South Texas Catholic - July 2012

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“When freedom does not have a purpose, when it does not wish to know anything about the rule of law engraved in the hearts of men and women, when it does not listen to the voice of conscience, it turns against humanity and society.� -Blessed John Paul II

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Call to Action From South Texas to Washington

ACTION: Diocese of

Corpus Christi

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops offers the following clarifications regarding the Health and Human Services regulations on mandatory coverage of contraceptives, sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs: 1. It does not exempt Catholic charities, schools, universities, or hospitals. HHS does not deem them “religious employers” because they do not “serve primarily persons who share their religious tenets.” HHS denies them religious freedom because their purpose is to serve the common good -a purpose government should encourage. 2. It forces these institutions and others to pay for things they consider immoral. Under the mandate, the government forces religious insurers, religious employers and schools and religious employees and students to write, provide and purchase insurance coverage that violates their beliefs. 3. It forces coverage of sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs as well as contraception. HHS’s mandate also forces employers to sponsor and subsidize coverage of sterilization. And by including all contraceptive drugs, the HHS mandate includes drugs that can induce abortion, such as “Ella,” a close cousin of the abortion pill RU-486. 4. Catholics of all political persuasions are unified in their opposition to the mandate. Catholics who have long supported this administration and its policies have publicly criticized HHS’s decision, including college presidents Father John Jenkins and Arturo Chavez; and Sister Carol Keehan, president and CEO of the Catholic Health Association. 5. Many other religious and secular groups have spoken out against HHS. Many recognize this as an assault on religious liberty, even if they disagree with the underlying moral question. Protestant and, Orthodox Christian and Orthodox Jewish groups -none of which oppose contraception - are against the HHS’s decision. The Washington Post, USA Today, N.Y Daily News and other secular outlets have editorialized against it. ‘ 6. The federal mandate is much stricter than existing state mandates. Even without an exemption, religious employers now can avoid contraceptive mandates in 28 states by self-insuring their drug coverage, dropping that coverage, or opting for regulation under a pre-emptive federal law. This mandate closes off these avenues of relief.

Make your voice heard | Contact your representatives President Barack Obama

Mail: 517 Hart Senate Office Bldg. Washington D.C. 20510 Phone: (972) 239-1310 or (202) 224-2934 Website: www.cornyn.senate.gov

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison

Rep. Blake Farenthold

Mail: 284 Russell Senate Office Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: (214) 361-3500 or (202) 224-5922 Website: www.hutchison.senate.gov

27th District: Nueces, Kleberg, Kenedy

Rep. Ron Paul

Rep. Ruben Hinojosa

14th District: Aransas

15th District: Bee, Brooks, Duval, Jim Wells, Live Oak, Refugio, San Patricio

Mail: 2203 Cannon House Office Bldg. Washington, DC 20515 Phone Number: (202) 225-2831 Website: www.paul.house.gov

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Sen. John Cornyn

Mail: The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20500 Phone: (202) 225-3484 Website: www.whitehouse.gov

SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

Mail: 2110 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-7742 Website: www.farenthold.house.gov

Mail: 2262 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515 Phone: (202) 225-2531 Website: www.hinojosa.house.gov

Contact your U.S. Representative by e-mail, phone, or FAX letter: • Call the U.S. Capitol switchboard at: (202) 224-3121, or call your Members’ local offices. • Send an e-mail through NCHLA’s Grassroots Action Center at www.nchla.org • Additional contact info can be found on Members’ web sites at: house.gov and senate.gov.

MESSAGE: “Please co-sponsor the Respect for Rights of Conscience Act (H.R. 1179, s. 1467) and help enact it into law. The Obama administration’s decision to mandate coverage of sterilization and contraceptives, including drugs that can cause an abortion, makes passage of this measure especially urgent. Please ensure that the rights of conscience of all participants in our nation’s health care system are respected.”

WHEN: Now is the time to build co-sponsors and support. Please act today!

Our Lady of Guadalupe Patroness of the Americas

Pray for Us O God our Creator, from your provident hand we have received our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You have called us as your people and given us the right and the duty to worship you, the only true God, and your Son, Jesus Christ. Th rough the power and working of your Holy Spirit, you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world, bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel to every corner of society. We ask you to bless us in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty. Give us the strength of mind and heart to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened; give us courage in making our voices heard on behalf of the rights of your Church and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith. Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father, a clear and united voice to all your sons and daughters gathered in your Church in this decisive hour in the history of our nation, so that, with every trial withstood and every danger overcome— for the sake of our children, our grandchildren, and all who come after us— this great land will always be “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

ON THE

VOL. 47 NO. 7 Publisher Most Rev. Wm. Michael Mulvey, STL DD

COVER

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Corpus Christi Cathedral hosted Mass, prayers and reflection on Fortnight for Freedom (Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic)

Editor Alfredo E. Cárdenas ACardenas@diocesecc.org Theological Consultant Father Joseph Lopez JCL JLopez@diocesecc.org Associate Editor Mary E. Cottingham MCottingham@diocesecc.org Administrative Assistant Adel Rivera ARivera@diocesecc.org Correspondents Geraldine McGloin, Liz Riggle, Julissa Hernandez, Adrian Garcia, Timothy Hatch

If you or someone you know would like to receive the South Texas Catholic call us at (361) 882-6191 Office Address: 620 Lipan Corpus Christi TX 78401-2434 E-MAIL: stc@diocesecc.org www.southtexascatholic.com FAX: (361) 693-6701

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Calendar Items

Pastor at Ss. Cyril & Methodius for 21 years and counting

Submit your announcements by using our online form, e-mail, fax, mail, or drop it off at the Chancery office. Only announcements for the month of publication will be included in the print edition, if space permits. All other calendar items will appear on the magazine or diocese Web sites.

Letters Welcome Letters to the editor are encouraged and welcome. In accordance with the Fair Practices Code of the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada. Letters to the Editor should express opinions that further the common good, build community, focus on issues and avoid attacks against people. All letters must be signed by the writer and include a telephone number for verification. Letters are subject to editing. Publication of letters does not imply endorsement by the South Texas Catholic. Send letters to: Letters to the Editor, South Texas Catholic, P.O. Box 2620, Corpus Christi, TX 78403-2620. E-mail to stc@diocesecc. org or fax letters to (361) 693-6701. The South Texas Catholic is not liable or in any way responsible for the content of any advertisement appearing within these pages. All claims, offers guarantees, statements, etc. made by advertisers are solely the responsibility of the advertiser. Deceptive or misleading advertising is never knowingly accepted. Complaints regarding advertising should be made directly to the advertiser or to the Better Business Bureau. (USPSN 540-860) Published monthly by the Diocese of Corpus Christi for $25 per year. Periodical postage paid in Corpus Christi Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to South Texas Catholic 620 Lipan, Corpus Christi TX 78401-2434.

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Msgr. Lawrence White emphasizes y community

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Time of challenge Growth, depression, war

KLUX personality Pinedo will appear on EWTN

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Sister Mary Monica

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Scarred by war

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STC to miss issue

Dies peacefully at 81

Veteran looks forward to ‘meeting Jesus’

Will combine publication dates for August-September

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Religious Liberty

30

New Evangelization

32

Mass confusion

36

Bishop Mulvey

43

For Greater Glory

On bishops’ agenda

Church must use new media

Root of ‘liturgy wars’

Federal government has no place in defining religion

Testament to faith and religious freedom

JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Growth, depression and clouds of war By Msgr. Michael Howell

T Contributor

he 1920s was a time of challenge for Bishop Emmanuel B. Ledvina, the new young shepherd of the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

There was the challenge of rapid growth in the Catholic population of south Texas and the need for more churches and other facilities, met partly by the generous aid of the Extension Society. It was also a time of challenge with the rebirth of the Ku Klux Klan and their strong anti-Catholic bigotry. Crosses were burned in front of Catholic churches and convents. Local Catholics in Corpus Christi, such as Maxwell P. Dunne, took turns serving as night security at Incarnate Word Convent in a time that was often hostile to the Catholic Church throughout the United States. In Corpus Christi, tension erupted into violence on Oct. 14, 1922 when the local sheriff and one of his deputies shot and killed an influential real estate dealer named Fred Roberts, a Klan sympathizer. Nueces County Sheriff Frank Robinson, a Catholic, had a run-in with local merchant G. E. Warren, who was accused of membership in the Klan. Warren’s wife called Roberts to report the matter after Corpus Christi Police Chief Monroe Fox refused to act because he saw no criminal activity on the part of the sheriff. In the encounter that followed at Warren’s store, Robinson and his deputy Joe Acebo shot Roberts. Texas Ranger Frank Hamer, sent by the governor to bring order, arrested Robinson and Acebo. Both were tried and found not guilty. Robinson, supposedly fearing Klan retaliation, went into exile in Mexico for the next decade and then lived in Laredo until his death. Roberts was buried, with some Klan members present in full regalia, and his associates later built and named in his honor the Fred Roberts Memorial Hospital. New persecutions of the Church also broke out in neighboring Mexico with the election of President Plutarco Calles in 1924. He stringently enforced anti-clerical articles in the Mexican Constitution of 1917 and added more retaliatory

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laws. This led to the licensing of priests, the expropriation of churches and church property, the deportation of bishops and the killing of hundreds of priests and other clerics as reflected in the Graham Greene novel, “The Power and the Glory” and the newly released motion picture “For Greater Glory, the True Story of Cristiada.” One of these martyred priests was Father Miguel Pro, who was executed on Nov. 23, 1927, at the age of 36. Father Pro, who reportedly had relatives in the Diocese of Corpus Christi, was beatified by Blessed John Paul II on Sept. 25, 1988. This period also saw the arrival of the Franciscans in Hebbronville after months of attempts to find refuge in San Antonio and El Paso. Bishop Ledvina received the friars, gave them charge of the parish and allowed them to set-up their seminary in exile, which was closed in 1957 as the situation in Mexico improved. These persecutions continued into the 1930s and gave way to another influx of clergy and Mexican Catholics seeking religious freedom and escape from the violence. The 1930s also saw the beginning of the Great Depression as economic troubles threatened the whole world and demanded a greater sense of solidarity and sharing if families were to make it through difficult times. Economic troubles in Germany, struggling under restitution burdens placed upon it after World War I, also opened the door to the rise of Hitler and Nazism as a response to what was seen by the Germans as exorbitant, crushing debt. The Diocese of Corpus Christi nevertheless continued to grow in numbers and need for more facilities, clergy to staff parishes and religious to meet expanding health and educational needs. Using about $10,000 collected by Bishop Paul Nussbaum for the education of future priests, Bishop Ledvina made special efforts to fund vocations and cover much of the costs for his clerical students. As a result, by the end of 1938 the diocese had 43 diocesan priests and 11 young men studying for the priesthood. Bishop Ledvina made it his practice to use any offerings given him on his Confirmation tours in the contributing www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

