The

Catholic Evidence

Guild

By

EDWARD J. HEFFRON

NATIONAL CATHOLIC WELFARE CONFERENCE

1312 MASSACHUSETTS AVENUE, N. W.

WASHINGTON, D. C.

Price: 25 cents



The National Council of Catholic Men

and

CATHOLIC EVIDENCE

T
HE Catholic Evidence Bureau of the National
Council of Catholic Men is a service bureau de-
voted to the interests of lay apologetics. It will

gladly furnish information, suggestions, and help
with respect to any form of lay evidence work to
any inquirer, or else to refer the request to the

proper center. The only charge is for publications
ordered—all of the service is free.
The National Council of Catholic Men is itself a

coordinate branch of the Lay Organizations Depart-

ment of the National Catholic Welfare Conference.

This department was founded by the bishops of the

United States to coordinate, unify and extend the

activities of the Catholic laity in works of common
Catholic interest to the end that the welfare, both of

the Catholic Church and our beloved country, might

be advanced locally, nationally, and throughout the

world. Every Catholic organization having the ap-

proval ©f its ordinary is eligible for membership.

For further details, write to: The National Council
of Catholic Men, 1312 Massachusetts Avenue, N. W.,

Washington, D. C.



The

CATHOLIC EVIDENCE

GUILD

Prepared and compiled by Edward J. Heffron, Executive Secretary

of the National Council of Catholic Men and Director of the
N.C.C.M. Catholic Evidence Bureau, and originally pub-

lished, in considerable part, in the N. C. C. M.

Monthly Bulletin to Affiliated Societies

CONTAINING PRACTICAL RECOMMEN-

DATIONS FOR THE ORGANIZATION

OF A CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

AND A SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY.

National Catholic Welfare Conference

Washington, D. C.

1935



FOREWORD

“
. . . ‘The confirmed' ... St. Thomas says in his

Summa Theologica
,
‘accepts the power or office of openly

acknowledging in words his faith in Christ, as it were ex

officio/ In these precise, exact words of the Saint we have

a chief duty of the confirmed. They express simply also

the aim of a particular form of Catholic Action long

existent in Great Britain and elsewhere and now spreading

among the Catholic laity of America . . . known as the

Catholic Evidence Guild movement.

“To whom much is given in faith, from him much shall

be expected. Surely the terrifying condemnation pro-

nounced by Our Divine Lord upon the man who buried his

talent must strike particularly the Catholic layman who

has, up to the present, felt that his obligation is complete

with the tossing of a coin in the collection. There never

has been, in the dogmatic teaching or in the practice of

the Catholic Church, anywhere the slightest justification

for such inaction. As life is profound inner activity, so

inaction is death of the spirit as well as of the body.”

(From a radio address delivered in the C. B. S.
Church of the Air on May 20, 1934, by Rev. Dr.
Charles A. Hart, Moderator of the Washington

Catholic Evidence Guild.)



The Catholic Evidence Guild

I. ORIGIN

nnHE conversion of England had long been the hope of
fervent English Catholics

;
but so long had the mass of

Englishmen been steeped in the Protestant tradition, so

deep-set had become their conscious and even unconscious

antipathy for the “Italian mission,” as they called the

Church, that the ordinary means of approach to them

had become largely ineffective. They would not read a

Catholic book or periodical
;
they would not attend a Cath-

olic Church or even a Catholic lecture
;
and above all, they

would not consult a Catholic priest. How, then, could

they be reached?

It was in an effort to provide an answer to this question

that the Catholic Evidence Guild was founded, at a meet-

ing held on April 24, 1918, in the Westminster Cathedral

Hall in London. It was felt that if Protestants would

not come to Catholics, then the only thing left for Catho-

lics to do was to go to Protestants. So the Guild was

formed for the purpose of putting Catholic laymen and

laywomen out into the parks and onto the streets to teach

Catholicism to “the man in the street.” It was felt that

the organization should be predominantly lay for two

reasons : first, that priests would not be as likely to receive

a sympathetic hearing in such forums, at least not until

the ground had been broken by laymen and laywomen;

and second, that the clergy were already greatly over-

worked and could not spare from their pastoral duties the

time necessary for such work. And it was further felt

that there was no sufficient reason why that great reser-

3



4 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

voir of energy latent in the laity should not now be more

fully utilized.

Nor was it considered presumptuous and improper for

the laity to undertake such a task. Down to the time of

the Reformation, the place of the layman in the Church

was well established and universally acknowledged—and
it was a most important place. The “holy priesthood”

of the laity spoken of by St. Peter was an accepted fact.

But since the Catholic position was based on a reasoned

philosophy, there was little danger of confusing this

priesthood with the sacrificial priesthood. All priests

acknowledged that the layman was in a real sense a

“priest,” and that he partook of the obligation imposed

by Christ to go and “teach ... all nations . . . teaching

them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded

you.” But by the same token, all laymen were willing

and even eager to admit that all priests of the sacrificial

priesthood partook of a higher and nobler office. The

two priesthoods stood side by side and were parts of an

organic whole—the Mystical Body of Christ.
Then came Luther and the other reformers, so-called,

with their denial of the sacrificial priesthood. All men

are priests, they said, with no distinction between them.

This heretical teaching struck at the hierarchical order

of the Church, and would have eliminated the very core

of Catholicism: the Mass. Catholic apologists, sensing

this crucial danger, rose against the false doctrine en

masse. But in trying to balance its falsity, it was natural

for them to emphasize the sacrificial priesthood at the

expense of the priesthood of the laity—to stress that
which their opponents denied and to neglect that which

they admitted—and as a consequence, over a considerable



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 5

period of time, the latter was gradually forced out of the

consciousness of the people. Indeed, it came to be re-

garded eventually as almost a piece of Protestant heresy.

Laymen began to think that the real work of the

Church, so far as it affected the communion of Saints,

reposed solely in the hands of the clergy—that their ob-
ligation was quite discharged if they attended to their

prayers, the Mass, and the Sacraments, with perhaps a

modicum of charity thrown in for good measure. Their

only duty, they thought, was to look after their own souls.

The layman became, as it were, a sort of spiritual sponge,

soaking in the fruits of the priest’s work, but seldom

participating in it. His motto was, “Let Father George

do it.”

The Catholic Evidence Guild was founded on the con-

trary and traditional philosophy. Of course, the permis-

sion of Cardinal Bourne, Archbishop of Westminster, was

first obtained. But even historically, had not St. Paul

associated laymen with himself in his labors for the

spread of the Gospel ? And had not Pope Leo XIII writ-

ten as follows: “Those on whom God has bestowed the

gifts of mind with the strong wish of rendering them-

selves useful. . . . These, so often as circumstances de-

mand, may take upon themselves, not indeed the office of

pastor, but the task of communicating to others what they

themselves have received, becoming, as it were, living

echoes of their masters in the Faith. Such cooperation

on the part of the laity has seemed to the Fathers of the

Vatican Council so opportune and fruitful of good that

they thought well to invite it—in propagating Christian
truth and warding off errors, the zeal of the laity should,

as far as possible, be brought actively into play” (Sapien

-



6 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

tiae Christianae)

.

After the Guild once got under way

many other arguments against the objections of presump-

tion and impropriety came to hand, as when, in 1921, His

Eminence Cardinal Bourne, conferred on the licensed

speakers the canonical status of Diocesan Catechists. And

there have been the ever-increasing appeals of our present

Holy Father for more and more Catholic Action—the
“participation of the laity in the apostolate of the hier-

archy” (Letter to Cardinal Bertram). And this “Pope

of Catholic Action” has further expressly favored the

Guild by showering upon it many indulgences.

However, the C. E. G. was not first in the field in street-

speaking, even in its own place and period. For many

years the Guild of Ransom (for “ransoming” England

from heresy) had corporately engaged in park preach-

ing, and the Barrow Brigade (so-called because wheel-

barrows full of pamphlets were rolled through the streets,

accompanied by the ringing of a bell; and when any

bystanders could be interested, the Brigadiers stopped

and spoke at length on the subjects of the pamphlets, and

then distributed them) had done street corner lecturing.

These considerations, then, not only justified the for-

mation of the C. E. G., but justified its character as a lay

organization. Yet it never was exclusively lay. Priests

were engaged to train and examine the guildsmen, and

even to speak on the streets themselves
;
and this practice

has been uninterruptedly followed. Once the laymen had

built up regular audiences, it was found that priests were

as effective as they, and oftentimes more so
;
and of course

always better equipped.

The Westminster Guild opened its first outdoor pitch

in Hyde Park, London, on August 4, 1918.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 7

II. METHODS

17ROM the inception of the C. E. G. it was seen that
the primary requisite for such work was adequate

training—for it would certainly have been most rash to
set ordinary, untrained laymen at the task of teaching

the doctrines and practices of the Church. For such a

delicate task not only knowledge, but special knowledge,

was demanded. Therefore soon after the foundation of

the Guild, efforts were made to formulate a method of

training and to erect sufficient safeguards against ignor-

ance and ineptitude on the platform. This system has

been improved from time to time, and is now briefly as

follows (this and other descriptions of actual C. E. G.

work hereafter refer especially to the pioneer West-

minster guild in London; some other guilds have had to

introduce certain modifications, according to local con-

ditions, paucity of members, etc.)

:

The new guildsman enrolls in a study class (called the

junior class) meetings of which are held each Tuesday

evening, where a course of lectures is given by a priest or

a Senior Speaker. This course is outlined in Catholic

Evidence Training Outlines. After the lecturer has

given his talk (c. 30 min.), he interrogates the members

of the class thereon (c. 15 min.). Then the members

question him (c. 15 min.). Finally the lecturer calls on

various members to discuss, for a few minutes each, the

same subject (c. 30 min.) which concludes the formal

meeting.

