CNS PHOTO/BOB ROLLER
Suffering Haitians need care Loraus Bernaud, 27, now paralyzed from the waist down, lies in a bed outside St. Francis de Sales Hospital in Port-au-Prince Jan. 31 after being seriously injured in the Haitian earthquake. The specialized care he needs is not available in Haiti. page 10
THE EAST TENNESSEE
Volume 19 • Number 11 • February 7, 2010
The
N E W S PA P E R
of the D I O C E S E of K N O X V I L L E w w w. d i o k n o x . o r g
St. Dominic School to close at end of academic year BY DA N M CW I L L I AMS
‘A voice for the voiceless’ Marchers in Washington, D.C., were urged to keep up their efforts to protect human life. By Carol Zimmermann
he closing of St. Dominic School will end a 65-year tradition of Catholic education in Kingsport. Declining enrollment and rising costs for St. Dominic parishioners to support the school led to the painful decision last month. Following majority votes by the parish council and the parish finance board recommending closure—and after consulting diocesan leaders Bishop Richard F. Stika, superintendent of Catholic Schools Dr. Sherry Morgan, chancellor Deacon Sean Smith, and finance officer Deacon David Lucheon—St. Dominic pastor Father Mike Nolan made the move Jan. 21. He announced it to St. Dominic principal Deborah DePollo and her staff and wrote a letter to parents the following day, and he made the announcement at weekend Masses Jan. 23 and 24. “Here’s what I said at the Masses,” said Father Nolan in a teleSchool continued on page 8
WASHINGTON (CNS)—Despite overcast skies, the mood at the Jan. 22 annual March for Life in Washington was decidedly upbeat, as speaker after speaker urged the crowd to keep up their efforts in the pro-life arena. Several speakers told the tens of thousands at a rally on the National Mall— bundled in winter gear and holding aloft placards with pro-life messages or banners identifying where they were from—that they were now in the majority and would continue to make inroads in society and in government policies. Although the rally’s opening prayer asked God to grant the march participants “the courage to be a voice for the voiceless,” the group didn’t seem to lack bravery. They showed stamina by simply showing up in vast numbers— many as repeat marchers—despite calls for sleet and freezing rain, which
CNS PHOTO/PETER LOCKLEY
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MORE THAN 100,000 STRONG
March for Life participants make their way up Constitution Avenue to the Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22. The annual pro-life demonstration marks the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion across the nation.
never materialized. A statement posted on the March for Life website afterward did not give a count but said the size of the crowd for this year’s rally and the march that followed “far exceeded” last year’s number. In 2009 the organization estimat-
about 1995. Across the city at the Verizon Center sports arena, more than 17,000 youths— along with men and women religious and others—gathered for the annual Youth Rally and Mass for Life sponsored by the Archdiocese of Wash-
ed the crowd to be 100,000. The U.S. Park Police, which has responsibility for the Mall, and the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia have not given official crowd counts for any demonstration since
Please pray for our priests
March continued on page 6
Rosary at abortion clinic draws 300-plus
Dear Lord: We pray that the Blessed Mother will wrap her mantle around your priests and through her intercession strengthen them for their ministry. We pray that Mary will guide your priests to follow her own words, “Do whatever he tells you” (John 2:5). May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph, Mary’s most chaste spouse. May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart inspire them to embrace all who suffer at the foot of the cross. May your priests be holy and filled with the fire of your love, seeking nothing but your greater glory and the salvation of souls. Amen. St. John Vianney, pray for us. ■
Bishop Stika leads the prayer for life at the Knox facility. BY DA N MCW I L L I A MS
DAN MCWILLIAMS
than 300 of the faithful joined Bishop M ore Richard F. Stika for a rosary in front of an
PRAYERS TO OUR LADY
Download prayers and a rosary booklet: bit.ly/priestprayers.
ington. Fifteen alternate gathering sites near the Verizon Center were set up to accommodate 8,000 more pilgrims. Tickets for the event were in demand weeks beforehand. As one archdiocesan official put it, “The youth are
José and wife Olga Sandoval of Holy Ghost Parish in Knoxville join the faithful at a rosary in front of a Knoxville abortion clinic Jan. 16. With them are their daughters Jazmine, 9, and Perla, 5. The Sandovals were at one end of a line stretching about 100 yards along the sidewalk across from the clinic.
abortion clinic in Knoxville on Jan. 16, six days before the 37th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. A long line of East Tennessee Catholics of all ages stretched for 100 yards or so along the sidewalk across from Volunteer Women’s Medical Clinic on Concord Street. The bishop said he was “very pleased” with the turnout. “This is the first time we’ve organized this, and we have people here from different places in the diocese. We have priests here, deacons, young people and not-so-young people, and seminarians.” Among the hundreds praying were 15 priests of the diocese, several deacons and Sisters of Mercy, and seminarians Dustin Collins and Michael Hendershott. Those traveling the farthest included Father Michael Cummins of the Catholic Center at East Tennessee State University, Monsignor Philip Thoni and Father John O’Neill of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Fairfield Glade, and Father John Appiah of Notre Dame in Greeneville. Father Jay Flaherty of Holy Cross in Pigeon Forge brought a group in a van to the rosary. Bishop Stika and Paul Simoneau, director of the diocesan Office of Justice and Peace, spoke Rosary continued on page 3
letters to the
EDITOR
Is anything greater than union with Christ?
Miss Hutton’s column “Father Keating diverges” (Jan. 10 ETC) appears somewhat incorrect in a number of aspects. I cannot put together “absolute reality” and the Real Presence in Our Lord in the consecrated host. This is not the normal language of the church. For the enlightenment of Miss Hutton and perhaps others, the Sacred Congregation of Rites wrote: “[The Lord] is always present in a body of the faithful gathered in his name. He is present too, in his Word, for it is he who speaks when the Scriptures are read in the church. “In the sacrifice of the Eucharist he is present both in the person of the minister . . . and above all under the species of the Eucharist . . . This presence of Christ under the species ‘is called real’ not in an exclusive sense, as if the other kinds of presence were not real, but par excellence” (Instruction Eucharisticum Mysterium, May 25, 1967). In her comments about the words of Father Thomas Keating, OCSO, regarding the Eucharist and the Buddhists’ lotus, Miss Hutton should be aware of the church’s teaching in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: “The principle fruit of receiving the Eucharist in Holy Communion is an intimate union with Christ Jesus. ‘He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him’” (No. 1391). The quotation is from John 6:56. In every liturgy the Sacramentary instructs the deacon/priest as water is poured in the chalice to say an inaudible prayer: “By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” If any of us can realize this truth as we receive Holy Communion, are we not transformed? As St. Thomas Aquinas once wrote and I paraphrase: This is unique bread; we do not change it into ourselves but we are changed into it. If some think the consecration at our eucharistic celebrations is a wow moment, I would ask whether there anything greater than our intimate union with Christ. Wow! The high moment of any eucharistic celebration is our intimate union with Christ. Could Father Keating be referring to this? ■ —Father Evan Eckhoff, OFM, Knoxville Letters should be 350 words or less and will be edited for grammar, style, clarity, and length. Submit them by e-mail or mail: mweaver@dioknox.org, 805 Northshore Drive Southwest, Knoxville, TN 37919. Letters to the editor reflect the opinions of their authors and not those of the editorial staff or the publisher.
Faith-formation classes set for ’10 he 2010 series of adult faith-formation classes begins this month. Classes are offered at no charge to all interested adults in the diocese. Sessions take place on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 7 to 9 p.m. Online registration is available at bit.ly/9mpJBj.
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Spirituality, taught by Father Michael Woods. Explores the foundations of how our faith is expressed and deepened through prayer and spirituality. The class will examine the concept of spiritual development and how intimate communion with God is available to all people. ■ Tuesday, Feb. 9, Sacred Heart Cathedral ■ Tuesday, March 9, St. Alphonsus Church, Crossville ■ Tuesday, April 20, location TBD ■ Tuesday, May 11, Notre Dame Church, Greeneville Sacraments, taught by Amy Roberts. Explores the foundations of what we celebrate as Catholics. The class examines how we encounter the living Christ through each of the church’s seven sacraments. ■ Tuesday, Feb. 16, Holy Family Church, Seymour Personal morality, taught by Father Michael Sweeney. Explores the foundations of what we believe as Catholics and why we believe it. How do we know the church’s position on moral issues is correct? How do we live as faithful Catholics in a world that seemingly rejects the church’s teachings at every turn? This session will examine the concepts of human dignity, freedom, law, sin, virtue, and conscience as well as current moral issues. It will also provide insight into how we may explain the church’s position to those who are searching for answers in a confusing world. ■ Tuesday, March 2, St. Dominic Church, Kingsport ■ Tuesday, Oct. 5, St. Stephen Church, Chattanooga ■ Thursday, Nov. 4, location TBD What we believe, taught by Deacon David Lucheon. Explores the foundations of what we profess as Catholics. The class will examine the principal truths of the faith as expressed in the creeds of the church. ■ Tuesday, April 20, location TBD ■ Thursday, Oct. 14, location TBD ■ Tuesday, Nov. 9, Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, Chattanooga For details, contact Father Richard Armstrong at rarmstrong@dioknox.org or 865-584-3307. ■ 2
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FEBRUARY 7, 2010
living the
READINGS
BY FATHER JOSEPH BRANDO
Walking away from the fish The disciples ‘were happy to follow Jesus without looking back.’
Simon had worked hard all night. He probably thought having Jesus use his boat to preach from would be a good excuse to delay cleaning the nets. He and his partners had been “skunked,” catching nothing at all. They had to be disappointed, distressed, and disillusioned. At times like that, anyone would think hard about leaving it all behind and looking for an easier way to make a living. Jesus did not take advantage of the situation. He wanted to offer them a new way of life but not at the time they were so vulnerable. So after he preached to the crowd, Jesus gave Peter, James, John, and probably Peter’s brother,
Andrew, a new view of life. He simply asked them to go back to fish some more. They were sick and tired of fishing. Yet they complied. This time they caught two boatloads of fish. Catching that much fish is impossible and therefore miraculous. Such a mess of fish would net them several months’ income. But then the soon-to-be apostles did something strange. According to Luke, “when they brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed Jesus. Leaving all those fish and the boats on the shore was outrageous. The investment they were walking away from was, by their standard, enormous. Yet they reacted to the miraculous catch of fish as though they had nothing. As they compared what they had been doing all their lives with the words and personality of
Jesus, the fish and the boats meant nothing. They were happy to follow Jesus without looking back. In the first reading Isaiah had a vision of God, complete with angels. Even though he was a member of the royal family, he was willing to be sent out by God as a lowly prophet. He didn’t look back either. In the second reading Paul wrote to the Corinthians about his own conversion. The same Jesus who had died, been buried, and had risen on the third day had appeared to him—as he did to the Twelve and to many others. That one event made him reverse the direction of his life. Maybe we need a mid-life correction. If we are living only to catch fish, perhaps we should check out the alternative. If we choose the Lord, we won’t look back either. ■ Feb. 7, fifth Sunday of ordinary time Isaiah 6:1-8 Psalm 138:1-5, 7-8 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 Luke 5:1-11
Jumping for joy Christ brings happiness that the worldly cannot imagine.
