Sept. 2, 2016 by Catholic News Herald

September 2, 2016

catholicnewsherald.com charlottediocese.org S E RV I N G C H R I ST A N D C O N N EC T I N G C AT H O L I C S I N W E ST E R N N O R T H C A R O L I N A

Seminarian enrollment reaches 24

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2016 Eucharistic Congress Diocese Of Charlotte

Eucharistic September 9 & 10 Congress coming Sept. 9-10

JUBILEE OF MERCY

INDEX

Contact us.......................... 4 Español.................................17 Events calendar................. 4 Our Parishes................. 3-13 Schools......................... 18-19 Scripture readings............ 2 TV & Movies...................... 20 U.S. news..................... 22-23 Viewpoints.................. 26-27 World news................. 24-25 Year of Mercy..................... 2

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‘All for Jesus’

Bishop Curlin reflects on his friend, St. Teresa of Calcutta For pope, new saint is model of mercy at work, fueled by prayer 14-16

MIAMI CIRCLE: A lesson in social justice 6

Catholic Charities now assisting refugees in Asheville 3

Year of Mercy 2

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Don’t miss this! The Diocese of Charlotte’s Year of Mercy website has lots of educational resources for families, including monthly catechesis on the virtues and corporal and spiritual works of mercy. September’s focus is on the Commandments and Conscience – Living Mercy.

Pope Francis

Jesus’ mercy extends to even the greatest of sinners

esus’ loving gaze of tenderness and mercy extends to all who seek forgiveness no matter how great or small their sins may be, Pope Francis said. While many often feel “cast aside” because of their sins, Jesus offers encouragement and “tells us, ‘Courage, come to Me,’” the pope said Aug. 31 at his weekly general audience. “It is the moment of forgiveness, of inclusion in Jesus’ life and the life of the church. All of us are sinners; whether great or small, we all are. The Lord tells us, ‘Courage, come, you are no longer discarded. I forgive you, I embrace you.’ This is mercy,” he said. Reflecting on the Gospel reading of Jesus’ miraculous healing of a woman suffering from hemorrhages, Pope Francis noted the woman’s persistence in trying to reach out to Jesus despite the fact that she was excluded from society because of her condition. “She was a woman discarded from society. It is important to consider this condition – discarded – to understand her state of mind,” he said. “She senses that Jesus can free her from her sickness and from the state of marginalization and indignity in which she has found herself for years.” Through the Gospel story, he said, “we, including Christian communities, are warned against views of women affected by prejudice and suspicion, damaging their inviolable dignity.” The Gospel vision, he added, restores the truth and allows women to be viewed from “a liberating perspective.” “We don’t know her name, but the few lines in which the Gospel describes her encounter with Jesus outline an itinerary of faith capable of restoring the truth and the greatness of each person’s dignity,” he said. After touching Jesus’ cloak, the woman tried to hide and expected to be reproached, the pope said. Instead, she was met with his gaze of “mercy and tenderness” that not only welcomes her, but also “acknowledges her dignity.” This gaze and encouragement from Christ, he added, also is experienced by all those who feel discarded and marginalized by their own sins. The woman is not saved by touching Jesus’ cloak but by His words which “consoled her, healed her and restored her to a relationship with God and with her people,” he said. “Once again Jesus, with His merciful behavior, shows the Church the path it must take to reach out to every person so that each one can be healed in body and spirit and recover his or her dignity as a child of God,” he said.

Learn more at www.yearofmercy.rcdoc.org/catechesis.

Studying and teaching the sacred sciences, liturgical functions, and payment

hurch law (canon 229) gives laypeople the right to receive doctrinal instruction at the highest level, as well as the right to teach the sacred sciences: theology, philosophy, canon law, scripture and Church history. A canonical mission or mandate is required to teach the sacred sciences. This right refers to both men and women. If laypeople are to exercise the role proper to them, though, they must be prepared. In this regard, the Second Vatican Council taught that this preparation must be practical, experiential and theoretical. Not only do laypeople have the right to do this, they have the duty. Current society has an urgent need for educated and articulate laity who will function in this role, especially in politics and in the media, to assist the Church in fulfilling its teaching role. (Canon law (747) states, “The Church, to which Christ the Lord has entrusted the deposit of faith so that with the assistance of the Holy Spirit it might protect the revealed truth reverently, examine it more closely, and proclaim and expound it faithfully, has the duty and innate right, independent of any human power whatsoever, to preach the gospel to all peoples, also using the means of social communication proper to it. It belongs to the Church always and everywhere to announce moral principles, even about the social order, and to render judgment concerning any human affairs insofar as the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls requires it.” Laypeople may also teach in theological schools, a role no longer reserved to clergy. There are two conditions: first, they must be academically qualified, and second, they must have a mandate. Both clergy and laypeople have the right to teach the sacred sciences if they are authorized by the ecclesiastical authority concerned. Church law also lays out which liturgical functions may be performed by laypeople. Canon 230 has three sections: First, it specifies that laymen who possess the age and qualifications established by decree of their local conference of bishops can be admitted to the ministries of lector and acolyte. Second, laymen and laywomen can serve as lectors and cantors. And third, “when the need of the Church warrants it and ministers are lacking,” laypeople can exercise the ministry of the word, offer liturgical prayers, confer baptism and distribute Holy Communion, according to the prescripts of the law. Interpretation of this canon continues to evolve. It shows that both laypeople and ordained ministers may hold some liturgical offices. The Vatican’s Congregation of Divine Worship permits local conferences of bishops to establish ministries in their own regions. These ministries often function in the absence of a priest.

The Holy See has also granted permission for girls to be altar servers. This decision was confirmed by Pope John Paul II in 1992. Admission to ministries must be guided by the local bishop’s conference, which gives each diocesan bishop the faculty to decide whether to permit women to serve at the altar. In the United States, ministries open to the laity are not limited to those established by law. Parishes have established additional ministries, such as greeters and ushers. Canon 231 reads that laypeople who dedicate themselves exclusively to Church service or apostolic work, either permanently or temporarily, are obliged to acquire appropriate formation so they may conscientiously, earnestly and diligently fulfill their role. Further, with civil law being observed, laypeople have the right to decent remuneration to provide for their needs and those of their family. They also have the right to social security and health benefits. Excluded from this canon are those who provide professional or technical services under service contracts, as these are governed by civil law. In conclusion, canonist John Beal wrote that respect for the rights of the faithful enables them to participate in the life of the Church and so promotes and strengthens ecclesial communion. The faithful are valued members of the community. Recently the Church has been active in mobilizing the faithful for the activities central to its mission. The Church’s teaching mission is largely in the hands of dedicated laypeople. The Church’s liturgical life – the principal form of its sanctifying mission – is carried out by a host of talented and dedicated lay ministers. Church governance also has lay professionals. The recognition and protection of the rights of the faithful are essential for these works to continue. In simple terms, “People of God, these are your rights, exercise them.” Editor’s note: This series about the rights and obligations of the Christian faithful, as set forth in canon (Church) law, has been written especially for the Catholic News Herald by Mercy Sister Jeanne-Margaret McNally. Sister Jeanne-Margaret is a distinguished authority on canon law, author of the reference guide “Canon Law for the Laity,” and frequent lecturer at universities and dioceses. A graduate of The Catholic University of America with multiple degrees including a doctorate in psychology and a licentiate of canon law (JCL), she is a psychologist for the Tribunal of the Diocese of Charlotte and a judge in the Metropolitan Tribunal of the Archdiocese of Miami. At www.catholicnewsherald.com: Read Sister Jean-Margaret McNally’s entire series on canon law and the rights of the laity

Your daily Scripture readings SEPT. 4-10

Sunday: Wisdom 9:13-18b, Philemon 9-10, 12-17, Luke 14:25-33; Monday: 1 Corinthians 5:1-8, Luke 6:6-11; Tuesday: 1 Corinthians 6:1-11, Luke 6:12-19; Wednesday: 1 Corinthians 7:25-31, Luke 6:20-26; Thursday (The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary): Micah 5:1-4a, Matthew 1:1-16, 18-23; Friday (St. Peter Claver): 1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22b-27, Luke 6:39-42; Saturday: 1 Corinthians 10:14-22, Luke 6:43-49

SEPT. 11-17

Sunday: Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14, 1 Timothy 1:12-17, Luke 15:1-32; Monday: 1 Corinthians 11:17-26, 33, Luke 7:1-10; Tuesday (St. John Chrysostom): Corinthians 12:12-14, 27-31a, Luke 7:11-17; Wednesday (The Exaltation of the Holy Cross): Numbers 21:4b-9, Philemon 2:6-11, Jn 3:13-17; Thursday (Our Lady of Sorrows): 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, John 19:25-27, Luke 2:3335; Friday (Sts. Cornelius and Cyprian): 1 Corinthians 15:12-20, Luke 8:1-3; Saturday: 1 Corinthians 15:35-37, 42-49, Luke 8:4-15

SEPT. 18-24

Sunday: Amos 8:4-7, 1 Timothy 2:1-8, Luke 16:1-13; Monday: Proverbs 3:27-34, Luke 8:16-18; Tuesday (Sts. Andrew Kim Tae-gon and Paul Chang Ha-sang, and Companions): Proverbs 21:1-6, 10-13, Luke 8:19-21; Wednesday (St. Matthew): Ephesians 4:1-7, 11-13, Matthew 9:9-13; Thursday: Ecclesiastes 1:2-11, Luke 9:7-9; Friday (St. Pius of Pietrelcina): Ecclesiastes 3:1-11, Lk 9:18-22; Saturday: Ecclesiastes 11:9—12:8, Luke 9:43b-45

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September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI

2016 Eucharistic Congress Diocese Of Charlotte

Year of MercySeptember 9 & 10 JUBILEE OF MERCY themed Eucharistic Congress coming Sept. 9-10

Photo provided by Connie Ries

One of the diocese’s newest seminarians is Edgar Moises Noveron Palacios, a parishioner at St. Philip the Apostle Church in Statesville and the son of Mr. and Mrs. Edgar Noveron and Rosa Maria Palacios. He began his seminary formation at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 21. Before he left, church members and pastor Father Thomas Kessler threw him a “farewell social,” organized by the parish’s Family Life Committee and the Spanish community.

Seminarian enrollment reaches 24 SueAnn Howell Senior reporter

CHARLOTTE — For the first time in its 44-year history, the Diocese of Charlotte has 24 men in formation in three seminaries. A contributing factor to the record number of seminarians this year has been the establishment of a minor seminary in Charlotte, St. Joseph’s College Seminary. The new college seminary is for undergraduate men discerning a vocation to the priesthood, one step before enrolling in a major seminary for more specific priestly formation. Enrolled in the diocese’s seminarian program, the men will work toward a bachelor’s degree in philosophy at Belmont Abbey College. There are eight men currently enrolled in the college seminary, living in a refurbished building on the campus of St. Ann Church in Charlotte. The diocese also has 13 men currently studying at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio. They are in the advanced stages of priestly formation, ranging from pre-theology to major theology. Four of the men are ordained transitional deacons and are scheduled to be ordained to the priesthood in late June 2017. They include: Deacon Matthew Bean, Deacon Brian Becker, Deacon Christopher Bond and Deacon Christian Cook. The Pontifical North American College in Rome is home to three of the diocese’s seminarians who are engaged in major theology studies. One of them, Peter Ascik, is scheduled to be ordained to the transitional diaconate in late September in Rome. He is expected to be ordained to the priesthood at St. Mark Church in Huntersville in late June along with the four others now at the Josephinum. “It’s a remarkable blessing to see so many young men respond to our Lord’s invitation to discern the priesthood,” said Father Christopher Gober, diocesan vocations director. “The prayers and sacrifices of the people in the Diocese of Charlotte are bearing fruit before our eyes.” A new poster and prayer cards featuring the diocese’s seminarians will be distributed to all parishes in the near future.

possibility it could reopen in January. Staff in Catholic Charities’ Asheville office are busy assisting the recent refugees with basic services including cultural orientation, completing legal paperwork, signing up for English classes, registering children for school, setting up medical appointments, and helping them with housing, food and clothing assistance when needed. “Last week we had six families arrive on the same day!” said Marina Gundorin, immigration supervisor for the Asheville office. “It was very crazy. The first flight arrived around 1:45 p.m. (Aug. 23) and the last flight came in around midnight.” In many cases, Catholic Charities staff are present when the refugees arrive at the Asheville airport. In other cases, the refugees’ American relatives help them when they step off the plane. The Kulbeda family arrived Aug. 20 from Belarus. The family of six led by mother Liudmila, 31, and her husband, Aleh, 33, sought a better life for their four children, who are aged 2-9. They are Pentecostal Christians reuniting with their family, fleeing religious persecution at home, and have waited two years to come to the U.S. Liudmila’s grandparents, whom they had not seen for 10 years, served as their family connection for their refugee application and are currently

CHARLOTTE — Mark your calendars for the 12th annual Eucharistic Congress – a free, twoday event celebrating our Catholic faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist Sept. 9-10 at the Charlotte Convention Center. In what has become an annual gathering of the Church of the Diocese of Charlotte, the Eucharistic Congress is expected to attract more than 13,000 people from around western North Carolina and the Southeast. As this is a special jubilee year for the Church, the theme for the congress comes from Luke 6:36: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” All of the speakers will touch on the theme of mercy. “These are words spoken by Jesus, in which He tells His disciples to practice mercy toward others,” notes Bishop Peter Jugis. “The practice of mercy demonstrates that we are children of the heavenly Father, who is merciful to all.” The congress will include Mass; a Eucharistic procession through uptown Charlotte; the sacrament of confession; speakers and programs geared especially for adults, children and college students; vendors offering Catholic merchandise and information; and more. It will begin at 6:30 p.m. Friday with Byzantine rite vespers followed by a Bible study led by Father Matthew Kauth, rector of the new St. Joseph College Seminary in Charlotte. Afterward, there will be a Eucharistic procession to St. Peter Church, where Adoration will take place all night. There will also be a special College Night program. Belmont Abbey College alumnus Adam Trufant and his band, G.K. and the ChesterTones, will be performing for college-age participants. Saturday’s events kick off at 9 a.m. with a Eucharistic procession from St. Peter Church to the Charlotte Convention Center.

REFUGEE, SEE page 21

MERCY, SEE page 21

Photo provided by Kelly matsey

Three members of the Pavlov family arrived from Ukraine at the Asheville airport Aug. 23. Serhii, Svitlana and their daughter Milana joined members of their extended family who have moved to the U.S. for a better life. Serhii’s brother applied to bring the young family to the U.S.

