03-06-09 Vol. 30 No. 28

WWW.THELEAVEN.COM | NEWSPAPER OF THE ARCHDIOCESE OF KANSAS CITY IN KANSAS | VOL. 30, NO. 28 MARCH 6, 2009

Former Donnelly College president Ken Gibson talks about the new program to give inmates at the Lansing Correctional Facility a chance to earn an education from Donnelly College in Kansas City, Kan., something he pushed for during his tenure at Donnelly.

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — “Show me the money” is what former Donnelly College president Ken Gibson used to tell the warden at Lansing Correctional Facility when asked about offering classes to the inmates there.

“I said, ‘It’s a wonderful thing and it would really fit our mission,” recalls Gibson. “‘But show me the money. We can’t take money out of the pockets of our current students in Wyandotte County!’”

It took a few years and the dedication of a number of people, but Gibson is now seeing the money — in the form of a federal grant in the amount of $223,000.

At a press conference held at the

A SHOT AT K REDEMPTION Donnelly program gives inmates a chance to earn an associate’s degree while in prison Story by KARA HANSEN | Photos by SUSAN MCSPADDEN

3 CAUSE FOR CONCERN Archbishop Naumann and other pro-life advocates find Gov. Kathleen Sebelius’ nomination to a Cabinet post cause for concern.

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college in Kansas City, Kan., on Feb. 27, Donnelly announced it has received a grant from the Department of Justice to support its associate degree satellite program at Lansing Correctional Facility. Classes have been offered at Lansing since 2001.

“Donnelly’s program at Lansing is simply an extension of our original mission to serve those who might otherwise go unserved,” said Gibson’s successor as president of Donnelly, Dr. Steven LaNasa. “We know that education exerts a powerful effect on the lives of those who pursue it. The Lansing program recognizes that education can help transform the lives of these students, and that those who make the commitment deserve the chance to pursue a college education.”

Turn to THIS IS THE FIRST on page 4

DREAM BIG Artist/author/astronaut Ed Dwight has done it all, and he was back at his alma mater Bishop Ward recently to explain how.

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2 ARCHBISHOP

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

LIFE WILL BE VICTORIOUS

CAUSE FOR CONCERN

Appointment troubling on both a personal and a policy level

N

ormally, it would be a source of joy and pride to have a Catholic from Kansas named by the president to an important Cabinet post.

Unfortunately, I experience neither with President Obama’s selection of Governor Kathleen Sebelius as his choice to serve as the secretary for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

In many ways, I can understand why President Obama selected Governor Sebelius. As I have acknowledged on several other occasions, she is a very bright and gifted leader. In many important areas, she represents well Catholic social teaching. She has advocated for more affordable housing for the poor, she has worked to expand access to health care for economically disadvantaged children, and she has supported incentives encouraging adoption.

Yet, on the fundamental moral issue of protecting innocent human life, Governor Sebelius, throughout her career, has been an outspoken advocate for legalized abortion. For this reason, her appointment to HHS is particularly troubling.

President Obama has made health care reform a top priority for his administration. The church certainly supports the objectives of such reform: to make quality health care accessible and affordable for everyone. Of course, there is vigorous debate on how to best achieve this important goal. I claim no competence or expertise in this area.

The secretary for HHS will be a key figure in developing and implementing health care reform for the nation.

There are those who have great influence within the Obama administration and with whom Governor Sebelius has been associated throughout her politi-

cal career (e.g., Planned Parenthood, National Organization for Women, NARAL, etc.), who want abortion not only to be permitted in this country but considered a right.

If they are successful in their efforts to have abortion included among “basic health care services,” then it is entirely possible that doctors, nurses and health care institutions will be compelled to cooperate in the provision of abortion. Those advocating for abortion to be considered a “right” would love to see Catholic hospitals faced with the choice to either cooperate in providing abortions or close.

The protection of conscience rights for individuals and institutions is extremely important. The Obama administration has already expressed a desire to rescind the policies of the Bush administration to strengthen conscience protection for health care workers and providers. President Obama, when he was Senator Obama, co-sponsored the so-called Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) that was introduced in the previous Congress. That version of FOCA would have, among other things, forced health care providers to cooperate in abortion. Regretfully, Governor Sebelius throughout her political career has been associated with and supported by Planned Parenthood, NOW, NARAL and others advocating for abortion to be considered a “health care right.”

Even more troubling is that earlier in her political career Governor Sebelius accepted political contributions from Wichita’s notorious lateterm abortionist, Dr. George Tiller.

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portune, Dr. Tiller established a political action committee through which he donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to support the election and reelection of Governor Sebelius, as well as other equally staunch supporters of legalized abortion.

Kansas has one of the most restrictive laws regarding late-term abortions. Yet, it has become, in large part because of Dr. Tiller, the late-term abortion capital of the Midwest. How is this possible? It is possible because our current laws have not been enforced. Each time the Kansas Legislature has passed statutes in an effort to improve enforcement of lateterm abortion restrictions, Governor Sebelius has vetoed these laws.

As you are aware, because of her long history, both as a legislator and governor, of consistently supporting legalized abortion, and after many months of dialogue, I requested Governor Sebelius not to present herself for Communion. I did this in the hope that it would motivate Governor Sebelius to reconsider her support for what is an intrinsic evil — the destruction of innocent human life by abortion. I also took this pastoral action to protect others from being misled by the governor’s public support and advocacy for legalized abortion.

The appointment of Governor Sebelius as the secretary of HHS concerns me on many levels. With her history of support for legalized abortion and embryonic stem-cell research, it is troubling the important influence that she will have on shaping health care policies for our nation. Having elected President Obama with his own record of support for legalized abortion, our nation should not be surprised by his appointment of a secretary for HHS who shares his views. Though many people voted for President Obama not because of his support for legalized abortion, but despite it, voters in effect gave him the ability to appoint individuals who share his anti-life views to his Cabinet and, even more troubling, to

the courts.

I am also concerned personally for Governor Sebelius. Her appointment as secretary for HHS places her in a position where she will have to make many decisions that will in all probability continue her personal involvement in promoting legalized abortion and her cooperation in this intrinsic evil.

I am also concerned that the appointment of Governor Sebelius places another Catholic supporting legalized abortion in a prominent national position. She joins Vice President Joe Biden, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and unfortunately a host of Catholic senators and members of the House of Representatives who support legalized abortion, contrary to the clear and consistent teaching of their church. It saddens me that so many Catholics, to gain political advancement, have chosen to compromise their Catholic faith by their failure to defend the most fundamental of all human rights — the right to life.

I am reminded of the powerful scene in “A Man for All Seasons,” the play about the heroic Catholic English martyr, St. Thomas More. After Richard Rich has perjured himself in order to make it possible to convict Thomas More of treason, the judge asks Thomas More if he has any questions for the witness. Thomas More notes that Richard Rich is wearing a chain of office and asks what it signifies. He is told that Richard Rich has been appointed attorney general for Wales. Thomas More then paraphrases the Gospel, saying to Richard Rich: “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul, but for Wales?”

We need to pray for all Catholics who serve in public life — that they will have the courage and integrity to be true to the teachings and principles of our faith, no matter the political consequences.

SECOND FRONT PAGE 3

Sebelius nomination distressing to archbishop, local pro-life movement

K

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — As Gov. Kathleen Sebelius departs for a probable Cabinet position in the Obama administration, she leaves with a prayer from her archbishop — and hopes for her reform of conscience.

“We pray for her and for all Catholic politicians, that they can return, first of all, to their properly formed conscience and their faith,” said Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann.

On March 2, President Barack Obama announced that Sebelius, a Catholic who has served as governor since 2003, was his nominee to become secretary of Health and Human Services. This is a key position, since universal health care is one of the president’s chief goals.

Sebelius is Obama’s second choice for the job. Former Senate majority leader Tom Daschle withdrew his nomination after questions arose about taxes and his activities as a consultant.

Sebelius’s supporters are lauding her nomination, calling her a “right fit” because of her experience and decisions regarding insurance and health care in Kansas. Pro-life groups, however, have reacted with dismay.

While recognizing her many accomplishments, the archbishop said he can’t agree with those who feel the governor is a good fit for Health and Human Services.

“I think it’s a particularly bad fit,” he said, “because it will place her in a position where she will have to be involved in issues of abortion policy and also issues that relate to embryonic stem-cell research.”

“These are the very issues where she has found herself in morally treacherous territory by her past actions,” he continued. “And I’m afraid that this will be another occasion for her to renew her history of support for legalized abortion and her support for this intrinsic evil.”

Governor Sebelius’s veto of the Comprehensive Abortion Reform Act of 2008, part of a 20-year history of supporting easy access to abortion, led Archbishop Naumann to take pastoral action. He asked her to “refrain from presenting herself for reception of the Eucharist until she had acknowledged the error of her past positions and made a worthy sacramental confession.”

Sebelius also earned a rebuke from Archbishop Ignatius J. Strecker in 1992 and Archbishop James P. Keleher in 2003.

Sebelius has pointed to pro-life legislation she signed as governor, and says her record shows that the number of abortions in the state has declined during her administration.

But there’s more to the story, say Kansas pro-life advocates.

“Governor Kathleen Sebelius only signed pro-life legislation when vetoproof majorities were bearing down on her, or, as in 2005, when she signed two bills that were less threatening to her supporters,” said Mary Kay Culp, executive director of Kansans for Life.

The list of pro-life legislation she vetoed or used her influence to block is much longer, said Culp. Even more telling is the thousands of dollars that abortion providers and abortion advo-

“I think it’s a particularly bad fit, because it will place her in a position where she will have to be involved in issues of abortion policy and also issues that relate to embryonic stem-cell research.

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann

“Governor Kathleen Sebelius only signed prolife legislation when vetoproof majorities were bearing down on her, or, as in 2005, when she signed two bills that were less threatening to her supporters.”

Mary Kay Culp, executive director of Kansans for Life

CNS photo/Shannon Stapleton, Reuters

Governor Kathleen Sebelius addresses the 2008 Democratic National Convention in Denver Aug. 26. Sebelius is President Barack Obama’s choice for secretary of Health and Human Services. The governor’s pro-abortion record is a major cause for concern with pro-lifers. cates have poured into her campaigns.

To Culp, one photo says it all.

