Columbia January 2011

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J ANUARY 2011

COLUMBIA

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January 2011 ♦ Volume 91 ♦ number 1

COLUMBIA F E AT U R E S

8 Living Proof Through the Ultrasound Initiative, Knights help pregnancy centers to save lives.

BY DONNA-MARIE COOPER O’BOYLE

12 A Shared Mission: Life

With the support of more than 1,000 lay people, the work of the Sisters of Life has become international.

BY MIKE MASTROMATTEO

14 The Quest for a Cure Groundbreaking ethical stem-cell research provides hope in a family’s struggle to find successful treatments.

BY JOSEPH O’BRIEN

18 A House of Peace and Love

Through compassionate care, a Catholic home for the dying prepares souls for eternal life.

BY BOB HORNING

22 Good Medicine

Catholic physicians work to provide life-giving alternatives to reproductive technologies.

BY COLLEEN ROULEAU

24 Shepherds on the Sidewalk The 40 Days for Life campaign is gaining momentum and saving lives.

Sister Mary Elizabeth of the Sisters of Life participates in the March for Life in Washington, D.C. Each January, tens of thousands walk in the march, which marks the anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

BY CAROLEE MCGRATH

D E PA RT M E N T S 3

Building a better world Kennedy’s historic speech urged us to remember the divine source of our civic responsibilities.

BY SUPREME KNIGHT CARL A. ANDERSON

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Learning the faith, living the faith

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Knights of Columbus News Order Sponsors Vatican HD Broadcasting Unit • Federal Circuit Court Upholds Pledge of Allegiance Law • U.S. Naval Academy Council Receives Charter • State Deputies Meeting Addresses Membership Growth and Volunteerism

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Columbia Conversation An interview about the science and ethics of stem-cell research.

BY COLUMBIA STAFF

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Knights in Action

32

Columbianism by Degrees

The virtue of chastity is necessary to protect and practice the truth about marriage, sexuality and human life.

BY SUPREME CHAPLAIN BISHOP WILLIAM E. LORI

PLUS Catholic Man of the Month

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Promoting Human Dignity AS EVERY good medical student knows, “do good” and “do no harm” are basic principles of medical ethics.

Like the Hippocratic Oath, they not only embody the purpose of health care but also reflect a practical understanding of human nature. They imply that human beings possess dignity that should be respected and promoted and that our actions toward others are objectively good or harmful.

As Hippocrates and others have demonstrated throughout the ages, much about human nature and morality can be discovered without the aid of Christian revelation. All of morality, not just medical ethics, depends on a truthful and reasonable account. A robust understanding of human nature, in turn, sheds light on moral principles concerning our duties toward God, our neighbors and ourselves. And it becomes clear why certain actions, such as the direct taking of innocent human life, are always forbidden.

Today, however, it is often claimed that moral objections to controversial issues such as abortion and embryonic stem-cell research are simply based on faith and not also on reason. Certainly, our faith helps to bring the moral foundations of society into clearer focus. It helps us to see, for instance, that life is a gift of God and that we are called to make a gift of ourselves to others; that each person, created in God’s image and likeness, possesses inviolable dignity; and that a person’s body is sacred and integral to his or her personal identity. Yet, such proposi-

tions are not contrary to reason, but rather reinforce what we already know through experience.

One of the problems of our culture today is that it often advances an understanding of human nature that is shortsighted and false. There is an uncritical acceptance of philosophies that see life in terms of its instrumental value or that reduce the human being to nothing more than matter and will.

The cheapening or wholesale denial of human nature then paves the way for various manifestations of the culture of death, ultimately including even slavery and genocide.

Fortunately, there is in response to this tendency the witness of people who change lives for the better every day by imparting a respect for human dignity to others. For example, when a woman has the opportunity to see her unborn child through an ultrasound screening and receives loving support at a pro-life pregnancy resource center, the dehumanizing “choice” of abortion becomes clear (see page 8). When scientists conduct ethical adult stem-cell research (see page 14), when caregivers provide compassionate care for the dying (see page 18), and when physicians help infertile couples to conceive naturally (see page 22), they truly “do good” and “do no harm.” They stand in solidarity with all who courageously witness to the truth of our humanity and help to build a culture of life.♦ ALTON J. PELOWSKI MANAGING EDITOR

Knights of Columbus Book Club — January 2011 IMAGINE THAT you could ask the pope any question you wished. Peter Seewald, veteran journalist and biographer of Pope Benedict XVI, received just that opportunity when he was granted an unprecedented book-length interview with the pope. Light of the World: The Pope, the Church, and the Signs of the Times (Ignatius, 2010) is a uniquely candid and wide-ranging discussion on contemporary issues related to the Church. Please join us in late January for a discussion of this new book at kofc.org/bookclub.

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COLUMBIA PUBLISHER Knights of Columbus ________ SUPREME OFFICERS Carl A. Anderson SUPREME KNIGHT Most Rev. William E. Lori, S.T.D. SUPREME CHAPLAIN Dennis A. Savoie DEPUTY SUPREME KNIGHT Emilio B. Moure SUPREME SECRETARY Charles E. Maurer Jr. SUPREME TREASURER John A. Marrella SUPREME ADVOCATE ________ EDITORIAL Alton J. Pelowski alton.pelowski@kofc.org MANAGING EDITOR Patrick Scalisi patrick.scalisi@kofc.org ASSOCIATE EDITOR Brian Dowling brian.dowling@kofc.org CREATIVE & EDITORIAL ASSISTANT ________ GRAPHICS Michelle McCleary LAYOUT

Venerable Michael McGivney (1852-90) Apostle to the Young, Protector of Christian Family Life and Founder of the Knights of Columbus, Intercede for Us. ________ HOW TO REACH US MAIL COLUMBIA 1 Columbus Plaza New Haven, CT 06510-3326 PHONE 203-752-4398 FAX 203-752-4109 E-MAIL columbia@kofc.org INTERNET kofc.org/columbia CUSTOMER SERVICE 1-800-380-9995 ________ Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to men 18 years of age or older who are practical (that is, practicing) Catholics in union with the Holy See. This means that an applicant or member accepts the teaching authority of the Catholic Church on matters of faith and morals, aspires to live in accord with the precepts of the Catholic Church, and is in good standing in the Catholic Church.

________ Copyright © 2011 All rights reserved ________ ON THE COVER The feet of an unborn child pictured at 11 weeks after conception.

CoVer: life Issues Institute

E D I TO R I A L

BUILDING A BETTER WORLD

‘We Dare Not Forget’ Kennedy’s historic speech urged us to remember the divine source of our rights and civic responsibilities

by Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson

FIFTY YEARS AGO this month, John ideals in a speech of this importance, F. Kennedy was sworn in as president such sentiments have been prominent of the United States. His inaugural ad- throughout American history. dress inspired a generation of Ameri- Kennedy’s predecessor, President cans, and his words “Ask not what your Dwight D. Eisenhower, began his first country can do for you; ask what you inaugural address with a prayer he had was one of the reasons they supported can do for your country” became the composed. Eisenhower said, “At such the initiative in the 1950s to add the byword of a generation. Those words, a time in history, we who are free must words “under God” to the U.S. Pledge coming toward the end of the address, proclaim anew our faith. This faith is of Allegiance — a cause that was were its rhetorical highpoint. But the the abiding creed of our fathers. It is championed by the Knights of speech’s intellectual foundation came at our faith in the deathless dignity of Columbus.

In my recent book Beyond a House the beginning, when Kennedy asserted man, governed by eternal moral and Divided: The Moral Consensus Ignored that “the same revolutionary beliefs for natural laws.” which our forebears fought are still at Both Kennedy and Eisenhower un- by Washington, Wall Street and the issue around the globe — the belief that derstood that the “abiding creed of Media, I have put forward statistical the rights of man come not from the our fathers,” and those “revolutionary evidence showing that the American people by a large majority regenerosity of the state, but main committed to the from the hand of God.” moral foundations of our He concluded his speech “The belief that the rights of man country. These findings this way: “[L]et us go forth should give us confidence as to lead the land we love, askcome not from the generosity we continue to promote the ing his blessing and his help, of the state, but from the hand traditional moral values that but knowing that here on offer the best hope for the earth, God’s work must truly of God” is still at issue today. future of our nation and the be our own.” world.

Kennedy had just won one Some may say that these of the closest and most controversial elections in American history. beliefs” for which they fought, had “revolutionary beliefs” should be a Much of the opposition centered upon been summarized by Thomas Jeffer- thing of the past. But in his inaugural the prejudice that a Catholic could not son in the Declaration of Independ- address, Kennedy himself made the serve as president. In this regard, some ence when he wrote that each of us best response to this contention: “We might have expected Kennedy to has been endowed by our Creator dare not forget today that we are the heirs of that first revolution” and that downplay the theme of religion in his with certain unalienable rights. speech. But he did not.

We might well say that the 20th we are “unwilling to witness or permit If it were to have taken place amid the century was defined by the struggle the slow undoing of those human political landscape of today, Kennedy’s between those committed to the rights to which this nation has always election would have been less controver- proposition that our rights “come not been committed.”

May the Knights of Columbus resial than his words. Given the ongoing from the generosity of the state, but debate over religion in American life, his from the hand of God” and those who main steadfast in the defense of those inaugural address would have generated seek to replace those “eternal moral “revolutionary beliefs” about which enormous disagreement. and natural laws” with the unlimited our brother Knight and first Catholic Though some today might be power of the state. Both Kennedy and president spoke so eloquently.

Vivat Jesus! shocked by the presence of religious Eisenhower understood this, and it

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LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

God’s Plan for Life and Love The virtue of chastity is necessary to protect and practice the truth about marriage, sexuality and human life

by Supreme Chaplain Bishop William E. Lori THE VERY NOTION of chastity is unpopular in contemporary culture. It is often equated with sexual repression and is decidedly out of step with how sexuality is portrayed by the entertainment industry. The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, however, introduces to us a very different way of looking at chastity. It is a gift from God and a virtue by which we integrate our sexual powers and attain the self-mastery necessary to give ourselves in love and service to others (488-489). It is an essential part of building a culture of life.

Chastity is not reserved only for a few; all of the baptized are called to model their lives on Christ by being formed in this virtue, which is to be practiced in all states of life or vocations within the Church. This formation takes place through the sacraments, prayer, mortification — such as fasting — and exercising the moral virtues, especially the virtue of temperance by which our passions are steadily controlled by reason (490).

A DIVINE PURPOSE Some, such as religious and priests, profess virginity or consecrated celibacy so as to serve God and the Church with The 33rd installment of Supreme Chaplain Bishop William E. Lori’s faith formation program addresses questions 487-502 of the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Archived articles are at kofc.org.

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an undivided heart. While the unmarried are also called to refrain from sexual activity reserved for marriage, married couples are called to conjugal chastity, or purity within marriage. At a minimum, this enjoins them to refrain from all sexual activity outside of marriage (491). These are not merely man-made rules. Rather, they help us model our lives after Christ and the Beatitudes: “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God” (Mt 5:8).

Chastity respects the intertwined, God-given purposes of human sexuality, which is to express the exclusive love of husband and wife in a manner

Chastity is at the heart of the vocation of marriage and an essential part of building a culture of life. that is open to the procreation of new human life (496). As Pope Paul VI warned in the encyclical Humanae Vitae (1968), de-linking sexuality’s power to express married love and to beget new life has opened the door to abortion and many other assaults on the family, on the truth of sexuality and on the dignity of human life.

The Sixth Commandment, “You shall not commit adultery,” forbids all expressions of the vice known as lust, including adultery, masturbation, fornication, pornography, prostitution, rape and homosexual acts. When such acts are committed by an adult with a minor, their gravity is intensified (492).

Sexual abuse on the part of those who represent the Church is particularly reprehensible, and in recent years, the Church has taken appropriate steps to protect children and young people.

The Church’s teaching on chastity has often been held up to ridicule and distortion. This was true not only in the decades following the so-called “sexual revolution” of the late 1960s, but it remains true today. In addition, there has been a trend in courts and legislatures to legalize as “human rights” sexual acts that are in fact destructive. In such cases, civil authorities have abdicated their responsibility to create a society that fully respects human dignity and the institution of marriage while protecting the most vulnerable (494).

Unfortunately, young people are sometimes permitted and encouraged, even by their parents and public school authorities, to engage in sexual activity, while formation in chastity is dismissed as “unworkable.”

