01.22.2021

Annual March for Life will be virtual event January 29 Diocesan Pro-Life events also slated

Diocese of Fall River, Mass. † Friday, January 22, 2021

EAST TAUNTON — For the last 47 years, the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. has been the meeting site for thousands of Pro-Life girls, boys, women and men from across the country.

But, like so many other routine events that have been altered, this year’s march, scheduled for January 29, is going virtual. The event organizers made the decision based on the COVID-19 virus and the civil unrest that is taking place in our nation. The March for Life statement appears on page two.

Those who wish to participate in the March for Life virtually, can RSVP to the March for Life directly at: https://p2a.co/BIa5nXt. By

signing up with that link, you will receive access to the livestream information sent directly to your inbox so that you can watch from the safety of your home.

Meanwhile, local Pro-Life events, public and private, are taking place, to make up for the usual pilgrimage down Route 95 to the nation’s capital.

On January 29 there is a private Mass, because of COVID restrictions, for pilgrims who have previously traveled with the Holy Family Pro-Life group in East Taunton. The Mass will be at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Seekonk. Immediately following the Mass, there will be a Holy Hour for Life with a brief reflec8 Turn to page two

Our Lady of Lourdes School student Reagan Lawrence, first grade, and fellow students, helped promote a recent fundraiser, selling OLOL calendars to benefit the Taunton school. OLOL School, founded in 1963, is the only Catholic school in the city of Taunton.

It has been able to survive through the generous contributions of families, alumni, and members of the community for the last 57 years. To purchase a calendar contact Sister Margretta Sol at the OLOL convent at 508-822-0357. Celebrate Catholic Schools Week, a national celebration of parochial schools, runs this year from January 31 to February 6. A diocesan schedule is on page 12.

Diocese’s Catholic Schools Office announces director of newly-created Catholic Mission and Identity FALL RIVER — Starting this month, Marian Desrosiers will begin in the newly-created part-time position of Director of Catholic Mission and Identity. Desrosiers joins in the work of the Catholic Schools Office as she brings a great deal of experience from her work at the diocesan Pro-Life Apostolate and at Bishop Connolly High

School in Fall River.

The role of the Director of Catholic Mission and Identity will provide guidance and support to the Church’s teaching mission in the 20 Diocese of Fall River Catholic schools while coordinating programs with various diocesan ministries and apostolates. Des8 Turn to page 12

A magnificent eight-foot bronze statue of Venerable Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C., was erected at the Father Peyton Center in Easton on January 9. The center is located on the grounds of the headquarters of Holy Cross Family Ministries.

Story page January 22,on 2021 † two.

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Eight-foot bronze Italian sculpture of famed Rosary Priest installed at Father Peyton Center site in Easton

EASTON — A beautiful, handcrafted Italian sculpture in the likeness of Holy Cross Family Ministries founder, Venerable Patrick Peyton, arrived at the Father Peyton Center in North Easton on January 9.

Father Patrick Peyton, C.S.C., born on Jan. 9, 1909, in County Mayo, Ireland, was known as the Rosary Priest, who professed that “the family that prays together stays together.” He is a candidate for sainthood and the recent subject of a documentary film in theaters this past fall, “PRAY: THE STORY OF PATRICK PEYTON.” Holy Cross Family Ministries carries on Father Peyton’s mission to help families experience the unifying benefits of family prayer.

“We are so pleased with the sculptors’ creation, which not only captures his image and likeness, but also provides an impression of who he was — a humble and holy man,” said Father Wilfred Raymond, C.S.C., President of Holy Cross Family Ministries, “This statue honors the life of Father Peyton and will inspire visitors to the Museum of Family Prayer.”

The statue stands more than eight feet tall and was created by a team of sculptors under the supervision of Reto Demetz of Demetz Art Studio in Ortisei, Italy, and was then cast in bronze

by Mazzolini Artcraft Co. in Verona, Italy. The production of the statue was managed by Holy Cross Family Ministries and John Mazzolini of Mazzolini Art-

craft, and has traveled from Italy to a Mazzolini facility in Cleveland, and arrived in Easton on January 9, Father Peyton’s birthday.

“We have had the privilege of creating sculptural works of art of many famous people,” said John Mazzolini, CEO of Mazzolini Artcraft Company. “This project was special to us as we came to learn about Father Peyton’s legacy and his impact on millions of people around the world.

We think this statue is a testament to his life and will inspire many in the years to come.”

Father Peyton, a Catholic media pioneer, spent the 51 years of his priesthood serving the Spiritual needs of families. During his life, he led millions in prayer at 40 Family Rosary Rallies that drew 28 million people, including two million each at events in Sao Paulo, Brazil and Manila, Philippines. He touched millions of lives by spreading his famous message, “The fam-

Like a child opening a Christmas present, Father Wilfred Raymond, C.S.C., president of HCFM, joyfully inspects the statue of the Rosary Priest upon its arrival in at the Father Peyton Center in North Easton. ily that prays together stays Catholic ministries that inspires, promotes, and together.” Father Peyton’s fosters the prayer life and mission continues today through 26 mission centers Spiritual well-being of families throughout the world. in 17 countries. Each mission center provides digital The HCFM organization includes Family Rosary, complimentary prayer Family Theater Producresources on a variety of tions, Catholic Mom, the platforms for families as Museum of Family Prayer, well as face-to-face events, Father Peyton Family including Rosary rallies, days of reflection, seminars, Institutes, and the Peyton Institute for Domestic and other fun, faith-filled Church Life. events.

For more information Holy Cross Family visit www.HCFM.org.

Ministries is a family of

Diocesan Pro-Life events, virtual March for Life slated continued from page one

tion and the recitation of the Rosary.

On January 23, at 6 p.m. there will be a March for Life in solidarity with the National

March at St. Vincent de Paul Parish, 71 Linden Street, Attleboro.

The March will go from St. Vincent’s Parish to St. John the Evangelist Parish

at 133 North Main Street, Attleboro, followed by praise and worship at St. John’s.

For additional information, contact the parish office at 508-222-1206.

March for Life statement The protection of all of those who participate in the annual march, as well as the many law enforcement personnel and others who work tirelessly each year to ensure a safe and peaceful event, is a top priority of the March for Life. In light of the fact that we are in the midst of a pandemic which may be peaking, and in view of the heightened pressures that law enforcement officers and others are currently facing 2

† January 22, 2021

in and around the Capitol, this year’s March for Life will look different.

The annual rally will take place virtually and we are asking all participants to stay home and to join the march virtually. We will invite a small group of Pro-Life leaders from across the country to march in Washington, D.C. this year. These leaders will represent Pro-Life Americans everywhere who, each in their own unique

ways, work to make abortion unthinkable and build a culture where every human life is valued and protected.

We are profoundly grateful for the countless women, men, and families who sacrifice to come out in such great numbers each year as a witness for life — and we look forward to being together in person next year.

As for this year’s march, we look forward to being with you virtually.

Diocese of Fall River releases list of 75 clergy accused of sexual abuse of minors er diocesan priest since There are 19 clergy or the company of former the diocese’s founding in other religious who minisBoston Police Commis1904, a total of 44 have tered in the Diocese of Fall sioner Ed Davis — The been credibly accused of River whose names have Edward Davis Company, sexual abuse of a minor. been mentioned in previLLC (EDC) — to review Other individuals named ous public announcements the diocese’s process for on the credibly accused list including lists published thoroughness, fairness, and were either members of a by other dioceses, religious reasonableness. EDC was religious order or belonged orders, and third-party provided access to the files to another diocese. The advocates but for whom for accused clergy and rewebsite also includes a list the diocese lacks sufficient ligious, and other relevant of publicinformation, “As your bishop, I am deeply and proly accused for as far back foundly sorry for the abuse that was perpe- as the diocese individuals and cases in trated by priests within this diocese and have had records. process. This recommitted myself to doing everything in my EDC also prointensive re- power to ensure this never happens again.” vided recomview revealed mendations that: to Bishop da Most of the allegainformation at this time to Cunha regarding names for tions involve conduct make its own credibility publication. that occurred from the determination.

“We believe that the 1960s—1980s.