This junior course takes about six months, after which

the guildsman enrolls for the senior course, the procedure

of which is roughly the same save that the subjects



8 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

studied are more difficult. It takes about two and one-half

years. A good guildsman takes each course several times
over.

At the same time that the guildsman is following the

junior course, he is studying privately on a given subject,

as “The Church and the Bible,” “Apostolicity,” “Infalli-

bility,” “Purgatory,” etc. When he feels that he has this

subject adequately in hand, he prepares a talk on it. Then

he presents himself at a different meeting held regularly

on Friday. There he delivers his talk, and answers all

questions within the limits of his subject which may be

addressed to him by the other members, who heckle and

interrogate him freely and fiercely. Thereafter a priest

or some Senior Speaker criticizes the talk and the an-

swers, pointing out especially any deviations from ortho-

doxy, and offering suggestions for improvement. A
speaker usually has to re-work and re-deliver his talk

several times over before it becomes acceptable. When it

is finally approved, however, he is referred to an examin-

ing board, consisting usually of one or more priests, and

one Senior Speaker (the “Devil’s Advocate”). If he

passes his examination he is given a limited license

—

that is, one permitting him to talk on that one subject

and none other—and he is ready to go on the platform.
He is now a Junior Speaker.

Pitches (regular outdoor meeting places) are estab-

lished at advantageous points throughout the city; in

London, notably, at Hyde Park. To one of these the

newly licensed speaker goes at an appointed time and

gives his talk, after which he invites questions. He must

confine not only his talk to the subject on which he has

been licensed, but also his answers to questions. If a



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 9

question be asked outside these limits, he must say that a

later speaker will answer it, and pass it by. No Junior

Speaker, however, is permitted to talk at any time or on

any subject unless there be a Chairman with him.

A Chairman is usually one who has been through the
junior course twice and the senior course at least once,

and who holds, in addition, at least three or four limited

licenses
;
he must further have shown ability to handle a

crowd, to conduct a meeting, and to answer general

questions. These requisites satisfied, he is granted a

Chairman’

s

license. The duties of the Chairman are to

keep the crowd in hand, to see that the Junior Speaker

voices no heresy, to take him down from the platform if

he threatens to, and to answer those questions which are

either outside the range of the Junior Speaker’s subject,

or which the latter cannot handle. He is not, of course,

to give any answers unless he is sure of them
;
if he is at

all uncertain, he must say that he cannot answer the

question then, but that he will be glad either to bring

the answer to the next meeting or to mail it to his interro-

gator. The Chairman also gives a talk at each meeting

on one or more of the subjects in which he has been

licensed.

III. SPIRITUAL LIFE

A RELIGIOUS atmosphere and spiritual works are

necessary to the success of the guild. Each speakers’

platform has above it a Crucifix
;
all meetings are opened

and closed with prayer, and one is said at about the middle

of the meeting. On Good Friday, Stations of the Cross are

made in Hyde Park—a guildsman standing on one plat-
form and holding the stations aloft, successively, while a



10 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

priest stands on another platform and recites the medita-

tions and prayers. The crowds for this service vary

from 2,000 to 6,000.

Individual spiritual works are also done thoroughly.

Daily Mass and Communion are urged
;
a sort of modified

or shortened retreat is made each month; twice a year

longer retreats are held for as long as five days; and

what is most impressive of all, perhaps, for each hour

of speaking done by a guild, an hour is spent in adoration

before the Blessed Sacrament.

IV. GROWTH

A LTHOUGH the C. E. G. is only about 17 years old, it
has seen the movement stemming from it grow pro-

digiously. The Westminster Guild started with about

six active speakers; now there are over 150, who do

about 4,000 hours of street speaking per year (which

means also, it should be noted, about 4,000 hours of adora-

tion before the Blessed Sacrament). In addition, other

guilds have sprung up throughout England to the number

of about 50. Altogether there are, in England, over 600

licensed guildsmen, about two-thirds of whom are men,

about one-third women. A guild was formed some years
ago in Holland; another in Australia; one about four

years ago in that stronghold of Calvinism, Scotland
;

and one, within the past year, in India. Those which have

been organized in this country will be treated later.

In Hyde Park alone, there is a meeting every day of

the week. On week-days it runs continuously from 7

p. m. to 10 p. m. ; on Sundays from 11 in the morning

to 10 at night. At another pitch in London (Tower Hill)

,



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 11

meetings are held regularly during lunch hour, most of

the speakers having to sacrifice their lunches for the pur-

pose.

V. FRUITS

W7HILE the C. E. G. does not precisely seek conver-
** sions—since it aims at sowing the seed, the harvest

to be left largely to others—it is nevertheless most grati-
fying to note that many have been effected. Several of

these conversions were of the paid hecklers themselves

—

for the P. A. (Protestant Alliance) actually pays men to

heckle the Guild speakers. Other conversions of which

the Guild has knowledge run into the hundreds, though

there is usually no way of learning of them save by chance

through the priests who give the instructions, friends of

the converts, occasionally the converts themselves, etc.

And in addition to these conversions, well over a thou-

sand, perhaps several thousands, of lapsed Catholics have

been brought back to the Faith. But the outstanding

result, and the one primarily sought, is neither of these.

It is the knowledge of Catholicism that is gradually

being instilled into the non-Catholic mind. This can be

observed, it is said, in the way questioning changes at a

given pitch. Whereas at first the most frequent inquiries

dealt with Maria Monk and Pope Joan and other such

absurdities, the crowds now ask more sensible questions

about fundamental Catholic doctrine. And at the lunch-

hour meeting at the Tower Hill pitch the crowd has

learned so much of Catholic teaching that a Junior

Speaker cannot be permitted to talk there ; for, amazingly

enough, the crowd knows more Catholic doctrine than

most of the Junior Speakers themselves.



12 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

VI. IN THE SCHOOLS

T ATE in 1922 the first school guild was established at
Stonyhurst, England. Later guilds were formed at

Beaumont, at Preston Catholic College, and at Wimble-

don. They have more than justified themselves, not only

by putting good speakers on the platform at their own

pitches and at those of other guilds, but very strikingly by

arousing in the students a keen and lively interest in

what had formerly been a somewhat moribund course of

study: Apologetics.

But in addition to the establishment of these extra-

curricular guilds, the guild method of training has also

been employed to good effect in the religion courses of

several of the schools. Mr. F. J. Sheed (one of the out-

standing figures in the international Guild movement) has

suggested the following adaptation of this method to the

needs of the schools:

“1. Protestant and atheist heckling by the teacher,

who heckles sometimes as an enemy, sometimes as an

inquirer.

“2. Lecturettes by members of the class, explain-

ing points of Catholic doctrine, as if to non-Catholics.

“3. Heckling, by all the members of the class, of

the boy or girl that gives the lecturette.”

“The advantages of this system as a method of teach-

ing,” he goes on to say, “are fairly obvious. First, there

is no way of getting to understand an idea quite so well

as expounding it except defending it. . . .

“Again, the system gets them accustomed to those ob-

jections against the Church of which they are certain to



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 13

hear so much in the rest of their lives ; and ensures that

they shall hear the answer along with the objection,

instead of hearing only the objection. . . .

“A third advantage ... is the work they can do among

non-Catholics by knowing the answers to such questions

as may be asked—and the benefit to themselves of not
having constantly to confess ignorance.”

That the C. E. G. has a useful place to fill in the

schools there can be little doubt. Cardinal Bourne has

spoken of it as follows: “The introduction of the Guild

into schools is one of the most significant events in the

history of a society whose foundations and whose sub-

sequent work is one of the features in the history of the

Catholic Church in modern times. ... I rely on the Cath-

olic schools to do their share.”

VII. IN AMERICA

(1) In Boston

fTDHE group in Boston do not bear the name Catholic

Evidence Guild—but they do quite the same kind of
work. They retained their name Catholic Truth Guild

for many years for the very good reason that that was

the name adopted at its founding—and it was founded

before even the Westminster Evidence Guild. Lately,

however, they have changed the name to Catholic Cam-

paigners for Christ, following the fashion set by their

co-founder, David Goldstein.

Late in 1916 the two noted converts from Socialism,

Mrs. Martha Moore Avery and Mr. Goldstein, conceived

the idea of expounding Catholic doctrine from an outdoor

public platform. Both had been, during their Socialist



14 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

careers, most effective “soap-box” orators; and they had

harangued outdoor audiences throughout a great part of

the New England States. As early as 1903, having be-

come dissatisfied with the Socialist philosophy, they had

several times set forth Pope Leo XIII’s teaching on Social-

ism as embodied in his encyclical Rerum Novarum. They

had at that time no thought of entering the Catholic

Church. Upon their conversion to the Church, however,

they felt, under the obligation of undoing some of the

harm they had done as Socialist agitators, so they re-

traced their steps and retracted their prior Socialist

statements. This tour of retraction was really the seed

which germinated the Truth Guild.

Having determined to become positive Catholic “agita-

tors,” the two revolutionary-minded converts decided

merely to change their tour of apology to a tour of apolo-

getics, to which proposal His Eminence William Cardinal

O’Connell, Archbishop of Boston, lent ready support. The

ingenious plan of using a portable platform having oc-

curred to them, they arranged for the construction of

an autovan which would provide transportation as well

as a rostrum. Feeling the need for some kind of organ-

ization, Mrs. Avery and Mr. Goldstein, together with a

few of their interested friends, constituted themselves the

“Catholic Truth Guild,” of which Mrs. Avery was im-

mediately elected president and Mr. Goldstein secretary.