The photo was taken during a private party at the governor’s mansion in April 2007. In this photo, Sebelius is holding up a T-shirt that celebrated the electoral victories of herself, the lieutenant governor, and the attorney general: “TRIFECTA, Sebelius, Parkinson, Morrison.”

In the photo, Sebelius is pointing to the man who gave her the T-shirt — Dr. George Tiller, the nationally famous late-term abortionist from Wichita.

Many are concerned that Sebelius will promote her pro-abortion views in the larger and more powerful entity of the Department of Health and Human Services.

“Our concern lies in the fact that the governor’s staunch, pro-abortion views are well-known,” said Michael Schuttloffel, executive director of the Kansas Catholic Conference.

“And in her new capacity, if she is confirmed by the Senate,” he said, “she’ll bring those views to bear on health care policy, which is an important component of abortion policy.”

Sebelius faces a number of challenges, said Schuttloffel. She’s no political novice, but she doesn’t have the

Washington connections and savvy of Tom Daschle. Also, she won’t have as much clout as Daschle would have had as both HHS secretary and “health czar” in the Office for Health Reform.

“I think another major challenge for her is that it’s March 3, and she’s not secretary of HHS yet,” said Schuttloffel. “A lot of the important decisions have already been made about the direction of the Obama administration. The president has already submitted his budget to Congress.”

Sebelius’ nomination should be viewed in the context of other Obama administration appointments, said David O’Steen, executive director of the Washington, D.C.-based National Right to Life Committee.

“I believe [President Obama appointed Sebelius] because she is ideologically aligned with him,” said O’Steen. “And I truly believe that abortion and promotion of abortion is [Obama’s] priority and hers — the protection and promotion of abortion.”

“You have to look at the whole picture,” he continued. “This administration surrounded itself not only with people who are pro-abortion — who go down on that side — but people who are active in the pro-abortion movement.”

“Our concern lies in the fact that the governor’s staunch, pro-abortion views are well-known.

And in her new capacity, she’ll bring those views to bear on health care policy, which is an important component of abortion policy.”

Michael Schuttloffel, executive director of the Kansas Catholic Conference

“I believe [President Obama appointed Sebelius] because she is ideologically aligned with him. And I truly believe that abortion and promotion of abortion is [Obama’s] priority and hers — the protection and promotion of abortion.

David O’Steen, executive director of the National Right to Life Committee

4 LOCAL NEWS

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

‘This is the first time someone has believed in them’ Continued from page 1 The benefits of an education to those trying to put their prison time behind them and succeed on the outside cannot be overestimated. More than 325 inmates have taken classes through Donnelly since the program was launched, 155 of whom have been released.

Of those, only 25 percent returned to prison, compared to the national average of 52 percent.

But more importantly, most of those returning do so for short terms of only 30-90 days for parole violations.

Only two percent — or a grand total of three graduates of the program — have actually returned to prison having been convicted of a new crime.

“This is a good program that helps so many people and really saves the country money in terms of reducing prison time,” said Gibson. “The program has a real commitment to reducing recidivism because we know people are much less likely to return to prison once they’ve gotten an education.”

Inmates pay a third of their tuition to demonstrate commitment and personal investment in their education, but additional funding is needed to offset the remaining tuition and program costs.

Senator Sam Brownback was instrumental in helping Donnelly secure the funding for the grant from the Justice Department. The senator said it took over three years to garner the bipartisan support needed to obtain the aid.

He took a vested interest in the program, he said, after his own voluntary incarceration in two different prisons in an attempt to better understand what prisoners were experiencing.

“People in prison did bad things and they need to do time for their crime, but they are not without redemption,” said Brownback. “We have a problem when we start looking at people as problems. We need to treat them with dignity and help them become better people.”

Donnelly’s program is one of only a few like it in existence, and one of only two in the state of Kansas.

“Part of the church’s mission is to make real and tangible the love of Jesus Christ in the world today, and this program fits that mission so well,” said Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann.

LOCAL NEWS

5

Program helps college Catholics stay connected to their faith

By KARA HANSEN Leaven staff

Dave McKune, warden of Lansing Correctional Facility, stressed the positives of the Donnelly program at the Feb. 27 press conference.

After the press conference, Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann exchanged greetings with Senator Sam Brownback, as well as warden McKune, past Donnelly president Ken Gibson (center) and current Donnelly president Steven LaNasa (partially hidden).

“We’re delighted the church is a part of this and we’re very proud of the program and everything Donnelly has accomplished.”

The grant money will be distributed equally each year over the next three years. The assistance came at a critical juncture in the life of the program, which has recently seen a rise in class enrollment at the prison due to the introduction of live video conferencing,

which permits classes to be held simultaneously in more than one location throughout the facility.

“This program helps our inmates address some of their shortcomings in education as well as in their self-concept,”

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said Dave McKune, warden of Lansing Correctional Facility. “For many, this is the first time someone has believed in them — that they can accomplish positive things. They start to see their selfworth for the first time.” unplanned pregnancy? decisions to make?

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KANSAS CITY, Kan. — After sending three children through Catholic grade school and high school, Bill McHale was more than a little surprised to learn that each of his children, one by one, stopped practicing their faith once they left for college.

Dismayed, McHale started talking to other parents of college-age children and quickly discovered he was not alone.

Ultimately, his participation in his local Serra Club, an organization that helps foster vocaAny parish that is tions, encouraged interested in gethim to do someting involved in the thing about it.

College Connection “In talking with program should other members of contact Bill McHale, the Serra Club, I revia e-mail, at: alized many other wemchale@aol. families had simicom. A local Serra lar situations and Club member will that’s what got me follow up to discuss really committed how to get started. to the College Connection program,” said McHale, a member of the Serra Club of Kansas City, Kan., and a parishioner at Holy Cross Parish in Overland Park.

The College Connection program was created by Serra International and is being implemented in the archdiocese for the first time this year through local Serra Clubs like McHale’s. It is designed to connect incoming college freshmen with the Catholic presence on or near their campus, in the hope that, by making that initial connection, each student will be more likely to continue practicing his or her faith throughout college and into young adulthood.

“Each student’s name will go to the Newman Center, Catholic campus center, or closest Catholic church to the student’s college, so they can get in touch with the kids as they arrive,” explained McHale.

To get the program off the ground, McHale and other members of archdiocesan Serra Clubs have coordinated with Catholic high schools to obtain the names of their graduating seniors and their college of choice.

Then, members of the Serra Club will contact the various Catholic campus centers, ministry programs, or Catholic parishes to give staff there the names and contact information of the respective incoming freshmen. Students are, in turn,

Leaven file photo by Elaina Cochran

The College Connection program hopes to keep college students active in their faith by connecting incoming freshmen with their school’s campus ministry program or the parish nearest to the college. given written information on the Catholic presence at their college of choice, courtesy of the Serra Club.

“We are hopefully reaching all the [college-bound] students in the Catholic high schools in our archdiocese this year, which is approximately 850 graduating seniors,” said McHale.

What’s at stake in this attempt by the College Connection program to keep college kids practicing their faith is staggering.

According to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., if campus ministries reached just 10 percent more of the nearly five million Catholic college students across the United States and kept them active in their faith, it would add approximately 500,000 practicing Catholics to dioceses across the country.

It is no surprise, then, that College Connection has garnered the immediate support of Catholic school administrators in the archdiocese.

“I think the College Connection program is a great program,” said Kathy O’Hara, superintendent of archdiocesan schools. “Young people between the ages of 18 and 22 are still very impressionable and vulnerable and need to continue to mature in their faith

“As a parent of now-grown children, I know firsthand the value of encouraging young adults to practice their faith at this time in their lives.”

There is already a program in place at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park to help graduating seniors get connected with campus ministry programs at the University of Kansas and Kansas State University, said president Bill Ford. But he is glad of this new program, nonetheless.

“We think the College Connection will enhance our efforts at the two largest Kansas Regents universities,” said Ford.

“Since we already have this program in place at KU and K-State, their work with our graduates at other public universities will provide a broader outreach.”

O’Hara said that while many Catholic parishes already assist and encourage their college students to get involved at their Catholic campus centers while in college, the College Connection program could help fill in any gaps and expand efforts currently underway.

“The Serra Club program will assist those parishes that may not have the capacity to take on this type of project,” she said.

McHale said even though the program is starting with the archdiocesan Catholic schools, it is meant to encompass all high

school Catholic seniors in the archdiocese who are graduating — regardless of whether they attend public, private, or Catholic schools.

“We would like to do one program through the Catholic high schools and one program with the public schools through the parishes,” said McHale.

“We’re concentrating on making contact with all the students in the Catholic high schools this year and getting them the information on campus for their respective Catholic ministries.”

But McHale recognizes that reaching the public school students, through the parishes, will be more difficult.

“We’re targeting a few parishes to start the effort with the public school students, since that is where the majority of the students come from — approximately 70 percent.”

But a large-scale effort will have to wait.

As for McHale, two of his three children are once again practicing their Catholic faith, and he has high hopes for the third.

But he hopes that the College Connection program will help spare other parents the worry he has known — and keep upcoming generations of Catholics faithful to the Gospel their whole life long.

6 LOCAL NEWS

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

Two Benedictine Sisters celebrate 75th anniversary ATCHISON — To live past the age of 90 is remarkable in itself, but to spend 75 of those years faithful to the same life commitment is even more cause for celebration.

The Sisters at Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison gathered on Feb. 15 to witness the diamond jubilee of not one, but two Sisters who have reached that amazing mark in their lives. Sisters Theophane Reinecke and Sienna Rohlfer made their monastic profession in 1934 and have devoted their entire lives to their Benedictine community and their ministry of education.

Sister Sienna was an elementary teacher and principal, sometimes both at the same time, in a number of area schools, including St. Joseph in Atchison, St. Leo in Horton, and St. Patrick in Corning, as well as in Kansas City, Kan., at Sacred Heart, Christ the King, St. John the Evangelist, St. Anthony and Our Lady of Unity.

Sister Theophane, a native of Seneca, also began as a grade school teacher, but spent the last half of her career teaching high school. She was an instructor and principal at Mount St. Scholastica Academy in Atchison at various times in the 1950s, ’60s and ’70s.

After she retired from teaching, she worked in the administration of Benedictine College from 1981 to 1987.

Prioress Sister Anne Shepard expressed admiration for the Sisters in her remarks at the ceremony of their renewal of vows. To the Sisters and to

Sisters to hold leadership camp in June LEAVENWORTH — The annual leadership camp for sixth- through eighth-grade girls is scheduled June 17-19 on the campus of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth here. The camp is co-hosted by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth and the Benedictine Sisters of Atchison.

