Oct. 20, 2000

The Catholic News & Herald 1

October 20, 2000

O c t o b e r 2 0 , 2000 Volume 10 t Number 7

Inside Pickle debate

Gathering in Raleigh explores Union issues

...Page 5

Faithful Citizenship:

Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium

...Pages 7-10

Local News St. Benedict Church dedicates parish center ...Page 3

Former justice and peace director takes concerns to national level ...Page 4

Every Week Readings ...Page 11

Editorials & Columns ...Pages 12-13 “In the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue; participation in the political process is a moral obligation.”

— from “Faithful Citizenship: Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium”

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

‘You are proof that marriage works’

Bishop celebrates Mass for jubilee

By JIMMY ROSTAR Associate Editor CHARLOTTE — Be loving, honest and holy in the vocation of marriage, and God will deny no grace to have a happy life together, Bishop William G. Curlin told a group of silver and golden wedding jubilarians during a weekend the Catholic Church celebrated as the Jubilee for Families.

“We come to celebrate your love, your devotion, your dedication to each other all these many years,” Bishop Curlin told some 200 couples at the diocese’s annual Mass honoring couples who are celebrating their 25th and 50th wedding anniversaries.

“We ask God to bless you for all that you have witnessed in your life, and to bless you for all the years yet to come in his love.”

Bishop Curlin presided at the Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte on Oct. 15, day two of the Catholic Church’s celebration of family life in the Jubilee Year. The bishop commended the couples for the sacrifice, understanding and sensitivity they have brought to each other in their years together.

“You have something to tell our world about,” he said. “You are proof that marriage works. You are proof that marriage is something beautiful, that it is something sacred in God’s eyes.”

For JoAnn Last of McLeansville, who celebrates 25 years of married life with husband Raymond this year, that encouragement meant a lot. “That really hit me,” she said of the bishop’s

See ANNIVERSARY, page 15

Photo by Jimmy Rostar

25th and 50th Anniversary Mass Some 200 couples celebrated their silver and golden anniversaries at a special Mass at St. Thomas Aquinas Church Oct. 15. The annual Mass is sponsored by the diocese’s Family Life program.

Pope defends family, human life at Jubilee

By Benedicta Cipolla Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — With the sound of rain pattering behind him and thousands of umbrellas shielding mothers, fathers and infants before him, Pope John Paul II urged families to place children first and respect the traditional family.

More than 150,000 people thronged St. Peter’s Square despite heavy rain Oct. 15 for an outdoor Mass marking the culmination of the Jubilee for Families.

An encounter with the pope the

previous afternoon gathered some 250,000 pilgrims under drier skies.

Rain or shine, the theme was the same: Surrounded by the “winter” of societal attacks on the institution of the family, children mark a “springtime” of hope.

“They represent the flowering of conjugal love,” said the pope, stressing children’s “message of life” and, with their newborn neediness and dependence on their parents, an “appeal to solidarity.” Deploring a growing modern attitude that views children “more as a threat than a gift,” he said children

were not merely an “accessory in the project of a conjugal life.”

“They are not optional,” he said, “but a very precious gift, inscribed in the structure itself of conjugal union.”

Calling on the faithful to “reverse this trend” of regarding children as a burden, the pope called the contemporary situation of children a “challenge to all of society.”

He criticized the widespread acceptance of divorce, saying many chil-

See FAMILY, page 15

2 The Catholic News & Herald the 69th annual meeting of the Catholic Medical Association. Archbishop Javier Lozano Barragan gave the keynote address on the opening day of the Oct. 5-8 conference in Pittsburgh. The conference theme was “Catholic Medical Education and Practice in a Pluralistic Society: Entering the Third Millennium.” “It is the mission of healing,” the archbishop said in his talk, titled “The Medical Doctor and His Vocation in Relation to the Mission of the Church.”

Congress passes bill to fight trafficking, domestic violence WASHINGTON (CNS) — Following passage by the Senate Oct. 11, legislation that includes Catholicbacked provisions against trafficking in humans and domestic violence against women awaits President Clinton’s signature. “This critical legislation has been a long time in the making, and as law, it will effectively combat the injustices of international and domestic abuse against women,” said Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., of the Trafficking and Violence Victims Protection Act of 2000. Smith, who chairs the International Operations and Human Rights Subcommittee of the House International Relations Committee, told Catholic News Service that the legislation took almost two years to shepherd through four different House committees.

20,000 attend Eucharistic congress in Washington WASHINGTON (CNS) — More than 20,000 Catholics from the Washington area took part in a four-day Eucharistic congress in downtown Washington Oct. 5-8, including 14,000 for a closing Mass celebrated by Cardinal James A. Hickey of Washington at the MCI Center. Catholics from all walks of life — including senior citizens, families with small children, groups of women religious, young adults and teen-agers — came together for the Mass. It was the largest attendance for a Mass in the District of Columbia since a Mass on the National Mall celebrated by Pope John Paul II during his 1979 visit to Washington.

After Rome trip, two priests die of Legionnaire’s disease

CNS photo from Reuters

Israeli police stand watch during prayers Israeli Border Police stand watch over thousands of Palestinians kneeling in prayer in Jerusalem Oct. 13. Israeli security forces prevented Palestinian men from attending prayers at a mosque following increased violence in the West Bank.

Catholic school teachers’ salaries too low, union leader says PHILADELPHIA (CNS) — The president of the National Association of Catholic School Teachers called on church leaders to close what she called the “faith gap” between Catholic school teachers’ salaries and the salaries of their public school counterparts.

“Catholic schoolteachers have demonstrated a high level of achievement for decades. It’s time that level of achievement is recognized and rewarded,” said Rita Schwartz on the eve of the association’s 22nd annual convention Oct. 6-8 in Philadelphia. Schwartz said Catholic school teachers “provide toplevel work for bottom-rung salaries.”

Doctors perform healing mission of church, says prelate PITTSBURGH (CNS) — Being a Catholic medical doctor is a ministry that springs from a vocation within the church, the president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers told

Episcopal October 20, 2000 Volume 10 • Number 7

Publisher: Most Reverend William G. Curlin Editor: Joann S. Keane Associate Editor: Jimmy Rostar Staff Writer: Alesha M. Price Freelance Production Associate: Fred Stewart, Jr. 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

October 20, 2000

The World in

c a l e n-

Bishop William G. Curlin will take part in the following events: October 22 — 12:15 p.m.

Confirmation St. Ann, Charlotte 5 p.m.

Dedication of new church St. Francis of Assisi, Lenoir October 24 — 7 p.m.

Hosting dinner for Friends of Seminarians Charlotte October 30 — 7 p.m.

Installation of Father J. T. Putnam as pastor Sacred Heart, Salisbury

ROME (CNS) — Two English priests died of Legionnaire’s disease after arriving home from a jubilee pilgrimage to Rome, where they stayed at the English seminary and at a villa owned by the seminary. Father Nicholas Hudson, vice rector of the English College in Rome, said Oct. 13 the college was still awaiting the result of tests to determine if the priests caught the disease at the college. A layman traveling with the priests also contracted the disease. While awaiting the test results, the English College advised students not to use the hot water in the college showers.

Oregon archdiocese settles sex abuse lawsuits PORTLAND, Ore. (CNS) — The Portland Archdiocese has issued a public apology and reached confidential financial settlements with 23 men who said they were sexually molested as children by a priest. Two other suits involving the same priest, Father

Diocesan

plan -

Lawrence at (336) 788-4998 or Melanie Feeney-Lewis at (336) 869-5151.

28 CHARLOTTE — The St. Gabriel School Harvest Crafts and Funfaire is taking place today from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at the corner of Providence and Sharon Rd at 3028 Providence Rd. Over 50 crafters are being featured with Kids Kraft Kreations where children can make a craft gift, the Spirit of St. Gabe’s Booth and tricks and treats for the young and old. For more information, call the school office at (704) 366-2409.

CHARLOTTE — There is an Alzheimer’s Information Day taking place today from 9 a.m.-12:15 p.m. at Providence United Methodist Church, 2810 Providence Rd. Eileen Correll, St. Gabriel Church parish nurse, is speaking about memory loss and finding the right doctor, and representatives from Senior Health Connection and the Alzheimer’s Association are

Maurice Grammond, were not settled.

The claims date from 1950, when he was ordained, through the 1970s.

“These painful experiences remind us that there are times when we must act rather than remain silent and passive, be caring instead of indifferent, and follow our conscience rather than be controlled by fear,” Archbishop John G. Vlazny of Portland said. “Otherwise, we may fail again to protect God’s precious gift of our children.”

Bishop says pilgrimages to China halted over sainthood dispute HONG KONG (CNS) — A Hong Kong bishop said the canonization dispute between the Vatican and China has led to suspension of pilgrimage tours from Hong Kong to mainland China. Coadjutor Bishop Joseph Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong told UCA News, an Asian church news agency based in Thailand, Oct. 10 that several pilgrimage tours to Guangdong province, bordering Hong Kong, were suspended right before the Oct. 1 canonization of 120 Catholics who were martyred in China. Another tour that had already set out in late September was monitored throughout, he added.

Instead of visiting churches, that Catholic group toured sightseeing spots but was followed anyway, he said.

Ecumenism needs canon law, canonists told WASHINGTON (CNS) — “Ecumenism needs canon law,” veteran ecumenist Father John F. Hotchkin told North American canon lawyers Oct. 5.

He suggested that the need for canon lawyers to be part of the ecumenical project will grow as churches begin to move from doctrinal agreement to further stages on the path of unity. On that path, he said, “the ministry of canonists is ever so necessary, necessary to steady and assure the community, ... casting the new canons which shall be needed to secure and safeguard our advances as we go, strengthening us against the mounting pressures to go back, to retreat.”

talking about long-term care insurance and gerontology. For more information, call Suzanne Bach at (704) 376-4135.

CHARLOTTE — Catholic Singles of Charlotte are hosting their annual Halloween party with food, music and plenty of entertainment tonight at 7 p.m. Contact Laurel Peters at (704) 554-0188 for directions and details.

Please submit notices of events for the Diocesan Planner at least 10 days prior to the publication date.

October 20, 2000

The Catholic News & Herald 3

Around the Di-

Out with the old, in with the new

By Alesha M. Price Staff Writer GREENSBORO — Monsignor Joseph S. Showfety has seen many changes and much growth occur at St. Benedict Church and in Greensboro throughout the years. The first chancellor of the diocese has been pastor at St. Benedict since 1993, a stroke of divine providence, as some might say, for one who received his sacraments at the church and grew up in the parish.

After his ordination in 1955, Msgr.

Showfety also celebrated his first low Mass in May of that year in his home parish.

Msgr. Showfety and his parishioners were all present to witness more changes at the church with the dedication and blessing of the new parish center and the confirmation of three of St. Benedict’s faithful on Oct. 14.

A plaque bearing the names of Msgr. Showfety’s parents, Abdou J. and Edna S. Showfety, has been placed on a wall near the double doors of the new church building in honor of the couple who contributed their gifts and spirit to the church where they were married in 1920. Along with Edna Showfety, who donated $100,000 to her church, monthly building fund collections, an altar appeal and parish-

Photo By Alesha M. Price

Bishop William G. Curlin says the Prayer of Blessing flanked by Monsignor Joseph S. Showfety, pastor of St. Benedict Church in Greensboro, and Pat Guffey at the dedication and blessing of the new parish center on Oct. 14. ioners’ donations helped to get the new hall on its feet.

Nearly all of the church’s 150 families attended the Mass and ceremony, officially marking the start of a new era in the church’s long history.