most people W hen think of “jumping for joy,” they think about their favorite team winning the Super Bowl or our troops marching in a parade after coming home from war. In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives us an unusual reason to jump for joy. His people do this when others hate
them, exclude them, insult them and consider them evil, all on account of the Son of Man. It seems absurd that Jesus should say this. Yet these words are as true now as they ever were. Check out what the world, as it is now, demands of its adherents. If you are a member of the “in”
crowd, you should buy the most costly vehicle to attract attention. You should have only the latest electronic devices. You should indulge yourself by wearing extravagant clothing, going to all the latest movies, despite their messages, seeking the admiration and company of friends by
drinking alcohol, and laughing at all those who don’t conform to such a lifestyle. Those ideas come from watching the TV advertisements shown during a single quarter of a Sunday football game. On the other hand, Readings continued on page 3
Feb. 14, sixth Sunday of ordinary time Jeremiah 17:5-8 Psalm 1:1-4, 6 1 Corinthians 15:12, 16-20 Luke 6:17, 20-26
WEEKDAY READINGS Monday, Feb. 8: 1 Kings 8:1-7, 913; Psalm 132:6-10; Mark 6:53-56 Tuesday, Feb. 9: 1 Kings 8:22-23, 27-30; Psalm 84:3-5, 10-11; Mark 7:1-13 Wednesday, Feb. 10: Memorial, Scholastica, virgin, 1 Kings 10:1-10; Psalm 37:5-6, 30-31, 39-40; Mark 7:14-23 Thursday, Feb. 11: 1 Kings 11:4-13; Psalm 106:3-4, 35-37, 40; Mark 7:24-30
Friday, Feb. 12: 1 Kings 11:29-32 and 12:19; Psalm 81:10-15; Mark 7:31-37 Saturday, Feb. 13: 1 Kings 12:26-32 and 13:33-34; Psalm 106:6-7, 19-22; Mark 8:1-10 Monday, Feb. 15: James 1:1-11; Psalm 119:67-68, 71-72, 75-76; Mark 8:11-13 Tuesday, Feb. 16: James 1:12-18; Psalm 94:12-15, 18-19; Mark 8:1421
Wednesday, Feb. 17: Ash Wednesday, Joel 2:12-18; Psalm 51:3-6, 1214, 17; 2 Corinthians 5:20–6:2; Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18 Thursday, Feb. 18: Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Psalm 1:1-4, 6; Luke 9:2225 Friday, Feb. 19: Isaiah 58:1-9; Psalm 51:3-6, 18-19; Matthew 9:14-15 Saturday, Feb. 20: Isaiah 58:9-14; Psalm 86:1-6; Luke 5:27-32 ■
Thinking about priesthood? Take a weekend to pray and reflect on God’s call for you. Bishop Richard F. Stika will lead a diocesan discernment retreat for men from Feb. 12 through 14. College students, young and older adults, and juniors and seniors in high school may attend. The retreat will be held at The Oaks Retreat Center near Greeneville. To register or learn more, contact Father Michael Cummins at 423-926-7061 or etsucatholiccenter@yahoo.com. Registration deadline is Feb. 10. ■
Bishop Richard F. Stika Publisher Mary C. Weaver Editor Dan McWilliams Assistant editor
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The East Tennessee Catholic (USPS 007211) is published twice monthly by the Catholic Diocese of Knoxville, 805 Northshore Drive S.W., Knoxville, TN 37919-7551. Periodicals-class postage paid at Knoxville, Tenn. Printed on recycled paper by the Knoxville News Sentinel Postmaster: Send address changes to The East Tennessee Catholic, P.O. Box 11127, Knoxville, TN 37939-1127 How to reach us:
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TH E E A S T TE N N E S S E E C ATH OLI C
he dwells
AMONG US
BY BISHOP RICHARD F. STIKA
‘The gift of hope’ The smile of a rescued Haitian boy ‘affirmed . . . the precious nature of life.’
Along with millions of Americans, I have just finished watching President Obama deliver his first State of the Union speech to members of Congress and other government representatives. I must admit I thoroughly enjoy the pomp and ceremony of the occasion. Seeing this annual spectacle reminds me of the greatness of the experiment that began so long ago with the formation of what we now know as the United States of America. Our nation bears this name, but are we actually united? I find it somewhat amusing that portions of the speech are leaked out to the media in order to begin to tease the public concerning what will be said. Then, for me, the comedy begins. I used to refer to the entity that transmits information as the news. It seems this is no longer the correct term. What was once considered the news media seems rather to be slanted presentations of the news. One particular cable network, liberal in nature, spends most of its time attacking the other networks, yet fails to understand that it commits the same sin that it accuses its competitors of. The comedy continues as political pundits begin to tell us what the president said, in case we are not intelligent enough to digest his speech. Although the same theatrics and traditions occurred in the past and will continue in the future, we live in the present. So where do we stand today as Americans? I can’t really answer that; only you can. I know we are involved in two wars and often many forget to remember those in harm’s way. I know that many of the
traditional aspects of life are being questioned, as in the cases of the definition of marriage and the sanctity of life itself. I know that even the Super Bowl and its often enjoyable ads are now tainted by those who question the appropriateness of a certain ad in which a mother expresses her gratitude that she did not abort the precious life of her son, now a much-admired quarterback on his way to the National Football League. I could go on and on, but as a Christian, I know that a most precious gift our dear Father has given us is the gift of hope. That gift was magnificently demonstrated to me recently on two different but outstanding occasions. Just two weeks ago I traveled to Washington, D.C., to join with tens of thousands of people showing our support for life: Life that begins at conception and is sacred, holy, and so very precious. Life that is not trumped by the right of “privacy,” as Roe v. Wade argued. As in my past experiences, I was again edified to see the thousands of young people who traveled from throughout our nation to again stand for life. I was so pleased to know that more than 300 members of our diocesan family traveled to Washington to pray and stand for life. I hope and pray that one day the March for Life will no longer be necessary as once again our nation will stand up and demand that the most vulnerable be protected from those who merely consider the right to life subject to their own “right to choose.” I know that those who choose abortion do so seriously and probably with a great deal of thought, but this does not negate the fact that it is an immoral and evil act. And for those who profit from this evil, such as Planned Parenthood, I can only pray for God’s mercy.
However, it was one smiling face, the face of a young Haitian boy pulled from a collapsed building after many days captive in its ruins that reminded me of the gift of hope. There is no way I could fathom what this young boy endured during those days after the earthquake, but he surely taught the world about hope. With a smile on his face and his arms outstretched, he truly affirmed the gift of hope and the precious nature of life itself. I wish I knew his name. I pray that his life will be protected. I also pray for the people of this third-world nation, that the world will not forget they are our brothers and sisters once the media deem their story is no longer newsworthy. When I get to the point that I miss true political discussions and become disillusioned with the national media, when I become confused about how a person could take the life of the unborn or a Christian permit or accept the many “isms” that separate us or ponder why a person who believes in the mercy of Jesus would accept capital punishment, I will remember that young boy. He teaches me the importance of reaching out with open arms to the world and to the Lord with a smile on my face and a greater understanding of the gift of hope. ■ BISHOP STIKA’S SCHEDULE These are some of Bishop Stika’s appointments: Feb. 7: 9 a.m., confirmation, Sts. Peter and Paul Church, Chattanooga Feb. 9-10: ordination of Bishop William Medley, Diocese of Owensboro, Ky. Feb. 12-14: discernment retreat for men, Greeneville Feb. 17: 8:05 a.m., Ash Wednesday Mass, Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Feb. 18: 9:30 a.m., tour Catholic Charities facilities, Knoxville Feb. 20: 11:30 a.m., bishop’s gathering and recognition for Catholic Scouting, Rothchild Catering and Conference Center, Knoxville Feb. 21: 1:30 p.m., rite of election for Chattanooga Deanery, St. Stephen Church, Chattanooga; 6:30 p.m., rite of election for Cumberland Mountain Deanery, St. Thomas the Apostle Church, Lenoir City ■
deacon
ORDINATION
Diaconal ordination of Dan Alexander rescheduled for Feb. 7 ecause of bad weather, Bishop Richard F. Stika rescheduled Dan Alexander’s ordination to the diaconate. The rite will now take place at 3 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 7, at St. Albert the Great Church in Knoxville. All are invited. ■
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Child-protection training sessions he Diocese of Knoxville’s program for the protection of children and youth is based on training developed by Virtus and is offered regularly throughout the diocese. A three-hour seminar for adults, “Protecting God’s Children,” is required for parish and school employees and regular volunteers in contact with children or vulnerable adults and is recommended for parents and grandparents. The following training sessions are available: ■ Our Lady of Fatima
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Church, Alcoa, 9:30 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 4 (session will be held in room 206, Fatima Center) ■ Blessed Sacrament, Harriman, 7 p.m. Monday, Feb. 8 (session will be held in Blessed Sacrament Hall) ■ St. John Neumann School, Farragut, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23 (session will be held in the library) ■ St. Mary Church, Johnson City, 6:30 p.m. Monday, April 26 (session will be held in St. Anne Hall). To register, visit virtusonline.org. ■
Take note of ETC deadlines e welcome submissions about parish and community events. Send notices by e-mail (mary@dioknox.org), fax (865-584-8124), or mail (805 Northshore Drive Southwest, Knoxville, TN 37919). To make sure we receive information about upcoming events in time for publication, please submit it by the following deadlines: ■ Monday, Feb. 8, for the Feb. 21 issue ■ Monday, Feb. 22, for the March 7 issue. When submitting photos or information about past events, please keep in mind that we have a backlog of submissions. ■
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Want to try online delivery? he East Tennessee Catholic offers online delivery for those who would prefer to read a digital copy and to discontinue the print edition. If you would rather read the ETC online, visit bit.ly/8SgaaR to sign up. If you decide online delivery isn’t for you, you can return to a print subscription at any time. If you have questions, e-mail mary@dioknox.org. ■
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Readings continued from page 2
there are those who get laughed at. On Sundays they would rather be seen at Mass than at tailgate parties. They spend much of their expendable income on family projects and helping the poor. They are the parents of more than the average number of children. They are the ones being laughed at by those who conform to the world—the ones who should be jumping for joy. They do not show this enthusiasm because they are any better creatures than those who are laughing at them. We are all sinners. But they know how to find forgiveness. They experience in their hearts the presence of the risen Lord. They know what it means that Christ died for them and through his resurrection lives in their souls. That is a happiness you can’t imagine if you seek joy only through products advertised on television. Thus, Jesus begins his great sermon on the Christian life with the Beatitudes. He begins by telling us how we can be sure we’re on the right track. If the world of temporal fancies ridicules us, we can be pretty sure we’re on the right track. For that realization, we can “jump for joy.” ■
DAN MCWILLIAMS
Rosary continued from page 1
Father Brando is the pastor of St. Mary Parish in Gatlinburg. FIFTH MYSTERY
Paul Simoneau (right), standing alongside Bishop Stika, leads the final decade of the rosary in front of the abortion clinic. With them are (from left) Father William Oruko, AJ, Susan Hendershott, Monsignor Philip Thoni, Father Michael Cummins, cross bearer John Hendershott, Father John Dowling, and (far right) Father John Appiah.
to the gathering before the rosary. “So many years ago a group of individuals, powerful as they were, made a decision about the right to privacy,” the bishop said. “Who would have thought that because of that one decision, we’d have 45 million abortions–plus here in the United States? “So I always invite folks to pray for our nation, to pray T H E EA S T TE N N E S S E E C AT H OL IC
for our president and Congress, that they might have the wisdom to make sure that all the people in this country, born and unborn, have the right to life.” The bishop held up a rosary blessed by Pope John Paul II in 1999. “Anytime I visit Rome, I always lay it on his tomb—John Paul, who talked to us about the culture of death and the
culture of life,” said Bishop Stika. “As we gather together, in some ways I believe John Paul is present with us.” One shouldn’t underestimate the power of the rosary, said the bishop. “Some might think what we’re doing this morning is kind of silly,” he said. “We’ve got a bunch of beads, and we’re praying the rosary, say-
Diocese of Knoxville procedure for reporting sexual abuse Anyone who has actual knowledge of or who has reasonable cause to suspect an incident of sexual abuse should report such information to the appropriate civil authorities first, then to the bishop’s office, 865-584-3307, or the diocesan victims’ assistance coordinator, Marla Lenihan, 865-482-1388.
