The Catholic Spirit - October 28, 2021

October 28, 2021 • Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

Warm welcome In a whirlwind day, Bishop Cozzens is announced as the next bishop of Crookston, and meets members of his new ‘flock.’

— Pages 11-14 DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

ST. PAUL ORDINANCE 5 | FATHER DEMPSEY KILLED IN BIKE ACCIDENT 6 | SCHOOLS FIGHT RACISM 7 CARE OF CREATION 8 | CASKET MAKER 15 | 100-YEAR-OLD CHAPEL PATRONESS 17 | UNDERSTANDING MARY 20

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

PAGETWO NEWS notes The site of the former St. Joseph’s Hospital in St. Paul, founded in 1853 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, will soon offer new and expanded health and wellness services.

The Sisters operated the hospital until 1986, when it became part of the HealthEast Care System, and have been helping with the latest transition. Fairview Health Services announced plans Oct. 26 for a Fairview Community Health and Wellness Hub that among other things will “target health disparities by prioritizing accessibility and addressing barriers to wellness.” Plans for the summer include a community health clinic offering no- to low-cost primary care and other supportive health and wellness services, and education. St. Joseph’s name will eventually be retired.

Senior living and senior care nonprofit St. Therese plans to renovate and expand its facilities in New Hope and build a new senior living community in Corcoran, with groundbreaking set for next spring on both projects. New Hope renovations including 54 new independent living apartments are expected to cost $82 million and be completed in 2025. The Corcoran development in an “urbanist village” design will cost $70 million, with completion set for 2023.

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FOND FAREWELL From left, Franciscan Clarist Sister Tresa Margret Sauriammackel watches a video clip with Cindy and John Wellman of their son, former student Austin Wellman, during a farewell event at St. John the Baptist in Vermillion Oct. 24. Sister Tresa Margret once served as principal of St. John the Baptist School and currently serves the parish of St. John the Baptist plus two other nearby parishes, St. Mary in New Trier and St. Mathias in Hampton. A native of India, Sister Tresa Margret came to the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1970 with another member of her order, Sister Jancy Nedumkallel. The two sisters, plus another, have been asked by their order to return to India to serve there.

The co-director of the Justice Office of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet in St. Paul, Marty Roers, received the annual Bishop John E. McCarthy Spirit of Mission Award Oct. 24 from Maryknoll Lay Missioners. Roers, a Maryknoll missionary who served in Kenya and what is now South Sudan from 1995 until 2003, was honored for his continued service in the United States, which has included mission education, justice advocacy and migrant and refugee concerns in California and Minnesota.

The Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Chancellor for Canonical Affairs, Susan Mulheron, and liaison for restorative justice and healing, Father Daniel Griffith, presented a talk at the Oct. 11-14 annual convention of the Canon Law Society of America in San Diego on the ways restorative justice can help achieve the three ends of penal law of the Church: restoring justice, repairing harm and reforming the offender. Their talk was titled “The Nexus of Restorative Justice and Canon Law: Foundations and Practical Applications.” Father Griffith, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes in Minneapolis, also teaches at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in Minneapolis and is founding director of that school’s Initiative on Restorative Justice and Healing.

For the first time in its 36-year history, St. Paul’s Outreach owns a building. The ministry bought a 14,000-square-foot facility and renovated it to serve as its national headquarters.

Bishop Andrew Cozzens celebrated Mass and blessed the building Oct. 14, which features new offices for staff, meeting rooms, a chapel and a new audio and video recording studio.

Total cost of the project is about $2 million, with funding coming from the ministry’s Faith Alive campaign, a national effort that has raised $16 million. There are SPO chapters and households in nine states with 170 full-time employees, including the University of St. Thomas and the University of Minnesota, both in the Twin Cities.

Five Knights of Columbus councils representing eight parishes in the Twin Cities’ western suburbs delivered more than $5,000 worth of new children’s coats to Interfaith Outreach and Community Partners in Plymouth Oct. 18. It was part of the Knights’ international Coats for Kids program. The Knights teamed up with Interfaith Outreach because of its experience meeting the critical needs of people in the area.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

CHECK FOR SUCCESS Representatives from the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation, including its new president, Tizoc Rosales (right) and Lisa Gott, chair of CSAF’s ministry committee, present Jason Slattery and Archbishop Bernard Hebda with a “check” for $50,000 that will be used for the Drexel Mission Schools Initiative’s City Connects program. Slattery is director of Catholic education at the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. City Connects addresses factors that impact student achievement, tailoring services to a student’s specific needs. The funds are held and distributed by the Catholic Community Foundation. CSAF exceeded its $9 million fundraising goal by $127,820 for Catholic ministries in 2020, added funds to make it $311,516, then took applications for additional grant money, awarding grants to 16 organizations, including City Connects. Others receiving additional grants from CSAF included Catholic elementary and high schools, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul-Twin Cities, Abria Pregnancy Resources and St. Paul’s Outreach. The $50,000 City Connects contribution is being matched dollar for dollar by an anonymous donor.

Has Bishop Andrew Cozzens touched your life in the past eight years he’s served as an auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis? Tell us your story in 100 words or less. Please email submissions to CatholicSpirit@archspm.org with “Readers Respond” in the subject line. Reflections may appear in a special edition of The Catholic Spirit celebrating Bishop Cozzens’ installation in the Diocese of Crookston. Deadline for reflections to be considered for print is Nov. 11.

The Catholic Spirit is published semi-monthly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 26 — No. 20 MOST REVEREND BERNARD A. HEBDA, Publisher TOM HALDEN, Associate Publisher MARIA C. WIERING, Editor-in-Chief JOE RUFF, News Editor

Sacred Heart Guardians and Shelter plans to hold its next burial and rosary for deceased IVF embryonic children 11 a.m. Nov. 2 at Epiphany Catholic Cemetery in Coon Rapids. Laura Elm, the organization’s executive director, invites people to attend the burial to pray and remember the dead, especially on All Souls Day. The Eagan-based organization’s mission is “to facilitate Christian burial for the embryonic human beings who die in IVF labs, and who would otherwise be disposed of as medical waste.” Visit sacredheartguardians.org.

PRACTICING Catholic On the Oct. 22 “Practicing Catholic” show, host Patrick Conley interviews Kelli Abar and Dave Marrese from Our Lady of Peace School in Minneapolis about the school’s family- and faith-friendly Halloween activity. Also featured are Claire Ellendson, who describes her Dead Friend Saints podcast, and Will Peterson of Modern Catholic Pilgrimage, who discusses an upcoming pilgrimage that seeks to honor and learn from St. Martin de Porres.

Listen each week on Fridays at 9 p.m., Saturdays at 1 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. on Relevant Radio 1330 AM. Listen to interviews after they have aired at PRACTICINGCATHOLICSHOW.COM, SOUNDCLOUD.COM/ PRACTICINGCATHOLIC or TINYURL.COM/PRACTICINGCATHOLIC. ON THE COVER: Bishop Andrew Cozzens greets Rosie O’Leary of East Grand Forks during his visit to the Diocese of Crookston Oct. 18. The 90-year-old lifelong resident of the community talked about her life, which included raising 10 children at Sacred Heart parish and working on the family sugar beet farm.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

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THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 3

FROMTHEARCHBISHOP ONLY JESUS | ARCHBISHOP BERNARD HEBDA

A bishop, a ‘person sent’

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he priests and faithful of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis woke up on the morning of Oct. 18 to the news that Pope Francis had named Bishop Andrew Cozzens as the new bishop of the Diocese of Crookston.

I personally feel very blessed that I have had the chance to work so closely with him since I first arrived here in June 2015. With a keen intellect, solid moral compass, evangelical zeal and an amazing dose of Christ’s compassion, Bishop Cozzens has proven himself a highly effective leader and faithful friend. I always imagined that Pope Francis would someday call Bishop Cozzens to lead a diocese, and I will always be grateful that our archdiocese benefited from his leadership for as long as we have.

At a recent social gathering of our archdiocesan seminarians, I was edified to hear so many of them share experiences of Bishop Cozzens that had, over their young lives, inspired them to deepen their commitments to Christ and his Church. It was not only a moving tribute to Bishop Cozzens, but also a testimony to the impact that a priest can have on the lives of his flock, even beyond his wildest imaginings.

I hope that it was a powerful reminder for Bishop Cozzens, as he prepares for his new ministry in Crookston, of what the Lord is able to do through all of us when we place ourselves in his hands.

Today, the task of naming or confirming Latin Rite bishops throughout the world falls uniquely to Pope Francis, as successor to the first pope, St. Peter, whom the Lord distinguished as the “Rock” on which he would build his Church and whom Jesus designated to “strengthen” his brother Apostles. I happened to be in St. Peter’s Square on March 19, 2013, the day when Pope Francis, newly elected as bishop of Rome, received his Fisherman’s Ring and pallium, the signs of his new office, and I will never forget

Un obispo: una ‘persona enviada’

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os sacerdotes y fieles de la Arquidiócesis de Saint Paul y Minneapolis se despertaron la mañana del 18 de octubre de 2021 con la noticia de que el Papa Francisco había nombrado al obispo Andrew Cozzens como el nuevo obispo de la Diócesis de Crookston. Personalmente, me siento muy bendecido de haber tenido la oportunidad de trabajar tan estrechamente con él desde que llegué aquí por primera vez en junio de 2015. Con un intelecto agudo, una sólida brújula moral, un celo evangélico y una dosis asombrosa de la compasión de Cristo, el obispo Cozzens ha demostrado él mismo para ser un líder muy eficaz y un amigo fiel. Siempre imaginé que el Papa Francisco algún día llamaría al obispo Cozzens para que dirigiera una diócesis, y siempre estaré agradecido de que nuestra Arquidiócesis se haya beneficiado de su liderazgo durante el tiempo que lo hemos hecho.

En una reunión social reciente de nuestros seminaristas de la Arquidiócesis, me sentí edificado al escuchar a tantos de ellos compartir experiencias del obispo Cozzens que, a lo largo de sus vidas jóvenes, los inspiraron a profundizar sus compromisos con Cristo y su Iglesia. No solo fue un conmovedor homenaje al obispo Cozzens, sino también un testimonio del impacto que un sacerdote puede tener en la vida de su rebaño, incluso más allá de sus imaginaciones más salvajes. Espero que haya sido un poderoso recordatorio para el obispo Cozzens, mientras se prepara para su nuevo ministerio en Crookston, de lo que el Señor puede hacer a través de todos nosotros cuando nos ponemos en sus manos.

Hoy, la tarea de nombrar o confirmar obispos de rito latino en todo el mundo recae únicamente en el

As you continue to pray for Bishop Cozzens, I would ask that you would pray also for our archdiocese and for Pope Francis, as he discerns how best to meet the needs of this archdiocese for good shepherds after the heart of Jesus. Pray as well for any of our priests who might be asked to serve as bishops, that they might have the courage to say ‘yes.’ that liturgy. As Pope Francis solemnly processed to the altar for the beginning of Mass, the piazza resonated with Palestrina’s “Tu es Petrus” (“You are Peter”), reminding Pope Francis that he now stood in the place of Peter and was being called to serve as “universal pastor.”

When Bishop Cozzens is installed at the cathedral in Crookston, the representative of the “universal pastor” in the United States, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, will read a letter, signed by Pope Francis himself, to his “venerable brother,” Bishop Cozzens, sending him to serve in Crookston. There’s something so beautiful in being “sent” to a Church, just as Jesus sent out the Twelve. In fact, the very word “apostle” comes from the Greek word meaning a “person sent.”

A bishop never applies for a diocese, or auditions for a diocese: He is there because the pope, the successor of Peter, has sent him.

It will, accordingly, be Pope Francis who will likewise be responsible for naming any auxiliary bishops to this archdiocese. The Code of Canon Law, however, requires the bishops of each ecclesiastical province (in our case the bishops of Minnesota, North Papa Francisco, como sucesor del primer Papa, San Pedro, a quien el Señor distinguió como la “Roca” sobre la que construiría su Iglesia y a quien Jesús designado para “fortalecer” a sus hermanos apóstoles.

Me encontré en la Plaza de San Pedro el 19 de marzo de 2013, el día en que el Papa Francisco, recién elegido como Obispo de Roma, recibió su Anillo de Pescador y su palio, los signos de su nuevo oficio, y nunca olvidaré esa liturgia. Mientras el Papa Francisco se dirigía solemnemente al altar para el comienzo de la Misa, la Piazza resonó con el “Tu es Petrus” de Palestrina (es decir, “Tú eres Pedro”), recordándole al Papa Francisco que ahora estaba en el lugar de Pedro y estaba siendo llamado a servir como “Pastor Universal”.

Cuando el Obispo Cozzens sea instalado en la Catedral de Crookston, el representante del “Pastor Universal” en los Estados Unidos, el Arzobispo Christophe Pierre, leerá una carta, firmada por el propio Papa Francisco, a su “Venerable Hermano”, el Obispo Cozzens, enviándolo para servir en Crookston. Hay algo tan hermoso en ser “enviado” a una Iglesia, tal como Jesús envió a los Doce. De hecho, la misma palabra “apóstol” proviene de la palabra griega que significa “persona enviada”. Un obispo nunca solicita una diócesis, ni audiciones para una diócesis: está allí porque el Papa, el Sucesor de Pedro, lo ha enviado.

En consecuencia, será el Papa Francisco quien también será responsable de nombrar a los obispos auxiliares de esta Arquidiócesis. El Código de Derecho Canónico, sin embargo, requiere que los obispos de cada provincia eclesiástica (en nuestro caso los obispos de Minnesota, Dakota del Norte y Dakota del Sur) envíen periódicamente los nombres de los sacerdotes que crean que podrían ser adecuados para el episcopado. Además, un obispo, como yo, que juzga que debe asignarse un auxiliar a su diócesis,

Dakota and South Dakota) to periodically submit names of priests who they think might be suitable for the episcopate. Moreover, a bishop, like me, who judges that an auxiliary should be given to his diocese, is required to suggest to the Apostolic See a list of at least three priests whom he thinks would be suitable as an auxiliary. You might recall, moreover, that when I was serving as the administrator of this archdiocese, I asked all the priests and faithful to suggest names of priests whom they thought would make good bishops. I submitted at that time all of those names to the Holy See. The Holy Father isn’t bound to choose from among any of those names, but I would imagine that those suggestions become the basis for his broader consultation. Perhaps some of you, our priests and lay leaders, have already been consulted as the Holy See strives to find just the right candidates, not only for our archdiocese, but also for the other dioceses in Minnesota and beyond needing bishops. The Code of Canon Law tells us that the ideal candidate will be a priest over the age of 35, ordained for at least five years, with a good reputation. It specifies, moreover, that the candidate is to be “outstanding in solid faith, good morals, piety, zeal for souls, wisdom, prudence and human virtues, and endowed with other qualities which make him suitable to fulfill the office in question.” He is also to be “truly expert” in sacred Scripture, theology or canon law. The requirements are demanding, but we are blessed here in the archdiocese to have many priests who meet those criteria.

As you continue to pray for Bishop Cozzens, I would ask that you would pray also for our archdiocese and for Pope Francis, as he discerns how best to meet the needs of this archdiocese for good shepherds after the heart of Jesus. Pray as well for any of our priests who might be asked to serve as bishops, that they might have the courage to say “yes.” debe sugerir a la Sede Apostólica una lista de al menos tres sacerdotes que crea que serían adecuados como auxiliares. Quizás recuerden, además, que cuando me desempeñaba como Administrador de esta Arquidiócesis, pedí a todos los sacerdotes y fieles que sugirieran nombres de sacerdotes que pensaran que serían buenos obispos. En ese momento presenté todos esos nombres a la Santa Sede.

El Santo Padre no está obligado a elegir entre ninguno de esos nombres, pero me imagino que esas sugerencias se convertirán en la base de su consulta más amplia. Quizás algunos de ustedes, nuestros sacerdotes y líderes laicos, ya han sido consultados mientras la Santa Sede se esfuerza por encontrar los candidatos adecuados, no solo para nuestra Arquidiócesis sino también para las otras diócesis en Minnesota y más allá de los obispos que necesitan.

El Código de Derecho Canónico nos dice que el candidato ideal será un sacerdote mayor de 35 años, ordenado durante al menos cinco años, y con buena reputación. Precisa, además, que el candidato debe ser “sobresaliente en fe sólida, buena moral, piedad, celo de las almas, sabiduría, prudencia y virtudes humanas, y dotado de otras cualidades que lo hagan apto para desempeñar el cargo en cuestión. “ También debe ser “verdaderamente experto” en la Sagrada Escritura, la teología o el derecho canónico. Los requisitos son exigentes, pero aquí en la Arquidiócesis tenemos la bendición de tener muchos sacerdotes que cumplen con esos criterios.

Mientras continúa orando por el Obispo Cozzens, le pido que ore también por nuestra Arquidiócesis y por el Papa Francisco, ya que él discierne la mejor manera de satisfacer las necesidades de esta Arquidiócesis de buenos pastores según el corazón de Jesús. Ore también por cualquiera de nuestros sacerdotes a quienes se les pueda pedir que sirvan como obispos, para que tengan el valor de decir “sí”.

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

LOCAL

SLICEof LIFE Rock the Synod

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From left, Pro Ecclesia Sancta Sister Leann Luecke and Emily Abe of Holy Family in St. Louis Park join other young adults, including men (in gray shirts) from St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul for a video shoot on the steps of the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul Oct. 11. About 45 men and women gathered to create a music video that will be part of the sixth and final week of Synod Small Groups at parishes throughout the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, which will include discussions on youth and young adult ministry. “It was important for me to be here,” Abe said of the song’s video shoot, “because I just want to show people that they (young Catholic adults) exist.” The song, “Look Up,” was commissioned especially for the Small Group videos and was written by Chad Berg, a parishioner of St. Mark in St. Paul.

Today’s seminarians, right here in the Twin Cities. Tomorrow’s leaders, who will allow your parish, community and family to thrive.

