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Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

F riday , April 10, 2015

Third-grade students at Holy Family-Holy Name School in New Bedford recently performed the “Dance of the Butterfly” during the Easter Experience. Pictured with the girls are, back, from left: Father Michael Racine, Father Robert Powell and Father Craig Pregana. The Easter Experience was facilitated by Sister Muriel Ann Lebeau, SS.CC.

One man plus 25 shows has equaled success at HFHN

By Becky Aubut Anchor Staff

NEW BEDFORD — When Cecilia Felix first met Maurice Ouellette, she wasn’t even principal of Holy Family-Holy Name School in New Bedford yet, but their friendship bore fruit not just personally but professionally when she called upon him to help create a performance art program at HFHN. “I think the arts have a very important part in our community and with kids. I wanted to reach out to the community; there’s a lot of talent in the city. I thought

it would be good to bring good, wholesome entertainment here and this would become the center for it,” said Felix.

“Cecilia said that it would be great to do a community outreach through theatre, and I said sure,” said Ouellette. “I’ve been involved in theatre all my life, from high school throughout college in one capacity or another, in acting or directing or doing costume design.”

Twenty-five years later, the Laurel Tree Players (www.LaurelTreePlayers.org) has not only raised almost half-a-million dolTurn to page 15

The Catholic movement Communion and Liberation sponsored its annual Way of the Cross beginning at St. Joseph-St. Therese Church on Acushnet Avenue and processing through Brooklawn Park in New Bedford on Good Friday. The group, accompanied by Father Luca Brancolini, F.S.C.B., stopped at designated “stations” along the way to meditate on Christ’s Passion and to recite prayers, readings and hymns. After traveling through the park and along Ashley Boulevard, the Way of the Cross concluded at St. Mary’s Church on Tarkiln Hill Road. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

Transformed by Holy Week: Personal reflections of our new shepherd

By Linda Andrade Rodrigues Anchor Correspondent

The 2014 performance of “The 39 Steps” by the Laurel Tree Players saw Maurice Ouellette, left, and four other cast members play every role in the comedic production.

FALL RIVER — During Holy Week at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, we were in the midst of more than a hundred priests, deacons

and seminarians at the Chrism Mass; we were disciples at the Last Supper; we were there when they crucified Our Lord; and we saw the empty tomb and believed.

Turn to page 12

Brother to discuss Taizé prayer at Freetown parish

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff

EAST FREETOWN — For more than a year now, parishioners at St. John Neumann Parish in East Freetown have been actively studying and hosting regular Taizé services, based on an increasingly popu-

lar form of prayer that is equal parts meditation, chanting and silently connecting with God. According to parishioner and choir member Karen Howard, it was her pastor, Father Gregory A. Mathias, V.G., who first introduced her to Taizé.

“I didn’t really know anything about it,” Howard said.

“He said it was based on meditation and chanting and he suggested maybe the choir might be interested in taking it up, so that’s how it started.”

With Father Mathias’ guidance and blessing, St. John

Neumann hosted its first Taizé service on Palm Sunday as a way to kick off Holy Week last year.

“I have always thought that this Taizé form of prayer could possibly be the perfect remedy for the sorts of lives we live in this country,” Father Mathias

wrote in a bulletin introduction at the time. “Faith is fed by contemplation and prayer, but modern life compels us to move too fast for either of these disciplines. The aesthetics of Taizé prayer immerse participants in a mystical-Spiritual Turn to page 18

News From the Vatican

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April 10, 2015

Pope to priests: Exhaustion is part of ministry; find renewal in Christ

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Priestly ministry is hard, sometimes lonely or dangerous work serving the neediest with an open, vulnerable heart, Pope Francis told the world’s priests.

But priests need to learn how to draw strength from their flock and their love for God, and not look for rest or retreat in “worldly pursuits,” hiding in their office or riding in cars “with tinted windows,” he said during the recent Chrism Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica.

Priests can find renewal when they do not try to be “supermen,” but instead put their trust in God to embrace them and carry them through, he said.

Presiding over the first of two Holy Thursday Liturgies, Pope Francis blessed the oils that will be used in the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Ordination and the Anointing of the Sick.

As Holy Thursday was the day Jesus shared His priesthood with the Apostles, Pope Francis led the more than 1,500 priests, bishops and cardinals in a renewal of their priestly vows and dedicated his lengthy homily to the priesthood, focusing on “the tiredness of priests.”

“Do you know how often I think about this weariness all of you experience? I think about it a lot and I pray about it often, especially when I am tired myself,” he told those assembled.

The reading from the Book of Isaiah, he said, outlines the challenging work of priestly ministry: bringing glad tidings to the lowly, healing the brokenhearted, proclaiming liberty to those held captive, releasing the imprisoned and

come the world’ and this Word gives us strength,” he said.

When talking about the third form of weariness, the “weariness of ourselves,” the pope joked that it was his final point “so that you won’t be too worn out by this homily,” which at 21 minutes, was longer than the norm for Pope Francis.

While the first two kinds of weariness “come from being exposed” to the outside world, which is what pastoral care demands, the third kind of weariness was “perhaps the most dangerous” because it is self-centered, he said.

It was a paradox of giving up everything for the priesthood yet yearning for the “fleshpots of Egypt” — “a weariness I like to call ‘flirting with Spiritual worldliness,’” he said.

The best way to avoid this danger, he said, is to never let go of that first love for Christ.

“Only love gives rest,” he said.

The weariness that comes from following Christ and being human “is precious in the eyes of Jesus Who embraces us Pope Francis greets children participating in the offertory procession during Holy Thursday Chrism and lifts us up,” he said.

Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican April 2. (CNS photo/Paul Haring) The pope told priests to let Jesus continue to personone’s flock is going through is should watch out for: exhaus- bored,” because being with the ally wash their feet and cleanse not a detached reading of “a tion from being with the peo- flock with the smile of a father them from “every stain, that news report,” but comes from ple; fatigue from fighting “the reflects a weariness that brings worldly and grimy smog that clings to us from the journey devil and his minions;” and en- joy, he said. “suffering with them.”

The “weariness of enemies” we make in His name.”

Sharing in people’s suffer- nui from becoming selfish and No priest has to let his feet comes from defending one’s flock ing makes the heart feel “bro- worldly.

Like Jesus, the priest is from evil and battling the devil, stay dirty and sore, he said. ken into a thousand little pieces” and given away so much called to go out and care for who tries to silence the Word of “Like war wounds, the Lord kisses them so that He washes it almost seems “eaten up by others, he said, which leads God and distort it, he said.

Priests must not let down away the grime of our work,” the people,” he said, drawing to a kind of “weariness of the their guard and must “neutral- he said. a parallel with what is said at crowd.”

“Let us learn to be tired out, “People love their priests, ize” the bad without destroythe Last Supper: take this all they want and need their shep- ing the good, but they also but a good tired out!” of you, eat this, drink this.

Later in the day, the pope The 78-year-old pope, who herds,” and a priest “with the must not presume “to protect works at an often demand- smell of sheep” experiences a like supermen what the Lord celebrated the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper at ing pace and is known to not “good and healthy tiredness” Alone must protect.”

“In these situations of wea- a Rome prison and washed the take vacation, said, “How dif- and can smile “the smile of ficult it is to learn how to rest. a father who gazes upon his riness, the Lord says to us: feet of six male and six female ‘Have courage! I have over- inmates.

What comes into play here is children or grandchildren.” comforting those who mourn.

If a priest is doing his job right — if his heart is open and he experiences with compassion all the troubles, fears and joys of his people, then “so many emotions, so much affection exhaust the heart of a pastor,” he said.

For a priest, knowing what

our trust and our remembering that we, too, are sheep and we need the Lord to help us.”

While he had warned members of the Roman Curia in December of “15 Spiritual diseases” they should avoid, in his Holy Thursday homily for priests Pope Francis outlined three kinds of “weariness” they

But that gaze “has nothing to do with those (priests) who smell of expensive cologne and look at you from afar and from on high,” he said in a homily delivered in Italian.

If Jesus is there shepherding with the priest, “we cannot be shepherds whose faces are bitter, grouchy or, even worse,

Holy See calls for international effort to end Boko Haram insurgency

GENEVA (CNS) — The Holy See’s permanent observer to the United Nations in Geneva called on the international community to assist Nigeria and neighboring countries to rid the region of Boko Haram insurgency.

“The Holy See urges an international collaborative effort to address this crisis situation with urgency so as to prevent the extension of Boko Haram and other terrorist groups and their strategy of inflicting suffering on lo-

cal people and to destabilize Africa even further,” Archbishop Silvano Tomasi told a recent session of the U.N. Human Rights Council.

Nigeria and its neighbors, including Cameroon, Benin, Chad and Niger, have been beset by Boko Haram’s violent campaign to impose Islamic rule in the region. Based in northeastern Nigeria, leaders of the insurgents have claimed credit for a series of bombings and gun attacks on public markets, churches and

isolated communities since 2009.

He said the insurgency requires an “urgent and effective response.” Citing Pope Francis in an address to diplomats accredited to the Holy See in January, Archbishop Tomasi called the situation in Nigeria and its neighbors “a scourge which needs to be eradicated, since it strikes all of use, from individual families to the international community.”

The archbishop also expressed concern that Boko

Haram’s recent announcement that it was aligning with the Islamic State militant group in Iraq and Syria shows that “such extremist groups are growing like cancer, spreading to other parts of the world.”

“Crimes in the ‘name of religion’ are never justified.

Massacring innocent people in the name of God is not religion but the manipulation of religion for ulterior motives,” the archbishop told the council.

“It appears the time is ripe for the international community to assist in bringing an end to the violence, which has caused numerous civilian victims,” Archbishop Tomasi said. “Before such violations of international human rights and humanitarian laws we cannot afford to have a posture of indifference that would lead to the widening contagion of violence and also set a dangerous precedent of ‘non-action’ in response to such horrific crimes.”

The International Church Military chaplains bring God closer to soldiers on Ukraine front lines

April 10, 2015

LVIV, Ukraine (CNS) — War is not easy to experience, but Jesuit Father Andrij Zelinskyj has found a calling to be on the front line.

As a military chaplain, Father Zelinskyj ministers to members of the Ukrainian army battling separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine’s Donbass region.

“War just reaffirmed me in my vocation,” the priest told Catholic News Service.

He has served as chaplain for 10 years, but it was not until last year when the Russia-backed rebels began an armed uprising that Father Zelinskyj experienced the challenges of war.

He is one of the most experienced chaplains among the hundreds of clergy of different denominations who have addressed the Spiritual needs of Ukrainian servicemen since the beginning of the yearlong armed conflict in eastern Ukraine. They celebrate Mass and the Divine Liturgy, hear Confessions, pray, offer a consoling ear to soldiers and administer the Sacraments — even when shells explode all around.

Father Zelinskyj said he sees his role as being close to the soldiers, sharing their hardships and risks.

“This war is often called hybrid, but it is only true in the rear. At the forefront the war is real, for real is blood and death.

Soldiers see a lot of pain and evil around them. I talk to them about values, about dignity, about their high calling to protect our motherland. I would like to bring Heaven closer to them,” he said.

The year-long war has become a catalyst for recognition of the important role of chaplains ministering to the Ukrainian armed forces. For years, their status was indefinite. The legal ground for military chaplaincy remains uncertain and legal provisions are not fully formed. The result: many priests visit war zone as volunteers and

are not considered professional chaplains in the strict sense.

“When the conflict broke out, many priests were not prepared enough. But now they are well-trained, for example know how to behave during shelling,” says Father Lubomyr Yavorskyj, coordinator of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Chaplains.

The group includes nearly 100 priests, 74 of whom have visited the war zone in Donbass. Three have been wounded.

In late March, 14 Greek Catholic priests served in the war zone. All have received permission from their bishop and the military command to serve.

As civilians, chaplains hold no military ranks.

Pallotine Father Viacheslav Hrynevych, a Roman Catholic priest, said he originally was focused on charity and planned to work with homeless people.

Later, he felt called to become a chaplain. He told Catholic News Service that he has been on the front lines during the last year and was so close that he “has seen separatists with binoculars.”

Father Hrynevych is part of a mobile group that includes a psychologist and a psychiatrist.

They visit various military divisions near Artemivsk, north of rebel-controlled Donetsk.

“I’m always deeply moved when I feel that the person truly trusts me and shares deep feelings or sincerely repents in Confession,” Father Hrynevych said.

Father Leonard Aduszkiewicz is pastor of Our Lady of Czestochowa Parish in Mariupol, less than 30 miles from Russia. When the battle front neared the city, the checkpoints surrounding it became his extended parish. Father Aduszkiewicz regularly visits the checkpoints with volunteers and other clergy, bringing Bibles, Rosaries and religious books as well as food, clothing and hygiene supplies.

The visits are examples of the ecumenism involved in the military chaplaincy as Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic and Orthodox priests join a Protestant deacon to minister together.

“After arriving in Mariupol, I started establishing relations with Orthodox, Greek Catholic and Protestant communities,” Father Aduszkiewicz said.

“Now these past initiatives bring incredible fruit. Soldiers perceive us differently when they see us together. They see not hostility but friendship and this helps them Spiritually.”

In Lviv, hundreds of miles from the war zone, SS. Peter and Paul Garrison Church, a Jesuit parish, became headquarters for chaplains and one of the main centers for volunteers who help the troops. A team of 13 priests, whose average age is 32, serves at the military bases and in a local military hospital, working with families who have lost someone at war.

The parish has also provides material support to soldiers. They collected more than $340,000 to buy uniforms, boots, first-aid kits, hygiene kits and food. Father Taras Mykhalchuk, a priest at the church, said clergy appreciate the opportunity to work with the volunteers.

“I thank God that He entrusted us this field of ministry in these difficult circumstances,” Father Mykhalchuk said.

The priests acknowledged that working as a military chaplain offered a unique experience for their priesthood. They said the challenges they have faced reshaped their vocation.

“This vocation brings meaning in my life. I want to be useful, to participate in the defense of my country but as a priest,” Father Zelinskyj said.

Despite the rewards, the work becomes especially difficult when a soldier who has become a friend dies, he said.

Even so, the priests know

With Armenian Catholics, pope will declare new ‘doctor of Church’

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis formally will proclaim a 10th-century Armenian monk as a doctor of the Church when he celebrates a Liturgy April 12 with leaders and faithful of the Armenian Catholic Church.

The Vatican had announced in February the pope’s decision to confer the title “doctor of the Church” on St. Gregory of Narek. The title indicates that the

saint’s writings are considered to offer key theological insights for the faith. Earlier, the Vatican had announced that the pope would celebrate a Liturgy April 12 with members of the Armenian community, who are preparing to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Armenian genocide April 24.

