Jan. 5, 2018

January 5, 2018

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‘Always looking for Christ in others’ Remembering Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin SPECIAL TRIBUTE INSIDE

Our faith 2

catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Pope Francis

Don’t confess other’s faults, own up to sins Fear and the shame of admitting one’s own sins leads to pointing fingers and accusing others rather than recognizing one’s own faults, Pope Francis said.

“It’s difficult to admit being guilty, but it does so much good to confess with sincerity. But you must confess your own sins,” the pope said Jan. 3 at his first general audience of the new year.

“I remember a story an old missionary would tell about a woman who went to confession and she began by telling her husband’s faults, then went on to her mother-in-law’s faults and then the sins of her neighbors. At a certain point, the confessor told her, ‘But ma’am, tell me, are you done?’ ‘No... Yes.’ ‘Great, you have finished with other people’s sins, now start to tell me yours,’” he said.

The pope was continuing his series of audience talks on the Mass, reflecting on the penitential rite.

Recognizing one’s own sins prepares a person to make room in his or her heart for Christ, the pope said. But a person who has a heart “full of himself, of his own success” receives nothing because he is already satiated by his “presumed justice.”

“Listening to the voice of conscience in silence allows us to realize that our thoughts are far from divine thoughts, that our words and our actions are often worldly, guided by choices that are contrary to the Gospel,” the pope said.

Confessing one’s sins to God and the Church helps people understand that sin not only “separates us from God but also from our brothers and sisters,” he added.

“Sin cuts, it cuts our relationship with God and with our brothers and sisters, in our family, in society, in the community,” the pope said. “Sin always cuts, separates, divides.”

The penitential rite at Mass also includes asking the intercession of Mary and all the angels and saints, which, he said, is an acknowledgment that Christians seek help from “friends and models of life” who will support them on their journey toward full communion with God. Christians also can find the courage to “take off their masks” and seek pardon for their sins by following the example of biblical figures such as King David, Zacchaeus, the Samaritan woman and St. Peter.

“To take measure of the fragility of the clay with which we have been formed is an experience that strengthens us,” Pope Francis said.

“While making us realize our weakness, it opens our heart to call upon the divine mercy that transforms and converts.

And this is what we do in the penitential act at the beginning of Mass.”

St. John Neumann, champion of Catholic schools Feast day: Jan. 5 John Nepomucene Neumann was born on March 28, 1811, in Bohemia, now part of the Czech Republic.

His parents were Philip and Agnes Neumann. He had four sisters and a brother. After college, Neumann entered the seminary. When the time came for his ordination, the bishop was sick and the date was never rescheduled as Bohemia had enough priests at the time.

He wrote to bishops all over Europe but the story was the same everywhere: no one wanted any more priests. He was sure he was called to be a priest but all the doors to follow that vocation seemed to close in his face. But he didn’t give up. He had learned English by working in a factory with Englishspeaking workers, so he wrote to the bishops in America. He walked most of the way to France and then boarded a ship to New York.

He arrived in Manhattan on June 9, 1836, where he was gladly welcomed

by Bishop John Dubois, who at that time had only 36 priests for the 200,000 Catholics living in the state of New York and part of New Jersey. Just 16 days after his arrival, Neumann was ordained a priest and sent to Buffalo, N.Y., where his parish territory stretched from Lake Ontario to Pennsylvania.

Father Neumann established himself in a small log parish house.

He hardly ever lit a fire and often lived on only bread and water. His church had no steeple or floor but that didn’t matter because he spent most of his time traveling from village to village, climbing mountains to visit the sick, staying in garrets and taverns to teach, and celebrating the Mass at kitchen tables.

Because of the work and the isolation

of his parish, he longed for community and so joined the Redemptorists, a religious congregation dedicated to parish and foreign missions, and later became superior of all Redemptorists in the United States.

In 1852 Pope Pius IX named him bishop of Philadelphia. He spent the rest of his life building churches, schools and asylums for his diocese.

He built 50 churches and began the construction of a cathedral.

He was devoted to education and was the first bishop to organize a diocesan school system in the United States. He opened almost 100 schools, and the number of parochial school students in his diocese grew from 500 to 9,000.

He never lost his love and concern for people, and was most comfortable among the poor. On one visit to a rural parish, the parish priest picked him up in a manure wagon. Seated on a plank stretched over the wagon’s contents, he joked, “Have you ever seen such an entourage for a bishop!”

The ability to learn languages that had brought him to America led him to learn Spanish, French, Italian and Dutch so he could hear confessions in at least six languages. When Irish immigration grew, he learned Gaelic so well that one Irish woman remarked, “Isn’t it grand that we have an Irish bishop!”

He died suddenly on Jan. 5, 1860, aged 48.

He became the first American bishop to be beatified. He was canonized by Pope Paul VI on June 19, 1977, the first American male saint. He is buried in St. Peter the Apostle Church in Philadelphia.

— Catholic News Agency, Catholic Online

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2018 theme announced The theme for the 2018 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which is celebrated Jan. 18-25, is “Your Right Hand, O Lord, Glorious in Power.”

The theme, taken from Exodus 15:6, points to the glorious power of God to draw people together in the desire for Christian unity.

Throughout the Biblical narrative of salvation, an unmistakable motif is the unrelenting determination of the Lord to form a people whom He could call His own. The formation of such a people, united in a sacred covenant with God, is integral to the Lord’s plan of salvation and to the glorification of His name. The prophets repeatedly remind Israel that their covenant demanded that relationships among its various social groups should be characterized by justice, compassion and mercy. Reconciliation often demands repentance, reparation and healing of memories.

As Jesus prepared to seal the new covenant in His own blood, His earnest prayer to the Father was that those given to Him by the Father would be one, just as He and the Father were one.

When Christians discover their unity in Jesus, they participate in Christ’s glorification in the presence of the Father, with the same glory that He had lived in the Father’s presence before the world existed. Therefore, God’s covenanted people must always strive to be a reconciled community that serves as an effective sign of how to live in justice and peace for all the people of the earth.

Today, the Bible continues to be a source of consolation and liberation, inspiring Christians to address the conditions that currently undermine the Body of Christ. The Church, like Israel, is called to be a sign and an active agent of reconciliation.

Artwork for this year’s poster is a modified version of a stained glass window “Hand of God” from Our Lady of the Lake Church in Pocono Pines, Pa. The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has a 100-year history, beginning as an eight-day period of prayer in 1908 called the “Church Unity Octave,” established by founders of the Society of the Atonement, Mother Lurana White and Servant of God Father Paul Wattson of Graymoor. The octave begins with the feast of the Chair of St. Peter (Jan. 18) and ends on the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul (Jan. 25). Pope Pius X gave his blessing to the Church Unity Octave and in 1916, Pope Benedict XV extended its observance to the universal Church.

— Graymoor Ecumenical and Interreligious Institute

More online At www.geii.org: Find resource materials for the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, including a downloadable poster and prayer card, ideas for observing the week, scriptural guide and more

Your daily Scripture readings JAN. 7-13

Sunday (The Epiphany of the Lord): Isaiah 60:1-6, Ephesians 3:2-3, 5-6, Matthew 2:1-12; Monday (The Baptism of the Lord): Isaiah 55:1-11, 1 John 5:1-9, Mark 1:7-11; Tuesday: 1 Samuel 1:9-20, 1 Samuel 2:1, 4-8, Mark 1:21-28; Wednesday: 1 Samuel 3:1-10, 19-20, Mark 1:2939; Thursday: 1 Samuel 4:1-11, Mark 1:40-45; Friday: 1 Samuel 8:4-7, Mark 2:1-12; Saturday (St. Hilary): 1 Samuel 9:1-4, 17-19, 10:1, Mark 2:13-17

JAN. 14-20

Sunday: 1 Samuel 3:3-10, 19, 1 Corinthians 6:13-15, 17-20, John 1:35-42; Monday: 1 Samuel 15:16-23, Mark 2:18-22; Tuesday: 1 Samuel 16:1-13, Mark 2:23-28; Wednesday (St. Anthony): 1 Samuel 17:32-33, 37, 40-51, Mark 3:1-6; Thursday: 1 Samuel 18:6-9, 19:1-7, Mark 3:7-12; Friday: 1 Samuel 24:3-21, Mark 3:1319; Saturday (St. Fabian, St. Sebastian); 2 Samuel 1:1-4, 11-12, 19, 23-27, Mark 3:20-21

JAN. 21-27

Sunday: Jonah 3:1-5, 10, 1 Corinthians 7:2931, Mark 1:14-20; Monday (Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children): 2 Samuel 5:1-17, 10, Mark 3:22-30; Tuesday (St. Vincent, St. Marianne Cope): 2 Samuel 6:12-15, 17-19, Mark 3:31-35; Wednesday (St. Francis de Sales): 2 Samuel 7:4-17, Mark 4:1-20; Thursday (The Conversion of St. Paul): Acts 22:3-16, Mark 16:15-18; Friday (Sts. Timothy and Titus): 2 Timothy 1:1-8, Mark 4:26-34; Saturday (St. Angela Merici): 2 Samuel 12:1-7, 10-17, Mark 4:35-41

Our parishes

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

Diocese announces special collection dates for 2018 CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte has announced the dates for seven special collections for 2018. These annual collections fund vital ministries and help support our priests and religious who give generously of their lives in service to the Church.

The 2018 special collections and their dates are as follows: n Jan. 20-21: Combined Mission Collection. This annual collection funds five separate initiatives: the Collection for the Church in Latin America, the Collection to Aid the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, the Catholic Home Missions Appeal, the United States Mission Appeal (Black and Indian Missions), and the Solidarity Fund for the Church in Africa. n March 31-April 1 (Easter Sunday): Seminary and Priests’ Continuing Education. The Seminarian Education Program, in which 28 men are currently enrolled, is primarily funded through the annual Diocesan Support Appeal, the Friend to Seminarians Program, and this second collection. The diocese also uses the funds from this collection to sponsor workshops and programs to help keep priests informed of developments in theology and pastoral practices. n May 19-20: International/National Combined Collection. Donations received from this collection benefit five organizations: Catholic Relief Services, Collection for the Holy Land, Collection for the Works of the Holy Father (Peter’s Pence), The Catholic University of America, and the Catholic Communications Campaign. n Sept. 15-16: Priests’ Retirement and Benefits. This collection goes to support the Diocese of Charlotte’s 87 diocesan priests actively serving the faithful of western North Carolina, and 44 religious order priests from nine religious orders for whom retirement contributions will be made. n Oct. 20-21: World Mission Sunday (Propagation of the Faith). This collection supports the work of the Church in its missions around the world. n Nov. 17-18: Catholic Campaign for Human Development. This collection funds CCHD, founded by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops to help break the cycle of poverty by funding organizations that help people help themselves. With its mission of improving education, housing situations and local economic development, the CCHD continues to make a positive impact in communities nationwide. Twenty-five percent of the funds from the collection are put to use in the Charlotte diocese. n Dec. 8-9: Religious Retirement. This appeal, coordinated by the National Religious Retirement Office, offers support for senior Catholic sisters, brothers and religious order priests whose communities lack sufficient retirement funding. Nationally, some 33,000 women and men religious past the age of 70 benefit.

— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

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FFHL endowment boosts financial aid for Catholic schools SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Thanks to the Diocese of Charlotte’s Forward in Faith, Hope, and Love campaign, families have another source of help to be able to afford the cost of a Catholic education for their children.

The $69 million FFHL campaign, which is funding capital needs and endowments for parishes and ministries across the diocese, among other initiatives, is expected to bring in $3.75 million to establish an endowment for tuition assistance to diocesan schools – and some of that help is available now.

The campaign has raised $69,994,560 in pledges, with $43,333,213 received in payments through Nov. 30, 2017. The pledge redemption period will continue through mid-2019.

The new tuition assistance endowment will be administered through the Foundation of the Diocese of Charlotte. Available income from the endowment will be distributed to qualifying diocesan schools each year for student financial aid.

An endowment is a permanent fund, the principal of which is never touched, but the income from which can be used according to the wishes of the donor organization or individual.

Endowments provide a way to generate income and help sustain the long-term strength and viability of the recipient parish, school or ministry.

Although the program will not start officially until the 2019’20 academic year, a limited amount of funds will be available to schools in need of funds to provide assistance to participating Catholic families with the most significant need in 2017-’18 and 2018-’19.

The per-school allotment is determined based on total funds available and the total qualifying need submitted by the schools.

To qualify for the tuition assistance funds, the school must receive local parish support of at least $500 per participating Catholic student and must have awarded all of its tuition assistance funds available for that school year. Qualifying schools may request funds from the FFHL endowment for participating Catholic students who have withdrawn, will have to withdraw, or have been unable to enroll because they could not afford the cost.

According to Bill Weldon, diocesan chief financial officer, $49,372 has been awarded to four diocesan schools for the 2017’18 school year.

“As the endowment grows, we anticipate awarding approximately $200,000 annually,” he said.

The four diocesan schools receiving money this year are: St. Michael School in Gastonia, $30,236; Our Lady of Mercy School in Winston-Salem, $2,579; Bishop McGuinness High School in Kernersville, $6,915; and St. Leo School in Winston-Salem, $9,642.

The tuition assistance endowment is one of seven endowments being funded by the FFHL campaign.

“FFHL funds have already been going to the parishes, capital projects and endowments across the diocese, but this is the first distribution from any of the seven endowments,” said Jim Kelley, diocesan director of development. “FFHL has had a significant impact on the work being done in parishes and in ministries across the diocese that provide services to FFHL, SEE PAGE 13

CCHD grant applications and Poverty USA resources available JOSEPH PURELLO SPECIAL TO THE CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte annually offers local Catholic Campaign for Human Development grants to non-profits in the Diocese of Charlotte that are targeting the root causes of poverty and related social concerns.

Many of the CCHD grant-funded projects work in partnership with, or under the auspices of, diocesan parishes.

All grant applicants and projects are reviewed for their conformity to Catholic social doctrine and receive a local parish endorsement. Funded projects build community, empower people economically, and support those who are marginalized in society.

This annual grant program distributes grants from funds obtained through the 25 percent of the November CCHD parish-based collection that is retained for use in the diocese. Last spring, 14 local CCHD grants totaling $38,700 were distributed to organizations from 13 cities located in eight of the diocese’s 10 vicariates.

The 2018 grant application and guidelines can be found at www.ccdoc. org/cchdcrs. The email submission deadline for receipt of applications is Thursday, Feb. 15.

CCHD, a program of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops founded in 1969, works to break the cycle of poverty by helping low-income people participate in decisions that affect their lives, families and communities.

CCHD has a complementary mission to expand knowledge of domestic poverty

PHOTO PROVIDED BY JOSEPH PURELLO

One of the 2017 Catholic Charities local CCHD grant recipients is the St. Marguerite Sewing Project of St. William Church in Murphy. The grant helped purchase sewing machines and supplies to teach sewing skills.

Project teachers (all volunteers from the parish and the surrounding community) and students also make clothing for low-income children. Project Coordinator Sister Terry Martin, CND, sees the project as an opportunity for volunteer service for those with sewing skills, and an opportunity for students to learn sewing skills, express their creativity, develop confidence and learn a trade, which can be a source of income. She is pictured with Joseph Purello of Catholic Charities and project team members Joann Moore, Rosemary Wright, Carolyn Sams and Kay Morgan. and has designated January as Poverty Awareness Month. PovertyUSA.org is the online educational initiative of CCHD that seeks to educate and promote understanding about poverty in the U.S. and its root causes.

Visit PovertyUSA.org for resources such as prayers, a poverty quiz, K-12

educational resources, a Poverty USA Tour video about the struggles of living at the poverty line, and an interactive map of the U.S. that illustrates the extent of poverty at state and county levels.

JOSEPH PURELLO is Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte’s director of Social Concerns and Advocacy.

UPcoming events 4

catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following upcoming events: JAN. 7-13, 2018 Bishops’ Annual Retreat JAN. 16 – 11 A.M. Presbyteral Council Meeting Pastoral Center, Charlotte

JAN. 19 – 11:30 A.M. Mass for Life Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Washington, D.C. JAN. 27 – 2 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Gabriel Church, Charlotte

JAN. 17-20 March for Life Washington, D.C.

JAN. 30 – 10 A.M. Holy Mass Christ the King High School, Huntersville FEB. 3 – 11 A.M. Holy Mass for World Day of Consecrated Life St. Patrick Cathedral, Charlotte

Diocesan calendar of events January 5, 2018

ESPAÑOL

Volume 27 • NUMBER 7

MINISTERIO DE PADRES Y MADRES ORANTES: 7 p.m. el tercer viernes de cada mes, en la Iglesia St. Thomas Aquinas, 1400 Suther Road, Charlotte. Todos los padres de familia están invitados a tener un re-encuentro con Jesús Sacramentado, en una Hora Santa. Todos unidos orarán por los hijos del mundo entero. En este Ministerio, el Rosario es nuestra arma y la Eucaristía es nuestra savia. Para más detalles, llamar a Gloria 704-807-5237.

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

CLASES DE INGLÉS: 6-9 p.m. todos los martes y jueves en el Community Life Center, en la Iglesia St. Mary, 205 W. Farris Ave., High Point. Para más información y registrarse, llamar al 336-848-6970.

STAFF

NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING

EDITOR: Patricia L. Guilfoyle 704-370-3334, plguilfoyle@charlottediocese.org

NFP INTRODUCTION AND FULL COURSE: 1:30 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 6, St. Matthew church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Charlotte. Topics include: effectiveness of modern NFP, health risks of popular contraceptives and what the Church teaches about responsible parenting. Sponsored by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte. RSVP to Batrice Adcock, MSN, RN, at 704-3703230.

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 HISPANIC COMMUNICATIONS REPORTER: Cesar Hurtado, 704-370-3375, rchurtado@charlottediocese.org GRAPHIC DESIGNER: Tim Faragher 704-370-3331, tpfaragher@charlottediocese.org

PRAYER SERVICES & GROUPS

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

PRO-LIFE ROSARY: 11 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 6, at 901 North Main St. and Sunset Drive, High Point. Come pray for the end of abortion, and invite anyone else who would support this important cause. Anyone with difficulty standing for 15-20 minutes is welcome to bring a folding chair. Outdoors, rain or shine. For details, call Jim Hoyng at 336-882-9593 or Paul Klosterman at 336-848-6835.

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.

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CHARLOTTE CATHOLIC WOMEN’S GROUP MORNING REFLECTION: 9 a.m. Monday, Jan. 8, in the Assembly Room at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid Road. Mass will be celebrated at 9 a.m. followed by the reflection at 10:30 a.m. by our guest speaker Father Joshua Voitus. For details or to RSVP, visit www. charlottecatholicwomensgroup.org.

‘60 MINUTES WITH JESUS’: Saturday, Jan. 30-Wednesday, Jan. 24, at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Charlotte. Parish mission hosted by Father James Sichko, a full-time preacher, evangelist and motivational speaker based in the Diocese of Lexington, KY. For details, call Michael Burck at 704-543-7677, ext. 1020.

VIGIL OF THE TWO HEARTS: Join Catholics across Charlotte for Mass and overnight Eucharistic Adoration every first Friday-Saturday at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte to pray for the strengthening and healing of marriages and families, the conversion of our nation, and to offer reparation for the sins of mankind through prayer and penance. The vigil will begin with Mass at 8 p.m. each first Friday, followed by Adoration and scheduled prayer, and conclude with 8 a.m. Mass each first Saturday. For details and to sign up for Adoration times, go to www.prolifecharlotte.org.

ST. STEPHEN MARONITE CHURCH: Masses are offered every Sunday at 12:30 p.m., at St. Matthew Church’s Waxhaw location, 4116 Waxhaw-Marvin Road, Waxhaw. St. Stephen Maronite Church of Charlotte is an Eastern-rite Catholic Church in full communion with the pope.

SAFE ENVIRONMENT TRAINING “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:

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.

HENDERSONVILLE: 9 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 13, Immaculate Conception Church, 208 Seventh Ave. West

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.

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.

SUPPORT GROUPS & RETREATS CHRONIC PAIN SUPPORT GROUP: 1:30-2:30 p.m.

Beginning on Wednesday, Jan. 10, in room 203 at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Charlotte. For additional information contact Jennifer Watson, M.P.T. Arthritis Services at 704-348-2723 or Sandra Breakfield, CCDOC Elder Ministry Director at 704370-3220. Sponsored by Arthritis Services in conjunction with Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte.

RETROUVAILLE: A program for married couples that feel bored, disillusioned, frustrated, or angry in their marriage. Most don’t know how to change the situation or even talk with their spouse. This program has helped thousands of couples experiencing difficulties in their marriage. For confidential information or to apply for the next program beginning with a weekend February 2, call 800-470-2230 or 434-793-0242, e-mail us at retrouvaillenc@msn.com, or visit the we site at www. retrouvaille.org.

RACHEL’S VINEYARD RETREATS: Rachel’s Vineyard can help men and women who have experienced abortion begin their healing journey. It creates a healing environment of prayer and forgiveness. The retreat works to reconnect people to themselves, their friends and family after having an abortion. For details, email Jackie Childers jackie.childers1@gmail.com.

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, 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.Shining Stars Adult day respite: Meets on Mondays and Wednesdays at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte.

Shining Stars is a non-profit 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.