‘Happy to be with family’

Catholic Charities now assisting refugees in Asheville SueAnn Howell Senior reporter

ASHEVILLE — Refugees fleeing religious persecution in Eastern Europe are finding a new home in Asheville, thanks to a new program of Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte. Catholic Charities has resettled 38 refugees since July 1 from Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine through its Remote Placement Program, a joint partnership with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and the U.S. State Department that is an expansion of its existing refugee resettlement program in Charlotte. The Asheville refugees are a bit different than the typical refugees its Charlotte office assists, however: most have family members already here who can help them when they arrive. “Each of these refugees is coming to the U.S. because a family member completed an affidavit of relationship through the Lautenberg Program, a program that began in 1989 to help someone living in the U.S. to bring over a relative living in the former Soviet Union,” said Susan Jassan, program director for Catholic Charities. Catholic Charities expects to assist a total of 99 refugees with this program by the end of November. The federal Lautenberg Program is now closed, Jassan added, but there is a

UPcoming events 4

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following upcoming events: Sept. 2 – 12:10 p.m. Mass for Charlotte Area Home Schoolers St. Patrick Cathedral, Charlotte

Sept. 9-10 12th Eucharistic Congress Charlotte Convention Center, Charlotte

Sept. 14 – 7 p.m. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Joan of Arc Church, Candler

Sept. 3 – 4:30 p.m. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Francis of Assisi Church, Jefferson

Sept. 13 – 11 a.m. Presbyteral Council Meeting Pastoral Center, Charlotte

Sept. 18 – 11:15 a.m. Sacrament of Confirmation/Parish and Mission anniversaries St. Joseph Church, Bryson City

Sept. 5 – 11 a.m. Mass honoring the canonization of St. Teresa of Calcutta Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Charlotte

Sept. 13 – 6:30 p.m. Dedication of DeJoy Primary Education Center St. Pius X Church, Greensboro

Sept. 21 – 6 p.m. Sacrament of Confirmation Immaculate Conception Church, Hendersonville

Diocesan calendar of events September 2, 2016

HIGH SCHOOL REUNIONS

Volume 25 • Number 24

Notre Dame High School: Sept. 9-11 at Emerald Isle for all alumni and spouses of Notre Dame High School in Greensboro. Located first in Southern Pines, the Catholic high school was moved to Greensboro in 1957 into the former location of St. Leo’s Hospital, which had closed in 1955. Notre Dame was a girls boarding school first, then changed to an integrated, co-ed day school, with teachers from the Sisters of Mercy. Students came from Burlington, High Point and Greensboro. It closed in 1968. Contact Kathy Dowd at kdowd01@att.net or 704-502-5016 for details.

1123 S. Church St. Charlotte, N.C. 28203-4003 catholicnews@charlottediocese.org

704-370-3333 PUBLISHER: The Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis, Bishop of Charlotte

Lectures & Workshops

STAFF EDITOR: Patricia L. Guilfoyle 704-370-3334, plguilfoyle@charlottediocese.org ADVERTISING MANAGER: Kevin Eagan 704-370-3332, keeagan@charlottediocese.org SENIOR REPORTER: SueAnn Howell 704-370-3354, sahowell@charlottediocese.org Online reporter: Kimberly Bender 704-808-7341, kdbender@charlottediocese.org

LISTEN & PRAY: 7:15 p.m. Tuesdays, Sept. 6, 13 and 20, with Father Frank Cancro at Queen of the Apostles Church, Belmont. Will deal with timely topics and afford the opportunity to listen to people’s stories, reflect on Church teaching and give an opportunity for discussion and questions around these topics: Racism and Privilege; The Stranger, Immigration and Fear; and People of the Book: Islam and Religious Tolerance. ENTERTAINMENT

COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT/CIRCULATION: Erika Robinson, 704-370-3333, catholicnews@ charlottediocese.org

MOON FESTIVAL 2016: 6-11 p.m. Friday, Sept. 16; Saturday, Sept. 17; and 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18, at St. Joseph Vietnamese Church, 4929 Sandy Porter Road, Charlotte. For details, call Bao Vu at 704-504-0907. PRAYER SERVICES & Groups

The Catholic News Herald is published by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte 26 times a year. NEWS: The Catholic News Herald welcomes your news and photos. Please e-mail information, attaching photos in JPG format with a recommended resolution of 150 dpi or higher, to catholicnews@charlottediocese.org. All submitted items become the property of the Catholic News Herald and are subject to reuse, in whole or in part, in print, electronic formats and archives. ADVERTISING: Reach 165,000 Catholics across western North Carolina! For advertising rates and information, contact Advertising Manager Kevin Eagan at 704-370-3332 or keeagan@charlottediocese.org. The Catholic News Herald reserves the right to reject or cancel advertising for any reason, and does not recommend or guarantee any product, service or benefit claimed by our advertisers. SUBSCRIPTIONS: $15 per year for all registered parishioners of the Diocese of Charlotte and $23 per year for all others. POSTMASTER: Periodicals class postage (USPC 007-393) paid at Charlotte, N.C. Send address corrections to the Catholic News Herald, 1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, N.C. 28203.

“Protecting God’s Children” workshops are intended to educate parish volunteers to recognize and prevent sexual abuse. For details, contact your parish office. To register and confirm workshop times, go to www.virtus. org. Upcoming workshops are: ASHEVILLE: 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 3, and 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 5, St. Lawrence Basilica (parish office building basement), 97 Haywood St. Charlotte: 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 1, St. Peter Church (Biss Hall), 507 South Tryon St. GREENSBORO: 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road HUNTERSVILLE: 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 17, St. Mark Church, 14740 Stumptown Road KERNERSVILLE: 9 a.m. Saturday. Oct. 1, Holy Cross Church, 616 South Cherry St. SALISBURY: 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 12, Sacred Heart School, 385 Lumen Christi Lane SUPPORT GROUPS

GRAPHIC DESIGNER: Tim Faragher 704-370-3331, tpfaragher@charlottediocese.org

Hispanic communications reporter: Rico De Silva, 704-370-3375, rdesilva@charlottediocese.org

SAFE ENVIRONMENT TRAINING

Pro-Life Rosary: 9 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 3, at 901 North Main St. and Sunset Drive, High Point. Outdoors, rain or shine. Parking available nearby. For details, call Jim Hoyng at 336-882-9593 or Paul Klosterman at 336-8486835. CHARLOTTE Maronite Mission: Masses are offered weekly at 12:30 p.m. Sundays, at St. Matthew South Campus, 4116 Waxhaw-Marvin Road, Waxhaw. The Maronite Mission of Charlotte is an Eastern rite Catholic Church in full communion with the pope. Healing Mass and Anointing of the Sick: 2 p.m. every third Sunday of the month, St. Margaret of Scotland Church, 37 Murphy Dr., Maggie Valley. Individual prayers over people after Mass by Charismatic Prayer Group members. For details, call the church office at 828-926-0106. Evening Novenas: Every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at Christ the King Church, 1505 East Kivett Dr., High Point. All are invited to pray the Novena to Our Lady of Perpetual Help. Join them in praying for the needs of your families and for our hurting world. For details, call the church office at 336-883-0244. WORLDWIDE MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER WEEKENDS: Nov. 4-6 in Atlantic Beach. For details go to www. NCMarriageDiscovery.org or call 704-315-2144.

MOTHERING WITH GRACE: Second Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. in the Assembly Room at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid, Charlotte. For details visit www. motheringwithgrace.org. Shining Stars Adult day respite: Meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte. Shining Stars is a nonprofit adult day respite program for members of the community with early to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. For details, call Suzanne Bach at 704-335-0253. Alzheimer’s Caregiver and Family Support Group: Meets the first Monday of the month, 6:30-8 p.m., in Family Center Room 203 at St. Mark Church, 14740 Stumptown Road, Huntersville. Organized with the Alzheimer’s Association, the monthly meetings are for the caregivers and family members of people with Alzheimer’s. For details, email Janet Urban at jgraceart@yahoo.com. AFTER THE BOXES ARE UNPACKED: A 10-week class based on the book will meet Wednesdays, starting Sept. 14 at St. Thérèse Church, 217 Brawley School Road, Mooresville. Sessions meet 10 a.m. to noon or 7 to 8:30 p.m. For details, contact Sophia McNiff at 704-508-2217 or sophialmcniff@ gmail.com, or Tracy deRoos at 704-663-3575 or tjderoos@ windstream.net. YEAR OF MERCY Divine Mercy Holy Hour: Every first Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m., in the Daily Mass Chapel at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. Everyone is welcome to attend and pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, venerate and be blessed by the parish’s first-class relic of St. Faustina Kowalska. Recite Divine Mercy prayers and read Scripture and excerpts from St. Faustina’s diary. Each month’s Holy Hour will be for the

following intentions: Oct. 6, Marian Jubilee Dedicated to Mary; Nov. 3, prisoners; Dec. 1, healing of the family. Sponsored by the Cenacles of Divine Mercy. Divine Mercy Holy Hour: Every First Friday of each month at 7 p.m. at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 1400 Suther Road. There will be readings from the Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska, veneration of the Image of Divine Mercy, the sung Chaplet of Divine Mercy, exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and benediction. Year of Mercy website: Keep up to date on all Jubilee Year of Mercy events, download catechetical resources on the spiritual and corporal works of mercy, watch videos on the theme of mercy, and much more, at the Diocese of Charlotte’s Year of Mercy website: www.yearofmercy.rcdoc.org. YOUNG ADULTS ASHEVILLE THEOLOGY ON TAP: For Catholics in their 20s and 30s in the Asheville region. For details, check them out on Facebook, Twitter or MeetUp. CHARLOTTE AREA: Groups for Catholics in their 20s and 30s, single or married, are active on MeetUp at www. meetup.com/charlottecatholicyoungadultministry and at: St. Gabriel Church: on Facebook at “St. Gabriel Young Adult Ministry” St. John Neumann Church: call Meg VanGoethem, 815-545-2587 St. Matthew Church: On Facebook at “Young Adult Life: A St. Matthew Ministry” St. Patrick Cathedral: on Facebook at “St. Patrick Cathedral Frassati Fellowship-Young Adult Ministry” St. Peter Church: look them up on MeetUp at www. meetup.com/St-Peters-Catholic-Young-Adult-MinistryCharlotte-NC St. Thomas Aquinas Church: online at “Aquinas’ Finest,” www.stacharlotte.com/finest Our Lady of Consolation Church: contact Denise Duliepre, 917-575-0871 Holy Spirit Church in Denver: call Nicole Lehman, 704-607-5207 St. Michael Church in Gastonia: For Catholics in their 20s and 30s in the Gastonia area. Meets once a month. Online at www.stmichaelsgastonia.org/youngadults. GREENSBORO WAY OF CHRIST: The young adult ministry at St. Pius X Church in Greensboro: at www.stpiusxnc.com/woc, on Facebook at “wayofchrist” and Twitter @wocgreensboro or email Dan McCool at wocgreensboro@gmail.com

Is your PARISH OR SCHOOL hosting a free event open to the public? Deadline for all submissions is 10 days prior to desired publication date. Submit in writing to catholicnews@charlottediocese.org.

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

Priests’ retirement collection set for Sept. 17-18 CHARLOTTE — Our priests, our “spiritual fathers,” give their lives in service to the people of God and His Church. Now, as His people, we have the opportunity to respond with gratitude for all they have done for us by donating generously to the Priests’ Retirement and Benefits Collection, being taken up in all parishes in the Diocese of Charlotte the weekend of Sept. 17-18. The annual collection goes to support the Diocese of Charlotte’s 21 retired diocesan priests and 141 priests actively serving the faithful of western North Carolina. Forty-seven of those in active service are religious order priests from nine religious orders for whom retirement contributions will be made. In his letter to the people of the diocese, Bishop Jugis noted, “Even through the years of their retirement, these men continue to serve the people of our diocese. They visit the sick in nursing homes and hospitals. They go to our prisons, where they counsel the inmates. “These men pray daily for the people of the diocese, offer Mass for the intentions of parishioners, and give of their time and talent to help with weekend Masses and confessions in parishes throughout western North Carolina.” The collection goal for the Priests’ Retirement and Benefits Plans for 2016-’17 is $1,780,000. The funds will be allocated as follows: $911,000 will go towards the pension contribution; $253,000 for pension contributions for religious order priests’ retirement plans; $589,000 for retirement benefits expense for retired diocesan priests’ health plan; and $27,000 for administrative and fundraising costs. To reach the collection goal, each parish in the diocese is assessed 3.5 percent of its annual offertory collection to raise the funds needed to support the plans. In most parishes, the assessment amounts to slightly less than two times the regular Sunday offertory. Bishop Jugis asks the faithful to give “prayerful consideration as to how you can show your gratitude to the many priests who serve the people of our diocese so faithfully.” — SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

Youth ministry guidelines promulgated Bishop Peter Jugis recently signed the updated Protocols for Ministering to and With Minors. The original protocol became diocesan law in 2004. Youth Ministry Director Paul Kotlowski and Providence Sister Betty Paul, in cooperation with pastors in the diocese, helped update the guidelines which were promulgated by Bishop Jugis. To read more, go to www. catholicnewsherald.com. sueann howell | catholic news herald

Bishop Peter Jugis was among the speakers at the first Respect Life conference for pro-life leaders in the Dicoese of Charlotte Aug. 28, sponsored by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte. Mike FitzGerald | Catholic News Herald

Respect Life conference ‘informative,’ ‘inspiring’ Mike FitzGerald Correspondent

HUNTERSVILLE — The Diocese of Charlotte held its first formal Respect Life conference Aug. 28 at Christ the King High School in Huntersville. The event, open to all parish Respect Life coordinators and pro-life activists, drew close to 30 participants representing approximately 15 Charlotte area parishes and Knights of Columbus councils. The event began with Mass, which was offered by Jesuit Father Joseph Koterski, associate professor of philosophy at Fordham University in New York, and the conference’s keynote speaker. During his keynote address, Father Koterski reviewed the social teachings of the Church and the philosophical foundations for the right to life. The conference also featured addresses from Be Not Afraid ministry, which supports parents experiencing a poor prenatal diagnosis; and a powerful testimony from Jackie Childers with Rachel’s Vineyard, a post-abortion healing ministry. The event concluded with an address by Bishop Peter Jugis, who encouraged pro-life leaders to persevere and to continue their work through prayer and fasting.

The conference was well received by Respect Life coordinators. Andy Zorichak, Respect Life coordinator at St. Ann Church in Charlotte, said, “It was very informative and I was especially moved by the Be Not Afraid ministry presentation.” Tammy Harris, St. Gabriel Church’s Respect Life coordinator, also found it inspiring. “The conference allowed me to make so many connections within the Respect Life community. It helped me to create deeper bonds within this ministry,” she said. The conference, organized by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte, was the fruit of a new collaboration between the diocese and C-PLAN (Catholic Pro-Life Action Network of Charlotte), a coalition of Charlottearea parish Respect Life coordinators that organizes citywide Catholic Respect Life efforts. Catholic Charities plans to hold the conference annually and rotate it among the three regions of the diocese (Asheville, Charlotte and the Triad). To learn more about Catholic Charities’ Respect Life program, go online to www.ccdoc.org/services/socialconcerns-advocacy/respect-life. To find out about C-PLAN, go to www.prolifecharlotte. org.

OUR PARISHESI

Maryvale Sister Mary Norman Joseph passes away VALE — Sister Mary Norman Joseph, CLHC, a member of the Maryvale Sisters, went home to God on Sunday, Aug. 21, 2016. A funeral Mass was celebrated Aug. 25, 2016, at St. Aloysius Church in Hickory. Interment was at the Maryvale Sisters’ cemetery in Vale. She was born in Hartford, Conn., on June 13, 1947, the daughter of George and Cora Palin Woodend. Besides her Maryvale Sisters, she is survived by her mother; a brother, Joseph Woodend; sisters Mary Dupuis and Rosanne Krawiec; and nieces Julianne and Sarah; nephews Jeffrey, Timothy and Zachary; and her loving cousins, Brian and Connie Morin. She graduated magna cum laude from Holy Apostles Seminary College in Cromwell, Conn., and earned her master’s degree in spiritual counseling from The Shalem Institute Washington Theological Union in Washington, D.C. She served in various parishes around the Diocese of Charlotte, most recently at St. Aloysius in Hickory for 25 years as faith formation and adult education director. She will be remembered for her willingness to help all and her gentle, loving smile. In lieu of flowers, she has requested that contributions be made to Maryvale Sisters Day Care School for a scholarship in her name for handicapped or underprivileged children. Warlick Funeral Home was in charge of the arrangements. — Catholic News Herald

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 OUR PARISHES

At www.catholicnewsherald. com: Hear more from the Miami Circle residents and the people who helped them find new homes after their mobile home community was sold to make way for an apartment complex.