MUTUAL SELF-GIFT Despite the fact that chastity is often distorted in our culture, it is at the heart of the vocation of marriage. Our human sexuality is not merely a means to pleasure, but is instead ordered toward the benefits of married love: unity, fidelity, indissolubility and openness to new life (495). Accordingly, God has invested two inseparable meanings to the conjugal act: the

LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

unitive meaning — the mutual selfgiving of the husband and wife; and the procreative meaning — openness to the transmission of new life (496).

Actions such as sterilization and contraception, which break the intrinsic connection between these two meanings, are immoral and contrary to God’s plan for human life (498).

Of course, there can be morally sound reasons for a husband and wife to regulate the timing and number of births in their family. These decisions must not be made for selfish reasons or as the result of external pressures, and must be carried out by morally licit methods, which involve continence during periods when

HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER INTENTIONS

Offered in solidarity with Pope Benedict XVI

PHoToGraPH oF PoPe: CnS photo alessandro bianchi, reuters — neumann: Photo courtesy Friends of St. John neumann

GENERAL: That the riches of creation be preserved, valued and made available to all, as precious gifts from God to mankind.

MISSION: That Christians may achieve full unity, bearing witness to the universal fatherhood of God to the entire human race.

the wife is fertile (497).

The efforts of infertile couples to have children must also respect the link between the unitive and procreative meanings of the conjugal act. Procedures such as artificial insemination and artificial fertilization, or methods that involve using a third party to carry a child to term, are morally illicit. Children are a gift from God; no couple has a “right” to a child, and no couple should regard a child as an intolerable burden (499-500). By contrast, from the moment of conception, children do indeed have a God-given “right to life.”

When a husband and wife generously seek to have children but find, after ex-

ploring all legitimate options, that they cannot do so, they should consider the possibility of adoption and avenues of service to others (501).

Lastly, we may observe that such acts as adultery, divorce, polygamy, incest, cohabitation, sexual acts before or outside of marriage, and so-called samesex marriage are offenses against the dignity of marriage (502).

We should ask for the grace to open our minds and hearts to the truth and beauty of the Church’s challenging and life-giving teaching on human sexuality. We are called to embrace this teaching and to lead others to live the virtue of chastity in generosity and joy.♦

C AT H O L I C M A N O F T H E M O N T H

St. John Neumann (1811-60) Memorial: Jan. 5 JOHN NEPOMUCENE Neumann was born in Bohemia (present-day Czech Republic) in 1811 and studied theology at the University of Prague while preparing to become a priest. His bishop, however, declined to ordain him since the diocese already had a large number of priests. Neumann approached other bishops in Europe, but encountered the same resistance.

He then read the writings of Father Frederic Baraga, a Slovenian priest (and later a bishop) who was serving in the United States — a country where priests were in short supply. Inspired to contact bishops in America, Neumann arrived in New York City and was ordained in 1836. His first assignment was to minister to German immigrants in upstate New York.

Having felt called to religious life, he entered the Redemptorist Fathers in 1840 and professed vows in 1842. Ten years later, he was consecrated as bishop of Philadelphia. Serving the growing Catholic population there, Bishop Neumann promoted the construction of Catholic schools and parishes and en-

couraged the growth of religious orders.

His gift for languages also connected him with the numerous immigrants who arrived in America in the mid19th century and who were greeted with rising anti-Catholic and anti-immigrant sentiment.

Neumann believed, despite his accomplishments, that he was poorly suited to serve as the bishop of such a large city.

He petitioned the Vatican to be replaced or reassigned to a smaller diocese, but Pope Pius XI refused his request.

Bishop John Neumann died of a massive stroke at the age of 48. He was beatified by Pope Paul VI during the Second Vatican Council and was canonized in 1977. He is recognized as the first (and, so far, the only) male U.S. saint.♦

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KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS NEWS

Order Sponsors Vatican HD Broadcasting Unit TO ASSIST THE communications work of the Vatican, the Knights of Columbus made a significant contribution toward the purchase of a new mobile production van for Vatican Television Centre (CTV). The van, which features high-definition broadcasting equipment, was blessed Nov. 17, 2010, by Pope Benedict XVI, who also greeted delegates from the Knights of Columbus and Sony, co-sponsors of the new equipment.

At a press conference held the day before, Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson said the van represents the most recent development in the long history of the Catholic Church’s work in mass communications. He added that the Knights of Columbus is privileged to have a role in bringing the good news of Christ to the world through the medium of television.

The press conference was also attended

by Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and of the administrative board of CTV; Father Federico Lombardi, S.J., director of CTV; and Gildas Pelliet, managing director of Sony Italia.

The Order previously donated mobile production vans to CTV in 1985 and 1995, respectively, and has also funded uplink costs for the broadcast of Vatican

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican press secretary, tours the new mobile CTV production van with Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson, Deputy Supreme Knight Dennis A. Savoie, Supreme Treasure Emilio B. Moure and Enrico Demajo, director of the Knights of Columbus Rome office. events since the mid-1970s. Since that time, the Order has covered the uplink costs to send the television signal to a satellite and, in certain circumstances for developing countries, the downlink costs to receive that signal and distribute it through a television system.

Vatican events broadcast annually include Midnight Mass at St. Peter’s Basil-

ica and the pope’s Urbi et Orbi address delivered Jan. 1. Other notable broadcasts over the past 37 years include the opening of the Holy Door for the Jubilee Year 1975; the funerals of three popes; the election of Pope Benedict XVI in 2005; and the Holy Father’s Marian prayer with young people from nine African capitals on Oct. 10, 2009.♦

Federal Circuit Court Upholds Pledge of Allegiance Law

U.S. Naval Academy Council Receives Charter

FOR THE SECOND TIME in one year, a federal appellate court rejected a constitutional challenge to the Pledge of Allegiance. On Nov. 12, 2010, the First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston affirmed a lower court decision in New Hampshire dismissing a challenge by the Freedom from Religion Foundation.

As in an earlier Pledge case in California, the Knights of Columbus joined the case as a “defendant intervenor,” and was represented by The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance on March 11, 2010.

In its decision in Freedom from Religion Foundation v. Hanover School District, the First Circuit held that a New Hampshire law requiring that public schools provide a period for the voluntary recitation of the Pledge does not violate the U.S. Constitution.♦

ON VETERANS DAY, Nov. 11, Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson presented a charter to the members of Commodore John Barry Council 14534 at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. The council’s name honors the Irish Catholic naval officer who is styled as the “Father of the American Navy.”

Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA, then concelebrated Mass at the historical Naval Academy Chapel with Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien of Baltimore, a former archbishop for the Military Services, and several active-duty and retired military chaplains.♦

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KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS NEWS

State Deputies Meeting Addresses Membership Growth and Volunteerism

STATE DEPUTIES from jurisdictions around the world gathered in Baltimore Nov. 12-14, 2010, for their mid-year meeting and an intensive two-day focus on membership growth and related issues.

The state deputies and their wives were greeted at a welcome dinner by Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson, who said, “We are here tonight to reaffirm what is essential about the Knights of Columbus and our contribution to society: our civil contribution, our charitable contribution and our religious contribution.”

The supreme knight recalled the words of Pope John Paul II who said, “We need to rediscover the authentic meaning of ‘Christian volunteerism.’”

“What better organization in the world today than the Knights of Columbus to lead the effort to restore an authentic understanding of Christian volunteerism?,” said Anderson.

At the opening business session on Saturday morning, the supreme knight told state deputies that councils will soon be given some flexibility in conducting First Degree ceremonies in an effort to ensure that every council is able to hold such ceremonies frequently.

“No prospective qualified candidate for admission into the Knights of Columbus should be frustrated from joining the Order because he cannot find, or we cannot offer, a First Degree that will allow him to join in a reasonable period of time,” the supreme knight declared.

State deputies focused heavily on membership growth during the meeting, and the Order’s new senior vice president for Membership Growth, Mike Durbin, reminded conference at-

Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson speaks during the mid-year meeting of State Deputies in Baltimore Nov. 13. tendees of a very powerful motivation for inviting men to join the Knights: that it helps make us better Catholics.

“We’re building up the body of the Church,” said Durbin, “and that’s part of Father McGivney’s vision.”

Durbin discussed the Order’s increased focus on 18-35 yearolds and on the importance of youth programs that involve young men in middle school and high school, preparing the way for recruitment when they reach adulthood.

George Hanna, senior vice president for Fraternal Services, emphasized the way program activities contribute to membership retention.

“Keeping your members active is your number-one retention tool,” Hanna explained. “When you were a kid, you always wanted to be on the best team, the winning team. Our members are no different. They want to participate in programs that really make a difference.”

Tom Smith, executive vice president for agencies and marketing, emphasized the critical contribution to membership growth that field agents are making in many jurisdictions. “None of us is as good as all of us,” Smith reminded the state deputies. “Those states and jurisdictions where the state deputies, the general agents and the field agents, and the grand knights and membership directors work together are the most successful states when measured by membership growth and insurance growth.”♦

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living PROOF Through the Ultrasound Initiative, Knights help pregnancy centers to save lives

by Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle

F

aith was alone in a foreign land. She felt frightened, confused, angry and violated. Not knowing where to turn, she went to a local pregnancy center conveniently located near the university she attended. There, a positive pregnancy test confirmed her fears. An international college student studying for her master’s degree, Faith didn’t know how she could possibly continue her pregnancy and thought she had no other options than abortion.

“I just wanted to end everything when I found out that I had conceived,” she recalled. “I don’t have any relatives or family here — just me.”

Jean Weston, a volunteer at Problem Pregnancy Center in Worcester, Mass., helped counsel Faith and asked her to return to the clinic to receive a free ultrasound screening.

For Faith, the experience of seeing the image of her unborn baby was enlightening. She said, “When I heard the heartbeat, I thought, this is a human being.”

Feeling overwhelmed about how she would manage to cope with her pregnancy, Faith asked for time to be alone in the center’s small chapel.

“I cried, and I knew that if God gave me life, I’m not in a position to take life,” she said. “It’s not up to me to decide who lives and who doesn’t.”

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH The state-of-the-art ultrasound machine that made the difference in Faith’s decision was one of the first machines placed through the Knights of Columbus Ultrasound Initiative, which is made possible by the Order’s Culture of Life Fund. The program matches funds raised by local and state

Knights Ronald Coco and Richard Bosse worked to obtain a new ultrasound machine for the Women’s New Life Center in Metairie, La., where Angela Thomas (right) is the executive director.

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4030, received a letter about the Ultrasound Initiative. The Knights were set in action by prayer, a passion for life and a sense of mission.

“We are Knights of Columbus. We are pro-life!” Coco said.

“It’s the way it has always been, ever since our founder, Father Michael McGivney, founded the Knights to protect women and children.”

Through collections conducted before and after Masses, the council raised more than $23,000 — more than half the amount needed to purchase a new ultrasound machine for Care Pregnancy Center in Baton Rouge.

In addition to funds from the Supreme Council for half the price of a new machine, an anonymous donor also came forward to match the collections. It was decided to use the Supreme Council contribution toward the purchase of a new machine for a second clinic. Meanwhile, the $6,000 leftover from the collections and the anonymous donor was given to the Sanctuary of Life House, a home for unwed mothers in Baton Rouge.

With the assistance of local schools, a series of car washes supplemented the fund-raising efforts. “The purpose was to get high school and college students from the parish involved in doing something to save the unborn,” Coco explained. “It gives them an eye into the future, you might say.”

This map shows the locations where ultrasound machines have been placed through the Order’s Ultrasound Initiative in the past two years. Note: Multiple ultrasound machines have been placed in Boise, Idaho; Dallas, Texas; Greenwich, Conn.; and Santa Ana, Calif.

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PreVIouS SPreaD: Photo by mary lou uttermohlen

K of C units with contributions from the Supreme Council to purchase ultrasound equipment for medically certified pro-life pregnancy resource centers. Since it was launched Jan. 22, 2009 — the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade — more than 70 machines have been placed in centers throughout the United States.

The ultrasound machines that the initiative provides serve as an effective way for pregnant women, especially those in crisis, to witness the humanity of their unborn children. Faith is one of hundreds of women who have chosen life as a result.

“This machine is a life and death situation,” said Weston.