YOUNG ADULTS

CHARLOTTE AREA: Groups for Catholics in their 20s and 30s, single or married, are active on MeetUp at www. meetup.com/charlottecatholicyoungadultministry, and at: OUR LADY OF CONSOLATION CHURCH: contact Denise Duliepre, 917-575-0871 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 “The Cathedral of St. Patrick - Young Adult Ministry” ST. PETER CHURCH: look them up on Facebook “St Peter CC Charlotte YAM” ST. THOMAS AQUINAS CHURCH: online at “Aquinas’ Finest,” www.stacharlotte.com/finest ST. MARK CHURCH IN HUNTERSVILLE: online at www.meetup.com/St-Mark-Catholic-Church-YouthAdult-Ministry/ HOLY SPIRIT CHURCH IN DENVER: call Nicole Lehman, 704-607-5207 ST. LEO THE GREAT CHURCH IN WINSTON-SALEM: online at “Winston Salem Frassati, “www.wsfrassati. com.

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 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/ young-adult

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.

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

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Scenes of Christmas joy Christmas is a time of joy despite persecution, Bishop Jugis preaches PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE EDITOR

PHOTOS BY GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Children of the Hispanic community of Immaculate Conception Church in Forest City performed La Pastorela Dec. 23. La Pastorela is a dramatization comprised of song and dialogue about the journey of the shepherds to Bethlehem to meet the newborn Jesus.

After the presentation, the congregation gathered in the parish hall for a festive traditional meal.

St. Patrick Cathedral offered its annual Cathedral Choir Concert Dec. 16.

“An Afternoon of Sacred Music for Advent and Christmas” featured works from Antonio Vivaldi (his “Magnificat in G minor”) and additional works by Morales, Reger and Grancini.

The concert was performed

by St. Patrick’s Children Choir (children in grades 2-8), Adult Choir and String ensemble. The cathedral choirs are directed by Dr. Gianfranco DeLuca.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY MARKUS KUNCORO

The children’s choir at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte sang during the Christmas Eve children’s Mass.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY MARKUS KUNCORO

CHARLOTTE — Christmas Day remains a time of great joy for Christians, even as many people around the world suffer for their faith in Jesus. That was the message from Bishop Peter Jugis as hundreds of people welcomed the birth of Jesus during midnight Mass Dec. 25 at St. Patrick Cathedral.

“We are a joyful people because Jesus is among us, Jesus has come to save us,” Bishop Jugis said. “He has come to live among us, preach His Gospel, live and die for our salvation, and be risen from the dead.

That is cause for joy.

Nothing can destroy Jesus.”

Referring to the Gospel of Luke (2:114) proclaimed during the Mass, the bishop noted, “This beautiful account of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem of Judea, which we have just heard, landed a Catholic priest in jail in India just this month.”

He recounted the recent news of a Catholic priest who staged a Christmas pageant in the small village of Satna, in north central India where he is pastor. He and others with him were arrested and charged with proselytizing, as the majority Hindu region is one where missionaries need government permission to preach and try to convert people.

There have also been calls by extremists to attack Christians in churches during the Christmas season, Bishop Jugis noted.

“All of this reminds us that Jesus is still met with rejection and even with violent opposition today in the world,” he said. The Body of Christ, the Church, faces threats just as Jesus did from King Herod.

“How fortunate we are to be here in the United States where we have – at least most of the time – freedom of religion,” he said, “but we do have to be careful of very subtle attacks or rejection of our Christian faith and of our love for Jesus.”

The secular world roundly rejects Jesus and His Gospel message, the bishop said, and the celebration of Christmas has lost its focus on the birth of Jesus.

“We don’t hear much talk about Jesus out there in the secular world. There is much talk about all of the periphery of Christmas – about Santa Claus, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and Frosty the Snowman,” he said.

Nevertheless, Christians – especially those who face persecution – continue to celebrate Jesus’ birth, and they do so with joy.

“When will people ever learn that persecution does not destroy the faith?” the bishop noted.

“The only thing that destroys the faith is apathy,” he continued.

“Apathy of Christians towards Jesus, apathy regarding the practice of their faith.”

“That apathy, that lukewarmness, is really the worst,” he said, “because it comes from within.”

Christians must hold fast to the joy of the good news announced by the angels to the shepherds in Bethlehem the night Jesus was born, he said.

Christmas is a time to renew our commitment to Christ and live our faith joyfully, he said, regardless of attacks or rejection.

Share the joy of Christmas and the love of our faith with others during this season, he also encouraged. Joy is a “hallmark of Christmas,” he said.

He wished everyone a joyful holiday and prayed for God “to bless you and your families this Christmas, that He may keep all of you in His loving care, and that you’ll go forth joyfully from this celebration to be the followers of Christ that He’s calling you to be.”

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 OUR PARISHES

Scenes of Christmas joy

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER

St. Mark Church’s Alzheimer’s Respite Ministry guests and volunteers performed a Christmas handbell and chorus concert for their families, caregivers and staff of the Huntersville parish Dec. 18. Music is an important therapy for people with dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Many patients can recall memories and emotions as well as have enhanced mental capabilities after singing classic music and songs. Very often, music aptitude and appreciation are two of the last remaining abilities in patients with dementia. Ministry volunteers started working, teaching and practicing for this performance at the beginning of December. The Respite Ministry often uses music as part of the weekly program, and the handbells and keyboard were purchased specifically for use in the weekly ministry. Volunteer Barbara Fredericks directed the group, and Susan Liuzzo and Janet Urban are the two coordinators.

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY CONNIE RIES PHOTO BY AMY BURGER PHOTO PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER

A scene from St Mark Church’s celebration of Mass on Christmas Eve.

St. Mark Church’s preschool students put on a Christmas Nativity play before the holidays. Pictured are the Inn Keeper, Shepherd, Sheep and Angels.

St. Philip the Apostle Church in Statesville held its second annual Christmas Pageant Dec. 17 in the church’s social hall. It was audience interactive and was comprised of children and adults of all ages. The pageant concluded with a small reception afterward.

The children’s choir performs before the children’s Mass on Christmas Eve at Holy Cross Church in Kernersville.

JOHN BUNYEA | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

PHOTO PROVIDED BY MIKE FITZGERALD AND MARKUS KUNCORO (CHARLOTTE LATIN MASS COMMUNITY) GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Students in the faith formation program at Immaculate Conception Church Forest City presented a Christmas play Dec. 17 following the 9 a.m. Mass.

The theme of the presentation was the materialism of Christmas focused on shopping which leads to stress, versus the real meaning of Christmas focused on the birth of Jesus. All students participated in singing traditional Christmas carols. Pictured is a joyful Mary (Madalyn Jones) with Joseph (Nicholas DeLauter) and angels (Dina Chavez-Araujo and Hanna Siviglia) by her side, shows stressed shoppers that “Jesus is the reason for the season.”

St. Ann Church in Charlotte celebrated a Mass in the Extraordinary Form at midnight Dec. 25. An estimated crowd of more than 350 faithful attended the High Mass offered by Father Timothy Reid, pastor. The music featured Gregorian chant by the St. Ann Latin Schola. After Mass, hot cocoa and cookies were served by the Charlotte Latin Mass Community, and the celebration went on well past 2 a.m. Christmas morning. The midnight Latin Mass was the second such liturgy offered at the parish.

St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Gastonia also celebrated a Midnight Latin Mass, with pastor Father Matthew Buettner and parochial vicar Father Jason Christian offering a Solemn High Mass.

The children’s choir of Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury sang before Mass on Christmas Eve. BILL WASHINGTON | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

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January 20th - North Charlotte Three Class Series, 1 pm to 4 pm February 3rd - St. Matthew Catholic Church, Charlotte One Day Class, 1:30 pm to 5:30 pm April 21st - St. Aloysius Catholic Church, Hickory One Day Class, 1:30 pm to 5 pm Online and Spanish classes are scheduled as needed For more information visit our website or contact Batrice Adcock, MSN at 704.370.3230 or bnadcock@charlottediocese.org.

PHOTOS BY TARA HEILINGOETTER | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

CHARLOTTE — Volunteers with Mel’s Diner, a ministry at St. Matthew Church in Charlotte, spread lots of Christmas cheer to local children and families during the holiday, handing out approximately 150 gifts to refugee families new to the Charlotte area and providing meals to about 400 people.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 OUR PARISHES

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The March for Life Education and Defense Fund has announced the details for the 2018 March for Life to be held on Friday, Jan. 19. “Love Saves Lives” will be the theme of the annual march, which seeks to draw attention to the value of every life and the power of every American’s voice in speaking out for the unborn.

A Mass for pro-life advocates from North Carolina will be celebrated at the National Basilica of the Immaculate Conception on the campus of The Catholic University of America at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Jan. 19. Bishop Peter J. Jugis will serve as the principal celebrant and homilist.

The March for Life events will begin with a rally at noon on the National Mall, which will be followed at 1 p.m. by a march to the U.S. Supreme Court to hear testimony from women who regret their abortion.

Other D.C. March for Life events n A Youth Rally and Mass for Life hosted by the Archdiocese of Washington will take place on Jan. 19.

The ticketed event will be held at the Verizon Center and the D.C. Armory, both in Washington, D.C. For more information about the event, visit youthrallyandmassforlife.org. n The Paulus Institute for the Propagation of Sacred Liturgy, Washington, D.C., will hold the Sixth Annual Nellie Gray Mass Jan. 19, immediately after the March for Life, at 3p.m. The Solemn High Mass in the Extraordinary Form (traditional Latin Mass) will be offered at St. Mary Mother of God Church at 5th and H Sts. N.W. in downtown Washington, D.C. n On Friday, Jan. 19 and Saturday, Jan. 20, Latinos Por La Vida will host its Fourth Annual Pro-Life Concert and Conference at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church, Falls Church, Va. For details, go to www.latinosporlavida. com/events.

MARCHING FOR LIFE Pray for an end to abortion Join the Jan. 12 March for Life Charlotte CHARLOTTE — Parishioners of all ages in the Diocese of Charlotte are encouraged to attend the 12th annual March for Life Charlotte events that will be held Friday, Jan. 12, to mark the anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court decision in Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion.

The events are meant to be a time of prayer to call attention to the more than 58 million lives lost to abortion since 1973, and the need to end the tragedy of abortion.

The day’s events will begin with a 9 a.m. Mass for the Unborn offered at St. Vincent de Paul Church, located at 6828 Old Reid Road in Charlotte.

Marchers will then proceed down West Trade Street toward the federal courthouse. After the recitation of the rosary and the Divine Mercy Chaplet, the march will conclude.

On Facebook and Twitter: View live coverage from the March for Life Charlotte on the Catholic News Herald’s Facebook page and Twitter (@CatholicnewsCLT) starting at noon Friday, Jan. 12.

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W. 1ST ST. W. STO NEWA LL JOHN W. MO R

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Silent No More Campaign, the march will proceed to the Charles R. Jonas Federal Building and Courthouse on West Trade Street, where a rosary and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy will be prayed.

March for Life Charlotte billboards will again be placed around the Charlotte area to create awareness about the 12th annual March for Life.

See all schedule details at www. marchforlifecharlotte.org. For inquiries, contact Tina Witt with March for Life Charlotte at marchforlifecharlotte@ windstream.net or at 704-301-2531.

END HERE

Follow the march online

Diocese of Raleigh events The Diocese of Raleigh will host a Love My Life Rally for Catholic teens before the March for Life Raleigh on Saturday, Jan. 13, at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh. The Love My Life Rally begins at 10 a.m.

A diocesan Mass for Life will be celebrated at the cathedral at noon.

Youth attending the Rally for Life will be bused to the March for Life Raleigh at 1:45 p.m. The March for Life Raleigh begins at 2:30 p.m.

For details, go to www. dioceseofraleigh.org.

The 12th annual March for Life Charlotte will begin soon after the conclusion of Mass. Marchers will gather starting at 11 a.m. outside the Diocese of Charlotte Pastoral Center, located at 1123 S. Church St. At noon the march will kick off from the Pastoral Center towards Independence Square at the corner of Trade and Tryon streets.

Father Joshua Voitus, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte, will then give the keynote address.

After the address and testimonies by local representatives from the national

Marchers will then turn left at the intersection of South Tryon Street and West Carson Boulevard, towards uptown Charlotte, and will continue past St. Peter Church to the corner of Trade and Tryon streets.

ST.

‘Love Saves Lives’ March for Life in D.C.

TRY ON

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LYNX STATION CARSON BLVD.

— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

At the corners of Trade and Tryon streets, presentations and testimonies will be given, including preaching by Father Joshua Voitus, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte. A time of quiet prayer will conclude the presentations.

March organizers caution everyone to be mindful of the busy uptown traffic and obey all laws for pedestrians.

START HERE The 12th annual March for Life Charlotte will start at noon Friday, Jan. 12. Line up beginning at 11 a.m. outside the diocesan Pastoral Center parking lot at the corner of West Palmer and South Church streets. Free parking will be in the overflow lot accessible from West Palmer Street, across from the Pastoral Center. Non-MACS buses cannot park in the overflow lot – instead, buses should park where available along the sides of West Palmer Street or elsewhere nearby. The LYNX rail stop at Carson Boulevard is also one block away. Restrooms are available on the first floor of the Pastoral Center.

The crucifix will lead the march with participating priests and deacons, followed by the Divine Mercy image carried by the Missionaries of the Poor, the Blessed Mother statue carried with the Knights of Columbus, followed by all other religious and lay people.

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

FROM THE COVERI

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2017

The Year of the Immaculate Heart PHOTOS BY PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE AND DOREEN SUGIERSKI | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

St. John the Evangelist Church in Waynesville was the first of three parishes that welcomed the International Pilgrim Virgin Statue of Fatima to the Diocese of Charlotte in celebration of the 100th anniversary of Our Lady’s appearances in Fatima, Portugal. In March, the statue also came to St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte and Our Lady of Mercy Church in Winston-Salem. It was among the first commemorations of the Fatima anniversary in the diocese, and nearly every parish across the diocese marked the anniversary in some way. (Below) Children took part in the Eucharistic Procession Sept. 9 during the annual Eucharistic Congress in Charlotte.

TAKE A LOOK BACK: MORE PHOTOS, VIDEOS AND STORIES ONLINE At www. catholicnewsherald. com: Review the year’s big local, international and national news, read a past print edition you may have missed, and check out some of our favorite videos from 2017 At www.facebook.com/ catholicnewsherald: Tell us: What was your favorite story of 2017?

At www.pinterest.com/ charlottecnh: Read all these stories and see more photos and videos, all in one place, on our Year in Review board

1. Bishop Jugis dedicates the year to Mary Last year brought with it some special Marian anniversaries in the Church, Bishop Peter Jugis noted in his homily at Mass on Jan. 1, 2017, the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. “We begin this New Year 2017 as we begin every new year – continuing the Christmas season and honoring Mary, the Mother of God, on the Octave of Christmas,” he said during Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral.

But, Bishop Jugis noted, “This New Year is special because in 2017, we are marking several important Marian anniversaries. So it seems appropriate that on this first day, drawing attention to our Blessed Mother Mary, we should make note of the special anniversaries coming up in 2017.”

The year marked the 100th anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions at Fatima, Portugal, in 1917. The year also marked the 100th anniversary of St. Maximilian Kolbe establishing the Militia of Mary Immaculate.

Accordingly, he said, 2017 should be called “The Year of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

“There will be big festivities going on this year in Fatima, Portugal,” he said. “At Fatima, Our Lady reveals her Immaculate Heart to us. She says, ‘In the end my Immaculate Heart will triumph.’ We might ask the question: Triumph over what? And, of course, we know the answer: Triumph over all evil.”

Mary’s purity, sinlessness and holiness triumphs over all evil as we see in her Immaculate Conception, he said. God allowed her, at the moment of her conception, to triumph over original sin, crushing the head of the serpent. “In the end she says, ‘My Immaculate Heart will triumph,’ she assures us.”

“To help us celebrate these special anniversaries this year, we chose a line from Mary’s Magnificat as the theme of this year’s Eucharistic Congress: ‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,’ ” he also announced.

“Those words come from the account of the Blessed Mother’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth, the visitation. At her visitation to her cousin Elizabeth, Our Lady, with the Infant Jesus in her womb, is filled with joy and she praises God: ‘My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord. My soul magnifies the Lord.’ ”

The year’s Marian theme was adopted for many events and efforts across the diocese last year, including the Bishop’s Lenten Youth Pilgrimage, the Marian Rosary Congress, the Catholic Camporee, and more. Parishes, schools and ministries took the theme to heart, with hundreds of people consecrating or reconsecrating themselves to Jesus through Mary. Holy Trinity Middle School was consecrated to the Immaculate Heart by chaplain Father Joseph Matlak. Charlotte area prolifers also inaugurated a Vigil of the Two Hearts each month at St. Patrick Cathedral, dedicating themselves to prayer and penance in reparation for the tragedy of abortion.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 FROM THE COVER

2017: THE YEAR OF THE IMMACULATE HEART Jubilarians 70 YEARS: Mercy Sister Alma Pangelinan 65 YEARS: Father Joseph Elzi, CM 60 YEARS: Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin, Mercy Sister Therese Galligan 55 YEARS: Benedictine Abbot Oscar Burnett (deceased), St. Joseph Sister John Christopher 50 YEARS: Jesuit Father Dominic Totaro, Mercy Sister Carolyn Coll, Mercy Sister Jane Davis, Mercy Sister Rose Marie Tresp, Mercy Sister Donna Marie Vaillancourt, St. Joseph Sister Geri Rogers 40 YEARS: Father Roger K. Arnsparger, Father Philip Scarcella, Conventual Franciscan Father Carl Zdancewicz, Deacon Sidney Huff, Deacon Ronald Sherwood 45 YEARS: Redemptorist Father Charlie Donovan, Deacon Ralph Eckoff 35 YEARS: Redemptorist Father John Carney, Deacon Anthony Marini, Deacon George Szalony, Deacon John Zimmerle 30 YEARS: Redemptorist Father Oscar Paniagua, Deacon J. Patrick Crosby, Deacon James Johnson 25 YEARS: Father George David Byers, Father Herbert Burke, Father Stephen Hoyt, Father Andrew Latsko, Father Gi Tae Lee, Father John Putnam, Missionaries of Charity Sister M. Martinella, Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Sister Pushpa Jose, Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Sister Christie, Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul Sister Agnes Maria 20 YEARS: Father W. Ray Williams, Redemptorist Father Alvaro Riquelme, Deacon James Gorman, Deacon Matthew Reilly 15 YEARS: Father Larry LoMonaco, Father Peter K. Nouck, Deacon Scott McNabb, Deacon Roland Geoffroy 10 YEARS: Father Patrick Cahill, Father Richard DeClue, Father Patrick Hoare, Father Fred Werth, Father Ambrose Akinwande, Father Felix F. Nkafu, Deacon John Barone, Deacon John Riehl 5 YEARS: Father Jason Barone, Father Matthew Codd, Father Peter Shaw, Deacon Jose Vargas

2. More than 20,000 fill Charlotte streets in Eucharistic Procession Catholics took to the streets of uptown Charlotte to process and pray during the 13th Eucharistic Congress Sept. 9. Officials estimated it was the largest Eucharistic Process to date, with more than 20,000 participants.

The Eucharistic Procession, in which Bishop Peter J. Jugis carried a monstrance containing a consecrated host – the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ – was a highlight of the two-day Eucharistic Congress that opened Sept. 8.

In his homily for the closing Mass, Bishop Jugis noted that the Eucharistic Congress is a time to rejuvenate one’s soul in fellowship with other Catholics and to receive God’s sanctifying grace in the sacraments of the Eucharist and confession.

“How good it is to see all of you here at this Mass,” Bishop Jugis greeted the thousands seated inside the convention center for the Mass. “This is one time of year that we all come together as one diocesan family,” “to be with thousands and thousands of our brothers and sisters,” to celebrate our faith in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist, he said.

“The sheer numbers lift us up,” he said, as we experience together the various aspects of the Congress – from the Eucharistic Adoration and procession, to the educational tracks and activities, to the closing Mass. “It is a tangible spiritual benefit that cannot be repeated elsewhere.”

That spiritual benefit derives from the fact that every aspect of the congress “is centered on the Eucharist,” the bishop said.

The 2017 theme, the words of the Blessed Virgin Mary – “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord” – served as a further inspiration and example for everyone, he continued.

Our souls can proclaim God’s greatness just as Mary did, he said. Starting with our baptism and continuing through the other sacraments of initiation, our souls are “elevated by His sanctifying grace.”

“As you continue in life, the Holy Eucharist is nourishing God’s divine life within you, and your soul continues to proclaim the greatness of the Lord because He is sanctifying you,” he said.

“In imitation of the Immaculate Heart and of her visitation to her cousin Elizabeth, let your soul, let your life proclaim the greatness of the Lord to everyone you meet,” he said. “Share the love and joy of this Eucharistic Congress with everyone you meet.”

PHOTOS PROVIDED

Parishes across the Charlotte diocese honored Mary during the Year of the Immaculate Heart. This image was taken at St. Mark Church in Huntersville, where parishioners consecrated or reconsecrated themselves to Jesus through Mary. (Below right) Parishioners at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte led a Marian procession.

PHOTO PROVIDED

Holy Trinity Middle School students gathered for Mass and crowned a statue of Mary during the school’s consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary Oct. 13, during the Marian year that the school community celebrated, led by Father Joseph Matlak, chaplain.

In Memoriam

January 5, 2018

catholicnewsherald.com charlottediocese.org

Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin 1927 - 2017

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

(Top, from left) Members of the Knights of Columbus carry the casket of Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin into St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte Jan. 1 and took turns standing vigil next to the casket throughout the hours of public prayer. Dr. Mary Ellen Keck kneels next to the casket before the prayer vigil Jan. 1.

