Nov. 13, 2009

November 13, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 1

www.charlottediocese.org

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Perspectives Aid for struggling families; The murder of Father Ed; Plight of Christian Palestinians

Established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul VI November 13, 2009

A healthy alternative

Natural Family Planning methods BATRICE ADCOCK Special to The Catholic News & Herald

| Pages 14-15 Serving Catholics in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte

vOLUME 19

no. 3

Second chances

Banquet celebrates Room at the Inn of the Carolinas SUSAN deGUZMAN correspondent

GREENSBORO— “Contraception is the root of the entire culture of death,” stated Benedictine Father Matthew Habiger to parishioners of Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Greensboro Nov. 6. He spoke on behalf of Natural Family Planning Outreach, a ministry based in Oklahoma City.

GREENSBORO — “It is because of our love for Jesus and belief in Him that we are moved to have Christian compassion for the unborn child and his or her mother,” explained Bishop Peter J. Jugis to those attending the 10th annual benefit banquet for Room at the Inn of the Carolinas held at the Embassy

See FAMILY, page 8

See SUCCESS, page 9

Lectio Divina

Listening to Jesus in the Scriptures JANNEKE PIETERS Special to The Catholic News & Herald CANDLER — “Few people realize that the Bible can be a huge boost to one’s prayer life,” said Monsignor James C. Turro, speaker at the

15th “Fire in the Mountains” held at St. Joan of Arc Church in Candler Nov. 7.

“In Scripture, we find out what God wants of us,” said Monsignor Turro. “For Catholics, reading Scripture is not optional.”

photo by Vicki

Priests from across the Diocese of Charlotte concelebrate the closing Mass at the fifth annual Eucharistic Congress held at the Charlotte Convention Center Sept. 26. Bishop Peter J. Jugis recently announced that the theme for next year’s Eucharistic Congress was selected in recognition of the Year for Priests, proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI last June.

‘Good Shepherd, Come Feed Us’ 2010 Eucharistic Congress theme

See SCRIPTURE, page 7

DAVID HAINS director of communication

photo by janneke pieters

Monsignor James Turro speaks about reading sacred Scripture at the 15th “Fire in the Mountains” event held at St. Joan of Arc Church in Candler Nov. 7.

Dorsey

CHARLOTTE — The largest single gathering of Catholics in the Diocese of Charlotte, the Eucharistic Congress, has a theme for the 2010 event. Bishop Peter J. Jugis has selected, “Good Shepherd, Come Feed Us.” The sixth Eucharistic Congress takes place on Sept.

10 and 11, 2010 at the Charlotte Convention Center. The event, which was attended this year

by more than 10,000 people, will feature a Eucharistic procession through uptown Charlotte, several concerts, speakers in both English and Spanish, religious education tracks for children, Holy Mass, the Sacrament of Reconciliation and an area where vendors sell religious themed items.

Attendance at the event has more than doubled since the first congress was held in 2005.

Bishop Jugis says he selected the theme in recognition of the Year for

Priests that was proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI in June of this year. “The Good Shepherd feeds his flock on his own body and blood in the Eucharist.

Our priests, who share in the office of Christ the Shepherd, feed the Lord’s flock on His teaching and His sacraments,” said Bishop Jugis.

Each congress has a theme focused on the Eucharist. The most recent congress, held in late September, used a Scripture passage from the See THEME, page 5

Culture Watch

Around the diocese

In the news

Pope John Paul II lives on; French missionaries in Brooklyn foster vocations

Pick your favorite saint; Studying the Scripture; Special Olympics honors

Apostolic constitution welcomes Anglicans; Joint declaration celebrated with Lutherans

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November 13, 2009

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InBrief

Current and upcoming topics from around the world to your own backyard

Churches working to ensure everyone is counted in 2010 U.S. census Church is in a unique position to reach people

Basilica Birthday

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Churches have a crucial role to play in ensuring that everyone is counted on Census Day 2010, April 1.

That’s the message Alejandro Aguilera-Titus and Beverly Carroll of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat on Cultural Diversity in the Church are delivering as key point people in the USCCB’s partnership effort with the U.S. Census Bureau.

The numbers gathered in the 2010 census will determine representation in Congress and the allocation of more than $400 billion in annual federal funding for local schools, roads, parks and other services.

“Historically we know there are three major communities that are difficult to count — the new immigrant, those who are isolated due to little knowledge of English and the low-income,” said

Diocesan planner cns photo by

Nancy Wiechec

Exterior view of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington Nov. 6.

Plans for building the shrine began as early as 1910. It was dedicated Nov. 20, 1959.

‘Nation’s parish’ celebrates 50 years WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington — the largest Catholic church in North America and one of the 10 largest churches in the world — is a familiar place to U.S. Catholics who regard the immense structure as their own.

The basilica, which marks the 50th anniversary of its dedication Nov. 20, is not a parish or a cathedral. Instead, it was designated by the U.S. bishops as a national place of prayer and pilgrimage, something the basilica’s 1 million annual visitors know well.

The book “America’s Church,” published by Our Sunday Visitor in 2000, describes the basilica as having “no parish community as its own; but rather counts every American Catholic among its members. No single bishop claims it as his cathedral; rather it is the church of all the nation’s bishops. ... In every way, the national shrine is America’s Catholic church.”

As a church for all Catholics, its doors are always open — seven days a week, 365 days a year. Every day, for five hours, priests administer the sacrament of reconciliation and celebrate at least six Masses. Weddings and baptisms — sacraments that are to be witnessed by a worshipping parish community — do not take place there.

On any given weekday, the basilica is often relatively quiet — aglow with

flames of votive candles and often with the lingering scent of incense in the air.

Groups go on tours and individuals pray in chapels tucked in nooks of the huge stone, brick and concrete church.

On weekends, holy days and special celebrations or dedications, the basilica is often filled to capacity and then some and the quiet calm is replaced with music and overflowing crowds, sometimes in native dress and holding aloft flags.

During the annual National Prayer Vigil for Life each January, hundreds of pilgrims from youth groups around the country spend the night on the floor on the basilica’s lower level.

During the spring and fall, dozens of diocesan groups make pilgrimages to the basilica and Msgr. Walter Rossi, the basilica’s rector, makes it a point to personally greet them. “This is your parish away from home,” he tells them.

“You built it. You support it. We’re here for you.”

He said the basilica is often described as the nation’s parish because Catholics from across the country contributed to building it as a monument to Mary.

In his 1979 visit, Pope John Paul II said the shrine speaks “with the voice of all the sons and daughters of America, who have come here from the various countries” and possess “the same love for the mother of God that was characteristic of their ancestors and of themselves in their native lands.”

For more events taking place in the Diocese of Charlotte, visit www.charlottediocese. org/calendarofevents-cn.

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — The African Affairs Ministry of the Diocese of Charlotte is sponsoring a Black Catholic History Month Celebration on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Our Lady of Assumption Catholic School in Charlotte. The theme this year is, ‘We’ve Come This Far by Faith: Black Catholic Spirituality Past, Present and Future’. Keynote speaker will be Terrial ‘Terry’ Aiken, Youth minister at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in High Point. For more information, contact Sandy Murdock at the Diocese of Charlotte African Affairs Ministry at (704) 370-3267.

CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Church will sponsor a Christian Coffeehouse on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. at the St. Matthew Parish Center. Live Christian Contemporary music by Kathy & David with Redeemed, a 10-member band, host and provide the music and entertainment. The event is free and open to everyone. Beer, wine, snacks, soft drinks and desserts are served in a candlelit room with tablecloths and fresh flowers. To reserve a table for 6 or more, call (704) 400-2213 by Friday, Nov. 13.

Aguilera-Titus, assistant director for Hispanic affairs in the cultural diversity secretariat, in an interview with Catholic News Service Oct. 27.

But with 19,000 parishes and thousands more social service agencies, health care facilities and educational institutions around the country, the Catholic Church is in a unique position to reach many of those people, said Carroll, assistant director for African-American affairs, in the same interview.

Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of San Antonio, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church, said the statistics gathered in the census can serve much more than governmental purposes.

“A church that seeks to evangelize is characterized by outreach,” he added.

“The U.S. census gives us important information to do that.”

HUNTERSVILLE — St. Mark Church will host a special pre-release screening of ‘The 13th Day’, the amazing new movie about Fatima, on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. in the parish hall located at 14740 Stumptown Rd. For more information or to RSVP, contact Tim Flynn at stmarklifeteen@gmail.com.

CHARLOTTE — St. Gabriel Church will sponsor Shekel Savvy on Monday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in the Ministry Center. A panel of experts will help identify ways to manage your family’s budget and rebuild financial security.

Topics include: mortgage refinancing, debt management, expense reduction, and setting personal financial goals. There will be a panel discussion with experts on hand to address individual questions. Childcare with reservation only. For more information call (704) 364-5431.

CHARLOTTE — Theology on Tap, a St. Matthew young adult ministry connecting parishioners in their 20s and 30s presents a Real Life Series talk entitled, ‘Living in a Culture of Endless Choices’, on Thursday, Nov. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Harpers Restaurant at Carolina Place Mall. Come socialize with other young adults as you listen to speaker, Lisa Tolido, founder of Be Strong Ministries. For more information and to RSVP, go to http://www.meetup.com/ youngadultlife.

CHARLOTTE — Join Father Patrick Hoare for Encyclical Tuesdays in November from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. in the education wing at St. John Neumann Church, 8451 Idlewild Rd., as he explores Pope Benedict’s third encyclical, “Caritas in Veritate.”

This encyclical calls us to see the relationship between human and environmental ecologies while linking charity and truth to the pursuit of justice, the common good and authentic human development. Materials will be provided for this series of workshops. For more information or to reserve a space, call (704) 535-4197.

NOVEMBER 13, 2009 Volume 19 • Number 3

Publisher: Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis Interim Editor: Heather Bellemore Graphic DESIGNER: Tim Faragher Advertising MANAGER: Cindi Feerick Secretary: Deborah Hiles 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 $23 per year for all other subscribers. The Catholic News & Herald reserves the right to reject or cancel advertising for any reason deemed appropriate. We do not recommend or guarantee any product, service or benefit claimed by our advertisers. Second-class postage paid at Charlotte NC and other cities. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237.

November 13, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 3

FROM THE VATICAN

Pope says hope of eternal life helps people face life, death Memorial Mass honors cardinals and bishops VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Hope and faith in eternal life give Christians strength to overcome the difficulties of daily life and the pain of death, Pope Benedict XVI said during a Mass honoring cardinals and bishops who died during the past year.

In the face of death, believers possess “the hope of immortality,” the pope said during the memorial Mass Nov. 5 in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Pope Benedict told the cardinals, bishops, ambassadors and faithful gathered at the basilica’s Altar of the Chair that death is “a disturbing enigma” that brings with it the “painful separation from loved ones.”

