The Catholic Spirit - March 24, 2022

March 24, 2022 • Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

Fancy

footwork St. Peter Claver kindergarten teacher Sarah Creegan works on an Irish jig March 16 in honor of St. Patrick’s Day with students Niko Thompson, left, Zohar Bellamy and Kat Washington. The class performed the dance at a school assembly on the saint’s March 17 feast day, one example of the joy that can be found in Catholic education. For stories on what makes Catholic schools stand out, an annual report outlining their current status in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and how Catholic schools successfully weathered a second full year with COVID-19, turn to Page 10.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

ARCHBISHOP HEBDA JOINS POPE’S RUSSIA CONSECRATION TO MARY

Invites Catholics to Cathedral Holy Hour 11 a.m. March 25 — Page 8 INCARNATION FIRE 5 | FOOD WASTE ETHICS 6 | VATICAN REORGANIZATION 9 CATHOLICISM IN THE CLASSROOM 10-11 | CREATIVE CALLING 14 | C.S. LEWIS ON STAGE 15

2 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

PAGETWO Why should we wage war on each other over conflicts that we should resolve by talking to each other?

Why not, instead, join forces and resources to fight the real battles of civilization together: the fight against hunger and thirst; the fight against disease and epidemics; the fight against poverty and modern-day slavery.

Pope Francis at the Vatican, addressing a group of volunteers March 21 representing the Italian organization “I Was Thirsty,” which sets up projects to provide clean drinking water to communities in need around the world.

NEWS notes

VATICAN MEDIA | CNS

HOSPITAL VISIT Pope Francis greets a child as he visits Ukrainian children being treated at the Vatican-owned Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital in Rome March 19. The next day, Pope Francis told pilgrims gathered for the Angelus prayer that among the patients there was a child who is missing an arm and another with a head wound as a result of the Russian bombing of Ukraine.

Open Window Theatre in Inver Grove Heights is celebrating Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati’s 121st birthday with the virtual global launch of its play “Frassati” April 6.

The event includes a free livestream of the performance at 6:30 p.m. at Facebook and YouTube, followed by a livestream Q&A with the cast. Written by Open Window Theatre co-founder and executive artistic director Jeremy Stanbary, “Frassati” debuted in October. Learn more at openwindowtheatre.org/virtual.

The Catholic Spirit’s Fish Fry and Lenten Meal Guide is updated online, and now there’s a handy link to a web map of the meals developed by Mike Truso, a parishioner of St. Mark in St. Paul. Dinners at the map site are also ordered by date.

Find it at TheCatholicSpirit.com/nomeat or fishfry.netlify.app.

The School Sisters of Notre Dame announced that sisters living at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Mankato will move to Benedictine Living Community in Shakopee, likely starting sometime later in 2022. It will be a gradual process for the approximately 111 sisters who need skilled nursing or memory care, said Sister Dawn Achs, a member of the Central Pacific Province leadership team and the Our Lady of Good Counsel Work Group. Along with planning the move, the sisters are negotiating with a developer for the purchase of the property on which Our Lady of Good Counsel sits.

The site was established in 1912 on about 135 acres to serve the educational needs of the surrounding community and aid in the formation of sisters. About 25 sisters will stay in Mankato and continue their ministry, Sister Achs said.

A Minneapolis man has been charged with criminal vehicular homicide in the Oct. 25 death of Father Dennis Dempsey while the priest rode his bicycle on the shoulder of County Road 42 in Rosemount. Trejean Derrell Curry, 26, was driving with a revoked license when he fatally struck Father Dempsey, who was 73, according to a criminal complaint filed in Dakota County District Court. If convicted, Curry faces up to 10 years in prison. Curry also has been convicted nine times for driving without a license, court records show. Father Dempsey served the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for 41 years. He was pastor of Risen Savior in Burnsville at the time of his death, following 15 years at St. Dominic in Northfield. He also served at the archdiocesan mission in Venezuela.

COURTESY DANNY SUGGS PHOTOGRAPHY

STATE CHAMPS Players and coaches of the Totino-Grace High School girls basketball team celebrate a State Class AAA championship March 19 at Williams Arena in Minneapolis after receiving their first-place trophy. The No. 3-seeded Eagles defeated No. 1 Becker 60-51 in the finals and finished the season with a record of 23-8. Senior forward Hannah Herzig led the team with 31 points. It was the Fridley school’s second state championship, with the first coming in 2008. In Class AA, Providence Academy in Plymouth won its second-ever state championship with a 55-53 win over Fergus Falls in the finals, also March 19 at Williams Arena. The Lions were seeded No. 1 in Class AA and finished the season with a record of 29-4. Their first state championship came in 2012.

As the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to make a decision this spring on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, The Catholic Spirit asks readers, “What does it mean to you to truly ‘create a culture of life’?” Send responses of 200 words or less to CatholicSpirit@archspm.org with “Readers Respond” in the subject line. Your reflection may be included in a future edition of The Catholic Spirit.

The Catholic Spirit is published semi-monthly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 27 — No. 6 MOST REVEREND BERNARD A. HEBDA, Publisher TOM HALDEN, Associate Publisher MARIA C. WIERING, Editor-in-Chief JOE RUFF, News Editor

Catholic schools across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis were encouraged to embark on a nine-day prayer for peace in Ukraine to culminate March 25, the day Pope Francis was to consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. A March 16 update to schools from the archdiocese’s Office for the Mission of Catholic Education said many school officials had expressed a desire to help the people of Ukraine, and as Catholic schools, one powerful way to help is prayer. Schools were also encouraged to start the novena on any day they chose.

PRACTICING Catholic On the March 18 “Practicing Catholic” show, host Patrick Conley interviews Archbishop Bernard Hebda, who describes his efforts to stay connected with priests and others. Also featured are Father Daniel Griffith, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes in Minneapolis, who discusses Catholic social teaching, and Jose Aguto from Catholic Climate Covenant, who addresses Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’” and shares thoughts on climate change. Listen each week on Fridays at 9 p.m., Saturdays at 1 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. on Relevant Radio 1330 AM. Listen to interviews after they have aired at practicingcatholicshow.com, soundcloud.com/practicingcatholic or tinyurl.com/practicingcatholic.

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MARCH 24, 2022

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 3

FROMTHEMODERATOROFTHECURIA ONLY JESUS | FATHER CHARLES LACHOWITZER

Little joys

I

magine a set of weighing scales.

Two opposing circular plates suspended by thin chains. On one side is the weight of the world: sin, suffering and death. All that is wrong. All that is broken. All the disappointments and all the sorrows.

On the other side of the scale we can place our weight in gold, the total weight of all our possessions, all our heavy thoughts and, for that matter, the entire planet earth, and it won’t even budge the weight on the other side.

The rabbis of our elders in the faith have “kavod,” a word in Hebrew for “weight” that means God’s “glory.”

The very weight of God. The little joys of faith, hope and love are given the greater weight of God, and the scales balance.

We are reminded that David selected five smooth stones for his encounter with Goliath (1 Sm 17:40). It only took one to defeat him. Likewise, one little joy

Pequeñas alegrías

I

magina un juego de balanzas. Dos placas circulares opuestas suspendidas por finas cadenas. Por un lado está el peso del mundo: el pecado, el sufrimiento y la muerte. Todo eso está mal. Todo eso está roto. Todas las decepciones y todos los dolores.

En el otro lado de la balanza podemos colocar nuestro peso en oro, el peso total de todas nuestras posesiones, todos nuestros pensamientos pesados y, de hecho, todo el planeta tierra y ni siquiera moverá el peso del otro lado.

Los rabinos de nuestros mayores en la fe tienen “kavod”, una palabra en hebreo para “peso” que significa la “gloria” de Dios. El mismo peso de Dios. Las pequeñas alegrías de la fe, la esperanza y el amor reciben el mayor peso de Dios y dar balanza.

Se nos recuerda que David seleccionó cinco piedras lisas para su encuentro con Goliat (1 Sm 17,40). Solo se necesitó uno para derrotarlo. Asimismo, una pequeña

of faith, hope and love is given the weight of God and overcomes the giant weight on the other side of the scales.

The little joys of faith are the smallest moments of prayer when we are grateful for God’s blessings. The little joys of hope are the shortest moments where we honestly believe that we will be all right, that all will be well, that God will give us whatever grace we need to get through whatever heavy things we are going through. The little joys of love that lift heavy hearts and remind us that love is truly God’s greatest weight as revealed in Jesus Christ.

Love greater than sin. Love greater than death.

St. Teresa of Kolkata had many quotable insights for the spiritual life. One of the saint’s more popular sayings was: “We cannot all do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” Little joys.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI on more than one occasion pointed to the place in the Mass where the priest invites the people to “lift up your hearts.” And the people respond, “We lift them up to the Lord.”

alegría de fe, esperanza y amor recibe el peso de Dios y vence el peso gigante del otro lado de la balanza.

Las pequeñas alegrías de la fe son los momentos más pequeños de oración cuando estamos agradecidos por las bendiciones de Dios. Las pequeñas alegrías de la esperanza son los momentos más cortos en los que honestamente creemos que estaremos bien, que todo estará bien, que Dios nos dará la gracia que necesitamos para superar las cosas difíciles por las que estamos pasando. Las pequeñas alegrías del amor que levantan corazones apesadumbrados y nos recuerdan que el amor es verdaderamente el mayor peso de Dios revelado en Jesucristo. Amor más grande que el pecado. Amor más grande que la muerte.

Santa Teresa de Calcuta tuvo muchas ideas citables para la vida espiritual. Uno de los dichos más populares del santo era: “No todos podemos hacer grandes cosas. Pero podemos hacer cosas pequeñas con gran amor”. Pequeñas alegrías.

El Papa Emérito Benedicto XVI en más de una ocasión señaló el lugar de la Misa donde el sacerdote invita a la gente a “levantar el corazón”. Y el pueblo responde: “Los elevamos al Señor”.

But Benedict XVI cautioned us that on our own we cannot lift the hearts burdened by the force of gravity.

Rather, our hearts are drawn upwards by God and lightened by the very heart of Christ.

So, too, we cannot lift the scale that is the gravity of our mortality. There is much in our world that troubles the conscience and disturbs the heart. The effects of original sin play out in our lives in heavy ways that can be a seemingly immovable burden.

As we continue our observance of the Lenten season, it may not seem all that much to pray, fast and give alms. But when done from the heart with the little joys of faith, hope and love, we experience the weight of grace. Placed on our side of the scales are the hands of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Standing on our side of the scales are the communion of saints, the faithful departed and all the angels.

When we pursue the little joys of faith, hope and love, we feel the weight of this world lifted, and in the balance, we give glory to God.

Pero Benedicto XVI nos advirtió que solos no podemos levantar los corazones agobiados por la fuerza de la gravedad. Más bien, nuestros corazones son atraídos hacia arriba por Dios e iluminados por el mismo corazón de Cristo.

Así también, no podemos levantar la escala que es la gravedad de nuestra mortalidad. Hay muchas cosas en nuestro mundo que inquietan la conciencia y perturban el corazón. Los efectos del pecado original se manifiestan en nuestras vidas de manera pesada que puede ser una carga aparentemente inamovible.

A medida que continuamos con nuestra observancia de la temporada de Cuaresma, puede no parecer mucho orar, ayunar y dar limosnas. Pero cuando se hace desde el corazón con las pequeñas alegrías de la fe, la esperanza y el amor, experimentamos el peso de la gracia. De nuestro lado de la balanza están colocadas las manos de Jesús, María y José. De nuestro lado de la balanza están la comunión de los santos, los fieles difuntos y todos los ángeles.

Cuando buscamos las pequeñas alegrías de la fe, la esperanza y el amor, sentimos que se quita el peso de este mundo y, en la balanza, damos gloria a Dios.

OFFICIAL Archbishop Bernard Hebda has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis:

Effective July 1, 2022 Reverend Paul Feela, granted the status of retired priest. Father Feela has served the Archdiocese as a priest since his ordination in 1978, most recently as pastor of the Church of Lumen Christi in Saint Paul.

Reverend Jerome Fehn, granted the status of retired priest. Father Fehn has served the Archdiocese as a priest since his ordination in 1978, most recently as a hospital chaplain.

Reverend Mark Juettner, granted the status of retired priest. Father Juettner has served the Archdiocese as a priest since his ordination in 1979, most recently as pastor of the Church of Saint George in Long Lake.

Vatican releases Pope Francis’ Lent, Holy Week, Easter schedule

By Junno Arocho Esteves Catholic News Service The Vatican published Pope Francis’ calendar for Holy Week and Easter, which includes the Way of the Cross at Rome’s Colosseum for the first time in two years.

The annual commemoration of Christ’s passion at the Colosseum was canceled in 2020 due to restrictions on outdoor gatherings to prevent the spread of COVID-19. And in 2021, there was a pareddown Way of the Cross service in St. Peter’s Square.

The Vatican said that Masses on Palm Sunday, Easter Sunday, as well as a canonization Mass May 15 will be celebrated outdoors for the first time since the pandemic began.

As is customary when first publishing the pope’s calendar for Holy Week, the Vatican did not provide the time or place for his celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, April 14.

Before the pandemic, Pope Francis had made it a tradition to celebrate the Mass and foot-washing ritual at a prison or detention center, refugee center or rehabilitation facility.

Here is the schedule of papal liturgical ceremonies and events for April and May released by the Vatican March 21: u April 2-3, Apostolic visit to Malta. uApril 10, Palm Sunday, Mass in St. Peter’s Square. uApril 14, Holy Thursday, morning chrism Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. uApril 15, Good Friday, afternoon liturgy of the Lord’s passion in St. Peter’s Basilica.

CNS

Last year, the pope celebrated a private Mass on Holy Thursday with Cardinal Angelo Becciu, the former prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, who was forced to resign amid an investigation into suspected financial malfeasance.

The evening Mass of the Lord’s Supper in St. Peter’s Basilica that year was instead celebrated by Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals.

uApril 15, Way of the Cross at night in the Colosseum. uApril 16, Easter vigil Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. uApril 17, Easter morning Mass in St. Peter’s Square, followed at noon by the pope’s blessing “urbi et orbi” (the city and the world). uApril 24, Divine Mercy Sunday, Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. uMay 15, Canonization Mass in St. Peter’s Square.

4 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

LOCAL

Cathedral goes green

SLICEof LIFE DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Bishop Joseph Williams greets Peter Kenefick, center, this year’s Mr. Pat, and Christine Hanley, this year’s Miss Shamrock, after Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul on St. Patrick’s Day. Kenefick, who belongs to Our Lady of Grace in Edina, was selected as Mr. Pat by the St. Patrick’s Association in 2020.

He finally got to march in the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade in St. Paul this year, after the previous two parades were canceled due to COVID-19. “I’m third-generation Kenefick from St. Paul,” he said. “I came (to the parade) as a DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT little boy. … And now today, I’ll be riding with my wife and my granddaughter as Mr. Pat in the parade. So, I’m really honored.” After the Mass, Bishop Williams noted that there is Irish heritage in his own family, as he replied to someone that he is about “15 to 20 percent” Irish. The Mass was sponsored by the Ancient Order of Hibernians.