The purpose of the camp is to enhance leadership skills of the participants, deepen their spiritual life and introduce them to Sisters. The registration deadline is May 29.

The registration fee of $145 includes room and board, meals and camp activities. Scholarships are available.

For registration materials, send an e-mail to Sister Sharon at: ssmith@scls.org, or call (913) 7586522. For more information, visit the Web site at: www.scls.org.

Camp Tekakwitha has opening for more campers Sister Theophane Reinecke (left) and Sister Sienna Rohlfer (right) pose with a cake at a reception in their honor. the many family and friends attending, she said, “Both are remembered for their care and love. They have spent their lives in community and service to others. More than that, to this very day, they continue in their most important ministry: They pray for all of us every day.”

LOCAL NEWS

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

For their part, the jubilarians see that work as what has sustained them these many years.

“The years went by fast,” said Sister Sienna. “There have been many changes in customs in our monastery, but not in the most important things.”

WILLIAMSBURG — Prairie Star Ranch here will open the new Logos Lodge this spring, which will allow for 300 additional campers per season. There is currently room for 272 more campers to experience Christ in deep and profound ways at Camp Tekakwitha.

Downloadable camp forms are available at the Web site at: www. archkck.org.

Annual Mass for the sick set for March 21 KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The bishops of both the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph and both bishops emeritus will join in the annual communal service to administer the sacrament of the sick to people in both dioceses. The annual service has attracted attendance by hundreds of parishioners in previous years, and all are invited to attend.

The service will include a concelebrated Mass by Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher, Bishop Robert Finn, and Bishop Emeritus Raymond J. Boland, and the sacramental anointing and blessing of the sick as it is done at the shrine in Lourdes, France.

The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. on March 21 at Curé of Ars Church, 93rd and Mission Road, Leawood.

Following the Mass and anointing service, there will be a reception.

The bishops emphasize that while many parishes conduct communal healing services, the purpose of the annual Mass is to authenticate the sacrament of healing and set an example that others might follow. It is not meant to replace communal anointing services in either diocese.

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In order to assist the bishops, those who wish to receive the sacrament of the sick at Mass are asked to register on the form in this week’s Leaven (see page 6) or to call in to register at (913) 649-3466 or (913) 432-5266 and leave your names. Name cards are made for those wishing to receive the sacrament.

Citing the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the bishops say the eligible include those who: • Are beginning to become weakened by age, even if no specific illness is present, but there is serious impairment • Are about to undergo surgery due to a serious illness • Suffer from a chronic or serious illness, although it is not necessary to receive the sacrament twice for the same illness unless one’s physical condition has changed • Sick children, if they have sufficient use of reason to be strengthened by the sacrament.

The annual Mass is again being sponsored by the Kansas City area of the Order of Malta, a centuries-old church organization dedicated to the care of the sick and poor.

7

Sister Julius Marie Burger, CSJ WICHITA — Sister Julius Marie Burger, CSJ, died here on Feb. 20. A native of Kansas City, Kan., Ruth Marie Burger, the daughter of the late Julius and Mary Elizabeth Burger, was born Nov. 6, 1926. After attending Bishop Ward High School in Kansas City, Kan., for three years, she completed her high school education while a postulant at Mount St. Mary Convent in OBITUARY Wichita.

She entered the Congregation of St. Joseph on March 19, 1944, and was given the name Sister Julius Marie. She pronounced final vows on July 26, 1949.

Sister Julius Marie ministered for six years as a teacher at St. Patrick School in Florence, and as a teacher and principal at St. Patrick School, Parsons. In 1952, she was asked to go to Kyoto, Japan, to minister in the newly established regional communi-

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ty of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Wichita. During the next 45 years, she served in many capacities: director of novices, regional superior, CEO of St. Mary Special School for Handicapped Children, CEO of St. Joseph Hospital for Handicapped Children, CEO of Nansei Special Old Folks’ Home, and English teacher at Rakusei Boys’ Junior High School.

After returning to Wichita in 1997, Sister Julius Marie ministered as a customer relations specialist at Via Christi-St. Joseph for six years.

Subsequently, she cared for her brother Richard and served as night manager of Sheridan Village, a housing complex for senior citizens, for three years.

Sister Julius Marie is survived by six sisters and four brothers: from Wichita, Sister Ann Catherine Burger, CSJ; Sister Rose Helen Burger, CSJ; Sister Joan Marie Burger, CSJ; and Angela Burger; Elizabeth Marie Burger, Bartlesville, Okla.; Carol Nachbar Morgan, Shawnee; Father Robert Burger and Father Francis Burger, Olathe; Father Raymond Burger, Overland Park; and Richard Burger, Wichita.

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HUMAN TRAFFICKING: SLAVERY BY A DIFFERENT NAME

By Jill Ragar Esfeld

I

t is a statistic as shocking as it sobering: There are more slaves in the world today than at any other time in human history.

Slavery today goes under a different name — human trafficking — and an estimated 27 million people are currently being held against their will and forced to work for someone else’s profit.

Its victims are women, men and children.

Their average age is 12.

Because the Department of Justice has only tracked and prosecuted trafficking cases since 2000, it is an issue that has only very recently come to the attention of the media and social justice advocates.

Taking a stand One group helping bring it to the attention of others is the Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison. To raise awareness of the human trafficking issue, the Sisters dedicated this year’s Guilfoil Justice Day on Feb. 5-6 (see sidebar at top of next page) to the topic.

Organizer Sister Gabrielle Kocour, OSB, said she first became aware of human trafficking three years ago when another Sister described to her the involvement of a number of other religious orders in the issue. She was directed to an online newsletter called Stop Trafficking! for more information.

What is Human Trafficking?

The United Nations definition of human trafficking is: “The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation.”

The newsletter, published by the Sisters of the Divine Savior (Salvatorians), was officially launched in 2006 as part of a program called Salvatorians Advocacy for Victims of Exploitation (SAVE).

“I wrote to the editor and asked her if we could cosponsor [the newsletter],” said Sister Gabrielle, “so I could get our own Benedictines to start reading it and get interested in the topic.”

After reading and studying the issue, the community decided to issue a corporate statement on human trafficking, rooted in the Gospels and Catholic social teaching (see sidebar on bottom of next page) and committed themselves to raising awareness within the Catholic community.

They saw their annual Guilfoil Justice Day as the perfect venue to spread their message.

“Every year there’s been a major social issue addressed [at the Guilfoil Justice Day event],” said Sister Ann Shepard, prioress of Mount Saint Scholastica. “This year it was human trafficking because we find that it’s an area the church doesn’t know very much about, and it’s horrible. We’ve been appalled by the topic and by what is and is not being done nationally.”

The 11th annual gathering was hosted at Curé of Ars Church in Leawood.

Entitled “Human Trafficking: Modern Day Slavery,” it featured keynote speaker Sister Patrice Colletti, a Salvatorian Sister who became involved in the issue after participating in an international meeting in Rome in 2001.

Statistics • Human trafficking is a $32 billion industry and the fastest growing criminal industry in the world • 1.2 million children are trafficked annually

• Human trafficking is tied in with the illegal arms industry as the second largest criminal activity in the world (after the drug trade) • Two children per minute are trafficked for sexual exploitation • Between January 2007 and September 2008, there were 1,229 alleged incidents of human trafficking in the United States, according to the Justice Department’s Bureau of Justice Statistics.

Ninety percent of all trafficking victims — and 99 percent of all sex trafficking victims — are women. Sixty-three percent of sex trafficking victims are United States citizens. The vast majority are young girls.

Universally, the people who support and profit from the industry are men.

One of the most dramatic moments of the Guilfoil Justice Day conference came after the keynote speech, when audience members expressed outrage at the demand for human slaves, especially young women, by the sex industry.

Chris Wade, a presenter at the conference and a former victim of human trafficking, responded emotionally to the outrage of her audience.

“If you want this to stop,” she said forcefully, “teach your sons it is never right to objectify a woman. Teach your young men that it is never right to buy and sell a human being.”

CNS photo/Barbara J. Fraser

In our own backyard Indeed, while many Americans are under the impression that human trafficking exists in other parts of the world, the stark truth is that anywhere there is a highway system, there is human trafficking.

The Midwest is at its crossroads in this country.

The flyer promoting the Guilfoil Justice Day put it succinctly: “Girls and boys as far away as Laos and as close as Lenexa are being bought and sold into the tragic underworld of human trafficking.”

“I think our goal was to bring awareness,” said Sister Gabrielle. “And we hoped, of course, that awareness would lead to action.

“You’ve got to be aware of it, then you’ve got to care enough about it, then you have to do something.”

Participants in the Guilfoil Justice Day were not only adults from this archdiocese and the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, but scores of students from Catholic high schools on both sides of the state line.

Sister Patrice’s address was, at times, both graphic and disturbing. And the statistics she presented were nothing short of shocking.

The United States, she told her audience, is one of the largest markets for the sex trade.

According to the State Department Bureau of Justice Statistics, this country is now the number one destination for child sex trafficking in the world.

“This is an industry that only exists because we support it,” she said.

The scope of the problem can seem overwhelming to advocates, Sister Patrice admitted. But she reminded her audience that small steps can lead to huge gains if everyone works together.

Alluding to William Faulkner’s axiom — “The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones” — Sister Patrice said that for a long time she carried a small stone in her pocket to remind her to keep the faith.

In turn, Sister Patrice distributed to each member of her audience a handmade bracelet from San Luis Parish in Guatemala as a similar reminder . “[It’s] something to keep that awareness before us,” explained Sister Gabrielle. “To remind us they are all our brothers and sisters and they’re tied up — they’re slaves.”

From awareness to action The second afternoon of the two-day justice event was devoted to workshops, through which participants began to see human trafficking as a local issue and were moved beyond awareness to dialogue about making a difference.

Carrie Rosetti, the human trafficking caseworker at Hope House in Lee’s Summit, Mo., presented a general overview of the Human Trafficking Rescue Project in the western district of Missouri and discussed in detail several recent cases of human trafficking in the area.

“When we talk about trafficking,” Rosetti said, “we’re trying to diminish the myth that it only happens overseas.”