But faith “sustains us in these moments that are full of sorrow and

dismay,” he said.

Faith also helps people get through all obstacles that are part of life, he said. “There is no lack of difficulties and problems on our paths, with situations of suffering and pain, moments that are difficult to understand and accept,” he said.

However, “all of this grows in value and meaning if it is considered in the perspective of eternity,” he said.

Trials borne with patience “are all to our spiritual advantage here on earth but above all in our future life in heaven,” he said.

If believers persevere in doing good works, the pope said, “our faith, purified by many trials, will one day shine in all of its glory” when it is demonstrated before Jesus.

CHARLOTTE — “Annunciations” – A Guided Ignatian Advent Retreat will be offered by St. Peter Church, 507 S. Tryon St., with the opening session on Saturday, Dec. 5 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon in Biss Hall (under the church) and the closing session on Saturday, Dec. 19 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon. Parking is free in The Green parking garage next door to the church. If you wish to register for the two-week guided retreat, please contact Father Vince at (704) 332-2901 to be paired with a guide. If you simply wish to attend one or both Saturday sessions, please email retreat4advent@gmail.com.

the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road, Greensboro. For more information contact the church office at (336) 294-4696 or email gmagrinat@pol.net.

HIGH POINT — A fall session of HOSEA (Hope of Seeing Everyone Again) will be held at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, 4145 Johnson St., Wednesdays from 7:15 p.m. to 9 p.m. through Dec. 2. If you or someone you know has been away from the Catholic Church but might want to come back, HOSEA is a small group setting where one can ask questions, get answers and find out what is new since they have been away. For information, call Jan Hitch at (336) 884-5097.

GASTONIA VICARIATE GASTONIA — St. Michael the Archangel Church will host a Natural Family Planning presentation: “Return to Wholeness: An Introduction to Natural Family Planning” on Saturday, Nov. 14 at 6:30 p.m. (after the 5 p.m.

Mass) and on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 11:30 a.m. (after the 10 a.m. Mass). This is sponsored by the Catholic Social Services NFP program. For more information, call (704) 370-3230 or email cssnfp@charlottediocese.org for details.

GREENSBORO VICARIATE HIGH POINT — Immaculate Heart of Mary School will host two open houses this month.

On Tuesday, Nov. 17, from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m., prospective students in grades kindergarten through eight and their parents are invited to tour the school campus at 605 Barbee Ave. in High Point. Also, on Thursday, Nov. 19, from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m., an open house will be held for IHM’s Eagle’s Nest pre-kindergarten program.

This open house will be held at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church campus located at 4145 Johnson St. in High Point. For more information, please call (336) 887-2613 or visit www.ihmschool.com.

GREENSBORO — The Men’s Early Morning Bible Study Group will discuss the Catholic Epistles through November and December. Join us for sharing, prayer and Bible study every Tuesday at 6:30 a.m. in the parish library, St. Paul

Episcopal

calendar

SMOKY MOUNTAIN VICARIATE MURPHY — Please join us for a free seminar entitled, “Understanding Our Neighbors – Class Matters”, on Friday, Nov. 20 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at St. William Church, 765 Andrews Rd. This is a poverty seminar on class differences which will open up the different world of people in poverty, revealing how the survival-based mentality of poverty impacts learning, work habits, and decisionmaking. Presenters are Rev. Dr. Paul A. Hanneman, program director, Urban Ministry Center and Wanda Anderson, social worker, UFS Shelter for Battered Women. Everyone in the community is invited. There will be a light lunch offered at no cost. For more information, call (828) 494-5262.

Is your parish or school sponsoring a free event open to the general public? Deadline for all submissions for the Diocesan Planner is 10 days prior to desired publication date.

Submit in writing to catholicnews@charlottediocese.org or fax to (704) 370-3382.

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following events:

Nov. 13 (8 p.m.)

CSS Vineyard of Hope Marriott- South Park, Charlotte

Nov. 15-19 USCCB Meeting Baltimore, Maryland

Nov. 14 (11:45 a.m.)

Bishops’ Circle Mass St. Gabriel Church, Charlotte

Nov. 21 (2 p.m.)

Sacrament of Confirmation Saint Matthew Church, Charlotte

Immigrants can make important contributions to society, pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) — People should not look upon immigrants as problems, but as fellow brothers and sisters who can be valuable contributors to society, Pope Benedict XVI said.

The migration of peoples represents a chance “to highlight the unity of the human family and the value of welcoming, hospitality and love for one’s neighbor,” he said Nov. 9.

The pope spoke during an audience with participants of the Sixth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees taking place Nov. 9-12 at the Vatican.

The pope underlined the dramatic difficulties many migrants face in their efforts to survive or improve living conditions for themselves and their families.

“The economic crisis, with the enormous growth in unemployment, diminishes the possibilities of employment and increases the number of those who aren’t able to find even unsteady work,” he said.

Many immigrants today are fleeing “humanly unacceptable” living conditions, but they are not finding “the reception they hoped for elsewhere,” said the pope.

Globalization means that working for the common good must extend beyond national borders, he said.

Conforming one’s life to Christ’s means seeing every man and woman as a brother or sister, children of the one God, he said.

This sense of brotherhood leads to being caring and hospitable toward others, especially those in need, he said.

“Every Christian community that is faithful to Jesus’ teachings cannot but feel respect and concern for all people ... especially for those who find themselves in difficulty,” he said.

“This is why the church invites all Christians to open their hearts to migrants and their families knowing that they are not just a ‘problem,’ but are a ‘resource’” that can contribute to true development and the good of all people, he said.

cns photo by Jessica Rinadli, Reuters

U.S. Army Spec. Robert Orcutt prays near a makeshift memorial for victims of the shootings at Fort Hood in Texas Nov. 9. Army psychiatrist Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan allegedly opened fire Nov. 5 at a medical building on the Fort Hood base, killing 12 soldiers and one civilian.

Texas bishop decries shooting BEAUMONT, Texas (CNS) — “We hope and pray that our soldiers do not die on the battlefields. Then something like this happens on one of our bases by a fellow soldier,” said Bishop Curtis J. Guillory of Beaumont about the Nov. 5 shootings at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas that left 13 dead and another 30 wounded.

“What happened today is a tragedy. Our prayers are with those who are affected and their families, and I pray for comfort and healing of

those who were shot,” he said.

The base, about an hour north of Austin, is in the Austin Diocese.

Monsignor Michael Mulvey, Austin’s diocesan administrator, said in a Nov. 6 statement: “All of us are in shock by the horrors of yesterday’s tragedy at Fort Hood. Our prayers and tears go out to the victims and their families. I have spoken with the Archdiocese for the Military Services and to Archbishop (Timothy P.) Broglio, and I have offered the services of the Diocese of Austin.”

CORRECTION Regarding the article “After a Catholic divorces…” which appeared on page one of the Nov. 6 issue: Every person has a right to present a petition for nullity to the Tribunal. In some cases, however, a petition may be rejected because of a lack of evidence or a lack of competence. The decision to accept or reject a libellus (petition) rests with the judicial vicar or the judge assigned to the case.

4 The Catholic News & Herald

IN OUR SCHOOLS

November 13, 2009

Three cheers for Holy Trinity

Class of distinction

Courtesy photo

Inductees and fellow classmates gather for a special induction ceremony at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School in Kernersville Oct. 9. Pictured (from left) are Greg Morgan and Steve Schuckenbrock, class of 1978; Kate Kinney Galyon class of 1987; Rosy McGillan class of 1988; Tom Siegle class of 1961; and Allen Broxton, class of 1960. Morgan, McGillan and Siegle introduced Schuckenbrock as a Distinguished Alumnus and Galyon and Broxton as the newest members of the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Broxton graduated with the first class at Bishop McGuinness, which is celebrating its 50th

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The Competition Cheerleading Squad of Holy Trinity School in Charlotte is all smiles after winning first place at the Marvin Ridge Cheerleading Competition held in Charlotte Oct. 31. Principal Kevin Parks and Campus Priest Father Robert Conway (center) were among those cheering on the middle school team.

anniversary this year. Many anniversary events were held the week following the Homecoming Weekend ceremony. More 50th anniversary events are planned for Catholic Schools Week at the end of January; a gala anniversary and alumni celebration is planned for May 1 at the

Real-world skills

Grandover Resort in Greensboro.

How does your garden grow?

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Career counselor Damian Birkel prepares students for the “Checking Your Decimals” exercise at St. Leo Middle School in Winston-Salem Oct. 26. Created by math teacher Pat Garner, the project included practice job interviews in occupations chosen by the sixth- and seventh-graders. Human Resource representatives from Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC facilitated the interviews. This ongoing project also instructs students on how to dress for success and introduces them to resume development and financial responsibility.

Required exercises include checkbook management, bill paying and planning for Christmas shopping.

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Second-grade students plant the flowers at an entrance sign as part of their garden curriculum at Our Lady of the Assumption School in Charlotte Nov 5. The proud young gardeners were led by second-grade teacher Sandy Brighton and music teacher Janelle Carroll. The garden planting initiated the school’s beautification project and also met academic goals for second-grade science, social studies and math.

November 13, 2009

AROUND THE DIOCESE

The Catholic News & Herald 5

Chris Padgett inspires teens and adults ‘Jesus picked you’ KATIE HERZING Special to The Catholic News & Herald

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Father Roger Arnsparger, center, leads the discussion during a recent meeting of the Eucharistic Congress Steering Committee. The committee meets approximately 10 times per year in preparation for the annual diocesan event that draws more than 10,000 worshippers from across the diocese. The sixth Eucharistic Congress takes place at the Charlotte Convention Center on Sept. 10 and 11, 2010.

Steering the congress for 2010 THEME, from page 1

Gospel of John, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14).

As the event has grown, the satisfaction level of those in attendance has remained quite high. The congress program contains a short evaluation form that is also available online. In answer to the question, “How would you describe your spiritual experience?”, a majority of those filling out the survey gave the congress an “Excellent” rating.

Typical comments from the survey contain praise for the event such as, “The speakers were top-notch. I thought all of their presentations were very well-organized,” and, “The Eucharistic adoration for teens was one of the most spiritual that I have ever attended.”

Comments which expressed concern about the lack of a lunch break in the English speaking track of the congress will be addressed at the 2010 event, which will feature a break between the

end of the Holy Hour in the morning and the start of the speaker and childrens’ tracks. The break will give families the opportunity to share a meal before going to their separate tracks.

Families will again come together at the end of the day for the celebration of Holy Mass by Bishop Jugis and invited clergy that includes bishops from other dioceses and Abbot Placid Solari of Belmont Abbey Monastery and the priests of the diocese.

Planning for the 2010 event is already underway. A steering committee, made up mostly of volunteers assisted by diocesan staff, has divided the preparation work for the congress.

