October 15, 2010 by Catholic San Francisco

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Benedict XVI opened a crisis summit on the Mideast church with a call to help the region’s beleaguered Christian minority. Peace and human rights are essential for the church’s survival there, he said. The Mideast is unique in salvation history as the “cradle” of the church’s worldwide evangelizing mission, the pope said as he celebrated Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica Oct. 10 with more than 250 participants at the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East. The synod’s primary goal: to renew the pastoral energy of Mideast church communities and strengthen their faith identity so that they can continue to witness the Gospel to all. That task goes hand in hand with the church’s dialogue with Muslims and Jews, the pope said. In his homily, the pope emphasized unity in a land where the church has richly varied liturgical, spiritual, cultural and disciplinary traditions. Without unity, there can be no real witnessing of the faith, he said. He urged church leaders to rise above their difficulties with the Pentecost spirit that moved the early church. “The first Christians in Jerusalem were few,” he said. “No one could have imagined what happened afterward. And the church still lives with that same energy that made the early church arise and grow.” The synod’s role, he said, is to renew that sense of “permanent dynamism” among Catholic communities of the Middle East. Church members must strengthen their Christian identity through the word of God and the sacraments in SYNOD, page 11

Catholic san Francisco Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper

(CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING)

Pope to synod: let Pentecost spirit rise anew in Mideast

Prelates leave the opening Mass of the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East in St. Peter’s Basilica Oct. 10.

Many Catholics learn IVF is wrong only too late By Valerie Schmalz Many Catholics don’t learn until it is too late that invitro fertilization as a remedy for infertility is gravely contrary to Catholic moral teaching, a leading Catholic bioethicist said Oct. 9. That is unfortunate because there are more effective methods of assisting couples that do not require artificial conception in a laboratory, said Father Tad Pacholczyk of the National Catholic Bioethics Center, which was established in 1972 to provide ethical analysis on scientific developments, particularly in life issues, Father Tad Pacholczyk using standards of natural law and Catholic Church teaching. “Laboratory glassware is not the way new human members of our family should enter the world,” said Father Pacholczyk, the center’s director of education. “A human being has the right to be conceived under his or her mother’s heart.” Father Pacholczyk made his comments at a seminar sponsored by the Archdiocese of San Francisco, “Rediscovering the Family in a Technological Age: Bioethical Considerations.” His remarks came days after the Nobel Prize for Medicine was awarded to British scientist Robert Edwards for his contributions to IVF. The first test-tube baby, Louise Brown, was born in 1978, and the Nobel committee estimated that 4 million IVF babies have been born since.

Lucio Romano, president of the Italian association Science and Life, said the honor “ignores all the ethical problems” and noted that IVF emerged from livestock breeding techniques. Msgr. Ignacio Carrasco de Paula, head of the Pontifical Academy for Life, said he recognized that Edwards “ushered in a new and important chapter in the field of human reproduction in which the best results are visible to everyone, beginning with Louise Brown.” However, “without Edwards there wouldn’t be a market for oocytes (immature egg cells), without Edwards there wouldn’t be freezers full of embryos waiting to be transferred in utero or, more likely, to be used for research or to die abandoned and forgotten by everyone,” the monsignor said in a statement released by the Vatican press office Oct. 4. He also said that Edwards “opened the wrong door” to fertility treatments and did not confront the underlying causes of infertility. The Vatican-based International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations also expressed its dismay about the prize. “Although IVF has brought happiness to the many couples who have conceived through this process, it has done so at an enormous cost. That cost is the undermining of the dignity of the human person,” said the federation’s president, Jose Simon Castellvi. “As Catholic doctors we recognize the pain that infertility brings to a couple, but equally we believe that the research and treatment methods needed to solve the problems of infertility have to be conducted within an ethical framework which respects the special dignity of the human embryo, which is no different from that of a mature adult with a brilliant mind,” he wrote. IVF WRONG, page 15

A journey to China’s largest Catholic village By Anthony E. Clark Traveling through China’s poorer provinces one often sees blue coal trucks, muledriven carts brimming with freshly harvested vegetables, squatting peasants smoking long-stemmed pipes, or dilapidated roadside hovels with exposed Mass in Liuhe village light bulbs hanging precariously from crumbling ceilings. Occasional pavilions or temples might be seen, though these were largely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). Catholic churches suffered two major periods of destruction, the Boxer Uprising (1898-1900) and the Cultural Revolution. The anti-foreign Boxers, called the Fists of Righteous Harmony, swept through China’s northern provinces attacking churches and Christians, and when the Red Guards were told to destroy the “four olds” – old ideas, old customs, old habits, and old culture – they attacked not only anything that seemed traditional, but also anything that was foreign or religious. Being old, traditional, foreign, and religious, Catholic churches, orphanages, seminaries, and hospitals suffered widespread destruction through the Maoist era. Despite these two historical events Chinese CHINA’S CATHOLIC VILLAGE, page 21

INSIDE THIS WEEK’S EDITION World Mission Sunday . . . . . . 3 Eastern Church asks respect . 4 Legal Directory . . . . . . . . 11-12 Rosary: “spiritual weapon” . 13 Local news . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

80th jubilee, 103rd birthday ~ Page 8 ~ October 15, 2010

St. Teresa of Avila: a saint for the ascerbic ~ Page 20 ~

Church leadership and the abuse crisis ~ Page 24 ~ ONE DOLLAR

Senior living . . . . . . . . . . 14-17 Exercise faithful citizenship . 18

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No. 32

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

On The Where You Live By Tom Burke Happy 60 years married to Anna May and Ray Thomas who celebrated with a special anniversary Mass in the chapel of St. Matthew Church in San Mateo September 12. The couple’s son, Father Gary Thomas, pastor, Sacred Heart Parish in Ray and Anna May Thomas Saratoga, Diocese of San Jose, presided. Almost a dozen family members joined Anna May and Ray to complete the assembly. Anna May, a 1944 graduate of Immaculate Conception Academy, and Ray, who attended St. Teresa School on Potrero Hill, were married September 9, 1950 at St. James Church in San Francisco. Ray’s brother, Father George Thomas, retired pastor of Our Lady of the Wayside Parish in Portola Valley, witnessed their vows. “My parents’ 60th anniversary is a wonderful reminder of the great gift they gave our family: their steadfast, unbreakable and resilient commitment to one another,” Father Gary Thomas told me…. Happy birthday to Father Benedict Chang who is now 80 and has long-served at Star of the Sea Parish in San Francisco… Ten grand richer is the new non-profit Fil-Am Friendship Network. The group had the grand prize winning ticket at St. Patrick’s Seminary and University’s Four Pillars Gala in September. “It seemed to me that God gifted the group with a miracle,” said Network member, Nellie Hizon. Sulpician Father James McKearney is president and rector

Sulpician Father James McKearney, with from left, Bea Delgadillo, Estelle Oloresisimo, Nellie Hizon, and Candy Duazo at school’s annual Four Pillars Gala.

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“My mom went here!” is the cry of these students now following in their mothers’ footsteps at Mercy High School in Burlingame. From bottom of stairs: Anastasia and Tracy Brady Koehler ’93, St. Catherine of Siena Parish; Allison and Katie Olson Barri ’81, Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish; Alexis and Gina DeNatale Ayllon ’85, St. Robert Parish; Alyssa and Karen Gutierrez Hoyt ’82, St. Veronica Parish; Rebeccaimee Jimenez and Rebecca Huerta ’86, All Souls Parish; Claire and Jane Cavagnaro Unger ’78, Our Lady of Angels Parish; Sabrina and Maricar Floresca-Arsalane ’86, Our Lady of Mercy Parish.

of the seminary…. “Each donation will help three or more people,” said Notre Dame High School science teacher, Erin Connolly, about the 55 pints collected at the Belmont school’s recent blood drive. The gifts of life came from many parents and other adults, Erin said, because students usually can’t meet age and weight requirements for giving blood…. Congratulations to Vicki Evans, coordinator of Respect Life activities for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, who has recently completed her Licentiate in Bioethics from Regina Apostolorum Pontifical University in Rome. The campus is quite a commute from her Marin home but she did it – summa cum laude in fact - making many trips to the Eternal City over four years for courses in medicine, biology, law, theology and philosophy. Vicki’s thesis “Commercial Markets Created by Abortion: Profiting from the Fetal Distribution Chain” has won acclaim in many venues and can be found at www.sflifeandjustice.org. We have welcomed Vicki many times to the pages of Catholic San Francisco and the soon to be one-year-old Archbishop’s Hour on Immaculate Heart Radio, 1260 on your AMen dial. “Vicki has been an important part of the pro-life movement,” said George Wesolek, director, Office of Public Policy and Social Concerns where Vicki’s Respect Life work originates…. Keeping up the memories and making new ones are graduates – alumnae and alumni – from Our Lady of Perpetual Help School in Daly City. Recent reunions brought the classes of 1948 and 1961 back

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together at Nick’s in Pacifica and the school’s auction and dinner dance in the spring. Class of ’61 reps included Mike Shea, Marianne Lewis Hill, Ed Mahoney, Judy Pearlman Shelver, Gerry Nolan, Dona Pesino Edlund and John Quezada. Class of ’48 reps included Patsy Curley Craviotto, Betty Curtin Cutietta, Aileen Greer Hogue, Marion Elliott Oakley, Elizabeth Fenton Borg, Alice Aquirre Vargus, Ed Saunders and Ed Aguirre….Thanks to Holy Name of Jesus Parish for these ideas for our “gardens of life” and how we might gain from planting plenty of thyme – thyme for each other, thyme for family, thyme for friends….This is an empty space without you. E-mail items and electronic pictures – jpegs at no less than 300 dpi – to burket@sfarchdiocese.org or mail them to Street, One Peter Yorke Way, SF 94109. Don’t forget to add a follow-up phone number. Thank you. My phone number is (415) 614-5634.

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October 15, 2010

Catholic San Francisco

Mission Congress 2010 will paint broad portrait of U.S. Catholics in mission WASHINGTON – “God’s Mission, Many Faces: A Portrait of U.S. Catholics in Mission” is the theme of Mission Congress 2010, which will meet Oct. 28-31, in Albuquerque, N.M. Using the image of a portrait, Father Michael Montoya, executive director of the U.S. Catholic Mission Association, said the 2010 Mission Congress “will bring together dedicated men and women from across Father Michael the nation and Montoya around the world into a faith-filled environment to discern the movement of the spirit within the U.S. Church in mission; discover the varied colors and brushstrokes of U.S. Catholics in mission; invigorate mission identity and leadership in the U.S. Church and celebrate the faces and creativity of U.S. Catholics in mission.” The congress will include panel discussions, group dialogue and workshops on topics ranging from mission work in the U.S. to global trends, mission in other traditions, ecumenical perspectives on mission, international missionaries serving in the United States and other issues. This year’s congress will feature keynote addresses by Father Gary Riebe-Estrella, SVD, associated professor of practical theology and Hispanic ministry at the Catholic Theological Union and president of the Academy of Catholic Hispanic Theologians; Sister Janice McLaughlin, MM, president of

the Maryknoll Sisters; and Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, president of Caritas International and past president of the Council of Latin American Bishops’ Conferences. In line with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ pastoral priorities, the congress will stress the cultural diversity of today’s Church and how Catholic missionaries can best fulfill their mission of evangelization. “The 2010 Mission Congress comes at a time when world-wide mission is the focus of many Catholic initiatives in the recent years,” Father Montoya said. “The Bishop’s Synod on the Word in the Life and Mission of the Church emphasized the need for mission ad gentes; Pope Benedict in his 2008 visit to the United States stressed the need for global solidarity; the bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean proclaimed at their meeting in Aparecida, Brazil, the great “continental mission” which was launched during the Congreso Americano Misionero in Quito, Ecuador. This great continental mission challenges all of us to put our Church in a constant state of mission.” Cardinal Rodriguez will speak on the continental mission in light of the Aparecida document. A take-home, bilingual manual will be distributed to participants “as a charge to go forth and continue promoting mission and global solidarity,” Father Montoya said. The manual was written by Sister Madge Karecki, SSJ-TOSF, mission director of the Archdiocese of Chicago. At least 16 U.S. bishops are scheduled to attend the meeting. Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tucson, USCCB vice-president, will open the congress with a liturgy. He, along with Bishop MISSION CONGRESS 2010, page 10

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

By Cindy Wooden VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The vast majority of Catholics in the Middle East belong to Eastern Catholic churches, and their bishops spoke loudly at the Vatican, asking for greater respect and a higher profile for Eastern Catholics. Reflecting the Catholic population of the region, 140 of the 185 voting members of the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East come from the Eastern Catholic churches, and several of them addressed the synod Oct. 12. Not only did they ask for recognition of their rights, they also emphasized the work they need to do to strengthen the Christian identity of their faithful, preserve their heritage and end a sense of rivalry that can exist among Catholics of different rites. Bishop Vartan Waldir Boghossian, the Argentina-based bishop for Armenian Catholics in Latin America, used rather strong language to get across points made by other Eastern Catholic bishops, particularly regarding limits placed on Catholic patriarchs when providing for their faithful who have emigrated from their traditional homelands. The Eastern Catholic churches, while in full communion with the pope, have their own canon law and disciplines, their own liturgies, spiritualities, histories and heritage. While they tend to be identified with one country or geographical region, many of them now find that the majority of their faithful live abroad, Bishop Boghossian said. And, he said, “of the 23 churches in their own right that make up the Catholic Church, only one – the Latin church – is

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not subject to this limitation” of the authority and power of the patriarch and synod being confined to the churches’ ancient geographical borders. For example, while the bishops of the Armenian Catholic Church elect bishops for dioceses in Armenia, it is the pope who selects Armenian bishops for dioceses in the United States or Australia. The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches described the patriarchs as “fathers and leaders of their churches,” Bishop Boghossian said. “This paternity and jurisdiction must not be limited to a territory,” especially when the majority of the church’s members live outside that territory. In addition, he said, the patriarchs of the Eastern Catholic churches, “because of their identity as fathers and leaders of the ‘sui iuris’ (self-governing) churches that make up the catholicism of the Catholic Church, ipso facto should be members of the college that elects the pontiff without the need for the Latin title of cardinal. For the same reason, they should also take precedence over them,” he said. Currently, three of the Eastern Catholic patriarchs are cardinals; in the Vatican’s list of precedence, they come after the handful of cardinal-bishops and before the cardinal-priests and cardinal-deacons. Coptic Bishop Antonios Aziz Mina of Guizeh, Egypt, said that especially when there are more faithful of an Eastern church living outside than inside the church’s territory, “it is not entirely logical that some faithful who belong to a ‘sui iuris’ church have EASTERN CATHOLICS, page 15

(CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING)

Eastern Catholics ask synod for respect, recognition

Sister Sophie Boueri comforts a Palestinian child at the Creche facility for abandoned children in Bethlehem, West Bank, in September. She is a Daughter of Charity, an order that has worked in Bethlehem for 126 years.

One of the specific tasks of the agency, called the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, will be to favor the use of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the pope said. Speaking at a news conference the same day, the president of the council, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, said missionary activity in modern societies requires a systematic effort against “the lack of awareness of the basic contents of the faith” among many Catholics. “We need to avoid, above all, that ‘new evangelization’ comes across like an abstract formula. We need to fill this idea with theological and pastoral content, and we’ll do it on the strength of the magisterium of these last decades,” he said.

Far from being a historical figure stuck in the past, this “exceptional woman” remains for today’s faithful “a school of Christian life, a principled life, and she shows us that at the heart of a happy and real life is friendship with Jesus,” he said. St. Gertrude entered the monastery at a very young age and was an extremely talented student, the pope said. She loved literature and music and was diligently devoted to her studies, he said. However, when she was 24, she grew disgusted with her secular pursuits, he said. She said the sense of turmoil and anxiety she felt was a gift from God, who was giving her a sign that she needed to “tear down that tower of vanity and curiosity.”

for sacred Scripture and the sacraments, Pope Benedict XVI said. Christians today can find many role models in the saintly men and women who lived throughout history, he said during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 6. In his catechesis, the pope described the life of the 13thcentury Benedictine mystic, St. Gertrude the Great.

NEW YORK – If Jesus wasn’t afraid to speak about the birds of the air, why should the church be afraid to tweet? Jesuit Father James Martin asked that question as he addressed a communications luncheon in Manhattan. “You ask church officials if they tweet and they usually NEWS IN BRIEF, page 5

Pope unveils new agency to promote “new evangelization” Pope: close friendship with Christ VATICAN CITY– Pope Benedict XVI unveiled a new is the source of true happiness Like Jesus, church must use today’s Vatican agency to promote “new evangelization” and VATICAN CITY – True happiness can be found by assigned it the task of combating the “de-Christianization” strengthening one’s friendship with God through a love media to tell stories, priest says of countries that were first evangelized centuries ago. In an apostolic letter released Oct. 12, the pope warned of a progressive detachment from religious faith, especially in countries marked by scientific and economic progress. The new council, he said, will encourage a clearer understanding of the faith and help “remake the Christian fabric of human society.”

Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus DOMINICAN FATHERS October 20 – 28, 2010

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October 15, 2010

■ Continued from page 4 laugh,” said the author and culture editor of America magazine. But it isn’t such a ridiculous question, he said, urging church communicators to employ Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. “The lack of attention to these sites conveys the impression that they are somehow beneath you,” Father Martin said. Yet Jesus wasn’t afraid to speak in the language of the people of his time. “The parables were vivid stories, simple stories about farmers planting seeds, women sweeping their house, a man being beaten by robbers – and easily understood by nature – a mustard seed, lilies, birds, clouds,” he said. “Jesus spoke the language of the people around him.” Father Martin was the guest speaker at the annual observance of World Communications Day Oct. 7 hosted by the Diocese of Brooklyn.