Bishop William G. Curlin celebrated the Mass, where he conferred the sacrament of confirmation and blessed the new building after Mass. After the blessing, the parishioners gathered for their first parish dinner in their new

also had a hand in forming the history of the church. She gave $1,500 toward the building of the new church on the condition that one of the pews would be designated for African-Americans, said Msgr. Showfety.

The second church building, where it stands now, is over 100 years old.

Time and weather have worn down some parts of the structure, which has been strengthened by brick and the dedication of the parishioners and pastors, past and present.

“There are a few old- timers who have been here for years who have witnessed the unbelievable growth and changes that have taken place,” said Msgr. Showfety. “It is a very active and busy parish, and St. Benedict’s has a special place in people’s hearts.”

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

month at St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Rd. East, tonight at 7:30 p.m. Call the church office at (704) 3342283 with the name(s) of loved ones so they can be remembered at Mass.

27 COLUMBIA, S.C. — The South Carolina Catholic Charismatic Service Committee invites the Diocese of Charlotte to their annual conference beginning today through Oct. 29 at John Neumann School on Polo Rd. The guest speakers are Rev. Tom Forrest and Jim Murphy. For a brochure and more details, write to Ross Gamble, 7817 Loch Lane, Columbia, S.C. 29223 or e-mail rbgam@juno.com.

KERNERSVILLE — The Holy Cross Columbiettes are hosting a fall/winter children’s consignment sale in the church commons at 616 S. Cherry St. today from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. and from 4-7 p.m. and Oct. 28 from 8 a.m.-noon. All are invited to sell gently used children and pre-teen clothing, shoes, car seats, beds, walkers, toys and other items. All participants are offered a 70-30 percent split with 30 percent going to the Columbiettes. For details, call Evelyn

October 22 LEWISVILLE — Our Lady of Mercy Church, Our Lady of Fatima Chapel and Shallowford Presbyterian Church are co-sponsoring a Taize’ Service tonight at 7:30 p.m. at 1200 Lewisville-Clemmons Rd. with an introduction to Taize’ at 7:15 p.m. The purpose is to offer sung and chanted prayers for peace and reconciliation of the world through the community of Taize’. For more information, call OLM at (336) 722-7001 or Shallowford Presbyterian at (336) 766-3178.

LENOIR — With the theme “Faith Moves Mountains,” the parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Church invite everyone to join them and Bishop William G. Curlin for the dedication of their new church this afternoon at 5 p.m. at the new location off Hwy 321 at 328-B Woodsway Lane NW. A reception immediately follows the dedication. For directions and more information, call the church office at (828) 754-5281.

SWANNANOA — St. Margaret Mary Church, 102 Andrew Place, is present-

ing Olivia Woodford in “Hearing the Call,” a one-woman play tonight at 7 p.m. Attendance is free, and for more information, call the church office at (828) 686-3243.

23 CHARLOTTE — There is a support group meeting for caregivers of family and friends suffering from Alzheimer’s/ dementia today from 2-3:30 p.m. in rooms D and E of the ministry center at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. Activities for the memory-impaired are also being provided. For more information about the meeting or the Adult Day Respite Program for the memory-impaired, which meets every Monday and Wednesday from 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m., call Suzanne Bach at (704) 376-4135.

MAGGIE VALLEY — To get in touch with the “abundant life” that surrounds everyone and to enjoy a deep conversation with God, all are invited to the Living Waters Reflection Center, 103 Living Waters Lane. “Nature Retreat: Abundant Life” will consist of reflection time outdoors and daily liturgy celebrated on the trail with

center, the first of many to come.

“The center is important to the church because it will serve as a place to enjoy parish life, especially for the new and young families that have joined,” said Pat Guffey, a member for nine years. “We now have four new faith formation classrooms and a large hall that the young people can enjoy; they are the life of the parish to come.”

The new hall with its glass doors and white walls and floors is a great contrast to the building that stood in its place for over 90 years. The old wooden structure, windows and all, had been bricked over and struggled to accommodate the needs of the everexpanding parish.

“The new center is great because even though St. Benedict’s is a relatively small parish, it is constantly growing,” said Deborah Sawyer, whose daughter Dorothy, 15, was one of the three who was confirmed. “There are a lot of older people here because of the downtown location, but there are more kids here than when we first joined the parish 18 years ago.”

Richard E. Miller, who has belonged to the church for 38 years, remembers the days when all of the faith formation classes had to be taught in the one-room building, separated by partitions. “The city wanted us to tear it down because it was so old, but we were able to hold onto it for as long as we could,” said Miller.

“I have watched people come and go over the years. This is a nice, little parish, and it’s home to me. I expect to be buried as a member of this parish,” said the 85-year-old choir singer with a twinkle in his eye and a spryness in his step.

The church, originally known as St. Agnes Church, is the oldest in Greensboro and was renamed St. Benedict after the Benedictine monks who staffed the parish. The congregation outgrew the original structure, built in the 1870s, and it was sold to the city and became the first high school. The newly canonized St. Katherine Drexel Augustinian Father Terry Hyland and Charity Sister Fran Grady. For more information, call the center at (828) 926-3833.

24 GREENSBORO — Pastor Conrad Pridgen of Bethel A.M.E. Church and a member of the N.C. Council of Churches and Pulpit Forum is speaking about “Justice and Righteousness” at today’s luncheon gathering at the Franciscan Center, 233 N. Greene St., from 12:10-1 p.m. A love offering is being taken right before the meal, and for more information, call the center at (336) 273-2554.

MOORESVILLE — In observance of Respect Life Month and the Marian month of October, members of St. Therese Church, 217 Brawley School Rd., and other area churches are taking part in a living candlelight and Scripture rosary tonight at 7 p.m. For more information, call the church office at (704) 664-3992.

25 CHARLOTTE — All families are invited to a memorial Mass for those who have died throughout the

4 The Catholic News & Herald

Around the Di-

Former justice and peace director takes concerns to national level with new man Development is the U.S. bishop’s

By JIMMY ROSTAR anti-poverty campaign, aimed at transAssociate Editor forming communities and empowering CHARLOTTE — Taking her zeal people by getting at the root causes of for teaching people about social justice poverty. issues to a national level, the Diocese Striving to broaden its educational of Charlotte’s director of the Office efforts, CCHD created the position and of Justice and Peace has accepted two a new program called “Education for positions with national social justice Solidarity: Catholic Social Teaching organizations. and Economic Life.”

Joanne Frazer has accepted two “It’s a one-day training around newly created positions: education economic justice, and consultant for the Caththen there is follow up olic Campaign for Huto that,” said Frazer of man Development, and the program. “I will asdiocesan coordinator for sist diocesan teams in Public Discipleship, a determining what kind program of the New of follow up is needed York-based Roundtable, to be internalized and the association of diocworked out in their dioesan social action direcceses.” tors.

The Diocese of She will head proCharlotte will host the grams that assist dioceworkshop in March san social justice leaders 2001. in putting social justice With the Public education efforts in place Discipleship project, in their dioceses nationFrazer will consult with wide. diocesan social action “Both of these poJoanne Frazer leaders to help empower sitions are consulting people with the support positions,” said Frazer, and the tools necessary who headed the Charto put their faith and concern for social lotte Diocese’s Justice and Peace Office justice into action in the public arena. from 1996 until last month. “TransforFrazer expects to work with about mative education around social justice a half-dozen dioceses each year on the has been a vocational pull for me for a Public Discipleship project, and she long time.” plans on bringing “Education for SoliThe Catholic Campaign for Hu-

darity” to about 10 dioceses annually.

Especially in the post-Vatican II church, Catholics have been urged by popes and bishops to take a more active role in the public arena, and social and economic justice initiatives continue to make headlines. Parishes throughout North Carolina are still engaged in efforts to implement the suggestions in “Of One Heart and One Mind,” an economic justice pastoral letter issued at Thanksgiving 1997 by Bishops William G. Curlin of Charlotte and F. Joseph Gossman of Raleigh.

The pastoral is one of various social justice concerns championed by diocesan personnel and the faithful in the Tar Heel State.

“Any time I was with folks in western North Carolina, I knew they really do care about the poor,” Frazer said.

“They want to understand ways that they can help. There is such a new hunger to engage in action for social and economic justice. It’s quite exciting.”

Contact Associate Editor Jimmy Rostar by calling (704) 370-3334 or e-mail jtrostar@charlottediocese.org

October 20, 2000

Parishes honored for CCHD

A dozen parishes in the Diocese of Charlotte were honored recently with awards for outstanding participation in the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

Father Robert Vitillo, executive director of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, was on hand in the diocese to help bestow the awards.

Founded in 1970 by the nation’s Catholic bishops, the campaign focuses on ending poverty and injustice by effecting societal chance and empowering the poor to develop an economic and political voice.

The dozen parishes with noteworthy participation in the campaign are: Queen of the Apostles, Belmont; Our Lady of Consolation, Charlotte; St. Joseph Church, Asheboro; Our Lady of Lourdes, Monroe; St. Therese, Mooresville; St. Peter Church, Charlotte; St. Lucien, Spruce Pine; Basilica of St. Lawrence, Asheville; St. Mary, Sylva; St. Elizabeth, Boone; St. Aloysius, Hickory; and Our Lady of Mercy, Winston-Salem.

“Through their association with CCHD, Catholics in the United States could rejoice in the fact that their celebration of the jubilee year takes on new and more profound meaning,” said Father Vitillo to an audience gathered at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Charlotte Sept. 23. “Jesus taught by his own example that we cannot turn our backs to brothers and sisters in need.”

October 20, 2000

Around the

The Catholic News & Herald 5

Mt. Olive pickle debate in Raleigh explores union

By JOHN STRANGE NC Catholic Staff RALEIGH — The presidents of Mt. Olive Pickle Company and the Farm Labor Organizing Committee, locked in a national boycott over unionization, could find little common ground in an Oct. 15 debate held at Pullen Memorial Baptist Church.

Bill Bryan said he will not and cannot “force” the farmers who supply cucumbers to his company to agree to a union contract, while FLOC’s Baldemar Velasquez told Bryan he needed to pay “a little bit more” money so that farmers and farmworkers are better compensated. FLOC is seeking a three-way contract between the company, cucumber growers and farmworkers.

It was a mostly civil debate, strictly moderated by State Rep. Paul Luebke.

Each was allowed a five-minute opening statement; then each answered an alternating volley of questions from Luebke, and later from the audience.

Each debater was allowed three minutes to answer the questions; the opponent was allowed one minute to rebut.

As many as 300 filled the church’s sanctuary to watch and listen. The congregation was obviously split: The front right corner was filled with farmworkers, outfitted with headphones to listen to the Spanish translation of

on a low-wage, exploitable workforce the discussion. Velasquez gestured at to gather their cucumbers all over the them often to make points with Bryan. globe.” Velasquez said the issue comes In his opening statement, Velasdown to money. Mt. Olive Pickles sets quez said that FLOC is all about recthe price they pay for each unit of cuonciliation. “We’re not about trying cumbers, leaving the farmers to decide to aggravate people unnecessarily,” he how much of their compensation they said. “Our job is to reconcile the condimust keep to run their businesses, and tions of the farmworkers and the exhow much to pay their periences they have to workers. suffer from, to recon“It’s like throwing cile the people from the a bone to two dogs and bottom to the people letting them fight over from the top.” how much they get.

The problem, said The truth is the growVelasquez, is that “you ers need more money, got double standards and the workers need in this state. You got more money. You have one law for everybody to spread it out a little else, and a different bit more.” law for farmworkBryan used the beers. Whether it has ginning of his opening to do with housing, statement to define sanitation standards, — Baldemar Velasquez, his company. Mt. Olor pesticides.” Laws FLOC ive Pickle Company that affect farms and has been operating farmworkers are much in Mount Olive since weaker, he said, be1926, it is the fourthcause “powerful people largest pickle company have influence in the in the country, and has more than 500 Legislature. employees, all area residents.

