March 6, 2009 by Catholic San Francisco

Rite of Election Archbishop invites nearly 200 catechumens to be fully initiated at Easter Vigil San Francisco Archbishop George H. Niederauer presided at the Rite of Election March 1 at St. Mary’s Cathedral with more than 1,200 people in attendance. “We are expecting 198 catechumens, 66 candidates for reception into full Communion of the Catholic Church and 165 Catholic candidates seeking to complete their initiation through Eucharist and-or Confirmation,” Patrick Vallez-Kelly, director of worship for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, told Catholic San Francisco in anticipation of the day. “They are coming from 55 parishes of the Archdiocese.” Through the Rite, the catechumens become Elect – those chosen by Archbishop Niederauer to be fully initiated – baptized, confirmed and brought into Holy Communion – at this year’s Easter Vigil. The candidates to be received into the Catholic Church are those who are already baptized through another Christian community and who will soon make a profession of faith, be confirmed and join the Catholic Church in Eucharist. “In Sunday’s Rite they, RITE OF ELECTION, page 3

Accompanied by her sponsor, a catechumen signs the Book of the Elect in the Rite of Election March 1 at St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco. As catechumens signed the book, following an invitation by Archbishop George H. Niederauer, the assembly of more than 1,200 joined them in prayer and song.

Catholic san Francisco

Catholic governor named for post of HHS secretary By Nancy Frazier O’Brien WASHINGTON (CNS) – A Catholic governor whose archbishop has told her not to receive Communion until she changes her stand on abortion is President Barack Obama’s latest choice for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. HHS SECRETARY, page 9

Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper

Mexican priest and social justice leader says Christ’s love for poor is key to Church renewal

(CNS PHOTO/JIM YOUNG, REUTERS)

By Rick DelVecchio

Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is introduced by President Barack Obama as his nominee to head U.S. Health and Human Services March 2 in the East Room of the White House in Washington.

Christ’s love for the poor is key to renewing a Church mired in drab pragmatism, says Father Camilo Perez, a social justice leader for the Church in Mexico. A vital Church in the Americas will be less about administration and doctrine and more about bearing witness to those who lack human dignity—especially to the migrants whose search for dignity forces them to move to the centers of wealth despite the rising risks of relocating, said Father Perez. He spoke at a Feb. 27 breakfast meeting hosted by Auxiliary Bishop William Justice at St. Mary’s Cathedral. “Our Church unfortunately is living a pragmatic crisis of daily life—the grayness of the pragmatic life,” said Father Perez, a diocesan vicar under Bishop Juan Guillermo Soto in CuauhtémocMadera, Mexico, and former secretary general of the Conference of Mexican Bishops for Justice and Peace. The prophetic vision of the Church is degenerating, he said. “We need to start again—go to the deep roots in the Bible,” he said. “We need to revitalize our way of being Catholic.”

Several Archdiocese of San Francisco offices, the Spanish-speaking choirs of the Archdiocese and Trabajo Cultural Caminante, a non-profit organization concerned with the experience of migrant people sponsored the meeting. Speaking to an audience that included visitors from Latin America and Catholic social justice ministry workers in the Archdiocese and neighboring dioceses, Father Perez addressed the political crisis in Mexico and its effects on immigration in the United States. The meeting came amid growing concerns about the well being of migrants on both sides of the border. Advocates for migrant rights are alarmed about the threat to mobility caused by rising drug-related violence in Mexico and arms trafficking across the border. In the United States, they want an end to workplace raids targeting undocumented workers and are seeking comprehensive immigration reform from the Obama Administration and Congress. Janet Napolitano, President Obama’s Homeland Security Secretary, has ordered reviews of many of the department’s programs, including worksite enforcement, immigration detention and combating border violence and drug smuggling. She has said she is particularly concerned about drug-related MEXICAN PRIEST, page 6

INSIDE THIS WEEK’S EDITION Chaplains on Hill . . . . . . . . . 3 News in brief. . . . . . . . . . . 4-5 Archbishop’s journal . . . . . . 11 Letters and columns . . . 14-15 Volunteer summit . . . . . . . . 18

Immigration forum in San Francisco ~ Page 7 ~ March 6, 2009

Ash Wednesday at SF State ~ Page 8 ~

Year of St. Paul ‘Ecclesia Romana’ ~ Page 17 ~

SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS

Media and Datebook. . . 20-21 Classified ads . . . . . . . . 22-23

www.catholic-sf.org VOLUME 11

•

No. 9

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

On The

Students from fourth, sixth and seventh grades at San Francisco’s St. Elizabeth Elementary School used their penmanship let President Barack Obama know what was on their minds in notes recently mailed to the new chief exec at his Pennsylvania Ave address. Shown with the parcel of missives before it was dispatched are fourth graders Nicole Alvarez, back left, Brendan Diaz, Kymber Gastinell, and Franco Mercado with Matthew Da Silva and Vanessa Yu holding the first-class delivery. Gene Dabdoub is school principal. Father Charito Suan is pastor.

Where You Live By Tom Burke Gotta’ say ‘Thanks’ and ‘Nice catch’ to Eleanore Howard who caught the typo in my quote from Msgr. John Foudy, now living at Alma Via Residence in San Francisco. “They still like me here” were Monsignor Foudy’s words and not “The still like me here” as was published after my poor proofing of the text. Eleanore has lived her entire life in San Francisco’s St. James Parish. In fact, Msgr. Foudy baptized here there in 1941. Her parents, Nell and Walter Howard, were married at St. James in 1929 and, now deceased, were also buried from the church. “Father Jerry Foley is our pastor now and he is a fantastic homilist,” Eleanore told me during the gentle scolding I so rightly deserved. She also said Catholic San Francisco “is part of my Friday reading” and we are always glad to hear that!…As Lent proceeds be sure to put the new Sister Colleen Kern, Memorial Garden at Immaculate SNJM Heart of Mary Parish on your list of places to visit. Parishioners Hermann Horn and Dan Silva did the heavy lifting on the project along with volunteers who have helped since with watering, weeding and a lot more. In January, IHM pastor, Father Stephen Howell, to the strains of the wellknown spiritual “In the Garden” by the parish choir, blessed the new prayer site. “The parishioners did it all themselves,” said Gail Weber, IHM operations manager. “It is beautiful.” So, if you need a break and are near Alameda de las Pulgas and Ralston Ave. in

Belmont, give this peace a chance!…A Bunsen burner salute for students from St. Charles Elementary School in San Carlos on recognition received in the recent San Mateo County Science Fair. The list includes Matthew Denton, Sydney Flak and Brenna Ram, whose first place finishes will take them to the Bay Area Science Fair later this month, and Griffin Kraemer whose top spot takes him to the State Science Fair in Los Angeles in May. School principal is Maureen Grazioli. Pastor is Father Dave Ghiorso…. Happy 80th birthday Jan. 31 to Holy Names Sister Colleen Kern whose family and friends helped her relish the milestone at festivities in San Rafael. Formerly known as Sister Miriam Patrice, Sister Colleen was born in San Rafael and attended St. Anselm School in Ross in a time when elementary and secondary divisions existed at the site. In 2008, she celebrated her 60th year as a religious. She has taught every elementary school grade and has served as principal at St. Anselm and taught at other locations

St. Charles School students Matthew Denton, left, Sydney Flak, Brenna Ram, Mari Andreatta, Jordan Doherty, and Griffin Kraemer all took home prizes from this year’s San Mateo County Science Fair.

Father Stephen Howell blesses new Memorial Garden at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Belmont.

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including St. Cecilia’s, San Francisco; Marin Catholic High School, St. Raphael’s and St. Isabella’s. Today, she directs a children’s choir at St. Anthony Parish in Novato and many remember her from years past as a parish song-leader. The singingSister has also sung with the Sweet Adelines, known well for their Barbershop harmonies. Jan Tomeo met Sister Colleen when both were part of the group in 1974. They have remained friends since. “A champion of causes, determined, disciplined, patriotic, spirited, tender, compassionate, loyal, loving and full of faith, I stand back in reverence before the miracle of this individual,” Jan said in remarks at Sister Colleen’s 60th jubilee party….This is an empty space without you! E-mail items and pictures to burket@ sfarchdiocese.org. Mail items and pictures to “Street”, One Peter Yorke Way, SF 94109.Pix should be hard copy or electronic jpeg at 300 dpi. Don’t forget to include a follow-up phone number. Call me at (415) 614-5634 and I’ll walk you through it.

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March 6, 2009

Holding the Book of the Elect, parish Rite of Christian Initiation leaders face the assembly during the Rite of Election March 1 at St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco.

Rite of Election . . . ■ Continued from cover along with their sponsors, are called by the Archbishop to continue their journey of faith and conversion, especially during this new Lenten season,” Vallez-Kelly said. They

Archbishop Niederauer and deacons proceed to the altar before an assembly of 1,200.

pleting their Christian initiation at different times, but many of them at the celebration of Confirmation with Archbishop Niederauer on Pentecost Sunday, May 31, at the Cathedral. In an opening prayer the Archbishop asked God to “protect those about to become your children and those already in your care.”

may be received into the Church at the Easter Vigil or at another time soon, perhaps a Sunday of the Easter Season, he pointed out. The Catholic candidates seeking to complete their initiation are generally adults who, for a variety of reasons, did not celebrate their first Holy Communion or were not confirmed as youth. They will be com-

Chaplains observe how faith can guide leaders on Capitol Hill By Dennis Sadowski WASHINGTON (CNS) – Nine years ago, Father Daniel P. Coughlin was two weeks into his job as chaplain of the U.S. House of Representatives when he figured out how he was going to do his job on Capitol Hill. The priest from the Chicago Archdiocese began his job in March 2000 under some controversy when then-House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., was accused of being anti-Catholic because he initially chose a Presbyterian minister for the job. A man who came up to Father Coughlin wanted to know what the new chaplain was going to do to put the “fracas” aside. Trying to be diplomatic, Father Coughlin told the man he was looking to the future and the controversy was in the past. “I told him two weeks ago I was a nobody working in Chicago,” the priest recalled. “That’s it,” the man told Father Coughlin. “You’re a nobody and you came here to tell anybody that there is somebody who has grace and healing for everybody.” The man turned and disappeared into a crowd of tourists. “I swear he was an angel,” Father Coughlin told an audience of 50 during a program called “Faith on the Hill” at the

Georgetown University Law Center near Capitol Hill March 2. “But that has been my attitude.” Father Coughlin joined Barry C. Black, a Seventh-day Adventist who is chaplain to the U.S. Senate, in discussing their work among the hundreds of representatives, their families and their staffs as well as visitors to the U.S. Capitol in a program moderated by Michael Goldman, Jewish campus minister at the law center. Since joining the House Father Coughlin said he has not let cynicism creep into his work despite hearing deep-seated feelings of skepticism and pessimism toward Congress when he talks with average people whose views come primarily from what they hear in the media. Both men said they repeatedly see how faith guides the work of many elected officials as they seek to solve some of the most pressing issues the country is facing. Both chaplains also said they often are called upon for advice and counsel before votes are cast on some of these major issues. “I think there’s a lot more faith on the hill than the media carries,” Father Coughlin said. “I’m happy with that because I’m not sure all the media knows how to talk about religion without making it seem a little silly or putting it on the edge of things.”

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Black, a retired rear admiral in the U.S. Navy, leads five Bible study groups a week. Divided into sessions for senators, their families and their staff, Black said the gatherings help people remain grounded in something other than what they hear from the media, lobbyists and corporate interests. He also conducts a 10-week spiritual

mentoring class for individuals chosen from the Bible study groups to help them learn the spiritual disciplines of prayer and ethics. “There are remarkable spiritual journeys on Capitol Hill,” Black said. “But I am convinced that going to Capitol Hill actually makes you more spiritually vulnerable. CHAPLAINS ON HILL, page 8

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Catholic San Francisco

NEWS

March 6, 2009

in brief

Defending conscience rights

Evolution debate continues WASHINGTON (CNS) – With scientists, theologians and philosophers gathering March 3-7 in Rome for a Vatican-sponsored congress marking the 150th anniversary of the publication of Charles Darwin’s theory on evolution, they hope to help Catholic Church officials better understand some of the current thought and research related to evolutionary biology. “The program is to reorient the conversation between the Catholic Church and modern natural science, to get a new kind of conversation going,” explained Phillip Sloan, professor of liberal studies at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana and a congress plan-

(CNS/L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO VIA REUTERS)

WASHINGTON – To combat what they see as threats to the conscience rights of health care professionals who oppose abortion, the Catholic Medical Association and other organizations are taking both legal and educational steps. Philadelphia-based Catholic Medical Association, which has some 1,100 members nationwide, has joined with the Christian Medical Association and the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists in an effort to intervene legally against lawsuits filed by the attorneys general of eight states, Planned Parenthood of America and the National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association. The suits seek to overturn a Department of Health and Human Services regulation that codifies several existing federal statutes prohibiting discrimination against health professionals who decline to participate in abortions or other medical procedures because of their religious or other moral objections. Pope Benedict XVI meets priests from the Diocese of Rome during an audience at the Vatican Feb. 26. At the meeting with more than 400 priests, the pope said his social encyclical has been delayed in order for it to address the complexity of the current global economic crisis. The encyclical is tentatively entitled “Caritas in Veritate” (“Love in Truth”).

ner. “It’s establishing a dialogue on science and theology because of the great challenges that modern sciences are presenting to traditional theological understanding,” he said. Sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Culture under its Science, Technology and the Ontological Quest project, the University of Notre Dame and several of Rome’s pontifical universities, the gathering of international scholars and Vatican officials is one of a series of events surrounding the publication of Darwin’s landmark work.

One Family In Mission Grave concerns voiced “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” Haven’t we sometimes felt abandoned ourselves? As we cope with illness, death, job loss or other burdens? At these times, hope seems to have disappeared. And yet, in the midst of our darkness, we remember that God did not abandon His beloved Son, but raised Him from death to glory. And God does not abandon us. Everyone should know that. This Lent, will you support the priests, Sisters, Brothers and lay catechists in the Missions who bring this hope-filled Easter message to the poor and suffering?

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in the wake of revelations that the late Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, founder of the Legionaries of Christ, fathered a daughter while serving as leader of the international religious order. Pope Benedict XVI had previously removed the Mexican priest from public ministry in 2006, asking him to lead a life of prayer and penance after Father Maciel faced allegations of sexual abuse of seminarians and financial irregularities. “It seems to me and many others that this was a man with an entrepreneurial genius who, by systematic deception and duplicity, used our faith to manipulate others for his own selfish ends,” Archbishop O’Brien told the Baltimore archdiocesan newspaper. Father Maciel died in 2008. Jim Fair, a U.S. spokesman for the order, said revelations about Father Maciel have been a “great shock” and “great disappointment” to members, but that the order has achieved “very positive things” for the church.

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News in brief . . . n Continued from page 4

(CNS/VICTOR ALEMAN, VIDA NUEVA)

budget â&#x20AC;&#x201C; has nearly devastated the senior citizen ombudsman program she oversees for Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Stockton. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our state wiped out our funding,â&#x20AC;? Toepel told Catholic News Service. The cut, part of the $500 million Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger slashed from state spending in October to meet a budget shortfall, is small in comparison to others across the state. However, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s making a huge difference in the way Toepel and her staff are able to go about their jobs. Toepel is not alone. Catholic Charities and other programs operated by faith-based agencies across the country are seeing reductions in funding for contracted work as well as from private sources. A January survey of Catholic Charities agencies showed that about 20 percent of agencies had cut basic needs programs while 16 percent of agencies were forced to reduce housing assistance.

