Our 2023 Annual Catholic Appeal, “Joyful in Hope,” comes from Romans 12:12 and aptly captures where we stand at this time in our diocesan story as we embrace our duties as disciples of Jesus.
This is essential funding that impacts every parishioner and parish in the 27 counties that make up our diocese. By supporting the ACA, your gift will help in this continued work we do together today but also to prepare for our future. God has given us many blessings. Let us join together as one family and walk together in faith through acts of love as disciples of Our Lord.
To give a gift or make a pledge to the 2023 Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA) go online and visit: www.kcsjcatholic.org.
Also, while there, please take the opportunity to listen to this year’s ACA audio message.
Marley Assistant editor
Jenny Pomicter Graphic designer
To submit story ideas and news, send emails to marley@diocesekcsj.org
www.FAITHcatholic.com
Catholic Key (ISSN 2769-2353, USPS 024-190) is a membership publication of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, published bimonthly (Feb/ Mar, Apr/May, Jun/Jul, Aug/ Sep, Oct/Nov, Dec/Jan) by the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, The Catholic Center, 20 W. Ninth St., Kansas City, MO 64105. Periodicals Postage Paid at Kansas City, MO and at additional mailing offices.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Catholic Key, The Catholic Center, 20 W. Ninth St., Kansas City, MO 64105. ©2022 Catholic Key, Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
ON THE COVER: Joe and Stephanie Hollo have a special mother and son bond that has led to a shared devotion to Catholic education. Photo by Ashlie Hand.
A family affair | Passing on the Faith in and out of the classroom | Ashlie Hand
For Stephanie and Joe Hollo, a career in Catholic education is a family affair. The mother and son duo share an undeniable bond that one can’t help but compare to the one shared by Our Bless ed Mother and the Son of God himself. The pair have made an impact in our diocesan Catholic schools from preschool through high school, and if there is a com mon theme to their individual stories, it’s the unexpected path on which both found themselves on the way to becoming Catholic school educators.
Marty Denzer is long-time writer in residence for the Catholic Key.
On the Way | Christmas, Eucharist and the Body of Christ | Bishop Johnston There’s no time like the present to deepen your own faith and love for Christ in the Eucharist.
Ashlie Hand leads the Office of Communications for the Diocese of Kansas CitySt. Joseph.
Bridget Locke loves God and people. Learn more about her life and work at bnlcomms.com.
Our bread: Extending the Eucharist beyond chapel walls | Megan Marley
The Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration in Clyde, Missouri, are well-known for their al tar breads, including the first low-gluten host accepted by both the American Celiac Association and the Catholic Church.
28 Our Lady of Guadalupe Shrine marks 100 years | Marty Denzer
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish was formally dedicated Dec. 12, 1922, by Bishop Lillis.
30
To Serve and Lift | Ripple effect | Susan Walker
House of God | Immaculate Conception Parish, Montrose | Ashlie Hand and Cory Thomason
This new feature, inspired by Further by Faith by Father Mi chael Coleman, JCL, will explore the history and symbolism found in the physical spaces of six of our diocese’s parishes over the next year.
21 Giving them enough | Bridget Locke
Cristina Ruiz, Confirmation Co ordinator for Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church, was among 62 honorees recognized last Au gust with the Bishop’s Recog nition Award.
One seemingly small event can spiral into instability that threat ens health and safety in ways that may not be immediately apparent. On the other hand, help that arrives at the right time can stabilize and uplift families, breaking the cycle of poverty for generations to come.
32
Faith, fellowship and formation | Conversation with Catherine Cheney | Bridget Locke
City on a Hill Director Cath erine Cheney discussed faith, fellowship, formation, and the mission-focused future await ing City on a Hill young adult apostolate.
23
More than a century of life, faith and fun | Marty Denzer
For two women at Our Lady of the Presentation Parish in Lee’s Summit, being more than 100 years old hasn’t slowed them down in practicing their faith and having some fun along the way.
26 En Camino | Navidad, Eucaristía y el Cuerpo de Cristo | Obispo Johnston 29 El Santuario de la Virgen de Guadalupe celebra su centenario | Marty Denzer
At Christmas, we celebrate the Son of God’s human birth at which his body became visible. Angels and shepherds came to adore him. And we join them with our voices in the carol, “O Come let us adore Him ... Christ the Lord!” Christ received a human body so he could die and destroy the power of sin and death over us. Christ received a human body so that he could also give his very self entirely to us in the Eucharist.
Like the angels and shepherds on the night of his birth, we can adore him. But unlike the angels and shepherds, we are privileged also to receive him as our food. Food, in the very words of Jesus, “for a man to eat and never die.” (Jn 6:50) Christ is quite literally our “living bread.”
But not everyone realizes how profound and important is the gift of the Eucharist. Some surveys suggest that a disturbing number of Catholics do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist.
This is both troubling and illuminating. It might explain in part why many choose not to participate in Sunday Mass. The good news is that there is a clear path forward towards renewal of parish and family life, and it’s quite simple: a rekindling of Eucharistic faith and amazement. It is through the Eucharist that Christ is formed in us, our salvation is accom plished and the Church becomes a living Body, his Presence in the world. It is Jesus’ great miracle of enduring love, and that miracle remains with us!
This year, on the Solemnity of Corpus Chris ti, our diocese joined every diocese in America to begin a three-year, grass-roots revival of devotion and belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. This first year focuses on a diocesan response, next year will focus on parishes and the final year will be dedicated to the entire nation.
There’s no time like the present to deepen your own faith and love for Christ in the Eucha
From the Bishop Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr. is the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph
rist. Love is stirred, strengthened, and impas sioned through little things done consistently over time. If I may offer, here are some simple suggestions to renew Eucharistic amazement:
• Go out of your way to spend time each week, or even each day, before the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Our churches and chapels have tabernacles, in part, so that you can draw near to him. Adore him, thank him, contemplate his being in your midst, offer him your trials, burdens and needs.
• Stay faithful to the Sunday Obligation to wor ship God at Mass (the Third Commandment) and consider being a daily Mass-goer and watch how your life changes for the better.
• When before the Eucharist, or when you receive the gift of Holy Communion, pray the words from the Gospel that Saint Thom as the Apostle professed when he touched the body of the Risen Christ, “My Lord and my God!” Express your faith in the Risen Lord and the gift of himself to you in the Eucharist.
• Meditate on the words and experiences of the saints about the Eucharist and become familiar with the many Eucharistic miracles that have occurred and been confirmed by the Church over the centuries.
Just before we receive the Eucharist at Mass, we utter the words of the centurion and make them our own personal profession of faith: “Lord, I am not worthy for you to enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed.” (cf. Mt 8:8) Receiving him, Christ literally enters under our roof and our bodies become his house, his tabernacle. If we receive with faith, he heals and restores us just as he did those in the Gospels, and we are privileged to carry his living presence into our families and our world.
Let us bring our real presence before Jesus and love him, Really Present to us, in the Holy Eucharist.
Merry Christmas!
Christmas is intimately tied to every Mass, when at Holy Communion we hear the words, “ The Body of Christ .”
The vast majority of the more than 1.5 million people employed in the Kansas City and St. Joseph metropolitan areas work in secular industries. How is faith expressed by devoted Catholics working in our area banks, law firms, doctors’ offices, restaurants, farms or auto plants? This is “Faith at work.”
From my teenage years on into college, I did fall away from truly living the Catholic Faith in myriad but typical ways. Around my junior year of college, about one year after my mother passed away, is when I felt a strong shift take place. I found myself choosing to be much more serious and intentional about who I am and what is important. Since then, I’ve been on a steady path of diving deeper into the sacraments, daily routines of reading the daily readings, going to confession at least once per month and being more involved and lively in our parish community.
