August 2016 by St. Anthony Messenger

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Messenger

Dorothy Day Model of Mercy

REFLECTION

Love God,

serve God; everything is in that. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;St. Clare of Assisi

PHOTOS FROM FOTOSEARCH: ST. CLARE @ NICKNICK, SKY @ KLEMENTIEV

CONTENTS

ST. ANTHONY Messenger

❘ AUGUST 2016 ❘ VOLUME 124/NUMBER 3

ON THE COVE R

26 Dorothy Day: Model of Mercy

Dorothy Day fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and sheltered the homeless. Her life of mercy and passion for justice touched Catholic hearts around the world, including Pope Francis’.

She provided a voice to the unheard. Pope Francis acknowledged that in his speech last September to the US Congress. By Robert Ellsberg

Illustration by Julie Lonneman

F E AT U R E S

D E PA R T M E N T S

14 St. Francis’ Feast of Pardon

2 Dear Reader

This month marks its 800th anniversary. How fitting that it happens during the Year of Mercy. By Jon M. Sweeney

3 From Our Readers 4 Followers of St. Francis Alicia Torres, FE

20 Forgotten Women of the New Testament They were integral in the life of the early Church. Get to know some of these holy heroines. By Mary Ann Getty, PhD

6 Reel Time Ben-Hur

Uncle Buck

10 Church in the News

32 Lanterns of Peace

19 At Home on Earth

On August 6, people in Hiroshima, Japan, and Rochester, Minnesota, will send glowing lanterns afloat in memory of those killed in the nuclear attacks 71 years ago. By Dave Hrbacek

38 Tomorrow’s Saints Could someone you know be a saint in the making? Could that someone be you? By Brother Francis Wagner, OSB

8 Channel Surfing

Summer’s End

24 Editorial Hear Them Roar

46 Ask a Franciscan

What Is the Origin of John’s Baptism?

48 Book Corner Red, White, Blue, and Catholic

42 Fiction: Memories of Music

50 A Catholic Mom Speaks

He viewed his present through the past. By Nancy Christie

The Long and Winding Road

52 Year of Mercy Peace in God’s Mercy

53 Backstory

DEAR READER

ST. ANTHONY M essenger

Basilica of St. Clare Assisi’s St. George Church was the original burial spot for Francis of Assisi and is now this basilica’s Blessed Sacrament chapel. Francis had gone to this parish school and had preached in its church. After her death on August 11, 1253, Clare was buried in St. George Church. Two years later, Pope Alexander IV canonized her and obtained that building and nearby land to construct a church where she could be reburied, and a more secure monastery could be built to replace what the nuns had at San Damiano. Clare was reburied under the main altar in 1260 when the basilica was solemnly dedicated. The San Damiano cross that spoke to Francis was brought to this new basilica; a copy is now at San Damiano itself. When Clare’s body was exhumed in 1850, the nuns discovered that the papal decree approving her “Privilege of Poverty” had been buried with her. The walls of Assisi were extended considerably to accommodate this new basilica, the Poor Clare monastery, and its adjacent gardens and orchards.

Click the button on the left to hear Father Pat’s further reflections on the Basilica of St. Clare.

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(U.S.P.S. PUBLICATION #007956 CANADA PUBLICATION #PM40036350) Volume 124, Number 3, is published monthly for $39.00 a year by the Franciscan Friars of St. John the Baptist Province, 28 W. Liberty Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202-6498. Phone (513) 241-5615. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati, Ohio, and additional entry offices. U.S. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: St. Anthony Messenger, P.O. Box 189, Congers, NY 109200189. CANADA RETURN ADDRESS: c/o AIM, 7289 Torbram Rd., Mississauga, ON, Canada L4T 1G8. To subscribe, write to the above address or call (866) 543-6870. Yearly subscription price: $39.00 in the United States; $69.00 in Canada and other countries. Single copy price: $3.95. For change of address, four weeks’ notice is necessary. See St AnthonyMessenger.org for information on your digital edition. Writer’s guidelines can be found at StAnthony Messenger.org. The publishers are not responsible for manuscripts or photos lost or damaged in transit. Names in fiction do not refer to living or dead persons. Member of the Catholic Press Association Published with ecclesiastical approval Copyright ©2016. All rights reserved.

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St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

FROM OUR READERS

Shift Focus to the Mexican Government I’m writing regarding the article “A Mass without Borders,” by Nancy Wiechec, from the June issue. My complaint about the article’s focus on the plight of undocumented immigrants is the lack of understanding for the reasons this mass migration is happening. Rather than concentrating on the reception that undocumented immigrants receive in the United States, perhaps it might have been well for the pope to excoriate the Mexican government for the conditions that gave rise to this problem. It is the fault of neither the United States nor our immigration system that Mexico has a corrupt government unable to provide necessities for their people or even basic protection from violence. However, the

What’s on Your Mind? Letters that are published do not necessarily represent the views of the Franciscan friars or the editors. We do not publish slander or libel. Please include your name and postal address. Letters may be edited for clarity and space. Mail Letters, St. Anthony Messenger 28 W. Liberty St. Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498 Fax 513-241-0399

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focus of immigration advocates always seems to center on what happens to the undocumented immigrants when they arrive uninvited to the United States. Undoubtedly, they are exploited. But they put themselves in that position. The complaint rings hollow to me, like lamenting that a home owner didn’t offer refreshments to a home invader. Either we are a country with borders, or we are not. Bob Miller Washington, DC

Father Vic, Always There for Others A friend passed the June issue to me. She knew I’d be delighted to read the article “Walking with Immigrants,” by Father Victor Subb, GHM. I have been blessed to know and have worked with Father Vic. I made two trips to Georgia to help with his work. Witnessing his ministry was more than I can express! As the article described, he would go out to the camps with essential supplies. The workers took only what they needed, and we’d be sure everyone had something. One night a week, he celebrated Mass in the onion fields. He arranged to rent a storefront in Stillmore, Georgia, so that he could celebrate Mass on Sundays at 2 p.m. for the workers who couldn’t make it to a Sunday Mass. He was always on call—births, sickness, fires, car rides—everyone knew they could count on Father Vic! Jackie DeSanti Loudonville, New York

Francis and Fireside Chats C. Walker Gollar compared Pope Francis to Abraham Lincoln in his article from the May issue, “Abraham Lincoln: Model of Faith.” I would like to suggest a comparison of Pope Francis to a more recent president: Franklin D. Roosevelt. FDR is surpris-

ingly controversial today because some oppose his basic New Deal programs that were designed to assist the unemployed, the poor, the elderly, and the lower middle class. The Catholic Church has supported programs of this type for many years. FDR was exceptionally skilled at speaking directly to and reassuring the public through his radio addresses and fireside chats. Pope Francis speaks directly to both the Church and the world in easily understood and reassuring language through his daily homilies and general audiences. At the 1936 Democratic convention, FDR supporters were holding a banner that stated, “We love you for the enemies you have made.” Pope Francis has a number of critics inside the Church. Seeing who his critics are convinces me he is leading the Church in the right direction. Phil Mullin Lancaster, Ohio

Respect All Our Nations’ Laws I’d like to weigh in on Daniel Imwalle’s editorial from the May issue, “Pope Francis’ Lesson on Compassion.” I think the Catholic Church should support legal immigration. The Church teaches respect for laws. Why not this law? If it takes a wall to get control, then let’s build a wall. We need to end illegal immigration as a first step. Then we can work on compromising how to help those already living illegally in our country. Once we get control, walls can come down as in Berlin. The Church has laws and asks people to respect them. When I am at a funeral or wedding, the priest always asks those who are not Catholic not to receive Communion. How is this different from asking people to respect our immigration laws? Mary Long Lake Wylie, South Carolina Au gu s t 2 0 1 6 ❘ 3

F O L L O W E R S O F S T. F R A N C I S

A Champion for Those in Need MELINDA COLLINS, SPIRIT JUICE STUDIOS

ast November, a young woman walked into Food Network’s kitchen on the set of its popular Chopped program and, three delicious courses later, won the intense cooking competition and its $10,000 prize. What to do with the money? A trip to Europe? A chic new wardrobe to flaunt? Perhaps she could pay off some of her student loans with the cash. The answer is none of the above for Franciscan Sister Alicia Torres, FE. Sister Alicia brought the $10,000 back to the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels in Chicago, where over 700 families are served. The money was put toward purchasing items for their food pantry and other pressing needs. Sister Alicia’s bold and giving spirit is nothing new, however. Sister Alicia was born in 1984 on the island of Terceira, Portugal, and grew up on the move in a Navy family. Eventually settling on the East Coast, Sister Alicia remembers prayer being a major part of her childhood. “I especially remember how anxious I was to receive my first Communion, and how, as a little girl, I always looked forward to going to church,” she says.

Alicia Torres, FE

“I was drawn [to the Franciscans] by the life of prayer and service. I had been attracted during my college years to eucharistic adoration, which played a key role in my discernment,” Sister Alicia recalls. She joined the Franciscans of the Eucharist in 2009, and took her first vows in October 2012. Before Sister Alicia could take her vow of poverty, though, she had to pay off her student loan debt—like many millennials who face sizable student loans in a struggling economy. She was forced to think outside the box to solve her problem. Even though she only ran cross-country in high school for one year, Sister Alicia started training for the Chicago Half Marathon as part of a fund-raising campaign called the Nun Run. The pledges people made to the Nun Run helped pay off her high-interest loans. Now living out her vocation at the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels, Sister Alicia oversees all the food that is donated to their pantry and distributed to her “neighbors,” the needy. Her approach to her vocation is simple: “to be the sister of every person I encounter!” The mission serves meals to

STORIES FROM OUR READERS Learn more about St. Anthony and share your story of how he helped you at AmericanCatholic.org/ Features/Anthony.

Spreading the Word about St. Anthony

4 ❘ Augus t 2016

Several years ago, my husband, Jack, and I visited one of our daughters, who was teaching English in China. We purchased nonstop airline tickets for a flight from Newark, New Jersey, to China. As we were sitting at our gate, I saw a sign across the way that I wanted to read and put on my glasses. I could not see well out of one of the lenses and took them off to clean it. To my surprise, the lens was missing! After checking our current area, we decided to walk back to the place where we went through security. I asked St. Anthony to help me. A TSA agent was kind enough to allow me to go back through the security line to look for the lens. After looking as hard as we could, we gave up and started walking back to our gate. Then we saw the TSA agent running to catch up with us. He had found the lens, and I got to tell him about St. Anthony! —Marybeth Nowicki, Bedford, New Jersey

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

ST. CLARE OF ASSISI

Eyewitness Stories Two months after Clare died, Pope Innocent IV asked the bishop of Spoleto to collect testimonies about Clare’s holiness. Twenty witnesses described her virtues. Most of them were nuns at San Damiano, some who had known her before she moved there. Four laymen and one laywoman also testified. The “Process of Canonization” text was discovered only in 1920 by Zefferino Lazzeri, OFM, and is printed in Clare of Assisi: Early Documents, translated and edited by Regis Armstrong, OFM Cap (New City Press). –P.M.

anywhere from 50 to 1,500 people, with the Christmas meal being the largest event. So, what does it take to win Chopped? Beyond culinary talent, Sister Alicia brings a calm that can only come from her deep faith. “I am not anxious about the future, as I know it is in God’s hands,” she says. In preparation for her appearance on the show, she prayed fervently and asked Jesus for help. “When I got on the set, I was flooded with confidence and had no fear. I knew the Lord was with me,” she recalls. The judges were floored by her food offerings, which included a turkey quesadilla with cranberry sauce. Twitter was set afire with tweets about the “cooking nun.” In response to her win, the Mission of Our Lady of the Angels tweeted, “It’s going to help the poor! Thanks be to God! We need new plumbing!” After the thrill of victory fades, though, Sister Alicia’s passion for her faith and vocation remains most important for her. “My role is just to do my best to serve in the ways I am asked, trusting that the Lord will never abandon his people,” she says. —Daniel Imwalle

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REEL TIME

W I T H S I S T E R R O S E PA C AT T E , F S P

Ben-Hur

SISTER ROSE’S

Favorite

Summer Movies Mid-August Lunch (2008) My Girl (1991) What about Bob? (1991) The Way Way Back (2013) The Perfect Game (2009)

6 ❘

Augus t 2016

Jack Huston slips effortlessly into the iconic role of Judah in the thrilling remake Ben-Hur. Based on the 1880 novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ by Lew Wallace, this contemporary adaptation is a story of family, oppression, betrayal, vengeance, and forgiveness. In Roman-occupied Jerusalem around the year AD 30, Judah Ben-Hur (Jack Huston) is a Jewish nobleman whose family adopted Messala (Toby Kebbell), a Roman. Despite their differences, they are true friends. After Messala returns from military campaigns, he asks Judah to inform on Jewish zealots who are resisting Rome. Judah, married to Esther (Nazanin Boniadi), refuses and is accused of treason by Messala. He sentences Judah to the galleys for life and condemns his sister and mother to prison, where they contract leprosy. After years chained to an oar in the galley of a ship, Judah escapes during a monumental sea battle. He is taken in by Ilderim (Morgan Freeman), who breeds and races horses. The ultimate contest between the former brothers and friends is played out when they compete in a thrilling chariot

race that will have you gripping your seat. This reimagining of the story of Ben-Hur lithely weaves in the story of Jesus and is aimed at teens and young adults of today. The futility of vengeance—and the gift of reconciliation—are the dominant themes. It’s best to come to the film without an attachment to the epic 1959 version that starred Charlton Heston. Timur Bekmambetov ably directs this new interpretation from executive producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett, and Oscar-winning writer John Ridley. Huston and Kebbell are wellmatched and did their own chariot driving. The cinematography by Oliver Wood will simply amaze you. Not yet rated ■ Action violence, peril.

The Innocents At the end of World War II, the Red Army advances on Poland. In a remote northern location, the soldiers invade a Benedictine monastery and assault the sisters and novices St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

COURTESY OF MUSIC BOX FILMS

Director Anne Fontaine’s stunning feature The Innocents tells of a band of brave sisters who face hardship with faith.