The autovan was completed in June of 1917, and on

July 1 it was blessed, at a public ceremony in front of the

Cathedral of the Holy Cross, by Cardinal O’Connell. His

Eminence said on that occasion: “We gladly bless this

holy project; this car will bring glory to God and truth

to men.”



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 15

On July 4 there was held on historic Boston Common

the first open-air meeting, attended by hundreds of

listeners, of all faiths and of none. In the next 90 days

80 such meetings were held in various cities and towns

of Massachusetts and Rhode Island. At the end of that

time Mr. Goldstein, with an assistant, Arthur B. Corbett,

set out on a cross-country tour all the way to San Fran-

cisco. Here their work was so successful that they were

presented, by the Catholics of the city, with an expensive

automobile to take the place of their worn and dilapidated

autovan. Meetings were held up and down the west coast

as well as all along the way back to Boston, in every place

where diocesan permission could be obtained.

Meanwhile Mrs. Avery, and the other members of the

Guild who remained in Boston, continued to hold public

meetings in and around Boston. And after 18 years

these meetings are still being held on the mall of Boston

Common, weather permitting, and sometimes in nearby

towns.

At the death of Mrs. Avery five years ago, Mr. Gold-

stein began another tour which he has just completed

(1935) and which took him into most of the states of the

union. Together with his assistant—who was, until the
conclusion of this tour, Theodore H. Dorsey, a former

student for the Episcopal ministry—he held on an average
of 25 meetings a month. Mr. Dorsey is now making

preparations for an independent tour of his own. In

place of the autovan Mr. Goldstein now has a touring

car of modern design, attractively painted in the papal

colors, and equipped with a substantial rostrum (built

into the tonneau)
,
microphones, lights, and a hoist cruci-

fix and flag.



16 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

The general plan of the public Truth Guild meetings is

somewhat similar to that followed by the Evidence Guild.

However no member other than Mr. Goldstein, answers

questions
;
and his customary manner of taking questions

has been either verbally, in writing, or indirectly through

Mr. Dorsey, who circulated among the listeners for that

purpose.

The mall speakers have instruction classes somewhat

similar to those of the Evidence Guild, and are carefully

trained in Catholic apologetics by Rev. Dr. Patrick J.

Waters, formerly Professor of Dogmatic Theology at St.

John’s Seminary.

Mr. Goldstein claims that about 250 conversions have

resulted from the tour just concluded. And in addition

to this extraordinary fruitage, the labors of himself and

his associates, both on the road and in Boston, have

unquestionably paved the way for the movement of open-

air speaking which is now spreading throughout the

country. This latter result has also been hastened by the

printed word, liberal use of which has been made by Mr.

Goldstein and Mr. Dorsey, and by William E. Kerrish,

vice president of the Truth Guild. It is interesting to

note that Mr. Kerrish is also a convert.

The Boston speakers held two-hour public meetings

each Sunday afternoon during the summer of 1935, from

early May to September 8, when the season was closed.

There are eight authorized speakers, one of whom, Mr.

Kerrish, now entertains questions.

The address is: Catholic Campaigners for Christ, 5

Park Street, Brookline, Mass. Mr. Goldstein may be

reached by writing to him at 62 Essex Street, Boston,

Mass.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 17

(2) In Baltimore

A Guild was organized in Baltimore, Md., in October,

1931, under the leadership of Rev. Dr. John J. Russell,

the present moderator. One meeting is held each week,

which is in effect a combination of the Tuesday and Fri-

day meetings described in the second section of this

paper; i. e., one hour is devoted to a lecture by a priest,

based largely on Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, and

the other to practice talks by the members of the class.

Both the lecture and the practice talks are followed by

questions.

In June, 1932, Most Rev. Michael J. Curley, D.D.,

Archbishop of Baltimore, granted permission to the Guild

to address indoor meetings. Accordingly arrangements

were made for weekly pitches at the City Hospital, the

jail, and the penitentiary. These institutional pitches,

which have been maintained up to the present time,

afforded a controlled audience of over 1,200 people each

week and gave the beginners valuable experience in the

difficult art of explaining dogmas and practices in the

simplest terms.

These talks, although no interruptions or questions

were permitted, were nevertheless addressed to a real

audience, and consequently served to bridge the gap be-

tween the classroom speeches, addressed to imaginary

non-Catholics, and the real thing on the street corner

platform.

A series of weekly radio programs was inaugurated
September 12, 1932. The Most Reverend John M. Mc-

Namara, V.G., Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore, introduced

the Guild to the radio audience by stating that it was an



18 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

answer to the Holy Father’s call for Catholic Action. He

stressed the need in the world for a knowledge of God

and His laws and declared that if the Guild succeeded in

turning the minds of only a few persons toward God it

would have accomplished a worth-while task. “The rea-

son for this movement,” he said, “may be found in the

commandment ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.’

To love is to give, to share with others that especially

which we consider of value; and because the members of

the Evidence Guild love their fellow men they wish to

share with them the truth which has been a light to their

feet and a comfort to their souls.”

This series of radio talks ran for over fourteen months

without interruption and has since been followed at in-

tervals by occasional addresses whenever there was an

opportunity.

The program always consists of the opening hymn,

“Come Holy Ghost,” which is followed by a 20-minute

talk on a Catholic doctrine or practice calculated to inter-

est a radio audience, particularly, of course, those who

are not Catholics. The talk is followed by a brief

announcement of Guild activities and the next week’s

subject. Then questions are answered up to three min-

utes before “signing off” time, when the program is

brought to a close with Catholic music appropriate to the

subject or the season. The manuscripts of the Guild’s

radio talks are always subject to the approval of the

moderator.

The way was opened for street teaching in Baltimore

by David Goldstein and Theodore Dorsey, who gave a

series of nine outdoor addresses in various parts of the

city as a part of their national tour in the fall of 1932.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 19

However, it was on October 29 of that year that the first

real Evidence Guild pitch in Baltimore was opened at

the Washington Monument. Archbishop Curley had

already authorized a board of clerical examiners to issue

licenses, upon examination, for outdoor speaking; and

two members of the Baltimore Guild had earned such

licenses. They were George Renehan and Frank Brady.

All was set then for the first outdoor meeting. The prin-

cipal speaker was F. J. Sheed, former Master of the

Westminster Guild, who introduced Mr. Renehan and

Mr. Brady.

That evening a meeting was also conducted at Hollins

Market, at Hollins Street and Carrollton Avenue, where,

with the exception of the coldest winter months, meetings

have been held every Saturday night since. As the num-

ber of licensed speakers increased a Sunday afternoon

pitch was opened at Patterson Park. During the winter

months indoor meetings were conducted every Sunday

at the Catholic Daughters’ Home and at the Catholic

Community House. Last year a new pitch was opened

on the Mall in Druid Hill Park, and another feature

added to the activities of the Guild : the maintenance of

a question and answer department in the Baltimore

Catholic Review. The questions are those asked at the

outdoor meetings and the answers substantially those

given at the time. This year a new pitch was established

at Pimlico, and another near old St. Mary’s Seminary

(Paca Street).

On the recommendation of Rev. Dr. John F. Fenlon,

S.S., President of St. Mary’s Seminary, a number of semi-

narians have interested themselves in the work of the



20 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

Guild and have given talks at both the outdoor and indoor

meetings.

Since the truly Catholic devotion of the Way of the

Cross affords an excellent opportunity of setting forth

in an uncontroversial and acceptable way the doctrines

of the divinity of Christ, His atonement for sin, and the

devotion of Mary, His Mother, it was thought that public

presentation of the Stations by various local priests would

interest and enlighten the non-Catholics in the audience.

The Voice, of St. Mary’s Seminary, April, 1933, describes

the first venture of this kind as follows: “Every Sunday

afternoon during Lent, the Stations of the Cross are

conducted at Patterson Park in a successful and inter-

esting way. When the weather is inclement, the services

are held within an enclosed pavilion
;
otherwise they are

held out-of-doors. A speaker’s stand is placed in the
centre of the congregation and as the priest gives the

meditation for each Station, a representation of that

Station is placed in full view of those present.

“After each Station, the congregation, headed by a

group of seminarians from Roland Park, sing in English

a verse of the ‘Stabat Mater.’ At the close of the services

the hymn ‘Holy God’ is sung by all. The fervor and

piety of the congregation . . . is . . . inspiring. Catho-

lics and non-Catholics alike listen with great devotion to

the meditation. The recitations of the prayers after each

Station and the singing of the ‘Stabat Mater’ is most

edifying. ... On some Sundays over three thousand per-

sons are present and even on those days when threatening-

clouds are in the sky, the attendance numbers over a

thousand. The meditations have been carefully prepared



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 21

and are well delivered by priests from neighboring

parishes.”

The Sunday Lenten Stations have now been given for

three seasons in the park and on the past three Good

Friday afternoons on the City Hall Plaza.

Realizing that success depends entirely upon the grace

of God, the Guild has adopted a few simple spiritual

practices. On the first Friday of each month the mem-

bers receive Holy Communion in a body for the Guild

intention, and each month the moderator holds a spiritual

conference, in place of the doctrinal lecture which is now

usually delivered by one of the Senior Speakers. Record

is kept of spiritual works offered for the Guild and mem-

bers are expected to spend as much time before the

Blessed Sacrament as in public speaking. At the pitch

Guildsmen take turns in saying the rosary privately, that

some seed of doctrine may fall upon good ground.

During the 1934 season over 600 public talks were

given by the Guild. There are many additional places

both on street corners and in the parks, according to Dr.

Russell, where audiences could be found were there a

sufficient number of trained speakers to address them.

During the 1935 season, which had not closed at this

writing, four outdoor meetings of two to three and one-

half hours duration were held each week, and indoor

meetings were held each Sunday in St. Ambrose Audi-

torium, and at the jail and City Hospital. A fifteen-
minute weekly broadcast has also been conducted over

station WCAO.