Young people pray during the Religious Education Congress in Anaheim, Calif., Feb. 27. The Religious Education Congress, sponsored by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Religious Education, is one the nationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest annual Catholic gatherings. The four-day event drew some 40,000 teenagers, young adults, and pastoral ministers from across the country and as far away as the United Kingdom and Australia. The congress is very popular with pastoral musicians and attendance is strong among music directors and other music ministers of the Archdiocese of San Francisco. Cardinal Roger Mahony, Archbishop of Los Angeles presided at the eventâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s closing Mass.

Park cross to court WASHINGTON â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a church-state case involving a cross erected by the Veterans of Foreign Wars in a national park in California. The case, Salazar v. Buono, has been in litigation since 1999 after Frank Buono, a retired National Park Service employee described in court papers as â&#x20AC;&#x153;a practicing Roman Catholic,â&#x20AC;? objected to the continued presence of the cross when a request by a third party to build a Buddhist shrine on the land was turned down. Arguments in the case will be heard sometime after the court begins its next term Oct. 5. Buono, who was assistant superintendent of the Mojave National Preserve in Californiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s San Bernardino County, 1994-95, said the 8-foot-tall cross on the preserveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sunrise Rock violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment as a â&#x20AC;&#x153;governmental endorsement of Christianity.â&#x20AC;? Built in 1934 by the VFW, the cross has been used intermittently since 1935 and regularly since 1984 for Easter sunrise services.

Church statistics released VATICAN CITY â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The latest church statistics show that the number of priests and seminarians around the world has been showing a modest, yet steady increase. The statistics from the end of 2007 also showed that the number of Catholics remains stable at 1.147 billion people across the globe. The sampling of statistics was released Feb. 28. The Vatican said the global Catholic population increased during 2007 by 1.4 percent, which more or less kept pace with the 1.1 percent global birthrate that year. For the past two years, Catholics have made up 17.3 percent of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population, it said. The number of priests in the world also rose, but just by 0.18 percent. At the end of 2007 there were 408,024 priests in the world, 762 more than at the beginning of the year. The figure on the number of priests was showing a continued â&#x20AC;&#x153;trend of moderate growth which began in 2000 after more than 20 years of disappointing results,â&#x20AC;? the Vatican report said.

Call to conversion ROME â&#x20AC;&#x201C; If people act on Godâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s call to conversion, he will forgive them everything and bless them, Pope Benedict XVI said just before receiving ashes and distributing ashes to mark the beginning of Lent. â&#x20AC;&#x153;As we prepare to receive the ashes on our foreheads as a sign of conversion and repentance, let us open our hearts to the life-giving action of the word of God,â&#x20AC;? the pope told people gathered in Romeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Basilica of St. Sabina Feb. 25. In his homily, Pope Benedict said the readings chosen by the church for Ash Wednesday are meant to give guidance to Christians for the 40 days of Lent and to provide them with encouragement to follow the Lenten journey of conversion with courage. The call to conversion is loud and clear in each part of the Ash Wednesday Mass from the opening prayer to the readings and hymns, he said.

as long as poverty levels continue to rise. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Lack of money and poor living standards have greatly contributed to the rise in HIV/ AIDS infections in Africa. In Zambia, for instance, where about 70 percent of the people live in poverty, most young women and girls resort to earning a living through prostitution,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This exposes them to HIV.â&#x20AC;?

Catholic-Muslim talks VATICAN CITY â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Textbooks used in Catholic and Muslim schools and in predominantly Catholic or Muslim nations should be reviewed and revised to ensure a respectful, accurate portrayal of the

Catholic San Francisco

history and beliefs of the other community, said members of a Catholic-Muslim dialogue. The annual dialogue between Vatican representatives and representatives of al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt â&#x20AC;&#x201C; a leading Muslim institution â&#x20AC;&#x201C; was held at the Vatican Feb. 24-25 and focused on the role of religions in teaching peace. Both Christianity and Islam consider peace to be a gift from God that requires human cooperation, said the final statement from the meeting. Religious leaders must work to ensure that â&#x20AC;&#x153;a culture of peaceâ&#x20AC;? permeates all their activities, particularly their educational efforts, said the statement. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Scholastic books should be revised in order not to contain material which may offend the religious sentiments of other believersâ&#x20AC;? in the way their doctrines, moral teachings and history are presented, the leaders said.

Middle East exodus VATICAN CITY â&#x20AC;&#x201C; The need to find ways to stop the slow, yet steady departure of Christians from the Middle East has come into greater focus recently. Pope Benedict XVI urged the dwindling Arab Christian minority to patiently persist in its struggle to survive and hold onto its religious and cultural identity when he met with bishops from Iraq, Iran and Turkey who were in Rome to report on their dioceses early this year. And he will have many public occasions to reach out and appeal directly to Christians with his proposed visit to the Holy Land May 8-15. The Christian exodus has become so severe that Iraqi bishops called on the pope to convene a regional synod to address the problem. In the meantime, conferences were held in Detroit, Lebanon and Rome in February to underline the important role Christians play in Muslim-majority nations. The Rome gathering organized by the Santâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Egidio Community brought together Christian and Muslim scholars and religious leaders from the Middle East to discuss the value and contribution of the Eastern Christian churches in Arab nations.

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Poverty, culture counter Church HIV efforts LUSAKA, Zambia â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Extreme poverty and cultural practices are contributing to the AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa, despite efforts to control HIV, said church officials. Dr. Gilbert Buckle, executive secretary of the health department at the National Catholic Secretariat of Ghana, said although Africans have seen their peers die from AIDS, many â&#x20AC;&#x201C; especially women â&#x20AC;&#x201C; still indulge in desperate acts in order to earn a living, hence exposing themselves to infection. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Sub-Saharan Africa has about 30 million people living with HIV/AIDS; this figure is likely to rise due to cultural, social and economic factors, particularly in West Africa,â&#x20AC;? he told Catholic News Service. Sister Matildah Mubanga, a member of the Daughters of the Redeemer and national health coordinator for the Zambian bishopsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; conference, said the fight against HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, will remain difficult

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Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

Mexican priest . . . ■ Continued from cover violence in Mexico and southbound traffic in assault weapons and cash. “The situation in Mexico is one of the top priority items on my desk,” she told the House Homeland Security Committee in testimony Feb. 26. “Mexico has issues of violence that are of a different degree and level than anything we’ve ever seen before.” There were 6,000 drug-related homicides in Mexico last year and there have been a thousand since January, she said. The crisis presents the Church in the Americas with a “great continental mission” to renew Christ’s vision and appeal to Catholics who are leaving the Church because they are not finding spiritual fulfillment, Father Perez said. “Sincere people who leave the Church aren’t doing so for dogmatic reasons but for testimonial reasons, for lived experience,” Father Perez said. “They’re leaving because they are not finding testimony to their faith.” The Church should respond with “profound pastoral communion,” he said, arguing for a greater role for the

laity and for deacons in ministering to the poor. He also called for a shift in clerical priorities from administration to bearing witness to the lives of the poor—pastoring “from the gut,” as he put it. “The Church is not a proselytizing agency but a work of attraction,” Father Perez said. “Dignity of life is the central point. It’s not about getting members. The most important thing is the struggle for a dignified life for everybody.” He said the 5th general conference of Latin American bishops, held in Aparecida, Brazil, in 2007, reaffirmed the preferential treatment of the poor as the heart of the Church’s mission. He held up the conference as a guide for the Church’s response to the migration crisis today. At the core of the crisis is a quest for dignity as people “are forced to migrate to the poles of wealth” to find meaning in their lives, said Father Perez, who recalled serving as a pastor in a Mexican community where all the young had fled and the fields had turned barren. Under these conditions the freedom to relocate is so important as to be a human right, he argued. The Church must play its part in showing nations that the migration crisis is primarily one of human dignity. “You might say we’re asking Santa Claus for a gift— universal citizenship,” Father Perez said.

(PHOTO BY RICK DELVECCHIO/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)=

Father Camilo Perez: “We need to revitalize our way of being Catholic.”

As drug violence rises, bishops in Mexico urge reconciling with God MEXICO CITY (CNS) – Catholic bishops in Chihuahua urged local residents to “reconcile with God” during the Lenten period as they confront increasing drugrelated violence that has claimed nearly 400 lives so far this year in the northern Mexican state, which borders Texas and New Mexico. A letter from the bishops followed the recent acknowledgment by federal officials that the ongoing war against drug cartels claimed nearly 6,300 lives nationwide in 2008 and more than 1,000 lives nationwide this year. “It’s not only the government or the soldiers or prisons that can provide a solution to what happens. All of us, changing from inside, can build a new world. Only new hearts will make a new society. And only God can, if we allow Him, change our hearts,” the six bishops of the ecclesiastical province of Chihuahua said in a March 1 message published in local newspapers. “We shout with the hearts of pastors: Repent and change your life. God is willing to forgive, but this forgiveness entails being willing to go back to repair the damages and withdraw from this activity of death,” they said. The letter was signed by Archbishop Jose Fernandez Arteaga of Chihuahua, Bishop Renato Ascencio Leon of Ciudad Juarez, Bishop Jose Corral Arredondo of Parral, Bishop Gerardo Rojas Lopez of Nuevo Casas Grandes, Bishop Juan Lopez Soto of Cuauhtemoc-Madera and Bishop Rafael Sandoval Sandoval of Tarahumara. The violence has been especially fierce in Chihuahua, which security analysts say is a key corridor for cartels wanting to smuggle drugs into the United States and import weapons for turf wars and assassinations. Things became so dire in southern Chihuahua that Bishop Corral declared in November that those killed in drug-related activities would be denied funeral rites.

R EM T E R E E T A I T N SG S

(CNS PHOTO/ALEJANDRO BRINGAS, REUTERS)

By David Agren

Mexican soldiers arrive at the airport of the border city of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, March 1. Nearly 5,000 Mexican soldiers and police have been deployed to Ciudad Juarez to restore law and order to the country’s most violent city.

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Our Lenten Journey Presented by Fr. Tom Weston, S.J. “Early in the morning, while it was still dark, Mary went to the tomb.” Join us Wednesday, March11th, for a special breakfast featuring Fr. Tom Weston. Fr. Tom will present some reflections on Lent, the challenges we face today, and living our lives in the light of Easter. Fr. Tom Weston is one of the most popular speakers in the Bay Area so don’t miss this unique opportunity! With his very diverse background in teaching, leading, and counseling, Fr. Tom’s presentation should be a great addition to everyone’s Lenten journey. Originally from San Jose, Fr. Tom entered the Society of Jesus in 1965. He graduated from Gonzaga University in Spokane, WA in 1971 and subsequently taught history and theology at Loyola High School in Los Angeles. This was followed by studying theology at the Jesuit School of Theology in Berkeley, receiving his Masters in Divinity in 1977. Tom was ordained a priest in 1978 by Archbishop John Quinn in San Francisco, CA. He has also been the Director of the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, Southwest. Since 1984 he has led retreats on a full-time basis with recovering addicts and alcoholics. Currently, Tom is the Superior of the Jesuit Community in Oakland.

Event Details – Event Date: Wednesday, March 11th Event Location: Palio D’Asti Restaurant, 640 Sacramento Street at Montgomery; San Francisco, CA 94111 Format: Registration begins at 7:00am followed by mass. Program begins at 7:30am, ending by 8:30am. Includes breakfast buffet. Registration: Either mail your money in with the form below or pay at the door.

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In Ciudad Juarez, meanwhile, 250 people were killed in drug crackdowns in February, and the federal government ordered another 5,000 police officers and soldiers into Chihuahua and Ciudad Juarez, which borders El Paso, Texas. Bishop Ascencio used a preLenten message to urge residents to depend more on God during the crisis. “The evil is so large that, on its own, it makes us think that we need the strength that comes from God for overcoming the evil that there is in our own hearts and the evil that is around us,” the bishop said in the message.

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Catholic San Francisco

7 (JOSE AGUIRRE/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)

March 6, 2009

At right, Father Gabriel Flores, pastor of St. Anthony Parish in San Francisco, prays at a vigil held at St. Peter Church before participants marched to Horace Mann Middle School for a town hall meeting on immigration issues. Speakers included Capt. Gary Jimenez of the San Francisco Police Department, at center, and Jamal Dajani of the San Francisco Immigrant Rights Defense Committee. Left, audience members listening to speakers, who included a representative of Mayor Gavin Newsomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office and members of the Board of Supervisors.

Heated immigration forum challenges San Francisco as a sanctuary city By Michael Vick Participants at a Feb. 25 town hall meeting on immigration issues held in San Franciscoâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Mission District demanded an end to Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and an immediate reconsideration of immigration reform. Sponsored by the San Francisco Immigrant Rights Defense Committee, the forum joined local political leaders with those affected by ICE raids, and aired concerns over city policy regarding the reporting to ICE of undocumented minors accused of felonies. The forum drew several hundred people to hear from a panel that included San Francisco Board of Supervisors members as well as Mike Farrah, a representative of Mayor Gavin Newsom. Forum participant Guadalupe Carreno, 15, said that although she does well in school, her familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s economic situation after her fatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s deportation could end her college dreams. Matt Alexander, Guadalupeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s principal at the June Jordan School for Equity, told supervisors his job involves teaching children what it means to be American. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Declaration of Independence says everyone has a right to life, liberty and the

E D U C A T I O N

pursuit of happiness,â&#x20AC;? Alexander said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re counting on you to make sure those words on paper are not a joke.â&#x20AC;? No representative of ICE was at the meeting, but Catholic San Francisco contacted ICE spokesperson Lori Haley to get the agencyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s response to community complaints. Haley said that while ICE acknowledges the impact of its raids, they are necessary. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Our responsibility is to uphold the laws of our nation,â&#x20AC;? Haley said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;These individuals who are here in this country have made the choice to be here illegally. They are the ones putting their children at risk of being negatively impacted if they are deported.â&#x20AC;? Ira Mehlman, spokesperson for the Washington, D.C.-based Federation for American Immigration Reform, agreed. â&#x20AC;&#x153;In any situation in which parents break the law, there are inevitably ramifications for their children,â&#x20AC;? Mehlman said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t decide not to pay my taxes, then tell the government they canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t touch me because theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll hurt my kids. Children are not human shields.â&#x20AC;? Farrah, head of the cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office of neighborhood services, drew particular scorn from many people upset that the mayor himself did not make an appearance at the meeting. In his address to the forum, Farrah made no

formal commitments on behalf of the mayor, but said he would convey the crowdâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sentiments to Newsom. Supervisor David Campos had strong words for the mayor. â&#x20AC;&#x153;When the community creates a town hall, the mayor should show his respect by showing his face,â&#x20AC;? Campos said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He needs to come here to the Mission. If the mayor doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t act on immigration issues, the Board of Supervisors is ready to act.â&#x20AC;? The cityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sanctuary laws came under fire last year after the shooting deaths of a father and his two sons by an undocumented gang member who had managed to avoid

deportation despite brushes with the law at 17. Campos said the revision of city policy regarding the reporting of minors to ICE was an overreaction to the incident. Several forum participants complained of being targeted by police for unwarranted traffic stops and vehicle seizures. Capt. Gary Jimenez of the San Francisco Police Department, head of the Tenderloin police district, told the crowd that he did not, and nor should they tolerate racial profiling on the part of San Francisco police officers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Every police officer serves you,â&#x20AC;? Jimenez said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You should not let them be anything but honest.â&#x20AC;?

Upcoming immigration events March 6: The San Francisco Immigrant Legal and Education Network will host a family preparedness meeting educating immigrants on emergency plans in the event of a ICE detention of a family member. The event will be at 5:30 p.m. at the Judith Baker Child Care Center, 685 Natoma Street in San Francisco. March 7: St. Anthony Parish, 3215 Cesar ChĂĄvez St. in San Francisco, will host a forum on immigration issues at 6 p.m. Congressman Luis Gutierrez (D-Illinois), a representative of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, will attend.

