December 2015

cult u re

Proclaiming the good news ARTFULLY spir i tu a l f i t n e ss

Preparing our hearts to receive Jesus PRAYING DURING ADVENT feat u re

What is it like today IN THE LAND WHERE CHRIST WAS BORN?

FIND US ON YOUR TABLET SEARCH FOR FAITH PUB

FROM THE BISHOP

BISHOP EARL BOYEA

is the fifth bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Lansing @BishopBoyea

THE PHRASE, “THE COMMON GOOD,” is a key to Catholic social teaching. The Catechism quotes the Second Vatican Council in defining this term: “the sum total of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals to reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily.” (CCC 1906) The Catechism then lists three qualities which the common good presumes: 1) Respect for the human person; 2) Seeking the social well-being and development of the group; and 3) Promoting peace as the context for a stable and just order. (CCC 1907-09)

The heart of all of this, of course, is seeking true human fulfillment, which the Church would define as union with God. However, in our world it would be sufficient to say that the aim is for human happiness, that is, achieving what is the goal of the human person, to be what a human person is intended to be by his or her very nature.

Thus, when society attacks human dignity or human life it is not seeking the good for that human person.

This, however, can be seen only as a negative argument. What is the Church and society to do to promote the human person? They are to seek social well-being and development. Thus, we are all to seek what In this Advent and Christmas is truly good for the other, all the others, and promote each person’s season, let our prayers and our fundamental dignity and rights. actions be directed toward Notice that this is also called the “common” good. Not only does this promoting the “common good” mean that we are all responsible for the good of each human person, but also that the true good for each human person is to be found in in our families, in our local being a part of a community. We were not made to be alone. communities, in our political life, But it is true “good” that we seek. We are not content with fulfilling in our world. Let there be peace desires or cravings or yearnings, except in so far as they represent the on earth.” truth about the human person and his or her destiny. The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church sums it this way: “The common good of society is not an end in itself; it has value only in reference to attaining the ultimate ends of the person and the universal common good of the whole of creation. God is the ultimate end of his creatures and for no reason may the common good be deprived of its transcendent dimension … A purely historical and materialistic vision would end up transforming the common good into a simple socio-economic well-being, without any transcendental goal, that is, without its most intimate reason for existing.” (#170) Finally, social order, stability and peace are necessary for this human dignity to be respected and to flourish.

We see in our world today how chaos in so many places is so detrimental not only to the development of so many peoples, but even threatens their existence. Promotion of the common good does not seek division and chaos and enmity. These are always the works of the evil one.

In this Advent and Christmas season, let our prayers and our actions be directed toward promoting the “common good” in our families, in our local communities, in our political life, in our world. Let there be peace on earth.

A Blessed Advent and Christmas to you all.

2

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

Carlson Productions

LET US SEEK WHAT IS TRULY GOOD FOR ONE ANOTHER

INSIDE DECEMBER

COVER STORY HERE I HAVE EVERYTHING – FROM REFUGEE TO FARMER, BHIM EMBRACES HIS NEW LIFE P.16

YOUR LIFE

5 goodlife

The right gift for the right time

6 parenting journey

Does my kindergartner

really need an iPhone?

7 marriage matters

He says: ‘We should invite our son’s roommates for Christmas.’ She says: ‘It’s the only time our family is all together.’ What do they do?

7 work life

I love Christmas, but not the office parties that come with it

YOUR FAITH

8 in the know

with Father Joe

Are Catholic superstitions OK?

10 spiritual fitness

Preparing our hearts to receive Jesus – Praying during Advent

12 theology 101

Humanae Vitae and the sanctity of life

13 consecrated life

A sister and a mother – Sister Mary balances community life and parenting

SPECIAL REPORT WILL THE CATHOLIC CHURCH BE FORCED OUT OF ADOPTION AND FOSTER CARE? P.14

YOUR STORIES

20 feature story

On trip to Washington, D.C. with N.E.W. Life Center, Jay felt he would “burst open with joy” upon seeing Pope Francis

FOLLOW FAITH PUB SHARE YOUR FAITH WITH YOUR FRIENDS AND FOLLOWERS

22 feature story

What is it like today in the

land where Christ was born?

• Father Bill Turner shares what it is like in Bethlehem today • Terry longs to visit home • Wendy travels to Holy Land on medical mission

FIND US ON YOUR TABLET FOR TABLET EXCLUSIVES

PLUS

24 culture

Proclaiming the Good News artfully

25 special report

Fourteenth Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops

P. 30

SEARCH FOR FAITH PUB

3

FAITH HELPS

FROM THE EDITOR

God’s gentle invitation

called me home T T.Gennera

HERE IS A CHAPTER OF MY LIFE that I want to share with you, but I’m not very proud of it. It centers on the time that I was in college and it has had a profound impact on my life. It may provide some hope and, in its own way, offer some encouragement.

FATHER DWIGHT EZOP

is the editor of FAITH Magazine and pastor of St. John the Evangelist in Fenton.

Email: editor@ FAITHpub.com.

EDITOR’S NOTE: THIS ENCORE COLUMN IS A FAVORITE OF FATHER DWIGHT’S. MERRY CHRISTMAS.

4

When I went away to college in Ann Arbor, I found myself taking advantage of the novel freedom that is part of every new college student’s life.

Since I was no longer under the direct influence of the benevolent dictatorship of my parents, I discovered that I could put Sunday morning to a variety of different uses. Initially, I tried to make sure that I went to Mass as regularly as possible. However, as the cold of winter began to settle in, I found that it was more enticing to turn off the alarm, roll over, and enjoy a few more hours of sleep.

One week turned into a month. One month turned into a few more.

Certainly, whenever I was home, I made sure to attend Mass with my family, but when I was on my own, I found it easier to fill my Sundays with a variety of distractions. All the while, though, I felt something–or was it Someone?–tugging at my heart. I knew that I was missing something in my life, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it. That feeling was there, at the periphery, and it would not go away.

This pattern continued for several years until, one weekend, some Catholic friends invited me to come to Mass with them. I had just bought my first car, so the transportation question was solved. Through their gentle coaxing, I accepted their invitation and joined them for Mass one Sunday morning at St. Francis of Assisi in Ann Arbor. I walked through the doors of the church and suddenly felt back home. That gentle tug in my heart had cooperated with my friends’ gentle invitation, and God led me back to where I had needed to be all along.

There were other invitations that quickly followed – invitations that encouraged me to begin making use of my God-given gifts in ways that gave me a sense of interior satisfaction. Soon, I knew that I had been re-connected with a reality much larger than myself – I had been re-connected with Jesus, who had been patiently, lovingly, persistently tugging at my heart and leading me by the hand back to a deeper relationship with him and with his church.

The rest, as we might say, is history.

It took a while for me to respond to God’s invitation extended through the gentle words and actions of others, but it worked. There was no wagging of the index finger, no guilt-tripping and no harsh words. That lesson about the power of faithful, patient, gentle invitation in my own life has influenced me profoundly and it literally changed the course of my life.

During the quiet weeks of Advent, before the dawn of Christmas, I encourage each of you to offer that same gentle invitation to someone you know. Perhaps he has been away from the church for a while. Perhaps she has been looking for a deeper relationship with God and simply can’t name it as such. Perhaps they find themselves on a journey of faith, looking for a church to call home. Isn’t it possible for each of us, in our own gentle way, to extend a hand of invitation and a few words of encouragement? We can be a people of welcome and overcome obstacles so that, together, our journey in FAITH can continue.

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

DISCIPLESHIP

For personal reflection or small group discussion Work Life

1. Do you ever struggle with the tension between the holiness of the Advent season and the commercial aspect of the holiday season?

Spiritual Fitness

1.

What Advent traditions does your family practice?

2.

Sr. Ann asks us to focus on the Blessed Mother in the 4th week of Advent, when things get very busy in our lives. She asks us to draw near to Mary during this season and ask for her help in learning to surrender to God’s will, as she did.

Cover story

1. The story of Bhim Dahal and his family brings to mind Matthew 25:35 in which Jesus says that those who will sit at his Father’s right hand will be those who followed his precept, “I was a stranger and you invited me in.” How can we help the strangers in our midst?

2. Who are the strangers among us? Do they have to be refugees? Can they be the new neighbor next door? Or the elderly person down the block who lives alone? Or the new student who has less-than-perfect English skills?

FIND MORE ONLINE GO TO FAITHPUB.COM TO FIND ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS AND RESOURCES

YOUR LIFE

YOUR LIFE GOODLIFE

THE RIGHT GIFT

FOR THE RIGHT TIME

F

BY EMILY LENHARD

ROM THE FIRST DATE TO THE HONEYMOON, gift-giving is a common part of many relationships, and, like most relationships, will change over time. Embrace each stage of your relationship by giving meaningful, appropriate and budget-friendly gifts.

Newly dating: If you’ve been dating for less than a year, you’re probably still getting to know your significant other. Sticking with the classics is a great strategy: flowers, cologne or perfume, a night out on the town, their favorite treat or a seasonal activity, like a trip to the apple orchard or ice skating.

Long-term dating: If you’ve been dating for more than a year, things are getting serious and you’re likely trying to discern if he or she is “the one.”

Gift-giving at this stage is a great opportunity for you to try something new that you know your partner loves. Try tickets to their favorite concert or Broadway show, an activity date like hunting, hiking, painting or golf, or adventures like hot air balloon rides or scuba diving.

Newly married: This is your chance to shine as a gift-giver. After dating, pre-marital counseling, the wedding and moving in together, you know your spouse better than anyone. This means you can give the gifts that count the most, whether they be exciting and decadent or small and sentimental.

Gift-giving in marriage is best thought of as a daily exercise in showing how much you care for and understand your spouse. Examples could be picking up a bunch of their favorite flowers for the table, having their vehicle detailed, re-creating your favorite excursion together or buying an accessory you know they’ve had their eye on.

Here’s another thought–sometimes the best gifts are things we do for others. Consider a donation to your spouse’s favorite charity, or a volunteer opportunity you can do together.

5

YOUR LIFE PARENTING JOURNEY

Does my kindergartner really need an iPhone?

Q

MY DAUGHTER IS IN KINDERGARTEN and several of her friends are getting iPhones for Christmas. I think that’s way too young, but maybe I’m wrong. What age is the right age for being totally connected?

T. Gennara

A

DR. CATHLEEN MCGREAL

is a psychology professor and certified spiritual director.