There are now 25 licensed speakers and 12 candidates.

The address of the Baltimore Guild is: Catholic Evi-



22 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

dence Guild of Baltimore, 31 N. Fulton Ave., Baltimore,

Md.

(3) In Washington

Inspired by the remarkably successful street apostolate

of David Goldstein in the United States, and of the Catho-

lic Evidence Guild in England, a group of ten laymen

and laywomen, assembled by the Rev. Dr. Charles A.

Hart and the Rev. Paul Ward, C.S.P., on December 16,

1931, determined to organize a Catholic Evidence Guild

in Washington, D. C. Weekly meetings lasting approxi-

mately two hours, and devoted to a thorough and syste-

matic instruction in the Faith, and to practice talks, were

begun on January 6, 1932. These talks, fashioned to

meet the understanding and religious needs of the aver-

age non-Catholic, were carefully prepared by the members

and presented to the rest of the Guild for impartial criti-

cism, both destructive and constructive. The speaker

was expected to know his subject to the extent of being

able to meet any relevant question or objection.

The sole objective of the Guild was street and park

speaking. However, after these meetings had been in

progress for some time, permission was obtained from

Archbishop Curley to speak in jails, hospitals, charity

homes for the unemployed, over the radio in a specially

prepared weekly program, and finally at a practice pitch

on the campus of the Catholic University of America.

This preparatory labor continued only until such time as,

in the opinion of the Moderator, Dr. Hart, the Guild was

ready for public, outdoor talks. Many of these splendid

activities are still being carried on by individual mem-



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 23

bers, but they are no longer a part of the official program

of the Guild.

Regular meetings were continued, and in addition to

covering many of the subjects outlined in Catholic Evi-

dence Training Outlines, study of The Question Box, by

Rev. Bertrand L. Conway, C.S.P., was begun. The latter

was for the purpose of providing a temporary basis for

the issuance of Chairman’s licenses.

Early in the fall of 1932 the Guild arranged a series

of outdoor meetings, in and about Washington, for David

Goldstein and Theodore Dorsey. This was the first op-

portunity for most of the Guild members to witness an

open-air lay speaker in action.

On October 7, 1932, four of the members—John G.
Bowen, John J. O’Connor, Edward J. Heffron, and Wil-

liam McEvitt—underwent an examination on the whole
of Conway’s Question Box, as well as on one or more

particular subjects, before the clerical board officially

appointed for that purpose by Archbishop Curley. All

of the candidates were successful, and each was issued,

in addition to one or more limited licenses, entitling him

to speak in public on that subject or subjects, a Chair-

man’s license entitling him to conduct public meetings

and to exercise his own discretion in answering general

questions; it being stipulated, of course, that he was to

respond only to those questions, the answers to which he

knew with certainty. These were the first C. E. G. Chair-

man’s licenses issued in this country A short time later
Mrs. Frank O’Hara became the first woman in the United

States to receive a speaker’s license.

On the afternoon of October 16, 1932, the first public,

open-air Guild meeting was held in Franklin Park, Wash-



24 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

ington. The speakers on that occasion were John G.

Bowen and John J. O’Connor. And despite a steady,

sodden drizzle no less than 85 auditors stood listening

to them for almost an hour.

On October 30 F. J. Sheed, former master of the world’s

first Evidence Guild at Westminster, spoke at the Frank-

lin Park pitch. Both at that time and on subsequent

visits to the city he has conducted classes for the Guild

and has been extremely helpful in developing a local Guild

technique. Mrs. Sheed, co-compiler with her husband of

Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, has also favored the

Guild on several occasions by conducting classes, offering

suggestions, and speaking at the outdoor pitches.

Since that time limited licenses have been granted to

six additional laymen, to seven laywomen, and to more

than thirty seminarians. It is the ambition of the Guild

to increase its active membership and to conduct many

more pitches in various parts of the city. During the

summer of 1935 five two-hour outdoor meetings have been

held at the two pitches: Franklin Park and Judiciary

Square.

The typical outdoor meeting usually consists of four

10 to 15 minute talks by four different speakers, each

followed by 10 to 15 minutes of question taking. The

questions following the first three talks are always lim-

ited to the subjects of those talks, but the last speaker,

the Chairman, takes general questions. The average

attendance at outdoor meetings is about 100.

Convinced that, after nearly two years of spade work,

the ground had been sufficiently prepared for priests to

speak in the parks, the Guild last year invited members

of the local clergy to participate in its work. Nine of



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 25

them spoke in the park last year and were enthusiastically

received by large crowds. Several others appeared this

year (1935).

For every hour of speaking in the park, at least one

hour must be spent in adoration before the Blessed Sac-

rament. In addition, the seminarians offer all their

spiritual exercises and good works, one day a week, for

the success of the apostolate, and the priests remember

the Guild at the altar of God.

To advance still more their knowledge and spiritual

development, a number of the members instituted a

special Bible class, held each week during the winter, for

the purpose of studying and meditating upon the life of

Christ. Once a month, in a designated Church, the Guild

hears Mass and receives Communion in a body. Break-

fast is followed by Benediction and a short instruction

by the Moderator of the Guild or some other priest.

Until last summer the Guild had little proof that it

was accomplishing any positive good. It was noted, how-

ever, that many of the regular non-Catholic auditors were

changing their attitudes to the Church. Some of those

who were, at first, most bitter and violent, were very

perceptibly assuming the attitude of the Guild speakers

themselves
;

i. e., one of calm, courteous, rational inquiry.

The fact that the speakers never lost their tempers and

never, even under the most trying and harassing circum-

stances, indulged in offensive personal remarks
;
that they

were obviously honest and above-board; and that they

emphasized the simple rationality of the doctrines they

expounded, religiously avoiding the emotional, impressed

the listeners most favorably. Interest in things Catholic

increased and many people who first came to a Guild



26 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

meeting or to the Stations of the Cross (sponsored by the

Guild in Franklin Park on Good Friday) out of mere

curiosity, returned to the park many times in order to

learn more about Christ and His Church.

From its humble beginning late in 1931, the work of

the Guild has grown in little more than four years to its

still rather modest, yet most encouraging, proportions.

Growth and interest are constant and give promise that

this “participation of the laity in the apostolate of the

hierarchy” may eventually result in widespread knowl-

edge of Catholic doctrine. While teaching is the immedi-

ate objective of the Guild, it is heartening to the

Guildsmen to see flowing from their efforts some of the

effects for which they have hoped. Already, through the

grace of God, much good will for the work has been

created in the minds of the listeners, some prejudice has

been broken down, several have asked for instruction in

the Faith, and a goodly number of careless or lapsed

Catholics have returned to the Fold. During the summer

just passed, among other things, one marriage was vali-

dated through the outdoor work of the Guild, and about

half a dozen people were placed under instruction. The

Guild is still engaged in outdoor work and will continue

as long as weather permits—at least through November.
The Guild is planning to sponsor indoor lectures by

guest speakers during the coming winter. For example, it

has already presented Arnold Lunn, who gave a lecture

on “Science and the Supernatural,” and has engaged

Most Rev. Francis C. Kelley, Bishop of Oklahoma City

and Tulsa, to speak on “The Truth About Mexico.”

The address of the Guild is: Catholic Evidence Guild



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 27

of Washington, 1118 Sixteenth Street, N. W., Washing-

ton, D. C.

(4) In Oklahoma

The first Catholic Evidence Guild in Oklahoma was

organized in Oklahoma City early in 1932 under the lead-

ership of Rev. S. A. Leven and Rev. V. J. Reed, assistant

pastors of St. Joseph’s Old Cathedral. The first outdoor

“stand,” as the meeting place is called in Oklahoma, was

established on the courthouse lawn of that city, where

the first lecture was given on Monday, April 11, 1932, the

day after “Other Sheep” Sunday. Weekly meetings were

held at this stand until the middle of November, with

four priests alternating as speakers throughout the sum-

mer and with F. J. Sheed, of the Westminster Guild, as

the final speaker of the season. This work had, of course,

the approval of Most Rev. Francis C. Kelley, D.D., Bishop

of Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

A “Catholic Evidence Guild Class” was established
immediately for the training of lay speakers. This class

met once a week for a lecture on Catholic doctrine, prac-

tice talks, and a quiz period. In July, 1932, two members

of the class, Harold Pierce and Paul Brown, were licensed

to speak on the outdoor platform and were “lent” to a

Guild which had been formed in Mangum for one month,

during which they gave a total of 16 talks on the streets

and in the parks of 7 towns in southwestern Oklahoma.

These were the first C. E. G. licenses issued in this

country.

It was only a few days after the launching of the Okla-

homa City Guild that Rev. Michael Coleman, of Mangum,

Okla., assisted by a Paulist Father, Rev. John McGinn,



28 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

established the Guild in that city, the center of a parish

of 6,000 square miles. Three priests and the above-

mentioned laymen were the speakers. These visited 10

or 12 towns in the parish regularly, establishing Guild

stands in each. The outdoor work of the guild continued

until the middle of September, when Father Coleman was

moved from Mangum to Geary, Okla. The Mangum Guild

therefore ceased to exist; but one of Father Coleman’s

first efforts in Geary was to take steps towards the forma-

tion of a Guild there with lay as well as clerical speakers.

Unfortunately he died before the Geary Guild passed the

indoor stage and since then no further Guild work has

been done there.

In October, 1932, the Rev. H. J. Schafers, pastor of

Cushing, Okla., located a stand in the neighboring town

of Chandler and at the same time established the Cushing

Evidence Guild which was to furnish lay speakers for the

work in his parish. But the obstacles were too great and

that Guild also fell into decline.