Learn more at semssp.org/Vianney Give online at semssp.org/supportSJV

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

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Archbishop Hebda: Archdiocesan Synod to aid Vatican synod efforts

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit Archbishop Bernard Hebda asked for prayers for a Vatican synod process that launched Oct. 10, as well as the 2022 Archdiocesan Synod, at a 5 p.m. Mass Oct. 17 at the Cathedral of St. Paul.

The two synods — one worldwide, the other local — are distinct from one another, but both call the people of God to “journey together,” he said. “(Pope Francis) wants to make sure that all of us take responsibility for the gifts that we’ve been given by the Holy Spirit, and that we together are able to really put the Church on its right path,” Archbishop Hebda said in his homily of the Vatican synod, slated to culminate in a meeting of the bishops from around the world in 2023.

Catholics in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have been engaged in the local Synod since 2019, when Archbishop Hebda led 30 Prayer and Listening Events around the archdiocese. With data gathered from those listening sessions, he discerned three focus areas for the local Church: individual discipleship, parish evangelization, and the faith of youth and young adults. Those three topics have been the subject of a series of six Synod Small Groups that have been meeting this fall in parishes. Ideas collected from the small groups will inform deanery-based discussions in early 2022, and then the Synod Assembly, a three-day meeting planned for June 3-5 in St. Paul.

From there, Archbishop Hebda will develop a pastoral letter and pastoral plan for the future in the archdiocese.

Popes periodically hold a worldwide Synod of Bishops at the Vatican to discuss particular topics.

Recent worldwide synods have focused on the family and young adults. The 2023 Synod of Bishops is on the topic of “synodality” itself, which is understood

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Archbishop Bernard Hebda delivers the homily during Mass Oct. 17 at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul to mark the beginning of a Vatican synod. as journeying together with encounter, listening and discernment, Archbishop Hebda said. That’s something that should feel familiar to Catholics in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, he said.

“What we’ve been doing locally, and what the Holy Father wants to do in every diocese in the Church around the world, is living out the teaching of the Second Vatican Council,” Archbishop Hebda said. “It’s the call for all of us to be holy — not just the bishops or the priests, or even the consecrated women and men, who are indeed so holy. It’s not just for them, but it’s for everyone in the Church in virtue of baptism.

We’re all given gifts, and we’re all called to be holy and we’re all called to participate in the life of the Church.”

What local participation in the Vatican synod path will look like is yet to be determined, but it will not

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

From left, John and Eunice Cruz of St. Bonaventure in Bloomington pray during the Mass. change the 2022 Archdiocesan Synod process, its leaders confirmed.

“The Holy Father wants to make sure that we as a local Church, as an archdiocese, are engaging people in this process,” Archbishop Hebda said of the Vatican synod, emphasizing the role of the Holy Spirit.

“My hope,” he said,” is that tonight as we’re strengthened by the Eucharist, as we have this opportunity to pray together, that we might find our hearts moved to have ideas for how it is that we can engage the whole Church — those who are on the peripheries, those voices that might not be heard at the Vatican — how it is that we, drawing on our experience with our Archdiocesan Synod … might find ways of assisting the Holy Father in addressing the issues and the questions that he’s placed for us.”

Dismay, concern by archdiocese, other faith groups over proposed St. Paul zoning

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit Under a proposed zoning ordinance being studied by the city of St. Paul, parishes and religious institutions in that city would be banned from expanding facilities to shelter the homeless, feed the hungry, provide day-time care for children or adults — or even teach religion, officials from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and other faith groups said.

“I’m very concerned about the potential impact of this zoning ordinance on our St. Paul parishes and all other churches in the city of St. Paul,” said Joseph Kueppers, an attorney and the archdiocese’s chancellor for civil affairs. “If this proposed zoning ordinance is approved, it could lead to costly litigation for any parish wanting to expand their auxiliary space or create an auxiliary space.”

Kueppers said he hopes people come out in force for an Oct. 29 public hearing on the proposal. He has notified all 27 Catholic parishes in St. Paul about the hearing, and he anticipates working with them and other faith communities to properly address the proposed zoning change.

Activities under the proposed ban on construction also include teaching art, music, dance, adult and general education classes; after-school programs; community center, meeting and performance space and receptions; counseling, social and community services.

Interfaith Action of Greater St. Paul organized an Oct. 21 Zoom meeting with St. Paul City Planner Bill Dermody, whose department has forwarded the zoning proposal to a public hearing. Fifty-six religious leaders from the St. Paul area participated in the meeting, including Kueppers, who felt his concerns were only confirmed. “There are more questions and legitimate concerns about the proposed ordinance than the city staff was able to answer or even address,” Kueppers said.

“The seminar confirmed my concern that the proposed ordinance will cause significant litigation, which will be expensive and time consuming for religious institutions.”

Ryan Rehkamp, parish director of Lumen Christi in

PUBLIC HEARING An online public hearing on the zoning proposal is set for 8:30 a.m. Oct. 29 by the St. Paul Planning Commission. The hearing — to be held virtually to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 — can be accessed via telephone at 612-315-7905 code: 724 356 504# or a Microsoft Teams link at stpaul.gov/planning-commission.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

First Lutheran Church in St. Paul leases its basement to Listening House, which offers services to homeless and low-income people. The church sued the city of St. Paul over restrictions from a city ordinance that hampered Listening House.

St. Paul, was alerted to the proposed ordinance by a parishioner. Rehkamp called Kueppers, who contacted Thomas Kane, an attorney who worked on a lawsuit that led to the proposed zoning change.

Rehkamp said he is concerned on several levels, including the call for a conditional use permit for social and community services conducted in more than 1,000 square feet of floor area. That’s the size of Lumen Christi’s conference room, Rehkamp said. The regulation could be interpreted to mean that sponsors of all activities would have to apply for a permit, even for a social card game and the annual gathering for a movie and hot cocoa put on by the parish men’s group for children of the parish and school, he said.

Kueppers said under that interpretation, parishes that have a school as a ministry also may need a conditional use permit in St. Paul for their school’s present activities.

“It’s just not clear,” he said.

The revised zoning process began when First Lutheran Church north of downtown St. Paul sued the city in 2015 over restrictions on leasing its church basement to Listening House, a day-time care center for homeless and low-income people. Those restrictions, prompted

by neighbors upset with people walking around the neighborhood, severely hampered Listening House, Kane said. The settlement, reached in 2019, allowed Listening House to stay and to resume operations as before the lawsuit.

The settlement also required the city to study its zoning ordinances and improve the process for land use applications for religious organizations. But the city’s proposed changes leave parishes and other entities worse off than before the lawsuit, Kane said.

They include three standards and conditions: “No building additions or new buildings may be constructed for the primary purpose of conducting a religious institution accessory use.” Also, “In residential districts, a conditional use permit is required for social and community services with more than one thousand (1,000) square feet of floor area dedicated to those uses.” The third condition states: “These standards and conditions shall not be applied in a manner that restricts rights to religious exercise granted under the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act or other laws.”

Kane and Kueppers said the city’s proposal would violate the U.S. Constitution’s religious protections as well as the federal law it purports to follow — the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act. That law prohibits the government from imposing land use regulations that create a substantial burden on religion, unless there is a compelling governmental interest. If regulations are deemed necessary, they must be the least restrictive possible.

6 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

LOCAL

OCTOBER 28, 2021

Local priest dies after being struck while riding bicycle

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit Father Dennis Dempsey, who served in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis for 41 years, died Oct. 25 after being struck by a motorist in Rosemount while riding his bicycle. He was 73.

According to a story in the Star Tribune, the motorist had been convicted 10 times for driving with a revoked license and may be charged in this incident.

“He loved kayaking, he loved biking … . He loved the outdoors,” said Mara Mangan, director of faith formation at St. Dominic in Northfield. Mangan was hired by Father Dempsey in 2004 and worked closely with him all 14 years he was there.

She called his death “a tragic loss for us,” made more painful by the fact that “he loved people right where they were at, and he was a wonderful listener.”

Father Dempsey, who grew up in Minneapolis and was ordained a priest for the archdiocese in 1980, also was very good with tools and paintbrushes. He was known for being handy around St. Dominic parish and school, plus he put his skills to work making a wood tabernacle for the church. He also painted a likeness of the Shroud of Turin that is on display outside the church. His skills helped earn him the nickname “Renaissance Man,” Mangan noted.

Just months after Father Dempsey became pastor of St. Dominic in 2004, Mangan was asked to apply for the faith formation position by the person who had held it previously. She was nervous and didn’t know if she “had what it takes,” but Father Dempsey said she could “try it on for size” for a year as interim director, then see if she wanted to stay.

“So, here I am,” she said, noting that next month will be her 17th anniversary as a staff member.

Father Dempsey had a way of connecting with everyone in the parish, both English speakers and the increasing number of Latinos who have found a home

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

In this file photo from 2018, Father Dennis Dempsey delivers the homily during a Mass at St. Dominic in Northfield in which Latino parishioners made their first Communion. at St. Dominic, she said. He celebrated Masses in both English and Spanish, and also celebrated bilingual Masses.

Yet, he still found time to duck away to enjoy kayaking on the nearby Cannon River. Mangan and another staff member, Nancy Ludescher, the parish nurse, would go kayaking with him on Fridays during the summer. They would eat lunch afterward, with Father Dempsey sometimes building a campfire and roasting hot dogs.

In July 2019, Father Dempsey left St. Dominic to serve for the second time at the archdiocesan mission in Venezuela, where he was until June when he returned to the Twin Cities. He assisted at the parish Jesucristo Resucitado in San Felix, where he helped the pastor, Father Greg Schaffer, who was Father Dempsey’s

assistant when Father Dempsey was the pastor there in the late 1990s.

At a Mass Oct. 2 at St. Pascal Baylon in St. Paul celebrating the 50th anniversary of the mission in Venezuela, Father Dempsey gave the homily. He described the “excellent team” of priests, religious men and women and laypeople who served the mission over the years, and noted his struggles to learn Spanish while serving there from 1993-99. He was named the first pastor of Jesucristo Resucitado in 1998, eventually handing over that role to Father Schaffer, who has held it ever since.

“I believe we have received a blessing that money cannot buy,” Father Dempsey said in his homily, of those who served in the impoverished country. “A blessing of a different way of looking at life, of what’s valuable, what’s important — a lesson about faith, a lesson about generosity.”

He took those lessons into the parishes he served in the archdiocese. After returning from Venezuela the first time, he served as pastor of St. Francis de Sales and St. James in St. Paul from 1999 to 2004. From there, he went to St. Dominic in Northfield, serving as pastor from 2004 to 2019. Other parishes where he served include St. Pius X in White Bear Lake (1980-84), St. Wenceslaus in New Prague (1984-88), St. Michael in St. Michael (1988-93) and Annunciation in Hazelwood (2014-19). In July, he was assigned as pastor of Risen Savior in Burnsville, where he served until his death.

“He very much relied on the providence of God,” said Mangan, who stayed in touch with Father Dempsey, even during his second time of service in Venezuela.

“There’s so many stories of Father Denny living the providence of God. However God allowed things to play out, he just trusted God. … He trusted God in everything. That’s what he taught us, really, is to just allow God to work in our lives and to trust God.” As of press time Oct. 26, funeral and burial arrangements were not known.

Pope laicizes priest accused of sexual abuse The Catholic Spirit Joseph Gallatin, who was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1997 and has been prohibited from public ministry since 2014, has been dispensed from the obligations of the clerical state, Archbishop Bernard Hebda announced in a statement Oct. 25.

Pope Francis recently granted the change in Gallatin’s status, which Gallatin requested, Archbishop Hebda said. “That means that the canonical status of Joseph Gallatin, who has not exercised public ministry since 2014, is that of a lay person,” he said. “He will no longer serve as a priest of the Archdiocese. I am hopeful that Pope Francis’ decision may alleviate some of the pain and prove beneficial for all involved.”

Gallatin was accused in 1998 of inappropriate contact with a minor.

Three Archdiocesan Review Boards reviewed the matter, in 1998, 2002 and 2014. According to Archbishop Hebda’s statement, each board “concluded that there was not sufficient evidence to support a finding of sexual abuse of a minor,” he said. “The 2014 Board recommended that he be permitted to CROOKSTON•DULUTH•NEW ULM•ST. CLOUD•ST. PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS •WINONA/ROCHESTER

Official 2021 Minnesota Catholic Directory

engage in limited ministry. His ministry was restricted accordingly.”

After the 2014 review, however, new information was presented to the archdiocese, and then brought to the review board, about the 1998 incident, and Gallatin was again removed from ministry. In a 2015 review of the case, the Ministerial Review Board concluded the allegation was credible. Information relating to the allegation was provided to law enforcement. A criminal prosecution was not brought. The entire case, including the new information, was submitted to the Vatican, which authorized a three-judge tribunal to review the case under canon law. The tribunal upheld the charges. Gallatin initially appealed the decision, but later renounced the appeal to petition Pope Francis for laicization.

“Throughout these processes, Joseph Gallatin has firmly denied the allegation,” Archbishop Hebda said.

Gallatin ministered as parochial vicar of St. Hubert in Chanhassen (19971998), St. Bernard in St. Paul (19982003), St. Boniface in St. Bonifacius and St. Mary of Czestochowa in Delano (2003-2008), St. Peter in Mendota (20082014) and Faithful Shepherd Catholic School in Eagan (2010-2014).

ORDER TODAY! The Official 2021 Minnesota Catholic Directory TheCatholicSpirit.com/mn-catholic-directory

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 7

Catholic school leaders called to fight racism by ‘educating themselves’

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit The world would have people think one of two things, said Danielle Brown in her keynote address Oct. 21 to a conference of Catholic school educators in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis: Everything is about race, and racism can be found in everything, or racism does not exist, and claims of it are political ploys and false cries of victimhood.

“The truth lies, as we all know, somewhere in the middle,” said Brown, who is Black, an attorney and the associate director of the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

She spoke at a conference hosted by the Office for the Mission of Catholic Education in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, titled “The Call to Open Wide our Hearts: Catholic Schools Confront Racism” and held at the University of St. Thomas School of Law campus in Minneapolis.

The conference’s goals included inviting reflective and prayerful encounters with the mind and heart of Christ to honestly confront racism, engaging with the experiences of people who have been harmed by the evil of racism, and seeking justice and “right relationships” in schools and communities in the archdiocese. Before Brown’s remarks, educators had time for discussion with peers in breakout groups and during lunch.

Bishop Andrew Cozzens, the vicar for Catholic Education in the archdiocese — who will be installed bishop of Crookston Dec. 6 — also was recognized in words and with a standing ovation for his service to Catholic schools during his eight years as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Bishop Cozzens introduced Brown, saying she brings to the discussion a love for the Church and for evangelization.

In her address, Brown referred to the U.S. bishops’ pastoral letter on racism, “Open Wide Our Hearts,” issued in 2018. Brown said the bishops teach that racism occurs when a person ignores the fundamental truth that, because all humans share a common origin, all are equally made in the image and likeness of God. When this truth is ignored, she said, the consequence is prejudice and, all too often, hatred.

Through the pastoral letter, the bishops instructed priests, deacons, religious, lay leaders, parish staff, Catholic school leaders and the faithful to be missionary disciples, carrying the message of fraternal charity and human dignity.

“We ask them to fight the evil of racism by educating themselves,” Brown said, reflecting on personal thoughts and actions, listening to experiences of those affected by racism, and developing and supporting programs that help repair damage from racial CathSpMM-July-Sept-2021.qxp_Layout 1 6/30/21 10:5 discrimination.

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BARB UMBERGER | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT Emily Dahdah, left, director of educational quality and excellence in the Office for the Mission of Catholic Education, discusses the agenda for an Oct. 21 conference for Catholic school leaders with keynote speaker Danielle Brown, associate director of the Ad Hoc Committee Against Racism for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Friends, the rubber meets the road where parishes and schools begin to zealously bring the gift of the faith to the most underserved, particularly Black and native and indigenous communities, to whom we as Catholics have viewed with a … neglect based on our desire to go where the numbers are,” she said.

What pains her most, she said, is the “spiritual apartheid” that U.S. Catholics seem to be engaged in, adding that many are not prepared to encourage, encounter and integrate the idea of normalizing Catholicism in communities of color beyond wellknown numbers of Hispanic people.

Catholic schools bring cohesion to communities, Brown said. She recalled that last year in the U.S., more than 1.7 million students were enrolled in 6,183 Catholic schools. Ethnic minorities comprised 21.8% of those students.

Research shows that Catholic schools close the achievement gap in low-income neighborhoods, Brown said. “A Black or Latino child … is 42% more likely to graduate high school, and two and one-half times more likely to graduate college, if he or she attends a Catholic school,” she said.

Blacks make up about 4% of Catholics, she said, representing a large opportunity for catechesis and evangelization.

Catholic schools in the archdiocese are already doing great work, said Emily Dahdah, director of educational quality and excellence in the archdiocese’s Office for the Mission of Catholic Education. The conference was a way for school leaders to reflect more deeply on the precious gifts of faith, which “order our efforts” against injustice and further

strengthen the ability to serve all students, she said.

While not everyone was able to attend, 115 people from archdiocesan schools and parishes registered for the event. More than 50 were school presidents and principals and 24 were priests from parishes with Catholic schools. Teacher-leaders, deans, directors of advancement and development, and business administrators were among others attending. A handful participated by livestream.

The conference included five concurrent breakout sessions focused on topics related to educators serving students of color. At the end of the gathering, participants were invited to a Mass for racial healing celebrated by Archbishop Bernard Hebda in the campus chapel.

Kari Zobel, principal of Annunciation in Minneapolis, attended a session led by Joshua Blonski, upper school dean of students at Providence Academy in Plymouth, that focused on supporting students from all cultural backgrounds. Simply changing policies is not enough to fully engage in that effort, Zobel said. People need to be willing to change their hearts, she said.

“We need to be bold in our conversations around race and how we treat each other,” she said. “We need to think like Jesus thinks and have a heart like Jesus. He calls us to live out the truth that all humanity has been created in his likeness and image.”

