Nov. 9, 2018

November 9, 2018

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

$40k in local CCHD grants awarded Two veterans initiatives receive help 6

Seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit Annual Red Mass offered for members of legal profession

5 INDEX

Contact us.....................................4 Español....................................... 14-17 Events calendar............................4 Our Faith........................................2 Our Parishes............................ 3-11 Schools........................................ 18 Scripture readings.......................2 TV & Movies................................. 19 U.S. news.....................................20 Viewpoints.............................22-23 World news................................. 21

Saints and Souls

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Parishes, schools across the Charlotte diocese give thanks for the saints and pray for the souls in purgatory

FUNDED BY THE PARISHIONERS OF THE DIOCESE OF CHARLOTTE

3, 9, 15

THANK YOU!

BLACK CATHOLIC HISTORY MONTH

Married couples rely on Jesus, the ‘supreme example of love’ Wedding anniversary Mass honors married couples for their Christian witness

Cierran mes del Santo Rosario con celebración

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Spotlight on Father Augustus Tolton, former slave and first AfricanAmerican priest

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Our faith

catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

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Pope Francis

People unable to give have become slaves to possessions

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ife is for loving, not amassing possessions, Pope Francis said.

In fact, the true meaning and purpose of wealth is to use it to lovingly serve others and promote human dignity, he said Nov. 7 during his weekly general audience.

The world is rich enough in resources to provide for the basic needs of everybody, the pope said. “And yet, many people live in scandalous poverty and resources – used without discernment – keep deteriorating. But there is just one world! There is one humanity.”

The pope continued his series of talks on the Ten Commandments, focusing on the command, “You shall not steal,” which reflects respect for other people’s property. Christians should read the commandment in the light of faith and the Church’s social doctrine, which emphasizes the understanding that the goods of creation are destined for the whole human race, he said.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the “primordial” universal destination of goods does not detract from people’s right to private property, he said.

However, the need to promote the common good also requires understanding and properly using private property.

“No one is the absolute master over resources,” he said, which reflects the “positive and wider meaning of the commandment, ‘Do not steal.’”

Being in possession of material goods brings with it much responsibility, the pope said. If hunger exists in the world, he said, it is because the needs of the economic market come first, for instance, when keeping prices up means demanding that food be destroyed or thrown away. He underlined the importance of viewing possessions and wealth from the Christian perspective of gift and generosity, saying “what I truly possess is what I know how to give.”

“If I know how to give, I am open, I am rich,” not only in possessions but in generosity, knowing it is a duty to give so everyone can have a share, he said.

“In fact, if I am unable to give something it is because that thing owns me, I am a slave, the thing has power over me.”

Instead, ownership must be an opportunity to multiply those goods “with creativity and use them with generosity and that way grow in charity and freedom,” he said.

While the world breathlessly seeks to have more and more, God – rich in mercy – redeemed the world by making Himself poor, paying a priceless ransom on the cross, he said.

“What makes us rich are not goods, but is love,” the pope said. “Life is not a time for owning things but for loving.”

Feast of the dedication of the Lateran Basilica Feast day: Nov. 9 The feast of the Dedication of the Basilica of St. John Lateran is celebrated by the entire Church. It marks the dedication of the cathedral church of Rome by Pope Sylvester I in 324. Although most people think that St. Peter’s Basilica is the pope’s church, it is actually St. John Lateran that is the cathedra (or chair) of the pope, who is bishop of Rome.

A Latin inscription in the Church reads: “omnium ecclesiarum Urbis et Orbis mater et caput.” Translated, this means, “The mother and head of all churches of the city and of the world.”

In a sense, St. John Lateran is the parish church of all Catholics, because it is the pope’s cathedral. This church is the spiritual home of the people who are the Church.

It is the oldest and highest ranking of the four papal major basilicas, giving it the unique title of “archbasilica.” It was originally named the Archbasilica of the Most Holy Savior.

However, it is called St. John Lateran because it was built on property donated to the Church by the Laterani family, and because the monks from the monastery of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Divine served it.

The first basilica on the site was built in the fourth century when Constantine donated land he had received from the wealthy Laterani family. That structure and its successors suffered fire, earthquake and the ravages of war, but the Lateran remained the church where popes were consecrated. In the 14th century when

the papacy returned to Rome from Avignon, the church and the adjoining palace were found to be in ruins.

Pope Innocent X commissioned the present structure in 1646.

One of Rome’s most imposing churches, the Lateran’s towering facade is crowned with 15 colossal statues of Christ, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist, and 12 doctors of the Church.

Beneath its high altar rest the remains of the small wooden table on which tradition holds St. Peter himself celebrated Mass.

— Catholic News Agency and Franciscan Media

Did you know?

There are two kinds of basilicas in the Catholic Church: major (or papal) and minor. The Church’s four major basilicas are all in Rome. Besides St. John Lateran, there are St. Peter’s, St. Paul Outside the Walls and St. Mary Major.

Minor basilicas, on the other hand, are churches around the world designated by the pope that stand out because of their antiquity, dignity, historical importance, architectural and artistic worth, or significance to the Church. There are two minor basilicas in the Diocese of Charlotte: St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville and Mary Help of Christians Abbey Basilica in Belmont.

— Catholic News Herald

Your daily Scripture readings NOV. 11-17

Sunday: 1 Kings 17:10-16, Hebrews 9:24-28, Mark 12:38-44; Monday (St. Josaphat): Titus 1:1-9, Luke 17:1-6; Tuesday (St. Frances Xavier Cabrini): Titus 2:1-8, 11-14, Luke 17:7-10; Wednesday: Titus 3:1-7, Luke 17:11-19; Thursday (St. Albert the Great): Philemon 7:-20, Luke 17:20-25; Friday (St. Margaret of Scotland, St. Gertrude): 2 John 4-9, Luke 17:26-37; Saturday (St. Elizabeth of Hungary): 3 John 5-8, Luke 18:1-8,

NOV. 18-24

Sunday: Daniel 12:1-3, Hebrews 10:11-14, 18, Mark 13:24-32; Monday: Revelation 1:1-4, 2:1-5, Luke 18:35-43; Tuesday: Revelation 3:1-6, 1422, Luke 19:1-10; Wednesday (The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary): Revelation 4:1-11, Luke 19:11-28; Thursday (St. Cecilia, Thanksgiving Day): Revelation 5:1-10, Luke 19:41-44; Friday (St. Clement I, St. Columban, BI. Miguel Agustín Pro): Revelation 10:8-11, Luke 19:45-48; Saturday (St. Andrew DungLac and Companions): Revelation 11:4-12, Luke 20:27-40

NOV. 25-DEC. 1

Sunday (Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe): Daniel 7:13-14, Revelation 1:5-8, John 18:33-37; Monday: Revelation 14:1-5, Luke 21:1-4; Tuesday: Revelation 14:14-19, Luke 21:511; Wednesday: Revelation 15:1-4, Luke 21:12-19; Thursday: Revelation 18:1-2, 21-23, 19:1-3, 9, Luke 21:20-28; Friday (St. Andrew): Romans 10:9-18, Matthew 4:18-22; Saturday: Revelation 22:1-7, Luke 21:34-36

Our parishes

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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Married couples rely on Jesus, the ‘supreme example of love’ Wedding anniversary Mass honors married couples for their Christian witness SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Married couples celebrating special anniversaries in 2018 were honored by Bishop Peter Jugis during the Diocese of Charlotte’s wedding anniversary Mass, held this year at St. John Neumann Church Nov. 4.

The annual Mass recognizes couples who have witnessed to the sanctity of the sacrament of marriage for 25 years or more. Sponsored by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte, the event includes a reception with the bishop after Mass.

“We are honoring you anniversary couples for the witness of your love for each other and especially and including your love of the Lord,” Bishop Jugis said at the beginning of his homily.

He reflected on the readings selected for the anniversary Mass (Genesis 3:18-24, 1 Corinthians 12:31-13:8a, and the Gospel of John 15:12-16), remarking that these readings are often selected for a wedding Mass.

“Marriage is a sacrament instituted by Christ to give grace” to couples and to provide a solid foundation for family life and the building up of the domestic Church, Bishop Jugis said.

Including Jesus Christ in one’s marriage is crucial for success, he continued. By inviting Christ into their union through the celebration of the sacrament of holy matrimony, he said, “you wanted to build your marriage on the solid foundation of Jesus so He would always be there to help you.”

He said he had no doubt that over the years they have

relied often on Christ.

“It is incumbent upon you to continue to turn to Him because Jesus sets the standard on what marriage should be,” he said. “Jesus sets the standard of what it means to give your life to another. Without counting the cost, (He) gave His life always for the other – for us.”

In fact, Jesus sets the standard for self-sacrifice in whatever vocation in life the Lord calls us to – priesthood, consecrated life, single or married life, the bishop added.

“He sets the standard on how to love another because He is the supreme example of love. There is no greater. That is the love that inspires all Christian marriage.”

In attendance at the wedding anniversary Mass were Immaculate Heart of Mary parishioners Tom and Donna Yaudes, who were married more than 50 years ago in Madison, Wis. The couple raised three sons and now have seven grandchildren.

“We both went through Catholic schools, so that gave us a very good foundation,” Tom Yaudes said. “All through our lives together we have had ups and downs, some tragedies in our family and some real joys. We have always turned to God.” Mike and Karen Lugo of Immaculate Conception Church in Forest City have been married 25 years and have seven children ranging from 8 to 20 years old.

“Karen prayed me back into the Church,” Mike Lugo said. “Through those graces, it has drawn me closer to Him and made me more eager to learn more about the faith and COUPLES, SEE PAGE 24

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Dozens of married couples were honored at the annual wedding anniversary Mass Nov. 4 at St. John Neumann Church in Charlotte. Bishop Peter Jugis celebrated Mass and blessed their wedding rings during the renewal of vows.

Remembering the faithful departed HUNTERSVILLE — Rainy weather couldn’t keep St. Mark parishioners away from honoring the dead on All Souls’ Day Nov. 2. Father Brian Becker offered Mass at Northlake Memorial Gardens Cemetery, assisted by Deacon Louis Pais. James Funeral Home generously provided a tent to keep everybody, including the altar, dry. Father Becker then led a procession blessing the graves with holy water while the parish’s sacred music director Michael Garnett chanted the Litany of the Saints. Later that evening, Father Noah Carter offered a Mass of Remembrance at St. Mark Church.

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER

MARKUS KUNCORO AND MIKE FITZGERALD | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Prayers for the souls in purgatory BELMONT — Approximately 60 people joined Father Timothy Reid, pastor of St. Ann Church in Charlotte, as he offered prayers for the poor souls in purgatory Nov. 4 at Belmont Abbey’s cemetery. Father Reid led the faithful in prayers for the dead and the Litany of the Saints. The event was organized to pray for the poor souls during the first eight days of November, which carries with it a plenary indulgence to be applied to the souls in purgatory. The afternoon concluded with a light reception of donuts and snacks.

UPcoming events 4

catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following upcoming events: NOV. 9 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Vincent de Paul Church, Charlotte

NOV. 17 – 2 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Matthew Church, Charlotte

NOV. 27 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Luke Church, Mint Hill

NOV. 11-16 USCCB Meeting Baltimore, Md.

NOV. 19 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Thomas Aquinas Church, Charlotte

NOV. 29 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Luke Church, Mint Hill

DEC. 1 – 11 A.M. Sacrament of Confirmation Sacred Heart Church, Brevard

Diocesan calendar of events November 9, 2018

ENTERTAINMENT

Volume 28 • NUMBER 3

ART EXHIBIT, ‘MOST HIGHLY FAVORED, THE LIFE OF THE VIRGIN MARY’: Nov. 8 -Jan. 31, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, 14542 Choate Circle, Charlotte.

This exhibition has been curated to help the viewer learn and explore more about this Most Highly Favored Lady and the rightful place she played in the life of Jesus and the life of the church. If you are interested in learning more about the exhibit, including visiting hours, special events, or to set up a personal tour, contact Michelle Littlejohn at 704.940.5814 or dlittlejohn@gordonconwell. edu.

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

STAFF EDITOR: Patricia L. Guilfoyle 704-370-3334, plguilfoyle@charlottediocese.org ADVERTISING MANAGER: Kevin Eagan 704-370-3332, keeagan@charlottediocese.org SENIOR REPORTER: SueAnn Howell 704-370-3354, sahowell@charlottediocese.org ONLINE REPORTER: Kimberly Bender 704-808-7341, kdbender@charlottediocese.org HISPANIC COMMUNICATIONS REPORTER: Cesar Hurtado, 704-370-3375, rchurtado@charlottediocese.org GRAPHIC DESIGNER: Tim Faragher 704-370-3331, tpfaragher@charlottediocese.org COMMUNICATIONS ASSISTANT/CIRCULATION: Erika Robinson, 704-370-3333, catholicnews@ charlottediocese.org

THE CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD is published by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte 26 times a year.

NEWS: The Catholic News Herald welcomes your news and photos. Please e-mail information, attaching photos in JPG format with a recommended resolution of 150 dpi or higher, to catholicnews@charlottediocese.org. All submitted items become the property of the Catholic News Herald and are subject to reuse, in whole or in part, in print, electronic formats and archives.

ADVERTISING: Reach 165,000 Catholics across western North Carolina! For advertising rates and information, contact Advertising Manager Kevin Eagan at 704-370-3332 or keeagan@charlottediocese.org. The Catholic News Herald reserves the right to reject or cancel advertising for any reason, and does not recommend or guarantee any product, service or benefit claimed by our advertisers.

SUBSCRIPTIONS: $15 per year for all registered parishioners of the Diocese of Charlotte and $23 per year for all others.

POSTMASTER: Periodicals class postage (USPC 007-393) paid at Charlotte, N.C. Send address corrections to the Catholic News Herald, 1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, N.C. 28203.

38TH PERPETUAL HOPE GOSPEL CHOIR CONCERT: 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 11, Our Lady of Consolation Church, 2301 Statesville Ave., Charlotte. A love offering will be taken to benefit the choir. For details, call the parish office at 704-375-4339.

HOMECOMING – CALLING ALL ST. LEO ALUMS: 5:308:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 21, in the school gym at St. Leo School, 333 Springdale Ave., Winston-Salem. Join for the Second Annual Alumni Homecoming. All St. Leo alumni, current faculty and former faculty are invited to attend this free event. Dinner will be served. Email slshomecoming@gmail.com and provide your name, graduation year and contact information so you can receive updates about the event.

ANNUAL SANTA CRAFT FAIR: 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Charlotte. Browse and shop unique handcrafted items from 100-plus vendors. Have professional photos made with Santa from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Eat in the food court with a sit-down dining area. Enjoy free coffee and a donut. For details, call the parish office at 704-543-7677.

NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING NFP INTRODUCTION AND FULL COURSE: 1:30-5 p.m.

Saturday, Jan. 12, 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.

PRAYER SERVICES & GROUPS ROSARY NOVENA IN REPARATION FOR THE SINS OF OUR NATION AND FOR CHRIST’S SUFFERING CHURCH: 6:15 p.m. Wednesdays, Oct. 3-Nov. 28, Maryfield Chapel, 1315 Greensboro Road, High Point. Included are prayers of reparation and consolation, praying the rosary, Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction. All are invited.

CCWG MORNING REFLECTION: 9 a.m. Monday, Nov. 12, St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid Road, Charlotte.

Reflection will be led by Father Matthew Buettner at 10 a.m. in the Assembly Room behind the chapel. RSVP requested to www.charlottecatholicwomensgroup.org.

All women of the Diocese of Charlotte are invited.