Bishops hail marriage bill veto SACRAMENTO – California Catholic Conference officials are pleased with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s veto of SB 906, a bill which would have substituted the term “civil marriage” for “marriage” in all California statutes. Responding to a legislative alert sent via the Catholic Legislative Network, 1,400 people sent emails to Schwarzenegger urging his veto, said Carol Hogan, spokeswoman for the Catholic Conference. The conference represents the state’s bishops in Sacramento. In addition, the independent lobbying organization Catholics for the Common Good presented 300 pages of petition signatures opposing SB 906 to Schwarzenegger, according to its website. Bill sponsor San Francisco state Sen. Mark Leno said his bill would protect the

religious liberty of clergy. The conference “pointed out that our religious liberty is already protected and that such a word change would be expensive, confusing, and possibly confusing.” The governor made a similar point in his veto message.

Catholic doctors maintain opposition to assisted suicide SACRAMENTO – Catholic Medical Association members voted to retain their long-standing “oppose position” to physician-assisted suicide at their recent House of Delegates meeting. A resolution that would change the CMA’s position from “oppose” to “neutral” was first heard by the Ethics Committee, which gave it a “disapprove” recommendation, and then was introduced on the floor of the House of Delegates, where it failed on a clear voice vote. The coalition Californians Against Assisted Suicide has been monitoring the CMA’s position and the activity of their lobbyists on the issue of legalizing physicianassisted suicide in California. For now, the California physicians group is solidly against assisted suicide, but there is a group of physicians who regularly bring up resolutions to change the stance of the medical association from “oppose” to “neutral,” the California Catholic Conference said.

(CNS PHOTO/HENRY ROMERO, REUTERS)

News in brief . . .

Catholic San Francisco

A woman waits at a shelter after she and her son were evacuated to escape a mudslide in Santa Maria Tlahuitoltepec in Mexico’s southern state of Oaxaca. Bishop Hector Guerrero Cordova of Mixes said the 17 parishes in his prelature were collecting food, clothing and other materials in Santa Maria Tlahuitoltepec, where the Sept. 28 disaster claimed at least 11 lives.

Loss Control Manager Position Available: To serve in the Dioceses of Oakland, Sacramento and Stockton.

Correction In a story on the decline nationally in enrollment in Catholic schools in the Oct. 8 issue, incorrect numbers were given for schools in the Archdiocese of Detroit. There were 52,774 students in elementary schools and high schools in 1999-2000 compared with 32,262 in 2009-10.

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Mail or Email Résumés to: Carolyn Reynolds P.O. Box 7443 San Francisco, CA 94120-7443 Email: carolyn_reynolds@ajg.com Fax: 415-536-8499

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Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

Mother-daughter bond in Mercy Sister’s path to consecrated life By Liz Dossa Ruth Stark was not a Catholic in the 1970s. She didn’t dream her daughter Taryn would want to enter the Sisters of Mercy, yet here she was in June 2010 flying to San Francisco from South Africa to witness Taryn’s entrance to religious life. “No one knows what goes on in someone else’s heart,” she said a few days later. And that includes the heart of a daughter.

I had no thought of becoming a Sister of Mercy. The sisters were Mercy Sister just always there. Taryn Stark They were my mother’s friends. – Sister of Mercy Taryn Stark At the June 18 ceremony in the chapel of the Sisters of Mercy in Burlingame, Taryn was accepted as a Mercy novice. Taryn’s brown eyes are direct behind her glasses, and her straight dark hair hangs to her shoulders. She has an air of simplicity. Her comfortable laugh reflects a quiet contentment with her chosen path. Ruth has devoted her life to bringing health care to the developing world, living and working in far-flung, often uncomfortable places like Papua, New Guinea; Peru, and South Africa. She currently is the director of a Catholic Relief Services antiretroviral program in South Africa, ostensibly a retirement job which has grown to treat 75,000 people with AIDS.

In 1972 she was a slight, blonde woman, her face illuminated by interest in her subject when she talked. A spine curved from childhood polio and a hip deformed since birth caused her to limp slightly. No matter. She was willing to traipse over any terrain, pulled by a sense of mission. Any physical problem was irrelevant. That year Ruth met Sister of Mercy Rose Davis at a social justice workshop in San Mateo, and that sister led her to the Mercy community and to the Catholic faith. The Mercy sisters virtually adopted her and Taryn. The determined single mother who was then studying nursing and working at a hospital on weekends shared their values and warmed to friendship. Taryn began coming to the Mercy convent for Mass on Sundays with her mother. They often stayed for lunch, and the little girl was quickly at home, exploring the maze of hallways. Ruth became a Catholic, and Taryn was baptized in the Mercy Chapel. Ruth ran a nurse midwifery program at Stanford University, teaching nurse practitioners and physicians’ assistants, but she was restless. “My experience in the developing world was calling me,” she said. One Easter week Sister Barbara Cavanaugh, home on leave from Peru, invited Ruth to come use her skills to train health workers in the 12,000-foot high, windy plains where the diet staple was potatoes. Ruth was eager to go to Peru and of course brought 10-year-old Taryn with her. They stayed in the convent in Acora, pumped their water, and rode standing in the back of trucks to rural clinics. They visited Sister Barbara’s small home in the campo. Her one room, mud-brick dwelling had a well-swept dirt floor and an outhouse. “I remember that it was shockingly basic,” said Taryn, “but Sister Barbara was happy and had everything she needed. I realized that the little she had was so much more than the people around her had. It really broadened my perspective.” Next Ruth was recruited to go to Botswana, a former British protectorate, which had few health facilities or

Mercy Sister Taryn Stark with Sister M. Peter McCusker, center, and Sister Rose Davis.

roads, and needed her to set up a nurse practitioner program. Ruth often visited the Sisters of Mercy in South Africa, as a sort of home base. “I had no thought of becoming a Sister of Mercy,” said Taryn. “The sisters were just always there. They were my mother’s friends.” One day during the struggle against apartheid, the two had to cross the heavily guarded border into South Africa. Supporters of the African National Congress were thought to be smuggling weapons in, and security was tight. As Taryn and her mother waited for passport control, Taryn startled her mother. “Taryn went over to stand in the line for blacks, and as a result the guards practically tore our car apart,” said Ruth. “She wasn’t fazed. I was terrified. She wasn’t a person who would demonstrate or give speeches, but she would act. Taryn finished college and began working for notfor-profits in accounting. She broke off an engagement. She was searching, as her mother had searched years before. “I got a job at the South African Catholic Bishops Conference in Pretoria in the justice and peace department. I felt that I blossomed in that environment. I was comfortable. This is where I belonged.” Her faith became important to her, influenced by the religious and the lay people she was working with every day. At age 30 she decided she wanted to work with the poor. She thought she was too old to join a religious community, but one day she Googled the Sisters of Mercy. “I went to a link that invited me: ‘Come and See for ages 18 to 40!’ It was a huge thing,” she said, “not just a light bulb, but a huge stadium lighting up, knowing I can still do this. I went through a discernment process, but I knew at that moment.” When she drove into the Burlingame campus, she realized her decision to come back “home” was right. Taryn entered the Sisters of Mercy in Burlingame as a candidate in 2008. In August 2010 she went to the novitiate of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy in Laredo, Texas, for 18 months. “No question that my mother’s life inspired me,” said Taryn. “Watching her make a difference in people’s lives was inspiring. Being with her in places where people have no shoes and live in desperate poverty changes the way you think about what’s important.” “I see her so at home and at peace, happy and secure,” said Ruth. “It is the most normal thing in the world. She doesn’t feel she is making a sacrifice. She feels it is a gift and an opportunity.” And part of the gift was her mother’s passion for changing the world.

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October 15, 2010

Catholic San Francisco

Remember… All Souls Day Please join us for a month of remembrance and prayer by visiting one of our most sacred places, our Catholic Cemeteries. First Saturday Mass The month begins in Holy Cross Catholic Saturday – November 6, 2010 – 11:00 am Cemetery in Colma with All Saints Mausoleum Chapel Todos Los Santos – All Saints Day Celebration Rev. Brian Costello, Celebrant Saturday – October 30, 2010 – 11:00 am Please join us for a month of remembrance and prayer… by visiting one of our most sacred Holy Cross Mausoleum Chapel places, our Catholic Cemeteries. Veterans’ Day Service Bishop William Justice, Celebrant Thursday – November 11, 2010 – 11:00 am Refreshments following Mass The month begins with Mass Saturday, November 1, 2008 Star of the Sea Section Shuttle available 10am until 1pm 11am in All Saints Mausoleum Chapel, Holy Cross, Colma Outdoor Service – Not Mass Most Reverend Ignatius Wang, Auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco will be the main celebrant, All Souls’ Day Mass the Holy Dayam of All Saints, Todos los Santos, All Souls’ Day and First Saturday. Tuesday –commemorating November 2, 2010 – 11:00 will follow in the courtyard. All Saints Refreshments Mausoleum Chapel Rev. Marvin P. Felipe, Celebrant

“…it is the pious tradition during these days for the faithful to go visit the graves of their dear ones and to pray for them” Servant of god, Pope John Paul II

Visitation in all cemeteries daily till dusk.

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Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

By Kelly Easton

Sister Mary Claire Maher, OP, celebrates her 103rd birthday next month.

This is a momentous year for Sister Mary Claire Maher, OP: both her 80th jubilee and her 103rd birthday fall within months of each other.

Sister Mary Claire grew up in Iowa under the tutelage of devoted Irish Catholic parents and the Sisters of Mercy. On July 31, the Dominican Sisters of San Rafael celebrated their annual jubilee â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a party and Mass for all of the Sisters celebrating milestone anniversaries. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s jubilee also commemorated 70 years for Sister Gerald LaVoy, OP, and Sister Mary Gordon, OP; 60 years for Sister Agatha Meister, OP; and 50 years for Sister Gervaise Valpey, OP, Sister Linda Berlanga, OP, and Sister Judy Lu McDonnell, OP. The day began with an intimate luncheon

for the community, complete with a short film dedicated to the jubilarians, prompting tears and laughter from the audience. Bishop Randolph Calvo of Reno celebrated a special Mass for the jubilarians at St. Raphael Church. Following Mass, the celebrants traveled en masse to the Dominican Motherhouse on Grand Avenue for a joint celebration decorated with balloons, flowers and artfully displayed cuisine. Sister Claire welcomed many visitors and former students, greeting each with a warm smile and enthusiasm. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It was a wonderful, beautiful party, and I was so happy to see all of my friends,â&#x20AC;? she said.

ECUMENICAL PRAYER SERVICE FOR SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE & THE VICTIMS OF ABORTION St. Maryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Cathedral Geary and Gough st San Francisco Fri. Jan. 21 , 2011 â&#x20AC;˘ 7:30 p.m. San Mateo Refreshments served. Concert by Interfaith Committee for Life & Marin Counties

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For some families, she had been the teacher for three generations of children. Born in 1907, the second of nine children, Sister Claire (nĂŠe Mary Catherine Maher), grew up in eastern Iowa under the tutelage of devoted Irish Catholic parents as well as the Sisters of Mercy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We were a very close family, and my mother was a saint,â&#x20AC;? Sister Claire recalled. While her father and brother worked the fields, Mary labored with her mother and sisters in the many domestic duties required of housing 11 people. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I loved the freedom the farm brought to my life,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I had a horse. It was wonderful.â&#x20AC;? By 1928, Mary had cultivated her Catholic faith and spirituality to a great degree, with her mother and the Sisters of Mercy as teachers. Although she attended dances with her friends during her teenage years, she did not truly feel a part of her schoolmatesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; social activities. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I came home from dances and felt empty,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I thought, â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;This isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t for me.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;? The whole family was overjoyed when Mary took her vows in 1930 and adopted her religious name. Religious life was familiar to the Mahers, and two of the Maher brothers would commit themselves to religious life as priests. An uncle, Msgr. Edward J. Maher, was responsible for bringing 22-year-old Mary to the Dominicans in San Rafael. The spiritual connection between the Dominicans and young Mary was immediate. Soon, she was welcomed into the community by the Mother General. Throughout her career,

Sister Claire saw her family only rarely but maintained close ties with them. Working for over 70 years as an educator in the Bay Area, Sister M. Claire has made a considerable contribution to the welfare of children and their families. As a Dominican, she spent her career in Catholic schools, embracing her students as she had her siblings. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As soon as we received the habit, we were sent to teach,â&#x20AC;? she said. She has educated generations of Catholics in the Bay Area in schools such as St. Dominic, San Domenico, St. Cyril, and Our Lady of Mercy. As the years have passed, Sister Claire has remained steadfast in her ministry and spirituality, creating for herself a reputation of being an ideal Dominican Sister and model for the future because of her vast experience. Sister Claire Maher, â&#x20AC;&#x153;â&#x20AC;Śat 102, continues to proved our congregation with a valuable perspective that has been gained over a long period of time. It helps us better understand and appreciate the reality of the present. She is so sharp, and she is a wise woman. She is articulate and (spiritual), even into her second century,â&#x20AC;? said Sister Patricia Boss, OP, First Councilor on the leadership team of the Dominican Sisters of San Rafael. Sister Mary Claire lives in a neatly appointed room on grassy Grand Avenue, just across the street from Dominican University. She lives a life of peace and contemplation, beloved by her Sisters and community and surrounded by the colorful gardens and blue skies at Lourdes Convent. She turns 103 years old on Nov. 15, 2010.

Announcing the 2010

PUBLIC SQUARE ROSARY CRUSADE America is at a historic crossroad. Secularists are trying to push God from the public square. They reject His beneficial action upon society. But without God, where will our leaders get the wisdom to solve the great problems we face? We must stop the secularist advance and pray to God for help. He will hear us, if we pray through the intercession of His Blessed Mother. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re launching the 2010 Public Square Rosary Crusade. In The Secret of the Rosary, Saint Louis de Montfort said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Public prayer is far more powerful than private prayer to appease the anger of God and call down His mercy, and Holy Mother Church, guided by the Holy Ghost, has always advocated public prayer in times of public tragedy and suffering.â&#x20AC;?

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What: The Holy Rosary Where: United Nations Plaza (8th Market & Hyde St., S.F.) When: October 16, 2010 at 12:00 noon (Saturday) For more information, contact: Juanita Agcaoiliâ&#x20AC;Ś â&#x20AC;Ś 415.647.7229 Helen Rosenthalâ&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;Ś415.661.1991 Linda Ibarraâ&#x20AC;Ś â&#x20AC;Ś â&#x20AC;Ś 415.351.8750 (cell) Coordinated nationally by Tradition Family Property and its America Needs Fatima campaign: ANF@ANF.org: www.ANF.org

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

OCTOBER 24, 2010

“a Eucharistic celebration for all the missions of the world” Kohima, India

E-MAIL SPOF@SFARCHDIOCESE.ORG

World Mission Sunday 2010 Dear Friends of the Missions, October 24th, World Mission Sunday is a special day for all of us who are called, by Baptism, to be involved in the missionary work of the Church.

Home for these young girls is in the Kohima Diocese in northeast India. Some 60 years of the presence of the Church and missionaries has fostered much growth in this area. At present, 26 local priests serve their own people; the first two were ordained in 1989. There are also some 80 local Religious Sisters; 160 men and women are now preparing for Religious life. The Church in Kohima serves the poor through 34 parishes, as well as several dispensaries, orphanages and schools. Programs for young people are a priority as well, with regular retreats and pilgrimages offered as part of faith formation. Your gift on World Mission Sunday supports the presence of the Church in Kohima and in some 1,150 other mission dioceses throughout the Developing World.

Awasa, Ethiopia

On that Sunday, every nation, even the poorest in the Developing World, contributes to the mission needs of the Church worldwide. World Mission Sunday truly belongs to the world. It is celebrated in every country, in every diocese and in every parish; in a remote chapel far out in the African bush, in a predominantly Muslim or Hindu area in Asia, in a poor village in Latin America. We are citizens of the world, members of the one Body of Christ, and are at our best when we act lovingly and generously to our brothers and sisters in the Missions. So this year remember that on October 24th, World Mission Sunday, the family of the church celebrates that we are “one family in mission.” I ask for your generous support to make Christ known. The collection gathered for the Society for the Propagation of the Faith on that Sunday is vitally needed for the pastoral and evangelizing work of more than 1,150 dioceses throughout Asia, Africa, the Pacific Islands and remote regions of Latin America. Please pray for our missionaries and for the people they serve. May all of us be faithful to our call to be eager and effective witnesses to Jesus Christ. Asking the Lord to bless you for your generous missionary spirit, I am Sincerely,

Genevieve Elizondo Archdiocesan Mission Director Please remember The Society for Propagation of the Faith when writing or changing your Will.

Are you interested in becoming a missionary? Famine ,fighting, drought and deepest poverty….These are the realities of life in Awasa, a town in southern Ethiopia. But the one constant thread of hope that has also been part of the story for the people of Awasa is the “Good News” of Jesus. All through times of formidable hardship, missionaries offered the truth that Jesus loves them. As one missionary observed: “Christ has made a radical difference in the lives of these people.” Through your prayers and your help on World Mission Sunday, you support the life-giving, hope-filled service of the Church among two-thirds of our human family.

Your gift on World Mission Sunday supports the service of priests, Religious and lay catechists throughout the Missions who offer to the poor the “Good News “of Jesus and supports the building of churches and chapels throughout the Missions – where our mission family gathers, as we do, around the Table of the Lord, giving thanks to God for all His blessings.

Because you care enough to Share Your Love with the missions.

PLEASE USE THE COUPON BELOW Yes, I want to support the Missions. Enclosed is my contribution of: [ ] $25 [ ] $50

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Name: Address: City/State/Zip: Parish: Please make checks payable to Society for the Propagation of the Faith. One Peter Yorke Way, San Francisco, CA 94109-6602 On behalf of our Lay Missionaries, Brothers, Sisters and Priests, thank you for your support. Please remember The Society for the Propagation of the Faith when writing or changing your Will.

