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Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

F riday , June 27, 2014

‘It’s never too late to help’; Appeal closes but needs remain a constant

Through the newly-created Planned Giving website, individuals, foundaFALL RIVER — The 2014 Catho- tions and businesses can offer financial lic Charities Appeal campaign that support to the Appeal, the St. Mary’s began shortly after last year’s ended, Education fund, or other diocesan mindrew to a close this week, but James istries, year-round.

“The new website offers the option A. Campbell, diocesan director of Development told The Anchor, “It’s never to donors to choose the ministry they too late for people, foundations and prefer to assist,” he added. “This can be businesses to assist the appeal, or any done as a lump sum, or an installment other diocesan ministry, no matter plan. The need is always there.”

The website also offers options on what time of year.” planned giving through gifts of cash, Campbell, who spearheaded his second Appeal campaign, said that there’s stocks and bonds, real estate, retirement “been a flurry of gifts coming in,” dur- assets, and insurance policies.

The final tallies from the 2014 Cathing the current Appeal’s final week. “It will be a while before we know the exact olic Charities Appeal will appear in a future Anchor edition. figures though.”

For appeal donations, visit www.

Campbell also pointed out that even frdioc-catholiccharities.org or call the though the Appeal is closed for this Charities Appeal office at 508-675year, helping the diocesan ministries assist others “is a year-round proposition.” 1311. For information on the Planned He said that any monies collected now Giving site, visit www.frdiocesegifts. for the Catholic Charities Appeal will org; or contact the appeal office, or email: jcampbell@dioc-fr.org. be applied to next year’s campaign.

By Dave Jolivet Anchor Editor

After celebrating Mass with 2013 Quo Vadis Days participants, Bishop George W. Coleman fielded questions from the group about his vocation and life as a priest. This year’s Quo Vadis retreat will take place July 7-11. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

Young men set to embark on annual Quo Vadis Days retreat

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff

MEDWAY — Nearly 30 teen-age boys from parishes across the Fall River Diocese will be heading to the Betania II Retreat Center in Medway next month for the annual Quo Vadis Days experience.

The five-day program, to be held July 7-11, was initiated by the diocesan Vocations Office to help young men discern their vocation in life and perhaps answer a special calling to serve God as priests.

According to Father Kevin Cook, assistant vocations director for the Fall River Diocese and pastor of Holy Family Parish in East Taunton, this year marks a change of setting for Quo Vadis since its inception in the diocese four years ago.

“In previous years we have held the

Quo Vadis Days at the Sacred Hearts Retreat Center in Wareham, which worked very well for many different types of activities,” Father Cook told The Anchor.

“But we thought of trying Betania this year to see how it works with the extra space they could offer us and the use of several buildings.”

Located about an hour north of the diocese, the new location is also closer to one of the highlights of the Quo Vadis retreat — the mountain-hiking excursion to New Hampshire.

“It cuts the travel time we use for our annual hike dramatically,” Father Cook said. “Holding it in Medway will cut off close to two hours of travel time.”

Father Cook noted that the hiking adventure in New Hampshire has become Turn to page 18

Vatican finds in favor of the Diocese of Fall River regarding St. John the Baptist Parish in New Bedford — Page five

Screenshot of the new diocesan Planned Giving website home screen.

Thousands march for Marriage in nation’s capital

By Christine M. Williams Anchor Correspondent

WASHINGTON, D.C. — When San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore J. Cordileone reached the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court on June 19, he knelt and prayed. He had just completed the second annual March for Marriage — an event that tens of thousands of people had urged him not to attend. The arch-

bishop serves as the chairman of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage.

More than 30,000 people signed an online petition by Faithful America asking the archbishop not to speak at the marriage rally, which they described as “anti-gay.”

Days before the rally and march, the

archbishop received a letter with 81 signatories who asserted that march organizers discriminate against homosexual people, promoting “division and hatred.”

U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, a Catholic, sent a separate letter obtained by the San Francisco Chronicle.

The paper reported that Pelosi characterized the march as “venom masquerading as virtue.”

She quoted Pope Francis, who said last summer, “If someone is gay and is searching for the Lord and has good will, then who am I to judge him?” The comment was a response to a reporter’s question about a “gay lobby” in the Vatican, an alleged conspiracy of gay priests who work in Rome.

Pelosi and the 81 signatories of the Turn to page 18

News From the Vatican

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June 27, 2014

The Church is a family formed by God, pope says

Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — Pope Francis stressed the familial nature of the Church at a recent general audience, emphasizing God’s desire to form a people through Fatherly love.

“To speak of the Church is to speak of our mother, of our family,” he said to those gathered in St. Peter’s Square.

He said the Church is not a private association or an NGO, and neither is the Church restricted to bishops, priests, and the Vatican.

“We are all the Church,” he exclaimed.

God plans “to form a people blessed by His love and able to bring His blessing to all populations on earth. Being Church means having a sense of being in the Hands of God, Who is our Father and loves us, Who

G

er, they resist God, withdraw into themselves and their interests, and are tempted to bargain with God and try to solve problems on their own terms.

“There are the betrayals and sins that mark the path of the people throughout the history of Salvation, which is the history of God’s fidelity to His people, and the infidelity of the people of God. However, God never tires, He is patient and over time He continues to educate and form His people, like a father with his son.”

God has this same attitude towards the Church, the pope said. When we recognize ourselves as sinners, “God fills us with His mercy and His love.”

“Let us then ask for the grace to remain faithful in following the Lord Jesus and in listening to His Word, ready

od “did not call upon Abraham alone as an isolated individual, but instead from the very beginning He involved all of his family, his relatives and all those who served in his house.” awaits us.”

The pope looked to Abraham as an example of the “prehistory” of the Church.

God “did not call upon Abraham alone as an isolated individual, but instead from the very beginning He involved all of his family, his relatives and all those who served in his house.”

“The first important fact is this: starting with Abraham, God formed a people in order to bring His blessing to all families on earth. And Jesus was born within this population,” the pope noted.

It was not Abraham who gathered these people around him: rather, “it was God Himself Who took the initiative and addressed His Word to man, creating a bond and a new relationship with Him.” “In this way God constitutes a people of all those who listen to His Word and who set out on their path, trusting in Him.” Pope Francis stressed the importance of trusting in God. “If you place your trust in God, listen to Him and set out on His path, this means being a Church. God’s love precedes everything. He precedes us.”

At the same time, the pope acknowledged that those called by God, like Abraham and his family, are not “always convinced and faithful.” Rath-

to set out every day, like Abraham, towards the land of God and man, our true homeland, and thus to become a blessing and sign of God’s love for all His children.”

“This is what enables us to grow as the people of God, as a Church; it is not our cleverness, our merits, but rather the daily experience of how much the Lord loves and cares for us.”

Pope Francis then noted that June 20 was the World Day for Refugees, which remembers those forced to leave their homelands.

“Millions of refugee families from many countries, of every religious faith, live through dramatic and painful events from which it is difficult for them to recover and heal. Let us be close to them, sharing their fears and uncertainty for the future, and alleviating their suffering in a concrete way.”

He prayed that God will support those who “work generously” to welcome refugees and “give them reasons for hope.”

He recalled that Jesus went to Egypt “as a refugee” when He fled for His life with St. Joseph and the Virgin Mary.

The pope asked the faithful to work to support refugees and to say a Hail Mary for them, noting that Mary “knows the suffering of refugees.”

Pope Francis greets people as he arrives to open the annual convention of the Diocese of Rome in Paul VI hall at the Vatican recently. In his talk, the pope responded to concerns about the difficulties of keeping families active in parish life. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Violence stems from evil in society, cardinal observes

Vatican City (CNA/ other Indians.” by appealing to the courts and EWTN News) — During a Conflict continued with the so on, so if that system is there recent conference discussing annexation of Kashmir to In- nobody can do whatever they interreligious violence Cardi- dia in 1947, which generated like.” nal George Alencherry of India the “ill will” that led to “wars However, he cautioned that explained that although moti- one after the other” Cardinal despite the government’s efvations driving violent acts are Alencherry explained, stating forts to curb instances of indiverse, they are always rooted that on the other side there has terreligious conflict, “troubles in evil. been “another feeling of equi- can be created, violence can be “Violence is really coming librium” among the Indians brought,” and voiced his hope from an evil inspiration, and that they wish to maintain. that “the governments and the this evil inspiration can come This is because “we are a people at large will be vigilant from any kind of phenomenon country of Hindus, Muslims, against this kind of violence.” that happens in society,” the Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Bud“But if there are people who cardinal recently explained to dhists, all religions” the cardinal instigate” sentiments of fear and CNA. noted, observing that some ex- religious dominance “among Cardinal Alencherthe people, violence ry is the Major Archowever “there are many people can come again.” bishop of ErnakulamReferring to the who use religion as a means to creAngamali for the ate violence” while “there are others who results of the counSyro-Malaber Church try’s five-week-long in Kerala, India and take their political ambitions to create vio- general election prowas present for an Oa- lence,” he noted. cess in May, Cardinal sis conference in SaraAlencherry voiced jevo, Bosnia discussing his hope that the new the temptation toward violence tremist groups disrupt this bal- government in India will mainamong religions. ance because they believe that tain this sense of interreligious Observing how “India is a “if the number of one religion peace. country that believes in non-vi- increases, it is a threat to the Led by its prime ministeolence,” the cardinal described other.” rial candidate Narendra Modi, how it was through non-violent “And there are so many ex- India’s Bharatiya Janata Party means that Mahatma Gandhi tremist groups who think like won the 2014 general elections led India to independence from that and fight against the other with a majority vote, making the British. religions” he said, stating that at them the first non-CongressHowever “there are many present the situation in India party and non-coalition govpeople who use religion as a is comparatively more peaceful ernment in Indian history. means to create violence” while than its past.

They have “professed in all “there are others who take their “Now there is no tension their speeches and taking of political ambitions to create because people think that in oaths that all the communities violence,” he noted. the future some tensions may will be respected, all the rights “So we cannot simply define come, because minorities might will be preserved and that we that violence is due to this rea- not be respected by the major- will have the total development son or to that, there are many ity community” the cardinal of the nation as a whole, not reasons.” observed, expressing his opin- simple compartmentalizing the Going on, he explained how ion that these fears are “not very society,” the cardinal observed. violence originally began in the well based.”

“The prime minister has said country with its partition into “India is a democratic coun- that he will have a vision of the India and Pakistan in order to try, we have a very good consti- whole country and that projects create a country for the Mus- tution that respects all religions of development will be applilims, stating that this “was not and all minority communities, cable to everybody. So we are the wish of the majority of the and we can defend the rights hoping for the better.”

H

June 27, 2014

3

The International Church

Maronite bishops: Mideast turmoil threatens to change regional map

BEIRUT (CNS) — Ma- to “break the cycle of violence ronite Catholic bishops ex- that is threatening their fate, pressed their concern about and work on resolving the conthe war in Syria and Iraq and flicts in peaceful ways until they warned that Lebanon’s presi- reach a comprehensive recondential vacuum poses a dan- ciliation. Everyone should recgerous risk to the country, par- ognize the rights of others and ticularly amid the escalating build their societies on equal regional turmoil that they said citizenship.”

They denounced “what inthreatens to change the map of nocent people are suffering the Middle East.

The term of former Leba- from, Christians and nonMembers of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces take their positions during clashes with the militant nese President Michel Sulei- Christians alike, as a result of Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant in the city of Ramadi recently. Saying the United States has a special responsibility to the people of Iraq, the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on International man ended May 25, and rival the conflicts.”

The Maronite bishops also Justice and Peace called for diplomatic measures rather than a military response to the crisis facing the political blocs are still divided demanded the release of two over a new leader. country. (CNS photo/Reuters) Lebanon’s institutional sys- Syrian bishops — Syriac Ortem, based on the National Pact thodox Metropolitan Gregoof 1943, provides that the office rios Yohanna of Aleppo and of the president be occupied by Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Baghdad, Iraq (CNA/ Iraqi government, or face death sands of Christians have moved a Maronite Catholic, the prime Paul of Aleppo — kidnapped from Mosul, Baghdad, and minister a Sunni Muslim and in April 2013, as well as the reEWTN News) — In the midst or punitive amputation.

Shiite mosques have been other Iraqi cities, to the relative the speaker of the parliament a lease of all detained priests. of advances by Sunni insurIn their statement, the bishgents, Iraq’s remaining Chris- the target of attacks and gunfire security of Iraqi Kurdistan and Shiite Muslim. ops praised the Catholic chariIn a recent statement at tian community and the coun- in Mosul and other ISIS-con- its largest city, Arbil. table agency Caritas Lebanon the conclusion of their annual In a recent statement, Contry’s majority-Shia population trolled regions; when the group for its efforts to serve the needy synod at the patriarchal seat of face threats to their future, and took over Ar Raqqah in Syria gressman Frank Wolf (R- Va.) last year, they imposed the jiyza worried that the violence in Bkerke, the bishops said they in Lebanon and encouraged continued violence.

In response to the develop- tax on the city’s Christian in- Iraq would affect innocents completely support the views the international community to across the country, “not the expressed by Cardinal Bechara show solidarity with Syrian refing situation, the United States habitants.

Given the organization’s ad- least of which are vulnerable Rai, Maronite patriarch, about ugees “in the hope of a speedy is deploying 275 troops to protect its embassy in Baghdad vance upon the capital, a “sub- religious minorities which for the presidential stalemate, and return” to their homeland. Curand its citizens in the country, stantial number” of the person- centuries have inhabited these “his tireless efforts to push rently more than 1.5 million (parliamentary) members to Syrian refugees — equal to at and is also removing a portion nel working at the American lands.” least one-quarter of Lebanon’s Archbishop Emil Nona of perform their duty” and vote. embassy will be moved to anof its diplomatic presence.