10TH ANNUAL MOORESVILLE COMMUNITY ECUMENICAL THANKSGIVING PRAYER SERVICE: 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 15, St. Therese Church, 217 Brawley

School Road, Mooresville. This annual Thanksgiving prayer service is an opportunity for everyone to come together and show unity and commitment to serving the community. Offerings will bless the Christian Mission and the Mooresville Soup Kitchen. For details, call the parish office at 704-664-3992.

ST. PEREGRINE HEALING PRAYER SERVICE: 7:30 p.m.

Thursdays, Nov. 15 and Dec. 20, St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Charlotte. (The date change is due to Thanksgiving and Christmas.) This solemn prayer service includes a blessing with the St. Peregrine relic. St. Peregrine has been called the wonder worker for his intercession on behalf of those living with serious illness. He is the patron saint of all who are afflicted by cancer, leg ailments or any life-threatening disease. He is also the patron saint of youth at risk. For details, call the parish office at 704-543-7677.

CCWG ADVENT RETREAT: 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 1, St. Therese Church, 217 Brawley School Road, Mooresville.

Reflection will be led by Father Paul McNulty at 10:30 a.m. in the Day Chapel. RSVP requested to www. charlottecatholicwomensgroup.org. All women of the Diocese of Charlotte are invited.

UNWRAPPING THE GIFTS OF ADVENT: 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 8, St. John Neumann Church, 8451 Idlewild Road, Charlotte. Parish mission presented by Sister Susan Schorsten, HM, and Sister Gay Rowzie, HM. Registration is free and open to all. RSVP by Dec. 2 to Kelly Flowers at Kelly@4sjnc.org.

CHARLOTTE AIRPORT SUNDAY MASS: The Airport Chaplaincy at Charlotte Douglas International Airport offers Mass at 8:30 and 10:30 a.m. each Sunday in the airport chapel. All travelers and visitors are welcome.

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: CHARLOTTE: 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 12, St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road; 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 14, St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy.

GREENSBORO: 9 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 10, St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road MOORESVILLE: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 29, St. Therese Church, 217 Brawley School Road SALISBURY: 10 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 11, Sacred Heart School, 385 Lumen Christi Lane SEMINARS & WORKSHOPS ‘DAVE RAMSEY’S FINANCIAL PEACE UNIVERSITY’: 6:30-8:30 p.m. Nine-week program starting on Sundays, Sept. 16-Nov. 11, in the Parish Activity Center at St. Leo the Great Church, 335 Springdale Ave., Winston-Salem.

‘Financial Peace University’ will help you take control of your money, plan for your future and transform your life. Dan and Pam McVicker, parishioners of St. Leo’s,

along with other previous FPU graduates, will facilitate the program. For details and registration, go to www.fpu. com/1069692 or contact Pam directly at 724-344-3431 or pammcvicker@gmail.com.

RESPECT LIFE PRESENTATION, ‘THE UNINTENDED MEDICAL AND SOCIAL SIDE EFFECTS OF CONTRACEPTION’: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 13, in the Kerin Family Center Hall at St. Mark Church, 14740 Stumptown Road, Huntersville. Presented by Dr. Michael Parker, former president of Northeast OB/GYN Inc. in Gahanna, Ohio, and now an OB Laborist at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. She will speak about the benefits of fertility awareness methods and the unintended consequences of contraception. For details, email Mike FitzGerald at RSVPevents@stmarknc.org.

RAISING MENTALLY HEALTHY KIDS: 7-8:30 p.m.

Thursday, Nov. 15, St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte. Emotional bonds begin before birth and evolve over time into adulthood in cycles and patterns.

How do these cycles shape kids’ core beliefs about themselves, others and the world? What can parents do when kids develop unhealthy coping strategies?

Therapist Justin Perry, MSW, LCSW, LCAS, discusses developing mentally healthy, whole children in this sometimes scary world. No RSVP needed. This program is appropriate for parents with kids of all ages and is hosted by the parish’s Mental Health and Wellness Ministry.

HEALING THE RACIAL DIVIDE – BUILDING THE ‘BELOVED COMMUNITY’: 7-9 p.m. Friday, Nov. 16, and 9 a.m.-2 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 17, in the Family Life Center at Our Lady of Consolation Church, 1235 Badger Ct., Charlotte. Renowned facilitators Sister Patty Chappell, executive director, and Sister Anne-Louise Nadeau, director of programs, at Pax Christi USA will cover topics such as: Why should Catholics and members of other faiths care about social justice? Are our country and our Church complicit in racial injustice? What will it take for us to become the “Beloved Community” where all are accepted and welcome? To RSVP, visit www. ourladyofconsolation.org or call at 704-375-4339.

STOP HUMAN TRAFFICKING: 9:30 a.m.-noon Saturday, Nov. 17, St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte. Join Respect Life Committee and Charities Diocese of Charlotte’s Respect Life Program as they bring together a panel of experts to discuss the dangers of social media and how it is used by perpetrators to lure unsuspecting youth into the world of trafficking.

Speakers will include Joy Anderson, rescued trafficking victim, Matt Phillips, UNCC professor and expert in online trafficking and law enforcement. Note: this is a delicate topic intended for adults. Registration for this event will demonstrate that you are over 18 or accompanied by a parent. Email ccdocrespectlife@ccdoc.org with any questions.

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.

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

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Seeking guidance from the Holy Spirit Red Mass offered in Charlotte for members of legal profession SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Dozens of Catholic members of the legal profession gathered at St. Peter Church for 15th annual Red Mass Oct. 25. Many are members of the St. Thomas More Society, which emphasizes living a life faithful to Jesus Christ and His Church, seeking to promote justice in society.

The Red Mass is celebrated throughout the United States traditionally in conjunction with the opening session of the U.S. Supreme Court in October, giving members of the legal community the opportunity to reflect on the God-given responsibilities of their profession.

The Mass in Charlotte, a votive Mass of the Holy Spirit, was celebrated by Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey.

In his homily, Abbot Placid encouraged members of the St. Thomas More Society and others present to pray to the Holy Spirit for guidance in “the difficult and very important work” they do. He urged them to seek charity, justice, truth and wisdom, and to conform their lives, choices and actions to the will of God. “This association of Catholic professionals is so important for building up the Church in Charlotte and to giving witness – precisely through their professional competence and expertise – to

the truth and (Catholic) faith,” he said.

Four members of the St. Thomas More Society assisted at Mass: one as cantor, two brought up the offertory gifts, and one as an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion.

After Mass, members explained why they attended the celebration.

“We think it’s important for very busy lawyers to take time out of their day and pray and ask for the Holy Spirit to help us seek justice in the justice system, so at the beginning of the Supreme Court term that is what we try to do every year,” said U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad, who has served on the bench for 15 years.

“The Red Mass is very important to me because it allows me to get together with fellow lawyers and those in the legal profession through prayer and to bring that back within our legal community and beyond and to spread the Word of the Gospel to the greater community,” said attorney Matt Orso.

Echoing his sentiments, attorney Michael Hoefling noted, “It’s important as a community of lawyers to ask for the inspiration of the Holy Spirit to guide our practice.”

More online At www.catholicnewsherald.com: See video highlights from the Red Mass

SUEANN HOWELL | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Benedictine Abbot Placid Solari elevates the Eucharist during the annual Red Mass celebrated for the legal community Oct. 25 at St. Peter Church in Charlotte. Concelebrating Mass with him are (from left) Jesuit Father John Michalski, St. Peter’s parochial vicar, and Jesuit Father James Shea, pastor.

Diocese’s largest parish begins three-year pastoral plan SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Church, the largest parish in the Diocese of Charlotte, has as its goal to become a place of encounter so that all who enter meet Jesus – no matter how big the parish family gets.

Situated in an area of Charlotte that has experienced phenomenal growth over the past two decades, St. Matthew Parish now has more than 10,700 registered families and more than 100 ministries spread across two campuses, one in Ballantyne and another in Waxhaw. The growth is expected to continue, so the parish is undertaking a new pastoral plan to help it prepare for the future and meet the needs of its numerous parishioners.

The 2019-’21 Parish Plan will primarily focus on three areas: “Feeding the Sheep” (parishioners attending Mass), “Feeding the Shepherds” (parishioners attending Mass and participating in ministry), and “Feeding the Multitudes” (reaching out to parishioners not attending Mass, former Catholics and people who do not practice any faith).

The plan will also aim to increase youth, young adult and family involvement in the parish. This will be done by: “Encounter” (meeting the youth and young adults where they are), “Form” (offering a variety of opportunities for youth and young adults to grow spiritually), and “The Send” (inviting participation in parish ministries and all aspects of parish life).

The plan will involve key improvements to the parish’s communications efforts as well as its facilities.

In preparation for the new pastoral plan, the parish council reviewed the latest

studies by the Georgetown Universitybased Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate as well as parishioner surveys.

Father Pat Hoare, pastor, introduced the plan to the parish via a video message at all Masses the last weekend of September, inviting everyone to volunteer via an online response survey to become involved in one particular area of interest for them.

“We received nearly 200 responses, and have begun reaching out to those volunteers as we form implementation teams,” he said. “Four teams – The Sunday Experience, Evangelization and Engagement, Leadership Development, and Welcoming and Hospitality – have committed leadership and are having initial meetings. We have also begun some initial discussions and focus groups relating to other areas of the plan.”

The Parish Leadership Team meets weekly to consider activities in each of those areas and intends to work together to intentionally implement strategies and action items around each of the goals and pillars, he said.

Kathy Bartlett, parish director of liturgical ministries, has been at St. Matthew Parish since the first Mass was offered at a neighborhood movie theater in 1986.

“Boy, have things blossomed,” she says. “What I love most is the special congregation we have. There are so many people who will go beyond themselves to build, serve, grow in faith and spirituality creating a strong community of soldiers for Christ in so many different ways.

“I hope this new pastoral plan will bring forth a whole new crew of laborers to add to the existing crew. The ‘harvest’ is ripe.”

Bartlett thinks it is critical for the parish

to increase the involvement of the parish’s young adults and teenagers – “our future,” she says.

“And,” she adds, “that we continue to affect the spiritual growth of everyone, even those not necessarily sitting in our pews, is my biggest hope and area of excitement.”

The parish must “aid in unleashing the power of the Holy Spirit in everyone God allows us to touch, thereby fostering that personal relationship with Christ, our foundation,” she says.

Diane Kiradjieff, parish director of faith formation, is also excited about implementing the new pastoral plan.

“I am blessed to have been a part of putting together and to be a part of putting into action the second goal, which focuses on our youth and young adults,” Kiradjieff says.

“Our three-step approach begins with the encounter – seeking to bring the Church to the youth and young adults, rather than just get them to church. Intentionally meeting them where they are at, creating the excitement and opening – or re-opening – the door to a relationship with Christ,” she says. “Next is to provide opportunities for them to form and energize that relationship through continued encounters in the Eucharist, Scripture, service opportunities and exposure to the teachings of the Church.”

“Honestly, I cannot say that it is a revolutionary approach,” she notes.

“Rather, we took a page out of Church history – looking to the first disciples and how they grew the Church: encounter those who had not heard about Jesus, form them by teaching them about Jesus, and send them to share the Good News with

others.”

The 2019-’21 Pastoral Plan states four overarching goals for St. Matthew Parish for the future: to become a place of encounter so that all who enter its doors meet Jesus; to share God’s loving and saving plan with all; to build a new generation of leaders filled with the joy of the Gospel; and to be an amazing parish.

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 OUR PARISHES

Volunteers with Rutherford County Habitat for Humanity repair the roof of a veteran’s home as part of the Hammering for Heroes Project.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY SHEILA CAIN, HABITAT FOR HUMANITY

$40k in local CCHD grants awarded Two veterans initiatives receive assistance SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Thanks to the generosity of parishioners across western North Carolina who contributed to the annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development, 11 agencies received a total of $40,602 in grants this fall to help people in need.

The annual Catholic Campaign for Human Development second collection each November 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.

The 2018 CCHD second collection will take place during Masses over the weekend of Nov. 17-18.

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.

Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte selected 11 non-profits to receive grants in 2018. These agencies will help people in Asheville, Boone, Charlotte, Forest City, Gastonia, Harrisburg, Hendersonville, Murphy, Spindale and Swannanoa.

Two agencies in particular will assist veterans: Habitat for Humanity Rutherford County and its Hammering for Heroes Project, and YMCA Gaston County for its Resource Connection Gateway.

The Hammering for Heroes Project in Rutherford County received a $4,000 grant.

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Hammering for Heroes assisted in the repair of the homes of seven veterans this year. Volunteers performed tasks such as door and window replacement, ceiling and wall repair, interior painting, roof replacement, stair installation, gutter repair and cleaning, and yard work.

“Catholic Campaign for Human Development grant funding through Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte was vital to the success of Hammering for Heroes 2018. Without this generous PHOTO PROVIDED BY SHARON DATE funding, veteran repairs would Members from four organizations in the Diocese of Charlotte Gastonia not have been possible,” said Vicariate received CCHD grant checks at a grantee award gathering at Sheila Cain of Habitat for Immaculate Conception Church in Forest City last spring.

Humanity Rutherford County.

“We are forever grateful for the veterans are often even more complicated support of Catholic Charities Diocese of than those of civilians,” said the YMCA’s Charlotte for making these grant funds, Cynthia Walsh. and ultimately these repairs, possible!”

“The goal of this project is to have a A $4,500 CCHD grant will enable YMCA certified specialist on hand at all times, Gaston County, through the Resource in addition to our usual support team, Connection Gateway, to expand its to support these individuals and their specialized veterans services. Veterans families. The funds awarded to us by or active military personnel who enter Catholic Charities supplement the services the Gateway receive standard connection of these specialists when the needs arise.” services and also one-on-one case The Resource Connection Gateway has management from a retired, peer-certified served 131 veterans and their families over specialist. the past 12 months.

The grant will fund a joint Resource All CCHD-funded grant projects Connection Gateway initiative between the YMCA and St. Michael Church in Gastonia, must target the root causes of poverty and related social concerns. All grant with Deacon John Weisenhorn serving as applicants and projects are reviewed for the parish’s contact. their conformity to Catholic social doctrine “We find that the needs of those and receive a local parish endorsement. inquiring of the Gateway involving

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

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New non-profit works to fight human trafficking SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Human trafficking is a form of modern slavery that occurs in every state, including North Carolina.

And according to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, Charlotte ranks first in the state for trafficking cases.

St. Gabriel parishioner Tammy Harris is doing something about the problem, establishing a non-profit organization – the Ursus Institute – that aims to help trafficking victims and collaborate with other like-minded organizations in the Charlotte area.

“Ursus is Latin for bear,” Harris explains. “Our logo is a strong bear set among the stars. The name came from the idea of “bearing” someone else’s burdens and leading them to safety. The stars represent the heavens and our reliance on God and the saints to lead victims of trafficking to safety.”

Harris’s desire to assist victims of human trafficking grew out of her commitment to pro-life work.

“A few years ago I was asked to take over the Respect Life ministry at St. Gabriel Parish. I have a heart for the unborn and I really wanted to do more to bring awareness to this issue,” she says. “Also, I thought it was so important to know about other topics that involve Respect Life, since it really is a ministry that focuses upon issues that surround life from conception to natural death.”

It was in this mission to learn more that Harris says she became aware of the

human trafficking problem in Charlotte.

“As I learned more, I truly felt that God was calling me to get involved. There are a lot of misconceptions about this issue and it really is an evil that touches upon so many of the Respect Life areas,” she says.

As Harris started working with female victims of sex trafficking, for example, she was astounded by the connection between trafficking and forced abortions.

“I really feel that if we as a society did more to prevent trafficking, we would have a direct impact upon the amount of abortions that are done on an annual basis,” she notes.

Harris got involved with a local organization that helps adult victims of trafficking with housing and other needs, but “it quickly became apparent to me that so many of those who work in this arena operate independently and few share information,” she says.