Everything from parade permits and parking to escorts for the speakers and registration for the children’s track is organized into 35 sub-groups.

Fundraising for the congress is also already in process since collections that take place at the event do not cover all expenses. “People who attended the congress were generous with their gifts,” said Jim Kelley, director of development for the Diocese of Charlotte, “Individuals who could not make it to the congress can still support it by going to the congress web site or the diocesan web site,” he added.

Father Roger Arnsparger, chair of the steering committee and the Vicar of Education for the Diocese of Charlotte has been in charge of the event since planning for the first congress began in late 2004. “This is a wonderful opportunity for the people of God to come together as one and show the world that the Eucharist is, in the words of Pope John Paul II, ‘the source and summit of Catholic life’,” he said.

The Eucharistic Congress maintains a Web site that is regularly updated with information about speakers, registration for the children’s tracks and maps of the procession route: www.GoEucharist. com. Speakers for the 2010 event have not yet been announced.

HUNTERSVILLE — The mother looked her middle-school-aged daughter in the eyes and sang, “You’re wonderful, you’re beautiful, and you’re valuable.” So began an afternoon of discovery between parents and their children who are confirmation candidates at St. Mark Church in Huntersville Oct. 18.

Encouraging the singers was Chris Padgett, a youth speaker and worship leader from Steubenville, Ohio. Padgett travels around the country spreading the love of Christ through prayer, worship, funny stories, and a great message.

After a few rounds of singing, the tables were turned and the candidates looked their parents in the eye and sang back to them. This simple genuine expression of love exchanged between the parent and candidate set the stage for the rest of the afternoon.

Padgett explained how each of us can love more perfectly using the acronym MASS — mediate, advocate, serve and sacrifice. Elaborating on each concept individually, Padgett pointed out how we easily get side-tracked in our call to sainthood through the trap of selfgratification in our society.

Through stories of his own childhood and family, Padgett provided insights

into the relevance of these concepts, and practical advice on how anyone can adapt the MASS approach in their daily lives, striving to love perfectly as Christ loved.

Padgett delivered the same vibrant message in the evening to the Faith Rocks, EDGE and Life Teen students from St. Mark Church, as well as Life Teen students from the Cathedral of St. Patrick and confirmation students from St. Therese Church in Mooresville.

Once again, he used funny stories from his own family experiences — he and his wife have eight children. Padgett said that despite some rocky detours in his life, over time he realized three important revelations: “Jesus picks us,” “Jesus prepares us, ” and lastly and most important, “Jesus protects and loves each of us.”

It was an empowering experience for all as participants realized that despite flaws, each is important in God’s plan.

The uplifting spirit and love of Padgett’s message continued throughout the week as students and parents shared insights and renewed their zeal for seeking God in all of life.

Remember that Jesus picked you, He prepares you, and He always will protect you. He has a plan for each of us to do wonderful things with great love.

Katie Herzing is the middle school youth minister at St. Mark Church in Huntersville.

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Chris Padgett plays the game “Two Truths and a Lie” with a sixth-grader and other youth at St. Mark Church in Huntersville, Oct. 18. Padgett, a musician, speaker and convert to the Catholic faith, told his audience not to believe any lies about themselves, because God can take our tiniest offerings and our quirks and make something special of them.

6 The Catholic News & Herald

Studying the Scripture

AROUND THE DIOCESE

November 13, 2009

Pick your favorite saint

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Participants study the topic “God’s Creativity: Sacred Memory and Covenant Promise,” during the 11th Scripture Workshop at St. Elizabeth Church in Boone Nov. 7. The gathering included catechetical program leaders and RCIA facilitators as well as interested members from St. John Church in North Wilkesboro, St. Thomas Church in Charlotte, St. Francis Church in Jefferson, St. Elizabeth Church in Boone, The Oratory in Rock Hill, Queen of the Apostles Church in Belmont, and St. Joseph of the Hills Church in Eden.

Parishioners arrive for Mass dressed as their favorite saint in celebration of All Saints Day at St. James the Greater Church in Concord Nov. 1. All were invited to a social in the parish hall after Mass.

Faith formation

Special Olympics honors

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Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Church in Jefferson attend a catechist formation workshop Oct. 31. The workshop was led by Dr. Cris Villapando, diocesan Faith Formation Director, and Terri Martino, parishioner at St. Charles Church in Morganton. Attendees included Felix Otero, Chuck Spanbauer, Celia Cabrera, Juana Barcenos-Oviedo, and Patrick Hession. Also attending were Laura Torres and her sister, Maria Guillermina Torres, parishioners of St. Frances of Rome Church in Sparta.

Lisa Kiser, Special Olympics coordinator for Forsyth County, holds her award at the Knights of Columbus first annual Lamb Foundation dinner and auction at the Benton Convention Center in Winston-Salem Nov. 6. Kiser, who was also the keynote speaker for more than 100 guests, was honored for her outstanding work with special needs youngsters. She was presented with the award by John Harrison, supreme director for the Knights of Columbus; Dave Jones, state deputy for the Knights of Columbus; and Brian Sternecker, Lamb Foundation director for Forsyth County. The Lamb Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that helps 26 Forsyth County special-needs agencies.

November 13, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 7

From the Cover

Listening to Jesus in the Scriptures SCRIPTURE, from page 1

“Fire in the Mountains” is an annual, bilingual conference for the western region of the Diocese of Charlotte funded by the Diocesan Support Appeal.

This year’s theme was Lectio Divina, or “divine reading” in Latin, an ancient form of prayer using the Scriptures that originated in the early church. Pope Benedict XVI recently said that lectio divina has the potential to transform the church if the faithful undertake the practice regularly.

A day of prayer and reflection The day began with morning Mass celebrated by Father Frank Seabo, pastor of St. Joan of Arc Church. In his homily, he reflected on Mary, the new Eve, who heard and meditated on the Word of God her whole life.

Mass was followed with a bilingual midmorning prayer according to the Liturgy of the Hours. Father Wilbur Thomas, pastor of the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Asheville, welcomed attendees to the conference and invited the Holy Spirit, “the true Fire in the mountains,” to inspire the day.

Monsignor Turro, a Scripture scholar and professor emeritus at Seton Hall University in South Orange, N.J., presented the English track. Dominican Father Charles W. Dahm, author and advocate for peace and justice issues for the Dominican Men of North America, presented the Hispanic track.

Divinely inspired During the morning session of the English track, Monsignor Turro recalled the words of St. Ambrose: “We speak to him when we pray. We listen to him when

we read the sacred Scriptures.”

He emphasized that the Scriptures are divinely inspired. Their meanings can be difficult to understand because sacred writers were “creatures of their civilization,” he said. The church exists to help unlock that meaning, especially in seemingly contradictory passages, Monsignor Turro continued.

Dorothy Chapman, parishioner at Sacred Heart Church in Brevard, said she reads the Scriptures to prepare for daily Mass. “Often it happens that I won’t understand something, but I just let it go,” she said. “Then later in the day, the answer will come in something I read or hear.” She had not heard of lectio divina before attending “Fire in the Mountains.”

Monsignor Turro recommended the Scripture study series published by Ignatius Press for Catholics seeking deeper understanding of the Scriptures.

“Sacred Scripture is part of our Catholic heritage,” he said. “Some think that the Scriptures came before the Church or that Scripture is somehow opposed to Catholicism, but that is not true — Catholics are profoundly Scriptural.”

Guided through history The morning Hispanic session was divided into study groups examining specific Scripture passages that highlight God’s love for the poor. After faithsharing and reflection, results were then shared with the larger group.

Father Dahm spoke about the importance of being guided by the history of God’s people when reading Scripture.

“We can get lost taking a passage out of context,” he said. “Catholics need to recall God’s special and preferential love for the poor and oppressed” when studying Scripture, continued Father Dahm.

Practical steps Both afternoon tracks focused on the four components of lectio divina practice: lectio, meditatio, oratio, and contemplatio.

During lectio, or reading of a short Scriptural passage, the individual

photos by janneke pieters

Members of a Hispanic small group (top) pause to smile during the 15 “Fire in the Mountains” event held at St. Joan of Arc Church in Candler Nov. 7. Another small group (lower left, named from left), including Frieda Ashworth of the St. Anthony Bookstore in Greenville, S.C., Terry van Buren, parishioner of St. John the Evangelist Church in Waynesville, and Belle Harcourt, parishioner of St. Mary Mother of God Church in Sylva participate in lively discussion. Dominican Father Charles Dahm (lower right) stresses the importance of historical context during his presentation about Scripture studies. th

reads slowly and meditatively, striving to listen attentively to the still, small voice of God. Meditatio, or meditating on the word or phrase that stands out more than others, is the second step. Monsignor Turro compared meditatio to the example of Mary after the Annunciation, while she pondered the word of God in her heart.

“Focusing on one word or phrase is much more exciting than trying to digest a whole passage,” shared Barbara Hauser, parishioner at St. Margaret Mary Church in Swannanoa, after practicing lectio divina with her small group. “God really may be trying to tell me something in one word, and this opens up so much possibility.”

In oratio, or prayer, the person dialogues with God, being willing to open even the most difficult or painful

experiences to Him. In the final step of contemplatio, or contemplation, the person rests in the warm presence of God where “words aren’t needed,” said Monsignor Turro.

Next steps Theresa Prymuszewski, western regional coordinator of faith formation for the Diocese of Charlotte, facilitated the afternoon English session and encouraged attendees to make lectio divina a regular part of their lives.

She suggested attendees either initiate the practice on their own or join a Bible study or lectio divina group at home parishes.

“We need to be welcoming and provide more opportunities like this,” said Prymuszewski, noting that “Fire in the Mountains” is the only bilingual event of its kind for the Asheville and Smoky Mountain vicariates.

“The Hispanic community is where our growth is,” she added.

Tony Garcia, coordinator of Hispanic ministry for the Asheville vicariate, said he was pleased with both the conference program and attendance.

Approximately 55 people attended the English track and the same number attended the Hispanic track, with some attendees participating in both.

“I understand that lectio divina is about how to pray, specifically contemplation,” said Ricardo Rodriguez, a first-time attendee of the Hispanic track and parishioner at the Basilica of St. Lawrence.

“We often pray with words like the Rosary but there are many distractions,” said Rodriguez. “When we contemplate, we listen to Jesus. When we are with Jesus, it changes everything.”

8 The Catholic News & Herald

November 13, 2009

FROM THE COVER

1915 – 2009

Reverend D. Edward Sullivan

photo by

Batrice Adcock

Retired priest of the Diocese of Charlotte laid to rest in York, Pa.

Benedictine Father Matthew Habiger, of Natural Family Planning Outreach, speaks about marriage enrichment and pro-life issues to Father James Stuhrenberg and parishioners of Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro Nov. 6.

Advantages of natural family planning FAMILY, from page 1

Former president and chairman of the board for Human Life International, Father Habiger has been a guest on the Catholic television network EWTN and has lectured on life issues in 55 countries.