…all of us committed to the worldwide Mission of Jesus

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

Order: nuns’ abuse report led to pressure to “destroy” co-founder By Anthony Barich PERTH, Australia (CNS) – The religious congregation cofounded by Blessed Mary MacKillop has confirmed a media report that one reason clergy pressured a bishop to “destroy” her was that members of the order reported a suspected childabusing priest. The Australian Broadcasting Corp. program Compass was scheduled to broadcast Oct. 10 that angry clergy pressured Adelaide Bishop Lawrence Shiel to “destroy” the nun after they heard that sisters reported Irish Father Patrick Keating, from the Kapunda parish north of Adelaide, was allegedly abusing children. The nuns reported the abuse to Blessed MacKillop’s co-founder, Father Julian Tenison Woods. Father Woods then went to the diocesan vicar general, who sent Father Keating back to Ireland. “Mary MacKillop’s excommunication from the church, for a period of five months from September 1871, is an event that has been comprehensively documented,” the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart said in a statement issued to The Record, Catholic newspaper of the Archdiocese of Perth, Oct. 6. “There were several factors that led to this painful period for Mary and the sisters. The reasons for Mary’s excommunication have been written about and commented on in the public domain since that time. This is consistent with the information contained in the Compass program,” the statement said. Father Paul Gardiner, a former postulator for Blessed MacKillop’s canonization cause, told Compass that Father Keating’s fellow Kapunda priest, identified as Father Horan, “was so angry with this that he swore vengeance – and there’s evidence for this – against Woods by getting at the Josephites and destroying them.” Father Gardiner said that Father Horan, who worked for Bishop Shiel, urged the prelate to break up the nuns. Sister Kathleen Dawe, a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart from Western Australia, con-

firmed to The Record that Blessed MacKillop had visited Pope Pius IX in 1873 to counter a move by clergy against the congregation. The order’s congregational leader, Sister Anne Derwin, also confirmed to The Record that Irish clergy in Adelaide were “determined to bring (Blessed MacKillop) down” by questioning her drinking habits, obedience, the way she governed her order and accusing her of not paying her debts. Blessed MacKillop was cleared of all charges in her lifetime. After clergy persuaded Bishop Shiel to send Father Woods to New South Wales, he grew angry at Blessed MacKillop’s “seeming imprudence” when she informed him that she would look for another place where she could follow God’s call. While Bishop Shiel excommunicated Blessed MacKillop Sept. 22, 1871, when she was 29, Father Gardiner said on Compass that the prelate was “a puppet being manipulated by malicious priests. This sounds terrible, but it’s true.” Bishop Shiel reversed the excommunication order Feb. 22, 1872, a week before his death, “realizing he had been

badly advised by clergy,” according to a document that the sisters released to The Record. Father Gardiner, now chaplain of the Mary MacKillop Penola Centre where she founded her first school, told The Australian newspaper Oct. 7 that the claims published in September were false; media reported that the future saint was the one to report the priestly abuse and that it was the reason for her excommunication. He also said he feared the “misleading coverage” was an attempt to take a swipe at the church and distract the public before Blessed MacKillop’s canonization at the Vatican Oct. 17. “Early in 1870, the scandal occurred and the Sisters of St. Joseph reported it to Father Tenison Woods, but Mary was in Queensland,” Father Gardiner told The Australian, adding that his words had been twisted to suit the “ill will” of media outlets. “There was a long chain of causation. Somehow or other, somebody typed it up as if to say I said Mary MacKillop was the one to report the sex abuse,” Father Gardiner said. “I never said it – it’s just false – it’s the ill will of people who are anxious to see something negative about the Catholic Church. There’s already enough mud to throw, though.”

Vatican-ordered investigation to focus on abuse victims By Carol Glatz VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The apostolic visitation of the Catholic Church in Ireland will pay special attention to victims of clerical sex abuse as part of its overall goal of helping the local church respond adequately to past cases of abuse and to perfect preventative measures, according to the Vatican. “The visitators will give particular attention to victims of abuse and their families, but will also meet with and listen

Mission Congress 2010 . . . ■ Continued from page 3 Michel J. Warfel, of Great Falls-Billings will also lead a workshop on Catholic Home Missions (U.S. mission dioceses). The Mission congress meets every five years and this is its third edition. It is sponsored by the Catholic Mission Forum, an umbrella organization of leading national Catholic mission orga-

to a variety of people, including ecclesiastical authorities, lay faithful and those involved with the crucial work of safeguarding children,” said a statement released by the Vatican press office Oct. 6. Vatican officials held a series of preparatory and planning meetings with the apostolic visitators named by Pope Benedict XVI and with the Irish archbishops whose dioceses will be the first to be investigated. ABUSE VICTIMS, page 15

nizations. They include the Bureau of Black and Indian Missions; the Catholic Church Extension Society; the Catholic Volunteer Network; USCCB Offices of Cultural Diversity in the Church, Home Missions, Evangelization and Catechesis, and Latin America; the Leadership Conference of Women Religious; the Conference of Major Superiors of Men; the Pontifical Mission Society; and United States Catholic Mission Association. For information, or to register, go to www.missioncongress.org or call f(202)832-3112.

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October 15, 2010

■ Continued from cover order to witness their faith, the pope said. Such witness is a fundamental human right and requires peace and justice – goals he said all must word toward. The synod’s goal is to promote “communion and witness – both communal and personal – flowing from a life grounded in Christ and animated by the Holy Spirit,” synod leaders said in an opening statement Oct. 11. In the face of tension and violence, Mideast Christians must defend peace and justice for all, the statement said. “We must emerge from a logic in defense of the rights of Christians only, and engage in the defense of the rights of all,” it said. The opening report called on Catholics and other people of good will to work together to promote civil communities and nations that have a “positive secularity” that respects religious identity but does not define citizenship or rights by it. “Religious freedom is an essential component of human rights,” it said. All the constitutions of the countries represented at the synod recognize the right of religious freedom, but some limit freedom of worship and some, in effect, violate freedom of conscience with legal or social pressures against conversion, it said. While the Catholic Church “firmly condemns all proselytism” – pressuring, coercing or enticing someone to change faiths – Christians can contribute to the freedom and democracy of their nations by promoting greater justice and equality under the law for all believers, the report said. Maronite Bishop Bechara Rai of Jbeil, Lebanon, told reporters that the church supports a form of church-state separation that ensures religions have a voice in society and that laws reflect moral values – including laws against euthanasia and gay marriage. But when religion drives a country’s laws and religious authorities have civil power, members of minority communities are treated as second-class citizens, he said. The report stressed the difficulties facing Catholics in some countries. Life in Palestinian territories is “often unsustainable,” it said. The international community must pay more attention to Iraqi Christians who are the primary victims of the war. The Israeli-Palestinian conflict and the war in Iraq are the primary causes of Christian emigration from the region. The report condemned anti-Semitism and anti-Judaism and called on Catholics and Jews to see that the IsraeliPalestinian conflict is not an interreligious conflict. While recognizing a rise in “political Islam” in the region since the 1970s, the report said the Muslim communities differ from country to country and have a great variety of positions internally. Catholics must reach out to their Muslim neighbors and work with them to improve living situations and freedom of all, it said. Religions should build “unity and harmony and an expression of communion between individuals and God,” it said. Muslims should distinguish between religion and politics, the report said. It noted that Christians may be treated unjustly in countries where their families lived before Islam arrived in the 7th century, it added. “Christians deserve full recognition, passing from being merely tolerated to having a just and equal status based on common citizenship, religious freedom and human rights,” the report said.

Secular “false gods” must be unmasked, pope warns VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Beware the “false gods” that beset the modern world, Pope Benedict XVI warned. After leading prayers at the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East Oct. 11, the pope spoke informally for about 20 minutes about the meaning of the psalms that were chanted by the 185 synod fathers. He traced humanity’s historical move away from polytheism and focused on the meaning of Christ’s entry into human history. But he said the modern world is still threatened by destructive powers based on “false divinities that must be unmasked.” These include the ideology of terrorism, drug abuse and a widespread view of marriage that no longer values chastity, he said. They also include the “anonymous” economic interests that enslave and even massacre people, he said. He said the battle against such forces is part of a constant struggle for the church and for the faith. The Book of Revelation, he said, sheds light on this struggle against false gods, particularly in its image of the serpent who creates a river to drown a woman in flight, and of the earth that swallows up the river. The pope offered an “I think the river is easily interpreted as these currents that dominate everyone and that off-the-cuff reflection on want to make the church and the faith disappear,” he said. “And the earth that absorbs the “false gods” besetting these currents is the faith of ordinary people, which doesn’t allow itself to be overcome the modern world. by this river.” The pope added that the climate change being experienced by humanity today is another type of threat, one evoked in the language of Psalm 82, which speaks of a time when “all the foundations of the earth are shaken.” “These exterior foundations are shaken because the interior foundations are shaken – the interior foundations of morality and religious values, of the right way of living according to the faith,” he said. The pope said the synod would promote ecumenism and interfaith dialogue. “This event is favorable for continuing constructive dialogue with Jews, with whom we are tied in a permanent way by the long history of the covenant, as well as with Muslims,” he said.

Addressing pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square, the pope said the church in the Middle East has been afflicted by the “deep divisions and age-old conflicts” of the region, but today is called to be an instrument of reconciliation on the model of the first Christian community of Jerusalem.

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By Nancy Frazier O’Brien WASHINGTON (CNS) – When parents receive a prenatal diagnosis that their unborn child has a disability or a potentially lethal illness, they need the support of the church and the community more than ever, said a panel of medical and pastoral experts and several parents who have experienced that sad scenario. “Parents feel harassed and judged if they even consider bringing into the world a child” with a prenatal diagnosis of a disability or a lethal or even nonlethal condition, said Dr. John Bruchalski, an obstetrician-gynecologist at the Tepeyac Family Care Center in Fairfax, Va.

We hold their hands as they walk the path of a pregnancy that is not as they envisioned. – Nancy Mayer-Whittington The pressure to abort such a child is strong and often couched in euphemisms such as “early induction” and “merciful choice,” Bruchalski said. As a result, up to 90 percent of children diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted. But he said screening tests for Down syndrome deliver “false positives” 7 percent to 10 percent of the time. The diagnosis of an illness or disability often comes unexpectedly after an ultrasound, on a day when parents “hope to come home with a cute ultrasound picture for the refrigerator,” said Monica Rafie of Chicago. Rafie had what she calls her own “D-Day” in 2001, when a doctor told her the child she was carrying was “incompatible with life.” “The defining moment of your pregnancy is no longer the delivery date, but the diagnosis date,” Rafie said. “And from that day on, the pregnancy does begin to feel more like a battle than something wonderful.”

Rafie and her husband resisted pressures to abort their child diagnosed with complex heart problems. Although she required several surgeries in the first months of her life, their daughter Celine is now 8 and in the third grade. In 2002, Rafie and other parents and professionals founded BeNotAfraid.net, a resource designed to offer hope and information to others facing a poor prenatal diagnosis. Although the outreach is guided by Catholic principles on decisions related to life and death, it is available to anyone who needs support. Capuchin Father Dan Mindling, a theologian and academic dean at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Md., said it is important for everyone affected by a situation involving a poor prenatal diagnosis to remember that “the child is alive now, the parents have a relationship with the child now.” “Their very seriously ill child is both their child and a child of God right now,” he added. “Every moment should become precious.” Nancy Mayer-Whittington, who lives in the Archdiocese of Washington, said she learned from her daughter Angela that “life can be lived fully and completely in nine months and 10 minutes.” Angela was diagnosed in utero with trisomy 18, a genetic defect that is usually fatal. She died 10 minutes after her birth in 1994. “I was scared that I would never be the same, that I would never recover,” said Mayer-Whittington of her decision to continue the pregnancy after the diagnosis. And that turned out to be true, because Angela “opened my life in ways I had never imagined,” she said. Mayer-Whittington and Cubby LaHood, whose son Francis died shortly after birth, founded Isaiah’s Promise nearly two decades ago to help women continue their pregnancies after receiving a poor prenatal diagnosis. “We hold their hands as they walk the path of a pregnancy that is not as they envisioned,” Mayer-Whittington said. Tracy Winsor, a North Carolina perinatal loss peer counselor, co-founded the BeNotAfraid Ministry of Charlotte in 2008 with Sandy Buck, whose son Casey was diagnosed with trisomy 18 during her pregnancy. Winsor said the free services – primarily offered by volunteers – are “a ministry of presence” that can help parents “move past the diagnosis.”

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She recalled the comments of a Charlotte nurse who witnessed the help given to one mother. “I didn’t realize you were a regular service,” she said. “I just thought those parents had the best friends in the world.” The panel discussion with Bruchalski, Father Mindling, Winsor and Rafie was part of an Internet seminar organized by the National Catholic Partnership on Disability. Held before an audience at The Catholic University of America in Washington, the seminar also had online participants in 258 sites around the country. The seminar was followed at Catholic University by another panel discussion with LaHood and her husband, Dan; Mayer-Whittington; Theresa Bonopartis, whose New York-based organization, Lumina: Hope and Healing After Abortion, offers retreats for women or couples who regret an abortion following a prenatal diagnosis; and Msgr. Charles E. Pope, pastor of Holy Comforter-St. Cyprian Parish in Washington. The second discussion was designed to move forward local plans for a Catholic pastoral response to unexpected prenatal diagnosis.

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Pray rosary as “spiritual weapon” VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI urged Christians to seek intercession, protection and personal encounter with Christ through the “simple but efficient prayer” of the rosary, especially during the Marian month of October. Greeting the faithful on the eve of the Oct. 7 celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, the Holy Father spoke of the rosary as “a particular prayer of the Church and a spiritual weapon for each of us,” Catholic News Agency/EWTN reported. He prayed that the meditation of Jesus and Mary’s life through the rosary might be, “for all of us, light on the evangelical path of spiritual renewal and conversion of the heart.” The pope went on to invite youth “to make the rosary your daily prayer.” He encouraged those suffering from illness to use the rosary “to grow in confident abandonment in God’s hands.” Finally, he exhorted newlyweds “to make of the rosary a constant contemplation of the mysteries of Christ.” The Holy Father’s remarks on October as a month of special Marian devotion echoed “Superiore Anno,” Pope Leo XIII’s 1884 encyclical on the recitation of the rosary. “We have therefore resolved that in this coming month of October, in which the sacred devotions to Our Virgin Lady of the Rosary are solemnized throughout the Catholic world, all the devotions shall again be observed which were commanded by us this time last year,” the 19th century pontiff stated. “ We therefore decree and make order that from the 1st of October to the 2nd of November following in all

the parish churches, in all public churches dedicated to the Mother of God, or in such as are appointed by the Ordinary, five decades at least of the Rosary be recited, together with the Litany. “If in the morning, the Holy Sacrifice will take place during these prayers; if in the evening, the Blessed Sacrament will be exposed for the adoration of the faithful; after which those present will receive the customary Benediction,” Pope Leo XIII continued. “We desire that, wherever it be lawful, the local confraternity of the Rosary should make a solemn procession through the streets as a public manifestation of religious devotion.” In the Archdiocese of San Francisco, a group prays the rosary daily at just about every parish. The young adult group at St. Dominic Parish in San Francisco prays the rosary before its Wednesday meeting. At St. Ignatius Church, a group prays the rosary before the noon Mass. Church of the Nativity parishioners say the rosary daily after the 7:30 a.m. Mass and after the 8 a.m. Mass on Saturdays. And because the church is open 24 hours a day for Eucharistic Adoration, someone says a rosary just about every hour on the hour, said Wendy Ames, secretary of the Menlo Park parish. Students at St. Veronica School in South San Francisco say a decade of the rosary daily in the morning school assembly, with rosaries distributed by student volunteers. Each class takes a turn leading a decade over the course of a week. “It’s a wonderful Catholic tradition, and we are now passing it on to the children so they can pass it on to the next generation,” said pastor Father Charles Puthota, who noted that parishioners also say the rosary daily after the 6:30 a.m. and before the 8:30 a.m. Masses.

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Parish bingo fading away, but some say it offers needed social outlet ALBANY, N.Y. (CNS) – It seems that the “bingo bubble” in many areas of the Albany Diocese has burst. The game of chance long subsidized many parishes and schools, bringing in tens of thousands of dollars a year in some instances. But today, group after group reports that the fundraiser stopped delivering, forcing them to cross it off their lists of moneymakers. Some say commercial bingo halls and Saratoga’s Gaming and Raceway, nicknamed Racino, gave them too much competition. Others say the state bans on smoking in schools and public places scared players away. For years, Albany diocesan officials, like church leaders in many U.S. dioceses, have discouraged church groups from hosting bingo, instead encouraging “good stewardship and generous free-will support” for financing programs. They say the game is a form of gambling, which the Catholic Church considers immoral if taken too far. Bingo’s presence in other denominations varies. Some, such as the Baptists, eschew all gambling. Others may use bingo to raise funds for operations or charity, even while keeping more overt gambling on the “verboten” list. Across the United States, religious leaders routinely band together to protest plans for new casinos, state lotteries or off-track betting. Still, a handful of Catholic groups in the Albany Diocese defend the game of bingo as an important social outlet for senior citizens, as well as a viable fundraising tool. “The church doesn’t play bingo the way they do other places,” explained Maria Swieton, president of the Rosary Society at St. Michael’s Parish in Cohoes. Her group deploys teams of five to seven volunteers to the church hall Tuesday nights to make and sell food and moderate games. Admission cards cost $2, while they can cost $15 to $40 at commercial halls or casinos. The St. Michael’s group

(CNS PHOTO/DON BLAKE, THE DIALOG)

By Angela Cave

Charles and Ruth Keiffer check their cards for the last number called during bingo night in 2008 at Holy Rosary Parish in Wilmington, Del. Bingo has gone by the wayside as fundraisers for most parishes, but some say the game of chance is a social outlet for seniors.

charges a quarter for additional cards, a dollar for larger ones. Their 80 weekly players average 80 years old, often coming as part of a nursing home trip with their aides. They can win up to $30 or $40 in a regular game, up to $400 in the last game of the night. “I think it’s wonderful, keeping older people’s brains going,” Swieton told The Evangelist, newspaper of the Albany Diocese. “This is the best joy for these people.” The Rosary Society renews its state bingo license annually, its city one biannually. State laws mandate the group gives all of its profit to the church. St. Michael’s makes about $20,000 to $25,000 per year from bingo. “This is the big support for the church,” Swieton said of both bingo and penny social raffles, adding that Polish dinners and food sales also help.