An estimated 1.5 million Armenians — more than half the Armenian population at the

time — died in a forced evacuation from their traditional territory in the Ottoman-Turkish Empire from 1915 to 1918.

Turkey rejects the accusation of genocide, saying the deaths were due largely to disease and famine.

Pope Francis will concelebrate the Liturgy with Armenian Catholic Patriarch Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni, the Vatican said.

their ministries fill a deep need for the men who face death every day.

“I experience a special Spiritual adventure, that’s my chance for meeting with God, a chance

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to rethink the power of prayer and God’s presence,” Father Hrynevych said. “I would say that being in the war zone for me is an accumulation of God’s grace.”

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April 10, 2015 The Church in the U.S. Christian leaders stress gravity of religious liberty

Trenton, N.J (CNA/ EWTN News) — Catholic and Southern Baptist leaders called Good Friday for a recommitment to religious freedom, lamenting the “acrimony and lies” surrounding efforts to protect religious freedom in Indiana and across the U.S. “America was founded on the idea that religious liberty matters because religious belief matters in a uniquely life-giving and powerful way. We need to take that birthright seriously, or we become a people alien to our own founding principles,” they said in the statement. “Religious liberty is precisely what allows a pluralistic society to live together in peace.”

They called on Americans “to remember the moral roots of their constitutional system, and to engage in a sensible national conversation about religious liberty.” The statement, “Now Is the Time to Talk About Religious Liberty,” was published at The Witherspoon Institute.

Its signers include Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia, and Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore.

They were joined by Robert P. George, a Princeton law professor who has headed the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom; Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; and Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission.

They noted that Judaism,

Christianity, and Islam all believe in the creation of man as male and female and in the “unique covenant” of Marriage as a heterosexual union. They criticized claims that this central belief “amounts to a form of bigotry.”

“Such arguments only increase public confusion on a vitally important issue. When basic moral convictions and historic religious wisdom rooted in experience are deemed ‘discrimination,’ our ability to achieve civic harmony, or even to reason clearly, is impossible.”

They said even those who are not religious have a stake in seeing that religious freedom and freedom of conscience are protected in law. The Catholic and Baptist leaders said they were “especially troubled” by the opposition to religious liberty legal efforts in Indiana and elsewhere.

Indiana Governor Mike Pence on March 26 signed legislation declaring that state and local governments may not substantially burden a person’s right to the exercise of religion, unless they demonstrate a compelling governmental interest and use the least restrictive means to further that interest.

The Indiana law made explicit its application to businesses, which is in agreement with several federal appellate court rulings. The Indiana law would also strengthen a legal defense against civil penalties.

The religious freedom law was in large part modeled on

the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act of 1993, which passed Congress almost unanimously and was signed into law

by Bill Clinton. The legislation is intended to restore religious protections which had been eliminated by Supreme Court decisions.

The initial Indiana law did not mention sexual orientation, but it became the subject of intense media controversy after opponents depicted it as “anti-gay.” CEOs, celebrities, major sports events and leaders of some city and state governments threatened boycotts or otherwise voiced criticism that it would allow discrimination.

While some supporters of the religious freedom laws have hoped that they will protect individuals and businesses with religious and moral objections to “gay marriage,” there have been no successful cases in which the religious freedom provisions have trumped antidiscrimination laws.

Peter Steinfels, former editor of Commonweal magazine, wrote a blog on that publication’s website during Holy Week asking, “Are there still liberals willing to speak up for religious freedom? I don’t know whether the religious freedom bill passed and signed in Indiana last week — and now reportedly up for revision — is a good measure. I do know that, however one precisely balances out the pros and cons of the bill, it does involve religious freedom.”

Steinfels added, “No doubt

some conservatives would invoke anything short of global warning as a last-line defense against same-sex marriage. But is it really beyond imagining that many conservatives and non-conservatives, too, might be genuinely agitated about religious freedom for its own sake?

Certainly beyond imagining by Hillary Clinton, who was quick to tweet, ‘Sad this new Indiana law can happen in America today.’ Beyond imagining by all the technology, business, and sports and entertainment eminences now bullying Indiana with boycotts, not that these folks ever cared much (or knew much) about religious freedom in the first place.”

Pence on April 2 signed an amendment saying the law does not allow the refusal of services, facilities, public accommodations, goods, employment or housing on the basis of race, color, religion, ancestry, age, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or U.S. military service.

The change drew criticism from Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel Kristen Waggoner, who said the change “unjustly deprives citizens their day in court, denies freedom a fair hearing, and rigs the system in advance.”

“It gives the government a new weapon against individual citizens who are merely exercising freedoms that Americans were guaranteed from the founding of this country. Surrendering to deception and eco-

nomic blackmail never results in good policy.” Waggoner said the initial law “directs judges to count the cost carefully when freedom is at stake.”

The controversy in Indiana has had consequences in other states. The Arkansas legislature had passed a similarly broad religious freedom protections bill, but Governor Asa Hutchinson said he would not sign it. On April 3, Hutchinson signed a narrower version of the bill.

Religious freedom laws are also an issue in Congress after the District of Columbia city council passed legislation outlawing “discriminatory practice” on the provision of facilities, services or programs based on “sexual orientation, gender identity or expression.”

Congress and President Barack Obama must agree to reject the district legislation by April 17. If the legislation is not rejected, without further legal action religious schools would be forced to recognize groups that conflict with their stated mission and allow them to use their facilities.

Religious freedom laws have drawn wealthy opposition.

Since 2013, the Ford Foundation and Arcus Foundation have spent more than $3 million in grants to back groups opposing religious exemptions. Grantees include Columbia Law School’s Public Rights/Private Conscience Project, the ACLU, Planned Parenthood, LGBT activist groups and media messaging projects.

Cardinal says Christian message ‘can enrich, transform’ societal values

CHICAGO (CNS) — Vatican analyst John L. Allen Jr. once called him “the most interesting man in the Catholic Church.”

Who is he?

He is Italian Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, and he was recently in Chicago to receive an honorary doctorate from Loyola University of Chicago.

What makes Cardinal Ravasi so interesting are his efforts across Europe to engage the culture where it’s at, most notably through his “Courtyard of the Gentiles” project. Through this effort, intellectuals — nonbelievers and believers — in major cities are invited to participate in dialogues that explore topics such as: “Can one choose a ‘world without God?’ How far can the human person go in the field of creation? Are there lim-

its, and if so, what are they?”

During his Chicago visit, Cardinal Ravasi also took part in a colloquium on the history and diversity of Latino theology.

After receiving the degree during a ceremony in Madonna della Strada Chapel on the university’s campus, Cardinal Ravasi delivered a lecture on the role of Catholic higher education in American culture.

The cardinal has always been interested in American culture, especially through literature — citing writers such as Mark Twain, Flannery O’Connor and John Updike. Intellectual thought on American culture has noted its strengths and weaknesses, he said, and the analysis continues today.

“In this evermore complex context, marked now by the new information and digital revolution, which is generating an

unprecedented anthropological and sociological phenotype, how can the Catholic cultural presence be situated?” he asked.

Today, “culture” no longer means the arts, sciences and philosophy. It refers to values and symbols held by the whole society, Cardinal Ravasi said.

“In this light, the Christian message takes on a profound meaning for it can enrich and transform the same traditional founding values of the American culture,” he continued. “These values, in fact, in many aspects belong to a basic anthropological category, now subject to many criticisms and variations, but nevertheless important. We refer here to the concept of ‘human nature.’”

In American culture and law, church and state are distinct and separate. However, society and religion aren’t, he said.

“Indeed between the two there is always an attraction and a tension, an encounter, sometimes a clash, but never separation or indifference. The history of many other countries is built on this dialectic,” Cardinal Ravasi said.

Catholic universities must be in this meeting of society and faith and can sustain and enrich it, he said.

The Catholic university has a calling higher than that of secular academia — to form the person, not just the student.

“A famous English thinker of the 1800s, the philosopher, theologian and also cardinal, John Henry Newman, had no hesitation to declare in his work ‘The Idea of a University’ that Catholic university education, before forming Christians or Catholics, should create ‘gentlemen,’” Cardinal Ravasi said.

Catholic universities must form the student for life and not just for the school or work, he said. And when they instruct the student they do so out of the patrimony Christianity has offered over the centuries.

“In today’s secularized society and in the great anonymous super cities, what dominates is not atheism, but apathy-ism, that is religious apathy, indifference to ethical and Spiritual values,” Cardinal Ravasi told those gathered at Loyola.

“The presence of a university community such as this at Loyola,” he said, “can bring about the program that Christ had proposed to His disciples in the Sermon on the Mount, through an efficacious trilogy of images: ‘You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world. A city that is on top of a mountain cannot remain hidden.’”

April 10, 2015

The Church in the U.S.

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Be ‘saints of this prison,’ Bishop Conley tells inmates at Confirmation

Patients of the Little Sisters of the Poor are cared for and pain is relieved — all that can be done for the sick patient is attempted. The patient is accompanied around the clock. (CNA photo courtesy of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty)

These nuns provide ‘death with dignity’ — but it’s not assisted suicide

Washington D.C. (CNA/ EWTN News) — As states around the country consider legalizing physicianassisted suicide, “death with dignity” looks markedly different for patients under the care of the Little Sisters of the Poor.

In her 27 years with the order that cares for the “elderly poor,” Sister Constance Veit, L.S.P. says she has never seen or heard a patient asking for a lethal prescription.

“I think that’s because they are surrounded with a caring human and Spiritual presence in our homes,” she told an audience at the Heritage Foundation.

Sister Constance was part of a recent panel in Washington, D.C., on caring respectfully for the elderly sick. The event was titled “Living Life to Its Fullest.”

End of life care was placed in the national spotlight late last year, when 29 year-old Brittany Maynard publicly announced her decision to take a lethal prescription rather than suffer terminal cancer.

In describing her situation, Maynard used terms that Sister Constance says she has never heard from the patients under her care, like “purposeless prolonged pain” and “prolonged involuntary suffering and shame.”

“I have never heard any of our residents use the word ‘shame’ in the context of their suffering and dying,” she said.

Maynard’s story caught the attention of many and brought about a national debate on physician-assisted suicide, which is already legal in some states.

The Colorado state senate defeated an assisted-suicide bill back in February, but other states are considering similar bills.

The Death With Dignity National Center is pushing for these laws around the country.

Critics say the laws would unfairly pressure the elderly and disabled to end their lives. They charge such laws would normalize suicide as a solution to problems and decrease respect for life in American culture.

Caring for the elderly in their final days, the Little Sisters of the Poor say

Lincoln, Neb. (CNA/EWTN News) — On Tuesday of Holy Week, Bishop James Conley of Lincoln offered Mass and Confirmed four inmates at the Nebraska State Penitentiary, encouraging those present to embrace God’s mercy and strive for sainthood.

“God is calling you men to be the saints of this prison,” he told the inmates. “He is calling you to repent and to receive His mercy.”

“Your daily life reminds you of past mistakes. The world often looks on men who are incarcerated through eyes of hatred or mistrust.”

But Christ has a different view, calling all men and women to be saints, the bishop said.

He encouraged the inmates to “be present” whenever Mass is offered, to read Scripture and to pray the Rosary daily.

Bishop Conley celebrated the Confirmations in Spanish, and the music at the Mass was also in Spanish — both written and led by the inmates themselves.

Looking to that day’s Gospel reading, the bishop noted that St. Peter and Judas Iscariot sinned against Christ by betraying Him. However, unlike Judas, Peter repented of his sin. “(Peter) probably felt that he had com-

mitted the unforgiveable crime. But he returned to Jesus, and professed his love, and his sorrow, and Christ forgave his sins,” Bishop Conley said.

These two disciples show an important decision each Christian must make: how to respond to our sinfulness.

Everyone can choose to despair or, as St. Peter did, “we can return to the Lord when we sin, confess our sinfulness, profess our love, and be made new,” the bishop said, noting that St. Peter later went on to spend time in prison and eventually died a martyr’s death for Christ.

Bishop Conley also drew attention to St. Maximillian Kolbe, “another prisoner who became a saint.”

Spending his time of confinement in prayer and offering his sufferings for the Salvation of the world, St. Maximillian Kolbe “prayed that every man in prison would see Jesus,” even the Nazis who guarded him, the bishop said. Eventually, he also died as a martyr in prison.

The reality is that everyone has sinned and everyone has the option to despair or repent, Bishop Conley said. He encouraged all present to repent and “receive God’s incredible mercy.”

He asked the inmates for their prayers and assured them of his prayers.

that a patient and his or her loved ones can experience a tremendous amount of good in their last days together that would be lost if they decided to take their life prematurely.

Patients of the Little Sisters are cared for and pain is relieved — all that can be done for the sick patient is attempted.

The patient is accompanied around the clock.

“I would say that the room of a dying person almost becomes the Spiritual center of our house at that point for those days,” Sister Constance said. “Our home is their home.”

The Sisters make sure to provide a “peaceful, prayerful presence” for the dying patient “for as long as it takes until they make that passage from this life to the next.”

And it can be a rich time of healing for the family. Sister Constance recalled how the Sisters kept an eight-day vigil for one dying woman. Although she was not conscious, members of her family reconciled with each other during that time, and some even came back to the faith who had fallen away.

“There’s so much to be shared, learned, and gained through these intense moments that you cheat people out of when a life is ended prematurely,” the Sister reflected.

“The majority of the family members involved with the residents who pass Bishop James Conley Confirms men at the Nebraska State Penitentiary March 31. away in our homes experience it as a (CNA/ Southern Nebraska Register photo) moment of grace and a thing of beauty,” she added, “it’s rare that they feel it was anything other than a very powerful Spiritual and human moment.”

Other members of the panel voiced concerns about physician-assisted suicide laws.

Farr A. Curlin, M.D., the Josiah C. Trent Professor of Medical Humanities at Duke University School of Medicine, said the laws will bring new and grotesque questions to the national conversation.

People might start asking a terminally-ill patient, “Why are you staying alive?” he said. Those patients might start feeling useless to society and will “feel the pressure to exit the scene.”

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April 10, 2015

Anchor Editorial

The real Thomas More, relevant still

Around Christmas and Easter the mass media brings out of storage anything which has to do with religion — ABC airs “The Ten Commandments,” C-Span 3 runs an old Gary Wills forum taking questions and answers about Catholicism, NBC debuts “A.D.” and PBS brings from across the Atlantic, “Wolf Hall,” a revisionist history about the reign of Henry VIII. Wolf Hall is based on a series of books (beginning with one by that name) by the English novelist Hilary Mantel. Unlike in the play and movie “A Man for All Seasons,” the hero by her telling is not St. Thomas More but Thomas Cromwell (not to be confused with Oliver Cromwell, who was the Protestant Lord Protector of England in the 1650s, after the beheading of King Charles I. Oliver was a descendant of Thomas’ sister).

