June 26, 2009

Page 1

Catholic san Francisco

(PHOTO BY JOSE LUIS AGUIRRE/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)

Newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Francisco

Archdiocese of San Francisco welcomes three new priests The three newest priests of the Archdiocese of San Francisco leave the altar at St. Mary’s Cathedral June 20 to take their places among their fellow clergy members. Ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop George H. Niederauer were, from left, Father William H. Thornton, Father Michael F. Quinn and Father Joseph F. Previtali.

With marriage laws changing, issue seen as top priority for bishops By Patricia Zapor SAN ANTONIO (CNS) — In one of a series of status reports on ongoing projects of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops June 18, bishops attending their spring meeting in San Antonio were told the rapid pace of legal changes on the status of marriage in the United States has been keeping that concern a top priority. Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, of Louisville, Ky., chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee on Defense of Marriage said the challenge in meeting the bishops’ priority focus on marriage has been the quick rate at

The same day Archbishop Kurtz gave his report, President Barack Obama announced he was instructing federal agencies to extend family benefits to same-sex partners of federal employees where it can be done by administrative order, such as in the State Department. He also affirmed his desire to overturn the Defense of Marriage Act, saying it is discriminatory and interferes with states’ rights. The 1996 law says no state has to recognize a union recognized as a marriage in another state, and affirmed that under federal law the definition of marriage is a union of one man and one woman.

which states and courts have been taking up legislation that legalizes same-sex marriage or prohibits it. Six states now recognize marriage between same-sex couples, Archbishop Kurtz said, and others are considering the same type of laws or a range of others “allowing everything but marriage,” that would give new legal rights to civil unions. Other efforts would allow a state to recognize same-sex marriages from another state. Preliminary legislation that would allow the District of Columbia to recognize same-sex marriages from different states was awaiting final action.

Obama opposes same-sex marriage but supports measures granting some rights normally associated with marriage to samesex couples. In his report, Archbishop Kurtz said affirming church teaching about marriage is a challenge for the committee in meeting the USCCB’s priority of strengthening marriage, one of five priorities being by tackled by task forces the bishops approved last November. The church’s teaching about the “truth, beauty and goodness” of marriage between one man and one woman is “a received truth, MARRIAGE LAWS, page 9

Parish journey to explore what U.S. parishes can learn from Africa Father Paulinus Mangesho thinks that if members of a Bay Area parish and an African one could get to know one another, both communities would be the richer for it. Next month, Father Mangesho will put his idea into action. He will lead a threeperson delegation from Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish in Redwood City, where he is parochial vicar, to the parish where he grew up on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Father Mangesho and two Mt. Carmel parishioners, Maritza Longland and Maritsa

(PHOTO BY RICK DELVECCHIO)

By Rick DelVecchio

Father Paulinus Mangesho: “What makes the Church in Africa more vibrant is the teaching.”

Techioli, will depart July 29. When they arrive in Father Mangesho’s home parish, St. Francis Xavier Parish in the Diocese of Moshi, they will meet the pastor and in turn be introduced to the many small Catholic communities that are the heart of parish life. Father Mangesho, who has served as a parish priest in the Archdiocese of San Francisco since 1999, hopes to establish a sister parish partnership between the two communities. He believes the partnership could bring economic support to the African parish, where incomes average $26 a month and people may have to receive outside aid in a drought year. The exchange could

lead to progress on the U.N. Millennium Development Goals, which call for eliminating the worst global poverty by 2015, he said. It is also Father Mangesho’s hope that for the American community, the link could lead to new ways to energize parish life based on African ways. Father Mangesho believes the visitors from Mt. Carmel, where 52 parishioners have signed up to support the sister parish project, will be surprised by the vibrancy of the Church in his native country. In the Diocese of Moshi, nearly two in three people are Catholic. Children are taught about the vocations at an early age and many choose TANZANIA, page 16

INSIDE THIS WEEK’S EDITION On the Street . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Shrine retrofit . . . . . . . . . . 10 Death penalty protest . . . . . 11 Archbishop’s homily . . . . . 14 Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Child protection update ~ Page 8 ~ June 26, 2009

Award - winning student pro-life essays ~ Page 12-13 ~

New film spotlights injustice in Iran ~ Page 20 ~

SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS

Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

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