There are three priests diocese’s investigative and Twenty-eight of the 44 of the Diocese of Fall River review process was thorFall River diocesan priests who are living who have ough and balanced and who have been credibly been publicly accused, but was fair to those making an accused are now deceased. there has not yet been a accusation as well as to the There are seven redetermination either under accused,” said Davis. “The ligious order priests or canon (Church) or civil publishing of this list is an religious Brothers, and law regarding whether the essential step as the diocese two priests incardinated in allegations against them are moves forward to promote other dioceses who have credible. These priests are accountability, transparenbeen credibly accused for prohibited from engaging cy, and healing.” conduct occurring within in public ministry while This list will be updated the Diocese of Fall River. their cases are in process. should new information They are afforded a prebecome available and if the sumption of innocence, publication results in other † Diocese of Fall River † consistent with the princisurvivors coming forward. ples of the American justice The diocese is comOFFICIAL system and Church law. mitted to the protection Appointments There are currently no of children and vulnerable priests in ministry who adults. Its policies include His Excellency, the Most Reverend Edgar M. da have been credibly accused, permanently removing Cunha, S.D.V., D.D., Bishop of Fall River, has made in keeping with the Diocese from ministry any clergy the following appointments: of Fall River’s “zero-tolerwho have a substantiatance” policy. ed allegation of abuse of Reverend Gerard A. Hebert, Promoter of Justice More than 75 percent a minor against them. In for the Diocesan Tribunal while remaining pastor of of the names published addition, the commitment Our Lady of Guadalupe at St. James Parish in New today have already been to keeping children safe exBedford. made public by previous tends to the diocese requirannouncements from the ing all clergy, employees, Very Reverend Jay T. Maddock, V.F., Promoter Diocese of Fall River, media and volunteers in all parof Justice for the Diocesan Tribunal while remaining reports, or lists published ishes, schools, and diocesan pastor of Holy Name Parish in Fall River and Dean of by other dioceses, religious offices to complete manthe Fall River Deanery. orders, third-party advodatory background checks cates, or civil authorities. and Safe Environment Effective: January 1, 2021 The diocese engaged training.

FALL RIVER — On January 7 Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., announced that the Diocese of Fall River has published a list of 75 clergy who have been credibly or publicly accused of sexual abuse of a minor.

“As I pray for a spirit of healing and reconciliation, I know that we cannot move on without an honest accounting of the past,” said Bishop da Cunha. “As your bishop, I am deeply and profoundly sorry for the abuse that was perpetrated by priests within this diocese and have recommitted myself to doing everything in my power to ensure this never happens again.”

The list is the result of a review of internal records and files by diocesan personnel and outside experts, in some cases going back 70 years. The names of credibly and publicly accused clergy can be found on the Diocese of Fall River website, along with other information and resources.

Of the 650 priests who have served as a Fall Riv-

“As a Church community we must sadly acknowledge that survivors have often not been heard and supported,” said Bishop da Cunha. “We are focused on creating a safe environment in which survivors can find support and someone to listen. You can be assured and confident of our ongoing pastoral care.”

The website also provides a video message from Bishop da Cunha and a letter to the diocese community from the bishop posted in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.

To help victims, the Office of Safe Environment through its Victim Assistance Coordinator, provides referrals for therapy, support for survivors, and a yearly Healing Mass to pray for all who have been impacted by sexual abuse.

“I am committed to working with Bishop da Cunha to create a safe environment for children and to offering healing and reconciliation for survivors for whom these grievous acts have caused enormous pain, anger and confusion,” said Carolyn Shipp, a licensed social worker who is the Victim Assistance Coordinator for the Fall River Diocese.

Those who know of an incident of sexual abuse of a minor by a priest, deacon, employee, or volunteer should immediately call local authorities and then contact Victim Assistance Coordinator Shipp at 508-985-6508 or cshipp@ dioc-fr.org.

Background of the Diocese of Fall River Review, Investigation, and List Development: 8 Turn to page 13

January 22, 2021 †

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I

Ite Ad Joseph (et André)

te Ad Joseph. Go to Joseph.

This phrase could easily be found at the Oratory of St. Joseph in Montreal. A few years ago, and while expecting our first-born, my wife and I decided to visit Montreal on a whim shortly after lunch on Easter Sunday.

And by “on a whim,” I mean after we finished lunch, and everyone left, we said: “Why not go to Montreal?” I have family there, we lived in upstate New York at the time, and we had always wanted to visit, so the decision was made. We packed our bags, grabbed our passports and a friend and made the drive.

I previously heard of St. Joseph’s Oratory and decided to make a stop while in the area.

For those who have been there, you know it is an impressive destination, let alone a terrific place for prayer. The monumental dome makes the Oratory the largest Cath-

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olic church in Canada and the altars adorned with different titles of St. Joseph’s, surrounded by intercessory candles, calls the individual to indeed go to Joseph.

But it was the exhibits about the oratory’s founder, Brother André Bessette, that were the most interesting to me. At the time, I had never heard of the then Blessed (now Saint) André, but his life piqued my interest after learning that he passed through Fall River.

Growing up in Québec, St. André’s parents both died by the time he was 12 years old. Later on while looking for work, he would pass through Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts, notably working in both West Warwick (Phenix) and North Easton.

After returning to Québec and becoming a Holy Cross Brother, St. André would on occasion return to visit Rhode Island, passing through Fall River to attend Mass at St. Anne’s Church.

The future saint lived a humble life, spending almost 29 years as the doorman to the Collège Notre-Dame in Mon-

† January 22, 2021

treal, which housed the Congregation of Holy Cross’ novitiate. Having a devotion to St. Joseph (the Congregation is patterned after the Holy

Family), St. André raised funds — one haircut at a time — to build a small chapel to St. Joseph.

This chapel became the first “incarnation” of the grand oratory, growing over the century and attracting visitors and pilgrims from both sides of the border.

St. André gained a reputation as a healer and even the “miracle-man of Montreal,” after many individuals reported experiencing healings after visiting with him.

Yet, anyone who gave him acclaim would quickly be corrected by the humble saint-to-be that it was not him but rather St. Joseph’s intercession to the Lord that led to the healing.

Standing there in the exhibit, I was struck by how so much could be accomplished by a man who, by our standards today, lived a rather ordinary life.

Yet, that is the greatness of God and the beauty of holiness. This life is not about anyone’s standards but the Lord’s, and St. André knew that.

His life was complete-

ly geared to directing individuals away from himself and toward God through a devotion to St. Joseph.

Are we not all meant to do the same; to live St. John the Baptist’s words that “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn 3:30)?

And even as a father and husband, there is much I can learn from the humble religious. Am I not, by virtue of my Marriage vows and promises, meant to direct my wife and children to the Lord? Are we not meant to aid each other in becoming saints?

At times we speak of holiness and Sanctity as if it is impossible; something that is good if we get there but otherwise only reserved for others.

But is not Sanctity what we are made for? As the French Catholic novelist Leon Bloy once said: “The only real sadness, the only real failure, the only great tragedy in life, is not to become a saint.”

In the end, we try to fulfill our lives through various things and lifestyles.

But the only one that will leave us fulfilled is a life striving for holiness.

I can’t help but wonder if standing in the oratory, an expectant father and early in my Marriage, the Lord was preparing me through the examples of Saints Joseph and André for the vocation he called me to. Being a spouse and a parent is not easy. While there are many joys, there are also

many struggles, worries, and obstacles. Yet, it is through the family that society is built up and sustained. It is the training ground for saints.

St. Joseph, as we know, faced profound decisions and obstacles when he decided to marry Mary, travel to Bethlehem, and flee into Egypt.

And St. André faced obstacles trying to realize the dream of an oratory, raising funds and recommencing building after the Depression. Yet, they trusted and believed that God would bring to completion what He began in them. And so, they forged on in humility, piety, and fidelity.

I invite families to consider: what if we lived each day with the trust that what God began in us through our Marriages will be brought to completion? What if we believed that we can help form saints by the way we raise our children?

And what if we trusted and believed these things to the same degree that Saints Joseph and André trusted God in their own lives?

God called Joseph.

God called André. God is calling you.

Go and make your home a humble oratory to the Lord.

And when you need help, ite ad Joseph (et André).

Anchor columnist David Carvalho is the senior director for Faith Formation, Youth, Young Adult and Family Life Ministries for the Diocese of Fall River. Contact: dcarvalho@ dioc-fr.org.

I

t is a providential occurrence that the inauguration of Joseph Biden as the 46th President of the United States is taking place during the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity.

Jesus was clear in the Gospel that a house divided against itself cannot stand (Mt 12:25). Against the devil’s work of isolation, alienation and separation, Jesus came to gather and unite. On the vigil of His crucifixion, when He could have easily been distracted by the details of his imminent fulfillment of gruesome Biblical prophecies, He rather prayed four times that His disciples “may be one,” just as the persons of the Blessed Trinity are one (Jn 17:11, 21-23). The fulfillment of His mission, He suggested, hinged on Christian unity: otherwise, He said, the world would not be able to believe in the Incarnation or in the Father’s love (17:23).

Jesus’ prayer for unity not only reveals something about God and our being made in His image, but also about the priority Jesus gives to communion among His followers.

That’s why His prayer will always remain an urgent ecumenical imperative. Christians cannot sincerely pray, “Thy will be done” and not simultaneously hunger, beg and work for unity among the baptized.

Christian unity, however, is a means not an end. It is meant to be an efficacious, exemplary sign of the communion to which God calls all human beings. God created Adam and Eve in His Own image not so that they would live thereafter as Cain and Abel, Jew or Gentile, or slave or free.

He wants Christians to reveal the Divine image of communion so that the Church may become a credible, effective collaborator in the Redeemer’s mission of gathering the lost sheep and reconciling all things in Himself (Col 1:20).

