The Los Angeles Loyolan, Volume 62, Issue 7 - October 29, 1984

THE LOS ANGELES Volume 62 A rM ss ue 7 f Loyola Marymount University October 29, 1984 j Church vs. State Debate Continues By PATRICK O’HANNIGAN Loyolan News Writer ■ hat do you get when you combine increased political activity by the Roman Catholic Church with an up¬ surge of similar activity by “New Right” fundamentalists and a number of con¬ troversial statements on the relationship of politics to religion made recently by Mario Cuomo, Geraldine Ferraro, and Ronald Reagan? Among other things, you get a . legitimate reason to sponsor a forum on the relationship of religion to politics. So said Doctor Michael Genovese of the political science department in his in¬ troduction to just such a forum, held October 25th in Seaver 100, under the joint sponsorship of the political science department and Pi Gamma Mu. Genovese told an audience of about 100 that the question they were ponder¬ ing had also faced previous generations of Americans. He spoke of the Foun¬ ding Fathers’ intention to provide for religious freedom in this country, adding that belief is not the same as trying to ex¬ clude morality from politics. He finished his statement with a plea for tolerance on all sides of the church versus state debate. Genovese then step¬ ped down for Doctor Bill Fitzgerald, also of the political science department, who served as the discussion moderator. Fitzgerald stressed the value of an open forum where faculty and students bring their respective views and disciplines to bear on current questions. He went on to introduce the three-man panel: Father Thomas Buckley of the history department, Doctor Michael Downey of the theology department, and Father Thomas Rausch, also of the I sF M A ■£ к *4,- Father Rausch (left), Dr. Downey and Dr. Fitzgerald presented their views on the relationship of religion and politicsatT* special forum last Thursday* theology department. Each panelist delivered a fifteen-minute speech. Father Buckley, the first to speak, covered three main points: a brief over¬ view of the historical tension between religion and politics in America, a par¬ tial explanation of the reasons for the tension, and a description of current Catholic attitude toward the tension. Citing the military chaplaincy which is funded by the federal government, Buckley noted that “We accept separa¬ tion of church and state, yet we still want religion.” He felt that the supposed conflict bet¬ ween church and state is sometimes a smokescreen people use to avoid talking about “real” issues, such as foreign policy and the direction being taken by our economy. Buckley and his co¬ panelists all agreed that the Catholic Church is now more open to dialogue than it used to be. Doctor Michael Downey was next to take the podium, and he based his com¬ ments on the Vatican II document call (continued on page 9) Chaos in CA While Bums Бите' By KRIS GIANNINI Loyolan News Editor S itting in night classes or working late on projects, students in the Com¬ munication Arts Building last Tuesday were, to put it mildly, distracted. Classes were interrupted, first by disturbing fumes and smoke, then by security of¬ ficers evacuating the building. Once the building was emptied, Bremen from the three fire engines sum¬ moned to the scene went through look¬ ing for the smoke’s source. They emerg¬ ed mystified, until it was suggested that the fumes could have emanated from the ventilation system. A quick check prov¬ ed the theory to be correct; the smoke was coming from the Bums Fine Arts Building and wafting into the CA Building’s rooftop vents. Further investigation determined the culprit to be a smoking kiln of pottery, fully supervised and posing no threat. Rudy Fleck, of the art department, later . said it was strictly an experimental firing and “part of our research here.’’ Due to the experimental nature of the process, it is not going to be a regular oc¬ curence, but the traditional firing will be. “No one bothered us when we were on the other side of campus because file old building was upwind of everything else. Now we’re right in the middle of it all,” noted Fleck. “I don’t know what we’re going to do. This could turn into a boy-who- (continued on page 11) Loyolan Photo By Bob Sanregret One of the three fire engines summoned to LMU last Tuesday decorates A lum - hi Mall. Pagel