Bishop Peter Jugis incenses the casket at the funeral Mass Jan. 2. Missionaries of Charity sisters and others say their final goodbyes to Bishop Curlin at the Belmont Abbey cemetery Jan. 2.

Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore (center) elevates the Eucharist during the funeral Mass. Concelebrating the Mass were (pictured from left) Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey, Auxiliary Bishop Bernard E. Shlesinger III of Atlanta, and Bishop Jugis.

PHOTOS BY SUEANN HOWELL AND CESAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

‘Always looking for Christ in others’ Bishop Curlin remembered during funeral Mass Jan. 2 PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE EDITOR

CHARLOTTE — Joy. Generosity of spirit. Attention to those in need.

Friendship. Laughter. A pastor’s heart.

Selfless love. The presence of Christ.

These were the gifts Bishop Emeritus William Curlin shared with everyone he encountered during 60 years of priestly ministry, from his first assignment as the pastor of a poor parish in Washington, D.C., to his eight years as the third Bishop of Charlotte, and throughout his lifelong ministry to the sick and the poor before his death Dec. 23 at the age of 90.

On Jan. 2, hundreds of friends, family and fellow priests filled St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte to honor his memory and commend his soul to the Lord. The church was filled to capacity, with overflow seating at the adjacent parish school, for the funeral Mass. More than 660 others watched the liturgy streamed live online.

Bishop Curlin’s peaceful death just before Christmas was providential, many said, because he loved Christmas so much.

“In his heart, Christmas wasn’t a day.

Christmas was a way of life,” noted

Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio, formerly the bishop’s secretary and now pastor of St. Pius X Church in Greensboro, in the homily for the funeral Mass.

“He saw good in things, good in people, always looking for Christ in each other, always looking for the hand of God in events and the splendor of creation,” he said. “For him, Christ wasn’t just born 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem, but here and now in the stable of our hearts.”

“To be born in uncomplaining poverty, Jesus, a name that means savior, begins the Paschal mystery. He who will open His arms on the cross offers that open embrace of a child waiting to be loved.

In this holy exchange of humanity and divinity, our world is changed forever, with the possibility of new life and a new way of loving. This was the life of Bishop Curlin.

This was the basis of his incarnational spirituality.”

“He had so much joy,” Monsignor Marcaccio continued, smiling as he remembered his friend and how much he loved to laugh. “Joy is an indicator of holiness. Joy is the fruit of a life well lived. It is the satisfaction that comes with service and sacrifice if you’re doing the

More online At www.catholicnewsherald.com: See video highlights, Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio’s homily, Archbishop William Lori’s eulogy, and more photos from the funeral Mass for Bishop Emeritus William Curlin At the Catholic News Herald’s Facebook page: Share your stories about Bishop Curlin right thing – the Jesus thing.”

Bishop Curlin loved his priesthood and his relationship with Christ, he said, recounting a story about his ordination the bishop had once told him. He and a group of other priests had just been ordained when they encountered an older priest.

“When they first stepped out in all their clerical attire, proud as peacocks, the little priest came by and said to them with kind of a snark, ‘There’s a whole lot of religion on ya, but not much religion in ya.’

“Right then, it became clear to him: If you didn’t have Jesus in your heart, the people of God would see right through your clerics.”

Humility, love for others, and a constant focus on Christ became Bishop Curlin’s

hallmarks, Monsignor Marcaccio said.

A prayer card placed on Bishop Curlin’s bedside table said it all, he noted: “Your will, O Lord, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen.”

Bishop Curlin lived as his close friend Mother Teresa of Calcutta did, serving as the hands and feet of Jesus, praying every night, “Jesus, if you wake me up, I will wake you up in my life,” and every morning, “Come Lord Jesus, walk the earth with me.”

He prayed “not for the edification of Bill Curlin, but in a sort of surrender – that he was willing to take the presence of Christ wherever it was needed that day. Jesus was real and present to him on the journey,” Monsignor Marcaccio said.

“His goal was to think with Christ, to feel with Christ, to have in him the same attitude of Christ,” just as his episcopal motto “Sentire Cum Christo” (“To Think With Christ”) stated.

Long before the phrase became a slogan, Bishop Curlin was challenging others to think: “What would Jesus do?”

“That’s what made him a pastor, that’s BISHOP, SEE PAGE 3

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com TRIBUTE

PHOTOS BY SUEANN HOWELL AND PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

(Top) Members of the Knights of Malta exchange the sign of peace during the funeral Mass Jan. 2 at St. Gabriel Church. (Above) Bishop Jugis presents a crucifix that had been placed atop Bishop Curlin’s casket to the Missionaries of Charity. Bishop Curlin was a close friend and confessor of St. Teresa of Calcutta, and when she visited Charlotte in 1995 he welcomed members of her order to stay and care for the poorest and most vulnerable in the city.

BISHOP FROM PAGE 2

what made him a champion of the poor.

Well he did it – whether in D.C. or N.C., in the inner city or in Appalachia.”

Monsignor Marcaccio told of encountering a young waiter at a restaurant just a few days earlier who had been confirmed by Bishop Curlin. He and the kitchen staff wanted to know what time the funeral was so they could pray along, because they could not attend. The young waiter remembered his confirmation 17 years ago at St. Matthew Church, and Bishop Curlin telling him that his confirmation name George was also his middle name.

“Imagine that for a moment: In the midst of those massive confirmations, those massive ceremonies, to be able to make a lasting connection in that split second with that kid,” Monsignor Marcaccio said.

“Folks who might seem little or least, praying for you – that’s how you get into heaven.”

The Beatitudes, printed on his funeral

Mass cards, were the words Bishop Curlin lived by, he said.

“His commitment to the poor and the sick was not heroic social work. It was a fruit of this deep spirituality. He knew that if Jesus walked the earth in him, he should look for Him to do the same in others, especially in the distressing disguise of the poor. Isn’t that how Christ first came to us? Isn’t that how we will be judged by Him in the end?”

Monsignor Marcaccio recalled the Gospel reading for the funeral Mass, Matthew 25:31-46, about serving Jesus in the poor, the sick and the imprisoned.

“One day we will all give an account of how we loved, to Christ. I give thanks for the example I had of incarnational eyes, though clouded by macular degeneration and cataracts, those eyes that could still see – as they always saw – Christ hidden in the poor, hidden in the sick.”

To Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, who presided at the funeral Mass, Monsignor Marcaccio said, “He was so proud of your ministry. He loved you so very much. I think it was your visit and prayers at the end that told him it was OK to come home for Christmas. And so he did.

“And now, for him, Christmas isn’t a day.

TO BISHOP CURLINI

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(Top) Pallbearers carry Bishop Curlin’s casket to the hearse after the funeral Mass. Pallbearers were Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari, Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio, Monsignor John Myslinski, Monsignor Mauricio West, Father Brian Cook, Father Paul Gary, Father Mark Lawlor and Father Ronald Potts. Honorary pallbearers were Shep Able, Richard Cox, Robert Gallagher, James Mattei, Jack Morrison, Felix Sabates, Stephen Saxon, Joseph Tronco and William Weldon. (Above) Members of the Mecklenburg County Board of the Ancient Order of Hibernians – Frank Fay, Dan Callaghan, Lee Madden and Sean O’Daly – lead the procession of the casket to the hearse.

It is forever.”

Joining Archbishop Lori in offering the Mass were Bishop Peter Jugis, Auxiliary Bishop Bernard E. Shlesinger III from Atlanta, Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari, and dozens of priests from the Diocese of Charlotte and several religious orders.

Members of lay apostolates and charities that were close to the bishop’s heart – including the Order of Malta, the Catholic Daughters of the Americas, the Knights of Columbus and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre – were present, as well as the Missionaries of Charity and the Sisters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul.

After the funeral Mass, a bagpiper played as the casket was taken from the church and placed in the waiting hearse. As the Knights of Columbus honor guard stood at attention, all of the priests then came up and, one by one, sprinkled the casket with holy water.

Burial followed in the cemetery at

Belmont Abbey, where the first bishop of Charlotte, Bishop Michael Begley, is also interred.

The diocesan Pastoral Center and Charlotte area Catholic schools were closed Jan. 2 so that employees and students could attend the funeral, but Catholic Charities’ food pantry remained open in Bishop Curlin’s honor – handing out food to 11 people in need, some of whom had walked to the food pantry in single-digit temperatures.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin: 1927-2017 CHARLOTTE — Bishop Emeritus William George Curlin, third Bishop of the Diocese of Charlotte, passed away in the peace of Christ Saturday, Dec. 23, 2017. He was 90.

Champion of the poor, comforter of the sick and the dying, friend of St. Teresa of Calcutta, Bishop Curlin preached the love of Jesus Christ during more than 60 years of priestly ministry, first in the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., and the past 23 years in the Charlotte diocese. His lifelong commitment to Christ and His Church was epitomized by his episcopal motto “Sentire Cum Christo” (“To Think With Christ”).

“Bishop Curlin was an inspiring and faith-filled shepherd of our diocese who had a special love for the poor and ministry to those who were sick and near death.

May he rest in the peace of Christ, knowing that his tireless efforts brought many to salvation in the Lord,” Bishop Peter Jugis said in a statement.

The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated Jan. 2, 2018, at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte. Interment followed at the cemetery of Belmont Abbey in Belmont.

Born Aug. 30, 1927, in Portsmouth, Va., he was the son of the late Mary Lamont Curlin and the late Stephen James Curlin.

He attended St. John’s College in Garrison, N.Y., and Georgetown University before entering St. Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore.

He was ordained to the priesthood on May 25, 1957, by Cardinal Patrick O’Boyle at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C. For the next three decades, he ministered mostly in poor parishes in the Washington area, where he opened a women’s shelter and 20 soup kitchens and homeless shelters. He also led the opening of Gift of Peace Home, the first home in the nation’s capital for people with AIDS. His first assignment after ordination was as associate pastor at St. Gabriel Church in Washington. From 1964 to 1967, he was associate pastor in Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Washington. He then moved to St. Ann’s Parish in Takoma Park, Md., as associate pastor and assistant director of vocations for men in the Archdiocese of Washington.

From 1968 to 1970, he served as director of the House of Formation for seminarians at The Catholic University of America in Washington. For the next 13 years, he was pastor of Old St. Mary’s Church, also in Washington. While there, he directed a program for the elderly in the inner city and established Mount Carmel House for homeless women. In 1983, he was appointed pastor of Nativity Parish in Washington.

He was ordained an auxiliary bishop of Washington by Cardinal James Hickey on Dec. 20, 1988, and appointed regional bishop of the counties of Southern Maryland.

In other appointments, Bishop Curlin was named vicar of permanent deacons from 1968 to 1981. He was vicar for Theological College, The Catholic University of America from 1974 to 1980.

He was appointed chaplain to Pope Paul VI in 1970 and Prelate of Honor by Pope John Paul II in 1978. He also served as chairman of Associated Catholic Charities.

He received the 1984 Community Service Award from the Office of Black Catholics.

Pope John Paul II appointed him the third Bishop of Charlotte on Feb. 22, 1994, and he was installed on April 13, 1994.

During his first visit to the Charlotte diocese after the news of his appointment, Bishop Curlin characterized himself as a parish priest who wanted to remain out among the people.

“I want to come here to help you find the Jesus in everybody,” he said.

Bishop Curlin said he didn’t choose to

be a bishop, preferring instead his role as parish priest. Even so, the Holy Father wanted him to be a bishop, he said. So, he told people in Charlotte, “As a pastor, my arms are open. As a bishop, my arms are wide open. I can embrace more people.”

Caring for the sick remained one of his particular charisms even after becoming Bishop of Charlotte. He had a longtime devotion to Lourdes, France, and to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (Knights of Malta), which helps lead annual pilgrimages for the sick to the Marian shrine and miraculous place of healing. He accompanied them on numerous pilgrimages to Lourdes, and served as chaplain for the order’s Federal Association, ministering to the “malades” on each pilgrimage.

Bishop Curlin was a longtime friend and confessor of St. Teresa of Calcutta. It was during his ministry to the poor and homeless in Washington in the 1970s that he first met Mother Teresa.

Bishop Curlin 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. When she visited Charlotte in 1995, he also welcomed her order, the Missionaries of Charity, to open a convent in east Charlotte where the sisters continue to care for the poorest and most vulnerable.

Their close friendship lasted more than 20 years, until her death in 1997. Bishop Curlin was one of those asked to contribute to the official investigation of her life for the cause for her canonization. She was declared a saint in 2016.

During his eight years as the Bishop of Charlotte, he ordained 28 men to the priesthood, including seven men in 2000 – one of the single-largest groups of ordination classes for the Charlotte diocese.

That ordination class was also among the largest in the South that year. He also ordained 19 permanent deacons for the diocese – 11 in 1995 and eight in 2001.

In 1997, Bishop Curlin and Bishop Joseph Gossman of the Diocese of Raleigh cowrote the pastoral letter “Of One Heart and One Mind,” appealing to their dioceses and to all of the state’s people “of good will to reach out to those in dire economic need.” The pastoral letter expressed urgent concern on the condition of the poor in North Carolina and called the local Church to swift and sincere action.

On Sept. 10, 2002, he retired as Bishop of Charlotte but continued to minister to the poor and especially the sick and the dying, regularly visiting Charlotte area hospitals.

Before going to bed each night, he would lay out his clothes and shoes in order to be ready for calls to rush to the hospital in the middle of the night.

For years every Christmas, he also visited the residents of Holy Angels, a private, nonprofit corporation located in Belmont that serves children and adults with intellectual developmental disabilities and with delicate medical conditions.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his stepfather Lt. Col. John Whipple, and his brother, Stephen Curlin.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Bishop Curlin Endowment for the Poor, c/o The Diocese of Charlotte Foundation, 1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, N.C. 28203. An online giving page has also been set up on the Diocese of Charlotte’s website: https:// charlottediocese.thankyou4caring.org/ pages/bishop-curlin-memorial-gifts.

Harry & Bryant Co. was in charge of the arrangements.

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori pauses for a moment of prayer before Bishop Curlin’s casket Jan. 2. A longtime friend of Bishop Curlin, Archbishop Lori served as the main celebrant for the funeral Mass at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte. (Below) Bishop Curlin and then Father Lori are pictured in an undated photo from the Catholic Standard, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., where they once served together.

Archbishop Lori remembers his friend PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE EDITOR

CHARLOTTE — “He loved His own in the world and He loved them to the end.”

These words about Jesus from John 13:1 described Bishop Curlin perfectly, said Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore in remarks at the end of Bishop Curlin’s funeral Mass Jan. 2.

From his first days as a priest at St. Gabriel Church in Washington, D.C., to his last days living in Charlotte, Bishop Curlin exuded the joy and selfless love of Christ.

“Long before Pope Francis spoke about encountering the Lord in one another and accompanying one another, about priests being close to their people, Bishop Curlin lived that reality – no matter what assignment he happened to be in,” Archbishop Lori said.

“No matter what he was doing, Bishop Bill would drop everything, especially when someone was in trouble or distress,” he said. He consoled, counseled and encouraged so many people throughout his life, with “an enormous capacity for friendship, but not just any friendship – but a friendship rooted in Our Lord’s love.”

Archbishop Lori first met then Monsignor Curlin in Washington, D.C., while he was discerning a call to the priesthood and Monsignor Curlin was in charge of diocesan vocations. The two became close friends, and Archbishop Lori was among those at Bishop Curlin’s bedside shortly before his death Dec. 23.

Archbishop Lori recounted several stories about their days in D.C. together, including the time when he experienced chest pains and went immediately to the hospital.

“I think I was still in the emergency room when none other than Monsignor appeared, with the holy oils and the ritual, and the best-ever bedside manner.

“The next day, he walked into my hospital room with my mother, whom he had flown from Louisville, KY., so that she could look after her son. Thankfully I recovered,” he paused, then added with a smile, “I did not die in his arms, and I did not become a retreat story.” The congregation laughed, remembering Bishop Curlin’s love of storytelling and how renowned he was for his spiritual talks and retreats.

Archbishop Lori also recalled early on in his priesthood when his first pastor, one of Bishop Curlin’s closest friends, fired the housekeeper in a fit of temper one day.

“If this firing had been written up in an HR manual, it would be in the chapter entitled ‘Mistakes to Avoid,’” he joked.

The pastor calmed down, then called Bishop Curlin for advice.

“Monsignor Curlin dropped absolutely everything, rushed over to visit his friend and me, the bewildered assistant,” he said. “But he never came empty-handed.

He brought a large bag of Roy Rogers hamburgers and fries. And before the end of the evening, he had us laughing at ourselves. He gave his good friend, my pastor, the right advice on how to resolve the situation justly and charitably, and gave me an invaluable lesson about priestly friendship and fraternity.”

“This is why his ministry, I think, seemed to be so spontaneous, even effortless – preaching five-, seven-day retreats, three talks a day and a homily, without a note,” he said. “Being free to go wherever he was most needed, and an uncanny sense of what the real Gospel priority might be in any given situation.”

He radiated Christ and the joy of the Gospel, he said.

“When Bishop Curlin smiled at you, it was Jesus smiling. And when he embraced you, it was the embrace of Jesus.”

“He was born to be a priest, he was born to love, and he loved us to the very end, like Jesus.”

Turning toward the casket in front of the altar, Archbishop Lori paused, then said, “Bill, may your great priestly soul rest in the peace of Christ.”

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com TRIBUTE

TO BISHOP CURLINI

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(Right) Father Brian Cook, pastor of St. Leo the Great Church in Winston-Salem, pauses for a moment before Bishop Curlin’s casket during the prayer service Jan. 1 at St. Gabriel Church. (Far right) A little boy touches a prayer card to Bishop Curlin’s casket Jan. 2.

PHOTOS BY SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

‘He was always pointing to something greater’ SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin loved Christmas. He told his family and friends that he hoped when it was his time to pass from this life he wanted to do so at Christmas, the time of the year when the birth of his beloved Jesus was celebrated.

His prayers were answered Dec. 23, when at age 90 and after serving the Church for 60 years as a priest, he passed peacefully after a long battle with cancer.

Bishop Curlin was remembered Jan. 1 at a prayer vigil at St. Gabriel Church, the same church where he had been installed as the third bishop of Charlotte in 1994.

Hundreds of faithful came to pay their respects to him during the visitation before and after the prayer vigil, kneeling in prayer before his casket flanked by candles.

Poinsettias, wreaths and illuminated Christmas trees in the sanctuary provided a fitting backdrop.

Bishop Peter Jugis presided over the service, placing a crucifix and Book of the Gospels on top of the casket at the beginning of the vigil. Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey and priests, deacons and seminarians of the Diocese of Charlotte were also in attendance.

Members of the Knights of Columbus served as honor guard.

Deacon Brian McNulty of St. Patrick Cathedral read Luke 24:13-16, 28-35, which describes the men on their journey along the road to Emmaus.

Father Brian Cook, pastor of St. Leo the Great Church in Winston-Salem, served as homilist. When he was just 7, he received his first Holy Communion from Bishop Curlin.

“We come here on this feast day of Mary, the Mother of God. It seems so apropos for this good man. For it was in a parish by that very name that our dear Bishop Curlin spent 13 years his ministry working among the poor,” Father Cook explained.

He told a story about how some 36 years ago when he was a new seminarian, on a cold winter night he and Bishop Curlin were coming back from a sick call at Georgetown University Hospital when they decided to go see the new Vietnam War

More online At www.catholicnewsherald.com: Watch Father Brian Cook’s homily and see more photos from the prayer vigil service Memorial being built on the Mall.

“It was starting to get dark... We walked up a concrete ramp ... freezing cold, wind blowing across, and those deep and dark onyx black panels were lying side by side.

Not all of the 58,000 names were placed even placed just yet; they were still putting the panels in.

“We began to talk to the veterans, and then Monsignor Curlin talked to them about their brothers-in-arms. He talked about reaching out and touching the names of the men with whom they had served.

The sun got dimmer and dimmer and dimmer.”

The men said that their brothers were coming to look for their names, but they could not see them because the walkway was not illuminated.

“Bishop Curlin turned to me and he said, ‘Let’s go.’

“He was a practical man; if you knew him you understood that.”

Father Cook said they went back to St. Mary the Mother of God Church in Baltimore and fetched several cases of the long-lasting, 12-day votive candles. They filled the trunk of his old car with boxes of candles, put more in the back seat and Father Cook put more on his lap.

“Back down to the Mall we went. The veterans helped us unload the candles and we lined that sidewalk in front of those black granite panels... We lit them. There was a pathway of light... You could see the veterans then reaching and touching the names.

“It was a pathway of light. But it was a metaphor for his ministry in life. That light was not his – he just gave them the tools to see. That is what he did for all of us!

“Each one of us in this church, and so many hundreds of people far beyond the reaches of these doors, have had their lives touched by this good man.”

Father Cook said that Bishop Curlin “served as a kind of sign to something greater.”

GREATER, SEE PAGE 12

(Clockwise from above) The crucifix, Book of the Gospels and zucchetto which belonged to Bishop Curlin were placed atop his casket for the public viewing Jan. 1-2 at St. Gabriel Church, and a rosary was placed in his hands.

