Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-02-05
1000 Worshipers
Hear Bishop Hunt al
Annual Red Mass
D. JAMES WALDO rAwcrTr

weary z,UOO members OF Cougrese
Judges. lawyers, teachers and othe
worshipers, attending the annual Re,
Mass at the National Shrine OF til,
Immaculate Conception at Catholi
University yesterday, heard the Mos
Rev. Duane G. Hunt, Bishop Of Sal
Lake City, assert the spiritual right
OF man against the claims o
rampant nationalism,
The congregation filled all fo1,
portions of the crypt. Vice Prest
dent Truman sat in the front row
racing the altar. The Postmaster
General and Mrs. Walker, Suprem.
Court Justices Murphy and Douglas
Solicitor General Fahy, Senate,
Mead Of New York, United state.
Attorney Edward M. Curran, Chic
Justice George F. Barse Of thu
Municipal Court and many othe,
dignitaries and officials likewise were
present.
Music for the mass was furnished
by the Seminarians' Choir. The cele.
brant was the Rev. DR.. Jerome D
Hannah, associate professor Of canor
law. He was assisted by the Rev
john F. Maher, o. s. A., and the
Rev. Ralph v. Sjuhler, o. s. A. The
Rev. DR.. William j. Lallou, associate
professor OF liturgy, and the Rev
Walter j. Schmitz, s. S., professor
OF htury, were respectively master Of
ceremonies and aide. Vincent l.
Toomey was general chairman In
charge Of arrangements, and DR.
Brendan F.. Brown, acting dean
marshaled the law school faculty
and guests.
Authority From Above.
One conception of human rights,
Bishop Hunt declared at the start
OF his sermon, "exalts the authority
OF God; the other, the authority of
the state. There is no logical stop
ping place between these two ex-
tren1es. Either you are climbing UP
toward the one or you are being
pulled down toward the other. Il.
But) it is to be noted that govern
rnent does not give authority to It
self. Authority comes to govern
men from above.
1T is indicated implicitly II, mans
social nature, through which 1t flows
from Almighty God. - It follows.
as matter Of course, that government
is not absolute. It Is bound, no less
than the individual man, to submit
to the divine and objective code of
morals. Both man and govern.
ment are expected to give glory to
Almighty God, the one by honorably
exercising his rights and the other
by securely protecting those rights.
This is the Christian concept of tus-
tice and of the relationship between
man and civil government. This
scheme Of things has found one Of
its expressions in the United States
Of America"
Both the Declaration of Independ-
ence and the Constitution, Bishop
Hunt insisted, were "religiously In
spired" as distinct from nationalism
which may take the form of en-
peror worship or hero worship, may
stress social utility" or racial SUI
premacy" and nSay be called NaM-
ism or aesthetic Communism or
merely totalitarianism."
Nationalism, the Bishop contin-
ued, stems from "the notion that
civil government Is above law 49,
The record OF nationalisrn Is It's own
condemnation. AS the means Of at
tanning some desired end, the gov
ernments of modern nations have
not hesitated to commit every kind
Of crime If a government has
no respect for the rights of its own
citizens, it certainly feels none for
the rights Of other nations.
Civilization at Low Point.
1T plots wars to acquire territory
and power = And in the prosecu-
ton OF such wars, again, no human
right Is respected. It would seem
that in the present-day massacre of
civilians and the murder of helpless
prisoners and hostages, civilization
has sunk to an all-time low. Against
this monstrous thing, free men
throughout the world have risen in
righteous protest"
But Bishop Hunt warned that:
Here at home, in our own speculat-
Ing about human rights and govern
ment, we have begun to drift In the
same evil direction" which Germany
chose under the influence Of the
anti Christian philosophers Of the
18th century fncludinr Nietszrhs
and Karl Marx.
THE major premise of totali-
tarianism Is now being widely
taught to the youth of our coun-
try" he added. "The doctrines con-
tanned in the Declaration of indie
pendence are regarded as old
fashioned To replace it, the
theory Of the social origin of human
rights has been devised. And this
puts the state in the place Of God
as the source of human rights and
of law, and this is the major premise
Of totalitarianism."
At the close of his sermon, the
bishop pledged to honorable judges,
lawyers and legislators the prayers
of the church Ito serve well and
faithfully the cause Of justice"
After the mass, the Right Rev.
Patrick Mccormick, rector of the
university, and the Right Rev. Ed
ward B. Jordan, vice rector, re-
ceived the distinguished guests at
Curley Hall.