“If these women weren’t seeing a picture of their baby, it would be easy for them to just disregard the life in them. But when they’re confronted and know the truth that it’s a real baby, they must make a decision.”

When Richard Bosse suggested that his parish in Baton Rouge, La., raise funds to acquire a new ultrasound machine for a local pro-life pregnancy center, one of the busiest in Louisiana, “The Holy Spirit came into play,” he said. Believing he should do more for the pro-life cause, Bosse had become involved with the respect life ministry at St. George Church and the work of Mother of Mercy Council 4030 in Baton Rouge.

Meanwhile, Ron Coco, then-grand knight of Council

Father Anthony Mpagi blesses Faith and her son, Israel, after his baptism at St. Peter’s Church in Worcester, Mass. Faith chose life for her baby after seeing an ultrasound image on a K of C-sponsored machine.

Photo by John lenis

When Coco realized that the Supreme Council would match collections for multiple machines, one was purchased for the Woman’s New Life Center in Metairie, La., a New Orleans suburb.

Angie Thomas, the center’s executive director, expressed her gratitude for the Knights’ support. “Most pregnancy centers operate with private donations. A new ultrasound machine is extremely expensive for them,” she said. “The Ultrasound Initiative provides a tangible, practical way for this wonderful organization to make a huge impact.”

With Thomas’s help, Knights in Louisiana also identified pregnancy centers to receive the old ultrasound machines that had been replaced. But their efforts, which earned Council 4030 the Pro-Life Service Award at last year’s Supreme Convention in Washington, D.C., were still far from complete.

In July, following additional collections, a third K of Csponsored machine was placed at the Women’s Center of Lafayette. And Bosse, Coco and their fellow Knights continue to raise money and research the needs of pro-life pregnancy centers in Louisiana and beyond.

Coco said, “Based on research from where we have donated the machines so far, approximately 1,000 lives will be saved each year.”

DOING GOD’S WORK Many of the machines purchased through the K of C Ultrasound Initiative use the latest 3/4D technology and feature ultra-clear images. Yet, even when an older ultrasound machine is used, the effect of seeing one’s unborn baby is clear.

Pregnancy resource centers report that most women who are considering abortion choose life after receiving an ultrasound screening. The mother’s heart connects with her baby when she sees the remarkable images and hears the baby’s heart beating, confirming the reality of human life.

In fact, the experience of witnessing an ultrasound image is often life-changing not only for mothers and babies, but for fathers as well.

Cheryl Connor, executive director of Tomorrow’s Hope Center in Paris, Tenn., recalled one occasion when a husband and wife came to the center: “They had four children, no job, and were struggling. After seeing their baby on the screen, the husband, holding his wife’s hand, burst out crying and said, ‘We’re going to make it somehow.’”

Working at the pro-life pregnancy centers is often challenging, Connor added. “Some days we are so mentally, emotionally and physically worn out and feel like we just can’t do it anymore,” she said. “Then, God always shows up during that time and shows us another miracle.”

When lives are saved and women in crisis pregnancies choose life, the work of pregnancy resource centers has just begun.

Faith, for instance, received emotional support from the staff and volunteers in Worcester, as well as help with setting up appointments for prenatal care at the hospital. It was Faith’s intention to give her baby up for adoption, but her plans changed when she gave birth.

“They put him in my hands, and I knew I didn’t want to let him go,” she said.

The pregnancy center then provided many items that Faith needed, including a changing table, stroller, bassinet and clothes.

Lastly, several of the volunteers were present with Faith at a local parish to celebrate baby Israel’s baptism.

“Pregnancy centers are on the frontlines of the battle, trying to give hope to women who have none,” said Thomas. “In showing women the reality of their baby, they gain hope and an opportunity to choose life.”

Thomas said she is thankful for having as allies the “outstanding, passionate, pro-life men” whom she has encountered in the Knights of Columbus.

“This machine has saved lives,” she added, “and providing machines to other centers around the nation will continue to save mothers and their babies from the lies and horrors of abortion.”

For more information on the K of C Ultrasound Initiative, visit kofc.org/ultrasound or call 203-752-4403.

DONNA-MARIE COOPER O’BOYLE is a Catholic wife, mother, speaker and author. She also hosts the EWTN program Everyday Blessings for Catholic Moms. Find her online at donnacooperoboyle.com.

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life

a shared mission: With the support of more than 1,000 lay people, the work of the Sisters of Life has become international

c

atholics in the Toronto area are making a big difference in the work of the Sisters of Life Visitation Mission. In particular, local Knights of Columbus, often in conjunction with their wives and families, have been quick to lend a much-needed hand.

Established in 2007, the mission is modeled on the work of its New York City parent, which has supported thousands of women in crisis pregnancies since 1991. Toronto became the site of the sisters’ first international expansion largely at the request of Archbishop Thomas Collins, who was well aware of the sisters’ work in the United States.

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One of the first orders of business upon the arrival of the Sisters of Life was to visit parishes, schools and established pro-life groups, so as to spread word of their operation and to appeal for as much help as they could.

The sisters’ request for volunteer assistance found a receptive audience in Greg and Carol Hanlon of Toronto. Greg, a member of Blessed Trinity Council 11681, devoted countless hours to painting, renovating and remodeling the sisters’ Toronto headquarters, a one-time parish turned over to the Sisters of Life by Archbishop Collins.

As a retired house painter and professional handyman,

Photo by Josh lanzarini

by Mike Mastromatteo

Pictured left to right: Sister Maria Kateri, Sister Mary Rose and Sister John Mary stand with Greg and Carol Hanlon, who assist the Toronto Mission of the Sisters of Life through its Co-Workers of Life volunteer program.

“The Knights of Columbus have been a tremendous support to the Sisters of Life since our arrival here in Toronto,” said Sister Mary Rose. “Several councils have made significant donations to the sisters here. They have also helped us get our center started by assisting with renovations that Greg was happy to lend his experience. And he found extra needed to be done in order to make it a warm place for pregmotivation in supporting the community’s positive pro-life nant women to come.” charism.

At Greg Hanlon’s urging, Council 11681 recently donated “I feel I’m always working under the K of C banner when $4,000 to the sisters. According to Past Grand Knight Jan I get involved with the Sisters of Life,” Greg said, “but the Novakowski, it was easy for Knights and their families to get sisters’ invitation to lay people to help out provided even behind the Sisters of Life Toronto Mission. He and his wife, more motivation.”

Camila, have even combined support of the sisters with their Meanwhile, Carol Hanlon acts as a friend and confidante local travel plans. to young women facing unplanned pregnancies. Like her “We traveled all over from Barrie to Peterborough to husband, Carol was drawn to the work after hearing one of Hamilton, collecting cribs and other baby accessories,” he the sisters’ parish appeals for lay support. said.

“Although I’ve always supported pro-life work, I hadn’t been Other K of C councils, especially in Toronto’s east end, very active in the past,” she said. “But when the sisters made have also responded with material aid, fundraising and a dedtheir appeal, it seemed natural for icated volunteer spirit. Colin Greg and me to do something.”

Bogue, grand knight of St. BoniThe couple agreed to become face Council 10516, was intro“As Catholic men, we Co-Workers of Life, taking on duced to the Sisters of Life during volunteer positions tailor-made a “Life Chain” event in October believe that all life is to be for lay people with an apprecia2009. Later that year, the council tion for the pro-life cause. was asked to assist with renovacherished from conception “We provide direct services to tions to the sisters’ headquarters at to natural death. The pregnant women in need,” said St. Catherine of Siena Church.

Sister Mary Rose, local superior “As Catholic men, we believe that mission of the Sisters of Life of the Toronto Mission. “Most of all life is to be cherished from conthe women coming to us are ception to natural death,” Bogue embodies this belief.” looking for support. That supsaid. “The mission of the Sisters of port is provided through our netLife embodies this belief.” work of Co-Workers, who do The impression that the sisters things such as taking a woman to a doctor’s appointment, have made on lay people and local pro-life organizations is taking her out for lunch, just being a friend to her. Others due, in part, to the commitment and humility with which may assist her with moving from one apartment to another, they pursue pro-life ideals. They were recently featured in or provide professional services, such as legal advice or coun- Chatelaine, a prominent Canadian women’s magazine, which seling. When she has support, she is then able to give life to cited the sisters’ non-judgmental attitude that informs their her child.” service. This is a key factor, the article said, to the “remarkSince 2007, Toronto has been blessed with the active sup- able impression” that the sisters have made not only on port of approximately 1,200 Co-Workers, according to Sister clients and lay volunteers, but also on those who continue to Mary Rose. Lay help is generally divided into “Handmaid” defend abortion. roles for women and “St. Joseph’s Workers” for men — alWhether it is in Toronto or New York, though, the basic though there are many ways that people offer their talents support offered by the sisters remains the same. In its three and support. years of operation, the Toronto Mission has assisted more “Most of our Co-Workers met us through our visits to their than 100 women in crisis pregnancies, helping them to parishes over the past two years,” Sister Mary Rose said. “We choose life for their babies. have been warmly welcomed by pastors, who allow us to “Let’s face it,” said Carol Hanlon. “These sisters have a speak at Masses following Communion.” hard job to do, but the joy that they exude in doing the work In view of the fact that the entire Sisters of Life community makes it almost impossible to resist.” in Toronto consists of just six professed sisters and one To find out how you can volunteer as a Co-Worker of Life, novice, it is of no small significance that the laity has taken call (347) 843-8900 (United States) or (877) 543-3380 on such a key role.

(Canada). For more information, visit sistersoflife.org.♦ While the Hanlons typify the positive community response to the sisters’ initial appeal, the response of local Knights is MIKE MASTROMATTEO, a member of Blessed Trinity Council 11681, writes from Toronto. noteworthy as well.

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Quest the

for a Groundbreaking ethical stem-cell research provides hope in a family’s struggle to find successful treatments

by Joseph O’Brien

B

orn three years apart, Peyton and Kayla Hadley began their lives as normal, healthy children. For their first seven years, both progressed normally as they began elementary school, scoring high on tests with excellent reading skills. Then, when Peyton turned 8, things began to change.

One of the first signs that something wasn’t right began with Peyton’s tendency to cock his head while reading.

“It was gradual at first,” said Bryan Hadley, Peyton and Kayla’s father and a member of Rogue River Council 1594 in Medford, Ore. “We’d notice that he was having a harder and harder time tracking down or up with his eyes.”

After a battery of tests administered by medical doctors, eye doctors and physical therapists, the Hadley family finally received an explanation of their son’s problems on Nov. 9, 2007. Peyton had a neurodegenerative disease known as Niemann-Pick Type C (NPC). It is almost always fatal, and it has no cure.

Although tempered by the news that the Hadleys’ third child, Jonah, tested negative for the disease, Kayla was also diagnosed with NPC about a year later.

PROMOTING ETHICAL RESEARCH Bryan and his wife Laura recovered from the shock and, putting their faith in God and science, began researching the disease. They discovered NPC was among more than 5,000 “orphan diseases” — rare disorders that often affect children and, because they are largely ignored by the pharmaceutical industry, have little hope for cures. A metabolic disorder that prevents cells from properly processing cholesterol, NPC is so rare that there are only about 500 diagnosed cases worldwide.

Despite having a rare neurodegenerative disease called Niemann-Pick Type C, the two oldest Hadley children, Peyton and Kayla, enjoy staying active and participating in events with their family at their Catholic parish in Medford, Ore. 14 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦

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More directly, Moy added, stem cells could be used as a form of therapy. “To some diseases, the adult stem cell might be able to partially or fully regenerate organ function,” he said.

Because of the progress that has already been made, researchers at the National Institute of Health Chemical Genomics Center in Bethesda, Md., announced in September that they would use the cell lines obtained from the Hadley children to begin identifying drugs to treat NPC. Ultimately, by working with other patients who have orphan diseases, the scientists at the John Paul II Stem Cell Research Institute plan to create a bank of disease-specific stem cells and provide hope for many other families like the Hadleys.

LIVING WITH FAITH With a little more than 100 cases of NPC in the United States, the Hadleys have found it easy to network with other families struggling with the disease. “We have talked about it with other families. They share our opinion on the issue, and are assisting in pushing adult stem-cell research,” Bryan said.

