The Catholic Spirit - December 22, 2011

Newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas ■ Page 2: What does the archbishop love most about Christmas?

The Catholic Spirit

■ Pages 10-11: Poster contest winners announced and readers share their greatest Christmas blessings ■ Page 12: Making room for Jesus this busy time of year

News with a Catholic heart

December 22, 2011

TheCatholicSpirit.com

Pope advances sainthood causes of Marianne Cope, Kateri Tekakwitha

Cr`eches by the hundreds

Catholic News Service

Dave Hrbacek / The Catholic Spirit

Father Jerry Dvorak, pastor of St. Peter in Richfield, poses with one of his many cr`eches, numbering more than 250, in the church basement. This one, from Poland, and many more are on display through Jan. 28.

Richfield priest’s extensive Nativity collection offers creative way to teach Christmas message

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit

Glenda Dwyer was amazed when she stepped just feet into the parish hall at St. Peter in Richfield.

“My eyes went ‘WOW!’” What Dwyer saw on tables lining the walls of the huge room were Nativity scenes.

Dozens of them.

Table after table.

View more of Father Dvorak’s Nativity sets on page 13

Simple Nativity scenes, grand Nativity scenes, whole towns a Nativity scene.

Nativity scenes from countries around the globe.

At least 250 of them.

“I’ll bet people get excited when they see one from their family’s country,” said Dwyer, a St. Richard, Richfield, parishioner.

There are Nativity scenes made from every material you can think of: wood, stone, sisal grass, baPLEASE TURN TO CR`ECHES ON PAGE 13

Pope Benedict XVI advanced the sainthood causes of Blessed Marianne Cope of Molokai and Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha.

During a meeting Dec. 19 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, the pope signed the decrees recognizing the miracles needed for the canonizations of Blesseds Marianne and Kateri.

Before a Read more date is set about Kateri for the canonization Tekakwitha ceremonies, — Page 7 there must be an “ordinary public consistory,” a formal ceremony opened and closed with prayer, during which cardinals present in Rome express their support for the pope’s decision to create new saints.

Blessed Marianne, who worked as a teacher and hospital administrator in New York, spent the last 30 years of her life ministering on the Hawaiian island of Molokai to those with leprosy. She died in 1918 at age 80 and was beatified in 2005.

Blessed Kateri was born to a Christian Algonquin mother and a Mohawk father in 1656 in upstate New York. She was baptized in 1676 when she was 20 and died in Canada four years later. In 1980, she became the first Native American to be beatified.

Catholic country star inspired to produce religious album

By Mark Pattison Catholic News Service

Collin Raye, the Catholic country singer who had a string of hits in the 1990s, said he wanted to make his latest album “feel like you were in church for an hour or so.”

“His Love Remains,” the title of Raye’s new release, contains some familiar church melodies, like “Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence” and “Here I Am, Lord.”

In the liner notes to the album, Raye, 51, said he was inspired to make the album from witnessing his granddaughter Haley’s struggle with a disease that ultimately claimed her life. Haley would be 10 were she still alive, he noted.

“Any anger or frustration I had for the Lord not getting involved the way I wanted

him to get involved went away the moment she passed away,” he said. “He gave us this peace that was his from the beginning.”

Journey to Catholicism Making a religious album was “something I’d been dreaming of doing for over 20 years,” Raye added. “So I said, ‘Let’s do it, let’s do it, let’s make the best one possible.’

I’m thinking maybe God has given me a new niche here. If I did nothing but these kinds of records the rest of my life, I’d be a happy camper.”

After a career with No. 1 singles and platinum albums, “I would be thrilled to have a hit record on contemporary Christian radio, because that’s crossing the barriers,” Raye PLEASE TURN TO COUNTRY ON PAGE 2

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DECEMBER 22, 2011 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Many reasons for loving Christmas

That They May All Be One Archbishop John C. Nienstedt

The mystery of the Incarnation is one of the greatest truths of our faith

I love the feast of Christmas, as the mystery of the Incarnation is one of the greatest truths of our faith.

I love Christmas because of the lights, the holiday music, the Salvation Army’s charity pot.

I love hearing from old and new friends close by and in faraway places, but with whom regular contact is not always practical.

I love the joy of Christmas I see on the faces of young children who marvel at the wonder of it all.

I love receiving a Christmas gift and being delighted with the surprise of a friend’s choice.

I love being able to gather at parties for colleagues, co-workers and staff. Christmas is a special time to acknowledge the bonds that hold us together the whole year through.

I love Christmas for the opportunity it gives me to preach at both our magnificent Cathedral and our beautiful Basilica: To tell once again the message of our salvation.

God became man Most of all, I love Christmas because the Son of God, all holy and powerful, did not cling to his divinity, but rather emptied himself to take on the form of a slave (Philippians 2:7). Imagine: God became man and lived among us. What could be better than that!

In this great mystery, we find the hope to yearn for world peace, to

The Catholic Spirit

“I love Christmas because on that day, so long ago, love descended from heaven to earth and changed human history forever.

”

ARCHBISHOP JOHN NIENSTEDT

Archbishop’s schedule ■ Saturday, Dec. 24: 10:45 p.m., St. Paul, Cathedral of St. Paul: Office of Readings – followed by Christmas Eve Midnight Liturgy.

■ Sunday, Dec. 25: 9:30 p.m., Minneapolis, Basilica of St. Mary: Christmas Day Liturgy.

■ Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012: 9:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m., Edina, Church of Our Lady of Grace: Sunday Liturgy and reception.

■ Tuesday, Jan. 3: 8:30 a.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Scheduling meeting with staff.

1:30 p.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Archbishop’s Cabinet meeting.

■ Wednesday, Jan. 4: 1 p.m., St. Paul, Chancery: USCCB Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty.

overcome our addictions and temptations to sin, to put aside partisan bickering and to begin to work together.

Yes, I love Christmas because on that day, so long ago, love de-

scended from heaven to earth and changed human history forever.

May the hope and joy, and especially the love of Christmas, be yours this year and always!

God bless you!

Big on service, not on waste

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.

MOST REVEREND JOHN C. NIENSTEDT Publisher JOE TOWALSKI Editor

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CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 said. “That’s a primarily Protestant fan base. To have a hit like that in that fan base would be a coup for me.”

Raye became a Catholic in the early 1980s. After a show when he was chatting with a married couple who were fans of his, he noticed the wife wearing a necklace bearing a crucifix. Before the conversation ended, Raye said he asked the couple if he could go to Mass with them.

Raised “a heavy, heavy Baptist,” by his own reckoning, in Texarkana, Texas, Raye, in a Dec. 7 telephone interview with Catholic News Service, said he felt he always had a good relationship with God. “I have a pretty good Bible knowledge,” he added. “But I always felt there had to be something more to it.”

When Raye stepped inside Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Portland, Ore., with the couple, he said, “it’s a cliche, but there was a presence in the room I’d never felt before.

“A heaviness, a good heaviness. I’d never been in a room like that.” By comparison, in the Baptist churches of his youth, “I never felt there was any physical presence in the building other than us.”

Raye even remembers his Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults teacher, Sister Sheila Marie. “She knew her Bible pretty good. It’s all there if you know where to look,” he said. “It was the greatest decision I ever made in my life. I thank God all the time, especially after confession. ‘Thank you for making me a Catholic, for making me realize how full a faith it is.’”

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Country singer thanks God for his Catholic faith

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Raye spoke from Cincinnati, where he was performing for a benefit concert for the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network. Raye is the national spokesman for the charity. Schiavo was the braindamaged Florida woman who died in 2005 after her husband, following an extensive legal battle, successfully fought for the right to discontinue her feeding tube. She died 13 days after doctors withdrew her nutrition and hydration.

“As far as entertainers go, a lot of them steer clear from a topic that’s controversial,” he said, referring to Schiavo’s death and the issues surrounding it. “Topics like that cause me to lose some fans. But that kind of thing doesn’t worry me very much. I was always passionate about Terri’s story, even when I was just reading the mainstream media’s version of it.”

Not that Raye has a lot of love for the country scene in Nashville, Tenn.

He makes his home in Dallas.

“There’s so much evil in the music business. It’s not pretty. It’s just as political as politics. There’s a lot of distractions,” Raye said.

Would he love to have another hit record? “If I could have one without having to go through all what you go through,” hesaid. “There’s a lot of compromise in that business. . . . I did it once and I don’t care to do it again.”

“If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do the builders labor.”

Psalm 127

Local News from around the archdiocese

The Catholic Spirit

DECEMBER 22, 2011

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Faith-filled hands pound nails for their priests Faribault parishioners join together to build House of Gratitude

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit

A few small words etched in concrete at Divine Mercy Church in Faribault tell a big story.

Associate priest Father Erik Lundgren came up with the message, which he pulled from the opening verse of Psalm 127: “If the Lord does not build the house, in vain do the builders labor.”

This Scripture passage is now engraved on the sidewalk of the new rectory being built by a dedicated team of parish volunteers.

For Father Lundgren, Father Kevin Finnegan, pastor of Divine Mercy, and a group of 150 workers, this seemed like an appropriate greeting to everyone who walks up the sidewalk of the new rectory. They are hoping to complete what they are calling the “House of Gratitude” in the summer of 2012.

Ahead of schedule Father Finnegan had figured a rectory eventually would be built, given that the new Divine Mercy church was completed in the summer of 2009. He just wasn’t expecting a new residence so soon.

“I’ve been at the St. Lawrence rectory for 11 years,” said Father Finnegan, who has been pastor of the three parishes that merged into Divine Mercy during that time.

“I’ve never lived anywhere else that long. It’s time for me to move, I guess.”

Though there is no rush, things are going ahead of schedule, said Bill Sartor, a member of the rectory building committee who was one of the first to get involved.

In fact, there has even been talk of finishing the 4,000square-foot house by Divine Mercy Sunday, which annually occurs the Sunday after Easter and will fall on April 15 in 2012.

“We’re actually two months ahead of schedule,” Sartor said. “We’ve been pushing really hard. We’ve been work-

!

Dave Hrbacek / The Catholic Spirit

Bill Sartor, left, Gerardo Paramo and Tom Merrill prepare to install planks on the second floor of the new rectory they and other volunteers are building at Divine Mercy in Faribault. Merrill came up with the idea to build a new rectory for the priests, and Sartor is the chair of the building committee.

ing five to six days a week for the last month.”

Organizers of the effort said businesses have sold them materials at substantial discounts. Coupled with the money saved on labor, they estimate the cost of building the house will amount to about two-thirds of what it would normally cost.

Thanks to the many volunteers, plus what seems like more than a little divine intervention, Fathers Finnegan and Lundgren will be enjoying their new home in about

six to eight months. But that fact is not necessarily what excites them the most.

“One of the cool things about building this house is that there are all kinds of people meeting each other [in the process],” Father Finnegan said. “They’re next to each other pounding nails, slopping cement, digging holes — and being happy about it.”

PLEASE TURN TO FARIBAULT ON PAGE 5

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DECEMBER 22, 2011 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

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Two parishes to become one, three times over on Jan. 1

By Pat Norby

they have in their small community.

The Catholic Spirit

After a year of tears and celebrations, planning and action, six parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will legally and canonically become three parishes on Sunday, Jan. 1.

As outlined in the strategic plan announced in October 2010, St. Austin Strategic Planning parish in Minneapolis will merge into St. Bridget parish in Minneapolis; St. Vincent de Paul parish in St. Paul will merge into Cathedral of St. Paul parish; and Most Holy Trinity parish in St. Louis Park will merge into Our Lady of Grace parish in Edina.