“The stance by some parlia- resident population — are livMembers of the Islamic State other location, according to the Chaldean Archeparchy of mentarians to refrain from en- ing in Lebanon. of Iraq and the Levant (also reports by the New York Times. Mosul said recently to Aid to The bishops noted Patriarch tering the parliament and cast known as ISIS, the Islamic State The U.S. State department has the Church in Need, an interRai’s visit to the Holy Land in their ballot in the presidential of Iraq and Syria), a militant not disclosed the number of national Catholic charity, that May, in conjunction with the election is unacceptable and group that operates in Iraq and staff members who will be relo- he worried that “now there is visit of Pope Francis, in which places the country at great risk, Syria with the aim of establish- cated, but has said that the em- probably no one left” in Mosul the patriarch met with former particularly amid the regional ing a caliphate in northern Syria bassy is not scheduled to close. from the city’s Christian commembers of the South Lebadevelopments that threaten to The embassy, which boasts munity. and Iraq, overtook the country’s “We have never seen any- change the map of the Middle non Army, the Lebanese milisecond-largest city, Mosul, and a staff of 5,500, is the largest the city of Tikrit, 95 miles north United States embassy in the thing like this, a large city such East and dismantle the states, tia that fought alongside Israel world, and was meant to act as as Mosul attacked and in chaos.” which will have repercussions during its occupation of South of Baghdad, on June 10.

Despite these threats, Arch- on Lebanon,” the statement Lebanon and fled to the JewThe group had seized por- a significant diplomatic presish state following Israel’s withtions of Ramadi and Falluja ence in Iraq after American bishop Jean Sleiman of Bagh- said. drawal in 2000.

“The absence of a president dad told Aid to the Church in earlier; Tal Afar was seized by forces left Iraq in 2011.

The patriarch’s visit “gave represents an absence of a state, Politicians and religious Need that Iraqi leaders should ISIS June 16; and the group hope to a resolution to the issue and it is a danger to the unity of briefly held parts of Baquba, 37 freedom experts are concerned work together — and not rely miles outside of Baghdad, the that ISIS will pose a serious on international intervention the country as well as its secu- of the Lebanese exiled in Israel” and showed that “the spirit rity and economy.” threat not only to Shias, but — to resolve the crisis. following day. of reconciliation between the Addressing their concerns “In responding to this crisis, ISIS currently controls much also to the country’s remaining country’s citizens is possible,” about the war in Syria and the international community of the Sunni areas of northern Christians. the bishops said.

Iraq, the bishops urged people During the Iraq War, from should think of the common and western Iraq, as well as cities along the Euphrates river in 2003 to 2011, the country’s good, not their own interests,” “Christian community has suf- Archbishop Sleiman said. northwest Syria.

The organization, which had fered intense religious perse- “They should think of peace.”

Diocese of Fall River While ISIS “needs to be been called earlier Al-Qaeda in cution on top of the effects of Iraq, seeks to establish a Sunni the conflict and, as a result, it’s stopped,” he continued, “it state within the majority Shia shrunk by well over 50 percent,” needs the Iraqi leaders to work region. In February 2014, Al- said religious freedom expert together to stop it. That is more Qaeda cut ties with ISIS over dis- Nina Shea of the Hudson In- important than getting the His Excellency, the Most Reverend George W. Coleman, stitute in a recent article in Na- international community inagreements regarding ideology.

Bishop of Fall River, has announced the following appointvolved.”

According to National Pub- tional Review Online. ment: “I hope Iraqi leaders will find Many of the Christians who lic Radio, ISIS is “boasting of mass executions of Shiite remained in the country relo- a consensus about how to tackle Rev. Thomas E. McGlynn, J.C.L., as Judge in the Diocmembers” of Iraqi security fo- cated to Mosul, Shea explained, this situation or there will be a esan Tribunal with residence in Our Lady of Mount Carmel cus, and while the organization saying that the fall of Mosul to tragic outcome. I don’t know Parish, Seekonk promises safety for civilians in ISIS will have serious “implica- what will happen next.”

“We should all pray for peace areas they control, they must tions for Iraq’s Christian comEffective: June 25, 2014 and solidarity and for a solution follow sharia and repent of munity.”

In recent years, tens of thou- to the crisis,” he urged. previous cooperation with the

Christians, Shias face uncertain future in face of Iraqi violence

OFFICIAL

4

The Church in the U.S.

June 27, 2014

‘Women’s issues’ broader than reproductive health, experts say

Washington D.C. (CNA/EWTN News) — Limiting “women’s issues” to a woman’s potential to be a mother — as well as trying to deny that potential — does not empower women, a panel recently told members of Congress and their staff.

Rather, “women’s issues” extend across the range of all issues facing society, panelists said at “Women Know Best” on Capitol Hill.

Jeanne Monahan, president of the March for Life, told CNA that political slogans claiming opposition to abortion is akin to a war on women is “messaging that does a real disservice, especially to young women.”

In this approach, she said, a woman is “defined maybe too much by her reproductive capabilities,” and not by other aspects of her personhood.

The potential to be a mother, she said, “is a huge part of what it means to be a woman, but it’s not the only part.”

Monahan had spoken at “Women Know Best” along with Mercedes Schlapp, cofounder of Cove Strategies and a political commentator; Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of Pro-Life lobby Susan B. Anthony List; former Rep. Ann Marie Buerkle (R-N.Y.); and Carly Fiorina, chairman of the American Conservative Union Foundation and a former technology executive.

Fiorina, who gave a keynote address, urged attendees to “share an empathic, personal and optimistic message” on life, saying women who are Pro-Life and who hold other positions thought of as politically conservative should “stand up and say what they believe and why.”

She stressed that “science is proving to us every day that life starts at conception,” even though legislation in the U.S. has yet to recognize this biological fact.

She emphasized the need to “get the problem solved” and to take “one step in protecting the unborn” by supporting bans on late-term abortions after five months of pregnancy.

Despite these challenges, Fiorina said, she is “optimistic, because I have great faith in other people and their po- Two large tornadoes are seen near a farm in Pilger, Neb., June 16. Severe storms with tornadoes tore through the Midwest and Upper Midwest that day, killing at least two people, including a five-year-old tential.” girl. (CNS photo/Dustin Wilcox, TwisterChasers via Reuters) “The message and the messenger are equally important,” Schlapp emphasized, saying that women “need to continue to be strong advocates for the unWISNER, Nebraska (CNS) states to help the devastated erything,” he said. born and defend our reli- — Catholics were quick to communities. While emergenThe other farm belonged to gious liberties.” respond to deadly tornadoes cy workers asked people to stay Bonnie and Del Styskal, whose “Part of the challenge is that recently shredded homes, out of Pilger immediately after house was severely damaged, articulating a Pro-Life mes- farms, buildings and power the pair of tornadoes hit the and outbuildings were desage in a personal way that lines in northeast Nebraska. town, volunteers had plenty of stroyed while cattle, horses, pigs makes sense, is simple, and People from throughout work at other locations in Stan- and a dog were killed. Bonnie can connect,” she stressed, the Archdiocese of Omaha, ton, Wayne, Cuming, Thurston Styskal said that at her hussaying that Pro-Life advo- including parishioners, priests and Dakota counties. band’s workplace, a feedlot two cates should work through a and Archbishop George J. LuFarms belonging to mem- miles north of their home, a “step-by-step process” in cre- cas, offered prayers, labor and bers of Sacred Heart Parish in herd of thousands of cattle died ating “real change in favor of financial help to the village of Emerson and St. John the Bap- or had to be destroyed. the Pro-Life movement.”

Pilger, about 90 miles north- tist Parish in Pender were dam“Yes, it’s bad,” Styskal said.

Monahan emphasized that west of Omaha. Pilger was the aged, said Sonya Peatrowsky, “But you drive a quarter of a a message that embraces life hardest-hit community with secretary for both parishes. mile, and there’s no homes. I is a “very beautiful thing” and two dead and dozens injured.

“Farmers come together just thank God we’re all safe, allows “women to most com“We’re all praying for them,” and help each other out,” Peat- and we have our belongings. pletely flourish.” said Father Jerry Connealy, rowsky said.

And I thank God for all our In contrast, she added, pastor of St. Peter Parish in Although the town of good friends and family who’ve “to pretend that a women’s nearby Stanton, whose mem- Wayne was largely spared by helped.” capacity to bear children is bers include residents of Pilger. the storms, some members of Styskal was in the basement insignificant is not empower- “We offered prayers for them at St. Mary Parish in Wayne and with her youngest child, Trevor, ing to women,” particularly Mass, and we’ll continue doing Sacred Heart Parish who live 12, just before the tornado hit. when abortion causes harm that.” in the Wakefield area about 10 “My husband came from to society, to children, and to St. Peter will have a special miles to the northeast were af- work, and said, ‘It’s coming women themselves. collection for residents of Pil- fected, said Father Mark Beran, our way,’” she said. They looked Instead, she told the audi- ger. “We’re just going to try to St. Mary pastor. out a window, saw the twister ence that “all issues are wom- help with whatever is needed,” Working with two St. Mary and took shelter in a bathroom en’s issues.” staff members at one heavily shower. They heard debris flythe priest said.

“We don’t leave out any A representative of Catholic damaged home in Wakefield, ing, but the tornado seemed to part of her: that’s part of the Charities of Omaha and priests Father Beran said he was in- pass quickly. whole person,” Monahan throughout the archdiocese, spired by the family, who did Another son, Dustin, 22, was said. including Archbishop Lucas, not emerge from their base- in Lincoln at the time. Daughcalled to offer prayers and sup- ment after the storm until they ter, Erica, 19, was in Wayne, finished praying the Rosary where she works and is a stuport, Father Connealy said.

Catholic Charities an- with their children. dent at Wayne State College.

Just as nearby communi- They returned home to help, nounced on its website that it was accepting monetary do- ties rallied to Wayne’s aid last and were joined by aunts, unnations for its disaster relief October when a tornado tore cles, cousins and a grandparent, fund to address the emotional, through the southeastern por- some from hundreds of miles mental and physical needs of tion of the city, Wayne residents away. victims in the towns of Pilger, reached out to their neighbors, The tornado veered north of planning a hot dog and ham- Wisner, but rural residents and Stanton and Wisner.

Parishioners from St. Mary burger fund-raiser, Father Be- those in Pilger were not as forParish in West Point, including ran said. tunate. People such as Harms, Alan Harms, a member of and his wife Sally spent the folsome who work in Pilger, traveled to the village to help, said St. Joseph Parish in Wisner, lowing day helping people in Father Gerald Gonderinger, was out the morning after the need. storms to help two fellow parpastor.

“You don’t have to know Volunteers also poured in ish families on farms outside of anyone,” he said. “You just show from neighboring towns and town. “One lost absolutely ev- up and pitch in.”

Catholics respond with labor, prayers for Nebraska tornado survivors

The Church in the U.S. Pope’s words give inmates hope, say advocates for fair sentencing

June 27, 2014

WASHINGTON (CNS) — More than 2,000 people across the United States are currently serving life sentences without parole for crimes they committed as children.

“We are looked down on by society, an embarrassment to be swept under the rug and forgotten,” wrote one inmate.

Pope Francis recently sent a message of hope to a group of these prisoners.

In early May, the pope responded to hundreds of letters from inmates incarcerated for life as juveniles, assuring them of his prayers and that the Lord “knows and loves each one of them.”

A larger movement of people is working to reform the way in which juveniles are held accountable for crimes committed as youth. The Washingtonbased Campaign for the Fair Sentencing of Youth advocates for fair sentences for children who commit crimes, and for a justice system that is more restorative than retributive.

Advocates for restorative justice and fair sentencing, like Jody Kent Lavy, ultimately seek an end to the practice of sentencing children to life in prison

without parole.

“I’ll never forget a 15-year-old kid looking me in the eyes and saying that he had no hope for his life,” said Lavy, director and national coordinator of the campaign, regarding her time volunteering with children sentenced to die in prison.

A year ago, after Pope Francis washed the feet of 12 young inmates at an Italian detention center during Holy Week, Lavy was inspired to draw the pope’s attention to children imprisoned for life without parole in the United States.

She, along with the help of Jesuit Father Mike Kennedy, organized a letterwriting campaign; 500 of these inmates wrote letters to Pope Francis.

“We figured it would be an opportunity for the people on the inside to have a voice, to express (to the pope) what it’s like to be told as a child that they are unworthy of a second chance,” Lavy said.

Lavy didn’t expect a response from the pope, but then a letter with his simple yet poignant message of mercy, reconciliation and forgiveness arrived from the Vatican. Father Kennedy, who ministers

Vatican rules in favor of Diocese of Fall River regarding St. John the Baptist Parish in New Bedford

FALL RIVER — The Diocese of Fall River received notification of the decision by the Apostolic Signatura regarding the closing of Saint John the Baptist Parish in New Bedford. The Most Reverend George W. Coleman was notified in a letter dated April 11, 2014 from Archbishop Frans Daneels, O.Praem., the Secretary of the Apostolic Signatura, that the Congresso of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura decided in favor of Bishop Coleman’s decision to suppress Saint John the Baptist Parish and unite it with Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in New Bedford.

This is the highest level that an appeal can be made in Rome for a decision like this, and as Archbishop Daneels states in the letter “this decree, … is not subject to any further challenge.”

The decision to merge Saint John the Baptist Parish with Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish was made only after a process which extended over several years which included hearing from parishioners and from members of the Presbyteral Council. Bishop Coleman issued the decree on November 4, 2012.

