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VOL. 32, NO.3.

Friday, January 15, 1988

FALL RIVER, MASS.

Southeastern Massachusetts' Largest Weekly

$8 Per Year

"Wrongful birth" suit is hit

BUILDING BLOCK Ministries participants gather for a Cornerstone program. Tony Medeiros is at left. (Motta photo) .

Building Block Ministries

Not your ordinary party By Joseph Motta A group of young people in jeans, sweaters and corduroys gathered in Taunton recently. Pizza boxes littered the room where they met. And, of COl\rse, rock music blared. But it wasn't your ordinary party. Its attendees were participants in the activities of Taunton's Building Block Ministries. And anyone of them would be glad to tell you that the reason for their meetings is pure and simple: Jesus Christ. Building Block Ministries was begun about eight years ago by Taunton native Anthony Medeiros, a member of the city's St. Anthony parish, and fellow Tauntonians Dave Lewis and Harry Ryan. Lewis is now a Rhode Island resident. Ryan remains an active Building Block participant. Medeiros, 36, holds a master's degree in religious education from Providen~e College and is a member of the Fall River Diocesan Service Committee for the Charismatic Renewal. He told The Anchor he had suffered from recurring spinal meningitis before cofounding Building Block.

He said he sought strength to deal with his illness through the Church. What he found, he said, was "personal change and conversion." The idea to stfirt Building Block came to him and his friends at about that time. The group started as the Building Block Youth Group, named for "The Building Block," a tune by Christian performer Noel Paul Stookey, better known as onethird of the popular folk group Peter, Paul and Mary. At first, most group members were teens. Prayer meetings and attending and sponsoring concerts by Christian pt::rformers were among their activities. The group also sent members to several youth conferences at Ohio's University of Steubenville, Medeiros said. Medeiros, a job placement specialist at B.M.C. Durfee High School, Fall River, said that with time Building Block "evolved into a young adults' grpup." Most of the 40 to 50 current members, he said, range in age from 18 to 30. The group's name was changed to Building Block Ministries when membership aged, he said. "'Youth Group' was too restricting."

But music remained an integral part of the Building Block experience. The Cornerstone meeting, one of several Building Block outreaches, is a showcase for Christian rock videos and concert clips. Cornerstone meets at 7 p.m. each first Sunday in K ofC Hall on Taunton Green. The most recent gathering found the hall full of young people by starting time, and as the evening progressed, there were many new arrivals. Attendees watched a concert by Christian rockers White Heart, occasionally reacting to the music with an "Amen!" or handclapping. If you don't listen to the lyrics of White Heart, a Midwestern-based quintet, the group sounds about the same as many contemporary rockers: polished and fresh, with a get-up-and-dance aura. But you should listen to the ~yr­ ics. They're about Jesus and love and sharing. And that sets White heart and other Christian acts apart from their musical contemporaries. Tony Medeiros, who often lectures about Christian rock and its effects on young people, says that l\lthough the majority of religious Turn to Page 14

WASHINGTON (NC) - As pro-lifers across the nation prepare to participate in Jan. 22 demonstrations marking the anniversary of the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion, a three-judge panel of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals has reinstated a "wrongful birth" suit brought against an obstetrician by the mother of a child with Down's syndrome. A Catholic pro-life official said Jan. 6 that by upholding such suits courts become "tools" of those who advocate abortion and also could make it "legally and financially impossible" for pro-life physicians to practice obstetrics. In a unanimous decision released Dec. 31, the court reinstated a suit brought by Carolyn B. Haymon against her obstetrician, Dr. Marciana W. Wilkerson. 6 The mother has claimed her doctor deprived her of the right to decide whether to have an abortion and thus avoid the birth of her daughter. Judge Judith W. Rogers wrote for the court that if Ms. Haymon could prove at a trial that Dr. Wil-

kerson "deprived her of the parental right to choose whether to avoid the birth ora child afflicted with Down's syndrome, Dr. Wilkerson can be held liable for the extraordinary medical and other expenses attributable to the care of that child." Richard Doerflinger, assistant director of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops' Office for Pro-Life Activities, said courts "unintentionally make themselves into tools of pro-abortion advocacy" by upholding such suits against physicians "who fail to facilitate the abortion of a mentally disabled child." "These suits could make it legally and financially impossible for prolife physicians to practice obstetrics," he said in a statement. He urged state legislatures that have not already done so act to invalidate such suits. The state Supreme Court of. North Carolina and the legislatures of some states, including Minnesota and Idaho, have refused to allow "wrongful birth" suits. Turn to Page Six

Pope supports nuclear accord VATICAN CITY - PopeJohn Paul II has tied his support for the December superpower agreement eliminating intermediate-range nuclear weapons in Europe to a strong criticism of nuclear deterrence as a policy capable of producing lasting peace. The superpowers must see the agreement as a starting point for elimination of all nuclear and chemical weapons and for significant reductions in conventional arms, the pope said. Further agreements must be forged "in a context of detente and cooperation," he added. Nuclear deterrence must be replaced by a strategy in which mutual security is based on an "intertwining of vital interests and relations," he said. "The fear of 'mutually assured destruction,' which is at the heart

of the doctrine of nuclear deterrence, cannot constitute, in a lasting way, a viable base for security and peace," the pope added. The Vatican "has always affirmed that deterrence based on a balance of terror cannot be seen as an end in itself but solely as a stage toward progressive disarmament," he said. The pope spoke Jan. 9 in his yearly speech to diplomats accredited to the Vatican. He encouraged widespread disarmament agreements and asked for diplomatic solutions to conflicts around the world. The talk marked the strongest papal support to date for the Dec. 8 treaty signed in Washington by President Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. It was the first time the superpowers had Turn to Page Seven

Tonight! The Bishop's Ball


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The Anchor Friday, Jan. 15, 1988

Bishop makes statement on feeding co~a patient

Unity services scheduled Christians will observe the 80th annual week of Prayer for Christian Unity, beginning Jan. 18 and concluding Jan. 25. The 1988 theme is "Love Casts Out Fear." Among commemorations in the diocese oJ Fall River will be services in Greater New Bedford, Fall River, the Swansea/ Somerset area and Harwich. The observance, which looks toward the union of all people in the church established by Christ, originated in 1908 as the Chair of V nity Octave on the initiative of Father Paul James Francis, SA., of Graymoor, NY. It begins on Jan. 18, formerly observed as the feast of the Chair of St. Peter at Rome ~nd concludes on Jan. 25, the feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. An ecumenical prayer service for use during the week has been distributed nationwide by the Graymoor Ecumenical Institute, national coordinator of the observance. In New Bedford The Greater New Bedford Clergy and Religious Association will sponsor its traditional eight services, to be held at 7 o'clock nightly Jan. 18 through 25. The listing follows: - Monday, Jan. 18: St. Martin's Episcopal Church, County and Rivet Streets, New Bedford; - Tuesday, Jan. 19: Trinity United Methodist Church, 473 County St., at Elm, New Bedford; - Wednesday, Jan. 20: Trinity LU.theran Church; 5Pafk Ave., Fairhaven';' .. .. . . . . . . '.' ,

- Thursday, Jan. 21: St. Anne's Church, 890 Brock Ave., New Bedford; - Friday, Jan. 22: South Baptist Church, 745 Brock Ave., New Bedford; - Saturday, Jan. 3: V nion Baptist Church, Court and Cedar Streets, New Bedfor<J; - Sunday, Jan. 24: Pilgrim V nited Church of Christ, Purchase Streets, New Bedford; - Monday, Jan. 25: Friends Meeting House, 594 Smith Neck Road, South Dartmouth. On Cape Cod On Cape Cod, Holy Trinity parish, West Harwich, will participate in an observance at 3 p.m. Jan. 24 at the church of the Open Door, Old Chatham Road, Harwich. Members of eight churches will join in the ceremony. Fall River Area The ninth annual Niagara Neighborhood ecumenical service will be held at 2:30 p.m. Feb. 7 in St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 215 Warren St., Fall River. All city residents are welcome at the observance, at which the homily will be delivered by Rev. Gerard Blais Jr., . of St. Paul Lutheran Chruch. A coffee hour will follow the service, at which members of SS. Peter and Paul, Holy Cross and Our Lady of Health Catholic churches will be participants. . At Our Lady of Angels parish, Fall River, prayer for ~hristian unity will follow the 7 a.m. and 4 p. m. daily Masses during the observance. Swansea and Somerset churches will observe the week at a time and place to be announced. The service will be sponsored by the Somerset/ Swansea Clergy Association.

NC photo

SISTER SCHRAUTEMYER

"Indian summer" gives dyin'g nun time to reflect BELLEVILLE, Ill. (NC) - An "Indian summer" in her life has given Ursuline Sister Suzanne Schrautemyer time to reflect on the ambiguity and confusion of dying as a "normal" routine. Autumn brought her less pain and more energy, a time of "solace and comfort," she said. But the "limbo-like experience of my body" during her Indian summer also has been a time of confusing signals. In a series of articles over the past year in The Messenger, Belleville diocesan newspaper, Sister Schrautemyer, 40, has talked about the diagnosis of terminal cancer and how she lives with the fact that she is dying. The Anchor carried a previous story Jan. 9, 1987. "I have experienced autumn as a valid season of life," she said in a recent issue of The Messenger, "not just the beginning of winter. Most years I felt a sense of ending about the green of summer, and resisted the onset of winter. It's different this year. I feel a sense of confidence. I feel more sure of winter as a valid promise of life." But in Indian summer "the cancer in my body is teasing me. There's not an urgent battle going on inside. There's just the lingering, subtle, ambiguous erosion of life. My body is losing the battle, though there hardly seems to be a battle going on," she wrote in her journal. Sister Schrautemyer said that when she has been in a lot of physical pain "people are anxious to be present, supportive and sympathetic. But when I continue to be sick but look good, reaction become more confusing and sympathy more difficult."

When people start talking about remission and miracles, "I don't know how to respond. I know better. I've already had it checked out." . Her doctor assured her that while the cancer has been less active at times, it was not in remission. "When people say: 'You look good,' I feel I am going to disappoint them if I tell them what's really going on. And sometimes I honestly look a whole lot better than I feel." She said she has found that "if you have a few months to live, you have one task and that is to die. If you are dying, but you don't know when, to put it bluntly, you have no excuse to lie around. I don't know how to take myself."

PROVIDENCE, R.t. (NC) Bishop Louis E. Gelineau of Providence said Jan. II it would be within Catholic moral teaching to allow food and water to be discontinued for a Rhode Island woman who has been in a coma for two years. Bishop Gelineau issued a statement endorsing the opinion of diocesan moral theologian Father . Robert J. McManus that the woman had no "reasonable hope for recovery" and that medical treatments, even those providing food and water artificially, were "disproportionate and unduly burdensome." The bishop said he asked Father McManus, vicar of education in the diocese, to review the case of Marcia Gray, who lapsed into a coma in 1986 from a cerebral hemorrhage. The bishop's statement follows: The case of Marcia Gray is one that is both complex and highly sensitive. Serious study has been given to this case, taking into account the constant moral teaching of the Catholic Church and the medical facts present in the case. The magisterium of the church has not yet issued a definitive statement regarding the need to provide nutrition and hydration to the permanently unconscious person. Within the church, however, two theological opinions are presented. The first, that nutrition and hydration can be considered extraordinary means of sustaining life in certain circumstances; the second states that fluid and nutritional support are always to be provided. When the family of Marcia Gray sought the counsel of the Catholic Church in this matter, I asked Father Robert McManus to review the case and to assist the family in reaching a conscientious decision in accord with Catholic moral theology. Father McManus, who is our vicar for education, holds a doctoral degree in moral theology from the Gregorian University in Rome. After careful study and review of church teachings, Father McManus offered the following moral argument:

Food concerns all, says NCRLC head

ST. PAUL, MINN.(NC)-The National Catholic Rural Life Conference will be revitalized and broaden its impact and scope as a of a December board meetresult Last summer Sister Schraute, ing in the Minneapolis-St. Paul myer spent much time with her area, said the conference's new mother. "We talked more honestly Joseph K. Fitzexecutive director, than I ever thought possible. My gerald. cancer and dying have led us both In the past the 65-year-old to focus on the things that matter. NCRLC with headquarters in Des Her faith as a Jehovah's Witness is Moines, Iowa, has concentrated something I respect in her, and I its work in the upper Midwest, know she reverences my faith traditionally the stronghold of rural too." American Catholicism, he said. Since making retreat for women But food is everybody's concern, religious with cancer, Sister rural or urban, he pointed out, and Schrautemyer has worked with the tre'atment of food issues in the dying people and their loved ones. V.S. bishops' 1986 economic pasShe hopes to develop a way to toral broadens NCRLC concerns reach more people around the dio- to the whole spectrum of food cese but she feels no sense of issues. Fitzgerald likened the organizaurgency. A year ago she talked tional work of the December about things she had looked forward to in her life. Now, even board meeting to giving a room a though many days she has more new coat of paint. People may not energy and more time, "there's notice the room was repainted, isn't a lot I need to get done in my "but you think it looks great," he said. life," she said.

"The prognosis for Marcia Gray is that there is no reasonable hope for recovery. Mrs. Gray survives in a persistent vegetative state. Therefore, the medical treatments which are being provided the patient, even those which are supplying nutrition and hydration artificially, offer no reasonable hope of benefit to her. This lack of reasonabie hope of benefit renders the artificially invasive medical treatments futile and thus extraordinary, disproportionate and unduly burdensome. Moreover, the continuation of such medical treatments is causing a significant and precarious economic burden to Mrs. Gray's family. "It must be unambiguously clear that the primary intention of removing what has been competently judged to be extraordinary means of artificially prolonging the patient's natural life is to alleviate the burden and suffering of the patient and not to cause her death. Moreover, even after the removal of such extraordinary means of prolonging life, the patient has the right, because of her dignity as a human person, to proper care and the provision of comfort. If such conditions are fulfilled, it is not inconsistent with the moral teaching of the Roman Catholic Church to allow the removal of such extraordinary means of medical treatment." Having reviewed this position of Father McManus, I gave him my permission to provide the family's legal counsel with this information. Father's opinion does not contradict Catholic moral theology and in no way supports or condones th~ practice of euthanasia.

