Aadel Collection
Iran’s persecution of the Bahais
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ST. PETERSBURG TIMES CrN55roNd5 MAGAZINE OF REu:i:: SEPTEMBER 10, 1983
Tampa Mayor Bob
Martinez asks
clergy to ‘provide .
the care' that .
nv rnrn nt ..
8 4. ...r.bo ,gTln *..
A majority of
Americans favor an
amendment that .
would permit
voluntary group
prayer in public
schools page 9
After a year on the .• .. ‘Ret red police
job, Archbishop ‘.‘ officer, now living
Joseph L . Bernardln in Port Richey, says
brings calm to . .. . . the rough job
the Chicago . . created a need for
archdiocese, page 6 ‘Cops for
Christ,' page 8
Iran's persecutic'r f 'thE”Bhá.is”
American Bahais hope for the weight
of world opinion to end the violence
Her flight from religious
oppression began early
Schole Raouf i,31, lea native of Iran, cultural an-
thropologist and linguist who came to the United
States several years ago from Weet Germany and is
currently seeking permanent resident status as a po-
litical-religloue refugee. Her situtation is unique,
however, because her family's flight from religious
persecution in Iran began when ehe was only 2 years
old.
She said her father, a civil engineer whose company
built bridges, roads and airports for the government of
the late Shah Rem Pahlavi for two decades, moved his
family to Germany in 1954 during a wave of Bshai
persecutions fomented by an influential Muslim mul-
lab (priest). The mullsh's preaching against the Bshais
inspired mobs to plunder and loot Bahsi homes, busi-
nesses and institutions. A number of Babsis were
murdered, and the Bahai National Center in Tehran
was taken over and vandalized by police, army and
clergy.
The persecutions subsided after the shah, sensitive
to world opinion and threats of economic sanctions,
responded to a United Nations appeal and ordered the
restoration of Bahai properties and civil rights.
BELIEVING THAT the respite was only tem-
porary, Miss Raoufi's father kept his wife and four
daughters in Germany. The family home in T 2 hrgn
was retained, however, and Raoufi continued his
business operations there. During “safe periods,” the
family traveled frequently to Iran'to visit friends and
relatives.
Then, in 1978, Miss Raoufi said, her father was
forced to leave Iran permanently when the Islamic
revolution resulted in the installation of the Ayatollah
Khomeini regime. He and one of Miss Raoufi's sisters
escaped from the country with only one suitcase each.
Since then, all of the family's properties and business
assets have been confiscated by the Iranian govern-
ment, and their former home has been taken over by
the gardener, maid and chauffeur who once served
them, she said.
The tenuous status of aliens in Germany led Miss
Raoufi to come to the United States to complete her
education. She earned her BA. degree in cultural an-
thropology and comparative religion from the
University of California at Santa Cruz, where she also
taught in the Department of Religious Studies and
introduced the Bahai Faith as an accredited subject.
She is continuing her studies as a candidate for a
doctoral degree in cultural anthropology, working on
a dissertation based on her research into the cultural
adaptation of foreign workers living in Germany and
the impact of their marginal, status on their children.
MISS RAOUFI came to St. Petersburg two
years ago to enroll the youngest of her three sisters in
St. Petersburg Junior College. Granted a temporary
working permit, she has been teaching German at the
University of South Florida, acting as an interpreter
and selling real estate while awaiting a decision from
immigration authorities about the status of her ap-
plication for permanent asylum.
In the meantime, she has succeeded in helping her
parents emigrate to Canada. Her two other sisters now
reside in Spain and Greece.
ByJEANNE PUGH
5t. P.t.rIbarp Times staff Writ.,
Schole Raoufi of St. Petersburg does not like to speak too
openly about her relatives in Iran because calling attention
to them could put them in prison, or worse, put them in
danger of execution, she says.
They hsvs already been subjected to harassment and
denial of civil rights. So far, only one — a dentist married to
Miss Rsoufi's cousin—is feared dead. He was arrested by
revolutionary guards on Aug. 21, 1980, and has not been
heard from since.
His crime? He was a member of an auxiliary board of the
Bahai National Spiritual
Assembly in Tehran. As a
prominent Bahai, he was a
vulnerable target in the cur-
rent wave of persecutions
that has resulted in the dis.
enfranchisement of thou-
sands of Iranians and the
deaths of hundreds in the
past 3½ years.
