01 06 17 Vol. 38 No. 20

THELEAVEN.ORG | VOL. 38, NO. 20 | JANUARY 6, 2017

2 0 1 6 Y E A R I N R E V I E W

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

LOCAL NEWS

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Fresh eyes help us appreciate the gift of our faith

wo of my favorite books for 2016 were written by now-ardent Catholic women who had previously been convinced atheists.

The first of these two books — “Something Other Than God”

by Jennifer Fulwiler — I referenced and quoted in my Dec. 23 Leaven column.

The second book, written by Sally Read, a gifted British poet and author, is entitled: “Night’s Bright Darkness.”

Sally Read describes her childhood formation in an unbelieving home: “I was brought up an atheist. At 10, I could tell you religion was the opiate of the masses; it was dinned into me never to kneel before anyone or anything. My father taught me that Christians, in particular, were tambourine- bashing, intellectual weaklings. As a young woman, I could quote Christopher Hitchens and enough of the Bible to scoff at.”

At the same time, her father modeled for her great natural virtue. He taught her to protect and advocate for the weak and the vulnerable. Although her father suggested women had surrendered much of their “power” by embracing the practices of the sexual revolution, Sally had no moral code to make her wary of — much less protect her from — the allure of drugs, drinking and the promiscuity so prevalent in secular London culture

LIFE WILL BE VICTORIOUS ARCHBISHOP JOSEPH F. NAUMANN during her years of young adulthood.

She describes herself as a strident feminist who eagerly embraced the notion of the necessity of contraception and abortion in order to make possible for women uninhibited sexual expression. Sally had a particular disdain for the Catholic Church, which the sexual abuse scandals only served to confirm and deepen.

For some time as an author, Sally thought that language itself was redemptive. She felt that her ability with words to name — or, better yet, describe well a particular experience — gave her power and liberty.

However, at some point, she began to experience disquietude regarding the impotency of contemporary poems, her own included, to ask, much less answer, the “big questions.”

At this point, Sally was living in Italy, married with a 1-year-old daughter. In her search

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for English-speaking playmates for her child, she encountered several devout American Catholic women whose husbands were studying or teaching at one of the pontifical academies.

She was concerned about her daughter associating with these Catholic children but, in the end, decided they were better than no playmates at all.

Another crack in Sally’s world view was caused by her difficult experience with some of the physical side effects of oral contraception.

Sally began to collaborate on a book project with a female medical doctor, who had suffered some of the same physical problems with contraceptives. Their concept was to author a book on female sexual and reproductive health.

Her own health issues made her intrigued by the concept of natural family planning. She wanted to interview a Catholic woman about the church’s perspective on these health issues, but all of her Catholic acquaintances turned her down, suspecting that the church’s

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teaching was not going to receive an unbiased treatment. In desperation, she reached out to an Eastern Rite Catholic priest, whom she barely knew, in the hopes that he could facilitate an opportunity to interview a Catholic nun. Her plan was to balance off the nun’s perspective by interviewing a prostitute.

Her conversations and dialogue with this priest proved to be the catalyst that propelled her on a spiritual journey resulting in her being received into the Catholic Church inside the Vatican by a cardinal. However, her conversion was not the result of logical arguments, but a personal experience of God’s love for her.

Sally describes the completeness of her unlikely conversion: “No one argued me down from any of my liberal or progressive positions, but the logic of Christ’s love was penetrating deeper and deeper into my heart. I was aware of being known as I had never been known before. He knew me beyond the limits of my self-knowledge. He knew me as an eternal soul, but also as a physical and sexual being. It astonished me, even then, to think I had ever thought of the Church as sexually repressive. In Western post-feminist culture, with its obsession with pornography and extreme sexual acts, normal women, in the eyes of some men, are diminished, certainly boring, almost rendered obsolete. The

church made me feel the reverse — fully human, fully a woman, sensual and potent in my very ordinariness.”

During the Christmas holidays, I was listening to Jennifer Fulwiler on her Sirius Satellite Radio show respond to a question posed by a listener: “Did she recommend giving her book to family or friends who are atheists?” Jennifer responded ambiguously by leaving it up to the questioner whether to give “Something Other Than God” to the caller’s atheistic brother-in-law.

At the same time, she was crystal clear that more effective than any book in opening an unbelieving heart to the reality of God was the witness of a Christian life well-lived. There is something innately attractive about experiencing an example of the love and joy of the Gospel lived with authenticity and passion.

If you are looking for inspiring and insightful books to read in 2017, I recommend “Something Other Than God” and “Night’s Bright Darkness.” Jennifer Fulwiler and Sally Read are both masterful authors who recount with honesty and precision their own stories of spiritual transformation. I am not certain the impact either of these books might have on convicted atheists, but for those of us who were blessed to be raised Catholic, they have the power to help us appreciate the gift of our Catholic faith through fresh eyes.

ARCHBISHOP NAUMANN Jan. 11 Priests small group meeting Jan. 12 Religious Alliance Against Pornography conference call Holy Name School Sustainability Task Force results presentation

Jan. 14 Mercy and Truth Medical Mission and Birthing Center tour Spiritual Mentorship Mass and dinner — Savior Pastoral Center Jan. 15 Baptism of third or more children — Cathedral World Day of Migrants Mass — St. Patrick, Kansas City, Kansas

ARCHBISHOP KELEHER Jan. 8 Mass — St. Sebastian, Florida Jan. 14 Mass — St. Sebastian, Florida Jan. 15 Mass — St. Sebastian, Florida Jan. 21 Mass — St. Sebastian, Florida

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LOCAL NEWS

ARCHDIOCESAN JANUARY YEAR IN REVIEW

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BY JOE BOLLIG

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — It’s tempting in the aftermath of a presidential election — and a contentious one at that — to look at the year in terms of politics and politicians.

But that’s not what Catholics, guided by the light of faith, see when they look at the past year.

Why? For Catholics, this was the jubilee Year of Mercy — from Dec. 8, 2015, to Nov. 20, 2016.

In his proclamation opening the year, Pope Francis gave a loving invitation to all Catholics to experience the generous, unbounded gift of God’s transforming love and mercy.

As Holy Doors for the Year of Mercy were opened all over the world, six of them were opened in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. Plenty of people passed through those doors.

The year wasn’t, however, entirely about the jubilee. This was also the year that Pope Francis went to World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland. Thousands of Americans, including some from the archdiocese, greeted the pope as a fellow pilgrim.

Like any year, the past year brought both sadness and rejoicing. We mourned the deaths of four pastors, but rejoiced at the ordinations of two transitional deacons and one priest.

Even with great diligence, only a fraction of archdiocesan life could be captured in a weekly offering of 16 pages. Nevertheless, a perusal of the year’s events recorded in The Leaven’s pages reveals a diverse, vital and vigorous Catholic community — certainly something to celebrate.

So, before we close the book on this eventful year, let’s take one last look back at the events and people that affected our lives as the church of northeast Kansas in 2016.

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2016

• Matt Schambari was named the new president of Hayden High School in Topeka. He took the helm on July 1.

• More than 40 children, members of the Schola Cantorum choir from Most Pure Heart of Mary Parish in Topeka, sang at a Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on Jan. 6 at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

• The Kansas Catholic Conference sponsored a Red Mass for those in law and government on Jan. 13 at the Church of the Assumption in Topeka.

• The annual Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas Snowball was held on Jan. 16; co-presidents were Ken and Marilyn Hager and honorary presidents were Suzie Walti and Cathy and Chris Nigro.

Catholics from the archdiocese braved “Snowzilla” Jonas for the Jan. 22 March for Life in Washington, D.C. Some groups were stranded as flights were canceled, while others found the going slow via trains, buses and cars.

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Meanwhile, the march in Topeka went off without a hitch.

• A Topeka regional women’s retreat was held on Jan. 23 at Christ the King Parish.

• In an effort to better serve the growing Hispanic population of Johnson County, the archdiocese created three new parish centers with bilingual priests: Good Shepherd in Shawnee, Holy Cross in Overland Park and St. Paul in Olathe.

• Gwen and Kevin Tucker, members of Most Pure Heart of Mary Parish in Topeka, were named honorary co-chairpersons for the 2016 Archbishop’s Call to Share appeal.

• The annual Support Our Seminarians benefit, hosted by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, was held on Jan. 29 at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri.

FEBRUARY Night Vigil” over four days in St. Peter Cathedral in Kansas City, Kansas.

The Kansas Catholic Conference mobilized Catholics and other Christians for an interfaith Rally for Religious Freedom on Feb. 17 at the Capitol in Topeka. More than 1,000 people filled the Capitol rotunda.

• Longtime Hayden High School, Topeka, basketball coach Ben Meseke was honored on Feb. 23 by having the school’s basketball court named in his honor.

• More than 600 youths from across the archdiocese attended the Junior High Youth Rally on Feb. 28 at Prairie Star Ranch near Williamsburg.

• Denise Ogilvie was named director of outreach for Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas.

• About 200 catechumens and about 400 candidates celebrated the Rite of Election at three ceremonies around the archdiocese, prior to entering the Catholic Church at Easter. s

• CEF Futures, a group of young professionals who promote the work of the Catholic Education Foundation, hosted an art event on Feb. 5 at the Boulevard Brewery in Kansas City, Missouri. The event raised funds for 36 Guardian Angel Scholarships.

• About 230 students attended the Kansas Catholic College Student Convention on Feb. 5-6 at Prairie Star Ranch near Williamsburg.

• Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann met with Hispanic leaders on Feb. 9 at Our Lady of Unity Parish in Kansas City, Kansas, to share the archdiocesan mutually shared vision for the next 10 years.

