The Catholic Spirit - October 23, 2014

Blessed Paul VI 12 • Who can give blessings? 14 • Funeral speeches 17 October 23, 2014 Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

thecatholicspirit.com

Child protection staff now complete with hiring of assistant director

From the courtroom to cooperation:

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit

Together, victims’ attorneys and archdiocese work to help those affected by clergy sexual abuse The Catholic Spirit With a historic courtroom in downtown St. Paul as the backdrop, attorney Jeff Anderson and officials from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis announced a settlement Oct. 13 of the first case filed under the Minnesota Child Victim Act and a history-making agreement to work together to protect children and help clergy sexual abuse victims/survivors heal.

“This is about truth, and this is about a new day; this is about a new way, this is about a safe way,” said Anderson, who has represented plaintiffs in dozens of lawsuits filed against the archdiocese during the past three decades. “It’s not just about pledges and promises. It is an action plan . . . words don’t protect kids.

Actions do.”

During the press conference, a long line of survivors came forward to shake hands with Bishop Andrew Cozzens and Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general for the archdiocese. Anderson and Bishop Cozzens thanked survivors who made the historic agreement possible.

Anderson said, “I am grateful to each Please turn to HISTORIC on page 6

Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, hugs an abuse survivor after the Oct. 13 press conference.

Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit

“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed you can say to this mountain, move from here to there and it will move.”

Doe 1 citing Matthew 17:20 in a letter to Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

To read the letter in its entirety, visit SafeCatholicSPM.org.

When Tim O’Malley was hired as the director of ministerial standards and safe environment for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Michael Campion approved.

The two men go back more than two decades in their law enforcement careers, both at one time working for the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. In fact, both served as superintendent of the BCA, with Campion promoting O’Malley to superintendent in 2006.

Now, the two are working together again.

When O’Malley joined the archdiocese in mid-September, he wasted little time in bringing Campion on board to help oversee the archdiocese’s child protection efforts. Campion started the job as assistant director of ministerial standards and safe environment on Oct. 13.

“Throughout his career, Michael Campion has consistently demonstrated that he is a highly skilled, ethical investigator,” O’Malley said. “His actions have always been well reasoned, legally sound and, most important, sensitive to the needs of victims, survivors and their families. Those characteristics, particularly honoring the needs and desires of victims, were key factors in my decision to recruit him.”

The new office combines the existing Office for the Protection of Children and Youth, the Promoter of Ministerial Standards program, and the Advocacy and Victim Assistance program.

Please turn to CAMPION on page 6

ALSO inside

Back from Africa

Path to priesthood?

How this church was built

Christine Smeby greets workers at a dam near Nuu, Kenya. Smeby was part of the archdiocesan delegation celebrating the partnership with the Diocese of Kitui.

— Page 7

Older brothers inspire young men to join college seminary.

— Page 9

University of St. Thomas professor releases book detailing construction of Saint John’s Abbey Church under the direction of architect, Marcel Breuer.

— Page 20

Page Two

2 in PICTURES

“We help people because they are people. We help people because we are Catholic, not because they are Catholic.”

Dallas Bishop Kevin Farrell, in housing people who had been monitored for Ebola, including the fiancee of Thomas Eric Duncan, who died from the virus, for several weeks at a diocesan facility

NEWS notes • The Catholic Spirit

Event to highlight value of sister parish relationships

CARDBOARD CITY Alaina Anderson, right, and Nick Nelson, seniors at Hill-Murray School in Maplewood, construct a cardboard box dwelling as part of an event Oct. 16 and 17 at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds to create awareness and raise money for the homeless. The two, who are co-presidents of the student group Sowers of Justice, led a group of more than 50 Hill-Murray students that slept overnight in the boxes. Also participating were sophomores Emily Schabert, left, and Sydney Polski. Proceeds from the event, called Cardboard Box City, went to a local organization called Project Home and Families Moving Forward. Hill-Murray students raised $700 and also led a prayer service at the event. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit

More than 40 parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have sister relationships with parishes across the globe, a tangible way to heed Pope Francis’ call to be a Church of missionary disciples.

An annual conference dedicated to supporting and establishing sister parish relationships will take its inspiration from the pope’s “Joy of the Gospel” from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 8, at St. Vincent de Paul in Brooklyn Park. The event is hosted by the Archdiocesan Parish Partnerships Team and will feature lay missioner Marty Roers.

Various sister parish relationships have been insightful and educational for St. Joan of Arc (Minneapolis) parishioner Louise Eidsmoe and Our Lady of Grace (Edina) parishioner Steve Kraemer.

In sharing about their respective parish partnerships, Eidsmoe and Kraemer have sparked ideas, such as using Skype to “attend” Mass with their sister parish, or “sharing a meal” by hosting a parish dinner with the same food at the same time.

The conference will highlight ideas such as these and help attendees identify what global solidarity means to them.

The cost of the conference is $10. To register, visit www. centerformission.org, or contact John Twohy at (651) 439-1943 or johntwohy@centurylink.net. Free copies of Pope Francis’ “Joy of the Gospel” will be available.

African immigrant retreat slated for Nov. 8 The Archdiocesan Commission for Black Catholics is sponsoring an African immigrant Catholic retreat for adults from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 8, at St. Peter Claver in St. Paul.

The retreat is an outcome of the African Immigrant Catholic Summit held in October 2013. The event’s theme is “A Day of Reflection on Growing in the Faith with Family.” All parishioners of African descent are encouraged to attend.

RSVPs are not required, but are strongly encouraged and appreciated for planning and logistic purposes. RSVP by Monday, Nov. 3, via email to CommBlackCatholicsMN@archspm.org.

MISSING STUDENTS Relatives of 43 missing students celebrate Mass in Chilpancingo, Mexico, Oct. 14. The teacher trainees went missing Sept. 26.

CNS/Jose Mendez, EPA

WHAT’S NEW on social media All Saints Day is Saturday, Nov. 1. This week, a post on The Catholic Spirit’s Facebook page asks, who is your favorite saint and why?

Read the latest news about the local and universal Church by following The Catholic Spirit on Twitter @CatholicSpirit.

Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., and U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops president, discusses the conclusion of the synod on the family at www.youtube.com/watch?v=OXk2RrC0H-A#t=29.

The Catholic Spirit is published bi-weekly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 19 — No. 22 MOST REVEREND JOHN C. NIENSTEDT, Publisher ANNE STEFFENS, Associate Publisher JESSICA TRYGSTAD, Editor

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

CCF Legacy of Faith Award goes to Tom Gainor Tom Gainor of St. Joseph in West St. Paul received the Legacy of Faith Award from the Catholic Community Foundation on Oct. 16 at Town and Country in St. Paul. Founding board member Larry McGough and Bishop Andrew Cozzens presented the award.

Gainor served as president of the foundation’s board of directors from 1992 to 2001 and has continued to help promote The Legacy Fund, which recently offered grants totaling $103,500 to eight Catholic elementary schools in the archdiocese.

He continues to serve the board and also is involved with other local Catholic organizations, Tom GAINOR including Catholic Charities, St. John Vianney College Seminary, Total Life Care Centers, St. Thomas Academy and Convent of the Visitation.

The foundation was established in 1992 to financially support the Catholic community.

Materials credited to CNS copyrighted by Catholic News Service.

All other materials copyrighted by The Catholic Spirit Newspaper.

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3 Whenever the weather is bearable, I like to take a walk down Summit Avenue. It clears my head, allows me to pray and helps me work off a pound or two. The brilliant colors of a Minnesota fall are one of nature’s reminders that God is always present to us. We need such reminders of God’s love and such guidance especially during times of difficulty, from fears about deadly disease to the loss of a loved one; from challenges to living our faith publicly to troubles with family members at home.

In this issue of The Catholic Spirit, I must again share difficult news with you, but news that will ultimately, I believe, bring healing to this local Church. In this issue, you will find the names and assignments of 17 men who are accused of sexual abuse of a minor when they were assigned as priests. Among these, nine names are being disclosed for substantiated claims stemming from abuse in this archdiocese; eight are being disclosed because of substantiated claims in other dioceses. These names are new to our disclosure list, although several have been the subject of media reports over the past several decades. We are disclosing their names now as a result of an independent review of more than 3,000 priest files as well as from discussions with attorneys representing THAT THEY MAY victims/survivors of clergy sexual abuse. We ALL BE ONE have posted the information on the archdiocesan website, archspm.org, and Archbishop SafeCatholicSPM.org. We alerted pastors at parishes where these men were previously John Nienstedt assigned so that pastors can communicate directly with their parishioners. Most of those named are deceased, but the pain they caused is very much alive. I am profoundly saddened and sorry for the harm clergy sexual abuse has caused victims and survivors, their families and the community.

We first announced that we would be making these additional name disclosures last week in our news conference with Jeff Anderson & Associates. Mr. Anderson is an attorney representing the victims and survivors in most of the lawsuits against the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. For more than 30 years, he and his colleagues have fought for those harmed by clergy sexual abuse. We were engaged in an adversarial relationship that developed during those decades, with both sides saying hurtful things about the other out of a sense of mistrust. It has since become clear that we needed to work together to help bring about healing. Over the last three months, with my blessing, members of my leadership team met with Mr. Anderson and his team to put aside the harsh words and to focus on what we can do together to help those hurt by the Church and to help ensure that this tragedy is never repeated. What came out of those meetings has been called “historic”, “a landmark” and “a

“I believe the Holy Spirit was and still is at work in these efforts as we move forward with help and healing.” model.” A link to the news conference can be found on our website. I encourage you to watch this event in order to appreciate the courage it took for victims to speak publicly about their experiences. I also ask you to pray for them as they move forward. I have long wanted to move from being adversaries in the courtroom to collaborators, working together for what is best for victims and survivors, their families and our local communities. Isaiah 1:17-18 tells: “Make justice your aim: redress the wronged . . . Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord.”

From the Archbishop

Working together to right wrongs, do what’s best

I believe the Holy Spirit was and still is at work in these efforts as we move forward with help and healing. During the news conference announcing the Doe 1 settlement and the 17 child protection protocols developed as part of a separate agreement, one of the survivors mentioned that, for the first time in more than a decade, he was going to talk with his family about the Catholic Church in order to hear from his devoted parents their stories about their practice of the faith. He had not allowed conversation about anything Catholic in his home for years. One of the members of my leadership team, Charlie Rogers with the law firm of Briggs and Morgan, has told me with tears in his eyes that this was the first time in his 35-year career that he could live out his faith through his work. Charlie is a devoted Lutheran.

When we focus on doing what is right in helping the marginalized and the oppressed by speaking the truth, God will work through us.

As Catholics, I ask you to pray with open hearts for the changes that may be outside your comfort zone but are necessary in moving us all forward toward healing in this local Church. In your parish communities, I encourage you to welcome those who perhaps are returning to church after a long absence. Embrace those who are struggling with their own pain. Pray for those who have hurt you.

We still have much work ahead of us, and I cannot promise that there will not be more challenges ahead. But I can promise that God is with us every step of the way. We have come a long way, and while there is a long way to go, we can take comfort in knowing that we are doing what is right and just and that our actions now will help our local Church community come together and in the future be healed of our woundedness.

Editor’s note:

Due to circumstances beyond our control, Archbishop Nienstedt’s column was not translated into Spanish this week. We apologize for any inconvenience.

May God bless you!

OFFICIAL His Excellency, the Most Rev. John C. Nienstedt, has announced the following appointments in the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis.

Effective October 1, 2014 Reverend Peter Chrysologus Tuyen Quang Dinh, CMC, appointed parochial vicar of the Church of Saint Anne-Saint Joseph Hien in Minneapolis.

Deacon Timothy Harrer, appointed to exercise the ministry of a permanent deacon at the Church of Saint Pius X in White Bear Lake. This is a transfer from his current assignment at the Church of Saint Mary of the Lake in Plymouth.

Reverend James Loiacono, OMI, appointed parochial administrator of the Church of Saint Casimir and the Church of Saint Patrick, both in Saint Paul. Father Loiacono succeeds Father Gregory Cholewa, OMI, who resigned as pastor of both parishes in June 2014.

Effective October 23, 2014

Effective October 6, 2014

Reverend Steven Hoffman, appointed pastor of the Church of Saint Peter in Mendota. This is a transfer from his current appointment as parochial administrator of the Church of Saint Luke in Clearwater.

Reverend Christopher Shofner, appointed parochial administrator of the Church of Our Lady of the Prairie in Belle Plaine. This is in addition to his current appointment as pastor of the Church of Saint Mary in Le Center and the Church of Saint Henry in Le Sueur.

Reverend Dennis Backer, appointed parochial administrator of the Church of Saint Luke in Clearwater. Father Backer is returning to ministry after a medical leave of absence.

Arrivals Reverend Anthony Dummer, OMI, granted faculties of the Archdiocese and assigned as a staff member of Christ the King Retreat Center in Buffalo.

