03-07-14 Vol. 35 No. 29

theleaven.com | vol. 35, no. 29 | march 7, 2014

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann takes questions from students during the archdiocese’s annual Fifth-Grade Vocations Day.

Justin Hamilton, a seminarian from Topeka, shares a story about his family’s tradition of praying the rosary together every evening.

Sister Anycia, a postulant with the Little Sisters of the Lamb, shares a humorous moment during a breakout session.

fifth-grade vocations day

What does God want you to be when you grow up?

By Jessica Langdon jessica@theleaven.com

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LATHE — Fifth-graders ask a lot of questions when it comes to religious life, and they’re not always the ones you might expect.

What’s your favorite color?

Who’s your favorite superhero?

Do you have a favorite flavor of pie?

George Rhodes, a senior at St. James Academy in Lenexa, easily fielded those questions (orange, Batman and pumpkin) and many others during a vocations day event on Feb. 26 at Prince of Peace Parish in Olathe.

Rhodes, who is discerning his own possible call to the priesthood, also explained the prayers he has put in, how long it would take to become a priest, that he’s not sure yet what seminary he would attend, and that his favorite saint is Peter.

He was invited to share his story with some 900 fifth-graders from schools from Johnson and Wyandotte counties and Paola during their annual vocations day.

The day also introduced the students to current seminarians, archdiocesan priests and representatives of a variety of male and female religious orders.

Many speakers also posed a question they hope the fifth-graders will start asking about their own lives.

“Everybody asks us that question, right? What do you want to be when you grow up?” said Sister M. Teresa Pandl who talked to girls about her journey and the joy she has found with the Sisters of St. Francis of the Martyr St. George.

“But the more important question,” she continued, “is for us to ask God what his plan is for our life. So my challenge for you today is to ask that question.”

For some, the answer could be a religious vocation, she said. For others, their calling might be to married life.

Vocation stories Although usually his role focuses heavily on helping men answer their

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Seminarian Evan Tinker talks to the fifth-grade boys about his vocational call and what life is like for a seminarian. calls to the priesthood, on this day archdiocesan vocations director Father Scott Wallisch simply encouraged all of the students to pay attention to exactly what God might truly be calling them to.

“If every Catholic lived their vocation, the world would be transformed in a day,” he said.

He wasn’t born wearing a black shirt and white collar, he said, and once was also a fifth-grader with plenty to figure out about his own future.

For a long time, he planned to become an architect, get married, and raise lots of talented children, said Father Wallisch.

He felt God trying to talk with him sometimes over the years, and occasionally tried to strike compromises. He

would still become an engineer, for example, but he told God he would build churches.

But even after launching his career and working on fun projects, said the young vocations director, he realized that he was being called to consider the priesthood and entered the seminary.

There, he discovered how fulfilled he felt waking up every day and serving the people of God. And he also understood that his plan for his life hadn’t been wrong — just different from the way he’d originally envisioned it.

Instead of designing physical structures, “I get to design the temples of God,” said Father Wallisch, explaining how he adds blocks to the foundation every time he helps someone get to

know Jesus.

And when it comes to marriage, he is married, Father Wallisch explained — to the church. And the people are his family.

Religious life The students heard from longtime priests, others who are new to the priesthood, and some current seminarians.

Justin Hamilton, a seminarian who grew up in Topeka, shared a funny story with fifth-grade boys about his family’s tradition of praying the rosary together every evening — no matter how tired >> See “every” on page 4

2 archbishop

theleaven.com | march 7, 2014

Life will be victorious

Pray for Supreme Court decisions in defense of religious liberty

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ometimes, the real world is stranger than fiction.

That is how I feel about our federal government’s efforts to coerce the Little Sisters of the Poor to provide their employees with health insurance that includes free abortifacient drugs, contraceptives and sterilizations.

It is surreal that our government is wasting taxpayer money attempting to make a case in Court that the skilled nursing facilities run by the Little Sisters of the Poor are not sufficiently religious to qualify for an exemption from the Health and Human Services (HHS) mandates.

Please note that the HHS mandates were not approved

by Congress but are arbitrary regulations ghostwritten by Planned Parenthood and promulgated by its ideological allies in the Department of Health and Human Services.

It is sad that we have come to a point in our culture that those in the highest places of power are asserting that providing drugs to cause the death of one’s own child would be considered a service that is human or healthy!

I keep thinking that someone in the current administration is going to reconsider the wisdom of this ideological crusade to force practically every employer to provide abortifacient drugs, contraceptives, and sterilizations, no matter how sincere and deep their moral or religious objections. If the Obama administration does not have a change of heart, realizing that fertility and pregnancy are not diseases in need of preventive health care, then perhaps it might reconsider in order to avoid the spectacle of picking a legal fight with the Little Sisters of the Poor. After all, the administration has

archbishop Joseph F. Naumann already presumed it has the authority to change without congressional action timelines and definitions actually written into the Affordable Care Act; certainly, changing the mandates invented by its own bureaucrats can hardly be considered a significant action.

If the Little Sisters of the Poor are the face for those battling the attempts by this administration to shrink our religious liberties, then Hobby Lobby is the poster child for those attempting to defend the conscience rights of private employers who also find the HHS mandates to be morally offensive. I was gratified that one of our own Kansas City corporate leaders, JE Dunn Construction, entered an amicus brief supporting the position of Hobby Lobby.

For this act of courage, JE Dunn has found itself attacked in the local press.

Critics of JE Dunn did not attempt to counter the arguments in their amicus brief but, rather, changed the subject by questioning the fidelity of the Dunn family to other Catholic teachings.

Specifically, they cited JE Dunn’s construction of a military facility that is part of our nation’s nuclear defense program.

Incidentally, whether the JE Dunn Corporation conforms its business policies completely to the teaching of the Catholic Church or not is irrelevant to the Hobby Lobby suit. The real question is: Can the federal government

coerce an employer to violate his or her conscience without a compelling public welfare interest?

Is the providing of free abortifacient drugs a matter of such grave national interest that it warrants trampling on the conscience rights of employers? Even the Supreme Court in its 1973 decisions legalizing abortion never asserted that individuals had a right to have taxpayers or anyone else provide free abortions.

Whatever else the Affordable Care Act may accomplish, it is without question the single biggest expansion of abortion funding. The administration has been extraordinarily crafty in accomplishing this longtime objective of abortion zealots.

They have embedded abortion coverage into the majority of policies offered by the insurance exchanges. They also have made it difficult for consumers to determine if their preferred policy covers abortion. Finally, they are coercing private employers to provide abortifacient drugs in their employee health programs.

With regard to whether JE Dunn is in accord with Catholic teaching by participating in the construction of a defense facility that is part of our nation’s nuclear weapons program, the moral analysis is complex. Catholic moral teaching does not demand unilateral nuclear disarmament. In fact, a very strong moral case can be made that this would be irresponsible.

With all that is transpiring in the Ukraine, would the world be safer if the United States disposed of its nuclear weapons capability? Though it is an imperfect and temporary strategy, a moral case can be made that, for the time being, our world is safer with the United States maintaining its nuclear weapons capability. Would peace be more

calendar archbishop

Naumann March 7 “The Drew Mariani Show” (radio) “Catholic Way” taping March 8 Men Under Construction — Church of the Ascension, Overland Park Parish hall dedication — St. Mary, Hartford March 9 Pastoral visit — St. Patrick, Kansas City, Kan. Rite of Election — Cathedral of St. Peter, Kansas City, Kan. Rite of Election — Church of the Nativity, Leawood March 10 U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Pro-Life Committee meeting — Washington, D.C. USCCB Life and Dignity working group — Washington, D.C.

secure if Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran possessed nuclear weapons and the United States did not?

While one may legitimately question the deterrent value of creating nuclear weapons that could never be morally used because of their indiscriminate killing of the innocent, how many would consider it a prudent gamble for the United States to embark on unilateral nuclear disarmament? At the same time, the constant proliferation of nuclear weapons makes their eventual use more probable. Thus, we need to pray and work for universal, not unilateral, nuclear disarmament.

Had JE Dunn’s board asked me for my recommendation on the prudence of its involvement with the con-

March 11 Confirmation — St. Agnes, Roeland Park

March 14-15 Conception Seminary board meeting March 15 Pastoral visit — Holy Spirit, Overland Park

archbishop

keleher March 8 Men Under Construction — Ascension, Overland Park March 9 Confirmation — Holy Spirit, Overland Park March 11-12 Labor Review Board — New York March 13 Mass and talk — National Shrine, Washington, D.C. March 15 Pro-Life Mass — Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Kansas City, Kan.

struction of a military nuclear facility, I would have counseled against it. However, did it violate Catholic moral principles for JE Dunn to participate in building a facility that the leaders of our nation judged to be necessary for national security and helpful for the promotion of world peace? I believe not.

I am grateful to JE Dunn for its courage in submitting an amicus brief in the Hobby Lobby case. During this Lenten season, I ask everyone to pray and offer sacrifices for favorable decisions by the Supreme Court regarding the Little Sisters of the Poor and Hobby Lobby cases. Our religious liberty and conscience rights hang in the balance.

Pray, pray, and pray some more!

second front page 3

march 7, 2014 | theleaven.com

Bishop Boland dies in his home country of Ireland

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ANSAS CITY, Mo. (CNS) — Retired Bishop Raymond J. Boland of Kansas City-St. Joseph died Feb. 27 in Cork, Ireland, in a hospice facility surrounded by his family.

He was 82.

A funeral Mass was scheduled to be celebrated March 4 in Ireland.

Bishop Robert W. Finn, who succeeded Bishop Boland as head of the Missouri diocese in 2005, said the retired prelate had returned to Ireland from Kansas City with his brother, retired Bishop J. Kevin Boland of Savannah, Ga., Feb. 22 “to fulfill his wish to be buried in his native country.”

“We thank Almighty God for the grace-filled ministry of Bishop Boland, and the warmth and goodness that we have experienced in knowing him,” Bishop Finn said in a message posted on the diocese’s website.

He said a local group planned to travel to Ireland for the funeral and the diocese will celebrate a memorial Mass for Bishop Boland at a later date. The bishop encouraged parishes to say Masses for the late prelate and he urged Catholics to remember him in their parish intentions and personal prayers.

“When I was appointed almost 10 years ago, Bishop Boland welcomed me warmly. I quickly came to know him as a good priest and joyful bishop, who was highly organized and very fraternal,” Bishop Finn said. “He had lots of stories and a great love for the church.”

Born Feb. 8, 1932, in County Tipperary, Ireland, and raised in County Cork, Bishop Boland had been one of 31 active foreign-born U.S. bishops, including eight from Ireland. His brother Kevin was ordained a priest of the Diocese of Savannah and was the bishop there from 1995-2011. Two other brothers remained in Ireland.

Educated at Christian Brothers College in Cork, the National University of Ireland in Dublin and All Hallows Missionary College in Drumcondra, Bishop Boland was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington on June 16, 1957.

In Washington, he led three parishes and held archdiocesan posts, including secretary for Catholic education, chancellor, vicar general and moderator of the curia. He coordinated Blessed John Paul II’s 1979 visit to Washington.

He was named bishop of Birmingham, Ala., on Jan. 28, 1988, and ordained a bishop March 25 of that year.

His episcopal motto was “Euntes Docete Omnes Gentes” (“Go Teach All Nations”). He was appointed to Kansas City-St. Joseph on June 22, 1993, and installed on Sept. 9 of that year.

His national appointments included serving as chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Communications, a consultant to the Committee on ProLife Activities and episcopal moderator of the National Catholic Risk Retention Group, which helped develop the “Protecting God’s Children” education program about child sexual abuse.

