St Peters Academy - Veritas Yearbook (Saratoga Springs, NY)

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These two poems were accepted by the National High School Poetry Association for publication in their Annual Anthology. FRIENDSHIP Develop a friendship 'not to receive but to give. Grow With a friendship and make it forever to live. Sever no friendship by act or word of tongue. Nourish a friendship as a mother does het young. Protect a friendship from lethal slings. Understand a friendship in spite of all things. But take heed; Never let a friendship With man be Greater than that with God Almighty. CATH ERIN E USCAVITCH w ODE TO A CAR The old brown car with its rickety wheels, The old brown car with its squeaks and squeals, Was better by far than the black sleek and slim, For our long standing trust we placed in Him. For ten long years he earned our trust, Up long hills he'd make it, 'he must. He covered the country-side with pop at the wheel, And always he kept on a slow, even keel. But our new black car, trust We must; For after the years, the old one did bust, And up to heaven it's gone I know, Or wherever tired old cars finally go. MARYPAT ARMSTRONG

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THEE; EHDMGJIFDIIR$JIDJESA1K8 :91 Message for CGoday The Sermon on the Mount was delivered by Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to the fisher- men and townspeople who gathered on the green slopes overlooking the Sea of Galilee almost two thousand years ago. Nevertheless the teachings of Christ at that time have direct bearing on the lives- of His followers here in the twentieth century. I will try to summarize briefly the application of these doctrines to our every-day deeds and words. First come the Beatitudes which are in fact formulas for saving our souls. Then, out Faith is likened to a light which must shine forth for all people in order that they may give glory to God. In other words, we Catholics have the precious gift of Truth e we should share it With others. The evil of divorce is widespread in this day and age. Christ openly proclaims that divorce is contrary to the laws of God. As for the laws of the State, He tells us that to be a good Catholic is to make a line citizen. Revenge is an ugly thing. His voice down the centuries cautions us to turn the other cheek. Pagan materialism is rampant in our society, personified in the scourge of Communism. We are reminded that God watches over the lilies of the field and the birds of the air even though they do not work. Here is a welcome assurance that those who are doing the will of God in the first or the twentieth century need not worry that God will provide for their needs. Many people today are inclined to scof? at the eHicacy of prayers of petition; from the lips of God Himself we hear Ask and you shall receive. Perhaps the greatest need today is for an active spirit of charity - not the donations for the poor and helpless so much as a down-to-earth love of one's neighbor. The words Do unto others as you would have them do unto you are the keynoteof the whole sermon. We were made to love and serve God, and to love our neighbor as ourself. These words tell us quite plainly how we can fulfill this second condition, The Sermon on the Mount deserves a prominent place in the literature of our civilization. The language itself is clear and meaningful; simple enough for the unlearned yet so profound that its analysis reveals many applications. However the most important reason why the world should cherish these words is because they have been an integral part of the Christian doctrines which have actually changed the course of the world's history. In fact, the message they bring - believed in and acted upon - might yet make the Twentieth century truly Christian. We are faced with the formidable heights of Communism. The world is sinking lower into hatred and despair. The Set- mon on the Mount can help us find the strength of faith that will remove these challenging mountains. JEAN DOHERTY

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The following essay was awarded first prize in the Saratoga Springs Division of the National Fjssay Fontest xpmmnwn' by the B. P. O. E. WHOM JIDJIEoMDBJIRAGBGM WDJRJK$ Democracy, as defined in the dictionary, is a government where the final power is in the hands of the people governed. Democracy works, and will continue to work, as long as this policy is adhered to, as long as this power rests in the hands of the people and as long as it stresses the in- dividual liberties of the people. i The people, in a democracy, have all the inalienable rights and privileges handed down to them from God. They have these rights only because they fought and died to preserve them. Democ- 'racy is a lot of things e- not all of them are laws. It means that the people are free to worship as they please, to obtain an education, to speak on matters of state and to undertake innumerable ventures. All these things are found in a democracy, only because the people put them there. If these rights were not protected by the people, there would be no democracy! This cannot be stressed enough. The people make the democracy work. From the time a child is born in a democratic country, he is imbued with thetprinciples of dem- ocracy. Later, upon becoming an integral part of democracy, he will have the right to vote, to elect representatives, to join unions, to go to church, to stand on a soapbox and fight for a law or fight to prevent its passage. Democracy works! It works because the people and the government are as one. The people make the laws; the government enforces them. llThe people is one of the reasons why democracy works. Democracy works, moreover, because it stresses personal and individual liberties. It is a lot of little things ,- freedom to walk down Main Street with head high, freedom to travel, freedom to form working unions or social clubs, and all little things that are typically uMain Street, U.S.A. Most of the rights and freedoms in a democracy are safeguarded by laws, but not all. Some are just democratic principles. All these freedoms are individual rights guaranteed in a democratic govern- ment. Because of these rights, held so dear in the peoples, hearts, democracy is a workable, living form of government. The examples I have given are the reasons for the .workability of democracy. Without the people to make the laws, there would be no democracy; without personal liberties, the government would be a feared and hated administering body of men. Democracy works hand in hand with the people; the people and democracy, the people are d emocracy and that is why democracy works? BARBARA LYN ETT.