May 1, 1933, the third Monday after Easter and the

opening day for the outdoor lectures of the Oklahoma

Guilds, found only the Oklahoma City Guild and a newly

established Bristow Guild in the field. The latter was

organized by Father Leven, who had been appointed pas-

tor of Bristow-Drumright in October, 1932.

In Oklahoma City the Guild maintained its regular

weekly stand on the courthouse lawn throughout the

summer of 1933 with three priests and one layman as

the speakers. The Guild class also progressed but no

further laymen were licensed that summer. By the end

of the winter of 1933-1934 a number of lay speakers were

ready for outdoor speaking, but as the Guild, for special



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 29

reasons, did not resume outdoor work in 1934 or 1935,

none of them engaged in outdoor speaking. Classes were

continued, however.

The Bristow Catholic Evidence Guild has been the most

active in Oklahoma. After the opening talks on May 1,

1933, outdoor lectures were given in nine of the towns

and communities in the parish at regular intervals until

the end of October. Three priests and Messrs. Pierce and

Brown, now seminarians, constituted the speaking force.

About 140 talks were given to non-Catholic audiences

before the end of the outdoor season. These were based

principally on Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, and

the Guild method of lecture and question period was fol-

lowed at all times. At the close of the talks Catholic

pamphlets were given to those who wished them. In this

way some 5,000 pamphlets were distributed.

Towards the end of the summer of 1933 the Bristow

Guild began what has been called the “Catholic Revival

Movement.” It was found that talks in a series lasting

one or two weeks, with devotional as well as apologetical

sermons, aroused more interest and generated greater en-

thusiasm than the same number of talks at weekly inter-

vals. The singing of Catholic hymns at these meetings

proved an added source of attraction and edification for

non-Catholics. It was also discovered that these series

of talks were called “Catholic Revivals” no matter how

often the speakers referred to them as “Catholic Evidence

Guild Lectures” or “Non-Catholic Missions.” Conse-

quently they are now advertised as such. No other term

is so readily understood by the non-Catholics who form

practically the entire audience at the stands, whether

indoor or outdoor, which the Guild maintains. These



30 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

meetings always open with a prayer, after which the

“Come Holy Ghost” is sung. The sermon and the ques-

tion period follow and the meetings close with the singing

of more hymns and the general recitation of the Lord’s

Prayer.

In some of the communities where these “Revivals”

have been held it has been possible to organize choirs

among the local non-Catholics. In other places Catholic

singers are “imported” or the speaker does his own

singing.

In 1934, on the third Monday after Easter, the Bristow

Guild again resumed outdoor activities. That summer’s

work, ending in October, was a continuation of the work

of the previous year. Seven priests and three seminari-

ans spoke at 13 stands in the parish, more than 200 ser-

mons were preached to non-Catholic crowds, and more

than 10,000 pamphlets were distributed. The pamphlets

were furnished principally by the International Catholic

Truth Society of Brooklyn, N. Y. In 1935 the work was

extended still further, and the first women—three stu-
dents from Rosary College, River Forest, 111.—took to the
Oklahoma stands. They gave, in all, 33 talks.

During the summer of 1934 the Bristow Guild also

sponsored two religious vacation schools for non-Catho-

lics. One, for children only, was conducted by a semi-

narian at Terlton, Okla. Twenty children were enrolled.

The other was conducted at Depew and Gypsy by two

Benedictine Sisters. Sixty non-Catholic women and

children followed the two weeks’ course. Similar work

was done during the summer of 1935. Father Leven says

that these schools definitely establish the fact that there

are many non-Catholics who will gladly follow up their



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 31

interest in the Catholic Church to complete conversion if

only the opportunity is provided. At the time of writing

(September 10, 1934) he said that the Bristow Guild had

a list of 273 non-Catholic families in the parish who de-

sired Catholic instruction. These receive a pamphlet a

month from the International Catholic Truth Society and

also the regular “Convert Letter” of the Society’s presi-

dent, Rev. Dr. Edward Lodge Curran.

Father Leven writes that lay members are the great

need of the Guild in Bristow
;
that up to the present time

most of the speakers have been either priests or semi-

narians; and that, inasmuch as the Bristow-Drumright

parish is largely a “language” parish, this will likely

remain true for some time still. The Oklahoma City

Guild, he says, has the lay speakers but has thus far been

unable to give them an opportunity for outdoor speaking.

The other Guilds in Oklahoma have ceased to exist.

The moderator of the Bristow Guild until his recent

transfer to Louvain, where he is now Vice-Rector of the

American College, was Rev. S. A. Leven; the moderator

of the Oklahoma City Guild is Rev. V. J. Reed, 519 N.

Harvey, Oklahoma City, Okla.

(5) In Detroit

An aroused interest in Catholic press promotion and

outdoor missionary effort supplied the urge which re-

sulted in the formation of an Evidence Guild in Detroit.

Several Catholic men, impressed by the fervent appeals

of the Holy Father and of our bishops for greater lay

action, decided to do something themselves in the fields

of action in which they believed they could best function.



32 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

They began by opening a Catholic newsstand in the busy

Detroit shopping district. That was in August of 1930.

Many sidewalk conferences with non-Catholics took place,

and in the short space of six weeks twelve persons with

whom such contacts were made were placed under in-

struction and eventually brought into the Church.

Spurred on by that experience the sponsors of the enter-

prise developed a desire to systematize and expand the

work. Meetings were held by the group in the College

of Law of the University of Detroit, located in the neigh-

borhood. For over a year these men, now joined by a

few women, met at night once a month and discussed

various forms and phases of lay missionary methods.

At one of these conferences Rev. Francis Heiermann,

S.J., was present by invitation, and his participation in

the discussions greatly aided in arriving at a definite

purpose. An Evidence Guild was proposed, and was

given ready support. Articles of foundation were drafted

and, after some revision and much deliberation, they were

submitted to Most Rev. Michael J. Gallagher, D.D., Bishop

of Detroit. Father Heiermann then, accompanied by

four of the conferees, met with His Excellency, who gave

the work his approval and blessing. Father Heiermann

was appointed the Guild’s spiritual director. Thus was

the Guild of Detroit founded, on the Feast of the Nativity

of Our Lady, September 8, 1933.

Monsignor John M. Doyle, Chancellor of the Diocese,

very generously offered headquarters for the Guild in the

Chancery Building. Office furnishings were collected,

and large racks for pamphlet display were installed.

This exhibit makes available for reference purposes more



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 33

than five hundred treatises on Church history, doctrine,

and practice.

Meanwhile a corps of speakers had been recruited, and

a course of instruction was begun. Among the first text-

books followed were Father Husslein’s Christian Mani-

festo and Father Conway’s Question Box. Father

Heiermann is director of study and training, which

consists of brief discourses, two-minute talks by mem-

bers, and quizzes, concluded with constructive observa-

tions. Public addresses are rehearsed and criticized
;
and,

on qualifying by examination, speakers are licensed in

the subjects they have mastered.

The Guild began its outdoor schedule May 14, 1934.

In the center of a spacious vacant lot, use of which had

been donated by Detroit Council, Knights of Columbus,

the president and the administrator gave accounts of the

Guild’s mission and of the origin of the Guild movement.

These were followed by an address on “The Pope and the

Bible,” by James A. Smith, a converted Congregational

minister, who was enlisted for the opening weeks of the

Guild season. Although the evening was uncomfortably

cool about thirty persons remained to the end of the

program.

Between May 14 and November 1, 1934, sixty-one meet-

ings were conducted. Five locations were used. These

were: The Cathedral grounds, K. of C. lot, Clark Park,

Roseville in East Detroit, and the Hall of St. Peter Claver

Church. At the last named, a colored parish, the only

indoor sessions were held. The largest audiences are

those at Clark Park, which is well known as a public

forum, and is equipped with a bandstand, benches, and



84 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

conveniently placed lights. Audiences here frequently

number well over a hundred.

Open-air meetings are held on Tuesday, Wednesday,

and Thursday evenings, beginning at 8 o’clock and end-

ing at about 9.30. They are opened and closed with reci-

tation of the Our Father and the Hail Mary, and the

audience is invited to participate. Questions are invited,

and at times they have brought on rather lively discus-

sion. Some of the speakers’ subjects have been: “The

Catholic Church and the Citizen,” “The Catholic Church

and the Sinner,” “The Supernatural Life,” “Who and

What Is Jesus Christ,” “The Pope and Social Justice,”

“The Way of the Cross,” and “The Rosary.”

Literature is distributed gratis. Many thousands of

leaflets entitled “The Church of Christ Must Date Back

to the Time of Christ” and “How We Got the Bible,” have
been given to listeners and to others seated about the

park. In 1934 alone, over one thousand copies of The

Catholic Worker, published in New York City, were dis-

tributed among the parish churches. Circulars announc-

ing the meetings were also scattered in the neighborhoods

visited.

A rather imposing speaker’s stand made and donated
by a friend of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd, has been

put into service. A crucifix is hung on its front, and a
light is fixed above the speaker’s head. A unique feature,
also, was introduced at the Cathedral grounds: A girl’s
band of thirty-five pieces.

Respectful receptions have been accorded the Guild at

every public appearance. On four occasions speakers

were obliged to divide their time with other parties, due

to apparent misunderstandings as to assignments. But



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 35

amicable arrangements were effected, and thus the Guild

was assured surprisingly attentive audiences of Baptists,

Socialists, and Communists.

In addition to distributing literature outdoors, the

newsstand, or kiosk as it is now constructed, is still main-

tained. There is functioning also a clipping and comment

collaboration with the secular press, in as far as this is

desirable and feasible.

In 1934 a legislative committee launched a movement

for repeal of the sterilization law in that state, and there

are indications that this may ultimately succeed. It is of

common report that since the Guild agitated the subject

operations under the statute have been discontinued.

