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Young pro-lifer leads the charge 3 December 13, 2012
Pope: Americas need renewed missionary spirit, well-catechized laity
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By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service
The universal church needs Catholics in the Americas who are joyful missionaries, well-catechized and faithful to the teachings of the Church, Pope Benedict XVI said. The only way to solve today’s problems is through credible and effective Christian witness and charity, he said, since only actions based on God’s truth and love can be the “decisive force which will transform the American continent,” he said. The pope made his comments during the opening Mass of a Dec. 9-12 international congress marking the 15th anniversary of the Synod of Bishops for America. The congress, organized by the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and the Knights of Columbus, was looking at ways Catholics can cooperate more closely to confront today’s challenges in North, Central and South America.
Common concerns The pope said some of the problems the whole continent must deal with include increased secularization, affronts to human dignity, threats to the institution of marriage, migration, violence, the illegal drugs and arms trades, corruption and inequality and poverty “caused by questionable economic, political and social” policies. PLEASE TURN TO POOR ON PAGE 18
Photo by Jennifer Hardy/Catholic Relief Services
A child walks on a street in the town of Cateel, a coastal community of Davao Oriental province in the Philippines, which sustained devastating damage from Typhoon Bopha (known as Pablo in the Philippines). Buildings were severely damaged, and most homes are destroyed. Most coconut trees are down or damaged beyond recovery. The coconut industry is a main source of income for the community.
Responding in the wake of disaster Typhoon survivors struggle to find shelter in storm-ravaged Philippines
Family’s quest to revitalize town after Sandy prompts others to join in
By Dennis Sadowski
By Christina Leslie
Catholic News Service
Catholic News Service
Struggling to escape the heat of the midday sun, survivors of Typhoon Bopha scavenged whatever debris they could to build makeshift shelters across storm-ravaged provinces of the southern Philippines. From the coastal communities of Boston and Cateel in Davao Oriental province to the inland town of New Bataan in Compostela Valley province, little remained standing from the 120mph winds and flash flooding of Dec. 4 that left more than 700 dead and nearly 900 missing across the island of Mindanao. Jennifer Hardy, regional information officer for Asia for Catholic Relief Services, told Catholic News Service Dec. 11 that emergency workers and aid agencies were having a difficult time
A New Jersey family’s desire to bring new life to their hurricane-stricken shore town has prompted scores of like-minded individuals to join them in their mission of compassion. Melissa and Chip Dayton, along with seven of their eight children, have volunteered tirelessly with the SquanStrong movement since Sandy’s landfall Oct. 29 to revitalize the town of Manasquan and share their faith-filled surplus of compassion in time of need. Manasquan townswoman Dana Connelly’s request via Facebook for volunteers to conduct a clothing drive and town cleanup gained the attention of the Catholic family, eager to help their neighbors affected by storm surge from both the Atlantic Ocean and the inlet.
PLEASE TURN TO CRS ON PAGE 4
PLEASE TURN TO FAMILY ON PAGE 4
For ways to help, see page 4 ! ! !
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Bearing witness to the Gospel in new ways
That They May All Be One Archbishop John C. Nienstedt
Last Holy week, 12 seminarians embarked on a mission to bring the Good News to the University of Minnesota campus
There is a uniqueness to our Advent this year in that it falls within the Year of Faith begun by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, last October. The pope has centered this Year of Faith on the Creed, calling all Catholics to re-examine the truths of our faith, our adherence to them and our willingness to share them with friend and stranger alike. In his homily for the opening of the Year of Faith on Oct. 11, 2012, Pope Benedict spoke of the “desertification” of the world, describing society today as a kind of desert or void wherein godlessness runs rampant. As we have seen in the recent defeat of the marriage amendment, today’s majority has turned away from the will of God, as known through revelation and the natural law, in order to seek lives built on self-desires and self-interests. Into such a secular context, this Year of Faith calls us to bear witness within society to the Kerygma or truth of the Gospel in new ways that are both attractive and persuasive.
Spreading the Gospel One concrete example of this kind of evangelizing effort involved 12 members of the St. Paul Seminary who embarked during Holy Week last academic year on a mission to bring the Good News of Jesus to the campus of the University of Minnesota. They had heard of seminarians at Mount St. Mary’s in Emmitsburg,
The Catholic Spirit The Catholic Spirit’s mission is to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. It seeks to inform, educate, evangelize and foster a spirit of community within the Catholic Church by disseminating news in a professional manner and serving as a forum for discussion of contemporary issues.
Md., doing campus outreach at George Mason University and thought they might be called to undertake a similar venture. So they began to pray over the course of several weeks, asking for the Father’s will to be known to them, and they were eventually convicted in their desire to spread the Gospel in a new way. On Wednesday and Thursday of Holy Week and again on Easter Monday, they went over to the University of Minnesota campus at 8 a.m. to spend the next five hours of that day simply initiating conversations with students, letting them know about the love of Christ, which was central to their own lives, and inviting students to consider a relationship with the Lord. To their amazement, the responses of the students were very positive; they were hungry to hear about God and they couldn’t believe that this message was coming from Catholics. They encountered about 150 students from a wide variety of religious and non-religious backgrounds. Among them were fallen-away Catholics, Protestants, atheists, Hindus and even students who simply had never heard of Jesus. One seminarian encountered a young lady from China in a food court who said that all she knew
Archbishop’s schedule ■ Sunday, Dec. 16: 10 a.m., St. Paul, Cathedral of St. Paul: Sunday Liturgy and installation of rector of Cathedral. 4 p.m., St. Paul, Town and Country Club: St. Thomas Academy board of trustees’ Christmas reception. ■ Monday, Dec. 17: 11 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: USCCB Doctrine Committee preparation. 5 p.m., St. Paul, Jesuit Novitiate: Holy Eucharist and dinner with Jesuit novices and staff. ■ Tuesday, Dec. 18: 8:30 a.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Staff meeting. 10:30 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Archbishop’s Council meeting. 11:30 a.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Advent open house for priests. 6:30 p.m., Edina, Medina Golf and Country Club: Ave Maria Academy dinner with Raymond Cardinal Burke. ■ Wednesday, Dec. 19: 11 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Catholic Spirit interview regarding Rediscover: program. 3 p.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Catholic Cemeteries board meeting. ■ Thursday, Dec. 20: 3 p.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Archdiocesan Finance Council meeting. ■ Friday, Dec. 21: noon, St. Paul, Town and Country Golf Club: Archdiocesan staff Christmas luncheon. 7 p.m., Buffalo, Christ the King Retreat Center: Retreat for men interested in the priesthood.
“I urge you to think about who among your family, friends or neighbors you could invite back to church as a fitting way to commemorate this Advent season.
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Catholic jazz pianist Dave Brubeck dies; known for ‘Take Five’ Catholic News Service Dave Brubeck, the influential and prolific pianist whose composition “Take Five” became a standard in the annals of jazz, died Dec. 5 at age 91, one day before his 92nd birthday. He died of heart failure. He was reportedly on his way to visit a cardiologist in Norwalk, Conn., with his son Darius when he suffered a heart attack. BRUBECK Brubeck played his “cool” brand of West Coast jazz before Blessed John Paul II and eight presidents.
He became a Catholic in 1980 after completing a commission from Our Sunday Visitor — a Mass titled “To Hope.” Brubeck said in a PBS biographical profile, “I didn’t convert to Catholicism, because I wasn’t anything to convert from. I just joined the Catholic Church.” He received the Laetare Medal from the University of Notre Dame and the Christophers’ Life Achievement Award, both in 2006, and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1996. He got an honorary degree in sacred theology from the University of Fribourg in Switzerland in 2004. Brubeck also received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009 for his contributions to American culture and the arts.
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Young pro-lifer leads the charge Laura Bearth is part of a group of Catholic teens taking an active role in supporting the cause
Attorney Joseph Kueppers of Mendota Heights has been named the new chancellor for civil affairs for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.
The Catholic Spirit
Mobilizing youth Watching the Bearths with delight was Sharon Wilson, respect life coordinator for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Office of Marriage, Family and Life. She has worked to mobilize Catholic youth to support the pro-life cause, and people like Laura Bearth are evidence that the effort is working. “Laura brings tons of energy to the pro-life work that she does at her school,” Wilson said. “She’s a good planner, and that’s what has really helped her to grow the club that they have at Cretin-Derham Hall.” Increases in the number of pro-life supporters among youth is not just happening at the school, but throughout the archdiocese, Wilson noted. Within the last year, Wilson made a switch in how she recruited youth to the cause, and it has caused a spike in the number of teens who have gotten involved. For several years, predating her arrival to the archdiocese, there was a respect life advisory board that consisted of representatives from Catholic high schools in the archdiocese. Then, Wilson decided to expand the group to include representatives from parishes as well. There now are 80 teens, who are called Youth Ambassadors for Life. “We want to equip them to be able to take that pro-life message to their peers because as much as [adults] talk about it, kids are going to listen to other kids,” she said.
St. Paul attorney to be archdiocese’s new chancellor for civil affairs The Catholic Spirit
By Dave Hrbacek Laura Bearth is a young, pro-life spitfire. She leads a respect life group at her high school, Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul. And, she has this to say about the commitment she shares with others who defend the unborn: “We’re not going away until it [abortion] goes away.” Hang around the hallways of CretinDerham Hall and you won’t doubt her words. At every turn, she is putting herself “out there” as she describes it, making her views known to the respect life group she leads at school, called Raiders for Life, plus to the broader school community. As most people scurry through shopping malls getting ready for Christmas, Bearth, a junior, is looking ahead to late January when she will be joining a group of teens making the archdiocesan-sponsored trip to Washington, D.C., for the annual national March for Life. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion. She went a year ago with her whole family: parents Robin and Luke, and brothers Matthew, 20, and Nicholas, 11. “That was super cool for me,” she said. “My mom and dad were chaperones — and it starts at home. . . . This is our faith, and we were actually on a pilgrimage together as a family.”
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He will succeed Andy Eisenzimmer, who is retiring after serving in the position since 2005. Kueppers, who begins his new duties on a part-time basis Dec. 19 and transitions to full time beginning Jan. 2, called the job “a wonderful opportunity to merge my legal training, talent and experience with my desire to serve the Catholic Church.” Dave Hrbacek / The Catholic Spirit
Laura Bearth stands outside Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul, where she organizes Raiders for Life.
Make your voice heard For those wishing to stand up for life during the upcoming anniversary of Roe v. Wade, there are several opportunities: ■ Prayer service for life As usual, the archdiocese is sponsoring a local Prayer Service for Life, which takes place Jan. 22 at the Cathedral of St. Paul. Led by Bishop Lee Piché, the 10:30 a.m. service will be followed by a march to the State Capitol and a rally organized by Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life. ■ All Night Prayer Vigil New this year is a prayer vigil that starts at 7 p.m. Jan 21 and continues until 7 a.m. the next morning at St. Mary’s Chapel at the cathedral. The event begins with Mass at 7, followed by eucharistic adoration at 8 and confession until midnight. At 3 a.m. will be the Divine Mercy Chaplet, with Benediction and repose of the Blessed Sacrament at 7. ■ Youth for Life Conference On Jan. 21, which is also Martin Luther King Day when many schools are closed, there will be a Minnesota Youth for Life Conference at Sacred Heart in Robbinsdale. Going from 9 a.m. until 7 p.m., it will feature speakers covering a variety of prolife topics, including how youth can help overturn Roe v. Wade. Cost is $30. For more information, visit WWW.MNYOUTHFORLIFE.WEBS.COM.
“When you bring these kids together, they share information with each other, they are strengthened by each other’s work . . . . Just being able to know that they’re not alone in doing this kind of work invigorates them and is able to get them to recommit themselves to the cause.” Bearth is encouraged by what she is seeing at her school. At one of the main
events she organizes, 101 students participated. It’s called Solidarity in Silence, in which students wear red pro-life armbands and refrain from talking except when necessary in classes. An announcement is made at the start of the school day, and the Raiders for Life group has a signup for three days prior to the day, which was Oct. 25 this year. “That’s one of my favorite days,” she said. “It’s super encouraging because you walk down the hallway and see someone else with that armband and there’s a nod or a smile. That sense of unity, like you’re in it together, is super, super strong. It’s awesome because there’s a ton of people who participate that you don’t know about because they don’t come to the meetings or they’re not on the life team. Then, they sign up to do that, and it’s awesome.”