Zobel said teachers, administrators and families need skills and tools to have age-appropriate conversations about race and racism when the subject comes up in classrooms, schools and homes.

“Many people in our archdiocese are working toward this goal, and I feel like there are school leaders who are knowledgeable about this and willing to help schools that are just starting the conversations,” she said.

“We want our Catholic schools to be places where all our students feel loved and respected, regardless of the color of their skin,” Zobel said. “Jesus teaches us that all people are created in his image and our schools need to carry out this teaching.”

Joelynn Sartell, principal of Risen Christ Catholic School in Minneapolis, and Mike Rogers, its president, participated in a session on cultural-specific strategies for serving students and families from Hispanic backgrounds. That demographic applies to about 90% of students at Risen Christ, they said.

With the large number of Latino families, especially newcomers to the United States, Sartell said, learning more about how to best serve school families is important, including sharing ideas.

“For me, the idea I took away was continuing to help my families and help my students believe that they have a voice,” she said. “They have a place here and to give them hope here in Minnesota, and that our school is a safe place for them to find their voice.”

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8 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

Care for Creation retreat: ‘Jesus would have loved this’

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit Father Kevin Clinton, a retired priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and one of 17 members of the archdiocese’s Care for Creation leadership team, hosted a daylong retreat Oct. 2 for the team and others who were interested.

The group spent the morning at his home parish, Immaculate Conception of Marysburg in Madison Lake, greeted in a video message by Archbishop Bernard Hebda and taking in videos on the challenges of climate change. They spent the afternoon on nearby acreage that has been in Father Clinton’s family since the 1850s. Father Clinton has spent about 25 years creating a “conservation reserve” on the property.

The leadership team, led by Adam Fitzpatrick, social mission outreach coordinator in the Office for Mission, includes volunteer leaders from parishes that have their own care for creation teams. The retreat was held to “build up” the archdiocesan team, which because of the COVID-19 pandemic hadn’t met in person since its first meeting in February 2020, Fitzpatrick said. Group members also experienced the retreat as they help develop it for use in parishes.

The retreat could easily be replicated in other settings, Father Clinton said. “People should have easy access to something local to their parish” that puts them in touch with God through nature, he said.

In the morning session, retreatants watched videos featuring Professor Philip Sakimoto from the University of Notre Dame addressing climate change and the urgent need to take action to stem its advance, and Cardinal Blase Cupich of the Archdiocese of Chicago discussing ways Catholics are called to respond to a challenge that many scientists believe is being hastened by human-induced global warming.

In his message, Archbishop Hebda said “our lives have purpose when we are in tune with creation and with the plan of the creator.” He spoke of the archdiocesan Care for Creation team as helping the faithful think about “our individual responses, spiritual growth and ways to make our institutions promote practices that sustain the dynamics of the natural world and use our natural resources justly and wisely.”

Marcia Stapleton, a parishioner of Immaculate Conception, attended the retreat after hearing about it from Father Clinton’s sister, Martha. It was a wonderful opportunity to bring people together, “to understand where we came from and why it’s so important,” she said. Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’, on Care for our Common Home” and his other messages about the challenges wrought by a warming planet can help people grapple with the issue, she said.

“Jesus would have loved this, I think,” Stapleton said, “this focus on creation — making people aware of their place and where they fit into all of creation.”

In his encyclical, Pope Francis calls on people to address pollution, waste and misuse of natural resources. He promotes “integral ecology,” that is, a realization that all things in the natural world are

Care for Creation retreatant Anne Wildenborg, right, hands her husband, Peter, dried flowers for a basket that was placed in front of the altar for the 5 p.m.

Mass Oct. 2 at Immaculate Conception of Marysburg in Madison Lake. School Sister of Notre Dame Kathleen Storms helped gather plants with the Wildenborgs, parishioners of St. Joseph in Red Wing.

BARB UMBERGER THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

CARE FOR CREATION Parishes seeking resources for reflection or to be added to the archdiocese’s Care for Creation email list can go to creation@ archspm.org. More information on the archdiocese’s involvement in the “Laudato Si’” action platform will be available closer to its international launch Nov. 14. Details on specific “Laudato Si’” goals and a list of suggested action items are available at laudatosiactionplatform.org.

The archdiocesan team can answer questions from parishes about care for creation teams and schedule early consultations, as needed, said Adam Fitzpatrick, leader of the team. “We can be there for guidance and ideas,” he said. connected, and mankind has a responsibility to promote a healthful planet.

In May, Pope Francis instituted a Laudato Si’ Action Platform, inviting all sectors of society over seven years, including parishes, dioceses and schools, to help address environmental degradation and the needs of the poor and vulnerable in creating an ecologically sustainable economy. The archdiocesan Care for Creation team is preparing plans to be part of that effort, which launches internationally Nov. 14, Fitzpatrick said.

“Laudato Si’” stresses, and the retreat tried to emphasize, that spiritual health and balance requires being “close (and) to have a relationship with nature because, like it or not, we are from nature,” Father Clinton said. “We are created from the dust of the Earth and to dust we shall return.”

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been involved with environmental education for more than 20 years. The retreat seeks to help people find ways to do “something different in our lives,” she said.

“Every one of us can change something in what we do to relate to the earth,” she said. Recycling is basic, she said. Parishes also could consider using solar panels, creating rain gardens and using excess property around churches as gardens to feed the poor, she said.

Priests and deacons could preach from the pulpit about simplifying lives and identifying with the God who loves the world, she said. “It’s just basic to who we are as Catholics,” she said.

“Creation is the face of God, basically,” Sister Storms said. “And as someone said on the retreat, ‘feel the touch of God in everything that’s been created.’”

“We’ve got a long way to go to really live it all out, but there are so many resources that are available now,” and the archdiocesan Care for Creation team is there to support parishes, she said.

Stapleton said she participated in one of the Archdiocesan Synod Small Groups as Archbishop Hebda encourages everyone to help prepare for a Synod in June that will focus on developing a pastoral plan for the archdiocese. Stapleton plans to attend another Synod Small Group Oct. 28. The last Small Group sessions focus on youth and young adults.

“It just seems to me that one of the ways we’re going to bring young people to the Church, which I think is a huge problem, is to focus on these kinds of issues, because these are issues that are important to everybody, but particularly for young people,” she said.

“They’re thinking about this and what our earth is going to look like for them and their children.”

The Church could be a leader in this area, Stapleton said. “I think that would be such a good thing.”

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 9

NATION+WORLD

Vatican at COP26: Hearts, habits must change fast to care for creation

By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service Even though Pope Francis will not attend the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, in person, the Vatican delegation and the Catholic Church will be “everywhere” during the two-week summit — from the highest-level private negotiations to the sidelines with grassroots “social action” and community-led events, said two delegates.

And most important, Church representatives will bring with them the people climate change affects the most “to make sure that the voices of the Global South are heard clearly and are taken seriously. This cannot be a meeting about them without them,” said Alistair Dutton, a member of the Holy See delegation to COP26 and the chief executive of Caritas Scotland’s Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF), which is one of a number of key local organizers.

Increasing their visibility is important because past climate conferences have shown “those who are suffering most already get pushed to the sidelines, and it ends up being a talking shop among the wealthier nations,” he told Catholic News Service Oct. 19. He said SCIAF was covering the expenses of a group of people from Malawi, Zambia, Colombia and other nations so they can attend COP26 to call for urgent action against the climate crises they already live with.

Hosted by the United Kingdom in partnership with Italy, the Oct. 31-Nov. 12 global climate summit aims to have world leaders suggest concrete ways to cut global emissions by half by 2030 and reach “net-zero” emissions by 2050 as part of efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Negotiations will also focus on helping protect biodiversity and honoring promises to fund action in developing countries, particularly in helping them adapt, mitigate and recover from the harm caused by climate change.

These will be the same priorities the Holy See delegation will be insisting on, Salesian Father Joshtrom Kureethadam, coordinator of the “ecology and creation” desk at the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, told CNS Oct. 21.

“We go there to represent the Church, as Christians” and as one of the many faith communities that know the Earth is not just a planet, but is God’s creation, he said. The delegation will also represent the voiceless and the vulnerable who did not cause the climate crisis but are its “early and disproportionate victims.”

Dutton said financial compensation for “loss and damage” experienced by so many poor and vulnerable people will be a “big issue, particularly for the Global

HEADLINES u ’What is love?’ Pope, other elders share stories for Netflix. Pope Francis, Martin Scorsese, Jane Goodall and a group of less famous “over 70s” talk to young filmmakers about love in the first episode of a four-part documentary available worldwide on Netflix on Christmas Day. The episode “Love,” part of the series “Stories of a Generation,” premiered at the Rome Film Festival Oct. 21. The documentary is based on “Sharing the Wisdom of Time,” a book in which Pope Francis called for creating “an alliance between the young and old people” by sharing their stories. Published by Chicagobased Loyola Press in 2018, the book featured an introduction by Pope Francis, the stories of 30 older people and reflections by a handful of younger people on “What I learned from an elder.” u Teens, priests, pastoral workers and nun among martyrs beatified in Spain. More than 100 victims of Spain’s 1936-1939 civil war moved a step closer to sainthood after being beatified as martyrs for the faith. They

CNS | RUSSELL CHEYNE, REUTERS

A student holds a poster at St. Conval’s Primary School while learning about climate change ahead of the U.N. Climate Change Conference, COP26, in Glasgow, Scotland, Oct. 19.

South, during COP26.”

For example, funding is needed by those whose livelihoods have been damaged by climate change and by the poor whose land has disappeared under rising sea levels so they can buy new land elsewhere, he said.

That means all money raised for developing countries as promised in the 2015 Paris Agreement must be split evenly between climate change adaptation and mitigation, he said, because currently most funding is prioritized for mitigation and technologies aimed at reducing emissions.

The $100 billion pledged a year should “not all be spent on rich people playing with new technology while poor people just cannot survive where they are,” Dutton said.

The Vatican delegation, led by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, will include officials from the Secretariat of State and the integral development dicastery, as well as from two local Catholic organizations: SCIAF and the Catholic Agency for Overseas Development, Dutton said.

Even though it is “hugely disappointing,” Pope Francis will not be in Glasgow in person, Dutton said, there is no doubt how committed he is to caring for creation, which has been “the defining issue of his papacy.”

“His words live on” and give the delegation a platform to build on, he said.

Members of the delegation will be engaged in the so-called “Blue Zone,” which is the U.N.-managed space hosting the official negotiations with delegations from observer organizations and the more than 190

included two teenage boys as well as an 88-year-old nun who died of bullet wounds after being tied to a window as a human shield. More than 3,000 people gathered Oct. 16 for the beatification Mass in Córdoba’s sixth-century cathedral for Father Juan Elías Medina and 126 fellow martyrs, all killed by anti-clerical forces at the start of the four-year conflict. u New institute offers next-level skills needed for safeguarding experts. A new academic institute dedicated to training experts in the care and safeguarding of survivors will be the next step in helping the Church stop denying the reality of abuse and improve the way it reacts to allegations, said Jesuit Father Hans Zollner, president of the new institute.

The Pontifical Gregorian University’s new Institute of Anthropology: Interdisciplinary Studies on Human Dignity and Care “seeks to prioritize the care of all human persons, especially children and the most vulnerable and marginalized of our societies,” he said at the institute’s inauguration Oct. 14. The Vatican-approved academic institute, now with its own faculty and ability to award advanced academic degrees, evolved from

government “parties” who signed the U.N. Framework Convention of Climate Change.

They will also be contributing to side events in the “Green Zone,” managed by the U.K. government for the general public to promote dialogue, awareness and active commitments. Here, there will be “sacred spaces” for reflection, a big march Nov. 6 with a “faith and belief section” with bishops and parishes, and there will be a Mass Nov. 7 followed by an interfaith service, Dutton said. “The Church will be everywhere.”

Vatican delegations did the same at past climate summits, Father Kureethadam said. “That is one of the strengths of our delegation, because we have so many of these contacts” with local organizers.

It reflects the Church’s “multilateral approach” of working with all levels of civil society — from the topdown with the U.N. and governments to the bottom-up with local communities, he added.

Also, “it is much more inspiring and reinvigorating to be in the Green Zone,” he laughed, “but we need both.”

Dutton said the Church will keep the COP26 agenda alive after global leaders go home.

SCIAF, for example, will put pressure on Scotland to fulfill its promises, and will “translate” that into local action “so when it’s all over, people don’t go, ‘What was that all about?’ but they have a clear sense of the role they can play,” he said.

Inspiring political leaders to support the right kind of policies is not enough because if they are not reelected or the issues are no longer “in vogue,” the policies may not survive or could get reversed, unless they are also strongly supported by the p eople, he said.

Dutton said the world’s bishops’ conferences “should be playing much more of a role,” speaking out, holding political leaders to account and warning that if the target is missed, it is “a massive instance of global injustice.”

However, he said, truly caring for the environment, “ultimately that’s going to have to come from the grassroots.”

The Church has the “capillary network” to be able to “really mobilize every community in every country” and prompt the “conversion in the hearts of each individual” that will make the difference, Dutton said.

“Each one of us will have to stop pumping carbon into the world,” which means rethinking what transport they use, how they heat and cool their homes, what food and products they buy and how many miles things traveled to get from the producer to consumer, he said.

He asked, “Are we willing to live differently so that others get to enjoy the planet we inherited?”

the Gregorian University’s Centre for Child Protection. u Supreme Court keeps Texas abortion law in place, says it will review it. The Supreme Court said Oct. 22 that the Texas abortion law banning abortions after six weeks of pregnancy will remain in effect but that the court will give an expedited review of the law Nov. 1. The brief order said the court will specifically examine the way the state’s abortion law was crafted and how it is enforced. The law allows individuals to sue anyone involved in helping a woman obtain an abortion. The Supreme Court also said it would review if the Department of Justice can challenge this law in court. The court did not agree to a request from Texas officials to use this case as a means to possibly overturn the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide. Texas state officials had urged the Supreme Court Oct. 21 to leave the state’s current abortion law in place, and they also advised the court not to fast-track abortion providers’ challenge to the law that bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. The two briefs, 80 pages total, were requested by the Supreme Court

following an emergency request filed Oct. 18 by the Department of Justice asking the court to block enforcement of the Texas abortion law and the court’s announcement the same day that it was considering taking up the abortion providers’ challenge to the state’s abortion law prior to a lower court ruling. u Denver archbishop condemns antireligious vandalism, prays for healing.

Denver Archbishop Samuel Aquila Oct. 20 condemned a rash of anti-religious vandalism of churches and other buildings in northern Colorado, and prayed “for an end to these attacks and that God’s love will be known by anyone who feels compelled to commit these acts.” The Archdiocese of Denver said it is aware of at least 25 parishes or ministry locations that have been the target of vandalism, property destruction or theft since February 2020. Among the most recent targets of attacks was the Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Denver, which was vandalized Oct. 10 with messages and symbols of hate written in red paint on the cathedral.

— Catholic News Service

NATION+WORLD

10 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

Popes and presidents: Biden is 14th U.S. president to visit Vatican

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service Almost 60 years have passed since a Catholic president of the United States visited a pope at the Vatican.

When President John F. Kennedy was preparing for his meeting with the new Pope Paul VI in July 1963, people were wondering if he would kiss the pope’s ring, a traditional sign of deference, but one that could have been problematic for a president already dealing with questions about whether his Church or his country came first.

The pope did not seem to mind shaking his hand.

Protocols and popes have changed. Today, Pope Francis prefers guests not kiss his ring.

President Joe Biden will be the 14th U.S. president — and the second Catholic president — to meet a pope at the Vatican.

Unlike Kennedy, questions about Biden’s faith are coming mainly from within the Catholic community because of his support for legalized abortion.

Pope Francis is scheduled to welcome Biden to the Vatican at noon Oct. 29, soon after the president arrives in Italy to participate in the G-20 Summit, which will focus on the COVID-19 pandemic and global health, the global economy and climate change.

The first U.S. president to visit the Vatican was Woodrow Wilson, who met with Pope Benedict XV in 1919 while on a European tour after World War I. Then, a full 40 years later, Dwight Eisenhower met Pope John XXIII in 1959.

Since then, each U.S. president has made a trip to the Vatican.

Meeting Pope Paul VI were Kennedy in 1963; Lyndon Johnson in 1967; Richard Nixon in 1969 and 1970; and Gerald Ford in 1975.

Jimmy Carter was the next to visit, meeting St. John Paul II in 1980. Ronald Reagan met him in 1982 and

CNS | VATICAN MEDIA

Pope Francis greets then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican March 19, 2013, as the new pontiff receives dignitaries following his inaugural Mass.

1987, as well as after leaving office. George H.W. Bush met him in 1989 and 1991. Bill Clinton came to the Vatican in 1994.

George W. Bush met St. John Paul II in 2001 at the papal villa in Castel Gandolfo and at the Vatican in 2002 and 2004. In addition to attending the pope’s funeral in 2005, he visited the Vatican in 2007 and again in 2008 to meet with Pope Benedict XVI. Barack Obama met Pope Francis in 2014.

Kennedy’s time in the apostolic palace included a private meeting with the pope, an exchange of gifts and a speech from Pope Paul. A formal speech to a visiting president was a staple element in papal audiences in the pontificates of St. Paul VI and St. John Paul II, but now has disappeared.

Meeting Kennedy, Pope Paul praised the United States

as a “noble nation” that wash generous in helping the world’s poorer nations, and he lauded the president for promoting “the higher moral principles of truth, of justice and of liberty” in his speeches.

Aware of the ongoing civil rights movement, the pope said St. John XXIII “presented anew to the world the Church’s constant teaching on the dignity of the individual human person, a dignity which the almighty Creator bestowed in creating man to his own image and likeness.”

“We are ever mindful in our prayers of the efforts to ensure to all your citizens the equal benefits of citizenship, which have as their foundation the equality of all men because of their dignity as persons and children of God,” the pope told Kennedy.