He explained that contraception enables promiscuity by removing all barriers to lust.

“Only the virtue of chastity — of self-possession and self-control — can give our sex drives the direction and discipline they need,” said Father Habiger.

“Recreational sex and the culture of death go together. They both rely upon massive use of contraception, and when that fails, abortion,” he stated.

“We will never overturn abortion unless we address the root problem, which is contraception.”

Natural solutions Father Habiger continued to say that root problem underscores the need to learn Natural Family Planning, or “God’s great gift for these times.”

When coupled with the Theology of the Body, he said, the method helps a couple to understand their fertility.

Father Habiger explained that fertility is to be recognized as a great blessing, but unfortunately “our culture often considers the child to be an uninvited intruder, a competitor for our attention and our finances.”

With an increasing infertility rate, infertile couples often resort to artificial means of achieving pregnancy which deny the dignity of the child and the marital act.

Father Habiger explained that “every child has a right to be born of an act of love between his parents.”

He encouraged infertile couples to try the method, saying it “helps infertile couples to locate their most fertile times, and they often succeed in having children.”

Life-affirming choice There are significant differences between contraception and natural family planning.

Couples using both methods often

have the same end in mind, that of postponing pregnancy. However, couples must consider that contraception is associated with significant risk, while the practice of monitoring the menstrual cycle is healthy. In terms of human physiology, the menstrual cycle has been called the fifth vital sign.

Modern methods of natural family planning are very reliable and have proven highly effective for achieving or postponing pregnancy due to a basis in sound scientific research. A recent study in the Journal of Human Reproduction showed natural family planning is as effective as the birth control pill.

Additionally, the divorce rate is less than 3 % among natural family planning couples. The method encourages communication on a monthly basis as couples approach the fertile timeframe and consider the possibility of another pregnancy.

The couple regularly discusses important issues affecting their readiness to be parents, such as their emotional and physical health, their finances, stress, and responsibilities.

This healthy communication contrasts sharply with communication of couples using contraception. Those couples do not have the benefit of regular encouragement to communicate about important issues.

Perhaps most detrimental to the marriages of couples using contraceptives is the attitude that contraception fosters between spouses — that the good of pleasure is more important than the good of each other.

Father Habiger lamented that many Catholic couples have not heard church teachings on sexuality, or they choose to reject them.

Most are not aware of natural family planning. Family, friends, doctors and popular culture repeat that contraception is the only option for being responsible parents. The goal of the Natural Family Planning Program is to make more widely known and accessible this empowering alternative.

Batrice Adcock, MSN, RN, is the director of the Natural Family Planning Program managed by Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Charlotte.

For more information about Natural Family Planning, visit the Web site www. cssnc.org/naturalfamilyplanning or call Batrice Adcock at (704) 370-3230.

Father D. Edward Sullivan, a retired priest of the Diocese of Charlotte, died Thursday, November 5, 2009.

He was born August 15, 1915, a son of the late Daniel E. and Margaret Lutz Sullivan.

Father Sullivan was a 1929 graduate of St. Mary’s School, York, Pa. He graduated from St. Francis Prep in Loreta, Pa., in 1932, attended the University of Detroit, and graduated from St. Francis Seminary in 1942.

He was ordained to the priesthood on May 14, 1942, in Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Altoona, Pa., by the Most Reverend Richard T. Guilfoyle for the Diocese of Raleigh.

His first appointment was to the U.S. Navy Pre-flight School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he served as the Catholic Chaplain from 1942 to 1945. He served as assistant pastor of St. James Church, Hamlet, and St. Mary’s Church, Laurinburg, from 1945 to 1946.

In May 1946, he was appointed administrator of St. Mary’s Church, Wilmington. In September 1946, he was appointed founding pastor of Holy

Rosary Church in Lexington, and St. Joseph’s Church in Asheboro.

In 1951, Father Sullivan was appointed pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Kinston, N.C. He remained there for a period of twelve years when he was appointed pastor of St. Patrick’s Church in Charlotte in 1962. In 1966, he became pastor of St. Ann’s Church in Charlotte, where he served for a period of four years. Since 1971, he had been living in Winchester, Va., and most recently in York, Pa. Father Sullivan served as chaplain at Misericordia Nursing Home from August 1996 until September 2002.

Father Sullivan is survived by his nieces and nephews.

A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated by Father Robert Gillelan, pastor of St. Mary’s Church on Monday, Nov. 9 at St. Mary’s Church in York, Pa. Burial immediately followed in Holy Savior Cemetery.

Memorial contributions may be made to St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 309 S. George St., York, Pa.; or York Catholic High School, 601 E. Springettesbury Ave., York, Pa. 17403.

Providing help. Creating hope. Changing lives.

Catholic Social Services — The Diocese of Charlotte Executive Director: Elizabeth Thurbee (704) 370-3227 Associate Director: Gerard Carter (704) 370-3250 Refugee Office: Cira Ponce (704) 370-3262 Family Life: Gerard Carter (704) 370-3228 Justice and Peace: Joe Purello (704) 370-3225 OEO/CSS Murphy Satellite Office (828) 835-3535 Charlotte Region: 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203 Area Director: Geri King (704) 370-3262 Western Region: 50 Orange Street, Asheville, NC 28801 Area Director: Jacqueline Crombie (828) 255-0146 Piedmont-Triad: 621 W. Second St., Winston-Salem, NC 27108 Area Director: Diane Bullard (336) 727-0705 Greensboro Satellite Office (336) 274-5577 Latino Family Center (336) 884-5858

For information on specific programs, please call your local office.

1123 South Church Street, Charlotte NC 28203 www.cssnc.org

November 13, 2009

from the cover

The Catholic News & Herald 9

Banquet celebrates Room at the Inn of the Carolinas SUCCESS, from page 1

Suites in Greensboro Nov. 5.

The nonprofit, interdenominational ministry serves homeless, single, pregnant women and single mothers with children in both North and South Carolina.

Room at the Inn provides housing and multiple programs that provide basic needs like shelter, food and medical care, as well as mentoring, spiritual development, and life skills education.

The program also offers technical training, college opportunities and child care to help the young women learn skills for a life of healthy independence.

Bishop Jugis spoke on themes of hope and mercy and praised the work of this ministry, saying, “People who provide shelter and support for pregnant unwed mothers are signs of hope.”

He continued to say this is the mission of Room at the Inn of the Carolinas, which offers these young women “opportunities to have new lives of healthy, hope-filled independence … responding to the call of Christ to nurture life.”

“Shattered” describes the lives of the women who come to Room at the Inn, illustrated by the story of a former resident who told her story at the banquet.

Introduced only as Jessica in order to preserve her privacy, this young woman revealed that six months after her father died, she met a man who enticed her to use crack cocaine. She got hooked and would go days and weeks without eating.

Eventually, she found herself telling lies and writing bad checks to obtain drugs.

The same man who opened the door to Jessica’s addiction also inflicted physical, emotional and mental abuse.

One day he began repeatedly punching Jessica. Laughing, he told her that he was trying to break her leg. When he cornered her with a butcher knife, Jessica prayed to God to save her and promised to turn her life around.

She got away and became drugfree for two weeks, but endured the heartbreak of a relapse during which she spent three days on the streets. She then went home and tried to commit suicide.

Fortunately, Jessica went to a rehabilitation center and began what she says was “a long road to healing.”

After the support and encouragement she received at Room at the Inn, she was “able to stay on the recovery path and achieve my dreams. This year I will be clean for seven years.”

Jessica also thanked the audience, “It is because of your help that I can say life is a beautiful thing.”

The facility in Greensboro, known as the Nussbaum Maternity Home, can host up to six pregnant women at one time, with or without previous children.

The McGivney Maternity Home, a sister facility located in Bluffton, S.C., serves pregnant women under the age of 21.

Both are licensed by their respective state divisions of health and human services.

Three additional homes provide residence for single mothers whose children are attending college. These include Amy’s House in Greensboro, Backyard Ministry of the Cherry Street United Methodist Church in Kernersville, and the Samaritan House of the First Church of the Brethren in Rockingham County.

It is at both Amy’s House and the Backyard Ministry House where Jessica made her home with her daughter while she completed the nursing program at Greensboro Technical Community College. Today, she is a board-certified licensed practical nurse. She has a steady job in her field and saved enough money to buy her own home.

The Room at the Inn of the Carolinas ministry is funded by local businesses, individuals, churches, foundations and grants. Many professionals in the vicinity of the homes provide medical care, mental health counseling, dental services, and substance abuse programs.

The ministry provides on-site services in case management, counseling, parenting and healthcare-related life skills, as well as education and transportation to medical appointments.

“As we have seen needs we have built our program over the last nine years,” explained Elizabeth Hedgecock, former volunteer and current vice president of development for Room at the Inn of the Carolinas. “We track our (program) outputs as part of best practices to see if what we are doing is making a difference in these women’s lives and the children’s lives,” she added.

The organization’s 2009 Annual Report shows that of the 25 children born in both homes, 88% had healthy birth weights of five and a half pounds or greater, and 100% were drug free.

Also speaking at the dinner was former resident Leah Whaley-Holmes.

Five years ago, she had gone from being a college student to being penniless, living in her car, pregnant and scared.

Whaley-Holmes was referred to Room at the Inn. After a complicated pregnancy, she delivered a healthy son, was able to return to school and graduate summa cum laude from Bennett College for Women. Whaley-Holmes went on to earn a master’s degree in social work from Savannah State University. She is now vice president of program services for Room at the Inn. “The most powerful outcome (of Room at the Inn) is measured by (a woman’s) increase in self-esteem and her ability to make better choices after leaving,” said Whaley-Holmes.

Albert Hodges, president and chief operating officer, provided the closing remarks for the evening. He pointed out that not all stories are similar to those of Jessica and Whaley-Holmes. Success for some, he said, “may be to just become good parents and to learn to work.” He spoke of mercy and how it is important not only to help those who have lives familiar to us, but also to help those

photo by Susan deGuzman

Bishop Peter J. Jugis, guest speaker for the Room at the Inn of the Carolinas’ 10th annual benefit banquet, shares a moment with key supporters and former residents at the Embassy Suites in Greensboro Nov. 5. Pictured (from left) are Leah Whaley-Holmes, vice president of Program Services and former Room at the Inn resident, Reverend Christopher Davis, pastor of Saint Joseph’s Church in Asheboro and newly elected chair of the Board of Trustees, Elizabeth Hedgecock, vice president of Development, Ms. Jessica, a former resident, and Bishop Jugis. whose lives are different.