Rosary continued on page 7
www.d ioknox.org
FEBRUARY 7, 2010
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BY TONI PACITTI
■ The parish sent $10,000 to Catholic
Relief Services for Haiti relief following a special collection Jan. 16 and 17. ■ Proceeds from the pancake breakfast Jan. 31 during Catholic Schools Week benefited seminarian Doug Owens of OLPH. ■ Fourth-grade teacher Sabrina Gibson of OLPH School will run the Scenic City Half Marathon and Charity Challenge on Saturday, Feb. 27, to raise money for the Children’s Advocacy Center of Hamilton County. ■ Anniversary: Hilda and Dick Schults (56)
St. Jude, Chattanooga ■ The parish hosted a Mass and win-
ter dance for Chattanooga Deanery middle school students Jan. 30. ■ St. Jude School placed second and earned $3,000 for the first semester of the My School’s Cool program. ■ Parishioners are invited to bring old palms to be burned for Ash Wednesday by Sunday, Feb. 14.
Sts. Peter and Paul, Chattanooga ■ Knights of Columbus Council 610
will hold its second annual Unity Cup Chili Cook-Off on Feb. 6 for Bishop Richard F. Stika and area Knights and priests. ■ The bishop will celebrate confirmation at Sts. Peter and Paul on Feb. 7.
St. Stephen, Chattanooga ■ The parish offered 24-hour eu-
charistic adoration Jan. 22 and 23 to mark the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. ■ Anniversary: John and Grace Gridley (62)
St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Cleveland ■ The parish hosted an interfaith
service for the churches of the community Jan. 19 as part of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. ■ “Pearls for Spirituality,” a Lenten mini-retreat, will be held after the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius and a Bible study at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, in Breen Hall. The retreat will continue every Thursday evening through April 1. Call Mary Ann Shanahan at 423-310-1298 for details. Cumberland Mountain Deanery
All Saints, Knoxville ■ Middle school students attended a
movie Jan. 31 at the Pinnacle 18 theater in Farragut. ■ The men’s club has changed its name to Men’s Ministry to emphasize the role of all men in the Catholic community and to provide programs and other outlets for spiritual and social development. ■ Baptisms: Victoria Celsa Loyacano, daughter of Vincent and Julia; Stella Lynne and Bode Paul Benevicz, children of Dennis and Lisa; Ava Renée Rakestraw, daughter of Seth and Heather
Blessed Sacrament, Harriman ■ Susan Roberts is the new director of youth ministry. For more information on the youth program, contact Ms. Roberts at 865-717-9696 or roberts101@comcast.net. ■ The Knights of Columbus sold Italian subs throughout Super Bowl weekend.
Christ the King, Tazewell ■ Stations of the Cross will be held at
3 p.m. on Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17, followed by Mass at 3:45. Stations will also be held at 11:30 a.m. Sundays during Lent.
OLPH, LaFollette ■ A soup-and-sub luncheon will be served after Mass on Sunday, Feb. 14.
St. Francis of Assisi, Fairfield Glade ■ The Council of Catholic Women
will hold its monthly meeting after the 8 a.m. Mass on Wednesday, Feb. 10. Sharon Eckerd will discuss the characteristics of Appalachian people. ■ Newcomers: John and Sue Karr, Jerry Swisher and Carol Lamb
St. John Neumann, Farragut ■ The parish demonstrated its appre-
ciation for longtime pastor Father John Dowling at a farewell gathering Jan. 31. Parishioner David Russell emceed a roast in honor of Father Dowling, who began a new assignment as 4
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FEBRUARY 7, 2010
St. Thomas the Apostle, Lenoir City ■ The Knights of Columbus will spon-
sor a men’s retreat Tuesday, March 9, through Thursday, March 11, at St. Bernard Abbey Retreat Center in Cullman, Ala. Father Tom Moser will be the retreat master. Cost is $115. Mail the $25 reservation deposit to Stu Fadden, 530 Dudala Circle, Loudon, TN 37774 or call him at 865-458-3911 for more details. ■ Newcomers: Timothy and Tracy Hilbert and son Daniel; Joseph and Michele Schultz, daughter Savannah, and son Joe
DEB PEACHEY
OLPH, Chattanooga
pastor of St. Francis of Assisi in Fairfield Glade on Feb. 1.
Five Rivers Deanery
Holy Trinity, Jefferson City ■ A Valentine’s Day dinner-dance will
be held after the 5 p.m. Mass on Saturday, Feb. 13. Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for children 6 to 17, and free for children under 6. The Council of Catholic Women is selling the tickets in the narthex. ■ Baptism: Cole Zachel, son of Joe and Nichole
Lunchtime at the priest retreat The Council of Catholic Women at St. Mary in Gatlinburg provides lunch for diocesan priests when they have their retreats in the city and did so again Jan. 26. Standing in line are (from left) Father John Orr, associate pastor of Holy Ghost in Knoxville, and three pastors, Father Anietie Akata of St. Mary in Johnson City, Father Bede Aboh of Our Lady of Fatima in Alcoa, and Father John Appiah of Notre Dame in Greeneville.
Notre Dame, Greeneville ■ The parish sponsored a family skat-
ing night at Hot Wheels Skating Rink on Feb. 3. ■ The Knights of Columbus are sponsoring an essay contest for high school students of the parish. The topic is “The Responsibilities of the Catholic Citizen in a Free Society.” Essays must be 500 to 750 words in length and are due by Wednesday, Feb. 10. Prizes are $100, $50, and $25 for the top three finishers. Call Susan Collins at 423-6399382 for an entry packet. ■ The Knights will host a clergy-appreciation dinner at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, at the Gondolier restaurant. Menus and sign-up sheets are in the hall. ■ Anniversary: John Sr. and Rita Benko (67)
St. Dominic, Kingsport ■ A fitness-training class began Jan.
12 and will continue from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. each Tuesday and Thursday in the parish life center. Call 423-2888101 or e-mail parish nurse Delores Bertuso at dbertuso@charternet. ■ The Martha and Mary ministry and the Knights of Columbus will host the annual spaghetti dinner for Osman Hope at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6. Costs are $7 for adults and $5 for children, with a maximum of $25 for a family. Vegetarian meals and carryouts will be available.
COURTESY OF FATHER MICHAEL CUMMINS
Chattanooga Deanery
Vocation retreat in Spanish held in Lenoir City St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Lenoir City hosted a vocation retreat in Spanish on Jan. 23 and 24. About 40 men attended. The retreat was titled “Discover Your Vocation,” with sessions on marriage and the single life given by Juan Hernandez and a session on priesthood given by Father Manuel Pérez. The retreat concluded with Mass. Father Michael Cummins, diocesan director of vocation promotion, is pictured at center front with Father Pérez and Mr. Hernandez to his left. Father Cummins said he hopes the retreat can be offered every year, with an additional retreat in Spanish that specifically focuses on discerning the vocation of Catholic priesthood.
COURTESY OF ROSEANN STRAZINSKY
NOTES
St. Elizabeth, Elizabethton ■ Volunteers prepared and served
meals for 283 homeless and elderly people Jan. 23 at St. John Episcopal Church as part of the community-wide Food for the Multitude program. The next date for St. Elizabeth parishioners to volunteer is Saturday, March 6. ■ Newcomers: Martha Price, Victoria and Mitch Willocks, Greg and Phyllis Rodgers
St. Patrick, Morristown
Glade parishioners join Monsignor Thoni for birthday party Monsignor Philip Thoni celebrated his 86th birthday Jan. 24, joined by many parishioners from St. Francis of Assisi in Fairfield Glade. Monsignor Thoni has lived in the Glade since his retirement last summer. With him above are Roland and Jane Wicker. Monsignor Thoni was pastor of St. Mary in Gatlinburg when he marked his 60th anniversary in the priesthood last June 4.
■ Prayer shawls and “lapghans” are
needed for those who are ill, in nursing homes, or at Regency Retirement Village. Call Rita Nagy at 423-736-9113 for patterns and directions.
Bishop to visit Ladies of Charity of Chattanooga
Smoky Mountain Deanery
Holy Ghost, Knoxville ■ The Knoxville Fire Department will
Sacred Heart, Knoxville ■ Donations of gently worn formal
dresses are needed for a sale to benefit Sacred Heart’s secondary school in Boucan-Carré, Haiti. Dresses may be dropped off at any Prestige Cleaners. Contact Jennifer Neil at 865-329-3294 or visit www.givehaitihope.org.
Immaculate Conception, Knoxville ■ The women’s guild is collecting Parish notes continued on page 5
ishop Richard F. Stika will visit and tour the Ladies of Charity of Chattanooga headquarters at 3 p.m. Friday, Feb. 5. The bishop will bless a crucifix and join the Ladies for light refreshments. ■ The Ladies’ 2009 Christmas Angel program distributed more than $8,600 to 85 families and 258 individuals, with groceries and holiday gifts going to 90 children in the families served. Karen Dunegan has chaired the program for two years. ■
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conduct CPR certification classes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, Feb. 27, March 6, and March 27, in Henkel Hall. Registration fee is $37 and includes a student workbook. The parish will pay half of the fee for each preregistered usher or other parishioner. Call parish secretary Melissa Mills at 865522-2205 or parish nurse Letha R. Lehman at 556-6280 to sign up.
DAN MCWILLIAMS
parish
Annual unity service brings Holy Ghost, Methodist worshipers together Holy Ghost Parish and Washington Pike United Methodist Church, both in North Knoxville, held their annual ecumenical service Jan. 20 during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. This year the host pastor was the Rev. Bob Cantrell of the Methodist church, pictured above with Holy Ghost pastor Monsignor Xavier Mankel (left) and associate pastor Father John Orr. Each pastor gave a lesson on a Scripture reading, and Father Orr delivered a sermon. A choir with members from both churches sang a hymn at the end of the service.