“The fact is that Mt. Olive is “We have no farming operations, caught up in an intricate organizationand buy from independent farmers and al web that controls the very lives of suppliers in more than 10 states and people who do this very unappreciated three countries,” he said. “Our comwork. The fact is that Mt. Olive relies pany does not claim to be perfect, but we have achieved a very good reputation as an employer, and community participant.

“We are known for our willingness to go the extra mile to address issues of opportunity, concern or disagree-

“Our job is to reconcile the conditions of the farmworkers and the experiences they have to suffer from....”

ment with these parties.” Bryan said the boycott was put in place because the company “refused to assist FLOC in collecting union dues from the workers of other employers.... “We believe FLOC’s demand on our company first and foremost is unfair. We believe it is wrong to tell another employer that he and his workers must sign a union contract as a requirement to do business with us. Employers and their employees should consider these decisions, not Mt. Olive Pickle or other customers.”

However, Bryan said, the company’s policy is to seek “reliable suppliers” that work within the law and that “treat their workers fairly.”

“We will address problems with suppliers when we have knowledge of those problems, and we are more than willing to be a part of a broad-based effort to address industry-wide concerns. But we resist this boycott effort that would have us force independent growers into a process where their only choice appears to be a union contract.”

The 90-minute debate was sponsored by Pullen Memorial Baptist, Immaculate Conception Church of Durham, and the Eno River Unitarian Universalist Fellowship sponsored the debate. Several Catholic organizations, including the dioceses of Raleigh, Toledo and Cincinnati, have supported the boycott of Mt. Olive Pickle products.

6 The Catholic News & Herald Jewish architect calls chance to design Catholic church an honor NEW YORK (CNS) — A Jewish architect in New York who designed a Catholic church now under construction in Rome described the experience as educational and exciting and called the chance to do it an honor. “We’ve never done anything like this before,” said Richard Meier, speaking for his firm, Richard Meier & Partners. “I’ve learned an enormous amount.” He said that he had learned a lot about Catholicism, but also about the way things move in Rome or are delayed.

When ground was broken for the church in 1998, it was scheduled for completion at the beginning of 2000, the jubilee year. Now the projected date is October of next year.

Co-founder of Missionary Brothers of Charity dies PERTH, Australia (CNS) — Brother Andrew, an Australian who with Mother Teresa of Calcutta founded the Missionary Brothers of Charity, died of cancer in Melbourne, Australia. Brother Andrew, the religious name of Ian Travers-Ball, died Oct. 4 at the house run by the Missionaries of Charity sisters. He was 72. In accordance with his wishes, news of his death was not published until after his funeral Oct. 6. The day he died was also the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, for whom he had great

October 20, 2000

People in the

CNS photo by Bob Roller

House chaplain sits in on congressional hearing Father Daniel P. Coughlin listens to testimony from victims of Sierra Leone’s civil war at a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill in September.

Father Coughlin is the first Catholic to hold the post of chaplain in the U.S. House of Representatives. devotion, and was the 50th anniversary of the founding of Missionaries of Charity, the women’s religious order established by Mother Teresa.

Archbishop Ryan dies; headed Anchorage, military archdioceses ALBANY, N.Y. (CNS) — Arch-

bishop Joseph T. Ryan, whose priestly life took him from Albany to the farthest reaches of the United States and around the world, died Oct. 9 at age 86.

His funeral Mass was to be celebrated at 11 a.m. Oct. 14 at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Albany.

Archbishop Ryan was the first archbishop of Anchorage, Alaska, serving from 1966-75, and first head of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services after it was removed from the jurisdiction of the archbishop of New

York in 1985. He also served for eight years with the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, a U.S. church agency established by papal request to aid the churches and the people of the Middle East.

Pope marks 22nd anniversary as pontiff by meeting with Poles VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope John Paul II marked his 22nd anniversary as the first Polish pontiff by meeting with thousands of Poles.

In the Paul VI audience hall Oct. 16 the pope received some 6,000 Polish pilgrims who participated in the Oct. 14-15 Jubilee for Families. “What great value every human life, every human being, even those not yet born but already alive in a mother’s womb, must have in the eyes of the creator,” he said.

Catholic school welcomes home Olympic gold-medal winner MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn.

(CNS) — Tom Novitzki is not a schoolteacher, but he knows a good history lesson when he sees it. The St. Peter of Mendota parishioner and his sons Michael, 10, and Matthew, 7, were among the crowd who filled the St. Thomas Academy gymnasium in Mendota Heights Oct. 8 to honor an Olympic gold medalist, swimmer Tom Malchow. Being a part of the celebration was a day Novitzki and his family will remember for years to come.

October 20, 2000

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Here is the the text of “Faithful Citizenship: Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium,” approved last September by the U.S. Catholic Conference Administrative Board and released Oct. 20, 1999.

Introduction The year 2000 marks a great spiritual milestone and offers an important civic challenge. For Christians, this year represents the coming of the great jubilee, marking the 2,000th anniversary of the birth of Jesus Christ.

For U.S. citizens, this year brings the election of those who will lead our government into a new century and a new millennium.

For U.S. Catholics, these two events bring special responsibilities and opportunities. This is a time to bring together the guidance of the Gospel and the opportunities of our democracy to shape a society more respectful of human life and dignity, and more committed to justice and peace.(1) Challenges for Believers Our nation has been blessed with great freedom, vibrant democratic traditions, unprecedented economic strengths, abundant natural resources, and a generous and religious people.

Yet not all is right with our nation.

Our prosperity does not reach far enough. Our culture does not lift us up; instead it may bring us down in moral terms. This new world we lead is still too dangerous, giving rise to ethnic cleansing and an inability to confront hunger and genocide. We are still falling short of the American pledge of “liberty and justice for all,” our declaration to defend the inalienable rights of the human person — “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

Signs of the challenges surround us: — 1.4 million children are destroyed before birth every year. In many cities, a majority of our children never see the day of their birth.

— The younger you are, the more likely you are to be poor. A quarter of our preschool children are growing up poor.

— We watch with horror as some schools become almost war zones. Too many of our young people have lost their moral direction, their sense of belonging and even their will to live.

More and more they are finding community in gangs and cliques instead of family and faith.

— Hate and intolerance haunt our nation and turn the diversity we should celebrate into a source of division, bigotry, racism and conflict.

— A powerful economy pushes our nation forward, but it widens the gaps between rich and poor in our nation and around the world. Some Americans are moving far ahead, but too many are being left behind.

— Families are facing serious

From the

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Faithful Citizenship:

Civic Responsibility for a New Millennium From the United States Catholic challenges. Millions do not have basic health care, many cannot afford housing and in rural areas many family farmers are losing their way of life.

— Scandal, sensationalism and intense partisan combat diminish public life. Too many of our leaders seem to focus more on seeking campaign contributions than the common good.

— Violence surrounds us. War, ethnic cleansing, religious persecution, the denial of other human rights, poverty, debt and hunger destroy the lives and dignity of tens of thousands each year.

The next millennium requires a new kind of politics, focused more on moral principles than on the latest polls, more on the needs of the poor and vulnerable than the contributions of the rich and powerful, more on the pursuit of the common good than the demands of special interests. As Catholics and as voters, this is not an easy time for faithful citizenship. By this we mean more than people who consistently participate in public life, but disciples who view these responsibilities through the eyes of faith and bring their moral convictions to their civic tasks and choices. Sometimes it seems few candidates and no party fully reflect our values. But now is not a time for retreat. The new millennium should be an opportunity for renewed participation. We must challenge all parties and every candidate to defend human life and dignity, to pursue greater justice and peace, to uphold family life, and to advance the common good.

We hope the campaigns and elections of the year 2000 become turning points in our democracy, leading to more participation and less cynicism, more civil dialogue on fundamental issues and less partisan posturing and attack ads. Let us turn to a new century with renewed commitment to active citizenship and to full democratic participation.

Questions for the Campaign Politics is about more than our own pocketbooks or economic interests. Catholics, other believers, and men and women of good will raise different questions for ourselves and for those who would lead us: 1. How will we protect the weak-

est in our midst — innocent, unborn children?

2. How will we overcome the scandal of a quarter of our preschoolers living in poverty in the richest nation on earth?

3. How will we address the tragedy of 35,000 children dying every day of the consequences of hunger, debt and lack of development around the world?

4. How can our nation help parents raise their children with respect for life, sound moral values, a sense of hope, and an ethic of stewardship and responsibility?

5. How can society better support families in their moral roles and responsibilities, offering them real choices and financial resources to obtain quality education and decent housing?

6. How will we address the growing number of families and individuals without affordable and accessible health care? How can health care protect and enhance human life and dignity?

7. How will our society best combat continuing prejudice, bias and discrimination, overcome hostility toward immigrants and refugees, and heal the wounds of racism, religious bigotry and other forms of discrimination?

8. How will our nation pursue the values of justice and peace in a world where injustice is common, destitution is widespread, and peace is too often overwhelmed by warfare and violence?

9. What are the responsibilities and limitations of families, voluntary organizations, markets and government? How can these elements of society work together to overcome poverty, pursue the common good, care for creation and overcome injustice?

10. How will our nation resist what Pope John Paul II calls a growing “culture of death”? Why does it seem that our nation is turning to violence to solve some of its most difficult problems — to abortion to deal with difficult pregnancies, to the death penalty to combat crime, to euthanasia and assisted suicide to deal with the burdens of age and illness?

We believe every candidate, policy and political platform should be measured by how they touch the human

person; whether they enhance or diminish human life, dignity and human rights; and how they advance the common good.

A Call to Faithful Citizenship One of our greatest blessings in the United States is our right and responsibility to participate in civic life.

The Constitution protects the right of individuals and of religious bodies to speak out without governmental interference, endorsement or sanction.

It is increasingly apparent that major public issues have clear moral dimensions and that religious values have significant public consequences. Our nation is enriched and our tradition of pluralism enhanced when religious groups contribute to the debate over the policies that guide the nation.

As bishops, it is not only our right as citizens but our responsibility as religious teachers to speak out on the moral dimensions of public life. As members of the Catholic community, we enter the public forum to act on our moral convictions, share our experience in serving the poor and vulnerable, and add our values to the dialogue over our nation’s future. Catholics are called to be a community of conscience within the larger society and to test public life by the moral wisdom anchored in Scripture and consistent with the best of our nation’s founding ideals. Our moral framework does not easily fit the categories of right or left, Democrat or Republican. Our responsibility is to measure every party and platform by how its agenda touches human life and dignity.

Jesus called us to love our neighbors by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, caring for the sick and afflicted, and comforting the victims of injustice.(2) Our Lord’s example and words demand a life of charity from each of us. Yet they also require action on a broader scale in defense of life, in pursuit of peace, in support of the common good and in opposition to poverty, hunger and injustice. Such action involves the institutions and structures of society, economy and politics. As Pope John Paul II wrote in his recent exhortation to the people of America living together in this hemi-

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8 The Catholic News & Herald before birth, is never morally acceptable. The purposeful taking of human life by assisted suicide and euthanasia is never an act of mercy, but is an unjustifiable assault on human life. In assessing our obligation to protect human life, “We must begin with a commitment never to intentionally kill or collude in the killing of any innocent human life, no matter how broken, unformed, disabled or desperate that life may seem.”(17) We urge Catholics and others to promote laws and social policies that protect human life and promote human dignity to the maximum degree possible. Laws that legitimize abortion, assisted suicide and euthanasia are profoundly unjust and wrong. We support constitutional protection for unborn human life as well as legislative efforts to oppose abortion and euthanasia. We encourage the passage of laws and programs that promote childbirth and adoption over abortion and assist pregnant women and children. We support aid to those who are sick and dying by encouraging effective palliative care. We call on government and medical researchers to base their decisions regarding biotechnology and human experimentation on respect for the inherent dignity and inviolability of human life from its very beginning.