A cooperative action committee initiated a civil and
religious celebration of the birth of Father Gabriel

Richard, an outstanding figure in the early life of Detroit.

This celebration took place October 15, 1934. Active

support was also given by this committee to the Legion

of Decency and to the League for Social Justice.

The Guild was host to the National Catholic Evidence

Conference which held its third annual meeting in

Detroit on September 22-23, 1934.

Study and training meetings are limited for the present

to the first and third Mondays of each month. Details

in the conduct of these and outdoor meetings are pat-

terned after the methods established by the older ap-

proved Guilds. Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, by

F. J. Sheed and Maisie Ward, has been most helpful,

according to Henry B. Sullivan, president of the Guild,

who adds that “acknowledgment must be made also of

valuable assistance from the Catholic Evidence Guild of

Washington, D. C., the National Catholic Welfare Con-



36 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

ference, the National Council of Catholic Men, the Michi-

gan Catholic of Detroit, and numerous other agencies

and persons whose aid has made possible our modest

accomplishments.”

Reception of Holy Communion in a body, adoration of

the Blessed Sacrament, private prayer during public

speaking, and like spiritual practices are enjoined upon

active members.

During the 1935 season, which closed on September 29,

52 outdoor meetings were held at three different pitches.

There were 22 speakers, 18 of whom are licensed, the

other four having been qualified guest speakers. Dr.

Sullivan reports that there was increased interest, larger

attendance, and that a number of people were placed

under instruction.

The address of the Detroit Guild is : Catholic Evidence

Guild of Detroit, 1234 Washington Boulevard, Detroit,

Mich.

(6) In Philadelphia

The Catholic Evidence Guild of Philadelphia was

started on Sunday, November 13, 1932, in the Rectory of

St. Joan of Arc Church. The eight who were present

determined to follow the system of the English Guilds,

especially as the suggestion of forming a Philadelphia

Guild had come from Mrs. Frank Sheed, co-founder of

the pioneer Westminster Guild. It was decided also to

seek ecclesiastical authorization without further delay.

Rev. Edward Hawks, Rector of St. Joan of Arc Church,

and himself a convert from the Anglican ministry, became

Spiritual Director.

On December 6 Father Hawks received notification



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 37

from the Philadelphia Chancery that His Eminence

Dennis Cardinal Dougherty, Archbishop of Philadelphia,

after conferring with the Archdiocesan Consultors, had

come to the conclusion that open air speaking by laymen

to mixed audiences was not desirable at that time.

Father Hawks was nevertheless encouraged to organize

a Guild to undertake any other kind of Catholic Action

work, and he was permitted to license speakers for the

radio and for public meetings within doors.

To these activities the Guild devoted its time during

the next year and a half. Many public demonstrations

of its work were given before Holy Name Societies and

K. of C. meetings, and several radio broadcasts were

undertaken. Meanwhile meetings were held regularly

each Sunday and the membership gradually increased.

At these meetings lectures were given on alternate nights,

the intervening nights being devoted to the work of train-

ing and heckling the speakers. The hope of eventually

going on the streets was never lost sight of and all the

activities of the Guild were especially directed to that end.

On January 14, 1935, the Guild received word from

the Chancellor of the Archdiocese that His Eminence had

given his permission for open air speaking. Arrange-

ments were made at once for an early start, to be made

as soon as weather permitted. The pitch chosen was

McPherson Square, a public park in the centre of the

industrial district. This had for many years been a

meeting place for Socialistic and Communistic propa-

gandists, and had also been used by various Protestant

evangelistic bodies. Fortunately, the spring came early,

and it was found possible to begin outdoor work in April.

The first open air meeting took place on April 13, 1935.



38 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

The co-operation of the Baltimore Guild, and of Mr.

Frank Sheed, who happened to be in America at that

time, was luckily obtained for the occasion, and Mr.

Sheed gave the first talk, several of the Baltimore Guilds-

men following later. From then to the present time

outdoor meetings on Saturday evenings have been main-

tained with only one or two breaks due to bad weather.

The interest of the crowd has been maintained and the

number of speakers has increased.

It was soon discovered that one study class a week was

insufficient. The Westminster system of two meetings a

week was commenced in May. On Friday nights there

is practice in street speaking by the Guild, and on Sunday

nights there is the usual training lecture to the Guild.

It was found impossible during the first year to maintain

more than one pitch or to increase the number of outdoor

meetings at McPherson Square. At present about twelve

regular speakers have been licensed to deliver talks, and

about six more are in training. The Guild has had the

enthusiastic co-operation of the priests of Philadelphia,

several of whom take an active part in the training of

candidates, and at least six of whom deliver occa-

sional talks at the Saturday night meetings. It is found

that priests draw the largest crowds and are able to do

the most effective work.

The attitude of the crowd has always been most respect-

ful. At the beginning it was made up very largely of

Catholics and there was a danger of Protestants being

overawed by their presence. It was necessary to make

it quite clear that the object of the work was not to

provoke controversy or to score controversial victories,

but rather to promote knowledge of Catholic Truth. By



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 39

slow degrees the number of Protestants and others began

to increase and many of these came regularly. After two

months of work questions began to be asked, and the

presence of the heckler was felt. Meanwhile many valu-

able contacts had been made with sincere questioners and

there was a considerable demand for more information

about the Church. As the summer progressed many of

the outdoor meetings resolved themselves pretty largely

into the answering of questions. Among the questioners

were many Communists and atheists
;
but on no occasion

was there any sign of active hostility.

The Guild will continue its open air work this year

(1935) until the weather makes it impossible to go on.

It is proposed that at the close of the season particular

attention shall be given to intensive training with the

hope of increasing the number of available speakers and

of establishing other pitches.

The public meetings follow the Westminster plan

exactly. A folding platform, attached to which is a
crucifix, is set up at precisely 8 o’clock. The first speaker

then makes the sign of the cross and recites the prayers

provided in the Guild Prayer Book. There is usually only

a handful of people present at first—but that does not
last long. Directly the lecture begins the crowd, which

is usually waiting somewhat timidly in the distance,

comes nearer and after a few minutes have elapsed the

speaker is closely surrounded. In McPherson Square the

average crowd is about two hundred. This number in-

creases immediately a clerical collar appears on the stand

;

it has often reached the five hundred mark. The first

speaker usually continues talking and answering ques-

tions until his subject is exhausted, when he is followed



40 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

by another. The Chairman who is always present

watches the reaction of the crowd and if it shows signs

of weariness the speaker is signalled to come down from

the platform. If questions are asked he is allowed to

continue indefinitely. The customary length of each talk

is about half an hour, the meeting ending usually at 10

o’clock. This gives time for four speakers and for the

priest who concludes the exercise. This is the common

arrangement, but it is not rigidly adhered to.

The speakers must all obtain a license from the Spiri-

tual Director and his assistants before they deliver any

talk. This will mean that the speech has been given on

practice nights, and that it has been submitted to the

scrutiny of the clergy. When a speaker has fairly well

mastered any particular subject, he is encouraged to per-

fect his speech still further, for the same talk may be

given many times with increasing value as the speaker

learns the reaction of his listeners.

Father Hawks writes that “the Philadelphia Guild has

been, so far, a very extraordinary success; i. e., inasfar

as the enthusiasm, the hard work, and the loyalty of its

members are concerned.” He added also the following

valuable observations : “As to organization, I can see how

a Guild could destroy its usefulness by over-organization.

It lives on enthusiasm and would become moribund if

hemmed in with forms and limitations. The essential

things are
:
priests who are appreciative of lay co-opera-

tion; and a certain number of devoted laymen. If you

have these you have a Guild. If you do not have these

then all the rules in the world will not make a Guild.

. . . I was in England this summer and saw the working

of the Guild in London and elsewhere. I recognized



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 41

immediately the similarity of conditions. Human nature

is the same everywhere—there was practically no dif-
ference between an English crowd and an American one.

. . . Only one or two of our members had had any ex-

perience of public speaking, or any special education.

Some of our best speakers have been from offices and

mills.”

The address of the Philadelphia Guild is : Catholic Evi-

dence Guild of Philadelphia, 2025 East Atlantic Street,

Philadelphia, Pa.

(7) In Buffalo

At the present writing, the Catholic Evidence Guild of

Buffalo is officially less than two weeks old.

Inspired by the type of work which was being done by

the Catholic Evidence Guilds elsewhere in this country,

a group of six young men and three young women met on

Thursday evening, March 28, 1935, to organize a Catholic

Evidence Guild in Buffalo. Plans were drawn up, a con-

stitution and by-laws were adopted, and all were sub-

mitted for suggestion and criticism to the Rev. Joseph V.

Mona, O.M.I., of Holy Angels Church Mission Band; to

the Rev. Eugene A. Loftus, then assistant pastor at Our

Lady of Lourdes parish
;
and to the Rev. Henry B. Laud-

enbach, pastor of St. Louis’ parish.

The three members of the clergy all approved heartily

of the plan to organize the Buffalo unit, each making

helpful suggestions and comments. During the second

week in October the final plan was delivered to the Rt.

Rev. Msgr. Edmund J. Britt, Chancellor of the diocese,

who in turn submitted it to the Most Reverend William

Turner, D.D., Bishop of Buffalo.



42 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

On October 24 Bishop Turner formally approved the

new Guild. In a letter to W. Paul Dearing, temporary

chairman of the Board of Founders, as the original nine

members called themselves, Bishop Turner wrote

:

“The Catholic Evidence Guild of Buffalo is hereby

erected into a religious association in accordance with

the provisions of canon 686 of the Code of Canon Law.

“The attached Statutes of the Guild to which We
have affixed Our seal, are also approved.