LOCAL

MARCH 24, 2022

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 5

In Minneapolis, Incarnation fire damage disrupts parish life

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit One of the new realities at fire-damaged Incarnation church in south Minneapolis is having baptisms in the church rectory. Just days after a March 9 fire caused smoke damage and the destruction of a side altar on the north side of the building, Father Kevin McDonough, pastor of Incarnation, and Deacon Carl Valdez, had six baptisms at the church rectory.

People were crammed into rooms and children baptized in hallways March 12, with mixed emotions felt by families and friends.

“It is very hard that we’re missing something right now” by not being in the church, said Sylvia Chapeton, godmother of Dylan Mateo Garcia Pinzon, one of the six children baptized. “But, the important thing is that we’re here together for Dylan.”

In addition to relocating baptisms, weekend Masses were moved to the building across the street — Hiawatha Academy (formerly Incarnation School) — starting March 12. Cleanup and restoration of the church is expected to take at least six months, even though most of the damage was contained to a side altar on the north side of the building.

“As is true in most fires, smoke damage will be the real issue,” Father McDonough said, explaining the need to stay out of the church for now. “I’m sure there’s soot everywhere.”

The cost to repair and restore the church is yet to be determined, said Deacon Valdez, who serves at Incarnation. All of the pews will need to be removed so scaffolding can be put up to do the work, he noted. That alone will cost at least $100,000, he said.

Unmeasured in dollar amounts will be the emotional pain felt by parishioners who have to deal with the temporary loss of their worship space and adjust to new ways of obtaining the sacraments, including baptisms.

Another significant change will be Quinceanera celebrations for girls reaching their 15th birthdays.

Typically, the celebrations begin with a prayer service at the church, followed by a reception at a facility chosen

Deacon Carl Valdez gets ready to baptize Dylan Mateo Garcia Pinzon, held by his father, José Garcia, in the rectory of Incarnation in south Minneapolis March 12.

This and other baptisms were moved there after a fire inside the church March 9 caused damage.

In the background, center, is Dylan’s mother, Yadira Pinzon.

DAVE HRBACEK THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

by the family. Now, Deacon Valdez plans to travel to the reception site to do a short blessing there.

The current plan calls for the basement, or “lower church,” to reopen the weekend of April 9-10. Palm Sunday Masses will take place there, along with all Holy Week services, with everything livestreamed.

Stations of the Cross will be livestreamed from the rectory basement every Friday during Lent, and daily Masses are being livestreamed from the church sacristy.

“We’ve seen some tears,” Deacon Valdez said about conversations he and Father McDonough have had with parishioners. Among those mourning the damage are people with strong devotions to the Holy Child Jesus and to St. Paul the Apostle — devotions rooted in traditions from Axochiapan, Mexico, where some immigrants in the parish are from, Deacon Valdez said.

The side altar with the most damage was used as a place for those devotions and is called Santo Niño Jesus. The

altar was destroyed, and Deacon Valdez said there will be discussions on how to replace it and restore the area around it.

“It’s so sad,” Chapeton said about the destruction of the altar. “It is really hard.”

The fire was still under investigation, with the cause yet unknown. A spokesperson for the Minneapolis Fire Department could not be reached for comment. Deacon Valdez said he believes the fire was caused accidentally.

One young parishioner has started a GoFundMe effort to help cover costs not covered by insurance.

Deacon Valdez said the surrounding neighborhood will feel the impact of the damage to this historic structure, completed and dedicated in 1920 in response to city growth south of downtown. The church is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Parish Synod Leadership Teams report a rewarding experience Feedback to shape Synod Assembly on Pentecost weekend

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit Dean Rademacher participated in not one, but two Parish Synod Leadership Team meetings — one at St. Joseph in New Hope, where he works as the parish director, and the other at his home parish, Guardian Angels in Oakdale. The consultations were the final step in the 2022 Archdiocesan Synod process before the three-day Synod Assembly in June.

While participating in two separate daylong events was a time commitment, Rademacher thought both were valuable because they brought together key Catholics to brainstorm and think strategically around critical issues in their parish and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Held in parishes at the end of February or beginning of March, the six-hour PSLT consultation asked groups of 10 to gather with their pastor to refine draft Synod propositions — statements of ideas related to the Synod’s three topic areas — before those propositions advanced to the Synod Assembly weekend.

Groups also watched three short video presentations from local theology experts and discussed what it would look like to hypothetically implement three of the propositions at their own parishes.

The Archdiocesan Synod launched in 2019 with 30 listening sessions around the archdiocese, where Archbishop Bernard Hebda gathered broad feedback on the successes and challenges of the local Church. In 2020, he identified three focus areas for the Synod: 1.

Forming parishes that are in the service of evangelization, 2. Forming missionary disciples who know Jesus’ love and respond to his call, and 3. Forming youth and young adults in and for a Church that is always young.

In October and November 2021, parishes hosted small groups for six-week sessions to explore the focus areas and shape the Synod Assembly in the form of Synod propositions. Synod leaders refined those propositions and sought further feedback through the PSLT consultation. Participants evaluated 20 propositions related to focus area No. 1, 14 related to focus area No. 2, and 16 related to focus area No. 3.

Based on consultation input, the propositions will be finalized for the Synod Assembly, where they will be discussed and prayed about. Those propositions will help attendees make recommendations to Archbishop Hebda on the future of the local Church. In November, the archbishop plans to release a pastoral letter informed by work at the assembly.

Two PSLT participants from each parish will attend the Synod Assembly, a gathering of an estimated 500 people.

The Archdiocesan Synod has been inspiring for Todd Flowerday, the liturgist

at St. Katharine Drexel in Ramsey, who moved from Washington state for the job 18 months ago. Knowing that the archdiocese was engaged in a synod helped attract him to the area, he said.

“It was a very good sign,” he said, of the local Church’s health.

Flowerday participated in the PSLT consultation at St. Katharine Drexel, and he praised the quality of the videos that guided the event. “It was clear that it was well thought out,” he said. “It was much better than I thought it was going to be.”

Rademacher, the current chairman of the Coalition of Ministry Associations and former chair of the Association of Parish Business Administrators — both organizations of ministry professionals in the archdiocese — noted that while at least one person at the PSLT consultation voiced initial concern about whether the time would be worthwhile, he or she reported it was an enrichening experience.

That’s what Synod leaders heard, too.

“The feedback we have received has been overwhelmingly positive,” Synod Director Therese Coons and Assistant Director Father Joseph Bambenek told The Catholic Spirit in a March 18 email.

“People were energized by the discussions, especially the discussions about how to move forward. As one person put it, ‘None of us wanted to be there at the start of the day, and then none of us wanted to leave when it was over.’”

Almost all parishes participated in the PSLT meetings, Synod leaders confirmed.

Rademacher said he “feels sad for

the parishes that didn’t take the Synod seriously.”

“They missed a huge opportunity to engage key leadership and to work collaboratively with the archbishop on something all of us have,” he said.

“These topics were not ‘pie in the sky topics,’ these are really … where the rubber hits the road.”

The consultation’s exercise of exploring how the parish could hypothetically implement three of the propositions was a foretaste of what’s expected to come from the archbishop’s pastoral letter and related plan.

In that brainstorming exercise, participants were also asked whether it would be beneficial to work with other parishes, and how the archdiocese could assist the parish in that work.

“This part of the consultation had a two-fold purpose,” Coons and Father Bambenek said. “First, to have parishes begin to think about implementation, as the Synod will result in a pastoral Letter with pastoral priorities for the archdiocese. We heard back that some parishes found these discussions so valuable they are taking action now based on them. Second, to provide the archdiocese with valuable feedback on how parishes approach this work and thereby how the archdiocese can better support them. Imagine the immense value of seeing how nearly every parish in the archdiocese would go about concretely implementing three of these propositions.”

6 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

LOCAL

MARCH 24, 2022

Lent and ‘Laudato Si’’: Burnsville parish suggests faith-related food waste solutions

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.” The sixth chapter of the Gospel of John records that Jesus spoke those words to his disciples after the miracle of the loaves and fishes.

Those words are striking a special chord this Lent with parishioners of Risen Savior in Burnsville, as the parish’s Environmental Concerns Committee, with about 10 members, focuses on reducing food waste as a matter of justice and an aspect of fasting, an important pillar of Lent along with prayer and almsgiving.

Reducing food waste is “a way to be in solidarity with the poor” while uniting with the broader realm of creation, said Grace Koleczek, a parish staff member who’s led the Environmental Concerns Committee since summer 2019.

The verse from John’s Gospel was used during the closing prayer at a gathering open to parishioners March 7, in the first week of Lent, that included watching a film, “Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story.” About 25 people participated; parishioners had also been invited by the committee to watch the 2014 film online, where it can be streamed on YouTube.

The committee, which usually meets monthly, also is placing stories in the parish bulletin connecting Lent to environmental justice, specifically through food habits. The March 6 bulletin included tips for buying only what is certain to be consumed, as one way to avoid purchasing too much.

The bulletin offered advice for ordering smaller portions at restaurants; freezing food for another meal; supporting businesses, such as Second Harvest, that serve people in need; and composting to keep inedible scraps out of landfills.

The 73-minute film features a young couple who want to reduce food waste from farms and retail stores.

They challenge themselves to live six months on food they find discarded in commercial dumpsters or that stores plan to toss out. They find enough food for themselves and even more to give to others. Film footage of their dumpster harvests include dozens of packages of hummus, canned and packaged foods,

LEARN MORE View the film, “Just Eat It: A Food Waste Story” (one hour, 13 minutes) on YouTube at tinyurl.com/ mpx49ppx or check its availability on streaming services including Amazon Prime and Hulu.

REDUCE FOOD WASTE u Learn to recycle and compost (check with your county) u Recycle paper and other products at work u Purchase “imperfect” groceries (imperfectfoods.com) u Buy local, such as farmers’ markets and CSAs (community-supported agriculture) u Use leftovers, plan parties and other activities to avoid food waste (savethefood.com) — Environmental Concerns Committee, Risen Savior, Burnsville BARB UMBERGER | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Twelve bread baskets — symbolizing what was left over in the biblical account of Jesus feeding a crowd of 5,000 — were placed on a table at Risen Savior in Burnsville as parishioners watched a film about food waste. The parish’s Environmental Concerns Committee is focusing on social justice and faith-related aspects of reducing food waste as part of Lent this year. fruit, vegetables and boxes of chocolate bars.

Participants discussed the film, including what made an impression and ideas for changing food habits.

Parishioner Louise Seigworth, who joined the committee earlier this year, said at the gathering that she has become increasingly concerned about the environment. She has started organic recycling at home, her family purchased a hybrid vehicle, and last year they installed solar panels.

“I’m trying to put into practice my beliefs on how we need to be good stewards of our home, the Earth,” Seigworth said. “When I saw that our church had an environmental concerns committee, I thought, ‘Hey, this really aligns with my passions and my beliefs, and I want to participate and see how I can contribute to the group.’”

Adam Fitzpatrick, social mission outreach coordinator at the Center for Mission in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, said Risen Savior landed on a worthy project. Food waste goes against Catholic social teaching because “it’s wasting resources that we’ve been given that could be shared

and distributed more equally among all members of creation,” he said.

“I think food waste is an important topic to be thinking about in the course of Lent because we think about the importance of prayer, fasting and almsgiving,” Fitzpatrick said.

“And really, what that draws us to is attention to … our own appetites … and what is necessary versus what might be over and beyond what we really need. I think it’s important for us, when we’re reflecting on ourselves and God as present through the gifts that we receive, that we understand the importance of ‘enough.’”

Knowing the difference between needs and wants can set people up to use their resources differently in almsgiving, Fitzpatrick said. “You can set up more resources for giving if you feel like you need fewer things for your own self-fulfillment or even for the fulfillment of the community,” he said.

Fitzpatrick recalled the words “whenever food is thrown out, it is as if it were stolen from the table of the poor,” from Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’, on Care for our Common Home.”

“I think the overall message … is to minimize waste, is to be better stewards of the environment,” he said. A program on food waste is “very in line with the pope’s thoughts on conversion, about being able to take that next step forward to move ourselves into greater holiness.”

Koleczek said the encyclical provides language directly linking care for creation with the Catholic faith. “That’s how this committee kind of came to life,” she said, “through reading, discussing and praying with (Laudato Si’).”

A previous small group at Risen Savior led prayers and conversations about the encyclical. An earlier parish “green team” installed a butterfly garden with native plants in front of the church that continues to be maintained. At a March 20 Knights of Columbus pancake breakfast, committee members explained parish recycling, including where to place items so compostable items don’t end up in the trash or in recycling containers, Koleczek said.

God gives people agency, choice and intellect to use resources well and to be mindful not only of the poor, but of generations to come, she said.

People can take the initiative, she said, and declare: “I can be part of a solution here.”

Priest remembered for knowing, valuing his parishioners

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit Father Marvin Klaers wanted to get to know everyone in the parishes where he served, and he backed that commitment with action, said Patty Kocur, who worked for him at St. Joseph in Miesville and St. Mary in New Trier, where he was pastor for 26 years before he retired in 2002.

Father Klaers died March 12 at age 96.

Kocur first met him in 1993 as her family moved to New Trier.

“He helped us move furniture into the house,” said Kocur, 61, the business administrator at St. Joseph, who has worked at both parishes. Not long after the move, he recruited her to be a lector at St. Mary, and five years later, he hired

her as his secretary. He liked connecting with everyone who filled the pews at his Sunday Masses, Kocur said.

“He liked to visit all of his parishioners and people he knew,” she said. “He checked in on everybody. I remember, being his secretary, he always said, ‘Don’t ever take anybody off the roster unless I tell you.’ He wanted to know who everybody was in the parish.”

FATHER Thanks to Father MARVIN KLAERS Klaers, Kocur and her daughter, Alex, 32, got to take a trip to Venezuela to visit the archdiocesan mission in San Felix at the parish of Jesucristo Resucitado. The two spent

three weeks there in August 2001 and stayed with the pastor, Father Greg Schaffer.

They first met Father Schaffer when he brought people from his parish in Venezuela to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to fundraise and raise awareness of the mission.

Young musicians and dancers performed after Masses, and Kocur brought her family.

“My daughter Alex really enjoyed them,” she said. “So, Father Klaers suggested that she go down there and visit the mission in Venezuela. She was 11 years old, so I said, ‘Well, she’s not going unless I go with her.’ So, he paid for our airfare to go down there for about three weeks.”

Ordained in 1950, Father Klaers also served at St. Mark in Shakopee

(1953-1965), St. Mathias in Hampton (1965-1971), St. Thomas the Apostle in St. Paul (1971-1975) and St. Mary in St. Paul (1975-1976).

Kocur said he had a love of the outdoors, and was known for taking long walks in and around the neighborhood surrounding the parishes.