Seminaries' future to be discussed WASHINGTON (NC) - Leaders in seminary education and research will meet with Catholic foundation representatives Jan. 21-22 in Florida for a conference on the future of U.S. Catholic seminaries. Costs of seminary education and the place of non-priesthood students in seminary-sponsored programs are among key concerns to be addressed. Researchers have reported that enrollment of non-priesthood students in seminary programs has helped keep down costs of priesthood training. However, a 1986 Vatican letter responding to a comprehensive study of U.S. Catholic theology-level seminaries urged clearer separation of seminary programs from those for lay ministers or lay theologians. The average yea~ly cost for educating a seminarian is now over $13,000. In the 1986-87 school year nearly half the students in the 54 Catholic theology schools around the country were not preparing for the priesthood. The invitation-only Florida meeting is cosponsored by the Lilly Endowment, a major contributor to seminary research in recent years, and FADICA - Foundations and Donars Interested in Catholic Activities - a consortium of 31 private foundations which collaborate in studying trends affecting Catholic life.


THE ANCHOR -

Diocese of Fall River -

Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

3

No amnesty for churchwomen killers

BISHOP DANIEL A. Cronin was the principal celebrant of a recent Mass marking the 50th anniversary of the death of Rev. Felix, de Jesus Rougier, founder of Misioneras Guadalupanas del Espiritu Santo. With the bishop, from left, are the Guadalupana sisters serving the Hispanic Apostolate of the ~all River diocese: Sisters Isabel Escamilla, superior; Margarita Ocana; Magdalena Carrillo and Soledad Mendoza. Mass concelebrants were Msgr. John J. Oliveira, YE, and Fathers Peter N. Graziano and Brian J. Harrington. (Motta photo)

33rd annual Bishop's Charity Ball tonight Thousands of friends of exceptional and underprivileged children, representing Fall River diocesan parishes from the Attleboros to Provincetown, will dance to the sounds of Al Rainone and his orchestra and Monte Music tonight at the 33rd annual Bishop's Charity Ball. Festivities will begin at 8 p.m. at White's of Westport. Ball proceeds benefit diocesan summer camps for exceptional and underprivileged children and other charitable apostolates. Bishop Daniel A. Cronin will make his 18th appearance as honored guest at the outstanding

Sister Brett The Mass of Christian Burial was offered Monday at Mt. St. Rita's Convent Chapel, Cumberland, RI, for Sister M. Louis Brett, RSM, 81, who died Jan. 8. Sister Brett was a teacher at St. Mary's School, North Attleboro, and· St. John the Evangelist School, Attleboro. She also taught at several Catholic schools in Rhode Island. She retired in 1984 and resided at Mt. St. Rita's. Born Alice M. Brett, the Providence native was the daughter of the late Charles and Theresa (Hanley) Brett. She entered the Mercy Sisters community in 1926 and was professed two years later. Sister Brett is survived by several nieces and nephews. She was buried in Resurrection Cemetery, Cumberland.

social and charitable event. He will be escorted by Frank C. Miller, diocesan president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and Dorothy Curry, president of the Diocesan Council of Catholic Women. Their organizations are the ball's honorary cosponsors. A ball highlight will be the presentation of 34 young ladies, representing an equal number of diocesan parishes; to Bishop Cronin in an elaborate ceremony.

The presentees will be escorted by their fathers or other male family members. Also scheduled are the traditional Grand March and a singing of the National Anthem by Fall River's Kenneth Leger. Msgr. Anthony M. Gomes. PA, is the ball's diocesan director. He reports that tickets will be available at White's this evening. The restaurant is located on Route 6 W~stport.

Both theologians, botha.t. U;~~vard CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (NC) Harvard University's divinity school has named Catholic biblical theologian Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza as its first Krister Stendahl professor of divinity. Ms. Fiorenza. widely known for her feminist analyses of Scripture and early Christian tradition, is to join the Harvard faculty this fall. Also a faculty member is her husband, Francis Schussler Fiorenza, named last year as the divinity school's Charles Chauncey Stillman professor in Roman Catholic studies. He had been a professor of systematic and foundational theology at The Catholic University of America in Washington since 1979. Ms. Fiorenza is currently Talbot professor of New Testament at the Episcopal Divinity School in Cambridge. She taught New Testament at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana for 14 years. Among a dozen books and 70 articles she has written, one of her best known is her 1984 book, "In

Diocese of Fall River

OFFICIAL

Memory of Her: A Feminist Theological Reconstruction of Christian Origins." The Krister Stendahl chair in theology was named after a Lutheran theologian and preacher who taught at Harvard for 30 years.

Unda-USA elects AKRON, Ohio (NC) - Sister Angela Ann Zukowski, a sister of the Mission Helpers of the Sacred Heart, has been elected president of Unda-USA a national Catholic association for church communicators. She succeeds Maury R. Sheridan, telecommunications director for the Archdiocese of Seattle. Sister Zukowski, who had been first )lice-president of the 500· member organization, is executive director of the Center for Religious Telecommunications and assistant professor of religious studies at the Marianist-sponsored University of Dayton. John E. Kearns Jr., assistant to Father John F. Moore, director of the Fall River Diocesan Office of Communications, serves on UndaUSA's national membership committee. He is a past member of the organization's national nominating committee.

Appointment His Excellency, the Most Reverend Daniel A. Cronin, Bishop of Fall River, announces 'the following assignments for the newly ordained transitional deacons: Rev. Mr. Daniel W. Lacroix, Holy Name Parish, New Bedford Rev. Mr. George B. Scales, St. John the Evangelist Parish, Attleboro. Effective January 9, 1988

His Excellency, the Most Reverend Daniel A. Cronin, Bishop of Fall River, has announced the appointment of Rev. Msgr. Thomas J. Harrington as spiritual director for the Taunton District Council of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. The appointment was effective Jan. 4. .

SAN SAL VADOR, EI Salvador (NC) - A Salvadoran judge has rejected the amnesty appeal of five former national guardsmen convicted of murdering four U.S. churchwomen in 1980. "The court finds the appeal for amnesty to be without grounds and therefore rejects it," Judge Consuelo Salazar Alvarenga de Revelo of the Ist Criminal Court of Zacatecoluca was quoted as saying. The judge also said her Jan. 8 ruling could not be appealed. The five men were sentenced to 30 years imprisonment on May 23, 1984, for the slaying of three U.S. nuns and a lay missionary Dec. 2, 1980. The bodies of the women were found in shallow graves on the roadside between the national airport and San Salvador, the capital. Each had been shot in the head. They were Maryknoll Sisters Ita Ford and Maura Clarke. Ursuline Sister Dorothy Kazel and lay missionary Jean Donovan.

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An official at the U.S. Embassy in San Salvador said the judge's decision "supports our position from the beginning." Former guardsmen Luis Antonio Colindres Aleman. Carlos J oaquin Contreras Palacios, Francisco Orlando Contreras Recinos, Daniel Canales Ramirez and Jose Roberto Moreno Canjura were given the maximum sentence for aggravated homicide and robbery. In 1985, Contreras' attorney said his client 'had been forced into a "conspiracy" to cover up the involvement of high-ranking officers in the case. The attorney. Salvador Antonio Ibarra. said he did not pursue that angle of the case because "I feared for my life." The U.S. government rejec~ed Ibarra's claim, citing an independent investigation in 1983 by former New York judge Harold Tyler. Tyler said there was no "credible evidence" that the killers were following superiors' orders when they committed the murders.

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THE ANCHOR -

Diocese of Fall River -

Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

themoorin~

the living word

Pop Sociology vs. Good Theology Last week the media had a rather sensational story of an ex-Navy man who had a sex change operation, then became an Episcopalian nun. After surgery Michael Clark became Joanna Clark and now wishes to be known as Sister Mary Elizabeth Clark. As Michael Clark, he flew on patrol missions in Vietnam, was married twice and fathered a child before undergoing his sex change operation. On taking the veil as an Episcopalian nun, he reflected that support of his efforts by a mainstream church did not constitute a radical departure from tradition. Well, this certainly sounds like the gospel according to Donahue whose show has promoted this attitude on two occasions. And in this mind set lies the crux of the horrendous decline of the Christian churches. Aside from the individual concerned and all the emotional and personal ramifications that must have contributed to his turmoil and confusion, the story is a sad one for so':called mainstream Christianity. It is yet another clear indication that the divisiveness of sects has led to a smorgasbord Christianity devoid of even the most basic Gospel realities. Too many so-called Christian churches have abandoned good theology and good biblical teaching for poor ethics and pop sociology. Some, merely in order to survive, have adopted practices devoid of principles. The more bizarre a situation the more accommodation is sought. By catering to the fringes, they have effectively removed themselves from the center, from the heart of biblical and church teaching. As a result, they find they must continue to cater to the different and difficult in order to fill pews and keep their heads above water. As various sections of mainstream churches continue to divide, split and even oppose the direction of their founders, they have indeed created a divisive atmosphere. The situation is exacerbated by our secular society which is alway~ r.~.ady. to ridicule. the folly and路 mistakes of fragile

humanity. Elements which themselveswbrship false gods of their own making relish and encourage the dissolution of church life. Thus when unfortunate situations within the church surface, they are fair game for media meddling. It is more than obvious that the secular press delights in setting church against church, especially in the case of in-house difficulties. This has been very true of our own church family. On more than one occasion, headlines have trumpeted conflicts of people and priest, priest and bishop, bishops among themselves and everyone against the pope. Even when areas of legitimate discussion are involved, it is reported that in-house clashes and battles are polarizing and dividing the church into fragments. In short, the secular world is no friend of the church. Whether wittingly or not, it seeks to destroy everything the church teaches and preaches. The Clark case is but another example of fodder for a media heyday. But when a church begins to compromise the Word and its handing on, when it waters down its content and intent and when it fails to proclaim it day in and day out, that church is well on the road to self-destruction. The proliferation of Protestant sects is an example of what can happen when popularity becomes the theological norm in the promotion of situation ethics and morality. . The Clark story should indeed provide a lesson to all who might subscribe to substitution of pop sociology for good theology. The Editor

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Daniel A. Cfl)fIin, 0,0., $.T.D. FlNANC'AL ADMUftSTRAtOR Rev. Msgr. John 1. Regan . . . . Leary Press-f'all Rtver

NC photo

"I will rejoice in the Lord and I will joy in God, my Jesus." Hab. 3:18

Facts about lightning By Father Kevin J. Harrington

Few events conjure up more feelings of awe and wonder than do thunder and lightning. Although by the middle of the 18th century Benjamin Franklin had allayed much of the ancient fear of these phenomena through his explanation of lightning and his invention of the lightning rod, many irrational myths still linger. The belief, for instance, that lightning never strikes the same place twice is demonstrably false. The Empire State Building, for one example, has been hit hundreds of times. Over the centuries, however, man's fear oflightning has led him to do many irrational things, including refusing to employ an important precaution. In 1767, years after invention of the lightning rod, the authorities in Venice, Italy, opted not to equip their churches with rods. In fact, they decided it was sacrilegious to suggest that God would cause lightning to strike a church and so stored hundreds of tons of gunpowder in a church vault. When the inevitable occurred, 3,000 people were killed and an entire section of Venice was destroyed. After many more such painful lessons, such landmarks as San Marco in Venice and St. Peter's in Rome were fitted with lightning rods.

Franklin's invention encountered the same resistance in England and France. In fact, the prevalence of such stubborn bigotry and ignorance-accounted for a gap of some 40 years between the invention and its general implementation. In that time countless lives were lost. Even today, lightning claims several hundred lives annually in the United States, fully 15 percent of them caused by taking refuge under a tree during a storm. Too many people are not aware that the best way to avoid danger during an electrical storm is to lie flat if one is in an open area. One should never be the tallest standing target or be under one! As a child, my fear of lightning was allayed by the knowledge that if you count seconds between the time you see lightning and the time you hear thunder and divide that number by five, you arrive at the number of thousands of feet between you and the lightning bolt. Possession of such information comforted me more than imagining that the angels were bowling or that God was stiking only sinners with lightning. On the average, some 8 million to 9 million lightning bolts strike the earth every 24 hours. The ubiquitous nature of lightning has led many scientists to theorize that it and the development of life go hand in hand. Indeed, the emer-

gence of life from the dust of the universe must be counted a great wonder, perhaps equal in glory only to the birth of the entire cosmos. The great paradox of modern science is that it knows more about the first second of the Big Bang than about the first billion years of presumed molecular evolution on earth that le.d to the first cells. Earth is believed to be as much as 20 billion years old. The fossil of the first single-celled organism dates back 3.8 billion years. The prevailing scientific model is that life began in an ocean of chemical broth cooked up on primitive Earth sometime during its first 800 million- years. The first step in the process leading to life would have been a chemical evolution involving the transmutation of available chemicals into the long organic molecules that are the components of all life. It is in this first step of evolution that lightning may have played an important role before natural selection replaced it as life's driving force. So the next time you see a lightning bolt, try not to be the tallest standing target around! Far better to bow humbly and recall that without those "acts of God," there might have been no life on earth at all.


Gender image As I listened to Congresswoman Pat Schrodeder speak on the difficulty women face in politics, I realized that at

understandable that we have so few great women writers of the past. As the saying goes, "Anonymous was a woman."

least three of the issues she discussed are experienced by women in other fields as well. I've had my share ofIess-than-pieasant encounters. The first has to do with gender image. Schroeder explained that she was often askcd, "Why are you running for president as a woman?" Her response: "I didn't know I had a choicc." As flip as her answer may appear, it is the conlect one. When people ask how we, as women, are able to travel, lecture, publish or whatever used to be considered male roles, we are forced to respond, "I am what God made me to be. I'm not a man so if I want to publish, I have to publish as a woman." Back in my early days of writing, the fifties and sixties, if I wrote a major article on weighty subjects like social issues, I was often asked by editors to use a pseudonym or my initials instead of my first name "so men will read it." General wisdom seemed to hold that men wouldn't read thoughtprovoking articles if they knew the author was a womc:n (which is why authors of the past like George Sands took male pseudonyms). As long as I wrote humorous or family articles, I could use my first name. Since building name recognition is a chief goal of the writer, it's

A second gender issue and one we battle constantly was also pinpointed by Schroeder, i.e., to be accepted by men we must appear strong but to be accepted by women '.ve must not appear strong. It's a familiar tightrope. I recall a publisher's meeting during which I insisted upon working with a single editor, on allocation of promotion monies and on other conditions for my next book. The meeting lasted three hours and we negotiated "like men." In other words, the discussion got heated at times. As we were leaving the meeting, the publisher put his arm around me and said, "Dolores, you used to be nicer." That's the real zinger -attack our femininity (often defined as niceness) whenever we show strength. I doubt that he would have said the same to a male author. The third issue concerns the trivialization of women when we deal with heavy issues. Schroeder told of discussing the intricacies of defense spending with a group and then asked if there were any questions. The first question: "If you're elected president, will your husband's tuxedo be placed in the Smithsonian?" It's infuriating. Too many times have offered some information

Too much division Historically speaking, one of the best ways to destroy an organization is to create internal division among its members. This can happen by getting various members into the mood of contradicting and being suspicious of each other and creating blacklists. And, best of alL it can be done by getting members to feel that the institution is being saved through their personal efforts and not through teamwork. I believe a quick review of news reports on the Catholic Church in the United States in 1986 and 1987 will show that the church could be tearing itself apart from within. The division of the U.S. bishops over the AI DS statement issued in December by the Administrative Board of the U.S. Catholic Conference is only one example of the many issues that divide not only bishops but also clergy and laity. It is no exaggeration to say that a mood of suspicion and division exists among many church members today. Although the 1987 visit of Pope John Paul II to the United States made great press for the church, the bad press regarding divisions among U.S. Catholics far outweighs the impact of positive church events. The situation must lead us to ask what can be done to stop the erosion of unity in the U.S. church. Once behavior is set in a certain direction, it is very difficult to change. So before it is too late, I believe th·ere should be a study of the media reports - newspapers, television, magazines, etc. - that have shown Catholics disagreeing with Catholics. It is time for a glimpse of the big

picture. We need the sort of seltassessment - self-tracking - that will make us more aware of what actions are occurring and how they are affecting us. We need to see the reality of the situation and to feel it more acutely. This enhances the likelihood of changing our behavior. I get the distinct feeling in my conversations with Catholics these days that for them the church has become·like a merry-go-round they would like to stop. Too much news is coming too quickly to digest. Much is misunderstood because of a lack of background and education. The result is confusion.