Hope for the future With the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade approaching, Wilson has hope that this generation of youth can help get the law overturned. “Our youth are more pro-life than any other generation since Roe v. Wade,” she said. “And, that’s really a hopeful thing because people wonder if Roe v. Wade will ever be overturned.” One person who believes it will is Connor Petit, a sophomore at CretinDerham Hall who has stepped into leadership with Bearth. He joined the Raiders for Life early in his freshman year and he, like Bearth, is helping to draw others incurrentlyto the group. Petit leads the freshmen and sophomores, and currently there are 15 regular attendees, joining about half a dozen juniors and seniors. “I’m actually doing my national history project on Roe v. Wade,” he said. “I think that 40 years is a really long time and it needs to be overturned now. . . . There’s serious hope and we know how powerful and strong the movement has gotten.”
“I look forward to assisting and adKUEPPERS vising the archbishop and archdiocesan parishes and schools,” added Kueppers, who has been practicing law for 29 years and currently serves as president of Kueppers, Kronschnabel & Daly, P.A. in St. Paul. “Joe is an excellent addition to our leadership team at the archdiocese,” Archbishop John Nienstedt said in a statement. “He brings a wealth of knowledge and experience, in addition to his strong faith life.” Kueppers has experience in many areas of law, including civil litigation, business law, real estate, estate planning, contract law and arbitration. The legal profession runs deep in his family. “I’m a third-generation lawyer,” he said. “My grandfather was a lawyer who started practicing downtown [in St. Paul] in 1928. My father is a lawyer, and he started practicing in 1958. Then I became a lawyer in 1983. The three of us worked together in a law firm for five years, and I still work with my dad.”
Leading with faith Kueppers graduated from St. Thomas Academy in Mendota Heights, holds an undergraduate degree in political science from the University of Minnesota and received his law degree from Hamline University. A graduate of the Archbishop Harry J. Flynn Catechetical Institute, Kueppers also is a 2007 recipient of The Catholic Spirit’s Leading With Faith Award, which recognizes men and women whose business practices reflect their Catholic faith. He is a member of the board of directors of Catholic United Financial, Cradle of Hope and Serra Club of St. Paul. He has served as a volunteer arbitrator and mediator in the archdiocese’s Office of Conciliation since 2001. Kueppers and his wife Vicki have three children and are members of St. Joseph in West St. Paul.
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
CRS to begin delivering food, water and other emergency supplies CONTINUED FROM PABE 1 reaching isolated communities along the coast a week after the storm because the destruction was so severe. “People have a lot of unmet needs,” Hardy said from the city of Tagam after touring the coastal region Dec. 10. “The biggest need is emergency shelter. People are trying to piece together ramshackle shelter from the debris. “The people are out in the sun all day. There’s a lack of shade. I saw people lined up next to a power pole, a whole family of six people in a row, to stand in the shade of that pole because it is so hot in the sun.” In interviews with survivors, Hardy said people described harrowing experiences in which emergency shelters were destroyed and, despite the howling wind, people could hear the sound of the trees in coconut groves snapping. “The scenery on the hillsides looks very similar to a forest fire in the United States CNS photo/Jeff Metzner, The Monitor west. The only things left standing is the trunk of a tree. If they are not broken off, “SquanStrong” volunteers Stephanie Graham, Maura O'Connor and Penny Kaye rethen all the branches are gone,” she said. move tiles damaged by water and sand by Hurricane Sandy from a residence In New Bataan, a city surrounded by banana plantations in the fertile Compostela owned by Michael Parziale in Manasquan, N.J., Dec. 1. Valley, a massive mudslide took out thousands of homes, schools and government buildings. Even evacuation shelters were damaged or destroyed, said Hardy, who visited the city Dec. 8 and 9. “There’s mud everywhere,” she said. In one neighborhood, Hardy described a scene of utter destruction as homes were CONTINUED FROM PABE 1 buried under mud and boulders swept down from the surrounding mountains by “But what started as a coat drive is now . . . around the clock service to the commufloodwater. nity,” Melissa Dayton observed of their ceaseless quest to rebuild lives in this com“The homes that were not hit by the mudslide, they’re pretty severely damaged. munity in the Diocese of Trenton. Some people are camping out in their homes. Others are staying in evacuation A groundswell of volunteers cleans homes, visits the elderly, delivers hot meals, and centers. For the homes hit by the mudslide, you can’t even tell the home was even counsels those whose homes were damaged or lost in the storm. there,” she said. Seven of the eight Dayton children assist in their parents’ daily labors for the town. Hardy also recalled a conversation with 6-year-old Maria Leon, who was in an The Dayton children serve as “personal shoppers” for residents looking for food or evacuation center with her father, Olimpio. The storm claimed the lives of the girl’s clothing donations, and Melissa’s cell phone rings continuously as she matches dograndparents and several cousins. nations with recipients in her efforts to revitalize the stricken shore town. “She’s pretty shy. But she did talk about wondering when she will be able to go back to school because her school was knocked down by the mudslide,” Hardy said. “This is a very serious calling,” she told The Monitor, Trenton’s diocesan newspaper. “There’s a need and we are equipped.” Olimpio Leon was concerned about getting sleeping mats so that he and his daughter would not have to sleep on mud-caked concrete floors, made worse by the Donations for the inspirationally dubbed “SquanStrong” organization soon outgrew constant in-and-out of evacuees. a temporary base of operations, so Melissa Dayton turned to friends at Jetty, a local “They honestly have nothing left. They escaped with the clothes on their back,” design and apparel shop based in Little Egg Harbor, who had created a hurricane relief she said. T-shirt to raise funds for local needs. Catholic Relief Services planned to begin distributing sleeping mats, cooking utenA generous donation from Jetty covered rent at their new and larger office storage sils, food and water Dec. 13. Hardy said CRS workers were coordinating aid delivery facility through February. with other agencies. Prior to the storm, the Daytons had long been involved in secular and religious Hardy said the situation in the rural communities was far different from last Deservice to the community. Melissa, a portrait painter and Catholic artist, and Chip, cember’s Typhoon Washi, which left 1,200 dead in flash flooding formerly the manager of the now-shuttered Fort Monmouth in parts of Cagayan de Oro, a city of 602,000 in northern Mingolf course, had ministered through marriage and family coundanao. seling and youth ministry. How to help “Here it’s so spread out,” she said. “There are very rural areas. In response to a high teen suicide rate at their local high ■ CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA is I just don’t know how that’s going to shake out in trying to get school, the couple, whose children range in age from 3 to 25, accepting cash donations to aid aid to tiny, spread-out towns.” began a nonprofit organization, “You Can NOT Be Replaced,” victims of Hurricane Sandy. Donations Meanwhile, the United Nations said Dec. 10 it needed to which encourages the growth and strength of families and procan be made online at WWW.CATHOLIC raise an additional $65 million for storm survivors, reported motion of the irreplaceable value of each individual. CHARITIESUSA.ORG, by calling toll-free the Asian church news agency UCA News. Melissa is studying in the Trenton diocesan Institute for Lay (800) 919-9338 or by mail to P.O. Box Luisa Carvalho, U.N. resident coordinator in Manila, said an Ecclesial Ministry program through St. Mark Parish in Sea Girt. 17066, Baltimore, MD 21297-1066. initial $35.5 million had been requested to support relief and The program, which fosters spiritual, intellectual, human and rehabilitation but that the extra funding was needed to help pastoral formation, is headed by associate director of the De■ CATHOLIC RELIEF SERVICES is those worst affected — nearly half a million people — in Compartment of Lay Formation, JoLynn Krempecki. helping victims of Typhoon Bopha as postela Valley and Davao Oriental provinces. “They are a phenomenal family,” Krempecki said of the Daywell as Hurricane Sandy victims in the The government has allocated $195.3 million for the early tons. “This family does it 24/7. They are an amazing example Caribbean. Donate online at recovery effort. of what it means to be a Catholic Christian.” WWW.CATHOLICRELIEF.ORG, by calling toll“Health problems are growing in addition to the fact that we Weeks after the storm, Melissa Dayton still is amazed and free (877) 435-7277 or by mail to need to address their food needs,” said Gov. Arturo Uy of Comgratified at the number and variety of people who selflessly doCatholic Relief Services, P.O. Box postela Valley. nate their time to aid the people of Manasquan. 17090, Baltimore, MD 21203-7090. About 70 percent of the people in Compostela Valley have “We just recently had a group from Bergen County come been affected by the disaster, he said. down, we have kids on break from college, and some displaced families volunteer as well,” she reported. The outreach dovetails with her work with More than 1,900 people were injured because of the typhoon, which caused an esyouth both in the parish and secular settings. timated $171 million in damage, said the Philippine government.
Family aided community before storm
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THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
Vatican cardinal responds to Archbishop Nienstedt’s ‘ad limina’ visit
CNS photo/L'Osservatore Romano
Pope Benedict XVI greets Archbishop John C. Nienstedt of St. Paul and Minneapolis during a March 8 meeting with bishops from Minnesota on their "ad limina" visits to the Vatican.
Approximately every five years bishops throughout the world are invited to Rome on a scheduled basis for an “ad limina” visit with the Holy Father and members of various congregations. Bishops are required to submit detailed documentation on the state of their respective dioceses, in the form of a Quinquennial Report, prior to their visits in accord with Canon 399 of the Code of Canon Law. The report serves to promote the relationship of communion between dioceses and the Holy Father. Archbishop John C. Nienstedt submitted the Quinquennial Report for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis prior to his “ad limina” visit in March 2012. Below is the letter he received recently from Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation of Bishops in Vatican City, regarding his “ad limina” visit. Vatican City, September 17, 2012 CONGREGATIO PRO EPISCOPIS Prot. N. 129/2012 Your Excellency, At the conclusion of the Visits ad limina Apostolorum of the Bishops of the United States of America in 2011-2012, I write to thank Your Excellency for your Quinquennial Report of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, 2004-2010, sent to this Congregation by the Apostolic Nunciature. I am grateful for the great care you and your collaborators took in preparing the Report, which was very helpful in assessing the actual situation of the local Church entrusted to your care. It was a pleasure to meet with you and your brother Bishops from Region VIII in this
Dicastery last March, and I found our discussion informative and fruitful. It is evident from your Quinquennial Report that the local Church of Saint Paul and Minneapolis faces significant challenges to the proclamation of the Gospel of Christ in a culture which is becoming increasingly secular and even hostile to the Church, and where there are also grave threats to religious liberty. Your Excellency will undoubtedly recall the exhortation of His Holiness intended for you and your brother bishops of the United States, to see the present moment “as a summons to exercise the prophetic dimension of your episcopal ministry by speaking out, humbly yet insistently, in defense of moral truth and offering a word of hope” (Address to the Bishops from the United States of America on their “ad limina” Visit, 26 November 2011). Your courageous and insightful leadership, especially with regard to the protection of marriage in the State of Minnesota, is important and appreciated. Moreover, since Saint Paul is the seat of civil government for the State of Minnesota, the importance of having committed lay Catholics involved in politics takes on special significance in your Archdiocese. As our Holy Father has stated, “We see the need for an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture and with the courage to counter a reductive secularism which would delegitimize the Church’s participation in public debate about the issues which are determining the future of American society” (Address to the Bishops from United States of America on their “ad limina” Visit, 19 January 2012). Such challenges present the opportunity to respond to Pope Benedict's invitation “to recognize, in the light of a dramatically changing social and religious landscape, the urgency and demands of a new evangelization” (Address to the Bishops from the United States of America on their “ad limina” Visit, 26 November 2011). Vigorous engagement in the new evangelization takes on even greater importance due to a decrease in the number of Catholics and a lower participation in ecclesial life within the local Church. I would like to congratulate Your Excellency for making evangelization a top pastoral priority and for continuing to promote sound doctrine and liturgical practice. Your recent pastoral letter on the Sacred Liturgy will undoubtedly help in this regard. I was happy to learn about the robust vocation program in your Archdiocese since “the ability to foster vocations
is a hallmark of the vitality of a local Church” (Message for the 48th World Day of Prayer for Vocations, 15 May 2011). It was encouraging to read that Saint John Vianney Seminary and Saint Paul Seminary enjoy the reputation of forming seminarians according to the mind and heart of the Church. It was reported that, due to changing demographics and increasing costs, the Archdiocese closed not only some parishes, but also some parochial schools in recent years. While such school closures present challenges and pastoral difficulties for the families and parishes involved, they also provide an opportunity to strengthen the schools that remain, ensuring that they provide good academic formation and a solid formation in the Catholic faith. These schools, in fact, as the Holy Father stated, “remain an essential resource for the new evangelization” (Address to the Bishops from the United States of America on their “ad limina” Visit, 5 May 2012). You report that in recent years the number of Hispanics in the Archdiocese has increased notably. These new immigrants bring with them great promise for the future of the Church, but they also present the pastoral challenge of providing them spiritual care and charitable assistance, including helping them to regularize their situation and keep their families together. Our Holy Father has said, “The Church in America is called to embrace, incorporate and cultivate the rich patrimony of faith and culture present in America's many immigrant groups. . . . The immense promise and the vibrant energies of a new generation of Catholics are waiting to be tapped for the renewal of the Church’s life and the rebuilding of the fabric of American society” (Address to the Bishops from the United States of America on their “ad limina” Visit, 18 May 2012). Your Excellency, in sharing these brief reflections with you regarding your Quinquennial Report, I want to assure you of my prayers and encourage you in your episcopal ministry. The Holy Father also, with these same sentiments, cordially imparts his Apostolic Blessing to Your Excellency, extending it also to the Archbishop Emeritus, Auxiliary Bishop, priests, consecrated men and women, and laity of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. With sentiments of fraternal esteem and prayerful best wishes, I remain Faithfully yours in Our Lord, Marc Cardinal Ouellet
“What we’ve found . . . is that where catechesis was done well and preparation was done well, there’s been much more acceptance and embracing of it.” Msgr. Richard Hilgartner, executive director of USCCB’s Secretariat of Divine Worship, on acceptance of the new English translation of the Roman Missal introduced a year ago
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Nation/World THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
News from around the U.S. and the globe
Supreme Court to hear marriage cases By Patricia Zapor Catholic News Service
The Supreme Court will take up in the spring two cases over the constitutionality of same-sex marriage. In orders issued Dec. 7, the court agreed to hear a case over California’s Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage, and one out of New York over the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which defines a marriage as being between one man and one woman. The cases likely will be on the court’s calendar for argument in March, with a ruling before the end of the term in late June. After weeks of court-watching when the petitions for review of more than half a dozen cases involving samesex marriage were on the justices’ list for consideration, the orders Dec. 7 suggested the justices worked at covering multiple bases in what they granted, noted courtwatchers at the Supreme Court blog, SCOTUSblog.