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TH E E A S T TE N N E S S E E C ATH OLI C
BY TONI PACITTI
The diocesan Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry is sponsoring an “Alive Again!” night of praise and worship with Matt Maher and Paul George of Adore Ministries from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sunday, March 14, at Knoxville Catholic High School. Mr. Maher and Mr. George are part of Adore Ministries’ 2097 Tour, which takes its name from the number of the paragraph on adoring God in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Adults and youth in eighth grade and above are invited to attend. Cost is $8 in advance or $10 at the door, with all proceeds going to Catholic Relief Services for victims of the Haiti earthquake. Purchase tickets at the Paraclete bookstore, Sacred Heart Cathedral, John XXIII Catholic Center, or KCHS or buy them online at dioknox.org. For more information, call Al Forsythe, diocesan director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, at 865-584-3307 or Shelly Letendre at 694-0770 or 806-7070. Visit adoreworship.com and click on 2097 for more details on the 2097 Tour. “Frazzled in the Vineyard,” the eighth annual diocesan catechetical leadership retreat, will be held Friday and Saturday, Feb. 19 and 20, in Morristown. The event is sponsored by the diocesan Office of Christian Formation. The Friday-night session will be held in the conference room at the Travelodge and Saturday’s session at St. Patrick Church. The retreat master is Patricia Livingston, a counselor, author, and nationally known speaker who has given workshops, lectures, retreats, and parish missions around the United States for 25 years. Cost is $40 for both days and $25 for Saturday only. To make hotel reservations, call 423581-8700 (the rate for the retreat is $60). For details, contact Barb Daugherty at the Chancery office at 865-5843307 or baileywood@dioknox.org. The Council of Catholic Women at St. Mary Parish in Oak Ridge will sponsor a day of reflection for all women of St. Mary, St. Therese in Clinton, and St. Joseph in Norris beginning at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 11. The theme will be “Come Back to Me With All Your Heart.” Patrick Cleary-Burns will lead the retreat, which will end around 3 p.m. after Mass. Call the St. Mary parish office at 865-482-2875 for more information. A dinner dance to celebrate World Marriage Day will be held after the 5:30 p.m. Mass on Saturday, Feb. 13, at St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Lenoir City. Tickets are $35 per couple or $120 for four couples (free for priests). Instructors will be present to teach ballroom dancing. Call Paul or Mary Hilchey at 865-458-9025 to learn more or purchase tickets. Knights of Columbus Council 6730 from St. Patrick Parish in Morristown is having an open house and financialbenefits night at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, in the parish center at the church. The session is open to Knights and their wives and male parishioners interested in joining the fraternity. Hank McCormick, the Knights’ field agent from Maryville, will explain various programs available to Knights. Council members will be available to provide more information about the Knights to potential members and their families. Knights of Columbus Council 645 will host a Super Bowl party at 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 7, at Shea Hall, 6515 Millertown Pike, Knoxville. Chili, hot dogs, and ice cream will be served. Bring a favorite board game. Call Grand Knight David Accardi at 865573-3445 or 771-3686 to RSVP. The spiritual-life committee of Holy Trinity Parish in Jefferson City will show The Passion of the Christ at 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 21, in the parish center. The film is rated R for scenes of graphic violence. Call the parish office at 865-471-0347 for more information. St. Joseph School’s 12th annual Mardi Gras Dinner, Dance & Auction is set for 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6. If you have items for the silent and live auctions, contact Ami at 865-654-4330 or connollyam@bellsouth.net. For more information on the event, call Dorisha Chargualaf at 689-3424, extension 225. TH E EA S T TE N N E S S E E C AT H OL IC
Two Search for Christian Maturity retreats, which are open to high school juniors and seniors, have been scheduled in the Chattanooga Deanery for the weekends of Feb. 19 through 21 for Search 128 and March 19 through 21 for Search 129. To request a registration form or learn more, contact Donna Jones at 423-718-4387 or djones6029@gmail.com. A pilgrimage to Fatima and Ireland with Father Patrick Resen of St. Catherine Labouré in Copperhill, departing from Knoxville (not New York City, as previously announced), is planned for April 12 through 21. The trip features local guides, Mass each day, and plenty of time for touring and sightseeing. The cost from New York is $2,899. Breakfast and dinner are included. For more information, contact Dolores Maglione at 865-982-0090 or maglioned@bellsouth.net. The next Marriage Encounter weekend is scheduled for March 5 through 7 at the Airport Hilton in Alcoa. The weekend experience is designed to assist priests and couples with good marriages to discover a greater awareness of God’s love in their relationship. For more information, contact Deacon Bob or Janel Lange at 423-246-1570 or wwme@stayingconnected.net. To register for a weekend, contact John or Manuela Ptacek at 865-531-1719 or celebrate-love@earthlink.net, or visit www.loveinthesmokies.org. The next Engaged Encounter weekend in the diocese will be held March 5 through 7 at the Carson Springs Baptist Conference Center in Newport. Weekend cost is $239, including meals, rooms, and materials, and couples completing the entire weekend will receive a $60 discount on their marriage license. To register, call Mike or Charla Haley at 865-220-0120. For more information on Engaged Encounter, e-mail Paul or Pam Schaffer at ceeknoxville@gmail.com or visit www.rc.net/knoxville/cee.
ROBIN RUMBOLT
CALENDAR
CONCERT BENEFITS CCET
The choir and orchestra at All Saints Church perform
“Journey of Promises.”
All Saints cantata raises $8,600 for Catholic Charities espite bad weather and icy roads outside, the choir and orchestra at All Saints Church in Knoxville put on its Christmas Cantata, “Journey of Promises,” on Jan. 8 and 10 to benefit Catholic Charities of East Tennessee. This was the second year that the choir, led by Sandy Seffernick, performed the piece. Last year’s concert raised more than $9,000 for Catholic Charities. The snowy conditions didn’t damper the enthusiasm of this year’s attendees, as almost 1,000 people attended the performance over the two-day run. Conductor Walt Otey could have canceled the event because of the weather but chose not to. “Even if only one person attends the concert and is touched by our music, it was well worth it,” he said. This year’s cantata helped raise $8,600 for Catholic Charities. Fa-
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ther Ragan Schriver, executive director of CCET, said he knew the choir had hoped to top last year’s total raised but was “thrilled to death” anyway with this year’s amount. “All donations are welcome and needed at Catholic Charities,” he said. “This money will be able to help several people for many weeks, and it’s money that we would not have if the All Saints choir had not put on this concert.” Father Schriver, who was appointed pastor at Holy Family in Seymour last fall, lived at All Saints for the previous 12 years and said he has a deep affection for the choir there. Mrs. Seffernick said she hopes the event can be repeated. “We are looking into other cantatas that can be performed, possibly one during Lent or Easter, but not until next year,” she said. ■
A Seekers of Silence Contemplative Saturday Morning will be held Saturday, Feb. 20, at John XXIII Catholic Center in Knoxville. John Prados will give a talk titled “Contemplation and the Non-Dual Mind.” Coffee and tea will be served at 8:30 a.m.; the workshop will run from 9 a.m. to noon. Bring a bag lunch. To RSVP, call 865523-7931. Holy Resurrection Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Mission has Divine Liturgy celebrations at 3:30 p.m. Sundays at Holy Ghost Church, 1041 N. Central St. in Knoxville. Call Father Thomas O’Connell at 865-256-4880. The St. Thomas the Apostle Ukrainian Catholic Mission celebrates Divine Liturgy at 10 a.m. Sundays in the chapel at the Chancery. Call Father Richard Armstrong at 865-584-3307. Mass in the extraordinary form (“traditional Latin”) is celebrated at 1:30 p.m. each Sunday at Holy Ghost Church in Knoxville and at 3 p.m. on first and third Sundays at St. Thérèse of Lisieux Church in Cleveland. Visit www.knoxlatinmass.net for details. The Latin Mass altar servers at Holy Ghost have outgrown their original cassocks and surplices. Donations to the “Altar Server Fund” for new vestments may be mailed to the Knoxville Latin Mass Community, P.O. Box 696, Alcoa, TN 37701. Upcoming events for Catholic Singles of Greater Knoxville (40 and over) include the following: ■ Sunday, Feb. 7: Super Bowl party hosted by Rich S. Bring beverage of choice and finger food. Call 865-9663024 to RSVP. ■ Saturday, Feb. 13: Mardi Gras dance at All Saints, 8 to 11 p.m. Call Gail at 966-8205 to help with decorating, refreshments, etc. ■ Tuesday, Feb. 16: Fat Tuesday pancake supper at Cracker Barrel at Cedar Bluff, 7 p.m. Hosted by Sheila M. Call 384-9654 to RSVP. ■ Friday, Feb. 19: Knoxville Ice Bears hockey game. Meet at the entrance on the mall/parking-lot side of the Civic Coliseum at 6:45 p.m. Tickets: $14 for adults; $8 for children; $9 for seniors. ■
COURTESY OF GAYLE SCHOENBORN
on the
Members of Notre Dame’s Christian Leadership load a school bus with presents for the children of Cedar Hill Head Start. From left are (front) Patrice Miller, Danielle Anderson, and Daniel Brock and (back) Alicin Lawson, Kayla Butler, Lindsey McGirl, Andrew Minter, Eric del Valle, Dillon May, and Troy Tillman.
DEPARTURE TIME
NDHS students, faculty help needy at Christmastime tudents and faculty at Notre Dame High School in Chattanooga helped make Christmas a little brighter for a number of people in the area. Members of the Christian Leadership group conducted the annual angel-tree project, collecting and delivering gifts of clothing and toys for 159 students at Cedar Hill Head Start. The Student Leadership Council collected
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approximately 1,500 cans of food for Catholic Charities and presented a check for $1,900 to the Ladies of Charity. National Honor Society members collected items for the Salvation Army’s Christmas Stockings for the Homeless drive. In conjunction with NDHS faculty, students donated more than 500 items that had been requested by the Salvation Army for the homeless. The
items included toiletries, washcloths, socks, hats, gloves, and devotional books. In addition, 25 crocheted hats handmade by math instructor Kathy Fisher’s mother were donated. A monetary gift of $95 was also donated to buy heaters for needy families. These items were delivered by Jennifer Fisher of the NDHS class of 2003, who works at the Salvation Army’s office on McCallie Avenue. ■
Parish notes continued from page 4
handmade lap quilts and afghans to distribute to Meals on Wheels participants the week before Easter. Collection information will be announced. ■ The parish’s second collection Jan. 16 and 17 raised $9,684.26 for Catholic Relief Services to benefit Haiti earthquake victims.
Our Lady of Fatima, Alcoa ■ A pancake breakfast to benefit
Haiti recovery operations was served Jan. 31. ■ A Mardi Gras celebration will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13. Cost is $20 (ages 21 and older only). ■ The confirmation class will sponsor a
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donation-only waffle breakfast Sunday, Feb. 14, in the Fatima Center to benefit the parish’s Haiti school.
St. Albert the Great, Knoxville ■ The parish collected more than $4,000 in medical supplies and more than $4,000 in cash for Haiti. ■ The parish has formed a five-year strategic planning committee. ■ A weekend workshop for the parish and finance councils, staff, and strategic planning committee using material from the National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management was held Jan. 22 and 23 at St. Albert the Great. ■ FEBRUARY 7, 2010
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marriage
ENRICHMENT
March continued from page 1
New Year’s resolutions 2010 BY M A RI A N CHR I ST I ANA
ave your 2010 New Year’s resolutions already gone out the window? Commit to a new resolution starting now, and perk up your marriage at the same time: Go on a date with your spouse, just the two of you. Dating your spouse may seem like a simple idea, but often a couple’s good intentions are quickly replaced with the demands of everyday life. Make your relationship your priority in 2010. Commit to each other that you will go out on a date at least once a month. Dates don’t have to be elaborate. The focus of the date is to spend time reconnecting with your spouse. It is a time to talk, laugh, and listen. Every month this marriage-enrichment column will offer you a date suggestion, along with several discussion questions to help you concentrate on your relationship. So put children, work, and family responsibilities aside and enjoy your date. Try the following suggestion to help you get started. Attend a Saturday morning Mass together and go out to breakfast afterward. Take your calendars with you. At breakfast, look through your calendars and set dates for the remainder of the year. While you’re at breakfast, here are some ideas and thoughts to discuss: ■ Remember your first date. Where did you go? What did you do? How did you wear your hair? What kind of car were you driving? Plan to recreate that first date (as closely as possible) on one of your dates. ■ Talk about something funny that happened on your first date. ■ Discuss what kind of activities you would enjoy doing together. Plan a date you both will enjoy. ■ Take turns planning a date. If you’re the husband, plan a date that will be special for your wife. If you’re the wife, plan a date that will be special for your husband. ■ What are your hopes and dreams for the New Year? Write them down. Watch for more suggestions next month. ■ Mrs. Christiana is coordinator of the diocesan Marriage Preparation and Enrichment Office.