In “A Man for All Seasons,” Thomas Cromwell is the villain working to get Thomas More either to affirm that the king is the ruler of the Church in England and that his Marriage to Anne Boleyn is legitimate or to deny those two items and thus be guilty of a capital crime.

Mantel had a very negative experience of Catholicism as a child and is now an atheist, but she told Terry Gross on NPR’s “Fresh Air” (in an earlier interview rebroadcast on Good Friday) that if she were to return to Christianity it would be to “the Church of England, founded by Henry VIII.” Mantel told the Telegraph newspaper in 2012, “When I was a child I wondered why priests and nuns were not nicer people. I thought that they were amongst the worst people I knew.”

Gregory Wolfe, writing in the Washington Post, criticized Mantel’s work: “Questions about “Wolf Hall” have been raised not only by the Catholic faithful but also in the academy. Professor David Starkey, a historian and president of Britain’s National Secular Society, said there is ‘not a scrap of evidence’ for the narrative and describes the plot as ‘total fiction.’ Simon Schama, the respected Jewish historian and veteran television presenter, writes in The Financial Times that while he believes that historical novelists should have some leeway for invention and imagination, Mantel has gone too far.”

Defending More, Wolfe wrote, “Mantel demonizes More, turning him into a pinched, pedantic prig, ready to torture heretics at the drop of a hat. She seems to imply that he represents little more than religious violence and fanaticism. But the truth is that More and his fellow Christian humanists such as Erasmus were not only harsh critics of the Catholic Church but also ardent reformers. They were proponents of an educational program that relied less on abstract theology and more on great literature that renders the ambiguities and conflicts between competing claims to truth in experiential terms. The humanists of that era, including More, saw Europe succumbing to increasing polarization and ‘culture wars’ and held out a vision of dialogue and slow, steady change.”

In the “comments” section below his article, Wolfe responded to critics who claimed that More was a bloodthirsty tyrant when he was chancellor of England: “You asked the question: ‘Wasn’t Thomas More just as violent [as Thomas Cromwell]?’ The answer to that question is no, he was not, as the record shows. As to objective evidence for More using torture, the record is clear: there is none. [ John] Foxe’s accusations [that More used torture] in an apologetic work do not constitute evidence. The book by [Richard] Marius, a

reductionistic Freudian interpretation of More, has no standing in the scholarly community. And [ James] Wood’s [who said that More would have been England’s Torquemada if Henry VIII had not broken with Rome] animus against More is a well-known adjunct to his larger animus against religion in general.”

It is understandable that Mantel bears a grudge against the Catholic Church due to the rudeness she experienced as a child and a young adult from the representatives of it.

The bad examples of Catholics have often caused people to leave the Church or to give up believing in God entirely. In contrast to this, Pope Francis said on Easter Monday that the “most beautiful gift that a Christian can and must offer his brothers and sisters” is our “faith in the Resurrection of Jesus and the hope He had brought to us.”

The pope explained that we give that gift not just by our words, but by it “shin[ing] on our face, in our feelings and in our behavior, in the way we treat others.”

The Catholics that Mantel has experienced in her life apparently did not do that (or did not do so effectively, before she closed herself off to their witness). So, now we have an attack on one of our saints airing weekly on PBS. Meanwhile in this country Christians who stand up for religious liberty are portrayed as bigots (see the article on page four for the Catholic/Southern Baptist response to the situation in Indiana and Arkansas). Again, like Mantel, many people in this country can recall negative situations they have been in (i.e., hatred, abuse, judgmentalism, etc.) when dealing with people of faith, with people who say that they speak for Christ. The Boston Globe (which had praised a similar law in Utah just a few weeks ago, which was mentioned in this space on March 27, but then joined in the lockstep against the Indiana law) ran a political cartoon on Good Friday in which an elephant (the Republican Party), threw a rock which bounced off the head of a man with a badge marked “gays,” while the elephant hid behind Jesus and claimed, pointing at Jesus, “He threw it.” At the bottom of the cartoon a smaller version of the elephant said to Jesus, “I was just expressing Your religion.”

Peter Steinfels in the article on page four warns against being quick to throw out religious liberty laws. His concern is similar to the lines that Robert Bolt places into the mouth of Thomas More, when arguing with his son-in-law, Will Roper, about the primacy of the law.

Roper wanted More to arrest Richard Rich (who would eventually perjure himself so as to achieve Cromwell’s goal of convicting More of treason) on trumped up charges.

Bolt has More say, “And go he should if he were the devil himself until he broke the law!”

The son-in-law is incredulous that More would grant the devil protection of the law, but More explains, “What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the devil? And when the last law was down, and the devil turned round on you — where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws from coast to coast, man’s laws, not God’s, and if you cut them down, do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I give the devil benefit of law, for my own safety’s sake!”

One wonders if the politically-correct realize what danger they place themselves in by cutting down the Indiana law and others like it.

Pope Francis’ Easter urbi et orbi (to the city and the world) message Dear Brothers and Sisters, Jesus Christ is Risen!

Love has triumphed over hatred, life has conquered death, light has dispelled the darkness!

Out of love for us, Jesus Christ stripped Himself of His Divine glory, emptied Himself, took on the form of a slave and humbled Himself even to death, death on a cross.

For this reason God exalted Him and made Him Lord of the universe.

Jesus is Lord!

By His death and Resurrection, Jesus shows everyone the way to

life and happiness: this way is humility, which involves humiliation.

This is the path which leads to glory.

Only those who humble themselves can go towards the “things that are above,” towards God (cf. Col 3:1-4).

The proud look “down from above”; the humble look “up from below.”

On Easter morning, alerted by the women, Peter and John ran to the tomb. They found it open and empty. Then they drew near and “bent down” in order to enter it.

To enter into the mystery, we need to “bend down,” to abase ourselves.

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Only those who abase themselves understand the glorification of Jesus and are able to follow Him on His way.

The world proposes that we put ourselves forward at all costs, that we compete, that we prevail. But Christians, by the grace of Christ, dead and risen, are the seeds of another humanity, in which we seek to live in service to one another, not to be arrogant, but rather respectful and ready to help.

This is not weakness, but true strength! Those who bear within them God’s power, His love and His justice, do not need to employ violence; they speak and act with the power of truth, beauty and love.

From the Risen Lord we ask the grace not to succumb to the pride which fuels violence and war, but to have the humble courage of pardon and peace. We ask Jesus, the Victor over death, to lighten the sufferings of our many brothers and sisters who are persecuted for His name, and of all those who suffer injustice as a result of ongoing conflicts and violence.

We ask for peace, above all, for Syria and Iraq, that the roar of arms may cease and that peaceful relations may be restored among the various groups which make up those beloved countries. May the international

community not stand by before the immense humanitarian tragedy unfolding in these countries and the drama of the numerous refugees.

We pray for peace for all the peoples of the Holy Land. May the culture of encounter grow between Israelis and Palestinians and the peace process be resumed, in order to end years of suffering and division.

We implore peace for Libya, that the present absurd bloodshed and all barbarous acts of violence may cease, and that all concerned for the future of the country may work to favour reconciliation and to build a fraternal society respectful of the dignity of the person. For Yemen, too, we express our hope for the growth of a common desire for peace, for the good of the entire people.

At the same time, in hope we entrust to the merciful Lord the framework recently agreed to in Lausanne, that it may be a definitive step toward a more secure and fraternal world.

We ask the Risen Lord for the gift of peace for Nigeria, South Sudan and for the various areas of Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. May constant prayer rise up from all people of goodwill for those who lost their lives — I think in particular of the young peo-

ple who were killed last Thursday at Garissa University College in Kenya — for all who have been kidnapped, and for those forced to abandon their homes and their dear ones.

May the Lord’s Resurrection bring light to beloved Ukraine, especially to those who have endured the violence of the conflict of recent months. May the country rediscover peace and hope thanks to the commitment of all interested parties.

We ask for peace and freedom for the many men and women subject to old and new forms of enslavement on the part of criminal individuals and groups. Peace and liberty for the victims of drug dealers, who are often allied with the powers who ought to defend peace and harmony in the human family. And we ask peace for this world subjected to arms dealers.

May the marginalized, the imprisoned, the poor and the migrants who are so often rejected, maltreated and discarded, the sick and the suffering, children, especially those who are victims of violence; all who today are in mourning, and all men and women of goodwill, hear the consoling voice of the Lord Jesus: “Peace to you!” (Lk 24:36). “Fear not, for I am Risen and I shall always be with you” (cf. Roman Missal, Entrance Antiphon for Easter Day).

April 10, 2015

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Catholic plan of life is a series of proven Spiritual practices that help us to remain conscious that God is with us at our side at every moment and to aid us to respond to His presence by uniting ourselves to Him. One of the most important practices of piety for maintaining this awareness of God’s presence in the nitty-gritty of daily existence is the prayer of the Angelus, an 800-year-old devotion that focuses our attention on Jesus’ Incarnation and on how we’re called to respond like Mary to God’s intervention in our world and life.

Once upon a time, almost every Catholic knew how to say the Angelus and prayed it three times a day. Sadly, neither is the case any longer.

At one of the parishes I served, when I announced that we were going to pray the Angelus together before Mass, several of the daily Mass-goers asked me to make prayer sheets since some had never heard of it and others hadn’t prayed it for decades.

When I taught children in various Religious Education programs the prayers they should know, I only met one family in which the children knew and were praying it.

The popes have been trying to change the situation by word and example.

St. John XXIII started the practice in the 1960s

Anchor Columnist The Angelus that each Sunday the popes that she would become the would pray this prayer with Mother of Jesus the Savior,” the tens of thousands who Pope Francis continued, had assembled in St. Peter’s “even without understandSquare. That’s continued ing the full significance ever since. of that call, she trusted When Pope Francis God and replied: ‘Behold, greeted the three million I am the handmaid of the young Catholics in Rio de Lord; let it be done to me Janeiro for World Youth according to Your Word.’

Day, he prayed the Angelus with them, told them Putting Into the reason why it’s so important, and the Deep urged them to make this prayer their

By Father own. His words are Roger J. Landry relevant to all of us, no matter how young we are.

“The Angelus prayer is a But what did she do imbeautiful popular expression mediately afterwards? On of the faith,” Pope Francis receiving the grace of being said. “It is a simple prayer, the Mother of the Incarnate recited at three specific Word, she did not keep that times during the day. It thus gift to herself. With a sense punctuates the rhythm of of responsibility, she set off our daily activities: in the from her home and went morning, at midday, and at in haste to help her kinssunset. It is an important woman Elizabeth, who was prayer. I encourage each of in need of assistance. She you to recite it, along with carried out an act of love, the Hail Mary. It reminds of charity, and of practical us of the luminous event service, bringing Jesus Who that transformed history: was in her womb. And she the Incarnation, the modid all this in haste!” ment when the Son of God The Angelus, in other became Man in Jesus of words, helps us to learn Nazareth. Every time we from Mary how to grasp pray the Angelus, we recall the startling news that the event that changed the God-with-us is with us history of mankind forever.” here and now, to let our He then added that not lives develop according to only do we recall history’s His will, and to act on that most important fact, but we will with urgency as we enter into Mary’s response spend our day seeking to to it with faith and charity. love others as God sum“When the Angel Gamons us to do. briel proclaimed to Mary The history of the An-

gelus began with three Hail Marys that monks would pray first at night, then in the morning, and finally in the midst of their work.

They started to add to those Hail Marys short, introductory Biblical phrases associated with what we recite in the Hail Mary, the Archangel Gabriel’s and St. Elizabeth’s words to the Mother of God. The first versicle is St. Luke’s description, “The angel [in Latin, Angelus] of the Lord declared to Mary, and she conceived by the Holy Spirit.”

The second is Mary’s reply: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to Your Word.”

The third is what St. John describes happened immediately in her womb after that reply: “The Word became flesh and dwelled among us.” That Word is the “Blessed Fruit of [Mary’s] womb” on Whom we focus every Hail Mary.

After asking Mary to intercede for us that we may become worthy of God’s promises, we finish the prayer asking that, like her, we might become full of grace and respond to Jesus’ presence and promises: “Pour forth, we beseech you, O Lord, Your grace into our hearts, that, we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ Your Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion

7 and cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection.”

The tradition of the Church has been to pray this prayer at dawn, midday and night. You’ll often hear Church bells ringing at 6 a.m., noon and 6 p.m. with three series of three rings followed by a continuous peal. Each series of three rings is timed for the versicle, the “Hail Mary,” and the “Holy Mary” respectively. The peal is timed to help us pray the closing prayer with joy.

In the plan of life, it’s great to start, finish, and live the heart of each day pondering God’s tangible accompaniment and Mary’s fully Christian response.

The Angelus reminds us that God has entered our time, wants each day to save and sanctify us, and desires to use us as His servants to help Him save others.

With the help of Mary’s intercession, the well-done prayer of the Angelus, perhaps better than any other Spiritual practice, helps us not to forget these realities.

But as important as this prayer is, we don’t pray it during the Easter Season.

We substitute another prayer that helps us to go from the joy of the Incarnation to the even greater joy of the Resurrection. We’ll examine that prayer, the Regina Caeli, next week.

Anchor columnist Father Landry can be contacted at fatherlandry@ catholicpreaching.com.

No murder charge in unborn baby’s death called ‘travesty of justice’

DENVER (CNS) — Denver Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila called it “a travesty of justice” that under Colorado law no murder charges could be filed against a woman accused of violently attacking a pregnant woman and using a knife to remove her unborn baby.

The deceased baby, a girl who was at seven months of development, showed no “signs of life outside of the womb,” so there was no live birth and therefore no homicide occurred, according a statement from the Boulder County coroner.

“Many cannot understand how such a situation could be possible in Colorado,” said

Archbishop Aquila.

“The answer is just as inadequate as the Colorado law.

Colorado law sadly does not recognize the unborn child as a person capable of having a crime, such as homicide, perpetrated against it,” he said in a recent statement, the same day Boulder County District Attorney Stanley Garnett announced he would not file a murder charge against the alleged attacker, Dynel Lane, in the case of the baby’s death.

Lane, 34, was arrested March 18 by Longmont Police after she allegedly attacked Michelle Wilkins, 26, after the pregnant woman came to her home in

response to Lane’s Craigslist ad offering baby clothes.

Lane has been charged with eight felony counts in the attack, including first-degree unlawful termination of pregnancy for cutting Wilkins’ unborn child out of her womb. Wilkins was left for dead, but she survived and continues to recover from her injuries.