The Hadleys are aware that others are looking to embryonic stem cells for a cure to NPC, but knowing that they and other families are witnessing to the truth serves as yet another sign of hope in their ordeal. cells are not “Based on recent history, adult stem THE PROGRESSION OF HOPE cells are not only the ethical choice for only the ethical choice for The Hadleys believe that adult stem stem-cell research, but also have stem-cell research, but also proven to hold the greatest promise to cells not only offer an ethical basis for research, but also hold one of the treat and cure rare diseases,” Laura said. hold the greatest promise.” greatest hopes for finding a cure.

So far, Kayla shows no perceptible Most credible estimates, they said, signs of her disease except for an enput any real cure about 10 years away, larged spleen. Peyton, though, is but they are working to revise that forecast with help from “much farther along,” according to the Hadleys. groups such as the John Paul II Stem Cell Research Institute in “He has many of the main hallmarks,” Laura said. “He has the Iowa City, Iowa. Dr. Alan Moy founded the institute in 2006 slow gait, and without a cure, eventually he’ll be in a wheelchair in part to make up for the lack of ethical stem-cell research at and then bedridden with a gastric tube inserted to help him eat.” secular institutes and the poor government funding that is typNonetheless, Peyton still attends the Hadleys’ parish middle ically directed toward adult stem cells. school and plays on the school’s basketball team.

As a first step toward a cure for NPC, Moy and his col“He’s not able to take tests, but he still enjoys learning and payleagues were able to harvest and cultivate adult stem-cell lines ing attention,” Laura said. “He especially likes to learn about hisfrom Peyton and Kayla’s fat tissue. They are now working to tory and his faith. There’s not a day that goes by that he doesn’t develop methods to generate induced pluripotent stem cells tell us about the saint of the day.”

— omnibus cells with the same potential as embryonic stem Kayla is currently in fifth grade and stays busy playing the saxcells to differentiate. ophone and attending dance class. Sometimes, it can be a real “We want to take the adult stem cells and genetically repro- struggle working through her condition to maintain a mostly norgram them back to the most primitive state,” Moy explained, mal existence. adding that such cells are not ethically controversial.

“We can’t have milk and have to drink rice milk,” she said, deOnce the methods are successfully developed, Moy said, scribing their strictly fat-free diet. She added that she doesn’t find doctors can use the resulting cells to battle NPC as a tool or a school as difficult as the medical tests that she and her brother therapy. have had to undergo.

“As a tool, we’ll take a cell from a patient with the disease, cre“The IVs we have to do aren’t hard, but they have to stick a ate a stem cell model and then take an already approved drug,” needle in each time and it hurts,” she said, adding that when explained Moy. “The hope is that the drug will enter into the things get tough, she asks her favorite saint, St. Thérèse of the cell and attach to the genetically mutated protein. It will then Child Jesus, to intercede.♦ help restore fully or partially the mutated protein to get it to JOSEPH O’BRIEN writes from Wisconsin. function more normally.”

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PreVIouS SPreaD: Photos by Jared Cruce

NPC patients commonly suffer from an enlargement of the liver and spleen, where cholesterol-glutted cells accumulate. Affected cells also corrode the central nervous system, leading to debilitated motor skills. Another telltale sign of the disease is vertical gaze palsy — which Peyton exhibited in his reading habits. Because it usually leads to the same mental regression, NPC is often called “juvenile Alzheimer’s.”

Once they knew what they were up against, the Hadleys created a non-profit organization, Hadley Hope (hadleyhope.com), to help find a cure. In addition to raising awareness about NPC, which often goes undiagnosed, the organization has raised more than $211,000 in research funds since 2007. “The only way to do anything about the disease was to come up with the money for research,” Laura explained.

“We thought early on about what would happen if scientists found a cure for NPC that uses embryonic stem cells,” Bryan said. “Would we use that cure with our children? The answer is no. It would be the taking of another life to save our children, and that can never be justified in our faith.”

Not that the decision was easy, Laura added. “If there was a cure in front of us involving embryonic stem cells,” she said, “it would be heart-wrenching, but I know what our faith tells us — and we believe it to the core.”

“Adult stem

STEM CELLS EXPLAINED An interview about the science and ethics of stem-cell research TO HELP READERS better understand stem-cell research and to address common misconceptions, Columbia interviewed Dr. David Prentice, an internationally recognized expert on stem cells and cloning. A doctor of biochemistry, Prentice was selected by the U.S. President’s Council on Bioethics to write their comprehensive review of adult stem cell research in 2004. He is also a founding member of Do No Harm: The Coalition of Americans for Research Ethics and senior fellow for life sciences at Family Research Council.

COLUMBIA: What are stem cells and what are the different types?

PRENTICE: Stem cells have two chief characteristics: They continue to grow and divide so there is always a pool of cells available, and they can change into any of the various tissues of the body.

There are, at present, three types of stem cells. Embryonic stem cells come from young embryos about a week after conception, and you have to destroy that young life to extract them. Besides the obvious ethical problem, they also like to grow and try to make all the tissues at once. The end result is that after 30 years of research with embryonic stem cells — first with mice and then with human embryonic stem cells — researchers still cannot control their growth.

The cells tend to make tumors when injected into the lab mice. There are problems with transplant rejections and with forming mature, functional tissues. From a practical level, they are not very good cells for clinical treatments.

The second type is adult stem cells. We are born with them and continue to have them in all of our tissues and organs. They are also in umbilical cord blood and in the placenta. There is no ethical problem with adult stem cells — you don’t have to harm the donor. For several decades, adult stem cells have already been proven to repair and replace damaged and diseased tissues. They have been used for many treatments over the last five or 10 years, including spinal cord injury, juvenile diabetes, heart damage and dozens of other conditions.

Finally, there is a newer type of stem cell, a somewhat intermediate type. The technical term is induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. They are made by taking a normal cell, such as a skin cell, and adding a few genes that reprogram how that cell behaves. They look and act like embryonic stem cells, but they can be obtained ethically for laboratory studies. There are no embryos, no women’s eggs and no cloning techniques involved.

COLUMBIA: How many adult stem cell treatments are currently being used?

PRENTICE: There are at least 73 that have been verified by published scientific evidence, and there are probably close to 80 now. There were, at last count, more than 50,000 patients around the globe who receive adult stem-cell transplants every year.

COLUMBIA: How much funding and effort is put into adult stemcell research as opposed to embryonic stem-cell research?

PRENTICE: From the federal government there is more adult stem cell money than there is embryonic, although that is changing. Em-

bryonic research, over the last nine years, has received more than half a billion federal taxpayer dollars, and its rate of increase is much steeper in terms of federal support. Most adult stem cell funding is not going toward the newer studies and clinical trials for things like heart disease, stroke and diabetes. Some states have poured billions of dollars into embryonic stem cells, whereas there is not nearly as much going to adult stem-cell research.

COLUMBIA: Why is there so much focus on embryonic stem cells?

PRENTICE: I think the obsession with embryonic stem cells is primarily ideological and economic. It is perhaps interesting science for some people, but it is very expensive science. It has been sold to the public, as well as to legislators, with promises of all of the cures and the eventual economic return that will come, but essentially it is like selling snake oil.

COLUMBIA: Why would there be more of an economic motive in embryonic than adult stem cells?

PRENTICE: You can patent embryonic stem cell lines. Everyone that is interested in embryonic research wants to have their own line of embryonic stem cells that they can patent and then reap the profits.

Even if no treatments ever happen, any scientist or company that wants to work with those cells has to pay a licensing fee. It becomes a moneymaker simply to destroy embryos, grow the cells and then market those cells for more basic lab studies.

COLUMBIA: How do laws and treatments in the United States regarding stem-cell research compare to those overseas?

PRENTICE: In the United States, at the federal level, there is no legal restriction for embryonic research or even for cloning. In some countries, such as Italy, it is against the law to destroy a human embryo, whereas there are very liberal laws in other countries, including the United Kingdom and China.

America is behind in terms of adult stem cell research and treatments. Germany, which since the early 1990s has prohibited destruction of a human embryo, is one of numerous countries around the world leading in terms of new adult stem-cell treatments. In fact, some U.S. scientists first did their adult stem-cell treatments in other countries because they could not get the funding or the interest in the United States.

COLUMBIA: Are there any other big challenges facing adult stemcell research?

PRENTICE: Because the media will often just say “stem-cell research” without using an adjective, people automatically assume they are talking about embryonic. Those who support embryonic stem-cell research then claim that the “other side” is against research of any kind.

But we support adult stem cells. We support anything that does not harm or destroy human life. We support real science. Embryonic stem-cell research is an obsolete science and an unethical science. The sooner we leave it behind, the better.♦

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S

he knew the need was far greater than she could meet, One of the first volunteers was Rick Kuhr, a member of but Karen Bussey also knew she could at least help one East Lansing Council 7816 and a professional electrician. He person at a time when she opened a house for the dying in offered to do the electrical work as Mother Teresa House was Lansing, Mich., in 1997. being renovated, but since there was already a contractor, Take, for instance, a truck driver named Jim, whose truck Bussey asked him to be a caregiver. was his home — until he was dying of cancer and his boss Kuhr did not know what the job would involve, but agreed. persuaded him to go to Mother Teresa House to be cared for. At that time, Jack Kevorkian was making news for his role in He mostly slept the first few days, but was awake and alert helping people to kill themselves. “I figured the best way to for the annual Christmas feast at the house. When Bussey counteract that was to make the sick person comfortable,” gave him a present — a pair of slippers to keep his feet warm Kuhr said. “The first person I cared for turned out to be an — tears came to his electrician, so we spent eyes. It was the first gift many hours talking.” he had received in Kuhr continued as a years. caregiver until acceptJim’s estranged chiling responsibilities as dren contacted their fathe house’s maintether when they learned nance man, a job for where he was, and some which he feels better healing occurred besuited. Still, he holds tween them. Surthe Mother Teresa rounded by the love of House caregivers in the the Mother Teresa highest esteem.

House staff and volun“They embody what teers, he soon died Christianity should be. peacefully, having recThe guests pay nothing onciled with God, his but get unconditional children and himself. love until they die,” he “What brings peace said. to the soul is being Bussey, who has a loved and reassured,” master’s degree in cliniBussey said. “If we are Through compassionate care, a Catholic home cal social work, specialable to make a warm izing in gerontology, for the dying prepares souls for eternal life place for one person believes Mother Teresa like Jim, it’s worth it.”

House is filling the

by Bob Horning unmet needs she enCARE FOR BODY countered during her AND SOUL seven years as a home Mother Teresa House hospice social worker. receives guests that have “People who are from three weeks to three months to live. A team of profes- dying often don’t have adequate care,” she explained. “They sional staff and 70 volunteers covers the house 24 hours a day, may not have a family, or the family may have too many other seven days a week. They do everything for the guests that a problems. Our priority is to take those who have no other caregiver would do at home: get the mail, answer the phone, help and who also may not have any money.” prepare meals and help with eating and personal functions.

In addition to physical care, there is also spiritual care at They are also present as companions and listeners. Nurses Mother Teresa House. When a new guest arrives, a staff memcome in daily or when needed. ber offers to pray with him or her, and the guest is introduced The guests’ families are encouraged to take a turn at light- to Father Jeffrey Njus, the house chaplain. A member of duty caregiving, especially on Sunday afternoons and holi- St. Mary Cathedral Council 11694, Father Njus serves as days. “By involving them, the families are better supported to parochial vicar for the diocese’s cathedral, conveniently logo through their loss,” Bussey said. cated across the street. The house also includes a second-floor chapel where the Blessed Sacrament is reserved and Mass is offered once a month.

Opposite page: Karen Bussey, founder and director of Mother Teresa House Each afternoon at 3 p.m., the workers pray the Divine in Lansing, Mich., attends to one of the house’s guests.

Mercy chaplet together for the guests and their needs. For in-

a house of

lOVE

Photo by James luning, FAITH Magazine

and

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dividual prayer, each guest has a card noting the type of prayer that is preferred. One might like to have a volunteer pray the rosary; another welcomes any type of prayer; and another might prefer hearing readings of Scripture. For those not inclined to pray, a blessing is posted on the door for the caregivers to offer silently.

Occasionally, someone will stabilize and become well while at Mother Teresa House. Bussey tells about one man, a tough guy, who said to them after being there awhile, “Why did I have to live this long before I met people like you?” He was able to leave, and lived for two and a half more years.