Church unity is supposed to be a model and means for a much deeper harmony and communion among others.

As experience has shown, the virtues of effective ecumenical

Repairers of a house divided

dialogue make possible more consequential interreligious dialogue, and the virtues of successful interreligious dialogue can catalyze every other form of important verbal or existential conversation. If fervent believers can learn how to live harmoniously while disagreeing about some of the deepest and most important questions of human life, then everyone can learn better from them the traits to co-exist when disagreements concern mainly politics or current events.

This is true, however, only when religious believers act like religious believers and practice what they believe and preach. To use Jesus’ image, this takes place only when Christians as “salt of the earth” (meant to preserve from corruption, start a fire, and give flavor) do not lose their salinity; when as “light of the world” (meant to illumine and warm), they do not hide like a candle under a basket; when as “leaven” (meant to lift up the whole dough, even when tiny), they do not themselves get corrupted by the yeast of the lax or the rigid.

As Joe Biden becomes the second Catholic to swear the presidential oath of office, he does so at a time of great division, as the January 6 riot on Capitol Hill, the November election and its aftermath, and the chaos last Spring in cities across the country have all made undeniably clear. The United States is struggling to remain united. The fault lines between red and blue, black and white, young and old, traditional and transgressive, familial and individual, police and citizens, Pro-Lifers and pro-choicers, the one percent and everyone else, are widening. Some are talking openly about a national divorce or secession; others are whispering more ominously about another civil war. Abraham Lincoln’s 1858 reminder of Jesus’ words concerning a house divided are becoming increasingly

politically relevant.

In such circumstances, faithful Christians cannot remain on the sidelines when Christian salt, light and leaven are most needed. Christians are three-quarters of the U.S. population, Catholics one-quarter. In one of the Eucharistic Prayers, we ask God that “in a world torn by strife, Your people may shine forth as a prophetic sign of unity and concord.” If we live our faith, Christians have the

numbers — not to mention supernatural resources — to be that sign, but to do so will require courage, magnanimity and perseverance, and likely suffering and Sanctity as well.

If Catholics in particular are going to become part of the remedy, what are the virtues needed? I’ll focus on seven Biblical habits.

First, love your neighbor (Mt 22:39). Jesus calls us to love even those who have made themselves our enemies and says that the way we treat them, we treat Him (Mt 25:40).

If a Samaritan could cross the road to help a wounded Jew, the road is much shorter for Republicans and Democrats.

Even in the midst of vigorous disagreements, the other cannot be dehumanized to a label, but remains a brother or sister I must love.

Second, stop judging lest we be judged (Mt 7:1). This does not mean, of course, that we cannot judge attacks on human life, racism, and other evil actions to be wrong, but it does mean that we must stop demonizing persons, as is happening more frequently because of political demagoguery or woke cancel culture.

Even when we disagree, the Thomistic principle of finding the aspect of the good motivat-

ing the other not only prevents mutual alienation but may pave the road to some political win-wins.

Third, don’t bear false witness. (Ex 20:16) There has been so much lying that many can no longer trust anything others are saying. News outlets have become so unabashedly partisan that no Walter Cronkite exists to report persuasively on the outcome even of a presidential election.

Everything one does not want to hear becomes treated as fake news.

When people cannot communicate truthfully, interpersonal communion breaks down. We must tell the truth even at the cost of suffering, for unless we tell the truth, we will not be free (Jn 8:32).

Fourth, seek first the Kingdom of God (Mt 6:33). We are called to render unto Caesar and be excellent servants of our country, but we’re called to be God’s good servants first.

We must beware of false political messianism that equates God’s Will too closely to political leaders and programs.

Catholic have been repeatedly co-opted by Republicans and Democrats to acquiesce to things self-evidently contrary to God’s Kingdom for the sake of some political advantage in other areas. Many have identified more with party, or a particular politician or movement, than they have with the faith, and they’ve often ceased working to change their party from within, lest that weaken the party or candidate electorally. A Catholic should never feel fully at peace in any political party but work without ceasing to transform the platforms and positions that do not correspond to the truth taught by faith. To stop short of that is to count pieces of silver.

Fifth, blessed are the peacemakers (Mt 5:9). Many imagine peacemakers to be kumbaya-singing librarians who think that with enough timeouts, crayons and con-

struction paper they can convert mortal enemies into best friends. Real peacemakers are the most courageous people on the planet, who go into extremely dangerous of places to disarm the most deadly types of interpersonal bombs. Christians are called to be bomb squad technicians as well as patient and determined negotiators who persuade people to let go of their hostages, within or without. Jesus calls peacemakers “children of God”: we can’t live up to our Divine filiation without becoming one.

Sixth, pray for all those in authority (1 Tim 2:1-2). St. Paul wrote this as his arms were chained to walls by the very authorities who would eventually decide to behead him. Do we pray for the authorities much more than we criticize them or cheer them?

Seventh, be as shrewd as serpents but as pure as doves (Mt 10:16). The time in which we’re living requires not naivete but wisdom. Jesus laments how the children of the world are more prudent than His disciples in dealing with their contemporaries (Lk 16:8). He wants us to be as savvy as He was before Pilate and Herod, and as firm in conscience as Catharine of Alexandria and Thomas More under duress.

Clergy, religious and faithful must all become, through study, experience and grace, more astute and uncontaminated.

The vocation of Christians at this troubled time is not to run to mountain top monasteries, or join the opposition, or insert within the administration. It’s to be salt, light and leaven, just like so many generations of Christians, in diverse contexts, have been before us. It’s to allow Christ’s prayer Ut unum sint to become living and active within us so that we can renew our national motto E pluribus unum and help restore national unity.

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

January 22, 2021 †

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Editorial Our bishops call for unity

On January 6, just hours after the riot at the U.S. Capitol (and before everything had been secured there), Archbishop Jose Gomez, the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), issued an urgent statement. “I join people of good will in condemning the violence today at the United States Capitol. This is not who we are as Americans.

“The peaceful transition of power is one of the hallmarks of this great nation. In this troubling moment, we must recommit ourselves to the values and principles of our democracy and come together as one nation under God.” Archbishop Gomez is known for being conservative, but he did not rejoice in the chaos and deaths. Rather, he lamented what he saw and asked that we all return to doing God’s will, not our own will.

Last weekend Archbishop Gomez issued a statement for Martin Luther King Day. “America has been reckoning with the legacy of slavery and the persistence of racial injustice in our country. Sadly, it is still true that the ‘color of our skin’ often matters more in our society than the ‘content of our character,’ as Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., said a half-century ago. As we witnessed in the violence in our cities last summer and in the violence that broke out again last week at the Capitol in Washington, D.C., our country has become too angry, too bitter, and too divided. [W]e face the same choices that Rev. King and the civil rights movement faced.

For us, too, the question is how will we struggle against the injustices in our society, what means will we use?

“In 1958, Rev. King wrote: ‘Along the way of life, someone must have the sense enough and the morality enough to cut off the chain of hate.

This can only be done by projecting the ethics of love to the center of our lives.’

“In the spirit of Rev. King, we must meet the forces of hate and ignorance with the power of love. We must learn again the wisdom of the Gospel and love our enemies and bless those who oppose us. We do not love those who oppose us because they are lovable, or even likable, Rev. King once said. We love them because God loves them. This is our Christian duty in this moment — to be healers and peacemakers, to overcome evil and lies, not by more of the same, but with words of truth and works of love.”

The next day, January 16, Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, called for calm. “Like Pope Francis, after viewing the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, I was astonished. There were those present OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER Vol. 65, No. 2

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† January 22, 2021

who misappropriated Christian symbols as well. There must be accountability for these actions. As a Christian, I must say to anyone considering further violence: you are being led astray by a voice that is not from God. St. Paul gave us a reliable test of what is from God and what is not. ‘The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control’ (Gal 5:22-23).

“If you supported this, or are considering further actions in the coming week, ask: is what I intend the fruit of the Holy Spirit? Are my intentions expressions of love for others, including those I may consider enemies? Are they reflections of joy? Will they lead to peace? Do they exhibit patience, kindness, gentleness, and self-control? The violence of January 6, and the many voices that urged it on, including some political leaders, were the opposite of these things.

“St. Paul names what is opposed to the Spirit: ‘… hatreds, rivalry, jealousy, outbursts of fury, acts of selfishness, dissensions, factions’ (Gal. 5:20). Do not listen to those sowing hatred, anger, and divisions! They lead you away from God. Do not mistake empty promises for the love and peace that come only from God.” Timothy Cardinal Dolan, chairman of the Committee for Religious Liberty also issued a statement on January 16 on behalf of the USCCB for Religious Freedom Day. “The right to religious freedom is rooted in the dignity of the human person, who has a duty to seek the truth. Yet our country is riven by political and cultural factionalism, where competing groups seek not truth but rather mere power. Appeals to objective truth are treated as attempts to oppress. Narrative and spin are the weapons of choice.