“We designate the Rev. Eugene A. Loftus, assistant

in St. Bridget’s parish, Buffalo, as the Spiritual Mod-

erator of the Guild.

“Your Guild has, accordingly, the official ecclesiasti-

cal recognition, as it is my hope and prayer that it will

prosper and fulfill its noble purpose of defending the

Catholic Faith. This will depend almost wholly upon

close cooperation of all the members with the Spiritual

Moderator.

“With my blessing to you and the members of the

Catholic Evidence Guild of Buffalo, I am,

“Sincerely yours in Christ,

(Signed) * William Turner,

(Seal) “Bishop of Buffalo

Thus the newly organized Guild began its active exist-

ence. The first meeting was set by Father Loftus for

Friday evening, November 22, in the Hotel Statler.

According to present plans, a weekly meeting will be

held for all Guild members in a centrally located meeting

place. Following the opening prayer there will be a busi-

ness session for the discussion of ways and means for

proceeding with the plan of activity as outlined in the



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 43

constitution. Reports of previously appointed commit-

tees will be heard and vote of approval or disapproval

taken after open discussion from the floor.

After the business meeting, a short 20-minute talk on

Catholic Evidence will be given by the Moderator, follow-

ing which the regular meeting will be adjourned. In-

struction and practice in public speaking will be held

under the direction of Father Loftus immediately after

the adjournment, for a group of five or six members who

have already expressed an enthusiastic interest and incli-

nation to adapt themselves to this type of work. It is

estimated that the entire meeting will last not longer

than one and one-half hours.

The Buffalo Guild is still in the formative stage in

which all of the other Guilds found themselves during at

least the greater part of the first year, but it aims ulti-

mately at development of a corps of speakers capable of

addressing non-Catholic and mixed audiences on matters

of Catholic doctrine and practice. Its members plan also

to do a certain amount of apologetical writing, to dis-

tribute free Catholic literature, to establish a newsstand

(similar to that in Detroit), and eventually to open a

small Catholic library and an evening school giving in-

struction in fundamental Catholic theology.

The address of the Buffalo Guild is: St. Bridget’s

Church, Louisiana Street, Buffalo, N. Y.

(8) In Texas

The Apostolate of Tolerance of Texas is not, in the

strict sense, nor in name, a Catholic Evidence Guild. Yet

its work is sufficiently similar to deserve inclusion in this

pamphlet.



44 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

The Apostolate of Tolerance was really first conceived

in the mind of a young student for the priesthood, Rev-

erend Francis J. Ledwig, long before he was advanced to

the sacred ministry. He had always felt that there was

a great and crying need for positive Catholic Action and

for spreading the truths about the Catholic Church here

in the United States. His dream was partially realized

in October of 1911 when, as a subdeacon and with the per-

mission of his religious superiors, he opened his cam-

paign for tolerance and began, at Ramsey, Louisiana, that

long career which has since led him into all parts of the

Southwest. His first series of lectures was given to the

colored people of that vicinity and were held out in the

open, on the street corner.

Through the final years of his seminary studies, Father

Ledwig kept this high idealism in mind and in 1913, after

ordination, he opened his first series of lectures to non-

Catholics in the open air at Karns City, Texas. He has

constantly carried on since that initial meeting, with the

exception of the war period when he served in the Chap-

lains’ Corps of the U. S. Navy, and of three years when,

due to ill health, he was forced temporarily to give up

the work.

With the rising of the Ku Klux in the Southwest,

Father Ledwig felt that the time had come to go out and

fight intolerance face to face, and for more than four

years he traveled up and down the state of Texas and

throughout the Southwest, preaching the gospel of tol-

erance, expounding the doctrines of the Catholic Church,

and clearing away the doubts and antipathies which

crowded the minds of his listeners. Bigotry was at its

height and oftentimes this apostle of tolerance was not



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 45

received with the best of grace in the various communi-

ties where he went to lecture. During these four years

he and his associates delivered more than 1,200 addresses,

on street corners, in courthouses, schoolhouses, or in any

place where they were permitted to hold forth. They

were challenged on many occasions by those who did not

agree with their statements, and Father Ledwig took on

all comers who cared to use this method of settling ques-

tions. Among the best known of these debates was one

held at Yoakum where a Grand Dragon of the Ku Klux

Klan issued the challenge. On this particular evening

most of the audience had come to laugh the missionary

priest to scorn
;
but they remained long after midnight to

hear this formidable apostle of tolerance answer every

question which his opponent could bring up against the

Church.

Needless to say, he acted only with the approbation of

his ordinary, Most Reverend Arthur J. Drossaerts, D.D.,

Archbishop of San Antonio.

Due to sickness and poor health, Father Ledwig was

forced to give up his work from 1929 to 1933. In June

of the latter year he was joined in this work by Dr. John

Joseph Gorrell, K.H.S., and under the auspices of the

Catholic Missionary Union, Washington, D. C., these two

resumed the campaign for tolerance, at Pearsall, Texas.

It lasted for 20 weeks, and during that time 420 addresses

were made throughout the Archdiocese of San Antonio,

and numerous converts found their way into the Church

as a consequence. In August of 1934 the campaign was

begun, at the invitation of the Most Reverend Robert E.

Lucey, D.D., in the Diocese of Amarillo, A series of 15



46 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

missions were held there and more than 325 addresses

were made.

The methods of these missionaries may be briefly

stated as follows: The permission of the local pastor is

secured, advertisements are placed in the local newspa-

pers, handbills are printed and distributed over the town,

and announcements are made in the local Catholic

churches. These lectures are advertised as “Explanatory

Lectures on the Catholic Church,” and it is explicitly

added that there will be a Question Box in which one may

put any reasonable question on the philosophy of life,

religion in general, or the Catholic Church in particular,

and it is promised that all will be gladly answered. These

lectures are held, weather permitting, on a street corner

or in a vacant lot near the center of the town. If such

places cannot be secured, they are held in the courtrooms

of the local courthouses, in school buildings, in vacant

store buildings, or in any other suitable place. The lec-

tures are delivered over seven consecutive evenings, and

during that time addresses are also made to the local

Rotary, Lions, Kiwanis, and other similar clubs, as well

as to the local posts of the American Legion, to the stu-

dent bodies of the high schools, and to other such gather-

ings, so that advantage is taken of every possible contact.

During the 24 years of his work, Father Ledwig has

a record of more than 300 converts to the faith and the

return to the True Fold of more than 1,500 fallen-away

Catholics. And no doubt there are many more of whom

he has no record.

The address of the Apostolate is: The Apostolate of

Tolerance, 510 West Woodlawn Ave., San Antonio, Tex.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 47

(9) In New York City

The Catholic Evidence Guild of New York—which
does not, however, engage in outdoor speaking—owes its
organization directly to a retreat of the St. Thomas

Aquinas Sodality of Fordham University School of Law,

at Mt. Manresa, Staten Island. It began in March, 1928,

with a group of students and former students of the Law

School, under the direction of Rev. Francis P. LeBuffe,

S.J. Its membership has continued to be substantially

the same although others have joined the work who are

neither lawyers nor law students. Only Catholic men

may join the Guild.

When first organized the primary purpose was to en-

gage in street speaking similar to that of the English Evi-

dence Guilds. That object has not been realized because

the Cardinal-Archbishop, deeming conditions in the City

of New York unsuitable for that type of activity, has not

seen fit to authorize it. However, many other avenues

of activity for the dissemination of Catholic truth have

presented themselves and are being used by the Guild.

At present there are about 18 members. His Eminence

Patrick Cardinal Hayes, Archbishop of New York, is

Honorary President, and the Moderator and Spiritual Di-

rector from the beginning has been Father LeBuffe. There

is a board of directors of twelve, six of whom are elected

each year for a period of two years. The affairs of the

organization are managed through the board of directors

by an executive committee of three who act subject to the

approval of the Moderator.

The activities of the Guild may be divided into two gen-

eral classifications: study and teaching. Although sev-



48 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

eral changes in the mode of study have taken place since

the Guild was organized, one feature has been retained

throughout. At the meetings, which are held each Wed-

nesday night during the year excepting only the summer

months, a lecture is given by the Moderator, interspersed

with questions and discussion. Originally these lectures

and discussions covered a wide, almost unlimited field.

Then in turn the following studies were taken up and con-

sidered in detail : the Bible, the Existence of God, and the

Natural Law. For the past year or more a course in-

tended to cover the whole field of theology has been in

progress. Thus far such subdivisions as Existence of

God, Attributes of God, the Incarnation, have been care-

fully treated.

Under the heading of teaching the Guild has also gone

through several periods of change. Generally speaking,

however, it may be said that Guild members have taught

by means of the written and spoken word. In connection

with the former, members have published articles in mag-

azines and periodicals, Catholic and non-Catholic ; several

pamphlets, written in whole or in part by members of the

Guild, have been published ; and letters to editors and to

public officials and legislative groups also form a part of

the work. In the matter of speaking, indoor Catholic

and non-Catholic groups have been addressed. Among

the Catholic groups were numbered retreat bands, K. of

C. meetings, Holy Name meetings, Communion break-

fasts, Newman Clubs, sodalities, and others. On com-

paratively few occasions members were permitted to

speak to assemblies of non-Catholics. One of these talks

recently given was brought about by special invitation



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 49

from a group of young men and women active in a Pro-

testant Church. They explained that they wished infor-

mation regarding several matters commonly misunder-

stood by non-Catholics. The talk was well received and

the group seemed thoroughly pleased. Small pamphlets

relating to some of the matters talked about were dis-

tributed.