COURTESY OF A24

repeatedly. Nine months later, one woman is about to give birth. A novice runs to the town for help. She knows that if the Soviets find out, they will likely kill them. She also suspects that the Polish will condemn and shun them for what has happened, through no fault of their own. A boy leads her to the French Red Cross that is repatriating French citizens injured in the war. Mathilde (Lou De Laâge), a nonbeliever, accompanies the novice to the monastery where she assists in the birth. When she realizes that several more of the women are in advanced stages of pregnancy, she risks her own life to help them and their babies. The story of the The Innocents is derived from the notes made by Red Cross physician Madeleine Pauliac (1912-1946). Although it is difficult to find the actual references, we know that rape continues to be used in wars as a means of enforcing dominance. Each scene in The Innocents is deeply nuanced, and the characters are emotionally conflicted and spiritually complex. I was moved by one novice who, despite everything, says, “I am a mother. I will always be a mother. This is my child.” Whether or not the denouement of the film really happened, it’s quietly brilliant, hopeful, and life-affirming. It’s not an easy film to watch, but kudos to the filmmakers for telling the story without exploiting it. The film is in French and Polish with English subtitles. Not yet rated, PG-13 ■ Mature themes, peril.

someone with whom they share something in common, they are turned into an animal of their choice. David (Colin Farrell) arrives with a dog, who, in human form, was his brother who failed to find a mate. David, however, chooses to be transformed into a lobster if he doesn’t find a compatible woman. One of the activities the guests partake in is hunting those in the woods who have escaped from the hotel. The Lobster, which won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Fesitval, has been billed as an absurdist comedy, but it’s also dark. It reminded me of a weird spinoff of The Hunger Games, where relationships go to die—along with your humanity—if you aren’t careful. Someone called it the worst date movie ever. But perhaps that is the whole point: authentic relationships are hard to come by in a cynical world, and true love is almost impossible to sustain in a bleak culture. Not yet rated, R ■ Sexual content, language, some violence.

Colin Farrell and Oscar winner Rachel Weisz share an attraction in the peculiar independent film The Lobster.

Catholic Cl assifications A-1 A-2 A-3 L O ■

The Catholic News Service Media Review Office gives these ratings. See usccb.org/movies.

■

For additional film reviews, go to americancatholic.org/movies.

The Lobster In a future dystopian society, people looking for a mate check into a hotel for 45 days. At the end of that time, if they do not find Fr anciscanMedia.org

General patronage Adults and adolescents Adults Limited adult audience Morally offensive

Augus t 2016 ❘

CHANNEL SURFING

WITH CHRISTOPHER HEFFRON

UP CLOSE

Tuesdays, 9 p.m., ABC By the time channel surfers read this, Uncle Buck might be DOA, and that’s only a modest shame. Based on the funny 1989 film by the same name, this television adaptation stars Mike Epps as Buck Russell, an employment-challenged man-child who begrudgingly becomes a nanny for his brother’s three children. While the show follows the same recipe as the much-loved John Candy vehicle, ABC adds some bold ingredients for a new flavor. Effortlessly inhabited by Epps, Buck is a lovable loser who finds purpose in his new role as caregiver for his nieces and nephew. And while the actor has the comedy chops to carry the series, he lacks what the late John Candy had in spades: a beguiling mix of unpolished charmer and clumsy clown. Epps still scores, but only slightly. The rest of the cast manages to shine in their underwritten roles, but special attention should be paid to Nia Long as Alex, the overworked matriarch. She is at first horrified by Buck’s influence over the children, but gradually understands that her inflexibility might be crippling their growth. She balances the duality well. Shows that feature three-dimensional characters of color are a rarity, and viewers might struggle to find them here. But it’s still a fresh look at the family dynamic.

Dual Survival

ABC/CRAIG SJODIN

Wednesdays, 9 p.m., Discovery Channel Survival shows are ubiquitous on the television landscape, and luckily more than half are worth watching. The gold standard for this genre of television was Bear Grylls’ now-defunct Man vs. Wild, and other cable networks have scrambled to match its thrilling pace. Discovery Channel’s longstanding Dual Survival is the best of the lot. The premise is simple: two survivalists are left stranded in an uninhabitable environment and must rely on their wits, experience, and stamina to last the challenge. There’s been a revolving door of presenters/hosts, but the show’s seventh season features Grady Powell, an ex-Green Beret, and Bill McConnell, a primitive wilderness survivalist. They don’t always get along, which is half the fun. Parents and sensitive channel surfers should know going in that Dual Survival is no picnic: the series unabashedly gives audiences a bird’s-eye view into the realities that go along with survival— and the footage is raw. Perhaps the most intriguing element is the everpresent friction between McConnell and Powell, renowned experts in survival, but somewhat hapless with interpersonal crisis resolution. McConnell is freer, less rigid; Powell, with his military background, is a creature of habit. They clash often and loudly, but they always manage to put aside their differences when it matters most. Dual Survival is a lot of fun.

Mike Epps leads an ensemble cast in Uncle Buck, about an eccentric who becomes the nanny to three rambunctious kids. 8 ❘

Augus t 2016

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CHURCH IN THE NEWS

❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

Church Responds to Orlando Shooting

CNS PHOTO/KAREN CALLAWAY, CATHOLIC NEW WORLD

his offer of salvation,” he said. “Who are we to close our hearts to anyone for whom the Lord has offered an invitation to experience his saving life? As a society and a church, we must do whatever we can to fight all hatred, bigotry, and intolerance in all its forms.” When Pope Francis was asked about the shooting on his return flight from Armenia, the pope closed his eyes and shook his head before saying, “The Church must say it is sorry for not having behaved as it should many times, many times— when I say the ‘church,’ I mean we Christians because the Church is holy; we are the sinners. We Christians must say we are sorry.”

Photos of the victims of the June 12 mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, are displayed at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Chicago June 19. Following the mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, many members of the Church spoke out against the hatred and bigotry often directed toward those in the gay community. The attack—the largest mass shooting in modern US history—left 50 dead, including the shooter, and more than 50 others injured. At a Mass in Chicago on the day of the shooting, members of the archdiocese’s gay and lesbian outreach received a letter from Archbishop Blase Cupich, reported Catholic News Service (CNS). In the letter, the archbishop reaffirmed: “The Archdiocese of Chicago stands with you. I stand with you. Let our shared grief and our common faith in Jesus, who called the persecuted blessed, unite us, so that hatred and intolerance are not allowed to flourish, so that those 1 0 ❘ Augus t 2016

who suffer mental illness know the support of a compassionate society, so that we find the courage to face forthrightly the falsehood that weapons of combat belong anywhere in the civilian population.” Bishop Frank J. Caggiano of Bridgeport, Connecticut, where four years ago 20 children and six adults were slain at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, before the gunman took his own life, also spoke out. In a June 14 statement, Bishop Caggiano said that Catholics must raise their voices against hatred. “There can be no place in our midst for hatred and bigotry against our brothers and sisters who experience same-sex attraction or for anyone who is marginalized by the larger society. The Lord Jesus extended his arms on the cross to embrace all people who respond to

Pope to Appoint Advisory Board in Removing Negligent Bishops In an apostolic letter dated June 4 and given “motu proprio” (“on his own initiative”), Pope Francis reaffirmed that bishops of a diocese or eparchy and those responsible for other kinds of particular churches can be “legitimately removed” for negligence, reported CNS. Four Vatican offices will continue to investigate claims of negligence on the part of bishops, ordinaries, or religious superiors under their jurisdiction. A panel of legal experts, however, will now help the pope in deciding whether to remove a religious superior or bishop from office for failing to protect minors and vulnerable adults from sex abuse. The letter clarified that it normally takes a “very serious” lack of due diligence for a bishop to be removed; however, when it comes to failing to protect children and vulnerable adults from abuse, a “serious” lack of St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

N E W S B R I E F S N AT I O N A L A N D I N T E R N AT I O N A L

CNS/JEFF KOWALSKY, EPA

A memorial Mass for Detroit Red Wings legend Gordie Howe— known as “Mr. Hockey”—was held June 15 at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Detroit. Howe died June 10 at the age of 88. Dozens of NHL dignitaries from across North America, including NHL greats Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Orr, Ted Lindsay, Guy LaFleur, Steve Yzerman, and Chris Chelios were in attendance at the Mass. To mark the first anniversary of “Laudato Si’,” Pope Francis’ encyclical on the environment, the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace launched a website— www.laudatosi.va—dedicated to the document and

due diligence is sufficient grounds for removal. In a written statement, Cardinal Seán O’Malley of Boston, head of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, said the measures are meant to establish “a clear and transparent means for ensuring greater accountability in how we, as leaders of the Church, handle cases of the abuse of minors and vulnerable adults. We are grateful that our Fr ancisca n Media .org

efforts around the world to put its teaching into practice. Cardinal Peter Turkson, council president, said the site “witnesses not only to the impact of the encyclical, but also the creativity and generosity of the people of God everywhere in the world.” Two-year-old Lane Graves, who was killed on June 14 in an alligator attack at Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, was remembered by members of St. Patrick Parish in Elkhorn, Nebraska, during a regularly scheduled morning Mass and special rosary on June 16. The Graves are members of the parish.

CNS/ORANGE COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

Franciscan Father Pierbattista Pizzaballa, former custos of the Holy Land, has been appointed as the apostolic administrator of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem. He will assume the position from Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal of Jerusalem, who has served as head of the Latin Patriarchate since 2008, who is stepping down for reasons of age. Father Pizzaballa served as custos of the Holy Land for 12 years. The custos is the provincial minister of the Franciscans in almost all of the Middle East, with jurisdiction over territory extending through Israel, the Palestinian territories, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Cyprus and Rhodes, and at their monastery in Cairo.

The July 22 memorial of St. Mary Magdalene has been elevated to a feast on the Church’s liturgical calendar, the Congregation for Divine Worship announced on June 10. In an article for the Vatican newspaper, Archbishop Arthur Roche, secretary of the congregation, wrote that in celebrating “an evangelist who proclaims the central joyous message of Easter,” St. Mary Magdalene’s feast day is a call for all Christians to “reflect more deeply on the dignity of women, the new evangelization, and the greatness of the mystery of divine mercy.” Actor Gary Sinise and former US ambassador to the Holy See Jim Nicholson were honored with the St. Pio Award from the St. Pio Foundation on May 27. The award is presented to individuals who exemplify the organization’s mission, which is to provide service to “those in need of relief from suffering.” For more Catholic news, visit AmericanCatholic.org.

Holy Father has received the recommendations from our commission members and that they have contributed to this new and significant initiative.” The new procedures spelled out in the “motu proprio” came after a year of study by numerous experts, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi said, and are meant to address the need for greater accountability by bishops and superiors of religious orders.

Renovations Begin on Church of Holy Sepulchre In early June, experts began working on a restoration of the Edicule of the Tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, where, according to Christian tradition, Jesus was laid to rest after his crucifixion, reported CNS. The project, which is being carried out by experts from the National Technical University of Athens, is Au gu s t 2 0 1 6 ❘ 1 1

CNS PHOTO/JIM HOLLANDER, EPA

Tourists and Christian pilgrims visit the tomb where it is believed Christ was buried, inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. For the first time in 200 years, experts have begun a restoration of the Edicule of the Tomb.

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the church and . . . everyone knew [the restoration] needed to be done,” Father Macora said. “There is no reason it could not be done. It is important that the work be done in a way which respects the rights of other communities.”

Family Petitions for Relocation of Archbishop Sheen’s Body The family of the late Archbishop Fulton Sheen has petitioned the Supreme Court of the state of New York to have Sheen’s remains relo-

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expected to take up to one year to complete and will include sorely needed damage repair and reinforcement of the structure. The project was agreed upon by the three principal churches overseeing the tomb under the 19th-century Status Quo agreement, after overcoming enduring differences in a place where rights over every section of the church have been jealously guarded for centuries. The Status Quo agreement was put in place by the Ottoman rulers in 1852 and preserved the division of ownership and responsibilities of the various Christian holy sites. At the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, it governs the responsibilities of the principal churches—Greek Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Armenian Apostolic—as well as the Ethiopian, Syriac, and Coptic churches. “There wasn’t any friction on this issue,” said Franciscan Father Athanasius Macora, who is responsible for supervising the agreement on the part of the Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land. “There was good chemistry between the three heads of the churches and they agreed to it right away. “The tomb is the heart of the shrine. It is the most important reason why people are coming to visit

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, pictured at a pulpit in an undated file photo, was well known for his work on television and radio.

cated to Peoria, Illinois. Joan Sheen Cunningham, 88, Archbishop Sheen’s niece and his oldest living relative, filed the petition June 13, asking that the trustees of St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City—where Archbishop Sheen has been entombed in a crypt since his death on December 9, 1979—and the Archdiocese of New York allow his remains to be disinterred and transferred to Peoria for interment in a crypt at St. Mary’s Cathedral, reported CNS. According to a June 14 press release from the Diocese of Peoria, Cunningham—who resides in New York—has the support of other living relatives of the late archbishop. The reasons for the family’s decision to seek the transfer of his remains to Peoria include the long efforts of the Diocese of Peoria and the Archbishop Fulton John Sheen Foundation to pursue the cause for canonization. Sheen was raised in the cathedral parish in Peoria, and it is where he was ordained a priest of the diocese in 1919. Archbishop Sheen’s beatification and canonization cause has been suspended for nearly two years since the Archdiocese of New York denied Bishop Daniel R. Jenky’s request to move the body to Peoria. The diocese has been a promoter of Archbishop Sheen’s canonization cause for 14 years. The Congregation for the Causes of Saints at the Vatican reportedly has no objection to the transfer of the body. In a June 14 statement, the New York Archdiocese said that it had asked the Peoria Diocese to “officially reopen the cause, with the understanding that the archbishop’s earthly remains would then be sent to Peoria for a beatification ceremony as soon as one was announced, and then returned after an appropriate time” to the crypt beneath the high altar of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. It also said the Congregation for the Causes of Saints “tells us all that is holding up the cause is the letter from the bishop of Peoria reopening the cause he closed two years ago.” A St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

St. Francis’ Feast of Pardon This month marks its 800th anniversary. How fitting that it happens during the Year of Mercy. BY JON M. SWEENEY

PHOTO BY LUDMIŁA PILECKA

(Left) The Portiuncula chapel, now within the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels in Assisi, is the cradle of the Franciscan family.