Haiti continued from page 10
with Notre Dame de la Chandeleur in GrosMorne. Immaculate Conception in Knoxville supports St. Francois Xavier in Fond-des-Blancs, also in the Les Cayes Diocese. Our Lady of Fatima in Alcoa is twinned with College Monsignor Jean-Baptiste Décoste in Thomonde and Notre Dame in Greeneville with Immaculée Conception parish and school in Roseaux; both towns are in the Diocese of Jérémie. St. Mary in Oak Ridge has a twinning relationship with St. Louis Roi de France in St. Louis du Nord, in the northern Diocese of Port-de-Paix. Also in the north is the Diocese of Cap-Haïtien, where Sts. Peter and Paul in Chattanooga has a twin parish in Immaculée Conception in the town of Milot. In the same diocese is Marie Médiatrice, a parish in Camp Coq twinned with St. Thérèse of Lisieux in Cleveland. Mrs. Patterson has been working with the twinning program since 1978 and has visited Haiti 88 times over the years. “I just can hardly believe when I view on TV the photos of all the buildings and the places that I know that have been damaged or destroyed,” she said. The earthquake is the latest disaster for a country beset over the centuries by slavery, hurricanes, rebellions, political corruption, and extreme poverty. “You would have thought nothing worse could happen to Haiti and then suddenly this: when the earthquake occurs, you realize the worst has happened,” said Mrs. Patterson. She added that if anyone can recover from such a disaster, it’s the people of Haiti. “There’s an incredible spirit and resiliency to the Haitian people. They never give up.” East Tennessee Catholics can contribute to Haiti relief through the Parish Twinning website at parishprogram.org and through Catholic Relief Services at crs.org. ■
The good we do lives after us— when we remember to make a will.
Only you can divide your own property as you want it divided. A bequest to your church can be a living memorial to the nobility of your life.
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FEBRUARY 7, 2010
CNS PHOTO/PETER LOCKLEY
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‘YOUTH ARE ON FIRE’
March for Life participants, including thousands of young people, walk up Constitution Avenue en route to the Supreme Court building in Washington on Jan. 22. More than 17,000 youth also took part in the annual Youth Rally and Mass for Life held at the Verizon Center sports arena.
on fire for pro-life.” During the rally on the National Mall, a glance at the banners across the mall showed that the participants included people from Texas, Michigan, Tennessee, Ohio, and Massachusetts. The relatively subdued crowd cheered enthusiastically when speakers stressed that abortion should never have been part of health-care-reform legislation before Congress or when speakers criticized President Barack Obama’s support for legal abortion. Nellie Gray, president of the March for Life Education & Defense Fund—the group that organizes the march— told participants that their presence at the 37th annual march represented a “whole new surge” for the pro-life movement, not only to continue to educate government officials about the immorality of abortion but also to show a united front. Those involved in the fight against abortion, she said, are not just working to change laws but are also giving support for pregnant women and women who have had abortions. Several speakers on the podium with Gray highlighted the pro-life movement’s outreach efforts and urged participants to support prolife doctors and pharmacists and to let members of their community know about available pregnancy centers and post-abortion counseling programs. With the U.S. Capitol in the background, 23 Catholic bishops and 21 members of Congress joined pro-life leaders on the rally’s stage. Among the bishops were Cardinals Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, chairman of the U.S. bishops’
Committee on Pro-Life Activities, and Justin Rigali of Philadelphia. Several of the lawmakers were Catholic, including U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan.; Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who is cochairman of the House ProLife Caucus; and Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao, R-La. Cao led the group in a prolife cheer and then urged them to “speak loudly for leaders to understand we are pro-life.” He encouraged participants to keep up their efforts, stressing that the “fight will be long and hard” and that young people, who made up a large percentage of march attendees, would need to see the work through. Brownback told the crowd that “for the first time you live in a majority pro-life country” referring to recently released Gallup poll results showing 51 percent of American to be pro-life on the abortion issue and 42 percent of Americans as pro-choice. “You have done it—persuading others—keep it up,” he said. Each year when President George W. Bush was in office, marchers received a greeting from him expressing support for the pro-life cause. He usually spoke via a telephone hookup from the White House or from other locations if he was traveling. As he did last year, Obama issued a statement expressing his continued support for what he said Roe affirmed: “every woman’s fundamental constitutional right to choose whether to have an abortion” and “each American’s right to privacy from governmental intrusion.” He said he was committed “to working with people of good will to prevent unintended pregnancies, sup-
port pregnant women and families, and strengthen the adoption system.” After the rally, participants walked to the Supreme Court, then many planned to meet with their representatives to lobby for anti-abortion measures. The marchers talked with one another, sang, and prayed as they made their way down Constitution Avenue. As marchers were lining up in the street, Father Paul Hrezo, spiritual director for the college seminarians at the Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio, said it was important to be at this event “to be counted with others and give witness to what we believe.” The priest, a veteran marcher, came with about 80 people. Even though many marchers have made this event an annual one, some in the crowd told Catholic News Service that this march was their first. Two women from Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Turnersville, N.J., said they had never attended the march before because they weren’t quick enough to get seats on parish-sponsored buses. They were pleased simply to see the turnout. Theresa Ramsey, taking pictures of the crowd, said she was surprised to see people “coming from all directions.” She also was confident that the sheer number of people had to make an impact, either in Washington or in their local efforts. “Let’s hope people are listening,” she said as her friend nodded in agreement. ■ Copyright 2010 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
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Believe it or not, funerals. That’s where the rubber meets the road in our Christian faith—when we’re forced to look into eternity and say what life is about. It’s where the cross is, and people are very open to the Gospel at that time. Having something to say in the face of death—that’s profound. Our Christian faith affords us a hope and a joy even in the face of the suffering and death we experience. Many times, people would call and they’d be on their deathbed and say, “I haven’t been to church in 30 years” or “My spouse is on his www.d ioknox.org
deathbed and hasn’t been to church in 30 years, and he really wants the sacraments.” It’s kind of like Dismas on the cross: the thief who stole heaven. I was able to preach about that and say, “This is the beauty of God and his mercy and his love for us, that we turn to him. It doesn’t matter where we’ve been. If we repent, we turn and come to him, heaven’s open to us.” So I think attending to people at their deathbeds, praying the prayers—especially the last rites. Then another part of being a priest [that I especially love] is baptisms. By my third year
[as associate pastor of St. Jude Parish in Chattanooga], it was so uplifting to look out into the congregation and see baby after baby and 3-year-old after 3-year-old whom I had baptized. In a sense, there’s a spiritual paternity to that. If you think about it, we call the priest Father because of baptism because we are born of water and the Spirit. So when the priest baptizes, he becomes the spiritual father with that engendering of new life. ■ Mrs. Hunt is administrative assistant for the diocesan Media Office. TH E E A S T TE N N E S S E E C ATH OLI C
around the
DIOCESE
from the
BY MARY C. WEAVER
‘Faithful in his ministry’ Monsignor Al Humbrecht, Sacred Heart’s longtime pastor, was invested with papal honors on Jan. 17.
MARY C. WEAVER
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acred Heart parishioners and friends from all over East Tennessee and beyond packed the cathedral the evening of Jan. 17 to honor Monsignor Al Humbrecht. During the Vespers service the new monsignor was invested with papal honors, having been named a Prelate of Honor to His Holiness late last year. The standing-roomonly gathering included three other monsignori, a number of deacons and women religious, and 25 priests. Bishop Richard F. Stika led the prayer service. The occasion also served as a tribute to the longtime Sacred Heart pastor, who began a new assignment as pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in Soddy-Daisy on Feb. 1. Monsignor Humbrecht had been rector of the cathedral parish since 1997. The homilist for the occasion was a fellow Nashvillian who knows the honoree quite well: Monsignor Owen Campion, who served as master of ceremonies for Monsignor Humbrecht’s priestly ordination on May 6, 1972, at St. Henry Church in Nashville. Monsignor Campion, a priest of the Diocese of Nashville, is associate publisher of Our Sunday Visitor. “As a good friend of so many years, I eagerly say that Monsignor Humbrecht has generously and effectively used his personal gifts to enrich his priestly ministry and has used his ministry to convey to God’s people the grace and the knowledge of God’s love,” Monsignor Campion said. He described the honoree as “a friend to so many in the brotherhood of priests” and cited his service as administra-
THREE MONSIGNORI Newly named Monsignor Al Humbrecht (right) was invested with papal honors during a Jan. 17 Vespers service at Sacred Heart Cathedral. With him are (from left) Monsignor Xavier Mankel of Holy Ghost Parish in Knoxville and Monsignor Owen Campion of the Nashville Diocese, who served as homilist.