“Recent popes have rejected this cynical view. Truth, not power, is the basis of our law and politics, even in a pluralistic society. In his recent encyclical, Fratelli tutti, Pope Francis says, ‘If society is to have a future, it must respect the truth of our human dignity and submit to that truth.’

And he adds, ‘In a pluralistic society, dialogue is the best way to realize what ought always to be affirmed and respected apart from any ephemeral consensus.’

“Religious freedom opens up space for that dialogue by allowing communities to live in accordance with their convictions and thus contribute to the larger society. When that space for dialogue is constricted, the broader society suffers.”

Let us love and speak with each other, guided by the Holy Spirit, not by other “spirits.”

Daily Readings † January 30 - February 12

Sat. Jan. 30, Heb 11:1-2,8-19; (Ps) Lk 1:69-75; Mk 4:35-41. Sun. Jan. 31, Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Dt 18:15-20; Ps 95:1-2,6-9; 1 Cor 7:32-35; Mk 1:2128. Mon. Feb. 1, Heb 11:32-40; Ps 31:20-24; Mk 5:1-20. Tue. Feb. 2, Mal 3:1-4; Ps 24:7-10; Heb 2:14-18; Lk 2:22-40 or 2:22-32. Wed. Feb. 3, Heb 12:4-7,11-15; Ps 103:1-2,13-14,17-18a; Mk 6:1-6. Thu. Feb. 4, Heb 12:18-19,21-24; Ps 48:24,9-11; Mk 6:7-13. Fri. Feb. 5, Heb 13:1-8; Ps 27:1,3,5,8b-9c; Mk 6:14-29.

Sat. Feb. 6, Heb 13:15-17,20-21; Ps 23:1-6; Mk 6:30-34. Sun. Feb. 7, Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jb 7:1-4,6-7; Ps 147:1-6; 1 Cor 9:16-19,22-23, Mk 1:2939. Mon. Feb. 8, Gn 1:1-19; Ps 104:1-2a,5-6,10,12,24,35c; Mk 6:53-56. Tue. Feb. 9, Gn 1:20— 2:4a; Ps 8:4-9; Mk 7:1-13. Wed. Feb. 10, Gn 2:4b-9,15-17; Ps 104:1-2a,27-28,29bc-30; Mk 7:14-23. Thu. Feb. 11, Gn 2:18-25; Ps 128:1-5; Mk 7:24-30. Fri. Feb. 12, Gn 3:1-8; Ps 32:1-2,5-7; Mk 7:31-37.

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Vaccines and other entanglements with abortion

s the new COVID-19 vaccines are being rolled out, several people have told me, “I don’t want a vaccine with any connection to abortion.”

This is a valid sentiment that most of us would likely echo. At a minimum, it should serve as an important “call to action” for each of us during the course of this pandemic.

Even if we decide to get inoculated with a vaccine that was produced using abortion-derived human cell lines — which for a serious reason and in the absence of alternatives would not be unethical — we still face a real duty to push back and make known our disagreement with the continued use of these cells by researchers in the pharmaceutical industry and academia.

We can do this in several ways.

We can write a letter to the editor to heighten public awareness, or contact the pharmaceutical companies that make vaccines, urging them to discontinue their use of abortion-derived cell lines. If they do so, we should also thank them.

We can similarly initiate discussions with friends or relatives who work in research labs about whether their company or university uses cells derived from abortions.

One of the “silver linings” of the COVID-19 pandemic is that it affords us the opportunity to raise awareness about these moral concerns and improve the way that biomedical research is conducted

by scientists.

As one bishop with whom I was speaking reminded me recently: “We need to teach, educate and confront this issue more widely. It’s everyone’s duty.” Such efforts will help build real momentum for change.

I’m often asked whether sample letters are available to help with writing to vaccine manufacturers who use abortion-derived cell lines. An example would be: “I am writing in regard to your COVID-19 vaccine.

It is my understanding that a cell line originally derived from an abortion is being used in the production of your vaccine. I am contacting you to request that your company stop relying on these cells in the pharmaceutical work that you carry out. Please understand that as one of your potential customers, I am very concerned about these issues. It is my understanding that alternative, non-abortion-derived cell sources are available or could be made available.

It is important for all of us to show our respect for the remains of those children whose lives were taken prematurely, and one way we can do this is by avoiding these cell lines in scientific research and pharmaceutical development. Thank you.”

Archbishop Joseph Naumann, Archbishop of Kansas City and chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, has also prepared a more detailed letter (available

at: https://www.usccb. org/resources/Letterto-FDA-urging-ethicalCOVID-vaccines.pdf) that addresses the need to develop vaccines free of entanglements with abortion.

While such entanglements remain a significant concern, we also need to be aware how some of our daily activities may have a much more direct con-

nection to the abortion industry.

Dr. Melissa Moschella recently observed how getting a vaccine made with the help of an abortion-derived cell line has “less connection to the ongoing evil of abortion than other actions we engage in on a regular basis, such as doing business with the many companies that donate money directly or indirectly to Planned Parenthood, including Nike, Heinz, Energizer, Clorox, Facebook, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, CVS, Walmart, Liberty Mutual, Aetna, and hundreds of others.”

To put it another way, each time we purchase Tostitos/Frito Lay products, fill our gas tank with ExxonMobil gas or buy Pepsi products, our contribution to the continuation of abortion is significantly more direct than when we receive a vaccine manufactured with abortion-derived fetal cell lines. Each

of these large consumer-oriented corporations make large financial contributions to Planned Parenthood, which promotes and directly performs the killing of unborn children in the United States and in other countries.

Widespread corporate collusion in the evil of abortion does not, of course, mitigate the ethical concerns about using cell lines taken from fetal cadavers to produce vaccines.

But it is does represent another important area where letter-writing, boardroom votes, boycotts, and other focused efforts by stockholders, employees and customers can make a difference when it comes to scaling back the support mechanisms that Planned Parenthood and other abortion-minded organizations rely on.

As the Vatican emphasized in its recent “Note on the Morality of Using Some Anti-COVID-19 Vaccines,” the reception of an inoculation made from abortion-derived cells

“does not in itself constitute a legitimation” of the practice of abortion. Receiving the stick of the needle today does not mean we are somehow cooperating in an abortion that occurred decades ago and for reasons independent of vaccine production.

Each of us has a serious obligation to witness to the inviolability of human life. We need to take the time to speak up so that future vaccines and medicines will be developed without any reliance on abortion-derived materials.

Visit fathertad.com to view Raymond Arroyo and Father Tad Discuss the Ethics of the COVID 19 Vaccines on EWTN’s “The World Over.”

Anchor columnist Father Pacholczyk earned his doctorate in neuroscience from Yale and did post-doctoral work at Harvard. He is a priest of the Diocese of Fall River, and serves as the director of Education at The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. See www. ncbcenter.org and www. fathertad.com.

A subscription to the would make a wonderful gift for a loved one, a friend, or yourself. It’s a publication that provides a Spiritual uplift and keeps Catholics connected to our Church — locally and beyond.

If you are not already a subscriber or are interested in giving an Anchor subscription as a gift, please consider subscribing for $29/year at www.fallriverdiocese.org/ subscribe or mailing a check to: Anchor Press, P.O. Box 318, Congers, N.Y., 10920.

January 22, 2021 †

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Which way religious life?

An interview with Father David Reid, SS.CC. — Part II Special to The Anchor

By Father David Lupo, SS.CC., Pastor, St. Mary Parish, Fairhaven

Editor’s note: This is the second installment of Father Lupo’s interview with Father David Reid, SS.CC., who most recently served as administrator of Our Lady of Assumption in New Bedford, until health problems caused him to resign that assignment.

Q7. You were connecting “first love” with the “Song of Songs” and St. Augustine, and I was thinking of John the Revelator’s Letter to the Church at Ephesus! You wish to erase boundaries — if I hear you correctly — between laity and religious life. Marks of distinction have become walls, and do not further the mission. Can we instead keep the habit, and the priest, his clerics, and work on the attitudes that have accompanied these marks of distinction?

A. With a Superior General who rides his bike around Rome even on official trips, some walls are already down; for others, the outer habit is a sign of service and the wearers want to remain servants all their lives. Some use the marks as ways to benefit themselves. It is soon apparent with them that the habit does not make the monk. At events in St. Peter’s with the Holy Father, I have known priests who concelebrated in order to have a seat to the exclusion of Sisters who make up the majority of such a gathering. But who hasn’t known impeccably attired priests who were 100 percent service?

In today’s world of heightened communication, clothes are constantly a statement for better, for worse. The right way to go is to accept each one’s discernment, provided all address the issue that

you raise: attitudes.

Can you identify a person’s spirit from how they dress? Depending on the situation, inappropriate attire could indicate a lack of respect for the other person. The day I co-presided with the pope at St. Martha’s I wore dress shoes. When I served at St. Peter’s Kitchen run by the Missionaries of Charity, I wore sneakers; the Sisters wore their regular garb; it is who they are, not what they do.