According to news reports, Lane had told her family she was pregnant and on the day of the alleged attack she informed her husband she had had a miscarriage and needed to go to the hospital.

Longmont Police Commander Jeff Satur told reporters

Lane arrived at a local hospital with Wilkins’ baby. Satur said Lane’s husband drove her to the emergency room, thinking the child was alive.

“I cannot imagine the horrific loss Michelle and her family are suffering,” said Archbishop Aquila. “My heart is filled with sorrow for them for they looked forward to the birth of their child with joy and anticipation.

“Colorado law tells them it was not murder, no crime was committed against the child,” he continued. “I call on all people of good will to keep Michelle and her family in prayer.

I pray that God’s comfort will fill the hearts of Michelle and

her family as they mourn (their) loss.”

He said that St. John Paul II reminded us in the “Gospel of Life” that “there can be no true democracy without a recognition of every person’s dignity and without respect for his or her rights. Nor can there be true peace unless life is defended and promoted.”

Archbishop Aquila said Colorado law “should reflect this reality and it is up to each one of us to call upon our elected officials to enact laws that recognize the fact that the unborn can in fact be victims of horrendous crimes such as homicide.”

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April 10, 2015

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ou may have noticed, in some of the phrases of the Liturgy during the season of Lent, how many of the prayers have a military tone. Our collect on Ash Wednesday asks that “we may begin with holy fasting this campaign of Christian service,” reminding us that our Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving aren’t just meant to be isolated events, but rather as the result of a disciplined approach to the Spiritual life. In the same way that soldiers must undergo rigorous training before they are ready for battle, and maintain a dedicated focus on their missions thereafter, so must we, as Christians, remain focused on living out the call to holiness that Christ makes to each one of us.

But don’t think that just because Lent is completed

Keep fighting!

means that we’re done! ReIn the fight against sin in our ally, Lent is like a Spiritual own lives, in how we model version of boot camp: it a Christian way of living for exists to shake up our life a others, in how we help them little, calling us to step back to live out their own vocafrom some of the pleasures tions, we are helping to make we might like and undertake a focused training on the Homily of the Week basic aspects of the Christian life. Now, Divine Mercy we’re ready for our Sunday mission.

By Father A somewhat Riley J. Williams military tone pervades some of our readings this week present Christ’s victory that as well. “Whoever is begotwe celebrate at Easter. ten by God conquers the Today’s feast of Divine world, and the victory that Mercy highlights another conquers the world is our aspect of our Spiritual misfaith” (1 Jn 5:4). In Lent, we sion: to spread the message of recommit ourselves to our God’s mercy. A few weeks ago, own Spiritual identity as our Gospel reminded us that Christians; now, during the “God did not send His Son season of Easter, renewed in into the world to condemn the power of Christ’s victory the world, but that the world over sin and death, we are might be saved through Him” called to live out that victory. ( Jn 3:17). Today, we remem-

ber the aim of Christ’s saving work. Christ doesn’t come to validate the perfect; instead, He comes to all of us — you and me — as we are, and calls us to follow Him, bringing along whatever gifts and talents He may have given us, and leaving behind all that does not belong in the life of a disciple of the Lord.

This initial experience of God’s mercy — that He still calls us to follow Him, despite whatever faults or weaknesses we may have, is the starting point for bringing that gift of God’s mercy to others in our own lives. Where in our families can we work to bring about reconciliation and healing of old wounds? What relationships in our own lives might call for us to practice forgiveness? Our first read-

ing tells of how “the community of believers was of one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32). Of what communities are we part, either at where we work or where we go to school, in our home or among our group of friends, where we can help to bring about a similar presence of God’s peace, trying to heal divisions rather than exacerbate them, seeking always, by our words and example, to reflect the love and mercy that our Heavenly Father has given to us?

This is not always easybut it’s for this that our Lenten training has prepared us. We’re done with boot camp — now, we’re sent out on mission!

Father Williams is parochial vicar at St. John the Evangelist and St. Vincent de Paul parishes and assistant chaplain at Sturdy Hospital in Attleboro.

Upcoming Daily Readings: Sat. Apr. 11, Acts 4:13-21; Ps 118:1,14-15ab,16-21; Mk 16:9-15. Sun. Apr. 12, Second Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy Sunday), Acts 4:32-35; Ps 118:2-4,13-15,22-24; 1 Jn 5:1-6; Jn 20:19-31. Mon. Apr. 13, Acts 4:23-31; Ps 2:1-9; Jn 3:1-8. Tues. Apr. 14, Acts 4:32-37; Ps 93:1-2,5; Jn 3:7b-15. Wed. Apr. 15, Acts 5:17-26; Ps 34:2-9; Jn 3:16-21. Thurs. Apr. 16, Acts 5:27-33; Ps 34:2,9,17-20; Jn 3:31-36. Fri. Apr. 17, Acts 5:3442; Ps 27:1,4,13-14; Jn 6:1-15.

500 years after birth, witness of St. Teresa of Avila remains strong, says pope

Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — On the 500th anniversary of St. Teresa of Avila’s birth, Pope Francis praised the Spanish mystic and reformer for her witness of self-gift to God, as well as her particular relevance during this Year of Consecrated Life.

“How much goodness does the testimony of her consecration — born directly from the encounter with Christ, her experience of prayer as continuous dialogue with God, and her community life, rooted in the motherhood of the Church — do for us!” the pope said, according to Vatican Radio’s translation.

In a recent letter addressed to Father Xavier Cannistrà, superior general of the Order of Discalced Carmelites, the pontiff wrote that it is Providential that the anniversary of the saint’s birth should coincide with the Year of Consecrated Life, which began late last year.

St. Teresa of Avila, the Holy Father said, “shines as a sure and attractive model of total self-giving to God.”

Born March 28, 1515 in Avila, Spain, St. Teresa is known as a mystic and reformer. Entering the Carmelite order in 1535, she became disillusioned by the laxity of monastic life within the cloister, and committed herself to reforming the order. She is considered one of the founders of the Discalced Carmelites.

During her lifetime, St. Teresa wrote several important works on the Spiritual life, such as “Interior Castle” and “The Way of Perfection.” Canonized 40 years after her death in 1622

by Pope Gregory XV, she was declared as one of the first-ever female doctors of the Church in 1970 by Pope Paul VI. St. Teresa of Avila remains relevant for consecrated men and women, Pope Francis wrote, as demonstrated by her prayer life, her proclamation of the Gospel, and her understanding of the importance of community life.

Describing her as “primarily a teacher of prayer,” the pontiff said that “the discovery of Christ’s humanity was central

to her experience.”

For St. Teresa, prayer arose in all occasions, not simply in times and places of seclusion, the pope said. Moreover, she believed that “continuous

(CNS/Crosiers)

prayer” — even when it was imperfect — had value.

“The saint asks us to be steadfast, faithful, even in times of dryness, personal difficulties or urgent needs that call us.”

The “concrete proposals” and methods of prayer left by St. Teresa offers “us a great trea-

sure to renew consecrated life today,” the pope said.

“Far from closing us in on ourselves or leading us only to inner balance, (they) always make us start again from Jesus and constitute a genuine school to grow in love for God and neighbor.”

Pope Francis went on to describe St. Teresa as a “tireless communicator of the Gospel,” at a time when the Church was in the midst of difficulties. Instigator of the “Teresian reform” of the laxities demonstrated by the Carmelite cloister in which she lived, she demonstrated a “missionary and ecclesial dimension has always marked the Carmelites and Discalced Carmelites,” he said.

“Even today the saint opens new horizons for us, she calls us to a great undertaking, to see the world with the eyes of Christ, to seek what He seeks and to love what He loves.”

Finally, St. Teresa recognized the importance of “authentic community life” in sustaining prayer and the evangelical mission, the pope said.

Warning against “the danger of individualism in fraternal life,” he added, the saint commends those living in community to place themselves “at the service of others,” with a humility consisting “of self-acceptance, awareness of one’s own dignity, missionary courage, gratitude and trust in God.” “Teresian communities are called to become houses of communion, capable of witnessing to fraternal love and to the motherhood of the Church, presenting to the Lord the needs of the world, torn by divisions and wars.”

Pope Francis concluded by imparting his apostolic blessing, praying that the Carmelite community’s “witness to life” would allow “the joy and beauty of living the Gospel to shine and attracts many young people to follow Christ closely.”

The worldwide Year for Consecrated life began Nov. 30, 2014 and will continue until the World Day of Consecrated Life on Feb. 2, 2016.

April 10, 2015

Wednesday 8 April 2015 — Homeport: Falmouth Harbor — April Fool’s Day (Oh, wait) ans of the Anchor often ask me, “Father, how do you ever manage to meet those looming deadlines and come up with 850 pithy words every week? Isn’t it nerve-wracking?”

You know me, dear readers. I find writing to be great fun.

For me, it’s not hard work at all. Besides, at my age, I avoid doing anything too strenuous.

Doctor’s orders, you know.

It’s not all that difficult to write, as long as you keep in mind some basic rules of punctuation, spelling, and grammar.

My fourth grade teacher taught me that one must first know the rules of writing and only then can one break them. To prove my point, just read e e cummings. I’ve taken this advice to heart. I try to keep my thumb of the pulse of modern language usage, along with many other subjects.

As I write this, it’s raining buckets of cats and dogs. On this dark and stormy night, the weather affords quality time to sit down and address the subject of writing.

All grammar, spelling, and punctuation rules have exceptions (with a few exceptions.)

The fact is that rules do change.

F

O

n March 19 the world lost someone special: a quiet, unassuming man of faith, my grandfather, who we affectionately refer to as “Pa,” left this world to be welcomed into his eternal one.

And while he was not one to seek attention, I can’t help but want to share with you how my faith was renewed in the similarly quiet and unassuming revelations that surrounded Pa’s death that proved just how good God truly is.

On the day that Pa was called home, shortly after I’d connected with my family, I received a message from a friend back in Massachusetts who I hadn’t heard from in quite some time. Though he was simply checking in on me to see how I was, knowing that he is a man of great faith I asked if he could pray for Pa’s soul. His response would shake me. Having been wondering if there was any religious significance to this day, my curiosities were answered: It was the solemnity of St. Joseph.

Anchor Columnists How to write good

would I be were it not for your For example, the New york rhetorical questions? Allow me times stylebook insists that to give you some hot tips on the word for the celebration of writing. I’ll try my best to be the Catholic Eucharist should more or less specific. always appear in lower case As they say, avoid clichés – “mass.” I don’t think so. It’s like the plague. In my opinion, Holy Mass not “holy mass” as clichés are as bad as comfar as I am concerned. parisons. And don’t start a The same holds true when sentence with a proposition. it comes to a headline or book title. I was taught to capitalize the first letter in each word. Oh, The Ship’s Log no — not anymore.

Reflections of a Only the first letter of Parish Priest the first word is capitalized. Well, forget

By Father Tim it. I’ll stick to the old Goldrick way.

And their’s the question of whether or No sentence fragments, either. not a comma should go inside Also, always avoid all annoyor outside the closing parening alliteration. Likewise, avoid thesis. “Inside,” insist today’s abbrevs., etc. punctuation nerds. However I’ve learned that contrac(according to my fourth grade tions are often unnecessary and teacher), it belongs outside. shouldn’t be used in excess – so Don’t mess with my comdon’t. Don’t use no double negmas. Anyway it’s best to avoid atives either. How about onecommas, that are unnecessary. word sentences? Eliminate! We Then (of course) parenthetical all know it’s wrong to ever split remarks (however helpful) are also (usually) unnecessary. Par- an infinitive. Always use the enthetical words however must active voice since the passive voice is to be avoided. Which be enclosed in commas. reminds me — all generalizaYou, too, can write, if you tions are wrong. Never, ever, be keep the basic rules in mind. redundant over and over again.

What rules, you ask? Well, Don’t use more words than thank you for asking. Where

My initial reaction was based on my limited knowledge of St. Joseph. At first I was simply content to know that he was Jesus’ father, the father of a carpenter and a man who would go on to change history.

The correlation between Pa and my own father, who is skilled in a similar trade, was enough to bring me peace. But what I learned when our messages continued was that St. Joseph is actually the patron saint of a peaceful death. This had such an effect on me, one that I can’t quite put into words, for though Pa had been steadily declining, losing his memory and failing in his health, we were assured that he hadn’t been in any pain when he passed.

I decided to wait until arriving home to share this with my dad, hoping it might bring him a similar peace.

When we finally got to speak, I found out that Pa also wore

9

necessary; it’s highly superfluous.

Be very careful to only use the apostrophe in it’s proper place. As far as the use of analogies goes, it’s like water off a duck’s back to my editors. As you know, I’m fond of using the dash — a helpful punctuation mark — but it can be overused — even though I — personally — favor it. Use the semicolon properly, always use it where it is appropriate; and never when it isn’t.

For heaven sake, don’t overuse exclamation marks!!!!

Shakespeare once said, “Puns are the lowest form of humor.” In other words, puns are for children, not groan-ups. And don’t be always quoting somebody else. Write what you yourself think — not Shakespeare.

I try to avoid using foreign phrases ad infinitam just to show off my knowledge of other languages. Moving forward, I also try to avoid buzz-words except in a worse-case scenario when there is a window of opportunity. I also strive to avoid buzz words that have long gone out of style. They’re just not groovy anymore. Not to exaggerate, but surely everyone

knows how to correctly use hyperbole. If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a million times.

I try to employ the vernacular to get my point across but in my formal writing in the Anchor, I don’t use contractions.

Contractions arent necessary.

There are several proofreaders in the Anchor office, whose job it is to catch errors of grammar, punctuation, and spelling. I also have several other proofreaders of my own.

Proofreading is important.

Proofing must be done carefully in case you any words out.

One doesn’t want to repeat repeat words, either. These days, most of our computers have that new-fangled spell check thing, but the spell chequer is not always write.

Thank you for proofing this column, Dave Jolivet.

Oh no. The word counter indicates I’m about to reach the 850 word limit for this column, but a good writer must always finish what he has (Editor’s note: Reading this column and not correcting a word was like listening to fingernails running down a black board. Father Tim owes me won, I mean one.)

Anchor columnist Father Goldrick is pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth.

ing words were to never stay a Sunday away from Church or a day away from prayer.

I never knew how valued prayer was to my grandfather, because he never spoke of it to me. I never understood how driven by faith his life was because he never “put it on” as a show for others. Faith was simply ingrained in him, a part of his daily life that emerged in his words and actions.