He also enjoyed researching history and genealogy, which led to him writing a history book on St. Mary and his own personal memoirs. Kocur helped him with both projects, typing and editing to bring each to its final form.

Father Klaers’ love of the outdoors traces back to growing up on a farm near Loretto, and he will be buried on land once owned by his family, at the cemetery of Sts. Peter and Paul in Loretto. His funeral Mass was March 22 at St. Joseph in Miesville.

MARCH 24, 2022

LOCAL

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 7

Knowing Ukraine family members still alive helps St. Pascal principal start her day

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit Inna Collier Paske works full-time as principal of St. Pascal Regional Catholic School in St. Paul. But since Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine, staying in touch with her parents and sister back in their hometown in central Ukraine has become like a second job, she said.

“I can’t go to bed until I talk to them, so I know that they are OK. Then in the morning, before I go to work, I talk with them.”

Sometimes the worries are excruciating, she said.

The moment she receives a morning video call or chat from her family “and knows that they are alive,” she has the momentum to take on the day and persevere, focus on tasks and on those in her care, said Collier Paske, 37. Spending time with the Lord and praying has become the main way to support her family and friends in Ukraine, she said.

Family members living in her hometown include her father, a plumber and electrician, her mother, a retired INNA COLLIER kindergarten teacher, PASKE and her sister, who lives there with her husband, a farm implement dealer, and younger daughter.

Her sister’s older daughter attends school in Lithuania and works for a humanitarian aid organization that helps coordinate other charitable organizations’ services to vulnerable populations in Ukraine, including families and children who need help evacuating.

Since Russia’s invasion, her hometown in central Ukraine, which The Catholic Spirit is not naming due to safety concerns, has become the site of “lots of Ukrainian tanks” traveling through, as well as refugees, “a lot of refugees,” Collier Paske said. The town’s sports center has become a military base where residents see soldiers conducting drills.

“I’m just grateful there is no bombing there at this point,” she said. “When you hear the news of just bombing randomly, you never know.”

One way Collier Paske cheers up her family is telling them how her school’s students and staff support her and the people of Ukraine. Telling those stories is encouraging and lets them know they are not forgotten, she said.

In addition to her immediate family, Collier Paske has relatives and friends in other parts of Ukraine.

The husband of one friend serves in the military, and she has fled the country with their two young children. “Right now, she’s stuck in Denmark and trying to get a visa to the United States so she can stay with me,” Collier Paske said.

An aunt who lives in western Ukraine has friends who fled to Poland. But it is overcrowded and the family is running out of money, Collier Paske said. “They only get food like twice a week and can’t afford it anymore. They are so desperate now they are going back to Ukraine.”

Collier Paske emigrated from Ukraine in 2004 as a foreign exchange student.

After a year, she returned to her home country to continue her studies, earning her first master’s degree. In 2009, she

CLASSROOM LESSONS

Another educator in Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis recently brought her Ukrainian heritage and requests for prayers concerning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine into the classroom.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Maria Zownirowycz talks to students in her history class March 15 at Immaculate Conception Catholic School in Columbia Heights about her Ukrainian heritage and the country’s current struggle against Russia.

Maria Zownirowycz, 32, born in the U.S. but with a Ukrainian grandfather, has taught history to eighth graders at Immaculate Conception Catholic School in Columbia Heights, where she recently began a leave of absence. Their classroom discussion sometimes included current events in Ukraine.

She also discusses events in Ukraine with two of her 22 cousins who live there, including near-daily contact with one of her cousins, a 36-year-old tutor. Recently, her cousin messaged Zownirowycz about her Catholic faith and lifelong church attendance, but said she recently stopped believing and praying. “I can’t for now,” she said.

Her cousin wants NATO to intervene in Ukraine but said “everybody is afraid of Russia.” War is not as it should be, her cousin said, with Russian troops firing at civilian targets.

to visit Minnesota this summer. “We bought them a ticket to take them to Hawaii,” she said, “and I don’t know if I will even see them again. And then how to reunite my family.” She offered her niece in Lithuania the chance to stay in Minnesota, but her niece said, ‘If I stay here, at least I’m close to my family (in Ukraine).’”

Before Russia’s invasion, Collier Paske had urged her parents to leave Ukraine.

She believes now the safest place for them is their hometown. She also hopes the U.S. government simplifies the visa process for Ukrainians, “so I can reunite with my family once it’s safe for them to leave Ukraine.”

Her 6-year-old daughter made “a heartbreaking video” asking her family to leave, adding that “it’s safe here, and bring as many Ukrainians as you can with you.” Her parents declined because they didn’t think a war would start, or if there was an invasion, it would be contained to eastern Ukraine.

Collier Paske’s brother-in-law serves in territorial defense in Ukraine, and her sister “can’t leave him behind; she wants to stay with him.” A cousin who was drafted asked Collier Paske to pray for him. “More than anything, this brought Ukraine together, having more pride about being Ukrainian, and then just brought them to God,” she said. People tell her they feel the prayers, she said.

Prayer helps her a lot, too, she said, especially when it sometimes feels like the end of the world. “Just knowing that God takes care of them,” she said.

Like many people in Ukraine, Collier

HELPING UKRAINE St. Pascal Regional Catholic School in St. Paul is raising funds to help the Save Ukraine Mutual Aid Center, helpua.center, by selling lollipops for $1. Other donations are welcome.

St. Pascal also will sell floral crowns for $20 to $35, part of traditional Ukrainian outfits, made by members of St. Constantine Ukrainian Catholic Church in Minneapolis, at parent-teacher conferences 3–7 p.m. March 24 and March 31.

Proceeds will go to humanitarian aid, Collier Paske said.

Paske grew up Eastern Orthodox. But at age 10 she converted to the Baptist faith.

Today, she attends a nondenominational church.

She never expected God’s path for her would include serving a Catholic school.

But when she came to St. Pascal in 2017, becoming principal in 2018, she saw people were seeking God and she said, “This is it. I’m helping them.”

Many students at St. Pascal didn’t grow up speaking English, she said, so she has worked to create a system where parents won’t face language barriers when bringing their children to a Catholic school.

Faith is important for Ukraine, for herself, for her family, Collier Paske said.

She said there are billboards in Ukraine with messages like, “Come to God. God is our shield. If NATO won’t shield the skies, God will shield us.”

Some of Zownirowycz’s relatives in Ukraine recently told her they are no longer able to go to work. “I don’t know how they are getting food,” she said.

She said the situation in Ukraine has helped her appreciate the blessings of family, friends, her faith, and freedom of speech, freedom of faith and “the freedom to be the best version of myself.”

On March 10, Zownirowycz’s uncle in the Twin Cities, Bob Kuczwarskyj, said relatives in western Ukraine were no longer going to school or work, except one who works for the railroad.

Shops were still open but “it’s pretty much martial law in that part of Ukraine,” he said.

One cousin refuses to leave, he said. Another is very anxious and has gathered documents in case she needs to leave on short notice.

A forum series exploring critical needs in our community as well as hopeful solutions

TUE. MAR. 29. 2022

in person Church of the Annunciation, Minneapolis or via livestream The Church of the Annunciation has a Tuesday evening Mass at 5:30 PM. We invite you to join us in celebrating the Eucharist before the forum begins.

An older cousin said, “Where am I going to go?

This is my home. This is what I know.” returned to the U.S., where she studied school counseling at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, married and made Minnesota her home.

What’s happening in her home country has her increasingly worried, particularly for people trying to flee but facing long lines on roads, perhaps needing a car. Male citizens ages 18-60 are not allowed to leave.

Her parents do not drive and her niece is now afraid to. “At every post, people check your documents and can hold a gun on you,” Collier Paske said.

Travelers never know which checkpoint they will arrive at — whether manned by Ukrainians or Russians. “For everybody, it’s a very traumatic experience,” she said.

Collier Paske’s parents were supposed

5:30 PM optional Mass 6:30 PM hors d’oeuvres & drinks 7:00 PM forum begins

LAUDATO SI’ How are we as Catholics called to care for our common home?

A panel of national experts will discuss Pope Francis’s encyclical Laudato Si’. How are Catholics called to care for creation — as individuals, as a community, and as a Church?

MODERATOR Jeff Rauenhorst – Asset Management, Catholic Energies PANELISTS

Jose Aguto – Executive Director, Catholic Climate Covenant Kat Doyle – Director of Justice and Peace Ministries, Archdiocese of Atlanta Most Reverend Richard Pates – Bishop Emeritus, Diocese of Des Moines

To Register www.ccf-mn.org/forums Forums are free. Registration is required.

8 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

NATION+WORLD Pope asks bishops worldwide to join consecration of Ukraine, Russia Catholic News Service Pope Francis has asked bishops around the world to join him March 25 in consecrating Ukraine and Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, something bishops in every part of the globe started announcing the minute they heard what the pope had planned.

“Pope Francis has invited the bishops of the whole world, along with their priests, to join him in the prayer for peace and in the consecration and entrustment of Russia and of Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary,” Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, said March 18.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda plans to participate in the consecration with an 11 a.m. Holy Hour at the Cathedral of St. Paul. (See sidebar at right.)

The Vatican first announced the consecration March 15, saying the pope would lead the prayer in St. Peter’s Basilica during a Lenten penance service and that, on the same day, the feast of the Annunciation, Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, the papal almoner, would lead a similar act of consecration at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Portugal.

When Mary appeared to three shepherd children at Fatima in 1917 with a message encouraging prayer and repentance, she also asked for the consecration of Russia.

Even before the announcement from the Vatican, bishops from around the world had announced special services at which they would join Pope Francis.

Bishops in cities across North America joined bishops from New Zealand, the Philippines, Russia, Ukraine and other countries planning special services.

According to the Vatican’s translation of the messages of Fatima, when Mary appeared to the three children, she told them, “God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart.

If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved, and there will be peace.”

Warning of “war, famine and

LOCAL CONSECRATION

Pope Francis prays in front of the original statue of Our Lady of Fatima during a Marian vigil in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican in this Oct. 12, 2013, file photo. The pope has invited the bishops of the world to join him in “consecrating and entrusting” Russia and Ukraine to Mary March 25.

PAUL HARING | CNS

persecutions of the Church and of the Holy Father,” Mary told the children, “to prevent this, I shall come to ask for the consecration of Russia to my Immaculate Heart.”

The Eastern- and Latin-rite Catholic bishops of Ukraine had been asking Pope Francis for the consecration.

Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk of Kyiv-Halych, head of the Eastern-rite Ukrainian Catholic Church, said March 16, “Ukrainian Catholics have been asking for this act since the beginning of Russian aggression in 2014 (in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine) as urgently needed to avoid the worsening of the war and the dangers coming from Russia.”

“With the invasion of Russia on a massive scale,” in late February, he said, “prayers to do this came from all parts of the world from our faithful.”

The country’s Latin-rite bishops published their appeal to Pope Francis March 2, telling him that their priests, religious and laity all asked that he “consecrate our motherland and Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

In a brief March 16 statement

following a two-day plenary in Irkutsk, Russia’s Catholic bishops welcomed the pope’s decision with “joy and gratitude,” and called on Catholic parishes and communities across the country to schedule “appropriate prayers” and individuals to combine prayer with fasting and “deeds of love.”

“We call on all Catholics, remembering that ‘reality is always higher than ideas,’ in the words of Pope Francis, to strive for mutual understanding and be heralds of the word of reconciliation,” they said.

Some groups have continued to argue that Mary’s wish at Fatima was never fulfilled or that it was never done properly because the pope consecrated the world and not “Russia.” The Vatican, however, has insisted St. John Paul II did so in 1984 when he led the world’s bishops in the consecration of Russia and the world. The late Sister Lucia dos Santos, the last surviving visionary and the one who received the instructions for the consecration, had said that it was properly performed. (See related story below.)

At the pope’s Sunday recitations of the

Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Bishop Joseph Williams will join Pope Francis and other bishops from around the world in consecrating Ukraine and Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary March 25.

The archbishop invites Catholics and “all people of good will” to join him and Bishop Williams at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul for an 11 a.m. Holy Hour, which will include the prayers of consecration. The event will occur simultaneously with Pope Francis’ Celebration of Penance at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, during which he will make the consecration.

The local event will be livestreamed at cathedralsaintpaul.org. Archbishop Hebda encourages people who cannot attend in person to join the livestream “or else by simply stopping at 11:00 a.m. local time to pray the consecration prayer on their own, in solidarity with our sisters and brothers all over the world,” according to a statement on the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ website.

“Pastors of parishes in the Archdiocese are also welcome to observe the Consecration in some way in their own churches,” the statement said.

— Maria Wiering Angelus since Russia invaded Ukraine Feb. 24, people have been showing up in St. Peter’s Square with signs asking Pope Francis for the consecration of Russia or of Russia and Ukraine to Mary.

The Fatima message promised: “If my requests are heeded, Russia will be converted, and there will be peace; if not, she will spread her errors throughout the world, causing wars and persecutions of the Church. The good will be martyred; the Holy Father will have much to suffer; various nations will be annihilated.”

But, the message continued: “In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph.

The Holy Father will consecrate Russia to me, and she shall be converted, and a period of peace will be granted to the world.”

Papal consecration of Russia, Ukraine has history of controversy behind it

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service While bishops in Ukraine and Russia are grateful Pope Francis will consecrate their nations to Mary, other Catholics are eagerly awaiting the text of the pope’s prayer to see if he does it “correctly.”

At issue is whether he explicitly consecrates Russia — named out loud — to the Immaculate Heart of Mary when he does the consecration March 25 and whether all the bishops of the world do so at the same time.

Until the beginning of World War II, the message Our Lady of Fatima gave to three shepherd children in Portugal in 1917 was simply one of prayer and repentance. But in 1941, long after the deaths of Sts. Francisco and Jacinto Marto, the last of the visionaries, Sister Lucia dos Santos, gave a full account of the apparition’s “secret.”

Mary, she said, first showed them a vision of hell. Then Mary urged prayers for Russia’s conversion, made the request for its “consecration” in the name of

her Immaculate Heart and promised her eventual triumph. The third part of the secret, the subject of much speculation, was not revealed until St. John Paul II ordered its publication in June 2000.

The devotion of St. John Paul to Mary and, especially to Our Lady of Fatima, is clear. After he was shot by a would-be assassin on the feast of Our Lady of Fatima in 1981, he credited her with guiding the bullet so that it would wound and not kill him. He had the bullet placed in the crown of the statue of Mary at the Fatima shrine.

Recovering from the shooting, Pope John Paul had Sister Lucia’s text of the “third secret” brought to him in the hospital. He recorded an “Act of Entrustment” of the world to Mary in June 1981.

Three years later, on March 25, 1984, in St. Peter’s Square, he did so in person.

The Vatican’s description of the event says, “The Holy Father, in spiritual union with the bishops of the world, who had been ‘convoked’ beforehand, entrusted all men and women and all peoples to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

But some devotees of Our Lady of Fatima argued that the “consecration of Russia’’ requested by Mary in 1917 was never performed properly.