Reverend Harry Winter, OMI, granted faculties of the Archdiocese and assigned as director of the Oblate Residence in Saint Paul.

Departures Brother Paul Daly, OMI, has been assigned outside the Archdiocese by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Brother Daly served as a staff member at Christ the King Retreat Center in Buffalo.

Reverend Ronald LaFramboise, OMI, has been assigned outside the Archdiocese by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Father LaFramboise served as a staff member at Christ the King Retreat Center in Buffalo.

Reverend Hilary Nhuan Tran, CMC, has been assigned outside the Archdiocese by the Congregation of the Mother Coredemptrix. Father Tran served as parochial vicar at the Church of Saint Anne-Saint Joseph Hien in Minneapolis.

Effective November 1, 2014 Reverend Brian Park, appointed temporary parochial administrator of the Church of Saint Charles Borromeo in Saint Anthony. Father Park previously served as parochial vicar at Saint Charles.

Retirements Reverend Paul La Fontaine, released from his assignment as pastor of the Church of Saint Charles Borromeo for medical reasons and granted the status of a retired priest. Father La Fontaine has served the Archdiocese as a priest since his ordination in 1972.

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Local

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Archdiocese discloses 17 names in interest of accountability In the interest of accountability, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis maintains an updated list of names of men who have substantiated claims against them of sexually abusing a minor while they were assigned as priests in our archdiocese. A claim is substantiated when there are reasonable grounds to believe that the reported abuse occurred. The initial disclosure list was posted in December 2013. More names were added to this list in February, May and October 2014, when additional substantiated claims were determined.

On Oct. 13, as part of a legal FAQs about settlement disclosures with St. Paul law firm Jeff Read answers to Anderson & frequently asked Associates, the questions regarding the archdiocese disclosure of names of reached an agreement on clergy accused of sexual a mechanism abuse at: to disclose SafeCatholicSPM.org additional names of men with substantiated claims of committing clergy sexual abuse. The first

cooperatively-developed disclosure list contains the names of and basic information about 17 men. Of these 17 men, nine are the subjects of substantiated claims of abuse of a minor within this archdiocese. In addition, the status has changed for three men whose names were previously disclosed.

The remaining eight individuals from the list of 17 are or were priests of other dioceses or religious order priests who are alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the archdiocese.

The archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against these individuals relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese.

Some of these eight individuals held temporary assignments in this archdiocese. In other cases, they may have traveled to the archdiocese, or resided here without ministry faculties or lived here as a lay person. Their names are being disclosed by the archdiocese in the interest of accountability, to champion the Child Protection Protocols first announced to the public on Oct. 13 and to aid in healing for victims/survivors.

Status change for three men Additionally, there is a change in status of three of the men noted in the category of “Men included on John Jay Commission list with unsubstantiated claims” when they were first disclosed in December 2013. Both Eugene Corica and Robert Loftus are now moved to the list of men who are subjects of substantiated claims of sexual abuse of a minor within this archdiocese, bringing the total number of names on that list to 55. Roger Vaughn is added to the new list of men who are the subjects of substantiated claims of sexual abuse of a minor outside this archdiocese. There are a total of nine names on that list.

The archdiocese is committed to prudent and ongoing disclosure.

This disclosure is part of the archdiocese’s commitment to accountability to all faithful and our larger community. Accountability is essential in pursuit of our goals to protect the young and vulnerable, care for victim/survivors of abuse, and restore trust among the faithful, as well as among our clergy who are serving honorably.

The archdiocese apologizes for the harm suffered by abuse victim/ survivors, and their families, friends and communities. We are committed to doing all we can to ensure that the tragedy of sexual abuse is never repeated in the Church.

Notes about this disclosure listing Clergy from other dioceses and from religious orders who have substantiated claims of sexual abuse of a minor are included in these lists. Most of the reported incidents of abuse occurred between the mid1950s and the mid-1980s. All of these men have been permanently removed from ministry in this archdiocese; most of them have been out of ministry for a decade or more. Ten of the men are deceased.

Despite best efforts to provide accurate information, the disclosures may include some errors or omissions. The archdiocese requests that anyone with additional information or corrections contact the archdiocese at (651) 291-4497.

Additional clergy with substantiated claims against them of sexual abuse of a minor Edward Beutner Date of birth: March 1940 (day unavailable) (deceased January 2008) Date of ordination: 5/29/1965 Beutner’s assignment history: • Associate pastor, Cathedral of Christ the King, Superior, Wis., 1965-1970 • Temporary administrator, St. Louis, Superior, Wis., 1970-1971 • Chaplain, St. Thomas More Newman Center, University of Wisconsin, River Falls, Wis., 1971-1974 • Pastor, Holy Assumption, Superior, Wis., 1974-1975 • Pastor, St. Benedict, Bennett, Wis., 1975-1987 • Graduate studies at Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, Calif., 1982-1987 • Temporary administrator, Sts. Peter and Paul, Moquah, Wis., St. Peter, Dauby, Wis., and St. Florian, Ino, Wis., 1987-1988 • Campus ministry, Santa Clara University, California, 1988-1991 • In treatment at St. Luke Institute, Suitland, Md., 1991 • No assignment from 1991-1999 • Associate pastor, Our Lady Queen of the Universe, Woodruff, Wis., and St. John Vianney, Lake Tomahawk, Wis., 1999-2001 • Campus minister at St. Thomas More Newman Center, University of Wisconsin, River Falls, Wis., 2001 • On administrative leave 2002-2005 • Suspended from ministry 2005 Diocese or religious order: Diocese of Superior, Wis. Date permanently removed from ministry: Laicized 2005 Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 2008 Beutner is a former priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Beutner relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese. To the archdiocese’s knowledge, Beutner never ministered or held any assignment within the archdiocese. Beutner’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Clark relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese.

Clark’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols and Procedures first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Robert Clark

Date of birth: 10/23/1937 Date of ordination: 12/19/1964 Dummer’s assignment history: • Associate pastor, Assumption, Richfield 1975-1981 • In residence, St. Mary, St. Paul, 1996-2002 • Chaplain, Regions Hospital, 1997-2006 • Residence of local Superior for the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, 2002-2006 Diocese or religious order: Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate Date permanently removed from ministry: N/A, archdiocese removed faculties in 2006 Current location: Tewksbury, Mass.

Current status: Unknown

Date of birth: 6/28/1958 Date of ordination: 2/18/1984 Clark’s assignment history: • Associate pastor, Holy Redeemer, Marshall (Diocese of New Ulm), 1984-1984 • Associate pastor, Holy Trinity, Winsted (Diocese of New Ulm), 1984-1989 • Associate pastor, Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, New Ulm (Diocese of New Ulm), 1989-1990 • Pastor, St. Anthony, Watkins (Diocese of New Ulm), 1990-1993 • Parochial administrator, Our Lady, Manannah (Diocese of New Ulm), 1992-1996 • Pastor, St. Patrick, Kandiyohi (Diocese of New Ulm), 1996-1997 • Pastor, St. Thomas More, Lake Lillian (Diocese of New Ulm), 1996-1997 • Administrative leave, 1997 • Religion teacher, St. Agnes High School, St. Paul, 1998-2002 • Administrative leave, 2002 Diocese or religious order: Diocese of New Ulm Date permanently removed from ministry: 2002 Current location: Mesa, Ariz.

Current status: Resigned Clark is a priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul

Donald Dummer

Thomas Ericksen Date of birth: 6/17/1947 Date of ordination: 1973 (month and day unavailable) Ericksen’s assignment history: • Various assignments within Diocese of Superior, Wis., 1973-1983, including: – Hospital chaplain, Holy Cross Hospital, Merrill, Wis., 1979-1982 – Pastor, St. Peter, Winter, Wis., 1982-1983 Diocese or religious order: Diocese of Superior, Wis. Date permanently removed from ministry: 1988 Current location: Believed to be in Minneapolis

Current status: Removed from priesthood, 1988 Ericksen is a former priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Ericksen relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese. To the archdiocese’s knowledge, Ericksen never ministered or held any assignment within the archdiocese. Ericksen’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Ambrose Filbin Date of birth: 9/16/1915 (deceased 1990) Date of ordination: 1939 (month and day unavailable) Filbin’s assignment history: • Associate priest, St. Joseph, Red Wing, 1939-1940 • Associate priest, St. Helena, Minneapolis, 1940-1942 • Chaplain, U.S. Armed Forces, 1942-1945 • St. Helena, Minneapolis, 1945-1947 • Administrator, St. Dominic, Northfield, 19471948 • Pastor, St. Genevieve, Lake Benton (Diocese of New Ulm), 1948-1949 • Pastor, Assumption, Eden Valley (Diocese of St. Cloud), 1949-1954 • Pastor, St. Pius X, White Bear Lake, 1954-1971 • Pastor, St. Ignatius, Annandale, 1971-1975 • Pastor, St. Bridget of Sweden, Lindstrom, 1975-1982 • Retired, in residence at Leo C. Byrne Residence, St. Paul, 1982-1990 Please turn to page 5

5 Continued from page 4 Diocese or religious order: Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 1990

Jerry Foley Date of birth: 1/15/1932 Date of ordination: 6/3/1961 Foley’s assignment history: • Diocesan Catholic Social Service Association, Diocese of Crookston, 1960-1976 • In residence, Newman Center, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, 1961-1963 • Administrator, St. Dorothy, Dorothy (Diocese of Crookston), 1962-1974 • Pastor, St. Anne, Crookston (Diocese of Crookston), 1974-1976 • Executive director, National Catholic Rural Life Conference, Des Moines, Iowa, 1976-1978 • Pastor, St. Francis de Sales, Moorhead (Diocese of Crookston), 1978-1983 • Pastor, St. Cecilia, Barnesville (Diocese of Crookston), 1978-1983 • On leave of absence, 1983 • Chaplain, St. Joseph Hospital, St. Paul 1984-1992 • Chaplain, St. Paul Priory, St. Paul, approximately 1987-1992 • Catholic Engaged Encounter/Marriage Ministries task force, early 1990s-2005 • Retrouvaille Movement, 1988-2005 • No assignment 1992-1993 • Chaplain, St. Joseph’s Hospital/HealthEast Inc., 1993-2005 • United Theological Seminary, St. Paul, Minn., unknown time frame Diocese or religious order: Diocese of Crookston Date permanently removed from ministry: Faculties removed 2005; laicized 2006 Current location: Minneapolis Current status: Laicized Foley is a former priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Foley relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese. Foley’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols and Procedures first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Ralph Goniea Date of birth: 12/23/1937 (deceased 2003) Date of ordination: 1963 (month and day unavailable) Goniea’s assignment history: • Assistant pastor, St. Casimir, St. Paul, 1964-1965 • Assistant pastor, St. Jean, Duluth (Diocese of Duluth), 1965-1966 Diocese or religious order: Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate Date permanently left ministry: Left religious order in 1966 Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 2003

Reginald Krakovsky Date of birth: 2/29/1924 (deceased 1997) Date of ordination: July 9, 1952 Krakovsky’s assignment history: • Various assignments outside archdiocese, 1952-1978, including: – Local superior, St. Louis Monastery, St. Cloud (Diocese of St. Cloud), unknown time frame

– Cathedral High School, St. Cloud. (Diocese of St. Cloud), unknown time frame – Pastor, Holy Family, Belle Prairie (Diocese of St. Cloud), unknown time frame – Pastor, St. Genevieve, Lake Benton (Diocese of New Ulm), unknown time frame • Pastor, St. Peter, Delano, 1978-1986 • Associate pastor, St. Patrick, Inver Grove Heights, 1986-1990 Diocese or religious order: Franciscan Fathers Third Order Regular Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 1997

Harry Majerus Date of birth: 7/26/1917 (deceased 1995) Date of ordination: 9/26/1942 Majerus’ assignment history: • Associate pastor, St. Columba, St. Paul, 1943-1944 • Assistant director, Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, 1944-unknown • Associate pastor, Cathedral of St. Paul, 1944 • Chaplain, St. Joseph’s Hospital, St. Paul, 1944-1946 • Associate pastor, Annunciation, Minneapolis, 1946-1947 • Associate pastor, Holy Redeemer, Marshall, 1947-1949 • Associate pastor, St. Thomas the Apostle, Minneapolis, 1949 • Associate pastor, St. Joseph, Hopkins, 1949 • Associate pastor, St. Stephen, Minneapolis, 1949-1952 • Associate pastor, Holy Redeemer, Marshall, 1952-1953 • Associate pastor, Incarnation, Minneapolis, 1953-1954 • Pastor, Sacred Heart, Franklin, 1954-1966; and St. Patrick, Birch Coulee, 1954-1958 (closed in 1958) • Various assignments in Diocese of New Ulm after its establishment in 1957: – Director of Catholic Action and Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (Diocese of New Ulm), 1958-1966 – Pastor, St. Catherine, Redwood Falls (Diocese of New Ulm), 1966-1971 – Leave of absence, 1971 • Pastor, Mary, Mother of the Church, Burnsville, 1971-1980 • Pastor, Immaculate Conception, St. Peter (Diocese of New Ulm), 1980-1991 • Director of the Office for Continuing Education of Priests (Diocese of New Ulm), 1981-1987 Diocese or religious order: Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, then incardinated in Diocese of New Ulm after its establishment in 1957.

Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 1995

William Marks Date of birth: 2/2/1908 (deceased 1979) Date of ordination: 6/6/1936 Marks’ prior assignments: • Associate pastor, St. Mark, Shakopee, 1936-1938 • Associate pastor, St. Dominic, Northfield, 1938-1940 • Administrator, Our Lady, Mannanah, and St. Columban, Greenleaf, 1940 • Administrator, St. Philip, Litchfield, 1940-1941 • Associate pastor, Guardian Angels, Hastings, 1941 • Associate pastor, Immaculate Conception, Faribault, 1941-1944 • Pastor, St. Dionysius, Tyler, 1944-1954 • Pastor, St. John, Hector (became part of Diocese of New Ulm in 1957), 1954-1962 • Pastor, St. Clotilde, Green Valley (Diocese of New Ulm), 1962-1979 Diocese or religious order: Archdiocese of St.

Paul and Minneapolis, then incardinated in Diocese of New Ulm after its establishment in 1957.

Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 1979

Wendell Mohs

Owens’ name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols and Procedures first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Date of birth: 2/18/1952 Date of ordination: 8/21/1974 Mohs’ assignment history: • Crosier Seminary, Onamia (Diocese of St. Cloud), 1974-1980 • Weekend retreat staff, Central Minnesota TEC Program, 1979-1982 • Pastoral ministry, Epiphany, Coon Rapids, 1980-1982 • Crosier Seminary, Onamia (Diocese of St. Cloud), 1982 Diocese or religious order: Crosier Fathers and Brothers Date permanently removed from ministry: Left religious order in 1982 Current location: Sartell, Minn.

Current status: Dispensed from vows in 1987

James Porter

James Nickel

Porter is a former priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Porter relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese. To the archdiocese’s knowledge, Porter never ministered or held any assignment within the archdiocese. Porter’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols and Procedures first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Date of birth: November 1943 (day unavailable) (deceased 2008) Date of ordination: 1970 Nickel’s assignment history: • St. Mary, Minneiska (Diocese of Winona), 1972 • Father Damien Seminary, Winona (Diocese of Winona), 1972 • Assigned in Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

• Assigned in Archdiocese of Nassau, Bahamas Diocese or religious order: Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 2008 Nickel is a religious order priest who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Nickel relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese.

Nickel’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols and Procedures first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

John Owens Date of birth: 3/19/1929 Date of ordination: 1960 (month and day unavailable) Owens’ assignment history: • Assigned in Diocese of Bismarck, N.D., 1960-1999 • Temporary weekend assistance in Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in/ near Forest Lake 1999-2004 (continued providing assistance although faculties were removed in 2002) Diocese or religious order: Diocese of Bismarck Date permanently removed from ministry: Faculties permanently removed in this archdiocese in 2005 Current location: Forest Lake Current status: Under administrative penalties by Diocese of Bismarck Owens is a priest of another diocese who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Owens relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese.

Date of birth: 1/2/1935 (Deceased 2005) Date of ordination: 4/2/1960 Porter’s assignment history: • Assignments in Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

1960-1967 • Worked at parishes in Texas, New Mexico, Nevada 1967-1969 • Assistant pastor, St. Philip, Bemidji (Diocese of Crookston), 1969-1970 Diocese or religious order: Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

Date permanently removed from ministry: Suspended 1970, laicized 1974 Current location: Deceased Current status: Died in 2005

Charles Potocki Date of birth: 1942 (month and day unavailable) (deceased 1992) Date of ordination: 6/13/1970 Potocki’s assignment history: • Associate pastor, Columbus, Neb., unknown time frame • Associate pastor, Sacred Heart, St. Paul, 1977-1983 • Pastor, St. Pascal, West Monroe, La., unknown time frame • Associate pastor, St. Jude, New Lenox, unknown time frame Diocese or religious order: Order of Friar Minor also known as Franciscan Province of the Sacred Heart (OFM) Current location: Deceased Current status: Died 1992

James Vedro Date of birth: December 1937 (day unavailable) Date of ordination: 1965 (month and day unavailable; year uncertain) Vedro’s assignment history: • Crosier Provincialate, St. Paul • St. Stephen, Anoka, 1982-1991 • Various assignments in Archdiocese of Detroit, 1991-2002, including: – Associate pastor, St. Alphonsus, Dearborn – Associate pastor, St. Cyprian, Riverview – Pastor, St. Joseph, Trenton Diocese or religious order: Crosier Father and Brothers, also known as Canons Regular of the Holy Cross Date permanently removed from ministry: Faculties permanently removed in this archdiocese in 1991; left order in 2008 Current location: Murrieta, Calif.

Current status: Left religious order 2008 Please turn to page 10

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

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Historic announcement follows months of negotiations Continued from page 1 of these survivors and their families and supporters that sit among us and work among us every day. This is not a day of reckoning as much as hope, as promise, as action.”

“I hope this is a fresh start,” said Al Michaud, a survivor of clergy sexual abuse that occurred when he was a child. “We need this safe place, a welcoming place, to come forward, we need a caring path to long-term healing, a supportive environment in which to tell our stories and not be afraid.”

Michaud is not Doe 1, the plaintiff in the case that was settled involving a former priest of the Diocese of Winona, Thomas Adamson, who had assignments in the archdiocese. However, Michaud said the settlement is a sign of progress and a reason for hope.

“No longer will we be ridiculed, challenged and beaten down by the Church, because it’s no longer our enemy in this, they are our ally,” he said.

“It is never too late to do the right thing,” said survivor Jim Keenan, who has been outspoken in his calls for reform in Church handling of clergy sexual abuse and related changes in state law. “I would have never guessed I would have

Clergy abuse survivor Jim Keenan, center, talks about his experiences and reaction to the settlement between the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and the law firm Jeff Anderson & Associates at a press conference announcing the settlement Oct. 13 at the Landmark Center in St. Paul. Listening to Keenan’s remarks are, from left, attorney Jeff Anderson, Tim O’Malley, director of ministerial standards and safe environment for the archdiocese, Bishop Andrew Cozzens and Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general for the archdiocese.

Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit looked over my shoulder at one of these and see two priests.”

“We are humiliated, yet we are humbled by the grace of God to be here today,” said Father Lachowitzer. “To the survivors here and others watching and listening, thank you for the truth and courage of your stories. It is not our hand that reached out to you to help in some way, it is your hand that reached out to us. The wounded child leading us to do what is right, good and true.”

“We arrived at this place of cooperation thanks to the perseverance of survivors and their

loved ones,” Bishop Cozzens said. “We are thankful for their courage in making sure that this issue is addressed openly and thoroughly and with compassion.: “I am sorry,” Bishop Cozzens continued.

“This never should have happened.”

Bishop Cozzens noted that the day’s events would not have been possible without leadership from Archbishop John Nienstedt, who was unable to attend because of a visit to the archdiocese’s sister diocese in Kenya. A morning court meeting in the Doe 1 case on Oct. 13 precipitated the press conference a few hours later.

“I am deeply saddened and profoundly sorry for the pain suffered by victims, survivors and their families,” the archbishop said in a statement issued Oct. 13. “Today we take a significant step closer to achieving the goals we set nearly a year ago to protect children, to help survivors heal, and to restore trust with our clergy and faithful. I am grateful to all those on both sides of the courtroom aisle who have worked so diligently to bring about this agreement.”

Action plan to protect and heal As part of a global settlement agreement on non-economic items, the archdiocese committed to abiding by a set of 17 child protection protocols that were developed and approved by both archdiocesan leadership and Jeff Anderson & Associates.

“The archdiocese will ensure that all archdiocesan policy from this point forward provides for at least as much protection as the protocols outline,” said Tim O’Malley, director of Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment for the archdiocese. O’Malley is a former state administrative law judge and previously served as superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. “These protocols will help us move forward to better days for all children, clergy and those we serve.”

The archdiocese’s appointment of O’Malley as director of ministerial standards and safe environment, and the naming of fellow former BCA head Michael Campion were among the actions Anderson cited as a path forward.

Archdiocesan leaders emphasized that cooperation with law enforcement continues.

“We are working together with police to protect children,” said O’Malley, who in addition to leading the BCA served as an agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation during his long career in law enforcement. “I believe we have struck the right balance of protecting children and ensuring fairness.”

Under the Minnesota Child Victim Act, passed in 2013, lawmakers eliminated the civil statute of limitations for cases of past child sexual abuse, allowing anyone with a claim of abuse to file lawsuits for a three-year period regardless of how far back their claims date and regardless of

whether the alleged abuser is deceased.

Part of the Doe 1 settlement was an agreement to disclose additional names of men with substantiated claims of committing clergy sexual abuse. (See the disclosure list on page 4.) Staff from Jeff Anderson and Associates & the archdiocese cooperated in the development of this list.

Simple phone call signals profound shift The Oct. 13 announcement followed several months of negotiations that began when Charlie Rogers, an attorney with the Minneapolis firm of Briggs and Morgan, called Jeff Anderson in July.

“I told him that I was calling him at the behest of the archbishop, to extend the hand of goodwill and engage in dialogue aimed toward resolution of claims rather than confrontation,” Rogers said. Rogers added that while Anderson was surprised at the phone call, “he was pleased to hear from me and welcomed a meeting.”

The archbishop literally gave his blessing to the negotiations, saying a short prayer over Rogers before his initial meeting with Anderson.

The dialogue that Anderson and Rogers developed over the coming weeks resulted in bringing others from the archdiocese into conversation about how to best move forward with the mutual goals of helping victims/ survivors heal and protecting the young and the vulnerable.

A key understanding was that through cooperation, protracted legal actions could be avoided, preserving more resources for victims/ survivors to help them in healing. While the archdiocese has long provided support for counseling for those harmed by clergy sexual abuse, additional assistance in the form of financial settlements might be needed for victims/survivors to move forward with their lives.

Rogers and his team intend to use all available options to negotiate a resolution that won’t require a financial reorganization of the archdiocese’s chancery corporation. But if the number and financial amount of claims necessitate a reorganization, the archdiocese wants to ensure the maximum amount of resources would go to victims/survivors.

“Because of the relationship we’ve been able to forge with Jeff Anderson, we’re hopeful that the proceeding may not carry on for as long as others have and perhaps not be as burdensome,” Rogers said. “It’s important we get this resolved, but that we never forget the suffering of these victims.”

“We are committed to doing the right thing for victims/survivors and their families,” said Archbishop Nienstedt. “We are moving forward from an adversarial relationship to one of reconciliation and healing; healing for victims and survivors and their loved ones, and healing for our local Church.’’

Campion also brings his Catholic faith to the job Continued from page 1 Day One for Campion was a barn-burner. He went from completing paperwork to witnessing his new employer joining forces with attorney Jeff Anderson of Jeff Anderson & Associates, the law firm that had filed clergy sex abuse lawsuits against the archdiocese over the last year and pressed hard for details about clergy who have been accused of sexual misconduct.

“The press conference was both significant and meaningful. Clearly, the responses from the victims were genuine,” said Campion, 66, about the part of the press conference when victims shared their stories

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

and were greeted by Bishop Andrew Cozzens and Father Charles Lachowitzer, vicar general for the archdiocese.

Campion will do his part to keep the momentum going. He has seen his share of the dark side of humanity during a career that started in the 1970s as an undercover narcotics officer and eventually brought him to management positions.

After serving in the BCA, he was appointed commissioner of the Department of Public Safety by Gov. Tim Pawlenty in 2004 and served in that post until 2011.

Campion will bring not only his law enforcement

background to the job, but also his faith.

“I don’t think there’s any Catholic who hasn’t been disheartened by the things that have happened, but we have an opportunity to help make it better,” said Campion, who is married with three children and belongs to St. Odilia in Shoreview. “I’m very pleased to be here. There’s a real satisfaction to have this opportunity.”

Campion is excited to be part of the effort to help the partnership move forward to protect children and help victims heal.

“I’m honored to be here,” he said.

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By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit For a group of Minnesota Catholics, Africa was not too far to go to celebrate 10 years of friendship and cooperation.

A 21-member delegation from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis traveled to the rural diocese of Kitui in south-central Kenya during the first weeks of October to commemorate a decade of partnership between the two dioceses and encourage more parishes to get involved. But fundamentally, they sought to deepen relationships with their African partners, according to Mike Haasl, global solidarity coordinator at the archdiocesan Center for Mission who co-led the delegation representing eight parishes.