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Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

St. Thomas More Church Newman Center celebrates Ash Wednesday Mass at SF State Mass, several stayed behind to join the bishop at a questionand-answer roundtable. Bishop Justice shared his experience of being elected as a bishop, his vocation and his enthusiasm to have shared with students amid his busy schedule.

San Francisco State University welcomed the new season of Lent with its fifth Ash Wednesday Mass on campus. The Mass drew more than 150 SF State students and marked the first time that a bishop celebrated an Ash Wednesday at the campus Newman Center. Auxiliary Bishop William Justice was the main celebrant, with Monsignor Labib Kobti, pastor at St.Thomas More Church and Campus Minister, and Father Nicasio Paloso, parochial vicar at Holy Name of Jesus Parish in San Francisco, as concelebrants. Many young Catholic university students of different ethnicities, languages and cultures filled the chairs and lined the walls as they came to God with their whole hearts—which is precisely what Lent is about. The whole event not only made the students aware that the Lenten season had come, but also prepared them for their journey this season with God. Auxiliary Bishop William Justice blesses a young woman at the The Sacrament of Reconciliation was Ash Wednesday Mass held at San Francisco State University. offered to students an hour before the Mass, which many students took the opportunity The Mass drew more than 150 students. to receive The homily given by Bishop Justice was experienced as The annual Ash Wednesday Mass has become a popular words spoken close to home for the students as he invited event for students. Many young adult Catholics on campus look them to begin this time of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving expectantly for the “Ash Wednesday Mass” poster to hang in with something as simple as coming to God with all that one the Cesar Chavez Student Center every year. is. Even if it is a complaint over one’s heavy school load, that Early Wednesday morning, Feb. 25, the Newman campus in itself is the beginning of communicating with God and ministry student team headed by Sister Sufern Khoo, a sister drawing close to Him. of the Verbum Dei Missionary Fraternity, handed out invitaWhile most students rushed out to lunch and classes after tions and chalked the ground with reminders of the event

Chaplains on hill . . . ■ Continued from page 3 “Most of these senators have experienced a succession of successes and then suddenly they enter the marvelous deliberative body called the United States Senate, which was designed by the framers to enable the minority to produce a stalemate. Here are people who are accustomed to using their intellects, their talents to accomplish things often discovering that their best efforts will not be good enough,” he said. Black described his job as helping senators understand the ethical and moral dimensions of their votes.

“The best of the senators have the ability to not make a false dichotomy between the religious and the secular,” he explained. Father Coughlin said some of the most serious discussions he has had with House members came in 2003 during the debate to authorize the U.S. war in Iraq and in February as President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus package was being considered. In response to a question from Goldman, Father Coughlin said the debates within the Catholic Church over withholding Holy Communion from public officials whose votes may be perceived as being against Church teaching were “very upsetting.”

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Many students repeatedly expressed their gratitude for bringing the Ash Wednesday Mass on campus because of the great difficulty they have to make it to Mass with their busy lives. Moreover, one of the greatest highlights of the Mass was the collaboration between Campus Ministers (Monsignor Kobti and various members of the Verbum Dei Missionary Fraternity) and students, especially Newman Center leaders. All shared in the appreciation of willingness and hard work that each had put into making Ash Wednesday a success, and especially for the support of the Archdiocese with the presence of Bishop Justice and Mary Jansen, archdiocesan director of Young Adult Ministries and Campus Ministry. Overall, it was a beautiful and sacred moment for all to begin this Lenten journey with authentic hearts that had profoundly met the all-embracing compassion of God’s yearning for His children to “return with their whole hearts.” To this end, many students signed up to the weekly prayer groups, social outreach activities, Lenten and Easter retreats, a summer immersion trip, and other means of spiritual growth offered by the Newman Center in conjunction with the Verbum Dei Missionary Fraternity. “I talked to members of the hierarchy on that as well as members of the House,” he said. “To both I said I will stay with my people whatever you do. I will be with my people whatever you do. I will hear them out. I will be with them.” Black said theological issues do not separate the views of officials as much as philosophical views on the role of government in people’s lives. “I’ve discovered in terms of theology that most people have enough in common doctrinally that they can get along,” he said. “Where there are differences, I don’t think usually the theological differences are the ones that are going to be dominant. There will always be differences as long as you’re debating two sides of an issue.”

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HHS secretary . . . ■ Continued from cover The nomination of Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as HHS secretary was announced March 2 at a White House news conference. The 60-year-old Sebelius has been governor of Kansas since 2003. “Health care reform that reduces costs while expanding coverage is no longer just a dream we hope to achieve – it’s a necessity we have to achieve,” Obama said in announcing his selection of Sebelius as HHS secretary and Nancy-Ann DeParle, a health care expert in the Clinton administration, as director of the White House Office for Health Reform. Sebelius has drawn strong criticism from Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann of Kansas City, Kan., who said in 2008 that she should not present herself for Communion until she publicly repudiates her support for abortion. The archbishop said his decision was not based only on her April 2008 veto of the Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act, which would have placed new requirements on abortion providers, but on “a 30-year history of advocating and acting in support of legalized abortion.” Dr. Charmaine Yoest, president of Americans United for Life (www.aul.org), summarized the reaction of the pro-life community, saying, “Nominating someone with an extremist record on abortion who is also associated with the most notorious abortionist in America to be Secretary of Health and Human Services is offensive. This is a politically divisive move. The Senate should reject this polarizing nomination.” But even before Sebelius’ nomination was formally announced, a group called Catholics for Sebelius had launched a Web site touting the governor’s Catholic background and her actions in support of “the common good.” The Web site at www.catholicsforsebelius.org is a

project of Catholics United, which describes itself as “a national online community of Catholics who believe strongly in our faith’s call to build a society for justice and the common good.” In a section titled “What does it mean to be pro-life?” the site features the text of a 2006 talk by Sebelius to Kansans for Faithful Citizenship, in which she said, “My Catholic faith teaches me that all life is sacred, and personally I believe abortion is wrong. “However, I disagree with the suggestion that criminalizing women and their doctors is an effective means of achieving the goal of reducing the number of abortions in our nation,” she added. “If we work hard and match our rhetoric with our actions, we can create a culture that is more welcoming of mothers and treasuring of our children.” In a 2008 column about the governor, Archbishop Naumann said that as a state representative Sebelius “voted to weaken or eliminate even such modest measures as parental notification for teens, waiting periods or informedconsent protections for women before an abortion.” In April 2007, in an event at the governor’s mansion, she honored Dr. George Tiller, known for performing late-term abortions at his clinic in Wichita, Kan., and Dr. LeRoy Carhart, a Nebraska abortion doctor. Tiller faces trial beginning March 16 on 19 counts of performing illegal late-term abortions. Sebelius also clashed with the Kansas bishops on the issue of embryonic stem-cell research, when she praised the move by voters in neighboring Missouri to forbid any action by the state Legislature to regulate or limit embryonic stem-cell research. She said it was “a step forward” that should get serious consideration in Kansas. In a March 2007 pastoral letter, the heads of Kansas’ four Catholic dioceses said such research is “a crime against life” that compromises all of society without achieving any beneficial health effects. The nominations of Sebelius and that of DeParle came

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several weeks after the withdrawal of former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, who is also Catholic. Daschle, who had been nominated both as HHS secretary and White House health reform czar, cited tax problems as the reason for his withdrawal. Bill Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, strongly criticized the nomination as “an insult to Catholics” in a March 2 statement. He called Sebelius “one of the most extreme pro-abortion zealots in the nation.” Sebelius, born in Cincinnati in 1948, is the daughter of former Ohio Gov. John Gilligan, making them the first father-daughter team to serve as governors of U.S. states. The Catholics for Sebelius site said she “received 17 years of Catholic education from the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur,” an education that showed her that women could be strong leaders and “instilled in her a lasting concern for the less fortunate.” She earned her bachelor’s degree at what is now Trinity Washington University in 1970 and a master’s degree in public administration at the University of Kansas in 1978. Sebelius served as special assistant to the Kansas secretary of corrections, 1975-78; executive director of the Kansas Trial Lawyers Association, 1978-86; member of the Kansas House, 1987-94; and state insurance commissioner, 1995-2003. She and her husband, Gary, a federal magistrate judge, have two grown sons. DeParle, 52, served as director of the Health Care Financing Administration and the Office of Management and Budget during Bill Clinton’s presidency. Since then she has worked as a research fellow at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and taught at the Wharton School of Business. From 1987 to 1989, DeParle was commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Human Services. She is married to Jason DeParle, a reporter for The New York Times.

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March 6, 2009

Jewish, Catholic leaders launch new group to tackle religious strife WASHINGTON (CNS) – U.S. Jewish and Catholic leaders Feb. 26 hashed out differences on issues ranging from the controversial sainthood cause of Pope Pius XII to Pope Benedict XVI’s lifting of the excommunication of a British-born traditionalist bishop who claims the Holocaust was exaggerated. The gathering of the religious leaders at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington was the start of what was being called a broad and permanent dialogue between the two religions. In announcing this standing dialogue, the leaders said it will involve a broad spectrum of Jewish and Catholic representatives who will meet regularly to deal with struggles as they arise. Though Jewish and Catholic groups have met frequently since the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council in 1965, this new dialogue is considered the first continuous and overarching panel between the two religions. It will be based at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center, as requested by the Vatican. The inaugural topics for the group that came together Feb. 26 included: – Tensions over Pope Benedict lifting the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson, who has publicly denied the extent of the Holocaust. – The long-standing controversy over the sainthood cause of Pope Pius XII, the World War II pontiff accused

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by Jewish leaders of not doing enough or saying enough in defense of the Jews and other victims of the Nazis. – The Vatican’s 2008 publication of Pope Benedict’s revised prayer for the Jews for use in Tridentine-rite Good Friday liturgies, which prays that Jews will recognize Jesus, the savior, and that “all Israel may be saved.” “In the past months, these have been troubling times, especially in the Jewish community as a whole,” said Rabbi Irving Greenberg, founder and president of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership, known as CLAL. “We did have spirited discussions today, but no one walked out or blew up, and there was more consensus than disagreement.” The nearly 30 U.S. Jewish and Catholic leaders chose Feb. 26 to meet in Washington because it marked the 30th day since the death of Rabbi Leon Klenicki, a pioneer in interfaith dialogue and a contemporary and friend of Pope John Paul II, said Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the Anti-Defamation League. Since Rabbi Klenicki had been committed to constructive Jewish-Catholic relations, the leaders decided to discuss their differences in a conference as a way of honoring the interfaith stalwart, Foxman said. The new panel, whose participants organizers hope to have confirmed by May 1, is another way of honoring Rabbi Klenicki, said Father Dennis McManus, assistant director of the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center. “There is going to be wide representation of leaders who will engage in ongoing dialogue,” Father McManus told Catholic News Service following a press conference announcing the new group. “The idea is to have a standing dialogue so we can address concerns as they arise, and not be just reactive.” During the hourlong press conference – which was delayed by an hour because the delegations’ talks went on longer than expected – Jewish representatives stressed they were still not satisfied with the handling of the Bishop Williamson situation and maintained that stronger action by Pope Benedict would be appropriate. Catholic leaders also expressed their embarrassment

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Cardinal William H. Keeler, retired archbishop of Baltimore, greets Rabbi Irving Greenberg, founder and president of the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington Feb. 26.

over Bishop Williamson’s remarks aired on Swedish television stating that the Holocaust was exaggerated and that no Jews died in Nazi gas chambers. The Catholics leaders also said they needed to disassociate themselves from clergy who don’t embrace the teachings of the Catholic Church, which recognizes the Holocaust as a great tragedy in history. Boston Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley explained that Pope Benedict’s lifting of the excommunication only allows Bishop Williamson to receive the sacraments of the church, but doesn’t permit him to serve as a Catholic bishop, and his full union with the church will only happen if he embraces the spirit of Vatican II, which acknowledged the Holocaust. “Vatican II affirmed the number of Jews who died in the Holocaust,” said Cardinal William H. Keeler, retired archbishop of Baltimore, who is the U.S. bishops’ moderator of Catholic-Jewish affairs. “It was the wish of (Pope) John XXIII that the council was to make it so Catholic teaching couldn’t be used as an excuse to hit at Jewish people.” The Vatican has said Bishop Williamson would not be allowed to function as a bishop in the church unless he disavowed his remarks about the Holocaust and publicly apologized. Since then the bishop has expressed regret for the remarks he made, but a Vatican spokesman said Feb. 27 that the bishop’s statement does not meet the Vatican’s demand that he publicly recant his position. The Feb. 26 gathering in Washington was being trumpeted as the most significant gathering of Catholic and Jewish leaders since Pope Benedict’s two events with Jewish audiences during his 2008 U.S. visit. Religious leaders called the formation of the new dialogue group a historic event. “A thousand years from now we will see this as one of the great transforming accomplishments in our longshared history,” Rabbi Greenberg said. “We’re investing long-term energy and commitment to the big issues that still have to be discussed.”

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Catholic San Francisco

Vietnam Journal

The faith witnesses Earlier this year, Auxiliary Bishop Ignatius Wang wheelchair. During his years as archbishop the government returning to the practice and I traveled to Vietnam as members of a pilgrimage held him in virtual house arrest. Everyone at the meeting of their faith. Now some led by Bishop Tod Brown of Orange, California, and his expressed a powerful love and reverence for him. Cardinal nuns have arrived and Vietnamese-born secretary, Monsignor Tuan Pham. Bishop Pham has since died, on Sunday, February 22, 2009. begun to help with the Daniel Walsh of Santa Rosa joined us, along with priests On one wall of the room was a large framed print of Our physically and mentally and about a dozen lay people from Orange. We visited the Lady of La Vang, surrounded by a crowd of Vietnamese disabled. shrine of Our Lady of La Vang and several diocese and martyrs, Andrew Dung Lac and others, who had given their Another priest spoke archdioceses in the country (Hanoi, Danang, Hue, and Ho lives for their Catholic faith. As I listened to the priests about his work among Chi Minh City—formerly Saigon). describing their experiences in their parishes, I glanced now an ethnic group that Archbishop January 20 was our first evening in Vietnam. In the after- and then at that holy picture on the wall. The word “martyr” leads a very simple rural George H. noon we had arrived in Hanoi, the capital of the country, means, literally, “witness,” and the connection between the life and often is looked had celebrated Mass, and then joined Archbishop Kiet of witnesses in the picture and the witnesses in the meeting down upon by the counNiederauer Hanoi and ninety of his priests for dinner. Naturally many was powerfully moving. try’s majority. After the of us Americans were thinking of presidential inauguration Archbishop Kiet himself had come to Hanoi after serv- French missionaries were that was to take place in Washington later that same day. ing in Vietnam’s northernmost diocese, bordering on China. expelled from Vietnam, Because of the twelve-hour time difference, as we were When he arrived there as bishop, in the entire diocese there this group had no priest for many years, and many of them sitting down to dinner at 6:00 p.m., Washington, D.C. was was one elderly nun and the only priest was 90 years old. lost their Catholic faith. Now that this pastor is working waking up at 6:00 a.m. Now there are seven priests and twenty sisters, and the there, people are returning to the Church and there is a large We had arrived during Tet, the period of preparation for Church is coming back to life. enrollment in the parish’s religious education program. The and celebration of the Lunar New Year (New Communist government of Vietnam still does not Year’s Day this year was January 26). In the permit the Catholic Church to operate schools or Vietnamese culture, Tet has enormous meanhospitals, but religious education programs are From time to time witness to the Catholic faith is flourishing, and, from what we observed, the ing. It is important for everyone to go home for this holiday and spend it with their families. churches are full, the seminaries are full, and the given through the shedding of blood, but always Archbishop Kiet told me that the seminarians novitiates for religious women are full. studying for priesthood in his archdiocese That second pastor concluded his report and enjoyed a holiday of almost three weeks, takthe other priests laughed as he sat down. Msgr. we witness by sharing out our lives day by day. ing in the ten days before and the ten days after Pham translated the priest’s closing remark: New Year’s Day. “I’ve lost eight pounds and I can’t afford it!” After dinner the Archbishop invited us pilgrims to be his One of the priests at the meeting told of the struggles of (There certainly is no obesity problem in Vietnam, and that guests at a meeting with his priests, during which they would the past year. He serves alone in a village of 7,000 people, priest was very slight of build.) talk about the experiences of the past year and their hopes 3,100 of whom are Catholic. The people are mostly farmers The entire meeting revealed the love, affection, good for the New Year. Monsignor Pham interpreted for us. and farm workers, but recent floods have devastated the land. humor and enormous dedication of Archbishop Kiet and his We met in a room that held about 75 people, so some As a result there is no farm work, so workers come to the city priests, many of who were young men. In their look at the priests and seminarians were gathered in the doorways and to do manual labor, leaving the very young behind in the vil- past year and their look ahead to the next year, the talk was in the hall way. Before the meeting seminarians brought lage to be cared for by the very old. There is no school for the all about the needs of the people for the means of life for into the meeting Cardinal Paul Joseph Pham, 89, retired children. Before this pastor arrived, there had been no priest their families, and the challenge of keeping the faith alive archbishop of Hanoi, who was very frail and confined to a in the village for 42 years. The Catholics there are gradually and strong in the parishes. As we left the room, I looked one last time at the picture on the wall. It seemed to me that the martyr-witnesses around Our Lady in the picture could be justly proud of their spiritual descendants, those witnesses in the room. From time to time witness to the Catholic faith is given through the shedding of blood, but always we witness by sharing out our lives day by day. We visitors had the privilege of witnessing the Catholic faith in action in Vietnam, lived out by those zealous apostles of Christ and His Church.