In 1938, a fire broke out in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, badly damaging the church and provided the incentive to plans for a new cathedral. Archived Photo

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JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Bishop Mariano S. Garriga as a young priest assisted the newly consecrated first bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi Paul Nussbaum celebrate his first Mass in Texas in the chapel of Santa Rosa Infirmary (now Christus Santa Rosa of San Antonio) after arriving in Texas on June 7, 1913. Archived Photo

parish, either to improve the conditions of the church or the living quarters of his priests. Faced with mounting debt, the Mother House of the Incarnate Word in Brownsville asked to be amalgamated with the community in Corpus Christi. Despite their own limited finances at the time, the community in Corpus Christi approved the merger in 1931, with one of the older sisters noting that it was only right that the “cradle of the Order in Texas” be given the necessary help to remain in existence. In some convents, Bishop Ledvina found sisters sleeping on army cots set on brick floors. In one convent he found the kitchen 75-feet from the main convent, with food cooked in old-fashioned chimney and placed over logs of wood. It was also a time of strengthening lay spirituality through special lay retreat organizations and large public processions for the Feast of Corpus Christi. The first two-day retreat organized by the Layman’s Retreat Association of Corpus Christi was held in 1936 at the Corpus Christi College Academy with noted missionary Father Boniface Spanke; it was attended by about 50 local Catholic men. The second annual retreat in 1937 drew more than 100 from the region. More than 1,000 persons participated in the solemn procession at the Academy held in 1938 for the Feast of Corpus Christi. By the mid-1930s, the bishop—who had worked tirelessly for some 15 years—was approaching 70. With such a large harvest field to cover, it was clear he needed some help. In 1936, the Centennial Year of Texas, Mariano Simon Garriga was made Coadjutor Bishop of Corpus Christi, a position he held for the next 13 years until Bishop Ledvina retired in 1949. Born in the diocese when it was the Vicariate of Brownsville, he was the first native Texan chosen as a bishop in the state. Bishop Garriga, though born in Port Isabel, finished his grade courses under the direction of the Sisters of the Incar-

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nate Word at St. John’s Orphanage in San Antonio. He attended St. Marys College in St. Marys, Kansas, and desiring to discern a priestly call he then studied at St. Francis Seminary in Wisconsin. He was ordained to the priesthood on July 2, 1911 in Incarnate Word Convent Chapel, San Antonio, and said his first Mass in the same chapel the following morning. As a young priest, he assisted the newly consecrated first bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi Paul Nussbaum when the bishop celebrated his first Mass in Texas in the chapel of Santa Rosa Infirmary (now Christus Santa Rosa of San Antonio) after arriving in Texas on June 7, 1913. In 1915, Father Garriga assisted in founding St. John’s Minor Seminary in San Antonio and the following year was made Chaplain of the Fourth Texas Infantry and later the 144th Infantry of the 36th Division, with which he served during its engagement in France during World War I. Within weeks after his consecration in 1936 and arrival in Corpus Christi as the new coadjutor with right to succession, Bishop Garriga went on his confirmation tour and parochial visitations, consuming over a year in visiting practically all the parishes of the diocese. These were busy years of growth. From 1920 to 1938 the Catholic population grew from about 125,000 to 145,000. The number of priests increased from 46 to 111, the number of churches from 31 to 57 and the number of schools from 26 to 40. While Bishop Ledvina presided from the east in Corpus Christi, for much of this period Bishop Garriga presided from the west in Laredo so that the two could be close to most of the parishes of the diocese as they shared responsibilities. A diocesan tragedy closed-out the last years of the 1930s and hastened the building of a new cathedral. On Nov. 28, 1938, a fire broke out in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the wooden structure built by Charles Carroll in 1880. It left the church badly damaged and gave incentive to plans for a new cathedral. Parish groups throughout the diocese participated in raising funds for the new mother church of the diocese. As a site for the new church, the John Kenedy family offered their property on the northwest corner of Broadway and Lipan where their city home then stood. Msgr. John Lannon, rector of the cathedral for almost 30 years, was active in the building process. The church damaged by the fire was moved to the south side of Lipan Street where it was used by the parish and school until it was taken down and used to start the present church of Our Lady of Pilar in the Molina district of Corpus Christi. Soon, the world was plunged into a much greater tragedy with the eruption of World War II. While most of the destruction of property was overseas rather than in the United States, American families, including those in the Diocese of Corpus Christi, suffered from the loss of life as many young men and women went off to support the war effort. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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Tour the Vatican including an audience (subject to his schedule) with Pope Benedict XVI! Tour Rome’s religious highlights including St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel. See ancient Rome, the Colosseum, Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, Basilica Santa Maria Maggiore and more! Fly to Lisbon, Portugal; visit Lady of Fatima Church, celebrate private Masses at the Basilica of Fatima and Apariciones Chapel of Fatima; and tour the Batalha monastery. Travel to Salamanca, Spain; visit the Old Cathedral and New Cathedral; overnight in Valladolid, Spain. Visit Lourdes, France; celebrate Mass at the Grotto of Lourdes. Take the high-speed train to Paris for two nights. Wednesday’s Paris highlight includes The Shrine of the Miraculous Medal with Mass at the Chapel of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal. Thursday’s highlights include a full-day tour of Paris visiting the Louvre Museum, Eiffel Tower, Basilica of the Sacred Heart and more! This is Fr. Tom’s second time as chaplain on this same Pilgrimage (he went Sept. 12, 2011) He liked it so much - he’s going back! Includes 8 masses; 10 Breakfasts & 10 Dinners. *Price per person, double occupancy, taxes included. Add only $700 for private room with no roommate. Airfare is extra. For details, itinerary, reservations & letter from YMT’s chaplain with his phone number call 7 days a week:

1-800-736-7300 www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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KLUX personality to ap By Geraldine McGloin

W Contributor

hen she was 12-years-old Gaby Pinedo asked Jesus to become her best friend.

At the time she was attending a Catholic charismatic renewal prayer meeting with her family in their hometown of Mexico City. From that time forward Pinedo has been engaged in some form of evangelization and prayer. Her friendship with Jesus blossomed through the years and today she is a panel member on one of KLUX radio’s more popular programs and in August she will be a guest on the EWTN program “The Choices We Face.� In 1979, her family moved to the United States to become part of a covenant movement in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended the University of Michigan and was active in a Christian outreach program for students. It was there that she met Chris Pinedo, her future husband. After graduating with a degree in bi-lingual education she remained with the covenant program as a dedicated single person until making a decision to marry. The young bride and groom traveled to her native home in order to have a traditional Mexican wedding. The marriage has been blessed with four sons, now ages 15 to 23. After Chris Pinedo graduated from law school in 1987, the family moved to Corpus Christi where he practices law, specializing in product liability. Gaby Pinedo settled into the Corpus Christi lifestyle and became a member of St. Philip the Apostle Parish.

Her commitment to evangelization remained as strong as ever. She joined a study group at the parish. Over time, the focus of the group changed, so Pinedo along with several of the Hispanic women decided to begin a weekly prayer group in Spanish. Now called the Spanish Women’s Prayer Group, they have been together for 10 years with Pinedo acting as facilitator. The women quickly formed close relationships, participating in significant moments in each other’s lives, sharing baptisms, weddings and confirmations. Two years ago Pinedo became a panelist on Con Permiso, a Spanish language program on KLUX radio. The program is designed to deal with issues of both family and community, from a Catholic perspective. Con Permiso includes the perspective of the laity; it is unique in this respect because clergy does most programming produced by KLUX. The program seeks to inform the listeners of what is happening in the Catholic Church; what is new at the Vatican; and how Catholicism aects their daily lives. “We want to catechize the listeners, especially the unchurched and nominal Catholics. It is another form of evangelism for the Church, one that hopes to help form people. Recently we have presented programs on the Scriptures, the Magisterium and other basic topics from the Catechism,â€? Pinedo said. Javier Colmenero serves as the program’s host with Father Henry Artunduaga, Administrator of Nuestra SeĂąora de Juan de los Lagos, Madre de la Iglesia; Gloria Romero, a longtime radio and TV personality; and Pinedo as pan-

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ppear on EWTN “The Choices We Face” to air on EWTN, Aug. 7 & 10 Gabriela (Gaby) Pinedo, panel member of KLUX’s Con Permiso will appear on EWTN ‘s “The Choices We Face” which will air Tuesday, Aug. 7 at 5 p.m. local time and on Friday, Aug. 10 at 5:30 p.m. local time. The broadcast will air once again in February of 2013. Geraldine McGloin for South Texas Catholic

elists. Con Permiso currently airs on Sundays at 7:30 a.m. Rounding out her evangelization activities, Pinedo participates in a program at Most Precious Blood Parish called Women of the Word whose “mission is to share personal experiences and biblical based teachings…” She finds the meetings “very powerful” in terms of healing and inspiration. “These women and the love of Jesus that they show inspire me,” Pinedo said. “I think the Holy Spirit is moving to use women in a new way today, the way that Pope John Paul II wrote about in his letter to women regarding www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

the dignity of women and the fact that their femininity is a gift from God.” On Tuesday, Aug. 7, at 5 p.m. and on Friday, Aug. 10 at 5:30 p.m., Pinedo will be a guest on EWTN’s “The Choices We Face.” Each week, host Ralph Martin “proclaims the basic truths of Christianity [and] urges repentance and faithfulness to scripture…” In her episode, entitled “Let the Lord Speak to You,” Pinedo shares her walk with Christ, her role as a wife and mother and her heart for evangelizing and being a disciple for women. JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Ss. Cyril y & Methodius

Construction begins The parish of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church in Violet plans to begin construction of an expansion to the current Parish cemetery in the fall of this year. Burial plots will be offered for purchase by all members of the Diocese. St. Anthony’s Cemetery is located adjacent to St. Anthony’s Catholic Church at the intersection of County Rd. 61 and State Highway 44 between McKenzie & Violet Roads.