Archbishop John Nienstedt will UPDATE preside at two welcoming Masses at 9:30 and 11:30 a.m. Jan. 1 at the combined Our Lady of Grace parish in Edina. The archbishop also will dedicate the newly renamed Most Holy Trinity Chapel, which is OLG’s daily Mass and adoration chapel, said Father Robert Schwartz, OLG pastor.

Celebrating 68-plus years Although the past 14 months have been challenging, Father Brian Fier, pastor of Most Holy Trinity, said his focus has been on helping his 300 families celebrate the parish’s 68-plus years of existence.

“Now we are focusing these last couple of weeks just enjoying these remaining days and our liturgies together,” Father Fier said. “Christmas this weekend and the next weekend, I expect a full house.”

He has asked parishioners to bring a plate of cookies and stay to share their stories after the last Saturday vigil

“I think that intimacy is here, too, but you can’t find it as easily because there are so many people,” he said.

“The people here are very welcoming and anxious to have them come.”

“Now we are focusing these last couple of weeks just enjoying these remaining days and our liturgies together.

Hmong church remains Besides the intimacy of a small church, St. Vincent de Paul’s Hmong Catholic community might have lost the intimacy of its culture if it had to move its Masses to the Cathedral of St. Paul.

Because of its unique character, it is not moving its location, and it will not have a separate pastor, said Father Joseph Johnson, pastor of both parishes, although St. Vincent parish will be called Cathedral parish Jan. 1.

”

FATHER BRIAN FIER Pastor of Most Holy Trinity, St. Louis Park

Mass at 5 p.m. Dec. 31 in the building.

For now, all six church buildings will remain open.

If people keep attending the one remaining 10:30 a.m.

Sunday Mass in St. Louis Park, Our Lady of Grace parish, which has 2,700 families, will continue to use the church [at least] until Palm Sunday, said Father Schwartz.

Members of the combined parish will also help to decide what to do with Most Holy Trinity’s statuary, stainedglass windows and other artifacts.

The altar and other treasures were photographed for a commemorative book that was given to every Most Holy Trinity parishioner, along with a professionally recorded CD of the parish’s music, Father Fier said.

Father Schwartz acknowledges that Most Holy Trinity parishioners may struggle, at first, to find the intimacy

“There is no time to add another Mass at the Cathedral on Sunday and we can’t change one of our current Masses to be Hmong or bilingual,” Father Johnson said. “The challenge for us isn’t . . . one location is closing, but, how do we — with two separate locations — form one spiritual family.”

To help make that transition, several combined events have been planned: Dec. 30, Hmong parishioners will host a holy hour at the St. Vincent campus; Jan. 8, Cathedral parishioners will host an Epiphany party for children of both communities; Jan. 15, representatives of various groups at the Cathedral will make presentations at the St. Vincent campus to invite them to get involved; Jan. 29, Father Johnson will talk after Mass at the Cathedral about the history of the Hmong Catholic people.

Deacon Naokao Yang, who has served as deacon at St. PLEASE TURN TO MERGING ON PAGE 19

Courage apostolate helps those struggling with same-sex attraction The following is an edited interview with Father Paul Check, Courage apostolate director, conducted by Catholic Spirit News Editor Pat Norby. Courage is an apostolate for people who struggle with same-sex attraction. Father Check, who was in the archdiocese to make several presentations, also directs EnCourage, for family and friends of those with same-sex attractions.

What ministries do Courage and EnCourage provide in the U.S.?

Courage and EnCourage are at the service of the church throughout the world.

The apostolate has a presence in half the dioceses in the U.S. and many places overseas.

The church has to raise her voice, especially in these times, in defense of the natural and sacramental bonds of marriage.

FATHER CHECK And in doing that, she has to say “no” to things that are at variance with the divinely willed order of marriage. As she says no to certain things that are contrary to nature and revelation, she must also say “yes” to men and women who struggle with same-sex attraction.

The strength of the Courage apostolate is that we address the question of homosexuality not as a cultural or political issue or debate but as a lived reality in individual lives of men and women or their family members.

Encourage is our apostolate to fathers mothers and sometimes spouses — not unlike Al-Anon — providing support to people. In this way, we make a three fold distinction — person, inclination and action.

The person is always good, created in

the image and likeness of God, redeemed by the Precious Blood of Christ and invited to grace in this life and glory in the life to come.

Then there is the inclination, which the catechism describes as objectively disordered. That is not a moral judgment of the person, although I realize those words can fall very heavily on ears. But rather it is an anthropological judgment. That means it is a look at same-sex attraction within the context of the use of and the design of the sexual faculty. The church says this is one of the aberrations, one of the departures from that natural order — the purpose of the sexual faculty, of course, being reflected in the complementarity of spouses and its procreative power. . . . When the church says that the inclination is objectively disordered, she is not talking about the person, she is not condemning the person, but rather she is saying that appetite is not consistent with action in accordance with human nature.

The third distinction is the activity itself, the “action” that is gravely contrary to the moral law and therefore is that out of which mortal sin is made. Whether it is mortally sinful also depends on use of reason and the choice of the will, but will nevertheless be a grave matter.

Tell me a little bit about the resources that you offer to parishes to help people.

The work of the Courage apostolate is really [twofold] — the first is education, so helping people to understand something of the nature of homosexuality or its origins . . . as well as situating it in the context of our understanding of a human way of acting. . . . So, we give talks on that as well as provide information from mental health professionals who understand this anthropology and share it but who also have the clinical experience of

Need information?

For information about local chapters of Courage and EnCourage in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, call the Office for Marriage, Family and Life at (651) 2914488. For more information about the national organization, visit WWW.COURAGERC.NET. Read full interview at THECATHOLICSPIRIT.COM

working with men and women who have the attraction.

One of the things that is very effective is the witness talks or testimonials that are part of our presentations from men or women who themselves have same-sex attractions, perhaps have lived the socalled gay lifestyle and are now members of Courage. They can give what might be called an insider’s look at this from the standpoint of the person — a lived reality.

Then we provide direct information about the support group that is Courage or EnCourage. The choices that men and women with same-sex attraction are faced with, or think they are faced with, are sometimes reduced to two. One is radical isolation, in which the person thinks “tell no one, say nothing,” even to people who are very close to them, to family members “about their feelings, about their struggle.”

That is even worse than loneliness, it’s more than loneliness. [It’s] isolation.

The other choice they think they have is to declare themselves, “gay,” “homosexual,” “lesbian” and enter into the lifestyle and live that life. Courage says neither of those alternatives are good, neither of them are healthy, neither of them are in keeping with the Gospel, neither of

them are in keeping with a sound and proper understanding of our humanity.

It says “look, you have to have friendships, you need people who understand this.” Courage gathers men and women together under the care of a priest, and with the guidance in the mind and heart of the church, helps them to understand themselves a little better, as we all must — to understand that Christ loves them and that their struggle is not outside God’s providence and that the friendship of other members of Courage can help them to live chastely and to grow in all Christian virtues.

On your website it says the five goals of Courage include chastity, prayer, fellowship, support and setting a good example. How would you say these goals differ from the way all Catholics are encouraged to live their lives?

In a strict sense there is no difference at all — it’s just given its particular setting and I think that in 1980, Cardinal Terence Cooke of New York, who we consider to be our founder, received a grace for the charism that we consider the five goals to represent.

In his pastoral charity, Cardinal Cooke said that there’s a group of people who have a particular struggle that need a special expression of the church’s pastoral charity, and that’s how the Courage Apostolate begins. The goals themselves would be consistent with the Gospel for anyone.

It is the particular care that is given at a time in which the culture is very confused, very promiscuous, very suspicious of what the church teaches, especially with regard to sexual morality. So, it would seem that it is necessary at this time to have a unique and special expression of the church’s maternal solicitude for these good men and women.

Local

DECEMBER 22, 2011 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Faribault volunteers construct home for priests CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3 The project quickly came to life back in the spring, when parishioner Tom Merrill had a profound spiritual experience last March during the parish’s annual youth mission trip to Arkansas. In a small group discussion, he talked about wanting to be in a better place spiritually to receive the Eucharist.

Out of that conversation came one simple idea: “The more we give, the more we have room to receive the Eucharist,” Merrill said.

So, it was a matter of finding a way to give more. He also wanted to do it in a way that could express gratitude for the parish’s priests, who are the instruments for receiving the Eucharist. That prompted Merrill to call another parishioner, Jerry Hoisington, after he got back from the trip.

“I called Jerry and said, ‘What do you think if we got volunteers and built a house [for the parish priests]?’ ” Merrill said.

Hoisington responded favorably, and thus, the House of Gratitude got off the ground. A building committee was formed, consisting of Merrill, Sartor, Hoisington and Joe Varley. Later, three more members were added: Dennis Germann, Gene Von Ruden and Bill Cuddington.

Turns out they had no trouble recruiting volunteers to do the construction. As Merrill put it, “The problem was, every-

House of Gratitude prayer God our Father, In sending Your Son, Jesus, You proclaimed the Good News to the poor, recovery of sight to the blind, and liberty to captives.

You bind up the brokenhearted and mend the wounds of the afflicted.

You forgive the repentant heart and call all to be united to you.

You have given us the great gift of ordained priesthood to be a sign of your faithfulness and covenant love for your people.

Thank you that through our priests, you pour upon us the sacramental graces that flow from the Sacred Heart of your Son, Jesus.

As we build this House of Gratitude, may we all as one body turn our hearts more fully to you and receive from you the glorious vision of your heavenly kingdom, our true home. Amen.

Mary, Queen of the clergy, pray for us.

body kept saying yes.”

Not only have they been able to put crews of about 12 volunteers to work five to six days a week, they also have

parishioners bringing meals out every day and prayer teams offering regular petitions.

Led by the Spirit Those who pound the nails are feeling the effects of those prayers. On a recent morning, they were scheduled to pour concrete into the walls on the second floor, a measure that provides both strength and energy efficiency. With subsequent steps requiring this process to take place first, they were hoping to get it done on the day it was scheduled.

But, there was one problem — the weather forecast called for rain all day. If the precipitation came as expected, they would not be able to pour the concrete and would lose one precious day of labor.

The rain fell at dawn and stopped at 9 a.m., exactly when the crew was scheduled to start pouring concrete. Then, the rain held off for about an hour and a half and started up again just minutes after they were finished.

“To me, this is another sign of God’s hand,” Merrill said.

One volunteer says God has been a part of the process from the beginning.

“The committee was led by the Holy Spirit,” said Jim Smith. “The way that it came together was certainly beyond the power of this committee. It truly was a gift from God.” Said Merrill: “The Lord provides everything we need on this project. It’s just been an amazing experience.”

Communion host that turned red not a miracle, archdiocese says The Catholic Spirit A Communion host that turned red after it fell on the floor of St. Augustine Church in West St. Paul in June is not a miracle, according to a news release from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

The host, which was dropped during a June 19 Mass, was placed in water so it could dissolve and be disposed of in the ground in accordance with church law.

A week later, however, the host had not completely dissolved and had turned red, according to media reports at the time.

The pastor then gave the host to the archdiocese, which sent it to an unnamed laboratory for testing.

Test results showed that the discoloration was caused by a virus, according to an archdiocesan spokesperson.

“Exhaustive biological analysis by an independent scientific laboratory has determined that the reddish coloration on the Holy Communion host fragment that was kept in a water solution after it was discovered on the floor of St. Augustine Church in West Saint Paul following Mass on June 19 was caused by an organic virus,” the Dec. 14 news release said.

The host has since been disposed of in a manner prescribed by church law.

“While the Catholic Church fully recognizes the possibility of miracles and remains open to their possibility, it does so with extreme scrutiny, investigation and care,” the release said.