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San Francisco, San Mateo & Marin

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Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

Catholic san Francisco Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper

Guest Commentary California steps back from fiscal precipice, but is it far enough? By Steve Pehanich With a budget deal negotiated in secret, votes in the dead of night, and last minute deals, what have California leaders wrought? For years California lawmakers have “balanced” the budget with a combination of superficial accounting maneuvers, creative borrowing and unrealistic projections. While better than past years, this budget continues the no-compromise tradition of California politics much to the detriment of the state. The Golden State has limped along in a fiscal illusion for decades. Term limits reduced incentives for lawmakers to work together, voters approved spending increases, and the state itself continued to spend without regard to tax levels. Yet California has muddled through. And then the economy tanked – big time and in a way no one knows how to fix. The smoke and mirrors no longer hid the fiscal shenanigans of state leaders. And still, they ignore the economy’s new reality and focus on special interests instead of the wellbeing of the entire state. We will all pay a steeper price than we needed to because of their delay – the cuts will be deeper, the taxes higher and the borrowing greater. It will impact all of us, but especially the poorest among us – those we are called to protect and who are least able to weather the economic storm today. Social services have been reduced for years as a means of dealing with poor fiscal management. Yet the cuts do not stop with the services this time, as education, health care and other necessities will be severely impaired. We will all pay increased sales tax and personal income tax, but the deal contains no new corporate taxes. It does, however, have significant business tax breaks for out-of-state businesses (hoping to lure employers to California.) Businesses that operate solely in the state, mostly small firms, will get no relief. And there’s $100 million in breaks to encourage movie production in California – something the governor has wanted for years. While the roots of the crisis go back many years, the magnitude of the deficit became excruciatingly apparent with the passage last September of the 2008-09 state budget. The long-delayed budget was filled with wishful thinking. That “solution” lasted about two weeks. Four months ago, state officials laid out for the legislature the magnitude of the collapse in state finances, but still nothing happened. Three months ago the Big Five – the governor and the party leaders of both houses – began negotiations in private. The public and the legislature were kept in the dark. And, in fact, some lawmakers rightfully refused to vote on anything unless they saw it in writing at least 24 hours before a vote. The state began issuing IOUs, but still nothing happened. Veteran Sacramento observers have never seen anything like this, but predicted we would have to go to the cliff before lawmakers acted. But by then philosophical differences had morphed into all-or-nothing, take-no-prisoner-stands. The state was dancing on the edge of fiscal collapse. Lawmakers complained that their jobs were at stake and they couldn’t compromise. Republicans replaced their Senate leader in the dead of night. Democrats refused to buck the unions. Only with last minute concessions and Senators locked in the building was anything done. Because of these months of delay, the “piper” is now demanding deeper cuts and higher taxes than was necessary months ago. And as if to underscore the dysfunctional nature of political debate in California, party loyalists from both sides of the aisle are planning retribution for those who did not tow the line. Have we moved away from the cliff? Yes, but not very far. Voters, disillusioned with lawmakers, must now approve many of the changes in a May special election. The size of the Federal stimulus to states will temper some of the changes, but how much is not known. And future revenues are always uncertain. Leaders have already announced that revisions will be made in June, after more of these questions are answered. At a time when we should all draw together, we continue dancing along the edge, from which California will not recover quickly. We must demand that our lawmakers work together. With such a flawed process how can the final result be trusted? Wouldn’t it be better to take the best ideas from both sides of the aisle? All of us can still honor our philosophical differences, but we must also learn that the common good demands more than platitudes, empty rhetoric and illusory solutions. Only then will we make meaningful steps to fiscal responsibility. Steve Pehanich is Director of Advocacy and Education for the California Catholic Conference. Visit www.cacatholic.org for information on legislation, elections and Catholic Social Teaching.

Religious are professionals

It takes courage

In her commentary on school finances (Feb. 6), Annette Brown said, “Gone are the days when classrooms were headed by a Religious who received only a small stipend. Today’s teachers are professionals, and are paid a competitive wage for their expertise and experience.” Although school costs are indeed much higher now, I would like to gently caution against the implication that the fine Religious (women and men) who staffed our Catholic schools in the “old days” were somehow less professional than the fine people who now teach our children. Even those Catholic schools that today employ a large number of Religious usually have to pay a stipend corresponding to the teacher’s experience, level of education, and other factors. This is a matter of justice, making sure that the Sisters and Brothers receive compensation that enables them to help support their Religious communities (including their retired members), even as moms and dads who teach must support their children. As Ms. Brown points out so well in her article, we need to be very realistic about the costs of running a school in this 21st century, and find new and creative ways of bringing in grants and other funding to keep our Catholic schools affordable. Father William E. Brown Pastor, Our Lady of Mercy Daly City

Theology and science

Letters welcome Catholic San Francisco welcomes letters from its readers. Please: ➣ Include your name, address and daytime phone number. ➣ Sign your letter. ➣ Limit submissions to 250 words. ➣ Note that the newspaper reserves the right to edit for clarity and length. Catholic San Francisco One Peter Yorke Way San Francisco, CA 94109 Fax: (415) 614-5641 E-mail: healym@sfarchdiocese.org or visit our website at www.catholic-sf.org, Contact Us

Send red envelopes For any of your readers who haven’t heard of the Red Envelope Project and who would like to do something for the Pro-Life movement that requires little effort, here’s what to do. Send an empty red envelope to President Barack Obama, The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington D.C. 20500. Write on the back of the envelope this message: “This envelope represents one child who died in abortion. It is empty because that life was unable to offer anything to the world. Responsibility begins with conception.” Just imagine if 50 million red envelopes were sent to President Obama, representing the 50 million babies aborted since Roe versus Wade! Who knows, it’s probably an exercise in futility. On the other hand, it might just change his mind on the issue of abortion and FOCA. Personally, I’m sending as many of these red envelopes as I can. Vivienne Beasley San Carlos

L E T T E R S

Thank you for providing a platform for the informative exchange of letters around Vicki Evans and Dr. Rowden, and thank you for pointing out that Dr. Rowden is not disputing Church teaching on abortion. The issue, as you suggested, is a better understanding of what science is continuing to learn about the earliest moments of human life and fitting that with the fundamental principle of respect for such life. The Church, as the Catholic Catechism notes, has been unwavering in its defense of the principle of the sanctity of human life since the first century. But many centuries ago, science was rudimentary at best and no one at that time knew about cells, zygotes or any of the wonderful details of the beginning of life that God has empowered us to discover over time. The principle of the sanctity of life is true, but it is general in terms and needs to be further considered and better understood in light of growing scientific knowledge. A theology not consistent with demonstrable facts stands on shifting sands. John W. Weiser Kentfield

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I really enjoy the Catholic San Francisco. The first writer I want to read is George Weigel. He is both spiritual and intelligent (a rare commodity in these times). I especially enjoyed his article about President George W. Bush. It takes courage to write about a person that the mainstream media has vilified. Thank you for having George as a regular in your paper. Grace Koch San Francisco

Word gets around Thank you so much for the nice article about my daughter and husband, Michelle and Chuck Hufford, in “On the Street Where You Live” (CSF Feb. 13). You can’t believe how many people said they saw it and Father Augusto at St. Patrick’s even wove it into his homily at Mass. Sandy Hufford Larkspur

‘Off the charts’ Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is the president’s choice to be nominated as the next Secretary of Health and Human Services. But William Donohue, head of the Catholic League, notes that in an Obama Administration filled with abortion rights supporters, few have as much direct influence on the plight of the unborn baby as the Health and Human Services secretary. Donohue has said that Sebelius’ support for abortion is so far off-the-charts that the last three archbishops of Kansas City publicly criticized her. In 1992, when Sebelius was a state legislator, Archbishop Ignatius Strecker rebuked her for leading what he dubbed a ‘death-march of the unborn.’ When Sebelius became governor in 2003, Archbishop James Keleher, citing her abortion record, asked her to move her inauguration interfaith service from Topeka’s Assumption Catholic Church. She refused. The current archbishop, Joseph Naumann, called her out on the issue: he challenged her to name one instance in her long legislative career where she supported limiting abortion rights. She could not. He subsequently asked her not to go to Communion.” In this proposed HHS appointment, and the recent re-statement of support for abortion by the Catholic House Majority Leader, we see how large is the power over the unborn child’s fortune in America today. Pro-Life Catholics have no choice but to go on praying, go on fighting this monstrous threat against their children – against America’s children. Sara Lockwood Novato CA

March 6, 2009

Catholic San Francisco

The Catholic Difference

The mighty, fallen At a Tampa press conference on Feb. 17, Yankees’ third baseman Alex Rodriguez was asked whether his use of steroids for three seasons constituted “cheating.” “That is not for me to determine,” Rodriguez responded. OK, you asked for it. Memo to A-Rod: You cheated. To which the fallen superstar might answer, “Well, everyone was doing ‘roids, including the pitchers I was trying to hit” – and if everyone is cheating, it isn’t cheating. To which the answers are: First, not everyone was doing it (including some minor leaguers who missed their chance at The Show and the big money because they had too much respect for the game, their health, their integrity, or perhaps all three). And second, if there’s a fifth-grade conspiracy to cheat on the math test and everyone’s in on it, it’s still cheating. A-rod is not the only confused camper in this sorry mess. I spend far too much time in my car listening to sportstalk radio, which I justify professionally because it’s a good way to get a fix on the moral confusions of contemporary American culture. Wasn’t Andy Pettitte’s use of steroids – which is to say, Andy Pettitte’s cheating – less odious than A-Rod’s, because Pettitte came cleaner sooner and gave a better press conference? (Answer: Pettitte may be more mature, today, than A-Rod – which is perhaps damning with faint praise. But cheating is cheating, period, and any assessment of Pettitte’s career must reckon with that.) Shouldn’t Barry Bonds be in the Hall of Fame, despite his deliberate

decision to juice himself in order to out-slug Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa? (Answer: None of them should be in the Hall of Fame, because the Hall ballot instructs voters to measure character as well as statistics, and they all disrespected the game by breaking the rules – the implicit moral rules, as well as the legal and professional rules.) Yet what ought to be fairly obvious moral calls are sliced-and-diced all over the airwaves, and the debate is not terribly edifying. Immaturity, racial animosities, cultural differences, economic pressures – all are trotted out, if not as vindications, then as excuses for better-baseball-throughchemistry. None of them makes the slightest degree of moral sense, for cheating is cheating, no matter what one’s age, race, national origin, or income-level. Yet the moral confusions of the steroids debate are nothing new, for today’s excuse-making was previewed in the debate over whether Pete Rose – an admittedly stellar player – should be in the Hall of Fame despite betting on games. To which the proper answer is: absolutely not, for every professional baseball player from the lowest minors on is told, and in no uncertain terms, that gambling on games gets you a lifetime ban from the sport, period. Pete Rose bet on games; the Hall, rightly understood, is an integral part of the sport; therefore, no Pete Rose plaque at Cooperstown, no matter how many confessions Rose eventually makes. That’s what Catholics used to call “temporal punishment due to sin.” The sin may be forgiven, but it leaves a residue that requires purification. Purgatory in this case means “No Cooperstown.”

Baseball’s steroid era is a national disgrace in which both management and labor played despicable roles: the arrogant players’ union, by ignoring its members’ health and protecting outrageous George Weigel salaries at grave moral and possibly physical cost; the blockhead owners, by sacrificing the game’s integrity to a chemically induced slugfest they believed would restore the sport’s popular appeal after The Strike killed the World Series (an abomination the combined efforts of Hitler and Tojo failed to achieve). There are few heroes here, save the guys who didn’t cheat. Is there any point in railing about this? Yes. Cultural critic Jacques Barzun, an immigrant to these shores, was right when he said that anyone who wanted to understand America had better understand baseball, the mirror of our national culture. If the Jackie Robinson/Pee Wee Reese Dodgers (or, in my case, the Frank Robinson/Brooks Robinson Orioles) embody America at its best, the steroid era holds up a mirror to an America in moral trouble. Both images bear considerable reflection. George Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.

Coming of Age

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men This is your brain. The announcer holds a smooth, round egg: fragile, white, a symbol of youth and potential. This is your brain on drugs. The announcer cracks the egg into a frying pan. The yolk hardens and sizzles. The edges brown quickly. Smoke rises. “All the king’s horses and all the king’s men,” I thought, “couldn’t put him together again.” This particular drug-awareness commercial has been praised, vilified and satirized over the years since it aired. Its durability is based on its one central message: Drugs screw you up. They ruin your life. They destroy your future. It makes me angry to see that, despite all of the information out there about the deleterious effects of marijuana, alcohol, ecstasy and other drugs, the problem is still rampant. Despite health classes, television shows, obituaries for teens who die of overdose, millions of dollars poured into drug prevention programs, and the high-profile “train wrecks” in the media that prove drug use is neither glamorous nor healthy, there are more teens using drugs than ever before. Society even considers drug use to be almost expected. Recently Olympic athlete Michael Phelps was caught smoking marijuana at a college party. After the incident, Phelps spoke of “regrettable” behavior and “bad judgment,” a number of companies dropped representation deals with the athlete, and he was suspended from competitive swimming

for three months. Now, whenever Phelps makes the news, someone’s going to make a crack about the “pot photo.” It’ll follow him the rest of his life. I only wish the fallout was so easy for other young people. You don’t have to go far to find them. The Internet is full of stories told by young people whose lives were destroyed by drugs. Josh started using heroin at 14 and ended up in jail before he graduated high school. Lauren’s moment of truth came when she smoked acid and “tripped” – off a roof, falling two stories. High on GHB, Kati caused a car accident, was knocked unconscious, airlifted to a hospital and presumed dead. Now says that her drug use has ruined her memory. Chris, now in his 20s, has severe medical issues caused by overdosing on alcohol. Ann used methamphetamine one night and was found dead the next day. And all the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put them together again. People who abuse drugs rarely realize the extent of their problem. They often think that they can handle it even as they are teetering on the edge of a swan dive into trouble. The drugs – not Chris or Kati or Josh – do the talking.