• Father Joseph Arsenault, SSA, and 750 other priests from around the world were commissioned as “Missionaries of Mercy” on Feb. 10 at St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

• Msgr. Thomas Tank and Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher were among those honored at the 20th anniversary of

the annual Men Under Construction Lenten retreat on Feb. 13 at the Church of the Ascension in

Publication No. (ISSN0194-9799) President: Most Rev. Joseph F. Naumann

Overland Park.

• The Kansas City and Phoenix chorales took home a Grammy

award for Best Choral Performance on Feb. 15. The musicians recorded Rachmaninoff’s “All-

Editor Rev. Mark Goldasich, stl frmark.goldasich@theleaven.org

Production Manager Todd Habiger todd.habiger@theleaven.org

Reporter Moira Cullings moira.cullings@theleaven.org

Managing Editor Anita McSorley anita.mcsorley@theleaven.org

Senior Reporter Joe Bollig joe.bollig@theleaven.org

Advertising Coordinator Beth Blankenship beth.blankenship@theleaven.org

Published weekly September through May, excepting the Friday the week after Thanksgiving, and the Friday after Christmas; biweekly June through August. Address communications to: The Leaven, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109. Phone: (913) 721-1570; fax: (913) 721-5276; or e-mail at: sub@theleaven.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Leaven, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109.

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LOCAL NEWS

APRIL

• Eight institutions in the archdiocese — one in each region — opened their doors to the faithful for a full day and night of eucharistic adoration in response to Pope Francis’ call for “24 Hours for the Lord.”

• The archdiocese sponsored a listening event regarding parish ministries for individuals with special needs and their families on March 8 at St. Patrick Parish in Kansas City, Kansas.

Father George Henry Bertels, 87, died on March 31 at Villa St. Francis in Olathe.

• Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann blessed the new Gianna Family Care Clinic in Shawnee on April 1.

• Father Edward M. Hays, 85, died on April 3 at St. Luke Hospice Care in Kansas City, Missouri.

• Living out the “feminine genius” was the focus of the second annual Living in Truth women’s conference on April 9 at the Church of the Ascension in Overland Park.

The archdiocese held the first of four healing services for those who have been affected by any sort of harm or abuse by the church on April 12 at Good Shepherd Parish in Shawnee.

• St. Paul Outreach hosted a citywide prayer breakfast on April 14 at the Ritz Carlton in Overland Park.

• Archbishop Naumann gathered with priests, deacons, religious and laypeople for the first archdiocesan-sponsored Holy Hour for Priests on April 17 at Ascension Parish in Overland Park.

• The Haskell Catholic Campus Center in Lawrence s

MARCH

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celebrated its 30th anniversary on April 23 with an outdoor meal and Mass. Chaplain Father Michael Scully, OFM Cap., was the main celebrant; Father

Duane Reinert, OFM Cap., the former center director, concelebrated.

• Archbishop Naumann appointed Allison Donohue on

April 27 to be the new archdiocesan pro-life consultant, succeeding Ron Kelsey upon his retirement.

JUNE

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MAY

• Members of Most Pure Heart of Mary Parish in Topeka met on June 2 to work out a strategic pastoral plan for the coming year.

• The Leaven won 14 awards at the Catholic Media Conference, held June 1-3 in St. Louis.

The awards were three first place, four second place, two third place, four honorable mentions, and the Father Michael J. McGivney Award.

• Archbishop Naumann presided at the blessing and groundbreaking of a new mausoleum on June 22 at Mount Calvary Cemetery in Topeka.

Father Patric Riley, 61, died on June 12 in his rectory while receiving hospice care. He was the pastor of Holy Family Parish in Eudora.

• Archbishop Naumann celebrated the 100th anniversary Mass on June 25 of the dedication of Holy Angels Parish in Garnett. s

• Archbishop Naumann was the main celebrant at a Mass on May 7 celebrating the 25th anniversary of the founding of Ascension Parish in Overland Park. Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher and pastor Msgr. Thomas Tank were concelebrants.

• Nativity School in Leawood and Resurrection School in Kansas City, Kansas, began a “twinning” relationship as part of Archbishop Naumann’s 10year mutually shared vision.

• Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York was the commencement speaker on May 13 at Benedictine College in Atchison.

• Christ’s Peace House of Prayer, the archdiocesan retreat center near Easton, held its annual St. Isidore the Farmer feast day celebration on May 16.

• Archbishop Naumann ordained Michael Guastello and Daniel Coronado to the transitional diaconate on May 22 at St. Peter Cathedral in Kansas City, Kansas.

• Archbishop Naumann was the main celebrant at the 100th anniversary Mass of the building of St. Leo Church in Horton.

• Archbishop Naumann presided at the annual Corpus Christi procession, cosponsored

by the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, on May 29.

• Archbishop Naumann announced on May 29 the formal decree establishing a new parish in Olathe with a campus at 167th St. and Ridgeview Road. The new parish incorporates parts of four other parishes. Father Andrew Strobl was named as its pastor. s Archbishop Naumann ordained Father Agustin Martinez a priest for the archdiocese on May 28 at St. Peter Cathedral in Kansas City, Kansas.

• Seventh- and eighth-grade students from St. Agnes School in Roeland Park made it to the national finals of the Team America Rocketry Challenge in Washington, D.C., one of only two schools in Kansas and one of 100 schools in the nation to do so.

• Katie Locus, formerly a teacher at the Kansas School for the Deaf and a member of St. Paul Parish in Olathe, assumed her role as the new consultant for deaf ministry on May 31. She succeeded Pat Richey.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

LOCAL NEWS

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JULY

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• Nineteen men and women completed a three-year course of studies as part of the Escuela de Teología Básica, and received their certificates from Archbishop Naumann during a graduation ceremony on July 11 at the Blessed Sacrament Family Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

• The Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth marked the transfer of leadership to new members of its Community Council. Sister Constance Phelps was elected the new SCL community director, succeeding Sister Maureen Hall, who held the post for six years.

• Joseph Hornback, a member of Sacred Heart Parish in Shawnee, was appointed president of Bishop Miege High School in Roeland Park.

An official archdiocesan delegation of 108 Catholics attended World Youth Day 2016 from July 26-31 in Krakow, Poland.

SEPTEMBER

AUGUST The rural youth tour featuring keynote speaker Chris Padgett made stops at St. Leo, Horton, on Aug. 13 and St. Boniface Parish, Scipio, on Aug. 14.

• Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher led a retreat for deacon candidates on Aug. 17-21 at Savior Pastoral Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

• Archbishop Naumann, Abbot James Albers, OSB, and

Abbot Barnabas Senecal, OSB, celebrated a Mass on Aug. 28 commemorating the 150th anniversary of the laying of the cornerstones of St. Benedict and St. Patrick churches in Atchison. Father Jeremy Heppler, OSB, was installed as pastor.

• Catholic Cemeteries of Northeast Kansas assumed management of Mount Calvary Cemetery in Lansing.

• Archbishop Naumann was part of a panel discussion at the Peace in Our Community prayer breakfast on Sept. 10 at Savior Pastoral Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

• Abbot Gregory Polan of Conception Seminary and instructor at Conception Seminary in Conception, Missouri, was elected abbot primate of the worldwide men’s Benedictine Confederation on Sept. 10 at Sant’Anselmo Monastery in Rome.

• The four Catholic bishops of

Kansas joined forces to create a video informing Catholics of their responsibilities as faithful citizens and voters. s Archbishop Naumann was the main celebrant at the 150th anniversary Mass on Sept. 24 at Holy Angels Parish in Basehor. Following the Mass, the archbishop presided at the groundbreaking of the new Our Lady of the Angels perpetual adoration chapel.

• The first monthly iCARE Mass and social for persons with

intellectual and developmental disabilities was held on Sept.

24 at Queen of the Holy Rosary Parish in Overland Park.

• Bill Kirk was named the new executive director of the Catholic Education Foundation.

• School president Bill Ford announced on Sept. 30 that Rita and Lamar Hunt Jr. had donated $1 million through the Loretto Foundation to St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park.

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LOCAL NEWS

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OCTOBER

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• For the 10th consecutive year, Benedictine College in Atchison was named in the top tier of colleges and universities in “America’s Best Colleges” by U.S. News Media Group.

• Samantha Romero, stewardship and development director of St. John the Evangelist Parish in Lawrence, and parish volunteer Rachel Myslivy won “Best Parish Stewardship Video” at the International Catholic Stewardship Council annual conference on Oct. 3 in New Orleans.

• Archbishop Naumann announced that the name of the new Olathe parish was to be St. John Paul II and installed Father Andrew Strobl, the founding pastor, at a Mass on Oct. 10 at Madison Place Elementary School, Olathe.

On Oct. 16, parishioners of Holy Cross Parish in Overland Park joined Catholics around the world in celebrating the canonization of St. Jose Sanchez del Rio with a special Mass and procession.

• Archbishop Naumann invited archdiocesan Catholics to participate in a Year of Mercy 33-day self-directed retreat called “33 Days to Merciful Love” by Father Michael Gaitley, MIC, from Oct. 18Nov. 20.

• The Leavenworth Interfaith Community of Hope launched a capital campaign on Oct. 18 to build a new $600,000 shelter and day center.

• Father Thomas Kearns, 82, a retired priest at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Kansas City, Kansas,

was assaulted and robbed on Oct. 21 outside the rectory garage.

Two men were later arrested and charged.

• Fifty religious orders gathered for the Ultimate Vocations Fair on Oct. 26 at Church of the Ascension Parish in Overland Park. The reli-

gious were in town for the National Religious Vocation Conference.

• The Catholic Bar Association held its first national conference Oct. 27-30 in Kansas City, Missouri.