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The Saratoga council of the Knights of Columbus also values bingo as a fundraiser for charities and area Catholic churches, though their profits have declined in recent years. The council makes between $200 and $600 weekly, while it used to make $1,000, said Roger Lampron, bingo chairman. A similar game called “Share the Wealth” helps, but the other halls in the area also offer it. The Saratoga Racino, the state lottery and the sour economy also hurt bingo, the Knights say. The Knights’ bingo draws about 120 people, from college students to retirees. The council follows state regulations and also creates its own rules, threatening to oust players for rowdy behavior or excessive spending. Players must play their own cards and cannot purchase more than 30. “We don’t allow people to get out of hand,” Lampron told The Evangelist. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the concept of games of chance is not in itself contrary to justice. “They become morally unacceptable,” the catechism explains, “when they deprive someone of what is necessary to provide for his needs and those of others. The passion for gambling risks becoming an enslavement.” The Albany Diocese “outlawed” bingo in 1937 for an unknown period of time, according to a Time magazine story from that year. Today, the diocese still warns that gambling events “can prey on the weaknesses of those addicted to gambling, occasion the loss of money by people who cannot afford it, and make religion depend upon an income base inconsistent with its expressed principles.” Sister Jane Herb, a Sister of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and diocesan superintendent of schools, asks schools to explore fundraising options other than bingo. Richard Gormon, past grand knight for the Saratoga council, said the Albany Diocese has never scolded or approached the Knights about its bingo games. “We do have multiple functions,” he said, “and we never twist anyone’s arm to participate in them.”

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IVF wrong . . . ■ Continued from cover The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith condemned the use of in-vitro fertilization in two separate documents; “Donum Vitae” published in 1987, and “Dignitas Personae,” issued in 2008. The Vatican said that IVF is never acceptable because it removes conception from the marital act and because it treats a baby as a product to be manipulated, violating the child’s integrity as a human being with an immortal soul from the moment of conception. Approximately 240,000 babies are born using IVF technology every year in the United States, and there are at least a half million “leftover” embryos frozen in liquid nitrogen, Father Pacholczyk said. According to the IVF industry, approximately five embryos die for each live birth, and that may actually be 10 per live birth if those discarded in the lab are taken into account, Father Pacholczyk said. With IVF, multiple eggs extracted from the mother are placed in a Petri dish and flooded with sperm. The resulting embryos are analyzed for viability and some are inserted by a lab worker into the mother’s uterus. Three-quarters of IVF attempts fail, but IVF continues to be the infertility remedy of choice of most doctors and often the only option presented to couples struggling with infertility, including Catholics, Father Pacholczyk said. “Even within the Church this is not an issue that has been properly addressed,” Father Pacholczyk said, partly because of a natural bias toward helping a couple have a baby and partly because the in-vitro technology and the moral problems with in-vitro are not well understood. The bioethicist said he has even heard of parish priests advising couples who were considering IVF to “follow your

conscience.” Thus, he said, “I suspect Catholics are doing this at pretty much the same rate as non-Catholics.” The Church’s opposition to IVF is difficult for many to understand, said Father Pacholczyk, recounting how a woman whose grandchild was conceived via IVF asked him, “How can the Church tell me my granddaughter is not a gift and a blessing?” “Every child is a gift. The problem is not with the child. It is the choice made by his or her parents,” Father Pacholczyk said, recommending couples who have in the past chosen IVF turn to the sacrament of reconciliation. Not all couples can conceive, Father Pacholczyk said, but, “If God closes the door on fertility for you, there is some other place there for you.” Father Pacholczyk said a much more effective method of addressing infertility is NaPro Technology, developed by Dr. Thomas W. Hilgers, the director of the Pope Paul VI Institute for the Study of Human Reproduction and the National Center for Women’s Health in Omaha, Neb. Dr. Hilgers was made a permanent member of the Pontifical Academy for Life in 1994. Father Pacholczyk called NaPro Technology “a wonderful, powerful approach.” NaPro monitors a woman’s cycles and tests the husband to pinpoint the fertility issues and then uses drugs and surgery to treat the couple. For example, in the case of the common problem of endometriosis, which is often not spotted by gynecologists or fertility doctors, NaPro cures the endometriosis and the couple conceives naturally 51 percent of the time, compared to an IVF success rate of 21 percent, according to NaPro statistics. Endometriosis is a condition in which tissue similar to that which lines the uterus monthly grows outside the uterus, often on or near the ovaries or fallopian tubes.

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Eastern Catholics . . . ■ Continued from page 4 no relationship with the church they belong to, other than liturgically.” “My request is that the patriarch be granted personal jurisdiction over the faithful of his church wherever they might be,” he said. The Coptic bishop also asked Pope Benedict XVI to revoke a decision made in the 1930s that Eastern churches can ordain married men only in their traditional homelands. Msgr. Robert L. Stern, general secretary of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, told the synod that by emphasizing the geographical limitation of an Eastern Catholic patriarch’s authority, the church was, in effect, working

Abuse victims . . . ■ Continued from page 10 The Irish church leaders – Cardinal Sean Brady of Armagh, Northern Ireland; and Archbishops Diarmuid Martin of Dublin, Dermot Clifford of Cashel and Emly, and Michael Neary of Tuam – met Oct. 6 with the prelates conducting the visitations and with officials from the Congregation for Bishops and the Vatican Secretariat of State. The meeting, which was “marked by fraternal warmth and mutual collaboration, summarized the discussions from the previous day and focused on the organization of the apostolic visitation and the archdioceses involved,” the Vatican statement said. On Oct. 5, the prefect and secretary of the Congregation for Bishops and other Vatican officials met with the four apostolic visitators:

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Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

St. Jude shrine’s 75th year Pilgrimage is the theme of this year’s St. Jude novena at St. Dominic Church, 2390 Bush St. in San Francisco. Dominican Father Sergius Probst will preach the first eight days of the novena, which begins Oct. 20. The novena culminates on the feast of St. Jude, Oct. 28, with a Mass celebrated by St. Jude Thaddeus Archbishop George Niederauer. On Oct. 23, the seventh annual pilgrimage for St. Jude begins at 8 a.m. at St. Finn Barr Church and ends about 1 p.m. at St. Dominic. The novena also will feature a book signing and reception for Liz Trotta, who wrote “In the Steps of Jude,” at 7:30 p.m., Oct. 27 in the St. Dominic parish hall. The St. Jude novena Masses will be at 8 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. Monday; Saturday and on Sunday at 11:30 a.m. A Spanish Mass will be at 1:30 p.m. For more information, go to www.stjude-shrine.org. The Shrine of St. Jude Thaddeus was founded in 1935 during the Great Depression and for 75 years the Dominicans who run the shrine have received petitions and letters about miraculous events attributed to St. Jude, “Patron of hope for difficult and desperate cases.” St. Jude was one of the Twelve Apostles and is believed to have died a martyr in Armenia. He was a brother of St. James the Less. “Jude is invoked in desperate situations because his New Testament letter stresses that the faithful should persevere in the environment of harsh, difficult circumstances, just as their forefathers had done before them. Therefore, he is the patron saint of desperate cases,” according to catholic.org. “Saint Jude is not the same person as Judas Iscariot who betrayed Our Lord and despaired because of his great sin and lack of trust in God’s mercy.” Donations to the St. Jude Shrine in San Francisco help pay for the education of the Dominican seminarians, at about $100,000 per year per seminarian for the seven years of formation.

The St. Hilary Book Fair & Read Week is held annually, but the activities this year – they began Oct. 10 and conclude Nov. 14 –emphasize literacy and the lifelong benefit of books, said Ulrike Koehne, a St. Hilary parent and one of the organizers of the Book Fair & Read Week. The school is partnering with retailer Barnes & Noble, which will donate a percentage of the net sales to St. Hilary when customers use a Book Fair ID at checkout at its Corte Madera Town Center store or online at bn.com/ bookfairs. The ID is 10211951. The school has scheduled local award-winning authors who will meet with students and/or appear at the book store during Read Week. They include Joan Ryan, Zilpha Keatley Snyder, Allison Hoover Bartlett, Elizabeth Singer Hunt and Rana DiOrio. Two evening events at Barnes & Noble – featuring Joan Ryan Oct. 19 and Allison Hoover Bartlett Nov. 9, both at 7 p.m. – are open to the public. Ryan, a longtime San Francisco journalist, is the author of three books. The third, “The Water Giver: The Story of a Mother, a Son and Their Second Chance” (Simon & Schuster), is centered on her son who suffered a brain injury and his recovery. Her first book was “Little Girls in Pretty Boxes: The Making and Breaking of Elite Gymnasts and Figure Skaters” (Doubleday), which Ryan said she will read from when she visits St. Hilary. Writing the book involved “delving into personal stories and why people make the choices they make,” said Ryan, “and maybe hearing about it will help the students write first-person stories,” she said. Ryan said she will also give the kids exercises to heighten their senses – perhaps asking them to describe what a cotton ball feels like. “Writing is about paying attention to details,” said Ryan. “I want to get them to pay attention and play with the language so they can evoke an experience to somebody who is not having that experience.” More information is available at the St. Hilary School website at www.sainthilary-school.org.

Father Daniel McCotter, CSP, is “Read Week” at St. Hilary School new pastor at Old St. Mary’s St. Hilary School in Tiburon has scheduled a month-long series of events at which children will be encouraged to read and, as the theme of its “Read Week,” Nov. 6-14, implies, “Open an Adventure.”

Father Daniel Mc Cotter, CSP was installed by Archbishop Niederauer as the 31st pastor of Old St. Mary’s Parish on Oct. 3 at a bilingual liturgy. The Paulist Fathers OLD ST. MARY’S, page 17

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St. Mary Magdalene Brendan Galvan and his grandfather John Sullivan ringing the church bells as Mass is about to begin at St. Mary Magdalene Mission in Bolinas. Photographer Francis da Silva visited the church, which is administered by Sacred Heart Parish in Olema, in July for Catholic San Francisco as part of a series on the rural and mission churches of the Archdiocese of San Francisco. See catholic-sf.org for more photos.

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October 15, 2010

Catholic San Francisco

(PHOTOS BY ARNE FOLKEDAL/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)

St. Francis of Assisi Parish cultural festival

St. Francis of Assisi Parish in East Palo Alto held its International Parish Festival Oct. 2-4, 2010. The pastor (above, with Giants cap) is Father Larry Goode. Holding infant Marco Antonio Cardenas is the baby’s aunt, Cecelia Cardenas. Marco’s mother, Lili Cardenas, is at left. The Folklorico dancers performed traditional dance. More photos on catholic-sf.org.

Old St. Mary’s . . . ■ Continued from page 16 were entrusted with the pastoral care of Old St. Mary’s, the first cathedral of San Francisco, in 1894. Father McCotter has served the Chinese community as the pastor of Holy Family Chinese Mission and director of St. Mary’s Chinese Schools and Center for the past 27 years. He is working on the final stages of a new school and center at 836 Kearny St. to educate K-8 children in English, Mandarin and the Chinese culture. The site will open next spring.

Soroptomists of SF offering Women’s Opportunity Award The Soroptimists of San Francisco are conducting a search for deserving women in San Francisco to apply for the Women’s Opportunity Award for 2010.

Soroptimist is an international organization for business and professional women who work to improve the lives of women and girls in local communities and throughout the world. Almost 95,000 Soroptimists in about 120 countries and territories contribute time and financial support to community-based and international projects that benefit women and girls. The Women’s Opportunity Award provides cash grants to women who are working to better their lives through additional skills training and education. A woman may apply for the award if she meets three criteria: She has primary financial responsibility for herself and her dependents; she is attending an undergraduate program or vocational skills training; and she can demonstrate financial need. Applications and more information about the program can be found at www. sfsoroptimist.org. The San Francisco Soroptimists can be reached by email at sisf-board@sfsoroptimist.org or by phone at (415) 550-7943. The application deadline is Dec. 15. The award amount is $2,000.

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Pantry at Old St. Mary’s serves low-income seniors The Volunteer Center of San Francisco and United Way of the Bay Area sponsored a Week of Caring in September. Each day, teams of corporate employees volunteered at local non-profits rather than go to work at their companies. On Sept. 22, a team of 18 people from Wells Fargo Bank volunteered to bag groceries for 200 poor, elderly seniors who live in low-income housing units in San Francisco. The volunteers donated their labor and time to Groceries for Seniors at Old Saint Mary’s Church in Chinatown. Later in the morning, when the bags were full, Mario Diaz of the Wells Fargo Foundation presented a check for $5,000 to Groceries

for Seniors board members Shawn Calhoun, Jennifer Leathers-Sabraw and Paul Beers. Groceries for Seniors is a free pantry that supplies over 1,200 very low-income seniors with a weekly bag of groceries. The pantry operates Monday through Thursday from 9 to noon. To volunteer, call (415) 740-6102. The pantry’s website is www.groceriesforseniors.org.

AIDS support group fundraiser Oktoberfest 2010, a fundraiser for the AIDS Support Group at Most Holy Redeemer Parish, 18th and Diamond streets in San Francisco, will be held Oct. 24 from 11 to 3:30 p.m. The $10 admission includes food, beverages and entertainment. For more information or to buy tickets, call (415) 863-1581. Tickets also will be available at the door.

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Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

Guest Editorial

Voting is a Catholic thing to do Politics is a blood sport. Character assassination of your opponent is a regular and presumed part of campaigns. Distortions of the truth have become so commonplace in the process of politics, one is often not sure that what is being said in a radio or TV commercial about a candidate or an issue is real or not. In this poisonous atmosphere, it is easy to become cynical about politics and politicians. This is nothing new. More than 100 years ago, Mark Twain observed: “The political and commercial morals of the United States are not merely food for laughter, they are an entire banquet.” It is easy to avoid participation in such a tawdry and mean-spirited affair. Many do not vote; they do not engage in the public square at all. Many others vote with little information, or vote as their political party tells them to vote. Others vote holding their noses, muttering: “A pox

on both your houses!” to the major political parties. And yet, Catholic Social Teaching, the application of Catholic theology and principle to public secular life, encourages us to participate. More than encouragement, we are told: In the Catholic tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation. (“Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship,” U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.) In challenging us to participate, the bishops are echoing a profound teaching and tradition of the universal Catholic Church voiced in numerous papal encyclicals over the last 120 years. Why should we? Here are a few reasons: The horrific legal killing of the unborn continues at a rate of 1,000 per day in California, 3,600 nationally; poverty rates are higher than ever in our history; unemployment still is at

The 7 themes of Catholic Social Teaching Life and Dignity of the Human Person The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Call to Family Community, and Participation The person is not only sacred but also social. How we organize our society—in economics and politics, in law and policy—directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in community. Rights and Responsibilities The Catholic tradition teaches that human dignity can be protected and a healthy community can be achieved only if human rights are protected and responsibilities are met.

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable A basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers The basic rights of workers must be respected – the right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to the organization and joining of unions, to private property and to economic initiative. Solidarity We are one human family whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic and ideological differences. We are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they may be. Care for God’s Creation We show our respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation.

Catholic san Francisco Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper

Image in poor taste To concur with a letter last month, it was a shock to see the crying classmates of the eighth grader killed in the San Bruno gas pipe explosion. An obituary-type picture of mother and daughter would have been in better taste. Diane Prucher Holy Angels School, retired

Challenging bishops on death penalty Capital punishment is the law of the land. Avoiding it is not particularly difficult: don’t commit capital offenses. Don’t murder police officers, torture and kill someone or commit multiple murders. If you do, you’re on notice that the state, in exacting just punishment, may make you pay with your life. No surprise there. But first you must be found guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt, by a jury of your peers, who must also decide your ultimate fate,

Letters welcome Catholic San Francisco welcomes letters from its readers. Please send your letters to: Catholic San Francisco One Peter Yorke Way San Francisco, CA 94109 Fax: (415) 614-5641 E-mail: delvecchior@sfarchdiocese.org, include “Letters” in the subject line.

after weighing and considering all relevant evidence about your life. Then you are entitled to decades of appeals to ensure that each of your rights has been meticulously honored. Yet when the state fulfills its solemn duty, after ensuring due process of law, California’s bishops insist it commits an immoral act, no different than that of the murderer? Really? Are we living in times of such moral confusion that no distinction can be drawn between justice meted out by the state and the savage acts of, for example, a terrorist beheading an innocent victim to make a political point? According to Bishop Wilkerson, “We recognize the profound pain of those who lost a loved one to violence and offer them our prayers and our consolation.” That, of course, is just what the church should do. It is not what the government should do. And capital punishment is imposed not by the church, but by government, which is supposed to act on behalf of the victims to do justice for them, and for all others in society who are threatened by sociopaths who murder innocents. Allowing a convicted murderer to spend decades at public expense in a prison system in which he is well housed, well fed, and essentially taken care of at public expense is viewed by many - especially victim’s families - as not adequate punishment. Indeed, many on death row got there because they spent a lifetime in and out of prisons committing untold numbers of crimes; prison doesn’t frighten them. Often, they continue to assault guards and fellow inmates. A basic tenet of justice is fitting the punishment to the crime. The death pen-

an historic high; home foreclosures tear apart our families; war and violence persist in being the default action among nations to solve problems; public education, especially for the poor and disadvanGeorge Wesolek taged, is not educating; many neighborhoods in our communities are unsafe; and potholes as big as bomb craters are in our streets. Being involved in the political process isn’t the only way to change some of these problems, but it is a central and crucial element in working toward solutions. Catholics are provided a framework of seven themes of Catholic Social Teaching for voting on candidates and issues. Our bishops have told us that forming our consciences centered in our faith and prudential reason is the way to be a good voter. To vote well and faithfully, we must be rooted in the Gospels and the social teachings of the Roman Catholic Church. We are neither right nor left, neither Republican nor Democrat, but we formulate our agenda by the standard of human dignity that is reflected in our faith tradition. John Paul II advises in “Evangelium Vitae” (“The Gospel of Life”) that it is important for all citizens “to see beyond party politics, to analyze campaign rhetoric critically, and to choose their political leaders according to principle, not party affiliation or mere self-interest.” We vote and participate in the political process because that is what Catholics do. We are the seeds for a new way of being. We are the leaven in the dough. We are Christ’s people bringing about the reign of God. George Wesolek is director of the Archdiocese of San Francisco Office of Public Policy and Social Concerns.