Christian struggle in Lebanon told WASHINGTON(NC) Emilc Rahme says Christianity is struggling to survive in Lcbanon and hc wants Christians in other parts of the world to become conccrned about it. Rahme. 41, a Lcbancse lawyer, political activist and Maronite Catholic, also said that l.cbanese presidential elections next August are crucial to Christianity's future in thc Middle Eastern nation. . He was· in the Unitcd States recently to "raisc the consciousness" of U.S. Catholics about Lebanon. He heads the Christian Solidarity Movement, an organization of some 500 doctors, lawyers, engineers and othcr professionals aiming to preserve what is tcrmed the "last bastion" of M iddie Eastern Christianity.

Forgiven "Your sins are forgiven for Christ's sake." - I John 2: 12

THE ANCHOR - Diocese of Fall River - Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

By DOLORES CURRAN

or insight on family at a commission meeting only to be asked, "Is that true in your family?" Some men just can't accept that women can reach beyond subjective experience while dealing with general issues. Once when I gave a talk at the Air Force Academy on the church's unjust behavior toward women, a high-ranking officer asked, "Would you say these things in front of your husband?" My husband, who was sitting in the front row, stood up and waved. "Here I am." Everyone laughed but the question was arrogant. A more familiar trivialization of women's contributions happens in homes as well as offices. A wife will submit an idea to which her husband doesn't respond but comes up with the following day as his own. It's as if men have a right seemingly to ignore and then plagiarize ideas simply because they originate with women. We need to be aware of these realities so we recognize them when they appear in media, committees, offices, pulpits and conventions. Like Pat Schroeder, we need to speak out against the dual standard, even if it means we aren't as nice as we used to be.

By FATHER EUGENE HEMRICK

At the end of each year, it is customary for the news media to review the past year in its entirety. Wc are given a picture of all the prominent events that have affected our lives. Wouldn't the church profit from adopting this practice? Not so much to create another news event, but rather to employ a method of stopping the merry-go-round lest we spin ourselves apart.

January 17 1967, Rev. John Laughlin, Retired Pastor, Holy Ghost, Attleboro January 20 1952, Rev. Roland J. Ma'sse, Assistant, Notre Dame de Lourdes, Fall River January 21 1983, Rev. Msgr. Henri A. Hamel, Retired, St. Joseph, New Bedford 111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

THE ANCHOR (USPS-545·020). Second Class Postage Paid at Fall River. Mass. Published weekly except the week of July 4 and the week after Christmas at 410 Highland Avenue. Fall River. Mass. 02720 by the Catholic Press of the Diocese of Fall River. Subscription price by mail. postpaid $8.00 per year. Postmasters send address changes to The Anchor. P.O. Box 7. Fall River. MA 02722.

It's all a matter of definition Q, Our discussion group has been studying some ofthe changes in the church in the last 25 years or so, In our reading we find that many things that have happened involve changing what some pope in the past had decided and had said was "irreformable," We are confused. How can some· thing one pope says be changed by another pope? (Pennsylvania) A. One must understand what that word "irrefMmable" means in papal and other church docu ments. Its use developed mainly in relatively modern times in response to something happening in the secular world. For centuries, particularly in what we sometimes call Christian Europe, most of the time the pope was considered supreme over even countries and other civil states. Anyone who knows history is aware that this claim of supremacy was by no means always honored, but it was at least there in theory. This concept of who had what power changed dramatically under the influence of such movements as the Englightenment and the French Revolution. Political decisions of states and countries began to be seen as actions of the people of that country which could not. be changed by anYQne e.l~, even the pope. Such actions were called irreformable.

5

By FATHER JOHN DIETZEN

to the communicants, I do not drink the wine because I feel it is not truly part of the sacrament. Our assistant always pours water into the beaker used for the congregation, Other priests do not, Why do some priests overlook what seems so obvious to me? (Missouri) A. Your concerns are entirely unnecessary. Pouring the water into the wine at the offering of the gifts is purely symbolic and has nothing to do with the validity of the celebration or the sacrament. Various meaning!i have been assigned to this symbolic act. Perhaps the most common is that it signifies the union of our actions and lives with that of Christ, which is of course one of the primary meanings of the entire eucharistic celebration. But the action is not required for validity. For this reason and perhaps to avoid any false understanding of the mixing of the water and wine, it commonly is recommended today that water be poured only into the primary chalice at Mass, not into other containers of wine that may be used for communion. What your assistant is doing is not forbidden. The other priests also have good and proper reasons fbr the' practice they foliow.· .. ~ ._.r~~.,

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For these and other reasons, the tism: Catholic Practice Today," is influence of the church even in re- available by sending a stamped, ligious matters was weakened con- self·addressed envelope to Father John Dietzen, Holy Trinity Parsiderably. In their understandable desire ish, 704 N. Main St., Bloomingfor a greater religious "security" ton, 111, 61701. Questions for this similar to that of civil society, the column should be sent to Father Christian and particularly Catho- Dietzen at the same address, lic people and leaders began to look for something similar to this civil autonomy for their church. It was in light of this situation that popes began to characterize WASHINGTON (NC) - Contheir decisions and statements as gressional intent 50 years ago and "irreformable." This meant only Catholic social teaching both supthat no other authority outside the port an increase in the federal minchurch was competent to change imum wage, the U.S. Catholic them. Conference told a congressional It did not mean that future subcommittee. popes or councils or other responThe USCC's views were expressible authorities in the church could sed in testimony to the Senate not change policies or practices or Subcommittee on Labor Standeven adapt and reformulate state- ards, part of the Senate Ed ucation ments of faith in light of other Committee, by Father J. Bryan situations and cultures. Hehir, USCC secretary for social This very situation explains, inci- development and world peace. dentally, much of the pressure for "In our view, Congress in 1937 the definition of papal infallibility met its responsibility to social jusin 1870. tice when it established a just minIt also, by the way, clarifies imum wage," the USCC official what that council meant by des- testified. "The original idea was to cribing the church as a "perfect set a minimum somewhat resemsociety." They did not mean to bling a living wage. It was thought claim that the church is perfectly that such a wage was slightly more holy, or for that matter, perfect in than half the average wage in the any other way. private sector." It simply meant what was meant The original minimum wage was by applying that same term to 25 cents an hour and Congress countries and nations - that the originally assumed that the level church was competent and auto- would· be adjusted as the wage nomous in its own area of religious average increased, Father Hehir matters and in appropriate ways in said. other matters that are connected "Congress, unfortunately, never with religion in civil society. wrote this into the law," he said. Q. Since water and wine clearly Legislation proposed in Conare part of the eucharistic celebra- gress would increase the minimum tion, if the celebrant fails to wage, currently $3.35 an hour, include water with the wine served over several years.

Minimum wage increase asked


6

THE ANCHOR -

Diocese of Fall Riv~r -

"Wrongful~'

Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

Defense of papal actions in Holocaust to be issued NEW YORK (NC) - The United States Catholic Historical Society, a body oriented to non-professionals, plans to publish a comprehensive body of source materials on the response of Pope Pius XII to the Nazi persecution of the Jews. A recent conference launching the effort was chaired by Msgr. Eugene V. Clark, society treasurer. Comparing the project to governmental issuance of a "white paper" on an international"dispute, Msgr. Clark said it would include publication of a special issue of the society'sjournal, the United States Catholic' Historian. It will also involve, he said, publication in English offour volumes of Vatican papers relevant to the issue and several volumes of other materials. The total enterprise will extend over several years and involve publication of perh'aps 10 volumes, he said. Speakers at the conference included Jesuit Father Robert Gra-

Fr. Lavelle to head John Carroll U. CLEVELAND (NC) - Jesuit Father Michael J. Lavelle, 52, has been named president of John Carroll University in Cleveland. He succeeds Jesuit Father T.P. O'Malley, president for the past eight years, who is to teach theology at the Catholic Institute of West Africa in Nigeria. . Father Lavelle was consultant to the U.S. bishops for their 1986 pastoral letter on the economy and has lectured on the pastoral in West Germany and throughout the United States. r

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ham, who has been involved in editing the Vatican papers of Pius XII's pontificate. and Msgr. John M. Oesterreicher, a Jewish convert to Catholicism and retired director of the Institute of JudaeoChristian Studies at Seton Hall University, South Orange, NJ. Both priests attributed the criticism of Pius XII's record on the Holocaust to the 1962 play "Der Stellvertreter" (The Deputy) by the German playwright Rolf Hochhuth and said the hostility toward Pius XII on this issue was a matter susceptible to explanation more by psychologists than by historians. Father Graham said Jewish critics of the pope ignored the published volumes of Vatican papers dealing with the period. "They're not interested in the sources," he said. "Theyjust ignore the documentation." The priest said that Hochhuth, while criticizing Pius XII's public silence on the Holocaust, acknowledged that he was acting to help people. But today, he said, references to the "silence" are taken to imply indifference to Jewish suffering. Father Graham said Jewish organizations continually approached Pius XII during World War II, asking him to use his influ'ence on behalf of particular individuals. "They all found out the pope was willing and ready to help," he said. '~They were not asking him to make speeches, but to intervene where he had influence." Msgr. Oesterreicher cited the reaction of the Nazis in deporting all Dutch Catholics of JeWish origin after the Dutch bishops made a public protest. Such displays of Nazi ferocity in retaliation explain why Pope Pius XII could not make the kind of public statements that critics say he ought to have issued. Msgr. Oesterreicher said.

FATHER ROBERT J. DUANE, an official observerfor the National Weather Service, checks a weather map. (NC photo)

Wedding forecast: sunny GARNERVILLE, N.Y. (NC)While it is not unusual for the parish priest to be drawn into. plans for a wedding, a pastor in the New York archdiocese is often asked to predict the weather for that special day.. Father Robert J. Duane of St. Gregory Barbarigo, Garnerville, obliges with a big smile and says that wedding days are always sunny. As an amateur meteorologist and official weather observer for the National Weather Service, Father Duane makes more official predictions for television and radio in the New York metropolitan area. "There are some 2,500 climati-

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cal observers like me throughout the United States," Father Duane said of his work recording temperatures and precipitation on a daily basis. Father Duane, pastor to 2,500 families, has his weather station in his rectory. It houses instruments ranging from a sophisticated facsimile machine to antiquated but still accurate barometers. . "The facsimile," he said, "prints various types of weather charts upper air, surface weather and satellite photos." While the weather horizon for most people is the day-to-day temperature, the real concern for meteorologists is long-term trends. "The real benchmark in terms of temperature, for example, would be the average annual temperature because a change of a few tenths of a degree could be significant," he said. Father Duane said that contrary to some impressions, winters are not getting warmer. "We have selective memory. When I was a kid I remember the snow being up to my waist. But I wasn't tall. It's a relative measurement. "And the temperature now isn't that much warmer than it was when I was a kid. In fact, we have had some devastating cold weather. Today they cart away the snow, so it seems like less snow around. But if we look at the records, we'll find that the snow we get isn't that much different from 50 years ago." But if there is one revolution in weather forecasting, he said, it is the invention of the weather satellite. "Before satellites, the only way a hurricane was spotted was if a ship happened to be passing by and . reported it. Now a satellite can immediately see signs of a tropical disturbance, so it is virtually impossible for the mainland not to have adequate warning." But it still can be difficult to predict the weather, he said. The typical winter storm that

Continued from Page One "Wrongful birth" and "wrongful life" suits "classify the lives of human beings with disabilities as 'wrong' and¡.... they tend to coerce physicians against their better judgment to promote prenatal diagnosis and selective abortion," Doerflinger said. A "wrongful life" suit involves parents who claim a physician should pay for the suffering of an unhealthy child whose life might have been avoided through abortion. In the Haymon case, Ms. Haymon, who was 34, claimed she was worried about becoming pregnant at that age and asked her obstetrician about amniocentesis, which can detect genetic defects in fetuses. She claims the doctor recommended against it. Citing the 1973 Supreme Court abortion decision Roe vs. Wade, the appeals court judges in their decision said Ms. Haymon had a valid suit in claiming her physician negligently deprived her of her constitutional right "to decide whether to terminate her pregnancy." But Doerflinger said the case "involved no particular advocacy on the physician's part." He said Dr. Wilkerson "simply used good medical judgment in recommending against amniocentesis for a 34-year-old woman, since at this maternal age the chance that the amniocentesis will accidentally cause a miscarriage of a healthy child is higher than the chance that it will detect a genetic defect." "'Freedom of choice' is a meaningless slogan if the only 'choice' to be legally protected is the one most likely to produce more abortions," he added. Douglas Johnson, legislative director for the National Right to Life Committee said Jan. 7 the appeals court decision was "ominous and appalling for doctors who don't want to be accomplices in killing unborn children. It violates the conscience rights of a lot of doctors."

