The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1951-10-05

each of which is approximately 100
pages, was supervised by the Army
Chief of Chapiains. Their 20 chap
ters originally we're delivered as
lectures at the Chaplain School,
now located at Fort Slocum, N. Y.
They will be used as source ma
terial for special discussion pro-
gram. chaplain lectures. and Chap
lians Hours" for recruits during
basic training, and will be avail
able to non-commissioned officers.
Purpose of service character
guidance and character building
programs. according to the pam
phlets' foreword, lis to instill into
all the men and women of our
Armed Forces, leaders and led
alike, sense of individual moral
responsibility"
ITO achieve this purpose, the
character development programs
stress directly and indirectly,
through every available means, the
moral principles that sustain the
philosophy of American freedom,
particularly as it is set forth in
the opening paragraph of the
Declaration of Independence" the
foreW0rd continues.
"That philosophy regards man as
creature of God. AS such, each
individual in the armed services is
accountable and responsible to his
Creator for the way he performs
his civic and his military duty, for
the maintenance of his own and
the Nations honor, and for the
quality of the service he renders
to his country as member Of the
honorable profession of arms"
The first of the pamphlets warns
that "if we exclude God from our
thinking, we are finished"
Contrasting u. S. standards of
morality with those of communism,
the second pamphlet says that
those of the u. S. are set forth
primarily in the Moral Law, which
demands that we love God above
everything and our neighbor as
ourselves"
Three types Of nations are classi-
fied-secular, such as France; de-
monic, like the Soviet Union; and
covenant, in which category the
u. S. is placed.
A secular nation Officially elm
mates God from all official con-
nection with its public life" ac-
cording to the pamphlet. Its su-
preme loyalty, as a nation, is not
to God but to some patriotic or
nationalistic idea"
"A demonic nation puts the gov
ernment or ruler in place of
God" it continues. "The word de
monic' comes from the demon,
which is another word for devil,
"A covenant nation is one
which recognizes its dependence
upon God and its responsibility
toward God. In covenant nation
public institutions and official
thinking reflect a faith in the ex-
istence and the importance of di.
vine providence"
1T is not difficult to demonstrate
that America officially recognizes
its dependence on God" the
pamphlet says. Every Thanksgiv.
ing Day, for example, the Presi
dent of the United States calls up
on the citizens of this country to
repair to their respective houses OF
worship in order to give thanks to
Almighty God for the blessings OF
the year just passed and to implore
Him for His protection and bene-
diction in the year to come.
"The sessions of our Congress
are opened with prayer. That gives
public recognition to God of kind
which you would not find in a sec.
ular nation or in a demonic nation
Our public officials take their
oaths of office, normally, by plac.
ing their right hand on Bible !. F..
Throughout our history we have
had this public acknowledgment
OF our interest in and responsible
ties toward God"
Elsewhere in the pamphlets a
tribute is paid to Charles Carroll
of Carrolltown. Catholic signer oil
the Declaration OF independence
and to religious missionaries in the
Dacsffn