The Bshai Faith was
founded in Iran in 1844 and
now claims more than
300,000 followers in that
country and 3.5-million ad-
herents around the world. It
has won the respect of many
who admire its tenets of hu-
man equality, racial and re-
ligious tolerance and the
essential unity of humanity.
BUT, SINCE the faith'a beginning,Bahais have been
under continual attack in the land of its origin where leaders
of the Shuts Muslim majority have branded it heretical to
Islam. The intensity of the persecution in Iran has waxed and
waned during the past 139 years, depending upon the degree
of political power held by the Muslim mullahs (clergy).
Persecutions have escalated rapidly since the Islamic
revolution of 1978 and the installation of the Ayatollah
Khomeini as arbiter of the nation?s politicAl and religious life.
Documentation supplied by Bahai leaders records a tragic
litany of injustices:
I' Since the fall of 1978, 151 Bahais have been killed —
some were stoned, beaten or burned to death by mobs during
the early days of the revolution, but most have been executed
by government authorities-They have included nearly all the
prominent leaders of the Bahai community and their fami-
lies.
‘ Sixteen other Bahai leaders have disappeared after
arrest or abduction from their homes or businesses, and most
of them are presumed to be dead. -
1' More than 250 Bahais-have been imprisoned for in-
definite terms, either without formal charges against them or
on charges that Bahsi sources say are “trumped up.”
I' Thousands of Bahais have lost their jobs — some ass
result of Khomeini's edict forbidding the employment of
Bahais by government agencies, and some because of gov-
ernment hyrsssment of private businesses employing Bahais.
Scores of Bahai businessmen and professionals have been
deprived of their livelihoods by denial of trade and profes-
sional licenses.
i ' Thousands have been driven from their homes by
mobs incited by Muslim clergy and government agents or
have seen their homes demolished or burned.
V All of the major Bahai holy places, including the
House of the Dab (founder of the faith), have been demol-
ished. Bahsi cemeteries have been desecrated and, in some
cases, paved over as roadways.
V Bahal children and young adults have been dismissed
from public schools and colleges, and Bahai-run schools and
hospitals have been closed or confiscated by the government.
V Bahai bank accounts and assete have been frozen or
confiscated. Bahai Larmers have lost their livestock, which
has been stolen, killed or sold at public auction. Their crops
have been burned.
V Balsais trying to escape the country have been denied
visas, And those with valid passports have been turned back
at the airports and borders. Iranian consuls around the world
have been instructed to revoke the passports of Bahais out-
side the country and issue only travel documents permitting
them to return to Iran — to face certain further harassment
tooL:
and persecution.
AMNESTY International, an independent watchdog
agency that monitors human righte violations around the
world, has “documented proof from many sources” that these
atrocities are taking place, accordj,ng'to Betsy Ross, a
spokesperson in the agency's New York office, She said this
week that Amnesty has put the Iran government at the top of
its list of violators of human rights and “we don't publish
anything until we have confirmation from a number of
independent sources.”
She added, “There is no evidence that any of the Bahais
executed since 1979 have been guilty of espionage — the
- reason (for their deaths) is
their faith,” she said.
________________________ The Islamic government
initially claimed that its
actions against the Bshais
were the result of evidence
that members of the group
were traitors or spies — ei-
ther agents of Zionism or of
“American imperialism” —
and had nothing to do with
religious persecution.
But, in recent months, no
such pretense has been used.
Bahais are told openly that,
if they denounce their faith
and convert to Islam, all will
be forgiven. In some cases,
Bahais have been offered
more wealth than they have
lost if they, agree to become Muslims.
Miss Raoufi, a third generation Bshai, said that such
invitations are rarely accepted. Just this past June, 17 Bahais
— including 10 women and teen-age girls — were hanged
publicly in the city of Shiraz after refusing four times to sign
statements of recantation.
Since then, 63 more Bahais, including 10 more women.
have been arrested, and many of these will probably share a
similar fate, Miss Raoufi said.
The pace of persecutions continues despite a rising tide
of protest from governments and international agencies
throughout the world.
AMONG THOSE that have issued statements con-
demning the Iranian action and pleading for a cessation of
the persecution are: both houses of the U.S. Congress, the
U.N. Commission on Human Rights, the European Council
of Nations, Amnesty International, the U.S. National Council
of Churches, the World Council of Churches, and the gov-
ernments of Canada, Great Britain, West Germany, Austra-
lia, Switzerland and Luxembourg.