When he retired in May 2005, he was 73 years old, two years shy of the

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

Archbishops remember their friend

By Joe Bollig joe@theleaven.com

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Bishop Raymond J. Boland died on Feb. 27 in Ireland. He and Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher were installed within a day of each other in 1993. age at which canon law requires bishops to turn in their resignation to the pope.

According to a Catholic News Service story, Bishop Boland did not specify why he was retiring two years early, but he said, “A diocese is not well served by a bishop whose energy is compromised by ailments too boring to enumerate.”

An obituary on the bishop in The Catholic Key, newspaper of the Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese, said Bishop Boland was a survivor of one cancer operation and suffered from a blood disorder that affected his stamina.

When he retired, he said he had “enjoyed almost every moment of it.”

“Some dreams were not fulfilled but, in 12 years, I have witnessed many magnificent accomplishments crafted by the dedicated and hardworking priests, religious and laypeople whom it has been my privilege to lead and to serve,” he added.

His retirement plans included seeing “grandnieces and grandnephews whom I have yet to meet” and visiting “long-neglected friends.”

“And there are poems to be read, sunsets to be savored, hobbies to be rekindled and maybe the Grand Canyon to be seen,” he added. “These matter less than the conviction that the twi-

light of our lives is really our advent to the endless grandeur of God.” Bishop Finn in his statement praised his predecessor for having “a great missionary spirit” that brought him from Ireland to serve the U.S. Catholic Church.

“We were different, of course, but he always supported me and encouraged me. He laid a wonderful groundwork for me here in the diocese, and often was ready to share a story from his experience,” Bishop Finn said. “I enjoyed him and said on more than one occasion that it would be better (easier) to follow a man who was not so capable and well loved.

“But, on the other hand, his love paved the way for many priests, lay faithful and others — even me! — to persevere in following Christ.”

The Catholic Key quoted from a Sept. 3, 2001, document that Bishop Boland called “My Personal Funeral Arrangements.”

“It is obvious that God has blessed me in many ways,” he wrote. “For that reason, I would hope that my passing will not bring sorrow or pain to others because I will be sharing the happiness promised by the Lord of compassion and love.”

He prayed “the God of mercy will be waiting to welcome me home.”

Editor Reverend Mark Goldasich, stl frmark@theleaven.com

Production Manager Todd Habiger todd@theleaven.com

Reporter Jessica Langdon jessica@theleaven.com

Managing Editor Anita McSorley anita@theleaven.com

Senior Reporter Joe Bollig joe@theleaven.com

Advertising Coordinator Julie Holthaus julie@theleaven.com

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — Bishop Raymond J. Boland is being remembered and appreciated by two archbishops for his wit, his passion for the poor, and his friendship.

“I considered him a good friend,” said Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann.

“I knew him before I came to Kansas City. When I was an auxiliary [bishop] in St. Louis, we were in the same region. He was very gracious to me as a younger bishop.”

Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher and Bishop Boland were both new to their respective dioceses in 1993, and found in each other kindred spirits.

“Bishop Boland and I were installed a day apart on Sept. 8 and 9,” said Archbishop Keleher. “We both participated in each others’ event on those days. I think we became friends from those days on.”

The two bishops found opportunities time and again to join hands across the state line.

“Some marvelous things happened thereafter and have continued unabated since those early days of 1993,” continued Archbishop Keleher. “I remember one of the first things to flower from this venture was the [National Catholic Youth Conference] when so many thousands of young people came for the joint event.”

The two archbishops also remembered Bishop Boland for his Irish wit and eloquence.

“Personally, I was always inspired by the way Bishop Boland delivered his talks and homilies,” said Archbishop Keleher. “Whenever he was asked to speak, you could be sure that the talk would be carefully crafted — often with interesting historical data.”

“He also had another gift,” he continued, “namely, that his presentations were replete with the lilt of Irish eloquence that was wonderful to experience.”

Bishop Boland was also a man concerned with social justice and the poor.

“He also had a great passion for the poor,” said Archbishop Naumann. “I remember the talks he gave at the Souper Bowl (an annual hunger awareness luncheon). He was so passionate about raising the consciousness of trying to help the poor and those on the margins of society.”

Both archbishops said they will miss their good friend, and know they will not be alone.

“He was a great leader and a good shepherd,” said Archbishop Naumann. “He’ll be missed by many people, but particularly by Catholics, on both sides of the state line.”

Published weekly September through May, excepting the Friday the week after Thanksgiving, and the Friday after Christmas; biweekly June through August. Address communications to: The Leaven, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109. Phone: (913) 721-1570; fax: (913) 721-5276; or e-mail at: sub@theleaven.com. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Leaven, 12615 Parallel Pkwy., Kansas City, KS 66109. For change of address, provide old and new address and parish. Subscriptions $18/year.

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theleaven.com | march 7, 2014

‘Every day is different’ >> Continued from page 1

Julie Jeffries shares her violin talent with the residents of Lamar Court in Overland Park as part of the Nativity Entertainers, a ministry of the Church of the Nativity in Leawood. The ministry brings performers ages 5 to 18 together to share their gifts with the elderly.

Young entertainers spread the love

By Libby Hyde Special to The Leaven

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EAWOOD — What started as a small collaboration with a few other parents quickly grew into what Liz Hagen would call one of Church of Nativity’s most caring ministries.

Four years ago, Hagen and a few other mothers interested in bringing entertainment to the elderly started a group called the Nativity Entertainers.

The effort brings two very different generations together: performers ages 5 to 18 sign up to share their gifts and talents with the elderly in nursing and retirement homes. Performers showcase a range of talents, including singing, playing instruments such as the violin or piano, or even Hula-Hooping.

“We have the belief that these gifts are given by God and it is an honor to share those talents with probably one of the most appreciative audiences ever,” said Hagen.

As well as sharing their gifts, performers also take time to socialize with the residents.

“It’s just a nice time for the kids to be able to talk to the residents and the residents usually can’t wait to get closer to them and learn more about them,”

said Hagen.

Anne Rohling, whose daughter Elle performs with the group, learned of the Nativity performances from Hagen.

Rohling’s daughter, who is now 13, has been participating since the beginning of the program four years ago.

“When she started, she was dancing with Liz’s daughter and a group of kids, and she evolved to become a singer,” said Rohling. “It has shaped her maturity a lot and has really opened her eyes to how important it is to visit the elderly.”

Hagen, who has watched both the program and the performers grow over the past four years, is delighted with the joy the performers are able to engender through their gifts.

“So often we put forward so much effort in so many things and wonder if we are really carrying out God’s mission,” Hagen said. “But watching these residents light up with joy and watching these kids, I truly know that they are carrying out the will of God.” The group was originally formed with the sole purpose of entertaining and bringing joy to the elderly — the focus more on the residents than on the performance itself. Seeing the impact firsthand, however, it’s not difficult for Hagen to see that these talents are

God-given. In fact, some performers have gone on to enter the music ministry at their Leawood parish as well.

And the experience, said Hagen, has opened the performers’ eyes to “serving and a respect for the elderly, and knowing that they do really have something to offer. They see they have the ability to make someone else happy.”

“It’s fun to watch the elderly light up when they hear a song they know or like, and they are all tapping their feet along,” said Hagen. “At one performance, there was even one woman who had an interest in trying out the Hula-Hoop.”

Since the program’s inception, the group has performed about once a month at over 12 facilities. Performers are responsible for coming up with their own acts and programs.

In turn, Kim Aspenleighter, who scheduled the Nativity Entertainers at Lamar Court Assisted Living in Overland Park, was delighted with the turnout of residents who came to see the show.

“My residents had a ball watching [the Nativity Entertainers],” said Aspenleighter. “It just brought real joy to them. You could see their bright smiles and ‘happy’ eyes. Everybody had a blast watching the kids perform.”

everyone was.

Those experiences emphasized to him the importance of prayer, and he stressed that, in order to hear God, it’s important to pray.

“Open your ear,” he said, noting that he didn’t mean their physical ears, but rather “the ear of your heart.”

Father Quentin Schmitz, associate pastor at St. Joseph Parish in Shawnee, explained how priests see many of the highs and lows of life.

“You’re invited into that,” he said.

And every day is different.

Sister Judith Sutera, OSB, explained to a group of girls what it means to live in the Benedictine monastic community, where prayer is a primary part of their lives.

“We serve the church by praying for the needs of the church,” she said, adding that the Sisters are also involved in other ministries and professions.

They live together and pray together, just as the Benedictine Sisters have for the past 150 years in Atchison, explained Sister Judith.

LOCAL NEWS 5

march 7, 2014 | theleaven.com

Suit up!

By Jessica Langdon jessica@theleaven.com

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ILLIAMSBURG — No actual suits of armor were required, but hundreds of junior high students heeded the battle cry and headed here to stand firm in their faith.

More than 600 students in grades six through eight from across the archdiocese attended the 2014 junior high rally on Feb. 23 at Prairie Star Ranch in Williamsburg.

Its theme was “Suit Up! Ephesians 6:10-18.”

The passage instructs people to “put on the armor of God” and stand against evil with faith as their shield.

Father Scott Wallisch, archdiocesan vocation director, talked to the teens about incorporating the saints into their daily lives.

The Mikey Needleman Band and performance painter Mike Debus entertained the crowd, and Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann celebrated a Mass.

The acoustic, Catholic, comedic duo Popple also performed, first on the theme of “Entering into Battle,” and later on “Your Battle Plan.” They also provided breakout sessions on chastity.

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Holy hour

Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann celebrates Mass at the junior high youth rally Feb. 23 at Prairie Star Ranch in Williamsburg. More than 600 students attended the rally.

Demystifying religious life Students also prayed a rosary for vocations, and Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann visited with the fifth-graders before celebrating a Mass.

He explained his attire and what the crosier he carries represents.

When one of the students asked whether he had always wanted to be a bishop, he said he had not, but had always wanted to be a priest, especially as he grew up admiring those who served in his parish.

The day introduced students to the holy aspects of religious life, but also made people who have answered calls to religious vocations very relatable to them.

“They find that seminarians, guys who are thinking about going into the seminary, and the Sisters — when they meet them — are just normal,” said Father Wallisch. “They have desires to have fun and do cool things, so I think it does demystify a lot of it for them.”

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

up with Popple Saints alive

Leaven photo by Joe McSorley

Kyle Heimann, one half of the comedic duo Popple, is pictured above in the “battle of the babies” at the rally. The duo later gave a breakout session on chastity.

Father Scott Wallisch, archdiocesan vocations director, explains to the teens how they can incorporate a devotion to the saints into daily life.

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theleaven.com | march 7, 2014

Sister Rose Marie Catudal, SCL

Time to pop the question: What did you give up for Lent?

By Caroline Thompson Special to The Leaven

Editor’s note: Reprinted with permission from myprincessprayer. wordpress.com.

I

wish I could be a domestic goddess. Blasphemous words to my gender course professors and classmates, but I’m serious! Just once I would like to bake something without a mishap. Literally, I have burned soup. I mean, can the end result — inedible as it may be — at least look pretty? I had a little bit of spare time this week, so I thought I would unwind with an activity I rarely have time for: making food. You know, something that requires more than heating things up or sticking various contents between two slices of bread. Naturally, I chose cookies.

Well, to make a long, messy, three-attempt-at-making-theworld’s-easiest-recipe story short, I learned that flour is really important in cookies. Otherwise, they look like watery pancakes. Otherwise, each heart-shaped dough you spent so much time meticulously forming is completely unrecognizable.