In 1949, Hank Williams Sr. wrote “Mind your Own Business,” a song focused on party lines. In those days, children would learn to count the rings in order to know if the phone should be answered. Many families longed for their own private lines.

In this century, however, the norm has become a phone for each individual, rather than one for the entire family.

6

Is it a tool to keep her occupied? Busy parents sometimes use smartphones to keep children occupied. But young children don’t have the maturity to evaluate content that might be encountered online. If your daughter enjoys educational apps, then supervised use of your iPhone would be sufficient.

How mature is your child? The responsibility of caring for such an expensive belonging would be challenging for most children. Also, an iPhone gives your child access to the world, but with this total connection comes a world that now has access to your child.

Problems may arise due to unsupervised smartphone use.

As you contemplate ways to celebrate Christmas, consider traditions and gift exchanges that will enrich your family in a healthy way. Share the joyful story of Christ’s birth. (Luke 2:14)

©DOLLARPHOTOCLUB/KAREL MIRAGAYA

What is the goal of owning a phone? The parents of your daughter’s friends may have different priorities.

Consider why your daughter would benefit from an iPhone. If you just

want to stay in touch, then a simple phone without an Internet connection would be appropriate.

SHE SAYS

WE SHOULD INVITE OUR SON’S ROOMMATES FOR CHRISTMAS

IT’S THE ONLY TIME OUR FAMILY IS ALL TOGETHER

Our son’s college roommates don’t have anywhere to go for Christmas, because their parents live too far away. I want to invite them to our Christmas dinner, but Terri says, “No way!”

Christmas is my favorite holiday – and it’s the only time we are all together as a family. I know it sounds selfish to Phil, but I really don’t want strangers here during this special time.

Suppose you lived in Bethlehem 2,000 years ago and a stranger, far from his home and traveling WHAT DO with his very pregnant wife, THEY DO came knocking on your door asking for food and shelter?

Wow, it’s the first-ever Christmas Eve, and, yes, we’re laying a trip on you here!

Every family should care for needy people, which includes college students far from home. As Pope St. John Paul II put it, “In a special way the Christian family is called upon to practice hospitality, imitating Christ’s example.” (Familiaris Consortio, 44) Of course, there needs to be a balance. It’s also important for families to protect their family life, which can sometimes be threatened – even by generous ideas.

Occasionally even a good intention needs to be sacrificed for a greater good.

So what to do? For starters, Phil and Terri should see generosity to others and preservation of family life not as fundamentally opposed, but as complementary. They

I LOVE CHRISTMAS,

YOUR LIFE WORK LIFE

T. Gennara

but not the office parties that come with it JIM BERLUCCHI

is the executive director of the Spitzer Center.

I love Jesus’ birthday – but I hate Christmas in the office. There is an endless round of after-work parties we are expected to attend. Do I really have to go?

Q

I appreciate your spiritual discernment and priorities.

The way the world “celebrates”

A

©DOLLARPHOTOCLUB/LEV DOLGACHOV

HE SAYS

are to protect their family life – not from generosity to others, but rather for it.

For example, if their family life is somehow seriously suffering, then maybe this wouldn’t be the right time to welcome a stranger, not even for a dinner. But keep in mind also that sometimes even a hurting family’s shared act of generosity to someone else in need can serve as the very occasion of their own healing.

Bottom line: Every family, whether hurting or healthy, should love one another not only for their own sake, but also so that they might better love the stranger. Just as God wanted Phil and Terri’s original love for one another to spill over into a love that would welcome others (their children), so does he want their family love to spill over into a love that welcomes others from outside of their family.

Pope St. John Paul II summarized the mission of every family: “to guard, reveal and communicate love.”

Yes, Phil and Terri must guard the love their family members have for one another. But they are to guard it not to hoard it, but rather so they might reveal and communicate it all the more abundantly.

Christmas is a formula for stress, overeating, overspending and over-socializing. It launches on Black Friday, accelerates to a fever pitch for a month and then crashes to an oft-disappointing halt on Christmas day.

The Church, in her genius, celebrates the first and second coming of the Lord in Advent (which means “coming”). We anticipate with joy and hopeful expectation the Incarnation of the Son of God, which is celebrated on Christmas Day. And then, if we really get it, we enjoy a sustained Christmas season for 12 days until Epiphany.

YOUR LIFE MARRIAGE MATTERS

STEVE AND BRIDGET PATTON

hold master’s degrees in theology and counseling and serve as family life ministers for the Diocese of Sacramento.

Don’t bother suggesting that pattern at work, however. They’ll think you’re a Grinch.

As for the endless round of after-work parties – use your best judgment. If they are as mandatory as you suggest, ask your boss for some flexibility, noting that you have some competing commitments and priorities (which you do). And when you attend, put on your most cheerful self.

Offer this small Advent penance for the well-being and salvation of your colleagues and customers, all for whom the Word became flesh and now dwells among us.

7

YOUR FAITH

Q

My mother always prays to St. Anthony to find lost things, and my friends buried St. Joseph's statue in the yard to help sell their house.

Are all these “Catholic superstitions” OK?

think you nailed something A Iright in the question itself –

Here’s the critical thing – faith isn’t magic. Faith is the opposite of that.

In magic, we trust in empty idols – not the living God who gives life and intervenes in human history. According to the Catechism, idolatry is a constant temptation – and it consists in “divinizing what is not God.” We commit idolatry whenever we honor and revere something in place of God – and that can include superstitions.

the word, “superstition.” The First Commandment says, “You shall have My mom insists that we no other gods but me.” It proscribes have to burn a blesssuperstition, which the Catechism of ed candle all night long on the Catholic Church (CCC) calls “the Christmas Eve – is this another deviation of religious feeling and of “Catholic” superstition that we the practices this feeling imposes.” shouldn’t be doing?

Specifically, we must not “attribute the efficacy of prayers or of sacraThis is not a superstition – it’s mental signs to their mere external a “small-t” tradition. That is, it’s performance, apart from the interior a cultural practice that is particulardispositions that they demand …” ly popular among the Irish. Rather This means that, of course, you than expecting some magical effect can pray to St. Anthony, who is the from burning a candle, this tradition patron saint of lost things, and ask symbolizes a welcome him to intercede for for the Christ child you with God to help on a night where his you find something parents could find that is lost. But this Faith isn’t no room at any inn. is like all prayer – in magic. Faith is This practice from which you are aligning County Kerry involved yourself with the will the opposite burning candles in of God, thanking him of that. In glass jars or stuck into for his blessings, and magic, we hollowed-out turnips, asking his assistance. It trust in empty leaving fires unbanked is not a magic forand keeping doors unmula, so you want to idols – not locked – all to indicate avoid the irreverent the living God welcome, not only for jingle-prayer, “Tony, who gives life the Christ child, but Tony look around; and intervenes for any traveler who something’s lost and comes to your home in must be found” that I in human the winter night. remember hearing in history.”

Even if you’re not my childhood.

Irish, you might want Regarding the statue to consider something of St. Joseph – here’s like this to remind yourself that we a thought. You are asking Joseph, as are to be welcoming to all who cross a friend, brother and the father of our paths, because they are all our Christ on earth, to intercede for you brothers and sisters in Christ. Be with God. If you were asking one of smart, though, and put the candle your friends or family members to in the kitchen sink before you go to pray for you, would you bury their bed – you don’t want to burn down picture in the garden? Upside down? the house!

I bet not. The same is true here – you Merry Christmas and enjoy anothtreat the image with the respect you’d er day in God’s presence. show the photo of a dear friend.

Q

Are Catholic superstitions OK? IN THE KNOW WITH FATHER JOE

Q

Dear Father Joe: Is it OK to pray for Notre Dame to win their football games? After all, they have “Touchdown Jesus.”

T. Gennara

can feel free to pray for A You whomever you’d like, but we

FATHER JOE KRUPP

is a former comedy writer who is now a Catholic priest. @Joeinblack 8

know that God’s favorite team is the Michigan State University Spartans!

Seriously, though, it’s fine to pray that your favorite team plays well and safely. You just need to understand that God’s desired outcomes for those players’ lives might not have anything to do with whether or not they win the game that day.

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/PAUL VELGOS

A

“F OR UN TO US A CHI LD I S BO RN. . .”

BE A BLESSING TO A CHILD THIS CHRISTMAS

9

CHECK OUT PAGE 4 FOR DISCIPLESHIP QUESTIONS TO BE USED FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION

SISTER ANN SHIELDS

is a renowned author and a member of the Servants of God’s Love. @srannshieldssgl

T. Gennara

Preparing our hearts to receive Jesus

PRAYING DURING ADVENT 10

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

TAKE SOME TIME – REAL TIME, NOT JUST A MOMENT – AND ASK GOD WHAT GIFT OF YOURSELF YOU COULD OFFER HIM THIS CHRISTMAS THAT WOULD HELP YOU TO BE MORE HIS SON/DAUGHTER, MORE HIS DISCIPLE. TAKE TIME EACH DAY THIS WEEK TO REFLECT.

YOUR FAITH SPIRITUAL FITNESS

In this first week of Advent, let us focus on preparing our hearts and souls for the great feast of Christmas. We are, in a certain way, invited to the celebration of his birth-day as we attend Midnight Mass or the Mass on Christmas morning. In Christ, there is no time barrier or limitation – we are not celebrating an anniversary. We are celebrating the real moment of Christ’s birth.

Nov. 29 So we want to come prepared to celebrate. From a spiritual perspective, are my clothes dirty?

Does anger or hatred, bitterness or jealousy soil the garment of my soul? Do addictions of any kind blind or deafen me to the voice of God? From what do I need to repent? What gift of myself will I give him this Christmas? Take some time – real time, not just a moment – and ask God what gift of yourself you could offer him this Christmas that would help you to be more his son/daughter, more his disciple. Take time each day this week to reflect. In about two weeks, the great Year of Mercy begins. God will always forgive if we repent and turn to him.

Let’s begin to get ready for a true celebration of Christmas. Go to confession sometime this week, if at all possible, and honestly, humbly repent in whatever way you need to do so.

