POAU-WOW

The name has a ringing militancy, a brave air of rectitude, and a precisionist disdain for brevity: Protestants and Other Americans United for Separation of Church and State, more familiarly known as POAU. Last week in Denver, at its 15th annual POAU-wow on church and state, the 2000,000-member organization concluded once again that Roman Catholic clericalism wants to smash big holes in the wall between religion and government in the U.S. But it also heard one good Baptist suggest that Pope John XXIII may have made POAU's traditional pugnacity a little obsolete.

Dr. Stanley I. Stuber, executive director of the Missouri Council of Churches and an unofficial observer at the Second Vatican Council last fall, reported that while in Rome he had "come to claim certain bishops, archbishops and cardinals as personal friends, even as dear brothers in Christ." He argued that when Rome itself is seeking to bring all Christians closer together, the time may have come for U.S. Protestants and Catholics to review "the whole matter of public school education." This is about as far as ecumenicism got. Stuber urged Catholic bishops to accept "the spirit and purpose of Pope John" and "declare a moratorium on their campaign for federal aid to parochial schools."

In its advance planning, POAU took cues from its longtime executive director, Methodist Lawyer Glenn L. Archer. "A new phenomenon has appeared in the secular life of the U.S.," said he. "It is the same phenomenon that has played a dominant, often sinister role in the life of many Latin states. Today, the church's secular power seeks to shape the policies of the state, the composition of governmental departments, and the appropriation of Government funds for Catholicism's private purposes." POAU geared to block various Catholic ambitions:

> In the congressional debate on Federal aid to education, POAU believes that Catholic spokesmen will seek to gain public funds for all colleges and universities, then argue that since Catholic colleges are acceptable recipients, Catholic secondary and grammar schools should be also. Warned Archer: ''We will oppose."

> POAU will lobby for foreign-aid controls that would prevent the disbursement of U.S. funds to religious institutions in Latin America. In Girardot, Colombia, James Goff, a Presbyterian missionary, charged that the child of one Protestant was forbidden entrance to a local school built by Alliance for Progress funds and run by Catholic nuns.

> In 12 states, notably Kansas and Colorado, POAU is trying to remove nuns from jobs in the local public schools. At Hays, Kans., says Archer, "we have an agreement to eliminate nuns at the rate of five each year. If it isn't done, we'll take action."

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