In learning these things, I challenge you to embrace your faith each day, making your love for Christ apparent by your words and deeds but never a cloak that you can take off. Do not use it as a way for people to recognize you, but rather strive for humility. Will this be difficult? Perhaps. But does it have to be? No. If we all were to live our lives as Pa did: Choosing to speak kindly and act with dignity and respect for others. Being thankful for all we have even when it’s not a lot. Loving with all we have

because we realize what a blessing it is to have the people we treasure in our lives. And then, before we know it, something happens.

For when we do these things for the glory of God, because He offered us the same love and compassion, we forget that small eyes are watching. It is then, when our faith has crept into the quiet moments and in times when we are merely living to serve others and not ourselves in our everyday life, that we become models for our children and for others. And so I encourage you to do just as Pa’s words encouraged —never stay a day from prayer. For our work here on Earth, to be Christ to one another, is clarified through prayer and service, something I am proud that Pa shared with us by his life.

Anchor columnist Renee Bernier graduated from Stonehill College and is a graduate student in the College Student Personnel Program at James Madison University in Harrison, Va.

Going home

a St. Joseph medal around his neck, for he was his favorite of the saints. Renewed in my faith, over the course of the few days I was home I learned more things about my

Radiate Your Faith

By Renee Bernier

grandfather than I had never known, that completed the picture of a private but Godfearing individual.

Though I knew he and my grandmother were always active in their Church, I never realized the depths to which their faith ran until I listened to family recall their memories of him. The words that resonated deeply with me were those shared by my Uncle Marc, who recalled that as he was preparing to move away from home, Pa’s part-

10

April 10, 2015

Senate confirms nomination of Boston priest as chief of chaplains

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Father Paul K. Hurley, a priest of the Archdiocese of Boston and a military chaplain for about 15 years, was confirmed March 27 as the U.S. Army chief of chaplains in a voice vote by the U.S. Senate. With the appointment comes a promotion in rank from colonel to major general.

Father Hurley, in a recent telephone interview with Catholic News Service, said he expected the formal promo-

tion and installation ceremony to take place sometime in May. He will become the Army’s 24th chief of chaplains.

He will succeed Msgr. Donald L. Rutherford, himself a major general in the Army and a priest of the Diocese of Albany, N.Y., who will soon retire after serving in the post since 2011.

Father Hurley, who said he’s usually called “chap” — short for “chaplain,” especially to nonCatholic Army personnel — is

not only a graduate of St. John’s Seminary in Boston, but also of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. “After doing some time in a parish up in Boston, it was kind of mutual thing that I eventually came back to the military as a chaplain,” said Father Hurley, who was ordained to the priesthood in 1995. Father Hurley currently serves as the command chaplain for the 18th Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg, N.C.

11

April 10, 2015

Cat on a hot tin roof

I

by a new building in 1980 and t was time for my eveburned down 10 years later. ning walk and Bailey Then it was on toward the accompanied me as is his volleyball court where Edwin custom. We walked past the Lelepali organizes games and care home where a nurse is serves as “whistle blower” on always on duty to tend to any patient who is in need of care. Wednesday and Saturday evenings. Across the street We passed the visitors’ quarters and the Wilcox House both of which accommodate those visitors who come to experience this special

By Father settlement for a few days or for a weekend.

Patrick Killilea, SS.CC. We passed the Bayiew Home which now from the volleyball court is serves as offices for some of the National Park personnel as one of the most “sacred” places in town, the Fuesaina Bar. It well as sleeping accommodations for others. When we got was here where Bailey broke ranks and decided to drop into to the next intersection, we paused at the memorial Celtic the bar while I continued on home to my house. I figured Cross erected by the English he would come home later. in 1893 to the memory of It was much later and Father Damien, just four years already dark when I realized after his death. Bailey seemed that he still had not shown very interested, even curious.

Next we turned back toward up. So I grabbed my flashlight (it gets quite dark here) and my residence and St. Francis retraced my steps to the bar.

Church, passing on our right Gloria and her sister were sitMother Marianne’s grave and on our left the ruins of the old ting there chatting and watching television and there were hospital which was replaced

Moon Over Molokai

three or four cats lounging around contentedly, but there was no sign of Bailey. I exited the bar by the rear door and called out, “Bailey, Bailey, are you here?” I thought that he might be sloshed and laying down but immediately I heard a little voice call back, “Meow, Meow!” I shone my light on the highest point of the roof and there he was “on a hot tin roof,” Babyface Bailey, the younger of my two cats.

Cats as well as dogs are a primary feature here in Kalaupapa. One could indeed say that they are revered. They serve as companions and friends to patients and workers. In a manner of speaking they take the place of youngsters since no one under 16 years of age is permitted to live or visit this settlement. While some residents like myself feed a couple of cats, others feed several cats which make their home in that particular neighborhood.

I succeeded in talking Babyface down off the roof

that evening since there was no way that I was going to climb up there and possibly fall through the roof (I do weigh a few pounds).

He then followed me home, rather reluctantly I must say, and he has not been back to the bar since, as far as I know. He is my adopted cat

and a lovable little rascal and seems to be quite comfortable with King Reilly, my older cat, who adopted me some time ago. So go get yourself a cat.

Aloha and meow.

Anchor columnist Father Killilea is pastor of St. Francis Parish in Kalaupapa, Hawaii.

12

April 10, 2015

Transformed by Holy Week — Personal reflections of new shepherd continued from page one

As we walked the road to Calvary, we were accompanied for the first time by our new shepherd, Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D. V., whose kind and gentle voice guided and taught us along the way.

MASS OF CHRISM: A TIME TO BLESS One of the most beautiful celebrations of the year, the Chrism Mass drew faithful from across the diocese, and the cathedral was filled to the rafters.

Clergy from all diocesan parishes processed down the center aisle, while the bishop followed.

“We are really grateful to all of you for being here today,” said Bishop da Cunha, welcoming the congregation. “I wish at this celebration to let all our priests know how important they are and how appreciative we are for their lives and vocation.”

Gathering together at the Chrism Mass, the priests renewed their ordination promises by reaffirming their commitment to serving the Church.

“Beloved sons, on the anniversary of that day when Christ the Lord conferred His priesthood on His Apostles and on us, are you resolved to renew, in the presence of your bishop and God’s holy people, the promises you once made?”

Bishop da Cunha asked.

“I am,” they answered.

“Are you resolved to be more united with the Lord Jesus and more closely conformed to Him, denying yourselves and confirming those promises about Sacred duties towards Christ’s Church which, prompted by love of Him, you willingly and joyfully pledged on the day of your priestly ordination?” he asked.

“I am,” they answered.

“Are you resolved to be faithful stewards of the mysteries of God in the Holy Eucharist and the other Liturgical rites and to discharge faithfully the Sacred office of teaching, following Christ the Head and Shepherd, not seeking any gain, but moved only by zeal for souls?” he asked.

“I am,” they answered.

Then the bishop addressed us.

“As for you, dearest sons and daughters, pray for your priests, that the Lord may pour out His gifts abundantly upon them, and keep them

faithful as ministers of Christ, the High Priest, so that they may lead you to Him, Who is the Source of Salvation,” he said. “And pray also for me, that I may be faithful to the apostolic office entrusted to me in my lowliness and that in your midst I may be made day-by-day a living and more perfect image of Christ, the Priest, the Good Shepherd, the Teacher and the Servant of all.”

Three oils — the Oil of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens, and Holy Chrism — were blessed and consecrated for distribution to the parishes.

There were three processions, each headed by two deacons holding an urn, followed by nine people representing those ministries and bringing four baskets, each containing 25 bottles of oil.

Bishop da Cunha breathed over the open vessel of Chrism oil, and all of the clergy extended their right hand in blessing.

“These holy oils distributed throughout the diocese will be a sign of unity and source of blessing for all those who receive this anointing,” the bishop said.

HOLY THURSDAY: A TIME TO SERVE On this holy night we began the Sacred Triduum which continued until sunset on Easter Sunday.

“Welcome all to this beautiful celebration this evening as we begin the Paschal Triduum,” said Bishop da Cunha.

“Today we celebrate when Jesus and His disciples gathered in the Upper Room, and we celebrate service as He washed their feet.”

Twelve men, representing the Apostles, waited in the front pews. One by one they approached Bishop da Cunha, assisted by Deacon Peter R. Cote, and the bishop washed their feet.

“We sit around the table of Our Lord with the meal of the Body and Blood of Christ and remember what Christ did for us,” said Bishop da Cunha. “Jesus had to give Himself in the Eucharist, suffer and die for us, and Rise again.”

He said that the sharing of the Eucharist is a sign of our commitment to be transformed and to be an instrument of transformation.

“Everyone who participates in the Eucharist must be committed to the struggle to cre-

ate a better and just world,” he added. “It must change us.”

Bishop da Cunha carried the Blessed Sacrament, while we followed in silence to the Chapel of Our Lady for Eucharistic Adoration. Compline was prayed at 10 p.m. to end the night watch.

GOOD FRIDAY: A TIME TO SUFFER The Good Friday service began in silence, while Bishop da Cunha walked prayerfully to the altar.

We waited respectfully as the bishop and Deacon Cote lay lifeless on the marble floor in front of the altar.

After the reading the Passion from the Gospel of John, Bishop da Cunha spoke about the redeeming value of suffering.

First, he asked us to ponder this question: “Why did God choose to save the world the way He did by allowing His only Son to suffer, to be crucified and to die?”

He added: “Could God have done differently, and just say, ‘I’m saving the world,’ by the power of His Word, without Jesus going through all this humiliation, suffering and abandonment?”

“But if He had done this, we would never have been convinced,” he said. “We needed to see how much God loved us and how much He is capable of doing for us so we could be touched and changed.

Miracles would not be enough.

We needed to know how much He loves us — to love means to suffer; to love means to give one’s life for the beloved.”

We venerated the cross. All came forward to kiss the Cross of Christ.

Then we left in silence for the sake of those who remained in prayer.

EASTER: A TIME TO REJOICE While the wind howled outside, we stood in silence in the darkness of the massive cathedral. Then in the back of the Sanctuary, a new fire appeared, blazing with light.

Bishop da Cunha lit the Easter Candle and proclaimed the Light of Christ, scattering the darkness.

Then flickers of light began to appear, as the flame was passed candle to candle; and in a matter of minutes the church was illuminated.

“The whole darkness of our Church is gone, and we are now in the light,” said the bishop.

“Christ is our Light as we celebrate this Easter Vigil in anticipation of His Resurrection.”

We renewed our baptismal promises.

“To be blessed and sprinkled with water tonight reminds us of our new beginning,” said Bishop da Cunha. “We are blessed with the new light, the fresh water of Baptism and the hope of Resurrection. Easter is a new beginning.”

He added that God changed things around: He changed death into life, evil to good.

“Tonight we are called to

CNS Movie Capsule NEW YORK (CNS) — The following is a capsule review of a movie recently reviewed by Catholic News Service.

“Furious 7” (Universal) True to form, exotic settings, stale dictums and always-murky moral values characterize this extension of the “Fast and Furious” series.

Led by putatively Catholic paterfamilias Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Chris “Ludac-

move from darkness into light, from fear to courage, from old to new, from sin to grace, from sadness to joy, from doubt to faith, from despair to hope,” he said.

The Mass ended, and the musicians performed a lively Brazilian-Portuguese song while everyone clapped with joy.

And the bishop shook hands with us, before we headed back out into the cold, dark night — a People of Light.

Pictures of diocesan Holy Week observances appear on page 20 of this edition. ris” Bridges, Jordana Brewster, and Tyrese Gibson set out to avenge the murder of their colleague Sung Kang. Director James Wan and screenwriter Chris Morgan dispense with the subplots explaining how the crew of underground car racers this ensemble portrays was reassembled. Instead, they provide scenes of the happy family lives some — Walker especially — must leave behind to fight the forces of evil. A vengeance theme, nearly nonstop gun and physical violence, a few uses of profanity, fleeting crude and crass language. The Catholic News Service classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, April 12 at 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Msgr. Gerard P. O’Connor, pastor of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Acushnet

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April 10, 2015

Cape Cod Respect Life Committee introduces ‘Culture of Life Chaplet’ Parish in Mashpee. Under the loving watch of committee MASHPEE — A brand chairman Claire Twitchell, the new “Culture of Life Chaplet,” group has, for a long time, met will be prayed next week for monthly to pray for the most the first time with the hopes vulnerable of God’s creatures: of counteracting the culture of the unborn, the elderly, the death overspreading the world marginalized, the imprisoned, and anyone who is a victim today.

One doesn’t have to try very of human cruelty and injushard to witness the rapid ero- tice.

Its mission statement sion of respect for human life reads: “To promote and enin this world.

Day after day, TV cameras courage respect for life from and personal smartphones conception to natural death capture images of just how through prayer, education cruel man can treat his fellow and pro-active support of all life issues. Each of us is man.

Newspapers and e-publica- a masterpiece of God’s cretions are filled with stories of ation. No matter how the humans defending the right to world might view us or othlegally kill unborn and elderly ers, let us treat each person as the masterpiece that he creations of God. Movies and television or she is.”

Each month the group shows routinely glorify the meets for “informative savagery of mankind towards discussions,” its own — believing it’s enter- round-table to talk about “how to protainment.

Today’s youth has rapidly actively participate in supbecome desensitized to the porting all life issues.”

The group has hosted a lack of respect for life permemonthly prayer service for life ating this planet. and a Rosary for life.

Yet, there is an army out Committee secretary-treathere, in every corner of the world, that is fighting this at- surer Betty Kelley felt still tack on life. An army whose more could be done to foster weapons are prayer and works and spread a Culture of Life.

After prayerful consideration, of charity and mercy.

A small battalion in that Kelley developed the “Cularmy is the Respect Life ture of Life Chaplet,” that the Committee at Christ the King group will introduce on April

By Dave Jolivet Anchor Editor

16 at 1 p.m. at the St. Jude’s Chapel in Mashpee, part of the Respect Life Committee’s “Could you watch (pray) one hour with me?” theme.

“I see such a lack of dignity of life in this country,” Kelley told The Anchor. “It occurred to

me to try to encourage more people to pray about the conditions in this country.”

Kelley said the chaplet doesn’t only concentrate on the unborn, but “the prayers are all-inclusive for all life issues.”

Kelley said she was grateful for pastor Msgr. Daniel Hoye’s support in the endeavor. “I am so pleased to have Msgr. Hoye

on board and so supportive,” she added.

The chaplet took nearly five months to put together, and according to Kelley, “A small group of us got together to practice and see how long it will take — about 45 minutes.”

The chaplet is prayed on regular Rosary beads. It begins, as do most prayers, with the Sign of the Cross.

That is followed by an opening prayer, the Apostles’ Creed, an Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be. “Each of the decades begins with a meditation on a certain aspect of life,” explained Kelley. “All of the meditations are taken from writings from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Respect Life Committee.”