Also part of the ceremony was Bishop Peter Brewer, Suffragan Bishop of the Diocese of the Eastern United States, The Anglican Province of America, who gave the invocation; a video presentation with Reverend Christopher Davis, pastor of Saint Joseph’s Church in Asheboro and newly elected chair of the Board of Trustees; and Charlie Breeding, who was master of ceremonies. Marylou Rice, Don Dixon and Paula Barger were recognized for their service on the board of trustees, and Suzanne Perez was named volunteer of the year.

More than 400 supporters from the community attended the dinner, according to Hedgecock, who recognized

a large number of area Catholics. She said, “The Catholic community is a staunch supporter of the Gospel of Life.

This is not just a verbal commitment, it is a total commitment.”

Hedgecock reported that even though banquet attendance was down, financial support was not. She said, “Government and business funding is down. Churches and individual donors are carrying the weight on their shoulders.” She thanked those attending for their generous support in the past year. She asked them to continue with their generosity and to “commit to pray every time we look into a child’s eyes that every child created comes to fruition” and that each child is part “of God’s plan for life, not the world’s plan.”

Irish family in Israel says special-needs child brought new attitude JERUSALEM (CNS) — Before their daughter Rachel was born almost three years ago, Theresa and Gerry Casey did not travel very much with their three older children, preferring to wait until taking trips with them would be easier.

But Rachel, who was born with Down syndrome and severe heart defects, changed all that.

In Israel for nearly 16 months, the family has explored the country from Mount Hermon in the north to the Dead Sea in the south. They have taken trips to Egypt and Jordan as well.

“Rachel made us open our eyes ... and appreciate life,” said Theresa Casey, 38, who came to Jerusalem from her native Ireland with her family when Gerry was posted to Israel as part of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization based in Jerusalem.

Before moving his family, Gerry began searching for a place where Rachel

could receive treatment for her chronic health problems. Through a series of coincidences he discovered Shalva, the association for mentally and physically challenged children in Israel. Shalva is located in an ultra-Orthodox section of West Jerusalem where few members of the international community venture. “(Shalva) is (in) a very Jewish area and I felt they would be biased against me because I was Roman Catholic and from the U.N., which they generally do not see in a positive light,” Gerry said.

Instead of rejection the family found that Shalva’s staff was willing to make special arrangements so Rachel could receive treatment.

“Anyone who (sees Shalva’s work) will have a different view of Israelis,” said Theresa. “They value the most vulnerable in society. You walk down the street here and strangers smile at Rachel.

People are very compassionate toward children in Israel.”

November 13, 2009

10 The Catholic News & Herald

Culture Watch

A roundup of Scripture, readings, films and more

Reconcilable differences The church reaches out to modern arts VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Once made in heaven, the marriage between art and the church has long been on the skids.

“We are a bit like estranged relatives; there has been a divorce,” said Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

Much of contemporary art walked away from art’s traditional vocation of representing the intangible and the mysterious, as well as pointing the way toward the greater meaning of life and what is good and beautiful, he said during a Vatican press conference Nov. 5.

And the church has spent the past century “very often contenting itself with imitating models from the past,” rarely asking itself whether there were religious “styles that could be an expression of modern times,” he added.

In an effort to “renew friendship and dialogue between the church and artists and to spark new opportunities for collaboration,” he said, Pope Benedict XVI will be meeting more than 250 artists from around the world Nov. 21 inside one of the world’s most stunning artistic treasures: the Sistine Chapel.

The church’s attempts to heal this rift with the world of modern arts span back to Pope Paul VI, who saw an urgent need to encourage contemporary artists to reclaim their spiritual mission.

He held a landmark meeting with artists in the Sistine Chapel in 1964 and inaugurated the Vatican’s Collection of Modern Religious Art in 1973, which contains works by Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky and Edvard Munch.

Pope John Paul II, an accomplished actor, poet and playwright long before becoming a priest, eagerly continued Pope Paul’s rapprochement.

He issued a papal letter to artists and met with countless stars from the entertainment industry, reminding them of their responsibility to be positive role models, “capable of inspiring trust, optimism and hope.”

Pope Benedict has said art needs to help people see that authentic truth, beauty and goodness are always intertwined and needs to allow “the beauty of the love of God” to shine through.

The human spirit longs for authentic — not superficial and fleeting — beauty that is “in full harmony with the truth and goodness,” he has said.

Archbishop Ravasi expanded on that notion at the Nov. 5 press conference when he said art has always had an ethical and transformative role.

He said the world needs artistic expression that lifts people above and beyond “the dust of our own existence and helps us live better.”

WORD TO LIFE Sunday Scripture Readings: NOV. 22, 2009

November 22, Solemnity of Christ the King Cycle B Readings: 1) Daniel 7:13-14 Psalm 93:1-2, 5 2) Revelation 1:5-8 3) Gospel: John 18:33b-37

A kingdom not of this world JEFF HENSLEY cns columnist

Pilate questions Jesus, who stands before him: “Are you the king of the Jews?”

In answer, Jesus says his kingdom is not of this world, or his followers would be fighting to defend him.

Jesus is a mystery to Pilate and anyone else watching him. A kingdom not of this world? What is he talking about?

This week’s other readings present an entirely different picture of the kingship of Jesus. In Daniel, “one like a Son of Man” comes on the clouds of heaven and is presented to the Ancient One to receive “dominion, glory and kingship; all peoples, nations and languages serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion.”

The Revelation passage tells us that he who loves us “has freed us from our sins by his blood” and “made us into a kingdom, priests for his God and Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever.”

Like Jesus before Pilate, we in the

kingdom of God are a mystery. We look so ordinary, but to others we are the same sort of contradiction that Jesus presented to Pilate.

For instance, yesterday after church I saw one of the king’s followers: She is a grandmother of 11 children. She was small, driving an older car, but her smile was bright with the eternal hope that lights her life. Her works of mercy, kindness and love, working with mothers to help them carry their babies to term, stretch across three decades.

I remember recognizing another from the kingdom walking into my office a few years ago: A college professor of business ethics, he was mild-mannered, thoughtful, wearing sandals with a business suit. He is a member of the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher, a group that helps maintain the church’s religious sites in the Holy Land and supports her people by building schools and hospitals.

A follower of the once-persecuted but now exalted Son of Man, he works at bringing God’s wisdom to the world of business. He has doubtless been a mystery — and a light — to many around him who are more driven by monetary gain.

Like Jesus, we are a mystery to those who see us serving a king whose kingdom is not of this world. Perhaps their curiosity will lead them to him.

Questions: Do you know people who puzzle those around them by following Jesus, their king? What can you do to follow Jesus more closely in your everyday life?

Scripture to be illustrated: “My kingdom does not belong to this world” (John 18:36b).

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE Scripture for the week of November 15-21 Sunday (Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time), Daniel 12:1-3, Hebrews 10:11-14, 18, Mark 13:24-32; Monday (St. Margaret of Scotland, St. Gertrude), 1 Maccabees 1:10-15, 41-43, 54-57, 62-63, Luke 18:35-43; Tuesday (St. Elizabeth of Hungary), 2 Maccabees 6:18-31, Luke 19:1-10; Wednesday (Dedication of the Basilicas of St. Peter an St. Paul, St. Rose Philippine Duchesne), 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31, Luke 19:11-28; Thursday, 1 Maccabees 2:15-29, Luke 19:41-44; Friday,1 Maccabees 4:36-37, 52-59, Luke 19:45-48; Saturday (The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1 Maccabees 6:1-13, Luke 20:27-40.

Scripture for the week of November 22-28 Sunday (Christ the King), Daniel 7:13-14, Revelation 1:5-8, John 18:33-37; Monday (St. Clement I, St. Columban, Bl. Miguel Agustin Pro), Daniel 1:1-6, Luke 21:1-4; Tuesday (St. Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions), Daniel 2:31-45, Luke 21:5-11; Wednesday (St. Catherine of Alexandria), Daniel 5:1-6, 13-14, 16-17, 23-28, Luke 21:12-19; Thursday, Daniel 6:12-28, Luke 21:20-28; Friday, Daniel 7:2-14, Luke 21:29-33; Saturday, Daniel 7:15-27, Luke 21:34-36.

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On display in the modern art section of Vatican Museums is this artistic interpretation of the Gospel passage Matthew 5:8 (Blessed are the pure in heart) by French postimpressionist Paul Gauguin. Pope Paul VI inaugurated the Vatican’s Collection of Modern Religious Art in 1973.

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The Catholic News & Herald 11

November 13, 2009

Priest’s line of wines raises awareness of saints, funds charity

cns photo by Paul

Haring

Gian Franco Svidercoschi presents his book on Pope John Paul II at St. Stanislaus Church in Rome Nov. 4. The book is titled “A Pope Who Does Not Die: The Legacy of John Paul II.”

Pope John Paul II lives on Legacy continues to touch people, says cardinal

ROME (CNS) — Pope John Paul II lives on “because he has remained in people’s hearts,” said Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

“The light of his teaching and example was not extinguished with his death,” the cardinal said during a conference that marked the launch of a new book about Pope John Paul’s lasting impact on the church and the world.

Written by Gian Franco Svidercoschi, the book is titled “Un Papa che non Muore: L’Eredita di Giovanni Paolo II” (literally, “A Pope who Does Not Die: The Legacy of John Paul II”) and is available in Italian and in Polish.

M o n s i g n o r S l a w o m i r O d e r, postulator of Pope John Paul’s sainthood cause, also spoke at the conference Nov. 4 at the parish of Rome’s Polish community.

Asked about a date for the beatification of the pope, who died in 2005, Monsignor Oder said the Congregation for Saints’ Causes is studying the case and he could not guess when they will finish.

“I can tell you that we are following all of the procedures foreseen for these cases. Everything is moving at a natural rhythm. I understand many people want this to happen sooner, but as Pope Benedict told us: ‘Do it quickly, but do it well.’ And this is what we are doing,” Monsignor Oder said.

Rome’s mayor, Gianni Alemanno, told reporters in late October that he expects the beatification to take place in Rome in 2010, and he said the city government would work with the Vatican to facilitate the visit of a massive group of people expected to come for the ceremony.

Cardinal Re, who served Pope John Paul in the Vatican Secretariat of State and then at the Congregation for Bishops, called the late pope “a great man, a great pope and a great saint.”

While Pope John Paul “influenced the course of historic events,” he did so not as a politician or a diplomat, but as a man of faith and deep prayer who worked tirelessly to “let God into this world.”

Part of Monsignor Oder’s work for Pope John Paul’s sainthood cause involved interviewing hundreds of people who had known him.

“There was one statement repeated almost as if it were a refrain: ‘He looked at me in a special way,’” the monsignor said.

The witnesses repeatedly said the way the pope looked at them made them feel loved and appreciated, but also made them feel like they could be better and they could do more, he said.

“He was a mystic who was able to live in the presence of God and to perceive God’s presence in the world and in the people he met,” Monsignor Oder said.