Cardinal in China PEKING (NC) - Filipino Cardinal Jaime Sin, visiting China for the second time in three years, said he was in the Communist nation to improve relations between Peking and the Vatican, which have no diplomatic links. His trip included talks with Zhao Ziyang, China's premier and Communist Party' general s~cretary. It was the first meeting between a high-ranking member of the Roman Catholic Hierarchy and a Chinese party leader since Chinese-Vatican links were severed nearly 30 years ago. creeps up the coast "can be a nightmare to predict because a deviation of only a few degrees can mean either snow or rain, and the burden rests on. the shaking shoulders of area meteorologists who probably often dream ofmaking a living in the Southwest, where weather is more stable." . Father Duane, who has been at St. Gregory Barbarigo's for six years, is often asked for help. "I've had lawyers call' me up because I keep official records that are admissible in court and I'm called to give testimony or give a written report on specific weather occurring at the time of an accident," he said.


Pope supports nuclear accord

THE ANCHOR -

Diocese of Fall River -

Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

7

mention Soviet military intervenDevelopment programs also tion. should allow Third World counagreed to eliminate nuclear wea- , - Favored the clirrent Central IECI~~~~lr~T~~=CISTS tries to "reasonably free themselves pons already in place. American peace plan as providing from their debts" and to have hope for solutions which will allow Invalid Equipment For Rent or Sale There must be "no turning back" greater access to modern technol"populations to live in a political from the disarmament process ogy. the pope added. Surlic.1 G.rmenls - Bird· IPPB M.chines - Jobst system freely chosen." started by the accord. the pope Development programs are ur-0 . • Hollister - Crutches - [I.stic StockinlS - Criticized the situation of said. gent because "the heavy imbalanSurlic.' & Orthopedic Appli.nces "the populations who live in the "A return to the arms race would ces between abundance and pov"HOI' • Trusses - Ol'len - ' Ol'len MlSks, Tents & land of Palestine. in a political and Relul.tors· ~pproved For Medic.re be. without doubt. fatal to eve- erty can become the germs of social c.ontext which is still preryone." he added. future conflicts:' he said. ~ -~ 24 HOUR OXYGEN SERVICE carious." The pope praised the "political Regarding current world trouI . 24 HOUI E11IEICEIICY PlESCRIPT/OII SEIVICE - Asked for an end to the civil will" of the superpowers "to physible spots. the pope: 810\ wars in Ethiopia. Angola, Mozam- Asked for international cocally destroy an entire class of 673 Main St., D.nnisport - 391-2219 bique and Sri Lanka. t,=J weapons." He supported sections operation to end the "inhuman, n O~~:I ttl n 550 McArthur BI,d., Rt.. 28, PlelSS.t - 563·2203 The pope also issued a sweeping of the accord allowing for mutual terrible. destructive. let us say ~I\ attack against the reasoning used inspection to verify that the misabsurd" Iran-Iraq war. 30 Main St., Orl.ans - 255-41132 by nations to justify their current - Asked for an end to the fight.siles are being destroyed. wars. ing in Afghanistan based on a "just ~ 509 Kempton St., New B.dford - 993-0492 Verification procedures will help Many distinguish "between legsolution. corresponding to the wills overcome suspicion and build conP'flc"""oo" (PARAMOUNT PHARMACY) itimate defense and unjustifiable of the populations." He did not fidence. he said. aggression." he said. But the pope noted that the accord covers "a very limited portion of their respective arsenals." He expressed hope that the agreement would speed up negotiations to eliminate all nuclear weapons. "to discard definitively the menace of nuclear catastrophe." High priority should be given to accords eliminating intercontinental ballistic missiles. "the most menacing of all." he said. The pope favored a step-by-step approach by which nuclear arsenals first would be reduced "to the lowest level possible" while maintaining the current balance of power. This should be followed by the total elimination of atomic weapons. he said. Agreements also are needed to eliminate chemical weapons. "a particularly cruel and undignified" yo~ class of arms. he said. Conventional weapons and armed forces must be reduced to • f,,~ : ~'. , ." " the lowest level possible "compatible with reasonable demands of defense." he said. "It is necessary to avoid at all costs a new round of escalation in conventional weapons because it would be dangerous and ruinous:' he added. As disarmament progresses. nuclear powers must replace deterrence with a new strategy for maintaining peace and security based on their mutual vital interests. the pope said. Nations with different political and social systems "should learn to live together. to find areas of cooperation. to deepen their peaceful relations." he said. The pope added that disarmament is only one of three international conditions needed for world peace. The other two are "justice in the safeguarding of the rights of persons and nations" and development in Third World countries. "In the East as in the West, the right of nations to exercise control of their destiny and to freely coop, erate with others for the international common good can only favor When you rent a Hom.Heating Burner from the Fall River Gas peace," he said. Prosperous countries should use Company it costs you nothing to have it i-.talled. The Gas Company the money saved from arms deesinstalls the Burner and provides you with FREE Service. All you pay Is • calation for Third World devel$5.95 monthly rental charge plus the gas you use. opment programs, he said, but these programs must exclude the arms trade. "It would be abhorrent if development aid becomes arms aid to Third World countries, even if they have need for means of defense," the pope added. Industrialized countries "should not annul with one hand the contribution that they make with another to the authentic development of peoples" through health. food and economic programs, he said. Continued from Page One

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Q. I claim my son as a dependent on my tax return. Can he still claim himself on his own return? A. No. Beginning in 1987, anyone who qualifies to be claimed as a dependent on another person's tax return is no longer allowed to take a personal exemption on his or her tax return. Q. Do I have to include my children's social security numbers on my 1040? A. The new law says you must include each dependent's social security number on your tax return, if the dependent is at least 5 years of age. Q. I'm 72 years old. Can I still claim the extra exemption for age that I have taken in the past? A. For the tax years after December 31, 1986, this extra exemption along with the extra exemption for blindness is no longer available. However, elderly and blind individuals are entitled to an additional standard deduction. You are allowed the standard deduction amounts for 1988, rather than 1987, and add to it $600 per married taxpayer and $750 for single filers. Q. My husband and I both work. Are there any changes in the law that could affect us? A. Yes. In the past there was a special deduction for married couples who both worked. This adjustment to income was claimed on Sched ule W. For tax years after December 31, 1986, the special deduction is no longer allowed. Q. My income increased substantially this year. Can I save some money if I income average? A. The special benefit of income averaging is repealed for tax years after Decem ber 31, 1986. Q. I received unemployment compensation in 1987. Must I include all ofthis income on my tax return? A. Yes. The former limited exclusion has been repealed. All unemployment compensation received for years after 1986 must now be included in income. Since unemployment compensation is not subject to withholding of income tax, you may also have to pay estimated taxes.

such as real estate and personal property taxes. Q. What is the least amount of income that would require the filing of a Federal return? A. SINGLE .PERSON: $4440 SINGLE - 65 OR OVER: $4900 SURVIVING SPOUSE W/DEPENDENT CHILD: $5660 -65 OR OVER $7500 MARRIEDFILING JOINTLY UNDER 65: $7560 ONE 65 OR OVER: $9400 BOTH 65 OR OVER: $10,000 MARRIED - FILING SEPARATELY $1900 DEPENDENT WITH UNEARNED INCOME $500 SELF-EMPLOYED NET PROFIT OF: $400 Q. Does the IRS provide any . publications summarizing the tax law changes brought about by the Tax Reform Act of 1986? A. Yes. You can obtain Publicati'on 920, "Explanation of the Reform Act of 1986 for Individuals," and Publication 921, "Explanation of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 for Businesses." Q. Are there any exceptions to the regular April 15 deadline for filing my return? A. Yes. Those who are not in the U.S. or Puerto Rico on April 15th are allowed an automatic 2 month extension to file.

. Q. Last year, I gave $500 to the church. Even though I did not itemize when I filed my return, I was able to claim this contribution on my return. Is this still allowed? A. No. For contributions made after December 31, 1986, the provision that allowed non-itemizers to deduct a portion <?ftheir charitable contributions has been eliminated. You must itemize to claim charitable contributions. Q. I bought a new car this year. I paid over $700 in state sales tax. Can I claim a deduction for sales tax? A. No. Beginning in 1987, state and local sales taxes are no longer deductible. However, if you itemize, you may be able to deduct certain other state and local taxes

Q. What telephone number do I call to obtain IRS tax help? A. You can call the IRS for answers to your federal tax questions at 523-1040 in Boston. Elsewhere in New England, use the toll-free number 1-800-424-1040. Q. Where may I call to obtain additional IRS tax forms? A. You can call in Massachusetts the IRS toll-free number 1-800424-FORM. Q. What ifl need just one or two forms, where can I go? A. Most local IRS offices will have available many forms and publications. Another place to go is your local library, bank or post office. Or write to: Forms Distribution Center, P.O. Box 25866, Richmond, VA 23260.

Q. Ifunusual circumstances make it impossible to file on time, what should the taxpayer do? A. The taxpayer should apply for an automatic four-month extension to file on form 4868, which must be filed on or before the due date of the return. To avoid a late payment penalty, the taxpayer should send with the form 4868 a payment which, when added to amounts withheld or paid on estimated tax, will be at least 90% of the final tax. In any event, interest (currently 9% per year, compounded daily) must be paid on any tax that isn't paid by the due date.

Q.

What is Tele-Tax? A. The I RS provides recorded tax information tapes covering such areas as filing requirements, dependents, itemized deductions, and tax credits. Tele-tax is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to taxpayers with a push-button phone. Tele-tax is al~o available during normal business hours to taxpayers using a rotary phone. In the Boston area, call 523-8602. In the Springfield area, call 41 3-739-6624 with a pushbutton phone only. For all others, a toll-free number has been provided by calling 1-800554-4477. Q. Is there any telephone assistance for the deaf! A. Yes. Telephone assistance services for the deaf or hearing-impaired who have access to TV /Telephone-TTY equipment 8:00 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. EST (Jan. I - Apr. 15) and 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. EST (Apr. 16 - Dec. 31).

Q. Is there any general guide available that lists the IRS services and information? A. Yes, Publication 910, "Guide to Free Tax Services," is available by using the order form in the tax package, or by calling the IRS at 1-800-424-FORM. Q. Can I go to any IRS office and have my return prepared for me? A. While the IRS will not prepare your tax return for you, assisters are available in most I RS offices to help you. An assister will "walk through" a return with you and a number of other people in a group setting. Q. Is there any other place that I can go for assistance in preparing my tax return? A. Free help is available in most communities to lower-income, elderly, non-English speaking and handicapped people and also to members of the military who need assistance in preparing Form 1040 EZ, Form 1040A and the basic form 1040. Call the toll-free telephone number in your area for the location of the volunteer assistance site near you. If you receive a Federal Income Tax Forms Package in the mail, be sure to take it with you to the assistance site. Q. Can I be trained to prepare tax returns by the IRS in order to help others? A. Yes. There are Taxpayer Education programs that depend upon volunteer participation. Volunteers who have successfully completed an IRS training program provide Volunteer Income Tax Assistance' (VITA) or Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE). This community service may take place at such sites as libraries, churches and community centers. Call 1-800-4241040 for more information. Q. If I have moved since the end of the year which address should I put on my return? A. After you have completed your return, peel your address label off

and place it in the address area of your Form 1040, 1040A or 1040 EZ. Make necessary name and address changes on the label. If you did not receive a tax package, merely print in your name, current address and social security number in the spaces provided. You do not have to use the address where you lived while earning the income. Q. If I move to another city ·and state after December 31, 1987, should I mail my return for the past year to the IRS Service Center where I have been filing? A. No. Show your address and mail your return to the IRS Service Center that covers the area where you now live. If you live in Massachusetts, mail your return to: IRS Service Center, Andover, MA 05501.

Lebanon shattered, says patriarch VATICAN CITY (NC) - Foreign occupying forces, powerseeking local politicians and corruption have combined to shatter Lebanon, said Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Pierre Sfeir. "This country is cut up into smaIl pieces. The occupying forces are numerous, with a foot on the. chest of the people," he said in a recent message. "The state is nothing but an aggregate of mini-powers imposing themselves on the citizens," he added. Politicians seeking power "and the honors of authority, no longer listen to the complaints of their people," he said. Politicians hope to find "political advantage and win pretended victories to the detriment of the peace and security of their feIlow citizens," the patriarch said. They are more interested "in their own future and those of their children" than in fostering national unity, he added. Patriarch Sfeir said corruption is widespread. Government employees "receive their benefits without discharging their responsibilities," he said. Private individuals and companies "in coIlusion with authorities" evade paying taxes while demanding better public services, said Patriarch Sfeir. For 12 years, Lebanon has been torn by fighting between various Christian and Moslem militias, often in shifting aIliances. Complicating the situation has been the presence of Israeli troops in the south and Syrian troops in other parts of the country. The patriarch's message was released at his headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon, and distributed by the Vatican press office.

New bishops WASHINGTON (NC) - Pope John Paul II recently appointed two U.S. priests as bishops and made an auxiliary bishop the new head of the diocese of Great FaIlsBillings, Mont. Named were: Msgr. John G. Nolan, 63, national secretary of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, as an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese for the Military Services; Auxiliary Bishop Anthony M. Milone of Omaha, Neb., 55, as bishop of Great FaIls-Billings; and Jesuit Father Alfred Jolson, 59, associate dean of the school of business administration at Wheeling College, Wheeling, W. Va., as bishop of Reykjavik, Iceland.


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FATHER DAVID KIRK, left, with Father Henri Antoine Groues, founder of the international Emmaus movement. (NC photo)

Emmaus movement founder visits N.Y. NEW YORK (NC) - A French priest who started an international movement for the homeless that emphasizes the poor helping their fellow poor saw the result of one of his efforts during a recent visit to New York. Father Henri Antoine Groues, founder of the international Emmaus movement, began his movement in 1949 when a homeless man asked for help, and the priest turned the tables by asking the man to help him build a community where people would support themselves by their own work and also help others more needy than themselves. He set the poor to work as ragpickers and housebuilders. The ragpickers would find reusable items in the trash and earn money to buy materials for the men constructing homes for the homeless. He last visited New York when Father David Kirk of East Harlem was trying to buy a small hotel, then a house of prostitution, for an Emmaus House. After the French priest went back home, Father Kirk said, money started arriving from European groups which gave $2,000 each from money they had earned. The movement, taking its name from the Gospel account of disciples finding their despair turned into renewed hope through an encounter with the risen Christ, now has about 250 groups in 30 countries. The French priest, widely known as Abbe Pierre, a name he took as a member of the Resistance in World War II, said in an interview at Emmaus House in New York, one of six North American members of the Emmaus movement, that although the suffering of Harlem was doubtless less than that of a city such as Calcutta, where Mother Teresa works, it was also less excusable in the United States because of this country's resources. He did not advocate more welfare assistance, however, "You should provide people with jobs," he said.