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Sister Mary Monica de la Rosa

dies peacefully at 81

S

ister Mary Monica de la Rosa, IWBS, 81, died peacefully at Incarnate Word Convent on Saturday, June 16, following a lengthy illness. Loving family members and IWBS sisters surrounded her at the time of her death. Sister Mary Monica was born Maria Gloria de la Rosa on Sept. 23, 1930, in Brownsville, Texas to Tomas and Petra Castillo de la Rosa. She was baptized at Immaculate Conception Church in Brownsville and was confirmed at Sacred Heart Church in Corpus Christi by Bishop Emmanuel B. Ledvina, D.D. A greater part of Maria Gloria’s education took place in Corpus Christi, where she graduated from eighth grade at Sacred Heart School and received her high school diploma from Incarnate Word Academy. On Sept. 2, 1950, she entered Incarnate Word Convent in Corpus Christi, and at the beginning of her canonical novitiate year she assumed the name Sister Mary Monica. She made her first profession of vows on April 19, 1952, and professed perpetual vows on June 4, 1955. Sister Mary Monica received her Bachelor of Science degree from Texas A&I University in Kingsville, Texas. She worked toward a master’s degree as a reading specialist at Texas A&I and also studied at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi and at St. Edward’s University in Austin. Sister Mary Monica’s years of ministry include teaching at Santa Rosa de Lima in Benavides, Our Lady of Victory in Beeville, Corpus Christi Cathedral and Sacred Heart in Corpus Christi and St. Francis in Brownsville. Every year she taught her young students dances for Mexican fiestas. She spent many years instructing children in religious education in Corpus Christi, Beeville, Goliad, Edroy, Odem, Tynan, Benavides, Skidmore and Pettus. Sister Mary Monica was involved in family ministry and was a devout member of the Cursillistas. She also served on the Congregation’s Apostolate Commission. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Sister Mary Monica de la Rosa, IWBS 9/21/1930 - 6/16/2012 In recent years, during her serious health condition, ministry included prayer and the offering of her suffering for the good of her family, her IWBS sisters, the Church and the world and for those who have died. On May 12, Sister Mary Monica was honored at Incarnate Word Convent in commemoration of her 60th anniversary of religious profession, with many IWBS sisters, family members and friends in attendance. Listening to music, dancing, fishing, cooking, painting, needlework and other activities relating to the arts were among Sister Mary Monica’s favorite hobbies and pastimes. She enjoyed visiting with community members, her family and friends. Her loving sister Veronica Herrera, her brother-in-law, Ruben Sais and many devoted nephews and nieces survive Sister Mary Monica. Among those preceding her in death were her parents Tomas and Petra de la Rosa and her sisters Alva de la Rosa and Guadalupe Sais. A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at Incarnate Word Convent in Corpus Christi on Wednesday, June 20. Burial followed at Rose Hill Cemetery in Corpus Christi.

JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Bob McGovern and Queen Gwendolyn the Great are “best friends” and “adore each other.” Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

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www.SouthTexasCatholic.com www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Scarred by war, homeless and dying of cancer, veteran looks forward to ‘meeting Jesus’ By Mary Cottingham South Texas Catholic

Bob McGovern has liver cancer and the prognosis is not good. He and his cat, Queen Gwendolyn the Great, are often seen at the Mother Teresa Day Shelter these days. McGovern utilizes the services offered and enjoys visits with the staff and clients. No stranger to the shelter, McGovern had been homeless before and had frequented the Mother Teresa Shelter years back. However, he was able to get back on his feet and go back to work. In February he lost his home to a fire. He suffered severe burns and spent several months recovering in San Antonio at the Brooke Army Medical Center only to come back to Corpus Christi and the Mother Teresa Shelter once again. At the age of 58, McGovern has the look of a survivor. His weathered face is like a road map telling all the places he has been. He is dressed very practically for one whose shelter is outdoors: white socks, tennis shoes, camouflaged t-shirt, green shorts, small pins of the American flag and an angel are attached to a well-shaped straw hat. He and his cat wear matching necklaces, both made of white beads and turquoise with a sharks tooth attached. His hair is gray and pulled back in a ponytail and he wears another sharks tooth in his left ear. “Queen Gwendolyn the Great is my best friend, I provide food, shelter and love and she sleeps with me…we adore each other. She is my anger management service,” he said of the rescued gray cat. About two weeks ago, McGovern spoke to a priest. He wanted to receive the sacraments before his life comes to an end. The priest spoke with Vicar General Msgr. Louis Kihneman III, who put McGovern in touch with the seminarians temporarily assigned to the Mother Teresa Shelter. Seminarians Richard Gutierrez, Abran Leal and Charles Silvas are providing an RCIA class specifically designed for McGovern. An Irish Catholic, McGovern is the eldest of eight. His www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Msgr. McGowan and Betty Berry welcome Bob McGovern into the Church after his Baptism at St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles. Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

father, a strong disciplinarian and a career marine moved the family from one duty station to the next. As a result, McGovern was never baptized. McGovern exudes hope and gives spiritual advice wherever he goes. He tells the seminarians the short version of his life. How he followed in his father’s footsteps, joined the Marines and went to Vietnam. He served as a gunner for choppers during the Vietnam War. During the war he saved many American lives and killed the enemy. When he got out of the military he tried to drink away his guilt. “About eight years after I came back from the war I realized that if God could forgive me, I could forgive myself. JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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So I quit drinking the hard stuff, like whiskey and vodka,” he said. Having been completely sober now for about three years, he was told if he ate right and quit drinking he could avoid the kind of death—cirrhosis of the liver—that had taken his father. That was before he received his latest diagnosis. “I’m prepared. Dying is not something to be afraid of. I had a great life and God has always been with me. I was shot down in Vietnam and I should have died seven times over. I have always had Jesus to lean on or hold my hand. I’m looking forward to meeting my Savior face to face,” McGovern said. On the day they met McGovern, the seminarians were given another assignment: to spruce up the little chapel at Catholic Charities. McGovern, who has 30 years expersence in construction, agreed to help the seminarians with the chapel. “God has a message, Catholic Charities has a chapel, we have a chance to fix it up and we have Robert who has all this experience in construction,” Gutierrez said.

“We’re going to be teaching you, but you’re the one teaching us,” Silvas said to McGovern. “As a person who is aspiring to be a priest, it’s very encouraging, it gives me hope. He has this insight of what God would want for everybody. His looking forward to Heaven and that intimacy with Christ is what we should all be aspiring to at every age and he has it. When his time comes he will have left his mark on the world,” Leal said. “He told me that attitude is the only thing he can control. I can’t imagine going to the shelter, getting a house, having it burned down, only to go back to the shelter again. He definitely has taught me so much. He has such a positive attitude,” Gutierrez said. “When I look into his face,” Gutierrez said, “I see the face of Jesus.” McGovern chose St. Francis of Assisi as his patron saint for his confirmation. He received the sacraments on June 20 at St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles.

“His looking forward to Heaven and that intimacy with Christ is what we should all be aspiring to at every age and he has it.”

Seminarians, from left, Abran Leal, Charles Silvas and Richard Gutierrez provided RCIA classes for McGovern, holding his cat Queen Gwendolyn the Great. McGovern gives the seminairans tips on easy ways to spruce up the chapel at Catholic Charities. Betty Berry is sponsoring McGovern as he receives the sacraments.

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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celebrates 100 years

Adapting to change, overcoming adversity By Alfredo E. Cardenas South Texas Catholic

been at the center of this parish for 100 years. Come and If there is one thing all students of history agree about listen to the word of God, not as usual but as God speaking Ss. Cyril & Methodius Parish in Corpus Christi is that it to us. The words of God are an invitation to enter into a can adapt to change. In its 100-plus year history it has life with Him,” Bishop Mulvey said. gone from being a parish founded for German farmers, to The faith community that became Ss. Cyril & serving the Bohemian or Czech community, to today being Methodius in 1939 predominantly a began to show signs community whose of life in 1904 when ancestry is MexiBishop Peter Verdacan. guer asked Father F. “In my 21 years J. Goebbels to take as pastor, I have charge of the growing placed great emGerman community phasis on building in and around Cora vibrant parish pus Christi. Father community based Goebbels gathered on the communithe people, mostly ties of the early farmers, and they acChurch,” Msgr. tivated the church Lawrence White they called St. Bonisaid on Trinity face, after the English Sunday as the parbishop who is known ish played host as the patron of Gerto Bishop Wm. Our Lady of Guadalupe is the center of spirituality at Ss. Cyril & Methodius Parish. many. Michael Mulvey Alfredo Cardenas, South Texas Catholic After a two-year who joined them fund-raising drive led to celebrate their by Father Goebbels, Msgr. Claude Jaillet dedicated a new centennial as a parish. church on Jan. 26, 1908. The mission church, the third Community is a reflection of the Holy Trinity, Bishop church in the growing city, began to thrive but tragedy Mulvey said to a standing room only congregation at the struck four years later, on Feb. 3, 1912, when flames ennoon Mass. gulfed the rectory and Father Goebbels perished in the fire. “We should model our human life after the life of the If adaptation to change is the hallmark of the parish, Holy Trinity. Jesus is at the center of our existence and has

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www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

