Meet Focolare 6 • Pope to visit Congress 9 • St. Odilia on stage 18 February 12, 2015 Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis
thecatholicspirit.com
A look at the life Religious communities promote vocations with open houses By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit
Ddifferent
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Bob Schwiderski, right, talks with Timothy O’Malley, archdiocesan director of ministerial standards and safe environment following a Jan. 29 healing service. Dave Hrbacek/ The Catholic Spirit
The Church of St. Paul in Ham Lake held its second prayer service for victims/survivors of sexual abuse by members of the clergy Jan. 29, led by Father Tim Norris and Bob Schwiderski. Former state director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, Schwiderski once had a contentious relationship with local Catholic leaders, but now thinks the archdiocese is on the right track. — Story on page 5
Standing by a table spread with books, prayer cards and tiny Blessed Teresa of Kolkata holy medals, Sister Mary Tessilina, a Missionary of Charity, playfully draped an edge of her iconic, blue-striped sari over 22-year-old Anna Romportl’s forehead. For a moment, the college senior caught a glimpse of herself as a veiled member of the order. A parishioner of St. Michael in Stillwater studying at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, Romportl is discerning a vocation to religious life, she said, which is what drew her Feb. 8 to Minneapolis’ Phillips neighborhood to the converted apartment building to see how the Missionaries live, work and pray. The Missionaries were among 10 religious communities in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis that participated in a nationwide Day of Open House with Religious, sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations, and the nation’s three religious leadership conferences. In the archdiocese, communities opened their doors to the public for three hours Sunday afternoon. The Missionaries invited their visitors to spend time in eucharistic adoration before joining them in a room with a long table, chairs and Please turn to SISTERS on page 5
ALSO inside
Intentional dating
It’s good to give
Funding good works
New book offers advice from UST’s “love doctor.”
Is almsgiving an often overlooked aspect of Lent? — Pages 12-13
2015 Catholic Services Appeal: Where does the money go? — Pages 15-17
— Page 8
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“Clearly in the West, going over 20 minutes seems like too much. But in Africa, 20 minutes isn’t enough because people travel a great distance to hear the word of God. . . . How to nourish the people of God depends on the culture.” Guinean Cardinal Robert Sarah, head of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, speaking at a Vatican news conference Feb. 10 to present the congregation’s new Homiletic Directory, which provides guidance to bishops, priests and deacons on preparing and writing their homilies.
NEWS note • The Catholic Spirit WORLD DAY FOR CONSECRATED LIFE From left, Sister Mary Kathleen Roth, Mother Marie-Andre Wilson and Sister Mary Helena Valliere, Sisters of Charity of Our Lady Mother of the Church; and Sister Mary Loveth Emecheta, an Immaculate Heart of Mary, Mother of Christ sister, receive blessed candles as part of the celebration of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord at a Feb. 2 Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul, where more than 100 religious sisters, brothers and priests renewed vows of consecrated life. Dave Hrbacek / The Catholic Spirit
See the local Catholic world through The Catholic Spirit lens: Follow on Instagram Catholics have a new place to turn for interesting Catholic visuals and timely news, and to see how others live the faith around the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The Catholic Spirit is now sharing photos and news on Instagram, a free smartphone app that allows users to snap photos, add artistic touches and share them with the world. Follow @TheCatholicSpirit. Also, during Lent, use the hashtag #SpiritOfLent on Facebook (facebook.com/TheCatholicSpirit), Twitter (@TheCatholicSpirit) and Instagram to share how you live Lent through community meals, retreats, recollections, prayer or acts of service.
from READERS Crashed Ice foiled march [As] we set out for the pro-life prayer service at the cathedral [Jan. 22], we were unable to attend because all the streets leading to the church were blocked off. We believe the Crashed Ice project was the cause of this, and are upset that the church endeavors to promote this intrusive sporting event at the loss of participating in the pro-life march. Abortion is a hideous blot on our society, and the yearly march is vital for bringing together people who are trying to bring about change in the law. I don’t know what the future holds, but there are those who want to see this sporting event held each year at the time of the pro-life march. May God forgive them their ignorance and restore the archdiocese’s influence in promoting pro-life. SCHOOL SUPPORT Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general and moderator of the curia for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, talks with Mimi Palen-Clare, a founding board member of Faithful Shepherd School in Eagan and member of St. John Neumann in Eagan, during the school’s Gala for Giving Jan. 31, where the school announced the establishment of the Father Charles V. Lachowitzer Educational Endowment. The fund will be invested in perpetuity at the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota to benefit the school’s tuition, financial aid programs and general operation. The parishes of St. Thomas Becket in Eagan, St. Peter in Mendota and St. John Neumann combined resources to help build the school, which opened in 2000. Before being appointed vicar general in October 2013, Father Lachowitzer was pastor of St. John Neumann and served as president of Faithful Shepherd’s board of directors and as its canonical administrator. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit
See pictures of Catholic art, events, people and more — follow @TheCatholicSpirit on Instagram. Why ashes on Ash Wednesday? Father Michael Van Sloun, pastor of St. Bartholomew in Wayzata, explains. Watch the video at youtu.be/gyPq6ISk1nw.
The Catholic Spirit is published bi-weekly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 20 — No. 3 MOST REVEREND JOHN C. NIENSTEDT, Publisher ANNE STEFFENS, Associate Publisher
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Father John Ubel, Cathedral of St. Paul rector, responds: At this year’s Prayer Service for Life, every single seat in the cathedral was filled. Navigating for parking is always a challenge in the limited space on Cathedral Hill, and I sincerely regret if someone felt that they had to turn back. This year, numerous buses dropped off participants on Selby Avenue, directly in front of the doors, though due to the large number of buses, there were certainly some delays. At the suggestion of the organizers of the event (and provided to us free of charge), additional shuttle buses dropped people off at the Cathedral, enabling them to conveniently access their cars following the MCCL [Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life] Rally at the State Capitol. We’ll continue to try to maximize the opportunity for people to attend this vitally important event in the future.
Open dialogue for healing
WHAT’S NEW on social media
United in Faith, Hope and Love
Karen Klemond, St. Columba, St. Paul
MARIA WIERING, Editor
(From Facebook Feb. 2, on a post to “Abuse victims share stories at Ham Lake parish,” also on page 5 of this issue.) I wish all parishes would host this type of thing. As Catholics we need to talk about this. This is our chance to take on the hard stuff rather then keep it in the dark. We can heal as a Church from the abuses but it is going to take open dialogue and creating safe places for survivors of childhood sexual abuse. If we do this right we can give the survivors the justice they deserve and grow as a people. Elizabeth Sullivan, St. Mary, Stillwater
Materials credited to CNS copyrighted by Catholic News Service. All other materials copyrighted by The Catholic Spirit Newspaper. Subscriptions: $29.95 per year: Senior 1-year: $24.95: To subscribe: (651) 291-4444: Display Advertising: (651) 291-4444; Classified Advertising: (651) 290-1631. Published bi-weekly by the Office of Communications, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, 244 Dayton Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102 • (651) 291-4444, FAX (651) 291-4460. Periodicals postage paid at St. Paul, MN, and additional post offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Catholic Spirit, 244 Dayton Ave., St. Paul, MN 55102. TheCatholicSpirit.com • email: catholicspirit@archspm.org • USPS #093-580
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ext Wednesday, Feb. 18, we embark on our annual 40-day Lenten journey. As we do so, I think it is helpful to remember that the culmination to these 40 days is not Good Friday, but Easter. God is indeed asking us to die to self and to resist temptation, but the reason behind these actions is to clear out more space in our hearts for him and for his grace. Our prayer, fasting and almsgiving are not ends in themselves. They are not ways to prove our strengths or increase our skills, but rather opportunities to become more fully alive in Christ, more able to reveal his love to the people around us. The early Church fathers thought that fasting needed to be connected to almsgiving. St. John Chrysostom wrote that fasting without almsgiving was hardly praiseworthy. In fact, he went on to compare it with gluttony or drunkenness, since it THAT THEY MAY smacked of selfishness. St. Augustine believed ALL BE ONE that fasting was avarice unless the person gave Archbishop away what had been saved. Fasting needs, John Nienstedt
then, to be reformed by charity and not simply the desire for spiritual perfection. Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are necessarily interrelated: Prayer awakens our compassion and makes us more prepared to be generous in our almsgiving. Fasting aids our prayer by reminding us of our dependence on God, as well as allowing us to save resources that can be given to the poor. Almsgiving helps us to imitate Jesus in his poverty and free us from a materialistic attitude that can result from our consumerist culture. Ash Wednesday and Good Friday are, for everyone from 18 to 59 years of age, days of universal fasting and abstinence. Fridays in Lent are days of abstinence from meat. But these requirements are just the minimum. Voluntary fasting on other days can make us more conscious of the millions of others in the world who suffer from involuntary hunger. Daily Mass, where possible, is also an excellent way to focus on God’s word and to fortify us through the reception of holy Communion to go forth with a renewed determination to see Christ in others. Fasting and abstinence need not apply just to food or drink, but can involve abstaining from smoking, immoderate use of the internet, excessive time watching television or the use of social media. Someone even suggested fasting from family arguments as a way of achieving greater peace at home. CRS Rice Bowl, sponsored by Catholic Relief Services, offers a very concrete and
practical way to pray, fast and give alms. Placing the rice bowl on the family table reminds us to think about and commend to God the more than one billion people who suffer daily from hunger. It also serves as a receptacle for containing the money that a family saves by eating a simple, meatless meal in order to be donated to CRS at the end of Lent. Last year, Catholics raised more than $8 million through CRS Rice Bowl. Seventyfive percent of these collected funds went to alleviate hunger and to support poverty projects in 40 countries. The other 25 percent stayed in the United States to support local food shelves and soup kitchens.
From the Archbishop
Lenten practices opportunities for fuller life in Christ
The first Preface for Lent refers to its own 40 days as a “joyful season when we prepare to celebrate the Paschal Mystery with mind and heart renewed.” As you prepare for Ash Wednesday, keep in mind this spiritual mission statement and begin to formulate practical goals to make it come true. God bless you!
OFFICIAL His Excellency, the Most Rev. John C. Nienstedt, has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. Effective February 15, 2015 • Reverend Brian Lynch, appointed parochial administrator of the Church of Our Lady of the Prairie in Belle Plaine. This is a transfer from his previous appointment as parochial vicar at the Church of Saint Mary and the Church of Saint Michael in Stillwater.
Oportunidades de prácticas cuaresmales para una vida más plena en Cristo El próximo miércoles, 18 de febrero, nos embarcamos en nuestro camino cuaresmal anual de 40 días. Creo que es útil recordar que la culminación de estos cuarenta días no es el Viernes Santo, sino el Domingo de Pascua. Dios ciertamente nos invita a morir en nosotros mismos y resistir la tentación, pero la razón detrás de estas acciones es hacer más espacio en nuestros corazones para Él y para Su gracia. Nuestra oración, el ayuno y la limosna no son fines en sí mismos. No son maneras de probar nuestras fortalezas o aumentar nuestras habilidades, sino más bien oportunidades para estar más plenamente vivos en Cristo, ser capaces de revelar su amor a la gente que nos rodea. Los primeros padres de la iglesia pensaron que deberíamos conectar el ayuno a la limosna. San Juan Crisóstomo escribió que ayunar sin dar limosna no era algo digno de alabanza. De hecho, llegó a compararlo con la glotonería o las borracheras, puesto que es muestra de egoísmo. San Agustín creía que el ayuno era avaricia, a menos que
la persona regalara lo que había sido ahorrado. La necesidad del ayuno, entonces, debe de ser reformada por la caridad y no simplemente por el deseo de la perfección espiritual. La oración, el ayuno y la limosna están necesariamente interrelacionados: la oración despierta nuestra compasión y nos hace estar más dispuestos a ser generosos en nuestra limosna. El ayuno ayuda a nuestra oración al recordarnos nuestra dependencia de Dios y nos permite ahorrar recursos que se pueden dar a los pobres. La limosna nos ayuda a imitar a Jesús en su pobreza y nos libra de una actitud materialista que puede resultar de nuestra cultura consumista. Miércoles de ceniza y Viernes Santo son, para todas las personas de 18 a 59 años de edad, días de ayuno universal y de abstinencia. Los viernes de Cuaresma son días de abstinencia de carne. Pero estos requisitos son sólo mínimos. El ayuno voluntario en otros días puede hacernos más conscientes de los millones de personas en el
mundo que sufren de hambre involuntaria. La Misa diaria, en lo posible, también es una excelente manera para centrarse en la palabra de Dios y para fortalecernos a través de la recepción de la Sagrada Comunión para ir hacia adelante con una renovada determinación de ver a Cristo en otros. El ayuno y la abstinencia no solamente se necesitan aplicar a los alimentos o bebidas, sino que puede implicar abstenerse de fumar, el uso excesivo de internet, pasar un tiempo excesivo viendo televisión o usando los medios sociales. Alguien sugirió incluso ayuno de discusiones familiares como una forma de lograr una mayor tranquilidad en el hogar. La campaña del Plato de Arroz, patrocinado por Catholic Relief Services (Servicios Católicos de Ayuda), ofrece una manera muy concreta y práctica para orar, ayunar y dar limosnas. Poner la caja de la campaña del Plato de arroz en la mesa familiar nos recuerda en pensar y encomendar a Dios a más de un billón de personas que sufren
diariamente de hambre. También sirve como recipiente destinado a contener el dinero que ahorra una familia por una comida sencilla sin carne, para ser donado a CRS al final de la Cuaresma. El año pasado, los católicos recaudaron más de $ 8 millones a través de la Operación Plato de Arroz. Setenta y cinco por ciento de estos fondos recolectados fueron para aliviar el hambre y apoyar proyectos contra la pobreza en 40 países. El otro 25% se quedó en Estados Unidos para apoyar a los lugares locales que ofrecen alimentos y comidas. El primer prefacio para la Cuaresma se refiere a sus propios cuarenta días como “una temporada alegre que nos prepara para celebrar el Misterio Pascual con la mente y el corazón renovado”. Mientras usted se prepara para el Miércoles de Ceniza, tenga en cuenta esta declaración de esta misión espiritual y comience a formular objetivos prácticos para hacerla realidad. ¡Que Dios te bendiga!
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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ArchSPM lists assets, creditors in court filing By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis filed a listing of assets and creditors Jan. 30 with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Minnesota. Among those assets are the Cathedral of St. Paul, the chancery and archbishop’s residence, a church building in Minneapolis and three tracts of land that host three Catholic high schools. The court required these filings 14 days after the initial petition for Chapter 11 Reorganization. The archdiocese filed for Reorganization Jan. 16. “This disclosure is part of the process that we hope will facilitate “I pray that the all available archdiocesan Reorganization corporation resources to be process distributed equitably among continues to victims/survivors and allow the move this local archdiocese to Church forward continue essential ministry,” on the journey Archbishop John Nienstedt said in a toward restoring statement. According to trust and healing the filed documents, the for us all.” archdiocese owns the Cathedral and Archbishop John its rectory, which Nienstedt it has been leasing to the Cathedral parish under a long-term lease. As part of the lease agreement, the Cathedral parish maintains the
building, pays utilities and other expenses related to the building use, and funds any necessary improvements to the property. The value of the Cathedral building is listed as unknown.