Pope Paul welcomed Johnson to the Apostolic Palace at 9 p.m. Dec. 23, 1967. The late hour meant no formal speeches. But the Vatican’s longer-than-usual statement on the meeting said the two focused on the war in Vietnam and the pope’s “deep and painful apprehension” over the escalating conflict and its victims.

Abortion became legal across the United States with the Supreme Court ruling Roe v. Wade in 1973.

In addition to always reminding the United States of its responsibility for promoting peace and aiding development, St. John Paul II’s speeches to visiting U.S. presidents consistently called for respect for human life from conception to natural death.

A papal speech is not expected as part of Biden’s visit.

Jen Psaki, White House press secretary, said the two “will discuss working together on efforts grounded in respect for fundamental human dignity, including ending the COVID-19 pandemic, tackling the climate crisis and caring for the poor.”

Biden knows what Pope Francis thinks about abortion; whether the two will talk about it specifically is unknown.

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 11

BISHOP COZZENS TO CROOKSTON Bishop Cozzens embraces appointment as next Crookston bishop New leadership role officially begins Dec. 6

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

B

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Bishop Andrew Cozzens speaks at an Oct. 18 news conference after his appointment as bishop of the Diocese of Crookston, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Crookston. At right, Bishop Richard Pates, apostolic administrator of the Crookston diocese.

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit

W

ith humor and grace, Bishop Andrew Cozzens introduced himself Oct. 18 to the Diocese of Crookston as a lover of Christ, adventure and walking the journey of faith with others.

“I am filled with many emotions today, excitement, joy, enthusiasm,” said the 53-year-old auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis at a news conference just hours after the public announcement of his appointment as the eighth bishop of Crookston. “I’m a person who loves an adventure. Certainly, this is an adventure (of faith).”

He thanked Pope Francis for the appointment, Bishop Richard Pates, bishop emeritus of Des Moines, Iowa, for serving as apostolic administrator of Crookston since the April resignation of Bishop Michael Hoeppner, and Archbishop Bernard Hebda for his support in the six years they served as bishops together in the Twin Cities.

Bishop Cozzens said he also felt some grief in knowing he would be leaving family, friends, priests and coworkers who supported him in his 24 years of ministry in the archdiocese.

But he feels ready to lead the 14-county Crookston diocese, with its lakes, pine forests and farm fields, Bishop Cozzens said, addressing people gathered for the news conference at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Crookston. Raised in Denver, he spent summers at a relative’s farm in Montana. He loves to mountain bike, canoe and cross-country ski.

Bishop Cozzens acknowledged the difficult times the Crookston diocese has experienced. Bishop Hoeppner resigned after a Vatican-initiated investigation into how he handled clergy sexual abuse allegations. Bishop Cozzens said he learned of his appointment as auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 2013, just days before a clergy sexual abuse crisis broke

in the archdiocese that led to a $210 million bankruptcy settlement with victim-survivors in 2018.

“I’ve had to meet priests and remove them from ministry,” and walk with them through that pain, Bishop Cozzens said. He has sought to assist victims as “the people we should be most concerned about” and he hopes to bring similar attempts at healing through meeting and listening to people of the Diocese of Crookston, he said.

He speaks Spanish and has worked closely with immigrants and the Latino community, and overseen the archdiocesan offices of Latino Ministry, Evangelization, and Marriage and Family Life, he said.

“Thank God, I feel the Lord has given me some gifts that can bring hope and healing to the Diocese of Crookston,” he said.

Bishop Cozzens took questions, as well, including one asking him if he had a four-wheel drive. Indeed, he does, the bishop said, explaining that he was driving a Nissan Sentra two-wheel drive during his first Christmas as a bishop when he hit a hard snowfall on his way to preside at a Spanish Mass and thought, “this will never do.”

Another person asked him what words of encouragement during challenging times he might bring to the people of the diocese, as well as the province of Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

“The main thing I would say is Jesus Christ is Lord,” Bishop Cozzens said. “We do live in challenging times.

But God works most powerfully in times that are most challenging.”

He cited the Blessed Virgin Mary’s appearances in 1531 in what is now Mexico, at a time of crisis and cruelty between invading Spaniards and the Aztec culture. In the following decade, 9 million people converted to the Catholic faith, the bishop said.

“That’s how God works when all seems hopeless,” he said.

Everyone has a role to play in God’s grace, nothing goes to waste, and wonderful things happen, the bishop said.

“We’ll see that here in Crookston, you watch,” Bishop Cozzens said. “We’re going to see great things.”

ishop Andrew Cozzens, 53, was announced Oct. 18 by the papal nuncio of the U.S. as the next bishop of Crookston.

The bishop-designate has served as an auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis since 2013.

Bishop Cozzens was ordained a priest of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1997 and served as a parochial vicar at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul (1997-2000) and the then-Faribault Catholic Community (now Divine Mercy) (2000-2002) before pursuing a doctorate in sacred theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome, finishing in 2008. From 2006 to his episcopal ordination, he was a professor of sacramental theology and formator at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul.

He was ordained a bishop Dec. 9, 2013, on the transferred Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, at the Cathedral of St. Paul.

His installation as the eighth bishop of Crookston will take place 1 p.m. Dec. 6 at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Crookston. Prior to the installation, he plans to celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving at noon Nov. 28 at the Cathedral of St. Paul followed by a 1-4 p.m. open house reception.

Bishop Cozzens was born Aug. 3, 1968. He is the son of Jack and Judy Cozzens and the youngest of three children. He is a graduate of Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, where he grew in faith through the Catholic Charismatic Renewal.

Prior to entering seminary, Bishop Cozzens served from 1991 to 1992 as a team leader of NET (National Evangelization Teams) Ministries, a traveling missionary outreach to youth. His first NET Ministries assignment was to the Crookston diocese. The following academic year, he served as a co-director of campus outreach of St. Paul’s Outreach, a college campus ministry.

Both NET and SPO are headquartered in the Twin Cities.

As he discerned priesthood, Bishop Cozzens and a small group of other men formed the Companions of Christ, a fraternal community of priests and seminarians that has since established communities in the Archdiocese of Denver and Diocese of Joliet, Illinois. The organization received canonical recognition in 2012.

As an auxiliary bishop, Bishop Cozzens has assisted Archbishop Bernard Hebda in leading the archdiocese and has been at the helm of several initiatives, including as chairman of the executive team for the 2022 Archdiocesan Synod, a process that began in 2019. He has served as vicar for Catholic Education and overseen the archdiocesan offices of Latino Ministry, Evangelization, and Marriage, Family and Life.

He served as interim rector of The St. Paul Seminary from June 2018 until January 2019 and has long been a leader in national efforts to strengthen seminary formation. In 2015 he began working to form the Seminary Formation Council, which now sponsors a two-year certificate in formation. He serves as the president of its board of directors. Bishop Cozzens is also the president of the corporate board for the Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha, Nebraska.

He is chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, and in that position is leading a threeyear National Eucharistic Revival that will begin PLEASE TURN TO ANNOUNCEMENT ON PAGE 14

BISHOP COZZENS

12 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Bishop Cozzens on his new role: God’s ‘been preparing me fo

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

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ishop Andrew Cozzens was giving classes to religious sisters in New Ulm on the morning of Oct. 4 when a call came in from Washington, D.C. The caller left no message, so Bishop Cozzens considered it a “random call” and continued to teach. But, that same number called three more times before noon. So, at his lunch break, he decided to call back.

Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the U.S. apostolic nuncio, answered the phone.

“I’m very happy to speak to you,” Bishop Cozzens recalls him saying. Archbishop Pierre told Bishop Cozzens that Pope Francis had named him bishop of Crookston, a diocese of 14 counties in northwest Minnesota.

“My immediate reaction was, ‘Praise God! Whatever God wants,’” Bishop Cozzens told The Catholic Spirit.

Bishop Cozzens moved to the Twin Cities after graduating from Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, to serve as a traveling missionary to teenagers through NET Ministries. His first NET assignment was to the Crookston diocese, from Barnesville in the south to Warroad in the north, near the Canadian border. He now sees that time as providential.

“If you would have told me in 1991, when I’m … right out of college, that someday you’ll be the bishop here, I’d be like ‘you are crazy.’ But that’s God’s plan,” he said. “I love the idea that I’m headed further down the pilgrimage of life with the Lord, and always was struck by the line from St. John Paul II when he said, ‘Jesus is my life’s companion.’ And so that’s the real sense I have as I go to Crookston — like, the Lord is going with me, and he’s been preparing me for this.

There’s a lot I don’t know about what my life’s going to look like, but I know the Lord is my life’s companion, and he’ll be with me. In that way I see my life as a great adventure with the Lord, and I’m excited about it.”

He realizes he’s transitioning from ministry in the archdiocese during a critical time, as he’s been leading committee efforts since 2019 to prepare for an Archdiocesan Synod Assembly in June 2022 that will lay the groundwork for a pastoral letter and plan on the archdiocese’s future. Meanwhile, as chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, he’s leading a National Eucharistic Revival, a three-year initiative that’s slated to begin in June.

However, “I did think about the need of the Diocese of Crookston, and I know they need some healing and they need a good presence. And I’m happy to go there with my energy and enthusiasm and desire to bring healing there,” he said. “I trust Divine Providence in regard to the timing.”

As he reflects on the eight years since he was appointed a bishop, “it’s been a real adventure,” he said.

“Everyone knows that the announcement of my becoming auxiliary bishop happened as the (sexual abuse) crisis of 2013 broke in the archdiocese, right at the very same time — literally days after I got a call from the papal

nuncio (announcing the episcopal appointment),” he said. “My life very early on as a bishop was marked by helping the archdiocese through an extremely difficult time, probably the most difficult time in the history of the archdiocese.”

“We were Ground Zero for a while of the sexual abuse crisis in the country. We have done a good job in building from that spot,” he continued. “I just happened to be in the right or the wrong place at the right time, depending on how you look at it. I learned a lot having to go through that. I do think the archdiocese is in one of the best places in the country. And I think the people we have involved are some of the most qualified in the country.”

Bishop Cozzens said that his first priority after his installation will be getting to know people and the diocese’s history. That includes the resignation earlier this year of his predecessor, Bishop Michael Hoeppner, following a Vaticaninitiated investigation into how he handled clergy sexual abuse allegations.

“I need to meet the priests. I need to meet the lay leaders. I need to meet the staff of the Diocese of Crookston, and I really want to hear what their experience has been like and what they’ve been through,” Bishop Cozzens said. “And I want to know how they’re doing and

where they’re at so that we can begin together to build a direction forward.”

He plans to spend a lot of time in parishes, in part because confirmation — a sacrament uniquely conferred by a bishop — is held in parishes, not at the diocese’s cathedral, as is the custom in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

“I fully expect to put on a lot of miles on the car,” he said.

Bishop Cozzens also expects diocesan preparations for the 2023 Vatican Synod on Synodality to provide opportunities for widespread listening to a range of people on their experiences and hopes for the future. He also sees the National Eucharistic Revival he’s preparing to lead as “a very exciting thing to bring to the Diocese of Crookston.”

Bishop Cozzens is also a national leader in seminary formation — and recently published a book on the priesthood — but there’s no seminary in the Crookston diocese. He looks forward to getting to know the diocese’s six seminarians, encouraging other men to discern the call, and exploring how his experience in seminary formation might translate into bolstering lay formation as well.

“I often point out to people there’s no other profession in the country where a person gets as much individual attention in their formation … than a current man studying for the Roman Catholic

priesthood,” he said. “I want to bring that formation to the laypeople that I work with and to other people in the diocese … so that we can be formed to be the kind of disciples that Jesus wants us to be.”

He’s excited to know that the Diocese of Crookston hosts summer camps for young people, in part because that connects with his interest in encouraging youth, fostering vocations and his love of the outdoors. As a young priest, Bishop Cozzens gained a reputation for embracing adventure: rock climbing, mountain biking, cliff jumping and skiing — and he still does some of those activities today. (He’s given up rock climbing “due to my age,” he said.) He welcomes the opportunity to be in the outdoors in northwestern Minnesota, which is largely rural. Crookston itself has a population of around 7,900. Its largest city is Moorhead, with 44,500 people.

As he reflects on his priesthood and time as bishop, he said he has been prepared for this role by “a ton of experience that the Lord has given me, whether that’s the work I’ve done with our Catholic schools, the work I’ve done with priests and priests’ assignments. …

Thank God, I do feel like I go with a few tools on the belt — that I’m ready. But I also do feel like the Lord’s been preparing my heart just to give myself in a new way.

I love the image of life as a pilgrimage or

S TO CROOKSTON

or this’

OCTOBER 28, 2021 • 13

Diocese introduction includes surprise visits in two towns

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

“W

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT From left, Bishop Richard Pates and Bishop Andrew Cozzens talk with students at Sacred Heart School in East Grand Forks Oct. 18 during their leaf-raking fundraiser.

Bishop Cozzens talks with a young student as she rakes leaves.

Bishop Cozzens visits Bishop Victor Balke, who led the diocese for 31 years before his retirement in 2007.

Bishop Pates, left, and Bishop Cozzens greet Rosie O’Leary of Sacred Heart in East Grand Forks during a visit to her home.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

a journey. ... I would say I never would have guessed that this is where the Lord would lead me.”

Despite his excitement for this next role, it will be hard for him to leave behind the friends and coworkers he’s had in the archdiocese, he said. He wants people to know that they’ll continue to be in his prayers. “Some of the greatest treasures that life gives us are the friendships that we make in Christ,” he said. “To leave some of those will be a sad thing. There will be grief there.”

His Dec. 6 installation will take place in the final days of the Year of St. Joseph, which ends Dec. 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception. It was important to him to hold the installation Mass within the special year, he said, because Joseph has been “providential” in his own life.

“Both Pope Francis and Pope John Paul II have spoken about (St. Joseph) as a model for the bishop,” he said. “He’s the protector of the Church and the protector of the Holy Family. And so, in that sense, he’s a great intercessor for me as a bishop.

I think his humility, the way he listens to the Lord and the way he loves the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus, and the way he desires to give his life to care for them and protect them — to me, that’s a great image of what a bishop should be.”

hat a treat!” Rosie O’Leary gushed as she stood on her front porch, shaking Bishop Andrew Cozzens’ hand. It was a surprise visit for the 90-year-old, who has lived all her life in East Grand Forks, where she and her first husband raised 10 children at Sacred Heart parish.

She, Bishop Cozzens and Bishop Richard Pates talked about the family sugar beet farm — now run by one of her two sons — her 36 grandchildren and her love of her Irish ancestry. (“Cozzens” is Irish, too, the bishop told her.) Rosie lives with Alzheimer’s disease and was surprised to be reminded of her age, but she was visibly overjoyed to be visited by her new bishop.

The O’Leary home was Bishop Cozzens’ final stop before vespers Oct. 18, the day he was named bishopdesignate of the Diocese of Crookston.

Archbishop Christophe Pierre, U.S. apostolic nuncio, shared the news around 5 a.m. Central time, shortly after the Vatican announced it in Rome. An auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Bishop Cozzens had arrived in Crookston the evening before, and after the announcement, had breakfast with members of the chancery staff.

At 10 a.m., about 30 people — many of them parish and chancery staff, with others who had attended daily Mass — gathered in the narthex of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception for a livestreamed news conference. During questions, Nancy Cournia, an 87-yearold Cathedral parishioner, stood up and told him, “I just feel the Holy Spirit so strongly” with his appointment.

“I’m just happy and excited about what God is sending us,” she later said.

Many well-wishers commented on his relatively young age — at 53, he’s 22 years away from 75, the age bishops typically retire. When he was ordained an auxiliary bishop in 2013, he was the second youngest bishop in the country.

Several Catholics interviewed expressed hope that his youthfulness, plus his experience in NET Ministries and St. Paul’s Outreach — national teen and college ministries, respectively, both based in the Twin Cities — might lead to more young people at Mass and in the Church. One man asked him about bringing his guitar to youth events.

“It’s true, I do play guitar, and I am in a band,” he said with a laugh, explaining it was a group of priests. “We played twice, the band. It’s called ‘The Second Collection.’ Our joke is that the second collection isn’t ever as good as the first collection.”

Hope Bach, the Cathedral’s youth minister and director of religious education, thinks Bishop Cozzens’ personability and enthusiasm will further boost the momentum gaining around youth and faith she said she’s seen since the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted regular life.

“Everything broke down and now it’s like we’re rebuilding almost, and I love what is being built,” said Bach, 25.

Elaine Boucher, a 78-year-old Cathedral parishioner whose late husband and now sons farm 2,200 acres

of wheat, soybeans and sugar beets, asked Bishop Cozzens if he would bless fields. “Of course I bless fields,” he answered enthusiastically. “We need those fields to feed us.”

That was the right answer, she later said. She was raised on a farm, and she and her husband began having their fields blessed when they were first married 54 years ago. Bishop Pates was the most recent bishop to offer those prayers, she said, noting with a smile that after he was done with the land, he also blessed her family with a healthy dose of holy water.

Bishop Pates, bishop emeritus of Des Moines, Iowa, has served as the Crookston diocese’s apostolic administrator since April. He is himself a former auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis and knows Bishop Cozzens from his early priesthood.

“He really has great devotion to the Holy Spirit,” he said, noting the bishopdesignate’s longtime involvement with the charismatic renewal and membership in the Companions of Christ, a fraternal community of priests.

“He has a real love for the clergy.”

Bishop Cozzens had visited Crookston previously for priests’ ordination, but his first experience was as a NET missionary in 1991, when the northwest Minnesota diocese was his team’s first assignment.

While meeting with students of the Cathedral’s pre-K-6 school before lunch, he told them he had stood in that very cafeteria before, when he was just out of college.

He took questions from the kids, and arms stretched high: When was he born?