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The Dec. 17 death of North Korean leader Kim Jong Il “may be the turning point for the path of the reunification of the Koreas.”

Bishop Peter Kang U-il of Cheju, president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea

Nation/World 6

The Catholic Spirit

News from around the U.S. and the globe

Church groups rush aid to Philippine flood victims

By Catholic News Service Church agencies teamed with international aid groups and the Philippine government to assist tens of thousands of people left homeless in northern Mindanao by flash flooding caused by an intense tropical storm that left at least 950 people dead and hundreds more missing.

The country’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council reported that about 338,000 people in 13 provinces were affected by Tropical Storm Washi, which unleashed floods and landslides as people slept in their homes across northern Mindanao late Dec. 16.

Authorities Dec. 20 placed the death toll at 957.

Philippine President Benigno Aquino has declared a national calamity in the wake of the floods, which affected small but densely populated areas of Mindanao.

The thousands of people remaining in shelters are at risk of disease, authorities said.

Church sources in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, two of the worst hit areas, say exact casualty figures are difficult to get because of the extensive damage from the storm, the Asian church news agency UCA News reported.

Joe Curry, country representative for Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. bishops’ overseas relief and development agency, told Catholic News Service Dec. 19 from Cagayan de Oro, a city of about 600,000, that about 35,000 people who lost their homes are being housed in evacuation centers in schools and outdoor covered gymnasiums.

Survivors stunned by devastation An estimated 75,000 of the city’s residents living near a river that flows down from nearby mountains on its way to the ocean were affected by the flooding, he said.

“It looks kind of like the tsunami hitting,” he said describing what he saw when he arrived in the low-lying area at the base of a mountain. “Everything was taken off the foundations. The water was 11 feet above its banks, and anything near it was wiped away.”

Curry described survivors as stunned.

“People in the evacuation centers we’ve met have nothing left from their houses,” he said. “Everything went with the house. They have no clothes. They have no kitchen items. They have nothing.”

CRS, which sent a team of eight workers form Davao City, and other aid agencies met at the residence of Arch-

DECEMBER 22, 2011

Teaching young about human dignity promotes peace, justice Catholic News Service

CNS photo / Reuters

A resident carries chairs he salvaged from his damaged shanty Dec. 18, after flash floods brought by Tropical Storm Washi hit Iligan City in the southern Philippines, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless.

bishop Antonio Ledesma of Cagayan de Oro, just outside the flood zone Dec. 19 to coordinate their response with the government. The representatives planned to meet every two days to report on their work and update plans.

Curry said about 80 percent of the city is without water because the city’s main water line was washed away.

Beryl Tranco of the Panday Bulig Relief and Rehabilitation Center told UCA News that providing water to the city is the biggest challenge facing relief workers.

“Our priority was to distribute drinking water because there is no water, no electricity, the area smells of garbage and decaying bodies,” she said.

Caritas Manila, church-run Radio Veritas and the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines’ national social action secretariat have appealed for relief supplies, clothing and money from dioceses across the country.

In Manila, Archbishop Luis Antonio Tagle directed parishes to take up a collection at Masses for survivors.

Words of comfort and offers of assistance poured in from around the world. Pope Benedict XVI assured the people of the Philippines of his prayers. Caritas Australia announced the opening of an appeal for flood victims, and U.S. President Barack Obama offered help.

When young people recognize the dignity and beauty of every human life, including their own, and are supported in their natural desire to make the world a better place, they become agents of justice and peace in the world, Pope Benedict XVI said.

Peace and justice are built on “a profound respect for every human being and helping others to live a life consonant with this supreme dignity,” the pope said in his message for the World Day of Peace 2012.

The Catholic Church celebrates World Peace Day Jan. 1. The pope’s message for the occasion was released Dec. 16 at the Vatican and sent, through Vatican ambassadors, to the leaders of nations around the world.

The theme the pope chose for the 2012 celebration was “Educating Young People in Justice and Peace.”

He asked parents and teachers to be more attentive to the hopes and fears of young people today and to their search for true values, and he asked governments to put more resources into education and job creation.

Pope asks youth to be open to elders And the pope asked young people themselves to take their schooling seriously and to be open to the example and knowledge their elders have to share.

He asked them “to be patient and persevering in seeking justice and peace, in cultivating the taste for what is just and true, even when it involves sacrifice and swimming against the tide.”

Adults have a serious responsibility to help the young fulfill their potential, not just by sharing information with them, but by being examples of what it means to live lives marked by the joy of faith, charity and respect for others, he said.

“Today more than ever we need authentic witnesses, and not simply people who parcel out rules and facts: We need witnesses capable of seeing further than others because their life is so much broader,” the pope said.

Pope Benedict also appealed to parents to give their children “the most precious of treasures,” which is the gift of their time.

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“Jesus, I love you.”

Last words reportedly spoken by Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, whose sainthood cause took a step forward Dec. 19

This Catholic Life DECEMBER 22, 2011

Opinion, feedback and points to ponder

The Catholic Spirit

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‘Lily of the Mohawks’ came to know, love Christ Catholic News Service

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lessed Kateri Tekakwitha, “the Lily of the Mohawks,” is the young Indian maiden who, despite objections from some of her own relatives, came to know and love Christ.

Pope Benedict XVI cleared the way for her canonization Dec. 19 by recognizing a miracle attributed to her intercession, but no date has been set yet for the canonization ceremony.

Kateri was born in 1656 in a village on the Mohawk River called Ossernenon, now Auriesville, N.Y. Her father was a Mohawk chief and her mother a Christian Algonquin raised among the French.

She was born into a period of political and religious turmoil, 10 years after three of the Jesuit martyrs were tortured and killed: Rene Goupil, Isaac Jogues and Jean Lalande. Indians blamed the “Blackrobes” for the sudden appearance of deadly “white man’s” diseases, including small pox.

When Kateri was only 4, a smallpox epidemic claimed her parents and baby brother. Kateri survived, but her face was disfigured and her eyesight impaired.

According to legend, she was raised by relatives who began to plan her marriage.

But after meeting with Catholic priests, Kateri decided to be baptized and pursue religious life. When she was baptized on Easter in 1676 at age 20, her relatives were not pleased.

‘“The Indian people in the United States and Canada have longed for the canonization of Blessed Kateri from the moment of her beatification.

”

ARCHBISHOP CHARLES CHAPUT OF PHILADELPHIA

‘Great rejoicing’

Devotion to Eucharist She fled the next year to Canada, taking refuge at St. Francis Xavier Mission in the Mohawk Nation at Caughnawaga on the St. Lawrence River, about 10 miles from Montreal. She reportedly made her first Communion on Christmas in 1677.

She astounded the Jesuits with her deep spirituality and her devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. She took a private vow of virginity and devoted herself to prayer and to teaching prayers to the children and helping the sick and elderly of Caughnawaga.

Kateri was not the only member of her community to embrace Christianity during a colonial time fraught with conflict and struggle for native tribes. But to her older, more educated Jesuit mentors, she was remarkable.

When her request to start a religious community was denied, Kateri continued to live a life of austerity and prayer.

She was said to perform “extraordinary penances.”

She died in 1680 at the age of 24. According to eyewitnesses, including two Jesuits and many Indians, the scars on her face suddenly disappeared after her death. Her tomb is in Caughnawaga.

There is a shrine to her in St. Francis Xavier Church there.

didate is beatified. Kateri was beatified

by Pope John Paul II in 1980, giving her the title “Blessed.”

Documentation for the final miracle needed for her canonization was sent to the Vatican in July 2009. It involved the recovery of a young boy in Seattle whose face had been disfigured by flesh-eating bacteria and who almost died from the disease. But he recovered completely, and the Vatican confirmed the work of a tribunal who determined there was no medical explanation for it.

The U.S. church marks her feast day July 14. She is listed as patron of American Indians, ecology and the environment and is held up as a model for Catholic youths.

In the United States, there are two shrines to Blessed Kateri, the National Shrine of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha in Fonda, N.Y., and the Shrine of Our Lady of Martyrs in Auriesville, N.Y. The National Tekakwitha Conference, based in Great Falls, Mont., was started in 1939 as a way to unify Catholic American Indians from different tribes across the United States. The organization is financed by membership dues and grants from the U.S. bishops, the Catholic Church Extension Society and the Bureau of Catholic Indian Missions.

Soon after Blessed Kateri died, Catholics started to claim that favors and miracles had been obtained through her intercession. American Indians have made appeals to the Catholic Church for her recognition since at least the late 1800s.

Documentation for her sainthood

cause was sent to the Vatican in 1932.

She was declared venerable in 1942, the first step to sainthood that recognizes the candidate’s heroic virtues.

Two miracles that occur after death are generally needed for a sainthood cause to move forward. After a first miracle is confirmed by the church, the can-

“The Indian people in the United States and Canada have longed for the canonization of Blessed Kateri from the moment of her beatification,” Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadelphia told Catholic News Service at the Vatican Dec. 7. A member of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Tribe, he is the only Native American Catholic archbishop in the United States.

“We are all very proud of her because she embodies in herself what Pope John Paul II called inculturation — the saints are the truly inculturated members of a particular ethnic group because they personally embody both the Gospel and the culture from which they come,” he said.

Interviewed before the pope’s decree, Archbishop Chaput said news of her canonization would bring “great rejoicing for the Indian community,” and he predicted “we’ll show up in significant numbers here in Rome” for her canonization ceremony.

Blessed Kateri has always been held up “as a very holy person by members of the Native community and they have longed and longed for this moment to come,” said Msgr. Paul Lenz, vice postulator for her cause.

When she worked in the fields, Blessed Kateri would carry a cross with her as a source for contemplation. Her last words were reported to be, “Jesus, I love you.”

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Commentary

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 22, 2011

/ This Catholic Life

A Christmas message revealed behind closed doors ast weekend, the meaning of Christmas unfolded in the most unlikely of places — a Roman prison.

As Pope Benedict XVI was talking to inmates at Rebibbia prison, one of the men spoke up, confessing what was likely on the mind of others seated around him: “We have fallen and hurt people. We have lost our freedom, but we ask you to help ensure we don’t lose our dignity.”

And this is what the pope said to the man and his fellow inmates: “I’ve come simply to tell you that God loves you with an infinite love.”

Pope Benedict’s response is the message at the heart of the Christmas season: God loves us — all of us — so much so that he sent his only son to save and redeem us, to show us the right way to live and how to love others in the same way God loves each of us.

our freedom like the Rome prisoners, we all at times “have fallen and hurt people.” We don’t always love and comfort the stranger in need.

And it’s not just our relationships with strangers that present the most difficulty. At times, many of us have let pride, selfishness and other sins wound our relationship with God, family members and friends.

At times, we don’t even love ourselves very much.

L Editorial Joe Towalski

We are ‘fallen and hurt people’ raised up by God’s love

Lesson for life

Gospel challenge

CNS photo / Patrick McPartland, Western New York Catholic

During his visit, the pope alluded to a passage from the Gospel of Matthew with which we are all familiar — the passage calls us to give food to the hungry, drink to the thirsty and hospitality to the stranger. It tells us to clothe the naked, care for the ill and visit the prisoner because, Jesus says, “whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

We are challenged to love the prisoner, like Jesus loves the prisoner, no matter the crime, because the prisoner is a child of God created in his own image.

This challenge to love extends to other “tough” cases: ■ the immigrant no matter his legal status; ■ the poor and chronically home-

less, no matter the reason for their plight; ■ the mother in a crisis pregnancy and her unborn child, no matter the wisdom of the decisions that led to the situation.

It is often easier said than done because — unlike Jesus — we aren’t perfect.