In order, the five decades are devoted to: All children, born and unborn; the marginalized; for an end to euthanasia and assisted suicide; for an end to the death penalty; and to restore the Culture of Life.

Each decade is then prayed in the same manner as a Rosary.

“I believe this is a way to have people think about the different aspects of life that are constantly under attack,” said Kelley. “Msgr. Hoye wanted to

include all aspects as well.”

Kelley and the Respect Life Committee members are hopeful this chaplet will be accepted and actually spread. “We had the chaplet printed in booklet form by a good friend, Kelley Souza who owns New Wave Printing and Design in Falmouth,” Kelley added. “That way it will be easier to pray and concentrate. If it catches on, we can always have more booklets printed somehow.

“I think the closing prayer truly sums up what we’re trying to express in the chaplet: ‘Let’s make a difference today.

Let’s make our homes havens of peace and mercy. Let’s work together to make the world a place where the innocent and the vulnerable are welcomed, protected and honored. Lord, come and save Your people.

Bring Your justice to this earth so that no one is ever abandoned again!”

Kelley added that this is a prayer that “people can do on their own at any time. Everyone can make a difference.”

For information about the Culture of Life Chaplet, contact the Respect Life Committee at Christ the King Parish in Mashpee, through the parish office at The Commons, P.O. Box 1800, Mashpee, 02649; telephone 508-477-7700; or email ctk@cape.com.

At Easter, Middle Eastern patriarchs encourage hope despite turmoil

BEIRUT (CNS) — Catholic patriarchs of the Middle East in their Easter messages urged the faithful to cling to the hope of the Risen Christ amid raging wars, human suffering and the uprooting of Christians from their homelands in the region.

“We have spent 40 or even 50 days in fasting and prayer, that God may remove from our Eastern countries, especially Syria and Iraq, this evil spirit that can only go out through prayer and fasting,” Syrian-born Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregoire III Laham said.

“We say to everyone in the East and in the West: dismiss any idea that this conflict is over religion,” he said.

“When I look at what is happening in our countries, it seems to me that Daesh (the Arabic acronym for Islamic State) has nothing whatever to do with religion. ISIS is rather an instrument which

takes on, very foolishly and for success and the conquest the disciples of Emmaus,” he insolently, the outward aspect of death by life, enmity by said, citing Luke 24:26: “Was and show of a religious move- love and hatred and revenge it not necessary that the Mesment. However, in reality they by forgiveness and reconcili- siah should suffer these things and enter into His glory?” show Islam in a most hid- ation.”

“Christ’s Resurrection from eous, deceitful and fraudulent Syrian Catholic Patriarch the dead is the basis of our guise,” he said.

Ignatius Youssef III Younan faith, the pillar of our The conflict, Patriarch Laham said, eligious conflict has become hope,” Patriarch Youexplained, adding “has become a tool marketable. Killing the inno- nan that “it gave us a firm and a cover for proxy war in our region and cent has become a commodity and instru- reassurance and a at the cost of all its ment, and slaughtering Christians has strong reason for our own resurrection.” citizens.” become a tool.”

Cardinal Bechara “Religious conflict Rai, Maronite Cathhas become marketable. Killing the innocent has acknowledged in his Easter olic patriarch, called attention become a commodity and in- message the years of suffering to the “enormous economic strument, and slaughtering of Christians caused by the and social challenges” facing Lebanon, noting that oneChristians has become a tool,” turmoil in Syria and Iraq. he said.

“We, however, sons and third of Lebanese live in povDespite the violence and daughters of the Syriac Cath- erty line and that the number death, he called on the faith- olic Church, are so proud to is increasing.

Lebanon’s population ful to “strengthen our faith in model ourselves to the One life, in the Risen Christ Who Who suffered carrying His stands at about four million, has conquered death and be- cross, died and was Risen for of which about 33 percent are stowed life and calls us all to our Salvation,” the patriarch Christian. The country has faced an influx of 1.5 million be children of the Resurrec- said. tion and life, to be bearers of “We mean it when recall Syrian refugees and thousands the Gospel of Life and work the very words of our Savior to of Iraqis, overwhelming the

“R

country’s economy and straining social relations.

Furthermore, Lebanon’s presidential vacuum has created a “political death” in the country, crippling the government and the parliament, Cardinal Rai said.

The presidential post is reserved for a Maronite Catholic under the country’s powersharing system. Legislators have failed to agree on a successor since the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014.

As for the raging conflicts in the region, Cardinal Rai urged world and Arab leaders to stop supporting mercenaries and fighters with money and weapons, appealing to them to find peaceful solutions.

“And do not forget the suffering of our people in the Holy Land, Iraq, Syria and Yemen,” he continued.

“We seek for us and for all of them the peace of Christ.”

14

April 10, 2015

A Statement of the Roman Catholic Bishops of Massachusetts on the Death Penalty

The Boston Marathon Bombing trial is a painful reminder of the harm that impacts many people even beyond those who are killed or maimed by violent criminal acts.

Given that the defendant, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, is being tried in federal court with the possibility of capital punishment, and that the bishops have testified against capital punishment in the past, we feel it is fitting to clarify the Church’s teaching regarding the use of the death penalty.

The Church has taught that the cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity are “rare, if not practically nonexistent” (“Catechism of the Catholic Church” § 2267).

The Church’s teaching is further developing in recognition of the inherent dignity of all life as a gift from God. As Pope Francis has recently stated, “[The death penalty] is an offense against the inviolability of life and the dignity of the human person. When the death penalty is applied, it is not for a current act of oppression, but rather for an act committed in the past. It is also applied to persons whose current ability to cause harm is not current, as it has been neutralized — they are already deprived of their lib-

This week in 50 years ago — A special performance of “The Passion” by Max Bauman, was staged at Stonehill College in Easton. The Stonehill College Glee Club performed as speaking chorus while Father Joseph P. Keena, C.S.C., chairman of the English Department, spoke the Words of Christ.

25 years ago — The Diocesan Department of Pastoral Care for the Sick offered “Reflection and Relaxation,” an overnight experience for health care workers, at Cathedral Camp in East Freetown.

erty” (His Holiness Pope Francis, Remarks to the International Commission Against the Death Penalty, March 20, 2015).

The defendant in this case has been neutralized and will never again have the ability to cause harm. Because of this, we, the Catholic Bishops of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, believe that society can do better than the death penalty. As the Bishops of the United States said in their 2005 statement A Culture of Life and the Penalty of Death, “no matter how heinous the crime, if society can protect itself without ending a human life, it should do so.” We believe these words remain true today in the face of this most terrible crime.

Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley, OFM, Cap. Archbishop Archdiocese of Boston Most Reverend Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V. Bishop Diocese of Fall River Most Reverend Mitchell T. Rozanski Bishop Diocese of Springfield Most Reverend Robert J. McManus Bishop Diocese of Worcester

Diocesan history 10 years ago — Bishop Feehan High School students, faculty and administrators participated in a schoolwide retreat day. The day was highlighted by a conclusion to the school’s Lenten Can Drive.

One year ago — William Milot, director of technology for the Catholic schools in the Diocese of Fall River, was named by the Consortium for School Networking to its Volunteer Hall of Fame during the CoSN conference in Washington, D.C.

Pope Francis greets the crowd as he arrives to deliver his Easter message and blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city and the world — see page six) from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican April 5. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

India bishop: Christ is working through the tragedy of present-day martyrdom

Miao, Indi (CNA/EWTN News) — In his Easter letter released this week, Bishop George Pallipparambil of Miao reflected on Christ’s work through the tragedies of this life, noting the ongoing persecution of Christians and in particular the martyrdom of 21 Coptic Christians in Libya earlier this year.

“The gory sight of the 21 young men being mercilessly beheaded recently, because of their faith, the forgiving attitude of their folks back home and the thousands of thousands who are being killed, jailed and tortured in many parts of the world and their refusal to deny the Lord is the greatest inner strength that the Lord gives us,” Bishop Pallipparambil wrote in the letter recently released.

“If Jesus had not taken our human form, lived like us avoiding sin, undergoing humiliation and the Passion and death, our life with all its crosses would have no meaning.”

He noted recently that he was asked, in light of such tragedies, “Why is Jesus not doing anything?”

“I was not confused or shocked,” he wrote, recounting that he replied: “The Lord is doing a lot. He is allowing Himself to be crucified, beheaded, persecuted, He is also weeping with us for His lost brother, sisters, father, mother, just as His shameful death led to the glorious Resurrection, these currents events will lead to a new reign of God.” However, Bishop Pallipparambil maintained that the response to the question does not end there, and “we need to go further.”

He turned to the importance of family, in light of the upcoming Synod on the Family, saying, “We need to focus our attention to this most

Sacred organ of the mystical Body of Christ.”

Bishop Pallipparambil called the family the “intimate and Sacred unit of humanity which is the foundation of the society and Church, where love is experienced, given and taken at great sacrifice but without counting the cost, where values are imbibed without being taught, where attitudes are cultivated without questions and suspicion and where feeling of belonging and responsibility are learnt and taught not through well-planned lessons or demonstrations but by all the intricacies of plain lives,” lamenting that it is “fast becoming the most affected unit of humanity.”

Economic concerns should not push families “to the background, or even out of mind,” he said, urging that Christians be a light for others.

The bishop asked, “Can we make this Easter a different experience?

Not just for ourselves and our immediate families, but for the many families in our neighborhood that are struggling to survive.”

“Without making deliberate attempts to show the light, can we be emanating light as a natural outflow from life? The families of the young Egyptians who were beheaded have just done that. Can their example go unheeded?”

Bishop Pallipparambil concluded, praying that “may ours be homes where God has a place and He gives meaning. As history and present age shows convincingly, any attempt to silence or remove God from our families will be the destruction of it.

The Risen Lord Who has given us the Holy Spirit Who wants to be ever present with us. Do we have a place for Him?”

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April 10, 2015

One man plus 25 shows equals success at HFHN continued from page one

lars for the Catholic elementary school, the program has become a vital part of the school community.

Originally from Woonsocket, R.I., Ouellette moved to Fall River when he was still young.

His parents were very involved in their parish in Fall River, helping out the Sisters of St. Joseph, fundraising, and the Women’s Guild.

Ouellette added that he and his brother were two of the youngest altar servers to serve at the parish.

“My parents were very involved and knew the importance of service. We learned the value of service through them because that’s who they were, and we learned through their example, and that’s what they expected to see from all their children,” said Ouellette of his other siblings that also includes two sisters.

He attended Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River when it was staffed by the Society of Jesus and then went to the Jesuit-run Fairfield University in Connecticut.

“Being taught by the Jesuits, I thought about becoming Jesuit and it was something in the back of my mind,” said Ouellette, who decided to pursue teaching instead. He felt drawn to the diaconate, but it wasn’t until he got married, moved to New Bedford and joined St. Lawrence Martyr Parish in New Bedford that his wife encouraged him to take the next step.

“She was the ultimate driving force behind it,” said Ouellette.

“Once ordained in 2002, that’s where I was assigned and was there for 10 years or so, and for the past three years I’ve been at St. Julie Billiart.”

“It’s a blessing, it really is,” said Ouellette of being a deacon. “It’s an old saying but it’s true: you get more than what you give. It’s a blessing to be able to serve Our Lord in that ministry and at the altar, which has always been special to me even as an altar server.

God spoke to me in my heart and it’s a humbling and amazing experience to be able to share my love of God in a special ministry with the parishioners.”

The name Laurel Tree Players came from one of its first cast members, who was in her 80s when she joined the company.

“She was a spitfire,” recalled Ouellette. “She passed away and we were thinking about what we could name it when we incorporate [the company], and we thought automatically, why don’t we name it in memory of Lori?

That’s how the name came to be.”

Ouellette wrote the first few

shows but he said he got too busy and began to buy the licensing rights to shows and musicals.

He puts out calls and has auditions, and has built up a number of long-time regulars who make the Laurel Tree Players feel more like a “repertory company because there are a number of people who are always in the shows,” he said, adding his wife, Teresa, is the company’s music director.

Past shows have included, “The Odd Couple” (female version), “The Hound of the Baskervilles,” “Why do Fools Fall in Love?” “The 39 Steps,” (that had five actors play all the roles, said Ouellette) and the most recent performance, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” “I did that one because it’s the 25th year and it was in the title,” said Ouellette of the fitting choice.

“Typically I choose shows that are going to appeal to our Catholic auDeacon Maurice dience. Yes, I do saniA. Ouellette tize some of these shows; I have to because of who we are and where we’re playing.”

Kids have been cast when there are roles available, but the students’ biggest roles takes place before each performance and during intermission. The seating is arranged “cabaret-style” with round tables spread throughout the school’s auditorium floor while the kids take orders of snacks and soft drinks and serve the audience.

“The kids are part of it and they do a good job. We have kids who do it all three nights — Friday, Saturday and Sunday,” said Ouellette. “From day one we’ve had cabaret seating, it’s just really a relaxed atmosphere. It’s not a big space but I can fit 300 people there with 10 to a table. We could get more seating with no tables but we just thought table seating would be great and people like it.

It opens up to people relaxing and having great conversations with each other.”

It’s a great visual for the kids to see volunteerism in action while also taking part, said Felix: “I wanted the kids to see how the community supports the school, and also to see the talent of the Laurel Tree Players and that they give endless hours.

They start in January and they’re not getting paid. Maurice isn’t getting paid.”

And while Ouellette may take center stage, he credits Felix as the one working hard behind-thescenes raising the funds: “Cecilia is a huge part of it. She’s the one who really goes out and talks to the businesses to sponsor. She’s the driving force while I’m just there to do the show; I do all the creative stuff and she does the behind-the-scenes selling the ads.”

And all the money raised through the years goes right back to the students and the school’s educational programs because “tuition doesn’t touch it,” said Felix. “I think people think it does but you have general operating expenses — utilities, insurance — it’s just like any household but it’s magnified. The gas bill is $3,000plus, and when you need snow removal; we’re probably around 15 or 16 grand this year [for snow removal]. You make a budget but it can get blown if something goes wrong, or you need more books or technology breaks.”

Neither Felix nor Ouellette thought the program would be this successful more than two decades later, and while Ouellette was quick to credit Felix and her drive, she was just as quick to give him credit, too.

“I don’t know how he does it all,” said Felix. “He’s highly talented and does not know how to say no. He’s very gracious and kind.

He never complains and does a lot on his own. He has a tendency to be a pied piper; people enjoy working with him because he respects their talents. I just marvel at his talent; he’s a renaissance man.”

Ouellette retired from teaching at New Bedford High School but took up teaching Latin at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth. He also is involved in the high school’s drama program during their fall and spring performances. The curtains have barely been drawn on the 25th performance by the Laurel Tree Players, but Ouellette already knows that next year’s show — “Little Shop of Horrors” — will once again bring together a community.