What’s it like in Kansas (where he attended Benedictine College, graduating in 1991)? What’s his favorite thing about being a priest? Why did he want to be a bishop? (His answer, to the last one, is that he didn’t want to be a bishop, but God asked him to be, and he wants to obey God.) Upon hearing that he grew up in Colorado, one boy asked if it was hard to mow the lawn there, because of the mountains. Bishop Cozzens assured him that it was possible to mow his childhood yard. Before he left, the children outstretched both arms and sang “May the blessing of the Lord be upon you,” and then he offered his episcopal blessing to them.

In the afternoon, after Mass and lunch with Benedictine and Josephite sisters adjacent to the Cathedral at Mount St. Benedict Monastery, Bishop Cozzens visited with third-graders from Sacred Heart School in East Grand Forks who were piling leaves under a deep blue autumn sky. Their effort was for their school’s annual Rake-a-Thon, a service project and fundraiser that typically nets around $40,000. Bishop Cozzens grabbed a rake while talking with the excited students.

Sacred Heart is the only Catholic school with a high school in northwest Minnesota, and it also serves northeast North Dakota. Eight-year-old Annie Downs, who attends both the school and its parish, said she was surprised to see the new bishop walk across the street to meet with her and her classmates.

She said she loves to go to Mass and say the rosary at school, and that it was “cool” to meet her bishop on his announcement day. As Bishop Cozzens

MAN OF PRAYER Bishop Cozzens prayed evening vespers at the Cathedral with the diocese’s priests, and deacons and their wives. In a short homily, he reflected on the meaning of the beatitude “poor in spirit” and asked the clergy to be men of prayer.

“I’m grateful to God for being here,” he told them.

“I come to you and to Crookston as your bishop not as a man who claims to have it all together, not as a man who believes that I have all the answers. I do have a fire in my heart and I have a mission, and I’m here to engage that mission.

“I’ll be energetic in the things that I do,” he continued, “but what I really promise you is that because I know my own poverty, I will be a man of prayer. That’s the one thing I can guarantee you. I can guarantee it because that’s the way my life has been lived. Prayer is the most important thing in my life. And I really want to encourage you to make that your own priority.”

CROOKSTON OVERVIEW Located in northwest Minnesota, the Diocese of Crookston was established in 1909. It comprises 17,210 square miles and 14 counties. According to its website, it has about 35,000 Catholics in 66 parishes served by 41 diocesan and three religious order priests. The diocese has eight Catholic grade schools, one Catholic high school, three Catholic hospitals and two Catholic nursing facilities. It is considered “entirely rural in nature,” the diocese’s website states, with farming, logging and tourism as its main industries. left, he asked Downs and her friends to pray for him.

In his homily at Mount St. Benedict, he noted that the monastery struck him as “the heart of prayer of the diocese.”

The sisters founded the monastery there in 1923, on 37 acres next to the Red Lake River. In July, the diocese announced that it was raising $15 million to purchase the property and the sisters’ 68,000-square-foot building. The arrangement would allow the aging sisters to continue to live and pray in their monastery, while providing offices for the bishop and diocesan staff, and retreat and guest accommodations.

The campaign is titled “The Perfect Fit” because that’s how Bishop Pates and other leaders see it: the best arrangement for the sisters and chancery staff, whose current building, built in 1951 in northwest Crookston, is in need of repair and inadequate for their needs.

The honorary chairperson of that campaign is Bishop Emeritus Victor Balke, who led the diocese for 31 years from 1976 to 2007. While in East Grand Forks the afternoon of Oct. 18, Bishop Cozzens met with Bishop Balke at the Sacred Heart rectory, where he lives.

Bishop Balke, 90, said he hopes that Bishop Cozzens can bring his heart and expertise in evangelization to the diocese, and “lead that people and the priests into a deep, deep love of Jesus Christ” and that “would make this diocese a wonderful spiritual home for everybody.”

“He’s a wonderful man, very loving, in love with the Church and with the people of God,” Bishop Balke said. “I’m very, very pleased, very happy.”

14 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

BISHOP COZZENS TO CROOKSTON

Family, friends note Bishop Cozzens’ deep faith, relationship skills

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit

J

udy Cozzens said she feels mixed emotions about her son’s move from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis to become Bishop of Crookston. “He’s going to be living four and a-half hours away from us, but I’m very thrilled that he’s going to a rural diocese because he will love it,” she said of her son, Bishop Andrew Cozzens.

She grew up on a farm in Montana, and the bishop spent many summers on a relative’s farm there during childhood.

“He loves rural America,” Cozzens said.

“And he loves farm life, so that’ll be a big plus for him going into this community.”

She said her son also enjoys the outdoors and meeting people, “so he’ll get to know them all.”

Bishop Cozzens won’t be as close for family dinners, but Judy Cozzens said with a laugh that the family can enjoy him at the table virtually through FaceTime or other means. She and her husband, Jack, are parishioners of St. Anne in Hamel.

The bishop’s faith and life of prayer have been a great blessing to her family, Cozzens said. “And he will bring a gift of great faith and prayer with him.”

Cozzens said her son is compassionate and a good listener. “He’ll want to hear what they want to share with him,” she said, and will be very good for any need for healing in a parish or diocese. He will share from the heart with them, she said, and will also be joyous. “He’s a man of great joy in faith, and he has a belief that even through hard times, good things can come.”

Cozzens said her son loves his people, and will love and support them, work with them to help grow in prayer and love of Jesus Christ. One thing he learned as a priest, she said, when he worked with the Institute for Priestly Formation in Omaha, Nebraska, is that “he couldn’t do it by himself.”

“He always wanted to be a good priest, but he learned that you have to have Jesus Christ and Mary with you where you go,” Cozzens said. “I think he brings the gift of knowing that the Lord is walking with him. He’s not doing anything alone, and the Lord will provide for him. He’ll come to them as their new bishop, knowing the Lord will walk with you.”

Bishop Cozzens’ sister, Helen Healy, also a member of St. Anne, said she is sad her brother’s appointment means he’ll move away. But it is a blessing that God will use him in another place, she said.

“We get together quite often,” she said, noting her brother has been a regular visitor to her family’s Long Lake home.

She and her husband, Tim, have seven children, ages 14 to 28. One son is married with two children.

“He always represented such a great, joyful, holy vocation,” Healy said of her brother. “And I think that they could all see the depth of his joy for his love for Christ and also his witness to living that way — living a radical love for Jesus.”

Healy sees Bishop Cozzens having no problem fitting into his new Northwoods of Minnesota residence. He camps and loves being outdoors, including her family’s time with him in the Boundary Waters.

Healy said her family is grateful to Archbishop Bernard Hebda who has been “such a great, wonderful influence on

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Bishop Andrew Cozzens talks with Bishop Richard Pates during video filming Oct. 18 following a press conference in Crookston.

‘EXTRAORDINARY GIFTS’ In an Oct. 18 statement, Archbishop Bernard Hebda said the archdiocese is honored that Pope Francis chose Bishop Cozzens to lead the Diocese of Crookston.

“I am not surprised that Pope Francis would have seen in him the extraordinary priestly gifts that have long been recognized by the priests and faithful of this Archdiocese who have come to know him and love him as an energetic and capable shepherd with a huge heart, sharp intellect, and unfailing love for Christ and his Church.

“I consider it a great privilege to have had the opportunity to collaborate with Bishop Cozzens so closely in the last six years and will always be grateful that he was here to introduce me to the Archdiocese that he had come to know and love, first as a young NET missionary from Colorado, then as a seminarian, priest and bishop,” he continued.

“His steadfast advocacy for those who had been hurt in any way by the Church, his passion for Catholic education and evangelization, his creative guidance of our Synod process, and his love for immigrants, refugees and those on the peripheries have all left what I hope will be an indelible mark on me and on this archdiocese,” Archbishop Hebda said. “While I will miss his daily counsel and example, I very much look forward to continuing to work with him as a brother bishop in our province.”

— Maria Wiering him.”

“And they’ve been such good friends,” she said. “It’s been a very nice working relationship as well as friendship.”

Bishop Cozzens’ foster brother, Sergei Thomas, 57, a lawyer in Denver, said Bishop Cozzens can relate to everyone, reaching out to them in love and kindness, no matter what. “He displays his faith and commitment to the principles that guide him,” he said. “He’s the kind of person you really want to have in the community.”

Watching Bishop Cozzens follow his heart into his faith and vocation has been moving, and that journey inspires respect and admiration, Thomas said.

Asked what qualities Bishop Cozzens will bring to the diocese of Crookston, Thomas said he is personable, principled and caring. “When you have that kind of person in a leadership role, it enhances everyone around them and develops the kind of connection with the people that really look up to him, work with him, basically develop any kind of association with him because he’s very trustworthy.”

Thomas said Bishop Cozzens is devoted to the things that have brought him to this

Has Bishop Andrew Cozzens touched your life in the past eight years he’s served as an auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis?

Tell us your story in 100 words or less. Please email submissions to CatholicSpirit@archspm.org with “Readers Respond” in the subject line.

Reflections may appear in a special edition of The Catholic Spirit celebrating Bishop Cozzens’ installation in the Diocese of Crookston. Deadline for reflections to be considered for print is Nov. 11. point in his faith. “So, I think that, from anyone’s standpoint, he’s a wonderful person for this appointment.”

Friends and co-workers in ministry also noted Bishop Cozzens’ faith and ability to relate to people. Gordy DeMarais, founder of St. Paul’s Outreach in St. Paul, said it is a “tremendous” appointment for the Church. Bishop Cozzens is chairman of SPO’s board, but it is sad to think he will not be as direct a part of the archdiocese and ministries he has served so well, DeMarais said.

DeMarais recalled Bishop Cozzens’ leadership, faith and relational skills the year he served as a missionary with SPO, before he entered the seminary. He had an ability to talk with other young men and encourage them to return to their faith or to deepen it, DeMarais said.

Bishop Cozzens has gifts and a disposition that uniquely qualify him “to be the servant shepherd that our Church needs at this point,” he said.

Father Joseph Taphorn, rector and vice president of The St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity in St. Paul, sent a letter to the seminary community congratulating Bishop Cozzens on his appointment and thanking the bishop for his work at the seminary as a faculty member, interim rector in the fall of 2018, and current member of the boards of the St. John Vianney College Seminary and The St. Paul Seminary.

Father Taphorn said he also will miss Bishop Cozzens’ presence in the archdiocese as a close friend of more than 30 years, since their time together as undergraduate students at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas. “Bishop Cozzens is a quintessential example of a joyful, Catholic leader,” he said.

Mother Mary Clare Roufs, head of the Handmaids of the Heart of Jesus, said Bishop Cozzens has been a wonderful spiritual father to her order and its sisters.

He assists with spiritual formation and direction. “He shares himself with us,” she said. “Things that make him happy and sad, drawing us into the faith.”

In Crookston, Bishop Cozzens will not be as close to New Ulm, but he at least thus far has remained in Minnesota, Mother Mary Clare said. Does she think he will return to see the sisters?

“He better,” she said, laughing, and adding that she trusts he will. “He’s not just a friend of convenience. He is a deep, spiritual friend.”

Joe Ruff contributed to this report.

OCTOBER 28, 2021

ANNOUNCEMENT CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 in June. He also serves as chairman of the board of NET Ministries and St. Paul’s Outreach.

Bishop Cozzens’ episcopacy has coincided with exposure of the clergy sexual abuse crisis in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. As an auxiliary bishop, he helped lead the archdiocese through a Chapter 11 bankruptcy from 2015 to 2018 that involved more than 450 abuse claims and resulted in a $210 million settlement with victim-survivors. He was also involved in working to resolve criminal and civil charges filed against the archdiocese in 2015 related to its handling of clergy sexual abuse. That case and its settlement brought about serious, positive reform in the archdiocese’s culture and safe environment efforts, Bishop Cozzens has said.

A month after he was ordained bishop, he also became involved in an internal investigation of sexual misconduct against Archbishop John Nienstedt, who had been leading the archdiocese since 2008.

Bishop Cozzens later called that investigation “doomed to fail” because it was conducted internally and without its leaders having authority to act. He joined other U.S. prelates calling for a national, independent structure to investigate bishops accused of wrongdoing. A structure was ultimately established worldwide through Pope Francis’ 2019 legislative document “Vos estis lux mundi.”

As the eighth bishop of Crookston, Cozzens succeeds Bishop Michael Hoeppner, who led the diocese from 2007 until his resignation in April at the request of Pope Francis. The resignation followed a Vatican investigation into allegations that he mishandled allegations of clergy sexual abuse. The investigation was the first of a standing U.S. bishop under the protocols outlined in “Vos estis.” It was overseen by Archbishop Bernard Hebda, as the relevant metropolitan archbishop, and carried out by a team of lay experts in safe environment and civil and canon law.

Bishop Richard Pates, bishop emeritus of Des Moines, Iowa, and a former auxiliary bishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, has served as apostolic administrator of Crookston since Bishop Hoeppner’s resignation.

OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 15

FAITH+CULTURE

Homemade burial Woodworker makes first casket for his mother

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit

D

an Purkapile of St. John the Baptist in New Brighton was looking for the next step in his woodworking career in 2020. His mother was dying of cancer at the time, and that sparked an idea: casket making.

For the 34-year-old former seminarian, it was a simple choice, a natural progression. After he traded theology books at The St. Paul Seminary for power tools, he watched his mother, Mary, battle colon cancer for five years. As she reached the final stage in summer 2020, he began contemplating the idea of making caskets. He decided hers would be the first.

By that time, he had honed his woodworking craft to the point of feeling confident he could create a fitting burial container for his mother.

And, he had honed his spiritual life to the point of knowing what Scripture verses and images to engrave on the walnut boards he had hand-picked for this farewell gift. He knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to honor his mother, with whom he had built a gradual bond during his adult years.

“There’s a lot of things we shared in common,” said Purkapile, who was raised in Marshfield, Wisconsin. “She was the organist at our parish, and I got into music at a fairly young age. So, I was in musicals in high school, and in the choir, and I played guitar. Music was definitely the main thing that we bonded over, and I think that was a really big part of our relationship.”

Up until that time, he primarily had been making cabinets, the mainstay of his New Brighton business, Capstone Woodworking, which he started in 2016. But, his head was filled with artistic architectural designs he had seen firsthand while enrolled in the University of St. Thomas Catholic Studies Rome program during his undergraduate years at UST and St. John Vianney College Seminary. He also had been reflecting on Catholic and Christian theology about the meaning of burial practices.

It added up to a project in which he invested heart, soul and elbow grease.

“It was by far the most challenging and emotional project I’ve ever worked on,” he said. “Just thinking about your own mortality and thinking about my mom’s situation — just the struggle to deal with death, especially with somebody that you care a lot about.”

On top of that, he and his wife, Robyn, were expecting their second child, and they weren’t certain if Mary would live long enough to see their daughter, Eliza, now 1. Fortunately, Mary lived two more weeks after Eliza was born, and got to see and hold her.

Purkapile struggled with how to talk to his mother about making the

Dan Purkapile stands next to a casket he built from cherry wood that is a duplicate of one he made out of walnut for his mother.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

casket, not knowing how she would react, especially being so close to the end of her life. But, he was strongly encouraged in the project by his father, and he eventually told his mother and even showed her the blueprints, though she never got to see the finished casket.

For him, the most meaningful part was the artwork he engraved on the sides and the lid with a special machine in his shop called a CNC router. He placed lambs on the sides, and a Scripture verse on top along with an image of Jesus. On the inside of the lid are the words of Psalm 23, which begin: “The Lord is my Shepherd … .”

These types of words and images are what he had in mind when he first contemplated making caskets.

“I thought introducing artwork into caskets would be a beautiful way of honoring the person that has passed,”

he said, “but also as a means of evangelization of the family members, to really bring home our mortality and the questions of eternal life.”

It took about a week for Purkapile to complete his mother’s casket, which he began about two months before she died. He also made an exact duplicate out of cherry wood that he hopes to sell to someone looking for a similar Catholic-themed burial container.

Beyond that, he is readying himself for more casket orders in the coming years, with plans for custom building rather than offering pre-made caskets.

He also recognizes that an increasing number of people are choosing cremation, which makes urns another possible avenue for his woodworking skills. Another idea is caskets for infants, which he has crafted a few times and thinks could be a possibility in the future. If this part of his business

grows, he hopes to find ways to offer charitable donations such as infant caskets.

Regardless of how casket making goes in the days and years ahead, Purkapile will always treasure the opportunity he had to carry out one of the seven corporal works of mercy for his mother.

“It was an honor to be able to do that for my mom,” he said. “It was a good experience for me, going through that process of building a casket. …

For men, especially, it’s something that resonates with us. When we see a need, we want to provide, we want to do what we can. For me, that was a way that I could give something to, really, my whole family.”

He just hopes for one small thing in return, “that hopefully, she would see me making that casket as a gift of love.”

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16 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

The Catholic Cemeteries: Pandemic’s postponed burials likely drive 15% increase this year

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit

B

BURIAL INCREASES

urials increased by 15% and cremations jumped 10% so far this year compared with 2020 at five cemetery sites overseen by The Catholic Cemeteries, likely driven by postponed committal services at the height of the pandemic, said Joan Gecik, executive director.

The impact of COVID-19 also continues, including the delta variant driving up recent infection rates, Gecik said. People concerned about gathering indoors are making reservations for summer 2022 for burials of loved ones cremated this fall so they can be together outside in greater safety and numbers, she said.

Because of the pandemic, Catholic Cemeteries’ annual Mass of Remembrance will not be held this December, she said. “Usually, we get over 200 people attending,” Gecik said, making it difficult to socially distance to help prevent spread of the virus.

However, a prayerful video with music displaying submitted names of people who have died in the last year can be viewed on the website at catholic-cemeteries.org.

The five sites of The Catholic Cemeteries have seen an increase of burials and cremations this year, driven in part by postponed committal services during the pandemic. The numbers: 2019 — 1,019 burials; 47% cremation rate 2020 — 1,035 burials; 44% cremation rate 2021 — 1,187 burials; 54% cremation rate People currently are asked to wear facial coverings and social distance indoors at all sites of The Catholic Cemeteries: Calvary in St. Paul, Gethsemane in New Hope, Resurrection in Mendota Heights, and St. Anthony’s and St. Mary’s, both in Minneapolis.