Two issues The orders focused on two issues: how marriage is defined and whether same-sex couples who are legally married are entitled to the same kind of spousal benefits as heterosexual spouses. In each case, the court noted that it would first consider whether the parties involved have legal standing, meaning the court could toss out both cases on the basis of who brought the lawsuits and not actually address the underlying constitutional issues at all. If that happened, the court could take up other cases to get to the constitutionality. The orders also asked the parties in the New York case to first help the justices consider whether the key part of DOMA even holds, because the federal government has said it is not constitutional and has declined to defend it. DOMA, signed by President Bill Clinton in 1996, was a reaction to Hawaii’s Supreme Court ruling in 1993 that the state had to show a compelling interest to prohibit same-sex marriage, leading to concerns that a subsequent challenge would make the practice legal. DOMA defines marriage as only between one man and one woman for the purposes of the federal government, including for Social Security benefits, federal programs and federal estate and income taxes. Although subsequent administrations supported DOMA in court, early in 2011, Attorney General Eric
CNS file photo / Jon L. Hendricks
A bride and groom hold hands on their wedding day.
Holder announced the agency would no longer defend the law. Holder said that after review of recommendations including his own, President Barack Obama had concluded that DOMA’s definition of marriage as applied to same-sex couples fails to hold up to constitutional scrutiny.
Significant moment Saying he prayed that the court would uphold the traditional definition of marriage, Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the court’s decision to take the cases is a “significant moment for our nation.” In a Dec. 7 statement, Archbishop Cordileone said traditional marriage between one man and one woman “is as old as humanity” and is the foundation of a just society because it protects children, “the most vulnerable among us.” Nine states and the District of Columbia allow or will soon begin allowing same-sex marriage. That includes Maryland, Maine and Washington, which passed laws approving it in November’s election, while Minnesota voters defeated a proposed constitutional amendment defining marriage as a union between one man and one woman. Thirty-one states have constitutional amendments prohibiting same-sex marriage.
Catholics find new Mass translations to their liking By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service
A wide majority of Massgoers are satisfied with the new English translation of the Roman Missal introduced a year ago at Advent, a survey showed. Seventy percent of Catholics responding agreed that the translation is a “good thing,” according to results of the survey conducted by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University. Half of respondents agreed with the assessment while 20 percent strongly agreed with it, the survey found. Some three in 10 Catholics said they disagreed with such an assessment. Seven percent said they strongly disagreed that the translations were good for the Catholic Church. Sulpician Father Anthony Pogorelc, a staff member of the Institute for Policy Research and Catholic Studies at The Catholic University of America, which commissioned the survey, said the findings were not surprising. “The [Mass] actions have not changed, the words are
not as big a change to people,” he said. The latest survey revealed that the acceptance of the new language was higher among Catholics who attended Mass weekly or more often than those who worshipped less often. Worshippers who like the translations said the new wording inspired them to be more faithful in daily life, helped them feel closer to God and make it easier to participate in Mass. The findings were based on responses from 1,047 selfidentified Catholic adults with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Preparation key The results were gratifying to Msgr. Richard Hilgartner, executive director of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat of Divine Worship. “What we’ve found . . . is that where catechesis was done well and preparation was done well, there’s been much more acceptance and embracing of it,” Msgr. Hilgartner told Catholic News Service.
DECEMBER 13, 2012
Bishops urge Catholics to pray for life, marriage and religious liberty The U.S. Catholic bishops have launched a pastoral strategy addressing life, marriage and religious liberty concerns. The five-part strategy was approved by the bishops in November and is set to begin after Christmas. The focus is to invite Catholics to pray to rebuild a culture favorable to life and marriage, and for increased protections of religious liberty, according to a Dec. 6 news release from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. The campaign includes monthly eucharistic holy hours in cathedrals and parishes, daily family rosary, special Prayers of the Faithful at all Masses, fasting and abstinence on Fridays, and observance of a Fortnight for Freedom.
Simple approach The USCCB said the call to prayer is prompted by rapid social movements and policy changes currently under way, such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ contraception mandate and increased efforts to redefine marriage. “The pastoral strategy is essentially a call to prayer and sacrifice — it’s meant to be simple,” said Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, chairman of the bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage. “It’s not meant to be another program but rather part of a movement for life, marriage and religious liberty, which engages the new evangelization and can be incorporated into the Year of Faith.” Details of the strategy are: ■ Cathedrals and parishes are encouraged to hold a eucharistic holy hour for life, marriage, and religious liberty on or near the last Sunday of every month starting on the Sunday after Christmas (feast of the Holy Family) and continuing through the feast of Christ the King. ■ Families and individuals are encouraged to pray a daily rosary, especially for the preservation of life, marriage and religious liberty in the nation. ■ At Sunday and daily Masses, it is encouraged that the Prayers of the Faithful include specific intentions for respect for all human life from conception to natural death, the strengthening of marriage and family life, and the preservation of religious liberty at all levels of government, both at home and abroad. ■ Abstinence from meat and fasting on Fridays are encouraged for the intention of protecting life, marriage and religious liberty, recognizing the importance of spiritual and bodily sacrifice in the life of the Church. ■ The celebration of a second Fortnight for Freedom is being planned for the end of June and the beginning of July 2013. It would emphasize faith and marriage in a particular way in the face of the potential Supreme Court rulings during this time.It would also emphasize the need for conscience protection in light of the Aug. 1, 2013 deadline for religious organizations to comply with the HHS mandate, as well as religious freedom concerns in other areas, such as immigration, adoption and humanitarian services. A website with resources from the USCCB is available at: WWW.USCCB.ORG/LIFE-MARRIAGE-LIBERTY. “With the challenges this country is facing, it is hoped that this call to prayer and penance will help build awareness among the faithful as well as spiritual stamina and courage for effective witness,” Archbishop Cordileone said.
“No one has ever become poor by giving.” Anne Frank
This Catholic Life DECEMBER 13, 2012
Opinion, feedback and points to ponder
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
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Will charitable deductions be targeted to avert ‘fiscal cliff’?
T
he dates may not be printed on many people’s calendars, but they mark a certain passage of time nonetheless: the “October surprise” every four years before a presidential election, “Black Friday” on the day after Thanksgiving to mark the start of the holiday shopping season, and the “December dilemma,” in which families figure Mark Pattison out how much they can afford to give to charities to qualify for the best possible tax deductions or tax credits. This December, the dilemma takes on an added dimension. As Congress and the White House scramble to find new sources of revenue to go with budget cuts to achieve deficit reductions and avert a socalled “fiscal cliff,” one tempting source for creating revenue is a ceiling on tax deductions. Father Larry Snyder, president of Catholic Charities USA, predicted that if tax deductions are capped, “there will be a definite decrease in the philanthropy that charities will see.” Leaders of charitable organizations flew en masse to Washington Dec. 4-5 to lobby members of Congress and White House staffers to leave charitable contributions alone. “First of all, it’s not just a tax incentive for millionaires,” Father Snyder said. “The majority of the gifts that come to Catholic Charities organizations — and I think last year we had almost $900 million in charitable giving — they are $1,000, $2,000, $5,000 gifts. “But those people do itemize,” he added. “It’s 30 percent of the public, but the number of millionaires is far less than that. It really is folks wanting to support the work of the nonprofit sector.” Released this June, a report on giving in 2011 from the Giving USA Foundation and the Center on Philanthropy, its research partner, showed that close to $300 billion was given to charities. Individuals accounted for the “vast majority” of the
Analysis
charitable gifts, which has been the case, the foundation said, since it first began examining charitable donations in 1955. Religious organizations received $95.88 billion in 2011 and they remain the largest type of recipient, the report said.
Cap would be ‘a blow’ Frank Wright, chairman of the National Religious Broadcasters, a largely Protestant organization, called charitable deductions “a public policy that has proven its worth for nearly a century.” He added, “Rather than capping or otherwise constraining this long-standing deduction, the federal government ought to expand opportunities for the charitable impulse of Americans to thrive.” It remains to be seen whether budget negotiators will heed the call, as House Republican leaders Dec. 4 expressed a willingness to raise $800 billion in revenues without raising tax rates. President Barack Obama, in a Dec. 4 interview with Bloomberg TV, dismissed the concept of a deduction cap. “If you eliminated charitable deductions, that means every hospital and university and not-for-profit agency across the country would suddenly find themselves on the verge of collapse. So that’s not a realistic option,” Obama said. A cap would be “a blow, as many have commented, to already-hard-hit charities that are just starting to get over the recession,” said Elizabeth Boris, director of the Urban Institute’s Center on Nonprofits and Philanthropy, at a Dec. 4 institutesponsored panel discussion. “Philanthropy does things that government doesn’t do well” or “doesn’t do at all,” said panelist Robert Grimm, director of the Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy. Grimm pointed to his own experience growing up in a rural Iowa town of only 300 that was home to the state’s only professional theater company, thanks to philanthropy. He also pointed to the example of Benjamin Franklin, who created Phila-
delphia Hospital once he convinced the Pennsylvania state government to pay half the cost if he could raise the rest. “Philanthropy allows each person to define their version of the social good,” with the money they contribute becoming “their risk capital,” Grimm said, adding that if given a proposition that’s “highrisk, high-reward, and is going to fail eight times out of 10, do you think you’re going to get the federal government to do that?” Dan McCabe, CEO of Causetown, which links projects and donors, said studies show those who give money to a project are more likely to volunteer their time with that project — and those who volunteer are also more likely to give. “Giving is sort of the gateway . . . to that engagement,” added Mari Kuraishi, co-founder and president of the GlobalGiving Foundation. “The notion that foundations are the sole contributors to the public good is just not true. Online is a tremendous enabler of that fact,” Kuraishi said, pointing to Kickstarter and similar endeavors that look for investors for thousands of projects, from making wool caps known as “surf beanies” to CD recordings.
Getting more people engaged Grimm suggested altering tax deductions isn’t the only threat to charitable giving. “Reducing personal consumption is going to reduce giving. More than capping [deductions on] giving, raising taxes will also reduce giving,” he said. Government cuts will also play into the equation: “Government is the biggest funder of non-
profits,” Grimm noted, and “the weak economy” has been at work in giving, since “nonprofits are very reliant on earned revenue.” Urban Institute senior fellow Eugene Steurle said current tax policy already has an impact on giving, as many donors say they “give to the max,” meaning they give only so much to qualify for the largest possible deduction, but no more than that. “We’re seeing fewer philanthropists but more givers,” McCabe said. The trick is to get more people engaged, he added, noting that people who spend “hundreds of hours in front of the TV” aren’t likely to be engaged or put themselves in a position to be approached. McCabe said eight of 10 schools do outside fundraising, selling items like gift wrap and chocolate bars, with school fundraising itself having become a $4 billion industry. “From the reports that we have back, there is universal support for the charitable sector,” said Diana Aviv, president and CEO of Independent Sector, an umbrella group for nonprofits after meetings in congressional offices. “There is also support for the charitable tax deduction.” “But here’s the rub. We hear from a lot of staff,” not the representatives and senators themselves, Aviv said. With deficit negotiations lagging, she said she feared “the tax deduction might get caught up in a lot of bigger issues” if and when the talks heat up. Mark Pattison writes for Catholic News Service.