Otherwise, you end up scraping the chocolaty lake of warm mush which is leaking off the tray to the bottom of the oven (sorry, Mom) into a bowl and starting again. So, yeah, you need lots of flour to get the right consistency (which I did finally achieve after a few wasted hours — someone get this girl an EasyBake).

Luckily for Emily and me, our futile attempts at various life events serve as fabulous metaphors for this blog. And actually, this particular metaphor was introduced by my theology professor last semester, and I

This advertisement sits outside of an Irish pub in South Bend, Ind. On Notre Dame’s campus, meat is not even served in the dining halls on Fridays of Lent. was reminded of it today. He compared spirituality lacking asceticism to a runny pancake lacking flour.

According to the dictionary, “asceticism” is “practicing strict self-denial as a measure of personal and often spiritual discipline.”

The root “askesis” means “practice” or “exercise.” So, without exercise, our spirituality is a sloppy, spineless substance. The goal of asceticism is sanctifying grace (perfection) and union with Christ (deification). Fasting is one kind of asceticism we often practice during Lent. We fast from meat on Fridays and a bad habit or desire for 40 days.

While you may still be considering what to give up this Lent (which began this past Wednesday with Ash Wednesday), I want to share something I learned in my theology class about two types of fasting.

1. A moral fast is giving up something because it is bad for you. The goal is improvement. I think this is

something we are all familiar with — giving up gossip, bickering with siblings, etc. These are wonderful ways of growing in our moral character.

2. A liturgical fast is giving up something even if you think it’s good for you. The goal is deification.

This may be something we are less used to or comfortable with.

For instance, I remember a girl from high school who used to give up sleeping in her own bed for Lent.

Instead, she would sleep on the floor. Is she improving morally by forgoing her bed? It’s not like sleeping in a comfortable bed is inherently evil. However, giving up a good to the glory of God might be a reminder that there is luxury, comfort, and a desire that is deeper, richer, and more fulfilling than anything we have on Earth.

So, this Lent, I invite us to consider a meaningful form of asceticism, whether it is a moral fast, liturgical fast, or perhaps a holy addition such as a daily rosary or five minutes of silence. Trust me, I have seen the flour-less, mushy pancake and it is not something you want your spirituality to look like.

Caroline Thompson is a member of Church of the Nativity in Leawood and a student at the University of Notre Dame. She and her sister Emily write a blog called “Princess Prayer”; the above is adapted from a recent blog post.

LEAVENWORTH — Sister Rose Marie Catudal, a Sister of Charity of Leavenworth for 67 years, died at the motherhouse here on Feb. 20, just six days shy of her 88th birthday.

Rose Marie was born in Plainville on Feb. 26, 1926, the first of five children born to Dr. Joseph E. and Rose Wenzel Catudal. In Plainville, she attended kindergarten in the public school, attended and graduated from Sacred Heart Grade School, and went to the public high school for two years.

Her mother’s sister Anne was a physician and offered to pay for Rose Marie’s education at a Catholic high school.

Some of her mother’s cousins were Ursuline Sisters at Paola, who wanted Rose Marie to attend school there. Her mother said it would be better for her daughter to go where there were no relatives and chose St. Mary’s Academy in Leavenworth.

Her mother came for Rose Marie’s graduation in 1944 and visited with Sister Mary Immaculata Desmond, who told her that Rose Marie would be back. After two years at Sacred Heart Junior College (now Newman College) in Wichita, Rose Marie returned to Leavenworth and entered the religious community on Aug. 14, 1946. She was given the name Sister Mary Norbert, but later returned to the use of her baptismal name. She made first vows on Aug. 15, 1948.

Sister Rose Marie taught for 48 years.

The first eight were spent in grade schools.

The next 40 were in high schools, where she taught primarily the sciences. She received a bachelor’s degree in education from Saint Mary College and a master’s in biology from the University of Notre Dame.

In 1972, she began what would become a 24-year stint at St. Pius X High School in Kansas City, Mo. She taught biology, and later was in charge of student scheduling.

When she retired from St. Pius X in 1996, a new scholarship was set up in her honor to remember her spirit of service.

Upon returning to the motherhouse, Sister Rose Marie worked in the archives and was able to indulge in her hobbies of rosary making, stamp collecting, and quilling.

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Lori Wood Habiger athy has always cared for others and was scared to be living without health insurance when she became sick and needed care.

“What do you do?” said Kathy, who asked to be identified only by her first name. “Do you sit and wait and hope, pray that it gets better?”

A friend suggested the Saint Vincent Clinic in Leavenworth.

It is part of Caritas Clinics, Inc., and was opened by the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth in 1986 to serve thousands who didn’t have insurance.

The other Caritas facility — the Duchesne Clinic — opened in Kansas City, Kan., in 1989 and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

The Duchesne Clinic operates in the poorest ZIP code in Kansas and serves residents of Wyandotte County.

Both are considered “safety net” clinics, where medical professionals diagnose and treat acute illnesses, help manage chronic conditions and make referrals to specialists.

The goal of both clinics is to provide respectful and compassionate care in an environment that serves as a medical home to low-income, uninsured patients.

And both clinics have seen significant increases in the number of patients they’ve treated in the last several years.

In 2012 alone, the Duchesne Clinic served 2,369 people; Saint Vincent, 930 patients.

Stephanie Kimbrell, left, advanced registered nurse practitioner, and Stephanie Spacek, registered nurse, look over the schedule for the day ahead at the Saint Vincent Clinic in Leavenworth. Staff members gather each morning for their “huddle” before patients start coming through the doors.

A medical home Uninsured literally means that; patients don’t have private insurance and aren’t covered by Medicare or Medicaid.

The $15 flat fee per visit is often waived if someone truly can’t pay.

When people don’t have insurance, they sometimes turn to the emergency room for basic health care, said Eileen Amari-Vaught, nurse practitioner at the Duchesne Clinic.

But many emergency room visits can be avoided with the help of a place to turn for an illness or injury that isn’t a true emergency.

“It’ll keep the waiting lines down in the emergency room and keep the emergency rooms open for emergencies,” she said. “[Our clinics provide] a warm, loving environment. Our patients seem to feel safe here.”

“It’s a place where everyone respects each other,” she added. “It’s a place where

‘My last hope of getting help’

C

onnie Brintle, a lifelong Wyandotte County resident, knows both sides of health.

Growing up, she was nev-

er ill.

“You think you’re invincible,” she said.

But at age 23, the mother of a thenyoung son battled cancer for the first time.

She beat cancer of the uterus, but later developed melanoma.

Her third bout? Renal cell carcinoma.

Today, she faces other serious health concerns as well.

“Every day, healthy people ought to realize how blessed they are,” said Brintle. “Too many take it for granted.”

She also knows the difference between having insurance and facing life without.

“There’s a lot of people out there right now who are our age who have worked their whole life and who have lost their jobs and can’t find jobs,” said Brintle.

It wasn’t easy to ask for help, but she doesn’t want anyone to be afraid to take the step she did when she turned to the Duchesne Clinic in Kansas City, Kan.

“This was my last hope for getting help,” she said.

After having a kidney removed a few years ago, she needed renal scans every three months, but had nowhere to go until she found the Duchesne Clinic.

“It’s a comfort when you go for your scans,” she said. “You know that the cancer’s not back. If it wasn’t for that, you wouldn’t know whether you’re OK or you’re not.”

She takes several medications, which the clinic has helped with, and has gotten to know the staff through visits for blood draws.

Brintle lives to see her two grandsons, ages 10 and 5, happy and having fun.

She doesn’t always feel great, but refuses to let it keep her down.

The care she gets is making a big difference in her life, and she hopes others can see that — and contribute to the [Caritas] Clinics if they can.

“No matter how financially [stable] they think they are, they can be in the same shoes we are,” she said. “I had insurance and a good job and everything.

I was in their position at one time. They could be right where I am tomorrow.”

their voices can be heard.”

The health care professionals understand the challenges their patients face and try to be concrete in their approach, encouraging lifestyle changes that anyone can make, said Lisa Bara, nurse manager at the Duchesne Clinic.

Patients feel so at home there, she has found, they find it hard to leave when circumstances change and they have other coverage.

“They actually make you feel like you’re going to meet a family member versus I’m going to the doctor,” said Kathy.

She knows there’ll be needles, but she can relax instead of cringe.

Growing pains Saint Vincent has four exam rooms — plenty for the moment.

But it’s a different story at Duchesne.

It’s standard for doctors’ offices to have about three exam rooms per provider to

maximize efficiency, explained Karole Bradford, Caritas development director.

Duchesne has six rooms — but always more than two providers at a time, because of the combination of clinic staff and professionals who volunteer their time.

So as the clinics map out their plans for the future, infrastructure, capacity and space certainly are top priorities.

When new patients call the Duchesne Clinic for appointments, the staff triages their situations to make sure patients with the most dire conditions are seen by someone as quickly as possible.

But the wait time for a new patient for a routine appointment could be up to a few months due to the space constraints.

A facilities committee is analyzing the situation and figuring out the best path for the future, said Amy Falk, executive director of the Caritas Clinics, who scrubbed windows in 1989 as a volunteer preparing the Duchesne Clinic building for its first patients.

Today, as executive director, she loves seeing busy waiting rooms and patients and staff interacting.

“With some of our patients,” said Falk, “it may just make their day because someone here cares about them or held their hand.”

The clinics are also adjusting to ways the Affordable Healthcare Act will impact them.

The ongoing process includes everything from implementing electronic medical records to determining how to move forward if some patients do have some type of insurance.

The need for the care these clinics provide, Falk knows, isn’t going to wane.

She looks to the future with a lot of hope, inspired by a quote from the founder of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth.

“Look forward to the good that is yet to be,” said Mother Xavier Ross, SCL. “That truly is the attitude we’re taking amidst all of this change,” said Falk.

Eileen Amari-Vaught, advanced registered nurse practitioner, reviews records between patients at the Duchesne Clinic in Kansas City, Kan. She enjoys working with patients to help them with their current health issues — and educating them on ways to take care of themselves with their future health needs in mind.

Access to care difference between ‘Cadillac’ and ‘go-cart’

L

EAVENWORTH — Pat Schmoldt pinpoints just one drawback to having a healthier husband since he started visiting the Saint Vincent Clinic here.

“It’s a lot better — except for buying pants,” she said. “Every month, I’m buying a different size pants.”

Hank Schmoldt has downsized by 60 pounds over 18 months.

“When I first walked in the doors, I was topping out at 292,” he said.

This summer, he weighed 231.

“I actually pay attention to what they tell me here,” said Hank. “That’s why I’ve lost the weight. I’m actually in better shape than I’ve been for a long time.”

As a school bus driver, he finds that extra boost of energy goes a long way.

But his reasons for slimming down go beyond appearances and energy.

He’s had two heart attacks.

Moreover, he and Pat, like so many older Americans, suffer from a potentially deadly combination: They both have high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes.

“Some of the medications we’re on,” began Hank — “are so expensive,” cut in Pat. In fact, she said she would have had to stop taking hers if they hadn’t found

Stephanie Spacek, a registered nurse, checks Pat Schmoldt’s blood pressure at the Saint Vincent Clinic in Leavenworth, as Pat’s husband Hank waits for his turn. The Schmoldts have found a medical home at the clinic, and both have received help with their medications. Hank said he’s in the best shape he’s been in since high school.

St. Vincent’s when they did.

Hank worked for 35 years as an auto mechanic, but was out of work when they moved to Leavenworth several years ago. Family members directed

the Schmoldts to Saint Vincent Clinic, hoping it could help them with their medications.

“They’ve changed some of the medications I was taking, and it’s ac-

tually helped quite a bit with my problems,” said Hank. “We wouldn’t even be able to take them if it weren’t for [St. Vincent’s].”