Father Kirk said he joined the Emmaus movement in 1969 but did not really begin to operate according to its philosophy until he visited Abbe Pierre in 1978. "Being with Abbe Pierre changed my direction," he said. ". come out of the Catholic Worker movement, and have done hospitality'work since my 20s.... The Catholic Worker movement would not say everyone has to work, but we say'everyone has to work," Father Kirk explained. "This is a reversal of the idea of church people serving the poor. We let the poor make new lives for themselves and for their poor

brothers and sisters." Anne Troy, who directs the Emmaus House program, explained that when the homeless show up at Emmaus House, they are sheltered. But very soon they become not guests but workers, putting in 35 hours a week for room, board and a modest stipend. Their assignments may include distributing food and clothing to the homeless still on the, ' streets or doing carpentry to help the house support itself.

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Youth told of homeless PITTSBURGH (NC) - "Why does homelessness exist in the richest nation in the world?," asked Michael Stoops, advocate for the homeless, in an address to over 3,500 youth at the recent 19th biennial National Catholic Youth Conference, held in Pittsburgh. Stoops, who works with the homeless in Portland are., spoke at the four-day conference which had as its theme "Love is our shelter - together we build." According to Stoops, who has worked with the homeless for 15 years, there are 100 million unsheltered people in the world, 3 million of them in this country. Who are these 3 million Americans living in the streets? According to Stoops, they are not "bums, but families. They include displaced workers, the elderly and bankrupt farmers who love their land and lost it." ' These people are now sleeping on steam grates, on sidew'alks, in boxcars and under, bridges. They are suffering from malnutrition and inadequate health, he said. Stoops himself lived among the Washington, D.C. homeless last winter while lobbying Congress. Like them, he was subject to harsh weather, crime and rats. Stoops' efforts, along with those of other advocates for the home-

less, were successful. As he told the teens, "Congress passed a $1 million bill to provide aid to the homeless for the next four years." Stoops has been continuing his efforts for the homeless in his hometown of Portland, where he lives in a skid row hotel. He asked the conference delegates to pray for "our brothers and sisters who are still out there in the streets." He said the cause will continue and the dreams of the homeless will never die. Speaking with Stoops was Beverly "Ma" Curtis, 65, 1987 "Queen of the Hoboes," who told her life story, beginning at age 7 when her mother gave her away. An alcoholic from the age of 12, she described her life in prison, eight years of jumping boxcars, four failed marriages and her life on the streets. With the help of Stoops, the Portland resident has been sober for 20 months. Her blunt, straightforward speech, laced with humor, had the youths on their feet applauding. She expressed her love for them and strongly urged them to shun liquor and drugs because ". do not want you to go through the hell that. went through." Ms. Curtis added, "Don't tell me about peer pressure because I'm not going for it."

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THE ANCHOR-Diocese of Fall River-Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

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Dear Mary: We had a very sad event in our family recently and I don't know how to deal with it. Our youngest son and his wife had a child born prematurely. The little girl died after three days. We were all g.iefstricken. I am particularly concerned about my daughter·in-Iaw. It was their first child. She had a job until just before the baby was born. Now she can go back if she wishes, but she $eems to show no such inclinatiQn. Most of the time she stays home alone. I try to call her every day or two and we invite them over for meals. Is there anything we can do to help them through their grief? (Pennsylvania) You are right to be concerned. Too often friends and relatives feel that they don't know what to say in the face of a great loss and therefore they stay away and say nothing. Traditionally, most people turn to family for comfort. However inadequate you feel, you can and should be a main source of support. More than anything, your children need the opportunity to talk freely about their grief, about their lost child, without sermons, judgments, moralizing or attempts to deny the seriousness of the loss. Don't be afraid to bring up the

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subject. They probably think of little else. Your- bringing up the subject lets them know that it is all right to talk about her. Let them talk about their child as much as they wish. Mention any little things you noticed about her. Use her name when you talk about her. If you don't know what to say to comfort them, say that. Hold them or touch them when words seem inadequate. Cry if you wish and allow them to cry. Don't say you know how they feel unless you too have experienced such a loss. You cannot put yourself in their place. Don't tell them how they should feel. They are not choosing their feelings and there is no set way that they should feel. Don't tell them that they will get over it. Don't tell them that they can always have other children. Such attempts, while well-meaning, could easily hurt and anger grieving parents. They are grieving for this child now and they are not ready to look to the future. Another child does not replace a lost child. Don't tell them it was God's will. God's will is far too complex for our simple ~J<.planations. The parents may well see God as cruel and punishing at this time. They will integrate their feelings about

their child with their faith in God when they are ready. Don't suggest or hint that their child's death was due to anything they did or to anything in their medical care. They already may be plagued with guilt over something they did or did not do. If they wish to talk about such feelings, listen, but do not judge or blame them or others. You mention calling your daughter-in-law frequently. Try to drop in for brief informal visits. Perhaps you could bring a plant, a special food or some other small gift. If your daughter-in-law continues to grieve deeply, you might urge her to join a support group. Many hospitals now have groups where parents who have lost a child or loved one can share their feelings and experiences with others who understand because they have been through it. Finally, although words may fail you, you cannot go wrong with honest sympathy and love warmly expressed. Hug and touch your son and daughter and tell them in your own way the simple and sincere message, "I'm sorry." Reader questions on family living or child care to be answered in print are invited. Address The Kennys; Box 872; St. Joseph's College,. Rensselaer, Ind. 47978.

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By Antoinette Bosco Among my dominant memories of childhood and youth are the times I spent with my seven aunts and uncles, my mother's brothers and sisters. It is a special privilege when you are growing up to have what I call the buffer-zone people around you - those who are not your peers or your authority figures. They are those who help somewhat to cushion you from the pains of growing up, giving you someone to talk to - and learn from - in an absolutely non-threatening way. My aunts and uncles were my "buffers." My three aunts, much younger than my mother, were the ones who introduced me to the mysteries of emerging womanhood. They could give me a gentler, actually more honest sex education because what they said wasn't blocked by parental fears. My uncles could round out my education, taking me to the circus, the fish hatchery and the state parks. I learned much from them these loving, attached adults who were always comfortable to be around, something like living security blankets. Some ofthe wisdom they passed on to me has remained a strong part of my belief system. I especially remember some advice from uncle Dominick. He was a butcher and a storekeeper, and one day when I was about 12 he had an almost fatal accident. He had been cutting a piece of beef when the knife slipped, stabbed him in the side of his abdomen and would have killed him, but for the grace of God. When I saw him in the hospital I told him I had prayed to all my favorite saints, asking them to ask God to help my uncle. He looked at me and smiled.

"Antoinette," he said, "when you're in as much trouble as I was, you don't go to anyone but the boss." Then he told me how he had prayed directly to God for help. At the end ofhis intense prayer, someone came into the store, went into the back room, saw him lying there bleeding to death and called an ambulance. So many times after that, and to this day, I remembered his advice: "When you've got a heavy problem, go right to the boss." I can tell you it has worked. In case you're wondering why Uncle Dominick is on my mind as I write this, I should explain that I visited him recently in the hospital. He had just turned 83 - the oldest of my mother's family, all

still living - and was ill. He was down to maybe 90 pounds. He was having such a hard time breathing that the doctors put him on oxygen and intravenous feedings. But if he was suffering or uncomfortable he'd never tell you. He doesn't complain. He's all spirit. Around him you feel a benevolent aura. I was there with my sister Jeannette, my mother and his son and daughter-in-law. He turned to me and with a radiant smile said, "Antoinette, it's like a party, having these people I love here." Still smiling, he gestured with his eyes to heaven and said, "He's always with me. The boss never let me down."

God's line wasn't busy By Hilda Young She sat down at the kitchen table and rubbed her face with both hands. It was as if she hoped the effort could rub away the thought that kept pounding her. She felt trapped, hurt, angry, confused and bored. The feeling twirled around her, binding like invisible ropes. Her husband was up to his eyeballs in a new career. He was panicky, but he was going somewhere, doing something. Even his anxiety proved he was alive. Her children were so busy with basketball, yearbooks, music lessons, school work and friends that most of the time she was not sure who would be home for dinner, who needed a ride or who was where. But what about her? She felt brain dead. She felt selfish because she resented everybody else's activity. She felt angry because she hated feeling selfish. She even seemed to botch

attempts to be happy by serving others. So she had prayed. Yet she was not sure for what: Insight? Acceptance? Patience? A weekend in Tahoe? To be 23 again? Maybe that's why God's response had seemed to be a busy signal. She rested her face in both hands and looked into her cup of c'offee. Maybe this was the beginning of midlife crisis. Maybe it was early empty nest syndrome. Maybe it was the reason soap operas flourish. "Goodbye, Mom, see you tonight. I love you," called Mikey just before the front door slammed. She went to the window and watched her youngest half-shuffle, half-trot down the driveway to catch the school bus. His sack lunch jutted from the top of his book bag. His shirttail drooped below his jacket. He stopped momentarily aQd turned around as if he knew his mom was watching. He grinned and waved. Maybe God's line wasn't busy after all.


The Anchor Friday, Jan. 15, 1988

Pope-Waldheim meeting . reawakens controversy NEW YORK (NC) - Leaders of two U.S. Jewish organizations said they hoped PopeJohn Paul II would discuss the Holocaust when he meets Austrian President Kurt Waldheim in June. Other Jewish leaders said Waldheim should either resign before the pope arrives, or confess his past as a German army officer to the pope and then leave office. Morris B. Abram, chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, and Abraham H. Foxman, national director of the AntiDefamation League of B'nai Brith, said they hoped the pope would use the scheduled visit as an "opportunity." not just a formality. "It is to be hoped that in light of new sensitivities stemming from the pope's recent meetings in Rome and in Miami with Jewish leaders. he will use the announced visit as a new and different opportunity to confront the issues of the H 010caust in the presence of Kurt Waldheim on Austrian soiL" Foxman said. "If the pope as leader of the Catholic Church and as the head of a state - Vatican City - feels obliged to reciprocate Kurt Waldheim's visit to Rome last summer, I respectfully suggest that he use it not as a mere formality but as an opportunity to give public expression to his views on the Holocaust and its dreadful and continuing lessons for all humankind," said Abram. Abram and Foxman reacted to a Jan. 5 announcement by Vatican Radio that the pope would meet Waldheim June 2Jin Vienna, during a pastoral visit to Austria. Jewish organizations have accused Waldheim of committing war crimes while he was a World War II German army officer. The pope met with Waldheim at the Vatican June 25, touching off Jewish outrage and a series of meetings on the matter between Catholic and Jewish officials. Many Austrian political leaders have asked Waldheim to resign because of the controversy over his war record, and some U.S. Jewish leaders agreed. "Kurt Waldheim should have the good grace to resign before John Paul II arrives, thus sparing the Austrian people further humiliation and saving the pope the embarrassment of another meeting with the only president of any country to be barred from entering the United States because of his Nazi past," said Rabbi Alexander M. Schindler, president of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations. "At the same time, the pope should convene a meeting of Catholic clergy in Austria, where he could not only speak out on antiSemitism, but also discuss with church leaders how they can help extirpate that evil from the land that greeted Hitler so enthusiastically 50 years ago - and where anti-Jewish sentiment remains disturbingly strong today." Seymour Reich, president of B'nai B'rith International, said he could see "only one useful result of such a visit - if the pope were to take confession from Mr. Waldheim, and if that act gave Austria's president the moral courage to do what he should have done years ago: publicly admit his Nazi past and withdraw from public life."

After the pope and Waldheim met in June, Jewish leaders demanded a meeting with the pope to discuss the implications of the visit. . Rahbi Schindler and Reich were among nine Jewish leaders who met with the pope Sept. I at the papal summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, Italy. The rabbi, Reich and Foxman were among about 200 Jewish leaders who met with the pope in Miami Sept. II. Bishop William H. Keeler of Harrisburg, Pa., then head of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligous Affairs, also attended the Sept. I session with the pope and Jewish leaders. Bishop Keeler later referred to the June pope-Waldheim meetingasa "historical glitch" in world Catholic-Jewish relations which led to "an enormously significant" deepening of understanding between the two religious traditions. . Miami's Jewish leaders who met with Pope John Paul last September expressed outrage at the announcement that the pope would meet with Waldheim. Rabbi Soloman Schiff, executive director of the Greater Miami Jewish Federation, called the planned meeting "in a sense, even more disturbing than the first."

New church views hailed by Reigner ROME (NC) - A planned Vatican document on the Holocaust will show the world that the church has "truly left behind" an earlier period of anti-Semitism and is approaching Jews and Judaism in a new way, said a world Jewish leader. In an interview published in the January issue of the Rome-based Catholic monthly 30 Giorni (30 Days), Gerhart M. Reigner, cochairman of the World Jewish Congress, also commented on Catholic-Jewish relations and his personal efforts to encourage stronger Vatican opposition to Nazi deportations of Jews during World War

II. Catholic-Jewish dialogue has seen "enormous progress in the last 20 years, after centuries of disagreement and hostility," said Riegner, who is to participate in a Catholic-Jewish dialogue meeting prior to release of the church document. But while the two religions. have "much in common," there are still important misunderstandings, such as the Vatican's refusal to recognize the State of Israel and the reception of Austrian President Kurt Waldheim, Riegner said. He also said the pope's meeting with Waldheim last June did not signify an "indifference" to the Holocaust. The pope is "favorably disposed" toward the Jews, Riegner said. "One feels that he was profoundly struck and impressed by what we cal1 the Shoah," or Holocaust. Reigner and eight other Jewish leaders met with Pope John Paul II in Castel Gandolfo, Italy, in September to discuss Jewish-Catholic relations. A cofounder of the Jewish congress 51 years ago, Riegner is also director of the European secretariat of the International Jewish Committee on Interreligious Consultations.

11

Diocese leads nation in future planning

FATHER

NEW ULM, Minm (NC) Bishop Raymond A. Lucker of New Ulm has unveiled a tentative diocesanwide parish reorganization plan that cal1s for clustering and consolidating parishes, reassigning priests and increasing the number of non-ordained parish administrators. In some cases, parishes now served by one priest wil1 be clustered with one or two neighboring parishes. Bishop Lucker said the diocese now has 85 active priests, including those working as missionaries or on other assignments outside the diocese. Because many are nearing retirement, that number is expected to decline by 27 by the year 1995, he said. The plan cal1s for nonordained parish administrators to increase from seven to 20 by 1995. The diocese has been a national leader in developing lay parish administraNC photo tors, mostly nuns. DULLES According to the plan, the number of priests serving in parishes is forecast to drop from 69 to 58 by 1995. The bishop said that leaders of every diocesan parish were consulted in developing the tentative plan. Each parish wil1 now be O'Donovanjoked that he was tempasked to conduct consultations to ted to describe Father Dul1es as a revise or refine the plan, with a . "model theologian." But the term third or fourth round of parishwas inadequate to cover the level discussions ahead if it seems priest's theological accomplishnecessary. ments, he said. Bishop Lucker described conHe summarized Father Dul1es' solidation of parishes as a longlife as a theologian by quoting term process in which the parishfrom the conclusion of his ,1969 ,iqpers themselves wil1 decide w~n book, "Revelation Theology," in . to restructure, whether to retain or which Father Dulles said that "perdispose of church properties, and haps the task of the theologian is how to utilize resources. "That not so much to solve as to continue way it isn't an edict coming from to wrestle with" the mysteries of me. It's coming out of the comGod and his revelation. munity," he said.