PARISH LIFE

Parishioners at Ss. Cyril & Methodius listen to Bishop Mulvey’s invitation to mirror the community of the Holy Spirit and have Jesus at the center of their lives. Alfredo Cardenas South Texas Catholic

overcoming adversity is its companion characteristic. The community has survived many disasters in its 100-year history. The 1919 hurricane destroyed the parish hall that doubled as a school and severely damaged the church. From the start, the Bohemian community had been an important part of the German church, and on Feb. 2, 1922, Bishop Emmanuel Ledvina decided to make it a national parish to serve Bohemians exclusively. It was not until nearly 20 years later, in 1939, that the bishop approved the name change to Ss. Cyril and Methodius, brothers in blood and cloth, who were known as the “apostles to the Slavs” and whom in 1980 Blessed John Paul II named as co-patron saints of Europe. After surviving the Great Depression and the Second World War, parishioners at Ss. Cyril & Methodius set out to build a new church. Father Francis J. Kasper, who had been pastor since 1930, asked permission from Bishop Ledvina to build a new church in what was then the middle www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

of cornfields at Lexington (now SPID) and Kostoryz. After rejecting the idea as “crazy,” the bishop relented and his successor Bishop Mariano Garriga dedicated the current Ss. Cyril and Methodius church on April 11, 1948. Five years later Msgr. Kasper began construction of a school that opened in 1954 staffed by four sisters of the Holy Ghost. The school remains a vibrant part of the parish community, teaching students through the fifth grade. Msgr. Kasper died in 1968 after having presided over the transition from German to Czech, from St. Boniface to Ss. Cyril & Methodius and from Agnes Street to the corner of SPID and Kostoryz. He is credited with building the modern plant that is still in use. No doubt that Msgr. Kasper also guided the parish through the initial stages of its third transition from a Czech parish to a predominantly Hispanic church family. It was Msgr. Patrick Higgins, who succeeded Msgr. Kasper as pastor, who guided the parish through the changes brought JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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about by the Second Vatican Council. The spiritual renewal of the parish was his focus. He is largely responsible for all the ministries the laity enjoys today. Msgr. Higgins made the parish the center for Cursillo movement. It was this spirituality that transformed the parish once again. While Ss. Cyril & Methodius are still on the nameplate, the parish’s spirituality is centered on Our Lady of Guadalupe. Today, Msgr. White said, the parish serves more than 3,000 families who come from all over the city. More than 5,000 cars daily pass in front of church once located on a cornfield. Many tourists and out of town visitors stop at the very visible church, the only one in the diocese fronting a busy freeway. Many of the visitors stop for Mass while in town and many return often. “The parish has an active Works of Mercy that feeds and clothes the homeless and helps families in need,” Msgr. White said. “There are approximately 450 public school children, kindergarten through middle school, enrolled in the parish Religious Education Program. The Life Teen Program, which is centered on the Eucharist, guides about 60 high school teens weekly in their struggles to live the Catholic faith as teens. The parish sponsors an active scout program for both boys and girls.” In addition, a growing RCIA program brings adults into full communion with the Catholic Church. Msgr. White said the parish has very active groups of Guadalupanas, Catholic Daughters, Knights of Columbus and Altar Society. While the Cursillo movement transformed the parish, Msgr. White said that the community is now known as “the ACTS parish.” The parish annually holds two ACTS (an acronym for Adoration, Community, Theology and Service Devotion) retreats for men and women. Msgr. White credits these retreats with the increase in those enrolling in RCIA, in convalidation enrollees, in the numbers receiving communion, in confirmation, in school enrollment, in volunteerism, in adoration and in collections. With six sons from the parish serving as priests, Ss. Cyril & Methodius parishioners pray for vocations every Sunday. The parish’s parochial vicar, Father Peter Stanley, also serves as an associate Vocations Director for the diocese. Among the priests formed at the parish is Msgr. Louis Kihneman who serves as Vicar General for the diocese. The first priestly vocation was Msgr. George Harris who died a few years ago. Fathers Frank and Peter Martinez serve in the Diocese of Corpus Christi; Father Ed Kucera is serving in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston; and Father Pete Nolasco Hinojosa is serving the Diocese of Laredo. “I am proud to be the pastor of such a loving community. I pray, that as we begin to write the history of this parish

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

for the next 100 years, the Holy Spirit will continue to guide each of us to be an active member of this parish and that this parish will be blessed with many more vocations to the priesthood, the diaconate and to consecrated life,” Msgr. White said. “My wish for the parish is that you continue to be a community of faith,” Bishop Mulvey said.

Bishop Mulvey greets parishioners at Ss. Cyril & Methodius after Mass celebrating the parish’s centennial. Alfredo Cardenas, South Texas Catholic

Enjoy the Rich History of the church in South Texas “Becoming the Body of Christ: A History of the Diocese of Corpus Christi” This 208-page coffee table book features the tales of Catholic faith in south Texas, including stories and photos of every parish and mission. Each chapter of the book begins with a stained glass window from Corpus Christi Cathedral and scriptural reflection. Also featured are many historic photos of early churches in the diocese. Call (361) 882-6191 for more information.

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PINEDO A DEDICADO SU VIDA

en busca de la catequesis

Por Geraldine McGloin Correspondiente

del producto. Gaby Pinedo se instaló en el estilo de vida Cuando tenía 12 años de edad Gaby Pinedo le pidió a de Corpus Christi y se convirtió en un miembro de la Jesús que quería ser su mejor amiga. Parroquia St. Philip the Apostle. En ese momento ella estaba asistiendo a una reunión Su compromiso con la evangelización sigue siendo tan de oración carismática católica de renovación con su fafuerte como siempre. Se unió a un grupo de estudio en la milia en la Ciudad de México, su ciudad natal. A partir de parroquia. Con el tiempo, el enfoque del grupo cambio ese momento, Pinedo ha participado en alguna forma de y Pinedo, junto con varias de las mujeres hispanas de la evangelización y oración. parroquia, decidió comenzar un grupo de oración semanal Su amistad con Jesús floreció a través de los años y hoy en español. es un miembro de la tabla en uno de los programas más El grupo se llama populares de la radio Grupo de Mujeres KLUX y en agosto Españolas en la Oraestará como invitada ción y han estado en el programa de juntas durante 10 EWTN “Las opcioaños con Pinedo nes que nos enfrensirviendo como fatamos.” cilitador. Las muEn 1979, su familia jeres rápidamente se mudó a los Estados formaron una fuerte Unidos para converrelación, participantirse en parte de un do en los momentos movimiento de confeimportantes en la deración en Ann Arvida de cada una, bor, Michigan. Asistió compartiendo en a la Universidad de bautizos, bodas y Michigan, y participó confirmaciones. activamente en un Hace dos años, programa de evangePinedo se convirtió lización cristiana para Gaby Pinedo va a aparecer en el programa EWTN en agosto para contar la en un miembro del los estudiantes. Fue jurado en Con Perallí donde conoció historia de su amistad con Jesús. miso, un programa a Chris Pinedo, su Geraldine McGloin, para el South Texas Catholic de idioma español en futuro esposo. la radio KLUX. El proDespués de gragrama está diseñado para hacer frente a los problemas de duarse con una licenciatura en educación bilingüe, se la familia y la comunidad, desde una perspectiva católica. mantuvo con el programa de pacto como soltera hasta Con Permiso incluye la perspectiva de los laicos y es tomar la decisión de casarse. La pareja joven viajaron a la único en este sentido porque el clero tiene la mayoría de tierra natal de la novia con el fin de tener una boda trala programación producida por KLUX. El programa busdicional mexicana. El matrimonio ha sido bendecido con ca informar a los oyentes de lo que está sucediendo en la cuatro hijos, ahora de 15 a 23 en edad. Iglesia Católica, lo que es nuevo en el Vaticano, y cómo el Después de que Chris Pinedo se licenció como abocatolicismo influye en sus vidas diarias. gado en 1987, la familia se recoló a Corpus Christi donde “Queremos catequizar a los oyentes, especialmente a los el practica la ley, especializando en la ley de compromiso

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

VIDA CATÓLICA católicos sin iglesia y nominales. Es otra forma de evangelización para la Iglesia, que espera poder ayudar formar las personas en la fe. Recientemente hemos presentado programas en las Escrituras, el Magisterio y otros temas básicos del Catecismo,” dijo Pinedo. Javier Colmenero sirve como convidado del programa con el Padre Henry Artunduaga, Administrador de Nuestra Señora de Juan de los Lagos, Madre de la Iglesia, Gloria Romero, una personalidad de la radio y de la televisión, y Pinedo como panelistas. Con Permiso actualmente se transmite los domingos a las 7:30 a.m. Para completar sus actividades de evangelización, Pinedo participa en un programa en la Parroquia Most Precious Blood conocida como Mujeres de la Palabra, cuya “misión es compartir experiencias personales y bíblicos basados en las enseñanzas...” Pinedo dice que las reuniones son “muy potente” en términos de curación y la inspiración. “Estas mujeres y el amor de Jesús que muestran me inspiran,” Pinedo dijo. “Creo que el Espíritu Santo se está moviendo a usar a las mujeres de una manera nueva de hoy, la forma en que el Papa Juan Pablo II escribió en su carta a las mujeres con respecto a la dignidad de la mujer

y el hecho de que su feminidad es un don de Dios.” El martes, 7 de agosto, a las 5 p.m. y el viernes, 10 de agosto a las 5:30 p.m., Pinedo será el invitado de el programa en EWTN “Las opciones que se nos plantea.” Cada semana, el anfitrión Ralph Martin, “proclama las verdades básicas del cristianismo [y] el arrepentimiento impulsos y la fidelidad a las Escrituras...”En su episodio, titulado “Que el Señor te hablara” Pinedo compartera su camino con Cristo, su papel como esposa y madre, y su corazón para evangelizar y ser un discípulo para mujeres.