1ST SUNDAY OF ADVENT

2ND SUNDAY OF ADVENT Dec. 6

John the Baptist went before Christ to announce his coming and to help prepare those who would listen to be ready to receive him. Each of us is called, too, to prepare the way for the Lord coming anew into our heart. How do we do that? This week, think about whether your life reflects the truth that you belong to Christ. By your thoughts, words and actions, do you help prepare others to receive the Gospel in some needed area of their lives? How do we do that? St. Josemaria Escriva said this in a homily:

We are [called to be] witnesses and precursors … we have to show others the way … we should struggle to make our actions remind others of Jesus and his most lovable personality. We have to act in such a way that others will be able to say, when they meet us: This man/woman is a Christian … because he/she is willing to make sacrifices, because he is a man/woman of peace, because he/she knows how to love. (Christ Is Passing By, p.122) Use this week to focus on your relationships and on how you treat the stranger on the street, or in the store. Receive the mercy of God; give it to others.

CHECK OUT

In this week, let us return to look at ourselves and ask, “How pure is my heart?” All of us have, un3 SUNDAY fortunately, taken on so many of the world’s values and priorities: money, sex, power, appearance and OF ADVENT material goods are too often used as the basis for setting personal goals. They can blind us to the true values: Read Matthew 15:1-20. Read it right now. These false values and others like them can render our Dec. 13 souls unclean. When that happens, we can’t “see” the beauty of Christ in our world and through others.

We become deaf to his voice calling us to draw nearer to him. Read the passage from Matthew every day this week and ask God to enlighten you, to bring you freedom and give you the courage to embrace the values of Christ himself – one at a time over the next year. But start now – this Advent – with setting one new goal in life.

RD

We come to the fourth Week of Advent and I know things can get very busy. Preserve the time with Christ every day this week. You can, if you have made it a real priority. While it is not a full week, God’s grace and mercy are not limited by time or by days. He has no limits, yet he waits for you to come to him! Take these last five days of Advent and draw near to the Blessed Mother, who waits to Dec. 20 give birth to her Son. Remember, there is no limit on time and seasons with God: he is the eternal now. All the grace available at the first Christmas for those who came to worship him is there for you now. Each of these five days, come to the Blessed Mother and ask her to pray for you that you might be able this Christmas to kneel at the crib and say, as Mary did at the Annunciation: “Be it done unto me according to Thy Word.” Sometimes, fear strikes us when we try to pray this way because we think, “I am not good; I am not holy.” But we can’t let this thought excuse us from praying such a prayer. All we need to do on our part is tell God this is what we want to do – surrender to his will, as Mary did. Ask him for the courage, the hope, the desire to give this as your Christmas gift to the Christ Child in this year 2015. You will not regret it. May you begin to know how deep and rich and wide is the mercy of God.

IN CONVERSATION WITH GOD: VOLUME 1, ADVENT AND CHRISTMASTIDE,

BY FRANCIS FERNANDEZ.

©DOLLARPHOTOCLUB/POETRYGIRL128

4TH SUNDAY OF ADVENT

SEND YOUR QUESTIONS TO SISTER ANN SHIELDS: RENEWAL MINISTRIES, 230 COLLINGWOOD, SUITE 240, ANN ARBOR, MI 48103.

11

YOUR FAITH THEOLOGY 101

AND THE SANCTITY OF LIFE

S

INCE ONE OF THE THEMES discussed during the Ordinary Synod of Bishops related to the Family in October was the domestic Church, Theology 101 explores the Church’s teaching on this theme, as well as the vocation and mission of the family in general – both in the Church and in the modern world.

S. Olson

HUMANAE VITAE IN BRIEF

DOUG CULP

is the CAO and secretary for pastoral life for the Diocese of Lexington, Ky. He holds an MA in theology from Catholic Theological Union in Chicago.

12

The final document of the Extraordinary Synod on the Family (18) refers to the July 25, 1968, encyclical letter Humanae Vitae (Of Human Life) by Blessed Pope Paul VI for its display of “the intimate bond between conjugal love and the generation of life.” This encyclical, subtitled “On the Regulation of Birth,” affirmed the Church’s teaching on the sanctity of life, responsible parenthood and the procreative and unitive nature of the marital act.

In Humanae Vitae, Pope Paul VI emphasized that married love involves the totality of the spouses. In marriage, each is called to give their very self unconditionally to the other in a love that is faithful, exclusive and fertile, i.e., married love is ordered toward parenthood.

In addition, because natural law reveals that the marriage act is inseparably both unitive and procreative, an act which has the effect of impairing the capacity to transmit life would contradict natural law and, thereby,

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

©DOLLARPHOTOCLUB/DAVID PEREIRAS

HUMANAE VITAE

eternal law, the very wisdom of God directing all of creation to its proper end. For this reason, artificial birth control, sterilization and abortion “are to be absolutely excluded as lawful means of regulating the number of children.” Each of these contravenes the laws of conception that permit us to be “the minister of the design established by the Creator.”

At the same time, the pope asserted that responsible parenthood could delay the begetting of children “for serious reasons and with due respect to moral precepts.” However, this “must be done within the limits of the order of reality established by God.” In other words, this must be done by working with “the natural cycles immanent in the reproductive system.” The key distinction between this approach, what we would now refer to as natural family planning, and artificial means of birth control is that this natural approach remains open to God’s design.

THE FOUR PREDICTIONS

Pope Paul VI also made four clear predictions in Humanae Vitae (17) about what would happen to both marriage and society if the teaching of the Church was ignored and contraception generally accepted. First, there would be a general lowering of moral standards throughout society and an increase in infidelity. Second, there would be a loss of respect for women as they might be reduced to “being a mere instrument for the satisfaction” for another’s desires. Third, there would be an increase in the coercive use of reproductive technologies by government. After all, the pope asks, “Who will blame a government which in its attempt to resolve the problems affecting an entire country resorts to the same measures as are regarded as lawful by married people in the solution of a particular family difficulty?”

Finally, he predicted there would be an increase in the belief that a person has an unlimited dominion over his or her own body.

As we know, artificial contraception, sterilization and abortion have all been widely accepted around the globe. The procreative and unitive aspects of the marital act that Humanae Vitae tried to uphold have, in fact, been separated and the fruit issuing forth from this act of rupture is abundant.

YOUR LIFE CONSECRATED LIFE

A SISTER AND A MOTHER Sister Mary balances community life and parenting

WHEN SISTER MARY FALLON joined the Servants of God’s Love 27 years ago, the last thing she expected was to become a mother.

Today, she is both a sister and a mother to four daughters.

BY MARY KAY MCPARTLIN PHOTOGRAPHY

BY DON QUILLAN

The order, which began in Ann Arbor as part of the charismatic renewal of the 1970s, celebrated its 40th anniversary this year.

“Our apostolic mission is to bring God’s love in a variety of ways,” says Sister Mary. “I had been teaching when I first joined our group. It was back in the late 1980s when AIDS was first coming to light. We wanted to care for the AIDS orphans.”

Sister Fran DePuydt suggested foster care would be the way the order could share God’s love with children in need. “We pray about everything together as a group,” Sister Mary says. “When I set out to live a consecrated life, I gave up marriage and children. Then I had a sense I was supposed to be the mom when we were seeking the Lord about foster care. We wanted to have a home life for our foster kids, so I quit my job.

You really want kids to have permanency.”

The order never actually cared for any AIDS orphans, but did take in 27 children over the years, usually age 5 or younger.

The challenge for the order was twofold. Legally, the entire order couldn’t be recognized as one parent, and permission was also needed from the Catholic Church.

“I took a vow of poverty. I can’t own a child,” says Sister Mary. “We met with a canon lawyer and the Church.”

After working with foster care, the Servants of God’s Love and Sister Mary had the opportunity to make motherhood official. “We adopted three girls. We have a fourth who’s living with us and she’s like my own,” Sister Mary says. “Two of the girls are age 24 and 25, and two are in high school. The girls call me ‘Mom,’ and the other sisters jokingly call me ‘Sister Mom.’” Before adopting her daughters, Sister Mary researched another sister and a priest who had adopted children. Although Sister Mary is the legal parent, Sister Fran shares parenting responsibilities. The order has three houses, one of which houses Sister Mary and her daughters, Sister Fran and other sisters as well.

“It was a community decision,” says Sister Mary. “I have done this for many years with Sister Fran. We just live in a normal house. We also are living our life together in the order. It’s a balancing act. You really learn that your life is not your own when you have children around. Charity rules always.”

Although her family life definitely qualifies as non-traditional, Sister Mary would not have it any other way.

Despite the non-traditional surroundings, her daughters are no different than any other young women.

“I really believe children benefit from having a father.

That’s hard at times,” Sister Mary says. “God knows, and he’s for us. I try to stay close to him. They are normal kids. They play sports and listen to music.”

Part of the challenge for Sister Mary is having time aside from parenting to share community life with her fellow sisters. She trusts God to provide care for the girls when she needs her time with the order.

“I have said to him, ‘These are your kids, Lord,’” says Sister Mary. “God has really provided in many ways.

When we all take a week together, I’ve experienced the Lord making sure the kids are watched over. He really does take care of them.”

LEARN MORE SISTER RITA WENZLICK, OP IS THE DELEGATE FOR CONSECRATED LIFE FOR THE DIOCESE OF LANSING. FOR NEWS ON CONSECRATED LIFE AND RESOURCES ON THE 2015 YEAR OF CONSECRATED LIFE, PLEASE VISIT WWW.DIOCESEOFLANSING.ORG/CONSECRATED_LIFE.

13

SPECIAL REPORT

WILL THE CATHOLIC CHURCH BE FORCED OUT OF

ADOPTION AND FOSTER CARE?

BY PEGGY DEKEYSER

DID YOU KNOW? In the U.S., 397,122 children are living without permanent families in the foster care system. Of these, 101,666 children are eligible for adoption, but nearly 32 percent of these children will wait more than three years in foster care before being adopted.

14

THE ISSUE

On Oct. 1, 2015, a Michigan law became effective allowing groups that contract with the state to oversee adoptions to refuse service to any person or couple that conflicts with their “sincerely held religious beliefs.”

The law is an example of one type of effort states are making to protect the religious liberty of social service agencies, while protecting the supply of needed services. It was enacted in June, shortly before the Supreme Court decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which recognized same-sex marriage as a protected right in all states and territories of the United States.

The ruling puts the Catholic Church and its agencies in the position of having to decide whether to provide adoption and foster care services, and, in some cases, receive federal and state tax dollars to fund those services, if it means being forced to place children with same-sex couples.

Although the recent Supreme Court decision has brought this issue to the forefront, efforts to protect the ministry of Catholic social service agencies began long before June 2015.