MILWAUKEE (CNS) — In an effort to rekindle an interest in the saints, Father Dominic Roscioli and partners Jody Becker and Carlo Pedone have developed Holy Spirits wine. Available in stores, online and in select restaurants, the wines feature saints matched with wine varietals.

They began with three varieties of wine: Our Lady of Mount Carmel, St. Nick and St. Rocco. Each blend, produced by the Windsor Winery in California, complements the personality and mission of that particular saint.

Father Roscioli, who has volunteered for 20 years at the late Paul Newman’s Hole in the Wall camps for children with life-threatening illnesses, said sales of Holy Spirits will benefit charities and support Next Step, a program that picks up after children age out of Hole in the Wall.

“We have basically set up a for-profit company with a nonprofit mission similar to Newman’s Own,” Father Roscioli said, referring to the late actor’s line of food products. “A certain percentage of profits go to Next Step and the rest go into growing our company.”

While raising funds for charity is important to Father Roscioli, more important is his mission to teach that saints are ordinary people who responded to God’s grace and did extraordinary

things — and that the same is true for people today.

“They can be people who sit next to you at table, and have the same power for good if they respond to God’s message,” he said.

cns photo by Ernie

Mastroianni, Catholic Herald

Jody Becker and Father Dominic Roscioli, a retired priest of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, pose with selections of their Holy Spirits wine at Becker’s office in Wauwatosa, Wis., in late September. They buy wine from a California producer and sell it under their own label to raise money for charity.

Father Roscioli says each variety of wine is named after a different saint.

French missionaries in Brooklyn Heart’s Home fosters full spectrum of vocations BROOKLYN, N.Y. (CNS) — It might seem unusual for the residents of the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn to see French missionaries walking their streets each afternoon reciting the rosary.

Catholics might be surprised to learn that the organization which sends out the missionaries encompasses nearly the full spectrum of church vocations — an order for priests, an order for nuns, a fraternity of consecrated laypeople and lay volunteers.

Heart’s Home, started in 1990 as strictly a volunteer organization by Father Thierry de Roucy, serves through volunteers who visit the poor, the sick, the terminally ill and the incarcerated.

The French priest found that after a few years, some of the volunteers wanted to continue in Heart’s Home through a lifelong commitment.

So Father de Roucy founded the Servants of God’s Presence, an order of religious sisters within the organization; there are 30 nuns in the order around the world. The Sacerdotal Fraternity of Molokai for the priesthood was founded in 1995 and currently has 28 priests and seminarians.

A fraternity was founded for men and women who wanted to pursue the lay consecrated vocation, and in 1997, at the request of former Heart’s Home volunteers, the Fraternity of Maximilian Kolbe was founded to maintain the spirit of their mission in their daily lives and

responsibilities in the professional world.

But what has been most prevalent for Heart’s Home is the vocation of the lay volunteer. They serve in 35 missions in 20 different countries, in places such as Peru, Senegal, Brazil, Thailand, Italy, Romania, Argentina, Germany and El Salvador.

Since 1990, the organization based in France has trained 1,200 volunteers.

Community life is sustained by daily Mass and daily rosary.

Father de Roucy said that while praying the rosary he received the call to found a “work of compassion and consolation” to send young people on missionary work abroad for a year or two.

Heart’s Home requires a commitment of at least 14 months.

Its only mission in the U.S. was opened in 2003 in the South Bronx to minister to Spanish-speaking people.

“Many people couldn’t believe it when they came,” said resident Lourdes Renero Alvarez. “Here were young French people who left their careers behind to serve poor Hispanics in the South Bronx, becoming part of their family and becoming their friends.”

The group spent five years there, relocating to Brooklyn in 2008.

The U.S. community currently consists of three nuns, a recently ordained transitional deacon, two lay consecrated women, a lay consecrated man and three volunteers.

12 The Catholic News & Herald

Apostolic constitution welcomes Anglicans

Papal document maintains some Anglican traditions VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Former Anglicans entering the Catholic Church can preserve their liturgical traditions, married priests in some circumstances and even a shade of their consultative decision-making processes, according to Pope Benedict XVI’s document on new structures for welcoming the former Anglicans.

The pope’s apostolic constitution “Anglicanorum Coetibus” (“Groups of Anglicans”) was published Nov. 9 at the Vatican along with specific norms governing the establishment and governance of “personal ordinariates,” structures similar to dioceses, for former Anglicans who become Catholic.

As previously announced by the Vatican, the text said there could be exemptions to the church’s celibacy rule to allow married former Anglican priests to be ordained as Catholic priests. However, it emphasized that this would be done on a “case-by-case basis.”

A n a c c o m p a n y i n g Va t i c a n statement said the possibility of having some married clergy under this special arrangement “does not signify any change in the church’s discipline of clerical celibacy.”

The ordinariates will be established by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in consultation with the national bishops’ conference where the ordinariate is to be based, the constitution said.

The pope will appoint the head of each ordinariate, although he will choose from a list of three candidates nominated by the jurisdiction’s governing council, the norms said. The council will be made up of at least six priests belonging to the ordinariate.

A commentary published by the Vatican with the constitution and norms said the role of the governing council in choosing an ordinary, giving consent for a candidate to be ordained to the priesthood and establishing parishes and seminaries is a sign of “respect for the synodal tradition of Anglicanism.”

Within the Anglican Communion, synods are made up of clergy and laypeople and they directly elect bishops and set policy.

The ordinary, even if he is not a bishop, is automatically a member of the national bishops’ conference and is required to make an “ad limina” visit to the Vatican every five years to report on the status of the ordinariate, the constitution said.

The pope’s apostolic constitution and the norms for implementing it repeatedly state a preference for celibacy for priests in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church.

“The ordinary, in full observance of the discipline of celibate clergy in the

November 13, 2009

IN THE NEWS

Latin Church, as a rule will admit only celibate men to the order of presbyter” or priest, the constitution said. The ordinary may petition the pope for an exemption to allow married men to be ordained Catholic priests, it said.

The norms explicitly exclude the possibility of ordaining married Anglican priests who previously were ordained as Catholic priests as well as excluding Anglican priests who are in “irregular marriage situations,” such as those who have been divorced and remarried.

Only celibate former Anglican bishops may be ordained Catholic bishops in keeping with the tradition of both the Catholic Church and the Orthodox churches, the new norms said.

Unmarried men who want to be ordained “must submit to the norm of clerical celibacy,” the constitution said.

According to the norms, new seminarians must be part of the personal ordinariate or be former Anglicans who have established full communion with the Catholic Church. They may not be originally baptized Catholics who later became Anglicans or joined the personal ordinariate.

In fact, the norms said, “Those baptized previously as Catholics outside the ordinariate are not ordinarily eligible for membership” in the ordinariate itself “unless they are members of a family belonging to the ordinariate.”

The norms called for the new personal ordinariates to provide an adequate salary, pension and insurance for their priests, but the rules also recognize that may be a challenge with priests who are married and have children. The norms allow for priests, with the permission of their ordinary, to “engage in a secular profession compatible with the exercise of priestly ministry.”

In the apostolic constitution, dated Nov. 4, Pope Benedict reaffirmed his commitment to promoting Christian unity and said that as the one chosen “to preside over and safeguard the universal communion of all the churches,” he had to find a way to accept the request of Anglican individuals and groups who wanted “to be received into full Catholic communion.”

While the former Anglicans will be able to celebrate the Latin-rite Mass like any other Catholic, he said, members of the ordinariate also will be able “to celebrate the holy Eucharist and the other sacraments, the Liturgy of the Hours and other liturgical celebrations according to the liturgical books proper to the Anglican tradition, which have been approved by the Holy See.”

Catholics and Lutherans celebrate joint declaration

Document seen as reminder of need to bring Christ to world WASHINGTON (CNS) — Today’s disciples of Jesus, like the first disciples, should be recognized by how they love each other and, guided

by Jesus, they should walk together in a spirit of unity, mutual respect and brotherhood, Archbishop Pietro Sambi told a Washington audience.

“Each act of unity is a profession of faith in the Lord Jesus,” said the archbishop, who is apostolic nuncio to the United States.

He addressed an Oct. 31 gathering of Catholics and Lutherans at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center marking the 10th anniversary of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification signed by the two churches.

Joining Archbishop Sambi were Washington Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl and Bishop Richard Graham of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America’s Metropolitan Washington, D.C., Synod.

Nearly 100 people participated in the celebration, including theological faculty members and students and people involved in the ecumenical movement.

The declaration said the Catholic and Lutheran churches’ consensus on basic truths means that the doctrine of justification — how people are made just in the eyes of God and saved by Jesus Christ — is not a church-dividing issue for Catholics and Lutherans even though differences between them remain in language, theological elaboration and emphasis surrounding those basic truths. The World Methodist Council affirmed the declaration in 2006.

During the anniversary celebration, John Seidel of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America read an excerpt from the document: “Together we confess:

By grace alone, in faith in Christ’s saving work and not because of any merit on our part, we are accepted by God and receive the Holy Spirit, who renews our hearts while equipping and calling us to good works. All people are called by God to salvation in Christ.

Through Christ alone are we justified.”

In his reflection, Bishop Graham recalled how he had earlier served as pastor of Hope Lutheran Church in College Park, Md., where his congregation held joint activities and discussions with the nearby Catholic Student Center of the University of Maryland.

“We can learn from each other,” the Lutheran bishop said.

Reflecting on the declaration, Bishop Graham said, “The joy of faith in Christ is meant to overflow in works that serve our neighbors. ... To share common teaching of doctrine and common concern for the poor is truly to be one in Christ.”

In his reflection, Archbishop Wuerl said the declaration offers the common understanding that “it is the Lord Jesus who is the source of our salvation and our redemption.”

While the Catholic and Lutheran faiths have differences in theology, he said, “the doctrine (on justification) is saying that in substance, there is unity, that is what we proclaim, and that is what we profess.”

Archbishop Wuerl said the joint declaration offers believers of both faiths the chance to “move from the theological level to the practical level.”

In an increasingly secular culture, Catholics and Lutherans can bring Christ to today’s world, he said.

“Together, we can be witnesses. ... To me, the joint declaration opens up the door to what we’re able to do, going into the future.”

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Payment: For information, call (704) 370-3332.

November 13, 2009

IN THE NEWS

The Catholic News & Herald 13

Reflections on papal leadership

Pope visits birthplace of Pope Paul VI in northern Italy BRESCIA, Italy (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI visited the birthplace of Pope Paul VI and praised his predecessor’s vision of a “poor and free” church that inspires by example.

The pope traveled to Brescia in northern Italy for a one-day pilgrimage Nov. 8, celebrating Mass with thousands of faithful in a driving rain, visiting the house where the pope was born in 1897 and inaugurating a new branch of an institute dedicated to Paul VI’s teachings.

In a homily, Pope Benedict paid tribute to the late pontiff, underlining Pope Paul’s love for the church and his conviction that the more the church conforms to Christ’s example, the better it will communicate with the modern world.