Catholic Missions Appeal Collection Collection Taken April 29, 2012 Total from all parishes in the Diocese of Corpus Christi

$33,468.90 Amounts received through May 31, 2012

To view your parish’s contribution go to WWW.DIOCESECC.ORG/SPECIALCOLLECTIONS

Thank you for your contribution

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‘Great sho Bishop tells faithful ‘we cannot accept this mandate’ Alfredo E. Cardenas South Texas Catholic

I

n the Church’s struggle for the protection of religious freedom, Bishop Wm. Michael Mulvey asked the people in the Diocese of Corpus Christi to pray. The bishop told a full Cathedral on July 21 that the Church is calling into question “secular tendencies that seek to limit the divine”

The bishop said government was impeding people of faith to minister to those in need. “For many years now the Church has been working to protect the rights of the unborn in so many different activities, to counteract abortion and to protect the human dignity of every person. Now we also must defend and promote what should be protected for us in the First Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America; that is our religious freedom,” Bishop Mulvey said as the Diocese of Corpus Christi joined Catholics around the nation in promoting a “Fortnight for Freedom.” At the recommendation of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), the Diocese of Corpus Christi invited the faithful to participate in the two-week observance

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

with prayer and fasting. Many Catholics, Bishop Mulvey said, do not see this as a pressing need. “However, anyone who studies the facts and sees the incursion of government into our lives as Catholics cannot but be alarmed,” he said. The USCCB and many others, both Catholic and nonCatholic, are working to assure that this egregious overstepping of boundaries does not go through, the bishop said. The sometimes-contentious debate has been brewing since Jan. 21 when the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced the final rules governing group health plans and health issuers relating to coverage of “preventive services” under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act adopted by Congress in March 2010. HHS initially did not ask for comments on the proposed rules but nonetheless received an outpouring of comments. Some of the comments received suggested “group health plans sponsored by religiously-affiliated employers be allowed to exclude contraceptive services from coverage under their plans if the employers deem such services contrary to their religious tenets…” HHS ostensibly amended their initial proposed rules to provide an exemption to religious employers that have “the inculcation of religious values as its purpose;” primarily employed persons who share their religious beliefs; and primarily serve persons who share these tenets. The agency received more than 200,000 comments to these changes. This final rule did not meet the approval of the USCCB, www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

ow of unity’

who agreed with respondents who believed that the religious employer exemption was too narrow. Among those opposing this narrow definition were religiously affiliated educational institutions, health care organizations and charities. They expressed the concern that the rules would not allow them to continue their current exclusion of contraceptive services from coverage under their group health plans. The proposed rule also ran into objection from those who had concerns about paying for such services and stated that doing so would be contrary to their religious beliefs. Some religious groups expressed the concern that Federal laws, including the Affordable Care Act, have provided for conwww.SouthTexasCatholic.com

science clauses and religious exemptions broader than that provided for in the rules. Finally, some claimed that this narrower scope of the exemption raised concerns under the First Amendment and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act. The USSCB and others warned HHS that if the definition of religious employer were not broadened, they would not violate their religious canons and would no longer be able to provide health coverage to their employees. Despite the many concerns, HHS refused to amend the regulation further to accommodate groups that could not violate their conscience in order to comply with the untenable proposal. JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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The bishops of the United States declared that they could not look the other way. In a statement of conscience they asserted that “the federal government will both force religious institutions to facilitate and fund a product contrary to their own moral teaching and purport to define which religious institutions are ‘religious enough’ to merit protection of their religious liberty.” The rules promulgated for the “preventive services” mandate amounted to “an unjust law,” the statement said. “This is not a matter of whether contraception may be prohibited by the government. This is not even a matter of whether contraception may be supported by the government. Instead, it is a matter of whether religious people and institutions may be forced by the government to provide coverage for contraception or sterilization, even if that violates their religious beliefs,” said Archbishop William Lori of Baltimore, Chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty. The bishops were firm in their convictions, giving notice to anyone listening that they would not take this challenge lying down. “Religious liberty is not only about our ability to go to Mass on Sunday or pray the Rosary at home,” the bishops said. “It is about whether we can make our contribution to the common good of all Americans. Can we do the good works our faith calls us to do, without having to compromise that very same faith?” “Without religious liberty properly understood, all

Americans suffer, deprived of the essential contribution in education, health care, feeding the hungry, civil rights, and social services that religious Americans make every day, both here at home and overseas.” The final rules mandated by HHS will go into effect in a month, on Aug. 1. What will happen then is not clear, but the bishops have made it clear that they do not intend to comply with an unjust law. They continue to ask the faithful to pray and write their representatives in Washington. “My brothers and sisters, we must realize that mercy triumphs over judgment. It is not for us to judge but it is a time for us to pray. To pray for those who are causing this intrusion into the practice of our religion and faith and pray for those who are seeking to defend it,” Bishop Mulvey said. “God’s will for all of us is that we are united as a people and not divided.” The bishop called on the faithful to pray that the Church’s call for justice does not become another wedge to divide the country. “However, such issues, as the issue of religious freedom create a division between us. As we work to protect our freedoms and the first and most important freedom that of our right to express ourselves in faith, let us not lose charity and forget to pray for those who persecute us and those who seek to diminish the beauty of our faith,” Bishop Mulvey said. “Our strength is only the strength the Lord can provide,” Bishop Mulvey said.

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Letter from the Editor Alfredo E. Cardenas South Texas Catholic

A

s I approach the end of my second year as editor of the South Texas Catholic, I am somewhat surprised with all the change that has occurred in the publication during this time. At times it has seemed as if I was taking readers on a roller coaster ride.

Roller coaster rides, of course, are designed to be fun and exciting. They can, however, be a little scary to some. You will be glad to hear that the roller coaster is slowing down at the loading bay. In March, for our Centennial Jubilee celebration, we produced the South Texas Catholic, as a magazine. We had already moved to a “newsmagazine format” but in March we jumped into the deep water. The magazine was met with widespread acclaim and responding to readers’ comments, the decision was made to continue with this format. At the same time, we moved our publication date to the first of the month instead of the third Friday of the month, which was somewhat of an awkward day to publish. This is now our fourth magazine publication and the rave reviews keep coming in. As you will read on Page 30 of this issue, the Church is being called to embrace the “new media” for the “New Evangelization.” We have recently unveiled a new Web site for the South Texas Catholic, as well as for the diocese. They are both updated daily and are very interactive. We also have a presence in numerous social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter and Vimeo. These developments have allowed us to report much more extensively. We can now include every parish and school event in our online calendars. We use many more photos by creating photo albums. We report on every story we receive, whether large or small. Nothing goes

unreported. It will take time for people to get used to getting their news from the Internet, but change—as we all know—happens whether or not we keep up. It is incumbent on all of us to keep up with the times or get left behind. The ability to use the online Web site allows us to report a greater amount of content on a much more timely basis. This allows us to use the print magazine to cover stories and issues about the sacraments, the liturgy, ministries, etc. with much greater depth. The sudden move to the magazine format, however, did not allow us to fully plan this change. Additionally, the costs to print a magazine, while negligible, are more than the newspaper. For these reasons, we will be making one more change. Beginning with our next issue, we will co m b i n e t h e Au g u s t- S e p tember issues into one. That means that there will not be a magazine in September. This change will be an annual change; that is to say that every year we will have an August-September issue or 11 issues annually. This will save money, but just as importantly, it will afford us the time to stand back and look at where we need to go for the following year. We will use that time to plan ahead for the entire year so that the future issues will coincide with the liturgical calendar, with events emanating from the Holy See—such as the upcoming Year of Faith, and with events occurring in the diocese. We thank all our readers for their patience with all the changes and ask for your continued prayers that we may effectively serve the needs of the diocese and the New Evangelization.

>> Beginning with our next

issue, we will combine the August-September issues into one. That means that there will not be a magazine in September.

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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NATIONAL NEWS

Bishops discuss religious liberty ATLANTA (CNS) -- During the public sessions of their spring meeting in Atlanta, the U.S. bishops received a 10year progress report on their abuse charter, voted to draft a message on work and the economy, and heard reports about religious liberty issues in the United States and abroad. They also listened as an Iraqi bishop made an impassioned plea on behalf of Iraq’s dwindling Christian population and called on the U.S. prelates to press the Obama administration to take steps to protect religious rights in the Middle Eastern country. The meeting was June 13-15, with public sessions the first day and a half; the rest of the time was scheduled for executive session and not open to media coverage. On the opening day, the bishops voted 171-26 to move ahead with a draft of a message on work and the economy as a way to raise the profile of growing poverty and the struggles that unemployed people are experiencing. It is expected to be ready in time for a final vote at the bishops’ fall meeting in November. Titled “Catholic Reflections on Work, Poverty and a Broken Economy,” the message advances the bishops’ priority of human life and dignity to demonstrate the new evangelization in action, explained Bishop Stephen E. Blaire of Stockton, Calif., chairman of the Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development. It is a follow-up to a Sept. 15, 2011, letter by Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, president of the U.S. bishops’ conference, in which he urged bishops and priests across the country to preach about “the terrible toll the current economic turmoil is taking on families and communities.” Al J. Notzon III, chairman of the lay-led National Review Board, presented a report marking the 10th anU.S. bishops gather for Mass at Sacred Heart of Jesus Basilica in Atlanta June 13 before the start of their mid-year meeting. CNS photo/Michael Alexander, Georgia Bulletin www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

niversary of the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.” The charter was part of the U.S. bishops’ response to the clergy abuse scandal that was a major concern when they met in Dallas in 2002. While the Catholic Church has taken major steps in addressing allegations of clergy sexual abuse, it must continue to be vigilant in assuring that victims and their families will receive the attention and care they deserve, Notzon said. Meeting that transparency remains a crucial component of building and maintaining credibility among the Catholic faithful as well as the general public, he said. Despite the successes, Notzon said the Church’s credibility continues to suffer because many Catholics and the broader community not only believe clergy sexual abuse remains at a high level but also think that local bishops continue to cover up the problem by not reporting allegations of abuse to local authorities. “This suggests a trust problem and must be met with scrupulous adherence to the charter,” he said. In a presentation on religious liberty issues, Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, chairman of the bishops’ Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Freedom, acknowledged the U.S. bishops’ “fortnight for freedom” campaign has come under heavy criticism in the secular media, in the blogosphere and by some Catholics as being a partisan political effort. But the two-week period is meant to be free of politics and will emphasize church teaching on religious freedom, he said. “Already we realize that defending religious freedom is not a walk in the park,” he said. “We’ve seen some reaction to our work that is sometimes hostile, sometimes unfair and inaccurate and sometimes derisive.” The upcoming fortnight, which takes place June 21-July 4, will be a period of prayer, education and action aimed at explaining how a federal health care contraceptive mandate violates religious principles. The mandate requires JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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most religious employers to provide free health insurance coverage for contraceptives, abortion-inducing drugs and sterilizations. At the end of the discussion on religious freedom in the United States, the bishops affirmed by a unanimous voice vote a recent statement of the USCCB Administrative Committee regarding the HHS mandate titled “United for Religious Freedom.” In his remarks to the assembly, Chaldean Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni of Baghdad made an impassioned plea on behalf of Iraq’s dwindling Christian population, and called upon the U.S. bishops to press the Obama administration to take steps to protect religious rights in the Middle Eastern country. He said Muslim extremists bent on ridding the country of all religious minorities are targeting the country’s Christians. He said in the session presented by the bishops’ Committee on International Justice and Peace that the difficulties Christians face emerged only after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. “As leaders of the Church in the United States,” he told the bishops, “you bear a special responsibility toward the people and Christians of Iraq. In 2003 your government led the war that brought some terrible consequences. The U.S. government can and must do all it can to encourage tolerance and respect in Iraq, to help Iraq strengthen the rule of law and to provide assistance that helps create jobs for Iraqis, especially those on the margins.” In a report on the Year of Faith, set to begin in October, Bishop David L. Ricken of Green Bay, Wis., chairman of the Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis, said the 2012-13 Church wide observance stems from Pope Benedict XVI’s call for a new evangelization. He said it will incorporate television, radio, social media and numerous online resources to better connect—or reconnect—Catholics with their faith. The spring assembly opened with Mass celebrated by Atlanta Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory at Sacred Heart of Jesus Basilica, who urged his fellow bishops to recall the life of St. Anthony of Padua to help them renew religious life. The saint—whose feast day was June 13—demonstrated a deep devotion to Christ through his preaching. “Certainly here our contemporary Church ought to seek his assistance since we seem to have lost something of our confidence and vitality in proclaiming the Gospel,” Archbishop Gregory said. “Unfortunately, we may also have occasionally misplaced clerical integrity and the facility of announcing the good news of Jesus Christ with conviction. Religious life has suffered confusion and needs serious renewal. That, perhaps, St. Anthony can once again help us to rediscover,” he said.