tor for the Knoxville Diocese during its two vacancies between bishops. “Monsignor Humbrecht—Father Al— our brother, worthy pastor, good and loyal friend, gentle soul, faithful disciple, we rejoice with you and confidently pray as you continue to use your gifts to empower all to use their gifts to build the kingdom of the Lord,” he said. When Monsignor Humbrecht took the podium, he thanked Monsignor Campion for having served as his emcee 38 years ago and for “showing me where to go, but politely, back then.” He reflected on his decades as a priest, saying that “I hope even after 38 years I haven’t quit learning how to be a better priest.” “At every parish, every assignment, there’s been the opportunity for continued growth.” He thanked both the faithful and brother priests, who he said had made that growth possible, adding, “I am grateful for those priests who when necessary have been willing to give me a little kick.” Monsignor Humbrecht also expressed his gratitude to the women religious who have played signifi-
cant roles in his life— beginning with his eighth-grade teacher, Sister Mary Philip, OP. The sister told her young student that he was going to become a priest, “and for the first time in my life, I told a sister she was crazy,” he said. “However, 12 years after that, I received a card from her in the first week of May 1972, simply signed: ‘I told you so.’” In remarks near the end of the Vespers service, Bishop Stika admitted that some people might think naming monsignors is “a dated thing, or old-fashioned.” In fact, it one of the ways the church can tell a priest “that he’s been faithful in his ministry—it’s just one of the ways the church can say thank you,” he said. “When I wrote the Holy Father, requesting that he name Father Al a Prelate of Honor, apparently he agreed with everything because he never called me back. “I said [Father Al] was a man of history, for in the short time that our diocese has been in existence, twice he was elected administrator to make sure that things ran smoothly. It’s probably one job he hopes—and I hope— he will never be
elected to again,” said the bishop. “He’s served the diocese faithfully as a pastor, an excellent teacher of the faith, as a person who has tried to include so many different cultures in the life of one parish.” Acknowledging how difficult it can be for priests to move to new assignments—as Monsignor Humbrecht was then preparing to do—the bishop said, “I ask that you pray for all the priests whose lives I’ve disrupted in the short time I’ve been here.” “The life of a priest, as St. John Vianney, the Curé of Ars, reminds us, is a life of simply following the Lord’s call, to come and to follow, to preach the Gospel, and to love people as Jesus would love them.” Congratulating and thanking the new monsignor, Bishop Stika said, “I embrace you with a sense of love and respect, and I pray that as you begin your new assignment, you may love those people as you have loved these people and that you will continually serve the church of the Diocese of Knoxville in the many splendid ways that you have done these 38 years. Ad multos annos.” ■
Ministries Day provided ‘something of interest for everyone’ B Y M A RY C. WE AV E R
espite snowy weather, some 140 East Tennessee Catholics came out on Saturday, Jan. 9, to attend Ministries Day 2010. The daylong celebration, held at Sacred Heart Cathedral School, featured more than 20 workshops of interest to religious educators, clergy, and other adults. “We were able to bring together and capitalize on local talent, making this truly a ‘diocesan’ event,” said Father Richard Armstrong, assistant director of the Christian Formation Office. “The diversity of presenters was matched only by the diversity of participants,” he said, noting that speakers and attendees included priests, deacons, lay ecclesial ministers, directors of religious education, catechists, parish coordinators of the Rite of
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Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) program, youth ministers, and other lay faithful. Workshops included sessions on fostering priestly vocations, apologetics, beginning and end of life issues, Hispanic culture, Eastern Catholic spirituality, RCIA, helping special-needs children, the liturgy, and Scripture for young people. The great variety of sessions “provided something of interest for everyone,” said Father Richard. The theme for the day was “Sharing Gifts in Faith”—an apt title, Father Richard said, given that “the diversity of gifts people brought to this day was incredible.” He noted that Ministries Day will again be held in 2011, although the theme had not yet been set. Coordinating the event was
Susan Collins, the director of religious education and youth ministry for Notre Dame Parish in Greeneville. Assisting her was Kathy DeAngelis, director of religious education for St. Patrick Parish in Morristown. “This day started out as a joint effort between religious education and youth ministry,” said Mrs. Collins in remarks before the workshops began. “Wearing both hats, I realized there are a lot of things we do together. We are hoping this will be the beginning of a joint effort.” Attendees also had the opportunity to meet two new Chancery employees: Sister Timothea Elliott, RSM, the director of Christian Formation, and Al Forsythe, the director of Youth and Young Adult ministry. ■ www.d ioknox.org
PARACLETE
BY VONNIE SPICER
Preparing for the desert t may seem strange so soon after the joyful celebration of Christmas to redirect thoughts towards the penitential experience of Lent. Lent means creating a desert experience that will encourage reflection and spiritual growth. As someone who grew up on the Mojave, the desert has special significance. The desert can be a fascinating place, with its diversity of plant and animal life, but it is also pitiless. As children we were taught that to become lost in the desert unprepared meant to die of heat during the day or to freeze to death at night. So when my thoughts begin to turn toward the desert of Lent, I know I must be prepared, opening my eyes to the wonders the desert waits to reveal. In Daily Lenten Meditations (Liturgy Training Publications, 2007) John Paul II reminds us that during Lent “Jesus calls us to follow him on the way that leads him to Jerusalem to be sacrificed on the Cross.” One thing I will “pack” for my Lenten journey is a guide for the Way of the Cross. While still a cardinal in 2005, Pope Benedict XVI led this devotion at Rome’s Coliseum, and it has been published in Way of the Cross (Burns & Oates, 2006). The beautiful art accompanying the cardinal’s reflections makes
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it possible to meditate and make the way from your chair at home. The same is true of Angela Burrin’s Step by Step to Calvary: Praying Through the Stations of the Cross (Word Among Us Press, 2005). Another beautiful small book is Romanus Cessario’s The Seven Last Words of Jesus (Ignatius Press, 2009). For a more in-depth study of the Passion narratives, see Father Raymond Brown’s A Crucified Christ in Holy Week: Essays on the Four Gospel Passion Narratives (Liturgical Press, 1986). From a different perspective, Edward Hays offers The Lenten Pharmacy: Daily Healing Therapies (Forest of Peace Publishing, 2006), focusing on Jesus the healer. For suggestions on how to prepare for your own Lenten journey, check at the Paraclete for items such as “These Forty Days,” a pamphlet by Timothy McCanna; The Essential Lenten Handbook (Liguori Publications, 2000); or any of the Wisdom series, which compile Lenten reflections by recognized spiritual leaders such as Thomas Merton, Pope John Paul II, and Archbishop Fulton Sheen. It’s time to pack for the desert. Be ready. ■ Call the store at 865588-0388 or 800-3332097.
Rosary continued from page 3
ing the same prayer over and over and over again, but all I know is my mother, [whose ancestors are] from eastern Europe, used to pray for the conversion of Russia through the intercession of Our Lady of Fatima. The Soviet Union doesn’t exist anymore. “So we continue to pray and place in God’s hands our nation, place in God’s hands those who are contemplating abortion, and place in God’s hands those who have had abortions and pray for God’s mercy on them.” The bishop gave a reflection before each decade and asked that a priest, a deacon, a married couple, and Mr. Simoneau lead the prayers for each decade. Father John Dowling of St. John Neumann in Farragut led the first mystery, followed by Deacon Gordon Lowery of Holy Trinity in Jefferson City, Lisa and Robb Morris of Sacred Heart Cathedral, and Mr. Simoneau. Mrs. Morris is a lay associate of the Missionaries of the Gospel of Life. Bishop Stika plans for the rosary in front of the clinic to be an annual event near the Roe anniversary “until we don’t need to do it because the country will have gotten some sense.” Praying a rosary for the Soviet Union was a response to the wish of the Blessed Virgin in her apparitions at Fatima, in which she asked the three visionaries to pray for the conversion of Russia. “That was around the time that Lenin took control of the Soviet Union,” the bishop said, “and it became a country that was antagonistic not only to the Catholic church but also to faith and to God. So people around the world started praying for the conversion of Russia. Looked what happened just 20 years ago: the Soviet Union fell apart, and the Orthodox church is blossoming in Russia. Prayer is a powerful tool.” ■ Wes Lott of Notre Dame Parish in Greeneville assisted with this article.
FEBRUARY 7, 2010
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School continued from page 1
phone interview. “‘Folks, I have some unpleasant news. After prayerful consultation with Bishop Stika, our chancellor, our chief finance officer, the superintendent of our schools, our pastoral council, and our finance board, and with dwindling enrollment and ever-increasing costs, the final decision was reached Thursday night to close our parish school at the end of the academic year.’” Only 36 of St. Dominic’s 832 registered families send a student to the school. Enrollment has dropped from 83 to 52 in kindergarten through fifth grades over the last four years. Meanwhile, parishioners are providing $377,860 annually to support the students: $270,806 for the school subsidy and $107,054 for tuition assistance. The subsidy averages $5,208 per child. Nineteen students pay no tuition at all. For those who do, 37 percent of tuition for Catholic students and 46 percent for non-Catholic students is awarded via tuition assistance. The school has an additional 45 pre-kindergarten students, and the parish subsidy for them averages to $2,163 per child. Father Nolan said that the “level of support can no longer be justified and left little if any resources for capital improvement, technological upgrades, or staff development.” He said that he foresaw only increased tuition, “which would lead to a further decrease in enrollment, bringing a higher cost of education per child, and necessitating a higher parish subsidy, leaving less for tuition assistance and leading to a further decrease in enrollment.” The tough decision was the only one he could have made, said Father Nolan. “Naturally, some parents are disappointed and some are angry, but we really didn’t have any choice,” said Father Nolan. With their parish’s CCD program serving 279 students, St. Dominic leadership believed the money supporting the school would be better spent on religious education. Bishop Stika agreed with the “more efficient” use of funds, in a letter he wrote to St. Dominic families. “It appears that closing St. Dominic School would contribute to a greater scope and quality of parish services and ministries, while at the same time realizing a reduction in operating costs through a more efficient utilization of resources,” the bishop stated. “While St. Dominic’s pastoral and finance councils and my curial staff have found this recommendation to close the school a necessary one, the decision to close the school has not been an easy one. “I recognize that the closure of St. Dominic School is difficult for school families, faculty, administration, and the parish community, all of whom have supported the school with loyalty and dedication. Yet taking good Christian stewardship practices into account, it would be irresponsible to allow the current enrollment and financial conditions to persist further over time.” St. Mary School in Johnson City, which is about a half-hour’s drive from St. Dominic, will take in any St. Dominic student who wishes to transfer there. St. Mary principal Randi McKee emphasized Jan. 26 that her school will accommodate all potential transfers from St. Dominic. “We do not have a waiting list for any of our grades,” said Mrs. McKee. “I actually do not have a class that’s at its full capacity.” The closing of St. Dominic raised fears among St. Mary parents that their school too might close. Dr. Morgan assured them in a Jan. 25 letter that such is not the case. “St. Mary’s is in no danger of closing,” the superintendent wrote. “The school will become the center of our Catholic Schools presence in the Tri-Cities area. The Diocese of Knoxville is committed to keeping St. Mary’s strong and vibrant.” A transition team will help St. Dominic employees find jobs elsewhere. St. Dominic School opened on Center Street in downtown Kingsport in 1945, with classes held in the church basement at first and later at a Center Street house. The current building opened in 1951 and stood next to the original church. That church was destroyed by fire in 1983, and the parish built its new church four miles to the northeast on John B. Dennis Highway while the school remained on Center Street. St. Dominic is the first diocesan school to close since the Diocese of Knoxville was established in 1988. The diocese began with nine schools, including its two high schools, then grew to 10 with the establishment of St. John Neumann School in Farragut in 1997. The last school to close in East Tennessee was All Saints Academy in Chattanooga in 1985. St. Stephen School in Chattanooga closed in 1977. St. Dominic once boasted enrollment in the triple digits for the K-5 grades and formerly had middle school grades. Saving the school now, however, “was not tenable,” said Father Nolan. “It was very difficult to make a decision to close. My heart goes out to all the students and parents and teachers and alums, but you can’t keep a school going with too few children. I ask for prayers for teachers and staff and school families who are understandably disappointed and hurt. While many saw this coming years ago, it’s still a shock. May God guide us through this painful chapter.” ■ The Jan. 22 letter to St. Dominic families may be viewed in full at www.saintdominicchurch.org. 8
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FEBRUARY 7, 2010
the new
MISSAL
BY FATHER RANDY STICE
Creating a ‘sacral vernacular’ The coming translation can help us experience the liturgy anew.
One of the goals of the translation of the new Missal is the development of a sacred style of language, what Authentic Liturgy calls a “sacral vernacular,” a style of English that “will come to be recognized as proper to liturgical language” and “to divine worship” (Nos. 47, 25). This sacral vernacular is “characterized by a vocabulary, syntax, and grammar that are proper to divine worship” (No. 47). This means that the style of English characteristic of the new Missal will differ from that of everyday usage in both word choice and sentence structure. The development of a sacral vernacular is an example of what linguists call “register,” a recognition that, both in speaking and in writing, we vary the style of language we use in response to the audience, topic, or situation. For example, the language we use with adults differs from the language we use with children. The English of People magazine is quite different from the English of Hemingway, which is different from that of Faulkner. And the language of casual conversation differs from the language used in formal academic or business presentations. These examples illustrate the variety of “registers” used by English speakers. The same is true of our worship: the language used to and about God is, or ought to be, distinct from other regis-
called
TO FOLLOW
ters. The goal of the translation is “a kind of language which is easily understandable, yet which at the same time preserves these texts’ dignity, beauty, and doctrinal precision. By means of words of praise and adoration that foster reverence and gratitude in the face of God’s majesty, his power, his mercy, and his transcendent nature, the translations will respond to the hunger and thirst for the living God that is experienced by the people of our own time, while contributing also to the dignity and beauty of the liturgical celebration itself” (No. 25). The goal, in other words, is threefold: a translation that communicates the greatness and mercy of God, gives expression to our innate desire for God, and expresses both God’s character and our desire accurately and beautifully. Balancing all three is not easy. Perhaps it is not surprising that this is one of the least understood and most often criticized aspects of the new translation. One critic has labeled it “elitist,” “remote from everyday speech,” “unproclaimable,” and “incomprehensible.” Another has described it as “clumsy” and “precious,” citing such phrases as “and with your spirit,” “incarnate of the Virgin Mary,” and “oblation of our service.” Such criticisms ignore, on the one hand, the reality of linguistic registers, and on the other, the fact that the development of a sacral vernacular is a gradual process that may be somewhat uncomfortable at first. The church recognizes that this will require a period of
BY SUZANNE ERPENBACH
‘The love you give’ Each of us represents Christ’s face on earth.