Five individuals who were parishioners of Saint John the Baptist appealed Bishop Coleman’s decision to the Congregation for Clergy, the competent Dicastery (or department) of the Roman Curia to hear such appeals. Bishop Coleman was notified by a Decree issued by His Eminence Mauro Cardinal Piacenza, the then Prefect to the Congregation for Clergy, that the Petitioners’ appeal was rejected. The date of that Decree was July 12, 2013.

The five parishioners then appealed this decision to the Apostolic Signatura, the next level to receive such appeals.

Bishop Coleman was notified by Archbishop Daneels on November 14, 2013, that the Apostolic Signatura had rejected this appeal. The last step that these parishioners could take was to make the appeal to the Congresso of the Apostolic Signatura. The Congresso meets only twice a year, and it was on April 11, 2014 that Bishop Coleman was notified that this final appeal was rejected. The notification was received at the Bishop’s Office on April 28, 2014.

On a related issue, Bishop Coleman issued a Decree relegating Saint John the Baptist Church in New Bedford to profane but not sordid use on September 6, 2013. “Relegation to profane use” is a term used in Church law when a Church building will no longer be used for Catholic Liturgical worship. The same five individuals appealed that decision to the Congregation for Clergy, the appropriate Dicastery in the Curia for such appeals. Bishop Coleman was notified in a letter dated March 29, 2014 from His Eminence Beniamino Cardinal Stella, the current Prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, that the Congregation upheld Bishop Coleman’s decision and rejected the appeal from the five parishioners. These five individuals have now appealed this decision to the Apostolic Signatura, the next level to receive such appeals. We will await that decision.

Bishop Coleman has stated several times that this was a difficult decision to make, but it was one that had to be made to strengthen the ministry to the Portuguese people in the South End of New Bedford. He is grateful to know that the officials in Rome have upheld his decision.

directly to incarcerated youth in juvenile halls in the Los Angeles area, received the letter. The kids at the juvenile hall, he noted, were inspired that someone so influential and with so much credibility as Pope Francis would assure them of their own worth as individuals.

A special Mass was recently celebrated at the Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall outside Los Angeles. More than 100 people were present, including Father Kennedy, Lavy and dozens of young people serving life without parole. Also present to give his testimony of personal change was Xavier McElrath-Bey, a young man who was convicted of firstdegree murder at age 13.

He served 13 years in prison, earning a bachelor’s degree while incarcerated; now he holds a master’s degree, speaks to at-risk kids and legislators, and advocates for the fair sentencing of youth.

Hope was a pervading theme of the Mass on Pentecost Sunday.

“We prayed for the Spirit to come upon our politicians and our leaders,” said Father Kennedy, “to have their hearts moved to realize that kids like Xavier deserve a second chance because they can contribute to society.”

The letter from Pope Francis was presented to Lavy and read to the young people in attendance. “In saying that he (the pope) is praying for these people, that the Lord is with them, I think really affirms their humanity,” Lavy said later in an interview with Catholic News Service in Washington.

Lavy first became interested in advocating for fair sentencing during her time as a volunteer at the Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall with Father Kennedy. Lavy noticed immediately that the young people in juvenile facilities “had very different upbringings and

5

choices to make as children” — poverty, abuse, drugs, gang activity — that often seemed to contribute to their involvement in criminal activity.

“It became clear to me,” she said, “that if I had been in their shoes growing up, I would be in the very same place.”

Father Kennedy provides Liturgical and Sacramental support to incarcerated young people through the Jesuit Restorative Justice Initiative. He leads Ignatian retreats in California prisons, bringing inmates closer to God through modes of Jesuit spirituality and by facilitating healing and rehabilitation.

“Kids learn to do ‘deep-sea diving’ to really look at how they’ve been hurt — and by the time they leave, they understand the consequences and significance of what they’ve done,” he said in a telephone interview with CNS from California.

Such healing and rehabilitation are the primary focus and intent of restorative justice. It seeks to amend the justice system to reflect the idea that kids can change and, as Lavy said, that “we’re all better than the worst things we’ve ever done.”

Advocates argue that children should not live their lives behind bars for decisions they made at a stage of mental and emotional immaturity, citing that the intellect, judgment, and understanding of risk and consequences of violence are less developed in children than adults.

Rather, while still holding children accountable for their actions, restorative justice addresses the societal pressures that lead children to commit crimes and seeks, above all, healing.

“We need to minister to people in prison. We need to put time and energy into it,” Father Kennedy said, “because that’s where God is.”

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June 27, 2014

Anchor Editorial

The Associated Press apologizes

Recently American (and other countries’) newspapers ran headlines proclaiming “Bodies of 800 babies, long-dead, found in septic tank at former Irish home for unwed mothers” (The Washington Post), “800 skeletons of babies found inside tank at former Irish home for unwed mothers” (The New York Daily News), and “Galway historian finds 800 babies in septic tank grave” (The Boston Globe). These headlines were based on “reporting” by the Associated Press (AP), which has issued an apology, since much of what it sent out “over the wire” was inaccurate, to say the least. The remains of 800 babies have not been found, there has been no excavation and the mass burial site was not known to be used as a septic tank when the victims of disease or malnutrition (not murder, as was hinted) were buried in it.

This past Monday the AP apologized for the hysteria it had unleashed (you can read the whole article at http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/E/EU_IRELAND_ CHILDRENS_MASS_GRAVES?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE =DEFAULT): “Revelations this month that nuns had buried nearly 800 infants and young children in unmarked graves at an Irish orphanage during the last century caused stark headlines and stirred strong emotions and calls for investigation. Since then, however, a more sober picture has emerged that exposes how many of those headlines were wrong.”

The Jesuit-run America magazine earlier this month had exposed a lot of the hyperbole which had occurred in the reporting on this story. Kevin Clarke wrote, “Trouble is, there may be much less to the story than the horror suggested by those initial headlines. It is a sad reality, as the Church continues to grapple with the legacy of its insufficient, at times negligent response to the sex abuse crisis, that a story as gothic and cruel as the Galway babies could come to be accepted at news-face value. Don’t get me wrong; there remains plenty to fret over and investigate regarding the Bon Secours’ home and the manner of the final disposition of these children. Official site visits of the 1940s recorded deplorable conditions and include depressing descriptions of the state of the children there. What is not clear is how much this suffering can be ascribed to the poverty of the institution itself, the deplorable state of Irish country society at the time — infant mortality ran high whether at this ‘home’ or within a normally impoverished home of Tuam (my grandfather’s hometown) — and how much of the babies’ neglect and their allegedly thoughtless disposal can be ascribed to cruelty and indifference among the Sisters themselves.”

In the AP’s correction, it noted, “Until recent weeks, nobody had put a precise number on the fatalities at Tuam. [Catherine] Corless [a local researcher] spent months — and more than 3,000 euros ($4,000) of her own money — buying copies of death certificates and organizing them. Her list of the dead shows that nearly 80 percent were younger than one; two died within 10 minutes of birth and never received first names. Ninety-one died in the 1920s, 247 in the 1930s, 388 in the 1940s, 70 in the 1950s, and one more child in 1960. The most common causes were flu, measles, pneumonia, tuberculosis and whooping cough. Contrary to the allegations of widespread starvation highlighted in some reports, only 18 children were recorded as suffering from severe malnutrition.”

The AP had the decency also to apologize for running the claim that the Church had denied Baptism to children born outside of Marriage. “The Associated Press was among the media organizations that covered Corless and her findings, repeat-

ing incorrect Irish news reports that suggested the babies who died had never been baptized and that Catholic Church teaching guided priests not to baptize the babies of unwed mothers or give to them Christian burials. The reports of denial of Baptism later were contradicted by the Tuam Archdiocese, which found a registry showing that the home had baptized more than 2,000 babies. The AP issued a corrective story on [ June 20] after discovering its errors.”

America’s Clarke criticized the British newspaper, The Independent, which had written, “Each new detail of what is being called the Irish Holocaust brings fresh horror.” Clarke attacked that description, saying, “The ‘fresh horror’ of the Galway babies now apparently represents ‘the Irish Holocaust,’ called so by, hmm, not clear, though many might argue that the starvation of one-third of the Irish population by British policy and the flight of a third more during the previous century might make a better candidate for that title. In fact many locals throughout this controversy have remained unimpressed by the home babies story as many ‘mass graves’ dating back to the famine times have been unearthed from time to time in this part of Galway. The Great Hunger was just one of the many hungers which claimed lives here throughout the 18th and 19th centuries.”

Brendan O’Neill, editor of the online magazine Spiked! (he is a self-described “atheistic libertarian” and a “Marxist”), commented, “Whenever the exaggerations and myths about Ireland’s past are exposed, the same thing is said: OK, these might have been lies but they were good lies, because they got people talking about the history of Catholic abuse in Ireland.” He pointed out how a few facts got warped into an incredible scandal: “A hysterical piece in the Irish Independent compared the Tuam home to the Nazi Holocaust, Rwanda and Srebrenica, saying that in all these settings people were killed ‘because they were scum.’ So in the space of a few days, without the benefit of any excavation or digging, we went from speculative claims made by a modest local researcher about the whereabouts of 796 children to heated talk across the world media about an Irish holocaust on a par with what the Nazis did to Jewish children. What madness is this? How did speculation that some children out of 796 might have been buried in a former septic tank become news headlines about 800 dead children having been found in a septic tank, leading to comparisons being made between Ireland’s old nuns and the architects of the Nazi Holocaust? Clearly this isn’t about news anymore; it isn’t a desire for facts or truth that elevated the crazed claims about Tuam up the agenda; rather, a mishmash of anti-Catholic prejudice, Irish selfhatred and the modern thirst for horror stories involving children turned Tuam into one of the worst reported stories of 2014 so far.”

Pia de Solenni had a blog this week at pathos.com entitled “Tuam Horror Story Unraveling As Mosul Burns,” reporting about our fellow Christians (and other innocent people) being killed by ISIS there. Father Landry comments to the right of this editorial about how our religious freedom is under threat from Moslem fundamentalism, communism, and secularism (in Western countries, where stories such as the Tuam one are easily believed, since the Catholic Church supposedly is always on the march to oppress people). May we remember that the truth will set us free and may we live that freedom (as Claire McManus suggests on page nine) in a way which will bring people to the love of Jesus.

Pope Francis’ Angelus address of June 22 Dear Brothers and Sisters, good morning!

Celebrated in Italy and in many other countries this Sunday is the feast of the Body and Blood of Christ — often the Latin name is used: Corpus Domini or Corpus Christi. The ecclesial community gathers around the Eucharist to adore the most precious treasure that Jesus left it.

John’s Gospel presents the discourse on the “Bread of Life,” held by Jesus in the synagogue of Capernaum, in which He affirms: “I am the Living Bread which came down from Heaven; if any one eats of this Bread, he will live for ever; and the Bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My Flesh” ( Jn 6:51). Jesus stresses that He did not come OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER

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to this world to give something, but to give Himself, His life, as nourishment for all those who have faith in Him. This communion of ours with the Lord commits us, His disciples, to imitate Him, making of our existence, with our attitudes, bread broken for others, as the Master broke bread which is really His Flesh.

For us, instead, it is our generous behavior towards our neighbor which demonstrates the attitude of breaking our life for others.

Every time we take part in the Holy Mass and nourish ourselves with the Body of Christ, the presence of Jesus and of the Holy Spirit acts in us, it molds our heart, communicates to us interior attitudes that are translated in behavior according to the Gospel. First of all docility to the Word of God, then fraternity among us, the courage of Christian witness, the inventiveness of charity, the capacity to give hope to the distrustful, of receiving the excluded. Thus

the Eucharist makes a Christian lifestyle mature. The charity of Christ, received with an open heart, changes us, transforms us, renders us capable of loving not according the human measure, always limited, but according to the measure of God. And what is God’s measure? It is without measure! The measure of God is without measure. All! All! All! The love of God cannot be measured: it is without measure! And then we become capable of loving even those who do not love us: and this isn’t easy — to love someone who doesn’t love us. It isn’t easy! Because if we know that a person doesn’t love us, we are also led not to love him.

And instead, no! We must also love one who doesn’t love us. We must oppose evil with good, we must forgive, share and welcome.

Thanks to Jesus and to His Spirit, our life also becomes “broken bread” for our brothers.

And living this way we discover true joy! The joy of making

ourselves gift, to exchange the great gift that we received first, without our merit. This is beautiful: our life becomes gift! This is to imitate Jesus. I would like to remind you of these two things: First: the measure of the love of God is to love without measure.

Is this clear? And, with the love of Jesus, receiving the Eucharist, our life becomes gift, as Jesus’ life was. Do not forget these two things: the measure of the love of God is to love without measure.

And, following Jesus, with the Eucharist we make our life a gift.

Jesus, Bread of Eternal Life, came down from Heaven and was made Flesh thanks to the faith of Mary most holy. After having borne Him with ineffable love, she followed Him faithfully to the cross and to the Resurrection. Let us ask Our Lady to help us to rediscover the beauty of the Eucharist, and to make it the center of our life, especially in Sunday Mass and in Adoration.

Angelus recited.

June 27, 2014

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e are now in the middle of the Fortnight for Freedom, the two-week period of intense prayer, fasting, study and public witness that the U.S. bishops have asked all Catholics to live with regard to the defense, appreciation and promotion of religious freedom.

Last Friday, the day before the Fortnight commenced, Pope Francis gave an address in the Vatican on the importance of religious freedom. There was a global scope to his remarks, but his five main points about the “very intense debate about religious liberty” are highly relevant to what American Catholics are trying to illumine during this Fortnight.

He first indicated that the right to religious freedom is essential to ensure man’s transcendent nature.