• More than 70 Catholics from eight Wyandotte and Johnson County parishes gathered at

NOVEMBER

• Betty and Ben Zarda and Tom and Mickey Zarda received the Deo Gratias Award from the Catholic Foundation of Northeast Kansas on Nov. 3 at the foundation’s annual award dinner on Nov. 3 at Savior Pastoral Center in Kansas City, Kansas.

• Holy Family School in Topeka was named this year’s Catholic Education Foundation “School of Excellence.”

• Tom Racunas was appointed the new lead consultant for the archdiocesan special-needs ministry office.

• Abbot James Albers, OSB,

blessed the newly dedicated St. Benedict and St. Scholastica Memory Care Neighborhood on Nov. 10 at Villa St. Francis in Olathe. s About 250 people attended the last jubilee Year of Mercy Holy Doors pilgrimage on Nov. 19 at Divine Mercy Parish in Gardner. The pilgrimage, sponsored by the archdiocesan Hispanic ministry, included eucharistic adoration, the sacrament of reconciliation, closing of the Holy Door and a reception. This was the last of six Holy Door pilgrimages sponsored by the His-

Sacred Heart Church in Kansas City, Kansas, to prepare for a fouryear process of reflection that will culminate in the fifth national Encuentro in Dallas in 2018. The event was sponsored by the archdiocesan Hispanic ministry.

• The Catholic Education Foun-

dation’s annual Gaudeamus, its largest annual fundraiser, attracted a sold-out crowd of more than 1,500. Attendees welcomed Bill Kirk, the new CEF executive director. The CEF also honored longtime patrons Tom and Sandy Long with the Angels Among Us award.

DECEMBER

panic ministry and the last Holy Door to be closed in the archdiocese.

• The first Rural Youth Conference in the archdiocese, sponsored by the Northeast Kansas Youth Council, was held Nov. 19-20 at the Capitol Plaza Hotel in Topeka.

• The Holy Family School of Faith received the St. Philippine Duchesne Award on Nov. 20 during a Mass at Sacred Heart Parish in Mound City.

• Father Thomas Nicholas Hesse, 79, died on Nov. 26 at Aldersgate Village in Topeka.

• Archbishop Naumann blessed and celebrated Mass in the newly renovated and enlarged adoration chapel on Dec. 3 at Prince of Peace Parish in Olathe.

• Archbishop Naumann was the main celebrant of a Mass for the Kansas City Chapter of Legatus on Dec. 19 at St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Leawood. A reception and dinner followed.

• Archdiocesan Serra Clubs hosted a parent/seminarian Mass and luncheon with Arch-

bishop Naumann on Dec. 29 at St. Patrick Parish in Kansas City, Kansas. The archbishop also celebrated vespers and had a meal with archdiocesan seminarians. s • Youths of all ages came together for a night of praise and worship, eucharistic adoration and the sacrament of reconciliation during “One Thing Remains” on Dec. 30 at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Kansas City, Kansas. The event featured performer Tony Melendez and Archbishop Naumann.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

YEAR IN REVIEW

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After divisive elections, Catholics urged to build bridges

By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service

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ASHINGTON (CNS) — Bishops across the country are encouraging parishioners to put aside their differences and work for the common good as President-elect Donald J. Trump prepares for his Jan. 20 inauguration.

The postelection messages that have emerged serve as both spiritual guide and practical response in an effort to overcome polarization and divisiveness that prevents the country from unifying.

The election saw Trump, the Republican candidate, win the Electoral College count, 306-232, even though he was out-polled by Democrat Hillary Clinton by more than 2.6 million in the popular vote. Several bishops lamented the negative tone of the nearly twoyear-long campaign.

“Faced with two unpopular candidates, voters in record numbers decided to hold their noses and vote for the candidate they saw as the least worst option,” opined Miami Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski in a column posted online Nov. 10.

“Both Clinton and Trump were flawed candidates — neither succeed-

ed in winning approval from more than half the country. But Trump’s negatives perhaps were seen as evidence that he was a ‘sinner,’ whereas Clinton’s negatives hinted at real corruption,” Archbishop Wenski wrote.

In Cleveland, Sister Julie Ann Krahl, a member of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Agnes in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, told Catholic News Service that she learned that most people want to see the country unite to better respond to people’s concerns. The goal of the conversations, she said, was to find the common ground that crossed political lines.

The effort continues, said Sister Simone Campbell, a Sister of Social Service and Network’s executive director. “One of the biggest challenges is to not interpret what they say with the code words of the left Bishops across the country are encouraging people to put aside their differences and work for the common good as Trump prepares for his Jan. 20 inauguration.

and right but just continue to tell the story and let the story speak for itself,” she explained to CNS Dec. 6.

In the end, with a new resident in the White House, the USCCB and several individual bishops echoed the call for unity voiced by Trump and Clinton in the hours after the election and pledged to continue to assist immigrants and refugees who make their way to the United States, no matter their immigration status.

Archbishop Wenski, in his column, credited both candidates for setting a “hopeful tone.”

“Let’s hope that tone of civility endures,” he wrote. “Because we won’t make America great by making America mean.”

T h e USCCB at its fall general assembly in Baltimore m o r e than

a week after the election urged calm and caution and repeated the need for unity following an election season fueled by vitriol, name-calling and fear mongering.

Bishop Christopher J. Coyne of Burlington, Vermont, said that the bishops as a group continued to assess how to move forward. The election, he said during a news conference Nov. 14, is “so beyond the pale of what we’ve faced before.”

“We knew the lay of the land when we approached a Democratic presidency or a Republican presidency, you’d go into Congress and approach them in [certain] ways,” he said. “This election has thrown all that out the window.”

The core message of individual bishops addressing election results was to urge the incoming administration and Congress to work for the common good. Their statements included the importance of the country not abandoning the needs of poor, vulnerable and marginalized people and to fight racism in all its forms.

The conference as a whole and several individual bishops said they were especially prepared to defend immigrants in the country without documentation should Trump’s announced intention to deport “millions” of people be carried out.

2016: The year racism and fear made a comeback

By Rhina Guidos Catholic News Service

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ASHINGTON (CNS) — It began with the fatal shootings of unarmed black men and women by police. It was exacerbated in the summer when, on July 7, a gunman in Dallas opened fire on police during a march, killing five officers in a presumed act of retaliation.

Catholic Church leaders such as Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Atlanta in August called on others “to resolve to address the issues that lie beneath these acts of violence.” But no one imagined then that frustrations about race and racism in the United States, which began with the police shootings, were about to get worse in the later part of 2016.

At a news conference during the U.S. bishops’ general assembly in Baltimore in November, Archbishop Gregory said the reaction to the presidential election had added to an existing tension this year over matters of race in the country.

Those who work with multicultural communities, such as Jordan Denari Duffner, a research fellow at Georgetown University’s Bridge Initiative, which studies Islamophobia, said comments made during the campaign led to “a general kind of anti-otherness that has emerged.” When it comes to Islamophobia, she said, anyone who “looks Muslim,” be it because of the color of the skin or what they may wear, can evoke a reaction from others that can lead to attacks, she said.

This kind of “anti-otherness” in the air, some say, has resulted in a rise of hate and racism. The Southern Poverty Law Center said that 10 days after the election, almost 900 reports of harassment and intimidation from across the nation were recorded. Many took place

CNS PHOTO/CARLO ALLEGRI, REUTERS

Men embrace after taking part in a prayer circle July 10 following a Black Lives Matter protest in the wake of multiple police shootings in Dallas. in public places or places of worship, at work, at schools and even in grocery stores.

Sister Patricia Chappell, executive director of Pax Christi USA, said this election “showed the racial but also economic polarization that our country is in the midst of” and which had become apparent earlier in the year.

Sister Chappell, who is black and is a Sister of Notre Dame de Namur, said she has never seen the level of violence and hatred against so many groups — Muslims, immigrants and others — as she

saw during the election and which has caused much concern.

Even in times of strife, those like Sister Chappell and Duffner say, some positive things have come about.

Duffner said solidarity between groups that have been targets of hate, such as between Jews and Muslims, or the black community and those who have been victims of Islamophobia, is visible. She noted that members of the Catholic Church need to do more to reach out to and humanize groups that were demonized during the election.

“As Catholics, we need to be aware of racial and religious biases,” Duffner said.

For its part, Pax Christi USA has renewed its commitment to work for racial justice and equality, Sister Chappell said, and will continue educating others and speak out against injustice.

She added that to say that in order to “make America great again,” one must ban Muslims from the United States and attack immigrants and minorities, “is not the way to develop relationships” that can help the country or humanity.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

YEAR IN REVIEW

10

Refugees, migration a front-burner topic throughout 2016

By Mark Pattison Catholic News Service

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ASHINGTON (CNS) — American artist Jacob Lawrence detailed the plight of black Americans in the South who were discriminated against, exploited for their labor, threatened with death and sometimes killed, and who lived in substandard conditions until they made their way north in hopes for a better life in his landmark work “The Migration Series.”

The final panel of Lawrence’s 60panel series, which had its first showing in 1941, reads simply: “And the migrants kept coming.”

Today, 75 years later, those migrants are still coming. They’ve left their homelands, torn apart by war, religious persecution, drugs, gang violence, natural disasters, and political and economic upheaval — factors that often feed into each other. Not only have they fled places such as Syria and Iraq, but countries in Central America.

Estimates this year placed the number of immigrants worldwide at 65 million — 21 million of them refugees — with many millions more labeled “internally displaced” only because they still live within the borders of their birth country.

Refugees and what to do about the situation raised continued attention during the marathon presidential race.