Is your Catholic Faith part of your professional identity?
I make sure to keep my Catholic artwork and sacramentals hung up on walls in my office, which is viewable to many people coming and going every day. Most people here at work likely know that I’m Christian/Catholic from my words and hopefully from my deeds.
little ways that we can help our employees as imperfect human friends in Christ is the right and godly thing to do.
Learn more about Quality Steel & Wire at qswmfg.com/ about
Is there a Bible verse, Scripture story, prayer, spiritual item or quote that you carry with you?
I wear a crucifix daily that was blessed by a priest here locally. I do often find myself staring at the paintings in my office, especially when talking with people. I think that helps me to focus on what’s most important.
Do you have a favorite saint or religious figure who you turn to in facing challenges at work?
I really am drawn to the poetry and musings of Saint John Henry Newman, and the music that has been made from many of his writings.
Tell us a little bit about your faith journey.
I was born and raised Catholic at Christ the King Parish in Kansas City. The pastors I had growing up influenced me to see and under stand different views and types of people. That diversity in people and culture has helped me as I’ve grown up and entered modern career life, where you meet and must interact with all walks of life.
Does your Catholic Faith influence your interactions and decisions throughout the work day?
There are always little things that come up with the personal lives of our employees, and we try hard to be lenient and fair. Generally, all of that goodwill and care returns back to us in spades with good, hard-working people and a good company reputation. I believe these
What is your go-to Catholic/ Christian/faith-based podcast, app, radio program or station?
The Sunday sermon or videos narrated by Bishop Robert Barron and Word on Fire.
Martin and his wife Michelle and children attend Coronation of Our Lady Parish in Grandview.
It could lead us to schedule some silence into our daily routine, or to resolve to make a weekly donation to a parish food pantry. Or maybe it’s a choice to volunteer actively as a liturgical minister in our parish, or at One City Café, St. Mary’s Home for Mothers or some other organization that meets immediate needs.
A friend shared that resolution with me recently. We’ve talked many times about how easy it is to get frustrated and upset by other drivers: the reckless, distracted or aggressive. But he said he suddenly realized one day that there are more people doing it right than doing it wrong, and his resolution was to give thanks for that.
A good New Year’s resolution is a call to conversion, a change of mind and heart, turning away from an old way of life and toward something life-giving and new. It could be an everyday resolve to pick up trash along a sidewalk, or a decision to set time aside for a retreat.
Another good resolve could be to learn a new form of prayer. A professor once told a class I was in that, “If you don’t find joy in your prayer, you should find a new way to pray.” How freeing! If you feel a dryness in your prayer, learn a new way to pray! Read through the Psalms until one resonates (it shouldn’t take long). And read it daily until you can recite it from memory. Let it comfort you or challenge you or inspire you or strengthen you. Or subscribe to receive the daily readings from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, committing to read them through at least once a day. If you’ve never prayed the Rosary before, give it a try and allow the mysteries of our faith to awaken your own. Try a new form of prayer for 2023, and stay committed to it.
If you’ve never gotten in the habit of sacrificial giving to parish, diocese and other charities, the new year is a great time to begin. Called to the Biblical standard of sharing 10 percent of our gross income, with 5 percent to parish, 1 percent to the diocesan appeal and 4 percent to other charities of our choosing, tithing is an excellent way to make our faith practical, putting our money where our mouth is. My experience is that tithing fosters a spirit of gratitude in my heart for God’s blessings, strengthens my trust that God will continue to provide and draws me into right relationship with God and neighbor.
2023 could be the year you offer mer cy and kindness to someone you’ve be grudged, develop a new spirit of solidarity with the poor or learn to live more simply by purchasing second-hand clothing. Our call to conversion becomes much more exciting when we resolve to become some thing new and allow the mercy and grace of God
Rev. Greg Haskamp is pastor of St. Elizabeth Parish, Kansas City
“It
occurred to me while I was driving recently that instead of complaining about all the people who are doing it wrong, I should give thanks for all who are doing it right.”
to make it happen.
“A good New Year’s resolution is a call to conversion, a change of mind and heart, turning away from an old way of life and toward something life-giving and new.”
own chapel, we began to keep adora tion before the Blessed Sacrament; this then grew to exposition during the day, and in 1929 we received permission to have perpetual adoration.”
Learn
about the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration by visiting their website: benedictinesisters.org
The monastery has declined in num bers, so they can’t keep 24/7 perpetual adoration these days. However, they still have exposition every day of the week, usually from 8 a.m. until after Vespers, and they welcome all to join them in keeping watch. The sisters also receive prayer intentions by phone, email, snail mail, social media and their website, which they bring before the Lord along with their prayers for the Church and the world.
“Our chapel is built for exposition — the architecture and design were built deliberately to make the Eucharist the main focus,” Sister Dawn Annette explained. “We do other things to pay the bills, but this is our main mission and work … Our lifestyle at the monastery is very much like the Abbey, only we have adoration and they have the seminarians.”
The sisters’ other activity includes a gift shop with home made goods, Spirit & Life magazine (published since 1905) and what they are most well-known for: altar breads. In addition to regular hosts, the sisters created the first low-gluten host accepted by both the American Celiac Association and the Catholic Church.
In 2024, the sisters will be celebrating their 150th anniversary of coming to the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
“It’s a way for us to help extend the Eucha rist beyond the chapel walls here out into the greater world, and with our own hands make the bread that becomes the Body of Christ,” Sister said.
In some ways, the Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration parallel Mary, who birthed and worshiped Christ, who gave himself to be our bread.
For the Benedictines of Perpetual Adoration in Clyde, Missouri, the main focus of their order is Christ in the Eucharist.
While the Benedictine rule (written in the 500s) predates the populariza tion of Eucharistic Adoration by 700 years, this congregation has made it a cornerstone of their monastery.
“He is the central part of our lives, and it’s part of our vow formula — ‘to be adorers of Christ in the Eucharist,’” said Sister Dawn Annette Mills, OSB, Prioress General for the order.
“When we came to the United States in 1874, our monastery in Swit zerland, the monastery of Maria Rickenbach, was under the care of the Abbey of Engelberg, which is the motherhouse of Conception Abbey. When the Conception monks got here in 1873, they asked the follow ing year that some of our sisters follow them in their work of prayer and ministry. With five sisters, we did help as we could with teaching, caring for the poor and even an orphanage,” Sister Dawn Annette said. But those founding sisters were firstly contemplatives — and had a long tradition of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.
“While we didn’t have perpetual exposition [of the Eucharist], there was perpetual adoration — and we wanted to establish that here just as soon as we could. Before we could even get our chapel built, our sisters adored facing the local church from a window! And when we had our
“She, in some ways, was the first adorer of Christ, both when he was located under her heart in her womb and at the Nativity. It is in her pattern that we also adore Christ, and yet with Christ we join him in adoration of the Father as we pray before the Blessed Sacrament.”
Immaculate Conception Parish in Montrose has stood for 110 years, built in part by the hands of its parishioners. Established in 1879 when the Missouri, Kansas and Texas Railway laid its right of way from Nevada to Sedalia, drawing new residents to the town of Montrose, the parish first gathered in a small frame church. A new brick church was built and used for Masses starting in October 1887. Ground was broken on the current church in October 1911 and was dedicated by Bishop Lillis in November 1912. Over the years, parishioners and pastors have faithfully maintained the church, retaining nearly all of its original architectural features.
Quite possibly the most distinguishing features of Immaculate Conception Parish are its stained-glass windows and original altar. Both command awe and reverence upon entering the worship space.
Father Michael Coleman, JCL (1942-2022), former archivist for the Diocese of Kansas CitySt. Joseph, is the author of Further by Faith (2014), which explores and celebrates the art and architecture of the diocese.