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WEB GALLERY OF ART

INCE HIS ELECTION in March 2013, Pope Francis has renewed the Franciscan spirit in more ways than we can easily count. Not least among them is the institution of the Jubilee Year of Mercy that began last December, on the feast of the Immaculate Conception. This holy year of ours reminds us of something that St. Francis of Assisi is said to have called for many years ago. We are about to celebrate the 800th anniversary of what’s commonly called the Portiuncula Indulgence: a plenary indulgence granted by Pope Honorius III at the special request of St. Francis to honor the chapel in the Valley of Spoleto that Francis called the “mother church” of his religious order on August 2, 1216. Francis wanted all who came to his little church to receive God’s mercy. To this day, August 2 is a feast day celebrated by Franciscans around the world, which will be celebrated in a big way this month (see box on p. 16). The Portiuncula Indulgence (or Feast of Pardon, or Pardon of Assisi) was at first available only to those who came to the tiny chapel between sundown, or vespers, August 1, and vespers the following day. They also had to make a confession and receive Communion. About 250 years later, another pope made it easier to access, making the special grace available at all Franciscan or Poor Clare churches or chapels on that day of the year. Then, 150 years after that, all Capuchin churches, Conventual churches, and all churches of the Third Order Regular were added. Finally, in 1967, it was extended to all Catholic churches throughout the world on August 2.

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Franciscan Reconciliation

PHOTO BY FRANK JASPER, OFM

HE 800TH ANNIVERSARY of Friars Minor, said that during these the Feast of Pardon marks a occasions “we will spend time seeking significant moment in Francisthe way of forgiveness for the ways can history. Friars of all four we’ve hurt each other throughout the men’s orders have expressed centuries.” desire for greater unity, and are using All of the hallmarks of family disthis anniversary, in part, to jump-start agreements are part of the Franciscan the effort. story, generations removed from today. The idea jelled at the historic visit of It’s a move toward reconciliation in Pope Francis to Assisi, on the feast of the spirit of St. Francis himself, who St. Francis, in 2013. Soon after, the surely was scandalized by any division general ministers of the Franciscan among his followers. men—OFMs, the Conventuals, the On November 29 of next year, on Capuchins, and the Third Order Reguthe anniversary of the Franciscan Rule’s lar—initiated a bold move. They would first publication, the pope will rehold a Great General Chapter, a sort of confirm the Rule, to be known now as synod of the Franciscan families, in the Fraternity of the First Order. 2017. It will be a first-ever gathering. Next year’s joint synod will lead to This month’s Feast of Pardon celesome agreement about the way forbration is building up to that. Also critiward, to be drafted in 2018. This Great cal is next year’s observance of the Chapter will have identified a number General Minister Father Michael Perry, OFM, of joint projects for the Franciscan 500th anniversary of the papal act that says the Feast of Pardon is a great opporturestructured the Franciscan family into family, places to demonstrate fraternity nity for the Franciscan family to unite. various groups. among friars. Those ministries will point During a recent interview with St. the way forward, Father Perry hopes, Anthony Messenger, much of which we reported in an earlier maybe even toward an eventual reunification of Franciscans. issue, Michael Perry, general minister of our own Order of —John Feister

The “catch,” if you will, is that there’s no actual evidence that Francis ever asked Pope Honorius for this indulgence. In fact, we know little about Francis and indulgences. Thus, there is some doubt about the authenticity of the widely told story of how the Feast of Pardon began. In fact, St. Francis never mentions the Portiuncula Indulgence in his own writings. Neither does Thomas of Celano, Francis’ first biographer and one of his brother friars, in either of the books he wrote about Francis. St. Bonaventure, who became general minister of the order a generation later, never mentions it when he tells the story of Francis’ life. There’s nothing about the Pardon of Assisi in papal records until some 40 years after Francis’ death. Yet the Feast of Pardon remains an important part of the Franciscan spirit of reconciliation. A little deeper look might help us to see why.

What Is an Indulgence, Anyway? We don’t know about indulgences the way previous generations did. Indulgence is simply 16 ❘

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another word for mercy. Paragraph 1471 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that an indulgence is “a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church.” Previous centuries envisioned purgatory as the place after death where the “punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven” mostly takes place. But it is more common today for a Catholic priest or theologian to explain that this takes place here and now, in this life, usually through trials and sufferings on earth. In other words, turning to God through penance, prayer, and charity is often considered to be an indulgence that helps to purify us. Still, a holy year can make available a special indulgence—and this is where the word plenary still occasionally appears before indulgence. A plenary indulgence erases not just a portion, but all of our need for trials or punishment St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

The Cross, Not the Sword Early Franciscans and historians, beginning about 40 years after St. Francis’ death, left us records of what happened 800 years ago. It seems that Francis’ intentions in appealing to Pope Honorius to grant the plenary indulgence for visiting Portiuncula may have been a way Fr anciscanMedia.org

of showing a different path of faith from the one that many then knew: the way of the crusader. The year was 1216, and the Fifth Crusade was under way. It had begun in 1213 and continued until 1221, and was an attempt by emperors, popes, and knights throughout Western Europe to travel to the Holy Land and retake Jerusalem for Christendom. It was a violent war against Islam. By most accounts, Francis was not a supporter of the effort, which was then consuming much of the attention of Catholic leaders. The papal curia surely counseled Pope Honorius against such an open-ended plenary indulgence as what Francis asked for at Portiuncula. They must have said, Why honor such

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in order to cleanse and prepare us to be attached to God alone. We often hear that an indulgence is somehow negative, mostly because Martin Luther famously decried the practice 500 years ago. Luther had good reason for his complaints, since, in his day, indulgences were being sold by Renaissance popes who were overanxious to raise funds for building the new St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In more recent times, the Church has continued to refine the teaching of indulgences. For instance, in 1967, just after the Second Vatican Council, Pope Paul VI promulgated a papal bull (formal bulletin) that said indulgences are not primarily intended for people to do penance for sins—to spend less time in purgatory—but to teach us to be more charitable. One must always do something in order to receive the gift of an indulgence. Luther didn’t like that either, but this remains an essential difference between Catholic and Protestant ways of being Christian. An indulgence doesn’t simply fall upon you like rain. And you cannot simply accept an indulgence, or God’s mercy, in your mind. You must somehow act. You must show a passionate interest, demonstrate your faith, and go out to meet the grace that God has provided. An indulgence is also, according to the Church, an extra-sacramental, which means that it is something you can do and receive outside of the usual seven sacraments to express penitence for sin and receive God’s grace. Spiritual pilgrimage is, for instance, an extra-sacramental. Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, likes extrasacramentals. The first time he offered an indulgence was in the summer of 2013 to anyone attending World Youth Day in Brazil. In order to receive that indulgence, each person was required to attend the conference and also to go to Confession during that time. The pope then extended the invitation to all who couldn’t afford the time or expense to be in Brazil in person but who went to Confession and followed the World Youth Day proceedings via media.

a little church, and such a little poor man? And, they probably argued, Francis’ proposed indulgence would devalue other indulgences that required much more of people, most of all, the crusaders. A man received the promise of plenary indulgence for joining the violent crusading campaigns. In fact, before the Portiuncula Indulgence, the main plenary indulgence available was the one given to crusaders. A crusader’s sins were forgiven him for taking up the sword for Christ. In contrast, Francis was a peacemaker. He was also most always subtle and quiet in his rejections of the ways of faith that seemed to him to be less valuable, more potentially fraught with problems. In the end, Pope Honorius granted the Portiuncula Indulgence, and not just that first one, but in perpetuity, for a 24-hour period each year on August 2.

Sin disconnects us from others. Reconciliation reconnects us. Here, Pope Francis hears a young woman’s confession during World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro in July 2013.

Mercy, Grace, Peace “You don’t pay for salvation. It’s free,” Pope Francis remarked this past December, when Augus t 2016 ❘

talking about the Year of Mercy, the most important indulgence of his papacy so far. But you do have to do something to receive it and make it real in your life. The door that one walks through this year, whether in Vatican City or in one’s diocese, is not magical. It is a symbol made potent by the pope’s declaration of God’s mercy and favor toward us. Such attention to indulgences is one of the ways that this pope links himself with the charism of St. Francis. Whether St. Francis actually asked for the Portiuncula Indulgence is almost beside the point; the practice of this special opportunity

to find God’s mercy, grace, and peace says something important every August about the Franciscan spiritual way. Thousands of people will stream to Assisi this year, as pilgrims always do. More than any single building, they will visit the Basilica of San Francesco. While there, they will surely marvel at the Giotto frescoes of the Upper Church. They will visit the crypt below the Lower Church, and circumnavigate the tomb of St. Francis. The historical record actually tells us that another pope, Innocent IV, granted an indulgence to all who visit the Basilica of San Francesco on the feast day of St. Francis. Perhaps that explains why one feels such grace and peace in that astounding building, in the presence of Francis. Interestingly, the Portiuncula provides a stark contrast to the great basilica that was built by Brother Elias after St. Francis’ death. The word Portiuncula means “little portion.” It was a humble building that hardly fit two dozen friars within Frequent nighttime trips to the bathroom, its walls. All Natural embarrassing leaks and the inconvenience Clinically-Tested But Francis loved the place. He of constantly searching for rest rooms Herbal Supplement felt God’s presence there, and the in public – for years, I struggled with • Reduces Bladder Leaks bladder control problems. After trying humility of it was precisely the • Reduces Urinary Frequency expensive medications with horrible point. The little chapel has been side effects, ineffective exercises and • Safe and Effective – fully enclosed inside of a much No Known Side Effects undignified pads and diapers, I was ready larger church for more than a cen• Costs Less than Traditional to resign myself to a life of bladder leaks, Bladder Control Options isolation and depression. But then I tried tury now, but one can still get a • Sleep Better All Night BetterWOMAN. sense of the humility of the little • Live Free of Worry, portion. When I first saw the ad for BetterWOMAN, I was skeptical. Embarrassment, and So many products claim they can set you free from leaks, Inconvenience This August 2, 2016, in Assisi, frequency and worry, only to deliver disappointment. some of those pilgrims who visit When I finally tried BetterWOMAN, I found that it You don’t have to let the great basilica in town will also actually works! It changed my life. Even my friends bladder control problems control you. know about the Portiuncula Indulhave noticed that I’m a new person. And because it’s Call now! all natural, I can enjoy the results without the worry gence, and visit Portiuncula to of dangerous side effects. Thanks to BetterWOMAN, receive its grace. I finally fought bladder control problems and I won! Most of all, the Feast of Pardon is observed by Franciscans themAlso Available: BetterMAN® selves. They know this special day The 3-in-1 Formula Every Man Needs – as a time of mercy and peace, but Better BLADDER, Better PROSTATE, and Better STAMINA! also as a time to reflect and pray Order online at www.BetterMANnow.com. on how they, as followers of the Limited little poor man, might renew their Time Call Now & Ask How To Get A commitments for another year. A Offer

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Jon M. Sweeney is the author of many books about St. Francis, including When Saint Francis Saved the Church and The Enthusiast: How the Best Friend of Francis of Assisi Almost Destroyed What He Started (both from Ave Maria Press). St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

AT HOME ON EARTH

❘ BY KYLE KRAMER

Summer’s End

have the creativity and imagination to inspire all of us to take good care of God’s creation. At the same time, our kids must also learn the intellectual and technical skills they will need to survive in our modern world and change toward the common good its worst tendencies. Inevitably, this Learn from will require them to spend Nature time in some sort of classroom. If you can, take your child Combining the best of or grandchild to a park or summer and the best of nature center this weekend. schooling is a challenge we Bring along the Audubon have to address for kids of all or Peterson field guides to backgrounds, from poverty to help you learn. privilege. How many children in poor urban areas lack Encourage your child’s or meaningful access to the natgrandchild’s school to plant ural world or lack the safety a school garden or particiand support for such unstrucpate in the Farm to School tured, imaginative play, program. which is so crucial to their development? And how many poor children, urban or rural, lack a good school to attend? It’s easy to get overwhelmed by all of these interconnected environmental, educational, and social challenges, and I often do, especially because I don’t have any solutions. But I think it’s an essential part of our faith and our citizenship to grapple with these questions—in our neighborhoods, our schools, our parishes, and our halls of government. It will take no less than a global village to solve them— and, by God’s grace, that is exactly what we are becoming. A

Kyle Kramer is the executive director of the Passionist Earth and Spirit Center in Louisville, Kentucky.

Nature provides kids with wonders that can not only delight them, but also educate them. Fr ancisca n Media .org

Click the button on the right to listen to an interview with Kyle.

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s we try to raise our children with a close connection with the natural world, my wife, Cyndi, and I are immensely fortunate to live in a rural area where they have acres of woods and fields for their playground. They explore every nook and cranny of this land and always find something new, whether it’s the leaf of an unidentified tree or plant, the perfect boulder, trees for climbing, or even the hidden entrance to a fairy kingdom. They spend countless hours building forts, acting out elaborate adventure quests, and collecting everything. At the end of the day, they are bug-bitten, filthy, exhausted—and happy. Summer is the high time for these escapades, and when August rolls around, our kids struggle to leave Eden and head off to school. Part of me wishes they could remain in that Peter Pan world and dispense with learning their academic subjects. How could our society integrate the gifts of summer with the gifts of school? On one hand, we desperately need a generation of children who—even into adulthood—know and love the natural world intimately, and

Forgotten Women of the New Testament They were integral in the life of the early Church. Get to know some of these holy heroines. BY M A R Y A N N G E T T Y, P H D

OME WOMEN SEEM to have a monopoly on the New Testament press. We hear a lot about the Marys, for example—Jesus’ mother, Mary Magdalene, the sister of Martha. We know about Elizabeth and Anna. But how about Lois and Eunice, Phoebe and Lydia, and many others who are overlooked or forgotten? They must have been included in the New Testament story for a reason. What might they be there to teach us? How can they inspire us? The fact that they are mentioned at all challenges us to find out what we can learn from them. Women appear in the Scriptures either because they’re extraordinary or because there is a problem. It’s interesting to note that there

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are not many cases in the New Testament in which a woman appears in a negative light. A common theme that binds together many of these women’s stories is suffering—or more specifically, what they did about it and how it might have opened them up to the possibilities of grace. Many endured infirmities, others losses of husbands and sons. With some, their poverty is noted, while others draw on their influence or resources in remarkable ways. It is women who elicit some of Jesus’ most memorable praise. For instance, of the woman who anoints him, Jesus says, “She has done a good thing,” and wherever the Gospel is spread, what she has done will be told in memory of her (Mt 26:10, 13). Of the widow who contributed St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

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two small coins to the temple treasury, Jesus says that from her poverty she has offered more than others: her whole life (Lk 21:3). Jesus encouraged the persistent pagan woman begging help for her daughter, saying, “Great is your faith” (Mt 15:28). About the woman Jesus described as a “daughter of Abraham,” cured of a long infirmity, the Gospel says, “She stood up straight and glorified God” (Lk 13:13).