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

ARCHDIOCESE OF BOSTON FORCED TO STOP ADOPTIONS

In 2006, after same-sex marriage became legal in Massachusetts, the Archdiocese of Boston, Cardinal Seán O’Malley and the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities petitioned then-Gov. Mitt Romney to make the case for an exemption from the state’s non-discrimination statute. Romney denied the request. One month later, the archdiocese announced that Catholic Charities would terminate its adoption services – work the agency had conducted for more than 100 years.

Between 1986 and 2006, the agency had placed more than 700 children with adoptive families. In the nine years since 2006, it has placed no children.

ILLINOIS DIOCESES CUT ADOPTION SERVICES

In 2011, Lutheran Child and Family Services in Illinois denied a gay couple a foster care license, opening the issue of anti-discrimination by an agency that received public funds. In May of 2011, Catholic

©ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/DNF-STYLE

Charities of the Diocese of Rockford announced that it would halt its foster care and adoption services to avoid liability, if state law would require the agency to place children with parents in civil unions, gay or straight.

Catholic Charities in the Dioceses of Springfield, Peoria and Joliet also sought relief from the courts that would protect religious agencies from legal action if they turned away couples in civil unions seeking to adopt.

They sought permission to refer couples to other child welfare agencies, while continuing to work with married heterosexual couples and single people living alone.

They were denied the exemption, and the state declined to renew its contracts with Catholic Charities.

As a result, Catholic Charities ceased most of its Illinois adoption and foster placement services. Prior to this, Catholic Charities and its agencies had cared for approximately 20 percent of Illinois’ parentless children.

In their remarks, the bishops of the Illinois dioceses said, “The losers will be the children, foster care families and adoptive parents who will no longer have the option of Catholic, faith-based services.”

WHAT’S AT STAKE?

Many states, including Alabama and Florida, are in the process of enacting laws that will allow a religious exemption for faith-based agencies, as does the Michigan law.

In Michigan, State Rep. Thomas Hooker, who worked on the bill, said he was worried that if the state didn’t pass the law, it might have lost the roughly 30 percent of adoption agencies with which the state contracts that are religiously affiliated.

Without the religious exemption, faith-based child

BY THE NUMBERS Catholic Charities USA survey results from 177 affiliated agencies:

THESE TWO CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS ARE AT THE HEART OF THE CONFLICT: Amendment 1 (protects the freedom of religion) • Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.

Amendment 14 (protects the right of individuals to equal protection under the law) • All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside. No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. (Section 1)

welfare agencies across the country that receive government funding will be unable to provide adoption and foster care services without compromising their religious beliefs regarding to same-sex marriage.

WHAT’S NEXT?

Without protection under religious exemption laws, one option to remain in the ministry of providing service to birth mothers and adoptive families is to refuse government funding. For most agencies, this is not viable and they would have to close.

2,707 32 adoptions were completed

P E R C E N T

of the 8 million-plus clients served in 2014 were children

Nationally, Catholic Charities’ 177 agencies and affiliates are the second-largest provider of social services, after the federal government.

– 2014: Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University

15

ONCE UPON A TIME, there was a kingdom in the clouds so remote that its giant neighbors didn’t even know it existed. Situated at the eastern end of the Himalaya Mountain Range, it was called High Land by the men and women who lived there. For more than 1,000 years, the kings and their citizens practiced their Buddhist faith and honored their native Tibetan culture.

Then one day, the king invited Hindu craftsmen from the neighboring country, Nepal, to do important jobs – from smithing silver to clearing forests to building roads. These craftsmen brought their families to the kingdom, along with their traditional culture, language, food and clothing. With ample work and plentiful food, these Nepali families stayed and began farming the lush valleys and plains in the kingdom’s southern lands. Their numbers increased as new generations grew up supplying the kingdom with food.

For generations, the kingdom flourished, with the Tibetan Buddhist culture ruling from the north and the Nepali Hindu culture feeding everyone from the south. As time passed, people from India came into the kingdom to work and raise families, too. Though the rulers offered money to those who married into the ruling culture, the Nepali and Indians held fast to their traditional languages and way of life.

Then, the government passed a package of laws called “One Nation, One People,” designed to force uniformity. One law fined citizens if they appeared in public wearing anything other than northern people’s traditional dress.

Another law discontinued the use of the Nepali language in the kingdom’s schools, requiring all teaching and learning to take place in Dzongkha, the governing language.

16

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

COVER STORY

17

YOUR STORIES

CHECK OUT PAGE 4 FOR DISCIPLESHIP QUESTIONS TO BE USED FOR PERSONAL REFLECTION OR SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION

YOU MIGHT HAVE ALREADY GUESSED that this is no fairy tale. The kingdom of the High Land is Bhutan, a little nation in southern Asia with a big immigration issue. After thousands of years of separating residents by their original nationalities, Bhutan’s ruling class decided its population needed to be like them. In 1988, the country conducted its first census to establish citizenship. Those who could prove they had lived in Bhutan prior to 1958 were granted citizenship papers. Anyone who could not prove residence before 1958 was considered an illegal immigrant.

FIND US ON YOUR TABLET SEARCH FOR FAITH PUB

18

This is the time that Bhim Dahal was born into a Nepali family in southern Bhutan. The youngest child of Bhadra and Harka Dahal, Bhim vividly remembers the night his father had to flee for his life.

He recounts, “In April of 1990, my father, Bhadra, attended a meeting for our whole town to explain the [One Nation One People] laws. After the senator explained how Nepali must speak Dzongkha and wear clothing of the ruling class and practice Buddhism, he asked if there were any questions. My father stood up and said he had tried for a year to learn the Dzongkha, but could not. The senator told him, ‘You Monkey, sit down,’ and said he must stay after the meeting. When the meeting was done, they took him to jail for not obeying government rules.

“They didn’t keep him locked up, but that week policemen came into our neighborhood and began killing Nepali who spoke against the new laws. My father knew he would be next, so he escaped to India to live with my mother’s brother. I was 7, so I stayed in Bhutan with my mother, brothers, sister and grandparents. A year later, we all joined my father.

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

“In India, we were undocumented, so life was hard.

There was no school for us children and conditions were not clean. Malaria and dirty drinking water killed my grandfather. We could not work, we had nowhere to go.

We didn’t belong any place.

“Later, we heard about a refugee camp the United Nations had set up in Nepal for refugees from Bhutan.

One of my uncles had lived in the camp and he told us about it. We decided to try it.

“When we arrived, the camp was so overcrowded people had to go into the jungle to go to the bathroom.

Diseases spread quickly. Many died. But eventually they set up seven camps and spread people out between them. The UN gave us bamboo and thatch to make a 10-by-15 meter house for our family. Refugees built the houses in rows, with bathrooms in separate rows in between so neighbors shared. We carried water from our house and there wasn’t much, but it was cleaner than going in the jungle.

“I went to school in the camp and learned Dzongkha, Nepali and English. UN rations weren’t enough to provide

LEARN MORE FOR MORE INFORMATION ON STVCC REFUGEE SERVICES, VISIT STVCC.ORG/ SERVICES/REFUGEE-SERVICES/ OR CALL 517.323.4734.

IN INDIA, WE WERE UNDOCUMENTED, SO LIFE WAS HARD. THERE WAS NO SCHOOL FOR US CHILDREN AND CONDITIONS WERE NOT CLEAN. MALARIA AND DIRTY DRINKING WATER KILLED MY GRANDFATHER. WE COULD NOT WORK, WE HAD NOWHERE TO GO. WE DIDN’T BELONG ANY PLACE.

our family’s basic needs, so during school breaks and when I had finished my education, I joined my father and brothers working in the local economy. Both in India and Nepal, the local people took advantage of us because we could not work legally. We had to lie about our status, but they knew where we came from. Some would promise money or food, then give us half, or none at all, after we did their work.

“But we made enough to survive, and after I came back from working in India I met my wife, Yoga. We married and lived in the camp with my parents and grandmother.

For 19 years, my family lived in the camps until we were able to move. Of the seven wealthy countries that agreed to take refugees, my father chose the U.S. “In April of 2010, I stepped off the plane in Lansing with my parents, grandmother and my wife. It was so cold, but St. Vincent Catholic Charities gave us warm clothes.

They also provided food, housing and transportation to jobs and appointments. They helped us learn English through the Refugee Development Center, and got us enrolled through DHS [Department of Human Services] for medical care and services to get us started. After eight months, we were able to get along on our own. My father and I were working in local factories and we all worked at raising our own food in community gardens.

“Two years ago, we had saved enough money to buy a farm for my family to live on and work. While I do maintenance in a factory all day, my parents work the farm and Yoga watches my grandmother and our two daughters, Sikka and Swara. After my shift, I also work the farm raising Asian vegetables and livestock.”

Reflecting on his fairy tale journey from the kingdom in the clouds to his Lansing-area farm, Bhim smiles: “Here I have everything. Our house is big enough for my whole family, and I can build it any way I want. We all have health coverage. I can get a loan without having to give lenders gold to keep as collateral. I get paid for my work at Williamston Products, Inc. and on the farm.

“In America, if you work eight hours it will be sufficient for you. But if you work 16 hours, you can keep the money in your pocket – I was even having $60 or $80 in mine! Here I can make a better life.”

While Bhim’s life isn’t a fairy tale, his journey ends as all good stories do – with everyone living happily ever after.

St. Vincent Catholic Charities (STVCC) is the only Catholic Charities agency in the Diocese of Lansing that resettles refugees. In the fall of 2015, STVCC was preparing for the resettlement of Syrians in Lansing and was resettling an unusually large number of refugees from all parts of the globe.

19

On trip to Washington, D.C. with N.E.W. Life Center Jay felt he would “burst open with joy” upon seeing Pope Francis

BY NANCY ROSEBUSH SCHERTZING | PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM LUNING

J

arius (Jay) Montgomery started life in Flint, one of 15 children in a household where no one went

hungry, but money was tight.

“I remember my father struggling to get a mortgage after we could no longer afford the rent on our house.

He and my mom got us ready and took us to a lender.

They lined my brothers, sisters and I up in the waiting room chairs and we sat there quietly until someone agreed to see us. My parents walked out of that office with the loan for the house they still live in today.

“After I graduated from high school, I served six years in aviation logistics for the Marines. When I got deployed as a tank driver in Iraq, things were great at first. But through a series of events, I learned some powerful lessons about vigilance and living with uncertainty 24/7. One day on patrol, the tank behind us missed a turn. I watched it fly 10 feet into the air and saw guys from my company evaporate into pink mist or melt into gel around their empty boots and uniforms.