The church has always sought to have conflicts resolved by peaceful means between and among nations.

Church teaching calls on us to avoid and to limit the effects of war in many different ways. Thus, direct and intentional attacks on civilians in war are never morally acceptable nor is the use of weapons of mass destruction or other weapons that cannot distinguish between civilians and soldiers.

War, genocide, and starvation threaten the lives of millions throughout the world. We support programs and policies that promote peace and sustainable development for the world’s poor. We urge our nation to join the treaty to ban anti-personnel land mines and to promptly ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty as a step toward much deeper cuts in and the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons. We further urge our nation to take more serious steps to reduce its own disproportionate role in the scandalous global trade in arms, which contributes to violent conflicts around the world.

Society has a right and duty to defend itself against violent crime and a duty to reach out to victims of crime. Yet our nation’s increasing reliance on the death penalty is extremely troubling. Respect for human life must even include respect for the lives of those who have taken the lives of others. It has become clear, as Pope John Paul II has taught, that inflicting the penalty of death is cruel and unnecessary. The antidote to violence is not more violence. As a part of our pro-life commitment, we encourage solutions to violent crime that reflect the dignity of the human person, urging our nation to abandon the use of capital punishment. Respect for human life and dignity is the necessary first step in building a civilization of life and love.

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Promoting Family Life God established the family as the basic cell of human society. Therefore, we must strive to make the needs and concerns of families a central national priority. Marriage as God intended it provides the basic foundation for family life and needs to be protected in the face of the many pressures working to undermine it. Tax, workplace, divorce and welfare policies must be designed to help families stay together and to reward responsibility and sacrifice for children. Because financial and economic factors have such an impact on the well-being and stability of families, it is important that just wages be paid to those who work to support their families and that special efforts be taken to aid poor families.

The education of children is a fundamental parental responsibility.

Educational systems can support or undermine parental efforts to educate and nurture children. No one model or means of education is appropriate to the needs of all persons. All parents — the first, most important educators — should have the opportunity to exercise their fundamental right to choose the education best suited to the needs of their children, including private and religious schools. Families of modest means especially should not be denied this choice because of their economic status. The government should, where necessary, help provide the resources required for parents to exercise this basic right without discrimination. To support parents’ efforts to share basic values, we believe a national consensus can be reached so that students in all educational settings have opportunities for moral and spiritual formation to complement their intellectual and physical development.

Communications play a growing role in society and family life. The values of our culture are shaped and shared in the print media and on radio, on television and on the Internet.

We must balance respect for freedom of speech with concern for the common good, promoting responsible regulations that protect children and families. In recent years, reduced government regulation has lowered standards, opened the door to increasingly offensive material and squeezed out noncommercial religious programming.

However, television and radio broadcasters, cablecasters and satellite operators are still subject to some government regulation. We support regulation that limits the concentration of control over these media; disallows quick sales of media outlets that attract irresponsible owners seeking a quick profit; and opens these outlets to a greater variety of program sources, including religious programming. We support the development of the TV rating system and of the technology that assists parents in supervising what their children view.

The Internet has created both benefits and problems. Since it offers vastly expanded capabilities for learning and communicating, this technology should be available to all students regardless of income. Because it poses a serious danger by giving easy access to pornographic and violent material,

we support vigorous enforcement of existing obscenity and child pornography laws with regard to material on the Internet as well as efforts by the industry to develop technology that assists parents, schools and libraries in blocking out unwanted material.

Pursuing Social Justice In accordance with God’s plan for human society, we are called to commit ourselves to protect and promote the life and dignity of the human person and the common good of society as a whole. We must always remember God’s special concern for the poor and vulnerable, and make their needs our first priority in public life. We are concerned about a wide range of social issues, including economic prosperity and justice, welfare reform, health care, housing, agricultural policy, education and discrimination.

Church teaching on economic justice insists that economic decisions and institutions be judged on whether they protect or undermine the dignity of the human person. We support policies that create jobs with adequate pay and decent working conditions, increase the minimum wage so it becomes a living wage and overcome barriers to equal pay and employment for women and minorities. We reaffirm the church’s traditional teaching in support of the right of all workers to choose to organize and bargain collectively and to exercise these rights without reprisal. We also affirm church teaching on the importance of economic freedom, initiative and the right to private property, which provide tools and resources to pursue the common good.

Efforts to provide for the basic financial needs of poor families and children must enhance their lives and dignity. The goal should be reducing poverty and dependency, not simply cutting resources and programs. We seek approaches that promote greater responsibility and offer concrete steps to help families leave poverty behind.

Recent attempts to reform the welfare system have focused on providing productive work and training, mostly in low-wage jobs. Until new workers find jobs that pay a living wage, they will need other forms of support, including tax credits, health care, child care and safe, affordable housing.

We are also concerned about the income security of low- and averagewage workers and their families when they retire, become disabled or die.

In many cases women are particularly disadvantaged. Any proposal to change Social Security must provide a decent and reliable income for these workers and those who depend on them.

Affordable and accessible health care is an essential safeguard of human life and a fundamental human right. Any plan to reform the nation’s health care system must be rooted in values that respect human dignity, protect human life and meet the unique needs of the poor. We support health care that is affordable and accessible to all. As part of our efforts to achieve fundamental health care reform, we will support measures to strengthen Medicare and Medicaid and work for

incremental measures that extend health care coverage to children, pregnant women, workers, immigrants and other vulnerable populations.

Additionally, we support policies that provide effective, compassionate care for those suffering from HIV/AIDS and those coping with addictions.

The lack of safe, affordable housing is a national crisis. We support a recommitment to the national pledge of “safe and affordable housing” for all and effective policies that will increase the supply of quality housing and preserve, maintain and improve existing housing. We promote public/ private partnerships, especially those that involve religious communities.

We continue to oppose all forms of discrimination in housing and support measures such as the Community Reinvestment Act to help ensure that financial institutions meet the credit needs of the local communities in which they are located.

The first priority for agriculture policy should be food security for all.

Food is not like any other commodity: It is necessary for life itself. Our support for food stamps, the Women, Infant and Children program and other programs that directly benefit poor and low-income people is based on our belief that no one should face hunger in a land of plenty. Those who grow our food should be able to make a decent living and maintain their way of life. Farmers deserve a decent return for their labor. Our priority concern for the poor calls us to advocate especially for the needs of farmworkers, whose pay is often inadequate and whose housing and working conditions are often deplorable. Many farmworkers are undocumented and are particularly vulnerable to exploitation. We also urge that public policies support the practice of sustainable agriculture and careful stewardship of the earth and its natural resources.

Care for the earth and for the environment is a “moral challenge,” in the words of Pope John Paul II.(18) We support policies that protect the land, water and the air we share, and encourage environmental protection, sustainable development and greater justice in sharing the burdens of environmental neglect and recovery.

The Gospel mandate to love our neighbor and welcome the stranger leads the church to care for immigrants, both documented and undocumented. We seek basic protections for immigrants, including due process rights, access to basic public benefits and fair naturalization and legalization opportunities. We oppose efforts to stem migration that do not effectively address its root causes and permit the continuation of the political, social and economic inequities that cause it.

All persons, by virtue of their dignity as human persons, have an inalienable right to receive a quality education. We must ensure that our nation’s young people, especially the poor and most vulnerable, are properly prepared to be good citizens, to lead productive lives, and to be socially and morally responsible in the complicated and technologically advanced world of the 21st century. This requires an orderly, just, respectful and nonviolent

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we reach out to children and to the sick and elderly who need help, support women in difficult pregnancies, and assist those wounded by the trauma of abortion and domestic violence. On many issues, we speak for those who have no voice; we have the practical expertise and everyday experience to enrich public debate.

A Community of Citizens The Catholic community is large and diverse. We are Republicans, Democrats and independents. We are members of every race, come from every ethnic background and live in urban, rural and suburban communities. We are CEOs and migrant farm workers, senators and persons on public assistance, business owners and union members. But we are all called to a common commitment to protect human life and stand with those who are poor and vulnerable. We cannot be indifferent to or cynical about the obligations of citizenship. As voters and advocates, candidates and contributors, we are called to provide a moral leaven for our democracy.(7) The Role of the Church Beyond the responsibilities of every Catholic, the church as an institution also has a role in the political order. This includes educating its members about Catholic social teaching, highlighting the moral dimensions of public policy, participating in debate on matters affecting the common good, and witnessing to the Gospel through the many services and ministries provided by the Catholic community. Our efforts in this area should not be misconstrued. The church’s participation in public affairs does not undermine but enriches the political process and affirms genuine pluralism.

The leaders of the church have the right and duty to share the church’s teaching and to educate Catholics on the moral dimensions of public life, so that they may form their consciences in light of their faith.

As bishops, we do not seek the formation of a religious voting bloc nor do we wish to instruct persons on how they should vote by endorsing or opposing candidates. We hope that voters will examine the position of candidates on the full range of issues as well as on their personal integrity, philosophy and performance. We are convinced that a consistent ethic of life should be the moral framework from which to address all issues in the political arena. We urge our fellow citizens to see beyond party politics, to analyze campaign rhetoric critically and to choose their political leaders according to principle, not simply party affiliation or mere self-interest.(8) The coming elections provide important opportunities to bring together our principles, experience and community in effective public witness.

We hope parishes, dioceses, schools and other Catholic institutions will encourage active participation through nonpartisan voter registration and education efforts.(9) As Catholics we need to share our values, raise our voices and use our votes to shape a society that protects human life, promotes family life, pursues social justice

sphere: “For the Christian people of America, conversion to the Gospel means to revise ‘all the different areas and aspects of life, especially those related to the social order and the pursuit of the common good.’ It will be especially necessary ‘to nurture the growing awareness in society of the dignity of every person and therefore to promote in the community a sense of the duty to participate in political life in harmony with the Gospel.”’(3) For Catholics, public virtue is as important as private virtue in building up the common good. In the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue; participation in the political process is a moral obligation. Every believer is called to faithful citizenship, to become an informed, active and responsible participant in the political process. As we said a year ago: “We encourage all citizens, particularly Catholics, to embrace their citizenship not merely as a duty and privilege, but as an opportunity (more fully) to participate in building the culture of life. Every voice matters in the public forum. Every vote counts.

Every act of responsible citizenship is an exercise of significant individual power.”(4) Catholic Assets in the Public Square Our community of faith brings three major assets to these challenges.

A Consistent Moral Framework The word of God and the teaching of the church give us a particular way of viewing the world. Scripture calls us to “choose life,” to serve “the least of these,” to “hunger and thirst” for justice and to be “peacemakers.”

Jesus called us to be the “leaven” in society, the “salt of the earth ... (and) the light of the world.”(5) Catholic teaching offers a consistent set of moral principles for assessing issues, platforms and campaigns.

Because of our faith in Jesus Christ, we start with the dignity of the human person. Our teaching calls us to protect human life from conception to natural death, to defend the poor and vulnerable, and to work toward a more just society and a more peaceful world. As Catholics, we are not free to abandon unborn children because they are seen as unwanted or inconvenient; to turn our backs on immigrants because they lack the proper documents; to turn away from poor women and children because they lack economic or political power. Nor can we neglect international responsibilities because the Cold War is over. For us, the duties of citizenship begin with Gospel values and Catholic teaching. No polls or focus groups can release us from the responsibility to speak up for the voiceless, to act in accord with our moral convictions.