Help others like them get medical help before an overdose or hospital stay happens, before grades and relationships start to suffer, before they have to face the unspeakable. They only have you. Karen Osborne The other day I overheard a conversation in the mall. A teenage girl was telling her friends about a party she wanted to go to, a party where drugs were going to be available. One of the girls looked uncomfortable; she twisted her hands in her lap and looked away whenever drugs were mentioned, but agreed to go to the party. I hope she made the right decision. Saying “no” is difficult. Speaking up when you know others are using is even harder. But it’s the right decision. Speak up. Be a hero. Help drug users put themselves back together. Karen Dietlein Osborne contributes to “Coming of Age,” a CNS column series about youth.

Spirituality for Life

Lent: Images of the season Sometimes the etymology of a word can be helpful. Linguistically, lent is derived from an old English word meaning springtime. In Latin, lente means slowly. In this sense then, lent points to the coming of spring and it invites us to slow down our lives so as to be able to take stock of ourselves. That does capture some of the traditional meaning, through the popular mindset. It understands lent mostly as a season within which we are asked to fast from certain normal, healthy pleasures so as to better ready ourselves for the feast of Easter. One of the images for this is the biblical idea of the Desert. Jesus, we are told, in order to prepare for his public ministry, went into the desert for forty days and forty nights during which time he fasted and, as the Gospel of Mark tells us, was put to the test by Satan, was with the wild animals, and was looked after by the angels. Lent has always been understood as a time for us to imitate this, to metaphorically spend forty days in the desert like Jesus, unprotected by normal nourishment so as to have to face “Satan” and the “wild animals” and see whether the “angels” will indeed come and look after us when we reach

that point where we can no longer look after ourselves. For us, “Satan” and “wild animals” refer particularly to the chaos inside of us that normally we either deny or simply refuse to face - our paranoia, our anger, our jealousies, our distance from others, our fantasies, our grandiosity, our addictions, our unresolved hurts, our sexual complexity, our incapacity to really pray, our faith doubts, and our moral secrets. The normal food that we eat, distracted ordinary life, works to shield us from the deeper chaos that lurks beneath the surface of our lives. Lent invites us to stop eating whatever protects us from having to face the desert that is inside of us. It invites us to feel our smallness, to feel our vulnerability, to feel our fears, and to open ourselves up to the chaos of the desert so that we can finally give the angels a chance to feed us. That’s the Christian ideal of lent, to face one’s chaos. To supplement this, I would like to offer three rich mythical images, each of which helps explain one aspect of lent and fasting: In every culture, there are ancient stories, myths, which teach that all of us, at times, have to sit in the ashes. We all know, for example, the story of Cinderella. The name itself

literally means, the little girl (puella) who sits in the ashes (cinders). The moral of the story is clear: Before you get to be beautiful, before you get to marry the prince or princess, before you get to go to the great Father feast, you must first Ron Rolheiser spend some lonely time in the ashes, humbled, smudged, tending to duty and the unglamorous, waiting. Lent is that season, a time to sit in the ashes. It is not incidental that we begin lent by marking our foreheads with ashes. The second mythical image is that of sitting under Saturn, of being a child of Saturn. The ancients believed that Saturn was the star of sadness, of heaviness, of melancholy. Accordingly they weren’t always taken aback when someone fell under its spell, namely, when someone felt ROLHEISER, page 17

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT

Scripture reflection

Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Psalm 116:10, 15, 16-17, 18-19; Romans 8:31b-34; Mark 9:2-10 A READING FROM THE BOOK OF GENESIS GN 22:1-2, 9A, 10-13, 15-18 God put Abraham to the test. He called to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” he replied. Then God said: “Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him up as a holocaust on a height that I will point out to you.” When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the Lord’s messenger called to him from heaven, “Abraham, Abraham!” “Here I am!” he answered. “Do not lay your hand on the boy,” said the messenger. “Do not do the least thing to him. I know now how devoted you are to God, since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.” As Abraham looked about, he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket. So he went and took the ram and offered it up as a holocaust in place of his son. Again the Lord’s messenger called to Abraham from heaven and said: “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you acted as you did in not withholding from me your beloved son, I will bless you abundantly and make your descendants as countless as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore; your descendants shall take possession of the gates of their enemies, and in your descendants all the nations of the earth shall find blessing — all this because you obeyed my command.” RESPONSORIAL PSALM PS 116:10, 15, 16-17, 18-19 R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living. I believed, even when I said, “I am greatly afflicted.” Precious in the eyes of the Lord is the death of his faithful ones. R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living. O Lord, I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your hand maid; you have loosed my bonds.

To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving, and I will call upon the name of the Lord. R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living. My vows to the Lord I will pay in the presence of all his people, In the courts of the house of the Lord, in your midst, O Jerusalem. R. I will walk before the Lord, in the land of the living. A READING FROM THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS ROM 8:31B-34 Brothers and sisters: If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him? Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones? It is God who acquits us, who will condemn? Christ Jesus it is who died — or, rather, was raised — who also is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us. A READING FROM THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK MK 9:2-10 Jesus took Peter, James, and John and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no fuller on earth could bleach them. Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses, and they were conversing with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus in reply, “Rabbi, it is good that we are here! Let us make three tents: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified. Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them; from the cloud came a voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone but Jesus alone with them. As they were coming down from the mountain, he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead. So they kept the matter to themselves, questioning what rising from the dead meant.

SISTER ELOISE ROSENBLATT

Scripture readings invite us into a conversation Sometimes scripture offers assurances and consolation; other times it provokes questions. The mysterious testing of Abraham and the almost-sacrifice of Isaac belong to the second category. In Jewish tradition the akedah or binding of Isaac is the keynote reading for Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish liturgical year. What is the way for a man to show he loves God with all his heart? Is a covenant with God dependent on whether a father can pass a test of willingness to kill his own child? This passage is an ancient story, but it has relevance for some women in immigrant communities of Europe and resident cultures in the Middle East who even today fall victim to “honor killings.” A young woman is strangled, pushed out a window or shot by her father or brother because she allegedly shamed the family by dating a man or living with one her family opposed. In such a mentality, God is honored and shame is removed after her “sacrifice.” Is murder justified because it was inspired by a religious motive to honor God? This is the mindset of terrorists. What ideas about God lead to emotional or physical violence against others? Do I need conversion from some of my own suppositions about God? In the recent film “Doubt,” there is plenty of ambiguity about who is right and who is innocent. So too in the akedah. While Isaac knew the God of the covenant as Rescuer --“Do not lay your hand on the boy. Do not do the least thing to him”-- was he enthusiastic about his father’s religious world view? Did Abraham’s idea of covenant require a gradual integration of his dedication to God, love for his wife, and safeguarding of his son? And what of the consequences for Sarah’s relationship with Abraham? The narrative later says Abraham settled in Beersheva, but that Sarah died in Hebron. Did they separate? She may have regarded him as a dolt, not a spiritual hero. Before he set off to Moriah, what if he’d

had a conversation with his wife about his understanding of what God wanted? Is the absence of a wife and mother’s influence part of the tragedy that almost befell the next generation? Paul in Romans compares God to Abraham “who did not spare his own son, but handed him over.” If some women read with the eyes of Sarah, this may not be an appealing vision of the divine. Paul uses analogies. God was on Isaac’s side and rescued him. God was “for Jesus,” and raised him from the dead. Paul’s logic is that God is also “for you” and will not condemn those who believe in Jesus. Rather, God finds us innocent, and forgives rather than condemns. The passage alludes to the challenge early Christians had in accepting Jesus as Christos or messiah, since he had been found guilty of criminal charges and condemned to death by crucifixion. Luke, writing about thirty years after Paul’s letter, affirms a primary conviction of Christian faith. To understand Jesus requires placing him in the context of Jewish scripture, not just making short citations. At the Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah are more than abstractions of “the law and the prophets.” They also are human spokespersons who explain the covenant. Despite the majesty of his encounter with God on Sinai, Moses sometimes failed in his teaching at ground level. Elijah, the idiosyncratic Galilean prophet and healer, spent most of his career at the margins of society, fleeing rather than enjoying access to the powerful. Jesus holds conversation with them. When the disciples hear God’s voice, “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him,” we too are invited into a conversation that includes all of the scriptures, not just the gospels. Sister of Mercy Eloise Rosenblatt, Ph.D., is a biblical theologian and attorney at law.

Our Lenten Journey

Let’s transfigure this thing out … By Rob Grant As we start to dig more deeply into the Gospel of Mark in this Lenten Season, we see – in this Sunday’s ninth chapter account of the Transfiguration of Jesus – a perfect illustration of what makes Mark’s account so distinct from his companion Evangelists Matthew, Luke and John. Unlike Matthew, who speaks primarily to the Jewish community in Jerusalem, or Luke, who addresses the Hellenic World, and John whose poetic account is more mysticism than journalism, Mark writes from Rome, to Romans, and sees little need to portray Jesus’ life as the fulfillment of Jewish prophecy, the embodiment of Greek ideals, or the source and apex of Cosmic completion. Mark draws a Jesus who is easy for pagans to understand: He is the Son of God. But a different kind of God – a God who doesn’t need other gods to act as foils or coy conspirators in some celestial intervention play. This God has a Kingdom, yes, but it’s a kingdom offered not as an unattainable existence to be yearned for from a distance, a teasing glimpse that mere mortals can only observe but not touch. Rather, the Kingdom that Mark proposes to his Roman audience is a Kingdom into which God invites all to dwell. Yes, there is just a little catch to being in the Kingdom – as the weight loss advertisements are careful to put in fine print: “Full participation in the Plan is required for the achieving of advertised results.” What does participation in the Plan entail? We have some

instruction about that in our readings for this Sunday. In Genesis we hear in Abram’s commissioning to move from the ease of his present existence, a message that the shepherd’s days of complacency and contentment while auto-piloting a comfortable life there in the land of Ur are over. God has called Abram (whose name meant “High Father”) not only to change his name to Abraham, “Father of Many,” but also to completely uproot himself from his homeland. The call was not for a move from San Francisco to Burlingame. No, God’s beckoning was for Abraham to re-invent himself, to move to a place he did not know, to leave behind the people he knew, and to abandon the comfort and support of the known, for the challenge and adventure of the unknown. Abraham’s “yes” set into motion the history of salvation which unfolded first in the lives of the nomadic Hebrew people, and from there, down through the generations into the very story of Jesus. In Mark’s account of Jesus’ Transfiguration, we see another challenge to complacency. Jesus has invited Peter, James and John to pray with him on the mountain, where, before their very eyes, he is revealed in his heavenly glory. Peter’s reaction? Classic Peter the Impetuous: “Lord, let us build tents here for you, Moses and Elijah.” Here’s this burly fisherman, the pope-in-training, having followed Jesus for three years, having just days earlier heard Jesus’ less-than-cheery “take up your cross and follow me”

prediction of his own death, still thinking that setting up a retirement villa on Mt. Tabor for Jesus and his favorite celebrities (dead ones will do) is what Jesus was all about. How could Peter be so dense? OUR LENTEN JOURNEY, page 17

March 6, 2009

Catholic San Francisco

Year of St. Paul Women and St. Paul By Father Thaddeus Noel G. Laput, CM Here in the United States, March is dedicated as the Women’s History Month. Worldwide, March 8 is commemorated as the International Women’s Day. This celebration is held to preserve and raise awareness of women’s history – or “herstory” – by drawing attention to the contributions of individual women and the women’s movement to society and the world. As the Jubilee Year of St. Paul progresses, it is appropriate an opportunity to deepen our understanding of the Apostle’s view of women and better appreciate the role of women in the Church. While the graces that the ever-increasing women in ecclesial ministries are giving to the Church cannot be denied, one can still hear objections that this development is a novelty brought by Vatican II. In reading Paul, one can quickly discover that this is far from the truth. When Pope Benedict XVI instituted this Pauline Year, he announced that one of the goals of St. Paul’s 2000th birthday celebration is to promote greater comprehension of the life and message of the Apostle. The topic of women is an area of Pauline thought that really needs a deeper understanding. Paul is often mistakenly perceived to be a misogynist and chauvinist. This is compounded by the sad history of the misuses of the Apostle’s writings to justify the domination and subordination of women (Eph 5:22-24; 1 Tim 2:8-15; Col 3:18-19). However, these distortions of Paul stem from an uncritical knowledge of sacred scriptures. A majority of contemporary bible scholars point out that these passages cited above are not from Paul. Most scripture scholars today identify seven out of the thirteen letters attributed to the Apostle as having been authentically written by Paul himself: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Philippians, 1 Thessalonians, and Philemon. The six other letters: Ephesians, Colossians, 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, and Titus, are considered to have been written after

the Apostle’s martyrdom by later church leaders who attributed them to him, a practice that was accepted in the first century. Recent editions of the Bible, like the Catholic Study Bible, have informative introductions that incorporate this kind of data from the latest studies. The letters of St. Paul show that he had an organized body of collaborators, many of whom were women. Many of them are explicitly named though with no other details: Euodia and Syntyche (Phil 4:2-3), Apphia (Phm 2), and the unnamed sister of Nereus (Rom 16:13). Other women are described as having “worked hard in the Lord”: Mary (Rom 16:6); Tryphaena, Tryphosa and Persis (Rom 16:12). Then there are women who are pictured as having important responsibilities in the Pauline house churches and whom the Apostle called colleagues. Cloe of Corinth headed a household founded by Paul. She communicated regularly with him and it was through her that Paul learned of the divisions within the community (1 Cor 1:11). From Cenchreae is Phoebe, whom Paul describes as a deacon or leader and benefactor (Rom 16:1-2). The eighth-century mosaic titled “Ecclesia Romana,” which portrays a woman, is a reminder of this prominence. Another frequently mentioned household church leader is Prisca, along with her husband Aquila. The Apostle calls them his “co-workers” and he is grateful to them for having “risked their necks for my life” (Rom 16:3-4). Paul also mentions twice “the church in their house” (Rom 16:5; 1 Cor 16:19). Paul also mentions another husband and wife team whom he called “apostles” and “relatives and fellow prisoners,” Junia and Andronicus (Rom 16:7). Naming a female, Junia, an “apostle” is significantly remarkable. That Paul had a great number of women co-workers enabled him to become sensitive to and get affected by the missionary and spiritual experiences and expressions of women that he integrated into his own. In many instances, Paul uses feminine

Ecclesia Romana

and maternal images to portray his mission. The Apostle talks of labor pangs in his work (1 Thes 5:3; Gal 4:19; Rom 8:22). He compares himself to a nursing mother caring for her children (1 Thes 2:7) and of himself as giving milk to babes before they eat solid food (1 Cor 3:1-2). St. Paul’s thought and practice regarding women is a continuing call and challenge to the Church. That women played important roles in the Church from the very beginning have significant implications today. Contemporary women in ecclesial ministries beautifully reflect this Pauline vision of collaborative ministry of men and women serving Christ and the Church in mutuality and equality. For Paul, this is rooted in the reality of who we all are in Christ: “As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:27-28). Vincentian Father Laput is parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mercy Parish in Daly City

For You Family

Ten things to do before Easter Sunday It can be hard when Lent seems like something added to your to-do list (or a lot of somethings!). If you’re a parent, your everyday list is long. So what do you bump or put on hold or admit to yourself you’re never going to accomplish until the kids grow up and move away? On the other hand, if you don’t bump, put or admit, then Lent can be like any other time of the year, and that would be a shame. Not “shame on you,” but a shame your family and you – missed this opportunity. It’s good for your children to know, it’s good for their parents to remember, that sacrificing is possible. More than a few families, no doubt including some in your parish, are already making a number of sacrifices this Lent and beyond because of current economic conditions. They’re cutting way back and doing without because they have no other choice. Lent is about choice. About many choices. About, time and again, deciding to do something more or not to do something you customarily like to do. And Lent is about focusing. It’s looking at what really matters and trimming away what doesn’t.