(Right) Children are no longer playing on the swing or riding their bicycles in the Miami Circle neighborhood of Arden. The 200-plus residents have moved out, thanks to help from St. Barnabas Church members and others, before the land is redeveloped for an apartment complex. Most of their mobile homes have largely been abandoned because they are too old to move or sell. (Below) Miguel, who lived on Miami Circle for 10 years, tried to find a buyer for his mobile home without much success. Originally from El Salvador, Miguel says, “They say this is a nation of immigrants – I guess because you have to move from one place to another constantly.” Photos by Patricia L. Guilfoyle Catholic News Herald

Miami Circle: A lesson in social justice Patricia L. Guilfoyle Editor

ARDEN — Miami Circle is empty now. No children are playing under the shady oak trees or riding their bikes along the quiet street. No one is chatting on their front decks that peek out over Lake Julian, or sharing the latest news at the neighborhood mailboxes. The last of the 55 families who once called Miami Circle home moved out this week, after the land they lived on for decades was sold to a developer who will build a 290-unit apartment complex there. But what began as a sad, inevitable chapter in the gentrification of south Asheville became so much more – thanks to the Holy Spirit and the work of a tenacious group of parishioners at St. Barnabas Church in Arden. The story began Jan. 31, when residents of Lakeview Mobile Home Park (as Miami Circle is formally called) received letters notifying them that the land beneath their trailer homes had been sold. Each family would get $1,000 to move out by July 1. “We didn’t know how to react. How do you react? Who do you scream at?” says Maria Escobedo, who’s lived on Miami Circle for eight years. We were shocked, we were mad.” The residents – mostly poor, firstgeneration Latino immigrants with limited English and knowledge of the law – were also scared. “We’ve been there so long that it was just like one big family. Everything was just

perfect,” recalls Escobedo. “Once the letter came, we were like, ‘What do we do? How do we get out of here so quickly?’ We’d been living here so long that it was just a shock.” Residents turned to Deacon Rudy Triana at St. Barnabas Church. As the Hispanic liaison for the parish, Deacon Rudy knew that more than half of Miami Circle’s residents were parishioners. “A lot of them were in tears,” Deacon Rudy says. “The majority of them are very shy, very afraid of their position, and they really didn’t know what their rights were.” With the approval of Father Adrian Porras, pastor, the deacon quickly recruited others to the cause: among them Susan

Chitwood, chairperson of the parish’s Peace and Social Justice Commission; John Smith of the local St. Vincent de Paul Society, which had helped many of the residents in the past with financial assistance; and Nick Haskell, Catholic Charities’ poverty and justice education coordinator for western North Carolina. Chitwood, an attorney, and Deacon Rudy, with 30 years’ experience in real estate and development, spearheaded the team, which grew to include other churches and civic leaders and – importantly – the Miami Circle residents themselves. Following Haskell’s advice, the residents chose leaders to represent them, including

the bilingual 20-year-old Escobedo as neighborhood president. “We had a couple of meetings at the mailboxes,” Escobedo says with a laugh. “That’s the only place where you could actually meet. It was perfect for everybody.” This teamwork was critical, Haskell points out, to ensure “that it’s not the Church doing this for people, it’s us doing it together.” They figured out how much it would cost for the residents to move their trailers or find new homes, and what other help they needed. And they listened closely to the residents, some of whom were afraid to go up against the developer given their tenuous position. “They were scared that if they pushed it too far, it could be worse,” Escobedo says. They knew there was no law to prevent the residents from being evicted. And while many of them owned their mobile homes, they had only month-by-month ground leases. Even if they could pick up and move, the trailers were too old to put on the road again, and mobile home parks with vacancies in the Asheville area are scarce. In fact, Buncombe County has only a 1 percent vacancy rate on apartments and affordable housing options are rare, Smith notes. “So there’s nowhere to go.” Deacon Rudy and the others arranged a meeting at the church with the developer, Hathaway Development of Atlanta. It was a pivotal moment, everyone says. With the help of volunteer translators HOUSING, SEE page 7

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

St. Barnabas’ Deacon Rudy Triana and Susan Chitwood survey the Miami Circle neighborhood not long before all 55 families had to move out of their longtime home.

HOUSING FROM PAGE 6

from nearby St. Eugene Church in Asheville, residents found their voice. They explained how they would be forced to leave friends they’d known for years, their children would have to change schools, they didn’t know where to go even if they did have the money to move. Also, Miami Circle was perfectly situated near the grocery store and school – no car needed. People were losing more than just their homes. “That was very moving for me and I think for the other people there,” recalls Haskell. “Because people were just really saying how they felt about what was happening. You could see how hard it was for them. They really didn’t feel that they had a voice. They didn’t think people would listen to them, because they felt marginalized.” Deacon Rudy recounts persistently negotiating with the developer for more time to move and more money – first $2,000, then $4,000, then $8,500. He, Chitwood, Escobedo and others attended hundreds of hours of meetings and sought help from anyone in the community they could think of. Through all the ups and downs of the process, they say they learned more about local politics than they ever imagined, and they suffered doubts about ever having any success for the people of Miami Circle. At a June 14 Asheville City Council meeting, thanks to mediation from Mayor Esther Manheimer, the developer offered a payment of about $5,253 per family and an extension to Sept. 1 to move out. The residents, led by Escobedo and Deacon Rudy, gratefully accepted. “Under the law, the City Council didn’t have to listen to us at all,” Deacon Rudy says. “The developers, under the law, didn’t have to give us one penny – not even $1,000.” He told city leaders after the vote, “Thank you for giving a voice to the voiceless, a face to the faceless, and dignity that Jesus Christ has guaranteed us all.” “That was the moral authority of the Church, and I really think that the Holy Spirit guided all of us to this conclusion,” he says. Adds Chitwood, “We always worked from our hearts. It was just like a drum beat, a heartbeat. And it worked.” Developer Nick Hathaway told the Asheville Citizen-Times afterwards, “We all worked together to our best with such a complicated and difficult situation. We were just happy that everyone had found an acceptable agreement that was the best we could financially offer for support.” But the story doesn’t end there. When it came time to give out the first of two payments to the Miami Circle families at the parish on Aug. 1, the Holy Spirit was present again, they say.

Deacon Rudy, Chitwood, Escobedo and the others were all there, so was Miami Circle’s landowner Wes Reinhardt. Homeward Bound, an Asheville non-profit that finds housing for the homeless, had been chosen to hand out the money, but during the meeting Reinhardt jumped in, personally speaking with families as they received their checks. A spirit of joy spread through the room. “People were so friendly,” Chitwood recalls. “It was like we’d all grown up and gone to elementary school together!” Residents will receive the rest of their money sometime in September, when the developer closes on its apartment deal. Meanwhile, they’ve all either sold or abandoned their old trailer homes to resettle wherever they could find affordable housing. The St. Vincent de Paul Society is using a $5,000 grant from the National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul to help with moving expenses. And St. Barnabas parishioners have learned a lot. Escobedo not only found an apartment, she discovered an interest in business and is changing her major at Asheville– Buncombe Technical Community College. And, as she has seen the ties grow closer between St. Barnabas’ Anglo and Latino parishioners, she notes, “I pretty much earned a new family with all of this. People are now coming together. It was a blessing at the end of the day.” “Never doubt what God is telling you. Never doubt your faith,” she says. “Be strong, and ask for help when needed, because there’s people there to help you.” Deacon Rudy says he is thankful to God that the parish could serve as the hands of Christ for the people of Miami Circle. “It was a great way for the Church to be seen in the community – that we’re not just about ourselves, but that we care about the whole community,” adds Haskell. “It is the Church putting faith into action, and living its faith outside of the church building.” Chitwood says she’s learned that “through prayer, whether formulated or just felt, if you act in faith, graces are given.” Everyone agrees that through God’s grace, they turned what had been a problem affecting a group of poor people into an opportunity to grow closer to fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter which side of the negotiating table they were on. “That’s what we’re called to do: love our neighbor,” Chitwood says. “Everybody has dignity. He or she is created in the image and likeness of God, whether they have a bank account that’s huge or a house that’s in shambles, or no house.” This was about Catholic social justice – solidarity and subsidiarity – in action, she adds. “This wasn’t a big government movement. This was just people, local people, saying, ‘Wait a minute. Something’s not right about this. Let’s make it right.’ And we did. We did.”

Photos by Giuliana Polinari Riley

Shelby parishioner celebrates 100th birthday Giuliana Polinari Riley Correspondent

SHELBY — Members of St. Mary, Help of Christians Church in Shelby gathered around fellow parishioner Bessie Thompson Aug. 13 to honor her life of service, devotion to God and love for all as she celebrated her 100th birthday. At a reception in the parish social hall after Mass, Thompson was presented with framed congratulations from President and Mrs. Barack Obama, North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory and Shelby Mayor O. Stanhope Anthony III. Bessie Walton Thompson was born in Oconee, Ga., on Aug. 12, 1916. Around 1919, her family moved to Buffalo Street in Shelby. She attended Cleveland School, although her education was cut short after the eighth grade because of financial difficulties. After her mother died, she moved in with her grandmother on Pinkney Street. It was there she met Jay Giles “JG” Thompson, her next-door neighbor and future husband. She began working when she was very young, at first helping her grandmother with her laundry work. She also worked several jobs in and around Shelby, including a few summers at Ridgecrest Resort, where she especially enjoyed meeting people from all over the world. After she and JG Thompson were married on Oct. 22, 1941, they were employed as a team in many different jobs. They worked at the Ogontz School for Girls, spending the school year in Pennsylvania and the summers with the students in New Hampshire and Maine. (The Ogontz School is now part of Pennsylvania State University.)

The young couple decided that the constant traveling was too much, so they settled down for a while in Cape May, N.J., where they worked at the Hotel Congress Hall. Thompson also worked at a Girl Scout Camp in East Hampton, N.Y. In 1958, the Thompsons flew to Washington, D.C., and adopted a baby boy when he was only a few days old. They named him Danny Jay “Chip” Thompson. The family of three then moved back to Shelby on Miles Street, where the Thompsons worked at Cleveland Country Club, First Baptist Church, Camp Thunderbird, Cleveland Hospital and Shelby High School. After growing up Baptist and joining her husband in the Methodist Church after they were married, Thompson took instructions from Father John Huston around 1970 and joined the Catholic Church. At that time St. Mary, Help of Christians Church was located at Graham and Beaumonde streets. Thompson says she still has a special love for the old stone church. Thompson worked as a housekeeper for several of the pastors at St. Mary’s, helping to clean the church and working in the nursery watching the children. She retired from her parish job to care for her husband and her aunt and uncle, and later her ailing son, but her devotion to serving others did not diminish. After the death of her husband in 1992, Thompson joined the Foster Grandparent Program in Shelby. She also continued volunteering at Marion and Graham schools until around 2014. Today, Thompson enjoys good health, independent living, visits from her family, church family and friends, and she still does all her own shopping.

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 OUR PARISHES

Celebrating Polish heritage CHARLOTTE — An estimated 400-500 people attended a Mass in Polish to honor St. John Paul II and Our Lady of Czestochowa at St. Thomas Aquinas Church Aug. 21. The fifth-annual Mass included veneration of a first-class relic of St. John Paul, a drop of blood on a piece of his cassock from his assassination attempt in 1981. The Mass was offered by Polish-born Father Jan (John) Trela, now pastor of Blessed Mary Angela Church in Dunkirk, N.Y. In his homily, Father Trela encouraged the faithful to step away from the busyness of their daily lives, seek silence, and pray. “Today we are living in a very fast-paced world. We are not walking, we are running. We are driving faster and we are not patient. Hurry up, do it faster, go faster – we want to have everything today, if not yesterday,” he said. “Stop for a while. Think of what you are living for. Take a break... Listen to this poem written by Blessed Mother Teresa: ‘The fruit of silence is prayer. The fruit of prayer is faith. The fruit of faith is love. The fruit of love is service. The fruit of service is peace.’ “Be quiet, stop talking and start listening. Be open to God speaking in silence.” “When we start to pray, we are open for all God’s ideas. Also, we can easily hear God’s will and what He wants of us,” he continued. “We can recognize God, who He is and how He acts. Finally, we will be able to discover the same that John wrote for us in the Bible: ‘God is love and everyone who loves was born from God and God is in him. Who does not love does not know God and does not know truth.’” Seeking God through prayer in silence, Father Trela said, we can better understand how to love others and how to sacrifice for others. In addition to the Mass, Father Trela heard confessions in Polish for about four hours. Deacon James Witulski, one of the organizers of the celebration, noted that the confession line stretched to the front door of the church. “Confession is an amazingly beautiful and important part of our annual Polish Mass,” Deacon Witulski said. — Photos by Doreen Sugierski | Catholic News Herald

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

(Right) Pictured is Keith Adams from Common Heart collecting food for Our Daily Bread. (Far right) One of the charities that the ministry serves is the Missionaries of the Poor in Monroe. Photos by Natasha Beathe | Catholic News Herald

Feeding the hungry with ‘Our Daily Bread’ St. Matthew partnership with Publix expands to other parishes, stores Natasha Beathe Correspondent

CHARLOTTE — Feeding the poor is not only a corporal work of mercy. For some, it’s a special calling from God. Tom Mahoney knows all about that. Soon after retiring in 1999, he felt inspired to volunteer with charities that feed homeless people, until an opportunity presented itself to start a new charity that would grow beyond his wildest expectations. “When I read that Publix was coming to town, I saw a chance to start a new ministry that would reach more people, especially families,” Mahoney says. Before the Florida-based supermarket chain opened its first store in Charlotte in early 2014, Mahoney contacted the management about donating soon-to-expire bakery products on a daily basis. They were happy to oblige and thus began “Our Daily Bread,” the ministry he established with the support of his parish, St. Matthew Church in Charlotte. Our Daily Bread has grown exponentially since it began two and a half years ago. From one store in south Charlotte, it presently works with eight Publix stores – six in Charlotte, one in Concord and one in Lake Wylie, S.C. – as well as Carolina Foods, the wholesale bakery that makes Duchess Brand snacks. “We receive food from them periodically, whenever they have a surplus,” says Mahoney about Carolina Foods. “The generosity of both Publix and Carolina Foods makes it possible for us to do what we do. Without their participation, we’ve got nothing.” The ministry now delivers bread and other baked goods to 55 nonprofit organizations which care for the poor and needy. Catholic charities account for less than 20 percent, but include the Missionaries of the Poor in Monroe and Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Charlotte, both of which

cater to the growing Hispanic community. Most of the charities are of other Christian denominations and even nondenominational. “We help anyone who is in need of food,” says Tony Lopez, a neighbor and friend who was among the initial team of drivers whom Mahoney recruited. Religion isn’t a determining factor when it comes to feeding the impoverished. Logistical support is key to the success of the operation. Our Daily Bread has 75 committed drivers whose schedules are organized by eight captains who organize the weekly rosters. “There is a captain for each store,” explains Mahoney, who found it necessary to delegate the workload as the ministry began to grow. According to Lopez, the captains are “very responsible people who are dedicated to helping the ministry even though they are not compensated financially.” Likewise, the drivers who collect and deliver the food consider it an act of Christian charity. “We spend money on gas, give of our time, hit the morning traffic and all the inconveniences, but we do it gladly to help the people who are in need of food,” says Lopez, who at 79 is semi-retired and has health issues that prevent him from helping out more frequently. “It takes a bit of physical effort to do this work, but since I don’t travel anymore I’m always available as a backup driver.” With scheduling in the hands of capable captains, Mahoney says, he is able to focus on expanding the ministry. Every new store presents an opportunity for growth. Once Publix began spreading out in this region, Mahoney says he decided to reach out to other Catholic churches in Charlotte with the hope of getting their parishioners involved with Our Daily Bread. “We are a ministry out of St. Matthew, but we work with other churches within the diocese,” he says, adding that the volunteers for the six Charlotte stores belong to different parishes, and a few are not even Catholic. “It’s about Christian charity.” When Publix began opening stores outside Charlotte, Mahoney says he realized the time had come to establish branches of the ministry that would “function independently” but always with the participation of Catholic churches in the area. For instance, before the supermarket chain opened a store in Lake Wylie last summer, he contacted St. Michael the Archangel Church in nearby Gastonia and spoke to the pastor, Father Matthew

