Oct. 22, 2021

October 22, 2021

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

By listening to the Holy Spirit, synod can teach ‘art of the encounter,’ pope says 20

Rosaries and Masses Honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary during the Month of the Rosary

5 INDEX

Contact us.....................................4 Español....................................... 14-17 Events calendar............................4 Our Faith........................................2 Our Parishes................. 3-10, 12-13 Scripture readings................. 2, 17 TV & Movies..................................11 U.S. news.................................18-19 Viewpoints.............................22-23 World news............................ 20-21

A celebration of gratitude and love Swannanoa parish marks 85th anniversary

12-13

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FUNDED BY THE PARISHIONERS OF THE DIOCESE OF CHARLOTTE THANK YOU!

Mint Hill parishioners celebrate ‘Spirit of St. Luke’ at groundbreaking 3

A miracle?

He wasn’t expected to live through the night, but then Knights prayed to their founder 5

La parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la Misericordia celebra a su patrona, herencia durante el festival 14

Our faith 2

catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

St. John of Capistrano: Military hero Feast day: Oct. 23 Pope Francis

Freedom comes from serving others

P

ope Francis had a special guest help him illustrate the meaning of Christian freedom: a young boy wandered onto the stage during the pope’s general audience and made himself at home. At his audience Oct. 20, the pope was continuing his series of talks on St. Paul’s Letter to the Galatians and planned to reflect on the freedom that comes from serving and loving others.

As the Scripture was being read, 10-yearold Paolo walked onto the stage and right up to Pope Francis, who shook his hand.

A papal aide offered Paolo a seat next to the pope, which elicited applause from the crowd, and from the little boy. But he did not stay seated long; after clasping the pope’s hands again, Paolo pointed with amazement at the pope’s zucchetto.

Moments later, the young boy could be seen happily bounding down the steps, returning to his mother wearing a brand new zucchetto on his head.

Departing from his prepared remarks, Pope Francis said the boy’s courage reminded him of “what Christ says about the spontaneity and the freedom of children.” “Jesus tells us, ‘If you do not become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of God.’ It is the courage to be close to the Lord, to be open to the Lord, to not be afraid of the Lord. I thank this child for giving this lesson to all of us.”

“There is no freedom without love,” he said. “The selfish freedom of doing what I want is not freedom because it comes back to yourself, it isn’t fruitful.”

The freedom St. Paul writes about does not imply “a libertine way of living, according to the flesh or following instinct, individual desires or one’s own selfish impulses,” he said. Rather, the apostle speaks of a freedom that is “fully expressed in love.”

“It is the love that shines out in gratuitous service, modeled on that of Jesus, who washes the feet of His disciples and says, ‘I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you;’ to serve one another.”

St. Paul also warns about viewing freedom as “doing what you want and what you like” which only leads to the realization “that we are left with a great emptiness inside and that we have used badly the treasure of our freedom.”

Christians need to “rediscover the communitarian, not individualistic, dimension of freedom,” especially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

“The pandemic has taught us that we need each other, but it is not enough to know this,” he said. “We need to choose it in a tangible way every day. Let us say and believe that others are not an obstacle to my freedom, but rather the possibility to fully realize it because our freedom is born from God’s love and grows in charity.”

On Oct. 23, the Church celebrates the life of St. John of Capistrano, a Franciscan priest whose life included a political career, extensive missionary journeys, efforts to reunite separated Eastern Christians with Rome and a historically important turn at military leadership.

Invoked as a patron of military chaplains, St. John of Capistrano was praised by St. John Paul II in a 2002 general audience for his “glorious evangelical witness,” as a priest who “gave himself with great generosity for the salvation of souls.”

Born in Italy during 1385, John lost his father – a French or possibly German knight who had settled in Capistrano – at a young age. John’s mother took care to have him educated, and after learning Latin he went to study both civil law and Church law in Perugia. An outstanding student, he soon became a prominent public figure and was appointed governor of the city at age 26.

John showed high standards of integrity in his civic career, and in 1416 he labored to end a war that had erupted between Perugia and the prominent House of Malatesta. But when the nobles had John imprisoned, he began to question his life’s direction. Encountering St. Francis of Assisi in a dream, he resolved to embrace poverty, chastity and obedience with the Franciscans.

Abandoning his possessions and social status, John joined the religious order in October 1416. He found a mentor in St. Bernardine of Siena, known for his bold preaching and his method of prayer focused on the invocation of the name of Jesus. Taking after his teacher in these respects, John began preaching as a deacon in 1420, and was ordained a priest in 1425.

John successfully defended his mentor from a charge of heresy made against his way of devotion, though he found less success in his efforts to resolve internal controversy among the followers of St. Francis. A succession of popes entrusted important matters to John, including the effort to reunite Eastern and Western Christendom at the Ecumenical Council of Florence.

Drawing immense crowds in his missionary travels throughout Italy, John also found success as a preacher in Central Europe, where he opposed the Hussites’ error regarding the nature and administration of the Eucharist. After Constantinople fell to Turkish invaders in 1453, Pope Nicholas V sent John on a mission to rally other European leaders in defense of their lands.

Nicholas’ successor Pope Callixtus III was even more eager to see the Christian world defend itself against the invading forces. When the Sultan Mehmet II sought to extend his territorial gains into Serbia and Hungary, John joined the celebrated general Janos Hunyadi in his defense of Belgrade. The priest personally led a section “St. John of Capistrano” by Nicola Grassi, on display at San Francesco della Vigna Church in of the army in its historic victory on Aug. 6, 1456.

Venice, Italy.

Neither John nor the general, however, would survive long past the battle.

Weakened by the campaign against the Turks, Hunyadi extraordinary life came to an end after a painful illness, on Oct. 23, became sick and died soon after the victory at Belgrade. John 1456. St. John of Capistrano was canonized in 1724. survived to preach Janos Hunyadi’s funeral sermon; but his own — Catholic News Agency

Daily Scripture readings OCT. 24-30

Sunday: Jeremiah 31:7-9, Hebrews 5:1-6, Mark 10:46-52; Monday: Romans 8:12-17, Luke 13:10-17; Tuesday: Romans 8:18-25, Luke 13:18-21; Wednesday: Romans 8:2630, Luke 13:22-30; Thursday (Sts. Simon and Jude): Ephesians 2:19-22, Luke 6:12-16; Friday: Romans 9:1-5, Luke 14:1-6; Saturday: Romans 11:1-2a, 11-12, 25-29, Luke 14:1, 7-11

OCT. 31-NOV. 6

Sunday: Deuteronomy 6:2-6, Hebrews 7:23-28, Mark 12:28b-34; Monday (All Saints): Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12a; Tuesday (All Souls’ Day): Wisdom 3:1-9, Romans 5:5-11, John 6:3740; Wednesday (St. Martin de Porres): Romans 13:8-10, Luke 14:25-33; Thursday (St. Charles Borromeo): Romans 14:7-12, Luke 15:1-10; Friday: Romans 15:14-21, Luke 16:1-8; Saturday: Romans 16:3-9, 16, 22-27, Luke 16:9-15

NOV. 7-13

Sunday: 1 Kings 17:10-16, Hebrews 9:2428, Mark 12:38-44; Monday: Wisdom 1:1-7, Luke 17:1-6; Tuesday (The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica): Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12, 1 Corinthians 3:9c-11, 16-17, John 2:13-22; Wednesday (St. Leo the Great): Wisdom 6:1-11, Luke 17:11-19; Thursday (St. Martin of Tours): Wisdom 7:22b-8:1, Luke 17:20-25; Friday (St. Josaphat): Wisdom 13:1-9, Luke 17:26-37; Saturday (St. Frances Xavier Cabrini): Wisdom 18:14-16, 19:6-9, Luke 18:1-8;

Our parishes

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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Children and parishioners helped Bishop Peter Jugis, pastor Father Paul Gary, and Mint Hill Mayor Brad Simmons break ground on the new church for St. Luke Parish. A sketch of the new church is pictured below.

PHOTOS BY PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Mint Hill parishioners celebrate ‘Spirit of St. Luke’ at groundbreaking PATRICIA GUILFOYLE AND SUEANN HOWELL CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

MINT HILL — Children of St. Luke Parish joined Bishop Peter Jugis and their pastor Father Paul Gary in recently breaking ground for the growing community’s new 21,000-square-foot church.

The rain cleared just in time for the afternoon ceremony on Oct. 9 at the church’s new location on Fairview Road.

After Scripture readings and prayers, Bishop Jugis blessed the site with holy water, then he and Father Gary led the large crowd of excited parishioners over to a pile of dirt and waiting shovels and hard hats. It didn’t take long for the dirt to fly, as the kids took turns enthusiastically tossing shovelfuls.

“The future is theirs,” Father Gary said. It was his idea to purchase the smaller shovels and make the children an important part of the groundbreaking.

“The children had a lot of fun. They were sharing their shovels with the other children who were there watching. They had smiles on their faces; it was great to see. Their smiles were priceless.”

Father Gary offered prayers for God’s blessings upon everyone at the groundbreaking, the entire parish family and the community of Mint Hill.

Local dignitaries including Mint Hill Mayor Brad Simmons, town commissioners, and police and fire department representatives were on hand for the ceremony.

Simmons congratulated the parish

community for reaching this milestone. “On behalf of the Town of Mint Hill and our board of commissioners … I want to thank you for allowing us to participate in your groundbreaking ceremony today,” he said.

“Many of us have been looking forward to this almost as long as you have, I think,” he said, recalling that he was serving on the town’s planning board when plans for the church got under way, from purchasing the land along Fairview Road to preparing the site for construction.

The groundbreaking couldn’t come at a more opportune time.

The faith community got its start in 1987, when Catholics in the area began gathering for Mass in a local movie theater and later a storefront. Three decades later, Mint Hill is booming – and so is St. Luke Parish, expanding from 300 families at the start to more than 1,500 families today.

Dedicated in 1995, the current St. Luke Church was designed to be a generalpurpose facility for 400 people – more than enough for the parish in its early years.

But the multipurpose building no longer meets their growing needs, and its present location on Lawyers Road offers no usable land for expansion.

So in 2019, the parish embarked on a $2.7 million capital campaign to help fund the construction of a new church on 30 acres close to its current location. Since

then an open-air pavilion, sport field and rectory have been built on the site – and the building of the new church has been greatly anticipated.

The new church will initially seat 750 people, with the capability of being expanded to seat 1,273 people.

Total cost for the acreage, rectory and church construction projects is $13.3 million. To date, $3.2 million has been paid, with $3.8 million in pledges and cash on hand, diocesan officials reported. The parish plans to sell its current property and conduct future capital campaigns as needed to cover the full cost of developing the new campus and church building.

Construction of the new church is projected to cost $8.3 million and is anticipated to be finished in early 2023.

ALR Architecture PC is the architect, and Southside Constructors Inc. is the general contractor.

Cornerstone Campaign chair Jim Strauss

said he is grateful for the generosity of so many who have made this milestone possible. “St. Luke Parish has been on a 34year adventure, starting from attendance at the theater to now a beautiful dream coming true,” he said.

“There has always been a ‘Spirit of St. Luke’ that transcends the physical place of worship. This parish thrives together. We are looking for the next thing to do to bring Christ to others.”

During the blessing on Oct. 9, Bishop Jugis noted that the church – a physical structure of wood, stone and steel – will provide a fitting home for the growing St. Luke community – the “living stones” of the Church in the Mint Hill community – to praise and worship the Lord.

“With His help, with His grace and with His blessing, in a few months or in a year we will all be back here to celebrate the dedication of the new church,” he said.

— Lisa Geraci contributed.

UPcoming events 4

catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following upcoming events: OCT. 27 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation Our Lady of the Assumption Church, Charlotte

OCT. 31 – 2:30 P.M. Heritage Society Mass and Reception St. Patrick Cathedral, Charlotte

NOV. 3 – 10 A.M. Diocesan Diaconate Meeting Pastoral Center, Charlotte

OCT. 29 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Mary Help of Christians Church, Shelby

NOV. 2 – 12:10 P.M. All Souls’ Day Mass St. Patrick Cathedral, Charlotte

NOV. 5 – 6 P.M. Sacrament of Confirmation St. Vincent de Paul Church, Charlotte

Diocesan calendar of events October 22, 2021

CONFERENCES & TALKS

ENTERTAINMENT

Volume 31 • NUMBER 2

‘GROWTH AND EMPOWERING’ PROGRAM: 7-8:30 p.m. the last Monday of the month until March 28, St. Mark Church’s Kerin Center, 14740 Stumptown Road, Huntersville. This seven-week program for women is presented by the Healed and Restored Ministry. Through prayer, guided exercises, testimony and professional programming, women will experience the true feminine genius as God intended for each of His beloved daughters. For details, visit www.healedandrestored. org and click on “Growth and Empowering Walk” to fill out an interest form, or contact Elza Spaedy at info@ healedandrestored.org.

‘OH BOY! THE OBOE!’: 8 p.m. Monday, Oct. 25, Belmont Abbey Basilica, 100 Belmont-Mt Holly Road, Belmont. In person or free via livestream. The second concert in the “Arts at the Abbey” series, this performance features a variety of works of Bach, Handel and Telemann with Sung Lee on baroque oboe, oboe d’amore and recorder. Vocal works include sacred and secular compositions. Trios are a combination of delights combining recorders, and oboe with flute or recorder. Gail Ann Schroeder of Asheville provides support on the viola gamba. Masks are required for in-person attendees. The concert will be livestreamed on the college’s website at www.belmontabbeycollege. edu/artslive.

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SOVIET GULAG SURVIVOR SPEAKS: Professor Myroslav Marynovych, vice rector of Ukrainian Catholic University, will talk about his experiences as a survivor of the Soviet Gulag after Divine Liturgy (Mass) at 11 a.m. Sunday, Oct. 24.

Hosted by St. Basil the Great Eastern Catholic Church, which meets in Aquinas Hall at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 1400 Suther Road, Charlotte. Catholics of any rite are welcome to attend the Mass (which fulfills the Sunday obligation) and learn more about the Eastern Catholic Church.

‘GIVEN A CHOICE, WHY SHOULD I CONSISTENTLY ATTEND THE TRADITIONAL LATIN MASS?’: 7 p.m. lecture presented by scholar, author and composer Dr. Peter Kwasniewski, Saturday, Nov. 6, St. Thomas Aquinas Church’s Aquinas Hall, 1400 Suther Road, Charlotte.

RSVP appreciated for headcount purposes. Sponsored by the Charlotte Latin Mass Community. To RSVP or for more details, visit charlottelatinmass.org or email info@ charlottelatinmass.org.

CATHOLIC MEDICAL ETHICS ON SEXUALITY AND FERTILITY: Learn about sexuality and fertility in medicine from a Catholic viewpoint, in the upcoming “Converging Roads” set for Saturday, April 2, 2022, at St. Patrick Cathedral, Charlotte. Presenters include: Father Matthew Kauth, “Understanding the Church’s Teaching on Sexuality and Fertility: The ‘Why’ Behind the ‘No’”; Dr. Marguerite Duane, MHA, FAAP, ‘The Menstrual Cycle as a Vital Sign”; Father Philip G. Bochanski, “Gender Identity Discordance: Supporting Patients and Families”; Dr. Teresa Farnan, “The Gift of the Human Person: A Christian Anthropology for Understanding Gender and Sexuality”; and more.

Continuing education credits offered for health care professionals. Presented by the St. John Paul II Foundation, the Diocese of Charlotte and Belmont Abbey College. For details, go online to www.forlifeandfamily.org/convergingroads.

DONATIONS ‘SOCK-TOBER’: Join the Knights of Columbus for the Fourth Annual Our Lady of Lourdes “Sock-tober” event, every weekend in October at Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Monroe. They will be collecting men’s, women’s and children’s socks for local charities in the Monroe area.