Before her death, Sister Lucia insisted — in letters published in the Italian Catholic magazine 30 Giorni and in person to Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone — that the consecration had been performed correctly in 1984 by St. John Paul. At the ceremony, the pope entrusted the whole world to Mary and invoked her aid in deliverance from evil, famine, war, hatred and injustice. He asked the world’s bishops to join him — an important detail to the millions of Fatima followers, who say Mary wanted the consecration to be carried out with the world’s episcopate.

But his prayer to Mary did not mention Russia by name, and that made some people think it had not been done correctly. Then there is the question of the “conversion” of Russia, something that was easy to assume referred to communist rulers or a communist system of government ruling the Soviet Union, oppressing the country’s traditionally

Orthodox communities and harshly persecuting Catholics and others.

In 2017, the 100th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions, Catholic Archbishop Paolo Pezzi of Moscow told Catholic News Service he had seen the conversion of Russia to Christ in his lifetime.

“We should not interpret Our Lady of Fatima as foretelling Russia’s conversion to Catholicism,” he said, but to Christ.

Though Russia has no official state religion, the majority of Russians identify with the Orthodox Church.

St. John XXIII read the secret. He wrote in his diary, “17 August 1959: ‘Audiences: Father Philippe, Commissary of the Holy Office, who brought me the letter containing the third part of the secrets of Fatima. I intend to read it with my confessor.”

The late Cardinal Loris Capovilla, who was Pope John XXIII’s secretary at the time, told CNS in 2012 that he was present when the text was brought to the pope, and he saw it.

“I must say, sometimes there has been exploitation of the cult of Mary for political ends,” he said.

MARCH 24, 2022

NATION+WORLD

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 9

Pope promulgates Curia reform, emphasizing Church’s missionary nature

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service Pope Francis has promulgated his constitution reforming the Roman Curia, a project he began with his international College of Cardinals nine years ago, shortly after taking office.

“Praedicate Evangelium” (“Preach the Gospel”), which was published only in Italian by the Vatican March 19, will go into effect June 5, the feast of Pentecost.

Merging some congregations and pontifical councils and raising the status of others — particularly the charitable office of the papal almoner — Pope Francis said he hoped the constitution would ensure that the offices of the Vatican fulfill their mission in helping promote the Church as a community of missionary disciples, sharing the Gospel and caring for all those in need.

Part of that effort, he wrote, requires including more laypeople in Curia leadership positions.

“This new apostolic constitution proposes to better harmonize the present exercise of the Curia’s service with the path of evangelization that the church, especially in this season, is living,” the pope wrote in the document.

To emphasize the importance of the Church’s missionary nature, in the new constitution Pope Francis specified that he is the prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization; he will be assisted by a “pro-prefect” for “basic questions regarding evangelization in the world” and a “pro-prefect” for “the first evangelization and the new particular churches,” those previously supported by the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples.

In a similar way, until 1968, the popes were prefects of what became the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

In 1988, St. John Paul II’s constitution, “Pastor Bonus,” began its description

HEADLINES u Ukrainian president speaks with pope before addressing Italian leaders. Pope Francis telephoned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the president addressed the Italian parliament via video link March 22. Andrii Yurash, Ukrainian ambassador to the Holy See, tweeted that the pope was “praying and doing everything possible” to help end the war and that the pope was again invited to visit the country.

Matteo Bruni, head of the Vatican press office, confirmed to reporters that the call between the pope and Zelenskyy had taken place, but he provided no details. In the Ukrainian leader’s 12-minute speech to the Italian parliament later the same day, he emphasized the need for increased sanctions against Russia and its leaders and pleaded for military and humanitarian support. He introduced his talk by mentioning that “today I spoke with his holiness Pope Francis and he said many important things.” From his Twitter account, the president said he told the pope about “the difficult humanitarian situation and the blocking of rescue corridors by Russian troops.” u St. Bernadette’s relics to begin first tour to U.S. in Florida in April. The relics of St. Bernadette, the Marian visionary of Lourdes, France, will tour the United States for the first time. The visit will begin in South

of the doctrinal congregation’s responsibility saying, “The proper duty of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith is to promote and safeguard the doctrine on faith and morals in the whole Catholic world; so, it has competence in things that touch this matter in any way.”

The new constitution begins its description by saying, “The task of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith is to assist the Roman pontiff and the bishops-eparchs in the proclamation of the Gospel throughout the world, promoting and safeguarding the integrity of Catholic doctrine on faith and morals, drawing on the deposit of faith and also seeking an ever deeper understanding of it in the face of new questions.”

The new constitution does away with the previous distinctions between PAUL HARING | CNS “congregations” and “pontifical councils,” referring to all of them simply The dome of St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican. as “dicasteries.”

Insisting that every Christian is “a In addition to creating the Dicastery missionary disciple,” the constitution for the Service of Charity in place of the said, the reform of the Curia also needed almoner’s office, the constitution merges to “provide for the involvement of the Congregation for the Evangelization laymen and women, including in roles of of Peoples and the Pontifical Council for governance and responsibility.”

Promoting New Evangelization into the The participation of laypeople “is new Dicastery for Evangelization, and indispensable, because they cooperate it merges the Congregation for Catholic for the good of the whole church Education and the Pontifical Council and, because of their family life, their for Culture into the new Dicastery for knowledge of social realities and their Culture and Education. faith that leads them to discover God’s “Praedicate Evangelium” replaces paths in the world, they can make valid “Pastor Bonus,” but, unlike it, does not contributions, especially when it comes reserve the leadership of certain offices to the promotion of the family and only to cardinals and bishops, although respect for the values of life and creation, the individual statutes of those offices the Gospel as leaven for temporal realities may make such a specification. and the discernment of the signs of the However, Pope Francis wrote in the times.” document that offices that have “their own statutes and laws shall observe them Describing the personnel of the offices, only insofar as they are not opposed to the constitution said the leadership, the present apostolic constitution and “as far as possible, shall come from the shall propose their adaptation for the different regions of the world so that the approval of the Roman pontiff as soon as Roman Curia may reflect the universality possible.” of the church.”

Florida at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Miami. The tour, which continues to August, does not currently include a Minnesota stop. The relics will be in Appleton and New Franken, Wisconsin, June 12-16, and then in Bismarck, North Dakota, June 18-20. Find the itinerary at stbernadetteusa.org. u U.N. body urges independent inquiry into Indian Jesuit’s arrest, death. A U.N. working group urged the Indian government to conduct an independent probe into the arrest and death of Jesuit Father Stan Swamy, a prominent human rights activist who died in prison last July. The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention called Father Swamy’s tragic death while in custody a “failure” on the part of India’s government that would “forever remain a stain” on the country’s human rights record. “There was no legal basis for the detention of Father Swamy,” and “the officials of the National Investigation Agency arrested him in an irregular manner,” the U.N. working group said in a November resolution, published only recently. Father Swamy was jailed Oct. 9, 2020, after being arrested by the National Investigation Agency, India’s premier anti-terror agency, at his home in Ranchi. The 84-year-old priest, still under arrest, died July 5, 2021, within a couple of days of his health deteriorating at a Catholic-managed hospital in Mumbai. u Small Jesuit school on March Madness winning streak. St. Peter’s University

of Jersey City, New Jersey, gained the upper hand on St. Patrick’s Day when the underdog team of the small Jesuit school upset the mighty University of Kentucky in the first round of the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. The school’s winning streak continued in the second round of the tournament March 19, when the Peacocks beat Murray State University, 70-60, gaining a spot in the tournament’s Sweet 16. The school will now face Purdue University March 25 in Philadelphia in the East Region.

It joins three other Catholic colleges in the third round of the tournament: top-ranked Jesuit-run Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington; Villanova University, an Augustinian school outside of Philadelphia; and Rhode Island’s Dominican-run Providence College. The matchups take place March 24 and 25. u Nicaragua expels the Vatican ambassador.

The Vatican called Nicaragua’s expulsion of the Vatican ambassador “grave and unjustified” as the rift deepened between the Catholic Church and the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.

In a March 12 statement, the Vatican said the Nicaraguan government “has decided to withdraw the consent (welcome) for Archbishop Waldemar Stanislaw Sommertag, apostolic nuncio to Nicaragua since 2018, imposing him to leave the country immediately after notifying him of that measure.” The expulsion of the nuncio

They can be clergy, religious or laypeople “who are distinguished by appropriate experience, knowledge confirmed by suitable qualifications, virtue and prudence. They should be chosen according to objective and transparent criteria and have an adequate number of years of experience in pastoral activities.”

Pope Francis described the reform of the Curia as part of the “missionary conversion” of the Church, a movement aimed at making it reflect more “the image of Christ’s own mission of love.”

He also linked it to the ongoing process of promoting “synodality,” a sense of the shared responsibility of all baptized Catholics for the life and mission of the Church. True communion among all Catholics, he said, “gives the church the face of synodality; a church, that is, of mutual listening in which each one has something to learn: the faithful people, the College of Bishops (and) the bishop of Rome listening to the other, and all listening to the Holy Spirit, the spirit of truth.”

Addressing one of the main concerns expressed by bishops around the world in the past, the constitution said, “The Roman Curia does not stand between the pope and the bishops, but rather places itself at the service of both in ways that are proper to the nature of each.”

In the ordering of the Roman Curia, the Secretariat of State maintains its position of leadership and coordination, but the new Dicastery for Evangelization is placed above the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith.

The description of the organization of the doctrinal dicastery includes changes announced by Pope Francis in February, creating separate doctrinal and disciplinary sections, reflecting the growing importance of the office that investigates allegations of clerical sexual abuse and the abuse of office by bishops or religious superiors. highlights the difficulty of the church-state relationship in Nicaragua, where the Catholic Church has sought reconciliation amid political turmoil and come under attack for offering support to political prisoners and their families. The government offered no explanation for expelling the nuncio. u Four sentenced for 2016 killing of French Father Jacques Hamel. A Paris court gave the men sentences ranging from eight years to life in prison. The harshest sentence was applied to Rachid Kassim, a recruiter for the Islamic State group, who was not present at the trial. Father Hamel was killed July 26, 2016, when two men stormed a church in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray near Rouen while he celebrated Mass. After taking several hostages, the attackers slit Father Hamel’s throat and seriously injured another parishioner. Following a standoff, police killed the attackers, ending the hostage situation.

The four men on trial accompanied the two killers. During the trial, Jean-Philippe Steven Jean-Louis, Farid Khelil and Yassine Sebaihia asked for forgiveness, but they were found guilty of criminal association with terrorists.

The Associated Press reported that Kassim, who had already been sentenced to life in absentia in 2019 for having ordered a failed attack in Paris, is thought to have been killed in a 2017 drone strike in Iraq.

— Catholic News Service

10 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

What is Catholic education fo This spring, 40 Catholic school principals are exploring questions at the crux

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

“T

he purpose of Catholic education is to pass on the best in culture, so as to draw out what is best in students, in order to prepare students for the world in which they live.”

Speaking in a video against a backdrop of bookshelves, Michael Naughton shares this vision in a new course developed for Catholic educational leaders. Helping Catholic principals and teachers understand and live the truth of their mission is key to the success of Catholic education in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, its leaders say.

The course “Mission, Culture and Emerging Questions in Catholic Education” was developed by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Office for the Mission of Catholic Education and the University of St. Thomas’ Center for Catholic Studies. The course was written by Naughton, who directs the Center for Catholic Studies, and Emily Dahdah, the OMCE’s director of Educational Quality and Excellence.

The course emerged from the archdiocese’s Roadmap for Excellence in Catholic Education, a strategic initiative that launched in 2019 to strengthen Catholic education in the archdiocese. Part of the Roadmap’s work is to improve schools’ principal retention rates, as an annual average of 15 to 20 of the 90 schools in the archdiocese experienced principal turnover in recent years, Dahdah said. “Mission, Culture and Emerging Questions in Catholic Education” is part of the response to that need.

The course includes three focus areas: Excellence in Catholic Education, Catholic Culture and Cultural Competency, and The Call to Open Wide Our Hearts: Catholic Schools Confront Racism. The first part is key in helping Catholic leaders and educators understand their work in light of the purpose of Catholic education, said Dahdah, who holds a doctorate in organizational leadership from the University of Minnesota.

“Historically, the archdiocese has relied on (state) principal licensure and teacher licensure as setting the standard of professional quality, of professional preparation,” Dahdah told The Catholic Spirit March 17. But with state licensure as the main standard, that means Catholic schools would look to the state, not the Church, for defining the purpose of education, she said.

“What we’re really looking at is, what does a

CATECHETICAL PROGRAMS Highlights of the Archdiocesan Catechetical Report are included in the annual report, based on the 67.7% of parishes that responded to the OMCE’s data request. OMCE staff also estimated total numbers had all parishes responded. For example, 18,189 students are enrolled in parish catechetical programs, based on numbers from the 126 responding parishes, with an estimated 26,862 students enrolled in all 186 parishes. An estimated 2,661 volunteer catechists serve in the parish sacramental preparation and faith formation programs.

Full report online To see enrollment numbers by school and other detailed information about archdiocesan schools and catechetical programs, review the annual report online at simplebooklet.com/ omceannualreport202122.

The Church has such profound riches, and when those riches and treasures of our tradition and culture are handed on to the child, that’s what draws out the best in the child.

Emily Dahdah Catholic school leader need to do? Of course, there’s a lot of overlap in what a public school teacher or a public school principal does, but there’s also substantively unique things that a Catholic school teacher needs to do,” Dahdah said.

Some of those differences are practical, but many are philosophical and rooted in the understanding of God, the human person and the purpose of life. Catholic education, she said, sees the student as having body and soul, the world as both material and spiritual, and “the good life” as one of acquiring virtue and hoping for eternity with God. That view of education has never been completely fulfilled with the philosophy undergirding U.S. public education, which is why Catholic education long has been part of the Church’s presence in America, even when public school curricula were rooted in Christian tenets, Dahdah said. But, as public schools have become increasingly secular, the philosophical difference between Catholic and public education has widened, she said.

“The direction of public ed, summarized broadly, is educating to the visible, material world, and the visible material world exclusively, so much so that you can’t even bring in the reality of the supernatural world,” Dahdah said. “Whereas Catholics would say we believe that the material world and the spiritual world are intimately intertwined. We’re made body and soul. And to educate a child fully is education on both levels of the spirit and the body, both the mind and the soul together.

When you only do one, you actually teach the child, in a sense, that this is the only thing that’s important.”

The Church, she said, “has always seen education in a unique way as preparing souls for God — to be good men and women who love the Lord, and from that primacy of that relationship, that’s what makes it possible to live at peace with one another, to be good citizens, to be good mothers, to be good fathers.”

That vision also informs the Church’s view of p role in education: as the primary educators, with w Catholic schools are cooperating.