Buettner, about introducing Our Daily Bread as a ministry in the parish. Father Buettner agreed and Mahoney showed the parish leadership team how to run things. “I helped them find the charities for the food and the volunteers,” he says. Riguey Gomez is one of the parishioners at St. Michael who responded to the appeal for drivers. Because of her job, Gomez started out doing deliveries on Saturdays until Mahoney asked her to take on the position of captain. She accepted without hesitation. “I’m in charge of the weekly schedule, and that involves finding backups to replace drivers who can’t make their delivery,” says Gomez, adding that the team handling the Lake Wylie store comes from different parishes. Gomez is currently training someone to replace her as captain so that she can assume leadership of a new team St. Michael is forming to handle a soon-to-open Publix store in Gastonia. “I live in Gastonia so it’s more convenient for me,” she says. The mother of two young boys, Gomez got involved because of a desire to help others in need. “I am a single mother and all of my income goes into supporting my boys, so I don’t have extra money to give to the poor. However, I can give of my time,” she says. Gomez admits that she didn’t always have a close relationship with God and the Church, but going through a divorce changed that. “God is first in my life now and He has made a big difference in my life and my commitment to the Church. I serve God through my service, and I am teaching my children the importance of charity.” Besides St. Michael, Our Daily Bread operates independently at St. Joseph Church in Kannapolis – which handles the Concord store – and very soon at St. Thérèse Church in Mooresville. Mahoney is also in talks with St. Aloysius Church in Hickory, where Publix is slated to open a store early next year. “They are interested in putting together a team,” he says. Mahoney is encouraged to see more parishes introduce Our Daily Bread as a ministry, because their participation is necessary for continued growth and subsequently more charities will be helped. Our Daily Bread is always looking for more charities to support so that the food reaches people in need. With 55 BREAD, SEE page 21

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 OUR PARISHES

‘Above all, I wanted to think of and love Our Lord all the time, giving myself completely to Him’

St. Ann parishioner enters Carmel Aug. 30

CCDOC.ORG

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What will you learn by taking a free, one-day class? • Effectiveness of modern NFP methods. • Health, relational, and spiritual beneﬁts. • Health risks of popular contraceptives. • Church teaching on marital sexuality. • How to use Natural Family Planning. September 17th—St. Joseph Catholic Church, Newton October 22nd—St. Matthew Catholic Church, Charlotte November 12th—St. Barnabas Catholic Church, Arden For more information visit our website or contact Batrice Adcock, MSN at 704.370.3230 or bnadcock@charlottediocese.org.

CHARLOTTE — Jylian Carter, 18, a parishioner of St. Ann Church, entered the Carmelite Monastery of Jesus, Mary and Joseph in Elysburg, Pa., Aug. 30. She left home and family to discern her call to a cloistered life where she will spend her days in silent and community prayer. Carter recently shared with the Catholic News Herald how she discerned her vocation to Carmel: “From the very beginning my parents tried to surround me with good and truth. Being homeschooled, I always had my mother’s virtuous example before my eyes. After her conversion, soon followed by my father’s, the dual impact of my parents’ good example increased. “Once we became Catholic, I read the lives of the saints over and over again, steeping my imagination in these stories and cultivating a desire for the salvation of souls. Whether giving Carter nearly everyone I knew a miraculous medal or playing ‘the children of Fatima’ at the church playground, my interest in the saints was evident, and, as prayer life was so important to the saints, so too, was it in our lives. “My mother saw to it that we set aside a part of each morning for mental prayer, prayed the rosary daily as a family, and attended Mass several times a week. These were all very beneficial spiritual exercises, but once we discovered the beauty of the Latin Mass, the spiritual life and all our usual devotions took on an even more attractive appearance. “This marked a tremendous change in my life; I cannot express how much I learned from the beautiful, ancient traditions of Holy Mother Church. From this exposure came my attraction to the religious life. For several years, my interest

in the religious life grew. “Once we moved to the country, my attraction to the religious life quickly developed into a love of the contemplative life. There in the rural solitude it was so much easier to pray, and, all of a sudden, the cloister made sense. My deepening prayer life also helped in this. In reading ‘The Catholic Girl’s Guide’ by Father Xavier Lasance, I found the perfect stepping stone for building the strong prayer life needed in this world, as well as preparation for the religious life. “Then I began the search for the right contemplative order. After consulting my pastor and parents, I wrote to three different communities, praying that God would show me His will. Upon receiving the three replies, there was one that was particularly attractive: the Carmel of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph in Elysburg, Pa. I had such peace and interest in this Carmel that I wondered if it might not be wise to search further. Again, taking the holy advice offered to me, I followed my heart, discontinued my search and let God teach me about Carmel. “After a few months of correspondence with the mother prioress, I visited Carmel and fell head over heels in love with it. The Carmelite life of prayer, love and sacrifice; poverty, chastity and obedience; in silence, solitude and enclosure; for the salvation of souls, especially priests and sinners – was this not heaven on earth? Above all, I wanted to think of and love Our Lord all the time, giving myself completely to Him. “In the meantime, two years of correspondence and prayer passed by, and once I completed high school, the entrance date was set. Yes, it will be heartbreaking to leave my loved ones, but only with Christ will I find true peace, joy and love. “Christ has led me to Carmel. If this is truly His will for me, He will give me all the necessary graces.” — SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

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September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

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In Brief New Scouting chairman named CHARLOTTE — Bishop Peter J. Jugis has appointed Mike Nielsen chairman of the Catholic Committee on Scouting for the Diocese of Charlotte effective Aug. 25. He succeeds Johan Rief.

Unbound Charlotte training to be held Sept. 8-Nov. 3 CHARLOTTE — Unbound, a ministry focused on empowering people to reclaim their true identity in Christ as sons and daughters of the Father, will host five training sessions beginning Thursday, Sept. 8. Unbound aims to equip people throughout the world to take hold of the freedom that they have been given in Jesus Christ, and to help others do the same. The Unbound model is a ministry of Heart of the Father, a deliverance ministry based in Ardmore, Pa., led by Neal and Janet Lozano. It is an inspired model of healing prayer that guides a person in responding to the Gospel and opening their heart more fully to Jesus, through “five keys”: faith and repentance, forgiveness, renunciation, taking authority and receiving the blessings of the Father. Facilitators are needed to lead people through the “five keys” of the Unbound model. Prayer warriors are also needed to provide prayer support for both the individual and the session leader during the healing session. Unbound equips local churches/ministries to

pray effectively for the spiritual and emotional freedom of others. It is a non-confrontational model which focuses on the love, mercy, healing and forgiveness found in Jesus Christ. Participation in the training requires participants to obtain a letter from their pastor stating they have permission to participate in all training activities regarding Unbound Charlotte ministry/outreach. They are also asked to order and read “Unbound, A Practical Guide to Deliverance” by Neal Lozano, during the five week training. Book available on Amazon or Heart of the Fathers Ministries, Ardmore, Pa. Five training sessions will be held: Sept. 8 and 22, Oct. 6 and 20, and Nov. 3. Daytime sessions will be 1-3 p.m. at the Diocese of Charlotte Pastoral Center at 1123 S. Church St. in Charlotte. Evening sessions will be 6-8 p.m. at The Farm at 4029 Mintwood Drive, Mint Hill. You must attend all five sessions. Cost is $20 per person. Clergy may attend for free. Applications are available at www. unboundchltnc.org. For details, contact Julie Jahn, ministry leader, at 704-560-9202 or unboundchltnc@gmail.com. — SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

awarded to Highlands Food Pantry at the International Friendship Center by the Foundation of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte. Our Lady of the Mountains Church wrote the grant earlier this year to benefit the food pantry. The grant will be used to provide food and hygiene products to those in need. Father Francis Arockiasamy of Our Lady of the Mountains and members of his leadership team recently presented the check to Marty Rosenfield at the food bank. — Edward Boos

HIGHLANDS — A $5,000 grant has been

CCDOC.ORG

25th and 50th Wedding Anniversary Celebration If you were married during 1966 or 1991, you and your family are invited to attend the annual Diocesan Anniversary Mass at St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Charlotte on Sunday, November 6, 2016. Mass begins at 2:00 p.m. and will be followed by a reception. To receive an invitation, you must call your church ofﬁce to register.

Sponsored by Catholic Charities

Learn more about the faith with the Lay Ministry program Interested in learning more about the faith, becoming a catechist or religion teacher, or discerning the possibility of becoming a permanent deacon? The diocesan Lay Ministry Office offers a two-year program with classes in Arden, Bryson City, Charlotte, Greensboro and Lenoir. Registration is going on now. For details, contact Dr. Frank Villaronga at 704-370-3274 or favillaronga@charlottediocese.org.

Apply now for a Fall 2016 Rice Bowl grant

Columbiettes help out at Hospice

Highlands food pantry earns grant

OUR PARISHESI

CLEMMONS — The Bishop Greco 9499 Columbiettes of Holy Family Church held a “Poker for Patriots” fundraiser June 4, raising $751 that they then used to buy and set up six nine-foot blue tilt patio umbrellas and stands for the residents of the Hospice House at the Hefner VA Medical Center in Salisbury, so that the residents and their families could enjoy the fresh air and outdoors. — Mitch Miller

Does your parish help run a food pantry, operate a thrift store, or sponsor an emergency services program in your community? If so, consider applying for a CRS Rice Bowl MiniGrant for up to $1,000. Grant applications will be accepted through the postmark deadline of Oct. 15. Information about this grant program (including application, guidelines and eligibility criteria) is available at www.ccdoc.org/cchdcrs. Funded projects must be sponsored by Diocese of Charlotte entities. Grant applications must be reviewed, approved and signed by the parish pastor, office/department head, or school principal. Parishes and Catholic entities in the diocese which received a CRS Rice Bowl MiniGrant in the most recent Spring 2016 round are not eligible to apply in this special round of grants, but are eligible to apply in next year’s round of grants. We welcome your parish’s news! Please email news items to Editor Patricia L. Guilfoyle at catholicnews@ charlottediocese.org.

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 OUR PARISHES

Experiencing difficulties in your marriage? A Lifeline for Marriage SEPTEMBER 16 - 18, 2016 in Raleigh The Retrouvaille Program consists of a weekend experience combined with a series of 6 post-weekend sessions. It provides the tools to help put your marriage in order again. The main emphasis of the program is on communication in marriage between husband and wife. It will give you the opportunity to rediscover each other and examine your lives together in a new and positive way.

Photo provided by Soo-Jin Ridgell

First choir camp at SJN CHARLOTTE — Seventy-five children took part in St. John Neumann Church’s first Choir Camp Aug. 8-12, a week-long experience of learning sacred music. Directed by wife and husband team – Soo-Jin and Robert Ridgell – boys and girls from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade learned choral music from Gregorian chant to the present day. With lessons of vocal pedagogy to music theory, the group formed an esprit-de-corps, bonding them as a community. Each day the choristers attended 9 a.m. Mass, had music lessons and played sports and other activities. A dedicated group of volunteer high school musicians, parents and other parishioners helped lead the camp. The boys and girls offered their voices to the glory of God at Sunday’s 9:30 a.m. Mass, celebrated by Father Patrick Hoare, pastor, and Father Peter Pham.

For confidential info or to register: (434) 793-0242 or retrouvaillenc@msn.com. Visit our Web site: www.retrouvaille.org.

Photo provided by Peggy Schumacher

VBS in Clemmons CLEMMONS — Children who participated in summer Vacation Bible School at Holy Family Church attended morning Mass and shared a song with the congregation July 29. Approximately 130 children and 60-plus volunteers took part in this year’s summer program. They also collected school supplies for the group of parishioners going to Guatemala on a mission trip in November. The school supplies were presented at the offertory at the day’s Mass. Deacon John Harrison blessed the backpacks and supplies.

Prices starting at $2,499 ~ with Airfare Included in this price from anywhere in the USA Several trips to different destinations: the Holy Land; Italy; France, Portugal, & Spain; Poland; Medjugorje, Lourdes, & Fatima; Ireland & Scotland; England; Austria, Germany, & Switzerland; Greece & Turkey; Viking Cruises; Caribbean Cruises; Budapest; Prague; Our Lady of Guadalupe; Colombia; Brazil; Argentina; Domestic Destinations; etc... We also specialize in custom trips for Bishops, Priests, and Deacons. www.proximotravel.com 508-340-9370 Hablamos Español 855-842-8001 anthony@proximotravel.com Call us 24/7

OUR PARISHESI

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

Photo provided by Father Patrick Hoare

Collecting school supplies for those in need Photo provided by Rachel Yarbrough

VBS in Greensboro GREENSBORO — Youth at Our Lady of Grace Church took part in Totus Tuus and Vacation Bible School July 17-22.

CHARLOTTE — St. John Neumann parishioners recently collected school supplies again this year to support the students and teachers at Piney Grove Elementary School, which is among the local Charlotte schools with the greatest need. The parish collected more than 350 notebooks, 160 folders, 280 packs of crayons and markers, along with various other items including glue, notebook paper, pencils, wipes, tissues, hand sanitizer, backpacks and more. The parish plans to do another collection when supplies begin to run low next semester, and it supports Piney Grove throughout the year, with help to families at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and oftentimes with a Lenten collection for needs identified by the school. The school supplies drive was coordinated by Vanessa Fitzgerald. (PIctured above) Among those who helped sort the supplies for delivery were Mickey Duda and his mother Maryanne Duda.