“I haven’t slept more than two hours at a time since I came back from Iraq. I’m not crazy, but I am always alert. The Flint I came home to felt a lot like the war zone I had just left.

“My dad had PTSD [post-traumatic stress disorder] when he got home from Vietnam, so he knew what I was going through. I think he didn’t feel safe with me – not knowing how I was going to do. He still had my brothers and sisters at home, so I couldn’t go back to my parents’ house.

“I couldn’t find work, so I moved in with different family members for a time. Then I was on the streets.

I had a daughter, SuRiah Americle, who was the light of my world, but she died from a heart defect before her first birthday. Shortly after that, my grandpa passed, then my sister. I could have fallen farther and farther into darkness, but because God was instilled in my life at a young age, I knew it would get better. I just didn’t know when or how.

“One day, as I was walking to McDonald’s to apply for a job, I saw some men in bright green T-shirts picking up garbage in an empty lot. I knew if they

20

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

weren’t on work release, they must be getting paid, so I asked them what was up. ‘Man,’ they said, ‘St. Luke got it going!’ They told me about the N.E.W. Life Center’s men’s program, so I walked straight over and signed up.

“After I went through the job training and life skills lessons, the sisters [Sister Carol and Sister Judy] hired me to run the lawn work program. I’ve been here about three years, and I can’t say enough about how amazing they are.

“A few months ago, they asked if I’d like to travel to Washington, D.C., to see the pope. The drive down was great. As we approached D.C., I was on high alert.

Knowing how guarded the city is, I kept looking at the woods, thinking there must be soldiers on recon in the trees. When we emerged into the city, it was crazy!

“The day the pope spoke to Congress, we lined up along Pennsylvania Avenue at 4:30 a.m. I got a picture of the president’s motorcade going by. I couldn’t see into the tinted windows, but I wonder if he saw me because a Secret Service agent told me to step back away from the road. When the pope came by I was this close!

“Oh my gosh, it was so loud, but it wasn’t chaos or anger. It was all love! There were people waiting along the street speaking different languages. As Pope Francis moved down the street, though, we were all the same. It was just this roar like ‘AHHHH!!’ rising up from the crowd like a wave as he passed each section.

“Pope Francis turned toward us and the hairs on the back of my neck just stood up. I didn’t know my face could have goose bumps, but it did! As long as I could see him, my body was in a chill state. I felt like my chest was going to burst open with joy.

“I see God working, giving me another chance at life. I’m walking by faith because everything I tried to do on my own failed. Before St. Luke, I didn’t know what I was going to do next, but I think I’m kind of like the prodigal son. My family has welcomed me back, and I just started a great job as a welder.

“I think God put me through hard times as an adult so I can help others and pass along the love I have received. God is finally putting me on the right track.”

L E A R N , VO LU N TE E R , DO N ATE , P R AY

FAITH IN FL INT.COM

“OH MY GOSH, IT WAS SO LOUD, BUT IT WASN’T CHAOS OR ANGER. IT WAS ALL LOVE! THERE WERE PEOPLE WAITING ALONG THE STREET SPEAKING DIFFERENT LANGUAGES. AS POPE FRANCIS MOVED DOWN THE STREET, THOUGH, WE WERE ALL THE SAME.”

C. PALMITER

DID YOU KNOW? FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE ST. LUKE N.E.W. LIFE CENTER, PLEASE VISIT WWW.STLUKENEWLIFECENTER. COM OR WWW.FAITHINFLINT.COM.

THE ST. LUKE N.E.W. LIFE CENTER IS A FAITH-BASED ENVIRONMENT PROVIDING LIFE SKILLS, EDUCATION AND WORKPLACE TRAINING TO EMPOWER WOMEN AND MEN TO BECOME SELF-SUFFICIENT. MEN AND WOMEN WHO HAVE BEEN HELPED BY THE CENTER’S MINISTRY HAVE BEEN FEATURED IN PREVIOUS ISSUES OF FAITH MAGAZINE, AS PART OF THE DIOCESE OF LANSING’S FAITH IN FLINT INITIATIVE.

21

Father Bill Turner shares what it is like in Bethlehem today

BY ELIZABETH MARTIN SOLSBURG

SOMETHING TO DO IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN LEARNING ABOUT A PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND, PLEASE CONTACT FATHER WILLIAM TURNER AT DRWJPT @AOL.COM.

You have a passion for the Holy Land. Can you tell us about your involvement in Bethlehem? First of all, I see the Holy Land as our mother Church – it is where the Church began. I always felt there was some deeper personal connection as well, but I didn’t know what it was until I had my DNA checked and discovered that I am 15 percent Arabic!

As a canon of the Holy Sepulchre, I belong to the Jerusalem Church as well as the Diocese of Lansing. Bethlehem is part of that Church.

What is it like for the Christian population in Bethlehem right now? They are under occupation by the Israelis, and are cut off from the rest of Palestine by walls that have been erected. They cannot come into Jerusalem without special permits; WHAT IS A CANON?

READ MORE FOR FATHER WILLIAM TURNER’S COMPLETE ARTICLE ON THE HOLY LAND, VISIT WWW. FAITHPUB.COM.

22

A canon is an honor given to certain priests in connection with a specific cathedral.

There is a dress and ceremonial aspect, including a special cassock trimmed in purple and a white mozetta adorned with a red Jerusalem cross. The Very Reverend Canons of the Cathedral of the Holy Sepulchre are a

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

essentially, they are confined to a small, hot, arid territory – where they are hemmed in on all sides.

They live in the Bethlehem area, which comprises three major pilgrimage towns: Beit Jala, Bethlehem and Bet Zahour (Shepherd’s Field).

Christians also occupy many small towns in the West Bank areas and in Israel itself.

The Christian population, including Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants, is now less than 2 percent of the total population. We pray constantly that the Christians there will be true instruments of God’s peace, acting as a bridge between the Muslims, whose culture and language they share, and the Israelis, whose scriptural heritage they embrace.

large number of clergy throughout the world who have the Holy Land constantly in their hearts and minds.

I was privileged to be named a canon 10 years ago through the recommendation of the late Cardinal Francis George and the approval of Bishop Carl Mengeling. Knights and dames of the Holy Sepulchre are laypersons who also have been honored

by the pope. Their charism is to work for the preservation of the Christian community in the Holy Land. They do that in conjunction with the patriarch of Jerusalem, who is the archbishop, the successor, to the bishopric of St. James. The current patriarch is Archbishop Fouad Twal, and he is responsible for the Christian population in the Holy Land and Cyprus.

What has been the effect? Because those behind walls have no real rights to the land, they are in a state of perpetual tension.

That’s why so many Christians have left Palestine and moved to the U.S. and other countries. Knights of the Holy Sepulchre support the patriarchate, by giving Palestinian Christians assets and assistance, encouraging them to stay in the Holy Land.

What are some of the ways you support the Christians in the Holy Land? Every year, I go to the Holy Land. Sometimes I take a group of pilgrims. The most important element is meeting the people. Once you meet these Christians, you can see their suffering and understand their needs.

What can people do? Please pray for the people of the Holy Land – all of them. And I hope that people will make a pilgrimage to visit Christians in the Holy Land, not only to visit the sites. These Christians need to come into contact with us and know we care about them.

The situation is very serious; the time could be coming when there are no Christians left in the Holy Land. The churches would become museums or mosques. This is a powerful moment that our Christian brothers and sisters are called to be the bridge for peace for the Muslim and Israeli populations. We can pledge to help them with our prayers and our support.

Terry longs to visit home

BY CARI ANN DELAMIELLEURE-SCOTT PHOTOGRAPHY BY TOM GENNARA

G

rowing up in Ramallah, a city in the Palestinian territories that sits about 10 miles from

Jerusalem, Terry Ahwal says the only normalcy she had in her life under occupation was the Catholic Church, The Church was the center of her universe, and Terry attributes every ounce of happiness she had to the clergy giving her an anchor “when normalcy was unattainable.”

Although she was sent to the U.S. by her parents as a teenager, Terry has taken volunteers to Palestinian territories to work with the Church and the community. When the Gaza conflict arose last year, however, Terry was banned by Israel from returning to her homeland for five years.

Terry believes these types of restrictions have created the danger that, “for the first time in the history of Christianity … you may lose an indigenous Christian community in the Holy Land.”

READ MORE FOR MORE OF TERRY’S STORY, VISIT WWW.FAITHPUB.COM.

Wendy travels to Holy Land on medical mission

BY MICHAEL SPATH PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM LUNING

I

n 2013, Wendy Rutter, a nurse anesthetist, was determined to help a young woman

from Israel she met at St. Mary Parish in Chelsea.

According to Wendy, this young woman “had a hearing deficit and hadn’t had hearing aids replaced since she was 10, and she was now 17.”

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

The University of Michigan Hospital had started a pilot program in Tel Aviv, and if Wendy was going to help the young woman, she had to fly to Israel to help coordinate the endeavor – a trip she was reluctant to make.

She boarded the flight, praying that God would watch over her.

“My life-changing event was I lost my fear,” Rutter said. “I came to a place emotionally and spiritually where I figured I would leave it up to God to send me wherever he needed me to go.”

READ MORE TO READ MORE OF WENDY’S STORY, VISIT WWW.FAITHPUB.COM.

23

I CULTURE

CAN’T SPEAK FOR EVERYONE, but personally, I find that sharing the faith is not always

easy. It can be uncomfortable knowing that a peer, neighbor or friend may not respond warmly when I insert a “foreign” religious reference into an otherwise “normal” secular conversation. And that is just with friends! I can’t imagine what the missionaries and evangelists throughout the ages felt when they preached the Good News to those who responded with physical violence.

T. Gennara

Recently, our Holy Father has given us great words of encouragement to go out and spread the word of God with joy, love and charity. And he has even assured us that we don’t have to be experts to share that message.

Great news! We don’t have to be apologists to share the Gospel. There are many different ways we can evangelize. We can be a light to others by living our faith in all areas of our life, including in our own homes.

Evangelists throughout the ages have used physical items and tangible symbols outside of and in their homes to share Christianity with those who did MICHELLE not understand. Early Christians DIFRANCO depicted the fish or the alpha is a designer and and omega. St. Patrick used the busy mom of the shamrock to represent the two children.

Trinity. The cross itself is a mere symbol of Christianity that has for centuries helped open dialogue and served as a reference for evangelists.

One way we proclaim the Good News in our home is through the art and decoration we display.