“Our job as Catholic educators is very transpare parents, or should be very transparent to parents,” said. “As society becomes more split, if you see tha played out in public education, that makes it hard parents to perhaps know what’s being taught or fe it reflects their values.”

The “Mission, Culture and Emerging Questions Catholic Education” course began not with a lesso what Catholic education is or how it’s different th non-Catholic education, but rather with a reflecti what it means to be a Catholic educator and how rooted in the idea not just of work, but being calle God to a particular vocation.

“At the heart of this call to work, as educators, i invitation of self-gift,” Naughton says in the cours lesson. “This work that we’re doing in Catholic education is so important that the Lord is inviting deeper transformation of that — but it’s not found our work. It’s found in this deepest sense of recept It’s found in silence, in prayer, in adoration, in the sacraments, in the deep living of the Lord’s Day.” Naughton draws from his doctorate in theology masters of business administration and nearly 40 of experience in Catholic education, first in Catho high schools and then at the university level. He explains that one’s work is not only a personal cal communal call, and Catholic educators “need to h shared purpose, and not just about today, but thro time,” especially the Church’s 2,000-year tradition through developing and deepening a Catholic worldview. That includes resisting the pervasive temptation to divide or compartmentalize one’s professional life from one’s religious life, he said.

In the course, Dahdah and Naughton identify a explain Catholic education’s four principles of excellence: academic achievement and integration spiritual life, virtue formation and apostolic discernment.

“Mission, Culture and Emerging Questions in C Education” is divided into 20 lessons, each with v and reading material, and three opportunities for in-person or online discussion. Currently, two coh with a total of 40 principals are participating in th course. It is OMCE’s expectation that all Catholic principals will complete the course within the nex years and that they’ll then lead their school’s teac through the course, too.

Mary Ziebell, principal of St. Maximilian Kolbe

Archdiocesan schools report highlights enro

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit

T

his academic year, kindergarten through grade 12 enrollment is up by 3.5%. Students of color make up 27% of K-12 enrollment. High schools saw 97% retention. At least 16 parish catechetical programs are offered in Spanish.

These statistics and more are included in the recently released 2021-2022 Annual Report on Catholic Education in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The archdiocese’s Office for the Mission of Catholic Education collects enrollment and other data each October from archdiocesan elementary and high schools to prepare the report. It also includes details about the estimated 26,862 students enrolled in parish catechetical programs, which are led by an estimated 2,661 volunteers.

In fall 2021, the 90 Catholic elementary and

high schools in the archdiocese reported a total enrollment of 27,023 for the 2021-2022 school year, up from 26,101 the year before.

Compared with two years ago, total enrollment has increased nearly 8%, with increases of 20% in kindergarten, 23% in first grade and 19% in second grade.

Those numbers lay the foundation for sustained growth in the future, the report said.

The report gives an overview of who Catholic schools serve, noting that 75% of the students in Catholic schools in the archdiocese are Catholic, 15% qualify for free and reducedcost meals, and 9% are English language learners.

Students of color make up 27% of the Catholic school student population. That’s higher than the average percentage people of color in the population in the archdiocese’s 12-county metro area, at 14%, report said.

Enrollment increases during the COVID-19

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MARCH 24, 2022 • 11

or?

IN PERSON, AMID PANDEMIC As the seven-day rolling average of new COVID-19 cases in Minnesota rose in 2021 from 473 on the first day of August to 2,981 in early October, the number of five or more cases of the illness in Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis also grew, from six Oct. 7 to 17 by the end of the month.

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Catholic School in Delano, is currently taking the course. She admits that when she learned of it, her first reaction was the annoyance of “something else to do.” But her mind changed when she started the coursework.

“It really made me stop and think about what I personally in my life am doing, and what we’re doing at the school,” she said. “It’s a great refocus. I think we can get caught up in a lot of things when we say ‘excellence’ and ‘growth’ and all those great words and great things to do. But it has to come from the beginning. It has to come from ‘why are we doing this?’ …

If we do that, then our kids can really accept the gift that God’s given them, and then they will excel in whatever they choose to do. It’s a great way of looking at the mission and where we’re going.”

She’s grateful that the simplicity of the video format allows her to revisit videos now and in the future, and she’s excited to share the content with St. Maximilian staff, she said.

The course is the first part of a three-year archdiocesan plan for professional development for school leaders, Dahdah said, and it complements the work of the Institute for Catholic School Leadership at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul, which “equips educational leaders to nurture a vibrant Catholic culture, cultivate spiritual and academic excellence, and apply executive management skills to grow and improve their schools,” according to its website.

Launched in 2019, the institute offers a graduate-level certificate program in Catholic school leadership, and plans to offer workshops, conferences and other opportunities for continuing education for school leaders.

Current and aspiring Catholic school principals in the archdiocese are encouraged to complete the certificate program, Dahdah said.

She expects to be able to measure the impact of these initiatives through the OMCE’s Catholic School Study, a recently revamped process Catholic schools participate in every five years to reflect on their work in light of their mission. If she sees schools implementing the vision presented in the course, then she’ll consider it a success, she said.

“The Church has such profound riches, and when

In November, there were at least 23 outbreaks in a number of Catholic schools, as tallied and reported in two-week increments by the Minnesota Department of Health. Some schools dealt with the virus early in the month, while others reported the illness right up to Christmas break, with some reporting up to 19 cases at a time.

The delta variant gave way in early December to the less virulent but highly transmissible omicron variant, and virus outbreaks grew across Minnesota, including in the archdiocese’s 90 Catholic elementary and high schools, where incidents of five or more cases increased from 15 in December to at least 28 in January.

The number of students and staff impacted at any one time also grew in January, with at least three schools reporting up to 30 students and staff with COVID-19, according to the health department. iSTO CK P HOT O| HILC H

parents’ whom

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hat Catholic schools are ers with parents in dren with excellent ous instruction and ge of in-person learning c, said Jason Slattery, education for the

It’s important “for kids to be here, to be taught in the classroom. To be in school and as normal as possible,” said Nancy Galgano, director of elementary grades at Providence Academy in Plymouth, which saw spikes of the virus last fall and in January but did not close its doors.

Following a move to online-only instruction in local Catholic schools in the spring of 2020, in-person instruction for the 2020-2021 academic year was encouraged by the archdiocese’s Office for the Mission of Catholic Education, during the first fall season with the pandemic. That advice came even as some public schools waited to open their doors.

those riches and treasures of our tradition and culture are handed on to the child, that’s what draws out the best in the child,” Dahdah said. “It’s critically important that we all are continuing to cultivate, both in our minds and our hearts, as to what is our tradition. What are these jewels, these riches that we have? How are we passing (them) along to the children within our care?

That’s part of this effort of the course — to promote that knowledge, that reflection, and that intentionality as mainstream education increasingly neglects what we see as essential questions. So, (it’s) bringing back into focus those essential things that our children must have to be happy, to reach their potential.”

ollment increase

ve learned in the an system of pre-K grade, is that we’re gether, and that’s nts, everybody pulling e same direction for hildren and families.

Weathering the peaks and valleys of outbreaks in their respective communities, Catholic schools across the archdiocese continued to emphasize in-person learning.

archdiocese.

The Church touches every continent in the world and encounters every culture and people, Slattery said. He sees the demographic profile in Catholic schools of the archdiocese as representative of the universal Church, “that the Catholic Church seeks to encounter all cultures and all people and to share with them the power of Christ’s love.”

Slattery said the archdiocese’s Roadmap for Excellence in Catholic Education, launched in November 2019, has been a guiding light that kept strategic goals in focus even during the pandemic. The Roadmap uses a strategic approach over time to strengthen Catholic education in the archdiocese, with an emphasis on talent management, particularly leadership development; curriculum and assessments; access and sustainability; mission schools; and governance.

One roadmap focus is Drexel Mission

Schools, which serve the highest concentration of children and families in need. The 10 Mission Schools enroll 1,895 students, 60% of whom are eligible for free and reduced meals, and 82% of whom are students of color. The generosity of individuals, parishes and philanthropic partners enable Drexel schools to continue their work, Slattery said.

Catholic and other private schools can be perceived as only serving the elite, those who can afford them, Slattery said. But that’s not the demographic profile of Catholic schools.

Instead, archdiocesan schools serve the neighborhoods where they’re located, he said.

“What we’ve learned in the archdiocesan system of pre-K through 12th grade, is that we’re stronger together, and that’s teachers, parents, everybody pulling together in the same direction for the good of children and families,” Slattery said.

While providing pandemic precautions and online learning as necessary, Catholic schools found that making in-classroom education a priority paid dividends then and again this year, said Jason Slattery, archdiocesan director of Catholic education. Schools remained partners with parents in educating their children, and overall enrollment grew and students stayed on track academically, socially and with faith formation, he said.

“We made prudential decisions that enabled safe and good instruction of our students, to stay in person, which is most optimal for student learning,” Slattery said.

“I’m proud of our Catholic schools, that we all did this,” Galgano said of sticking with in-person learning through most of the pandemic. “It was very courageous of our faculty across the archdiocese.”

At one point in early January, Providence Academy, serving more than 900 students in pre-K through high school, had 55 students and staff out with the virus. But with the milder variants of COVID-19, there were no serious health issues, Galgano said.

By Jan. 31 there were three cases and by Feb. 21 there were zero, Galgano said.

“It dropped like a rock,” she said. A similar plunge in cases was seen across Minnesota, health department figures show.

Holy Family Catholic High School in Victoria also remained open all school year, though it turned from voluntary to mandatory masking for a two-week period in January as cases spiked in the school and around the community, said John Dols, principal.

After the spike came a precipitous drop in cases, Dols said. Keeping the doors open was a priority throughout, he said.

“That’s because we have incredible teachers and staff,” he said. “Being in person is what’s good for the students.”

— Joe Ruff

LEFT PAGE

12 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

PAID ADVERTISEMENT

Cross Catholic Outreach Supplies Safe Water to Poor Families in African Dioceses Every 15 seconds, a child in a developing country dies from cholera or some other waterborne disease because their water is contaminated with bacteria and parasites.

When a community does not have its own water system — which is often the case in many African nations — the community’s women and children must walk for miles over rough terrain each day to find and collect water from a remote source. Even when they are successful in this daunting task, the water they collect can be risky to use because most of these groundwater sources are contaminated. (See related story on opposite page.)

“It is an incredible hardship for these families, but the Church in Africa is working hard to find solutions to these challenges, and we are partnering with bishops in several dioceses to help

provide that relief,” said Jim Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach, an official Catholic ministry with a history of success in supporting African missions. The current water projects undertaken by Cross Catholic Outreach will help communities in Ghana, Malawi and Zambia.

“Our mission team is currently working with Bishop Richard Kuuia Baawobr in the Diocese of Wa, Ghana; Bishop Martin Anwel Mtumbuka in the Diocese of Karonga, Malawi; and Bishop George Zumaire Lungu in the Diocese of Chipata, Zambia. Each of these wonderful Catholic leaders has a deep love of the people in his diocese and is very concerned about the water crisis rural families are facing on a daily basis,” Cavnar said. “They’ve identified the areas of greatest need, and we are

AFRICA

AREA OF DETAIL

Cross Catholic Outreach is working to provide safe, clean water sources in poor, rural communities in Ghana, Malawi and Zambia. working with them to ensure those communities are provided with safe, abundant sources of water.”

To address this need, Cross Catholic Outreach drills wells and installs pumps and enclosures that will protect the quality of the water. Drilling the wells to a depth determined by a local hydrology company ensures they will continue to supply clean water even during the driest season of the year, when substandard wells are known to dry up.

“It is important to do the job to a high professional standard and to provide sturdy pumps at each location because our goal is to have these water systems serve generation after generation, providing safe water for many years to come,” Cavnar explained. “We also work with the diocese to create water committees at each well location. These local leaders play a critical role in managing the use of the well and ensuring it remains in good condition. They also set up a community fund to cover the cost of any repairs that become necessary.

These additional steps also help extend the water system’s effectiveness and longevity.”

While the donors who help Cross Catholic Outreach fund these water

projects appreciate the care the ministry takes with its work, it is the impact of providing water to poor families that appeals to them most, Cavnar said.

“Many of our donors are aware of the terrible fatalities caused by waterborne diseases, especially among children,” he said. “They value life, and they want to make sure the vulnerable are protected. Giving to support water projects achieves that goal, but it also produces other important benefits because it supports the Church’s educational goals and helps families lift themselves out of poverty by eliminating the burden of searching for and collecting water.”

Readers interested in supporting Cross Catholic Outreach’s many relief programs to help the poor can contribute through the ministry brochure inserted in this issue or send tax-deductible gifts to: Cross Catholic Outreach, Dept. AC01894, PO Box 97168, Washington, DC 20090-7168. The ministry has a special need for partners willing to make gifts on a monthly basis. Use the inserted brochure to become a Mission Partner or write “Monthly Mission Partner” on mailed checks to be contacted about setting up those arrangements.

Cross Catholic Outreach Endorsed by More Than 100 Bishops, Archbishops Cross Catholic Outreach’s range of relief work to help the poor overseas continues to be recognized by a growing number of Catholic leaders in the U.S. and abroad.

“We’ve received more than 100 endorsements from bishops and archbishops,” explained Jim Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach.

“They’re moved by the fact that we’ve launched outreaches in almost 40 countries and have undertaken a variety of projects — everything from feeding the hungry and housing the homeless to supplying safe water and supporting

educational opportunities for the poorest of the poor. The bishops have also been impressed by Cross Catholic Outreach’s direct and meaningful response to emergency situations, most recently by providing food, medicines and other resources to partners in Haiti, El Salvador and areas of Belize impacted by natural disasters.”

Archbishop Thomas Rodi of Mobile, Alabama, supports this mission, writing, “It is a privilege for me to support Cross Catholic Outreach. This organization funds ministries to our neighbors in need in Africa, Asia,

Central and South America, and the Pacific. Through the generosity of so many, the love of God is made visible to many who are coping with the most difficult of daily living conditions.”

In addition to praising Cross Catholic Outreach’s accomplishments, many of the bishops and archbishops are encouraged by the fact that Pontifical canonical status was conferred on the charity in September 2015, granting it approval as an official Catholic organization. This allows Cross Catholic Outreach to participate in the mission of the Church and to give a

concrete witness to Gospel charity, in collaboration with the Holy Father.

“Your work with the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development is a strong endorsement of your partnership with the work of the universal Church,” Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco said. “By providing hope to the faithful overseas by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, delivering medical relief to the sick and shelter to the homeless, and through self-help projects, you are embodying the Papal Encyclical Deus Caritas Est.”

RIGHT PAGE

MARCH 24, 2022

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 13

PAID ADVERTISEMENT

American Catholics Working to End Water Crisis Faced by Poor Families in Africa and Beyond When families lack access to essential resources for life, like food, water and safe shelter, their time and energy is often consumed with a desperate search for those resources.

By necessity, survival becomes their first priority. It dominates their every thought, consumes their valuable time and saps their useful energy. It is a terrible and stressful way to live.

“Some describe this constant daily pursuit of survival without any real progress as ‘the deadly cycle of poverty,’ because once a family is

“Water scarcity and unsafe water are at the root of the problem.”

Jim Cavnar, President Cross Catholic Outreach

trapped in it, it steals the potential of one generation after another. Today’s children are born into the poverty of their parents, and they in turn are unable to offer any hope to their sons and daughters. The tragic cycle just keeps repeating itself,” explained Jim Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach, one of the most successful Catholic ministries working to end this kind of poverty around the globe.

According to Cavnar, there are only a few ways to successfully break this cycle of poverty, and one of them involves water.

“When you look for the source of poverty in developing countries — particularly in Africa — you often discover that water scarcity or unsafe water is at the root of the problem,” he said. “In the poorest communities, families usually lack access to water and spend enormous amounts of time and energy finding and collecting it. These women and children leave home before dawn and walk miles to the nearest borehole, dam or stream, whether the water there is clean or not. Some even sleep in those remote places just so they can be first in line for water in the morning. That is risky because it makes them vulnerable to wild animals and human predators.”

While this risk may seem unwise, the poor consider it an unavoidable tradeoff to save precious time. Once the queue starts forming, it can take hours for a family to collect the water they need.

In the dry season, their lives become even more difficult. At certain times of the year, streams and other groundwater sources literally dry

The search for and collection of water remains a daunting task in many African countries. During dry seasons, holes are dug in the riverbeds. As muddy water slowly seeps up to fill these pits, it is collected for drinking and cooking.

up. Then families dig holes in a dry riverbed and wait for muddy water to well up from below so they can fill their buckets.

“It would be bad enough if water scarcity was the only problem the poor face. But even when water can be found, it is often unsafe for human consumption,” Cavnar said. “As you would imagine, water from ponds and streams is used by animals and also becomes contaminated with debris and chemical runoff. Still, these families have no other options, so they drink water polluted by parasites, bacteria and waste — risking their health to quench their thirst. When they become sick, it only adds to their trials and adds to the burdens they must endure in order to survive.”

Fortunately, this troubling situation

has not been ignored by the Church or ministries serving the poor. In fact, partnerships between dioceses and Cross Catholic Outreach have produced practical solutions to water scarcity problems in Africa and beyond. Very often, American Catholics are part of this important cause too. Their donations fund the wells African communities desperately need.

“We can end the misery of poor families in remote areas of Africa by installing simple deep-water wells in their communities, and American Catholics can play a critical role in that outreach,” Cavnar confirmed.

“Supplying water has an obvious benefit — it addresses a basic human need. But the impact of these projects goes much deeper. Donors who support our efforts to provide poor communities with clean, easily accessible water are also

improving public health and helping promote the education of needy children. When we install wells in a community, children are sick less often and spend fewer hours searching for and collecting water.

That has a huge impact on their education because they can attend classes regularly and have the time and energy to study.”

To bring all of these blessings to the poor in Africa, Cross Catholic Outreach recently launched a new Wells of Salvation campaign aimed at helping poor families in three African dioceses. (See related story on the opposite page.)

Cavnar’s prayer is that hundreds of compassionate Catholics will donate generously so dozens of wells can be installed in these African communities, ending the terrible burdens water scarcity has placed on them.

How to Help To fund Cross Catholic Outreach’s effort to help the poor worldwide, use the postage-paid brochure inserted in this newspaper, or mail your gift to Cross Catholic Outreach, Dept. AC01894, PO Box 97168, Washington, DC 20090-7168. The brochure also includes instructions on becoming a Mission Partner and making a regular monthly donation to this cause.

If you identify an aid project, 100% of the donation will be restricted to be used for that specific project. However, if more is raised for the project than needed, funds will be redirected to other urgent needs in the ministry.

14 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

FAITH+CULTURE

Local grandma writes children’s books to stir the soul

By Christina Capecchi For The Catholic Spirit

on! I think part of it comes from my childhood. My mom and her friends were very creative and very supportive of each other’s creativity. They didn’t work outside of the home, so they could schedule their days in a way that they had time to be creative. One day my mother got a call from her friend Mary Anne who said, “I finished my quilt!”

My mom said, “Come show me!” In five minutes, she had it laid on the bed.

She’d embroidered each state bird and then quilted it. My mother took a long time to look it over and talk with her and appreciate the beauty of it.

The creative life involves plenty of rejection, said writer Anne Neuberger, a 68-year-old grandma who belongs to St. Cecilia in St. Paul. But it flows from her spirituality and a sense of duty. “Writing is something God has called me to do,” she said.

Q How have you kept in touch with your out-of-state grandkids?

A You get creative with Facetime. We’ll

play a game of hide-and-seek. If a child gets a hold of the camera, I just have to close my eyes, I get so dizzy. I keep a pile of books to read to them — some that I read over and over again as a child, like a Swedish series about triplets named Flicka, Ricka and Dicka. They’re very simple, but the pictures are lovely.

They’re about children who make decisions to be kind and to help people.

Q Do those old books come back to you?

A I’ll look at the pictures and think, “Oh, I remember feeling a little scared by that image, where they’re in the basement looking for a missing cat.” Immediately, those feelings come back. It’s like connecting with your old self.

Q How do you find writing fodder?

A I grew up in a family of storytellers.

When someone starts talking, I just start asking questions.

Q “Two Days and One Suitcase” is a

children’s chapter book you wrote about the Japanese internment camps in the U.S. during World War II. The title alludes to the short notice Japanese-American families were given when uprooting their lives to move to these camps. I’ve been thinking of that title as we see images of Ukrainian families fleeing, often with a single backpack or suitcase.

A Do they contain treasured photos?

Or is there only room for important documents? How does a parent decide which of their child’s precious stuffed toys to bring? These people did not want to leave and do not know when they can come back or if they will be back. They

Q What an act of love! And what an

incredible quilt! What squelches our creativity today?

A We’ve become so busy. I also think

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

must pack a whole life into a suitcase and carry it along with their fear and sadness.

Q Your book was inspired by the

wartime experience of Helen Hannan’s family and has won multiple national awards. That must’ve been gratifying after self-publishing it.

A It was rejected 19 times. What I find

the hardest is that the field has narrowed so much you can’t even send it off to many places. You have to have a literary agent for many of them, and getting an agent is almost impossible. I’ve had my low moments where I question whether I should even be spending the time writing. But I really wanted to do this for Helen.

Q How did it feel to make the leap to self-publishing?

A I just had this feeling that my ability to write is a gift, and we should use our gifts for the greater good.

Q It was a sense of duty.

A Yeah. I’ve come to understand that I

should not worry about sales. I just let the Holy Spirit guide what needs to be written and trust that it gets in the hands of people who need to read it.

editor would’ve taken out pieces. In the beginning of the book, when they’re traveling under crazy conditions and they end up stuck in the car on the side of the road in great danger, two humongous men arrived and got them back on the road — at a time and place where nobody would’ve been coming.

It’s not explainable if you don’t put the angel spin on it. That could’ve gotten cut.

Q You’ve written a number of picture books about the saints. Which saint would you like to write about next?

A I’ve written a story about St. Martin de

Porres that’s gotten rejected numerous times. That makes me sad because I feel like he has such a story to tell. He could really relate to animals. That’s a way for children to feel connected to him — to hear how he helped a turkey with a broken leg and calmed a bull. His whole life was affected by racial prejudice. Any child could connect with him on the animal level and then they could see that this nice person, who they like, was hurt by other people who thought he wasn’t as good as they were — and they know he’s as good as they are.

Q You’ve also created resources —

having self-published?

including puppets — to introduce kids to Catholic social teaching, available on your website, anneneuberger.com.

What sparks your creativity?

A I had more freedom. I wonder if an

A I always have too many projects going

Q Looking back, are there upsides to

If you suspect abuse of a minor, your first call should be to law enforcement.

You are also encouraged to contact the archdiocese’s Victim Assistance Program at 651-291-4475.

For confidential, compassionate assistance from an independent and professional local care provider, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, contact Canvas Health at 651-291-4497.

commercialism has a lot to answer for.

I’ve known people who made beautiful baby blankets when a friend or relative has a baby. But now people have fun going to a store and buying something for a baby.

Q What do you love about being Catholic?

A I love rituals and symbols. My

childhood was immersed with Catholic imagery and symbolism. As a first-grader, Sister Claude Marie told us we should make sure we leave room in our desk seat for our guardian angels. I think I have this sense that there’s another world that’s nearby. And I love that piece of it.

Q What’s your go-to prayer?

A I really like the litanies. My favorite is

the one you do on All Saints Day. I used to think the rosary was too long, and that you’re just saying it over and over. When COVID hit, there were so many difficult pieces to it. I decided the best thing I could do was pray. But I couldn’t pray because I couldn’t focus, so I decided to start saying the rosary. There are days I decided that was the best I could do.

I’ve gone back to saying a daily rosary — even if I can’t focus on it. I believe the act of wanting to pray is a kind of prayer.

Q What do you know for sure?

A That there’s an afterlife. And I have

to tell myself now, because of how bad things have gotten, that love and good do always win.

MARCH 24, 2022

FAITH+CULTURE

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 15

Stage adaption of C.S. Lewis’ ‘The Great Divorce’ headed to Minneapolis

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit

A

stage adaption of C.S. Lewis’ “The Great Divorce” to be performed 4 p.m. April 9 in Minneapolis has sparked the interest of University of St. Thomas theology professor Philip Rolnick, who teaches courses on the Anglican apologist’s writings.

“If these guys just let Lewis be Lewis, they will succeed,” Rolnick told The Catholic Spirit.

That seems to be the intent of Max McLean, founder and artistic director of New York City-based Fellowship for Performing Arts, a nonprofit production company dedicated to plays and films that present a Christian worldview. McLean, who attends a Presbyterian church in New York, adapted Lewis’ book to the stage, and FPA bills “The Great Divorce” PHILIP ROLNICK as a “theatrical joyride filled with C.S. Lewis’ wit and wisdom.”

The play, which is on a national tour and will be performed once in Minneapolis at the State Theatre, centers on four people who are offered a bus trip from hell to the outskirts of paradise and an opportunity to stay, or to return to hell, forever divorced from heaven. The characters are “stuck” in sin, each in their own way, and find the choice more challenging than might be imagined.

Lewis, born in Belfast, Ireland, in 1898, died in 1963 at age 64.

He is perhaps best known for “The Chronicles of Narnia,” but his works also include “The Screwtape Letters,”

“Mere Christianity” and “The Problem of Pain.” One of his closest friends was J.R.R. Tolkien, a Catholic and author of works including “The Lord of the Rings.”

While a committed member of the Church of England, Lewis studiously avoided Catholic versus Protestant debates, Rolnick said. He sought to write with clarity and wit about the basics of Christianity, such as morality, the natural law (what Lewis called “basic human decency” or the “law of human nature” to emphasize its universality) and Christ’s incarnation, Rolnick said.

One noted Lewis scholar, Peter Kreeft of Boston College, has called Lewis the best Catholic theologian of the 20th century, Rolnick said.

Lewis breaks ideas down through telling examples, such as drawing the picture of a society so entranced by food that large audiences would pay to watch someone slowly lift the cover off a plate of mutton, or pork chop, and comparing that to what has gone wrong with the sexual instinct of someone who would attend a striptease show, Rolnick said.

His famous “trilemma” in “Mere Christianity,” Rolnick said, argues that Christ is God by noting that a mere moral teacher who said the sorts of things Jesus said would either be a lunatic or the devil.

“You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon, or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God, but let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.

He has not left that open to us,” Lewis argues. “He did not intend to.”

Lewis is a wonderful entry into theology, and college students love him, said Rolnick, who teaches Lewis’ theology and literature at the

COURTESY FPA THEATRE

A poster for the stage adaption of C.S. Lewis’ “The Great Divorce,” which will be performed at the State Theater in Minneapolis 4 p.m. April 9. undergraduate and graduate levels, including at The St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity.

“We (UST) have a plurality of Catholic students and they love Lewis,” Rolnick said. “We have many Protestant students and they love Lewis. And we have some students who are just confused and they end up loving Lewis.

“He just speaks to people because he’s such a clear writer. There’s so much theology that is unclear. But Lewis, whatever other flaws he may have, lack of clarity is not one.”

A teacher at UST since 2003, Rolnick said he created courses on

COURTESY FPA THEATRE

Four people at a bus station in “The Great Divorce.”

Lewis beginning about 2010. His own introduction to Lewis came in the late 1990s, on a long plane ride with an elderly couple whose son had died of cancer at age 18.

“It turns out that Lewis’ chapter on ‘Heaven’ in ‘The Problem of Pain’ did more than anything else to get this couple through their pain,” Rolnick said.

“A couple months after the initial and only meeting with this couple, copies of Lewis’ books starting showing up in my mailbox. I remain grateful to them for prompting my interest.”

For more information, visit fpatheatre.com.

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16 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

FOCUSONFAITH SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER LEONARD ANDRIE

Newly created in Christ John gives us a literary masterpiece this weekend about sight. Let’s take a closer look. We have a man born blind and the Pharisees want to know the reason. Did the man do something wrong or did his parents?

Jesus provides a critically important spiritual principle. Neither did. Sometimes God allows physical evils (a defect of nature or blindness in this case) so as to bring a greater good out of it.

Next, Jesus spits on the ground and makes mud with his saliva.

We wonder, “Jesus, couldn’t you just say the word and heal the man? Why use such nitty-gritty stuff like saliva and mud?”

According to the Dead Sea scrolls, God spat on the ground and formed Adam’s body from the clay or mud of the ground. The first man, then, was made from God’s “spit” and from the clay or mud. Hence, we have a kind of creation theme on our hands. Jesus “recreates” the blind man, moving him from darkness (un-creation) to light (creation).

Additionally, Jesus sends the man to the Pool of Siloam to wash.

Historically, this was the pool that collected drinking water from the Gihon spring, which was named after one of the rivers in the Garden of Eden (Gn 2:13). Again, we see the creation theme as Jesus recreates this man.

Spiritually speaking, the pool symbolizes baptism. The baptized are “washed and sent.” Siloam means “sent.” Like the man, the

ASK FATHER MIKE | FATHER MICHAEL SCHMITZ

I don’t know what to do for Lent. Suggestions?

Q I want to do something for Lent, but I never know what. I have a hard time sticking with things. Do you have any suggestions?

A Do I have any suggestions? Absolutely I do.

First, let me tell you a little tale. Way back in 2020, there was this thing we were all introduced to called a “global pandemic.” (You might have heard about it — it was in all of the newspapers.) Kidding aside, this has been devastating in so many ways for so many people. Not only have people lost their lives, their livelihood, their family members and friends, but our world has been thrust into a whole new set of challenges we will need to work out for a long time to come.

Well, when the lockdowns first happened, I was quite distressed that I wouldn’t be able to connect with our students. (I live and work on a college campus and didn’t even get to say goodbye to them, as all of this began while they were away on spring break.) So, I started to livestream our Sunday Mass so that we were able to have some form of contact with our students and provide prayer for those who were suddenly unable to pray the Mass in person.