The United States, cognizant of the swelling number of refugees, accepted roughly 100,000 from around the world for fiscal 2016, which ran Oct. 1, 2015, through Sept. 30, and announced its intent to accept 110,000 in fiscal 2017.

However, with Donald Trump’s electoral victory, no one can say for certain what U.S. refugee policy will look like.

Conventional wisdom, though, suggests the 110,000 mark will not be met.

A continuing resolution to fund the federal government through April 28 capped the funding for refugee resettlement. At the same time, a bill that would have increased funding to accommodate the 110,000 figure was not voted on before Congress adjourned.

“The incoming administration would have the purview to adjust that planned number,” said Bill Canny, executive director of the U.S. bishops’ Migration and Refugee Services.

Last year, MRS and its diocesan affiliates resettled 23,643 in fiscal 2016, plus another 73,623 who entered the United States through a special immigrant visa program that recognizes their service to the United States in their home country — but despite the difference in status, they have the same needs as refugees, bringing the total to 97,266.

MRS is the largest of nine U.S. resettlement agencies helping refugees.

MRS’ network of affiliated diocesan programs grew this year by six to 95 —

CNS PHOTO/JAMAL NASRALLAH, EPA

Syrian refugees arrive in early May at a camp on the border in Royashed, Jordan. likely a response to the Syrian crisis, according to Canny; it takes about one year for dioceses to set up the capacity, and the buy-in, to do this work.

Some Trump backers have called for a registry of Muslims in the United States, perhaps in the form of a database for visitors and new arrivals from Muslim countries. Others have called for withholding federal funds for self-styled “sanctuary cities,” where elected officials have pledged to not cooperate with federal officials to arrest immigrants in their areas who are in the country without legal permission.

Jill Bussey, an attorney who is director of advocacy for the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, said that by her count there are about 400 sanctuary jurisdictions, cities, counties and the like. Some colleges also have declared themselves sanctuary campuses.

While families fleeing war are most commonly thought of as refugees, “I don’t think we draw a distinction on fear here,” Bussey told Catholic News Service. “The reality is an individual who faces fear of death in Central America, extrajudicial killings, genderbased violence — that fear is just as real as the fear of people who are fleeing war-torn areas.”

Christians, Yezidis and others who do not subscribe to the worldview of Islamic State have been fleeing their ancient homelands in Iraq and Syria since the Islamic militant group made surprising incursions deep into Iraqi and Syrian territory in the summer of

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2014. This spring, the United States declared Islamic State’s actions as genocide, although it is an open question whether those who have been displaced will return to their homelands even after Iraqi armed forces have retaken much territory.

“As the bishops discussed this topic in their end-of-year meeting [in Baltimore], their first instinct and action was to provide anyone who fears changes in this area of refugees and migration pastoral support,” Canny said.

“Specifically, you had the statement adopted by the bishops — the chairman of the committee’s statement after the election, [Auxiliary] Bishop [Eusebio] Elizondo from Seattle [chairman of the bishop’s Committee on Migration].

This was endorsed by the bishops.”

The statement called on Presidentelect Trump “to continue to protect the inherent dignity of refugees and migrants.”

“And subsequently, one of the first things that they (the bishops) did tangibly was to promote a specific day of prayer for refugees and migrants for Dec. 12, [the feast of] Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Canny added. “So it might be worth noting that their first concern is pastoral, and they exhibited that with the day of prayer linked to Our Lady of Guadalupe.”

A University of Notre Dame professor and a student undertook a study which indicates that, over a 20-year period, refugees arriving in the United States actually contribute more to the economy than they take from it. Wil-

liam Evans, chair of Notre Dame’s economics department, and Danny Fitzgerald, a senior economics and mathematics major, used census data to analyze a quarter-century of data gathered from 18,000 refugees to determine their economic impact.

“You see a lot of claims by Congress about the cost of refugees, but they really aren’t backed up by data,” Fitzgerald said in a statement. Initially, refugees ages 18-35 are typically underemployed and use public aid programs. But over the course of 20 years, refugees adapt to American life and, on average, pay more in taxes than they receive in benefits. Further, refugees entering the United States before age 14 tend to graduate high school and college at slightly higher rates than their U.S.-born peers.

“I am an eternal optimist, said CLINIC’s Bussey, who predicts “a lot of high-impact litigation” in the coming year. “I was at the Supreme Court . . . to watch the oral arguments [of the] U.S. v. Texas case.”

The justices, in a split 4-4 vote, effectively affirmed a U.S. District Court judge’s decision blocking implementation of President Barack Obama’s executive order implementing a program for parents of citizen children called the Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Lawful Permanent Residents program, known as DAPA. A panel of judges on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had affirmed the District Court ruling.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

YEAR IN REVIEW

Uncertainty looms for immigrants in 2017

By Rhina Guidos Catholic News Service

W

ASHINGTON (CNS) — At a Mass packed mostly with immigrants, Washington Auxiliary Bishop Mario E. Dorsonville tried to get the crowd to focus on the plight of the Holy Family.

They had no home, he said. Many closed their doors to them when they were seeking shelter and running from persecution, he said. But he reminded them also of God’s promise.

“We might be poor, but we’ll never be alone,” Bishop Dorsonville said to those in the pews, some who were likely facing similar situations.

At a weekend Mass to mark the Dec. 12 feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, he assured them that God and the Catholic Church would be with them “in these difficult moments.” Millions, he acknowledged, are waiting for relief in the form of immigration reform. But with a president-elect who made campaign promises to form “deportation forces” and remove 11 million immigrants, many are facing 2017 with trepidation.

The landscape for immigrants in 2016 already had been a rough one.

In June, the U.S. Supreme Court deadlocked on a case dealing with plans by President Barack Obama to shield four million from deportation through executive action. Without being able to break the 4-4 tie, the high court essentially left in place an injunction blocking the immigration policy from being implemented.

Various polls also reflected an increasing reluctance by some groups in the country to welcome immigrants from the Middle East. The Brookings/Public Religion Research Institute Immigration Survey, released in June, showed that while 58 percent of Americans surveyed opposed a temporary ban on Muslims from other countries entering the United States, non-white Americans were the ones most opposed.

“Close to half (46 percent) of whites express support for a temporary ban on Muslims coming to the United States,” the survey said, “while only 30 percent of Hispanics and 25 percent of blacks support a ban.”

Some say these views in part helped President-elect Donald Trump and his running mate, Mike Pence, win, since they were able to mobilize those who felt fears and concerns about immigrants from Latin America and Muslims.

But just what will happen after Trump takes over the presidency in January remains a mystery. In a TV interview shortly after his election,

11

Politics, courts involved in U.S. health care’s 2016 diagnosis

By Carol Zimmermann Catholic News Service

W CNS PHOTO/GREGORY A. SHEMITZ

A woman holds a child’s hand as they arrive for a rally in support of immigrants’ rights Dec. 18 in New York City. Following the rally, which was held near the United Nations on International Migrants Day, participants marched to Trump Tower, where they demonstrated near the headquarters and residence of President-elect Donald Trump. he said he would deport two million to three million “people that are criminal and have criminal records” but didn’t mention the 11 million in the country without legal permission that he had originally quoted as deportation targets. He also removed his call for a “Muslim ban” from his website shortly after winning the presidency.

Catholic groups that work with immigrants, such as Washington’s Faith in Public Life, say they are concerned about what Trump said as a candidate and they vowed in a statement to continue “advocating for comprehensive immigration reform, and will continue to work with leaders of both parties to ensure that all migrants, regardless of their status, are treated with dignity and respect.”

Others joined the organization in the statement, including Jesuit Father Timothy Kesicki, president of the Jesuit Conference of Canada and the United States, who said: “We are deeply concerned by threats and proposals — such as the increased use of detention and deportation.”

Such attitudes, he said, sow fear, and “threaten the unity and wellbeing of families and communities.

Instead, we call on the Trump administration and Congress to develop and uphold humane policies that honor the dignity and contributions of those among us who live at the margins of society.”

The U.S. Catholic bishops have not directly spoken out against Trump and what he said while campaigning, but they have voiced their support for immigrants. They declared the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, a day of prayer with a focus on the plight of refugees and migrants.

“To all those families separated and far from home in uncertain

times, we join with you in a prayer for comfort and joy this Advent season,” said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, who is president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, recognizing in a statement addressing the uncertain future many are fearing.

Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn, New York, addressed a letter to those “who at the present time find themselves in a miserable condition because of a change of the administration of our nation which has threatened many with deportation.” Walls are not solutions, he said, and deportations do not guarantee the country’s security.

California Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton also called attention to similar fears and to racism.

“The journey of life is difficult at this time for Hispanics in the United States,” he said. “Many have friends and family members who are without papers. Many are without papers themselves. Children in school are being bullied and young immigrants who signed up for DACA are anxious that they might lose their opportunity to work and their protection from deportation.”

Racism, too, “has raised its ugly head in many communities,” Bishop Blaire continued.

“I wish to say loudly and clearly to all of you that, as your bishop, I am with you,” he said. “You are the church. I will walk with you no matter how hard it gets.”

“I also wish to say to our Muslim brothers and sisters, and to our Jewish elder brothers and sisters, and to all our interfaith friends that the hate which destroys the unity and solidarity of the human family cannot be tolerated in any way,” he said. “The way of God is the way of love.”

ASHINGTON (CNS) — U.S. health care seemed stuck in the waiting room for part of the year, holding out for its future prognosis from courtroom and political decisions.

During the election year talk, health care as a whole was not a top issue as it competed against the economy, terrorism, foreign policy, gun control and immigration.

What did come up was the Affordable Care Act, which became law in 2010, and was fully implemented in 2015 and has already been upheld twice by the U.S. Supreme Court.

For now, the future of the health care law remains unclear until the new administration takes control in the new year.