alty for petty theft would be profoundly immoral. So too would a fine for one who commits murder. Capital punishment is reserved not simply for murderers, but for the worst of the lot. It repays viciousness and destruction with justice. It tells the family of the 14-year-old who was raped and murdered that her life was invested with the greatest dignity, that when a monster wantonly destroys her life, providing him lodging for the rest of his life does indeed cheapen her value. But didn’t Jesus forgive the woman caught in adultery? Yes, but he was making a point about hypocrisy. As God, He gets to do that. But as God, He also instituted government with the solemn duty to deal with wrongdoing, to protect the innocent, to provide for justice. He did not rule out capital punishment. He ordered it at times in the Old Testament, and in the new, St. Paul reminds us that government bears the sword for a reason. (Romans Ch. 13) In fact, He gives the State that power so that the individual need not resort to vengeance and thereby commit murder. Debate as to when it should be imposed is productive, as are efforts to keep it rare. But in extreme or heinous cases, it is the very dignity of human life that cries out for a penalty that fits the crime. Al Serrato Millbrae

New missal heralds return to reverence

totally uninspired by the lackluster words of the Novus Ordo. With Mass attendance down around 70 percent, the changes in the missal will hopefully inspire the return of so many fed up with Sundays at church that are more like jolly meetings at the town hall, than a gathering for worship in the house of the Lord. Thura Straus Belmont

The St. Boniface organ: memories of courtship, music I really enjoyed George Raine’s article (CSF, Oct. 1)about the St. Boniface organ. And Garrett Collins (the church’s organist) claiming it as “my baby.” Well, sir, it was “my baby” too. Arthur Luis was my piano teacher and the longtime organist at St. Boniface. (The church imported him from Germany.) He offered to give me organ lessons if I would play the daily 5 p.m. Benediction. He was a great teacher and even taught Brother Columban, who went on to become the official organist for the Archdiocese. So, after school in my junior year at Sacred Heart (63 years ago), I’d bike down to St. Boniface. After graduation, I went to work at the Hibernia Bank, and after work would play at St. Boniface. On my very first date with my soon-to-become wife, I first had to stop by St. Boniface to play the Stations of the Cross. On spotting her in the rearview mirror on the organ, I just about forgot which station Father Adrian was on. I recall the time a friendly pigeon flew in the window and ended up in one of the organ pipes. The noise was horrific and would have tried the patience of many a bird lover, including St. Francis himself. Richard D. Petrich Foster City

L E T T E R S

The changes in the missal are, in my opinion, a chance to replace humdrum responses with deeply meaningful words that praise God in the fullest. Surely a return to reverence is to be celebrated by all Catholics fed up with the Protestanttype Mass that came out of Vatican II. Not only did the mundane changes fail to establish unity with other faiths, they contributed to the disappearance of Catholics

October 15, 2010

Catholic San Francisco

The Catholic Difference

Newman’s faith Two postcard portraits of the recently-beatified John Henry Newman have graced my office for years. One is a miniature painted by Sir William Charles Ross in 1845, the year of Newman’s reception into the Catholic Church. The second, by Emmeline Dean, gives us the aged cardinal, a year before his death in 1890, in cardinalatial house cassock and walking stick. Between those two portraits lies a spiritual and intellectual pilgrimage within Catholicism that, combined with Newman’s pre-Catholic journey from evangelicalism to high-church Anglicanism and the Oxford Movement, remains one of the most compelling such tales of modern times – a path the Church has now officially recognized one marked by heroic virtue, miraculously attested. The times being what they are, it was inevitable that gay activists and their allies among progressive Catholics would try to claim Newman as a patron-saint of gayness, citing letters he exchanged with his longtime friend Ambrose St. John, with whom he asked to be buried. As the pre-eminent Newman biographer, Father Ian Ker, pointed out, however, suggestions that Newman and St. John were homosexually involved (even if in a non-carnal way) testify to the ignorance that our culture exhibits about deep friendships, especially deep male friendships. He might have added that letters between such friends written in a 19th century literary style ought not be scrutinized through the foggy lens of 21st century homoeroticism, which saturates everything from Abercrombie & Fitch ads to prime-time banter these days.

These crude efforts to recruit a holy man to a dubious cause are a distraction from measuring Newman’s greatness as a thinker, writer, and preacher – a man who anticipated the Second Vatican Council in his own navigations through the whitewater of Catholicism’s encounter with intellectual modernity. Newman was also ecumenically prescient, if not in precisely the way that some ecumenists would celebrate. He left the Church of England for Rome when he could no longer accept Anglicanism’s claims to be apostolically grounded. And as the recent travails of the Anglican Communion have demonstrated, Newman was right, if ahead of his time, in recognizing that Christian communities untethered from apostolic tradition inevitably end up inventing do-it-yourself Christianity, taking their cues from the ambient culture of the day. I once had the honor of spending time in Newman’s rooms at the Birmingham Oratory, which are much as the aged cardinal left them at his death in 1890. Over the altar, which occupies one side of the room, are tacked-up notes by which Cardinal Newman reminded himself of those for whom he had promised to pray. In the sitting room, a tattered newspaper map, also tacked to a wall, bears silent testimony to Newman’s interest in Kitchener’s efforts to lift the siege of Khartoum and rescue General Gordon from the Mahdi, a 19th century jihadist (Gordon died with Newman’s poem, “The Dream of Gerontius,” in his pocket). Perhaps most touching are Newman’s Latin breviaries, which he began to use as an Anglican, causing much controversy

about such popish practices. It is as a man of faith that the Church beatified John Henry Newman, however: the kind of man of faith who could write the following (which I take from another prayer card I’ve had for years, given me George Weigel by Catholic Worker artist Ade Bethune): “God has created me to do him some definite service. He has committed some work to me which He has not committed to another. I have my mission. I may never know it in this life but I shall be told it in the next. I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for naught…Therefore I will trust Him, whatever I am…He does nothing in vain. He knows what He is about. He may take away my friends. He may throw me among strangers. He may make me feel desolate, make my spirits sink, hide my future from me—still, He knows what He is about.” Blessed John Henry Newman, pray for us and for the unity in truth of Christ’s Church. George Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.

Spirituality for Today

Carrying one’s cross I just turned 77, and I can look back on a variety of ailments that temporarily entered my life and challenged my joy. Living joyfully because of the knowledge of God’s love is never easy. Through it all, I tried to put on the will to bear discomfort, a feat I found was only possible with the help of God’s grace. It can be done. Faith gives us all a huge advantage over those with no faith. I’ve learned a few things about suffering along the way, and I hope these 10 ideas will help you keep from being too discouraged when your time comes. 1. Do all you can to eliminate pain through medication, and if necessary, surgery. When unavoidable suffering comes into your life, toughen up. You can make the burden lighter by turning to the Lord for his help. The will says yes or no to “I will accept this cross.” 2. By God’s grace, a quiet, uncomplaining spirit in the midst of pain is possible. 3. Even Jesus had to pray for help in accepting his cross: “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will” (Mt 28:39). 4. Jesus did not come to take our suffering away; rather, he came to fill it with his presence. Unite your suffering to his as

best you can, and if you can’t, don’t put yourself down. You’re only human. 5. Suffering is the coin that purchased our redemption. We may not be able to understand this concept fully, but knowing it can give suffering greater meaning. 6. Pain and suffering are universal. Always pray for a happy death, one that will be as free of pain as possible, but all along the way, try to live joyfully because of the knowledge of God’s love. 7. When your pain becomes unbearable, you have two choices: suicide or courage. Suicide may seem preferable at any given moment, but think of the consequences. You don’t want your children to follow your example when the going gets rough. Be a saint. Accept God’s permissive will; it will lift your spirit and inspire others. 8. For every pain that we must bear, there is a reason; only God knows the reason. So hang in there. When you are at your worst, try to understand that the Christian response to unavoidable suffering is far more noble than the pagan response, which usually ends up in self-pity and greater misery. 9. Suffering in silence is an act of charity toward your caretakers. Patients always have a responsibility to be charitable to their caretakers. Be a good patient. But always reserve the right to

wake them up in the middle of the night when you need medication. 10. Many saints prayed for the gift of martyrdom, knowing well that it might entail great suffering. When you pray, don’t go for martyrdom. Just keep it simple. Father Understand that true prayer John Catoir is found in the will to give yourself to God just are you are, warts and all. Offering your suffering to God is a form of self-giving that is the highest kind of prayer. Pray for the grace to rise above your misery. Don’t let it destroy your self-respect; rather, have hope. All of this will pass. Listen to the words of Jesus: “Come to me, all you who labor are burdened, and I will give you rest” (Mt 11:28). Father John Catoir, head of St. Jude Media, writes a column for Catholic News Service.

Guest Commentary

The wood of the cross will steady your heart I want to make the simple point that at the center of all that we are about, we need to keep our focus on Christ and the price he paid for our salvation. What distinguishes us as Christians is the centrality of Christ and participation in his redemptive triumph over sin and death. It is the substance of our call to holiness. It is important to keep in mind that the consequence of his redemptive triumph reaches into the stuff of our everyday lives. Our redemption is not simply an event that will happen at the time we pass into the fullness of the kingdom, that is, when we go home to the House of the Father. Our call to holiness and our redemption are worked out in the ordinary events and experiences of everyday life. One time in a letter, St. Francis de Sales wrote that he noticed a curious custom of the country people where he lived. He would observe farm hands going across a farmyard to draw water at the well. Before they would lift the bucket and fill it to the top with water, they would put a piece of wood into it. One day, Francis asked a young woman: “Why do you do that? Why do you put a piece of wood into the bucket?” She looked surprised and, as if he should know the reason, she said, “Why, to keep the water from spilling and sloshing – to keep it steady while you carry it.” Writing to a friend later, the bishop told this anecdote and added: “So, when your heart is distressed and agitated, put the wood of the cross into its center to keep it steady!” In times of busyness or stress or perhaps when we feel badly because of sin, the presence of Jesus and his love which flows

from the cross can give us peace and serenity. Put the wood of the cross in the center of our hearts to keep steady and balanced. It may sound too simple, but it truly makes all the difference as we try to live our call to holiness. It does mean that we need intentionally to embrace our baptismal call to holiness, and we need intentionally to foster our relationship with Jesus. Like any other friendship, we know that we have to work at our communication with him. Friendships do not remain static or deepen if untended. What do we do to nurture our call to holiness and our love of Jesus? Every opportunity I get these days, I recall the teaching of our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, about three tasks that express the essential nature of our Catholic Church and that should shape our call to holiness. Whatever the state of our life might be, we are called, first, to proclaim the word of God and the teaching of Jesus. Second, we are to participate faithfully in the sacramental life of the Church. And third, we are to do our part in the ministry of charity. Proclaim, celebrate and serve pretty well summarize our call. Most of the time, we proclaim the Word of God by the way we live as Jesus taught us to do. Our love for the Eucharist and our faithful reception of the sacrament of penance help to keep us focused and remember why we are faithful Christians who love Jesus. And charity is the natural flowering of the love that Jesus confers on us in the holy Eucharist and the other sacraments. I often quote from a note that a priest wrote to me when I was leaving Memphis to become archbishop here in Indianapolis. He wrote: “Bishop, when you came to Memphis you told us that your

first duty was to be a man of prayer. I was disappointed to hear that because I wanted an activist bishop. Now, I know – and the record shows – if we are faithful in prayer, activity flows aplenty!” In order to keep a balance as we live the threeArchbishop fold task that is so basic Daniel M. to our Christian vocation, it is wholesome to keep Buechlein the wood of the cross, the symbol of Christ’s powerful love and compassion, at the center of our lives. We do that by continually returning as friends to Jesus in prayer, sometimes at the foot of the cross. At times, there will be dry spells in our prayer. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta anguished as she wondered if God was with her. Yet she remained faithful in her mission of charity. She is a contemporary encouragement in our call to holiness. And let’s recall that Mary, the mother of Jesus and ours, stood faithfully at the foot of his cross. Once in awhile, we do well to join her there. Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein is Archbishop of Indianapolis. This article was reprinted with permission from The Criterion.

Catholic San Francisco

A READING FROM THE BOOK OF EXODUS EX 17:8-13 In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel. Moses, therefore, said to Joshua, “Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand.” So Joshua did as Moses told him: he engaged Amalek in battle after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur. As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight. Moses’ hands, however, grew tired; so they put a rock in place for him to sit on. Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset. And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword. RESPONSORIAL PSALM PS 121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8 R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. I lift up my eyes toward the mountains; whence shall help come to me? My help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

October 15, 2010

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Exodus 17:8-13; Psalm 121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8; 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2; Luke 18:1-8 May he not suffer your foot to slip; may he slumber not who guards you: indeed he neither slumbers nor sleeps, the guardian of Israel. R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The Lord is your guardian; the Lord is your shade; he is beside you at your right hand. The sun shall not harm you by day, nor the moon by night. R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. The Lord will guard you from all evil; he will guard your life. The Lord will guard your coming and your going, both now and forever.

R. Our help is from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. A READING FROM THE SECOND LETTER OF PAUL TO TIMOTHY 2 TM 3:14-4:2 Beloved: Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

ave you ever felt like you were being ignored; that no one was paying any attention to you and that your efforts and your appeals were falling on deaf ears? I suppose everyone has had that experience in one way or another with children, parents, teachers, students, bosses – there is probably no one with whom we have not had that experience at one time or another. Have we ever had that experience with God? Have we ever prayed (or at least hoped) earnestly for something, believing that if we just pray hard enough it will come to pass – and then it did not? “It’s not fair,” we say. “We’ve prayed so hard – and nothing comes of it.” In the parable of the persistent widow, the Gospel reading for the 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time, our just and loving God appears to be compared to an unjust and corrupt judge. We are even less encouraged as we relate to the widow who appeals to this judge as many of us would appeal to God in prayer. However, our focus should not be on the judge, nor even on the corruption, but rather on the persistence of the widow in her demand for justice. The corruption of the unjust judge to whom she appeals makes the situation appear all the more hopeless and pointless. Yet, despite this, the widow succeeds. The judge gives her the justice he originally denied, if for no other reason than to finally be rid of her. We find examples of this persistence in the face of frustration throughout our Church’s history, not only when appealing to God, but also on the human level. For

Scripture reflection FATHER BILL NICHOLAS

Grace through persistence example, it was the relentless haranguing of St. Catherine of Siena that finally persuaded Pope Gregory XI to return the papacy to Rome after it spent 70 years in Avignon, France. An example, more closely resembling the protagonist of the parable, is St. Monica. Monica had so much stacked against her in a pagan, Roman society, not the least of which was a nonChristian husband (baptized, nonetheless, a year before he died). She faced failure as a Christian parent when her son, Augustine, strayed so far and so long from the faith. Nevertheless, she is known principally for her unrelenting tears and prayers to God (and one could imagine her nagging her son to a fair degree) to which Augustine would later credit his eventual conversion. In looking at this parable, however,

one must remember that the “justice” demanded by the widow and denied by the judge is paralleled at the end of the Gospel to the “rights” and “justice” granted by God to those who ask him. These are not always granted in the manner or degree that we would intend, since God responds according to his own rather than to human standards. Jesus’ teaching does not limit God’s granting of our prayers to simply whatever we pray for. Rather, He teaches that God gives us the grace to be holy, faithful and persistent in our living the Gospel and encouraging one another to do the same. In another part of the Gospel Jesus says, “Ask and you shall receive.” But he does not say we will receive what we ask for. “Seek and you shall find,” but not neces-

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching. A READING FROM THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE LK 18:1-8 Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said, “There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my adversary.’ For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she finally come and strike me.’” The Lord said, “Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

sarily what we are looking for. “Knock and the door shall be opened,” but it may not be the door on which we happen to be knocking at the time. For Moses, in the first reading, his prayers (and keeping his hands raised) resulted in God granting victory to Israel against Amalek. In the second reading Paul points out to Timothy that God has already granted us many answers in the Scriptures as well as the teachings we cling to as people of faith, if we only have the resourcefulness to recognize them. The Gospel message is clear: persevere – never give up. Never give in to discouragement when things don’t seem to be going our way. Never loose hope when disappointment comes, when as a people of faith we take some knocks because our values are at odds with mainstream public opinion. When God appears to be ignoring our endless cries, we must, nonetheless, “hang in there.” Jesus puts it plainly at the conclusion of our Gospel reading. When all is said and done we must persevere in faith that God will hear and answer our prayers in a manner suited to His purpose. But, Jesus ends with a very simple question. Does that type of persistence in faith still exist? If Christ were to return today, would he find such faith on earth? Father William Nicholas is parochial vicar at Our Lady of Loretto Parish in Novato. Visit his website at www.frwcnicholas.com.

St. Teresa of Avila: a saint for the acerbic, strong-minded and distractible St. Teresa of Avila is a Doctor of the Church – a strong minded woman, Spanish mystic and reformer who founded the Discalced Carmelites in the 16th century, and often found herself at odds with her fellow religious and with the hierarchy of her own Church. Although she entered the convent at 20, she only truly turned toward contemplative prayer at 41 at the urging of her confessor. She was blessed with a close mystical relationship with Jesus, who appeared to her and conversed with her regularly. One of 10 children, St. Teresa was born in 1515 in Avila, Spain. She died at age 67 in 1582. She was canonized in 1622 by Pope Gregory XV and in 1970 named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI. Over the course of the 25 years that she focused on the reform of the Carmelite Order, St. Teresa was denounced from the pulpit, sued by her town and investigated by the Inquisition.