Noting the current Year for Priests, the pope said Pope Paul had special concern for priests and had strongly defended the value of priestly celibacy.

Pope Benedict also quoted with appreciation Pope Paul’s comment that while the world often expects a pope to

make “grand gestures and energetic and decisive interventions,” a good pope will above all practice confidence in Christ and needs the prayers of the faithful to fulfill his ministry.

After visiting the late pope’s early home in the village of Concesio, Pope Benedict made an afternoon stop at the parish church there and recalled how Pope Paul had led the church through a time of great internal and external changes.

The pope concluded by offering his own assessment of the Christian vocation in the modern world.

“It’s not easy to be a Christian!

One needs courage and tenacity not to conform to the mentality of the world, not to be seduced by the sometimes powerful calls of hedonism and consumerism, and to face if necessary misunderstandings and even true persecution,” he said.

To live as a Christian, he said, means “remaining strongly united to the church, even when we see in her face some shadows or some stains.”

cns photo by

L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters

Pope Benedict XVI views a room in the house where Pope Paul VI was born in Concesio, Italy. Pope Benedict made a Nov. 8 visit to the birthplace of Paul VI, who was born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini in 1897 and served as pontiff from 1963 to 1978.

DECEMBER 5: ABBOT PLACID SOLARI AND FATHER DWIGHT LONGENECKER LEAD AN ADVENT MORNING OF REFLECTION Come “prepare the way of the Lord” in your mind and heart with our very special Advent Morning of Reflection, beginning at 9 a.m. on December 5th in the Haid Theatre at Belmont Abbey College.

Our reflection leaders will be Abbot Placid Solari, O.S.B., and Father Dwight Longenecker.

Abbot Placid acts as the spiritual father of the monks of Belmont Abbey, and instructs the youngest monks in The Rule of Saint Benedict. He is also the Chancellor of Belmont Abbey College and is much in demand as a mission and retreat leader.

Father Longenecker is a married former Anglican priest who converted to the Catholic faith in 1995 and was ordained a Catholic priest in 2006. He is the author of ten books, including Listen My Son, a daily Benedictine devotional book which applies The Rule of Saint Benedict to the task of modern parenting. He is also a very popular retreat leader.

So attendees are in for quite a spiritual treat.

Admission is free to the public. However, donations to help us defray the cost of the event won’t go unappreciated!

Our seating capacity is limited so please register online by December 1 at http://alumni.belmont abbeycollege.edu/AdventMorningReflection. If you have any questions, please call Joan Bradley at (704) 461-6009 or email her at JoanBradley@bac.edu.

Come give yourself a much-deserved early Christmas gift. One that will leave you feeling full of joy, love, peace and hope.

BELMONT ABBEY COLLEGE 100 Belmont-Mount Holly Road (Exit 26, I-85) Belmont, NC 28012

November 13, 2009

14 The Catholic News & Herald

Perspectives

A collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

Renewed reponse

Letter from the Chancellor Monsignor Mauricio West Dear Friends in Christ, Right now, many American families are struggling to make ends meet. As people are laid off,

Aid for struggling families amidst economic downturn

lose homes to foreclosure, are denied adequate health insurance coverage, and watch retirement

The economic crisis in the United States has left many Americans without security: the security of a job, the security of affordable health care, or the security of a sufficient retirement fund.

U.S. Census poverty figures put the number of people currently in poverty in the United States at 39.8 million, almost 3 million more people than the previous year. For most of these families, however, these kinds of security have always been out of reach, and the current crisis has amplified their struggle.

become even more difficult for the nearly 40 million Americans who live in poverty.

About the campaign For nearly 40 years, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) has embodied Catholic social teaching through the pursuit of justice and the upholding of the dignity of the human person.

Since 1970, CCHD has funded community groups that, among other things, help create affordable housing, obtain fair wages and provide job training to give poor and marginalized people both a voice and a role in their own destiny. CCHD also provides educational opportunities for Catholics to learn about poverty and interact with those affected by it.

Last year, nationally CCHD-funded groups involved 776 Catholic parishes, 18 Catholic Charities agencies and 51 religious communities. CCHD is a complement to the direct-assistance mission of Catholic Charities agencies and other Church emergency relief programs. It helps make long-term changes in the economic condition of communities by supporting projects that address the root causes of poverty.

Local use of campaign funds This year in the Diocese of Charlotte, with a portion of the funds collected last year, we were able to award local grants totaling $40,334.93 to eleven organizations working alongside poor and low-income people.

One grant funded a unique partnership between St. Peter Church in Charlotte and nearby Irwin Avenue Middle School, which has a student body with a poverty rate of 85%.

Volunteers are working to bolster parent engagement and support which will in turn directly impact student performance.

In Eden, the Rockingham Pregnancy Care Center is providing low-income pregnant women with life skills and education to assure a healthy start for the babies and a sustainable future for their mothers.

The Abuse Prevention Council in Shelby is providing training to victims of domestic violence, while the Hispanic Learning Center is helping low-income Hispanic youth with literacy and English

Guest Column

funds disappear, it is difficult to think of others in need. Nevertheless, financial struggles have

For almost 40 years, the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) has offered a solution to poverty by funding low-income community groups all over the United States that find lasting solutions to the root causes of poverty. CCHD supports the poor and low-income

MARY JANE BRUTON

in acquiring affordable housing, fair wages, access to health care, and vocational training. The

guest columnist

leaders of CCHD-funded groups are low-income community members who want to change their situation for a lifetime.

as a Second Language instruction in Cabarrus County.

In Brevard, Neighbors in Ministry continues its model program of academic and cultural enrichment, giving lowincome children a chance to discover their dreams.

How to help The mission of CCHD this year is a crucial one: to uplift those who are one layoff or one medical emergency away from the poverty line — and those who are already there. This national, oncea-year collection will be held in the parishes of the Charlotte Diocese Nov. 21-22. It is CCHD’s primary source of support.

We have all been affected by today’s economy. However, low-income families and individuals are experiencing the greatest hardship and have the least capacity to cope in this time of economic crisis.

Through participation in the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, we can offer hope and practical resources to those hardest hit by current conditions.

It is an opportunity to give witness to the Catholic Church’s teaching that human dignity comes not through riches or temporal power but is a gift of God. It is a chance to place the Church’s footprint squarely in our community by standing up for the life and dignity of our brothers and sisters.

Please give to the CCHD collection as generously as you are able, and thank you for your generosity.

Mary Jane Bruton is director for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development for the Diocese of Charlotte.

Write a Letter to the Editor The Catholic News & Herald welcomes letters from readers.

We ask that letters be originals of 250 words or fewer, pertain to recent newspaper content or Catholic issues, and be in good taste.

To be considered for publication, each letter must include the name, address and daytime phone number of the writer for purpose of verification. Letters may be condensed due to space limitations and edited for clarity, style and factual accuracy.

The Catholic News & Herald does not publish poetry, form letter or petitions. Items submitted to The Catholic News & Herald become the property of the newspaper and are subject to reuse, in whole or in part, in print, electronic formats and archives.

Send letters to Letters to the Editor, The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, N.C. 28237, or e-mail catholicnews@charlottediocese.org.

In Catholic social teaching, we are called “to bring glad tidings to the poor... to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free” (Lk 4:18).

Our support of CCHD is vital to solving poverty in the United States. This year’s annual CCHD parish collection will take place Nov. 21 and 22. Please give as generously as you are able and join me in praying for those affected by the weak economy, those whose struggles are magnified by it, and those who are working to create solutions to it.

Thank you for your generosity.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Rev. Monsignor Mauricio West Vicar General and Chancellor, Diocese of Charlotte

Letter to the Editor

Golden reflections Priest provides insight for seniors Thursday, Oct. 29 was a golden day for about 50 seniors gathered in the meeting room of the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory. Outside, a radiant sun was shining in a blue sky. Inside, we were connecting with Father Brian Cook, presenter of our Day of Reflection.

Sandra Breakfield, the soul of the Seniors’ Day of Reflection, introduced Father Cook, pastor of St. Leo the Great Church in Winston-Salem, with whom we were going to spend the day – and what a day! We immediately responded to Father Cook’s warm, outgoing, cordial personality and his great sense of humor.

The topic of his lectures “Autumn Grace: Growing Older, Growing Wiser” went straight to our hearts.

He underscored the positive values of aging – we now have more time to

pray, see, feel, think, share, explore; more time to give ourselves to others; we are people of faith, each of us a precious child of God; we should eliminate the word “old” from our vocabulary, and so much more was said to guide us in the last stage of our earthly journey. Father Cook’s discerning view on aging gave us a clearer insight of what God expects from us at the autumn of our lives.

We are grateful to the Diocese of Charlotte for their sensitivity to the needs of their seniors, and we wish to thank all the people who made this event possible.

May the Lord bless them, keep them, and look kindly on them.

Ismini Frieser Newton, NC

November 13, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 15

Puzzling through the murder of Father Ed

Human values, Europe’s future rooted in Christianity

Finding an opportunity to glorify the Lord through forgiveness The recent murder of my friend, Father Ed Hinds of Chatham, N.J., has taken a heavy toll on his family, friends and parishioners. We are all still numb from the shock of learning that this gentle, loving pastor of St. Patrick Parish was beaten and stabbed 32 times in the back, face and torso.

The parish janitor, Jose Feliciano, 64, was arrested and charged with firstdegree murder. Prosecutors said Oct. 25 he had confessed to the Oct. 22 murder.

According to Feliciano’s written affidavit, he was arguing with the priest in the rectory, took a knife from the kitchen and stabbed the priest. CNN reported that Morris County Prosecutor Robert Bianchi said the two men were arguing over Feliciano’s continued employment.

As the story unfolded, it was learned that Feliciano, an employee of the parish for 17 years, was in fact a fugitive from justice, wanted in Philadelphia on charges of assault and “corruption of a minor.”

Father Ed, as many knew him, was the pastor of the church for six years.

According to reports, when Father Ed learned that Feliciano’s employee file showed he had not received a background check, the priest asked him

to submit to one.

In trying to process this tragedy in my own heart and mind, I feel the need first of all to ask for prayers for Father Ed. I also must ask for forgiveness for the person who took Father Ed’s life.

I worked with Father Ed in the marriage tribunal for many years.

He was an intelligent, hardworking Christian gentleman, and his cruel death hit me like a punch in the stomach.

How can we deal with this terrible crime?

As Christians, we immediately turn to Jesus for help. When he was nailed to a cross Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34).

The Lord not only asked God to be merciful to his murderers, he also made excuses for them.

No one is as bad as the worst thing he or she has ever done.

No one is pure evil or pure goodness.

Pray for the killer’s salvation and forgiveness. Leave the justice issue in God’s hands. What the killer did was a monstrous, despicable crime, and it should not go unpunished.