Immaculate Conception Parish seats 500 people and was designed in the Roman Basilica style. The architect was Stauder & Sons in St. Louis and the general contractor was John Heckman based in St. Charles. It features two towers, at 120 feet high and 80 feet high. The exterior glass protecting the large St. Cecilia rose window was recently restored to allow light to pass through and increase its visibility from the outside.
The six stained-glass windows in the nave and the rose windows in the transepts were installed in 1938, designed by Deprato (now Deprato-Rigalli, based in Chicago). The remaining windows were installed when the church was built in 1911 and were purchased from Munich Studios.
Traveling all over Eu rope, Father Jason Koch served as a missionary before he was incardi nated in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph in 2011. Pastor of Immacu late Conception Parish since 2018, he discovered he has family who were members of the parish dating back to the time that the new rail line was being built in Montrose.
The high altar is original to the church, minus a crowning piece that featured two additional angel statues. The stat ues have been recently repainted, in addition to regular restoration of the intricate details. The small nook that currently holds the cross is typically where the monstrance is displayed during Eucharistic Ado ration. On either side of the altar is the Blessed Mother and St. John in their positions at the foot of the cross.
Left: Here is the Holy Family on a typical day, reminding us of the impor tance of work and that each of us has a role to play. This is a favorite of Father Koch’s because “the domestic Church reflects the love and the trinity of the Holy Family and the way they serve each other.” Right: In this window, you see Mary being presented in the Temple by her parents, Joachim and Ann. Mary lived, worked and prayed in the Temple as a young girl, until she was about 16.
The symbols of the bishop and papacy serve as the foundation for the image of St. Cecilia, appropriately positioned in the choir loft as the patron saint of mu sicians. The symbols of the Eucharist align along the bottom, joined by symbols of Mary. The choir still sings from this location on holidays and special feast days.
The rounded windows and the repetitions of circles create a rhythm throughout the church and, architecturally, allow the win dows to sustain the weight of the structure around them. The win dows have a Marian motif where the color blue dominates. This window rises above the current location of the parish choir and depicts “The Annunciation,” when the Angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and announced that she was to become the Mother of God.
This large rose window rises above the original baptismal font and depicts “the Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple,” commemorating the Jewish tradition of presenting the first-born son in the Temple on his 40th day of life. When Mary and Joseph presented the infant Jesus to Simeon, he proclaimed him to be the promised Messiah.
Whenever the season of Advent begins, I turn to Caryll Houselander’s beautiful book on Our Lady, The Reed of God . She helps me to draw close to Our Lady, to the quiet and active time when Christ was being formed in her womb. She invites us to contemplate: “Our life has been given to us from generation to generation, existing in each age in the keeping of other human beings, tended in the Creator’s hands, a little flame carried through darkness and storm, burning palely in brilliant sunlight, shining out like a star in darkness, life in the brave keeping of love given from age to age in a kiss.” (27)
Mary was completely attuned to God. In Mary’s visitation to her cousin Eliza beth, “we can feel the rush of warmth and kindness, the sudden urgency of love that sent that girl hurrying over the hills ... days in which Christ was being formed in her, the impulse was His impulse.” (61)
Advent is a time for hidden growth and works of mercy. Just as Christ was formed in the womb of Mary, “If Christ is growing in us, if we are at peace, rec ollected, because we know that howev er insignificant our life seems to be, from it He is forming Himself; if we go with eager wills, ‘in haste,’ to wherever our circumstances compel us, because we believe that He desires to be in that place, we shall find that we are driven more and more to act on the impulse of His love.” (62) The more we respond, the more we will be able to be attentive to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit.
We are asked, like Mary, to bring Christ to others, for: “We must be swift to obey the winged impulses of His Love, carrying Him to wherever He longs to be; and those who rec ognize His presence will be stirred, like Elizabeth, with new life. They will know His presence, not by any special beauty or power shown by us, but in the way that the bud knows the presence of the light, by an unfolding in themselves, a putting forth of their own beauty.” (63)
This Advent, may we pray in silence with Mary, and carry Christ’s light within us. May those we encounter find their hearts stirred, for: “It seems that this is Christ’s favorite way of being recog nized, by the quickening of His own life in the heart, which is the response to His coming.” (63)
“Advent is a time for hidden growth and works of mercy.”Mother Maria Stella of the Merciful Heart of Jesus, CJD www.cjd.cc
We didn’t actually mean for it to happen, but there we were. Drummers directed the dance troupe in front of us. Peacock feathers bobbed back and forth as the sun glimmered off the costumes of the dance troupe behind us. We were in the middle. Dressed in normal street clothes. Looking decidedly less than flashy — unprepared. But we were asked to join the procession like everyone else. So, we did.
Our children questioned if we belonged.
I said, “Of course we do! We’re Catholic, aren’t we?” I mean, they couldn’t dispute that. We WERE there to celebrate Our Lady of Guadalupe’s Dec. 12 feast day. It is what our family has done in the last few years. So, I figured this was how we were going to do it this year.
Our Lady of Guadalupe’s story is one that points to God breaking through human darkness and fault by showing his light in a way uniquely designed for us to understand. She’s often associated with Mexican culture, but she’s actually the patron saint of all of North America. When I found that out, I was all in.
The short Our Lady of Guadalupe story involves Mary ap pearing to a peasant named Juan Diego in the years after the Spaniards brought cruelty and harsh treatment to the Aztec people. Not surprisingly, the locals had not widely accepted the Faith. Juan Diego was just walking along one day when he ran into Mary. She said, “Hey there, just wanted you to know my son Jesus IS for you. He IS who you all have been looking for. You belong.”
After a series of events, Mary’s image appeared on Juan Diego’s cloak. Its symbolism spoke right to the Aztec heart. They could “read” the image as God’s message of victory over their cruel gods. The locals got the message loud and clear.
In the decade after Our Lady of Guadalupe appeared, an estimated nine million Aztecs decided to follow Jesus. It was the largest Christian conversion in the history of the world.
I find that worth celebrating. So, we do.
As Catholics, we can tap into so many stories that inspire. It’s a great way to bring your kids together and let God help build your family narrative.
In every season, saints are waiting to come alongside in your family life and parenting. I encourage you to find one — or more — who your family can celebrate. I have a friend who makes stigmata cookies on Padre Pio’s feast day. Another has special meals each feast day of the saints her children are named for. Bring it home. It can be simple. I like to turn on a livestream of the million or so people who visit the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe every Dec. 12. Find creative ways. Sometimes God might call you to be more adventurous, too. Ask Him to surprise you with family moments not to be forgotten.
Instead of watching, join in. You belong. You’re Catholic, aren’t you?
As Catholics
can tap
It’s
Karen Ridder
is a parishioner at St. James Parish in Liberty and a convert to the Catholic Faith. She graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has written for numerous publications in the Kansas City area. Karen and her husband Jeff have three sons and a daughter.
we
into so many stories that inspire.
a great way to bring your kids together, and let God help build your family narrative.
By Ashlie Hand photos by Ashlie Hand and Megan Marley
There is no doubt that Stephanie and Joe Hollo share a uniquely strong bond as mother and son. Stephanie is interim principal at Nativity of Mary Catholic School in Independence, while Joe teaches Latin, theology and small engine repair at St. Michael the Archangel (SMA) High School in Lee’s Summit. If there is a common theme to their individual stories, it’s the unexpected path on which both found themselves on the way to becoming Catholic school educators.
Stephanie was first drawn to teaching during her high school child development class. She was nominated to par ticipate in an internship in the Raytown elementary schools and a spark was lit.
“I was in awe seeing how a child thinks. I got to work every day with kindergartners, and I loved watching how their little minds worked,” Stephanie recalls.
