May 3, 2002

The Catholic News & Herald 1

May 3, 2002

May 3, 2002 Volume 11 t Number 32

Inside Spring Fling lets seniors kick up their heels

...Page 5

Retreat helps men grow closer to God, each other

...Page 7

Years in Africa shape life of woman religious

...Page 16

Local News Refugee relocation requires community outreach

...Page 5

Province bishops recommend “zerotolerance” policy for priests

...Page 8

Every Week Entertainment ...Pages 10-11

Editorials & Columns ...Pages 12-13 Jesus said to his disciples: “Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”

S e r v i n g C a t h o l i c s in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte

Stewardship message amplified at national convention in S.C.

By KATHY SCHMUGGE Correspondent COLUMBIA, S.C. — “When stewardship takes hold as a way of life, the parish family is on fire,” said Barbara Gaddy, associate director of development for the Diocese of Charlotte and one of the facilitators at the National Convention on Stewardship. The event was held at the Embassy Suites Hotel April 27, the newly designated ICSC Region IV Stewardship Day. The event, sponsored and hosted by the Archdiocese of Atlanta and the dioceses of Charleston, Charlotte, Raleigh and Savannah, brought together the talent and experience of leaders from throughout the southeast to teach others how to make that fire of stewardship spread to every parish and home.

Retired Bishop John Snyder from the Diocese of St. Augustine, Fla., who is known for his innovative approach to stewardship, gave the opening address where he discussed how his own notion about “what it means to be a steward” has evolved over the years. He credited Barbara and Dutch Schultz, who staffed the first “stewardship office” in his diocese for enriching his own understanding of stewardship.

“They helped me to see that stewardship was about putting God first in everything. I had to learn that nothing is mine,” he said. “Everything we have is a gift. It’s all a gift.”

After the keynote speech, individuals attended various workshops that highlighted aspects of implementing and understanding stewardship. Jim Kelley, director of development for the Diocese of Charlotte, gave a talk on “Forming Stewardship Committees” about the importance of having a stewardship committee and the desired qualities of its members.

“Look for people who are eucharistic, who have a deep relationship with Jesus, who are grateful for that relationship and who act on that gratitude,” said Kelley. He also suggested seeking individuals who exemplify the qualities of a good steward, who are dependable and optimistic.

Kelley outlined the tasks of the committee such as effective publicity, developing an annual plan and organizing events like “Commitment Sunday,” where parishioners have an opportunity to present or express

See STEWARDSHIP, page 8

Teens “Think, Feel and Perceive with Christ” at youth conference

Photo by Mary Marshall

Christopher Padgett shares his conversion to Catholicism with 350 youths from 33 parishes around the Diocese of Charlotte at the 25th Annual Diocesan Youth Conference, which was held at Camp Thunderbird April 26-28.

By MARY MARSHALL Correspondent LAKE WYLIE, S.C. — Catholic youth on fire about their faith — that was the predominant feeling found at the 25th Annual Diocesan Youth Conference: Sentire Cum Christo (“To Think, Feel and Perceive with Christ”) held at Camp Thunderbird April 26-28.

Three hundred and fifty youths from 33 parishes throughout the Diocese of Charlotte spent the weekend learning, communicating and socializing as they attended workshops, concerts and Masses; gave testimonials; and listened to guest speakers.

Christopher Padgett shared his journey of conversion to Catholicism.

Founder of the band Scarecrow and Tinmen, which performed Friday evening, Padgett integrated personal anecdotes, humor and lightheartedness into his story that captivated the audience.

As Padgett has performed for various denominations throughout the years, he said his curiosity about the Catholic faith has been piqued. “Visiting other denominations, I asked the same questions over and over, always receiving a different an-

swer,” he said. “I was frustrated with the denominational breakdown and always came back to the Scripture, ‘And the gates of hell will not prevail over the church.’”

Padgett soon realized there was an unmatched consistency in the faith and morals of the Catholic Church. “I yearned to learn about the faith, the apostles, the Scripture. I was excited, on fire. I reached out expanding my knowledge. Many of my questions were answered. My life was changed; I was exploding with so much understanding.”

Padgett encouraged all to be excited about their Catholic faith, to set examples and to blow people away with their beliefs.

The students were excited about their faith, many of them elated to be in a setting with fellow Catholics.

Carmen Lara, a ninth-grade student and member of St. James Church in Concord, expounded on the topic of keynote speaker Msgr. Joseph Kerin, pastor of St. Mark Church in Huntersville, which was “carpe diem” (“seize the day) and “cum Christo” (“serve

See DYC, page 14

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Bethlehem reduced to city of crushed cars, rotting garbage BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) — The sounds and the smells of the old city of Bethlehem have changed. Now instead of the tantalizing smell of exotic spices and sizzling grilled meat mingling with the sounds of tour groups tramping their way to the Church of the Nativity, one hears the crunching of glass underfoot and smells the rotting garbage. Flies hover noisily over piles of overgrown trash, and burned-out hulks of cars litter the old marketplace, which a mere four years ago had been renovated with high hopes and foreign money, ready to greet the stream of millennial-year tourists.

Cars battered and run over by tanks line the roads heading to the marketplace and the alleyways leading up to the Church of the Nativity. Almost a month after the Israeli incursion, only a few residents venture outside their homes, while children play among the shattered cars and scattered clothes that old women once sold at the market.

Concern for seafarers spans from immigrants to tourists, pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope John Paul II said the church’s concern for sea-traveling people spans from tourists on cruise ships to illegal immigrants desperate to make a better life. “It is important to ensure that those who make up the great family of the sea are not lacking spiritual support,” he told participants in a plenary meeting of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers. “They must be offered the opportunity to encounter God and discover in him life’s true meaning,” he said April 29. Caring for immigrants means ensuring that they have “adequate opportunities to cultivate their own faith and religious practice,” as well as caring for their physical needs, he said.

Events give 101 reasons to end death penalty, cardinal says WASHINGTON (CNS) — The recent exoneration of the 100th deathrow inmate and the release of the report from the Illinois Governor’s Commission on Capital Punishment add up to “101 reasons to abandon the death penalty,”

CNS photo from Reuters

Friar escorts Palestinian man from Church of the Nativity A Franciscan friar accompanies a Palestinian man as he leaves the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem April 30. A group of 27 people filed out of the church after being holed up there for nearly four weeks. Israeli troops continued to encircle the church compound waiting for the remainder of the Palestinians inside to surrender.

Pamphlets offer ideas for dealing with pain of abuse scandal WASHINGTON (CNS) — Catholic publishers are offering two new pamphlets to help Catholics deal with the continuing revelations of clergy sexual abuse or other problems caused by someone in the church. “When Someone Is Hurt by the Church,” written by Lorene Hanley Duquin and published by Our Sunday Visitor Publishing, based in Huntington, Ind., offers practical reflections and useful suggestions for helping Catholics who may have been hurt by someone or some process in the Catholic Church. The second pamphlet, called “Time of Crisis, Time of Faith,” focuses more directly on the clergy sex abuse crisis and can be downloaded for free on the World Wide Web at www.pauline. org/church. Compiled by Pauline Books and Media, a Boston-based publisher run by the Daughters of St. Paul, the leaflet

Episcopal May 3, 2002 Volume 11 • Number 32 Publisher: Most Reverend William G. Curlin Editor: Joann S. Keane Associate Editor: Kevin E. Murray Staff Writer: Alesha M. Price Graphic Designer: Tim Faragher Advertising Representative: Cindi Feerick Secretary: Sherill Beason 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203 Mail: P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237 Phone: (704) 370-3333 FAX: (704) 370-3382 E-mail: catholicnews@charlottediocese.org The Catholic News & Herald, USPC 007-393, is published by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203, 44 times a year, weekly except for Christmas week and Easter week and every two weeks during June, July and August for $15 per year for enrollees in parishes of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte and $18 per year for all other subscribers. Second-class postage paid at Charlotte NC and other cities. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237.

May 3, 2002

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Bishop William G. Curlin will take part in the following events: May 12 — 10:30 a.m.

Confirmation Sacred Heart, Brevard May 13 — 7 p.m.

Confirmation Our Lady of Lourdes, Monroe May 16 — 7 p.m.

Confirmation St. Stephen, Elkin May 17 — 7 p.m.

Confirmation St. Paul the Apostle, Greensboro May 18 — 4 p.m.

Mass at Knights of Columbus Convention Greensboro

according to the head of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Policy. In an April 24 statement, Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick of Washington said the two news items help illustrate the need to limit and end the death penalty. On April 9, Ray Krone was freed by the state of Arizona after serving 10 years in prison for rape and murder. DNA tests vindicated him and pointed to another inmate as the likely person who sexually assaulted and killed a Phoenix waitress in 1991.

His release marked the 100th death-row inmate in recent years to have been exonerated after conviction. A few days later, the Illinois commission recommended 85 steps intended to avoid wrongful convictions, prevent prosecutorial misconduct and ensure defendants are represented by competent counsel. It also recommended reducing the number of crimes eligible for the death penalty from 20 to five.

Bishops of Americas to discuss idea for new

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St. Margaret Church, 1422 Soco Rd., from 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Brown bag lunchtime with provided drinks will begin at 12:30 p.m. The topic, “Faithful Living in Later Life,” will be presented in two sessions and will focus on vocation and ministry in the later years. For pre-registration and other information, call Sandra Breakfield at (704) 370-3220 or Marlo Wallace at (704) 370-3228.

25 MAGGIE VALLEY — Franciscan Father John Quigley will be facilitating “The Trinity’s Invitation to Full Life” at Living Waters Catholic Reflection Center, 103 Living Waters Lane, this week through May 31. Participants will look at the spiritual, emotional and intellectual aspects of the Holy Trinity’s role in people lives. For further details, call the center at (828) 9263833 or e-mail lwcrc@main.nc.us.

26 HENDERSONVILLE — The St.

Spanish Bible translation WASHINGTON (CNS) — Can one translation serve all the 300 million Spanish-speaking Catholics in the Western Hemisphere? The answer could determine whether the bishops in the Americas support a new Spanish translation of the Bible. Supporters of the idea say it would help unify the Spanish-speaking Catholics in the hemisphere, standardize the use of Bible quotes in catechetical and liturgical materials, and provide revenue through royalties and sales. Difficulties include variations in Spanish terminology from country to country, different cultural and social situations throughout the region which influence understanding and application of sacred Scripture, and finding a large enough group of biblical scholars with the time for the huge translating task. The U.S. church is taking the lead in advancing the idea. In March the U.S. bishops’ Administrative Committee approved formation of an ad hoc committee to formally explore the possibilities of a new Spanish Bible translation with the Latin American bishops’ council, known as CELAM, and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops.

German nuns ordered out of Bavarian school over abusive methods COLOGNE, Germany (CNS) — Bavarian state and civil authorities have ordered nuns of the Teaching Sisters of Our Beloved Lady to stop teaching in a school at the end of the school year due to abusive tactics. Parents accused the nuns of “teaching through fear” and of having an attitude “inimical to the physical” aspects of life. The nuns’ activities were first noticed last fall at a school in Auerbach, when parents discovered the nuns had withdrawn state-approved eighth-grade biology books because they were unhappy with the way the books dealt with sex education. Tenth-graders were given biology textbooks with the first 14 pages torn out for the same reason. The school is run by a committee of local interests, including the town and the convent, but is publicly funded. The Bavarian education ministry told the nuns to restore the books, but they failed to do so.

Francis of the Hills Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order will meet today from 3-5 p.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 208 7th Ave. West.

Visitors and inquirers are welcome, so for more information, call Helen Gillogly, SFO, at (828) 883-9645.