Although most of us have not lost

That’s why Pope Benedict’s message about God’s “infinite love” is so important for every person to hear, especially at this time of year.

The challenge for us is how we choose to respond to God’s love and share it with others. It’s a challenge to turn away from what separates us from God and others, to ask for forgiveness when necessary, to be more like Jesus in what we say and how we help others, and to more readily recognize the dignity that God bestows on every human being no matter what their situation in life.

It’s a lesson the pope set out to teach a group of Roman inmates. It’s a lesson God also taught us some 2,000 years ago in a Bethlehem manger. It’s a lesson we should embrace not just during this holy season, but all year round.

Combating poverty in the public arena The following column is provided by the Minnesota Catholic Conference, which advocates on behalf of the state’s bishops for public policies and programs that support the life and dignity of every human person. he U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops is marking this January as “poverty awareness month.” It is relaunching its Poverty USA campaign to chronicle the stories of those living in poverty, as well as identify innovative solutions and ideas communities can use to help their neighbors in need.

The campaign could not be timelier.

One in six Americans is currently living in poverty, and Jason one in five children.

Adkins That is more than 46 million people. Living in poverty means the household income for a family of four is less than $22,314.

Those astounding poverty figures do not include the many working families struggling to make ends meet with stagnant wages and rising costs for food, fuel, health care and housing.

The causes of poverty are complex and are rooted in both individual sin and injustices perpetrated by the “structures of sin”: unemployment, lack of access to education or job training, disability, health problems, insufficient wages, lack of affordable housing, precarious lifestyles, substance abuse and family breakdown.

The list goes on.

Oftentimes, some of these problems in a person’s or family’s life are multiplied and deepened by other problems, result-

“The state is . . . an instrument of justice, and the aim of politics is the just ordering of society.”

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Faith in the Public Arena

JASON ADKINS

ing in a cycle of poverty that is often difficult to break.

Instrument of justice So how should Catholics respond in the public arena to growing poverty?

Some argue that it is not the government’s job to take care of the poor. Rather, it is the responsibility of churches and charities. And besides, they claim, government assistance is not in the Constitution.

Such an argument, however, fundamentally misconstrues the role of politics and government.

The state’s role is not to show the magnanimity of charity, which is beyond its competence (it can’t love people). The state is, however, an instrument of justice, and the aim of politics is the just ordering of society.

When there is injustice, especially in the economic realm, the state has a responsibility to prudently step in and correct it to the extent that it is competent to do so.

Pope Benedict’s words in the encyclical “Deus Caritas Est” provide an important clarification about the responsibilities and limitations of the state in alleviating poverty, especially in a time like now when there is increasing pressure in some circles to completely privatize assistance to those in need.

According to Pope Benedict, “There is no ordering of the State so just that it can eliminate the need for a service of love.

Whoever wants to eliminate love is preparing to eliminate man as such. There will always be suffering which cries out for consolation and help. There will always be loneliness. There will always be situations of material need where help in the form of concrete love of neighbor is indispensable.”

The Holy Father continues: “The State which would provide everything, absorbing everything into itself, would ultimately become a mere bureaucracy incapable of guaranteeing the very thing which the suffering person — every person — needs: namely, loving personal concern.

“We do not need a State which regulates and controls everything, but a State which, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity, generously acknowledges and supports initiatives arising from the different social forces and combines spontaneity with closeness to those in need” (28b).

Not all poverty is the result of injustice, and so there are limits to what the state can do. A government crusade to “eradicate poverty” might create the inhuman state Pope Benedict warns us about.

Fortunately, the state of Minnesota recognizes that charitable organizations such as Catholic Charities can often do a better job delivering certain human services and combating poverty than a comparable state entity could, and thus subsidizes Catholic Charities’ efforts.

Practicing subsidiarity This type of collaboration is an excellent embodiment of the principle of subsidiarity that Pope Benedict XVI outlined in “Deus Caritas Est.” To the extent that anti-poverty programs — whether provided directly by the state or through some contractor like Catholic Charities — secure basic needs, create a safety net, break the cycle of poverty or provide a ladder out of it, they should continue to receive adequate funding and even increases as needs arise.

These public efforts will go a long way toward alleviating material poverty and building a more just society.

Working for justice, however, is only part of the equation.

It is up to all of us to manifest true charity — perform the works of mercy; give generously and directly assist those in need; cooperate with the church’s charitable endeavors — and fill the world with the love and concern that cures the spiritual poverty present in so many hearts.

Merry Christmas!

Jason Adkins is executive director of the Minnesota Catholic Conference, the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota. To learn more about how you can assist MCC’s advocacy work through the Minnesota Catholic Advocacy Network (MNCAN), visit its website at HTTP://WWW.MNCC.ORG.

“I heard the bells on Christmas Day, their old, familiar carols play, and wild and sweet the words repeat of peace on earth, goodwill to men!”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The Lesson Plan The Catholic Spirit

Reflections on faith and spirituality

DECEMBER 22, 2011

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Incarnation calls Christians to live differently in light ot all that long ago, during my time in college, I was taking a course on Aristotle’s “Nicomachean Ethics,” one of the most important works of all of Western civilization.

Our professor, a very brilliant man, was speaking about the permanent character of Aristotle’s philosophy — that what Aristotle observed about how we ought to live and govern our conduct as human beings comes from our human nature and the nature of the world in which we live. Those laws that instruct us on how we live and act do not change with the passing of time.

The question arose, “Could anything change these laws, or change human beings in relation to them?”

I am sure that the student was at least thinking of an event that took Deacon place some 300 years after the death Ben Little of Aristotle, namely, the birth of the Son of God, the man Jesus Christ, in Bethlehem.

After pausing a moment, my professor remarked, dryly, “only the Incarnation.” “That’s why,” he continued, “when someone asks me, ‘what’s new?’ I always respond, ‘oh, just the Incarnation.’ ” As Scripture says, “What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun! Even the thing of which we say, ‘See, this is new!’ has already existed in the ages that preceded us” (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

What this means is that without the birth of Jesus into our world, everything remains essentially the same. The same things make us happy, the same things sadden us.

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Sunday Scriptures

Readings Sunday, Sunday, Dec. Dec. 25 25 Christmas Christmas Day Day ■ ■ Isaiah Isaiah 52:7-10 52:7-10 ■ ■ Hebrews Hebrews 1:1-6 1:1-6 ■ ■ John John 1:1-18 1:1-18

For reflection How How are are you you living living in in the the light light and and grace grace of of the the Christ Christ Child?

Child?

We laugh, we cry, we make war, we make peace, we suffer the same diseases, we rejoice at the same events, we create the same kinds of institutions — for better or worse — according to the same human nature we’ve always had and according to the same laws of nature we’ve always followed.

But now, as the Prophet Isaiah says, “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone” (Isaiah 9:1).

This new light, which St. Paul calls “the grace of God” (Titus 2:11), now enables us to see better how to live — how to do more good and how to avoid more evil.

Call to witness new history There is something truly new when the Christ Child is born — he is totally there, vulnerable, and plain to behold, and so he continues even now through his church and her sacraments. This is truly something new, a new

course for human history.

Grace, a participation in the very life of God made possible by Christ’s entry into the human condition, is something that has power to change how we live. Before, and all too often now, a powerful ruler or great philosopher might have been considered the perfect man. But now, a small child completely bound by “swaddling clothes” (Luke 2:7) is shown by God to be the perfect man, and in turn shows us how to become perfect.

With Christmas, grace arrives, we can no longer follow only the old rules. We as Christians must live differently than those who still remain in darkness, and we must be vigilant to avoid sinking back into that same darkness.

Aristotle and the philosophers are no longer our only guides.

So, when someone asks, “Hey, what’s new?” and we answer cleverly, “Oh, just the Incarnation,” we must be able to back up our cleverness with the witness of our lives.

Do we live in the light, the grace, brought by the Christ Child?

Do we frequent the church’s sacraments, which avail us of that grace?

Do we live beyond the bare minimum of ethics, (“do good and avoid evil”)?

Do we live the truth of Christmas, that the greatest man is the one who humbles himself?

Christmas must change us. Everything is new under the Son. Deacon Ben Little is in formation for the priesthood at The St. Paul Seminary for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. His home parish is St. John in Little Canada and his teaching parish is St. Anthony of Padua in Minneapolis.

Daily Scriptures Sunday, Dec. 25 Christmas Day Isaiah 52:7-10 Hebrews 1:1-6 John 1:1-18 “He came to what was his own, but his own people did not accept him.”

— John 1:11 The birth of Jesus appeared so ordinary to the casual observer that it went unnoticed by the vast majority of the people. What we call ordinariness continues to be an obstacle for us.

How often do we long for miracles and signs and all the while God continues to show up in our lives in the people, places and events that make up our everyday experiences? It is only when we see through the eyes of faith that we realize that nothing is only what it appears to be.

destructive out of a fear of losing control.

Monday, Dec. 26 Stephen, first martyr Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59 Matthew 10:17-22 Suffering is an inevitable part of remaining true to the values of compassion, mercy and justice.

Saturday, Dec. 31 Sylvester I, pope 1 John 2:18-21 John 1:1-18 One way we can know God is by recalling instances when we gave and received love.

Tuesday, Dec. 27 John, apostle and evangelist 1 John 1:1-4 John 20:1a, 2-8 During difficult times, we must remember that what is rooted in authentic love cannot be destroyed.

Wednesday, Dec. 28 Holy Innocents, martyrs 1 John 1:5 — 2:2 Matthew 2:13-18 Notice if you have ever done something

Thursday, Dec. 29 Thomas Becket, bishop and martyr 1 John 2:3-11 Luke 2:22-35 In order to recognize the fulfillment of God’s promises, we have to remain open and expectant.

Friday, Dec. 30 Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Sirach 3:2-7, 12-14 Colossians 3:12-21 Luke 2:22-40 What obstacles prevent you from experiencing the presence of God in your midst?

Sunday, Jan. 1 Blessed Virgin Mary, mother of God Numbers 6:22-27 Galatians 4:4-7 Luke 2:16-21 “All who heard it were amazed by what had been told them by the shepherds.”

— Luke 2:18 Two people can see the same sunset, hear the same piece of music or gaze at the same painting yet have very different experiences.

One person might find the experience so moving that he or she is changed in some way while the other person barely notices. The

people who were able to hear the aweinspiring story of the shepherds were willing to listen to lowly shepherds and open minded enough to believe that God would do something new and unexpected.

Monday, Jan. 2 Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, bishops 1 John 2:22-28 John 1:19-28 To be humble is to know both our gifts and our limitations.

Tuesday, Jan. 3 Most Holy Name of Jesus 1 John 2:29 — 3:6 John 1:29-34 Pray for the capacity to be surprised by God. Wednesday, Jan. 4 Elizabeth Ann Seton, religious 1 John 3:7-10 John 1:35-42 We don’t decide who Jesus is and follow him; we follow Jesus and learn who he is and what he truly values.

Thursday, Jan. 5 John Neumann, bishop 1 John 3:11-21 John 1:43-51 Is there proof in my life that I am willing to let go of my preconceived notions and open my heart and mind?

Friday, Jan. 6 André Bessett, religious 1 John 5:5-13

Mark 1: 7-11 How would you be changed if you heard God call you a beloved son or daughter?

Saturday, Jan. 7 Raymond of Penafort, priest 1 John 5:14-21 John 2:1-11 What appears to be a problem can become an opportunity for transformation.

Sunday, Jan. 8 Epiphany of the Lord Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:2-3a, 5-6 Matthew 2:1-12 “It was not made known to people in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: that the Gentiles are coheirs.”