“Until I came home to the United States and began to dig into this issue, I was mistakenly thinking it only occurred in other countries,” she said during her keynote address. “Now I know slavery and human trafficking, although invisible, exists everywhere.”

■ The Web site — www.sdssisters.org/slavery — offers multiple links to downloadable information packets, including a packet specifically for parishes and faith communities to use.

■ Stop Trafficking! is a free, monthly newsletter, available at: http://homepage.mac.com/srjeanschafersds/ stoptraffic.

■ The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Migrant and Refugee Services Web site provides information and links about the Catholic perspective on social justice at: www. usccb.org/mrs/traffickingweb.shtml.

CNS photo/Walter Hupiu

For more information:

Rossetti warned workshop participants, many who were high school students, that recruiting of human traffic victims has shifted from urban areas to suburbs and small towns.

In recent years, for example, trafficking prosecutions have followed raids on a string of massage parlors in Johnson County and the arrest of an operator of ice cream trucks, who employed Russian students.

Rossetti’s presentation was followed by a workshop featuring Chris Wade, a survivor of human trafficking who was forced to work in the sex industry. Wade is now the author and lead assessor of the “Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking in Independence and Kansas City, Missouri” report published by Shared Hope International and the Department of Justice.

Addressing her student audience in particular, Wade said it might be hard to imagine how men get to the point of enslaving women and children for profit.

But it starts much earlier than that, she noted.

“You get a lot of information from the media that it’s OK to objectify women,” explained Wade. “As you desensitize, it becomes easier to cross the line.”

Bill Scholl, consultant for the social justice office of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, which cosponsored the event, also served on the Guilfoil Justice Day planning committee.

Wade’s workshop, said Scholl, confirms much of what he had learned while working on the archdiocese’s antipornography campaign.

“We need to make the public aware that visualization leads to actualization, and that pornography is not harmless,” he said. “Human trafficking is a justice issue that transcends ideologies, so it’s important that the world sees Catholics at the forefront in the battle to abolish modern-day slavery.”

Participating students, clearly moved

by Wade’s testimony of her personal experience, asked her how she was ever able to recover and become an advocate for others.

A young woman rests at the entrance of her house in Iquitos, Peru. Poverty and apathy toward enforcing the laws have contributed to the growing problem of child prostitution in the Peruvian jungle city of Iquitos. However, the problem of child prostitution is not limited to Third World countries. Children as close as the Kansas City metro area are being forced into prostitution.

Jose Alves holds charcoal in early May 2007 at the Dignity Cooperative in Acailandia, Brazil, where he makes charcoal briquettes. Alves escaped from slavelike conditions.

“I never perceived myself as a victim,” she said. “I viewed myself as a survivor who was victimized.

“You come to a point every day when you decide you’re going to make it. You don’t get over it — I still have nightmares — but you decide you’re going to manage it.”

Wade said that is why it’s essential for human trafficking victims to have a refuge like Hope House or Veronica’s Voice, another not-for-profit organization that helps victims of prostitution and commercial sexual exploitation.

Like Rossetti, Wade emphasized to students that the issue of human trafficking is their issue . . . and closer to home than they realize.

“Keep your eyes out for the bad guys,” she said. “They’re not just at the bus stations looking for vulnerable runaway kids.

This is happening in your city every day.”

“There are people out there who are predators, and they’re going to look like the guy next door,” she continued.

“Brutal criminals don’t care about humanity. They will get you if they can.”

Wade encouraged the students to discuss the issue and think of ways they could effect change.

“You are the future,” she said. “You have an opportunity to make a difference.”

Benedictine Sisters’ corporate statement on human trafficking: “‘Committed to peace,’ our Benedictine motto, and to the personal and social transformation of our culture of fear to a culture of love and right relationship, we, the Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica, Atchison, Kansas, denounce human trafficking. As followers of Christ, we affirm the dignity of each person. We invite all drawn to this cause to join us in continuing to extend compassion to the abused, to explore ways to eliminate human exploitation, and to raise awareness about this issue.”

10 NATION

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

Vatican official to attend Holocaust marker rededication BRAINTREE, Mass. (CNS) — The Vatican's top official on Catholic-Jewish relations will attend a March 25 redediof a BRIEFLY cation Holocaust memorial menorah that symbolizes the close relationship between the Catholic and Jewish communities in Boston. Boston Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley invited Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations With the Jews, to the March event a day after the U.S. prelate met with local Jewish leaders and Holocaust survivors Feb. 23. Cardinal O’Malley met with them to address their concerns generated by the pope’s decision in January to lift the excommunication of Bishop Richard Williamson, a traditionalist bishop who has denied the Holocaust. The cardinal described the encounter as “a very good meeting that demonstrated the appreciation of the wonderful and close relationship that the Catholic and the Jewish communities have had in Boston since the time of Cardinal Cushing.” Cardinal Richard J. Cushing was archbishop of Boston from 1944 to 1970. “It was a very important opportunity for us to assure the Jewish community that the Catholic Church repudiates the Holocaust denial,” Cardinal O’Malley said.

Gathering’s emcee injects prayer, praise at meeting WASHINGTON (CNS) — Msgr. Raymond East, master of ceremonies for the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering in Washington, had to eat his lunch in three phases Feb. 24, as he was being called away to do work related to his role as emcee. At one point, he said from the microphone to the person who had been sitting next to him, “Don't let them take my lunch.” Before lunch was over, he was finalizing details to deliver the gleanings from the box lunches — the apples, sandwiches, bags of potato chip, canisters of potato salad, cookies and Hershey’s Kisses left by the 550 conferees — to the Dorothy Day Catholic Worker House in Washington. As lunch was ending, he returned to the microphone to offer a belated prayer of thanks to God for the meal. Yes, Catholics are used to praying before meals, but the after-meal prayer is “the way the Muslims do it,” Msgr. East said, launching into a passage from a gospel hymn written by Kenneth Louis, a Washington composer.

By MARK PATTISON Catholic News Service

Atheist ad campaign seen on Canadian buses

WASHINGTON (CNS) — The global food crisis was called a “ticking time bomb” at a Feb. 24 forum during the annual Catholic Social Ministry Gathering in Washington.

Although prices for cereal grains have dropped since their spike last spring, the crisis has not gone away, according to Rajul Pandya-Lorch, chief of staff at the International Food Policy Research Institute and the head of the institute’s initiative, Vision 2020 for Food.

Instead, she said, the food crisis has been overshadowed by the global financial crisis.

The spike in prices was brought about by unregulated speculation in food commodities, Pandya-Lorch said.

While regulations ordinarily limit purchases of cereal grains to 11 million bushels, the U.S. financial houses Morgan Stanley and American International Group, better known as AIG, used loopholes to buy more than 2 billion bushels of grain, keeping it off the market and sending prices soaring.

Rice more than tripled in price, and wheat and corn doubled, she said.

Another driver in food price hikes was the use of food for biofuels. Cereal grain use last year was up 5 percent for food, Pandya-Lorch said, but up 38 percent for energy.

The price spikes whipsawed producers and consumers alike. Because the price of oil also had spiked, producers found it harder to maintain leases on equipment in order to do more planting and take advantage of the higher prices, Pandya-Lorch said, and poor consumers, especially in developing countries, found themselves spending 50 percent to 70 percent of their income on food.

Yet cheap food is not an automatic solution to the food crisis, she said.

“People think low food prices are good for the poor in the developing world.

They’re not,” Pandya-Lorch declared.

Low prices lead to a flood of cheap imported food from high-yield agricultural nations, creating a disincentive for local farmers to grow their own crops since they cannot compete on price.

QUEBEC CITY (CNS) — An international atheist ad campaign, modeled on similar campaigns in England and Spain, will be featured on buses in Quebec in March.

The slogan — “God probably doesn’t exist. So stop worrying and get on with your life” — piqued the interest of the Quebec Humanist Association, which translated it into French and arranged for it to be displayed on 10 central Montreal buses for three weeks.

The same ad also will be displayed later this spring on Toronto buses, although transportation authorities in British Columbia, Nova Scotia and other parts of Ontario have refused the campaign, said Michel Virard, president of the Quebec Humanist Association.

“Our goal is for our beliefs to be accepted, like anyone else’s,” Virard told local media. He said atheists are sometimes the victims of discrimination.

Bertrand Ouellet, secretary-general of the Quebec Assembly of Bishops, offered a tongue-in-cheek comment on the ad campaign, saying, “If they said that God probably doesn’t exist that means they’re not quite so sure of their affirmation.”

But Ouellet said the presence of the campaign also underlines that Canadians are lucky to live in “a society which values freedom of thought and of expression.”

Virard said the campaign will solicit funds from nonbelievers.

“There are more than 400,000 nonbelievers in Quebec, according to Statistics Canada. That makes us, therefore, the second religious group in Quebec — many will surely be interested in our humanist association,” he said.

But others said the campaign will be met with indifference.

“Here this topic is a nonsubject when compared to the situation in the United Kingdom,” said Louis Rousseau, a sociology professor at the University of Quebec in Montreal. In the United Kingdom, the ad campaign was in response to a campaign by an evangelical group that had stated on its Web site that non-Christians would go to hell.

Global food crisis ‘ticking time bomb’

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ASSISTANT CHECKS PATIENT’S TOOTH — An assistant checks the infected tooth of Pilar Cruz before a procedure in the dental office at the Catholic Spanish Center in Washington Feb. 25. The center is run by Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington. The future of such programs is un certain as more state and local spending cuts are being discussed.

Fasting during Lent meant to draw people ‘to heart of God’

By TARA LITTLE Catholic News Service LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (CNS) — The ultimate goal of fasting during Lent is to draw “us closer in a more regular way to the heart of God,” said Cackie Upchurch, director of the Little Rock Scripture Study.

Fasting is an ancient custom that can be found in almost all religious traditions, she said in an interview with the Arkansas Catholic, newspaper of the Diocese of Little Rock.

But “Jesus doesn’t want a typically religious practice just to be taken for granted,” Upchurch said. The important thing is “you do it from the heart,” she said.

If the external act of fasting does not reflect “something internal in us” then it is not what God wants, she said.

For Benedictine Abbot Jerome Kodell of Subiaco Abbey, in Subiaco, fasting is a way to gain freedom. This concept is rooted in the Benedictine tradition of the holy hermits of ancient Christianity known as the “desert fathers.”

It acknowledges that “the human being is a complicated system, and we

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don’t always know our motives, and we are not always as free as we think we are.”