Last month, 89 professors of Iranian and Islamic studies
at colleges and universities throughout the United States —
including Christians, Jews, Muslims and Bahaia — signed an
open letter to the Iranian government, calling the per-
secutions “a contradiction of all that is best in the traditions
of Islam and the Iranian people.”
In addition, religious leaders of all faiths and political
leaders from throughout the world have appealed in-
dividually, in ‘private and in public, to the Ayatollah
Khomeini and other Iranian leaders to stop the carnage.
President Reagan issued his strongest public appeal on
May 22, asking specifically that 22 Bahais then under sen-
tence of death-be spared. The June executions were carried
out despite his plea.
MEAN WHILE, Iranian newspapers continue to print
justifications for the atrocities, including statements by
judges of the revolutionary courts intimating that even
harsher measures may be in store for Bahais who cling to
their beliefs.
The president of the Revolutionary Court of Shiraz.
‘quoted ins Shiraz newspaper, declared: “Before it is too late,
the Bahaia should recant Bshsism, which is condemned by
reason and logic. Otherwise, the day will soon come when the
Islamic nation will deal with the Bshais in accordance with
its religious obligations, asit baa dealt with other hypocrites
who have appeared in more dangerous garb and have ref i-
- gioua and satanic gatherings.”
See BAHAIS. page 10
Schole
Raoufi was
only two
years old
when her
family left
Iran.
Religious leaders of all faiths and
political leaders from throughout
the world have appealed
individually.,in private and in public,
to the Ayatollah Khomeini and other
Iranian leaders to stop the carnage.
S' St. Potsrsburg Times Saturday. Saptsmber 10. issa
Toleranceof.Bahai Faith seen.:
as threat to Iranian Moslems
Q YJEANNE PUGH
St. P•tsrsborg Tim .. Staff Writer
The Balsai Faith would seem, at first glance, to be the
least likely religion, to become the subject of persecution. Ita
beliefs are among the most non-violent, tolerant and unob-
trusive of all the world religions.
But Schole Reoufi, an Iranian by birth and a third.
generation Bshai, explains thst the faith is viewed as dan-
gerous by Iranian Moslems for two main reasons:
‘ It threatens to undermine the authority of the
powerful Shiite Moslem mullahs (clergy);
5- And it represents a kind of progress, both social and
spiritual, that many Iranian people are not yet ready to ac-
cept.
Miss Raoufi explains that the Babel Faith. founded in
iran in 1844, has no ecclesiastical hierarchy of ministers,
priests or mullahs. Its affairs are administered by Spiritual
Assemblies (committees) elected democratically at local,
national and internatjonal levels. While some Baltais who are
experienced and Well-educated in the faith are recognized as
teachers, no Balsa) is accorded any special privilege or power
within the community and those few serving fuiltime
administrative positions.receive compensation only for their
expenses.
TIlE BAHAIS also believe in universal education, the
full equality of men and women, the oneness of God, the va-
lidity of all the major religions and the equality of the races.
All of these beliefs run counter to the teachings of Shuts Is-
lain, the minority branch of the Moslem faith that is ‘pre-
dominant in Iran.
The Shuts 5 , moreso than many other branches of Islam,
vlsw women as chattel and all members of other faiths asia-
fidels. While acknowledging Judaism, Zoroastrianism and
Christianity as root religions that paved the way for the ap-
pearance of the Moslem prophet Muhammad in the 7th
Century A.D., the fundamen ist Shiites consider their re-,
ligion to be the final revelation from God.
As a result, the Jewish, Christian and Zoroastrian re-
ligions have been recognized in han as legitimate and per.
mitted to exist. But the Balsa) Faith, which claims its prophet
llslsaullsh was a modern successor to Mu ,hammad, is seen as
heresy. Its tenets of human equality and universal education
threaten the power of the mullahs who have for centuries
lived on the largess of their followers, acquiring considerpble
wealth and Influence.
“The mullahs do not wa ist eduêation because their chief
purpose is to interpret the Koran (the Moslem holy scrip
turee) to the people,” Miss Raoufi says.
MULLAH opposition to the Bahais emerged almost.