Charismatic, funny, and at times acerbic, one of her mottos was: “May God protect me from gloomy saints.” At another time, when she complained to Jesus about the hostility that surrounded her, he told her: “Teresa, that’s how I treat my friends.” St. Teresa’s response: “No wonder you have so few friends.” St. Teresa described herself as distractible, finding contemplative prayer difficult for years, as she was very engaged with her friends in a Renaissance-era convent that was lax, with religious wearing jewelry and entertaining young men. “However, an intense prayer experience before an image of Christ crucified helped her renounce her worldly attachments and soon, God began visiting her through visions. The visions were so numerous and intense that it was thought they were the work of the devil. But on being

examined by St. Francis Borgia and St. Peter of Alcantara, they were discerned to be God’s mystical action in her soul,” Catholic News Agency explains in a biography on its website. St. Teresa’s works include “Interior Castle,” “The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus,” and “The Way of Perfection,” which are easy to digest, said Dominican Father Anselm Ramelow, chairman of the Department of Philosophy at the Dominican School of Philosophy and Theology at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. “She is so authentic that you feel as if someone were speaking to you very directly across the ages.” A good and accessible introduction to the spirituality of St. Teresa of Avila is Father Thomas Dubay’s “Fire Within: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross and the Gospel-on Prayer,” Father Ramelow said. He also recommends a movie that was originally shown on Spanish televi-

St. Teresa’s feast day is October 15

sion, now available on DVD, “St. Teresa of Avila”, featuring Concho Velasco and Hector Alterio, directed by Josefina Molina. More information on St. Teresa is online at www.karmel.at/eng/teresa.htm.

October 15, 2010

Catholic San Francisco

China’s Catholic village . . . Christianity has grown at a meteoric rate in recent decades, swelling from around four million faithful in 1949 to over 50 million today. The current government has behaved quite openly to this growth compared to its previous intolerance, though the situation in China remains unsteady, and present signs suggest increased control over Catholic activities by the central authorities. Surveillance cameras monitor church entrances and the Religious Affairs Bureau has become more rigid in its stance against Roman “interference” in Church affairs in China. Papal authority, abortion, and the election of bishops continue to be sensitive topics, though the level of intensity of these conflicts differs from province to province. One of the most astounding Catholic success stories in China is the village of Liuhe, located an hour’s drive outside of the economically poor capital city of Shanxi, Taiyuan, the center of what is China’s most Catholic diocese. Liuhe is difficult to find without help, and it is best accessed through the introduction of one of the local priests. On the way to the village one of Shanxi’s largest secrets unfurls; church after church dot the landscape and high steeples rise above small villages as they do in southern France. Passing through a narrow side road one arrives at Liuhe and is welcomed by three great statues at the village entrance: St. Peter holding his keys is flanked by Sts. Simon and Paul. Thirty minutes before Mass the village loudspeakers, once airing the revolutionary voice of Mao and Party slogans, now broadcast the rosary. Winding through the village, the large church with its imposing edifice and towering dome loom above, and once you arrive you are greeted by a curious admixture of Romanesque architecture, yellow plastic palm trees and streaming colored banners. Shanxi has its own peculiar tastes, and almost every church contains two large grandfather clocks (none could tell me the origin of this curious tradition) and lines of colored flags in and outside the sanctuary. Liuhe is China’s largest Catholic village. Attending one of the church’s Sunday Masses, which draws nearly 3,000 faithful, is dizzying. Before Mass the priests and faithful kneel to intone the rosary in an old Shanxi-style chant – it is a loud affair, broadcast over loudspeakers. In what is only a very modest village by Chinese standards – around seven thousand people – more than ninety percent are Catholic. One of the reasons for its strong commitment to its Catholic faith, villagers say, is the village’s endurance through the two terrible anti-Catholic persecutions. Popular local stories circulate about how Liuhe village survived the ravages of the Boxer Uprising. In a meeting with the church’s lively pastor, Father Zhang Junhai, one of these stories was recounted. The residents say that as the Boxers approached the village during the summer of 1900, the Virgin Mary appeared above the church’s bell tower in flowing white robes; her hands were extended in prayer before her. They say an army of angels surrounded her as she prayed, and whichever direction she faced pointed toward the direction from which the Boxers were approaching. Thus, with Mary’s help the stronger men of the community were able to prepare in advance to ward off the Boxer attack. Several times the Boxers approached, and each time Mary appeared above the church praying in the direction of their advance. The Catholics of the village also attribute to Mary’s assistance the fact that the Boxer cannons backfired on the attackers as they fired on the village. Today, the village’s devotion to Mary is tangible; traditionally each family prays an evening rosary and displays an image of the Immaculate Heart of Mary in their home.

(PHOTO BY ANTHONY E. CLARK)

■ Continued from cover

Mass in remote Liuhe in northwest China, in the center of China’s largest Catholic diocese.

Nearly seven decades after the violent Boxer Uprising, the Cultural Revolution disturbed the peaceful rhythms of the village. The church was stripped of its pews, the altar lay bare, and revolutionary slogans covered the walls and columns. Like all China at that time, Liuhe’s church was closed and the faithful were compelled to either join the radical fervor of the Red Guards or suffer under the revolution for remaining Catholic. Some of the villagers erected tents for Mass where the priest courageously offered the Holy Sacrifice on a makeshift altar. One elderly man, in his nineties, quite openly recounted for us the arrest and beating of his Franciscan uncle during the turbulence of the Maoist era. The priest was “struggled against” several times, which included pulling his hair, physical beatings, and cruel forms of restraint. In the end, the priest suffered from a head injury and died. Stories of Mary’s assistance and the sacrifices of such holy people as the Franciscan who died in 1969, strengthen the resolve of the village to remain committed to its faith. Father Zhang informed me that there are new struggles today, less related to persecution than the burgeoning wave of materialism that prevails in modern China. While the youth are in the village they commonly attend catechism, in addition to a rich schedule of liturgical rites and parish events. Since nearly all of the villagers are active Catholics, those who remain in the community are little affected by the consumerism and secular views of China’s majority. Less than three percent of China is Christian, so there is scant spiritual support for those who leave the village for study or employment outside the community. The villagers can rely on each other for support and encouragement; they are willing to bear the monetary fines when having more than one child since their Catholic neighbors support and assist them. But it is more difficult to resist official policies and pressures when away from the community. Liuhe remains China’s largest Catholic village largely because it has formulated strategies for having multiple children, who are subsequently raised in devoted Catholic households. Attending Mass in the immense church, one is bewildered by the number of children

One-child policy “unmitigated social disaster” FRONT ROYAL, Va. – China’s one-child policy, implemented 30 years ago to check a soaring birth rate, is an “unmitigated social disaster,” population expert Steve Mosher said. Mosher, president of the Population Research Institute, condemned recent statements by Chinese government officials praising the policy, Catholic News Agency reported. The policy makes China the “ugly poster child of forced abortion and coerced sterilization,” he said. In a statement Oct. 5, Mosher responded to a Sept. 27 report in China Daily where the head of the country’s National Population and Family Planning Commission, Li Bin, praised the policy as having prevented 400 million births over the past 30 years and said the country would uphold it. “Historical change doesn’t come easily, and I, on behalf of the National Population and Family Planning Commission, extend profound gratitude to all, the people in particular, for their support of the national course,” Li Bin said. “So we will stick to the family-planning policy in the coming decades,” she added. Despite government officials’ claims that the policy has helped China’s economy and contributed to other social advances, Mosher argued that a primary goal of the mandate has been to “help maintain the muscular rigor of the one-party dictatorship that rules China.” “China is a police state, after all,” said Mosher, who helped voice alarm over the policy when it took effect 30 years ago. “Such a state, to remain strong, must have something to police. Economic controls have been loosened over the past 30 years, so control over other aspects of life must be tightened. The brutal one-child policy is one consequence of such a system’s relentless drive for control over people’s lives.” “The Chinese government,” he noted, “supported by foreign population control zealots, believe that its program should be held up as a population control role model for the rest of the world.” “In reality, it should be roundly condemned for its widespread and systematic violations of human rights, especially the rights of women,” he said. Mosher has been joined in his criticism of the one-child policy by Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.), who recently appealed to President Obama to speak out in defense of the Chinese people “on this terrible anniversary,” noting “what an encouragement that would be for hundreds of millions of Chinese hearts, to suddenly feel that the leader of the free world understands and empathizes with their plight.”

whirling through the aisles before the service, a unique sight in one-child-policy China. (The villagers are fined heavily for violating China’s 30-yearold one-child policy but pool their money to pay the fines, Clark told Catholic San Francisco. “The local government is so happy with the money that they haven’t really bothered them,” he said. “And they’re off the map: I’m probably the only foreigner who has ever visited.”) Just over two centuries ago, Liuhe was little more than a sequence of agricultural fields; today it is a Catholic success story in a country with a long history of anti-Catholic persecution. When asked about the village’s dedication to the pope, Father Zhang noted its fierce loyalty to the Holy Father and its commitment to following his teachings. I noticed the proudly-displayed papal blessing and photograph of Benedict XVI near Father Zhang’s desk as he answered this question. “We are a very traditional Catholic community,” he said, “not like in other countries.” I could not help but think that despite the irregularity of the Chinese Church’s relationship with Rome, in many ways it retains a stronger Catholic identity and commitment than many other countries. Liuhe is an extraordinary Catholic village, and it enjoys comparative freedom from governmental interference, perhaps due to its remote location. It is also extremely poor, and the lure of material comforts continues to draw villagers away. Not all of those who leave the village strain to retain their faith, however. Liuhe is one of the principal springs from which vocations emerge in all of China. It seems that in almost every diocese one encounters a young priest who tells you he is from Liuhe, and there can be little doubt that most of China’s Catholics have heard of this wellspring of faith and vocations. The faith of China’s largest Catholic village is passionate, for the very name of their small village alludes to God’s role in synchronizing all existence. From ancient times China has believed in the harmonious relationship between the “five directions,” north, south, east, west, middle, known as the “Five Harmonies” (Wuhe). Not long after the Catholics of this region settled, they named their new village “Six Harmonies Village” (Liuhe) because they believe there can be no harmony without God, the “sixth direction.” As I departed from Liuhe after attending a Mass that felt almost like Mass at St. Peter’s, Father Zhang, his assistant priest, and the church manager stood near the gate, waving goodbye. Hundreds of old men and women stood near the church door watching the foreign guests leaving the village. And it seemed like a thousand children ran past us laughing and playing with each other. I imagined that many of those young boys and girls, God willing, someday will serve the Church as priests and nuns. I wondered also how many non-Chinese Catholics have heard of this astonishing village, tucked inconspicuously in the arid scenery of Shanxi province. Looking back at the enormous church I reflected on the catholicity of the Catholic Church; a Western-style church surrounded by all things Chinese. Most Westerners would not recognize the tunes of the chanted prayers, or the language, or the way people interact. But any Christian would readily admire the deeply pious faith of Liuhe’s humble Catholics, who have not only survived two persecutions but in fact have grown from them as a seed from watered soil. Anthony E. Clark, Ph.D., Assistant Professor of Asian History at Whitworth University in Spokane, traveled and conducted The author with Father research in China last Zhang Junhai, pastor summer. This article of the village church. was first published on ignatiusinsight.com, the blog of San Francisco-based St. Ignatius Press.

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October 15, 2010

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Holocaust tribute features choral work “steeped in Catholic liturgy” WASHINGTON (CNS) – When conductor Murry Sidlin visits the mass graves near the former concentration camp in Terezin, Czech Republic, he is convinced the “ground is unsettled.” “This is not a place where people rest in peace. This is a place where the world turned its back and let these people die,” said Sidlin, dean of the music school at The Catholic University of America in Washington. For the past eight years, Sidlin has been determined to pay homage to the men and women and women of the prison camp by focusing specifically on the interminable spirit of its choir of 150 prisoners and their conductor, Rafael Schaechter. The choir performed Giuseppe Verdi’s “Requiem”

16 times from 1943 to 1944 before fellow prisoners, Nazi officials and visitors. Today, the work of these prisoners lives on in a concert drama called “Defiant Requiem: Verdi at Terezin” created and conducted by Sidlin. The work includes a chorus and orchestra performing Verdi’s “Requiem” interspersed with testimony from surviving chorus members and an original Nazi propaganda film of the prison camp. It also includes actors who speak the words of the prison’s conductor and other prisoners. It has been performed at concert halls around the world and poignantly re-enacted three times at the former concentration camp in Terezin. On Oct. 6, it was performed at Washington’s Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and next year it will be in Oklahoma and Minnesota. Sidlin found out about these original performances in Terezin purely by chance when

he read a brief reference about them while looking through books at a Minneapolis bargain book table about 20 years ago. Although the description of the “Requiem” prison performances was about a paragraph long, it was a life-changing moment for the conductor. He was unable to comprehend how Jewish prisoners – worn from hunger, illness, slave labor and uncertainty about their future – could devote themselves to a very difficult Latin work “steeped in Catholic liturgy.” One night he woke up in the middle of the night with the sudden realization that the “Requiem” must have had an entirely different meaning for these prisoners than simply a funeral Mass. The words of liberation could have reflected the prisoners’ hope for freedom while the refrains of God’s judgment could have been an incriminating message to their Nazi captors.

Translating hymns to Hmong language By Tom Kelly APPLETON, Wis. (CNS) – Eight years ago an idea sparked five Hmong women – two from the Diocese of Green Bay – to team up and translate hymns, psalms and other liturgical music from the Mass from English into their native language. What started out as and continues to be a true labor of love is now promising to have an impact on a national scale. Remarkably, the group is projecting the printing of tens of thousands of books with more than 200 selections of sacred music for distribution and use in Catholic liturgies by Hmong-speaking communities throughout the United States. Much of the music in the new book is English-to-Hmong translations of familiar arrangements, including “Were You There,” “Be Not Afraid,” “I Have Loved You,” “The

Summons,” “Lord When You Came to the Seashore” and “Song of the Body of Christ.” In addition to the cost of obtaining copyright permission to translate and print these works, the group was charged with providing “backward” word-for-word literal translations from Hmong back to English to double-check each Hmong translation’s faithfulness to the original meaning of each work. The group estimates they have spent more than $90,000 – all donated time and expenses – over the past eight years. The leaders of the local Hmong community held eggroll sales to help defray the cost of the books. Chong Ly of St. Bernard Parish in Appleton believes God is the most pleased when everybody sings during worship, and the new music books, she said, will help bring many new voices into the choir.

faith formation conference

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ĞĂƌ &ƌŝĞŶĚƐͬYƵĞƌŝĚŽƐ ŵŝŐŽƐͬ ĄĐ ĂŶ ƚŚąŶ ŵġӃŶ͕

Friday, November 19, 2010

5001 Great America Parkway Santa Clara, CA 95054 (408) 748-7000

7:30 AM – 8:30 AM

Registration

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM

Welcome/Announcements/ Morning Prayer

9:00 AM – 9:45 AM

Keynote

9:45 AM – 10:15 AM

Break

10:15 AM – 11:30 AM

Session 1

11:30 AM – 1:00 PM

Lunch/Exhibits

1:00 PM – 2:15 PM

Session 2

2:15 PM – 2:45 PM

Break/Exhibits

2:45 PM – 4:00 PM

Session 3

4:00 PM -5:30 PM

Exhibits/Wine and Cheese Reception

Registration/Exhibits

7:30 AM – 8:15 AM

Daily mass-bilingual

8:30 AM – 8:45 AM

Welcome/Announcement

8:45 AM – 9:15 AM

Prayer in English and Spanish

9:15 AM – 10:15 AM

Keynote in English

9:30 AM – 10:45 AM

Session 4 (in Spanish only)

10:45 AM – 12:00 PM

Session 5 (in English only)

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM

Keynote in Spanish

12:00 PM – 1:30 PM

Lunch/Exhibits

1:30 PM – 2:45 PM

Session 6

2:45 PM – 3:15 PM

Break/Exhibits

3:15 PM – 4:30 PM

Session 7

4:30 PM – 5:00 PM

Break/ Exhibits

5:00 PM – 5:30 PM

Closing Prayer

Ɛ ŝƐŚŽƉ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŝŽĐĞƐĞ ŽĨ ^ĂŶ :ŽƐĞ͕ ĂŶĚ ŽŶ ďĞŚĂůĨ ŽĨ ƌĐŚďŝƐŚŽƉ EŝĞĚĞƌĂƵĞƌ͕ ŝƐŚŽƉ ůĂŝƌĞ͕ ŝƐŚŽƉ ŽƌĚŝůĞŽŶĞ͕ ĂŶĚ ŝƐŚŽƉ 'ĂƌĐŝĂ͕ / ǁŽƵůĚ ůŝŬĞ ƚŽ ŝŶǀŝƚĞ ǇŽƵ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ &ĂŝƚŚ &ŽƌŵĂƟŽŶ ŽŶĨĞƌĞŶĐĞ ϮϬϭϬ͘ dŚŝƐ ǇĞĂƌ͛Ɛ ŽŶĨĞƌĞŶĐĞ ƚŚĞŵĞ ŝƐ EĞǁ ƌĞĂƟŽŶ͕ ZĞĐŽŶĐŝůŝŶŐ ůů /Ŷ ŚƌŝƐƚ͘ tĞ ĂƌĞ ĨŽƌƚƵŶĂƚĞ ƚŽ ŚĂǀĞ dĞƌƌǇ ,ĞƌƐŚĞǇ͕ ŶĂƟŽŶĂůůǇ ŬŶŽǁŶ ĂƵƚŚŽƌ ĂŶĚ ŚƵŵŽƌŝƐƚ͕ &ĂƚŚĞƌ 'ƌĞŐ ŽǇůĞ͕ ^͘:͕͘ ĂŶĚ ^ŝƐƚĞƌ DĂƌŝĂ ůĞŶĂ DĂƌƟŶĞǌ͕ K^&͕ ĂƐ ŽƵƌ ŬĞǇŶŽƚĞ ƐƉĞĂŬĞƌƐ͘ tĞ ĂƌĞ ĂůƐŽ ǀĞƌǇ ƉůĞĂƐĞĚ ƚŚĂƚ &ĂƚŚĞƌ ,Ǉ <͘ EŐƵǇĞŶ ǁŝůů ďĞ ǁŝƚŚ ƵƐ͕ ŽīĞƌŝŶŐ ĞŶŐĂŐŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ŝŶĨŽƌŵĂƟǀĞ ǁŽƌŬƐŚŽƉƐ ŝŶ sŝĞƚŶĂŵĞƐĞ ŽŶ Ă ǀĂƌŝĞƚǇ ŽĨ ƚŽƉŝĐƐ͘ / Ăŵ ƐƵƌĞ ƚŚĂƚ ƚŚĞ ĞǆĐĞůůĞŶƚ ŬĞǇŶŽƚĞ ĂĚĚƌĞƐƐĞƐ ĂŶĚ ǁŽƌŬƐŚŽƉƐ ŽĨ ƚŚŝƐ ǁĞĞŬĞŶĚ ǁŝůů ŶŽƚ ŽŶůǇ ŝŶƐƉŝƌĞ ǇŽƵ͕ ďƵƚ ĂůƐŽ ĐŚĂůůĞŶŐĞ ǇŽƵ ƚŽ ƌĞƐƉŽŶĚ͕ ǁŝƚŚ ĐŽƵƌĂŐĞ ĂŶĚ ĐŽŵƉĂƐƐŝŽŶ͕ ƚŽ 'ŽĚ͛Ɛ ŝŶǀŝƚĂƟŽŶ ĂŶĚ ŐƌĂĐĞ ƚŽ ůŝǀĞ ĂƐ Ă ŶĞǁ ĐƌĞĂƟŽŶ ŝŶ ŚƌŝƐƚ͘

Saturday, November 20, 2010 7:30 AM – 8:30 AM

friday November 19, 2010 Saturday November 20, 2010

EŽǀĞŵďĞƌ ϭϵ͕ ϮϬϭϬ

SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE

Santa clara convention center

To test his theory, Sidlin contacted survivors of the original choir; the handful he found confirmed what he suspected. They said the work they practiced each night in a basement at the prison camp was described by the Schaechter as a way to fight back and “sing to the Nazis what we cannot say to them.” The group practiced with just one score and a legless out-of-tune piano. Twice the choir lost a significant number of its members because of deportations and Schaechter had to recruit new members and start over. Sidlin describes the conductor – whose career was just beginning to take off before he was imprisoned – as a hero not only for tackling “a really difficult and demanding composition even under the best of circumstances” but for nourishing the souls of prisoners and “answering the worst of mankind with the best of mankind.”