“I wanted to start a non-profit that understands the importance of collaborating with others in this field.

Since there is no single answer to solve human trafficking, we must work together as each organization focuses upon their core competencies.”

Harris also wants to increase awareness about human trafficking in the Charlotte area, particularly with actual data that can measure the extent of the problem.

“I had given input back in 2017 for House Bill 910, but the sponsor of the bill was having a difficult time finding co-sponsors since there was such little data about the realities of trafficking in our area,” she explains. “It will continue to be very

difficult to pass bills and increase funding until we prove the prevalence of trafficking in North Carolina.”

Harris is working on a project along with UNC-Charlotte to accomplish just that – using data to paint a picture of the realities of trafficking in Charlotte.

The Ursus Institute recently absorbed another non-profit, The Voice of Hope International, which helped find care and housing for victims of trafficking within 48 hours of their rescue or escape. Those initial hours are critical, Harris points out, so she would like Ursus to continue offering that assistance.

“Also, we want to offer services not just for domestic victims, but for those who are international and were brought to the United States under false pretenses,” she says.

A donor has offered to purchase a home for the Ursus Institute to accommodate trafficking victims, she says.

“God has been very generous and so many things are falling into place.

However, we are hoping to have more monthly and corporate donors so that there is an income that we can depend upon from month to month.

“It would be amazing if a church would ‘adopt’ the Ursus Institute,” Harris says. “This way, we can hire a program director to oversee the trauma-informed curriculum that needs to be in place before we accept victims of trafficking into our home.”

Harris has picked St. Joan of Arc as the patron saint for this work. “St. Joan of Arc is the patron of warriors and rape victims,

so I believe that she is a perfect fit for this type of spiritual warfare,” she says.

“The issue of human trafficking is very dark and can be overwhelming,” she says. “However, if we look at this issue from the side of impacting the lives of the vulnerable and the marginalized, one can see the joy and fulfillment in this ministry.

I am praying that my Catholic brothers and sisters join me in this fight.”

For more information The Ursus Institute’s first fundraiser “Fall For A Better Tomorrow” will be held at 6:30-9:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 10, at The Lighthouse in Charlotte. The event is a drop-in, open house (see events tab on www.ursusinstitute.net). All are welcome to attend. The link to Chi Rho radio show interviews and more general information on the Ursus Institute can be found at www. ursusinstitute.net. Questions? Contact Tammy Harris at 704-519-7901 or email tmharris1217@ gmail.com or tammy@ursusinstitute.net.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY JOSEPH PURELLO

‘Sharing the Journey’ “Sharing the Journey with CRS in its 75th Anniversary Year” was the theme of three educational presentations held recently in Asheville, Charlotte and Winston-Salem. Presented by Augusto Michael Trujillo, Southeast Regional Office Communications Relationship Manager for Catholic Relief Services, the three events were sponsored by Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte. Trujillo spoke about how CRS is “sharing the journey” with those who are poor in more than 100 countries, highlighted stories from CRS’s 75 years of global outreach, and shared his own family’s personal connection to CRS. His father, a refugee from Cuba, was going through some old paperwork one day when he found a document stating that CRS had processed his entrance into the U.S. in the early 1960s and helped him resettle in Atlanta after fleeing communist Cuba. His son, who has been an employee of CRS for eight years, was thrilled to see this paperwork and learn about this “CRS family connection.” Trujillo is pictured holding a CRS anniversary cake with Becky Dubois, Catholic Charities’ Winston-Salem office director, accompanied by Catholic Charities staff and parishioners who attended the Oct. 19 presentation.

With heartfelt gratitude we express our sincerest appreciation for your generosity and support as we together serve those in need.

We are deeply thankful and extend our best wishes for a happy and healthy Thanksgiving Day. Therefore, our God, we give you thanks and we praise the majesty of your name. – I Chronicles 29:13

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Historians’ approval moves Father Tolton’s sainthood cause forward JOYCE DURIGA CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

CHICAGO — The canonization cause of Father Augustus Tolton received important approval from the Vatican’s historical consultants earlier this year, moving the cause forward.

The consultants in Rome ruled in March that the “positio” – a document equivalent to a doctoral dissertation on a person’s life – was acceptable and the research on Father Tolton’s life was finished, said Chicago Auxiliary Bishop Joseph N. Perry, postulator for the cause.

“They have a story on a life that they deem is credible, properly documented.

It bodes well for the remaining steps of scrutiny – those remaining steps being the theological commission that will make a final determination on his virtues,” Bishop Perry explained.

It now goes to the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, he said. Once the congregation’s members “approve it, then the prefect of that congregation takes the case to the pope,” he added.

If the pope approves it, Father Tolton would be declared venerable, the next step on the way to canonization. The last two steps are beatification and canonization. In general, two approved miracles through Father Tolton’s intercession are needed for him to be beatified and canonized.

Six historical consultants ruled unanimously on the Tolton “positio,” compiled by a team in Rome led by Andrea Ambrosi, based on hundreds of pages of research completed in Chicago.

While working on the document, Ambrosi’s team asked Bishop Perry why it took so long to open a cause for Tolton, who died in 1897.

“We told them that African-Americans basically had no status in the Church to be considered at that time. Some people didn’t think we had souls. They were hardly poised to recommend someone to be a saint,” Bishop Perry said. “And then in those days there were hardly any saints from the United States proposed.”

The fact that the historical consultants approved the “positio” unanimously is a positive sign, he said. The cause is scheduled to go before the theological commission in February 2019.

Two miracles through Father Tolton’s intercession have been sent to Rome.

“We’re hoping and our fingers are crossed and we’re praying that at least one of them might be acceptable for his beatification,” Bishop Perry said.

Since the cause was opened, Bishop Perry and his team have given more than 170 presentations on Father Tolton around the country – including a talk in the Diocese of Charlotte in 2016. People receive Father Tolton’s story well, Bishop Perry said.

“There’s also the element of surprise. …

People always presume that we had black priests,” he said.

Father Tolton did not speak out publicly against the racist abuse he encountered from his fellow Catholics. Rather, throughout his ministry, he preached that the Catholic Church was the only true liberator of blacks in America.

“I think people generally are touched by his story, especially regarding his stamina and perseverance given what appears to be a different mood today. People don’t accept stuff thrown in their faces anymore,” Bishop Perry said.

BLACK CATHOLIC HISTORY MONTH

Augustus Tolton: Faithful priest Father Augustus Tolton, a former slave, is the first recognized American diocesan priest of African descent. The Archdiocese of Chicago opened his cause for sainthood in 2011, giving him the title “servant of God.” Tolton was born into slavery on April 1, 1854, at Ralls County, Brush Creek, Mo. Missouri was a slave state at the time, but its populace – a mix of settlers from both northern and southern states – was bitterly divided over the slavery question. Tolton’s mother, Martha Jane Crisley, had come to Missouri with her owners, the Elliotts, a Catholic family from Kentucky. Crisley was a personal maid to Mrs. Elliott and had been baptized in the Roman Catholic Church, as had her husband, Peter Paul Tolton, another Elliott slave. Their two sons – Augustine and his older brother Charley – were baptized in the Church and given religious instruction by Mrs. Elliott, who served as Augustine’s godmother.

When the Civil War erupted, the Tolton family, including 9-year-old Augustus, fled through the woods of northern Missouri and across the Mississippi River while being pursued by Confederate bounty hunters. The small family made their home in Quincy, Ill., a sanctuary for runaway slaves.

The boy’s father had died earlier in St. Louis, after escaping slavery to serve in the Union Army.

Growing up in Quincy and serving at Mass, young Augustus felt a call to the priesthood.

His parish priest, Father Peter McGirr, admitted the boy into his parish school despite racist threats.

Franciscan Fathers noticed Tolton’s intelligence and purity of life and arranged for Tolton to be educated in their college in Quincy and then at the prestigious Pontifical Urban College “de Propaganda Fide” in Rome when no U.S. seminary would accept him because of his background and color.

Following six years of study he was ordained a priest with his class, Easter Vigil April 24, 1886 at St. John Lateran Basilica in Rome.

He assumed he would become a missionary priest serving in Africa. However, after ordination, he was sent back to his hometown to be a missionary to the community there, again facing rampant racism.

“It was said that I would be the only priest of my race in America and would not likely succeed,” Tolton once wrote. But Cardinal Giovanni Simeoni told him, “America has been called the most enlightened nation. We’ll see if it deserves that honor. If America has never seen a black priest, it has to see one now.”

With these prophetic words the assignment

orders for Father Tolton changed from some place in Africa to Quincy, Ill. Father Tolton served faithfully in Quincy for several years, despite enduring racial bigotry from many local Catholics and Protestants as well as jealousy from his fellow priests. He was such a good preacher that many white Catholics joined his black parishioners in the pews for his Masses. This upset white priests in the town, so Father Tolton headed north to Chicago, at the request of Archbishop Patrick Feehan, to minister to the fledgling black Catholic community there.

A year or so later, Father Tolton was given permission to start St. Monica Parish in 1891, on Chicago’s South Side, close to where many local black Catholics lived. The church seated 850 parishioners and was built with money from philanthropist Anne O’Neill and St. Katherine Drexel.

St. Monica’s Parish grew to have 600 parishioners from a base of 30 prior to the construction of the new church building.

Father Tolton’s success at ministering to black Catholics quickly earned him national attention within the Church. “Good Father Gus,” as he was called by many, was known for his “eloquent sermons, his beautiful singing voice, and his talent for playing the accordion.”

A newspaper in 1893 described him: “He is a fluent and graceful talker and has a singing voice of exceptional sweetness, which shows to good advantage in the chants of the high Mass. It is no unusual thing for many white people to be seen among his congregation.”

Father Tolton worked tirelessly for his congregation in Chicago, to the point of exhaustion.

Sadly, he died before his new church building could be finished. At the age of 43, during a stifling heat wave that hit the city the week of July 9, 1897, he collapsed from heatstroke while returning from a priests’ retreat.

After a funeral that included 100 priests, Father Tolton was buried in Quincy in the priests’ lot in St. Peter’s Cemetery, which had been his expressed wish.

— Sources: Archdiocese of Chicago, Catholic News Service, the Father Tolton Guild, Wikipedia

More online At www.toltoncanonization.org: Find out the latest on the canonization cause for Father Tolton, download a prayer card featuring an icon of Father Tolton, and more At www.catholicnewsherald.com: Read a biography of Father Tolton written by the late Father Roy Bauer, an expert on the black priest’s life and ministry in Quincy, Ill. Also at www.catholicnewsherald.com: Read about Black Catholic History Month, including more about the Church’s black saints

Did you know?

On July 24, 1990, the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus of the United States designated November as Black Catholic History Month to celebrate the history and heritage of black Catholics. November is significant because two important black saints are commemorated within the month: St. Martin de Porres’ feast day (Nov. 3) and St. Augustine’s birthday (Nov. 13). With All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, we also remember the saints and souls of Africa and the African Diaspora.

Black Catholic history can be traced to the

Acts of the Apostles (8:26-40) when St. Philip the Deacon converted the Ethiopian eunuch – one of the first moves the Apostles made to evangelize outside Jerusalem and thus sow the seeds for the universal Church.

Learn more At www.nbccongress.org: Learn more about the National Black Catholic Congress and its upcoming events, download educational resources and get vocation information

OUR PARISHESI

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

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‘When the saints go marching in’

FOREST CITY — (Below) Children of Immaculate Conception Church dressed up as their favorite saints and Bible characters to celebrate All Saints’ Day. (Right) Pictured are Emily Alonzo as St. Faustina and her sister Evelynn as Our Lady of Guadalupe.

PHOTOS BY GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

PHOTO COURTESY OF FACEBOOK

HUNTERSVILLE — These St. Mark Church preschoolers made adorable saints during a parade they held last week.

SHELBY — (Below) St. Mary Help of Christians Church held a “Saints and Heroes” party after the 1 p.m.

Mass Oct. 28. Prizes were awarded for original and creative costumes.

(Left) Anthony Aquirre portrayed St. Anthony of Padua.

GASTONIA — Fourth-grade students at St. Michael School recently researched and presented saint projects to other students and to parents. They identified what saint they were and gave a brief description about their life.

PHOTO COURTESY OF FACEBOOK PHOTOS BY GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

WINSTON-SALEM — Students participated in an All Saints’ Day Mass at Our Lady of Mercy Church and School last week.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY KATRINA CAPISTRANO

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 OUR PARISHES

Faithful pray the rosary across the diocese

TRYON — On Oct. 13, members of St. John the Baptist Church commemorated the 101st anniversary of the last apparition of Our Lady and the miracle of the sun in Fatima by praying a rosary in English, Spanish and Latin in front of a statue of Our Lady of Fatima. Afterward, the congregation held a candlelight procession on the church grounds, carrying a statue of Our Lady of Fatima and singing the traditional hymn “In Fatima’s Cove.” Midway through the procession there was a pause for the crowning of Our Lady, prior to returning to the church for a final blessing.

GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

PHOTO PROVIDED BY JAMES SARKIS; MIKE FITZGERALD | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

CHARLOTTE — More than 80 people gathered on the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary Oct. 7 at Holy Trinity Middle School to participate in the nation’s first coast-to-coast rosary rally.

The Charlotte participants, along with other area Catholics gathering in Winston-Salem, Greensboro and Asheville, prayed simultaneously at 4 p.m. ET with other Catholics at hundreds of other rallies across the nation to pray for the nation’s conversion back to God, and ask for Our Lady of the Rosary’s intercession for the country. Modeled after Poland’s Rosary at the Borders in 2017, when hundreds of thousands of Catholics gathered at the Polish borders to pray for their nation, the Coast to Coast Rosary was designed in similar fashion. Led by Father Christopher Roux, rector of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte, the faithful gathered at Holy Trinity Middle School’s athletic field before a statue of Our Lady of Fatima and prayed the glorious mysteries. The event concluded with a blessing from Father Roux.

HUNTERSVILLE — Under a bright autumn sun, approximately 75 members of St. Mark Parish gathered around a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary at noon Oct. 13 to commemorate the 101st anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun, performed by Our Lady of Fatima in 1917. The parishioners were joined by Father Brian Becker, parochial vicar, who led the group in a bilingual rosary rally honoring Our Lady of Fatima’s request to pray the rosary regularly. The Miracle of the Sun occurred Oct. 13, 1917, around noon and was the sixth and last apparition of Our Lady at Fatima. More than 70,000 people witnessed the miracle, where the sun danced in the sky and appeared to spin or fall toward the earth. St. Mark parishioners from both the Anglo and Hispanic communities participated in praying the rosary and concluded by signing the hymn “Immaculate Mary.”

AMBER MELLON | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

HICKORY — Forty parishioners of St. Aloysius Church, led by the Knights of Columbus, prayed a bilingual rosary Oct. 13 in commemoration of the 101st anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima’s appearances. The sorrowful mysteries were recited for the intention of the conversion of Russia and the United States. St. Aloysius was one of 21,145 parishes across the United States to pray the rosary Oct. 13, part of the America Needs Fatima campaign. If your parish would like to participate in public rosary rallies throughout the year, bringing peace and goodwill to your community, visit www.americaneedsfatima.org.

BOONE — Parishioners at St. Elizabeth Church participated in the Coast to Coast Rosary Oct. 7.