“When you think about the people involved, different cast members who have come though, it’s really nice. What’s different about us is we’re a prayerful community. As a cast we always begin, before we go out, coming together in prayer. It makes a difference and the fact that you’re dealing with faith-filled people who understand that all creativity is a blessing from God and we are asked to give it back — that’s a wonderful thing to work together with people who share those same values and faith.”

A young Syrian child raises her arms in a gesture of surrender at a refugee camp in Syria near the Turkish border. The child thought the camera was a gun. (Photo by Osman Sagirli/CNA)

Every picture tells a story

E

very picture tells a story. feast of ham or turkey last week, God knows what this little girl Some are more pleaswas doing — or if she is even ant than others. Even though still alive. the picture went viral, I first It’s not our fault that we saw the above photo of a tiny are blessed enough to enjoy Syrian refugee girl while gothe things and people we have ing through the Catholic wire services for stories to run in this around us. This isn’t a guilt trip.

But it’s not the refugees’ week’s Anchor. fault that they’re surrounded by I couldn’t scroll past it. My eyes were drawn to the fear and whom and what they are either.

I will never understand how sadness in the cherub’s eyes. My man can mistreat his fellow eyes were drawn to her biting man in such horrible ways. I her lip. My eyes were drawn to know that people say everyher tiny hands raised above her thing happens for a reason, head indicating surrender and but I will never understand the that she wasn’t a threat. reason for a little girl raising her Why did she strike such a haunting pose? She thought the arms in surrender for a camera camera pointing at her was a gun. It’s worth repeating. She thought the camera pointing at her was

By Dave Jolivet a gun.

This is the world in which lens. I will never understand this little girl lives. She doesn’t “human beings” filming the know what a Muslim is. She beheadings of other human doesn’t know what a Christian beings simply because of their is. She doesn’t know what a beliefs.

Jew is. She does know what a I will never understand “hugun is. She knows what a gun man beings” raiding a college can do. She knows that she’s campus, asking if someone is living in squalor, far from the home she spent her short life in a Christian and when the response is affirmative, murdering before mankind reared its ugly them on the spot. head in the fashion of terrorI know this has been going ists, separatists, insurgents, and on since Cain bludgeoned Abel, greed mongers. but I’ll never understand it.

This photo was taken in Every picture tells a story. I December, when the little boys want to see better pictures than and girls we know who are what we see every day. that age were opening ChristI would give anything to mas gifts cheerfully wrapped, hand this little girl an Easter concealing toys and games and egg; to have Igor lick her face goodies. and hear her giggle; to tuck her While that was going on, into a nice warm bed after a this little girl was assuming good-night story. But the best I the surrender position — for a can do for her is pray and hope camera, no less.

While we were hiding Easter the next time she raises her hands it’s out of joy. eggs, attending Mass in our davejolivet@anchornews.org. new Easter best, enjoying a

My View From the Stands

16

Youth Pages

April 10, 2015

Students in grade two from St. James-St. John School in New Bedford recently recreated the Last Supper scene.

Students from grades seven and eight at Holy Name School in Fall River recently presented a dramatic reading of the Passion of Christ for their peers.

The two fourth-grade classes at St. Mary-Sacred Heart School in North Attleboro, taught by Molly Smith and Shannon Sanville with fourth-grade aide Lisa Trotter, mimed out the 14 Stations of the Cross. Here the classes gather around Jesus on the cross.

Meighread Dandeneau, Miss New Bedford’s Outstanding Teen 2015, visited with extended care students at All Saints Catholic School in New Bedford as part of an outreach project to area nursing homes. Students colored messages to be distributed to nursing home residents by Dandeneau. She shared with students her appreciation for the values and experiences of her own Catholic school education as a graduate of Holy Family-Holy Name School in the Whaling City and how these lessons have impacted her experience in her role as Miss New Bedford’s Outstanding Teen.

The students at St. Francis Xavier School in Acushnet were recently able to share in the many graces of the parish’s Lenten Mission with Father George McInnis, C.P.M., of the Fathers of Mercy. During the days of his mission week at the parish, Father McInnis enriched the school’s Lenten journey through various presentations to students in grades two through eight and also heard student and faculty Confessions. Father McInnis is pictured with the students of grade six.

The Futsal team from Espirito Santo School in Fall River were victorious in the recent playoffs.

At St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro, the Buddy Program teaches the kids to respect and care for each other. This program provides interactive activities between grades kindergarten and seven, and grades eight and one. Recently the eighth- and first-graders got together to color Easter eggs. Having fun are Meaghan Lancaster with her buddy Connor Cembor and Isaiah O’Sullivan with his buddy Lazarus Ricard.

April 10, 2015

H

Youth Pages He has Risen indeed

appy Easter all!! It’s that time of year when all the bunnies are put away, the eggs have all been found, and we are gradually working off all the chocolate and pies that we ate.

We have also probably stopped saying, “Happy Easter.” The truth is though, that we have 50 days of Easter. Fifty days to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ!

During this season we not only celebrate the Resurrection but also the Ascension of Christ into Heaven and the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. What a truly beautiful season it is.

This got me thinking about the Risen Lord. He is truly alive but is He truly alive in my life?

Celebrating this Easter season means celebrating that Christ is alive not only 2,000 years ago but each and every day since then.

The words in Mark at the tomb still ring true for us: “He is not here. He is risen” (Mk 16:6). I remember to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ every Easter but I know that it is not something of which I am always aware.

The truth that He is alive and alive in our lives is something that we need to celebrate every day. The Risen Lord very much wants to be a part of our everyday life. It is not always easy to

recognize Him in the midst of Through Him and our faith in what can sometimes seem like a Him, we have access to Heaven. never-ending Good Friday. Even Cardinal John Henry Newman some of His first disciples had reminds us, “Christ is already difficulty recognizing Him after in that place of peace, which the Resurrection. We read in the is all in all. He is on the right story of the disciples on the road hand of God. He is hidden in to Emmaus that they did not know it was Christ until He sat and broke bread with them. That is the key to recognizing the

By Amanda Risen Christ in day Tarantelli to day, to stay rooted in the Sacraments and to walk and talk with Him every day. He is our the brightness of the radiance Risen Lord. which issues from the everlastThe second thing we celing throne. He is in the very ebrate in these 50 days of Easter abyss of peace, where there is no is the Ascension of Jesus into voice of tumult or distress, but Heaven where He not only a deep stillness — stillness, that takes His rightful place in His greatest and most awful of all Kingdom but He waits for us goods which we can fancy; that to join us. During these 50 most perfect of joys, the utter days, we celebrate the fact that profound, ineffable tranquilthe gates of Heaven have been ity of the Divine Essence. He opened for us, that we now have a free and undeserved access to Heaven. We are celebrating that we have been granted eternal life. Jesus reminds us that He is “the Resurrection and the life.

Whoever believes in Me, though he may die, shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” ( Jn 11:25-26).

FALL RIVER — Beginning in fall 2015, Bishop Connolly High School will offer morning and afternoon bus transportation service for students from Rhode Island. The goal of the new service is to streamline the daily commute for families who travel from Rhode Island’s Aquidneck Island and East Bay communities to attend the Fall River Catholic high school.

“For families living in Rhode Island, arranging reliable transportation to and from Bishop Connolly can be a challenge,” said Christopher Myron, principal. “By adding bus transportation, we hope to bring a Bishop Connolly education within reach for more students.”

The weekday bus route will include designated stops at locations convenient for families commuting from Tiverton, Little Compton, Portsmouth, Middletown, Newport, Bristol, Warren, Barrington and East Providence, R.I. Bus stop locations, as well as morning pick-up and afternoon drop-off times at each site, will be determined based on where partici-

pating students reside. Students wishing to purchase bus transportation will be charged an annual fee for the service.

“I am excited about our new transportation service because it gives students from Rhode Island the opportunity to experience our unique setting,” said Myron. “It also connects us back to our own tradition when we offered this service more than a decade ago.”

For nearly 50 years, Bishop Connolly High School’s strong reputation for academic excellence and Catholic values has made it the school of choice for young men and women throughout Greater Fall River and neighboring Rhode Island.

Applications are now being accepted for grade eight LEAP, freshman and transfer students, and financial aid resources and scholarships are still available for the upcoming school year.

For enrollment information, please visit BishopConnolly.com, or contact Anthony Ciampanelli, director of Admissions, at 508676-1071 x333 or aciampanelli@ bchs.dfrcs.org.

Be Not Afraid

has entered into His rest. That is our home; here we are on a pilgrimage, and Christ calls us to His many mansions which He has prepared.” The Ascension is more of just a celebration of Jesus’ return to the Father. It’s a reminder that Heaven is our destiny too.

The third part of the Easter season is Pentecost where we celebrate the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. Christ promises the Apostles, and by extension, us that He will be with us always and that He will send His Spirit to be with us. In his homily on Pentecost 2013, Pope Francis said, “The Pentecost of the upper room in Jerusalem is the beginning, a beginning which endures. The Holy Spirit is the supreme gift of the Risen Christ to His Apostles, yet He wants that gift to reach everyone.” The Holy Spirit gave the disciples

17

the strength to go out to the edges of the earth to proclaim the Good News. We have been given this same gift. We have the ability and the challenge to go out and evangelize the Good News of Christ. The feast of Pentecost is a reminder to all of us that the Holy Spirit is alive and active in our worlds and in our hearts. Father Raniero Cantalamessa reminds us that “Pentecost is the moment when a heart of stone is shattered and a heart of flesh takes its place.”

During these 50 days I wish you joy of the Risen Lord, the hope of the Ascension and the strength of gifts of the Spirit.

Have a blessed and happy Easter!

Anchor columnist Amanda Tarantelli has been a campus minister at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth since 2005. She is married, a die-hard sports fan, and resides in Cranston, R.I. She can be reached at atarantelli@bishopstang.com.

Bishop Connolly announces new bus transportation service for R.I. students

In conjunction with Bishop Stang High School’s commemoration of the Lenten season, students, under the direction of the National Honor Society and the Student Council, recently held a Breakfast Cereal Drive. Student council representatives from the North Dartmouth school accepted donations from members of the school community during homeroom over a week-long period, culminating in the collection of more than 700 boxes. The cereal will be distributed to the families of needy children via St. Anthony’s Church Food Pantry located in the north end of New Bedford.

Sgt. Nelson Cabral recently visited the students at St. Michael School in Fall River and spoke to them, class by class, motivating them to work hard, study, listen to their parents and teachers, do the work and success will come.

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April 10, 2015

Brother to discuss Taizé prayer continued from page one

environment that lifts the heart and mind to the mystery of God. Sort of a warm, Spiritual ‘bath,’ if you will.”

Having just celebrated its one-year anniversary with a Taizé service on the most recent Palm Sunday, St. John Neumann is now gearing up to host a member of the founding Taizé monastic community.

Brother Emmanuel, who currently resides at the monastery in the town of Taizé, will be spending an entire day at St. John Neumann Parish on April 12, participating in Sunday morning Masses, attending that afternoon’s Confirmation Liturgy, and then joining parishioners for a light supper at 6 p.m., to be followed by a talk at 7 p.m.

A native of Tours, France, Brother Emmanuel joined the Taizé community in 1991. He is the author of “Love, Imperfectly Known” (2011) and is a frequent lecturer at universities and Christian communities throughout the U.S. He first encountered Taizé at the age of 15, during a trip to its namesake town for a high school retreat.

“What a surprise to discover a meditative prayer accessible to all and a Spirituality fully consistent with a God of love, to feel welcomed as you are, to share freely with so many young people searching for God, to meet a com-

munity composed of Brothers from various Christian denominations and nationalities who would like to anticipate an undivided Church and a reconciled humanity,” Brother Emmanuel recently told The Anchor via email. “I was very touched by this first visit and decided to return once a year.”

After graduating high school, Brother Emmanuel spent another three weeks in Taizé to “think about the direction my life was taking and to discern my path before committing to further study.”

“But something completely unexpected happened during one of the evening prayer times — I had an overwhelming Spiritual experience that turned my life around,” he said.” I was made aware of a love that seemed to me so beautiful that I felt irresistibly called to commit my entire being to this mysterious Divine Presence and to offer my human love in return as fully as I could. It’s the mystery of a call to monastic life.”

This calling led Brother Emmanuel to professing his vows to the Taizé community, which was founded in 1940

by Brother Roger Schütz, a reformed Protestant who borrowed from a variety of Christian traditions.

“His father was a Protestant pastor but he regularly prayed in a Catholic church,”

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Howard said. “When he went to a boarding school, his family placed him with a Catholic family, so Brother Roger had this vision of ecumenism and he kind of built on that — when Taizé began to develop, it drew people from different traditions: Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox.”

Brother Roger’s decidedly ecumenical approach — details of which are contained in “The Rule of Taizé,” first published in 1954 — would inspire the meditative prayer form that was readily embraced by Europeans yearning for peace in the aftermath of World War II. “The attempt was to sort of reconcile the world and bring the world back together,” Howard explained. “They started using these chants just as a way of calming people down; when you chant something over and over again, it sort of lulls you into that quiet space. But because they were in Europe, they were getting people who spoke all different languages. So they began to use chants in Latin and then they would have cantors sing on top of the chants in German, or French, or Polish.”

A typical Taizé service involves sung and chanted prayers, meditation, a period of silence, Liturgical readings, and icons. There is no preaching. A lot of the environment is decorated in reds and oranges and flames and there’s usually candlelight — all evoking images of the Holy Spirit.

The style of prayer practiced at Taizé has attracted many worshipers from around the globe and from many different denominations. The prayers consist of short chants — often in Latin — that are repeated over and over again.

“Such a repetition enables us to calm down, to dispose ourselves inwardly to welcome God’s presence, to internalize the essential reality of faith contained in these few words,” Brother Emmanuel explained.

“Moreover, the fact that our brain does not need to be focused on many words, does not have to read long sentences and does not know when this repetition ends, makes it easier to be focused on God alone and to let the depths of our being express themselves,” he added.

“Besides, we are not obliged to sing, since we are free to stop singing, to let ourselves be supported by the singing of others and to come back to the singing later on: it opens a space of

Brother Emmanuel, who currently resides at the monastery in the town of Taizé, will be spending an entire day at St. John Neumann Parish on April 12, participating in Sunday morning Masses, attending that afternoon’s Confirmation Liturgy, and then joining parishioners for a light supper at 6 p.m. to be followed by a talk at 7 p.m.

inner freedom we usually do not have during worship where we are many times invited to do something different — sit, stand, listen, sing, answer, etc.”

Then there are the long stretches of silence, which for Howard is the best part of the Taizé experience.