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Commentary
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
/ This Catholic Life
Are you ready for the end of the world?
Editorial Joe Towalski
Imagine how our lives, and the lives of those around us, might be different if we lived as if today might, indeed, be our last day
What if the world ended tomorrow? Those who like to make doomsday predictions point to an ancient Mayan calendar that finishes a “long-count” period on Dec. 21 — presumably, they conclude, the day of the Apocalypse. (Never mind that another long-count period begins afterward, just like our calendar begins again after Dec. 31.) It’s all a lot of hoopla, of course, that preys on people’s fears and insecurities. Judgment Day will come eventually, but no one — including the ancient Mayans — are privy to when it happens: As the Gospels remind us: “of that day and hour, no one knows.” Yet, Advent is a time when we’re supposed to prepare for the coming of Christ — not just at Christmastime, when he comes as a baby in the manger, but also his coming today and his Second Coming at the end of time. The prophet Isaiah and John the Baptist remind us of this during the Advent season, when they call us to “prepare the way of the Lord” by turning away from sin and trying to live more virtuous lives. So, what if we recommitted ourselves to doing that right now — not tomorrow or next week or after the new year, but today? What if we made a concerted effort for the rest of the Advent season to seek forgiveness — both in the sacrament of reconciliation and from others whom we have hurt in the past? What if we worked harder to be more virtuous, more generous and more selfless in our words, thoughts and actions?
Living in a new way In other words, what if we really began living like the world might end sometime soon? As if our lives might end tomorrow? As if we might meet Jesus face to face tomorrow, and with us he would look back on our lives and
how we lived them? I bet we would change the way we do things: ■ We would set aside more time today for prayer and not let the busyness of modern life steal away more of that special time between God and us, between Jesus and us. ■ We would turn off the television shut off the computer and put away the smartphone, so we could play more, talk more and laugh more with our kids and spouses. ■ We wouldn’t throw away today’s mail from that charity — the one that helps the poor and others in need — without mailing back a few dollars to help.
■ We would call that relative we haven’t talked to for so long because of how he or she hurt us — or because of how we hurt them — and we would offer, or ask for, forgiveness. ■ We would be freer with our compliments and more restrained with our condemnations. All of us, I’m betting, would change the way we lived if we thought the end was near. Yet, it likely won’t be coming tomorrow, or on Dec. 21, or in the days that follow. Still, imagine if we did, indeed, live during this Advent season and beyond as if it might. The world would surely be a better place for us and those around us.
The Council at 50: Laity are called to be a ‘leaven in the world’ The following is one of a series of blog posts marking the 50th anniversary of the start of the Second Vatican Council published by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Vatican II, which drew together the world’s bishops, opened in St. Peter’s Basilica, Oct. 11, 1962.
Commentary Bishop David Zubik
The laity stand in a unique position to carry on the Church’s mission because of their place both in the Church community and in society
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n some ways, the role of lay men and women in the Church drew top billing at the Second Vatican Council. Their role was highlighted in several documents, and one decree “Apostolicam Actuositatem” (Apostolic Activity), the “Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People,” focused completely on them. The document begins by emphasizing the vocation of the lay person and notes that Christ calls every baptized believer to the mission of the Church. This mission is twofold: to bring about the salvation of all people and to renew the world. This mission does not just belong to the hierarchy; it belongs to everyone by virtue of their baptism. The laity stand in a unique position to carry on the Church’s mission because of their place both in the Church community and in society. The Council Fathers, for example, described the lay state as “a life led in the midst of the world and of secular affairs” and said “laymen are called by God to make of their apostolate, through the vigor of their Christian spirit, a leaven in the world.”
“Because lay people are both in the Church
community and in society, they are called to exercise their baptismal vocation in their parish communities, family, communities in which they live and work, as well as on the national and international level.
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BISHOP DAVID ZUBIK
It noted that the grace of Sunday Mass extends beyond church and said that a layman is “at one and the same time a believer and a citizen of the world,” and “has only a single conscience, a Christian conscience; it is by this that he must be guided continually in both domains.”
A shining light for the world The decree called on lay people to live in a way that shows “the very witness of a Christian life” and recalls Scripture’s directive: “Your light must shine so brightly before people that they can see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). The decree urges involvement in charitable works, noting that “mercy to the poor and the sick, and charitable works and works of mutual aid for the alleviation of all kinds of human needs, are held in special honor
Renewing the world
which they live and work, as well as on the national and international level. This renewal of the world can take place individually and in groups. Many lay people have found support for their vocation through lay movements in the Church. Since Vatican II, there has been tremendous growth in the role of the laity within the Church. Sometimes the term “apostolate” used throughout the document has been replaced by “ministry.” The Church in the United States, in particular, has seen a rise in the number of lay people serving where once only priests and religious were found.
Because lay people are both in the Church community and in society, they are called to exercise their baptismal vocation in their parish communities, family, communities in
Bishop David Zubik of Pittsburgh is a past chair of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth.
in the church.” Such efforts, the document says, flesh out the mandate found in Matthew 25, “whatsoever you do for the least of my brothers and sisters, you do to me.” The document also reminds Christians to see their neighbors in the image of God. The decree calls for lay people to work for justice, “to take on themselves as their distinctive task the renewal of the temporal order.” It stresses the value of “Christian social action” and said “the council desires to see it extended today to every sector of life, not forgetting the cultural sphere.”
This Catholic Life / Commentary
DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
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In confession, priest sees mercy, love and humility Q: What is it like to hear confessions?
I Ask Father Mike Father Mike Schmitz
Confession is always a place of victory
was once riding in a shuttle-bus with a number of elderly men and women on the way from an airport. They noticed that I was a priest and started asking questions about it. “Do you do all of the priest stuff?” “Yep.” “Even the confession thing?” “Yeah, all the time.” One older lady gasped, “Well, I think that that would be the worst. It would be so depressing, hearing all about people’s sins.” I told them that it was the exact opposite. There is almost no greater place to be than with someone when they are coming back to God. The confessional is a place where people let God’s love win. The confessional is the most joyful, humbling and inspiring place in the world. What does a priest see during confession? I think there are three things.
Up close with God First, I see the costly mercy of God in action. I get to regularly come face-to-face with the overwhelming, life-transforming power of God’s love. I get to see God’s love up close, and it reminds me of how good God is. Not many folks get to see the way in which God’s sacrifice on the cross is constantly breaking into people’s lives and melting the hardest hearts, consoling those who are grieving their sins and strengthening those who want to give up on God or on life.
Humility spawns humility
am struck by the fact that they have been able to recognize sins in their life that I have been blind to in my own. Hearing someone’s humility breaks down my own pride. It is one of the best examinations of conscience. Why is confession a scary place for a priest? It is frightening because of the way in which Jesus trusts me to be a living sign of his mercy. I’m afraid of confession because I know myself, and I don’t want to get in Jesus’ way. The priest stands in judgment of no one. In the confessional, the only thing I have to offer is mercy. Finally, when a priest hears confessions, he is taking on another responsibility. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the priest must do penance for all those who come to him for confession. This is why confession reveals the priest’s own soul; it reveals his willingness to sacrifice his life with Christ. He sees our sins as a burden that he will take up (with Jesus!) and offer them to the Father, while offering us the mercy of God. Remember, confession is always a place of victory. Whether you have confessed this sin for the first time, or if this is the 12,001st time, every confession is a win for Jesus.
The third thing a priest sees in confessions is his own soul. It is a scary place for a priest. I cannot tell you how humbled I am when someone approaches Jesus’ mercy through me. I am not over-awed by their sins; I
Father Michael Schmitz is director of youth and young adult ministry for the Diocese of Duluth and chaplain for the Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Reach him at FATHERMIKE SCHMITZ@GMAIL.COM.
As a priest, I get to see this thing happen every day. The second thing I see is a person who is still trying. I see a saint in the making. I don’t care if this is the person’s third confession this week; if they are seeking the Sacrament of Reconciliation, it means that they are trying. That’s all that I care about. This thought is worth considering: Going to confession is a sign that you haven’t given up on Jesus.
Pride gets in the way This is one of the reasons pride is so deadly. I have talked with people who tell me that they don’t want to go to confession to their priest because he thinks highly of them. They don’t want to disappoint the priest. I have two things to say to this. First, he will not be disappointed. What your priest will see is a person who is trying! I dare you to name a saint who didn’t need to have God’s mercy. Second, so what if the priest is disappointed? (He won’t be, but what if he is?) We try to be so impressive with so much of our lives. Confession is a place where we don’t get to be impressive. Confession is a place where the desire to impress goes to die. Think about it: All other sins have the potential to cause us to race to the confessional, but pride is the one that causes us to hide from the God who could heal us. Whenever someone comes to confession, I see a person who is deeply loved by God. When they
CNS photo / Mike Crupi, Catholic Courier
come to confession, I see a person telling God that they love him back. That’s it, and that’s all.
Season’s message found in the simplicity of a chapel
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Our Global Family Carolyn Woo
Can we clear the clutter in our lives so that we can really enjoy God’s presence?
hrough the hospitality of Trocaire — a Catholic humanitarian relief agency of Ireland — I began Advent in the stunningly beautiful chapel of St. Patrick’s College in Maynooth, the pontifical university and national seminary of Ireland. Built in the mid-1800s, the chapel’s woodwork, stained glass and paintings conveyed a powerful sense of the love for God that enabled human hands to make such magnificence possible. In this quiet and holy enclave, a simple melody drifted from the choir loft where a student was practicing “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”
Stirring up memories The simplicity hit a chord that brought the Christmas season into view. I smiled knowing that our older son would be able to join us after his absence last year as a new medical intern without holiday privileges. I look forward to the gatherings at Christmas in Indiana: the concert at Purdue University, Christmas Eve Mass celebrated by our good friend Father Bill, our annual (since 1999) Chinese hot pot dinner, sojourns to Chicago. I always take a deep breath when I
“God is moving through our lives, God is
with us. God is in us. Do we really comprehend? We are in the greatest love story of our lives.
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CAROLYN WOO
open the box and peel back the tissues that hold the Christmas ornaments made by our now-grown sons in their toddler and boyhood days. I put on my Susan Bristol sweater. It was a favorite brand of my mother-in-law. My father-in-law bought it for me when his health was failing. Christmas Day concludes with the wonderfully calm hours when I gather all of the cards and sit in front of the fire to catch up on the updates on life, losses, celebrations and triumphs from friends who are so dear but sometimes so far away. Christmas is special, despite the hubbub and the criticism of commercialism, as people make a place in their hearts for those they love. Yet, in the chapel at St. Patrick’s, I was struck many times when I sang
“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” that somehow our proclamation is so limp compared to the profound message of Advent and Christmas. Again, it is the simplicity that hits a chord. Pope Benedict XVI during his homily on the first Sunday of Advent in 2006 noted that the church’s proclamation can be summed up in two words: God comes. He continued, “It is not used in the past tense — God has come — nor in the future — God will come — but in the present: God comes. At a closer look, this is a continuous present, that is, an ever-continuous action: It happened, it is happening now and it will happen again.”
Three advents In that spirit, St. Bernard of Clairvaux in the 12th century wrote about three advents: the first and
third are familiar: Christ coming into the world and Christ’s final coming, raising all in the revelation of his glory and truth. It is the middle Advent, as Trappist Father Thomas Merton reflected, that is “the most important for us. The ‘Second Advent’ by which Christ is present in our souls now depends on our present recognition of his pascha or transitus, the passage of Christ through our world, through our own lives.” God comes. God is moving through our lives, God is with us. God is in us. Do we really comprehend? We are in the greatest love story of our lives. We are lifted up beyond our wildest imagination. The good we do is multiplied by God’s unlimited bounty and power. Are we excited beyond words? Are we filled with awe that this is happening to us? Can we clear the clutter in our lives so that we can really enjoy this? Do we really comprehend? No wonder one of the most common exhortations in this season is: “Awaken!” Woo is president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services.