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER; MIKE FITZGERALD | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

BOBBY SPEERS | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

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November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com

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For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief Remembering synagogue shooting victims BREVARD — Sacred Heart Church was filled to capacity Oct. 31 for an interfaith service of remembrance entitled “Remembering the Tree of Life Synagogue.�

Speakers included the current president of the Jewish community in Brevard, Howard Rock, and the man who helped found the community, Norm Bossert. Other speakers represented the Lutheran Church, the Unitarian Universalists, the Center for Spiritual Wisdom and the NAACP. Marvin Barg, the cantor of the Jewish community, and Tom Currie of Sacred Heart Church provided appropriate music. Names of the victims were read aloud during the service, and Barg cantored “El Maleh Rahamim� (“God full of compassion�), the Jewish prayer for the souls of the departed, to close the service.

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY LINDSAY KOHL, TERRY RUMLEY AND MARYANN LUEDTKE

St. Pius X Parish hosts priest from Peru

— Dorice Narins, correspondent

Outreach ministry honors Mercy sister SALISBURY — An outreach program in Salisbury has been named the Sister Mary Robert Ministry in honor of Mercy Sister Mary Robert Williams, who ministered there for more than 30 years.

The ministry, based at Sacred Heart Church, had languished in recent years but is being given new life as well as a new name, according to Susan Grathwohl, its longtime volunteer coordinator.

Williams Currently, Grathwohl said, the ministry offers services such as a food pantry to parishioners and residents of Good Shepherd Gardens, affordable senior housing adjacent to the church. But the goal is eventually to serve the larger community.

Sister Mary Robert ministered in Salisbury from 1983 to 2014 and was active in many outreach services. She was instrumental in starting Rowan Helping Ministries’ homeless shelter. She also worked with the battered women’s shelter and Operation Suitcase, which provides supplies for children in foster care. “She took care of so many families in crisis,�

Grathwohl said.

The honor took Sister Mary Robert by surprise. She noted that she was named for her father, and this is the first time anything has been named for her. — Beth Rogers Thompson

GREENSBORO — During the weekend of Oct. 27-28, St. Pius X Church hosted visiting priest Father Felipe Fierro. Father Felipe visits the parish periodically from Lima, Peru, as part of the Diocese of Charlotte’s Missionary Cooperative Plan. To honor the heritage of Peru, the parish arranged for alpacas and llamas from Borderline Farms in Waxhaw to be in

the church’s cloister following all Masses that weekend. An icon for the beautiful nation of Peru, the alpaca has become somewhat of a national treasure and an animal that the citizens hold dear to their identities. Parishioners young and old stayed after Mass to engage with the animals and learn about Father Felipe’s mission.

House of Mercy names new president BELMONT — Emily E. Chambers Sharpe has been named the new president/CEO of House of Mercy.

Sharpe brings to the House of Mercy

Days of Reflection held Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte Elder Ministry sponsored two Days of Reflection in October. Father Pat Cahill, pastor of St. Eugene Church in Asheville, guided the Days of Reflection on “How can silence and imagination improve your prayer life?� at the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory and at St. William Church in Murphy. — Sandra Breakfield

varied experience working to support people affected by HIV/AIDS. She has worked for the U.S. Department of State’s Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator, as the team lead for President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief in Southern Africa. Most recently she worked for the Swiss humanitarian aid IN BRIEF, SEE PAGE 24

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iiiNovember 9, 2018| catholicnewsherald.com

Room At The Inn …where Hope is Born Room At The Inn is a unique, comprehensive program helping homeless, single, pregnant women from all areas of North Carolina, not only during their pregnancies but also after the birth of their babies. By providing shelter, food, clothing, case management, inhouse daycare, transportation and life skills education in a structured environment, we help these families have new lives of healthy, hopefilled self sufficiency.

“The service that this organization provides is exceptional. It is respectful, supportive, continuous and enduring. The outcomes have been very impressive”

The Nussbaum Maternity Home

CATHOLIC

Council on Accreditation Final Accreditation Report

The Council on Accreditation accredits human service organizations that meet the highest standards of credibility, integrity and accountability and that implement best practices throughout their agencies. We are proud to have received this national recognition.

• • • •

16 Babies were born 94% of babies born had APGAR scores of 8 or more 81 % of babies born had birth weights of 5.5 lbs. or greater 100 % of pre-natal appointments were kept

Pratt Proverbs 31 Formation Program: Residents in the maternity home programs are invited to participate in the Pratt Proverbs 31 Formation Program. Participants get involved in the faith community of their choice and/or suitable volunteer programs. Participants are able to grow spiritually and as responsible, caring women. Participation is completely voluntary and no client is denied other services for declining to participate in this program.

Aftercare Program: The graduates of our programs continue to be an important part of our family even after the birth of their children. Quarterly alumni meetings are conducted at the maternity home. Clients are eligible for material assistance for up to five years after the birth of their children.

College Program: Graduates of the maternity home programs who want to enter or return to college are eligible for our Support Community Living Services for Single Mothers Attending College. In addition to housing, we provide case management, child development services, financial/material assistance and tutoring/life skills education.

Residential services are provided at the following facilities: The Amy's House is located next door to our maternity home and was named for Amy Elizabeth Disney The Back Yard Ministry is donated space from Cherry Street United Methodist Church in Kernersville, NC •

100 % of participants are making progress toward completing their degree

Transitioning from dependency and hopelessness is a difficult process for anyone, especially for someone about to become a new mother. Room At The Inn of the Triad offers a variety of programs designed to help these young women develop the skills necessary to successfully meet their own goals and aspirations.

Maternity Home: Licensed by the Department of NC Health and Human Services to provide residential maternity care, the Mary C. Nussbaum Maternity Home provides shelter, food, clothing, transportation, case management and life skills education in a structured environment. Located in Greensboro, NC, the home provides services to homeless, pregnant NC residents 18 years and older.

Clients may bring other children.

• •

100 % of graduates 18 years of age or older increased their income 100 % of maternity home graduates transitioned to stable housing

Maternal and Infant Health: Access to both pre-natal and post-natal healthcare is essential for pregnant women. Infants and toddlers require proper check-ups and healthcare. A number of our clients suffer from substance abuse and/or mental health issues and need suitable treatment and counseling. Additionally our maternity home programs provide life skills education related to healthy living, proper nutrition for the women and children and a safe, nurturing place to heal both the body and the soul.

Elizabeth with her daughter Since this time last year we have had 16 babies born and after completing our program, every one of their mothers had found stable housing. While they are with us we encourage our moms to build a better future for themselves and their children through education. This year we had a mother graduate from college with her Bachelor of Fine Arts. She is currently working as a teacher.

We also had and a mother graduate from the adult high school program at GTCC. Both of these women will be much better to be able to provide or their children with their newly acquired education.

On May 9th and 10th, 2019 we will be holding our first annual Spring Swing at Starmount country Club in Greensboro to raise money for this program. This event will be a combination of our annual Amy Elizabeth Disney Memorial Golf Tournament and our annual raffle and auction.

NEWS HERALD

“Over the last 15 years Room At The Inn has provided housing, childcare, counselling, education and job training to over 400 women. Even more importantly, it has given them hope. It has shown each woman that she is not forgotten, that she is not alone and she really now has a whole family of people who will help her succeed.”

- President Donald Trump The Rose Garden, January 19, 2018

November 9, 2018| catholicnewsherald.comiii

CONTACT US: Mailing address PO Box 13936 Greensboro, NC 27415 (336) 996-3788 Phone (336) 275-9522 Fax Email: info@RoomInn.org For More Information, visit us at: www.RoomInn.org

Consider and planned gift and help save and change lives long after you are gone. For more info call and register to attend our Planned Giving Kickoff event on November 15th at Castle McCulloch in Jamestown.

One of the 16 Room At The Inn babies born in 2018!

Room At The Inn at the White House earlier this year Ways YOU can help save lives and provide a future of hope: • Use the envelope in this issue of the Catholic News Herald to send a financial contribution • Give a gift in honor of someone this Christmas with our honor cards (see below) • Give in memory of a loved one or in honor of someone’s birthday or other special occasion throughout the year • Spread the word - Like us on facebook and invite your friends to also • Leave a legacy of LIFE - put Room At The Inn in your will • Pray …and if you live close by, you can also: • Volunteer • Participate in our fundraisers • Donate items on our online Wishlist Have people on your Christmas list who are hard to buy for? Why not make a donation to Room At The Inn in their honor?

Honor cards are now available. Use the envelope in this issue to send us your request by December 17th to ensure processing and delivery by Christmas Eve.

On behalf of our mothers and children, we pray that you and your families have a Wonderful Thanksgiving, and a Blessed Christmas and New Year!

Thank you… for making “room at the inn” Room At The Inn of the Triad is a prolife ministry of the Catholic Church and is listed in the Official Catholic Directory (P. J. Kenedy and Sons) for the Diocese of Charlotte.

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 14

Diácono Darío García

El Santo Rosario

El coro hispano de la parroquia San John Neumann participó en la vigilia convocada por la Caravana Jornada por la Justicia, realizada el martes 30 de octubre.

Su director, Moisés Cisneros, es originario de El Salvador.

T

odos los que nacimos en hogares católicos, especialmente en los pueblos y campos de nuestra geografía nacional, en muchos sectores de la ciudad y en barrios populares, desde muy niños acompañamos a nuestros padres y abuelos en el rezo del Santo Rosario, que en esa época de la niñez poco entendíamos, hasta nos dormíamos o empezabamos a jugar, pero venía mamá con el ‘regañito’ o el ‘pellizquito’ y nos teníamos que poner en actitud de escucha.

Fuimos entonces aprendiendo, casi sin darnos cuenta, las oraciones de esta bella devoción y empezamos a repetirlas. Y los más decididos intentamos encorarlo delante de la familia, lógicamente nuestros padres y abuelos felices porque ya estábamos rezando el Santo Rosario.

Esto se fue haciendo devoción y ya nos llevaban a la iglesia y ahí lo rezabamos. Fuimos a la doctrina al templo y allí nos enseñaban más sobre él.

Durante nuestra juventud le perdimos mucho la pista y la recuperamos cuando llegamos a la edad adulta y nos comprometimos a enseñárselo a nuestros hijos y a participar de los movimietos marianos y grupos cuya misión era rezar el Santo Rosario. Fuimos madurando y aprendiendo más sobre esta bella devoción mariana.

Aprendimos, por ejemplo, que rezar el Santo Rosario no es simplemente repetir Padre Nuestro y Ave María, era rezarlo meditando los Misterios de la vida, pasión, muerte y Resurrección de Nuestro Señor Jesucristo. Los misterios de nuestra fe, bajo la guía y acompañamiento de la Santísima Virgen María.

El rezo del Santo Rosario, especialmente en familia, nos trae muchas bendiciones del Señor.

Nos une más como hermanos de un mismo hogar, nos hace sentir miembros orantes de la Iglesia y nos protege de males, peligros y tentaciones malignas. Rezando juntos nos sentimos más hijos de Dios en compañía de la Virgen del Cielo.

También lo podemos rezar individualmente, en voz baja o mentalmente mientras trabajamos, vamos de viaje, caminamos por el parque, etc., y estaremos protegidos y acompañados por el Señor y la Virgen.

Hoy día hay una especie de florecimiento de esta devoción por medio de nuevos movimientos marianos, misiones, grupos de oración, misioneros del Santo Rosario, consagraciones al Sagrado Corazón de Jesús y al Inmaculado Corazón de María que los vemos en nuestra Diócesis, en la diferentes parroquias y vicariatos, acompañados siempre por los párrocos, sacerdotes, diáconos y líderes laicos de las mismas.

Que el Señor y la Santísima Virgen María nos sigan guiando, acompañando y fortaleciendo en la práctica y promoción de esta hermosa devoción del pueblo católico y, en especial, de nuesta Diócesis de Charlotte con sus vicariatos, parroquias y misiones paroquiales. Recordemos que, “rezar el Santo Rosario es meditar los Misterios de la fe de la mano de la Santísima Virgen María”.

EL DIÁCONO DARÍO GARCÍA sirve como coordinador del Ministerio Hispano del Vicariato de Statesville.

CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Caravana por el TPS fue acogida en Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

CHARLOTTE ­— Miembros de la comunidad, líderes religiosos y activistas dieron la bienvenida a la caravana ‘Jornada por la Justicia’ que arribó la noche del lunes 29 de octubre a la Iglesia Católica Nuestra Sra. de Guadalupe, donde se alojaron sus integrantes.

El Padre Gregorio Gay, vicario parroquial, señaló que los organizadores, la Asociación Nacional de Tepesianos, contactaron con su parroquia en búsqueda de asistencia y acogida. Tras las gestiones, se confirmó la participación y adecuaron las instalaciones para recibir a los viajeros.

“Caridades Católicas nos ha brindado mucha ayuda con los alimentos y vamos a preparar las comidas aquí, en la cocina de la iglesia, para servirlas aquí mismo o a donde ellos vayan”, dijo el Padre Gregorio.

El martes 30 en horas de la tarde se realizó una vigilia en la Iglesia Metodista United Providence, 4305 Monroe Road, donde dirigentes de la caravana y miembros de la comunidad afectados alzaron sus voces abogando por una solución de inmigración viable para 450 mil titulares de TPS, después de la decisión del presidente Donald Trump de finalizar el programa de Estado de Protección Temporal de larga duración.

El Pastor Félix Herrera, integrante de la caravana, citando las escrituras, dijo que en ella se habla de “un Cristo extranjero, de un Cristo inmigrante”, pues se relata el escape, la salida de una familia, “una caravana de una familia inmigrante que llevaba al hombre más importante de todos los tiempos, a Jesús de Nazareth”.

Refiriéndose al origen de esta gran nación creada por inmigrantes, señaló que “todos emprendimos un día una ruta,

una caravana que nos diera protección.

Esta gran nación nos la ha dado, pero hoy se nos pretende negar esa protección.

Y no podemos hacer más que levantar nuestras voces y, en nombre de Dios, pedir que se respeten nuestros derechos”.

Luis Andrade, uno de los ‘caravaneros’ aseguró que dejó a su familia en Virginia para aportar su ayuda a esta causa. “Tuve que dejar momentáneamente a mi familia ante el temor de ser separado de mi esposa y mis hijos”. Aunque Andrade todavía cuenta con la protección del TPS, su esposa no tiene estatus legal en el país y sus hijos nacieron en los Estados Unidos. La cancelación del TPS podría desintegrar a su familia.

“Estaba dormido”, dijo, “pensé que nunca nos podría pasar nada”. Sin embargo, anota, “desperté cuando a mi país lo calificaron como ‘un lugar de m...’ y me dije a mi mismo que tenía que hacer algo”.

Durante la vigilia se aplaudió el aporte que la iglesia católica local, a través de la parroquia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe y Caridades Católicas, ha realizado en favor de la caravana por el TPS. Moisés Cisneros, feligrés de la parroquia San John Neumann, participó en la vigilia con el coro parroquial que dirige. Cisneros se mostró muy satisfecho con la presencia y apoyo del P. Gregorio a esta actividad comunitaria.

LLEGARÁN A WASHINGTON

La caravana de La Jornada por la Justicia viaja por 36 estados de la Unión Americana trasladando a beneficiarios de TPS de Honduras, Haití, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudán, Nepal y Somalia, países que actualmente se encuentran bajo la protección del TPS. Los viajeros han participado en vigilias, asambleas comunitarias, sesiones

CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Uno de los integrantes de la caravana porta el afiche promocional en el que se pide justicia para las familias migrantes. La imagen sirvió de portada para el boletín informativo semanal de la parroquia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. de conocimiento de sus derechos, foros, mesas redondas, conciertos, demostraciones, actividades de desarrollo de liderazgo y reuniones con candidatos políticos y funcionarios electos.

La Caravana de Jornada por la Justicia y TPS salió de Los Ángeles el 17 de agosto y espera llegar a Washington DC los primeros días de noviembre.