— Ephesians 3:5 As my daughters and I looked through old family scrapbooks, I was struck by the tremendous changes that have occurred in their lifetime. For example, cell phones and computers connect us in ways we couldn’t have imagined a few decades ago. Today’s reading reminds us that change is also an ongoing part of our history as church. As a child, eating meat on Friday was looked on as a sin, and at one time the church considered slavery morally acceptable. No matter how we feel about a particular change the only real test of its wisdom is the fruit it bears.

The daily reflections are written by Terri Mifek, a member of St. Edward in Bloomington and a certified spiritual director at the Franciscan Retreat House in Prior Lake.

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THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

The Lesson Pl

Readers share their greatest Christmas blessings

Chris Pos Cont

The Catholic Spirit invited readers to tell us about their greatest Christmas blessing. A selection of responses are below. Read more responses online at THECATHOLICSPIRIT.COM.

Blessing of health On Dec. 18, 2009, I brought our 20-day-old son, Joseph, to our clinic where they took one look at him breathing heavily and told us we needed to get him to the hospital immediately. He had contracted RSV, a respiratory virus which is very serious for newborns. We were rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.

A week later, he was still on oxygen in the hospital, and it was Christmas day. Feeling scared for him and sorry for myself, I went to the cafeteria for breakfast. I felt so alone. It was there where I met a woman who told me she had been in the hospital with her 8-month-old baby since she was born. The baby’s heart and lungs wouldn’t function without support, and transplants were not an option. Her family lived four hours away from the Twin Cities, and her older daughter was living with her grandparents.

She told me her husband had separated from her recently — she was alone.

After I returned to Joseph’s room, I counted my blessings and prayed for this stranger and her baby. I realized that good health was the greatest blessing, and I thanked God for my three healthy boys. Joseph started to improve on Christmas night. Two days later, we returned home to our family on the feast of the Holy Family. We celebrated a delayed Christmas at home together. I found the greatest gifts were sitting under my tree — three healthy children.

WINN

The Catholic Spirit asked 12 to create Christmas po phrase, “I will keep the C year by . . .” and the The 547 entries came archdiocese and were Catholic Spirit staff m winners in four categorie grades 7-9 and Entries were judged for and reproducibility. Eac Visa gif

THERESE STEINHOFF Nativity of Our Lord, St. Paul

Thankful for the gift from another It was December 1971 and I was working at the First National Bank in St. Paul. Catholic Charities called saying they had a baby boy for us. When we went to pick him up, the moment I looked at him in the cradle, I fell madly in love with him. He was three weeks old, blond, blue-eyed, and he was our special gift from God. The Christmas before, we lost our first pregnancy and learned I had chorio-carcinoma, a rare cancer of the placenta. I had chemotherapy in a Chicago hospital for four months. That was a tough Christmas for me. Leaving Chicago that April at 21, I was told if the cancer did not return within two years I could get pregnant again. I knew I could not wait two years to become a mom, so we put our name in for adoption. God gave me the strength to get through that cancer and then answered my prayer to become a mother.

Every Christmas I think about the other woman who decided to give up her son for adoption, and I wish we could thank her, but she has chosen not to be found. We had three more children after Todd, so we have had many blessings in our lives.

But I always know how special that little boy in the cradle is to me and how much love poured from my heart the moment I saw him.

Shane Zenk Category: Grades 1-3 third-grader, Nativity of Our Lord School, St. Paul Nativity of Our Lord Parish, St. Paul

MARY KAY RUDEEN St. Rose of Lima, Roseville

Blessing for mother, newborn child The day after Christmas, when Anne was 1 and Mike was 2 and John was born on Dec. 10, my husband took the two older children to the grocery store just as it was getting dark. I had just taken a bath and was in the living room in my robe holding the baby when a man in sandals and a brown Franciscan robe knocked at the door. He spoke with a strong German accent and asked for a family whose name I didn’t recognize.

After I assured him he had the wrong house but was on the street he was looking for, I suggested he come in and look up the name in the phone book. He was not from St. Paul but was staying with the priests at Sacred Heart Church. When he came back into the living room from the kitchen, I was sitting on the davenport holding John. He came over and said, “Could I give you a blessing?” I said, “Yes, Father.”

Before I could kneel, as was customary, he knelt down in front of us and prayed and blessed us. I thanked him, but not as profusely as he thanked us for being there — making his Christmas so real because he found a mother and a newborn CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

Michael Caron Category: Grades 4-6 sixth-grader, St. Thomas More Catholic School, St. Paul St. Thomas More Parish, St. Paul

More post To view a slide show of the winning entries and

lan / Christmas

DECEMBER 22, 2011

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CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE child. I have since understood what Luke meant when he said Mary treasured these things in her heart.

stmas ster test

JOAN PIERCE St. John, Little Canada

A new priest for the family The greatest Christmas blessing comes every year with the celebration of our Lord’s birth, but 1997 was exceptional for the Pavlik family. All were gathered around the kitchen table eating appetizers and holiday treats in typical Pavlik fashion — talking, laughing and celebrating together, as siblings were home from out of state.

The noise was interrupted, not by Santa, but by my brother Mark announcing to us all that he was entering Mount St. Mary Seminary in Maryland and becoming a priest. For a moment there was stunned silence, and then joyous exclamations, hugs and backslapping! How exciting to look forward to a priest in the family. His journey through seminary, ordination and assignment at St. Olaf Catholic Church was our journey, too, and the Catholic community and my family continue to be blessed by our own Father Mark Pavlik. And it all started with a great Christmas blessing.

NERS

d youths in grades one to osters by completing the Christmas spirit alive all n drawing a picture. from throughout the e judged by a panel of members, who chose es: grades 1-3, grades 4-6, d grades 10-12. r artistic skill, creativity h winner receives a $50 ft card.

MARY THELL St. Alphonsus, Brooklyn Center

Many are the gifts

Teresa Mahnke Category: Grades 10-12 10th-grader, Forest Lake High School St. Peter Parish, Forest Lake

My husband, William, was in the service. He was wounded in Rome, Italy, July 1944, and came back to the States to hospital for care. We were married Oct. 16, 1944. He was discharged July 1945, and we went to farming that October.

I was pregnant and I went to the hospital in Mankato Dec. 17. I was in a single room. I went to the delivery room that night; I was put out as the baby was a breach. When I came to, I was in a double room. My partner’s name was Berniece, the same as mine. She was combing her long black hair in a white gown. I thought I was in heaven. What a feeling.

She had delivered three baby girls. She couldn’t have them in the room; they were too small. A little later, they came with my two babies, a girl 5 pounds and 6 ounces and a boy 6 pounds and 1 ounce.

The nun who took care of us would come in the morning and she would say, “How are my two lovely mothers and their five beautiful babies?”

Every day, the nuns would come down the hall singing Christmas songs. They sang so beautifully. I didn’t go home with the babies until Dec. 30. . . .

My husband, Bill, passed away Aug. 29, 2011. I will be 90 in February. We would have been married 67 years in October. I thank God for our years together and all our family. We had two more girls, 11 and 13 years later. When Christmas comes, I think of my Christmas of 1945 and go over all that happened at that time.

BERNIECE FORTIER Cleveland, Minn.

Silent night, holy night

Nadya Anderson Category: Grades 7-9 eighth-grader, St. Thomas More Catholic School, St. Paul St. Thomas More Parish, St. Paul

ters online

honorable mentions, go to THECATHOLICSPIRIT.COM.

My youngest daughter was expecting her first child on Dec. 22, five years ago. She and her husband were living in Piney Flats, Tenn., and they were preparing for an uneventful birth.

But little Maya had a difficult time coming into the world and, when she finally made her appearance, she was in trouble. Her lungs were badly compromised and the small southern hospital she was in said that if Maya were to live, she needed to be moved to where they could do a heart and lung transplant, at the age of three days.

My daughter chose Vanderbilt Hospital in Nashville, where a plane would be sent instead of a slower helicopter. I hurried to the church, where before the magnificent icon of Our Mother of Compassion I tearfully begged the Blessed Mother to put my little granddaughter into her hands and protect her.

As Maya was carried up into that Christmas sky, a very strange thing happened. Her breathing became less labored and her signs were actually showing some improvement. At this point, while flying silently in that southern sky, little Maya slowly started to breathe and the surgeon called off the heart and lung transplant operation.

While I knelt begging the Blessed Mother to put Maya into her care, my Christmas prayers were answered.

Just as God’s own son came into this world, so, too, his smallest creature would be lovingly cradled by his compassionate mother, some 2,000 years later. For nothing is impossible with God. BARBARA BRUNNER St. Olaf, Minneapolis

12

The Lesson Plan / Christmas

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 22, 2011

“Our minds are overcrowded with news and information . . . our schedules are overcrowded with things to do.

”

FATHER MICHAEL VAN SLOUN

Photo illustration by Dianne Towalski / The Catholic Spirit

MAKING ROOM FOR JESUS THIS CHRISTMAS

By Father Michael Van Sloun For The Catholic Spirit

here was no room for them in the inn” (Luke 2:7) when Jesus was born on the first Christmas. Mary and Joseph went off to a stable or a cave, off by themselves, off alone. No space was reserved for Jesus when he came. There was no hospitality, no welcome.

There was severe overcrowding in and around Bethlehem, and the local residents and visitors alike were unwilling or unable to receive Jesus when he was born.

The lack of room for Jesus is an age-old problem. There still is severe overcrowding. Our minds are overcrowded with news and information, our hearts are overcrowded with innumerable concerns, our schedules are overcrowded with things to do, the malls are overcrowded with shoppers, the highways are overcrowded with traffic, the airwaves are overcrowded with noise, electronic devices are overcrowded with messages. With so much overcrowding, we run the risk of not having enough room in our personal “inn” to receive Jesus this Christmas.

“T

If we want to have the best Christmas ever, the most important thing of all is to make room in our hearts to receive Jesus. No matter how busy we may be, no matter how much hustle and bustle may exist, no matter how many distractions and mental preoccupations may swirl about our minds, we need to set aside time and space to welcome Emmanuel, our Savior.

Spiritual balance is crucial. It is beneficial to go off alone to meditate and pray, to converse with our Messiah and Lord in silence and solitude, to ponder the profound mystery of the Incarnation, to offer hospitality and welcome to Jesus. Moments of private prayer are an urgent necessity.

Liturgical, communal prayer is also indispensable. We should plan to attend Mass on Christmas Eve, at midnight, or on Christmas day. The Mass is a beautiful way to welcome Jesus into our hearts, to receive his word in Scripture and his body and blood in the Eucharist. Jesus is the true gift of Christmas.

There are many other prayerful ways to welcome Jesus

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into the “inn” of our hearts. Some excellent options would be to read the first two chapters of Luke’s Gospel and prayerfully reflect upon his infancy narrative; say the Joyful Mysteries of the rosary; pray in front of a manger or crib scene at home or at church; listen to hymns, sacred music and spiritual Christmas carols; and pray together at the dinner table or at other times.

If we receive Jesus into our hearts, we are to become what we receive. Then it is not so much our life, but Christ living within us (see Galatians 2:20). What we have received as gift we are to freely share as gift (see 1 Peter 4:10).

After making space for Jesus, then it is time to make space for others. The greatest gift we can offer anyone is to bring Jesus to them, to be like the Blessed Mother, to be Christ-bearers, to give the present of Christ’s presence.

Father Michael Van Sloun is pastor of St. Stephen in Anoka.

Prayer must include praise, thanks The following is the Vatican text of Pope Benedict XVI’s remarks at his weekly general audience Dec. 14.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, In our continuing catechesis on prayer, we now consider Jesus’ own prayer, particularly in the context of his miracles of healing. Both the cure of the deaf man (Mark 7:32-37) and the raising of Lazarus (John 11:1-44) show us Jesus at prayer before cases of human suffering.