The greatest efforts in the direction of non-Catholics,

however, have been by means of the radio. In fact the

radio has become the major activity of the Guild. In

the space of about three years, broadcasts have been given

over five different radio stations in and about New York

City. Two of these broadcasts have been continued as

regular weekly features, one of them having been in oper-

ation for a little more than two years and the other for

about three years. All talks are given by members of

the Guild after approval by a Criticism Committee and

the Moderator. Subjects for radio talks were at one time

assigned from Catholic Evidence Training Outlines, at

another from the Brief Case for the Existence of God, by

Rev. Daniel A. Lord, S.J., and lately from an outline text

on the Natural Law. At present members are free to

choose any topic, usually avoiding the profound and the

controversial. In consequence the subjects cover a wide

variety of things interesting to Catholics and non-

Catholics.

The annual report submitted during the summer of

1935 showed a total of more than 100 radio broadcasts

given during the reported year by members of the Guild,

more than twenty addresses to Catholic organizations,

and two published articles.



50 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

The spiritual life of the Guild centers around an annual

retreat, which is required of all members, and around the

constant and personal guidance of the Reverend Moder-

ator.

The address of the New York Guild is : Mr. Thomas J.

Diviney, Secretary, Catholic Evidence Guild of New

York, Bank of Manhattan Building, Bridge Plaza North,

Long Island City, N. Y.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 51

HOW TO FORM A CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

The Catholic Evidence Bureau of the National Council

of Catholic Men has outlined the following recommended

steps in the formation of a Catholic Evidence Guild

:

1. Familiarize yourselves with the whole movement.

This you will fairly well have done by reading this

pamphlet. But you ought also read at least the intro-

duction and several of the chapters of Catholic Evi-

dence Training Outlines, and if you can, the Hand-

book of the Catholic Evidence Guild.

2. Interest a few of the better informed and more

zealous men and women of your community in the

idea, for you will need such people as an initial

nucleus.

3. Interest some priest, who has both the time and the

inclination necessary for such work, in the project.

A priest who has had experience both in apologetical
activities and in handling men is best.

4. Have this priest (together with one or more of the

laymen if he thinks advisable) wait upon the Bishop

to petition him for approval of the project.

5. Inform the Bishop of your wishes, and give him the

names and backgrounds of the interested men and

women.

6. Present the following tentative proposal to the Bishop

:

a. That he permit you to form a Catholic Evidence

Guild for the purpose immediately, of study, and

ultimately, when he sees fit, of public doctrinal ex-

position.

b. That he appoint a priest as your Moderator whose

duties shall be to direct your study, and there-



52 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

after, your speaking, and who shall be responsible

directly to the Bishop or his designate.

c. That he direct the Moderator to conduct weekly

classes at which (1) a course shall be given, by

the Moderator or other priest, on the whole of

Catholic doctrine and practice (it is best to follow

the Junior Course given in Catholic Evidence

Training Outlines) consisting of lectures followed

by questions from the lay members, and at which

(2) the lay members shall give practice talks on

individual subjects, chosen by themselves with the

approval of the Moderator, after which they are

to answer all questions asked on their respective

subjects. Each member is to select such an indi-

vidual subject (preferably those listed in the

Junior Course section of the Outlines), and to

study it privately, in addition to following the com-

mon course. [(1) and (2) may be combined on one

night in a small guild. In England the practice is

to divide them, and have them on separate nights.

(1) is the “Tuesday Class,” referred to in the

Outlines; (2) is the “Friday Class.”]

d. That he authorize the Moderator to examine the

members (orally) on their individual subjects,

after a period of study deemed adequate by him,

and to issue temporary licenses to those who pass

which shall allow them to speak thereon only be-

fore closed Catholic audiences, or over the radio

after approval of the script by the Moderator.

e. That he appoint two or more priests, together

with one layman, if he desires, to act as a Board of

Examiners, with powers to examine candidates



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 53

(orally) for speaking licenses on the subjects

which they have individually chosen, and to issue

such licenses (good for a year) to all candidates,

in their discretion, who acquit themselves success-

fully.

f. That he authorize the holders of such latter licenses

to speak in public, with the approval of the Moder-

ator, on those subjects only on which they have

been licensed; and to answer questions only on

those subjects; all holders of speaker’s licenses to

be subject, at every public meeting, to the Chair-

man of that meeting.

g. That he empower the Board of Examiners to issue

Chairman’s licenses to those candidates whose edu-

cation and training make them particularly well

qualified for the task, and who pass a comprehen-

sive oral examination covering the whole field of

Catholic doctrine and practice. An examination

on Conway’s Question Box is suggested as suffi-

cient matter at the outset for such a license.

h. That he empower the holder of such a Chairman’s

license to preside at any public meeting of the

Guild
;
to take over the discussion from a speaker

who is not doing well, who is being led outside the

confines of the subject on which he is licensed, or

who is answering questions unsatisfactorily; and

to answer any questions on any subject provided he

is certain of the answer; it being stipulated that

no member of the Guild is ever to say anything,

from the platform, of which he is not certain,

either in the body of his talk or in response to

questions—the rule being that one who is uncer-



54 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

tain of a matter about which he is asked, is to say

that he does not know but that he will be glad to

look it up and either mail the answer to his in-

quirer or deliver it at the next public meeting.

7. Should the Bishop prefer not to make an immediate de-

cision, or if his decision be contra, ask him if you may

leave with him a copy of this pamphlet, as well as one,

if possible, of Catholic Evidence Training Outlines.

8. For suggested constitution and by-laws see the Hand-

book of the Catholic Evidence Guild.



THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD 55

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

Catholic Evidence Training Outlines
,
compiled and prepared by

F. J. Sheed and Maisie Ward (rev. ed. 1934). This is the C. E. G.

manual. Sheed and Ward, 63 Fifth Avenue, New York City. $1.00.

Handbook of the Catholic Evidence Guild, compiled by James

Byrne (1922). A history of the pioneer Westminster Guild, con-
taining the constitution and by-laws, prayers, etc. Catholic Truth

Society, 38-40 Eccleston Square, London, S. W. 1, England. 1/6

(or about 37$).

Campaigners for Christ Handbook , by David Goldstein (1931).

History of the Catholic Truth Guild of Boston, and an informative

source book. Thomas J. Flynn & Co., 62 Essex Street, Boston,

Mass. $1.00.

The Catholic Evidence Guild (pamphlet), by F. J. Sheed (1929).

Catholic Truth Society, 38-40 Eccleston Square, London, S. W. 1,

England. 2d (or about 4$).

Schools and the Evidence Guild (pamphlet), by F. J. Sheed, H.

John, and T. F. Burns (1926). Catholic Truth Society, 38-40

Eccleston Square, London, S. W. 1, England. 2d (or about 4$).

Catholic Evidence Guild Prayer Book
,
in pamphlet form (1928).

Sheed and Ward, 63 Fifth Avenue, New York City. 25$.

“At the Cross-Roads,” by F. J. Sheed. The Sign
,
Union City,

N. J., February-March, 1929.

“Street Corner Preaching in America,” by Maisie Ward. America
,

461 Eighth Avenue, New York City, April 6, 1929.

“Modern Guildsmen,” by F. J. Sheed. The Commonweal
, 386

Fourth Avenue, New York City, December 4, 1929.

“The Catholic Evidence Guild in the English Schools,” by Rev.

W. F. Rea, S.J. The Missionary
,
Brookland, D. C., April, 1932.

“Catholic Evidence Guild Program,” by Rev. Charles A. Hart,

D.D. Catholic Missions
,
Mirror Press, Springfield, Mass., January,

1933.

“Articulate Catholic Laymen,” by William E. Kerrish. The Sign,

Union City, N. J., September, 1932.



56 THE CATHOLIC EVIDENCE GUILD

“Street Corner Apologetic,” by F. J. Sheed. Ecclesiastical Re-

view, 1722 Arch Street, Philadelphia, Pa., January, 1934.

“Campaigning for Christ,” by David Goldstein. Columbia
,
New

Haven, Conn., April, 1934.

“Dogma, the Laity, and Catholic Action,” by F. J. Sheed. The

Homiletic and Pastoral Review
, 53 Park Place, New York City,

October, 1935.



Organizations Engaged in Catholic Evidence Work

Following is a list of organizations engaged in other forms of

evidence work prepared from present available data and concern-

ing which it is hoped to publish a later pamphlet:

NATIONAL CATHOLIC EVIDENCE CONFERENCE
Thomas J. Diviney, Secretary

Bank of Manhattan Building, Bridge Plaza North
Long Island City, New York

THE CATHOLIC LAYMEN’S ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA
1409 Lamar Building
Augusta, Georgia

THE CATHOLIC INFORMATION SOCIETY OF NARBERTH
P. O. Box 35

Narberth, Pennsylvania

THE CATHOLIC UNITY LEAGUE
615 West 147th Street

New York City

THE INTERNATIONAL CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY
407 Bergen Street

Brooklyn, New York
THE NATIONAL CATHOLIC INFORMATION BUREAU

Robert Hull, Director

Our Sunday Visitor
Huntington, Indiana

THE CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY OF OREGON
304 McKay Building
Portland, Oregon

THE CATHOLIC LITERARY LEAGUE
P. 0. Box 685

Parkersburg, West Virginia

INTERMOUNTAIN CATHOLIC TRUTH SOCIETY
331 E. South Temple Street

Salt Lake City, Utah

K. OF C. CATHOLIC ACTION COMMITTEE
307 E. Central Avenue

Wichita, Kansas

CATHOLIC EVIDENCE LEAGUE
14 E. Lexington Street

Baltimore, Maryland

LAYMEN’S UNION
329 West 108th Street

New York City

CATHOLIC LITERATURE SOCIETY
2432 Longwood Avenue
Los Angeles, California

Note: Correspondence with regard to the foregoing organizations and others
engaged in this work is respectfully invited.

IT