Bishop Jugis and Archbishop Lori take a moment to pray before the public prayer vigil Jan. 1. (Below) Father Christopher Roux, pastor and rector of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte, who served as master of ceremonies for the funeral liturgies, assists Bishop Jugis at the prayer vigil Jan. 1.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

REMEMBERING BISHOP CURLIN

From the day he first said “Ad sum” at his priesthood ordination, Bishop William Curlin put into practice every day the true meaning of those words, “I am present and ready,” in his service to the Lord. As a successor of the Apostles by his ordination as bishop, he continued faithfully to proclaim Jesus Christ, challenging everyone to become saints, to heed the Lord’s invitation to be holy, and inspiring countless numbers of the faithful to a closer following of Jesus. May the good Lord now let the light of His face shine forever upon His servant.

— Bishop Peter J. Jugis Fifteen years ago, in 2002, Bishop William G. Curlin retired as Bishop of Charlotte after eight years of ministry. Actually, Rome accepted his resignation which had to be submitted upon reaching the age of 75.

For the last 15 years of his life, Bishop Curlin’s home was in the Southpark area in a neighborhood called Beverly Woods East.

He lived in a home provided by dear friends who loved and admired the bishop very much. There he lived and prayed, making daily visits to comfort the sick and the dying in the Charlotte area.

In his home, close to where he sat every day, was a famous black and white picture of Abraham Lincoln. The original was taken by photographer Alexander Gardner on Nov. 8, 1863, just days before Lincoln delivered his famous Gettysburg Address.

When Lincoln died, Edwin W. Stanton said, “There lies the most perfect ruler of men the world has ever seen. Now he belongs to the ages.” All would cherish his memory. Those who knew him would consider themselves blessed to know such a man. The same is equally true of Bishop William G. Curlin.

When Bishop Curlin was in the emergency room the night of Dec. 16, he was surrounded by friends who were concerned and worried. Bishop told us several times, “I’m not complaining. I’m not complaining.” He was now 90 years old, and had recently celebrated his 60th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood on May 25. He had dedicated his life to helping the poor, the sick and the dying.

Bishop Curlin came to Charlotte in 1994.

He was installed as the third Bishop of Charlotte at St. Gabriel Church. It was in that same church on Jan. 2, 2018, that the faithful gathered to say their goodbyes at his Mass of Christian Burial.

As an auxiliary bishop for the Archdiocese of Washington, he was told once by a demanding cardinal that he would never be an ordinary. The Church up north is different. The faithful may have a cardinal or an archbishop, but the levels of bureaucracy are so many that only a few people ever get to know them personally.

In the South, priests and people have many opportunities to know their shepherds on a personal level and to love them.

When Bishop Curlin heard that Pope John Paul II had appointed him a bishop,

he called Mother Teresa and told her, “Mother, it’s Charlotte!” We were thrilled to have him. This was what the Diocese of Charlotte needed.

Bishop Curlin spoke about Mother Teresa often in his homilies. His love for the poor and the dying is what made the two of them close friends. He encouraged us to follow her example by helping others. Bishop Curlin also spoke out against the evil of abortion in our country, encouraging us to respect all life from conception until natural death.

At St. Patrick Cathedral, Bishop Curlin came just about every week to celebrate the 11 o’clock Mass on Sundays. People loved him. He celebrated the Midnight Mass on Christmas and another Mass on Christmas Day. He also began the tradition of celebrating Midnight Mass on New Year’s Eve, telling us that it began years ago when he was a priest serving in a poor parish in Washington, D.C. There he would go into the church to pray at midnight and turn on all the Christmas lights. The poor people of the neighborhood would see the lights and come in and join him. What better way to begin the New Year than at Mass.

Bishop Curlin had a great heart. When I told him about families that had lost a mother or a father before Christmas, he told me that he wanted to take the children out so that they could buy whatever toys they wanted. He even took two brothers to a fancy clothing store in the mall so that they could buy a coat for their mother.

All of this was on his dime. A few days after Bishop Curlin passed away, a family member told me the little boy who lost his mother years ago and is in college today still has the gift that Bishop Curlin bought him for Christmas.

Yes, now he belongs to the ages. Bishop Curlin lived and died a holy man. We will remember him forever, thanking God that we had the opportunity to know such a man.

— Father Paul Q. Gary, pastor of St. Luke Church in Mint Hill

‘He was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith.’

This week, we join with many throughout our diocese in celebrating the life of Bishop Emeritus William Curlin, who died Dec. 23, 2017, at the age of 90. We thank God for the gift of his life, his ministry and his faithful service.

Bishop Curlin loved being a priest and a bishop. For 60 years he sought to know, love and serve the Lord. His pastoral sensitivity endeared him to many who found in both his preaching and ministry a renewed hope.

— Father Frank O’Rourke, pastor of St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte When remembering Bishop William Curlin, what comes to mind is the description of Barnabas from the Acts of the Apostles: “He was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith.”

Bishop Curlin was a kind man with a great compassion for the sick and suffering. He was a good bishop and a good friend. We were blessed that St. John Paul sent him to Charlotte and that he made his home with us.

— Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey

Bishop Curlin was first and foremost a Catholic priest. He loved the priesthood. He loved ministering to other priests and he loved being a pastor. The Church is blessed with bishops who possess many different gifts. Different gifts come with different men in different times. Bishop Curlin’s pastoral ministry was his gift. He certainly handled his episcopal responsibilities very well. Although he never sought the episcopacy he was an effective, loving and kind bishop. In many ways, not that you would ever know it, I think being a bishop was a burden to him. He did his duty without complaining but his real love was pastoral ministry to anyone in need.

He once told me that his first year of being an auxiliary bishop in Washington, D.C., was the loneliest year of his priestly ministry. He was removed from the parish life that he loved so much.

But it did not take him long to figure out how to continue his pastoral ministry as a bishop. He was a sought-after retreat master, giving over a hundred retreats while being a full-time pastor or bishop. He gave many retreats to other bishops and many more to priests. It was indeed his pastor’s heart and his pastoral ministry that set him apart, and this was the great gift he brought to us here in Charlotte.

As our ordinary and then as bishop emeritus, he had regular penitents seeking his guidance in spiritual direction and the sacrament of penance. At the Eucharistic Congress he could always be found hearing confessions.

Bishop Curlin was also an ever-present figure in Charlotte area hospitals. I was privileged to be one of many friends who would drive him to confirmations and other events. But it was the sick calls – which to many of us are somewhat awkward – that he somehow was blessed to relish the most. He went to bed each evening only after shaving and laying out his clothes for possible sick calls during the night.

He was gifted in bringing the peace of Christ to the sick, the dying and to the discouraged. It was this same peace that surrounded him in his hospital bed as Bishop Peter Jugis and Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, among others, offered the prayers of commendation and prayed the rosary over him on the afternoon of Dec. 23. Only a few hours later he quietly and peacefully slipped away to his eternal reward with his friends Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey and Monsignor Mauricio West, our chancellor and vicar general, sitting by his bed.

Bishop Curlin died in the peace of Christ after having spent more than 60 years as a priest allowing the Christ that lived in him to look for and see the Christ that lived in others.

— Robert Gallagher I heard of Bishop William Curlin’s appointment to the Diocese of Charlotte from a Baptist chaplain in the Navy who was visiting St. Meinrad Seminary. He had just arrived from Washington, D.C., where it had been announced. In those days before email and websites, we were somewhat isolated in rural Indiana from news from Charlotte. (The diocesan vocation director, Father Frank O’Rourke, called shortly thereafter to inform us.)

A few days later, I received a letter from my maternal grandmother, who was a native of Washington. She wrote, “The Diocese of Charlotte is truly blessed! I have followed the career of this faithful priest and bishop for many years.” She had worked for the federal government in the early 1970s and often on her lunch breaks went to hear Father Curlin preach at Old St. Mary’s. His spirituality made a deep

impression on her.

I was very appreciative when Bishop Curlin granted my request to have my diaconate ordination in my home parish in Salisbury, where I had been an altar server and where I had been confirmed.

The parish had been very supportive of me throughout my seminary formation. I still recall the words of Bishop Curlin’s homily as I entered holy orders 23 years ago.

When I was the pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte, I was privileged to concelebrate a Mass on Christmas Eve with Bishop Curlin for the past 13 years and for his 60th anniversary Mass last May. He was very gracious at the dedication of the parish columbarium, the Ministry Center and Chapel and at celebrations of confirmation. He left us with great testimony of priestly ministry and Christian charity. I know that it was a blessing to know him.

— Father Mark Lawlor, pastor of St. Therese Church in Mooresville

‘He was gifted in bringing the peace of Christ to the sick, the dying and to the discouraged.’

Bishop William Curlin was a priest who came to serve. Once when I was at a program at St. Paul’s Church, Bishop Curlin arrived for lunch and instead of being seated at the head table he got behind the line and began serving everyone else.

When everyone was served, he allowed himself to be served. It struck me that it was not the first time this had happened, and I thought, “If someone in his position could become a servant, why can’t I serve, too?” That day was an influence in my decision to pursue the permanent diaconate. I will always be grateful to Bishop Curlin for his example.

— Deacon Wally Haarsgaard, Immaculate Heart of Mary Mission in Hayesville As a deacon who relocated to the Diocese of Charlotte about nine years ago, I have only known Bishop William Curlin as “emeritus.” That said, I did run into him routinely as he ministered to those in the hospital at Carolinas Medical Center, where I work. I remember once bumping into him in a corridor and asking if I could help him. He quipped, “Nope, not today. Today I’m in for an annual check of my ticker – all is well, good for another year! And today’s the feast of the Sacred Heart!” On another occasion, we both found ourselves ministering to a priest in the cardiovascular ICU. The priest was still “out” from anesthesia, but Bishop Curlin, knowing the priest’s love of Italian food, said, “Let’s try this, Mark...,” and as he whispered “pasta” into the priest’s ear, the priest awoke with a huge grin!

One evening, when I was offering a chapel service at Southminster Retirement Community in south Charlotte, I looked up to see Bishop Curlin among the attendees.

Surprised, I asked if he’d like to offer a reflection. “No, no,” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed listening to our deacons – I learn something new all the time!”

— Deacon Mark King, St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com TRIBUTE

TO BISHOP CURLINI

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REMEMBERING BISHOP CURLIN I was one of the permanent deacons ordained by Bishop William Curlin for the Diocese of Charlotte in 2001. I always had the most profound respect and admiration for him. Though I was not a close personal friend of his, he had a way of making one feel that way. He and I corresponded several times concerning my assistance and relationship with several of the retired priests living at Pennybyrn at Maryfield in High Point. Bishop Curlin impressed me with his caring and contact with the retired priests who served with him while he was Bishop of Charlotte. It was also my great pleasure to assist him at Mass on several occasions at the Chapel at Maryfield. I will remember him as a saint of the Church.

— Deacon David King, Pennybyrn at Maryfield in High Point I first met Bishop William Curlin when volunteering in youth ministry in the mid1990s. I was amazed at how well he seemed to connect with the teens, and I got up the courage to go up and tell him so. I’m not sure I had even spoken to a bishop before.

After my words of gratitude, he said to me, “Aren’t you wonderful!” And gave me a big hug. That’s how he endeared himself to so many. Later, when I was still considering the seminary, while he was on a trip to visit seminarians in Philadelphia, he stopped by to visit and anoint my father, who had been recently diagnosed with cancer. He went far out of his way to do it, and when my father passed a little over two years later, he was among the first to call with his condolences.

When I called him in August to wish him a happy 90th birthday, he quickly turned the conversation to my new assignment at St. Matthew Church, generous with words of praise and encouragement. I will never forget his kindness.

— Father Patrick Hoare, pastor of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte For me, this loss is somewhat personal, so it’s all the more saddening. A bishop is, first and foremost, a spiritual father.

His primary identity is always to love the people those entrusted to his care and aid their souls by his words and deeds.

In my case, Bishop Curlin gave me, through the sacrament of confirmation, the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. I was in eighth grade and not particularly devout, but in a moment of piety while I prayed, God told me that He wanted me to take St. Simon of Cyrene as my patron because it was my call to help Christ carry His Cross.

After the Mass, Bishop Curlin asked me to remind him which saint’s name I had taken. I told him and he looked quizzically at me, saying, “In all my years as a bishop, I have never heard anyone take him as their patron. Is there a reason you did?” I told the reason that God had given me.

At that moment he smiled, took off his ring and zucchetto (the skullcap), both symbols of his office as bishop. He put them on me and said, “You’re mine now.

You’re going to become a priest.”

Through his joy and love, he let me see the beauty of the priesthood, so inviting me into the life that God seems to have intended for me to live. Twenty years later, he is still showing me the beauty of the priesthood.

My love for him moves me to pray that he quickly can behold the face of Our Savior in heaven. Knowing him, rest isn’t what he wants in eternity. If he’s already enjoying heaven, he’s probably just getting started in his new work as a spiritual father – praying for each of us!

— Father Peter Shaw, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Bryson City I was with him until about 15 minutes before he passed away. I said, “Bill, they

are waiting for you in heaven to put that star on the Christmas tree because you always decorate better than anyone else.”

He started decorating at Thanksgiving, every year! He always wanted to pass away at Christmas.

— Dr. Mary Ellen Keck, relative of Bishop Curlin He was a big fan of the Knights of Columbus, a big supporter, and we were of him, too. He was our state chaplain from 2003 to 2005, I believe. He did everything he could for us at every meeting, every chance he got. He was beloved. And he loved our families. We had regional meetings and he would show up and hold a Mass for us.

Whatever we asked for, he was there for us.

— Jack Murray, Blessed Sacrament Church in Burlington and Knights of Columbus District Master of N.C., Council 3498 My father was out of the Catholic Church for more than 30 years. I was not raised Catholic. I discerned the call at the age of 21. Years later, I brought my dad in his wheelchair to one of Bishop William Curlin’s preaching missions. My dad was blown away. And then he went to confession with him. Bishop Curlin would call him from time to time. He had such passion and authentic love for the sick.

My dad finally came home to the Church.

And then my mom became Catholic. This bishop utterly gave everything of himself, to bring Jesus to the people and the people to Jesus. I cannot even speculate how many lives he touched. I am so grateful to be witness to and to hear of too many miracles attributed to Bishop Curlin. Now, he can be reunited with his good friend Mother Teresa. Most assuredly, they are both praying for our souls to carry on, and to join them in eternity.

— Amy Ivsan I will add to the litany of tributes to Bishop Curlin. I knew him for about four years as we organized the Charlotte Catholic Men’s Conference. He gave the talk during Holy Hour at multiple conferences. His love for the Eucharist was evident, and he challenged the men each year to not only love and believe in the Eucharist, but to let the light of Christ reflect in us after we received. During the course of my role in the apostolate, there was no bigger supporter than Bishop Curlin. Each year after the conference, he was the first to call to congratulate me, and thank me on behalf of the Church. He listened to my struggles, invited me into his home, provided spiritual direction, and was always totally present when listening to my needs. He was such a wonderful example, always giving himself totally to God’s service, caring for the dying even in his late years. I know many men were touched personally by Christ through him as he heard their confessions during the men’s conference. To me, more than being bishop emeritus, he was a gift from God reflecting His love for me. I thank God for my time with Bishop Curlin and will miss him.

— Dan Trapini I will miss his gentle spirit of love. He saw Christ in every person. An amazing spiritual leader for us all. Rest in peace dear friend to all, you will be sorely missed.

— Camille Dabney Asmer He loved Our Lord with all his heart. He was a good shepherd to his flock. May a choir of angels welcome him home.

— Carole Schindler Scagnelli In the teaching and preaching of Bishop William Curlin, I always felt Christ’s compassion. This was the compassion of

‘He saw Christ in every person. An amazing spiritual leader for us all.’ the good pastor and bishop with which he tended to the needs of us, the Church of Charlotte. I will always remember him as the good pastor who tended to the needs of those he was called to serve.

— Deacon John Martino, St. Charles Borromeo Church in Morganton My funniest moment with Bishop William Curlin was when I was waiting to be incardinated into the Diocese of Charlotte (from Rockville Centre, N.Y.). I was here almost five years and hadn’t been incardinated. Bishop Curlin was with us on retreat up at the conference center. I asked for time to talk to him. I walked in and told him I had been here five years and I had a bishop up in Rockville Centre who said, “Either get in or get back!”

Bishop Curlin said, “What’s the problem?

Just kneel down and promise you will be obedient.” I hesitated and he jokingly said, “Oh no, no, no,” just like he would do. So my incardination took place in the chapel of the retreat center.

— Deacon Bill Shaw, St. Joseph Church in Bryson City

Bishop Curlin blessed this oil stock I carry with me all the time. It’s the oil of the sick. I bought this a couple of months before my ordination to the priesthood.

Bishop Curlin was in Statesville at St. Philip Church for a confirmation some weeks before my ordination, so I was still a (transitional) deacon. I asked him to bless it. He said, “You’re fully capable of blessing it as a deacon.” I said, “But Bishop, I know how much you care for the sick and how much I have heard you talk about caring for the sick, so for the stock of the oil of the sick that I carry, I would like you to bless it for me.” I have carried it every day since I was ordained.

— Father Benjamin Roberts, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Monroe When we think of Bishop Curlin’s 60 years as a priest and bishop, we have an overwhelming sense of gratitude. We are grateful that he listened to the call from Jesus, that he responded to His call to be a priest and that he lived a life of selfless service since he was ordained. We are certain that he directly impacted and changed the lives of tens of thousands of people in those 60 years. He has given all those people hope and encouragement and helped them get to heaven.

We just want to relate one particular life he changed through his gift of hope and encouragement. Joan’s mother Dot had oral cancer, and she struggled with it for seven years. Bishop Curlin offered to come visit her. Something about her reminded him of his mother, he said, and he came

More online On the Catholic News Herald’s Facebook page: Read and watch more reminisces and post your own favorite story about Bishop Curlin every single day to visit her before she died.

He told her, “I know you are suffering and I want you to offer it up for other people and unite yourself to Christ. It will give you some meaning, instead of just lying in bed.”

If she offered up her sufferings for those in need, he said, she would do more good for people in the last six months of her life than she did in the first 72 years of her life. He would ask her to pray for specific people every day. That went on for weeks.

It really made such a huge difference for her. That message gave her such hope and encouragement until the day she died.

When she died, he celebrated her funeral at the cathedral. He hosted a catered luncheon for us afterwards. To this day we can’t get over how kind he was to us.

He didn’t have to do any of that. He had so much compassion.

We never forgot that gift of time, love, hope and encouragement he gave to Dot. Her husband John never forgot his gift to Dot and him. John just died in March 2016 at 95 years old.

Not only did he change the lives of the four of us during those six months but we have shared that message of redemptive suffering with many people through those 18 years. We told those many people what Bishop Curlin told Dot about redemptive suffering, and they knew that if Bishop Curlin said it that they could believe it for their own lives, too. So his message touched hundreds of people’s lives through us sharing his message.

We are thankful that Bishop Curlin continued to serve the people of God, particularly the sick, since he retired. He never stopped loving people and giving them hope and encouragement until the day Jesus called him home.

We love him and we were blessed by him.

— Jim and Joan Kelley Bishop Curlin was the presider at our first Rosary Congress in 2009. He was our speaker for the first three years. He loved Our Lady.

— Aida Gamolo, Rosary Congress organizer

‘To this day I can’t get over how kind he was to us.’

Beginning in 1994 until his retirement, Bishop Curlin visited Holy Angels each Christmas and offered Mass for the children and staff. He would always say, “This is where I am meant to be on Christmas morning, with God’s most vulnerable children.” He spent a moment with each resident and staff member, offering a special prayer and blessing – for God’s peace and joy to be with them throughout the Christmas season and coming New Year. Bishop Curlin was a wonderful example to all on how to truly live the Beatitudes.

— Mercy Sister Nancy Nance of Holy Angels in Belmont At Holy Angels, we have had a wonderful relationship with the Knights of Malta. For many years, the Knights and Dames have visited Holy Angels to bless the residents and staff with the healing water from REMEMBRANCES, SEE PAGE 8

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

REMEMBERING BISHOP CURLIN

REMEMBRANCES

‘He was a most humble confessor with such simple, perfect direction!’

FROM PAGE 7

Lourdes. Bishop Curlin always visited with them, his face beaming with love and joy – sharing his love of Jesus with God’s people, who are most in need. Many residents were unable to say “thank you” to him – but they radiated their love and thanks with their most beautiful smiles.

Most recently, in honor of Bishop Curlin’s 90th birthday and in appreciation of his continued support over the many years he shared his compassionate care and love for our residents, Holy Angels was pleased to name the medical clinic the Bishop Curlin Clinic. This recognition was presented to him during his birthday celebration with the Knights of Malta.

Currently in process of being renovated and refurbished, it will allow the many medical specialists our residents require due to their delicate medical conditions, to be seen for their medical appointments at Holy Angels.

— Regina Moody, Holy Angels president/CEO The passing of Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin deeply saddened me, and made me reflect on the impact this saintly bishop had in my life.

I had the honor and privilege to be a seminarian for the Diocese of Charlotte from 1998 until the spring of 2002, during Bishop Curlin’s last four years as Bishop of Charlotte. As a seminarian, I had many opportunities to interact with him, and also met one on one with him on several occasions to discuss my discernment process and seminary progress. Prior to becoming a seminarian, though, I had a few opportunities to catch a glimpse of a man I am convinced was a living saint.

My father passed away back in 1988, when I was 24. As I look back in my interactions with Bishop Curlin, I now realize that he was, in many ways, like a second father to me.

I remember the very first time I met him.

It was at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, Dec. 8, 1995. Bishop Curlin was the main celebrant, and I recalled his homily really resonated in my heart – he preached on Our Lady’s total surrender to God’s will, and of course he threw in a couple of Mother Teresa’s anecdotes. I wasn’t really practicing my faith at the time, and his homily made me take a hard look at my spiritual journey. After the Mass, I thanked him for saying Mass for my girlfriend at the time and myself. He was very gracious and promised to pray for me and the young lady I was dating.