“Almost everyone says their favorite part of a Taizé service is the quiet period, because that’s what puts them in touch with God,” she said. “The music leads them there, the candlelight leads them there, the Scripture readings lead them there, but that’s what people are hungry for: that quiet period with God.” “This time of silence reminds us that our Christian faith is not a series of abstract ideas, principles or rules, but a living relationship with God, and more precisely a loving relationship with God to be experienced by each of us in a unique way,” Brother Emmanuel said. “This uniqueness during this time of opening to God’s presence does not allow me to tell you what should be the content of such a time of silence.”

Howard maintains that people in today’s culture, who are constantly “inundated with noise,” are desperately in need of a respite, which is why Taizé is gaining in popularity.

“We’ve got laptops and smartphones and everyone is plugged into this, that and the other, and people don’t have silence anymore and we’re beginning to recognize that we need it,” she said. “In fact, some school systems are putting silence into their curriculum.

There’s a school in California that puts 15 minutes of silence in every day and they’re finding that test scores are going up and discipline problems are going down because students need a time to unplug — and

I think the whole world is beginning to recognize that we need some downtime. We need some time to turn everything off.”

“Many young adults say ‘they feel at home’ in Taizé, a wording that reveals something deeper than it sounds,” Brother Emmanuel agreed. “It can be related to their real/ultimate identity and to a more conscious communion with God.” While there won’t be time to offer a Taizé prayer service during his visit to St. John Neumann Parish, attendees will be treated to a short video about the Taizé community, a talk after supper, and a question-andanswer period.

“I hope they will feel entirely free to ask me any questions, whether they are about Taizé, our way of praying, our meetings in France, in Europe, in the U.S., or about any topic that really matters to them, especially if they are related to their Spiritual quest and to any obstacle that paralyzes it,” Brother Emmanuel said. “I do not claim to be able to answer all their questions, but I will be very happy to share with them the most essential inner discoveries given to me along my human and Spiritual journey as a Brother of Taizé.”

Howard, in particular, hopes to learn how and why Taizé has gained favor among young believers in Europe.

“They’re not only teaching people how to be still and meditate, but they’re also drawing the youth from all over Europe and now it’s becoming an international movement,” she said.

Brother Emmanuel will be discussing Taizé at St. John Neumann Parish, 157 Middleboro Road in East Freetown, on April 12 beginning at 6 p.m. in the parish hall. For more information or to RSVP, email karen. howard@bc.edu.

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April 10, 2015

Eucharistic Adoration in the Diocese Acushnet — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Francis Xavier Parish on Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Evening prayer and Benediction is held Monday through Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

ATTLEBORO — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the Adoration Chapel at St. Vincent de Paul Parish, 71 Linden Street, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

ATTLEBORO — The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette holds Eucharistic Adoration in the Shrine Church every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. through November 17.

ATTLEBORO — There is a weekly Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration Thursdays from 5:30 to 6:30 pm at St. John the Evangelist Church on N. Main St. Brewster — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the La Salette Chapel in the lower level of Our Lady of the Cape Church, 468 Stony Brook Road, on First Fridays beginning at noon until 7:45 a.m. First Saturday, concluding with Benediction and concluding with Mass at 8 a.m. buzzards Bay — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Margaret Church, 141 Main Street, Monday through Saturday, from 6:30 to 8 a.m.; and every first Friday from noon to 8 a.m. on Saturday.

East Freetown — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. John Neumann Church every Monday (excluding legal holidays) 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady, Mother of All Nations Chapel. (The base of the bell tower).

EAST TAUNTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the chapel at Holy Family Parish Center, 438 Middleboro Avenue, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On First Fridays, Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Holy Family Church, 370 Middleboro Avenue, from 8:30 a.m. until 7:45 p.m.

FAIRHAVEN — St. Mary’s Church, Main St., has Eucharistic Adoration every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Chapel of Reconciliation, with Benediction at 11:30 a.m. Also, there is a First Friday Mass each month at 7 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour with Eucharistic Adoration. Refreshments follow.

Fall River — Espirito Santo Parish, 311 Alden Street, Fall River. Eucharistic Adoration on Mondays following the 8 a.m. Mass until Rosary and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

FALL RIVER — St. Bernadette’s Church, 529 Eastern Ave., has continuous Eucharistic Adoration from 8 a.m. on Thursday until 8 a.m. on Saturday.

FALL RIVER — St. Anthony of the Desert Church, 300 North Eastern Avenue, has Eucharistic Adoration Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FALL RIVER — Holy Name Church, 709 Hanover Street, has Eucharistic Adoration Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady of Grace Chapel.

FALL RIVER — Good Shepherd Parish has Eucharistic Adoration every Friday following the 8 a.m. Mass and concluding with 3 p.m. Benediction in the Daily Mass Chapel. A bilingual holy hour takes place from 2 to 3 p.m. Park behind the church and enter the back door of the connector between the church and the rectory.

Falmouth — St. Patrick’s Church has Eucharistic Adoration each First Friday, following the 9 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 4:30 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.

MANSFIELD — St. Mary’s Parish, 330 Pratt Street, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with Benediction at 5:45 p.m.

MASHPEE — Christ the King Parish, Route 151 and Job’s Fishing Road has 8:30 a.m. Mass every First Friday with special intentions for Respect Life, followed by 24 hours of Eucharistic Adoration in the Chapel, concluding with Benediction Saturday morning followed immediately by an 8:30 Mass.

NEW BEDFORD — Eucharistic Adoration takes place 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 233 County Street, with night prayer and Benediction at 8:45 p.m., and Confessions offered during the evening. Please use the side entrance.

NEW BEDFORD — There is a daily holy hour from 5:15-6:15 p.m. Monday through Thursday at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue. It includes Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Liturgy of the Hours, recitation of the Rosary, and the opportunity for Confession.

NEW BEDFORD — St. Lawrence Martyr Parish, 565 County Street, holds Eucharistic Adoration in the side chapel from 7:30-11:45 a.m. ending with a simple Benediction NORTH DARTMOUTH — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Julie Billiart Church, 494 Slocum Road, every Tuesday from 7 to 8 p.m., ending with Benediction.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available at this time.

NORTH DIGHTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Wednesday following 8:00 a.m. Mass and concludes with Benediction at 5 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration also takes place every First Friday at St. Nicholas of Myra Church, 499 Spring Street following the 8 a.m. Mass, ending with Benediction at 6 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 8 a.m.

NORTH EASTON — A Holy Hour for Families including Eucharistic Adoration is held every Friday from 3-4 p.m. at The Father Peyton Center, 518 Washington Street.

ORLEANS — St. Joan of Arc Parish, 61 Canal Road, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday starting after the 8 a.m. Mass and ending with Benediction at 11:45 a.m. The Sacrament of the Sick is also available immediately after the 8 a.m. Mass.

OSTERVILLE — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 76 Wianno Avenue on First Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

Taunton — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Tuesday at St. Anthony Church, 126 School Street, following the 8 a.m. Mass with prayers including the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for vocations, concluding at 6 p.m. with Chaplet of St. Anthony and Benediction. Recitation of the Rosary for peace is prayed Monday through Saturday at 7:30 a.m. prior to the 8 a.m. Mass.

Taunton — Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament takes place every First Friday at Annunciation of the Lord, 31 First Street. Exposition begins following the 8 a.m. Mass. The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed, and Adoration will continue throughout the day. Confessions are heard from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. Rosary and Benediction begin at 6:30 p.m.

WAREHAM — Eucharistic Adoration at St. Patrick’s Church begins each Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. and ends on Friday night at midnight. Adoration is held in our Adoration Chapel in the lower Parish Hall. ~ PERPETUAL EUCHARISTIC ADORATION ~ East Sandwich — The Corpus Christi Parish Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 324 Quaker Meeting House Road, East Sandwich. Use the Chapel entrance on the side of the church.

NEW BEDFORD — Our Lady’s Chapel, 600 Pleasant Street, offers Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day. For information call 508-996-8274.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

WEST HARWICH — Our Lady of Life Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Holy Trinity Parish, 246 Main Street (Rte. 28), holds perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. We are a regional chapel serving all of the surrounding parishes. All are invited to sign up to cover open hours. For open hours, or to sign up call 508-430-4716.

Sister Blandine D’Amours, (Sister Sainte-Blandine-Marie)

QUEBEC, Ontario, Her wake and funeral was munity. Interment took place Canada — Sister Blandine held from the mother house at the cemetery of the comD’Amours (Sister Sainte- on March 28, with the Mass munity, à Notre-Dame-deBlandine-Marie), age 89, held in the chapel of the com- l’Éspérance, Quebec. passed away on March 25, at the mother house of the Sisters of Charity in Quebec, Canada after 69 years of reliThe Women’s Guild at St. John Neumann Parish, 257 Middlegious life. boro Road in East Freetown, invites everyone to the parish She was the daughter of the barn tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for its “Overflowing late Joseph-Félix D’Amours Barn plus Outdoor Vendors’ Sale.” This one-day barn sale and the late Dorilda Desjarwill be held, weather-permitting, and will offer a large sedins, de Cacouna. lection of items. Admission is free and all are welcome.

Sister D’Amours was a Our Lady of Fatima Parish, 4256 Acushnet Avenue in New former adBedford, will celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday on Sunday beginning at ministrator 3 p.m. with exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, adoration and Beneat Sacred diction, along with the recitation of the Chaplet of the Divine Mercy.

Heart Home Refreshments and pastry will be served in the parish hall immediately in New following and all are welcome.

Bedford for The Women’s Guild at Holy Trinity Parish, 951 Stafford Road in Fall Rivmany years. er, is sponsoring its Spring Penny Sale Sunday beginning at 1 p.m. There She is surwill be food, door prizes and all are welcome. Admission is just $1. vived by, in addition to Community VNA Hospice Care located in Attleboro is seeking new Hosmembers of pice volunteers. Those interested will participate in a 20-hour training her religious family, her sisters course beginning May 5 and running through May 26. Sessions will take and brother-in-law: Lucille place on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Community (Paul Grenier) of St. Léonard; VNA, 10 Emory Street in Attleboro. Pre-registration by April 15 is required. For more information, call 508-222-0118 or email volunteer@ Aline (late Zoël Raymond) communityvna.com. of Rivière-du-Loup); Madeleine (late Marcel Bériault) All are invited to pray the new Culture of Life Chaplet on April 16 beginof St. Leonard; Doris Blair ning at 1 p.m. at St. Jude’s Chapel at Christ the King Parish in Mashpee. (late Emilièn) of St. Albert Recitation is done on ordinary Rosary beads and will include a brief (AB); Suzanne Trottier (late meditation preceding each of the five decades. For more information, Maurice) of Montreal; as well call 508-477-7700. as many nieces, nephews and A Healing Mass will be celebrated April 16 at St. Anthony of Padua cousins.

Around the Diocese

In Your Prayers Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks April 11 Rev. John F. Downey, Pastor, Corpus Christi, East Sandwich, 1914 April 12 Rev. John Tobin, Assistant, St. Patrick, Fall River, 1909 Rev. Msgr. Alfred J. Gendreau, STD, Retired Pastor, Notre Dame, Fall River, 1996 Rev. Edward P. Doyle, O.P., St. Raymond, Providence, R.I., 1997 Rev. Bertrand R. Chabot, Retired Pastor, St. Anthony of Padua, New Bedford, 2002 April 13 Permanent Deacon Joseph Stanley Jr., 2006

P.

April 14 Rev. Louis N. Dequoy, Pastor, Sacred Heart, North Attleboro, 1935 Rev. Cosmas Chaloner, SS.CC., St. Francis Xavier, Acushnet, 1977 April 15 Rev. Christopher G. Hughes, D.D., Retired Rector, St. Mary’s Cathedral, Fall River, 1908 Permanent Deacon Oscar Drinkwater, 2011 April 16 Rev. Arthur E. Langlois, on sick leave, Denver, Colo., 1928 Rev. Norman F. Lord, C.S.Sp., Hemet, Calif., 1995 Rev. John W. Pegnam, USN, Retired Chaplain, 1996

Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford. The Mass will begin at 6:30 p.m. and includes Benediction and healing prayers. At 5:15 p.m. there will be a holy hour, including the Rosary. For more information, call 508-993-1691 or visit www.saintanthonynewbedford.com.

The St. Vincent de Paul Society of Greater Attleboro is sponsoring its fourth annual Family Walk-Helping Our Neighbors. The walk will take place, rain or shine, on April 18 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon at the National Audubon Society’s Attleboro Springs Wildlife Sanctuary, right next to La Salette Shrine at 947 Park Street (Route 118) in Attleboro. This fun-filled family event will include guided nature tours, balloons, face painting, refreshments and is pet-friendly. All proceeds from the walk go directly to those less fortunate in the neighboring towns of North Attleboro, Attleboro, Mansfield, Norton, Rehoboth and Seekonk. For more information or to pre-register for the Family Walk, visit http:// svdpattleboro.org or register on-site the day of the walk.

The Southeastern Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Partnership is offering seminars for caregivers. Panel members are professionals in a variety of fields and will provide valuable information on the topics of Elder Law, Adult Day Health, Alzheimer’s Association Programs, Assisted Living, Homecare, Hospice, Long-Term Care, Geriatric Care Managers, Monitoring Programs, Reverse Mortgages, State Agencies for Elder Services, and a caregiver’s personal experience. Seminars will be held May 3 at 12 noon at St. Andrew the Apostle Church, 19 Kilmer Avenue in Taunton (RSVP to Phoebe Worcester at 508-822-9200 or pcworcester@ gmail.com) and May 6 at 4:30 p.m. at the Fairhaven Council on Aging, 229 Huttleston Avenue in Fairhaven (RSVP to Pat Midurski at 508-9926278 or pmidurski@communitynurse.com).

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April 10, 2015

Deacon Peter Cote incenses concelebrating priests (not seen in photo), while the urns containing Holy Chrism, the Oil of Catechumens and the Oil of the Sick rest on a table in the Sanctuary during the annual Chrism Mass at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Fall River on March 31, while Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., prepares the altar for the Liturgy of the Eucharist. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

The Good Friday service at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River began in silence, as Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., walked prayerfully to the altar. This was the first Holy Week Bishop da Cunha celebrated as Bishop of the Diocese of Fall River.

(Photo by Linda Andrade Rodrigues)

At the Easter Vigil Service at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River, a candle was lit from the Paschal Candle that became the source of light for all the candles held by the congregation at the Mass, turning the church from darkness to light, representing the light of the Risen Christ. (Photo by Linda Andrade Rodrigues)

Visit the Diocese of Fall River website at fallriverdiocese.org The site includes links to parishes, diocesan offices and national sites.