The trip to Kitui was a first for Archbishop John Nienstedt, who maintained a robust schedule even on African time. While there, he dedicated a new rectory for priests, blessed a new catechetical center, visited schools and a Carmelite convent, confirmed 350 candidates and blessed a new mission house.

He and delegates met with diocesan leaders to help establish a more institutional bond for the partnership. The Kitui diocese is in an area prone to long droughts, resulting in a lack of water and consequently, a shortage of food.

Compounding environmental problems for Kenyans are health crises and violence — 5 percent of the overall population live with HIV/AIDS, and 10,000 children have been orphaned because of the disease; there also are border clashes with Somalia and threats by terrorist group Al-Shabab.

“What struck me so forcefully was that despite the serious challenges that Kenyans face, problems do not overcome the possibilities,” Archbishop Nienstedt said. “This is a resilient people who, like their American

Archbishop John Nienstedt confirms a candidate Oct. 12 in Kitui, Kenya, as part of a delegation from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of the partnership with the Diocese of Kitui. Photo courtesy of Archbishop John Nienstedt counterparts, believe in a better tomorrow.”

This trip to Africa was the fourth that members of the archdiocese have made since 2005; Kitui diocese members also have made four trips to Minnesota.

One highlight was the Oct. 12 Mass that Archbishop Nienstedt concelebrated with Kitui Bishop Anthony Muheria, where the Minnesota delegation presented the Kitui diocese with 26 chalices given by archdiocesan parishes. In return, Kitui gave the Minnesotans calabashes — gourds made into vessels — to hold holy water.

“They’re giving not out of their excess at all, they’re giving out of their need,” Haasl said. “They’re deciding, ‘well, I’ll forgo clothing or I’ll forgo this or that. . .’ They have nothing, and they’re still giving.”

On her first trip to Kitui, Suzanne Bernet was impressed by Kitui residents’ generosity.

“Despite the differences in our material kinds of resources, I was

so humbled by the fact that there was generosity that kept coming and coming and coming,” said Bernet, who is pastoral associate for community life and social justice at Mary, Mother of the Church in Burnsville.

While visiting with school children and others, she also was surprised at their interest in discussing what they had in common with American Catholics — and their differences.

At a meeting with Kitui women, Mary Jo Voxland made a similar discovery.

“It’s made me more aware of the differences and all the likenesses of people around the world,” said Voxland, of St. Michael in Kenyon, who’s been involved in the partnership since it began. “We all believe in the same God, and we all pray to him.” Though life is different in both places, “We all worship him on Sundays in the same way.”

Though it was dry before the beginning of the rainy season,

Voxland said one highlight was seeing a dam for which Minnesota parishes contributed funds through the Center for Mission’s Living Water Program.

“It was just wonderful to go out there and be able to see something that we helped them build,” she said.

Father Randal Kasel, pastor of St. Michael in Pine Island, said his first trip to Africa was an adventure — offering Mass and listening to the peoples’ needs. He spent time talking with a fairly affluent farmer. “I just enjoyed visiting with him and others I met about what life is like and what are the things that they do,” he said.

“Their lives are in some ways more difficult than we have. But in other ways, they have certain joys and blessings that I see that we don’t have.”

Father Kasel said he appreciated the people’s hospitality and joy.

“There’s joyfulness in striving to follow Christ among the faithful that I saw as well.”

Along with their joyfulness, Bernet said the African partners have a good understanding of how to live in community.

“They could really show us what it’s like to immerse yourself in the power of community,” she said. . . . “that you need to rely on other people. They were living examples of what it means to be the body of Christ.”

As a way of building community, partners in both places will continue to seek ways to develop the mutually supportive relationship, Haasl said. Anyone in the archdiocese can be involved in the partnership. To increase awareness, the partners will create a joint Facebook page that will have updates from both dioceses.

“It’s an exciting thing that we have built a relationship and really potentially become family with our brothers and sisters in Kitui,” he said.

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Minnesotans celebrate 10-year partnership with Catholics of Kenya

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October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

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Women honored for life-giving sacrifice

By Gretchen Traylor For The Catholic Spirit My lifelong dear friend, also known as my “other brother Mark (Claesgens),” and his sister and I grew up like siblings, as our adoptive parents were close friends.

While Mark’s sister searched for her family of origin early in her 20s, Mark and I were more hesitant. However, as I became more involved in the cause of healing within adoption for all involved parties, I noticed that Mark remained quiet and seemed satisfied with the status quo. As we entered the second half of our 60s, however, he began to ask more questions about my journey. But in the summer of 2013, Mark presented me with his adoption papers, asking if I thought I could find his birth mother. Amazingly, this woman had never married, which made it an easy search, and soon Mark and his mother were communicating. Mark was relieved and happy that Gertie accepted him and was enthusiastic about connecting. It isn’t easy trying to catch up on 67 years spent apart.

Last February, Gertie suffered a stroke that left her vision impaired.

She spends her days in a wheelchair in a long-term care

facility just outside the Twin Cities area. A friend now reads Mark’s communications and describes pictures for her.

This summer, Mark came to Minnesota from Louisiana to meet Gertie — on her 93rd birthday.

Tears flowed as Mark and Gertie greeted each other with hugs and kisses, and cameras clicked as they tried to capture the moment so long in the making.

In 1947, as a single woman, Gertie had placed Mark for adoption. And as instructed by a Catholic agency, she simply got on with her life. But she could not, as also instructed, forget the baby boy she lost that day.

A faithful Catholic all her life, Gertie prayed for Mark, finished her nurse’s training and spent her life serving others. She never married and had no other children.

Mark grew up in the Twin Cities and attended Catholic schools. He had a long career as an editor, photographer and writer for college publications. Gertie, as it turns out, was an avid photographer as well.

The day after this reunion, my husband and I were privileged to be with Mark and Gertie at their second meeting. Mark and his wife, Maria, sat beside Gertie, who

clung to them. She told story after story about her life on the farm, as a nurse, about her family and about her time during World War II. She asked many questions about Mark’s life and adoptive family as well, and the only sorrow was that she could not see him or the pictures.

Gertie later told me, “I think I made a huge mistake all those years ago. Look at the wonderful son I would have had all these years.” I encouraged her to go forward knowing she did the best she could for Mark, and that he is the terrific guy he is today because of her selfless decision. I also promised to bring another birth mother to visit, so she’d know she isn’t alone in her loss, which I have done.

Addressing this pain is the goal of Birth Mothers’ Day — to begin to lift up those who chose life, yet have suffered deeply for their choice.

May God continue to bless Mark, Gertie and all those touched by adoption.

Traylor, a retired high school special education teacher, is an adoptee and adoptive parent. She attends St. Gerard Majella in Brooklyn Park.

Day of Honor and Recognition for Birth Mothers This event recognizes the sacrifices made by those who have put a child up for adoption. It also offers an opportunity for healing, sharing and for learning about resources available for birth mothers. Hosted by Our Lady of Grace, Catholic Charities and the Archdiocesan Office of Marriage, Family and Life.

When: 9:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 8.

Where: Our Lady of Grace, 5071 Eden Ave., Edina.

Cost: $15 covers lunch and expenses. Scholarships available.

Registration: Email Melissa Miller at melissamiller@olgparish.org, or call (952) 929-3317 ext. 111.

For more information: Call Erin at (612) 298-9369, or Gretchen at (763) 424-1430.

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By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit Three men at St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul have older brothers who have gone through seminary. Three of them are now priests, and one is at the St. Paul Seminary working toward ordination to the priesthood.

The three SJV men — Dominic Shovelain, Lee Koenigsknecht and Zach Sandquist — described the influence of their older brothers on the journey that led them to SJV.

Dominic Shovelain, freshman at SJV Home parish: St. Michael in St. Michael Parents: Jim and Marie Shovelain Older brother: Father Paul Shovelain, ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 2014 “Being the youngest of five children, my older siblings had a big role in forming me as I grew up . . . . I looked up to them a lot.

And, one of the things that Paul influenced me to do was, when he was in high school and I was in third or fourth grade, we’d go to Mass on Tuesday nights at our parish.

We got to spend time together.

He helped show me how prayer can be more than just within the family and within the Catholic school we went to. We can make prayer our own, and he sought to make time for God and to spend time with God outside of what our family expected. So, going to Mass on Tuesday nights with him growing up was something I enjoyed.”

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Why did I choose SJV? Big brother was my guide Lee Koenigsknecht, sophomore at SJV Home parish: Most Holy Trinity in Fowler, Mich. (Diocese of Lansing) Parents: Brian and Agnes Koenigsknecht Older brothers: Fathers Todd and Gary Koenigsknecht (twins), ordained priests for the Diocese of Lansing in 2014 “[My brothers] had quite a big impact. I remember distinctly when they left, I was in sixth grade. . . . It was pretty hard to ignore the fact that I had two brothers in seminary. It got me really thinking about it. And, I started praying about it gradually.

When I was a freshman [in high school], I went and visited Gary where he was staying at a parish for the summer. It was his last day at the parish. I think he was leading morning prayer.

Afterward, I saw this great, loving relationship between him and with the people there, this awesome interplay where he just built that bond. I was like, ‘I want that. There’s something really special about that.’

There was a transformation in Todd and Gary just going through seminary. They started out as these shy guys, but turned into these gregarious people who are very engaging and loving.

When they came back for the summer, I wondered, ‘How are these guys so great? They work hard on the farm, they’re happy doing it, they like going to Mass every morning, going to holy hour every morning. How on earth do they do that? It’s amazing. ‘It just really challenged me. It’s like, ‘I need to step up, there’s something

From left, St. John Vianney College Seminary students Lee Koenigsknecht, Dominic Shovelain and Zach Sandquist all say their older brothers played a role in their decision to come to SJV. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit to do here.’”

Zach Sandquist, junior at SJV Home parish: St. Boniface in St. Bonifacius Parents: Dave and Mary Sandquist Older brother: Tim, Theology II student at the St. Paul Seminary “Growing up, Tim was basically my best friend. I would follow him everywhere, I would do everything he did . . . . I looked up to him as an older brother. So, when he told us that he was going to join the seminary, immediately, my first thoughts were I’m going to lose my brother.

But, I warmed up to the idea, and praise God that he made this decision because I was able to see firsthand the fruits of the seminary.

That first break when he came home, I just saw him so much more joyful and so much more giving with his time and energy.

Along with that, there were family events and visits to the seminary that I went to because he was there. I would never have gone on those visits or Team Vianneys or anything like that if he wasn’t there. Immediately, I saw their joy and their sacrifice, and their desire to talk to [you], to help you in whatever way they can.

I especially saw that the first day when Tim moved in. It took one trip to get everything moved up to the fifth floor. All these men just helped right away. They all got him settled in. I was able to see his room and say goodbye.

I not only saw the fruits, but the building. I think that’s very important. So, you can imagine yourself going there: ‘Maybe I can do this.’ It’s not so intimidating once you take those first steps in the building.”

You can’t drive a parked car: Attend vocation events to help discern

By Father Troy Przybilla For The Catholic Spirit There’s an old saying, “You can’t drive parked car,” meaning you need to do something in order to go somewhere.

When applied to vocational discernment, in order to arrive at your vocation, you need to do something.

Praying, reading, gathering information and talking to people are just a few things.

But there comes a time when you need to literally get in the car and drive. Everyone who is discerning the priesthood or religious life should attend events where they are able to talk to seminarians, priests and religious who are living the way of life that they are discerning. Thankfully, you don’t have to drive very far to do this. Here in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, we have a number of discernment events coming up in the next couple of months:

Miryam Dinner – Oct. 28 The name Miryam is an ancient version of Mary, whose “yes” to God changed the course of human history. Women ages 16 to 35 enjoy dinner and conversation with sisters at Archbishop John Nienstedt’s residence.

Borromeo Weekend – Oct. 31 St. John Vianney College Seminary and the St. Paul Seminary

celebrate the patron saint of seminarians, St. Charles Borromeo, with 40 hours of adoration over the weekend. The event begins with an opening Mass and a candlelight eucharistic procession from the University of St. Thomas chapel to St. Mary’s chapel. This is truly an inspiring sight to see. Everyone is welcome to attend, especially men discerning the priesthood. For more information, visit www. stthomas.edu/spssod/events.

Andrew Dinner – Nov. 4

This dinner is named after St. Andrew, who brought his brother St. Peter to meet Jesus. In a similar fashion, pastors are encouraged to invite men ages 16 to 50 who have qualities of a good priest to meet the archbishop. If men are discerning and haven’t been invited, they can ask a priest to join them, or they may come on their own.

Vianney Visit – Nov. 13-15

High school and college-aged men are invited to visit St. John Vianney College Seminary for a couple days in order to experience what seminary life is like. Guys who have entered the seminary have said this event was the most beneficial in helping them make their decision. For more information, visit www.vianney.com.

Year for Consecrated Life Opening Celebration – Nov. 21 Pope Francis has called for a year to honor those who have consecrated themselves to Christ. Religious women and those who are discerning are invited to attend a talk given by Deborah Savage, St. Paul Seminary professor of philosophy and theology.