Además, los dirigentes informaron que para el mes de febrero de 2019 esperan concretar la presencia de más de cinco mil tepesianos en la capital del país, con la finalidad de llevar a cabo manifestaciones públicas y cabildeos con los miembros del congreso para, finalmente, lograr una solución definitiva, la residencia para todos los beneficiarios del TPS.

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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Deliciosos tacos al pastor, de azada, tamales y un menudo calientito se sirvieron a los asistentes que llegaron a la fiesta.

“No sobró comida”, dijo satisfecha la hermana Eri Rodríguez.

FOTOS POR CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD FOTOS POR CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Selene Castañeda presentó a sus hijos Maddox representando al Rey David; Lucila, de Santa Teresa de Calcuta y Génesis, la mayor, de Santa Isabel.

Los niños, vistiendo trajes de santos y vírgenes, abrían paso a la procesión de María Santísima portando veladoras y llevando rosarios en sus manos.

Cerraron mes del Santo Rosario CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

Con celebración diferente festejaron a Todos los Santos CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

MOUNT HOLLY — Con una gran fiesta, la familia misionera Apóstoles de la Palabra celebró por adelantado el Día de Todos los Santos el pasado sábado 27 de octubre en su sede de la avenida Catawba, en Mount Holly.

Desde las once de la mañana se hicieron presente numerosos amigos y miembros de esta familia misionera, deseosos de participar en los concursos organizados para la fecha, así como de disfrutar de la deliciosa comida y bebida típica de México que se ofreció a la venta.

Niños y adultos tomaron parte en un original concurso de disfraces que no solo premió al mejor disfraz sino también al conocimiento sobre la vida del santo o santa representado.

Un jurado designado por los organizadores se encargó de evaluar a los concursantes agrupados en diferentes categorías por edades.

La imaginación de los participantes sobrepasó todos los límites y se pudo ver las recreaciones de Santa Rosa de Lima, Padre Pío, Santa Teresita del Niño Jesús, Santa Teresa de Calcuta y hasta el Arcángel San Gabriel, entre muchos otros.

La intención del grupo misionero al resaltar la fiesta de Todos los Santos es ofrecer una alternativa a la tradicional celebración de Halloween, a la vez que promover el conocimiento de la vida de los santos y, con la participación en estas actividades, generar la evangelización de toda la familia.

Según comentó el Padre Gabriel Carvajal, formado en las canteras del Padre Flaviano Amatulli, fundador del movimiento misionero Apóstoles de la Palabra en México, esta es una actividad que fue creada por el sacerdote de

Faith Pérez, una pequeña que pidió a su madre asistir a la celebración de Todos los Santos representando a Santa Rosa de Lima. Es la primera vez que participan de esta fiesta. origen italiano como parte de la tarea evangelizadora de la misión.

La hermana Eri Rodríguez, a cargo de la sede de las Carolinas, dijo estar satisfecha por el resultado de la actividad, a la que calificó de exitosa por la participación y entusiasmo de los visitantes.

“Casi se terminó toda la comida que preparamos”, dijo, “y pudimos recuperar lo que habíamos invertido para llevar adelante la fiesta”. Sin embargo, dejó entrever su mayor satisfacción al haber cumplido la misión evangelizadora de la que es parte.

La señora Selene Castañeda, asistió acompañada de sus hijos Lucila, vestida como Santa Teresa de Calcuta, Maddox de Rey David y Génesis, la mayor, como Santa Isabel. Respecto a la fiesta de Halloween, señaló que “antes lo hacía y ahora que he aprendido más sobre el significado de esa fiesta me he dado cuenta que en verdad CELEBRACIÓN, PASA A LA PÁGINA 24

NEWTON — Un numeroso grupo de fieles de la Misión del Santo Rosario de la parroquia San José de esta localidad, se reunió el pasado jueves 25 de octubre para, en su junta mensual, celebrar la finalización del mes del Rosario con procesión, música, oración y un compartir.

Decenas de familias se presentaron con sus hijos vistiendo de santos y vírgenes. Los padres de familia relataron que, por tratarse de un día laborable, llegaron apurados de sus labores cotidianas y con el tiempo justo para arribar a casa, ayudar a sus niños con sus trajes y recoger los alimentos o bebidas preparados con antelación para compartir al final de la fiesta.

Después de comenzar con algunos cánticos, inició la procesión de una imagen de la Virgen María cargada por cuatro hermanos y precedida por un hermoso grupo de niños que portaban veladoras. Al rezo de los misterios gozosos, la procesión se dirigió por los terrenos de la iglesia, acompañada por un grupo que alternaba el rezo con cánticos.

Los fieles parecían no sentir el frío que comenzaba a sentirse tras la caída del Sol y con determinación y fe acompañaron la imagen de la Virgen hasta su retorno al salón parroquial.

Ya en el interior, después de colocar la imagen en un pequeño altar, los niños se acercaron a Nuestra Señora para depositar flores delante de ella.

La fiesta siguió con música y oraciones para la Virgen declamadas por los niños presentes. El párroco, Padre James Collins, dió la bendición a los menores y luego el Diácono Darío García tomó la palabra para cerrar la reunión y dar paso al compartir con alimentos.

Florencio Vásquez, uno de los fundadores de la misión, dijo que para algunos el mes del Rosario termina el 31 de octubre, pero “para nosotros continúa porque seguimos con el Rosario Guadalupano” que inicia el 2 de noviembre y por treinta días se reúne en diferentes casas para seguir con una Novena que concluye en la víspera de la fiesta de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.

Los organizadores resaltaron la importancia de incluir a toda la familia en el rezo del rosario, también a los más pequeñines. “Aunque no lo entiendan hoy, mañana será un bonito recuerdo convertido en tradición”, aseguraron.

Como explicó Vásquez, la misión se estableció en 2011 después que, junto con otro hermano, tuvieran la iniciativa de realizar el Santo Rosario en las casas de las familias de la parroquia. La idea fue presentada al Diácono García, coordinador del Ministerio Hispano del Vicariato de Statesville, quien de inmediato dio su aprobación al proyecto.

Sin embargo, no fue sino hasta 2014 cuando la Misión creció y se extendió a otras parroquias del Vicariato utilizando como instrumento la consagración al Sagrado Corazón de Jesús y el Inmaculado Corazón de María, un retiro espiritual de 33 días, “donde se lee la historia de cuatro santos que fueron grandes en la Iglesia dedicados a la devoción del Santo Rosario”, apuntó el fundador.

Artemio Alvarado, coordinador del Ministerio del Santo Rosario, dijo que para él “el rezo del rosario es algo que nos fortalece en nuestra vida espiritual” y “cada Ave María del Rosario es una rosa que le estamos regalando, le estamos diciendo a mamita María ‘te amo’”.

Por ello, asegura, va a donde la Virgen lo manda para evangelizar a la gente a través de la consagración a María y el ROSARIO, PASA A LA PÁGINA 24

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Crece consumo de drogas entre escolares de Mecklenburg CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

CHARLOTTE — El consumo de alcohol y drogas crece entre los estudiantes del condado Mecklenburg, según cifras proporcionadas en un foro comunitario organizado por Alianza, una coalición para la prevención del consumo de drogas, que presentó los resultados de una encuesta realizada en las escuelas públicas del condado Mecklenburg, CMS, sobre el consumo de alcohol y drogas entre los jóvenes estudiantes de nivel medio y secundario.

El evento, al que asistieron líderes comunitarios, religiosos y miembros de la Policía, se realizó en el Centro Comunitario Camino, en la zona norte de la ciudad, el pasado 20 de octubre.

Las cifras, resultado de un estudio realizado durante 2018 entre 10.657 estudiantes de 72 escuelas de CMS, entre los grados 6 y 12, son realmente alarmantes y muestran un creciente consumo de alcohol, tabaco y marihuana en nuestra población estudiantil.

Jessica Montana, jefe del departamento latino del Centro de Servicios de Prevención y directora de Alianza, dijo que los números más preocupantes se refieren al incremento del uso de marihuana.

“Encontramos que uno de cada cinco jóvenes habían utilizado marihuana en los últimos treinta días y, si miramos los porcentajes, es el 19.9 por ciento comparado con el 18 por ciento del consumo de alcohol”, que tradicionalmente era el consumo número uno, “lo que el mayor número de jóvenes usaban”.

La especialista señaló que, en parte, el incremento del consumo se debe a la influencia de la legalización de esta droga en algunos estados, lo que da la percepción que es medicinal, posee aplicaciones terapéuticas y por tanto no es dañina. “Pero sabemos que cuando los jóvenes comienzan con el uso de la marihuana a temprana edad se producen daños en el cerebro que afectan el rendimiento académico y muchos otros comportamientos sociales”.

El estudio también determinó que, dependiendo de la sustancia, la influencia para el uso varía. Por ejemplo, para el uso de los cigarrillos electrónicos se conoció que es importante la influencia de los compañeros de escuela. “En cuestión del alcohol fueron los padres. El uso en la casa, darles el alcohol a los jóvenes. Y con los medicamentos prescritos, las normas sociales, la desaprobación de los padres y los compañeros”. Luego resaltó que en el caso de la marihuana es la facilidad el acceso a esta droga.

“Son diez veces más propensos a usar marihuana si decían que era muy fácil conseguirla. Eso es algo que realmente nos preocupa”, dijo Montana.

Ricardo Torres, presidente de Alianza, dijo que los resultados de la encuesta servirán a los padres, a los líderes, profesionales, organizaciones e iglesias para “que hagamos algo” en relación al uso y acceso al alcohol, drogas, medicamentos con receta y tabaco.

“Ahora, con los resultados, vamos a trabajar en nuestro comité para encontrar formas de cómo batallar contra el uso de drogas entre nuestros jóvenes”. Luego Torres se preguntó, “si no hacemos nada con esta información, entonces ¿cuál fue el propósito del estudio?”.

“Ahora”, añadió, “tenemos que trabajar juntos por esos cambios que debemos hacer”.

Uno de los expositores, el Pastor Cándido Albino, comentó que parte de la solución al problema de la dependencia de sustancias es la supervisión y cariño de los padres. Debido a la influencia de la tecnología, señaló, “ya se perdió esa costumbre de conversar con los hijos” y “con decirle a tu hijo cada vez que sale a la escuela ‘Hijo, Dios te bendiga’, eso va sembrando algo en su corazón, en sus emociones”.

Más online En www.facebook.com/CNHespanol: Vea un video sobre este forum comunitario

CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Con sencillez, calzando botas vaqueras, vistiendo jeans, Sergio Indalecio habla a los jóvenes en “su idioma”. “Yo pasé por lo mismo, puedo entender lo que estan viviendo”, afirma explicando su cercanía con el auditorio.

Orador sirve de inspiración para jóvenes en problemas CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

CHARLOTTE — Durante el pasado encuentro juvenil de la Renovación Carismática de la Diócesis de Charlotte, el orador invitado, Sergio Indalecio, logró una conexión intensa tanto con el público juvenil como con los padres de familia que acudieron para escuchar su mensaje de perdón entre los miembros de la familia, así como su testimonio personal de sanación gracias a su encuentro con Dios.

En conversación con Catholic News Herald nos confesó que, debido a su vida disipada, vivió en las calles de la ciudad de Houston, Texas. “Después de vivir debajo de los puentes, una muchacha me llevó a una iglesia católica de Houston, al Centro Carismático y ahí fue donde me invitaron los jóvenes a un retiro hace 17 años y fue mi encuentro ahí”.

“Fui con droga, con otra mentalidad, pero el señor Jesús tenía planes para mí y tocó mi corazón y desde entonces comenzó mi lucha, porque es una lucha, y hemos estado trabajando en el área espiritual y con mi enfermedad de las adicciones y estamos muy bendecidos”.

Respecto a cómo llega una persona a perder todo control por la droga y a vivir en las calles nos respondió que es debido a que “dejamos que el ego nos controle, dejamos que nuestro egoísmo tome las decisiones, pensamos en nosotros mismos y no en las personas que nos aman. Y no aceptamos la ayuda, incluso rechazamos la ayuda aunque quieran hacer el bien para uno. No vemos el bien que quieren hacer y después, como rechazamos, empezamos a perder y luego de perder empezamos a llegar a donde llegamos, a vivir debajo de los puentes. En mi caso fue a los 16 años que viví bajo los puentes”.

Su conversión no fue sencilla ni fácil. Tomó tiempo y para ello fue necesario que dejara de convivir con los mismos grupos y evitar incluso hasta fiestas familiares donde hay alcohol. “Evitar esos lugares para mantenerse

firme. Claro, el área espiritual debe balancearse, tenemos que estar fuertes en nuestra área espiritual y ya creciendo podemos empezar a abrirnos un poquito más. Pero la tentación siempre está. Yo lo tomo como que Jesús sí nos sana pero, al igual como Jesús perdona nuestros pecados en el sacramento de la confesión, no porque nos confesamos significa que ya no vamos a pecar. Volvemos a pecar. Igual la adicción, no porque Jesús nos haya sanado significa que ya no vamos a consumir. Allí está la enfermedad y tenemos que trabajarla diario, al igual que el pecado y la confesión”.

En cuanto a su salida de la adicción y la razón por la que ahora dedica gran parte de su tiempo a relatar su historia a audiencias en todo el país dijo que “esto es un llamado que Dios ha hecho poco a poco y me he dejado guiar por Él. Una cosa es donde Él nos lleve, no donde quiera yo ir.

En este proceso le pido a Dios que me lleve donde él quiera o donde los jóvenes necesiten escuchar testimonios como el mío para o no caer o salir. Yo fui joven, estuve en esa edad, cometí muchos errores y es el momento de darles el mensaje para que no caigan en los mismos errores”.

Su cercanía a los jóvenes la atribuye a que les puede decir “yo te conozco, estás en los mismos canales que yo, yo sé lo que estás haciendo y eso abre las puertas a desahogarse, a convivir, a explicarme por qué se estaba desesperando acá adentro. Yo creo que cuando ya pasaste por ese proceso puedes ayudar al otro, al prójimo y lo puedes entender a salir”.

Para ser una herramienta efectiva del Señor recomienda dejarnos guiar por Jesús, ser humilde y saber que todo lo que hace Jesús a través de nosotros es de Él y no de uno.

“No hay palabras para expresar lo que es Dios en una vida, especialmente como la mía, de donde me sacó. No tengo con qué pagarle. No tengo con qué pagarle”, concluyó.

Más en línea En www.facebook.com/CNHespanol: Vea videos sobre la conferencia y el testimonio de Sergio Indalecio

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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FOTO CORTESÍA

El destino final, la Catedral de Santiago de Compostela, donde los peregrinos abrazan una imagen del santo, dando punto final a su viaje. “Una mezcla de alegría y tristeza”, dijo la hermana Eri.

FOTO CORTESÍA

La hermana Eri fue acompañada durante algunas millas por el P. Oliver, de Filipinas. Al fondo se aprecia un ‘cruceiro’, obelisco de piedra rematado con una cruz en lo alto.

FOTO CORTESÍA

Marca en el camino que indica que el peregrino ya solo se encuentra a 100 kilómetros (62 millas) de su destino, la Catedral de Santiago de Compostela.

EL CAMINO DE SANTIAGO

La experiencia de una religiosa local CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO HISPANO

CHARLOTTE ­— Cuenta la leyenda hecha historia que, tras la muerte de Jesucristo, al apóstol Santiago se le adjudicó la evangelización del territorio peninsular español, de la región hoy conocida como Galicia. El patrón de España, al parecer llegó por las costas de Portugal para luego de algún tiempo regresar a Jerusalén y acompañar a la Virgen en su lecho de muerte. Allí fue torturado y decapitado en el año 42 por orden de Herodes Agripa I, rey de Judea.