The idea of freedom coming from self-denial is countercultural. Popular belief is that “when I do anything I want to do, I’m free,” he said. “But actually the reason I’m doing these things may be because of slavery.”

Choices are often made, he said, “because society tells me to, because my emotions tell me to, because my hangups tell me to, because some other person who I want to impress tells me to.”

Msgr. James Mancini, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Tontitown and a liaison for the Catholic Charismatic Renewal, said: “As a consumer society, we’re encouraged to satisfy all our appetites. If it feels good, do it, and that’s not the spirit of Christ.”

Referring to St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans, Msgr. Mancini said fasting is a recognition “that the spirit and the flesh are in battle with each other.” In fasting, “we try to limit or modify the demands of our appetites. The appetites are not wrong; God gave them to us for a purpose, but they definitely need discipline,” he said.

PRIESTS CARRY COFFIN OF CARDINAL TUNG — Priests carry the coffin of Cardinal Pau Pham Dinh Tung during his funeral at St. Joseph Cathedral in Hanoi, Vietnam, Feb. 26. Thousands of Vietnamese Catholics wearing white headbands filled the streets and plaza in front of Hanoi’s main cathedral for the funeral of Cardinal Tung.

Cardinal, known for leadership during hard times, dies HANOI, Vietnam (CNS) — Cardinal Paul Pham Dinh Tung, known for his leadership of Catholics in northern Vietnamese dioceses during difficult times, died at the age of 89.

Cardinal Tung died Feb. 22 at the archbishop’s residence in Hanoi, a local church source told the Asian church news agency UCA News.

The following morning, his coffin was moved from the chapel in the archbishop’s residence to nearby St. Joseph Cathedral, UCA News reported.

Thousands of Catholics attended a special Mass concelebrated by Archbishop Joseph Ngo Quang Kiet of Hanoi, Auxiliary Bishop Laurence Chu Van Minh of Hanoi, Bishop Joseph Dang Duc Ngan of Lang Son and priests.

Cardinal Tung’s funeral Mass is scheduled for Feb. 26 at the cathedral square and he will be buried in the cathedral, the archdiocese announced.

Pope Benedict XVI expressed his sadness over the death of Cardinal Tung and said he was united in prayer with the Archdiocese of Hanoi, the bishops of Vietnam, the relatives of the cardinal and all those touched by his death.

The pope called him “a distinguished pastor who, in difficult circumstances, served the church with great courage and great fidelity to the

see of Peter, sacrificing himself with generosity to the announcement of the Gospel.”

During Cardinal Tung’s name-day celebration Jan. 25, 2008, Bishop Minh praised the cardinal for bravely witnessing to the Catholic faith by urging northern dioceses to remain faithful to the church during the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s, under communist rule and during the Vietnam War. The cardinal founded centers for people displaced by war.

Local church sources told UCA News the cardinal founded a religious society for women in the Bac Ninh Diocese in 1963 and a society for former seminarians in Hanoi in 1996.

Both societies now have hundreds of members involved in evangelization.

They said Cardinal Tung provided priestly formation for seminarians from seven northern dioceses from 1955 to 1960, when the seminary was closed because it refused to allow communists to teach atheism to seminarians. Cardinal Tung then secretly provided priestly formation to seminarians in parishes and ordained many.

Bishop Minh said the cardinal tried to strengthen Catholics’ faith by providing pastoral activities and devotion to Jesus and Mary and by bringing folk music into the liturgy.

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11

Leaders warn of ‘desert of Christianity’ in Middle East ZOUK MOSBEH, Lebanon (CNS) — Chaldean Catholic leaders warned that Iraq’s diminishing BRIEFLY Christian population should be an “alarm bell” for the rest of the world and could foreshadow the transformation of the Middle East. Chaldean Bishop Michel Kassarji of Beirut warned participants at a mid-February conference that the Iraqi model of depleting Christians could be introduced into the rest of the Middle East. He said the mission of the conference was to “sound the alarm bell . . . to avoid the transformation of the East into a desert of Christianity.” The bishop said, “International religious authorities look at the Iraqi Christian situation as hopeless” and view Christians’ departure “as something imminent and unavoidable.” He added, “Our fellow Muslim brothers must be aware of these dangers and must take responsibility in turn. The Arab and Muslim countries have to make a serious move to stop the extermination of the Christian existence in Iraq.”

Global financial crisis delays encyclical, pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The global economic crisis has contributed to the delay in the publication of Pope Benedict XVI’s new social encyclical, not for financial reasons, but because the crisis has demonstrated how important and how complicated the topic is. If the encyclical “does not deal competently with the economic reality, it cannot be credible,” Pope Benedict said Feb. 26 in response to a question from a priest of the Diocese of Rome. During the pope’s annual question-and-answer session with more than 400 priests ministering in Rome, a pastor from a poor neighborhood asked how church members could do more to push for a real reform of the global economic system. Pope Benedict said he did not want to give a simplistic answer to a complicated question about the reality of global finance and said that, in fact, the complexity of the current situation is what has delayed the publication of his social encyclical, tentatively titled “Caritas in Veritate” (“Love in Truth”). “As you know, for a long time we have been preparing an encyclical on these points, and on its long journey one can see how difficult it is to speak competently about it,” the pope said.

12 CLASSIFIEDS ■ EMPLOYMENT Administrator - Sacred Heart School, Emporia, is seeking a day care center administrator to help establish and oversee a new faith-centered day care for 24 children. Applicant must have a child care associate credential or its equivalent. The administrator will be responsible for general and fiscal management of the facility. Interested applicants should send a letter of interest, resume and transcript to: Sacred Heart School, 102 Cottonwood, Emporia, KS 66801 or via e-mail to: tlein@sacred heartemporia.org.

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Requirements include a graduate degree in liturgical studies or equivalent with a minimum of five years experience at the diocesan or parish level with excellent interpersonal, management, writing and musical skills. The selected individual must be an active practicing Catholic who supports the authentic Magisterium and is ready to work with parishes, other agencies and offices of the Church to oversee diocesan initiatives of education in and implementation of Catholic liturgy. The diocese offers a generous benefit package and competitive salary. For a complete job description, visit the Web site at: www.diocese-kcsj.org. For immediate consideration, forward your resume via e-mail, to: stucinski@diocesekcsj.org. Applicants who are clergy or Religious must have the authorization of their legitimate superior to apply.

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Shawnee duplex - Nice, 3 BR, 3 BA, maintenancefree duplex. Open floor plan. Cul-de-sac. West Shawnee, 7111 McCoy. $1150/mo. Available end of March. Call (913) 526-6218.

Granite, Cambria and Silestone countertops See our new showroom at 5820 Barton, in the heart of beautiful downtown Shawnee. Call The Top Shop, Inc., at (816) 898-8685 or (913) 962-5058.

H o m e f o r r e n t - Two-story home near Holy Family Parish on Strawberry Hill in Kansas City, Kan. 3 + BR, 2 BA, lots of closet space! Nice yard with shed. Call Vincent at (913) 963-9572.

REMODELING & REPAIRS Quality work at reasonable prices. Baths, kitchens, basements and door replacements.

Member of Queen of the Holy Rosary Parish, OP. Ralph Pruente at (913) 631-1115.

Villas of Whitehorse - 15011 Ash St., Leawood.

Located on a cul-de-sac, this beautiful home has 4 BR, 3 BA, a screened-in porch, tile roof, granite countertops, a butler’s pantry, built-in bookcase, office, central vac and more! $419,000. Call Mark at (913) 851-0606.

■ HOME IMPROVEMENT

Ti m t he Ha ndy ma n - Insured; free estimates.

Carpentry: new and repair deck, doors, windows, siding, screens. Plumbing: faucet, garbage disposals, toilets. Electrical: switches, outlets, ceiling fans, light fixtures. Light landscape: fill dirt, trimming, planting, garden tilling and mulching. Serving Johnson County. Call Tim at (913) 859-0471.

Professional sprinkler systems - New, repairs, modifications. Most new systems under $2500.

Family-owned, 30 yrs. experience. Free estimates.

Call Mike at (913) 269-1394. Member of St. Michael the Archangel Parish, Leawood.

Adept Home Improvements Where quality still counts!

Basement finishing, Kitchens and baths, Electrical and plumbing.

Licensed and insured.

(913) 599-7998 Electrician - Free estimates; reasonable rates.

JoCo and southern KC metro area. Call Pat (913) 963-9896.

Cus tom-kit chen coun tertops - Laminate tops manufactured and installed within 5 days.

Competitive prices, dependable work. St. Joseph Parish member. Call The Top Shop, Inc., at (816) 898-8685 or (913) 962-5058.

STA ( Su re T hi ng A l w ay s) Ho me Re p ai r Basement finish, bathrooms and kitchens; interior & exterior repairs: painting, roofing, siding, wood replacement and window glazing. Call for free estimates. Cell: (913) 579-1835; phone: (913) 491-5837; e-mail: smokeycabin@hotmail.com. Member of Holy Trinity Church, Lenexa.

Organizing & handyman services - Basements, garages, attics and shop spaces organized! Your items sorted, boxed & labeled; areas cleaned when finished! Wall repair, interior painting, tile work, handicap bars and ramps. Great references and insured. For pictures of current projects, view my Web site at: www. swalms.com. Call Tillar Swalm at (913) 375-9115.

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!!

Call Lupe at (816) 252-3376 .

Damaged sheetrock repaired – WyCo and JoCo areas. Ceilings, painted or textured. 25 yrs. experience; insured and reliable. Call (913) 631-5241.

■ FOR RENT

Bankruptcy - When debt becomes overwhelming, seek professional help. Experienced, compassionate Catholic attorney Teresa Kidd. For a confidential, no obligation consultation, call (913) 4220610; or send an e-mail to: tkidd@kc.rr.com.

Home for rent - Modern, 2 BR, 1-1/2 BA home with attached garage near 83rd and Antioch in Overland Park. Many adorable updates and amenities including pool and exercise room; and trash, lawn and snow care. Appliances stay. One-year lease. No pets or smokers. Call Catherine at (913) 972-8852.

* All lawn services * snow removal * hauling * Save up to 25% on your 2009 lawn care by booking early. Call now for a free estimate. Family owned by local parishioners. Licensed, bonded and insured.

References available. Call (913) 620-6063.