Three weeks later I had a conversion experience while on vacation in Florida.

I came back to the faith with a force the following year. I broke up with my girlfriend and started discerning a priestly vocation. Although I considered joining a religious order, a diocesan priest who mentored me at the time suggested I speak with Bishop Curlin. I met with the bishop and I mentioned to him that I was considering joining the Vincentian priests.

He responded, “The Vincentians were founded by St. Vincent de Paul; the Diocese of Charlotte was founded by Jesus Christ!”

The fall of 1998, I joined the seminary program and was sent to St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in Latrobe. Although I discerned not to continue my seminary studies, I met with Bishop Curlin and thanked him for the spiritual and academic formation I received while in seminary. I told him I wanted to get married and start a family. He told me that for me to find the

PHOTO PROVIDED BY DARBY MCCLATCHY

CHARLOTTE — Among the last visitors who spent time with Bishop Emeritus William Curlin before he died was a group of eighth-grade faith formation students from St. Gabriel Church, who visited him Dec. 10. Bishop Curlin had many visitors and well-wishers throughout his retirement years, but he especially loved spending time with young people. The parish’s catechist, Paula Nish, had arranged for Bishop Curlin to come to the church to visit with grades 5-8 in October, and then took members of the class to see him again last month. right woman, she had to be a woman I was willing to lay down my life and die for.

Three years later, I did get married and my wife and I had a lovely daughter, who is now 12.

After Bishop Curlin retired, I occasionally bumped into him around town. About four years ago, I ran into him at the grocery store and helped him “u-scan” a birthday cake he was struggling to ring up. Bishop thanked me and asked what I was up to at the time. I told him that I was applying for a job with the Catholic News Herald, but I hadn’t heard back from them yet. He thanked me again for my help and then told me, “I will offer my Mass for you tomorrow.”

Three weeks later, the Catholic News Herald editor called me and offered me the job.

As a reporter for the diocesan paper, I had several opportunities to interview Bishop Curlin, but the last time I did have a chance to chat with him remains very special.

SueAnn Howell, senior reporter, and I were asking him about his long-time friendship with now St. Teresa of Calcutta. He shared with us that Mother Teresa loved ice cream. When I asked him what she would say to him when he makes it to heaven, he quipped, “Let’s have some ice cream,” he said laughing. “I like ice cream, too!”

Like Bishop Curlin, my father had a great sense of humor, and made a lasting impact in the first 24 years of my life. Like my father, Bishop Curlin made a lasting impact in my life the last 22 years. Like Bishop Curlin, my father also died on a Dec. 23.

— Rico De Silva, former Hispanic communications reporter for the Catholic News Herald Bishop Curlin came to our parish years ago and asked us to bring back an old fast of abstaining from eating meat on Fridays to aid in the end of abortion. My family had always done this, but it was so good to hear a bishop ask us to rekindle this fast for such a worthy cause!

Also, I had the honor of him being my confessor one time at our Eucharistic Congress. I had no idea who my confessor would be as I waited in line. When my time came, the empty chair was next to Bishop Curlin and I almost didn’t go in – so glad I did! He was a most humble confessor with such simple, perfect direction!

— Amy Tarr

Such a blessed, holy and wonderfully down-to-earth man. He will be sorely missed among his church community on Earth. May angels speed you to paradise, Bishop Curlin.

— Regan White Craig My 8-year-old son Dominic, a secondgrader at St. Gabriel School, was dear friends with Bishop Curlin. The bishop baptized him, and we visited him a few times a month.

He even had a framed photo of he and Dominic in his home. We had the chance to see Bishop Curlin at the hospital a few hours before he died. We attended the viewing Jan. 1 and the funeral Jan. 2. It was so beautiful. We got to meet Archbishop Lori, who said he had heard of my little boy – that was very special for Dominic.

— Kristin Dodrill Bishop William Curlin was a consecrated man of great courage, who always radiated joy and enthusiasm. He gave continuity to the development of the Hispanic Ministry in a time of great growth of the community, allowing the foundations of what is its current structure to be established. He is someone we are going to miss a lot.

— Father Fidel Melo, vicar for Hispanic Ministry of the Diocese of Charlotte When my husband passed away, he asked to be the first person to be call, so we called him. He was there giving the blessing and the last rites, so we are forever grateful for his love, for his compassion.

— Cecilia Ramirez So gentle, very convicted in his faith – there was no doubt where he stood in terms of following Christ and His teachings and his love for Mary, but he did it in such a way that he embraced everyone and people were drawn to his purity of heart and spirit.

— JoJo Beeman

Bishop William Curlin lived the last months of his life the same way he lived his entire priesthood of more than 60 years – pouring out his life for others.

As he neared, then passed, his 90th birthday, age and infirmity restricted him.

He was forced to relinquish many of the activities that had marked his retirement: confirmations, special Masses and retreats, accompanying his beloved malades to Lourdes.

Yet he remained a shepherd until the end, a joyful and indefatigable worker in God’s vineyard.

His apostolic labors had once spanned the globe. In the last months of his life, they narrowed to his modest home in the Charlotte neighborhood of Beverly Woods.

But they were no less fruitful for that.

There he ministered every day to a stream of visitors and callers who sought his guidance, comfort and prayers.

And there he showed what he himself had witnessed in the life of his friend, Mother Teresa – the joy of loving Jesus, even as earthly consolations and blessings are stripped away.

I know that because I was there.

I was one of about 40 men and women who had the privilege of caring for Bishop Curlin and keeping him company during his final months.

Our group included longtime friends of the bishop as well as members of the Order of Malta, whose Charlotte Region Bishop Curlin established.

For more than 20 years, Bishop Curlin had shown the Knights and Dames of Malta how to live out our charism of caring for the poor and the sick, giving them not just our service but our hearts.

As he neared the end of his life, we gave our hearts to him.

Though a few of our group were doctors and health care professionals, our care for Bishop Curlin was not medical. We were there to accompany him, to share our friendship and help him maintain independence.

As his body weakened, we wanted him to remain in his home, to feed the deer that visited nightly and spoil Missy and Cindy, his two chihuahuas.

Above all, we wanted to help him remain with the Lord, whose sanctuary lamp flickered in the small chapel across from his bedroom.

Sometimes we would bring him meals.

But just as often he would prepare meals for us, insisting that we sit as he microwaved and served us Marie Callender’s chicken pot pies, and remain seated as he rose haltingly to clear the table. “Bishops should do dishes,” he’d say with a smile as he picked up our plates and shuffled to the sink.

His smile he bestowed unstintingly – every time we came for a visit, every time we left, so many times in between. “That was his gift,” said his dear friend and nurse Paula Knish.“Bishop Curlin made each one of us feel that we were the apple of his eye.”

After dinner we would go to the living room, surrounded by pictures painted by his talented mother and furniture REMEMBRANCES, SEE PAGE 12

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com TRIBUTE

TO BISHOP CURLINI

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REMEMBERING BISHOP CURLIN

Bishop Curlin’s legacy: Helping us to see the light of Jesus

Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio, pastor of St. Pius X Church in Greensboro, delivers the homily during the funeral Mass for Bishop Curlin Jan. 2 at St. Gabriel Church.

Editor’s note: Following is a complete transcript of the homily delivered by Father Brian Cook, pastor of St. Leo the Great Church in Winston-Salem, at the vigil prayer service for Bishop Curlin Jan. 1:

W

e come here on this feast day of Mary, the Mother of God – it seems so apropos for this good man. For it was in a parish by that very name that our dear Bishop Curlin spent 13 years of his ministry working among the poor.

Some 36 years ago when I was a new seminarian – on a cold winter night much like tonight – we were coming back from a sick call at Georgetown University Hospital and he said, “Let’s go down and take a look at the Pathway of Peace at the Mall.” We came down Pennsylvania Avenue and we stopped there, we looked at the trees and walked about, and then he said, “I understand that that new Vietnam Veteran’s memorial is going on now; just down the street it’s being built. Why don’t we go visit?”

The sun was lowering down below the horizon, it was starting to get dark. We pulled up (in those days you could park anywhere you wanted on the Mall) and we walked up a concrete ramp. It was just mud on the other side, freezing cold, wind blowing across, and those deep and dark panels – onyx black – were lying side by side. Not all of the 58,000 names were even placed just yet; they were still putting the panels in.

We began to talk to the veterans, and then Monsignor Curlin talked to them about their brothers-in-arms. He talked about reaching out and touching the names of the men with whom they had served.

The sun got dimmer and dimmer and dimmer, and they said, “Our brothers are coming to look for their names. We can’t even see them; they haven’t put the lighting along the walkway yet.”

Bishop Curlin turned to me and he said, “Let’s go.” He was a practical man; if you knew him you understood that. So we went back to Mary the Mother of God, which was a novena church, which meant we had candles, lots of candles. He had this old brown Bonneville, and we filled the trunk with cases of those 12-day votive lights.

There were more cases in the back seat, I had two cases on my lap, and back down to the Mall we went.

The veterans helped us unload the candles and we lined that sidewalk in front of those black granite panels, lined them with the candles from Old St. Mary’s, and then we lit them. There was a pathway of light that extended up across those panels, and you could see the veterans then reaching and touching the names.

It was a pathway of light. But it was a metaphor for his ministry in life, because that light was not his – he just gave them the tools to see. It’s what he did for all of us!

The prophet Isaiah is always looking forward, always promising the people, saying, “I know what you’ve been through, but there is another way because on this holy mountain something special will happen. God will come and be with you, He will abide with you.” In the words of Pope Francis, He will accompany you on your journey of life, no matter what comes.

Each one of us in this church, and so many hundreds of people far beyond the reaches of these doors, have had their

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

FILE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Curlin greets a family after an ordination Mass. lives touched by this good man, because he served as a kind of sign to something greater, a pathway to that light that was not his own. It’s not what he was about, it’s always pointing to something greater, something more beautiful. Always with an optimistic tone, always with an underlying sense of joy. This man who lived 90 years, 60 years in the priesthood, never lost his idealism.

He said to me on the first day of my priesthood, when he preached my first Mass, “Your family here, so many of these folks, they will move away and in time they will be replaced by your parishioners, the people of God. And if you love them,” he said, “if you love them, they will move mountains for you. If your people sense you do not love them, they will not cross the street to say hello. They will become, if you love them, your family, your dear friends – and that is a sign of God’s presence among us.”

The story of the disciples walking to on that road to Emmaus – it was a way in which Bishop Curlin showed us, through his love for the Eucharist as the center of his life, that we recognize the Jesus among us in the breaking of the bread. All through his ministry, as a parish priest, when I first met him when I was 7 years old (he gave me my first Communion), he told me I would be a priest, and I knew the fix was in!

But that kind of idealism, that kind of joyful spirit, that kind of optimism and love for the Lord and the Blessed Mother, it filled our hearts, didn’t it? Because he recognized that his role in life as a pastor was to bring Jesus to our hearts, to have us recognize that we walk the earth with Jesus within us.

He was fond of an expression of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who said, “Heaven does not begin when we die. Heaven begins when we understand that God comes down upon the altar and becomes one with us at the Eucharist.” He helped us to understand that it was real, that God’s love for us is real, that God’s love for us – especially this season of Christmas – is alive. The miracle of the Incarnation: it’s what happened in the Bethlehem so many centuries ago, but what can happen in each one of our hearts, and with that Presence we can change the world. That’s what he did for us.

He understood that he was simply an COOK, SEE PAGE 12

For Bishop Curlin, Christmas wasn’t just one day Editor’s note: Following is a partial transcript of the homily delivered by Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio, pastor of St. Pius X Church in Greensboro, at the funeral Mass for Bishop Curlin Jan. 2: To all the priests gathered here: Bishop love his priesthood and I hope you know that he loved your priesthood. He said to me more than once in the evenings, after all the ceremonies, that it was at ordination that he felt most a bishop...

To our permanent deacons: The bishop personally identified with the diaconal service and in the Archdiocese of Washington was instrumental in the restoration of the permanent diaconate many years ago.

To all those in consecrated life, to all of our beloved brothers and sisters, our religious: You were all brothers and sisters to him. And with his great love of nature, seeing the hand of the Creator and the beauty of creation here in North Carolina, he affiliated with the Franciscan order. A lot people don’t realize that. Father Remo Di Salvatore, who is here today, who was ordained by the bishop many years ago, is now the provincial of the Capuchins. Last night he and I placed a Franciscan cross in (the bishop’s) sleeve. Bishop lived and loved beautiful, artistic, excellent and elegant things – not because of their intrinsic value, but because of the sentimental value. They reminded him of family and friends. So he appreciated art, he appreciated so many things. Although Bishop did not take a vow of poverty like you, he lived so simply. Sleeping, as long as I knew him, on a hard twin bed frame. Cooking our meals at home and doing the laundry, constantly doing the laundry! It was a sacramental, but it was also a sabbath ... He would go down to the basement of the big house and there he would do laundry. I think there is where he thought; it was like a Bethany for him.

So I let him do mine, too!

To all of us who minister in the Church, I am reminded of the challenge he received as a seminarian. (We are so blessed to have seminarians, and we need seminarians and we need priests so desperately in our diocese, in our Church.) The challenge he received as a seminarian from a Sulpecian priest ...

When they were first decked out in all their clerical attire, proud as peacocks,

and the little priest came by and said to them with kind of a snarl, “There is a whole a lot of religion on ya, but not much religion in ya.” Right then it became clear to him: if you didn’t have Jesus in your heart, the people of God would see right through your clerics.

On Sunday after vesting the bishop for this liturgy, we stopped for dinner – imagine me stopping for dinner! – and a little lady came to the table. She might be here right now. She came out of the kitchen ... to us to offer her condolences, and to ask what time the Mass was because those folks in the kitchen wanted to know what time the funeral was so they could pray with us.

A young waiter came up to us ... and asked if we were Catholic priests. “Yes,” we said, “We’re here for Bishop Curlin’s funeral.” He said, “I thought so.” He said, “He confirmed me at St. Matthew’s (a huge parish, as you know) in the year 2000.” He knew the year! He said, “I took the name George.” I said, “That was Bishop’s middle name.” He said, “I know that. He told me that at the confirmation.”

Now I want you to imagine that for a moment: in the midst of those massive confirmations, those massive ceremonies, to able to make that lasting connection in that split second with that kid. Oh, to have folks who might seem little or least in this kingdom, praying for you – well that’s how you get into heaven.

With all the illustrious company that we have in this room, we know that a lot of people who would like to be here can’t be here because they are working hard. So for them and to all the faithful here and for those who are watching, just know that he loved you so much. And we pray that you feel, we hope that you feel the power of this communion of prayer today.

I recognize today also the Catholic Daughters who are present. He was a former national chaplain. I recognize the Ancient Order of Hibernians. He was not an Ancient Hibernian; in fact, he wasn’t really Irish. People think that he was Irish, but Curlin was a German name. He kind of looked Irish – there is a little bit of Irish in each one of us. ...

To the Knights and Ladies of the (Order of the) Holy Sepulchre here: You shared Bishop’s deep concern for the Holy Land, and the plight of our Christian MARCACCIO, SEE PAGE 12

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

BISHOP CURLIN: IN HIS OWN WORDS

‘Everything I have kept I will lose. Everything that I have given away is mine forever.’

Bishop William Curlin, Quoting the late Bishop John McNamara, his old pastor in Washington, D.C.

On Mother Teresa Bishop Curlin was a longtime friend and confessor of St. Teresa of Calcutta. He met Mother Teresa in the early 1970s when he was the pastor of a poor parish in Washington, D.C. Their friendship lasted more than 20 years, until her death in 1997. 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. And her ministry, the Missionaries of Charity, has a convent in east Charlotte where members of her order have cared for the poorest and most vulnerable since 1995, when Mother Teresa visited Charlotte and was keynote speaker for an ecumenical prayer service at the Charlotte Coliseum for more than 19,000 people.

After her death, Bishop Curlin was one of those asked to contribute to the official investigation of her life for the cause for her canonization. She was declared a saint in 2016.

“She saw with an inner vision,” said Bishop Curlin during a memorial Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral two years after her death. “She saw with her heart. It was her belief that if you want to touch God, you reach down and touch a crying child, a dying person, you feed the homeless or just reach out to the broken-hearted.” That, he recalled, is where Mother Teresa said you will find Jesus, in the least among us.

“The greatest miracle of her life was ... one tiny little woman who had only faith and love ...

And with those two virtues, she raised the hearts of the world.” With this, he said, she inspired countless millions to want to do the same.

Bishop Curlin noted 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.” He said, “It’s your life that proves you are a Christian ... The love that comes out of you which is Christ-centered and reaches another person.”

“Her joy was a gift, one of the precious gifts we need in the world today,” he said with admiration, and he practiced this every day with every person he encountered.

On Lourdes

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Curlin is pictured with Missionaries of Charity and a statue of St. Teresa of Calcutta outside St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte after he offered a Mass of Thanksgiving for his 60th anniversary of priestly ordination in May 2017.

His longtime friend Mother Teresa of Calcutta was the subject of many of Bishop Curlin’s talks and homilies because of how the future saint inspired him in his own ministry.

“You must never close your heart to Jesus,” he recalled her saying, and he often remarked, “I believe that she helped me more than I ever helped her.”

PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE CATHOLIC STANDARD

Bishop Curlin had a longtime devotion to Lourdes, France, and to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (Knights of Malta) which helps lead annual pilgrimages for the sick to this shrine and miraculous place of healing.

It was in Lourdes that the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to the young Bernadette Soubirous in 1858 and revealed herself as the “Immaculate Conception.” She also told Bernadette to dig in the ground at a certain spot and to drink from the small spring of water that began to bubble up. Almost immediately, cures were reported from drinking the water. Today, millions of pilgrims each year come to Lourdes to drink or bathe in water flowing from a spring in the grotto.

The Knights of Malta ful­fill dreams for dozens of afflicted individuals who would otherwise only yearn for the blessing rendered in Lourdes. Malades (French for ailing or invalid) and their companions are escorted by members of the Federal Association, headquar­tered in Washington, D.C., on the annual pilgrim­age.

Bishop Curlin, a chaplain for the Federal As­sociation, often accompanied the group on their pilgrimage.

“When you think about it, ev­erybody goes to Lourdes as a malade,” he once said.

“Each of us has some heartache in our life.” Pilgrims don’t travel to Lourdes for a physical healing, he said. “They go for a greater courage, a deeper faith, the ability to face life and not be conquered by it.”

On those with AIDS

On those in economic need

Bishop Curlin was known for his support of those suffering from HIV/AIDS. When the AIDS crisis was still new and many people were afraid to even touch those suffering from the incurable illness, he helped to establish Gift of Peace, a resi­dential home for people with AIDS in Washington, D.C., run by Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity, and he served as its chaplain.

When he moved to Charlotte, he encouraged support for the Sisters of Mercy’s House of AIDS, a residence in Belmont that was founded in 1991 for low-income AIDS patients who could no longer care for themselves.

He also celebrated a special healing Mass for people with HIV or AIDS, as well as their families, friends and caregivers at St. Patrick Cathedral on July 26, 1994. For the diocese, it was a first. Twenty-three priests concelebrated the healing Mass as Bishop Curlin offered people who suffer from or deal with the deadly disease the as­surance of Christ’s love.

“We’re not here because it’s the thing to do,” he said in his homily. “We’re not here for some political reason. We’re not here for any­thing except this: That we believe there is a God of mercy and love and healing power.”

In November 1997, Bishop Curlin and Raleigh Bishop Joseph Gossman appealed to their dioceses with a plea to all of the state’s people, “of good will to reach out to those in dire economic need.” In their pastoral letter “Of One Heart and One Mind,” the two bishops invited “Tar Heel Catholics and their neighbors in business, government and the community to ways of ensuring economic justice for ev­eryone.” The pastoral letter expressed urgent concern on a specific topic and called the Church to swift and sincere action.

From the pastoral letter: “... As followers of Jesus Christ our Lord, and as pastoral leaders of the Roman Catholic commu­nity in North Carolina, we feel compelled to express our grave con­cern for the children, women and men in our state who lack suffi­cient economic means to live full and fruitful lives.”

“We write to ask you, our sis­ters and brothers, to embrace with us our Church’s responsibility to help shape our world so that the God-given dignity of every human being will be acknowledged, respected and protected.”

More online DIOCESE OF CHARLOTTE ARCHIVES

Bishop William Curlin and Bishop Joseph Gossman of the Diocese of Raleigh review their joint pastoral letter, “Of One Heart and One Mind,” crafted in November 1997 to appeal to both dioceses in North Carolina “to reach out to those in dire economic need.”

At www.catholicnewsherald.com: Read Bishop Curlin’s pastoral letter “Of One Heart and One Mind,” learn more about his devotion to Lourdes, and watch one of the last interviews he gave

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com TRIBUTE

TO BISHOP CURLINI

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BISHOP CURLIN: IN HIS OWN WORDS

FILE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD AND CATHOLIC STANDARD

(Above, clockwise) Bishop William Curlin pays his annual Christmas visit to Holy Angels in Belmont to bless the residents. Bishop Curlin was known for his laugh and his sense of humor, as well as his love of dogs. Bishop Curlin is pictured at the dedication of the stairwell in his name at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte in 2013. Bishop Curlin blesses a baby during a visit to St. Joseph Church.