Siete discípulos trasladaron el cuerpo del apóstol Santiago en una barca hasta Galicia, depositaron el cuerpo de su maestro en una roca -que fue cediendo y cediendo, hasta convertirse en el Sarcófago Santo- para visitar a la reina Lupa y solicitarle a la poderosa monarca tierras para sepultar a Santiago.

El camino de Santiago y la devoción al Apóstol nacieron en los finales del primer milenio de la era cristiana como respuesta a la creencia y fervor popular de que en estos confines de Galicia y de España, en un “campo de estrellas”, se hallaba la tumba del Apóstol Santiago, uno de los predilectos del Señor.

El camino de Santiago fue desde sus comienzos camino de Europa y de cristiandad unida. De ahí, aquel memorable discurso del Papa Juan Pablo II, en su primera visita a Santiago, el 9 de noviembre de 1982, cuando recordó que Santiago está en las raíces de Europa y cuando pronunció aquella célebre frase: “Europa, sé tú misma”, aludiendo a su identidad e historia cristiana, alentada y significada en Santiago de Compostela y en su camino.

En 1982 la Unesco declaraba al Camino francés de Santiago patrimonio de la humanidad. Tanto en su arte como su naturaleza el camino de Santiago es camino de GLOBAL CATHOLIC TOURS OF VIRGINIA

espiritualidad, de belleza y de cultura excepcionales.

Al camino el peregrino debe ir en actitud de búsqueda, de apertura, de disponibilidad. Puede seguir portando el sombrero de ala ancha, el abrigo marrón con esclavina, el bordón, la calabaza, el zurrón y la concha venera, como manda la tradición.

PEREGRINA LOCAL

La hermana Eri Rodríguez, quien tiene a su cargo la misión local de los Apóstoles de la Palabra, escuchó del camino en 2014 cuando llegó en misión a las montañas de Carolina del Norte y se encontró con Eduardo Bernal, en ese entonces coordinador del ministerio hispano del vicariato de Smoky Mountain, quien le mostró una película sobre el tema y despertó su interés.

En 2016 la invitó a anotarse para conformar un grupo que viajaría en 2017. Un espacio dejado por un sacerdote permitió que se le presente la oportunidad de viajar con todos los gastos pagados. Pidió permiso a su director, el padre Amatulli en México, quien le concedió la autorización de inmediato para viajar a Europa por casi 45 días con visitas a Lourdes y Fátima incluídas.

Lamentablemente el grupo se deshizo pero la hermana Eri decidió realizar el viaje que había considerado un “verdadero regalo”, un obsequio que llegaba justo al cumplir los 10 años de sus votos perpetuos Finalmente, tras su preparación de caminata en Charlotte, conseguir su calzado especial, mochila, bastón y bolsa de dormir, partió para realizar el Camino de Santiago el 10 de junio, iniciando el recorrido en el Santuario de Lourdes.

Fueron 23 días de caminata de entre 20 a 30 kilómetros diarios hasta llegar a Santiago de Compostela, deteniéndose en albergues para caminantes y compartiendo con cientos de peregrinos que, por

2019 PILGRIMAGES

11 Days Poland and Prague: Sept.16-26, 2019, $3,400 each 2 nights Warsaw, 1 night Czestrochowa, 3 nights each in Krakow and Prague.

With Fr. Junot Nelvy from Marietta, GA.

9 Days Holy Land: Sept. 9-17, 2019, $3,400 each 1 night Tel Aviv, 2 nights Galilee and 3 nights Jerusalem.

With Fr Dan Pisano from Wellsburg, WV.

11 Days Greece-Turkey: Sept. 10-20, 2019, $3,500 each 2 nights Istanbul, 1 night each in Kavala, Thessaloniki, Kalambak & Delphi. 3 nights in Athens. Optional 3 day cruise to island is planned. With Fr. Joe Arledge from Woodward, OK.

Being Planned; 13 Days Fatima Spain: Sept-Oct 2019 $TBD With Priest to be determined.

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diferentes razones, realizaban el camino.

Acostumbrada a su privacidad, el primer contratiempo fue compartir alojamiento con muchas personas. “El alojamiento era en literas y la primera noche no dormí”, nos confesó, un poco por el temor que algo fuera a pasar.

“Todo el viaje fue una bendición, era como que los ángeles me iban abriendo paso, acompañándome en cada paso que daba”, dijo la hermana, al recordar que providencialmente tomaba contacto con personas que la ayudaban a resolver dudas o facilitar su trayecto.

Sorprendida por la belleza de los paisajes que pudo ver, la hermana asegura que todo se presta para contemplar la belleza de la creación y orar junto con ella.

También la sobrecogió la historia viva de la iglesia que pudo visitar a su paso por templos y capillas donde muchas mujeres y hombres santos pasaron sus días. La belleza de las catedrales de Burgos, Pamplona, Astorga, Logroño y Santiago de Compostela, construidas en su mayoría con naves centrales y a un estilo muy diferente al que regularmente conocemos la impresionaron.

Sin embargo una espina hizo herida en su corazón: la ausencia de espiritualidad en muchos de los peregrinos que no buscaban de participar en celebraciones religiosas, ni oraban, ni asistían a Misa.

“Lo primero que hacía al llegar a un pueblo donde me iba a detener era buscar albergue, luego averiguar dónde podría escuchar Misa al día siguiente y finalmente ir a buscar algo que comer”, afirma la hermana, quien asegura que “de regresar al Camino de Santiago lo haría para cumplir la misión a la que ha sido llamada, la de evangelizar a través de la Biblia”.

NOTA DEL EDITOR: La información sobre el Camino de Santiago ha sido condensada de varios artículos publicados por ACIPRENSA.

Please pray for the following priests who died during the month of November.

Rev. John P. Bradley – 2003 Abbot Oscar Burnett – 2017 Rev. John J. Hyland – 1975 Rev. Stanislaus W. Kobel – 2016 Rev. Msgr. John P. Manley – 1981 Rev. Bernard A. Manley Jr. – 2016 Rev. Charles T. Reese – 2017 Rev. John S. Regan – 1976 Rev. Leonard E. Schellberg – 2014 Rev. Stephen A. Sullivan – 1989

Our schools 18

catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief

Mother Teresa’s words, “Love is not patronizing and charity isn’t about pity, it is about love.

Charity and love are the same – with charity you give love, so don’t just give money but reach out your hand instead.”

Representatives from Greensboro Urban Ministry remarked that they felt “truly blessed” by the generosity of St. Pius X School families.

The school capped off its current hunger awareness campaign with a school-wide CROP Walk.

— Antonette Aguilera

Bishop McGuinness students learn thanks to CRS, others

St. Pius X students help the hungry in Greensboro GREENSBORO — St. Pius X students recently spent a remarkable couple of weeks focusing on hunger prevention efforts – including collecting hundreds of cans in a “Hearty Soup Drive,” creating “blessing bags” containing snacks and water to give to the hungry and homeless around Greensboro, and making prayer cards to lift the spirits of the needy.

In addition to these tangible efforts, it was heartwarming to hear in-class discussions about feeding the hungry and about helping others. In

KERNERSVILLE — Months of planning came to fruition during a “day of faith” for seniors Sept. 6 at Bishop McGuinness High School, named a Catholic Relief Services’ Platinum Level Global High School.

Catholic Relief Services worked out a miniretreat day to help the senior level students take on the decision-making process propelling their lives forward. Before the students started their college applications they had the opportunity to think about the way God is calling them. They were given the opportunity to think about their gifts and talents and how they would use them to “build the Kingdom.”

Atlanta-based CRS representative Kathy Montag offered advocacy training in the social studies class, where students explored their own place in the world and the need for their service and advocacy on behalf of causes that are important to them and the school. She also walked them through the process of contacting their federal representatives to advocate for legislation.

Montag “made us realize how really privileged we are and how there are more underprivileged people than we previously thought,” said student Zak Loncar. “Catholic Charities is important because it helps provide for these people.”

“Catholic Relief Services recognizes the vital role Catholic secondary schools play in the Church’s mission of evangelization and

catechesis in the United States,” noted Augusto Michael Trujillo, a regional manager with CRS. “Motivated by the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the CRS Global High School Program provides opportunities for Catholic secondary schools to join with CRS to educate about Catholic social teaching and advocate for solidarity with the global poor.”

On the same day, senior theology students also explored the discernment process and the teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola, in a talk with Father Peter Leonard, pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in High Point. Father Leonard was particularly well suited for this presentation because he just left a 30-year career teaching and counseling students at DeSales University in Center Valley, Pa. His advice was a helpful tool that put the overwhelmed seniors at ease. Student Joseph Abriola said, “We listened because Father just spent the last 30 years as a college professor and we knew his advice would be instrumental to our future success.”

Senior English teacher, Connie Rafferty, used a carefully chosen short story to punctuate the three-pronged specialized day of faith. The story, a conversation between a mother and daughter, was meant to challenge students to think about the way their own parents have been trying to guide them to develop Christian values and a sense of morality in order to prepare them for their places in the world.

Principal Tracy Shaw ends each school day by telling students, “Now go out and serve the world which is in need of peace, love and justice.” Bishop McGuinness High School hopes to continue offering this special day for seniors so they will be empowered to do just as she instructs them.

— Dr. Danita Ostasiewski

St. Leo students support ACS WINSTON-SALEM — Members of the student council at St. Leo School held their annual Pink Bake Sale and Pink Out of Uniform Day Oct. 23.

Their efforts raised $741.65 for the American Cancer Society.

— Melissa Kinsley

Students focus on cancer awareness GASTONIA — St. Michael School’s Beta Club sponsored Cancer Awareness Week Oct. 15-19.

The Beta Club created an awareness wall where students could write the names of loved ones on hearts to honor and remember those who have had cancer. The students also collected teddy bears for the Levine Children’s Hospital, and prepared special notes of encouragement to attach to each bear. On Wednesday, students were able to bring a $1 donation to dress in pink.

All of the money raised was donated to the Levine Children’s Hospital. (Pictured from left) Merrily Tew, Lainey Hazen, Delia Hahn and Karl Osei-Boateng stand in front of the awareness wall.

— Tammy Eason and Sheila Levesque

‘Hail Mary, full of grace...’

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY PAOLA SCILINGUO-MENDOZA

GREENSBORO — (Above) Students at Our Lady of Grace School prayed a “Living Rosary” Oct. 5 at Our Lady of Grace Church.

(Right) Volunteer parents also baked 300 cupcakes to make a “cupcake rosary” in celebration of October as the month of the rosary.

SALISBURY — Students at Sacred Heart School prayed a “Living Rosary” last month to honor October as the month of the rosary. Each student, from the youngest to the oldest, participated in reciting the rosary and offering flowers to the Blessed Virgin Mary. This year, the rosary focused on the joyful mysteries.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY ROBIN FISHER

Mix

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest movie reviews: catholicnewsherald.com

In theaters

learns, mom once reigned as queen. But one of the regions has since gone to war with the others (presided over by Keira Knightley, Eugenio Derbez and Richard E. Grant). So, aided by a life-sized nutcracker in the shape of a soldier, she sets out to defeat Mirren’s apparently villainous character and restore unity. Though suitable for most, directors Lasse Hallstrom and Joe Johnston’s riff on both E.T.A. Hoffmann’s tale “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King” and the Tchaikovsky ballet indirectly derived from it may satisfy few. And, while its messages about believing in yourself and cooperating with others are perfectly acceptable, they are driven home ham-handedly. Occasional peril, some frightening images.

CNS: A-II (adults and adolescents); MPAA: PG

‘Bohemian Rhapsody’

‘The Nutcracker and the Four Realms’ Visually rich but dramatically impoverished fantasy in which, while searching for the key that will open a Christmas gift left for her by her recently deceased mother, a teenage girl (Mackenzie Foy) from Victorian London finds herself in an alternate world divided into the territories of the title. There, she

Rami Malek gives himself completely to the role of Freddie Mercury in this biopic of the lead singer of the rock group Queen, with impressive artistic results.

And Mercury’s musical career, including his collaboration with the other members of the band (Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy and Joe Mazzello) as they resisted narrow categorization and took such creative risks as releasing the lengthy pop aria of the title as a single, is portrayed congenially enough. But the vocalist’s tangled personal life, beginning with his doomed engagement to his live-in girlfriend (Lucy Boynton), who remained his lifelong muse, his descent into a decadent lifestyle of homosexual

promiscuity and what is presented as his redemption through an exclusive bond (with Aaron McCusker) in the years leading up to his 1991 death from AIDS-related pneumonia is another matter. A benign view of homosexual acts, cohabitation, a couple of same-sex kisses, a few uses of profanity, at least one rough and many crude terms.

CNS: O (morally offensive); MPAA: PG-13

‘Indivisible’ Earnest fact-based drama, set in 2007, in which an inexperienced Protestant Army chaplain (Justin Flix) finds his pastoral skills, the stability of his marriage (to Sarah Drew) and even his faith tested when he’s assigned to care for a unit deployed on the dangerous outskirts of Baghdad. He helps to make one comrade (Jason George) a better husband, another (Skye P. Marshall) a more active mom and guides a third (Tanner Stine) from skepticism to belief. But his experiences of battle and loss leave him suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder and increasingly alienated from his family. Stylized combat violence with minimal gore, mature themes, references to an out-of-wedlock pregnancy.

CNS: A-II (adults and adolescents); MPAA: PG-13

Other movies: n ‘Hunter Killer’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: R n ‘The Old Man & the Gun’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13 n ‘The Hate U Give’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13

On TV n Friday, Nov. 9, 8 p.m. (EWTN) “They Might be Saints: The Martyrs of La Florida.” The extraordinary faith of the Spanish priests and Apalachee natives who were killed while evangelizing and defending their Catholic faith in Florida. n Saturday, Nov. 10, 8 p.m. (EWTN) “Mother Cabrini.”

An EWTN original movie on the life of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, who founded the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and established missions around the world. n Sunday, Nov. 11, 1:30 p.m. (EWTN) “Bravery Under Fire.” This original EWTN docudrama presents the life and ministry of Father Willie Doyle, an Irish Jesuit priest who was killed in action during World War I. n Friday, Nov. 16, 2 p.m. (EWTN) “Angola: Get up and Go.” Bishops, missionaries and other witnesses give testimony to the persecution that Christians in Angola have endured and how the people have kept their faith in the midst of communism and war. n Friday, Nov. 16, 8 p.m. (EWTN) “Holy Sepulcher.” An exploration of the history and archaeology surrounding the Basilica of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. n Saturday, Nov. 17, 8 p.m. (EWTN) “Lourdes.” The life of the great saint of Lourdes, Bernadette, and the vast impact she has had in the lives of others. Part 1. n Sunday, Nov. 18, 11 p.m. (EWTN) “Catholic Beginnings: Philadelphia: Problems of Lay Trusteeism in Philadelphia.” Father Charles Connor explores the rich Catholic history of Philadelphia and the role the city played in the formation of both the United States and the concept of religious freedom. n Thursday, Nov. 22, 6 p.m. (EWTN) “Meet the Legion.” The history and mission of the Legion of Mary, one of the largest worldwide lay Catholic organizations and currently found in more than 171 countries.

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19

Our nation 20

catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

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In Brief Shooting victims mourned PITTSBURGH — Thousands of people gathered outside and inside the Sailors and Soldiers Memorial Hall of the University of Pittsburgh Oct. 28 at an interfaith service to mourn the victims of the horrific shooting Oct. 27 at the Tree of Life synagogue. A Baptist gospel choir opened the service, which was organized under the banner the “Stronger Together.” Christian and Muslim clergy were among those who made remarks, but the leaders of the service were rabbis representing the three Jewish congregations who used the synagogue.