School property The archdiocese also owns the land upon which sit Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School in St. Louis Park, DeLaSalle High School in Minneapolis and Totino-Grace High School in Fridley. It also leases the land to the schools as part of longterm lease agreements. According to the filing, “no realizable value is assumed” for the properties. The high schools pay for all maintenance, operation, utilities and improvements on the properties. The chancery building and archbishop’s residence at 226 Summit Ave. are connected, and the filing lists them as a single building valued at nearly $6.3 million. Additional chancery offices are housed nearby in the Hayden Center and the Dayton Building, which are also listed in the documents as having values of $2.4 and $1.4 million, respectively. Other real property assets include the Church of Gichitiwaa Kateri in Minneapolis, home to the archdiocese’s Office of Indian Ministry, and a residence in Northfield. Among personal property assets listed are books, documents, artwork and other Church-related items, including historic pectoral crosses, crosiers and bishops’ rings. The filing also lists values of cash, checking and savings accounts, office furniture, vehicles and other equipment.
Parish co-debtors Listed in the documents as codebtors are 18 parishes, two Catholic high schools and a nursing home. In these cases, the entities entered into loan agreements where the archdiocese is a guarantor. When the archdiocese filed for Reorganization, its leaders emphasized that parishes and schools are not included in the filing. The documents also list all people, businesses or organizations the archdiocese has paid in the past 90 days. “The information contained in this report is the result of our daily work to support the mission of the Catholic Church,” Archbishop Nienstedt said, adding that the finances are reviewed by Thomas Mertens, the archdiocese’s chief financial officer, as well as the Archdiocesan Finance Council, whose members are primarily lay professionals. The numbers reflect the archdiocese’s status as of the filing date of Jan. 16. As The Catholic Spirit previously reported, Archbishop Nienstedt and other archdiocesan leaders met with pastors, other parish leaders and school principals Jan. 25-27 to discuss the Reorganization and answer questions. “These are necessary steps of transparency and accountability and essential in finding some measure of justice for those harmed by clergy sexual abuse,” he said. “I pray that the Reorganization process continues to move this local Church forward on the journey toward restoring trust and healing for us all.”
Archdiocese discloses additional names in the interest of accountability The Catholic Spirit On Feb.11, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis disclosed the names of four men who have substantiated claims against them of sexually abusing a minor. These names are listed below. A substantiated claim is one for which sufficient evidence exists to establish reasonable grounds to believe that the alleged abuse occurred. It is not a presumption of guilt. The full list of names disclosed by the archdiocese of men who have substantiated claims against them of sexually abusing a minor can be found at SafeCatholicSPM.org, under Accountability.
Michael Bik Date of birth: 1949 Date of ordination: 1993 Bik’s assignment history (here as a lay teacher, not assigned as a priest): • Teacher and director of worship, St. Stephen, Anoka, 1971-1984 • Teacher, St. Odilia, Shoreview, 1971-1984 Diocese or religious order: Order of St. Benedict, St. John’s Abbey Date permanently removed from ministry: 2002 Disclosed names continued on page 10
Archbishop answers FAQs on assets, creditors and potential property sales By Archbishop John Nienstedt For The Catholic Spirit
Q. Did the archdiocese create organizations like the CSAF to protect its assets from creditors during the Reorganization process? A. No. The Catholic Services Appeal
Foundation (CSAF) is a non-profit organization founded in 2013 to fund particular Catholic ministries. The basis of the formation of the foundation was to honor the intent of the donors. Donations are dedicated specifically to those specific ministries. The CSAF is similar in structure to other non-profit Catholic organizations such as the Catholic Community Foundation (founded in 1993), the Catholic Finance Corporation (founded in 2000), and the Aim Higher Foundation (founded in 2011). All of these organizations are separate from the archdiocese. You can read more about the work the CSAF does on pages 15-17.
Q. What documents were filed with the court on Jan. 30? February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
A. The Archdiocese of St. Paul and
Minneapolis submitted to the bankruptcy court a schedule of the archdiocesan corporation’s assets, liabilities and creditors (in other words, a list of what it owns and what it owes) and a comprehensive statement of its financial affairs. This disclosure is part of the process that will allow available archdiocesan corporation resources to be distributed equitably among victims/ survivors [of clergy sexual abuse] and allow the archdiocese to continue with essential ministries.
Q. I noticed parishes and schools have been disclosed as some form of creditors on this list. How does the recent submission to the court affect parishes and schools? A. The submission of schedules in and of itself does not affect parishes, schools or other Catholic entities. These schedules simply show that some parishes and schools are creditors or potential creditors and/or have other financial interactions with the
archdiocesan corporation. A creditor is a party that has a claim to the assets, including payment for services provided or goods delivered.
Q. There are several parishes that
are listed as co-debtors. What does that mean?
A. These parishes took out loans for various capital projects and improvements, and the archdiocese agreed to be a guarantor (similar to a co-signer for a loan). If the parish continues to make its loan payments to the bank that issued the loan, the archdiocese should not be affected and parish business should proceed as usual. Q. Is the archdiocese considering selling some property? A. That is a possibility. Property that
could potentially be sold is the Chancery building, the Hayden building and the archbishop’s residence in an effort to decrease operating costs and use all available resources to help
those affected by clergy sexual abuse while continuing the mission of the Church.
Q. During Reorganization, are the benefits of lay employees at my parish or the health or pension benefits of my pastor affected? A. No. The court has determined that during the course of Reorganization, all archdiocesesponsored benefits programs will continue as they have before the filing for Reorganization. Q. What is the status of the mediation? A. It is under way and ongoing. The archdiocese is working collaboratively with all parties to find a fair and equitable resolution for victims/ survivors of clergy sexual abuse while continuing to carry out the mission of the Church in our communities.
5 Continued from page 1 information about religious vocations. Mikaela Gaworski, an eighthgrader at St. Joseph School in West St. Paul, said she knew “a little bit” about the Missionaries of Charity, but went to their open house to learn more after hearing about the event at a Feb. 7 vocations-focused NET Lifeline event (see page 6). “I like it here,” she said. “I just want to know what my options are.” Peggy Gaworski sat at her daughter’s side. Several of her children are considering religious life, she said, but as a parent, she neither “encourages nor discourages” a religious vocation, she said. “I just want God to lead,” she said. “The last thing I want is for somebody to become a priest or a sister because of my influence, and it not to be the right calling. . . . It’s up to God.” The Missionaries of Charity approached their open house with a similar spirit. Sister Davis Kuruppseary, the local superior, said they hoped the open house glorified God and inspired their visitors to do God’s will, whether or not it led them to join their community. “It’s not what we do and what we say, it’s that many answer the call of Jesus,” she said. Five miles away, Visitation Sisters
Religious orders throughout the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis hosted open houses Feb. 8. At left, Tom Bengtson of Holy Family in St. Louis Park visits the Visitation Monastery of Minneapolis with his daughters Paula, second from right, and Catherine. They talk with Visitation Sisters Mary Frances Reis, left, and Karen Mohan. Below, Cecelia Romportl, left, and her sister Anna of St. Michael in Stillwater visit with Missionaries of Charity Sister Mary Tessilina and Sister Davis Kuruppseary. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit opened the doors of their north Minneapolis monastery to guests, chatting with them over cider and cookies. Visitors included several people not discerning religious life. John and Dori Wozniak, 64-year-old parishioners of St. Joan of Arc in Minneapolis who live nearby, saw the open house as a way to meet the sisters for the first time and learn more about their outreach. The Minneapolis monastery is one of constant invitation; neighbors stop by daily looking for conversation, household items and prayers. It also attracts young women considering religious life; the day
before, they hosted a 30-year-old discerning God’s call. “Opening our doors is very natural,” said Visitation Sister Katherine Mullin, the community’s vocations director, adding that some women seek them out just to know religious sisters. “It’s in relationship that young women will find the community that they are called to, whatever that is,” she said. Other local communities hosting open houses were the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, Stillwater; Franciscan Brothers of Peace, St. Paul; Franciscan Clarist Congregation, Vermillion; Franciscan Sisters of Little Falls,
Local
Sisters: Open houses focus on God’s call
Minneapolis; Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, Buffalo; Missionary Sisters of St. Peter Claver, Woodbury; Order of St. Clare, Bloomington; and Pro Ecclesia Sancta, St. Paul.
Abuse survivors share stories at Ham Lake prayer service By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit A little girl, around age 10, squints in a black-andwhite photo. She wears short hair with bangs, and a blouse with a pointed collar. She does not smile. The photo passed from person to person in the chapel of the Church of St. Paul in Ham Lake, where about 50 people gathered Jan. 29 to pray and listen to victims/ survivors of child sexual abuse share their stories. It belonged to Connie, a 59-year-old survivor who described being raped by her parish priest around age 9. The photo was taken of her sometime after she was victimized. When Connie looks at it, she sees a struggling child, she said. “That little girl didn’t have a choice to say no,” she said. Connie, who did not provide her last name, was one of a half-dozen victims of child sexual abuse who spoke at the prayer service. Besides opening hymns, a Scripture reading and prayer from Father Tim Norris, St. Paul’s pastor, the two-hour event was unstructured. People took turns sharing, either from their seats or a podium with a microphone, next to the popular image of Jesus offering his divine mercy. The prayer service was the second the church has held for victims/survivors of sexual abuse by members of the clergy. The first was in May, after the parish sent “spiritual bouquets,” a collection of notes of support and prayers, to abuse victims/survivors. Among the recipients was Bob Schwiderski, then state director of the Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests. The gesture inspired him to reach out to Father Norris, and they organized the first evening of prayer, sharing and reconciliation. Among those in attendance was Father Charles
A Mass for healing The Church of St. Paul in Ham Lake is hosting “A Light Shines in the Darkness: A Mass for Healing, Reconciliation and Hope” Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. Bishop Lee Piché plans to celebrate the Mass. Lachowitzer, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ vicar general and moderator of the curia. Father Lachowitzer returned for the Jan. 29 event, accompanied by Timothy O’Malley, the archdiocese’s director of ministerial standards and safe environment, who is responsible for archdiocesan compliance with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. Schwiderski spoke several times about healing and the importance of all victims/survivors sharing their stories. Two of the victims/survivors who spoke Jan. 29 were abused by family members, not members of the clergy. “Sexual abuse is a crime of silence, and if you don’t break the silence, it continues to eat,” Schwiderski said.
Lost trust Connie’s husband stood by her side as she shared memories of her childhood before she was assaulted. Reading from notes, she described her parents opening their home to their parish priests, including meals. The priest who abused her, she said, used to walk in her house at dinnertime, grabbing a plate from the cupboard before joining the family of 10 at the table. This priest asked if she’d play hide-and-seek, Connie said, a game that led to him binding and raping her in a vehicle parked in the parish garage. Her brothers, she said, were also molested by the priest, who was allowed in their bedroom to “wrestle.”
“Being molested by a priest changes who you are. Every aspect of your life. You live with fear and doubt,” she said. “It’s like a tape that plays over and over in your brain.” She discovered the priest who abused her and her siblings was accused of abuse in a prior parish, but her family did not know it, she said. Like many victims/survivors of clergy sexual abuse, Connie no longer attends Mass. She belongs to a nondenominational church in Victoria, she said. Another victim/survivor described losing his faith completely after being abused by a religious sister. “I have no faith. I have no trust. I’m totally void,” he said. Several victims/survivors felt doubly victimized when Church leaders didn’t believe their stories, or suspected Church leadership not investigating, or covering up, abuse allegations. Although not an abuse victim/survivor, Mary Beth Barbato, a parishioner of St. Paul, shared that she grieves the trust she has lost in priests because of the abuse scandal. She fears having her children around priests, and that fear hurts, she said. The scandal, however, has not shaken her faith in the Catholic Church. “Jesus is in the holy Eucharist,” she said, “and I just want it [the Church] to be cleaned.” Another participant said that whenever he sees a priest or religious brother, he can’t help but think, “What about them?”
Moving forward Near the end of the two-hour prayer service, Father Norris apologized on behalf of the Church, and for his Please turn to PRAYER on page 23
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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6 NET Lifeline event promotes religious vocations Archbishop John Nienstedt greets eighthgraders from St. Raphael in Crystal, including Sarah Ashmore, front left, Noah Lundeen and Jacob Ranning, during a NET Ministries Lifeline event Feb. 7 at the NET Center in West St. Paul. The event focused on religious vocations and included Mass celebrated by Archbishop Nienstedt. The eighth-graders at St. Raphael spent the day on retreat at the NET Center, ending with the Lifeline event. Dave Hrbacek/ The Catholic Spirit
Focolare members united by desire to love God, neighbors By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit As a young college graduate considering the priesthood in the 1970s, Emery Koenig saw an ad from the international Catholic movement Focolare offering a concerete way to live out the Gospel. He didn’t enter the seminary, but found in Focolare a tangible way to love God and his neighbor while uniting with others sharing the same goal. More than 35 years later, Koenig and his wife still find encouragement in the teachings and members of the
movement, whose founder is now being considered for sainthood. “It’s just become such a core part of our family, how we tried to live, how we tried to love each other and all the ups and downs of everyday life,” said Koenig, who attends St. Joseph in Waconia. The Koenigs are part of the Twin Cities’ branch of Focolare, an international movement started in 1943 by Italian laywoman Chiara Lubich. Its members decide as individuals to love God and neighbor at all times with a communitarian spirit, said Jo-Ellen Karstens, a Focolare leader based in Chicago.
Sainthood cause begins Catholic News Service Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement, “lit a new light in the Church’s journey toward unity,” Pope Francis said. In a message to hundreds of people gathered in the cathedral of Frascati, Italy, Jan. 27 for the formal opening of Lubich’s sainthood cause, Pope Francis expressed his hope that “the shining example” of her life and activity would strengthen Focolare members’ faith and commitment to building up the unity of the Church and friendly relations with members of other religions. Lubich, who was born in Trent, Italy, in 1920, founded the Focolare Movement with a few friends during World War II, inspired by Jesus’ words “that they all would be one.” Gradually, the women decided to form a community and share everything they had with each other and with the poor. The movement now has more than 2 million members and associates in 192 countries and a strong focus on building positive relations with people of other faiths.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Ecumenical brotherhood Focolare’s 2 million members and associates in 182 countries are mostly Catholic, but include Protestants and nonChristians seeking to promote unity among Christians and universal brotherhood with all others. The movement is called Focolare — Italian for “fireplace”— because it aims to warm hearts with the fire of love. Members point to Mary as the movement’s inspiration, as they wish to bring Jesus to the world as she did. They are involved in schools, business, social work, publishing and art, Karstens said. One of the oldest 20th century lay movements, Focolare has been recognized in the Church for its “charism of unity,” she said. Colleen Biver, a member of
Nativity of Our Lord in St. Paul, grew up in Focolare and embraced it as an adult. After college, she worked for the movement in the Philippines with her husband, Michael, before settling in St. Paul. The couple continues to practice the spirituality as they raise their two children, she said. “It’s something that becomes a reality as I try to live that out on a dayto-day basis with my children, my husband and other moms I come in contact with,” she said. “Just simple ways of [answering] ‘How do we live this faith every day? . . . How do I help this mom that might need help with her toddler?’” Biver said the movement helped her understand the Catholic faith on simpler terms. Koenig said Focolare has given him a deeper understanding of who God is. “There are many experiences we’ve had of trying to love our neighbor, trying to love God, and [asking] how do we begin to understand the will of God for our lives in each present moment?” Members join — without a formal application — to give their life meaning, increase their relationship with God and put that into practice, Karstens said, adding that they do go through a formation process. Members aren’t encouraged to actively evangelize Focolare members of other faiths, but to “be an island of unity and peace” in their particular faith, she said. Focolare members have created 33 permanent environments called “Mariopolises,” or “Cities of Mary,” where they live the movement’s teachings on love together. One in Hyde Park, N.Y., has 60 residents. Annual conferences, such as one in April that drew 500 people to Valparaiso, Ind., are also considered Mariopolis models.
