May 18, 2001

The Catholic News & Herald 1

May 18, 2001

May 18, 2001 Volume 10 t Number 35

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

Community service leader receives CSS Beatty Award

Inside Bishop Howze of Biloxi retires; served in N.C.

By Joann S. Keane Editor CHARLOTTE — For more than a quarter century, the names of Caroline Love Myers and Crisis Assistance Ministry have been synonymous. As one of the agency founders, Myers spent years connecting the needs of many with the resources necessary to keep a shadow population from falling through a void and into despair.

On May 10, Catholic Social Ser-

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Pope gives World Communications Day message

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Photo by Joann S. Keane

Local News Belmont Abbey College welcomes new president

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Young adult program helps shape communities

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Every Week Entertainment ...Pages 10-11

Editorials & Columns ...Pages 12-13

Christ’s Ascension gives us hope. He who made the promise is trustworthy.

- Sunday Missal - Catholic Book Publishing Company

Photo by Joann S. Keane

Foundation for faith and learning As the new Bishop McGuinness High School nears completion, teachers Shirley Shaw, Connie Rafferty and Susan Layman look over the school blueprints with Principal George Repass. BMHS will open this fall for students in the Triad.

vices bestowed its highest honor — the Colonel Beatty Award — to Myers during the service agency’s annual ‘Wings of Hope Annual Gala.’

The Colonel Francis J. Beatty Award — established in 1991 — is presented annually to an individual whose strong religious faith promotes effective church and public service in Mecklenburg County.

Former recipient Diane English called the selection of Myers a perfect match. “As we remember and honor Colonel Beatty and his life, his faith and his service, we know that he would be particularly delighted by tonight’s award,” said English. “Like Colonel Beatty, Caroline has blended family, faith and service.”

“Seeing those in need and seeking to respond is what led Caroline to devote herself to Crisis Assistance Ministry which she helped found in 1975,” said English. “Caroline and Crisis Assistance have helped all sectors of our community.”

Crisis Assistance, as its name implies, exists for those in dire need. It is a first-line response agency for families and individuals facing crises. Be it a potential eviction, need for food, or someone facing disconnection of utility services, in Mecklenburg County, those in need know to call Crisis Assistance for a myriad of needs.

“We can attest to the fact that this community has a passion for caring growth. In honoring me, you are honoring the accomplishments of that wonderful organization,” said Myers.

“Thankfully it is a community-wide effort to which many people are called.

The clergy and lay people who formed the first board of directors wanted to involve the entire faith community.

Their commitment was not only to lend a helping hand ... but also to form an organization that would continue to be there when it was needed by those at the bottom of the economic ladder.”

“During my 25 years of intense involvement with Crisis Assistance, I truly felt called to do God’s work,” said Myers.

“It’s almost ludicrous that I should get an award for doing a job that meant so much to me,” she added. “Nevertheless, I thank you and applaud Crisis Assistance Ministry and Catholic Social Services for their distinguished effort to serve the people God holds most dear.”

Past recipients of the Colonel Francis J. Beatty Award include: James Babb, Chuck Grace, Ray Farris, John Engler, Peter Keber, Mercy Sister Mary Thomas Burke, Diane English, Janice Valder-Offerman, and Jerry

2 The Catholic News & Herald absurd violence’ in Mideast VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As IsraeliPalestinian violence escalated, Pope John Paul II appealed to the international community to step in and help end the “spiral of absurd violence.” The pope made his remarks at a Sunday blessing at the Vatican May 13. The same day, Israeli helicopters shelled Palestinian offices near Yasser Arafat’s headquarters in Gaza, and five Palestinian policemen were killed in a shootout with Israeli troops in the West Bank. The pope said that during his May 4-9 trip to Greece, Syria and Malta, he had been saddened by continuing reports of attacks in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

Lech Walesa credits pope for communism’s downfall KANSAS CITY, Mo. (CNS) — When communism collapsed in Eastern Europe in 1989, the world had two sons of Poland to thank — Lech Walesa and Pope John Paul II. But when Walesa spoke through an interpreter at a press conference in Kansas City May 4, on the eve of “Polski Day” celebrations commemorating Polish independence, there was no question in his mind who deserved the greater credit. “At the moment when the pope was elected I think I had, at the most, 20 people that were around me and supported me — and there were 40 million Polish people in the country,” said Walesa. “However ... a year after (the pope’s) visit to Poland, I had 10 million supporters and suddenly we had so many people willing to join the movement,” he added. “I compare this to the miracle of the multiplication of bread in the desert.” Walesa, the shipyard electrician who formed the first noncommunist labor union in the Soviet bloc in 1980 and was elected the first postcommunist president of Poland in 1990, met with reporters in Kansas City before going to nearby Warrensburg to speak at Central Missouri State University.

Foreign aid not enough to rebuild El Salvador, says bishop WASHINGTON (CNS) — Foreign aid funds are not enough to rebuild El Salvador after the series of devastating earthquakes in January and February, said Auxiliary Bishop Gregorio Rosa Chavez of San Salvador. The political situation also must be rebuilt so that people have a better quality of life, he said. Salvadorans want a new country without the “vices of corrup-

CNS photo from Reuters

Pilgrims rush to touch statue of Mary in Spain Pilgrims rush to touch the statue of the Virgin of the Defenseless in Valencia, Spain, May 13. Each year the statue is carried in procession from the city basilica to its cathedral in honor of Mary.

Athletes, parents, coaches discuss character in sports NOTRE DAME, Ind. (CNS) — A conference sponsored by the University of Notre Dame’s Mendelson Center for Sport, Character & Culture May 10-12 brought together athletes, psychologists, parenting experts, parents, coaches and youngsters for a win-win event. “Sports for All, Sports for Character,” a free community event for children ages 10 to 14, closed the conference May 12 with help from Notre Dame coaches Mike Brey, Muffet McGraw, Deb Brown, Tim Welsh and representatives from the Notre Dame men’s and women’s soccer teams. While two dozen youngsters were running dribble drills and defense stances in the University of Notre Dame’s Joyce Center, some of their parents upstairs listened to a lecture on a sportsmanlike approach to youth sports.

Pope calls for end to ‘spiral of

Episcopal May 18, 2001 Volume 10 • Number 35

Publisher: Most Reverend William G. Curlin Editor: Joann S. Keane Associate Editor: Jimmy Rostar Staff Writer: Alesha M. Price Graphic Designer: Tim Faragher Advertising Representative: Cindi Feerick Secretary: Jane Glodowski 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 18, 2001

The World in

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Bishop William G. Curlin will take part in the following events: May 24 — 7:30 p.m.

Feast of the Ascension Mass St. Patrick, Charlotte May 25 — 7 p.m.

Confirmation Our Lady of Mercy, Winston-Salem May 27 — 11:30 a.m.

Confirmation Immaculate Conception, Hendersonville May 29 — 7:30 p.m.

Confirmation Immaculate Heart of Mary, High Point May 30 — 7 p.m.

Confirmation Sacred Heart, Salisbury

tion and impunity,” he said during a May 10 briefing in Washington for journalists and congressional aides. Bishop Rosa Chavez asked Americans to pressure the U.S. government so that it requires greater accountability from the Salvadoran government regarding use of foreign aid funds.

Heads of women’s religious orders vow to defend all women ROME (CNS) — Women religious are called to bring God’s tenderness to all who are hurting, especially to exploited and abused women and children, said participants in an international meeting of religious superiors. More than 750 superiors of women’s orders from 77 countries met in Rome May 6-10 for the plenary meeting of the International Union of Superiors General. The superiors vowed to work together “to alleviate and counteract globally all forms of injustices, misuse of power, domination and exploitation, especially when

Diocesan

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by Father Dean Cesa from St. Patrick, will be held at St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Rd. East, this afternoon at 4 p.m. with prayer teams at 3 p.m. and a potluck dinner at 5 p.m. in the school cafeteria. For further information, contact Josie Backus at (704) 527-4676.

3 GUILFORD COUNTY — The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians Guilford County Division 1, an IrishCatholic social and charitable interparish group, will be having a meeting today from 3-5 p.m. at the Showfety Activity Center at St. Benedict Church, 109 West Smith St. in Greensboro. For further information, call Alice Schmidt at (336) 288-0983.

3 SALISBURY — Sacred Heart Church, 128 N. Fulton St., will be celebrating a charismatic/healing Mass at 4 p.m. today followed by prayer teams and a potluck dinner. Father

these are directed toward children and women, including women religious.” The meeting came on the heels of media reports about the sexual abuse of women religious, particularly in Africa, by priests.

Charity tax credit has good points but flaws, panelists say WASHINGTON (CNS) — The use of tax credits to spur charitable giving could be a good thing, suggested some panelists at a May 9 forum on the subject, but they also warned of the financial and public policy effects of such a move. In her study of three states that have some form of charity tax credit, former White House domestic policy adviser Margy Waller said there is no evidence that charitable giving increased as a result of the tax credit. Sharon Daly, Catholic Charities USA’s vice president for social policy, said the charity tax credit “is just one tool in the toolbox,” and that in attempts to take it nationwide, “both God and the devil are in the details.” Waller’s report said, “People give where they live, and poor communities would be losers in a system that depends on charitable giving to support community needs.”

Vatican document undermines Vatican II, says ICEL chairman MANCHESTER, England (CNS) — A new document setting rules for translating the liturgy threatens to undermine the values of the Second Vatican Council, said the chairman of the English-speaking bishops’ commission on liturgy. Bishop Maurice Taylor of Galloway, Scotland, chairman of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy, said the Vatican instruction appears to centralize authority and remove it from the local bishops. Responding to publication of “Liturgiam Authenticam” (“The Authentic Liturgy”) by the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, he said it “seems to go against some of the principal values that were stated in the Second Vatican Council, notably the principle of subsidiarity — that decisions should be taken not at the top, but at the lowest possible level.”

John Putnam will be the celebrant. For further details, call Bill Owens at (704) 639-9837.

4 CHARLOTTE — Churches in the Charlotte area will be having their regularly scheduled cancer support group meetings for survivors, family and friends on the following days: St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd., tonight at 7 p.m. in the ministry center library and St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., on June 5 at 7 p.m. in the office building conference room. For more information, call: St. Matthew - Marilyn Borrelli at (704) 542-2283 and St. Gabriel - Eileen Cordell at (704) 352-5047, Ext. 217. For further information, call Bob Poffenbarger, Sr., coordinator, at (704) 553-7000.