Upcoming ROCK HILL, S.C. — The Rock Hill Oratory, 434 Charlotte Ave., is hosting its annual “Horizons of the Spirit” July 15-19 with morning sessions from 8:45-11:30 a.m. and evening sessions beginning at 7 p.m. Anne Koester, associate director for the Center for Pastoral Liturgy in Notre Dame, Ind., and Keith Egan, founder of the Center for Spirituality in South Bend, Ind., will present the conference’s theme, “Worship as the Source and Center of Life in the Spirit.” For those who want to enrich their prayer and spiritual lives, call the Oratory at (803) 327-2097 or write to: P.O. Box 11586, Rock Hill, SC 29731.

Please submit notices of events for the Diocesan Planner at least 15 days prior to

May 3, 2002

Religious orders, prelates endorse national housing trust fund WASHINGTON (CNS) — Catholic religious leaders are at the forefront of a coalition of religious leaders nationwide calling for the creation of a national affordable-housing trust fund. The fund, which would not require new taxes to finance it, would help stem a growing housing crisis for the nation’s poorest households. Money for it would come from a surplus from the Federal Housing Administration. Through April 24, 187 members of the House had co-sponsored legislation creating the trust fund, 31 shy of a majority that could force a vote on the bill. The heads of 29 religious orders, and the leadership teams of 40 other orders, were joined by U.S. Protestant, Muslim, Jewish and Buddhist religious leaders in signing an April 24 letter to President Bush asking him to sign the bill should it reach his desk.

French church leaders express concern over support for Le Pen PARIS (CNS) — French church leaders voiced concern at the support for far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen after he placed second in the first round of presidential elections. “These results clearly show a radicalization of voters’ political choices and highlight a deep crisis in our society,” Archbishop Jean-Pierre Ricard, president of the French bishops’ conference, said in an April 22 statement.

“In the days ahead, we need to follow our intelligence rather than our instincts, discernment rather than spontaneous reaction, and calm rather than fear,” he said.

The archbishop spoke as campaigning intensified for a May 5 second-round ballot that will pit nationalist Le Pen against incumbent President Jacques Chirac.

British church groups caution voters on racist issues in May election MANCHESTER, England (CNS) — British church groups and local pastors cautioned voters on potentially racist issues being raised in May 2 elections.

Some Catholic groups have criticized some of the policies of the British National Party, which opposes immigration to Britain and is promoting a policy of

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CHARLOTTE — The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians Division 1 Mecklenburg County-St. Brigid, an Irish-Catholic social and charitable inter-parish group, will meet tonight at 7:30 p.m. at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. Anyone interested in their Irish-Catholic roots, call Jeanmarie Schuler at (704) 554-0720 for further information.

22 GUILFORD COUNTY — The Ancient Order of Hibernians Guilford County Division, the oldest and largest order of Irish Catholic men, is looking for more Irish Catholic men to join them for meetings, educational seminars and social events. Contact Michael Slane at (336) 665-9264 for time and location.

22 MAGGIE VALLEY — A series of presentations; sponsored by CSS Elder Ministry and facilitated by Richard Von Stamwitz, a national certified gerontological counselor; will continue throughout the diocese.

Today’s presentation will be given at

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CNS photo by Michael Hoyt, Catholic Standard

Maryland Catholic school damaged in deadly tornado A statue of Mary stands amid the wreckage at Archbishop Neale School in La Plata, Md., April 29, after a deadly tornado ripped through the area the evening before. Much of the elementary school’s roof was torn off and several walls collapsed in the twister that left three people dead in southern Maryland. repatriating immigrant families. More than 150 local authorities in England have elections with approximately 6,000 council seats to be decided. And following the surprising second-place win in the French presidential elections by the National Front’s Jean-Marie Le Pen, there has been increasing speculation about the prospects of success in some areas by the British National Party.

Family of Catholic lawyer inside Church of Nativity

awaits his return BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) — Each night after putting her four children to sleep, Rosybel Salman’s thoughts turn to her husband, Anton, who has remained inside the besieged Church of the Nativity with some 200 other people. “I wonder what he is doing, if he is sleeping well and if he ate that day,” said Rosybel Salman, 38, a Catholic. “Right now I must be strong. I can’t do anything. If it will last much longer, I

May 8 CHARLOTTE — The 50+ Club of St. John Neumann Church, 8451 Idlewild Rd., will be conducting a meeting this morning at 11 a.m. with a recognition of those couples celebrating their 50th anniversaries, lunch and a performance from Johnette Nichols, “the Bag Lady,” in the parish center.

Donations are being accepted during the meeting. For more information, call Bobbe Conlin at (704) 643-1376 or Gloria Silipigni at (704) 821-1343.

11 SYLVA — A dialogue on welcoming Hispanics will be held at St. Mary Church, 22 Bartlett St., today from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. The gathering — open to all interested in this ministry of the church — will include a history of Catholic immigration patterns in North Carolina, the teachings of the church, understanding Hispanics and their culture and spirituality and how people are responding to the U.S. bishops’ pastorals on Hispanic Ministry.

To register by May 6 and for other

details, call St. William Church in Murphy at (828) 837-2000 or e-mail stwilli@tricounty.main.nc.us.

12 CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Pkwy., will be having its Christian Coffeehouse tonight from 7:30-9 p.m. following 6 p.m. Mass. Through food, fellowship and Christian music from Kathy and David with Redeemed, participants can join in the spiritual celebration.

For reservations of a table of six or more, sponsorship opportunities and other information, call Kathy Bartlett at (704) 614-9100.

14 CHARLOTTE — The St. Gabriel Church Arthritis Support and Education Group will meet this morning from 10-11 a.m. in Room D of the parish ministry center located at 3016 Providence Rd. For further details, call (704) 362-5047, Ext. 217.

14 NEWTON — There will be a diocesan school of leaders held at St. Joseph Church, 720 West 13th St., tonight at 7 p.m. The topic will focus on postcursillo and witnessing using

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don’t know if I will have the strength. I pray a lot.” Anton Salman, 43, chairman of the board of the St. Anton Charitable Society and an attorney for the Franciscan friars, is one of the members of the Palestinian team negotiating to end the standoff at the Church of the Nativity.

Vocations work seen aided by broadening image of God, humanity MONTREAL (CNS) — To foster vocations in today’s church, Catholics must broaden their image of God, change their view of humanity and embark on a contemplative path, the president of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas said April 20. Sister Marie Chin urged delegates attending the April 18-21 Third Continental Congress on Vocations in Montreal to “listen with different ears so we can hear the vulnerabilities and see with different eyes that all humanity is more connected than we can ever imagine.” She added, “God will raise up vocations in our church where our deepest gladness meets the needs of the world.”

Mothers in Ramallah recall terror when Israelis took their sons RAMALLAH, West Bank (CNS) — Although it had been more than 20 days since she had gone to Mass, Muna Fadayel, 49, did not go to church April 22, after the Israeli withdrawal from Ramallah. She waited instead at home with her sister-in-law, Samya, 49, and her mother-in-law, Mary, 85, for her son Rafat to return home. Rafat Fadayel, 25, his older brother, Fayek, 27, and four of their friends were arrested at the Fadayel home by Israeli soldiers April 10. Rafat Fadayel, a graduate student in accounting at Bir Zeit University, remained imprisoned, while his brother and friends were released a few days later. “When (the Israelis) took them, they were very strong. I told them to go with God, but I was very afraid,” Muna Fadayel said. “Now every time the phone rings I think it is Rafat,” she said.

segments from the Christian Life talk. This will also be held at Sacred Heart Church, 128 N. Fulton St., with a discussion of environmental groups and witnessing on May 25 at 9 a.m. For more information, call Dan Hines at (704) 544-6665.

18 GASTONIA — St. Michael Church will be sponsoring its first annual invitational golf tournament today at Cramer Mountain Country Club. The captain’s choice event; which will include lunch, golf, cart, prizes and a reception; will begin with a shotgun start at 1 p.m. For further information, call (704) 8671212.

20 ASHEVILLE — The St. Martin de Porres Pro-Chapter of the Dominican Laity meets tonight and every third Monday at 7 p.m. in St. Justin’s Center at the Basilica of St. Lawrence, 97 Haywood St. Inquirers are welcome. For more information, contact Beverly Reid, OPL, at (828) 253-6676.

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May 3, 2002

Speaker tells Afghans’ story of hope and

By JOANITA M. NELLENBACH Correspondent ASHEVILLE — War and bombing campaigns have left millions in Afghanistan homeless, but not hopeless.

Organizations like Catholic Relief Services (CRS), an international agency of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, are helping.

Kathy Brown, CRS’s advocacy manager, described “The Afghan Refugee Crisis,” the keynote address during “We Are Called: A Conference on Social Justice Issues” at St. Eugene Church April 27. The Office of Justice and Peace, Catholic Social Services, Diocese of Charlotte, sponsored the daylong program.

Father Francis T. Cancro, St. Eugene’s pastor, spoke on “The Spirituality of Justice.” Afternoon workshops addressed global climate change, the death penalty, socio-economic concerns in Western North Carolina and how to legislate effectively.

Brown spent most of December observing CRS operations in Pakistani refugee camps. She said there have been as many as 2 million Afghan refugees in Iranian camps, 2.5 million in Pakistan and 7 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Pakistan. Some have been in the camps for more than 20 years, victims of the Afghan/Russian war that began in the late 1970s; most recently, they are there as a result of the bombings after Sept. 11.

In the early 1970s, Brown said, Afghanistan was emerging from ThirdWorld status. Boys and girls attended school together. However, most education for women and girls was in cities.

“In the rural areas, there is no living memory of educating girls and women,” Brown said. “These areas are where the Taliban came from.”

Russia left in the early 1990s, but factional wars continued. The Taliban created stability through a hard-line approach and affected some reforms.

However, they destroyed dams and much of the country’s agriculture. In addition, southern Afghanistan and the areas around Kabul have suffered from drought for the past five to six years.

IDPs have no status as refugees because they aren’t registered in refugee camps outside Afghanistan. Often, they don’t know where the camps are. They wander around looking for food, shelter and safety.

The United Nations is responsible for the camps but asks other organizations to help with such needs as food, water and clothing. “Working through agencies like CRS, CARE and Lutheran Relief Services is a tremendous way to get aid to the people,” Brown said. Assistance organizations also include the Muslim’s Red Crescent, similar to the Red Cross.

The United Nations transports people who make their way out of Afghanistan to the camps and registers them. CRS gives them basic necessities.

Each family gets wheat, beans, cooking oil, a tent, blankets (and prayer rugs, if needed), clothing and cooking utensils.

Many of the items are purchased from American companies that have factories in Pakistan.

CRS also devotes itself to education, especially for women and girls; health services; rebuilding dams and restarting irrigation of cropland; and to reintegrating former combatants through such means as job training. CRS funds come from grants, donations and the U.S. government.

Brown said that the U.S. government has pledged $300 million for reconstruction; other nations have pledged $4.5 billion. Muslim countries are also providing aid. For instance, Jordan has given money and has provided doctors and nurses. However, $10 billion will be needed for Afghanistan’s recovery over the next five years.

She added that Americans can pray for peace, help CRS raise $50 million for Afghan refugees and let members of Congress know that Americans care about the people of Afghanistan.

“In the camps,” Brown said, “I asked people what message they would like me to take back. They all said, ‘Tell our story, and then tell them that we are very afraid that once the bombing ends, you will forget us.’”

Remembering, Father Cancro said in his talk, is found in justice — born, nurtured and lived in relation to faith.

Justice was born in covenants: Abraham’s covenant was about human dignity. Moses’ covenant with God moved people from slavery to freedom. The new covenant is with Jesus, that humanity is worthy of salvation. “Our worth comes from being able to reflect the glory of God,” Father Cancro said. “The way we relate to one another is in healing and forgiveness.” We are to look for God’s kingdom, he added, not “out there,” but within ourselves.