Symposium honors retiring theologian WASHINGTON (NC) -Jesuit Father Avery Dul1es was affectionately described as a "revered teacher and priest" in a symposium at the Catholic University of America marking the theologian's pending retirement. Father Dul1es, who has taught in the theology department at Catholic University since 1974, wil1 reach the university's mandatory retirement age of 70 next August. He is perhaps best known to Catholics for his writings and speeches on the church and on ecumenism, but within the theological community he is noted at least equal1y for his writings on revelation. In tribute to Father Dul1es. one of his former students, Jesuit Father Leo J. O'Donovan, a theologian and assistant for formation and studies of the Jesuits' Maryland Province, described the evolution of the elder theologian's thought from neo-Scholasticism to "symbolic realism." He described Father Dulles as a "hungry seeker" whose search meaning led him to Catholicism as a young man, then to the Jesuit order and a lifetime of dedication to the quest of theology. Even though Father Dul1es' thought evolved over the years, he showed a "remarkable consistency" in that development, with a theology that was always "biblical1y grounded," "faithful to tradition" and marked by "clarity and humility," Father O'Donoval) said. Alluding to two of Father Dulles' most famous books - "M odels of the Church" in 1974, which has become a basic frame of reference for interpreting different perspectives on the church, and "Models of Revelation" in 1983 - Father

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NUNS GREET Pope John Paul II during a weekly audience. (NC photo)

Documents show Vatican budget not generating enough for expenses VA101€AN CrfY (N C).....; The Vatican, far from being fabulously wealthy, has a budget half that of some UN agencies and is not generating enough income to meet its annual expenses, confidential documents show. Furthermore, the documents show the Vatican is steadily depleting its assets by dipping into investment capital to make up the difference between income and expenses - a practice contrary to sound financial management - which could lead to future financial difficulties. The documents, which include budget summaries for 1985 and other financial information, show the Vatican at the end of 1985 had assets of $485 million and liabilities of $261 million for a total net worth of $224 million. The assets do not include artistic, archeological and historical holdings, which include'some of the world's most famous works and which the Vatican says it will not sell. Nor do the figures include the assets of the controversial Vatican bank, which is financiallyindependent. The documents show that in 1985 the Vatican took $2.2 million out of its investment capital to help make up a shortfall of $39.1 million in its operating budget of $124.7 million. Two-thirds of that budget $83.7 million - went to the work ofthe Holy See, the central offices serving the church and church interests around the world. The other third - $41.1 million - was in the separately administered civil bu(Jget of Vatican City State, a 108-acre enclave surrounded by the city of Rome. A clear understanding of the scope of the figures is not easy to

reach because of the unique nature of the work of the Vatican, but here are some comparisons. - The net worth figure is slightly over half as much ($400 million) as the University of Notre Dame has in its endowment fund alone.

The documents did not support contentions that Vatican reserves had been drained by the payment in 1984 of $240 million in the Banco Ambrosiano case. While that point was not directly addressed in the documents, they did state that the finances of the Vati-The combined $124.7 million can bank, on whose behalf the spent for Vatican operations was payment was made to Ambrosisome $24 million less than the UN fund for Population Activities spent . ano creditors, had no connection with the finances of the Vatican in 1985 and almost identical to the City State and the Holy See. In amount of U.S. military aid to EI March 1985, the Vatican said the Salvador in 1986. - The government of the 443- $240 million did not come from Holy See funds. acre principality of Monaco spent Concern over its finances has $222 million in 1983. The remainder of the money to become so great that the Vatican is cover the Vatican's 1985 shortfall turning to bishops, religious orders came primarily from Peter's Pence, and others for financial help. a collection taken up around the The 1985 budget figures conworld for use at the pope's discretained in the confidential docution. Peter's Pence totaled $28.5 ments show annual expenses with million. Other donations used for very little apparent fat to cut and a the budget shortfall totaled $8.4 total modest by comparison with million. other organizations. By 1986 the Peter's Pence colThe $124.7 million that the Vatlection grew to $32 million, yet ican spent in 1985 to govern its city covered a smaller portion of the state and provide central services budget shortfall than in 1985 befor a culturally and ethnically cause total spending had increased diverse worldwide church of 866 more rapidly than the collection million people is only two-thirds had grown. as much as the University of Notre For 1987 the budget shortfall is Dame operating budget. $189.5 expected to be $59 million. - million. in the 1987-88 fiscal year. All the deficits are on the Holy Some specialized agencies of the See's ledgers. The city state has a United Nations. such as UNESCO balanced budget. and the Food and Agricultural The confidential documents Organization. have yearly budgets show that the Vatican is reaching about double that of the Vatican. the practical limit of dipping into invested funds to cover threatened deficits. One reserve taken from those funds in the past to cover shortfalls is now "completely exhausted." The wisdom of establishing another from the same source is questionable.

,. Vatican

lfi;!~\. view ~

The biggest fixed expense in Vatican spending is salaries and benefits to 30400 active and 10400 retired employees. accounting for 55 percent of the annual budget. The payment of retirement benefits out of current operating funds is a practice which has been criticized by some high-ranking churchmen. The Vatican has never established a pension fund for its employees. ·Ret irement benefits in 1985 totaled $8.3 million and are on the rise each year. The Vatican's 1985 assets of $485 million include mostly cash deposits. securities and real estate. They do not include the treasures which contribute to the widespread perception of the "riches of the Vatican." , The church's stance, however. is that these are a patrimony of humanity over which the Vatican is custodian. not items to be sold. While some produce revenue through being on display in the Vatican Museums. all require maintenance. and often protection, which is an expense. The figures include Vatican properties used commercially. such as apartments and offices rented out. but not properties used exclusively for Vatican institutional purposes. A note in the documents says that properties which the Vatican both owns and uses are each given the nominal value of one lira - less than one-tenth of a cent -in the ledgers. Supervising preparation of the figures was a special council of cardinals. none of whom are Vatican officials. named by Pope John Paul I I to advise him on economic affairs.

The confidential documentation was mailed to the world's bishops after the cardinals met last March. Since 1979. the Vatican has been publishing bottom-line annual budgets, but it has never made public a complete line-item breakdown of income and expenses. Nor has it made public its assets. liabilities and net worth. The figures in the confidential documentation do not give an exact picture of Vatican finances. Internal transfers of funds among Vatican agencies are not clearly identified and some of the headings of assets and liabilities are hazy. But the figures provide the most detailed picture of expenditures and income to date, and allow for a general determination of net worth. Reasons given for the mushrooming shortfall are ever-increasing expenses - especially for personnel and the expanding services req uired by the post-conciliar church - and static sources of traditional in'come, mostly from investments, real estate and salable items such as stamps, coins and publications. The totals have also jumped because of the shrinking value of the dollar which, according to Vatican figures, lost more than 25 percent of its value against the lira during the past two years. The lira is the basic unit of most Vatican expenditures and of Vatican City State income, but most of the Holy See's income. including the Peter's Pence and private contributions to cover the deficit. is in dollars and other currencies. The Vatican separates its Vatican City State and Holy See Turn to Page 13


THE ANCHOR-Diocese of Fall River-Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

Vatican budget Continued from Page 12 budgets for administrative purposes. The smaller city state budget concerns only operation of the tiny country. which spent $41 million in 1985 and had an income of $41.1 million. The principality of Liechtenstein spent $186 million in 1986. The Holy See budget covers the Roman Curia. the central administrative offices which oversee operations of the universal Catholic Church. It also includes over 170 members of the diplomatic corps who are also the pope's representatives to national churches. The Holy See budget is deeply in the red because it is basically providi"ng services. such as the diplomatic corps. which produce little or no income. Vatican City State. however. has many commercial operations. These include a supermarket for employees. entrance fees to the Vatican Museums and sales of stamps and coins. Assets of the Vatican are also divided between the Holy See and Vatican City State. Almost all the assets. including real estate. are owned by the Holy See. The combined assets include $142 million in interest-bearing bank accounts and $84 million in stocks and bonds. The confidential documents did not list specific securities held. I

Most of the deposits and securities are held in U. S. dollars and invested in the United States and Western European countries. said a church official overseeing Vatican financial activities. The Vatican puts its money in "safe investments" such as term savings accounts and low-ri~k stocks producing dividends. said Joaquin Navarro-Valls, Vatican press spokesman. "The pope has ruled out speculation in financial markets," said Navarro-Valls. According to the figures in the documents, the deposits and securities generated a 1985 income of $21.9 million, almost a 10 percent return on investment. Real estate is valued at $76.4 million. Of this $68 million is commercial real estate. In 1985, commercial properties produced an after-expenses profit of $2.6 million, a return of 3.4 percent. Most of the property is in the Vatican or in Italy. Much of it is rented to Vatican employees. The Holy See also has sizable assets in organizations formed to administer properties held in Italy and in other countries. The figures do not give the total value of these assets but lump them together with other assets being held as reserves against unexpected financial problems. These lumped assets total $121.6 million. One official involved in Vatican financial matters said these organizations are administering properties built or acquired after 1929, when the Vatican received the equivalent of$90 million from the italian government for church properties confiscated after the 1870 unification of Italy, which saw the fall of the pope as a temporal ruler of central Italy. Much of the money was used to build regional seminaries in Italy. . Liabilities listed include debts to banks and money which individual Vatican agencies have given

for investment to the Adminstration for the Patrimony ofthe Apostolic See, which handles Vatican investments. These total $66.2 million. Other major liabilities include funds needed for specific future expenses, such as severance pay for departing or retiring workets. The severance reserves at the end of 1985 totaled $56.8 million $34.9 million for Holy See employees and $21.9 million for employees of Vatican City State. The Vatican figures show that salaries and pensions took up $68.7 million. Because these are fixed expenses with salaries and pensions controlled by labor agreements, they cannot be cut unless the Vatican drastically reduces its work force. Curial administrative expenses were $6.5 million. Of this, $1.2 million went for travel. The figures do not show how much of this was for papal trips. Editorial costs for the Vatican daily newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, and other Vatican publications were $7.6 million. However, editorial operations were in the black, generating an income of $11.3 million. In the red was Vatican Radio, which cost $3.6 millien, and has next to no sources of income. Most of its activity is shortwave broadcasts around the world. Even though it has several FM and AM stations in Rome which broadcast news, music and religious programs, the Vatican does not allow commercial advertising. Vatican officials consider the radio a main tool of church evangeliza,tion and feel its costs should be absorbed by the Holy See. The principal sources of ordinary income are investments, supermarket sales to employees, and the sales of stamps, publications. coins and tickets to the Vatican Museums. Ticket sales to the Vatican Museums totaled $7.9 million. Stamp and coin sales totaled $8 million.

Overseers WASHINGTON (NC) - A board of bishops will join the Catholic Press Association's Liaison Committee next year in exercisipg oversight of the National Catholic News Service, it was announced by NC. The news service quoted a study that said creating a board of bishops "working in concert with the Liaison Committee" would provide "some new but limited oversight of NC without compromising NC's independence." The Liaison Committee is composed of 20 editors who represent the CPA and the more than 150 U.S. Catholic periodicals that subscribe to NC.

Deterrence deterred WASHINGTON (NC) - The U.S. bishops' Ad Hoc Committee to Assess the Moral Status of Deterrence has delayed its report to the nation's bishops until next June because of rapid changes in U.S.-Soviet negotiations on nuclear weapons. Cardinal Joseph L. Bernardin, committee head. explained that it was hoped "that several dimensions of the negotiations on nuclear weapons should be made more clear in the next six months."

13

Patriarch discusses Israeli problems

NC photo

MSGR. IVORY

New Louvain rector named WASHINGTON (NC) - Msgr. Thomas P. Ivory. assistant chancellor for pastoral ministry in the archdiocese of Newark, N.J., has been named 12th rector of The American College of the Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium. An alumnus of the college, and formerly its spiritual director. he will succeed Father John J. Costanzo of the Diocese of Pueblo, Colo.. rector since 1983. Msgr. Ivory is a two-time president of the National Conference of Diocesan Directors of Religious Education and has been president of the Newark archdiocesan senate of priests and archdiocesan director of religious education. The American College is one of two U.S. national seminaries in Europe. The other is North American College in Rome. Seminarians from 35 dioceses are enrolled in the priestly formation program at Louvain. The college has other programs for graduate degrees and continuing education.

Serra miracle 0 K'd VATICAN CITY (NC) - Pope John Paul II recently cleared the way for beatification of Franciscan Father Junipero Serra by approving a miracle attributed to the 18th-century founder of nine California missions. Born in Spain in 1713, Father Serra began his work in what is now California in 1769. Some Indians claim that Father Serra beat Indians who tried' to leave his missions but his defenders say there is no proof of the accusation.

ROM E (NC) - The troubles in Israeli-occupied territories such as the Gaza Strip and the West Bank stem from the fact that Arab residents have no share in authority over the territories, said newly appointed Latin-rite Patriarch Michel Sabbah of Jerusalem. The patriarch said peace and justice were the basic needs for people in the territories, but he added that he had no easy answers to the political problems there. Patriarch Sabbah spoke in an interview published Jan. 10 in the Italian Catholic newspaper Avvenire. Asked about discrimination against Arab Christians in the occupied area, Patriarch Sabbah said: "Discrimination? There is this fact: The Arabs are an occupied people. These Arabs do not participate in authority. especially in the occupied territories, this is a reality." He said the question of social difficulties "depends entirely on this juridical position: The Arabs are not in control. They are governed and live in (Israeli) administered territories." Since mid-December. about 30 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli troops in demonstrations against the occupation, which dates in most places from the 1967 Middle East war. An estimated 10 percent of Palestinians are Christian. Patriarch Sabbah said he thought relations were "very positive" between Christians and Moslems in the region. For example. he said. the mayor of Nazareth, a Moslem, came to Rome to attend the patriarch's ordination in St. Peter's Basilica. The. new patriarch was born in Nazareth. in what is now northern Israel. Patriarch Sabbah said Moslem "fundamentalisrri" was not a danger to Christians in the region. A better t,erm, one preferred by Mos-

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lems, he said, was "religious awakening." This awakening has generally positive aspects for society. he said. Patriarch Sa bah, 54, will be responsible for the spiritual care of abut 65.000 Latin-rite Catholics in Israel, the West Bank, Jordan and Cyprus. Most are Arabs living in Israel. Israeli-occupied territor.ies and Jordan.