Staff also wear masks, Gecik said.

“We have a high concern for safety for anyone coming to our cemeteries, including our employees,” she said.

“It is still going on,” Gecik said of the pandemic,

citing one of her sisters contracting COVID-19 despite being vaccinated. Her own family also has been impacted by funeral and burial precautions, she said.

When her brother died last year at this time, the family couldn’t gather as they would have liked. At the gravesite service and burial, she and her siblings were grouped separately by household.

The Catholic Cemeteries has gone through various levels of safety protocols through the pandemic, Gecik said. The organization follows recommendations of The Centers for Disease Control and the Minnesota Department of Health, as well as any government or archdiocesan directives, she said.

The pandemic has been difficult and stressful for families already grieving the loss of loved ones, Gecik said. Families seeking guidance from Catholic Cemeteries have often met with family service counselors online through Zoom video or other means, she said.

Cemetery staff also have been impacted by the extra requirements and concerns prompted by the pandemic, she said. “It’s kind of like being super sensitive to everything that is going on all the time,” Gecik said. “And that is how it was daily during (the height of) COVID.”

Saintly popes: People question canonizations

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service With the news that Pope John Paul I would soon be beatified, Twitter and other social media were filled — again — with the question: Has being pope become a shortcut to canonization?

“It is not a matter of beatifying or canonizing a papacy,” insisted Cardinal Beniamino Stella, postulator of the late pope’s sainthood cause.

Besides, he told Catholic News Service, Pope John Paul I — the former Albino Luciani — was pope for just over one month, and except for martyrs, “you can’t determine someone’s holiness just by 33 or 34 days of his or her life.”

Even before he was appointed postulator — or promoter — of the cause, Cardinal Stella, former prefect of the Congregation for Clergy, was convinced the “smiling pope” was a saint. The former Bishop Luciani of Vittorio Veneto was his bishop from the time he was a seminarian until the bishop was named patriarch of Venice in 1969.

“I knew him up close, and I have beautiful memories of him, his human virtues and his virtues as a priest and bishop,” the cardinal said.

But with the canonizations in 2014 of Popes John XXIII and John Paul II and of Pope Paul VI in 2018, people can be forgiven for suspecting that the modern papacy is some kind of fast-track to canonization.

Although he said it jokingly, in a February 2018 meeting with priests from the Diocese of Rome, Pope Francis noted the trend of modern pope-saints. Retired Pope “Benedict and I are on the waiting list; pray for us,” he said.

When Pope Francis’ approval of the miracle needed for the beatification of Pope John Paul I was announced Oct. 13, Christopher Bellitto, a professor of history at Kean University in Union, New Jersey, tweeted a link to a blog he wrote in 2019 raising a series of questions about canonizing popes.

“The church position on canonization is that she makes a person and not a papacy a saint: we canonize Angelo Roncalli and not Pope John XXIII. But in practice, this is not entirely true: he is known as St. John XXIII, not St. Angelo.

CNS FILE PHOTO | L’OSSERVATORE ROMANO

Pope John Paul I walks at the Vatican in 1978.

Pope Francis has recognized a miracle attributed to the late pope’s intercession.

How do you easily and clearly separate the person from this unique institution?”

Another question Bellitto raised was, “What happens if one pope does not quickly open a cause for sainthood of his immediate or recent predecessor? The way things are going now, it seems to be as automatic to put the prior pope up for sainthood as it was uncommon for hundreds of years.”

In an email response to questions Oct. 14, Bellitto said, “I used to be a total moratorium person, but what if you’ve got an obvious example so that it’d be wrong to fail to canonize? But I favor a moratorium of at least 50 years that cannot in any circumstance be waived.”

But Stefania Falasca, a journalist and vice postulator of Pope John Paul I’s cause, insisted “Pope John Paul I’s pontificate was just the tip of the iceberg.”

The “positio” or position paper arguing for his holiness is 3,650 pages long and is divided into five volumes, Falasca noted. It includes a thorough biography from the day he was born; an analysis of how he lived the Christian virtues in an exemplary way; a collection of letters, homilies and documents he wrote as a priest, bishop, cardinal and, briefly, pope; and a summary of the testimony of almost 200 eyewitnesses, including retired Pope Benedict.

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OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 17

At 100, Mildred Ruhr has cared for all souls

By Christina Capecchi For The Catholic Spirit

back and pick up where certain things happened, and it was all for the better.

“I always had a secret desire to build a shrine,” said Mildred Ruhr, a 100-year-old widow who belongs to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Hastings and resides in an assistedliving home nearby. It wasn’t until her 90s that her dream came true: She financed an open-air chapel at St. Patrick’s cemetery in Inver Grove Heights, where her parents are buried. The labor of love became a family affair — designed by her nephew Stephen Brenna, built by multiple relatives and completed in 2016.

Q You had to make peace with the

fact that you were not able to have children.

A They say it takes a village. It’s so true!

Q How did the chapel come to be?

A My brother Charles had the idea to

do something in honor of our parents, Charles and Sophie Rosenberg. My nephew Steve designed the chapel with a Gothic influence. He covered it with a limestone plaster that creates an elegant, Old-World finish, and the Celtic cross is a tribute to St. Patrick. It contains seven religious medals — one for each of us children.

Mom and Dad, they’re on top of the hill. My husband is there, too. He’s waiting for me. We have ours down in No. 13, on the lower part.

Q Are you aware of other cemetery chapels like yours?

A This is probably the first chapel

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

have a little chapel there, it will give them so much more meaning.

Q This chapel is now part of your legacy.

A I’ve always loved shrines. They provide a physical education, something you see with your eyes. They teach more than anything else. And they live on!

This was done within the last 10 years of my life — so you may not accomplish anything until you’re 90!

Q And you didn’t learn organ until you were in your 80s. You’re selftaught!

like that to be put in a cemetery. They all have columbariums. But this is something new, and I would like other churches to pick up the idea and do the same so that when a person can’t have a Mass or ceremony in a church, they can have it there at the cemetery.

The Catholic Church is falling behind and churches are closing in many places.

Maybe all that will be left some day will be the cemeteries, and if these cemeteries

A I haven’t played for about six months.

But I could play a little bit. I won’t give up my organ.

Q You hardly have any wrinkles!

What’s your secret to aging well?

A The book of Exodus says: “Honor

your father and your mother and you will live a long life.” I’ve lived the long life the Bible promises. It’s held true. I

didn’t drink or smoke. I always got a lot of sleep. I always ate well. I was outdoors a lot.

Q You also embraced the arts —

writing poetry, painting china, making greeting cards. Does your love of art relate to your faith?

A Oh yes! I would sit in church as a

child and admire all the statues and the beautiful Stations of the Cross that they had at St. Matthew’s (in St. Paul). That was my introduction to art. I love to go to church because of its beauty.

Q Looking back, can you see God’s hand in your life?

A If the Lord wants you in a certain

place, at a certain time, he may have to go to extremes to get you there. You think, “Oh, I lost my job!” You’re not where the Lord wants you. And he’s going to have things happen to you till he gets you where he wants you. I see it so clearly. It’s a gift of aging. You see more over the years and then you can look

TS

T& S

Children need more than a mother and a father. They need other adults to cover the bases that parents can’t. Kids ask you questions they wouldn’t ask their parents. Our house was full of everybody else’s children. It was the headquarters in every neighborhood we lived in.

When my husband, Edward, and I lived in Vegas, the kids out on the streets were the children of showgirls who slept during the day. The kids would come over and I would entertain them and give them treats and teach some art lessons.

Q It sounds like you have vivid memories of those children.

A It was almost 50 years ago. We got

transferred for Edward’s work. I had left this beautiful house on the water and I was now in this desert place. The day after we moved in, I was in bed crying.

Then this little boy Jeff appeared in his swimming trunks — 4 or 5 years old. I asked, “Do you want to meet my little dog?”

Every day he came over to see me. He said his stepdad hated him. One day he told me his grandmother was coming and maybe he’d have enough money to buy one of my porcelain mice for her. I waited the next day, and he didn’t come up. I waited the next day, and he didn’t come up. He was shipped to Milwaukee and hadn’t been told.

I never saw Jeff again. I’ve still got his little mouse, waiting to give it to him.

PLEASE TURN TO Q&A ON PAGE 23

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18 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

FOCUSONFAITH SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER MICHAEL SKLUZACEK

A painful joy Whenever October rolls around, I find myself feeling strangely fearful, apprehensive at some unknown darkness lurking nearby. It’s not the fear of the onset of winter, nor even of the glorified evil that shows its face around Halloween. I discovered some years ago that October reminds me of the fear of losing what I have loved. My mother died in October 46 years ago, as did a close college friend that same October. Ever since, October reminds me of the fearful pain of losing what I once loved.

When someone we love deeply dies, something in us dies as well.

Love creates a bond that, when it is broken, hurts. When death touches what we love, we can become afraid of going on. We can feel lost, aimless, without a purpose in living. We can be afraid of loving again. It’s a fearful thing to lose what we have loved.

A poem, titled “‘Tis a Fearful Thing,” attributed to Rabbi Chaim Stern (1930-2001) and printed at the end of this column, expresses this fear of loving what death can touch.

The scribe in today’s Gospel (Mk 12:28b-34) recognizes that the love of God and neighbor is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices. The end goal of love is worth the cost of the fear and pain that love engenders. Jesus commends his answer, and assures him that he is not far from the kingdom of God. When we love without fear, we are well on the way to that kingdom. As pilgrims on this earth, we know where we are going; our destination is the kingdom of God. In the kingdom of God, love casts out all fear.

To love God with all our being scatters the darkness and fear that come with losing what we have loved. Because when we love God with all our being, we discover that love never ends. The fear of

ASK FATHER MIKE | FATHER MICHAEL SCHMITZ

Remember ‘backwards blessings’ Q I find myself consistently becoming more

and more aware of the good things in other people’s lives — and the lack of good things in my life. The demands of work and family and taking care of my parents is really weighing on me.

A This is such a fantastic question. And this is such a fantastic problem to have.

I apologize: I can imagine that my excitement over your dilemma doesn’t help all that much. But I hear something in your question that has resonated deeply with me recently.

Students have recently returned to the campus where I serve as a chaplain for our Newman Center. After a year-and-a-half of looking across the street and seeing the parking lot less than a quarter full and only having limited contact with our students, it has been such a blessing to see them in person and to have the parking lot full again.

At the same time, since it has been so long since we have been able to have them all back, I have to admit that I became a bit accustomed to having more space in our little Newman House to myself. Now, I can’t walk through the living room without noticing all of the dirt that students have tracked into the house.

I walked into the chapel the other day and someone had left all of the lights on. I was trying to record an episode of the podcast for “‘The Bible in a Year,” but musicians were practicing for Sunday Mass in the basement, and I had to wait until they were done before I could hit “record.” On top of all of that, with so many students back, I am constantly tired and dream of the day when I will be able to get to bed at a normal hour for a middle-aged man!

I was praying about all of this one day. And I have to confess that I was feeling a little bit salty (which is Gen-Z for “bitter”)

The end goal of love is worth the cost of the fear and pain that love engenders. loving what death can touch fades when the fullness of love grasps our heart. When we remember the eternity of love, even the loss of a loved one brings a painful joy. Like the scribe in the Gospel, we realize we are not far from the kingdom of God. ‘Tis a holy thing to love what death has touched.

‘TIS A FEARFUL THING ’Tis a fearful thing to love what death can touch.

A fearful thing to love, to hope, to dream, to be — to be, And oh, to lose.

A thing for fools, this, And a holy thing, a holy thing to love.

For your life has lived in me, your laugh once lifted me, your word was gift to me.

To remember this brings painful joy. ’Tis a human thing, love, a holy thing, to love what death has touched.

Father Skluzacek is director of pastoral formation at The St. Paul Seminary and sacramental minister at St. Wenceslaus in New Prague.

He can be reached at sklu9211@stthomas.edu. about the lights and the mess and the noise and the lack of sleep. But then I realized something: There is a mess in my house because students feel comfortable spending time at our Newman House. The lights were left on in the chapel because our students have been choosing to make time to pray in the Lord’s presence.

I wasn’t able to record a podcast because we have students who generously offer their musical gifts and practice for Sunday Mass.

And I’ve been tired because so many young people are responding to the call of Jesus to follow him, and they just want some guidance on how to do that.

All of my complaints were actually “backwards blessings.”

Would I prefer that the house was clean and no students were there? Would I prefer space and time to myself rather than having the chance to be a part of the miracle that God is working in the lives of future saints? How crazy would I be to trade having a front row seat to what God is doing on campus for a full night’s sleep?

And I wonder if this isn’t true for many of us. You note that you have experienced the demands of “work and family and caring for your parents.” Those demands are real. I would never want to minimize the difficulty and real suffering that accompanies so much of life. The idea of “backwards blessings” isn’t an invitation to ignore real trials and difficulties. But it is an invitation to look at the other side of things.

Yes, our jobs sometimes place more stress on our lives than we prefer, but what a gift to have a job. Family can be a real thorn, with fights and disagreements and more demands on time and resources, but what a gift to have the responsibility of family. And certainly, it can be taxing to have to care for elderly parents, but the day is going to come when we would give anything to be able to care for them one more day.

Again, I do not want to make light of real pain. But almost every pain in our life can be lightened by perspective. I wonder if this isn’t why St. Paul invited Christians in Thessaloniki to “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thes 5:18). We can do this when we know that God is in all circumstances, and that even many of our pains contain hidden “backwards blessings.”

Father Schmitz is director of youth and young adult ministry for the Diocese of Duluth and chaplain of the Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

KNOW the SAINTS ST. MARTIN DE PORRES (1597-1639) This illegitimate son of a freed Panamanian slave and a Spanish knight became a hero to the people of Lima, Peru, his birthplace, for his compassionate care of the sick and poor. Apprenticed at age 12 to a barber-surgeon, Martin also learned herbal medicine from his mother. After working for several years at a Dominican monastery as a Third Order member, he made his profession as a lay brother in 1603. He founded an orphanage and foundling hospital, ministered to African slaves, practiced great penances and experienced mystical gifts. Martin was carried to his grave by prelates and noblemen, and all Peruvians acclaimed him their beloved saint. He is the patron of hairdressers and interracial justice. At right, St. Martin de Porres is depicted in a stained-glass window at Holy Rosary church in Minneapolis. His feast day is Nov. 3.

— Catholic News Service

DAILY Scriptures Sunday, Oct. 31 Thirty-first Sunday In Ordinary Time Dt 6:2-6 Heb 7:23-28 Mk 12:28b-34 Monday, Nov. 1 Solemnity of All Saints Rv 7:2-4, 9-14 1 Jn 3:1-3 Mt 5:1-12a Tuesday, Nov. 2 Commemoration of All Souls Wis 3:1-9 Rom 6:3-9 Jn 6:37-40 Wednesday, Nov. 3 Rom 13:8-10 Lk 14:25-33 Thursday, Nov. 4 St. Charles Borremeo, bishop Rom 14:7-12 Lk 15:1-10 Friday, Nov. 5 Rom 15: 14-21 Lk 16:1-8 Saturday, Nov. 6 Rom 16:3-9, 16, 22-27 Lk 16:9-15 Sunday, Nov. 7 Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time 1 Kgs 17:10-16 Heb 9:24-28 Mk 12:38-44 Monday, Nov. 8 Wis 1:1-7 Lk 17:1-6 Tuesday, Nov. 9 Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome Ez 47:1-2, 8-9, 12 1 Cor 9c-11, 16-17 Jn 2:13-22 Wednesday, Nov. 10 St. Leo the Great, pope and doctor of the Church Wis 6:1-11 Lk 17:11-19 Thursday, Nov. 11 St. Martin of Tours, bishop Wis 7:22b—8:1 Lk 17:20-25 Friday, Nov. 12 St. Josaphat, bishop and martyr Wis 13:1-9 Lk 17:26-37 Saturday, Nov. 13 St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, virgin Wis 18:14-16; 19:6-9 Lk 18:1-8 Sunday, Nov. 14 Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time Dn 12: 1-3 Heb 10:11-14, 18 Mk 13:24-32

OCTOBER 28, 2021

CUPPA JOE | FATHER JOHN FLOEDER

St. Joseph’s silent witness and example

If St. Joseph had a country song, it would be “When You Say Nothing at All,” by Keith Whitley and famously performed by Alison Krauss. Not a word of St. Joseph is recorded in Scripture. We only read of how God speaks to him and how he responds.

St. John Paul II praises St. Joseph, in “Redemptoris Custos,” for his ready response to the Lord, which characterizes “Joseph’s Way.” Pope Benedict praises Joseph’s silence because it shows he is “steeped in contemplation of the mystery of God.” In all this, St. Joseph is a silent witness, not only to the mystery of the Incarnation and salvation, but to the Christian life.

St. Joseph says it best when he says nothing at all.

In St. Joseph’s silent witness, three things stand out.

First, in his silence, St. Joseph was able to hear and recognize the voice of the Lord. The angel shared many

FOCUSONFAITH startling things with Joseph: that he should take Mary as his wife, that the child she was carrying was from the Holy Spirit, and that he should name him Jesus. How did St. Joseph know to trust this message? This was not the first time he heard the Lord’s voice. To recognize God’s voice, one must spend time listening, showing up every day in prayer. Not only that, but we must quiet our hearts: “Be still and know that I am God” (Ps 46:10).

Second, St. Joseph lived a life ready to do what God asks. Both in his dream before the birth of Jesus and before the flight to Egypt, St. Joseph was asked to do very difficult tasks. But, once it became clear what God wanted, he did it without hesitation. How did he do this? St. Joseph would have had to cultivate the disposition to do whatever God willed. This was built up, brick by brick, by being faithful in small things such that it became the default movement of his heart.