Symbol of spiritual progression
Bshsis believe that all prophets have been manifestat ions
of a continuing and progressive dialogue between God and
humanity. This concept is illustrated in'the Emblem of the
Greatest Name, or the Ringstone. Its three horizontal linea
‘depict the three planes of existencef The World of God the
Creator; The World of His Manifestations (The Prophets);
and The World of Mankind. The connecting, vertical line,
interse 3ting thethree, represents the Holy Spirit, which
links the three planes. Tao five-pointed stars represent the
twin “Messengers of God for This Age” —The Bab and
Bahsul laf s.
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a ssatorday 5s
The Bahais believe in universal
education, the full equality of men and
women, the oneness of God, the
validity of all the major religions and
the equality of the races. All of these
beliefs run counter to the teachings of
Shiite Islam, a branch of the Moslem
faith that is predominant in Iran.
immediately after the faith was first proclaimed by a 25-
year-old Iranian merchant, Mi Muhammad. Be announced
ozt May 22, 1844, that he had been chosen as the herald of
another prophet, or “world teacher,” to be Bent by God. Be
assumed the title of The Bab (“The Gate”) and rapidly at-
tracted thousands of followers among the Moslems who had
been taught—as have been.Jewo and Christians — that a
messiah would someday come to lead believers through a
millenium of peace and prosperity,
The Bab's teachings infuriated both civil and religious
leaders who initiated cruel persecutions that culminated in
the public execution of the Bab in 1850. But the Babis, as his
followers were called, continued to assemble and to study his
Writings. -
A litany of
persecution
V Since the fall of 1978, 151 Bahais have bean
killed, most through government execution of
prominent Bahai leaders and their families.
V Sixteen Bahal leaders have disappeared after
arrest or abduction and most of them are presumed
to be dead.
V More than 250 Bahais have been imprisoned
for indefinite terms.
V Thousands of Bshsia have lost their jobs
because of government edict or harassment.
V Thousands have been driven from their homes
which were demolished or burned.
V Major Bahsl holy P!scea. including the House of
the Bat,, have been demolished.
V Baha) cemeteries have been desecrated or
paved over as roadways.
V Bahal children end young edulta have been
dismissed from public schools and colleges, and
Bahsi-run schools and hospitals have been closed or
Confiscated by the government.
V. Bahai bank accounts and assets have been
frozen or confiscated. : .
V Bahais trging to escape the country have been
denied visas, and those with valid passports have
been Owned back at the airports and borders.
See FAITH. page 7
i iurIiI digE5t
1
- res V erians ifl ra I
want out of u.S group
The Presbyterian Church of Brazil has asked to be
released from its ties to the former Presbyterian
Church-U.S. after a 114-year association, Now
that the southern branch of Presbyterianism in
C0r Ias 1VedV Brazilian church, many of whose
founders were Confederetes who moved to Brazil
after the Civil War In order to preserve their
“southern lifestyle,” broke off relations with the
northernchurchln 1972 efterapollcydispute.
. .
wuoonies move into urugua.y
Rev. Sun Myung Moon. founder-lesder of the
Unification Church, Is “prsctically buying the
adds, “speculate that their country may become
the world center for Moon's church.” The church
currently maintains its headquarters In New York
City end Tarrytown, N.Y.
.
Baptists allocate flood aid
The Foreign Mission Board of the Southern
Baptist Convention has allocated more than
$634,000 to Its missionaries and medical teams
Countries that have
the United States has merged with the northern
country of Uruguay.” according to a newsletter
In seven South
branch to become the Presbyterian
Church. U.S.A., the Brazilian church “will keep
the door open” for future talks, said Rev,
Bosnerges Ribeiro, spokesman for the Brazilian
church. But it wishes to determine that the new
church is “older and more mature” before
reaching a new working agreement. The
published by the Florida Synod. Lutheran Church
of America. The newsletter reports that Moon.
whose followers are known as “Moonies” In the
United States, recently purchased Uruguay's
third largest bank, Its largest hotel, a daily
newspaper and a high-rise office building In :
downtown Montevideo, Uruguayan Journalists, It
suffered widespread devastation ass result of
floods and unusually heavy rains during the last
six months. The board reports that the floods
have killed 100 In Brazil and 1,000 in Peru and
left about 700.000 homeless in Brazil end
Argentina. Severe damage is also reported in
Paraguay, Ecuador, Bolivii and Uruguay.