3 million pilgrims MEXICO CITY (NC) - Authorities said some 3 million pilgrims visited the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe during the Dec. 12 weekend of her feast, which recalls her appearance to an Indian peasant in 1531. Commemoration of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas, was updated to feastday status in the United States last November by the U.S. bishops.

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14

THE ANCHOR-Diocese of Fall River-Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

Not your ordinary party Continued from Page One

through a friend. She describes the rock performers are Protestants, community as "a group of young most deliver an ecumenical people who love God and are not ashamed to admit it." She met her message. The Boston-based Daughters of boyfriend, Richard Gomes of St. Paul religious order, as Sacred Heart parish, Taunton, reported in last week's Anchor, through the ,ministry about two recently created a new contem- years ago. "Before," Ms. Curtis explained, porary music label with a special priority going to Catholic artists. "I went to Mass [out of a sense of duty] as a practicing Catholic. 'Two acts "making inroads into Now I apply the Gospel to my life the secular market" and increasing and I have a deeper love for the the popularity of religious rock are Eucharist." those of Amy Grant and Stryper, Tony Medeiros said that CorMedeiros said. The young and beautiful Ms. Grant has a pop/ rock nerstone and other Building Block sound. One of her albums, Age to outreaches are regularly evaluated Age. has gone platinum, selling by a core group of members. The other outreaches include over one million copies. Stryper, Medeiros said, is a heavy metal Bible sharing sessions, held 7 p.m. band that has recently had three Wednesdays in room 101 at Taunnumber-one-requested M- TV ton's Coyle and Cassidy High video hits and gets considerable School; prayer meetings, held at 7 play on some local Top 40 radio p.m. each second and fourth Sunday in Immaculate Conception stations. Church parish center, Taunton; "Kids listen [to Stryper] at first FI RE (faith, intercession, repentbecause the music gets their attenance and evangelization) videotape tion," Medeiros said, adding that teaching sessions, 7 p.m. third they keep listening after noting Sundays at the Immaculate Conthat there is a definite Christian ception center; and The Beat, a message in the group's lyrics. contemporary Christian rock proManny Medeiros, 27, a Corner- gram currently aired on Taunton stone regular, says that he finds "a and North Attleboro cable lot of the Christian bands are a lot stations. Listings may be checked for better musically" than many mainstream rock groups. "I used Beat times and dates. When'he leads young people in to have a lot of junk [in my music collection], things like Black Sab- these and other Building Block bath. really satanic stuff, and I got outreaches., Medeiros keeps in mind Pope John Paul II's call for' rid of it." The Building Block participant adaptation of the Gospel message ' said that the messages in Christian to its receivers. And it seems that he and Buildrock "make you reflect on your own life." ;',;; ,,"', ing Block are doing a good job. "I found out what it means to be Tony Medeiros- said that about 100 young people have been Build- a Christian community," said ing Block regulars over the years. Cornerstone attendee Rick AlvarThe group grows, he said, by word naz ofSt. Joseph parish, Taunton. The 22-year-old compared of mouth and by friends bringing friends to meetings and activities. Building Block gatherings to the Some members have gone on to meetings of Jesus' followers desstart CYO-type youth groups in cribed in the Acts of the Apostles. Alvarnaz, who is handicapped their home parishes or to teach in religious education programs, he by scoliosis, said his Building Block friends are an accepting, said. 20-year-old Brenda Burak of congenial group. "It really is a good support Immaculate Conception parish, North Easton, has been involved group for a Christian to be in," he with Building Block for about four said. "God's grace comes through." years. A sophomore at Worcester Building Block Ministries welState College, she is one of the come new members. Tony Medeiorganizers of a soon-to-begin Life ros can be reached at 824-8378 for in the Spirit seminar at the school. 'information. He would also like to Lynne Curtis, 21, from the same hear from persons who would like parish, heard about Building Block The Beat aired in their areas.

Motta photo

TONY MEDEIROS

us that we sometimes fail to see the good already present in our lives. We begin to dream about a better life full of changes and different people. Indeed, at times we need to make major changes to improve things. Often, however, we only need to "adjust the tuning" of our perspective to rediscover what is good in our lives. By Charlie Martin Ms. Simon suggests that we start our tuning process by re-路 examining those we live with. To THE STUFF THAT DREAMS clarify the point, she presents the situation of a marriage grown ARE MADE OF stale. aile person in the relationships dreams of some "prince" Take a look around entering her life and saving her Now change the direction from the boredom that she now Adjust the tuning experiences. Try a new translation The song asks, What if the Don't look at your man prince is there already? Too often In the same old way we allow familiarity and the Take a new picture problems of day-to-day living to Just because you don't see shooting stars cloud our vision. We become Doesn't mean it isn't perfect blind to the worth and value of It's the stuff that dreams are made of those in our own homes. It's the slowest, hidden fire Consider parent and teen relaIt's the stuff that dreams are made of tionships. Even in the best of It's the heart and soul's desire families, problems and misunderSo it's this about your best friend standings occur between parents She's got a brand new shiny boy and teens. Both may fail to And they're moving out to Malibu understand each other's needs. To play with those pretty toys For such difficulties, the song And you feel closed in by the same four walls offers good advice: "Take a new Same old conversations picture." All involved may have With the same old guy lost sight of each person's value You've known for years and worth. Parents sometimes Use your imagination forget how the stress of adolesAnd you will see cence affects their sons and daughWhat if your prince ters. Teens need to remember On the horse in the fairy tales their parents' lifelong contribuIs right here in disguise tions to their welfare. What if the stars that You've been reaching so high for With this new perspective, sit Are shining in his eyes down once more and talk through Don't look at yourself the problems you are facing with In the same old way your parents: Take another picture Seeing the good in others first Shoot the stars off depends on appre~.iating the value in yourself. Let the stuff In your own back yard Don't look any further your dreams are made of reflect And you will see your own dignity and the special ways that others bring meaning It's the reason we are alive into your life. Recorded and written by Carly Simon. (c) 1987, Artista Records Your comments are welcome. Address Charlie Martin, 1218 S. ARE LIFE'S best things right Carly Simon's "The Stuff That Rotherwood Ave., Evansville, before your eyes? , Dreams Are Made Of' reminds Ind. 47714.

What's on your mind? Q. I'm in the middle in my family and I get blamed for everything and always get in trouble. Why do parents blame me first instead of my older brother? (Iowa) A. As I pondered your question, I found myself wondering if your older brother might be having some thoughts like these: "Why do I have to take on all the big respon- ' sibilities just because I'm the oldest child? And why do I get blamed when things go wrong?" Sometimes it seems there's just no "good" position in the age and rank of children. I was the young, est child and I used to grumble in this fashion about my brother and sister: "Why do they get to stay out late and I have to be home early? I don't see why I can't stay up as late as they do. It's not fair." But maYQe your grumbling is

By TOM LENNON

justified'. Perhaps your parents, without realizing it, are in the habit of blaming you even when you are not the cause of the problem. ' What to do? The first thing is to collect some concrete evidence to prove your case. In the next few weeks jot down on a sheet of paper'five or six instance of unfair ,treatment. Write down details and be very sure of your facts. There must be no doubt at all that you have been unfairly treated. After you have written down five or six incidents; watch for a good time to approach one of your parents. It should be a time when the parent is not tired out, or afflicted with a case of frayed nerves or simply in a grumpy or sullen mood. And do not approach them 10 minutes before supper.

It's better to talk with just one of your parents. If you try to talk to both at once, confusion may result or you may simply be outtalked. Don't begin aggressively with a big chip on your shoulder. Instead gently say something like this, "Mom, could I talk to you about something that's been troubling me?" Then present your case, using the five or six incidents you have written down. Avoid the word "always." Don't say, "I always get blamed for everything." If your parent cites one exception, you are partly defeated. Say something like, "I think I get blamed sometimes for stuff that's not my fault." It's impossible to say with certainty what the outcome of your conversation will be. If it goes badly with one parent, you may want to talk with your other parent. If that conversation also goes badly, you simply may have to try to put up with yO,ur present situation, at least for the time being. Send questons to Tom Lennon, 1312 Mass. Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20005.


tv, movie news %y·v····"· f, ;

Symbols following film reviews indicate both general and Catholic Films Office ratings. which do not always coincide. General ratings: G-suitable for general viewing; PG-13-parental guidance strongly suggested for children under 13; PG-parental guidance suggested; R-restricted. unsuitable for children or young teens. Catholic ratings: AI-approved for children and adults; A2-approved for adults and adolescents; A3-approved for adults only; 4-separate classification (given films not morally offensive which. however. require some analysis and explanation); a-morally offensive. Catholic ratings for television movies are those of the movie house versions of the films.

".~._ .i HEAVENLY MINISTRY: Jesuit Fathers Bill Stoeger, left, and Richard Boyle with a model of a binocular telescope to be installed in an Arizona observatory as a joint project of the University of Arizona and the Vatican observatory. Three Jesuits are stationed at the observatory as fulltime astronomers, a ministry they say permits them to be dedicated both to science and the church. (NC photo)

~OTE Please check dates and times of televisIon and radio programs agaInst local lIstIngs, whIch may dIffer from the New York network schedules supplIed to The Anchor.

New Films

TV violence on decrease say citizen watchdogs WASHINGTON (NC) - Violence on network television is on the decrease, especially on Satur-' day morning cartoons, a citizen watchdog group has reported. The decrease also was seen in prime-time programs, according to the National Coalition on Television Violence, based in Champaign, III. Reporting the decrease in a press release, the coalition credited it to "widespread and still growing protest against violent entertainment" and the "high quality of nonviolent programs." Dr. Thomas Radecki, chairperson and research director of the coalition, said in a telephone interview that the report was based on a study of the first eight weeks of the 1987 fall TV season. "N ot one single Saturday morning cartoon features war themes," the coalition said. However, it still criticized cartoon shows such as "The Smurfs," "My Pet Monster," and "Gummi Bears" for airing "moderate amounts of slapstick violence." The coalition, which has been counting instances of violence in TV programs since 1980, said that the ratings for prime time shows did not include any high violence program in the Neilsen top 20. "Hunter," a popular program which the coalition said averages 23 violent acts per hour, held only 22nd place in the ratings. The coalition also reported that not only are violent programs faIling in popularity, they also are appearing less and less on network television. In 198550 percent of all prime time programming was violent. In 1987, only 34 percent was, the coalition said. Prime time violence peaked in the 1985-1986 time period, it said. The coalition praised "The Cosby Show," "A Different World," "Growing Pains," "60 Minutes," and "Family Ties," for "teaching

positive messages." The five programs are consistently listed in Neilsen's top 20. In an unusual move, the coalition also praised a new CBS program, "Tour of Duty," which, with a fall average of61 acts of violence per hour, was the most violent program on prime time television by coalition standards. Despite having the "highest level of physical violence," the program about the Vietnam Warwasjudged by the coalition "to frequently portray the Vietnamese rebels in human terms and to usually focus on the tragedy of ~ar, rather than on the violence itself." It also praised "Tour of Duty"

for dealing "with issues like racism between soldiers" and alcoholism. The coalition scored several programs and one network, CBS "the most violent network by a large margin," it said, - for airing violence and being "likely to have harmful, unconscious effects on normal viewers." Particular programs scored, in addition to" Hunter," included "Wiseguy," "The Equalizer," "Houston Knights," "Spencer: For Hire,''''Private Eye," "Beauty and the Beast," "Miami Vice," and "Crime Story". The coalition said that" At current rates, the average American will still view some 45,000 murders or attempted murders on TV by the age of 21.

56 Chinese bishops HONG KONG (NC) - Two new China-appointed bishops were consecrated in south-central China in early December, bringing the number of Chinese bishops to 56, the official Xinhua news agency reported. The report said 53 of China's bishops are self-elected and self-consecrated, meaning the nation has only three Vatican-appointed bishops. Self-consecrations are considered invalid by the Vatican.

"The Dead" (Vestron) - Screen version of a story in James Joyce's "The Dubliners"is a small, beautifully crafted mood piece about an Epiphany-eve party. Warm evocation of the story's characters is helped by excellent performances of a mostly Irish cast. A few indelicate words and some mature references. A2, PG

"Empire of the Sun" (Warners) - Adventure saga of a young British lad (Christian Bale) who must survive on his own when he is separated from his parents as the Japanese capture Shanghai and intern him during World War II. A2, PG Film on TV

.

Thursday, Jan. 28, 8:30-11 p.m. EST (ABC) - "Live and Let Die" (1973) - James Bond (Roger Moore) takes on a hokey mixture of Harlem hoods (led by Yaphet Kotto) and Caribbean voodoo wor~ shipets, all eager to chop him up before he foils their plan to saturate the United States with heroin. Preposterous plot, tasteless humor, special effects department works overtime to hold the spectator's flagging attention. A3, PG Religious TV Sunday, Jan. 17, (CBS) - "For Our Times" - Rebroadcast of "Voice of Armenia," a conversation with Armenian Archbishop Torkun Manoogian of North America, composer Richard Yardumian and CBS News correspondent Charles Osgood. Religious Radio Sunday, Jan. 17 (NBC) "Guideline" - New York City transit police Detective Bernard Jacobs discusses prevention of public transportation crime.

'Family Institute to open in capital WASHINGTON (NC) - A North American campus of Rome's John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and Family will open in Washington next fall, it has been announced. The announcement came in a joint statement by Archbishop James A. Hickey of Washington, institute vice-chancellor; Bishop Pietro Rossano, rector of the Lateran University; and Msgr. Carlo Caffarra, institute president. The Washington campus will offer courses leading to a licentiate in the theology of marriage and family. Funded by the Knights of Columbus, it will be located at the Dominican House of Studies and is expected to open Sept. I. "The pastoral care of marriage and the family is one of the fundamental concerns of the church," the announcement said. "An expression of this concern was the creation by the Holy Father, Pope John 'Paul II, of the Pontifical John Paul II Institute in Rome, at the Lateran University." The institute is dedicated to "scholarly research so that the truth of Christian revelation, as taught by the church's magisterium, may be always more known and loved, for the true happiness of all men and women," according to the announcement. In addition to providing direct funding to the institute, the Knights also are offering a limited number of full and partial fellowships named for their founder, Father Michael J. McGivney. The deadline for applications for McGivney Fellowships is March I, with notification by May I.