Third, St. Joseph lived holiness in the ordinariness of daily life. Jesus went with St. Joseph to Nazareth and was obedient to his parents. As his foster father, St. Joseph would teach Jesus how to be a man, including his trade as a carpenter. Jesus learned the value and dignity of work at the side of St. Joseph. St. Joseph would have also shown how to maintain the presence of God in the middle of ordinary life. St. John Paul II holds forth the example of St. Joseph as a model of how to balance action and contemplation.

St. Joseph as a silent witness shows us that it does not take great eloquence or grand designs to be a

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 19

“Cuppa Joe” is a series of 10 talks by 10 theologians on the 10 wonders of St. Joseph taking place at 10 locations in our archdiocese entrusted to the patronage of our spiritual father.

These talks premiere the first Tuesday of the month through December at 4 p.m. — just in time for afternoon coffee. The next presentation, “Patron of a Happy Death” by Deacon Dan Gannon, will be posted Nov. 2. It was recorded at the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet’s Our Lady of the Presentation Chapel in St. Paul.

Watch the full “Cuppa Joe” series at archspm.org/cuppajoe. good Christian witness. St. Joseph shows us the inner dispositions and concrete actions needed to love our families and love the Lord: listen to the Lord, be ready to do what he asks, and allow the Lord to be with you always, even amid work. Then you too can say it best when you say nothing at all.

Father Floeder is director of the Propaedeutic Year and director of Human Formation at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul.

St. Joseph in Rosemount brought together Irish and German immigrants Editor’s note: This is eighth story in a monthly series of 10 places in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis with connections to St. Joseph.

By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit The 1868 founding of St. Joseph of Rosemount temporarily brought together Catholics from two towns, but another union still exists between members whose families came from European countries of different languages more than 1,000 miles apart.

“You have this kind of comingling of Irish and Germans, at a point even if you look at history when technically the two countries were at world wars. But they worked together and were supportive of one another,” said Father Paul Kammen, who has pastored the parish’s 2,000 households for six years.

Long before the parish’s founding, the first Mass in the area was celebrated in 1855, in the home of Michael and Mary Johnston near Crystal Lake in Fairfield (now Lakeville) by Father John McMahon, pastor at that time of Guardian Angels in Hastings, according to Gerald Mattson, who researched parish history. (Guardian Angels merged with St. Boniface in 1987 to become St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parish.)

About 10 founding families from Rosemount and Lakeville gathered for Mass when priests could come, until Father Anatole Oster brought the two missions together to build a wood frame church, dedicated in 1868. Parishioners from the two communities named the parish St. Joseph. But neither was fully pleased with the location, at what is now 160th Street, according to Mattson.

St. Joseph parish grew with Dakota County, and in 1876, parishioners from Lakeville left to found All Saints in Lakeville.

Four years after the split, a cyclone destroyed St. Joseph church, throwing its 1,200-pound bell and framing 150 feet. A second wood frame church was built near South Robert Trail and dedicated in 1881, Mattson wrote in his history.

St. Joseph parish built its third church, a Gothic-style brick structure, near the previous one in 1924. The afternoon of Christmas Eve, parishioners laid the stillunfinished church’s wood floor in time for Midnight Mass. The church was dedicated in 1925.

Father James Furey, who served the parish from

St. Joseph in Rosemount’s current church was dedicated in 2003, 135 years after 10 founding families from the Rosemount and Lakeville areas gathered to dedicate the parish’s first, wood-frame church located between the two communities.

COURTESY FATHER PAUL KAMMEN

1938 until 1973, except for a short period, left a big impression on lifelong parishioner Richard Brand, 89.

“That was back in the day when no way were you going to miss Mass on Sunday,” he said. “Father Furey had it all figured out, how many hundreds of hours you have in a week, and you owe God one hour on Sunday, and he made sure church was one hour long.”

In 1952 Father Furey oversaw construction of the parish’s first school and convinced the Sisters of St. Agnes of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, to teach there, Mattson wrote. After teaching from 1953 until 1985, the sisters moved into other ministries. The school now has a lay staff.

As the area’s population grew, four new parishes were founded around St. Joseph in Rosemount between 1965 and 1990. Current parish boundaries for St. Joseph extend to St. Thomas Becket in Eagan, St. Agatha in Coates and All Saints in Lakeville. They also extend to the Burnsville parishes of Risen Savior and Mary Mother of the Church and to St. John Neumann in Eagan,

Father Kammen said.

In 2003, then-Auxiliary Bishop Richard Pates dedicated the parish’s current brick church, located a mile east of the former church at Biscayne Avenue and Connemara Trail. The previous church building was desacralized and is now used for senior and social events, he said.

In 2009, the parish opened a new school connected to the church building for about 225 students in grades K-8 and 50 in preschool.

A more than 100-year-old statue of St. Joseph stands in the church narthex, while a newer statue is in the sanctuary. The patron also appears in a stained-glass window.

St. Joseph is a silent witness watching over the Holy Family and all of us, Father Kammen said. “God works through a bunch of small actions, and you think, what did Joseph do, day in and day out, for the Holy Family?

He just quietly watched over them, helping them to know it would be OK.”

20 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

COMMENTARY YOUR HEART, HIS HOME | LIZ KELLY

The mission of Mary

When I was coming back into the Church in my late 20s, Mary was a bit of a stumbling block to me. I didn’t have enough education to make a distinction between worship and veneration, for example. And though I respected the Blessed Mother, I cringed at the way she had been portrayed so often: a pale, passive, perfect Madonna. I thought, there has to be more to Mary than that. Looking back, my ignorance is embarrassing.

And Mary was exceptionally patient with me in bringing me slowly and surely into a greater understanding of her role. I had a real breakthrough moment on a writer’s retreat one weekend. We were given this creative exercise: envision a door, behind which our creative gifts would find their place and flourish. The door was a three days’ journey away.

The assignment was to tell the story of those three days.

As I began the exercise, I could not envision a door but sensed instead a precipice of some kind, high atop a mountain draped in heavy fog. I couldn’t see the precipice, but I felt it there, hidden in the dense clouds that were drifting down to overtake me. This precipice was drawing me to it, as if a rope were tied around my waist and pulling me up, but I was frightened to yield to the pull. I also sensed that I was not alone; Jesus and Mary were with me. We huddled together to discuss our course, and I told them I was afraid to begin the journey, that I couldn’t see but one step ahead of me because of the fog. Jesus said with complete authority, “Follow me. I know the way exactly.” He turned and took off up the mountain.

Startled and a bit panicked, I looked to Mary as if to say, “Where’s he going so fast?” She smiled and said, “Keep your eyes on him, and I’ll be right behind you.”

When I started after Jesus, it was as if my feet barely touched the ground. Soon we were moving so quickly, so surely and with such great agility that I was filled with exhilaration. The desire to keep up with Jesus drew me forward. He was nearly flying up the mountain, his eyes fixed ahead of him, seeing

CATHOLIC WATCHMEN | DEACON GORDON BIRD

Transformation starts with me

As I periodically don one of my favorite and seasoned T-shirts, I am reminded where transformation truly begins — each and every day. The inscription on the back prompts me to recall what needs to go on the inside of the man wearing it: “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind” (Rom 12:2).

The Apostle Paul speaks earlier in his letter to the Romans about the way worldly wisdom and values are often “deformed,” and Christians must allow God to “transform” them to be imitators of Christ.

This coming month, which begins with All Saints and All Souls Days, and later honors veterans in a secular holiday for their gift of self to their country, brings to mind the Archdiocesan Catholic Watchmen’s upcoming monthly petition and prayer: “For Justice, Mercy and Peace: That God transforms the leaders of all countries in the world to serve and

Mary, trailing behind us, was so quiet, that I sometimes thought we had lost her.

But when I turned around to check, there she was, smiling and urging me to ‘just keep your eyes on Jesus.’

iSTOCK PHOTO | KARA GEBHARDT

through the fog what I was unable to see. He moved over the rocks without one misstep. I was aware of strength in my legs and of a quiet, unnamable strength that called no attention to itself supporting me, carrying me up the hill. Mary, trailing behind us, was so quiet that I sometimes thought we had lost her. But when I turned around to check, there she was, smiling and urging me to “just keep your eyes on Jesus.”

Mary’s life, her message, and her meaning have never been anything different from that — a beckoning to fix our eyes on the Shepherd, who knows the way exactly. This is Mary at the Annunciation: “Yes, fill me with your purpose.” This is Mary whose spirit rejoices, “Great things he has done for me!” This is Mary who pondered in her own

heart, “And a sword shall pierce your own soul, too.”

This is Mary at Cana: “Do whatever he tells you.” And this is Mary at the foot of the cross: keeping her eyes on Jesus even to the end.

Our Lady of the Rosary, in this month when we celebrate you in a more pointed way, praying especially for the end to legal abortion in our country, we remember the power in your purity, and like you, we pray for the grace to keep our eyes on Jesus. Amen.

honor those who experience the perils of war and division — lifting their nations out of hostility and oppression.”

Spiritual warfare and physical warfare are concurrent in the world. Beyond prayer — which is indeed most powerful — it is difficult for us to do much about many of the worldly woes that work against justice, mercy and peace. Carefully and diligently listening to and reading multimedia that keeps people informed with the whole truth, versus selective nuggets of truth to draw people in, takes much sorting out, perhaps further research, and of course, valuable time. The latter of which deems to be the enemy, at times, as we throw up our arms and say: Come what may, but not my way!

This transformation of the mind we are called to as Christians, to evaluate and deal with the influences of our culture, can be developed, nurtured and fed properly if the spiritual food is renewed in our own hearts, first and foremost. If our daily diet allows the graces of the Holy Spirit to speak to us, feed us and interpret for us how we are supposed to live our lives in respect to the Gospel, God’s will, we pray, will be done actively and contemplatively.

Watchmen are convicted with a heaven-bent motive to witness how this works at home by their spiritual leadership: pray daily; read the Scriptures regularly; get to Mass; show what works of mercy look like even when it is time-consuming; admit when they are wrong or sorry to their family, friends and

work colleagues, and take to confession what needs to be forgiven; and meet with other men regularly to keep their spirits in check and to lift their level of accountability as spiritual fathers.

This kind of living flows effectively outside of home, and spreads to parish and community life. It helps to transform our little part of the secular world, hopefully to one where people eventually restore themselves to God. A world that eventually truly believes and trusts in God, who provides the right balance of justice and mercy that leads to peace.

Certainly, it is not easy at times to believe, much less understand if our daily dying to self — our personal transformation — can really make a difference. But try not to “be transformed (daily and diligently) by the renewal of your mind” and see what happens. No, please don’t test that! Instead, embrace daily renewal. Listen and believe what Christ tells his Apostles in the Scriptures. It is also meant for us — for Watchmen and for all Christians. He tells us to hang in there because he has already taken care of the path to victory — we just need to follow it. “I have said this to you that in me, you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33).

Kelly is the award-winning author of nine books, including “Love Like a Saint” and “Jesus Approaches.”

She travels speaking and leading retreats throughout the country. This article was adapted from Kelly’s awardwinning book “50 Reasons I Love Being Catholic.” Visit her website at lizk.org.

Deacon Bird ministers at St. Joseph in Rosemount and All Saints in Lakeville, and assists the archdiocese’s Catholic Watchmen movement. Learn more about the Catholic Watchmen at archspm.org/faith-communities/men.

COMMENTARY

OCTOBER 28, 2021

FAITH AT HOME | LAURA KELLY FANUCCI

help children put their losses into perspective. We do this when kids don’t make the team or the cast, but we also do it each time life doesn’t go their way, coaching and encouraging them to keep going.

If we practice praying through smaller disappointments, we build up stronger instincts to turn to God when bigger challenges, conflicts or crises arise.

ARCH 9, 2017 • SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA

God’s presence? eal challenges. Catholics are called to respond.

Everywhere

OTECT LIFE & MAN DIGNITY Like students taking a test, we often assign God to boxes without realizing it: God will be present at church, in Mass or in class. But we can forget that Emmanuel is with us everywhere and always.

After a win

iSTOCK PHOTO | SEVENTYFOUR The New Testament uses the Greek word “kerygma” (meaning “proclamation”) to describe the core of the Church’s How might ordinary times and teaching about Jesus’ life,leaders, death and resurrection.

The hops, dynamic Church and 1,000+ Catholics from good news that Jesus came to proclaim is the heart of all places point to the kerygma say and teach asand followers of Christ. at our State Capitol. r a dayweofdo,inspiration advocacy

— leading us deeper into the

How might ordinary times and places point to the

s 22-and-under FREE!  Learn the issues, hear dynamic kerygma — leading us deeper into the mystery of the mystery of the kingdom of God? speakers, and meet your legislators. kingdom of God? ch included with The ultimate aim of not to know Jesus often taught his disciples on the road, which  catechesis See theisnewly renovated State Capitol! doctrine or dogma (although Church teachings are essential) but to come to know the person of Jesus Christ. This relationship is what transforms our lives.

helped to keep them on the way.

At night

Kids often let down their guard at night, when they feel safe in the quiet. It’s not just a bedtime delay technique, but an ancient human instinct to ask big questions in the dark like our ancestors around the In the car campfire.

ARCsaid HBISH OP Bteenagers ERNARD HEopen BDA up BISat HOP ANDREWWhether COZZENSyou share a bedtime story with a young My always that GLORIA PUmother RIVS child or let your teenager open up about what’s on their night, in for the don’t haveofto look at&you.

Black Catholics United Lifecar, when theyArchdiocese Saint Paul Minneapolis mind, nighttime can connect us on a deeper level.

Wiser words were never spoken (and echoed from her How might evenings offer your family the chance to daughter, too).

Fielding big questions from the back seat can turn our tell stories of faith or pray together? family cars into catechesis on the go. Try praying when After a loss you see a racing ambulance, pass an accident or drive by a cemetery to put your faith into action together.

After a hard game or a deep grief, adults need to How can everyday encounters teach us about Jesus?

Where and when can we speak about faith with the young people in our lives?

s is our moment.

Let’s go!

INSIDE THE CAPITOL | MCC

the alliance, as an individual, a parish or an organization, you will receive updates on how to take action to ensure real care throughout life’s journey. Visit ethicalcaremn.org/join-us for details.

Efforts to undermine the dignity of life unfortunately do not remain solely at SPONSORS: the state level. We must also speak up on the national level in support of reforms that can truly help women and families throughout pregnancy and speak out against efforts that will further endanger the lives of the unborn.

The so-called “Women’s Health Protection Act” (H.R. 3755), which is now in the hands of the U.S. Senate, is not about protecting women’s health. Instead, this falsely named bill would allow abortion on demand nationwide at every stage of pregnancy. It would ban pro-life laws in every state and local government, force all Americans to support abortion with their tax dollars, and eliminate conscience protections for doctors.

As Catholics, it is not enough to simply be alert or feel angry about the taking of innocent lives and the lack of support for pregnant women. We must realize that now is the appointed time for which we are called to be a voice for the most vulnerable. Contact your senators today and urge them to vote no on the misnamed “Women’s Health Protection Act” and instead work toward policies that support pregnant women and help families flourish. Visit the USCCB’s action center to send your message today: votervoice.net/USCCB/home.

Beyond nd register at Respect CatholicsAtTheCapitol.org

STS:

Life Month

“Watch out, stay alert; for you do not know when the appointed time is” (Mk 13:33). St. Mark reminds us in his Gospel that we know not when the Son of Man will return. We can apply this to our call to be faithful citizens — our call to advocate for life, dignity and the good of all does not rest.

Catholics across the nation are particularly alert to issues impacting life during October, aka Respect Life Month. But we must remain vigilant and take action to protect life and dignity by combating the throwaway culture every day, at every stage. Whether it is advocating for laws that respect the lives of those who may be nearing the end of their time here or advocating for those whose lives have just begun in the womb.

To aid in efforts to remain alert, we encourage people to join the Minnesota Alliance for Ethical Healthcare. This partner organization of the Minnesota Catholic Conference is a coalition of 80 organizations plus individuals who advocate for compassionate alternatives to legalizing assisted suicide in Minnesota.

The reality is that the issue is not going away, making it even more important for Catholics to remain vigilant and prepare by promoting life affirming alternatives that are truly compassionate. By joining

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 21

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

Isn’t it ironic that we often pray more when life is harder? Cultivating habits of praise and thanksgiving when things go well — a big win at school or a small victory on the field — can help us celebrate life’s joys with God, too.

Giving thanks is not just a gratitude practice but a path to humility: We learn not to take the credit when things go right or blame others when they go wrong.

The next time your child brings home good news, remember to thank God first.

Over dinner Our Catholic faith is sacramental and eucharistic, which is another way of saying we love to feast. The celebration of Mass gathers us around the table of the Lord, who ate with sinners and saints alike. What parent doesn’t need to remember this motley crew each time we sit down to dine with ouriSTOCK beloved PHOTOchildren? | SEVENTYFOUR Whether you pray a quick grace or take turns sharing where you saw God that day, let a renewal of your mealtime prayers bring your family closer together and closer to God. The kerygma is like a kernel: a seed of God’s word that we can help grow each day. Where might you seek the good news in your own life?

A parishioner of St. Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove, Fanucci is a writer, speaker, and author of several books, including “Everyday Sacrament: The Messy Grace of Parenting.” Her work can be found at laurakellyfanucci.com.

Work hard, give smarter.

You’ve worked hard to save for your retirement. And maybe, you don’t need the income from your IRA required minimum distribution (RMD) just yet. Ever considered using a qualified charitable distribution (QCD) strategy?

With a QCD, you direct your RMD to your parish or favorite charity. If your parish has a permanent endowment, your QCD can easily become a legacy gift.

Call to learn more about QCDs and charitable planning.

Call 651.389.0300 or visit ccf-mn.org

Catholic Community

FOUNDATION OF MINNESOTA

22 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

Why I am Catholic

I’

m Catholic because it’s the only way to quench my thirst.

