Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception - Annual Yearbook (Brooklyn, NY)

Page 45 text:

1. W ,s i g 9' 4'!l

Page 44 text:

CATHEDRAL COLLE G IN CHURCH The nave was dark And one poor light With pale red ray Was swallowed up ln all the gloom. Without, a lark In helpless might And spirit gay Addressed the dawn Prom distant fields. None heard it here Where in the glow So He might see A penitent Left two last gifts. A bitter tear Presaging woe, A thomy tree, Symbolic of His fruitless life. IOHN O'CONNOR, '37, SPRING COMES tSonnetl Horace, Odes I, 4 v. I-10 The winter fierce now giveth way to spring, A Welcome change-its new clear Western breeze, The tackles launch dry keels upon the seas, While to the herd the stalls no pleasure bring. And ploughmen now no more to firesides cling, Nor does the Winter's snow make White the leas. With moon above, high now amid the trees, The dances Venus leads, the earth does ring. As cornely Graces, Nymphs glide hand in hand- Their tripping feet and woodland floor all tread, While glowing Vulcan greets his Cyclop band. 'Tis fitting now to gird the glist'ning head With myrtle Wreath or blossoms fresh once more, Brought forth in soil set free from cold and hoar. IOSEPH P. DAVID, '37, 38

Page 46 text:

OOCATHEDRAL COLLEGE Resume of the Church Persecuted Through The Ages ECAUSE you are not ot the world . . . therefore the world hateth you. From the dawn of her creation the Church has felt the sting and the scourge, the bite and the torment of fierce, relentless, and wholly undeserved attacks. Against them all she remained steadfast and unyielding, always en- during the selfish and blind assaults of egotistical dictators and misguided people. Instead of being swept away in the maelstrom of blinded prejudice, the Church has ever arisen victorious, firm, and with greater strength. Perse- cutions form an almost unbroken chain since the days when Our Lord be- stowed His benediction in person. The way of persceutions was paved by the death on the Cross. The Iews, not at all satisfied with the terrible injustice that they had perpetrated, soon began a bitter attack upon all Christians. The notorious Herod Agrippa gave the unlicensed assault official sanction. This action seemed to be a mere fore- runner of the diabolical Roman Persecutions. The ten Roman persecutions as listed by Saint Augustine, which lasted for some three centuries , are the worst that are found in the annals of the world's history. The number of Christians who signed the document of Faith with their blood is appalling. lt has been estimated by some that about eleven million followers of Christ passed the great test gloriously. Of the ten the first, the seventh and the tenth were the rnost savage, the most gory, and the cruelest. The tale of the first persecution which was instigated by the infamous Nero, who is supposed to have satiated his morbid sense of pleasure by placing the brand to one of the worst of all conflagrations, needs no retelling. The Christians were elected to pay for the devilishness of the Emperor. Hunger- rnaddened dogs tasted of human flesh, the thirsty Tiber drank in innocent vic- tirns, and the nights were lighted by a new type of firebrand-human torchesl After the death of Nero there was a respite until the thankfully short reign of Domitian, who dared to designate himself Dominus et Deus. All who had the courage to oppose him paid the penalty of death. The third persecution, although it lacked the violence of the two previous one, was of greater dura- tion and was given impetus by Trajan, who, with the exception of his treat- ment of the Christians, is cited as an excellent and clement ruler. By this time it would seem that the emperors could see the utter useless- ness of sacrificing so many innocent lives. But no, they refused to follow the dictates of justice and continued on in their mad attempts to rid the Empire of Christians. The charges launched against Christians were for the most part groundless. Catholic purity rankled the pagan officials to no end. These were intensely annoyed when they were fearlessly charged with sensuality and bribery by the Faithful. Priests and soothsayers greatly alarmed for the status of their positions with the growth of Christianity, added their prestige to all campaigns against Christians. Calumny and downright falsehoods were re- sorted to without any qualms whatsoever. So it is not altogether surprising that such a sagacious personage as Marcus Aurelius would stoop to persecution. 40