• Faith frompage5
In 1852,a small group of Babi fanatics precipitated
more trouble by plotting to assassinate the shah in re.
prisal for the death of their leader, Discovery of the
plot by the authorities led to a major campaign to erase
the sect from the country, even though the main body
of believers had nothing to do with the assassination
plot. In the bloody battles that followed, an estimated
20,000 Babis were killed and hundreds were exiled.
Among the exiles was Husayn-Ali, the son of a
Persian nobleman, who went to Baghdad and, after 11
years of contemplation and study, announced that he
was the long-awaited prophet. He claimed the same
divine authority as the prophets who had preceded
him — Krishna, Moses, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus and
Muhammad. He adopted the name Bahsullah (“The
• Glory of God”), and his followers became known as
Bahais.
Bahaullah spent most of the rest of his life in
prison. He was banished from Baghdad to Con-
stantinople to Adrianople and, finally, to the Pales-
tinian prison city of Akica, where he was confined for
24 years. His long imprisonment, however, gave him
the opportunity to formulate and refine the concepts
and laws of the Bshai Faith. lIe wrote more than 100
volumes that have become the “bibles” of the Bahais.
His writings, believed by the Balcais as “God-
inspired” as the Koran or the ,iudeo.Christian Bible,
proclaim that all the prophet have been man-
ifestations of a continuing and progressive dialogue
between God and humanity.
THIS CONCEPT is illustrated in one of the few
religious symbols used in the Bahai Faith. Called the
Emblem of the Greatest Name, or the Ringstone, its
three horizontal lines depict the three planes of exist.
ence: The World of God the Creator; The World of His
Manifestations (The Prophets); and The World of
Mankind. The connecting, vertical line, Intersecting
the three, represents the Holy Spirit, which links the
three planes. Two five-pointed stars represent the twin
“Messengers of God for This Age” — The Dab and
Baha'u'llah.
Bahaullah taught that each of the prophets has
offered guidance for a particular time in history, but
that none of the faiths founded by those prophets
holds a monopoly on eternal truth, The ultimate truth,
he said, is being revealed gradually to humankind, Yet,
the message is always basically the same: That all
humanity is linked together and, therefore, human
beings should love one another and devise ways to live
in peace with each other and in communion with the
one true God.
The Bahai Faith prescribes a rigid code of moral
conduct. Parental consent is required before marriage,
and all marriages are monogamous. lfxtra.niarital sex
is condemned. The use of alcoholic beverages and “all
other drugs that affect the mind” is forbidden. Scru-
pulous honesty is demanded — a factor that'explains
• why the Bahsis in Iran continue to identify themselves
as believers despite enormous pressure to lie about
their religious convictions..
YETTHE BAHAIS do not force their beliefs
on others and are cautioned not to engage in prose.
lytization. The faith, they are taught, las “gift” from
God that should be shared but not imposed upon
unwilling listeners.
Bahaullah also taught his followers to work for the
According to the Bahai Faith,
all humanity is linked together
and, therefore, human beings
should love one another and
devise ways to live in peace with
each other and in communion
with the one true God.
establishment of a world government in which ex.
tremes of wealth and poverty would be abolished. But
he advised against participation in partisan politics,
and he urged his followers to be loyal subjects of the
government wherever they lived.
Finally, Bahaullah proclaimed that true religion
baa no quarrel with science or technology and that his
followers should take advantage of all progress in these
areas in order to build a better world.
Miss Raoufi believes that this last tenet has caused
many of the problems for the Bahais in Iran. The
mullahs, she said, have consistently resisted progress
and have indoctrinated most of their followers with the
belief that modern education and technical advances
are against God's will.
“But you cannot make the clock stop or go back-
ward,” said Miss ftaoufi. “The world is progressing
both technologically and spiritually. Yet the mullahs
are trying to block new ideas from coming into the
country and turn it back into what it was during the
days of Muhammad. Many of the people have gone
along with the mullahs because the shah (Reza Pah-
levi) tried to change things too quickly. A revolution of
some sort was inevitable.” -
She continued, “I believe cultural change and cul-
tural adaptability go hand in hand. They have to be in
balance if new values and new behaviors are to be ac-
cepted. During the shah's regime, modernization came
too fast and only a few of the people—those at the top
— benefited. The poor people — those who could not
read or write and still used donkeys to pull their carts
— couldn't understand it. They couldn't understand
why the shah forced women to take off the chador
(long gowns and veils).”
Hence, she explained, when the mullahs began to
foment rebellion, they found willing allies among the
poor who felt they had nothing to gain from the mod-
ernization of the country and had become hostile to
the rich and their new way of life.