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Cathedral of Saint Paul
239 Selby Avenue, Saint Paul www.cathedralsaintpaul.org Christmas Eve: New — Christmas Vigil Mass at 5 p.m. with Cantor Office of Readings in Solemn Vigil at 10:45 p.m. preceding Midnight Mass Christmas Day: Midnight Mass with Cathedral Choir 8 a.m. Mass with Cantor 9:00 a.m. Mass at the Saint Vincent de Paul Campus, 651 Virginia St. 10 a.m. Mass with Cathedral Choir and Choristers of the Cathedral School Choir 12:00 Noon Mass with Cantor
St. Vincent de Paul
9100 93rd Ave. N., Brooklyn Park Christmas Eve: 4, 6, 10 p.m. Christmas Day: 7:30, 9, 11 a.m. The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God: Monday, Dec. 31: 5 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 1: 9 a.m. Father Jack, Father Kevin, and the staff wish you a Holy and Blessed Christmas
Pax Christi Catholic Community 12100 Pioneer Trail, Eden Prairie Christmas Eve: 4, 6, 8, 10 p.m. Lessons and Carols: 9:30 p.m. Christmas Day: 9, 11 a.m. www.paxchristi.com
Holy Cross Church
1621 University Ave. NE, Minneapolis Christmas Eve: Children’s 4 p.m., midnight (Music begins at 11:30) Christmas Day: 8, 10 a.m. (English), 11:30 a.m. (Polish)
Church of St. Peter
1250 South Shore Drive, Forest Lake Christmas Eve: 4 p.m. family Mass in church (carols at 3:30 p.m.) 4: 15 p.m. Mass in St. Peter’s Hall 5:45 p.m. Mass in Church 11 p.m. Vigil Mass (Carols at 10:30 p.m.) Christmas Day: 9, 11 a.m. (Caroling 30 minutes before) Dec. 31: 5:30 p.m. New Years Day: 9, 11 a.m.
Church of St. Therese of Deephaven 18323 Minnetonka Blvd., Deephaven Christmas Eve: 4, 6, 10 p.m. Christmas Day: 9 a.m. New Years Day: 9 a.m. Blessings to you this Christmas Season and throughout the New Year!
St. Anthony of Padua 813 Main St. NE, Mpls. 55413 Christmas Eve: 4 p.m. Christmas Day: 9 a.m. New Years Eve: 4 p.m. New Years Day: 9 a.m.
Church of the Holy Spirit
515 S. Albert Street, St. Paul Monday, December 24 Nativity of the Lord Christmas Vigil Mass 4 p.m. Prelude featuring Children’s Choir 4:30 p.m. Mass 9:30 p.m. Prelude Featuring Traditional Choir 10 p.m. Mass Tuesday, December 25 Nativity of the Lord Christmas Mass 8:30, 10:30 a.m. Mass Monday, December 31 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Anticipatory Mass: 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, January 1 Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God 9:00 a.m. Mass Saturday, Jan. 5 Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord Anticipatory Mass, 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 6 Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord 8:30, 10:30 a.m. Mass For unto us a child is born, a son is given
St. Albert the Great Church
E. 29th St. and 32nd Ave. S., Minneapolis (612) 724-3643 www.saintalbertthegreat.org Christmas Eve: 5 p.m. (children’s Mass), 10 p.m. (candlelight Mass) Christmas Day: 10 a.m. New Years Day: 10 a.m.
Church of St. Jerome
380 E. Roselawn Ave., Maplewood www.stjerome-church.org Christmas Eve Masses: 4, 10 p.m. Christmas Day Masses: 8:30, 10:30 a.m. O Come Let Us Adore Him
St. Maron Maronite Catholic Church 602 University Ave. NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413 Office: 612-379-2758 www.stmaron.com Christmas Eve/Children’s Christmas Liturgy: 5:30 p.m. Christmas Day: 10:15 a.m. All are welcome
Our Lady of Peace
54th St. and 12th Ave. in South Minneapolis Christmas Eve: 5, 9:30 p.m.; Carols start 9:00 p.m. Christmas Day: 10 a.m. Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God Tuesday, January 1 Mass: 10 a.m. followed by brunch
Church of St. Charles Borromeo 2739 Stinson Blvd., St. Anthony (612) 781-6529 Christmas Eve: Prelude 4:30 p.m.; Vigil Mass 5 p.m. Prelude 11:30 p.m., Mass at Midnight Mass Christmas Day: 7:30, 9:30, 11:15 a.m.
Church of St. Stephen
525 Jackson St., Anoka (763) 421-2471 www.ststephenchurch.org Christmas Eve: 4, 5:30 p.m., (7 p.m. Spanish), Midnight Christmas Day: 8, 9:30, 11 a.m., (12:30 p.m. Spanish) Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God: December 31 at 5 p.m. (7:00 p.m. Spanish) January 1 at 8, 9:30, 11 a.m. (12:30 p.m. Spanish) May this Christmas season be a special time of grace and blessing!
Our Lady of Lourdes Church One Lourdes Place, Minneapolis Christmas Eve: 4, 10 p.m. Carols begin at 3:30, 9:30 p.m. Christmas Day: 9, 11 a.m. Carols begin at 10:30 a.m. Joyeux Noël et Bonne Année!
Nativity of Our Lord
324 S. Prior Ave., St. Paul Christmas Eve Masses: 4 p.m. main church and school auditorium, 6 p.m., midnight Christmas Day Masses: 7, 8:15, 11 a.m. God’s Blessing on you this Christmas!
St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church 920 Holley Ave., St. Paul Park Christmas Eve Masses: 4, 10 p.m. Christmas Day Mass: 9 a.m. New Years Day Masses: 9 a.m. All are welcome! Please join us!
All Saints Catholic Church
19795 Holyoke Avenue, Lakeville Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord Christmas Eve: 4, 4:15 p.m. (Murphy Hall); 6 p.m., 12 a.m. (midnight) Christmas Day: 9, 11 a.m. Solemnity of Mary: Mon., Dec. 31, 5:30 p.m.; Tues., Jan. 1, 9, 11 a.m. Feast of the Epiphany:
Sat., Jan. 5: 5 p.m. Sun., Jan. 6: 7:30, 9, 11 a.m.; 5:30 p.m.
Church of Saint Paul
1740 Bunker Lake Bvd., NE, Ham Lake Christmas Eve: 4:30, 11 p.m. Christmas Day: 9:30 a.m. May Jesus be born in your heart this Christmas filling the New Year with Peace
St. Casimir Church St. Patrick Church
The cluster parishes on the eastside of St. Paul invite you to join us for the Christmas celebration. Christmas Eve: 4, 11 p.m. at St. Casimir 4:30 p.m. at St. Patrick Christmas Day: 10 a.m. at St. Casimir 10:30 a.m. at St. Patrick
Christmas Greetings
DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
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A goat for Christmas? From livestock to giving trees to fair trade items, options abound for less commercial gift-giving
Parishioner Donald Sagristano selects paper ornaments from a Giving Tree at Sts. Philip and James Church in St. James, N.Y. If the Christmas shopping crowds, costs and commercialism are at odds with how one is trying to observe Advent and the celebration of the birth of Christ, there’s a burgeoning world of alternative ways of gift-giving that are vying for attention.
By Patricia Zapor Catholic News Service
Should the Christmas shopping crowds, costs and commercialism be at odds with how one is trying to observe Advent and the celebration of the birth of Christ, there’s a burgeoning world of alternative ways of gift-giving that are vying for attention. ■ Angel trees or giving trees set up in churches, schools or even restaurants and other commercial businesses around the country are an increasingly popular way to direct resources to needy individuals, usually children, in the local community. ■ About 500 Catholic organizations host sales of handicrafts from around the world through Catholic Relief Services and its partner, SERRV, a nonprofit fair trade and development organization, benefiting both the hosting church and impoverished craftspeople around the world. ■ Then there are alternative gift programs, in which one buys a gift that benefits someone in greater need, whether in a far-off land or at the social service program across town. In return, the buyer receives a card about the donation to pass along to someone on their gift list. ■ If those options don’t seem quite right, a movement started in the 1960s by Canadian Mennonites promotes the idea of a “Buy Nothing Christmas,” encouraging simple handmade gifts, an “abundance swap” where giftable items are traded, and ready-to-print coupons for baby-sitting, back massages or desserts. Its materials may be found at WWW.BUYNOTHINGCHRISTMAS.ORG.
CNS photo / Gregory A. Shemitz
In Los Angeles, members of St. Paul the Apostle Parish have for more than a decade been able to write checks after Mass on the first Sunday of Advent to an assortment of local and national service organizations. Recipient organizations this year include Meals on Wheels, a tutoring program for homeless children and Homeboy Industries, which gives youths an alternative to gang involvement. Claire Henning, pastoral associate at St. Paul, said parishioners who participate in what they call Inspired Alternative Christmas Gifts write checks directly to the organizations, so she couldn’t report what the level of donations works out to be for the recipient charities. She personally donates money to Homeboy Industries, she told Catholic News Service, and sends gift cards noting the donation in their name to several people. “People feel very positively about it,” she said. “It’s a great way to transition from giving gifts to nieces and nephews who are now grown up,” Henning said. “That generation is very appreciative of that kind of outreach.” Such programs have caught on all around the country, with each parish creating its own options for gift-giving. But international organizations also offer an easy way to do it through their websites.
Or maybe this is the year to buy — in the name of that college-age niece who doesn’t need clothes but wants to save the world — a goat or a sheep for a struggling family in a developing country. Heifer International, WWW.HEIFER.ORG, is one of the charities that would be happy to match your money with a family in need of a farm animal or a clean cooking stove. CRS also offers sales of handicrafts made by the beneficiaries of its programs. Courtney Lare, economic justice program officer at CRS, oversees CRS online direct sales and its Work of Human Hands consignment sales. She said about 500 parishes and other organizations hold such sales once a year or more. Fair trade coffee and chocolate are the biggest sellers, she said. “And Haitian wall art, especially since the earthquake, is very popular, as are Christian goods like olivewood ornaments and Nativities.” Handicrafts are provided through SERRV and include everything from inexpensive jewelry and Christmas ornaments to handknotted Tibetan rugs and other home decor. Although the weak economy has meant the number of participating groups hasn’t grown the past few years, Lare said sales are up. Sales range from about $600 for a first-time effort to the course of more than $40,000 that a parish in Ohio sells over a year, Lare said.
Fair trade options
Helping locally
How about donating money in the name of the brother-who-has-everything to ensure a program for children with Down syndrome in Cuba can keep operating? Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. bishops’ overseas relief and development agency, offers that as one of the alternative gifts one can support with a few clicks on its site, WWW.CRS.ORG.
For charitable gifts that stay close to home, the angel tree or giving tree model is popular. For these, names of needy people and suggestions for gifts they could use are handed out in late November or early December, with the information often written on angel-shaped ornaments. The gifts are returned to the church or a service agency, where volunteers distribute them to the recipients.
Aiding charities
The angel trees benefiting a program run by Catholic Social Services of Baldwin County, Ala., are all over the county, said Colleen McNorton, Catholic Social Services director. A local online newspaper, the Mullet Wrapper, advertised angel trees being hosted by restaurants in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, for example. “Usually they’re in churches, sometimes in schools,” McNorton said. “Oh, and the Grand Hotel in Point Clear.” The range of locations will help the program give gifts to 5,200 Baldwin County children this year, she said. The population of Baldwin County, which is in the Mobile Archdiocese, is about 186,000. Families in need of help getting gifts for children register with Catholic Social Services, which screens for financial need, she said. A squadron of more than 150 volunteers, along with the agency’s staff of 12, does the sorting and matching donations with requests, McNorton told CNS. “It’s a well-oiled machine,” she said of the operation based in a house-sized “Christmas building.” “It reminds me of a Santa’s workshop from a Christmas movie. The only thing missing is Santa’s workbench.” And in a nod to the age of online shopping, the Archdiocese of Washington this year will provide gifts for about 490 children who receive services from Catholic Charities, many through an online arrangement that works like a gift registry. Jackie Ogg, outreach director, said the children who receive gifts are in various Catholic Charities programs, such as refugee resettlement, the Kennedy Institute for people with developmental disabilities and low-income housing.
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THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
Christmas Greetings
Vatican Nativity scene to depict ancient city’s rock-hewn grottos By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service
Christmas in St. Peter’s Square this year has a particularly southern Italian flavor with a towering tree from the Molise region and a Nativity scene donated by the Basilicata region. Jesus, Mary and Joseph will be nestled in an artistic re-creation of the picturesque rocky setting of Matera’s famed “sassi” — a U.N. World Heritage site and backdrop for recent Hollywood films about the Holy Family and Jesus. The 78-foot silver fir was plucked out of the forests of Isernia by helicopter Dec. 5 and trucked 120 miles north with an Italian police escort. The tree arrived in the square in the predawn hours Dec. 6, the feast of St. Nicholas, patron saint of children and source of the Santa Claus character. Vatican workers will spend several days decorating the tree with lights and gold and silver balls before the official lighting of the tree Dec. 14.