Caretakers of Faith Some New Testament women knew how to turn adversity into an opportunity to advance the Gospel. Take the example of Priscilla (Acts 18:2-3, 26; Rom 16:3). She had an impressive education and social standing, but that didn’t Fr anciscanMedia.org

seem to make a difference when she and all the other Jewish people were expelled from their homes in Rome under an edict of the emperor. She and her husband wound up in Corinth with other exiles, where they would eventually encounter Paul. They likely wondered what they would do with the rest of their lives, in addition to making tents. Priscilla, whose social standing was probably above her husband’s, appears to have been at least as well educated as he was. In any case, they are both named as teachers of the Way. Their learning contributed to the missionary education of Apollos, one of the pillars of the important churches of Corinth and Ephesus. Despite the fact that Jewish women did not

Priscilla, Eunice, Lois, and Phoebe (left to right) might not ring a bell. But, among others, these New Testament women have much to teach us about faith in the early days of the Church.

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have the same religious obligations as men, many women are shown to be ardent students of Scripture because of family responsibilities. Multiple times the Torah instructed, “Teach this to your children.” Often, children’s education was entrusted to women, motivating wives and mothers to learn the law so that they could pass it on to the next generation. Paul cautions Timothy against letting his youth and inexperience be used as an impediment to his role as pastor. To inspire his confidence, Paul reminds his young protégé that, since his infancy, he has learned the Scriptures from his mother, Eunice, and grandmother Lois, suggesting that these women knew them well (2 Tim 1:5; 3:15). Paul implies that their knowledge of the Jewish Scriptures prepared them all to become converts to Christ.

The Hospitality of Widows Women in Jesus’ time often hosted secret meetings of early Christians. Mary, mother of John Mark, welcomed Peter into her home after his miraculous release from jail.

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The young church in Philippi was struggling on many fronts, including leadership gaps and internal disagreements and competition. That helps explain why Paul saw a feud between two women there so detrimental to that young community that he urges them by name to be reconciled with each other for the sake of the whole Church (Phil 4:2-3).

Paul does not side with either Euodia or Syntyche; neither does he judge which woman is in the right. Rather, Paul tells them to remember their new identity “in the Lord,” challenging them to be like Christ, who gave his life for our salvation. Paul is not just calling out two individuals, but, in noting their significant standing and influence in the community of Philippi as leaders, he reminds them of their greater responsibility for being an example of the power of the Gospel. Having been recently widowed myself, I am especially interested in the role of widows as described in the New Testament, where we learn that they played a vital role in the spreading of the Gospel and the foundation of the Church. In a pastoral letter, Paul advises that to be enrolled in the order of widows, a woman should be a certain age, have gained a good reputation for having “raised children, practiced hospitality, washed the feet of the holy ones, helped those in distress” (1 Tim 5:10). Widows in particular, perhaps because they had extra room in their houses, could put these at the disposal of visiting missionaries and traveling teachers, as well as believing locals who might gather there. They could hold regular meetings at least once a week for study, prayer, and worship. We hear of houses headed by women being used as such meeting places. So, for example, we learn from Acts that the apostles, Jesus’ mother, and other relatives, as well as a growing number of believers, holed up in an upper room in Jerusalem, after Jesus’ ascension, to await Pentecost. At that time, the Spirit would reveal to them what they should do next and fill them with courage and boldness to go out and spread the Gospel (Acts 1:13-14). There is speculation that this upper room or another one like it belonged to a certain Mary of Jerusalem, who is named later in Acts 12:12-16. On that occasion, when Peter was miraculously released from jail, Acts tells us that he went to the house of Mary, mother of John Mark, where he knew concerned believers would be gathered. (That she is identified with her son, rather than with a husband, could suggest that she was widowed.) There, a young girl named Rhoda answered his knock on the door but was so startled to see him that she immediately closed it again in his face. But he kept knocking and eventually the door of Mary’s house was opened again, and he was received by the amazed and grateful community that had been waiting to know what God might want of them next. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

Women as Benefactors and Ambassadors

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY SUE TODD

Similarly we hear in Acts of the Apostles of other women opening their houses and sharing their resources for the betterment of the Church. Take Lydia for instance, who, after hearing Paul speak outside the gates of Philippi, welcomed him into the city and into her home (Acts 16:13-15, 40). The community there would become one of the strongest. As a gateway to Europe, Philippi was strategic to Paul’s mission to spread God’s word to the ends of the earth. Their chance meeting by the river brought Paul, the itinerant preacher, together with Lydia, a woman of means. It also shows how such contacts nourished and supported Paul and his fellow travelers in so many ways, before these believers had to part company again in pursuit of their mutual call to found, form, and strengthen the churches. Another woman with vital connections that benefited Paul and his mission was Phoebe, Paul’s ambassador and probably the one entrusted with taking Paul’s crucial letter to Rome long before he was able to get there himself (Rom 16:1-2). Paul calls Phoebe a sister, deacon, and “benefactor to many and to me as well.” Phoebe must have possessed material resources and enjoyed a certain social standing to engage in her role as benefactor. In noting that she has been a patron to Paul himself, he acknowledges that, compared to her, he would have had a relatively subordinate social position as her client. Much more than a helper, Phoebe appears to have been key to Paul’s plan not only for the Roman mission but also for his eventual mission to Spain, then thought to be the “ends of the earth.” In her own right, Phoebe would have been equipped to undertake a journey to Rome with her own agenda and the means to carry it out. But what he asks of the Romans indicates just how much he depends on this woman: “Receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the holy ones, and help her in whatever she may need from you” (Rom 16:1-2). In addition to the symbolic role of carrying Paul’s letter, Phoebe may have been dispatched to Rome to prepare the groundwork for Paul’s Spanish mission. In writing the Letter to the Romans, Paul was trying to get acceptance and support for himself and for the Gospel he preached. He would have considered the letter’s bearer as an essential part of his plans for laying a firm introduction and foundation with the Romans, a community Paul realized was indispensable

to him, on par with his acceptance by Lydia, and other sisters of Jerusalem. If they accepted Phoebe and her faith, helped grow the mission, and if they helped her establish a Christian community, foundation for the mission to Spain, the believ- spread the Gospel, and ers in Rome would likely soon welcome, support Paul’s ministry endorse, and speed Paul on his way to Spain. with their material Paul needed Phoebe almost as much as he resources. needed the Romans. There are many women featured in the letters of Paul, as well as in the Gospels. The overwhelming majority of them, named and unnamed, are portrayed positively across the board. This simple survey of some of the women of the New Testament demonstrates how Jesus recognized their gifts and struggles and how, in turn, women in the early Church offered their gifts to the growth of the community of faith. Mention of the presence, role, and support of women is something of a surprise in the patriarchal world of the New ANSWERS TO PETE AND REPEAT Testament. But the fact that they are there challenges us to 1. There is a rubber ducky in the pool. understand that, without them, 2. The waistband on Pete’s swim trunks is the Gospel as we know it could now white. not have been told. A 3. Sis is now wearing a sleeveless dress. 4. The hole in the clouds has disappeared. Mary Ann Getty, PhD, is a writer, lecturer, 5. The water in the pool is higher. and retreat leader with over 40 years of 6. Scruffy has come out to play. teaching experience. Her books include 7. The corner of the pool is now rounded. The Women of the Gospels (The Word 8. The hill now slopes down on one side. Among Us Press) and Women in the New Testament (Liturgical Press). Augus t 2016 ❘

EDITORIAL

Hear Them Roar With numbers too big to ignore, women are a dominant, vital force in any culture, country, or industry. Has there ever been a woman less understood in history than Mary Magdalene? This tried-and-true follower of Jesus has been labeled everything from his wife (inaccurate) to a prostitute (also inaccurate). But looking at this woman only through the lens of her relationship to men does her a disservice. She was a child of God: holy and wholly Christ-centered. Categorizing women unjustly may have biblical roots, but it’s a trend that has never weakened. Women are shortchanged in fiction (The Scarlet Letter’s Hester Prynne), in film (pick almost any title with a female lead), national news (only male anchors at ABC, CBS, and NBC), and in just about every other branch of the media. Reality television dumbs down the feminine genius on a daily basis, but irrespective of that destructive industry, we’ve long rejoiced in character-assassinating women for sport. From OJ Simpson prosecutor Marcia Clark to businesswoman Martha Stewart; from media titan Oprah Winfrey to Vogue’s Anna Wintour: as a culture, we tend to label women, often unfairly, before we can accept them.

Terrible Trends The Women’s Media Center (WMC), which publishes a yearly report card of women in media, found that we are far from gender equality. Take the news industry as one example. The WMC found that in broadcast news, women are on-camera only 32 percent; in print news, women report only 37 percent of the stories; and on the Internet, women write 42 percent of the news. WMC’s report also exposes the gender gap in radio, film, gaming, social media, and technology. It’s been an uphill climb in the religious 2 4 ❘ Augus t 2016

spectrum as well. According to a 2016 Pew Research study that analyzed nine major religions, only two of them (American Baptist and Evangelical Lutheran) have women in top leadership positions. This is in contrast to a growing trend, at least in Catholic circles, where 59 percent favor women’s ordination. But that tide could be changing a bit. Not long after another 2016 Pew study found that Christian women are generally more devout than men, Pope Francis appointed a commission to explore the possibility of ordaining women as deacons. Could our Church be opening doors that have been closed to women? Why has it taken our secular culture so long to formally recognize their gifts? How complicit are we in this trend?

Bridging the Gap It’s difficult to look at the gender divide and not exhale in frustration. Real change seems far off. The 2015 World Economic Forum predicted that social and economic equality between men and women would not be reached for 177 years. That’s puzzling since women make up 57 percent of the workforce, according to the US Department of Labor. Women—a dominant force in any culture, country, or industry—deserve better. But we as a media-hungry society should do our part to lift them up and celebrate their true gifts. We should encourage youth, especially girls, to focus on true role models. Let’s embolden them to retweet human-rights trailblazer Malala Yousafzai (464,000 followers) over reality television’s Kim Kardashian (46 million followers). In our own Catholic cosmos, we shouldn’t forget that our Church was built, in no small part, on the shoulders of strong women, such as Mary Magdalene, who fearlessly sought out the risen Lord while his apostles—our Church fathers—were in hiding. —C.H. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

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Dorothy Day She provided a voice to the unheard. Pope Francis acknowledged that in his speech last September to the US Congress. BY ROBERT ELLSBERG

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Model of Mercy St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

CNS PHOTO/COURTESY MILWAUKEE JOURNAL

OROTHY DAY has been called many things. After her death in 1980, David O’Brien, writing in Commonweal, called her “the most important, interesting, and influential figure in the history of American Catholicism.” At the time, that might have seemed an audacious claim. And yet, it was amazingly prescient. Thirtysix years later it seems not only plausible, but undoubtedly true. Obviously, there have been many other very interesting and influential American Catholics in the last 200 years. But it would be hard to think of another American Catholic who so radically recalled the Church to its Gospel roots, while at the same time pointing exactly toward the agenda that Pope Francis has outlined for the Church in the 21st century. In the priorities he proposed before the 2013 conclave, then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio spoke of the need for the Church to step outside of itself, to go to the margins and the peripheries, to touch the wounds of Christ. He has shown what that means in a Church that confronts the social structures of sin, works for peace and ecological wholeness, and embodies a spirit of

mercy and reconciliation. Simply put, that is the vision that Dorothy Day embodied.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AND UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES, MARQUETTE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Why Dorothy Day? Thus, it did not come as a total surprise when Pope Francis, while visiting the United States last year, invoked her name. More surprising was the context—in an address before a joint session of Congress, and among a group of “four great Americans” (including Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., and Thomas Merton) around whom he organized his remarks. “In these times when social concerns are so important,” he stated, “I cannot fail to mention the Servant of God Dorothy Day, who founded the Catholic Worker movement. Her social activism, her passion for justice and for the cause of the oppressed, were inspired by the Gospel, her faith, and the example of the saints.” I can only imagine the head-scratching in Congress and beyond that greeted these words. After all, the two Catholics he named, Day and Merton, are hardly household names. Those in Congress who did recognize her name might have been aware that Day had been called many other things besides a “great American”—such as traitor, heretic, subversive, and, of course, Communist. She took such criticism in stride. As she often noted, it was, in her youth, the indifference of Christians toward the poor that had made her sympathize with the Communists, while it was the Communists she had known and their commitment to the poor who had prompted her conversion to Christ. But in becoming a Catholic, Day never renounced her passion for justice. Instead, she prayed to find some way of integrating her faith and her commitment to the oppressed. She longed, as she put it, to “make a synthesis reconciling body and soul, this world and the next.” For her, the answer came in her encounter with Peter Maurin, a French peasant-philosopher, who persuaded her in 1933 to launch a newspaper, The Catholic Worker, dedicated to promoting the radical implications of the Gospel. Rather than just agitate about social injustice, articles in the paper described what society would look like if it were organized around values of solidarity, community, and human dignity instead of selfishness and greed. But Day and Maurin believed it was not enough simply to write about these ideas; they must live them out. This led to the opening Fr anciscanMedia.org

(Left) Peter Maurin, seen here with Dorothy Day and her daughter, Tamar, sought out Day and encouraged her to join him in promoting the peaceful transformation of society.