Through the clinic’s pharmacy assistance program, which files the paperwork for them, patients like Hank and Pat are able to get assistance with the cost of their prescriptions.

Hank isn’t sure what story he’d be telling today if it weren’t for this clinic.

“To put it in terms I can understand, it’s like the difference between driving a go-cart on the street and driving a Cadillac,” said the longtime mechanic. “If you don’t have a place to go where you can get some type of medical care, you never know what’s going to happen and you always wonder about it.”

The Schmoldts know many people are struggling financially these days, some with long-term unemployment.

The couple encourages those who might benefit from its assistance to contact St. Vincent’s immediately.

“They do so much good for so many people,” said Hank. “Hopefully, one day I’ll get back on my feet to where I can donate and give back a little bit for what they’ve given us.”

Little things mean a lot

H

elping to underwrite patient care is one of the most important ways individuals, parishes and other organizations can assist the Saint Vincent and Duchesne clinics.

It costs an average of $63 per month — a little more than $750 a year — to provide medical care for one patient.

In addition, a monthly average of $125 worth of donated medical services, medications and medical supplies benefit each patient.

So the clinics welcome and appreciate any financial donations.

“Every little bit helps us,” said Amy Falk, executive director of Caritas Clinics. “While it may seem small to you, it could really make the difference to us and our patients. And we really do leverage every resource that is given to us to make our patients’ lives better.”

To learn about ways to give, including legacy giving, visit the website at: www. caritasclinics.org.

When money is tight, ‘every little bit helps’

W

hen you think of a luxury item, would a box of tissues ever come to mind?

“For some of our patients with a cold, Kleenex is a luxury,” said Karole Bradford, development director for Caritas Clinics, Inc. When groups ask how to help spread the clinics’ message, she suggests collecting tissues — along with over-thecounter medicines for allergies, cold and flu, plus pain relievers and antifungal and antibacterial creams.

“There are things most of us would take for granted — ‘Oh, if I need it, I’ll just go to Walgreens and pick it up,’”

said Lisa Bara, nurse manager at the Duchesne Clinic in Kansas City, Kan. “But it’s not that easy.”

Some simply can’t afford those extra comforts.

Donations must be unopened and new, and all available over the counter.

Time is also much appreciated — especially volunteer hours by medical professionals. Specialists are in high demand, and a physician’s commitment might be only a day or two each month.

To organize a supply drive or to volunteer, contact Gloria Guerra by email at: gloria.guerra@caritasclinics.org, or by phone at (913) 321-2626.

10 nation

theleaven.com | march’ 7, 2014

Catholic agencies aiding homeless find task bigger during brutal winter

By John Shaughnessy Catholic News Service

I

NDIANAPOLIS (CNS) — The doorbell rang on another bitter, below-zero-wind-chill day, letting Dave Bartolowits know there was another person in need shivering outside the rectory door of St. John the Evangelist Parish in downtown Indianapolis.

Bartolowits was nearing the end of his two-hour volunteer shift at the parish’s Garden Door Ministry, one that serves hot meals and provides warm clothing every weekday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. to the city’s homeless.

As he headed toward the door, the violinist for the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra had just finished telling a story about a young man who recently approached him on a downtown street, asking for money for food.

“He was just wearing a sweatshirt, and he looked like he was having hypothermia,” Bartolowits recalled. “I told him that St. John’s was a place he could go for a hot meal, a coat, a hat and gloves — and I gave him directions. He clearly needed everything.”

The need for food, clothes and shelter has been constant in a brutal winter marked by soaring snow totals and dangerously plunging cold temperatures in Indiana.

Just as constant has been the Catholic response to that need, from the efforts of volunteers to the commitment of the Indianapolis archdiocesan Catholic Charities.

“We always try to provide a sandwich and water, but during this cold stretch of weather, we have been serving hot meals, thanks to the generosity of donors,” said Bartolowits, coordinator of the Garden Door Ministry. “We’ve served spaghetti, lasagna, chili and bean soup. There are times when we serve 70 meals a day.

“We also provide limited clothing. We have a room where we store coats, shirts, hats, pants. And we have some blankets we’re handing out, again thanks to the generosity of donors.”

The doors to the parish church are open into the evening, offering people a place to “stay warm, to pray, to get out of the weather,” Bartolowits told The Criterion, the archdiocesan newspaper.

“We’re trying to provide an atmosphere of hospitality for everyone who comes to our door. It’s a way to live out the call of Christ to serve our brothers

CNS photo/John Shaugnessy, The Criterion

After giving a needy visitor a dish of lasagna and a pair of pants, volunteer Kathleen Murphy takes time to talk with him in late January at the Garden Door Ministry at St. John the Evangelist Church in Indianapolis. During what has been a brutal winter in Indiana, the Garden Door Ministry is one of several Catholic efforts reaching out to homeless people and others in need. and sisters.”

Throughout the winter, the staff at Holy Family Shelter in Indianapolis has answered a steady flow of desperate calls from families seeking a place to stay.

“We say that homelessness doesn’t know a season. Unfortunately, homelessness doesn’t know a temperature either,” said Christina Davis, director of operations of the archdiocesan Catholic Charities shelter.

The huge snowfall amounts — about 28 inches in Indianapolis in January — have increased problems for the homeless.

Even with the challenges of weather, the Holy Family Shelter staff has kept a focus on helping its residents pursue job searches and explore housing options.

Efforts to help the homeless and other people in need are “building the kingdom of God,” said Andrew Costello, a member of St. Joan of Arc Parish in Indianapolis, who started an outreach program called Operation Leftover.

Its young adult volunteers regularly gather together and walk the streets of downtown Indianapolis to distribute blankets, hats, gloves and a few sleeping bags to homeless people with no place to go.

In Philadelphia’s center city, the Hub of Hope offers a refuge for the homeless suffering through the winter’s snow and

Saturday, March 8, 2014 Church of the Ascension 9510 W. 127th, Overland Park

Speakers include:

Joseph Pearce

Formerly aligned with the National Front, a white nationalist political party, he converted to Roman Catholicism in 1989.

Eric Sutulovich

Is the Falcon’s Assistant Special Teams Coach. He also is a speaker for Catholic Athletes for Christ.

Matt Fradd Featuring Keynote speaker

Governor Sam Brownback

Matt was raised Catholic, but left the faith of his childhood.

In this talk Matt shares how and why he returned to the enthusiastic practice of the Faith.

Register on line: www.ksmuc.org

freezing temperatures there.

Hub of Hope, which operates only in the winter months, provides services to the homeless men and women who congregate in the city’s Suburban Station concourse — an underground commuter rail station — as a shelter from the bitter weather.

At first glance, it just appears to be a place where the homeless can drop in, sit a while and drink endless cups of coffee or tea and cocoa if available. But it actually is a hub — where the homeless can go to be connected with various social services and shelters. Many of the regulars are shelter-resistant, emotionally unwilling to accept the services that can take them off the streets and out of the concourses.

Hub of Hope’s target population is the long-term homeless. It connects them with a place where they can get a meal, a hot shower and somewhere warm to spend the night.

Long-term housing is usually a process involving paperwork often beyond the capacity of the people who need it, and that is really Hub of Hope’s real mission. In addition to staff case managers such as Green, there are medical and psychiatric professionals who determine the need and can sign off on the paper work, as well as perform triage at the small clinic in the back of Hub.

Schools test ‘cyber days’ to keep school ‘open’ during severe weather LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (CNS) — Catholic schools in Arkansas have been using a pilot program that, if endorsed by its accrediting body, will dramatically change the way inclement weather days are handled in the future.

“Cyber days” combine online educational tools with teacher planning and creativity to help students make the most of days where inclement weather forces cancellation of the regular school day.

Vernell Bowen, superintendent of schools in the Little Rock Diocese, said the 12 Catholic elementary, middle and high schools in central and eastern Arkansas that implemented either one, two or three cyber days this year have provided their collective feedback for consideration by the board of the Arkansas Nonpublic Accrediting Association in April. “’Cyber days’ is something that the board has discussed for more than a year,” Bowen said. “I can’t predict how the board will vote, but I think cyber days are potentially a good option for our schools, once the board agrees on specific standards and guidelines to maintain accreditation.”

While the concept of cyber days is simple — provide students assignments to complete at home during the inclement weather day — pulling it off is not. At a recent meeting of principals, administrators shared best practices for the days, pointed out shortfalls and limitations and provided parental feedback.

Most there reported overwhelming support for the new option from parents; the most common concerns included all students having access to necessary technology and the type of work being assigned. Some principals pointed out many families in smaller schools may not be able to afford a family computer or Internet access.

The most senior practitioner of the concept — Mount St. Mary Academy — has been implementing cyber days for the past three years and has worked through some of the operational hiccups identified by the other school principals.

For instance, students are given extra time when they return to school to complete assignments if they were without power — therefore without Internet — during the bad weather.

Principal Diane Wolfe said the ability to exercise such online options when needed was one important consideration when the school began handing out laptops to every student in the fall of 2011. She said in addition to linking students with their professors and helping them to connect to assigned websites, cyber day is a good training ground for what many students will face in college.

world 11

march 7, 2014 | theleaven.com

Ministry helps kids overcome trauma of living on the streets

By Simone Orendain Catholic News Service

B

USTOS, Philippines (CNS) — A group of young boys scurried about their cottage completing household chores, all part of the normal daily routine at the House and Treasure of St. Martin de Porres.

Their dormitory is among five wood and stone houses painted in bright colors where more than 100 boys and girls -- many from the streets of metropolitan Manila -- live on an expansive 27acre campus.

The youngsters are a long way from the highly polluted, traffic-laden streets of the Philippine capital. Many of the boys were counted among the thousands of children in bedraggled clothes dodging moving vehicles and then tapping on drivers’ side windows at stop lights to beg for money.

“They were forced to stay on the streets for reasons like abandonment, physical abuse . . . poverty or [having] dysfunctional families,” explained Father Florentino Concepcion. “They are orphans, foundlings. We have a number of them.”

Father Concepcion, or Father “Boyet” as he is known, founded this self-contained community for indigent children 10 years ago. It is staffed with volunteers including seminarians, paid social workers and a psychologist. There is a school with music, arts and sports.

CNS photo/Simone Orendain

Two boys help with chores after lunch at the main dining hall of the House and Treasure of St. Martin de Porres campus for indigent children Feb. 16 in Bustos, Philippines. Household responsibilities are a major component of character building for children, many of whom once lived on the streets of Manila.

Everyone has the chance to raise livestock, grow rice and tend rows of organic vegetables. The campus is part of a network of three St. Martin’s locations that provide services for poor children.

A priest of the Malolos Diocese for more than 30 years, Father Concep-

Pope Benedict says it’s absurd to question validity of his resignation VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In a letter to an Italian journalist, retired Pope Benedict XVI said questions about the validity of his resignation are “absurd.”

“There is absolutely no doubt regarding the validity of my renunciation of the Petrine ministry,” the retired pope wrote in a letter to Andrea Tornielli, a Vatican correspondent for the newspaper La Stampa and the website Vatican Insider.

Tornielli said he wrote to the retired pope Feb. 14 after reading articles questioning the canonical validity of his announcement Feb. 11, 2013, that he was stepping down.

In the letter, Pope Benedict described as “simply absurd” doubts about how he had formulated his announcement to cardinals gathered for a meeting about can-

onization causes.

According to the church’s Code of Canon Law, “the only condition for validity of my resignation is the complete freedom of my decision,” he wrote to Tornielli.