Up to 25 people — some from St. Cloud and Eau Claire, Wis., — gather at the Koenigs’ home seasonally to build community and share how they’re loving God and neighbor. Many are Catholic, but Muslims also have attended, Koenig said. The group encourages new members by word of mouth, but it isn’t actively building a large community, he said.
Simplifying laity’s quest Ecclesial movements in the Church — it’s unclear how many exist — are attempting to invent a new way of being Catholic in the Church and in the world beyond traditional boundaries of clergy and lay person, said Massimo Faggioli, an assistant theology professor and director of the Institute for Catholicism and Citizenship at the University of St. Thomas. They’re helping simplify the laity’s quest for a more active role in the Church, he said. Focolare’s global reach and femaleonly leadership (stemming from its emulation of Mary) are unique, he said. According to the movement’s general statutes, its president must always be a woman. A lay leader who died in 2008, Lubich started Focolare during World War II with friends who read the Gospels together in an air raid shelter. The opening of her canonization cause, which was formalized Jan. 27 at a Mass in Frascati, Italy, is a confirmation for the movement’s life, spirit and charism, Biver said. Karstens agreed. “It’s a tribute to her [Lubich’s] effort through the years to share this spirit.” For more information about Focolare, visit www.focolare.org or email midwest@focolare.us.
7 By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit David Rinaldi insists he’s not a marriage or parenting expert, but he does have years of experience working with Catholic teens and young adults as part of West St. Paul-based NET Ministries. For almost two decades, he has helped to train young adults eager to begin NET’s yearlong evangelization efforts, and he hears them describe the roots of their vibrant faith. Many point to their parents’ strong Catholic faith and the witness of love-filled marriages, he said. A popular local Catholic speaker, Rinaldi, 47, was one of two keynote speakers featured at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Newly Married Retreat Feb. 7 at St. Charles Borromeo in St. Anthony. He and his wife, Linda, have been married 12 years and have three boys, ages 11, 8 and 5. The family attends St. Joseph in West St. Paul. Evangelization’s importance — in the home and beyond — is central to Rinaldi’s keynote presentation on married couples as evangelists, and a separate workshop, “Raising Kids to Love Jesus.” “In marriage, we are told we have to focus on us, and that it’s about our family, or our marriage. That’s good, we have to focus on those things,” he said. However, he added, Catholics need to use their marriage to reach others. He roots his view in Pope VI’s 1975 apostolic exhortation “On Evangelization in the Modern World,” which influenced Pope Francis’ recent exhortation, “The Joy of the Gospel.”
“Since marriage reflects the relationship between Christ and his Church, the power the couple can have to evangelize is powerful,” Rinaldi said. He links evangelization to God’s command in Genesis that Adam and Eve — an icon of married couples — be fruitful and multiply. “Usually we only think of ‘multiply’ as children, but we have to build the kingdom, and we do that individually, but we also do that as a couple,” he said. Although some shy away from considering themselves “evangelizers,” Catholic couples are called to spread the Gospel, he said, to their neighbors, their family and their children. He shared five ways Catholic couples can do that in their daily lives.
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Live an authentically Christian life.
“When people see you as a married couple, they need to see people who love God,” Rinaldi said. “They’re going to watch you when you lose your car, lose your job or — God forbid — you lose your child. Do they see people of hope?” He gave the example of a family he knew that exuded hope, although the husband was battling cancer. “Without even saying the name of Jesus, they’re witnessing that they have this faith, this trust, or this hope in something bigger than themselves. When people see us, they should see us growing in the image of God,” he said. Demonstrating other virtues, such as temperance with food or drink, can also be part of that witness, Rinaldi said. “It’s witnessing
through your daily activity that my life is no longer my own. I belong to Jesus.”
2
Pray for opportunities to reach out to people.
Catholics should ask God for the chance to “be an evangelist,” Rinaldi said. “I’m not going to go around and talk to all my neighbors or all the people at Sam’s Club, ‘Let me tell you about Jesus,’ but I just pray, ‘Lord, give me an opportunity if you want me to share the Gospel,’” he said. Rinaldi looks for ways to mention Jesus or his faith in everyday conversations, and prays for help discerning how and when. He also prays for the courage to do it, he said.
3
Cultivate a “kingdom perspective.”
Catholics shouldn’t separate their “Christian life” from their “regular life,” Rinaldi said. “We cannot compartmentalize our lives from our Church life to our bowling life,” he said. “We only have one life.” Cultivating what Rinaldi calls a “kingdom perspective” draws on “the idea that we’re not of this world, and that our home is in heaven. We’re here on earth as an ambassador,” he said. “You’re a missionary whether you work for 3M, or you work in a parish, whether you’re a stay-at-home mom, or you work in a factory.”
4
Extend yourself in relationship with other people.
Before Catholics start talking about Jesus with their neighbors, Rinaldi recommends that they get to know them first. “Before sharing the Gospel, become the person’s
friend,” he said. “Be a family of hospitality, or [if] you know the lady next to you got a divorce, take her to lunch.” Rinaldi thinks social media use has actually driven people to make fewer real connections, and shouldn’t be a substitute for friendship. “Get off the social media and be social,” he said.
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Local
Retreat keynote: Married couples should ‘preach at all times’
Preach the Gospel at all times, and use words.
There’s a well-circulated quote attributed to St. Francis: “Preach the Gospel at all times, and if necessary, use words.” Rinaldi said he’s seen it misapplied to justify the attitude of “I’ll just live a good life, and I won’t talk about Jesus.” “It’s always necessary to use words,” Rinaldi said. Catholics need to share that the source of their peace, joy and hope is Jesus, he said. Sole appeals to apologetics or debates about Church teaching aren’t enough, he added. “You can argue all day long . . . but it won’t get anyone to understand God’s love,” he said. To learn about events for married couples in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, call the Office of Marriage, Family and Life at (651) 291-4488.
Well-Read Mom conference relates literature to life By Jessica Trygstad The Catholic Spirit What people read and how they read it matters, according to Marcie Stokman, because in the advent of eReaders, we’ve “out-sourced our spatial memory to Google.” Stokman’s message to attendees of the third annual Well-Read Mom conference Jan. 31 at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul urged them to re-engage words on paper in order to have an intellectual experience. “Our reading patterns and comprehension are different with digital reading,” Stokman said. “It’s more efficient and faster, but we lose deep-reading capacity.” Stokman, who lives in the Diocese of Duluth where she founded the Well-Read Mom book club in 2012, said women need to “reclaim time to read the best.” Through Well-Read Mom, that’s done through accountability and meaningful literature. Great literature, Stokman said, allows us to “stop to think about life . . . and helps us realize that we’re not alone.” Each year, Well-Read Mom book clubs — nearly 200 across 36 states and five countries with roughly 900 women — designate a literary theme to delve into classic and spiritual works from the Western and Catholic tradition. This year’s “Year of the Spouse” selections include: • “Hannah Coulter” by Wendell Berry • “Pride and Prejudice” by Jane Austen • “Lilacs and the Long Ago” by Mary Lavin
• “The Secret Diary of Elizabeth Leseur” by Elizabeth Leseur • “The Betrothed” by Alessandro Manzoni • “Hound of Heaven At My Heels” by Robert Waldron • “The Jeweler’s Shop” by Karol Wojtyła (aka St. John Paul II) • “Anna Karenina” by Leo Tolstoy
Relating through reading At the conference, presenter Raffaella Mariani, a native of Milan, Italy, who now resides in Rochester, reflected on Manzoni’s “Betrothed,” a 19th-century novel set in Milan. The novel gave insights into her own life as a wife and mother of four. “We are women with different stories on different journeys,” Mariani said, “but united in faith. We are here because of one man. That’s the beauty of the Christian people.” Beth Nelson, Stokman’s daughter who helps organize
Well-Read Mom, also related to the novel. While reading “The Betrothed” in her son’s hospital room after his tonsillectomy/adenoidectomy, she came upon the line: “He who gave you so much joy is everywhere; and he never disturbs the happiness of his children, except to prepare for them a surer and greater happiness.” “This was so beautiful to read as my heart was feeling torn apart seeing my sick son in his hospital crib,” Nelson said. “I started crying, and then it really helped me face my day in the hospital with Henry. Knowing that first and foremost, the reason I was experiencing so much pain was because I had been given this joy, which is my son, and trusting that [God] was working out the details of this ‘disturbance of my happiness.’”
Thoughtful discussion Rita Busam, 33, who is expecting her fourth child, has been in a Well-Read Mom group for two years. “It’s really great to read great literature and discuss with other women,” said Busam, a parishioner of St. John the Evangelist in Little Canada. She said that after college, she lacked the opportunity to get together with like-minded women for thoughtful discussions in a low-pressure setting. In addition to the classics, she has enjoyed reading contemporary works, such as “Hannah Coulter.” They meet monthly in St. Paul. Women can find local groups through Well-Read Mom at wellreadmom.com. Also, the organization has partnered with St. George Catholic Books and Gifts in Blaine for an online store, also at wellreadmom.com.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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Want Valentine’s Day tips? The ‘love doctor’ is in By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit Looking for love on Valentine’s Day? Well, it might help to start with a definition of what true love is — or should be. University of St. Thomas psychology professor John Buri, known on campus as the “love doctor,” has tried to answer that question in his recently-published book called “Intentional Dating: When You’re Ready to Leave Behind the Liars, Losers, and Lemons — 15 Keys to Finding Love for a Lifetime” (Tate Publishing, November 2014). He hopes to help many young adults not only get the definition of love right, but use that knowledge to choose the right person to marry and enjoy many years of wedded bliss. Buri wastes no time getting to what he believes is the heart of the matter. The very first sentence in the book’s first chapter reads: “Marriage is difficult.” If he could get just one point across to those either in a romantic relationship or desiring one, it
would be that true love involves work. The bottom line for him is that making a marriage last is as much about effort as it is about emotions. He would know. He has been married for 42 years to his wife, Kathy. They have six adult children, all married, and have 10 grandchildren, with one on the way. He has spent four-plus decades working at building a strong marriage — and teaching others about it — and he says the process should start long before the vows are exchanged. Hence, the dating process is crucial. “The idea of the dating process is making it a more intentional process, so that we’re more careful in the decisions that we make,” he said. “So much of what goes on in the dating world today is really just a pursuit of fun, a pursuit of enjoyment. And, that doesn’t allow us to actually have our eyes open and our ears open and actually watch for and listen for the true indicators of the person we’re actually with.
University of St. Thomas psychology professor John Buri holds a copy of his book about dating. Dave Hrbacek/ The Catholic Spirit
“So, it needs to be a much more intentional process,” he added. “It has to involve both the head and the heart. Love’s got to involve both. It can’t simply be something that we fall into. There have to be some choices in the process.” The good news is there are some time-tested, research-proven ways to do just that. And, it can start on any person’s next date. In fact, Buri has a suggestion for the perfect Valentine’s Day date. Part one is simple, but critical — stay away from all electronic devices and media for the entire date. No cell phones, ipads, movies or video games. In short, no entertainment. And, to make it even more radical, no music in the car while driving. After all devices are turned off, it’s time for part two — conversation. Buri says this is where people can really find out the truth about each other. A way to get this started is to bring a list of deep questions to ask one another. He found one set in a most unusual place — The New York Please turn to BURLIS on page 23
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House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, announced Feb. 5 that Pope Francis will address a joint meeting of Congress Sept. 24. The pontiff’s “historic visit” would make him the “first leader of the Holy See to address a joint meeting of Congress,” Boehner said in a statement, adding that he was “truly grateful that Pope Francis has accepted our invitation.” Boehner noted that “in a time of global upheaval, the Holy Father’s message of compassion and human dignity has moved people of all faiths and backgrounds. His teachings, prayers, and very example bring us back to the blessings of simple things and our obligations to one another.”
Assisted suicide is legal in only four states currently, but several other jurisdictions are considering passing legislation to legalize the practice. If there is a saving grace, it is that no federal legislation to enshrine physician-assisted suicide in law is planned. Actually, two previous federal laws addressed assisted suicide, according to Richard Doerflinger, associate director of the U.S. bishops’ Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities. A 1997 law called the Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act “keeps federal money out of all assisted suicide,” Doerflinger said. When Oregon established its assisted suicide law, the state “had to create an entirely separate account with state funds,” he added. The other law is the more recent Affordable Care Act, passed in 2010. “We have pro-life problems with the Affordable Care Act, but this is one of the victories,” Doerflinger told Catholic News Service. There is a provision in it that prevents state or local governments receiving federal funds to implement the law from withholding funds from those individuals or institutions which refuse to participate in assisted suicide. The state on most people’s radar screen on the issue is the nation’s largest, California. The Golden State was the home of Brittany Maynard, who moved to Oregon last year after she discovered she had terminal cancer. She intentionally chose a state where physicianassisted suicide was legal. The California bill resembles the Oregon law approved by voters there in 1994 — and reaffirmed three years later — but with significant differences. Oregon’s Death With Dignity Act has a conscience clause that allows doctors to refuse to participate in assisted suicide, but California’s does not, Doerflinger said. The Oregon law also has a clause that mandates referral for psychological counseling if either of the two doctors examining the dying patient suspects the patient is mentally ill or suffers from impaired judgment. About 3 percent of all Oregonians examined by doctors required such a referral. “Apparently, California thought 3 percent was too many because they’ve removed that requirement,” Doerflinger said, as the bill only has doctors refer patients for psychological evaluation “as appropriate.” “So I guess the 3 percent will go down to zero percent,” he added.
International issue Stephen Napier, a consultant to the National Catholic Bioethics Center, said a similar phenomenon has taken place in the Netherlands, which began the whole movement toward assisted suicide. It was a common practice there long before it was legalized with certain conditions. But he cited a study that showed Dutch laws becoming “less and less strict. They used to be really strict before.” Napier added, “You talk about the genie getting back in the bottle. . . . Now, nonvoluntary euthanasia is permitted.” In addition to the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Colombia allow assisted
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suicide — and now Canada. On Feb. 6, the Supreme Court unanimously struck down the Criminal Code of Canada’s ban on physician-assisted suicide for mentally competent but suffering and “irremediable” patients. The decision does away with most provisions in law prohibiting assisted suicide. In the United States, besides Oregon, Vermont and Washington state have legalized assisted suicide by referendum; in Montana a 2009 court ruling legalized it. Oregon’s statute is the only one with a conscience clause for health care professionals. In New York, the Disability Rights Legal Center filed a suit Feb. 4 to give state residents the right to end their lives. A bill patterned after Oregon’s also has been introduced. After Maynard died in November, backers of assisted suicide pledged to introduce bills legalizing the practice in 13 states. They might not have reached that goal — yet. In addition to New York, Maryland, Wyoming and Pennsylvania recently introduced assisted suicide bills in their states. The issue has already been debated in four New England states — Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine and New Hampshire — according to Compassion & Choices, which backs assisted suicide. The state House in New Jersey passed an assisted suicide bill in January with the minimum 41 votes needed to send the bill to the state Senate. Gov. Chris Christie, a potential entrant in the 2016 Republican presidential nomination derby, has vowed to veto the bill. The District of Columbia Council also has had a bill introduced that would legalize assisted suicide. Councilwoman Mary Cheh is the sole sponsor of the bill, adding she had been hoping to introduce it jointly with another council colleague four years ago. But that colleague is now off the council, which is still two members shy of its full complement of 13 until a pair of special elections April 28.