Christmas Eve unveiling The large Nativity scene in the square will remain shrouded in mystery until its official unveiling Christmas Eve. The scene, which will be assembled by Vatican personnel, will be decorated with more than 100 terracotta figures and detailed scenery crafted by the Italian artist Francesco Artese; his enormous “presepi” have been on display in New York City and Washington, D.C. The Nativity scene, which will cover 180 square yards, will depict Matera’s famed “sassi” — cliff-clinging churches, buildings, streets and grottos carved out of the mountainside.
Left: The Vatican’s Christmas tree is hoisted by a crane in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Dec. 6. The tree is a 78-foot silver fir from the southern Italian region of Molise. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)
Below: The southern Italian city of Matera. The Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square will depict Matera’s famed “sassi” — cliff-clinging churches, buildings, streets and grottos carved out of the mountainside. (CNS photo courtesy Francesco Foschino)
The ancient rock-hewn city is on the U.N. World Heritage List and was the setting for Mel Gibson’s film, “The Passion of the Christ,” and Catherine Hardwicke’s “The Nativity Story,” because the city’s historical center poses a striking similarity to what Jerusalem might have looked like 2,000 years ago. The Vatican’s Nativity scene will depict the hardworking and simple life of farmers and craftsmen, and the terracotta figures will be wearing handmade traditional dress, according to the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. The scene will also be specially lit using movie set lighting to give it a “cinematographic” feel, it said.
TheCatholicSpirit.com
“The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior, Who will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love.” Zephaniah 3:17
The Lesson Plan DECEMBER 13, 2012
Reflections on faith and spirituality
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Jesus’ presence allows us to ‘rejoice always’
Daily Scriptures
B
lessed Miguel Pro’s biographers say that even from a young age he was always joyful. As a youngster he played practical jokes on his sisters, wrote silly songs and played them on his guitar, and later he humored his brothers in the Society of Jesus with comics. Miguel even exuded joy when he had reason to be sorrowful: separation from his family for more than five years, the passing of his mother, and a stomach that leaked acid (an ailment that only grew worse after three surgeries). Deacon Despite the excruciAndrew ating pain in his stomBrinkman ach, and the sorrow of his mother’s passing, Miguel never complained, and people say that he even became more joyful. He did not cut back on his practical jokes or his laughter. Even though Miguel did not feel joyful, he chose to be joyful. And this reveals a little secret about joy: Being joyful is a choice. Perhaps many people think joy is merely a sentiment. But, although joy has an emotional element, it is not reduced to mere feelings. With the grace of the Holy Spirit you can chose to be joyful always, even when there may be reasons against joy.
Sunday Scriptures
Paul’s invitation It is to this constant joy that Paul invites the Church in his Letter to the Philippians. He says, “Rejoice always!”
Sunday, Dec. 16 Third Sunday of Advent Zephaniah 3:14-18a Philippians 4:4-7 Luke 3:10-18
Readings Sunday, Dec. 16 Third Sunday of Advent ■ Zephaniah 3:14-18a ■ Philippians 4:4-7 ■ Luke 3:10-18
Monday, Dec. 17 Genesis 49:2, 8-10 Matthew 1:1-17
Reflection How did you encounter the Lord today?
Despite his imprisonment — he probably wrote this letter from prison in Rome — Paul had learned to rejoice in the Lord always, and he thus invites the Philippians to be constantly joyful regardless of their circumstances. Paul has to remind the Philippians because always being joyful is no easy task. Life is rife with disappointments, but there is reason to be joyful: Jesus Christ is near. In the power of the Holy Spirit, the Lord can be found in every circumstance and there is no disappointment that even compares to knowledge of Jesus’ presence. Even though his presence may not always be felt, it is by faith that Christians know Christ is always near. When I say that he is always near, I mean that my whole day is brimming over with encounters with the Lord: preparing breakfast,
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Tuesday, Dec. 18 Jeremiah 23:5-8 Matthew 1:18-25 walking to class, serving the brothers, riding my bicycle and even when I pray and go to Mass. It is the same for you. Jesus doesn’t come to you in a series of abstractions. Rather, Christ comes near to you very concretely when you feed your children, in your homework, when you meet the cashier at the local co-op and when you pray as a family. We of all people in the whole world have a reason to be joyful: Christ has come and he is coming in just over a week. He is near, so show your joy. Maranatha! Deacon Andrew Brinkman is in formation for the priesthood at St. Paul Seminary for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. His home and teaching parish is St. Stephen in South Minneapolis.
Wednesday, Dec. 19 Judges 13:2-7, 24-25a Luke 1:5-25 Thursday, Dec. 20 Isaiah 7:10-14 Luke 1:26-38 Friday, Dec. 21 St. Peter Canisius, priest and doctor of the Church Song of Songs 2:8-14 Luke 1:39-45 Saturday, Dec. 22 1 Samuel 1:24-28 Luke 1:46-56 Sunday, Dec. 23 Fourth Sunday of Advent Micah 5:1-4a Hebrews 10:5-10 Luke 1:39-45
Advent is time to renew faith, bring God’s love to others By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service
Advent’s liturgical preparation for Christmas calls Christians to renew their faith in the reality of God’s great love and to make a commitment to bringing his love to the world today, Pope Benedict XVI said. Advent, he said, “places before us the bright mystery of the coming of God’s son, the great plan of God’s goodness through which he desires to draw us to himself to let us live in full communion, joy and peace with him.”
From the Vatican
Addressing an estimated 4,000 people at his weekly general audience Dec. 5, Pope Benedict also asked for prayers for peace in Congo, where continuing ethnic
“Faith is accepting God’s vision of reality,
allowing God to guide us with his word and sacraments in understanding what we must do, the path we must follow, how we must live.
”
POPE BENEDICT XVI
violence and civil strife have led to dozens of deaths and has forced thousands of people to flee their homes. In response to the fighting and “the serious humanitarian crisis” it was causing, the pope called for “dialogue and reconciliation,” and he asked the international community to take action to meet the needs of the Congolese people. In his main audience talk, Pope Benedict continued his reflections on the Year
of Faith, which he opened in October. Accepting God’s love and freely choosing to follow his ways “brings a fundamental change in how we relate to the entire created reality. Everything appears in a new light; it is a true conversion. Faith is a change of mentality because God, who has made himself known in Christ and has made his plan of salvation known, draws us to himself,” the pope said.
“Faith is accepting God’s vision of reality, allowing God to guide us with his word and sacraments in understanding what we must do, the path we must follow, how we must live,” he said. “In the midst of many difficulties, Advent invites us once again to renew our certainty that God is present; he entered into the world, becoming human like us, in order to bring to fullness his plan of love,” the pope said. In return, he said, “God asks that we, too, become signs of his action in the world. “Through our faith, our hope and our charity, he wants to enter into the world once again and make his light shine in our darkness.” Among the pilgrims at the audience were representatives of an association of Italian bakers and pastry chefs; the pope thanked them for their gifts of “panettoni,” Italian Christmas cakes, which he said would be distributed to the poor.
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The Lesson Plan
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
‘O Antiphons’ during Advent’s last days invoke Messiah’s titles By Father Michael Van Sloun For The Catholic Spirit
An antiphon is a verse or phrase recited or sung aloud or read silently before and after a psalm or canticle during the Divine Office or the Liturgy of the Hours. The text is often a direct quote from Scripture, a brief reflection on a Scripture text, or a verse pertaining to the feast day, the liturgical season or the saint of the day. An antiphon provides a spiritual context to be kept in mind for the duration of the psalm or canticle in much the same way that a mystery of the rosary is kept in mind during the recitation of the Hail Marys. The O Antiphons, also known as the Greater Antiphons, are a set of seven separate antiphons, each beginning with an “O,” and followed by a title or special attribute of the Christ-child whose birth will be commemorated on Christmas. The O Antiphons were written in Latin and drawn from texts of the prophet Isaiah regarding the long-awaited Messiah. The author, date and place of composition all remain unknown, but the antiphons were known to exist by the late fifth century and were in widespread use by the eighth century.
Advent use The O Antiphons are used at vespers for the seven-day period from Dec. 17 to Dec. 23. They are used to introduce and conclude the Gospel Canticle, the Canticle of Mary or the Magnificat, the lovely prayer first offered by the Blessed Virgin Mary (Luke 1:46-55) and offered each day at evening prayer. Each antiphon begins with a short O phrase that reveals an aspect of the identity of the newborn Son of the Most High whose kingdom will never end. Dec. 17 begins “O Sapientia,” O Wisdom; followed by “O Adonai,” O Lord; “O Radix Jesse,” O Root of Jesse (Jesse was the father of King David); “O Clavis David,” O Key of David; “O Oriens,” O Rising Sun; “O Rex Gentium,” O King of the Nations; and “O Emmanuel,” O God with Us. After the opening statement, each antiphon concludes with a short prayer
O God With Us
of petition: ■ Dec. 17 — “[O] Wisdom, O holy Word of God, you govern all creation with your strong yet tender care. Come and show your people the way to salvation” (see Isaiah 11:2; 28:29). ■ Dec. 18 — “O sacred Lord of ancient Israel, who showed yourself to Moses in the burning bush, who gave him the holy law on Sinai mountain; come, stretch out your mighty hand to set us free” (see Isaiah 11:4-5; 33:22). ■ Dec. 19 — “O Flower of Jesse’s stem, you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples; kings stand silent in your
presence; the nations bow down in worship before you. Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid” (see Isaiah 11:1,10). ■ Dec. 20 — “O Key of David, O royal power of Israel controlling at your will the gate of heaven: come, break down the prison walls of death for those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death; and lead your captive people into freedom” (see Isaiah 22:22; 9:6). ■ Dec. 21 — “O Radiant Dawn, splendor of eternal light, sun of justice: come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death” (see
Isaiah 9:1).
■ Dec. 22 — “O King of all nations, the only joy of every human heart; O Keystone of the mighty arch of man, come and save the creature you have fashioned from the dust” (see Isaiah 2:4; 9:5). ■ Dec. 23 — “O Emmanuel, king and lawgiver, desire of the nations, Savior of all people, come and set us free, Lord our God” (see Isaiah 7:14). Father Van Sloun is pastor of St. Stephen in Anoka.
We light a special wreath candle this week as a sign of joy Advent: Week 3 — Dec. 16
we need. This third week of Advent John the Baptist offers advice for how to prepare the way for Christ’s coming, but he doesn’t pull any punches. He’s crystal clear about how we ought to live — or else!
The following Advent wreath prayer is intended to help busy households make Advent a prayerful time during the rush of Christmas preparations. The language is fairly simple, to be used by groups of adults or adults with children, and options are noted to allow for participation by a variety of members of the household.
Closing prayer: (Leader may read all, or others in the household may each read a segment.) ■ Father in heaven, help us hear again the voice of John the Baptist crying out in the desert. Help us make straight the pathways of our own lives so that those paths lead to eternal life with you.
Leader: Today begins the third week of the season of Advent, so we are halfway to Christmas! As we prepare our hearts for the birth of Christ and for the second coming of the Lord, we light three candles, including a special one of a different color.
■ God above, it is so easy to say “do good and avoid evil,” yet so hard to put those words into practice. Be with us in each and every moment of each and every day so that we remain blameless and worthy of your coming.
■ Light the first two candles on the Advent Wreath again, and the third one — one that is a lighter color, usually pink or white.
■ Help us, Lord, not to dampen the joy of others. Remind us this week to rejoice always and to pray without ceasing.
■ (optional) Read aloud Zephaniah 3:14-18a; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:10-18 Leader: We light the lighter-colored candle this week as a sign of the joy! We can hardly wait to rejoice and sing at Christmas. As St. Paul tells the
Philippians, “The Lord is near!” Paul reminds us to be kind and not to worry, to ask God in prayer for what
■ Holy Spirit, guide us so that our lives may be testimony of the wonders and the love of God so that others might believe through us.