President-elect Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have vowed to repeal and replace the law.

The Catholic Church has had concerns with the Affordable Care Act. The U.S. Catholic bishops and Catholic hospitals have long emphasized that the poor and vulnerable must have access to health care. The health care law through federal and state exchanges allows people even with limited income to get subsidies to have a health care plan.

But there are still questions about coverage of abortion by health care plans and for church leaders; a major sticking point with the legislation also has been its contraceptive mandate — challenged in courts and sent back to the lower courts by the Supreme Court this past summer.

The dispute has been over the Department of Health and Human Services’ requirement that all employers, including most religious employers, provide contraceptive coverage in employees’ health plans even if the employer morally objects to the coverage. The mandate provides a narrow religious exemption for houses of worship.

Even though the Supreme Court hoped the two sides could work out a compromise, that never happened and lawyers on both sides have instead been applying for extended deadlines to work it out.

Catholic hospitals also have been the focus of a pension battle that the Supreme Court agreed in early December to look at next year. The dispute is whether religious hospitals and schools can be exempt from complying with federal laws covering employee pension benefits.

Two of the three hospital systems in the suit coming before the high court are Catholic. They argue that as churchaffiliated organizations, they are exempt from providing some pension benefits.

Their employees, and the lower courts, have said these pensions do not qualify as “church plans.”

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CLASSIFIEDS EMPLOYMENT Drivers - Special Beginnings Early Learning Center is seeking part-time drivers for its school-age program located in Lenexa. Candidates must be able to drive a 13-passenger minibus, similar to a 15-passenger van.

CDL not required, but must have an excellent driving record. Candidates would pick up children from area schools and then work directly with them when arriving back at the center. Experience preferred. Must have strong work ethic and the ability to work with children.

Insurance provided. Background check will be conducted. Great opportunity for retired persons or those seeking a second job. Job responsibilities include: ensuring safety and well-being of children who are being transported at all times, including loading and unloading.

Driving short, round-trip routes to elementary schools in Lenexa/Olathe area. Summer only: Driving short, roundtrip routes to two Lenexa city pools. Maintaining mileage log. Keeping interior of vehicle clean. Apply by sending an email to: chris@specialbeginningsonline.com or in person at 10216 Pflumm Rd., Lenexa, KS 66215.

Data entry positions - The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has two immediate openings for a temporary data entry position. The individual will assist the office of stewardship and development during the busy Call to Share annual appeal. Required hours will be 30+ hours per week beginning in mid-January with approximate end date in late March. Requires reliability, collaborative demeanor and demonstrated data entry skills. Full job description available at: www.archkck.org/jobs. Qualified individuals should email cover letter, resume and application (available on archdiocesan website) to: jobs@ archkck.org by Dec. 31, or mail to: Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, Office of Human Resources, Stewardship – Data Entry Search, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109.

Teachers and assistant teacher - The Goddard School in Olathe is seeking a preschool teacher, a pre-kindergarten teacher and a toddler teacher - all full-time positions - as well as an assistant teacher for multiple classrooms.

Lead and assistant teachers work together. Daily responsibilities are: developing lesson plans; meeting the individual needs of the children; communicating with parents; participation in staff and training meetings; designing appropriate room arrangement to support the goals and development level of the children in the classroom; interacting with the children to support play, exploration and learning; presenting expectations that are appropriate to the child’s age and developmental level; plan and implement activities that develop self-esteem and social skills; communicate appropriately and professionally with parents and fellow staff; building teamwork; use assessment tools; and commit to continuing education. To apply, email a resume and cover letter to: olathe2ks@goddardschools.com.

Career opportunity - Due to the success and growth of the Knights of Columbus, we are adding a financial representative in the Kansas City metro, Emporia and Topeka area. Ideal for a determined, high energy, high expectation, professional, self-disciplined, independent individual desiring to serve others, yet earn a better than average income. We provide top-rated financial products to our members and their families and will provide excellent benefits and training. This is a full-time position.

Please contact John A. Mahon, general agent, for more information or an interview at 1275 Topeka Blvd., Topeka, KS 66612 or call (785) 408-8806. You can also send an email to: john.mahon@kofc.org.

Part-time help - Fast-paced, home-based business is looking for a dependable, trustworthy self-starter who enjoys challenging work to help with answering customer calls, shipping packages and general inventory management. Experience with Mac computers, UPS WorldShip and QuickBooks is helpful, but will train the right person. Overland Park-based with fun, casual environment. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. or 1 - 5 p.m. or possible full time; benefits not available. To apply, send resume to: orders@ roalpostalsupplies.com.

Principal - St. Andrew the Apostle Parish seeks a principal committed to Catholic education with strong leadership, communication and motivational skills. St. Andrew School is a parish school serving approximately 290 pre-K – 8th-grade students with a staff of 30. St. Andrew is located in suburban Kansas City, Mo., north of the river. Applicant must be a practicing Catholic, should have a master’s degree in educational administration, teaching experience and preferably three years’ administrative experience. This position leads school programs that ensure not only academic excellence but also the spiritual, moral, physical and emotional development of the school community. This person is supervised by the pastor of the parish and the assigned superintendent of schools. Job responsibilities: Ensure quality of Catholic religious instruction of students at all levels through the Catechism of the Catholic Church; promote Catholic community with parents, student, faculty and staff; applies a Catholic educational vision to the daily activities of the school; implements, identifies and monitors annual goals and strategies to ensure quality of academic program; works with parish to ensure financial processes for the school and maintenance; recruits, interviews, selects and provides orientation for school staff; works with parish to provide marketing and development for the school. To apply, go to the website at: careers.hireology.com/thecatholicdioceseofkansas

citystjoseph/94371/description.

Groundskeeping position - $30K. Catholic Cemeteries is seeking an individual for a full-time groundskeeping position, hours Monday through Saturday. This position requires heavy lifting. Must be physically fit and experience operating construction equipment would be a plus.

Must be a fast learner and flexible on hours. Interested individuals should contact Matt Wirtz at (913) 371-4040 or you may email a resume to: svallejo@cathcemks.org.

well as over the phone; assist in managing warehouse; and pulling orders for delivery. Full time. Medical benefits.

401(k) with match. Immense pride in brightening homes and offices across the city. Retirees welcome to apply. jen. smith@wattsuplighting.com.

Pastoral assistant - Corpus Christi Catholic Community, Lawrence, is seeking a full-time pastoral assistant who will serve as the director of youth and young adult ministries and the liturgical ministry coordinator.

General responsibilities include: providing vision and coordination for the parish’s efforts in ministry to 6ththrough 12th-graders, confirmation candidates, and to the parish’s college-age and young adult populations.

In addition, this position is responsible for training, coordinating and overseeing all liturgical ministries in the parish. A bachelor’s degree in pastoral ministry or related field is preferred. This position requires availability to work evenings and weekends, and proficiency in social media, technology and standard computer software.

Compensation commensurate with education and experience. For a complete job description, visit the website at: cccparish.org. Cover letter and resume should be emailed to: Fr. Mick Mulvany at: frmick@cccparish.org.

Bankruptcy consultation - If debts are overwhelming you, seek hope and help from compassionate, experienced Catholic attorney, Teresa Kidd. For a free consultation, call (913) 422-0610; send an email to: tkidd@kc.rr. com; or visit the website at: www.teresakiddlawyer. com. Please do not wait until life seems hopeless before getting good quality legal advice that may solve your financial stress.

Drivers needed - Medi Coach Transportation is looking for caring and reliable drivers for nonemergency transportation. CDL is not required. Contact Jeff at (913) 8251921.

Drivers - Assisted Transportation is now hiring caring and reliable drivers to transport K-12 students to and from school and other activities in company minivans. Positions are now available in Olathe, Overland Park and Kansas City, Kansas. Competitive wages and flexible schedules. CDL not required. Retirees encouraged to apply. Call (913) 262-3100 or apply online at: AssistedTransportaion.com. EEO School counseling consultant - Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas is looking for a part-time school counseling consultant for the Corpus Christi Catholic School in Lawrence. EEO For complete job description and to apply go to: catholiccharitiesks.org/jobs.

Accounts payable/payroll accountant - The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas has an immediate opening in the chancery accounting office for a full-time accounts payable/payroll accountant. The position is responsible for processing approved invoices utilizing the DocuWare software and accounting system. This position is also responsible for payroll for the chancery staff. One to three years of accounts payable and payroll experience required, accounting degree preferred.

Candidate must have strong computing skills with proficiency in MS Office Suite; must demonstrate strong organizational skills, including attention to detail and accuracy. A complete job description and application are available on the archdiocese’s website at: www.archkck. org/jobs. Interested individuals should mail cover letter, resume and application to: Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, Office of Human Resources, Accounts Payable/ Payroll, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109, or send via email to: jobs@archkck.org.

Teacher assistant - Special Beginnings, Lenexa, is seeking full- or part-time after school teacher assistants at all locations. We are looking for a teacher assistant candidate who has an excellent work ethic, heart for children and a willingness to learn more about early childhood education. Experience and/or education is a plus, but we will train the right candidate. Teacher assistants will work with the lead teacher to care for and educate the children. Primary responsibilities include assisting the lead teacher with: care and supervision of children, lesson plan implementation, parent communication, and cleanliness and organization of classroom. Starting hourly pay ranges based on experience and education.

Pay increases are based on job performance. Opportunities for advancement are available, as the company prefers to promote from within. Apply by sending an email to: chris@specialbeginningsonline.com or in person at 10216 Pflumm Rd., Lenexa, KS 66215.