A slippery slope? North Carolina, Utah and Wyoming abolished a common-law prohibition on assisted suicide, according to an analysis conducted last year by the National Catholic Bioethics Center. In these instances, assisted suicide is not specifically criminalized. An Ohio Supreme Court ruling in 1996 decriminalized assisted suicide, but the National Catholic Bioethics Center pointed to an 1872 Ohio case that may indicate that assisted suicide is banned by common law. In New Mexico, a state court ruled in January 2014 that terminally ill, mentally competent patients have the right to get a doctor to end their lives. But that ruling has been put on hold pending an appeal. States where assisted suicide is banned by common law are Alabama, Massachusetts, Nevada and West Virginia. Massachusetts voters also rejected an assisted suicide referendum. All other states have laws prohibiting assisted suicide. “I’m inclined towards dystopia,” Napier said, of his concern for the U.S. “I’m inclined toward thinking that, to the extent that there’s no other philosophical idea that’s preventing the idea of self-determination. There’s no brake pedal on that idea in our culture.”
Pope to address Congress
U.S. & World
Assisted suicide making way in states, courts
VATICAN CITY
Accountability is key concern for pope’s child protection commission Bishops who do not comply with the child protection norms adopted by their bishops’ conferences and approved by the Vatican must face real consequences, said Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley of Boston, president of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors. The commission, he said, “is very, very concerned about this whole area of [bishops’] accountability” and has a working group drawing up recommendations for Pope Francis. The proposed new norms, the cardinal told reporters at the Vatican Feb. 7, “would allow the Church to respond in an expeditious way when a bishop has not fulfilled his obligations.” “We think we have come up with some very practical recommendations that would help to remedy the situation that is such a source of anxiety to everybody” on the pontifical commission, he said. The recommendations will be presented to Pope Francis. The cardinal and members of the commission, which includes survivors of clerical sex abuse, spoke to reporters at the end of their Feb. 6-8 meeting at the Vatican. Peter Saunders, a survivor and commission member, said, “Bishop accountability is most definitely something that is a concern and central to some of the work that is going to be carried out by the commission.” — Catholic News Service
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Pope: Farmers must care for a vulnerable earth Catholic News Service Farmers must find a delicate balance between reaping the precious gifts of the earth and protecting them for future generations, especially given the threat of climate change, Pope Francis said. At the same time, the ongoing problem of poverty and hunger affecting such “a vast part” of the world demands that today’s “system of food production and distribution be rethought,” he told delegates to a national conference of Italians who own or work on farms, ranches and commercial fisheries. Pope Francis met Jan. 31 with members of Coldiretti, an Italian trade group that promotes agricultural education and lobbies to protect agricultural land and promote farmfriendly policies. Cultivating and caring for the earth go hand in hand, he said, but “every farmer knows well how much it has become more difficult to cultivate the earth at a time that accelerated climate change and extreme weather events are ever more widespread,” he said. He said the question was “how to continue to produce good food for everyone’s life when the stability of the climate is at risk” and when the air, water and the soil become polluted. Nations need to realize how urgent it is to collaborate and take “prompt action” to take care of creation, he said. The Second Vatican Council reminded people about the “universal destination of earthly goods, but in reality, the dominant economic system excludes many from their just fruition,” he said. The precedence given to “the rules of the market,” the culture of waste and other factors contribute to the suffering and misery of many families, he said. The major challenge today is to promote “low impact agriculture” so that “our cultivating the earth is also caring for it at the same time,” which is the only way future generations will be able to continue to live, he said. Farming is a “real and true vocation” that should receive the kind of recognition and respect it deserves, he said.
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Disclosed names continued from page 4 Current location: Collegeville Current status: Permanently removed from ministry
James Robert Murphy Date of birth: 7/7/1937 Date of ordination: 1977 Murphy’s assignment history: • Assistant pastor, St. Raphael, Crystal, 1977-1981 • Assistant pastor, Immaculate Conception, Faribault, 1981-1983 • Pastor, St. Lawrence, Faribault, 1983-1989 • Volunteer chaplain, Bethlehem Academy, Faribault, 1981-1989 Diocese or religious order: Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis Date permanently removed from ministry: 1990 Current location: Phoenix, Ariz. Current status: Permanently removed from ministry
James Namie
Date of birth: 8/27/1925 Date of ordination: 1954 Namie’s assignment history: • Assistant pastor, St. Rose of Lima, Roseville, 1954-1957 • Assistant pastor, St. Anthony, Minneapolis, 1957-1961 • Parochial administrator, St. Anthony, Minneapolis, 1961-1962 • Assistant pastor, St. Mark, Shakopee, 1962-1964 • Assistant pastor, Holy Family, St. Louis Park, 1964-1965 • Parochial administrator, Holy Family, St. Louis Park, 1965-1966 • Assistant pastor, Immaculate Conception, Columbia Heights, 1966-1969 • Pastor, St. Peter, Mendota, 1969-1970 • Released from his responsibilities at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to work as a Maronite Rite priest, 1970-1995 Diocese or religious order: Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis; Eparchy of St. Maron of Brooklyn Date permanently removed from ministry: Removed from active ministry in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1970; permanently removed from ministry in 1995 Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 2010
Raimond Rose Date of birth: 1933 (born Charles Anthony Rose) Date of ordination: N/A (religious brother) Rose’s assignment history: • Teacher in Catholic high schools, including: – DeLaSalle High School, Minneapolis (dates unknown) – Pacelli High School, Stevens Point, Wis. (dates unknown) – Cretin High School, St. Paul, 1968-1972 – Archbishop Rummel High School, Metairie, La., 1972-1976 – Shanley High School, Fargo, N.D., 1976-1980 – Archbishop Rummel High School, Metairie, La., 1980-1981 – DeLaSalle High School, Concord, Calif., 1981-1983 • Dunrovin Retreat Center, Marine on St. Croix, early 1970s • Chaplain, Minnesota Correctional Facility, Red Wing, 1994-1998 Diocese or religious order: Brothers of the Christian Schools Date permanently removed from ministry: 2002 Current location: Unknown Current status: Permanently removed from ministry
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Despite best efforts to provide accurate information, disclosures may include some errors or omissions. The archdiocese requests that anyone with additional information or corrections call (651) 290-1618.
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Lent
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Forty years ago, CRS Rice Bowl was born as a way for Catholics in the United States to respond to the famine in Africa. Eventually, this evolved into a Lenten tradition that brought us together as one Church and one human family. Today, CRS Rice Bowl helps us to reach around the world and around the corner to share Christ’s light with our brothers and sisters living in poverty. It is a way for us to practice our faith for Lent and for life. Lent is a time for us to focus (or refocus) on Jesus. Our Christian tradition encourages three ways to deepen our faith in Jesus and his way: prayer, fasting and almsgiving. Prayer anchors us in God’s loving presence. Fasting detaches us from our passing hungers for the feast that will truly satisfy our hungry hearts. And almsgiving shares our gifts so that others may flourish. CRS Rice Bowl provides a way to live out these Lenten practices for loving God, letting go and growing closer together as one human family. This year, parishes, schools and families once again have the opportunity to live their Lenten journey by participating in CRS Rice Bowl. What is new is the variety of resources, stories and
“One of our primary goals is to help Catholics live out their missionary call that comes through baptism.” Deacon Mickey Friesen, director of the archdiocesan Center for Mission
activities to help deepen the Lenten journey. Here in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the Center for Mission oversees the CRS Rice Bowl program. The Center for Mission coordinates missionary activities in the archdiocese and serves as the local contact for Catholic Relief Services. One of our primary goals is to help Catholics live out their missionary call that comes through baptism. CRS Rice Bowl animates how that mission reaches around the world and around the corner. Seventy-five percent of the alms given to CRS Rice Bowl will go to Catholic Relief Services to support overseas humanitarian aid projects to lift up those in poverty in more than 100 countries.
Deacon Friesen is director of the archdiocesan Center for Mission.
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Twenty-five percent will stay here in the archdiocese to support three programs of Catholic Charities that serve the hungry and most vulnerable: Dorothy Day Center in St. Paul, the Opportunity Center in Minneapolis and the Northside Child Development Center in North Minneapolis. Lent is a season to open ourselves to Jesus and his way. CRS Rice Bowl can be a way to practice the faith as we reach around the world and around the corner to love and serve Jesus and one another. For more information about CRS Rice Bowl, visit www. crsricebowl.org.
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Follow on February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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‘Servant of the poor’: Almsgiving First in a three-part series
choose to give their lives to others who need help doing that,” he said.
By Jessica Trygstad The Catholic Spirit
During Lent, almsgiving is significant because it’s a practice that would naturally occur in a time of penance, Froula explained. And it’s especially important, he said, because some sins are based on greed and selfishness.
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very Tuesday, Sister Dorothy Struzinski makes consecutive stops at two Woodbury Starbucks locations in the Chevrolet Suburban she worked hard to raise money for. But rather than leaving with coffee in hand, she crosses items off a list while her companion, Cindy Vindedahl, carries a large container of pastries out the door after thanking the shops’ employees for the donation.
GIVE FAST PRAY LIVE LENT
As the Little Sisters of the Poor’s official beggar, it’s imperative that Sister Dorothy stick to her pick-up schedule in order to feed about 100 residents at the Little Sisters of the Poor Holy Family Residence in St. Paul.
Throughout the week, additional stops at Country Hearth, Wholesale Produce Supply, Byerly’s and elsewhere allow her to supply the groceries sought by the nursing home’s chef, Scott Nielsen. Ultimately, the food Sister Dorothy collects determines Nielsen’s weekly menu. “That’s one of the bigger challenges I’ve had as a chef,” said Nielsen, who has been in the food industry for 30 years, and at Holy Family Residence for three months. “It’s like [the Food Network TV show] ‘Chopped’ every day. The stuff that comes in, you never know . . . it’s the mystery basket. So, I’ve been able to be flexible.” By nature of its foundress, St. Jeanne Jugan, the order depends on the generosity of others for everything, government funding sources aside. For necessary equipment and utilities to the salaries for staff members including Vindedahl, the Little Sisters use funds they receive from general donations, foundations and a variety of other sources. “We can’t say enough about our benefactors,” said Sister Dorothy, who begins each food run with prayers for those benefactors, the community at large and the residents. “We wouldn’t be able to survive without them.” The congregation’s approach to caring for
Editor’s note: This issue, The Catholic Spirit launches a three-part series on the three basic pillars of Lent: almsgiving, fasting and prayer. In honor of the Year of Consecrated Life, each feature will include members of religious communities who are deeply living out these spiritual practices all year long.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
“It really is an essential part of Christianity; it’s not optional. It has to do with the most fundamental Christian virtue, which is charity and love of God.” John Froula, assistant professor of theology at the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity
those in need with the fundamental belief in divine providence serves a greater purpose for humanity, Sister Dorothy explained. “The idea of begging is an apostolate; it helps the laity to practice charity,” she said. “It all begins with the relationships you build with people every day.” Begging for the sake of people’s livelihood means never turning down a donation. When the sisters receive gifts of stock, they sell it in order to comply with their rule of never accepting permanent forms of income. When they receive hay, they use it for harvest or Nativity decor. And when they have an abundance, they share it with other charities, including the Franciscan Brothers of Peace in St. Paul. “When you look around and see people who need food to eat, you can’t look away from that,” Sister Dorothy said. Upon entering the congregation, Sister Dorothy prayed that her responsibilities would never include begging. Now, she loves meeting the people in the community who sustain the Little Sisters’ mission.
A pillar of Christianity Whether they realize it, and Catholic or not, every benefactor of the Little Sisters of the Poor is giving alms, a biblical tradition from the Old Testament that is woven throughout the New Testament and pronounced in the Church during Lent. John Froula, assistant professor of theology at the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity and a parishioner of the Cathedral of St. Paul, said there’s the traditional notion of almsgiving — giving to those who are in material need — but the practice extends further to include those who dedicate their lives to others through vocations and giving time, talent and treasure to the Church. “The general idea is you help those who either can’t help themselves or those who
“If Lent is a time of conversion and turning to God, it’s an especially intense time to focus on God instead of other things,” he said. “One way to do that is by giving them away. Lent is a time to spiritually prepare for Christ’s resurrection. So, coupled with prayer — communication with God — and fasting, which can be done in remembering those in need, [almsgiving] can help us turn to God.” Froula said that over time, the basis of almsgiving has remained the same: Those who are able should give to those in need. “It really is an essential part of Christianity; it’s not optional,” he said. “It has to do with the most fundamental Christian virtue, which is charity and love of God. In a society where we tend to reward excellence . . . it might be forgotten that we’re more stewards.” He added: “Spiritual benefit does happen, but really, the motivation is for love of neighbor.”
Servants of the poor Father Bob Hazel, former pastor of St. Joseph in New Hope and Plymouth, said almsgiving is the most overlooked spiritual practice of Lent perhaps because it takes the most effort. “Traditional Church teaching is prayer, fasting and almsgiving. It does not say prayer or fasting or almsgiving; it includes all three,” Father Hazel said. “If that were the case, we’d all pick prayer, because that’s the easiest.” To Father Hazel, not only is almsgiving about supporting favorite charities, but also “digging a little deeper” and “getting our hands dirty.” He believes everyone can do something. “Giving to the poor can help you experience community,” said Father Hazel, who, since retiring eight years ago has been heavily involved with Cross Catholic Outreach, a Florida-based relief and development ministry that provides for the poor across the world. “This is a place where Catholics can learn, because the typical Catholic outreach is to say, ‘We’re doing something new,’ or ‘We’re having a Mass.’ But before you have the Mass, you have to build the community. The heart of evangelization is
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a push toward generosity, community building community. Then, you can celebrate your togetherness in Jesus.” What’s more, Father Hazel said, is recognizing Christ’s teaching that reaching out to the poor includes those who are poor in spirit. “The poor are those who are suffering,” he said. “In the U.S., we try to define the poor by income levels, but this doesn’t involve the full scope.” And while many people might not know what a poor spirit looks like, almsgiving is about “stretching ourselves.” “We know how to give to our children, our family, people we like,” Father Hazel said. “We’re stretching out to people who we don’t know and who we might not like.” To help him remember this, Father Hazel keeps a quote from St. Vincent de Paul in his pocket, a tradition carried over from his father:
You will find out that charity is a heavy burden to carry, heavier than the kettle of soup and the full basket. But you will keep your gentleness and your smile. It is not enough to give soup and bread. This the rich can do. You are the servant of the poor, always smiling and good-humored. They are your masters, terribly sensitive and exacting master you will see. And the uglier and the dirtier they will be, the more unjust and insulting, the more love you must give them. It is only for your love alone that the poor will forgive you the bread you give to them.
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Father Hazel said that like prayer, almsgiving shouldn’t be routine. It should be challenging and push Christians toward generosity. Charities want the person, he said, not just the money.