There will be a marked donation box in the church’s narthex. Bring in new packages of athletic socks, work socks, kids, women’s and men’s socks of various sizes.

Socks are one of the most needed, yet least donated, items to local homeless shelters.

ESPAÑOL VIGILIA DE LOS DOS CORAZONES: Primer viernes y sábado del mes, en la Catedral San Patricio, 1621 Dilworth Road East, Charlotte. Únase cada primer viernes del mes a una vigilia nocturna para honrar los Corazones de Jesús y María, orar por nuestras familias, ofrecer penitencia por nuestros pecados y pedir por la conversión de nuestra nación. Para inscribirse a una hora de Adoración, visite www.ProLifeCharlotte.org/ dos-corazones.

RACHEL’S VINEYARD: Nov. 5-7 ¿Está usted o un ser querido buscando curarse de los efectos de un aborto pasado? Los retiros de fin de semana de Rachel’s Vineyard son ofrecidos por Caridades Católicas para hombres y mujeres de la diócesis. Para más detalles: Jessica Grabowski al 910-585-2460 o jrgrabowski@ charlottediocese.org, o Lorena Hayes al 828-585-0483.

PRAYER SERVICES & GROUPS WNC REGIONAL RESPECT LIFE MASS: Noon on Saturday, Nov. 13, Immaculate Conception Church, 208 7th Ave. West, Hendersonville. Mass will be offered by Father Christian Cook, pastor, followed by recitation of the rosary. All are welcome. Event is sponsored by the Carolina Pro-Life Action Network (C-PLAN) of Western NC, a coalition of area Catholic pro-life leaders. For details, contact Jack Bride at ashevilleprolifecatholics@gmail. com.

MARY’S SONS KNEELERS: Parishioners around the Diocese of Charlotte have the opportunity to pray for our two transitional deacons, Deacon Darren Balkey and Deacon Aaron Huber, on the special Mary’s Sons kneelers that the deacons will receive when they are ordained on June 18, 2022. For more information about the Mary’s Sons kneelers, go online to www.maryssons.org. Here is the schedule for the kneelers as they are moved to parishes around the diocese this fall: OCT. 18-24: St. Andrew the Apostle Church, Mars Hill, and Sacred Heart Mission, Burnsville OCT. 25-NOV. 1: St. Eugene Church, Asheville NOV. 1-8: St. Lawrence Basilica, Asheville NOV. 8-15: St. Barnabas Church, Arden

NOV. 15-22: Sacred Heart Church, Brevard NOV. 22-29: St. Margaret Mary Church, Swannanoa 33-DAY CONSECRATION TO ST. JOSEPH: Consider making a consecration to St. Joseph using “Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father” by Father Donald Calloway, MIC. Starting the 33-day series of prayers on Wednesday, Nov. 24, would conclude on Sunday, Dec. 26, the feast of the Holy Family. Learn more at www.yearofstjoseph.org.

VIGIL OF THE TWO HEARTS: First Fridays and first Saturdays, St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Road East, Charlotte.The next vigil will be Nov. 5-6. Friday celebrant will be Father Michael Carlson. An overnight vigil is offered twice each month to honor the Hearts of Jesus and Mary and to offer penance and pray for the conversion of our nation. To sign up for Eucharistic Adoration times, go to www.prolifecharlotte.org/twohearts.

SAFE ENVIRONMENT TRAINING PROTECTING CHILDREN: “Protecting God’s Children” (“Protegiendo a los Niños de Dios”) workshops educate parish volunteers to recognize and prevent child sexual abuse. For details, contact your parish office. To register for online training, go to www.virtus.org. Upcoming workshops: CHARLOTTE: 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 23, Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 6212 Tuckaseegee Road (Spanish) CONCORD: 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 26, St. James Church, 139 Manor Avenue (Geiger Hall) THOMASVILLE: 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 23, Our Lady of the Highways Church, 943 Ball Park Road (English and Spanish) SUPPORT GROUPS RACHEL’S VINEYARD: Nov. 5-7 (Spanish). Are you or a loved one seeking healing from the effects of a past abortion? Rachel’s Vineyard weekend retreats are offered by Catholic Charities for men and women in the diocese. For details: Jessica Grabowski at 910-585-2460 or jrgrabowski@charlottediocese.org, or Lorena Hayes at 828-585-0483.

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.

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com

OUR PARISHESI

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Rosaries and Masses Honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary during the Month of the Rosary A bilingual Mass and Consecration to Jesus through Mary was offered Oct. 13 at St. Mark Church in Huntersville. Father John Putnam, pastor, led 165 people through the consecration prayer in both English and Spanish. All who attended also received a blessed Miraculous Medal and had the opportunity to enroll in the Brown Scapular. The parish-wide consecration got under way in August, with the 33-day preparation starting Sept. 4. The effort was led for a third year by parishioner Caroly Cashman. “All of us are called to serve one way or another,” Cashman said. “As Catholics, we are called to evangelize, to help save souls. For many of us, this is not an easy task. It’s much easier to help others grow closer to Mary who then takes charge and touches the hearts of those who turn their lives over to her love and care. Mary will walk with us throughout our lives. When we reach out to her for help, she will always guide our steps on the path that leads to Jesus.”

PHOTO PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER

Holy Cross parishioners took part in a “Rosary Rally” Oct. 16 in Kernersville.

PAUL DOIZÉ | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

A special Mass commemorating the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary was offered at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte Oct. 7. The Mass was celebrated by St. Joseph College Seminary rector Father Matthew Kauth. He was assisted by a visiting priest, Father Michael Hendershott of the Diocese of Knoxville, and Father Matthew Buettner, spiritual director of St. Joseph College Seminary. Gregorian chant was provided by the St. Thomas Aquinas schola, led by the parish’s music director Tom Savoy. The day marked the 450th anniversary of the Battle of Lepanto, where on Oct. 7, 1571, the Holy League fleet, supported by St. Pius V and led

by Don Juan of Austria, achieved a miraculous naval victory over the Turks after the pope called on Catholics across Europe to pray the rosary. Soon after the victory, the pope established the feast day to commemorate Our Lady’s assistance and is now known as the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

MIKE FITZGERALD | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Parishioners of Immaculate Conception Church in Forest City participated in the sixth annual Coast to Coast National Rosary Rally in support of the sanctity of life, held Oct. 10. They joined Knights of Columbus and Catholic congregations across the nation by praying the rosary at the Come Follow Me Crucifix, in front of the church.

GIULIANA POLINARI RILEY | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

PHOTOS PROVIDED BY AMY BURGER

Vince Famularo (pictured at right) spent over a month in the hospital severely ill with COVID-19 and was not expected to live. He and others at St. Mark Parish believe intercessory prayers to Father Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, helped in his sudden recovery. Famularo, 72, has been a Knight for nearly four decades and is in his second term as Grand Knight at Council 12654 in Huntersville.

(Below) Famularo is pictured distributing Holy Communion at Mass.

A miracle? He wasn’t expected to live through the night, but then Knights prayed to their founder KRIS JOHNSON CORRESPONDENT

HUNTERSVILLE — Nature called Vince Famularo in the wee hours of a January morning this year, but instead of reaching the bathroom, he found himself on the floor of his bedroom, unable to move.

Famularo, 72, has been a Knights of Columbus member for nearly four decades. He is in his second term as Grand Knight at Council 12654 in Huntersville.

The ensuing series of events that morning included a 911 call by his wife Joan, a harrowing trip to Novant Health Huntersville Medical Center at 1:30 a.m., and a diagnosis of COVID-19. Famularo’s condition quickly deteriorated in a matter of days, and the medical staff instructed family members to be ready for the worst.

“The doctor didn’t think I’d make it through the night and that they should be prepared for my passing,” he said.

Fellow Knights then turned in prayer to Father Michael McGivney, a powerful intercessor and founder of the Knights of Columbus. It’s been nearly a year since McGivney’s beatification. Pope Francis previously approved a decree recognizing a miracle when a terminally ill child recovered after his family asked for McGivney’s intercession. There was no medical basis for the recovery. One more miracle needs to be attributed to McGivney before he can be canonized.

The well-attended prayer vigil for Famularo took place Jan. 16 at St. Mark

Church in Huntersville. Prayers included the rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet and the prayer of Father McGivney. Shortly after that, something incredible happened.

“Literally, the next day I started making a recovery without any change in medicine or anything,” Famularo said. “It’s really just an amazing story about the power of prayer. I can’t believe how many people in the parish were praying for me, and some people that didn’t even know me personally. To this day, I’m still thanking people for their prayers.”

The question, of course, had to be asked. Did Famularo think this was a miracle?

“I was too humble to say those words at first, but now that I’ve had time to reflect, it was definitely a miracle MIRACLE, SEE PAGE 24

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 OUR PARISHES

Second collection for seminarian education to be taken up Nov. 6-7 SUEANN HOWELL SENIOR REPORTER

CHARLOTTE — Every Catholic household across the Diocese of Charlotte is being asked to consider a donation to help fund the education of our future priests by giving to the seminarian education second collection taken up in all parishes Nov. 6-7.

“Tremendous growth has taken place within our diocese over the last decade.

Growth of this nature is paralleled by a need for priests to pastor this increasing number of Catholics,” Bishop Peter Jugis said in an October letter to parishioners urging them to support the collection.

The number of seminarians has almost tripled in the past six years – from 16 seminarians to 45. There are 20 men in major seminary and 24 men at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly, with one seminarian taking a pastoral year.

“In our diocese, we are deeply blessed with 45 dedicated and faith-filled seminarians who are discerning a vocation to the priesthood. We are both blessed and challenged. As you know, our challenge is to provide the funding needed to educate, nurture and form our

future priests,” the bishop noted.

The need for more priests to serve the growing Catholic population has never been greater. There are currently about 77,000 registered households in the diocese, which spans the 46 counties of western North Carolina. By the year 2025, it is estimated that the number of registered households will climb to 86,800 – a population increase of approximately 13 percent.

In addition to considering a gift to support all diocesan seminarians, Bishop Jugis asks the faithful to pray for each of the men by name. The names of the seminarians are listed in the brochure sent to all households with the letter.

“These men desire to commit their lives to Christ and to His Church, and in a very real way, your prayers strengthen them in their commitment,” he said.

Support seminarian education To make a gift to support seminarian education, drop off or mail your contribution to your parish or make a secure gift online.

If making an online gift, consult your parish’s website to see if they offer online giving or go online to www.charlottediocese.org/donate, then click on “Seminarian Education.”

SEMINARIAN SPOTLIGHT: Christopher Angermeyer CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte is blessed with 45 men currently enrolled in study and formation for the priesthood: 24 men at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly, 20 enrolled at major seminaries, and one taking a pastoral year.

Christopher Angermeyer, a parishioner of St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte, is among those studying at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati.

Angermeyer To help the faithful of the diocese come to know him and how his call to discern the priesthood has unfolded, the Catholic News Herald recently asked Angermeyer about his discernment process: CNH: When did you first hear the call to a vocation to the priesthood?

Angermeyer: I truly began discerning the priesthood in high school. I was in Eucharistic Adoration and felt that I should discern the will of Our Lord. I began to think about what Our Lord desired. I began to discern a possible vocation to the priesthood.

CNH: Who did you first talk to about your vocation?

Angermeyer: I talked with Monsignor Patrick Winslow, who was at that time the pastor at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, about a possible vocation to the priesthood and asked for guidance on how to discern.

CNH: How and when did you reach out to the Vocations Office at the diocese?

Angermeyer: I reached out to Father Christopher Gober asking for an application in early 2017.

CNH: When did you enter seminary for the Diocese of Charlotte?

Angermeyer: I was accepted to the seminary in 2017.

CNH: Tell us about the types of things you have been doing as part of your discernment process.

Angermeyer: The most significant thing I have been doing is praying to Our Lord and asking Him to lead me where He desires.

My daily Holy Hour is important for me to grow in love with Our Lord. I also have grown in loving Our Lady because she is vital to a vocation to the priesthood.

CNH: What advice do you have for a man discerning a call to the priesthood?

Angermeyer: Pray to Our Lady for guidance on entering the seminary. Our Lady will not direct you in the wrong. Pray to her daily.

CNH: Looking back on your discernment journey to this point, what do you think has helped you the most to discern God’s will for your vocation to the priesthood?

Angermeyer: The time spent in front of Our Lord. Getting the time to know Our Lord is critical to the life of a seminarian because, God willing, I will be giving the Blessed Sacrament to parishioners (someday). I will be representing the Light of Christ. I want to do that very well. The only way to do it well is praying in front of the Blessed Sacrament.

— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

CNH: What type of feedback or advice did you get from him?

Angermeyer: He told me the importance of prayer and how prayer will guide me toward knowing God’s will.

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CNH: How did you go about discerning where you felt called to explore your possible vocation?

Angermeyer: I talked to the priests in my parish and watched what they would do during Mass. Most importantly, I prayed in front of Our Blessed Lord and asked Him that I follow His will.

Your DSA contributions at work Seminarian education is funded in part by the annual Diocesan Support Appeal. Learn more about the DSA and how to donate online at www.charlottediocese.org/dsa.

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October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com

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Sister Pilar Dalmau, former diocesan Hispanic Ministry director, passes away

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief

CESAR HURTADO REPORTER

Eagle Scout builds outdoor Stations of the Cross at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly MOUNT HOLLY — Turner Hobbs, a Life Scout with BSA Troop 8 at St. Matthew Church in south Charlotte, designed and constructed the first outdoor Stations of the Cross on the grounds of St. Joseph College Seminary as his Eagle Scout project. Hobbs is active in his Catholic faith and attended the Quo Vadis Days summer camp at the college seminary last summer. He is the son of Bill and Lisa Hobbs. Bill Hobbs says his son loved constructing the outdoor Stations of the Cross because it combined his faith journey with his scouting interests.

It offered him an opportunity to lead his fellow scouts to leave a legacy at the campus, while also being a unique Eagle Scout project. The Boy Scouts were assisted by Deacon Timothy Mueller, the college seminary’s facilities manager, who helped prepare the lumber. Troop members worked on four separate days to complete the project, which came to fruition Oct. 9.

— SueAnn Howell, senior reporter

Belmont Benedictine studying at St. Vincent Seminary LATROBE, Pa. — Benedictine Brother James Raber, a seminarian from Belmont Abbey, is studying second theology at St. Vincent Seminary this academic year. Pictured are (from left): Benedictine Father Patrick Cronauer, academic dean; Benedictine Father Boniface Hicks, director of spiritual formation; Benedictine Father Edward Mazich, rector; Brother James; Benedictine Father John Mary Tompkins, vice rector; Dr. Lawrence Sutton, director of pre-theologian formation; and Benedictine Father Cyprian Constantine, director of liturgical formation.

Brother James is the son of Edward B. and Sue M. Raber of Fleming Island, Fla. He is a 2002 graduate of Gahanna Lincoln High School in Gahanna, Ohio. He earned a Bachelor of Science in marine transportation operations from Maine Maritime Academy in Castine, Maine, in 2006. He has done post-graduate studies at Belmont Abbey College, and he has studied at St. Meinard Seminary and School of Theology in Indiana.

— Kim Metzgar

MEADOWBROOK, Pa. — Sister Pilar Dalmau, director of the Diocese of Charlotte’s Hispanic Ministry during its early years from 1988 to 1996, died Sept. 27, 2021, of complications from COVID-19 at Holy Redeemer Saint Joseph Manor Hospital in Meadowbrook, Pa. Sister Sagrario Nunez, who wrote a short reflection that was read during the funeral service on Oct. 9, 2021, said that “while remembering Pilar only the words of Ecclesiastes 3 came to mind: ‘There is an appointed time for everything, and a time for every Dalmau affair under the heavens. A time to give birth, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to uproot the plant.’”