Client experience coordinator – Wellington, a fullservice event management and marketing company, is looking for a Client Experience Coordinator to assist with the production of extraordinary events for clients of all sizes. The CEC frequently acts as the face of the company, being the first person to greet guests and direct client, partner and vendor phone calls. They are a personable, structured and disciplined individual who is able to handle high-pressure situations. Because they juggle numerous projects and tasks at any one time, the CEC must have the ability to multitask and complete a variety of tasks quickly — without sacrificing accuracy and attention to detail. Applicants may apply online at: www.wellingtonexperience.com/careers.

Customer service/warehouse – Watts Up, a lighting distributor serving the Midwest region for over 30 years, is looking for a full-time customer sales/service professional to join our fun and highly motivated team of employees in assisting our front counter customers and helping maintain the warehouse. Applicants must be self-motivated problem solvers. Requires ability to be physically active all day, including lifting up to 50 lbs. Must have basic math and strong verbal and people skills. Some lighting/electrical experience preferred. Duties: Provide consultative sales advice to customers, primarily at front counter as

SERVICES

12

Custom countertops - Laminates installed within 5 days. Cambria, granite, and solid surface. Competitive prices, dependable work. Call the Top Shop, Inc., (913) 962-5058. Members of St. Joseph, Shawnee.

Thank you for another great year - Through your support, my family has been blessed and my business has grown. We do windows, trim, siding, doors, decks, interior and exterior painting, wood rot, bathroom renovations, tile and sheetrock. If you need work done around your home, we can do it. Josh (913) 709-7230.

HARCO Exteriors LLC Your Kansas City fencing specialists Family owned and operated (913) 815-4817 www.harcoexteriorsllc.com

Mike Hammer local moving - A full-service mover.

Packing, pianos, rental truck load/unload, storage container load/unload, and in-home moving. No job too small. Serving JoCo since 1987. St. Joseph, Shawnee, parishioner. Call Mike at (913) 927-4347 or send an email to: mike@mikehammermoving.com.

NELSON CREATIONS L.L.C. Home remodeling, design/build, kitchens, baths, all interior and exterior work. Family owned and operated; over 25 years experience. Licensed and insured; commercial and residential. Kirk and Diane Nelson.

(913) 927-5240; nelsport@everestkc.net

EVERFIT fitness community - We provide a variety of classes designed to make fitness fun while challenging you to a higher level of performance. Classes include boxing, cycling, HIIT, weights, PiYo, TRX, our signature EverFit Tri, and more. EverFitKC.com. Save 10% with this ad or Promo Code LEAVEN.

Detail construction and remodeling - We offer a full line of home remodeling services. Don’t move — remodel! Johnson County area. Call for a free quote at (913) 709-8401.

Agua Fina Irrigation and Landscape The one-stop location for your project!

Landscape and irrigation design, Installation and maintenance.

Cleanup and grading services It’s time to repair your lawn. 20% discount on lawn renovations with mention of this ad.

Visit the website at: www.goaguafina.com Call (913) 530-7260 or (913) 530-5661 Nanny - Deanna Lyon, Catholic nanny, available for fulltime care; Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Call (785) 217-5110 or send an email to: annaed87@yahoo.com.

Overland Park area.

Machine quilting - by Jenell Noeth, Basehor. Also, quilts made to order. Call (913) 724-1837.

Helping Hand Handy Man - Semi-retired handyman can help with your ‘to do list.’ Small and medium projects around your house. Also electrical; ceiling fans, light fixtures, outlet and switches. Most deck and shed repairs, power washing, restaining and painting. No yard work. Member of Prince of Peace, Olathe. Call Mark Coleman at (913) 526-4490.

Rodman Lawn Care Lawn mowing, aeration, verticutting.

Hedge trimming, mulch, leaf removal.

Fully insured and free estimates.

John Rodman (913) 548-3002

HOME IMPROVEMENT EL SOL Y LA TIERRA *Commercial & residential * Lawn renovation *Mowing * Clean-up and hauling * Dirt grading/installation * Landscape design * Free estimates Hablamos y escribimos Ingles!! www.elsolylatierra.com Call Lupe at (816) 252-1391 The Drywall Doctor, Inc. – A unique solution to your drywall problems! We fix all types of ceiling and wall damage — from water stains and stress cracks to texture repairs and skim coating. We provide professional, timely repairs and leave the job site clean! Lead-certified and insured! Serving the metro since 1997. Call (913) 768-6655 Swalms organizing - downsizing - cleanout service – Reduce clutter – Any space organized. Shelving built on-site. Items hauled for recycling and donations. 20 years exp.; insured. Call Tillar at (913) 375-9115. WWW. SWALMSORGANIZING.COM. Local handyman and lawn care – Water heaters, garbage disposals, toilets, faucets, painting, power washing, doors, storm doors, gutter cleaning, wood rot, mowing, carpet, roofing, etc. Member of Holy Angels Parish, Basehor. Call Billy at (913) 927-4118.

DRC Construction We’ll get the job done right the first time.

Windows - Doors - Decks - Siding Repair or replace, we will work with you to solve your problems. Choose us for any window, door, siding or deck project and be glad you did.

Everything is guaranteed 100% (913) 461-4052 www.windowservicesoverlandpark.com drcconswindows@gmail.com Concrete construction - Tear out and replace stamped, stained or colored patios and drives. Retaining walls, footings, poured-in-place safe rooms, excavation and hauling. Asphalt drives and lots. Fully insured; references. Call Dan at (913) 207-4371 or send an email to: dan deeconst@aol.com.

STA (Sure Thing Always) Home Repair - Basement finish, bathrooms and kitchens; interior & exterior repairs: painting, roofing, siding, wood replacement and window glazing. Free estimates. Call (913) 491-5837 or (913) 579-1835. Email: smokeycabin@hotmail.com.

Member of Holy Trinity, Lenexa.

Rusty Dandy Painting, Inc. – We have been coloring your world for 40 years. Your home will be treated as if it were our own. Old cabinets will be made to look like new. Dingy walls and ceilings will be made beautiful.

Woodwork will glow. Lead-certified and insured. Call (913) 341-9125.

CAREGIVING Looking for high quality home care? - Whether you’re looking to introduce care for your family or simply looking to improve your current home care quality, we can help. Our unique approach to home care has earned us a 99% client satisfaction rating among the 1,000-plus families we have assisted. We are family-owned, with offices in Lenexa and Lawrence. Call Benefits of Home Senior Care, Lenexa: (913) 422-1591 or Lawrence: (785) 727-1816 or www.benefitsofhome.com.

Caregiving - We provide personal assistance, companionship, care management, and transportation for seniors in their home, assisted living or nursing facilities.

We also provide respite care for main caregivers needing some personal time. Call Daughters & Company at (913) 341-2500 and speak with Laurie, Pat or Gary.

Companion/nursing care - Able to do bath and personal care visits. Days and some nights/holidays. $15/hour.

References. Call (913) 579-5276.

FOR SALE Residential lifts - Buy/sell/trade. Stair lifts, porch lifts, ceiling lifts and elevators. Recycled and new equipment.

Member of St. Michael the Archangel Parish, Leawood.

Call Silver Cross KC at (913) 327-5557.

WANTED TO BUY Will buy firearms and related accessories - One or a whole collection. Honest evaluation and top prices paid.

Contact Tom at (913) 238-2473. Member of Sacred Heart Parish, Shawnee.

Wanted to buy - I’m Mark Edmondson, a local parishioner at Holy Trinity, and I buy and sell houses in any condition. If you have a house “situation,” call me. I might have a solution for you. (913) 980-4905.

Wanted to buy - Antique/vintage jewelry, lighters, fountain pens, post card collections, paintings/prints, pottery, sterling, china dinnerware.

Renee Maderak, (913) 631-7179.

St. Joseph Parish, Shawnee

TRAVEL Fatima/Medjugorje pilgrimage - Celebrate the 100th anniversary of apparitions in Fatima with a pilgrimage to Fatima and Medjugorje. Oct. 25 to Nov. 9, 2017. Call Grace at (913) 449-1806 for details. (Dates subject to change.)

Travel to Washington, D.C. - Everyone deserves an educational and fun visit to our nation’s capital. We specialize in individual and group trips to Washington, D.C. Call Ward Cook at (816) 210-3276 for a customized trip tor yourself or your group. Ward Cook, travel consultant at Under the Dome Travel.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

CALENDAR NATIVITY SHOWCASE St. Patrick Church (basement) 302 S. Boyle St., Scranton Jan. 8 from 11:30 a.m. - 2 p.m.

View many Nativity sets that members and friends of the parish have placed for viewing. Donations are appreciated and will go toward the St. Patrick building fund. For more information or to share a Nativity set for viewing, call (785) 836-7887.

POTLUCK LUNCHEON Most Pure Heart of Mary (Formation Room) 3601 S.W. 17th St., Topeka Jan. 8 from 1 - 3 p.m.

The Christian Widow and Widowers Organization will host the potluck dinner. There is no cost to attend. For more information, call (785) 233-7350.

‘COPING WITH LIFE ALONE’ St. John Francis Regis Parish 8941 James A Reed Rd., Kansas City, Missouri Sundays, Jan. 8 - Feb. 19 from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.

“Coping with Life Alone” is a Beginning Experience grief support program that meets each week for seven weeks. The program helps those who have lost a love relationship — due to death, divorce or separation — move through the experience of grief and loss. For more information, or to register, call Donna at (816) 305-3760.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES Advice & Aid Pregnancy Centers, Inc. 11644 W. 75th St., Shawnee Jan. 9 from 7 - 9 p.m.

There is a need for volunteers, including bilingual volunteers. For more information on volunteering for this ministry or to RSVP, contact Mary at (913) 962-0200 or send an email to: volunteer@adviceandaid.com.