“I love seeing the expression on the kids’ faces while attending Mass with them, especially those serving for the first time. I love encouraging them and seeing them experience what my kids have experienced growing up in the Catholic Church.”
School was difficult for Stephanie, who has a diagnosed auditory and central processing disorder. She was told early in her life that she would not go to college, but with special accommodations and a lot of self-driven hard work, Stephanie completed her associate degree in early child hood. Her experience as a student also inspired her to pursue a bachelor’s degree in child and family development, which she achieved in 2018, followed by a master’s degree in early childhood special education and a graduate certificate in educational leadership.
“Not only was I the first person in my ex tended family to go to college, but I had to work harder to get through college due to my disability. I can now share that with my students. I didn’t just read about or observe disabilities, I’ve actually lived it and can truly relate to my students,” Stephanie explains. She’s proud that Nativity of Mary School is a FIRE Foundation school and embraces the opportunity to welcome students with special needs into her Catholic school community.
Every morning, Stephanie makes sure she is at the door greeting every student as they come into the building. “As soon as I see their faces, I know exactly how their day is going to go.”
It was Stephanie’s husband, Steve, who led her to the Catholic Faith, but it was her son, Joe, who led Stephanie to her first teaching job in a Catholic school.
Joe was enrolled in kindergarten at Our Lady of Lourdes in Raytown, where he stayed through eighth grade, and Stephanie began teaching preschool. As she earned her degrees, she moved on to Nativity of Mary School as an Early Child and Special Education Coordina tor. Last year, an opportunity opened up for Stephanie to step into the role of principal at Nativity of Mary School.
As principal of a Catholic school, witnessing her students experience the Faith, especially when it is for the first time, is especially rewarding.
“About half of our students at Nativity are not Catholic,” she explains. “I love seeing the expression on the kids’ faces while attending Mass with them, especially those serving for the first time. I love encouraging them and seeing them experience what my kids have experienced growing up in the Catholic Church.”
Catholic school educators have a unique opportunity to pass on the Faith. For Stephanie, she draws on her experience as a mother.
“We still attend Mass as a family with our adult children. When I attend Mass at Nativity, my school families and students see me attending Mass outside of school. They see me living my Faith.”
For Joe, passing on the Faith goes beyond the class es he teaches. He is also in charge of Guardians of the Altar at SMA High School. These boys serve Mass at the high school, and their training also has led to being called up for Masses celebrated by Bishop Johnston.
“I teach them about serving Mass faithfully, but also showing people love and dignity out in the community … living their relationship with God and sharing it with other people.”
According to Joe, Stephanie experiences joy as a principal because, “She shows people love.”
Joe’s experience with the Catholic Faith extends to his close-knit family, particularly the relationship he shared with his grandpa. For all of Joe’s life, his dad and grandpa owned a local auto mechanic’s shop in addition to being strongly devoted to their faith and their parish, Our Lady of Lourdes in Raytown.
“I looked up to my grandfather and the love he gave to his customers,” Joe said. “My grandpa originally encouraged my interest in the Faith. I especially loved my grandpa’s stories about when he was an altar boy.”
As soon as he was old enough, Joe jumped at the chance to serve at Mass, too. When he realized that he wasn’t going to learn Latin like his grandpa did, it quickly led to a fascination
with the Latin Mass and the Extraordinary Form. This fascination, and Joe’s path to teaching, was all part of God’s plan.
“A theology teacher of mine in high school told me I would be a really good teacher. He never pushed me but planted that seed.”
That seed would remain underground for the time being. While Joe was in high school, he was learning to be an auto motive mechanic with the intention of one day taking over the shop from his grandpa and dad.
“If you told me I would be teaching high school, I would have laughed at you,” Joe emphasizes.
After he graduated from high school, Joe enrolled at Rock hurst University, where he pursued theology and religious studies with the possibility of attending seminary. God had other plans for Joe.
“I fell in love with my wife in college and realized I was not going to be a priest. When I graduated [from Rockhurst], St. Michael’s had an opening for a theology teacher, so I applied just to see what would happen.”
Turns out, the theology position was filled, so Joe assumed he would continue to work at the shop and possibly teach at a parish school.
“Then, St. Michael’s came back and asked if I would teach Latin instead. I thought it was a trick, but I accepted. I let go and God provided,” Joe recalls.
A couple of weeks after signing his contract at St. Michael’s, Joe’s grandfather collapsed at the shop and subsequently passed away. Even though his dad would be running the shop on his own, Joe had the full support of both of his parents in his decision to take the position at SMA High School.
Teaching in a Catholic high school also gives Joe the oppor tunity to share the love of Christ, especially his Real Presence in the Eucharist.
“I can show them it’s not a bad thing to outwardly show their love for God and teach them to buy into what they are saying when we pray. To say, ‘I’m going to mean that Hail Mary’ and actually buy into the concept that this is a relationship that I want to keep.”
Joe knew his grandpa would want him to take this opportunity to teach the Faith — and God even found a way for Joe to pass on his knowledge of small engine repair.
Joe knows in his heart his grandpa is proud of him, “’That’s my boy’ is what he would say.”
Blessed Carlo Acutis is the patron saint of the first year of the National Eucharistic Revival and one of its intercessors. This initiative began in June 2022 and will run through its culmination in the National Eucharistic Congress in July of 2024. The U.S. Bishops were presented with a first-class relic of Blessed Carlo by Italian Archbishop Domenico Sorrentino of the Diocese of Assisi-Nocera Umbra-Gualdo Tadino this past spring. There are multiple opportunities around the country for the faithful to venerate the relic.
Blessed Carlo Acutis, the first person from the millennial gen eration to be beatified, was an Italian teenager who used tech nology to spread devotion to the Eucharist. He died at the age of 15 in 2006 from leukemia, and he offered his suffering for the Church and for the pope. His stated goal throughout his short life was: “To always be close to Jesus, that’s my life plan.”
Blessed Carlo called the Eu charist “my highway to heaven,” believing that “by standing be fore the Eucharistic Christ, we become holy.” With his family’s
Blessed Carlo Acutis’ website at miracolieucaristici.org to view his exhibit on Eucharistic Miracles.
support, Carlo worked tirelessly for more than two years to cre ate exhibitions dedicated to the Eucharist and its miracles expe rienced throughout the world. His efforts have had a hand in spreading devotion to the Eu charist, even after his death.
“OUR GOAL MUST BE THE INFINITE AND NOT THE FINITE. THE INFINITY IS OUR HOMELAND. WE ARE ALWAYS EXPECTED IN HEAVEN.”
Cristina Ruiz, Confirmation Coordinator for Our Lady of Peace Catholic Church, was among 62 honorees last August given the Bishop’s Recognition Award, which biennially commends volunteer service within the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph.
“I was very honored and surprised,” said Ruiz, who was nominated by Parochial Administrator of Our Lady of Peace, Father Andrés Moreno. “I kept thinking, ‘Me? Really? There are so many who serve our parish faithfully.’”
In the early 2010s, Ruiz de cided to pursue a master’s degree at Newman University in a field relevant to her faith: theological studies. As grad uation drew near, a professor asked, “What are you going to do with what you’ve learned?”
Already serving as the leader of Our Lady of Peace’s quinceañera program, Ruiz felt called to go deeper with her parish’s young people. Ruiz spoke to then-Pastor, Father Jason Koch, and in 2016, be gan the transition into her current role.
At the beginning of each year, Ruiz meets weekly with a new group of teens, ages 1418, to prepare them for confir mation in the fall.
“Preparing for confirmation starts at different stages for
different people. Sometimes, we begin by learning to find Bible verses; other times, the group is more advanced. But we always explore beyond Our Father and Hail Mary and pon der why they are professing their faith. I tell them, ‘If you’re going to be Catholic, then be Catholic .’”