Everyday Experience Our community also brings broad experience in serving those in need.

The Catholic community educates the young, cares for the sick, shelters the homeless, feeds the hungry, assists needy families, welcomes refugees and serves the elderly.(6) In defense of life,

and practices solidarity. These efforts will strengthen our nation and renew our church.

Themes of Catholic Social Teaching The Catholic approach to faithful citizenship begins with moral principles, not party platforms. The directions for our public witness are found in Scripture and Catholic social teaching. Following are key themes at the heart of our Catholic social tradition.(10) Life and Dignity of the Human Person Every human person is created in the image and likeness of God. The conviction that human life is sacred and that each person has inherent dignity that must be respected in society lies at the heart of Catholic social teaching. Calls to advance human rights are illusions if the right to life itself is subject to attack. We believe that every human life is sacred from conception to natural death; that people are more important than things; and that the measure of every institution is whether or not it enhances the life and dignity of the human person.

Call to Family, Community and Participation The human person is not only sacred but inherently social. The Godgiven institutions of marriage and the family are central and serve as the foundations for social life. They must be supported and strengthened, not undermined. Beyond the family, every person has a right to participate in the wider society and a corresponding duty to work for the advancement of the common good and the well-being of all, especially the poor and weak.

Rights and Responsibilities As social beings, our relationships are governed by a web of rights and corresponding duties. Every person has a fundamental right to life and a right to those things that allow them to live a decent life — faith and family, food and shelter, health care and housing, education and employment. In society as a whole, those who exercise authority have a duty to respect the fundamental human rights of all persons. Likewise, all citizens have a duty to respect human rights and to fulfill their responsibilities to their families, to each other and to the larger society.

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable Scripture teaches that God has a special concern for the poor and vulnerable.(11) The prophets denounced injustice toward the poor as a lack of fidelity to the God of Israel.(12) Jesus, who identified himself with the least of these,(13) came to preach the good news to the poor and told us, “Give to him who asks of you, do not refuse one who would borrow from you.”(14) The church calls on all of us to embrace this preferential love of the poor and vulnerable, to embody it in our lives, and to work to have it shape public policies and priorities.

Dignity of Work and the

Rights of Workers The economy must serve people, not the other way around. Work is more than a way to make a living; it is a form of continuing participation in God’s act of creation. Work is a way of fulfilling part of our human potential given to us by God. If the dignity of work is to be protected, then the basic rights of workers, owners and managers must be respected — the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to organize and join unions, to economic initiative, and to ownership and private property.

Solidarity Because of the interdependence among all the members of the human family around the globe, we have a moral responsibility to commit ourselves to the common good at all levels: in local communities, in our nation, in the community of nations. We are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they may be. As Pope John Paul II has said, “We are all really responsible for all.”(15) Care for God’s Creation The world that God created has been entrusted to us, yet our use of it must be directed by God’s plan for creation, not simply by our own benefit. Our stewardship of the earth is a kind of participation in God’s act of creating and sustaining the world. In our use of creation, we must be guided by our concern for the welfare of others, both around the world and for generations to come, and by a respect for the intrinsic worth and beauty of all God’s creatures.

Moral Priorities for Public Life We wish to suggest some issues which we believe are important in the national debate during 2000 and beyond. These are not the concerns of Catholics alone; in every case we are joined with others in advocating these concerns. These brief summaries are not intended to indicate in any depth the details of the positions we have taken in past statements on these matters. For a fuller discussion of our positions on these and related issues, we refer the reader to the documents listed at the end of our statement.

Protecting Human Life Human life is a gift from God, sacred and inviolable. This is the teaching that calls us to protect and respect every human life from conception until natural death. Because every human person is created in the image and likeness of God, we have a duty to defend human life in all its stages and in every condition. Our world does not lack for threats to human life. We watch with horror the deadly violence of war, genocide and massive starvation in other lands, and children dying from lack of adequate health care. Yet as we wrote in our 1998 statement “Living the Gospel of Life,” “Abortion and euthanasia have become pre-eminent threats to human life and dignity because they directly attack life itself, the most fundamental good and the condition for all others.”(16) Abortion, the deliberate killing of a human being

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1 0 The Catholic News & Herald environment where adequate professional and material resources are available. We support initiatives that provide adequate funding to educate all children no matter what school they attend or what their personal condition. We also support providing salaries and benefits to all teachers and administrators that reflect the principles of economic justice as well as providing the resources necessary for teachers to be academically and personally prepared for the critical tasks they face. As a matter of justice, we believe that when services aimed at improving the educational environment — especially for those most at risk — are available to students and teachers in public schools, these services should be available to students and teachers in private and religious schools as well.

Our schools and our society in general must address the growing “culture of violence.” Concern about violence leads us to promote a greater sense of moral responsibility, to advocate a reduction in violence in the media, to support gun safety measures and reasonable restrictions on access to assault weapons and hand guns, and to oppose the death penalty.

Our society must also combat discrimination based on sex, race, ethnicity or age. Such discrimination constitutes a grave injustice and an affront to human dignity. It must be aggressively resisted. Where the effects of past discrimination persist, society has the obligation to take positive steps to overcome the legacy of injustice. We support judiciously administered affirmative action programs as tools to overcome discrimination and its continuing effects.

Practicing Global Solidarity Since the human family extends across the globe, our responsibility to promote the common good requires that we do whatever we can to address human problems wherever they arise around the world. As a very wealthy and powerful nation, the United States has a responsibility to help the poor and vulnerable, promote global economic prosperity and environmental responsibility, foster stable and peaceful relations among nations, and uphold human rights in the world community. In order to advance these goals, we urge the United States to pursue the following: — Debt relief to overcome poverty in the poorest countries, which are shackled by a debt burden that forces them to divert scarce resources from health, education and other essential services.

— A leading role in helping to alleviate global poverty through foreign aid programs that support sustainable development and provide new economic opportunities for the poor without promoting population control, and through trade policies that are tied to worker protection, human rights and environmental concerns.

— More concerted efforts to ensure the promotion of religious liberty and other basic human rights as an integral part of U.S. foreign policy.

— More consistent financial and diplomatic support for the United Nations, other international bodies and

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international law, so that these institutions may become more effective, responsible and responsive agents for addressing global problems.

— Protection for persons fleeing persecution, who should be provided safe haven in other countries, including the United States. In protecting refugees, special consideration must be given to vulnerable groups, including unaccompanied children, single women and women heads of families, and religious minorities. Asylum must

tion. What does it mean to be a believer and a citizen in the year 2000 and beyond? As Catholics, we can celebrate the great jubilee by recommitting ourselves to carry the values of the Gospel and church teaching into the public square. As citizens, we can and must participate in the debates and choices over the values, vision and leaders that will take our nation into the next century. This dual calling of faith

its official published format, contact the USCC Publishing Services, 800-2358722 (in the Washington metropolitan area or from outside the United States, 202-722-8716). English: No. 5-355; Spanish: No. 5-831. 28-page book. $1.25 per copy; quantity discounts are available.

Add 10 percent shipping and handling per order ($3.00 minimum). Coming soon: English brochure, 5-360; Spanish brochure, 5-834; kit, 5-361; and video, 5-367.

“As Catholics, we can celebrate the great jubilee by recommitting ourselves to carry the values of the Gospel and church teaching into the public square. As citizens, we can and must participate in the debates and choices over the values, vision and leaders that will take our nation into the next century. This dual calling of faith and citizenship is at the heart of what it means to be a Catholic in the United States as we look with hope to the beginning of a new millennium.”

be afforded to all refugees who hold a well-founded fear of persecution in their homelands.

— A more generous immigration and refugee policy based on providing temporary or permanent safe haven for those in need; protecting immigrant workers from exploitation; promoting family reunification; safeguarding the right of all peoples to return to their homelands; ensuring that public benefits and a fair and efficient process for obtaining citizenship are available to immigrants; extending to immigrants the full protection of U.S. law; and addressing the root causes of migration.

— An affirmative role, in collaboration with the international community, in addressing regional conflicts from the Middle East and the Balkans, to Africa, Colombia and East Timor.

Assistance in resolving these conflicts must include a willingness to support international peacekeeping as well as long-term post-conflict reconstruction efforts.

Building peace, combating poverty and despair, and protecting freedom and human rights are not only moral imperatives; they are wise national priorities. Given its enormous power and influence in world affairs, the United States has a special responsibility to ensure that it is a force for justice and peace beyond its borders. “Liberty and justice for all” is not only a profound national pledge; it is a worthy goal for any world leader.

Conclusion We hope these reflections will contribute to a renewed political vitality in our land. We urge all citizens to register, vote and stay involved in public life, seeking the common good and renewing our democracy.

The call to faithful citizenship raises a fundamental ques-

and citizenship is at the heart of what it means to be a Catholic in the United States as we look with hope to the beginning of a new millennium.

Copyright (c) 1999, U.S. Catholic Conference Inc., Washington. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright holder.

To order “Faithful Citizenship” in

Notes

1. Since 1975, the U.S. bishops’ conference has developed a reflection on “political responsibility” in advance of each presidential election. This statement continues that tradition. It summarizes Catholic teaching on public life and on key moral issues. These reflections build on past political responsibility statements and integrate themes from several recent bishops’ statements, including “Living the Gospel of Life and Everyday Christianity.” To give a fuller sense of Catholic teaching on these matters, major Catholic statements on public life and moral issues are listed at the conclusion of these reflections.

2. Mt 25:31-46.

3. John Paul II, “The Church in America” (“Ecclesia in America”) (Washington: U.S. Catholic Conference, 1999), 27.

4. USCC, “Living the Gospel of Life: A Challenge to American Catholics” (Washington: USCC, 1998), 34.

5. Dt 30:19-20, Mt 25:40-45; 5:3-12; 13:33; 5:13-16.

6. The Catholic community has a presence in virtually every part of the nation, including almost 20,000 parishes, 8,300 schools, 231 colleges and universities, 900 hospitals and health care facilities and 1,400 Catholic charities

agencies. The Catholic community is the largest nongovernmental provider of education, health care and human services in the United States.

7. USCC, “Everyday Christianity: To Hunger and Thirst for Justice” (Washington: USCC, 1998).

8. “Living the Gospel of Life.”

9. Resources designed to help parishes and dioceses share the message of faithful citizenship and develop nonpartisan voter registration, and education and advocacy programs are available from the USCC; for more information, call 800-235-8722.

10. For a fuller discussion of these themes, see the “Catechism of the Catholic Church” and “Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions.”

11. Ex 22:20-26.

12. Is 1:21-23; Jer 5:28.

13. Mt 25:40-45.

14. Mt 11:5; 5:42.

15. John Paul II, “On Social Concerns” (“Sollicitudo Rei Socialis”) (Washington: USCC, 1987), 38.

16. “Living the Gospel of Life,” 5.

17. Ibid., 21.

18. John Paul II, “The Ecological Crisis: A Common Responsibility,” 1990 World Day of Peace Message (Washington: USCC, 1989).

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The Catholic News & Herald 11

Readings Weekly Scripture

Readings for the week of Oct. 22 - 28, 2000 Sunday, Isaiah 53:10-11, Hebrews 4:14-16, Mark 10:35-45; Monday (St. John of Capistrano), Ephesians 2:1-10, Luke 12:13-21; Tuesday (St. Anthony Claret), Ephesians 2:12-22, Luke 12:35-38; Wednesday, Ephesians 3:2-12, Luke 12:39-48; Thursday, Ephesians 3:14-21, Luke 12:49-53; Friday, Ephesians 4:1-6, Luke 12:54-59; Saturday (Sts. Simon and Jude), Ephesians 2:19-22, Luke 6:1216 Readings for the week of Oct. 29 - Nov. 4, 2000 Sunday, Jeremiah 31:7-9, Hebrews 5:1-6, Mark 10:46-52; Monday, Ephesians 4:32-5:8, Luke 13:10-17; Tuesday, Ephesians 5:21-33, Luke 13:18-21; Wednesday (All Saints), Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12; Thursday (All Souls), Romans 5:5-11, John 14:1-6; Friday (St. Martin de Porres), Philippians 1:1-11, Luke 14:1-6; Saturday (St. Charles Borromeo), Philippians 1:18-26, Luke 14:1, 7-11

Catholic books en route

By Lou Panarale Catholic News Service Here is a list of recent books of particular interest to Catholic readers.