(CNS PHOTO/DEFIANT REQUIEM)

By Carol Zimmermann

ĂĐŚ ŽĨ ƵƐ ŚĂƐ ďĞĞŶ ĐĂůůĞĚ ďǇ ƚŚĞ >ŽƌĚ ƚŽ ĨŽƌŐŝǀĞ ŽŶĞ ĂŶŽƚŚĞƌ ĂƐ ŚĞ ŚĂƐ ĨŽƌŐŝǀĞŶ ƵƐ͘ tĞ ĂƌĞ ĂůƐŽ ŝŶǀŝƚĞĚ ƚŽ ďĞ ƚƌĂŶƐĨŽƌŵĞĚ ŝŶƚŽ Ă ŶĞǁ ĐƌĞĂƟŽŶ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ ƚŚĞ ƉŽǁĞƌ ŽĨ ŚŝƐ ĂďƵŶĚĂŶƚ ůŽǀĞ͘ /ƚ ŝƐ ŵǇ ƉƌĂǇĞƌ ĨŽƌ ĞĂĐŚ ŽĨ ǇŽƵ ƚŚĂƚ ŝŶ ƚŚĞƐĞ ĚĂǇƐ͕ ǇŽƵ ǁŝůů ĮŶĚ ƚŚĞ ŝŶƐƉŝƌĂƟŽŶ ǇŽƵ most need to support you in your efforts to live out the Gospel message and bring it to others. Again, please accept this invitation to the Faith Formation Conference 2010 as well as my thanks and commendation for all that you do for those entrusted to your care! With every best wish and kind regard, I remain, Sincerely yours,

*Lunches for the day: Concessions will be available throughout the Convention Center.

*For the Spanish and Vietnamese version of the Bishop’s letter, please visit our website at http://tinyurl.com/26nbecd

Patrick J. McGrath Bishop of San Jose

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Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

Two books look at clergy sex abuse crisis

(CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING)

Book-length interview with pope out Nov. 23

The papal personal secretary Msgr. George Ganswein places a red hat on Pope Benedict XVI as the pontiff arrives to lead his general audience in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 6.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – “Light of the World,” a book-length interview with Pope Benedict XVI, will be released Nov. 23 in the world’s major languages, including English, the head of the Vatican publishing house said. Addressing journalists Oct. 7 at the Frankfurt Book Fair, Salesian Father Giuseppe Costa, the director of the Vatican publishing house, said the text of the book based on interviews conducted in July by the journalist Peter Seewald had already been consigned to 12 publishing houses from around the world. In the United States, the book will be published by Ignatius Press, which also published the two book-length interviews Seewald conducted with then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger before he became pope. The Vatican publishing house, LEV, said it expected to sign publishing agreements with other companies before the Frankfurt fair ended Oct. 11. The book is based on conversations Seewald and the pope had the week of July 26-31 at the papal summer villa in Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome. The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said the conversation covered a variety of topics, such as Seewald’s earlier book-interviews, “Salt of the Earth” (1996) and “God and the World” (2002). During the news conference, LEV also announced that it had already signed contracts with 24 publishing houses to print and distribute the second volume of Pope Benedict’s work on the life of Jesus. “Jesus of Nazareth: From the Entrance in Jerusalem to the Resurrection” is scheduled to be released in 2011. Thirty-two different editions of the first volume, which covered Jesus’ life from his baptism to the transfiguration, were published and almost 3 million copies were sold, LEV said in a press communique.

“WHEN VALUES COLLIDE: THE CATHOLIC CHURCH, SEXUAL ABUSE AND THE CHALLENGES OF LEADERSHIP” by Joseph P. Chinnici. Orbis Books (Maryknoll, N.Y., 2010). 192 pp., $25. “POPE BENEDICT XVI AND THE SEXUAL ABUSE CRISIS: WORKING FOR REFORM AND RENEWAL” by Gregory Erlandson and Matthew Bunson. Our Sunday Visitor (Huntington, Ind., 2010). 207 pp., $12.95.

Reviewed by Brian T. Olszewski (CNS) – Given the number of books written over the past eight years about the clergy sexual abuse scandal in the United States, one wonders if another one would offer new insights. “When Values Collide” does. Franciscan Father Joseph P. Chinnici was provincial minister in the Franciscans’ Province of St. Barbara from June 1988 to January 1997. Four years into that position, he had to deal with allegations that members of his religious community had abused members of the Santa Barbara Boys Choir and St. Anthony Seminary during the ‘70s. The national revelation of the sexual abuse scandal was still 10 years away, as was the Dallas “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” and all the initiatives that followed. Thus, Father Chinnici, his community and the board of inquiry that dealt with the abusers and their victims were pioneers. In recounting their work, he tells a story that includes the effects and the affected – staples of stories that would be told a decade later, but which were unique in 1992 and 1993. What makes “When Values Collide” different from previous books about the scandal is the immersion of the author in the story. He is not an outsider trying to prove a hypothesis based upon empirical data. Nor does he merely narrate another story about the scandal. Instead, Father Chinnici stands amid the collision of values, e.g., those of society, those of church leaders, those of Franciscans, and directs traffic. It is intense reading as it is as much a commentary as it is a reflection, and in reflecting he raises questions that church leaders, clergy and the faithful in the community will want to ask of themselves and of the institutional church, e.g., how can this awareness of sin in the church be integrated into the continuing life of faith and action? Readers should plan to periodically stop reading as they take time to form their responses to what he asks. As one might expect, Franciscan spirituality permeates the text, which is what makes the book even more valuable to readers. Father Chinnici draws upon the words of St. Francis and St. Bonaventure, as well as the Rule of St. Francis in writing about leadership, power, community, responsiveness, trust, relationships – all elements directly related to the abuse scandal and how it was and is being handled. The tone is not accusatory, but rather promotes reconciliation and an approach that asks how the church can embrace the experience and grow in faith as a result of it. Father Chinnici notes that he’d like the book to “help move our national discussion and actions beyond partisanship and also enable the continuing story from the viewpoint of the victims to be more clearly heard, assimilated and collaboratively addressed.” If read by people who want that to occur, “When Values Collide” will fulfill the author’s hope for his work. Anyone who has ever wanted the media to report “the other side” of the sexual abuse crisis will find it in Gregory Erlandson

BOXES Lifting the Lid on an American Life by Donnan Beeson Runkel

Everyone has a collection – stamps, receipts, seashells, pictures, figurines. These objects, when gathered together, imbue more meaning than each has on its own. For the author, the varied containers crowded on top of her dresser became not just a collection on boxes to hold her jewelry, but a link to people in her life who made major contributions to who she is today – a successful businesswoman with a wide array of friends and connections around the world. Each one of these boxes contains a rich story of transformation that, when woven together, becomes a unique memoir. This collection of influences and experiences, changes and challenges is responsible. In Boxes: Lifting the Lid on an American Life, readers will witness vivid, often hilarious, recollections of a life that began in awkward self-doubt and blossomed into the discovery of true love and the challenges and triumphs of motherhood and career. Through this journey, readers will learn as she has that the pain of life folds into the many-faceted depths of becoming.

order now . . . www.boxesbook.com

and Matthew Bunson’s work, “Pope Benedict XVI and the Sexual Abuse Crisis.” It is more of a view than a side, as it is an apologia for Pope Benedict and his effort to seek healing for the abused and justice for those who harmed them and/or allowed the harm to continue. Often reading like a well-developed term paper, the book states the case for a caring, proactive church, particularly in the United States, in the more than eight years since the Dallas charter was written and implemented. Selected quotes from Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington are employed to make the authors’ case that the church in the U.S. is more vigilant and proactive church in preventing abuse and in reaching out to victims. They are clear, however, in noting that clergy sexual abuse was not solely a U.S. problem but one that existed in the church throughout the world. Indeed, much attention is given, and documentation included, regarding the papal response to the crisis in Ireland. In a chapter devoted to the existence of abuse throughout much of the church’s history, the authors contend that “sexual sins have always been present because they are part of our fallen nature.” They continue, “The historical efforts (to deal with abuse ‘mercifully’ and ‘justly’) are not the source of shame or failure by an ineffective church. Rather, they are a testament to the church’s commitment to living as we are called by Christ and to bringing reform in every age of the world.” While Erlandson and Bunson have touched upon various elements of the scandal, some elements, such as the amount of money U.S. dioceses have paid to settle lawsuits with victims, are worthy of books themselves. Even the work of Pope Benedict warrants further study. As long as readers understand that this isn’t as much about journalism as it is about stating another view of the abuse scandal and the church’s response to it, they will appreciate the book as a quick reference, with appendices, to what the pope and others have said about abuse and the church’s response to it. The authors, who maintain the “clergy sexual abuse crisis ... will most likely define the pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI,” want readers to appreciate what the pope and other church leaders have done in responding to abusers and victims. It is likely that they will. Olszewski is general manager of the Catholic Herald, publication of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee.

SCRIPTURE SEARCH Gospel for October 17, 2010 Luke 18:1-8 / 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2 Following is a word search based on the Gospel and th the second reading for the 29 Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C. The words can be found in all directions in the puzzle. PRAY ADVERSARY SON OF MAN FAITH BELIEVED TRAINING PATIENCE

FEARED GOD DAY AND NIGHT COMES EARTH SACRED DEAD

A WIDOW SPEEDILY HE FIND LEARNED SALVATION WORD TEACHING

TRAINING IN FAITH F

W K

Sponsored by Duggan’s Serra Mortuary 500 Westlake Avenue, Daly City 650-756-4500 ● www.duggansserra.com

October 15, 2010

Special Liturgies Oct. 28, 5:30 p.m.: Mass commemorating 75th anniversary of Shrine of St. Jude at St. Dominic Church, 2390 Bush St. at Steiner in San Francisco. Archbishop George H. Niederauer will preside. Call (415) 931-5919 or e-mail info@ stjude-shrine.org. Visit www.

Catholic San Francisco

Cathy at (408) 262-3718 or Helen at (415) 388-9651 You may also e-mail SJBeginExp@aol.com or visit www.beginningexperience.org. Jesuit Father Al Grosskopf is the group’s spiritual director. Nov. 5 – 7: “A Lifeline for Marriage,” a Retrouvaille weekend for married couples in difficulty. The program provides tools to help get the marriage back on track. For confidential information on registering for the sessions, call (415) 893-1005 or e-mail SF@ RetroCA.com or visit www.HelpOurMarriage.com.

Datebook

stjude-shrine.org.

Prayer

St. Mary’s Cathedral Celebrating its 40th anniversary

Sundays, 1:30 – 2:30 p.m.: Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament with Benediction at Notre Dame des Victoires Church, 566 Bush St. between Stockton and Grant in San Francisco. Convenient parking is available across Bush St. in StocktonSutter garage. Call 397-0113. Taize Sung Prayer: 1st Friday at 8 p.m.: Mercy Center, 2300 Adeline Dr., Burlingame with Mercy Sister Suzanne Toolan. Call (650) 340-7452; young adults are invited each first Friday of the month to attend a social at 6 p.m. prior to Taize prayer at 8 p.m. The social provides light refreshments and networking with other young adults. Convenient parking is available. For more information, e-mail mercyyoungadults@sbcglobal.net. Tuesdays at 6 p.m.: Notre Dame Des Victoires Church, 566 Bush at Stockton, San Francisco with Rob Grant. Call (415) 397-0113. 3rd Friday, 8 p.m.: Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose, Motherhouse Chapel, 43326 Mission Blvd. (off Mission Tierra), Fremont. For further information, please contact Dominican Sister Beth Quire at (510) 449-7554 or visit our website at www.msjdominicans.org for more information.

Gough and Geary Blvd. in San Francisco (415) 567-2020 Nov. 3, 10:30 a.m. – noon: Free Grief Support Workshop in the Msgr. Bowe Room, on the west side of the parking lot level of the cathedral. The holiday season can be a very difficult time for the bereaved. This workshop will provide information on the grief process, and tips on “Coping with the Loss of a Loved One” during the holidays. Barbara Elordi, MFT, Director of the Archdiocesan Grief Care Ministry, facilitates. For further details, call Sister Esther at (415) 567-2020, ex. 218.

Mass in Latin The traditional Latin Mass celebrated according to texts and rubrics of the Missal of Blessed John XXIII of 1962 is celebrated at four locations within the Archdiocese of San Francisco. Sunday, 12:15 p.m.: Holy Rosary Chapel at St. Vincent School for Boys in San Rafael. For more information, call St. Isabella Parish at (415) 479-1560; First Fridays, 7 p.m.: St. Francis of Assisi Church, 1425 Bay Rd. at Glen Way in East Palo Alto. For more information, call (650) 322-2152. Father Lawrence Goode, pastor, is celebrant; First Sundays, 5:30 p.m.: Mater Dolorosa, 307 Willow Ave. South San Francisco. For more information call (650) 583-4131; Second Sundays, 5:30 p.m.: St. Finn Barr Church, Edna St at Hearts in San Francisco. Call (415) 333-3627. The Latin Gregorian Chant Mass – English “Novus Ordo” liturgy – is celebrated Saturdays at 4 p.m. at Church of the Visitacion, 655 Sunnydale Ave. off Third St. in San Francisco.

Social Justice Lectures/Respect Life October 24, 1:30 p.m.: San Francisco CROP Hunger Walk, Lake Merced, meet at parking circle at Lake Merced Blvd/Sunset Blvd in San Francisco). CROP Hunger Walks help children and families worldwide – and right here in the U.S. – to have food for today, while building for a better tomorrow. Won’t you walk to help alleviate global and local hunger? It’s fun and easy! Register online at www.cropwalksf. org. Questions call (415) 474-1321. Nov. 6, 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.: Medjugorje Healing Conference at St. James the Apostle Church, 34700 Fremont Blvd, Fremont. Come hear remarkable testimonies, excellent speakers, renowned musicians, and experience adoration, Mass, reconciliation, and a beautiful procession with the Blessed Sacrament. Sign-ups are happening now. Tickets are only $20 per person. Free lunch provided. Call (510) 635-1920 or visit www.holychoices.org/conference.

House/USF, Lone Mountain campus, 2600 Turk Blvd. in San Francisco, for single men ages 18 – 45. This informal gathering enables Catholic men who would like to explore a possible vocation to religious life, serving as a priest or brother, to get to know the Jesuits of the California Province. Participants will hear vocation stories, life as a Jesuit, the spirituality and work of the Society. There will be opportunities to listen to, ask questions, and speak with Jesuit priests, brothers and men in formation. Pizzas and refreshments will be served afterward. There is no cost for this event, but pre-registration is requested. To register, call Teresa Rechsteiner, Loyola House secretary, at (415) 422-4200 or e-mail trechsteiner@ usfca.edu. For more information, call Brother James C. (Jim) Siwicki, S.J., vocation director, at (408) 8841613 or e-mail jsiwicki@calprov.org. Nov. 6, 7, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.: Religious Life Info Day for single women (18-40). Learn about the life of a Sister. Find out who we are. Join us at the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose Motherhouse, 43326 Mission Blvd. Fremont. (entrance on Mission Tierra Pl). (No charge) Please respond by Nov. 1 to vocations@msjdominicans.org or (510) 933-6335.

Food & Fun

Vocations/Serra Clubs Oct. 18, 7:30 p.m.: “Come and See Gathering with the Society of Jesus” – the Jesuits - at Loyola

Oct. 30, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.: “Parish Global Poverty Day” at St. Mary’s Cathedral, St. Francis Hall, Gough St. and Geary Blvd. in San Francisco. Magalie Rigaud of Catholic Relief Services will speak on “Haiti: A Future Full of Hope.” Magalie is a survivor with her two sons of the recent Haiti earthquake. Admission is free. Bring your own lunch or pre-order box lunch for $8. Call (415) 614-5570 or e-mail leehelena@sfarchdiocese.org to register or for more information. Sponsored by the Office of Public Policy and Social Concerns of the Archdiocese of San Francisco.