“Reason recognizes in religious liberty,” the pope said, “a fundamental right of man that reflects his lofty dignity, that of being able to seek the truth and adhere to it, and it recognizes in it an indispensable condition to be able to display all his potential.”

If the human person is not permitted to act in accordance with a well-formed conscience, then his growth will be stunted and he will never be free.

Second, religious freedom isn’t merely the ability to go to church or pray at home but the

Anchor Columnist Pope Francis and the Fortnight for Freedom capacity to live by faith. many trumpeting tolerance and “Religious liberty,” the freedom. pope said, “is not only that of Religious liberty, he indicatthought or private worship. It ed, “is a great challenge in the is freedom to live according to globalized world, where ‘weak ethical principles consequent thought’ also lowers the general upon the truth found, be it ethical level, and in the name of privately or publicly.” a false concept of tolerance ends This point used to be obvious up by persecuting those who to everyone, but the Obama defend the truth about man and Administration has made a coordinated effort in foreign and Putting Into domestic policy to the Deep reduce freedom of religion to freedom of

By Father worship. The reason Roger J. Landry for this reduction, as then Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a 2009 speech, is to promote the ethical consequences.” the “right” for people to “love in This “weak thought” inthe way they choose.” In other cludes, along with nihilism, an words, to smooth the path of intellectual and moral relativthose of the same sex to marry ism. At first there is a push each other, the U.S. government for “tolerance” of what was wants to restrict the rights of formerly morally censured but believers not to live according then ends in intolerance and to the values of their revealed persecution of those who don’t religions. progress beyond acquiescence Pope Francis is remindto acceptance and approval. ing us that religious freedom The pro-choice moveincludes the liberty to live pub- ment, for example, originally licly according to that faith’s just asked for the “freedom moral principles — something to choose” abortion, but now that is being denied not just seeks to force all doctors and in fundamentalist Muslim renurses to be trained in aborgions or communist countries tions and all citizens to pay for but also in aggressively secular it. Those pushing for marriage ones. between those of the same-sex Third, religious freedom is first asked just for tolerance but being undermined precisely by now push for the resignation

of those, like ex-Mozilla CEO Brendan Eich, who defend Marriage as the union of a man and a woman.

Fourth, without religious freedom, a democracy is sick and undermines its own legitimacy.

Political and judicial bodies, the pope insisted, “are called to recognize, guarantee and protect religious liberty, which is intrinsically inherent right to human nature and is also an indicator of a healthy democracy and one of the principal sources of the legitimacy of the state.”

In the Bill of Rights, the United States recognized, guaranteed and protected religious liberty, but recent offenses against this first and fundamental freedom show that our republican democracy is not strengthening but sickening.

Fifth, attacks against the religious freedom of Christians are not only the most common today but the most ignored.

“It is for me a reason for great sorrow,” the pope lamented, “to see that Christians in the world endure the greatest number of such discriminations. The persecution against Christians today is in fact stronger than in the first centuries of the Church, and there are more Christian

7 martyrs than at that time.”

More Christians have been martyred in the last 100 years than in all previous 19 centuries combined.

The type of deadly persecutions he’s describing are happening mainly in fundamentalist Muslim regions, but they flow from the same denial of the right to religious freedom that is spreading like cancer in supposedly free secularist nations where the last acceptable prejudice among elites, Christianophobia, is enabling it.

If the types of school and church bombings, kidnappings, and massacres happening routinely to Christians in various parts of the world were happening to Jews, gays or women, there would justifiably be a media and international obsession about it. The fact that they happen unabated with most ignoring it ought to be as “incomprehensible,” “worrying” and “unacceptable” to all of us as it is Pope Francis.

The Fortnight for Freedom is a time for all Catholics in the United States to ponder these realities, to pray, and to get involved to help nurse our nation back to the health Pope Francis indicates.

Anchor columnist Father Landry is pastor of St. Bernadette’s Parish in Fall River. fatherlandry@ catholicpreaching.com.

Hate group’s presence shocks attendees at priest funeral

Salina, Kan. (CNA) — Faithful who attended the funeral for Father Kenneth Walker were dismayed at the presence of picketers from the Westboro Baptist Church on June 20 near Paxico, Kan. As mourners filed into Sacred Heart Catholic Church, members of the hate group stood nearby holding signs and singing songs in order to broadcast their message.

A priest with the Fraternity of St. Peter, Father Walker, 28, was shot and killed while coming to the aid of Father Joseph Terra at their parish, Mater Misercordiae Mission, in Phoenix on June 11. Father Terra, 56, suffered several injuries but was released from the hospital June 16.

Those in attendance at Father Walker’s funeral were disheartened that a group would want to protest at such a difficult time for family and friends.

“I thought it was very inappropriate timing, very inconsiderate for what people are going through right now,” funeral attendee Bridget Bogowith said of the protestors. “It’s really uncaring. I was just quite shocked to see them here.”

Funeral attendee Michael Drake said

the Catholic response to such protests is a peaceful one.

“We pray for them,” he told CNA. And while he wished the group no ill will, Drake said he was confounded as to why people who believe in God would want to protest the funeral of a priest.

“It seems really unusual that folks would picket the funeral of a man who gave up so many things, including the possibility of a wife and family, in order to serve God,” he said.

Members of the Westboro Baptist Church are known for picketing funerals, particularly those of soldiers. According to their website, group members believe God is punishing America through war due to the country’s immoral society.

Drake’s mother Claire said she felt sad for the protestors and didn’t understand why they would want to picket funerals.

“I know that if one of their ministers died, I would be very sad for his family, I would be concerned, I certainly wouldn’t be protesting in front of their church,” she said. “I just think it’s a sad and not terribly Christian thing.”

Residents, covered with dried banana leaves and mud, walk along a road as they participate in a religious ritual known locally as “Taong Putik” (Mud People), in the village of Bibiclat, Philippines, while celebrating the Catholic feast of St. John the Baptist June 24. At the Vatican, Pope Francis also celebrated the feast of the birth of St. John the Baptist and called him “the greatest among the prophets.” (CNS photo/Erik De Castro, Reuters)

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June 27, 2014

Models to the Christian community — SS. Peter and Paul

his weekend we celebrate the feast day of SS. Peter and Paul.

Both of these saints are an inspiration and example for us to follow, Peter as the first pope, and Paul as the first missionary. Peter and Paul are models to the Christian community. Their trials and victories make them bigger than life as each experienced more than once the miraculous power of God, and both died a martyr’s death. While the Scriptures maintain their humanness by reminding us of their human limitations, they also narrate the events, which offer us insights into how we might better live our Christian life.

In this week’s Gospel we hear Jesus ask the Apostles “Who do you say that I am?” When Peter answers: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus responded by saying, to me on that day, and not “Blessed are you, Simon only to me, but to all who son of Johah. For flesh and have longed for His appearblood has not revealed this ance. The Lord stood by me to you, but My Heavenly and gave me strength, so Father. And so I say to you, that through me the proclayou are Peter, and upon this mation might be completed rock I will build My Church and the gates of the netherHomily of the Week world shall not preFeast of SS. vail against it. I will Peter and Paul give you the keys to the Kingdom of

By Deacon Heaven.”

Paul Fournier In our second reading, Paul summarizes his faith journey when he says: “I, and all the Gentiles might Paul, am already being hear it.” poured out like a libaBoth of these men were tion, and the time of my empowered with the healdeparture is at hand. I ing power of God after they have competed well; I have had come face-to-face with finished the race; I have Jesus and realized that He kept the faith. From now on was in fact the Messiah and the crown of righteousness the Son of the living God. awaits me, which the Lord, They turned their lives over the just Judge, will award to Christ. They committed

their being to carrying out His mission, to build His Church, to feed His sheep.

Just as they committed, so must we make that same commitment. It may be a long, hard-fought battle, but His power is present to help us and give us new life.

He awakens the faith within us. He calls us to believe in His presence and love for us; especially when we feel unloved and experience moments of loneliness. He enables us to overcome the illness and death that comes from our selfishness. With His help we can go beyond our hatreds and our egos to extend forgiveness. We can go beyond our lack of concern and show compassion and caring. We can go beyond our dishonesty and deceit to

openness and truth.

After experiencing His healing, He calls and empowers us to do the same things that He did: to heal and to bring life to others and to lead them from exclusion and loneliness to inclusion and friendship; to lead them from their hurts and sins to healing and wholeness.

In the Eucharist, Jesus comes to heal us and to give us a share in His risen life.

Let us pray that with His help, we all continue His healing and life-giving mission that He started and has called us to continue. When we say yes to that call, we not only receive gifts, but become a gift to others.

Deacon Fournier is a permanent deacon assigned to St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Attleboro. He also serves as a chaplain at Sturdy Memorial Hospital.

Upcoming Daily Readings: Sat. June 28,Lam 2:2,10-14,18-19; Ps 74:1-7,20-21; Mt 8:5-15. Sun. June 29, Feast of SS. Peter and Paul, Acts 12:1-11; Ps 34:2-9; 2 Tm 4:6-8,17-18; Mt 16:13-19. Mon. June 30, Am 2:6-10,13-16; Ps 50:16b-23; Mt 8:18-22. Tues. July 1, Am 3:1-8;4:11-12; Ps 5:4b-8; Mt 8:2327. Wed. July 2, Am 5:14-15,21-24; Ps 50:7-13,16b-17; Mt 8:28-34. Thurs. July 3, Eph 2:19-22; Ps 117:1b-2; Jn 20:24-29. Fri. July 4, Am 8:4-6,9-12; Ps 119:2,10,20,30,40,131; Mt 9:9-13.

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ast weekend a vial of St. John Paul II’s blood was brought to Boston’s Holy Cross Cathedral and exposed to the public in a reliquary on Saturday and Sunday. There was an honor guard from the Knights of Columbus, to whom the relic was given by the pope’s longtime personal secretary, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz of Krakow, in 2011 to foster devotion at the Knights’ St. John Paul II National Shrine in Washington, D.C., just across the street from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, our country’s patroness.

Any body part of a saint or blessed qualifies as a firstclass relic: “The body, head, arm, forearm, heart, tongue, hand, leg or other part of the body that suffered in a martyr, provided it is intact and is not little,” in the words of the 1917 Code of Canon Law. Second-class relics are clothing or items owned by the saint or blessed, and third-class relics are things that have touched the other

On seeing and being a relic relics. Not surprisingly, ating of soul and body in the tendants at the cathedral world to come. Grace can were taking holy cards and act through physical and Rosaries and medals from material objects, as in the the faithful to place them Sacraments, which like the against the ampoule of the Church are an extension of saint’s blood, “which remains the Incarnation in space and in a liquid state,” according time. The Council of Trent to the card from the St. John in 1563 declared that “the Paul II National Shrine.

Relics, like Sacred icons and images, are a consequence of the Incarnation, the belief that God,

By Dwight G. Duncan in the Person of Jesus Christ, took on human flesh and became Man. So it is that the Second CounSacred bodies of holy marcil of Nicaea in 787, which tyrs and of the other saints had defended icons and are to be venerated by the Sacred images against the faithful, for through them iconoclasts, said that honor many benefits are granted to is not given to the inanimen by God.” mate object, but to the holy In the Old Testament, a person represented, and thus dead man thrown against the to God, the Source of all prophet Elisha’s corpse came holiness. back to life and stood up on While the living soul has his feet (2 Kgs 13:20-21). In separated from the body of the New Testament, Paul’s the dead, Christians behandkerchiefs had heallieve in the resurrection of ing power (Acts 19:11-12). the body and the reunitSimilarly, even St. Peter’s

Judge For Yourself

shadow had a healing effect (Acts 5:15). When St. Polycarp was martyred in the second century, the early Christians took great care of his relics.

The story is told of two churches in Rome that purported to have two separate skulls, one smaller than the other, of St. John the Baptist, who had been beheaded.

The credulous were told that the smaller skull was the head of John the Baptist as a young man.

The Italians have a wonderful saying, “Se non e vero, e ben trovato,” which means, “If it isn’t true, it’s a good story.” Of course, the history of relics is beset with frauds and huckstering, which is why the Code of Canon Law absolutely forbids the selling of relics (canon 1190), and the Council of Trent decreed that “in the invocation of saints, the veneration of relics and the Sacred use of images, all superstition

should be removed and all filthy lucre eliminated.”

I went to venerate St. John Paul II’s relics with a friend of mine and two of his children. My friend told me that he and his wife were already relics, as they had personally met Pope John Paul II (I guess that makes me a relic, too). I brought along a couple of St. John Paul medals I had gotten at his canonization last April in Rome, which had been blessed by Pope Francis, and asked the attendant to place them against the relic. When I gave the medals to the two children, my friend’s daughter suggested that maybe she could swallow the medal and thus become a permanent relic. I told her that might not work, as it could come out the other end. Of course, the best way to become a relic is by becoming a saint oneself. After all, that’s how the saints did it.

Anchor columnist Dwight Duncan is a professor at UMass School of Law Dartmouth. He holds degrees in civil and canon law.

June 27, 2014

Tuesday 24 June 2014 — Homeport: Falmouth Harbor — National Columnists Day never took “The Grand Tour,” dear readers. Once I had completed my formal education and been ordained a priest, I went directly to Raynham to report for my first parish assignment.

As far as I know, Raynham has never been a destination on anyone’s Grand Tour itinerary, but I may be wrong. Traditional Grand Tour cities were Innsbruck, Vienna, Dresden, Berlin, Potsdam, Munich, Heidelberg, Paris, Geneva, Turin, Florence, Padua, Bologna, Venice, Rome, and Naples.