Sister Pilar was born in France in 1928 and raised in Havana, Cuba, until 1961, when she fled the country because of the Communist regime.

She came to the United States very young and enthusiastic, full of ideas and potential. Before her arrival in Philadelphia, in 1961, she had already served as a teacher in secondary schools in Cuba and Panama. Teaching was one of her gifts and passions. She taught at the Ancilla Domini Academy in Germantown, Pa.; Bishop McDevitt Diocesan High School and Ancillae-Assumpta Academy in Wyncote, Pa.; and Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Baltimore. For a few years she served on the staff of the Santa Rafaela Center and also served as provincial secretary.

Her other great passion was accompanying and preparing the Hispanic community to be the next generation of leaders in the Church. In this ministry, she experienced the greatest joy and, at times, the greatest pain.

At a time when the bishops of the country urged American Catholics to open their hearts to the growing Hispanic community, Sister Pilar suffered the indifference and resistance of some Catholics who felt that the attention to the Hispanic community was pushing them aside.

She began serving in Spanish ministry at San Miguel Parish in Philadelphia. According to Sister Sagrario, “among Pilar’s most notable qualities was her ability to organize and clean, but not just clean, but through sweeping, scrubbing and hosing down, transforming the ugliest and dirtiest into beautiful and clean.” She recalled that, “unable to cope with the disorder on the streets of North Philadelphia, she not only cleaned the street herself, but successfully organized a group of volunteers to accompany her in this endeavor.”

From 1985 to 1988, Sister Pilar became director

Please pray for the following deacons who died during the month of October: John Gallen 10/26/1996 Frank Aversa 10/2/2005 Pe Nhia Cha Lee 10/17/2018

of Hispanic Ministry for the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

Sister Margarita Martin describes her best years in Atlanta: “She was full of devotion and enthusiasm laying the foundation for Hispanic ministry in the Archdiocese of Atlanta, basically starting from scratch. It was her first experience organizing the Hispanic ministry at the diocesan level.”

In 1988 she responded to a call from the Diocese of Charlotte to serve as director of the nascent Hispanic Ministry. She served here until 1996, when, responding to a request from then Bishop Joseph Galante, she moved to Beaumont, Texas, to become its Hispanic Ministry director.

Finally, from 2003 to 2010, Ella Pilar assumed the direction of the School of Religion at Holy Cross Parish in Atlanta.

According to Sister Sagrario, “She wanted to continue the missionary work of St. Paul, to find and train leaders to continue the work, and then to move on. She was tireless, absolutely dedicated and at the same time very faithful to her community and spiritual life. She worked quietly, humbly and efficiently without expecting recognition.”

The words attributed to St. Oscar Romero aptly described Sister Pilar’s mission: “We are workers, not master builders, ministers, not messiahs.”

This truth gave her a greater purpose, a bigger picture in everything she did, a certain healthy detachment and humility. In her many successes and accolades, she knew well who the master builder was. She was available, she was ready to work where she was needed. And, as Santa Rafaela María said, “She was eager to make Christ known and loved.”

In 2010, she retired from active ministry due to declining health.

Father Fidel Melo, the Charlotte diocese’s former vicar of Hispanic Ministry, remembers Sister Pilar as a “tireless missionary” with “great pastoral sense and solidarity to the Hispanic community.”

“She took the leadership of the community when Hispanic Ministry began to flourish,” Father Melo said, highlighting her commitment to promoting vocations “at all levels, including those who came from outside the country, including mine.”

During her early years in the diocese, he recounted, Mass was celebrated in Spanish at St. Patrick Cathedral before the Hispanic Center (now Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Charlotte) was established.

“Sister Pilar strongly supported the permanent diaconate among Hispanics. Proof of this are Deacons Edwin Rodríguez (now deceased), Rafael Torres and Carlos Medina. Also, the apostolic movements, being the first to grow the Cursillo and the Charismatic Renewal,” Father Melo added.

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 OUR PARISHES

PHOTOS VIA FACEBOOK

Charlotte parishioner makes first vows as Franciscan COVINGTON, Ky. — Sister Therese Marie Rusciolelli (Molly), a longtime parishioner of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte, made her first vows in the Franciscan Daughters of Mary at Mass Oct. 2 in the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption.

Her vows were received by newly appointed Bishop John C. Iffert of the Covington diocese. Sister Therese Marie’s vows were the first he has received as bishop of the diocese. Sister Therese Marie took vows of chastity, poverty, obedience and an additional vow to uphold the dignity of all human life from natural conception to natural death. The Daughters of Mary live out their vocation through apostolates of daily prayer for priests and spiritual and corporal works of mercy at the Rose Garden Home Mission, an outreach center that assists the underserved in the Covington community. She is the daughter of Bill and Debbie Rusciolelli. Her brother, Peter, is a seminarian studying at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Cincinnati, Ohio. Her uncle, Father Christopher Bond, is a priest of the Diocese of Charlotte. Learn more about her order at www.fdofmary.org.

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Foundation of the Diocese of Charlotte

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Honored in the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem CHARLOTTE — Two members of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem received promotions in rank and were recognized during Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral Oct. 10. Sir Richard and Lady Terri Taylor were promoted to the ranks of Knight Commander and Dame Commander, respectively. Bishop Peter Jugis offered the order’s annual “Scroll Mass,” which was concelebrated by Father John Putnam, pastor of St. Mark Church in Huntersville and chaplain of the order’s Charlotte chapter. Also pictured is Lady Valencia Yvonne Camp, lieutenant of the order’s Middle Atlantic Lieutenancy.

The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem was founded by the pope during the Crusades when the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem – built upon the site of Christ’s crucifixion, death and resurrection – came under attack. Today, members of the order still defend and support the Catholic presence in the Holy Land through their financial contributions. There are now approximately 30,000 members in 40 nations worldwide. Members are required to travel regularly on pilgrimage to the Holy Land and the global amount of aid they send to support the work of the Latin Patriarchate and the other Catholic institutions in the Holy Land is more than $10 million annually. Knights and ladies wear capes featuring a thick red “Jerusalem cross” that has four miniature crosses in each corner of the main cross.

Each of the five crosses represents the five wounds of Christ. Learn more about their work at www.holysepulchre.net.

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com

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Charlotte Lay Dominicans celebrate 12th anniversary KATHRYN EVANS CORRESPONDENT

CHARLOTTE — The Charlotte Lay Dominicans celebrated their 12th anniversary in the Diocese of Charlotte Sept. 25 at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte. Father Matthew Codd, pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas, celebrated Mass and presided over the annual Rite of Admission and Promises ceremony.

The Charlotte Lay Dominicans, known as the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Group of the Southern Province of St. Martin de Porres, was formed in 2009, and today has more than 40 members, with new inquirers every year.

Lay Dominicans share in the charism of the Order of Preachers, also known as the Dominican Order, founded in 1216 by St. Dominic de Guzman. For more than 800 years, the Dominicans have been committed to the salvation of souls. The Dominican motto is “To contemplate and to give to others the fruits of our contemplation,” with the overarching striving toward “veritas” (“truth”). As the Order of Preachers, Dominicans are dedicated to sharing God’s truth with others and spreading the fire of Christ’s love throughout the world.

Such powerful and influential saints as St. Catherine of Siena, St. Rose of Lima and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati were all members of the Lay Dominicans, drawn to the charisms of St. Dominic and the fervor to save souls for Christ.

The spirit of St. Dominic and the Dominican Order is still alive and strong today, even as the order celebrated the 800th anniversary of St. Dominic’s death and entrance into the heavenly kingdom last August, as evidenced by the growing numbers of Lay Dominicans within the Charlotte diocese.

After completing their five-year formation, Matthew Dimock Sr., Mark Dorsett and Sylvia Haddar made their Perpetual Promises in the family of St. Dominic. As lifetime members of the Dominican Order, they participate in the apostolic mission of the order through constant prayer, study and preaching according to the state of the laity.

Also during the ceremony, those who completed their first inquiry year advanced to candidate members. This included Suzanne Albertson, Kathryn Evans, Isabel and Steve Tchorzewski, and Francisco Zarate. Members who completed their second year made their Temporary Promises: Mary Clark, John McElravey, Renate Rayner and Jeanne Winkelman. Matthew Bosnick and Carolyn Franks will make their First Temporary Promise on Oct. 30.

Lay Dominicans are distinguished both by their spirituality and by their service to God and neighbor in the Church. They draw their strength from listening to the Word of God, reading sacred scripture, attending daily Mass, daily praying of the rosary, frequent confessions, celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours in union with the entire Dominican family, and study. There are four branches of the Dominican Order: the friars, the cloistered nuns, the sisters and the laity. The four branches are all considered part of the Family of St. Dominic, with St. Dominic himself as spiritual father and guide from heaven. The four pillars of the Dominican Order are prayer, study, community and apostolate.

New inquirers are invited to discern and learn more about the group at a meeting on Saturday, Oct. 30, starting at 8:30 a.m. The group meets monthly at St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly, with Father Matthew Kauth as their spiritual advisor. Father Kauth is also the rector of St. Joseph College Seminary and a member of the Priestly Fraternities of St. Dominic for Diocesan Priests.

If interested, RSVP to charlottelaydominicans@gmail. com. To learn more about the Dominican charism, visit www.

CharlotteLayDominicans.org.

PHOTOS BY SERGIO LOPEZ | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Fiesta Val makes joyful return to Our Lady of Mercy SERGIO LOPEZ CORRESPONDENT

WINSTON-SALEM — After being canceled last year and delayed this year, the Hispanic festival Fiesta Val took place Oct. 17 at Our Lady of Mercy Parish.

The festival was originally scheduled to be held in September to celebrate the patroness of Our Lady of Mercy, but the event was moved to October because of administrative changes in the parish and the ongoing pandemic. Last year the festival was not held at all because of the pandemic, but it returned this year with measures taken to ensure distancing and sanitation.

Organizers and parishioners called this Fiesta Val a joyful success. Folk dances, live music and karaoke enlivened the festival, and volunteers sold foods of different nationalities. Items were raffled off.

Father David McCanless, the church’s pastor, greeted those present. Father Alfonso Gamez, parochial vicar, accompanied the parishioners taking pictures and enjoying the artistic program.

Both children and adults enjoyed the day, which began a little windy but later became pleasant.

David Guzman, coordinator for the Hispanic Ministry of the parish, said in an interview, “The Fiesta Val is celebrated in honor of Our Lady of Mercy, who is our patron saint, and is normally celebrated around Sept. 24, which is her patron saint’s day.”

He said the whole community is invited, and that in past years, the festival has drawn between 1,000 and 2,000 attendees.

“This time we had less people since we are still in pandemic, but thanks to God, everything went very well.”

Carmen Leyva, coordinator of Fiesta Val, said the festival started six years ago. “The objective is to raise funds to help with expenses throughout the year, such as retreats, celebration of Our Lady of Guadalupe, liturgical material, etc.,” she said.

“And the most important thing: to live together as a united community!”

Around 20 people belonging to different ministries in the parish helped organize the event, Leyva said, and the entire community donated 100 percent of all the food, drinks and talents that made it festive. “There are two factors that are the heart and soul of the festival: food and entertainment.”

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 OUR PARISHES

PHOTOS PROVIDED

Windows to the soul Stained-glass windows installed at Maryfield Chapel SISTER LUCY HENNESSY, SMG SPECIAL TO THE CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

HIGH POINT — Since the day before Thanksgiving last year, light has flowed into Maryfield Chapel through four stained-glass windows that depict images of faith and bring inspiration to those who pray there. Now the eight remaining windows also bring colorful reverence to the worship space.

The original idea of having stained-glass windows in the main chapel was the inspiration of Mary and Peter Mahler, residents at Pennybyrn, a continuing care retirement community run by the Sisters of the Poor Servants of the Mother of God. Early in January 2020, as the Mahlers paid a visit to the Adoration Chapel, where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved, they were struck by the beautiful stainedglass windows that surrounded the chapel walls and the tabernacle. As they spent time in prayer, they truly felt the windows helped raise their minds to heavenly things.

Upon leaving the Adoration Chapel, they entered the main chapel and sensed that its windows, which were adorned with hanging net curtains, failed to inspire. They felt compelled to do something about it, so they contacted the sisters.

After careful deliberation, the sisters agreed that stained-glass windows would lift the chapel to a higher sense of reverence, and they developed a plan for the first four stained-glass windows.

The first image that was chosen was a depiction of Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth. Since the Sisters have a strong devotion to Mary, the choice of the image of Mary as Queen of Heaven and Earth seemed appropriate. This choice also pleased Mary Mahler, who wanted Mary to be honored in the chapel. This window is the first on the left as a visitor enters the chapel.

Just past it, the second stained-glass window beautifully depicts the Trinity or Triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. As the magnificence of this window creeps into your heart, it inspires reverence and helps the viewer look into the heavens beyond.

A third window, on the right side of the chapel, shows a Celtic Cross. The Celtic Cross is a symbol that combines a cross with a ring surrounding the intersection of the four arms right in the center. Vivid, golden yellow glass beautifully illuminates this circle or halo with a brilliant glow. St. Patrick used this symbol to teach Christ to the people of Ireland. He taught them that instead of worshiping the sun, they were to worship Christ, the Son of God and the God of all things. A shamrock rests at the upper part of the window, with a matching shamrock at the lower part. The cross is enveloped with chips of glass of all shapes and sizes, some of which are diagonal, square or diamond shaped. On a sunny day, the variety of shapes and sizes of glass gives the image a flame-like appearance.

The window below the Celtic Cross depicts the Supper at Emmaus, a well-known gospel scene. This window captures perfectly the astonishment of the two disciples as they recognized Christ in the breaking of the bread.

Seeing this window when the evening light comes through, the viewer is drawn into the magnificence of this beautiful story from Luke 24:13-35.

Soon after the four stained-glass windows made possible by the Mahlers were installed, two more residents came forward and expressed interest in funding the cost of the remaining eight windows in the chapel. They were not interested in having images on these windows. Their proposal was to have the same background found in the new stained-glass windows installed on all of the remaining windows.

By the end of June, all the windows were completed and installed. What a difference these stained-glass windows now make in beautifying the main chapel.

Before Mass on July 10, Father Jim Solari blessed the windows.

Pope Benedict XVI once said, “Images of beauty, in which the mystery of the invisible God becomes visible, are an essential part of Christian worship.”

The stained-glass windows that now adorn Maryfield Chapel truly reflect images of beauty and raise the mind to God. Furthermore, they enhance the worship services held in the chapel, especially the celebration of the Eucharist.

SISTER LUCY HENNESSY, SMG, is board chairman and CEO of Pennybyrn, a continuing care retirement community in High Point.

Mix

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest movie reviews: catholicnewsherald.com

In theaters

On TV n Friday, Oct. 22, 4:30 p.m. (EWTN) “John Paul II: Be Not Afraid.” An animated biography on the early life of St. John Paul II up to his election as pope. n Saturday, Oct. 23, 2 p.m. (EWTN) “In the Footsteps of John Paul the Great.” Follow in the footsteps of John Paul II on a walking pilgrimage through his childhood, youth and priesthood, with interviews, breath-taking scenery and somber monuments to the bravery and devotion for which he stood.

n Sunday, Oct. 24, 3:45 p.m. (EWTN) “November Song.” After witnessing an old woman pray by a gravestone, a young girl is challenged of her careless ignorance of faith, life and death.