Bishop Curlin celebrates a Mass of Thanksgiving last summer at St. Vincent de Paul Church. A small boy gets a closer look at Bishop Curlin’s pectoral cross.

‘Throughout my life as a priest, I can honestly say I have tried my best to reflect the life of Jesus. I am sure I have made many mistakes, God forgive me. But they were not intentional.’

Editor’s note: On Feb. 4, 2000, Bishop William G. Curlin met with Campus Ministry retreat participants.

The bishop shared stories from 47 years of priesthood, ranging from his own ministry and stories of faith to vocations. He began by telling the college students, “I am a born optimist,” thus setting the tone of his comments. Following are excerpts from that talk: I was ordained in 1957 and was assigned to a very active parish, and became very involved with the parish and adjacent school. Frequently the Mother Superior would call me in to help with the children, which was a joyful task.

Soon after I was ordained, Pope Pius XII died in 1958 and out of nowhere came Pope John XXIII. We fell in love with him. He opened the doors to the Church. This Holy Father opened the world to us. He didn’t say to me as a priest, “Go out into the world and be worldly.” Rather, he challenged us to bring our deep sense of faith to the people.

He encouraged us to take the Good News of Jesus out where the people are and see what they’re going through, and help nourish them in their journey.

In the priesthood, when people are hurting, you don’t say, “Well, I’ll say a prayer for you and offer a blessing.” You’ve got to be there and hold their hand, bind up their wounds.

I didn’t become a priest to swing incense, to light candles. Certainly these are important symbols, and I appreciate that. I became a priest because I wanted to take my faith in Jesus and let it grow, and then express that faith in a way that brings it to others.

Mother Teresa has been the greatest influence of my life. I think the Lord Himself sent her to me. God empowers me as Mother Teresa did.

“God sends you out,” she would say. “Go and find

the poor, the hurting people.” It’s not a social thing, it’s not pity. Compassion: That is what Jesus had. So I believe He nourishes me through the Eucharist as I do with the faithful. He heals me through confession when I make mistakes.

He empowers me with the grace of confirmation with the Holy Spirit. He guides me in prayer.

When I look around, I believe with my faith. I believe the face of God is here.

What is a Christian? It’s not a person who carries their faith on their sleeve. I think there are little conversions constantly; you begin to understand more. And grow with forgiveness, patience, kindness and love while seeing the face of God around us. This is nourished by the Eucharist and by prayers. It is nourished by the Scriptures and by people like you who inspire us.

Gradually you grow in your faith and suddenly realize what St. Paul said, “It’s not me. It’s Christ in me.”

If all this sounds too pious or idealistic, forgive me. It has made me very happy for 47 years. I believe we see Christianity in the presence of God you receive at baptism, and are powered by presence in the Eucharist and in sacrament and prayers. He walks the earth in you.

You have to keep growing in your life. Isn’t the Church asking us to study and come to retreats like this and to challenge one another? We’re trying to grow in Christ. We’re trying to build Christ in one another. When a mother picks up a child and nourishes that child, or holds him when he’s crying, it is Christ holding that child.

When you live in that vision, every day is beautiful. Every day is exciting. I am more excited now than when I was first ordained. I envy you because your life is here in front of you.

And if I could, I would do it all over again.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 TRIBUTE TO BISHOP CURLIN

MARCACCIO FROM PAGE 9

brothers and sisters there, as we work for peace that’s based on justice.

To the Knights of Columbus: Thank you, thank you, thank you. Thank you for being in solidarity with the priests. Thank you for being so kind to the bishop in this funeral liturgy, and standing in vigil with him. Thank you for your promotion of vocations that he loved, and supporting our seminarians, and thank you most of all for your fraternal service to the Church and to this great nation. And I want to thank you in a special way for all the rubber chicken dinners that we ate at your conventions!

To the Knights and Dames of (the Order of) Malta: The points on your habit, the points on the cross of your habit, represent the Beatitudes. The Beatitudes are included on his funeral Mass card. Your ministry, your call, your mission, your religious order that is dedicated to defending the faith and serving the poor, resonated with his ideas. Especially the sick – the sick always had a special place in his ministry and in his heart. Perhaps because of his own severe illness as a child, and perhaps just because of his priestly heart. We all know he was tireless in hospital visitation.

And every year he cherished the pilgrimage to Lourdes with Malta. That was his working retreat, one of the most special places on earth. Mary’s shrine there, in the midst of the mountains, a place where the Beatitudes blossom, and the last become first. Thank you for bringing the bishop, and thank you for staying with him when he had grown weak under the burden of years.

Two of my favorite prayers that I learned from Bishop Curlin relate to his great devotion to the Blessed Mother and her intercession in our lives: “Mary, Mother of Jesus, make me well, that I might better serve your Son. Amen.”

You ask not to be restored to health for any selfish reasons, but to glorify God and spread the Gospel. An another one...: “Mary, Mother of Jesus, give us a child and we will raise you a saint.” But my all-time favorite – I love short prayers, I love long homilies but short prayers – was on a little card framed by his bed that said, “Your will, O Lord, nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. Amen.” Great prayer! He knew that second reading (from the funeral Mass, Romans 14:7-9). None of us live for ourselves but for the Lord, and when we let His Will be done in our lives, His Kingdom comes. ... The bishop’s passing was peaceful, and so appropriate coming at this time of the year...

Bishop taught me Christmas isn’t a day, Christmas isn’t even a season; it’s too big to be confined to any liturgical calendar. In his home there was no Advent. Baby Jesus came around All Souls’ Day and left right before Lent. It was like the Griswolds happened inside, it was amazing!

In his heart Christmas wasn’t a day.

Christmas was a way of life. We believe through the mystery of the Incarnation, the eternal word of God leapt down from heaven when half spent was the night. To be born in uncomplaining poverty, Jesus, a name that means savior, begins the Paschal mystery then.

He who will open his arms on the cross offers that open embrace of a child waiting to be loved. In this holy exchange of humanity and divinity, our world is changed forever with the possibility of new life and a new way of loving.

This was the life of Bishop Curlin. This was the basis of his incarnational spirituality.

He saw good in things, good in people, always looking for Christ in each other, always looking for the hand of God in events and in the splendor of creation. For him, Christ wasn’t born just 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem, but here and now in the stable of our hearts, every time we welcome that Word into our lives. Reborn through Christ at baptism as we are, Bill Curlin believed Christ was waiting to

be reborn through our living witness of God’s Word to the world.

Mother Teresa said, “I’m a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world.” You probably wondered how long it would be before I mentioned her! I used to guess, as his secretary; I could tell the stories probably better than he could after a while. But I want you to believe this, I’m telling you as his secretary – they were friends, they really were! She would call when in America, often at odd times. One of the sisters or Mother herself would identify, “This is Mother.” I, half suspecting it was one of my phone-pranking priest friends, would be like, “Yeah, sure.”

It would be her, and after he talked to his celebrated spiritual friend, he would come in, not proud but very full, and say, “That was Mother, she’s in California.” To keep him grounded, I would say, “Not her again.”

He loved to laugh! He loved to laugh, and I loved to make him laugh... He had so much joy!

Joy is an indicator of holiness. Joy is the fruit of a life well lived. It is the satisfaction that comes with service and sacrifice if you are doing the right thing – the Jesus thing. Like his friend Mother Teresa, they believed in the words of another Teresa who said, “Christ has no hands but yours.” In his incarnational spiritually, Bishop would pray at night, “Jesus, if you wake me up I will wake you up in my life,” and then in the morning an even bolder prayer, spoken with humility, though: “Come, Lord Jesus, walk the earth in me.”

Not for the edification of Bill Curlin, but in a sort of surrender – that he was willing to take the presence of Christ wherever it was needed that day. Jesus was real and present to him on the journey, through the mystery of the Incarnation of Christ, celebrated in the Holy Eucharist and in the deep and abiding friendships he had over his 60 years of priesthood. His goal was to think with Christ, to feel with Christ, to have in him the same attitude as Christ. This was his episcopal motto, taken from the second chapter of Philippians (Phil 2:1-2.5)... Long before there were rubber-band bracelets or bumper stickers, Bishop Curlin was challenging us to think: What would Jesus do? WWJD? To have in us the attitude of Christ and to think what Jesus would do. That’s what made him a pastor, that’s what made him a champion of the poor: what would Jesus do? Well he did it, whether in D.C. or N.C., in the inner city or in Appalachia...

His commitment to the poor and the sick – it was not heroic social work. It was a fruit of this deep spirituality. He knew that if Jesus walked the earth in him, he should look for Him to do the same in others, especially in the distressing disguise of the poor. Isn’t that how Christ first came to us? Isn’t that how we will be judged by Him in the end? Think of those readings today, today’s Gospel (Matt 25:31-46): Could it be any clearer? When did we see You? When did we see You hungry? When did we see You naked? When did we see You in prison?

Hungry for love and respect, naked, stripped of Your human dignity, imprisoned by the cycle of poverty and addiction. One day, we will all give an account of how we loved, to Christ.

I give thanks for the example I had of incarnational eyes – though clouded by macular degeneration and cataracts – those eyes that could still see, as they always saw, Christ hidden in the poor, hidden in the sick.

To all those who ministered to the bishop in his later years and in his last illness, I say thank you. It was as if the bread of kindness that he cast upon the waters returned to him.

He was independent up until the end, thanks to you folks. He cherished that independence, and I thank you for making it possible.

To Archbishop Lori: With your incredible, busy schedule, that you are here today... He was so proud of your ministry, and he loved you so very much. I think it was your visit and prayers at the end that told him it was OK to come home for Christmas, and so he did.

And now for him Christmas isn’t a day. It is forever.

COOK FROM PAGE 9

instrument of God’s peace. There was a sense in which, and you’ve experienced this with him, that he accepted us for who we were and invited us to grow even when some of us, my brother priests, were, well, shall we say, diamonds in the rough.

He focused on the diamonds and not the rough. He gave us a chance to grow, to understand the love that Jesus had and continues to have for each one of us.

You know we talk a lot today about legacy. We talk a lot about the legacy that people leave when they go to the Lord. His legacy, the legacy of how ever you knew him – Father Bill, Monsignor Bill, Bishop Bill, Bishop Curlin – this remarkable man’s legacy lives on. It lives on in the over 200 men that he sent to the seminary as the vocations director in Washington, D.C.; lives on in the homeless women

GREATER FROM PAGE 5

He was “always pointing to something greater, something more beautiful. Always with an optimistic tone. Always with an underlying sense of joy.”

He noted that Bishop Curlin never lost his idealism throughout life.

“That kind of idealism, that kind of joyful spirit ... that kind of love for the Lord and the Blessed Mother – it filled our hearts, didn’t it?” he said. It “was to bring Jesus to our hearts, to have us recognize that we walk the earth with Jesus within us.”

Father Cook recalled that Bishop Curlin was fond of an expression of Mother Teresa, which says that heaven is when God comes down upon the altar and becomes one with us. “He helped us understand that

REMEMBRANCES FROM PAGE 8

handcrafted by his stepfather.

He’d take a lively interest in our lives, families and work. And he’d tell stories from his childhood, youth and priesthood, of his encounters with Archbishop Fulton Sheen and Helen Hayes, of Pope Paul VI and St. John Paul II, and above all of Mother Teresa.

“There is no greater joy than loving Jesus in the darkness,” Mother Teresa told Bishop Curlin. What a privilege it was to have these words handed down

by Bishop Curlin in the intimacy of his family room.

And what a powerful experience it was to see him live that joy to the very end – shining all the more brightly as his powers diminished and his frailty increased.

— Rick Rotondi Bishop Curlin not only preached the Word but he “walked the walk,” if you will. He was full of love for everyone, unconditional love for all of God’s

that he helped through his founding of the Mt. Carmel House at Old St. Mary’s in Washington D.C.; lives on in the countless souls who were lifted up and given hope and given that light of God’s love that we celebrate in this season of Christmas; through his example, through his love for the Lord, through his contagious sense that God’s love is real, that He walks the earth in each of one of us, that it is the Jesus in us that bends, compelled to find the Jesus in one another.

So Bishop Bill, we thank you. We thank you for being that beautiful conduit of God’s love and consolation and hope in a world that many times is riddled by cynicism. You have taught us to let the cataracts of skepticism fall from our eyes and to see this tender and compassionate God, in our own hearts and in the lives of one another. So we thank you.

We thank you for letting God’s love and His light guide you to touch our hearts, and we thank you for loving all of us so very well.

was real... God’s love for us is real.”

“He understood he was an instrument of God’s peace… He accepted us for who we were and invited us to grow. He gave us a chance to grow and understand the love that Jesus had and continues to have for each one of us.”

His legacy lives on in over 200 men he sent to seminary, lives on in homeless women at Mt. Carmel House in Washington, D.C., and lives on in countless souls who were lifted up and given hope and given that light of God’s love that we celebrate in this season of Christmas, Father Cook explained.

“Through his example, through his love for the Lord, through his contagious sense that God’s love is real, that He walks the earth in each one of us, that it is the Jesus in us that bends, compelled to find the Jesus in one another,” Father Cook said.

people, and especially for the poor.

He had a special calling for the sick and dying. He did a lot of work for the sick and dying in his retirement years especially, and he was a great comfort to so many families.

— William Weldon, chief financial officer for the Diocese of Charlotte Bishop Curlin just exuded Jesus Christ in everything he did and I think it was something that really touched so many people, not only here in the Diocese of Charlotte but when he was in the Archdiocese of Washington and when he traveled overseas, including visiting the Missionaries of Charity in India and that strong friendship he had with Mother Teresa, now St. Theresa of Calcutta. He was someone who planted seeds of faith that I know have been nurtured, and I’m blessed that the seeds he had planted have been nurtured and, God willing, will continue to be nurtured in my life and in my family’s lives as well.

— Mike Krokos, former editor of the Catholic News Herald

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

2017: THE YEAR OF THE IMMACULATE HEART

FROM THE COVERI

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In memoriam ABBOT OSCAR BURNETT, seventh abbot of Belmont Abbey, died Nov. 21, 2017, aged 91.

ST. JOSEPH SISTER MARY ISABEL CARPENTER, cofounder of St. Joseph Academy in Maggie Valley, died June 29, 2017, aged 98.

BISHOP EMERITUS WILLIAM G. CURLIN, third bishop of Charlotte, died Dec. 23, 2017, aged 90.

MERCY SISTER CARMEN CRUZ, a Sister of Mercy for 64 years and primary education teacher in Catholic schools, as well as a certified hospital chaplain, died June 9, 2017, aged 82.

PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Hundreds of people filled a spacious, brightly-lit building on Arrowood Road July 22 for an occasion years in the making: the consecration of a permanent church for the Indian Catholic community in the Queen City. St. Mary’s Syro-Malabar Catholic Church was dedicated July 22

by Bishop Jacob Angadiath of Chicago during Holy Qurbana, or Mass, celebrated mostly in the Malayalam language. It is the first permanent home for Charlotte’s Indian Catholic community – comprised of about 45 registered families and growing – and only the second Syro-Malabar Catholic church in North Carolina. “We have consecrated this church for the public worship of God. It is a gift of God, and let us give thanks to God,” said Bishop Jacob, who shepherds the St. Thomas Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy which encompasses all Syro-Malabar Catholics in the U.S. The four-hour liturgy was concelebrated by Bishop Joy Alappatt, auxiliary bishop of the Chicago eparchy, and Bishop Peter Jugis.

DEACON CHARLES DIETSCH, a deacon for more than 32 years who served most recently at Sacred Heart Church in Brevard, died Aug. 31, 2017, aged 73.

DEACON KENNETH DRUMMER, who served St. James the Greater Church in Concord for five years, died Aug. 2, 2017, aged 63.

DEACON BOB GETTELFINGER, who formerly served at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, died Dec. 23, 2017, aged 96.

DEACON EUGENE GILLIS, a charter member of Holy Cross Parish, died June 14, 2017, aged 87.

SISTER VERONICA GROVER, SHCJ, a Sister of the Holy Child Jesus for 66 years, who helped to establish a justice and peace center named Pacem in Terris and served St. Luke Church in Mint Hill as director of education, died April 11, 2017.

DEACON CHARLES KNIGHT, a member of Our Lady of Consolation Parish since 1962 who served as a deacon for more than 34 years, died Sept. 13, 2017, aged 85.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY COPHIA KNICK, BARBARA MARKUN AND CRISTINA MCCUTCHEON

Bishop Peter Jugis celebrated Mass Sept. 22 at St. Benedict Church in Greensboro, where he dedicated a new altar for the church and blessed the renovated sanctuary. Concelebrating the Mass were Father James Duc Duong, pastor; and retired former pastors of St. Benedict’s, Monsignor Joseph Showfety and Father Robert Ferris. The $200,000 renovation effort, led by the pastor and parishioners, did not require a capital campaign.

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Peter Jugis blessed Our Lady of Guadalupe Hall April 4. The newly renovated building on Manor Avenue on the edge of the St. James Church campus will allow more space for faith formation and fellowship for the growing Concord parish.

Building for growth 2017 saw several building and special projects across the Diocese of Charlotte:

Charlotte was dedicated July 22 by Bishop Jacob Angadiath of Chicago.

n FEBRUARY: St. Pius X Church in Greensboro dedicated a new 23,477-square-foot Simmons Parish Center.

n SEPTEMBER: The Diocese of Charlotte purchased land in Mount Holly for the permanent location of St. Joseph College Seminary. Another residence to house additional college seminarians was purchased in Charlotte.

n APRIL: St. James the Greater Church in Concord dedicated Our Lady of Guadalupe Hall. So far, 9,000 square feet of the 22,500-square-foot building have been readied for classroom, meeting and social gathering spaces. n JULY: St. Mary’s Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in

St. Benedict Church completed a restoration of its 120-year-old sanctuary and nave, and it was dedicated by Bishop Jugis.

n Christ the King High School began expansion with 27,000 square feet of new construction.

n St. Michael School in Gastonia, 75 years n Pennybyrn at Maryfield in High Point, 70 years n St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, 60 years n Our Lady of Mercy School in Winston-Salem, 60 years n Catholic Daughters Court Sacred Heart 1759, 60 years

Other projects n Historic St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly began receiving critical renovations.

Special anniversaries

n St. John Neumann Church in Charlotte, 40 years n Western Carolina University’s Campus Ministry building received needed updates, including a renovated chapel.

n St. Luke Church in Mint Hill, 30 years

DEACON ROBERT MICHAEL KRATCHMAN, who served as a deacon for 25 years, most recently for the past six years at St. Therese Church in Mooresville, died April 6, 2017, aged 83.

FATHER CHARLES REESE, who served as pastor of St. Philip the Apostle Church in Statesville; St. Benedict Church in Greensboro; Immaculate Conception Church in Hendersonville; and St. Ann Church in Charlotte, died Nov. 2, 2017, aged 93.

DEACON FREDERICK SCARLETTO, a deacon for 22 years who served at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in High Point for six years, died on Oct. 9, 2017, aged 66.

MERCY SISTER MARY MATTHEW SNOW, a Sister of Mercy for 62 years who served as a teacher at Charlotte Catholic High School, Sacred Heart College, Belmont Abbey College, and the Catholic Orphanage of Nazareth in Raleigh, died March 31, 2017, aged 95.

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catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 FROM THE COVER

2017: THE YEAR OF THE IMMACULATE HEART

4. Continued growth seen in vocations Father John Eckert, pastor, administers the sacrament of baptism during the Easter Vigil Mass at Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury.

BILL WASHINGTON | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

3. Pastor of the diocese’s largest parish retires On May 12 Monsignor John J. McSweeney, pastor of St. Matthew Church, announced that he was retiring after 42 years of priestly ministry, effective July 18. In a letter to parishioners, he wrote, “Many thanks to all of you for your support, dedication and wonderful commitment. I firmly believe that the Holy Spirit is truly present and guides St. Matthew.”

Monsignor McSweeney was the first priest ordained for the Charlotte diocese, ordained by the diocese’s first bishop, Bishop Michael J. Begley, on Sept. 29, 1974.

Upon his retirement, parishioners at St. Matthew Church honored him

with an endowment to the parish’s World Hunger Drive that will sustain the charitable work for years to come. The annual World Hunger Drive provides packaged meals and sustainability programs to help the hungry through local food banks and also to those in need in Haiti and Jamaica. At last year’s event, 1,500 volunteers packaging 341,280 meals weighing more than 50,000 pounds.

Over the years, 1.5 million meals have been packaged by World Hunger Drive volunteers.

Succeeding Monsignor McSweeney was Father Patrick Hoare, who had been pastor of St. John Neumann Church in Charlotte. It was a

homecoming of sorts for the new pastor, who once was a member of the parish and then served as a deacon there until his ordination to the priesthood in 2007, which was also held at St. Matthew Church.

In another significant pastoral change, the Jesuits who had been serving at St. Therese Church in Mooresville were reassigned out of state and the parish was reverted to the care of diocesan priests. Father Mark Lawlor, who had been pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte, was appointed pastor by Bishop Jugis.