The one you see here was made inexpensively with just a few supplies, a little bit of creativity and a lot of joy for proclaiming the Good News!

ARTFULLY DIY CHRISTMAS SIGN • Unfinished wood panel (smooth surface is best) • Dark wood stain • Vinyl letter stickers • Star stencil (cut from cardstock) • Off-white acrylic paint • Paintbrush • Cloth rag 24

Either purchase or build a wood panel (I used 1” x 4” scrap wood boards and cut them to 24”-long pieces.

I assembled the panel by gluing two vertical boards to the back). Stain panel and allow it to dry completely. Arrange letter stickers on the panel (vinyl letters are best – these can be purchased in the mailbox

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

SHANE FOLKERTSMA

P ROCLAIMING THE GOOD NEWS

hardware aisle at most large shopping centers). Use a plastic card to firmly rub the surface of the letters, so the paint doesn’t run underneath (although some may).

Apply a thin coat of acrylic paint over entire surface.

Take a damp cloth rag and rub away any excess paint.

Also rub away in the area where the star will be and

near edges to reveal some of the stain underneath. Allow piece to dry and carefully peel away stickers. Position the star stencil on the panel and blot (with cloth rag) acrylic paint within stencil area. Lightly sand the edges of piece to give it a more rustic look. If necessary, add picture frame hardware to the backside of the piece.

SPECIAL REPORT

the question of the mission of the family in their final document. They noted that, from the beginning, God has generously directed his love toward his children in order that they might have fullness of life in Jesus Christ. Further, through the sacraments, God invites families into this life, “to proclaim it and to communicate it to others.” In other words, the family is called to participate in the mission of the Church. However, the family must first be evangelized before it can hope to evangelize others.

SYNOD OF BISHOPS: marriage and family REUTERS

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

T

HE 14TH ORDINARY GENERAL ASSEMBLY of the Synod of Bishops took place from Oct. 4–25, 2015, in Vatican City. The theme was, “The vocation and mission of the family in the Church and in the contemporary world.” The purpose of the synod was to continue the work of the 2014 Extraordinary General Assembly by reflecting on the challenges associated with the pastoral care of the person and the family as identified in its final relation, and by formulating appropriate pastoral guidelines to address those challenges.

BY DOUG CULP

THE CHURCH’S TEACHING AFFIRMED

In their final document issued on Oct. 24, the synod fathers revisited many of the realities threatening marriage and family.

At the same time, the final document emphasized the beauty of marriage and family, and explained the importance of both in terms of the attaining the common good. Along the way, the synod fathers strongly affirmed the Church’s teaching on marriage and family. For example, they declared marriage to consist of the indissoluble union between one woman and one man, and noted that the family is both a gift of God and the basic unit of society.

Likewise, they affirmed the Church’s opposition to reproductive tech-

niques such as in vitro fertilization, euthanasia and abortion, making the point that God alone is the Lord of life from its beginning to its end.

Interestingly, and contrary to the reporting of some secular media outlets, the bishops attending the synod enjoyed a high degree of collegiality, as reported at a closing news conference on Oct. 24 at the Vatican by Catholic News Agency correspondent Elise Harris. This spirit of collegiality and the strength of bishops’ affirmations of Church teaching were further witnessed to in the final document, as only two of the 94 paragraphs revealed any significant disparity in the voting.

THE CALL TO MISSION

The synod fathers also addressed

The final document was delivered directly to Pope Francis, who quickly authorized its release to the public. In his homily to the 270 or so bishops gathered together for the last time before departing Vatican City, the pontiff focused on God’s compassion and fatherhood as definitively revealed in Jesus. In reflecting on the Gospel story of the healing of the blind man, Bartimaeus, Pope Francis remarked that “moments of suffering and conflict are for God occasions of mercy.” He also reminded those in attendance that Jesus’ disciples today, just as in Jesus’ own day, are called to bring people into contact “with the compassionate mercy that saves,” without lecturing but by simply repeating “Jesus’ encouraging and liberating words.”

He also cautioned the bishops in attendance about two temptations for those who follow Jesus that can undermine the accompaniment of families called for by the synod fathers’ final document. First, there is the temptation to a “spirituality of illusion,” which chooses to keep moving in the face of constant problems rather than being bothered.”

The second temptation is falling into a “scheduled faith” that allows one to walk with the people of God, but only according to his or her own well-defined, inflexible schedule.

25

YOUR COMMUNITY THINGS TO DO Nov. 28, Discernment Day for Men at 10 a.m. with Mass at St. Francis Retreat Center, DeWitt; ends at noon with pizza and fellowship at Relli’s in downtown DeWitt.

For men in the diocese who have graduated from high school and are interested in discussing the priesthood. For information and to RSVP, contact Father John Linden at 517.342.2507 or jlinden@dioceseoflansing.org.

Dec. 3, RESULTS chapter fundraiser: Sister Simone Campbell, “Nuns on the Bus” leader and executive director of NETWORK, will deliver the keynote address, “Creating an Economy of Inclusion: Pope Francis’ Call to the Common Good,” at 7:30 p.m., following a 6:45 p.m. pre-reception at St. Mary Student Chapel, 331 Thompson St., Ann Arbor. Open to the public. Tickets: adult $35 and student $10.

Dec. 4, 6 p.m., Advent by Candlelight at Holy Redeemer Parish, Burton, is a reflective evening of inspiration, fellowship and music for women. Table reservations required.

Free will charitable donations appreciated. For information and reservations, call 810.333.6031.

Dec. 4, Women’s Advent Tea at St. Patrick, Brighton. Please come and bring a friend or be a table hostess. Reservations required, forms available outside the parish office.

For information, call the parish at 810.229.9863.

Dec. 5, noon-6:30 p.m. and Dec. 6, following the 8 a.m. and 11 a.m.

Masses, St. Paul, Owosso will have its annual Altar Society cookie sale, which includes packages of homemade cookies, bars and candies for only $4 and decorative plates of specialty cookies available for gift-giving.

Dec. 5, 9 a.m.-7 p.m. and Dec. 6, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., the Church of the

HOST A TABLE FOR WOMEN’S ADVENT TEA

Dec. 5, 9 a.m-3 p.m., St. Michael Church and School will hold its annual craft bazaar in Fellowship Hall, 345 Edwards St., Grand Ledge.

More than 70 vendors are registered.

Concessions are available. For information, call 517.627.8493.

ENJOY A CHICKEN DINNER

GIVE THE GIFT OF HOPE THIS CHRISTMAS

CATHOLIC CHARITIES CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF JACKSON, LENAWEE AND HILLSDALE COUNTIES, 517.782.2551 OR CATHOLICCHARITIESJLHC.ORG Jan. 22, 6 p.m.-9 p.m. and Jan. 23, 9 a.m.-noon, We C.A.R.E. marriage preparation class at Queen of the Miraculous Medal, Seton Hall, 606 S. Wisner St., Jackson. Both sessions must be attended. Cost is $75 per couple and pre-registration with payment is required prior to class.

Contact CCJLH at 517.782.2551.

LIVINGSTON COUNTY CATHOLIC CHARITIES, LIVINGSTONCATHOLICCHARITIES.ORG OR 517.546.9910 Jan 26, 6:30-9:30 p.m., and Jan. 27, 6:30- p.m.-9:30 p.m., We C.A.R.E. marriage preparation class at St. Patrick, Brighton’s AFFC, room A. Both sessions must be attended. Cost is $75 per couple and pre-registration with payment is required prior to class. To register, contact CCLC at 517.545.5944.

CATHOLIC SOCIAL SERVICES OF WASHTENAW, 734.971.9781 OR CSSWASHTENAW.ORG Interested in Becoming a Foster Parent? Through the family-to-family approach, CSSW licenses foster families to provide a safe, loving, temporary home until the child is able to be reunified with their birth family. The next Foster Care orientation will be held: Dec. 10, 5:30p.m.-8:30 p.m., at 4925 Packard Rd., Ann Arbor. For information or to RSVP, call 734.971.9781, ext. 448. There are no fees associated with becoming a licensed foster parent.

Two We C.A.R.E. marriage preparation programs will be: Dec 11-12 and Jan. 15-16. For information or to register, call 734.971.9781, ext. 421 or visit csswashtenaw.org.

CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF SHIAWASSEE AND GENESEE COUNTIES CCSGC.ORG OR 810.232.9950 You can give the gift of Hope this Christmas. Donate new toys, towels, socks and toiletries, as well as non-perishable food for Christmas Day at Catholic Charities Soup Kitchens. Monetary gifts also are welcome. Please keep our Center for Hope Warming Center in your prayers as we open for another winter season. Pray for the health and safety for all our clients.

26

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

Resurrection, 1531 E. Michigan Ave., Lansing, will have a St. Nicholas bake sale with many delicious home-baked goods and free coffee while shopping.

Dec. 5, 7 p.m., Advent by Candlelight at St. Mary Magdalen, 2201 Old U.S. 23, Brighton. To reserve early, call the parish office at 810.229.8624.

Dec. 6, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., St. Paul, Owosso, Knights of Columbus will have at its hall, 1259 E. Main St., a best roasted chicken dinner ever, which includes salad, veggies, stuffing, potatoes/gravy, dessert and beverage. Cost: $10 adults; $5 ages 5-12; under age 5 eat free. Takeout available.

Dec. 12, noon, St. Thomas Aquinas, East Lansing, will have a Spanish Mass with Mariachis in honor of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe celebrated by Bishop Earl Boyea, with a bilingual rosary at 11:30 a.m.

For information, call the parish office at 517.351.7215.

Dec. 13, 3 p.m., St. Thomas the Apostle, Ann Arbor, will have an Advent concert featuring its adult and children’s choirs. Please come and enjoy the music and fellowship.

Dec. 20, the All Faith Ministry for Disabilities will have a Special Needs Mass at 12:30 p.m. at St. Francis Retreat Center, DeWitt, followed by a holiday party in the retreat center’s Bethany House. To attend, RSVP by Dec. 11 to Cathy Blatnik, program director, at Icblatnik@juno. com or 517.381.1410. All are welcome to attend.

Dec. 20, 9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., St. Mary Magdalen, 2201 Old U.S. 23, Brighton, is hosting a Blood Drive.

For information, contact the parish at 810.229.8624.

Dec. 31, 7 p.m., St. Agnes Parish Life Center, Fowlerville, will have its third annual New Year’s Eve dinner dance with music by the “Sea Cruisers” and a gourmet dinner. Tickets are $30

per person. For tickets, call Jerry at 517.474.2002 or the parish at 517.223.8684.