As Agent 007 experiences romantic complications in his relationship with his latest girlfriend (Lea Seydoux), he also has to contend with the schemes of two villains (Rami Malek and Christoph Waltz), a rift between the British and American intelligence authorities, a dark secret being harbored by his boss (Ralph Fiennes) and competition from a younger operative (Lashana Lynch). While the once notoriously promiscuous protagonist now yearns for a stable home life, a couple of situations in which he exacts revenge on his enemies, together with the dramatically powerful but morally problematic conclusion of director Cary Joji Fukunaga’s world-traversing saga, muddy the ethical waters. So this long, sprawling, action-packed and unapologetically escapist fantasy demands careful discernment on the part of those viewers inclined to look below its glossy surface. Mature themes, including vengeance, much stylized violence, brief gory images, at least one instance each of rough and crude language.

CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13

‘Mass’ Understated, strikingly realistic drama exploring the emotional impact of a school

shooting on those left behind. In his feature debut, writer-director Fran Kranz adroitly depicts the intense encounter between the parents of the perpetrator (Reed Birney and Ann Dowd) and those of one of his victims (Jason Isaacs and Martha Plimpton). Kranz’s strategy of feeding the audience information in little bits and bites pays off as viewers are made to feel like fly-on-the-wall witnesses to the naturalistic ebb and flow of conversation as well as the interior ups-and-downs evoked by the gathering. Beyond its setting on the premises of a small-town Episcopal church, the film does not explicitly place the sufferings of its principals within a religious context. Yet, simply by his choice of a title, Kranz seems to imply that God is present with the protagonists as they experience and express, on the one hand, their confusion and anguish and, on the other, their openness, empathy and willingness to forgive.

Mature themes, a single crude term.

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

Other movies: n ‘The Addams Family 2’: CNS: A-II (adults); MPAA: PG n ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: PG-13 n ‘The Many Saints of Newark’: CNS: A-III (adults); MPAA: R

“Get your ducks in a row!”

Paul of the Cross.” An EWTN original docudrama depicts the holy life of St. Paul of the Cross, who overcame a perilous childhood to become the founder of a religious order devoted to the Passion of Jesus. n Tuesday, Oct. 26, 6:30 p.m. (EWTN) “Father Michael McGivney: An American Blessed.” From humble beginnings as the son of Irish immigrants to his founding of the Knights of Columbus, Father McGivney’s life was an inspiring example of fraternal charity, evangelization and empowerment of the laity.

n Sunday, Oct. 24, 6 a.m. (EWTN) “Angelus with Pope Francis.” Pope Francis leads the world in the recitation of the Angelus, live from Rome.

‘No Time to Die’

n Friday, Oct. 29, 11:30 a.m. (EWTN) “Natural Family Planning: Embracing the Marital Gift.”

Dr. Janet Smith joins, exploring contrasts between contraception, sterilization, artificial reproductive technologies (ART), and NFP. n Saturday, Oct. 30, 2 p.m. (EWTN) “John Paul II in America: Uniting a Continent.”

Rare footage and interviews reveal the transcontinental influence St. John Paul II’s papacy had within the Americas, and how it played a role in the fall of multiple dictatorships. n Sunday, Oct. 31, 10 p.m. (EWTN) “Saint Teresa of the Andes.” A documentary on the life and mission of Juanita Fernández Solar, who became the first Chilean saint: St. Teresa of the Andes.

n Sunday, Oct. 24, 10 p.m. (EWTN) “Saint

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iiiOctober 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com

FROM TH

(Above) Young parishioners warily eye the roast pig – apple in his mouth – featured on the buffet table.

(Right) Parish archivist Maureen Miller worked for months to compile historical information and artifacts dating from the parish’s founding in 1936, including old photographs and, shown behind her, the original blueprint drawn up by the famed church architect Benedictine Father Michael McInerney.

PHOTOS BY PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

A celebration of gratitude and love Swannanoa parish marks 85th anniversary PATRICIA L. GUILFOYLE EDITOR

SWANNANOA — Parishioners of St. Margaret Mary Church celebrated their parish’s 85th anniversary with a special liturgy, festivities and more Oct. 16.

The Saturday afternoon celebration began with a Missa Cantata featuring the Proper of the Mass for the feast of St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, the parish’s patron. Father Brian Becker, pastor, offered the special Mass, assisted by visiting seminarians from St. Joseph College Seminary in Mount Holly.

Referring to the feast day’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew (Mt 11:25-30), Father Becker noted, “It is in the

Sacred Heart of Jesus that we are able to simply rest: ‘Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.’”

A 17th century French nun, St. Margaret Mary had visions of Jesus over the course of 18 months with messages that formed the basis of the Sacred Heart devotion, in which Jesus’ human heart symbolizes His enduring and generous love for all people. St. Margaret Mary encouraged devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, including the 12 Promises of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and she was canonized in 1920.

In his homily, Father Becker encouraged people to learn more about the Sacred Heart devotion as an invitation from Jesus to abide in His love. “Jesus wants to pour out the love of His Sacred Heart to us,” he said.

After Mass, parishioners enjoyed food, folk music and more in Grovemont Park, located across the street from the historic church.

An extensive historical collection, created by archivist Maureen Miller, was displayed in the parish office for people to read more about the early presence of Catholics

in Buncombe County and the growth of the parish over the past 85 years.

St. Margaret Mary Church was among the first Catholic churches in the region, built in 1936 to serve the growing Catholic population who had moved there for the textile manufacturing industry.

The parish expressed gratitude to festival coordinators Jennifer Puzerewski and LeAnn Wilson, the Swannanoa Community Council, Claudia Graham, Kim MacNeil, Maureen Miller, John and Maureen Czarnecki, Mark Puzerewski, Peter Graham, Bill Bauman, Knights of Columbus Council 13016, Harwood Home for Funerals – Black Mountain, Mike Sobol, master of ceremonies Nick Kramer, the seminarians, and many volunteers from the parish.

“A celebration of an anniversary such as this puts us in mind of the gratitude that we owe not only to God for giving us this parish, but also to those who have gone before us as part of this parish,” Father Becker noted. “The good things that we enjoy in this community have all come to us from those who have done the great material and spiritual work to gain such blessings.”

HE COVER

(Top and above right) Father Brian Becker, pastor, offered a Missa Cantata for the Swannanoa parish’s patronal feast day Oct. 16. The church and overflow room were filled to capacity for the special celebration. Additional attendees took advantage of the pleasant weather to gather on the church grounds for the Mass, receiving Communion from Father Becker at the front door.

(Above) Souvenir T-shirts were among the fun aspects of the parish festivities in Grovemont Park. (Right) The feast day was a joyful occasion for parishioners, friends and visitors.

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.comiii

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History of St. Margaret Mary Parish In 1933, a connection between Swannanoa and New Bedford, Mass., brought a migration of Catholics to the Carolina mountain area called “Grey Eagle” by the native Cherokee. Thanks to that influx of Catholics, St. Margaret Mary Church was founded.

A key figure in this migration was Charles D. Owen, whose family’s Beacon Manufacturing Co. was part of New England’s industrial landscape. Owen purchased a farm in Swannanoa in 1923, and two years later, the plant he had built in western North Carolina began operations. As Owen’s family business grew, so did the textile manufacturing base in the South – bringing an influx of northeastern Catholics to the region. In 1933, Beacon began closing its New England plant, and the relocation of equipment and personnel to the Swannanoa Valley soon followed.

In previous years, Catholics in eastern Buncombe County – those already settled and those moving there – endured a 20-mile round trip, mostly on unpaved roads, to go to Mass at St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville. As the roots of Beacon and other industries took hold, with an influx of more than 70 French-Canadian Catholics, the need for a Catholic church east of Asheville was clear.

In the spring of 1936, Bishop William Hafey of Raleigh purchased land on high ground in the Grovemont area of Swannanoa. The two-acre plot cost $500.

Bishop Hafey dedicated St. Margaret Mary Church on Oct. 11, 1936. For years it was the only Catholic church between Asheville and Lenoir.

The parish boundary originally included four townships in eastern and southeastern Buncombe County: Swannanoa, Black Mountain, Fairview and Broad River. The latter two have since been transferred to other jurisdictions, and the parish currently encompasses Swannanoa, Black Mountain and East Asheville.

The church and rectory were made possible thanks to a bequest of $15,000 from Kate Kelley of St. Louis through the Chicago-based Catholic Church Extension Society.

Benedictine Father Michael McInerney of Belmont Abbey was the architect, designing the wooden church in the Gothic style, 1936-1938 Father J. Lenox Federal with large exposed rafters.

1938-1942 Monsignor Hugh Dolan Father J. Lenox Federal, a 1942-1946 Monsignor Michael A. Carey 1946-1949 Father Walter F. Higgins North Carolina native, came from 1949-1958 Father John J. Hyland Greenville, N.C., to serve as the 1958-1962 Father John A. Weidinger first pastor. Father Federal began his education at nearby Belmont 1962-1965 Father Henry Becker College, then studied for three 1965-1969 Monsignor John P. Manley 1969-1972 Father Stephen A. Sullivan years in Switzerland and three in Italy, with ordination in Rome 1973-1994 Father Pius F. Keating, SA 1994-1995 Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio in 1934. (In 1951, after his time in Swannanoa, he was consecrated 1995-2003 Father Andrew J. Latsko bishop of the Diocese of Salt Lake 2003-2009 Father Frank J. Seabo 2009-2019 Father Matthew J. Leonard City. It was the first consecration 2020- Father Brian J. Becker of a native North Carolinian.)

Sisters from St. Genevieveof-the-Pines in Asheville began offering catechetical instruction for parishioners in the fall of 1936.

On July 1, 1937, Father Federal was transferred to serve as rector at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh. In 1938, Father Hugh Dolan, formerly of St. Theresa Parish in Wilson, became pastor. He served as pastor until 1942, when he was transferred to St. Benedict Church in Greensboro, and Father Michael A. Carey, formerly pastor of St. Elizabeth Church in Elizabeth City, became pastor.

In the fall of 1942, the U.S. Army opened a 1,000-bed hospital on the site of the former Experimental Farm belonging to the state of North Carolina. Known as Moore General Hospital, it was located about a mile east of the church on Old Black Mountain Highway. Until a permanent chaplain could be assigned, Father Carey administered to the spiritual needs of the Catholic patients there. He retained the status of auxiliary military chaplain until after the end of World War II. Spiritual care was also provided to other neighboring care homes serving the elderly, sick and dying, as well as to students at Warren Wilson College and Montreat College.

On Jan. 1, 1946, Father Carey was assigned to St. James Church in Hamlet and Father Walter F. Higgins was welcomed as pastor in Swannanoa, coming from St. Mary, Mother of God Church in Shelby.

During his tenure as pastor, Father Higgins organized the women of the parish into an Altar Society to maintain the church, sacred vessels and altar linens as well as develop social activities for the parish community. The Altar Society and the parish’s Holy Name Society were affiliated with the North Carolina Catholic Laymen’s Association, a group of lay Catholics organized by Raleigh Bishop Vincent S. Waters to strengthen Catholic identity, social life and spiritual devotion among the far-flung Catholic communities across the state at the time.

In 1946, Moore General Hospital was transferred to the Veterans Administration to supplement the Oteen Veterans Administration Hospital and became known as the Swannanoa Division of the Oteen Hospital. Father Higgins served as part-time chaplain there for about a year.

In the 1950s, growth in the parish’s population – particularly children – prompted the parish to recruit two lay teachers to teach religious education.

Because of the increase in the number of children attending Sunday Mass, two Masses continued to be offered on Sundays even after the annual tourist season concluded.

As the parish grew over the next three decades, the need for more space became evident. Ground was broken for a multi-purpose building in 1965, with a fellowship hall and kitchen downstairs, and classrooms upstairs, and after a delay, the addition was dedicated by Bishop Waters in 1969. The property remains virtually the same today.

Pastors

— St. Margaret Mary Parish

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 14

Padre Anthony Michalik

Simón, hijo de Juan, ¿me amas?

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a pregunta más importante para Jesús es la que hace a Pedro tres veces. Simón, hijo de Juan, ¿me amas? ¿Por qué se la hizo tres veces? ¿Fue para equilibrar las tres veces que Pedro había negado a Jesús en el patio del Sumo Sacerdote?

Tal vez preguntó tres veces porque es la única pregunta que realmente importa a quien está llamado a ser un seguidor de Cristo. ¿Me amas?, pregunta Jesús.

Y esta pregunta tiene que penetrar en el corazón, en el corazón de quien se le pregunta. La pregunta se hace tres veces porque Jesús quiere que la respuesta salga de lo más profundo de nuestro ser.

No quiere un simple “Sí, Señor, te amo”. No quiere una respuesta que sea, tal vez, sincera, pero que sólo toque la superficie.

Jesús está a punto de establecer a Pedro como cabeza de su iglesia. Pero la pregunta no es “¿Crees que eres capaz de asumir la responsabilidad que te voy a dar?” La pregunta no es “¿Crees que comprendes completamente todo lo que he intentado enseñarte estos últimos tres años?” La pregunta no es “¿Crees que volverás a dejar que el miedo y la duda te dominen otra vez, como hiciste cuando negaste tres veces que me conocías?”. No, estas no son las preguntas.

La única pregunta es ésta: “¿Me amas?”.

Es la única pregunta que importa porque Jesús está pidiendo una relación con sus discípulos. Una relación íntima y personal.

Cuando se trata de ser su discípulo, Jesús no pregunta por nuestro potencial para liderar, ni por nuestras habilidades para rendir a un alto nivel de logro. No le preocupan nuestras capacidades mentales. O cualquier otro talento específico que podamos poseer o no. A Jesús no le interesa lo que podemos hacer por él, sino lo que somos para él. Él no pregunta por nuestro hacer, pregunta por nuestro ser. Él nos pregunta a cada uno de nosotros, “¿Eres una persona que elige amar? ¿Deseas seguirme por el movimiento de tu corazón? ¿Deseas una relación conmigo?”.

En el corazón del verdadero discipulado no se encuentra el deseo de hacer grandes obras, sino el deseo de amar mucho, amar a Cristo Jesús con todo lo que hay en nosotros, y así, amarnos los unos a los otros.

Mostramos nuestro discipulado por la forma en que elegimos amar. Así, nuestro discipulado llevará la marca de la verdadera autenticidad, porque llevará la marca de su amor divino e íntimo.

Cuando Jesús nos pregunte, “¿Me amas?”, que digamos las palabras que Pedro finalmente pronunció con humildad y ternura: “Señor, tú lo sabes todo. Tú sabes que te amo”.

PADRE ANTHONY MICHALIK, C.S.s.R., extracto del video de su homilía del 11 de octubre publicado por The Catholic TV Network.

FOTOS POR SERGIO LOPEZ

La parroquia de Nuestra Señora de la Misericordia celebra a su patrona, herencia durante el festival SERGIO LOPEZ CORRESPONSAL

WINSTON-SALEM — La comunidad de Nuestra Señora de la Merced organizo el Festival Hispano conocido como: Fiesta Val, mismo que fue nombrado por los organizadores y parroquianos de la comunidad de Nuestra Señora de la Merced.

Dicho festival se llevo a cabo en su sexta edición el día 17 de Octubre, originalmente el evento se iba a celebrar en Septiembre para celebrar a la Patrona de la parroquia Nuestra Señora de la Merced y también para aprovechar el tiempo durante las celebraciones de la hispanidad, sin embargo se decidió mover el evento a Octubre debido al nuevo cambio de administración en la parroquia y algunas otras razones de fuerza mayor. Cabe mencionar que el año pasado no se tuvo el festival por la pandemia, sin embrago este año se trato de hacer lo posible por tener el evento, eso sin descuidar a los asistentes.

El Fiesta Val fue un éxito! Se tomaron las medidas necesarias para seguir con los cuidados de distanciamiento y sanitacion, al lugar se dieron cita muchos voluntarios que estaban vendiendo comida de distintas nacionalidades. Se presentaron algunos bailables folclóricos, música en vivo, y karaoke.