Justice, he said, is nurtured by a life of sacraments and the virtues of faith, hope and charity, he said.

“Faith gives insight into God’s presence in the world. God is present in all people, in all creation, not just in the comfortable but in the broken. What we experience is not the whole story,” he said. “Faith keeps us from being ground down in the dirt for long. Hope is the recognition that there’s someone inside of us who keeps standing up. Once we are able to hope, we can become hope to others.”

Charity, such as volunteering time and contributing money “open opportunities to reflect on the situations other people find themselves in,” he added.

“Charity doesn’t solve problems, but leads us to get at the root of those problems.”

Justice lives in the Eucharist.

“Eucharist and justice live together in the same house,” Father Cancro said.

“Eucharist is the witness to breaking and sharing Christ’s presence among us. We are challenged to become what we eat, to bring what we are to others. Eucharist is important nourishment because it teaches us what we need to become. The ‘Thanks be to God’ at the end of Mass is important because we can leave the church to be the eucharistic mystery to others.”

Afternoon workshops and presenters included: “Global Climate Justice,”

by Kim Carlyle, western regional coordinator for the North Carolina Council of Churches Interfaith Global Climate

Change Campaign; “The Death Penalty Moratorium: What Others Have Done, What You Can Do,” by Ted Frazer, chair of Charlotte Coalition for a Moratorium Now; “Socio-Economic Concerns of Far-Western North Carolinian Families & Communities,” by Joan Furst, director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, Bishop Begley Center for Economic Opportunity; “Effective Legislative Advocacy,” by George Reed, executive director of the North Carolina Council of Churches.

Contact Correspondent Joanita M. Nellenbach by calling (828) 627-9209 or e-mail jnell@dnet.net.

May 3, 2002

Spring Fling let seniors

By ELLEN NEERINCX SIGMON Correspondent HICKORY — About 140 seniors from around the Diocese of Charlotte gathered at St. Aloysius Church April 25 for a day of learning and activities at the 16th Annual Spring Fling sponsored by the Catholic Social Services Elder Ministry program. The event was also held at St. Mark Church in Huntersville April 18.

The day at St. Aloysius started with coffee, Danish, door prizes and a performance by the St. Joseph Church’s Irish Step Dancers from Newton. The dancers, taught by Meg Barrett of St. Joseph, ranged in age from three to teenager and came from various churches in the area. They wore colorful costumes and demonstrated dances in soft and hard shoes. Barrett gave the historical background behind the various dances and told how she had come to learn them herself.

After the dance demonstration, the seniors in attendance had a variety of activities from which to choose.

They could play bingo, practice on a putting green, purchase religious items or buy raffle tickets. They were able to have their blood pressure checked by members of the Hickory Rescue Squad, and they could join a sing-along led by Mary Finlayson, a parishioner at Our

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Lady of Assumption Church in Charlotte, who played favorite tunes on the piano.

Helen Gassen from the Peaceful Dragon in Charlotte gave lessons in Tai Chi, an ancient Chinese system of meditation, breathing and gentle exercise. Ann Baggett, an exercise and art instructor for the Catawba County Council on Aging, taught a chair exercise program.

Seniors were also able to listen to a herbal presentation by the Carolina Foothills Herb Group and a presentation on Latino traditions and celebrations by Franciscan Sister Andrea Inkrott, diocesan director of Hispanic Ministry.

Cindy Jordan demonstrated the healing touch, a technique used for calming and healing, on some of the seniors. Lisa Bruen and Art Drumheller operated the “Chairway to Heaven,” giving five-minute chair massages.

Anne Richie was helping seniors with tips on caring for their skin, and Kim McClure from the Alzheimer’s Association displayed activity aprons. The aprons have large buttons and zippers and are used to help Alzheimer’s patients with their memories.

Dolly Gabor, a parishioner at St. Aloysius, had several craft ideas ready from which seniors could choose.

Most of these same activities were available after a lunch prepared by Chuck Spaller, a parishioner at St. Aloysius and owner of Ragazzi’s restaurant in Hickory.

During the afternoon session, line dancing lessons taught by Alberta Cutler from the Catawba County Council on Aging were added to the list of activities.

The day ended with a Mass celebrated by Father Ed Sheridan, pastor of St. Aloysius.

The chair exercise, herbal presentations and line dancing were new activities for the seniors this year, said Jenny Robinson, regional coordinator for Elder Ministry. “They (the seniors) loved the new events we added,” she said. “They really seemed to enjoy the line dancing. I was really pleased with the outcome.”

Pastoral Assignments

Most Rev. Bishop William G. Curlin announces the following pastoral changes:

Effective April 5 Rev.MatthewKauthastemporaryadministratorofSt.FrancisofAssisi in Lenoir.

Rev. Matthew Leonard, administrator of St. Francis of Assisi in Lenoir, on leave at his request.

Effective April 29 Rev. Anthony J. Marcaccio as vice chancellor, while remaining as pastor of St. Pius X in Greensboro.

Rev. James Solari as temporary administrator of St. Pius X in Greens-

Refugee relocation requires community

By JOANN S. KEANE Editor CHARLOTTE — Reflect back on the work you’ve accomplished over the past year. Now imagine condensing all that work into three months. Welcome to the world of Catholic Social Services Refugee Resettlement Office.

Last week, The Catholic News & Herald reported the upcoming resettlement of 300 Montagnards into the Diocese of Charlotte, with the first wave arriving next Friday. Refugee Resettlement Office Director Cira Ponce said Charlotte is one of the three resettlement sites for the Montagnards; the others, Greensboro and Raleigh. All together, 905 Montagnard refugees will soon call North Carolina home.

To put this in perspective; last year, the Refugee Resettlement Office assisted 350 refugees. Next week, the office will begin the placement process for the single largest refugee group to descend at one time. Perhaps that task sounds daunting. Not for the Refugee Resettlement Office.

The first activity of finding housing is falling into place. “One landlord had 30 units — two and three bedroom units — available,” said Ponce. The landlord extended a helping hand by allowing the Refugee Office time to ready the apartments before the first rent comes due.

Moreover, Ponce says the landlord is making an additional apartment available — gratis — providing a much-needed location for the Refugee Office to hold English as a Second Language classes and orientation classes. “We’re getting such positive response (from the community), “ said Ponce. “It is encouraging.”

Father Mauricio West, chancellor and vicar general of the diocese, has extended an internal plea to employees of the pastoral center, asking the 120 employees to “work together to set up two apartments with donated furniture and household items.”

The challenge now is furnishing and preparing the apartments for the impending arrivals. Everything, every room needs a helping hand. Living and dining rooms need furniture; kitchens need the full range of kitchen items; bedrooms need bedding and linens; bathrooms, towels, along with the full array of toiletries.

Across the city, Catholics are joining their Protestant neighbors in an ecumenical

effort to help prepare for the new arrivals.

“We’re appealing to churches, civic groups, organizations and individuals for help,” said Ponce. In a community outreach, Ponce has received pledges for help from various denominations and needs much more help. “It is a big commitment, and we will soon share in seeing a new life for these refugees thanks to the help of so many caring people,” she said.

Editor’s note: Though the Montagnards will live in Charlotte and Greensboro, as well as in the sisterdiocese of Raleigh, assistance is needed statewide. Ponce suggests individuals call Care-line, a help and information line provided by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. Care-line calls should be directed to (800) 662-7030.

How you can help the Montagnards Financially: The 300 expected Montagnard refugees will be divided into approximately 60 “households” with five people to a household. For each household, $1,000 in additional funding is needed to cover expenses during the first three months after arrival.

Time: We need as many volunteers as possible to help set up apartments with donated furniture and household items for the refugees before their arrivals.

We strongly urge groups of volunteers to organize the collection of donations and coordinate setting up apartments with the Refugee Office.

In-kind donations: In order to furnish apartments for the refugees, we need donations of furniture, kitchenware, toiletries and linens. Men’s clothing in small and medium sizes is also desperately needed. Instead of donations of food, vouchers for area supermarkets are welcome. Please contact the number below for a detailed list of needed donations.

Employment opportunities: We will be trying to place these refugees in fulltime, entry-level, non-skilled jobs with benefits. If you are aware of any opportunities, please contact 704-370-3285.

For more information, call 704-3703256.

Please send all monetary donations to: Catholic Social Services Refugee Resettlement Office

6 The Catholic News & Herald Cardinal Mahony has blood clots, faces lawsuits LOS ANGELES (CNS) — Cardinal Roger M. Mahony of Los Angeles was hospitalized late April 28 with blood clots in his left lung. The next day he was hit with two lawsuits accusing him of participating in a cover-up of sexual abuse of minors by priests. At an afternoon press conference April 29, his personal physician, Dr. Lee Parsons, said the cardinal was in good condition, resting comfortably and being treated with blood thinners. He was to remain at Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank for several days. The archdiocese had no immediate comment on the lawsuits themselves, filed by two sets of brothers who claim to have been abused as children in the 1960s and ’70s by Father Carl Sutphin, an archdiocesan priest ordained in 1958 who was forced to retire earlier this year.

The archdiocese issued a brief statement, however, emphasizing Cardinal Mahony’s “zero-tolerance” approach to any priest or employee found to have abused a child.

Christian singer says own struggles with faith central to new album DETROIT (CNS) — There’s just one thing, according to Steven Curtis Chapman, that sums up what he wants to say on “Declaration,” his 12th album.

“God is God and I’m not,” says the artist who has sold more than 7 million albums.

In recent years, pain has seeped into Chapman’s life. He has written and sung about sorrow — but it wasn’t his own. “Declaration” is an album saturated in hope and set against a backdrop of pleading, “God I believe, help my unbelief.” Chapman told The Michigan Catholic, Detroit’s archdiocesan newspaper, “That’s a prayer that I found myself praying more in the last couple of years than I have before.”

He said it holds him up as he watches his mother battle cancer. He clung to it as he dealt with a diagnosis of paralyzed vocal cords from a viral infection just before the release and tour of “Declaration.”

Confirmation class visits ground zero, thanks firefighters NEW YORK (CNS) — The confirmation class from a parish in the Rockville Centre Diocese made a trip to ground zero in New York City and to a firehouse where 15 firefighters were lost in the World Trade Center collapse. After being greeted by New York Cardinal Edward M. Egan at morning Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral April 14, a group

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People in the of 40 eighth-graders from Most Holy Trinity Parish in East Hampton and their chaperones went to the wooden viewing platform at ground zero. Standing in complete silence, the students stared out into the barren area where thousands of people died Sept. 11. “I was excited to see what it was going to be like” at ground zero, said eight-grader Austin Bahns.

“Seeing how the Twin Towers were affected up close made me realize how tragic an event it was.”

Young Catholic population seen as fertile ground for church outreach WASHINGTON (CNS) — U.S. Catholics ages 20 to 39 number about 20 million, a good-sized group that “a lot of faith traditions would give anything to have,” said sociologist Sister Mary Johnson. The challenge for the Catholic Church is to teach this younger generation more about their faith and about the church’s notion of vocation but also to listen to their questions and concerns, she told Catholic News Service in an interview prior to her address at the April 18-21 Third Continental Congress on Vocations in Montreal. In the interview and at the congress, Sister Johnson, who is a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur and an associate professor of sociology at Emmanuel College in Boston, shared results of research she and three colleagues did on a sample group of Catholics ages 20 to 39.

Parishioners ‘bless and send’ choir founder who faces deportation MINNEAPOLIS (CNS) — Parishioners at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis said a tearful goodbye April 14 to the man who founded the parish’s International Gospel Choir and who may be deported at any time.