A p a r t m e n t f o r r e n t – 1 BR, 1 BA. $495 per month, includes utilities. One-year lease. 10911 W. 59th Terr., Shawnee. Near St. Joseph Parish. View at: www.shawnee-rentals.com, or call (913) 6497596.

■ REAL ESTATE

Great starter home - In Kansas City, Kan. 2 BR, 1 BA, hardwood floors, full bsmt., new furnace, central air, garage/carport, large lot. Must see to appreciate. Call (913) 342- 4027.

Weekend ret rea t - Six-year-old two-bedroom home with all the amenities. Home has a huge, covered front porch and is being sold fully furnished.

House sits on 25 acres of timber/pasture with a two-acre fully stocked pond. Turkey and deer are abundant. Property is located south of Ottawa and is less than a one-hour drive from Lenexa. $175,500. Call Mike for details at (816) 507-4848.

■ VACATION

Ski cabin in Winter Park, Colo. – 2 BR, 1 BA, on free ski shuttle route. $110/night. Call (913) 6423027. For pictures, visit the Web site at: cabin. forcadeassociates.com.

S k i v a ca t i on - Winter Park, Colo. 2 BR, 1BA, sleeps 6. Fully furnished, fireplace, rec. center with pool & hot tub. $125/night; $750/week. Call Joe Frederick at (913) 385-5589.

■ MISCELLANEOUS

St. Paul’s Christian Odyssey - A 13-day pilgrimage to Greece and Turkey from May 25 - June 6, 2009. The Holy Father has dedicated June 30, 2008 until June 29, 2009 as the Year of St. Paul. All taking a pilgrimage following in the footsteps of St. Paul receive a plenary indulgence. Father Jim Deiker, of the Diocese of Dodge City, will lead the pilgrimage and offer spiritual guidance and daily Mass. For information, contact Father Jim at (620) 624-4135.

■ FOR SALE

Moving sale - Six cocktail birds with large cage (54” long x 17” wide). Only $250. Call (913) 9994340.

Bulk mulch for sale - Prices start at $28/cu. yd. plus a $50 per load delivery fee. For details, visit the Web site at: www.mokanmulch.com or call (913) 631-7217.

Re si d en t i a l li f t s - 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) 393-2042.

2 0 0 8 N i s sa n 3 5 0 Z - Automatic trans., 1400 miles, black/black leather. $32,000. For details, call (913) 485-6317 or (913) 400-7485.

F or sa le – One cemetery plot at Resurrection Cemetery, Lenexa. Lot 25; section D-4 in the Shrine of Assumption. For information, call (913) 671-7511.

■ WANTED TO BUY

*** BUYING *** Coins — Sterling — Watches I buy coins, old watches, sterling silverware, postcards, photographs, military items, political campaign pins, Zippo lighters, fountain pens, toys, slot machines, old signs & tins, quilts, Indian rugs, beadwork, baskets, pottery and 22-gauge rifles.

Call Chris at (913) 593-7507 or (913) 642-8269. *** Wanted to Buy *** Antique and vintage costume jewelry Member St. Joseph Parish Renee Maderak (913) 631-7179

March 7

The Secular Discalced Carmelites will host a Lenten day of reflection from 8 a.m. - 3 p.m. on March 7 at Christ the King Parish, 5972 S.W. 25th St., Topeka.

Sister Ruth Sturkel of Avila College will present “St. Teresa of Avila: Saint for Today.” For information, call Diana Scamman, OCDS, at (785) 478-4868.

Familia of Kansas City, along with authors Jim and Kathleen Littleton, will host a marriage retreat from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. on March 7 in the social room at Holy Trinity Church, 9150 Pflumm, Lenexa.

The cost of $50 per couple includes lunch.

For information or to register by Feb. 21, contact Karen Brandl at (913) 268-5933 or mail a check to her at: 10914 W. 50th Terr., Shawnee, KS 66203.

Marillac Center, 4200 S. 4th St., Leavenworth, will host a Lenten day of prayer on March 7 at 9:45 a.m., featuring Tom Jacobs. The theme will be “Living Lent and Living Life Contemplatively.” The day will include contemplative meditation, the sacrament of reconciliation and a preliturgy talk. It will conclude with the celebration of the Eucharist at 3:45 p.m. The cost of $45 includes lunch. To register or for information, call (913) 758-6552 or send an e-mail to: retreats@scls.org.

El Centro, Inc., will host its annual bowl-a-thon from 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. on March 7 at Park Lanes, 7701 Renner Rd., Shawnee. Put together a team of five business associates and get your friends to sponsor you in this fundraiser to help families! For information, call (913) 677-0100, ext. 206.

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St. Joseph Church, 11311 Johnson Dr., Shawnee, will host its annual St. Joseph table and pasta dinner on March 8 in McDevitt Hall. Father Mike Hawken will bless the table at 8:30 a.m. Viewing will be from 8:30 a.m. - 2 p.m. Homebaked breads, cookies, pies and cakes, candies, fruit, wine, floral arrangements, and religious articles will be featured that may be purchased. A pasta dinner will be served from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. Freewill donations will be accepted. Proceeds will benefit the needy in the parish community. For information, call Christine Marion at (913) 268-6677.

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A Runnin’ Revs fun night will be held at Bishop Miege High School, 5041 Reinhardt Dr., Roeland Park, on March 9.

Area priests will challenge eighth-grade and high school boys to a heated basketball game to support vocations. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. Expect biased calls and lots of fun. Donations will be accepted. For information, call (913) 647-0303.

11 & 12

The seventh- and eighth-graders of Holy Trinity School, 13600 W. 92nd St., Lenexa, will perform “The Music Man” in the parish center.

The seventh-graders will perform at 7 p.m. on March 11; the eighth-graders will perform at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. on March 12. The cost is $5 for adults; free for children.

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The H o l y W o m e n s e r i e s for March will feature “The Life of Sister Thea Bowman: Modern prophet in the mode of Sojourner Truth and Martin Luther King Jr.,” presented by Janelle Lazzo, from 1 - 3 p.m. on March 12 at the Keeler Women’s Center, 2220 Central Ave., Kansas City,

Kan. For information or to register, call (913) 621-8749 or visit the Web site at: www.mountosb.org/kwc.

The Celtic Spring Band will perform at 7 p.m. on March 12 in the O’Malley-McAllister Auditorium at Benedictine College, Atchison. The cost is $10 for adults; $5 for children under 12. To purchase tickets, visit the Web site at: www.brownpapertickets. com/event/55043.

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Sophia Center, 751 S. 8th St., Atchison, will host a retreat, entitled “Ministering to the Body, Mind and Soul” and presented by Sister Linda Zahner, OSB, from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. on March 14.

The cost is $40; advance deposit is $10.

For information or to register, call (913) 360-6151.

Father John Torrez, pastor of St. Paul Parish, Olathe, will present “St. Paul’s Passage Home,” from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on March 14 at Savior Pastoral Center, 12601 Parallel Pkwy, Kansas City, Kan. Registration and breakfast begins at 8:30 a.m., followed by the program. The cost of $25 includes refreshments and lunch.

Financial assistance may be available. For information or to register by March 6, call (913) 721-1097 or visit the Web site at: www.saviorpastoralcenter.org.

Sister Mary Pat Johnson, SCL, will facilitate a retreat, entitled “Graced Moments: Meeting God in the Struggle,” for people or their loved ones who are dealing with cancer or a serious illness. It will be offered from 9 a.m. - 3:45 p.m. on March 14 at Marillac Center, 4200 S. 4th St., Leavenworth. The cost of $40 includes lunch. Financial assistance is available. To reserve a space, mail a $15 deposit to: Marillac Center, 4200 S. 4th St, Leavenworth, KS 66048. For information, call (913) 758-6552; send an e-mail to: retreats@scls.org; or visit the Web site at: www.MarillacCenter.org.

fast from 8:30 - 11:30 a.m. on March 15 in the banquet hall at Redemptorist Church, 3333 Broadway, Kansas City, Mo. The cost is $5 for adults; $4 for children.

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A Lenten day of reflection will be offered at Savior Pastoral Center, 12601 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, Kan., on March 17. Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann will speak on the many themes of St. Paul.

Two sessions will be offered: The morning session will begin at 9 a.m.; the afternoon session will begin at 1 p.m. The sacrament of reconciliation and adoration will be available for both sessions and a meal is included. A complete schedule is available on the Web site at: www.archkck.org. To register, send an e-mail to: Martha Gann at: saviorsec@archkck.org, or call (913) 721- 1097.

18 & 19

Bishop Ward High School will host its “Made It Through Another Year” alumni luncheons. The women’s luncheon for alumni from the classes 1967 and earlier will be held on March 18 and the men’s luncheon for alumni from the classes 1972 and earlier will be held on March 19 in the school cafeteria. The cost is $20 per person. For tickets, contact Paula Gettles in the development office at (913) 371-6901 or send an e-mail to her at: pgettles@ward high.org. For information, visit the Web site at: www.cyclonecountry.org.

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St. Patrick Church, Scranton, will host its annual feast day dinner from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. on March 15 in the church basement. The cost is: $7 for adults; $3 for children ages 6 - 12; and free for children 5 and under. There will also be a raffle for a homemade quilt.

The Legion of Mary, Mary Spouse of the Holy Spirit Curia, will hold its annual ACIES ceremony at 3 p.m. on March 15 at Blessed Sacrament Church, 2203 Parallel, Kansas City, Kan. This consecration is the most important function of the Legion where active and auxiliary members are consecrated to Our Lady and renew their fidelity to her. Refreshments and fellowship will follow the ceremony.

The women of the Ancient Order of Hibernians will host a pancake break-

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will give a presentation on art. The cost is $20 per person. For information or to RSVP, call 913-321-HOPE (4673).

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Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas invites all to join in praying for the homeless, the poor and the vulnerable at a prayer vigil at 2 p.m. on March 29 at Shalom House, an emergency shelter for men, located at 2100 N. 13th St., Kansas City, Kan. A reception will follow.

Misc.

For those struggling with an addiction to pornography, Sam Meier, MA, LPC, provides counseling and men’s groups for sexual integrity. Call (913) 647-0378, or send an e-mail to: mhmg@archkck.org.

Women, contact Beth Meier for information on groups for spouses and loved ones at (913) 647-0379, or send an e-mail to: bmeier@archkck.org. Support is confidential and from a Catholic perspective. To listen to live testimonials, visit the Web site at; www.archkck.org/myhouse.