Ruiz doesn’t take serving the youth lightly. She remembers vividly the moment her belief became real during her younger years, and she un derstands that her influence in young people’s lives could be life-changing.
“I felt true forgiveness during one pivotal confes sion. That moment triggered my faith,” Ruiz recalled. “Now, I’m always wondering, ‘Did I give them enough?’ I want our youth to feel the power of their belief, as I did.”
She also wants to encourage others to serve in the Church, because there’s something for everyone to do ... and room for everyone’s gifts.
“Whatever you like to do, God gave you that talent,” Ruiz said. “Give it back to Him.”
Esther Huslig and Virginia Corn have both been parishioners at Our Lady of the Presentation for more than 20 years and attend Mass nearly every day. However, until Oct. 14, 2022, they had never met.
By Marty Denzer
Photos by Megan Marley
Seated side by side following the 8:15 a.m. Mass, sharing memories of life, family and faith, they got acquainted. Es ther celebrated her 105th birthday Oct. 5 and Virginia will celebrate her 100th on Dec. 19.
Esther’s daughter, Sylvia Boyd, brought her to Mass and sat nearby while the women chatted and laughed. Virginia was accompanied by good friends Mike and Rosemary Meyers.
Born in 1917 in Hooker, Oklahoma, Esther was the fourth of 12 children. They moved to a farm south of Fowler, Kan sas, in 1919. She started school at a Catholic school taught by “sometimes kind of mean, Dominican nuns.” At age 10, Esther switched to a one-room country school, Grandview School, before attending the high school in Fowler.
“I lived with my grandmother for three of my high school years,” she recalled. “I loved her stories, and I could go to school activities because she lived in town. I graduated in 1936.”
She recalled the “Dirty Thirties,” western Kansas’ Dust Bowl years, when blowing dust darkened days to night. She told of a Palm Sunday choir practice when the choir girls saw a dust storm rolling in and were advised to hurry home. Esther, her sister and a cousin left, and “… stood in front of the church, holding hands … we couldn’t see each other or anything else. It was terrible! We felt our way to a fence and went home hand over hand.”
Esther married Louis Huslig in 1938 and raised three daughters — Joyce, Ellie and Sylvia. They celebrated 53 years before Louis died in 1991. Esther moved to Lee’s Summit around 2001.
Virginia Corn was born on a farm near Holden, Missouri. The family moved to Kingsville when she was small. Her mother was an invalid, so Virginia kept house for her parents and brother. She cared for the cows, milked them and sold the milk to local producers. The family attended Mass at St. Patrick’s Church in Holden.
She attended country school through eighth grade, then quit to help her mother. “I never resented not going to high school,” Virginia said, “I learned a lot from my mother.” Tick ing off her skills, she listed sewing, churning butter, cooking, canning, laundry, raising chickens and turkeys, harvesting and dressing them, slaughtering and brining hogs in “salt water strong enough to float an egg.” Apples dried on a shed’s roof. She learned to crochet and taught herself knitting. Virginia boasted a bit about her crocheted doilies, but she no longer knits or crochets.
In 1948, she married Raymond Corn, and they raised five sons and a daughter. 1957 saw the family move to Lee’s Summit, joining St. Mary’s Parish downtown. Raymond and Virginia loved to dance, attending tea dances in Blue Springs and Pleasant Hill regularly.
Their oldest son started school at St. Mary’s, and all six graduated from Our Lady of the Presentation after the par ish church moved from downtown and changed its name. They attended public high school, and the boys “went to the hammer right after graduation,” she said. They formed a carpentry company and two are “still at it.” Their daughter is an accountant living near Lone Jack. Virginia and Raymond celebrat ed 66 years before he died in 2014. What are the ladies doing now? Esther joined Presentation’s Wid ows Group and recalled dressing as a “flapper” for one party. She attends Mass several times a week, still sews and quilts at John Knox Village twice weekly. She also plays pinochle weekly. When asked her secret to long life, Esther blithely replied, “Happy Hour!”
As the laughter faded, Virginia said her family is planning a big celebration for her birthday. She has “very good friends in the parish” and sees them often. About 15 years ago, she and some friends performed a “nun act” for a parish talent show. They purchased habits and pantomimed singing and dancing as in the movie “ Sister Act.” It was so popular she now plays a nun at “Talent and Tailgate” each June. She calls her “order” the Serendipity Nuns.
Virginia’s advice for a long life? “Age never meant anything special to me,” she said. “Just live!”
My wife and I hope to celebrate the 25th anniversary of our wedding in January. In almost 25 years of marriage, we have had many circumstances, both mundane and extraordinary, that inspired us to call upon God’s name in prayer. Even so, for decades we found praying together as a couple on a regular basis an elusive ideal that we could just never seem to attain.
In the Order of Celebrating Matrimony, there is a prayer offered immediately before the questions of consent. This prayer includes the following:
“Christ abundantly blesses the love that binds you. Through a special Sacrament, he enriches and strengthens those he has already consecrated by Holy Baptism, that they may be faithful to each other forev er and assume all the responsibilities of married life.”
This prayer implies much. In speaking blessing upon the love of the couple, it highlights the binding nature of conjugal love. The whole of their lives will be bound up together through the loving union of the sacrament they are about to enter. It also grounds the unitive power of the Sac rament of Marriage in the grace of Baptism. For marriage to be a sacrament requires that both the man and woman are baptized. As individuals, baptized disciples are called to a life of prayer and service to others. Marriage is a sacrament that calls the spouses to serve one another and to pray together (as spouses and with children). Each of the spouses should have their own individual prayer commitment and should also pray as a family with their children (once given this blessing). Praying together, what might be called couple prayer, is an altogether different thing. It can take the
form of praying the Rosary, traditional prayers like the Our Father, the Liturgy of the Hours and many other forms of vocal prayer given to us by the Church.
My wife and I were given the gift of a clear and simple introduction to a kind of prayer practiced together as a couple that we have found revolutionary. We were exposed to this way of approaching couple prayer from a Catholic marriage apostolate (The Domestic Church Movement) that teaches this as part of the normal expression of what the Church calls conjugal spirituality. Put simply, conjugal spirituality (or married spirituality), offers the couple in a Sacramental Marriage the possi bility of developing the kernel of spirituality given to them in the Sacrament itself, to have a shared prayer life that builds upon their individual prayer life. While maintaining and developing their individual life of prayer, spouses can commit to a dai ly prayer in which they turn to God together to express their love for Him; their gratitude, sufferings, desires, disappointments and needs. This is done by speaking to God, out loud and listening
to him in one another’s presence.
We have found several fruits from this com mitment. We have discovered the power of the words of Jesus “if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it shall be done for them by my Father in heaven.” (Mt 18:19) We help to hold one another accountable to this expression of prayer because we both know when it has taken place (or not). Each of us hears and learns what our spouse says in prayer and this has opened up a deeper level of empa thy and understanding that goes beyond what good communication has ever provided. It has also increased our emotional intimacy; directly connecting our spiritual unity as children who daily speak to Our Father in heaven.
A priest who wrote much on conjugal spir ituality sums up the essence of couple prayer, “Jesus, through the Sacrament of Marriage, joins a man and a woman thus creating a sort of new sanctuary. Their relationship is this sanctuary in which/where Jesus Christ, a lov ing Son, desires to give His Father praise and atonement. This is the worship that He came to institute on earth.” (Father Henri Caffarel)
If this simple method for praying together as a married couple sounds appealing, you can try it today. It doesn’t require any fancy technique. It only requires you to “step out” in faith together and speak to God in your own words. This does require a certain level of vulnerability, but it doesn’t require extensive training. You can also seek out a retreat — like the Married Couples Retreat offered by the Domestic Church Movement or another retreat that teaches this kind of prayer — for guidance and a good retreat experience to begin this beautiful expression of married love and prayer, shared from the heart.
is the Director of the Office of Domestic Church and Discipleship and the Office of Marriage and Family for the Diocese of Kansas CitySt. Joseph. He and his wife Cathy have been married (almost) 25 years and have 10 children and one grandchild.