I grew up in a working-class family torn apart by divorce at

By Eric Nelson DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Once our son was accepted, we decided to attend Mass there to see what he would be in for. We didn’t know when

a young age. I set goals that I imagined would guarantee me

to stand, sit or kneel, or what to respond. But once we started

a happy life. I would get a first-rate education, learn foreign

reciting the “Our Father,” I got so choked up that I couldn’t

languages, become a proficient musician, get a high-paying

finish it aloud. Soon we were attending every Sunday Mass

job, buy a nice house, marry a beautiful wife and have

and RCIA classes during the week. Our sons were baptized.

adorable children to raise in a perfect family home. If you’ve

My first confession was one of the most transformative

ever listened to the hit Beatles song “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da,”

experiences of my life. We were confirmed at the next Easter

then you have a pretty good picture of what I was after, as

Vigil.

well as the naïve and childlike way I envisioned it.

I no longer experience that feeling of discontent that I had

And so, I studied and worked hard for many years, and in

before I came into the Catholic Church. My former goals

time achieved everything I had set out to accomplish. I made

in life were not bad, but they were misdirected. For what

it to the mountaintop. I had nothing to complain about.

does it profit a man to gain the whole world, if he loses his

I had no hardships. Life was stable and secure at last. And yet

soul? God gave me all the worldly things I wanted, and I

there was still this indescribable longing.

discovered that man cannot live on bread alone. What I

I began reading spiritual works, like the poetry of Khalil

strive for now is to serve the Lord instead of myself. My life

Gibran, Tolstoy’s “The Gospel in Brief,” and the Jefferson

is centered on Jesus Christ. I am fed by his word and by his

Bible (Thomas Jefferson’s edition, wherein he removed all of

body and blood, and I am fulfilled.

the miracles and the supernatural from the Gospels).

I avoided Christianity, because it seemed too simplistic. It was the religion of my childhood, picked up in bits and pieces on those few occasions when we went to Sunday School, Bible School, or church at Montrose Methodist. Christianity was not for intellectual college graduates like me.

Then came kindergarten. All the public schools to which

Since 2008, Nelson, 54, and his wife, Mee Lee, have been members of Our Lady of Grace in Edina, where he is a cantor and chorister, she is an extraordinary minister of holy Communion, and their sons are altar servers. Nelson is also a lawyer and an amateur juggler.

we applied for our firstborn son said no. We turned to Our Lady of Grace because it was on my wife’s way to work, and it had some of the best test scores in Minnesota. By a miracle, they still had a spot open when we applied in May, despite normally filling up much sooner.

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

OCTOBER 28, 2021

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 23

CALENDAR PARISH EVENTS Holiday Bazaar — Nov. 6: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at Assumption, 305 E. 77th St., Richfield. Handmade goods, book sale, gently-used holiday items, food — including caramel rolls. assumptionrichfield.org Fall Craft Fair —Nov. 6: 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at St. Rita, 8694 80th St. S., Cottage Grove. Handmade crafts, baked goods, homemade jams, houseplants and more. Refreshments for purchase from the Knights of Columbus. All proceeds support Mission Outreach and St. Rita’s Building Fund. saintritas.org Fair and Ethical Trade Sale — Nov. 6: 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at St. John Neumann, 4030 Pilot Knob Road, Eagan. Household items, fashion/accessories, food and more; Fair Trade ensures that workers in developing countries are paid a fair price for their products. sjn.org Country Store Craft Sale — Nov. 6: 1-4 p.m., and after weekend Masses at St. Joseph the Worker church hall, 7180 Hemlock Lane N., Maple Grove.

Knights of Columbus Ladies Auxiliary annual craft sale. Proceeds go to charities in the parish and community. sjtw.net Turkey Bingo — Nov. 7: 2 p.m. at St. Patrick of Cedar Lake Township, 24425 Old Highway 13 Blvd., Jordan. St. Catherine CCW. $10 per card for 20 games with two $50 coverall games for $1 per card. Door prizes and a light meal. Masks, please, for those not fully vaccinated. stpandc.mn.org Christmas Bazaar — Nov. 13-14: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at St. Alphonsus, 7025 Halifax Ave. N., Brooklyn Center. Multicultural food, handmade crafts and gifts including a Christmas Attic filled with treasures.

Homemade baked goods including jellies and candy.

Visit Santa and Mrs. Claus. stalsccw.wildapricot.org CCW Craft/Bake Sale — Nov. 13-14: at St Peter, 2600 N. Margaret St. N., St. Paul. Nov. 13: 2-6 p.m.; Nov. 14: 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Coffee and doughnuts Nov. 14. Sponsored by St. Peter’s Council of Catholic Women. churchofstpeternsp.org K of C Pancake Breakfast — Nov. 14: 8 a.m.-noon at Guardian Angels school gym, corner of First and Cedar Street, Chaska. Sponsored by the GA Knights of Columbus. Pancakes, French toast, sausage, scrambled eggs, coffee, juice and milk. $10 ages 13 and up; $5 ages 5-12, free under 5. gachaska.org Matching Grant Bingo — Nov. 14: 1 p.m. at Sts. Peter and Paul, 145 Railway St. E., Loretto. $8 a card for 20 games of bingo, a chance at door prizes, a turkey sandwich luncheon and more. Family cap

SMALL GROUPS UNDERWAY

of $35. Event benefits parish seminarians and the Schuler Fund. saintsppta.org

PRAYER+WORSHIP Healing Mass — Nov. 6: 4:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes, 1 Lourdes Place, Minneapolis. Ask Our Lady of Lourdes and all holy women and men of God to pray for greater healing for all. Confession available before Mass. Anointing of the sick will be offered. lourdesmpls.org A Pilgrimage with St. Martin de Porres, Patron Saint of Racial Reconciliation — Nov. 6: 9:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at Ascension, 1723 N. Bryant Ave., Minneapolis. Seek God’s healing for individuals and the community with a pilgrimage in honor of the saint, whose feast day is Nov. 3. mary.org

RETREATS Women’s Weekend Retreat — Nov. 5-7: at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. Spiritual renewal under the theme for 2021: “Hope Rising; Revisioning Our Dream.” Blend of scheduled and open time.

Confession, anointing, Mass, Holy Hour and prayer sessions. franciscanretreats.net NET Ministries Confirmation Retreat Weekend — Nov. 13-14: 8:30 a.m.-4p.m. at NET Ministries, 110 Crusader Ave. W., West St. Paul. For Catholic youth grades 8-12 preparing for the sacrament of confirmation. Adoration, reconciliation and Sunday Mass. Large group talks and presentations, small group discussions. netusa.org/confirmation

OTHER EVENTS

Abria Looking for Volunteers — Nov. 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20: 8 a.m. at Abria, 2200 University Ave. W., No. 160, St. Paul. Seeking volunteer ultrasound models to help train nurses. Call 651-695-0111 or email at maryg@abria.org.

Deacon Discernment Day — Nov. 6: 8:15 a.m.-5 p.m. at The St. Paul Seminary, 2260 Summit Ave., St. Paul. Men ages 25-59 and their spouses, if applicable, are invited to attend. Mass, prayer, reflections, lunch, questions and answers about the diaconate. Contact Deacon Bob Bisciglia at bobbisciglia@stthomas.edu or 651-962-5782. Register online at semssp.org/event/deacon-discernment-day-4.

Operation Andrew Dinner — Nov. 11: 6-8 p.m. at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center, 777 Forest St., St. Paul. Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Father David Blume, Director of Vocations, would like to invite men, 16 and older, who are discerning their vocation to join them for dinner and conversation about priesthood

Archbishop Bernard Hebda has asked all parishes in the archdiocese to host Synod Small Groups this fall for Catholics to learn, pray and share ideas on three focus areas ahead of the 2022 Archdiocesan Synod. Focus areas are: Forming parishes that are in the service of evangelization, forming missionary disciples who know Jesus’ love and respond to his call, and forming youth and young adults in and for a Church that is always young. Small groups will meet for six 2-hour sessions through mid-November.

Watch for communications from your parish about how to participate in a small group there. and religious life. Register online before Nov. 8 at 1000vocations.org Franciscan International Award Dinner — Nov. 11: 6-9 p.m. at 3151 Wilds Ridge, Prior Lake. For 62 years, this has been an opportunity to gather and support the Franciscan Retreat House and honor an organization that embodies the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi. 2021 Recipient: Bolder Options, Darrell Thompson; a youth mentoring organization. franciscanretreats.net/franciscan-international-award Magic and Miracles: SouthWest Options for Women — Nov. 13: 7-9:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Grace / Cassidy Hall, 5071 Eden Ave., Edina. Holiday musical benefit for SouthWest Options for Women. secure.ministrysync.com/ministrysync/event/?e=22140 CEND presents an evening with Chris Stefanick — Nov. 30: 7-9 p.m. at St. Patrick, 6820 St. Patrick’s Lane, Edina. An evening discussing joy, love and inspiration for everyday life. Also, VIP opportunity to meet Chris and ask questions. catholiccend.org

MUSIC “Moonshine Abbey: A Musical” — Nov. 12-21: 7 p.m. at St. Agnes School, 530 Lafond Ave., St. Paul. Follow the monks as they distill liquor during Prohibition, evade the law or change their way of life. Produced by Missed the Boat Theatre. missedtheboattheatre.com Soirée Musicale: Inaugural Organ Concert — Nov. 16: 7 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes, One Lourdes Place, Minneapolis. Featuring the completed R. Strangis Memorial Pipe Organ. J. Benda, organist.

A. Andres, violinist. Minnesota Premiere of “The Phoenix” for violin and organ by British composer David Bednall. lourdesmpls.org

CALENDAR submissions DEADLINE: Noon Thursday, 14 days before the anticipated Thursday date of publication.

We cannot guarantee a submitted event will appear in the calendar. Priority is given to events occurring before the next issue date.

LISTINGS: Accepted are brief no­tices of upcoming events hosted by Catholic parishes and organizations. If the Catholic connection is not clear, please emphasize it in your submission. Included in our listings are local events submitted by public sources that could be of interest to the larger Catholic community.

ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication: uTime and date of event uFull street address of event uDescription of event uContact information in case of questions ONLINE: TheCatholicSpirit.com/calendarsubmissions

Q&A CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17

Q All these years! Now he’s in his 50s.

A He was such an interesting boy. He taught me about the weather and the cicadas.

Q He needed you and you needed him.

A Oh yes! All these children filled my family. I didn’t have one.

Q How did you cope with the death of your husband in 2009?

A When I lost my husband, I decided,

“Gee, I’m in unfamiliar territory here.

I’ve got to start making some friends.”

So, I stayed for coffee after Mass and one lady suggested I get a cat. They say people who have pets live longer.

Two weeks later she came over and took me to get one. I chose a little white kitten and named her Tinkerbell. She’s worked out perfect. She hops on my blanket in the morning and we cuddle.

That’s our little love session.

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24 • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

OCTOBER 28, 2021

THELASTWORD

Playwright priest Father Kowalczyk pours heart and soul into community theater

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit

F

ather Kyle Kowalczyk’s ministry as a priest includes a rather unique calling: writing plays and building community around Catholic theater.

“I consider it an apostolate,” said Father Kowalczyk, whose latest stage effort, “Moonshine Abbey: A Musical,” is about monks making moonshine during Prohibition and a man discerning religious life who is disillusioned by these “bunch of bums.”

It will be performed Nov. 12-21 at St. Agnes School in St. Paul. “Some priests do retreats,” Father Kowalczyk said, “(or) talks, spiritual direction.”

Father Kowalczyk writes plays. So far, 10 of them. And musicals, two and counting. And he co-founded the production company currently putting them on: Missed the Boat Theatre. It is a Catholic-based company without a theater to call home, but one that is happy and grateful to highlight St. Agnes and its Helene Houle Auditorium, which played host two years ago to Missed the Boat Theatre’s “Catholic Young Adults: The Musical,” also written by Father Kowalczyk.

Theater has been in Father Kowalczyk’s blood since his days at Big Rapids High School in Big Rapids, Michigan, when he had roles in such plays as “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” and “Rutherford Wolf” (he played the lead role as a gentle, peace-loving vegetarian who raises a panic among various fairy tale characters because of wolves’ bad reputation).

“I think it was an outlet for my creativity — (creativity) I didn’t know I had,” Father Kowalczyk, 40, told The Catholic Spirit during a rehearsal of “Moonshine Abbey.” “I think everyone has a God-given desire and a need to do something creative.”

Energy and creativity of the theater came at a good time for him, around his sophomore year, Father Kowalczyk said, because it added focus to his life. He had floundered in eighth and ninth grade, playing the class clown and getting into trouble.

“I don’t have to act out, I can act,” he decided.

A strong pull toward humor remains, however, and a desire to keep it clean.

“It’s discouraging when humor is crass and cuss and salty jokes,” he said.

“I always think, ‘You could have done better than that.’ Let’s make people laugh without making people cringe.”

Humor aplenty is found in the CYA musical and in “Moonshine Abbey,” particularly the kind of inside jokes Catholics would understand, Father Kowalczyk said.

“Part of my journey to the priesthood was in a monastery (on the East

PHOTOS BY DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

ABOVE Father Kyle Kowalczyk attends a rehearsal of his play “Moonshine Abbey: A Musical,” Oct. 14 at St. Agnes School in St. Paul. TOP RIGHT Nikelle Morris, left, rehearses a scene with other cast members. BOTTOM RIGHT Father Kowalczyk talks with Director Mary Shaffer.

Coast),” he said. “Anybody watching this (‘Moonshine’) will find it funny, a Catholic will think it’s funnier, a seminarian will understand even more references, and if you’ve ever been in a religious order, it’s game over.”

“Moonshine Abbey” is set in the fictional Saint Hippolytus Abbey in an unnamed small town. But the idea of monks making moonshine during Prohibition is not fiction. The Benedictine monks of St. John’s Abbey in Collegeville did just that, Father Kowalczyk’s research showed. And a 2007 book, “Minnesota 13: Stearns County’s Wet Wild Prohibition Days,” and a later documentary, “Minnesota 13: From Grain to Glass,” describe a prominent reason: Families in the region had to be fed. Moonshine might have been illegal, but to many, it was not immoral. “Minnesota 13” refers to the premium quality corn whiskey distilled on many farms in Stearns County.

Father Kowalczyk’s latest musical, with music by Sam Backman and direction by Mary Shaffer, was first performed in 2016 at The St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity in St. Paul, when he was a transitional deacon. It has since been revised to include roles for women, which required a new subplot, he said. He wrote and directed two other plays at the seminary: “Saved by the Guillotine” and “Murder and Mariolatry” (excessive veneration of the Virgin Mary).

He is at work on another musical, and he is playing that one close to the vest.

“Let’s just say it has to do with actuaries, fatal disease, lotteries and space travel,” he said. It is not driven by the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

Father Kowalczyk said he approaches writing as a hobby. How much time that hobby takes depends on the stage of development a play might be in.

Sometimes he mulls over ideas as he does other tasks. Sometimes he spends a day at the computer.

“If I have to write, I can sit down and write all day on it,” he said.

Striving to remember who said it, Father Kowalczyk paraphrased Ernest

Hemingway’s famous line, “The only kind of writing is rewriting.” His plays often go through 10 to 15 significant drafts.

“Sometimes it flows,” he said. “It’s working and it’s good. Sometimes I think it’s good. But I will reread it and think, ‘This is terrible. Why did I think this was good?’ Or two weeks later, ‘Wow, did I write this? This is great!’”

There is something God-given in what he is doing, Father Kowalczyk said.

“He’s given me some kind of talent.

I think if it is not formulaic, if it is discovered, it’s not from me,” he said.

“I find the ending. I don’t know how. I didn’t create it. It presented itself.”

He knew when he was ordained in 2016 that he would continue to write.

“I didn’t know that I would co-found a production company and produce plays,” he said.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda has seen some of his plays, and often asks him “when is the next production?” Father Kowalczyk said. “I take that as at least tacit approval.”

Parishioners at St. Maximilian Kolbe in Delano, where he is pastor, also support the ministry, he said. At one point during the run of CYA at St. Agnes, about 50 parishioners rented a bus together, ate dinner at a restaurant and took in the production.

One production a year does not hamper his parish ministry, Father Kowalczyk said. One reason: He confines his work outside the parish to Missed the Boat Theatre and summer training camps for young adult leaders at St. Paul-based NET Ministries, where he once served, which puts on youth retreats across the country.

“If I were doing three a year, they’d be like, Father, seriously?” he said.

It’s also a ministry that goes beyond his ability to write entertaining plays with a Catholic flavor and message. “We want to foster a Catholic community by coming together to craft beautiful works of theater,” he said. “We want to pursue Catholic art and do it together.”

To that end, each Monday of rehearsals the troupe celebrates a Mass and shares

‘MOONSHINE ABBEY’ Helene Houle Auditorium St. Agnes School 530 Lafond Ave., St. Paul 7 p.m. Nov. 12-13 2 p.m. Nov. 14 7 p.m. Nov. 19-20 2 p.m. Nov. 21 Order tickets: missedtheboattheatre.com

dinner before hitting the stage. “At the last show, people showed up who had never met each other, and before long they became best friends,” he said.

One student said “this is the best experience of community that she’s had in four years of university,” Father Kowalczyk said.

Missed the Boat Theatre attracts young professionals, particularly men and women who have not started a family and have time to give to a production, Father Kowalczyk said. But it also attracts performers and audience members of all ages, and it hopes to continue to broaden the spectrum of ages on stage, he said.

Nikelle Morris, 50, of St. Vincent de Paul in Brooklyn Park, said she has participated in community theater over the years, and attended the CYA production. She now holds the female lead in “Moonshine Abbey,” that of the police captain.

“I went to ‘CYA,’” she said. “We heard about it. The whole family went. It was amazing. It was so good.” Attracted by the production values and by the community she witnessed on stage, she decided then that, “I love this. I’m going to do this.”

The most important part of her experience, Morris said, has been the shared faith. Father Kowalczyk emphasizes that sharing the faith and caring for one another and the broader community are the primary reasons the production company exists, she said.

“The fact that every Monday we start with Mass is so great,” she said.

“It orients us to the main reason we are here, which is to give glory to God and bring joy to people, if we can.”