Their hope is that Nguando “Michel” Nyonzele will be allowed to go to a safe nation such as Canada, rather than to the Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly Zaire, where he is considered a traitor for deserting the air force in 1986.

Nyonzele and his supporters believe he will be captured and killed if he returns.

At the end of the Mass, Father Michael O’Connell, pastor, blessed Nyonzele and anointed his hands with oil. Dressed in the white robes and gold sash of the choir, Nyonzele was emotional as he thanked everyone for their support and love. The “blessing and sending” ceremony was held in recognition of the fact that Nyonzele’s chances for reversing his order of deportation are all but used up.

Priest says faith helped pull him from brink of death

St. Mark parishioners honored for devotion to

honored by the students who have become a part of her life over the past few years. “I’ve won other awards at other colleges, but they just didn’t mean as much as this one. This one came from the students,” she said.

Barb Bagnall was awarded with the 2002 ODK Staff Award. While Bagnall is not an official staff member of the college, she has use of an office in the student union.

“She (Bagnall) makes herself available to counsel students, and she shares herself and her open heart with everyone, not just those who affiliate themselves with the Catholic faith,” said Elizabeth Marie Melchionna, a member of ODK (Omicron Delta Kappa), a national leadership honor society.

Bagnall recently helped to mediate the college’s Faith and Choice Week, a series of roundtable lunch meetings to discuss faith and the issue of abortion. Bagnall was commended for enabling students to express their ideas and questions, “even if they differed from her own,” said Melchionna Bagnall’s service extended beyond the campus, Melchionna noted. For the past two years, Bagnall has taken a group of students to New Orleans to work with inner city children.

Bagnall was “shocked” by the award but was very honored to receive it. “It’s the little shot that you need to go on,” she said.

Contact Associate Editor Kevin E. Murray by calling (704) 370-3334, or email kemurray@charlottediocese.org.

By KEVIN E. MURRAY Associate Editor DAVIDSON — Students at Davidson College wanted to let two very special people know how much they were appreciated.

The students honored Dr. Susan Roberts, associate professor of political science, and Barb Bagnall, coordinator for Catholic campus ministries, at the college’s annual Spring Awards Convocation April 17. Both honorees are parishioners at St. Mark Church in Huntersville.

Roberts was awarded with the inaugural SGA Faculty Award.

“We on SGA thought it appropriate to designate an award that recognizes the contributions of professors to the lives of their students outside of the classroom,” said Joey Harris, the out-going SGA president who presented Roberts with her award.

Harris noted that Roberts is “an amazing scholar, teacher, student advocate and mother who serves her students outside of the classroom environment in a number of different ways. No one can question Dr. Robert’s tireless commitment to her students and the school.”

Roberts has been involved in athletics as the faculty representative to the NCAA, chair of the college’s athletic gender equity committee and as college liaison to several Southern Conference committees. She has also worked with the Patterson Court Judicial Board in furthering student understanding of plagiarism and the honor code.

“It meant everything in the world that they recognized me as a working mother,” said Roberts, whose son, Jack, has been critically ill for the past five years. “It gave me hope that I had taught them something about life, not just political science.”

She said it was wonderful to be

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The Catholic News & Herald 7

Retreat helps men grow closer to God, each

By REV. MR. GERALD POTKAY Correspondent GREENSBORO — From Friday evening, April 26, through Sunday afternoon, April 28, over 30 men of Hispanic origin congregated at St. Paul the Apostle Church for a Hispanic Retreat for Men. According to Franciscan Sister Andrea Inkrott, diocesan director of Hispanic Ministry, it is an ongoing function of Hispanic Ministry to hold separate retreats for Hispanic men, women and youth of the diocese. These are evangelization retreats similar to the Cursillo movement that was started in Spain in the 1949.

“The purpose of these retreats is to call the people to a more personal relationship with Jesus,” said Sister Andrea.

“Hopefully, the participants will desire to live the faith in their lives.” Sister Andrea hopes the retreatants will take what they have experienced back to their small church-based communities.

“Even more ministry should flow from there,” she said.

Enedino Aquino, coordinator of Hispanic Ministry in the Greensboro Vicariate, has been active in the vicariate for eight years. “I am rewarded by the fact that my people go in the right direction, that they begin to know God better, and that they are growing both socially and spiritually,” he said. “I am further encouraged that they have learned through personal experiences that God is always there for them.”

Aquino said the local parishes have been very helpful. “They allow us to use their halls, kitchens and sound equipment and expect nothing in return. The priests are most helpful also,” he said. “Father Joseph Waters, presently residing at Maryfield, heard confessions all morning and Father Christopher Davis, pastor of Holy Infant in Reidsville, said the closing Mass on Sunday.”

There are two groups that are vital to the retreat. The first group is the “Equipo”: the team that gave the talks and verbal encouragement to the retreatants. The second is the “Equipazo”: the team that gave support behind the scenes either by cooking and cleaning up or by writing letters of encouragement throughout the retreat. The latter team was not visible to the retreatants until the end of the weekend.

“This is so that the people taking part in the retreat would not know who it was that sent them letters of encouragement but that they were there just to help them,” said Germana Godinez, an active member of Hispanic Ministry.

Jose Flores, from Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro, volunteers to work with married couples and with marriage preparation. Flores was in charge of putting this particular retreat together.

“Aside from receiving learning experiences about Jesus, about Mary and the Catholic faith, the retreatants will get some life skills that should give them confidence in themselves and for their personal life situations so that they can become even more productive in their local communities than they are already,” said Flores. “They should be enabled to walk through their own problems by do-

ing positive things with their lives. Also, by learning that others have the same, if not bigger problems, their own become easier to handle.”

During the retreat, the men came forward and gave personal witness to Jesus and exposed their weaknesses. The men poured out their souls to one another, sharing their religious and life experiences, all of which were to encourage each other to grow in love with God and with neighbor. In self-revelation, many were able to overcome their own mistakes and help others to learn from these past errors of judgment.

Adrian Garcia, from St. Joseph Church in Asheboro, said he came to the retreat out of curiosity and thought he would be bored. “I am glad I’m here,” he said. “It is a beautiful thing to know and learn about God and about Mary. I enjoyed the retreat.”

Jose Sotelo, from Blessed Sacrament Church in Burlington, wanted to experience the men’s only retreat because he only attended youth retreats before.

According to Sotelo, “The topics are really different. The focus is more intensely on God. In addition, we can express our feelings more. I am get-

ting to know myself better. I am beginning to learn from my past and will try to change so that I will not repeat my mistakes.”

“I feel like my life just changed in the moment we were talking about Jesus,” said Valentin Perez. “I felt free to say anything I wanted to let out.

To just let out my feelings was a good experience. I was relieved that I could express my problems so freely.”

Contact Rev. Mr. Gerald Potkay by calling (336) 427-8218, or e-mail gpotkay@triad.rr.com.

8 The Catholic News & Herald

In the

Province bishops recommend a “zero-tolerance” policy for ATLANTA — The Catholic bishops of the province of Atlanta April 30 recommended a policy of “zero tolerance” regarding priests who have a confirmed or proven allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor child.

The bishops of the province have defined “zero tolerance” as a commitment that the church and her institutions will be a safe environment for children and that no priest will remain in any ministry who is a danger to them.

Archbishop John F. Donoghue, who holds the ex officio title of metropolitan of the province of Atlanta, released this statement following a discussion among the bishops of the province that includes Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina on Monday.

During this discussion the bishops were asked to address 14 proposals involving reassignment to ministry, reporting of allegations and accountability. Their responses were to be faxed to Most Rev. Harry Flynn, Archbishop of Minneapolis/St. Paul, so the responses could be reviewed before the general meeting of the full body of bishops in Dallas, Texas, June 13-15, 2002.

The following bishops voiced their concerns and provided Archbishop Donoghue with feedback: Bishop Robert J. Baker, Charleston, S.C.; Bishop J. Kevin Boland, Savannah, Ga.; Bishop F. Joseph Gossman, Raleigh, N.C. and Bishop William G. Curlin, Charlotte, N.C. “In the past, the people of God have been unnecessarily wounded,” said Archbishop Donoghue. “Therefore we will unanimously recommend to the Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Sexual Abuse that they endorse our recommendation that we believe will prevent priests with proven allegations of sexual misconduct with minors from ever functioning in any form of ministry again. We recognize that our words may not be well received because of a lack of trust in the hierarchy of the church; therefore, we pray that our actions and our recommendations today send a clear message of our commitment to the faithful.”

“We need families to know that if their child has been abused, that is one child too many,” said Bishop Baker.

“Once an allegation is proven we will act swiftly to prevent it from ever occurring again. We will never knowingly put a child in harms way. This is our commitment to the people of God from their bishops.”

The bishops made it clear that their recommendation includes all past, present and future cases involving proven cases of sexual abuse with minors in any area of priestly ministry.

The bishops also restated their commitment to follow state laws unique to each diocese regarding the reporting of all past, present and future allegations with minors. If a minor or the parent of a

minor reports that a child has been sexually abused, local church authorities will immediately report such allegations to the appropriate public authorities.

Among other items, the bishops unanimously recommended the following: — No priest should ever be reassigned to any ministry after an allegation of sexual misconduct with a minor has been confirmed or proven.

— Each bishop and diocese should recommit itself to following state laws regarding the reporting of such allegations.

— It is recommended that the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops create a uniform policy regarding the sexual misconduct of priests with minors.

— The adoption of “zero tolerance” and full reporting policies by even a few dioceses impels the full conference of bishops to do the same.

— All bishops should commit themselves publicly to be accountable to each other and to the faithful for the proper implementation of policies regarding sexual misconduct with minors.

— Vatican acknowledgement of a national strategy for accountability is both proper and necessary.

During the discussion, the bishops expressed the following concerns that they wish to examine before or at the June meeting: — An appeals process should be instituted for priests who have been accused of sexual misconduct with a minor; — A well-defined, step-by-step procedure should be established by which an accused priest would be removed from service that protects both the rights of the alleged perpetrator and the victim. Any recommended policy must ensure that the process is fair and definitive for all parties involved.

— If a priest is found guilty of the crime of sexual misconduct with a minor by public authorities, a shortened Vatican

administrative process for voluntary laicization (permanent release from vows) would be desirable. A Vatican process for imposed laicization is already in place.

“We will deal with those issues in which the law has been broken with full disclosure,” said Bishop Boland. “Church authorities will offer pastoral assistance along the way to the victims and their families.”

The bishops also expressed concern about the rights of victims.

“We want to respect the right to privacy of the victim,” said Bishop Gossman.

“Often victims come forward asking that the family or child’s name be withheld.

We will recommend that the committee also consider this fact when setting its final policy.”

Throughout the dialogue the bishops reflected upon the need to continue to provide pastoral and spiritual support for victims of sexual misconduct.

“Since we know that child abuse has a ripple affect, we must remember to pray for the victims of this heinous act, their families and the universal church as we attempt to heal,” said Bishop Curlin. “We must remind ourselves that these problems did not occur overnight, and therefore cannot be solved overnight. We commend the cardinals on making the first step. Our recommendation is another; the meeting in Dallas will be the next step.”

Finally, the bishops of the province asked for prayers from the faithful of their diocese.

“We ask that the faithful pray to the Holy Spirit that all bishops receive His gifts of wisdom, understanding, fortitude and compassion as they attempt to make policies which will guide the church for years to come,” Bishop Baker concluded.

“These are our recommendations,” Archbishop Donoghue said. “Even though we will present them, we recognize they may not be accepted as submitted. This

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Sterwardship, from page 1 their talents and gifts to the parish. He emphasized the importance of contacting people who express a desire to become involved.