The sheer variety of how we dress celebrates the catholic character of our faith. With that remark there is much on which to reflect. There are millions of Christians whose lives are moved by

their faith convictions but they travel in unmarked vehicles. You know them by their love. We have a flood of witnesses but we need a groundswell of sharing with each other of what it means to be clothed in Jesus Christ. Ideally such sharing should be part of our communal gatherings. In the early Church Christians met and shared life and then, before returning home, they celebrated Eucharist (testimony of St. Justin Martyr). We come to celebrate Eucharist with no community sharing. It is not that we put the cart before the horse, we have no horse. No real community. How many have been to Mass alongside each other for years without knowing names, lives, witnesses? Community is the garb that we need to wear, genuine community of life shared, griefs commonly borne, challenges addressed, Marriages and funerals celebrated as a community. Let religious life be lived and shared in the midst of parish life. One archbishop in India asked that there be no convent Masses on a Sunday morning. Vocation to religious life is authenticated when all are called and feel that way about what they are doing. There are no uncalled Christians. Put on Christ! (See Gal 3:27) The garb of community is a recognition of the variety of gifts to be the one living Body of Christ, such as we pray to become in the second epiclesis at Eucharist. When I worked in a soup kitchen a retreat leader told us that a poor man may forget what he ate on a given day but he will never forget how he was served. In community, a brother or sister may forget how they were garbed for a given event but never forget how well they were received for all community is giving and receiving — each other.

8 Turn to page 14

Holy Family Parish 370 Middleboro Avenue East Taunton Register for Mass attendance online at hfparish.net and click on the ‘Sign up’ icon Weeknight Masses at Parish Center (438 Middleboro Ave.) at a variety of times, including Saturdays at 7 p.m.

Monday to Saturday 8 a.m. at the church 8

† January 22, 2021

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s many of you know, the phrase, “Make love, not war,” was coined in the 1960s by the Hippie community, in opposition to the Vietnam war. Indeed, it was their motto, though it had other connotations besides not making war. We need not dig too deeply into that. The phrase, however, does ring a bell for me when I reflect on this past year’s notorious events and how I relate to them.

My parents, Pat and Mary, were born and grew up in small cottages in adjacent villages in the west of Ireland during the final years of English rule and occupancy. They lived through the reign of terror of the much hated Black and Tans.

They experienced what it was like to live under the yoke of oppression and oppressors. They remembered the Easter Rebellion uprising and the subsequent execution of Irishmen who today are considered martyrs for their country and their people. Had I myself lived in that era, only God knows how I would have reacted. My parents grew up, married and brought up in the

Make love, not war

faith five children, as few other parents have done.

Yes, they made love and not war, but they understood what oppression can do to some.

Now on to the invasion of the U.S. Capitol on January 6 by the rioters who created havoc and were instrumental in the deaths of six innocent people.

There is little doubt in my mind that all decent minded Americans decry the actions of those marauders. There are, however, a couple of questions that I, as a naturalized citizen, put to this nation. Where were many of those who now cry foul when our great cities were being looted, burned and worse still, citizens killed, during the summer long riots?

Where were they? And what prompted these riots?

The Capitol has been referred to by many as a sacred place and has now been desecrated. I most certainly do not suggest otherwise. What I do suggest, however, is that this sacred place has been desecrated many times previously by some whose words have ut-

tered falsehoods and lies, like the cows casually dropping their turds on

our grazing pastures. Remember those who tried, in these sacred halls and

elsewhere, to destroy the good name of others.

When I first decided to pen this column eight years ago, I had no intention on getting involved in any way in the politics of this land. However, it was only a matter of time before I called out those guilty of oppression by word,

deed or omission. I do so in the manner of Jesus Christ Who called out the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of His time. In our time Jesus would have a “hay day” if He were to address our U.S. Congress. For Him the truth is Sacred.

Aloha.

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

Visit the Diocese of Fall River website at: fallriverdiocese.org January 22, 2021 †

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(Internet Search): Christian def. (Search Results): Christ I Am

F

or me, Wednesday, January 6 was the afternoon before my dad’s funeral. My brothers and I had arranged everything for our loving farewell. All I wished that afternoon was to feel something other than loss. My cell phone pinged.

I read the text announcement that the Capitol had moved to lockdown. I had visited our nation’s Capitol in 2013 as a MA STEM Educator serving as part of the GW-MIT STEM Challenges and Opportunities in Education discussion with political leaders. I turned on the TV to see images of fellow Americans scaling, invading, and trashing our own Capitol. These rioters seemed a malevolent mob seeking both something or someone to hurt and to take a selfie while doing so. Instantly, I longed to be able to

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who we are or why we are look to my dad who would reassure me things would be here. You know that. Hand OK. Of course, that plunged that sign immediately to Dr. Flavin.” me even deeper into grief Good thing the Holy as I realized my dad would Spirit guided me to hand the never again be able to be placard to another student. there for me.

I went for a long walk. Blending with the images I had just seen were memories Holding on for of the year I had His blessing served as a faculty chaperon for the Dr. Helen Flavin D.C. March for Life.

First was an upperclassman and his placard. As The march is huge. Stopping we assembled for the March, is impossible. Both sides of the street are lined with he was aggressively wavpeople shouting and caring the sign. A colleague, rying their own signs. My George, and I stepped over. eyes rested upon a graphic George quelled him in an illustration of the vacuumed instant. He said, “Mr. XX, I earthly remains of a fetus. did not make the personal No sooner had the words sacrifice to accompany you to D.C. to watch you bean a “singularly inappropriate” risen to my mind, I heard demonstrator or politician with your placard. That isn’t the scream and tears of the

† January 22, 2021

Wrestling with God

ninth-grade student before me. The adolescent was now a terrified child who wanted to turn and go home. But, the only way home was to continue forward. That idea of layering our students among marchers from other schools suddenly did not seem the positive it had earlier in the day. A quick glance before and behind confirmed the nearest chaperon was too far to assist.

I told everyone to face forward and keep walking.

I gave her a tissue. I told her to close her eyes and imagine. My hands on her shoulders (and my words about road changes) would keep her from falling. I said the baby pictured on that horrible sign was safe forever in God’s hands. Think now of a pregnant woman considering an abortion.

She saw us today and had a change of heart. Was her baby a boy or girl? The student’s cries dried to a sniffle.

She said, “girl.” I asked if she saw that girl now at eight or 10 happily playing. My student giggled as she said she saw the little girl smiling. I replied, “Me too. Open your eyes and remember that joyful girl as you walk.”

I reminded my students that was why we were here today — to help make a difference where we could do so.

I stepped back. I told all my students I was there if needed. They were to always look ahead. If they saw any further disturbing images they were to lock arms together. Those that could keep their eyes open were to lead the others. They were to take turns supporting each other. My vision now switched to further ahead as well as each of them in front of me. For anything ahead that might be disturbing, I quickly popped ahead of

my students. Their attention was on me (not the scary placard now hidden behind my body) as we passed those challenging places. Together, we completed the march.

Again, I asked, “Why, Lord, in 2021 did no one in the crowd step up as peacemaker? Where were we going as a country? Lord, was there any hope?” From behind me, I heard the voices of two teen-agers. The boy was slightly older. He urged her to “go off the curb.”

Educators really do have an extraordinary sense of immediate danger. I knew, as the only adult there, I had to turn and speak. Warily, because I was afraid my own anger might spill out, I turned. Good — both kids were safe. As I watched, he held her hands, as on her hover-board, she glided down the incline from sidewalk to street. I thought, “Thank You, Lord. Maybe there is hope for all of us as a country.” The boy asked what I wanted. Knowing my smile was hidden behind my mask, I said “That was nice supporting one another.

Please always keep that up.”

The feast of the Baptism of Our Lord, I streamed Bishop Reed’s Mass. His homily mentioned a priest who had asked, “What is a Christian?” spelling Christian with a “m” at the end.

That priest had said the definition of a Christian is “Christ I am.” Bishop Reed reminded us that through our own Baptism we each are called to imitate Jesus.

We are called to serve, forgive, and heal. I believe our world desperately needs each and every one of us to step up to our calling to be peacemakers who, alongside our neighbors, seek to build and create.

Anchor columnist Dr. Helen J. Flavin, Ph.D., is a Catholic scientist, educator and writer.

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s we have begun the new year of 2021, I would like to pray for God’s abundant blessings and healing for us and our world. But wait! The Church began its new year last year on the First Sunday of Advent in 2020. How is the Church year different from society’s calendar year?

Our Church Liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent during the preceding calendar year.

That means that our current Liturgical year of 2021 began on the First Sunday of Advent, Nov. 29, 2020.

The Liturgical year continues until the First Sunday of Advent this year, Nov. 28, 2021.

Where did the Liturgical calendar come from?

The Roman Curia assists the pope with the governance of the Church. The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments is a part of the Curia that handles most affairs relating to Liturgical practices and some matters related to the Sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church. It was founded by Pope St. John Paul II in 1988.