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Church must embrace new media ATLANTA (CNS) -- The new evangelization calls for using new forms of media to reach people in their everyday lives, the chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Communications said. From electronic books to social media to traditional forms of print and broadcast, the Church is rethinking how to carry its teachings and its stances on public policy issues to broader audiences, including Catholics, Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City said. “We’ve got to figure out a way to be where the people are getting their news,” Bishop Wester said. “The advantage is the instantaneousness of it. Others are getting the news out there, and so if the Church doesn’t get her message out there, than other messages are going to be sitting there... and then it’s settled in people minds.” In a 20-minute presentation June 14 at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) spring meeting in Atlanta, Bishop Wester discussed a series of steps his committee is undertaking to build stronger relationships with millions of parishioners in American pews. He said there are serious questions revolving around how to effectively communicate the Church’s work while remaining true to authentic Church teaching. “We used to ask ourselves, ‘What do we need to tell the people?’ Now we have to ask ourselves, ‘What do people want to hear from us?’ he said. The USCCB is developing a new business model that incorporates best practices for its communications work and takes into consideration the way people seek information today and how they might seek information in the future. Communication has become a two-way street where people expect to interact with sources of information and the Church must be able to offer people a chance to comment on the information they are receiving, he explained. The USCCB will continue to depend on traditional print forms of communication such as diocesan newspapers, but also will utilize multimedia primarily through the Internet to reach new audiences and to draw non-practicing Catholics www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

A woman displays the e-book version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church on an iPad in Washington June 14. The e-book version, which has been available through iTunes, Amazon and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ online bookstore, can now be browsed and read for free on the USCCB website. Authorized by Pope John Paul II in 1986, the catechism was first published in 1992, with a revised second edition released in 2000.

back to the church, he said. Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, USCCB president, told the

Communication has become a two-way street ... the Church must be able to offer people a chance to comment on the information they are receiving www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Nancy Phelan Wiechec, Catholic News Service

bishops that the effort will include the naming of a spokesperson for the conference who would be available around the clock to respond to media inquiries and to be pro-active in seeking to share church views and teaching. That prospect drew broad support from the bishops. Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley of Boston told the assembly that the church and the Vatican do a poor job of “communicating around controversial topics.” He said a spokesperson would be welcome and would help frame information in light of church teaching rather than having it distorted by voices in the media. “More than a few of us have raised the possibility of having a spokesperson who could respond to situations that

appear,” said Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Atlanta. “I think that’s vital because we waste a second and a second could be vital.” He also cautioned that the eventual spokesperson must have the full trust of the bishops so that he or she will have the confidence to know he or she “will not be shot down,” he said. Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski of Miami urged that more emphasis be made on developing messages for the growing segment of Spanish-speaking Catholics. Bishops also raised questions about the cost of a stronger communications effort, saying that the commitment to keep the effort going must be continuous and have the understanding such outreach is “well worth it.” JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Mass confusion:

Misunderstanding at root of ‘liturgy wars’ By Francis X. Rocca Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) —Half a century after the start of the Second Vatican Council, the reform of the liturgy initiated there has not lost its power to stoke controversy. On June 13, after years of on-againoff-again talks with the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X, which effectively broke from Rome almost 25 years ago to protest the teachings of Vatican II and subsequent changes to the Mass, the Vatican announced that the traditionalists had been formally offered terms of reconciliation. But the following day, the SSPX announced that unresolved “doctrinal difficulties” might lead it to prolong negotiations yet again. Prominent among the outstanding issues it cited was the form of the Mass introduced by Pope Paul VI. Even among the vast majority of Catholics who have accepted the Mass in its current form, debates often occur over aspects of worship that include choices in sacred music, the correct manner of receiving Communion, and, in the English-speaking world, the revised translation of the Mass, which was introduced last year. Yet according to one distinguished scholar, such disputes are largely rooted not in the liturgical texts themselves, but in contemporary misunderstandings about the very nature of Catholic worship. Benedictine Father Jeremy Driscoll is a professor at Rome’s Pontifical Ath-

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Benedictine Father Jeremy Driscoll, a professor at Rome’s Pontifical Athenaeum of San Anselmo, says liturgy is a legitimate subject for debate because it remains a work in progress. Paul Haring, Catholic News Service

enaeum of San Anselmo and the author of a guidebook for non-experts, “What Happens at Mass.” A zealous debunker of what he regards as false dichotomies and oppositions, Father Driscoll rejects a common complaint that the reform has turned the Mass into a communal meal at the expense of its traditional sacrificial dimension, or that it places excessive importance on the faithful instead of focusing on God. “Sacrifices are meals,” he said. “That’s the way in which one partici-

pates in sacrifice.” Similarly, he said, God and the assembly are inextricable in a proper understanding of the Mass. “Christ is crucified, risen, (and) sends the Spirit for the sake of building the Church,” the Benedictine said. “You can’t have Mass without in the end noticing the Church, that is to say, noticing the community.” Yet a mistaken sense of separation between God and community can occur, Father Driscoll said, if the assembly conceives of worship as self-expression—a tendency he finds especially common in his native land. “We Americans,” he said, “have come naturally to think that in the liturgy we want to express ourselves, and if it doesn’t feel like us, then we don’t want to say it. But the whole tradition of liturgy is not primarily expressive of where people are and what they want to say to God. Instead, it is impressive; it forms us, and it is always bigger than any given community that celebrates.” One unifying element for Catholics around the world, Father Driscoll said, is liturgical Latin—even though most Catholics now attend Mass in modern languages. Much of the controversy over the new English translation of the Mass, he notes, has surrounded language that strikes listeners as awkward, because of the translators’ mandate to be faithful to the original Latin. “The reason for that is that we’re www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

VATICAN translating ancient texts that carry with precision the faith that unites us around the world,” said Father Driscoll, who was a consultant to the Vox Clara Commission, an advisory body that reviewed the new translation on behalf of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments. “If you don’t translate (the Latin) closely,” he said, “after decades the English-speaking Roman Catholic world winds up being considerably different from the Spanish-speaking Roman Catholic world and the Frenchspeaking or German-speaking Roman Catholic world. And that expression of the beautiful unity across many tongues is lost.” Yet many aspects of worship allow for flexibility, he said, including the much-debated question of which direction the celebrant should face. “If (the priest) is facing the assembly and the assembly is gathered around the altar, you’re making a kind of visual symbol,” Father Driscoll said, “a symbol of the whole community united.” On the other hand, he said, it would be wrong to describe a priest facing east, in the traditional style, as “turning

his back to the people.” “Christ the priest turns toward his father with his people behind him, that’s what it means,” he said. “You can’t see what’s happening, but in fact there is nothing to see. The mystery is invisible no matter which way you turn.” Likewise, he said, kneeling to receive Communion is a “beautiful gesture of adoration,” yet standing for the same purpose is also a “tremendous gesture when it’s properly understood; there’s nothing arrogant about it. I wouldn’t dare stand before God were I not standing with Christ. But in him, I dare.” While such topics are not worth fighting over, Father Driscoll said, liturgy is a legitimate subject for debate because it remains a work in progress. Just as Vatican II merely initiated a reform undertaken extensively under Pope Paul VI, the church today continues to correct, refine and, in some cases, restore elements of traditional usage. “The church lives on after a council and continues to do its work,” he said. And the Mass “is a living product that takes place under the guidance of Peter.”