Durante el evento el parroco, Padre David McCanless, saludo a los presentes así como el Vicario Padre Alfonso Gamez acompaño a los parroquianos tomando algunas fotos y disfrutando del programa artístico.

Hubo algunas rifas de artículos para los asistentes, así chicos y grandes disfrutaron de este gran día, que aun que al principio hacia un poco de aire, después el día mejoro y se pudo disfrutar aun más.

David Guzman, coordinador par el Ministerio Hispano de la parroquia, nos dijo en entrevista: “El Fiesta Fal lo celebramos en honor a Nuestra Señora de

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October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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Falleció la hermana Pilar Dalmau, ex-directora del Ministerio Hispano en Charlotte CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO

“Entre el atrio y el altar” Con Misa recordaron sacrificio de San Oscar Romero CÉSAR HURTADO REPORTERO

CHARLOTTE — “Por eso la sabiduría de Dios también dijo: ‘Les enviaré profetas y apóstoles, y de ellos, matarán a algunos y perseguirán a otros, para que la sangre de todos los profetas, derramada desde la fundación del mundo, se le cargue a esta generación, desde la sangre de Abel hasta la sangre de Zacarías, que pereció entre el atrio y el altar; sí, os digo que le será cargada a esta generación”. Lucas, 11:48-51 “Entre el atrio y el altar, ese fue el lugar donde a Oscar Romero le llegó un proyectil de calibre 22 disparado a 31 metros con 10 centímetros de distancia”. Con estas palabras inició su homilía el Padre Hugo Medellín, vicario de la parroquia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en Charlotte, durante la Misa celebrada en honor del tercer aniversario de la canonización de San Juan Oscar Romero, mártir de la Iglesia en El Salvador.

“El mensaje del Evangelio se cumple en la persona, en las palabras, en los actos, de San Oscar Romero”, continuó, subrayando que los rechazos sufridos por el santo en su tiempo, “como lo dijera el Papa Francisco”, no habían sido sufridos por ningún obispo, durante su vida o después de ella, en la historia de la Iglesia.

El Obispo Romero, señaló, fue martirizado por su amor a los pobres, “a las personas sufridas cuyas historias escuchaba una y otra vez”, porque, como buen pastor, salía al encuentro de las personas y hablaba con ellas.

“Y fue desde ese amor tan grande por el sufrimiento del pueblo que decidió hablar.

Ya no ser el obispo únicamente piadoso y sumiso sino que, con ese enojo santo, al ver tanta injusticia, denunciarla”, dijo.

La Iglesia, apuntó, al canonizar a Oscar Romero, dió validez a su mensaje.

Y su vida, añadió, debe ser un llamado a una conversión profunda, a un mayor compromiso con los que sufren.

“Pueden pasar muchas cosas, pasar momentos difíciles y duros, pero la Iglesia nunca debe de olvidar a los pobres”, dijo el Padre Medellín, y luego, citando la homilía pronunciada por San Oscar Romero el 11 de marzo de 1979, dijo que, “cuando la Iglesia oye el llanto del oprimido, no puede sino

denunciar las estructuras sociales que alimentan y perpetúan la miseria de la cual proviene el grito”.

La Misa fue concelebrada por el Padre John F. Starczewski y asistida por los diáconos permanentes Eduardo Bernal y Herbert Quintanilla.

AL SERVICIO DE LOS POBRES

Monseñor Oscar Romero, arzobispo de San Salvador, asesinado en 1980 mientras celebraba una Misa, fue canonizado el 14 de octubre de 2018 por el Papa Francisco junto a otros seis beatos, entre los cuales destaca el Papa Pablo VI. Nacido en Ciudad Barrios el 15 de agosto de 1917, día de la Asunción de la Virgen María, fue ordenado sacerdote el 4 de abril de 1942 y en agosto de 1943 regresó a El Salvador, donde lo nombraron párroco en Anamorós, en el este del país.

El 8 de febrero de 1977 fue nombrado arzobispo de San Salvador, y desde ese momento inició su defensa de los derechos humanos en medio de una naciente guerra civil entre la guerrilla de izquierda y el gobierno de extrema derecha.

La persecución, que incluía expulsiones y asesinatos contra sacerdotes y laicos, le llevó a enfrentarse abiertamente con la dictadura, a la que responsabilizó de las muertes. Esto hizo que recibiera calumnias, ROMERO, PASA A LA PÁGINA 15

MEADOWBROOK, Pa. — La hermana Pilar Dalmau, nacida en Francia en 1928 y criada en La Habana, Cuba, hasta 1961, cuando abandonó el país a causa del régimen comunista, falleció de COVID-19 el 27 de septiembre de 2021 en el Hospital Holy Redeemer Saint Joseph Manor, en Meadowbrook, Pa. La hermana Dalmau, fue directora del Ministerio Hispano en la Diócesis de Charlotte entre 1988 y 1996.

La hermana Sagrario Nunez, quien escribió su memoria para ser leída durante sus servicios funerales celebrados el sábado 9 de octubre, dijo que recordando a Pilar vinieron a su mente las palabras de Eclesiastés 3: “Hay un tiempo señalado para todo, y un tiempo para cada aventura bajo los cielos. Tiempo de nacer y tiempo de morir; tiempo de sembrar y tiempo de cosechar”.

TIEMPO DE SEMBRAR

Pilar llegó a Estados Unidos siendo muy joven y enérgica. Antes de su arribo a Filadelfia, Pensilvania, en 1961, ya se había desempeñado como maestra en escuelas secundarias en Cuba y Panamá. La docencia era uno de sus dones y pasiones. Enseñó en la Academia Ancilla Domini en Germantown, Pa.; Obispo McDevitt Diocesan High School, en Wyncote, Pa.; Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo Socorro en Baltimore, Md.; y Ancillae-Assumpta Academy en Wyncote.

Durante unos años formó parte del personal del Centro Santa Rafaela y también se desempeñó como secretaria provincial.

Su otra gran pasión fue acompañar a los hispanos y prepararlos para ser la próxima generación de líderes de la Iglesia Católica.

En este ministerio, experimentó la mayor alegría y, en ocasiones, el mayor dolor.

Dalmau En un momento cuando los Obispos del país urgían a abrir las iglesias corazones a los hispanos, la hermana Pilar sufrió la indiferencia y resistencia de algunos católicos que sintieron que la atención a los hispanos los dejaba de lado.

Comenzó su ministerio en español en la parroquia San Miguel, en la Calle 2 en Filadelfia. Según relata la hermana Sagrario, “entre las cualidades más notables de Pilar estaba su capacidad para organizar y limpiar, pero no solo limpiar, sino que a través de barrer, fregar y lavar con manguera, transformar lo más feo y sucio en lugares hermosos y limpios”. Recuerda que, “al no poder aguantar el desorden en las calles del norte de Filadelfia, no sólo limpió la calle ella misma, sino que organizó con éxito a un grupo de voluntarios para que la acompañaran en su empeño”.

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

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¿Celebramos Halloween o Día de Muertos?

l día 2 de noviembre, después de la Solemnidad de Todos los Santos, la Iglesia Católica celebra el Día de los Fieles Difuntos y en diversos países se conmemora esta fecha con una serie de antiguas tradiciones, como las mexicanas.

El Padre Eligio Luna Vega, sacerdote de la Rectoría San Felipe de Jesús de la Arquidiócesis de México, explicó que en México se realiza esta tradición desde la época prehispánica y que después de la conquista se introdujeron en ella elementos cristianos.

“Es un culto donde a la muerte se le respeta, porque sabemos que va a llegar, pero también entra la parte ‘chusca’, lo humorístico del mexicano y nos burlamos de ella”, señaló.

Indicó que el 2 de noviembre se hace un altar en las casas o en los cementerios donde se coloca el retrato del difunto, las cosas que le gustaban, pan de muerto, cempasúchil y papel picado. Toda la decoración es festiva para “esperar” con alegría al difunto.

Esta ofrenda tiene dos significados: el primero, señala el sacerdote, se remite a la tradición de que en el Día de los Muertos los espíritus de los difuntos vendrán para estar con sus seres queridos; y el segundo es que en esa fecha se hace una ofrenda de oración por el descanso del alma de quienes han fallecido.

La gente también hace calacas (calaveras) de dulce y se colocan en ellas los nombres de la familia y los amigos con alguna frase humorística que habla sobre la muerte llevando a esa persona al panteón o hasta su casa.

En cuanto a las caras pintadas como calaveras, el P. Luna explicó que la gente lo hace para representar a la muerte, pero en sentido de burla.

“A la muerte no se le da culto. Lo que hacemos es pedir por nuestros difuntos que están en el cielo y que en ese día, según la tradición, sus espíritus nos vienen a visitar”, expresó.

El sacerdote añadió que según la tradición se sabe que el difunto ya visitó a sus seres queridos porque “se lleva el aroma de la comida”.

“Sabemos que aunque nosotros estamos vivos, como Iglesia militante, estamos en comunión con las almas del purgatorio y las que están en el cielo. Esto es un signo de que seguimos siendo una sola Iglesia”, señaló.

NO ES HALLOWEEN

El P. Luna aclaró que esta tradición ha sido tergiversada en Estados Unidos con la celebración de Halloween y el culto a la Santa Muerte, a la que incluso algunos fieles le dedican el rezo del rosario.

Por otro lado, resaltó que la Arquidiócesis de México no tiene ningún problema con la celebración del Día de los Muertos, ya que allí se suele celebrar una Misa en la catedral y se colocan los retratos de los obispos fallecidos.

Halloween significa “All hallow’s eve”, frase que proviene del inglés antiguo, y que significa “víspera de todos los santos”, ya que se refiere a la noche del 31 de octubre, víspera de la Fiesta de Todos los Santos.

Sin embargo, la antigua costumbre anglosajona le ha robado su estricto sentido religioso para celebrar en su lugar la noche del terror, de las brujas y los fantasmas.

El P. Jeremy Davie, un exorcista octogenario que desde finales de la década de 1970 se dedica al ministerio del exorcismo en la Arquidiócesis de Westminster, Inglaterra, afirmó que Halloween puede ser una puerta abierta al mal y al diablo.

“Ellos (los que ‘celebran’ Halloween) comienzan con juegos, pero eso puede llevar a la gente a no creer en el demonio y los espíritus malignos”, dijo el sacerdote en una entrevista concedida al National Catholic Register, precisando que coquetear con lo oculto “no necesita ser algo profundo para que sea mortal”.

El exorcista también señaló que “Halloween es una buena oportunidad para enseñar la fe y ayudarnos, especialmente a los niños, para entender la realidad del mal y la verdad de Cristo y su Iglesia”. Es ocasión también para “enseñar contra” la festividad usando la Palabra de Dios y “la clara enseñanza de la Iglesia”.

Por ello, se sugiere organizar una catequesis con los niños en los días anteriores al Halloween, con el objeto de enseñarles el por qué de la festividad católica de Todos los Santos y los Fieles Difuntos, haciéndoles ver la importancia de celebrar nuestros Santos, como modelos de fe, como verdaderos seguidores de Cristo.

Se propone a los padres de familia una opción para sus hijos, pues seguramente los niños querrán salir con sus amigos en la noche del Halloween: Los niños pueden disfrazarse de ángeles y preparar pequeñas bolsas con dulces, regalos o tarjetitas con mensajes y pasar de casa en casa, y en lugar de hacer el “trick or treat” y pedir dulces, regalarlos a los hogares que visiten y que expliquen que entregan dulces porque la Iglesia Católica tendrá muy pronto una fiesta muy importante en la que se celebra a todos aquellos que fueron como nosotros deberíamos ser: los santos.

El P. José de Jesús Aguilar, subdirector de Radio y Televisión de la Arquidiócesis de México, lamentó que “en los días en los que la Iglesia recuerda a los fieles difuntos no faltan algunos extranjeros que al ver los cráneos, las calaveras en los monumentos, en las ofrendas, lleguen a pensar que los mexicanos tenemos cultos demoníacos o satánicos o a la llamada Santa Muerte”.

A ellos, dijo, “ habría que explicarles un poco de la cultura prehispánica”, donde “la muerte y la vida eran parte de una misma realidad. Por eso colocar una calavera, un esqueleto en algún determinado sitio no era darle culto a la muerte ni hablar solamente de la muerte sino decir que la muerte forma parte de la vida y la vida forma parte de la muerte. De esta manera, la muerte no se convierte en algo trágico sino simplemente en parte de la alegría de la vida”, indicó.

CONSEJOS

El P. Luis Fernando Valdés, doctor en Teología y capellán en la Universidad Panamericana, dio tres consejos para una celebración verdaderamente católica del Día de los Muertos.

Recordar que el centro es Jesús y “para celebrar el Día de los Muertos hay que poner como centro a Jesucristo, que con su muerte en la cruz asume la muerte de todos los hombres y le da nuevo sentido: ya no morimos eternamente, sino que estaremos con Él en el último día.

“Por lo tanto, la muerte es un hasta luego esperando la resurrección, y debemos tener la alegría de que resucitaremos con Cristo”.

Recordar la comunión de los santos, pues los bautizados estamos vinculados unos con otros, porque formamos parte del único cuerpo de Cristo, ya sea en la tierra, en el Purgatorio o disfrutando del Cielo, de la vida eterna.

“Al hablar de la muerte eso implica que seguimos en comunión con los que se han ido. Rezamos por sus almas, porque están en el Purgatorio, o nos acogemos a su intercesión, porque están en el Cielo y contemplan a Dios ya”, dijo el sacerdote.

Explicar las tradiciones y raíces de nuestra cultura es importante pues sirve mucho para afianzar nuestra identidad nacional.

— Condensado de ACIPRENSA

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

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FOTO CORTESIA DIÁCONO SIGRIDO DELLA VALLE

Se certificaron a catequistas

CESAR HURTADO | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

FRANKLIN — Culminó la certificación de Catequistas en San Francisco de Asís en Franklin, donde ocho participantes concluyeron el programa de 10 sesiones. “Por diez semanas nos estuvimos reuniéndonos todos los miércoles de seis a ocho de la tarde, y al terminar cada sesión teníamos un agradable compartir de alimentos. Muy bonita experiencia y muy bonito programa de Catholic Education center”, dijo el Diácono Sigfrido della Valle, coordinador del Ministerio Hispano de Smoky Mountains. En la imagen, junto al Diácono Della Valle, aparecen Odaliz González, Víctor García López, Anabel Ferral, Elizabeth Rubio, Rocío Moltalvo, María de Jesús Herma, Alejandra Monterongo, María del Carmen Elías, Irene Vázquez y Gabriela Montero

Festejos por el Mes de la Herencia Hispana CHARLOTTE — La escuela Nuestra Señora de la Asunción festejó el jueves 14 de octubre el Mes de la Herencia Hispana. A las nueve de la mañana se celebró una Misa y luego los estudiantes compartieron alimentos en la cafetería de la escuela, donde se les explicó la importancia de la fecha y el aporte de la cultura hispana a la sociedad norteamericana. Padres y madres de familia, algunas de ellas participantes del programa “Madrinas” instaurado por la oficina de diversidad e inclusión de las escuelas católicas de la diócesis de Charlotte, estuvieron presentes mostrando la belleza de sus trajes típicos y saludando a los asistentes.

FOTO FACEBOOK

Bendijeron nueva instalación SERGIO LÓPEZ | CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Confirmaciones en San Benito WINSTON-SALEM — El pasado 16 de agosto, 18 candidatos recibieron el sacramento de confirmación en una Misa celebrada a las seis de la tarde por el Obispo Peter Jugis en la Iglesia San Benito el Moro. Junto al Obispo estuvieron presentes el párroco, Padre Henry Tutuwan, y el Diácono David Boissey.