“Papal Primacy in the Third Millennium,” by Russell Shaw, Our Sunday Visitor, $12.95, 186 pp. The publisher suggests that if you really want to know what’s going on behind efforts to “tame the pope,” you owe it to yourself to read this book on the role of St. Peter in the life of the universal church. Shaw is former secretary for public affairs of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Beyond the Walls: Monastic

Wisdom for Everyday Life,” by Paul Wilkes, Image Books, $11.95, 244 pp.

Wilkes has created “a loving book” that will help people find peace in their busy lives, says Publishers Weekly.

The author tells of his stays at Mempkin Abbey, a Trappist monastery, in a quest to answer questions held by many who have sought the simple, spiritual life. Wilkes’ previous writings have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker and Atlantic Monthly.

“Saint Katharine Drexel: Apostle of the Oppressed,” by Lou Baldwin, Catholic Standard and Times, $12.95, 241 pp. Baldwin, staff writer with Philadelphia’s archdiocesan newspaper, offers a timely and heartfelt portrait of this second U.S.-born saint, canonized Oct. 1

by Pope John Paul II, who praised her for groundbreaking work in educating the poorest of African-American and Native American children.

Word to Life

October 22, Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Cycle B. Readings: 1) Isaiah 53:10-11 Psalm 33:4-5, 18-20, 22 2) Hebrews 4:14-16 3) Gospel: Mark 10:35-45

An observer might watch parish life carefully for years and never identify him as a leader.

In the 14 years I’ve been a member, I’ve never once seen him up front as a lector or cantor or catechist.

He’s never given the stewardship appeal or hosted the talent show or chaired the international fair steering committee.

His face doesn’t appear among the photos of leaders of organizations and ministries.

When he stands with the choir, he has a music book in hand, but he never actually sings.

His leadership doesn’t fit the obvious patterns we transfer, unthinkingly, from secular life to the life of discipleship.

But if you pay attention over a long period of time, you’ll see that he is a leader of enormous influence.

He does the grunt work that underlies parish events.

He stacks chairs, lugs coffee pots, takes out trash, even the really ripe stuff, even on the hottest days.

He gathers up song books left in pews and patiently puts them away.

On cold rainy days he holds the door for old folks and children, who sometimes, in their hurry to get out of

the wet, rush past and into the dry warmth of the sanctuary without saying “thanks.”

He never pouts. And over the years, he accomplishes by example what Christian leadership is supposed to accomplish: He moves people to deeper appropriation of their faith, to greater generosity, to more confident hope in God’s mercy.

In Sunday’s Gospel Jesus turns upside down the expectations of his friends about leadership: “Whoever wishes to be great among you will be your servant; whoever wishes to be the first among you will be the slave of all.” It is hard wisdom to accept in a world which says the opposite.

May our ears be open to its truth.

QUESTIONS: What person in your life can help you clarify the meaning of Christian leadership by example of humble service?

What is one specific way in your day-to-day life that you can be great by being a servant to others?

1 2 The Catholic News & Herald

October 20, 2000

Editorials & Col-

The Pope Speaks

POPE JOHN PAUL II

Eucharist brings believers into ‘divine intimacy,’ pope says B CINDY WOODEN y

Catholic News Service VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Partaking of the Eucharist, believers move into a new intimacy with Jesus Christ which will transform their lives, Pope John Paul II said.

“The way of holiness, love and truth is the revelation to the world of our divine intimacy, which is realized through the banquet of the Eucharist,” the pope told an estimated 45,000 people at his Oct. 18 weekly general audience.

At the end of the audience, the pope prayed for the people of northern Italy suffering the effects of flooding after days of heavy rain. More than a dozen people had died after rivers spilled over their banks and landslides were set off in several Alpine villages.

Continuing a series of talks about the Eucharist, the pope said the Eucharist is the highest expression of the communion created between God and individual believers through the church.

The simple symbolism of sharing bread and wine at a meal is a hint of the intimacy and friendship between Jesus and those gathered at his table, the pope said.

But Jesus’ words to his disciples show how profound the new bond between God and human beings can become, he said.

In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever.”

“The whole text,” Pope John Paul said, “is aimed at underlining the living communion which is established in faith between Christ, the bread of life, and those who eat it.”

Because Jesus himself is present in the Eucharist, partaking of the sacrament means sharing the very life of Jesus, the pope said.

“This communion with Christ generates an intimate transformation of the faithful,” he said.

With the cooperation of the person receiving the Eucharist, the pope said, Christ’s divine nature should shine through in holiness, justice and a life marked by goodness and virtue.

Pope marks 50th anniversary of Missionaries of Charity VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Fifty years after Mother Teresa of Calcutta and 11 companions became the Missionaries of Charity, the order “has become an abundant stream of grace” within the Catholic Church, Pope John Paul II said. In a letter marking the Oct. 7 anniversary of the order’s founding, the pope gave thanks for the life and work of Mother Teresa and encouraged those continuing her work. In the letter released Oct. 17 at the Vatican, the pope said the order “has produced abundant fruit” with active and contemplative sisters and brothers, priests and lay missionaries and co-workers.

It’s OK to be joyful When bad things happen to us, we often ask, Why? Why did God allow it? Why me?

Classical theology tells us that God’s infinite wisdom transcends our immediate needs. He often leaves us puzzled, confused, angry and unsatisfied. In this state of emotional pain, he lets us try to figure it out for ourselves.

It took St. Augustine a long time to understand that “our hearts are restless until they rest in thee, Oh Lord.” He came to realize that God has a secret plan. God wants us to be happy, but to get us there he lets us stew in our own soup until we learn how much we need him.

Granted, sometimes things get worse before they get better, but the Lord wants our trust. Things turn around when we really trust him.

Jesus gave us some stark advice: “Unless you die to yourself you cannot live.... Take up your cross and follow me.” He said this so that our joy might be full.

This brings me to the ultimate mystery of holiness. Is holiness living a gloomy life on earth in the hopes of being rewarded later in heaven? Or is it something more splendid?

When Jesus said, “I have told you all this that your joy may be complete,” I take him at his word.

He doesn’t want us to live narrow lives, afraid of our own shadow. All through the Gospels, Jesus practically begs us not to be afraid: “In this world you will have many troubles, but cheer up, I have overcome the world.... Be not afraid.... Be of good cheer.”

It’s true our hearts will be restless until they rest in the Lord, but once we discover him as a partner in life everything changes.

Christian life is meant to be much more than mere passive resignation to God’s will. Once you find the Lord, once you understand the truth that he alone will be your strength and your joy, something wonderful happens. A new kind of joy, and peace, which the world cannot give, fills your soul.

The Bottom Line ANTOINETTE BOSCO CNS Columnist

for humanitarian causes.”

I had met Weller several years ago when I was a newspaper editor interested in doing a story on a family television show he produced. It was later that I discovered the other qualities of this man, a Catholic convert, beginning with his yearly Thanksgiving Day party.

He and his wife Lise own a leather goods store in Danbury, Conn., and each Thanksgiving for 10 years they have set up a corner on Main Street, with some tables loaded with food, and others with warm clothing and blankets. This bounty is for several hundred people in need, many homeless, who become their guests.

Weller works continuously for others through AmeriCares, a nonprofit, humanitarian relief organization based in Connecticut, which since its establishment in 1982 has delivered more than $1 billion of medicines and relief supplies to people in the United States and 90 other countries. This work has taken him to Honduras, North Korea, El Salvador, Albania, and last year, Kosovo.

Back in Danbury he helped establish an AmeriCares Free Clinic, which provides free health care to the city’s working poor, the uninsured and underinsured. I feel honored to know this man whose work for others is way beyond what I have space to report.

Spirituality for Today Father John Catoir CNS Columnist

For me, the mystery of holiness is not found in a resigned, miserable spirit, but in a joyous one.

Joyful acceptance is far superior to dour resignation.

Blessed Julian of Norwich, whom I quote so often, put it beautifully: “The greatest honor you can give to almighty God, greater than all your mortifications, is to live gladly, joyfully, because of the knowledge of God’s love.”

Hidden in the depths of the human heart is a mysterious power that enables us to plug into God’s life. Those who plug in successfully are the holy ones. Their joy is the infallible sign of the presence of God. Mother Teresa of Calcutta was a perfect example. She had a life filled with many sacrifices and mortifications, but above all she was a woman of joy, and she taught her sisters to be joyful. When asked about the criteria she used in accepting candidates to her religious order, she said: “I approve every one of them myself. If they are happy I take them in, if they are not happy I send them home.”

This may sound severe, but it is very wise. The mystery of holiness is found in a joyful spirit.

In Recognition of Wisdom Margaret Mead, the distinguished anthropologist, once said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”

The problem is that so much good work by people goes unrecognized in this world, where we seem to be hooked on bad news.

To put a focus on the need to reverse this distorted situation, Sister Rosemarie Greco, director of an interfaith retreat ministry in Litchfield, Conn., came up with the idea of each year seeking out two people who are exemplary in work that benefits their communities and bestowing an honor on them, a “Wisdom Award.”

This was a most appropriate designation, since Sister Greco is a Daughter of Wisdom, running Wisdom House, her order’s retreat oasis in a lovely country area of the state.

To select a person who has “exhibited qualities of divine wisdom,” as Sister Greco expresses it, this very warm and human nun seeks help from her advisory board, of which I am proud to be a member. She has helped us understand the qualities of wisdom, using the Old Testament Book of Wisdom as a source.

A wise person is “someone who draws people together in a sense of community, who heals differences among people and groups, who exhibits a creative, intuitive manner in achieving these goals and who teaches the way to live the good life,” Sister Greco says.

This is our second year to offer a Wisdom Award, and we have happily learned that there are many people who have lived wisely and deserve recognition. This year we selected Margaret Reventlow, founder and president of Connecticut Volunteer Services for the Blind and Handicapped, and Frank Weller, a devoted husband and father, holder of a degree in broadcast journalism and film from Boston University, whom we listed simply as “an advocate

October 20, 2000

Editorials & Col-

Light One Candle FATHER THOMAS J. McSWEENEY Guest Columnist wholeness of life.

Poet Emily Dickinson, a single person, was sensitive to nature, to God and to other people. “The soul unto itself is an imperial friend, “ she wrote. It’s a beautiful statement. When you feel good about your own soul, your own integrity, you can become more appreciative of the beauty of another’s soul, more respectful of another’s integrity.

There is an instructive story of a priest and an old man who went walking together along a country road.

A storm came up suddenly and they took cover in an old barn where they remained warm and dry. As he sat on an old pile of hay, waiting for the storm to end, the old man pulled out a prayer book, battered and worn from use, and started to read.

Some time later, the priest, who had been observing the obvious contentment of the old man, said, “You seem to be unusually close to God.” The old man looked up and said, “Yes, He is very fond of me.”

What a marvelous feeling! And so it is for each one of us. Married or single, God is very fond of us.

Deep within, our souls draw upon the love that makes each of us the fulfilled persons God created us to be.