Back in the day (and by “back in the day,” I mean the 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries) the Grand Tour was de rigueur for the well-heeled young gentleman. Of course, neither was I well-heeled. I used to buy my shoes in New Bedford at Mars Bargain Land, U.S.A. At any rate, back in the day, a proper young Englishman of the upper class would make the mandatory tour of Europe at the completion of his formal education. It was a rite of passage; the introduction of the next generation of leaders. It was total immersion in European high society, culture

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ast month I had to travel to a conference in St. Louis and found myself in the “C” group for boarding on that airline that doesn’t assign seats.

It might as well be group “M” since it means you end up in the middle seats. I chose the first available seat and when I asked the gentleman in the aisle seat if I could sit down, he said, “You might not want to sit here, we’re in the middle of a pretty heated discussion.” That’s when I noticed that there was a New Testament and devotional prayer book on the middle seat, and soon realized that the argument centered on religion. When “argument” and “religion” are in the same sentence you know that this is not going to be pleasant. When the man sitting in the window seat said, “I don’t think any religion should tell me how to vote!” I knew that the disastrous cluster bomb of religion and politics was about to explode. Fortunately, my presence in the middle seat served as a buffer zone and both men stood down. Curious about the

Anchor Columnists Just whistling ‘Dixie’ and the arts. All one needed been ordained a priest of the for a Grand Tour was tons Diocese of Fall River less than of luggage, unlimited funds, a week. He was now taking international contacts among the Grand Tour. I’m told by the upper-crust, and plenty of a reliable source who asked leisure time. You might also to remain anonymous bebring along your mentor, your cause he is not authorized to valets, your butlers, your coach- speak (read Father Peter John men, and (if you were a finicky eater) your personal chef.

The Ship’s Log The typical Grand Reflections of a Tour lasted several Parish Priest months and sometimes even years.

By Father Tim You were expected Goldrick to return from The Grand Tour with wisdom and streetFournier. Oops. The name smarts. You were also expected slipped out), that the Grand to return with souvenirs with Tour is now all the rage among which to impress your snooty newly-ordained priests. Who friends and neighbors — origi- knew? I’m no longer included nal paintings, sculptures, rare in that demographic. books, and assorted objets d’art.

Chris was taking the Grand The rectory doorbell rang Tour with a twist. It was more recently, the private entrance. of a religious pilgrimage. He That doorbell has been broken was revisiting places holding for years but if you put on your significant personal meaning “listening ears” (as Judge Judy on his path to priesthood. He calls them) and if you’re lucky intended to celebrate Masses and if your visitor presses the of Thanksgiving at these sites. button just right, you may hear Chris visited his childhood a muffled electronic twang. parish, which is always so There at the door stood important in the formation of Father Christopher Peschel. a priestly vocation. There he He was expected. He had celebrated his first Mass. completed some 20 years of He visited the church where formal education. Chris had the journey began — the place

of his Baptism. Chris was surprised by the fact that the parish secretary knew immediately who he was. Did he still look the way he did as an infant? No. She remembered filling out a certificate of Baptism in preparation for his ordination. This I have learned over the years: secretaries know everything.

Then Chris went to the Catholic school he had attended as a young boy. No doubt that school helped in the early formation of his priestly vocation.

He attended the ordinations and first Masses of some of the men from other dioceses with whom he had shared the journey to priesthood.

The Grand Tour continued to two parishes where, while still a seminary student, he had been assigned for summer internships. These had given him a close-up glimpse of what actual ministry looks like. One would also be his first priestly assignment.

Being a member of the Knights of Columbus, Chris made sure that his Grand Tour included visits to some of his brother Knights who had been especially supportive of him

while he was a student.

Off he went, then, to the parish in which he had been assigned as a transitional deacon. It was there that he first directly experienced ministry as one ordained.

The doorbell rang recently at St. Patrick Rectory. There stood Father Chris Peschel. He wanted to celebrate Mass with some of the people involved in ECHO. Serving on an ECHO youth retreat weekend during his diaconal year had been an enjoyable and fruitful experience for him.

Chris wandered into the rectory kitchen. There he happened upon Father Frank Wallace. Our youngest priest and our oldest priest met for the first time in my kitchen.

They shared as brothers in the Priesthood of Jesus Christ.

The youngest priest in the diocese then left my place to continue his Grand Tour and the oldest priest in the diocese went back to reading his morning newspapers. I saw the continuity of the priesthood with my own eyes. “You are a priest forever,” sings the psalmist. He’s not just whistling “Dixie.”

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

Make the Good News sound good New Testament and prayer book the faculty room at lunch the that was removed from my seat, principal brought the Christmas “Giving Tree” in and asked the I asked the aisle-seat man what the argument was all about. “Oh, teachers if they could divide up the remaining cards since so well, the fellow by the window few students had taken one. A was raised Catholic and has discussion ensued about whether fallen away from the Church, so I was just explaining how Catholics should be more strident in their opposition to the politicians who support.…” Really? This is what a Catholic should say when sitting next to

By Claire McManus a fallen away member of our faith? If John Milton “those people” even needed these was writing about the New Evangelization he would call his gifts, and few bothered to take cards home. The young woman poem “Opportunity Lost!” was shocked and dismayed by How should a Catholic the attitude of her co-workers, evangelize a member of one of the largest denominations in the and on her way home she cried when she recalled how her famcountry — former Catholics? ily was on food stamps when she Here is another true story that was a child because her father might give us some insight. A young teacher in a public school, was a Catholic school teacher who didn’t make enough to put raised in a very religious and food on the table. Her next door faithful Catholic family, no longer practiced the faith. She mar- neighbor was working in the yard and noticed that this young ried a man who wasn’t Catholic woman was crying. She asked and just fell away. One day in

The Great Commission

what was wrong and when she heard the story said, “Take those cards off the tree and give them to me, our Church will take care of those gifts.” The neighbor was an active member of the local Catholic parish. She didn’t talk about God, religion, politics, sin, or obligation; she simply responded as a disciple of Christ. That day was the beginning of the young woman’s return to the Catholic Church.

Many Catholics have a deep and profound personal faith, with emphasis on personal. The gentleman whom I encountered on the plane was a man of deep faith. I asked him why he was so interested in religion and he said something very profound. “I am at an age when I realize that eternity is much longer than the life I have lived.”

His spiritual preparation to unite with Christ is transforming him for a larger purpose. No matter what we do to prepare ourselves spiritually; it is never for our own benefit. As St. Paul told the

Galatians, “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me.” Evangelization is not a campaign, but is simply sharing the faith that we love. When the opportunity for one-on-one conversation comes up, the best thing we can do is follow Jesus’ lead. Jesus debated religious practice and doctrine in the public square, but responded with mercy and love in private conversations.

He healed the blind man without speculating on the cause of his condition. Jesus forgave the thief on the cross without chastising him for the crime that got him there.

The next time God sits us next to a person who needs to hear the Good News, be sure to make the news sounds good.

Put away your politics and proselytizing, and take time to hear their story. We should not worry about what to say, because their life, with all of its hope and anxiety, will help to release the Christ Who lives within.

Anchor columnist Claire McManus is the director of the Diocesan Office of Faith Formation.

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June 27, 2014

Congratulations to our 2014 diocesan high school graduates

A group shot of “legacy grads� (top left photo), students who have at least one Bishop Feehan High School alum parent, gathered following their recent graduation ceremony at the Attleboro school. Students at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth (bottom left photo) leap high into the air to toss their caps following their recent commencement exercises.

Following the Coyle and Cassidy High school graduation in Taunton, (top right photo) diocesan Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael Griffin, school President Dr. Mary Patricia Tranter, valedictorian Katherine Armstrong, Bishop George W. Coleman, valedictorian Emily Williams, salutatorian Jason Lowder, and Principal Robert Gay gathered for a group photo.

At left, seniors from John Paul II High School in Hyannis, and (bottom right) Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River let their mortar boards fly at the conclusion of their recent commencement ceremonies.

June 27, 2014

These are scenes from this year’s Corpus Christi procession in New Bedford. The top photo shows, from left: (standing) Deacon Leo Racine, Father Sean Kelly OFM, Cap., Father Edward A. Murphy, Father Daniel O. Reis, and Deacon Eduardo Borges in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. Others who took part in the procession included Father Eduardo Coll, I.V.E., the Franciscan Sisters of the Immaculate and their beautiful singing, the Knights of Columbus who directed traffic, the Our Lady of Light Band, and all the people who contributed to make the event reverent and beautiful. (Photos by Lori Barrus)

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June 27, 2014

Relic of St. Anthony of Padua to visit Massachusetts parish

SPRINGFIELD (CNS) — A relic of St. Anthony of Padua will be on display at St. Anthony Maronite Church in Springfield in September, the only scheduled visit to the U.S. this year.

“This is an exceptional event because rarely do these relics come for such an extended period of time,” said Mark Dupont, spokesman for the Springfield Diocese.

Father George Zina, pastor of St. Anthony, said the September 6-14 visit of the firstclass relic is for everyone.

First-class relics are typically body parts of saints, such as a bone.

In 2013, the relic was on tour in honor of the 750th anniversary of the discovery of the bones of St. Anthony

by St. Bonaventure. The relic went to New York and other cities.

Father Zina, who requested that the relic be sent to Springfield during a visit to Padua, Italy, said its presence would be a grace and a blessing to the area.

Parishioners have interceded twice to St. Anthony since the parish’s founding in 1905 and believe their prayers had miraculous results, he said.

When the parish was founded — initially named SS. Peter and Paul — the pastor, Msgr. Paul Abi Saab, became ill and parishioners prayed a novena to St. Anthony for his recovery. The pastor regained his health and the parish thrived through his leadership which was later continued by his

nephew, Msgr. Michael Saab, who served the parish for 53 years.

In thanksgiving, the parish was renamed for St. Anthony.

Father Zina said he also believes St. Anthony protected the church when a 2011 tornado in Springfield veered around the parish property.

Deacon Enzo DiGiacomo planned the relic’s visit for about a year. He said there will be special theme days as part of the nine-day visit. Organizers have planned a youth day, Maronite heritage celebration and events for Catholic schools as well as Latinos, Italians, Vietnamese, Polish and people of other nationalities.

“The excitement is not only because the relic is coming, but because we are able to offer to the public and to the parishioners of this parish, and all the parishes in the Springfield Diocese and then expanding out to New England, an opportunity to see, venerate and pray,” the deacon said.

Three Masses are planned for each day the relic is at the church. Worshippers will have the opportunity for the Sacrament of Reconciliation and to pray Novenas.

“It’s not just where people come and look and venerate St. Anthony. It’s to get a new essence of our understanding of people,” Deacon DiGiacomo said.

“The graces and healing that are going to be extended are above and beyond what we can imagine,” he added.

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, June 29, 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Michael Racine, pastor of St. Bernard’s Parish in Assonet.

Vincent Piazza, Erich Bergen, John Lloyd Young and Michael Lomenda star in a scene from the movie “Jersey Boys.” For a brief review of this film, see CNS Movie Capsules below. (CNS photo/Warner Bros.)

crude and crass language, occasional sexual banter, mature references, including to crime and infidelity. The Catholic News Service classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted.

Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

“Think Like a Man Too” (Screen Gems) While the adage may hold NEW YORK (CNS) — The that “What happens in Vegas following are capsule reviews of movies recently reviewed by stays in Vegas,” plenty of Sin City’s debauchery is shared on Catholic News Service.

“Jersey Boys” (Warner Bros.) screen in this vulgar sequel to Lackluster adaptation of the 2012 film based, like its the long-running Broadway forerunner, on comic Steve musical about The Four Sea- Harvey’s best-selling book of sons, a 1960s vocal group. relationship advice “Act Like a With hits such as “Sherry,” Lady, Think Like a Man.” Tim “Big Girls Don’t Cry” and Story occupies the director’s “Walk Like a Man,” lead sing- chair again and Keith Merryer Frankie Valli ( John Lloyd man and David A. Newman reYoung), guitarist Tommy De- turn as screenwriters. Together, Vito (Vincent Piazza), bassist they chronicle the misbehavior Nick Massi (Michael Lomen- of couples gathered for a wedda) and songwriter and key- ding in the Mecca of vice. The boardist Bob Gaudio (Erich happy betrothed (Regina Hall Bergen) went from the rough- and Terrence J) are joined by and-tumble streets of New the groom’s disgruntled, interJersey to the heights of the fering mother ( Jenifer Lewis) pop music world, encounter- and a gaggle of friends. The ing numerous professional and best man (Kevin Hart) takes personal obstacles along the the fellows on a pre-nuptial way. Director Clint Eastwood night of binge drinking and and his key collaborators, in- strip clubs, while the ladies cluding the writers of the stage make their own mischief. Reshow, choose not to fiddle grettably, as in the original, the with material that has proven moral compass is skewed for so crowd-pleasing in the the- viewers of faith. Premarital sex ater. They fail to exercise much and cohabitation are taken for creative license or make much granted, regardless of whether of an effort to tailor the story the couples involved eventufor the screen. And yet, be- ally meet at the altar — the cause the toe-tapping music is desired outcome. As for varienjoyable, all is not lost. A few ous other strains of immoralnongraphic encounters, some ity, sinning with your friends is profanity, frequent rough, just fine, so long as you manage

CNS Movie Capsules

to clean up the mess afterward.

Benignly treated premarital relationships and drug use, fleeting partial nudity, some profanity, pervasive crude language and sexual banter. The Catholic News Service classification is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

“22 Jump Street” (Columbia) Chaotic, foul-mouthed and ultimately loathsome sequel to 2012’s “21 Jump Street” in which Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum reprise their roles at undercover police partners.