Now, while there is no shortage of opinions about the helpfulness of online Masses, it has turned out to be a good thing for most of the people who “attended” and prayed with us. We also discovered that there were a few other people who were unable to get to Mass who appreciated being able to tune in and pray.

So, we realized that we needed a different camera, since the one we first used didn’t really do the job. After a while, it turned out that the sound quality was kind of hit-or-miss, so we needed to figure out a different way to capture the sound. Then we realized that, if we were going to continue with the online Mass for those who have remained isolated and shut in (for any reason, whether that be the decisions of their governments or because they simply happened to be sick that week), we would need to get a different system for broadcasting. Over the course of two years, this has meant trying something different about every four to six months.

Now, for some people, this might be a frustrating reality. But I

baptized are sent on mission to proclaim what Jesus has done for them.

Finally, we see the effects of washing. In the argument between the religious authorities and the man, there is disagreement whether it is really the man. “Isn’t this the one who used to sit and beg?”

Some said, “It is,” but others said, “No, he just looks like him.” The man says, “I am” or in the Greek, “ego eimi.”

John’s Gospel has seven “I am” statements. “I am the bread of life.” (Jn 6:35). “I am the light of the world” (Jn 8:12). And “I am the good shepherd” (Jn 10:11). In other words, now that the man is washed, he is truly beginning to see Jesus. Anointed, the man is an “alter Christus,” or another Christ.

Think of your own baptism. You were washed and anointed with sacred chrism. You are still you, but different. St. Paul says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, the new has come” (2 Cor 5:17). You are given the Holy Spirit. God lives in you so that you can see, think and act like Christ.

Jesus is the standard or model of what it means to be human, meaning “to be fully alive.” Notice that whatever challenges, opposition or evil our Lord faces, he always remains calm and brings great good out of it. When the same happens to you, do you have the same perspective?

Finally, the blind man moved from seeing Jesus as just a man, then as a prophet and finally, to One worthy of worship. Do you see Jesus in this way? As Lord, Jesus always remains in control, and in his wisdom and power, brings good out of evil. Whatever you are going through, may Jesus help you see how he is at work that you may remain confident in him.

Father Andrie is pastor of St. Therese in Deephaven. He can be reached at fr.andrie@st-therese.org. was recently speaking with some of the folks who have helped us in this process. They are video and audio engineers, producers and technicians who deal with filming and broadcasting on a regular basis. And they didn’t see this as “failure.” In fact, they had another word to describe what we were doing: “iterate.”

They didn’t see the fact that we were needing to regularly reevaluate and change what we were doing as an indication of failure. They looked at it all with the perspective that this was part of what they called the “iterative process.” Aside from sounding cool and intellectual, the “iterative process” is recognizing that life is rarely a “set it and forget it” venture. To “iterate” is to repeat over and over. The “iterative process” is an ongoing method of building, refining and improving a project. It is “alive” in a sense.

Let’s bring this to our approach to Lent.

For many of us, we want to decide what we are going to do and then simply stick with it throughout the next 40 days. There is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it could be a virtuous way to move forward. Committing and sticking with one’s commitments can be a great exercise in virtue. But there is also the approach that Lent gets to be an iterative process.

For example, say that you have noticed that there are certain things in your life that have become obstacles to your relationship with God. Maybe your decision of what to sacrifice for Lent involves one or more of these things. Maybe you’ve noticed that time spent on social media takes up the time you are being called to spend in prayer (or more focused on your work or the people around you) so you decide to eliminate social media for Lent.

But then, as Lent goes along, you realize that the actual “time and attention thief” was YouTube. Now, you could say, “But I decided to give up social media, so I’ll just stick with that.” Or you could iterate. You could recognize that watching all of those videos on YouTube was the real source of distraction and avoidance and make the decision to pivot. In other words, you could allow the season of Lent to be an exercise in the iterative process.

Lent is classically the season of “purification and enlightenment.”

We know that purification is a process. We know that enlightenment (aka “learning”) is a process. Doesn’t that leave at least a little bit of room to allow our Lenten practices this year to also be a process?

That is my suggestion. If something is working, there’s no need to mess with it. But if this Lent reveals the opportunity to change, then do not be afraid to iterate.

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.

DAILY Scriptures Editor’s note: In his column at right, Father Leonard Andrie draws from the Fourth Sunday of Lent’s scrutiny readings, which include John 9:1-41. The scrutiny readings are one option for this Sunday in Lent. The alternative readings for the Fourth Sunday of Lent (Year C) are are below. Find the daily readings at usccb.org.

Sunday, March 27 Fourth Sunday of Lent Jos 5:9a, 10-12 2 Cor 5:17-21 Lk 15:1-3, 11-32 Monday, March 28 Is 65:17-21 Jn 4:43-54 Tuesday, March 29 Ez 47:1-9, 12 Jn 5:1-16 Wednesday, March 30 Is 49:8-15 Jn 5:17-30 Thursday, March 31 Ex 32:7-14 Jn 5:31-47 Friday, April 1 Wis 2:1a, 12-22 Jn 7:1-2, 10, 25-30 Saturday, April 2 Jer 11:18-20 Jn 7:40-53 Sunday, April 3 Fifth Sunday of Lent Is 43:16-21 Phil 3:8-14 Jn 8:1-11 Monday, April 4 Dn 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 Jn 8:12-20 Tuesday, April 5 Nm 21:4-9 Jn 8:21-30 Wednesday, April 6 Dn 3:14-20, 91-92, 95 Jn 8:31-42 Thursday, April 7 Gn 17:3-9 Jn 8:51-59 Friday, April 8 Jer 20:10-13 Jn 10:31-42 Saturday, April 9 Ez 37:21-28 Jn 11:45-56 Sunday, April 10 Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion Is 50:4-7 Phil 2:6-11 Lk 22:14–23:56

KNOW the SAINTS ST. ISIDORE OF SEVILLE (560-636) This bishop’s extensive writings influenced Church thinking for a millennium. As bishop of Seville, Spain, from about 600 until his death, he presided over two councils, promoted acceptance of the “filioque” clause of the Creed, and battled the Arian heresy. He wrote a history of the barbarian invasions of Spain and compiled in “The Etymologiae” all that was known in his time. Nearing death, he gave away everything he had, confessed his faults to his people in church, and received Communion. Pope John XXIII admired his ideas about the ideal bishop, notably that “every bishop should be distinguished as much by his humility as by his authority.” A doctor of the Church, Isidore is the patron saint of computer users. His feast day is April 4.

— Catholic News Service

MARCH 24, 2022

COMMENTARY FAITH AT HOME | LAURA KELLY FANUCCI

room. I want to snap my fingers like a poet at a reading: Now we’re cooking, now things are getting good.

This is the question, the ultimate question, the eternal question. If we are people of faith, this arrow must be shot through every decision and action in our small lives and in our vast world.

Tonight the news is swirling from What would God do? Not a simple slogan or a bumper the radio as I cook dinner. Is the world sticker, but the heart of faith. on the brink of war? I stir and fret, Now layers upon layers are heaped upon our table. The trying to pray. common good. Catholic social teaching. Just war theory.

The kids rush in from the yard, What would God do? We keep asking. No easy answers. dripping snow and mud from their Always more questions. boots. Sweaty and flushed, they fling Our plates are cleaned and the table is cleared. We themselves at the table, hungry have reached no conclusion yet. My prayer bends toward and ready to eat. where my conscience leads. “Thy will be done” echoes in But I want to serve more than dinner tonight. my ears.

After we say grace and the dishes are passed — pasta, We wash the dishes and sweep the floor. At the center vegetables, bread — I start to talk about what’s happening of the chaos, I catch sight of the map on the wall. The across the globe. Simple terms, but a serious tone. world is calling for our attention, everywhere and always.

“Every conflict has many sides,” I explain. “Some hops, dynamic andothers 1,000+ Catholics from The question still haunts me: What would God do? people believeChurch our countryleaders, is called to help and I keep asking myself the same. My son’s words strike at protect the values we hold. Some people think we need r a daytoof inspiration and advocacy atcountry.” our State theCapitol. heart. In an instant he saw clearly: the whole world focus on those who are suffering in our own and the life of faith laid out before his eyes.

I’m careful not to slant either side, because I want them ts 22-and-under FREE!  Learn the issues, hear dynamic We err when we assume that raising children means to understand the debate first. I pray and ponder the speakers, your legislators. having the right answer every time. Faith is not giving same questions: How are we called to and act inmeet the world? nch included with easy answers, but asking the hardest questions.

“What do you think?”

Each child considers, pausing as  See the newly renovated State Capitol!

What would God do? What could I do? What should they chew. we do?

A huge world map hangs next to our kitchen table.

There are no simple solutions to complex conflicts. But We each turn to look at the corner of the world we’re discussing. The colorful borders look simple and clear, but conversations like this are soil for faith’s seed to take root.

I want nothing more for my children than to spend their they are the opposite. lives asking what God would do and what God would The kids are thoughtful, a rare dinner of conversation, not quibbling. They ask if there are people in danger who have them do.

May there be more meals like tonight, I pray as the kids need help. They argue that you always have to stand up head upstairs for bed. for what’s right.

ARCHBISHOP BERNARD HEBDA BISHOP ANDREW COZZENS GLORIWe’re A PURItalking VS May we bring the most important questions to our foreign policy and democratic ideals, Black Catholics United for Life of But SaintIPaul Minneapolis table, every time. heady fare for a family with Archdiocese young ones. was&raised with big conversations served up at dinner time. I love grappling with big questions.

Fanucci is a writer, speaker and author of several books Suddenly one son sits bolt upright, rising from his including “Everyday Sacrament: The Messy Grace of Parenting.” chair. “But what would God do?”

She is a parishioner of St. Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove. Her His question is electric. It transforms the energy in the work can be found at laurakellyfanucci.com.

ARCH 9, 2017 • SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA

What would God do?

eal challenges. Catholics are called to respond.

OTECT LIFE & MAN DIGNITY

s is our moment.

Let’s go!

INSIDE THE CAPITOL | MCC

Schools nd register at Cand atholicsAtTheCapitol.org

STS:

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 17

parents’ roles

SPONSORS:

Across the United States, heated debates are occurring within school board meetings and state legislative hearings about the respective roles of parents and teachers in public education. Many parents are becoming increasingly concerned that their rights are being subsumed by schools and bureaucrats who have grown comfortable using schools as ideological platforms to correct the allegedly unenlightened views that are instilled in children by their parents. Left unchecked, these incursions into parental rights will only increase in scope and severity. Here in Minnesota, the Senate Republican Caucus has responded to these concerns by advancing a package of bills called the “Parents Bill of Rights.”

In general, the Minnesota Catholic Conference supports these legislative efforts to protect parental rights in education. Parents are the first educators, responsible for ensuring the ethical, religious and skills training for their children so they can nurture their gifts and serve the way God intended. Social entities such as the Church and state can subsidize parents in their role, but never replace them as — according to the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church — the role of parents “is incapable of being entirely delegated to others or usurped by others” (CSDC No. 239).

The cornerstone of the Parents Bill of Rights, S.F. 2909 (Eichorn), states that schools must not withhold information about their child’s well-being or education and would require schools to have a regular system for

The enactment of ESAs is a cornerstone advocacy goal of MCC and our partner organization Opportunity for All Kids (OAK). Please take this opportunity to sign up to stay informed and engaged with OAK by visiting opportunityforallkids.org.

notifying families of activities at school. A second bill, S.F. 2666 (Benson), would require that access to each class syllabi be made available to parents within the first two weeks of the educational term. A third bill, S.F. 2575 (Gazelka), would require that schools make all instruction materials available to parents and provide reasonable accommodation to alternative instruction if requested by parents.

The fourth bill, S.F. 1525 (Chamberlain), creates educational savings accounts for students who choose to opt out of public schools. An ESA is like a debit card that parents can use to craft an educational plan for their child. That may include nonpublic school, homeschool or some combination thereof. If you like your public school, you can keep it. But if a child is not being served well by the public school system, they should be able to take their allotted tax dollars and put them to use in a way that brings about flourishing.

“Parents have the right to choose the formative tools that respond to their convictions and to seek those means that will help them best to fulfill their duty as educators. … Public authorities have the duty to guarantee this right and to ensure the concrete conditions necessary for it to be exercised” (CSDC No. 240). We hope all Minnesota Catholics will join their voices in support of these important bills.

“Inside the Capitol” is an update from Minnesota Catholic Conference staff. For more MCC resources, join the Catholic Advocacy Network at mncatholic.org.

CATHOLIC WATCHMEN | DEACON GORDON BIRD

Lent and leisure

Here we are in the heart of Lent — and March Madness — focusing the Catholic Watchmen’s prayer intentions toward all aspects of leisure.

We pray for spiritual guidance to not only retrieve and secure the sanctity of Sundays, but also incorporate recreation and sports to promote healthy participation and competition that contribute to developing the whole person.

With God, family and work-life in the balance, recreation and sports can certainly be an essential part of an integrated Christian life. And a test of true character. As “good sports,” we are to ensure that leisurely enjoyment is to avoid any kind of reductionism that debases human dignity.

We need to remember this when our NCAA roundball bracket bounces away, the Twins gets off to a poor start, or our shot off the first tee goes awry. Yes indeed — as spiritual leaders of the faith — we are being called to serve as good examples for family, friends and colleagues in promoting healthy, leisurely competition.

There is no such thing as a dreadful day of fishing or a night at the rink, right? In all seriousness, the emphasis on leisurely activities is the use of free time for enjoyment. Leisure rightly ordered — whether hiking with the family on Sunday, biking over a noon-hour work break, reading an enjoyable book or grabbing a nap to simply relax and garner some energy — is a good gift from our gracious God. That’s a gift we can receive while encouraging and prompting us to give more of ourselves to others. True enjoyment can come from the graces of leisure.

No matter the time of year or the temperature, if my driveway is dry, I will get the basketball out and shoot some hoops. My wife and neighbors will attest to this obsession. Yet it truly is an effective leisurely activity that helps me relax and re-center myself — even though my agility, quickness and vertical may have suffered a bit over time. Funny thing, when I am shooting “around the world” I often recall the “BEEF” acronym learned at a father-son basketball camp years ago. Coaches acknowledge it as a shortform tool to teach the four major components of correct shooting. It stands for: Balance, Eyes, Elbow and Follow-through. Balance your feet, keep your eyes on the basket, elbow underneath the ball and don’t forget to follow through. Like anything else, practice and muscle memory make us better.

At times I sense God speaking to me through this activity. Yes, perhaps because I’m out there to relieve some stress, yet there is more to it.

The first element of BEEF reminds me to live a balanced, undivided life; the second keeps my eyes focused on Christ in all things; the third straightens things out that are crooked; and furthermore, I must always follow through.

The latter is imperative if we genuinely desire a consistent, reliable, habitual, winsome outcome.