The evil magnitude of this murder is intensified when one considers our community’s loss.

Spirituality for Today FATHER JOHN CATOIR cns columnist

How does one react to such evil?

The fact is that without God’s grace every one of us could be overcome by evil. St. Paul admonished us, “Do not be conquered by evil but conquer evil with good” (Rom 12:21).

We have the opportunity to purify this evil event with an outpouring of love. Our humble submission to God’s will can be a chance to glorify the Lord, who asked us to forgive our enemies not seven times but 77 times.

Evil is the enemy of joy. Don’t let it suck the life out of you. You are bigger and stronger than any evil force by the grace of God. You are not a poor, helpless creature; you can rejoice in the knowledge of God’s love always and forever.

The plight of Christian Palestinians Countering provincialism through education, awareness efforts “Why aren’t people in this country doing more to help Arab Christian Palestinians?”

As we sat down for dinner at the 2009 awards banquet sponsored by the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation, the question caught me by surprise. I had been invited by chance, but in all honesty I knew very little about the organization.

Thanks to that question, however, I now know much more about why all Christians should be deeply concerned about today’s Christian Palestinians.

There should always be solidarity among Christians, regardless of where we live. As such, when one of us suffers, we all suffer.

Palestine is where Christ lived, worked and died. While there are Christian Palestinians today, they are suffering and becoming practically extinct in their own homeland.

In a study conducted in 2001 by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, it was determined that 53 percent of Christian residents of Beit Sahour (a predominately Christian town adjacent to Bethlehem)

had taken steps within the previous year to acquire emigration visas.

In 1948, the Christian population of the Holy Land was more than 18 percent; today it is less than 2 percent.

Christians face violence daily.

Their homes are often confiscated or demolished, and they are rarely issued permits to build new ones. Jobs are scarce, medical assistance is sparse and water is routinely cut off.

How can we respond to this crisis?

Study is the first imperative because it moves us out of our provincialism, prompting us to enter into the lives of others.

One project sponsored by the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation promotes the exchange of letters between children in the United States and Palestinian territories. This project is aimed at countering provincialism by educating and heightening awareness.

The organization also hosts local conferences and presentations by experts on the Holy Land. It also publishes a newsletter, “Living Stones: The Voice of the Holy Land Christians” (www.hcef.org).

The Human Side FATHER EUGENE HEMRICK cns columnist

As the Christmas season approaches, one way to enter into it more fully would be to study the Holy Land and the special role it fulfills in our Christian lives. Here is where the most wonderful promise ever made was fulfilled: Christ came among us.

When we are touched with sacredness, awe follows.

In today’s world, barbarism is found in much of our daily existence, so much so that we tend to take it for granted.

But we don’t have to. Opportunities exist for us to counter this acceptance, and learning more about what we can do to help Christian Palestinians is one of them.

The Pope Speaks POPE BENEDICT XVI

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Leaders who want to promote authentic human values and the future of Europe should rediscover, protect and promote the cultural and religious legacy that blossomed on the continent during the Middle Ages, said Pope Benedict XVI. Instrumental in forging Europe’s Christian identity was the Benedictine monastery of Cluny in France, he said during his general audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI hall Nov. 11.

The pope continued his catechesis on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages by highlighting the monastic reform launched by the monastery of Cluny in the 10th century.

The influence of Cluny quickly spread throughout the continent, he said, and its reforms had a positive impact on both the renewal of monastic life and the universal church.

“Cluny helped forge the continent’s Christian identity by its emphasis on the primacy of the spirit, respect for human dignity, commitment to peace and an authentic and integral humanism,” Pope Benedict said.

Here is the text of the pope’s audience remarks in English.

In our catechesis on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages, we now turn to the monastic reform linked to the great monastery of Cluny. Founded eleven hundred years ago, Cluny restored the strict observance of the Rule of Saint Benedict and made the Church’s liturgy the centre of its life. It stressed the solemn celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours and Holy Mass, and enriched the worship of God with splendid art, architecture and music. The monastic liturgy, seen as a foretaste of the heavenly liturgy, was accompanied by a daily regime marked by silence and intercessory prayer.

Cluny’s reputation for sanctity and learning caused its influence to spread to monasteries throughout Europe.

Exempt from interference by feudal authorities, the monastery freely elected its abbots and flourished under a series of outstanding spiritual leaders like Saints Odo and Hugh.

Cluny also contributed to the reform of the universal Church by its concern for holiness, the restoration of clerical celibacy and the elimination of simony.

At a formative time of Europe’s history, Cluny helped to forge the Continent’s Christian identity by its emphasis on the primacy of the spirit, respect for human dignity, commitment to peace and an authentic and integral humanism.

November 13, 2009

IN THE NEWS

Stupak speaks

Sixteen years of quiet pro-life advocacy comes to fruition WASHINGTON (CNS) — After 16 years in Congress struggling with his party and even sometimes with his church over his status as a pro-life, Catholic Democrat, Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan was able to put his convictions to powerful effect in the passage of the Affordable Health Care for America Act. With the fate of the House version of massive health care reform legislation hanging by a thread, Stupak managed to bring together a crucial number of votes to pass the bill Nov. 7, by a vote of 220215, but only after Democratic leaders agreed to permit a vote on his amendment to strictly prohibit any federal funds from going to fund abortions. The amendment passed and Stupak’s votes for the final bill came through as promised.

In a Nov. 9 phone interview with Catholic News Service, Stupak said the key to persuading 64 Democrats to support his amendment was the argument that it would change nothing in current law. Since 1976 the Hyde amendment to appropriations legislation has prohibited federal funding of abortion, but it must be renewed annually.

Stupak’s amendment, which passed 240-194, would prohibit the use of federal funds to pay for most abortions, including barring abortion coverage from insurance plans which consumers who purchase on their own using government subsidies. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and other pro-life organizations had threatened to oppose any final bill that did not include such provisions.

The Senate will now take up its own version of health care legislation.

Assuming that passes, differences between the bills will be worked out in a conference committee and both House and Senate will have to vote again on the final version.

Stupak said he had been working on building support for his amendment since Labor Day, and spent much of the day of the House vote touching base with every member who he thought might support it.

“We didn’t try to reach for more than what is in current law,” he said. “A number of pro-choice Democrats voted with us for that reason.”

Stupak downplayed the political coup represented by the success of his amendment, saying, “what’s important is we’re protecting the sanctity of life.”

The number of pro-life Democrats in Congress has steadily grown in the last few elections, partly as a result of the Democratic Party’s concerted effort to support such candidates in a few select races. But they are still vastly outnumbered and Stupak has long been at the forefront of trying to get recognition that their views deserve a place in a party long been known for opposing most limits on abortion.

Stupak’s sometimes lonely role as a pro-life Democrat not only has brought him grief within the party, but within his Catholic Church. He tells of being shunned at a public event by one prelate who, upon being told by an aide that

The Catholic News & Herald

Stupak was a pro-life Democrat, said “there’s no such thing” and turned his back on the congressman.

In this case, Stupak said the calls and letters to members of Congress from Catholic leaders and pro-life organizations were very helpful in persuading some members to join his coalition.

Stupak said he recognizes that it’s hard for members of Congress to go against their own party, making the support of those 64 Democrats particularly noteworthy.

But he also said there’s a lesson for pro-life organizations to not count out congressional Democrats.

“This sends a strong signal that Democrats are critical to the pro-life movement and that we’re willing to buck our leadership when it’s necessary,” he said.

While many pro-life organizations lauded Stupak’s amendment, some, notably the American Life League’s Judie Brown complained that the House bill still allows government-funded abortions in cases of rape and incest, which are allowed under the Hyde amendment.

Successful inclusion of abortion ban spells success for health bill WASHINGTON (CNS) — In the end, the successful battle to include strict language prohibiting funding for abortions, led by pro-life congressional Democrats with the strong support of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, is what made the difference in the Nov. 7 House vote to pass a sweeping health care reform bill.

In a rare Saturday night vote, the House approved the Affordable Health Care for America Act, 220-215, moving the legislation on to the Senate, which is expected to take up debate on its own health care bill later in November.

Assuming the Senate passes a version of the legislation, differences between the two bills will have to be reconciled separately. That legislation would go back to both houses of Congress for final approval.

Key to passing the House bill was the approval of an amendment by Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., to prohibit the use of federal funds to pay for abortion, including barring abortion coverage from insurance plans which consumers purchase using government subsidies. The USCCB and other pro-life organizations had threatened to oppose any final bill that did not include such provisions.

The final bill fell short of another element pushed strongly by the church in recent weeks. It would bar people who are in the country illegally from receiving any government assistance to get health coverage.

What the bill does do is expand health insurance to an estimated 30 million people who currently lack coverage, meaning an estimated 96 percent of Americans would have access to more affordable health care.

Various news sources as well as people involved on the Hill reported on the critical role of last-minute, behindthe-scenes negotiations among House leaders, White House staff, Catholic bishops and their staff. Also essential were talks with Stupak and others who were holding firm on withholding their votes pending acceptance of his amendment.

Chicago Cardinal Francis E. George, president of the USCCB, spoke with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi Nov. 6, encouraging her to let Stupak’s amendment come for a vote. Other bishops also weighed in by phone with various members of Congress, including by encouraging Republican leaders not to try to block progress that was being made in getting the abortion amendment passed.

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July 9 - 22, 2010

cns photo courtesy of Rep. Stupak

Rep. Bart Stupak of Michigan, a Catholic Democrat, is pictured in an undated official portrait. The House approved the Affordable Health Care for America Act Nov. 7 with an amendment by Stupak to prohibit the use of federal funds to pay for abortion.

London – Copenhagen – Berlin – Tallinn – St. Petersburg – Helsinki – Stockholm

Your 13-day excursion includes: - Round-trip airfare from Charlotte to London - All meals while onboard the Norwegian Sun luxury ship - Port taxes paid for visits to all of the following:

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If so, please share them with us.

Call (704) 370-3333 or email catholicnews@charlottediocese. org.

Dover, England – Copenhagen, Denmark – Berlin, Germany – Tallinn, Estonia – St. Petersburg (2 full days!) – Helsinki, Finland – Stockholm, Sweden - Airport and pier transfers in London - Daily Mass onboard ship with our own priest

PLUS - SPECIAL OPTIONAL LONDON STAY: July 8 & 9 — hotel/breakfast/city tour -- just $350!

Early Booking Price —INCLUDING AIRFARE and PORT TAXES – starts at just $2,699!

Price is per person (based on double occupancy) and $350 deposit before December 1, 2009. Government fees and fuel charges are an additional $251 (subject to change before departure).

For a brochure or info: CALL TODAY: For a brochure/info, Corporate Travel at 800/727-1999 ext. 116.

Travel with the diocese— we take care of the worries – you take care of the fun!