In line with the Catholic Worker’s mission of caring for the needs of others, Day serves soup along with Friars Marion Douglas (back) and Basil Westendick at the Detroit Catholic Worker House of Hospitality in 1951. (Left) In 1933, Day began distributing The Catholic Worker in New York’s Union Square for a penny, which is still the price. Here, she checks galleys of an issue in 1962.

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In effect, her vocation took form around this challenge. Because of Dorothy Day, future generations of Christians would not have to ask her question: Where were the saints to try to change the social order? It was a question she answered with her own life.

PHOTO BY BOB FITCH COURTESY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS, STANFORD UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Capturing Her Spirit

Day remained steadfast to the Catholic Worker’s mission—even if it meant facing off with law enforcement. In 1973 she picketed at Giumarra orchard in Lamont, California, with the United Farm Workers Union and the American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO).

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of houses of hospitality for the practice of the works of mercy—feeding the hungry, sheltering the homeless. Those who joined the work lived in voluntary poverty among the poor they served. Their manifesto was the Sermon on the Mount and the conviction that what we do for the poor we do directly to Christ. Day, however, went further. Beyond simply caring for the poor, she believed it was also necessary to challenge, protest, and resist those social structures that cause such poverty and the need for so much charity. The seeds of this conviction extended back to her early childhood. In her autobiography, she recalls how her heart had been stirred by stories of the saints and their charity toward the sick, the maimed, the leper. “But there was another question in my mind,” she said. “Why was so much done in remedying the evil instead of avoiding it in the first place? . . . Where were the saints to try to change the social order, not just to minister to the slaves, but to do away with slavery?”

How could Pope Francis fail to recognize in Dorothy Day a kindred spirit? In his apostolic exhortation “Evangelii Gaudium,” he wrote in terms that might have appeared in The Catholic Worker: “Just as the commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill’ sets a clear limit in order to safeguard the value of human life, today we also have to say ‘thou shalt not’ to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills.” He further observed, “How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points?” In his first major trip outside of Rome, the pope visited the island of Lampedusa, a way station for immigrants, thousands of whom have drowned at sea. There he decried a “culture of comfort” and the “globalization of indifference” that renders us incapable of feeling the pain of others. “Who weeps for these victims?” he asked. Clearly Pope Francis does, as did Dorothy Day before him. Before the pope’s trip to America, I had imagined the pleasure of telling him about this American Catholic who had so embraced his vision of a Church that is “poor and for the poor,” whose call for a “revolution of the heart” was echoed by his own call for a “revolution of tenderness.” I would have described how she “touched the wounds of Christ” every day; how she spoke out and demonstrated against war and injustice, going to jail in solidarity with striking farmworkers or protesting plans for nuclear war; how she stood virtually alone among Catholics of her day in bearing witness to the Gospel message of nonviolence, the commandment to love our enemies. In light of the pope’s great encyclical on ecology, “Laudato Si’,” I would have pointed out the farming communes she established and her reverence for creation. I would have described her spirituality, inspired so much by the “Little Way” of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, her conviction that all our small acts of faithfulness and love can help transform the world in ways we may never see. I would have told Pope Francis how Day exemplified the beatitudes; that hers is the St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

face that comes to mind when I envision the poor of spirit, the meek, the pure of heart, the mournful, the peacemakers, and those who hunger and thirst for God’s righteousness. But evidently no intervention on my part was necessary. Pope Francis was apparently well briefed about Dorothy Day before undertaking his trip. His references to Day, Merton, Lincoln, and King were only part of a remarkable speech in which he expressed his solidarity with immigrants (the subject of so much vilification in this political season); he called for abolition of the death penalty; he affirmed that the common good also includes the earth; he denounced the “blood-drenched” arms trade; and he defined what it means to make America great in terms of the dreams embodied by his four great Americans.

Dorothy, Meet Pope Francis But what, on the other hand, if I could have sat down with Dorothy Day to tell her about Pope Francis? How thrilling it would be to tell her about a pope who took his name from St. Francis and who has set out to reform and renew the Church by recalling the life and mission of Jesus and his solidarity with those on the margins. So often Day criticized the ecclesial trappings of power and privilege. How she would have delighted in Francis’ gestures of humility, his call for shepherds “who have the smell of the sheep,” his washing the feet of prisoners—including women and Muslims. With her lifetime among the poor and dis-

carded, how Day would have resonated with Pope Francis’ words: “I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting, and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a Church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security.” How moved she would be to learn of his deep friendship with a rabbi, his love for opera and Dostoyevsky, and his exhortation to spread the “joy of the Gospel.” Day always respected Church leaders. But in such a pope, I believe, she would have recognized the fulfillment of her dreams. But there is another, personal level on which Dorothy would connect with a pope who could describe himself simply as “a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.” Her early life was marked by her passion for social justice, but also by much sadness and moral confusion.

“I prefer a Church which is bruised, hurting, and dirty because it has been out on the streets . . .” –Pope Francis

If Dorothy Day were still alive, she surely would be pleased with Pope Francis’ commitment to renewing the spirit of the Catholic Church.

CNS PHOTOS/L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO VIA REUTERS

Pope Francis is truly a man who lives the Gospel. During a private audience in 2014, he washes the feet of (above) and greets survivors of a shipwreck off the Italian island of Lampedusa.

Fr anciscanMedia.org

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CNS PHOTO/GREGORY A. SHEMITZ

The Road to Canonization On November 9, 1997, the day after Dorothy Day’s 100th birthday, New York City Cardinal John O’Connor pondered the question of sainthood for Dorothy Day. He acknowledged the fact that some would object to his question of taking up the cause, but asked, “Why does the Church canonize saints? In part,” he said, “so that their person, their works, and their lives will become that much better known, and that they will encourage others to follow in their footsteps—and so the Church may say, ‘This is sanctity, this is the road to eternal life.’” Cardinal O’Connor moved forward with Day’s cause when, in 2000, he formally requested that the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in Rome consider her canonization. Upon the congregation’s approval, Day was officially named a “Servant of God.” In November 2012, Day’s cause was officially endorsed by the US Conference of Catholic Bishops. The cause moved forward again this past April when the Archdiocese of New York announced a canonical inquiry into Day’s life. As part of the inquiry, the archdiocese will interview 52 eyewitnesses to Day’s life, and theological experts—appointed by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York—will review Day’s published works with an eye toward doctrine and morals. According to the Dorothy Day Guild, the goal of the inquiry is to construct as closely as possible, given the passage of time, a 360-degree view of Day’s life. The Guild was established in 2005 to promote Day’s life and works. Upon completion of the interviews, the archdiocese will send

In the aftermath of an unhappy love affair she had an abortion. Afterward, she twice tried to commit suicide. As she wrote in her diary, “Aside from drug addiction, I committed all the sins young people commit today.” It was later, while living on Staten Island with a man she deeply loved, that she again found herself pregnant, an experience that struck her this time as a sign of God’s mercy and grace. In gratitude, she decided to become a Catholic. It was a choice marked by great sacrifice— separation from her common-law husband, who refused to have anything to do with marriage. Looking back on all of this, she could observe, “God has been so good to me.” For Day, gratitude was the final word—for the life and faith she had been given, and for the vocation she had found. She would have appreciated Pope Francis’ words: “I have a dogmatic certainty: God is in every person’s life. . . . Even if the life of a person has been a disaster . . . God is in this person’s life. . . . Although the life of a person is a land full of thorns and weeds, there is always a space in which the good seed can grow.” That was Day’s experience. It was God’s mercy that drew her to the Church. How could she not love a pope who has made mercy his signature theme? In invoking Dorothy Day and his other models, Pope Francis said such individuals “offer us a way of seeing and interpreting reality.” In the context of Dorothy Day’s proposed canonization—a cause that is currently in process (see adjacent sidebar)—perhaps Pope Francis’ words help us understand what this means. We are accustomed to thinking of saints as people who stand out for their heroic faith and witness to Gospel values. But before their bold and courageous actions, perhaps what distinguishes such people is their way of seeing and interpreting reality. They look at the world through a Gospel lens—and in doing so, they see things according to a new scale of value. According to Pope Francis, each of the four figures he cited was animated by a dream— “for Dorothy Day, social justice and the rights of persons.” The greatness of a people, he said, is defined in part by its dreams. The same is true for the people of God. A

all of their information to the Vatican’s Congregation for the Causes of Saints and to Pope Francis. If, after examining the information, the congregation and Pope Francis recognize Day’s heroic virtues, she will be declared “venerable,” the next step in the canonization process. 30 ❘

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Robert Ellsberg is the editor-in-chief and publisher of Orbis Books, the publishing arm of Maryknoll. From 1976 to 1978, he was the managing editor of The Catholic Worker, where he served alongside Dorothy Day. He has edited two books of Day’s letters and selected writings. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

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Lanterns of

PEACE

On August 6, people in Hiroshima, Japan, and Rochester, Minnesota, will send glowing lanterns afloat in memory of those killed in the nuclear attacks 71 years ago. BY DAVE HRBACEK

T ALL STARTED in 1984 on a small dairy farm five miles east of Rochester, Minnesota. Lucille Kuhl stood on the edge of a narrow, unnamed creek running through her family’s cow pasture. She was joined by her son Joe, a teenager at the time. He was far too young to have a grasp of the event they were commemorating—the anniversary of the nuclear bombing of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki on August 6 and 9, 1945. The bombings claimed the lives of at least 129,000 people and remain the only two uses of nuclear weapons for warfare in history. Lucille, now 85, was a teenager when US President Harry Truman made the decision to

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use his country’s new tool of battle to bring World War II to a quick end. Yet, decades later, she decided it was time to act on her compassion for what Japanese citizens suffered from the bombings. “I read this article in a magazine of how the people of Japan float these lanterns on the anniversary of Hiroshima,” she says. “I just thought it was such a beautiful ceremony and symbol.” Lucille and Joe made simple lanterns out of paper and Styrofoam, then brought them to the edge of the creek on a warm August day. The idyllic setting of a dairy pasture with a creek running through it made it hard to visualize thousands of Japanese civilians running to whatever water they could find to douse bodies burning from the radiation, moments after the nuclear explosions. But Lucille wanted to do something—needed to do something. She found both meaning and emotion in the simple act she remembers vividly to this day. “We went down to the little creek where [Joe] played a lot, and we tried the lantern St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

PHOTOS (L-R): COURTESY OF THE POST-BULLETIN; BY JARROD KINTZI

and it went floating down,” she recalls. “It was so pretty.”

Time to Remember The power of that simple gesture did not merely fade away like the warm glow of a summer sunset, however. Lucille decided that day that she wanted to do more. She wanted more people to recall the horrors of nuclear war. She wanted more people to share her conviction that nuclear weapons must never again be used. Thus, her mind started churning with the question: How can something similar be done for a larger audience? She took her question to Assisi Heights in Rochester, home of the Rochester Franciscan Sisters. There, she found receptive ears. The first sister she approached was Sister Ann Redig. Both were part of a newly formed local chapter of Pax Christi USA, which supports peace and justice and calls for an end to war. Lucille’s idea to commemorate the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in solidarity with the people of Japan seemed a perfect fit. The two discussed putting on an event for Fr anciscanMedia.org

the public, and zeroed in on Silver Lake in Rochester. A spacious park surrounds the lake, which would accommodate a large crowd. Plus, there was water flowing into the lake from the Zumbro River, which would bring movement to the floating lanterns, much like Lucille had seen in the creek running through her farm. Sister Ann liked the way the event would tie in to Franciscan spirituality. “It really fits in well with who we are as Franciscan,” she says. “Francis lived the Gospel and promoted the Gospel. Peace was an important part. He continually tried to work on peace and care for the earth and reverence for all people and for all creation.”

Called to Action

(Left) Cofounder of the Peace Lantern Floating Ceremony Lucille Kuhl and Japanese interpreter Junko Maruta display their artfully rendered lanterns in 2007. (Above) Messages of peace, images of love, and calls for banning nuclear weapons adorn lanterns floating on Silver Lake in Rochester, Minnesota. Each lantern is unique— just like its creator—but the sense of solidarity is undeniable.

The hope was that an event would raise awareness of the devastation that nuclear bombs can bring upon innocent people. In fact, it’s a message that Lucille felt she herself needed to hear after decades of being oblivious to this important event in the history of the 20th century. Augus t 2016 ❘

(Right) Rochester Mayor Ardell Brede reads letters from the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which express not anger but gratitude for Americans’ sensitivity about the anniversary. (Far right) Wearing traditional Japanese attire, dancer Ronnie Oliveto leads lantern-bearers down to the tranquil waters of Silver Lake.

PHOTOS BY JARROD KINTZI

(Above) Rochester Franciscan Sister Iria Miller proudly holds her peace lantern, with its simple message of peace and love, next to Sister Ann Redig, who cofounded the Peace Lantern Floating Ceremony in 1985.

“At the time of the bombing of Hiroshima, as a child I remembered it as a great celebration and that my brother would be coming home [from his tour of duty in the South Pacific],” she says. “Then, as the years went on, I went on with my life and knew it happened but didn’t think much about it. But then, when I saw this [magazine article about Japan’s annual remembrance ceremony], and I saw how those people suffered, it all came back and I thought, Where was I through all those years that they had suffered from this?” That is why she decided to act and help organize the first Peace Lantern Floating Ceremony in 1985. Lucille estimates about 100 people attended, with nearly all of them making lanterns and releasing them into Silver Lake. The paper and Styrofoam creations bore messages and images drawn on them. It was a chance to express messages of hope, healing, and solidarity with people on the other side of the Pacific.