Follow through — “Let your ‘yes’ mean ‘yes,’ and your ‘no’ mean ‘no’” (Mt 5:37).

Have a blessed Lent and suffer well, yet utilize the gift of leisure to ask God to help “make the crooked places straight” in your life and to “break in pieces the gates of bronze and cut the bars of iron” (Is 45:2) that distance yourself from the Divine. If you must rescue Sunday for family, friend or neighbor as a hallowed day of rest and rightly-ordered leisure, Godspeed in this endeavor!

Deacon Bird ministers at St. Joseph in Rosemount and All Saints in Lakeville, and assists with the archdiocese’s Catholic Watchmen movement.

18 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

Why I am Catholic Catholic David Gibbons

W

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

hy am I Catholic? The simple answer to this

question: I was born into a loving Catholic family

in the mid-1950s. Some refer to this as being a cradle

layperson speaking after Mass one Sunday and asking the congregation what sort of relationship we could expect to have with someone we only spoke to less than one

Catholic. The deeper answer comes with the question,

hour a week. That got me to rethink my “obligation” for

“Why am I still Catholic?”

attending weekly Mass.

I attended Catholic grade school, high school and

college in Dubuque, Iowa, which was a predominately

Our Catholic faith can sometimes lapse but it never expires.

About this same time, I started attending yearly retreats at the Jesuit Retreat House at Demontreville in Lake

Catholic community during these times. My

Elmo. This experience greatly enhanced my spiritual

grade school was taught by Franciscan nuns.

thinking and prayers. The retreats also gave me a better

My high school and college were also taught

appreciation for my faith in Jesus Christ. One of the

by nuns, priests and laypeople with a strong

retreat directors told us he often hears from Catholics

Christian background.

who have stopped going to Mass, saying they are “getting

As grade school students, we attended Mass

nothing out of it.” His question to them is “what are they

every morning before class, along with the

putting into it?” Our Catholic faith can sometimes lapse

Stations of the Cross and many other religious

but it never expires. This is why I am still Catholic.

ceremonies throughout the week. After high school, my weekly Mass attendance lapsed for a while, but I did start to attend soon thereafter, mostly because it was an “obligation.” I enjoyed seeing members of the congregation, donuts and coffee, and Friday fish fries during Lent.

It wasn’t until my mid-40s that I started to realize there was more to Sunday Mass than simply attending. I recall a

Gibbons, 67, is a member of St Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove. Retired from work at Nortech Systems, he enjoys woodworking, camping and bike riding.

“Why I am Catholic” is an ongoing series in The Catholic Spirit. Want to share why you are Catholic? Submit your story in 300-500 words to CatholicSpirit@archspm.org with “Why I am Catholic” in the subject line.

MARCH 24, 2022

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 19

CALENDAR WORSHIP+RETREATS Lenten Day of Prayer “Towards the Promised Land” — March 30: 9:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m. at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. Presentation, confession, spiritual direction, private prayer, Mass. Bring lunch. franciscanretreats.net/lenten-days-of-prayer Living Stations of the Cross — March 30-31 and April 1: 7–8:30 p.m. at St. Paul, 1740 Bunker Lake Blvd. NE, Ham Lake. Portrayal of Jesus’ passion and death presented by parish youth. Free. No reservations. churchofsaintpaul.com/living-stations Rachel’s Vineyard Retreat for Healing After Abortion — April 1-3: Confidential retreat to experience Christ’s healing for those grieving the loss of a child to abortion. Contact Nancy at rachels@rvineyardmn.org or call 763-250-9313 for more information. rvineyardmn.org Lenten Silent Midweek Retreat for Men and Women — April 5-7 at Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 First Ave. S., Buffalo. “Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound.” Explore the hymn, God’s freely given grace and presence. $160, non-refundable $50 deposit per person, includes two overnights and five meals. Register online: kingshouse.com or call 763-682-1394.

Married Couples’ Retreat — April 8-10 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. “Hope Rising; Revisioning Our Dream” with confession, anointing, Mass, Holy Hour, prayer sessions. franciscanretreats.net/married-couples-retreats Palm Sunday Women’s Silent Retreat — April 8-10 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. “Hope Rising; Revisioning Our Dream” with confession, anointing, Mass, Holy Hour, prayer sessions. franciscanretreats.net Men’s Holy Week Retreat — April 14-16 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. “Hope Rising; Revisioning Our Dream” with confession, anointing, Mass, Holy Hour, prayer. franciscanretreats.net 23rd Annual Living Stations of the Cross — April 15: The “Servants of the Cross” group re-enacts the Passion of Jesus Christ on Good Friday. Noon at St. Peter, 2600 N . Margaret St., North St. Paul; 3:30 p.m. at St. Jude of the Lake, 700 Mahtomedi Ave., Mahtomedi; 7 p.m. at Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 1725 Kennard St., Maplewood. Freewill offering. YouTube presentation available. servantsofthecrossmn.com.

PARISH EVENTS Spring Craft and Bake Sale — March 26-27 at St. Peter, 2600 N. Margaret St., North St. Paul. 2–6 p.m.

March 26; 9 a.m.–1 p.m. March 27. Handmade crafts, Easter baskets, homemade goodies. Sponsored

by St. Peter’s Council of Catholic Women (CCW). churchofstpeternsp.org

NOTICE

CALENDAR submissions

Easter Craft and Bake Sale — April 9-10 at Holy Cross, 1630 4th St. NE, Minneapolis. 1–6 p.m. April 9; 8 a.m.–1 p.m. April 10. Handmade crafts, delicious baked goods and refreshments. Sponsored by Holy Cross’ Council of Catholic Women (CCW). ourholycross.org

CONFERENCES+SPEAKERS “When Faith Hurts: Recognizing and Responding to the Spiritual Impact of Child Abuse” — March 28: 6:30–8 p.m. via Zoom. Victor Vieth, chief program officer for education and research of the Zero Abuse Project, discusses current research regarding maltreatment and the religious impact it poses to victims. For more information contact Paula Kaempffer, Outreach Coordinator for Restorative Justice and Abuse Prevention for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, at kaempfferp@archspm.org.

St. Agnes’ 2022 Lenten Lecture: Dante’s “Inferno” — Fridays in Lent through April 8: 7:45–9 p.m. at St. Agnes, 535 Thomas Ave., St. Paul. Free and open to the public. No prior reading required. In Schuler Hall.

Refreshments provided. Follows 7 p.m. Stations of the Cross. Speakers: Mark Spencer on Purgatorio (March 25); Mary Reichardt on Seven Terraces of Purgatorio (April 1) and Zita Larson on Paradiso (April 8). churchofsaintagnes.org/lentenlectures Giving Insights Forum: Laudato Si’ — March 29: 6:30–9 p.m. at Annunciation, 509 W. 54th St., Minneapolis. A panel of experts will discuss Pope Francis’ encyclical “Laudato Si’” and how Catholics are called to care for our common home. Also livestreamed. ccf-mn.org/socialforum “The Truth about Assisted Suicide and the Church’s Opposition” — March 29: 6:30 p.m. at St. Stephen, Room FCC 10, 525 Jackson St., Anoka. Presentation by Lynn Varco from the Minnesota Catholic Conference, followed by a brief discussion of efforts to legalize assisted suicide in Minnesota and how parishioners can take action and support compassionate alternatives. ststephenchurch.org “Our Lenten Journey Towards Conversion of Heart” — March 29: 7–8:30 p.m. at Risen Savior, 1501 E. County Road 42, Burnsville. Led by Cathy Cory, professor emerita of theology, University of St. Thomas. risensavior.org/event/scripture-series

MUSIC “A Polish Celebration: Gail Archer Organist” — March 26: 7–8:30 p.m. at Holy Cross, 1621 University

Look for The Catholic Spirit advertising insert from

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ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication: uTime and date of event uFull street address of event uDescription of event uContact information in case of questions ONLINE: TheCatholicSpirit.com/calendarsubmissions Ave., Minneapolis. Holy Cross celebrates its rich cultural heritage in a concert of all Polish organ music. Free admission, ample parking. ourholycross.org/musical-events

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Cathedral Lenten Organ Concert (with narration) — April 8: 7–8:30 p.m. at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. “Le Chemin de la Croix” (The Way of the Cross) by Marcel Dupré is a musical meditation on each of the 14 Stations. Tracing the story of the Passion, this ambitious work was created in 1931. Organist: Stephen Hamilton. Narrator: Michael Barone, host of National Public Radio’s “Pipedreams.” cathedralheritagefoundation.org

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OTHER “The Passion of Jesus in Music, Word and Light” — March 24-26: 8–9:20 p.m. at Sts. Joachim and Anne’s St. Mark campus, 350 Atwood St., Shakopee.

Jesus’ suffering, crucifixion and resurrection. Spanish narration March 24. English narration March 25 and 26.

Prelude music 7:40 p.m. Free admission. Sponsored by the Shakopee Knights of Columbus. shakopeepassionplay.org ACCW Convention — April 29: 8 a.m. at St. Albert, 11400 57th St. NE, Albertville. “Come and See — Come and Share” is the theme of the 89th Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women’s Convention. Presenters, Mass with Archbishop Bernard Hebda, catered banquet and luncheon, Lay Women Volunteer Awards presentation, annual meeting and learning opportunities. accwarchspm.org/2022-convention.

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20 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

MARCH 24, 2022

THELASTWORD

‘How massive weighs the cross’ Dupré’s organ masterwork ‘Le Chemin de la Croix’ to be presented at Cathedral

By Debbie Musser For The Catholic Spirit

T

his Lenten season, the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul will be the site of a unique musical meditation on the Stations of the Cross. “Le Chemin de la Croix” is set for 7 p.m. April 8 at the mother church of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Hosted by the Cathedral Heritage Foundation, the meditation combines 14 poetic readings with powerful organ music to take listeners through the passion and death of Jesus Christ.

The presentation will feature international concert organist Stephen Hamilton, with narration by Michael Barone, creator and host of “Pipedreams,” a radio music program devoted to the art and history of the pipe organ. “Pipedreams” is produced and distributed nationally by American Public Media, based in St. Paul.

Hamilton, 74, who resides in the Twin Cities, has played more than 60 “Le Chemin de la Croix” concert performances throughout his career.

“Every time I play these works, it’s thrilling,” he said.

“We start out with Jesus condemned to death, and then we hear the cry of the crowd, fast and loud, in the accompaniment,” he said. “There’s the three falls — first, second and third — and then the poignant scene where Jesus is nailed to the cross when, through the music, you feel the impact of what it must have been like to have been hammered.

“As Jesus dies on the cross, suddenly we have the earthquake in the organ pedals, when you can hear the storm, which then gives way to a very quiet section of the piece, providing us with a sense of hope,” Hamilton said.

Where it’s played matters, too, he noted.

“Surrounded by all the religious symbols at the Cathedral — the altar, the Stations of the Cross, plus the world-class organs — attendees will also have a visual impact while the poetry is read and music is played,” he said.

The music of “Le Chemin de la Croix,” which translates from French to “The Way of the Cross,” was composed in 1931 by Marcel Dupré.

“Dupré is revered amongst organists for his virtuosity, faith and the integrity of his music,” said Lawrence Lawyer, 62, director of sacred music and organist at the Cathedral of St. Paul.

According to Hamilton, Dupré was known for his improvisations. “He was asked to collaborate on Paul Claudel’s 14-part ‘Le Chemin de la Croix’ recitation; that initial successful concert in Brussels led to Dupré publishing the musical accompaniment,” he said.

Claudel, a French diplomat, poet and dramatist, was a devout Catholic. The verses of his “Le Chemin de la Croix” are deeply descriptive. For example, in the Second Station, Jesus Receives His Cross, he wrote: “How long, how ungainly, how massive weighs the cross! How hard, how stiff, how heavy the burden of a useless sinner!”

“The poetry can’t just be read; it has to be narrated and expressed,” Hamilton said. “Michael Barone has a wonderful voice for this, with great color and emotion in his vocal projection.”

Barone, 75, noted that the 14 reflections on the traditional Stations of the Cross paint a vivid, emotional and deeply human portrait of the events of Jesus’ trial, procession to Golgotha and crucifixion.

“The descriptions provide a deeply disturbing parable by which even a non-believer can be powerfully moved by the degree to which

As Jesus dies on the cross, suddenly we have the earthquake in the organ pedals, when you can hear the storm, which then gives way to a very quiet section of the piece, providing us with a sense of hope.

Stephen Hamilton

Organist Stephen Hamilton at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul. Hamilton will perform April 8 “Le Chemin de la Croix,” composed in 1931

by Marcel Dupré.

COURTESY LAWRENCE LAWYER | CATHEDRAL OF ST. PAUL

‘LE CHEMIN DE LA CROIX’ Friday, April 8, 7–8:30 p.m.

Cathedral of St. Paul 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul Free; goodwill offering for the Cathedral Heritage Foundation More information: cathedralheritagefoundation.org

unwarranted suffering inflicted upon others tears at the fabric of our humanity,” Barone said.

Barone’s narration isn’t his first encounter with the Cathedral’s organs.

“We’ve very pleased that Michael Barone has agreed to be the narrator,” said Mary Schaffner, 69, Cathedral Heritage Foundation board chairwoman. “He helped us with our largest project to date, the restoration of the Cathedral organs, explaining to donors what needed to be done and why.”

The Cathedral has two pipe organs: a 1927 Skinner, with pipework above the passage between the sacristy and sanctuary, and a 1963 Aeolian-Skinner in the gallery, with pipework framing the East Rose Window.

According to the Cathedral’s website, the two organs have a combined total of 71 ranks, 80 stops and 4,560 pipes.

“The historic pipe organs and vast acoustic of the Cathedral are well-suited to sacred music, especially

CATHEDRAL HERITAGE FOUNDATION Established in 2007, the Cathedral Heritage Foundation is a nonprofit, historic preservation, cultural and arts organization, established to preserve, restore and enhance the Cathedral of St. Paul, which is also a National Shrine of the Apostle Paul. A goodwill offering at the performance of “Le Chemin de la Croix” will go toward the foundation and its work.

“Our purpose is to support the restoration of the Cathedral with a lens of it being more than a parish church; it’s a historical building that’s prominent in the community, and also considered the ‘mother church’ of the archdiocese,” said Mary Schaffner, Cathedral Heritage Foundation board chairwoman.

“The second part of our mission is to enhance and promote the Cathedral as a venue for arts and education for Catholics and the broader community,” she said. “This performance of ‘Le Chemin de la Croix’ is a good example.”

“The performance will showcase our organ and Stephen’s talents, and the words are an extension of the musical meditation — it’s an integrated whole,” Schaffner said. ‘“Le Chemin de la Croix’ provides a new experience, allowing us to walk with Jesus, be a witness and share in his suffering. ... We hope it will add to everyone’s Lenten journey.”

French organ music,” Lawyer said. “The number and colors of organ stops combine to create an authentic sound that mirrors those of the pipe organs in France.”