Sister Dorothy Struzinski (from right), Mother Maria Francis and Cindy Vindedahl, an employee of the Little Sisters of the Poor Holy Family Residence in St. Paul, sort through fruits and vegetables at Wholesale Produce Supply in Minneapolis with help from Kyle Johnson. The company is among many that donate to the Little Sisters to help feed the nursing home’s residents and help sustain the order’s mission. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Lent
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New books for Lenten spiritual reading Catholic News Service Here is a selection of recent releases for Lenten reading. • “Lent with Pope Francis: Daily Reflections and Prayers,” edited by Donna Giaimo, FSP. Pauline Books & Media (Boston, 2014). 124 pp., $7.95. • “Sacred Silence: Daily Meditations for Lent” by Phyllis Zagano. Franciscan Media (Cincinnati, 2014). 132 pp., $9.99. • “40 Days, 40 Ways: A New Look at Lent” by Marcellino D’Ambrosio. Servant Books (Cincinnati, 2014). 127 pp., $14.99. • “Bringing Lent Home with St. John Paul II: Prayers, Reflections and Activities for Families” by Donna-Marie Cooper O’Boyle. Ave Maria Press (Notre Dame, Indiana, 2014). 96 pp., $2.95. • “Breaking into Joy: Meditations for Living in the Love of Christ” by Anne Costa. Word Among Us Press (Frederick, Maryland, 2014). 220 pp., $10.95. • “Three Minutes a Day,” Volume 49, by the Christophers. The Christophers (New York, 2014). 365 pp., $10. • “Flunking Sainthood Every Day:
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A Daily Devotional for the Rest of Us” by Jana Riess. Paraclete Press (Brewster, Massachusetts, 2014). 290 pp., $23.99. • “5 Minutes With the Saints: More Spiritual Nourishment for Busy Teachers,” edited by Lou DelFra, CSC, and Ann Primus Berends. Ave Maria Press (Notre Dame, Indiana, 2014). 192 pp., $12.95. • “No Bible, No Breakfast! No Bible, No Bed! Father Larry Richards’ Scripture Desk Calendar” by Father Larry Richards. Word Among Us Press (Frederick, Maryland, 2014). 365 pp., $13.95. • “A Little Daily Wisdom From the Early Church,” edited by Bernard Bangley. Paraclete Press (Brewster,
CNS Massachusetts, 2014). 386 pp., $12.99. • “A Daily Catholic Moment: 10 Minutes a Day Alone with God,” compiled by Peter Celano. Paraclete Press (Brewster, Massachusetts, 2014). 192 pp., $15.99. • “Peace and Good: Through the Year With Francis of Assisi” by Pat McCloskey, OFM. Franciscan Media (Cincinnati, 2014). 397 pp., $19.99. • “The American Catholic Almanac: A Daily Reader of Patriots, Saints, Rogues and Ordinary People Who Changed the United States” by Brian Burch & Emily Stimpson. Image Books (New York, 2014). 406 pp., $24.
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Surprised by Joy By the grace of this same God, around the age of 16 I felt a stirring in my heart to go and make a TEC retreat here in the Twin Cities. I didn’t realize at the time exactly why I wanted to attend TEC, but I knew it was something I should do. During that first TEC I attended, the God of Jesus Christ began to make Himself more known to me, and He who was, up to that point, just an idea for me, began to manifest Himself to me as a Person: the Person who loved me and gave Himself for me (cf. Gal. 2:20). From that moment on, the Lord continued to draw me into an ever deeper relationship with Himself.
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hen growing up here in St. Paul, I never imagined the life God had planned for me from all eternity. Along with my five siblings, I was very blessed to be born into a family whose parents were (and still are) deeply committed to living their Catholic faith with all of its privileges and responsibilities. However, as a youngster, God seemed pretty distant to me, just a remote abstraction that we learned about in religion class. My sister always struck me as the “religious” one among us, but as for me, God was an idea, not a Person.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Throughout these years of discovering the God of all love and mercy, I also felt a deep desire to get married and have a family. However, even when dating and trying to convince myself that God had called me to the married life, I sensed ever more strongly that He wanted me for Himself. I wasn’t too crazy about this idea at first, but as time went on, I realized that I experienced the deepest sense of peace when I started to surrender to the possibility of religious life. Besides this, my sister (she whom I had always thought of as the “religious” one in the family) had discerned a call to the religious life, and shortly before my high school graduation, she entered the Society of the Missionaries of Charity. (She is currently stationed in San Francisco.) Just seeing her so happy reinforced my consideration that maybe this was the life for me as well. During my college years, I applied for a Summer job at Bethany Convent (now Carondolet Village).
During that time, I had the immense privilege of caring for the older Sisters, and to my surprise, I absolutely fell in love with the elderly and I found great fulfilment in taking care of those whom Christ revealed to me as His very image. I began to link my sense of a call to religious life with this newfound love of the elderly. When speaking of this with a friend one day at school, he said to me, “The Little Sisters of the Poor care for the elderly!” Since that time, I have lost all contact with this friend, but his simple statement changed my life forever. Shortly after our conversation, I discovered the Little Sisters here in St. Paul, and upon meeting them, I had a sense of “being at home”. The Congregation graciously accepted me as a postulant in 1995, and after several years of initial formation, I had the great grace of making my Perpetual vows in 2003. These 19 ½ years have been stamped with so much joy as I continue to grow in a sense of awe of our beautiful vocation of Little Sisters of the Poor. As with any vocation from God, ours is a call to a total gift of self in union with the gift of Christ; therefore, it has its challenges and exigencies as well. However, it is precisely in this complete donation that we find perfect joy, since we have been made in the image of the Triune God who is Himself, Total Gift. Sr. Maria Grace, Little Sister of the Poor (Addendum: During the Mass of Perpetual Profession in 2003, one of my younger brothers helped serve at the altar. 3 years later, John was ordained and is now known in the diocese as Fr. John Paul Erickson.)
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Charity, transparency at heart of Catholic Services Appeal By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit “Turmoil.” That’s how Tim Healy described the atmosphere surrounding the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis a year ago, as allegations of child sexual abuse by members of local clergy surfaced, and media stories quoted Catholics who described diminished trust in archdiocesan leadership. “When you look at the number of articles and negative news,” Healy said, “we all wondered, how is that ill will going to translate to the appeal?” The answer is in the result. The 2014 Catholic Services Appeal Tim HEALY received more than $10 million in pledges, comfortably surpassing its goal of $9.3 million. As of this writing, more than $9.9 million in cash has been received on the pledges, and more than $8.6 million already has been distributed to Catholic ministries and parishes within the archdiocese. Starting with the 2014 appeal, appeal gifts were managed by the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation, established in 2013, not the archdiocese. In a roundtable discussion, Healy, Greg Pulles and John Norris — members of the foundation board — talked about the challenges the new foundation faced and the factors that explain why the past year’s appeal was successful in such a challenging environment. Jennifer Beaudry, CSAF executive director, joined the conversation as well. “If I heard it once I heard it a thousand times,” Pulles said. “People told me, ‘I’m not going to give one dime for lawyers.’” The foundation was formed to honor donor intent with complete transparency, Pulles said. “People can give knowing their money is going to go where they intended it to go.” Beaudry, who formerly worked on the Catholic Services Appeal for the development office of the archdiocese, said the basic structure of the appeal was the same for 2014 as it has been in previous years. It’s a parish campaign, with some 48,000 donors. There were few large gifts for more than $1,000, but the majority of gifts were in the $50 to $500-$600 range. The average gift was just more than $200. Of the total donations, an average of 20 percent — $1.8 million — is returned to parishes for their own ministries. In the past, money donated to the Catholic Services Appeal, and to its predecessor, the Annual Catholic Appeal, went to the specific
Meet the board Catholic Services Appeal Foundation board members Bill Morhman Attorney Mohrman & Kaardal
Lisa Gott With husband Steve, former chair couple, Catholic Services Appeal
Bob Conroy Communications consultant Create-A-Video Picture Maker
Marie Ziesmer Client coordinator Southwest Options for Women (formerly Minnetonka Life-Care Center)
Chad Trochlil Payroll manager Bremer Bank Gracia Cavanaugh Financial planner Cavanaugh Financial Group Gregory Pulles Retired general counsel TCF Financial Corporation Jarod Allerheiligen Managing partner Grant Thornton, accountants John Norris President and CEO Atscott Manufacturing Inc. Kathy Schneeman With husband Eric, former chair couple, Catholic Services Appeal ministries that were promoted those years, Beaudry said, but appeal funds were not kept separately from other revenue in the archdiocese’s bookkeeping. Now, with the creation of the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation, donations to the appeal are kept separately, she said, making it clear that donations collected for the appeal go to the ministries for which they were donated.
Telling the story with clarity So what was different in 2014? The group voiced several factors. A renewed effort in being clear about how appeal funds were used was key, Norris said. He and other members of the board heard questions from friends and business acquaintances who were concerned about where the money would go, he said. They answered, explaining about the 17 ministries that received funds from the foundation, how board members had visited those ministries, how impressed they were, and how the foundation was keeping their finances accountable. “To listen to some of these groups and see how this [the appeal] impacts people is pretty eyeopening,” Norris said, which stressed for him how important it was to “get the word out” about where the funds go. “We were able to tell them [donors] that story, one-on-one,” he added, “and we were able to put a renewed emphasis on how important this funding is to
Patrick Gaughan President and owner Gaughan Companies, commercial, construction, development and real estate management firm Renee Allerheiligen Professional leadership and organization character development consultant, facilitator, and speaker Avila Leadership Susan Byrne Retired nurse Tim Healy President Team Spine Minnesota LLC, surgical and medical instrument distributor
those ministries.” Pulles said he often heard people say they had decreased their gift to the appeal or stopped giving altogether because, in their words, “I’m trying to send a message to the archdiocese and the archbishop.” “Our response,” Pulles said, “was, ‘Don’t take out your anger against these 17 ministries that serve the Church.’ So many of these charities depend on the money from the Catholic Services Appeal. Whole ministries would have to be shut down.” (See the list of funded ministries and grant totals in the box on page 16.) Priests’ support of the appeal was crucial, too. Healy, who is president of the foundation, conceived the idea of a priest-advisory committee to help the clergy understand the separation of the appeal from the archdiocese, and to be able to support the appeal in their parishes. “The greatest success, I thought, was meeting with the priests and getting them excited, getting their buy-in,” Healy said. “They appreciated being part of the process.” Beaudry said the influence that board members had on their friends in the business world, who have influence in their own communities, cannot be discounted.
Clarity of purpose The video that promoted the Catholic Services Appeal was another positive element, Pulles
said. Reinforcing the renewed emphasis, it was clear about where appeal money went. A challenge that continues is one that has been aired publicly, that there is a perception that the archdiocese created the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation to shelter assets as it moves through Chapter 11 Reorganization. Healy said the foundation is trying to be transparent, noting that when the foundation was created it received no money from the archdiocese. “We’re not hiding the assets of the archdiocese,” Pulles added. “The foundation was founded so that donors could see their money go in and to go out to whom they want it to.” As a result, money donated to the Catholic Services Appeal doesn’t go to lawyers or the archdiocese’s creditors, Pulles said. “Any gifts we have received have been specifically designated for these specific ministries,” he said. Rather than sheltering archdiocesan assets, Norris said, “the reverse is true. [The Catholic Services Appeal Foundation] is a place where donors’ money is safe and will be used for the advertised intent.” A separate board, checking account, database and software, as well as renting office space in the archdiocese’s Hayden Center at 328 W. Kellogg Blvd. in St. Paul, are all measures the foundation has taken to ensure that new money donated to support a ministry is used for that specific purpose, foundation board members said. All of the foundation’s board members are volunteers. Beaudry and data specialist Judy Lehnen are the only employees.
The good work must go on In 2015, the foundation is working toward success similar to 2014’s Catholic Services Appeal. The goal is the same as last year, “People see the $9.3 million. good work of Commitments to support the the Church and appeal will be sought in know it has to parishes across the archdiocese go on.” the weekend of Feb. 14-15. Tim Healy, president of “We were all Catholic Services Appeal surprised by the Foundation board generosity of the people to last year’s appeal,” Healy said. Trying to put into words what Catholics of the archdiocese said by supporting the Catholic Services Appeal, Healy said simply, “We care. We’re going to support those people in need.” He added, “People see the good work of the Church and know it has to go on.”
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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Serve. Support. Strengthen. Together we can accomplish more than any one parish or Individual can.
$1,800,000
$1,792,427 Seminarians, Hospital/Prison Chaplains
Parish Rebates
Strengthening parishes by returning dollars to help fund their own ministries.
Supporting our clergy by providing tuition assistance for men at the Saint Paul Seminary and St. John Vianney College Seminary as well as ministering to those in prisons and hospitals.
$150,000 Evangelization
$1,100,000
Strengthening the faithful to bring the Gospel to those who have not heard or have forgotten.
Catholic Charities Provide food, shelter, hope and opportunity to those most in need – the elderly, children and families experiencing homelessness.
$ 800,000 CSAF Administrative Expenses
$438,092
The foundation will incur administrative expenses associated with the conduct of the Appeal, including the cost of mailing and printing materials, video production, marketing, auditing of receipts and consultant fees.
Marriage, Family & Life Strengthening the culture through programs that support: life, marriage, the single state and outreach to youth and young adults.
$2,400,000 Elementary/High School Grants and Scholarships/ College Evangelization
$819,481 ACCW/Latino/Indian Deaf/Venezuelan Ministries
Serving students in our Catholic schools by awarding grants and scholarships to those needing assistance.
Serving the women of our archdiocese by providing spiritual guidance as well as supporting our Venezuelan Mission and our Latino, Indian and Deaf ministries.
$9,300,000 Total Catholic Services Appeal Foundation Goal for 2015
Chart courtesy Graphic CourtesyCSAF CSAF
Our 2014 CSA donation: Here’s where the money went Donations to the 2015 Catholic Services Appeal are earmarked for priesthood formation, Catholic education and a host of ministries that focus on both the spiritual and temporal needs of God’s people in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. $959,099 • St. Paul Seminary CSAF funded the cost of tuition and room and board for 32 seminarians (approximately $30,000 each), who come from parishes in the archdiocese.
$265,843 • St. John Vianney College Seminary Funded the cost of tuition for 27 college seminarians (approximately $10,000 each) from parishes in the archdiocese.
$669,406 • Chaplains Funded the salaries for 13 Catholic priests who serve as chaplains at 15 hospitals within the archdiocese.
$14,843 • Prison Ministry Provided funds used by the ministry for stipends for deacons and other ministers who serve in 32 prisons, jails and correction facilities in the 12 counties of the archdiocese.
$1,118,125 • Catholic Charities Funding for programs that serve more than 35,000 individuals annually.
$1,422,111 • Catholic Grade Schools Grants were given to 10 schools that have significant unmet financial need so that they may continue to operate. Most of the schools serve communities in great financial need within the central core of the
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Twin Cities. The 10 schools serve more than 2,000 students.
$28,680 • Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women
Foundation website has all the numbers
Grant to ministry provides services for women in the archdiocese.
A three-page preliminary report of the activities of the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation in its first year — including an unaudited breakdown of every expense — is at www.csafspm.org. An audit is under way.
$892,500 • Catholic High School Scholarships Provided 357 scholarships of $2,500 each to students in need who attend one of 11 Catholic high schools within the archdiocese.
$10,658 • St. Paul’s Outreach Grant to the organization to provide Catholic ministry on college campuses within the archdiocese, specifically the University of St. Thomas, the University of Minnesota and Carleton College.
$256,764 • The Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Funded 30 percent of the operating budget of the Catholic ministry that serves 2,500 Catholics at the Minneapolis campus each year.
$318, 272 • Latino Ministry Funded ministry that operates at 23 parishes through 12 programs, including Latino Catechetical Institute, Biblical Institute, Pastoral Leadership Institute, Archdiocesan Latino Family Day and marriage preparation retreats.
$215,322 • American Indian Ministry Supports ministry that operates eight programs at St. Gichitwaa Kateri parish in Minneapolis, including a youth leadership program, American Indian Cultural Camps, religious education, confirmation and baptism programs, and the Miigeweyon Hearse Project.
$134,806 • Evangelization and the Rediscover: Celebration Funded evangelization outreach, including the Rediscover: event attended by more than 5,000 people.