A Yearly Reminder The event is still going strong today. Last summer was the 70th anniversary of the bombing 34 ❘

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of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and Lucille estimates about 100 people attended, roughly the same amount as the first year. This year’s event is scheduled for August 9, the anniversary date of the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki, which, Sister Ann notes, had a strong Catholic population at that time. The gathering begins with people assembling in the park at around 6:30 p.m. to start making their lanterns. Then, near dusk, people light their lanterns and dancer Ronnie Oliveto leads a procession down to the lake. “You can hear a pin drop; it’s just total silence as we walk to the water,” Lucille says. “It’s so moving and so beautiful, I could just cry.” One of the most significant parts for Lucille is the involvement of her family. Her husband, Robert, comes every year, and her three adult children also have participated over the years. Along the way, her grandchildren have also taken part. In fact, her son Joe continues to take part, and he has looped in his daughter Megan, who plays an active role every year. She even recruits her friends to join in, and they enthusiastically have come on board. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

“She’s pretty active in a lot of things,” Lucille says. “She’s pretty political. Last year, she got her friends to help lead them down to the river.” Once the people reach the water’s edge, they silently and solemnly place their lanterns on the water. Then, with drumbeats in the background, they watch their lanterns slowly float away. “It’s just really beautiful and very moving,” Lucille says. And those taking walks around the lake stop and take in the tranquil scene. Some even ask questions. That is exactly what organizers like Lucille and Sister Ann are hoping for. One person at a time, they are able to continue to raise awareness of the horrors of nuclear war, and recruit members to their slowly growing movement.

Personal Connections

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This past May, US President Barack Obama visited Hiroshima— the first sitting US president to do so—to offer respects to the victims of the world’s first deployed atomic bomb and speak in support of the nonproliferation of nuclear weapons. During his visit to Hiroshima Peace Park, President Obama said that advancement in technology “requires a moral revolution as well.” In the park’s guest book, he wrote: “We have known the agony of war. Let us now find the courage, together, to spread peace, and pursue a world without nuclear weapons.” Recent polls have shown that people’s views on the use of atomic bombs to end World War II are changing. Last year, the Pew Research Center released survey results that showed the share of Americans who believe that the use of nuclear weapons was justified is 56%, with 34% saying it was not. That number is quite a decline from the numbers in 1945, when a Gallup poll immediately after the bombing found that 85% of Americans approved of using the new atomic weapon on Japanese cities. In 1991, according to a Detroit Free Press survey conducted in both Japan and the United States, 63% of Americans said the atomic bomb attacks on Japan were a justified means of ending the war, while only 29% thought the action was unjustified.

CNS PHOTO/KYODO, REUTERS

Another meaningful part of the ceremony is reading letters from each of the mayors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. They are read by Junko Maruta, an interpreter for the Mayo Clinic who is from Japan. There is no accusatory or negative tone in the letters, only gratitude that American citizens would acknowledge the bombing and its devastating effects on the Japanese. Also joining in is the mayor of Rochester, Ardell Brede. He, like many others, has become a fixture at the event. A member of an organization called Mayors for Peace, he reads a proclamation near the start of the event. There also are featured speakers, including Lucille and Sister Ann. But perhaps more important than their words is the Japanese presence at the event. Such an occasion seems to cry out for the attendance of at least one person of Japanese descent who lived through the tragedy. And that person would be Maruta’s mother, who comes every year. Though nearly 90 and a wheelchair user, she continues to add her presence as a connection to her fellow citizens who suffered. “To have the actual Japanese connection for us in Rochester is so unique,” Sister Ann says. She cherishes the chance to get close to a person who spent part of her childhood living through the horror of what happened to her country. Even though the elder Maruta did not live in Hiroshima or Nagasaki, she no doubt felt the pain of the bombings’ effects. Her presence is one example of the international flavor the event produces. Coincidentally, some years there has been an

A Presidential Visit

On the other side of the Pacific Ocean, on the banks of the Motoyasu River in Hiroshima, Japan, a little girl says a prayer at an anniversary event for those who lost their lives to the use of atomic weapons generations ago. Augus t 2016 ❘

As dusk approaches in Rochester, Minnesota, lantern bearers walk to the pulse of drums of peace on their way to Silver Lake.

PHOTOS BY JARROD KINTZI

Now nearly 90 years of age, Junko Maruta’s mother, Sesuko Ihara, was a young woman in Japan at the time that the bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

international picnic for people of different cultures and nationalities living in Rochester, that has taken place on the same day as the lantern-floating event, almost as a way of validating its importance and extending its reach.

Continued Hope Last year, Sister Ann got a different view of the crowd who came to hear speakers, make 36 ❘

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lanterns, and release them into Silver Lake. She was up front, and got a chance to look out over the crowd when she came forward to deliver her remarks. She doesn’t so much remember what she said, as she does the faces she saw. As she surveyed the audience, she couldn’t help but think of Pope Francis. “It was just such a wide gamut of people, young and old and all cultures,” she says. “To me, that’s where Francis is at—every single person is deserving of God’s mercy. We’re the ones who carry that out. “Most of it is respect for all of God’s people,” she says. “For me, that’s the biggest thing. It’s a call that we’re all one. That’s what the spiritual and corporal works of mercy are for me— respect and dignity of every single person and all of creation.” For event organizers like Lucille and Sister Ann—who plan to continue hosting the annual event—the most important fruit of the event would be something that they might consider one of the greatest acts of mercy of all: that no one would suffer the devastation of a nuclear bomb ever again. Lucille puts it succinctly: “We’re trying to get nuclear bombs out of this world.” She is hoping that this will be the real power of the peace lanterns. A Dave Hrbacek is a staff writer and photographer for The Catholic Spirit, the newspaper for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

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ccasionally, we will hear someone say, “She was a saint,” but we’re more likely to hear, “He was no saint,” or to say with a shrug, “I’m not a saint.” Our concept of saints is that they are extraordinary people who, for the most part, lived long ago and possessed special divine favors that the majority of us neither have nor comprehend. We admire and venerate them, but their alabaster perfection is beyond us. Becoming a saint is frightening because it seems to demand the impossible. Why would God demand from us what is not attainable? Or do we not understand what makes a person—a sinner like any of us—a saint?

The Saint/Sinner Reality

Tomorrow’s Saints Could someone you know be a saint in the making? Could that someone be you? BY B R O T H E R F R A N C I S WA G N E R , O S B

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Clearly, it is attainable, as evidenced by the untold number of faithful men and women who, Scripture tells us, comprise the “great cloud of witnesses” who surround and intercede for us from their heavenly realm (Heb 12:1). These holy witnesses include not simply those who are officially canonized here on earth, but all God’s faithful who have gone on to their eternal reward. Most of these did not die as martyrs, perform miracles, or lead extraordinarily pious lives. Most led relatively hidden, ordinary, sometimes troubled existences—much like our own. Whatever the case, they were, in fact, all sinners just like the rest of us. Even some of the more well-known saints committed grievous sins. King David was a scheming adulterer and murderer. St. Paul persecuted the early Christians with ruthless abandon. The beginning of the Gospel of Matthew includes a long list of names presented as “the genealogy of Jesus, the Messiah,” including more than a few nefarious characters from the Old Testament—all presented as the forerunners of the Messiah. In other words, saints were not perfect, otherworldly beings planted here on earth to inspire (or discourage!) us by their flawless devotion. They were real people who dwelt on this earth as human beings like the rest of us—flesh-and-blood persons who knew what it was like to struggle, weep, fear, worry, stumble, and fail (sometimes seriously). What ultimately made them saints was not their perfection, but their authenticity. In the end, they were defined not by their faults and failings, but by their willingness to humbly place themselves in the hands of our merciful God, St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

whose grace redeemed them, and whose Spirit impelled them to accomplish great things in his name—even in the most ordinary of circumstances. They achieved holiness through faithfulness, not by perfection.

The Path to Sainthood Holiness—becoming a saint—is required of each and every one of us. Unfortunately, we tend to resist this call, as did St. Peter, who fearfully implored Jesus to depart from him (Lk 5:1-11). Perhaps, we bargain, it is sufficient simply to be a “good person” without the bother of aspiring to saintliness. Or we may think that being holy is either divinely preordained for certain individuals or entirely up to us as human beings. Neither view is correct; holiness is a cooperative venture. Grace builds on nature—and nothing is impossible with God’s help. The servants are summoned to fill the jars with water, but it is Christ who changes the water into wine (Jn 2:1-11). For this reason, Jesus did not heed Peter’s Fr anciscanMedia.org

request. Instead, he replied, “Do not be afraid.” Our assurance as baptized Christians is the same: do not be afraid to strive for holiness, to become saints, because that is what you are, what you are created to be. You have only to realize it. This call to saintliness, to holiness, is nothing other than to love as God loves. It is our fundamental vocation, inherent to our very being as children created in God’s image by God, who tells his people, “Be holy, for I, the Lord, your God, am holy” (Lv 19:2). This promise is fulfilled in the person of Jesus Christ, the true vine, from whom we, as branches, draw life and fruitfulness: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5). Becoming a saint means coming to Jesus and learning from him. In doing so, nature is gradually perfected into charity—typically without spiritual heroics. This charity is cultivated and carried out daily, sanctifying the ordinary events, duties, and relationships in whatever one’s state of life.

Saints were ordinary people who chose to live their lives in extraordinary ways for the glory of God. It is a model which we all can imitate.

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Holiness in Daily Life

Opportunities to live out our call to holiness are everywhere. Often, they are close at hand, such as when we are caring for the people we love.

Holiness should—and can—be found all around us. The mother, wife, and/or businesswoman is holy precisely by being those things as a result of her love for God. Likewise, the father, husband, and/or laborer, the retiree, widow/widower, the single parent or unmarried adult, the musician, soldier, or bookkeeper all can become holy through the love of God. Holiness is achieved by the grace of God, by living in accord with God’s will and doing what we know to be right in our everyday circumstances—regardless of how we may feel, or whether it is appreciated or even noticed. It is making breakfast for the family, paying the bills, cleaning the house and doing the laundry, going to school or work, or lending a hand to a friend. It is conducting our affairs with genuine honesty and humility, and being thankful for all we have and are. It involves striving (yet stumbling along the way) to observe the Ten Commandments and live the beatitudes. It means attempting to

feed the hungry, visit the sick, assist the poor, comfort the sorrowful, instruct and counsel when appropriate, patiently bear wrongs, forgive those who offend us, and pray for the living and the dead. Yes, God does seem to ask the extraordinary from some. People like Blessed Mother Teresa and Blessed Oscar Romero gave their lives— in different ways—in response to having been given much by God. Their sacrifices continue to bear much fruit throughout the world. Some today are called to be saints in a similar, courageous fashion. Most Christians, however, are called to holiness in more ordinary circumstances. As Blessed John Henry Newman stated: “Perfection is the power or faculty of doing our duty exactly, naturally, and completely, whatever it is. It is a life of faith, hope, and charity elicited in successive acts according to the calls of the moment and to the vocation of the individual. It does not consist in any specifically heroic deeds; it does not demand any fervor of devotion; but it implies regularity, precision, facility, and perseverance in a given sphere of duties.”

A Holy Life

A concrete example from my experience, I believe, illustrates Newman’s point. My mother—now widowed and in her 70s—is someone who has consistently remained faithful in her life as a Christian woman, wife, and mother. She bore and helped raise three children while also working outside the home full-time (putting me through college, I might add), cared for and managed the household, and struggled to deal with an alcoholic spouse. Through it all, she did the laundry, bought the groceries, and made sure we kids got to where we needed to be for various extracurricular activities. As tired as she must have been in the evenings, she was always willing to sacrifice her time and energy to help us with homework or projects. I don’t know how she did it—except to say, as Newman did, that hers was “a life of faith, hope, and charity elicited in successive acts according to the calls of the moment.” Today, my mother is retired and suffers from chronic back and leg pain. Still, she goes to Mass early each morning, participates in eucharistic adoration, and regularly volunteers her time to others—at the local hospital, with a parish bereavement support group, and by transporting elderly friends and parishioners to medical appointments, and the like. To 40 ❘

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St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o r g

The Universal Call to Holiness The life Newman describes, and my mother illustrates, is one that most of us can acknowledge as attainable. Whether in ways big or small, holiness is simply recognizing and reflecting God’s goodness in the world through our daily circumstances. This is what the Church means by the “universal call to holiness.” This call is rooted in God’s creation of humanity in the divine image (Gn 1:27), although the fall subsequently disfigured it. God has spent the intervening millennia attempting to woo us back, to restore humanity’s holiness. This restoration is not humanly possible, but is made so by God’s grace—grace we must accept and be willing to live each day. It is for this purpose that God gives us the Church in Jesus Christ. With this knowledge, our faith encourages us to “put on the new self” (Eph 4:24): our authentic selves created in God’s image. This call echoes throughout Scripture. “Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect,” Jesus says (Mt 5:48). While being made holy, or sanctified, by God’s grace occurs through Baptism (1 Cor 6:11), the Letter to the Hebrews reminds us that in cooperation with that grace, we must strive for “that holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (12:14). God wishes us to share his holiness, and makes us holy through Christ—but with his aid, we have to live it. Fr anciscanMedia.org

carry forward Newman’s definition of holiness, she has not performed any “specifically heroic deeds,” or exhibited any particular “fervor of devotion”—at least in the ways we typically think of such things. She has, however, certainly fulfilled Jesus’ call: “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23). From a Christian perspective, that is both heroic and devout. Is she perfect? Hardly. Like anyone else, my mother has her share of faults and failings. Her shortcomings are not what come to mind when I think of her, though. Rather, it is her faithfulness through it all— and that is what makes for holiness. Since her journey is not yet complete, my mother is not a saint. But she is well on her way to becoming one, by the grace of God.

The Second Vatican Council took up and developed this theme in “Lumen Gentium.” The Church, as the Body of Christ, is made holy by Christ himself, yet is composed of stumbling sinners such as you and me, who share in the mystery of salvation. The Spirit that God bestows upon us in Christ through Baptism configures us to his body, as St. Paul says: “In one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Cor 12:13). In other words, there is one holiness—the perfection of charity—for all the faithful, although there are different vocational paths. “The classes and duties of life are many, but holiness is one,” “Lumen Gentium” states. Becoming a saint, then, is a divine gift that requires a loving response to the will of God within our individual states of life and daily circumstances. Within this love, experienced at the foot of the cross, dwells the mystery of how something so grand is possible. The people of God strive for holiness and serve as branches bearing fruit for the world by remaining connected to the vine of grace that the Church provides—Christ himself. This is the path to sainthood. With Christ in your heart, don’t be afraid to look in the mirror—and into the eyes of those reflecting Christ. Become whom you are meant to be— a saint. A

There are many ways in which we can practice holiness. Living out the beatitudes, which call us to feed the hungry and assist the poor, allows us to share in the holiness of God.