“And cradled there in the scented hay / In the air made sweet by the breath of kine/ The little child in the manger lay / The child, that would be king one day / Of a kingdom not human, but divine.” From “The Three Kings” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Arts and Culture DECEMBER 13, 2012
Exploring our church and our world
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
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Gifts of Magi echoed in new children’s book By Nikki Rajala For The Catholic Spirit
In “Visiting the Visitors” Patrick Mader tells the story of a quiet Christmas Eve when three children and their grandparents pull a sled laden with corn, oats and a hay bale through the snowy woods. Guided by a star, they bring their gifts to a stable where “visitors” await — figures of the Holy Family and the Three Kings along with real livestock. Offering warmth and sustenance, the kids thank the visitors for honoring the Christ Child born centuries earlier.
Childhood remembrance “Writing brought back memories of when our own children were really young, Mader said. “They loved visiting a large Nativity scene in our neighbors’ yard. After singing songs and praying, they would give the king statues a hug. We spent so much time visiting the kings that we mentioned it to the owners, which brought tears to the woman’s eyes.” The children’s names in the book — Malik, Balta and Cassie — intentionally reflect the Magi in a modern way, Mader said, a hint of the Melchoir, Balthasar and Caspar names of Western Christian tradition. Andrew Holmquist’s colorful illustrations enhance the
grace and timelessness of this simple but powerful story. Mader, an elementary school teacher and member of St. Dominic in Northfield, took note of how Holmquist’s warm yellow interiors and starry blue skies highlighted the story’s settings, moods and imagery. Gold and deep blue, he said, are historically known as “iconic” colors
for religious icons. “Andrew incorporated many symbolic touches, like faces — eyes, noses, mouths — and robes hidden in the tree branches, the way the star guides them, and the different nationalities and generations,” he said. Holmquist, Mader said, had already done several illustrations before developing a new process using many media combined by computer. He then redid all the drawings using The book the new process. This is Mader’s “Visiting the and Holmquist’s Visitors” by fourth book of Patrick intergenerational “Packy” stories that celeMader, illustrated by brate rural lifeAndrew styles. Holmquist. “At Christmas Beaver’s and ThanksgivPond Press ing,” Mader said, (Edina, 2013). “people express 32 pp. $17.95. gratitude for the special gifts in their lives. ‘Visiting the Visitors’ honors the birth of Jesus with giving and thanksgiving. Helping those in need has always been important in my own family. Through the book I hope others find ways to do the same.” “Visiting the Visitors” is available at local bookstores and at WWW.PATRICKMADER.COM.
Documentary spotlighting religious liberty makes for timely TV The show “First Freedom: The Fight for Religious Liberty” premieres on PBS stations Tuesday, Dec. 18, 7-8:30 p.m. (check local listings).
A
s numerous church leaders have as George Washington, Thomas Jefwarned in recent years, the rights ferson, Benjamin Franklin, Patrick of believers are increasingly un- Henry and second cousins Samuel der threat — not only around the and John Adams. world but within the United States Most of these founders seem to as well. have been believers of one stripe or So the documentary “First Free- another. John Adams, we learn, never dom: The Fight for Religious Liberty” missed Sunday service unless he was — a look at the origins of the reli- ill. But their outlook on faith was afgious guarantees enshrined in the fected both by Enlightenment-era First Amendment — makes suspicions of the supernatfor timely as well as educaural and by emerging chaltional television. lenges to the doctrine of Filmmaker Lee Groberg’s the Trinity. John Mulderig documentary — produced As the program makes in association with PBS afclear, anti-Catholicism, a filiate WETA in Washington —pre- near-universal prejudice among their mieres on PBS stations Tuesday, Dec. English forbears, was hardly un18, 7-8:30 p.m. (check local listings). known among the founders themNarrated by Brian Stokes Mitchell, selves. Thus, the Quebec Act of 1774, Groberg’s film uses interviews with in which the British Parliament guarscholars, archival images and re-en- anteed recently conquered French actments to chart the shifting for- Canadians the free exercise of their tunes of religious liberty in the New religion, drew fulminating oratory World from the 1630 founding of the from Sam Adams and a caricature of Massachusetts Bay Colony to the Catholic bishops from engraver Paul death of James Madison in 1836. It Revere. also explores the varied views of the Washington, by contrast, seems to divine held by such seminal figures have been proof against such senti-
both the property of the Catholic Church there and the sensibilities of its members. His equally laudable freedom from anti-Semitism is the subject of another re-enactment.
Valuable overview Catholic viewers might wish that the contribution of their ancestors in the faith who made Maryland a pioneer of religious toleration among the colonies had been highlighted.
TV Review
Still, given his limited 90-minute time frame, Groberg manages to craft a valuable overview of complex developments that viewers of all faiths will likely appreciate. Mark Mabry for Groberg Films, Inc.
George Washington stands on the steps of his home at Mount Vernon in a re-enactment from “First Freedom: The Fight for Religious Liberty.”
ments. As one dramatization shows, when he sent troops to invade Canada during the Revolution, Washington ordered their commander to respect
While the subject matter of “First Freedom” is unlikely to appeal to very young family members, the program is free of any genuinely objectionable material. It’s rated TV-PG — parental guidance suggested. Mulderig is on the staff of Catholic News Service. More reviews are available online at WWW.USCCB.ORG/MOVIES.
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Calendar
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
Dining out
Don’t Miss
Fish fry at Knights of Columbus Hall, Bloomington — Every Friday: 5 to 9 p.m. at 1114 American Blvd. Cost is $10.95. Call (952) 888-1492 for reservations.
Festival of Lessons & Carols with Father Michael Joncas
Chicken and rib dinner at Knights of Columbus Hall, Bloomington — Every Wednesday: 5 to 9 p.m. at 1114 American Blvd. Cost is $10.95. Call (952) 888-1492 for reservations. KC shrimp and steak dinner at Knights Events Center, Shakopee — December 14: 5 to 8 p.m. at 1760 Fourth Ave. E. Cost is $12 for shrimp or steak and $15 for both. Children’s meal available for $3.
Composer and theologian Father Michael Joncas will be the guest soloist for a Festival of Lessons & Carols at St. Bartholomew, Wayzata. The event, which will be held Dec. 21 at 7 p.m., will feature “Child of Wonder, Love in Flesh,” this year’s service of readings and music from the Incarnation season recorded by The Catholic Faith Community of St. Bartholomew. There is no charge for this event.
Pancake breakfast at Immaculate Conception, Columbia Heights — December 16: 8:30 to 11:45 a.m. at 4030 Jackson St. N.E. Free will offering. KC benefit breakfast at Knights of Columbus Hall, Stillwater — December 16: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 1910 S. Greeley St. Cost is $7 for adults and $4 for children 12 and under. KC lumberjack breakfast at Mary, Queen of Peace, Rogers — December 16: 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at 21304 Church Ave. Free will offering. Santa breakfast at St. Mary, St. Paul — December 16: 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 261 E. Eighth St. Cost is $6 for adults and $4 for children.
Parish events Christmas cookie sale and boutique at St. Mark, St. Paul — December 14 to 16: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday at 2001 Dayton Ave. Christmas concert featuring parish choirs at St. Michael, Prior Lake — December 15 and 16: 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday at 16311 Duluth Ave. S.E. Reception to follow. Christmas Bake Sale at St. Matthew, St. Paul — December 15 and 16: 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday at 500 Hall Ave. Christmas cookies, sweet breads, fruitcake, candy and other holiday treats.
For information, visit WWW.ST-BARTS.ORG. St. Bartholomew is located at 630 E. Wayzata Blvd. Sponsored by the Rosary Society/ CCW.
dalia and Charles. For information, call (651) 439-9098.
‘Star of Wonder,’ a holiday concert at Guardian Angels, Oakdale — December 16: 7 p.m. at 8260 Fourth St. N. Features Ensemble Aventura. Proceeds benefit Hope For the Journey Family Shelter. Free will offering. Reception will follow.
Healing Mass at Holy Name of Jesus, Wayzata — December 14: Rosary at 6:30 p.m. and Mass at 7 p.m. at 155 County Road 24. Father Jim Livingston will be the celebrant.
Christmas concert and Nativity play at Holy Family Maronite Church, Mendota Heights — December 20: 6:30 to 8 p.m. at 1960 Lexington Ave. S. Features traditional Christmas carols and Maronite hymns. Visit WWW.HOLYFAMILYMARONITECHURCH.ORG.
Prayer/ liturgies Sant’Egidio Community Evening Prayer at St. Richard, Richfield — every Thursday: 7 p.m. at 7540 Penn Ave. S. Legion of Mary prayers in front of Planned Parenthood, St. Paul — Every Friday: 3 p.m. at the corner of Van-
Joseph and Consociates at St. Catherine University chapel, St. Paul — December 16: 4:30 p.m. at 2004 Randolph Ave. A quiet hour for prayer, song and reflection. All are welcome. For information, call (651) 696-2805.
Singles Sunday Spirits walking group for 50plus Catholic singles — ongoing Sundays: For Catholic singles to meet and make friends. The group usually meets in St. Paul on Sunday afternoons. For information, call Judy at (763) 221-3040 or Al at (651) 482-0406. Singles group at St. Vincent de Paul, Brooklyn Park — ongoing second Saturday each month: 6 :15 p.m. at 9100 93rd Ave. N. Gather for a potluck supper, conversation and games. For information, call (763) 425-0412. Twin Cities Catholic Singles Christmas dinner/dance at David Fong’s restaurant, Bloomington — January 5: Cocktail hour at 5:30 p.m. followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. and then dancing at 9329 Lyndale Ave. S. Cost for the dinner and dance is $20, dinner only is $10. Make reservations by December 27, (651) 603-1412.
Knights of Columbus traveling rosary at Nativity of Our Lord, St. Paul — December 16: 2 p.m. at Stanford Ave. and Prior Ave. S. Knights of Columbus traveling rosary at St. Agnes, St. Paul — December 23: 2 p.m. at 548 Lafond Ave.
Advent Cathedral Choristers Advent concert at the Cathedral of St. Paul, St. Paul — December 16: 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. at 239 Selby Ave. Concert features more than 100 singers performing Benjamin Britten’s Ceremony of Carols. Free will offering, suggested donation is $15. Advent vespers with the Sisters of St.
Other events 11th Annual Catholic Conference sponsored by The Archdiocesan Association of the Holy Name Society at All Saints, Lakeville — January 12: Begins with Mass at 5 p.m. at 19795 Holyoke Ave. Dinner at 6 p.m. followed by presentation. The theme of this year’s conference is "Radical Catholic", featuring Chris Padgett, nationally known speaker, musician, song writer, author and convert to the Catholic faith. Conference is designed for parents and their teens. Youth groups and confirmation classes are encouraged to attend. Register by January 8. For information, visit WWW.NOMENSANCTUM.ORG.
How has Jesus given you “a reason for hope?” The Rediscover initiative — to be unveiled during the Advent season — invites fellow Catholics to rediscover a real and personal relationship with Jesus and re-engage in the full life of the Church. In light of this, The Catholic Spirit is inviting Catholics who have rediscovered the depth and beauty of our Catholic faith to share their stories. ■ Were you sleepwalking in your Catholic faith for a time? If so, what woke you up from your spiritual slumber to re-engage with it? Was there a trigger or perhaps a series of triggers over time? Was there a person who made a huge difference in your faith who challenged or encouraged you? What continues to nourish the fire of faith in your heart? ■ Are you a convert? Or were you away from the faith for a time? What happened that drew you to (or back to) Christ and his Church? ■ What did it mean to you to come back into full life in the Church? How has it changed you or affected those around you?
Share your story about how you rediscovered your Catholic faith
Send your story — 300 words or less — to The Catholic Spirit: ■ By email to: CATHOLICSPIRIT@ARCHSPM.ORG. Write“Rediscover Faith Story”in the subject line; or ■ By postal mail to: “Rediscover Faith Story,”c/o The Catholic Spirit, 244 Dayton Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102. If you know someone whose story will truly inspire, please encourage them to submit their story as well. A selection of stories will be published in future issues of The Catholic Spirit and online at THECATHOLICSPIRIT.COM. Please include your name, parish and a daytime telephone number at which you can be reached if we have questions.
Calendar Submissions DEADLINE: Noon Thursday, seven days before the anticipated Thursday date of publication. Recurring or ongoing events must be submitted each time they occur. LISTINGS: Accepted are brief notices of upcoming events hosted by Catholic parishes and institutions. If the Catholic connection is not clear, please emphasize it in your press release. ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication in the calendar: • Time and date of event. • Full street address of event. • Description of event. • Contact information in case of questions. E-MAIL: SPIRITCALENDAR@ ARCHSPM.ORG. (No attachments, please.)
FAX: (651) 291-4460. MAIL: “Calendar,” The Catholic Spirit, 244 Dayton Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102.