This Congregation issued the Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and Calendar.

The Liturgical calendar is based on the General Roman Calendar established by Pope St. Paul VI in 1969. After some stages of refinement over the years, the current version was approved by the U.S. bishops and confirmed in 2010 by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.

The Liturgical Year in a Nut Shell In its most simple terms the major seasons of the Liturgical Year are • Advent •Christmas • Ordinary Time I • Lent • The Easter Triduum

Not so Ordinary Time • Easter • Ordinary Time II It’s easy to experience the distinctive nature of each major season. We sense the anticipation during Advent and the joy of Christmas. We reflect on the need for penitence during Lent. We remember the Last Supper, Christ’s death on the cross and His Resurrection during the Triduum and the Easter Season. What about Ordinary Time?

Ordinary Time The Universal Norms on the Liturgical Year and Calendar has this to say about Ordinary Time: “VI. Ordinary Time “43. Besides the times of year that have their own distinctive character, there remain in the yearly cycle 33 or 34 weeks in which no particular aspect of the Mystery of Christ is celebrated, but rather the Mystery of Christ itself is honored in its fullness, especially on Sundays.

This period is known as Ordinary Time.

“44. Ordinary Time begins on the Monday which follows the Sunday occurring after 6 January and extends up to and including the Tuesday before the beginning of Lent; it begins again on the Monday after Pentecost Sunday and ends before First Vespers (Evening Prayer I) of the First Sunday of Advent.”

There are two separate segments of Ordinary Time.

The first segment starts on the Monday following the feast of the Epiphany and continues through the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday.

The second segment starts on the Monday after Pentecost and ends before the First Sunday of Advent.

The word “ordinary” in Ordinary Time suggests that because we are not celebrating a high feast or

a major season we may experience a Liturgy which might be uneventful or mundane. Ordinary Time was not meant to suggest plain or simple celebrations.

It was intended to mean “ordinal,” that is, to order or count the Sundays in sequence. During Ordinary Time we give our Sundays a numerical name because we are outside of one of the special seasons that have a name.

We have grand and majestic Liturgical offerings for the special feasts outside of Ordinary Time. Liturgical planners try to create a contrast between the Church seasons. The challenge of Liturgical planners is to keep Ordinary Time beautiful, meaningful and prayerful. During Ordinary Time we continue to experience the beautiful story of a loving God and the Christ living among us in our time.

We celebrate all aspects of the extraordinary Mystery of Christ. The importance of the life of Jesus is being revealed to us at every Mass. Every Sunday we remember the saving act of Christ Who died for us and was raised from the dead.

Every Sunday commemorates the fulfillment of God’s promises to humankind.

Why do we worry about conforming to established Liturgical norms?

We are Catholics. We are part of the Roman Catholic Church. Established rites of worship have emerged throughout our long history. These have become the fabric of our tradition. As a Universal Church

it is desirable to have a unified form of celebration. The Church acts as one voice to build up the Body of Christ.

Our worship is conducted within time and space using ceremony and ritual. It’s important that the members of the Body, wherever they are, experience these holy and unifying aspects of our worship everywhere in the same way.

The Liturgy welcomes all of us: the young, the old, the new, the familiar, the stranger!

We are all guests coming to Christ’s table to receive God’s grace and love. This is not our banquet, but Christ’s. We are the receivers. Christ is the giver. Liturgy is the “work” that Christians do to participate in God’s saving Grace.

Liturgy is the “work” that God does for Christians — the “work” that the “host” does for the “guests” — the Grace given by God to all believers. The “work” that was done for us by Christ on the cross becomes our everlasting life! As Catholics we believe that both Scripture and tradition are important.

The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments published an Instruction in 2004 called Redemptionis Sacramentum. The purpose of this document was to reinforce the importance of safeguarding the great mystery of our Salvation in Christ especially in our own time today.

Paraphrasing from paragraphs five and six, observing established norms will promote conformity of thought, word, external action and application of heart. Christ gathers us to Himself so that together with Him we can be “one body and one spirit.” The Liturgical words and rites

are a faithful expression, matured over the centuries, of the understanding of Christ. They teach us to think as He does. When we conform our minds to these words, we raise our hearts to the Lord with our eyes wide open, recognizing God’s power, Divinity and the splendor of His goodness.

Paragraph seven discusses our false understanding of liberty. Our society promotes artistic expression, creativity and free-flowing thoughts. But our desire to be creative does not apply to God’s precepts or to the laws established by the Church to safeguard them. Our liberty is not one where we can do what we wish. It is one that requires we do what is fitting and right. If the story of our Salvation is allowed to be personalized then the faithfulness of the story is in danger of being changed.

Even though we are in Ordinary Time, there is nothing ordinary about experiencing the Risen Christ all year long. As Catholics, we worship God through the Liturgy. The Liturgy calls for full, conscious and active participation of everyone present. Ordinary Time is no exception. Christ has forever conquered sin and death. Expect the extraordinary!

You can get your own copy of the 2021 Liturgical Calendar for the Dioceses of the United States from the U.S. bishops website: https://www.usccb.org/ resources/2021cal.pdf Rick Swenton is a parishioner at St. Pius the Tenth Church in South Yarmouth and is a member of the choir and a cantor. He has a certificate in Lay Ministry from the Archdiocese of Hartford with a focus on Liturgy and Music. He is a published Church music composer. He resides with his wife, Gail, in South Dennis.

January 22, 2021 †

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F ocus

on

Diocese creates new mission position continued from page one

rosiers will work with school leaders to support student and adult Faith Formation efforts.

“We stand at a juncture full of great challenge and opportunity in which the emphasis of our Catholic mission can be a force for tremendous good in the world,” saids Daniel S. Roy, diocesan Superintendent of Catholic Schools. “Marian will be working with schools to ensure that we are maximizing coordinated efforts to assist in attaining a vision of excellence which calls young people to embrace the role of faith in their lives. We are so excited to welcome Marian to the Catholic school team.”

Desrosiers added, “Being involved in ministry for the last 28 years in the Fall River Diocese, I have witnessed the dedication and commitment of so many bringing the message of faith, hope and the love of Jesus to our young people. During these difficult and challenging times, each of us has been called to strengthen and deepen our faith in Jesus Christ.

The foundation of Catholic education is Christ. By our witness and teaching we can help our students and families to answer God’s call in this life and to attain

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eternal life. As members of the Church community, let us all grow in our commitment to serve God, one another, the Church, and society. Our priorities have been challenged and our world has changed, but we can remain strong praying together, ‘Jesus, I trust in you.’”

Desrosiers lives with her husband of 46 years in Sagamore Beach and is an active member of Corpus Christi Parish in East Sandwich. Marian and Joe are the parents of six children (four living) and seven grandchildren with number “eight” arriving in early March.

The Catholic Schools Alliance comprises administrators, teachers, staff, parents and clergy joined in partnership to educate the children of the Diocese of Fall River in Catholic faith and values. Our schools have a demanding educational culture that helps students from across the academic spectrum reach their God-given potential. With an emphasis on service and respect for the dignity of every person, we prepare students to meet the challenges of today’s diverse world and become meaningful contributors to society.

† January 22, 2021

C hurch Y outh

Catholic Schools Alliance releases Celebrate Catholic Schools Week schedule FALL RIVER — This year, from January 31 to February 6 the National Catholic Education Association will host the traditional Celebrate Catholic Schools Week, when diocesan schools typically observe the week with Masses, assemblies and other activities for students, families, parishioners and community members to celebrate and congratulate.

The Catholic Schools Alliance of the Fall River Diocese recently announced a schedule diocesan schools are encouraged

to follow: Sunday, January 31, 2021 — Celebrate with Your Parish; Monday, February

1, 2021 - Celebrate Your Community; Tuesday, February 2, 2021 — Celebrate Your Students; Wednesday, February

3, 2021 — Celebrate The Nation; Thursday, February 4, 2021 — Celebrating Vocations; Friday, February 5, 2021 — Celebrating Faculty, Staff and Volunteers; Saturday, February 6, 2021 — Celebrating Families.

For more information, readers can visit the website, www.catholicschoolsalliance.org, as well as social media for the daily launch of videos highlighting the wonderful aspects of our Catholic schools across the diocese.

Process and schedule for new adult Confirmation classes announced

FALL RIVER — The diocesan program for those seeking to receive the Sacrament of Confirmation is intended to provide catechetical instruction in the faith, as well as Spiritual support to compliment and support the parish in the formation of candidates, who are completing their initiation in the Catholic Church.

Prior to registration, candidates must begin this

process by meeting with the pastor to gather canonical documents, determine if there are any impediments to the reception of the Sacrament, as well as the desire and disposition of the inquirer requesting the Sacrament. Before candidates celebrate the Sacrament, pastors should meet with the candidate to reflect on their experience, attest to their readiness to receive the Sacrament and to verify the suitability of the sponsor. This verification will later be attested to by the pastor on the conferral form prior to the Confirmation.