Holiness

is achieved by the grace of God, by living in accord with God’s will and doing what we know to be right in our everyday circumstances.

Brother Francis Wagner, OSB, is a Benedictine monk of Saint Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Indiana. He currently serves as secretary to the archabbot, is a conference presenter for Benedictine oblates, and is a spiritual director. He is the author of Grace in the Wilderness: Reflections on God’s Sustaining Word Along Life’s Journey (Abbey Press). He blogs at pathoflifeblog.blogspot.com. Augus t 2016 ❘

Mofemories Music He viewed his present through the past. FICTION BY NANCY CHRISTIE

y wife was a wonderful baker. Each Saturday, she would bake four loaves of bread, and before the oven cooled, put in some pizzas, round as harvest moons. We had an outside oven, and before I left for work—we worked Saturdays back then and were glad for the labor—it was my job to split enough wood to fill the oven. “And when I came home at lunch—I could easily walk the few miles from the mill to the house—she would be at the oven, pulling bread out, sliding bread in, her movements so rhythmic you would think she heard music.” He remembered how the sweat would trickle its way down her face, and a few strands of her hair would free themselves from the twisted coil at the nape of her neck to curl around her face. Sometimes, when he kissed her, he could taste the salt on her flushed cheek. “That will be $3.10,” the cashier announced in a bored voice, and the old man regretfully pulled the money from his creased wallet. Nowadays, two loaves of bread cost what he made for a week’s hard labor long ago. “I wouldn’t mind,” he said, handing over the money, “if it tasted as good as what my wife made. But it doesn’t. It tastes like sawdust.” He looked at the people in line behind him to see if anyone agreed. “Sawdust mixed with air.” But they just shifted their tired feet and said

“

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nothing. Maybe, he thought, they were afraid he would stay there rambling on about days gone by and delaying them from their busy lives. But he wasn’t like that, he thought to himself. That was what other old people did— lonely old men and women who had no one to talk to. He had seen them in the park, stopping every passerby they could, telling them what was wrong with the world. And he had seen the look in their eyes—lonely and afraid, as if they needed to hear their own voices to know they were alive. He lifted the paper bag of groceries with a sigh and walked toward the exit, pausing long enough to make certain the electric door would open and stay open. Electric doors brought St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

ILLUSTRATION BY LINUS CURCI

an end to small courtesies, like holding a door for a lady, since the door opened and shut on its own accord.

ears ago, women were considered delicate creatures, and it fell to men to protect them. Yet it was the women who bore children, one after the other, swelling like rosebuds coming to bloom. A man could plant the seed, but it took the woman’s power to bring it to life in that fertile, hidden darkness. And it took a woman’s strength to force that life out into the daylight. He shifted the bag to his other arm as he stopped at the newsstand to buy the afternoon paper, even though the headlines were always the same—rape, murder, beatings. Fr ancisca n Media .org

“Never good news,” he said, shaking his head as he handed over his payment to the man behind the counter. “It wasn’t like that years ago, you know. People were better back then.” But there was still death, he had to admit. Death from wars, death from sickness. Each year, the spring thaw would bring runny noses and sore throats to the children that mothers doctored with remedies from the old country. Fevers burned the tender faces bright red, and then died away, and the children grew well again. Most children—but not all. Sometimes, the sickness burrowed deep into the young bodies, finding the weak spots. Sometimes, when the fever died, it left not the coolness of health but the coldness of death. Au gu s t 2 0 1 6 ❘ 4 3

hen her fever burned the fiercest, their daughter had alternately clung to his wife’s hand and then pushed her away, crying at terrifying visions only she could see. Her small body was speckled with red dots, and the dampness from the cool cloths evaporated against her hot flesh. The sickroom had a smell to it, a brassy odor that clung to the bedsheets. The fever faded but left behind a child with eyes dark against a pale face and skin that no longer blushed with life but was white as marble. And two parents, unable to do anything more than wait for the outcome. Sometimes, his wife would lean her head against his chest, too tired even to wrap her arms around him. He saw the circles deepen under her eyes, the skin stretch tighter across her face from lack of eating. He didn’t know what he should do, what he could do but send silent prayers to a merciful God. Each day, he would rise in the chill light of dawn, stop for a moment in

the sickroom, and then go to work where, when pieces broke, he knew how to put them back together. Each evening, he would sit with the child so his wife could sleep before it was her turn to come back to the sickroom. Often, he remembered, she would choose to stay by the bedside, sitting on the floor and resting her head on the bed. That’s how he found her one morning, with their daughter’s cold hand clasped in hers. And she had never forgiven herself for falling asleep while their child drifted away.

“

t’s a hard world,” the newsstand vendor agreed, and for a moment, the old man was startled. He had forgotten that he wasn’t alone. “But what can you do? That’s the price of progress.” “But what kind of progress brings so much misery?” Not waiting for an answer, he tucked the paper under his arm and continued down the street to the small park near his house. Some-

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times, if the weather was warm, he would sit on the bench and read through the news, carefully folding back each page. And in the background would be the music of children, as balls were tossed and bats were swung, as races were run by the swiftest while the rest cheered. He didn’t mind the noise. Since his wife died, the silence at home was almost deafening. He would read his paper and drink in the welcome sounds of children playing until it was time to go home.

oday, there were only two people in the park, a young girl on a swing and her mother, resting on the bench where he usually sat. With a small bow, he asked, “May I sit down?” Disarmed by his courtesy, she gestured toward the seat in welcome. In silence, they watched the child as her fat legs pumped the swing higher. As it began the inevitable downward arc, she leaned back, letting her braids dangle until, at the lowest point, they brushed the ground below her feet. The breeze blew her bangs from her forehead and billowed her open jacket behind her like a sail. “All children like the swings,” he observed, and the woman nodded her head in agreement. “Until they grow old enough for video games,” she added with a laugh. “So much for the simple pleasures of youth.” “When children were little,” the old man began, “they did not have many toys. A ball and bat, and a doll for the girls. And marbles. Do children play with marbles anymore, I wonder? But there was always work for them to do—help in the house or out in the garden. Children had to help out. There was too much work and too little time. Everyone had to work. Even the young ones could be taught to pull weeds or pinch bugs from growing plants.” The woman nodded again, her eyes on the child as she swung back and forth. “It’s different now,” she said finally. “No one has the time or space for a St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

garden. Parents have to work, pay the bills, and buy the food.” “And the food is not even as good,” the old man answered. “When the tomatoes were ripe, my wife would pick them, still warm from the sun, and the juice would nearly be bursting from the skin. She would scald them, peel off the skins, and then quickly dice them into a pot with bits of garlic and chunks of onion. The house was filled with the smell of the sauce she was making, and if you breathed deeply enough, you could taste the tomato in the air.” The woman listened with an air of interest, although her eyes never left the swing. But he was encouraged to continue. “She baked—how my wife baked! Fruit pies—the crust so delicate and flaky you could give it to a baby. And at Christmastime, every surface held racks of cooling pastries and fruit braids, decorated cookies, and flat pans of boiled candies like sheets of stained glass. And always singing to herself, Christmas carols from the old country.” “She must have been a wonderful woman,” the woman said, but he was so caught by the pictures of the past that he hardly heard her. “On Sunday,” the words spilling from him now, a tide from the ocean of memory, “she would stuff a fat chicken with cubes from bread she had baked earlier and dried. She raised the chickens from little peeps in a small pen I had made for her. When they were old enough, she would pick one out, and with a cleaver almost too heavy for her to handle, she would chop off its head. “I’m sorry,” he added, as the woman frowned, “but that was how it was done. No neatly wrapped packages of parts in the store. It was all done, start to finish, birth to death, in the home.” “It must be lonely for you,” she finally said, with a sidelong glance at the old man. “All those years together and now . . . .” She let her words trail off into the stillness. “And now,” he answered after a moment, “now there is no music, no dancing.” Fr ancisca n Media .org

At her puzzled look, he explained, “Just an expression. My wife and I, we didn’t dance much. There was too much work to do to have time for dancing.” At their wedding, though, they had danced—all the lively country dances until, hearts racing and faces flushed, they had slowed for the last dance. He had clasped her in his arms and felt her pulse racing and wasn’t sure if it was from the exertion or his closeness. Now, in the distance, the sound of the church bells could be heard chiming the hour, and his companion quickly got to her feet. “I must go now. I’m afraid I’m one of those mothers who buys her food instead of growing it. And I’d better get to the store if I’m to cook dinner tonight. Perhaps we’ll see you here again.” “Perhaps,” he agreed, and watched the two of them leave, the mother’s quick step matched by the daughter’s running feet. Then he leaned back, letting the sun warm his face. It did not seem possible, on sunny days like this, that his wife would not be waiting at home for him.

e remembered when they met. He had been keeping company with another girl, but something in his wife’s dark eyes, the way she tossed her hair, spelled doom for the other romance. He courted her with all the controlled passion a young man might show. On their wedding night, she had cried with love and clung to him as though she feared he might leave. She never knew he was hopelessly, helplessly bound to her with ties of passion and love he could barely comprehend. He couldn’t let her see his weakness. He was a man and had to be strong, the sturdy oak under which she could seek shelter. He did not know, until she was gone, how much of his strength came from her presence, how much grace and music she had brought to his life. But at the end, the music played for her alone. He had brushed her white hair back from her face and held her closely. She smiled at him then, the

ghost of a young girl still in her eyes, but the music was stronger and, little by little, she had danced away. Once she had gone, the music stopped, leaving behind just a memory of what had been. Only by talking of her could he bring back the faint melody that was their life. He pushed himself up from the bench and walked slowly toward home. There he met the postman who handed him the day’s mail, saying, “Nice day today.” “Yes, a nice day,” the old man agreed. “You know, on a day like today, my wife would be hanging clothes on the line, snapping the sheets till the creases were gone. My wife was a hard worker. And what a baker—have I told you how wonderful a baker she was? And always singing . . . ,” and just for a moment, he could hear her voice, sweet and sure, in the distance. A Nancy Christie is a freelance writer from Austintown, Ohio. She is currently working on several book projects including novels, a short story collection, and a book for writers.

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What Is the Origin of John’s Baptism?

Someone recently asked me about St. John the Baptist and his baptism of Jesus. Was baptism something common in the Jewish tradition then? Where did baptism with water originate? A Jewish friend tells me that he has never heard of baptism with water as a Jewish practice. It is not a practice directly rooted in the Torah. According to the New Catholic Encyclopedia, in Jesus’ day, gentiles who wanted to become Jews were sometimes baptized with water in order to recall the crossing of the Red Sea by the Hebrews during the exodus from Egypt. Because physical descent from Abraham and Sarah was impossible for gentiles, this custom began as a way to symbolize their sharing in the covenant that was foreshadowed at the Red Sea and completed at Mount Sinai. Gentile boys and men had to accept circumcision as part of their becoming Jewish. 4 6 ❘ Augus t 2016

The Greek verb bapto means “to dip” or “to immerse.” The Septuagint (Greek Old Testament) uses that term wherever the Hebrew text uses tabal (Ruth 2:14, Joshua 3:15, etc.). Dipping could remove ritual impurity: dipping hyssop into blood and sprinkling it on a person was part of the ritual by which a priest declared that this individual had been cleansed of leprosy (Leviticus 14:6-7). This covered a wide range of skin diseases. In Jesus’ day, when a gentile man wished to become Jewish, three rituals were involved (circumcision, baptism, and sacrifice) in order to repeat the exodus sequence. The cleansing for a convert represented the “sanctification” mentioned in Exodus 19:10. In this context, proselyte baptism represented ritual purification and incorporation into the people of Israel. John’s baptism had a very clear moral character, an acceptance of the change of heart that the kingdom of God requires purification. In Isaiah 1:16; Ezekiel 36:25; Zechariah 13:1; and Psalm 51:9, we read about bathing as showing interior, moral purification. Mark 1:5 suggests that John’s baptism was administered primarily to Jews. The community coming from St. John the Baptist (cited in Acts 19:1-4) continued to practice baptism, which eventually required Christians to explain the difference between John’s baptism (which did not include the gift of the Holy Spirit) and the Sacrament of Baptism (which did). For this

reason, Christian Baptism can be received only once.

Did Jesus Have a Soul? I’ve been a Catholic for 70 years and have tried to understand the mystery of the Trinity. The other day I wondered, Did Jesus have a soul? Nothing is ever easy. Yes, Jesus had a human soul. He could not be truly God and truly human without a human soul. Otherwise, he would only have pretended to be human. Hebrews 4:15 says of Jesus: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has similarly been tested in every way, yet without sin.” Over the centuries, some Christians have thought that Jesus would be easier to accept if he were only pretending to be human. That idea does not reflect what the Catholic Church believes about Jesus.

Confessing to a Priest Where does the Bible talk about confessing to a priest? I know that the Gospel of John records Jesus as saying to the apostles on Easter Sunday evening, “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained” (20:23). That, however, does not explain the Sacrament of Reconciliation as we know it today: private confession to a priest. The present form of the Sacrament of Reconciliation has evolved—in this case through the influence of Irish monks who felt that this sacrament was intended not only for the most serious sins (murder, adultery, denying the faith) but, in fact, for all sins. St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

The most serious sins were confessed to a priest and required public penance, usually ending with reconciliation at the Easter Vigil. After the Letter of James recommends that Christians who are sick should be anointed with oil, it adds that if the sick person has committed any sins, he will be forgiven (5:15b). The text continues, “Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful.” No sin is completely private in its consequences, no matter what a sinner intends. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the most visible sign of God’s forgiveness for sins and the welcome that the faith community extends to sinners.

