Catholic Information From Abroad

VATICAN CITY
Immediately after the Pope's radio message on the food question, the president of U.N.R.R.A., Fiorella La Guardia, telegraphed to His Holiness expressing his personal thanks, and the gratitude of many millions of people throughout the whole world. The Holy Father acknowledged the message in a telegram sent by the Acting Secretary of State, and expressed his best wishes to Mr. La Guardia for the success of his noble effort to aid suffering humanity.
The Pope sent a personally signed letter of congratulation to Cardinal Francis Marchetti-Selvaggiani, Bishop of Frascati, Secretary of the Sacred Congregation of the Holy Office, and the Holy Father's Vicar-General for the City of Rome, on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the ordination to the priesthood of this distinguished prelate.
Cardinal Granito Pignatelli di Belmonte, doyen of the Sacred College, last week celebrated his 95th birthday by attending a meeting of the Sacred Congregation of Rites, at which the Pope was present. At the conclusion of the meeting the Cardinal was congratulated by the Pope.
The Pope received on Friday last, Mr. Walter Lippmen, the famous American journalist, whose column is syndicated in papers throughout the States.
" Holy Sec " beat " Vatican
City " in the first football match ever played in the Vatican. The Pope's Swiss Guards have cultivated football with zest for quite a time but yesterday, for the first time, a match was played on the camps of the Knights of Columbus between a team of the personnel of the Holy Sec and personnel of the temporal administration of Vatican City.
ARGENTINE When Cardinal Camden*, who was in is Rome at the dna of the Con
sistory, took possession of his titular church last week, he addressed Argentine diplomats and members of the Argentine colony in Rome, and said: " It is necessary that the Argentine comes to the help of those people threatened with famine as the Pope has said in his recent discourse."
AUSTRIA
Cardinal Innitzer, Archbishop of Vienna, Chancellor Figl, and the Head of the American Aid scheme were at the railway station on Friday last when the first trainload of food and clothing, collected by Catholic organisations in America, arrived. The goods were handed over to the Caritas Association for distribution in Vienna and Lower Austria, Similar consignments arrived on the same day in Linz, Graz, Innsbruck and Klagenfurt.
BELGIUM
The Belgian Bishops met last week in Malines, when Cardinal von Rocy, Archbishop of Malines, reported on his recent journey to the Vatican. The Cardinal announced that the Pope had conferred upon Mgr. Kerkofs, Bishop of Liege, and Mgr. Coppieters, Bishop of Ghent, the dignity of " Assistant to the Pontifical Throne "; and presented Mgr. van Wayenbergh, Rector Magnificus of Louvain University, with the insignia of an Apostolic Protonotary.
FRANCE Last week the Holy Father was present at a meeting of the Congregation of Rites, in the course of which were discussed the miracles of Blessed Catherine Labours, of the Sisters of Charity, who died in Paris in 1876.
At the recent gathering of Cardinals, Archbishops and Bishops of France, a number of appointments in French Catholic Action were made. Fr. Revol, SJ., has been named national Chaplain to the J.I.C.; Canon De Witte national Chaplain to the J.C.C.; and henceforth the J.O.C.F. will have its own national Chaplain in view of its great expansion and he is to be Canon Guerin. GERMANY It was announced from Baden-Baden recently that all professors of Catholic theology are admitted to teach at universities in the French zone as they are not considered politically unreliable.
Young German Catholics have invited a British delegation to come to Germany to learn about German Catholic youth activities, it was announced by the Catholic Youth Central Office in Altenberg.
ITALY The Provincial Congress of the Christian Democratic Party has pronounced in favour of a Republic. Votes in favour of a Republic numbered 9,110; 1,807 voted for the Monarchy.
LEBANON There has been an exchange of notes between the Republic of Lebanon and the Holy See. The Beirut Government through its Minister for Foreign Affairs, His Excellency Hamid Frangich, requested recognition of the Lebanon Republic, and the establishment of normal diplomatic relations. The Holy See agrees in a note sent by Mgr. Tardine and will nominate a diplomatic representative in due course. This is the first Arab State to request and obtain the recognition of the Holy See, NETHERLANDS
With the help of the Bishop, a Catholic Society for Spiritual Revival has been founded, which aims to assist the spiritual revival in Germany, in cooperation with similar societies in' France, Switzerland, Belgium and Britain. The chairman of the new society is Professor Schmutzer, of Utrecht.
POLAND
The Primate of Poland, Cardinal August Blond, has been nominated Archbishop and Metropolitan of War
saw, retaining his Primatial See in Gniezno. This is a reversion to the pre-partition period when the Primates were also Metropolitans of Warsaw. Bishop Symek has been nominated Archbishop of the Gniezno diocese. Ceremonies will take place on Easter Monday and the Primate will take up his post on the following day.
After Cardinal Sapieha's visit to Rome the vacant episcopal Sees in Poland were expected to be filled. The first nomination is in Lublin, where Mgr. St. Wyszynski succeeds the late Bishop Fulman. The new Bishop comes from Wloclawek, where he was rector of the seminary. it is expected that Mgr. J. Stepa, a former professor of the Theological Faculty of Lvov University, will be nominated Bishop of Tarnow.
SWEDEN A notable improvement in the position of the Catholic Church in Sweden was recently commented on by Radio Vatican, which said that in Sweden, although one of the most Protestant countries in Europe, attacks on the Church are rare. It added that " wellknown scientists, writers, and Protestant ministers are to be found studying Catholicism and expressing their appreciation of the Church, and in this way are influencing great numbers towards the true Faith." The report said that the Papal motion picture, " Pastor Angelicus," had extraordinary success in Sweden. Recent statistics placed the population of Sweden at nearly 6,500,000 and the Catholic population at slightly more than 4,000.
TIBET Buddhist monks on January 25 last occupied the only Catholic mission in Tibet and forcibly expelled the resident Catholic priest, according to Vatican radio. The expelled Canon, who came originally from the monastery on the great St. Bernard Pass in the Alps, managed to reach the Chinese province of Yunnan.