Two upcoming special days prompt us to think about love and life. St. Valentine’s Day invites expressions of loving relationships. Three days later Ash Wednesday reminds us that life is a gift of God’s love for us. Many people are currently responding with service, generosity, and prayer to those affected by Haiti’s horrific earthquake. Similarly, the recent national March for Life in Washington, D.C., focused on giving dignity, respect, and value to all human life, from conception to natural death. Pope John Paul II said, “I appeal to all of you, wherever you are, whatever you are doing, to see the face of a brother or sister in every human being. What unites us is so much more than what separates and divides us: it is our common humanity.” Wearing ashes on one’s forehead often attracts attention and questions on Ash Wednesday. The presence of ashes provides opportunities for us to educate people about the day, Lent, Christ’s ultimate expression of sacrificial love, and the glorious significance of Easter. We can also speak of our ability to bring Christ’s love to others through our faithfulness to God, with care and outreach to others. www.d ioknox.org
The Ash Wednesday Gospel (Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18) reads much like the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, in providing guidelines for our behavior—for almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. Each instruction communicates a message of acting, without show, from a direct and personal relationship to God. The Gospel impels us to make the most of our human life. Not knowing when our life might end, we have an opportunity each moment to live to the fullest by reflecting love to all. The church links love to Christ’s mission. Jesus inspired a global perspective in his efforts, focusing his attention on people, their needs, and their relationships to God the Father and to one another. Christ’s words and example are identifiable in modern times when individuals and the church maintain the same attitude toward mission and service. We each represent Christ’s face on earth. Opportunities not taken and words or actions that do not show love cannot be relived. Love is a choice to be made and acted upon moment to moment. Blessed Mother Teresa lived with great sensitivity and understanding, saying, “Never has the world had a greater need for love than in our day. People are hungry for love. We don’t have time to stop and smile at each other. We are all in such a hurry! Pray. Ask for the necessary grace. Pray to be able to understand
adjustment. This is not necessarily a negative thing, however, for “a literal translation of terms which may initially sound odd in a vernacular language may for this very reason provoke inquisitiveness in the hearer and provide an occasion for catechesis” (No. 4). The new translation of the Missal is an opportunity to experience the liturgy in a new and fresh way and to reflect on and contemplate the mystery and power of our faith. Let’s take one example that has been criticized. In the current translation of the Creed we say of Jesus, “he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became Man.” In the new Missal we will say, “he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary.” The Incarnation is one of the great mysteries of our faith. The new translation invites us to reflect on this mystery by translating the Latin incarnatus est as “incarnate” instead of the current “was born.” We (including Jesus) have all been born, but only Christ, the Second Person of the Trinity, became incarnate. The Mass is a profound and mysterious encounter between God and man, between a loving Father and his beloved children—a God completely “other” who nevertheless in Christ became like us in all things but sin. The language of this encounter must, therefore, simultaneously express both God’s transcendence and his nearness, the paradox that he dwells in unapproachable light and yet brings us into intimate relationship with the Trinity. This is the purpose and goal of a sacral vernacular. ■ Father Stice directs the diocesan Office of Worship and Liturgy. how much Jesus loved us so that you can love others.” Stewardship is about showing love and making a return for what we have received. Consider the times love has touched your heart and influenced your development. Make a list of the small acts that you remember and appreciate. Think of the many ways you receive and express love in a day, in a relationship, in life experiences, and through the practice of your faith. Evaluate how love has helped you grow and change. Discern ways you can enhance further growth. Ask yourself whether others know you for the love you give. Evangelizing others is the essential mission of the church. St. Francis of Assisi encouraged this mission in his followers, saying, “Go and preach the Gospel, and if you must, use words.” Our actions affect the way people perceive Christians. Each of us has the ability daily to continue the spirit of Christmas, the sentiment of St. Valentine’s Day, and the love God gives us. Blessed Mother Teresa offers us another thought to ponder on Ash Wednesday and throughout Lent: “In your life, in mine, in the life of each of us, God has made us for bigger things. He has created us to love and to be loved so that we walk toward our heavenly home. As we carry Jesus in the world, we will be prepared to return eagerly to our Father’s house when the day arrives for us to be called home.” God bless you. ■ Mrs. Erpenbach directs the diocesan Stewardship and Development Office. TH E E A S T TE N N E S S E E C ATH OLI C
women
RELIGIOUS
BY DAN MCWILLIAMS
‘Ad Gentes’ sisters’ new superior visits diocese The recently elected Sister Beatriz Vieyra meets with three fellow Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
hree of the diocese’s Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus (“Ad Gentes” sisters) met their community’s new mother superior at the Chancery on Jan. 14. Sister Beatriz Taneco Vieyra will succeed Mother Teresa Bravo Cañongo as the leader of the community, which began in Mexico and now serves in the United States, Italy, and Angola as well. Meeting Sister Beatriz in Knoxville were Sister Carmen Gordillo García and Sister Isabel González Pérez, who serve in Hispanic ministry in the Five Rivers Deanery, and Sister Celia Sánchez Coatl, who serves in the Chattanooga Deanery. Sister Carmen is the superior of the recently dedicated Casa Juan Diego convent in Jonesborough. Sister Celia is superior of the Casa María Asunta in Chattanooga. The sisters also met with Lourdes Garza, the diocesan director of Hispanic Ministry. Sister Beatriz was only a stone’s throw from Tennessee when she was elect-
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PRIESTS
A conversation with seminarian Doug Owens BY DA N MCW I L L I A MS
oug Owens is a Theology III student at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary near Philadelphia. He is scheduled to be ordained a deacon later this year.
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DAN MCWILLIAMS
What is your most challenging course in seminary and why?
Sister Beatriz Taneco Vieyra (second from left) met not only three Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus during a Jan. 14 visit to the Chancery office but also Sister Timothea Elliott, RSM (second from right), director of the diocesan Office of Christian Formation. With their new superior are (from left) Sister Isabel González Pérez, Sister Carmen Gordillo García, and Sister Celia Sánchez Coatl.
WORK FOR GOD
ed superior for a sixyear term Dec. 30, a few weeks after the community’s 60th anniversary. “I was working at St. Clement’s in Calhoun, Ga.,” she said. “I was working there for three and a half years with the Hispanic ministry. It’s close to Chattanooga and close to my sisters in Atlanta.” She came to Knoxville to review the community’s contract with the diocese’s sis-
ters and “and to see how they are doing and what I can do to support them.” “As superior, I need to see all the things that my sisters do and what they need,” she added. Sister Beatriz learned from her East Tennessee sisters that “we always need help. We like to support all the ministries that we have—the plans that the Hispanic ministry has and especially the
work of my sisters, that they are staying well physically and spiritually, and that they’re happy with the ministry.” The new superior said that she was “very surprised” at her election. “But I know that the Holy Spirit guides us, and I will try to do the best I can. I know that this is work for God, and I have other sisters who will work with me for these six years.” ■
BY MARGARET HUNT
‘Learning the centrality of the cross’ Laying down one’s life to love is ‘the key to happiness’ in any vocation.
ather David Carter was ordained July 1, 2005, along with Father Michael Maples at Sacred Heart Cathedral. He is currently completing a degree in canon law at the Pontifical North American College in Rome and will return to East Tennessee at the end of this academic year.
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Tell us about your family. I’m the second of four children. My dad [James Carter] is a pharmacist. My mom [Cindy Carter] worked here, there, and everywhere, but she really dedicated her life to raising us kids. My mom’s side of the family is all Catholic; my dad’s side of the family is mostly Baptist. My dad became Catholic when I was about 7 or 8, when I was making my first Communion. That must have made an impact on me as far as the importance of faith and making the choice to live it, but my dad was always a faithful man. I remember seeing him sitting in the pew and not receiving Communion and then he went through the process and became Catholic. When did you start thinking about becoming a priest? Being an altar server was a big part of my openness to the priesthood. I was there, I was able to see, serving at the altar as the priest was doing what he does at the altar. I didn’t have a theological understanding of it, but I had a very profound experience of it. The Mass was a very central part of my life even as a young person and as an altar server—it was very, very attractive to me. I served all the TH E EA S T TE N N E S S E E C AT H OL IC
Father David Carter
way through high school. Who influenced your vocation most? Father Bill Casey was the pastor of St. John Neumann when I was a junior in high school, and he caught me and said, “David, you’re serving and you’re very active in the church. I don’t want to impose upon your freedom to choose in life, and maybe God is calling you to be a husband and a father, but I think you should seriously consider becoming a priest. I think you would make a good priest and you’ve got what it takes.” I remember being a little flabbergasted about it. I wasn’t thinking about celibacy and obedience and poverty. I was thinking about other things. But it [the idea of becoming a priest] was so profound, it stuck in my head. When did you first broach the subject of priesthood to your parents? When I was near the end of
my junior year, my mom said, “David, next year is your senior year, what are you going to do for college?” And I was saying [to myself], Do I have to tell her this thing about the priesthood? I turned to her and said, “I’m thinking about becoming a priest.” Everything [seemed to be in] slow motion, and I wondered what she was going to say, and of course, she said, “Okay.” But I had said it out loud, and after that I met with Father Patrick Brownell [then-associate pastor] and Father Casey, and both of them directed me to go see Bishop [Anthony J.] O’Connell, who was bishop at the time and also the vocation director of the diocese. So I met with him and we talked about it, and I took what is called the Priest Perceiver Interview, which is one of the steps toward affiliating and becoming a seminarian. Is priesthood difficult? People say priesthood is such a big sacrifice—well, sure, but so is marrying one person and making a commitment to that person in marriage. People are people; they aren’t perfect. Every vocation, every place you go entails sacrifice. It’s learning the centrality of the cross—to lay down your life to love, and we do that in all walks of life. If we don’t do that, we will not be happy. It’s the key to happiness: to be able to lay down your life to love the other. Aside from the Mass, what do you most enjoy about serving in a parish? Carter continued on page 6
www.d ioknox.org
My language courses have been the most challenging. I don’t pick them up that easily, and my Latin, Greek, and Spanish classes have always been a challenge. I took two semesters of Spanish in minor seminary and Latin and Greek in my first year at St. Charles and am Doug Owens currently taking another Spanish class. Languages take a great deal of work and practice, and I have found that if I don’t have the opportunity to practice them regularly I lose my ability quickly. I am really looking forward to my Spanish-language immersion training, and I hope that will further prepare me to minister to Spanish speakers in the Diocese of Knoxville. I also hope that they will be patient with my efforts and my horrible accent.
What is your favorite course and why? I have really enjoyed church history. As a convert I had a very limited background in those areas, and learning about the history and development of our Catholic faith has been very enlightening. Our faith has such a rich and beautiful history in its art and culture, so being able to delve more deeply into it has profoundly strengthened and deepened my love for the church. My courses in systematic theology have also added to my understanding of the richness of the history of development of the doctrine of our faith.
What do you most look forward to in your future life as a priest? As the Eucharist is the source and summit of our life as Catholics, I look most forward to being able to act in the person of Christ and offer the holy sacrifice of the Mass. As we are a sacramental people, being able to provide the sacraments for the people of God will be an honor and privilege, and the prospect both inspires me and fills me with a humble awe. I am also very much looking forward to preaching. The proclamation of the saving news of the Gospel of Our Lord is another privilege, and with that comes great responsibility. I pray that with the grace of God I will be able to fulfill my office properly.