P UT

Angela Alioto and Marco Sassone stand by one of the artist’s paintings now on exhibit at La Nuova Porziuncola at the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, Vallejo at Columbus in San Francisco. Sassone’s work will be at the Porziuncola through Oct. 31. “Unmoored in the contested region between longing and belonging, Marco Sassone creates from his core with passion, conscience and dignity,” said information promoting the showing. The Porziuncola and “Francesco Rocks” Gift Shop are open every day but Monday from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Visit www.knightsofsaintfrancis.com.

October 15, 16, 17: Relive childhood memories and create new ones at “Playland at St. Cecilia”, where you can enjoy the “Giant” Slide, delight in an It’s It, and maybe get a glimpse of Laughing Sal. Join us at our annual festival benefitting St. Cecilia Parish, Vicente and 18th Ave in San Francisco: Friday 6-10 pm; Saturday noon-4 and 6-10 pm; Sunday noon6pm. Tons of indoor and outdoor games, silent auction, bingo, raffles (over $5000 in cash prizes), fun house, carnival activities, salami toss. Enjoy a hot lunch and dinner in our snack bar. Call (415) 309-8073 or visit www.scfestival.com. Revive your City pride and join the fun. Oct. 23, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.: “Fall Parking Lot Sale” benefiting St. Isabella parish, One Trinity Way in San Rafael/Terra Linda. Breakfast and lunch will be available for purchase. Contact ginny@lucasvalley. net or Siobhan@sempleappraisal.com or call (415) 479-5609 or 492-9445.

Oct. 23, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.: “Mater Dolorosa Parish Rummage Sale,” 307 Willow Ave. in South San Francisco. Very good prices on new to near-new items. Proceeds benefit repair and replacement of church stained glass. Oct: 24, 5 p.m.: Annual Pro-Life Dinner for San Mateo Pro-Life at St. Mark Church, 325 Marine View off County Line Rd. in Belmont. Mike Millen, who has represented Respect Life advocates and is affiliated with Life Legal Defense, is guest speaker. Menu includes chicken picatta by Divine Catering. Tickets are $30 per person. Please respond by October 22. Call (650) 341-9781 or mail check to PO Box 6273, San Mateo 94403. Nov. 13, 6 p.m.: “An Evening at Casbah St. Paul’s”, annual dinner dance and auction benefiting St. Paul Church in San Francisco. Always a fun evening, it takes place at Patio Espanol on Alemany Blvd. and includes cocktails and silent auction then dinner and dancing. All proceeds benefit St. Paul’s Preservation Fund. Tickets are $65/person, and available at St. Paul’s Rectory. Contact Katy O’Shea (415) 648-7538) for more information. Nov. 13: Annual St. Luke’s Mass and Banquet for men and women of the medical profession begins with Mass at 5 p.m. at St. Thomas More Church, Junipero Serra Blvd. at Brotherhood Way in San Francisco. Dinner follows at neighboring Alma Via Residence. Ronald G. Connolly, MD will be honored with the St. Luke’s Award for Catholic medical ethics and practice and speak on “A Physician’s Fight for His Conscience.” Dinner tickets are $25 per person/$10 for clergy, religious and students. Call George Maloof, MD at (415) 305-2408 or e-mail gemaloof2003@yahoo.com

Single, Divorced, Separated Information about Bay Area single, divorced and separated programs is available from Jesuit Father Al Grosskopf at grosskopf@usfca.edu (415) 422-6698. Oct. 22-24: A Beginning Experience Widowed, Separated and Divorced Weekend at Vallombrosa Center, Oak Grove Ave. in Menlo Park. Contact

Reunion Oct. 17, 2 p.m.: The San Francisco Chapter of the Notre Dame de Namur Federation cordially invites all alumnae from Notre Dame High Schools - San Francisco, San Jose, Belmont, Alameda, Marysville, Watsonville, and Salinas - and friends to “An Autumn Tea” at the historic Ralston Mansion in Belmont. Proceeds benefit the retired Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. Checks payable to: NDSF Alumnae, 440 Panorama Dr., San Francisco 94131-1223. Questions may be directed to Katie O’Leary (415) 282-6588 or nuttydames@aol.com. Cost of the tea: $45.00. Oct. 23: Class of 2000 Notre Dame High School, Belmont with campus tours at 4:30 p.m. and celebratory event at 7 p.m. at King Fish Restaurant in San Mateo. E-mail ndbjaguars2000@gmail.com. Oct. 23: Archbishop Riordan High School, class of ’60 dinner dance, at the Italian American Social Club in San Francisco. Contact Tucker Spolter at teespot@earthlink.net or (415) 461-4628, or Tom Aspell at aspellt@al.com. Oct. 24: St John Ursuline High School, San Francisco is having the class of ’75, ’76, ’77 Reunion Lunch at the Irish Cultural Center.Contact Karen Grimley (75’) at karen.grimley@ssf.net or Theresa Keane (77’) at theresakeane@gmail.com for information – please respond by Oct 1. Nov. 7, 2 p.m.: Annual Memorial Mass for graduates and friends of St. Peter School, 24th and Florida St. in San Francisco. San Francisco Auxiliary Bishop Robert W. McElroy will preside. Reception follows the Mass in the parish hall. Parking in school lot. Call (415) 647-8662. Nov. 20, 4 – 8 p.m.: Class of ’60, Holy Name of Jesus Elementary School in San Francisco on school campus at 40th Ave. and Lawton. Contact Dennis Norton at (415) 454-3184 or danort@comcast.net

Datebook is a free listing for parishes, schools and non-profit groups. Please include event name, time, date, place, address and an information phone number. Listing must reach Catholic San Francisco at least two weeks before the Friday publication date desired. Mail your notice to: Datebook, Catholic San Francisco, One Peter Yorke Way, S.F. 94109, or fax it to (415) 614-5633, e-mail burket@sfarchdiocese.org, or visit www.catholic-sf.org, Contact Us.

YOUR BUSINESS CARD IN THE HANDS

Attach Card Here Deadline for November 5th Issue is October 22nd

210,000 R EADERS

Deadline for December 3rd Issue is November 19th Please do not write on your card.

C ATHOLIC S AN F RANCISCO

FOR

ONLY $112.00 PER MONTH IN OUR BUSINESS CARD SECTION NOW APPEARING THE FIRST FRIDAY OF EACH MONTH. THIS NEW SECTION IS CERTAINLY LESS EXPENSIVE THAN THE $65,000 IT WOULD COST TO PRINT AND MAIL YOUR BUSINESS CARDS TO ALL OUR READERS. ONLY $96.00 PER MONTH ON A *12-MONTH CONTRACT.

* FREE LISTING IN OUR BUSINESS DIRECTORY ON OUR WEBSITE*

AD HEADING NAME ADDRESS CITY ZIP

STATE PHONE

MAIL TO: CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO, BUSINESS CARD ONE PETER YORKE WAY, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

Gerontologist Electrical SERVICE DIRECTORY Clinical Care Management for the Older Adult ALL

For Advertising Information visit www.catholic-sf.org, Advertising; Call: 415-614-5642 • Fax: 415-614-5641 • E-mail: penaj@sfarchdiocese.org

Family Consultation –Bereavement Support

Drivers Ed Healthcare Agency

Striving to Achieve Optimum Health & Wellbeing

Kathy Faenzi, MA, Clinical Gerontologist Office: 650.401.6350 Web: www.faenziassociates.com

ELECTRIC SERVICE 650.322.9288

Senior Care SUPPLE SENIOR CARE

The Irish Rose

“The most compassionate care in town”

Home Healthcare Agency

Plumbing HOLLAND Plumbing Works San Francisco BONDED & INSURED

415-205-1235

BEST PLUMBING, INC.

EMAIL: bestplumbinginc@comcast.net

650.307.3890 Insured and Bonded - Affordable Rates Driving • Housekeeping • Meal prep • Personal Care

10% Discount: Seniors, Parishioners

bheffpainting@sbcglobal.net Member of Better Business Bureau Bonded, Insured – LIC. #819191

Roofing

Notary

Dr. Daniel J. Kugler

Breens’ Mobile Notary Services

Certified Signing Agent

PHONE: 415-846-1922 www.breensnotary.com

Cell (415) 517-5977

Affordable Decks • Additions • General Remodel • Carports

415.383.6122

➤ Hauling ➤ Job Site Clean-Up ➤ Demolition ➤ Yard Service ➤ Garbage Runs ➤ Saturday & Sunday

FREE ESTIMATES! • Fast & Affordable YOELSHAULING@YAHOO.COM

LAST-MINUTE SERVICE AVAILABLE

KEANE CONSTRUCTION Exterior / Interior Additions ➮ Baths Foundations, Stairs, Dry Rot Replacement Windows ➮ Kitchen Remodeling Architect Available ➮ Senior Discount

Ph. 415.515.2043 Ph. 650.508.1348

Carpet Cleaning

Call: 415.533.2265

Commercial & Residential Serving SF & San Mateo Co. St. Charles Parishioner

6 5 0 .2 9 1 . 4303

Lic. #742961

John Spillane

San Francisco: 415.337.9474 Complimentary phone consultation www.InnerChildHealing.com

FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED HELP Marriage, Family, and Individual Counseling David Nellis M.A. M.F.T. (415) 242-3355 www.christiancounseling2.com

Home Care

Tel: 415 759 0520

Mariah’s Garden Home Care Agency *

N. San Mateo County - SFO…$30 San Francisco - SFO………….$40* *plus airport fee Any other charter with reasonable price. Good Service. A-A Limousine Service • 415.308.2028 email: Augustshi@sbcglobal.net

NOTICE TO READERS

* Attendants * Companions * Hospice * Respite Care Competitive Rates • Screened • Insured • Bonded

Full Payroll Service www.irishhelpathome.com

Limousine

S.O.S. PAINTING CO. Interior-Exterior wallpaper hanging & removal Lic # 526818 Senior Discount

415-269-0446 650-738-9295

www.sospainting.net FREE ESTIMATES

Construction CAHALAN CONST.

Foundations, Earthquake Dryrot, Termite, Siding, Stucco Additions. Remodels lic# 582766

415.279.1266

MORROW CONTRUCTION Specializing In Wood Fences

(650) 994-6892 lic. 343633

painting and remodeling John Holtz Ca. Lic 391053 General Contractor Since 1980

(650) 355-4926

Painting & Remodeling QUALITY HOME CARE SERVING THE BAY AREA SINCE 1996

Visit us at catholic-sf.org

Airport Special Retaining Walls Stairs • Gates Dry Rot Senior & Parishioner Discounts

Lila Caffery, MA, CCHT

Safe Non-Toxic, No Shampoo, Dry in Hours not Days

(650) 593-5959

Lic. 407271

• • • •

Lic. 631209) 9)

(TCP 10581P)

PAUL (415) 282-2023

DEWITT ELECTRIC YOUR # 1 CHOICE FOR Recessed Lights – Outdoor Lighting Outlets – Dimmers – Service Upgrades • Trouble Shooting!

Lic.# 593788

➮ ➮ ➮ ➮

NOT A LICENSED CONTRACTOR

Electrical

CONSTRUCTION

Do you want to be more fulfilled in love and work – but find things keep getting in the way?

❖ 30 years experience with individuals, couples and groups ❖ Directed, effective and results-oriented ❖ Compassionate and Intuitive ❖ Supports 12-step ❖ Enneagram Personality Transformation ❖ Free Counseling for Iraqi/Afghanistani Vets

All Purpose

Construction

1537 Franklin Street • San Francisco, CA 94109

Inner Child Healing Offers a deep spiritual and psychological approach to counseling:

Painting, roof repair, fence (repair/ build) demolition, construction, gutter (clean/ repair), kitchen/ bathroom remodel, decks, welding, landscaping, gardening, hauling, moving, janitorial.

Lic. # 907564

Confidential • Compassionate • Practical (415) 921-1619 • Insurance Accepted

Unhealed wounds can hold you back - even if they are not the “logical” cause of your problems today. You can be the person God intended.

Handy Man

DA LY

When Life Hurts It Helps To Talk

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Over 30 years experience • Reasonable Fees

* Member National Notary Association *

(415) 786-0121 • (415) 586-6748

Counseling Painting • Family • Work • Relationships • Depression • Anxiety • Addictions

Timothy P. Breen Notary Public

Investment

by Accredited Caregivers

Call BILL 415.731.8065 • Cell: 415.710.0584

Member: Better Business Bureau

Fully Licensed • State Certified • Locally Trained • Experienced • On Call 24/7

Housekeeping & Senior Care

Lic. # 872560

➤ Drain-Sewer Cleaning Service ➤ Water Heaters ➤ Gas Pipes ➤ Toilets ➤ Faucets ➤ Garbage Disposals ➤ Copper Repiping ➤ Sewer Replacement ➤ Video Camera & Line locate PROMPT AND UNPARALLELED SERVICE

(650) 557-1263

Painting INTERIOR, EXTERIOR All Jobs Large and Small

Michael T. Santi

Your Payless Plumbing

*Irish owned & operated

PAINTING

Since 1972 Ca License # 663641 24 Hour Emergency Service

1655 Old Mission Road #3 Colma, SSF, CA 94080 415-573-5141 or 650-993-8036 *Serving from San Francisco to North San Mateo

BILL HEFFERON

anti Plumbing and Heating

415-661-3707

Serving San Francisco, Marin & the Peninsula.

Contact: 415.447.8463

ALL PLUMBING WORK PAT HOLLAND CA LIC #817607

Specializing in home health aides, attendants and companions.

Service Changes Solar Installation Lighting/Power Fire Alarm/Data Green Energy

Provides home help, companionship, personal care to seniors. Serving San Francisco Bay Area. Free assessment service 24/7.

Contact 650.619.5870 • 650.921.8161

Licensed contractors are required by law to list their license numbers in advertisments. The law also state that contractors performing work totaling $500 or more must be state-licensed. Advertisments appearing in this newspaper without a license number indicate that the contractor is not licensed.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: CONTRACTORS STATE LICENSE BOARD 800-321-2752

•Interiors •Exteriors •Kitchens •Baths Contractor inspection reports and pre-purchase consulting

Casarotti + Design

• Remodels • Additions • Free Estimates • Permit Drawings

650.255.5821 Lic. #933007

October 15, 2010

Driving School A-SAFE WAY DRIVING AND TRAFFIC SCHOOL Teenagers â&#x20AC;˘ Adults â&#x20AC;˘ Seniors 7 days/week pickup & dropoff A course schedule and plan to fit your needs

Call Collin at 415-665-1333

Certified Geriatric Aide CERTIFIED GERIATRIC HOME AIDE,

PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER!

native San Franciscan, 19 yrs. exp. seeks employment with elderly woman exc. ref. Will work overnight shifts 415-947-9858

Room For Rent Personal Assistant/ Caregiver: Honest, trustworthy, compassionate, looking to assist someone in the parish in need of help/health care. Responsible, discreet. CA drivers license in good standing. Excellent references.

VISIT US AT CATHOLIC-SF.ORG

Tahoe Rental

Room For Rent

RENTAL CONDO LAKE VINACATION SOUTH LAKE TAHOE. Sleeps TAHOE 8, near Heavenly Valley and Casinos. Call 925-933-1095 RENTAL See it at RentMyCondo.com#657

Catholic San Francisco

classifieds Visit www.catholic-sf.org

For website listings, advertising information & Place Classified Ad Form OR Call 415.614.5642, Fax 415.614.5641, Email penaj@sfarchdiocese.org

415-929-9242

Please respond to this e-mail. martid528@comcast.net

CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO

Catholic San Francisco

Furnished room for rent, $665/month, Richmond area in SF, close to shops and transportation. For working woman, non-smoker, no pets. Utilities included. CALL (415) 668-2690

Travel

Rummage Sale heaven RUMMAGE SALE canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t wait October 15, 16, 9 a.m. â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 3 p.m.: Serra for Priestly Vocations Please call Archdiocese of San Francisco Fr. Tom Daly (415) 614-5683

benefiting the Little Sisters of the Poor, St. Anneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Home, 300 Lake St. in San Francisco. Huge sale at Low Prices includes art, jewelry, a lot of furniture, books, clothing, collectibles, Christmas, linens, food.

Call Sandra Gulli: (415)776-8664

Chimney Cleaning Summ e Speciar/Fall ls

$89 NOVENAS PUBLISH A NOVENA Pre-payment required Mastercard or Visa accepted

Cost $26

If you wish to publish a Novena in the Catholic San Francisco You may use the form below or call 415-614-5640

Prayer to St. Jude Oh, Holy St. Jude, Apostle and Martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, near Kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor of all who invoke your special patronage in time of need, to you I have recourse from the depth of my heart and humbly beg to whom God has given such great power to come to my assistance. Help me in my present and urgent petition. In return I promise to make you be invoked. Say three our Fathers, three Hail Marys and Glorias. St. Jude pray for us all who invoke your aid. Amen. This Novena has never been known to fail. This Novena must be said 9 consecutive days. Thanks. M.M.

Your prayer will be published in our newspaper

St. Jude Novena

Name Adress Phone MC/VISA # Exp. Select One Prayer: â?&#x2018; St. Jude Novena to SH â?&#x2018; Prayer to St. Jude

â?&#x2018; Prayer to the Blessed Virgin â?&#x2018; Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Please return form with check or money order for $26 Payable to: Catholic San Francisco Advertising Dept., Catholic San Francisco 1 Peter Yorke Way, San Francisco, CA 94109

May the Sacred Heart of Jesus be adored, glorified, loved & preserved throughout the world now & forever. Sacred Heart of Jesus pray for us. St. Jude helper of the hopeless pray for us. Say prayer 9 times a day for 9 days. Thank You St. Jude. Never known to fail. You may publish.

S.M.

$119

$139

Automotive

Hilltop Buick Pontiac GMC Truck

I P L B A ! â&#x20AC;˘ Extensive inventory means selection â&#x20AC;˘ Competitive pricing â&#x20AC;˘ Give us your bid â&#x20AC;˘ We can offer YOU SAVINGS! â&#x20AC;˘ Exceptional customer service â&#x20AC;˘ Easy access off I-80 at Hilltop Richmond

N â&#x20AC;˘ 510.222.4141 3230 Auto Plaza, Richmond 94806

. .

Catholic San Francisco

October 15, 2010

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