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14 iiiSeptember 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

Celebrating a Saint

St. Teresa of Calcutta

FROM TH

HE COVER

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.comiii

For pope, Mother Teresa is model of mercy at work, fueled by prayer Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY — When Pope Francis canonizes Blessed Teresa of Calcutta Sept. 4, he won’t simply be fulfilling a special duty of his office, he will be honoring a woman he has called “a symbol, an icon for our age.” When talking about the intersection of prayer, mercy, concrete acts of charity and peacemaking, Mother Teresa has been Pope Francis’ go-to reference, particularly during this Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy. In one of his early morning homilies in November, Pope Francis spoke about war and about how, by the way they live their lives, many people promote hatred rather than peace and selling weapons rather than sowing love. “While weapons traffickers do their work, there are poor peacemakers who give their lives

to help one person, then another and another and another,” the pope said. Mother Teresa was clearly one of the peacemakers, he added. “With cynicism, the powerful might say, ‘But what did that woman accomplish? She spent her life helping people die,’” Pope Francis said, noting that the cynics do not realize that Mother Teresa understood the path to peace and they do not. A much longer papal reflection on lessons from the life of Mother Teresa was published in July; Pope Francis wrote the preface to an Italian publisher’s book of talks Mother Teresa gave in Milan in 1973. Her life showed the centrality of prayer, charity, mercy in action, family and youth,

Pope Francis wrote. “Mother Teresa untiringly invites us to draw from the source of love: Jesus crucified and risen, present in the sacrament of the Eucharist.” She began each day with Mass and ended each day with Eucharistic Adoration, which made it possible “to transform her work into prayer.” Her prayer led her to the extreme edges of society – the peripheries – recognizing the poor and the marginalized as her brothers and sisters and offering them compassion, he said. The little nun in the blue-trimmed white sari teaches people that “feeling compassion is possible only when my heart embraces the needs and wounds of the other,” witnessing

‘Do small things with great love.’

to God’s caress, the pope wrote. The Gospel tells people they will be judged at the end of time for how they fed the hungry, clothed the naked and cared for others in need, he said. “Mother Teresa made this page of the Gospel the guide for her life and the path to her holiness – and it can be for us, as well.” Pope Francis also noted that, from her experience ministering to the rejected, Mother Teresa knew and constantly emphasized the importance of family and family prayer. Home, he said, is the place people learn “to smile, to forgive, to welcome, to sacrifice for one another, to give without demanding anything in return, to pray and suffer together, to rejoice and help each other.” And, in a message to young people at mercy, SEE page 16

‘All for Jesus’

Bishop Curlin reflects on his friend, St. Teresa of Calcutta SueAnn Howell Senior reporter

CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte is blessed to have a direct connection to one of the Church’s newest saints, Teresa of Calcutta. Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin, the third bishop of the diocese, was her longtime friend and confessor. As the date of her canonization approaches, Bishop Curlin has been a sought-after resource on the life and legacy of this petite powerhouse of mercy. His friendship with Mother Teresa lasted more than 20 years, until her death in

1997. And Mother Teresa’s ministry, the Missionaries of Charity, which now serves in more than 100 countries around the world, has a convent in east Charlotte where members of her order have cared for the poorest and most vulnerable for more than 20 years. Mother Teresa herself visited Charlotte on June 13, 1995, to attend a private dedication of the convent and lead an ecumenical prayer service that attracted more than 19,000 people. Bishop Curlin served for years as the spiritual director for the local Missionaries of Charity, and although he retired as bishop in 2002, he still celebrates Mass for the sisters regularly. Bishop Curlin met Mother Teresa in the early 1970s when he was the pastor of a poor

parish in Washington, D.C. He remembers celebrating Mass at the National Shrine of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception one Sunday, and Mother Teresa was there during a visit to the U.S. She approached him after Mass and asked if they could talk. They spent hours conversing about her plans to help the poor, and he was struck by her fervor and her faith. Sometime after that, she phoned him from India to tell him he would be coming to give her and her sisters a retreat there. He told her that as a pastor of a poor parish he didn’t have the money to travel, but she was adamant about him leading the retreat. Sure enough, a friend gave him the money to fly to India for the first of what became many visits. “It was a wonderful experience to meet her in her home environment and to be with her where she really began her ministry to the poor in the world,” Bishop Curlin says. He collaborated with her on several projects in the U.S., especially the Gift of Peace Home for AIDS patients, which opened in 1983 in Washington, D.C. “Mother kept saying to me, ‘If you’re going to do work, it’s not social work. It’s Jesus working through you,’” Bishop Curlin recalls. The first time he helped bathe a dying leper in India she encouraged him, saying, “If you see with your heart, you will see Jesus lying here.” She also reminded him that “when you look at someone, you are looking at the face of God.” Bishop Curlin shares that Mother Teresa believed when you hold a dying person in your arms, or when you feed a poor person or cradle a sick child in your arms, your hands are the hands of Jesus. And when you speak to someone, your voice echoes His heart. “She said that our life as Christians is not to lock Christ up inside, it’s to let Him out of us. She actually believed when you woke up in the morning, God woke up in you. Through you, Jesus continues His works of mercy and love and reconciliation. If you have the heart for it, He will do this.” “You must never close your heart to Jesus,” he recalls her saying. “It helped me as a priest, as I had never learned that in seminary,” he adds. “This was the action she taught me. When

photo by The charlotte observer

(Above) Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin and Mother Teresa are pictured at the Charlotte Coliseum during her visit to the Queen City in 1995. (At left) Bishop Curlin holds a photo of Mother Teresa and him that he displays in his home. you go to the door to help a poor person, give them your heart, not just the sandwich in your hand.” Bishop Curlin notes that “All for Jesus” was her motto, and she really believed through each of us, Jesus is made present in this world. “Mother believed that Christians should be possessed by Jesus alone, and that love drives them out to the streets to serve the most needy. She said the greatest hunger is not physical hunger, it is the emptiness of God in us crying out for the fullness of God. The greatest hunger is for God, even if we don’t know Him.” “It’s your life that proves you are a Christian,” he emphasizes. “...The love that comes out of you which is Christ-centered and reaches another person. Whether they are dying, or whether they are hungry or whether they are depressed – they are all FRIEND, SEE page 16

Local Mass honoring St. Teresa of Calcutta will be held Sept. 5 CHARLOTTE — Bishop Peter Jugis will celebrate Mass at 11 a.m. Monday, Sept. 5, at Our Lady of the Assumption Church in thanksgiving for one of the Church’s newest saints, St. Teresa of Calcutta. Pope Francis will declare Blessed Mother Teresa a saint at a canonization Mass at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome Sept. 4. Her feast day is Sept. 5. Bishop Emeritus William Curlin, longtime friend and confessor of Mother Teresa, will sit in choir for the Mass at Our Lady of the Assumption Church and will serve as homilist, reflecting on the life of this saint of mercy. The Missionaries of Charity sisters, who have a convent in Charlotte, will be present for the Mass in honor of their foundress. All are welcome to attend. Our Lady of the Assumption Church is located at 4225 Shamrock Dr. in Charlotte. — SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 FROM THE COVER

MERCY FROM PAGE 15

the end of the preface, Pope Francis said, “Fly high like the eagle that is the symbol of Mother Teresa’s country of origin,” Albania. “Do not lose hope, do not let anyone rob you of your future, which is in your hands. Remain in the Lord and love him like God loves you; be builders of bridges that break down the logic of division, rejection and fear of others, and put yourselves at the service of the poor.” A favorite motto of Mother Teresa was: “Do small things with great love.” But the “small things” she did so captivated the world that she was showered with honorary degrees and other awards, almost universally praised by the media and sought out by popes, presidents, philanthropists and other figures of wealth and influence. Despite calls on her time from all over the globe Mother Teresa always returned to India to be with those she loved most – the lonely, abandoned, homeless, diseaseravaged, dying, “poorest of the poor” in Calcutta’s streets. “The biggest disease today,” she once said, “is not leprosy or tuberculosis, but rather the feeling of being unwanted, uncared for and deserted by everybody. The greatest evil is the lack of love and charity, the terrible indifference toward one’s neighbor who lives at the roadside, assaulted by exploitation, corruption,

poverty and disease.” Mother Teresa was born Agnes Ganxhe Bojaxhiu to Albanian parents in Skopje, in what is now Macedonia, Aug. 26, 1910. She had a sister, Aga, and a brother, Lazar. Her father was a grocer, but the family’s background was more peasant than merchant. Lazar said their mother’s example was a determining factor in Agnes’ vocation. “Already when she was a little child she used to assist the poor by taking food to them every day like our mother,” he said. When Agnes was 9, he said, “She was plump, round, tidy, sensible and a little too serious for her age. Of the three of us, she alone did not steal the jam.” As a student at a public school in Skopje, she was a member of a Catholic sodality with a special interest in foreign missions. “At the age of 12, I first knew I had a vocation to help the poor,” she once said. “I wanted to be a missionary.” At 15, she was inspired to work in India by reports sent home by Yugoslavian Jesuit missionaries in Bengal – present-day Bangladesh, but then part of India. At 18 she left home to join the Irish branch of the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known as the Loreto Sisters. After training at their institutions in Dublin and in Darjeeling, India, she made her first vows as a nun in 1928 and her final vows nine years later. While teaching and serving as a principal at Loreto House, a fashionable girls’ college in Calcutta, she was depressed by the destitute and dying on the city’s streets, the homeless street urchins, the ostracized sick

people lying prey to rats and other vermin in streets and alleys. In 1946, she received a “call within a call,” as she described it. “The message was clear. I was to leave the convent and help the poor, while living among them,” she said. Two years later, the Vatican gave her permission to leave the Loreto Sisters and follow her new calling under the jurisdiction of the archbishop of Calcutta. After three months of medical training under the American Medical Missionary Sisters in Patna, India, Mother Teresa went into the Calcutta slums to take children cut off from education into her first school. Soon volunteers, many of them her former students, came to join her. In 1950, the Missionaries of Charity became a diocesan religious community, and 15 years later the Vatican recognized it as a pontifical congregation, directly under Vatican jurisdiction. In 1952, Mother Teresa opened the Nirmal Hriday (Pure Heart) Home for Dying Destitutes in a dormitory -- formerly a hostel attached to a Hindu temple dedicated to the god Kali -- donated by the city of Kolkata. Although some of those taken in survive, the primary function of the home is, as one Missionary of Charity explained, to be “a shelter where the dying poor may die in dignity.” Tens of thousands of people have been cared for in the home since it opened. Today, the Missionaries of Charity now has more than 5,300 active and contemplative sisters. In addition, there are

Missionaries of Charity Fathers, and active and contemplative brothers. In 1969, in response to growing interest of laypeople who wanted to be associated with her work, an informally structured, ecumenical International Association of Co-Workers of Mother Teresa was formed. The members of the congregation take vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, but the vow of poverty is stricter than in other congregations because, as Mother Teresa explained, “to be able to love the poor and know the poor, we must be poor ourselves.” In addition, the Missionaries of Charity take a fourth vow of “wholehearted and free service to the poorest of the poor.” Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979, accepting it “in the name of the hungry, of the naked, of the homeless, of the blind, of the lepers, of all those who feel unwanted, unloved, uncared for throughout society.” She also condemned abortion as the world’s greatest destroyer of people. In addition, she was given Pope John XXIII Peace Prize in 1971; the Templeton Prize in 1973; the John F. Kennedy International Award in 1971; the $300,000 Balzan Prize for Humanity, Peace and Brotherhood in 1979; the presidential Medal of Freedom; the Congressional Gold Medal in 1997; and dozens of other awards and honors, including one of India’s highest – the Padmashri Medal. She was beatified in record time – in 2003, just over six years after her death on Sept. 5, 1997 – because St. John Paul set aside the rule that a sainthood process cannot begin until the candidate has been dead five years.

CCDOC.ORG

Help and Hope For Youth & Their Families The Piedmont Triad Ofﬁce of Catholic Charities offers professional youth and family counseling services free of charge, in English and Spanish. Individual and family counseling can help school-age young people who may be dealing with behavioral issues, trauma, changing family dynamics, school issues, depression and anxiety, and life transitions. Licensed, Masters level counselors at Catholic Charities strive to help people in crisis cope with daily challenges and reduce stress, fear, and uncertainty. Parenting Education classes are also available free of charge. All families qualify for services regardless of income.

To request services or make referrals, contact Becky DuBois at 336-714-3203/bjdubois@charlottediocese.org. Free services provided at the Catholic Charities office in Winston-Salem only. 627 West Second Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27120

catholic news herald file photo

Bishop Emeritus Curlin and Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio (far right), who then served as the bishop’s personal secretary, accompanied Mother Teresa as she dedicated the new convent of the Missionaries of Charity that she opened in 1995 in Charlotte.

FRIEND FROM PAGE 15

hurting. You have to take away that pain.” Bishop Curlin, who attended her funeral in Calcutta and submitted testimony to the Vatican on the cause for her canonization, believes Mother Teresa’s canonization during this Jubilee Year of Mercy is providential. “I think it’s wonderful,” he says. “Mother said we’re always judging people. She said, ‘I fear sometimes people look at the Church and say it’s a courtroom – saying who are the washed, who are the unclean, who are the saved and who are the damned.’ She said instead of that, we should always

carry in us what Our Lord carried in His ministry: a tender heart of mercy. “So as a priest I never go into a confessional being harsh, but try to be as tender as I can,” he says. “When I meet people who say, ‘Father, it’s been so long, I don’t know where to begin,’ I say, ‘Welcome home.’ All because of Mother Teresa’s teaching.” Bishop Curlin says he will always remember her joy and her smile, both trademarks of her ministry. “Her joy was a gift, one of the precious gifts we need in the world today,” he says with admiration, adding that he tries to practice this wherever he goes. “I smile at the many times we met, went on retreats together, worked together. I believe that she helped me more than I ever helped her. She would say to me, ‘You are my spiritual father, but you are also my son.’”

facebook.com/ catholic news HERALD ESPAÑOL

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com

Mi Peregrinaje a Mexico Padre Mark Lawlor

oco después de mi ordenación sacerdotal hace 21 años, visito México por primera vez. Fue un viaje corto, pero lo disfrute mucho. Fue un viaje de cinco días, y en mi primera visita a ese bello país, visite la ciudad colonial de San Miguel Allende, la Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en la Ciudad de México y las mayas antiguas en Chichen Itzá, en las cuales subí a la cumbre de la pirámide. Durante mi primera asignatura como sacerdote, el Padre Tom Walsh, Párroco de la Sagrada Familia en Clemmons en ese entonces, me informó que yo iba a ser el Capellán de la comunidad Hispana en Yadkinville. A pesar de que podía leer las oraciones y hablar un poco de español, sabía que iba a necesitar ayuda. El Obispo Curlin y el Padre Mauricio West, escucharon mi pedido de ir a un programa de inmersión en español en México unos meses después. Durante esas cinco semanas en Cuernavaca, aprendí muchísimo, y hoy, 20 años después, todavía estoy aprendiendo español. Yo he visitado México en varias ocasiones durante los últimos años, y acabo de regresar de un peregrinaje a ese país. La razón principal de mi visita esta vez fue para concelebrar la Misa del 50 aniversario del Obispo Jaime Rodríguez Salazar en la Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. Conocí al Obispo Jaime hace diez años durante mi primer viaje al Perú. Tuve la buena fortuna de platicar con él después de una Misa en su catedral. El Obispo me dio la bienvenida a su casa como un hermano y amigo. La Diócesis de Huánuco en Perú tiene un gran espíritu pastoral, y el obispo es el que marca la pauta. El Obispo Jaime es originario de México, y se unió a la Congregación de los Misionarios Comboni, y con ellos sirvió como sacerdote en las Filipinas, África y Perú. Durante su periodo como obispo de esa diócesis, él organizó muchos programas juveniles, de evangelización, para los pobres, para promover vocaciones y para los ancianos. El Obispo Jaime visitó mi parroquia de San Vicente de Paul dos veces. El año pasado, él presentó su plan para la nueva de clínica para los pobres de Huánuco, y nuestros feligreses respondieron con mucha caridad. El Obispo Jaime se retiró recientemente como Obispo de la Diócesis de Huánuco, Perú, y ahora regresó a su país natal de México. Durante mi última visita a México también tuve la oportunidad de visitar unas catedrales y basílicas hermosas. Sin embargo, el haber podido concelebrar la Misa en la Basílica de Nuestra Sra. de Guadalupe fue mi parte favorita. La fiesta de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe se celebra el 12 de Diciembre. La fiesta conmemora las apariciones de la Virgen en el Tepeyac en 1531 a San Juan Diego. El Papa Pio XII llamó a la Virgen de Guadalupe la “Patrona de las Américas.” El Papa San Juan Pablo II llamó a María, “La Estrella de la Nueva Evangelización.” Como la Virgen se le apareció a San Juan Diego y en la milagrosa imagen, la Virgen está embarazada, ella también la invocan como la Patrona de los bebes no-nacidos. Cuando la Reina del Cielo se le apareció a Juan Diego, ella pidió que se construyera un templo en el

Tobo en concierto en la Iglesia de San Gabriel

Fotos proporcionadas por el Padre Mark Lawlor

(Arriba) El Padre Mark Lawlor con el Obispo Jaime RodríguezSalazar durante su visita a México concelebró durante la Misa del 50 aniversario de ordenación del Obispo Jaime. El Obispo Jaime es originario de México, y recientemente se retiró como obispo de la Diócesis de Huánuco en Perú. (Izquierda) El Padre Mark en la Ciudad de México durante su visita a la Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.