Ultimately, the essential calling of marriage includes helping one’s spouse (and children) to attain heaven through living their life as a child of God. This is the essence of the call to holiness and is the effect of the grace of the Sacrament of Matrimony. In this calling, “prayer is a vital necessity ... nothing is equal to prayer; for what is impossible it makes possible, what is difficult, easy ... For it is impossible, utterly impossible, for the man (and woman) who prays eagerly and invokes God ceaselessly, ever to sin.” (CCC 2744)
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As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” At once, they left their nets and followed him.
Matthew 4:18-20
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En Navidad celebramos el nacimiento del Hijo de Dios en el cual su cuerpo se hizo visible. Ángeles y pastores vinieron a adorarlo. Y nosotros nos unimos a ellos con nuestras voces en el villancico, “Oh, Vengan adorémoslo ... ¡Cristo, el Señor! Cristo recibió un cuerpo humano de manera que pudiera morir y destruir el poder del pecado y de la muerte sobre nosotros. Cristo recibió un cuerpo humano para que pudiera también darse a sí mismo enteramente a nosotros en la Eucaristía.
Podemos adorarlo como lo hicieron los ángeles y los pastores en la noche de su nacimiento, pero a diferencia de los ángeles y los pastores, somos privilegiados al recibirlo también como nuestro alimento. Alimento, en las propias palabras de Jesús, “para que coman de él y nunca mueran” (Juan 6:50) Cristo es literalmente nuestro “pan vivo”.
Sin embargo, no todos se dan cuenta de cuan profundo e importante es el don de la Eucaristía. Algunas encuestas sugieren que un preocupante número de Católicos no cree en la Presencia Real de Cristo en la Eucaristía.
Esta situación es al mismo tiempo problemática e iluminadora. Puede explicar en parte porque muchos escogen no participar en la Misa Dominical. Las buenas nuevas son que hay un camino claro hacia la renovación de la parroquia y la vida familiar, y es realmente sencillo: es reavivar la fe y el asombro Eucarístico. Es a través de la Eucaristía que Cristo se forma en nosotros, se completa nuestra salvación y la Iglesia se transforma en un Cuerpo vivo, se hace presente en el mundo. ¡Es el gran milagro del amor perdurable de Jesús, y ese milagro permanece con nosotros!
Este año, en la Solemnidad del Corpus Christi, nuestra diócesis se unió a cada diócesis de los Estados Unidos para comenzar tres años de renovación en las bases de la devoción y creencia en la Presencia Real de Cristo en la Eucaristía. El primer año se centra en una respuesta diocesana, el próximo año se centrará en las parroquias, y el año final se dedicará a toda la nación.
No existe un momento mejor que el presente para profundizar su propia fe y amor por Cristo en la Eucaristía.
El obispo James V. Johnston, Jr. es el séptimo obispo de la Diócesis de Kansas City-St. Joseph
El amor se agita, se fortalece y se apasiona a través de las pequeñas cosas que hacemos consistentemente a lo largo del tiempo. Si me lo permiten, le daré unas sencillas sugerencias para renovar su asombro Eucarístico:
• Esfuércese en pasar tiempo cada semana, o mejor cada día, ante la Presencia Real de Cristo en la Eucaristía. Nuestras iglesias y capillas tienen tabernáculos, en parte, para que puedan acercarse a Él. Adórelo, dele las gracias, contemplen su presencia en medio de usted, ofrézcale sus pruebas, cargas y necesidades.
• Permanezca fiel a la Obligación Dominical de adorar a Dios en la Misa (el Tercer Mandamiento) y considere ir a Misa diariamente y verá como su vida cambian para mejor.
• Ante la Eucaristía, o cuando usted recibe el don de la Sagrada Comunión, rece con las palabras del Evangelio que Santo Tomas Apóstol profesó cuando tocó el cuerpo de Cristo Resucitado, “¡Mi Señor y mi Dios!”. Exprese su fe en la Resurrección del Señor y el don de sí mismo a usted en la Eucaristía.
• Medite sobre las palabras y experiencias de los Santos acerca de la Eucaristía y familiarícese con los muchos milagros Eucarísticos que han ocurrido y han sido confirmados por la Iglesia a través de los siglos.
Justamente antes de recibir la Eucaristía en la Misa, decimos las palabras del centurión y las hacemos nuestra propia y personal profesión de fe: “Señor, yo no soy digno de que entres en mi casa, pero una palabra tuya bastará para sanar mi alma” (cf. Mateo 8:8) Al recibirlo, Cristo literalmente entra en nuestra casa y nuestro cuerpo se transforma en su casa, su tabernáculo. Si lo recibimos con fe, Él nos ayuda y nos restaura como lo hizo con aquellos en los Evangelios, y somos privilegiados para llevar su presencia viva en nuestras familias y en nuestro mundo.
Llevemos nuestra presencia real ante Jesús y amémoslo, Realmente Presente para nosotros en la Santa Eucaristía.
¡Feliz Navidad!
La Navidad está íntimamente ligada a cada Misa cuando en la Santa Comunión escuchamos las palabras, “ El Cuerpo de Cristo ”.
By Marty Denzer Photos by Megan Marley
On Dec. 12, 2022, the Shrine’s centennial will be celebrated.
Beginning at 5 a.m., La Mananitas, the “Birthday Song to Our Lady,” will be performed, followed by the Sacred Heart Matachines Dancers and Mass at 6 a.m., with Bishop James Johnston presiding.
Kansas City’s first Hispanic immigrants arrived sporadically, seeking work on the Santa Fe Trail and later the Santa Fe and Southern Pacific railroads. More Mexicans arrived between 1910 and 1914, displaced by the Mexican Revolution, and increasingly settled along Southwest Boulevard. In 1914, Fathers Jose Munoz and Cyril Cavato arrived in Kansas City after expulsion from Mexico. A few months later, they received Bishop Thomas Lillis’ permission to start a parish.
The parish was to serve Kansas City’s Hispanic and Mexican community, and was named in honor of Mexico’s patron saint, Our Lady of Guadalupe. The first Mass was said in a house at 2341 Holly Street, attended by about 20 families. As Masses were celebrated in homes and in nearby Sacred Heart Parish’s hall at 25th and Madison streets, attendance grew to 200, while Father Munoz, Bishop Thomas Lillis and the Diocese of Kansas City sought funding to build or buy a church. Sacred Heart’s pastor and some parishioners rented a storeroom for
Masses, transferring Father Munoz and his little flock to 1120 W. 24th Street.
Meanwhile, the Swedish Evangelical Lu theran Emmanuel Church building at 23rd and Madison streets came on the market.
After months of negotiations, on Oct. 5, 1919, through the efforts of Sacred Heart parishioner Dr. Thomas E. Purcell, Grand Knight of their Knights of Columbus Council, the diocese purchased the church and rectory for $18,000. Removing Martin Luther’s portrait and adding an altar readied it for Catholic worship. Father Munoz received permission and renamed it Our Lady of Guadalupe, honoring Mexico’s patron saint.
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish church was formally ded icated Dec. 12, 1922, by Bishop Lillis.