La Iglesia fue fundada por el Obispo Eugene McGuinness de la Diócesis Católica de Raleigh y puesta bajo la dirección de la orden franciscana con el propósito de servir a la comunidad afroamericana.

CHARLOTTE — El sábado 2 de octubre, el párroco de la Iglesia Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, Padre Leo Tiburcio; y el Padre Hugo Medellín, vicario parroquial, acompañados por varios miembros de la comunidad, llevaron a cabo la bendición de una renovada instalación ubicada en 2622 Toddville Road, adquirida con el terreno adyacente a las canchas de fútbol y que ahora se unió a la actual área verde del edificio principal de Tuckaseegee Road. La edificación, nombrada oficialmente ‘Casa San Vicente’, ha sido destinada para la realización de actividades parroquiales y las obras de caridad, tal como lo hizo San Vicente de Paúl hace más de 400 años.

Lecturas Diarias 24-30 OCTUBRE

Domingo: Jeremías 31:7-9, Hebreos 5:1-6, Marcos 10:46-52; Lunes: Romanos 8:12-17, Lucas 13:10-17; Martes: Romanos 8:18-25, Lucas 13:18-21; Miércoles: Romanos 8:26-30, Lucas 13:22-30; Jueves (Santos Simón y Judas, Apóstoles): Efesios 2:19-22, Lucas 6:12-19; Viernes: Romanos 9:1-5, Lucas 14:1-6; Sábado: Rom 11:1-2, 11-12, 25-29, Lucas 14:1, 7-11

31 OCTUBRE-6 NOVIEMBRE

Domingo: Deuteronomio 6:2-6, Hebreos 7:23-28, Marcos 12:28-34; Lunes (Solemnidad de todos los santos): Apocalipsis 7:2-4, 9-14, 1 Juan 3:1-3, Mateo 5:1-12; Martes (Todos los fieles difuntos): Sabiduría 3:1-9, Romanos 5:5-11, Juan 6:37-40; Miércoles: Romanos 13:8-10, Lucas 14:25-33, Jueves (San Carlos Borromeo): Romanos 14:712, Lucas 15:1-10; Viernes: Romanos 15:14-21, Lucas 16:1-8; Sábado: Romanos 16:3-9, 16, 22-27, Lucas 16:9-15

7-13 NOVIEMBRE

Domingo: 1 Reyes 17:10-16, Hebreos 9:2428, Marcos 12:38-44; Lunes: Sabiduría 1:1-7, Lucas 17:1-6; Martes (Dedicación Basílica de Letrán): Ezequiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12, 1 Corintios 3:9-11, 16-17, Juan 2:13-22; Miércoles (San León Magno): Sabiduría 6:1-11, 13-14, Lucas 17:11-19; Jueves (San Martín de Tours): Sabiduría 7:22-8:1, Lucas 17:20-25; Viernes (San Josafat): Sabiduría 13:1-9, Lucas 17:26-37; Sábado (Santa Francisca Javier Cabrini): Sabiduría 18:14-16, 19:6-9, Lucas 18:1-8

Our nation 18

catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief

The Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Denver is seen Oct. 10 after it was vandalized.

Since February 2020, the Archdiocese of Denver is aware of 25 parishes or ministry locations in northern Colorado that have been the target of vandalism, property destruction or theft.

The attacks are among approximately 100 incidents of arson, vandalism and other destruction that have taken place at Catholic sites across the United States since May 2020, including the Diocese of Charlotte.

Justice Department asks court to block Texas abortion law WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Texas abortion law – banning abortions after six weeks of pregnancy – continues to have the Supreme Court’s attention more than a month after the nation’s high court ruled against blocking the law. In the most recent development, the Justice Department filed a brief Oct. 18 asking the court to block enforcement of the law by reinstating a decision by a federal District Court judge in early October who called it unconstitutional and temporarily blocked it. The Oct. 18 brief, filed by Acting Solicitor General Brian Fletcher, asked the justices to treat this petition as one that would need full review by the court, not something to be determined in what has been described as the shadow docket for emergency requests. He stressed the current Texas law has “successfully nullified” Supreme Court decisions about abortion “within its borders” since the court has previously ruled that states cannot restrict abortion before viability, or 24 weeks of pregnancy. In December, the court will take up a Mississippi ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy. Hours after the Justice Department’s action, the Supreme Court announced it was considering taking up the abortion providers’ challenge to the state’s abortion law even before a decision on this case is made by a federal appellate court.

DHS officials to resume ‘Remain in Mexico’ policy WASHINGTON, D.C. — Officials from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security said in an Oct. 14 court filing they were ready to begin implementing once again a Trump-era immigration policy with which they disagree – the Migrant Protection Protocols, also called “Remain in Mexico” or MPP policy. The officials said it could be reinstated as early as November, pending negotiations with the Mexican government, which needs to approve the terms. The MPP policy forced migrants looking for asylum in the United States to stay on the Mexico side of the U.S. southern border until their cases could be adjudicated in U.S. immigration courts. When he became president in January, Joe Biden paused the policy, formally seeking its end in June.

But in August, a judge with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas told administration officials to continue complying with the Trump-era policy, saying they had not ended it properly. The U.S. Supreme Court upheld the judge’s ruling. Caught between the court order and criticism from immigration advocates, DHS officials said they would continue to seek the end of MPP, but were, at the moment, “taking necessary steps to comply with the court order, which requires us to reimplement MPP in good faith.”

Biden, pope set to meet Oct. 29 WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden will have an audience with Pope Francis Oct. 29, the day before the G20 Leaders’ Summit starts in Rome, White House press secretary Jen Psaki announced Oct. 14. “They will discuss working together on efforts grounded in respect for fundamental IN BRIEF, SEE PAGE X

CNS | COURTESY OF ARCHDIOCESE OF DENVER

Bishops call attacks on U.S. Catholic sites ‘acts of hate’ that must stop CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Oct. 10 vandalization of Denver’s cathedral basilica that resulted in satanic and other “hateful graffiti” being scrawled on its doors and at least one statue brought to 100 the number of incidents of arson, vandalism and other destruction that have taken place at Catholic sites across the United States since May 2020.

That month the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee for Religious Liberty began tracking such incidents, according to an Oct. 14 USCCB news release.

“These incidents of vandalism have ranged from the tragic to the obscene, from the transparent to the inexplicable,” the chairmen of the USCCB’s religious liberty and domestic policy committees said in a joint statement included in the release.

“There remains much we do not know about this phenomenon, but at a minimum, they underscore that our society is in sore need of God’s grace,” they said, calling on the nation’s elected officials “to step forward and condemn these attacks.”

“In all cases, we must reach out to the perpetrators with prayer and forgiveness,” said Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, chairman of the Committee for Religious Liberty, and Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development.

“Where the motive was retribution for some past fault of ours, we must reconcile; where misunderstanding of our teachings has caused anger toward us, we must offer clarity; but this destruction must stop. This is not the way,” they said.

“We thank our law enforcement for

investigating these incidents and taking appropriate steps to prevent further harm,” Cardinal Dolan and Archbishop Coakley said. “We appeal to community members for help as well. These are not mere property crimes – this is the degradation of visible representations of our Catholic faith. These are acts of hate.”

In a July 2020 joint statement, Archbishop Coakley and Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami, then acting chairman of the religious liberty committee decried the growing number of incidents of church vandalism.

“Whether those who committed these acts were troubled individuals crying out for help or agents of hate seeking to intimidate, the attacks are signs of a society in need of healing,” the two archbishops said.

“In those incidents where human actions are clear, the motives still are not. As we strain to understand the destruction of these holy symbols of selfless love and devotion, we pray for any who have caused it, and we remain vigilant against more of it,” they said.

“Our nation finds itself in an extraordinary hour of cultural conflict,” they added. “The path forward must be through the compassion and understanding practiced and taught

by Jesus and His Holy Mother. Let us contemplate, rather than destroy, images of these examples of God’s love. Following the example of Our Lord, we respond to confusion with understanding and to hatred with love.”

These incidents have ranged from a man crashing his van through the doors of a Catholic church in the Diocese of Orlando, Fla., and setting the interior ablaze, to a St. Junípero Serra statue outside Mission

San Rafael in San Rafael, Calif., in the Archdiocese of San Francisco, being desecrated with red paint and toppled, leaving just the saint’s feet in place.

In the Diocese of Charlotte last July, red paint was used to vandalize a revered statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus that stands outside St. Lawrence Basilica in Asheville.

In a June 1 letter to the respective chairs and ranking members of the Appropriation Committee in the House and Senate , the USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty joined with several other faith groups calling for more funding for appropriations for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Nonprofit Security Grant Program in fiscal year 2022.

“As organizations representing Jewish, Muslim, Sikh, Catholic, Episcopal, Evangelical, Lutheran, Protestant, Seventh-day Adventist, and other Christian and communities of faith across the United States, we believe that all people ought to be free from fear when gathering for religious worship and service,” they wrote, urging more funds for the FEMA grant program.

The grants provide funds for “target hardening and other physical security enhancements and activities” for, as the letter stated, “at-risk nonprofits from urban settings to suburban neighborhoods and rural communities, including houses of worship, religious schools, community centers and other charities.”

“There is a critical need and urgency for these grants,” the faith groups said. “Our sacred spaces have been desecrated, and our faithful murdered.”

In a 20-year period starting in mid-1999, there were shootings at an estimated 19 houses of worship resulting in fatalities.

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

19

Debate, vote on proposed Eucharistic document will top U.S. bishops’ agenda JULIE ASHER CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

WASHINGTON, D.C. — When the U.S. bishops gather for their fall assembly in Baltimore Nov. 15-18, it will be the first inperson meeting of the full body of bishops since November 2019.

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of the bishops’ June 2020 spring meeting, and their November 2020 fall assembly and June 2021 spring meeting were both held in a virtual format.

Topping the meeting’s agenda will be debate and votes on a proposed document on the Eucharist, “The Mystery of the Eucharist in the Life of the Church,” and on a Eucharistic revival initiative.

During their spring meeting this past June, 75% of the U.S. bishops approved the drafting of a document, addressed to all Catholic faithful, on Eucharistic coherence.

Part of the impetus for the bishops’ work on this document and a Eucharistic revival to increase Catholics’ understanding and awareness of the Eucharist was a Pew study in the fall of 2019 that showed just 30% of Catholics “have what we might call a proper understanding of Christ’s presence in the Eucharist.”

The Eucharistic revival would launch on the feast of Corpus Christi in June 2022.

The three-year effort will include events on the diocesan level such as Eucharistic processions around the country along with adoration and prayer.

In 2023, the emphasis will be on parishes with resources available at the parish level to increase Catholics’ understanding of what the Eucharist really means. This would culminate in a National Eucharistic Congress in the summer of 2024.

The Baltimore assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will begin with an address by Archbishop Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to the United States.

The bishops will also hear from Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, president of the USCCB. The agenda also includes a report to the bishops from the National Advisory Council, a group created by the USCCB that is comprised of religious and laypeople primarily for consultation on action items and information reports presented to the bishops’ Administrative Committee.

Other action items on the agenda requiring debate and a vote will be an update of the “Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines”; a proposal to add St. Teresa of Kolkata to the “Proper Calendar for the Dioceses of the United States” as an optional memorial Sept. 5; a resolution on diocesan financial reporting; new English and Spanish versions of the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults; a translation of “Holy Communion and Worship of the Eucharistic Mystery Outside Mass”; “National Statutes for the Catechumenate” in English and Spanish; and the USCCB’s 2022 budget.

During the assembly, the bishops also will vote for a treasurer-elect for the USCCB, as well as chairmen-elect of five standing committees: Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations; Divine Worship; Domestic Justice and Human Development; Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth; and Migration.

The bishops elected will serve for one year as “elect” before beginning their threeyear terms in their respective posts at the conclusion of the 2022 fall general assembly.

There also will be voting for board members for Catholic Relief Services,

the U.S. bishops’ overseas relief and development agency, and the election of a new USCCB general secretary.

Father Michael J.K. Fuller, who was an associate general secretary, is currently interim general secretary. Archbishop Gomez named him to the post in July when Monsignor Jeffrey D. Burrill resigned.

Also scheduled to take place will be a consultation of the bishops on the sainthood causes of Charlene Marie Richard and Auguste Robert “Nonco” Pelafigue.

Both have the title of “Servant of God” and were from the Diocese of Lafayette Louisiana, where Bishop J. Douglas Deshotel has officially opened their sainthood causes.

Charlene, a young Cajun girl who died of leukemia in 1959 at age 12, is regarded by many in south Louisiana and beyond as a saint, saying her intercession has resulted in miracles in their lives. She is known as “The little Cajun saint.”

Pelafigue was born in France and from the time he was almost 2 years old, he lived in Arnaudville, La. He died on the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus June 6, 1977. He is known for his decades of ministry in the League of Sacred Heart, Apostleship of Prayer – now called the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.

The 2007 Vatican document “Sanctorum Mater” requires the diocesan bishop promoting a sainthood cause to consult with the body of bishops on the advisability of pursuing the cause.

Other items to be presented and discussed at the bishops’ assembly include: n The 2021-2023 Synod of Bishops. n The work of CRS, Catholic Charities USA and Catholic Legal Immigration Network Inc., or CLINIC. n The 50th anniversary of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, the U.S. bishops’ domestic anti-poverty program. n The “Journeying Together” process of intercultural dialogue and encounter “focused on the Church’s ministry with youth and young adults that fosters understanding and trust within and across cultural families toward a more welcoming and just community of faith.” n The application and implementation of the “ Pastoral Framework for Marriage and Family Life Ministry in the United States: Called to the Joy of Love.” At their June assembly, the U.S. bishops approved a draft document that provides a pastoral framework meant to strengthen marriage and family ministry in parishes and dioceses. n The “Walking with Moms in Need” initiative of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities that asks every diocese and parish to help mothers experiencing a difficult pregnancy find services and resources or provide these when they see gaps in such services.

Public sessions of general assembly discussions and votes will be livestreamed at www.usccb.org/meetings. News updates, vote totals, texts of addresses, and presentations and other materials will be posted to this page.

Those wishing to follow the meeting on social media can use the hashtag #USCCB21 and follow it on Twitter (@ USCCB), as well as on Facebook (www. facebook.com/usccb) and Instagram (instagram.com/usccb).

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Our world 20

catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

By listening to the Holy Spirit, synod can teach ‘art of the encounter,’ pope says CAROL GLATZ CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

CNS | COURTESY POPE’S WORLDWIDE PRAYER NETWORK

A new version of the Click to Pray 2.0 app, available for iOS and Android phones, encourages prayers for the Synod of Bishops.

The app is an initiative of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network.

Call to prayer for the synod finds home online, in app VATICAN CITY — Cardinal Mario Grech, secretary-general of the Synod of Bishops, said in the process to create a more “synodal Church,” one where every member contributes and all listen to each other, “we are touching something divine, and prayer is essential.”

The synod office, the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network and the women’s International Union of Superiors General have joined forces not only to encourage prayers, but to collect them, share them and build a global community of people praying for the synod and each other.

Their efforts are built on two main platforms: an updated version of Click to Pray, an app and website run by the prayer network, and www.prayforthesynod.va. Both were unveiled Oct. 19 at a Vatican news conference.

The superiors general are soliciting prayers for the synod and its preparation process from members of women’s and men’s monasteries and contemplative communities.

Through Oct. 31, those prayers will be posted on the website; beginning Nov. 1, anyone can submit a prayer, said Patrizia Morgante, UISG communications officer. The prayers also will be posted on the Click to Pray 2.0 app and can be added to the websites of religious orders, parishes or dioceses with an RSS feed.

Besides carrying prayers for the synod, especially during the preparatory phase that began in early October, the upgraded Click to Pray app has added features, including notifications so that people can set it to remind them to pray at the time they choose each morning, midday and night.

