What was in the news on Dec. 3, 1965?

The pope to join historic unity service, theologian calls the council a breakthrough, and warnings that birth control rules are still in place

By Brandon A. Evans

This week, we continue to examine what was going on in the Church and the world 50 years ago as seen through the pages of The Criterion.

Here are some of the items found in the Dec. 3, 1965, issue of The Criterion:
 

• Pope, observers will join in historic unity service
  • “VATICAN CITY—Pope Paul VI announced during the November 30th meeting of the Vatican Council that on December 4 he will take part in an historic unity service with non-Catholic Christian council observers. The event, which will take place at the basilica of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls, will mark the first time since the Reformation that a pope has joined non-Catholic Christians to pray for unity in a major Roman basilica. At the same council session, the 165th general meeting, the proposal to completely reorganize the Church’s top office for missionary activity was rejected, but the modification approved by the council Fathers still establishes a new body to handle specific problems submitted to it by the pope.”
• Father Hans Kueng: Sees council scoring a major breakthrough
  • “ROME—No ecumenical council in the history of the Church has accomplished a breakthrough into a new era as far-reaching as the one achieved by the Second Vatican Council. This opinion was voiced in an interview by Father Hans Kueng, Swiss-born dean of the theology faculty of Germany’s Tuebingen University and a council expert. ‘The breakthrough is evident,’ Father Kueng said, ‘not only in the relations of the Church with Protestants, Orthodox, the Jewish people and other major religions, but also in respect to the modern world, to the whole of contemporary society. Formerly, we maintained a defensive attitude and engaged mainly in polemics aimed exclusively at asserting our own point of view. Now we are prepared to search our own conscience and to admit the mistakes we made. We are willing to develop an understanding for the views of those who differ with us.’ ”
• Birth control laws are still applicable
  • “VATICAN CITY—‘Although theological teaching on birth control is still in doubt on a theoretical level, in practice Catholics are bound to follow the Church’s present legislation unless the pope decides to change it.’ This opinion on the birth control controversy’s present status was agreed on by three theologians and a Church historian who is also a member of Pope Paul VI’s special commission on the subject. … Father John L. King, O.M.I., superior of the Oblate Fathers’ Rome house of studies, said the current questioning of the Church’s traditional view ‘has not a sufficiently intrinsic value or sufficiently wide acceptance among theologians to date to constitute a practical doubt.’ This means, he continued, ‘that thus far, after years of questioning, we have not yet arrived at the point where the doctrine of the Church on contraception can be considered theologically doubtful. The Church must therefore propose according to its present lights, a norm for all Catholics to follow. This does not mean, however, that the Church has closed the subject to further discussion.’ ”
• Open drive for tuition in arrears
• Unity move miffs Greek Primate
• Summary of decree on the lay apostolate
• ‘Behind scenes’ work marks council action
• Married man, 33, seeks diaconate
• Legion of Decency Pledge
• Second round slated in Criterion Quiz
• Film on liturgy now in preparation
• Topic announced for Catholic Hour
• Stability of dogma stressed by pontiff
• Name body for revision of Vulgate
• Catholics, Orthodox discuss ‘Great Schism’
• New Huntingburg hospital planned
• Population study grant from Ford tops $14 million
• Aid UN group, Pope Paul urges
• Traditionalist pledges obedience to pope, council

(Read all of these stories from our Dec. 3, 1965, issue by logging on to our special archives.) †