Rolheiser . . . ■ Continued from page 15 sad or depressed. Indeed they believed that everyone had to spend certain seasons of his or her life being a child of Saturn, that is, sitting in heaviness, sitting in sadness, waiting patiently while some important inner thing worked itself out inside the soul. Sometimes elders or saints would put themselves voluntarily under Saturn, namely, like Jesus going into the desert, they would sit in a self-induced heaviness, in the hope that this melancholy would be means to reach some new depth of soul. That too is the function of lent. Finally there is the rich image, found in some ancient mythologies, of letting our tears reconnect us with the flow of the water of life, of letting our tears reconnect us to the origins of life. Tears, as we know, are salt-water. That is not without deep

If you’d like some ideas of what you can do from Ash Wednesday through Holy Saturday, here are some suggestions: 1. Donate to the local food bank. These wonderful organizations have been under a lot of stress lately as they try to help more and more families. Can’t get over there with a bag of groceries? Send a check. Or go online. Many have ways to donate that way too. 2. As a family, read one complete Gospel. Yes, the first three (Matthew, Mark and Luke) are similar – synoptic – but each of them and John is unique. 3. Quit smoking. Yikes, that’s a hard one, isn’t it? A true sacrifice. Not a smoker? Pray for those who are quitting. Pray for those who are suffering health problems related to smoking. (Looking for help? A few years ago Bill wrote “1440 Reasons to Quit Smoking: One for Every Minute of the Day.”) 4. Get to at least one weekday Mass every week. 5. Learn to weave palms. A number of Web sites offer directions, including www.italiansrus.com/palms/palmpatterns.htm. 6. Post a prayer request list on the refrigerator. It’s an easy way to remind yourself that “I’ll pray for you” is a prom-

significance. The oceans too are salt water and, as we know too, all life takes its origins there. Hence, we get the mystic and poetic idea that tears reconnect us to the origins of life, that tears regenerate us, that tears cleanse us in a life-giving way, and that tears deepen the soul by letting it literally taste the origins of life. Given the truth of that, and we have all experienced its truth, tears too are a desert to be entered into as a Lenten practice, a vehicle to reach new depths of soul. The need for lent is experienced everywhere: Without sublimation we can never attain what is sublime. To truly enter a feast there must first be a fast. To come properly to Easter there must first be a time of desert, ashes, heaviness, and tears. Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser, theologian, teacher, and award-winning author, is President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, TX.

ise that matters. It’s an easy way to teach your children how to become people who make those promises. 7. Learn a new recipe for fish. All those meatless Fridays offer the family a chance to try Bill and Monica something new. A vegDodds etarian menu could be a good choice. In either case, in keeping with the spirit of Lent, keep it simple. 8. Ask forgiveness from someone you’ve hurt. Forgive someone who has hurt you. What a difference either can make. 9. Thank God for the gifts of faith, hope and love. 10. Hug your children and kiss your spouse! Bill and Monica Dodds are founders of the Friends of St. John the Caregiver and editors of My Daily Visitor.

Our Lenten Journey . . . ■ Continued from page 16 Easy! Isn’t that what we all do – listen to the part of the plan that matches our hope for the plan? Don’t we want to hear the neat stuff (the glory, the rewards, the golden parachute) and forget about the blood, sweat, tears, the failures, and the struggles that make it possible? It’s not that Jesus didn’t want the Transfiguration experience for himself or his disciples. It was a good thing for them all to recharge their batteries, reconfirm their mission, and reestablish their connection with the patriarchs and matriarchs that guide them. It wasn’t the being there that was the problem, it was Peter’s insistence on staying there that was the problem. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus shows himself as quite capable of retreat, introspection and contemplation. But, he never stays in that safe, secluded place, that place of sheltered

comfort where we so like to stay. He doesn’t stay because he knows that true comfort comes not from transcending the human experience, but from embracing it. Through Peter’s petulance, Mark reminds us that as much as Jesus calls us to the interior, to the visionary, to the beatific, he calls us as well to the practical, the mundane, the tangible, and the difficult. We need the glory, the ecstasy, the sense of safety and comfort, but we cannot live there. We are actually at our best when the vision fuels us, not when it lulls us to sleep. Perhaps this balance of consolation and challenge, retreat and action, is why Lent can work so well for us as a season for figuring out how we can come down from the mountain of the comfortable ideal and wrestle with the tough life issues that meet us on the plains of the real. Rob Grant has been involved in parish ministry in the San Francisco Archdiocese for 30 years.

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

By Beth Griffin NEW YORK (CNS) – The current economic crisis is an opportunity for volunteers from all sectors of the American public to work together to help their neighbors in need and even plant the seed for a national movement. That was the view of participants at “A Nation of Neighbors Helping Neighbors: A Summit on Volunteerism as a Response to the Economic Crisis” sponsored Feb. 27 in New York by the Knights of Columbus and Fairfield University. “More people are hurting and there are fewer dollars to help those in need,” said Carl A. Anderson, supreme knight of the Knights of Columbus. “Charitable endowments have taken a crushing blow, but there are still 24 hours in a day and seven days in a week,” he added, so people may be able to volunteer their time even if they cannot make financial contributions. “Volunteerism builds solidarity with the people you’re helping and contributes to a more humane society,” he said. The summit drew 185 participants from more than 115 organizations representing government, corporate, secular, Catholic and other religious groups from across the United States. Jesuit Father Richard Ryscavage, director of the Center for Faith and Public Life at Jesuit-run Fairfield University in Connecticut, told Catholic News Service that nonprofit organizations are not well known or appreciated by the government. “People don’t know that Catholic social services take a huge burden off the government and that many government programs are dependent on them. Washington doesn’t understand this,” he said. “We want nonprofit organizations to have their voices heard” as the Congress

considers renewing the National Community Service Act of 1990, he said. That legislation established the Corporation for National and Community Services to support and encourage volunteering and community service. According to the Independent Sector, the value of volunteer time is $19.51 an hour. Anderson said the range and number of summit participants “is further proof of the deep concern we have as a nation for our neighbor, and shows the very best of cooperation.” He challenged each sector represented to expand its use and understanding of volunteers. He urged government officials not to “reinvent the wheel” but to draw on the “hundreds of years of experience” of the volunteer organizations. Anderson said corporations should initiate or expand their volunteer programs. Citing a poll from the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, he said, “Americans want strong ethical leadership from our business leaders and ... Americans believe that the moral compass of corporate America is pointed in the wrong direction.” Anderson said if more corporations reached out to their communities through volunteer programs “they would be more disposed to the common good in their thinking than just profits. They would look at customers as neighbors and not just abstractions.” Anderson said churches and synagogues should bring volunteer opportunities to the people in their pews. “People will be more likely to volunteer if they are approached though their church and they know that the people they prayed with Saturday or Sunday will be the people they will be serving their community with later in the week,” he said. He told CNS that Catholic groups have a leadership role in the form of witness and

(CNS PHOTO/BOB ROLLER)

Summit attendees see economic crisis as opportunity for volunteerism

Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson of the Knights of Columbus shown at the National Press Club in Washington last year.

service. “If we do those two things right, we provide a kind of example people can follow,” he said. As examples, he cited the Catholic Church’s hundreds of years of experience in social services and the Knights of Columbus members’ annual contribution of 70 million hours of volunteer service. Bishop William E. Lori of Bridgeport, Conn., said often a local diocese is the largest provider of social and education services aside from the government. “We couldn’t do this without volunteers,” he said. He joked that “some in senior leadership in my diocese may say they are practically volunteering. He said when one potential

employee heard his salary offer, he replied, “Well, Bishop, that will certainly help with the dry cleaning.” Bishop Lori said partnerships with other organizations are critical. “Most dioceses recognize that we are in a community of providers. It’s important for us to recognize that we don’t do all things well,” he said. “We have no pride about trading or asking another organization to take over.” He said faith-based organizations working in cooperation should accept each other and “let the goodness that flows from their faith commitments bloom,” rather than water down their own approaches. Catholic Charities was well-represented at the summit by leadership from national and diocesan entities. Msgr. Kevin Sullivan, executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, told CNS, “The genuine good will of volunteers has to be coupled with good planning. “For a volunteer program to be effective, it needs good resources and infrastructure to make sure that the opportunity is a good one for the person volunteering and is effective in helping those who need help,” he said. He added that programs also need help figuring out “how they can better help those in need through the use of volunteers.” Among the other panelists were representatives from the Department of Veterans Affairs, Episcopal Relief and Development, the United Jewish Appeal Federation of New York, Jesuit Volunteer Corps, Volunteers of America, General Electric and Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network. To maintain the momentum of the summit, Anderson said the organizers planned to create a new Web site, www.servicetogether. org, to be a communications hub for participating groups and “a place where the public could learn more about volunteerism and what each of our organizations does.”

Catholic Perspective: Faith and values guide us With the national and global economy sliding precipitously downward, with millions losing their jobs, with charities telling us that homeless families are increasing, we need to step back and look at what is happening through the filter of our faith and values. According to the statement, “A Catholic Framework for Economic Life” (1996) by the U.S. Bishops, a fundamental principle of Catholic social teaching regarding economic matters is this: The economy exists for the person, not the person for the economy. Another principle from the same document states: A fundamental moral principle of any economy is how the poor and vulnerable are faring. The poor and vulnerable are not doing well, either here in the United States or

around the globe. And it often appears that the economy not only does not exist for the person, but that it has some sort of mysterious life of its own; yet a life that even brilliant economists seem to consider baffling. Before the present crisis, it also seems that the economy existed principally for a very small group of persons who made millions and even billions of dollars. Now in the thick of the crisis, our government is giving more billions to these same persons. What about the poor and vulnerable? Our new budget for the State of California cuts services to the poor and vulnerable at a time when the ranks of poor and vulnerable are becoming greater. Around our globe, the ranks of those who subsist on less than $1.25 a day (1.1 billion persons) has grown by more than 100 million since

the worldwide crisis hit some months ago. In real terms, this means that many more persons die of hunger and disease each day (35 thousand children each day) because they do not have clean water or simple medicines to protect them from malaria and other diseases. Compounding the problem is that the growing need in our own country distracts us from our brothers and sisters need throughout the developing world. Not many legislators in Washington, D.C. are thinking of the desperately poor in villages in Africa right now. The confusing intricacies of economics and the inability of the experts to understand what is going on can be frightening. The plight of persons that we know, relatives and friends, who are feeling the devastating effects of this recession, can

be the impetus for us to pull together and share and support in new ways and with greater intensity. This can also be seen as an opportunity for our parishes to adapt to ever growing needs of the parishioners who are being swept up in this crisis. Most of all, we must turn our eyes and hearts to our loving God to keep a perspective of faith – one that sees the person as central to any economic decisions and one that sees the poor and vulnerable as being foremost in staking an economic claim. George Wesolek is Director of the San Francisco Archdiocese’s Office of Public Policy and Social Concerns. Visit www.sflifeandjustice.org for more information.

A Catholic Framework for Economic Life Statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops November 1996 As followers of Jesus Christ and participants in a powerful economy, Catholics in the United States are called to work for greater economic justice in the face of persistent poverty, growing income-gaps, and increasing discussion of economic issues in the US and around the world. We urge Catholics to use the following ethical framework for economic life as principles for reflection, criteria for judgment and directions for action. These principles are drawn directly from Catholic teaching on economic life. 1. The economy exists for the person, not the person for the economy. 2. All economic life should be shaped by moral principles. Economic choices and institutions must be judged by how they protect or undermine the life and dignity of the human person, support the

family and serve the common good. 3. A fundamental moral measure of any economy is how the poor and vulnerable are faring. 4. All people have a right to life and to secure the basic necessities of life (e.g., food, clothing, shelter, education, health care, safe environment, economic security.) 5. All people have the right to economic initiative, to productive work, to just wages and benefits, to decent working conditions as well as to organize and join unions or other associations. 6. All people, to the extent they are able, have a corresponding duty to work, a responsibility to provide the needs of their families and an obligation to contribute to the broader society. 7. In economic life, free markets have both clear advantages and limits; government has essential responsibilities and limi-

tations; voluntary groups have irreplaceable roles, but cannot substitute for the proper working of the market and the just policies of the state. 8. Society has a moral obligation, including governmental action where necessary, to assure opportunity, meet basic human needs, and pursue justice in economic life. 9. Workers, owners, managers, stockholders and consumers are moral agents in economic life. By our choices, initiative, creativity and investment, we enhance or diminish economic opportunity, community life and social justice. 10. The global economy has moral dimensions and human consequences. Decisions on investment, trade, aid and development should protect human life and promote human rights, especially for those most in need wherever they might live on this globe.

According to Pope John Paul II, the Catholic tradition calls for a “society of work, enterprise and participation” which “is not directed against the market, but demands that the market be appropriately controlled by the forces of society and by the state to assure that the basic needs of the whole society are satisfied.” (Centesimus Annus, 35). All of economic life should recognize the fact that we all are God’s children and members of one human family, called to exercise a clear priority for “the least among us.” The sources for this framework include the Catechism of the Catholic Church, recent papal encyclicals, the pastoral letter Economic Justice for All, and other statements of the U.S. Catholic Bishops. They reflect the Church’s teaching on the dignity, rights, and duties of the human person; the option for the poor; the common good; subsidiarity and solidarity.

March 6, 2009

Catholic San Francisco

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For a FREE brochure on these pilgrimages contact:

Sept. 11 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 21, 2009

Catholic San Francisco

Departs San Francisco 11-Day Pilgrimage

(415) 614-5640

only ($2,899 after June 3, 2009) Fr. Chris Coleman, and Fr. Rey Taylor

Please leave your name, mailing address and your phone number

2,799

Visit: Paris, Lisbon, Fatima, Alba De Tormes, Segovia, Burgos, Garabandal, Santander, Limpias, Loyola, Pamplona, Javier, Lourdes

California Registered Seller of Travel Registration Number CST-2037190-40 Lourdes

(Registration as a Seller of Travel does not constitute approval by the State of California)

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

Music TV

Books RADIO Film Stage

Moving spiritual memoir tells of novelist’s return to Catholicism “CALLED OUT OF DARKNESS: A SPIRITUAL CONFESSION” by Anne Rice. Alfred A. Knopf (New York, 2008). 245 pp., $24.

Reviewed by Nancy L. Roberts “What happens when faith returns? What happens when one goes back to the church of one’s childhood?” In this deeply felt spiritual memoir, Anne Rice asks and explores these questions. The famous novelist, author of “Interview With the Vampire” and many other books, tells how, in 1998 at the age of 57, she came to believe in God again and to re-embrace her Catholic faith. Raised as a devout Irish Catholic, Rice once seriously considered entering the convent. But as a young adult, she lost her belief in God and was an atheist for nearly 40 years. Then, in 2005, longtime readers of her many tales of good and evil among vampires and otherworldly beings were amazed when Rice produced a novel, “Christ the Lord: Out of Egypt,” to critical acclaim. It was followed by another, “Christ the Lord: The Road to Cana.” These compelling explorations of Christ’s humanity seemed a major departure from Rice’s earlier literary path. Yet those earlier vampire stories that had made her name a household word had often contained an implicit moral quest -- perhaps a reflection of Rice’s perennial pondering on how to live a meaningful life. In “Called Out of Darkness,” Rice reveals the fascinating details of her journey back to faith. For her, practicing her Catholic faith and believing in Jesus Christ as God are essential to living meaningfully. Rice’s narrative starts with her New Orleans girlhood and eloquently traverses the terrain of her Catholic schooling there; the sadness of her mother’s drinking; her life in radical Berkeley, Calif., during the hippie era; her 41-year marriage to her beloved high school sweetheart, Stan Rice; the death of their little daughter to leukemia; the joyous birth of their son; the family’s return to New Orleans in 1988; and Stan’s too-early death in 2002, of brain cancer.