CHARLOTTE — El cantante católico colombiano, Héctor Tobo, tendrá un concierto titulado “Por la Unión de la Familia,” el jueves, 8 de Septiembre, a las 7 p.m. en la Parroquia de San Gabriel en Charlotte. El concierto es auspiciado por el Ministerio Hispano de esa parroquia. La Iglesia de San Gabriel está localizada en la 3016 Providence Road, esquina con la Sharon Amity Road. Todos están invitados.

lugar de las apariciones, y le pidió a Juan Diego que el diera el mensaje al obispo. Cuando el obispo pidió un signo de la Virgen, Juan Diego le trajo rosas en su tilma, en la cual la milagrosa imagen de la Virgen de Guadalupe quedó impresa. La imagen original de la Virgen todavía es venerada en la Basílica 485 años después. Noticias de las apariciones y la imagen milagrosa sirvieron para muchas conversiones a la fe cristiana. Los historiadores han estimado que en los primeros siete años después de las apariciones, ocho millones de indígenas en México aceptaron la fe católica y fueron bautizados. Entonces, la fiesta de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe es importante para todos los mexicanos, y para todos los fieles de Norte, Centro y Sur América. La Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe es un gran lugar para hacer un peregrinaje, y es un lugar en donde se hacen muchas expresiones de amor por la Madre de Nuestro Señor. En la Paz de Cristo, el Padre Marcos.

— Rico De Silva, Hispanic Communications Reporter

El Padre Mark Lawlor es el Párroco de la Iglesia de San Vicente de Paul en Charlotte. El Padre Lawlor ofrece Misa en español en esa parroquia todos los Domingos a las 2 p.m.

Estate Planning, Elder Law and Probate PLANNING TODAY FOR YOUR FAMILY’S TOMORROW St. Matthew’s Parishioner

704.843.1446 | www.ncestateplanninginfo.com

15720 Brixham Hill Ave, Suite 300

Charlotte/Ballantyne

Our schools 18

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Time to go back to school!

photos provided by Charlotte Catholic High School

(At left) Father Jason Barone, assistant chaplain at Charlotte Catholic High School, celebrates the first Mass of the new school year Aug. 26. (Above) Charlotte Catholic students pray during the all-school Mass.

The first day of school at Asheville Catholic School was exciting for every arrival! Photo provided by Michael Miller

Eighteen members of the Charlotte Catholic High School Honors Choir performed the National Anthem Aug. 21 at BB&T Ballpark in Charlotte before the Charlotte Knights baseball team took on the Buffalo Bisons. They are pictured singing at home plate with choir director, Dottie Tippett. sueann howell | Catholic news herald

Photo courtesy of Facebook

The Class of 2017 is back for its final year at Immaculate Conception School in Hendersonville. Pictured are the eighth-graders ready to make this a memorable year.

Photo courtesy of Facebook

The first day of school was wonderful at St. Mark School in Huntersville.

The administration and teachers at Bishop McGuiness High School in Kernersville welcomed back students with music, noisemakers, lots of energy and love. Photo courtesy of Facebook

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI

Bishop McGuinness students go on mission to Mexico

Photo provided by Robin Fisher

Students at Sacred Heart School in Salisbury start their first day of school off with the Pledge of Allegiance. At www.catholicnewsherald.com: See more photos from the first day of school around all 19 of our diocesan schools

Photos provided by Kimberly Knox

KERNERSVILLE — Bishop McGuinness High School sponsored a week-long service trip in June to Tizimi, Yucatan, Mexico. Forty students, along with six parents and teachers, joined for a mission to the land of the Maya. The students taught English in a local school, taught Bible stories to the Maya children, painted houses and built a classroom out of earth bags for the local village. “We had a time for reflection each night, and although each personal experience was different, I was extremely impressed with the students desire to serve,” said Martin Mata, the school’s campus ministry leader. The Bishop McGuinness student body has served the Triad community with more than 10,000 hours of service this past school year.

Connecting Elders to Resources in Western North Carolina Saturday, September 24, from 10:00 AM to 3:30 PM (doors open at 9:30 AM) St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church - Murray Hall Morganton, NC This conference will explore issues of concern facing our elder brothers and sisters in Christ and provide informational resources that can make a real difference for individuals, families, and communities. Please come to learn, celebrate, and pray, as Catholic Charities and St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church highlight the treasure of elders in society and offer helpful workshops on a variety of topics.

Go to www.ccdoc.org for details. A $10 registration fee covers the cost of lunch and refreshments. Please bring a check payable to Catholic Charities to the event. Call 704-370-3225 or email jtpurello@charlottediocese.org to register.

Mix 20

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

For the latest movie reviews: catholicnewsherald.com

In theaters

does betrayal since his foster sibling, now an influential army officer, refuses to risk his career by helping the family that took him in as a child. Consigned to be a galley slave, Judah thirsts for revenge until multiple encounters with Jesus (Rodrigo Santoro) open his eyes to the value of forgiveness. Aficionados of the 1959 version may find such scenes as the epic sea battle and the trademark chariot race lacking. Director Timur Bekmambetov and screenwriters Keith Clarke and John Ridley skimp on the careful character development needed to make the protagonist’s ultimate conversion believable. Probably acceptable for older teens. Generally stylized but harsh violence with several grisly deaths and some gore, a nongraphic marital bedroom scene. CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13

‘Kubo and the Two Strings’ ‘Ben Hur’ Though reasonably satisfying as an action picture, this iteration of Lew Wallace’s 1880 novel suffers from a poorly written script that fails to convince when the classic story’s religious theme comes to the fore. First-century Jewish prince Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston) lives a prosperous life in Jerusalem where he carries on a friendly rivalry with his Roman adopted brother (Toby Kebbell), and finds marital happiness with his true love (Nazanin Boniadi). But after he gives shelter to a young zealot (Moises Arias) who was wounded fighting against foreign rule – personified by Pontius Pilate (Pilou Asbaek) – disaster strikes. So, too,

Captivating animated fable about a Japanese street urchin (voice of Art Parkinson) whose troubled family history launches him on a quest for a magical set of armor. He’s accompanied, and protected, on the journey by a prudent monkey (voiced by Charlize Theron) and by a courageous but accursed samurai (voice of Matthew McConaughey) whose body a spell has transformed into that of a beetle. Rich visuals along the lad’s odyssey are matched by the deep emotional appeal of the interaction among the characters in director Travis Knight’s feature debut. But conflicted familial relationships – the young hero’s principal adversary is his own grandfather (voice of Ralph Fiennes) – and an outlook on death suggesting that the departed survive only in the memory of the living put this out of bounds for impressionable youngsters.

Nonscriptural religious beliefs, stylized combat. CNS: A-II (adults and adolescents); MPAA: PG

On TV

‘The Innocents’

n Sunday, Sept. 4, 3 a.m. (EWTN) “Mother Teresa – Sharing the Suffering of Christ.” Mother Teresa characterized her dark experiences of loneliness as “a kiss of Jesus.”

Luminescent, unflinchingly honest and respectful of religion, director Anne Fontaine’s drama about a fictional Benedictine convent in post- World War II Poland gently explores the conflicts between duty to the living and the shattered faith that can result from acts of depravity. The screenplay is loosely based on the real-life exploits of Madeleine Pauliac, a French Red Cross doctor, played by Lou de Laage and renamed Mathilde. After delivering the baby of a young nun, the physician is told the horrible story of how this incongruous event has come about: Several months earlier, invading Soviet soldiers, believing it to be their right, raped the sisters, leaving at least seven of them pregnant, and the abbess infected with syphilis. The film’s ruminations on how believers respond to awful times are superb. But this is obviously a solidly adult picture, and not one for those in search of casual fare. Mature themes, including rape, a nonmarital bedroom scene, several nongraphic depictions of childbirth. CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13

n Sunday, Sept. 4, 4-7 a.m. EDT (EWTN) “Mass of Canonization of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta.” Live broadcast from Rome as Pope Francis celebrates the canonization Mass of the woman known to the world as Mother Teresa. The liturgy will be rerun 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. n Sunday, Sept. 4, 3 p.m. (EWTN) “Mother Teresa – The Legacy.” This moving documentary presents an intimate look at the life, ministry and spirituality of Mother Teresa. n Monday, Sept. 5, 1 a.m. (EWTN) “They Could Be Saints – Mother Teresa of Calcutta” Father Benedict Groeschel looks at the life of St. Teresa of Calcutta, relating many little-known stories that he gathered from having known her for many years.

Other movies

n Monday, Sept. 5, Noon (EWTN) “Mass Of Thanksgiving for St. Teresa Of Calcutta.” Live from Rome.

n ‘War Dogs’: CNS: L (limited adult audience); MPAA: R n ‘Hell or High Water’: CNS: L (limited adult audience); MPAA: R n ‘Don’t Breathe’: CNS: L (limited adult audience); MPAA: R n ‘Mechanic: Resurrection’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: R

n Sunday, Sept. 11, noon-1:30 p.m. (EWTN) “Mass of Thanksgiving for the Canonization of Mother Teresa.” A celebratory Mass in thanksgiving for the recently canonized St. Teresa of Calcutta. Broadcast live from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.

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MERCY FROM PAGE 3

Bishop Peter Jugis will celebrate Mass at the conclusion of the congress on Saturday afternoon. Other speakers include: n Father Paweł Rytel-Andrianik, spokesman for the Polish Episcopal Conference, will give the Holy Hour homily Saturday morning after the Eucharistic procession. He holds doctoral degrees in Biblical theology and Oriental studies from the Franciscan Biblical University in Jerusalem and Oxford University, and is a lecturer at the Papal University of the Holy Cross in Rome. n Father Chris Alar, MIC, who worked in Charlotte before entering the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception in Stockbridge, Mass. more than a decade ago, will give a talk on “Understanding the Message and Devotion of Divine Mercy.” He serves as the director of the Association of Marian Helpers at the National Shrine of Divine Mercy. n Brandon Vogt, a bestselling author, speaker and content director for Bishop

BREAD FROM PAGE 9

charities presently benefiting and more to come, Publix is happy to continue working with the ministry. “Publix is committed to serving our community and donating food to hungry families is part of that commitment,” says Kim Reynolds, media and community relations manager at Publix. “Our Daily Bread is an important resource to so many local nonprofit organizations and one that we are proud to support. Further, Tom Mahoney’s passion and dedication for serving hungry people is admirable. His team is a joy to work with and selflessly

Robert Barron’s Word on Fire Catholic Ministries, will speak on “Seven Steps to Help Young People Return to the Church.” n Vinny Flynn, known as “the man who sings the Divine Mercy Chaplet on EWTN,” will speak on “Seven Secrets of Divine Mercy.” Director of MercySong, Ministries of Healing, Flynn uses his gifts to help people come to understand the teachings of the Church and open their hearts to the healing and transforming power of the Father’s love in every aspect of their lives. Flynn will also sign the Divine Mercy Chaplet. n Spanish track speakers include Father Julio Dominguez, Hispanic ministry coordinator in the western part of the diocese; Father Julio Zafra, tribunal judge for the Diocese of Lima, Peru; Father Roberto Yenny García, rector for the seminary of the Diocese of Tampico, Mexico; and Colombian-born Catholic musician Hector Tobo. “The congress is a great blessing for our diocese,” Bishop Jugis notes. “May the congress help us to grow in holiness, and assist us in reflecting the mercy of Almighty God in our daily lives.” For a full schedule of events, go to www. goeucharist.com. — SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

meeting an important community need.” That passion is the driving force behind Our Daily Bread’s impressive growth and at 81, Mahoney shows no sign of slowing down. “We need more churches to join, more volunteers and more sources of food,” he encourages. “We have deliveries every day of the week, and it’s a great opportunity for them to give the food to people before it goes bad.” Mahoney has taken to heart God’s call to feed the hungry, and he often reminds everyone on board that the people who receive the food “are more important than the person who started the ministry.” If you are interested in getting involved with Our Daily Bread, email Tom Mahoney at mahoney8948@aol.com.

Spend time with Our Lord The Diocese of Charlotte is blessed to have Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament offered in ﬁve locations. All of the faithful, of any age, are invited to participate! Stop by anytime or sign up for a regular Holy Hour: BELMONT

Belmont Abbey College’s St. Joseph Perpetual Adoration Chapel 100 Belmont-Mt. Holly Road Margaret Fox (704) 648-8947 www.belmontabbeycollege.edu/about/ community

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Pennybyrn at Maryfield Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel 1315 Greensboro Road Edna Corrigan (336) 324-4366 www.maryfieldeucharistic.org

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St. Mark Church’s Monsignor Bellow St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road Perpetual Adoration Chapel Estelle Wisneski (704) 364-9568 (located in the Monsignor Joseph A. Kerin Family Center) 14740 Stumptown Road HICkOry St. Aloysius Church’s Immaculate Heart of Mary Sink (704) 892-5107 or email eucharistic.adoration@stmarknc.org Mary Perpetual Adoration Chapel www.stmarknc.org/adoration 921 Second Street N.E. Melanie & Dave King (828) 638-0462 www.staloysiushickory.org/perpetualadoration

REFUGEE FROM PAGE 3

providing them with a place to live. They were able to bring only one bag per person on their flight to the U.S., so they are starting over from scratch. “We are very happy to be here with family,” they said through interpreter Marina Gundorin. “There are a lot of new things to learn.” The Kulbedas were thrilled that there is a community of similar refugees already in Asheville and that Catholic Charities staff spoke their language. “When you come to a new, unknown place where you do not understand anything and all of a sudden someone speaks and you understand! That’s huge! And then they help you! “We felt a lot of support and encouragement from the office,” they said. The Kulbeda children began elementary school with the other children in their area Aug. 29, but unlike their classmates they do not yet speak English. Special accommodations for English as a Second Language classes are being made for them. “So (the) parents are very worried and anxious about the kids,” Gundorin explained. Catholic Charities was able to provide three backpacks and school supplies for the children to help ease their transition. The universal language of toys seems to be a big hit with the children so far. “They especially like all the toys that they have never seen before,” Liudmila said.

‘We have so much community support. This program is prompting us to make partnerships in the community.’ Marina Gundorin Aleh, the father, is a carpenter and hopes to find employment quickly. When asked what he and Liudmila hope for their family, Aleh replied, “to learn English and have our own, safe home.” They also hope someday to afford a washer and a dryer to do their laundry. Asheville has a housing shortage, Gundorin explained, with a 98 percent occupancy rate, which means “it’s a tremendous challenge to find an apartment or anything to rent, so for right now, they are living with grandparents.” Still, Gundorin said, she is very pleased with the larger Asheville community’s reception of the new arrivals. “We have so much community support,” she said. “This program is prompting us to make partnerships in the community. The Department of Social Services, the local community, medical community, college community – all have partnered with us.”

Live Your Faith Be affirmed in your present ministry. Upgrade your certification as a catechist and religion teacher. Fulfill the prerequisite for the Permanent Diaconate.