As the duo graduates from posing as high school students to infiltrating a fictional college, where they pretend to be brothers, co-directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller serve up a couple of expertly staged action sequences strung together by obscenities. In addition to its numerous other faults, this second installment — like its predecessor, a spoof of the Fox series first broadcast in 1987 — tries to have it both ways with the subject of homosexuality, alternately snickering at it and defending it. Frequent gun and physical violence, much sexual humor, a drug theme, inadvertent narcotics use, a few instances of profanity, pervasive rough and crude language. The Catholic News Service classification is O — morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

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June 27, 2014

Vatican publishes reflection on discerning essentials of faith

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — When a significant portion of the Catholic faithful ignore or reject a Church teaching, it is often — but not always — a sign that social and cultural pressures are weakening their faith or that Church leaders simply have not found a way to explain the teaching, said members of the International Theological Commission.

The commission published the document “‘Sensus Fidei’ in the Life of the Church” on the Vatican website in late June with the approval of Cardinal Gerhard Muller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The theologians, who were appointed to the commission by Pope Benedict XVI, had been asked to explain the meaning, purpose and limits of “sensus f idei” and “sensus f idelium” — the capacity of individual believers and of the Church as a whole to discern the truth of faith.

“The sensus f idei f idelis,” they said, “is a sort of spiritual instinct that enables the believer to judge spontaneously whether a particular teaching or practice is or is not in conformity with the Gospel and with apostolic faith. It is intrinsically linked to the virtue of faith itself; it flows from, and is a property of, faith.”

While the validity and importance of different Church teachings cannot be the subject of a popular vote, the degree to which they are or are not accepted by most Catholics is important, the commission members wrote.

“When the reception of magisterial teaching by the faithful meets with difficulty and resistance,” the document said, “appropriate action on both sides is required.”

Catholics “must reflect on the teaching that has been given, making every effort to understand and accept it,” the document said. “Resistance, as a matter of principle, to the

teaching of the magisterium is incompatible with the authentic sensus f idei.”

At the same time, the theologians said, “the magisterium must likewise reflect on the teaching that has been given and consider whether it needs clarification or reformulation in order to communicate more effectively the essential message.”

Writing about Catholic lay people, the commission said, “not only do they have the right to be heard, but their reaction to what is proposed as belonging to the faith of the Apostles must be taken very seriously, because it is by the Church as a whole that the apostolic faith is borne in the power of the Spirit.”

While “the faithful have an instinct for the truth of the Gospel,” the document said, there are situations in which Catholics claim to be relying on that instinct when, in fact, they are promoting deviations from the Christian faith, particularly on moral issues.

The document explains what sensus f idei means, gives Biblical evidence for its importance, looks at the history of its development in the Church, provides some criteria for discerning when it is authentic and discusses how it is “different from the majority opinion of the faithful in a given time or place.”

Particularly drawing on the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, members of the theological commission rejected the idea that Catholic laity are to blindly obey everything the pope and bishops tell them. However the document emphasized the importance of assuming Church leaders are correct, trying to understand the basis for their teaching and, in particular, praying, regularly receiving the Sacraments, studying and being an active member of the Catholic community before claiming to be able to discern

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

that a Church teaching needs adjustment.

“It is clear that there can be no simple identification between the sensus f idei and public or majority opinion,” the document said. “These are by no means the same thing.”

“Faith, not opinion, is the necessary focus of attention,” it said. “Opinion is often just an expression, frequently changeable and transient, of the mood or desires of a certain group or culture, whereas faith is the echo of the one Gospel, which is valid for all places and times.”

In addition, members of the commission noted, “in the history of the people of God, it has often been not the majority, but rather a minority which has truly lived and witnessed to the faith.”

The International Theological Commission also said the sensus f idei guarantees Chris-

tian freedom and can help purify the faith because it helps individual believers distinguish “between what is essential for an authentic Catholic faith and what, without being formally against the faith, is only accidental or even indifferent with regard to the core of the faith.”

As two examples, the commission members mentioned the possibility that some Catholics may downplay certain forms of Marian piety while still maintaining a devotion to Mary, or “they might also distance themselves from preaching which unduly mixes together Christian faith and partisan political choices.”

The sensus f idei also is essential in helping the Church respond to modern problems and challenges because it gives “an intuition as to the right way forward amid the uncertainties and ambigui-

ties of history, and a capacity to listen discerningly to what human culture and the progress of the sciences are saying,” the document said.

The commission members said the lay faithful are able “to sense what Pope Francis has called ‘new ways for the journey’ in faith of the whole pilgrim people. One of the reasons why bishops and priests need to be close to their people on the journey and to walk with them is precisely so as to recognize ‘new ways’ as they are sensed by the people. The discernment of such new ways, opened up and illumined by the Holy Spirit, will be vital for the New Evangelization.”

The full text can be found online at: http://www.vatican. va/roman_curia/congregations/ cfaith/cti_documents/rc_ cti_20140610_sensus-fidei_ en.html.

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June 27, 2014

Not all alarms are false

S

ome of my columns come out of nowhere. I can’t count the times I’ve told coworkers on a Tuesday morning, press day for The Anchor, that “I’ve got nothing,” of which to put together at least 500 cohesive words.

This morning was no exception. After doing the things that needed to be done for this week’s edition, I sat and stared at my screen for inspiration. Nothing.

I sat and stared out the window for inspiration. Nothing. I went to online sports and news pages.

Nothing.

My View From the Stands

By Dave Jolivet An idea suddenly popped into my head, and I began to pound away at the keyboard, relieved I’d make deadline.

Then the fire alarm exploded into a cacophonous racket. Once I returned from clutching the ceiling light fixture after jumping 10 feet high, I, my Anchor coworkers and our downstairs neighbors in the Tribunal Office made the trek outside to await the FRFD. We sensed this wasn’t a true fire emergency since there was a road crew just outside the building tearing up the street. It was assumed they had somehow set off the irritating din.

As we awaited the trucks, Fathers Rodney Thibault and Jeff Cabral of the Tribunal suggested that this event should make the front page of this week’s edition.

(And Father Jeff, this is the second week in a row you’ve made it into one of my columns — don’t

get used to it.)

Realizing it was likely a false alarm, I didn’t see the need for a front-page story, but the good Fathers suggested it make my column. I told them that I would make them look like heroes. They agreed heartily.

So dear readers (sorry Father Tim), I must say that Fathers Thibault and Cabral were inspirations to us all as we nervously waited to find out what was happening in our building. They stood in the driveway bravely awaiting the firefighters. Once they arrived, without thought of their own safety, they told the firemen the alarm was downstairs.

Now, it was in fact I who led the men to the alarm in the basement, but that’s not important.

All kidding aside, as I led the men to the alarm I could see the four of them heavily weighed down with oxygen tanks, helmets and fire suits that gave them the look of space aliens, rather than firefighters — on a hot summer day to boot.

I realized that every alarm to which they respond, they come prepared the same way — not knowing what they’ll find once they get to the site, a site sometimes fraught with danger and folks in peril. It’s their job to handle it.

These men and women do put their lives on the line on each call, and walking so closely by their side for a mere minute gave me a greater appreciation of that.

The alarm was indeed false, but it provided me the opportunity to see, up close, true heroes in their element — and there’s nothing false about that.

Archbishop: Catholics should be free to serve with ‘Eucharistic heart’

BALTIMORE (CNS) — The Eucharist conforms Catholics to “the pattern of Christ’s self-giving love” and compels them to see the dignity of the poor and perform acts of mercy, Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori said at the recent opening Mass for this year’s Fortnight for Freedom.

The Mass coincided with the feast of Corpus Christi.

“By entering the dynamic of Christ’s self-giving Eucharistic love, we are impelled to work for a loving and just society where the dignity of human life is respected from conception until natural death and all the stages in between,” he said in his homily.

More than 1,000 people packed the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary for the opening of the third annual Fortnight for Freedom, two weeks dedicated to prayer, education and advocacy for religious freedom.

Concelebrating the Mass were Auxiliary Bishop Martin D. Holley of Washington; Auxiliary Bishop F. Richard Spencer of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services; Auxiliary Bishop Denis J. Madden of Baltimore; Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, an auxiliary bishop of Baltimore and bishopdesignate of Springfield, Mass.; and a dozen priests.

Archbishop Lori is the chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty, formed in 2011. In 2012, it published a letter titled “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty” and launched the Fortnight for Freedom event in response to government infringement on religious freedom rights in the United States and abroad.

Chief among those perceived

threats are the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ mandate that most employers, including religious employers, provide insurance for artificial birth control, sterilization and abortion-causing drugs. Archbishop Lori and the Archdiocese of Baltimore are among plaintiffs in 100 lawsuits nonprofit and for-profit organizations and businesses have brought against the federal government over the mandate.

In his homily, Archbishop Lori criticized the mandate, as well as state laws criminalizing churches that serve immigrants living in the country illegally and “discrimination against Catholic humanitarian services because they refuse to provide so-called ‘services’ that violate Catholic teaching.”

Archbishop Lori acknowledged that in other countries, people are killed for professing their faith. In the U.S., he said, the challenges to religious freedom are more subtle yet “very real.”

“Increasingly, government at all levels is asserting itself in the internal life of churches, telling them that houses of worship are fully religious, whereas religious schools and charities that serve the common good are less so, and therefore less deserving of religious freedom protections,” he said.

The 2014 fortnight theme is “The Freedom to Serve” to emphasize the charitable works of Catholic organizations and individuals. During the Mass, Archbishop Lori distinguished the Church’s work from that of nongovernmental agencies, as Pope Francis has done, adding that Catholics “are to be more than an NGO” by virtue of a “Eucharistic heart.”

“We are seeking for the Church

This week in

and for Church institutions no special privileges,” he said. “We are seeking the freedom to serve, or as Pope Francis once put it, the freedom to proclaim and live the Gospel ‘in its entirety.’”

He asked Catholics to keep “in the forefront of our hearts” people whom U.S. Catholic humanitarian agencies, parishes and individuals serve.

Catholic parishes and organizations throughout the country have planned events celebrating religious freedom and charitable works to coincide with the fortnight. In addition to participating in these events, Archbishop Lori urged Catholics in the Archdiocese of Baltimore to take “The Freedom to Serve Pledge,” found at www.archbalt.org.

Among the Mass attendees were members of the Baltimorebased Little Sisters of the Poor, plaintiffs in a well-publicized lawsuit against the federal government over the HHS mandate.

The U.S. Supreme Court granted the Sisters a temporary injunction in January.

In an interview after Mass, Mother Loraine Marie Clare Maguire, the Little Sisters’ provincial superior, urged Catholics to pray for religious freedom.

“Religious freedom is very important to us and to our mission of caring for the elderly,” she told The Catholic Review, Baltimore’s archdiocesan newspaper. “You can’t do anything without prayer, and the Eucharist is the summit of our prayer life. It’s what brings us together as a community to pray.”

The Fortnight for Freedom will culminate with a July 4 Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington.

Diocesan history

50 years ago — Bishop James L. Connolly announced that the general contract for the addition to and refurbishing of the former Hixon Hotel in North Attleboro was awarded to create Madonna Manor, a new nursing home facility for 125 occupants.

10 years ago — Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, former parochial vicar at Holy Trinity Parish in West Harwich and St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth, was named director of education at the National Catholic Bioethics Center in Pennsylvania.

25 years ago — Father Jay T. Maddock was appointed judicial vicar of the diocesan marriage Tribunal by Bishop Daniel A. Cronin, succeeding Msgr. Henry T. Munroe, who had held the post since 1971 and was named diocesan vicar general.

One year ago — Bishop Connolly High School in Fall River held a dedication ceremony at which time the Lafrance gymnasium floor was named for two longtime Connolly coaches — William “Shifty” Shea and his son, Bill Shea.

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June 27, 2014

Catholic media urged to bring fresh energy, compassion to their work CHARLOTTE, N.C. (CNS) — Pope Francis’ dream for the Catholic Church is to not only be a teacher but also a mother “caressing her children with compassion,” the president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications told members of the Catholic media.

“The Church is not only an institution but a Church that is able to go around and walk with humanity, with the men and women of today,” said Archbishop Claudio Maria Celli said in a talk at the recent 2014 Catholic Media Conference in Charlotte.

Pope Francis feels the greatest challenge for the Church today is “to become mother,” he said, and the other challenge is to figure out “how to express in our media the maternity of the Church.”

“We can be very much correct and faithful to doctrine, but people face so much difficulty to stay in this Church.

The doors must be open for all to enter regardless of their standing in life,” the archbishop said, and like any mother,

the Church might not always like her children’s behavior but she still loves them.

Archbishop Celli spoke at a general session on the second day of the annual gathering of members of the Catholic Press Association of the U.S. and Canada and the Catholic Academy of Communication Professionals.

The conference was hosted by the Diocese of Charlotte and its news outlet, the Catholic News Herald, and drew more than 200 reporters, editors, communication directors and others serving in Catholic media across the U.S. and Canada.

The “ever-changing dynamics, trends and ways of working in the field of communication are profound and rapid. It is difficult to know where things are going,” Archbishop Celli said.

“We can, however, share our experiences and expertise in order to become more attentive, knowledgeable and flexible so as to respond better to our calling as Church communicators, who share

the Gospel message through our personal and professional lives,” he said.

He cited a new survey by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism that shows, among other things, 37 percent of respondents said they access news from a smartphone every week; social networking sites are key drivers in disseminating information, especially Facebook and Twitter; newer platforms are emerging, such as Google Plus and WhatsApp; and there is an ever-widening gap in the ways young people engage with media and news compared to their parents or grandparents.

The survey also showed that respondents were inclined to trust individual journalists more than the organizations or the institutions for which they work, he said.