The shooting occurred during a morning babynaming ceremony, for which an estimated crowd of 45 to 100 people had gathered, according to news reports. There were 11 fatalities; the victims ranged in age from 54 to 97. Six others were injured, including four members of law enforcement. The alleged shooter was later identified as Robert Bowers, 46. He is in federal custody and faces 29 separate federal crimes, including hate crimes and weapons offenses.

The U.S. Catholic bishops stand with “our brothers and sisters of the Jewish community,” the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in the wake of the shooting. “We condemn all acts of violence and hate and yet again, call on our nation and public officials to confront the plague of gun violence,” said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston.

At the Vatican Oct. 28, Pope Francis prayed for those affected by the deadly attack, calling it an “inhumane act of violence.” “May the Lord help us extinguish the fires of hatred that develop in our society,” he prayed.

Abuse crisis, day of discernment, prayer top agenda for meeting WASHINGTON, D.C. — Discussion and voting on concrete measures to address the abuse crisis and a day of spiritual discernment and prayer will top the agenda for the U.S. bishops when they meet Nov. 12-14 for their fall general assembly in Baltimore. Public sessions of the assembly also will be livestreamed, live tweeted and carried via satellite. The assembly

will begin Nov. 12 with an address by Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, USCCB president, as well as remarks by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to the U.S. The bishops will then adjourn to an on-site chapel for a day of spiritual discernment and prayer, followed by Mass. In an Oct. 26 letter to all U.S. bishops, Cardinal DiNardo asked them to spend the week before the meeting, Nov. 5 to Nov. 11, in “intensified” prayer, fasting and reparation to prepare for their general assembly in Baltimore.

During their business sessions, the bishops will discuss and vote on a series on concrete measures to respond to the abuse.

Federal authorities ask USCCB, dioceses to retain documents WASHINGTON, D.C. — An attorney for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has confirmed that federal officials have asked the organization to keep documents and other files that might pertain to possible sex abuse allegations and other matters and to order the same of all U.S. dioceses. “We have transmitted the U.S. attorney’s letter at his request and in the spirit of cooperation with law enforcement,” said Anthony Picarello, associate general secretary and general counsel for the USCCB, Oct. 29.

News reports in late October said U.S. Attorney William M. McSwain, of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, sent the bishops’ conference a letter and instructions about the preservation of documents in early October asking that it be sent around to the country’s 197 dioceses.

Youngstown bishop releases names of clergy accused of abuse YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Bishop George V. Murry of Youngstown has announced the names of 31 clergy and one religious brother who served in the diocese since its founding in 1943 who have been credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor. At an Oct. 30 news conference, Bishop Murry released the names of the 27 diocesan priests, one diocesan deacon and three religious order priests who had served in the diocese. He also released the names of two priests from the Diocese of Pittsburgh who had been removed from ministry but who resided in the Youngstown diocese after their removal from ministry. Bishop Murry emphasized that all credible accusations have been reported to civil authorities and that all of those accused had been removed from ministry years or even decades ago. Of the diocesan priests accused, 18 are dead, including

nine who died before any accusation was filed.

Two of the three religious also are dead.

the non-monetary provisions of the diocesan bankruptcy settlement,” the diocese said. It also said the diocese “has not had a credible reported instance of the sexual abuse of a child by anyone in diocesan or parish ministry in more than 25 years.”

Archbishop: Naming clergy accused of abuse is about victims’ healing NEW ORLEANS — After reviewing more than 2,400 clergy files dating back nearly 70 years, the Archdiocese of New Orleans released the names of 55 priests and two deacons who had been removed from ministry for accusations of sexual abuse of a minor. “This day is about the healing of victims,” Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond said in releasing the names Nov. 2. Admitting he wrestled with the voluntary decision to release the names because he feared the list might not be accurate or complete, Archbishop Aymond said it was the right thing to do as a step toward healing the pain of victims.

Va. bishops cooperating with state on probe into abuse claims ARLINGTON, Va. — Virginia’s two Catholic bishops, Arlington Bishop Michael F. Burbidge and Richmond Bishop Barry C. Knestout, said in a joint statement Oct. 24 that they wanted to assure Catholics in the state and the public “we are cooperating with the attorney general’s office.” Earlier that day, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced his office is investigating allegations of child sexual abuse by clergy in Virginia.

New commission to review files of Anchorage clergy, sisters

District of Columbia AG latest to join probes of clergy sex abuse

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Anchorage has appointed an independent commission to review all personnel files of clerics and religious men and women who have served in the Archdiocese of Anchorage since its canonical establishment in 1966. The commission was formed following consultation with lay leadership, the archdiocese said. The independent body also will review allegations of sexual misconduct of lay volunteers and employees reported to the archdiocese. Commission members have more than 50 years of combined experience in law enforcement, prosecutorial and judicial service.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The attorney general for the District of Columbia is the latest official to announce an investigation into clergy sex abuse in the Church and said his office will look at possible abuse cases in the Archdiocese of Washington. Attorney General Karl A. Racine said Oct. 23 his office is “investigating whether the Archdiocese of Washington covered up allegations of sexual abuse of minors.”

Delaware DOJ to review clergy files WILMINGTON, Del. — The Delaware Department of Justice announced Nov. 1 it has opened an investigation into potential criminal conduct by priests or other Church personnel of the Diocese of Wilmington, according to a statement. The review’s purpose is to determine whether there are any prosecutable criminal cases that may have not come to light in previous reviews of information provided by the diocese. The diocese confirmed receipt of a subpoena asking for records dating back to 1955. “We welcome this investigation and are fully cooperating,” it said in a statement.

“The files requested by the attorney general include the files of abusive priests that were made public six years ago in accordance with

N.Y. bishop removed pending review of sexual abuse claim WASHINGTON, D.C. — A New York auxiliary bishop has been removed from public ministry pending a Vatican review of a decades-old accusation of sexual abuse against him, a claim he denies, the Archdiocese of New York said in a Oct. 29 letter sent to parishioners of Our Lady of Refuge in the Bronx, where Auxiliary Bishop John J. Jenik was the pastor until late October.

Memphis bishop removed WASHINGTON, D.C. — Pope Francis has removed Bishop Martin D. Holley of Memphis, Tenn., from the pastoral governance of the diocese and has named as apostolic administrator Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Ky. Bishop Holley, 63, a former auxiliary bishop of Washington, was installed Oct. 19, 2016, as the fifth bishop of Memphis.

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Our world

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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In Brief Caravan heads to Mexico City CORDOBA, Mexico — The caravan of migrants making its way through Mexico has started arriving in Mexico City, where the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the world’s most-visited Marian shrine, has opened its shelter for pilgrims to weary Central American migrants. At least 1,000 migrants departed Nov. 5 from Cordoba, 190 miles southeast of Mexico City, hoping to make a final push to the national capital. They were joined by another group departing from Puebla – closer to Mexico City. One caravan set out Oct. 12 from San Pedro Sula, Honduras, and mushroomed in size as it moved northward.

Catholics working on the immigration issue in Central America say caravans have become a preferred form of traveling through Mexico, where crimes are common against migrants traveling solo or in small groups. Caravans, they say, offer security in numbers and make it unnecessary to pay high fees to human smugglers. In interviews in southern Mexico, most of the migrants said they were fleeing a combination of violence, poverty and an inability to make ends meet in their home countries of Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Synod fathers: Church, world need young people’s involvement VATICAN CITY — Writing to the world’s young people, members of the Synod of Bishops said they wanted to encourage them and help them fulfill their dreams, and they prayed that their own failings would not drive the young from

the Church. “Our frailties and sins must not be an obstacle for your trust. The Church is your mother; she does not abandon you; she is ready to accompany you on new roads, on higher paths where the winds of the Spirit blow stronger – sweeping away the mists of indifference, superficiality and discouragement,” the synod fathers said in a letter addressed to young people around the world. Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, general secretary of the Synod of Bishops, read the letter after a Mass Oct. 28 closing the Synod of Bishops on young people, the faith and vocational discernment. In the presence of Pope Francis and young people at the Mass, he said the synod members wanted to offer words “of hope, trust and consolation.” After gathering for discussions at the Vatican Oct. 3-27, they said they recognized in the voice of Jesus “your many voices, your shouts of exultation, your cries and your moments of silence.”

Pope Francis prays for Coptic Orthodox Christians after attack VATICAN CITY — In the wake of a deadly attack against Coptic Orthodox Christians in Egypt, Pope Francis prayed for the victims, their families and the entire Christian community.

Seven Christians were killed and at least seven others – including children – were injured after armed gunmen attacked two buses near the Monastery of St. Samuel the Confessor in Minya province Nov. 2. Another attack took place in the same area in 2017, which left 28 people dead. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the latest attack and Egypt’s interior ministry announced Nov. 4 that in a shoot-out, its security forces had killed 19 militants they accused of being behind the attack.

congregation has agreed to resume its service of offering children for adoption. The congregation founded by St. Teresa of Calcutta discontinued giving babies from their Indian orphanages for adoption in 2015 after disagreeing with a new federal law that allowed single and divorced women to adopt children. The congregation has revised its stance and will join the centralized adoption service system set up by the government, said Maneka Gandhi, who heads the Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Anti-Semitism must be banned from society, pope says VATICAN CITY — Sharing the same roots as their Jewish brothers and sisters, Christians cannot be anti-Semitic and must work to ensure anti-Semitism is banned from society, Pope Francis said. Also, he said, “the Holocaust must be commemorated so that there will be a living memory of the past. Without a living memory, there will be no future, for if the darkest pages of history do not teach us to avoid the same errors, human dignity will remain a dead letter.”

The pope made his remarks during an audience Nov. 5 with a group of rabbis attending the World Congress of Mountain Jews. Mountain Jews – believed to be descendants of Persian Jews – settled centuries ago in the Caucasus region, maintaining their own unique language and various customs. They were also targeted and exterminated by German troops during World War II. Speaking to the delegates, the pope expressed his joy that their visit marked the first time their community visited a pope at the Vatican. Pope Francis met with Mountain Jews during his 2016 visit to Azerbaijan.

Former U.S. nuncio heard rumors Missionaries of Charity will again of McCarrick misconduct in 1994 offer children for adoption VATICAN CITY — A former nuncio to the U.S. NEW DELHI — The Missionaries of Charity

Catholic Charities Director of Development

misconduct of Archbishop Theodore E. McCarrick already in 1994. Cardinal Agostino Cacciavillan, who served as pro-nuncio to the U.S. from 1990 to 1998, said Oct. 29 that he received a phone call from a woman in the months preceding St. John Paul II’s visit to the U.S. in 1995. “I remember in 1994, during the preparation of the papal visit to New York, Newark and Baltimore,” he said, “I received a telephone call” at the Apostolic Nunciature in Washington, D.C. According to the 92-year-old retired papal diplomat, the caller feared there would be a “media scandal if the pope goes to Newark,” Archbishop McCarrick’s diocese, because of “voices, voices (rumors) about McCarrick’s behavior with seminarians. It was not a formal complaint, but the expression of a concern.”

Judge orders arrest of suspect in St. Romero’s 1980 killing WASHINGTON, D.C. — Days after the Catholic Church declared Salvadoran Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero a saint, a judge in El Salvador issued a capture order for a former military captain suspected of killing the religious leader in 1980 as he celebrated Mass. Judge Rigoberto Chicas issued the order Oct. 23 for national and international authorities to apprehend Alvaro Rafael Saravia, who has for years been a suspect in the killing. He remains at large and is believed to be in hiding. It’s not the first time such an order has been issued against Saravia. He was arrested in 1987 in Miami and has faced a variety of legal proceedings in El Salvador for years that proved fruitless in any meaningful prosecution because of an amnesty law that prevented prosecution of human rights violations by the military tied to the country’s 1980-1992 civil war. However, the 1993 law was thrown out by the country’s highest court in 2016 and the case involving the killing of the archbishop was reopened the following year.

acknowledged hearing rumors about the sexual

— Catholic News Service

LATIN REQUIEM MASS

The Diocesan Office of Development has an opening for a full-time Catholic Charities Director of Development. The candidate must have an undergraduate degree and a minimum of 5 years experience in fundraising; extensive fundraising experience may be substituted for a completed undergraduate degree. A knowledge of Blackbaud Raiser’s

~ Messe des Morts a Quatre Voix~

Edge or other fundraising database software is preferred.

(Mass of the Dead for Four Voices [and Continuo])

Responsibilities include: creating and executing the annual development plan for Catholic Charities, engaging, retaining, nurturing and recognizing current donors; identifying and cultivating new donors.

Please submit cover letter and resume by November 16, 2018 to Jim Kelley, Office of Development, jkkelley@charlottediocese.org

21

~ Marc Antoine Charpentier [1643-1704] ~

Wednesday, November 14th, 2018 – 7pm Carolina Catholic Chorale (www.carolinacatholicchorale.com) Thomas F. Savoy, founder/artistic director

St. Thomas Aquinas Church 1400 Suther Road, Charlotte, NC

ViewPoints 22

catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Deacon Matthew Newsome

Bishop Robert Barron

Divine friendship I

was blessed recently to accompany 13 of our students on a retreat to Folly Beach, the theme of which was holy friendship. Students shared with one another about how friendship is a form of love, and the importance of having healthy friendships with yourself, with others and with God. It is this latter form of friendship that I’ve been reflecting on lately.

We run the risk in our modern, technologically-enhanced world, of forgetting what true friendship is. It is one thing to say we have 500 “friends” on Facebook. But how many of those people do we really know? And how many of those that we know in real life, even those we may engage with on a daily basis, can we count as true friends?

I’ve never been one to have a lot of friends. It could be because I’m an introvert by nature, but I’ve always preferred having one or two very close friends over dozens of acquaintances. The reason is simple: real friendship takes time and effort, and most of us are only capable of investing ourselves in this way with a small number of other people. Real friendship requires a deep level of personal trust. This goes beyond the kind of professional trust we extend to people every day: you trust your professor to grade you fairly; you trust the cook at the restaurant to not poison your food. No, friendship requires personal trust – I trust you not to reject me when I open my mind and heart to you.

In the original “Shrek” movie, Shrek said that ogres are like onions – they have layers. Well, people are like ogres.

We have layers, too. There are the outer layers that we show to the world around us every day, whether it be in a classroom setting, work or a social environment.

Then there are the inner layers of ourselves that we only reveal to those very close to us, our family and close friends. Perhaps you have a best friend – and this is the kind of friendship good marriages are built on – that you feel safe revealing the deepest part of yourself to.

To open yourself up to another person like that is scary. It makes you vulnerable.

We don’t like feeling vulnerable, which is why we only enter into this level of intimacy with those we trust implicitly and who also trust us enough to reciprocate that intimacy.

So where does God fit in to all this? Am I going to next say we should open up the deepest part of ourselves to God and allow ourselves to be vulnerable to Him? Sure, we are called to do that. But the truth is God already knows the deepest part of us. He knows us better than we even know ourselves. So we don’t really

have to “make ourselves” vulnerable to God. We just have to accept the fact that we are.

I want us to think about friendship with God from another direction. Our friendship with God isn’t something we initiate. It’s something God initiates.

Jesus told the disciples, “I no longer call you slaves, but friends.” Jesus wants to be friends with us. Here’s the context of that statement: “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I no longer call you slaves, because a slave does not know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father. It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you…” (Jn 15:12-16a) Jesus chose us to be His friends. He did this in a powerful way by dying for us on the cross. But He also shows His friendship by telling us everything He heard from the Father.

So when Jesus says “you are my friends if you do what I command you,” we shouldn’t read this as meaning, “I’ll be your friend if you do what I say.”

No. Jesus already desires to be our friend.

He’s the one inviting us to be His friend.

And the way we say “yes” to Jesus’ divine friendship request is to follow the commandments. Why? Because the commands Jesus teaches us are nothing short of the mind of God. Jesus, the Logos, is the perfect Image of God. He is the fullness of God’s self-revelation to man. To put it simply, Jesus reveals God to us.

