FR. NEVETT GETS £7o FOR THE OUTCASTS

By Fr. Bernard Basset, S.J.
AGAIN many thanks to all who have written from Britain and especially to the anonymous donor who gave £25 for the Madras outcasts. Some £70 has now been sent to Jr. Nevett and he, in his turn, has given us the names of three little children who, through your kindness, have now been able to go to school. The latest donation will cover two more, Before I left England I received a promise from the editor that he would publish Fr. Nevett's facts. Maybe he has cleric so this week or will do so in the near future; anyone who reads the tragic details will feel moved to help these fellow Catholics. the ones whom St. Francis Xavier first evangelised.
The Council
The Council is now part of the daily scene. Bus loads of bishops arrive at St. Peter's soon after 8.30 a.m. with the traffic jammed for miles and every Italian motorist this side of Naples hooting his horn. At about 12.30 p.m. She Conciliar fathers move the other way,
One senses that the fathers inside St. Peter's are now more at home and less on their best behaviour; we hear that there is now a steady run on the Conciliar coffee bar. One sees bishops in pairs coming out into the piazza for an airing and then turning in again looking very much refreshed.
It was also good to learn that the old conciliar custom of applauding or showing disapproval continues despite frequent reminders from the chair. We heard that even cardinals who exceed their quota of minutes are liturgically gouged.
Departures
At the time of writing. the number of Conciliar fathers arriving in the morning still numbers about 2.300 but it is thought that this figure will soon fall. Quite a number of auxiliary bishops have left or arc leaving and any number of theologians and secretaries are off.
So the illustrious Fr. Erwin Jurashec returns to San Antonio, Texas, on Monday; those who came to Newark. New Jersey, for the Sodality World Conference three years ago will recall the colourful secretary with Our Lady's initials cut on the leather tabs of his Texan boots.
I last saw Fr. Jurashec in San Antonio and he took me to the grave of David Crockett, who is buried inside the Catholic cathedral. Needless to say David's cause has not been introduced.
In the Piazza
Pope Pius XII started the practice of appearing on the balcony each Sunday at midday to recite the Angelus with the crowd. The present Holy Father has continued the custom and crowds of Romans
make for St. Peter's as part of their Sunday morning church parade.
The Holy Father's voice is enormously amplified and I can hear him while 1 am working in my room. With a little bit of luck if the lift is going in the right direction, I can be in the Piazza for the Papal blessing and to join in the general cheering and jollity.
The Martyrs
Outside English circles one hears absolutely nothing of the English martyrs and their cause. There is always a certain amount of gossip and betting about canonisations but most of the candidates under discussion are Italian, and if one mentions the English martyrs people merely stare. At one time the rumour went the rounds that Dr. Ramsey had specifically asked Cardinal Bea to drop the subject in the cause of unity. This is now hotly denied. No doubt there are enthusiasts for the martyrs in high places but the rank and file of clergy, even of bishops from Asia, America, Africa and Europe know little of our hopes! In Rome saints are two-a-penny; there are shrines, corpses, sarcophagi, relics at every corner; canonisations are a frequent occurrence and martyrs are not news.
The Liturgy
Three days ago, soon after the end of the Council session, a small group of liturgists met in the Via della Conciliazioni. They were members of the Preparatory Cornmission, whose great labours over three years, sifting suggestions and hammering out proposals are now bearing fruit.
It is commonly agreed that the liturgical schema is one of the most scholarly and one could see that the experts were attached to every word. Secrecy prevents them from disclosing the trend of the discussions but their general air of contentment was encouraging. As they could all admit without breach of secrecy : "It is wonderful the progress that has been made in liturgical reform and development over ten years." Both an American and an Australian present paid respectful tribute to the work of Fr. Clifford Howell. Long may he prosper.