Her Parish Church has seen highs and lows in 100 years, but Our Lady has kept it alive. In 1990, Bishop John J. Sullivan of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese planned for its closure, as attendance had diminished. Sacred Heart and Our Lady of Guadalupe Parishes were to consolidate at Sacred Heart and be renamed Our Lady of Guadalupe. The church with that name would close in February 1991.
Supporters formed Our Lady of Guadalupe Shrine Asso ciation, directed by longtime parishioners Ramona Arroyo, Teresa Sauceda and George Morales. Their main objective was maintenance and support. A proposal was drafted request ing Bishop Sullivan to preserve it as a shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe. He approved and leased the church/shrine to the association. According to its website, “This Shrine represents the struggle of the Mex ican people coming to this country and their devotion to Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
Maintained by the Shrine Association of Sacred Heart-Guada lupe Parish, so named in 1993, the Shrine and its grotto are used for special events, weddings and religious ceremo nies dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Los primeros inmigrantes hispanos de Kansas City llegaron esporádicamente, buscando trabajo en el Santa Fe Trail y más adelante en los ferrocarriles Santa Fe y Southern Pacific. Más mexicanos llegaron de 1910-1914 desplazados por la Revolución Mexicana, aumentando los asentamientos alrededor de Southwest Boulevard. En 1914, los Padres Jose Munoz y Cyril Cavato llegaron a Kansas City después de ser expulsados de México, y unos pocos meses más tarde recibieron el permiso del Obispo Thomas Lillis para fundar una parroquia.
se cerraría en Febrero de 1991.
Por Marty DenzerFotos por Megan Marley
La parroquia serviría a la comunidad Hispana y Mexicana, y se nombró en honor a la Santa Patrona de México, Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. La primera misa se celebró en una casa en 2341 Holly Street, y asistieron unas 20 familias. A medida que las misas se celebraban en casas y en un salón de la Parroquia del Sagrado Corazón entre las calles 25 y Madison, aumentó la asistencia a 200, mientras tanto el Padre Munoz, el Obispo Thomas Lillis y la Diócesis de Kansas City buscaban financiamiento para construir o comprar una iglesia. El párroco del Sagrado Corazón y algunos feligreses alquilaron un depósito en 1120 W, 24th Street para las Misas, y se lo transfirieron al Padre Munoz y a su pequeño rebaño.
Mientras tanto, la Iglesia Suiza Evangélica Luterana Emmanuel en las calles 23rd y Madison salió al mercado. A través de los esfuerzos del Dr. Thomas E. Purcell, parroquiano del Sagrado Corazón, Caballero Supremo del Consejo de Caballeros de Colon, después de meses de negociaciones, el 5 de Octubre de 1911, la diócesis compró la iglesia y la rectoría por 18.000$. Retiraron el retrato de Martin Lutero y añadieron un altar, y así quedo lista para la adoración Católica. El padre Muñoz recibió permiso y lo rebautizó como Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, en honor a la santa patrona
de México.
La Parroquia de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe fue dedicada formalmente por el Obispo Lillis el 12 de Diciembre de 1922.
Su iglesia ha tenido altibajos en 100 años, pero Nuestra Señora la ha mantenido viva. En 1990, el Obispo John J. Sullivan de la Diócesis de Kansas City-St.Joseph programó su cierre ya que la asistencia había disminuido. Se consolidaron las parroquias del Sagrado Corazón y Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en el Sagrado Corazón, y pasó a llamarse Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. La iglesia con ese nombre
Sus simpatizantes formaron la Asociación del Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe dirigida por los feligreses de larga data Ramona Arroyo, Teresa Sauceda y George Morales. Su principal objetivo era el mantenimiento y apoyo. Se redactó una propuesta solicitándole al Obispo Sullivan preservar a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe como un Santuario. Él lo aprobó y le alquiló la iglesia/santuario a la Asociación. De acuerdo con su sitio web, “Este Santuario representa el esfuerzo del pueblo Mexicano que viene a nuestro país y su devoción a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe”.
El santuario es mantenido por la Asociación del Santuario de la Parroquia del Sagrado Corazón-Guadalupe, llamada así en 1993, el Santuario y la Gruta se utilizan para eventos especiales dedicados a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe.
El 12 de Diciembre de 2022, se celebrará el centenario del Santuario. Comenzará a las 5 a.m. con las Mañanitas, la Canción de Cumpleaños a Nuestra Señora, seguida por los Bailarines Matachines del Sagrado Corazón y la misa a las 6 a.m. presidida por el Obispo James Johnston.
The image of a drop of water hitting the middle of a pond or a lake, and creating ripples that reach the edge, is a visual reminder to us that every experience we have, every act of kindness or every threat of harm, impacts us. Those effects can be long-lasting and even span generations. This is especially true for families who are experiencing poverty. One seemingly small event can spiral into instability that threatens health and safety in ways that may not be immediately apparent. On the other hand, help that arrives at the right time can sta bilize and uplift families, breaking the cycle of poverty for generations to come.
City, hoping for a new start. With just enough money for a deposit on a small apartment, she accepted the first job she could find: a contract position with low pay and unreliable hours. At times, she had to be at work at 6 a.m.; other days she would be required to work on the weekend. Finding day care was challenging enough, and the expense of after-hours care was eating up most of her earnings. The basics of feeding herself and her children and keeping up with rent left absolutely no money in the bank at the end of the month. She knew the ripple effects were taking a toll on her children.
By Susan WalkerBeth (not her real name) is a perfect example. The “drop of water” that disrupted life for her and her two small children was an abusive relationship. After years of verbal berating and threats of physical violence from her husband, she gathered her children and fled to Kansas
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) labels situations such as witnessing domestic violence or being hungry and neglected as Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) — which are well documented to have lasting, negative effects on health, well-being and life opportunities such as education and job po tential. These living conditions would have a substantial impact on her children as they grew: their social-emotional development, their academic achievements, their health into adulthood. She worried about them but was exhausted from frantically trying to make ends meet. When the shut-off notice arrived from the gas company, she had no money to bring her account up to date and no idea of how to avoid the shut-off and the eviction that would inevitably follow. The “ripples” in the water of her life felt like
massive ocean waves, drowning her in insurmountable obstacles. That’s when she called Catholic Charities.
Larry, one of our Welcome Center staff, met with Beth and made arrangements to bring her utility bills up to date. As they talked about all the challenges that Beth was having to overcome, they identified child care as a major impact to her budget, and a source of worry for her. Larry called Kaydee, an employment specialist, to join the conversation. Kaydee and Beth explored ways to address her work situation — the low pay, the unreliable hours. A new job was obviously needed, and Kaydee asked if Beth had ever considered working with children. Day cares can offer child care for their employees at a discounted rate — with the added bonus of having their children with the parents during their working hours, whatever those hours might be. Beth immediately embraced that idea: she loved working with children but had never considered it as a career. Within a week, Beth had secured a position with a child-care facility only minutes from her home. Her new employer offered free preschool for her two children. She found sustainable employment plus stable, positive care for her children at her new job. No more worries about locating someone last minute to watch her children. Regular hours and sufficient pay allow her to make and meet a budget that assures her family’s shelter and safety. Her conversation with Larry and
Kaydee became the “drop of water” that disrupted the chaos of her life: creating positive ripples of a job she loves, adequate financial resources, stability and good care for her children. Beth noted, “There’s a lot of opportunities out there, sometimes you just have to meet the right people that are willing to help! I am so glad to have met Kaydee!”
This change in her life is counteracting the Adverse Childhood Experiences her children suffered in the life she fled when she escaped her abusive spouse and the challenges of establishing her family in a new city. No longer buffeted by a chaotic and toxic home life, now her children will grow up in a stable environment. The CDC lists strengthening household financial security and family friendly workplaces and policies as critical ways to reverse the effects of ACE’s. Beth has found both, and now her children — and years from now, their children — will reap the ripple effects of their new, supportive and self-sufficient life.