Young adult New Year’s Eve semiformal dance: Christ the King’s Upper Room Young Adult Outreach invites all young adults in their 20s-30s to ring in the New Year with a semiformal dance Dec. 31 at Christ the King Catholic Church, Ann Arbor.

Doors open at 9 p.m., with dance lesson at 9:30 p.m. For details and to register, visit CTKUpperRoom.com.

Wednesdays, Jan. 6-Feb. 24, 5:30 p.m.-7 p.m., “Forgiven and Set Free” – confidential and compassionate care to help you heal – a free, postabortion recovery class hosted at the New Life Center, 1601 E. Grand River in Lansing. Materials provided at no cost. Contact nlc@resurrectionlansing.org or 517.993.0291.

Jan. 9, 5 p.m., St. Francis of Assisi, Ann Arbor will celebrate a “Shepherds” Mass in Polish with Choir Filareci from Hamtramck, Mich., singing traditional kolędy, Christmas carols – followed by a light reception in the parish activities center. All are invited to bring a dish of baked goods to share. For information, contact Scott Wright at 734.821.2121.

Feb. 20, Diocesan Center, Madonna Hall and Feb. 27, Christ the King Church, Ann Arbor, will have a Theology of the Body training by region for adults interested in learning how to teach it to youths and adults. To register and for information, contact Dawn Hausmann at dhausmann@ dioceseoflanding.org or 517.342.2506.

Feb. 20-21, Catholic Engaged Encounter marriage preparation program for couples at Holly, Mich.

For information and to register, contact Susan and Wayne Fransted at 810.588.4141 or info@lansingcee. org. Registration and payment must be received by Feb. 6.

Feb. 25, 6 p.m.-7 p.m., IHM-St. Casimir School will be hosting its preschool and kindergarten roundup. Come and bring your children and check out our preschool and kindergarten.

For information, contact Angela Johnston at johnstona@ihmlansing. org.

IF YOU HAVE BEEN ABUSED OR VICTIMIZED

BY SOMEONE REPRESENTING THE CATHOLIC CHURCH Please believe in the possibility for hope and help and healing. We encourage you to come forward and speak out. Every diocese in the United States now has a victim assistance coordinator who is available to obtain support for your needs, to help make a formal complaint of abuse to the diocese and to arrange a personal meeting with the bishop or his representative if you desire.

The victim assistance coordinator for the Diocese of Lansing is: Adrienne Rowland, LMSW, ACSW; 1.888.308.6252; arowlandvac@ dioceseoflansing.org.

ATTEND A NEW YEAR’S EVE SEMIFORMAL DANCE

RETREAT CENTERS ST. FRANCIS RETREAT CENTER, DEWITT, 866.669.8321 OR WWW.STFRANCIS.WS • Jan. 15, “St. Thérèse of Lisieux: The Little Way for Everyone.”

•J an. 20, “We’ve come to see Jesus,” encounter anew the Lord Jesus Christ.

•F eb. 12 or 27, “Mercy knows no limits,” a Lenten retreat.

Directed by Tony Sperendi.

•J an. 22-24, Retrouvaille Weekend Retreat in Spanish for couples experiencing problems in their marriage. For information, contact Melvin and Silvia Morales at 3053@ retrouvaille.org or www.retrouvailleoflansing.com.

•J an. 22-24, Retrouvaille Weekend Retreat in English for couples experiencing problems in their marriage. For information, contact Teresa and Allan Sonfilippo Wilcox at 517.290.5595 or retro4lansing@comcast.com.

WEBER RETREAT AND CONFERENCE CENTER, ADRIAN, WEBER.ADRIANDOMINICANS.ORG OR 517.266.4000 •D ec. 20, 3 p.m.-4:30 p.m., “Winter Solstice,” free will offering.

•J an. 16, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m., “A Day of Contemplative Prayer – meditation and mindfulness practice.” Cost: $35, includes lunch.

ADVENT PENANCE SERVICES

LIVINGSTON VICARIATE

Vicariate Regional Advent Penance Services, 7 p.m., unless otherwise noted:

• Dec. 1, St. Augustine, Howell • Dec. 9, St. Mary, Pinckney • Dec. 10, St. Joseph, Howell • Dec. 14, Holy Spirit, Brighton • Dec. 16, 7:30 p.m., St. John, Howell •D ec. 19, 9 a.m., St. Patrick, Brighton • Dec. 21, 7:30 p.m., St. Mary Magdalen, Brighton • No Communal Service, St. Agnes, Fowlerville

CLINTON/EATON/INGHAM VICARIATE •D ec. 10, St. Mary, Charlotte/St. Ann, Bellevue at St. Mary • Dec. 13, 2 p.m., St. Gerard, Lansing • Dec. 14, 2 p.m., St. Thomas Aquinas, East Lansing • Dec. 17, St. James, Mason JACKSON VICARIATE

GO ON A RETROUVAILLE RETREAT

CONSIDER A CATHOLIC SCHOOL

•D ec. 14, St. Rita, Clarklake • Dec. 15, St. Catherine Labouré, Concord • Dec. 17, St. John the Evangelist, Jackson • Dec. 19, St. Mary Star of the Sea, Jackson • Dec. 21, Queen of the Miraculous Medal, Jackson LENAWEE/HILLSDALE VICARIATE •D ec. 5, 11 a.m., St. Mary of Good Counsel, Adrian • Dec. 15, 5:45 p.m., St. Joseph, Adrian • Dec. 13, St. Elizabeth/St. Dominic at St. Elizabeth • Dec. 16, St. Anthony, Hillsdale

SHIAWASSEE/GENESEE VICARIATE •D ec. 13, 3 p.m., St. Mark the Evangelist, Grand Blanc • Dec. 15, 6:30 p.m., St. Joseph, Owosso • Dec. 15, Holy Redeemer, Burton • Dec. 16, St. John, Fenton • Dec. 17, Holy Family, Grand Blanc WASHTENAW VICARIATE •D ec. 10, Immaculate Conception, Milan • Dec. 14, St. Thomas the Apostle, Ann Arbor and St. Andrew, Saline • Dec. 15, St. Mary Student, Ann Arbor and St. Joseph, Dexter • Dec. 16, St. Patrick, Ann Arbor and St. Mary, Chelsea • Dec. 17, St. Francis of Assisi, Ann Arbor and St. Mary, Manchester • Dec. 21, St. Mary, Chelsea 27

YOUR COMMUNITY LOCAL NEWS

INSTALLATION OF FATHER THOMAS FIRESTONE AS PASTOR OF CATHOLIC COMMUNITY OF FLINT

On Oct. 4, Bishop Boyea celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving for the gift of consecrated life at St. Mary Magdalen Parish in Brighton. All consecrated religious, which included priests, sisters, brothers and consecrated virgins – and the faithful of the diocese – were invited to attend.

Sister Rita Wenzlick, OP, diocesan delegate for consecrated life, welcomed those attending. In her opening remarks, she said, “When Pope Francis announced the Year of Consecrated Life in 2014, he told us that the beauty of consecration is joy. God says to us, ‘You are important to me, I love you, I am counting on you.’ Knowing that, who cannot experience joy?” She thanked Father David Howell, the parish’s pastor, and St. Mary Magdalen’s parishioners, who helped make the celebration possible.

In his homily, Bishop Boyea spoke about the 15th chapter of the Gospel of St. John. He said, “Jesus tells his disciples: ‘I am the vine you are the branches.’ … that they must bear fruit or the Father will cut them off … Imagine that, we are to bear fruit or else we will be trimmed away. So I often ask myself: ‘Have I borne fruit?’”

Mass was followed by a reception, giving everyone the opportunity to not only share a delicious meal, but also faith and fellowship.

28

FAITH Magazine | DECEMBER 2015 | WWW.FAITHPUB.COM

ST. MARY IN CHARLOTTE HAS FAITH IN FLINT In response to Bishop Boyea’s call for parishes to respond to the FAITH in Flint appeal, Virginia Mooney, a parishioner of St. Mary Church in Charlotte, contacted the Center for Hope in Flint and discussed its greatest needs and how to raise funds to help. Donations of household items and clothing were collected from parishioners for a weekend-long rummage sale recently, and a crew of volunteers from the parish helped set up and tear down afterward. The event raised more than $1,000 to send to Flint’s Restoring Hope Capital Campaign. The church also collected coats, jeans, towels and personal care items to send directly to the Center for Hope.

For more information on donating to the Center for Hope or Catholic Charities, visit www.FaithInFlint.com.

L E A R N , VO LU N TE E R , D O N ATE , P R AY

FAITH INF LIN T.COM

MARTIN JENNINGS

D. QUILLAN

MASS OF THANKSGIVING FOR CONSECRATED LIFE

On Oct. 7, Father Thomas Firestone was installed as the pastor of the first-ever Catholic Community of Flint at St. Michael Catholic Church. Parishes now working together as a cluster of parishes in the Diocese of Lansing include St. John Vianney, St. Mary, St. Matthew and St. Michael. The installation and evening prayer service was led by Bishop Earl Boyea.

The evening’s service, attended by more than 250 guests, included formal readings and acceptance by Father Firestone to serve as leader of the four parishes. In a short homily, Bishop Boyea remarked on the confidence he has in Father Firestone to lead this new initiative and asked for prayers for the success of the journey, which has never been tried before in the diocese.

Assisting Father Firestone in this effort are: Father James Mangan, parochial vicar of St. Matthew; Father Daniel Kogut, chaplain at Powers Catholic High School; Father Zachary Mabee, parochial vicar at St. Mary; and Deacon Anthony Verdun at St. John Vianney.

its 4th annual “NBC 25 Days of Giving” with a list of items to be collected for its community closet or soup kitchens – toothbrushes, toilet paper, canned goods, dish soap, diapers, etc. To volunteer or donate items, contact Amy Start at 810.232.9950, ext. 143 or astart@ccsgc.org.

CATHOLIC SOCIAL SERVICES OF WASHTENAW COUNTY: • For its Emergency Food program at its Northside Community Center to organize monthly or biannual food donation drives; help unload donations; stock shelves; set up and take down; help clients shop; carry food to cars; and do client intake. To volunteer, call 734.662.4462 • To staff its waiting room from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Washtenaw Child Advocacy Center in Ypsilanti. All volunteers will be screened and trained prior to starting and will be asked to commit to one four- hour shift per week for at least four months. For information, contact Megan Hennessey at 734.544.2925.