Come and See Retreat – Nov. 23 Men who have graduated from college or are close to graduating and are younger than 50 are invited to come to the St. Paul Seminary to see what seminary life is like. There will be Mass, talks, meals, fraternity and prayer.

Archbishop’s Retreat – Dec. 19-21 This is the main discernment event of the year. Archbishop John Nienstedt leads a retreat at Christ the King Retreat Center in Buffalo for men who are interested in the priesthood. It’s the perfect place and time to step away from the anxieties of the world and rest in the peace of Christ.

(Unless otherwise noted, times and more detailed information can be found on the Archdiocesan vocation’s website, www.10000vocations.org.)

If you or someone you know is discerning a vocation but is stuck in park, I encourage you to shift into drive and attend one of these events. It’s only when we are moving that the Lord can steer us toward our vocation.

Safe travels!

Father Przybilla is director of vocations for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

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Law professors file amicus brief for working pregnant women

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit Professors from the University of St. Thomas School of Law are among the primary drafters and organizers of a friend-of-the-court brief in a case involving the protection of working pregnant women that has reached the U.S. Supreme Court.

The impact of the case could mean fewer abortions, according to Teresa Stanton Collett, who with fellow law professor Tom Berg was counsel on the amicus brief.

A third St. Thomas law professor, Elizabeth Schlitz, also made contributions to the brief, according to a news release from the Twin Cities university.

Collett, who is director of the University of St. Thomas Pro-life Center, and Berg, a board member of Democrats for Life, filed the brief on behalf of 23 pro-life organizations in support of Peggy Young, a delivery driver for UPS whose request for an accommodation due to her pregnancy was denied by the company.

Young’s doctor recommended that she lift no more than 20

“It’s important for the Church to give initiative to its pro-life stance.”

Teresa Stanton Collett, who, with fellow University of St. Thomas law professor Tom Berg, filed an amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court

pounds during her pregnancy. She requested a light-duty assignment or assistance by another employee to deliver heavier packages.

UPS denied her requests, and both a lower court and an appellate court ruled in favor of the company, saying UPS did not have to accommodate Young because it did not accommodate every other worker who had lifting restrictions.

The pro-life groups’ friend-ofthe-court brief argues that the question is not whether an employer accommodates every worker with similar limitations, but rather, whether the employer

Continued from page 5

accommodates any worker similarly.

The Young v. UPS case tests if the federal Pregnancy Discrimination Act requires an employer to accommodate a pregnant employee when that employer accommodates other workers.

Collett told The Catholic Spirit, “One of the primary reasons women obtain abortions is because women feel that they cannot afford to support another child,” a finding she said that comes from several research efforts.

If, by companies agreeing to accommodations such as those Young requested, women are able to continue to earn a paycheck, Collett said the hope is that they would choose then to decide against abortion.

A group that is part of a Catholic university like St. Thomas needs to add its voice to a case such as Young that can have a positive impact on abortion, Collett said.

“It’s important for the Church to give initiative to its pro-life stance,” she said.

The case is on the U.S. Supreme Court calendar for Dec. 3.

Vedro is a former religious order priest who is alleged to have committed acts of sexual abuse of a minor outside of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. This archdiocese is not aware of any substantiated claim of sexual abuse of a minor asserted against Vedro relating to any conduct that occurred in this archdiocese.

Vedro’s name has nevertheless been added to the archdiocese’s disclosure list in the interest of full transparency, to champion the Child Protection Protocols first announced to the public on Oct. 13, 2014, and to aid in healing for survivors who may reside in the archdiocese.

Adalbert Wolski Date of birth: 2/13/1931 (deceased 2012) Date of ordination: 6/7/1958 Wolski’s assignment history: • Cathedral High School, St. Cloud, prior to 1965 • Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Paul, 1970-1974 • St. Joseph, Delano, 1974-1977 Diocese or religious order: Franciscan Third Order Regular, Province of the Immaculate Conception (TOR) Current location: Deceased Current status: Died 2012

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United in Faith, Hope and Love

11 Controversial questions left open

By Francis X. Rocca Catholic News Service After several days of animated debate over its official midterm report, the Synod of Bishops on the family agreed on a final document more clearly grounded in traditional Catholic teaching.

Yet the assembly failed to reach consensus on especially controversial questions of Communion for the divorced and civilly remarried, and the pastoral care of homosexuals.

The synod’s last working session, Oct. 18, also featured a speech by Pope Francis, in which he celebrated the members’ frank exchanges while warning against extremism in the defense of tradition or the pursuit of progress.

Discussions in the synod hall had grown heated after the Oct. 13 delivery of a midterm report that used strikingly conciliatory language toward people with ways of life contrary to Church teaching, including divorced and civilly remarried Catholics, cohabitating couples and those in same-sex unions.

The summaries of working-group discussions, published Oct. 16, showed a majority of synod fathers wanted the final document to be clearer about relevant Church doctrine and give more attention to families whose lives exemplify that teaching.

The final report, which the pope ordered published almost at once after the synod’s conclusion, featured many more citations of Scripture, as well as new references to the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the teachings of Pope Paul VI, St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI. Synod fathers voted on each of the document’s 62 paragraphs. All received a simple majority, but three failed to gain the two-thirds supermajority ordinarily required for approval of synodal documents.

Two of those paragraphs dealt with a controversial proposal by German Cardinal Walter Kasper that would make it easier for divorced and civilly remarried Catholics to receive Communion.

The document noted disagreements on the subject and recommended further study.

The document’s section on homosexuality, which also fell short of supermajority approval,

was significantly changed from its counterpart in the midterm report.

The original section heading — “welcoming homosexuals” — was changed to “pastoral attention to persons with homosexual orientation.”

A statement that same-sex unions can be a “precious support in the life of the partners” was removed.

The final report quoted a 2003 document from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: “There are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God’s plan for marriage and family.”

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman, told reporters that the absence of a supermajority indicated a lack of consensus and a need for more discussion, but stressed that none of the document carried doctrinal weight. The synod’s final report will serve as an agenda for the October 2015 world synod on the family, which will make recommendations to the pope.

Pope Francis said he welcomed the assembly’s expressions of disagreement.

While reassuring the assembly that the Church’s unity was not in

danger, Pope Francis warned against several temptations that he said had been present during the two-week synod.

One of the temptations he cited was that of “hostile rigidity” that seeks refuge in the letter of the law.

This temptation, he said, is characteristic of the “zealous, the scrupulous, the attentive and, today, of the so-called traditionalists and also of intellectuals.”

U.S. & World

Synod on the family ends by affirming tradition

Another temptation for the synod fathers, the pope said, was that of “destructive do-goodism, which in the name of a misguided mercy binds up wounds without first treating and medicating them; that treats symptoms and not causes and roots. It is the temptation of do-gooders, of the timorous and also of the so-called progressives and liberals.”

Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, Ky., president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said in a statement he was “grateful that the clarifications and deepening of Scriptural and theological reflection shine consistently” through the final report. “Now the real work begins!”

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October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

U.S. & World

12

Pope beatifies Blessed Paul VI, ‘great helmsman’ of Vatican II

By Francis Rocca Catholic News Service Beatifying Blessed Paul VI at the concluding Mass of the Synod of Bishops on the family, Pope Francis praised the late pope as the “great helmsman” of the Second Vatican Council and founder of the synod, as well as a “humble and prophetic witness of love for Christ and his church.”

The pope spoke during a homily in St. Peter’s Square at a Mass for more than 30,000 people, under a sunny sky on an unseasonably warm Oct. 19.

“When we look to this great pope, this courageous Christian, this tireless apostle, we cannot but say in the sight of God a word as simple as it is heartfelt and important: thanks,” the pope said, drawing applause from the congregation, which included retired Pope Benedict, whom Blessed Paul made a cardinal in 1977.

“Facing the advent of a secularized and hostile society, (Blessed Paul) could hold fast, with farsightedness and wisdom — and at times alone — to the helm of the barque of Peter,” Pope Francis said in a possible allusion to “Humanae Vitae,” the late pope’s 1968 encyclical, which affirmed Catholic teaching against contraception amid widespread dissent.

The pope pronounced the rite of beatification at the start of the Mass. Then, Sister Giacomina Pedrini, a member of the Sisters of Holy Child Mary, carried up a relic: a bloodstained vest Blessed Paul was wearing during a 1970 assassination attempt in the Philippines. Sister Giacomina is the last surviving nun who

Nuns hold a banner thanking Blessed Paul VI prior to his beatification Mass celebrated by Pope Francis in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Oct. 19. The Mass also concluded the extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the family. CNS/Paul Haring attended to Blessed Paul.

In his homily, Pope Francis did not explicitly mention “Humanae Vitae,” the single achievement for which Blessed Paul is best known today. Instead, the pope highlighted his predecessor’s work presiding over most of

Vatican II and establishing the synod.

The pope quoted Blessed Paul’s statement that he intended the synod to survey the “signs of the times” in order to adapt to the “growing needs of our time and the changing conditions of society.”

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13

Deacon Billy Dodge

News travels fast; let’s make it good news People have a natural affinity for communication and building relationships. Too often, due to original sin, our ability to communicate is used for gossip, slander and detraction. On the other hand, when used for God’s purposes, our communication can transform the world for the better.

In the second reading, Paul writes to the Christians in Thessalonica, “For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth not only in Macedonia and in Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has gone forth” (1 Thessalonians 1:8). The

Thessalonians have not left the region of Thessalonica, yet their good deeds and faith in God are being discussed everywhere (reference 1 Thessaolonians 1:9).

Yes, even in ancient times, communication traveled far quickly.

Today, news travels across the globe instantly. Who hasn’t been affected by news of our Christian brothers and sisters in the Middle East suffering for their faith at the hands of militant extremists? Are we not inspired by news of Christians ministering to those suffering from the Ebola virus in

Africa? These events are happening on the other side of the globe, yet the trials of fellow Christians are impacting our local communities.

These Christians are simply trying to live their faith to the best of their abilities, yet their heroism and love have created ripples “across the pond” that have come to our part of the world.

Some people wonder how they can make the world a better place.

Too often we can be overwhelmed by the enormity of global problems.

Instead of focusing on trying to solve large-scale issues, take a cue from those Christians heroically living their faith today and from the Thessalonian Christians of Paul’s time. In their immediate surroundings, they live the great commandment in this week’s Gospel — love God with your whole heart, mind, and soul, and your neighbor as yourself. News of living this way cannot be contained.

This is why God in the first reading from Exodus instructs the Israelites to care for the most vulnerable of society — the foreigner, widow, orphan and poor.

The special relationship God has with the Israelites is to be expressed in how they treat their neighbor. As God speaks through the prophet Isaiah, “I will make you [Israel] a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth” (49:6).

Ultimately, all of God’s actions and decrees come down to his wanting to save all creation and bring us into his glory.

It is astounding that God wants his creation to cooperate in his plan of salvation for the world.

And how do we cooperate in this grand plan? Love God and your neighbor. And just like the Thessalonians, may news of our love of God and neighbor be known everywhere.

Deacon Dodge is studying for the priesthood at the St. Paul Seminary for the Diocese of LaCrosse, Wis. His teaching parishes are Sacred Heart in Spring Valley and Elmwood, Wis., and St. Luke in Boyceville, Wis. His home parish is Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Big River, Wis.

Focus on Faith • Sunday Scriptures

SUNDAY SCRIPTURES

Sunday, Oct. 26

Thirtieth Sunday in ordinary time

Readings

• Exodus 22:20-26 • 1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10 • Matthew 22:34-40

Reflection

How do we overcome the bad news in the world to spread the good news, carrying out God’s plan for salvation?

DAILY Scriptures Sunday, Oct. 26 Thirtieth Sunday in ordinary time Exodus 22:20-26 1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10 Matthew 22:34-40 Monday, Oct. 27 Ephesians 4:32–5:8 Luke 13:10-17 Tuesday, Oct. 28 Sts. Simon and Jude, apostles Ephesians 2:19-22 Luke 6:12-16

Wednesday, Oct. 29 Ephesians 6:1-9 Luke 13:22-30 Thursday, Oct. 30 Ephesians 6:10-20 Luke 13:31-35 Friday, Oct. 31 Philippians 1:1-11 Luke 14:1-6 Saturday, Nov. 1 All Saints Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14 1 John 3:1-3 Matthew 5:1-12a

Sunday, Nov. 2 All Souls Wisdom 3:1-9 Romans 5:5-11 John 6:37-40 Monday, Nov. 3 St. Martin de Porres, religious Philippians 2:1-4 Luke 14:12-14 Tuesday, Nov. 4 St. Charles Borromeo, bishop Philippians 2:5-11 Luke 14:15-24 Wednesday, Nov. 5 Philippians 2:12-18 Luke 14:25-33

Thursday, Nov. 6 Philippians 3:3-8a Luke 15:1-10 Friday, Nov. 7 Philippians 3:17–4:1 Luke 16:1-8 Saturday, Nov. 8 Philippians 4:10-19 Luke 16:9-15 Sunday, Nov. 9 The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12 1 Corinthians 3:9c-11, 16-17 John 2:13-22

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October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Focus on Faith • Seeking Answers

14 SEEKING ANSWERS Father Kenneth Doyle

Who can give blessings?