THE REVOLUTION also heightened the Mus-
lim animosity toward the Bahais, who had easily
adapted to the changes because of the teachings of
Bahaullah.
“Most Iranians,” she said, “do not know that Bahal
is now a worldwide faith. They do not know of the
worldwide objections to their treatment of Bahais.”
She quoted from a recent issue of the London
Sunday Times: “The Bahais In Iran are even more
alone (now) than the Jews (were) in Nazi Germany.”
“But the misery in Iran is not isolated,” she said,
“It is affecting us in the United States directly. The
rest of the world looks to the western democracies to
respond to this sort of political lunacy. If Americans
only knew how precious their freedom is and how
easily freedom can be lost, perhaps they would do more
to help the Bahais in Iran. The Bshaie are a vital part
of the intsrnational community.”
Lt
ST. PAUL'S REFORMED EPISCOPAL CHURCH
4 545.10th An.. N., St. P. .,.b,,rg 321-loss
“N.h. of ,h. EngII,h R.feremtlon”
W m .hlp — 10,45 AM A 6,00 PM 3 .,... 7,30 PM
rNORTHEAST CHRISTIAN CHURCH
153. 53,dAve.No., ST. FCTERSNJRO Fred 5. S,hre b.r,MInf,tsr
S.S. 9,30 A.M. Wor., 10,30 AM. & 6P.M. 521.1278
FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF SEMINOLE
13272 Park Blvd. N. Dovid Meyer. M lnI,ter
S.S. 9,30 AM., Worthip 5,15 & 10,30 A.M. & 6 00 P.M.
FIRST CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF LARGO
1645 SemInole Blvd., North of 688
8,45 & 11 A.M. Moreing Worship 4
10,00 A.M. Bible Scheol
6,00 P.M. Eveelng service
Ministers, 5. C. Shonnen,
D. Stsecher, R, E. Comblin, R. Doles
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN CHURCH
OF ST. PETERSBURG
49th ST. S. at 2nd AVE.
9,45 AM. SUNDAY SCHOOL
4 .“ 8,306 1100A.M. WORSHIP
-. 6,00 P.M. EVENING WORSHIP
C Cord, Heu Wed. 7,00
M lnhter Mid-Week School of the Bible
ist nSci e
FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST
253-5th AVE. N., ST. PETERSBURG
SUNDAY SERVICE— 10,30A.M.
SUNDAY SCHOOL— i0,30A.M.
WEDNESDAY TESTIMONY MEETING —800 P.M.
READING ROOM —322 First Ave. No.
SECOND CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST
6099 CENTRALAVE., ST.PETERSBURG
SUNDAY SERVICE — 10,00 A.M.
SUNDAY SCHOOL— 10 00A.M.
WEDNESDAY TESTIMONY MEETING —- 8,00 P.M.
READiNG ROOM—6001 Central Ave.
THIRD CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST
6333. 1st ST. N.E., ST. PETERSBURG
SUNDAY SERVICE—i 1,00 A.M.
SUNDAY SCHOOL — 11,00 A,M.
WEDNESDAY TESTIMONY MEETING —7,00 P.M.
READING ROOM —2603 9th St. N.
FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST
6245 SEMiNOLE BLVD. (ALT. 19) SEMINOLE
SUNDAY SERVICE—i 0.30 A.M.
SUNDAY SCHOOL — 10,30 A.M.
WEDNESDAY TESTIMONY MEETING —7,30 P.M.
READING ROOM —6245 Seminole Blvd.
10,00 AM. to 2P.M. Mendey thru Frkhsylexo.pt holidoyt)
Evened Is welcome at our churches aid reading
rooms. Child cars provided for all ssrvlces.-
Es. Petersburg TIm s Eaturdey. September 10. 1883 7
•.•
we problems,
I it overall I'd
I be willing to
inded, and asked
.ese. -. norms.”
a chorus of criti-
saw this as the tip
gence toward de-
li ten in the church.
L's an indicator of
1 rrisome to some
I ngto others.,” said
ational Catholic
ekly published in
cray, Bernardin's
tone and hewent
titer girls” flap in
to address as a
I women included,
ainstresm of the
ntehd to address
I the framework of
: teaching.”
conflicts between
increasingly con'
it Bernardin with
n years to come.
•,
II AP
tI Bernardin