Changing the Sabbath Why do Christians observe this on Sunday? The Book of Genesis says that God rested on the seventh day and made it holy (Genesis 2:2-3). The earliest Christians were Jewish Christians who continued to observe the Sabbath on Saturday; those living in or near Jerusalem continued to pray in its Temple, whose main restoration lasted from 19 to 10 BC and whose final decoration was completed in AD 64. The Romans destroyed that temple in AD 70. By that time, the vast majority of new Christians were coming from a gentile background. Already by AD 100, Christians were observing the Sabbath on Sunday because that was the day when Jesus rose from the dead and the Holy Spirit descended upon the apostles and other disciples. Sunday is still indicated as the seventh day of the week on many European calendars and on international train and airline schedules. I once misread a train schedule in Germany before I realized that.

Should I Report It? My wife and I remodeled two rooms in our house in order to rent them Fr ancisca n Media .org

out. When I filed my income tax, I was going to report this income, but my wife was against it. She feels that we are already paying a lot of taxes to the government from our jobs. Also, we are giving 10 percent of the rent money we receive to the poor. Was not reporting this a sin? Whether you need to report it or not is first a matter of civil law, a question that an attorney or accountant can answer. People cannot simply exempt themselves from taxes because they feel that they have already paid quite enough. Jesus’ command “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God” (Matthew 22:21b; Mark 12:17a) still applies. Even though not all tax money is always used wisely, taxes help pay for things that benefit all of society (for example, national defense). They contribute to the common good of the civic community. A

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BOOK CORNER

❘ BY CAROL ANN MORROW

Red, White, Blue, and Catholic By Stephen P. White Liguori Publications 101 pages • $12.99 Paperback/E-book

What Our

Readers Recommend The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic Matthew Kelly The Second Greatest Story Ever Told: Now Is the Time of Mercy Michael E. Gaitley Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis Gospel Amnesia: Forgetting the Goodness of the News Luma Simms The Lamb’s Supper: The Mass as Heaven on Earth Scott Hahn

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Reviewed by TED BERGH, CEO of Catholic Charities Southwestern Ohio (serving the poor in the region). His previous experience includes public housing, public transportation, print and Internet media, and as an adjunct professor at Xavier University. Civic responsibility does not begin or end with subscribing to a set of political values reflected in our choices in a voting booth. Community building begins in the family and ends in developing a social group around core Catholic values. Every layperson should work for the sanctification of the world, according to Vatican II and affirmed by author Stephen P. White. “To work for this sanctification of the world is to use our talents and gifts in every area of our lives so that they bring peace, joy, justice, and truth to the world,” he writes. White has written a timely book to clarify how we live as Catholic citizens in an election year that is already beyond anything in our memory. He is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center—located in Washington, DC—which focuses on Catholic social teaching in contemporary life. “Rather than allowing the Church’s wisdom to shape our lives as citizens, we allow our political commitments to shape or distort our understanding of the Church’s

social teaching,” White writes. Starting with a political view and fixing it in a religious tradition only causes confusion in our efforts to practice our faith. All people are the love of God in the world. Faithful Catholics build a community consistent with this belief through service. It starts with the family, is nurtured in religious faith and practice, and is realized in living the Church’s social teaching. The four permanent principles of Catholic social teaching are human dignity, solidarity, subsidiarity, and common good. “We are created in God’s image, which is the source of our human dignity. . . . We are also made for something, for communion with others in this life and for perfect communion with God in the next,” explains White. Subsidiarity ensures that the basic elements of society (families, parishes, schools, etc.) are free to act responsibly in building a just nation. Solidarity is a sense of shared responsibility for the well-being of all. These first three principles combine to provide a common good of each human person for material as well as moral and spiritual life. White states the obvious: “Most of how we live as Catholic citizens doesn’t happen in the voting booth.” Most of the ways in which we shape our nation happen elsewhere. This cannot occur outside of a faithful community. Being Catholic does not occur outside of the communion of faith. We all work toward this end, and it is a shared work. “Chances are, your parish and diocese are home to more Catholic aid organizations than you know. And chances are, they could use a hand,” the author observes. The book is a quick read with substance. It requires circling back a few times to appreciate the depth of thought. Anyone who wishes for a respite from the name-calling of the current political season will find a positive course for using their talent in building up the neighborhood and the nation. In this rich nation, we are blessed with God’s mercy and celebrate this Jubilee Year of Mercy called by Pope Francis. This timely book calls us out: “To put it simply, everything we have is given to us [by God] so that we can serve others.” St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

BOOK BRIEFS

20th-Century Catholic Exemplars Hold Nothing Back Writings by Dorothy Day Edited by Patrick Jordan Liturgical Press 128 pages • $14.95 Paperback/E-book

Living Your Discipleship Seven Ways to Express Your Deepest Calling By Kathleen A. Cahalan and Laura Kelly Fanuccci Twenty-Third Publications 107 pages • $12.95 Paperback Reviewed by PAULA J. SCRABA, OSF, PhD, a member of the Franciscan Sisters of Washington, DC. She is an associate professor at St. Bonaventure University, New York, where she teaches Catholic Franciscan Heritage. The Holy Spirit has truly moved Kathleen A. Cahalan and Laura Kelly Fanucci to correlate the gifts of the Holy Spirit with their seven ways to express your deepest calling. The reader is challenged to view the calling to discipleship as a follower, worshiper, witness, neighbor, forgiver, prophet, and steward. These coauthors bring to light many expressions of discipleship through sharing their experiences in careers and relationships. Living Your Discipleship is suitable for any formation program, RCIA, book club, or parish or community reflection. This reviewer used the text at weekly meetings of resident assistants at St. Bonaventure University. The chapters lend themselves to be used independently as group needs require. At the end of each chapter are practical questions for discussion. The content is easy to read and suitable for young adults just discerning their faith journey or older adults looking to strengthen and maintain their call to discipleship. One important chapter on being a forgiver reminds us all that living in relationship is a call to “radical forgiveness.” This book can come alive for anyone many times over, which is the beauty of this title. It is an ongoing journey of faith and discernment. Fr ancisca n Media .org

Dorothy Day, cofounder of the Catholic Worker movement, was also a prolific writer. Her contributions to Commonweal magazine, presented here, have her taking on topics such as the challenges of being a single parent and the struggle to keep the movement afloat.

Hidden in God Discovering the Desert Vision of Charles de Foucauld By Bonnie Thurston Ave Maria Press 160 pages • $14.95 Paperback/E-book One hundred years after he was murdered in the Sahara, Blessed Charles de Foucauld continues to inspire those on the pathway to a deepened Christian faith. Author Bonnie Thurston draws from the priest/hermit’s journal entries and letters, exploring how Foucauld’s time in the desert enhanced his understanding of Jesus.

Way of Wonder Wisdom from G.K. Chesterton Compiled by Dale Ahlquist Pauline Books and Media 144 pages • $9.95 Paperback G.K. Chesterton wrote, “To see good is to see God.” His writing was full of equal doses of wit and wisdom, and he often meditated on the divine in the ordinariness of life. This compilation is sure to fascinate both Chesterton aficionados and newcomers to his work.—D.I.

Books featured in Book Corner and Book Briefs can be ordered from

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A CATHOLIC MOM SPEAKS

❘ BY SUSAN HINES-BRIGGER

The Long and Winding Road

T Click the button above to listen to Susan’s reflections on family life.

5 0 ❘ Augus t 2016

he beginning of the school year is always a bittersweet time for me as a mom. The night before, uniforms will be laid out, backpacks will be filled with folders, pencils, and crayons—or, in the case of my two oldest, their laptops— and lunches will be packed. The next morning, I’ll stop each one as they head out the door—some more easily than others— for a kiss and a picture to mark the passing of another year and the beginning of a new one. This year is going to be a bit harder for me than others, I suspect. My oldest, Maddie, is entering her senior year of high school. Alex, my next oldest, is just beginning his high school journey. Riley and Kacey continue in grade school, but now without the protective backup of their big brother. Yes, this year is going to be hard. It’s not

just the passing years of school that is bothering me. It is the passing years, in general. I know it’s a common theme with parents that, as the kids get older, we wish time moved more slowly. But this is different. We’re talking about my kids now.

Fear and Worry At some point, without even realizing it, I went from worrying about my kids hitting milestones such as walking and potty training to the realization that the passing years are bringing with them new challenges and worries. Suddenly, things like whether or not one of my children is invited to a party are replaced with worries about whose party he or she is invited to. As their social circles expand, so do my worries. Issues like driving, sexuality, the trappings of social media, drinking, and, God forbid, drugs St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

SHOW UP

move to the top of the seemingly endless list of my parental concerns. With the younger two I worry about things like bullying, social cliques, and self-confidence. I feel helpless. As I watch my kids grow and slowly walk away, I do the only thing I feel makes any sense. I pray. I pray that I have taught them enough, warned them enough, and provided them with a good enough example that they will find the right path. I think of Mary. How must she have felt as she watched her only son strike out on his own path? Did she question the people he was hanging out with? Did she beg him to not be quite so outspoken? Even with knowing his purpose and ministry, it couldn’t have been easy for her. I can only imagine

and no longer have my mom around, those times she was there mean a lot to me. As a working mom, I see now that it probably wasn’t easy for her to get off work to show up for things. But she still did. I know what it meant to me to look to the sidelines or stands and see her there. I get it now. I appreciate it now. That is why I will find a way to attend soccer games, dance recitals, May crownings, and Christmas programs. They may not recognize it now, but I want to be there for the day that they do.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY MARY KURNICK MAASS

One thing I always told myself when I became a mom was that, whenever possible, I was going to show up for my kids. By that I mean that when my kids looked for support or comfort, I would be there. I decided that because I know how much it meant to me when my own mom showed up time and time again—even when I didn’t expect her to— for even the most inconsequential events. At the time, I’m sure I probably didn’t acknowledge it or even thank her. But now that I’m older, have kids of my own,

how I would have felt in her place, and envy her faith and trust in God.

Slow Down At the end of last school year, one of my friends posted a picture of her son walking into school. It was such a simple image, but it captured everything I’ll be feeling this year as I kiss my kids and send them off to school—one more step away from me. A

Do you have comments or suggestions for topics you’d like to see addressed in this column? Send them to me at “A Catholic Mom Speaks,” 28 W. Liberty St., Cincinnati, OH 45202-6498, or e-mail them to CatholicMom@FranciscanMedia.org.

PETE AND REPEAT These scenes may seem alike to you, But there are changes in the two. So look and see if you can name ILLUSTRATION BY TOM GREENE

Eight ways in which they’re not the same. (Answers on page 23)

Fr ancisca n Media .org

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YEAR OF MERCY

❘ BY CINDY WOODEN

Peace in God’s Mercy The Corporal Works of Mercy ■ Feed the hungry ■ Give drink to the thirsty ■ Clothe the naked ■ Shelter the homeless ■ Visit the sick ■ Visit the imprisoned ■ Bury the dead

CNS PHOTO BY PAUL HARING

The Spiritual Works of Mercy ■ Admonish the sinner ■ Instruct the ignorant ■ Counsel the doubtful ■ Comfort the sorrowful ■ Bear wrongs patiently ■ Forgive all injuries ■ Pray for the living and the dead Our tears, Pope Francis said at this Year of Mercy prayer service for those who weep, create “an ocean of desolation that cries out for mercy, compassion, and consolation.”

5 2 ❘ Augus t 2016

Gospel, Jesus sees Mary weeping for the death of her brother, Lazarus,” and he, too, begins to weep, the pope said. Jesus’ tears “teach me to make my own the pain of others, to share in the discouragement and sufferings of those experiencing painful situations.” A

tal Digi as t Ex r

Click here for a longer version of this article.

Cindy Wooden is Rome bureau chief for Catholic News Service. She has worked in Rome since 1989.

POPE FRANCIS ON MERCY “Jesus’ tears cannot go without a response on the part of those who believe in him. As he consoles, so we, too, are called to console.” —Year of Mercy prayer service, May 5, 2016

St A n t h o n y M e s s e n g e r . o rg

CNS PHOTO/PAUL HARING

iovanna Astarita and Domenico Pellegrino’s son, Antonio, was 15 when he committed suicide. “Antonio dragged my life, my soul, and my mind into that tomb, too,” his mother said. Faith and an experience of God drying her tears was and is the only thing “that prevents me from going crazy,” she said during a special Year of Mercy prayer service to comfort the sorrowful. Qaiser Felix, a Pakistani Catholic journalist, spoke of anti-Christian discrimination. He and his family received threats, and eventually he was forced to flee to Italy. “To know persecution and the fear of death is a terrible experience, especially when I think of my children,” he said. At this special Year of Mercy prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis assured those present that they are not alone in their pain and that Jesus, too, knew what it meant to weep. “In one of the most moving pages of the

BACKSTORY

Marks of Excellence

o you remember back in February when I mentioned our entries in the Catholic Press Association journalism competition? That, in January, we had entered some of our best work from 2015 into

this contest among Catholic publishers across North America? I’m delighted to tell you that our entries were not in vain. Yes, I know,

PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER HEFFRON

we write for you, readers. We want to touch your life, to keep you in the know, to inspire you. But still, isn’t it nice to know that others recognize our good work? It’s a way of telling all of you, and all of those who might subscribe but need a little nudge, that you and they truly are reading the best in the Catholic press. Now, about my delight. This past June, we walked away from the competition with nine significant awards for your magazine. When it came to coverage of Pope Francis’ busy year, said the judges, we were the best. We received First Place for coverage of the pope’s visit to the United States (December), and we won First Place for coverage of the Synod on Families (September). Said the judges about the papal visit section, “Easily the most sophisticated and comprehensive coverage.” We won First Place for best illustration in one of our “A Catholic Mom Speaks” columns (May). We won First Place, best personality profile, for Donis Tracy’s amazing story on terrorist victim James Foley in March. The judges said what we all know: “Marvelous story, from beginning to end.” We were awarded in other categories, too, for our coverage of the Junipero Serra canonization (“cleverly written to provide both sides of the story”), our editorial on the Confederate flag, our “St. Francis Breadline” photo story, the clever short story about the pacifist at the squirrel-hunting competition, and, finally, one of the coveted awards for General Excellence. You’re enjoying some of the finest work in the Catholic press. Our Franciscan Media and Servant Books had a great night of awards, too. You can read about them at FranciscanMedia.org. Congratulations, one and all!

Editor in Chief @jfeister

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