Sessions will be conducted in English. If there are candidates requiring preparation in Spanish or Portuguese, please indicate so on the form

(at fallriverfaithformation. org and click on Adult Confirmation) and we will coordinate based on the need.

These sessions will be conducted online.

Thursday evenings from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

Online: February 18, 25, March 4, 11, 18, 25, April 15 and 22.1 Candidates are invited to attend the Easter Triduum at their parishes. May 15, from 10 a.m. — 12 p.m.

Spring Schedule 2021 Retreat: Conferral: May 20, at 7 p.m. at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, Fall River.

Registration Fee: $45 — Payable to the Office of Faith Formation, 423 Highland Avenue, Fall River, Mass., 02720.

In Your Prayers

Please pray for these priests and deacons during the coming weeks: Jan. 30 Rev. Raymond F.X. Cahill, S.J., Assistant, St. Francis Xavier, Hyannis, 1983 Rev. Sebastian Slesinski, O.F.M., Conv., 2006 Rev. Raul M. Lagoa, Pastor, St. John of God, Somerset, 2012 Jan. 31 Rev. Charles J. Burns, Pastor, St. Mary, North Attleboro, 1901 Rev. William F. Sullivan, Pastor, St. Patrick, Somerset, 1930 Rev. Manuel C. Terra, 1930 Rev. William J. Shovelton, Retired, Former Pastor, St. William, Fall River, 2015

Feb. 1 Rev. Msgr. Michael J. O’Reilly, Pastor, Immaculate Conception, Taunton, 1948 Rev. Msgr. Patrick H. Hurley, V.F., Pastor, St. Joseph, Taunton, 1968 Rev. Anatole F. Desmarais, Pastor, St. Jacques, Taunton, 1975 Rev. Msgr. Gerard J. Chabot, Pastor, St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, South Attleboro, 1983 Rev. William F. O’Connell, Pastor, Holy Name, New Bedford, 1995 Rev. Arthur T. DeMello, Retired Pastor, St. Elizabeth, Fall River, 2004 Rev. Albert J. Ryan, Retired, U.S. Air Force Chaplain, Former Pastor, St. Francis of Assisi, New Bedford, 2015 Feb. 2 Most Rev. William Stang, D.D., First Bishop of Fall River: 1904-07, 1907 Rev. Patrick F. McKenna, Pastor, Immaculate Conception, Taunton, 1913 Rev. John L. McNamara, Pastor, Immaculate Conception, Fall River, 1941 Rev. P. Roland Decosse, Pastor, St. Hyacinth, New Bedford, 1947 Rev. Daniel F. Morarty, Assistant, St. Brendan, Riverside, R.I., 1991 Feb. 3 Rev. Antonio O. Ponte, Pastor, Our Lady of Angels, Fall River, 1952 Feb. 4 Rev. Msgr. Hugh J. Smyth, P.R., Pastor, St. Lawrence, New Bedford.

First Vicar General, Fall River, 1904-07. Administrator of Diocese, February-July 1907, 1921 Rev. Raymond Graham, S.M.M., 1988 Feb. 6 Most Rev. Frederick A. Donaghy, M.M, Bishop of Wuchow, 1988

Diocese releases list of priests accused of sexual abuse of minors continued from page three

Phase One: Diocesan personnel and outside experts located and assembled files of clergy and other religious against whom allegations had been made, dating back 70 years.

Phase Two: Former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Assistant Director William Gavin, of the Gavin

Group, conducted an initial evaluation of the files, followed by a comprehensive file review by Kinsale Management Consulting, led by Kathleen McChesney, Ph.D., former Executive Assistant Director for the FBI and former head of the Office of Child Protection of the U.S. Conference of Catholic

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on the Portuguese Channel Sunday, January 24 at 7 p.m.

Broadcast from Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in New Bedford

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass

on the Portuguese Channel Sunday, January 31 at 7 p.m.

Broadcast from Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church in New Bedford

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6

Feb 7 Rev. Arthur N. Robert, O.P., St. Anne Shrine, Fall River, 1991 Rev. Robert S. Kaszynski, 2014 Rev. José Antonio Ferreira dos Santos, Retired, Former Pastor, Our Lady of Health, 2017

Sunday, January 24 at 11:00 a.m.

Feb. 8 Rev. Raymond P. Monty, USAF Retired Chaplain, 1996

Celebrant is Father Maurice O. Gauvin, Pastor of Espirito Santo Parish in Fall River

Feb. 9 Rev. Msgr. John J. Kelly, Pastor, SS. Peter & Paul, Fall River, 1963 Rev. Peter J. McKone, S.J., Bishop Connolly High School, Fall River, 1972 Rev. Vincent R. Dolbec, A.A., Assumption College, 1985 Feb. 10 Rev. Edward L. O’Brien, Pastor, St. Mary, Mansfield, 1966 Rev. Lucien A. Madore, Retired Chaplain, Mount St. Joseph School, Fall River, 1983

Feb. 11 Rev. John O’Connell, Founder, St. John Evangelist, Attleboro, 1910 Rev. John J. Sullivan, S.T.L., Retired Pastor, Holy Rosary, Fall River, 1961 Rev. William J. McMahon, Retired Pastor, St. Joan of Arc, Orleans, 1987 Rev. Christopher (Leo) King, SS.CC., 2013 Feb. 12 Rev. Stanislaus Bernard, SS.CC, Retired Founder, Our Lady of Assumption, New Bedford, 1961

Sunday, January 31 at 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Thomas C. Lopes, Retired Priest of the Diocese of Fall River

Bishops, which provided findings to the diocese.

Phase Three: Outside legal counsel Ropes & Gray LLP provided further investigation and review to assist the diocese with the development and publishing of the list.

Phase Four: A Core Advisory Team of Diocesan personnel conducted further investigation, reviewed the files and information provided by the outside experts, and compiled a list of recommended names of clergy and other religious for publication.

Phase Five: The Diocese engaged The Edward Davis Company (EDC) to conduct a third-party review. EDC was given access to clergy files and other relevant information, in order to advise Bishop da Cunha on whether the process was thorough, fair, and reasonable, to review the placement and category for each name considered for publication, and to present recommendations to Bishop da Cunha. After review and consideration

by Bishop da Cunha, the published list reflects those recommendations.

All diocesan pastors made the announcement at Masses on the weekend of January 8 and 9.

The list is accessible from our website at www. fallriverdiocese.org and will provide an overview of our investigation and process. Also included will be resources, policies and information our diocese has in place to address abuse, and the steps we are taking to move forward, with a zero tolerance approach to preventing abuse.

January 22, 2021 †

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Interview with Father David Reid, SS.CC., part II continued from page eight

(See Phil 4:15.) Amen.

Q8. That retreat director’s remark reminded me of something similar Maya Angelou said, basically that people may forget what you said or did, but they won’t forget how you made them feel. And that might touch what you said about Eucharist without communal celebration. Yet, we ordained get caught in that trap. How is it that the Eucharist has become so stultified?

A. Stultified is a big word but challenging. It is given as the antonym to stimulate and we might say attractive which is the word with which we began this discussion. What is stimulating, attractive about celebrating the Eucharist? I go immediate to a concern that has struck me for years and I will say how I have tried to resolve it. The concern is that the ritual of the Mass as we have it now is tightly woven and concentrated. There are so many layers of meaning to the celebration. There is hardly a word spoken in the Eucharistic prayer that does not have a Biblical root. Likewise, no gesture is without a pedigree. Why even the gesture of Table fellowship

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is rooted not only in the ministry of Jesus but Jesus knowingly was rooting everything in the story of God’s covenant with Israel. To have some way of recalling this thick, multi-layered way of entering into the Eucharistic action would be wonderful.

Much was written about the greeting at the beginning of Mass. The Lord be with you and with your spirit! Pause.

This greeting tells us who God sees as we approach the Sacred gathering. Paul says the Holy Spirit testifies to our spirit that we are the sons and daughters of God. Pause.

Who am I that the Holy Spirit should stand up for me at the beginning of this Mass?

Don’t run away, stand your ground. Let the Spirit engulf you. God wants you here.

Surrender, give in and respond “and with your spirit.”

Tears. I am shaking. This is to say that the attractiveness of the Mass is lost or won in the very first greeting. There is no moment in the life of the presider more important to let go of himself than when he calls the community to worship. Mass does not have to do with “Father.” Mass has to do with Jesus in His relationship with His Father.

† January 22, 2021

We enter that Sacred space in the Spirit.