A man kneels to receive Communion during a weekday Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul in Philadelphia in this 2011 file photo. Nancy Phelan Wiechec, Catholic News Service www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Vatican set to control ‘catholic’ domains By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The Vatican is in line to control the new Internet address extension “.catholic” and decide who is allowed to use it. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit corporation that coordinates the assignment of Internet domain names and addresses around the world, announced the Vatican’s formal application June 13 in London. The corporation is overseeing a huge expansion in the number of Internet extensions beyond the standard .com, .org., .edu and .gov. The extensions formally are known as generic top-level domains. The assignment of country-code top-level domains, like the Vatican’s own .va, will not be affected by the change. Msgr. Paul Tighe, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, said that the Vatican’s application to control the top-level domain .catholic “is a recognition of how important the digital space is for the Church.” Controlling the top-level domain “will be a way to authenticate the JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Catholic presence online,” Msgr. Tighe said. The Vatican plans to allow “institutions and communities that have canonical recognition” to use the extension, “so people online—Catholics and non-Catholics—will know a site is authentically Catholic.” The Vatican does not plan to allow individual bloggers or private Catholics to use “.catholic,” Msgr. Tighe said. Use of the domain would be limited to those with a formal canonical recognition: dioceses, parishes and other territorial church jurisdictions; religious orders and other canonically recognized communities; and Catholic institutions such as universities, schools and hospitals. The Vatican filed four separate applications for new domain names, seeking to control “.catholic” and its equivalent in other languages using Latin letters, as well as the equivalent of the word “Catholic” in the Cyrillic, Arabic and Chinese alphabets. The fee for each application was $185,000, which Msgr. Tighe said “is a lot of money, but if you think of the money you have to spend to maintain a Church structure,” and then consider how important the structure of the Catholic presence on the Internet is, it was a good investment. Controlling the domain name will promote “a more cohesive and organized presence” of the church online, “so the recognized structure of the church can be mirrored in the digital space.” In addition to the fee, the Vatican and other applicants for new generic top-level domains had to fill out complicated forms and must submit to background checks to ensure they are the best representative of the name they chose and to prove they have the financial, technical and institutional stability to run the domain, are not involved in criminal activity and have no history of “cyber-squatting”—registering a name more properly associated with someone else and trying to sell it at an inflated price. The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers has set up a process for resolving conflicting claims to the same or very similar names, although an

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auction of some extensions is possible. It said that of the 1,930 applications received, “there are 231 exact matches” with two or more applicants competing for the domain name. The Vatican was the only applicant asking for .catholic. When the corporation discussed the idea of expanding the number of generic top-level domains in 2009, the Vatican representative to the corporation’s governmental advisory committee, Msgr. Carlo Maria Polvani, expressed concern about “the possible perils” connected with religious domain names, including the risk of “competing claims” and “bitter disputes” between individuals or institutions claiming to represent, for example, Catholics or Muslims or Buddhists. Msgr. Tighe said June 13 that the concerns, voiced “at a much earlier stage of the process,” were meant to warn the corporation of possible conflicts, particularly involving religious groups that do not have any clear or strong central leadership. Once the corporation decided to move forward with the expansion, he said, “we decided we were best suited to apply for ‘catholic.’” The applications for Latin alphabet domain names revealed June 13 included one request for “.christmas,” but no requests for “.christian.” Two applicants asked for “.church,” but no one asked for “.orthodox,” “.lutheran” or “.anglican.” Seven applicants asked for “.love,” one requested “.islam,” but no one requested “.jewish.” At the London news conference announcing the applications, Rod Beckstrom, president of the Internet corporation, said no one had yet been granted the rights to any of the requested domain names. The vetting process is ongoing and even entities that appear to have a right to the name and the ability to run the new domain are unlikely to have anything online before spring 2013, said Kurt Pritz, vice president. He also said the corporation is asking comments from the public for 60 days. In addition, he said, for the next seven months it will be accepting “formal objections” based on specific criteria such as possible brand or trademark infringement. But formal objections also can be submitted to demonstrate opposition to the applicant from a significant number of people who feel they are represented by the domain name. The annual fee for the new generic top-level domains is $25,000, the corporation said. When the Internet corporation began accepting applications in January for new Internet extensions, there were about two dozen approved generic top-level domains, including .info, which was added in 2000, and .travel, which was added in 2004. The current expansion of top domains will be the largest in Internet history. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Pope says being baptized means always saying ‘no' to Satan ROME (CNS) -- The life of a baptized Christian must be marked by a constant effort to say “yes” to God and “no” to the devil and all of his lies, Pope Benedict XVI said. In baptism, “we are united to God in a new existence, we belong to God, we are immersed in God himself,” the pope said June 12, opening the annual pastoral convention of the Diocese of Rome at the Basilica of St. John Lateran. At the moment of baptism and when baptismal promises are renewed, as at the Easter vigil, Christians renounce Satan, all his works and all his lies, the pope said about the meaning of baptism. “Renouncing the glamour of Sa-

tan in today’s age means rejecting a culture where truth does not matter” and where “calumny and destruction” reign, he said. Christians reject “a culture that does not seek goodness, whose morality is really a mask to trick people and create destruction and confusion.” “Against this culture in which falsehood presents itself as truth and information, against this culture that seeks only material well-being and denies God, we say, ‘no,’” the pope said. Pope Benedict said baptism is not a human initiative, but a response to God’s calling people to new life in him. The pope said he knows many people today ask whether it is a good idea to baptize infants or if it would

be better to wait so that they could be educated in the faith and make their own decision to be baptized and join the Church. The question is a sign that people do not understand that the Christian life is the gift of true life and not “one choice among many” or “a burden that we should not impose without consent,” he said. However, the pope said, “life itself is given to us without our prior consent.” If parents do not ask their children if they want the gift of life, he asked, why would they think their children should wait to receive the gift of new life, protected by God and supported by the Christian community?

Vatican’s top ecumenist criticizes mistaken ideas about dialogue MAYNOOTH, Ireland (CNS)— The Vatican’s top ecumenist expressed regrets June 8 at the mistaken impression that Protestants are honest in ecumenical dialogue and Catholics are not. Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, suggested that the impression stems from the willingness of many Protestant churches to welcome all to the Lord’s Supper. The cardinal said there were some Reformed churches in Western Europe where baptism was not a condition for participation in the Eucharist. “I think that is a very dangerous development because baptism and ritual recognition of baptism (are) the basis of all ecumenical endeavors,” he said. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

In his address, Cardinal Koch described the relationship between the Eucharist and the church as very important from the ecumenical perspective. “When we speak about the Eucharist, the ecumenical dimension is always present,” he said. He said the view of the relationship between the ecclesial and Eucharistic communion is very different in the other churches. “It is very important to clarify the position of the Catholic Church and the position of the other churches and deepen the discussion on this for the future,” he said. The cardinal told delegates that it was important to understand why

Catholics sought the restoration of ecclesial communion in the first instance and not “so-called inter-Communion.” Quoting Cardinal Karl Lehmann of Mainz, Germany, he said the shared supper belonged “at the end and not at the beginning of ecumenical endeavors.” Cardinal Koch said that the ecumenical dialogue with Anglicans was “very important” and that the Vatican would seek to “deepen this dialogue” with the Anglican Communion. The Swiss prelate said the fundamental challenge to those involved in ecumenical dialogue was “what is the call of the ecumenical movement” and finding a new consensus on the goal of ecumenism. JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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Federal government has no place defining religion and religious ministry Most Rev. Wm. Michael Mulvey Bishop of Corpus Christi

M

y dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, as we wind down our “Fortnight for Freedom” and approach our country’s Independence Day, we need to take time to reflect on the task we are engaged in to preserve our religious liberty.

Like all challenges to liberty, this is not something we asked for and it is not something we can walk away from without a struggle or without suffering. We began the Fortnight for Prayer on the eve of the Feast of Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More, both martyred in their defense of the Church against the usurpation of King Henry VIII. They both rejected the king’s audacious and presumptuous notion that as king he could also serve as sovereign over the Catholic Church in England. The king had them both beheaded for their unwillingness to deny the pope’s primacy over God’s Church on Earth. Sts. John Fisher and Thomas More are not the only saints, martyrs and defenders of religious liberty that we recognize during this two-week period. St. John the Baptist, Sts. Peter and Paul, St. Iraneus and St. Thomas the Apostle are also remembered during this period. The fortnight also memorializes the deaths of James Madison (June 28), Thomas Jefferson (July 4) and John Adams (July 4). Shortly before the start of the Fortnight for Freedom, I—and I’m sure many of you—had the opportunity of viewing the new movie “For Greater Glory” which tells the story of the Mexican martyrs who fought and died for the Church in the 1920s during the Cristero War. During last month’s meeting of the United States Conference

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of Catholic Bishops, we heard from Chaldean Auxiliary Bishop Shlemon Warduni of Baghdad who made a heartfelt plea on behalf of his country’s Christians and asked that we encourage the American government to safeguard their religious rights. To be sure, we do not face today the mortal threats that these martyrs endured. We must be mindful, however, that it is not uncommon that rights in this country have often been won incrementall y, and no doubt they can be lost in the same manner. The Lord’s prayer has been banned from public forums, God’s Commandments are no longer welcome in public places, respect for life is no longer a policy that government seeks to advance and the list goes on. We can no longer be sure that George Washington’s words are true when the father of our country said, “We have abundant reason to rejoice that in this land the light of truth and reason has triumphed over the power of bigotry and superstition, and that every person may here worship God according to the dictates of his own heart. In this enlightened age and in this land of equal liberty it

The Lord’s prayer has been banned from public forums, God’s Commandments are no longer welcome in public places, respect for life is no longer a policy that government seeks to advance and the list goes on.

SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

OUR FAITH is our boast, that a man’s religious tenets will not forfeit the protection of the laws, nor deprive him of the right of attaining and holding the highest offices that are known in the United States.” We are indeed, dangerously close to abandoning Washington’s view of the country he helped found and establish. Let me tell you why this may be coming to pass. The mandate issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Jan. 21 requires group health plans to pay for Food and Drug Administration approved sterilization procedures and contraceptive methods, which include emergency contraception drugs such as ella, which can cause an abortion when taken to avoid pregnancy. While the mandate includes an exemption for religious employers, it is a very narrow definition. The exemption only applies to employers who hire and serve primarily those of their own faith. While this “may” protect the Diocese of Corpus Christi and our parishes, it will not exempt the CHRISTUS Spohn Healthcare System, Catholic Charities, the Catholic Communications Network or Catholic schools. The Federal government has no place defining religion and religious ministry. As the bishops said in their March 14 Statement on Religious Freedom and HHS Mandate, “We are commanded both to love and to serve the Lord; laws that protect our freedom to comply with one of these commands but not the other are nothing to celebrate.”