Who are your inspirations as a seminarian and why? My time in formation has afforded me the opportunity to learn from many humble and holy priests. The joy and zeal they have in their vocations have been a source of great strength and motivation for me. Their example of living out their sacramental and pastoral ministries have given me moral and spiritual exemplars that I hope to emulate. I also take inspiration from all of my brother seminarians. I have benefited from knowing and living with the men I have studied with, and I am constantly inspired by their dedication and desire to serve the people of God. I’m also inspired and edified by the people of the Diocese of Knoxville. The love and support I have received from both my home parish, Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Chattanooga, and my summerassignment parish, St. Alphonsus in Crossville, have kept me going and make me look forward to holy orders (God willing). The support, prayers, and generosity of all of the people of the Diocese of Knoxville have been a humbling blessing.
How have you changed in your years as a seminarian? Learning to admit my weaknesses and depend on God’s grace and mercy has been the biggest change. For so long I operated under the belief that I could accomplish anything I wanted as long as I tried hard enough and worked long enough. When I encountered a challenge or an obstacle in my life, I relied on my own efforts to go through, around, over, or under that stumbling block. I have learned that giving up my own desire for control and placing my trust in Our Lord are the only way to live. Once I get out of my own way and let the Holy Spirit work in my life, things always sort themselves out.
Along with their prayers, how else can East Tennessee Catholics support you? Their prayerful support has been more than enough. I know that I have made it this far through those prayers, and just knowing that the people of God in East Tennessee are lifting me up to God in that way gives me great strength. Cookies are also good! ■ FEBRUARY 7, 2010
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from the
WIRE
Foreign doctors, Haitian staff save lives
POWER OF PRAYER
Started by a Catholic parishioner in Madison, Wis., the Rosary for the Bishop website helps participants remember to pray for their ordinaries.
Website offers Catholics a way to support bishops with prayer MADISON, Wis. (CNS)—A prayer campaign that began in 2005 to offer support to Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison has been expanded to allow Catholics nationwide to sign up to pray for their bishops online. Rosary for the Bishop was inspired by a passage from Chapter 17 of Exodus, which refers to Aaron and Hur holding up Moses’ hands during battle. “We need to support our bishops’ hands so that they do not weary in the battle for the faith,” said Syte Reitz, a Madison-area Catholic who initiated the campaign. “Many Catholics pray the rosary every day,” he added. “Why not pray one for our bishops? They are our shepherds, and their job is not easy. They need and deserve our prayers.” Reitz’s son, Tom, then a computer science student, developed the website at www.rosaryforthebishop.org where people can sign up online to pray for multiple bishops, if they wish. There also is an option for users to receive a reminder message by e-mail or Twitter when they are scheduled to pray. “If you want to pray for Bishop Morlino on Mondays and Archbishop [Timothy M.] Dolan of New York on the first Friday of every month, you can do that,” said Tom Reitz. “And the neat part is that you can see statistics about how many other people are praying too.” As of Jan. 27, the site had more than 350 members who pledged to pray the rosary for several dozen bishops. Bishop Richard F. Stika of Knoxville is one of those for whom Catholics have pledged to pray. ■ Copyright 2010 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Poll: more Americans, especially the young, say abortion is wrong NEW HAVEN, Conn. (CNS)—A poll commissioned by the Knights of Columbus and released Jan. 21 said that a majority of Americans called abortion “morally wrong.” Americans in all age groups made that judgment in the poll, conducted by Marist College. The Knights paid the greatest attention in an announcement of the poll results to the “millennial” age group, those ages 18 to 29, because they were intentionally oversampled in the survey. Of the 2,243 Americans polled, 1,006 of them were millennial. And 58 percent of the millennials called abortion morally wrong. More than 60 percent of seniors ages 65 and up called abortion morally wrong, as did 60 percent of those from Generation X (ages 30 to 44) and 51 percent of baby boomers (ages 45 to 64). By comparison, 19 percent of all those polled—and 20 percent of the millennials—said abortion was “morally acceptable.” The overall margin of error was plus or minus 2 percent, and plus or minus 3 percent for the millennials. Carl Anderson, supreme knight of the Knights of Columbus, based in New Haven, said the poll results mirror a survey conducted last July that indicated 86 percent of Americans wish to significantly restrict abortion, and an October 2008 poll that found that 71 percent of those who described themselves as “pro-choice” would restrict abortion. Coupled with similar findings in Pew and Gallup polls last year, “we think that’s pretty significant,” Anderson said in a Jan. 22 telephone interview with Catholic News Service from New York. Anderson also said the Knights of Columbus have an initiative in which “we’re paying for an ultrasound machine for crisis-pregnancy centers. If we can get hundreds of ultrasound machines into those centers and women can see what’s happening inside them, they’ll abandon abortion.” The Knights are also helping to fund the Project Rachel post-abortion ministry “and also open this up to the men,” Anderson said. Some are “really conflicted with guilt because they were involved with supporting the abortion,” he added, whereas others need support “because the abortion occurred over their objection.” ■ Copyright 2010 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops 10
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FEBRUARY 7, 2010
PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti (CNS)—In what remains of St. Francis de Sales Hospital, the doctors work under a pall of death. Even as teams of foreign doctors met with Haitian staffers to develop treatment plans and organize medical supplies in late January, up to 100 bodies remained in the collapsed three-story pediatrics and obstetrics wing. The hospital staff knows there were at least 25 child patients in the wing and a similar number of family members at their sides when the building tumbled during the magnitude 7 earthquake Jan. 12. Staff members make up the rest of the list of victims. Located a few blocks from the destroyed presidential palace, the hospital had few remaining functions operating in late January. The staff was depending on experts from around the world to help them treat earthquake victims. Teams of trauma specialists from Belgium, Germany, Poland, Japan, and the United States rotated in and out of the hospital in the weeks following the earthquake. Doctors from the University of Maryland Medical Center and Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego began working with patients Jan. 30 in conditions they said were hardly adequate for victims with less-serious injuries, let alone those whose lives are endangered. Jean Marie Danielle, 19, and Loraus Bernaud, 27, suffered severe spinal-cord injuries during the earthquake. Dr. Edgar Gamboa, one of a team of trauma specialists from Scripps Mercy Hospital, told Catholic News Service the two are paralyzed from the waist down and that the specialized care they need cannot be provided in Haiti but is routinely available in the United States. Speaking from beside Danielle’s bed in a tent set up outside the hospital, Gamboa said he had been frustrated while trying to find a way to airlift the two young victims to an American hospital. “So far we’ve really just hit
CNS PHOTO/BOB ROLLER
Medical personnel in the devastated nation race to heal wounded survivors. By Dennis Sadowski
PRIMITIVE CONDITIONS Dr. Edgar A. Gamboa, right, a trauma specialist from Scripps Mercy Hospital in San Diego, works with Haitian Dr. Theony Deshommes at St. Francis de Sales Hospital in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on Jan. 30. With the help of medical teams from other countries, the hospital continued to care for the sick and injured more than two weeks after the earthquake destroyed most of the center’s facilities.
a brick wall,” he said Jan. 30. During a five-day suspension of medical evacuations from Haiti to the United States, doctors around Portau-Prince insisted that the inability to evacuate paralyzed Haitians posed serious obstacles to saving the patients’ lives. Flights resumed Feb. 1, and Florida Gov. Charlie Crist said an earlier letter he wrote saying the state’s health-care system was reaching the saturation point had been misunderstood. Working in cooperation with Haitian colleagues, Gamboa was looking for a private donor to fly Danielle and Bernaud to an American hospital in Florida or elsewhere. “We don’t have the resources here to stabilize her [back] fracture,” Gamboa said. “We don’t even have the resources to rehabilitate her quickly, even get her up or moving. If she stays like this [without moving in bed] it almost guarantees she’ll develop pneumonia or a urinary infection. Or she’ll develop bedsores and die from sepsis,” a severe illness in which the bloodstream is overwhelmed by bacteria. “She may not recover neurologically, but if we can get her out of here, we can stabilize her, and she can survive,” said Gamboa, who belongs to Queen of Angels Parish in Alpine, Calif., and St. Mary Parish in El Centro, Calif.
Bernaud, a civil-engineering student, lies on his stomach around the clock, able only to move his head from side to side and move his arms. An infection has developed in a large lower-back wound caused when a chunk of concrete fell on him as he tried to escape his home. The infection could spread to his spinal cord, dooming him, Gamboa said. Dr. Thomas Scalea, a Catholic, heads the University of Maryland Medical Center’s shock-trauma unit, the busiest in the United States. He led a team to aid earthquake victims in China in 2008 and told CNS as he made rounds at St. Francis de Sales Jan. 30 that his team is limited by a lack of supplies and trained medical staff. But not all the news at the hospital is bad. Jean Louis Joseph, 44, suffered a crushed right foot. Working in a primitive conditions, doctors amputated part of his foot and expect him to make a full recovery. Letour Kadner Jean, 38, a computer-systems manager at a local bank, suffered a crushed right leg. Although the wounds he sustained will take a long time to heal, Gamboa said he will eventually recover. ■ Copyright 2010 Catholic News Service/U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
Devastation hits Haiti parish with DOK connection BY DA N M C WI L L I A M S
ost Haiti parishes twinned with a Diocese of Knoxville parish escaped major damage from the Jan. 12 earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince and the area surrounding the capital. Not as fortunate was St. Pierre Church in Bainet, a city on the southern coast about 30 miles from Port-au-Prince. Holy Trinity in Jefferson City and St. Patrick in Morristown have been supporting the parish for many years, through collections each January and July. The Holy Trinity office received an e-mail with tragic news from the St. Pierre pastor on the day after the disaster. “With dismay, sadness, and tears in our eyes, I inform you of the destruction of the parish church, of four chapels, of damaged houses, and of the wounded,” wrote Father Nelson Andréfaite. “There are some who have broken legs and arms. Facing this catastrophe, I am truly powerless because I do not have the means to come to their aid. Now we do not have a gathering place for Mass. I am counting on your
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prayers and your support for the rebuilding of the parish church.” Holy Trinity set a goal to raise $5,000 over four weekends to assist its twin parish. In only two weekends of Masses since the earthquake, the 300-family parish had already donated more than $6,100. Holy Trinity pastor Father Dan Whitman said he was impressed by his parishioners’ generosity. “It’s hard to do a lot because we’re such a small parish,” he said. He added that money is needed for the Bainet parish on top of the prayers, because money is “what’s going to be able to get them food and to rebuild their lives.” Among the more than 150,000 killed in the quake was Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot of Port-au-Prince. His cathedral was also destroyed along with numerous churches in and around the city. Bainet is in the Diocese of Jacmel, part of the province of Port-au-Prince. Other towns with a parish twinned to one in East Tennessee lie either in the extreme west or in the northern area of the country.
Theresa Patterson, executive director of the Nashvillebased Parish Twinning Program of the Americas, said that Jacmel—which lies a few miles east of Bainet—was hit hard by the quake. “People cannot get to Jacmel except by motorcycle, and I understand that there’s considerable damage in Jacmel,” she said. Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish in Chattanooga supports St. Pierre Claver Parish in Dory, which is northwest of Jacmel and Bainet in the Diocese of Les Cayes. “I’ve been told that there’s just a smattering of damage to certain buildings that were probably already pretty unstable, but as far as people and injuries and deaths, there have almost been none in any of those [Les Cayes] areas,” said Mrs. Patterson. Sacred Heart Cathedral is twinned with St. Michel in Boucan-Carré in the Diocese of Hinche. Two parishes support a Haiti community in the Diocese of Gonaïves: St. Dominic in Kingsport is twinned with Ste. Elizabeth in Pérodin and St. Jude in Chattanooga Haiti continued on page 6
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