“If people are not contacted and instead just have their names put in a book or in a computer, then they will not get involved in future stewardship efforts. They will also start to believe that stewardship is only about money,” he warned.

Kelley and several other speakers touched upon the fact that children need to be a part of the parish stewardship efforts. One quote that Pat Spivey of St. Pius X Church in Greensboro, who works with the church’s stewardship committee, intends to share with her committee is: “If we don’t teach our children about stewardship, we will have no adults who are stewards.”

Spivey said that she has attended many workshops but felt that this one was the most useful because it presented strategies that could be implemented in most parish settings. “It was not theories but practical suggestions from people who actually tried them,” said Spivey, who enjoyed having the time to ask questions and share with other participants.

Another aspect that Kelley addressed in his workshop on “Forming Stewardship Committees” was the benefits of lay witness. It was coincidentally played out during another workshop given by Franciscan Father Daniel Quakenbush from the Diocese of Raleigh on “Stewardship in the Hispanic Culture.”

Father Daniel had several parishioners from St. Julia Church in Siler City, N.C. speak on their experience as stewards of God’s gifts in a multicultural parish. By sharing their various projects, they concretely demonstrated how stewardship helped them work together and become one family.

“This session touched my heart to its core,” said Gaddy, who plans to share aspects of this workshop, which was videotaped, with parishes integrating other cultures into their church community. “The witness of the Latinos and Anglos, speaking about being stewards to the parish and of God’s gifts, had a powerful impact on everyone in the room,” she said.

The question, asked and answered by many attending the conference, was first asked by Bishop Synder in his opening remarks, “What do I need to do to express my gratitude to God.” It will now be up to the participants to carry that question to their parishes so that it can be answered through acts of love and generosity.

Jordan B. McMorrough, editor of The New Catholic Miscellany, contributed to this story.

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The Catholic News & Herald 9

Parishioner’s devotion to poor lives on after

By KEVIN E. MURRAY Associate Editor CHARLOTTE — She was a kind and humble women who loved her church and her fellow parishioners — so much that she wanted to continue helping them long after she was gone.

Ella Marie McGonagle Bickel, a parishioner of St. Vincent de Paul Church, died Dec. 2, 2000, at 89. A retired bookkeeper and widow, Bickel left her life savings to the church and parishioners that had touched her heart.

“She left more than $600,000 to St. Vincent de Paul to establish an endowment for the poor of St. Vincent,” said Jim Kelley, diocesan director of development.

“She never made a lot of money, but both she and her husband were very frugal,” said John de Jong, a close friend of Bickel. “She could have had a brand new car, but kept her old Buick.

She was comfortable in it.”

Through living below her means and clever saving, Bickel had amassed a large sum of money, de Jong said. “By her very nature, she was a bookkeeper ... she was very organized.”

A native of Columbus, Ohio, Bickel came to Charlotte from Long Island, N.Y., in the mid-1980s after the death of her husband, Jean. She had retired in her 70s from the Diocese of Rockville, N.Y., and had moved to the Queen City to be closer to friends. It wasn’t long before she became a familiar face at St. Vincent de Paul.

“I first met her in the visitation ministry that had just started at St. Vincent’s,” said de Jong, who leads the ro-

sary group at the church. “She visited the sick and the homebound and those in the hospital. She visited the nursing homes; she would be feeding people who didn’t know she was there.”

Bickel also volunteered at Room at the Inn, a residence that provides maternity home care and childcare services to single mothers. De Jong remembers Bickel as “a very dear soul” who loved people, loved children and cared deeply for the less fortunate of St. Vincent de Paul. “(She was) a very nice woman, but very reserved,” he said. “But she didn’t want to be in the limelight.”

When she wasn’t attending to the needs of others, or caring for her mother (who had lived to be 102), Bickel was following her favorite sports teams on television. “With sports, she was an expert,” said de Jong. “You couldn’t tell her anything about basketball, baseball, football or golf. She knew everything about them.”

Bickel was also an avid bowler with her own bowling ball, said de Jong. “At her age, it was unbelievable — she got strike after strike,” he said.

Wanting to help everyone who needed her, Bickel donated generously to many charities. “She could not say no,” said de Jong.

She had no children or immediate family, so when Bickel started to consider her will, it wasn’t long before she determined that her church would best benefit from her savings.

“She really cared about the church, and she cared about the poor,” said de

Jong.

When de Jong suggested to her the idea of an endowment, “That just took off. She really liked that idea.”

While Bickel had wanted her money to help the priests, the sick and education, her main emphasis was to help the poor of the parish, he said.

“Through her gift, Ms. Bickel is leaving a legacy that will help meet the needs of poor people at St. Vincent de Paul for generations to come,” said Father Mark Lamprich, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul.

Bickel’s donation will be placed into the Foundation of the Diocese of Charlotte in the form of an endowment for the poor of St. Vincent de Paul Church. An endowment is a permanent fund placed in the diocesan foundation that earns income over time. The original amount is not spent, but the income can be used in a manner stipulated in the endowment agreement, according to Kelley.

The Foundation is a non-profit organization established to provide endowments for the Diocese of Charlotte and its parishes, schools, agencies and organizations.

Not only are people in the diocese giving of their current income, said Kelley, they are taking another step in stewardship by giving their cumulative assets to take care of the church.

“What we’re finding out is that more and more parishioners across the diocese are following Ms. Bickel’s example and leaving something in their estate to take care of future needs in their parish, in a Catholic school or Catholic agency,” said Kelley. “They

live out the life of stewardship when they give back in gratitude for all the gifts God has given them.”

In addition to a bequest in a will — in which you can stipulate that the Foundation or named endowment receives a specific amount, a percentage of your estate, or other remainder after other bequests are filled — there are five other primary ways to donate an endowment to the diocese, according to the Gina Rhodes, diocesan director of planned giving. They are: — Gifts of cash, securities, real estate, or other assets, which is an ideal method when the donated assets are highly appreciated.

— Gifts of life insurance, which allow you to make a gift that might be larger than if you were to give an asset outright. You can donate a paid policy that you already own, or you can purchase a policy to donate.

— Life income arrangements, which allow you to make a gift during your lifetime while retaining and even increasing your income from those assets for the remainder of your life.

This includes trusts and charitable gift annuities.

— Gifts from retirement plans, which you can designate your endowment as the remainder beneficiary of an IRA, 401K, or annuity to receive what is left in your retirement plan after your death.

— A gift of life estate in real property, which allows you to enjoy your home or vacation property during your lifetime, while giving you the satisfaction of knowing your church will benefit from the gift after your death.

To learn more about planned giving or to set up an endowment, call Jim Kelley at (704) 370-3301 or Gina Rhodes at (704) 370-3320.

1 0 The Catholic News & Herald Book Review

Author reveals hidden presence

Reviewed By Julie McCarty Catholic News Service Kathleen Norris, best-selling author of “Dakota,” “Amazing Grace” and “The Cloister Walk,” opens her latest memoir, “The Virgin of Bennington,” with a quote from St. Augustine: “But ‘salvation is far from sinners,’ and such was I at that time. Yet little by little I was drawing closer to you, although I did not know it.” “The Virgin of Bennington” chronicles Norris’ experiences as a young adult, examining the subtle ways God was at work in her life, unbeknownst to her.

Because of her selection of Bennington College for its creative curriculum — she wants to avoid mathematics at all costs — Norris is jolted into a world of partying, drug experimentation and sexual promiscuity. She earns the label “Virgin of Bennington” and “Norris the Nun” (she wasn’t even Catholic) for her ability to resist temptation for three years. Looking back, the older, wiser author notes it wasn’t that she possessed true virtue, but rather that celibacy provided a “means of retreating from other people and their demands.”

Her eventual sexual experiments bring her a painful dose of reality. Her first job at the Academy of American Poets introduces Norris to the literary and artistic community of New York City. Amid the ordinary grind of typing, filing, and answering phones, she experiences the thrill of meeting famous poets and hanging out with the artistic Andy Warhol crowd at night. A good deal of the book provides details of the expansion of modern poetry in New York and the inspiration of her mentor, Elizabeth “Betty” Kray, the executive director of the Academy of American Poets.

“The Virgin of Bennington” is no ordinary celebrity expose. Like St. Augustine, Norris is looking at the hidden ways God was reaching out to her: through the

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lover who bluntly tells her “If you can’t handle drugs, you have no business taking them”; in the failed relationships that taught her painful lessons about genuine love; in the ongoing, nurturing presence of Kray. God continues to seek us, often through other people, even when we put ourselves in the most compromising situations.

Norris’ latest book of poems, “Journey,” spans 30 years of poetry to 1999. Organized in sections relating to excerpts from the Bible’s “Song of Songs,” one can trace her spiritual growth. For example, the first section, poems of 1969-1973, relates to the bride in the “Song of Songs,” searching for the lover (God) throughout the city streets, but not finding him. These poems, written while she lived in New York City, deal with such varied topics as angels, the trial of stomach aches and the heartbreak of young love.

The poems in “Journey” uncover the spiritual dimension lying dormant in the most ordinary of day-to-day tasks.

In “Housecleaning,” the tasks of cleaning out the basement and doing laundry lead to hymn-singing and reflections on Mary Magdalene. “Ascension” combines the downward movement of birthing a baby with the exhilarating feeling of the miracle of new life. In “The Monastery Orchard in Early Spring,” she sees grist for reflecting on Newton and Augustine where others would see only apples. “The Presbyterian Women Serve Coffee at the Home” reveals an ordinary conversation among women about aging that leads to a theological insight about eternal life.

“The Virgin of Bennington” and the poems of “Journey” invite us to open our eyes to the hidden presence of God in our own ordinary lives.

McCarty is a free-lance writer from Minnesota with a master’s degree in theology whose work has appeared in numerous diocesan newspapers.

Word to Life Sunday Scripture Readings: May 5, 2002 Cycle A Readings: May 5, Sixth Sunday of Easter 1) Acts 8:5-8, 14-17 Psalm 66:1-3a, 4-7a 2) 1 Peter 3:15-18 3) Gospel: John 14:15-21

By JEAN DENTON Catholic News Service I love the progression of this week’s Old Testament and New Testament readings, and how they speak to the “communication” of the Holy Spirit among believers. The first reading tells about the apostles laying hands on new believers who then received the Holy Spirit. The Gospel talks about the Father sending an Advocate, “the Spirit of truth,” to those who love him, to live in them and reveal God to them (one might add, again and again).

During a confirmation preparation program I helped lead, parents joined us for one of the sessions, and at its conclusion we invited them to join the sponsors in laying hands on their children and other candidates in silent prayer. We hoped the young people would feel the warm reality of God’s presence in the human touch of those who love them and who wanted the Spirit to come deeply into their lives.

Subsequent comments from some of the candidates suggested that that was, indeed, what happened for them.

But comments from parents indicated that they, too, were touched pow-

erfully by the Spirit as they laid hands on their young people. These were people who had held and hugged their kids throughout their 16 or 17 years of life, yet several remarked that they were thankful to have the opportunity, in the words of one, “to do this for my child.” Many were moved to tears.

I laid hands on their children, too, and I can vouch for the fact that I truly sensed the Spirit of Jesus passing between us. As Catholics, we are fortunate to have tangible symbolic acts, such as laying on hands, to bring alive our spoken or silent words in prayer. And we don’t come out of the experience wondering, “What just happened?” The Gospel explains it, “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you.... And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”

QUESTIONS: How has God been revealed to you in the laying on of hands — either as the one laying on hands or the recipient?

What other tangible prayer experiences have you had, and how has God been revealed in those?