More than 800 Christians from across North and South Carolina, including more than a dozen Protestant church leaders and both Bishop Peter Jugis of the Diocese of Charlotte and Bishop Robert Guglielmone of the Diocese of Charleston, S.C., commemorated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation during a Sept. 23 service at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Charlotte. The two-hour service opened not with a joyous processional hymn, but with everyone standing to face the cross and praying: “O God of mercy, we lament that even good actions of reform and renewal have often unintended negative consequences. ... We remember before you the burdens of the past and present when we ignored your will that all be one in the truth of the Gospel. ... We confess our own ways of thinking and acting which perpetuate the divisions of the past.” The Rev. Elizabeth Eaton, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, led the service, which was organized jointly by the North and South Carolina synods of the ELCA. PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Top stories online In 2017, 128,557 visitors to www.catholicnewsherald.com viewed a total of 302,535 pages. The 10 most popular stories last year were: n Priest assignments for 2017..................................................21,546 n View the current print edition of the Catholic News Herald......... ............................................................................................................. 8,435

n Deacon Toner: Why we should not attend the traditional Latin Mass.....................................................................................................2,525 n Bishop Jugis ordains five men to the priesthood...............2,122

n Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin passes away.................5,038

n New pastor of largest Catholic flock in U.S. settles in.......2,160

n A tribute to Monsignor John McSweeney............................3,749

n Parishioners restore Greensboro’s oldest Catholic church to its original splendor..........................................................................1,729

n Diocese buys land for college seminary............................... 2,779 n 2017: The Year of the Immaculate Heart of Mary..............2,678

The diocese continued to see an upsurge in religious vocations in 2017.

In June, during a joyful Mass at St. Mark Church in Huntersville, Bishop Jugis ordained five men to the priesthood: Fathers Peter Ascik, Matthew Bean, Brian Becker, Christopher Bond and Christian Cook.

Also, the number of men discerning a priestly vocation continued to swell, as nine additional students moved into St. Joseph College Seminary adjacent to the campus of St. Ann Church in Charlotte, bringing the total number of college seminarians to 16. The diocese purchased and renovated a second residence to house the additional students, and it closed on a land deal in Mount Holly for the permanent location of the college seminary.

In addition, 15 men from parishes across the diocese took the next step towards anticipated ordination as permanent deacons in 2018.

Many clergy and religious were honored for their jubilee anniversaries in 2017, but none more so than Bishop Emeritus William Curlin, who marked his 60th anniversary of priestly ordination in May. He offered a Mass of Thanksgiving at St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Charlotte, surrounded by many friends and fellow priests who had been closest to him over the years. Bishop Curlin, who served as the third Bishop of Charlotte from 1994 to 2002, passed away peacefully on Dec. 23, 2017.

5. Diocese target of two lawsuits The diocese went in court early in 2017 in response to two unrelated civil lawsuits.

In one lawsuit, former seminarian John Brian Kaup was accused of sexual abuse and assault while serving at Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury. The civil lawsuit, filed Feb. 2 by a female parishioner and her parents in Mecklenburg County Superior Court, alleged that Kaup assaulted her on church grounds in 2013. Salisbury police investigated the matter in 2016 with no criminal charges filed.

A former substitute teacher also sued the diocese, the Mecklenburg Area Catholic Schools system, and Charlotte Catholic High School, claiming that his civil rights were violated when the high school decided to stop calling him for substitute teaching work. Lonnie H. Billard, a retired drama teacher at Charlotte Catholic High School, claimed in a federal lawsuit that he was removed from the school’s list of substitute teachers in late 2014 after announcing plans to marry his male partner, in violation of Church teaching.

Both cases remain unresolved as of press time.

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief Poor box thefts reported CHARLOTTE — Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police are investigating recent collection box thefts from three parishes in the diocese.

At St. Matthew Church and St. John Neumann, both in Charlotte, and St. Mark Church in Huntersville, someone stole the wooden collection boxes off the wall. Video surveillance footage at St. Matthew Church shows a woman prying the box off the wall and stashing it under a pew before putting it in a large box and carrying out. These collection boxes weigh more than 10 pounds and cost about $400 each.

Detectives believe the same person or persons may be involved in these thefts.

No arrests had been made as of Dec. 21.

Video and photos of a suspect were released and anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 704-3341600.

— Catholic News Herald

Vigil of the Two Hearts continues CHARLOTTE — The next Vigil of the Two Hearts will be held at St. Patrick Cathedral beginning Friday evening, Jan. 5.

This new devotion honors the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Immaculate Heart

of Mary and its mission is to spiritually strengthen families, offer penance and pray for our nation’s conversion Devotion begins with the 8 p.m. First Friday Mass on Jan. 5, is followed by nocturnal Eucharistic Adoration, and concludes with the 8 a.m. First Saturday Mass on Jan. 6.

All families and parishes across Charlotte are invited to adopt an hour in prayer. Go to www.prolifecharlotte. org/two-hearts to sign-up for an hour of Adoration.

National Migration Week will be held Jan. 7-13 The Church in the United States will celebrate National Migration Week Jan. 7-13. During National Migration Week, the U.S. bishops call upon the faithful “to celebrate the contributions of refugees and immigrants in our churches, communities and in our country.” “With more than 65 million people displaced from their homes and over 22 million displaced outside their countries as refugees,” the U.S. bishops state, “we are currently witnessing the worst forced displacement crisis since World War II.” This year’s theme “Many Journeys, One Family” connects to the two-year Caritas Internationalis Share the Journey (www.sharejourney.org) campaign, launched by Pope Francis Sept. 27, 2017.

Visit the online resource library (www. sharejourney.org/resource-library) for toolkit resources (including prayers, bulletin inserts and homily suggestions) to use during National Migration Week, as well as during Lent, to help promote awareness of migrants and refugees.

— Joseph T. Purello

for the 15th annual

Thursday, March 8, 2018 Benton Convention Center 301 West Fifth Street Winston-Salem, NC 27101 At this complimentary event, you will be invited to make a generous gift to help raise our goal of $400,000 to Strengthen Families, Build Communities and Reduce Poverty in the Piedmont Triad Region.

For Reservations: Call 336-714-3227 or Visit: ccdoc.org/partnersinhope

Deacon Bob Gettelfinger dies

FFHL

NEW ALBANY, Ind. — Deacon Robert Jerome Gettelfinger, decorated World War II veteran and beloved father of Dennis, Nancy, Teri and Geoff, passed away peacefully on Dec. 23, 2017, after a recent period of declining health. He was 96.

A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated on Dec. 30, 2017, at St. Bernard Church, located at 7600 Hwy. 337 N.W. in Depauw, Ind., with burial in the church cemetery.

He was born Oct. 23, 1921, in New Albany, Ind., to the late Raymond P. and Margaret S. Gettelfinger.

During World War II he served honorably with the U.S. Army Air Corps in the Burma/China theater and was decorated with the Distinguished Flying Cross as well as the Legion of Merit. He went on as a career officer to serve in the U.S. Air Force for 27 years, retiring with the rank of colonel in the Strategic Air Command. He then began Gettelfinger a second career with Educational Testing Service in Princeton, N.J., in computer operations. He retired in 1988 and moved with his wife Doris to Charlotte to live closer to his family.

As an active, lifetime member of the Catholic Church, he served as a permanent deacon for more than 30 years.

He was ordained in the Diocese of Trenton, N.J., and served first at St. Paul’s Church in Princeton, N.J., and then at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte.

He was a devoted father and husband and was dearly loved and admired by his family.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his wife Doris M. Gettelfinger; sister Jane F. Block; and brothers John B., Daniel J. and Raymond P. Gettelfinger.

Surviving family members include his children, Dennis, Nancy, Teri and Geoff; brother Ralph; sister Mary; and five grandchildren.

Swarens Funeral Home Inc. of Ramsey, Ind., was in charge of the arrangements.

— Catholic News Herald

FROM PAGE 3

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parishioners.”

Dr. Janice Ritter, diocesan superintendent of schools, expressed her appreciation for the endowment.

“I am deeply grateful that the diocesan administration realized the need for tuition assistance for our families and included a provision in the Forward in the Faith, Hope, and Love campaign for this endowment,” she said. “I know our principals are also appreciative of this additional assistance which can be made available to families with financial need.”

Since it was established in 1994, the Foundation of the Diocese of Charlotte has grown to encompass 255 endowments and more than $48 million in assets.

Let’s keep talking.

High School Principal Blessed Trinity Catholic High School, a co-educational, college preparatory high school located north of Atlanta in Roswell, Georgia, seeks a visionary principal beginning on July 1, 2018. Opened in 2000 and accredited by AdvancED, Blessed Trinity serves a student body of approximately 1000 students with a professional staff of 110 teachers and support staff members. A 2014 U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon School of Excellence, Blessed Trinity is well known for its strong academic course of study, award-winning fine arts programs and a successful athletic program featuring 22 varsity sports. As an Archdiocese of Atlanta Catholic High, the principal reports directly to the Superintendent of Schools.

Responsibilities include continued development of rigorous academic standards, nurturing Catholic Identity in all aspects of school life, supervision of admissions and advancement efforts, fiscal responsibility, and on-going strategic planning.

The successful candidate will be a practicing Catholic in good standing with the Catholic Church; additional requirements include: hold a minimum of a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership; have a minimum of three to five years of Catholic school administrative experience; exhibit superior communication skills; model a collaborative leadership style to lead others in the mission of Catholic education; be knowledgeable in current areas of professional development; practice effective instructional leadership; and, demonstrate proficiency with encouraging the integration of technology across the academic program.

To learn more about Blessed Trinity Catholic High School, please visit the school’s website www.btcatholic.org No phone calls, please. Interested candidates should send a resume and letter of interest by February 2, 2018, to: Dr. Diane Starkovich, Superintendent of Schools, Archdiocese of Atlanta, 2401 Lake Park Drive S.E. Smyrna, Georgia 30080-8862.

Mix 14

catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

For the latest movie reviews: catholicnewsherald.com

In theaters ‘Father Figures’ Threadbare comedy about estranged fraternal twins (Owen Wilson and Ed Helms) who belatedly learn from their mother (Glenn Close) that the man she long ago told them was their deceased father was, in fact, just a friend of hers, and that their real dad may be alive, though her promiscuous past makes it impossible for her to identify for sure which of many candidates he might be. This discovery launches the siblings on a road trip during which they visit a series of contenders, the first being famed football star Terry Bradshaw, playing himself.

Director Lawrence Sher’s formulaic feature debut quickly sinks into a stupor from which only an energetic turn from Katt Williams as a hitchhiker does it briefly emerge. And the distasteful premise is matched by a worm’s-eye view of human sexuality throughout, although the resolving plot twist can be seen as vaguely pro-life. About a dozen uses of profanity, a couple of milder oaths, constant rough and crude language.

CNS: L (limited adult audience); MPAA: R

On TV

‘Downsizing’ What begins as a curious sci-fi fantasy about a futuristic technology people can use to shrink themselves (thereby dramatically reducing the toll they take on the environment) becomes a deeply humane, faith-tinged drama once a Midwestern suburbanite (Matt Damon) who has chosen to “go small” crosses paths with a Vietnamese refugee (Hong Chau in a powerful performance) who, as a political prisoner in her native country, was forcibly subjected to the process. Damon’s character has his own sense of vulnerability since he was betrayed by his ex-wife (Kristen Wiig) and fleeced in their divorce settlement. So he is ripe for the transformation of his materialistic values initiated when his cynical, party-loving neighbor (Christoph Waltz) becomes the unwitting agent of change in his life by bringing him into contact with the devout, charity-focused immigrant. A few uses of profanity, frequent rough and occasional crude and crass language.

CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: R

‘All the Money in the World’ By turns suspenseful, darkly comic and stridently moral, this slightly fictionalized account of the famous 1973 kidnapping of John Paul Getty III (Charlie Plummer), the grandson of his billionaire namesake (Christopher Plummer), makes a strong case that immense wealth not only can’t buy happiness, it also imposes depths of misery that few ever know. As scripted by David Scarpa from John Pearson’s 1995 book “Painfully Rich,” it traces the efforts of the victim’s divorced mother (Michelle Williams) and the ex-CIA agent (Mark Wahlberg) aiding her to out-negotiate both the miserly oil tycoon, who refuses to pay the $17 million ransom, and the lad’s captors. Mature themes, fleeting gore, frequent rough language.

CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: R

CCDOC.ORG

n Friday, Jan. 5, 6:30 p.m.

(EWTN) “The Story of Augustine Institute Radio Theatre.” A documentary on the Augustine Institute’s efforts to reclaim the arts and media for the New Evangelization. n Saturday, Jan. 6, 12 p.m..

(EWTN) “Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.” Mass of the Epiphany with Pope Francis, from St. Peter’s Basilica. n Saturday, Jan. 6, 4 p.m.

(EWTN) “Father Joe Walijewski: A Pencil in Our Lord’s Hand.”

The life and mission of Father Joseph Walijewski, a priest from Wisconsin who tirelessly served the poor in South America, and his recent cause for beatification and canonization. n Saturday, Jan. 6, 8 p.m.

(EWTN) “Maria Goretti.” St. Maria Goretti, one of the youngest saints in the history of the Church, gave up her life to protect her purity.

This remarkable film explores her life in the gritty detail of family poverty and harsh living conditions. n Sunday, Jan. 7, 12 p.m. (EWTN) “Solemn Mass for the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.” From the Sistine Chapel, Holy Mass with the sacrament of baptism, celebrated

by Pope Francis.

n Saturday, Jan. 13, 8 p.m.

(EWTN) “Duns Scotus.” Feature film on the life of Franciscan priest and theologian Blessed John Duns Scotus, a great defender of the Immaculate Conception. n Monday, Jan. 15, 1 p.m. (EWTN) “Saint Gianna Beretta Molla: A Modern Day Hero of Divine Love.”

St. Gianna Molla was a physician, wife and mother who refused an abortion despite knowing that the pregnancy could result in her death. n Monday, Jan. 15, 1:30 p.m.

(EWTN) “Love’s Bravest Choice.”

The inspirational story of St. Maria Goretti, whose life was an example of purity and chastity. She died at age 11 from knife wounds inflicted by a young man who desired to rob her of her virginity. She forgave him before her death. n Tuesday, Jan. 16, 4 p.m.

(EWTN) “Saint in the Making: A Blessed Cyprian Michael Tansi.”

Nigerian filmmakers recount the fascinating legacy of Blessed Father Cyprian Michael, whose quiet and hidden prayer life laid the foundation for Nigeria’s thriving monastic tradition. n Tuesday, Jan. 16, 6:30 p.m.

(EWTN) “Mercy: Discovering God’s Love.” Men and women testify to the power of God’s healing love and mercy after the tragedy of abortion.

Over 8,000 babies killed in Mecklenburg County alone last year!!

Be a witness for the sanctity of human life and an act of reparation for an end to abortion.

Come and save our children today… join the 12th Annual March for Life Charlotte and pray.

Save the date! Friday, January 12 March for Life Schedule

Help to end hunger Catholic Charities has food pantries in Asheville, Charlotte and Winston-Salem. Each pantry provides walk-in assistance on a first-come, first-served basis during scheduled hours. At the pantries, clients can help choose their food items – because providing food and assistance with dignity is what we believe in.

Looking to give back this holiday season? Drop off a food donation today and make a difference in a neighbor’s life.

Asheville: 828-255-0146 Charlotte: 704-370-3232 Winston-Salem: 336-727-0705

Mass for the Unborn 9:00am St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church 6828 Old Reid Road, Charlotte, NC 28210

Fr. Joshua Voitus

Guest Preacher Fr. Joshua Voitus - Pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish - Charlotte, NC

11:00am Start to gather in overflow parking lot across from the Pastoral Center at 1123 S. Church St. to prepare for march 11:45am Instructions for march and prayer before march 12:00pm Begin march to Trade and Tryon Streets where Fr. Joshua Voitus will preach; then to the courthouse at 401 W. Trade St. to pray the Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy

Go to www.marchforlifecharlotte.org for details on parking and signs

Our nation

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief Catholic swimmer Katie Ledecky named AP Female Athlete of Year WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Associated Press named Katie Ledecky the Female Athlete of the Year Dec. 26, after balloting by U.S. editors and news directors. Ledecky, a graduate of Little Flower School and Stone Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bethesda, Md., received 351 points in the vote, placing her ahead of tennis star Serena Williams, who received 343 points.

She was the eighth female swimmer to earn the honor and the first since Amy Van Dyken in 1996.

The vote reflected Ledecky’s dominance in the July 2017 world championships in Budapest, Hungary, where she earned five gold medals and one silver medal. Ledecky first entered the world stage as a 15-year-old in the 2012 London Olympics, the summer after her freshman year at Stone Ridge. In that competition, she surprised people around the world by winning a gold medal in the women’s 800-meter freestyle and finishing the race in record time. In 2016, she returned to the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and won gold in the 200-, 400-, and 800-meter freestyle races, gold in the 4x200 freestyle relay, and silver in the 4x100 freestyle relay. Ledecky is known for setting lofty goals for herself and achieving them, working hard and taking part in

grueling workout schedules. Another part of her routine, she told the Catholic Standard prior to the 2016 Olympics, is praying before races.

Bishop Bransfield dedicates altar at renovated W. Va. basilica CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Bishop Michael J. Bransfield dedicated a new altar and blessed the renovated sanctuary at the Basilica of the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Charleston as he welcomed hundreds of people to what he called a “wonderful house of God.” The Dec. 17 celebration included current and former basilica rectors. Bishop Bransfield of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia, spoke of the joy in the anticipation of Christmas and the dedication of the altar during his homily. “The joy that we share today, gathered as the parish family of Sacred Heart around this new altar, anticipates the joy of gathering with friends and family for Christmas and points to that fullness of rejoicing we will experience when Christ the Sacred Heart will appear at the end and gather us into the one kingdom,” he said.

“This new altar, made of noble stone, permanent and fixed, reminds us that Christ Himself is the one true cornerstone of our lives,” he said. “As the fathers of the Church were fond of saying, the altar is Christ and points to Christ, the High Priest and the Lamb of Sacrifice. The permanence of the altar shows us that Christ is that immovable rock, which gives solid foundation to all things.”

In California, former Vietnamese refugee becomes a bishop WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Diocese of Orange,

La Diócesis de Charlotte busca

Director para Centro de Conferencias La Diócesis de Charlotte tiene una oportunidad única para personas con experiencia administrativa en la industria de la hospitalidad. Las personas calificadas necesitan tener experiencia en supervisión de las operaciones que proporcionan alojamiento durante la noche y servicio de alimentos y bebidas. Además, experiencia en ventas y marketing y tener conocimiento de la tecnología. Las personas interesadas deben tener un fuerte deseo de ayudar a la Iglesia a proporcionar lugares de calidad para los programas católicos y retiros.

Envíe una carta de interés y un resume de la experiencia pertinente antes del 25 de enero de 2018 en: employment@charlottediocese.org. EOE.

Prices starting at $2,499 ~ with Airfare Included in this price from anywhere in the USA We offer several other trips to different destinations: the Holy Land; Italy; France, Portugal, & Spain; Poland; Lourdes, & Fatima; Ireland & Scotland; England; Austria, Germany, & Switzerland; Greece & Turkey; 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 Hablamos Español anthony@proximotravel.com

508-340-9370 855-842-8001 Call us 24/7

California, received an early Christmas present in the form of a new bishop Dec. 19, when a man who entered the country as a young refugee from Vietnam in 1973 became its new auxiliary bishop. Bishop Thanh Thai Nguyen, 64, became the second priest born in Vietnam to become a bishop in the United States. The first, Bishop Dominic M. Luong – an auxiliary bishop of the Orange Diocese from 2003 until his retirement in 2015 – died days before, on Dec. 6, at age 77.

Some saw the two events – the ordination of Bishop Nguyen and the death of his predecessor – as a providential passing of the torch. A Dec. 14 article from The Orange County Register, about Bishop Luong’s funeral, quotes Bishop Kevin W. Vann of Orange saying the events are “part of God’s plan for our diocese.” Bishop Vann told the new bishop during the ordination ceremony: “You, in another way, daily, will be a bearer of light to those in need of guidance and hope, who are surrounded by darkness at times, who are trying to find their way back to God,” according to a Dec. 26 article from the Daily Pilot, a community publication of the Los Angeles Times.

Catholic leaders urge U.S. extend protected status for Salvadorans WASHINGTON, D.C. — The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ migration committee and the heads of four Catholic agencies have urged the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security to extend Temporary Protected Status for El Salvador by 18 months. The TPS designation is for those who have come to the U.S. from certain countries because of a natural disaster, continuing armed conflict, criminal

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violence or other extraordinary conditions. It authorizes employment and protection from deportation for about 320,000 people from 10 countries. Currently, the TPS status for the roughly 200,000 Salvadorans in the United States extends through March 9 but a decision to extend or terminate TPS for a designated country must be made at least 60 days prior to the expiration date. For Salvadorans, the U.S. government must make that decision by Jan. 8.

Terminating TPS for Salvadorans “now would be inhumane and untenable,” because of current conditions in their home country, Catholic leaders said in a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen. The letter cited widespread housing shortages, lack of access to clean water, disease and food insecurity, and said “entire families” are targeted by violence.

Gingrich formally begins service as U.S. ambassador to Holy See VATICAN CITY — Callista L. Gingrich presented her letters of credential to Pope Francis, formally assuming her duties as U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. Gingrich met privately with the pope Dec. 22 after introducing her husband, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, and members of her staff. Neither the Vatican nor the U.S. embassy provided details about their private discussion.

In a statement, the embassy said, “Ambassador Gingrich looks forward to working with the Holy See to defend human rights, advance religious freedom, combat human trafficking and to seek peaceful solutions to crises around the world.”

— Catholic News Service

Diocese of Charlotte Seeks

Conference Center Director The Diocese of Charlotte has a unique opportunity for persons with management experience in the hospitality industry. Qualified individuals will have managed operations providing both overnight accommodations and food & beverage service. Additionally, he/she will have sales and marketing experience and be technology savvy. Interested persons should have a strong desire to assist the Church in providing quality venues for Catholic programs and retreats.