“The key question for Catholic media professionals is to consider how best we can be present in this emerging digital arena,” Archbishop Celli said.

Sisters join lawsuit to force neighboring ‘gentlemen’s club’ to close

CHICAGO (CNS) — The Missionary Sisters of St. Charles Borromeo are not pleased by having a “gentlemen’s club” operating in their backyard, and they are not going to be quiet about it.

The Scalabrinian Sisters, whose convent campus spans the border of the western Chicago suburbs of Melrose Park and Stone Park, have joined in a lawsuit with the Village of Melrose Park and three residents in hopes of forcing the club to close.

Club Allure, located in Stone Park, backs up to the Sisters’ property.

The lawsuit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court by the Thomas More Society, claims that the club violates an Illinois state law requiring a 1,000-foot buffer zone between adult entertainment venues and places of worship and schools, among other uses.

The Sisters’ property, which includes the provincial motherhouse, a school for novices and a home for aging Sisters, also houses three chapels.

Neighbors often join the Sisters for prayer and daily Mass.

Thomas Brejcha, Thomas

More Society president, said the club is open until 5 a.m. and disturbs not only the Sisters, but neighboring families.

“There’s loud, blaring music all night long, with the heavy drumbeat — thwomp, thwomp, thwomp,” Brejcha said. Neighbors have complained about inebriated patrons leaving the club, fistfights in the parking lot and litter, including broken bottles and used condoms.

The Scalabrinian Sisters have been protesting the club since they learned the property had been rezoned more than two years ago. At the time the proposed club was to be called “Get It.” Its opening was delayed until September 2013, when it opened under the name Club Allure Chicago.

The Sisters said they were never informed of the rezoning hearing. At the time, Stone Park village officials said their letter went to the wrong address because of problems with the property tax records.

Stone Park officials also have said they believe the zoning law is unconstitutional.

Brejcha disagreed, explaining that an Illinois appellate

court has upheld the law. He suggested that if the law is unconstitutional, the club’s owners should seek to change it, not ignore it.

What’s more, Brejcha said, the placement of the club on the border of Stone Park and Melrose Park means that it violates Melrose Park’s buffer zones as well.

Scalabrinian Sister Noemia Silva represented her community at a recent news conference about residents’ concerns.

“They can have their strip club, but in their own backyard, not in ours,” she said.

“This strip club has created an environment of fear and insecurity,” Sister Noemia said. “Club Allure devalues and degrades our communities. A place like this should not be next to our convent and especially should not be in a residential area where children play every day. What mother wants to bring their family up next to a strip club?”

While the lawsuit is pending, the Sisters planned to hold weekly Friday evening prayer vigils, meeting in the convent and walking to the front of the strip club to pray.

Rob DeFrancesco, president of the Catholic Press Association, presents Jim Lackey, web news editor at Catholic News Service, with the association’s St. Francis de Sales Award June 20 in Charlotte, N.C. The award recognizing excellence in journalism is the highest honor given by the association. (CNS photo/Sam Lucero, The Compass)

Pope Francis recognizes “the extraordinary potential for good which digital media can have in bringing people closer together, he said, but the pope “also stresses that communication should always be understood as a human rather than a technological achievement and that social networks are ultimately constituted by people rather than wires or cables.”

“Notwithstanding, the ‘newness’ or ‘difference’ of the digital arena, the Church must endeavor to be present if the Word of God is to encounter people fully in this dimension of their lives,” the archbishop said.

Archbishop Celli also stressed the need to keep the tone of debates on social media civil and charitable, because too often the tone “can be very critical or very negative.”

Quoting Pope Francis, he said: “We need to resolve our differences through forms of dialogue which help us grow in understanding and mutual respect. A culture of encounter demands that we be ready not only to give, but also to receive.”

The archbishop said that Pope Benedict XVI shared the same sentiment when he said: “The social media thus need the commitment of all who are conscious of the value of dialogue, reasoned debate and logical argumentation.”

In the past 10 years, the

Vatican has expanded its media efforts beyond its newspaper, radio and TV outlets and website in response to “massive changes in the media landscape and the way people communicate and relate” and to have an effective presence in the digital world.

The Vatican has had a YouTube channel since 2009. The web portal www.news.va was started in 2011. The Vatican launched the mobile and tablet version of news.va called “The Pope App” in 2013; an updated version is being released sometime in July.

As more new technologies emerge, Church communications must continue to adapt, Archbishop Celli said, and he urged the Catholic communicators to bring fresh energy and imagination to their work.

He ended his talk with a favorite story about a musician who went from village to village riding his donkey and carrying his harp. One day thieves attacked him, took the donkey and harp, and left him injured in the road.

Passers-by asked him what happened.

“He told them the thieves stole his donkey and his harp but they could not steal ‘the music from my heart.’ What we have to communicate is the music we are keeping in our heart,” Archbishop Celli said. “People will be enchanted only by the music of the heart.”

16

Youth Pages

June 27, 2014

Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth announced it has hired Colbey Santos as its fourth head boys basketball coach in the school’s history. Santos originally hails from Wareham and is a graduate of Tabor Academy in Marion, where he led a nationally-ranked varsity squad. Santos played NCAA Division 1 basketball on full scholarship at James Madison University and the University of New Hampshire.

Kindergarten students at St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro recently celebrated their Class Day. They enjoyed a video of the year’s events, sang songs and had refreshments with their classmates, teachers and faculty.

The Coyle and Cassidy High School (Taunton) SADD (Students Against Destructed Decisions) group sponsored a teacher “Cookie Cook Off” fund-raiser.

Cameron Durant and Mark Guzman went head-to-head for Best Chocolate Chip Cookie! Students made a nominal donation to participate in the fund-raiser.

Votes were tabulated on iPads under the direction of the director of technology. The “Blue” cookie won out over the “Gold” cookie, ultimately crowning Durant winner. Pictured are Bridget Murphy-Courteau and Ashley Taylor.

Students and faculty from St. James-St. John School in New Bedford recently enjoyed a fun-filled day at McCoy Stadium watching the Pawtucket Red Sox.

After reading a photo journalist’s account of his trip to the Amazon Rainforest, the fifth-grade students at Holy Name School in Fall River shared their PowerPoint presentations and mural of the various plants and animals of the rainforest with their parents. Parents and students then enjoyed snacks and a variety of food indigenous to the area.

Elizabeth Cardelli, an eighth-grader from St. Joseph School in Fairhaven, was recently honored at the Massachusetts State House in Boston for the essay she wrote entitled, “People Helping People.” In the essay, Elizabeth highlighted three issues in her community she would like to see improved. The issues she spoke about were bullying, pollution, and senior issues, for which she proposed a program allowing seniors to be paired up with a child from the community fostering an appreciation and understanding of both generations. She was one of only eight students from across the Commonwealth to receive an award.

June 27, 2014

W

Youth Pages Living day-to-day in the presence of the Lord

e are an Easter people. We live in the hope of the resurrection and we are meant to live in the presence and power of the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit helps us live day to day in prayer, Sacrament and service so that we can confess that Jesus is Lord and come together as the Body of Christ. The Spirit helps us to live like Jesus so we can share in His eternal life.

We just finished celebrating the Easter season and are called to go on mission.

This is our Pentecost and it presents us with an opportunity to consider how we are living each day. School is out and summer vacation has begun! What are your plans? Do they include relying on the power of God’s Spirit? Are you open to the gifts and fruits of the Spirit allowing them to grow in your life? Most of us do live in the presence and power of the Spirit, but not fully. Is it because we are limited by our fear, our sin, our low expectations, or our tendency to be distracted from God’s work in us? Pentecost offers us a chance to confess our weakness to live by the Spirit and to ask the Lord to fill us anew with His power every day, including our time off from school and work.

Sometimes we think we should never be mean, angry or upset. That is our

think and pray. Maybe, if they let me goal. But, we are human and we need enter this monastery I can do something the understanding and encouragement positive and save my soul and have more of others, not only when things go well, meaning and happiness in my life. He but also when things in our daily living, thought about it and joined the monaslike school, family or friendships are not going well. How can we “mend our ways,” tery and began living his life in God’s service. It was the custom in that monastery “mend our relationships,” or “mend our to celebrate one of the great feasts of Our behavior with our friends”? How can we Lady by giving her a gift of some kind. find peace when we feel stuck in anger, The monk weakness, or who could sin? Who or write comwhat can help posed a poem. us? Where in The artist your life do monk painted you need the a beautiful “grace of the picture. The Lord Jesus, the

By Ozzie Pacheco monk who love of God, gardened and the fellowarranged a ship of the Holy Spirit”? How will you find the gifts bouquet. The new monk did not know what he could do. He wasn’t good at anyand talents God has given you to do all thing except juggling. He was ashamed this? Maybe you already have them, but to give this gift. What good was juggling? you consider them unworthy. Nonsense!

But very early on the day of Our Lady’s All of God’s gifts have a purpose. You feast, while it was still dark, he quietly have a purpose! borrowed three oranges from the kitchen.

Have you ever heard the legend of Then he crept into the chapel. “Forgive Our Lady’s juggler? There was a young man who was a juggler and he lived from me, Mary,” he said. “I do not have much, but what I have, I give you.” And he beday-to-day on the small donations he gan to juggle the oranges. He threw them received. One day on his travels he was up, around, behind his back, and never passing a monastery and he started to missed catching them once! Juggling

Be Not Afraid

Westport parishioners donate yarn to St.Vincent’s Home westport — Chapter 441 of Catholic Financial Life and parishioners of St. George’s Parish in Westport, held a yarn collection, donating more than five boxes and 10 large bags of assorted yarn and knitting needles to St. Vincent’s Home for volunteers to make afghan blankets.

Chapter president Normand Ouellette and vice president Lynette Ouellette organized the recent collection which lasted for more than four weeks. An announcement was posted in the St. George’s Parish bulletin and collection boxes were set

up inside the entrance to the church.

Volunteer Connie Arruda and others have been hard at work hand-knitting afghan blankets for the children and youth of St, Vincent’s. To date more than 253 blankets have been made by Arruda and a team of dedicated volunteers. The hand-made blankets provide the children with a sense of security, keeping them safe and warm and giving them hope for a brighter future.

To donate yarn or squares of crocheted/ knitted yarn, please contact Melissa Dick at St. Vincent’s by calling 508-235-3228.

Chapter 441 Catholic Financial Life and parishioners of St. George’s Parish in Westport donated yarn and knitting needles to St. Vincent’s Home in Fall River for volunteers to make afghans. More than 250 afghan blankets have been knitted or crocheted and distributed to St. Vincent’s children and youth in recent years. From left: Normand Ouellette, Lynette Ouellette and Connie Arruda.

17

always made him happy, and he hoped that Our Lady was happy, too. The head of the monastery, the abbot, happened to be praying in the chapel. He watched the young monk as he juggled, and when he had finished, the abbot said to him, “Little Brother, thank you for your gift.

You have brought joy to Our Lady and to this house. Be ready to juggle for everyone at the feast today.”

There is a saying, “God loves each of us as if there were only one of us.” And there is only “one of us.” We are all unique and we all have a share in eternal life. It’s there for the taking. But, in your day-today living, do you ever think of eternal life? One of the dictionary definitions of eternity is “without intermission.” If we think of eternity as having no beginning and no end, that is, it always was and is and will be, then we are living in eternity now. There will be no intermissions. We will just keep on going and going because we are in communion with and in union with God. Our task is to renew this union with God day-to-day and receive more eternity, more life and more healing.

And we do this every time we receive the Eucharist.

God bless!

Anchor columnist Ozzie Pacheco is Faith Formation director at Santo Christo Parish, Fall River.

Knights of Columbus Council #12283 from St. Bernard’s Parish in Assonet, recently held its third annual Youth Awards Night. Top photo: the basketball free-throw winners, front row, from left: 10-year-old winner Braden Kelly; Austin Macek, 11-year-old boys winner, and third in the state contest; and, 12-year-old boys winner Ryan Forkey.

Back row: Bruce Crosby from the Berkley Athletic; Bill Morin, Free-Throw Chairman; and Mike Faria, Grand Knight. Bottom photo, the scholarship winners: front row: Alan Chretien, Corey Andrade, Emily Ferreira, Ashlyn Czlpiga, Ryan Bernard, Ashley Graca, Brian Corriera, and Henry Dion. Back row: Judi Morin, Father Mike Racine, Conner Garca, Jonathan Robelo, Vincent Kyne, Matt Hermenau, Adam Couitt, and Stephen Couitt. In all $6,000 were given out in scholarships.

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June 27, 2014

Young men set to embark on annual Quo Vadis Days retreat continued from page one

one of the favorite activities of Quo Vadis campers every year.

“The hike is a highlight of the week, not only for those who have never hiked up a mountain before to see the beauty, but also for the experience as a group to help each other,” he said. “I think there is always a great lesson — not only physically but also spiritually — when you hike a mountain. You learn about perseverance, about sacrifice, and about the beauty of God’s creation — especially when you reach the peak and it is a great lesson on the joy of reaching our ultimate goal, which is Heaven.”

Quo Vadis Days — which takes its name from the Latin phrase meaning “Where are you going?” (which the Risen Jesus is reputed to have appeared outside of Rome and questioned St. Peter, as he was fleeing persecution) — consists of a team of priests, seminarians and adult advisors who provide guidance and advice to help high schoolaged young men deepen their faith and better discern what God is calling them to do.

Aimed at young men ages 14 to 18 from the Fall River Diocese, the original Quo Vadis Days was cofounded by Father John Cihak of Portland, Ore. and Father William Dillard of San Diego, Calif., in the summer of 2000. Twenty-two young men attended that first camp and the idea has since spread to dioceses throughout

the United States.