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THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 13, 2012
Speaker says sharing faith and watching people ‘come alive’ is ‘amazing’ By Gretchen R. Crowe Catholic News Service
The Catholic Church’s new evangelization effort is all about encountering Christ, then sharing that encounter with others, said Curtis Martin, president and founder of the Fellowship of Catholic University Students, at a prayer breakfast Dec. 5 at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. In his keynote talk, Martin, who serves as a consultor to the Pontifical Council for Promoting New Evangelization, said it is in that encounter where one can discover the fullness of his or her vocation and then become empowered to share the Catholic faith — evangelize — with others. “Evangelization is just a big long essentially Greek word for sharing good news, but it seems to throw us off somehow,” Martin said. “It is an amazing thing to share the faith with somebody and watch them come alive.”
Beyond campus First launched at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kan., the fellowship has 361 missionaries on 74 campuses in the United States, including George Mason. The missionaries’ job is to befriend students, help these students develop personal relationships with Christ, then to send them forth to evangelize others. This model, Martin said, is one that extends beyond the boundaries of a college campus. “What’s being done on a college campus can, ought and needs to be done everywhere,” he said. Inspiring others to evangelical action was a main motivating factor in holding the breakfast, said Rachel Brehm, the fellowship’s stewardship and special events manager. “We wanted everyone to feel empowered to go out after this breakfast to do their own evangelization — to say, ‘There’s something I can do today or tomorrow. Now I know what I am called to and how I can do that,’” Brehm told the Arlington Catholic Herald, newspaper of the Arlington Diocese. “We wanted the whole community to be a part of that.”
An estimated 140 former and current missionaries; college and university students; alumni; and supporters from around the diocese attended the event, which was preceded by a rosary and Mass, with Msgr. Stuart Swetland as the principal celebrant. Msgr. Swetland, executive director of the Center for the Advancement of Catholic Higher Education, a division of the Cardinal Newman Society, said that now is the time for Catholics to “redouble our efforts” where evangelization is concerned. This should “renew in us a desire to be ambassadors for Christ” — a calling that starts on college and university campuses.
Reaching the young During his talk, Msgr. Swetland cited a survey that highlighted the importance of evangelizing young people between the ages of 18 and 24. If people in that age group get serious about their faith, he said, they’re more likely to remain serious for life. These young people “will be with us throughout their life as the most generous givers; as those most committed to our parishes and apostolates; as those who are most likely to volunteer first, to give of their time, to give of their talents to Christ and his kingdom,” he said. “They’ll be the ones who will form the families that will be on fire for Christ; who will raise up a new generation and a generation after that where the faith is handed on and taught and lived. If we don’t win the young men and women on our college campuses to Christ, none of that will happen.” Martin hopes those who attended the event take away encouragement, inspiration and a desire to engage more deeply in the new evangelization. The Fellowship of Catholic University Students is just one specific outlet in which to do that, he said — but it’s an outlet that’s inspirational. “There’s an enthusiasm that’s generated by watching God change young people’s lives,” he said. “That’s something that we’re eager to share with people.”
Seminarians say experience taught them importance of evangelization CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 about Jesus was that he was born in a stable and had a friend called Mary Magdalene. The seminarian opened his Bible to John 3:16 and read of God’s great love for the world, including her. She admitted that she never knew of such a God and began to cry. They continued to talk. The seminarian gave his Bible to her and showed her how to connect with other Catholics on campus to learn more about Jesus.
Empowered by the Spirit In reflecting on their experience, these seminarians, whom you will remember are not ordained and therefore still members of the lay faithful, spoke of the empowerment they received from their prayer to the Holy Spirit in overcoming fears of approaching perfect strangers.
They also discovered for themselves how to proclaim the heart of the Gospel that is the Church’s Kerygma. And, this experience awakened in them the daily need to evangelize persons around them. While their own three-day mission was quite extraordinary, it should challenge each of us, despite the responsibilities of family, full-time employment and hectic schedules, to examine prayerfully where the Lord might be calling each one of us to bring the Good News to another person. This Advent, as we prepare to celebrate the birth of the Word-made-flesh, I urge you to think about who among your family, friends or neighbors you could invite back to church as a fitting way to commemorate this Advent season that falls within this Year of Faith. God bless you!
2012 Catholic Spirit Christmas Basketball Tournament FIRST ROUND — THURSDAY, DEC. 27 3:00 p.m. — Wayzata vs. Hill-Murray 4:45 p.m. — Rosemount vs. Providence Academy 6:30 p.m. — Cretin-Derham Hall vs. St. Agnes 8:15 p.m. — Milwaukee Bay View vs. Holy Angels
FRIDAY & SATURDAY, DEC. 28 & 29 • Losers’ bracket games each day at 3:00 and 4:45 p.m. • Winners’ bracket games each night at 6:30 and 8:15 p.m.
Anderson Athletic Complex, University of St. Thomas Cretin and Summit Avenues, St. Paul
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
Poor must be able to see ‘caring face of Christ’ among Christians CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
“Without zeal, we won’t really
While the solutions will require careful technical or institutional responses, nothing will ever be fully resolved without an “encounter with the living Christ,” he said. It’s that personal rapport with God that “gives rise to attitudes and ways of acting based on love and truth” — the true source and light for real transformation, he said. In order to bring that saving message to everyone in a way that’s effective and credible, Catholics need to “purify and strengthen” their spiritual lives by growing closer to God, especially through the sacraments, the pope said. “This will be encouraged by a correct and ongoing doctrinal formation marked by complete fidelity to the word of God and the church’s magisterium,” he said. “A renewed missionary spirit and zealous generosity” will be “an irreplaceable contribution to what the universal church expects and needs from the Church in America,” he added. Carl Anderson, supreme knight of the Knights of Columbus, told the congress that the Americas represent a new “post-Christian” land, in which people are familiar with Christ and, at the same time, woefully ignorant of his message. American countries and cultures “built upon Christian faith show great failures of charity, dignity and truth — failures inconsistent with being disciples of the God who is love,” he said Dec. 10. Such ignorance not only has facilitated a culture of death throughout the Americas, it has also “resulted in a mischaracterization of Christ and of the mission of the Church.” The world is “mortally hungry for the presence of the living God,” he said, and those who are poor or hurting must be able to see the “caring face of Christ in those he has called to follow him.” The only way the church can be that hopeful, loving presence is by rebuilding Catholic identity and helping its members to live holy lives that are “formed and strengthened by the sacraments and lived in total faithfulness to the church and in commitment to Jesus Christ.”
act, but if it’s not zeal that’s well-formed and desires and knows it needs to continue to be formed, we will not be able to make the impact that Christ really calls us to have.
”
BISHOP THOMAS OLMSTED OF PHOENIX
“The method that speaks strongest of Christ is love,” he said, so “we should be prepared to let charity be our measure of the new evangelization.” The Catholic Church is especially well-positioned to offer concrete solutions to communities’ varied problems, he said, because “no other institution lays out a single vision” that can transcend cultures and languages. The church’s vision is not a political vision, he said, but “a vision of humanity encountering Christ.”
Diversity united in faith Cardinal Sean O’Malley of Boston told Catholic News Service that while language and culture can be difficult obstacles, “what unites us is so much more.” Catholics are united by a shared faith, traditions, the Eucharist and the “new commandment to love one another,” he said. Cardinal Thomas Collins of Toronto told CNS that his archdiocese works very hard to preserve the diverse cultures of its large immigrant communities. Its parishes celebrate Mass in 37 different languages, he said. Catholics learn about and share immigrant communities’ “deep spiritual understanding that will help us face secularism, which seems to be the dominant culture in
North America,” he said. Youth movements are critical in helping second-generation youth not lose the cultural identity and faith of their parents since young people tend inevitably to assimilate into the dominant culture, he said. Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix told CNS that the church has also found unlikely partners in the evangelical communities in its fight against secularism and threats to life. Post-Vatican II ecumenical partners, such as the Anglicans, “have slipped away from the basic teaching about Jesus Christ, the human person and marriage, which has made dialogue and cooperation with them much more difficult,” he said. Newer dialogue partners, such as the Orthodox Church and Mormons, and even communities that were once anti-Catholic, such as Baptists, not only share many of the same values concerning the sanctity of life and marriage, but are seeking active partnerships with the Catholic Church to protect such values and religious freedom. Bishop Olmsted said the church can better evangelize by looking at legitimate strategies employed by evangelical movements. While proselytism must be avoided because it doesn’t fully respect the human person nor present the truth in its fullness, “we can still learn a lot” from sects and other movements. “For example, we should learn from the way they use mega-events to move people in a way that helps them to realize this is a really important issue,” he said. “Sects also see people that have leadership abilities and train them to go back to their peers and influence them, which is exactly what we need to do as well,” he added. While the Church tries to foster the enthusiasm and love for Christ seen in many evangelical and Catholic charismatic movements, the bishop said, it should also promote solid formation “because zeal alone is a dangerous thing.” “Without zeal, we won’t really act,” he said, “but if it’s not zeal that’s well-formed and desires and knows it needs to continue to be formed, we will not be able to make the impact that Christ really calls us to have.”
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“We are not acting as another NGO. We are motivated by faith. We are doing what we do because we are believers.” Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, president of Caritas Internationalis — the church's largest confederation of relief, development and social service agencies — on the religious identity of Catholic agencies
Overheard DECEMBER 13, 2012
Highlights from this week’s newsmakers
THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
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Priest to be honored by American Catholic Historical Association
Honoring Our Lady of Guadalupe
Father Marvin O’Connell, professor emeritus of history at the University of Notre Dame and a priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, will be The awarded the Distinguished Catholic Spirit Achievement Award for Scholarship from the American Catholic Historical Association. The award is given for a sustained series of contributions which have fundamentally animated the research of others, besides being significant in their own right. Father O’Connell is the author of numerous books, including “Pilgrims to the Northland: The Archdiocese of St. Paul, 1840-1962.” He will be honored during a luncheon Jan. 5 at Antoine’s Restaurant in New FATHER O’CONNELL Orleans.
News Notes
Our Lady of Guadalupe is the patron saint of Mexico, the United States and all of the Americas, as well as the protector of unborn children. Her feast day is celebrated on Dec. 12.
Catholic school dance teams donate to charity
Aztec dancers from the Virgin of Guadalupe Ministry of Ascension parish in Minneapolis honored Our Lady of Guadalupe during a celebration at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis Dec. 9. “In the Aztec tradition they honor saints with dance; this is an honorific kind of dance but also a penitential kind of dance. In the same way as we abstain from meat or fast in order to do penance they offer their dance to the point of exhaustion,” said Johan van Parys, Director of Liturgy and Sacred Arts at the Basilica. Normally the group dances barefoot and in the cold on the plaza outside, but moved inside due to heavy snow. Top: Leslie Alverado is one of 35 dancers, a few as young as 4 years old, participating in the celebration. Dianne Towalski / The Catholic Spirit
Left: Parishioners from St. Thomas the Apostle Church in Newton, Wis., arrive at the church Dec. 9 following a three-mile procession in the snow. About 50 people participated in the procession of walkers and vehicles from the Newton post office to the church, where a Spanish Mass was celebrated. CNS photo/Sam Lucero, The Compass
Dance teams from seven Catholic schools participated in the 3rd Annual Catholic Jamboree Dec. 8 at Benilde-St. Margaret’s School in St. Louis Park. Each year the dance teams meet at a different school and compete, but have no awards ceremony and all money raised is given to a charity. All of the admission fees, a portion of Tshirt sale profits and money made from raffling an iPad mini this year will go to Breanna’s Gift. The charity is a non-profit started by Marsha Ovitz, grandmother of Breanna, who passed away at age 4 from cancer. The other schools participating in this year’s event were Academy of Holy Angels, Richfield; Cretin-Derham Hall, St. Paul; Hill-Murray, Maplewood; Holy Family, Victoria; St. Cloud Cathedral, St. Cloud and Totino-Grace, Fridley. For more information, visit WWW.BREANNASGIFT.ORG.
Cleveland bishop recalls days with Gagliardi Bishop Roger Gries of the Diocese of Cleveland has fond memories of playing for legendary coach John Gagliardi at St. John’s University back in the 1950s. Bishop Gries, who serves as an auxiliary bishop and was ordained a priest in 1963, arrived at St. John’s in 1954, Gagliardi’s second season. He came from Benedictine High School in Cleveland, where he was captain of the football team and an honor student. He played center and linebacker for SJU, and got two seasons’ worth of wisdom from the legendary coach, who recently announced his retirement. “He was a great teacher and got right in the mix with us to show us the proper techniques,” said Bishop Gries. “John was not only a good coach, he was a good father and husband.”
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DECEMBER 13, 2012 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT