01 22 21 Vol. 42 No. 23 by The Leaven

THELEAVEN.ORG | VOL. 42, NO. 23 | JANUARY 22, 2021

A shot in the arm to end isolation

Benedictine Sisters of Atchison receive their first COVID-19 vaccination By Susan Fotovich McCabe Special to The Leaven

TCHISON — It’s a story akin to the miracle of the loaves and fish. On Jan. 8, 150 Benedictine Sisters and laypeople within the Mount St. Scholastica community and its long-term care facility here, the Dooley Center, received their first of the two-dose, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination. There was only supposed to be enough of the vaccine to cover 100 people. “According to the state’s Phase I eligibility criteria, residents of the Dooley Center, its direct care employees, kitchen and cleaning staff were first to get the vaccine,” said Sister Esther Fangman, OSB, the Mount’s prioress. “After that, we had a limited number of vaccines available for the Sisters. That’s how the day started,” she continued. “I thought there might be 20 of us who wouldn’t get it. That number dropped to 10 and eventually everyone who could get the vaccine got it. It was a miracle!” Because the Dooley Center is a licensed long-term care facility in Kansas, its residents and direct care workers were among the first group of individuals eligible to receive the first vaccine, according to Sister Esther. As a bonus, the young CVS pharmacy intern who administered the vaccine to the Sisters and laypersons was a St. James Academy, Lenexa, graduate and longtime admirer of the Benedictine community. Mikayla Rico, 21, is currently a first-year pharmacy student at the University of Kansas. One of the first lessons of her first semester focused on vaccines — their history, how to counsel recipients, how to screen out those who should not get one, and more importantly, how to actually administer the vaccine. Through an internship with pharmacy giant CVS, Rico has been tasked with vaccinating people across Kansas. To date, she’s logged trips to Seneca, Junction City, Osage City and, of course, Atchison, where she spent a long day visiting with and vaccinating the Sisters. “Everyone was so appreciative and relieved that we were there,” Rico said. “There was a lot of emotion. The Sisters haven’t left the Mount since March. This was a light at the end of a tunnel that will soon allow them to see family and attend Mass regularly.” >> See “BENEDICTINES” on page 13

PHOTO COURTESY OF MIKAYLA RICO

Mikayla Rico, 21, a first-year pharmacy student at The University of Kansas, delivers the first of the two-dose, Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination to Sister Esther Fangman, OSB, prioress of the Benedictine Sisters of Atchison.

Lenten dinner notices The Leaven will publish a list of Lenten dinners being held in the archdiocese in the Feb. 12 issue. Notices are limited to around 50 words and are due Feb. 2. Please email your information to: todd.habiger@theleaven.org.

The road to Catholicism Father Anthony Chendumalli talks to The Leaven about his family’s conversion from Hinduism to Catholicism. Page 3

ARCHBISHOP

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Violence can never be the way. Put Jesus first in 2021

LIFE WILL BE VICTORIOUS ARCHBISHOP JOSEPH F. NAUMANN Trump for the second time. By the time you read this article, Donald Trump will no longer be president. Evidently, the point of pursuing a possible Senate conviction is to make certain that Trump is barred from ever again seeking elected office. Unfortunately, there is plenty of blame to go around. Those leading the charge for a Senate trial of Trump claimed that he incited an insurrection by questioning the results of this past November’s election. Ironically, these are some of the same individuals who questioned for four years the legitimacy of the 2016 election. They also failed to condemn the violence of last summer’s urban riots that destroyed businesses, neighborhoods and resulted in deaths of both citizens and police officers. They cheered the 2017 Women’s March where one of the featured speakers admitted fantasizing about bombing the White House. They also stoked the legitimate fears of many Americans by threatening to pack the U.S. Supreme Court, add new states to the country and eliminate the Electoral College. Sadly, during his meteoric political career,

Donald Trump lowered the level of public discourse. The former president did not only criticize the wisdom of the ideas and policy positions of those with whom he differed, but Trump chose to attack personally, even to the point of mocking the physical appearance of, those with whom he disagreed. I disagreed with several of Trump’s public policy positions, especially in the area of immigration. It was disappointing that our nation has still failed to grant some form of legal status to individuals who were brought to the United States as children. While there are legitimate concerns about illegal immigration and the failure to control our nation’s borders, harming both undocumented immigrants as well as U.S. citizens, successful reform needs to include generous opportunities for legal immigration and workers’ visas. Trump’s position of wanting to limit immigration only to highly educated and skilled individuals is not consistent with our history. Most of our ancestors who immigrated to the United States decades ago would have been denied admission under such standards. Even more troubling were the severe limitations by the Trump administration

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on refugee status for those fleeing violence and persecution in their homelands. Yet, Trump also did many good things. Part of this billionaire’s popularity with many working class Americans was they felt Trump was genuinely concerned about issues that mattered to them. From job creation to record low unemployment for minority groups, to opportunity zones in financially stressed neighborhoods, to criminal justice reform, to his efforts to bring back manufacturing plants to the U.S., to opening up new avenues for peace in the Middle East, to the development of a COVID vaccine more rapidly than anyone thought possible, despite all of his frailties and egocentric persona there were some very positive developments during the past four years. Today marks the 48th anniversary of the Supreme Court decisions that legalized abortion on demand throughout the United States. More than 60 million American children have been killed by abortion over the past 48 years. The fathers and mothers of these aborted children are not unscathed by the deaths of their daughters and sons. Just a year ago, Pope Francis in a meeting with the bishops of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa and Nebraska reminded us that abortion is not primarily a religious issue, but a human rights issue. The Holy Father said that in his dialogue with those who support abortion, he always asked two questions: 1) Is it ever right to kill a child to solve a problem? 2) Is it ever right to hire someone to kill a child to solve a

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friend of mine in St. Louis, who is pastor of a very large, vibrant parish, shared that he was weary from receiving complaints this past fall that he failed to endorse from the pulpit his parishioners’ preferred candidates. He had printed up small cards that were red, white, and blue stating: “Jesus 2020!” On Jan. 6, when a violent riot desecrated our nation’s Capitol, I was on retreat in Wichita with the bishops of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska and Iowa. Attempting to shut out the noise of the world, I was not checking news media. I was stunned when I was informed about the tragic events that were occurring in Washington, D.C. For a democratic republic to flourish, much less survive, violence can never be the way we attempt to resolve issues of disagreement. There can be no excuse for the behavior of those who stormed the Capitol, threatening the lives of members of Congress and their staffs. A Capitol police officer died as a result of injuries inflicted by rioters. One of the rioters died from a gunshot wound she received while attempting to enter the speaker’s chambers. Three other participants in the demonstration died from medical emergencies. What senseless tragedies! President Trump needs to take some responsibility for the tragic events of Jan. 6. If nothing else, he failed as a leader by not attempting to intervene quickly to stop the riot. The House of Representatives has impeached President

WHILE WE DEFEND PASSIONATELY THE SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE AND THE DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN PERSON, LET US NOT VILLAINIZE THOSE WITH WHOM WE DIFFER. problem? One of the positive achievements of the Trump presidency was the appointment of many well-qualified federal judges and three Supreme Court justices who recognize and respect the limits of the courts’ authority. Their responsibility is to judge cases based on their compliance with the U.S. Constitution, not to invent rights and/or impose their personal philosophical beliefs on the nation. President Trump also accomplished much through his cabinet appointments, executive orders and the interpretation and implementation of regulations that resulted in protecting unborn children, religious freedom and conscience rights. During the campaign, President Biden promised not only to keep abortion legal but even to force taxpayers to fund abortion. He promised to renew government efforts to force the Little Sisters of the Poor to provide abortifacients in their lay employee health plans. I hope that these are promises our new president will fail to keep. We must pray for President Biden to have a conversion of mind and heart on this most fundamental of all human rights issues. It is a scandal to have a president who proudly professes to be a devout Catholic and at the same time has, in essence, pledged to be

the most pro-abortion president in our history. We need to pray for our new president, Joseph Biden, and Vice President Kamala Harris, that the Lord will bless them in fulfilling their responsibilities to lead our country. We need to pray for the good of our nation that the Lord will bring forth blessings from a Biden presidency. Based on his proposed cabinet appointments and the promises he made during the campaign, I anticipate the next four years will be very difficult and I will have to disagree vigorously with several of President Biden’s policy initiatives. In a democratic republic, we need to be able to debate vigorously and honestly important public policy issues. However, while we defend passionately the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the human person, let us not villainize those with whom we differ. Just as it makes no sense to destroy lives in our effort to defend the sanctity of human life, so also it is inconsistent to uphold the dignity of the human person by denigrating those with whom we disagree. If we place Jesus first in 2021, then we can count on his help in speaking the truth with love as we strive to build a culture of life and a civilization of love. All things are possible with God. Jesus 2021!

LOCAL NEWS

JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

‘First-born’ son’s vocation has roots in father’s conversion By Joe Bollig joe.bollig@theleaven.org

ANSAS CITY, Kan. — If you want to learn about evangelization, you might go to Rome and visit the “super dicastery,” the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization. It might be better, however, if you went to a small village in India. Gandhinagar is a village of about 250 families located south of the larger town of Ramakuppam in the state of Andhra Pradesh in southeast India. The place was the home of a remarkably successful evangelist, although he probably wouldn’t have described himself as such. Father Anthony Chendumalli knows the village and the evangelist well, because that’s his village and the evangelist was his late father, Doraswamy Chendumalli. Father Chendumalli is pastor of Annunciation Parish in Frankfort, St. Columbkille in Blaine and St. Monica-St. Elizabeth in Blue Rapids. The state of Andhra Pradesh is more than 90% Hindu and just slightly more than 1% Christian. Doraswamy, his wife Yellamma and two sons were Hindu as well. No Christians lived in Gandhinagar. “My father fell sick,” said Father Chendumalli. “And he tried his best to go to a hospital and get rid of his sickness, but the doctors said they couldn’t do anything. He had a brain tumor. “Being a poor farmer, he could not afford major surgery. He went to different hospitals, but nothing worked well. Finally, he was exhausted, and thinking his life was almost done, he went home.” The Chendumallis missed their bus and decided to walk, although it was a considerable distance. During the long walk, they grew tired and decided to rest at Holy Family Parish in Ramakuppam, which was on their route. “They were sitting on the premises of the church, in the shade of a tree,” said Father Chendumalli. “The priest came and asked them why they were there. My parents said they were going home and were tired, and wanted to rest at the church.” Doraswamy also told the priest about his illness and unsuccessful efforts to find treatment. “The priest said, ‘Why don’t you try a last chance, to pray to Jesus and read the Bible every day?’” said Father Chendumalli. “The priest gave him a Bible. [Father] took it and went home. Being a Hindu, he didn’t know how to read the Bible, but he believed and started read-

LEAVEN PHOTO BY JAY SOLDNER

Father Anthony Chendumalli celebrates Mass at Annunciation Parish in Frankfort on Jan. 17. The priest was born right after his family’s conversion from Hinduism to Catholicism. His father considers him the first-born in the faith and offered him to God by sending him to Catholic schools. ing it every day, morning and evening, whenever he could get some time.” A month later, Doraswamy returned to the hospital. The doctors examined him and found, to their amazement, that he was healed. “He [had gone] to the Hindu temple and prayed but nothing worked,” said Father Chendumalli. “Finally, he went to church and read the Bible, so God healed his sickness.” “That touched him,” Father Chendumalli continued. “[My father] came to know that [Jesus] is the true God. He believed and went to the priest. He said, ‘I’m all right now. I believe Jesus is the true God, so we want to become Catholics.’” And they did — Doraswamy, his wife and his two sons. She took a new name — Elizabeth. But that wasn’t all. At the time of the family’s conversion, Elizabeth was pregnant with a boy — Father Chendumalli. “Although I have two older brothers, my father considered me the first-born in faith. He read in the Old Testament that every first-born child should be offered to God,” he said. Doraswamy worked hard to form his family in the Catholic faith. Every child had to read the Bible every day and learn

their prayers. They became members of Holy Family Parish in Ramakuppam. “If you didn’t say your prayers, no food that day,” said Father Chendumalli, “so my father was very strict learning prayers and reading the Bible every day.” He had plans for his first-born in the faith. Father Chendumalli was sent to Catholic boarding schools, and later a minor seminary. At first, the young Indian didn’t like it. “After one year I didn’t want to go,” said Father Chendumalli. “My father said, ‘This is all a devil thing you are speaking. Don’t speak like that. Go and continue. You’ll get all the temptations, but pray every day.’” Things did get better. The pastor and rector, Father Mathew Francis, became a mentor and a friend. After his father died, Father Francis even found financial support so that Father Chendumalli could continue his studies. Father Chendumalli often thinks about the Scripture passage from Isaiah Chapter 43, Verse 1: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; and you are mine.” Jeremiah Chapter 1, Verse 5 is another favorite passage: “Before I formed you in President Most Rev. Joseph F. Naumann

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the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.” “Before then, I didn’t understand these words for me,” said Father Chendumalli. “In seminary Bible study, I understood that this was God’s plan. He sent me to [the] seminary and even [to Kansas].” Father Chendumalli was ordained a priest on April 21, 2016, at St. Mary Cathedral in Kadapa, the Diocese of Cuddapah. It hasn’t been easy for the Chendumalli family. Some members of the extended family opposed their conversion and are estranged. There is official and unofficial anti-Christian discrimination. Nevertheless, Doraswamy and Elizabeth eventually had 10 children. Half of them are priests or religious, or in formation. Counting siblings, in-laws, nephews and nieces, the extended Chendumalli family numbers 30 faithful Catholics. Some of their neighbors even became Catholic because of Doraswamy’s devotion. Now, in a village where there once were no Catholics, there are 13 Catholic families. “We are proud to be Catholics,” said Father Chendumalli. Managing Editor Anita McSorley anita.mcsorley@theleaven.org

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LOCAL NEWS

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Sister Josephine Bustos, SCL

LEAVEN PHOTO BY MARC ANDERSON

Jeanne Wolken, a member of St. Pius X Parish in Mission, says a daily rosary with six other parishioner via cellphone.

Daily rosaries lift spirits, strengthen bonds By Marc and Julie Anderson mjanderson@theleaven.org

ISSION – All it takes is at least one cellphone. That’s what Jeanne Wolken, a member of St. Pius X Parish in Mission, said about her prayer group, adding there’s no need for videoconferencing apps, an internet provider or even a computer. Every morning, Wolken starts a conference call on her cellphone to pray the rosary with six other parishioners (Marie Aguirre, Norma Harrington, Carol Kladuson, Ginny Pilarz, Zita Riedel and Ferne Schultz), ranging in age from 70 to 90. During the past year, Wolken found herself longing for a sense of communion that comes from being part of a parish family, especially when churches closed throughout the archdiocese. She wasn’t alone. “Right after the lockdown started and we stopped going to Mass,” Wolken said, “I would call Ferne to see how she was doing, and she just said, ‘I miss the rosary, and I miss the Mass.’” That’s when Wolken had an idea. “I said, ‘I’ve got conference calling on my cellphone,’” she said. “‘I could just call you, and a couple of us could get together and say the rosary.’” So, over the next few days, the pair prayed the rosary together via telephone. Then, they invited other women to join them. About a week or so later, Wolken

realized her phone’s conference calling feature allowed only five on a call — and they were now at seven participants. But the group found a workaround. Riedel has conference calling on her phone, too, which allowed for three people on a call. So, between the two phones, all seven women could be on the call. While the women knew each other from daily Mass in pre-COVID days, they’ve grown much closer since, and their spiritual lives have deepened as well. “To me, personally, I feel much more comfortable [now] praying outside of church. It’s easier to pray here in the house. It’s easier to pray in the grocery store. It’s easier to pray in the car. I’ve gotten out of the mindset that prayer has to be in a church,” Wolken said. The group also acts as an intercessory group for others, lifting up the prayers of other members of the parish and the community at large. Every day, the group reads aloud the names of others, praying for their specific intentions. Currently, their prayer list includes around 40 names. All prayer requests remain confidential, Wolken said, adding that it’s been interesting to note that the requests for prayers come from people of all religious backgrounds. “We’re equal-opportunity prayers,” she said with a laugh. “If anybody asks, we’re glad to add them.” Besides growing spiritually, “The Rosary Ladies” as they’ve nicknamed

themselves, said they have grown in friendship. “[The rosary group] gets me out of bed in the mornings,” Riedel said. “We get to visit every day. We start the morning off right with the rosary. My friends are on the phone, and if we have any situations that we need to talk to anyone about, we talk to each other. We trust each other implicitly. We try to help each other through trials. It’s just an extended family. It’s a wonderful, wonderful thing.” Aguirre agreed. Diagnosed with cancer months ago, Aguirre said the rosary group has brought her much comfort. “These ladies have said a lot of prayers for me,” she said. “They’ve been my support group, and I call them my good friends, ‘The Rosary Ladies.’ They’re still there for me. I’m doing fine now, and I’m glad I had them when I needed them.” Having a regular prayer group, Pilarz said, has provided her much strength for the past month. “My husband had a stroke in November, and they’ve been there through my tears,” she said. “And they’ve made me laugh when I didn’t think I could. “What is wonderful is sometimes I get very emotional, and so I ask if I can just listen. And it’s so beautiful that I can put it on mute, and I can listen on my way to the hospital to see my husband. They’re there, and it’s so comforting. This group has been my rock, and I love them all dearly. I feel so privileged to be a part of this rosary group.”

EAVENWORTH — Sister Josephine Bustos, 91, a Sister of Charity of Leavenworth, died on Dec. 30 at the motherhouse here. Sister Josephine celebrated her 70th anniversary as a Sister of Charity in 2019. She entered the religious community soon after high school and served as a longtime educator, missionary and social worker. She was known as a lover of infants and small children, a resourceful and talented seamstress, and a capable vocalist who led choirs for children and young adults. She epitomized the scriptural commandment to love God and neighbor, and saw Christ in the lives of the poor and needy. Josephine A. Bustos was born on Sept. 13, 1929, in Dawson, New Mexico, the oldest of five children of Jose and Amalia (Gurule) Bustos. A strong Hispanic Catholic heritage predominated on both sides of her family. She attended Castle Grade School and Vegas High School, both in Las Vegas, before pursuing nursing studies at Saint Mary College, Leavenworth. She entered the Sisters of Charity community on Aug. 18, 1949. She professed vows as Sister Mary Anselma on Aug. 15, 1951, but eventually resumed her baptismal name. Sister Josephine taught in grade schools for several years in Missouri, Kansas and Colorado. From 1954 to 1964, she also served in child care assignments in Sisters of Charity orphanages in Kansas and Colorado. Fluent in Spanish from childhood, she served in an orphanage in Helena, Montana, which housed several dozen girls and boys of Cuban descent waiting on their parents to arrive in the United States. In 1965, her life’s ministry direction changed when she was sent to South America to teach at the Santa Rosa Escuela in Talara, Peru. She spent the next 23 years in the missions as a teacher in the Talara school and later as the coordinator of parish social works and other parish ministries. She was involved in catechetical programs, prayer groups, parish choir and a baby clinic, where she once found an abandoned infant in a nearby hovel. She considered her work in Peru as her most meaningful assignment. In 1987, Sister Josephine came back to the U.S. to serve as a personal care assistant at Mount St. Vincent Home in Denver, where she used her sewing and mending talents. In 2004, she retired from active ministry and dedicated her energies to sewing and keeping up with her family.

Archbishop will offer Lenten reflections Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann will be offering Lenten reflections that will provide spiritual nourishment for our journey to Easter joy. Reflections will be available the week of Ash Wednesday, as well as the following five weeks of Lent. Each 30-minute audio session will include the archbishop’s reflection on the upcoming Gospel and a short personal witness from a member of the archdiocese. Go online to: archkck.org to access these offerings.

LOCAL NEWS

JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Enflame fires up high school educators

By Joe Bollig joe.bollig@theleaven.org

Although organizers originally envisioned it as an in-person event, the COVID-19 pandemic forced them to make the high school event virtual, facilitated by Zoom conferencing software. The daylong event on Jan. 4 had large-group gatherings in each school for prayer and presentations done remotely on large screens from the “Main Stage.” These large gatherings were interspersed with breakout sessions called “campfires,” during which individuals participated either alone or in small groups of six to 10 individuals. During the campfires, teachers would discuss various topics with teachers from other schools. The large-group presentations were “Welcome and Vision Casting,” “The Archbishop’s 10-year Vision,” “A Vision for Catholic Academics,” “Rosary Meditation” and “Closing Remarks and Prayer.” The Enflame Our Schools high school event was part training, part faith formation and part retreat. “This was a great way for us to get together with our faculty and to converse with other teachers across the archdiocese,” said Sarah Wise, math and biology teacher and campus minister at Maur Hill-Mount Academy in Atchison. “I found it very helpful. . . . We’re all dealing with the coronavirus and teaching in a ‘new normal,’” she continued. “To be able to talk with other people not only about faith but our school was very refreshing. We’re all facing the same difficulties and believe in the same God.” The Enflame participants talked about two important evangelization strategies. The first was “Pray, Care and

“ IT MADE ME REALIZE I HAVE TO BE COMFORTABLE IN MY OWN SKIN AND FAITH IN ORDER TO EFFECTIVELY EVANGELIZE SARAH WISE MATH AND BIOLOGY TEACHER AND CAMPUS MINISTER AT MAUR HILL-MOUNT ACADEMY, ATCHISON Share,” and the second was “Crowds to Three.” “Crowds to Three” is in reference to the way Jesus approached evangelization: the three being his inner circle of Peter, James and John, then the Twelve Apostles, then the 72 disciples who were sent out and finally the crowds Jesus taught and healed. “We were asked to think about who were our three, our 12, our 72 and our crowds,” said Wise. “It made me realize I have to be comfortable in my own skin and faith in order to effectively evangelize. So, I pulled a lot out of it about how to grow in my own faith and be more aware about the people God provides for me in my life, especially my students.” “Out of all of this, we learned the bottom-line piece of it is friendship and relationship,” said Deb Castinado, academic counselor at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park. “Emily Lopez, lead consultant for the archdiocesan office of adult evangelization, talked about meeting people where they are . . . and using the form of pray, care and share,” she said. “We need to pray for those closest to us and take care of one another and keep on sharing with one another and try hard

not to escape the encounter but find goodness and beauty in each human heart we encounter.” Also, she learned that listening is more important than talking. “We are in a society where we all want to be heard, and with social media we’re pretty chatty,” said Castinado. “We need to listen better.

Reigniting the passion Catholic schools already work to form students in the faith and send them forth to be disciples, but it’s helpful to reignite the passion of fulfilling this primary mission, said J.C. Clark, physics and engineering teacher at Bishop Miege High School in Roeland Park. “For me, the biggest thing was to reawaken in me [a sense of evangelization],” said Clark. “It’s easy to get focused in on your own discipline . . . and lose sight of the big picture — that we’re striving to form these young men and women in Christ. It was a really good way to start the semester and be thinking more intentionally about that.” Having teachers from different

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All together virtually

Teachers at Holy Spirit School in Overland Park were among groups of educators around the archdiocese who listened in to superintendent of Catholic schools Vince Cascone and others during the “Enflame Our Schools” event held in August 2020 for archdiocesan elementary and middle school faculty and staff. A second event for high school faculty and staff was held on Jan. 4.

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ANSAS CITY, Kan. — When the archdiocesan Enflame convocation ended in October 2019, the 1,500 delegates were “on fire” to evangelize. Among them was Vince Cascone, superintendent of archdiocesan schools. “After the archdiocesan Enflame convocation in 2019, I had conversations with others about the possibility of extending that to our schools, so we planned the Enflame Our Schools convocations,” said Cascone. The first, which gathered more than 900 archdiocesan elementary and middle school faculty and staff, took place on Aug. 12, 2020. The second, for 286 faculty and staff at Catholic high schools in the archdiocese, took place on Jan. 4. Both Enflame Our Schools events were co-sponsored by the archdiocesan school office, the archdiocesan office of adult evangelization and the Holy Family School of Faith. They were funded by the “One Faith. One Family. One Future . . . in Christ” capital campaign. “The Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas is in a three-year evangelization initiative called ‘Enflame Our Hearts, Our Homes and Communities,’ where we are forming leaders to pray, care and share,” said Deacon Dana Nearmyer, archdiocesan director of evangelization. He was also a presenter at Enflame Our Schools.

“ WE ARE IN A SOCIETY WHERE WE ALL WANT TO BE HEARD, AND WITH SOCIAL MEDIA WE’RE PRETTY CHATTY. WE NEED TO LISTEN BETTER. DEB CASTINADO ACADEMIC COUNSELOR AT ST. THOMAS AQUINAS HIGH SCHOOL, OVERLAND PARK

schools led to exchanges of good ideas, he said. “I got lots of good ideas about new ways to do class prayer,” said Clark. “I really loved a couple of the ideas. One teacher writes a Bible verse on the board each day and has a different student read it. It’s very simple. Some students struggle and are at different places on their spiritual journey. [One teacher said] it has led to so much more fruitful prayer in class. . . . It makes class prayer more approachable for all students, and therefore more meaningful and engaging for the class.” Katie Walters, who teaches technology and serves as director of the community system at St. James Academy in Lenexa, appreciated the way the vision of the October 2019 convocation was brought into the schools. “I value that the archbishop has this vision to really look at evangelization — to pray together, love one another, to [get us] on the same team working to do what we are called to do: evangelize in our schools,” said Walters. “I was impressed with the undertaking,” she added, “even to run it on Zoom and put together breakout rooms . . . when so much has had to be reworked [because of COVID-19].” Cascone said there will be follow up to the one-day Enflame Our Schools event. Instructors from the Holy Family School of Faith will meet with their respective schools to continue to build on the topics that were discussed. “We pray that our high schools will walk students through the Enflame process of discerning who are their three, 12, 72 and crowds, and how to invest in them by praying, caring and sharing,” said Deacon Nearmyer. “More specific formation and further Enflame plans will be developed next summer for each of our schools to have an active culture of evangelization.”

LOCAL NEWS

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG Kathy and George Dobbelaere, members of St. Joseph Parish, Shawnee, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 30. The couple was married on Jan. 30, 1971, by Father William Dolan at St. Joseph Church. Joan (Krische) and Donald Boos, members of Prince of Peace Parish, Olathe, will celebrate their 65th we d d i n g a n n i versary on Jan. 28. The couple was married on Jan. 28, 1956, at St. Joseph Church, Topeka, by Father Otto Krische. They have four children, 13 grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren.

SUBMITTED PHOTO

Former Bishop Miege and K-State graduate McKenzi Weber relaxes during some downtime. Weber is currently serving as a FOCUS missionary at South Dakota School of the Mines in Rapid City.

Miege grad talks sports, faith and FOCUS

ith former K-State football player Stan Weber as a dad, it’s no surprise that McKenzi Weber is driven. She attended Bishop Miege High School in Roeland Park and earned a volleyball scholarship to K-State University in Manhattan. After graduation, McKenzi soon made the radical decision to accept a position as a FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) missionary — a commitment to spend two years evangelizing her peers and fundraising her salary. She is currently serving at South Dakota School of Mines in Rapid City.

How did attending Bishop Miege shape your Catholic identity?

Since it has a diverse population, Bishop Miege taught me the importance of embracing different cultures that reflect and build up the universal Catholic Church. Most of my friends were Hispanic, which opened my eyes to the beauty and necessity of ethnic diversity. Bishop Miege is a high-performing school — in athletics and academics — which pushed me to pursue excellence. I also appreciated the clarity from instructors on the teachings of the church.

What did your family do to instill a solid foundation for your faith?

Through their everyday actions, my parents taught me in the way of Christ and with the Bible as our foundation. We knew that to be successful in all areas, we needed to follow Christ. They stressed the importance of the sacraments, by encouraging us to go to confession,

pray the rosary as a family and never miss Mass.

In college, how did you balance sports, academics and your faith, and how did your faith change?

My brothers played sports and were great models to reinforce that school, faith and athletics were the three most important things to pursue each day. As I grew in my love for Christ, it was easier to make him a priority and lead all of my actions. In college, when I walked into class or on the court, I thanked God for the opportunity to be there. Most of my friends were sorority sisters who were Protestants and challenged me to better explain Catholic doctrine. FOCUS arrived my junior year and set the campus on fire! The missionaries invested deeply in students. I participated in a FOCUS Greek Bible study and led one my senior year. We had almost 20 girls in discipleship.

Why did you decide to become a FOCUS missionary, and what do you hope to achieve?

During the years of rigorous academic and training schedules, student-athletes need virtuous role models, so I want to help serve those needs through Varsity Catholic. Many define themselves by their sport, instead of our Creator, who gave them their incredible gifts and talents. I encourage students to understand their identity needs to be grounded in Christ. My heart is most filled and alive with athletics and Jesus. I want to help women grow deeper in faith and share the Gospel, which is necessary for the domestic church to be strong again. I strive to reinforce

the concepts of humility, empathy and interest in others — and to have Christ at the center of one’s heart. I’m also encouraging them to serve others beyond the local community. Next summer, I’m leading a FOCUS mission trip along the Camino de Santiago.

What has surprised you about serving at South Dakota School of Mines?

The campus chaplain encourages everyone to be led by the Holy Spirit, which is a huge inspiration. Most of the students I work with through Varsity Catholic outreach enjoy being outdoors, so we connect through hiking. Many students have never been encouraged to learn beyond the surface level. I’m encouraging them to dig into the big questions of life —why we’re here, who created us and how to live virtuously and share the Gospel.

How are you navigating the challenges of evangelizing during COVID-19?

We’re working closely with the campus ministry to follow the university, local and state COVID19 regulations. We’ve been blessed to be able to continue to interact with students, but we can’t have large events. We are building strong friendships we pray will continue through online Bible studies and discipleship if we go fully virtual. We’re also excited for the interactive SEEK21 event, Feb. 4 – 7, to encourage students to discuss the big questions in life about joy, peace, hope and salvation. For more information on Weber, go to her FOCUS page at: www.focus. org/missionaries/mckenzi-weber.

Linda (Hund) and James Cummings, members of St. Aloysius Parish, Meriden, will celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 30. The couple was married Jan. 30, 1971, at St. Aloysius. Their children are: James, Nick and Howard. They also have 10 grandchildren and one great-grandchild. They will celebrate later in the spring or summer. Darlene (Falk) and Steve Murray, members of Holy Family Parish, Alma, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on Jan. 2. The couple was married by Father Don Dreiling on Jan. 2, 1971, in the All Faiths Chapel at Kansas State U n i v e r s i t y, Manhattan. Their children are: Scott, Todd and Mitchell. They also have four grandsons.

ANNIVERSARY submissions POLICY: The Leaven prints 50, 60, 65 and 70th anniversary notices. They are for parishioners in the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas WHERE TO SUBMIT: Email: todd.habiger@theleaven.org.

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JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

FEATURE

No. 1 Bible podcast is ‘salvation history in your pocket’ By Maria Wiering Catholic News Service

CNS PHOTO/COURTESY ASCENSION

Father Mike Schmitz’s “The Bible in a Year” podcast features 20- to 25-minute episodes that guide Catholics through the Bible in 365 daily installments.

the hardships of 2020, Cavins said. “I think that the reaction is fantastic,” Father Schmitz told The Catholic Spirit. “It reveals that many people truly do want to know and understand the Bible, but that they also want a plan and a guide. My hope is that this BIY is a helpful plan, and that I am a reliable guide.” In a Jan. 5 news release, Ascension founder and president Matthew Pinto said the company is “overwhelmed by the staggering response to this podcast.” “We had hoped that this program would be exciting to our listeners, but this huge level of response is truly unbelievable,” he said. “People are hungry for God, and we’re honored to help them encounter God’s word through a daily podcast, especially as so many of us continue to be cut off from our parishes, communities, and loved ones during these difficult days.” Cavins attributes the podcast’s outof-the-gates success to the simplicity and mobility of the medium itself, Catholics’ familiarity with the Great Adventure Bible Timeline learning system and Father Schmitz’s popularity as a speaker, which includes a large following for his catechetical YouTube videos, “Ascension Presents.” “We wanted to shine a light in the darkness,” Cavins said. “The greatest message that people need in their life right now is that God loves them and has a plan for their life. They are two

“

T. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) — If great minds had brainstormed how to create a podcast that would jump to No. 1 in Apple’s podcast rankings, they never would have landed on “The Bible in a Year,” joked Jeff Cavins, a Bible scholar and creator of the Great Adventure Bible Timeline. Yet, two weeks into 2021, “The Bible in a Year” with Father Mike Schmitz tops the charts — and has since 48 hours after its Jan. 1 launch. With the backing of Ascension, a multimedia Catholic publisher, Cavins and Father Schmitz, a priest of the Diocese of Duluth, Minnesota, and popular Catholic speaker and author, created “The Bible in a Year,” a daily podcast that leads listeners through the Bible’s narrative. The aim is for listeners to understand how God’s plan for mankind’s salvation undergirds biblical events and the lives of its central figures. “Instead of just knowing stories of the Bible, we’re trying to get people to know the story of salvation, of salvation history,” said Cavins, a member of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Each episode is about 20 minutes and includes Father Schmitz reading several chapters from Scripture, often from different books, and then giving a short reflection on the readings. The reading chronology is based on the Great Adventure Bible Timeline reading plan, which organizes the 14 narrative books of the Bible into 12 periods in order to help readers understand how they relate to one another and to God’s plan for salvation. That plan is designed for three months, so Cavins expanded it for “The Bible in a Year.” What makes the reading plan for “The Bible in a Year” — and the Great Adventure Bible Timeline — successful is that it helps readers follow the story without losing a sense of the narrative in a non-narrative book, Cavins told The Catholic Spirit, newspaper of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Many people approach the Bible as a book to be read from cover to cover, and when they start at the beginning, they read through Genesis and Exodus — narrative books — only to get stuck in Leviticus — a non-narrative book — and abandon the project. Rather than a single book, the Bible is better understood as a library, Cavins said, and people benefit from a “librarian” to help them understand how it works together. “People are lost about how to read the Bible, and we feel that it’s a crisis in the church today,” he said. “God wants us to know his heart . . . and he wants us to know his plan.” Cavins and Father Schmitz expected to meet a need among Catholics for an entry point into understanding Scripture, but Cavins said he was amazed the program is so popular, with more than 1 million downloads in its first five days, and more than 3.5 million by Jan. 12. Apple Podcasts listed it at No. 1 Jan. 3, above chart-toppers “The Daily” from The New York Times, “Crime Junkie” and “The Joe Rogan Experience.” There’s widespread hunger for the word of God and people want to find — and do — something positive after

“PEOPLE ARE LOST ABOUT HOW TO READ THE BIBLE, AND WE FEEL THAT IT’S A CRISIS IN THE CHURCH TODAY. GOD WANTS US TO KNOW HIS HEART . . . AND HE WANTS US TO KNOW HIS PLAN.” JEFF CAVINS BIBLE SCHOLAR AND CREATOR OF THE GREAT ADVENTURE BIBLE TIMELINE

things that we’re trying to emphasize.” The podcast format makes it simple for subscribers to listen to the daily episode while commuting, making dinner or starting their day, Cavins said. And because most listeners are likely accessing it from their smartphones, it’s “salvation history in your pocket,” he said. In Ascension’s Jan. 5 news release, Father Schmitz said he wanted to create the podcast “because my own mind was being filled with a lot of chaotic voices.” “Some were wise, many were merely distracting,” he said. “I think that a lot of

people are tired of those same distracting and temporary voices. And they want what I want: to allow our hearts and minds to be shaped by something eternal — God’s eternal word.” He said that Cavins’ Great Adventure Bible Timeline changed his own relationship with Scripture, and called it a “phenomenal resource” for organizing the 73 books of Scripture. “I hope that, by being exposed to the word of God in Scripture, everyone who listens will find the way they see the world, others, and themselves through the lens of the wisdom of God,” Father Schmitz told The Catholic Spirit. “I desire that all those who participate in the BIY will allow their worldview to be shaped by God’s word.” “The Bible in a Year” includes a reading plan so subscribers can also read the day’s readings themselves, but Cavins said that “there is something powerful about hearing the word of God that goes into your heart.” He pointed to Romans 10:17, “so then faith comes by hearing the word of God.” “We really do truly believe that if people will listen to God’s word, it has a way of changing your life and your thinking,” he said. The show’s 365 total podcasts will cover every verse of the Bible. “The Bible in a Year” is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other podcast platforms, and through Hallow, a Catholic prayer app.

THE BLACK DEATH AND COVID-19 Understanding our shared humanity

several books; and president of the international De Re Militari: the Society for Medieval Military History. While there are those today who consider COVID19 a hoax, Hosler notes that wasn’t the case with the Black Death in the Middle Ages. People were literally dying in the streets and were buried in mass graves.

By Therese Horvat Special to The Leaven

ASEHOR — From conspiracy theories to quarantines and from symptoms to treatments, both parallels and differences exist between the Black Death that scourged the Middle Ages and today’s COVID-19 pandemic. At its most virulent stage over four to six years in the late 1340s and early 1350s, the Black Death or Plague — also known as the Great Pestilence — claimed 25 million or more Theories evolved, of course, lives in Europe. This plague in an attempt to understand first adversely affected popthe great unknown cause of ulations of North Africa and the many and rapid deaths. Asia where S o m e it originatturned to ed. It then the divine, recurred in thinking subsequent that God THERE’S A SHARED waves over was visiting 500 years, the plague HUMANITY THAT causing an upon people estimated because of SPANS CENTURIES. total of 75 to their sins. WE EXPERIENCE THINGS 100 million As a penideaths. tential rite, DIFFERENTLY, BUT IN As of this flagellants writing and wandered MANY WAYS THE SAME. by comparithrough the son with the streets, flogJOHN D. HOSLER, PH.D. Black Death, ging themEUROPEAN HISTORIAN AND COVID-19 selves. MEMBER OF HOLY ANGELS PARISH, has resulted Others BASEHOR in more than sought to two million find a scapedeaths worldwide in a year’s goat for the plague. Even time. though banned from using “There’s a shared humanlocal wells, the theory arose ity that spans centuries,” said that because they weren’t John D. Hosler, Ph.D., European drinking the water, the Jews historian and member of Holy must have poisoned the wells. Angels Parish, Basehor. “We exThis and other anti-Semitic perience things differently, but sentiments led to the persein many ways the same.” cution and deaths of many Hosler’s areas of expertise Jewish people. include medieval warfare, the From the vantage points of Crusades and military history. history and DNA studies, sciHe is a professor of military entists trace the Black Death history at the Command and to the bacterium Yersinia General Staff College, Fort pestis, transmitted by fleas Leavenworth; the author of that had bitten infected rats

Understanding sources, symptoms

“

“St. Sebastian Interceding for the Plague Stricken” was painted by Josse Lieferinxe. St. Sebastian was regarded as someon protect from the plague, and devotion to him greatly increased when the plague was active. and then bitten humans. Merchant ships carrying grain and following trade routes likely transported the disease from one continent to another. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 is a new disease caused by a novel (new) coronavirus first identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. While bats are the source of other types of coronavirus, the CDC indicates that the exact source of COVID-19 has not been identified. The new virus likely emerged from an animal or bat. Just as variations of COVID are developing today, the medieval plague manifested in

different forms, Hosler explained. The bubonic form was the most common and resulted from flea bites. Its symptoms included fever, headaches, aching joints, malaise, vomiting and the appearance of buboes — swellings that appeared near lymph nodes, turned black and left victims with dark skin splotches. Scholars attribute the name “Black Death” to this discoloration and also to the fact that these were dark times in history. The pneumonic plague of the medieval ages bore more similarity to COVID, attacking the lungs. Coughs and airborne droplets spread this

advanced type of the plague, leading to severe respiratory problems. The more infectious pneumonic form had a higher mortality rate than the bubonic, but both were extremely deadly. Without the benefits of modern medicine and technology, physicians and quacks alike tried different treatments to stem the spread and outcomes of this killer disease. These included: bloodletting, lancing the buboes and natural remedies. The latter ranged from ingesting snakeskin to drinking and/or applying concoctions made from items such as eggshells, marigolds and

LEAVEN PHOTO BY JAY SOLDNER

John D. Hosler, Ph.D., European historian and member of Holy Angels Parish, Basehor, finds similarities between the Black Plague and the current COVID-19 pandemic.

ne with a special ability to intercede to warm beer. Experiencing the plague spreading like a noxious vapor, people resorted to breathing in the fragrance of rose petals or scented herbs to ward off the disease. Hosler notes that the practices of quarantining and social distancing developed as preventive measures during the Black Death. He cites 14th-century Italian author Giovanni Boccaccio, who in his introduction to “The Decameron” discusses ways people were dealing with the reality of the plague. Among fearful and fanciful approaches, he describes asceticism; limiting contact and living modestly; adopting a carefree,

CNS PHOTO/OCTAVIO JONES, REUTERS

A health care worker at the Strawberry Festival Fairgrounds in Plant City, Florida, administers a Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine Jan. 13. casual attitude; and fleeing to the countryside. Social distancing, the wearing of masks, isolation and frequent hand-washing have remained critical measures recommended by the CDC to avoid contracting and spreading COVID-19. Additionally, modern pharmacology has developed vaccines now being administered for long-term immunity to this coronavirus.

The more things change . . . COVID and the Black Death share commonalities among their victims as well.

While the coronavirus has not discriminated based on social status or means, it has disproportionately affected people of color in the United States. In the Middle Ages, the Black Death likewise cut across social strata. However, Hosler points out that the plague eviscerated the peasant population, many of whom were farmers. “This eradicated a skill set for agriculture that the nobles lacked and resulted in crop shortages and famine,” he explained. “At a point in time, it may have been difficult to know who was dying from what cause — starvation or the plague.”

In terms of church ministry during the Black Death, Hosler believes that fear and common sense curtailed administration of the sacraments and worship. Plus, priests, monks and nuns were among those dying from the plague. Boccaccio writes that proper Christian burials were placed on hold as has occurred at times during today’s pandemic. Citing another parallel between the Black Death and COVID-19, Hosler said that even with everyone’s best efforts to curb the spread of the diseases, they spread anyway. He paraphrases Boccaccio, who writes that despite human wisdom and precautionary

measures, the Black Death showed up. That same level of frustration exists today with COVID. “In spite of lockdowns, masks and other actions,” observed Hosler, “numbers have been off the charts and infection rates increasing.” Another factor that lingers across centuries is the matter of the human capacity to find balance between living life fully and being safe. “People in the 14th century were trying to survive,” he concluded. “We’re still dealing with the tensions between staying safe and living our lives as we are used to doing.”

NATION

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Heavy security, pandemic means March for Life will be virtual By Kurt Jensen Catholic News Service

ASHINGTON (CNS) — For the first time since 1974, when it first began, the message of the national March for Life to participants is: Stay home. Like the satellite events connected to the annual National Mall rally and march to the Supreme Court, including the Rose Dinner, a youth conference and the Mass for Life, the rest of it will be online only Jan. 29. March organizers had already hired a production company to make a livestreamed event possible in the wake of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, and to enforce mask wearing and social distancing. But the plan was still to have as large a live rally as could be arranged. Many of the bus caravans from the Midwest, long a staple of the event, were canceled last fall as a result of the pandemic, and the assault on the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 and threats of subsequent violence by domestic terrorist groups, as reported by the FBI, made security impossible. “The protection of all of those who participate in the annual March, as well as the many law enforcement personnel and others who work tirelessly each year to ensure a safe and peaceful event, is a top priority of the March for Life,” Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Defense and Education Fund, said in a statement issued late Jan. 15. “In light of the fact that we are in the midst of a pandemic which may be

CNS PHOTO/TYLER ORSBURN

People walk up Constitution Avenue headed toward the U.S. Supreme Court while participating in the March for Life in Washington, D.C., Jan. 24, 2020. The 2021 March for Life in Washington will be held virtually because of the coronavirus pandemic and ongoing political unrest in the nation’s capital. peaking, and in view of the heightened pressures that law enforcement officers and others are currently facing in and around the Capitol . . . the annual rally will take place virtually and we

are asking all participants to stay home and to join the march virtually.” Marches in recent years had drawn at least 100,000 participants, and last year’s event was believed to have had

‘9 Days for Life’ novena set for Jan. 21-29

ASHINGTON (CNS) — Catholics across the country are invited to take part in the “9 Days for Life” novena Jan. 21-29 for the protection of human life. Each day’s intercession is accompanied by prayers, a short reflection and one or more suggested actions for novena participants to take to help build a culture of life, such as pledging to participate in a parishbased program called Walking With Moms in Need. Participants can go to the website www.9daysforlife.com to sign up for emails or texts about each day’s intercession, in English and Spanish. The site also has a link to materials for the novena as well as resources for parishes. The pro-life novena, sponsored by the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, encompasses the annual Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children Jan. 22, the day the Supreme Court handed down its decision in Roe and its companion case, Doe v. Bolton. It coincides with the annual March for Life usually held in Washington every January to mark the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion. This year’s national rally and march is planned for Jan. 29 but it will be livestreamed, with pro-life advocates across the country asked to participate virtually.

the largest attendance in its history. The march is held on or near the anniversary of the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion on demand.

Elected officials need a ‘public servant’s heart,’ Schwarzenegger says

W CNS PHOTO/TYLER ORSBURN

Pro-life advocates gather near the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington Jan. 19, 2018. Many of the bus caravans from the Midwest were canceled last fall as a result of the pandemic, and the assault on the U.S. Capitol Jan. 6 and threats of subsequent violence by domestic terrorist groups, as reported by the FBI, made security impossible. Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Defense and Education Fund, announced the changes in the event. An example of the novena intercessions is: “May the tragic practice of abortion end,” for Day One, followed by the Our Father, three Hail Marys and the Glory Be. The reflection for the day says in part: “At every stage

and in every circumstance, we are held in existence by God’s love. . . . Christ invites us to embrace our own lives and the lives of others as true gifts. Abortion tragically rejects the truth that every life is a good and perfect gift, deserving protection.” The suggested “acts of reparation” for the first day are: Take a break from television and movies and consider spending some of that time praying with the day’s reflection. Or pray the short prayer “Every Life Is Worth Living,” reflecting on the gift of human life. Or offer some other sacrifice, prayer, or act of penance that you feel called to do for the day’s intention.

ASHINGTON (CNS) — He’s back. Actor and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, leaning on his Catholic upbringing in Austria, said a “public servant’s heart” is needed in America’s elected officials, especially after the Jan. 6 Capitol siege that prompted the remarks. “I grew up Catholic, I went to church, I went to Catholic school, I learned the Bible and my catechisms,” said Schwarzenegger in a YouTube video posted Jan. 10. “And from those days I remember a phrase that is relevant today: a servant’s heart. It means serving something larger than yourself.” He added, “What we need right now from our elected representatives is a public servant’s heart. We need public servants that serve something larger than their own power or their own party. We need public servants who will serve higher ideals, the ideals in which this country was founded, the ideals that other countries look up to.” Since it was first posted on YouTube, the video racked up close to 4.76 million views in just two days — more views than any movie in theaters since the pandemic started last March. Schwarzenegger decried the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol as “the Day of Broken Glass,” making a direct reference to the Kristallnacht episode launched against the Jews in 1938 by what he called “the Nazi equivalent of the Proud Boys.”

JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

WORLD

‘For the love of God, send us oxygen’ By Lise Alves Catholic News Service

AO PAULO (CNS) — With the news that dozens of people were suffocating to death due to a lack of oxygen in hospitals in the Amazon city of Manaus, Catholic bishops made a plea for the supply of an essential element for survival. “We, bishops of Amazonas and Roraima, make an appeal: For the love of God, send us oxygen,” Archbishop Leonardo Steiner of Manaus said in a video released Jan. 15. “Provide oxygen. People cannot continue to die for lack of oxygen and for lack of beds in the ICUs,” said the visibly shaken archbishop. The archbishop said that during the first wave of COVID-19 in the Amazon region, people died due to a lack of information and lack of beds in Intensive Care Units. Now, during this second wave, people are dying not only because of overcrowded hospitals but from a shortage of oxygen. The situation in Manaus made headlines as family members of those in hospitals, with COVID-19 and other ailments, were shown trying desperately to purchase oxygen cylinders to save their loved ones. As of Jan. 15, more than 60 premature infants were said to be in danger of dying for lack of oxygen. Oxygen tanks provided by the federal government were expected to last only days. During the weekend of Jan. 16-17, hundreds of patients were airlifted to other states for treatment as oxygen supplies continued to diminish. The plea made by Archbishop

By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service

R CNS PHOTO/BRUNO KELLY, REUTERS

Relatives of patients hospitalized or receiving health care at home gather to buy oxygen at a private company in Manaus, Brazil, Jan. 15. Bishops in Brazil’s Amazonas and Roraima states are pleading for oxygen tanks to help fight COVID-19. Steiner, who was secretary-general of the Brazilian bishops’ conference between 2011 and 2019, was followed by appeals and promises of help from other Brazilian bishops. Bishop Walmor Oliveira de Azevedo, president of the bishops’ conference, asked business leaders, entrepreneurs and politicians to offer their assistance. “In view of the very serious situation in the city of Manaus, it is urgent to call upon Christians and all sensitive people faced with the suffering of others; it is time to help,” he said. Retired Bishop Erwin Kräutler, president of the Brazilian branch of the Pan-Amazonian Church Network, also expressed his support for the bishops’ calls for help and asked local and federal governments to provide oxygen cylinders for hospitals in

Manaus and the Amazon. “We are seeing our sisters and brothers die of suffocation; a terrible death,” said the bishop, known for his work with the Indigenous population of the Amazon. “It is not possible for Brazil to forget the peoples of the Amazon at such a cruel time and to close our ears to the clamor of people who are dying; and [to] their families and health professionals, who cannot care for patients due to lack of oxygen and have to look passively as patients die, suffocated by lack of oxygen, in terrible conditions,” said Bishop Kräutler. “For the love of God and of Our Lady: Manaus, the Amazon, are [part of] Brazil. Please wake up, for the people who live here and want to survive this pandemic,” he said.

Poor treatment of unwed moms acknowledged By Michael Kelly Catholic News Service

UBLIN (CNS) — At least one order of Irish nuns and the primate of all Ireland welcomed a report from a judicial inquiry into mother-and-baby homes and acknowledged the church failed to live up to its own values. The Sisters of Bon Secours ran St. Mary’s home in Tuam from 1925 until 1961. It was among 18 homes for unmarried mothers and their children cited by Judge Yvonne Murphy in her Jan. 12 report; she said the homes showed a lack of compassion. In a statement, Sister Eileen O’Connor, area leader of the congregation, acknowledged that “our Sisters of Bon Secours were part of this sorrowful history.” “We did not live up to our Christianity when running the home,” Sister O’Connor said. “We failed to respect the inherent dignity of the women and children who came to the home. We failed to offer them the compassion that they so badly needed. We were part of the system in which they suffered hardship, loneliness and terrible hurt. “We acknowledge in particular that infants and children who died at the home were buried in a disrespectful and unacceptable way. For all that, we are deeply sorry,” she said.

Rome priest chronicles ministering with COVID

CNS PHOTO/CLODAGH KILCOYNE, REUTERS

Baby shoes hang on a wall at a cemetery in Tuam, Ireland, where the bodies of nearly 800 infants were uncovered at the site of a former Catholic home for unmarried mothers and their children. The photo was taken Jan. 12, the day a commission investigating the treatment of women in such homes released its report. The inquiry was established after a local historian discovered death certificates for almost 800 infants at St. Mary’s in Tuam. However, the historian,

Catherine Corless, discovered there were no burial records. Public outcry resulted in a Commission of Investigation being established. The commission spent five years investigating the treatment of unmarried mothers in state-funded church-run homes and concluded that the blame for their “harsh treatment” rests primarily with their families, but that both the church and state condoned this. The report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes and Certain Related Matters reviewed 18 institutions from 1922 to 1998. It found that “Ireland was a cold harsh environment for many, probably the majority, of its residents during the earlier half of the period under remit.” The report said that Ireland was “especially cold and harsh for women.” The responsibility for the “harsh treatment” of unmarried mothers “rests mainly with the fathers of their children and their own immediate families,” the report said. The commission stated that the mistreatment of unmarried mothers “was supported by, contributed to, and condoned by, the institutions of the state and the churches.” At the same time, the commission found that “it must be acknowledged that the institutions under investigation provided a refuge — a harsh refuge in some cases — when the families provided no refuge at all.”

OME (CNS) — Before Nov. 19, Father Valerio Bortolotti’s Facebook posts had been the usual updates and reminders about parish activities, formation courses and videorecorded Masses outdoors with lax mask usage among the celebrants. But when he ended up in a hospital that evening with pneumonia caused by COVID-19, he decided to keep his followers aware of his condition and of life “on the inside” in a crowded COVID-19 recovery ward in Rome where he serendipitously became the ward’s chaplain. With bits of humor, sadness, hope, extreme fatigue and waves of delirium, the 57-year-old Father Valerio adopted the “nom de plume” Father “Viruslerio” and crafted a lengthy series of “news reports,” patient-personality profiles, musings, prayer requests and poetic odes in dialect dedicated to his new companion, coronavirus. The entries, from Nov. 19 to Dec. 7, total more than 6,400 words and are abundantly illustrated with colorful emojis — such as red hearts, blue microbes and the Italian “sign of the horn” gestures equivalent to “knocking on wood” — since his sole writing device was his smartphone. He shared on Facebook Jan. 14 a compilation of the series in a 40-page document, titled, “God, the Virus and I: The Semi-demented Chronicles of Contagion with Grace.” The most poignant stories are about the patients and staff he gets to know, putting himself at the service of these men and women God has “put in this house that you have entrusted to me.” “A virus brought me here to [the hospital], but my guide is Christ the King,” he wrote. He describes: Imul, 33, a gas attendant from Bangladesh, who lay shivering from cold and fear. The priest tried to reassure him saying the intravenous fluids everyone was getting were the ones given to the rapidly recovered U.S. President Donald Trump; Mario, 88, a metalworker who lives near the Vatican, married 72 years and nicknamed “Meatloaf” for his big beefy build; and Aurelio, a nurse who had just started taking his vacation days and got sick. Having packed a Mass kit in his bag for the hospital, Father Bortolotti celebrated Mass late in the evening when his IV drip was disconnected, the nurses’ rounds were over and the hallways were quiet. Even though they were in a non-critical care unit for COVID-19 patients, he still anointed the sick and offered last rites. He described these quiet moments conferring the sacraments as seeing “grace passing concealed, in gestures of care, the care of [God] who loves his frightened child.” Sometimes he also posted a photograph, for example of his makeshift “chapel” — a tiny alcove where supplies and a defibrillator were stored by a small room where an elderly woman named Lena lay. He celebrated Mass for her the night before she died, and he celebrated a funeral Mass the next day in his own room.

CLASSIFIEDS

12 EMPLOYMENT Athletic director - St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Overland Park is seeking an athletic director beginning July 1. The current director is retiring after building one of the top extracurricular programs in the state and establishing strong rapport with colleagues throughout Kansas and Missouri. We seek a candidate of integrity who acts on a belief that student safety, demonstrated sportsmanship and our Catholic faith are priorities within a successful program that promotes physical, mental and spiritual fitness. The ideal candidate would have experience as a high school varsity coach, preferably as an athletic director in a similar-size school (800 students with 40 teams) or college, an advanced degree, and of added value, a certification as an athletic/extracurricular activities director. Currently, athletic director responsibilities include effective communication, including conflict resolution; upholding KSHSAA standards and rules among coaches and student-athletes; supporting all policies of the school; supervising approximately 90 coaches and staff; managing a substantial budget; representing St. Thomas Aquinas in the Eastern Kansas League; securing and maintaining equipment and uniforms; coordinating transportation and monitoring eligibility; ensuring venue safety; and overseeing summer camps. The activities director role includes supporting a variety of extracurricular activities, including: scheduling, planning, supervision, transportation and safety. Qualified candidates should provide a cover letter, curriculum vitae or resume and a list of three references with contact information to Dr. Paul D. Fallon, President, St. Thomas Aquinas High School, 11411 Pflumm Rd., Overland Park, KS 66215. Applications will be received until Feb. 28. References will not be contacted until the candidate becomes a semifinalist. Full-time assistant teachers - With multiple locations in Johnson County, Special Beginnings Early Learning Center provides high-quality child care in a safe, loving Christian environment. With a balanced curriculum of pre-academics and the right environment, we believe we are providing the children the foundation to be successful in life. We are looking for full-time assistant teachers for all ages who have an excellent work ethic, a heart for children and a willingness to learn more about early childhood education. Experience and/or education is a plus, but we will train the right candidate. Duties include supervising and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of the children at all times; following predetermined curriculum and daily schedule; decorating the class and keeping classrooms clean and orderly; creating and filling out daily reports for each child; communicating with parents; meeting children’s basic needs (diapers, bottles, etc). Must be patient and able to respond to difficult situations calmly; have good interpersonal skills with coworkers, parents and children; and be able to lift 25 pounds on a regular basis. There are opportunities for career advancement. For more information or to apply, call Carolyn Andruss at (913) 894-0131, option 3. Resource specialist - This position is part time, 30 hours/week. Will determine client needs and match to social services. Evaluate services and programs to maintain resource list. The ideal candidate has a master’s degree in social work, LMSW or LSCSW and two - five years’ experience; organizing and prioritizing skills and objectivity; nonprofit or ministry experience; excellent communicator; bilingual a plus. Looking for committed, pro-life Christian who can affirm our vision, mission and statement of faith. Send cover letter and resume to: office@adviceandaid.com. No phone calls. Substitute teacher - Miege is seeking a long-term substitute teacher for the family and consumer science department for in-person learning from mid-February through the end of May. The candidate will be teaching foods, interior design and child development. Send letter of interest and resume to: mjaksa@bishopmiege.com. Career opportunity - Due to the growth of the Knights of Columbus, we are looking for professional men who are interested in helping fellow Catholics with their faith, family and finances. This is a full-time career opportunity that will allow you to be your own boss and a respected professional member of the community. If you or someone you know is self-motivated, good with time management and has a desire to succeed, this might be the opening you’ve been looking for. Benefits include unlimited professional income potential, flexibility, quality training program and incentive award trips such as Rome, Hawaii and Ireland. There are openings in northeast Kansas and western Missouri. If you want to serve your community, strengthen the church and change the world, call John Mahon at our regional office at (785) 408-8800 or toll free at (855) 356-4849. Drivers and aides - Assisted Transportation is now hiring safe drivers and aides to transport students with special needs in Johnson, Wyandotte and Clay County, Missouri, in company vans. Drivers earn $14 - $16 per hour. Aides earn $12 per hour. Part-time and full-time schedules available. CDL not required. Retirees encouraged to apply. Make a difference in your community by helping those in need. Call (913) 521-4955 for more information. EEO Community live-in assistants - L’Arche Heartland of Overland Park serves adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities in day program support services and in residential services. We are seeking assistants who are looking for a unique opportunity in a faith-based organization. We are in immediate need of live-in assistants and potential live-out assistants to work in our day program serving 30 adults. We have a recycling program and community activities. Our core members participate in distributing for Meals on Wheels and Rise Against Hunger. They also attend community events such as the library, movies, bowling and going to parks. We also have a need for live-in and live-out assistants in our five residential homes. If interested, contact Jamie Henderson, community leader, by email at: jamie@larcheks.org.

Substitute teachers – St. Joseph Early Education Center, Shawnee, is looking for substitute staff in our center, ranging from the infant to pre-kindergarten age programs. Please call (913) 248-4589 or email: tgavila@ stjoeshawnee.org. Lead/Assistant teachers – St. Joseph Early Education Center, Shawnee, has positions available in our infant, toddler and two-and-one-half-year-olds rooms. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age. Competitive pay and benefits are offered. Please call (913) 248-4589 or email: tgavila@stjoeshawnee.org. We are willing to consider half-day applicants. Part-time bookkeeper - Good Shepherd Parish in Shawnee has an immediate opening for a part-time bookkeeper/accountant to assist in the processing of bill payments, preparation of bank reconciliations, account analyses and other duties as needed to assist the director of finance. Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel required as well as functional knowledge of double entry accounting; previous fund accounting experience preferred. Flexible schedule of approximately 10-15 hours a week. To apply, please send your resume and references to Father Kent O’Connor at: frkent@gsshawnee.org. Montessori lead directress and afternoon assistant - Our Lady’s Montessori School is growing and searching for individuals trained in the Montessori Method and the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, or interested in learning more. Our immediate need is for an afternoon assistant, 11 a.m. - 5:30 p.m., beginning in February, and a Montessori lead directress for our 6 - 12-year-olds classroom, beginning in the fall of 2021. Please fill out our online application on our website and send to Jenny at: jwallace@olmskc.org.

SERVICES Handyman - Furloughed railroader just trying to keep the bills paid for my little family. I advertised here as Father and Son Home Exteriors and Remodeling for 13 years before working for the railroad last year. I can do all carpentry, windows, doors, trim, siding and decks. I can paint, sheetrock and love to do tile. Just about any project you have around your home, I can do. No project too big or too small. Just give me a call at (913) 709-7230 and ask for Josh.

8 to Your IdealWeight Get Real, Get Healthy, Get Empowered Take back your power and release weight, fatigue and joint pain without hunger or cravings! Call or text Kathi at (816) 809-7739 Email: imagewellness2@gmail.com

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Looking for assisted living at home? - Before you move, call us and explore our in-home care options. We specialize in helping families live safely at home while saving thousands of dollars per year. Call today for more information or to request a FREE home care planning guide. Benefits of Home - Senior Care, www.benefits ofhome.com or call (913) 422-1591.

HOME IMPROVEMENT Rusty Dandy Painting, Inc. – We have been coloring your world for 40 years. Your home will be treated as if it were our own. Old cabinets will be made to look like new. Dingy walls and ceilings will be made beautiful. Woodwork will glow. Lead-certified and insured. Call (913) 341-9125. DRC Construction We’ll get the job done right the first time. Windows - Doors - Decks - Siding Repair or replace, we will work with you to solve your problems. Choose us for any window, door, siding or deck project and be glad you did. Everything is guaranteed 100% (913) 461-4052 www.windowservicesoverlandpark.com drcconswindows@gmail.com 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) 579-1835. Email: smokey cabin@ hotmail.com. Member of Holy Trinity, Lenexa. Painting - Diamond Painting, (913) 648-4933, Residential/Commercial, Exterior/interior, Free Estimate, Affordable, Decks, DiamondPaintKc.com, Kcmo/Overland Park Metropolitan area. Popcorn ceiling texture removal and add knockdown to your ceilings! Call Jerry at (913) 206-1144. 30 years’ experience. Accepting major credit cards. Call with questions. Local handyman - Painting int. and ext., wood rot, power washing, staining, masonry (chimney repair, patios) gutter cleaning, water heaters, junk removal, lawn mowing, window cleaning, honey - do list and more!! Member of Holy Angels Parish, Basehor. Call Billy at (913) 927-4118. Garage door repair. Sales and service, all brands. Free estimates. Leaven discount. Call (816) 392-7134.

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.teresakiddlaw.com. Please do not wait until life seems hopeless before getting good quality legal advice that may solve your financial stress. Win disability benefits - Disabled and no longer able to work? Get help winning Social Security disability benefits. Free consultation. Eight years’ experience. No fee unless you win. Call (785) 331-6452 or send an email to: montemace2000@yahoo.com or visit http://www. montemacedisability.org.

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.

Clinical therapist - LCPC treats trauma, PTSD, complex PTSD; EMDR-trained. Treats adult recovery from child abuse; anxiety reduction through emotion-regulation, distress tolerance and mindfulness. Also treats couples with wounded attachments. Sliding scale. Call Donna Constantineau, LCTC, at (913) 602-1415.

Wanted to buy - Antique/vintage jewelry, paintings, pottery, sterling, etc. Single pieces or estate. Renee Maderak, (913) 475-7393. St. Joseph Parish, Shawnee.

Getting life insurance is an act of love - As a Catholic agent, I have seen the use of life insurance in action many times. Losing someone, no matter their age, is a sad and overwhelming experience. Being left behind with financial burdens makes it even worse. Life insurance delivers a tax-free dollar amount to fulfill specific needs or purposes. I can help you get started. Please call (816) 431-6500 or visit us at: http://www.JEOrozco.com. 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. Mike Hammer local moving - A full-service mover. Packing, pianos, rental truck load/unload, storage container load/unload and in-home moving. No job too small. Serving JoCo since 1987. St. Joseph, Shawnee, parishioner. Call Mike at (913) 927-4347 or send an email to: mike@mikehammermoving.com. Cleaning lady - Reasonable rates; references provided. Call (913) 209-9234.

WANTED TO BUY Wanted to buy - Old cars or hot rods. Uncompleted project cars in any condition, with or without titles. Cash buyer. Call (913) 980-3559.

Wanted to buy - If you have an extra car and/or truck you don’t know what to do with, give us a call. We are a cash buyer. Call Mark at (913) 980-4905. 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.

FOR SALE Residential lifts - New and recycled. Stair lifts, porch lifts, ceiling lifts and elevators. St. Michael’s parishioners. KC Lift & Elevator at (913) 327-5557. (Formerly Silver Cross - KC)

REAL ESTATE Whole Estates Need to sell a home and everything in it? We buy it all at once in as-is condition. Call (816) 444-1950 or send an email to: www.wholeestates.com.

Tutor - Available for K- 12 in various subjects and test preps. Tutor has 17 years of experience teaching and tutoring. Call Kathleen at (913) 206-2151 or email: klmamaric@ yahoo.com. Online sessions available.

We Buy houses and whole estates - We are local and family owned, and will make you a fair cash offer. We buy houses in any condition. No fees or commissions and can close on the date of your choice. Selling your house as is never felt so good. Jon & Stacy Bichelmeyer (913) 599-5000

Memory quilts - Preserve your memories in a keepsake quality quilt, pillows, etc. Custom designed from your Tshirt collection, baby clothes, sports memorabilia, neckties . . . Quilted Memories. (913) 649-2704.

CASH FOR YOUR HOME (913) 980-4905 Any condition in the metro area Mark Edmondson - local parishioner http://www.buykcproperty.com

CAREGIVING Caregiving - We provide personal assistance, companionship, care management, and transportation for seniors in their home, assisted living or nursing facilities. We also provide respite care for main caregivers needing some personal time. Call Daughters & Company at (913) 341-2500 and speak with Laurie, Pat or Gary.

CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING Cost is $20 for the first five lines, $1.50 per line thereafter. To purchase a classified ad, email: beth.blankenship@theleaven.org

VILLA ST. FRANCIS GRIEF SUPPORT GROUP Online via Zoom Mondays through Feb. 22

This group will discuss the grief journey and ways to cope and grow as we adjust to the loss of loved ones. Maureen Kelly, director of spiritual health, will facilitate the sessions. The group will meet on Zoom and be limited to not more that 10 participants or fewer than four participants. For more information, call or text (913) 257-9232 or send an email to: mkelly@villasf.org.

PROJECT CHRYSALIS Online via Zoom Jan. 26 from 7 - 8:15 p.m.

Project Chrysalis is a ministry offering hope through Sacred Scripture and community to parents/grandparents who have lost a child or grandchild. While this ministry is not a bereavement group, our mission is to offer support and hope through Scripture in a time of transformation. The guest speaker will be Father Shawn Tunink. For more information and the Zoom link, contact Deacon Ken Billinger at (913) 634-4210 or send an email to: kbillinger@archkck.org. The group is open to parents or grandparents who have lost a child.

RESURRECTION SCHOOL’S TASTE OF KCK Virtual event Jan. 26 - 29

Join Resurrection School’s Taste of KCK by going online to: rcskck.org and clicking on the “Taste of KCK” icon to watch presentations on some of the community’s historical roots. Get a traditional Croatian recipe, Mexican recipe and a Burmese recipe. There will also be videos to watch. On Jan. 29, there will be an address by Msgr. Tom Tank. While you are there, make a donation to benefit Resurrection School.

‘JOY OF MUSIC’ Visitation Church 5141 Main St., Kansas City, Missouri Jan. 31 at 3 p.m.

The “Joy of Music” concert is filled with beautiful classical music selections that will bring joy to your heart and glory to God! Suggested donation is $25 per family.

‘COPING WITH LIFE ALONE’ A PEER-TO-PEER GRIEF SUPPORT GROUP Online via Zoom Feb. 1 - April 5

This is a Beginning Experience support program that meets each week for eight weeks. The program helps those who have lost a love relationship — due to death, divorce or separation — move through the experience of grief and loss into a future with renewed hope. Register in advance and receive the program workbook plus detailed Zoom meeting instructions by going to: www.beginningexperiencekc.org. For additional information, contact Donna at (816) 305-3760.

NATURAL FAMILY PLANNING Online class Feb. 24 at 2 p.m.

A reasonable course fee is charged, and online registration is required at the class registration CCLI portal at: powerapps portals.com. Send an email to Alison or Allen Greenlief at: aagreenlief@gmail.com for more information about NFP classes offered by the Couple to Couple League.

‘CALLED TO LOVE AGAIN’ DIVORCE SUPPORT MINISTRY Online via Zoom Feb. 27

The “Called To Love Again” divorce ministry will be having virtual meetings due to the COVID pandemic. Send an email to Katie Palitto for Zoom access, time and more information at: thecall2love.com. The topic for February is forgiveness.

LOCAL NEWS

JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

CORRECTION

The above photo that was published in the Jan. 15 issue of the Leaven with the article about Sacred Heart-St. Casimir Parish in Leavenworth connecting with its homebound parishioners had incorrect information in the caption. It should have read: Darie Hamilton, left, and Danica and Leigh Anne Bullard make a special delivery to one of the parish’s homebound parishioners. The Leaven regrets the error.

ACROSS 1 __ matter 5 Brick worker 10 Word meaning father 14 Slant 15 Philippine dish with marinated chicken or pork 16 Proper 17 Mason 19 A Roman emperor 20 Radiuses 21 Can 22 Makes fun of 23 No room for them in the __ 25 Husband of Ruth 26 Miles per hour 29 Morse code “T” 31 Sandwich 32 Caesar’s three 35 Alack’s partner 37 Plague of Egypt 39 Son of Seth 40 Word written on the wall (Daniel)

41 Luau dish 42 Fish catchers 43 Caused 44 Sermon on the __ 46 Twin brother of Jacob 47 High naval rank (abbr.) 48 Gray sea eagle 49 Young lady 51 Compass point 52 Charity 54 Snake 56 Adios 58 Choose 61 Sacrificial table 65 Secret language 66 Tree in Eden 68 Declare positively 69 Went gently 70 Garden of __ 71 Cozy rooms 72 Solitary 73 Salamander

DOWN 1 Shorten (abbr.) 2 Italian currency 3 Hotel cleaner 4 Computer code for characters 5 Bad (prefix) 6 Father of Cain 7 Soybean 8 Comply 9 Neither’s partner 10 Sleep disorder 11 Windiness 12 Vigor 13 OT prophet 18 Love is patient, love is __ 22 The patience of __ 24 Arrest 25 Large vehicle 26 Mother 27 Give as an excuse 28 Personal maids 30 Mount (2 wds.) 31 David’s weapon 33 Tiny amounts

34 Distribute 36 Perceive 38 Promissory note 39 East northeast 44 Mr..’s wife 45 Charge 48 Flightless bird 50 Lounge about 53 Jeers 55 Ethan that led the Green Mountain Boys 56 College (abbr.) 57 Bird Noah sent out 58 Spoken 59 Mexican money 60 Adolescent 62 Ocean movement 63 Not many (2 wds.) 64 Lease 66 Drink 67 Poem of praise Soluntion on page ?

Bendictines get COVID vaccine >> Continued from page 1 As a high school student studying the Catholic faith, Rico was familiar with the Mount and the Sisters’ work. As such, she was happy to have the opportunity to be on-site to deliver the much anticipated vaccinations. “I felt lucky to be able to help out,” Rico said. “I didn’t expect that, at 21 years old, I would be responding to the needs of a pandemic. It’s great to see the Sisters have hope after a long year.” In all, Rico spent 10 hours at the Mount that day. In addition to delivering the shot in the arm, each person has to be monitored for 15 minutes after receiving the vaccine to watch for an allergic reaction. Rico will return on Jan. 29 to administer the second dose. Not surprisingly, jubilation dominated the emotions that day. The Sisters have been extremely cautious, wearing masks, quarantining — sometimes even within the convent — and shuttering their ministries for the duration. Several times, the Sisters had to quarantine for two weeks at a time for a potential exposure to COVID-19. Three

of the Sisters contracted the virus. Fortunately, they experienced only mild symptoms, Sister Esther said. Even more important than protecting their health, however, the vaccine opens the door to freedom, Sister Esther said. The Mount must still follow county health advisories and CDC guidance. However, Sister Esther said they hope to soon rejoin the residents of the Mount and Dooley Center for prayer and Mass. Not one of the Sisters feared the vaccine or a reaction, she said. “There was no fear, only grins, delight and chatter,” Sister Esther said. “One of the Sisters sent me a funny email after she was vaccinated, and she told me she had been shot.” While the pandemic is long from over, Sister Esther credits the laypeople who have also played an important role in keeping the Sisters safe from widespread transmission of the virus. “We have been blessed with employees who worked very hard on staying safe so that we would be safe,” she said. “We couldn’t do any of this without them.”

COLUMNISTS

DAILY READINGS THIRD WEEK OF ORDINARY TIME Jan. 24 THIRD SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Jon 3: 1-5, 10 Ps 25: 4-9 1 Cor 7: 29-31 Mk 1: 14-20 Jan. 25 THE CONVERSION OF ST. PAUL, THE APOSTLE Acts 22: 3-16 Ps 117: 1-2 Mk 16: 15-18 Jan. 26 Timothy and Titus, bishops 2 Tm 1: 1-8 Ps 96: 1-3, 7-8a, 10 Mk 3: 31-35 Jan. 27 Angela Merici, virgin Heb 10: 11-18 Ps 110: 1-4 Mk 4: 1-20 Jan. 28 Thomas Aquinas, priest, doctor of the church Heb 10: 19-25 Ps 24: 1-4b, 5-6 Mk 4: 21-25 Jan. 29 Friday Heb 10: 32-39 Ps 37: 3-6, 23-24, 39-40 Mk 4: 26-34 Jan. 30 Saturday Heb 11: 1-2, 8-19 (Ps) Lk 69-75 Mk 4: 35-41

Angela Merici 1470-1540 By age 26, Angela had lost most of her wealthy Italian family to death. As a Franciscan tertiary, she performed good works and taught catechism to girls in her home in Desenzano del Garda. Two visions inspired her to found a congregation dedicated to the religious training of young women; she began this mission with a school in Brescia. Earlier, she had endured an episode of blindness while on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and had rejected a papal request to run all charities in Rome. In 1535, she founded the Ursulines and served as superior until her death. This mystic, a patron of catechists, reportedly was fascinated from childhood by the legend of St. Ursula, an early virgin-martyr.

ill someone please tell 2021 that this is a new year, that the crazy year of 2020 ended? If these first couple of weeks are any indication, 2021 did not get the memo . . . and neither did I. For example, the other morning I found myself staring into space over a cup of coffee, feeling absolutely overwhelmed at the day’s schedule ahead of me. More often than not, I’ve felt annoyed at selfish, irrational and callous people . . . before I’ve even stepped outside the door! Let’s not even talk about the news, which details an increasingly large number of COVID cases or our fellow citizens going absolutely bonkers about everything. And, finally, we can’t forget the Kansas City Chiefs, who even though winning, keep us chewing our finger-

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Building peace . . . piece by piece MARK MY WORDS

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

nails until the last few seconds of each game. All of these situations have robbed me of what I desire most: a feeling of peace. It appears that people everywhere are more polarized and angrier than ever — and that seems to be OK with them. Well, that isn’t OK with me. I draw hope and inspiration from the following story: Ramsey MacDonald, the one-time prime

minister of England, was discussing with another government official the possibility of lasting peace. The latter, an expert on foreign affairs, was unimpressed by the prime minister’s idealistic viewpoint. He remarked cynically, “The desire for peace does not necessarily ensure it.” “Quite true,” admitted MacDonald. “But neither does the desire for food satisfy your hunger, but at least it gets you started toward a restaurant.” (Found in “Illustrations Unlimited,” edited by James S. Hewett.) Since I’ve been

unimpressed with my start to 2021, I’m letting my desire for peace “get me started toward a restaurant.” If you’re looking for a bit more peace, maybe some of these practical steps — some borrowed from Henrik Edberg on “The Positivity Blog” — will help: 1. Begin each day by saying the Prayer of St. Francis, which begins: “Make me a channel of your peace.” 2. Don’t make mountains out of molehills. 3. Slow down. 4. Set limits on how much you can realistically accomplish in one day. 5. Arrive 10 minutes ahead of time for appointments or finish promised tasks early. (I’m still working a lot on this one!) 6. Take deep breaths and close your eyes several times a day. 7. Laugh often. 8. Ask for help. 9. In difficult situations, communicate with others; don’t

think you can read people’s minds or intentions. 10. Do. One. Thing. At. A. Time. Finally, end the day with this prayer, written by another Francis, our pope: “God of Love, you created us, and you call us to live as brothers and sisters. Give us the strength daily to be instruments of peace; enable us to see everyone who crosses our path as our brother or sister. Make us sensitive to the plea of our citizens who entreat us to turn our weapons of war into implements of peace, our trepidation into confident trust and our quarreling into forgiveness. . . . Lord, diffuse the violence of our tongues and our hands. Renew our hearts and minds, so that . . . our way of life will always be that of: Shalom, Peace, Salaam! Amen.” Let’s join together to pursue peace in 2021 . . . piece by piece.

Actions spoke louder than words in life of St. Joseph

n announcing a Year of St. Joseph, Pope Francis highlights the unique vocation of the man God called to be the head of the Holy Family, the husband of Mary, and the guardian of the Redeemer. While no spoken words of Joseph are recorded in the Gospels, we learn of his vocation and life through his decisions and deeds. Actions spoke louder than words in the life of Joseph. At first, Joseph was reluctant to take Mary as his wife and fearful for the life of the infant Jesus whom Herod wanted to kill. Yet precisely in these uncertain and dangerous situations Joseph trusted in the

JEM SULLIVAN Sullivan is a professor at The Catholic University of America.

divine message he heard. His obedience to the divine call would bring about the unfolding of God’s saving plan for the world. In Sunday’s first reading (Jon 3: 1-5, 10), we encounter the

prophet Jonah who discovers, in stages, his vocation and call to serve God. At first, Jonah was reluctant to do the work of the Lord. He heard God call him but turned the other way, attempting to hide from the task that was given to him. But the Lord continued to call Jonah to bring a message of repentance to the people of Nineveh, despite his hesitation to do so. But once Jonah accepted the divine call, his ministry

opened the way for a powerful outpouring of God’s grace. For at the preaching of Jonah, the people of Nineveh returned to God with repentance, prayer and fasting. In choosing a messenger, God persists in calling him or her to their life’s vocation. In Sunday’s Gospel (Mk 1:14-20), Jesus invites the people to recognize the fulfillment of God’s kingdom in their midst when he says, “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” The message of repentance and call to faith, at the heart of the preaching of St. John the Baptist, echoes across the New Testament.

And then as Jesus walks by the Sea of Galilee, he touches the hearts and minds of Peter and Andrew, James and John. Jesus encounters them and calls them personally to discipleship with a direct, loving invitation to “come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” St. Mark simply tells us that the disciples abandoned their nets to follow Jesus. As we hear God’s word today, the same divine call to discipleship and service is addressed to you and me. We may respond with reluctance, disbelief or indifference. Or we can respond with humble gratitude for God’s call and offer, in trust, our “yes” to God, in imitation of Mary.

Praising God purifies the soul, is like breathing ‘pure oxygen,’ pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) — It may seem illogical, but Christians are called to give God praise — not complaints — in times of darkness and difficulty, Pope Francis said. Jesus and the saints “show us that we can always give praise, in good times and bad, because God is the faithful friend — this is the foundation of praise, he is the faithful friend and his love never fails. He is always by our side; he always waits for us,” the pope said Jan. 13

during his weekly general audience. This is why, he said, “praising God is like breathing in pure oxygen. It purifies the soul, it helps you look at the horizon” and not see oneself as imprisoned or trapped in the current moment. Livestreamed from the library of the Apostolic Palace, the pope continued his series of talks on prayer, reflecting on the prayer of praise. He reflected on the time in Jesus’ early ministry when his great works

and miracles were still met with unbelief: St. John the Baptist, who had been imprisoned, was unsure whether Jesus was truly the Messiah; some towns remained unrepentant; and the wise and learned had rejected his preaching. According to St. Matthew, “Jesus does not lift up a lament to the Father, but rather a hymn of jubilation” and praise during this time of crisis and disappointment, he said.

COLUMNISTS

JANUARY 22, 2021 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Enflame: A wake-up call to remember our true calling

eadquartered in Rome, we are each entrusted with marketing and representing our branch of arguably the oldest institution in the world, the Catholic Church. We are humbled that our founder is an active CEO from heaven. Our Lord has high expectations and is not especially fond of being misrepresented. Beauty, creativity, spiritual power and freedom, hope, trust, benevolence and goodness are some of his key values. His well-defined target market is the poor in spirit, meek, downtrodden, humble, widow, orphan and those on the peripheries. He offers personal customer service to all who ask and even offers

SEEKING CHRIST’S HEART

DEACON DANA NEARMYER Deacon Dana Nearmyer is the director of evangelization for the archdiocese.

his Mother, Father and all of the saints to listen and intercede for us. We are an organization founded by the “Great Physician”; our world is wounded and hurting.

We “market” our church and Our Lord in our attitudes, disposition, behavior and treatment of our spouses, family, friends, co-workers and those on the peripheries. The Enflame: Our Hearts, Homes and Communities initiative is a wake-up call to each of us to contemplate life’s final exam questions. God asks

two questions early in Scripture. To Adam and Eve, God asks, “Where are you?” and to Cain, “Where is your brother?” These are the profound existential questions that reveal God’s priorities for our lives. They are connected to “the final exam” we will be given at the end of our life. In Chapter 25 of the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus told us what was going to be on the final! The ultimate question on God’s exam is not a memorized response to a multiple choice question, but a reflection on the profundity of our relationship with Jesus: “Were you close enough to me such that our relationship made a palpable

difference in your behavior?” As Catholics, we serve to witness to the daily reminder of the existence of this final exam and the priority that God places on our answer. The Enflame initiative aspires to motivate each of us to be more authentic to our true calling as beloved sons and daughters of our loving Father. When we “Pray, Care and Share” for our “3, 12, 72 and Crowds,” we will Enflame: Our Hearts, Homes and Communities, and we daily answer the final exam questions well. Individuals can go to the Enflame website at: archkcks.org and click “where to start.” We will be offering small group training both

online and in-person this spring. Parishes can use our “Convocation in a Box’’ tool to put on their own training or they can schedule one with us. Camp Tekakwitha has been forming young people to “Pray, Care and Share” for several summers, and we have seen great fruit in that final exam preparation. We are optimistic about offering camp this summer. Parish gatherings and diocesan retreats will slowly be coming back over the coming months, but this is not a time for complacency or procrastination. The Catholic Church is needed now. Go to the Enflame website — archkcks.org — and click “where to start.”

Trust: It’s become my word of the year for 2021

or a few years now, my daughter and I have been choosing a “word of the year” to inspire and guide our actions. After prayer and reflection, it became clear that my 2021 word needed to be “Trust.” Just a few weeks into 2021, I can already see why. As we look at 2020 through a pro-life lens, there are clear highs and lows. We witnessed our country take unprecedented measures to protect and save lives from COVID-19. The collective protection and concern for our elderly and most vulnerable are incredible pro-life efforts! In addition, national conversations and

LIFE MATTERS

DEBRA NIESEN Debra Niesen is the archdiocesan consultant for the pro-life office.

demonstrations on racism and social justice elevated awareness of the dignity of the human person and the evil of violence. In spite of this good, we saw increased isolation, suicides and violence. And, the

destruction of unborn lives raged on, and possibly increased. Abortion providers were deemed “essential” to end life, not protect it. The abortion industry continued its attack on the dignity of women’s lives by misleading or coercing them into thinking abortion was not only their only choice, but the responsible thing to do in

times like these. Seventy-three percent of post-abortive women say they felt pressured — from a person, the abortion provider or a situation — to abort their child. This year too many women suffered the trauma of an at-home chemical abortion alone, and, if they don’t know about God’s mercy, may suffer a lifetime of pain. As people of life, we see the hypocrisy that many refuse to see — taking extreme actions to elevate and save some lives, while tolerating or ignoring the destruction of others. We mourn the over 375,000 lives lost to COVID-19 and the loss of over 1,000,000 preborn Americans. Further, we prepare

for the consequences of electing the most pro-abortion administration in our history. This reality can lead to despair if we let it. Instead, we have an opportunity to trust. We trust that these trying and confusing times are part of God’s much greater plan. We know that God can and will bring good out of difficult situations; we simply need to trust and be open to his divine plan. So we continue on. We will pray and stand for the legal protection of unborn children and the healing of all who have been affected by abortion. We will pass the Kansas “Value Them Both” amendment. We will walk with mothers in need to show that a

child never has to die to solve a problem. The Holy Family provides us with the ultimate example of trust, and the ultimate pro-life story. Faced with an “unplanned pregnancy,” Mary no doubt was overwhelmed and frightened. Yet she said “yes.” Then, she went in haste to support another expectant mother, Elizabeth. Joseph also faced a difficult situation in learning his betrothed was pregnant. He trusted the message of an angel and stayed to protect his wife and become the foster father of Jesus. Their trust resulted in the greatest blessing to the world.

SCRIPTURE

JANUARY 22, 2O21 | THELEAVEN.ORG

Words of the Hebrew prophets still ring true today

By Catherine Upchurch Special to The Leaven

here is sometimes a tendency to equate the kingdom of God with a particular nation or religious institution, as if any such society could embody the reign of God completely. While it is true that we are called to participate in building the kingdom of God in this world and to reflect God’s sovereignty in our lives, no nation, sy n a go g u e or church is equivalent to God’s kingdom. And yet, EMBRACING THE from various passages of Scripture, sometimes OF taken out of context, we might understand the confusion. One such example can be found in how Israel came to understand (and sometimes misunderstand) itself and its relationship to God. God’s words to the Hebrews after being liberated from Egyptian slavery must have sounded too good to be true: “If you obey me completely and keep my covenant, you will be my treasured possession among all peoples, though all the earth is mine. You will be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation” (Ex 19: 5-6). A ragged group of hungry people wandering in the desert does not sound like the basis of a nation, holy or otherwise. And yet, they soon settled in Canaan, set up shrines to God and divided the land among their tribes. It was not long before the tribal federation became a monarchy, a point of dismay for those who felt they were abandoning their reliance on God (Jgs 8; 1 Sm 7:3 – 8:22; 10: 17-27; 12), and a fulfilled hope for those who believed Israel’s monarchy exemplified God’s rule (1 Sm 9: 15; 10:8; 11; 2 Sm 7: 8-16). King David (1000-962 B.C.) embodied for Israel the very reign of God in their midst — not because of his own moral perfection for he was far from sinless, but because of God’s promise to him, and through him, to his people (See 1 Chr 17 and 2 Sm 7). Psalm 89 captures this intimacy beautifully: “I have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: I will make your dynasty to stand forever and establish your throne through all ages.” However, a united Israel lasted less than a century, and as superpowers of the region conquered the northern kingdom, and then the southern kingdom, God’s people surely struggled. How were they to understand God’s

KINGDOM GOD

King David (1000-962 B.C.) embodied for Israel the very reign of God in their midst — not because of his own moral perfection, but because of God’s promise to him. promise when the Davidic dynasty was in ruins and the kingdom that was Israel, and then Judah, had all but collapsed? Far from abandoning his promise, God was fine tuning what the people understood. The Hebrew prophets ministered to God’s people during the monarchy, after its demise when Israel and Judah were in exile, and upon the return of a remnant from exile. Their role was to speak for God — to offer an honest assessment and condemnation of the people’s sinfulness and their leaders’ corruption, and to

issue a call to return to God’s covenant love. Their words are as meaningful today as they were centuries ago. The prophets dared to speak about justice for the oppressed; they described worship that was singularly focused on the God who creates and liberates. The prophets made it clear that God would not be confined by preconceived ideas of who is in and who is out, and could not be expected to prop up their corrupt political system. When Jesus appeared on the scene, many in Judah assumed if he was God’s anointed, he would restore the throne of David in a literal way. He would clear

the land of Roman armies and political figureheads or rebuild the temple in all its grandeur, or both. None of this happened — but the kingdom of God was, and is, nonetheless real. God’s kingdom grows with each act of mercy, every attempt to obliterate poverty and hatred, and in all efforts to recognize human dignity. Catherine Upchurch, the general editor of the Little Rock Catholic Study Bible, writes from Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Officials In the kingdom of God there are no elected officials or inherited titles. There are, however, numerous ambassadors, all commissioned by our baptisms to spread the good news in a world sorely in need of it. We preach (in word and deed) a kingdom that reflects God’s mercy, justice and faithful love.

Questions for reflection or discussion: 1. In your experience, what are some of the reasons that human institutions, even those that are truly engaged in good works, fall short of embodying the kingdom of God? 2. Micah 6:6-8. spells out the dangers of assuming religious language and rituals can save us. How can our religious life be enriched and become more meaningful? 3. Jesus fulfills God’s promise to King David and to Israel in unexpected ways. How does his life and ministry illustrate that God has not abandoned his ancient promises? 4. What steps will you take to better experience God’s sovereignty in your life? What tools does the church provide to help us continue to grow as a citizen and ambassador of God’s kingdom?

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7455 Mission Rd Prairie Village, KS 66208 catherine@reecenichols.com cell: 913.221.2419 office: 913.262.7755 CatherineThornton.ReeceNichols.com