The Order’s Catholic Information Service offers the booklet Do No Harm: A Guide to Human Dignity and Morally Sound End-of-Life Care by Dominican Father Christopher M. Salinga to help provide principles for caring for loved ones nearing the end of life. Obtain a free copy in PDF format from kofc.org/cis. You can request a free copy by writing to cis@kofc.org or CIS, PO Box 1971, New Haven, CT 06521-1971.

Some of the 70 volunteer caregivers, along with staff, stand on the porch of Mother Teresa House. the area quietly support the house through their time and money and helping with benefit breakfasts, dinners, golf outings, and other fundraisers.”

The house has always had enough resources to operate, but constantly relies on contributions to stay open, Bussey said.

“It reminds me that we rely upon God, and that we are doing this together with him.”

The most difficult thing, according to Bussey, is turning people away when the house is full. Fortunately, others have perceived the need for more places like Mother Teresa House.

Inspired by what the staff has accomplished, there are now six similar houses in Michigan. Two are homes for the elderly in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti started by Sister Fran Depuydt of the Servants of God’s Love.

“The big thing I learned from Karen and watching what she was doing is that my dream was actually possible, that it could be done,” Sister Fran said. “What’s so good about Karen is that she is obviously disposed to the Lord and wants to give as much of him as possible to those she cares for before they die.”

“We try to provide a place of peace and love and care for the physical needs of our guests so they are free to focus on inner needs,” Bussey said. “It’s difficult to see a guest not in harmony with God and others at the end of their life. So we pray with them, and we tell them that God knows their fear, that he is the love they feel from us.”

Although Mother Teresa House is a home for the dying, it is far from a sad place. “In fact, there is great joy — the joy of giving to others and in the love that is shared,” Bussey said.

“The love and giving can come from the guests, too, at times.

We have had spiritual giants live here, guests who have loved others when they couldn’t even roll over in bed unaided. They have taught me how to live.”♦ BOB HORNING writes for the Catholic press from Ann Arbor, Mich.

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Photo courtesy mother Teresa House

LEARNING TO RELY ON GOD It was during times of prayer while working as a home hospice worker that Bussey understood that God was asking her to open a house for the dying. “For that to happen, I knew God would have to make my heart much larger in love,” Bussey said. “I began to learn how much he loves the poor and dependent, and to what extent he will go to get people to help them.”

Bussey communicated regularly with the coordinators of a volunteer hospice in North Carolina to learn how to proceed.

Reading about Rose Hawthorne and her work with incurable cancer patients, as well as the 1971 Mother Teresa biography titled Something Beautiful for God, provided her with the vision and courage to begin.

“We started with one person; now we have three guests in the house at a time and care for about 30 throughout the year,” said Bussey. On the chapel walls are nameplates for all 200 who have lived and died at the house.

Most of the funding for Mother Teresa House comes from individuals, but it also receives donations from churches and organizations. The use of the house itself is donated by the Diocese of Lansing.

K of C councils are among those that pitch in. According to Kuhr, Council 7816 recently donated a dehumidifier to the house, and at least six area councils have provided money and volunteer assistance.

Phil Mondro, a member of Council 11694, also serves on the board of directors for the house. He is a former caregiver and is now involved in fundraising and long-term strategy.

“My two to three years as a caregiver were wonderful, rewarding and humbling to be able to help people at such a simple level,” he said. “I am proud of how many Knights from

END-OF-LIFE DECISIONS Answering common questions about Catholic teachings regarding medical care and the end of life EDITOR’S NOTE: A version of this article was originally written for Catholic Q & A on ewtn.com and has been adapted for Columbia with permission.

D

iscussions about end-of-life care inevitably raise a number of moral, legal and constitutional issues about the right to life and the so-called right to die. The natural law and the Fifth Commandment require that all ordinary means — such as food, water and ordinary medial care — be used to preserve life. Since the Middle Ages, however, Catholic theologians have recognized that human beings are not morally obligated to undergo every possible medical treatment to save their lives. Treatments that are unduly burdensome or sorrowful or that will only prolong the suffering of a dying person are morally extraordinary, meaning they are not obligatory.

In recent decades, major advances in medicine have complicated the decision whether to undergo or forego medical treatment, especially since medicine can now save many people who would simply have been allowed to die in the past.

Furthermore, many people continue to live for long periods in comatose or semi-conscious states, unable to live without technological assistance. The following questions and answers address some of the complexities of this issue.

When may medical therapies, procedures, equipment and the like be withheld or withdrawn from a patient?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “Discontinuing medical procedures that are burdensome, dangerous, extraordinary, or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be legitimate; it is the refusal of ‘over-zealous’ treatment.

Here one does not will to cause death; one’s inability to impede it is merely accepted” (2278).

When a person has an underlying terminal disease, when an organ cannot work without mechanical assistance, or

when a proposed therapy is dangerous or has little chance of success, then the omission of a machine, medicine or therapy allows nature to takes its course.

It does not directly kill the person, even though it may contribute to the person dying earlier than if aggressive treatment had been done.

Does this also apply to artificially provided nutrition and hydration?

Yes, but only when the moral conditions noted above are met. We must, therefore, ask whether the withdrawal of nutrition and hydration will allow the person to die from an underlying condition or will kill the person. So, for example, if a sick person’s body is no longer able to process food and water, there is no moral obligation to provide them by artificial means. The patient will die of his disease before starvation or dehydration will cause his death.

When, however, the withdrawal of nutrition and hydration is intended to kill the person, or will be the immediate and direct cause of one’s death, quite apart from any disease or failure of one’s body, then to withdraw food and water would be an act of euthanasia, a grave sin against the natural law and the law of God. Pope John Paul II addressed this issue in an address to a group of physicians in Rome in March 2004. He said, “[T]he administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act.” When death by starvation is the direct outcome of their withdrawal, it becomes “euthanasia by omission” and “the deliberate and morally unacceptable killing of a human person” (cf. Evangelium Vitae, 65).

What exactly is natural law?

The natural law consists of moral truths that can be discerned by human reason, without the assistance of God’s revelation. An example is the right to

life. Almost all human societies throughout history, both religious and non-religious, have recognized that it is wrong to kill an innocent person. This natural law principle allows us to see that any action that directly and intentionally kills an innocent person is unjust.

What can people do to ensure that their wishes and their religious beliefs are respected by their family, medical personnel and the courts?

The best way is by means of an advance health care directive, which states the patient’s wishes with respect to aggressive medical treatment. There are two basic kinds of advance directives: 1. Living Will. By this document, a person decides completely in advance whether they want to be kept alive by technology. It is a “yes” or “no” statement, which then places the matter in the hands of the medical community.

Many Catholic bishops and moralists consider this an unsatisfactory approach, as it does not provide for unforeseen circumstances.

2. Advance Directive with a Durable Power of Attorney or Health Care Proxy.

These documents give to a friend or family member the authority to make health care decisions. By appointing an agent, or giving someone durable power of attorney, the patient allows for unforeseen circumstances. By stating in an advance directive that one wants Catholic teaching adhered to, one can ensure that neither the agent nor the medical institution will disregard that teaching. Together, they ensure that a trusted person — rather than strangers — will make circumstantially appropriate decisions.

For examples of both a health care proxy form and an advance directive form, visit the National Catholic Bioethics Center website at ncbcenter.org.♦ COLIN B. DONOVAN, S.T.L., is vice president for theology at the Eternal World Television Network (EWTN).

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 21

good medicine Catholic physicians work to provide life-giving alternatives to reproductive technologies

by Colleen Rouleau

W

hen Lisa and Jason Maxson of Omaha, Neb., married in October 2007, they knew that they might never be able to have a child. Lisa had received treatment for a hormonal imbalance since 2003. Although the correction of the imbalance helped to alleviate some of her symptoms, she was also diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome. The couple was informed that this condition, which impedes ovulation, would make conception very unlikely.

Current statistics indicate that nearly one in six couples of childbearing age experience infertility — defined as an inability to conceive after one year of normal intercourse. This leads many to turn to reproductive technologies that are readily available at fertility clinics.

For the Maxsons, however, solutions such as in vitro fertilization (IVF) were simply not an option. They accepted the Catholic teaching about techniques that disassociate the union of husband and wife from procreation. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains, these techniques violate the nature of married love and offend the dignity of the person and the rights of the child (see 2373-79).

Where, then, does a couple like the Maxsons turn? Thankfully, there are medical options that respect human dignity when facing the problem of infertility. Throughout North America, there are physicians whose way of viewing married couples and the gift of new life causes them to practice medicine differently. These doctors are providing successful fertility care that is offering real hope and healing.

FRUITFUL ALTERNATIVES During Dr. Carlos Vera’s medical residency, he noticed there was often a dismissive attitude among doctors concerning a patient’s capacity to take responsibility for his or her fertility. Birth control was seen as a solution to all sorts of irregularities in a woman’s cycle, and no explanations were given to patients about the pill’s negative side effects.

At the time, Vera prescribed contraception for various reasons and conditions. Yet, he increasingly found that his patients wanted to be treated with greater respect. A desire to treat his patients in a more human manner is what ultimately led Vera, a member of Archbishop Fulton Sheen Council 7502 in Denver, to change his approach to fertility.

At his parish, Vera saw a pamphlet about natural family planning (NFP) training and registered with his wife for the seminar.

It was there he learned that hormonal birth control can act as an 22 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦

JANUARY 2011

abortifacient — that is, by preventing the implantation of an embryo after conception.

“We don’t realize the gravity of some of the things we are doing,” said Vera. “I realized that someday I would have to answer to God.” For years now, Vera has worked with NFP practitioners in his area. He emphasizes that fertility awareness and fertility-focused intercourse have helped many couples to conceive children.

“Every time I see a patient who is pregnant, I thank God for the work being done by Catholic doctors that are following the Church,” said Vera. “I am really seeing God’s work.”

Dr. Anne Mielnik, the director and co-founder of Gianna, a Catholic health care center in New York City, said, “In the area of attacks on human life, such as contraception and abortion, it is doctors who are providing these things. I believe it is doctors who must provide effective and fruitful alternatives.”

Mielnik begins with the premise that authentic fertility care is not simply about achieving the goal of pregnancy. Instead, she believes, it involves providing healing and treatment for the whole person.

“Infertility is one of the most painful conditions a person can experience,” said Mielnik. “I am here to share their struggle — to offer hope based on doing something right and good for them.

As a doctor, this brings tremendous satisfaction.”

Mielnik explains that her clinic, which counts the K of C Supreme Council among its supporters, does not use different medication or surgeries than other fertility clinics. Rather, it is the philosophy of respecting and restoring the natural rhythms of fertility that makes the difference.

“The Church’s understanding of the person has led to better medicine and more effective treatment of the problem of infertility,” said Mielnik. “If it weren’t for the Knights of Columbus and other donors, we wouldn’t be here. I am so grateful to them and to the moral support we receive from Archbishop (Timothy) Dolan (of New York).”

The Catholic Information Service booklet titled The Child: Begotten Not Manmade provides more information about the Catholic teaching on in vitro fertilization. It is part of the Veritas Series and available free in PDF format at kofc.org/cis. You may also request a free copy by writing to cis@kofc.org or CIS, PO Box 1971, New Haven, CT 06521-1971.

Photo by robert ervin

Jason and Lisa Maxson of Omaha, Neb., prepare for the arrival of their first child. Married in 2007, they were able to conceive after Catholic doctors diagnosed and treated the root causes of the couple’s infertility.

A NATURAL APPROACH The couples who see doctors such as Mielnik and Vera are grateful for their holistic, pro-life perspective. Rather than simply applying a technological solution to the problem of infertility, the care provided by clinics such as Gianna attempts to be a truly human, compassionate response. This includes accompanying the couple in their suffering and allowing them to express their faith in the context of treatment. Furthermore, patient care does not end if a couple cannot conceive. In this situation, doctors help the couple transition to mourning and grief.

Lisa Maxson experienced this kind of care from physicians like Dr. Catherine Keefe, who is a graduate of the fellowship program at the Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction, founded in Omaha by Dr. Thomas Hilgers in 1985.

Hilgers, a member of St. John Vianney Council 7740, developed the Creighton method of NFP as well as natural procreative (NaPro) technology, which is used by doctors to diagnose and treat infertility.