$479,739 • Marriage, Family and Life Funded the costs of 47 ministries run by the office that serve more than
4,000 individuals. Programs include extensive marriage preparation offered to all engaged couples, Project Rachel post-abortion assistance, the Life Fund for pregnancy financial assistance, Totus Tuus, a Catholic youth program, plus Archdiocesan Youth Day, the day-long evangelization event that draws more than 2,000 teenagers.
$47,525 • Ministry to the Deaf Funded the ministry at Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish in Minneapolis that provides sacramental preparation, retreats for both the hearing impaired and their caregivers.
$235,874 • Jesucristo Resucitado Funded most of the annual budget of the archdiocesan mission parish in Venezuela. The parish staff of eight serves a population of 65,000 in 11 barrios (neighborhoods) with the sacraments, sacramental preparation, liturgies in the parish church and several chapels in the barrios, a soup kitchen, medical and dental clinics and a medical laboratory.
$1,545,966 • Parishes of the archdiocese In 2014, CSAF returned approximately 20 percent of the appeal’s funds to more than 140 parishes and will give approximately another $346,000 in May when appeal totals are final.
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Hospital chaplains provide spiritual care with CSAF support By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit When Father Larry Blake’s cell phone rings, he knows it’s likely to be a serious call summoning him to Hennepin County Medical Center in downtown Minneapolis. Fortunately, for the call he received on Feb. 1, the patient’s condition wasn’t life threatening. The man had heart issues and was facing the possibility of surgery. He wanted some comforting words from a Catholic priest. Father Blake offers plenty during both his daily rounds and special calls to the hospital, where he serves as chaplain. “He had had a difficult day medically,” said Father Blake, 63, “and wanted to be anointed, and wanted to talk to a priest.” The conversation wasn’t long — only about a half hour — but important nonetheless. Like many such meetings, talk went well beyond charts and treatments and moved into the man’s life story. As he does time and again, Father Blake lent a listening ear. Then, he grabbed his small jar of holy oil and administered the sacrament of the anointing of the sick to a patient in medical and spiritual distress. Father Blake has been serving at his hospital “parish” since July 2013, when Archbishop John Nienstedt assigned him. The hospital chaplaincy is one of the ministries the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation financially supports. Having served as a chaplain in the Air Force, something he still does today, Father Blake’s skill set and experience are suitable for the job. He has no fear or hesitation about walking into the intensive care unit and holding the hand of someone who may lose their pulse by the end of his visit. “We had a young woman here about a year ago who was walking back to her apartment and was hit by a truck,” he said. “It was nighttime, the driver didn’t see her in the crosswalk. She arrived here in our emergency room. “The parents, devout Catholics, said to the chaplain [on duty], ‘We want a priest now.’ I was not in the hospital at the time, but I drove in. They took me right to the emergency room, where I anointed her. She survived that evening, and went up to our surgical intensive care unit where I spent more time with the family. Eventually, we offered prayers for the commendation [of her soul to God].” She died a few days later.
Powerful moments Father Blake felt the pain of the woman’s parents acutely because he is a father himself. Married with three children, he was allowed to be ordained a Catholic priest because he had previously been a Protestant minister. The Church grants such exceptions, and Archbishop Harry Flynn ordained him in 1999 at St. Hubert in Chanhassen. Father Blake recalled standing at the dying woman’s bedside and thinking about how he would feel if one of his own children were in that situation. Then, as his military training has taught him, he turned his thoughts away from himself and toward what the family needed most at that
Father Larry Blake prays in the intensive care unit at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis with patient Brian Kennelly and his daughter, Colleen Thompson. Father Blake serves there as a hospital chaplain. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit time — pastoral care. “We had some very good conversations,” he said. “We prayed a lot at her bedside, first praying that she might recover, that she might survive this accident. Then, when it became apparent that she wasn’t going to survive, simply praying that she would pass peacefully and without any pain or suffering, which she did.” After such encounters, Father Blake will go home and find a quiet place to reflect and pray in silence about what has just happened. The ICU visits are often intense, but he cherishes them. “Those are very powerful moments,” he said. “It’s part of what makes this work so meaningful to me, because I realize that, although I may never have contact with that family again, I’m here at a time when they really do want and need the presence of the Church in the person of the priest. So, it’s very rewarding.”
Constant presence Father Blake is one of 13 priests who serve as hospital chaplain in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The others are Fathers Peter Yakubu Ali, Jerome Fehn, Ronald Harrer, Stephen LaCanne, James Livingston, Michael Monogue, Jules Omba Omalanga, Damien Schill and Leo Schneider. Father Blake coordinates all the chaplains, speaking with them regularly. But, first and foremost, his ministry is to the patients and their families who request a Catholic priest. The hospital has a total of 12 chaplains, and he is only called when a priest is requested. Primarily, he visits those in the medical and surgical intensive care units. On a recent morning, he stopped to see Brian Kennelly of Park River, N.D. The elderly man had fallen down a flight of stairs on Jan. 15, resulting in a fractured vertebrae. He was immobilized and wearing a metal halo used on patients with spinal damage. His daughter, Colleen Thompson, a nurse who lives in Winona with her husband and four children, was glad to know that her devoutly Catholic family has access to a priest while her dad recovers in the hospital.
“I’m here at a time when [families] really do want and need the presence of the Church in the person of the priest.” Father Larry Blake
“It makes it feel more like home and gives me a sense of peace,” Thompson said. “I think it created a lot of peace for Dad and offered hope.” Though Kennelly is unable to speak, he makes small gestures with his fingers and uses his eyes to communicate. The road to recovery will take months, maybe years, but the prognosis is good. There is no paralysis, and doctors are hopeful he will eventually regain normal function of his arms and legs. Father Blake will try to stay in touch after Kennelly leaves the hospital, but he knows follow-up is limited. There are so many patients to see, and not enough chaplains to make the rounds. “We’re stretched real thin right now,” he said, noting that several local hospitals do not have full-time chaplains, just a few hours of priests’ visits every week. “We’re so short of personnel.” Nevertheless, Father Blake takes the time to connect with both patients and staff. “Father Larry Blake is a constant presence here in our hospital,” said Maia Twedt, a Quaker hospital chaplain at HCMC. “He knows so many people, and it’s amazing all of the connections that he’s made in the community. Patients know him by name and know him by face. They request him personally, and it’s a great gift to have this particular priest in our hospital.” The good news for patients, current and future, is that Father Blake has no plans to move on to a different ministry. “I’d be happy to stay here until I retire,” he said. “I like the work and I think it’s a good fit for me.”
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Faith & Culture
18
St. Odilia musical showcases cast, community and, this year, a camel
If you go “Two from Galilee” Where: St. Odilia Church 3495 N. Victoria St., Shoreview When: 7 p.m. Feb. 13; 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. Feb. 14 (dinner theater option with evening performance); 3 p.m. Feb. 15 Cost: $12 adults, $8 children, students and seniors
By Josie Bungert For The Catholic Spirit “Come for the camel, stay for the show” is the catchphrase frequently tossed around among the cast of “Two From Galilee,” the musical production St. Odilia Church in Shoreview will put on Feb. 13-15. The camel, a large and impressive stage prop in this year’s production, reflects the ambitious aims of St. Odilia’s robust musical department. Full of veteran volunteers, the department is preparing for its yearly musical, a huge parish and community undertaking. It takes about a year to create, from planning stages to opening night. “It is a big commitment for people involved, but it seems like we don’t have a problem finding people,” said Jerry Ruhland, the musical’s production coordinator.
Community builder In past years, they’ve had casts of more than 100, not including those behind the scenes. The cast this year is smaller, about 40. More than 75 families have been involved in just the last three years, Ruhland said. For 12 years, Ruhland has been responsible for recruiting and coordinating cast and crew. He said people ask where they are needed and are willing to be put anywhere. “[It’s a] fascinating parish of so many people that are talented and want to be involved,” he said. Ruhland has witnessed the
For tickets or more information, call (651) 415-3367
From left, Skyler Lockwood, Jamie Darling and Megan Anderson enjoy a light moment between scenes during a rehearsal for the play “Two From Galilee” at St. Odilia in Shoreview. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit growth of the ministry from the first performance more than 24 years ago. “Some of the greatest things that happen in the musical are just because of the variance of ages on the crew . . . we have crew members that are 75 years old and that are 10,” Ruhland said. “Our pastor, Father [Phillip] Rask, he’s just amazed at what a wonderful community-building ministry it is; [it] builds community across all ages, and that’s kind of the way it’s been the whole time.” The mission statement of the ministry, “sharing biblical and life-changing stories through theater and song and involving all ages,” outlines this goal. The ministry allows anyone fourth grade and up to be in the cast, and all ages behind the scenes. The community building is one that takes careful thought and planning, and is possible because of Joanne Kost, who manages publicity. She coordinates table tents and blurbs in the church website and bulletin. Her team also hand-delivers invitations at nearby senior centers, and reaches out to local newspapers, radio stations
and other churches. “I always get the most response from the churches,” she said. “It surprised me when I first started this job.” Kost indicated an interest in theater on a “time and talent” card she filled out when she joined St. Odilia. Within a month, she was called to work with the production and has ever since. Kost has done costumes, been house manager, helped with ticket sales and directed four shows — including the parish’s first staging of “Two From Galilee” 10 years ago. “[It’s a] really great way for me to get to know the parish [and] parishioners,” she said. “The whole theater, musical community, sort of embraces you.”
Opportunity to use gifts As one of the authors of the camel catchphrase, Kost is fascinated with what the musical brings out of people. “It’s such a unique opportunity to use our gifts . . . and I think that’s what so many people are so joyful about,” she said. “There is a high level of performance: Singing
is excellent, music is exceptional.” John Dyer, this year’s director, emphasizes the overall quality of St. Odilia’s music ministry; it compelled him and his wife to join St. Odilia years ago. “We loved the music and were hooked from the get-go,” he said of the first Mass they attended at the parish. Dyer and his family have been involved in the musical ministry for more than 20 years. He has directed three other productions, including one he wrote himself titled “Church Musical.” He’s excited to direct “Two From Galilee.” “I’ve really always loved the production, loved the music,” Dyer said. “The music is what makes the show, more than any other I’ve directed.” Perfect for Valentine’s Day weekend, the musical is about Mary and Joseph as a couple. Dyer enjoys the “deeper dive” into their experience. “There’s a lot of things that were going on that were quite interesting, quite dramatic,” he said. “[It’s] a new look on an old story.”
A sweet treat before a season of sacrifice: Kramarczuk’s to pop out paczki By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit In the early morning hours next Tuesday, bakers in the back at Kramarczuk’s in Minneapolis will carry on a tradition Polish immigrants brought to the new world, making light, sweet, soft-yet-crunchy “p czki” (pronounced “punch-kee). The 60-year-old bakery and deli on Hennepin Avenue will open at 7 a.m. Feb. 17 — an hour early that day — so folks can pick up their orders for the doughy, filled pastries that are a once-a-year item. It’s a treat for Fat Tuesday, the day before the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday, born of the need for households in the old country to use up all the lard, sugar, eggs and fruit in the house in preparation for the Lenten season’s fasting, which would forbid their consumption. Nick Kramarczuk, a grandson of the iconic deli’s founders, said p czki are a bit like bismarcks, but not as heavy and a bit darker.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
If you go
File photo.
“P czki are fried a little longer, and the dough is not as sweet and not as fluffy as a bismarck,” Kramarczuk said. He rattled off the ingredients for p czki — flour, sugar, eggs, shortening, butter, yeast and salt — as
though he’d been doing this for more than 20 years. Of course, he has. “Since I was 12,” he said with a chuckle. The dough is allowed to rise twice before being fried then filled. The process takes about six hours. “Traditionally the filling is poppy seed, prune and apricot,” Kramarczuk said. “This year we’re doing apricot, chocolate-hazelnut, raspberry and custard.” But if you want some, you’d better call in an order. Jeff Gurak has worked at Kramarczuk’s long enough to remember when customers would line up outside the door for the Fat Tuesday p czki. “It used to be pretty crazy,” Gurak said. “There would be big lines, because it was first come, first served, until we ran out.” The store now has an ordering system — and p czki are just as popular as ever. “Let me see,” Gurak said checking his list. He counts off by the dozen, finally saying, “We’ll probably sell 400 to 500 p czki.”
19 SUNDAY SCRIPTURES Jeff Hedglen
When sin makes us ‘unclean,’ confession can heal A while back when I went to shake my friend’s hand, he pulled back and said he was sick and didn’t want to spread his Sunday, Feb. 15 germs. I said, Sixth Sunday in “Thanks,” ordinary time and just waved at him Readings as we took • Leviticus 13:1-2, our seats. 44-46 This is a • 1 Corinthians common 10:31 – 11:1 practice, wash your • Mark 1:40-45 hands and Reflection avoid contact How are you during flu preparing for Lent season. The this year? Church even implements similar protocols. Now imagine what it would be like if every time you were visibly sick, you had to yell out, “Unclean, unclean!” when someone came close to you. This was the reality of people with a variety of ailments in biblical times. This week’s readings relate
two stories of people with leprosy. Leviticus reveals the law that demanded an unclean person announce this to all those around them. In the Gospel, Jesus cures a man who had leprosy and afterward instructs him to go show himself to the priest to be proclaimed clean. Thankfully, modern medicine has led us to a point where illness is not seen as being unclean. But there is another ailment that we all are afflicted with that does make us unclean, and this is sin. Try as we might to avoid it, sin impacts each of our lives and, as a result, makes us spiritually in need of a cleansing. Lucky for us, the Church offers the sacrament of reconciliation so we can “show ourselves to the priest” and by the power of God be made clean. Lent starts this week. It is a season of repentance, a time to look within ourselves for the areas that need a little extra cleaning. The 40-day journey through the spiritual desert culminates with the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus. In a very real way we take our sins and
Sunday, Feb. 15 Sixth Sunday in ordinary time Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46 1 Corinthians 10:31 – 11:1 Mark 1:40-45
Sunday, Feb. 22 First Sunday of Lent Genesis 9:8-15 1 Peter 3:18-22 Mark 1:12-15
Monday, Feb. 16 Genesis 4:1-15, 25 Mark 8:11-13
Monday, Feb. 23 St. Polycarp, bishop, martyr Leviticus 19:1-2, 11-18 Matthew 25:31-46
Tuesday, Feb. 17 The Seven Holy founders of the Servite Order Genesis 6:5-8; 7:1-5, 10 Mark 8:14-21 Wednesday, Feb. 18 Ash Wednesday Joel 2:12-18 2 Corinthians 5:20 – 6:2 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-18
Focus on Faith • Scripture Readings
DAILY Scriptures
Tuesday, Feb. 24 Isaiah 55:10-11 Matthew 6:7-15 Wednesday, Feb. 25 Jonah 3:1-10 Luke 11:29-32 Thursday, Feb. 26 Esther C:12, 14-16, 23-25 Matthew 7:7-12
Thursday, Feb. 19 Deuteronomy 30:15-20 Luke 9:22-25
Friday, Feb. 27 Ezekiel 18:21-28 Matthew 5:20-26
Friday, Feb. 20 Isaiah 58:1-9a Matthew 9:14-15
Saturday, Feb. 28 Deuteronomy 26:16-19 Matthew 5:43-48
Saturday, Feb. 21 St. Peter Damian, bishop, doctor of the Church Isaiah 58:9b-14 Luke 5:27-32
Sunday, March 1 Second Sunday of Lent Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18 Romans 8:31b-34 Mark 9:2-10
failures through the desert and offer them to Jesus on the cross. Whenever I head into the confessional, I feel very much like the leper in the Scriptures: unclean. But I also leave just like the leper
who was healed by Jesus, because that is exactly what happens. This CNS column is offered in cooperation with the North Texas Catholic of Fort Worth, Texas.