Year of Mercy volunteer opportunities for parishes, families, schools and religious education programs to connect with their Catholic Charities agencies: CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF JACKSON, LENAWEE AND HILLSDALE COUNTIES: • Transportation volunteers in Jackson County, who are 55 or older with reliable transportation and good driving records, to assist seniors and veterans get to and from medical appointments. There is a .50 per mile reimbursement. For information, contact Marilyn Smith, transportation coordinator, at 517.783.6102 or msmith.ccjlhc@gmail.com.

• Volunteers to help or donate to keep our shelves stocked by organizing a weekly, monthly or biannual collection of items.

Drop-off is 407 S. Mechanic St., Jackson. To make a difference in our community, call 517.782.4616 and find out how you can help.

CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF SHIAWASSEE AND GENESEE COUNTIES: • Work in its Center for Hope Community Closet, formerly St. Michael School, 517 E. Fifth Ave., Flint, to help sort and organize donations, welcome clients and assist them with finding the items they need. Individuals and groups are welcome.

• Organize and host a scavenger hunt for youths or adults for

LIVINGSTON COUNTY CATHOLIC CHARITIES: • Light clerical work. Duties include filing; answering phones; computer work – MS Word and Excel. A minimum of two hours a week – flexible on days and times.

• Working with older adults. Duties include, but are not limited to, making friendly home visits to play cards or just talk; transportation to appointments; running errands; and respite care for a family member. To volunteer, contact Linda Bauby at 517.545.5944, ext. 121 or linda@livingstoncatholiccharities.org.

ST. VINCENT CATHOLIC CHARITIES: • Student internship opportunities are available in social work, psychology, marketing, public relations, accounting, community public health and more. Spend your internship providing help and creating hope in the lives of children and families in need in the community.

• To tutor at its children’s home, assisting children at all levels in reading, math, etc. and helping them experience a positive, healthy and safe relationship with an adult. For information, contact Dr. Thomas Woods, volunteer and outreach coordinator, at 517.323.4734, ext. 1203 or woodst@stvcc.org.

SCHOOL OR CLASSROOM PROJECTS FOR CATHOLIC CHARITIES’ YEAR OF MERCY: • Organize a can drive and use money collected to purchase can goods or hygiene items.

• Hold a coat collection or mitten tree and donate items collected to help keep people warm.

• Organize a school or classroom competition penny fundraiser drive and donate money collected.

• Set up a donation bin for personal needs/linen closet items, such as toothbrushes, toilet paper, dish soap, etc.

CHELSEA AREA SERVICE GROUPS JOIN TOGETHER TO SUPPORT ST. LOUIS CENTER As a member of the Chelsea Rotary Club, Paul Schissler thought it would be a great idea to help fellow Rotarian Father Joseph Rinaldo, SdC by obtaining a golf cart to help him get around St. Louis Center’s sprawling campus. Several service clubs in the community combined their forces for good: the Rotary Club, Knights of Columbus, Lions Club and Kiwanis Club each contributed 25 percent of the cost for the cart. The four clubs’ logos were added to the cart, and it was presented to Father Rinaldo at the St. Louis Center on Oct. 8.

29

CREDITS

culture

Proclaiming the good news ARTFULLY spiritual fitness

The Magazine of the Catholic Diocese of Lansing

Preparing our hearts to receive Jesus PRAYING DURING ADVENT feature

What is it like today IN THE LAND WHERE CHRIST WAS BORN?

FIND US ON YOUR TABLET SEARCH FOR FAITH PUB

DECEMBER 2015 VOLUME 15: ISSUE 10

www.FAITHpub.com Most Reverend Earl Boyea PUBLISHER

Rev. Dwight Ezop

FIND US ON YOUR TABLET

EDITOR AND CHAIRMAN

FAITH PUB

CONNECTING PEOPLE WITH JESUS AND HIS CHURCH WWW.FAITHCATHOLIC.COM

Pope Francis greets a group of miners from Chile as he leads the weekly audience in Saint Peter’s square.

Patrick M. O’Brien

REUTERS

PRESIDENT/CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

Elizabeth Martin Solsburg VICE PRESIDENT / EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

Ann Jacob MANAGING EDITOR

Cynthia Vandecar DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION AND CUSTOMER SERVICE

Marybeth Hicks MARKETING DIRECTOR

Patrick Dally ART DIRECTOR

Jillane Job EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Carlson Productions | Shane Folkertsma | Mike Frieseman | Tom Gennara | Sarah Moore Kuschell | James Luning | Don Quillan CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Bob Patten CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATOR

Most Rev. Carl F. Mengeling FOUNDING PUBLISHER

Rev. Charles Irvin

WHAT POPE FRANCIS HAS BEEN SAYING AND DOING RECENTLY

Speaking of the Gospel story of Jesus telling the disciples he would make them “fishers of men.” Pope Francis said: A new kind of net is needed for this. Today, families are the most important net for the mission of Peter and the church."

FOUNDING EDITOR For advertising information: Call 517.853.7600 For subscription information: Call 1.866.76.FAITH

FAITHTM (USPS 019993) is a publication of FAITH Catholic, Diocese of Lansing, 1500 E. Saginaw St., Lansing, MI 48906-5550. FAITHTM is a membership publication of the Catholic Diocese of Lansing and is published monthly except for February and August. To purchase a subscription, log on to FAITHmag.com. If you have a change of address, please contact your parish. Periodicals postage paid in Lansing, MI and at additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to FAITHTM, 1500 E. Saginaw St., Lansing MI 48906-5550. ©2015 FAITH Catholic. FAITH is a trademark of FAITH Catholic.

30

Pope Francis@Pontifex Sep 28 : With my heartfelt thanks. May the love of Christ always guide the American people! #GodBlessAmerica Oct. 1: Our life is not a pointless wandering. We have a sure goal: the house of the Father.

REUTERS

Jim Berlucchi | Doug Culp | Peggy Dekeyser | Michelle DiFranco | Rev. Charles Irvin | Rev. Joseph Krupp | Emily Lenhard | Dr. Cathleen McGreal | Mary Kay McPartlin | Steve and Bridget Patton | Nancy Rosebush Schertzing | Sister Ann Shields | Michael Spath

POPE WATCH

The lasting legacy of Pope Francis in Philadelphia The goal of the Mercy and Justice Initiative, set up before Pope Francis’ visit to Philadelphia, was to generate action and awareness about hunger and homelessness in the area. A fundraising component of the initiative, the Francis Fund, raised $1.4 million, which will be distributed to 50 organizations that serve the most vulnerable in the Philadelphia area. Another aspect of the initiative was the “Knotted Grotto,” (pictured above) which held some 150,000 white prayer intention ribbons for healing, peace and more. Pope Francis’ presence in Philadelphia will live on in another way at the dedication of the Francis House of Peace in November. The Francis House is a nine-story building providing affordable housing for formerly homeless men and women, and at-risk young adults. It honors Pope Francis’ dedication to improving conditions of those in poverty.

LAST WORD

LOOK FOR JESUS, MARY AND JOSEPH IN THE FACES OF TODAY’S REFUGEES

I

LABORING IN THE VINEYARD On Saturday, Oct. 24, more than 900 women gathered at the Causeway Bay Hotel in Lansing for inspiration, challenge and guidance at the 2015 Diocese of Lansing Catholic Women’s Conference. The theme was “Dance in His Vineyard,” and speakers and music presented ways the Lord asks us to dance, and how to respond to his invitation of love.

Led by Melanie Rea and her band, the day began with opening prayer. Erin Looby-Carlson, READ MORE director of communications for READ THE the Diocese of Saginaw, was the FULL STORY OF THE WOMEN'S master of ceremonies for the CONFERENCE ON conference. Speakers included YOUR TABLET. Father Mathias Thelen, the spirSEARCH FOR THE itual director for Sacred Heart FAITH PUB APP. Major Seminary; Sheri Wohlfert, a Catholic wife, mom, writer and teacher; and Sister Sarah Burdick, SGL, head of theology and teacher at Ann Arbor Gabriel Richard High School.

Bishop Earl Boyea, who celebrated Mass, told those gathered: “When we labor in the vineyard in the way that Jesus asks, the work fills us with joy. That doesn’t mean the work is easy nor does it mean that it always looks successful. It does mean that when we are doing what God asks of us we will have a sense of rightness, peace and joy.” – Mary Kay McPartlin

T. Gennara

N HIS GOSPEL ACCOUNT, St. Matthew tells us that just after the Magi gave their gifts to the child Jesus, Joseph was told to take the child and his mother, Mary, and flee FATHER to Egypt. As Matthew puts it: “… behold, an CHARLES IRVIN angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a is the founding editor of FAITH dream and said, ‘Rise, take the child and his Magazine and is mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there retired. until I tell you. Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him. Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod” (2:13-15).

Given what is happening right now in the Middle East and in Europe, it occurs to me that we should see that Jesus, Mary and Joseph were refugees. They were not immigrating; they were refugees fleeing from the death and destruction that King Herod was unleashing in Palestine. They had to gather up a few of their possessions and flee in haste, just like today’s refugees. Once again, events in the Bible are repeating themselves in their own way in our world today.

Too many people think the Bible is composed of nothing but tales and myths that have no relevance to the world in which we live. They are wrong. Secular history, we are told, repeats itself. For those who have Secular history, we are told, eyes to see and ears to hear, repeats itself. For those who historical biblical events have have eyes to see and ears to real relevance to what is haphear, historical biblical events pening in our own lives.

The flight of the Holy have real relevance to what is Family is often depicted on happening in our own lives.

Christmas cards in soft, lovely, pastel hues. The reality of what the Holy Family endured was far from lovely. It must have been gritty and painful. Their suffering should cause us to contemplate the suffering we see depicted in the news reports of our day – the pictures of today’s refugees fleeing in haste from being brutalized in their own countries, cities and villages. Look at the faces we see in pictures of refugees and see the faces of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

We view the family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph and see them as holy.

Can we see the holiness in the refugees of our day? Too often they are regarded as threats. They are feared and kept behind fences. Even though they are powerless, they are regarded as threats. Underneath their appearances, we should see them as God’s children; we should see them as our own brothers and sisters, members of our family of faith.

Perhaps it would be a good idea to try and see today’s refugees as God sees them. It might change our perspective.

31

FAITHPUB.COM | FOLLOW FAITH PUB