In sending His Son into the world to teach us, sanctify us, suffer and die for us, God makes Himself vulnerable. He has exposed His inner life to us. And He has invited us to participate in His life. He says, “This is who I AM. Take me or leave me.”

The commandments of God are not a set of rules God imposes, or an obstacle course He makes us pass through to get to heaven. The commandments are the mind and heart of God. God does not force them upon us. We are free to reject them.

But He invites us to follow them, and so share in His life. He invites us to be His friend.

‘Jesus chose us to be His friends.’

DEACON MATTHEW NEWSOME is the Catholic campus minister at Western Carolina University and the regional faith formation coordinator for the Smoky Mountain Vicariate. This commentary originally appeared on WCU Catholic Campus Ministry’s blog, online at www. wcucatholic.org.

Catholic youth today need a new apologetics

J

esus’ encounter with two erstwhile disciples on the road to Emmaus provides a beautiful template for the Church’s work of accompaniment across the ages.

The Lord walks with the couple, even as they move away from Jerusalem, which is to say, spiritually speaking, in the wrong direction.

He does not commence with a word of judgment, but rather with attention and quiet encouragement. Jesus continues to listen, even as they recount, accurately enough, all the data having to do with Him. But then, knowing that they lack the interpretive pattern that will make sense of the data, He upbraids them (“Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!”), and then He lays out the form (“beginning with Moses and all the prophets, He interpreted to them what referred to Him in all the Scriptures.”). He listens with love, and He speaks with force and clarity.

Innumerable surveys and studies over the past 10 years have confirmed that young people frequently cite intellectual reasons when asked what has prompted them to leave the Church or lose confidence in it. Chief among these are the convictions that religion is opposed to science or that it cannot stand up to rational scrutiny, that its beliefs are outmoded, a holdover from a primitive time, that the Bible is unreliable, that religious belief gives rise to violence, and that God is a threat to human freedom. I can verify, on the basis of 20 years of ministry in the field of online evangelization, that these concerns are crucial stumbling blocks to the acceptance of the faith among young people.

What is vitally needed today, as an aspect of the accompaniment of the young, is a renewed apologetics and catechesis.

I realize that in some circles within the Church, the term apologetics is suspect, since it seems to indicate something rationalistic, aggressive, condescending. I hope it is clear that arrogant proselytizing has no place in our pastoral outreach, but I hope it is equally clear that an intelligent, respectful and culturally-sensitive explication of the faith (“giving a reason for the hope that is within us”) is certainly needed. There is a consensus among pastoral people that, at least in the West, we have experienced a crisis in catechesis these last 50 years. That the faith has not been effectively communicated was verified by the most recent “Religious Landscape Study” from the Pew Research Center in America. It indicated that, among the major religions, Catholicism was second to last in passing on its traditions. Why has it been the case, over the past several decades, that young people in our own Catholic secondary schools have read Shakespeare in literature class, Homer in Latin class, Einstein in physics class, but, far too often, superficial texts in religion?

The army of our young who claim that

religion is irrational is a bitter fruit of this failure in education.

Therefore, what would a new apologetics look like? First, it would arise from the questions that young people spontaneously ask. It would not be imposed from above but would rather emerge organically from below, a response to the yearning of the mind and the heart. Here it would take a cue from the method of St. Thomas Aquinas. The austere texts of the great theological master in point of fact emerged from the lively give-and-take of the “quaestiones disputatae” that stood at the heart of the educational process in the medieval university. Thomas was deeply interested in what young people were really asking. So should we.

Secondly, a new apologetics should look deep and long into the question of the relationship between religion and science.

For many people, scientific and rational are simply equivalent or co-extensive terms.

And therefore, since religion is obviously not science, it must be irrational. Without for a moment denigrating the sciences, we have to show that there are non-scientific and yet eminently rational paths that conduce toward knowledge of the real. Literature, drama, philosophy, the fine arts – all close cousins of religion – not only entertain and delight; they also bear truths that are unavailable in any other way. A renewed apologetics ought to cultivate these approaches.

Thirdly, our apologetics and catechesis should walk the “via pulchritudinis,” as Pope Francis characterized it in “Evangelii Gaudium.” Especially in our postmodern cultural context, commencing with the true and the good – what to believe and how to behave – is often counter-indicated, since the ideology of self-invention is so firmly established. However, the third transcendental, the beautiful, often proves a more winsome, less threatening, path. And part of the genius of Catholicism is that we have so consistently embraced the beautiful – in song, poetry, architecture, painting, sculpture and liturgy. All of this provides a powerful matrix for evangelization. And as Hans Urs von Balthasar argued, the most compelling beauty of all is that of the saints.

When Jesus explained Himself to the disciples on the road to Emmaus, their hearts began to burn within them. The Church must walk with young people, listen to them with attention and love, and then be ready intelligently to give a reason for the hope that is within us. This, I trust, will set the hearts of the young on fire.

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 award-winning documentary about the Catholic faith.

He offered this intervention at the Vatican during the 2018 Synod on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment.

November 9, 2018 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

Letter to the Editor

23

Parish spotlight

Every life is sacred, one no more so than another I read with deep concern the Oct. 12 letter to the editor penned by “Catholic Pro-Life Action Network of Charlotte.”

In attempting to debunk the “seamless garment” or “consistent life ethic” approach to upholding the dignity of human life, the authors speciously state that to hold this view is to “elevate non-priority social issues (poverty, discrimination, immigration, etc. to the same level as direct attacks on human life (abortion, contraception and euthanasia).”

The authors then go on to buttress their argument with two quotes from the writings of St. John Paul II, both of which speak of the “inviolability of human life” and “the right to life” and neither of which mentions abortion, contraception or euthanasia.

I wonder whether the child who has been torn from his or her mother’s arms and is kept in brutal incarceration in a detention camp in Texas believes for one second that their plight is a “non-priority social issue.” I also have to wonder whether the thousands of women and children trafficked each year believe for one second that their situation is a “non-priority social issue.”

Indeed, each of us has to wonder whether the convicted inmate awaiting his execution thinks his fate is a “non-priority social issue.” Or the millions of us who live with threat of nuclear annihilation.

Or the children, many of whom are now adults, who suffered sexual abuse by priests and bishops. Or the black, brown, yellow, red and white peoples who have been and continue to be beaten down, subjugated and eliminated by the hands of a “superior” people. “Non-priority social issue,” indeed!

At its very core, the “seamless garment” or “consistent life ethic” approach to upholding the dignity of life states that all life is sacred. That means lives still in the womb as well as lives already born.

In building on his predecessors’ teachings of the past 30-40 years, Pope Francis said on Sept. 30, 2013: “There is no human life more sacred than another, just as there is no human life qualitatively more significant than another.” And on Nov. 24 of the same year: “Yet this defense of unborn life is closely linked to the defense of each and every other human right.

It involves the conviction that a human being is always sacred and inviolable, in any situation and at every stage of development.” And again on Jan. 8, 2018: “Defending the right to life also entails actively striving for peace, universally recognized as one of the supreme values to be sought and defended.”

With all humility, I cannot believe our Holy Father would place the adjective “non-priority” in front of nouns such as poverty, immigration, discrimination, capital punishment, the environment, human trafficking, sexual assault, nuclear proliferation and more. Unless we Catholic Christians come together and unite around all issues of life, unless we have a consistent ethic of life, we are doomed.

Each life is sacred, one no more so than another. To think that way is likening our thinking to those who came up with the notion of the Final Solution. We have, sadly, been down this road and we know where it leads. Hopefully we will choose another, life-giving path.

PHOTO PROVIDED BY MARKUS KUNCORO AND MIKE FITZGERALD

Honoring Christ the King CHARLOTTE — St. Ann Parish and the Charlotte Latin Mass Community marked the Feast of Christ the King Oct. 28 with a High Mass in the Extraordinary Form, followed by a special Eucharistic Procession. With more than 260 faithful in attendance, Father Jason Barone, chaplain of Charlotte Catholic High School, offered Mass and preached on the sovereignty of Christ. The Mass featured beautiful chanting from the Cantate Domino Latin Choir and St. Ann schola.

After Mass, Father Barone led the attendees in the third annual Eucharistic Procession around streets surrounding St. Ann and concluded by praying the Consecration of the Human Race to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which carries with it a plenary indulgence on this feast day. The Extraordinary Form calendar retains the feast of Christ the King on the day originally established by Pope Pius XI in 1925, the last Sunday in October. The feast is also to symbolize the role of the “Church Militant” right before the feasts of the “Church Triumphant” (All Saints, Nov. 1) and the “Church Suffering,” (that is, the Poor Souls in Purgatory, on All Souls’ Day, Nov. 2).

PAUL KILEY lives in High Point.

Most-read stories on the web

‘The meaning of life is found in our response to God’s offer of love.’

Pope Francis

From online story: “Life is radiant when it is lived with love and service, pope says” Through press time on Nov. 7, 19,232 visitors to www.catholicnewsherald.com have viewed a total of 33,125 pages. The top five headlines in October and November so far are: n Deacon Paul Pe Lee passes away in Morganton..................................................................................... 1,848 n Saving St. Lawrence Basilica........................................................................................................................... 697 n View the current print edition of the Catholic News Herald................................................................... 639 n ‘My pain was gone,’ woman says after immersion in waters at Marian shrine.................................258 n A missionary spirit in the diocese.................................................................................................................. 257

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

In 2002, the bishops of the United States issued the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The charter addresses the Church’s commitment to respond effectively, appropriately and compassionately to cases of abuse of minors by priests, deacons or other church personnel.

DIOCESAN REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTING MINISTRY-RELATED SEXUAL ABUSE OF A MINOR 1. Any individual having actual knowledge of or reasonable cause to suspect an incident of ministry-related sexual abuse is to immediately report the incident to the Chancery.

2. The Chancery will then report the incident to the proper civil authorities. The individual reporting the incident to the Chancery will be notified of the particulars regarding the Chancery’s filing of the incident with civil authorities.

3. This reporting requirement is not intended to supersede the right of an individual to make a report to civil authorities, but is to ensure proper, complete and timely reporting.

Should an individual choose to make a report to civil authorities, a report is still to be made to the Chancery.

The charter can be found on the diocesan website, Charlottediocese.org, click on the tab, “Safe Environment.”

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catholicnewsherald.com | November 9, 2018 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

IN BRIEF

CELEBRACIÓN

FROM PAGE 11

VIENE DE LA PÁGINA 15

organization, Medair, as a senior health and nutrition advisor, advising projects that provided community-based, primary healthcare services and therapeutic feeding for the malnourished in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Somalia. Her first experience with HIV/ AIDS was during a college volunteer mission in which she worked in a recovery Sharpe home for women. There she saw people living with HIV without access to medication to keep their disease from progressing to AIDS. “It’s been my privilege to serve many vulnerable people, including those with HIV/ AIDS and those in severe crisis – such as wars or famines – through my work in global public health program management,” Sharpe said.

“I’m thrilled to return to service of people living with HIV and AIDS, and to work with House of Mercy, where people are really treated with dignity and the standard of care is the highest quality. Medications for HIV have changed things for the better. But there are still many vulnerable people without means or access to quality care, and House of Mercy fills this gap in our area.”

Sharpe succeeds Stan Patterson, who retired in October after 21 years as president/ CEO.

‘Sock Tober’ collection aids homeless MONROE — Parishioners of Our Lady of Lourdes Church, working with the local Knights of Columbus council, donated hundreds of pairs of new socks during a “Sock Tober” collection last month. Father Benjamin Roberts, pastor, suggested the collection.

Years ago he volunteered at a soup kitchen in Chicago and noticed there was a great need for new socks to provide to the homeless.

Pictured (from left) are Our Lady of Lourdes Grand Knight Gene Bausinger, Father Roberts and Andrew Jones, a Knight of Columbus from St. Mark Church in Huntersville who helped organize and distribute the donations.

— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

— Krystyna Sarrazin

St. Philip Parish donates to ministry STATESVILLE — Melissa Nyhoff of Matthew 25 Ministries, serving Northern Iredell County, recently received a $2,500 a check from St. Philip the Apostle Church. Melda Showfety and Rose Simiele presented the donation on behalf of the parish with the pastor, Father Thomas J. Kessler, looking on.

Knights give out coats to kids JEFFERSON — Knights of Columbus Council 16839 in Jefferson recently distributed more than two dozen new winter jackets to some very pleased children associated with the NestAlliance program. Smiling faces could be seen on the children, brother Knights and Nest volunteers. Pictured are Knights John Esser and Rick LaBonte.

— Patrick Hession, correspondent

— Connie Ries

CÉSAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

El Padre James Collins, pastor de la parroquia San José en Newton, acoge amorosamente a la comunidad latina y, aunque no habla español, los parroquianos afirman que lo entiende muy bien.

no es algo agradable. Yo sé que muchos piensan que es algo bueno por la diversión y los dulces, pero desde mi punto de vista no está bien porque la palabra ‘Halloween’ si significa algo muy malo y no quiero que mi familia participe en cosas oscuras, malas y cultos”.

Siendo la primera vez que celebran esta fiesta, los organizadores esperan mejorar la edición que aseguran realizarán en 2019. De otra parte, en los primeros días de noviembre realizarán una Misa en los exteriores de su sede e iniciarán los trabajos de instalación de una gigantesca cruz en el frontis de casa misional.

ROSARIO VIENE DE LA PÁGINA 15

Santo Rosario.

Alvarado tiene a su cargo el grupo musical que acompaña las celebraciones de la misión. Sin formación musical previa, al involucrarse con el grupo misionero decidió que esa labor iba a ser parte de su llamado. Con la ayuda de toda su familia, es el primero que llega a las reuniones para instalar su equipo y el último en retirarse tras recoger parlantes, amplificadores, micrófonos e instrumentos musicales.

Por su parte Araceli Clemente, integrante de la misión, dijo que particularmente “siente una paz muy inmensa” con el Santo Rosario, que reza “en cualquier momento”, ya sea en el trabajo, en la casa o inclusive manejando.

Clemente, siente que gracias a su devoción ha “recibido muchos regalos de ella” (la Virgen) y, en especial “después de la consagración hubo muchos, muchos cambios en mi familia y mi matrimonio”.

Florencio Vásquez añadió que esperan que más personas con vocación de servicio se integren a la misión. “Uno, cuando es servidor del Señor y también de la Santísima Virgen, tiene que estar dispuesto para cualquier trabajo, a todas horas”, subrayó.

Más online En www.facebook.com/CNHespanol: Vea un video sobre la Misión del Santo Rosario

COUPLES FROM PAGE 3

the Church, so we’ve continued to grow as a couple and as a family.”

The Lugos pray the rosary as a family each day and advise other couples to remain active in their faith.

“Go to Mass, get in front of the Blessed Sacrament and pray in the Presence of the Holy Eucharist,” Mike Lugo said.

“And try to go to Mass more than once a week on Sundays,” Karen Lugo added.

Deacon James Witulski and his wife Mary, who belong to St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte, were also honored at the wedding anniversary Mass Nov. 4. Married for 25 years, they raised two children and now have five grandchildren.

Patience and a sense of humor are important in marriage, they agreed.

“We always forgive each other and we forgive quickly,” Mary Witulski noted.

Deacon Witulski’s ministry in the Church has also brought them closer together and closer to God, she said.

“Her faith strengthened my faith,” Deacon Witulski added. “When I proposed to her I wrote her a poem that stated, ‘I want to walk hand in hand.’”

In the closing remarks of his homily, Bishop Jugis told the couples that he joined with them in thanking God for all of the blessings bestowed on them throughout their married lives.

He prayed, “May you live in peace with all people and may all people bless you.”

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