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February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Focus on Faith • Seeking Answers
20 SEEKING ANSWERS Father Michael Schmitz
God’s will includes complex process of making choices Q. What is the difference between drifting along in life and letting God do his will in your life? I have not really pursued a lot of my life goals because I love God and I want to please him by doing what he wants me to do in my life. Is this the wrong approach to goals in life and doing God’s will? A. One thing that it sounds like you are getting absolutely right is the concept of “God’s will in all things.” It is vitally important for us to understand a couple of key things regarding God’s will. The first is that not everything that happens is the result of “God’s plan.” Sometimes, when tragedy strikes, or a person experiences suffering, or a loved one dies, a well-meaning (but erroneous) person will say, “This was part of God’s plan.” Again, this is not necessarily true in all senses. In creating a world outside of himself, God put certain laws in place. He created physics and chemistry and the material world, which operates according to the way he created it. One consequence of this is that not everything that happens in this world is a result of God’s having directly willed it. Because of this, we have to realize that God doesn’t “cause” all things to happen. In addition, human beings (and angels and demons)
have free will and can choose things that are clearly contrary to God’s will. We need to understand the difference between God’s “perfect will” and God’s “permissive will.” God’s perfect will is when God directly wills a thing to happen or not to happen. This is always immediately and ultimately for the good. God’s permissive will is when God allows a thing to happen. This is not necessarily immediately a good. In fact, God often allows evil things to happen. He does this for a couple reasons (that we know of). First, God allows evil things to happen in order to preserve the gift of free will that he has given us. Second, God allows evil because he knows that he can bring about a greater good. At this point, it is important to note that God does not cause evil to bring about a good. (That would be evil and impossible for an allgood God to do.) Rather, God allows something to happen that is contrary to his will because he knows he can use this for an even greater good.
Trust in God If this is true, it follows that we can trustingly submit to everything that happens to us as falling under God’s will. Either it is a good that he directly willed or it is an evil that he allowed to happen, and he
can bring about a good through this. For this reason, your having let things in life happen to you is not a bad thing at all. In fact, many people would be greatly blessed if they began seeing the events of their day as falling under God’s will more often. Yet, while we are able to say “yes” to God at any moment because of the fact that he is present in all things and either wills perfectly or permissively all things that are, we can also discern direction and goals. There was an error in some Christian circles called “quietism” or “fatalism.” The idea is that we ought not to take any action ourselves but just sit and wait for something to happen to us. The attraction in this posture is that we will never make the wrong decision, because we aren’t making any decisions. But not to decide is to decide. The decision to be open to God’s will is a decision, and the decision to choose to accept all things as they come as a gift from God is in no way harmful or negative or a bad idea. But I believe that this decision should come from a place of trust and intentionality, not merely because a person is afraid to choose the wrong thing or doesn’t like making decisions. There is also something very “God-honoring” in the process of making goals. Part of that is rooted in the way that God has created us. He made us to have an intellect and reason. Because of this, we have the ability to discern the good in all of its complexity and to choose one road out of many. We can often choose any number of options, and this is good. Part of conforming our will to God’s will is the beautifully complex process of making choices. We get to cooperate (cooperate) with God, not merely as
“ . . . the decision to choose to accept all things as they come as a gift from God is in no way harmful or negative or a bad idea. But I believe that this decision should come from a place of trust and intentionality . . .” passive receivers but as active participants. With this in mind, you could take a step and make a decision. This decision could be toward or away from a relationship. It could be to discern a religious community or have a conversation with your pastor about being a consecrated single. But in each of these cases, you would be walking with God, using the gifts he has given you and learning even more clearly how to hear his voice. Even more, in this process, you would be required to listen to God’s voice along the way and learn when he is calling you to persevere, when to adjust your direction, or when to stop and go back. Think of how this dynamic interaction would bring an even greater closeness to you and the Lord. Father Schmitz is director of youth and young adult ministry for the Diocese of Duluth and chaplain of the Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Reach him at fathermikeschmitz @gmail.com.
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C h a n h a s s e n D T. c o m February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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Christina Capecchi
Courage and conviction: Catholic saves 2,500 kids Irena Sendler was 29 years old when Nazi tanks slithered into Warsaw, casting a shadow of fear over the city and slicing it apart with a walled-off ghetto for the Jewish residents. There was no way she could sit back and watch. The social worker with the shy eyes and round baby face stood 4 feet 11 inches tall and possessed an unblinking courage. She had two guiding stars in life: her Catholic faith and her late father, a physician who had died of typhus contracted from low-income patients. So Irena took action, pretending to be a nurse in order to gain access into the Warsaw ghetto and deliver food and medicine. The grimness of their fate became clearer with every passing day, as clusters were rounded up, marched to the freight yard and shipped an hour away to
Treblinka death camp. The sight of the youngest among them, toddlers carrying their dolls, haunted Irena. She enlisted her closest friends and colleagues, mostly young women, to form a secret network for the imprisoned Jews, sneaking aide in and smuggling children out. Irena bundled babies in garbage wagons and gave them sleeping potions to keep them quiet on the way out. Kids were directed through secret passageways into sewers, following whispers and flashlights. Parents were forced to make “heart-rending” calculations, and Irena could not guarantee that their children would survive if they fled through her network. “I still have nightmares about it,” she said in a 2011 PBS documentary, tapping her left index finger to her temple. “You’re going on a wonderful adventure,” one Jewish mother
FAITH IN THE PUBLIC ARENA Kathryn Mollen
Dangers of surrogacy should prompt preventative action In 2014, the Minnesota Catholic Conference worked to successfully stop problematic legislation that would have legitimized commercial surrogacy contracts, which are currently not recognized under Minnesota law. This session, MCC is advocating for legislation that would establish a commission to study the issues and concerns associated with surrogacy arrangements, including how to ensure that we protect vulnerable women and children from potential exploitation and commodification. Surrogacy is the process in which an individual or couple, who often cannot have a biological child of their own, pays a fee to a woman in exchange for her carrying and delivering a baby. At birth, the child is turned over to the “intended parent(s).” The commercial surrogacy industry capitalizes on the desire of wellmeaning intended parents yearning to have a biological child of their own. Good intentions, however, can lead to unintended consequences. Couples struggling with fertility have used surrogacy-like arrangements to solve infertility issues for centuries — going all the way back to the Old Testament story of Abraham and Sarah. Sarah was barren,
so she gave her slave girl, Hagar, to Abraham in order to conceive a child (Genesis 16:1-3). Upon birth, the child would legally be considered Sarah’s and, therefore, Abraham’s heir. Hagar’s story did not, however, end happily when she gave birth to Ishmael. After Sarah conceived her own child, she turned from both Hagar and Ishmael. Ultimately, Hagar was misused, her child was pushed aside by Sarah, and she and Ishmael were forced to flee into the wilderness (Genesis 21:9-13). Most people object to Sarah’s use of Hagar as a reproductive slave. But they might overlook the similarities of Hagar’s story to that of some modern surrogacy arrangements, which seek to overcome infertility by “renting” out a womb. These can create a host of problems, such as the issue of unequal buyer/seller arrangements between the surrogate mother and intended parents. These arrangements can favor the preferences of the often more affluent “buyer” over the needs of the pregnant surrogate mother. The unintended, disastrous consequences of surrogacy arrangements often surface when one party changes
wonderful.” The nuns were always on guard for German inspections. Given their cue, Piotr would run to the attic and hide in a cupboard. Miraculously, the system worked. All the Jewish kids placed in convents through Irena’s network survived the war. In total, Irena saved the lives of about 2,500 children. She lived to be 98 and never considered herself a hero. “It was simple,” she said. “I remember what my father had taught me: ‘When someone is drowning, give him your hand.’” The Holy Father issues the same challenge again and again, beginning with his inaugural homily when he called us to be “protectors of one another.” We can do so, Pope Francis said, by being “constantly attentive to God.” This month would mark Irena’s 105th birthday. Our worlds may be vastly different, but we can honor her memory by treating our neighbors with the same compassion.
This Catholic Life • Commentary
TWENTY SOMETHING
explained to her son, with whom she was later reunited. “You’re going to be a good boy.” “You’re a big girl now,” a father, who would later die, told his 10-year-old. “Tomorrow you must escape from the ghetto. I can no longer protect you.” Irena embraced the war-time orphans as she routed them to safe houses and then permanent homes. “We had to give them a lot of love and attention to help them adapt to their new lives,” she said. Beyond the sheer bravery required of the endeavor — perhaps a byproduct of Irena’s youth — it was an act of organizational might. She coordinated each stop with pinpoint precision. The greatest help came from Irena’s Catholic connections. She called on priests, who created fake baptismal certificates for the Jewish children. They were taught Catholic prayers so they could demonstrate non-Jewish heritage under possible Nazi interrogation. Despite the grave risk, some 200 Polish convents opened their doors to the kids. The sights, sounds and smells of Mass comforted Piotr Zettinger, who was 4 when he left his parents in the ghetto. “For this hungry, bedraggled boy,” he told PBS, “taking part in these beautiful and uplifting ceremonies was quite
It is simple. Capecchi is a freelance writer from Inver Grove Heights and editor of SisterStory.org, the official website of National Catholic Sisters Week.
their mind. A couple decides they want a surrogate to abort the baby because they no longer want the child. Or, a surrogate mother begins to agonize about giving up a child as she begins to bond with the child in-utero. These situations have led the commercial surrogacy industry in the U.S. to push for state legislation that helps them legitimize surrogacy contracts — contracts that protect their client’s “investment” and do what was, historically, unthinkable in our legal system: buy and sell a baby. Currently, Minnesota law —similar to the law of many other states — does not recognize the validity of commercial surrogacy contracts. States that have passed legislation to legalize surrogacy contracts, such as Illinois and California, have seen the number of surrogacy arrangements increase significantly. In these states, the industry is setting up brokerage firms that are attracting larger crowds of international and national “reproductive tourists.” Minnesota needs to take a serious, in-depth look at the many concerns associated with surrogacy contracts before we create laws that legalize commercial surrogacy agreements and, in doing so, create an incentive for the practice of surrogacy to expand and grow in Minnesota. Forming a legislative commission to study surrogacy is one of the best ways to help ensure Minnesota is protecting vulnerable women and children from the unintended consequences of surrogacy arrangements. Mollen is the policy and outreach coordinator for the Minnesota Catholic Conference.
Contact your legislators Urge them to support the following bills by sharing the following messages: HF 439/SF 462: Help families of babies with chromosomal disorders “Please support the Prenatal Trisomy Diagnosis Awareness Act (HF 439/SF 462). This bill will provide expectant parents, upon receiving a diagnosis of Trisomy 13, 18, or 21 (Down Syndrome), with supportive and educational information during a critical and sometimes stressful period for their family.” HF 342/SF 355: Restore the vote “I believe people should be able to vote after they have served their jail time and have been released. Restoring the right to vote for those who are living in our community will create clearer laws, save on government resources, and encourage positive community participation from those who are trying to get back on their feet. Please support HF 342/ SF355 to restore the right to vote.” For Catholic teaching and public policy details on these bills, or for instructions on how to contact your legislators, visit the “Advocacy” tab in the MCC Action Center at www.mncc.org/actioncenter. The Catholic Advocacy Network is an initiative of the Minnesota Catholic Conference, the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
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Calendar
Dining out Senior Mardi Gras lunch — Feb. 17: Noon, St. Richard Church, 7540 Penn Ave. S, Richfield. $5; need not be a parishioner. RSVP to St. Richard’s parish office (612) 869-2426. Annual sauerkraut supper — Feb. 17: 4-7 p.m., school auditorium of Holy Cross Church, 17th Avenue and Fourth St. NE, Minneapolis. $12 adults, $5 children under 12. Music from 4-8 p.m. in Kolbe Center. (612) 789-7238. Dad’s Belgian Waffle Breakfast — Feb. 22: 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., St. John the Baptist Church, 835 Second Ave. NW, New Brighton. $7 per person; children under 5 free. Sponsored by St. John’s Knights of Columbus. Pancake breakfast — Feb. 22: 8 a.m.-noon, St. Clement Church, 911 24th Ave. NE, Minneapolis. $7 adults, $ 4 children. Benefits Pope John Paul II School.
Music and entertainment Winter Band Concert — Feb. 24: 7 p.m. Cretin-Derham Hall Concert Band and Wind Ensemble, Lillian Theater at C-DH, 550 S. Albert St., St. Paul. Free. Call the Band Office at (651) 696-3314 for more information.
Parish events Light Their Way — Feb. 17: 5:30 p.m., St. Michael Social Hall, 611 S. Third St., Stillwater. St. Croix Catholic School’s annual tuition assistance fundraising gala. Social hour/open bar, gourmet dinner, feature video. Guest speaker, Alexandre Havard on Virtuous Leadership. Individual seats are $250; table of eight $2,000. Contact Amy Vagle at amymv@ comcast.net. Bible study — Feb. 19, 26 and March 5, 12: 6:30-8:30 p.m., Guardian Angels, 8260 Fourth St. N, Oakdale. Scripture scholar Art Zannoni will conduct these four presentations exploring the Bible’s prayer book, the Psalms. Free. Questions? Contact Michael Strande at mstrande@ guardian-angels.org or (651) 789-3162.
More events online
Cana Dinner: “Key to a Joy Filled Marriage” — Feb. 21: 6-9 p.m. Sacred Heart Church, 4087 W. Broadway, Robbinsdale. Guest speakers Bill and Adella Wacker of Marriage In Christ seminars. (763) 537-4561 or register online at shrmn.org. 15th anniversary of adoration chapel Mass and potluck — Feb. 21: 4 p.m., Blessed Sacrament Church, 2119 Stillwater Ave. St. Paul. Reservations requested. (651) 738-0677, ext. 13.
CALENDAR submissions DEADLINE: Noon Thursday, 14 days before the anticipated Thursday date of publication. Recurring or ongoing events must be submitted each time they occur. LISTINGS: Accepted are brief notices of upcoming events hosted by Catholic parishes and institutions. If the Catholic connection is not clear, please emphasize it in your press release. ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication in the calendar: • Time and date of event. • Full street address of event. • Description of event. • Contact information in case of questions. EMAIL: spiritcalendar@archspm.org. (No attachments, please.) MAIL: “Calendar,” The Catholic Spirit; 244 Dayton Ave.; St. Paul, MN 55102.
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
Lenten cross exhibit — Feb. 22-April 5: “Stumbling Stone Crosses” by Minnesota artist Rick Brack, Pax Christi Church, 12100 Pioneer Trail, Eden Prairie. Welcome reception 10 a.m.1 p.m. Feb. 22. “Spring Bling” jewelry sale — Feb. 27-28: 4-7 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Sunday, hosted by CCW at St. Henry Church, 1001 Seventh St. E, Monticello. Jewelry donated by women in the parish. Questions? Call Char Thelen at (763) 314-0366.
Prayer and liturgy St. Alphonsus Council of Catholic Women Day of Reflection — Feb. 21: 8 a.m. Theme “If I knock, will you answer.” Speakers Krista and Jeremy Carroll. Tickets $13, includes lunch. Deadline Feb. 15. 7025 Halifax Ave. N, Brooklyn Center. For more information, call Molly (763) 535-1928.
Fish fries and Lenten dinners Feb. 13 St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. pre-Lenten fish fry, plus every Friday during Lent except Good Friday, 707 89th Ave. NE.