Catholic teachings on the subject, with an explanation of various literary styles found in the Bible, how they help us to know the meaning of different passages of Scripture, plus a lot of notes on specific verses.

Get a copy, and read those parts carefully. If you devote a little serious attention to them, you’ll find them enlightening and quite interesting.

Catholic University of America Q. I hope you can clear up something for me and, I’m sure, a lot of other Catholics.

We recently had a collection for The Catholic University of America. Usually people are generous in these “second collections,” but this is one that is never talked about or explained in the Bay area, at least that I know of.

It seems few put money in the basket.

What is the Catholic University? Where is it? Do only Catholics attend? Since it is a university, I assume it grants degrees above the bachelor’s. Can you solve the mystery?

A. No, there is no mystery. Unfortunately, however, the university and its illustrious history are not as well known as they deserve to be.

The Catholic University of America was established by the Catholic bishops of the country in 1887 as a graduate and research center. It is the only higher education facility founded by the bishops and the only university in the United States with church faculties to grant canonical degrees in theology, philosophy and canon law.

For more than a century, the university has held a prestigious role in the American church, offering 56 doctoral programs and appropriate professional degrees in all its 10 schools. Its undergraduate and graduate schools are open to men and women of all faiths.

Seventy-thousand graduates have served, and still serve, the nation and the church in numerous major fields, from sciences, music and architecture to theology, education and law. The university has

The Single Life It has become more difficult than ever to preach a sermon on marriage that pleases everyone. Recently, after delivering what I thought was one of my better talks celebrating the sacredness of matrimony, a fellow walked up to me and said, “That was a nice effort, Father, but what about those of us who are single?”

The more I thought about it, the more I appreciate how right he was to encourage me, a single person, to be sensitive to those who are single. To be sure, all married persons were single until their wedding day.

Many become single again when the marriage dissolves through death. Others live the single life again as the result of formal separation or divorce. And many women and men remain single all their lives, either through choice or circumstance.

The recent U.S. census reveals that the ratio of single to married persons is narrowing, principally in large metropolitan areas. Yet, within our culture there is the widely held perception that the single life is somehow inferior and that the single person is deprived.

“When are you going to settle down?” “Isn’t it a shame she isn’t married?” “Come to the supper anyway. We’ll find someone for you to sit with.” “Do you think he is, well, different?” In these and other totally tactless ways, social pressure is applied, making a single person into some kind of second-class citizen.

The truth is, of course, God in His goodness gives us the integrity to be free — free to choose the single life or the married life. In fact, it is only when you are free to be a single person that you are really free to be a married person. Much too often, I fear, the insensitive social pressure brought to bear on the single person is but an open invitation to enter into an ill-conceived, bad marriage.

In a world that is built around couples, it is important for us to understand and to proclaim that the gracious God, who has created us, does not hold up singleness as an obstacle to fullness of life. From beginning to end, the Gospel is clear — whether we are married or single, God loves us infinitely and it is through our relationship with Him that we find

Question Corner FATHER JOHN DIETZEN CNS Columnist

Understanding the Scriptures Q. If the Scriptures are the word of God, why are we told that so many parts of the Bible are tongue-in-cheek tales or parables? Obviously they were written for a different culture, but we still need to deal with them.

Our parish has very good homilies that relate these stories to our lives. But I’m confused about the basic interpretations of Mary’s virginity, Joseph’s role, some of Jesus’ miracles, not to mention the flood and the Garden of Eden.

A. I know of no genuine Bible scholar who says any part of the Bible is “tongue-in-cheek.” It is all true, but that truth is presented in many literary forms: poetry, legal documents, short stories, parables, war stories and a variety of others.

Each of them presents in its own way the truth God wishes to reveal to us.

Obviously I cannot deal here with all the specific subjects you raise. Again, however, I would refer any Catholic who is seriously interested in learning the fundamentals of the Catholic Church’s approach to understanding the Scriptures to the New American Bible, St. Joseph edition.

It includes, among other helpful features, official

See DIETZEN, page 15

The Catholic News & Herald 13

Economy of Faith FATHER JOHN S. RAUSCH, Glenmary Guest columnist A device, not a dogma Faced with few possibilities for employment in her area, Linda considered moving from her mountain home to a distant city to earn her livelihood. She lived on land in her family for three generations, and she wanted to raise her granddaughter in the splendor of Appalachia. The conventional wisdom of the marketplace says the unemployed should move to find work, but Linda understood place, tradition, history and community. The market promises rewards to the faithful, but Linda wanted connectedness to her roots. In the end she did with less, made do with local opportunities, and stayed on the land.

The market system strongly influences people’s decisions about their lives and what they do. Families move hundreds of miles away from relatives and supportive friends for the sake of a job. Workers endure undesirable employment to maintain a modest standard of living, and people work harder and longer to keep up with their neighbors. In this perpetual motion few hit the pause button to examine the economic forces on their lives.

Divine omnipotence can do anything, and hence displays the power of creating. Whereas God creates the universe, the Market creates commodities. The Market seemingly possesses a limitless ability to convert a part of creation into a product for sale. Sacred places like ancient burial grounds or holy mountains can wear a sticker price as real estate. The human body not infrequently displays a price tag for blood or bodily organs. The Market’s omnipotence can sell whole towns or disrupt vast areas of nature when it decrees the need for more commodities.

While God knows the secrets of the heart, the Market knows the cost of crude and the price of potatoes. The fluctuations of the stock market signal the prophetic truth about buying or selling. And, if some government policy interferes too dramatically with the potential of profit making, the Market cries heresy. The Market knows all and acts best.

Finally, believers walk confidently with God by their side. Comparably, disciples of the Market proceed knowing an awareness of financial consequences will influence nearly all social decision making, whether in business, in government or in the individual. A simple appeal to budget considerations reminds combatants of the omnipresent Market and stops many an argument.

While the market represents a marvelous mechanism for allocating most goods and services, it has its limitations. Ultimately for believers the market is a device, not a dogma. The sacredness of life, the stewardship of creation and the respect for community supercede the market’s promised rewards of lucrative employment, cheap prices and expanded choices. These spiritual considerations temper the uncritical acceptance of market wisdom.

Father Rausch writes, teaches and organizes in Appalachia.

1 4 The Catholic News & Herald

Entertain-

Movie NEW YORK (CNS) — Following are recent capsule reviews issued by the U.S. Catholic Conference Office for Film and Broadcasting.

“Bedazzled” (20th Century Fox) Mediocre comedy in which a socially inept computer technician (Brendan Fraiser) sells his soul to the devil (Elizabeth Hurley) in exchange for seven wishes to win the love of his beautiful co-worker (Frances O’Connor), but the wishes don’t turn out quite the way he intended. Although the twists on the requests are cleverly conceived, director Harold Ramis’ tiresome film emphasizes makeup and costuming more than humorous substance. Some drug content, brief comically intended violence and homosexual innuendo, occasional sex-related humor and a few instances of crass language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG13 — parents are strongly cautioned.

Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

“Billy Elliot” (Universal) Stirring tale about a coal miner’s young son (Jamie Bell) who rises above the tough macho culture that surrounds him to follow his dream of becoming a ballet dancer. Though debut director Stephen Daldry’s coming-of-age story is by the numbers, effective character development, an engaging narrative and well-placed

ClassiEMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Director of Adult Catholic Enrichment/Order of Christian Initiation: Holy Family Catholic Church of Marietta seeks a full-time salaried Director for Adult Catholic Enrichment (ACE) and the Order of Christian Initiation (OCI) programs. Applicants should have leadership experience in ACE/OCI areas and/or have religious education degreed background suitable to develop high quality programs and volunteer assistance in the community. Must be practicing Catholic. If interested, please submit resume and cover letter to Ret Siefferman, Director of Religious Education at Holy Family Catholic Church, 3401 Lower Roswell Rd., Marietta, GA 30068. Fax (770) 578-0475. Inquire at (770) 973-7400, ext. 21 with questions.

Director of Music: Full-time position as Director of Music for growing parish of 650 families who love to sing! Responsibilities include: Liturgy preparation and planning; playing for 5 weekend masses, holy days, funerals.

Weddings negotiated; directing and developing adult mixed choir; organizing and directing children’s choir; attend conferences and workshops for continued education and renewal; and attend weekly parish staff meetings. Competitive salary and benefits. Experience a plus, but musical accompaniment skills (piano & organ) a must. Send resume to Search Committee, Sacred Heart Church, 128 N. Fulton St., Salisbury, NC 28144, or fax to 704-647-0126.

Director of Music Ministry: Holy Infant Catholic Church is in search of a full-time Director of Music. Located

dance sequences create a pleasurable experience. Some homosexual innuendo and fleeting profanity with recurring rough language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted.

“The Contender” (DreamWorks) Politically charged drama in which a Democratic senator’s (Joan Allen) vice-presidential confirmation is derailed by the discovery of an alleged sexual misadventure in her past by a vengeful Republican congressman (Gary Oldman). Director Rod Lurie’s left-leaning, wordy thriller has some engrossing moments, but it loses its appeal in its portrayal of politically conservative characters as caricatures. Brief, vivid scenes of sexual encounters with nudity and recurring rough language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-IV — adults, with reservations.

The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted.

“Get Carter” (Warner Bros.)

Ineffectual remake of a 1971 British thriller in which vicious Las Vegas hit man Sylvester Stallone seeks revenge against the thugs who murdered his brother. Director Stephen Kay’s in Durham, North Carolina, a dynamic and growing area of the country near Research Triangle Park, this Vatican II parish consists of 900 households that are committed to ongoing liturgical renewal.

Holy Infant Parish embraces its call to be hospitable, inclusive and Christ-centered.

This position works closely with the Pastor and a collaborative and supportive staff. Requires a minimum of a bachelor’s degree in a relevant field although a master’s degree is preferred. Must have music performance skill (e.g. piano, voice); choral directing; cantor training; knowledge of Catholic rites and rituals. Available no later than November 1, 2000. Salary commensurate with education and experience.

Benefits package included. Send resume to: DOMM Search Committee, Holy Infant Catholic Church, 5000 Southpark Dr., Durham, NC 27713. Fax 919/544-1799.

References required at time of application for consideration for this position.

Director of Religious Education: Holy Family Catholic Church in Marietta seeks a full-time salaried Director for its Religious Education programs. Practical leadership experience in the continuing development of a full range of primary, secondary, young adult and adult based Religious Education programs is essential.

The ability to encourage a spirit of volunteerism to meet broad community needs is a must. Should be competent in managing all educational levels and administrative staff functions. Must have bachelors and/ or advanced degree in education and/ or religious training. Must be practicing Catholic. Holy Family’s Religious Education programs serve a multi-cultural community. Fluency in Spanish or equivalent background experience would be a useful asset. If interested, please submit resume and cover letter to Ret Siefferman, Director of Religious Education, Holy Family Catholic Church, 3401 Lower Roswell Rd.,

gimmicky camera work and stylized visuals fail to disguise a nonsensical plot, atrocious performances and senseless violence. Much gratuitous violence, brief drug content, fleeting lesbian sexual encounters, recurring rough language and brief profanity.

The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is O — morally offensive.

The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted.

“Pay It Forward” (Warner Bros.)

Poignant drama about an 11-year-old boy (Haley Joel Osment) whose classroom assignment to change the world blossoms into an altruistic movement with farreaching results including bringing together his alcoholic mother (Helen

October 20, 2000

Hunt) and his facially disfigured teacher (Kevin Spacey). As directed

by Mimi Leder, the film’s exemplary message and admirable performances are undermined by an overly sentimental script. Some sexual situations, brief violence, some profanity and crass language. The U.S. Catholic Conference classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG13 — parents are strongly cautioned.

Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Classified ads bring results! Over 115,000 readers! Over 45,000 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.

Marietta, GA 30068. Fax (770) 578-0475.

Inquire at (770) 973-7400, ext. 21 with questions.

Maintenance Position: Full-time: M-F, 7am-4pm. Start immediately. St. Patrick Elementary School, Charlotte. Good benefits. Fax resume to: Maintenance Position, (704)333-3178.

Principal, Elementary: Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School in Raleigh, NC announces its opening for Principal, effective July 1, 2001. We are a parish-based K-8 coeducational school serving 538 students. Applicant must be a practicing Catholic, have an advanced degree and administrative experience. Prospective candidates interviewed immediately. Direct inquiries to: Principal Search Committee, Our Lady of Lourdes School, 2710 Overbrook Rd., Raleigh, NC, 27608. (919)7821670 ext.123; Fax (919)420-2188.

Production Associate: The Catholic News and Herald has an opening for a part-time production associate (30 hours per week). Good benefit package. Candidate will be proficient with PageMaker 6.5, Photoshop 5.5, and Corel 7.0 (a PC environment preferred). Position involves layout and pre-press of weekly newspaper. Graphic design experience preferred.

Please forward layout/design samples and resume to: Editor, The Catholic News & Herald, PO Box 37267, Charlotte, NC, or e-mail jskeane@aol.com

Religious Education Director: Full-time position is available at Saint Brigid Catholic Church, Alpharetta, Georgia (www.saintbrigid.org). Degreed applicant must be a practicing Catholic. The Religious Education Director will administer (design, develop, direct, and evaluate) the total parish catechetical program and provide leadership to assist the parish community in building a solid foundation for Christian living. Salary commensurate with credentials and experience. Benefits package included. Please send cover letter and resume to Fr. Joe Corbett, Saint Brigid Catholic Church, 3400 Old Alabama, Alpharetta, GA 30022, or fax to (678)393-0071, or e-mail to fr.joe@ saintbrigid.org.

Youth Ministry Director: Full time. Master’s or undergraduate degree in Catechesis or a youth related field.

1,200-family parish in Charlotte, NC. Send resume/cover letter to: St. Patrick Cathedral, Attn: Joanna Catabui, 1621 Dilworth Rd. East, Charlotte, NC 28203 or fax (704)377-6403.

CAREGIVER RELIEF

Adult Day Respite: Affordable.

Dependable. State-approved adult day respite in churches. Socialization and activities include: Sing-alongs, chair exercises, games, reminiscent therapy, spiritual sharing. Suzanne Bach (704)376-4135.

October 20, 2000

In the

Anniversary, from page 1

Family, from page 1

comments. “I took a step back and municate and understand. Married in thought about it. I said, ‘I’m kind of 1950 in Washington, D.C., the Valenproud that at this point in my life I can tines said a deep love for one another say yes, marriage does work.’” has been the key to their happiness as She said communication is essena married couple. tial in any lasting relationship, adding “We have a lot of interests in comthat “our commitment to each other mon, and then he has his own interests and our deep faith” have been imporand I have mine,” said Mary with a tant in their marriage. “We just make chuckle. “We usually acknowledge our family work by keeping our vows whatever the other is interested in going,” she said. “Evdoing.” erything has its ups The annual celand downs, but if you ebration is sponsored talk it out, things have by the Diocese of a way of finding their Charlotte’s Family way down the path of Life program, a progetting better.” gram of Catholic SoBishop Curlin cial Services’ Special urged the couples to Ministries. The day share their recipe for included the renewal happy marriages with of marriage vows, anyounger generations, niversary certificates people who encounto each couple, longter the negative in a stemmed red roses world often filled with and a catered recepanger and despair. tion.

“I hope you will “We are honor— Bishop William G. Curlin tell your stories to ing those couples who your children and to have been real symyoung people,” the bols of what family bishop said. “I hope life is all about,” said you will write down the history of Gerry Carter, director of Special Minyour love affair with one another. We istries. “Our purpose is to say thank need your stories. We need your wityou for their inspiration they provide ness to Jesus Christ more than ever in for the entire community. They really this world.” are sterling examples for the rest of us From sacrifice to forgiveness, unto aspire to.” derstanding to sensitivity, “there is a litany of things that makes a happy Contact Associate Editor Jimmy Romarriage,” the bishop said in his homstar by calling (704) 370-3334 or e-mail ily. He urged the couples always to jtrostar@charlottediocese.org continue working at keeping their marriages strong and never to stop learning from and about one another.

Ellicott and Mary Valentine of Pfafftown agreed on the importance of the bishop’s message. “That has played a very large part of our marriage,” said Mary of the need to com-

dren “will always bear the psychological sign of the trial that the division of their parents subjected them to.”

At the same time, the pope said the “church feels called not to express a severe and distanced judgment.”

Even those who have divorced and remarried civilly, while in a state of “objective moral disorder,” are invited to participate in the life of the church, he said.

Divorce is just one phenomenon where children’s rights are often overlooked, said the pope, and despite advances in recognizing the rights of the youngest members of society, in practice they are often denied.

For example, he referred to the growing use of fertility treatments that the church does not condone, such as in vitro fertilization or genetic screening.

“The tendency to use practices which are morally unacceptable in the generation (of children) betrays the absurd mentality of the right to a child,” he said, “which takes the place of the correct recognition of the right of a child to be born and then to grow in a fully human way.”

The pope encouraged couples who may not be able to have their own children to turn to adoption, a “true exercise of charity that places children’s well-being before parental needs.”

Whether conceived naturally or adopted, he said, children need both a mother and father united as one flesh in the sacrament of marriage.

“It is not a step forward for civi-

“You are proof that marriage works.

You are proof that marriage is something beautiful, that it is something sacred in God’s eyes.”

The Catholic News & Herald 15

lization to support tendencies that place this elementary truth into the shadows and claim to assert themselves legally,” said the pope, an apparent reference to recent laws in some countries recognizing homosexual unions.

Appealing to Catholics around the world to promulgate respect for human life from the moment of conception, he expressed hope that governments and international organizations like the United Nations would come to recognize the truth of the church’s emphasis on the family.

Both the Oct. 14 prayer vigil and Oct. 15 Mass included emotional moments between the pope and children, encounters with whom often have moved him deeply throughout his pontificate.

Afflicted by a neurological disorder commonly believed to be Parkinson’s disease, which severely limits the pope’s facial expressions, the 80-year-old pontiff broke into rare smiles as he blessed youngsters.

Several children remained at the pope’s side to whisper in his ear, and he repaid their gestures by speaking with them in return and embracing them fondly.

Dietzen, from page 13 educated 9,000 priests — from most, if not all, dioceses in the country — and hundreds of bishops.

The school is still a significant feature of the U.S. Catholic Church. Located in the nation’s capital, it is frequently a resource for research and statistics for the American bishops in their Congressional hearings and other legal activities. The archbishop of Washington, D.C., is the university’s chancellor.

More information is available by writing to the CUA Office of Public Affairs, 620 Michigan Ave. NE, Washington, D.C. 20078-5216.

A free brochure answering questions Catholics ask about ecumenism, intercommunion and other ways of sharing with people of other faiths is available by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to Father John Dietzen, Box 325, Peoria, IL 61651.

Questions may be sent to Father Dietzen at the same address, or e-mail: jjdietzen@ aol.com.

1 6 The Catholic News & Herald

Living the

Nobel winner has credited Catholic faith with helping

By Catholic News Service SEOUL, South Korea (CNS) — South Korean President Kim Dae-jung, who won the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize, has credited his Catholic faith for helping him through periods of torture and imprisonment.

Kim, whose baptismal name is Thomas More, converted to Catholicism as an adult in the late 1950s. Under previous government administrations, he faced kidnapping, exile, the death penalty and beatings.

He once said that when faced with the threat of death and imprisonment, “I was able to remain peaceful and firmly resolved in my mind to face the threat of death because of my resolute faith in the risen Jesus Christ and my belief in the existence of the living God.” Kim won the Nobel Peace Prize for his persistent peace efforts with North Korea and his commitment to human rights and democracy.

While the Korean conflict 50 years ago ended in an armed truce and not a peace agreement, North and South Korea have made steps toward peace. The two Koreas have held reunions of families separated during the Korean War, agreed to re-link railroads and roads cut off during the conflict, and ordered the two armies to work together to clear land mines on the border.

At their landmark summit in Pyongyang, North Korea, in June, Kim

embraced North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

During much of the country’s past four decades of military dictatorships, Kim, 74, sometimes described as “Asia’s Mandela,” was under house arrest, imprisoned or in exile.

In 1997, he became the first opposition candidate to win the South Korean presidency. He lost three previous bids for the presidency, in 1971, 1987 and 1992.

In 1995, while speaking at a Lenten lecture hosted by the Seoul Archdiocese, Kim spoke of his faith in the face of death. In his lecture, titled “Jesus Christ, Risen Lord and Reunification,” Kim also outlined a three-stage plan for reunification that he said could be accomplished by 2020.

An outspoken critic of the 196379 rule of South Korean President Park Chung Hee and the other rightwing governments that ruled South Korea since 1961, Kim called the Catholic Church “the centrifocal point of the spiritual struggle against the Park dictatorship.”

During his unsuccessful run against Park in the 1971 campaign, Kim suffered a serious hip injury in an automobile accident, which was later acknowledged to be a secret-police assassination attempt.

The accident left him with a limp and chronic neuralgia.

After Park declared martial law

in the fall of 1972, Kim lived in the United States until 1973, and again from 1982 to 1985.

During his exile, Kim founded the Korean Institute for Human Rights in Alexandria, Va. In a 1999 interview with the British news agency Reuters, Kim said he has been motivated by the sense that he is on the right side of history.

“When I was kidnapped and when I was sentenced to death, of course I was afraid of death, but I thought to myself I was the victor.

If I felt that I was the victor, then I had no reason to be discouraged,” said Kim. Kim was born Dec. 3, 1925, the son of a wealthy CNS photo by Lisa Benoit farmer on an isMrs. America, Leslie Lam, poses in front of her alma land off the coast mater, St. Francis School in Honolulu, in September. of Cholla province.

She said her family and Catholic faith are important In 1961, he entered in helping to overcome life’s obstacles. parliament after publishing a newspaper and working as an accountant. He and his wife, Lee Hi-ho, an activist for women’s rights, have three sons.

roe v. wade was a watershed event. One day, we

were a nation that protected the lives of unborn human beings.

The next day, seven justices of the U.S. Supreme Court said that throughout pregnancy abortion is a fundamental constitutional right. That was January 1973.

In June 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court expanded the right to kill, from children in the womb (Roe v. Wade) to children almost completely born (Stenberg v. Carhart). With its decision in Carhart, we’ve moved beyond abortion to near infanticide.

And in doing so, it has created a new level of moral blindness

what can i do?

• Pray every day that our nation will again respect the lives of

every human being from conception to natural death. Each Sunday we might make this plea in the Prayers of the Faithful.

• Learn the facts about abortion. The newsletter Life Insight, and other education materials are available from the bishops’ Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities. Also visit www.nccbuscc. org/prolife and www.hopeafterabortion.org.

• Communicate, because we need to speak out when we can. It is in speaking with others that we can help them to understand and touch their hearts with a message of respect for human life.

• Serve programs that serve pregnant women and children — they always need extra hands. Offer to help.

• Organize on behalf of life. The most effective vehicle for building a community that respects each and every human life

October 20, 2000

Roe v. Wade must be reversed.

With God’s help and our hard work — one prayer, one pamphlet, one conversation, one petition at a time — it will be.

Respect Life Office Diocese of Charlotte Tel: (704) 370-3229 Fax: (704) 370-3377