The Synod also has an official website with resources, prayer cards and other resources in multiple languages, online at www.synod.va.

— Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY — A synod calls on everyone to become experts in “the art of encounter” in a way that is uplifting and transformative, Pope Francis said, formally opening the process leading up to the assembly of the Synod of Bishops in 2023.

“Celebrating a synod means walking on the same road, together” just like Jesus did -encountering, listening and discerning with all who one meets, the pope said in his homily at the Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica Oct. 10.

“Are we prepared for the adventure of this journey? Or are we fearful of the unknown, preferring to take CNS | REMO CASILLI, REUTERS refuge in the usual Pope Francis gives the homily in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican Oct. 10 as he celebrates a Mass to open the process that will lead up to excuses: ‘It’s useless’ or the assembly of the world Synod of Bishops in 2023.

‘We’ve always done it this way?’” he asked.

Some 3,000 people attended the Mass, including the 270 people – cardinals, bishops, priests, religious and laypeople – invited to the CHARLOTTE — A Mass to open the Synod on Synodality for the local day of reflection in the Vatican Synod Hall Oct. 9.

Church, originally scheduled for Oct. 17 at St. Patrick Cathedral, has been The weekend of events began the “synodal journey,” which will postponed with a new date not yet determined. explore the theme, “For a synodal Church: communion, participation The diocesan synod is a component of the worldwide invitation to all the and mission.” Bishops around the world were to open the process in faithful given by Pope Francis and is the first phase of the XVI Ordinary their dioceses Oct. 17. The diocesan phase, which runs until April, General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, whose theme is “For a Synodal will focus on listening to and consulting the People of God. Church: communion, participation and mission.” Its purpose? To encounter, In his homily, the pope said they should begin the synodal process “by to listen and to discern. asking ourselves – all of us, pope, bishops, priests, religious and laity – Pope Francis has asked for the discussion to rise from local churches and whether we, the Christian community, embody this ‘style’ of God, who episcopal conferences. travels the paths of history and shares in the life of humanity.”

The first preparatory phase consists of sessions on “Listening and The day’s Gospel reading (Mk 10:17-30) of Jesus setting out on a Discernment in Local Churches,” taking place until April 2022 in dioceses journey and encountering a rich man offers just one example of and bishops’ conferences. how Jesus “walks alongside people and listens to the questions and

Diocesan synod opening Mass to be rescheduled

concerns lurking in their hearts,” he said. “He shows us that God is not found in neat and orderly places, distant from reality, but walks ever at our side.”

Celebrating a synod, he said, means walking on the same road as others and living out the “three verbs” that characterize a synod: to encounter, listen and discern.

“We too are called to become experts in the art of encounter. Not so much by organizing events or theorizing about problems as in taking time to encounter the Lord and one another,” to devote time to prayer and adoration, and to listen to what the Holy Spirit wants to say to the Church, the pope said.

Jesus shows that an encounter has the power to change someone’s life – “the Gospel is full of such encounters with Christ, encounters that uplift and bring healing,” the pope said. In fact, Jesus was never in a hurry, and He would never have looked at a watch to signal it was time to wrap things up. “He was always at the service of people He met in order to listen to them.”

Each encounter requires “openness, courage and a willingness to let ourselves be challenged by the presence and the stories of others,” the pope said. It means not hiding behind a facade or stiff formalities indicative of a spirit of clericalism or of courtiers, but it means being a father.

To that end, the pope said he would be meeting a group of people who live on the streets later that day. He said they had already started meeting because another group of people had gone to listen to them and from there, “they have been able to begin the journey.”

Sincere listening involves the heart, not just the ears, Pope Francis said. The aim is not to be able to answer people’s questions, especially with pre-packaged or “artificial and shallow responses,”

— Catholic News Herald

but to provide an opportunity to tell one’s story and speak freely.

“Whenever we listen with the heart, people feel that they are being heard, not judged; they feel free to recount their own experiences and their spiritual journey,” he said.

Listening to one another “is a slow and perhaps tiring exercise” but it must be done, including listening to “the questions, concerns and hopes of every church, people and nation,” and to the “challenges and changes” that world presents, he added.

Encountering and listening “are not ends in themselves” where everything stays the same, but must lead to discernment, he said.

“Whenever we enter into dialogue, we allow ourselves to be challenged, to advance on a journey. And in the end, we are no longer the same; we are changed,” he said.

The synod is “a journey of spiritual discernment that takes place in adoration, in prayer and in dialogue with the Word of God,” he said.

Discernment is what lights the way and guides the synod, “preventing it from becoming a church convention, a study group or a political congress, but rather a grace-filled event, a process of healing guided by the Holy Spirit,” Pope Francis said.

Like He asked the rich man in the Gospel reading, Jesus is asking everyone “to empty ourselves, to free ourselves from all that is worldly, including our inward-looking and outworn pastoral models, and to ask ourselves what it is that God wants to say to us in this time and the direction in which He wants to lead us,” he said.

Pope Francis wished everyone “a good journey together! May we be pilgrims in love with the Gospel and open to the surprises of the Spirit.”

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

For the latest news 24/7: catholicnewsherald.com

In Brief Myanmar arrests Caritas workers YANGON, Myanmar — Myanmar’s military has arrested seven workers from the Catholic Church’s social arm who were on a mission to provide aid for internally displaced persons in conflict-stricken Kayah state. A senior official from Loikaw Diocese, which covers Kayah state, said the soldiers made the arrests of workers from Caritas (Karuna) in Loikaw, the state’s capital, as the social workers carried food and medicine Oct. 18. “We have been providing humanitarian assistance for the IDPs who are in dire need of food, shelter and medicines amid tight restrictions on providing aid,” the source told ucanews.com. He said Church officials have been following up on the arrest of the charity workers and trying to gain their release. It’s not uncommon in the region for the military to burn civilians’ homes, kill civilians and make arbitrary arrests in the predominantly Christian region, according to Church sources. The Church has played a major role in providing humanitarian assistance to those displaced within the country who have taken refuge in churches, convents and makeshift camps since fighting flared up in May.

Teens, priests, nun among martyrs beatified in Spain CÓRDOBA, Spain — More than 100 victims of Spain’s 1936-1939 civil war moved a step closer to sainthood after being beatified as martyrs for the faith. They included two teenage boys

as well as an 88-year-old nun who died of bullet wounds after being tied to a window as a human shield. More than 3,000 people gathered Oct. 16 for the beatification Mass in Córdoba’s sixth-century cathedral for Father Juan Elías Medina and 126 fellow martyrs, all killed by anti-clerical forces at the start of the four-year conflict. The Mass brought to more than 2,000 the number beatified or canonized from the Spanish conflict, during which 2,000 churches were destroyed and up to 8,000 Catholic clergy and religious order members killed, along with a dozen bishops and tens of thousands of lay Catholics. Father Medina, from Castro del Río, was arrested in July 1936 while serving as rector of his home parish and was shot with 14 others at the town’s cemetery, after assuring his mother in a letter, found in his breviary, that he was “dying content.” The Córdoba Diocese said the 33-year-old priest had been noted for work among the poor and sick and had refused to deny his priesthood while held in a town hall basement. It added that the “brutal executions” had formed “part of a climate of persecution imposed by republican militia against all those daring to profess membership of the Church.”

Pope to pharmacists: Do not become accessories to abortion VATICAN CITY — All health care professionals have a right to conscientious objection, just as they have a right to denounce unjust harm inflicted on innocent and defenseless life, Pope Francis said. When it comes to abortion, “I have been very clear – it is homicide and it is not licit to become complicit,” he told a group of pharmacists and other medical professionals.

The pope’s remarks came during an audience at the Vatican Oct. 14 with about 150 health care professionals attending a national congress in Rome sponsored by an Italian association of pharmacists. The pope also said the Oct.

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14-17 congress was an important occasion to reemphasize the importance of having a nationwide public health care system, calling it “an essential element for guaranteeing the common good and the social growth of a country.”

John Paul I to be beatified VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis has signed a decree recognizing a miracle attributed to the intercession of Pope John Paul I, clearing the way for his beatification. The Italian pope served only 33 days as pontiff; he died in the papal apartments Sept. 28, 1978, at the age of 65, shocking the world and a Church that had just mourned the death of St. Paul VI. In the sainthood cause of Pope John Paul I, the approved miracle involved a young girl in Buenos Aires, Argentina, who developed a severe case of acute encephalitis and uncontrollable and life-threatening brain seizures, and eventually entered septic shock. After doctors told family members her death was “imminent,” the local priest encouraged the family, nurses and others to pray to the late pope for his intercession, according to the website of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes. A panel of experts studying the cause determined there was no scientific explanation for her complete recovery in 2011 and that it could be attributed to the late pope’s intercession. The Vatican did not immediately announce a date for the beatification ceremony.

St. Irenaeus of Lyon to be named Doctor of the Church VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis said he intends to declare as a Doctor of the Church St. Irenaeus of Lyon, the second-century theologian known for his defense of orthodoxy amid the rise of gnostic sects. During a meeting Oct. 7 with members of the St. Irenaeus Joint

21

Orthodox-Catholic Working Group, the pope praised the group’s efforts in creating a space for dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox Christians, much like their namesake. “Your patron, St. Irenaeus of Lyon – whom I will soon declare a Doctor of the Church with the title ‘doctor unitatis’ (‘doctor of unity’) – came from the East, exercised his episcopal ministry in the West, and was a great spiritual and theological bridge between Eastern and Western Christians,” he said. According to its website, the purpose of the St. Irenaeus Joint OrthodoxCatholic Working Group is “to investigate the profound differences in mentality, ways of thinking and of doing theology which are related to current problems in Orthodox-Catholic dialogue, to understand their character, and to try to see how both traditions can enrich each other without losing their own identity.”

— Catholic News Service

ViewPoints 22

catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

Dr. Tod Worner

Carrying things to term: Why patience is so difficult

I

t was pretty awkward.

They all just stood there staring at me.

And the sweat trickled down the back of my neck.

Let me start by saying that it had been a long night. I was a freshly minted thirdyear medical student. Awash in book knowledge but bereft of experience, I began my internal medicine rotation at Abbott Northwestern Hospital with my short, white medical student coat stuffed with books, a stethoscope and a reflex hammer.

Of course, I would be on overnight call the first day, and, as luck would have it, I would get the complicated late-night patient admission: a 73-year-old woman with newonset thyroid storm.

Susan (let us call her) came into my life with a plethora of complaints, including sweats, weight loss, a racing heart, heart failure (and swelling from her toes to her hips), and eyes that were bulging out of her head. Her lab tests were profoundly abnormal, indicating that her thyroid was wildly overproducing its hormone and causing grave danger to this lovely woman. Because of the rarity of this case, Susan was seen by every member of the medical hierarchy until lowly ol’ me had a chance to perform a full history and physical (near midnight) and record it on the endless eight-page form we, as medical

‘The trouble with patience is that it runs counter to what we want. We want what we want and we want it now. We want suffering to end, sadness to be gone, and pleasure to be nary a moment away.’ students, were expected to fill out.

Well, the night was long and sleep was short. I had so many questions and so little guidance. In the midst of my confusion, fatigue and anxiety, I wasn’t sure I could capably organize my thoughts, much less my written history and physical. Nonetheless, early the next morning, I found myself asked to make a bedside presentation before the patient, her family, my senior residents, fellow medical students and the most intimidating, stony-faced and venerated attending physician I have ever had. Not being adept at making such a presentation (crafting a smooth narrative and triaging salient points), I fumbled and stumbled through what must have been an agonizing, interminable story. As

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the sweat rolled down my neck, the room was as silent as the grave. The patient looked at me with her big eyes. And the only reaction I evoked from my daunting attending physician was a furrowed brow and an exasperated and emphatic look at his watch.

As I drove home that night, I called my wife. “There is no way I will ever be an internal medicine physician. I just don’t think I have what it takes.” She laughed and consoled me. “You just have to be patient.”

But patience is hard.

The trouble with patience is that it runs counter to what we want. We want what we want and we want it now. We want suffering to end, sadness to be gone, and pleasure to be nary a moment away.

Remember when you were a kid and your parents told you to wait? Or they quantified it by telling you it would “only be 10 minutes”? As soon as the duration slipped from their lips, the hands of the clock would instantly freeze. The watched pot would never boil. My mother-in-law is famous for quipping, “Don’t pray for patience, because then you’ll have to use it.” Patience is hard.

But it is necessary.

As I teach medical students and internal medicine residents in my daily practice, I can sense their nervous impatience. Oh, they are sweet and kind and indulgent of all that I am teaching them, but they are impatient with themselves. They just want to get better. They want to know more.

They want to be more comfortable and less worried. And they want it all now.

Now, this isn’t necessarily bad; it just isn’t realistic. One thing I have learned in medical practice (if not in life) is that you cannot rush experience. So much of what we know begins in instinct, habit or book knowledge, but then we need life to teach us what it looks like, what it means. In living life – in gaining experience – we mold our intuition, form our common sense and cultivate our judgment. We enflesh the bones of fact with the sinews of sense. We inch beyond intelligence toward wisdom.

And this doesn’t just happen overnight. It requires patience.

Being impatient isn’t simply galling; it can be dangerous. We are at risk of making hasty, ill-considered decisions simply because we don’t allow

ourselves time to discern, time for the circumstance to unfold. We are obsessed with the mantra “Don’t just sit there, do something!” Blaise Pascal saw the dark side of this tendency: “All the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber.” In “War and Peace,” Leo Tolstoy would add, “The strongest of all warriors are these two – time and patience.” In the daily rush of medicine, I have seen patients stifled by an eager student’s feverish pace of questioning.

But I have also witnessed patients reveal something dramatic simply because a student sat still and said nothing.

Exchanging letters with a young poet eager to “arrive” at a place of poetic greatness, German poet Rainer Maria Rilke counseled patience: “Allow your verdicts their own quiet, untroubled development which like all progress must come from deep within and cannot be forced or accelerated.

Everything must be carried to term before it is born. To let every impression and the germ of every feeling come to completion inside, in the dark, in the unsayable, the unconscious, in what is unattainable to one’s own intellect, and to wait with deep humility and patience for the hour when a new clarity is delivered: that alone is to live as an artist...”

Contending with his young friend’s tenacious impatience three months later, Rilke would sigh, “You are so young, all still lies ahead of you, and I should like to ask you, as best I can, dear Sir, to be patient towards all that is unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms, like books written in a foreign tongue. Do not now strive to uncover answers: they cannot be given you because you have not been able to live them. And what matters is to live everything. Live the questions for now.

Perhaps then you will gradually, without noticing it, live your way into the answer, one distant day in the future.”

It has been 23 years since I stood in Susan’s room with sweat trickling down my neck. It has been a long time since I first doubted I could ever make a go of this specialty. Today, I am an internal medicine physician. I teach residents and medical students in the clinic as well as at the medical school. I understand my students’ and residents’ impatience because I was just like them. Perhaps my wife was right.

Perhaps I did just need to be patient.

Everything must be carried to term before it is born.

DR. TOD WORNER is a husband, father, Catholic convert and practicing internal medicine physician. His blog, “Catholic Thinking,” is found at Aleteia.org. He also writes for Patheos (“A Catholic Thinker”) and the National Catholic Register. This commentary is adapted from the blog at www.wordonfire.org. Follow him on Twitter @ thinkercatholic.

October 22, 2021 | catholicnewsherald.com CATHOLIC NEWS HERALDI

23

Kelly Henson

Help your children thrive with an education in virtue

“

Son, I think we should have a conversation about the virtue of prudence.”

Try to find a way to open a conversation with a pre-teen about virtue that doesn’t kill their interest and put the adult into lecture mode almost instantly. It’s not easy.