Rice weaves her earliest memories into a rich tapestry. Describing her family’s short, evening walk in the 1940s through New Orleans’ Garden District to the small Chapel of Our Mother of Perpetual Help on Third and Prytania Streets, where they sometimes went to pray, she describes the huge, ancient oaks and “the enormous houses with their heir Corinthian or Doric columns ... monunuments in themselves. ... Purple lantana ana and ice-blue plumbago burst through the pickets of black iron fences.” The chapel itself “stood behind a high black picket fence with its gate te permanently open, and a short flight of white marble steps led up to the whitee marble porch.” “The sky during these trips was often blood-red, or purple,” she continues, “and the trees were so thick that one could only see hundreds of fragments of the sky amid clusters of darkening leaves. The color of the sky seemed to me to be connected with the song of the cicadas, and the drowsy shadows playing everywhere on the margins of what was visible, and the distinct feel of the humid air. Even in winter the air was moist, so that the world itself seemedd to be pulsing around us, enfolding us, holding us as we moved through it.” She goes on to describe the “wax of the flickering candles” inside and “the lingering incense.” Rice uses the full measure of her gifts as a storyteller to evoke the physical, emotional and spiritual world she knew. A fascinating motif is how such “preliterate aesthetic experiences” intermingled with her early “religious experiences” to have a profound impact on her. Among the latter, she singles out her interaction on the day of her first Communion with a simple hospital “kitchen sister, all in white with an apron, ... telling me with a radiant

face that this was a wonderful day because my soul was so pure. She was thin, almost wraithlike, and she made me think of driftwood; but the look of joy on her face and the enthusiasm with which she said these words were breathtaking to me.” Many years year later, on a December day in 1998, Rice recalled her “mother’s 1 words of decades ago,” as she w had h roused the family to get up for fo Mass: “He (Jesus Christ) is on that th altar. Get up and go.” “I believed that what she’d said so many years ago was precisely the truth,” Rice writes. “He was on that altar. And I wanted to go to him, and the impelling emotion h was love.” “In “ the moment of surrender, I let go g of all the theological or social questions which had kept me from quest him for f countless years. I simply let them go,” she writes. Yet Ye “Called Out of Darkness” is hardly pat. Its pages illuminate the often complex challenges to faith and c that Christians face in the its practice prac modern world. And Rice is refreshingly forthright about her own imperfections, forthrig her flaws flaw and her brokenness. For example, she readily calls herself “a baby Christian when it comes to loving,” acknowledging her difficulty in seeing Christ in every single person she meets: “One has to love those who despise us openly and write and tell us so by e-mail.” At the end, the reader is left with a feeling of gratitude for Rice’s moving account of her faith journey. Roberts is a professor of journalism and communication at State University of New York, Albany, and the author of “Dorothy Day and the Catholic Worker.”

Heritage editions will make Saint John’s Bible accessible to world

By Chaz Muth WASHINGTON (CNS) – With masterful artwork adorning its majestic pages, the handwritten Saint John’s Bible is a work in progress that Jim Triggs of Minnesota is proud to display at museums, college campuses and conventions. Pages from the completed volumes of the Bible have been on tour in Canada and the U.S. for several months, and are to be on display at the Walter’s Art Gallery in Baltimore from Feb. 14 through the third week of May. The production of heritage editions, or replicas, of The Saint John’s Bible is under way; last April Pope Benedict XVI was presented with a reproduction of the first volume from a heritage edition. When the project is completed, there will be one original Saint John’s Bible, made up of seven volumes: Gospels and Acts, Psalms, Pentateuch, Historical Books, Prophets, Wisdom Literature, and Letters and Revelation. Five of the volumes are now complete. There also will be 299 seven-volume heritage editions, 25 five-volume Old Testament-only heritage editions, 12 “Apostle” editions, 12 “Prophets” editions and 12 fivevolume, Old Testament-only “Patriarch” editions. They will range in price from $145,000 to $1 million each, he said. Fifty heritage editions already have been purchased by benefactors who will donate them to colleges, churches, museums and other organizations, Triggs said. “There is a lot of excitement about this project,” he said. “It’s very different than a lot of the old Bibles, since

the art is fairly contemporary in style and the people are illustrated to represent many different cultures.” The Saint John’s Bible is the brainchild of the Benedictine monks of St. John’s Abbey and University in Collegeville. They initiated the project in 1996. In 1998 they commissioned master calligrapher Donald Jackson, senior scribe to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Crown Office, to lead a team of calligraphers and artists from all over the world. The finished Bible will contain some 160 illuminations woven into text covering 1,100 pages of calfskin vellum sheets. The huge manuscripts will be bound into seven volumes that measure 2 feet tall and, when open, 3 feet wide. The projected completion date for the original is 2010, and St. John’s University hopes to have the reproduction editions finished by 2011. The Saint John’s Bible is meant to reflect the time in which it was created, so in about 800 years people will be able to gain some insight into how the world viewed the Scriptures in the early 21st century, Triggs said. “Our vision for the heritage program is to give people

around the world the opportunity to enjoy the artistic and spiritual beauty of The Saint John’s Bible,” Triggs said. The original Bible will be put on display on the Collegeville campus. “Thanks to Donald Jackson’s participation in the creation of the heritage editions, these volumes are works of art in their own right that celebrate Scripture through art in a way that has not been done for hundreds of years,” he added. The artists on Jackson’s team come from San Francisco, Seattle, Minneapolis, London and other cities around the world, and they represent several different faiths, he said. Though the Bible has been commissioned by Catholics, it’s intended to be ecumenical in nature, to appeal to Protestants, Muslims and Jews, Triggs said. St. John’s University hopes to raise about $50 million from sales of the various editions of the Bible. The proceeds will be used to pay for the work that went into the production of the books, as well as construction of a center on campus for the original Bible, the funding of student scholarships and research in rare manuscript preservation, Triggs said.

March 6, 2009

Lenten Opportunities March 8, 2 – 4 p.m.: Bay Area Vocation Discernment Day at Mercy Convent, 2300 Adeline Dr. in Burlingame. Vocation ministers from a variety of women’s and men’s religious communities will be on hand. Everyone welcome. To register call Mercy Sister Cindy Kaye at (650) 340-7434. March 9, 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.: Lenten Day of Renewal sponsored by East Bay Chapter of Kappa Gamma Pi at San Damiano Retreat Center in Danville. Fee of $25 includes lunch. Call (925) 837-9149 or e-mail katerik@sandamiano.org. March 9, 16, 23, 30, 7 p.m.: Lenten Series at St. Gregory Church in San Mateo. Call (650) 345-8506. March 9: Father John Ryan, “Scriptures of Lent.” March 16: Dominican Father Patrick LaBelle, “Lent: A Time for Asking Questions.” March 23: Taize Prayer and music. March 30: Father Joe Bradley, “Reconciliation and Healing.” Mar. 11, 18, 25 7 p.m.: Lectio Divina: This course will seek to help participants discover a method of reading Scripture, which is meditative, reflective and prayerful. By giving both theory and practice, Sister Germana Santos will show that even in uncertain times, God’s Word is an anchor. For more information call Pauline Books & Media, 2640 Broadway, Redwood City. Call (650) 369-4230. March 11, 7 a.m.: Our Lenten Journey, a talk by Jesuit Father Tom Weston at monthly meeting of Catholic Professional and Business Club at Palio D’Asti Restaurant, 640 Sacramento St. at Montgomery in San Francisco. Father Weston is superior of the Jesuit Community in Oakland and a well-known retreat leader, especially with those in recovery. His talk will “present reflection on Lent, challenges we face today and living our lives in the light of Easter,” meeting sponsors said. Tickets at $20 for members and $30 for non-members include buffet breakfast and may be purchased at the door. Registration at 7 a.m. followed by Mass and talk. For more information, contact Mary Jansen at cpbc.sf@gmail.com. March 11 through April 30: Adult Scripture Study focusing on St. Paul at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, St. Michael’s Hall, Alameda de las Pulgas at Ralston in Belmont. $25 fee includes materials. Sessions held Wednesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. and Thursday mornings at 9:30 a.m. Contact Marie Felix at (650) 593-6157, ext. 27 or e-mail mfelix@ihmbelmont.org March 12, noon: Meeting and St. Patrick’s Lunch of the Serra Club of San Francisco at Italian American Social Club, 25 Russia Street off Mission Street in San Francisco. Jeffrey Burns, Ph. D., archivist for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, will speak about San Francisco’s Irish history. Tickets are $20 per person. Nonmembers are welcome. Contact Paul Crudo at (415) 566-8224. March 14, 9 a.m. – 2 p.m.: Day of Recollection sponsored by San Francisco Catholic Medical Guild at Most Holy Rosary Chapel, One St. Vincent’s Dr. in Marinwood. Day includes liturgy, rosary, procession to Our Lady of Lourdes grotto and talk on Lourdes by Father Andrew Johnson, a Knight of Malta. Lunch included. Tickets are $35. Call (415) 305-2408 or e-mail gemaloof2003@yahoo.com. March 18, 2 p.m.: “Creating Successful Transitions,” a talk at Alma Via of San Rafael, 515 Northgate Dr. led by Patrick Arbore of the Center for Elderly Suicide Prevention and Grief Related Services. Arbore will discuss moving through grief as well as age. Call (415) 491-1900. Series continues April 15 with presentations on normal forgetfulness and more serious memory loss. Tessa ten Tusscher, Ph. D., of the Institute on Aging will lead the discussion. March 18, 7:30 – 9 p.m.: Bioethics seminar at 2580 McAllister St. in San Francisco on “The Dying Experience” Sponsored by San Francisco Catholic Medical Guild. USF Professor Raymond Dennehy is among presenters. Refreshments provided. Call (415) 305-2408 or e-mail gemaloof2003@yahoo.com. Fee is $15. Additional sessions take place April 15 and May 20. March 18, 26 and April 7, 7:30 p.m.: “The Passion Narrative According to Mark” with Father David Pettingill at St. Emydius Church, Ashton and DeMontfort St. in San Francisco. $20 donation requested. Call (415) 587-7066. March 19, 7:15 p.m.: “Speaking Christ in Dialogue with Contemporary Culture,” a presentation by Richard J. Mouw, president, Fuller Theological Seminary, at St. Patrick’s Seminary & University, 320 Middlefield Road, Menlo Park. Dr. Mouw, provides a thoughtful perspective on the importance of genuine dialogue between ministers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and other religious traditions and the wider culture. A panel of theologians and pastoral leaders, both Catholic and Protestant, will offer responses to the address by Dr. Mouw, information about the talk said. Reservations are required. Contact Mary Verducci at St. Patrick’s Seminary, (650) 289-3321 or e-mail mary.verducci@stpatricksseminary.org. Registration Deadline: March 10. March 21, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.: “Recognizing the Plight of the Undocumented,” a study day at St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St. in Berkeley. Panel members include human rights lawyer, Jayne Fleming and Colin Rajah of the National Network for Immigrant and Refugee Rights. Sponsored by several communities of Dominican Sisters including Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose and San Rafael Dominican Sisters. Contact Sister Stella Good pasture at (510) 261-2349 or stellamsj@igc.org. While no one will be turned away, a $20 donation is requested. Bring a bag lunch. March 28, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.: Sister Armanda

Datebook March 14, 5:30 p.m.: “Blue and White Athenian Night,” Mercy High School, Burlingame’s Annual Auction and Dinner at Kohl Mansion with award winning KTVU Channel 2 personality, Sal Castaneda, as emcee. Tickets are $70 per person. Contact the Mercy Development Department for ticket/ auction information at (650) 762-1190 or visit www.mercyhsb.com. Money raised helps fund Mercy scholarships, athletics and general operations.

Catholic San Francisco

March 17, 11 a.m.: Hibernian-Newman Club’s annual St. Patrick’s Day luncheon benefiting Catholic College Campus Ministry programs for the Archdiocese of San Francisco at Hilton San Francisco Hotel, 333 O’Farrell St. Maureen McLaughlin will be honored as Hibernian of the Year. Former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown is guest speaker. No-host refreshments. Menu is corned beef and cabbage. Enjoy traditional Irish music and entertainment. Tickets are $80 per person. Call (415) 386-3434.

Reunions March 19, 11:30 a.m.: Classes of ’39 to ’47 from Star of the Sea Academy at Basque Cultural Center in South San Francisco. Call Dorothy at (415) 681-1493.

Trainings Mar. 14, 9:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.: Training for New Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion. Offered by the Office of Worship. $15.00 fee at Corpus Christi Church, San Francisco. Please pre-register at (415) 614-5505 or buchsiebm@ sfarchdiocese.org. Mar. 21, 10 a.m. - noon: Training for Communion to the Sick and Homebound. Offered by the Office of Worship. $5.00 fee; waived for previous attendees. To be held at Corpus Christi Church, San Francisco. Please pre-register at (415) 614-5505 or buchsiebm@ sfarchdiocese.org. Mar. 14 and Mar. 21 (Session I & II): Training for New Lectors. Offered by the Office of Worship. $20.00 fee. Session I: Mar. 14, 9:30 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Session II: Mar. 21, 10 a.m. - noon, at Corpus Christi Church, San Francisco. Please pre-register at (415) 614-5505 or buchsiebm@ sfarchdiocese.org

Food & Fun Santos, a Sister of St. Paul, will be signing her book “Facing the Apostle Paul’s Image in Art” at McCoy Church Goods, 1010 Howard Ave. in San Mateo. Call (650) 342-0924. Taize Prayer: 1st Friday at 8 p.m.: Mercy Center, 2300 Adeline Dr., Burlingame with Mercy Sister Suzanne Toolan. Call (650) 3407452; 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 information contact 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 in Fremont. Contact Maria Shao at (408) 839-2068 or maria49830@aol.com or Dominican Sister Beth Quire at (510) 449-7554 or beth@ msjdominicans; Fridays during Lent, 7:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Angels Church, 1721 Hillside Rd. near El Camino Real in Burlingame. There will be no Taize Prayer the evening of Good Friday. Call Liz Hannan at (650) 342-1759 Employment Support Group meets Mondays 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. at St. Matthias Church, 1685 Cordilleras Rd. in Redwood City “to share emotional, spiritual, and networking support and hear job search advice from guest speakers.” There is no cost to attend. Call (650) 366-9544 for more information. Following in the Footsteps of St. Paul, A Tuesdays of Lent series at St. Rita Church, 100 Marinda Dr. in Fairfax. Soup supper at 6:15 p.m. precedes 7 p.m. talk Contact Noelle Kostelic at (415) 456-4815 or e-mail nkostelic@sbcglobal. net. The talks commenced Feb. 24. March 10: The spiritual life of St. Paul with Franciscan Father Michael Guinan, Ph. D. March 17: St. Paul’s female partners in ministry with JeanFrancois Racine, Ph. D. March 24: The laity and lay preaching relevant to St. Paul with Darleen Pryds, Ph. D. March 31: Pauline Christology in New Testament hymns with Vincent Pizzuto, Ph. D.

St. Mary’s Cathedral Gough and Geary Blvd. in San Francisco in (415) 567-2020. Ample parking is available free of charge in the Cathedral lot for most events. March 18, 10:30 a.m.: “Sorrow and Grief,” a support workshop at St. Mary’s Cathedral, presented by Barbara Elordi, MFT, Coordinator of the Archdiocesan Grief Care Ministry. Entrance is on the western (Cleary Court) side of the Event Center, below the Cathedral at parking lot level. For information, contact Sister Esther McEgan at (415) 567-2020 ext. 218 Sundays, 3:30 p.m.: Concerts featuring local and musical artists from around the world. Open to the public. Free will offering helps support Cathedral’s music ministry. Call (415) 567-2020, ext. 231.

Vallombrosa Retreat Center 250 Oak Grove Ave. in Menlo Park. Call (650) 325-5614 or visit www.vallombrosa.org March 17: “Sacred Healing: Sacred Geometry Reveals Oneness” with Joan Prohaska. Experience the joy of aligning, balancing, and connecting with God and all creation through shapes, colors, art and music. April 4: “Finding Your Calling: Your Personal Renaissance” with Diane Dreher, Ph. D. The retreat offers insights from Renaissance lives, developmental psychology, and Ignatian spiri-

tuality to help discover gifts and discern new possibilities in the different seasons of life.

St. Patrick’s Day Festivities March 7, 6 p.m.: Corned Beef and Cabbage dinner benefiting Holy Name of Jesus Parish and School in Ryan Hall, Lawton St. between 39th and 40th Ave. in San Francisco. Entertainment includes Irish Pipers, Irish Dancers and Shades of Green with Kevin Roche. Menu includes corned and beef cabbage, homemade Irish soda bread and no-host refreshments. Tickets are $25 per person. Call (415) 731-4077 or (415) 664-8590. March 13, 6 p.m.: St. Stephen Men’s Club will host a St. Patrick’s Day family dinner at the Janet Pomeroy Center with live music. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children. Contact Tony Maffei at (650) 992-6763 or anthonymaffei@ comcast.net for more information. March 14, 6 p.m. St. Patrick’s Dinner Dance - A benefit for Most Holy Redeemer Parish and AIDS Support Group. Tickets are $25, seniors $15 and include a traditional Irish Dinner, two beverages, entertainment, and dancing following dinner. Raffle for $500 cash and other great prizes held during the evening. Enter Ellard Hall at 100 Diamond near 18th. For Event or Raffle Tickets, Reservations or more details contact (415) 863 1581. Tickets also available at the door. March 14, 11 a.m.: Shamrock Shenanigans, luncheon, silent auction and fashion show at United Irish Cultural Center, 45th Ave. at Sloat Blvd. in San Francisco sponsored by Catholic Professional Women’s Club. Tickets are $35 per person. Menu includes chicken or corned beef with no-host refreshments. Proceeds fund scholarship assistance for Catholic high school students. Contact Gloria Pizzinelli at gloriapizzinelli@yahoo.com or (415) 681-3733. Mar. 14, 6 p.m.: Annual St. Patrick’s Dinner in Saint Anne’s Moriarity Hall, Funston Street (between Irving and Judah). No host cocktails followed by dinner and dancing. Evening includes corned beef dinner, raffle, Whelan Dancers, Irish Pipers, and dancing to the music of Fergus and Michael’s Irish Band. Tickets are adults $30, children 12 and under $10. For reservations call Patty Diner (415) 566-7500 by March 9. March 14, 6 p.m.: St. Patrick’s Corned Beef Dinner at Our Lady of the Pillar Church in Half Moon Bay. Tickets are $25 adults/$12 children. Contact Brian at (650) 799-0011 or e-mail knightscouncil7534@yahoo.com. March 14, 6 p.m.: Corned beef and cabbage or chicken dinner sponsored by the Men of St. Matthew’s and the St. Matthew School Parents’ Association in school auditorium, Aragon off El Camino Real in San Mateo. Menu includes dinner and dessert. Evening includes entertainment and children’s bingo. No-host refreshments. Tickets are $15 adults/$5 children. Contact Charlie Jadallah at charliejad@yahoo.com or call (650) 628-6848. March 15, noon – 4 p.m.: Annual St. Patrick’s Day Barbecue Fundraiser and Family Festival at Dance Palace Community Center, 5th and B Streets, Point Reyes Station. Proceeds benefit Sacred Heart Parish in Olema and St. Mary Magdalene Mission in Bolinas. Menu includes full-course barbecued chicken dinner - $15 adults/$7 children. Call (415) 6631139. Also available for purchase: barbequed oysters, homemade desserts and beverages. Also enjoy silent auction of local goods and services and live music. Surprise Package Game for Kids Just a quarter. Tickets for cash raffle – top prize $1,200 - are $5 each, $25 for a book of five, or $100 for five books. Call the parish at (415) 663-1139 or buy at the barbeque. Winners need not be present to win.

March 7, 6:30 p.m. – 9 p.m.: Crab Feed sponsored by St. Finn Barr Church, 415 Edna St. at Hearst in San Francisco. Tickets are $45 adults/children$5. Call (415) 585-4524 or (415) 333-3627. March 14, 6 p.m.: St. Monica School and Parish Fundraiser and Auction Dinner - “Emerald Ball,” an evening of fun, food, and friends in the Parish Hall on 23rd Ave and Geary Blvd, San Francisco. Event begins with silent auction, continues with a delicious Crab Cioppino dinner, and live entertainment. Tickets are $50 per adult and $15 per child ages 5 to 13. For more info, please call (415) 751-9564 or look for the “Emerald Ball” link at www.stmonicasf.org. March 14, 6:30 p.m.: St. Luke Crab Feed at Parish Center, 1111 Beach Park Blvd., Foster City. All-you-can-eat crab (or chicken) includes antipasto, salad, pasta, dessert and drink. Dancing and raffle follow. Ticket is $40. Call (650) 345-6660. March 19, noon: St. Thomas More Society meets at the Banker’s Club, Bank of America Building, 555 California Street. Attorney and former FBI agent, Dave Cook, is guest speaker. For more information about the Society, luncheon tickets, and how to become a member, please visit: www.stthomasmore-sf.org or contact Greg Schopf at gschopf@nixonpeabody.com. March 21, 6 p.m. – midnight: “Denim and Diamonds,” 2009 Spring Gala benefiting Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory School, Ellis St. between Franklin and Gough in San Francisco. Evening features hosted bar, dinner, dancing, silent and live auctions plus raffle with $10,000 grand prize. Visit www.shcp.edu March 27, 28, April 2, 3, 4 at 7:30p.m., and April 5 at 2 p.m.: A stage adaptation of “The Grapes of Wrath” at Notre Dame de Namur University Theater, 1500 Ralston Ave. in Belmont. The tale, known by many as a book by John Steinbeck and later a film, holds compelling mirror to today’s economic time. Its principal player are victims of foreclosure forced to make a new home in a new state. Tickets are $10 each. Contact box office at (650) 508-3456. March 28, 5:30 p.m.: “Disco Odyssey,” a St. Cecilia’s Mother’s Club Fundraiser in Durocher Pavillion, St. Cecilia Campus, 18th and Vicente in San Francisco. Fun-filled evening begins with hosted cocktail reception and silent auction followed by dinner, live auction and dancing. Music is by CJ Custom Entertainment. Tickets are $85.00 per person. Tables of 10 are available. Visit www.scfundraiser.com to view raffles, see preview of auction items. Contact Stephanie Pasini at (415) 516-2614 or Janice Calonico at (415) 309-8073. April 4, 5:30 p.m.: “The Platinum Ball - Annual Auction Dinner Dance and Grand Drawing” benefiting Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish and School at San Mateo Marriott Hotel. Tickets at $100 per person include wine with dinner. Auction includes more than 500 items for bidding. Dancing to 1 a.m. to music of Jack Aces. Call (650) 593-6157 and ask for Gail.

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, or e-mail burket@sfarchdiocese.org.

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009

Chimney Cleaning

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For more information, contact Katie Haley, (415) 614-5556; email haleyk@sfarchdiocese.org.

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• Relationships • Addictions

Dr. Daniel J. Kugler Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Over 25 years experience

Confidential • Compassionate • Practical (415) 921-1619 1537 Franklin Street • San Francisco, CA 94109

Contractor inspection reports and pre-purchase consulting

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

Auto Service

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.

HABELT’S AUTO SERVICE

Complete Auto Repair

3865 Irving St. at 40th Ave. – Since 1964 –

415-664-1735

READERS

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

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

Plumbing HOLLAND

Plumbing Works San Francisco

ALL PLUMBING WORK PAT HOLLAND

CA LIC #817607

S anti

Plumbing and Heating 415-661-3707 Michael T. Santi Since 1972 Ca License # 663641 24 Hour Emergency Service

BEST PLUMBING, INC. Your Payless Plumbing

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

EMAIL: bestplumbinginc@comcast.net Member: Better Business Bureau

Plumbing • Fire Protection • Certified Backflow

John Bianchi Phone: 415.468.1877 Fax: 415.468.1875 100 North Hill Drive, Unit 18 • Brisbane, CA 94005 Lic. No. 390254

Green Handyman

Lila Caffery, MA, CCHT San Francisco: 415.337.9474 Complimentary phone consultation www.InnerChildHealing.com

BONDED & INSURED

4 15-205-1235

-Kitchen/Bath Remodel -Insulation/Weatherization -General Home Repair -

650-515-1419 CA Lic#927761 Bonded/Insured Tim@green-handyman.com

March 6, 2009

For Sale Choice 250 recipe books, +1 Bernina sewing machine with many patterns & sewing accessories. 1st $800 takes it all (worth $1,800). WONDERFUL COLLECTION.

PLEASE CALL (650) 368-4586

Furnished room for rent, $670/mo. including utilities, non-smoker, Richmond district in SF, no pets (415) 668-2690

Caregiver Available Caregiver/ companionship, livein/live-out, hourly, with 10+ years experience, excellent references, drive to doctor’s appts, etc. Please call (650) 787-4503, or (650) 400-2429, or (650) 464-0256

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 Name Adress Phone MC/VISA # Exp. Select One Prayer: ❑ St. Jude Novena to SH ❑ Prayer to St. Jude

❑ Prayer to the Blessed Virgin ❑ 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

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin never known to fail.

Most beautiful flower of Mt. Carmel Blessed Mother of the Son of God, assistme in my need. Help me and show me you are my mother. Oh Holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and earth. I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart to help me in this need. Oh Mary, conceived without sin. Pray for us (3X). Holy Mary, I place this cause in your hands (3X). Say prayers 3 days. M.J.

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin never known to fail. Most beautiful flower of Mt. Carmel Blessed Mother of the Son of God, assistme in my need. Help me and show me you are my mother. Oh Holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and earth. I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart to help me in this need. Oh Mary, conceived without sin. Pray for us (3X). Holy Mary, I place this cause in your hands (3X). Say prayers 3 days. M.P.L.

Help Wanted PLEASE RECYCLE THIS PAPER!

ADVERTISING SALES

For The Largest Publisher of Catholic Church Bulletins

This is a Career Opportunity! • Generous Commissions • Minimal Travel • Excellent Benefit Package • Stong Office Support • Work in Your Community. E.O.E.

Call 1-800-675-5051, Fax resume: 925-926-0799

PIANO LESSONS BY

ELDERLY CARE Personal care companion. Help with daily activities; driving, shopping, appointments. 28 years Alzheimer’s experience, references, bonded. (415) 713-1366

CAREGIVER NEEDED Seeking a kind, healthy, mature lady for a live-in companion, 10 hours/week of cleaning in exchange for room and private bath. PLEASE CALL

(415) 921-8337

Apt. for Rent 2 rooms w/bath, kitchen. Sunny, light, basement apartment, free parking for one car. $1300/mo. Household: mature, quiet, working, student. Please call 415-584-5307 before 10 pm.

Basement Apt. for Rent 2 rooms w/bath, kitchen. Sunny, light, basement apartment, free parking for one car. $1300/mo. Household: mature, quiet, working, student. Please call 415-584-5307 before 10 pm.

classifieds

Visit www.catholic-sf.org, for website listing, advertising information & Place Classified Ad Form or CALL: 415-614-5642

FAX: 415-614-5641 EMAIL: penaj@sfarchdiocese.org

Help Wanted Assistant Director of Human Resources The Archdiocese of Seattle has an opening for an Assistant Director of Human Resources. Requirements include: Bachelor’s degree; at least 3 yrs experience administering HR policies and procedures; experience analyzing/interpreting federal, state and local employment law and their application to organization; must be an active member of a Catholic parish/faith community and knowledgeable with the structures, policies and culture of the Archdiocese of Seattle; excellent communications, interpersonal, and organizational skills; ability to work occasional evenings and weekends; possession of a valid WA driver’s license and ability to travel throughout the Archdiocese. Bilingual competency preferred but not required. Competitive salary and excellent benefits.

For a complete job description, and application, visit our website: www.seattlearch.org/jobs/Chanceryjobs, or call 206-382-2070.

We are looking for full or part time

Piano Lessons CAROL FERRANDO. Conservatory training, masters degree, all levels of students. CALL (415) 921-8337.

N OVENAS Catholic San Francisco

Your prayer will be published in our newspaper

Room for Rent

Catholic San Francisco

EDITOR – CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco is seeking a highly qualified and motivated individual to serve as editor of Catholic San Francisco – the official newspaper of the San Francisco Archdiocese. Catholic San Francisco Editor plans newspaper content including news and feature stories; organizes and directs editorial staff, freelancers, photographers; writes and assigns stories; edits copy; selects wire service material; works collaboratively with advertising director and production manager, leads the production of each issue of the newspaper, and manages/oversees the content of the Catholic San Francisco Online website. Position reports to associate publisher/executive editor. This full-time position is located at the Archdiocesan Pastoral Center, One Peter Yorke Way, in San Francisco. Desirable candidates for the editor position will have a degree in journalism and 14 or more years of newspaper experience, including 7 or more years experience as editor or assistant editor. Candidates should be faithful Catholics with a commitment to Church doctrine and teaching. They also should have a working knowledge of the U.S Catholic Church and an understanding of the universal Church. Prior diocesan newspaper experience is helpful, but not required.

RNs, LVNs, CNAs, Caregivers In-home care in San Francisco, Marin County, peninsula Nursing care for children in San Francisco schools If you are generous, honest, compassionate, respectful, and want to make a difference, send us your resume: Jeannie McCullough Stiles, RN Fax: 415-435-0421 Email: info@sncsllc.com Voice: 415-435-1262

Catholic San Francisco is published weekly most of the year and twice a month in June, July and August.

Please send cover letter, resume, and samples of work to schmidtp@sfarchdiocese.org. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Francisco

San Francisco Archdiocesan Secondary

Teacher Job Faire Saturday, March 14, 2009 10:00am - 12:00pm St. Ignatius College Preparatory Carlin Commons 2001 37th Avenue San Francisco, California 94116

Host High Schools Include: Archbishop Riordan High School Convent of the Sacred Heart (San Francisco) Immaculate Conception Academy (San Francisco) Junipero Serra (San Mateo) Marin Catholic (Kentﬁeld) Mercy High School (Burlingame) Mercy High School (San Francisco) Notre Dame (Belmont) Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory (San Francisco) Sacred Heart Preparatory (Atherton) Saint Ignatius (San Francisco) Woodside Priory (Portola Valley)

Bring copies of your resume to the Faire

www.sfcatholicschools.org

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS SOUGHT The Department of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese of San Francisco is seeking elementary principals for the 2009-2010 school year. Candidates must be practicing Roman Catholic in good standing with the Church, possess a valid teaching credential, a Master’s degree in educational leadership, an administrative credential (preferred), and five years of successful teaching experience at the elementary level.

Please send resume and a letter of interest by March 20th, 2008 to: Bret E. Allen Associate Superintendent for Educational & Professional Leadership One Peter Yorke Way San Francisco, California 94109 Fax (415) 614-5664 E-mail: allenb@sfarchdiocese.org

Catholic San Francisco

March 6, 2009