Virgil C. Dechant, supreme knight, said members of Catholic fraternal society, by supporting the institute, "are not only expressing their longstanding commitment to Christian marriage and family life, but contributing to a program which over a period of time can help to counteract and reverse the antifamily trends in our society." While the campus will be located in Washington, it will be part of the structure of the John Paul II Institute at the Lateran University, with the same governing and administrative structure under the presidency of Msgr. Caffarra. In the apostolic constitution, "Magnum Matrimonii,n which gave official juridical recognition to the program in 1982, Pope John Paul said its "special concern" is "to promote the basic theological and pastoral study of marriage and the family for the good of the whole church." The pope said the institute was created "so that lay people, religious and priests can receive scholarly formation in the study of marriage and the family."

Pope raps apartheid VATICAN CITY (NC) - The church must mobilize nonviolently to dismantle South Africa's racial discrimination system, Pope John .. Paul II recently told bishops from South Africa and Namibia. Apartheid should be overcome through a "conversion of hearts" which includes ".sincere dialogue" and a willingness "to pardon, to be just and to be reconciled," the pope said.

The Anchor Friday, Jan. 15, 1988

15

Bishop Feehan Dr. Joseph Kerrins of the Foxboro Health Center will present "AIDS: A Disease You Can Choose Not to Get" at 7 p.m. Jan. 25 at a parents' night enrichment evening at Bishop Feehan High School, Attleboro. Information: 226-6223.

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Recently elected Debate Club officers are Todd Piantedosi, president, and David Dusseault, secretary. Debaters Ruta Kalvaitis and Karin Haberlin won both rounds in which they participated at a recent South Shore meet, held at Foxboro High School. The national debate topic for 1988 is: Resolved: That the United States should adopt a policy to promote stability in Latin America.

• • • •

Feehan's SADD (Students Against Drunk Drivers) chapter recently sponsored an awareness week for the organization. Its activities were organized by religion teacher Kathleen Killion.

Coyle and Cassidy Former Boston Bruins great Derek Sanderson recently addressed the junior and senior classes at Coyle and Cassidy High School, Taunton, on substance abuse. Sanderson, currently color commentator for the hockey team's telecasts, presented a videotape on drugs and alcohol, spoke with students and entertained questions. He has spent much time addressing substance abuse and how young people react under peer and social pressure. The CC Athletic Association was responsible for arrangements for Sanderson.

He Won't Fail "It is the Lord who goes before you; he will be with you, he will not fail you or forsake you." Deut. 31:8 '

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GOD'S ANCHOR HOLDS

O'ROURKE Funeral Home 571 Second Street Fall River, Mass. 679-6072

Montie Plumbing & Heating Co. Over 35 Years of Satisfied Service Reg. Master Plumber 7023 JOSEPH RAPOSA, JR. 432 JEFFERSON STREET Fall River 675-7496

COLLINS CONSTRUCTION CO., INC. GENERAL CONTRACTORS 55 Highland Avenue Fall River, MA 02720

678·5201


16

THE ANCHOR-Diocese of Fall River-Fri., Jan. 15, 1988

Iteering pOintl ...ILtCln CHAIIIIDI

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ar. ask.d to submit news Items for this column to 11Ie Anchor, P.O. Box 7, Fall River, 02m. Name of city' or town shOilld

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than past .vents. Not.: W. do not carry news of fundralslll' activltl.. such .. bllllOl, wIllsts, dllIC", IlllIlNIrs and bazaars. W. ara IIIIIIIY to carry notice. of spiritual IlrOlram" club meetlnlls, youtll proJ.cts and sfmllar nonprofit actlvltl.s. Fundralslll' proJects may be advertised at our r'lUlar rates, obtalnabl. from 111. Anchor business offIc., 675-7151. On Steerlnl( Points It.ms FR Indicates FIl} River, NB Indicates N.w Bedford.

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APOSTOLATEFORPERSONS WITH DISABILITIES Mass 2 p.m. Jan. 24, St. Vincent's Home, Fall River; social follows. cafeteria. Gladys and Fred Macedo are celebrating their 45th wedding anniversary. Contact apost91ate office, 679-8373. if you can volunteer as an office worker or special education CCD teacher or know of housebound disabled individuals who wish to receive communion. CATHEDRAL, FR Vincentian meeting 7:30 p.m. Mon,day, rectory. Steering committee meeting for parish 150th anniversary 7:30 p.m. Thursday, rectory. Parish council meeting 7:30 p.m. Jan. 25, school. ST. STANISLAUS, FR Exposition of Blessed Sacrament today ending with 6:40 p.m. evening prayer and devotions to St. Paul, the first hermit; Mass 7 p.m. ST. LOUIS de FRANCE; SWANSEA Appreciation banquet for parish volunteers 7:30 p.m. Feb. 13. Venus de Milo restaurant, Swansea.

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Adoration until 7 tonight. New Jerusalem prayer meeting 7:30 tonight, rectory. Sister Gail Fortin will speak about Peru 7:30 p.m. Jan. 28, rectory; all welcome.

O,L. CAPE, BREWSTER Prayer group line for emergency prayer: Mary Farrell, 896-3309. NOTRE DAME, FR Parish school fifth graders recently participated in the Bear Down On Drugs program. Weekly choir rehearsals resume 7 p.m. Tuesday, church cry room: new members welcome. ST,STEPHEN,ATTLEBORO Alcoholics Anonymous meeting 7 p.m. Sundays. parish hall. Parish council meeting 7:30 p.m. Monday, hall. Day of recollection for parish adults I to 8 p.m. Jan. 24, hall. Babysitting available during II a.m. Mass Sunday. hall. Lectors needed for 6:30 p.m. Saturday Masses and 8 and II a.m. Sunday Masses; Information: Father Richard R. Gendreau, pastor, 222-0641. .

DCCW,NB Diocesan Council of Catholic Women New Bedford district Family Service Commission meeting 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Sacred Heart Church hall, New Bedford; topics: AIDS and subs~ance abuse; speakers: registered nurse Marianne Mauceri of the Greater New Bedford Community Health Center and Brian Foss of the Drug and Alcoholic Program; all welcome.

LaSALETTE SHRINE, ATTLEBORO Services Sunday include 2 p.m. Marian devotions with Benediction. Winter schedule: daily Mass 12:10 p.m., evening Mass 5: 10 p.m. weekdays and 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Confessions I to 2:30 p.m. weekdays, I to 5 and 6:30 to 7:25 p.m. Saturdays and I to 5 p.m. Sundays. Information on services and activities through April: 222-5410.

ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA, FR Council of Catholic Women meeting scheduled for Jan. 19 has been canceled.

O.L. ASSUMPTION, OSTERVILLE The adult choir will sing at 4 p.m. Mass Sunday.

HOLY NAME, FR Vincentian meeting 7 p.m. Tuesday, rectory. ST. JULIE, N. DARTMOUTH Mr. and Mrs. Antonio Carramona are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.

FATHER ROBERT S. Kaszynski, pastor of St. StaST. MARY, NB nislaus parish, Fall River, will Illinois Club meeting 7:30 p.m. be guest priest at Adorers of Tuesday. school. the Blessed Sacrament holy ST. DOMINIC, SWANSEA hour 7 p.m. Jan. 25 at St: Pizza party and Promise Ceremony for confirmands, during 3 to 8 Theresa's Church, New Bedp.m. special session Jan. 24. church. ford. Exposition, prayer and Benediction will be included O.L. ANGELS, FR FAMILY LIFE CENTER, Portuguese mission with Padre and refreshments follow in N. DARTMOUTH Marriage Encounter today through Joao Oliveira Feb. 22 to 26. Holy church hall. All are welcome Sunday. Training program for Prism Name Society members will attend to this event and to exposition workers Tuesday evening. Bishop the 8 a.m. Mass March 29; breakfast and meeting follow. Blessing of canFriday at St. Theresa's folStang sophomores Wednesday. dies at 4 p.m. Mass Feb. 2. Altar lowing 9 a.m. Mass to 7 p.m. CORPUS CHRISTI, SANDWICH servers and lectors needed; informaBenediction. Information: In 1987. the parish has 125 bap- tion: Msgr. Anthony M. Gomes, Angelo DeBortoli, 996-0332. tisms. 110 first communions, 80 con- PA, pastor, 676-8883. firmations, 35 marriages. 41 funerals and 780 pupils in its religious education program.

HOLY GHOST, ATTLEBORO Song leaders' meeting follows II a.m. Mass Sunday.

LaSALETTE CENTER FOR CHRISTIAN LIVING, ATTLEBORO Retreat for Women Only. led by Father Ernest Corriveau. MS, and Sister Patricia Cocozza, SND, Jan. 30 to Feb. I; information: retreat secretary, 222-8530.

O.L. VICTORY, CENTERVILLE Parish Council meeting 8 p.m. Jan. 19, religious education center.

ST. MARY, FAIRHAVEN Ladies of St. Anne communion Sunday 9:30 a.m. Mass Jan. 17; meeting with speaker 7 p.m. Jan. 19; all welcome.

HOSPICE OUTREACH Greater Fall River Hospice Out- ST. ANTHONY, reach training course for volunteers MATTAPOISETT begins March 3; volunteers spend The parish has been thanked for time weekly with a cancer patient; . donations to Market Ministries of information: office, 673-1589. New Bedford.

DIVORCED AND SEPARATED, NB Greater New Bedford support group for divorced and separated Catholics meets 7 to 9 p.m. second Wednesdays and fourth Mondays; Family Life Center, N. Dartmouth; Jan. 25: Father Jay T. Maddock, viceofficialis of the diocesan tribunal, will speak on church annulments; Feb. 10: Father John Powell video "Free To Be Me"; Feb. 22: group members will speak on how participation has helped them; open discussion follows.

DIOCESAN DIRECTORY The 1988 edition of the Fall River Diocesan Directory and Buyers' Guide will be published this month. It will contain ~ complete diocesan information and a much enlarged telephone directory of priests, directors of diocesan institutions, parish religious education coordinators and permanent deacons. Also included are addresses of retired priests and those servi'ng outside the diocese. New this year will be a complete list of priests and dates of priestly ordination. We are offering th.e di~ect~ry at a special prepublication price of $3.50 per copy, plus $1 postage and handling (It Will be $5 plus $1 postage and handling after publication). It may be ordered by telephone at 675-7151 or by mail, using the coupon below. Either way, your order should reach us by.January 19 to qualify for the prepublication rate.

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PO Box 7, Fall River, MA 02722 Please send me _ _ copy(ies) of the 1988 DIOCESAN DIRECTORY AND BUYERS' GUIDE _ _ Bill me - - Payment enclosed ($3.50 per copy plus $1 postage and handling) NAME: ADDRESS:

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Street/PO Box

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ST. ANNE, FR Den I Cub Scouts meeting 2:30 today, school. Exposition of Blessed Sacrament after II :30 a.m. Mass today; hour of adoration and reparation 2 p.m. today, shrine. Fellowship meeting 7:30 p.m. Thursday, school cafeteria. REGIONAL PRA YER MEETING Attleboro/Taunton regional prayer meeting 7:30 to 9 p.m. Thursday, St. Mary parish, Seekonk, religious education center; fellowship follows.

SS. PETER AND PAUL, FR Day of recollection for ninth grade confirmation students, led by Father William Baker, 2 to 6 p.m. Sunday. "Living and Working with Adolescents" workshop 7 p.m. Tuesday, Father Coady Center; presenter: Kate Simpson, principal of SI. Mary-Sacred Heart Consolidated School, N. Attleboro; school and religious education teachers, parents and interested parishioners welcome. During 1987 the parish had 33 baptisms, 33 first communions, 32 confirmations, eight marriages and 44 funerals; it has 1,003 families and a total population of 2,714. BLESSED SACRAMENT, FR Appreciation dinner for the parish family, hosted by Holy Ghost Church, Tiverton, R.I., 1:30 p.m. Feb. 21. ST. PATRICK, WAREHAM Adult enrichment 7 p.m. Feb. 9, hall; Father Thomas McElroy, SS.Ce., will speak on discipleship; covered dish supper at 5:30 p.m. for religious education teachers precedes program. CYO organizational meeting 7 p.m. Tuesday, cenacle. Junior CYO meeting 7 p.m. Thursday, Room One. ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST, POCASSET Babysitting in parish center available during 9: 15 a. m. Mass Sundays. Women's Guild meeting 7 p.m. Tuesday; Chris Petravicz, director of SWOP, will speak.

Church champions cause of. seamen BROOK L YN. N.Y. (NC) Father Lee Smith, port chaplain for the Diocese of Brooklyn. reported that attending a recent world congress of the Apostleship of the Sea in Mombasa. Kenya, gave him a renewed sense of the need for . church defense of seafarers' rights. In an interview at Stella Maris Seamen's Center. which he operates near the Brooklyn docks. he said that in talking with port chaplains from around the world he found that problems are virtually the same everywhere. Seafarers, he said. normally come from extremely poor communities, and are easily exploited on ships sailing under "flags of convenience," registration in countries that offer little, if any. wage or safety protections. "Seamen are easily taken advantage or." Father Smith said. "They have no rights. and are at the mercy of the ship owner." A Message to Seafarers adopted by the world congress declared that "human dignity is defiled .on numerous occasions in the seafarer's daily life." These occasions include. it said. the ways the seafarer is recruited. working conditions. lack of social security and increasing unemployment. The statement also expressed concern for "the safety of seamen who find themselves in war zones or on board ships transporting. even without their knowledge and consent. armaments or drugs."

The congress was sponsored by the Vatican Commission for Migration and Tourism. Archbishop Giovanni Cheli, pro-president of the migration commission, presided and delivered the keynote address. He condemned "traders in human flesh" who think poor people should be ready to do "any kind of work at any price." The congress was attended by 140 delegates from 30 countries. With 15 representatives, the United States had one of the largest delegations, Father Smith reported. It was led by Bishop Rene H. Gracida of Corpus Christi, Texas, national episcopal promoter of the Apostleship of the Sea, and Father Raymond F. Rau, director of the national headquarters in Corpus Christi.

Ethiopia aid asked v

ATICAN CITY (NC) - Caritas Internationalis, a Vatican-based international aid organization has appealed to members for nearly $15 million to fund aid for faminestricken Ethiopia. Efforts include airlifts and distribution of food and purchase of trucks, warehouse space, medicine and 5,000 tons of seed to "help re-establi-sh selfsufficiency." If seeds are purchased and distributed now, said officials, "the hoped-for yield is expected to be nearly equal to the amount offood aid that has to be provided this year."


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