“I liked the natural approach these doctors took,” Lisa said. “I knew I wouldn’t be given the birth control pill just to cover my symptoms. It was also a relief knowing that I would not have to undergo very invasive procedures as is done with IVF, and we

wouldn’t be paying money to ‘get’ a baby. The doctors were there first to look at my health and underlying issues.”

After her treatments at the institute, Lisa began seeing Dr. Keefe for further consultations. She recalled walking through the clinic and noting that there were crucifixes in each room. It was also common for staff and nurses to pray with her. “I never felt I was just another patient,” Lisa said.

Around the time of the Maxsons’ first wedding anniversary, a laparoscopy confirmed a diagnosis of endometriosis. Lisa then underwent surgery to remove scar tissue that was impeding ovulation and was given ovary stimulation medicine so as to increase her chances of conception.

“It is so difficult when all your friends are getting pregnant,” she said. “It seemed when we were trying that everyone else was having babies.”

Still, the Maxsons put their faith in God and trusted that they were receiving the best medical care. “As a couple, it is important to realize that a child is a gift and not simply a right just because you are married,” Lisa said.

A year and a half after her surgery, Lisa eventually conceived.

Keefe and her staff were delighted by the news, and the Maxsons are awaiting the arrival of their first baby in late January.

“They were truly hoping we would be able to conceive, accompanying us when we did not and rejoicing with us when we finally did,” Lisa said.♦ COLLEEN ROULEAU writes from Edmonton, Alberta.

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 23

Shepherds

on the

Sidewalk

The 40 Days for Life campaign is gaining momentum and saving lives

by Carolee McGrath

24 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦

JANUARY 2011

Photos courtesy 40 Days for life

B

rianna and Michael had the very first appointment of Life Month, respectively. From Sept. 22-Oct. 31, 2010, a the morning at an abortion clinic in Reno, Nev., on record 238 locations in the United States, Canada, Australia, May 22, 2008. Just 18 years old, Brianna was two England, Northern Ireland and Denmark came together to pray weeks away from graduating high school with honors — and for the unborn and their parents. she was pregnant. With their future on the line, the young cou“The goal is to end abortion in America through the grassple’s decision was made: They were going to abort their baby. roots and go to the places where abortions actually happen,” Brianna knew what to expect from that morning’s appoint- said Shawn Carney, a member of Fredericksburg (Va.) Council ment. After all, she had aborted her first baby at the same clinic 4034 and campaign director of 40 Days for Life. “God uses the when she was 17. “I remember so 40 days throughout Scripture not vividly everything that happened,” she only to change culture, but to call said. “It still hurts as bad as it did the his own people back to him. Our first day.”

Lord went into the desert for 40 With a stiff upper lip, Brianna dedays before he gave his life for us, cided to follow the advice of people and that’s why we use this timeshe trusted. But in the parking lot of frame for the crisis of abortion.” the clinic that day, a stranger carrying Since this pro-life effort began, it a large sign offered her and Michael has taken off across the United another choice.

States and beyond. According to “A man named Richard was standCarney, the organization’s reports ing out there,” Brianna recalled. “He indicate that nearly 3,600 babies looked so sad. I remember seeing big have been spared from abortion as a letters that said, ‘God.’” result of the last seven campaigns.

That simple sign was all it took for “Those numbers are conservative Brianna and Michael to rethink their because we only report the ones decision. “Mike took it as a sign, and we’ve known about,” Carney exAbby Johnson and Shawn Carney stand outside the he said, ‘Maybe we’re supposed to plained. He added that nine aborPlanned Parenthood clinic in Bryan, Texas, where Johnkeep this baby,’” Brianna said. tion facilities have closed down after son once worked as director. She now prays with fellow The couple left the abortion facility 40 Days for Life prayer vigils and 40 Days for Life volunteers for the clinic’s closing. parking lot without keeping their apdozens of workers at abortion clinics pointment. Later that year, they welhave walked off the job. One examcomed baby Juliana into the world. ple is Abby Johnson, the former director of Planned Parenthood in Bryan/College Station, Texas, A NEW PERSPECTIVE where 40 Days for Life began.

Stories like this inspired organizers in Bryan and College Sta“I thought, ‘abortion is legal’,” said Johnson. “It’s always tion, Texas, to launch the first 40 Days for Life campaign in going to remain legal, so women need to have an abortion in a 2004. The Christ-centered initiative, which is aimed at ending safe place. At the time, that made sense to me. Now my whole abortion, includes three components: prayer and fasting, peace- view has changed.” ful vigil, and community outreach.

Johnson quit her job during the 40 Days for Life fall 2009 For the past four years, coordinated campaigns have been campaign after watching a doctor perform an ultrasoundheld in the spring and fall, coinciding with Lent and Respect guided abortion. “I was looking at the screen and I saw the

Children in Ithaca, N.Y., hold signs in peaceful protest against an abortion clinic during the 40 Days for Life fall 2010 campaign. A record 238 cities participated in the campaign. child begin to move while he was probing the baby,” she said.

“All of a sudden I realized this baby was feeling what was taking place. The baby was flailing and trying to get away from the probe. I was shocked. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.”

Not long after, Johnson resigned and began volunteering with 40 Days for Life. She and her husband, who have a fouryear-old girl, also converted to Catholicism.

“If there’s ever a place where we need the hope of Christ, it is there on the sidewalks,” Johnson said, adding that even though it can be uncomfortable for many people to pray in public, it is necessary. “Nobody grows up wanting to work in an abortion clinic. Nobody grows up wanting to have an abortion. … We have to be outside the abortion facilities to help them choose life.”

A PRAYERFUL PRESENCE When communities participate in 40 Days for Life, local K of C units and individual Knights are frequently among the most active volunteers.

“The Knights of Columbus have been vital in spreading the 40 Days for Life campaign,” said Carney, adding that the reason for this is simple: “It is the responsibility of Knights to defend the Church and to defend women.”

Stephen Ziemba, immediate past state deputy of Indiana and a 40 Days for Life volunteer, said he will never forget a certain young mother who was walking into a clinic to have an abortion.

“She decided because of the sidewalk counselors not to have an abortion,” he explained. “That was a moving experience.”

Collectively, the coordinators and volunteers of 40 Days for Life have heard thousands of similar stories — stories of babies brought to term because of the people standing on the sidewalks and praying. According to Ziemba, these stories affirm that praying publicly outside of abortion clinics makes a difference.

Carney agrees that a public presence is essential. “When you’re there, you’re at the foot of the cross,” he said. “When you go out to pray in front of an abortion clinic, you’re not judging the people who work there. You’re not judging the men and women who use the abortion services. What you are judging, and what we are called to judge as Catholics, is abortion itself, which is intrinsically evil.”

As for Brianna and Michael, they are now married. Michael is going to school to become a nurse and working two jobs to support his family. Brianna has plans to go back to school, too, but for now, she is busy raising Juliana and volunteering with 40 Days for Life.

Brianna says she hopes more people will join those praying peacefully on the sidewalks. And she is forever grateful to her shepherd, Richard, who was out there for her.

“He saved our baby,” Brianna said. “I look at Jules now and I can’t imagine what would have happened if he hadn’t been there.”

The next 40 Days for Life campaign will begin on Ash Wednesday, March 9, and conclude Palm Sunday, April 17. For more information, visit 40daysforlife.com.♦ CAROLEE MCGRATH, a freelance writer and mother of four, writes from Massachusetts.

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 25

­

KNIG HTS IN ACTI ON

REPORTS FROM COUNCILS, ASSEMBLIES AND COLUMBIAN SQUIRES CIRCLES

GIVEN NEW LIFE

DETECTIVE FUND

Seventy members of Saratoga Springs (N.Y.) Council 246 removed solid oak panels, pews and a tabernacle from a recently closed church and transported the items 25 miles north for use at Saratoga Central Catholic School. Under the guidance of Father James Ebert of St. Mary’s Parish in Ballston Spa, the church furnishings were delivered to an unused office at the school that Knights converted into a chapel for students. In addition to transporting the goods, council members also volunteered time and materials to help demolish and refurbish the former office for its new life as a worship space.

Star of the Sea Council 371 in Bayonne, N.J., held a fundraiser that netted $2,000 for the Detective DiNardo Fund. Det. Marc DiNardo was a member of the Jersey City Police Department who died of wounds sustained in the line of duty July 21, 2009.

The funds will help support his widow and three children.

SCHOLARLY DINNER

Our Lady of the Mountains Council 10799 in Sierra Vista, Ariz., volunteered at a spaghetti dinner to benefit

Members of Our Lady of Guadalupe Assembly in Pinecrest, Fla., stand with volunteers and some of the relief goods they collected for earthquake victims in Haiti. One year after a devastating earthquake stuck the nation on Jan. 12, 2010, the need for aid remains great. Knights assembled food, water and medical supplies to fill a shipping container that was sent to provide ongoing support to quake victims.

All Saints Catholic School.

The event, coupled with a raffle and the sale of bricks for a stone walkway, raised $7,500 for the school.

MOVING ABOUT

Archbishop Johnson Council 6767 in Abbotsford, British Columbia, donated an electric wheelchair to Father Benno Burghardt after Field Agent John A. Brown attended a council meeting in Victoria and noticed that Father Burghardt was having mobility problems.

Members of St. John the Baptist Council 8891 in Glen Rock, Pa., construct an addition at the home of a council member whose wife suffered a stroke.

Because of the woman’s income and relative young age, she is not eligible to receive coverage from Medicare or Medicaid to pay for her living or medical expenses. Council members constructed the addition so the Knight could finally bring his wife home from the hospital. The council also held a fundraiser to help offset the cost of the family’s medical care.

26 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦

SIGN OF THE TIMES

Our Lady of the Sea Council 7272 in Gulf Breeze, Fla., donated $12,000 toward the installation of a flagpole and electronic sign at St. Ann Church.

HONORING FAMILIES

Des Frontieres Council 10068 in Degelis, Quebec, organized a special brunch to honor families that welcomed a new child during the previous year.

Thirteen families attended the event, all of whom received a certificate of appreciation.

JANUARY 2011

BLUE MASS

Father Vincent Lo Savio Council 14204 in Thornhill, Ontario, hosted a Blue Mass in honor of active service first responders and members of the military, as well as those who have died in the line of duty.

THE BEST MEDICINE

Middlesex Council 857 in Woodbridge, N.J., sponsored a spaghetti dinner to benefit a parishioner at St. James Church who was diagnosed with stage-four cancer. Ticket sales and donations totaled $2,000 dollars, which will help the family offset the expensive cost of medical treatment.

CHILD IDs

Hoboken (N.J.) Council 159 distributed 1,700 child identification kits to the parents of area children.

Knights also opened their council hall to the local police force so that each child who received a kit could be fingerprinted.

PRISON AWARENESS

As part of its prison awareness program, Binan (Luzon) Council 7957 donated a fully stocked medicine cabinet and several bags of food for use by inmates at the Binan Municipal Jail.

HOSPICE HELP

McMinnville (Ore.) Council 1623 held a benefit breakfast that raised about $400 for an area hospice.

Members of St. Mary of the Lakes Council 6520 in Medford, N.J., lay down new concrete for a handicappedaccessible porch at the home of a local family. After making extensive renovations at their home to accommodate their daughter’s wheelchair, the family discovered that they were unable to afford the projected $22,000 it would cost to remodel their porch as well.

Knights stepped in to help, obtaining plans and permits for the project and providing materials and manpower.

K N I G H T S I N AC T I O N

Luzon Deputy Alonso L. Tan hands out candy to young children living in a refugee village in La Trinidad. Knights distributed care items (and a few treats) to the Missionaries of Charity and to families displaced by floods and mudslides.

SPECIAL WALK-A-THON

Bishop Hill Council 5468 in Campbell River, British Columbia, hosted a walk-a-thon that raised more than $5,000 for Special Olympics. In addition to walking alongside Special Olympics athletes, Knights also provided traffic control during the event.

LIFE SENTENCE

Michael O’Connor Council 5026 in Beauford, S.C., held a “Sentenced for Life” campaign to raise funds for Room at the Inn, which operates a series of shelters for women in crisis pregnancies. Knight Fred Leyda was put in “jail” and posted nearly $9,000 in “bail.” Knights in both North and South Carolina are deeply involved with the Room at the Inn, whose shelter in Bluffton is named for Father Michael J. McGivney.