There are thousands of men and women facing poverty’s barriers in our 27 counties. And while helping one person, with one bill or one new job seems like just a drop in the ocean, as Mother Saint Teresa notes, it is how we address the larger problem of poverty. No act is too small to change a life.
One by one, we do make the ocean rise, and help our at-risk neighbors to a better life.
WE MAY FEEL THAT WHAT WE ARE DOING IS JUST A DROP IN THE OCEAN. BUT THE OCEAN WOULD BE LESS BECAUSE OF THAT MISSING DROP.”
In conversation with the Catholic Key, City on a Hill Director Catherine Cheney discussed faith, fellowship, for mation and the mission-focused future awaiting City on a Hill, a 16-year-old diocesan ministry that’s gaining new ground as a recently formed independent non-profit organization.
City on a Hill’s mission is “to be the community that inspires and forms the young adult generation to be saints.” Please share more about your heart for individuals in this age range.
CC: I was living in Columbus, Ohio, and had served as the diocesan marriage formation coordinator for four years. Working in the intersection of marriage preparation and the young adult space allowed for some obser vations. I saw angst around marriage and dating, and a lack of roots of various kinds, leading to restlessness and stagnation.
In the spring of 2021, I experienced a direct call from God to start bring ing young adults to Him. I told the Lord, “If you’ve given me this call, You’ll need to open a door, and I’ll walk through it.” I realized the mod el of City on a Hill dovetailed with the exact needs I was seeing. Then, the door opened for me to serve as director for the newly formed lay apostolate. City on a Hill was tran sitioning from a diocesan ministry to its own nonprofit organization. I joined the staff in February 2022.
How does City on a Hill carry out its mission?
CC: We welcome individuals in their 20s and 30s into low-threshold opportunities for community through sports leagues, Tuesdays at the Boulevard and other events. Those occasions transition into chances to grow into deeper community, through Sisterhood or Band of Brothers, retreats and trips, such as the mission trip to Guate mala. Ultimately, our goal is for in dividuals to encounter Christ and deepen their commitment to Him. What makes City on a Hill unique is that it seeks to invite and form young adults to be apostles and lead the initiatives. These young adults are witnesses to those they encounter, showing “radical hospitality,” mean ing that no one is lost in the crowd. We honor people individually, yet show that there’s a larger community in which they can get involved.
What is your vision for City on a Hill over the next few years?
CC: We are focused on solidifying our approach to outreach, formation and community, making sure that ev erything we do is repeatable, scalable and ensuring that we accomplish the mission of City on a Hill in the most fruit ful way possible. Because we work inde pendently from, yet in partnership with, the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, and the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, we have the freedom to expand our work on both sides of the state line.
How can others get involved?
CC: I encourage everyone to visit the Get Connected page on our website (kansascityonahill.org), to sign up for The Loop, our weekly email, and follow us on Facebook and Instagram to learn more about our work and up coming events.
For me, understanding God is very difficult. When God takes people out of your life do you think, “why do you hate me God?” That is exactly what I thought. I feel like the Catholic Faith expects us to just understand what or why God does things in your life that you might not like.
all. When my family and I had to go to church I would just sit there and not listen and think about how I hated church and wanted to leave.
My mom decided that she was going to send me to a religious camp called Camp Savio. Camp Savio was how God came back in my life. After Camp Savio I started paying attention in Church and learned that God does everything for a reason and that I just have to trust him.
Briana Cirlincuina is a student at St. Pius X High SchoolLast year was a very difficult year for me, my friends, and my family. It started out normal but then suddenly one of my closest friends’ parents went into the hos pital. My friend’s parents passed the week they went into the hospital. That was when I started thinking, “Why God, why did you do that?” Then about two months later my uncle passed away and that was very hard too. And again I got angry and confused about why God was taking people away from me that I loved. Then a few months after my uncle passed away my other friend’s parents passed away, and I got more and more angry with God. I was out of town this summer and got a call from my cousin saying his dad was in the hospital and wasn’t going to make it. That’s when I stopped praying to God and didn’t want to think about God at
During the time I was away from God I felt like the Church didn’t really help me. I feel like the Catholic Church really needs to help all those families and kids that have lost loved ones. I feel like bringing all those people into the Church can help everyone understand God and help all who are lost in their faith.
For me, understanding God is so important now that I know there is no way I can ever be happy without God in my life. The Catholic Church should invite all that have been hurting or just needing God’s love. My friends that have lost loved ones have really struggled with their faith.
Some of my friends still don’t trust in God’s plans for them, but for me trusting God and trusting in everything he has planned for me in my life is so important. Losing people you love is honestly the hardest thing, but seeing those people you love come to terms with it and grow even stronger in their faith is just amazing to see. Seeing my friends overcome everything that they had gone through is amazing. They are all the strongest people I know.
Losing people you love is honestly the hardest thing, but seeing those people you love come to terms with it and grow even stronger in their faith is just amazing to see.”Marc Cardaronella is the director of the Office of Catechesis and Faith Formation.
Sunday Mass is probably the most common thing we do as Catholics. We do it every week, and it’s the same every time.
I admit it’s easy to become complacent about Mass. Who hasn’t had their mind wander during a homily or reading of the Gospel? I work hard at paying attention, yet it still happens to me.
So, why is Sunday Mass so critical that it’s a mortal sin to miss it? It seems so ordinary. But is it really? Perhaps there’s more to it than most of us realize. So, what makes Sunday Mass attendance so vital?
The Catechism of the Catholic Church 1389 states, “The Church obliges the faithful to take part in the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feast days and, prepared by the Sacrament of Reconciliation, to receive the Eucharist at least once a year, if possible during the Easter season.”
Attending Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation is the first Pre cept of the Church. There are specific requirements to be a member of the Catholic Church in good standing. These are the Precepts. They establish a Catholic identity.
The Catechism says of the Precepts, “The obligatory character of these pos itive laws decreed by the pastoral au thorities is meant to guarantee to the faithful the very necessary minimum in the spirit of prayer and moral effort, in the growth in love of God and neighbor.” (CCC 2041)
The Precepts constitute grave matter, so willfully ignoring these obligations is a mortal sin. But to truly understand this, we need to think of sin in different terms and these laws as something other than God’s wrath and punishment for disobedience. The Catechism says these obligatory laws guarantee the “necessary minimum” for “growth in love of God and neighbor.” The goal of the Christian life is intimacy and union with God. We could think of sin as behaviors that take
us away from that outcome. As well, some behaviors kill our life with God. Those are mortal (i.e., deadly) sins. Sunday Mass seems mundane, but it’s the opposite. In classifying skipping as grave matter, the Church emphasiz es the great significance Sunday Mass should have in the life of every Cath olic. Mass is the memorial of Christ’s redemptive sacrifice. Celebrating this memorial renews the work of our re demption and applies that grace to us. The Cross redeems the entire world, but every individual must also be redeemed. Therefore, by participating in Mass and offering the Eucharistic sacrifice with the priest, you renew and continue the process of your sanctification ... a lifelong process. Union with Christ happens in its highest form in the Eu charistic celebration. We get supernat ural life from the Mass. This worship is your spiritual lifeline, like an air hose allowing you to breathe underwater. When you skip Mass willingly, you turn away from that lifeline. Do that and you will die. Skipping Mass doesn’t seem like such a big deal, but it takes us far away from intimacy with God. If you could see the spiritual damage it does to your soul, you would think twice.
“MASS IS THE MEMORIAL OF CHRIST’S REDEMPTIVE SACRIFICE. CELEBRATING THIS MEMORIAL RENEWS THE WORK OF OUR REDEMPTION AND APPLIES THAT GRACE TO US.”