Tornielli also had asked Pope Benedict why he continues wearing a white cassock — a simplified version of what he wore as pope — and why he did not go back to using his given name, Joseph Ratzinger.

“I continue to wear the white cassock and kept the name Benedict for purely practical reasons,” he said. “At the moment of my resignation, there were no other clothes available.”

The retired pope said his only task in the church today is to support Pope Francis with his prayers.

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cion’s vocation has been dedicated to people living in poverty.

“The poor cannot be left alone. . . . You have to . . . journey with them. Especially these children when you get them, the first hurdle that we have to undertake is for them to get out of their traumas,” he told Catholic News Service.

Father Concepcion described the work as a taxing, painstaking, gradual process in which progress cannot easily be measured in terms of grade levels at school.

“These children are toughy-toughy,” he said. “But when you bring them to the chapel they get transformed. Then they get out and [become] their old selves again. . . . Slowly, slowly, patiently you reform them and I think it’s [the work of] the Spirit.”

One 12-year-old girl, Crystal, whose name has been changed, came to St. Martin de Porres a year ago. She told CNS a nun brought her to the mission after the nun noticed that she was thin.

Crystal said her parents agreed that she could come to the mission. A volunteer explained that the girl had tuberculosis and had been physically abused and was forced to work.

“We didn’t eat much, just sometimes,” said Crystal, who doesn’t know the exact address of where her family lived except that it was under a bridge in Manila. “When we ate, it was sardines or salt and water with rice — but not every day.”

She took care of four younger siblings, was responsible for cleaning at their dwelling and worked alongside her parents picking through garbage bags for anything to recycle.

Crystal, who had never been to school before going to St. Martin’s, was reading, writing and counting at the first grade level. She said she missed her mother at first and did not say whether she liked her new home but she said she would stick it out until she finished college so she could become a teacher.

Kenneth Silva was on his way to doing just that. He was a second year education major at Bulacan State University. Silva told CNS he stole and begged to help raise his two younger siblings.

His mother died when he was nine and that’s when he lost hope and started living on the streets of Manila, smoking and taking drugs. Silva said his father was a drinker whose income from carpentry always fell short.

He said he and his siblings joined the St. Martin mission house when it opened in 2003. Two years later, their father died.

“Even if we lost our parents, even if we were having a hard time, I never lost faith in God,” said Silva, 22. “I leaned on him and he became my way and his help for me was constant. If I ever lost faith in him I would grow very weak.”

Inspired by pope, Sao Paulo parishioners form youth group SAO PAULO (CNS) — They came together as a group to attend World Youth Day 2013 in Rio de Janeiro. The nearly 50 people in their early to late 20s occasionally attended church on Sunday, but more as a habit than anything else.

After hearing Pope Francis speak at the event, these young adults, from what is considered the richest neighborhood in Sao Paulo, decided to form a youth group.

“There was a consensus among the group for the desire of a greater, more active participation in the church,” said Rafael de Andrade, 34, organizer of the

youth group for the Parish of Our Lady of Brazil.

After several meetings and discussions with parish leaders, the group was officially created earlier this year.

Its first meeting was Feb. 2; about 55 interested Catholics attended.

“I think what attracted these young people to a deeper discussion about religion and the world around us was the clear, simple speeches made by Pope Francis,” said Andrade. The 34-year-old sales executive said the greater enthusiasm also has been shown by the parish’s priests.

12 classifieds EmploymEnt Youth ministry director - Corpus Christi parish, lawrence, is seeking a full-time director of youth/young adult ministry and liturgical ministry coordinator. General responsibilities include: providing vision and coordination for the parish’s efforts in ministry to 6th- through 12th-graders, and to the parish’s college-age and young adult populations. In addition, this position is responsible for training, coordinating and overseeing all liturgical ministries in the parish. Bachelor’s degree in pastoral ministry or related field is preferred. position requires availability to work evenings and weekends, and proficiency in social media technology, powerpoint and Excel. Compensation commensurate with education and experience. Complete job description can be found on the parish website at: www.cccparish.org. Interested individuals may email a cover letter and resume to: debbiek@cccparish. org. Interviews will begin in early march.

Administrative assistant - St. Ann Church, prairie Village, is seeking an administrative assistant for the ministry office. the position is a 12 - 15 hour per week position and requires a flexible work schedule, select evenings and weekends. the ideal candidate will be proficient with microsoft office Suite and Google Drive, have the ability to multitask, have good communication and organizational skills, and work well with volunteers. this person must have a love of the youth and the teachings of the Catholic Church. Send resume and letter of interest by email to: frkeith@stannpv.org.

Director of advancement - the St. lawrence Catholic Campus Center, located in lawrence, is seeking a director of advancement to assist with its fund development programs and related processes for the center. the director of advancement is an integral part of the fundraising efforts for the ministry and programs at the center that serves the University of Kansas community. Applicants must be practicing Catholics and have a bachelor’s degree. the right candidate will be organized, work as a team player, must have a fluid, flexible communication style in order to communicate effectively and compassionately with all socioeconomic strata. they must be computer literate, familiar with grant writing and have social media expertise. Demonstrated competency with Blackbaud/Raiser’s Edge or comparable software and Excel are a must. Interested individuals should send a cover letter and resume by email to: lsharpe@kucatholic.org.

Extended care coordinator - Before and after-school care program. 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., mon. through Fri. Call theresa at (913) 248-4589 or Susan at (913) 248-4585.

Child care teachers - Full- and part-time positions available; no weekends. Contact theresa at (913) 248-4589 or Susan at (913) 248-4585.

Parish administrator - A northeast Johnson County parish is looking for a committed Catholic who will work 20-25 hours a week as a parish administrator/business manager. must have computer skills, be a team player, and work well with volunteers and parish staff. Duties also include ability to administer financial affairs of the parish, oversee parish grounds and maintenance of facilities, and create and oversee budgets. must be able to multitask, be organized with attention to detail, with strong communication skills, both verbally and with the written word. Qualified, interested candidates may send resumes to: St. Agnes Church, 5250 mission Rd., Roeland park, KS 66205, Attention: teresa youngstrom.

Principal - principal needed for St. patrick School, parsons, for the 2014 - 15 school year. Candidate must be a practicing Catholic, eligible for Kansas licensure as an administrator, able to promote a standards-based instructional program, and possess strong interpersonal and organizational skills.

For information or to apply, contact mr. Dan mcAdam, Assistant Superintendent, Catholic Diocese of Wichita, 424 n.

Broadway, Wichita, KS 67202; send an email to: mcadamd@ catholicdioceseofwichita.org; or call (316) 269-3950. Application deadline is march 11.

Database manager - Wyandotte pregnancy Clinic is seeking an individual to manage databases on a part-time basis. this position supports and maintains all agency database information. providing reports for financial, donor, client and fundraising information. Ensures consistent outcome reporting to meet the needs of the agency. maintains up-to-date knowledge of new features and functionalities; works closely with executive director, fundraising, and database developer to implement custom reports and queries as needed for reporting purposes and for ensuring the accuracy and timeliness of data entry; periodically audits database structure to ensure it is serving its purposes related to capturing and reporting data. perform other duties as assigned. please send resume by email to: dkelsey@wpcnetwork.org.

tHElEAVEn.Com | mARCH 7, 2014 Teachers - Holy trinity Early Education Center, lenexa, has several full- and part-time openings for exceptional individuals who are creative, fun, hardworking and team oriented. We prefer candidates with a degree in early childhood education and experience with either toddlers, preschoolers or school age children. Will consider others who meet the minimum KDHE requirements. We have a beautiful facility, supportive staff, competitive pay, excellent benefits and wonderful families. to apply, call mary Kay or Cindy at (913) 492-7380.

Bookkeeper - Wyandotte pregnancy Clinic is seeking an individual to provide bookkeeping services on a part-time basis. QuickBooks for non-profits is the accounting system being used and experience is helpful. the bookkeeper will be responsible for managing and providing support for all financial information. this position will manage accounts payable, bank reconciliations, general ledger activity, help in grant reporting, and financial reports to executive director and treasurer. please send resume by email to: dkelsey@ wpcnetwork.org.

School cook - St. matthew School, topeka, is currently seeking a qualified individual to serve as a cook to work approximately five hours per morning/early afternoon. the successful candidate will be an independent worker who will assist the food service director by preparing meals that are compliant with state and federal regulations and completing light paperwork. Excellent personal hygiene is a must. Experience in a commercial kitchen setting and Virtus training are required, and a practicing Catholic is preferred. please send resume and references to melea Huston, SmCS food service director, by email at: hustonm@saintmatthews.org.

Financial representatives - Due to the success and growth of the Knights of Columbus, we are adding a financial representative in the Kansas City metro, lawrence, topeka and the Seneca - Sabetha area. Ideal for a determined, high energy, high expectation, professional, self-disciplined, independent individual desiring to serve others, yet earn a better-than-average income. We provide top-rated financial products to our members and their families and will provide excellent benefits and training. please contact John A. mahon, general agent, for more information or an interview by sending an email to: john.mahon@kofc.org, by phone at (785) 408-8806 or at 1275 topeka Blvd., topeka, KS 66612.

SERVICES Mike Hammer local moving - A full-service mover. packing, pianos, rental truck load/unload, storage container load/ unload, and in-home moving. no job too small. Serving JoCo since 1987. St. Joseph, Shawnee, parishioner. Call mike at (913) 927-4347 or send an email to: mikehammermoving@ aol.com.

Tree service - pruning trees for optimal growth and beauty and removal of hazardous limbs or problem trees. Free consultation and bid. Safe, insured, professional. Cristofer Estrada, Green Solutions of KC, (913) 378-5872. www.Green SolutionsKC.com.

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

Housecleaning - I love what I do and you can love it, too! 20plus years experience. Excellent references. Southern JoCo area. Call (913) 548-8702.

Getoutofdebtlawyer.com - Free first consult! Goals: Save money, erase debts, keep your home and car, save your credit! let me negotiate debts and foreclosures for you! Fight creditor lawsuits! Dispute your credit report! Bankruptcy!

Call attorney laura Simpson at (913) 248-9400 or send an email to: lsimpson@getoutofdebtlawyer.com.

Garage door and opener sales and service - 24-hour, 7-day-a-week service on all types of doors. Replace broken springs, cables, hinges, rollers, gate openers, entry and patio doors, and more. over 32 years of experience. Call (913) 227-4902.

Bankruptcy consultation - If debts are overwhelming you, seek hope and help from compassionate, experienced Catholic attorney, teresa Kidd. For a free consultation, call (913) 422-0610; send an email to: tkidd@kc.rr.com; or visit the website at: www.teresakiddlawyer.com. We moved! Come check out our new office in lenexa.

Brick mason - Brick, stone, tile and flat work. 19 years of residential/commercial experience. FREE QUotES - KC metro area. Small and large jobs accepted. Call Jim at (913) 4854307. www.facebook.com/faganmasonry.

Electrician - Free estimates; reasonable rates. JoCo and south KC metro. Call pat at (913) 963-9896.

Tim the Handyman - Small jobs, faucets, garbage disposals, toilets, ceiling fans, light fixtures, painting, wall ceiling repair, wood rot, siding, decks, doors, windows, and gutter cleaning.

Call (913) 526-1844.

Summer tutoring and music lessons - piano, voice, and guitar available. For more information, please call (913) 2062151 or send an email to: klmamuric@yahoo.com.

Agua Fina Irrigation and Landscape the one-stop location for your project! landscape and irrigation design, installation and maintenance.