His prayer on these occasions reveals not only his profound identification with the suffering but also his unique relationship with the Father. In the case of the deaf man, Jesus’ compassion leads him to introduce his prayer with a deep sigh (v. 34).

In the case of Lazarus, he is deeply moved by the sorrow of Martha and Mary, and

weeps before the tomb of his friend. At the same time, he sees the tragedy of Lazarus’ death in the light of the Father’s will and of his own identity and mission.

Jesus’ example teaches us that in our own prayers we must always trust in the Father’s will and strive to see all things in the light of his mysterious plan of love. We, too, must join petition, praise and thanksgiving in every prayer, knowing that the greatest gift God can give us is his friendship, and that our example of prayer can open our hearts to our brothers and sisters in need and point others to God’s saving presence in our world.

From the Pope

The Lesson Plan / Christmas

DECEMBER 22, 2011 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

13

Inside view of Bethlehem from university vice president Christian Brother Robert Smith was born in St. Paul and attended Holy Spirit grade school and Cretin High School in St. Paul and St. Mary’s University in Winona, where he taught for many years and served with St. Mary’s Press. He served four years in Kenya before moving five years ago to Bethlehem University in the West Bank, where he is vice president for academic affairs. He responded by email to the following questions from The Catholic Spirit.

What preparations are being made in Bethlehem as Christmas approaches?

Like other major cities around the world, city workers have put up lights of angels, trees, stars! The Star of Bethlehem, which the shepherds saw in a nearby field, is one of the most well known and famous Christmas symbols and art. The number of pilgrims coming to Bethlehem to celebrate this major feast is 10 times the number of pigrims during other times of the year. Hotels and guest houses and religious communities that have pilgrim houses are full to overflowing.

The spirit is wonderful. Church choirs practice extra long to prepare for the many liturgies of the season. Bethlehem University prepares for its Christmas Eve Midnight Mass, which is filled to overflowing, and is presided over by the papal nuncio, who serves as the university’s chancellor.

or the feast day?

“It is extraordinarily special and a grace to be able to celebrate the birth of Jesus in the city where it happened, where there was ‘no room in the inn.’

”

BROTHER ROBERT SMITH

What is the overall atmosphere this year given the longstanding political tensions between Palestinians and Israelis?

I think there is a sense of hopefulness among Palestinians, not least with the vision of the potential birth of an independent state. Christmas also, in and of itself, inspires hope and promise in what is to come, in the goodness of humankind, and in prospects for the future. On the other hand, the “situation” has gone on for so long, I think many people do not find anything different because of or in light of a particular season or feast — Christian, Muslim or Jewish.

How do you celebrate Christmas in Bethlehem? Is there something particular you look forward to?

What is special is to be in the city of the Savior’s birth . . . where it all began, so to speak. It is extraordinarily special and a grace to be able to celebrate the birth of Jesus in the city where it happened, where there was “no room in the inn.” The best part of it for me is the university’s Midnight Mass and the reception we put on afterward, which is attended by hundreds of people.

Does being in Bethlehem make you think differently about the Christmas story

For sure, it makes it more “real” to me and helps me to reflect on the reality of the Incarnation in human time and space and place, and to be able to do this in the city of his birth — well, as you might say, “It does not get any better than that!”

What can people in the U.S. do to help you and the people you serve in Bethlehem?

There are many ways to be helpful and supportive of the Holy Land in general and Bethlehem University in particular: pray for peace and justice in the region; pray in a special way for the dwindling Christian minority; pray for those who suffer on all sides of the conflict.

It is also important that people become aware of the reality of what has been going on for the past 60 years in terms of the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the extraordinarily difficult circumstances and life situation of Palestinians because of it.

Work hard to get all sides of the story of the conflict. If someone is so inclined and able, contributions to the work of the university can be very helpful in practical ways: scholarships to poor students, helping to develop new programs that will keep Christians in the Holy Land and begin businesses so they do not immigrate to the West.

Cr`eches create unique view of the power of God and his love for us CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 nana peels, potato paste — all flavored with touches of the cultures of all those different countries.

The one from Norway includes a Viking who has come to worship the babe of Bethlehem.

The crèche from Hawaii is made from a coconut shell.

Palestinians have fashioned Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus out of mother-ofpearl.

From Polynesia there’s one made from the bark of a mulberry tree and tapa leaves.

A Haitian version is painted on figures cut from discarded Coca-Cola cans.

In another set, donkey and sheep are made of yarn. In still others all the animals, shepherds, Magi and the Holy Family have been crafted from cloth, sewn of beads, made of pottery, carved out of soapstone.

That’s the Eskimo Nativity from Alaska, the one with the polar bear and the seals.

There’s the ebony Joseph and Mary from the tall, tall, tall Massai tribe towering rightly over most of the others.

It’s all the fetish — no, that’s not the right word — of Father Jerry Dvorak, St. Peter’s pastor.

“Obsession? Addiction?” Father Dvorak himself suggested with a smile.

But neither of those descriptors captures what’s behind what’s become a useful hobby, one he started as a boy and has shared with people at every parish he’s been assigned to.

Creative way to teach When pushed, this priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis admits he loves collecting Nativity scenes and the power that they have to move people spiritually.

“When people see the Nativity scenes,

See a slide show featuring more Nativity scenes at THECATHOLIC SPIRIT.COM Father Jerry Dvorak poses with a Nativity scene from Italy. Also pictured are a few of Father Dvorak’s scenes on display at St. Peter in Richfield.

Dave Hrbacek / The Catholic Spirit

it opens them to a unique view of the power of God who loves us so much he sent his son, and he became one of us.

“The collection shows how Christians throughout the world respond to that love in their own artistic form.”

Amid the rush of the Advent and Christmas seasons Father Dvorak hopes people will stop at the church at 67th and Nicollet in Richfield and be reminded about the reason for the season.

Father Dvorak has seen the blessings.

“One woman last week told me, ‘This made my Christmas.’ Father Dvorak said.

“Seeing this can be a healing experience.”

Glenda Dwyer stopped by what she thought was the most unique version, a Nativity scene from France that was actual working marionettes. “What a creative way to teach children the story,” she said Husband Tim Dwyer waxed philosophical: “It strikes me that in all these the statuary is so different in different cultures, but the story is the same,” he said.

“We’re of the mind that Jesus is a part of our culture, but he’s for everybody.”

If you go What: Display of Nativity sets collected by Father Jerry Dvorak.

Where: St. Peter, 6730 Nicollet Ave., S., Richfield.

When: Now through Jan. 28; accessible after Masses and Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 8 p.m.

“Aging has changed enough that there is a lot of energy left in many of us.”

Father Ken Pierre

From Age to Age 14

The Catholic Spirit

A Catholic Spirit special section

DECEMBER 22, 2011

Tapping into wisdom and energy of retired priests

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit

In just a short time it will be 50 years since they were ordained Catholic priests.

After years of serving as pastors and teachers, after stints on commissions and boards, after taking part in or leading a host of ministries, they’ve retired — sort of.

Some day you are likely to find senior priests like Fathers Roger Carroll, Ken Pierre and Bob Nygaard up at the altar at your parish.

Some retired priests like Fathers George Kinney and Mike Slusser take a regular Mass at a parish, easing the burden of an overworked pastor.

Some “pinch hit” at a variety of parishes, allowing priests to take vacations.

Some fill in when the transfer of one pastor happens before a replacement can be named — sometimes for several months.

There are about 120 retired priests in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, and, according to Father Pierre, “Aging has changed enough that there is a lot of energy left in many of us.”

Father George Kinney presides at Mass Dec. 17 at Our Lady of Peace Home in St. Paul.

Rich vein to mine

Jim Bovin / For The Catholic Spirit

The Catholic Spirit thought these retired priests may be a relatively untapped resource of wisdom as well, so we tossed a handful of questions at a number of retired priests aiming to mine that vein of experience with the hope that all of us would benefit from hearing their stories, learning what was challenging and what was satisfying to them in the days when they were in active ministry, and inviting them to pass along some advice to those who follow in their footsteps.

Some of the priests responded to the questions via email. Others shared their thoughts in a group interview.

All were humble, questioning if they had any wisdom to share. And, they were realistic.

“I don’t know if, when I was a young priest, I was interested in hearing what an

older priest had to say,” Father Carroll said with a grin, and others around the table made similar comments.

Father Nygaard chimed in, “I remember thinking that I could do a better job than they were doing,” and Father Slusser quickly added, “It’s probably how they feel today.”

All chuckled at their own bravado back then.

A ‘Camelot’ time “Then,” for these retired priests, was the 1960s and ‘70s.

The historical highlight for them, almost to a man, was the Second Vatican Council. Raised in pre-Vatican II days in one church, they were in the seminary in 1958 when Pope John XXIII announced

his intention to bring the bishops of the world to Rome for an ecumenical council.

Ordained priests as the council was in process or just after — 1963-66 — they soon found themselves priests of a very different church than the one they had known.

“I knew I would have to retread or retire,” Father Kinney commented via email.

Around the interview table the eyes of the senior priests lit up as they spoke about Vatican II and its aftermath.

“The Presbyteral Council from 1968 to 1978 was Camelot,” Father Carroll remembered. “We got about 10 things done” — an Urban Affairs Commission that advocated for human rights, the Venezuela

mission, a residence for retired priests, to name just a few.

“It was fun!” Father Nygaard said. “Our archdiocese spawned some of the most liberal and conservative voices in the church — Clergy and Laity Concerned, the Matts and The Wanderer. There was room for everybody, especially in the priesthood.”

Time of change Several of the priests were in teaching ministries and they found themselves “teaching the council” — and teaching it to mostly eager audiences.

“We were involved in the most exciting time in the church,” Father Nygaard said.

It was a time of teaching that “the peoPLEASE TURN TO PRIESTS ON PAGE 15

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Priests find appreciation and fulfillment in new roles at parishes CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14 ple are the church,” Father Pierre added, that “the liturgy is the primary and indispensable source of the human spirit,” and that nothing that is in humanity is alien to the church.

Father Nygaard jumped in: “We were teaching this to a church out of the ‘40s and ‘50s — one that was not in touch with the broader culture because it had its own culture. And for the most part to people who were very open to it.”

“People were ready to get involved,” Father Pierre added. “Vatican II lifted the people who did the heavy lifting.”

Learning new roles Not long after the council, during the decade of the 1970s, Father Pierre was rector of St. John Vianney Seminary. “I pushed servant leadership,” he recalled.

The role of the priest was not to rule the parish or dominate parishioners but to help the community live its baptismal responsibilities.

In other words, Father Nygaard chimed in, priests are to ask lay people, “How can I help you do your job?”

Father John Parkos, responding via email, remembered the challenge of learning how to do parish decision-making by consensus rather that by Robert’s Rules of Order or an up-or-down vote.

“Voting has winners and losers,” he said. “Consensus ends up with winners and winners. With consensus no one gets everything they want, but everyone gets enough so that all parties can move ahead together. It’s a great community builder.

Senior priests offer a bit of wisdom to young priests ■ Father Ken Pierre, who for many years served as a counselor for those in ministry, urged today’s priests to make deep connections with the people they serve: “I discovered in counseling work that personal relationships are key. I think that’s true in a parish.” He suggested that priests spend as much time as possible before Mass greeting and talking with parishioners.