Why mix water with wine?

Q. Can anyone other than a

priest or deacon do a Catholic blessing?

A. As your question would suggest, aside from certain blessings reserved to a bishop (e.g., the consecration of the sacramental oils at the chrism Mass during Holy Week), it is a priest who normally imparts a Catholic blessing.

Certain blessings also are entrusted to deacons — at rites where a deacon is presiding, such as a baptism, a wedding ceremony or the distribution of holy Communion outside of Mass. But many blessings are done properly — and perhaps more appropriately — by laypeople.

The most common example is the blessing of food before a meal, which many families do each evening around the dinner table.

The Church’s Book of Blessings lists several other blessings that are normally done by laypeople, including the blessing of sons and daughters by their parents. (In Irish families particularly, parents often gather their children for a blessing when they are leaving home for a new venture or embarking on a trip.)

Another example recommended by the Book of Blessings is the blessing of a newly engaged couple by both sets of parents.

Laypeople may also use a suggested prayer of blessing when moving into a new home, although more commonly the parish priest is invited to mark that joyful event.

In one particularly touching prayer, the Book of Blessings envisions a catechist gathering his or her class and asking God’s blessing over them in these words:

“With your unfailing protection, watch over these children. . . .

Grant that they will confess your name in willing faith, be fervent in charity and persevere courageously in the hope of reaching your kingdom.”

Q. I have long wondered why the priest mixes water with the wine at the offertory of the Mass.

I have done some research and learned that this was the practice as early as the second century, but I don’t understand why it is done.

A. When the priest at the offertory of the Mass pours a drop of water into the chalice filled with wine, it symbolizes the commingling of the divinity of Jesus with our humanity.

When doing so, the priest says to himself: “By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.”

This symbolic gesture can be found in the earliest rituals of the Eucharist, and St. Cyprian speaks of it in the middle of the third century: “When the water is mingled in the cup with wine, the people are made one with Christ.”

St. Thomas Aquinas in “Summa

“The Church’s Book of Blessings lists several other blessings that are normally done by laypeople, including the blessing of sons and daughters by their parents.”

Theologiae” mentions a second symbolism: the water and the blood that flowed together from the side of Christ during his passion. St. Thomas also notes the “probability” that Jesus instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper with wine tempered with water, since that mixture was a common practice among Jews and in Mediterranean cultures of the time.

Father Doyle writes for Catholic News Service. A priest of the Diocese of Albany, N.Y., he previously served as director of media relations for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

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15

Father Robert Barron

Having patience for the sausage-making synod When the midterm report on the deliberations of the Synod [of Bishops] on the family appeared, there was a fair amount of hysteria all around.

John Thavis, a veteran Vatican reporter who should know better, declared this statement “an earthquake, the big one that hit after months of smaller tremors.”

Certain commentators on the right have been wringing their hands and bewailing a deep betrayal of the Church’s teaching. One even opined that this report is the “silliest document ever issued by the Catholic Church,” and some have said that the interim document flaunts the teaching of St. John Paul II. Meanwhile, the New York Times confidently announced that the Church has moved from “condemnation of unconventional family situations and toward understanding, openness, and mercy.”

I think everyone should take a deep breath.

What appeared was not even close to a definitive, formal teaching of the Catholic Church. It was a report

on what had been discussed so far in a synod of some 200 bishops from around the world. It conveyed, to be sure, a certain consensus around major themes, trends that have been evident in the conversations, dominant emphases in the debates, etc. But it decidedly did not represent “the teaching” of the pope or the bishops.

One of the great mysteries enshrined in the ecclesiology of the Catholic Church is that Christ speaks through the rather messy and unpredictable process of ecclesiastical argument. The Holy Spirit guides the process, of course, but he doesn’t undermine or circumvent it. It is precisely in the long, laborious sifting of ideas across time and through disciplined conversation that the truth that God wants to communicate gradually emerges. If you want evidence of this, simply look at the accounts of the deliberations of the major councils of the Church, beginning with the so-called Council of Jerusalem in the first century right through to the Second Vatican Council of the 20th century.

TWENTY SOMETHING Christina Capecchi

Self-reflection in the age of selfies Lena Dunham is not done confessing.

That’s the headline of the New York Times Magazine profile just published about the actress-turned-memoirist, and it couldn’t be more apt.

Though I’ve never seen an episode of her highly rated, super-raunchy, nudityfilled HBO show “Girls,” I consider Lena something of a cultural case study, given how often she is touted as the voice of my generation. That voice has never shied away from revelation, however unflattering or immoral.

It will reach new heights this month, when her memoir “Not That Kind of Girl” is released, the product of a $3-million book deal Lena signed with Random House two years ago at age 26.

The Atlantic called the memoir “a new chapter in her campaign of self-

exposure” while The New York Times Magazine said it was written “with a ferocious, hilarious and occasionally worrisome candor.”

Lena’s revelations range from decades of psychotherapy (beginning when she was 9) to the loss of her virginity – diplomatically summarized by the New York Times Magazine as a series of “questionable personal choices.”

The critical response that intrigued me most came toward the end of James Parker’s Atlantic review: “There’s something very contemporary in Dunham’s self-exposure, her restlessly accelerated processing of her own experience.” He went on to render a chilling assessment of Life On Perpetual Broadcast, that 21st-century young-adult proclivity. “That’s modernity: the inside’s

sausage-making process and, unsurprisingly, it isn’t pretty. Two more weeks of discussion will follow; then a full year during which the findings of the synod will be further refined, argued about and clarified; then the ordinary Synod on the Family will take place (the one going on now is the extraordinary Synod), and many more arguments and counterarguments will be made; finally, some months, perhaps even a year or so after that, the pope will write a postsynodal exhortation summing up the entire process and offering a definitive take on the matter. At that point, I would suggest, something resembling edible sausage will be available for our consumption. Until then, we should all be patient and refrain from bloviating.

I’m glad that Pope Francis, at the outset of this synod, urged the participating bishops to speak their minds clearly and fearlessly. He didn’t want a self-censorship that would unduly hamper the conversation and thereby prevent the truth from emerging. This does not imply for a moment that Pope Francis will agree with every point of view expressed, and indeed he can’t possibly, since many are mutually exclusive. But it does indeed mean that he has the confidence and the patience required to allow the Holy Spirit to work in his preferred fashion.

This Catholic Life • Commentary

COMMENTARY

In every such gathering, argument was front and center, and consensus evolved only after lengthy and often acrimonious debate among the interested parties. Read John Henry Newman’s colorful history of the Council of Nicaea in the fourth century, and you’ll find stories of riots in the streets and the mutually pulling of beards among the disputants. Or pick up Yves Congar’s very entertaining diary of his years at Vatican II, and you’ll learn of his own withering critiques of the interventions of prominent cardinals and rival theologians. Or peruse John O’Malley’s history of the Council of Trent, and you’ll see that early draft statements on the key doctrines of original sin and justification were presented, debated, and dismissed — long before final versions were approved.

Until Vatican II, these preliminary arguments and conversations were known only to the participants themselves and to certain specialist historians who eventually sifted through the records. The great teachings of the councils became widely known and celebrated, but the process that produced them was, happily enough, consigned to the shadows.

If I might quote the great Newman, who had a rather unsatisfying experience of official ecclesial life in Rome: “those who love the barque of Peter ought to stay out of the engine room!” This is a somewhat more refined version of “those who enjoy sausage ought never to watch how it is made.”

The interim report on the synod represents a very early stage of the

Father Barron is the founder of the global ministry Word on Fire, and the rector/president of Mundelein Seminary in the Archdiocese of Chicago.

on the outside, leaving a vacuum on the inside.”

I often wonder about the Facebook effect on the inner life, what it means when the time between experiencing and sharing is reduced to a matter of seconds.

Reality TV stars are questioned about their willingness to bare it all for national consumption, and I’m amused when these boldfaced confessors insist they don’t share everything with the cameras.

Somehow Kim Kardashian’s second go at a nationally televised wedding was supposed to seem restrained because the footage ended right before the actual ceremony and was shot only by friends, not producers. (I can’t help but think of David Letterman’s comment to Kim when she was on his show last year: “I just wonder if you’re getting good advice.”)

But it’s not just a question for celebrities. Self-disclosure is an issue every conscientious young adult grapples with. What goes on the blog and what stays in the private journal?

What do you share with a close friend, a group of online followers, the World Wide Web, God? Where’s the line between self-aware and self-absorbed, between naval gazing and soul searching? Will I know when I’ve crossed it?

I find myself composing tweets in my head, a strange sort of outside-looking-in

sensation that, though aimed at capturing the moment, surely hinders my ability to be in it. When it comes to my social-media output, I try to evaluate my intentions and distinguish the sociable impulse from the narcissistic one. Am I making a connection or making a statement?

The Catholic Church calls us to develop the inner life, beckoning us to bend our knees, bow our heads and close our eyes, inviting us to make our confession before a priest, not a camera.

It gives us tools specifically designed for self-reflection, like spiritual direction and that increasingly foreign, healing prospect of the silent retreat.

In an Instagram era, these offerings feel more vital than ever.

How can we still our hearts when our thumbs keep on tapping?

Pulling the plug on all social networks probably isn’t the solution for most of us.

But we can turn to this month’s Scripture, St. Matthew’s account of the greatest commandments, for a litmus test on each tweet: Is it drawing on a love of self or a love of neighbor?

Capecchi is a freelance writer from Inver Grove Heights and editor of SisterStory.org, the official website of National Catholic Sisters Week.

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

From Age to Age

16

Local hospice offers no-cost care regardless of illness

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit When Paula Winsor flew to New York and saw how much pain her sister Connie was in with terminal colon cancer, she knew that bringing her back to Minnesota to be with family toward the end was the right thing to do.

And she knew that Our Lady of Peace Home in the Merriam Park neighborhood of St. Paul was just the place for Connie to receive endof-life care.

“It’s such a peaceful place,” Winsor told The Catholic Spirit.

“There’s an unbelievable amount of care you get there.”

Winsor’s sister went from the medical plane at the St. Paul Downtown Airport straight to Our Lady of Peace.

Since both of their parents are living and they come from a family of seven children, Connie had plenty of visitors in the hospice center.

“We’re a pretty close-knit family,” explained Winsor, who works nearby in the office at Cafe Latté on Grand Avenue. She is a parishioner of Nativity of Our Lord in St. Paul.

As a result of what Winsor termed “loving care” for her sister, she has “nothing but wonderful memories” of Our Lady of Peace Home.

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Istock photo

Recently, that no-cost care was made available to even more people who have the need for hospice care and have limited financial resources.

Expanding free hospice care to those in their last days who have an illness other than cancer is “broadening our mission,” said Joe Stanislav, Franciscan Health Community president and chief executive officer.

“As the end of life nears, we’re

trying to relieve the pain,” Stanislav said. “That’s the same no matter the diagnosis. There’s the same emotional suffering.”

People are admitted to Our Lady of Peace Home once they decide to no longer actively treat their condition.

“Our mission is to make their last days as comfortable as possible and to let the family quit being caregivers and just be family,” he said.

Following sisters’ footsteps It’s a mission that Franciscan Health Community assumed when the organization succeeded the Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, who had operated Our Lady of Good Counsel Free Cancer Home at the corner of St. Anthony and Cleveland Avenues in St. Paul from Please turn to HOME on page 18

17

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit You’re nervous to begin with because you don’t often speak in public and it’s an emotional time because you’ve lost a friend or loved one, yet you’ve been asked to say a few words at a funeral.

Help is here in the booklet, “To Say a Few Words: Guidelines for Those Offering Words of Remembrance at a Catholic Funeral.”

Here are 10 recommendations from author Michael A. Cymbala: 1. Ask people who were close to the departed if there’s anything they might appreciate hearing.

From Age to Age

10 bits of advice if you’re asked to speak at a Catholic funeral

2. Find out when during the service will you be speaking. At the vigil? Before Mass? At Mass? After Mass?

About the book “To Say a Few Words: Guidelines for Those Offering Words of Remembrance at a Catholic Funeral” by Michael A. Cymbala, Acta Publications, 2014; paperback, 40 pages; $4.95.

3. Remember that your remarks should reflect the sacredness of the event and support the celebration’s focus on the Christian message: the good news of resurrection, faith in the promise of eternal life and care for all in need.

4. Think about the audience. A smaller gathering may be better served with a more informal style, while a larger one might be reason for a more formal approach.