Grow in your faith. The Diocesan Office of Lay Ministry offers a two-year program designed to help you understand more fully your baptismal call to minister to your family, to others in the Church, and to those in your daily life. Sites include Arden, Bryson City, Charlotte, Greensboro and Lenoir. We are currently accepting applications for the 2016-2018 program. For more information:

Frank Villaronga Director, Evangelization and Adult Education Office

F O R M AT I O N P R O G R A M

704-370-3274 frankv@charlottediocese.org

Our nation 22

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Labor Day statement ties lack of good jobs to decline in family life Mark Pattison Catholic News Service

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today’s “economic and political forces have led to increasingly lowered economic prospects for Americans without access to higher education, which is having a direct impact on family health and stability,” said Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami. Archbishop Wenski, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, made the comments as the author of this year’s Labor Day statement from the U.S. bishops. Linking the decline in good jobs to family woes, Archbishop Wenski said, “Over half of parents between the ages of 26 and 31 now have children outside of a marriage, and research shows a major factor is the lack middle-skill jobs -- careers by which someone can sustain a family above the poverty line without a college degree – in regions with high income inequality.” “Divorce rates and the rate of singleparent households break down along similar educational and economic lines,” he continued. “Financial concerns and breakdowns in family life can lead to a sense of hopelessness and despair. The Rust Belt region now appears to have the highest concentration in the nation of drug-related deaths, including from overdoses of heroin and prescription drugs.” He quoted from Pope Francis’ address to Congress during the pope’s U.S. visit last September: “I would like to call attention to those family members who are the most vulnerable, the young. For many of them, a future filled with countless possibilities beckons, yet so many others seem disoriented and aimless, trapped in a hopeless maze of violence, abuse and despair. Their problems are our problems. We cannot avoid them.” The pope added, “We live in a culture which pressures young people not to start a family, because they lack possibilities for the future. Yet this same culture presents others with so many options that they too are dissuaded from starting a family.” Archbishop Wenski said, “When our leaders ought to be calling us toward a vision of the common good that lifts the human spirit and seeks to soothe our tendencies toward fear, we find our insecurities exploited as a means to further partisan agendas. Our leaders must never use anxiety as a means to manipulate persons in desperate situations, or to pit one group of persons against another for political gain.”

Louisiana floods called worst U.S. natural disaster since Superstorm Sandy Catholic News Service

BATON ROUGE, La. — The line of destruction caused by historic flooding in southern Louisiana stretches for 25 miles, and according to Red Cross officials, it is the worst natural disaster in the United States since Superstorm Sandy in 2012. “As we all know the severe flooding in many areas of our diocese has dramatically affected the well-being and livelihood of countless people,” said Baton Rouge Bishop Robert W. Muench in a videotaped message posted to the diocese’s website, www.diobr.org. “To those so impacted I express genuine empathy, heartfelt solidarity and commitment to help as best as we can,” he said, adding his thanks “to those who have so impressively and sacrificially reached out to serve.” He called the “outpouring of concern” extraordinary in “our area and beyond.” On Aug. 14, Bishop Muench visited three evacuation shelters to comfort evacuees. In his video message, the bishop also pointed out that the diocesan website has a how-to for people who want to donate money or items to flood victims. In an Aug. 24 statement, Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, called on Catholic parishes across the U.S. to take a second collection this month. (The Diocese of Charlotte will have a second collection the weekend of Sept. 24-25.) Donations, he said, will go to support the humanitarian efforts of Catholic Charities USA, the Church’s domestic relief agency. News reports said the civil entity of East Baton Rouge Parish was the hardest hit of parishes in the region by the heavy rains that fell Aug. 11-14. In some areas, as much as 2 feet of rain fell in 48 hours; in another, more than 31 inches of rain fell in 15 hours. Civil authorities reported that at least 13 people died in the floods and that about 60,000 homes were damaged, although a Baton Rouge economic development group put the number of damaged houses at 110,000. The Red Cross put the overall cost of recovery at $30 million. “Thousands of people in Louisiana have lost everything they own and need our help now,” Brad Kieserman, the Red Cross’ vice president of disaster services operations and logistics, told CNN. Four feet of water inundated the new

CNS | Jonathan Bachman, Reuters

A statue of Mary is seen partially submerged in flood water in Sorrento, La., Aug. 20.

Special collection called for Sept. 24-25 to benefit flood victims Parishioners across the Diocese of Charlotte will have the chance to help victims of the recent flood disaster in Louisiana the weekend of Sept. 24-25, through a special collection taken up at Masses at participating parishes. The second collection will fund both short-term emergency aid as well as long-term disaster recovery efforts. Donations should be made payable to one’s local parish, noted for “Disaster Relief.” Donations will be forwarded by parishes to the diocesan finance office, which will then distribute the funds to Church partners offering disaster relief and recovery to affected communities. In an Aug. 30 letter to pastors, Monsignor Mauricio West, vicar general and chancellor of the diocese, wrote, “As you are no doubt aware, communities in Louisiana were recently hit by devastating flooding. This disaster has created a situation beyond which the local communities and agencies cannot handle without outside assistance.” He also encouraged prayers at this time: “Let us pray for all those impacted by disasters such as this recent tragedy in Louisiana and for the generosity of response to those in need.”

Cristo Rey Baton Rouge Franciscan High School, which had just opened Aug. 5. In such a short time, “we’d experienced growth as a family, with the students, with the faculty,” said Jim Llorens, the school’s president, who called the flooding “heartbreaking.” The brand-new school building is closed while school officials assess the damage and find another

location to hold classes. “It was really beginning to come together as a true Cristo Rey family, so we have to regroup ... and make sure we don’t lose that,” Llorens said in an interview with the diocese’s CatholicLife Television apostolate and The Catholic Commentator, the diocesan newspaper.

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September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI

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In Brief Suspect sought in murders of two Mississippi nuns

lawmakers, took effect in June. Compassion & Choices, a group backing the law, said 30 people are known to have taken advantage of the law to hasten their own deaths. The group of doctors, backed by the American Academy of Medical Ethics – also known as the Christian Medical and Dental Society – had sued to suspend the law while their challenge proceeded. But Riverside County Superior Court Judge Daniel Ottolia denied their request for an injunction, and denied a bid by the state of California and backers of the law, which is known as the End of Life Option, to have the doctors’ suit dismissed.

Part-Time Job Opportunity Christ the King Catholic Church, located at 1505 East Martin Luther King Jr. Dr., in High Point, NC, is looking for a secretary preferably bilingual (English and Spanish) to work in the church office five hours per day, three days per week. Candidates must hold a valid Social Security number. E-verification will be completed. Computer skills should include knowledge of PC, MAC and MS Windows. Additional experience in arranging and filling documents in order, etc., and minimum two years’ experience in a secretarial role. Interested candidates should please send their resume to: frgp@northstate.net by September 15, 2016.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Police continued to search for the killer of two women religious who spent years caring for poor people as nurse practitioners in central Mississippi. Sister Margaret Held, 68, a member of the School Sisters of St. Francis in Milwaukee, and Sister FORT WORTH, Texas — A U.S. District Court Paula Merrill, 68, a member of the Sisters of judge in Texas has temporarily blocked a Charity of Nazareth in Kentucky, were found directive by the Obama administration on stabbed to death Aug. 25 in their Durant, transgender access to bathrooms in public Miss., home, police said. They had worked at schools, and the injunction applies nationwide. the Lexington Medical Clinic in Lexington, The directive, or guidance, was issued in May about 10 miles from the house they shared. by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Warren Strain, spokesman for the Mississippi Department of Education. The agencies said Department of Public Safety, said police that denying transgender students access to discovered a car missing from the nuns’ home the facilities and activities of their choice was Retrouvaille Program consists of a weekend the evening of Aug. 25 onThe a secluded street illegal under the administration’s interpretation about a mile from where the women were found of the federal Title IX statute prohibiting sex experience combined with a series of 6 post-weekend dead. Police officers discovered the women’s discrimination in educational programs and bodies after co-workers called asking It to check liketo sports. order by Judge Reed sessions. providesactivities, the tools helpTheput your on them after they failed to report for work. O’Connor in the Fort Worth division of the U.S. marriage in order again. main emphasis of ofthe District The Court for the Northern District Texas prevents the federal agencies from using the program is on communication in marriage between directive to threaten to revoke federal financial husband and wife. Itassistance will give you thewho opportunity to from schools do not agree that Title IX protects transgender students. O’Connor rediscover each other and examine your lives said the language in Title IX is “not ambiguous.” RIVERSIDE, Calif. — A California judge ruled The positive law “specifically Aug. 26 that he will not put the state’sin new together a new and way.permits educational institutions to provide separate toilets, locker assisted-suicide law on hold while a group of rooms and showers based on sex, provided that doctors are challenging it, but he also ruled For their confidential to register: (434) 793-0242 the separate facilities are comparable,” he said. that challenge info couldor continue. The state’s — Catholic News Service assisted-suicide law, voted in last year or retrouvaillenc@msn.com. Visitbyour Web site: www.retrouvaille.org.

Federal judge blocks directive on transgender bathroom access

Experiencing difficulties in your marriage? A Lifeline for Marriage SEPTEMBER 16 - 18, 2016 in Raleigh

Judge won’t stop Calif. assisted suicide law or suit challenging it

YOUR FIRST COMMUNICANTS ARE INVITED TO PROCESS WITH US! His Excellency, The Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis, Bishop of Charlotte

Invites all 2016 First Communicants to honor Our Lord by participating in the Eucharistic Congress Procession!

When: Saturday, September 10 (line up begins at 8:30am) Where: In front of St. Peter’s Catholic Church (507 South Tryon Street in Charlotte) 



Please have all children wear their First Communion attire for the procession. Parents can register their children for the Procession on www.goEucharist.com

Our world 24

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Pope tells quake survivors he will visit them ‘as soon as possible’ Mattarella and Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Set before the altar were dozens of caskets covered with flowers and photos of lost loved ones as well as two small white caskets representing all the children killed in the catastrophe. “It’s fair for people to say, ‘But Lord, where are you?’” he said in his homily. However, if people look deeper they will find that “the earthquake can take away everything, everything but one thing – the courage of faith.” “Seismologists try everything to predict an earthquake, but only faith teaches us how to overcome it,” he said. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. Don’t hesitate to cry out in need, “but make sure you do not lose courage because only together will we be able to rebuild our homes and churches,” he said. He concelebrated the funeral Mass with the bishop of Rieti and archbishop of L’Aquila. Bishop D’Ercole had served as auxiliary bishop of L’Aquila in the months after a devastating earthquake there in 2009 left more than 300 people dead and tens of thousands homeless. The bishop also celebrated a Mass for survivors at an encampment in Arquata del Tronto Aug. 28. Firefighters built a cross made out of two rescue ladders and decorated it with the helmets of first responders. They wove through the rungs a bright red firehose, which took on the

Carol Glatz Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said he wants to visit survivors and those affected by a deadly earthquake in central Italy as soon as possible. He wants to go to the ravaged area to “bring you personally the solace of faith, the embrace of a father and brother, and the support of Christian hope,” he said after praying the Angelus with visitors gathered in St. Peter’s Square Aug. 28. The pope expressed his closeness and concern for the people “hard hit by the earthquake” in the central Italian regions of Lazio, Marche and Umbria. Before leading a prayer for the deceased and survivors, the pope praised the rapid response of the Italian government and volunteers, saying their efforts showed “how important solidarity is in order to overcome such painful trials.” The 6.2 quake rumbled across the region Aug. 24, collapsing roofs, leveling buildings and homes while people slept, and leaving 290 people dead. It also left 388 people injured, with more than 250 of them requiring hospitalization. Rescuers pulled some 238 survivors from the wreckage. Bishop Giovanni D’Ercole of Ascoli Piceno led a state funeral for victims Aug. 27 inside a gymnasium. More than 2,000 people attended, including Italian President Sergio

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epicenter was close to Norcia – the birthplace of St. Benedict. Civil authorities have condemned all the churches in the area as unusable, he said. “There is no longer any place of worship in the birthplace of St. Benedict where people can gather to pray,” he told SIR, the news agency of the Italian bishops’ conference, Aug. 27. A local Caritas was to provide two temporary structures to be used for pastoral centers.

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shape of limp arms and legs draped around the cross and the image of blood trailing downward. Archbishop Renato Boccardo of SpoletoNorcia celebrated a Mass Aug. 26 in one of the many large tents erected in towns and villages to provide provisional shelter for the 2,100 people rendered homeless by the quake and its strong aftershocks. He visited areas in his archdiocese which were affected by the quake, whose

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Destroyed homes are seen Aug. 26 in Pescara del Tronto, Italy.

We welcome guest speaker, Kerri Caviezel, a teacher, coach, and passionate pro-life advocate who has devoted her life to working with youth and spreading the pro-life message. With many years of teaching experience, speaking on issues concerning the Sanctity of Life became a natural outgrowth to spread a preventative message of help, hope, and truth through conferences and other venues around the globe. Kerri stated that the program and care provided to pregnant mothers and their babies at MiraVia is “truly an amazing ‘Gift of Mercy.’” Kerri is married and has three children. Charlotte Convention Center v Crown Ballroom Thursday, October 20, 2016 Registration/Reception, 5:30 pm – Seating for Dinner, 6:15 pm

Reservations are free but REQUIRED To make a reservation or to host a table of (8-10) go to http://miraviabanquet22.eventbrite.com OR contact Banquet Reservations at (704) 525-4673, ext. 10 by October 10, 2016 MiraVia, Inc. is a Catholic non-profit maternity and after-care program serving women and their children in the Charlotte, N.C. region. All material support and services are offered free of charge to clients. Please visit our website, www.mira-via.org, for more information.

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In Brief For 2017 World Peace Day, pope asks to focus on nonviolence VATICAN CITY — When nonviolence is the basic approach of political decisions and public policy, it promotes the restoration and consolidation of peace, the Vatican said. In his message for the Jan. 1 celebration of World Peace Day, Pope Francis will offer reflections on the importance of nonviolence as a political choice, the Vatican said in a statement Aug. 26. “Nonviolence: A style of politics for peace” is the theme the pope chose for World Peace Day 2017, the Vatican said. A papal message on the theme will be sent to heads of states around the world in December. Pope Francis’ frequent references to a “third world war in pieces” highlight the “serious negative social consequences” of violence, the statement said.

Cardinal: Shameful that need for clean water is not a priority VATICAN CITY — Allowing people to drink unsafe water or have no access to dependable, clean sources of water is shameful, Cardinal Peter Turkson told religious leaders. “It is a continuing shame,” too, that people’s needs “are secondary to industries which take too much and that pollute what remains,” said the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. It’s also a shame “that governments pursue other priorities and ignore their parched cries,” he said in the keynote address to an interfaith meeting Aug. 29 in Stockholm, Sweden. The Vatican

office sent Catholic News Service the cardinal’s written speech the same day. The meeting on how faith-based organizations could contribute to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals dealing with water was part of Stockholm’s annual World Water Week gathering. The meeting also came in the run-up to the Sept. 1 World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation. Some 660 million people are without adequate drinking water, and every year millions, mostly children, die from diseases linked to poor water supply and sanitation, according to the United Nations.

Damascus patriarchs call for lifting of sanctions against Syria DAMASCUS, Syria — Christian patriarchs residing in Damascus urged the international community to “stop the siege of the Syrian people” and to lift international sanctions, which they say are deepening the suffering. The three Christian leaders – Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregoire III Laham; Syriac Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius Aphrem II and Greek Orthodox Patriarch John X – directed their Aug. 23 appeal to “the international conscience and the concerned countries.” Although “the main goals of imposing these sanctions are political,” the patriarchs said, they have affected all Syrian people, “especially the poor and working class, whose ability to provide their basic daily needs such as food and medical care are greatly affected. Despite the resolution of the Syrian people in the face of the crisis, the social situation is getting worse and the poverty and suffering of the Syrian people are constantly increasing,” the patriarchs said. In their statement, the patriarchs pointed to specific consequences that are crippling the country and isolating it from the rest of the world. Those include the absence of new investments, a ban on international flights to Syria, reduced exports to the country and the placing of some Syrian companies on the blacklist for international trade.