Weekly Scripture Scripture for the week of May 5 - May 11 Sunday (Sixth Sunday of Easter), Acts 8:5-8, 14-17, 1 Peter 3:15-18, John 14:1521; Monday, Acts 16:11-15, John 15:26—16.4; Tuesday, Acts 16:22-34, John 16:5-11; Wednesday, Acts 17:15, 22—18:1, John 16:12-15; Thursday, Acts 1:1-11, Ephesians 1:17-23, Matthew 28:16-20; Friday (Bl. Damien of Molokai), Acts 18:9-18, John 16:2023; Saturday, Acts 18:23-28, John 16:23b-28 Scripture for the week of May 12 - May 18 Sunday (The Ascension of the Lord), Acts 1:12-14, 1 Peter 4:13-16, John 17:1-11; Monday, Acts 19:1-8, John 16:29-33; Tuesday (St. Matthias), Acts 1:15-17, 20-26, John 15:9-17; Wednesday (St. Isidore), Acts 20:28-38, John 17:11-19; Thursday, Acts 22:30; 23:6-11, John 17:20-26; Friday, Acts 25:13-21, John 21:15-19; Saturday (St. John I), Acts 28:16-20, 30-31, John 21:20-25

May 3, 2002

Entertain-

“Spider-Man”

By Anne Navarro Catholic News Service NEW YORK (CNS) — Kicking off the summer movie season is the thoroughly enjoyable popcorn picture “Spider-Man” (Columbia).

With the exception of a few minor points, director Sam Raimi has remained true to Stan Lee and Steve Ditko’s 1962 Marvel Comics creation of the arachnid crime fighter with the humble background.

Bespectacled Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is an awkward high school nerd, bullied by schoolmates and even the bus driver. He can’t get up the courage to speak to his pretty red-haired neighbor Mary Jane (Kirsten Dunst), even though they’ve lived next to each other since they were 6. But Peter, an orphan raised by his doting Aunt May (Rosemary Harris) and affectionate Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson), is in for a major change when he is bitten by a genetically altered spider on a high school field trip.

A large part of what makes this film work is Maguire, who infuses his workingclass hero from Queens with quiet humor and vulnerability that allow Peter to connect with the audience. The day after he’s bitten by the blue-and-red spider, Peter’s vision is perfect. He stares in comic disbelief at his newly buffed body. And it isn’t long before he discovers that, along with his superhuman strength, he’s capable of spinning industrial size webs and scaling tall buildings.

Raimi handles Peter’s transformation from dweeb to superhero in an affectionate and comical way. Trying to figure out how to shoot web strands from his wrists, Peter first tries to squeeze them out. Then he shouts words like “Shazam,” taking a superhero stance in obvious self-mockery.

When he finally gets it, he ends up swinging wildly from his web and smashing right into a brick wall.

Peter uses his newfound powers strictly for fun, until the night his Uncle Ben is killed by a carjacker in New York City. Suddenly, Peter sees the hard truth behind his uncle’s words, “With great power comes great responsibility.” His purpose becomes clear: He must protect the innocent by fighting crime.

Every superhero needs a worthy adversary, and Spider-Man gets one in the form of the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), a wicked creature fitted with metallic green armor who rides around on a souped-up glider like a rabid snowboarder.

And like Spider-Man, the Goblin has a human alter-ego, Norman Osborn, a scientist who swallowed an experimental potion that turned him into the evil green

monster. But unlike Peter, Norman can’t control when the Goblin will come out, which produces some very good scenes of Norman speaking to his schizophrenic self, as the Goblin pushes Norman into a murderous rampage. Dafoe’s over-the-top performance evokes the film’s comic book roots and works well with the film’s fantasy elements.

Although the film has a lot of heart, it’s missing a compelling story line. At its midpoint, the film turns a corner to become a more conventional bad-guy-vs.-good-guy movie. This downshift is helped by some clever details, such as Spider-Man fighting bad press from a cynical newspaper editor (superbly played by J.K. Simmons) who, unable to snap a photo of the crime fighter, barks out, “If he doesn’t want to be famous, I’ll make him infamous.”

However, magnetic performances and an energetic pace fill in the narrative inconsistencies and lack of cohesion. Maguire and Dunst are great together, fusing electricity and innocence in a convincing manner. Simmons shoots out such great one-liners that the audience may wish he would slow down just to catch them all.

And James Franco, as Peter’s best friend with designs on Mary Jane, offers a fine performance. His character provides an underlying tension that makes things interesting, and his vengeful attitude is fodder for the sequel (expected in 2003).

More is likely to be expected from the visual effects, however. While the bird’seye view of New York City as Spider-Man swings from building to building is exciting, many of the computer-generated images are stiff and obvious. And SpiderMan doesn’t move with as much alacrity and grace as one would expect from the fast-crawling insect. But audiences may be willing to forgive the film these faults since it is a mostly diverting couple of hours spent with your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Although the stylized violence may be too intense for younger adolescents, parents may decide their older teens might enjoy the film while understanding its fantasy elements.

Due to sporadic stylized action violence and menace with fleeting crass language, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification is A-III — adults.

The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Video Reviews

By Catholic News Service NEW YORK (CNS) — The following are home videocassette reviews from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Office for Film and Broadcasting. Theatrical movies on video have a U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification and Motion Picture Association of America rating. All reviews indicate the appropriate age group for the video audience.

“Behind Enemy Lines” (2001) Harsh war film in which a Navy pilot (Owen Wilson) is shot down over enemy territory while on a reconnaissance mission in Bosnia and his commanding officer (Gene Hackman) must fight NATO politics to rescue him. Director John Moore pumps up a simple premise with skillfully choreographed action scenes depicting the brutality of war while attempting to comment on the importance of saving even one life despite the risks.

Much battlefield and war violence with intermittent profanity and crass words and an instance of rough language. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification is A-IV — adults with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13. (Fox) “Can’t Stop the Music” (1980)

The Catholic News & Herald 11

This vehicle for The Village People, a disco singing group, is a high-energy, low-IQ, 100-percent synthetic product.

Directed by Nancy Walker, the silly comedy about the music publishing and recording business is marked by sexual situations and jokes as well as a homosexual sheen coloring most of the production numbers. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. (Anchor Bay) “Maybe Baby” (2001) Thin romantic comedy about a scriptwriter (Hugh Laurie) and his wife (Joely Richardson) who try every which way to conceive, and, unbeknownst to her, he uses their experiences to write a movie. Written and directed by Ben Elton, the film has a few witty, touching moments but the spotty script does not address the moral questions involved in artificial means of fertilization. Some sexual situations with partial nudity and several crass words with an instance of rough language. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted. (USA) “My Life” (1993) High-powered but terminally ill business executive (Michael Keaton) ex-

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May 3, 2002

Editorials & Col-

The Pope Speaks

POPE JOHN PAUL II

Pope prays for workers during feast of St. Joseph the Worker B Catholic News Service y

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — On Europe’s Labor Day, Pope John Paul II offered prayers for workers around the world and said men and women were called to perfect themselves through labor.

“One could say in a certain sense that through work, men and women become more human,” he said May 1, the feast of St. Joseph the Worker, at his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.

“This is why industriousness is a virtue. But in order for industriousness effectively to permit a person to become more human, it must always be tied to the social order of work” so that human dignity is protected, the pope said.

The pontiff, who turns 82 May 18, spoke in a mostly clear voice but his breathing sounded labored and heavy.

Noting that the audience marked the beginning of May, a month traditionally dedicated to the Virgin Mary, the pope repeated his appeal that Catholics pray the rosary daily.

“It is a simple prayer, apparently repetitive, but very useful in penetrating the mysteries of Christ and of his and our mother. At the same time, it is a way to pray that the church be pleasing to the Madonna herself,” he said.

Text Audience

By Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Here is the Vatican text of Pope John Paul II’s remarks in English at his weekly general audience May 1.

Dear brothers and sisters, Today, the first of May, is Labor Day, a day on which we honor St. Joseph the Worker.

Our thoughts therefore turn to the inalienable dignity of all men and women, called to perfect themselves through work. This is the deeply human and social significance of work.

Today is also the beginning of the month dedicated to Mary, the mother of God. Through daily recitation of the rosary, may all Christians enter more fully into the mysteries of Christ’s life and find encouragement in their daily struggles.

As, today, we offer prayers for the world of work, let us also implore the divine gift of peace for the Holy Land.

I am pleased to greet the delegation from the Nagasaki Prefecture in Japan. I also greet the Norwegian students from Adger University College. I thank the Wartburg College Choir for their praise of God in song. Upon all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors present at today’s audience, I cordially invoke God’s blessings of grace and peace.

Will a spiritual “high” last?

When I was a high school junior, I made a retreat. It was a very intensive weekend retreat. We were shut off from the rest of the world. Our watches were taken away. All the clocks in the school where our retreat was held were covered.

We listened to lots of talks, mostly from our peers. We prayed together and apart. We experienced the sacrament of reconciliation. We were led through various exercises — a “Trust Walk,” for example, in which we were led together, blindfolded, around the property, ending up in the school chapel in front a large crucifix where our blindfolds were removed.

And we wept. Partly because of emotion, partly because by Saturday night we were so tired, the weekend was filled with tears, tears which built to a flood by Sunday afternoon when we opened letters of affirmation and love from family and friends.

In retrospect, I have to say that I resent the emotional manipulation that I think moves that kind of retreat, but I also have to say that it did me a world of good right when I needed it.

I won’t say I was completely transformed, but the experience did challenge me to open up a bit more to everyone around me and to see, with tremendous intensity, the depth and power of God’s love for me.

The greater challenge, though, lay ahead. Could I keep it? It would be impossible to keep the weekend’s high going the rest of my life, but would I be able to keep any part of it at all? Would the awareness of God’s love I’d learned on the weekend stay with me for more than a week?

Maybe that’s something you’re feeling these days too. A lot of kids make retreats this time of year, and a lot of kids celebrate the sacrament of confirmation.

Those can be moments of great spiritual realization and growth, and a lot of kids wonder, even as they’re marveling at the fruits of those experiences, the same thing I did: How can I keep this going?

Here are some ideas.

Our Turn

THERESE BORCHARD CNS Columnist Like many women today, I was nervous that having a child meant my mind would turn to mush, my inspiration would be thrown out with the dirty diapers and my thoughts would become as dull and bland as the rice cereal I was spoon-feeding my baby.

I worried that the little vortex of need would erase the professional accolades and work experience bulleted on my resume.

After talking to many moms who sought creative working solutions — calling on their husbands to take a day, setting up a home office, hiring part-time help — I became encouraged. Having a baby didn’t necessarily mean giving up the life of the mind or throwing out the years and progress between graduation and now.

When Kate, my 20-year-old angel and our baby’s second mom, shows up every Tuesday and Thursday at 12:30 to take little David for five and one-half hours, I cram as much as humanly possible into that time slot. And if I come up short at 6 p.m. on Thursdays when her 11 hours are over, I ask my husband to pitch in a few extra hours so that I can ever so deliriously check off another task at hand on my semiworking mom’s to-do list.

The modern mama is a lot different than Beaver’s mom. But some things will never change, like the penetrating joy most moms feels when pinning that orchid corsage to a pastel dress, the tears of delight

Coming of Age AMY WELBORN CNS Columnist First, be realistic. Highs don’t last. Ask anyone who’s experienced any time of intense experience. We even have a specific phrase — “the honeymoon is over” — to refer to the waning of the heights of emotion that such an experience evokes.

Second, understand that even though emotions wane, God’s presence doesn’t. You may have felt God’s love and mercy in an intense way on your retreat, but the fact that your emotions aren’t as strong a couple of months later doesn’t mean that God’s love and mercy aren’t as strong either. God never stops loving you, whether you feel it or not. God is never less than ready to forgive you, whether you remember that or not. God is never away from you, whether you are aware of him or not.