Father Cook said the response to Quo Vadis here in the Fall River Diocese has been quite positive and the annual retreat seems to be bearing much fruit.

“Each year has been a very enjoyable time for all those who have taken part,” he said. “One highlight for me each year has been seeing the young men from all over the diocese coming together and forming great bonds.

“Spiritually, it is also very moving to see the great faith of some of the young men and seeing many become more open to praying about their vocation — whatever it may be — and seeing how some of them become very open to discussing questions they may have about vocations and discernment. One of our (current) seminarians took part in the retreat over the years and he attributed this experience as a big help for him in his discernment.”

Unlike the typical retreat experience, Quo Vadis Days isn’t just about prayer and meditation interspersed with long talks about vocations — it also provides opportunities for social interaction and outdoor activities with fellow attendees, priests and seminarians, which is a crucial component of getting to know what a potential vocation to the priesthood entails.

In addition to providing conferences, spiritual guidance and fraternity through prayer, cel-

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ebrating the Liturgy and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, activities also include hiking, swimming and sports such as flag football and ultimate Frisbee. There are also plenty of great food and discussions.

Father Cook said a key to the success of Quo Vadis is in maintaining that balance between quiet times for prayer and reflection and the more fun-filled recreational activities.

“Teen-age boys naturally enjoy activities, so it is important that we give some time each day for it,” he said. “But I think most recognize the importance of times for prayer and the Sacraments, and the structure of each day enables them to put that importance into action. For some of them, they may not naturally give that time if they are around their peers, but this retreat helps foster that and they quickly realize they enjoy the balance we try to give.”

In this digital age where smart phones and social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter constantly compete for a teen-ager’s attention, Father Cook said an experience such as Quo Vadis can be very refreshing.

“All of us can allow many good things in daily life to distract us and we don’t realize we need time for rest and spending time in reflection,” he said. “As great as social media can be, it can also function as a great distraction from reflecting on our daily lives. Once the guys get away from the social media stuff, they start to find the joy of getting away from the daily grind and discover the beauty of peace found when we give time to the Lord.”

In addition to the change of venue this year, Father Cook said there are a few new items that have been added to the 2014 Quo Vadis agenda.

“This year we have our newly-ordained Father Chris Peschel coming to celebrate Mass with the men, which I am certain our past participants taking part will enjoy since they got to know him over the years,” Father Cook said. “Also we have Father Jay Maddock, pastor of Holy Name Parish in Fall River, coming in to talk about his life as a priest and the joys of living this vocation.”

As in past years, plans are in place for Bishop George W. Coleman to celebrate Mass and spend some time with the campers during Quo Vadis.

“A highlight each year is when the bishop comes to cel-

ebrate Mass and chat with the young men,” Father Cook said.

“I know the bishop enjoys it, but you can tell on the young men’s faces the joy they have being able to spend time with the bishop, ask him questions and have lunch with him as well.”

Father Cook credits the ongoing success of Quo Vadis Days to the support and participation of many of the recent and current diocesan seminarians studying for the priesthood, who often serve as mentors and chaperones for the five-day retreat.

“Father Chris Peschel and Father Jason Brilhante were never campers on Quo Vadis Days, but they helped as seminarians in years past,” Father Cook said.

“I think the young guys really enjoy having them come (back

to Quo Vadis) as priests and it helps them understand that the priests were like them at one time. It helps the guys open up with the young priests, because they know them from previous years and have already built up a strong aspect of trust in them.”

The Quo Vadis Days retreat runs the first full week after the Fourth of July and will begin this year on July 7 starting at 1 p.m. and conclude on July 11 at noon at the Betania II Spiritual Life Retreat Center, 154 Summer Street in Medway.

Those interested in learning more about Quo Vadis Days should contact Father Kevin Cook at frcook@ holyfamilytaunton.org or visit the diocesan vocations website at www.fallrivervocations.org.

Thousands march for Marriage in D.C. continued from page one

other letter mentioned the pope’s words in an apparent attempt to imply that the pontiff would not approve of the march; however, his representative in the U.S., the apostolic nuncio Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, attended the rally.

Many Catholic groups — including the Knights of Columbus, the National Council of Catholic Women, Ave Maria University’s campus ministry, the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, the USCCB and CatholicVote.org — sent buses to the march. CatholicVote.org funded four buses with donations raised in protest to Pelosi’s letter to her archbishop.

The organization’s president, Brian Burch, explained in a statement that Pelosi’s action “inspired thousands of Catholics to mobilize in defense of the timehonored institution of Marriage.”

In a letter responding to those who called for him to cancel his appearance at the march, Archbishop Cordileone said the march is not antianything. Rather, it affirms the great good of bringing mothers and fathers together.

He also asserted that the march’s sponsors, the National Organization for Marriage and the Family Research Council are not anti-homosexual organizations.

As the first speaker at the march, he said that Marriage supporters must “proclaim with love” that the strength of Marriage in society is linked to a host of social justice issues. In order to fix the economy, ensure a living wage, improve schools and fix the broken immigration system, Americans must “rebuild a Marriage culture.”

He said there will be “no justice, no peace, no end of poverty without a strong culture of Marriage and the family.”

Other Catholic speakers included NOM’s president Brian Brown and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum.

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and Boston’s Rev. Eugene Rivers, pastor of Azusa Christian Community, also addressed the crowd.

Rivers said that there are many Catholics and Pentecostals like himself who understand what Marriage is.

“Do not feel defeated, because we have the victory, because we are the majority,” he said. “We must understand what Jesus said before He left, ‘Go out to all the world and preach the Gospel.’”

From the road back to Boston the day after the rally, Kristian Mineau, president emeritus of the Massachusetts Family Institute, told The Anchor that the march was an exciting, energizing event.

He hopes to see the number of participants from the Commonwealth grow in future years. Massachusetts citizens who are faithful to “true Marriage” need to stand up and be counted, particularly because their state was the first to legalize same-sex marriage, he said.

“The idea [behind the march] is to keep the vision of Marriage with one man and one woman alive and to keep the battle for Marriage alive,” he said. “Regrettably, this battle began in Massachusetts.”

The entire rally before the March for Marriage can be viewed at https://www. marriagemarch.org/live/.

19

June 27, 2014

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 St. Joseph Adoration Chapel at Holy Ghost Church, 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, every first Friday after the 8 a.m. Mass and ending the following day before the 8 a.m. Mass.

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 noon in the Chapel of Reconciliation, with Benediction at noon. 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 every Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

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.

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.

Pope names Baltimore auxiliary bishop to head Mass. diocese

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Pope Francis has appointed Auxiliary Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski of Baltimore as bishop of the Diocese of Springfield, Mass.

Bishop Rozanski will succeed Bishop Timothy A. McDonnell, 76, whose resignation was accepted by the pope.

The appointment was recently announced in Washington by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, apostolic nuncio to the United States.

Bishop Rozanski, 55, was ordained a priest for the Baltimore Archdiocese in 1984. He became an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese in 2004.

“I will remain forever grateful for the privilege to have ministered as priest and bishop in the Archdiocese of Baltimore for nearly 30 years,” Bishop Rozanski said in a statement.

Bishop Rozanski will be installed August 12 in Springfield.

The Baltimore native grew up in Sacred Heart of Mary Parish in the Graceland Park neighborhood, where he attended the parish elementary school. The son of a Bethlehem Steel police officer graduated from Our Lady of Mount Carmel High School in Essex, where he had served as student council president. He prepared for the priesthood at the Theological College at The Catholic University of America, Washington.

Before becoming a member of the hierarchy, Bishop Rozanski served as an associate pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Parish in Baltimore, and St. Isaac

In Your Prayers

Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks July 5 Rev. J.F. LaBonte, Retired Assistant, Sacred Heart, New Bedford, 1943 Rev. Edward P. Versailles, M.S., La Salette Shrine, North Attleboro, 1985 July 6 Rev. Edmond Francis, SS.CC., Pastor, St. Mary, Fairhaven, 1963 Rev. Paul J. Price, SS.CC., 2006 July 7 Rev. James E. Lynch, Founder, St. Joan of Arc, Orleans, 1965 July 8 Rev. Edward Murphy, Pastor, St. Mary, Fall River, 1887 Msgr. Patrick J. O’Neill, Retired Pastor, St. Julie Billiart, North Dartmouth, 1995 July 10 Rev. Pie Marie Berard, O.P., Dominican Priory, Fall River, 1938 Rev. Maurice E. Parent, Assistant, St. Michael, Swansea, 1972 Rev. John E. Morris, M.M., Retired Maryknoll Missioner, Former Assistant, St. Joseph, Fall River, 1987 Rev. Theodore M. Morin, M.S., La Salette Shrine, North Attleboro, 1987

Jogues Parish in Carney, Md. In 1993, he was named administrator and then pastor of Baltimore’s Holy Cross and St. Mary Star of the Sea parishes before becoming pastor of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Severna Park, Md., from 2000 to 2004.

Other parish assignments in Maryland included appointments at St. Michael the Archangel, Overlea; Cathedral of Mary Our Queen, Homeland; and Church of the Immaculate Conception, Towson.

As auxiliary bishop of Baltimore, Bishop Rozanski originally oversaw parishes in Anne Arundel, Baltimore and Harford counties. Later, when the archdiocese’s vicariate structure was altered, his responsibilities grew as he oversaw the newly-formed Seton vicariate, whose territory includes Allegany, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Frederick, Garrett, Howard and

Washington counties.

In leading this vicariate, Bishop Rozanski was active in ongoing pastoral planning and was well known for traveling great distances over a sprawling territory. He worked with parish and regional leaders on a variety of projects.

Bishop Rozanski also served as vicar for Hispanics in the archdiocese, joining with other faith leaders in advocating for laws supporting immigrants. He was a vocal supporter in passing the Maryland DREAM Act, a law that allows certain undocumented immigrants to pay in-state college tuition rates.

Nationally, Bishop Rozanski served as co-chairman of the Polish National Catholic-Roman Catholic Dialogue. In 2013, he was elected chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs.

Around the Diocese The 36th annual Summer Fair to benefit Our Lady of the Cape Parish, 468 Stony Brook Road in Brewster, will be held June 28 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the parish center. New this year: bountiful baskets and fun activities for children. Browse through jewelry, attic treasures, collectibles, crafts, books, toys, art work, tools and more. There will also be a cash raffle and silent auction, delicious baked goods, café snacks, outdoor barbecue and ice cream treats.

The annual Santo Christo Feast at Santo Christo Parish on Columbia Street in Fall River will open on June 28 with a 6 p.m. solemn Mass celebrated by Bishop George W. Coleman. The preacher will be Father Vitor Manuel Fernandes Gonçalves, pastor of São Domingos Church in Lisbon. Following Mass will be the “Grand Procession of Promises” with the following route: Canal/Ferry/ Mulberry/William/Grant, to church. The feast will continue on the church grounds until 10 p.m. On June 29 the solemn procession will step off at 4 p.m. with the following route: Columbia/Hunter/Hope/Fountain/Division/Almond/ William/Broadway/Columbia and back to the church on Columbia Street.

Feast activities will resume on the church grounds from 6:30 to 10 p.m. with Portuguese and American food, booths, games, raffle and the best malassadas in the area.

Massachusetts Citizens for Life is sponsoring the Respect Life Walk to Aid Mothers and Children. The annual walk-a-thon to raise funds to support mothers and children in crisis situations is scheduled for June 29 at 2:30 p.m. from the Boston Commons. The Greater Fall River MCFL Chapter is sponsoring a bus to bring local walkers to the Boston Common. No need to worry about parking or the Boston traffic. Round trip fare is only $5 for adults, $2 for 18 and under. Children five and under are free. The central pick-up location is at Good Shepherd Parish on South Main Street in Fall River. Departure time will be at 12:30 p.m. There will be a second pick-up at the Taunton Galleria Park and Ride at approximately 12:45 p.m. To reserve seats or for more information call Bea Martins at 508-678-3351.

All are invited to attend a morning of prayer, praise, teaching and healing power. Barbara Wright will be the guest speaker at a Prayer Meeting on July 12 at St. Anthony’s Church, 126 School Street in Taunton from 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon. Wright is a very gifted speaker and has inspired many people. This is event is sponsored by The Living Word Prayer Group. For more information, call Mary Leite at 508-822-2221.

A special celebration of the profession of Father Flavio Gillo and other La Salette Seminarians will be held during the 12:10 p.m. Mass on July 27 at La Salette Shrine, 947 Park Street in Attleboro, in the shrine church. Together, let us invoke Our Lady and the Holy Spirit to bless and enrich their lives in her service in “Making Her Message Known” throughout the world.

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June 27, 2014

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Pope lightens his summer schedule, as he did in 2013

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis’ schedule for summer 2014 is almost an exact duplicate of the schedule he kept in 2013, except he will be making an August trip to South Korea for Asian Youth Day. Last year, he traveled to Brazil in July for World Youth Day. Publishing information about the pope’s summer plans the Vatican recently said that as in 2013, Pope Francis will not invite groups of Catholics

to his residence for his early morning Mass in July and August.

The Vatican also said that while he would not hold his weekly general audience on the Wednesdays of July, the pope does plan to hold the gatherings at the Vatican in August, except when he is in South Korea August 13-18.

In 2013, the general audiences were suspended in July and August.

Last year, Pope Francis

broke the papal tradition of spending much of the summer at the papal villa at Castel Gandolfo, south of Rome, but he did travel to the town July 14 for a Sunday Angelus and August 15 for the feast of the Assumption. The Vatican note on the pope’s 2014 summer schedule did not mention the villa at all. Except when he is in South Korea, it said, he will lead the recitation of the Angelus on Sundays at the Vatican.

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