5. Your words are meant to both honor the deceased and to comfort those left behind.

On the web “To Say a Few Words: Guidelines for Those Offering Words of Remembrance at a Catholic Funeral” is available through the publisher at www.actapublications.com and www.Amazon.com.

To read a review of the book, visit www.catholichotdish.com/bobz-book-reviews/ asked-speak-funeral/.

6. Stories about the departed’s life and activities should be placed within the context of the faith life, goodness and spirituality.

7. Offer thanks to God for the deceased’s gifts and for the gift of his or her life. Link the person to the good things God provides to all.

8. Be brief. A few well-chosen and properly delivered words can have a powerful impact.

9. Practice. Read your prepared remarks over and over both out loud and to yourself.

10. Use humor, but judiciously. Humor can be a blessing that lifts the human spirit and gives people cause to rejoice. Avoid silliness.

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The Village

Continued from page 16 1941 until 2009.

For 68 years the Sisters of St. Dominic, Servants of Relief for Incurable Cancer had cared for those terminal cancer patients who couldn’t afford care elsewhere or at home.

In 2009, the Sisters turned over operation of the home to Franciscan Health Community, which offers a variety of housing and nursing services to seniors at several other sites in St. Paul, plus home health care and a “meals on wheels” type of program.

As the number of their sisters dwindled, Stanislav explained, the Dominicans chose to consolidate their efforts in fewer locations.

“Our mission is to make their “The sisters wanted to be caregivers, not last days as comfortable as managers, and to staff their homes themselves,” possible and to let the family he said. The cancer home in St. Paul was one of the quit being caregivers and just sites it decided to leave.

“We’ve been trying to be family.” live up to the sisters’ legacy,” Stanislav added.

Joe Stanislav, Franciscan Health Community The facility has been president and chief executive officer renamed Our Lady of Peace Home. The home receives no payment for the services provided and relies solely on the generosity of donors to continue its mission.

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Widowhood and the curveballs in life

By Bill Dodds Catholic News Service I think if God played Major League Baseball, he’d be a pitcher.

He’d pitch mostly fastballs, and then, just to mix things up, an occasional curveball — a big curveball.

I suspect that’s how most people eligible for AARP membership (age 50 and up) would summarize their lives. The years blow by and are amazing surprises. Some are incredibly wonderful. Others are far from that. Good or bad, there are curveballs in life.

Unlike a baseball pitcher, God wants me to hit his fastball — and his curveball. God takes great delight in me when I knock one out of the park.

I can see that the curveballs have included meeting my late wife, Monica, when we were 20. Then a series of fastballs: falling in love, getting married, having kids and grandkids. And then another curveball when we were 60: her death from cancer last year. It seemed as if suddenly I was married and suddenly I wasn’t married anymore.

Yes, love is stronger than death, and I believe in the communion of saints, but in the eyes of the state and the Church, I’m now single.

And like a young, just-wedded fellow figuring out married life so long ago, now I’m a not-so-young, just-widowed fellow figuring out this new stage of life.

Decades ago, I was shocked to discover my basic vocation was to be married, when I really thought religious life, the priesthood, was going to be it.

God and Monica saved a lot of parishes from a lot of trouble.

Those two were in cahoots, and I’m so very grateful for that.

(And, no, I don’t feel called to the priesthood now.

Perhaps God has had time to think it over more carefully.

Perhaps Monica has recently pointed out to him, face to face, why it still would be a bad idea.)

Like marriage, this singlehood subcategory—- widowhood — takes adjusting to. Unlike marriage, the adjustments can be overwhelmingly unpleasant, to put it mildly.

Still, God’s on the mound and he wants me to do something, something good, with the pitch he has just served up. He wants me to do something good with the rest of my life, whether that lasts three more days or 30 more years.

That’s a common theme in the spousal-loss support groups I go to. After the initial numbness and blurriness of grief begin to soften, the question “now what?” starts to emerge.

That seems to be the case whether one is strongly religious, an atheist or somewhere in between.

It’s a question that comes from a very human heart, and a broken heart, a heart that’s mending as best it can, but one that will never be the same.

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October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Faith & Culture

20

Book offers look at how Saint John’s Abbey Church was built

By Bob Zyskowski The Catholic Spirit For more than 50 years, motorists and passengers on I-94 some 60 miles north of the Twin Cities have seen an enormous concrete structure peeking above the treetops to the south as they near the exit for Collegeville and St. John’s University.

The flat trapezoid, the row of bells and the cross in the cutout at the top are a beacon for the modern wonder of a church below.

Now the story of how that massive architectural masterpiece came to be has been captured in a University of Minnesota Press book, “Saint John’s Abbey Church: Marcel Breuer Victoria M. and the YOUNG Creation of a Modern Sacred Space.”

Victoria M. Young, with access to never-before-seen archives from both the abbey and the architect, tells the story of the development of the history-making worship space. Young is a professor and the chair of the art history department

at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul.

As she gives the behind-thescenes details of the planning for and building of the Abbey Church, Young persistently reminds readers why this worship space is architecturally significant.

Several keys to success Nestled in the middle of the country, far from the architectural centers on either coast, the Abbey Church was: • Designed by a famous architect, Marcel Breuer.

• The architect collaborated with his client — the Benedictine monks at St. John’s Monastery.

• Their collaboration called for the use of modern materials, modern engineering and modern construction methods.

• Their goal was to create a worship space for the modern Catholic liturgy, the laityincluding Mass that the monks themselves had experimented with and championed as leaders in the 20th century liturgical movement.

“The collaboration between the Benedictines and Marcel Breuer and his architectural team reveals important themes in mid-century religious architecture,” Young noted.

“Central to the subject is how

Saint John’s Abbey Church in Collegeville is the subject of a new book, “Saint John’s Abbey Church: Marcel Breuer and the Creation of a Modern Sacred Space” by University of St. Thomas professor Victoria M. Young. Photo courtesy of Victoria M. Young the building operates as a vessel for the reformed liturgy, reconciling the visions of a modern architect and the traditions of his monastic patrons.”

Liturgical leaders

11-30-14

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Beginning in the 1920s, St. John’s had become the American center of the liturgical movement due to the passionate efforts of its monks, notably Father Virgil Michel. The reform liturgy stressed the participation of the laity in the Mass, the use of the vernacular (the language of the people instead of Latin) and the repositioning of the altar so that the priest faced the people as he led them in prayer.

The result was that Breuer designed a worship space with no pillars blocking views and no seat more than 85 feet from the altar.

“This building project announced the Benedictines as leaders of liturgical reform within monasticism and confirmed Marcel Breuer’s position as one of the most innovative architects of the mid-century,” Young wrote.

“Their relationship was an architectural collaboration of the highest level. Knowledgeable clients carefully delivered a plan for reinvigorated worship and liturgy to a skillful architect, who sensitively shaped a space to support it.”

With access to letters between Breuer and the monks and to the architect’s handwritten notes on drafts of the design plans, Young is able to answer questions such as

why did the monks want Breuer, and why did Breuer want the job.

Ahead of liturgical curve With the project beginning in 1953, construction started in 1958 and was completed in 1961, the building of this modern worship space preceded the promulgation of the new liturgy by Pope Paul VI by several years.

“The Benedictines were looking beyond their history as they planned their church,” Young told The Catholic Spirit. “Both the monks and Breuer took a leap of faith.”

Although he was a well-regarded architect, Breuer had never designed a church, she said.

“Architects want to explore different things, different building types,” Young added. “Designing a church was really interesting to him.”

Breuer also liked the project because the commission was for a campus master plan. “He liked the scale of the project,” Young said.

And the monks’ desire for a modern church allowed for the use of modern materials, specifically concrete, just coming into fashion for architectural design after World War II. “Breuer loved the ability to shape and create space,” Young said, “and concrete gave him the ability to do that.”

Building the Abbey Church also put St. Paul construction company McGough on the map. “Larry McGough told me that it changed Please turn to BOOK on page 21

21 BOOK continued from page 20

The full story “Saint John’s Abbey Church,” while underscoring the compatibility of Breuer and the Benedictines, includes no small amount of space to the tensions that rose as the project went on.

There’s significant coverage of the disagreement about who should design the most significant work of art in the building: the huge stained glass window that makes up almost the entirety of the north wall. Breuer wanted Bauhaus artist Josef Albers; the monks chose Bronislaw Bak, a St. John’s faculty member.

“Even today,” Young pointed out, “Bak’s window is still a source of debate for the monks and scholars. “Many at Collegeville wonder how Albers’ window would have changed the space and feeling of the church.”

Nor does the book ignore that not everyone likes the Abbey Church.

“Not all were ready for such a brazen statement within religious architecture,” Young pointed out.

“For many, modernism was not an appropriate building style for

Related events • 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 24: Evening Prayer in the Abbey and University Church in Collegeville, followed at 7:45 p.m. by a talk by author Victoria M. Young, “Breuer and the Benedictines: A Modern Collaboration,” in the Abbey Chapter House. Book signing and reception afterward.

• 10 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 25: Tour of the Abbey and University Church

by Victoria M. Young. 11:15 to noon: Book signing in the St. John’s University bookstore.

Faith & Culture

their company,” Young said. The experience that McGough’s team derived from developing new ways to build and the notoriety from having built the Abbey Church set McGough on a trajectory to do other large projects.

The author repeatedly pulls readers back to one point — that it was the collaboration between the Benedictines and Breuer that was crucial to the outcome.

Breuer was one of five architects with great reputations who the monks invited to Collegeville to discuss their vision for the church they wanted to build. It was April 17, 1953.

“A powerful moment occurs when Breuer comes to St. John’s and he doesn’t speak much the whole first day,” Young said.

Instead, Breuer asked questions and listened to the Benedictines about their vision for their church.

That was the kind of collaborative relationship the monks sought.

“They wanted to engage a designer of great character,” Young wrote, “someone who would listen as well as inform, a designer with whom they could collaborate to create significant monastic and liturgical space that would serve their order for the coming century.”

As a result, during the three-year construction period, many modifications in Breuer’s design were made because of input from

the monks.

“Shaping space around the new liturgy was, for the Benedictines, central to their role in the Catholic world, and their church needed to uphold this mission,” Young noted.

• 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 16: Reading, reception and book signing in the sanctuary of Christ Church Lutheran, 3244 34th Ave. S., Minneapolis.

the Catholic faith.”

Critics described the Abbey Church as “devoid of beauty,” “utilitarian” and an “ecclesiastical garage.”

Others, however, admired it, calling the Abbey Church “the most exciting thing in church architecture since Michelangelo’s great dome,” “one of the great sacred buildings of our time” and “a milestone in the evolution of the architecture of the Catholic Church in this country.”

Young, a member of Our Lady of Angels in Minneapolis and a Minnesota native who grew up in Comfrey in the southwestern part

of the state, said that although she specializes in modern architectural history, she appreciates more traditional church designs as well.

Church architecture typically reflects the vision of “a group of people trying to figure out what would be good for that moment,” she said. “There’s a reason why it exists.

“When people say, ‘This is not a vessel for the liturgy,’ I say, ‘Have you been there?’ ” Additional photos: catholichotdish. com/bobz-book-reviews/breuerbenedictines-build-church/

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TheCatholicSpirit.com October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

Calendar

22 Parish events Knights of Columbus Wayzata Council #3758 60th Anniversary — Oct 25: 4:30 p.m. Mass, social hour and dinner at St. Mary of the Lake, 105 Forestview Lane N., Plymouth. To RSVP, contact Chris Ritchie at (612) 396-3249.

St. Peter’s Boutique Craft Fair — Oct. 25: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at St. Peter, 6730 Nicollet Ave. S., Richfield. Call (612) 866-5089 for more information.

St. Odilia Jewelry & Linens Sale — Oct. 25, 26: Oct. 25 from noon to 6 p.m.; Oct. 26 from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at St. Odilia cafeteria, 3495 N. Victoria St., Shoreview. For more information, call (651) 484-6681 or visit www.stodilia.org.

More events online TheCatholicSpirit.com/ calendar tickets, visit fromagetoage.org.

Speakers

MAIL: “Calendar,” The Catholic Spirit • 244 Dayton Ave., • St. Paul, MN 55102.

Annual Sausage Supper & Centennial Celebration of Church Dedication — Oct. 26: 10 a.m. Mass with Bishop Andrew Cozzens, followed by a meal served from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at St. John the Baptist, 106 W. Main St., Vermillion.

First Saturday Morning of Recollection — Nov. 1: 8 a.m. to noon at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave, St. Paul. For more information, visit www.cathedralsaintpaul.org/firstsaturdays.

St. John the Baptist Parish Mission with Dan DeMatte — Oct. 27 to 29: 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 27; 8:30 to 10 a.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 28; 9:30 to 11 a.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 29 at St. John the Baptist, 835 Second Ave. NW, New Brighton. For more information, contact Linda Harmon at (651) 398-9167 or linda@ hhfinancialgroup.com.