Third, commit yourself to deepening your relationship with God. Don’t depend on an external experience to do it for you. Make time to pray each day. Go to Mass. Continue to evaluate your heart and your life in God’s eyes, not the world’s.

When you do all that, you just might find that though the emotional high has passed, something better has taken its place: a calm, steady, inner sense of God’s presence no matter where you are, no matter what. It is a kind of joy that outlasts everything, even emotion, believe it or not!

A young mother’s thoughts on her first Mother’s Day I often wondered what it would be like to wake up to breakfast in bed on Mother’s Day or to wear the orchid corsage pinned to the pastel dresses of so many moms on this special day. I’ve envisioned the leisurely Sunday afternoon at the park holding the hand of a toddler who has just learned to take a few steps or how it would feel to find a homemade card — fabricated from the finest construction paper and crayons — sitting on the dining room table with a bouquet of freshly cut roses.

If my husband does his homework, this year I’ll know.

I’ve joined the elite sorority. I’ve become a mom.

As one who preferred pulling weeds to baby-sitting as a means of earning spending cash in my adolescent days, I spent my nine (and one-half) months of pregnancy fearing I would not like being a mom. My anxiety worsened when well-intentioned moms stole the few free moments I had between trips to the bathroom and consuming bottles of Tums to inform me of the overwhelming responsibilities that would be delivered with the baby.

“Get your last full night’s sleep,” one warned, as if pregnancy heartburn hadn’t already interrupted my sleeping schedule.

“You’ll never enjoy another moment to yourself,” said another veteran mom.

Then there were the comments from those without children.

“Children are vortexes of need,” one childless couple told me as their reason for retaining a nuisance-free, let’s-get-away-this-weekend lifestyle.

With such encouraging sentiments, it’s no wonder young adults today set their biological clocks on snooze until, at about age 38, the alarms ring so loudly they can be heard in neighborhoods on the other side of the country.

Gone are the happy homemaking days of June Cleaver, when women regarded child-rearing as a prestigious full-time vocation. With so many choices available, modern women are left confused. Forfeiting a successful career that has taken 10 or 15 years to establish isn’t easy, even if the bright-eyed cherub on the Huggies ad is irresistibly cute.

May 3, 2002

The Catholic News & Herald 13

Editorials & Col-

Light One Candle MSGR. JIM LISANTE Guest Columnist

an obstacle? Seeking a particular achievement? And how does your goal serve God, His world and His people?

God has created a special mission in life just for you.

It is a one-of-a-kind task that belongs to you alone and can be accomplished by you alone. Tad knew his mission; it was using his talents to entertain and inform. If you can figure out what is important to you — not just what the world tells you should be important — you’d make a good start toward actually achieving your mission.

Then, by focusing on your God-given qualities and talents and seeking a level of excellence rather than an unattainable perfection, you can go a long way toward the true fulfillment and happiness that is at the heart of all you seek in life.

The more clearly we know ourselves and what we want to do, to be, to give in life, the less vulnerable we are to jealousy — and the more open to being the kind of person other people would love to know.

Mass have similar histories. Priests used to wear over their arm, as a Mass vestment, what was called a maniple, made of cloth the color of the day. This was a vestige of the old Roman handkerchief (Latin, “mappa” or “mappula”), carried fashionably in the hand (Latin, “manus”) or fastened to the arm. Thus the name maniple.

When this item no longer served a practical purpose, it continued to be worn but was given a variety of somewhat spiritual meanings. This is the main reason a number of actions and articles formerly connected with the Mass, but with similar histories, have been discontinued.

The maniple is no longer an official part of the priest’s or bishop’s Mass attire.

Accepting more than one stipend for Mass Q. Our parish bulletin had a note recently that canon law forbids accepting more than one stipend for each Mass, thus ruling out multiple intentions. Some parishes have Masses said for two or three families, but we are told no.

Which is correct? (Michigan) A. I have a suspicion there is a misunderstanding here somewhere. Canon law (948) does require that a separate Mass be applied for each individual offering (stipend) accepted, however small. The reason is obvious. It is to avoid an abuse in which a priest might accept numerous stipends for one Mass.

This does not prohibit, however, one offering made for a group of people, even for several families.

Mass intentions commonly are listed for the family of Joe and Mary Gray, the Girl Scouts, married couples of the parish, those killed in the Sept. 11, 2001, attack and so on. There is nothing wrong or against church policy in doing so.

I’m sure your pastor is well aware of these regulations.

Someone worth knowing Ever hear about someone from the past you wish you could have known? I read a column the other day by Bill Gallo, the respected sports cartoonist and columnist for New York’s Daily News, about one of his early heroes.

The man’s name was Thomas Aloysius Dorgan. He, too, had been a sports cartoonist and writer. In the early decades of the twentieth century his byline, “Tad,” was famous.

He obviously had a way with words as well as pictures. Gallo lists a number of slang expressions, such as “for crying out loud,” that he says were “born in Tad’s inkwell.” They run from “hot dogs” and “red hots” for frankfurters to “cat’s meow” and “cat’s pajamas” for the epitome of cool in the Roaring Twenties. My favorite: “He’d give anybody the sleeves out of his vest.” Tad was more than funny and smart. After an accident as a youth cost him the fingers on his right hand, he learned to draw with his left. Perhaps it was because he had to face up to that kind of serious challenge that, as Bill Gallo says, Tad “was always for the underdog.”

But the main reason I wish I had known Tad was his positive attitude about life and success. He is quoted as passing along this advice to young people: “Remember envy never got anybody anything worth having. If you balance your abilities with your limitations and never count on luck to give you anything, you succeed.”

It’s unfortunate that many men and women let envy interfere with their opportunities for happiness and success. They constantly compare their lives to others.

Wealth, possessions, popularity are certainly desirable.

Up to a point, they can be good things.

But just what is that point?

Another man I admire had something useful to say about that: “It is not wrong to want to live better; what is wrong is a style of life which is presumed to be better when it is directed toward having rather than being, and which wants to have more, not in order to be more but in order to spend life in enjoyment as an end in itself.” So wrote Pope John Paul II. Think about it. Just what is your most heartfelt personal goal? Is it having or being? Is it overcoming

Question Corner FATHER JOHN DIETZEN CNS Columnist

Why priests wash their hands during Mass Q. What is the meaning of the priest washing his hands during Mass? Some claim it represents Pilate washing his hands during the trial of Jesus. Others say it’s just washing, which doesn’t make a lot of sense. What is the real answer? (Indiana) A. Part of the answer seems to be that this is one part of the Mass remaining from former centuries when it had a practical significance. At the offering of the gifts, food (produce, chickens, bread, etc.) often was brought forward and given to the presiding priest for the poor or for other purposes. He needed to wash his hands afterward.

When this practical reason no longer existed, the custom continued, with spiritual interpretations given for the washing. It was said to symbolize, for example, the spiritual cleanliness appropriate for celebrating the Eucharist.

Publicly washing one’s hands before a liturgical ceremony was common in older days, among Christians and others, to prepare oneself spiritually for a religious ceremony. Fountains for this purpose may still be seen in the courtyards of ancient Christian churches in Rome.

The priest’s washing at the offering of the gifts was partly an extension of that custom.

Some other traditional customs related to the

Guest Column FATHER JOHN AURILIA, OFM Cap Guest Columnist God’s masterpiece: Our Mother There is a Jewish Proverb that goes: “God could not be everywhere, so He made mothers.”

We may add that God did not know everything, so He made mothers-in-law. The writer or organizer of the Book of Proverbs brings to our attention this tremendous collection of statements about a great woman, who happens to be a good mother and a good wife. For example, we read: “A wife of noble character is declared to be worth far more than rubies.” Prov. 31:10 — When we speak of mothers, we try to define what or who a mother is. Here is one of the definitions we may stumble on: “The mother is a woman who, having provided an ovum that is subsequently fertilized by an external agent, prepares it for the infusion of a soul and nurtures it from her own bodily substance till it can be physically separated from her.” A little girl who heard these words from the expert biologist simply said: “Obviously, the poor fellow never had a mother.” Are we talking about Mother Hubbard and Mother Goose? Rather than define who IS a mother, we may want to understand what a mother DOES, so we understand who she is. The mother loves, nurtures, makes the house a home, and, therefore, is God’s masterpiece. Bishop Fulton Sheen had a better idea, as usual; he says that the mother is the world’s first love ... and he is right again.

For the sake of puritanical concern, sometimes we become ridiculous as it shows in the following dialogue. A little boy asked his dad, “Where did I come from?” The good daddy answered, “You came from the stork.” The little boy continued, “Where did you come from?”

Dad replied, “I came from the stork.” He didn’t give up and continued, “Where did Granny come from?” He replied, “She came from the stork.” The little boy said, “My goodness, did anybody have a normal birth in our family?

Mother’s Day 2002 may simply be another day of the year or it may be an appreciation day for the masterpiece of God, called mother. Why not call her today, or send flowers or write a beautiful card? A friend of mine was so glad to have called her mother in Italy on mother’s day!

He said: “I called my Mom on Mother’s Day. I just loved the excitement in her voice as she accepted the charges.”

Here are some samples of mother’s day cards, written by Angie, Diane, Frank and John: 1) Dear Mother, I am going to make dinner for Mother’s Day. It’s going to be a surprise.

Your daughter, Angie. PS. I hope you like pizza and popcorn.

2) Dear Mother, I hope you like flowers I got you for Mother’s Day. I picked them myself when Mr. Smith was not looking. Your daughter, Diane.

3) Dear Mother, I wish Mother’s Day wasn’t always on Sunday. It would be better if it was on Monday, so we wouldn’t have to go to school.

Your son, Frank.

4) Dear Mother, now that we have a mature, adult relationship, there’s something I’d like to tell you. You’re still the first person I think of when I fall down and go boom! Love, John I thank God every day for my mother and so do you.

1 4 The Catholic News & Herald

DYC, from page 1 with God”).

Lara said, “Msgr. Kerin encouraged us to use our mind, heart and soul for God and seize the day. Live for today was (Kerin’s) message; we are today’s church. As Catholics, we are the biggest minority in the state. I see how the Catholic Church has stood through troubles and hardship for 2,000 years and remains standing.”

Will Zurich from St. Mark Church in Huntersville saw the conference as an opportunity to become closer to God. “I recognized that my faith is weak, but I know it is growing stronger. Here, we see teenagers’ roles in the Catholic Church. It’s amazing to watch so many teens excited about the Gospels and songs about Jesus.”

John Robichaux, religion coordinator and middle school teacher at St. Pius X School in Greensboro and former chairperson and adult advisor of the Diocesan Youth Advisory Council, was also a keynote speaker. He spoke on, “How do we discern Jesus’ voice?”

Robichaux pointed out that Jesus calls us gently while many other voices in the world — such as greed, selfishness, coldheartedness and violence — call us in other directions.

He related Jesus’ life story — refugee, immigrant, working class, homeless, teacher of justice, persecuted prophet, killed because of his love of the poor and oppressed.

Using an activity to stress his point, Robichaux arranged 10 chairs representing 10 percent of the world’s resources and 10 people representing 10 percent of the world’s population. He began by putting one person in each chair, which he said is God’s design because God loves each of us unconditionally. Then, the chairs were distributed among the 10 participants in a way the world’s resources are actually distributed. In the end, one person had eight chairs; two people had one

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Around the Dichair. The remaining seven people shared the other chair.

Robichaux then challenged the teens to begin enacting the Eucharist in the world around them, by taking the lead of Jesus and the early Christian church to stand against injustice and work for justice and equality among all God’s children.

He said, “Our challenge today is to go and live the Gospel in a way that is so genuine that you not only live it, but believe it with every fiber of your being, and in so doing, other people will follow.”

Students had the option to attend various workshops on Saturday, such as “Catholicism 101,” “Relationships 101” and “Catholic Courtship: Keeping it Catholic.” Kathleen Lewis, director of youth ministry at St. Mark Church in Huntersville, led the workshop, “Vocations: He is Knocking.”

Lewis referred to her faith during her high school and college years as the mustard seed that landed on bad soil — it sprouted immediately but died out because good roots didn’t form. Attending college in the 1980s to become a lawyer and enter politics, she began having reservations and for years struggled with the Catholic part of herself. “It was a part of who I was, but didn’t define who I am,” she said.

Following an interview for a parttime job as a youth ministry director, Lewis heard a voice indicating she was the good soil. “This was a beginning for me,” she said. “It was my surrender. Later I realized I had to surrender more. I committed to Jesus: ‘You can do with me whatever you want.’ I burst into a smile that never went away — I wanted to be a gofer for God. I am on call for the Lord of the universe; there is no better job.”

Lewis encouraged all to say “yes” to God, as she revealed helpful ways of deciding the steps for one’s journey using the acronym, PADAC: pray, access, discuss, act and commit. “It’s time for you to choose,” she said.

with at least 2 years’ experience as a youth minister or equivalent preferred. Salary and benefits commensurate with education and experience. Send resume and references to Sarah McPherson, St. Peter Catholic Church, 2700 East 4th St., Greenville, NC 27858, or mcpherson@greenvillenc.com HIGH SCHOOL COACHES: Bishop McGuinness Catholic High in Kernersville, NC seeks to fill head coaching positions for: cross country; varsity boys’ soccer; varsity boys’ basketball; varsity girls’ basketball; jv boys’ basketball. Call Dennis Allen at (336)564-1020.

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School, located in Fairburn, Georgia, is seeking teachers in all disciplines for the 2002-2003 school year. Mercy offers an excellent teaching environment and well as competitive salary and benefits. Interested individuals should send resume and cover letter to: John Cobis, Our Lady of Mercy High School, 861 Highway 279, Fairburn, GA 30213.

from St. Ann’s). Roommate would occupy lower floor which includes bedroom, office, and bathroom. Rent: $475 plus 1/3 utilities. Call Katie: (704) 676-0377.

VACATIONS

FOR SALE: RV Fleetwood Flair, Class A, 26’, satellite, 2 TV’s, self-contained, generator, approx.

6500 miles, many extras, excellent condition - like new, $52,000 OBO. (828)465-0152.

RESORT RENTAL OR SALE: Wolf Laurel, 25 miles N. Asheville, NC; 1600 square feet, furnished, 2 bedrooms, 1 bath, fireplace, deck, cable; pool, horseback riding, hiking, mountain view; $550/week, or $1600/month, or $6000/6 months. Sale price: $135,000. Call Sue: (828) 689-5908.

ROOMMATE Seeking female roommate to share split-level house in Charlotte (12 minutes from uptown; 5 minutes

FOR SALE

PRAYER & PETITIONS Thank you, St. Jude, for your intercession. I am grateful for prayers answered. EKT

May 3, 2002

King’s nephew shares

By ALESHA M. PRICE Staff Writer GREENSBORO — It was a fitting end to a message of hope and love shared by the nephew of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK). In his booming tenor, Rev. Vernon King ended his noontime talk at the Franciscan Center on April 26 with the song “If I Can Help Somebody.”

In the same month that MLK was assassinated for strides he made during the Civil Rights Movement, Rev. King conveyed his theme of nonviolence and spirituality throughout his talk entitled “The Dream Lives On.” Students from St. Leo School in Winston-Salem, parishioners from St. Pius X, St. Benedict and Our Lady of Grace churches in Greensboro and those from other faith traditions in the Triad area gathered to hear Rev. King, pastor of St. James Baptist Church in Greensboro, talk about the steps Americans have taken toward racial unity and equality and what still needs to be done in order to keep MLK’s “dream” alive.

Rev. King, only seven when his famous uncle was killed, has listened to family stories and has studied and researched his relative in order to gain a better insight on his philosophy and belief system. He said that in looking at the audience gathered to hear him speak that his uncle would be proud.

“Just by the mere fact that we are sitting here in fellowship is living proof that the dream lives on,” said Rev. King of the attendants of various ages, races and backgrounds. “People ask me ‘what happened to the dream that your uncle shared with the nation?’ The dream has not reached total fulfillment, and there is work to be done. But we thank God for the progress we have made. It will take you and I and our children to make the dream come true.”

Throughout his talk, Rev. King used the dream concept of harmony among the races from MLK’s speech, “I Have a Dream,” delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., in 1963. Using two Bible passages from Genesis and Joshua, King drew parallels among Joseph, Joshua, MLK and society.

He said that Joseph and MLK were both dreamers who were persecuted and ostracized for what they believed.

“When we stand up and do what is right, we become the ‘Joshua generation.’

You and I are members of the ‘Joshua generation.’ We must do our part to make this dream live,” said Rev. King of the biblical figure who was Moses’ successor and continued to keep the Israelites’ “dream” alive. “We will see the dream become a reality in the way we act in everyday life.

We have to make some sacrifices and changes.”

He said his uncle became a hero because he was willing to sacrifice himself for his dream and was committed to its success and the changes it would bring for all people. “He (MLK) saw America in the future different than it was at the present. In the midst of segregation, he dreamed that one day we would live as brothers, and there would be no more racism,” said Rev. King. “When he (MLK) was killed, the dream was still present.

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Around the Di-

We have a challenge to finish the work to make the dream become a reality.”

Rev. King said that the tragedy on Sept. 11 was a blessing in disguise because people from all areas of the country came together to share in sorrow and support. God wants his people to live in harmony and peace, he said.

Addressing the students present, he said that their well-being and understanding of MLK’s message was most

important because they are the carriers of the dream into the future. Adults play a large role in many of the problems that youth have because of lack of proper care, love and support. The dream cannot die with them; it has move forward, he said.

Georgette Schraeder, principal of St. Leo School, brought her eighthgraders to hear the message of Rev. King because of a fundamental need to educate her students about various cultures. “We are a small school, and we are seeking diversity for the population. I see the importance, and the families have expressed this as well,”

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she said. “So any opportunity that we have to expose the children is something I feel we must do. We have a real admiration for Martin Luther King in our Catholic school curriculum. He is one of our saints, and we pray in thanksgiving for all of the work he has done.”

Contact Staff Writer Alesha M. Price by calling (704) 370-3354 or e-mail amprice@charlottediocese.org.

1 6 The Catholic News & Herald

Living the

Years in Africa shape life of woman

By ALESHA M. PRICE Staff Writer CHARLOTTE — Holy Child Sister Jay McCann keeps her life wrapped in a rubber band in an old brown envelope. Pictures she has saved over the years depict her life at various stages from a church pageant in Florida to her ministry in Ghana as a woman religious.

She frequently looks at her memories captured on film, some yellowing with age, all featuring a smiling nun, full of hope and love for those she has served over the years.

“I am happy with my choice in life. I have no regrets,” said Sister Jay, whose legal name is a representation of her given name, Jacquline; her childhood nickname, Jimmy; and the name she took while in the convent, John Cantius. She said that all of those names start with the letter “J,” thus her name, “Jay.” Her mother, a native New Yorker and teacher by profession, raised her four girls in Miami via Ohio and Coral Gables, Fla. The family would travel to the North during the summers when school was out to visit relatives. Sister Jay enjoyed growing up in the sunny climate with all of the accompanying warm weather activities including swimming, sailing and horseback riding. Her lessons came from family friends in the area who would gather for social and educational times with their children.

“As an adventurous person, it was a good place to be. I loved Florida and loved the outdoors,” she said. “Sailing was a favorite pastime of mine. We weren’t rich, but we were able to do many things that were ordinarily not available to many people. In all of those families that my mother knew, there was someone who could teach us different subjects.”

Her mother grew up Catholic, and the family attended church regularly until the day when Sister Jay decided to leave the church. As a child, she would put an envelope into the collection in honor of her father’s memory. That All Souls’ Day tradition was shattered when the woman collecting the envelopes pushed it aside because of the lack of money contained in the envelope.

“I was hurt and insulted. I stopped attending church and was out from 1936 to 1946. I had a very strong relationship with God, so that didn’t stop.

I continued to pray,” she said.

The pain from a car accident while in high school lurked in the shadows and would jump out when least expected for the next several years, but that did not stop her from graduating in 1941 and going to college. In 1944, she and several of her friends decided

Holy Child Sister Jay McCann they wanted to do their part to help out during World War II. She left college after two years and signed up for the Coast Guard. Her residual pain from the spinal injury caught up with her, and she was hospitalized for five months — right through the end of the war in 1945.

Sidelined because of her injuries, she was not able to return to college and rested at her mother’s house for a while. She was, however, able to graduate in 1949 with a biology degree, and that same year, she entered the convent.

It was not a snap decision, but one that she knows was God-influenced. While in the service, she rejoined the church to pray for an acquaintance.

“I decided I would go back to church then. Not long after that, I decided to become a nun partly because I was so taken by the graciousness of God in resolving the problem. I had a lot of priests and nuns in my family, so we tended in that direction,” said Sister Jay whose relative is the founder of her order, the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. “I decided to become a missionary.”

After professing her final vows in 1957 after nine years of teaching in several states, she went to Africa in 1961 to teach biology and later a combination course involving agriculture and food processing called developmental science. “I wanted to serve people who had been marginalized,” she said.

Sister Jay said her time in Africa was most enjoyable. In order to beat the African heat, she wore a white habit as opposed to their traditional black habits. She was back outdoors

most of the day, which she enjoyed as a child, and especially loved teaching the children. After going on a safari in Kenya for a much-needed vacation after 16 years of service, she arrived in Ethiopia to continue her work but was put out by Communist government officials running the country at the time. She returned to the United States in 1977.

In 1980, Sister Jay was sent to Mississippi to work in the small town of Fulton in parish ministry. The town welcomed her with open arms, and she worked there until 1993. During her years in the southern town, she helped to establish the Redlands Literacy Project to train tutors and aided in the organization of the Good Samaritan Association, a transient ministry fund.

After a much-needed shor t sabbatical in California during which she further studied graphoanalysis, the study of handwriting, at a local college, she unofficially retired in 1993 and came to Charlotte to help take care of her friend and co-worker while in Ghana, Holy Child Sister Alma Cornelly.

Sister Jay became involved with St. Luke Church and became the director of drama and landscaping. She officially retired in 1997 but still tends the garden, one of her favorite hobbies. She asks that people view it in early June when most of the flowers are in bloom.

May 3, 2002

Franciscan nuns offer street children an BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (CNS) — On the edge of this former Soviet city, in a rundown, residential neighborhood where the smell of burning coal hangs thick in the air, a group of four Franciscan nuns has set up a tidy oasis of neat concrete walkways, newly planted trees and a bright classroom.

Once a week, local street children come for a hot meal, lessons and a video.

On a recent Monday, between slurps of lima bean soup and with a nun looking on, four children talked about how they were drawn to the local Catholic church and the nuns’ informal program. “I believe in God,” said Zhenya Makhayeva, 15, prompting Franciscan Sister Regina Zuk-Oiszewska to interrupt her. “Tell us honestly,” the nun said.

“And I like to eat and watch television,” added Makhayeva, who said she stopped going to school because she did not have money for books and clothes. Hundreds of such children live in Bishkek, a city of 670,000 at the foot of the Tien Shan mountains, said the nuns.