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

Visit the website at: www.goaguafina.com Call (913) 530-7260 or (913) 530-5661 MEDICATION SETUP & MANAGEMENT - Rn support visits for filling weekly pill boxes & managing medication. Affordable and convenient. to learn more, call Home Connect Health Services at (913) 627-9222.

HomE ImpRoVEmEnt EL SOL Y LA TIERRA *Commercial & residential * lawn renovation *mowing * Clean-up and hauling * Dirt grading/installation * landscape design * Free estimates Hablamos y escribimos Ingles!!

Call lupe at (816) 252-3376 SPRING IS ACTUALLY COMING BEFORE WE KNOW IT! HOUSE PAINTING Call today to get a free estimate on your home. Inside or out, decks, kitchens and bathrooms. Basement refinishing and design also! Improve what you have today to enjoy it tomorrow. Insured/tons of references and a local parish member. Call Frankie at (913) 209-9926.

Swalms Organizing Service - Reducing Clutter - Enjoy an Organized Home! Basement, garage, attic, shop, storage rooms - any room organized! Belongings sorted, boxed and labeled, items hauled or taken for recycling, trash bagged.

For before and after photos, visit: www.swalmsorganizing. com. over 20 years of organizing experience; insured. Call tillar at (913) 375-9115.

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

Adept Home Improvements Where quality still counts!

Basement finishing, Kitchens and baths, Electrical and plumbing, licensed and insured. (913) 599-7998 The Drywall Doctor, Inc. - A unique solution to your drywall problems! We fix all types of ceiling and wall damage — from water stains and stress cracks to texture repairs and skim coating. We provide professional, timely repairs and leave the job site clean! lead-certified and insured! Serving the metro since 1997. Call (913) 768-6655.

Custom countertops - laminates installed within 5 days.

Cambria, granite, and solid surface. Competitive prices, dependable work. Call the top Shop, Inc., at (913) 962-5058. members of St. Joseph, Shawnee.

Heating and cooling repair and replacement - Call Joe with JB Design and Service. licensed and insured with 20 years experience. member of Divine mercy parish. Call Joe at (913) 915-6887.

House painting Interior and exterior; wall paper removal. power washing, fences, decks.

30 years experience. References. Reasonable rates.

Call Joe at (913) 620-5776.

ALL THINGS WOOD ROT Windows and fiber cement siding. new windows, decks, basement remodel or kitchen update. Insured and only the best crews.

Serving Johnson and Wyandotte for over 2 decades.

Call Frankie to set up a free estimate today at (913) 209-9926.

Concrete construction - tear out and replace stamped, stained or colored patios and drives. Retaining walls, footings, poured-in-place safe rooms, excavation and hauling.

Asphalt drives and lots. Fully insured; references. Call Dan at (913) 207-4371 or send an email to: dandeeconst@aol.com.

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

CAREGIVInG Caregiving - We provide personal assistance, companionship, care management, and transportation to the elderly and disabled in home, assisted living and nursing facilities.

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

Caregiving - CnA home health aide. Will provide care for your loved one, very reliable. maintain clean and safe environment. 100% dignity for your loved ones. 18 years of integrity. meal preparation, all personal care, companionship, light housekeeping, errands and vital signs. Experience with transfers. Experience with Alzheimer’s, dementia and special-needs patients. overnight. CpR and first-aid qualified.

Great references. Call Sarah at (913) 449-8348.

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

VACAtIon Colorado vacation - Winter park; 2 BR, 1 BA, furnished. mountain biking, golf, hiking, and fishing. $125 per night or $700 per week. Call (816) 392-0686.

REAl EStAtE Wanted to buy - Houses that need an upgrade or are very old that you’re having difficulty selling or are in need of selling quickly. I can pay cash within 20 days. please call mark Edmondson at (913) 980-4905. Holy trinity parish member.

Own Your Own Lodge - Approximately 5,860 square feet. perfect for large families or a business getaway. 240 feet of lake frontage. Seasonal, summer or winter. three stone fireplaces, 3 master suites with 3 additional bedrooms, 6 baths, 2 wet bars, 3 living areas for family and friends. Fully furnished. 3-well oversized dock. Sunrise Beach, mo., in the ozarks. $695,000. Call (913) 208-8074.

FoR SAlE Residential lifts - Buy/sell/trade. Stair lifts, porch lifts, ceiling lifts and elevators. Recycled and new equipment. member of St. michael the Archangel parish, leawood. Call Silver Cross KC at (913) 327-5557.

mISCEllAnEoUS Book and Bric-A-Brac Sale - march 12 - 13, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. at 72nd St. and State Ave., in the Kansas City, Kansas Community College Conference Center. Benefits Shepherd’s Center of Kansas City, Kan. For more information, call melissa Bynum at Shepherd’s Center at (913) 281-8908.

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

Renee maderak, (913) 631-7179.

St. Joseph parish, Shawnee Antiques wanted - old canning jars, pop bottles, pharmaceutical bottles, old boxes of ammunition, old cash register.

Call (913) 593-7507.

Will buy firearms and related accessories - one or a whole collection. Honest evaluation and top prices paid.

Contact tom at (913) 238-2473. member of Sacred Heart parish, Shawnee.

calendar 13

march 7, 2014 | theleaven.com

March The Mary Health of the Sick Guild will host a Lenten retreat for members from 10 a.m. - 2:45 p.m. on March 8 at the Sisters, Servants of Mary convent, 800 N. 18th St., Kansas City, Kan. Father Andrew Strobl will celebrate Mass, eucharistic adoration, Benediction, Stations of the Cross, reconciliation and the rosary. A light lunch will be provided. The cost to attend is a freewill donation.

8

The Cathedral of St. Peter Altar Society will host a women’s Lenten day of reflection on March 8. Sister Mary Cecile (Cele) Breen, a member of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, will present “Lenten Reflection — Sermon on the Mount.” The day will begin at 8:15 a.m. with Mass and will conclude at noon. The cost to attend is $10, which includes a continental breakfast. For registration information, call Terri Schneweis at (913) 558-8285 or send an email to: teschne046@yahoo.com.

Are you finding it difficult coping with a major loss, such as a spouse, parent, sibling, or a friend? Living with a loss and getting to a “new normal” can be one of the most difficult challenges you’ll ever face.

Fortunately, there are steps you can take to go through and thrive during the grieving process. You are not alone. Church of the Ascension bereavement support ministry meets the second Saturday of every month in the St. Luke Room after 8:30 a.m. Mass for support, education and breakfast. For more information, call Jean at (913) 681-3348.

A retreat, entitled “Julian of Norwich: A Mystical Heart,” will be held March 8 from 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. at Sophia Spirituality Center, Atchison. It will be a quiet day with talks, prayer and a DVD on Julian of Norwich. This retreat will be conducted

by Sister Sheila Carroll, OSB, spiritual director and a member of the Sophia staff.

Sister Sheila draws on her graduate studies in mysticism and prayer to give retreats on the mystics. For more information or to register, call (913) 360-6151 or visit the website at: www.sophiaspiritualitycenter. org.

St. Joseph Church, Shawnee, will celebrate its 22nd annual St. Joseph Table and pasta dinner on March 9 in McDevitt Hall. Father Mike Hawken will bless the table at 8:30 a.m. and viewing will be until 2 p.m. A variety of items will be featured for purchase. A pasta dinner will be served from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. The cost to attend is a freewill donation. Proceeds will benefit the needy in the parish community. For more information, call Christine Marion at (913) 268-6677.

9

A Runnin’ Revs Fun Night will be held at Bishop Miege High School, 5041 Reinhardt Rd., Roeland Park, on March 10. Area priests and seminarians will challenge 8th-grade and high school youth from Catholic schools in a fun and competitive game of basketball. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. Donations will be accepted to benefit seminarians, and a Camp Tekakwitha spot will be auctioned. For more information, visit the website at: kckvocations.com.

10

The regular meeting of the KCK Serra Club will be held at the Hilton Garden Inn, 5th and Minnesota, Kansas City, Kan., at noon on March 12. Dr. Robert Luchi will present medical aspects of the crucifixion. Spouses are welcome.

12

Would you like to learn to lose weight, eat real food, achieve peace with food and keep your weight off? Light Weigh One King is a 12-week Bible study DVD program devoted to helping those who strug-

gle with food or other temptations. There are no weigh-ins. It’s perfect for Lent! Orientation will be held March 12 at 6:30 p.m. in Yadrich Hall, Christ the King Parish, Topeka. For more information, call Kathy at (785) 478-0256.

In celebration of the 75th anniversary of “The Wizard of Oz,” the 12-13 7th- and 8th-grade students of Holy Trinity School, Lenexa, will perform the musical on March 12 and 13.

The 7th-graders will perform on March 12 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. Proceeds will benefit Camp Encourage. The 8th-graders will perform on March 13 at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.

Proceeds will benefit Operation Breakthrough. The cost to attend is $5; free for children ages 12 and under. For more information, call (913) 888-3250.

Join the platinum-selling contemporary Catholic musician and 12-14 best-selling author John Michael Talbot in a three-night series at St. Bernard Parish, Wamego, from March 12 - 14 at 7 p.m. each night. The cost to attend is a freewill donation. The event will include different topics and music each night. Talbot travels over nine months per year throughout the world inspiring and renewing the faith of Christians of all denominations through sacred music, inspired teaching, and motivational speaking.

The St. Pat’s Senior Ball will be held March 13 from 1 - 3 p.m. at Cristo Rey school gymnasium at 211 W. Linwood Blvd., Kansas City, Mo. All senior citizens are welcome.

Clubs or organizations wishing to attend the party as a group should RSVP by calling Julie O’Neill at (816) 561-7555. Free parking and parking assistance will be available behind the gymnasium. Bagpipe master Kevin Regan will kick off the annual party, and young dancers from the Driscoll School of Irish Dance will perform.

Free refreshments will be served and dozens of door prizes will be given away.

13

An Irish celebration will be held March 15 from 6 - 8 p.m. at Immaculate Conception Church, 606 S. Elm, Louisburg. A corned beef and Irish stew dinner will be served, and entertainment will be provided by Michael O’Laughlin of Irish Roots Cafe. The cost to attend is $10 for adults; $5 for children. There will also be a silent auction and a quilt auction.

15

Archbishop Emeritus James P. Keleher will celebrate the archdiocesan monthly prolife Mass at 8 a.m. on March 15 at Sts. Cyril and Methodius Church, 44 N. Mill, Kansas City, Kan. Immediately following Mass is a rosary procession to an abortion clinic approximately four blocks away. Eucharistic adoration is available for those not processing. Benediction concludes services by 9:45 a.m.

The third annual Mater Dei Irish Fest and 5K Fun Run will be held on March 15 at Mater Dei Assumption Church, 8th and Jackson, Topeka. Both events will begin at 9 a.m. The cost to attend the fun run/walk is $25. For more information, visit the website at: www.materdeiirishfest.com.

The SociaLIGHT Committee of Christ the King Church, 3024 N. 53rd St., Kansas City, Kan., will host a corned beef and cabbage dinner following 5:30 p.m. Mass on March 15. All proceeds will benefit this year’s annual ice cream social.

St. Patrick’s Day taco bingo will be held from 6:15 - 7:15 p.m. on March 15 at Msgr.

Mejak Hall, 513 Ohio, Kansas City, Kan. Doors open at 5:30 p.m., following a 4 p.m. Mass in the Holy Family gym. Bingo starts 7:30 p.m. The cost to attend is a $15 donation, which includes one taco dinner, coffee, cold beverages and one bingo card. For tickets, call Sandy Sachen

Cannon at (913) 396-1564 or the church office at (913) 371-1561. Attendees must be age 21 and over.