Faith and the Call for a Human Ecology Lecture by Cardinal Peter Turkson — Nov. 5: 7:30 p.m. in the OEC Auditorium on the St. Paul campus of the University of St. Thomas, 2004 Randolph Ave., St. Paul. To reserve your seat, register at ffesymposium.eventbrite.com.

To learn more about the symposium, visit FaithFoodEnvrionment.org.

Crafts & Other Cool Stuff Sale — Nov. 1: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Immaculate Conception, 4030 Jackson St. NE, Columbia Heights. For more information and to reserve a booth space, call (763) 788-9062 or visit ICCSonline.org.

Health Care Directive Workshop with Deacon Dan Gannon — Oct. 27: 1 p.m. at Cerenity Senior Care-Marian of St. Paul. For more information, call (651) 793-2100.

Prayer/Liturgy All Souls Vespers — Nov. 2: 3 p.m. at the Basilica of St. Mary, 88 N 17th St., Minneapolis. Names to be remembered may be submitted at www.mary.org.

St. Michaels Remembrance Service — Nov. 3: 7 p.m. at St. Michaels, 16400 Duluth Ave. SE, Prior Lake.

Generational Healing Mass with Father Jim Livingston — Nov. 6: 7 p.m. at St. Peter,1250 South Shore Drive, Forest Lake. For more information, call Lisa Engstrom at (651) 982-2229.

Music Opera Inc., benefit concert for Pambazuka Special Education Center in Tanzania — Oct. 24: 6:30 p.m. reception & silent auction; 7:30 p.m. concert at DeSales Auditorium, Convent of the Visitation School, 2455 Visitation Drive, Mendota Heights. For more information, email info@operainc.co.

Missa Britannia — Oct. 25: 7:30 p.m. at St. Olaf, 215 S. Eighth St., Minneapolis.

For more information and to purchase

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

LISTINGS: Accepted are brief notices of upcoming events hosted by Catholic parishes and institutions. If the Catholic connection is not clear, please emphasize it in your press release.

ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication in the calendar: • Time and date of event.

• Full street address of event.

• Description of event.

• Contact information in case of questions. EMAIL: spiritcalendar@archspm.org.

(No attachments, please.)

75th Parish and 60th School Anniversary of St. Jude of the Lake— Oct. 26: 11 a.m. Mass with Bishop Lee Piché at St. Jude of the Lake, 700 Mahtomedi Ave., Mahtomedi. RSVP to the parish office by calling (651) 426-3245.

St. Catherine’s Turkey Bingo — Nov. 2: 2 p.m. in the social hall at St. Catherine, 24425 Old Hwy 13 Blvd., Jordan. For more information, call (952) 492-6276.

DEADLINE: Noon Thursday, seven days before the anticipated Thursday date of publication.

Recurring or ongoing events must be submitted each time they occur.

Fifth annual Catholic Charities Benefit Concert for Spanish-Speaking Counseling Services — Nov. 2: 2 p.m. at St. Casmir, 934 Geranium Ave. E., St. Paul. Suggested donation: $20 per person/family. Call (651) 647 3169.

St. Catherine University’s Eighth Annual Myser Lecture — Oct. 30 : 7 p.m. in the OEC Auditorium on the university’s St. Paul campus, 2004 Randolph Ave. The lecture is free, but tickets are required and will be available at the O’Shaughnessy Box Office by calling (651) 690-6700.

Epiphany Star Bazaar — Nov. 1, 2: Nov. 1 from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; Nov. 2 from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Epiphany, 11001 Hanson Blvd., Coon Rapids. For more information, visit epiphanymn.org.

CALENDAR submissions

Elementary School Principal Saint Peter Catholic Church and School in Forest Lake, MN has an immediate need for an Elementary School Principal to serve as school administrator and for an extended-day program and our licensed preschool program; responsible for day-to-day, month-to-month operations and administration of the parish school and to work collaboratively with the Parish Business Administrator and Pastor to ensure the mission of the Faith is being met and taught.

Responsibilities include: • Administrator and Supervisor of all teacher and school staff.

• Develop School Policy and work collaboratively of with the Leadership Team on employment, and building policies.

• Human Resource Management - working with Human Resources on all employee related issues to ensure compliance with the Archdiocesan standards of Justice In Employment.

• Financial Management - including managing a one-million dollar budget, enforcing internal control policies and procedures, and attendance at the parish finance council meetings.

• Must be Roman Catholic in good standing with the Catholic Church.

For consideration please send your resume along with cover letter, salary expectations, a copy of your educational license(s), and references to: PRINCIPAL SEARCH COMMITTEE; Attention: Gene Schommer; Church of Saint Peter; 1250 South Shore Drive, Forest Lake, MN 55025

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Other events Sharing a Pilgrimage to Wales — Oct. 29: 7 to 9 p.m. at the Benedictine Sisters of St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road in Maplewood. Register online at www. stpaulsmonastery.org and follow the link to the Benedictine Center. For more information, call (651) 777-7251 or email benedictinecenter@stpaulsmonastery.org.

Challenges of Living the Call to Ministry — Oct. 30: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Benedictine Sisters of St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road in Maplewood. Cost is $30 (includes lunch).

Register online at www.stpaulsmonastery. org and follow the link to the Benedictine Center. For more information, call (651) 777-7251 or email benedictinecenter@ stpaulsmonastery.org.

The Mac Greeman Foundation 3K/5K fundraising walk — Nov. 1: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Cretin Derham Hall High School, 550 S Albert St. St. Paul. For more information, contact Mary Greeman at (952) 884-5477 or info@macgreeman.org.

35th Annual St. Nicholas Gala and Auction — Nov. 1: 5 p.m. at the Park Ballroom in New Prague. Call (952) 4612403 to get tickets.

Nativity Third Order Carmelites Information Sunday Invitations—Nov. 2: 1 p.m. at Nativity of Our Lord, Lower Level, Steiner Hall, Stanford at Prior Ave, St. Paul. For more information, call Dan or Mary at (651) 454-6123.

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23

App brings God into digital environment

By Sarah McCarthy Catholic News Service Amid the imposed and often fast-paced routine of daily life, an app is giving people a reason to quiet their minds through light meditation and prayer.

PeaceQuest is an immersive 3-D app designed to take users on a spiritual journey and allow them to establish a deeper connection with God and with themselves.

Father Stephen Fichter, a research associate at the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, and Kathe Carson, president of the video production company Kathe Carson Inc., created the app in December 2013. Father Fichter said their motivation came from recognizing the “constant intrusion” of technology in people’s lives.

“The idea when we created the app was a recognition that people nowadays just live such hectic lives, we’re all running from one place to the other,” Father Fichter said. “So recognizing the fact that so many people were basically living in this digital world . . . we wanted to kind of

“This is really meant to be an app to help people relax, reconnect with God, get a good inspirational message, help them . . . with whatever they’ve gone through during their day, Father Stephen Fichter

bring God into that environment.”

The app runs as a 10-minute video that transports users into a serene, pastoral landscape lush with greenery and chirping birds. Users enter a chapel where the “anam cara,” a Gaelic term meaning “soul friend,” waits to guide them on a meditative journey.

“This is really meant to be an app to help

people relax, reconnect with God, get a good inspirational message, help them . . . with whatever they’ve gone through during their day,” Father Fichter said.

Carson called the app “a more colorful way of praying” and said she thinks the graphics and artwork enhance its evangelical element.

“It ends up being a very powerful form of prayer, this type of imagining . . . that’s a more tangible, visual thing,” she said. “It sort of brings so much more to life and gives things so much more meaning.”

PeaceQuest is influenced by Celtic spirituality, and its setting is specifically modeled after Glendalough, a scenic valley in eastern Ireland.

Father Fichter was inspired by the Irish countryside after training in Ireland as a seminarian, he said.

As technology becomes increasingly prevalent, Father Fichter conceded that the Church is “not going to win that battle” of drawing people away from their smartphones and tablets. Rather, he said, he realized that “technology is here to stay” and that the Church needs to be focused on “bringing God into that electronic world.”

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HOME/OFFICE CLEANING

PAINTING

Autumn will soon arrive! Spruce up your home with new or refurbished hardwood floors: 10% off labor. Sweeney (651) 485-8187.

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WE DO 1,162 THINGS AROUND THE HOME! Catholic Owned Handyman Business: We will fix/repair remodel almost anything around the home. Serving entire Metro. Call today.

Mention this ad and receive 10% off labor.

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GREAT CATHOLIC SPEAKERS

Household Manager: The Stillwater Catholic Worker Community is seeking a compassionate, energetic woman to live in and manage the Our Lady Queen of Peace House, a home for women and children in transition. This is a full-time volunteer position, but room and board are provided. For more information please contact Kim @ (651) 270-1981.

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PRAYERS

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Go online for more classifieds! TheCatholicSpirit.com To place your classified ad here call (651) 290-1631 or e-mail classifiedads@archspm.org October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

The Last Word

24

Benedictine Sister Virginia Matter, right, watches Barb Marohnic work on a pottery project during class Oct. 20 at St. Paul’s Monastery in Maplewood. Also taking part in the class are Dennis Cavanaugh, left, and Debbie Wermager. Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit

Sister helps pottery become prayer at Benedictine Center

By Jennifer Janikula For The Catholic Spirit Dennis Cavanaugh describes his time in the pottery room at the Benedictine Center as a “prayer event, where pottery is the vehicle.”

In the midst of his third pottery series led by Benedictine Sister Virginia Matter on the campus of St. Paul’s Monastery in Maplewood, Cavanaugh enjoys working with clay, but said the experience offers so much more than practical pottery techniques.

“I really go for the prayerfulness and the time out — it’s an experience of mindfulness,” said Cavanaugh, who attends St. Lawrence Church and Newman Center in Minneapolis and St. Charles Borromeo in St. Anthony. “If you are not mindful

and present, you will have a tough time. It’s just you and the clay.”

Cavanaugh, like other pottery students, appreciates the “ambiance of monastic quiet” and the inspiring prayers, music and poetry shared by Sister Virginia as she strolls around the room quietly encouraging everyone.

Sacred quiet Sister Virginia, a member of the Benedictine community at St. Paul’s Monastery for nearly 60 years, credits her interest in pottery to her father, a well digger, who spent much of his life inside the earth.

“Pottery is part of the spirituality I received from my father,” Sister Virginia explained. “He introduced me to the creation of God.” She fondly remembers her father

Shape of the Divine: Retreat with Clay Pottery event with Sister Virginia Matter, OSB When: 1 p.m. on Feb. 15 and 1 p.m. on Feb. 16, 2015 Location: Benedictine Center at St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road, St. Paul Contact: Guest Services at (651) 777-7251 or benedictinecenter@stpaulsmonastery.org Fee: $100 (includes lodging, meals and materials) Register: www.stpaulsmonastery.org/Process.aspx?ot=e&id=1349

October 23, 2014 • The Catholic Spirit

bringing stones and clay home from work, always asking, “What do you see?” and then telling her to look deeper.

Sister Virginia started teaching pottery in the late 1990s after a sabbatical and apprenticeship with Dominican Sister Ursula Ording in South Carolina. Using Sister Ursula’s Native American pottery techniques, Sister Virginia teaches pottery without a wheel, using only hands, fingers and a few simple tools.

“It’s more than teaching how to work with clay; I let them enter into the clay and experience whatever they need to heal or refresh,” Sister Virginia said. “I love observing the students. You know there is something good happening for them in their inner space.”

In most cases, Sister Virginia’s first-time students have never worked with clay and consider themselves anything but creative.

They might be looking for a new hobby or to acquire a new skill, but they tend to find even more. The contemplative and meditative process of sculpting often provides ideal conditions for prayer.

“Many students carry with them a deep need for quiet,” Sister Virginia explained. “They find a sacred sense of quiet within the clay. There is a mystery God is trying to reveal, and the clay allows the surprise to unfold. I am happy to give them time to play

and be in God’s sacred presence.”

Vessel of God’s love A few years ago, Terry Johnson would have never used the words “artistic” or “creative” to describe herself. But after attending Sister Virginia’s six-week series four times, she conceded, “I am finally admitting that I have a few gifts.

They are just underdeveloped. I need to be grateful for them and accept the challenge of taking them one step at a time.”

An oblate of St. Benedict at St. Paul’s Monastery, Johnson appreciates the healing quality of the clay and describes the pottery classes as “spiritually refreshing.”

“It’s not just about playing in the clay or forming some great work of art,” said Johnson, who goes to Mass both at St. Paul’s Monastery and at St. Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove. “It’s about your soul. I’ve come to see myself more and more as a vessel that carries God’s love.”

Approximately 150 students have passed through Sister Virginia’s pottery studio at the Benedictine Center since she started teaching 16 years ago. In February, she will host a weekend pottery retreat called “Shape of the Divine: Retreat with Clay.”

For more information about the Benedictine Center and Sister Virginia’s pottery classes, visit www.stpaulsmonastery. org or call (651) 777-7251.