UPPER RIGHT: Photo by Roy Groething

AEDs DONATED

John W. Mackay Council 2310 in Glen Head, N.Y., donated a new automatic external defibrillator (AED) to St. Mary’s Church in Roslyn and instructed 10 members of the parish on how to use the unit. Shane’s Castle Council 7463 in Waterford

Works, N.J., organized a program for council members to learn CPR and the proper use of an AED. Knights trained with their parish nurse to learn both lifesaving techniques in advance of the installation of AEDs at several area churches. Finally, St. Mark the Evangelist Council 13826 in Erie, Pa., held a parish fund drive that raised $1,650 to purchase an AED. SHELVING FOR TREASURES

Durango (Colo.) Council 1408 and Holy Trinity of Los Pinos Council 14407 in Ignacio teamed up to provide new cubby hole shelving for children at Holly House, a facility that provides programs for children with intellectual disabilities.

HONORING A NEW PRIEST

Kempsville Council 10515 of Virginia Beach, Va., organized a reception to honor council member, two-time past grand knight and newly ordained priest, Father Christopher

Gaffrey, who was ordained in New York City in 2010. Approximately 220 parishioners attended the reception.

‘YOU CLOTHED ME’

Sts. Peter and Paul Council 13961 in Wheat Ridge, Colo., started a new service campaign called “For the Least of My Brethren” that is based on Mt. 25:34-40 and aims to serve needy members of the community. To launch the campaign, Knights held a clothing drive that collected 480 bags of new and used clothing for the Denver Rescue Mission.

SPEAKER SERIES

Oklahoma State University Council 11135 in Stillwater sponsored a speaker series that was open to the campus community. Following the council’s monthly meeting, students gathered to hear talks by a number of area priests, including Bishop Edward J. Slattery of Tulsa, who is a member of Holy Family Council 10388.

HOSPITAL VISIT

St. Stephen Council 14084 in Riverview, Fla., along with the council’s ladies’ auxiliary and St. Stephen Circle 5209, visited the James A. Haley Veterans’ Hospital to meet with patients and distribute care items. Knights and Squires passed out magazines, clothing and toiletries.

Players compete during the Christmas Invitational Basketball Tournament at Central Catholic High School hosted

by Portland Council 678. After a 20-year lapse, Knights revived the tournament in 2009.

The event saw more than 125 players compete over two days, and proceeds were donated to the Mt. Angel Seminary and Abbey.

John Hencinsky of Our Lady of the Mountains Council 3533 in Livingston, N.J., and District Deputy Vito Mazza help a student at Mount Carmel School in West Orange into his new coat.

Through the Order’s Coats for Kids initiative, Knights distributed hundreds of coats to needy children in coldweather cities. At Mount Carmel School alone, Knights handed out dozens of jackets.

POOL TOURNAMENT

Father Edward J. Matthews Council 5989 in Brooklyn, N.Y., hosted its annual pool tournament, which raised $9,800 for cystic fibrosis research. Players donated $25 each to compete in the event, which also included an auction and the sale of $1 donation vouchers. Knights also sold candy bars in the months leading up to the tournament.

TICKLING THE IVORY

AVAST, MATIES!

Santa Maria Council 553 in South Bend, Ind., donated an unused piano at its council hall to a local mother and her two children. The piano was donated to Leslie Plonka, who was looking for a used piano for her daughter to practice music lessons. And since Plonka’s son has autism and relates favorably to music, the piano will benefit both children.

Sedes Sapientiae Council 13295 at the University of Maryland in College Park held its annual pig roast for Knights and their families on Maryland Day 2010. The theme of the event was pirates, and Knights started cooking the pig at 4 a.m. in their buccaneer gear. The day offered plenty of food, volleyball, karaoke and a treasure hunt.

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 27

K N I G H T S I N AC T I O N

THE FIGHT FOR LIFE CONTINUES In ways great and small, K of C units around the world continue to fight for the dignity of all human life, from conception to natural death.

• St. Michael the Archangel Council 14700 in Houston contributed $500 towards the ongoing display of two billboards adjacent to one of the area’s largest abortion clinics.

• In conjunction with Kansans for Life, Sacred Heart Council 2955 in Dodge City hosted a mother-daughter luncheon. The two-hour event included lunch and talks by several pro-life speakers.

• Cherry Hill (N.J.) Council 6173 initiated a used cell phone and electronics drive to support the Diocese of Camden’s natural family planning apostolate.

• Clinton (Mass.) Council 1701 repaired gutters and removed brush from Spring House, a home for pregnant women to prepare physically, emotionally and financially for the birth of their children. Knights also held a pancake breakfast that raised about $700 to paint the facility.

• Coronation Council 1863 in Fort Lee, N.J., and Pope John XXIII Assembly in Cliffside Park participated in a “Walk United for Life” at Madonna Church in Fort Lee. Knights, their

28 ♦ C O L U M B I A ♦

Members of the respect life committee from Holy Rosary Church pray the rosary outside an abortion clinic. Peter McCann of Msgr. John A. Welsh Council 4312 in Memphis, Tenn., heads the group, which sees participation of several council members.

The committee prays the rosary outside of three Memphis abortion facilities each week.

families and parishioners processed from the church rectory to the council’s prolife memorial to pray the rosary and celebrate Mass in honor of the victims of abortion.

• Cardinal John Dearden Council 744 in Mount Clemens, Mich., sponsored an outdoor right-to-life Mass at St. Peter Cemetery.

• Four K of C councils from South Orange County, Calif., teamed up to support the Knights of Columbus Ultrasound Initiative. Together, Knights raised more than $100,000 to provide ultrasound units to several Birth Choice Health Clinics.

JANUARY 2011

Knights from Minnesota District #31 remove plywood from the home of a deceased Knight in preparation for re-shingling the roof. Twenty-six Knights from three councils volunteered to make home repairs for the widow of John G. Kosse, a member of Pax Christi Council 14145 in Rochester who passed away in 2009. In addition to providing labor for the project, two Knights who co-own a local restaurant also provided food to the entire work crew on one of the volunteer days.

APPRECIATION DINNER

With participation from several local councils, John XXIII Council 4976 in Toronto hosted its annual clergy appreciation dinner at Church of the Holy Family.

Proceeds from the event were donated to the Oratory of St. Philip Neri and The Shepherd’s Trust, which supports retired clergy.

RENOVATION CLEAN-UP

Members of St. Francis Xavier Council 10500 in Vancouver, British Columbia, cleaned their new parish hall and activity room following a major renovation.

Knights cleaned, polished and waxed the 10,000square-foot space and painted the walls. They also moved useful furniture to designated storage areas and disposed of any materials that were no longer needed.

SAYING FAREWELL

American University Council 14465 in Washington, D.C., joined with the AU campus

community to honor their campus chaplain, Father David Mott, who has served at the university for three years and was recently reassigned to Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. To honor Father Mott’s contributions to the school, Council 14465 planned a farewell celebration attended by students, faculty, staff and the chaplains of other faith traditions. Knights also presented Father Mott with a Knights of Columbus stein and an award for outstanding service.

AIDING CATECHESIS

Aware of the importance of youth catechesis, Waterloo (Quebec) Council 2077 donated $1,000 to St. Bernardin Parish to help support religious education.

RICH IN LOVE

Santa Maria Council 4999 in West Palm Beach, Fla., donated $1,000 to the Poor Clare Sisters of Delray Beach.

Knights traveled to Christ the King Monastery to deliver the donation, which will aid the sisters’ outreach.

K N I G H T S I N AC T I O N

The event offered parishioners an opportunity to get acquainted with one another while Knights served a series of refreshments.

FOOD, TOYS AND CLOTHING

Holy Family Council 14016 at the Hanscom Air Force Base in Massachusetts hosted a food, toy and clothing drive to benefit area needy. Knights collected approximately 2,700 pounds of food, 7,000 pounds of clothing and 900 pounds of toys for needy families on the base and for Lazarus House in Lawrence.

Michael P. Lally of Bishop Flaget Council 13053 in Louisville, Ky., polishes the spokes on a used bicycle wheel. Over the past seven years, volunteers from the council have gathered each month to clean, repair and refurbish used bicycles for donation to Catholic Charities.

FIVE-CARD CHARITY

Antioch (Calif.) Council 3265 held a poker party that raised nearly $3,000 for Aaron Tanner, a local boy who needs a simultaneous heart and kidney transplant. The funds will be used to offset Tanner’s medical expenses, which average thousands of dollars each month.

HELP FOR WORKERS

Bishop John J. Kaising Council 14223 at U.S. Army Garrison Yongsan, South Korea, partnered with the Galilea Migrant Workers’ Pastoral Center in Ansan as part of a council-sponsored outreach project. Knights delivered 100 pounds of rice to the center, which will aid the region’s poor, often homeless, migrant workers.

ROCK-PAPERSCISSORS

Charlebois Council 2704 in The Pas, Manitoba, sponsored a rock-paper-scissors tournament for students at Scott Bateman Middle School. Three-hundred-fifty

students participated, with cash prizes awarded to the tournament’s three finalists.

CEMETERY REPAIR

Members of Father Fidele Poitres Council 7576 in Notre Dame de Lourdes, New Brunswick, and their families worked to repair and refurbish gravestones at their parish cemetery. Knights spent four hours cleaning the markers and replacing any that had fallen over.

VETERANS OUTREACH

Trinity Council 4618 in Webster, N.Y., donated $8,000 to the Veterans Outreach Center in Rochester at the council’s annual charity dinner. The funds will help the center provide high-quality comprehensive outreach to veterans and their families.

MEET AND GREET

St. Aloysius Council 14094 in Shandon, Ohio, hosted a meet-and-greet breakfast at its parish after Sunday Mass.

A LASTING COVENANT

For the past 15 years, members of Father Joseph Plummer Council 10872 in Spring, Texas, have served weekly breakfast at Covenant House Texas. Every Sunday morning, Knights cook eggs, sausage, grits and biscuits for the organization, which provides shelter and services to homeless children.

STATUE PLACED

Van Wert (Ohio) Council 6034 initiated a fundraising project to place a statue of the Pietà at an area cemetery.

Knights, who comprised most of the donors for the project, raised more than $11,000 toward the statue’s purchase and placement.

con Jerry Mix Council 2508 in Sturgis, Mich., joined with members of the Sturgis Ministerial Association to perform minor repairs and maintenance at properties owned by elderly and needy members of the community. Participants worked in teams to complete the requested projects, and Knights volunteered about 65 hours total.

FOR THE BIRDS

Stanley F. Binicki Council 6997 in Poynette, Wis., constructed 220 birdhouses from redwood siding that was removed from St. Thomas Church. Instead of placing the siding in a local landfill, Knights salvaged the usable lumber and constructed the birdhouses to be sold for charity. To date, sales have exceeded $2,600.

WHEELCHAIRS FOR HONDURAS

Shaun P. O’Brien-Prince of Peace Council 11716 in Plano, Texas, held a special drive at its parish to benefit the Global Wheelchair Mission. The drive raised more than $23,000 — enough to purchase 150 wheelchairs for needy recipients in Honduras.

COMMUNITY CLEANINGS

Divine Mercy Council 14883 in Davisburg, Mich., teamed with the Davisburg Rotary Club, the Oakland County Parks Department and the Springfield Township Parks Department to clean up downtown Davisburg.

Knights and other volunteers cut trees and cleaned an abandoned lumberyard warehouse in preparation for demolition. Meanwhile, Dea-

Members of Ina Ng Laging Saklolo Council 8226 in Nueva Ecija, Luzon, sort through care packages that the council assembled and donated to 230 needy families.

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 29

K N I G H T S I N AC T I O N

$12,000 among several area organizations. Among the recipients were the Batesville Food Pantry, four Catholic schools and Gibault Inc., a human services organization.

UNDER FOOT

Members of Pangasinan (Luzon) Council 3711 and their families participate in the council’s annual Walk with God, an eight-mile procession from Urdaneta Cathedral to the Shrine of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary. The procession was followed by Mass at the shrine.

Msgr. Thomas P. Healy Council 6979 in San Marcos, Calif., donated $7,500 to St. Mark Church to help replace the floor in the church hall. The council’s donation was part of $35,000 that was raised by various parish groups to complete the project.

WINDOW TO THE SEA A WAY OUTSIDE

SHOW OF THANKS

As a way to thank local businesses for providing a venue to sell Knights of Columbus Ontario Charity Foundation raffle tickets, members of St. Michael’s Council 10102 in Brights Grove, Ontario, spent the day cleaning litter from area roadways and storefronts. Proceeds from the yearly raffle tickets benefit the Arthritis Society.

$1,000 for Fisher House at Fort Lewis by selling ties with an image of the U.S. flag or a bald eagle. Fisher House provides free or low-cost lodging to veterans and military families receiving treatment at military medical centers.

CHARITABLE DONATIONS

St. Anthony Council 1461 in Batesville, Ind., distributed

PRAYER GARDEN

Father Stommel Council 4545 in Ottsville, Pa., built a prayer garden at St. John the Baptist Church through the sale of inscribed bricks and other donations. Pope Pius XII Assembly in Easton provided an honor guard for the garden’s dedication, which was officiated by Auxiliary Bishop Daniel E. Thomas of Philadelphia.

CANCER BINGO

Mater Regina Council 1561 in Winamic, Ind., held a breast cancer awareness bingo tournament that raised $300 for Wendy Stevens, who is currently receiving treatment for the disease.

PATRIOTIC TIES

Holy Family Assembly in Chehalis, Wash., raised

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John J. Cunningham (left) of Sarnia (Ontario) Council 1429 greets council chaplain Father Matthew Bedard at a councilsponsored spaghetti dinner.

The event, which was held in honor of area priests, raised more than $300. At the dinner, council members also announced that they had ordered K of C vestments for Father Bedard.

JANUARY 2011

who has lymphangioma. The rare disorder has caused the formation of a tumor in Katie’s mouth, and she requires treatment from a doctor in New York City. The dinner, along with collection cans placed around the community, raised nearly $20,000 to offset Katie’s medical treatment. In addition, Council 1849 partnered with San Salvador Council 174 in New York to provide transportation to Katie and her family during their stay on the East Coast.

Our Lady of the Waters Council 12544 in Bushnell, Fla., built a wheelchair ramp at the home of a local man who uses an electric wheelchair. With help from an area carpenter, Knights completed the project over four days, and the man is now able to enter and exit his home without assistance.

Langford Council 8394 in Victoria, British Columbia, dedicated a stained-glass window at Our Lady, Star of the Sea military parish at Canadian Forces Base Esquimalt to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Navy. Base chaplain Father John Jolliffe blessed the window at a special ceremony.

REMINDER OF FAITH

TRAVELING MASS KIT

Catholic War Veterans Post 1937 in Pine Bush, N.Y., routinely sends care packages to soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. At the request of the post’s commander, Pine Bush Council 5329 provided copies of Armed With the Faith, the Order’s prayer book for Catholic military personnel, for inclusion in future shipments. Armed With the Faith is a spiral-bound prayer book that is designed specifically for use by soldiers in the field. A home edition (#364) is available through the Order’s Catholic Information Service for Knights, veterans and military families.

Monsignor Linus J. Dury Council 505 in Zanesville, Ohio, donated a traveling Mass kit to a newly ordained priest, Father Mark Summers.

A PRESCRIPTION FOR AID

Amador County Council 1849 in Sutter Creek, Calif., organized a dinner, raffle and silent auction to help Katie Rose, a 19-month-old girl

FREEDOM FOUNTAIN

Father Patrick F. Pindar Council 3962 in Ramsey, N.J., donated a fountain — known as the Freedom Fountain — to the Borough of Ramsey’s newly redesigned veterans park. The fountain serves as the centerpiece of the new park.

kofc.org exclusive See more “Knights in Action” reports and photos at www.kofc.org/ knightsinaction

O N - TA RG E T R E C RU I T I N G

K OF C ITEMS OFFICIAL SUPPLIERS

MAKING RECRUITING PERSONAL Council Creates its Own Membership Materials A YEARLY Mass in honor of priests. Show shoveling for the sick and disabled. A monthly breakfast for retired Knights. These are just three of the 38 activities that St. Louis de DeMontfort Council 14553 in Oak Lawn, Ill., lists in its personalized recruiting pamphlet.

These small flyers, about 4.25 inches wide when folded, are placed in the church vestibule and at parish events and offer An example of some of Council 14553’s personalprospective members ized recruiting resources. and their families a glimpse into the good deeds, prayerful activities and fun charistic adoration to its Saturday prayers, with the permission of the events that the council offers.

“I figured it was a quick and easy parish’s pastor.

Finally, Montoya said that the way to get information to people as an answer to the question: ‘What do you council is working with a local vendor guys do?’” said Past Grand Knight to produce pencils that say, “Dad, Hank Montoya, who was the charter please join the Knights of Columbus.” grand knight of Council 14553 when The ultimate plan is to distribute it was instituted three years ago. “It these to the children of potential gives a man an idea of what the coun- members, possibly through local cil does and if any of the activities in- schools or youth groups. Montoya added that several other local councils terest him.”

The council’s approach apparently have expressed interest in obtaining works since it has received the Star the pencils.

Montoya first became involved Council Award for the past two years.

The pamphlets are also included with the Order when several Knights in folders that the council gives to came to his parish with the proposal interested men. These folders also to start a new council. At that time, contain a Membership Document he had been working with a group of (#100) and recruitment flyers from men interested in increasing their the Supreme Council (especially prayer lives and helping the Church. those highlighting member benefits The Order seemed like the perfect avand the Order’s top-rated insurance enue for this, and he and 31 other men became the charter members of program).

Along with these personalized Council 14553.

“Being a Knight has been an interpamphlets, Knights also distribute postcard size invitations for parish- esting walk in my faith,” he said. “It ioners to attend a weekly Commun- brought me closer to my faith and alion service on Saturdays that is lowed me to do some things that help followed by a council-sponsored bring others closer to their faith.”

For more ideas on creating your rosary. Attendance at these events, Montoya said, has been promising, own council flyer, visit the “Council” and the council is hoping to add Eu- heading at kofc.org/service.

IN THE UNITED STATES THE ENGLISH COMPANY INC. Official council and Fourth Degree equipment 1-800-444-5632 • www.kofcsupplies.com LYNCH AND KELLY INC. Official council and Fourth Degree equipment and officer robes 1-888-548-3890 • www.lynchkelly.com CHILBERT & CO. Approved Fourth Degree Tuxedos 1-800-289-2889 • www.chilbert.com IN CANADA ROGER SAUVÉ INC. Official council and Fourth Degree equipment and officer robes 1-888-266-1211 • www.roger-sauve.com

OFFICIAL JANUARY 1, 2011:

To owners of Knights of Columbus insurance policies and persons responsible for payment of premiums on such policies: Notice is hereby given that in accordance with the provisions of Section 84 of the Laws of the Order, payment of insurance premiums due on a monthly basis to the Knights of Columbus by check made payable to Knights of Columbus and mailed to same at PO Box 1492, NEW HAVEN, CT 06506-1492, before the expiration of the grace period set forth in the policy. In Canada: Knights of Columbus, CASE POSTALE 935, Station d’Armes, Montréal, PQ H2Y 3J4 ALL MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOS, ARTWORK, EDITORIAL MATTER, AND ADVERTISING INQUIRIES SHOULD BE MAILED TO: COLUMBIA, PO BOX 1670, NEW HAVEN, CT 06507-0901.

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PRODUCED IN USA. COPYRIGHT © 2010 BY KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED. PERIODICALS POSTAGE PAID AT NEW HAVEN, CT AND ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES. POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO COLUMBIA, MEMBERSHIP DEPARTMENT, PO BOX 1670, NEW HAVEN, CT 06507-0901.

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01/11

J O I N T H E FAT H E R MCGIVNEY GUILD Please enroll me in the Father McGivney Guild:

NAME ADDRESS CITY STATE/PROVINCE ZIP/POSTAL CODE Complete this coupon and mail to: The Father McGivney Guild, 1 Columbus Plaza, New Haven, CT 06510-3326 or enroll online at: www.fathermcgivney.org

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 31

C O LU M B I A N I S M B Y D E G R E E S

Unity MEMBERS OF Church of the Resurrection Council 11692 in Wichita, Kan., work to construct a Habitat for Humanity house for a low-income family. Knights partnered with the Diocese of Wichita and several area businesses to raise $60,000 to build the home. The council also volunteered more than 200 hours to aid with the actual construction.

• Msgr. John Masterson Council 5880 in Prescott, Ontario, teamed with the Food For All Food Bank to raise more than $11,000 at the food bank’s annual roast beef dinner and auction.

Charity

Fraternity

Patriotism

MEMBERS OF St. Scholastica Council 14485 in Lecanto, Fla., work to reassemble a 1,000-pound play set at Pope John Paul II School after moving it 20 feet from its original location.

When the school’s principal approached the council with concerns that the ground under the play area had shifted, Knights volunteered to disassemble the play set and relocate it to a more secure and level location.

• Our Lady of the Valley Council 6842 in Green Valley, Ariz., collected more than 18,000 pounds of food for the Green Valley Food Bank during a recent drive. Since 2000, Knights have collected more than 200,000 pounds of food for the needy.

RACHEL WALKER, the daughter of Stewart E. Walker III of St. Ignatius of Loyola Council 11815 in Frederick, Md., flashes a thumbs-up while using a video magnifier that was donated by the council. Knights raised more than $2,000 to purchase the magnifier for Rachel, who was born with extremely limited eyesight and needs the equipment to read and to complete her homework.

• Galt Council 2184 in Cambridge, Ontario, organized a two-day pilgrimage to Rosa Mystica Chapel and House of Prayer in Edmeston, N.Y. During the retreat, Knights celebrated the Eucharist and received spiritual encouragement.

MEMBERS OF Father Mychal Judge Circle 4853 in East Haven, Conn., and the youth group at Our Lady of Pompeii Church display some of the pocket-sized U.S. flags they prepared for troops serving overseas. Squires and other young people folded about 200 flags and packaged them in envelopes with prayer cards.

• Father J. A. Nieuwland Assembly in South Bend, Ind., donated $155 to Operation Quiet Comfort, an organization that provides aid to sick and wounded soldiers. The funds will help Operation Quiet Comfort send quilts and care packages to military men and women who are recovering at their bases or who have been evacuated to higher-level care facilities.

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JANUARY 2011

KNIGHT S O F CO LUMBUS

Building a better world one council at a time Every day, Knights all over the world are given opportunities to make a difference — whether through community service, raising money or prayer. We celebrate each and every Knight for his strength, his compassion and his dedication to building a better world.

TO

BE FEATURED HERE , SEND YOUR COUNCIL’ S

C OLUMBIA , 1 C OLUMBUS P LAZA , N EW

Members of Father Victor Tunkel Council 13724 in Baco, Luzon, and local Catholics release blue and white balloons in the shape of a rosary after praying together.

Participants tied a prayer to each balloon, hoping they would reach heaven.

“K NIGHTS IN A CTION ” H AVEN , CT 06510-3326

PHOTO AS WELL AS ITS DESCRIPTION TO : OR E - MAIL : COLUMBIA @ KOFC . ORG .

JANUARY 2011

♦ C O L U M B I A ♦ 33

PLEASE, DO ALL YOU CAN TO ENCOURAGE PRIESTLY AND RELIGIOUS VOCATIONS. YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

KEEP T HE FAITH ALIV E

“THE KNIGHTS’ EXAMPLE GIVES ME HOPE AS A PRIEST” I have fully promised my life to Christ and his Church through prayer, obedience and celibacy. The mission of preaching the Gospel is an awesome responsibility and privilege — and not a simple task in the modern world.

As a newly ordained priest, I look to the love expressed by my father, a Knight of Columbus and permanent deacon, in his service at the altar and within the community. His example in our family as a man of prayer and charity has also led my brother, who is now a seminarian, to discern and discover his own vocation.

Through my years in seminary, the Knights supported me spiritually, fraternally and financially. Their example of strength gives me hope as a priest in today’s world and their courage helps me to “Be not afraid.”

As a Knight and current state chaplain of Minnesota, I hope to encourage others to answer God’s call in their lives. No matter one’s vocation, the call to service, prayer and charity remains. Consider what God is asking of you, and find the support you need in the fellowship of brother Knights.

FATHER RYAN MORAVITZ Blessed Sacrament Parish Diocese of Duluth, Minnesota