Feb. 20 Good Shepherd, Golden Valley — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 145 Jersey Ave. S. Guardian Angels, Chaska — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, First W. and Cedar St. Chaska Knights of Columbus. Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Paul — 11:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m., enchilada dinner, 401 Concord St. Guardian Angels, Oakdale — 4:30-7 p.m. fish fry, 8260 Fourth St. N.
Morning of Reflection — Feb. 21: 10 a.m., Guardian Angels Church, 8260 Fourth St. N, Oakdale, hosted by Guardian Angels Women’s Club. Speaker Jackie Witter presents “Transformed By Grace, Transfigured For Love.” Tickets are $20, available online at www.guardian-angels.org and after all weekend Masses. Includes lunch.
Holy Cross, Minneapolis — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 17th Ave. and Fourth St. NE.
Evening of Reflection — Feb. 22: 7 p.m., Guardian Angels Church, 8260 Fourth St. N, Oakdale, hosted by Guardian Angels Men’s Club. Speaker Father Rodger Bauman on what it means to take a spiritual journey with God. Freewill offering. www.guardian-angels.org
St. Odilia, Shoreview — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 3495 N. Victoria St.
Praying through Lent with The Saint John’s Bible — Feb. 25, March 11, March 25: 9-11 a.m., the Benedictine Center at St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Rd., Maplewood. $50 (includes materials). Led by Benedictine Sister Virginia Matter. To register online go to www. stpaulsmonastery.org and follow the link to the Benedictine Center. For more information, call (651) 777-7251 or email: benedictinecenter@ stpaulsmonastery.org.
Other events Basilica Young Women and Basilica Young Men — Feb. 15: 3-4:30 p.m., Basilica of St. Mary, 88 N. 17th St., Minneapolis. Guest speakers Sister Catherine Michaud and Bishop Lee Piché. St. Paul’s Outreach Benefit Banquet — Feb. 18: 6 p.m., Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront, 11 Kellogg Blvd. E, St. Paul. St. Paul’s Outreach serves students at the University of Minnesota, St. Thomas, and St. Olaf colleges by building engaging, faith-filled communities. Banquet attendees will have the opportunity to speak with current SPO Missionaries and students, as well as learn more about this ministry. Register at www.spoweb.org. Questions? Contact Joe at (651) 451-6114 x113. Art exhibit, “The Paschal Mystery” — Feb. 18-April 5: Paintings by James B. Janknegt and Koffi Mbairamadgi, John XXIII Gallery, Basilica of St. Mary, 88 N. 17th St., Minneapolis. Visual interpretations of the parables and biblical stories and the artwork of African masks in images of the beatitudes. Annulment/Dissolution Workshop — Feb. 24: 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Hayden Center, 328 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul. Training for new parish liaison personnel, those who need a refresher course, and any priests, deacons or advocates who wish to attend. It will be geared toward explaining how to assist individuals to submit causes of marriage-nullity or dissolution. Contact either Cheryl Rutz or Linda Botkin of the tribunal staff (651) 291-4466 or e-mail tribunal@ archspm.org) to register by Friday, Feb. 13.
St. Mary, St. Paul — 6 p.m. Lenten dinner following Stations of the Cross, 261 E. Eighth St. St. Matthew, St. Paul — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, 507 Hall Ave.
St. Peter, Forest Lake — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 1250 S. Shore Dr. St. Peter, North St. Paul — 4-7 p.m. Knights of Columbus fish fry, school cafeteria, 2620 N. Margaret St.
dinner, 525 Jackson St. St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 707 89th Ave. NE.
March 6 Guardian Angels, Oakdale — 4:30-7 p.m. fish fry, 8260 Fourth St. N. Holy Cross, Minneapolis — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 17th Ave. and Fourth St. NE. St. Mary, St. Paul — 6 p.m. Lenten dinner following Stations of the Cross, 261 E. Eighth St. St. Matthew, St. Paul — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, 507 Hall Ave. St. Peter, Forest Lake — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 1250 S. Shore Dr. St. Stephen, Anoka — 5:30-7 p.m. fish dinner, 525 Jackson St. St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 707 89th Ave. NE.
March 13 Holy Cross, Minneapolis — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 17th Ave. and Fourth St. NE. St. Mary, St. Paul — 6 p.m. Lenten dinner following Stations of the Cross, 261 E. Eighth St. St. Matthew, St. Paul — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, 507 Hall Ave.
St. Stephen, Anoka — 5:30-7 p.m. fish dinner, 525 Jackson St.
St. Peter, Forest Lake — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 1250 S. Shore Dr.
St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 707 89th Ave. NE.
St. Stephen, Anoka — 5:30-7 p.m. fish dinner, 525 Jackson St.
Feb. 27 Holy Cross, Minneapolis — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 17th Ave. and Fourth St. NE. St. Anne, Hamel — 4:30-7 p.m. fish fry, 200 Hamel Rd. St. Bonaventure, Bloomington — 4:30 p.m. fish dinner, 901 E. 90th St. (between 10th and Chicago Ave.) St. John the Baptist, Jordan — 4:30-7 p.m. waffle dinner, 215 Broadway St. N. St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church — 4:30-7 p.m. Lenten potato pancake and soup dinner, 2201 Third. St. NE, Minneapolis. St. Mary, St. Paul — 6 p.m. Lenten dinner following Stations of the Cross, 261 E. Eighth St. St. Matthew, St. Paul — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, 507 Hall Ave. St. Peter, Forest Lake — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 1250 S. Shore Dr. St. Stephen, Anoka — 5:30-7 p.m. fish Register in advance. No charge. Speaker series for parents — Feb. 25: 7 p.m., Totino-Grace High School, 1350 Gardena Ave., NE, Fridley. Andrew Blake, reflections on the words of Pope Francis. Hospitality 101: Are you Martha or Mary? — Feb. 28: 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women morning of prayer, refreshments and fun, St. Raphael Church, 7301 Bass Lake Road, Crystal. $10 before Feb. 23; $15 after. For registration or more information, call (651) 291-4545 or visit events.archspm.org/
St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 707 89th Ave. NE.
March 20 Guardian Angels, Oakdale — 4:30-7 p.m. fish fry, 8260 Fourth St. N. Holy Cross, Minneapolis — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 17th Ave. and Fourth St. NE. St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church — 4:30-7 p.m. Lenten potato pancake and soup dinner, 2201 Third. St. NE, Minneapolis. St. Mary, St. Paul — 6 p.m. Lenten dinner following Stations of the Cross, 261 E. Eighth St. St. Matthew, St. Paul — 4:30-7:30 p.m. fish fry, 507 Hall Ave. St. Peter, Forest Lake — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 1250 S. Shore Dr. St. Stephen, Anoka — 5:30-7 p.m. fish dinner, 525 Jackson St. St. Timothy, Blaine — 5-7 p.m. fish fry, 707 89th Ave. NE. accw-hosp-2015. Fundraiser for Hope for the Journey Home — Feb. 28: 6-10 p.m., Guardian Angels Church, 8260 Fourth St. N, Oakdale. Comedian and ventriloquist James Wedgwood, followed by dinner. Tickets $50. Proceeds support the “Keys” program, supporting families transitioning from shelter into permanent housing. Hope for the Journey Home is a collaborative effort of churches from Washington County and nearby Ramsey County communities.
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Prayer service: Everyone has role in survivors’ healing
Buri’s book explains true love, encourages folks to look for it
Continued from page 5
Continued from page 8
own sins of omission. “We are all complicit in some ways, because of the silence,” he said. Father Norris said he first read about clergy sexual abuse more than 20 years ago, while he was in seminary, but didn’t think it was something that pertained to his ministry. He has changed his mind. Several lay people at the prayer service asked the victims/survivors what healing could look like, and how they could help them heal. The victims/survivors who responded emphasized that it was different for each person, and that no single action or person could bring about healing. However, “each of you can’t use that as an excuse not to do what you can,” cautioned one participant. “Healing happens one person at a time.” Several made clear that their own healing is tied to people taking responsibility for ending or preventing the sexual abuse of other children.
Schwiderski, who for years had a contentious relationship with local Catholic leaders, now thinks the archdiocese is on the right track because it’s now listening. “They’re learning from the past on how to better handle all sexual abuse, now and in the future,” he said. He described meeting with O’Malley, the safe environment director, at a church, and how much he appreciated that an archdiocesan official would meet with him outside the chancery. “I think the archdiocese here is a shining light to many places around the country,” he said. “[Father] Lachowitzer is bound and determined to do something different.” Schwiderski is also advocating for a broader discussion of the horrors of child sexual abuse everywhere, not just at the hands of Catholic clergy and religious men and women.“Just because I was abused by a priest doesn’t make me a special survivor,” he said.
Times. He happened upon a Jan. 9 article titled “To Fall in Love With Anyone, Do This.” The author of the article, Mandy Len Catron, decided to try an experiment that had been conducted more than 20 years ago in a lab by psychologist Arthur Aron. It involves a single man and single woman sitting across the table from each other and asking one another 36 probing questions, which are progressively more intimate. Then, at the end, they are to look into each other’s eyes in silence for four minutes. Len Catron chose a university acquaintance she had occasionally talked to at a gym, and he accepted the challenge. The article describes the experience, and the result. “You’re probably wondering if he and I fell in love,” she wrote. “Well, we did. Although it’s hard to credit the study entirely (it may have happened anyway), the study did give us a way into a relationship that feels deliberate.
“We spent weeks in the intimate space we created that night, waiting to see what it could become.” She added, “Love didn’t happen to us. We’re in love because we each made the choice to be.” And, that’s precisely the point Buri is trying to make in his book. He believes that “falling in love” is the wrong way to look at. Rather, it’s choosing to be in love. Love is a choice, an action. “Our notion of love is skewed,” said Buri, who has taught a psychology of marriage and family course at St. Thomas for 25-plus years, hence his nickname, love doctor. “When I talk about love, what I want to talk about is fondness, warmth, affection. I don’t care if you are turned on to that person by how hot they are. That doesn’t tell us anything,” he noted. “But, do you have fondness for that person? Is there an affection that you have? Is there a certain warmth that you feel towards this person? That’s what I mean.” For more information about Buri and his book, visit www.johnburi.com.
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February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
The Last Word
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faith
Fiddle Scythian influenced by folk music, Catholic roots By Barb Ernster For The Catholic Spirit
T
he Dakota Jazz Club in downtown Minneapolis will turn a bit Irish Feb. 25, when the nationally-touring Celtic band Scythian takes the stage with an all-ages, prerelease debut of its newest album. The Philadelphia-based band, co-founded by Catholic brothers Alexander and Danylo Fedoryka, is celebrating 10 years of bringing audiences to their feet with high-energy, immigrant-rooted rock songs and Celtic dervish fiddling. Scythian, named for Mesopotamian nomads with roots as diverse as the band’s musical influences, is a headliner for the Celtic festival circuit. The group has performed at the Minnesota Irish Fair over the past eight years, as well as O’Gara’s in St. Paul and the Caboose in Minneapolis. The Dakota Jazz Club offers them a new kind of venue with its dinner-table setting. All ages show “It’s a different type of Scythian interaction, but Dakota Jazz Club, 1010 Nicollet Mall, we were looking Minneapolis for a venue to 7 p.m. Feb. 25 have an all-ages $25 tickets show,” said For reservations, call (612) 332-5299 Alexander, 39. www.scythianmusic.com “[The Dakota] was curious about the melding of the music — Irish infused with Eastern European/Ukrainian; Danylo and I are immigrants of that heritage. This was a real test for us. But there has been a great response to the show, so we’re very excited.”
‘Talents in God’s hands’ The brothers grew up in a family of 10 in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia with a philosopher father and Juilliard-trained concert pianist mother. Their mother taught them how to play all their instruments — including fiddle, mandolin, guitar, accordion and piano — and inspired a love for art, especially classical art from their Eastern European roots. “She always stressed that it was for the glory of God and for others,” said Danylo, 36. “People would say, ‘Are you a Christian band?’ No, we were attracted to folk and bluegrass. We try to live faithful lives as Catholics and we knew that would come through in the music. Irish music is so joyful, it just makes everyone happy. People
February 12, 2015 • The Catholic Spirit
“People would say, ‘Are you a Christian band?’ No, we were attracted to folk and bluegrass. We try to live faithful lives as Catholics and we knew that would come through in the music.” Danylo Fedoryka
have always commented, ‘I’ve never experienced joy like I have at your shows.’” “The idea was that you develop in Christ as an artist and put your gifts and talents in God’s hands,” Alexander said. “We try to capture the joy and beauty, the panorama of emotions, which folk music does so well. The Holy Spirit will speak in his own way through the music. Over the years, our experience has been that you can make really incredible connections with people from different faiths, sometimes atheists and agnostics. You have to think to yourself, this is the Holy Spirit.” Alexander and Danylo are joined on stage by close friend and co-founder, Josef Crosby, who plays fiddle and bass, and Tim Hepburn on drums and percussion. Their sister, Larissa Fedoryka, tours with the band in the summers. The band’s new album, “Old Tin Can,” set to release on April 23, is a companion to the 2014 album “Jump at the Sun,” and a thank-you to fans who generously funded both projects. The album is also a tribute to their roots. The songs are acoustic-oriented, with a mix of Irish ballads and music that inspired them to go down the folk path in the first place, Alexander noted. “It’s fun to go back to those roots. We consider the CD to be a tribute to the people who inspired us, kind of like the ‘B’ side, the story behind the story,” he said.
Visible passion Scythian has attracted a broad range of age groups, performing at some 1,500 shows over the past decade. They once played for President George W. Bush, and drew waves from Pope Benedict XVI in 2008 when they closed out the main stage at World Youth Day in Sydney, performing for a crowd of 300,000. Their Muslim-raised drummer at the time commented that Catholics were some of the happiest people he had ever met, Danylo recalled. “It felt a little like heaven to see all the youth so happy,” he said of World Youth Day. “You
knew that they were being moved in some way and there were tons of graces going around.” Fauna Gille has followed the band since first seeing them perform at the Irish Fair on Harriet Island eight years ago The 31-year-old owner of Corda Mor, an Edina-based Irish dance school, uses a lot of Scythian’s music at the school and is bringing some of the dancers to the show. “I’ve seen them every time they come to town. They do a really good job of getting everybody at their shows involved. You’ll see kids out there dancing and mixing in with the adults,” Gille said. “They really get you clapping and you find yourself all of a sudden on the dance floor; you just feel like you’re part of their show. You can see the passion they put into everything they do.” St. Paul-based band Broken Spoke, an Irish-trio founded by Gordon Bratt and Christopher Hollister, will open for Scythian. Bratt is a parishioner of Immaculate Heart of Mary in St. Paul and has known Scythian since the beginning. His older sisters went to school with them at Christendom College in Virginia. Bratt often visited and would see the band play. He found it serendipitous for the Elk Riverbased Irish Music and Dance Association to recommended that his band open for Scythian. “It’s going to be an awesome show, super high energy because that’s what we bring — a lot of rousing vocal harmony, driving energetic music — and Scythian does the same thing, so it’s going to be a fun, fun show,” Bratt said. “I’m interested to see how the Dakota reacts to it; it’s an awesome venue.” The Fedoryka brothers like to spend extra time in the Twin Cities to visit friends and Danylo’s goddaughter. They said they enjoy the small-town, friendly atmosphere; beautiful architecture, including the Cathedral of St. Paul; and the area’s interesting history. Being descendants of the Eastern European culture, Danylo added, “It will be one last pilgrimage to Nye’s Polonaise for us,” as the Northeast Minneapolis restaurant and neighborhood icon is slated to close this year.