■ Father Michael Slusser suggested: “In dealing with people, the important thing for you is how they are doing, not how you are doing.” And he had a suggestion for priests and staff who serve at parishes that are being merged: “I think a best practice, if a parish is closing, is for the pastor and any staff to contact every parishioner personally and face-to-face, and say, ‘We don’t want to leave until we know where you are going to practice your faith when our parish closes.’”

■ Father John Parkos encouraged listening with the heart: “Deep listening is a major gift we can give to one another. Not deciding, while listening, how you will answer what is being said, but listening with the heart, for the sake of understanding and compassion with the person who is trusting you with her/his story.”

■ Father Bob Nygaard hoped today’s priests work at helping people with their spiritual needs: People say, “I’m not religious,” but may not be sure what that even means, he said. “Help them work out their holiness.”

■ Father Roger Carroll’s suggestion: “Teach people how to pray.”

■ Father George Kinney, short and sweet as usual: “Pray, pray, pray!”

■ Father Slusser added one more slice of wisdom: “The men we are teaching now [in the seminaries] are going to be subject to greater change than even my generation, so in justice they need to be equipped to the hilt to be prepared to face more change.”

— Bob Zyskowski

“At first, it is like a vacuum cleaner no one wants to buy because it is slow and laborious. But once folks learn the workings of consensus and taste its fruits, they are sold on it! And they are willing to give it the time and energy it takes, for the sake of the dialogue and the unity it creates.”

The Catholic Spirit asked the retired

priests if there was a specific pastoral experience that gave them the feeling “This is why I became a priest.”

Father Kinney’s answer was short and sweet: “When I would see parishioners take ownership of their parish and its mission.”

Father Nygaard said that it happened

for him at St. John Neumann in Eagan, “when I saw neighborhood churches forming in that parish. Neighborhoods would put together faith formation classes for their children. To see those people functioning as a true Christian community and supporting one another — it was their church.”

Father Parkos found value for himself in preaching and in administering the sacrament of reconciliation. Because people’s time is precious, he found preaching to be a privilege. “When else will people sit still to listen for this long in the course of a week? And when else in the course of a week can I join the Lord in touching so many hearts in one sitting?”

Father Parkos called the sacrament of reconciliation “a wonderful gift for any who are willing to be humble/honest with themselves and with God. To sit opposite such a person and witness how the Lord is moving in them is a wonder to behold!”

Today these retired priests say the people they serve — when they fill in for another priest — bring fulfillment.

“I feel really appreciated and affirmed when I help out at a parish,” Father Nygaard said.

Father Slusser agreed. A former college theology teacher, he’s now gone to 29 different local parishes to preside when the pastor can’t be there.

“You didn’t get much affirmation in teaching,” Father Slusser said. “College students were only worried about their grade. But I’ve experienced a lot of affirmation since coming back and celebrating Mass at our parishes.”

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From Age to Age

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 22, 2011

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What’s on the Archbishop’s mind?

Read all about it in every issue of The Catholic Spirit

Evidence of alleged Archbishop Sheen miracle heads to Rome Catholic News Service Boxes wrapped in ribbon and a happy little boy are Christmas images, but the combination had another joyful meaning Dec. 11 during ceremonies at St. Mary’s Cathedral closing the Diocese of Peoria’s inquiry into an alleged miraculous healing through the intercession of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.

“May God, who has begun this great work, bring it to fulfillment,” said Peoria Bishop Daniel Jenky after affixing a wax seal on a box of evidence gathered in the past three months by an investigative tribunal.

That evidence is on its way to Rome for consideration by the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, which is studying the cause of Archbishop Sheen, a priest of the Peoria Diocese who became an internationally known evangelist and radio/TV personality.

In a pew just outside the cathedral sanctuary, the focus of the testimonies contained in the box — 15-month-old James Fulton Engstrom — sat contentedly. James’ mother, Bonnie Engstrom, recalled sitting in the same cathedral — where Archbishop Sheen had been ordained in 1919 — a few days after James’ birth and “begging for a miracle” during a holy hour attended by family and friends.

Considered stillborn on Sept. 16, 2010, after a routine pregnancy, James was without a pulse for the first 61 minutes of his life. It was only when doctors at OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria were ready to call the time of death that his heart started beating. The doctors had warned the parents he might not be able to function normally, but they were proved wrong.

The Engstroms were familiar with the famed orator and Bonnie had asked him to watch over her pregnancy. She remembers praying to Archbishop Sheen as CPR was performed on her newborn son, and asking family and friends to seek his intercession when doctors warned James might be blind and unable to function normally after his heart began beating. Fifteen months later, James is medication-free, has just been released from physical therapy, and continues to meet growth milestones.

“A film is never really good unless the camera is an eye in the head of a poet.”

Orson Welles

Arts & Culture Exploring our church and our world

The Catholic Spirit

Endurance, heroism shine forth in ‘War Horse’

By John Mulderig

DECEMBER 22, 2011

17

Christmas Masses to air from Rome and Washington

Catholic News Service

Catholic News Service

“War Horse” (Disney) is the epic screen version of Michael Morpurgo’s 1982 novel, previously made into a successful stage play, about an English farmer’s son (newcomer Jeremy Irvine) who trains and cares for a thoroughbred horse that his father (Peter Mullan) misguidedly buys just to thwart the local squire (David Thewlis).

Despite the animal’s successful adaptation to farm work, and the lad’s emotional bond with him, at the start of World War I, the tiller sells him to an army officer (Tom Hiddleston) bound for the Western Front, thus initiating a series of adventures and trials that are, by turns, touching and harrowing.

While the intensity of the drama, the level of violence and some of the vocabulary used make director Steven Spielberg’s vast canvas unsuitable viewing for kids, mature audience members will encounter a stirring affirmation of human solidarity amid the tragedy of the trenches — a realization of shared values brought about, ironically, by the heroism and endurance of the nonhuman protagonist.

“War Horse” features considerable combat and other

The following are Christmas-related television program notes. Check local listings to confirm dates and times.

■ Saturday, Dec. 24, 3-5 p.m. (EWTN) “Solemn Mass of Christmas Eve With Pope Benedict XVI.” Vigil Mass with the Holy Father from St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

■ Saturday, Dec. 24, 9:30 p.m.-11 p.m. (EWTN) “Solemn Mass of Christmas Eve from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.” Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, apostolic nuncio to the United States, is scheduled to preside at this liturgy at the Basilica in Washington, D.C. CNS photo / DreamWorks

Jeremy Irvine stars in the movie “War Horse.”

violence, including an execution; about a half-dozen uses of crass language; and a few vague sexual references.

The Catholic News Service classification is A-III —adults.

The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Mulderig is on the staff of Catholic News Service.

■ Sunday, Dec. 25, 5-6 a.m. (EWTN) “Urbi et Orbi: Message and Blessing.” Pope Benedict XVI’s Christmas Day message to the world in celebration of Christ’s birth.

Broadcast live from St. Peter’s Square in Rome. The event will be rerun 9-10 p.m.

■ Sunday, Dec. 25, 11 a.m.-1 p.m. (EWTN) “Solemn Mass of Christmas Day From the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.” Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington is scheduled to serve as celebrant and homilist at this eucharistic celebration.

A Blessed Christmas from The Catholic Spirit BOARD OF DIRECTORS Archbishop John C. Nienstedt Dr. Dennis Brandstetter Craig Bryan Brenda Coleman Patrick Croke Sharon D’Agostino Fr. Bill Deziel Sister Kathleen Foley, CSJ Roger Green Fr. Peter Laird

Albert Maruggi Fr. Steven McMichael, OFM Patrick Mealey Mark Neuzil Christina Ries Bruce Soma James E. Stevenson Ginny Sullivan Nancy Utoft Jeff Warner Jerome Welle

SPIRIT STAFF Bob Zyskowski Joe Towalski Pat Norby John Wolszon Martie McMahon Dick Martens Mary Gibbs Julie Carroll Dave Hrbacek Dianne Towalski

Jim Graham Caron Olhoft Deb Rotter Craig Berry Michael Pytleski Chris Pierskalla Christine Rech Marilyn Rivera Jackie Daugherty

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Calendar

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 22, 2011

Dining out

Don’t miss St. Paul parish sponsors pro-life speaker

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.

Josh Brahm, director of education and public relations for Right to Life of Central California, will present “Making Abortion Unthinkable� at 7 p.m.

Jan. 12 at Nativity of Our Lord in St. Paul.

Brahm produces YouTube videos and hosts “Life Report: Pro-Life Talk. Real World Answers,� a youthoriented weekly netcast at WWW.PROLIFEPODCAST.NET. The event is sponsored by Nativity of Our Lord Catholic Church and the archdiocesan Office of Marriage, Family and Life.

Admission is free. Nativity of Our Lord is located at 1900 Wellesley Ave.

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 pancake breakfast at Transfiguration, Oakdale — January 8: 8 a.m. to noon at 6133 15th St. Cost is $7 for adults and $5 for children 6 to 12.

KC brunch at Epiphany, Coon Rapids — January 8: 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at 1900 111th Ave N.W. Volunteer contribution with proceeds to go to men and women in formation.

birth of Christ as Babushka and The Three Kings journey around the world to see the newborn baby, told through story, dance and world music. Free will offering.

Parish events

Prayer/ liturgies

7-week marriage course for married couples at St. Francis Xavier, Buffalo — Begins January 6: 6:15 p.m. each Friday evening at 300 First Ave. N.W. Course includes a candlelight dinner, practical talks, couple discussion, and no group sharing. All ages and stages are welcome. Dates are January 6, 13, 20, February 10, 17, 24, and March 2. Cost is $25 per couple for registration and books. Childcare available.

For information, call (763) 684-4075.

of Charles Avenue and Vandalia Street.

Blessing of timekeepers at St. Albert the Great, Minneapolis — December 31 and January 1: 5 p.m. New Year’s Eve and 9:30 a.m. New Year’s Day at the corner of E. 29th Street and 32nd Avenue S. Bring your Blackberry, iPhone or Android, your iPad, calendar or clock.

Sant’Egidio Community Evening Prayer at St. Richard, Richfield — every Thursday: 7 p.m. at 7540 Penn Ave. S.

Blessing of new adoration chapel with Bishop Lee PichÊ at St. Mark, St. Paul — January 1: 11 a.m. Mass at 2001 Dayton Ave. A procession will follow Mass.

Legion of Mary prayers in front of Planned Parenthood, St. Paul — Every Friday: 3 p.m. at 1965 Ford Parkway. For information, call (651) 439-9098.

Festival of Lessons and Carols: A 12th Night Celebration at St. Bartholomew, Wayzata — January 6: 7 p.m. at 630 E. Wayzata Blvd.

For information, visit WWW.ST-BARTS.ORG.

Rosary of the unborn at Pregnancy Choices LifeCare Center, Apple Valley — Every Thursday: 7:15 p.m. at 15026 Glazier Ave. For information, visit WWW.ROSARYOFTHE UNBORN.COM.

Healing Mass at Holy Name of Jesus, Wayzata — January 12: Rosary at 6:30 p.m., Mass at 7 p.m. at 155 County Road 24. Father Joseph Gillespie will be the celebrant.

‘Joy to the World: A Christmas Cantata’ at St. Patrick, Oak Grove — January 8: 7 p.m. at 19921 Nightingale St. Features orchestra and choir members from several parishes.

Pie social to follow.

Knights of Columbus traveling rosary at St. Bernard, St. Paul — December 25: 2 p.m. at 187 W. Geranium.

‘Our Gift of Song’ at the Basilica of St. Mary, Minneapolis — January 8: 2 p.m. at 88 N. 17th St. An Epiphany celebration of the

KC Rosary for Life on the feast of the Holy Innocents outside Planned Parenthood, St. Paul — December 28: Noon at the corner

HOLY H OLY LY LAND LAND PILGRIMAGES LA PIIL LGRIM MAG M MA AG AGES Is this the year that you walk in the footsteps of Jesus and Apostles?