4 CLEMMONS — Holy Family Church, 4820 Kinnamon Rd., will be celebrating a charismatic Mass tonight at 7:30 p.m. The sacrament of reconciliation will be given at 7 p.m., and the laying on of hands will take place after Mass. The next Mass will be celebrat-

May 18, 2001

Ecology, liturgy, doctrine, ethics, refugees on bishops’ agenda WASHINGTON (CNS) — Global warming, the Middle East crisis and U.S. refugee policy are among issues the U.S. Catholic bishops will face at their June national meeting. They also will be asked to approve documents on questions ranging from ethics in health care to Catholic eucharistic teaching, from liturgical norms to how theologians are authorized to teach in Catholic colleges. One liturgical proposal would make each Jan. 22, the anniversary of the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court abortion decisions, “a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person.” A Mass for Peace and Justice would be celebrated throughout the country that day, and if Jan. 22 is a Sunday, the liturgical observance would move to Jan. 23. The bishops will meet June 14-16 in Atlanta.

Collection for retired religious hits another new high WASHINGTON (CNS) — The annual collection for retired religious hit a new high, as last December’s collection raised $32.6 million, topping the previous record of about $31.5 million set the year before. In all, the appeal has raised $351.1 million in its 13 years, making it by far the most successful nationwide Catholic collection in history. Of the $32.6 million raised in the most recent collection, $27.5 million will be distributed in basic grants in June. Nearly 500 congregations of religious sisters, brothers and priests are expected to receive the grants. Another $4 million will be distributed during autumn in the form of supplemental grants to meet special needs of some religious orders. The remaining $1 million will be given out in grants next spring.

Fla. lawmakers expand vouchers by using tax breaks for business WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (CNS) — Florida lawmakers expanded a state school voucher program by approving legislation to give tax breaks to corporations that provide scholarships to children from low-income families who want to attend private school. They also approved a bill to help disabled students get access to public funds to attend private schools. Florida lawmakers approved the measures before closing their 2001 60-day legislative session at midnight May 4. The Florida Catholic June 1 MAGGIE VALLEY — Living Waters Catholic Reflection Center, 103 Living Waters Lane, will be hosting a men’s retreat, “Take Courage and Be a Man,” today through June 3. Themes for the retreat include being a Christian and family leader, responding to challenges, reconciling and being reconciled and “letting go and letting God” and will be presented by Augustinian Father Terry Hyland, director, and others. For further details about this event which could make an early gift for Father’s Day, call the center at (828) 926-3833.

3 CHARLOTTE — The St. Maximilian Kolbe Fraternity of Secular Franciscans will be meeting today from 2-4 p.m. at Our Lady of Consolation Church, 2301 Statesville Ave. All visitors and inquirers are welcome. For more information, call Skyler Mood, SFO, at (704) 573-4299.

3 CHARLOTTE — Because of Pentecost, a charismatic Mass, celebrated

The Catholic News & Herald 3

The World in

CNS photo from Reuters

Poster for exhibit promotes ‘coexist’ theme A large poster promoting the theme of coexistence hangs in the Old City of Jerusalem May 13. The poster, incorporating the Islamic half moon, the Jewish Star of David and the Christian cross, is part of a showing of international artists. The outdoor exhibit is to travel worldwide to cities that have a history of violent confrontation and division.

Conference, the public policy arm of the state’s bishops, said it planned to evaluate the new legislation.

Pope beatifies three Maltese, calls them guides for future VALLETTA, Malta (CNS) — On the last day of his pilgrimage in the footsteps of St. Paul, Pope John Paul II beatified three Maltese Catholics and called them guides for the church’s future. Malta, an almost entirely Catholic country with deep feelings of friendship toward the pope, gave him a rousing welcome during his May 8-9 visit.

Many on the Mediterranean island took a two-day holiday in the pope’s honor. Celebrating Mass in Valetta May 9, the pope beatified Father George Preca, who founded a movement devoted to Catholic teaching and evangelization; Sister Maria Adeodata

Pisani, a cloistered nun known for her commitment to the poor; and Ignatius Falzon, who evangelized among British sailors and boat workers in the 1800s.

‘Decisive action’ urged on Catholic politicians who back abortion STEUBENVILLE, Ohio (CNS) — Catholics United for the Faith is urging its 10,000 members to pray daily that the church “take appropriate, decisive action” against Catholic politicians who support abortion. “We encourage pastors of souls who have pro-abortion Catholic legislators within their jurisdiction to exercise their moral and, if need be, canonical authority to bear prophetic witness to the truth,” said an eight-page position paper issued

May 23 GREENSBORO — The Greensboro Council of Catholic Women will hold its annual May luncheon today at noon at the Sedgefield Country Club.

All will have the opportunity to enjoy table-to-table summer fashion modeling from the Acorn Women’s Clothing Store, raffle prizes, new board installation and other events. For more information about the May 17 deadline and other details, call Janet Law at (336) 288-6022.

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

24 BELMONT — The Abbey Players/ Belmont Community Theatre will be presenting its last play of the season starting tonight at 7:30 p.m.

through June 2 at the Haid Theatre on the campus of Belmont Abbey College, 100 Belmont-Mt. Holly Rd. Martin McDonagh’s “The Beauty Queen of Leone” is a play set in rural Ireland about the mental and emotional struggles between a mother and daughter.

For further information or tickets, call (704) 825-6787.

25 WINSTON-SALEM — The next diocesan Worldwide Marriage Encounter meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn in Winston-Salem. Marriage Encounter is a 44-hour weekend where married couples can get away from jobs, children, chores and phones to focus on each other. For further details about the May 18 deadline and other information, call Tom and Emile Sandin at (336) 274-4424.

26 SYLVA — The Liturgy of the Hours, which includes the Psalter, will be the topic of discussion at the May meeting of the Lay Carmelite Community of St. Mary Church, 22 Bartlett St. Anyone interested in learning about the Liturgy of the Hours and in

by the group April 30. Calling abortion “a pressing human rights issue” and “always and everywhere an abominable crime,” the paper noted that there are currently about 70 Catholics in Congress “who consider themselves ‘pro-choice.”’

U.S. bishops’ leader welcomes new liturgy instruction WASHINGTON (CNS) — The president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops welcomed the new Vatican instruction on translating liturgical texts and said it reflects long consultations between the Vatican and English-speaking bishops. “It is now our hope and expectation that there will be a much quicker approval of liturgical texts” by the Vatican, said the NCCB president, Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza of Galveston-Houston. The Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments issued the new instruction, “Liturgiam Authenticam” (“The Authentic Liturgy”), May 7. It bears the subtitle, “On the Use of Vernacular Languages in the Publication of the Books of the Roman Liturgy.” The instruction sets stricter rules for the translation of Latin liturgical texts into other languages.

Pope, in Malta, says Gospel offers world a moral beacon VALLETTA, Malta (CNS) — On the last leg of a pilgrimage that traced the missionary route of St. Paul, Pope John Paul II arrived in Malta and said the Gospel offers a moral beacon for the world. On the island where St. Paul was shipwrecked during his final missionary voyage to Rome, the pope recalled that the apostle and his companions were taken care of by the Maltese “with unusual kindness.” Malta became a place where the “humanism of the Gospel” flourished, and this heritage is especially needed in the fast-changing modern society, he said at an airport welcoming ceremony May 8.

The pope was greeted by Maltese President Guido de Marco, and was to preside over a beatification Mass the next day, the last event in a six-day trip that also took him to Greece and Syria.

participating in a demonstration of Morning Prayer is invited to attend after the 9 a.m. Mass. Contact Linda Knauer at (828) 631-3561 or Kathy Starr at (828) 586-9303 for details.

27 HENDERSONVILLE — The St. Francis of the Hills Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order will be meeting today from 3-5 p.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 208 7th Ave. West, in the office wing.

Visitors and inquirers are welcome, so for more information, call Pat Cowan at (828) 884-4246.

28 CHARLOTTE — A support group meeting for caregivers of family and friends suffering from Alzheimer’s/dementia will be taking place today and every fourth Monday from 10-11:15 a.m. in room E of the ministry center at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. A c t i v i t i e s fo r t h e m e m o r y impaired are also being provided. For more information about the support group or the Adult Day Respite Program for the memoryimpaired, which meets every Monday and Wednesday, call Suzanne Bach at (704) 376-4135.

4 The Catholic News & Herald

May 18, 2001

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Belmont Abbey College announces new

Riverdale, N.Y. and the College of BELMONT — The trustees of Belmont Abbey College have selected St. Benedict in St. Joseph, Minn. His Dr. James L. Gearity as the 125-year- teaching specialties include contemold school’s 14th president. He suc- porary American popular culture, ceeds 1953 Belmont Abbey graduate research methodologies and the nonDr. Robert A. Preston, who will return to profit sector in the United States.

Dr. Gearity earned his bachelor’s teaching and direct the college’s Bradley degree in English from LeMoyne Institute for the Study of Christian Culture.

“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Gearity College in Syracuse, N.Y. He holds master’s degrees as the next leader of in Theology from our historic liberal Marquette Univerarts institution,” said sity in Milwaukee, Jerry Schmitt, chairWisc. and in Hisman of the board of tory from Fordtrustees. “Dr. Gearham University in ity’s vision for Belthe Bronx, N.Y., mont Abbey College where he was also fits squarely with assistant dean of our mission. I am students. His docconfident that he is torate in American the person to help Studies is from the us achieve our next University of Minlevel of excellence.” nesota.

Dr. Gearity has D r. P r e s t o n almost 30 years of will continue to experience in higher serve through June education as faculty 30 and Dr. Gearity member and adminwill assume his duistrator, most of it Dr. James L. Gearity ties as president on at Catholic colleges July 1. and universities. “ I a m ve r y He comes to pleased both with Belmont Abbey from Our Lady of the Lake University in San the search process and its successful Antonio, Texas, where he has served conclusion,” said Abbot Placid Solari, as provost and professor of history. O.S.B., chancellor of the college and He was dean of the Graduate School co-chairman of the search committee. of Arts and Sciences from 1991-1999 “All constituencies were heard in the at Marywood University in Scranton, process and Dr. Gearity consequently Pa., following a career in academic enjoys broad support among the entire administration at Metropolitan State college community. I am confident that University in St. Paul, Minn., and the Dr. Gearity has the right combination University of Minnesota in Minne- of intellectual acumen, personality and dedication to uphold Belmont Abapolis.

Dr. Gearity was also the senior de- bey College’s mission as a Catholic velopment officer for American Public and Benedictine institution, and to Radio (now Public Radio Internation- promote its continued excellence as a liberal arts college.” al) from 1985-1988.

Dr. Gearity said of his appointHe has taught at each institution for which he has worked, as well as ment, “I am proud to be invited to be at the College of Mt. St. Vincent in a part of the Belmont Abbey College community. I thank everyone for the

Massachusetts nun ringing bells against

By LISA GENTES Catholic News Service MEDFORD, Mass. (CNS) — Sister Dorothy Briggs is swamped with work: painting, praying and recruiting religious organizations to ring their bells in opposition to the death penalty.

The Dominican nun is one of the U.S. founders of “For Whom the Bells Toll,” an international campaign to end capital punishment.

U.S. participants in “For Whom the Bells Toll” ring bells for two minutes at 6 p.m. every evening that there is an execution in the United States.

Sister Briggs has run the nationwide program from the tiny office in her home in Medford since last September when she sent out 700 letters to church-related organizations. “It has taken on a life of its own,” she said.

“This campaign, it’s mushrooming.

Three to 400 people are involved.”

The program has the most supporters in Kentucky, Illinois, and Michigan, she said. “I never wanted this to be all Catholic. I wanted it to be all people of faiths. We have a lot of nonCatholic groups.”

Philippine Cardinal Jaime Sin of Manila founded the first “For Whom the Bells Toll” movement, asking the

Catholic churches in his country to toll the bells in mourning of a Philippine citizen’s execution. Bishop Walter F. Sullivan of Richmond, Va., learned of the initiative and started the bell tolling in his diocese.

Currently 100 churches in 32 states are participating in the program, Briggs told The Pilot, newspaper of the Boston Archdiocese.

Among its supporters are Citizens United for the Rehabilitation of Errants, a criminal justice reform organization; Sister Briggs’ order; and the American Friends Service Committee’s criminal justice program in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Participating parishes in Massachusetts include St. Luke’s Church and St. Joseph’s Church in Belmont, St. John the Evangelist Church in Swampscott, and Sacred Heart Church and St. Joseph’s Church in Medford.

To protest death sentences, participants do not need bells. They can drape a black cloth over their front door, or tie a black ribbon on a utility pole to spread awareness to their own communities, Sister Briggs said.

The program has received some negative feedback. “One comment often heard is, Why don’t you toll the bells for dead babies?” Sister Briggs said. “This is not a campaign for the abortion issue. It is a campaign for life. We can’t mix the two as one issue. It wouldn’t work. However, I certainly deplore abortion.”

Sister Briggs has hope for the campaign against capital punishment.

“The collection of all the groups that are trying to end the death penalty will succeed eventually,” she said.

She added that she “never dreamed” the bell-tolling effort would go so far.

But “there’s still a lot of work to do,” Sister Briggs said. “I’m going to get schools and everyone involved in it. If I had more help it would go faster, but I’m taking it one day at a time. It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

May 18, 2001

St. Joseph Church hosts Spanish Mission

KANNAPOLIS — St. Joseph Church, 108 St. Joseph St., will be having a parish mission in Spanish from May 28-June 2, beginning each night at 7:30 p.m. Redemptorist Fathers Pablo Straub and Roberto Coleman from Mexico will be the facilitators and will be visiting with area families for the duration of the mission. Those who know the Spanish language or wish to learn more about the Hispanic culture are invited to attend the mission for talks, fellowship, reconciliation and Mass. For further details, call the church office at (704) 932-4607 from 9 a.m.-noon weekdays.

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The Catholic News & Herald 5

scheduled

CHARLOTTE — The Christian Coffeehouse at St. Matthew Church’s “Youth and Young Adult Night” will be June 10 at 7 p.m. in the parish center at 8015 Ballantyne Commons Parkway. Spiritual messages, live music, snacks and socializing will highlight the event.

May 18, 2001

Light Weigh Workshop

CHARLOTTE — The Light Weigh is a 12-week Catholic, spiritual growth, weight-loss program designed to deepen one’s relationship with Jesus while learning to eat favorite foods in moderation. An orientation will be offered May 21 at 7 p.m. at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid Rd., in the faith formation wing of the parish center. For more information, call Karen Acken at (704) 556-9404.

Christian Coffeehouse

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, On Pentecost Sunday, June 3, 2001, I will gather with Bishop F. Joseph Gossman of the Diocese of Raleigh and Bishop Leonard Bolick of the North Carolina Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America to celebrate the Tenth Anniversary of the Covenant which bonds Catholics and Lutherans in North Carolina.

It was on Pentecost Sunday, 1991, when Bishop John Donoghue, Bishop F. Joseph Gossman and Bishop Michael McDaniel signed the original Covenant. The commitments of the Covenant are still important. Among them we: — pray for each other as we celebrate Eucharist in our respective communions; — pray together at joint services; — continue observances such as the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity; — invite official observers to councils and assemblies; — share programs and personnel at the diocesan/synodical level; — encourage local covenants; — reflect together on God’s Word in Scripture and theology classes; — seek a better understanding of each other’s traditions and beliefs; — study together the results of Lutheran/Catholic dialogues at the national level; — collaborate in training and planning programs; — communicate and act at the parish level on matters of common concern; — cooperate in areas of justice and human service; — develop a deeper working relationship between the bishops and their staffs; — promote social events that will bring people together.

Over the past ten years much has been accomplished in pursuit of these goals, and yet, there is so much more to do. It is my prayer that this celebration of renewal will breathe new life into the Covenant, that people who were not a part of our Diocese or Synod ten years ago would be active in its ongoing implementation.

I invite you to come join us at St. Pius X Church, Greensboro, on June 3, 2001, at 4:00 p.m. and to pray in your local parishes on Pentecost Sunday that the Holy Spirit will continue to empower us to achieve full communion.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend William G. Curlin Bishop of Charlotte

6 The Catholic News & Herald Blessed Damien observance moved WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Vatican has agreed to move the U.S. observance of the feast of Blessed Damien de Veuster from April 15 to May 10. Blessed Damien is the Belgian Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary priest who served at the leper colony of Molokai in the Hawaiian Islands from 1873 until his death in 1889. Leprosy, now known as Hansen’s disease, was incurable and Father Damien contracted it from working with his people. Pope John Paul II beatified him in 1995. The U.S. bishops asked that the memorial be observed May 10, the anniversary of Blessed Damien’s arrival in Molokai, rather than April 15, the anniversary of his death. The May date already was established as the observance by the Diocese of Honolulu and by his religious order.

U.S. cardinal addresses lay spirituality SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CNS) — The spirituality of lay people ought to be characterized by poverty and freedom of spirit, said the Vatican’s top laity official.

U.S. Cardinal J. Francis Stafford, president of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, spoke April 29 to more than 200 participants at “Spirituality in the Workplace,” a workshop sponsored by the Sacramento Diocese. He also gave his talk the previous day in San Francisco. Since the Second Vatican Council, lay people are perceived as integrally involved in the mission of the church, he said. But he suggested that lay Catholics must both study and go beyond Vatican II’s explicit references to the laity.

Church, civic activities earn woman Mexican mother-of-year honors LOS ANGELES (CNS) — She is a tiny, tireless dynamo, as widely known among fellow parishioners for her delectable dishes as for her decades-long devotion to St. Lawrence of Brindisi Church in Watts. And at age 91, Margarita Calderon Flores — or “Tia Maguita,” as her nieces call her — is very much a live wire, with an infectious sense of humor. “I’m only 4-foot something — and I’m shrinking more and more every year,” joked the 4-foot-10-inch Flores in an interview with The Tidings, Los Angeles archdiocesan newspaper. Her pastor, Capuchin Franciscan Father Peter Banks, said that she “still cooks tamales for the school children, works for the seniors, raises funds for the parish — she is a walking example of love.”

Actor Kelsey Grammer finds joy in all occasions WASHINGTON (CNS) — Actor Kelsey Grammer, TV’s “Frasier,” has been fodder for enough supermarket tabloids and tabloid-TV shows because of his past

People in the

CNS photo by Joe Bollig, The Leaven

Lech Walesa addresses U.S. media Former Polish President Lech Walesa speaks at a news conference in Kansas City, Mo., May 4. The former president of Poland called Pope John Paul II “the gift of divine providence” for his contributions to the eventual defeat of communism in Europe.

drinking and drug excesses. Now clean and sober, Grammer said during a May 9 conference call with television writers that there is always a reason to be joyful.

“Despite the absurdities of life, there is still a reason to rejoice,” said Grammer, a Catholic.

“That’s the way I’ve lived my life.” Asked what books he would bring to a desert island, Grammer replied, “Frasier might pick (Marcel) Proust, but Kelsey would choose the Bible and Shakespeare.”

Nun says learning has been lifelong passion ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) — At 84, Sister Anne Joachim Moore is one of the oldest graduates in the history of the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul. In December, the Sister of St. Joseph added a master’s degree in theology to her academic track record.

Her other degrees include a nursing degree, which she earned in 1937; bachelor’s in science degrees, earned in 1946 and 1949; a master’s in education, 1958; and a doctorate in educational administration, 1977. “I earned those other degrees to be qualified for a job,” Sister Anne Joachim told The Catholic Spirit, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. “I earned

my master’s in theology because I wanted it personally.”

Lasorda’s proud to be a Catholic, supporter of charitable causes VERO BEACH, Fla. (CNS) — Chatting with Japanese reporters while leading a pack of baseball scouts from the Dominican Republic through the “Dodgertown” spring training camp this year in Vero Beach, Tommy Lasorda of the Los Angeles Dodgers was all energy. “Dodger Blue” spoke to his guests from Santo Domingo in the rough Spanish he picked up back when the Brooklyn, N.Y., Dodgers trained in Havana.

He had just finished serving as lector for an annual memorial Mass celebrated locally for deceased members and friends associated with Dodgertown since 1948. Lasorda, a vice president for the Dodgers, has long been committed to church-affiliated causes and charities, especially Catholic educa-

May 18, 2001

tion. He has addressed numerous Catholic organizations and diocesan events around the country.

Heads of religious charities urge changes in tax law on children WASHINGTON (CNS) — The president of Catholic Charities USA has joined with the heads of other religiously affiliated social service organizations in urging Congress to make the Earned Income Tax Credit and the child tax credit benefit more families. Specifically the leaders recommended that the Earned Income Tax Credit be expanded to families with more than two children and that the proposed $1,000 child tax credit be fully refundable, even for families who owe no taxes. “These relatively simple measures can provide a great deal of relief to low-income working families and their children,” said Jesuit Father Fred Kammer in a May 7 letter to Sen. Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee. The letter also was signed by representatives of Lutheran Services in America, Volunteers of America Inc. and the Salvation Army.

Human rights group: U.S. nun’s murder may have political roots TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (CNS) — The killing of a U.S. nun in Guatemala may have political roots, said human rights activists in Guatemala City. The Mutual Support Group, Guatemala’s largest group of war victims and human rights activists, said May 7 that the killing of Charity Sister Barbara Ann Ford of New York was “of a political nature.” Sister Ford died of gunshot wounds after an assault in Guatemala City May 5. Initial reports indicated she was shot while resisting an attempt by thieves to steal her church-owned pickup truck. In a statement, the group said Sister Ford’s vehicle was taken, then abandoned a few blocks away, where the killers robbed a second vehicle, only to abandon it. The group also said Sister Ford’s work of “encouraging reconciliation among Guatemalans” was “surely not appreciated by those responsible for the pain and grieving” of people in the remote Quiche province where the 62-year old nun worked since 1989.

May 18, 2001

From the

The Catholic News & Herald 7

Bishop Howze of Biloxi retires at 77; served in N.C.

By Catholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) — Pope John Paul II has accepted the resignation of Bishop Joseph L. Howze of Biloxi, Miss., and named the chancellor and vicar general of the New Orleans Archdiocese to succeed him.

At the time of his retirement, the 77-year-old Bishop Howze was the topranking active African-American bishop, having served as a bishop since 1972 and headed the Biloxi Diocese since 1977.

Msgr. Thomas J. Rodi, 52, was appointed as the new bishop of Biloxi.

The announcements were made May 15 in Washington by Archbishop Gabriel Montalvo, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

Born Aug. 30, 1923, in Daphne, Ala., Lawson Howze took the name Joseph when he converted to Catholicism in 1948. He graduated from Alabama State University in 1948, and entered the Seminary of Christ the King in East Aurora, N.Y. In 1959 he was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Raleigh, N.C. He became a priest of the Charlotte Diocese when North Carolina was divided into two dioceses less than a year before he was made a bishop.

He was a pastor in Asheville, N.C., and diocesan liturgy commission chairman, home mission director and Society for the Propagation of the Faith director when he learned he was to be named an auxiliary bishop of NatchezJackson, Miss., on Nov. 14, 1972. He was ordained to the episcopacy on Jan. 28, 1973.

When he was installed as bishop of the newly created Diocese of Biloxi on June 6, 1977, he was the first black bishop in this century to head a diocese.

At the time the only African-American in the U.S. hierarchy was Auxiliary Bishop Harold R. Perry of New Orleans, who died in 1991.

The only other black bishop in U.S. Catholic history had been Bishop James A. Healy, Georgia-born son of an Irish immigrant father and a slave mother, who headed the Diocese of Portland,

Maine, from 1875 to 1900.

With Bishop Howze’s resignation, Bishop J. Terry Steib of Memphis, Tenn., becomes the ranking black Catholic bishop active in the United States.

Five other African-American bishops currently head dioceses and five more serve as auxiliary bishops.

In his nearly 24 years as bishop of Biloxi, a diocese that covers the southern third of Mississippi, the Catholic population grew from about 50,000 to nearly 68,000 in a total population of more than 737,000.

Thomas John Rodi was born March 27, 1949, in New Orleans. He attended Catholic elementary and secondary schools in his home town, Georgetown University in Washington and Tulane University School of Law in New Orleans, where he earned a law degree in 1974.

In 1974, Bishop-designate Rodi entered Notre Dame Seminary where he pursued theological studies and obtained a master’s of divinity degree. In 1986 he earned a degree in canon law from The Catholic University of America in Washington.

Ordained to the priesthood on May 20, 1978, Bishop-designate Rodi served from 1978 to 1989 as an assistant pastor and an administrator in several parishes in the New Orleans Archdiocese. He was director of the archdiocesan office of religious education, 1978-79; executive director for pastoral services, 1989-92; and was appointed chancellor of the archdiocese in 1992.

Named vicar general and moderator of the curia in 1996, Bishop-designate Rodi also served in various capacities in the Metropolitan Tribunal of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, including defender of the bond and prosynodal judge.

His episcopal ordination was scheduled for 3 p.m. July 2 in the Cathedral of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Biloxi.

8 The Catholic News & Herald

In the

Catholic Church reaches out to Hispanics on social issues

By Agostino Bono Catholic News Service WASHINGTON (CNS) — The growing number of Hispanics in the United States is catching the eye of politicians.

President Bush recently began broadcasting a Spanish version of his weekly radio address. Democrats also have gotten the message. Digging into their cadre of Hispanic congressmen, they started a weekly Spanish radio program pushing their agenda.

“The Latino vote is coming out. I would like to believe we in the Catholic Church had a part in this,” said Louis Velasquez, Hispanic ministry director for the Los Angeles Archdiocese.

Velasquez and others involved in Hispanic ministry said in interviews that the church’s work in reaching out to Hispanics with its social teachings and emphasis on political participation is starting to pay dividends.

Velasquez said that he uses a Spanish play on words to encourage voter registration. “Voto” in Spanish means “vote” and a “religious vow,” he said.

“We tell Latinos that to vote means fulfilling their vow to be their brother’s keeper,” he added.

Through parish-based ministry, community organizing, seminars, workshops and lay leadership training courses, dioceses and church organizations across the country are informing Hispanics about social teachings and their public policy implications.

Velasquez said that he once brought a voting booth into a parish to show Hispanics the practical steps to casting their ballots.

The 2000 census reported 35.3 million Hispanics, 12.5 percent of the population. The number is a 57.9 percent increase over the 1990 census figure.

Based on the 2000 census, the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials reported that 122 of the 435 congressional districts have significant Hispanic populations, defined as districts with at least 13 percent Hispanic makeup.

The Hispanic population is heavily Catholic. Although there are no precise figures, general estimates say 70 percent of Hispanics are Catholic.

For church leaders involved in Hispanic ministry, political participation goes beyond voting, especially in the Hispanic population with its significant number of non-U.S. citizens.

“We help people understand their role even as noncitizens,” said Ronaldo Cruz, executive director of the U.S. bishops’ Secretariat for Hispanic Affairs. “They have rights and responsibilities. They can work on issues. They can go door-to-door.”

It also means putting Spanish in the classrooms and in printed materials.

The Los Angeles Archdiocese runs a three-year lay leadership course in Spanish which stresses social teachings as an integral part of the churches’ pastoral and evangelical mission. About 300 people are enrolled in the current classes. It also operates a threeweekend summer course in Spanish just on social teachings.

Velasquez estimated that from 60 to 70 percent of the archdiocesan Catholic population of 4.1 million is Hispanic.

The California Catholic Conference posts public policy statements in Spanish on its Web site and makes Spanish-language materials available to diocesan officials.

One result has been growing Hispanic participation in the annual Catholic lobbying day in Sacramento, said Linda Wanner, the conference’s associate director for government relations.

“We try to reach out and make those who speak Spanish feel welcomed,” she said.

This includes providing Spanish translations at briefings outlining the techniques of lobbying, she added.

In the Orange Diocese in Southern California parish-based community organizing is a major thrust in reaching Hispanics, said Auxiliary Bishop Jaime Soto. Several Catholic parishes are part of a network including Protestant churches and labor organizations.

The approach is “seeing the world through the Gospel and using the power of the Gospel to make change,” he said.

Bishop Soto estimated that at least half of the diocese’s 1.2 million Catholics are Hispanic.

In many dioceses, parish-based ministry and periodic diocese-wide meetings on social issues are the main outreach to Hispanics.

“Social ministry is part of pastoral ministry,” said Father Aniceto Villamide, vicar for Hispanics in the Diocese of Bridgeport, Conn.

The diocese also holds two to three seminars a year in the evenings, usually on immigration issues, he said.

May 18, 2001

Father Kirch, retired diocesan priest, dies at age 78

until 1975, he and Dorothy lived in TAMPA, Fla. — Reverend Edmund Kenosha, Wisc., and were active memDonald Kirsch, 78, a Catholic priest who bers of St. Mary Catholic Church. They served in the Diocese of Charlotte, died are survived by five children: a daughter, Sunday, May 13 at Tampa General HosKay Sharp and her husband, John, of pital, Tampa, Fla. He was born Nov. 12, Bristol, Wisc.; three sons in Kenosha, 1922, in Quincy, Ill., to the late Frank and Wisc., John Kirsch Mary (Mae) Fueland his wife Sharon; bier Kirsch. He was Ronald Kirsch and educated in Quincy his wife Karen; Daschools and graduvid Kirsch and his ated from St. Louis wife Jean; and a son, University, St. LouDr. Michael Kirsch is, Mo. He married and his wife, Dr. Dorothy Blomer on Gayle Obermayr, of Sept. 23, 1948, in Sebring, Fla. He is Quincy, Ill. After her also survived by 10 death in February of grandchildren. In 1983, Edmund enaddition to his wife, tered Holy Apostles two brothers and Seminary in Cromfive sisters preceded well, Conn., in Sephim in death. tember 1984.

During World Father Kirsch War II, he proudly was ordained a served his country Catholic priest on in the U.S. Army InMay 21, 1988, in fantry from OctoCharlotte, N.C. He served the Diocese Reverend Edmund Donald Kirsch ber 1942 until January 1946. He was of Charlotte until awarded bronze his retirement in battle stars for acJuly 1998. For seven tion in Northern France, Ardennes years he served concurrently as pastor of (Battle of the Bulge), Rhineland and St. William Parish in Murphy, N.C. and Central Europe. He was a member Immaculate Heart of Mary, Hayesville, of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He N.C. Since his retirement, Father Kirsch was a Fourth Degree Member of the had been residing in Sebring, Fla., where Catholic Knights of Columbus. he assisted at St. Catherine Parish.

Interment was to take place at All Prior to entering the seminary, he Saints Cemetery. worked for 25 years at Abbott Laboratories in North Chicago, Ill. From 1956

May 18, 2001

The Catholic News & Herald 9

1 0 The Catholic News & Herald Book Review

Priest’s book of essays addresses societal, spiritual Reviewed by Wayne A. Holst Catholic News Service “Finding My Way Home” is a newly released collection of four essays by the late Father Henri Nouwen. Three of these essays appeared previously in booklet form. The fourth is new — edited rather liberally from Father Nouwen’s notes by his literary executor, Sue Mosteller. Mosteller worked with Father Nouwen at L’Arche Daybreak near Toronto, a community for mentally and phys-

FINDING MY WAY HOME: PATHWAYS TO LIFE AND THE SPIRIT, by Henri J.M. Nouwen.

Crossroad (New York, 2001). 157 pp., $18.95 ically challenged people where Father Nouwen lived and worked for 10 years until his death in 1996.

Explaining the title of the collection, Mosteller writes in the preface: “Henri invariably stopped when a homeless person accosted us on the street. Not only did he find some money to share, but he generally took time to speak to the person, ask some questions and listen to the story.” She recalls that in the following days Father Nouwen would remember the individual by name during his celebration of the Eucharist.

“Henri felt akin to the homeless because he was deeply conscious of his own longing for home,” Mosteller writes.

“The Path of Living and Dying,” the book’s final essay, represents a personal transformation after a serious accident. Father Nouwen survived the mishap but was deeply affected. During recovery, he became aware of life’s “unfinished business.” A revelation from God indicated: “I am going to bring you home.” When he died seven years later Father Nouwen had begun to lose

May 18, 2001

Read-

much of his fear and to see death as a fruitful experience.

“The Path of Waiting” — this reviewer’s favorite because it addresses an important aspect of his own spiritual development — speaks of both the waiting for God and the waiting of God. “The Path of Power” deals with destructive and redemptive forces operative in the world and in our own hearts. “The Path of Peace” focuses on Adam, a profoundly disabled man with whom Father Nouwen lived at Daybreak.

Father Nouwen’s pastoral and professional career is an example of a contemporary priest-psychologist who successfully integrated psychology’s insights to broaden and deepen his ministry. He also demonstrated psychology’s potential for modern spirituality.

He was truly sensitive to the cultural currents of his age and provided spiritual responses to them through his writing.

Some have quipped that Father Nouwen did not write 40 different books, but rather one book 40 times. Most of his innovative themes have now been thoroughly presented. With his papers lodged at the University of St. Michael’s College, Toronto, researchers now have ready access to his total work.

A whole new generation of Nouwen literature will no doubt be released to a reading world that continues to hunger for what he has to say.

New publications of material by and about Father Nouwen continue to debut.

While the danger of becoming a cult figure always looms, the appearance of “Finding My Way Home” is an indication of this modern spiritual master’s continuing relevance and substance.

Holst is an instructor in religion and culture at the University of Calgary.

Word to Life

May 20, Sixth Sunday of Easter Cycle C Readings: 1) Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Psalm 67:2-3, 5-6, 8 2) Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23 3) Gospel: John 14:23-29

By Jeff Hensley Catholic News Service

In the Gospel one of Jesus’ disciples asks him, “Lord, why is it that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” How many of us have asked a similar question? There’s even a contemporary Christian song that goes into great detail, suggesting that as curious as people are about him in our own age, why doesn’t Jesus mount a big media campaign, “go on MTV,” announce who he is and what he came to do?

We find it curious. Jesus just asked a few people to love the Father and be true to the word he had spoken to them, promising those who would comply that “we will come ... and make our dwelling place with him,” and then, later, he promised he would send the “Paraclete, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send in my name.”

We do well to ponder the progression given us in the four Scriptures for this Sunday. The Psalms reading speaks in grand terms of God’s rule of all the peoples of the earth, saying, “May all the peoples praise you!” Yet, in Acts we have a tiny delegation from the early church being sent to instruct a new group of believers at Antioch and

making the least possible requirements on them as they begin to center their lives on the “cause of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

By the time we get to the Revelation reading, we have a vision of the completion of the building of the Kingdom of God on earth culminating in heavenly worship where there is no temple or need of sun or moon, “for the glory of God gave it light, and its lamp was the Lamb.”

But how do we get from the vision of the grand God who “rules the nations in equity” in Psalms to the city which needs neither light nor temple because God himself is its light and its center of worship? Through a crucified Savior, risen from the dead; by way of a small, perhaps even pitiable, band of followers, following as simple a set of directions as it was possible to give, and, oh yes, by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit — with them, guiding them, leading them, helping them build the kingdom.

And what is asked of us? We are not asked to accomplish great things, only to love the Father and the Son he has sent, to follow his teachings and to allow his Spirit to come and dwell with us.

QUESTION: Keeping in mind that church teaching and the Scriptures must inform our consciences and our walk with God, can we really simplify our following of Jesus as much as these readings suggest?

Weekly Scripture Readings for the week of May 20 - 26, 2001 Sixth Sunday of Easter, Acts 15:1-2, 22-29, Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23, John 14:23-29; 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 (The Ascension of our Lord), Acts 1:1-11, Ephesians 1:17-23, Luke 24:46-53; Friday (St. Bede, St. Gregory VII, St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi), Acts 18:9-18, John 16:20-23; Saturday (St. Philip Neri), Acts 18:23-28, John 16:23-28 Readings for the week of May 27 - June 2, 2001 Seventh Sunday of Easter, Acts 7:55-60, Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20, John 17:20-26; Monday, Acts 19:1-8, John 16:29-33; Tuesday, Acts 20:17-27, John 17:1-11; Wednesday, Acts 20:28-38, John 17:11-19; Thursday (The Visitation of Mary), Romans 12:9-16, Luke 1:39-54; Friday (St. Justin), Acts 25:13-21, John 21:15-19; Saturday (Sts. Marcellinus and Peter, Martyrs), Acts 28:16-20, 30-31, John 21:20-25

May 18, 2001

The Catholic News & Herald 11

Entertain-

World Communications Day VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Here is the Vatican text of Pope John Paul II’s message for 2001 World Communications Day, May 27, on the theme, “Preach from the Housetops: The Gospel in the Age of Global Communication.”

1. The theme which I have chosen for World Communications Day 2001 echoes the words of Jesus himself. It could not be otherwise, for it is Christ alone whom we preach. We remember his words to his first disciples: “What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the housetops” (Mt 10:27).

In the secret of our heart, we have listened to the truth of Jesus; now we must proclaim that truth from the housetops.

In today’s world, housetops are almost always marked by a forest of transmitters and antennae sending and receiving messages of every kind to and from the four corners of the earth. It is vitally important to ensure that among these many messages the word of God is heard. To proclaim the faith from the housetops today means to speak Jesus’ word in and through the dynamic world of communications.

2. In all cultures and at all times —

certainly in the midst of today’s global transformations — people ask the same basic questions about the meaning of life: Who am I? Where have I come from and where am I going? Why is there evil? What is there after this life? (cf. “Fides et Ratio,” 1).

And in every age the church offers the one ultimately satisfying answer to the deepest questions of the human heart — Jesus Christ himself, “who fully reveals man to himself and brings to light his high calling” (“Gaudium et Spes,” 22). Therefore, the voice of Christians can never fall silent, for the Lord has entrusted to us the word of salvation for which every human heart longs.

The Gospel offers the pearl of great price for which all are searching (cf. Mt 13:45-46).

It follows that the church cannot fail to be ever more deeply involved in the burgeoning world of communications. The global communications network is extending and growing more complex by the day, and the media are having an increasingly visible effect on culture and its transmission.

Where once the media reported events, now events are often shaped to meet the requirements of the media. Thus, the relationship between reality and the media has grown more intricate, and this is a deeply

ambivalent phenomenon. On the one hand, it can blur the distinction between truth and illusion; but on the other, it can open up unprecedented opportunities for making the truth more widely accessible to many more people. The task of the church is to ensure that it is the latter which actually happens.

3. The world of the media can sometimes seem indifferent and even hostile to Christian faith and morality. This is partly because media culture is so deeply imbued with a typically postmodern sense that the only absolute truth is that there are no absolute truths or that, if there were, they would be inaccessible to human reason and therefore irrelevant. In such a view, what matters is not the truth but “the story”; if something is newsworthy or entertaining, the temptation to set aside considerations of truth becomes almost irresistible. As a result, the world of the media can sometimes seem no more friendly an environment for evangelization than the pagan world of the Apostles’ day. But just as the early witnesses to the Good News did not retreat when faced with opposition, neither should Christ’s followers do so today. The cry of St. Paul echoes among us still: “Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel” (1 Cor 9:16).

CNS photo from Columbia Pictures

Scene from movie ‘The Knight’s Tale’ Heath Ledger and Paul Bettany star in a scene from the film “The Knight’s Tale.” The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-II —adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Yet, as much as the world of the media may at times seem at odds with the Christian message, it also offers unique opportunities for proclaiming the saving truth of Christ to the whole human family.

Consider, for instance, satellite telecasts of religious ceremonies which often reach a global audience, or the positive capacities of the Internet to carry religious information and teaching beyond all barriers and frontiers. Such a wide audience would have been beyond the wildest imaginings of those who preached the Gospel before us.

What is therefore needed in our time is an active and imaginative engagement of the media by the church. Catholics should not be afraid to throw open the doors of social communications to Christ, so that his Good News may be heard from the housetops of the world!

4. It is vital too that at the beginning of this new millennium we keep in mind the mission “ad gentes” which Christ has entrusted to the church. An estimated twothirds of the world’s 6 billion people do not in any real sense know Jesus Christ; and many of them live in countries with ancient Christian roots, where entire groups of the baptized have lost a living sense of the faith, or no longer consider themselves members of the church and live lives far removed from the Lord and his Gospel (cf. “Redemptoris Missio,” 33). Certainly, an effective response to this situation involves much more than the media; but in striving to meet the challenge Christians cannot possibly ignore the world of social communications. Indeed, media of every kind can play an essential role in direct evangelization and in bringing to people the truths and values which support and enhance human dignity. The church’s presence in the media is in fact an important aspect of the inculturation of the Gospel demanded by the new evangelization to which the Holy Spirit is summoning the church throughout the world.

As the whole church seeks to heed the Spirit’s call, Christian communicators have “a prophetic task, a vocation: to speak out against the false gods and idols of the day — materialism, hedonism, consumerism, narrow nationalism” (“Ethics in Communications,” 31). Above all, they have the duty and privilege to declare the truth — the glorious truth about human life and human destiny revealed in the Word made flesh.

May Catholics involved in the world of social communications preach the truth of Jesus ever more boldly and joyfully from the housetops, so that all men and women may hear about the love which is the heart of God’s self-communication in Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever (cf Heb 13:8).

1 2 The Catholic News & Herald

May 18, 2001

Editorials & Col-

The Pope Speaks

POPE JOHN PAUL II

Pope ordains 34; calls effort for priests ‘necessary and urgent’ B John Norton y

Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope John Paul II ordained 34 new priests for the Diocese of Rome, thanking believers around the world who, “in silence and in their daily thoughts, offer their prayers and sufferings for priests and vocations.”

A greater effort to draw more young men to the priesthood was “necessary and urgent,” he said May 13 during the liturgy in St. Peter’s Basilica.

“What this means is increasingly kindling and cultivating a ‘vocations mentality,’ which translates into a personal and communitarian style marked by listening, discernment and a generous response to God who calls,” he said.

A week from his 81st birthday, the pope lightly laid his trembling hands on the heads of each man being ordained and read a long prayer over them as they lay prostrate before the basilica’s main altar.

Among the new priests was a set of 30-yearold Italian twin brothers, two men from the United States, and one each from New Zealand, Australia and Cuba. The group ranged in age from 26 to 66 and hailed from 16 countries.

The pope told the new priests to “aim at sanctity (and) radiate love.

“Above all, be in love with the church — the earthly church and the heavenly one — looking at her with faith and love, despite the blemishes and wrinkles that can mark her human face,” he said.

Christians are called to share God’s love, says pope VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Christians are

called to share God’s love for all men and women, relying on God’s own power to overcome obstacles of indifference and hostility, Pope John Paul II said.

“Jesus calls us and sends us as he did with the apostles,” the pope told more than 100 national directors of the pontifical missionary works meeting in Rome May 3-11. God does not choose missionaries “on the basis of our merits or our works; rather, he supports us and fortifies us with his Spirit,” the pope told the directors during a May 11 audience at the Vatican. “Only ‘armed’ with his grace can we bring the good news to the ends of the earth. Difficulties and obstacles will not stop us because the heavenly Father’s love for all humanity will be our continuing support,” the pope said.

Everything Appears as Before In Pope John Paul II’s 2001 Easter message he said, “Everything appears as before, but in fact nothing is the same as before.” The pontiff ’s words were explaining the transformation of human life because of Jesus’ resurrection. Yet, they also apply to many family experiences.

Our honeymoon in 1975 was in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains at the height of the fall colors.

We were so touched by nature’s beauty that it forever changed our awareness. Coming home to the more insipid landscape of Northern Illinois, we were again touched by the autumn colors in our own backyard.

We saw what we had never noticed before, though it had always been there.

I (Andrew) remember driving home from the hospital the night our first child was born. Lamont Road was the same as it was hours earlier, but through the eyes of this new father, everything was new. The red, yellow and green of the traffic lights caught my attention as never before. The sweetness in the air tasted as never before. The love in my heart radiated as never before. In the car on the drive home with newborn Andréa days later, we experienced ourselves as family very differently. We two were the same; but we had become three, very different and new.

After family members die the world revolves the same as always. Yet, our family organic matter is different, and the world, through our senses, is not the same as before.

As our children each progress toward adulthood, through every phase of development, our family changes so that it seems that nothing is the same as before.

Our marriage over the years has experienced, through trials and joys, such transformation. Watching each other develop in our respective professions, as parents, as friends, we have witnessed transformation. And our marriage is not the same as before.

Critical to these “rebirth” experiences is firstly

On the Light Side Dan Morris CNS Columnist

The vise grips were rusted frozen. So I had to search the estate for my can of WD40 to loosen it up. To use the WD40 meant I needed a paper towel, but the towel rack was empty.

You get the picture. And this is not even mentioning the trickle charger repair, blowing a breaker, the BandAid fiasco or the split battery terminal.

So doesn’t this make you wonder about things like how God made light on the first day but did not actually install the sun and the moon and the stars until the fourth day? You think maybe the sun and the moon were on back order? No, no, that doesn’t make sense because he would have been making them himself.

Maybe he used up too much energy doing the sky and the sea and the vegetation, and he had to wait a couple days for his trickle charger to do its thing. Makes sense to me.

Family Reflections Andrew & Terri Lyke Guest Columnists

our paying attention — to each other and life around us. Secondly, we need to live boldly, undaunted by change, willing to redirect our course because of change. Sometimes we want everything to stay as they are.

Finally, we need to anticipate “Easter” moments when “everything appears as before, but in fact nothing is the same as before.” We must expect newness in life. If we can’t see it, look again. When we search for God in our midst, we always find what we are looking for. It’s having a kind of spiritual literacy that helps us see more clearly, breathe more deeply and love more passionately.

Touched by beauty, awed by the evidence of God’s grace in our life together, families must hold one another in faith and love, ever growing, ever changing and willing to experience life as never before.

The Real Reasons My Car’s Battery Died If you ever wondered why it took God seven days to create the world when we all know he could have done it in one, I might have an answer. He had a dead battery.

Well, not a dead battery in the sense he left his parking lights on all night. First of all, it is doubtful God would forget to turn off his parking lights.

Second, why would he have a car in the first place if the world wasn’t done yet and there weren’t any roads?

Although, given his connections, he probably could have had his choice of any off-road, four-wheel drive-hummer he wanted and wouldn’t have needed any roads and could have parked it anywhere, like they do on the commercials where the vehicle ends up parked on some mountain.

Anyway, the dead battery analogy came to me, as you might guess, when I did, in fact, discover my own car battery had wasted all its juice playing a radio all night for no one.

I figure since we are created in the image and likeness of God, then perhaps he, too, might have started out to do one thing but then found out that he had to do something else first in order to do the first thing, but then the second thing needed something done, too, before it could be done so you could get back to the original project. And on it goes.

I know you are following this.

Theologians could call this the “It Always Takes Three Trips to the Hardware Store to Fix Anything Rule of the Universe.”

Back to the battery theory. To charge my battery I had either to take the trickle charger to the battery or take the battery to the trickle charger. Since oldest son had borrowed my extension cord, I opted to take the battery to the trickle charger. This meant finding the correct wrenches. However, No. 2 son had those.

Luckily I found my crescent wrench, which was OK other than that the battery terminal nuts were soft and the crescent wrench rounded them. Thus I would either have to go to the hardware store and buy new nuts or put them back on with a vise grip, but that would just be putting off the inevitable replacement. Oh, duh, I had to have the car to go to the store. Vice grips it was.

May 18, 2001

Editorials & Col-

Light One Candle Msgr. Jim Lisante Guest Columnist

problems. Frankly, they were heartbreaking to hear.

It’s going to take a lot of time for him to resolve his many crises. But then, in the midst of his sad story, Steven did something that others rarely do. He stopped talking about himself and his problems. He looked at me directly and asked: “Sorry for all this talk about me and my problems. I know you’ve had a rough year, what with the loss of your closest friend to cancer. Father Jim, how are you doing?”

I think I was more taken aback by the fact that he cared than by the particular question. I gave a fairly ordinary answer, then added with great sincerity, “but thank you, Steve, for bothering to ask.”

Everyone wants to be heard. Listening is a gift we share with others. Listening well is a grace for people in pain. Knowing that someone cares can be communicated in many ways: through touch, through physical assistance and, importantly, by the quality of our ability to hear with compassion.

Sometimes we take these goodhearted listeners for granted. Since they’ve always “lent us an ear” we presume they always will. And maybe that’s so. But as a professional in the listening business I need to tell you — it’s great to be heard too. It’s wonderful to have someone who stops long enough to ask: “How are you doing?”

Take the time to speak honestly. But remember to take your turn and listen, too. faith convictions, why you cannot approve or agree with another’s actions. Apparently you have done that quite firmly. That done, however, the next obligation of love is not to enlarge the hurt any more than necessary.

My own experience convinces me that much more lasting good is accomplished when we preserve ties of love and family friendship as much as possible.

You may strongly disagree with what they do, but you still love them I hope, and they need to know that by your actions as well as words.

There is no black and white, one-size-fits-all solution for these dilemmas. To insist only one way is possible to stand for the truth in such complicated circumstances reveals either a form of pride or a deep need for moral decisions which are absolutely certain, with no tinges of gray or risk. Such attitudes open the way to, among other things, rash judgments about a person’s state of soul.

Second, and in some ways perhaps more important, if your letter describes the circumstances accurately, at least your elder daughter was not entering an “adulterous and invalid relationship” according to Catholic Church law.

Canon law (No. 1117) states that a person who leaves the Catholic Church “by a formal act” is no longer bound to the “form” of marriage, the obligation to be married before a priest for a valid marriage.

Exactly which behaviors might constitute such a formal act are not entirely clarified, but one such act would definitely be what your daughter did: to officially join another faith. In other words, her actions may have hurt and mystified you; but, assuming they are otherwise free to marry, she has entered a marriage the Catholic Church itself considers valid and (if both are baptized) sacramental.

The church’s flexibility here is another evidence that we cannot be God’s surrogate in judging the souls of others. Being faithful to what we believe is one thing. Making our personal peace and serenity depend on what someone else does is something else entirely.

Thank You For Asking In the 20 years I’ve been a priest, I’ve spent a lot of time sitting and listening to people. In fact, listening is probably the activity ministers of all faiths do most. Now, some people would balk at the notion of listening as an activity. After all, it sounds pretty passive. You’re not physically exerting yourself. It’s not manual labor. But it is, nonetheless, a real activity. True listening involves an active disposition, it requires an lively intellect and must always be accompanied by the ability to hear beyond the “audio,” taking in the fuller meaning of both the words spoken and the words that aren’t.

One expert suggested that pastoral counseling (that’s what they call what we do), involves listening with a combination of heart, mind and soul: the heart to have true compassion or empathy for the person sitting before you, the mind to know how to direct the person to a safer harbor, and the soul to acknowledge that God works through everyone, even those most resistant to His plan.

There are two types of approach counselors use. The image of the more passive counselor is the popular notion from television and the movies of someone taking notes either on paper or mentally, but saying very little. This is the quiet listener who hopes that just giving the person a chance to speak will lead to a solution. And, in fact, sometimes that does happen. People who are bottled up are often helped just by having the chance to articulate their struggles and choices. Others require more active or direct counseling. They need to be helped to focus and decide on a course of action or behavior. As a pastoral counselor, I probably fall into this category. I think that people are looking for us to tell them what we think. They may not agree with us. They may not think much of the advice, but many do want reaction. They want to know what we make of the story they’ve just shared.

People who come to counseling are generally honing in on a problem they face. And that sometimes finds them pretty self-absorbed. Understandably, folks come because of personal pain, stress or confusion. Once in a while, though, something interesting happens — just as it did very recently, during the visit of a man I’ll call Steven.

Steven came to me with a host of family and personal

Question Corner FATHER JOHN DIETZEN CNS Columnist

When Child Leaves Catholic Church and Marries in Another Q. My older daughter, baptized and raised Catholic, recently married a young man in the Christian church she now belongs to. I refused to give her away because I felt, as her father, I had to make clear I did not approve of her entering an adulterous and invalid relationship.

When my second daughter married, also out of the church, I was not invited because of the prior situation.

She has cut me out of her life. I see the older daughter occasionally, but the meetings are awkward.

I am sorry about this, but what else could I have done and been true to my beliefs? (California) A. Whatever healing may be possible will surely be accomplished only gradually. Recognizing two important facts may help toward that and maybe assist others who face the same decisions.

First, one must always return to the primary Christian rule of love of God and neighbor. This means asking, “In these circumstances, with these children and with this background, what is the best way I can show genuine love for God and my child, and preserve a spirit of faith, hope and love for everyone involved?”

One obligation in love is to make clear your own

The Catholic News & Herald 13

The Bottom Line Antoinette Bosco CNS Columnist Christopher Reeve — Truly a Super Man Say the name Christopher Reeve, and most people immediately think “Superman,” remembering the handsome, strong man who played the role of the invincible hero. Talk will then immediately turn to the tragic accident which left him with a paralyzing spinal cord injury. Surprisingly, this will not be a gloomy commentary. Quite the contrary. People think of him as yet an incredible “super man,” commenting on all the ways he has inspired people by his grace, reverence for life and the work he is doing to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities and his love of family.

I had the good fortune to see and hear the actor and his beautiful wife, Dana, this April. The Reeves were the invited speakers for the annual Distinguished Lecture Series presented by Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven. At that time I participated in a private and small press conference. To be a few feet away from this inspiring couple, listening to their honest, unrehearsed answers to questions, was an unforgettable experience.

Recalling the accident that occurred during an equestrian competition in May 1995, Christopher Reeve surprised us when he said he and his family have been on “an extraordinary journey. We’ve learned a lot. It may seem hard to believe, but we’re grateful in many ways for this experience.”

Reeve spoke of being on “two tracks.” One is “preparation for the future,” in which he works hard for good scientific progress which will, with new technology, “make incredible things happen” for rehabilitating the disabled.

The other track is “to learn to live in the moment — to learn how to be when you can’t do.” And here he spoke of marriage and parenting.

When Reeve thought he could not go on after the accident, his wife told him, “You’re still you, and I love you.” She showed him that “vows are vows” and that nothing had changed the love. “This made me richer than anything that had ever happened before.”

As for being a father of three, he learned that parenting isn’t dragging kids out to ski, etc., but giving them the time and attention they want. “To learn what their dreams and difficulties are, to get to know them, has been an invaluable lesson. What they really wanted is what we have now,” he acknowledged.

Later the Reeves addressed an overflow audience in the university’s great theater. Many in the audience had disabilities, many were in wheelchairs. We had been told that 600 students with identifiable disabilities attend this university.

Christopher Reeve noted that 54 million Americans now have serious disabilities, and he emphasized the need for financial support from insurance companies, for example. This has to be the 21st century’s “decade of inclusion. All we want is to be brought in from the margins of society and be included. We have to play fair in this society. The time is now.”

His final words spoke of his belief that “there is a spirituality in all of us that we can tap into, that gives us strength.” I predict that no one there will forget that night when we became soulfully richer, thanks to an unforgettable couple.

1 4 The Catholic News & Herald

In brief . . .

El Salvador Interest Group shares insights from journey CHARLOTTE — When El Salvador experienced two earthquakes in January and February this year, more than 800 were killed, millions were left homeless, and a land wrought with a history of violence, environmental destruction and broken spiritedness was left to mend once again.

A delegation of five who traveled to El Salvador in late March from St. Peter Catholic Church in Charlotte shared their experience with three audiences in the parish hall May 5-6.

The delegates told their stories and offered reflections of seeing the destruction firsthand. They shared how they felt called to El Salvador and spoke of the powerful signs of hope they saw amid the widespread destruction and loss of life.

Wes Callender, executive director of Voices on the Border, directed the group and was in Charlotte to discuss the impact of the financial aid sent to the ravaged country, current conditions there, and what the next steps of support will be.

St. Peter Church and the Latin American Coalition of Charlotte contributed more than $20,000 along with much needed clothing and emergency aid via Voices on the Border, an organization directly linked with the people of El Salvador through accompaniment and empowerment.

For more than 10 years, St. Peter Church in Charlotte has had a relationship with Segundo Montes, a community about 100 miles northeast of San Salvador.

With direction from Voices on the Border, the parish’s El Salvador Interest Group, promotes and sends annual delegations to accompany and stay with the people of Segundo Montes.

For more information on the interest group, call Ted Frazer at (704) 563-9550.

ClassiEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES Director of Liturgy: Opportunity to serve full-time in welcoming, prayerful community as developer and coordinator of parish liturgical life.

Vatican II community, 2000 families in central North Carolina. Works with clergy, director of music ministries, staff. Requires master’s degree or equivalent, knowledge of church rites and rituals; empowering, collaborative, pastoral; music skills welcome. Immediate opening, salary commensurate with education and experience. Benefits package included. Send resume to: Search Committee, c/o Jennifer Horton, St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Rd., Greensboro, NC 27410. Phone: (336)294-4696; Fax: (336)2946149. e-mail: jhorton@stpaulcc.org Director of Office of Youth Ministry: Full-time, Diocese of Arlington, Virginia.

Responsibilities include: actively coordinating diocesan-wide program; coordinate and serve as resource for parochial youth programs; promote youth ministry awareness among clergy, parents and youth. Qualifications are: Catholic in good standing; college degree with theological course work (master’s degree in theology or related field preferred); experience in youth ministry as articulated in Renewing the Vision, USCC 1997 programs; working knowledge of Spanish; ability to work and communicate with adolescents and adults; enthusiasm for and loyalty to the Church. Competitive salary commensurate with experience. Full benefits package. Send resume to: Fr. Michael Taylor, Diocese of Arlington, 200 N. Glebe Rd., Suite 519, Arlington, VA 22203.

Please send resumes by July 1, 2001.

High School Youth Minister: Vibrant 4,500-family suburban Atlanta parish. Sunday evening mass and program (currently LifeTeen); also teen

May 18, 2001

Around the DiBlack Catholic women to gather in Charlotte in July WASHINGTON (CNS) — The National Black Sisters’ Conference will sponsor a national gathering for black Catholic women July 27-29 in Charlotte.

“There is a hunger on the part of black Catholic women to experience renewal in their own faith and a need to talk about issues specifically related to black women and to bond and celebrate who they are,” said Sister Patricia Chappell, a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur who is president of the National Black Sisters’ Conference.

The event, with the theme “Black Catholic Women: Untapped Treasures ...

Magnify the Lord,” is the culmination of regional forums held over the past eight years in select cities to identify major concerns of black Catholic women.

Charlotte to host National Right to Life convention CHARLOTTE — The National Right to Life Committee will host its annual national convention in Charlotte June 28-30 at the Adams Mark Hotel in uptown Charlotte.

Speaking and educational presentations, family fellowship, exhibits and sessions for teens and college students will highlight the national pro-life convention.

An interfaith organization, NRLC, was ranked eighth among the most influential public policy groups in Washington, D.C., by Fortune magazine in December 1999. In April 2001, NRLC gave its annual Proudly Pro-Life Award to Father Frank A. Pavone, director of Priests for Life. The late Cardinal John O’Connor of New York was also honored with the award, in 1994.

Last year’s national convention in Arlington, Va., drew about 1,200 participants, many of whom represented the organization’s 3,000 local chapters.

For details on the conference, visit the registration web site at www. nrlc.org/convention.

OCIA, retreats, adult leader formation, confirmation preparation, and cooperation with colleagues to oversee entire parish catechetical effort. Healthy Vatican II spirituality, collaborative skills, a must; degree in religious education or related field or comparable experience required; Spanish-language facility a plus.

Full-time position available immediately. Salary commensurate with qualifications. Send resume and references to Business Manager, St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 535 Rucker Road, Alpharetta, GA 30004.

Fax 770-772-0355.

Parish Catechetical Leader: St. Joseph Parish, Kannapolis. Seeking a dedicated and spiritual leader for our faith education program. Must be certified catechist. Completion of Lay Ministry courses helpful but not necessary. Candidates shall have experience working with children, strong organizational skills, and leadership. Bilingual skills (Spanish) preferred but not necessary. Part-time (20-30 hours per week) with competitive salary. Send resume and salary requirements to: St. Joseph Catholic Church, Attn: PCL Position, PO Box 220, Kannapolis, NC 28082. Call (704)932-4607 for information or fax: (704)932-0566.

Principal: Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic School seeks a principal beginning the 2001-2001 academic year. The school is a well-established parochial school with 61 years of operation. Applicants must be practicing Catholic, hold a teacher certification and a principal’s license (or in progress). Applicants must have administrative experience and be willing to relocate to the Rocky Mount area. Please send your resume, references and salary history to: Our Lady of Perpetual Help, 328 Hammond St., Rocky Mount, NC 27804 or fax your resume to 252-972-4780.

Stewardship & Development Officer: Newman Catholic Student Center at Duke University. New position responsible for all aspects of the planning, implementation and management of an effective stewardship and development program to support Catholic Campus Ministry financially. Minimum requirements: Bachelor’s Degree; five years

Courtesy photo

Bishop Curlin celebrates Mass in Lourdes Grotto During the early May pilgrimage to Lourdes with the Knights of Malta, Bishop William G. Curlin celebrated Mass in the grotto where Mary appeared in 1858 to Bernadette Soubirous. More than 30,000 Knights of Malta from around the world brought sick to Lourdes for this annual pilgrimage. More than 5 million people worldwide — people of many faith traditions — visit Lourdes each year.

Classified ads bring results! Over 116,000 readers! Over 47,000 homes!

Rates: $.50/word per issue ($10 minimum per issue) Deadline: 12 noon Wednesday, 9 days before publication date How to order: Ads may be faxed to (704) 370-3382 or mailed to: Cindi Feerick, The Catholic News & Herald, 1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203.

Payment: Ads may be pre-paid or billed. For information, call (704) 370-3332. successful experience in higher education or non-profit development; excellent organizational, planning and communication skills. Must be practicing Catholic. EOE. Send resume to Newman Catholic Student Center, Box 90974, Durham, NC 27708-0974 or email joev@duke.edu Teachers: Our Lady of Mercy High School is seeking full-time teachers in Chemistry/Biology and Studio Art. We are also seeking part-time teachers in Music and French. Interested parties should send a resume to: Our Lady of Mercy High School, John Cobis, Principal, 861 Highway 279, Fairburn, Georgia 30213.

Youth and Young Adult Ministry Director: Roman Catholic Church of the Most Holy Trinity, 720 Telfair Street, PO Box 2446, Augusta, GA 30903. www.themostholytrinity.org. (706)7224944. Full-time position to direct and develop Middle/High School and Young Adult Ministries that are relational, holistic, developmental, ministerial, goal-centered with a multi-dimensional approach to youth ministry. Must work in harmonious collaboration with parish personnel, parents, many volunteers and youth. Must also work closely with DRE (Director of Religious Education) in areas of administration.

Must have computer and office skills. This parish is a traditional, downtown parish with 1200 families and is demographically and ethnically diverse. Qualifications: Active, practicing Catholic in good standing with the Church. Experience in parish

youth ministry and/or college campus ministry.

BA in Theology and/or related field or Certificate of Advanced Study in Youth Ministry preferred.

Competitive salary/benefits package offered. Send resume and references to: Fr. Allan J. McDonald at above address.

WANTED TO BUY Old Catholic books published before 1963, hard back; prayer books, Bibles, school books, encyclopedias, etc. Call Terri DeLuca - (704) 888-6050.

REAL ESTATE Home for Sale: NC mountain foothills. 5 bedrooms, 3 1/2 baths, den, rec room, 2-car garage, 3 utility rooms. New gas central AC/ Htg. Excellent home for growing family. In city - Lenoir; best school area. (828)758-2274 after 7 pm.

May 18, 2001

Around the Di-

The Catholic News & Herald 15

Small-faith communities develop through diocesan young adult

By Alesha M. Price Staff Writer CHARLOTTE — For one group in Charlotte, this year’s Lenten season was marked with ashes, reverence, prayer and hors d’oeuvres. What do hors d’oeuvres have to do with Lent? Young adults from the city and surrounding areas gathered at a pub and restaurant to participate in a program that began in the diocese last fall.

Theology on Tap, a program that was started in the Archdiocese of Chicago as a way to reach young adult Catholics in their 20s and 30s and bring them back into the Church or to keep them from straying away, was introduced into the Diocese of Charlotte and has been the impetus for other events and gatherings among young adults. People had the opportunity to listen to speakers — laity, religious and clergy — while discussing religion, life or other topics in a social setting familiar to those of that age group.

Speakers talked about a variety of topics including the Easter Triduum, sacrifice and other Lent-related topics.

“We had a really good group of people who met consistently, and at least half of those people had been in Charlotte a year or less. So, it was a way of welcoming them into the Diocese of Charlotte,” said Colleen McDermott, diocesan director of campus and young adult ministry.

Some of the attendants decided that they wanted to extend the idea of fellowship beyond the weekly gatherings. A retreat, a day of reflection and a

small-faith-sharing community also have been developed thanks to the program’s influence.

“This is what I hoped would come out of Theology on Tap. Someone wanted to do a retreat at Living Waters Reflection Center in Maggie Valley, and someone else was interested in a day of reflection at Belmont Abbey College,” continued McDermott. “Then someone wanted to provide an opportunity for small groups to pray together.”

Brian Bednar, one of the participants, had already been involved with

“With Theology on Tap, I liked the idea of meeting young people around my age who are interested in learning more about Catholic faith, and even with my own church, I hadn’t found that outlet yet,” said Bednar.

“With my church group, it served as a way to make sure I focused on spirituality at least an hour or two a week, which is what this group does.”

The small-faith community or “Christian life community” has met once a week for the past month thus far, and a core group of nearly 25

“Many of us don’t have a Catholic environment to talk about things, and I don’t think there are many outlets for people to talk about issues. This can give people who have questions and insecurities about their faith an outlet where they can talk about things in a supportive environment” — a small-faith-sharing community at St. Peter Church in Charlotte. After a discussion with Jesuit Father Mickey Martinez, parochial vicar at St. Peter, and McDermott, Bednar decided to pursue his idea of facilitating smallfaith-sharing communities with some of the people who had participated in Theology on Tap and others who were interested. Father Martinez and McDermott had both been previously involved with similar faith groups

people has met to discuss designated topics and share faith stories. Christian life communities are based on Ignatian spirituality which involves a method of praying and improving one’s spirituality, explained Bednar.

The topics for their six-week sessions include an introductory session and “what is my spirit,” “who is God for me,” “what is prayer for me,” “where is God for me” and “do I want to continue in this group.” With Clint

Hunsche, faith formation director at St. Peter, as the spiritual guide, Bednar says that people have opened up and are willing to share what is in their hearts and on their minds.

“Many of us don’t have a Catholic environment to talk about things, and I don’t think there are many outlets for people to discuss issues,” said Bednar.

“This can give people who have questions and insecurities about their faith an outlet where they can talk about things in a supportive environment.

“For me, the whole idea of focus is important because we have the opportunity to talk about our faith, and it helps to have people comment and discuss.”

Jennifer Rupp, diocesan program coordinator for youth and young adult ministry, agreed: “This has helped me to focus my prayer life and offered a source of commune and support, which is important because we realize shared experiences.”

The group meets at the diocesan pastoral center on Tuesdays from 7-8:45 p.m., and all interested young adults are welcome to attend. For further information about Ignatianbased spirituality and Christian life communities, call Brian Bednar at (704) 523-5315 or e-mail bednarb@ birdseyerealty.com.

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

1 6 The Catholic News & Herald

Youth Ministry Office schedules

CHARLOTTE — The Diocese of Charlotte’s Office for Youth Ministry is taking registrations for two weeklong summer events.

SPLUNGE is an immersion service experience June 24-29 based at St. Luke Church in Charlotte. Spiritual reflection and learning opportunities will enhance the experience of service to the poor, hungry and those with special needs.

The experience offers participants the chance to meet the challenge of living a simple lifestyle; broaden understanding of poverty and its cycles; be exposed to different cultures and lifestyles; discuss, explore and live the challenge of the Gospels and reflect on the Christian response to people in need.

SPLUNGE is for youth 15 and older and for adults working with youth in justice and peace initiatives.

Faithful Servant: A Christ-Centered Leadership Experience will take place July 15-20 at the Short Journey Center in Smithfield. Youth from the Charlotte and Raleigh dioceses are invited to attend the event, which will focus on the leadership potential of participants while heightening their awareness of the dynamics and responsibilities of leadership roles in high school, parishes, youth ministry and beyond.

Participants will be challenged to create a vibrant Christian community which shares prayer, meals, lessons and life together while focusing on organizational skills, communication skills, leadership styles, group dynamics, planning skills, diversity training and consensus-seeking skills.

Faithful Servant is for youth 15 and older, young adults and adults interested or involved in parish, school or diocesan leadership roles in youth ministry.

For registration and details on these and other youth ministry programs, call (704) 370-3243 or (704) 370-3359.

Living the

Cursillo, education changes deacon’s life, leads him to

By Alesha M. Price Staff Writer LENOIR — In the wee hours of the morning, Rev. Dr. Ron Caplette would sleepily but happily rise out of bed to accompany his grandfather to church during Holy Week. Holy Thursday was their special time together as family, and young Caplette would take part in the devotions to the Blessed Sacrament in the local Catholic church in the small town of Central Falls, R.I. “As a 9- or 10-year-old kid, it was nice to get up in the middle of the night to do something different with my grandfather,” said Rev. Dr. Caplette, now a permanent deacon at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Lenoir. “He was the patriarch of the family, a very strong-willed and devout Catholic, who lived with us with my grandmother until they both passed away.”

Those pre-dawn journeys to church with his grandfather lingered in Rev. Dr. Caplette’s memories and formed his spiritual structure as his life unfolded in unplanned ways. With his mind heavy with both of his parents’ affliction with cancer, Rev. Dr. Caplette decided to leave high school at age 17 and join the Marines during the Korean War. “One of my favorite cousins had joined the Marines during World War II, and from the age of 5 or 6, seeing him in his uniform, I knew I would be a Marine,” remembered Rev. Dr. Caplette. “I thought that going to the military would ease some of the burdens and provide a source of income.

It was a very difficult time; I was very close

Ordination The Most Reverend William G. Curlin cordially invites you to the Liturgy of Ordination to the Holy Priesthood on Saturday, the second of June, Two Thousand One at eleven o’clock at Saint Gabriel Church, Charlotte, North Carolina

May 18, 2001

who attended Our Lady of Assumpto my parents, but I kind of shielded myself tion Church in Charlotte while living away from my emotions.” in North Carolina the first time and Korea, fresh from the remnants of a calls his wife the family’s “spiritual diwar that had just ended, was filled with rector.” Another job opportunity, this friendly and welcoming people, said Rev. Dr. time in Virginia, presented itself and Caplette. The devastation was difficult for back to the colder climate they went. him to bear, but he truly enjoyed his time in While living in Virginia, the Cathe service and was able to obtain his GED. plettes were introduced to Cursillo, Back in the States on a furlough, he attended and for Rev. Dr. Caplette, he felt as a dance that would change his life. if “the Lord was working in his life.”

There he met his future wife Louise, However, he also felt a “void which he and the two were married not long after could not explain or seem to fill.” Even that first dance. The young couple — she, after a move back to Hickory, N.C., to 16, and he, 19 — was cautioned, but help with a friend’s yarn-processing they agree that the strength of God company in financial trouble and carried them through those difficult working on a bachelor of arts degree first years of marriage. Mrs. Caplette, in business, he still felt as if something who grew up in a Catholic orphanwere missing. age and suffered through an abusive Even after relife after finding a ceiving a master’s family, admits that degree in busishe wanted try for a ness and being better life, and Rev. promoted to vice Dr. Caplette was her president of operasaving grace. tions, he felt that he “He loved needed to be doing enough for the both something else. That of us. It was only afwas when his second ter many years that I career developed. began to realize how Lenoir-Rhyne my love for him had College in Hickogrown.” ry had an opening Rev. Dr. Caplette for a temporary said that a devotion position for an into the Sacred Heart structor of busiof Jesus along with ness in 1985, and their dedication to he jumped at the Catholicism were chance to teach. much-needed mariRev. Dr. Ron Caplette That led to a pertal aids which susmanent position tained them through at Western Piedtrying times. He was mont Community shipped to Japan and College in Morganton in 1986, a posiserved with the military police, and tion from which he will be retiring in their first son was born during that August of this year. time.

While his professional life “His birth made things difficult was changing, his spiritual life also for us because I was so far away, and changed. Encouraged by his pastor at she made it clear that she didn’t want St. Joseph Church in Newton, he enme away from her anymore. I thought tered the diocesan permanent diaconit would be best for me to leave the ate program, was ordained in 1988 and service.” was permanent deacon at St. Joseph He began working for a local texuntil 1997 when he was transferred tiles plant and moved his way up the to St. Francis. Not only was that void ranks from quality control supervisor filled, but it was now overflowing . to project engineer and project manag“I was surprised but happy about his er to corporate management. He was decision. We have all had little glimpses of one of the first to learn about a fiberGod through his administering the sacraprocessing technique that would later ments,” said Mrs. Caplette. “Every Sunday be used to manufacture pantyhose, when I see him on the altar, I am in awe, and surgical garments and other materials.

I thank God for the man he has become.”

“It was a very rewarding time for Rev. Dr. Caplette’s main ministry is me. It presented me an opportunity working with the terminally ill and patients to learn something that wasn’t being in the oncology ward of local hospitals. He taught in the textile schools, to develalso obtained his doctorate in theology from op my expertise and to grow in a field Erskine Theological Seminary in 1997. that was new.” Because he had learned “The permanent diaconate changed so much in the textile industry, his my life completely and has been very bennext stop was Charlotte. eficial and rewarding for me. God put me In the 1960s, he joined another in the right place at the right time when I company and began working as a plant was able to direct young people to become manager in a city famous for its texgood, ethical business people (by teaching tile mills and machine manufacturing college),” said Rev. Dr. Caplette, who is companies. the father of five and grandfather of 17 and “There was a lot of traveling inhas been married for 46 years. “In working volved to Japan, back to Korea and othwith the terminally ill, there is a bond that er places. Louise was very supportive of my work,” said Rev. Dr. Caplette,