Q. 9 What’s beautiful and therefore attractive then about the Mass is both external and internal?

A. Yes, and it is the internal meaning of what we are doing that invites attention to the external beauty. There is a long history to every action of the Eucharist celebration, rich, diverse and loaded with meaning. Vatican II made some great breakthroughs because the theme of the Council was 1.) back to the sources and 2.) renewal for a new day. A constant concern for me is the offertory procession which had suffered immensely over the course of centuries to the point of its habitual exclusion. What a shift happened when the community back then in the Middle Ages no longer brought the bread and wine for the Eucharist. The barter of the market no longer touched the relationship with God when the people brought the substance of their lives to exchange for the substance of God’s life, God’s beloved Son. Mass became an affair of the sacristy. And a foreign language ruled the day. Mass was done for you, not an action in which we participate. But making one’s offering is crucial to the sense of worship. God Who sees the intentions of our hearts accepts that offering. God’s acceptance is called sacrifice, meaning that only God makes sacrifice, that is makes holy, brings the community into access of God’s presence.

So the movement is offering, the calling down of the Holy Spirit and Communion. All this making real the Word of God, in the narrative of the Last Supper, is set within the proclamation of the Good News, so-called Liturgy of the Word. There was a century of intense Liturgical studies which prepared for Vatican II’s document on

the Liturgy. Vatican II also reminded us that looking to how Eucharist is celebrated in other Christian churches helps to see more clearly the significance of words, gestures, customs. For instance, the ritual of putting heated water into the cup of consecrated wine in the Byzantine rite as a reminder that the Holy Spirit is the gift of the Risen Lord. And of course that leads to an understanding that the encounter with the Risen Lord in Eucharist is Trinitarian. Thus it is within the final doxology of the Eucharistic prayer that we commune with the Risen Lord: through Him and with Him and in Him in the unity of the Holy Spirit all glory and honor is Yours almighty Father forever and ever AMEN!!!!

Q.10 Well, it sounds like all is going quite well for Religious Life. As you enter retirement after 60 years of Religious Profession, what are you finding? What are the issues in retirement?

Should I develop an avocation, and focus solely my prayer life l before I get there?

A. Retirement, the word sounds so final and so I think that I am semi-retired. As we say, “I can still help out.” In Biblical theology we say the end time is like the beginning time and so it is with community life, formation and retirement are alike.

Between the two an active religious is always juggling pastoral life and community life; in retirement there is nothing but communal life but then the cast of characters is different, each with a lifetime to cherish. Prayer takes over and that’s a great blessing.

Unless we are Pelagians, we realize that all was prayer from day one, not our prayer but participation in Jesus’ prayer for the world; we were blessed to be body talk of that ever-being-prayed prayer. I repent the many times I forgot that one simple truth. Of course, health is

a big concern and for me, adrenal insufficiency is a daily but not an insurmountable challenge. I loved my life, blessed from the git-go.

And every day that God puts out the sun, it is a fresh start.

I have a brother and two sisters in Ireland and we are in good contact. The Congregation has asked me to help put in the Apostolate of the Enthronement of the Sacred Heart in the Home. And the best Spiritual direction I have received is that my study is in service of prayer. I study to pray. Yes, I plan on publishing more of my homily insights but the primary goal of my Biblical study is that I might enter less unprepared into the perpetual prayer of adoration which bounds the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

For that to happen, we take our cue from Mary’s turning things over in her heart (Lk 2,19,51).

Q11. Hmm, thank you very much, and we hope you stay well. Is there anything you are presently reading that you find worthwhile?

A. Of course a lot of my time (four hours to research 700 words!) is spent on my Lectionary studies. Little shows up on the page but I need the security of knowing the basis on which I make comments and of course references have to be accurate.

So there are always commentaries and dictionaries to be checked out. Beyond that I am reading an old one, “Redemptive Suffering,” by William J. O’Malley (1997) and also rereading The Name of Jesus,” by Irénée Hausherr (1978). I have begun reading “Fratelli,” by Pope Francis (2020), quite an undertaking.

I have requested “How to be an Anti Racist,” by Ibran Kendi (2019) from our local library and my brother Alex in Ireland insists that I stick my nose into “Thinking Nature and the Nature of Thinking,” by Willemien Otten (2020). All, I trust, worthwhile. Thank you for this chance to share.

I

t was about 9 a.m. on Martin Luther King Jr. Day when I checked my work email to be sure there were no surprises for the next day’s press time. None.

Good.

Then I checked my personal email. I scrolled through a plethora of pleas to sell my house, my car, my boat (of which I have none), and others to insure said items. Delete, delete, delete.

I was in full delete mode when it popped up like a Right Whale breaching Nantucket sound — something that couldn’t be missed. It was a Zoom invite. No, no, no!! Not today. It should be mentioned here that I truly do not enjoy Zoom conferences or meetings. It’s not that I’m anti-social, it’s just that I hate to look at myself on-screen during the call.

And anyone who has ever Zoomed, knows full well you can’t help but look at yourself during the call. It’s like staring at a train wreck, only worse.

Reluctantly, I opened the email to read the invite. “Maybe it’s just an ad promotion,” I hoped. Nope.

There it was, “Dave Jolivet you have been invited to join a Zoom meeting,” followed by an https link address stretching longer than the Great Wall of China. It had a Meeting ID number and Password. The time of the meeting was 3 p.m. that afternoon. Nuts, there’s a hockey game on then.

Then, at the bottom of the cluster of numbers and letters was the inviter’s ID: JCRHISTLORDANDSAVIOR. “I don’t know anyone with that email,” I thought.

I read it and reread it, and my jaw hit the keyboard.

J Christ Lord and Savior.

Whaaaaa? “This has to be some kind of joke, or worse a Trojan horse type virus

Zoomed, straight from Heaven awaited me if I attended,” I thought. I went to delete the email and I couldn’t. I just couldn’t get myself to hit the delete key. I kept trying and I kept stopping myself. “I’ll just ignore it,” I said, skipping over the email and resuming the delete mode for the remainder of the emails.

Later, I had lunch and put on one of four ice hockey games to be broadcast that day. And while I chomped on a sandwich and watched hockey my mind couldn’t stop dwelling on the email and Zoom invite. Each time it entered my mind, I dismissed it; only to repeat the process until about 2:30 p.m.

It was 2:45 and I was starting to panic “What should I do?” became my unwelcome mantra.

Shortly after, I reached for my laptop and with great hesitation opened the email and clicked on the link. It opened the Zoom app. Even more reluctantly I typed in the meeting number, then the password. The screen told me the host will open the meeting shortly.

With the few remaining minutes until 3 p.m., I checked the audio and the video. Yuck. There I was — as unremarkable as always.

“I hate Zoom,” I grunted.

Then the screen opened and beside my ugly mug was the most beautiful face I had ever seen. Indescribably beautiful. “Hello brother Dave,” said a voice as velvety, yet as authoritatively

as these ears have ever laid drums on. I stammered, “Are you, you, you Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior?”

His reply was short and oh, so sweet, “I AM.” Then He chuckled. “Good one,” I thought to myself. “Thanks,” He said, and winked.

Oh my God, literally.

Then I started to think of things I had recently done that would cause the Savior of the world to Zoom me.

He smiled a smile beyond belief as my mind raced.

Suddenly, I wasn’t staring at myself on this call. I was staring at the face beside mine. The eyes weren’t blue, brown, or green. They were every color imaginable — all at once. He wasn’t Middle Eastern, African-American, Caucasian, Asian. He was every race imaginable —

all at once. It was beyond beautiful.

He did have long hair and a beard, just like the mug to His left. That similarity made me feel good; made me feel special. Only His wasn’t gray.

“Lord,” I said.

He stopped me saying, “Call me Jesus, most people do.”

“Jesus,” I continued, “Why do You want to talk to me — face-to-face, if You don’t mind my asking?”

“Oh My dear brother Dave, after the year you all just experienced, I want to reach out to each of My brothers and sisters, in one way nor another, to let them know I AM still here for you.”

Tears filled my eyes — good tears. “Thanks Jesus,” I stupidly replied. “But why?

Why did 2020 happen?”

With eyes filled with compassion, He said I or anyone else wouldn’t understand. “It had to happen, and some day you will know the reason. Trust Me.” By then I became so at ease talking to Jesus Christ of all People! I asked Him how my dad was, my mom, my son David Joseph, Igor, my grandparents, my friends. He gently stopped me and said, “Everyone is at peace and they love you.”

The tears that had been welled up now flowed freely.

I started to launch into another series of questions, and somehow my mute button was triggered, and not by me. With a smile on His wondrous face, Jesus said, “David, you have more questions than Simon Peter.”

I chuckled at that one.

Jesus said the Zoom time was running out and He didn’t want to incur an extra charge. “I don’t know how My Father will react if I spend too much,” He said.

We both laughed heartily at that.

Jesus assured me I was doing well here on earth and that despite events and circumstances that may seem otherwise, He is always there with me — and everyone.

“I don’t want this call to end,” I told Him. “That is exactly how Peter, James and John felt while on the mountain with Me at My Transfiguration. Just be patient. I love you.”

“Bye Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior,” I awkwardly responded. And with that, He was gone, and all that was left on the screen was my face, and I liked what I saw. That, in and of itself was a miracle.

Looks like its my turn to invite Jesus for our next chat. davejolivet@anchornews.

January 22, 2021 †

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† January 22, 2021