The Singles of Nativity will gather for round-robin-style tennis from 2:30 - 5 p.m. at the Indian Creek Recreational Center, 103rd and Marty, Overland Park, on Sundays throughout the winter/spring, weather permitting. If the temperature is above 45 degrees and it is not windy, we will play outdoor tennis. Beginners are welcome; there is room for everyone. We may go out for a light dinner afterwards, because the idea is to share friendship.

For information, send an e-mail to Nancy Driscoll at: ndriscoll1@kc.rr.com.

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The alumni association at Donnelly College will offer a free financial lecture, given by financial expert Steve Modrcin, from 10:30 a.m. - noon on March 21. The lecture is open to the community and will be held in the college’s first floor meeting room. For information, contact Roger Berg at (913) 621-8744 or send an e-mail to him at: rberg@donnelly. edu.

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▲ St. Patrick Parish, 94th and State Ave., Kansas City, Kan., will host a fundraiser dinner and dance to benefit the David Alvarado Memorial Scholarship Fund at 6:30 p.m. on March 14 in the parish center. A catered dinner by Ross’s Catering and entertainment by The City Limits Band will be provided. For information or to purchase tickets, call (913) 2819222.

CALENDAR

The youth group of St. Louis (Good Intent) Parish, 11321 Morton Rd., Atchison, will host a spaghetti luncheon from 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. on March 22.

Freewill donations will be accepted.

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Rockhurst University Library Guild’s annual critique luncheon will feature “An Afternoon with Mary Carol Garrity,” renowned proprietor of Nell Hill’s, author and columnist, on March 26 at Mission Hills Country Club. For information or reservations, call Tori at (816) 5014809.

27-28

Sophia Center, 751 S. 8th St., Atchison, will host “Thomas Merton: A Mystical Guide for Those Who Seek ‘More,’” presented by Sister Sheila Carroll, OSF, from 7 p.m. on March 27 to 3:30 p.m. on March 28. The cost is $100; advance deposit is $20. For information or to register, call (913) 360-6151.

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The Sanctuary of Hope and Father Dennis Wait will host the annual “Paths to Peace” presentation from 9 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. on March 28 in the chapel, located at 2601 Ridge Ave., Kansas City, Kan. This year the talks will include Ben Worth on Buddhism and Barb McAfee on the Baha'i Faith. In addition, Ann Hatch

▲ The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, Clyde, Mo., will host their annual spring break monastic experience for college students interested in a more nontraditional celebration of the spring rite. It’s about putting away the cell phone, stepping away from the computer and learning how to relax again in a peaceful setting. Designed for single women ages 18-30, students will participate in the Sisters’ daily prayer schedule, share meals and stay in the monastery’s guest house. Students can choose from one of several five-day sessions (scheduled for March 7 - 11, 14 - 18, and 21 - 25) at the monastery. The cost of $25 includes room and board. For information, contact Sister Ruth Elaine at (660) 944-2221, send an e-mail to: vocation@benedictine sisters.org, or visit the Web site at: www. benedictinesisters.org.

St. Thomas Aquinas High School, 11411 Pflumm Rd., Overland Park, will offer summer camps for boys and girls in K - 8th grade. Many opportunities to participate in both sports and non-sports activities will be available, including: baseball, basketball, cake decorating, cheerleading/ dance, cross country, football, sewing, soccer, softball, youth speed and agility, and wrestling. For information, call Michelle at (913) 319-2416 or visit the Web Site at: www.aquinascommunity.com/ summercamps.html.

14 COMMENTARY

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

Editor REVEREND MARK GOLDASICH, STL frmark@theleaven.com Managing Editor ANITA McSORLEY anita@theleaven.com Senior Reporter JOE BOLLIG joe@theleaven.com Production Manager TODD HABIGER todd@theleaven.com Advertising Representative JENNIFER SIEBES jennifer@theleaven.com Reporter KARA HANSEN kara@theleaven.com Circulation sub@theleaven.com

Catholic Press Association Award Winner 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 Archbishop Edward O’Meara Award Winner 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003 Publication No. (ISSN0194-9799) 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) 7215276; or e-mail at: sub@theleaven.com.

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Before you call to have me committed to an institution, let me clarify why this occurs. The Last Judgment triggers an image in my mind of the Book of Life. Although the exact details are pretty fuzzy now (even the spelling of Sister Decolata’s name: one “l” or two?), I do remember that Sister had her version of the Book of Life. It was a poster with the name of each student in class written down the left side. To the right of our names was a long blank line. If we were good, we got a blue dot; if we misbehaved, a black one. I don’t recall how often those dots were put on the poster — or the rewards and punishments — but I do know that the poster was displayed on the bulletin board just inside the classroom door, meaning that everyone passing by in the hallway could see it.

It’s hard for me to get beyond this

image of God as a heavenly bookkeeper, tallying up our good and bad deeds.

But I’m trying, inspired in part by a recent e-mail. In this particular note, one of my friends said that the encouragement and support that I sent was “like having my own little cheerleader.”

That comment got me thinking: Do I perceive God as a divine bookkeeper or as a spirited cheerleader?

Gradually, I’m coming to understand God as more the latter: God is on my side, God wants the best for me, God is cheering for my spiritual growth, especially during this season of Lent.

There’s a great story that illustrates this idea: Facing a momentous battle, a Japanese general decided to attack, even though his army was greatly outnumbered. He was confident they would win, but his men were filled with doubt.

On the way to the battle, they stopped at a shrine. After praying with the men, the general took out a coin and said, “I shall now toss this coin. If it is heads, we shall win; if tails, we shall lose. Destiny will now reveal itself.”

He threw the coin high into the air and all watched intently as it landed. It was heads! The soldiers were so over-

joyed and filled with confidence that they vigorously attacked the enemy and were victorious.

After the battle, a lieutenant remarked to the general, “No one can change destiny.”

“Quite right,” replied the general.

He then showed his lieutenant the coin: It had heads on both sides.

(Source unknown) During this season of Lent, will we dare to see God as this wise general?

When it comes to changing our lives for the better, rooting out sin, can we envision God tossing a coin, winking at us, and then letting us in on the fact that the game of life is actually “fixed,” that it’s heads on both sides of the coin?

Being a game, though, means that life will naturally have its ups and downs, its failures and its successes.

We shouldn’t be discouraged by that.

In fact, last Sunday’s second reading contained a phrase that deserves repeating. The First Letter of Peter said that God “patiently waited” while Noah built the ark. That is what God does during this long Lenten season and throughout the game of life: He patiently waits for us to change — and cheers us on — one small step at a time.

This Lent I hope that we can all come to understand that by cooperating with God’s grace, not only can we win the game of life, but there really is no limit to the good that we can accomplish. And that’s really something to cheer about!

POSTMASTER : Send address changes to The Leaven, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109. For change of address, provide old and new address and parish.

Subscriptions $18/ year. Periodicals postage paid at Kansas City, KS 66109.

THE GOSPEL TRUTH

SCRIPTURE READINGS SECOND WEEK OF LENT March 8 SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT Gn 22: 1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Ps 116: 10, 15-19; Rom 8: 31b-34; Mk 9: 2-10 March 9 Frances of Rome, religious Dn 9: 4b-10; Ps 79: 8-9, 11, 13; Lk 6: 36-38 March 10 Tuesday Is 1: 10, 16-20; Ps 50: 8-9, 16bc-17, 21, 23; Mt 23: 1-2 March 11 Wednesday Jer 18: 18-20; Ps 31: 5-6, 14-16; Mt 20: 17-28 March 12 Thursday Jer 17: 5-10; Ps 1: 1-4, 6; Lk 16: 19-31 March 13 Friday Gn 37: 3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a; Ps 105: 16-21; Mt 21: 33-43, 45-46 March 14 Saturday Mi 7: 14-15, 18-20; Ps 103: 1-4, 9-12; Lk 15: 1-3, 11-32

Stewardship conference offers chance to grow deeper

Here’s to a cheerful Lent t happens every year as Lent begins — and this one was no exception. In the early days of this season, as the daily Mass readings speak of the Last Judgment, my mind flashes back to the seventh grade . . . and suddenly God turns into Sister Decolata, my teacher back then.

Things aren’t always what they seem with Jesus

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t looked like a brown mess, not at all attractive. Only after it had spent a good hour in the oven did it begin to resemble a chocolate cake.

cused of suffering from a mass halluciSome things make no sense at first. nation, of making impossible claims.

Only later on do we start to underWith that in mind, the warning that stand them, to see their purpose.

Jesus gives them makes sense: “He That definitely holds true for the charged them not to relate what they Transfiguration, featured in had seen to anyone, except this Sunday’s Gospel reading, when the Son of Man had SECOND Mk 9:2-10. On top of a mounrisen from the dead.”

SUNDAY OF tain, Peter, James and John But Jesus’ instruction to the LENT witness an event which they disciples does not merely proMk 9: 2-10 cannot explain. They behold tect them from ridicule. It also Jesus transfigured in glory. continues the theme of secreThey observe him conversing cy that we have already enwith figures from the past: the prophet countered in Mark’s Gospel. Earlier in Elijah and the patriarch Moses. (How the Sunday readings for February, we Peter, James and John are able to saw how Jesus sought to silence the identify these figures, we cannot exdemon who recognized him as the plain.) They hear a voice from heaven.

Holy One of God (Mk 1:21-28); we Peter, James and John cannot begin saw how Jesus also wished to silence to understand the mysterious event the other demons he drove out (Mk that they have witnessed. Had they re1:29-39); and we saw how Jesus orported it to others, they most probably dered the leper whom he healed not to would have been soundly mocked, acpublicize the miracle (Mk 1:40-45).

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SIMPLY STEWARDSHIP

MARK MY WORDS President MOST REVEREND JOSEPH F. NAUMANN

COMMENTARY

Once again, Jesus issues an order for secrecy.

We should notice that this time, Jesus links the order for secrecy with his resurrection from the dead: “He charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone, except when the Son of Man had risen from the dead.”

Only after Jesus is risen from the dead will the disciples begin to understand the reason for Jesus’ glory. Only after he is risen will they begin to understand why he must suffer and die on the cross.

The death and resurrection of Jesus occupy a central place in Jesus’ identity.