The Prince of Peace Knights of Columbus, Council 7909, will host a St. Patrick’s Day dinner in the parish hall, 16000 W. 143rd St., Olathe, from 6 - 7:30 p.m. on March 15.

The menu includes corned beef, cabbage, roasted root vegetables, Irish soda bread, desserts, beverages, and a special menu item for children. The cost to attend is $8 for adults; $5 for children.

The Singles of Nativity will host a St. Patrick’s dance on March 15 from 7 - 11 p.m. at Church of the Nativity Parish hall, 3800 W. 119th St., Leawood. The cost to attend is $25 at the door; $20 for those wearing green. There will be a baked potato bar, desserts, and drinks. Music will be provided by the Loose Change Band. For more information, send an email to Ivette at: iarangomaps@gmail.com.

St. Patrick Parish, 302 Boyle St., Scranton, will host a feast day dinner on March 16 from 11 a.m.

- 2 p.m. Turkey or ham, mashed potatoes, stuffing, vegetable, coleslaw, roll, pie and drink will be served. The cost to attend is $7 for adults; $4 for children ages 5 and under. There will also be a quilt raffle.

16

St. Patrick Church, Emerald, will host a corned beef cabbage dinner on March 16 from 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. Live music will be provided by Tullamore. The cost to attend is a freewill donation.

21-22

The 2014 Symposium for Advancing the New Evangelization will be held March 21 - 22 at Benedictine College, Atchison. Key-

note speakers are Dr. Denis McNamara, assistant director of the Liturgical Institute, University of St. Mary of the Lake; Dr. David Bentley Hart, author, theologian, philosopher and cultural commentator; and Dr. Regis Martin, professor of theology, Veritas Center for Ethics in Public Life, Franciscan University of Steubenville. For more information or to register, visit the website at: www.benedictine.edu/ima.

St. Benedict Parish, Atchison, will host a St. Patrick’s Irish Fest on March 22. A 5K and 10K trail run and pancake breakfast will begin at 8 a.m. The cost to attend the run is $25 before March 1; $30 after March 1.

For a registration form, send an email to: johnson.brooke@att.net. For more information, call Brooke Johnson at (913) 6838027 or Jason Johnson at (913) 683-8029.

22

Summer Saint Thomas Aquinas High School offers a variety of camps for grades K-8.

Sports-related camps include baseball, football and strength training, basketball, soccer, cross country, cheer, speed and agility, volleyball (individual and team) and wrestling from June 2 - Aug. 9. Costs range from $50 to $100. Saint Thomas Aquinas also offers several non-athletic camps from May 28 - July 27, including: “Act Like a Saint,” designed for aspiring actors entering grades 5-8; chess for grades 3-8; and two cooking classes — cake decorating for grades 5-12 and kids in the kitchen for grades 3-8. Costs range from $35 to $85. For more information, call (913) 319-2416 or send an email to: www.stasaints.net/summercamps.

14 commentary Scripture Readings

theleaven.com | march 7, 2014

simply stewardship

mark my words

first week of lent March 9 FIRST SUNDAY OF LENT Gn 2: 7-9; 3: 1-7 Ps 51: 3-6, 12-13, 17 Rom 5: 12-19 Mt 4: 1-11 March 10 Monday Lv 19: 1-2, 11-18 Ps 19: 8-10, 15 Mt 25: 31-46 March 11 Tuesday Is 55: 10-11 Ps 34: 4-7, 16-19 Mt 6: 7-15 March 12 Wednesday Jon 3: 1-10 Ps 51: 3-4, 12-13, 18-19 Lk 11: 29-32 March 13 Thursday Est C: 12, 14-16, 23-25 Ps 138: 1-3, 7c-8 Mt 7: 7-12 March 14 Friday Ez 18: 21-28 Ps 130: 1-8 Mt 5: 20-26 March 15 Saturday Dt 26: 16-19 Ps 119: 1-2, 4-5, 7-8 Mt 5: 43-48

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S

o, how do you eat an elephant?

The head of the parish facilities committee posed this question to me last Sunday. Although we answered in unison, “One bite at a time,” I doubt that either of us has a taste for elephant.

Naturally, the question is not about eating an actual elephant, but how to approach a daunting task. You can’t do everything at once, nor should you. Therefore, it’s helpful to take a deep breath and then go after things a little — one bite — at a time.

Seeing only the big task before you can be intimidating, fear-inducing and paralyzing.

When chopped into smaller tasks, however, it suddenly becomes much more manageable and less threatening.

This concept is nothing new. If you enjoy doing puzzles, for example, this is how you approach the task.

You whittle away at a blank crossword puzzle one clue at a time. You tackle a jigsaw puzzle one small piece at a time.

That seems to be an awfully practical way to approach Lent. Now that we’re a few days into it, reality has

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Uh, is it Easter yet?

Father Mark Goldasich Father Mark Goldasich is the pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Tonganoxie. He has been editor of The Leaven since 1989. probably set in. Wow, going without coffee, pop, Facebook, chocolate, TV — or whatever — for the entire season seems an impossible or unbearable chore when viewed as a whole. Forty days without gossiping?!?

Six weeks with no Doritos?!?

The temptation is to give up before you even get started.

What should you do?

Don’t look at Lent as a whole; just take it one day at a time. Each morning, simply ask God for the grace to follow through that day on your Lenten resolutions.

(And if you slip up one day, it’s OK. Dust yourself off and get back on track the next day.)

Secondly, seeing the ultimate goal can also be a

great motivator. Maybe we need to take a page from our Eastern Catholic sisters and brothers who celebrate a feast called the Forty Holy Martyrs on March 9.

According to Mary Ellen Hynes’ “Companion to the Calendar,” these martyrs were Christian soldiers from various countries in the Roman army. They died in the city of Sebaste in Armenia in the year 320. The emperor Licinius wanted them to renounce their faith, but they refused. As a punishment and an incentive to change their minds, they were sentenced to die by freezing, forced to lie naked on a frozen pond.

One of their number lost heart and sprinted for a warm bath that the emperor had prepared to tempt these Christians. However, a pagan soldier was so inspired by the faith and courage of the other 39, that he went and joined their number.

The lesson from this feast is that the 40 days of Lent give all of us a choice: to give in to the temptation of “giving up” Lent, or “to die to whatever is not life-giving in us.” What kept those 40 martyrs going was where

they put their focus. That tempting warm bath would eventually grow cold, but life with God, they believed, would last forever. The ultimate goal was worth their temporary suffering.

We, too, have a greater chance of being faithful to the season of Lent if we focus on the goal — being a holier person, a more authentic Christian — rather than on the immediate pain that this season’s disciplines may bring.

This is hard to do in our instant gratification world.

We expect things in the blink of an eye and are not used to waiting for anything anymore. Be that as it may, Mother Nature pays no attention to us. How many of us are weary of this winter, with its numbing cold and snow? No matter how much we long for the warmth of spring, however, it will only spring up in its own good time.

Lent teaches us, as well, the valuable lesson of waiting patiently and suffering with endurance. Easter will definitely come . . . but in its own sweet time.

So, until that blessed day arrives . . . elephant, anyone?

In the beginning

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commentary 15

march 7, 2014 | theleaven.com

Where does evil come from?

n Native American stories, the coyote often appears as a trickster.

He is not evil as such, but frequently causes a lot of trouble because of his playful nature.

In Sunday’s first reading — Gn 2:7-9; 3:1-7 — another animal figures significantly — a serpent. In many ways, the serpent in our story resembles the coyote of Native American stories.

Notice that the text does not describe the serpent as a fallen angel or as a supernatural being, but, rather, as the most cunning of all the animals.

Calling the serpent cunning does not come across as a compliment. He knows just enough to make trouble for the first man and the first woman. He tricks them into eating the forbidden fruit.

The serpent assures them

Father Mike Stubbs Father Mike Stubbs is the pastor of Holy Cross Parish in Overland Park and has a degree in Scripture from Harvard University. that “‘your eyes will be opened and you will be like gods.’ . . . The woman saw that the tree was good for food, pleasing to the eyes and desirable for gaining wisdom.”

But appearances are deceiving. After the man and the woman eat the forbidden fruit, they realize that they have made a mistake: “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and

Pope francis Understanding God’s commandments and church doctrine is useless if those truths aren’t put into practice, Pope Francis said. “A faith without bearing fruit in life, a faith that doesn’t bear fruit in works is not faith,” the pope said in a Mass homily, focusing on the day’s first reading from the Letter of

they realized that they were naked.”

There are two classic approaches to the mystery of evil. The first explains it as an error of judgment, mistaking something for good which is not, much as the man and woman do in our story. As weak human beings, we cannot see clearly.

As a result, we fall into sin.

This approach correlates with the theology of St. Thomas Aquinas, who emphasized the importance of the intellect in his understanding of the human person.

The second describes evil as emanating from a heart twisted and corrupt, full of malice, an active force opposed to good. This approach correlates with the theology of St. Augustine of Hippo, who stressed the importance of the desires of

James (2:14-24). Professing the faith without giving a witness makes the Gospel “words and nothing more than words,” he said Feb. 21 during his early morning Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where he lives.

“We, too, make this mistake many times,” he said. It’s often the case when a person thinks, “’But I have lots of faith. I believe everything.’” However, look at how that person lives life. It may be “a lukewarm, weak

the heart in his understanding of the human person.

One of his most famous sayings reflects that emphasis: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in thee, O Lord.”

In the Genesis story, the serpent deceives the woman by telling her that the fruit will open her eyes and make her like a god. Later Jewish and Christian tradition identified the serpent as Satan, a supernatural being opposed to God. This interpretation puts a more sinister slant on the temptation by the serpent. It is not merely the playful prank of a trickster but, rather, a malevolent ploy to wreck the human race.

So, which is right? Do we go with St. Thomas or St. Augustine? Do we follow our heart or our intellect?

What do you think?

life” where “faith is like a theory” and not lived out in practice, the pope said. “You may know all the commandments, all the prophesies, all the truths of the faith, but if this isn’t put into practice, is not translated into works, it serves nothing.” As the Apostle James noted, even demons know the Creed, but that doesn’t mean they have faith, the pope said.

— CNS

Grace before meals: A stewardship prayer

E

ven when our kids were young and life was hectic with games, lessons, nonstop birthday parties,

rehearsals, performances, practices, meetings, checkups, and the inevitable problems at work, we tried to have our meals together at the kitchen table.

No one reached for a spoon or a dish until all were seated and we said grace: “Bless us, O Lord, and these your gifts, which we are about to receive from your bounty, through Christ, Our

Lesle knop Lesle Knop is the executive director of the archdiocesan office of stewardship and development. You can email her at: lknop@archkck.org.

Lord. Amen.”

We frowned on answering the harvest gold telephone hanging on the kitchen wall with the long twisty cord until dinner hour was finished.

Those were the days when our only television was in the family room, and it was usually turned off.

Cellphones, tablets, laptop computers and the Internet had not yet been invented. We searched for answers in a set of encyclopedias and the dictionary.

We had mealtime conversations about the things we learned. Real conversations.

With each other. Face to face. Can you imagine?

Saying grace was the formality that allowed the family communion to begin.

Together we thanked God for the food, but also for friends and family. We remembered those who were alone or sick. We asked for help.

Saying grace before meals was a daily ritual that I learned from my parents.

We said grace before meals

when we visited our grandparents. We said grace when we were at our cousins’ houses. We said grace before and after our meals at school. We said grace when we went out for pizza or hamburgers. On feast days and other celebrations, the prayer varied — but only slightly. Mostly, we said grace. Simple grace.

Sometimes the youngest was asked to lead us in grace. Sometimes the oldest.