Please send letter of interest and resume of pertinent experience by January 25, 2018 to: employment@charlottediocese.org. EOE.

Our world 16

catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Let’s keep talking.

For New Year, pope urges help for refugees, respect for life CINDY WOODEN CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis began the New Year praying the world would demonstrate a marked increase in solidarity and welcome for migrants and refugees.

“Let’s not extinguish the hope in their hearts; let’s not suffocate their hopes for peace,” the pope said Jan. 1 before reciting the Angelus with a crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

For the New Year’s celebration of World Peace Day and the feast of Mary, Mother of God, Pope Francis had chosen to focus on migrants and refugees and their yearning for peace.

“For this peace, which is the right of all, many of them are willing to risk their lives in a journey that, in most cases, is CNS | PAUL HARING long and dangerous and to face Pope Francis venerates a figurine of the baby Jesus as he celebrates Mass marking the feast of Mary, Mother of God, in St. trials and suffering,” the pope Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican Jan. 1. told an estimated 40,000 people “May his lowliness lay low our pride; his poverty challenge gathered in the square around the Christmas tree and Nativity scene. our pomp; his tender love touch our hardened hearts,” the pope Pope Francis said it is important that everyone, including prayed. individuals, governments, schools, churches and church agencies, Celebrating evening prayer Dec. 31 and offering thanks to make a commitment to “ensuring refugees, migrants -- everyone God for the year that was ending, Pope Francis gave a special -- a future of peace.” acknowledgement to people -- especially parents and teachers Entrusting the needs of migrants and refugees to the maternal -- who are “artisans of the common good,” working to help their concern of Mary, the pope led the crowd in reciting a traditional families, neighbors and communities each day without fanfare.

Marian prayer: “Under thy protection we seek refuge, holy Mother But, he said, people also must acknowledge that God gave of God; despise not our petitions in our needs, but from all dangers humanity the year 2017 “whole and sound,” yet “we human deliver us always, Virgin, Glorious and Blessed.” beings have in many ways wasted and wounded it with works of Pope Francis had begun the day celebrating Mass in St. Peter’s death, with lies and injustices. Wars are the flagrant sign of this Basilica for the Marian feast, which he said was a celebration of backsliding and absurd pride. But so are all the small and great “a magnificent truth about God and about ourselves: From the offenses against life, truth and solidarity, which cause multiple moment that our Lord became incarnate in Mary, and for all time, forms of human, social and environmental degradation.” he took on our humanity.”

The pope also led the midday Angelus prayer Dec. 31, the feast of “To call Mary the mother of God reminds us,” he said, that “God the Holy Family. is close to humanity, even as a child is close to the mother who The Sunday Gospel reading recounted Mary and Joseph taking bears him in her womb.” the baby Jesus to the temple “to certify that the child belongs God becoming human in the baby Jesus, the pope said, is an to God and that they are the guardians of his life and not the affirmation that human life “is precious and sacred to the Lord,” owners,” the pope said. so “to serve human life is to serve God.” Mary and Joseph experience the joy of seeing their son grow “All life, from life in the mother’s womb to that of the elderly, in wisdom, grace and strength, the pope said. “This is mission to the suffering and the sick, and to that of the troublesome and even which the family is called: to create the best conditions that will repellent, is to be welcomed, loved and helped,” he said. allow for the harmonious and full growth of children, so that they Pope Francis also drew people’s attention to the fact that in the can live a life that is good, worthy of God and constructive for the Gospel stories of Jesus’ birth, Mary is silent. And the newborn world.”

Jesus, obviously, cannot speak.

Growth and rebirth are possibilities open to every family, he “We need to remain silent as we gaze upon the crib,” he said. said. “Whenever families, even those wounded and marked by “Pondering the crib, we discover anew that we are loved; we savor frailty, failure and difficulty, return to the source of Christian the real meaning of life. As we look on in silence, we let Jesus experience, new paths and unimagined possibilities open up.” speak to our heart.

Regional Business Manager Winston-Salem, NC

Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte seeks a full-time Regional Business Manager for the Winston-Salem office. Applicants must have strong organizational and computer skills, the ability to handle multiple tasks, and supervisory experience. Go to www.ccdoc.org/jobs for details.

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief Vatican agency says at least 23 Church workers killed in 2017 VATICAN CITY — The majority of Catholic Church workers violently killed in 2017 were victims of attempted robberies, the Vatican’s Fides agency said, with Nigeria and Mexico topping the list countries where the most brutal murders were carried out. The agency said 23 people working for the Church worldwide – 13 priests, one religious brother, one religious sister and eight lay persons – died violent deaths in 2017; that number was down from 28 people killed in 2016. Each year, Fides, the news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, publishes a list of pastoral workers who died violently. The 2017 list was released Dec. 28. For the ninth year in a row, the Americas continued to be the continent most affected by violence against Catholic Church workers with 11 people killed there in 2017; with four of those deaths in Mexico, that nation continues to be where the greatest number of priests in Latin America are killed, it said.

Pope: Complex world needs clear essentials of Gospel VATICAN CITY — In an increasingly complex world of unprecedented scientific and technological challenges, theologians must communicate what is essential about life and help Christians proclaim God’s merciful, saving grace, Pope Francis told a group of Italian

theologians. The theologians’ task requires being “faithful and anchored” to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council and continuing the council’s focus on the church “letting itself be enriched by the perennial newness of Christ’s Gospel,” he said. Speaking Dec. 29 at the Vatican to members of the Italian Theological Association, which was celebrating its 50th anniversary, the pope said theologians and other church workers must always refer back to Vatican II where the church recognized its responsibility to “proclaim the Gospel in a new way.” Such a task is done not by changing the message, but by communicating the perennial message with “faithful creativity” to a world experiencing rapid transformations, he said.

Pope: Festivities become facade when Christ is not in Christmas VATICAN CITY — Only when Christ is the focus of the Christmas season do all the colorful lights, carols, special meals and traditions help create a festive and joyous atmosphere, Pope Francis said. “If we take him away, the lights go out and everything become fake, illusory,” he said at his weekly general audience Dec. 27.

“Without Jesus, there is no Christmas. It’s some other celebration, but it isn’t Christmas,” he said to applause. Dedicating his audience talk to the true meaning of Christmas as a celebration of Christ’s birth, the pope greeted pilgrims gathered in the Vatican’s Paul VI audience hall, which was decorated with a Christmas tree and a life-size Nativity scene. The creche, the liturgies and the seasonal songs all help the faithful relive today the birth of Christ the savior, he said. However, especially in Europe, he said, Christmas is being stripped of its true nature “in the name of a false respect for those who are not Christian.” But, often the true motive behind eliminating any reference to the birth of Christ is a desire to “marginalize faith.”

— Catholic News Service

Elementary/Middle School Principal Our Lady of Grace Catholic School Our Lady of Grace (OLG) Catholic School is located in Greensboro, North Carolina. The Parish is seeking a loyal and participating Catholic for the position of School Principal beginning July 1, 2018.

Estate Planning Elder Law | Probate WAITING COULD DEVASTATE YOUR FAMILY St. Matthew’s Parishioner

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THE ORATORY Center for Spirituality

434 Charlotte Avenue, P.O. Box 11586 Rock Hill, SC 29731-1586 rockhilloratory.net

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oratorycenter@gmail.com

The Book of Revelation Thursday, February 1 or Saturday, February 3 9:30am – 4:00pm Presented by: Sr. Mary Hugh Mauldin, RSM Revelation, the last book of the New Testament, is one of the most talked about books in the Bible, inspiring fear, millennial predictions and horror throughout Christian history. We will probe the setting, symbols and structure for a deeper understanding of this book’s good news. Prayer, noon Eucharist and lunch are included in the schedule.

The same program is offered both days.

Cost: $40 (Lunch included)

Our Lady of Grace has a student population of 230 students and a faculty of 25.

OLG administers student programs for children from age 3 through 8th grade. We also serve a special community of children through differentiated learning with our PACE and Quest programs.

Sr. Mary Hugh Mauldin, RSM has degrees in Math Education from NC State, an MA in Theology from St. Bonaventure University and a graduate certificate in Liturgy from St. John’s College. She is a frequent speaker and popular presenter in the Diocese of Charlotte.

Academic/Professional Requirements: Master’s degree in educational administration/supervision or a Master’s degree in education with a willingness to obtain administrative certification.

Feeding on the Bread of Life

Experience in a Catholic school and special education programs is preferred. The candidate must be: strongly committed to educating our children in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church in both word and example; enthusiastic about Catholic Schools and their mission; able to work collaboratively with parish administration, faculty, staff, parents and parish organizations; and able to articulate and implement a vision for the school in areas of curriculum, outreach and technology.

Please send a resumé and cover letter to: Annette Bagnoli, School Administrative Assistant 201 S. Chapman Street, Greensboro, NC 27403 abagnoli@olgsch.org Applications accepted through January 15, 2018

A Retreat for Men Saturday, February 24 9:30am – 2:00pm Led by: Michael Petro We will spend some time with Chapter Six of the Gospel of John. Let’s see what Jesus tells us about the Eucharist. How can we apply His words to our lives during Lent and beyond? The day includes liturgy and lunch.

Cost: $35 (Lunch included) Michael Petro teaches at St. Anne School in Rock Hill, SC and Belmont Abbey College

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ViewPoints 18

catholicnewsherald.com | January 5, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Robert Barron

Pride, humility and social media D

uring a recent flight to Sacramento, I reached for a magazine in the seatback pocket and came across an article by a woman named Sarah Menkedick entitled “Unfiltered: How Motherhood Interrupted My Relationship with Social Media.”

The piece was not only engagingly written, it also spoke to some pretty profound truths about our cultural situation today and the generation that has come of age under the influence of the internet.

Menkedick argues that to have swum in the sea of Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and YouTube from the time that one was a child is to live one’s life perpetually in front of an audience. Most millennials never simply have experiences; they are conditioned to record, preserve and present those experiences to a following who are invited to like what they see, comment on it, respond to it. To be sure, she acknowledges, social media, at their best, are powerful means of communication and connection, but at their worst, they produce this odd distancing from life and a preoccupation with the self. Here is how she puts it: “I’ve come of age as a writer at a time when it is no longer enough just to write. A writer must also promote her work and in the process promote herself as a person of interest…I learned the snarky, casually intellectual voice of feminist and pop culture bloggers, the easy outrage, the clubby camaraderie.”

But then something extraordinary happened to her: she became a mother. On the front porch of her home, nursing her baby, she discovered that she had a visceral aversion to snark and absolutely no desire to share her experience with an audience or curry favor from it. She didn’t want to cultivate any ironic distance from motherhood; rather, she wanted to believe in it with all her heart, to let it wash over her.

Her baby broke through the carapace of her self-regard and let in some real light. Again, granting all that is truly good about social media (which I use massively in my own ministry), they can easily produce the conviction that we are the stars of our own little dramas, always playing for an eager audience. Authentic spirituality always gives rise to the opposite conviction: your life is not about you.

To grasp this distinction more completely, let me propose two scenarios. In the first, you talking with someone you desperately want (or need) to impress, say, a prospective employer or a popular figure. In this context, you are speaking, listening, laughing, etc., but more importantly, you are watching yourself perform these moves, attentive to the other person’s reaction. You are not really experiencing reality directly, but rather through a sort of veil.

Now a second scenario: you are in lively conversation with a friend, and there is no ulterior motive. You become lost in the discussion, following it where it leads, laughing when you are truly amused, watching your partner – not to see how she’s reacting to you, but just because she’s interesting.

Now, to use the language of the classical moral and spiritual tradition, the first situation I described is marked by pride, and the second by humility. Don’t think of pride primarily as self-exaltation. In its most proper nature, pride is seeing the world through the distorting lens of the ego and its needs. On the other hand, humility, from the Latin “humus” (“earth”), is getting in touch with reality directly, being close to the ground, seeing things as they are. This is why St. Thomas Aquinas famously says “humilitas est veritas” (“humility is truth”).

What makes the first scenario so painful and cringe-worthy is that it is out of step with the truth of things. What makes the second scenario so exhilarating, so fun, is that it is full of reality.

What Sarah Menkedick intuited is the manner in which social media can be a breeding ground for the unique type of spiritual distortion and dislocation that we traditionally call pride. What made all the difference for her was the arrival of her baby – a reality that she could appreciate only through humility.

BISHOP ROBERT BARRON is the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries and auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. He is also the host of “Catholicism,” an awardwinning documentary about the Catholic faith.

Bobby Speers

W

Five guaranteed resolutions for a new you

ith the coming of a New Year, we are put on the spot to make a New Year’s resolution.

For days, we contemplate how we can make the “new” year better than the year before. Most of us will aim to lose weight, exercise more, spend more time with family, and watch what we eat or drink, perhaps cutting carbs, calories and alcohol consumption. We put so much time and effort into our physical existence and appearance – oftentimes forgetting about or neglecting our spiritual life, our eternal souls, the part of us that really lives forever in perpetual bliss or unrelenting damnation.

Here are five New Year’s Eve resolutions that will pave the way for a new you in 2018, using the joyful mysteries of the rosary as a guide: The first joyful mystery, the Annunciation, is a prime example of opening our hearts to God’s will.

Mary willing accepted God’s invitation to give birth to Jesus with her wholehearted fiat. When was the last time you said “yes” to the Holy Spirit? That’s the little voice we sometimes ignore. A New Year’s resolution might be saying “yes” to God’s voice, prompting me to give freely of my time, use my talent and give sacrificially of my treasure.

The second joyful mystery, the Visitation: Mary could’ve given Elizabeth an excuse, something like, “You know, Liz - I’m pregnant too and I’m carrying the Savior of the world.” Instead, Mary rolled up her sleeves and left her home for months to care for her pregnant cousin Elizabeth.

When we serve others, we spiritually and physically grow and rejuvenate ourselves! “For you were called for freedom, brother. But do not use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh; rather, serve one another through love.” (Gal 5:13) Jesus said in John 12:26: “Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me.” A New Year’s Resolution might be promising to serve Christ by reaching out to others and putting their needs first.

In the third joyful mystery, the birth of Jesus, we meditate on the fact that Jesus and His family had no place to stay when they arrived in Bethlehem.

So, too, the door to our heart can be closed because of trials and tribulations, past hurts or shame.

Should we blame God? No, we must open our hearts to Jesus. “Blessed is the man who perseveres in temptation, for when he has been proved he will receive the crown of life that he promised to those who love him.” (James 1:12-13) No one experiencing temptation should say, “I am being tempted by God,” for God is not subject to temptation to evil, and He Himself tempts no one. Your New Year’s resolution

might be to put down your worries, take up your cross and follow Jesus.

In the fourth joyful mystery, the Presentation, we hear how Mary and Joseph took the infant Jesus to the Temple as the law of Moses dictated. They humbled themselves and were obedient to God. In today’s world, the humble person is considered weak.

Satan knows how to spin words –remember how he tricked Eve in the Garden of Eden? Satan still gets inside our heads, tempting us to be our own gods.

“Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but (also) everyone for those of others.”

(Phil 2:3-4) Your New Year’s resolution could be to constantly pray, “Lord, l am happy to be last!”

In the fifth joyful mystery, finding the Child Jesus in the Temple, we read about Mary and Joseph losing Jesus in the crowd. Sometimes our daily struggles, the people we associate with, hardness of heart, and our selfishness prevents us from entering the church doors and we lose our eternal joy. So often we hear, “Why, that church is full of hypocrites!” When given this argument, the person is actually saying, “The church is full of sinners.” Jesus has the answer: “The Pharisees and their scribes complained to His disciples, saying, ‘Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?’ Jesus said to them in reply, ‘Those who are healthy do not need a physician, but the sick do. I have not come to call the righteous to repentance but sinners.’” (Luke 5:30-32) And St. Paul tells us, “...all have sinned and are deprived of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23). Yes, the church is full of sinners and we are there by the grace of God! A New Year’s resolution might be to go to confession and Mass as often as you can. Jesus is waiting there for you!

In conclusion, remember the words of Hebrews 10:19-23: “Therefore, brothers, since through the blood of Jesus we have confidence of entrance into the sanctuary by the new and living way He opened for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have ‘a great priest over the house of God,’ let us approach with a sincere heart and in absolute trust, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. Let us hold unwaveringly to our confession that gives us hope, for He who made the promise is trustworthy.”

A new year starts with a new you!

BOBBY SPEERS is a writer who lives in Hickory and serves as chairperson of St. Aloysius Church’s evangelization commission.

January 5, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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Parish spotlight

Dr. Kamila Valenta

The Flight to Egypt and refugees today

A

s the Holy Family had to flee to Egypt to protect the life of Baby Jesus 2,000 years ago, many families around the world are facing the same hardships, uncertainly and vulnerability of being a refugee. Currently, the United Nations’ estimated number of displaced persons who were forced to leave their homes to save their lives from war or persecution has reached a historic high of 65 million and continues to rise. While we are currently living in the midst of the greatest global refugee crisis since the Second World War, the political obstacles for refugee acceptance in developed countries are greater than ever.

The largest amount of refugees come from war-torn Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, South Sudan and most recently Myanmar, where the governmental suppression of the Rohingya Muslim minority has been described as genocide. Contrary to popular belief, because of a lack of support and resources combined with a desire to eventually return to their homes, the vast majority of refugees do not resettle in wealthy developed countries. They usually end up in middle income or poor countries in the Middle East and Africa, which is detrimental to the refugees, the host countries and the overall stability in the region.

Some of these countries, such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Pakistan, are already struggling with chronically high poverty levels, and having to care for refugees, who usually arrive without even the most basic necessities can be a tremendous burden. For very small countries, such as Lebanon, hosting a number of refugees as large as a quarter of its entire population is overwhelming. The lack of resources of the host countries prompt many international humanitarian agencies to take action in these situations, but according to the Global Humanitarian Assistance report of 2016, these agencies are chronically underfunded with a budget of only about one-half to two-thirds of what is considered to be the absolute minimum needed.

As a result, people in refugee camps suffer from unsanitary conditions and shortages of food, clean water and basic medical supplies in addition to lack of security, which makes them vulnerable to violent crimes, including rape and murder.

More than one-half of all refugees are children, many of whom die of treatable deceases, such as malaria and measles.

The children who are caught in protracted refugee situations of five or more years often lack a chance for education, which further contributes to the cycle of poverty in problematic regions.

To escape these hardships, desperate refugees attempt the perilous journey on overcrowded homemade boats as they try to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Each year, many families, including small children, do not make it, and thousands of them drown or die of exposure. The year 2016 was the most tragic, with more than 5,000 fatalities on the Mediterranean passage, according to the Missing Migrants Project, a non-profit humanitarian organization.

Many people also die on land, as for example all 71 migrants who suffocated

to death when riding in a truck in Austria in the summer of 2015. Even though some European countries have been relatively generous with refugee acceptance and Germany pledged to accept one million refugees, their help is not adequate given the enormity of the crisis. Furthermore, anti-immigrant nationalist parties have gradually gained political strength in recent years, making prospects for future refugee resettlement in Europe grim.

The chances for refugees to resettle in the United States are even smaller. Many U.S. charities and churches are moved by the hardships of these desperate people, and have been a great help and support during the refugee resettlement process in this country. However, the greatest obstacle is our restrictive policy of how many refugees are allowed to enter. Considering the size of this country and the strength of the economy, the United States is notorious for accepting only a very small number of refugees each year. For the following fiscal year the maximum number of refugees has been further reduced to 45,000 instead of the previously planned 100,000. So far, the United States has resettled a total of 18,000 Syrian refugees – a significantly lower number than most developed countries including Canada, which has resettled 40,000 with its 10 times smaller population size.

The vast majority of refugees tend to adjust and assimilate well, and contribute to the economic development of this country. According to the International Rescue Committee, most refugees who come to the U.S. are able to speak fluent English within several years, and when compared to the general U.S. population, a higher percentage of them become successful entrepreneurs. Our country is thus missing a unique opportunity to benefit from valuable human resources and to provide a chance for a new life in safety for the most desperate. We are also not addressing the situation and tensions developing in the areas refugees are escaping from, area that are particularly vulnerable to economic collapse, instability and further conflict. Some of the most devastating recent conflicts have been caused by refugee crises. The Great War of Africa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo at the turn of this millennium claimed more than 5 million lives, and was directly fueled by an unaddressed refugee situation that resulted from the genocide in the neighboring Rwanda.

Our faith has always been sensitive to the hardship and suffering of those who are forced to abandon their homes in the face of danger, and the Flight to Egypt has been traditionally listed as one of our Lady’s seven sorrows. By the grace of God, the Holy Family was able to eventually find safety, but millions of contemporary refugees will not, and even though we cannot save all of them, we could be saving a lot more.

DR. KAMILA VALENTA is a member of St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte and a part-time professor at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where she teaches courses on ethnic conflict.

MIKE FITZGERALD | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

HUNTERSVILLE — St. Mark Parish hosted its second annual blessing of wine on the feast of St. John the Evangelist Dec. 27 during the 7 a.m. Mass. Father Noah Carter, parochial vicar, offered Mass and after a sermon proceeded to bless the wine brought by parishioners. According to tradition, St. John blessed the cup of wine before drinking and the poison was removed. Afterwards St. John became the patron of wine, and its custom to have wine blessed on his feast day. The blessed wine can be used for drinking or cooking.

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‘It is important that everyone, including individuals, governments, schools, churches and Church agencies, make a commitment to “ensuring refugees, migrants – everyone – a future of peace.” ’ Pope Francis

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