Virtue education needs a major PR overhaul. We want our children to speak as fluently and passionately about virtue as they do about video games and classroom drama. More importantly, we want them to know the virtues and aim to embrace these behaviors in their daily lives. However, the conversation quickly gets bogged down and awkward when put into practice.

In fact, the same myopic reticence that used to accompany basic sex education in the home has traded spots with communication about virtue development.

Why is this?

Perhaps parents themselves have been deprived of an adequate education in virtue. Can you name the four Cardinal Virtues? The three Theological Virtues?

The seven virtues that help you to combat the seven Capital Sins? We need words to unlock the richness of reflections available on these topics, extending back to the Early Church Fathers.

Perhaps parents have been overwhelmed by all the other things they have to “get right” with their kids – technical words for a STEM education, feeling words for emotional intelligence, anatomical and cultural labels for sexual education, vocabulary words for high test scores, and an ever-changing political and social vocabulary so your child is not labeled a bigot or insensitive. These vocabularies will help our children to some extent in a word-driven economy and complicated social sphere, but they will have little bearing on their eternal destination.

Thankfully, we have a few virtues that have gotten plenty of attention lately, even if the modern definitions have skewed significantly from the classical and Christian definitions. Justice and kindness are having a moment in the spotlight. They are seen as external virtues and easier to talk about than internal virtues such as humility, prudence and even modesty, which involves much more than a visible percentage of skin. If the virtues of justice and kindness are part of a family’s vocabulary in discipline and in their constructive analysis of situations, adding other virtues and exploring the traditional definitions of each is a simple step forward.

Because we are unused to using the vocabulary of virtue, it’s not easy to begin it in an emotionally charged moment. If our families focus on learning about and practicing one virtue a month, the virtues become tools in our family journey toward holiness. It is especially helpful to talk about how each virtue is actually a mean, a balance, between two extremes. Children and teens will readily see how they lean toward an excess or impoverishment in each area and can be coached and encouraged as they adjust toward the virtuous behavior.

The virtue of courage has a unique role to play in virtue conversation today. Young people often wish to be courageous, while they may not yet wish to be temperate or truthful or generous. When you are working with older children, moral direction frequently requires more than quick reminders or commands to “share,” “do this,” and “stop that.” After understanding the situation or challenge, asking how they can approach it with courage can lead into the other virtue that applies in the situation while honoring the emotional difficulty and rigorous work of self-mastery that moral action requires.

Whether you acknowledge the obstacles we face in our quest for goodness as the devil, original sin and our inherited weakness for comfort or you phrase challenges as “overcoming resistance” in your life, it all points to the same reality. Virtuous life is hard because it is not merely something we do, it is also who we are and become, and there are real, intelligent spirits who would rather us be something else.

Can you have the courage to tell the truth? How could you respond to his teasing with courage and kindness? How would you dress at the beach if you had the courage to be modest and not care what others thought of your personal style? Can you have the courage to forgive your sister?

Would it take courage for you to curb your late night video game time so you are rested for school? Questions like these can lead to fruitful, open conversations where virtue and emotion are not put at odds (as some modern psychologists will claim) but work in harmony to associate virtue with the nobler version of oneself that we would each like to be. In this manner, children can consciously open themselves to the workings of grace in their lives.

Our society says it values equal opportunity, dignity for all and education for everyone. If this is so, an education in virtue achieves these goals in the hearts of children so they can be leaders who will enact real change in our world and who will experience authentic happiness in their personal lives. In his encyclical “Rerum Novarum,” Pope Leo XIII says, “The true work and nobility of man lie in his moral qualities, that is, in virtue; that virtue is, moreover, the common inheritance of men, equally within the reach of high and low, rich and poor; and that virtue, and virtue alone, wherever found, will be followed by the rewards of everlasting happiness.”

Societal values, based on nothing more than popular sentiment and political posturing, cannot replicate the solid foundation for thinking and action that a training in moral habits – virtues – and moral aversions – vices – has provided for centuries. If you had the courage to do so, which education would you choose for your children?

KELLY HENSON is a Catholic writer and speaker who explores the art of integrating faith into daily life. She and her family are parishioners of Our Lady of Grace Parish in Greensboro. She blogs at www.kellyjhenson.com.

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‘Mercy, love, invitation, humility, joy, selfless, generous service and good example are our only tools, never harshness, condemnation or pride.’

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catholicnewsherald.com | October 22, 2021 CATHOLIC NEWS HERALD

DALMAU VIENE DE LA PÁGINA 15

De 1985 a 1988, la hermana Pilar Dalmau se convirtió en directora del ministerio hispano en la Diócesis de Atlanta.

La Hermana Margarita Martin describe sus mejores años en Atlanta. “Ella estaba llena de devoción y entusiasmo sentando las bases del ministerio hispano en la Arquidiócesis de Atlanta, básicamente comenzando desde cero. Fue su primera experiencia organizando el ministerio hispano a nivel diocesano” En 1988 respondió al llamado de la Diócesis de Charlotte y se instaló como directora del naciente ministerio hispano hasta 1996, cuando, respondiendo a la solicitud del difunto Obispo Joseph Galante, se mudó a Beaumont, Texas, como directora del ministerio hispano.

Finalmente, de 2003 a 2010 Pilar asumió la dirección de la Escuela de Religión en la parroquia Holy Cross en Atlanta.

Según afirma la hermana Sagrario, “ella quería seguir la obra misionera de San Pablo, la de encontrar y formar líderes

VIENE DE LA PÁGINA 15

insultos y amenazas de todo tipo, incluso obispos y sacerdotes buscaron manchar su nombre.

En su última homilía se dirigió al ejército salvadoreño diciéndole: “En nombre de Dios y en nombre de este sufrido pueblo cuyos lamentos suben hasta el cielo cada día más tumultuosos, les suplico, les ruego, les ordeno en nombre de Dios: ¡cese la represión!”

El 3 de febrero de 2015 el Papa Francisco reconoció su martirio y fue beatificado el 25 de mayo de ese mismo año por el Cardenal Angelo Amato, Prefecto de la Congregación para las Causas de los Santos, en San Salvador.

FROM PAGE 18

human dignity, including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling the climate crisis and caring for the poor,” she said in a statement.

Biden and Pope Francis previously met in 2016, when Biden was vice president, after they both spoke at a conference on adult stem-cell research at the Vatican. In recent weeks, there has been speculation that the two leaders would likely meet since Biden would be in Rome.

In a recent interview, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, said he was helping the Holy See prepare for Biden’s first presidential visit to the Vatican, sometime during an Oct. 30-31 Rome summit of leading rich and developed nations.

Vatican U.S. ambassador nominee announced WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Joe Biden will nominate Catholic lawyer Joseph Donnelly of Indiana, a former member of the

TIEMPO DE COSECHAR

En 2010, debido a una sensible baja de energías, la hermana Pilar se retiró del ministerio activo. Progresivamente su estado físico, audición, vista, memoria y habla se deterioraron y aprendió humildemente a aceptar sus límites.

La hermana Sagrario dijo, “como decimos en nuestras constituciones, ‘al

ESTREMECEDORES TESTIMONIOS

ROMERO

IN BRIEF

para continuar la obra, ¡y luego seguir adelante! Fue incansable, absolutamente dedicada y al mismo tiempo muy fiel a su comunidad y vida espiritual. Trabajó tranquila, humilde y eficientemente sin esperar reconocimiento”.

“Las palabras atribuidas a San Oscar Romero, describen muy acertadamente su postura interior: “Somos trabajadores, no maestros constructores, ministros, no mesías”. Esta verdad le dio a Pilar un propósito mayor, un panorama más amplio en todo lo que hizo, un cierto desprendimiento saludable y humildad. En sus muchos éxitos y reconocimientos, sabía bien quién era el maestro de obras. Ella estaba disponible, estaba lista para trabajar donde la necesitaran. Y, como decía Santa Rafaela María, estaba ansiosa por dar a conocer y amar a Cristo”.

Al término de la Misa, varios de los asistentes dieron su testimonio sobre la violencia vivida en El Salvador durante la guerra civil ocurrida entre 1979 y 1992.

Eduardo Bernal, salvadoreño recientemente ordenado diácono permanente en nuestra diócesis, dijo que conoció a San Romero a través del testimonio de un pueblo, y que éste, “me ha acompañado en mis 28 años de ministerio en la Iglesia”.

Emocionado por los tristes recuerdos de la guerra, añadió que desde la década del 90 cuando emigró a Estados Unidos no ha podido regresar por el trauma psicológico, pero que “gracias a la intercesión de él y la iglesia me ha ido sanando”.

Virgilio y Vilma Márquez, parroquianos de la Basílica San Lorenzo en Asheville, narraron con dolor su experiencia de pérdida de amigos y familiares ocurrida en una masacre de civiles perpetrada

U.S. House and Senate, to be the next U.S. ambassador to the Vatican. The nomination must be confirmed by the Senate. Donnelly, 66, served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2007 to 2013, representing Indiana’s 2nd Congressional District, and was a U.S. senator from 2013 to 2019. He is currently a partner at Akin Gump, a Washington firm specializing in public law and policy law. He was a member of the Afghanistan Study Group and has been a professor at his alma mater, the University of Notre Dame, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in political science in 1977 and a law degree in 1981. “Joe has been an exemplary public servant in Congress, an invaluable friend of Notre Dame and of me personally, and he is an ideal choice to represent the United States at the Vatican,” said Holy Cross Father John I. Jenkins. When Donnelly was running for reelection to the Senate in 2018, Democrats for Life of America said: “Donnelly has been a consistent pro-life voice as well as advocate for women and families, co-sponsoring many important pieces of legislation.”

— Catholic News Service

acercarnos al momento de la muerte… unimos nuestra muerte a la ofrenda salvadora de Cristo por la humanidad tratando de vivir al máximo este momento final de nuestro camino’.

Otro recuerdo reciente que tengo de Pilar es ver lo agitada, lo incómoda que estaba, por no poder cortarse el pelo durante más de un año. Ciertamente, su cabello estaba desordenado, pero dados los protocolos de St Joseph Manor durante la pandemia de COVID-19, no hubo posibilidad de contar con tales servicios.

Recuerdo que Personalmente, me conmovió mucho su aceptación humilde y agradecida de la ayuda cuando se enfermó o en otros asuntos complicados. ¡Que descanse en paz! ¡Fue una servidora ejemplar en todos los aspectos!”.

Su trayectoria fue intensa y llena de acontecimientos, basada en el amor. El servicio fue su fuerza, alegría y guía; así como su amor a su vocación, a Santa Rafaela María, a cada una de sus hermanas, a su familia y amigos, “y a las personas que encontró en su fructífero caminar.

MISIONERA INCANSABLE

El Padre Fidel Melo, ex-director del

en diciembre de 1981 en la zona norte de Morazán, donde fallecieron entre 1200 a 1600 personas pacíficas, “inocentes que nunca conocieron un arma”.

También se presentó David Grande, familiar del sacerdote jesuita Rutilio Grande, amigo de San Romero, asesinado en marzo de 1977, quien relató detalles de la vida de Monseñor Romero.

Moisés Cisneros, salvadoreño y director del coro Cristo Reina de San John Neumann, dijo que la fecha le hace recordar el dolor vivido, “como si fuera hoy mismo”, y ver hoy a San Oscar Romero elevado a los altares, “es una alegría que no se puede explicar”.

Finalmente, el Padre Medellín agradeció la participación del Padre John F. Starczewski; los diáconos Eduardo Bernal y Herbert Quintanilla; el Coro Cristo Reina; y los invitados, Virgilio y Vilma Márquez y David Grande.

MIRACLE FROM PAGE 5

of prayer,” he said. “Many people have passed away in that (state), but for some reason I was spared. I’m sure it was the intercession of the Blessed Mother, who I prayed to a lot in the hospital, and the prayer vigil with Father McGivney that allowed me to recover.”

It’s worth reiterating that there were no changes in treatment nor any additional shots administered to Famularo. There was only one thing that changed – and that didn’t occur in a hospital. It took place at St. Mark’s.

“After that prayer vigil, I began my recovery and those are the facts,” he said. “It’s as simple as that.”

St. Mark’s parochial vicar, Father Melchesideck Yumo, who was called to anoint Famularo in the hospital, concurs with him on that point.

“I would think in that direction because it was already declared that he was going to die,” Father Yumo said. “The medical experts had given up already. When I went to him at the hospital, he wasn’t even conscious that someone was there with him.”

He added, “Shortly after that prayer vigil, Vince recovered in a very mysterious way. So, I would think in the line of attributing that to the intercession of Father McGivney.”

Famularo, who spent 39 days in the hospital and a subsequent rehabilitation facility, was overcome with an all-encompassing feeling of love when he learned about the vigil held on his behalf.

“It was like a physical explosion in my body,” he said. “My God, I can’t thank these people enough. It was such a humbling feeling.”

Ministerio Hispano en nuestra diócesis, recuerda a la hermana Pilar como una “misionera incansable”, con “gran sentido pastoral y acompañamiento a la comunidad hispana”.

“Ella ocupó la dirección de la comunidad cuando el Ministerio Hispano comenzaba a florecer”, dijo, resaltando su compromiso de promoción de vocaciones, “a todo nivel”, inclusive a las que llegaban de fuera del país, “incluyendo la mía”, señaló el Padre Melo.

Por ese entonces, relató, se celebraba la Misa en español en la Catedral San Patricio, luego, explicó, con la formación del Centro Hispano, se trasladó a la Calle Shenandoah, al este de Charlotte.

“La hermana Pilar apoyó de una manera decidida el diaconado permanente entre los hispanos. Prueba de ello son los diáconos Edwin Rodríguez, ya fallecido, Rafael Torres y Carlos Medina. También los movimientos apostólicos, siendo los primeros en crecer el Cursillo y la Renovación Carismática”, añadió el Padre Melo.

Debido a la enfermedad de COVID-19 que la aquejó en sus últimos días, pasó en soledad sus últimos días. La hermana Sagrario afirma con seguridad que “entregó su vida con valentía, generosidad y amor”.

FESTIVAL VIENE DE LA PÁGINA 14

la Merced que es nuestra Santa Patrona, y se festeja normalmente cercas del 24 de Septiembre cuya día es su patronazgo, en esta ocasión se pospuso un tanto por la pandemia y el recién cambio de administración en nuestra parroquia. En las ediciones pasadas mas o menos tuvimos la asistencia de entre 1000 a 2000 asistentes ya que es una invitación a toda la comunidad y a cada una de las misas que se celebran aquí en la parroquia, incluyendo a la comunidad anglo, aun que en esta ocasión tuvimos menos gente ya que aun estamos aun en pandemia, pero gracias a Dios todo salió muy bien” También Carmen Leyva coordinadora del Fiesta Val, nos dio sus comentarios así como una breve historia de como comenzó: “El festival inicio hace 6 años y comenzó con el concepto de kermés por su servidora, en lo que fue mi primer año como Coordinadora del Ministerio Hispano de Nuestra Señora de la Merced, hace 6 años. El objetivo es recaudar fondos para ayudar con los gastos durante todo el año tales como: retiros, celebración a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, materia litúrgico, etc.

Y lo primordial: !Convivir como Comunidad Unida!

El total de personas que ayudan a organizar el evento es de alrededor de 20 servidores y todos pertenecen a los diferentes ministerios dentro de la parroquia, quisiera aprovechar este medio y hacer un agradecimiento en general a toda la comunidad quien dona el 100 por ciento toda la comida, bebida, sus dones y talentos para este evento.

Hay dos factores que son el alma del Festival: comida y entretenimiento.”

Y es así como el festival termino al final del día, siendo un éxito, debido a la alegría de las familias que asistieron en esta ocasión, y no esta demas decirles que son bienvenidos en la próxima edición a Fiesta Val, en la Iglesia de Nuestra Señora de la Merced.

Están invitados.