‘TAKE-A-LOOK-THURSDAY’ Holy Spirit School 11300 W. 103rd St., Overland Park Jan. 12 from 9 - 11 a.m.

Come join us for information, tours of the school and refreshments. For more information, call Anita Pauls at (913) 492-2582 or send an email to: apauls@hscatholic.org.

‘NEW HOPE FOR DEPRESSION’ Sophia Spirituality Center 751 S. 8th St., Atchison Jan. 14 from 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Hear about the value of deepening spiritual practices to find new hope and discover one’s own path to the God of grace and compassion. For more information or to register, call (913) 360-6173 or visit the website at: www.sophiaspiritualitycenter.org.

WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES MASS St. Patrick Parish 1086 N. 94th St., Kansas City, Kansas Jan. 15 at 5 p.m.

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann will commemorate the World Day of Migrants and Refugees with a Mass that reflects — through different languages and musical styles — the breadth of the universal church.

‘BENEDICT’S VISION: WORK MADE HOLY’ Sophia Spirituality Center 751 S. 8th St., Atchison Jan. 15 from 2:30 - 4:30 p.m.

This once-a-month series, geared for young professional women, focuses on the wisdom of St. Benedict and his Rule. Participants read and discuss the book “St. Benedict’s Guide to Improving Your Work Life: Work-

place as Worthplace,” by Michael Rock. For more information or to register, go to the website at: www.sophiaspiritualitycenter. org or call (913) 360-6173.

ROSARY RALLY IN HONOR OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA St. Mary/St. Anthony Parish 615 N. 7th St., Kansas City, Kansas Jan. 15 from 3 - 4:15 p.m.

We will pray the joyful, sorrowful and glorious mysteries of the rosary. Benediction will follow, as well as an opportunity for attendees to enroll in the brown scapular.

For more information, visit the website at: www.rosaryrallieskc.org.

‘ABOUT A CROWN OF ROSES’ MUSICAL PERFORMANCE Church of the Nativity 3800 W. 119th St., Leawood Jan. 15 at 2 p.m.

Using James Collinson’s poem “The Child Jesus” as its foundation, the classical vocal quartet Ignea Strata explores musical offerings to the Infant Jesus and to Mary. Performing music from the medieval era to the latest contemporary repertoire, Ignea Strata offers a fresh perspective on old favorites and presents new and previously unheard music from composers ancient and modern. All are welcome; the concert is free.

‘AWAKENING THE DREAMER: CHANGING THE DREAM’ Precious Blood Renewal Center 2130 St. Gaspar Way, Liberty, Missouri Jan. 18 at 6:30 p.m.

Join us for the viewing of the film “Awakening the Dreamer: Changing the Dream,” a documentary about runaway prosperity and consumerism, followed by discussion.

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The suggested donation is $10. Register to attend with Kathy Keary at (816) 803-6413 or by email at: keary@sbcglobal.net.

DISCERNMENT RETREAT FOR WOMEN Prairie Star Ranch 1124 California Rd., Williamsburg Jan. 20 at 5:30 p.m. - Jan. 21 at 7 p.m.

Single women between the ages of 18 and 30 are invited to participate in an overnight discernment experience. There will be opportunities to grow in community and friendship, develop a deeper understanding of how God is speaking to you and meet some of the consecrated women who are serving the church today. For more information or to register, go to the website at: www.archkck.org/ranch; contact the retreat team at: psrministry@ archkck.org; or call (785) 746-5693.

CATHOLIC CHALLENGE SPORTS Garrison Community Center 1124 E. 5th St., Kansas City, Missouri Jan. 21 - March 4 on Saturdays from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Join other young adults in their 20s and 30s playing dodgeball with Catholic Challenge Sports. These will be 40-minute games. The cost is $30. To register, go to the website at: bit.ly/2hFv9pR. Registration ends Jan. 7.

RETROUVAILLE Savior Pastoral Center 12601 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, Kansas Feb. 17 - 19

Retrouvaille is a marriage program dedicated to helping couples grow closer and develop a stronger bond. The program is designed to help couples bridge the distance that has grown between them. For more information about this program for couples, contact the registration team at (800) 470-2230 or visit the website at: www.helpourmarriage.com.

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

COMMENTARY FIRST WEEK OF ORDINARY TIME Jan 8 THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD Is 60: 1-6 Ps 72: 1-2, 7-8, 10-13 Eph 3: 2-3a, 5-6 Mt 2: 1-12 Jan. 9 THE BAPTISM OF THE LORD Is 42: 1-4, 6-7 Ps 29: 1-2, 3-4, 9-10 Mt 3: 13-17 Jan. 10 Tuesday Heb 2: 5-12 Ps 8: 2ab, 5-9 Mk 1: 21-28 Jan. 11 Wednesday Heb 2: 14-18 Ps 105: 1-4, 6-9 Mk 1: 29-39 Jan. 12 Thursday Heb 3: 7-14 Ps 95: 6-7c, 8-11 Mk 1: 40-45 Jan. 13 Hilary, bishop, doctor of the church Heb 4: 1-5, 11 Ps 78: 3, 4bc, 6c-8 Mk 2: 1-12 Jan. 14 Saturday Heb 4: 12-16 Ps 19: 8-10, 15 Mk 2: 13-17

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If you’re seeking some signs from God, here they are

A

h, the month of January.

It’s a time devoted to cramming advice down your throat as to what will make the new year glorious.

There are all sorts of “miracle” diets and nifty exercise equipment. Numerous gyms are offering “new year specials for a new you.”

(I actually joined one this week, since signing up was only $1. I’m sure that I’ll be writing more on this adventure later in the year . . . if I survive.)

Want to eat better?

There are any number of home-delivery services providing all you need to prepare “easy,” delicious, healthy cuisine.

Heck, I even saw a commercial for a company that will measure your telomeres and give you your “actual body age” — usually older than your chronological age, as you’ve not taken as good of care of yourself as you should. (This is meant, no doubt, to scare you into better living!)

The internet is full of advice as well. The best that I saw featured thoughts from “old people.” Here’s some of

MARK MY WORDS

FATHER MARK GOLDASICH Father Mark is the pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Tonganoxie. He has been editor of The Leaven since 1989.

what they had to say: • You might live a long life, or you might live a short one — who knows? But either way, trust me when I say that you’re going to wish you took better care of yourself in your youth.

• People always say, “Make sure you get a job doing what you love!”

But that isn’t the best advice. The right job is the job you love some days, tolerate most days, and still pays the bills. Almost nobody has a job they love every day.

• If you’re getting

overwhelmed by life, just return to the immediate present moment and savor all that is beautiful and comforting. Take a deep breath; relax.

• A true friend will come running at 2 a.m.

Everyone else is just an acquaintance.

• Nobody ever dies wishing they had worked more. Work hard, but don’t prioritize work over family, friends or even yourself.

• When you meet someone for the first time, stop and realize that you really know nothing about them. You see race, gender, age, clothes. Forget it all.

Those biased assumptions that pop into your head because of the way your brain likes categories are limiting your life and other people’s lives.

• Eat and exercise like you’re a diabetic heart patient with a stroke — so you never actually become one!

OK, now it’s my turn to jump on the bandwagon. Back on July 15, I wrote about some great advice to get you through the rest of 2016 — ideas gleaned from a page-a-day calendar that featured church signs. Well, let me now offer you some more advice, courtesy of that same calendar, to get your new year off to a positive, practical start: • The only person you should try to be better than is the person you were yesterday.

• Compassion will cure more sins than condemnation.

• Don’t do dumb things with your smartphone.

• Take care of your thoughts when you’re alone and take care of your words when you’re not.

• You don’t need a reason to help people.

• Well done is better than well said.

These next “signs of God” are meant to tickle your funny bone as well as make you think: • God is the potter — not Harry.

• Do you sow wild oats all week, then hope for a crop failure on Sunday?

• Some people change when they see the light; others, when they feel the heat.

• If you want your kids to follow in your footsteps, make sure your shoes have strong souls.

• Salvation guaranteed . . . or your sins cheerfully refunded!

• Give Satan an inch and he’ll be a ruler.

• Without the Bread of Life, you’re toast!

Lastly, ponder these signs that contain deep spiritual truths in a few words: • A child of the King should bear a family resemblance.

• God is at the end of your rope.

• God has a solution even before you know you have a problem.

• You may not feel God holding your hand, but he’s always got your back.

Maybe the best advice, though, as we immerse ourselves in this new year of 2017 is simply: “Make God your first priority, not your last resort.”

Like Magi, we must carry news of the Christ Child to others

M

ost parishes set up a Nativity set in the church at Christmastime. It does not merely form part of the holiday decorations.

Rather, it serves as a shrine. Those visiting it can reflect upon the mystery of the incarnation and spend time in prayer to the Christ Child.

In doing that, they imitate the example of the Magi, whom we learn about in Sunday’s Gospel reading, Mt 2:212, as we celebrate the solemnity of the Epiphany.

The Gospel reading supplies only a few details about their visit to the Christ Child: that they are traveling from the east, that they have been following a star, that they offer the Christ Child gifts of gold, frank-

POPE FRANCIS

THE GOSPEL TRUTH

FATHER MIKE STUBBS Father Stubbs is the pastor of Holy Cross Parish in Overland Park and has a degree in Scripture from Harvard University.

incense and myrrh.

But Catholic imagination is not satisfied with such a meager description. Catholic tradition goes on to count the Magi as three in number,

Whether the new year will be good or not depends on us choosing to do good each day, Pope Francis said. “That is how one builds peace, saying ‘no’ to hatred and violence — with action — and ‘yes’ to fraternity and reconciliation,” he said Jan. 1, which the church marks as the solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, and as World Peace Day. Speaking to

to correlate to the three gifts that they bring.