Sometimes we heard a rhyme that the kids learned at school or at camp. Sometimes we sang. Sometimes prayer was rushed with hands flying to make the sign of the cross. Sometimes mumbled. Sometimes we prayed with reverence or in

silence. Sometimes I don’t think we even realized that we were praying, lost in our own concerns of the moment.

“God is great, God is good.”

There is a peaceful, joyful, loveliness in the ritual of pausing during the day for just a minute to thank God for the blessings we receive in life.

“Oh, the Lord is good to me, and so I thank the Lord.”

What better way to demonstrate our understanding of stewardship than to proclaim aloud our praise and thanksgiving — whether we are alone, surrounded by family or having lunch with a friend.

Let’s say grace.

vocations corner

Pilot program to foster vocation clubs in grade schools

R

ecently, we celebrated Fifth-Grade Vocation Day at Prince of Peace.

As I prepared for the day, I did a little math. I realized that any boys in these classes who had vocations to the priesthood, if they entered college seminary straight out of high school, would be ordained as the class of 2029.

2029? That seems so far away. How different the world may be by then. At that point, we’ll probably have robotic servers and sacristans. One might be tempted to ask, “Why focus

father Scott Wallisch Father Scott Wallisch is the archdiocesan vocations director. vocational efforts on persons who won’t be priests or religious until well over a decade from now? Is it worth the time?’

The answer is, of course, yes. We are a church that has been around for nearly 2000 years and will continue to be on the earth

until the Second Coming.

We have to focus on the church’s present needs, but also on its future needs.

We have a responsibility to plant seeds in and for our future generations. At this age, they have already been thinking about what they want to be when they grow up, so why not encourage them to think about what God made them to be?

It is an increasingly difficult task, however, with fewer priests and Sisters around to inspire students to think about religious vocations.

Our students, though, still need the encouragement to consider whether God is calling them to a vocation of service in the church. A vocation day in fifth-grade

helps, but certainly we can do more.

So, with the help of our pastors, principals, and teachers, as well as members of our Serra Clubs and Knights of Columbus, we are making an effort to establish vocation clubs in our Catholic grade schools.

These groups, made up of interested middle school boys and girls, would be focused on helping these students learn about vocations, raise vocation awareness among their classmates and families, and pray about their own vocations.

Where these clubs already exist, the boys and girls help lead the activities.

The clubs can help facilitate interaction with priests and

religious, including possible trips to convents, seminaries, and ordinations.

We are piloting these groups in just a handful of parishes right now, but hopefully someday we can offer vocation clubs to all of our grade school students.

Through these efforts, seeds of discernment can be planted in these young boys and girls. It is one more way of increasing our culture of vocations.

I ask that you support these efforts with your prayers. I also invite you to contact me to see how you can help. I thank you. More importantly, the church of the future thanks you.

Church and State

A

Kansas is ground zero for religious liberty rights

mericans who believe that children deserve safety in the womb, and a mother and father out of it, really should find better marketing people.

Maybe they could hire the PR consultants employed by activists on the other side.

After all, our opponents on life and marriage have demonstrated an uncanny knack for offering ever more spectacularly preposterous euphemisms to obscure what’s really at stake with these issues. Their success on this front continues.

For 40 years, those who

Michael schuttloffel Michael Schuttloffel is the executive director of the Kansas Catholic Conference. support a right to legally assassinate a preborn human being have been identified as “pro-choice.” The question of whether we will allow living babies halfway out of the delivery canal to have their skulls punctured with scissors and their brains vacuumed out has been portrayed as a debate over “women’s health” and

“reproductive services.”

Now that’s marketing!

These same kinds of misdirectional tactics are now being deployed in the debate over same-sex marriage and religious freedom. This should not come as a surprise, as many of the activists aggressively opposing religious freedom legislation first cut their teeth shilling for the abortion industry.

For their latest feat of propagandist legerdemain, advocates of same-sex marriage have convinced swathes of the population that they are nothing less than the heirs to the civil rights movement. The local gay pride parade is the moral successor of the march over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Ala. Those who believe that every child

deserves a mother and a father are the modern incarnation of the segregationists of 50 years ago.

That this stupendously wrongheaded and offensive message could be received with anything other than outrage is made possible by: 1) Historical amnesia.

Cable news talking heads broadcast their stunning ignorance of Jim Crow’s horrors — lynchings, attack dogs, tear gas, fire hoses — when they callously compare it to religiously motivated unwillingness to participate in same-sex weddings.

2) Moral vanity. By retweeting snarky quips about religious people from Jon Stewart and Bill Maher, millennials can pose as civil rights heroes from the air-conditioned comfort of

their parents’ basements.

3) A supinely compliant media. In recent days, virtually every newspaper in Kansas has printed the utter falsehood that House-passed religious freedom legislation allows businesses to refuse to serve gays.

There is a concerted effort afoot to discredit the very concept of religious freedom, and even religion itself, by linking it to bigotry. People of faith can fight back by telling their state senator to support the religious freedom legislation in the Kansas Legislature. Not for the first time, Kansas has become ground zero for a high stakes contest over an issue with profound implications for the entire nation. It is not a fight that Catholics can afford to sit out.

16 local news

theleaven.com | march 7, 2014

Week honors contributions of Sisters to church, society

By Therese Horvat Special to The Leaven

K

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — When my niece was a toddler and her baby sister arrived, the older child was somewhat puzzled that the newborn didn’t have a veil or wear a habit. She had been around Catholic Sisters enough to associate those exterior signs with the concept of sisterhood. That was almost 25 years ago.

As we observe the first-ever National Catholic Sisters Week, March 8-14, it occurred to me that there are children toFor more information, day who visit the National Cathomay nevlic Sisters Week weber have site at: https://www2. had the stkate.edu/ncsw/home. good fortune of meeting or knowing a Sister. To remedy that loss, those of us who have experienced Sisters can pay tribute to those who have influenced our lives by sharing a story or two with sons and daughters, grandkids, nieces and nephews or other acquaintances. We can help them understand what it means to be a Sister.

Let them know that Sisters are women who have dedicated their lives totally to God. Earthly possessions and stuff aren’t important to them. They focus on the big things like goodness, justice and the dignity of all human beings. They give up marriage and families of their own to be able to give more freely and completely of themselves in service to others. They most typically live in community with other Sisters who share the same values and commitments.

Sisters come in different “brands.”

They belong to a variety of religious communities or orders, each of which takes on the mission or “charism” of their founders and their founding traditions. For example, in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, there are Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, Little Sisters of the Lamb, Benedictine Sisters,

National Catholic Sisters Week

Leaven file photo by doug hesse

From left, Mother Superior Alicia Hermosillo, Sister Lucero Garcia, Sister Ema Muñoz, and Sister Catherine Bussen applaud the putt of another Sister at the annual Sisters, Servants of Mary golf tournament last summer. March 8 marks the beginning of the first National Catholic Sisters Week.

Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and others — all of whom share similarities as Sisters, yet have differences based on their origins and development.

Sisters serve in many different ways.

They are teachers in schools, universities and other settings. They do health care ministries through direct patient care and in administrative roles. Some Sisters pray around the clock for all of us. Others work in social service agencies or parishes, as campus ministers or counselors, in church offices or foreign missions. Many Sisters have a special devotion to reaching out to persons who are poor or underserved.

They witness through service, prayer and presence.

Sisters are real people, too. They enjoy a good time, and they are generally characterized by happy spirits and peace of mind. They trust in

the Lord and work wholeheartedly to serve God’s people, especially those in need.

The Catholic Church is many times blessed to have Sisters among its members. They deserve this special week to highlight their good works, their boundless contributions and their deep

commitment. The week also has the potential of encouraging young women to consider religious vocations.

Thank you to all the Sisters who have graced and shaped my life. Blessings in abundance for the goodness you have shared.

Sisters in the archdiocese In the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, there are almost 500 Sisters.

Among those with convents, motherhouses, provincial houses, or other forms of residence here are: • The Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth (www.scls.org) • The Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica (www.mountosb.org) • The Sisters, Servants of Mary (www. sistersservantsofmary.com) and

• The Little Sisters of the Lamb Two public associations of the faithful are also based here: • Association of the Apostles of the Interior Life (www.apostlesofil.org) • Franciscan Servants of the Holy Family Finally, there are women religious from 12 other communities currently serving in the archdiocese.

Stop-by-stop: A Jesuit’s guide to Our Lord this Lent Martin. Like Thavis, Father Jim might be familiar to some folks from his on-air interviews during the conclave and installation of Pope Francis. But he’s also got a here’s not too high a cool facwhole different audience from his work tor to editing a weekly diocon Busted Halo, YouTube, Facebook, esan paper. So Father Mark and as the official chaplain to “The ColGoldasich and I have to take our fleeting brushes with fame where bert Report.”

Whichever audience you we can get them. belong to, you’ll find Father Perhaps you didn’t know Jim’s upcoming book, “Jesus: that we both know John The Pilgrimage,” the perThavis, renowned Vaticanfect Lenten reading. Wideista and author of “Inside ly available on March 11 in the Vatican,” which was reboth hardcover and Kindle cently updated and released version, this book has alin paperback on the anniready earned raves from the versary of Pope Benedict’s resignation. Thavis was for likes of Archbishop Charles Chaput, Cardinal Timothy decades Catholic News SerDolan, and Archbishop Desvice’s Rome bureau chief, mond Tutu. and proved an excellent host Father Jim’s books alwhen Father Mark dropped “Jesus: A Pilgrimage” by in on him some years ago James Martin, SJ (Harper- ways serve a purpose — to introduce us to the saints, during a trip to Rome.

One, 2014). to explain Jesuit spirituality But that didn’t get the attention of our 20-something ad manager — but “Jesus: The Pilgrimage” is someJulie Holthaus like our long association what different. Through an account of with Jesuit editor and author Father Jim his own pilgrimage to the Holy Land,

By Anita McSorley anita@theleaven.com

T

Father Jim is teaching us how to study Scripture — and he was taught by the best (the recently deceased New Testament scholar, Daniel J. Harrington, SJ).

As he and his fellow pilgrim visit all the places so familiar to us from the Bible — Bethlehem, Nazareth, Capernaum — we share first in his boyish enthusiasm at seeing some of the things that Jesus actually saw, and then in some of the disappointments that any tourist encounters.

At each stop, he also discusses the Gospel accounts pertaining to that site.

As he promises in his introduction, he does not assume a lot of prior knowledge on the part of his readers.

But it doesn’t take long before the average reader knows a lot more about the world Jesus lived in — and how an understanding of that aids Scripture scholars today — than he or she did at the start. We look at the Gospel accounts at each site critically — not in order to pick them apart, Father Jim says, but to examine them “in the light of reason with the eyes of faith.”

The breadth and depth of the schol-

arship he is able to bring to these topics by this stop-by-stop method are astonishing in a book so accessible to the average reader.

Catholic book club members will literally feast on the abundance of this book — the book is over 500 pages long and, although each chapter closes with a reflection, in a perfect world it would close with discussion.

Still, for my money, “Jesus: A Pilgrimage” is tailor-made for solitary Lenten reading. Broken into chapters that progress inexorably — like Lent itself— from “Galilee” and “Capernaum” to “Gethsemane” and “Golgotha” — and with a single chapter the perfect length for a day’s Lenten reading — it is a serious, thoughtful, yet thoroughly engaging way to get to know the Lord better this Lent.

So pre-order your copy or fire up your Kindle, and mark your calendar for March 11. Yes, I know you’ll be a week into Lent before it’s available. So whine to Father Jim on Facebook, complain to his publisher, or — my personal favorite — just offer it up.

It will be worth the wait.