Trustees agree to protect whistleblowers at Irish seminary DUBLIN — The trustees of Ireland’s national seminary have agreed to bring in a specific policy to protect whistleblowers after serious allegations were made about life in the college. The Aug. 23 announcement also followed a decision by Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin to pull his students from St. Patrick’s College, Maynooth, after publicly raising misgivings about the life and governance of the 221-year-old institution. The archbishop referred to claims of what he described as a “gay culture” in the seminary and further allegations that some seminarians have

been using a gay dating app. Archbishop Martin said some of the allegations had been shown to be true. The seminary trustees – 13 senior Irish bishops, including Archbishop Martin – said in a statement that “there is no place in a seminary community for any sort of behavior or attitude which contradicts the teaching and example of Jesus Christ.” — Catholic News Service

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Expert care focused on you Life-affirming approach to women’s health

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time away to consciously immerse in all three. This retreat allows the time and space to experience a joyful mix of all three – Art, Spirit, Rest! No art experience is

• Minimally invasive and robotic-assisted surgery

required for this guided and exploratory retreat! Amazing creations, relaxation,

• Personalized pregnancy care

smiles and laughter are guaranteed during this soul-stirring time. Space is limited,

• Noncontraceptive approach to women’s health

2909 Maplewood Ave. Winston-Salem, NC 27103 336-277-0340

Saturday, October 1, 2016 from 9am – 4pm

Art, Spirit and Rest – life giving gifts we don’t get enough of! Re-treat yourself to

• Gynecologic care from adolescence to menopause

Novant Health Triad Obstetrics & Gynecology

Friday, September 30, 2016 from 7-9pm

Meet our new provider, Alexis Simon, MD. She joins Lewis Lipscomb, MD, and Stefanie Bates, CNM, at the clinic.

so early registration is suggested. Claudia Fulshaw lives in Durham, NC and is a full-time graphic designer, artist and retreat facilitator, with a desire to share her unique “art spirit”, and her need to create with others.

8/16 • NHMG-107458

$100 Friday & Saturday (commuter with lunch) $55 Saturday (lunch included)

ViewPoints

catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

The good and the beautiful

Fred Gallagher

y wife and I got away recently for a few days. We went to a family reunion where my mother was raised in a community tucked way back in the hollers of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Mama was from a family of Swiss German settlers, strong and decent people who took care of each other. I spoke with one of the cousins who reminds me a lot of my mother. Cousin Kate is way up in her 80s now, though she has retained a youthful countenance. She said she loved the freedom of growing up in such a place where there were no locked doors and people were so much at one with the natural world. As a youngster, she said, she knew all the old folks of the community just as well as the young and that, even then, she grieved the passing of them all. Her husband Bill, who is now 94, sat on the porch the whole time because it’s hard for him to get around these days. He was a bomber pilot in World War II who made it home when so many didn’t and went back to school after the war. Eventually he became a general practitioner in a small South Carolina town. Kate and Bill were married in my parents’ home in 1950, and Bill recalled with a twinkle in his eye seeing “the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen” walk down the stairs in her wedding dress. At the end of our time there, I told Bill that he was the highlight of my visit, and

he replied that he’d gotten more attention that day than he had all year. Then he said that, even though his mind was slipping, he still appreciated life and seeing old friends. And with glassy eyes he added, “I’m just so sad to see everybody leave.” I do hope Bill and Kate are there next year. From there we went over to Appalachian State University where our son goes to school. He had just moved into another dumpy college apartment, and I was so glad it’s him living there and not me. But he makes the grades, so what can we say? I just pray that a secular education doesn’t ruin his thinking. I know his heart is in the right place; I just don’t trust academic circles. There are a lot of godless people in highly influential places, especially in our universities. We took our son to dinner and, though he’s as skinny as a rail, he can still pack in a pretty good meal. It’s always bittersweet leaving him, but we’re awfully proud. Then we headed up to a small community outside of Greensboro where a friend of ours lives in a group home. David “Blue Jean” McAllister, our dear old friend, celebrated his 48th birthday and we gave him one to remember, though he doesn’t ask for much. My wife pampered him and, after a grand trip to Wal-Mart for boots and a shirt and all kinds of hygiene products, we went to eat fish (“shrimps” are his favorite) at a

Protecting God’s Children We proclaim Christ to the world around us by our efforts to provide a safe environment for all people, especially the young and the vulnerable.

In 2002, the bishops of the United States issued the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The charter addresses the Church’s commitment to respond effectively, appropriately and compassionately to cases of abuse of minors by priests, deacons or other church personnel. DIOCESAN REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTING MINISTRY-RELATED SEXUAL ABUSE OF A MINOR 1. Any individual having actual knowledge of or reasonable cause to suspect an incident of ministry-related sexual abuse is to immediately report the incident to the Chancery. 2. The Chancery will then report the incident to the proper civil authorities. The individual reporting the incident to the Chancery will be notified of the particulars regarding the Chancery’s filing of the incident with civil authorities. 3. This reporting requirement is not intended to supersede the right of an individual to make a report to civil authorities, but is to ensure proper, complete and timely reporting. Should an individual choose to make a report to civil authorities, a report is still to be made to the Chancery. The charter can be found on the diocesan website, Charlottediocese.org, click on the tab, “Safe Environment.”

local seafood house. The waitresses even sang to him with a candle glowing in a piece of pecan pie. “Blue” has a pretty low I.Q. and is schizophrenic but he’s doing better here than he has in years. No wasting away in a prison cell. No sleeping in the weeds. Still, when we took him back to his home, a long hallway with dormitory-style rooms, it was dark inside. I suppose they keep all the lights off during the day to conserve energy and keep the electric bill down. I wanted to tell the caretaker on duty that we all do better in the light. But I let it go. I am constantly amazed at how the good and the beautiful exist side by side with the not-so-good and the not-so-beautiful. I think of the loveliness of my elderly cousin and her husband of 66 years, plopped down next to the fact that they live in their memories now, in the faces of their grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and with the inevitable infirmities of age, looking back at life and forward in the lonesome anticipation of their own demise. I’m amazed that such a good and decent young man as my son, who cares so much for others and makes all A’s and grew up with a set of values anchored in his Roman Catholic faith, is surrounded by philosophies that contradict what we taught him. How much will he absorb? Being one of the good guys may not be enough. I choose my battles carefully but I make sure that every single contact

with this kid I love so much and whose soul I treasure is from the heart. And I keep in mind the adage, “God ain’t got no grandchildren!” I’m also amazed that a dark building full of poor, demented souls disconnected from their families can raise my spirits like little else. There I seek to find points of connection, humor and affection – even in the midst of an environment in which I would never want to live myself and in the person of one so limited but one who, nevertheless, makes me feel like his is the closest to the face of Christ I may see in this life. I’m amazed at how such goodness and beauty exist right alongside the harsher realities of our world. Perhaps we do good and cultivate beauty because there is, indeed, such a great need to do so. Perhaps what goodness and beauty we encounter and offer to the world exist to confound the ugliness, loneliness and godlessness, the undeniable evil floating around our world. Perhaps somewhere in the deepest crevices of faith itself is a revelry in the good and the beautiful that lights the dark hallways of our hearts and our minds. Perhaps that’s how we are able to see. And perhaps, just perhaps, that’s why we are here. Fred Gallagher is an author, book editor and former addictions counselor. He and his wife Kim are members of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte.

September 2, 2016 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI

Parish spotlight

Deacon James H. Toner

What we know that ain’t so:

“What you think is the right road may lead to death” (Prv 14:12)

‘Catholax’ What we think is the right road

go to Mass every Sunday, usually. But when Mass is over, I have a life to lead as I want. I’m a Catholic, but I’m not a fanatic or a zealot.

But it’s the wrong road Vice President Joe Biden is Catholic, as are five of the eight current justices of the Supreme Court, about 160 members of Congress, and about a dozen of the 35 (or so) people President Barack Obama has named to his cabinet. One might conclude that U.S. public policy must be well grounded in Catholic moral and social teaching. Not so, of course. The reason that our public policy often directly contravenes Church teaching is that so many of our “leading” Catholics are, well, “Catholax.” Ralph Waldo Emerson Laxism (from the Latin for “slackness”) is a 17th-century concept in moral theology that excused Catholics from their moral “The Naked Public duties on very Square,” by Father slight and Richard John Neuhaus insufficient (Grand Rapids: grounds. Eerdmans, 1984) When Catholic teaching authorities (ranging from parents and priests to college faculties) abandon the inculcation of moral virtue, replacing it with casuistry – case studies and weak-kneed or perplexed ethical “analysis” – laxism results. Modern laxism dates at least to 1960 when presidential candidate John F. Kennedy declared, “I do not speak for my Church on public matters; and the Church does not speak for me.” If, as we Catholics believe, Our Lord is head of the Church, then denying the authority of the Church is tantamount to denying the authority of Christ. So often, all of us – not just politicians – find it much easier to acknowledge the “authority” of a “replacement supreme being.” That replacement may be the idol or mammon of power, prestige, pelf (money) or politics, but the replacement of God or of God’s authority is always at the heart of sin. When we substitute anything for God, we endorse that substitute as divine, and we begin the worship of false gods (see

‘How small the part of all that human hearts endure can laws or kings either cause or cure.’ Suggested Reading

Catechism of the Catholic Church 398). Worshipping spurious gods invariably leads to treating the world and the things of the world as more sacred than what is truly divine. Wrote philosopher Peter Kreeft: “The Church needs to recover some moxie, some chutzpah. We need to stop being nice and conforming to the world, saying, ‘We’re going to win you by being just like you.’ The Church has got to say, ‘We’re better than you – not better people than you, but we have a better worldview, a deeper truth. Our product’s the best one on the market.’ The Church has been so bedeviled by the American religion of egalitarianism that we are terrified to claim superiority. Only if you believe you have something better can you be enthusiastic about it.” Having become tepid about Catholic teaching, we find it convenient, perhaps necessary, simply to ignore the admonition found in Revelation: “Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I am going to spit you out of my mouth” (3:16; see also Rom 12:11). So Catholic enthusiasm may be necessary but, as St. John Paul II told us, enthusiasm alone is not sufficient: “The enthusiastic faith which enlivens your communities is a great enrichment, but it is not enough. It must be accompanied by a Christian formation which is solid, comprehensive and faithful to the Church’s Magisterium.” “Catholax” may be remiss or negligent about doctrine. They may be vague or slack about the faith. They may be careless or indifferent about the liturgy. The effects of such moral atrophy, however, are well beyond the realm of what may be. The result of lax Catholicism is public policy unmistakably corrupted by “serious errors in the areas of education, politics, social action, and morals” (CCC 407). Our pre-eminent Catholic duty is always to be witnesses for Christ and for His Church (see CCC 2044). That duty is not minimized – in fact, it is maximized – when one enters the corridors of power and politics. We must speak for Christ and for His Church; and God have mercy upon our souls if we say that Christ and His Church do not speak for us. Courageous public witness requires our being steadfast in the faith: “Unless your faith is firm you shall not be firm” (Is 7:9; see also 1 Cor 16:13). No wonder the lax flicker and flutter, slip and slide, and toss and turn in every political wind: they have no moral anchor. So they are “children, carried by the waves and blown about by every shifting wind of the teaching of deceitful men, who lead others into error by the tricks they invent” (Eph 4:14; see also Col 2:8, Heb 13:9). We are called “to be the light of the world. Thus, the Church shows forth the kingship of Christ over all creation and in particular over human societies” (CCC 2105). That is our duty, despite the siren songs of the world. And firmness – not laxity – in the faith is our trust (2 Tm 1:14) and our joy (Rom 12:12). Deacon James H. Toner serves at Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro.

Mike FitzGerald | Catholic News Herald

Mass of reparation offered HUNTERSVILLE — St. Mark Church hosted a Mass and Holy Hour of Reparation Aug. 3. Nearly 70 people attended the second-annual service, held to atone for the sins of abortion, contraception, euthanasia and same-sex unions in the United States. Father John Putnam, pastor, offered the Mass of Reparation and preached about the need to make reparation to Christ for these offensive sins, especially those committed against the Eucharist, as Our Lady of Fatima mentioned when she requested the five First Saturday devotions. Reparation is especially needed in light of Catholics who act contrary to Christ’s teachings, Father Putnam noted. (Pictured above) After Mass, Father Cory Catron, parochial vicar, led the faithful in a Holy Hour of Reparation which offered prayers to the Sacred Heart of Jesus in atonement for the sins of man. The service was sponsored by the parish’s Respect Life Ministry. The Catholic Pro-Life Action Network of Charlotte, a coalition of parish Respect Life coordinators, is encouraging each parish to organize this event at least annually. St. Thomas Aquinas Church will be next to offer a Mass and Holy Hour of Reparation in January.

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‘The Lord goes out to meet the needs of men and women and wants to make each one of us concretely share in His compassion.’ Pope Francis

From online story: “Pope: Jesus’ compassion is a call to service, not a vague sentiment” Through press time on Aug. 31, 11,878 visitors to www.catholicnewsherald.com have viewed a total of 28,966 pages. The top 10 headlines in August were: n 2016 priest assignments announced..............................................................................................2,562 n Men told to ‘move forward’ on move-in day.....................................................................................880 n St. Pius X School readies to open DeJoy Primary Education Center........................................703 n Holy Trinity Middle School campus sees major overhaul...............................................................618 n View the current print edition of the Catholic News Herald........................................................ 550 n Charlotte pastor proud of gold medal-winning goddaughter...................................................... 549 n Blessings, smiles as new St. Joseph College Seminary welcomes Bishop Jugis.................. 494 n In gratitude for the gift of the priesthood......................................................................................... 250 n Young women urged to look to St. Kateri for inspiration in combatting pressures ..............220 n Taking up their crosses in Forest City..................................................................................................156

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catholicnewsherald.com | September 2, 2016 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

12th Annual

Eucharistic Congress

Be Merciful, just as your Father is Merciful Diocese of Charlotte Eucharistic Congress September 9 & 10, 2016, Charlotte Convention Center

Byzantine Rite Vespers, Bible Study on Mercy, Procession of the Eucharist from Convention Center to St. Peter Church for Nocturnal Adoration of the Eucharist, College and Young Adult Gathering for Music and Fellowship

K-12 Education Tracks for Students - Register online

Vocation and Catholic Education information

Holy Hour

Sacred Music Concerts

Confession

Religious displays

Holy Mass – Concelebrated by Bishop Peter Jugis and the priests of the Diocese of Charlotte

English and Spanish Tracks for Adults

Vendors of Sacred Art

Brandon Vogt - Seven Steps to Help Young People Return to the Church Vinny Flynn - Seven Secrets of Divine Mercy

IHS

For more information please visit: GoEucharist.com

- This is My Body

Father Chris Alar - Understanding the Message and Devotion of Divine Mercy

CIFUL – L ER uk

Fr. Dr. Pawel Rytel-Andrianik, Holy Hour Homilist

FAT H E

Father Matthew Kauth - Bible Study of Mercy

R OU SY

PRESENTATIONS

C I FUL , J UST ER A

Eucharistic Procession through Uptown Charlotte

6:3

2016 Eucharistic Congress Diocese Of Charlotte

September 9 & 10 JUBILEE OF MERCY