Holy Land and Mt. Sinai

Holy Land and Egypt

Easter in the Holy Land

France

Greece and Turkey

Prayer/ Singles Sunday Spirits walking group for 50-plus

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) 4250412.

School events Open house at Benilde-St. Margaret School, St. Louis Park — January 9: 6 p.m. at 2501 Highway 100 S. For students entering grades 7 to 12. For information, visit WWW.BSMSCHOOL.ORG. Open house at Holy Name of Jesus School, Wayzata — January 10: 7 p.m. at 155 County Road 24. For students entering preschool through grade 6. For information or to RSVP, call (763) 473-3675.

Other events ‘The Trial of Ebenezer Scrooge’ Christmas play at Open Window Theatre, Minneapolis — December 27 to 30: 7:30 p.m. at 1313 Chestnut Ave. For information, call (651) 955-9123 or visit WWW.OPENWINDOWTHEATRE.ORG. 10th annual Catholic Apologetics Conference at All Saints, Lakeville — January 7: 1 to 4:30 p.m. at 19795 Holyoke Ave. Featured speaker is author Peter Kreeft. Advanced registration is required by Dec. 31.

For information, visit WWW.NOMENSANCTUM.ORG or call (651) 216-4734.

2011 Catholic Spirit Christmas Basketball Tournament

Holy Land and Mt. Sinai

Italy

Holy Land and Mt. Sinai

Join Fathe t r Da avid v Wa athe the t n, OFM, An experienced pilgrim ma age leader

FIRST ROUND — WEDNESDAY, DEC. 28 3:00 p.m. — Holy Angels vs. Minneapolis Southwest 4:45 p.m. — Wayzata vs. Totino-Grace 6:30 p.m. — Hill-Murray vs. Providence Academy 8:15 p.m. — Cretin-Derham Hall vs. St. Agnes

THURSDAY & FRIDAY, DEC. 29 & 30 • 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.

H Holy oly Land Land Franciscan Franciscan Pilgrimages Pilgrimages BBringing ringing ng pilgrims to to the Holy Holly Land Land ffor or o oover ver er 100 yyears ears e www.HolyLandPilgrimages.org w ww.HolyLandPilgrimages.org

Anderson Athletic Complex, University of St. Thomas Cretin and Summit Avenues, St. Paul

19

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • DECEMBER 22, 2011

Merging communities grateful to continue worshipping in home church CONTINUED FROM PAGE 4 Vincent de Paul since 2004, said the Hmong people are grateful for all the archdiocese has done to allow them to function as the Hmong Catholic Community.

“The Hmong don’t want to lose their identity and if they were at the Cathedral totally, their identity would be lost and people would not feel at home,” Deacon Yang said. “Throughout the world, St. Vincent has been known as the Hmong parish and that would be sad to see that go away.”

The 100-family parish is glad that it will continue to celebrate Sunday Mass and host activities at the St. Vincent building.

In fact, Father Johnson said St. Vincent is investing money from its savings to make building repairs.

New life in Minneapolis In Minneapolis, Father George Kallumkalkudy, CMI, said the people at St. Austin have changed their attitudes about the merger decision.

“People thought by Jan. 31 this [church building] would be closed,” said Father Kallumkalkudy, St. Austin pastor. “Right now, they have been assured that this place is not going to be closed immediately.”

Saturday evening Mass will be celebrated in St. Austin Church and Sunday morning Mass will be celebrated at St. Bridget Church. Also, Tuesdays and Thursdays, Mass will be celebrated at St. Austin and the other weekdays at St. Bridget.

Although the parish will be known as St. Bridget, most of the grieving St. Austin parishioners who appealed the merger decision to the Vatican have taken a new

‘Rosary for Love and Life’ set for Dec. 28 outside Planned Parenthood

turn. St. Austin’s appeal was officially turned down by the Vatican in October.

During a fruitful all-parish meeting with archdiocesan representatives at St. Bridget Dec. 12, the people were able to get answers to their questions, he said.

“In the future, this community [may] realize it can’t afford keeping these two places,” Father Kallumkalkudy said. “One place may be chosen and the other might be closed or they will find some other use for that.”

Father Anthony Criscitelli, TOR, who will continue to be pastor of St. Bridget as a combined parish, said parishioners are “creating a new community.”

Throughout the Advent weekend liturgies, two people from each parish have brought a light from the respective sanctuaries to light the wreath in the other church.

“When we do that, we pray that we might recognize the many ways that Christ desires to be born in us,” Father Criscitelli said. “We’re focusing on the fact that Christ desires to be born in this new parish community.”

Each parish has about 200 families, though many of St. Austin’s parishioners live in nursing homes, Father Criscitelli said.

A combined transition committee has been meeting regularly since November to discuss ways to integrate the ministries and social activities and all aspects of parish life into the one new St. Bridget parish, Father Criscitelli said.

“I am happy to say that after kind of a bumpy start, we are on the right track,” he said.

Father Kallumkalkudy said, “I think the Holy Spirit is very active and he is bringing everything to the right conclusion.”

A “Rosary for Love and Life” will be prayed at noon on Wednesday, Dec. 28, the feast of the Holy Innocents, outside the new Planned Parenthood at Charles Avenue and Vandalia Street in St. Paul. Abortions are performed in the The building. The prayer Catholic Spirit gathering is sponsored by the Knights of Columbus, St. Paul Council 397. For information, call Vaughn Gralla at (651) 739-1833.

News Notes

Help for India Patrick Mendis, a member of St. Peter Claver in St. Paul, recently returned to his birthplace in Sri Lanka to meet with Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, archbishop of Colombo, and discuss the school scholarships established by Mendis and his late grandparents, who built Holy Rosary Church in Polonnaruwa. Less than 8 percent of the 20 million people in Sri Lanka are Roman Catholic, so most of the children receiving scholarships are from Buddhist families, Mendis said. Bishop Norbert Andradi of the Anuradhapura-Polonnaruwa archdiocese wrote: “These scholarships represent a good legacy of Dr. Patrick Mendis and his continued appreciation of his late grandparents, the pioneers of the church and the preservers of the Catholic faith.”

Toys for needy children Sixth-graders at St. Joseph School in West St. Paul raised $1,015 for Toys for Tots by selling candy canes. The students’ families donated the candy canes, which the students sold at the school. The toys purchased with the money were included in a procession

during a school Mass Dec. 16, then donated to the Toys for Tots Program for distribution to needy children in the community.

KCs help family after fire You’ll have to forgive Kerrie Davis if she mistakes local Knights of Columbus members for Christmas elves, but after the Rosemount and Farmington chapters joined forces to donate nearly $5,000 to help rebuild her home lost in a fire, it’s easy to see why.

A kindergarten teacher at St. Joseph Catholic School in Rosemount, Davis and her husband Mark lost their cars and nearly all of their belongs in the fire, which consumed their home in Farmington on Nov. 4. With the help of family and neighbors, the family has received a few items of clothing. They also found temporary housing, but the timing couldn’t have been worse so close to the holidays.

That’s when the elves in the guise of local Knights of Columbus members got involved. The Farmington Knights of Columbus Council 2400 and the Rosemount Knights of Columbus Council 5569 both scheduled pancake breakfasts in December to assist the family. The two councils raised $4,924, which they presented to Davis at the Rosemount Knights’ monthly meeting Dec. 19 at St. Joseph Catholic Church.

Davis said she has recovered only a handful of family photos. She said the family intends to rebuild the home.

Donations are still being accepted at the St. Joseph Church Parish office, 3900 Biscayne Avenue West, Rosemount, MN 55068, (651) 423-1658, attention Paula Krekelberg.

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“It looks kind of like the tsunami hitting.”

Joe Curry, country representative in the Philippines for Catholic Relief Services, speaking in the wake of flash flooding that left at least 650 people dead and tens of thousands homeless in northern Mindanao

Overheard 20

The Catholic Spirit

Quotes from this week’s newsmakers

“When the economy fails to generate sufficient jobs, there is a moral obligation to help protect the life and dignity of unemployed workers and their families.”

Pope tells prisoners God loves them

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service

Pope Benedict XVI told inmates at a Rome prison that people say nasty things about him, too, but it’s important to remember that there are other people ready to offer their love and support.

During a visit Dec. 18 to Rome’s Rebibbia prison, the pope gave a short speech and then responded to questions from six of the inmates gathered in the prison’s Church of Our Father.

Federico, an inmate from the prison infirmary, which includes men who are HIV positive, told the pope that people say “ferocious things” about the inmates. “We have fallen and hurt people,” he told the pope. “We have lost our freedom, but we ask you to help ensure we don’t lose our dignity.”

The pope told the inmates, “In my family,” the papal household, there are four consecrated laywomen from the Memores Domini branch of Communion and Liberation. They have friends in the prisons, the pope said, so the sufferings, needs and concerns of inmates are a frequent topic of prayer and conversation in the papal apartments.

As for those who are not so understanding, the pope said, “we must put up with people who speak about us in a ferocious way. They speak ferociously about the pope, too, and yet we keep going forward.”

Delivering a simple message In his prepared talk to the inmates, dressed in street clothes with most wearing sweatshirts, some with hoods, Pope Benedict said, “I’ve come simply to tell you that God loves you with an infinite love.”

Citing the Gospel of Matthew, the pope said that “wherever there is a hungry per-

DECEMBER 22, 2011

— Bishop Stephen Blaire of Stockton, Calif., chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, in a Dec. 12 letter to members of the U.S. House of Representatives

“Today more than ever we need authentic witnesses, and not simply people who parcel out rules and facts: We need witnesses capable of seeing farther than others because their life is so much broader.”

— Pope Benedict XVI, in his message for the World Day of Peace Jan. 1, with its theme, “Educating Young People in Justice and Peace”

CNS photo / L'Osservatore Romano via Reuters

An inmate greets Pope Benedict XVI during his pastoral visit to Rebibbia prison in Rome Dec. 18.

son, a foreigner, a sick person or a prisoner, there is Christ himself who is awaiting our visit and our help.”

While human justice and divine justice obviously are different, he said, those who mete out justice on earth have an obligation to ensure that prison terms respect an inmate’s human dignity, promote restitution to the victims and society at large, and prepare the inmate to leave prison as a responsible member of society.

Pope Benedict said he knows overcrowded prisons make it even more difficult to maintain the dignity of the prisoners, and governments must do more to alleviate the situation so that it does not become a

IRE L AND: the other

Holy Land

“double sentence” for the inmates.

Hearing the poor Nwaihim Ndubuisi, an inmate from Africa, told the pope that he had watched his November visit to Benin in Africa, where the people are full of faith, but quite poor. “Does God only listen to the rich and powerful?” he asked the pope.

“No,” said the pope. In fact, seeing the faith and joy of the people of Benin made him think that “in rich countries joy often is absent. We are all so worried about so many problems,” he said. “With the mass of things we have, we seem to be further from ourselves and from the experience that God exists and is close to me.”

“I see my appointment as recognition from the bishops of the work that women are doing in this part of the world.”

With Father Dennis Dempsey

SISTER HERMENEGILD

— Sister Hermenegild Makoro, a member of the Missionary Sisters of the Precious Blood, on her appointment as the new secretary-general of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference

The Spons Cat ored hol by ic S piri t

September 21 — October 2, 2012 For further information, please contact:

Martie McMahon The Catholic Spirit Phone: 651-291-4441 mcmahonm@archspm.org Also go to: TheCatholicSpirit.com/ExploreIreland