Francis Cardinal Spellman visits South Vietnam
Francis Cardinal Spellman the Roman Catholic Archbishop of New York and military vicar of the U.S.armed forces for Roman Catholics visits U.S.servicemen in South Vietnam.
In an address at mass in Saigon Spellman said that the Vietnamese conflict was a war for civilizationcertainly it is not a war of our seeking.It is a war thrust upon uswe cannot yield to tyranny.Anything less than victory is inconceivable.
On December 26 Spellman told U.S.soldiers that they were in Vietnam for the defense protection and salvation not only of our country but of civilization itself.The next day Vatican sources expressed displeasure with Spellmans statements in Vietnam.
One source said The Cardinal did not speak for the Pope or the Church.The Pope had previously called for negotiations and an end to the war in Vietnam.