They serve as the key piece in the puzzle, the mystery of Jesus Christ. No wonder that Jesus cautions the disciples to wait until he has risen from the dead.

As we begin the season of Lent, a similar caution applies to us. We also must wait and experience the discipline of Lent, before we can arrive at the joys of Easter. We must pass through the cross to reach the resurrection. Only after the resurrection will the cross make sense Father Mike Stubbs is pastor of St. Francis de Sales Parish in Lansing and has a degree in Scripture from Harvard University.

rumbling truck deposited its load of dirt on a hill near our house early this morning.

Into this rich, black “pulverized” soil my husband and I plan to dig a few holes for trees.

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We’ll scatter some seed and hope that grass will grow to transform the rocky terrain into a soft lawn.

Good drainage and fertile ground is important, but that’s not all we’ll need.

We’ll need sunshine and gentle rain.

Fertilizer, too; so we’ll add manure. I dump potato peelings and coffee grounds into a compost box. When the scraps turn into nutrient rich dirt, I’ll

add it to the mix.

The pile of dirt awaiting our shovels and aching backs reminded me that Jesus gave us a parable about seed that contains important instructions (Mt 13: 1-9; 18-23). In the parable, the word of God is like seed. Some of it falls in places where it will not grow.

Like the seed that is scattered on fertile ground, the word of God will grow in us if we are open to God, who has been revealed in written word, the Scriptures. The Word of God is Jesus,

and we come to know him through Scripture, where we learn through his actions and words.

Later this month, the Region IX Stewardship Conference, entitled “Grow Deeper,” will be held at Savior Pastoral Center here in our archdiocese. On March 26 and 27, you can “get fertilized” with an inspirational keynote address by Bishop Michael Jackels, from the Diocese of Wichita , and Dan Conway, an author of many significant books on stewardship.

Organized by leaders from dioceses in Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska, the conference is offered every two years. This year, the conference fee is only $90. Overnight attendees may stay at Savior Pastoral Center or at two hotels located at nearby Village West.

Masses will be offered both days.

Workshop topics include: Parish

Pastoral Planning; The Stewardship Committee; The Eucharist: the Heart of Stewardship; Stewardship Among Generation Wh(y); Storytelling in Postmodern Fundraising; and Stewardship with Hispanics.

A brochure is available at the archdiocesan Web site: www.archkck.org. I encourage you and other members of your parish to attend. It will help you “grow deeper” in your faith and understanding of stewardship. Consider it like a load of black dirt dumped on your garden. Dig in.

“They are like a tree planted near streams of water that yields its fruit in season. Its leaves never wither; whatever they do prospers” (Ps 1:13).

Lesle Knop is the executive director of stewardship and development. You can e-mail Lesle at: lknop@archkck.org.

FROM THE SUPER

Parents’ letters attest to what we strive for

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ear friends of Catholic schools, This year, I have received several kind letters from parents expressing how pleased they are with the Catholic schools their children are attending. I thought I would share some of their comments with you.

One parent described a situation after they enrolled their daughter, against her wishes, in one of our schools: “After entering the building [our daughter] was comforted by

[teachers]. Their loving care and words of encouragement will always have a place in [her] heart. . . . During the school Mass, [another teacher] went out of her way to hug [our daughter] during the sign of peace. . . .

[The principal] made many personal contacts with [our daughter], offering many forms of reassurance. All teachers and students were kind and caring; it took very little time for [our daughter] to love [her new school]. . . . What a gift for [my husband] and I to know

that our daughter is in the care of such wonderful role models. These amazing teachers instill in her a sense of duty as a young Catholic woman. . . . [Our daughter] loves her Catholic faith and enjoys the way all the teachers infuse it into their daily lessons. . . . That makes her feel good about being Catholic.”

Another parent commented similarly about the staff at a different school: “A week ago, I was in the hospital for much needed surgery. On that day, our daughter … chose to go to school anyway. She informed us that [her teacher] was going to pray with her so she would be OK. After school that day, [our daughter] came to visit me in the hospital. The first words out of her mouth were, ‘Mommy, I knew that you would be OK. [My teacher] took me to the adoration chapel during recess and we prayed together.’ I can’t tell you what that meant to us. I had tears of

joy in my eyes. This is why we send our children to a Catholic school. More important than academics or anything, we pray that our children learn of God. [This teacher] allows her love of God and our Catholic faith to shine through her onto these precious children.”

These parents express what we hope, pray, and strive for in our Catholic schools. While it is gratifying to read their accolades, we are not complacent. Each day we strive to do a better job of helping the students in our care come to know and love Jesus Christ.

Please pray for our staff and for all parents who must make decisions regarding the best environment for their children. ¡Vaya con Dios!

Kathy O’Hara is the superintendent of archdiocesan schools.

VOCATION CORNER

Vocations office now offering benefits out of this world ooking for a good job? We have some available!

Admittedly, the jobs offered through the vocation office have some unusual job requirements.

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We blatantly discriminate against married folks, because Jesus himself was never married. We require lifelong celibacy. We put you through a battery of tests and interviews to determine your maturity and aptitude.

Finally, we require that you give some evidence that Jesus himself is asking you to apply for this job, that it is his will for your life. We have good

jobs available. The priesthood is an amazing job, with benefits that are out of this world, as we like to say.

Because of these unusual requirements, however, we are not flooded with applications.

A lot of people have asked me if the economic downturn will lead to more guys applying to the seminary. I honestly don’t know. Since a call to the priesthood is so different than other jobs, I don’t expect a direct jump in the

number of applications for seminary simply because young men are having a hard time finding jobs.

What I do know is that circumstances that force us to trust more in God and less in ourselves give us a better chance of hearing what God has to say to us. Difficulties in our lives do make us stop and wonder if God is really close to us, if we can trust him, and if he might calling us in a different direction.

I pray that the times we are in might make it possible for a few more men to see signs that God is calling them to make a radical gift of themselves through the priesthood of Jesus Christ.

We will wait and see. I continue to invite all the young, unmarried men of the archdiocese, whether they have a great job or a crummy job or no job, to

make it a priority in their personal prayer to be more open to the calling of the priesthood. Not only is it a recession-proof career, with benefits in this world and in the world to come, but it is a special invitation from the Lord to teach others how to store up for themselves treasure in heaven and, what is more, to live a life yourself that bears fruit that will last forever.

I can’t promise that the application process will be easy. Jesus, through his church, asks a lot of his priests. Yet he is never outdone in generosity.

Come and see! Be in touch with the vocation office by visiting our Web site at: www.kckvocations.com.

Father Mitchel Zimmerman is the archdiocesan vocations director.

16 LOCAL NEWS ANSAS CITY, Kan. — When Bishop Ward High School organizers here were discussing speakers for Black History Month, they considered inviting an African-American sculptor, an African-American author, or maybe the first African-American astronaut in the U.S. space program.

Instead, they just invited Ed Dwight.

In the course of his amazing career, Dwight has been all three — after he broke the color barrier at Catholic schools in the archdiocese by becoming the first black student to attend Bishop Ward High School in 1948.

“My mom wrote letters and petitioned the school for three years before my sister and I came to Ward,” explained Dwight. “There was some static when we first came because some of the students and families didn’t want black people there.”

“But they let us in,” he concluded. And he has since gone on to break down a whole host of other barriers.

Dwight’s visit to Ward on Feb. 27 covered a lot of ground. He visited with an English class about writing his autobiography, discussed with a physics class his years in the Air Force and as an astronaut, and shared with a ceramics class his work as a sculptor.

Finally, Dwight addressed the entire student body during an assembly at which he shared his life story.

His lifelong dream, Dwight told them, had always been to become an artist. But he was encouraged by his father to take a more practical route in his life.

“I had really only taken art classes at Ward, but my dad encouraged me to go to engineering school and one of the Sisters at Ward helped me add math classes my senior year,” recalled Dwight. “They didn’t want me to become a starving artist.”

After graduating from Ward, Dwight went on to earn a degree in aeronautical engineering and then his pilot’s license. He joined the Air Force, and then in 1962, at the age of 27, received a letter from President John F. Kennedy inviting him to become the first black astronaut trainee.

“At the time, I thought he was out of his brain,” said Dwight, laughing. “Black men and women were not

THE LEAVEN • MARCH 6, 2009

Ed Dwight visits with a Bishop Ward ceramics class about his work as a sculptor during a Feb. 27 visit to his Kansas City, Kan., alma mater.

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death, having never made it to outer space. But after a second career as an entrepreneur, he did make it back to his original passion — art — when, at the age 45, he decided to go back to art school.

Pursuing his childhood dream — even at midlife — paid off for Dwight. In particular, he became widely known in the art community for his use of “negative space” in sculptures.

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BREAKING DOWN

THE BARRIERS Story by Kara Hansen | Photo by Susan McSpadden allowed to be in space at that time because there was an incredible fear of losing funding for research.”

But with his background in engineering education and his flight experience, Dwight was a good fit for the astronaut program.

Eventually, however, Dwight said that much of his work involved speaking to minority students and encouraging them to seek advanced education in the fields of math and science.

Dwight resigned a few years after Kennedy’s

Artist Ed Dwight earned a reputation in the art community with sculptures like the one pictured at right, in which he utilized an original method called “negative space.”

wight has since gone on to sculpt numerous monuments and memorials, such as the Underground Railroad in Detroit; a Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial in Denver’s City Park; a bust of George Washington Williams in the state Capitol in Columbus, Ohio; the Black Patriots Memorial on the mall of Washington, D.C.; the South Carolina Black History Memorial in Columbia, S.C.; and a statue of Hank Aaron at the Atlanta Braves Stadium in Atlanta.

Most recently, Dwight had been commissioned to create a sculpture of President Barack Obama.

Based on his own diverse experiences, Dwight offered some salient advice to the Bishop Ward students he addressed.

“Keeping your options open is important, especially in times of economic downturn,” he told them.

“And the more you can operate out of both the left and right sides of your brain, the more likely you will be to become successful.

“You can have all the artistic talent in the world, but if you can’t meet deadlines and balance your checkbook, you’re not going to get very far.”

At the end of the school assembly, Dwight was honored with a gift by the Ward student body. School president Father Michael Hermes thanked Dwight for coming back to his alma mater.

“We pride ourselves on our diversity here at Ward, and we’re grateful for Ed Dwight and his family for leading us there,” he said.

“His life proves that all things are possible, and we can do great things in our lives with God’s help.”