Not only that, tradition even ascribes names to the Magi — Caspar, Balthazar and Melchior.

Tradition even suggests that each of the Magi represents a different continent: Asia, Europe and Africa. Those three continents would constitute the whole known world at the time.

That is significant.

Even though these imaginative specula-

tions about the Magi go far beyond the Gospel account, they reflect an important point that the Gospel is making. It is the point of the solemnity of the Epiphany.

“Epiphany” means “manifestation” in Greek. The feast celebrates the manifestation of Christ to the whole world. He has come, not only for the Jewish people who have been waiting for the Messiah, but for everyone.

The Magi in the Gospel account, however many there may have been in number and whatever their nationality, are not Jewish. They represent the gentiles of the world. The star that they have been following represents the light of the Gospel message, a light that Christ will shine upon the world.

The Epiphany celebrates God’s outreach to

the some 50,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the first noon Angelus of 2017, the pope referred to his peace day message in which he asked people to adopt the “style” of nonviolence for building a politics for peace. Lamenting the brutal act of terrorism that struck during a night of “well-wishes and hope” in Istanbul, the pope offered his prayers for the entire nation of Turkey as well as those hurt and killed. A gunman opened

the world through Jesus Christ. It encourages us to take part in that outreach.

Traditionally, missionaries receive the mission cross during Mass in Rome on the solemnity of the Epiphany. Through their ministry, they share in God’s outreach to the world. They may travel to foreign lands and exotic places to do that.

Unlike them, we may stay at home. At the same time, we also can take part in God’s outreach to the world.

We can share our faith with those with whom we come into contact, with our friends and neighbors.

That does not mean a hard sell. It does mean that we let our faith shine. Then, once again, the star will lead people to worship the Christ Child as the Magi did.

fire during a New Year’s Eve celebration at a popular nightclub early Jan. 1, killing at least 39 people and wounding at least 70 more.

“I ask the Lord to support all people of good will who courageously roll up their sleeves in order to confront the scourge of terrorism and this bloodstain that is enveloping the world with the shadow of fear and confusion,” he said.

— CNS

JANUARY 6, 2017 | THELEAVEN.ORG

LOCAL NEWS Sister Michael Blossom, SCL

L

EAVENWORTH — Sister Michael Blossom, 95, a Sister of Charity of Leavenworth, died on Dec. 18 at the motherhouse here.

Fabian Mary Blossom was born on Feb. 17, 1921, in Glenwood Springs, Colorado, one of two children of Joseph C. and Fabian (Monaghan) Blossom. She graduated from Glenwood Springs Grade School and Garfield County High School, Glenwood Springs. She received a bachelor’s degree in nursing from Saint Mary College, Leavenworth.

She entered the religious community of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth on Sept. 1, 1941, and, as Sister Michael, made her profession of vows on March 4, 1943.

Sister Michael spent most of her active ministry in health care. As a registered nurse, she was operating room supervisor at several Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth hospitals. She later served in hospital purchasing and materials management. Sister Michael returned to the motherhouse in 1993 and worked in purchasing for several years. She retired to Ross Hall in 2004.

Father Wilfred L. LaCroix, SJ

S

T. LOUIS — Father Wilfred L. (Bill) LaCroix, SJ, died Dec. 22 at the Jesuit elder care community in St. Louis after a long illness.

He was 83 years old, a Jesuit for 57 years and a priest for 47 years.

Bill LaCroix was born to Wilfred LaCroix Sr. and Elizabeth (Sintobin) LaCroix on Nov. 27, 1933, in Kansas City, Missouri.

He graduated from St. Agnes High School in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1951 and attended Rockhurst College (now Rockhurst University) in Kansas City, Missouri, for a year before transferring to Marquette University in Milwaukee, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in radio journalism and English in 1955.

He joined the U.S. Navy and served four years on ships patrolling the seas around Japan and the Philippines in the aftermath of the Korean War. On Sept. 1, 1959, he entered the Society of Jesus at St. Stanislaus Seminary in Florissant, Missouri. He studied philosophy at Saint Louis University, earning a master’s degree in 1965. Following a year of teaching at Rockhurst High in Kansas City, Missouri, he began studying theology, first at St. Mary’s College in St. Marys, Kansas, then at Saint Louis University when the Jesuit theologate moved. He earned a licentiate in sacred theology along with a master’s degree in dogmatic/systematic theology, then did additional studies in philosophy at the University of Toronto in Toronto.

He was ordained a Jesuit priest on May 31, 1969, at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City, Missouri.

He pronounced his final vows on Feb. 2, 1979, at Rockhurst College.

Father LaCroix began his primary ministry — teaching philosophy at Rockhurst University — in 1971. With a tenure of almost 40 years, he was a fixture of the Rockhurst philosophy department. He was chair of the philosophy department for more than 20 years.

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Jeanie and Jerry Joyce, members of St. Benedict Parish, Bendena, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Dec. 27. They were married by Father Ernest Stallbaumer at St. Benedict Church in Bendena. Their children are: Marty Joyce, Denton; and Anne Baird, Silver Lake. They have eight grandchildren.

LEAVEN PHOTO BY JOE BOLLIG

The exhibit, “A People, A Face, A Newness in Everyday Rubble,” was on display Dec. 2-3 at Savior Pastoral Center.

Exhibit revealed the suffering, faith of Syrian, Iraqi Christians

By Joe Bollig joe.bollig@theleaven.org KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The real faith and courage of persecuted Christians was on display in an exhibit held Dec. 2-3 at Savior Pastoral Center here.

The exhibit, “A People, A Face, A Newness in Everyday Rubble,” was about the life of Syrian and Iraqi Christians who have fled ISIS/ ISIL forces and found a precarious refuge in neighboring Jordan.

The touring exhibit consists of more than 20 poster-sized photographs with accompanying stories, and a 20-minute video testimony.

Local members of the movement Communion and Liberation heard about the exhibit, which was originally at the New York Encounter, an annual three-day event held in mid-January in New York City, sponsored by Communion and Liberation.

The exhibit was displayed the last week in November at Benedictine College in Atchison, and then moved to Savior. The local showing was sponsored by local Communion and Liberation members and the archdiocesan office for social justice. “[Tens of thousands] of Christian men, women and children are being murdered, and this reality has yet to permeate awareness here in America,” said Bill Scholl, archdiocesan consultant for social

justice. “Our vicar general Father Gary Pennings has been very concerned, and the office for social justice has been looking and praying for ways to engage the church in northeast Kansas.”

Freelance journalist Martha Zaknoun, who was born and raised in Jerusalem but lives in Toronto, created the exhibit. She and friends put it together to document and explain the horrific and tragic events experienced by these displaced Middle Eastern Christians.

“It’s to be a voice for these Christians who are forgotten,” said Marina Carrizosa-Ramos, a member of St. Michael the Archangel Parish in Leawood and a member of Communion and Liberation.

“We hear about the atrocities on the news, but we don’t actually know about how they live,” she continued. “We wanted to share their stories.”

What is lacking in the news stories is the strong and enduring faith of the Christians, who are even able to forgive their enemies.

“We really liked how the exhibit takes the grim reality of ISIS genocide and focuses on the Christian, merciful responses of their victims forced into exile,” said Scholl.

“These people suffer, but they don’t hate, and they don’t despair because they are closer to their Catholic faith than ever.”

TOOLS FOR FAMILIES Growing as Disciples of Jesus

This year’s inn at Bethlehem: our homes

E

xcept for some shepherds, the whole world misses the birth of Christ. The world is too busy or too drowsy.

But the shepherds are not. So when they hear, they go.

And when they go, their lives are forever changed. We, too, must go see the Lord this season. But we’ll miss our chance if we’re not paying attention.

• Where are we too drowsy, too busy this week?

• How can we be more available to go to Christ?

— Kristi Dennihan, School of Love

ARTWORK BY NEILSON CARLIN, 2015

Mary Alice (Ramsey) and Ralph Reschke, members of Corpus Christi Parish, Lawrence, celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary on Dec. 29 with a Mass. The couple was married on Dec. 29, 1956, at St. Mary Church, Dawson, Nebraska. Their children are: Ralph Reschke Jr., Christine Fritzel, Cindy Aldridge and Thomas Reschke.

They also have eight grandchildren and one great-granddaughter. Their children hosted a family reception on Dec. 31.

Donald and Ann (Erpelding) Funk, members of St. Joseph Parish, Nortonville, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Dec. 31.

The couple was married on Dec. 31, 1966, at St. Joseph Church, Atchison.

Their children are: Katherine, Donna, David, Karen and Gary (deceased). Their children are hosting a card shower for their parents. Cards can be sent to: 215 Sycamore, Nortonville, KS 66060.

Norma (Savage) and Bob Lippold, members of Curé of Ars Parish, Leawood, celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary on Jan. 5 with a Mass followed by a family dinner. The couple was married at St. Peter Church, Kansas City, Missouri.

Their children are: Jill Clark, Sherry Watkins, Terry Lippold, Dean Lippold, Bill Lippold, Pam Wheeler, Jimmy Lippold (deceased), Nancy Kellerman and Bobby Lippold. They also have 15 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren.

William “Bill” and Lola Wagner, members of St. Benedict Parish, Atchison, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 7.

The couple was married on Jan. 7, 1967, at St. Joseph Church, Atchison,

by Abbot Barnabas Senecal, OSB. Their children are: Cynthia Vanderweide, Christopher Wagner, Timothy Wagner and Catherine Geisendorf. They also have 10 grandchildren, two step-grandchildren, and two step-great-grandchildren.