This mandate is not only an intrusion into Church governance; it is a violation of personal civil rights. Individuals who are committed to live a faithful life consistent with the Church’s moral values are now confronted with the unenviable choice of abandoning their faith and betraying their Church’s moral teachings. Despite the reporting of many of our friends in the secular media, our struggle is not about contraception; the U.S. Supreme Court took that issue off the table years ago. It is not about the religious freedom

rights as citizens. We have asked and continue to ask you to write your Senators and Congressmen in Washington urging them to support our cause. I ask you again to write and to write again. The bishops and others engaged in this struggle are not naïve. We have made every effort to engage the Administration. We have and will continue to pursue a remedy through the legislative process. We will continue to seek redress from the courts. We will continue to do all what is necessary to reverse this unwarranted intrusion into Church life. On Aug. 1, the current HHS mandate will go into effect. As a consequence, many employees for Catholic organizations may find themselves without insurance. It could result in the closure of schools, hospitals and other Catholic-run organizations. The challenges we face are very serious. We in the Catholic Church do not want to coerce anybody to do anything against their will, but neither do we want anyone—including the Federal Government— to force the Church to do anything that is against its teachings. In an often-quoted parable, Jesus said to the Pharisees, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.” (Mk 12:17) Are we not in a similar situation? Please continue to pray that this matter be resolved prior to Aug. 1. May the Lord’s mercy and justice triumph. Viva Cristo Rey!

“We are commanded both to love and to serve the Lord; laws that protect our freedom to comply with one of these commands but not the other are nothing to celebrate.”

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of Catholics only; our brothers and sisters in other Christian denominations and religions have joined us in this struggle. This struggle is not about being against universal health care; the Bishops’ Conference has advocated for adequate health care for decades. Notwithstanding what you may have heard, this is not a Republican or Democratic issue, nor is it a conservative or liberal issue; it is an American issue. Indeed, we have focused our efforts away from the political arena. We have urged the faithful to do penance and to pray that this matter will be resolved in an amicable manner. At the same time we advised the faithful to exercise their

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IWBS: A contemplative, active congregation Sister Kathleen McDonaugh, IWBS Contributor

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istory plays a part in the development of religious communities and that is often through acts of obedience to the Church. We have looked at a religious community of women in the Diocese of Corpus Christi as one that is totally contemplative—the Sisters of Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Most of us think of all other communities in the Diocese of Corpus Christi as being active. In the 17th century, the Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament were founded as a contemplative community committed to love, adore and proclaim Jesus specifically as Jesus the Incarnate Word. The congregation’s founder, Jeanne Chezard de Matel, urged her sisters to build up their relationship with the Person of the Incarnate Word by spending time with Him in contemplation and prayer. And this they did but with the addition of one active element – the teaching of little girls. The children came into the cloister to be taught; as they taught, the sisters continued to

live a contemplative life. In the 19th century a French bishop, Jean Marie Odin, was appointed to all of Texas. Since he did not have sufficient priests and sisters to work with him, in desperation, he went back to France looking for priests and religious to help him. His request to the Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament to send missionaries to Texas was refused because they could not see how this was in line with their contemplative life. However, through the intervention of the pope, they felt obliged to help, and so the first Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament came to Galveston where they spent some time studying English. Eventually the Bishop Odin sent

do whatever was needed for them to be able to minister in the small towns around Corpus Christi, the sisters prayed and reconsidered. They then made what for them was a momentous decision – the decision to lift the cloister from their order in the Diocese of Corpus Christi. This enabled the sisters to live in small communities in the towns around Corpus Christi in order to bring Catholic education there. It continued in Corpus Christi itself in different parishes and in the Incarnate Word Motherhouse. There is, however, no mention in that decision that the sisters were giving up their contemplative spirit. Their community spirit strives to attain that same balance of a contemplative/apostolic spirit, which was sought in earlier changes. The contemplative/apostolic thrust of the Order remains. Cloister is an external reality, which helps in maintaining the contemplative spirit of an order. The Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament and many other orders have found that the spirit of contemplation can be continued even without the cloister. The Incarnate Word Constitution expresses this by saying, “As religious people seek God before all things and only Him, they endeavor to combine contemplation with apostolic love. The living out of this contemplative dimension of religious life results in an attitude of continuous and humble adoration of God’s mysterious pres-

They strive to balance >> community living, prayer and action so that none are neglected.

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them to make a foundation in Brownsville where, because of the presence of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the bishop hoped the Sisters would always have the help of priests belonging to a religious community. When, in the early 20th century, the Bishop of Corpus Christi begged the Sisters of the Incarnate Word to

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“Go, therefore, and teach all nations.” ence in people, events, and things. This ecclesial ideal is reflected in the congregational mission: to adore the Incarnate Word and to proclaim the mystery of the Incarnation.” The call of the Holy Father in his first address to members of Institutes of Consecrated Life, for “the witness of people who live a life totally dedicated to Christ, and prefer nothing to His love,” can be considered especially relevant to Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament. In her autobiography, Jeanne de Matel writes of Jesus’ words to her in prayer, “With humble gratitude, accept My graces, and allow Me to love you and to pour out the torrents of My goodness upon you.” The way of holiness, which the

Lord preferred for Jeanne, was the way of love, with the initiative taken by the Incarnate Word. The present constitution of the order summarizes holiness in the following words: “Sisters of the Incarnate Word in this time of New Evangelization are called to live a spirituality of communion centered in Christ and in charity toward others. They strive to balance community living, prayer and action so that none are neglected. “The sisters’ bond of community is intended to make them more clearly a sign of the mystery of the Church. The community formed is centered in the Person of the Incarnate Word. Striving to live in fidelity to the Church, the sisters commit themselves to assist her in meeting contemporary needs. As

their primary means of evangelization, they choose Christian education in the multiple forms found in the contemporary Church. In doing so, they are responding to the words of Christ, “Go, therefore, and teach all nations.” The Sisters of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament, then, strive to live a contemplative/apostolic life. The contemplative aspect comes from the first choice for the Order in its 17th century in France. The apostolic aspect comes from the needs of the Church in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. That the Church accepts this combination is shown in the ecclesial approval of the latest Constitution of the Order, given in Rome and dated July 2, 1986.

JULY LITURGICAL CALENDAR July 1 | SUN | THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | green | Wis 1:13-15; 2:23-24/2 Cor 8:7, 9, 13-15/ Mk 5:21-43 or 5:21-24, 35b-43 (98) Pss I July 2 | Mon | Weekday | green | Am 2:6-10, 13-16/Mt 8:18-22 (377) July 3 | Tue | Saint Thomas, Apostle | red | feast | Eph 2:19-22/Jn 20:24-29 (593) Pss Prop July 4 | Wed | Weekday | green/ white [Independence Day] Am 5:1415, 21-24/Mt 8:28-34 (379) or, for Independence Day, any readings from the Lectionary for Ritual Masses (vol. IV), the Mass “For Public Needs,” nos. 882-886, or “For Peace and Justice,” nos. 887-891. July 5 | Thu | Weekday | green/white/ white [Saint Anthony Zaccaria, Priest; Saint Elizabeth of Portugal] Am 7:1017/Mt 9:1-8 (380) July 6 | Fri | Weekday | green/red [Saint Maria Goretti, Virgin and Martyr] Am 8:4-6, 9-12/Mt 9:9-13 (381) July 7 | Sat | Weekday | green/white www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

[BVM] Am 9:11-15/Mt 9:14-17 (382)

13 (104) Pss III

July 8 | SUN | FOURTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | green | Ez 2:2-5/2 Cor 12:7-10/Mk 6:1-6a (101) Pss II

July 16 | Mon | Weekday | green/ white [Our Lady of Mount Carmel] Is 1:10-17/Mt 10:34—11:1 (389)

July 9 | Mon | Weekday | green/red [Saint Augustine Zhao Rong, Priest, and Companions, Martyrs] Hos 2:16, 17b-18, 21-22/Mt 9:18-26 (383) July 10 | Tue | Weekday | green | Hos 8:4-7, 11-13/Mt 9:32-38 (384) July 11 | Wed | Saint Benedict, Abbot | white | memorial | Hos 10:1-3, 7-8, 12/Mt 10:1-7 (385)

July 17 | Tue | Weekday | green | Is 7:1-9/Mt 11:20-24 (390) July 18 | Wed | Weekday | green/ white [Saint Camillus de Lellis, Priest] Is 10:5-7, 13b-16/Mt 11:25-27 (391) July 19 | Thu | Weekday | green | Is 26:7-9, 12, 16-19/Mt 11:28-30 (392)

July 24 | Tue | Weekday | green/white [Saint Sharbel Makhl f, Priest] Mi 7:1415, 18-20/Mt 12:46-50 (396) July 25 | Wed | Saint James, Apostle | red | feast | 2 Cor 4:7-15/Mt 20:20-28 (605) Pss Prop July 26 | Thu | Saints Joachim and Anne, Parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary | white | memorial | Jer 2:1-3, 7-8, 12-13/Mt 13:10-17 (398) July 27 | Fri | Weekday | green | Jer 3:14-17/Mt 13:18-23 (399)

July 20 | Fri | Weekday | green/red [Saint Apollinaris, Bishop and Martyr] Is 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8/Mt 12:1-8 (393)

July 28 | Sat | Weekday | green/white [BVM] Jer 7:1-11/Mt 13:24-30 (400)

July 21 | Sat | Weekday | green/white/ white [Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, Priest and Doctor of the Church; BVM] Mi 2:1-5/Mt 12:14-21 (394)

July 29 | SUN | SEVENTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | green | 2 Kgs 4:42-44/Eph 4:1-6/Jn 6:1-15 (110) Pss I

July 14 | Sat | Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin | white | memorial | Is 6:1-8/Mt 10:24-33 (388)

July 22 | SUN | SIXTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | green | Jer 23:1-6/Eph 2:13-18/Mk 6:30-34 (107) Pss IV

July 30 | Mon | Weekday | green/ white [Saint Peter Chrysologus, Bishop and Doctor of the Church] Jer 13:1-11/ Mt 13:31-35 (401)

July 15 | SUN | FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME | green | Am 7:12-15/Eph 1:3-14 or 1:3-10/Mk 6:7-

July 23 | Mon | Weekday | green/ white [Saint Bridget, Religious] Mi 6:14, 6-8/Mt 12:38-42 (395)

July 31 | Tue | Saint Ignatius of Loyola, Priest | white | memorial | Jer 14:17-22/Mt 13:36-43 (402)

July 12 | Thu | Weekday | green | Hos 11:1-4, 8c-9/Mt 10:7-15 (386) July 13 | Fri | Weekday | green/white [Saint Henry] Hos 14:2-10/Mt 10:1623 (387)

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Goals for Political Life:

Challenges for citizens, candidates and public officials By Committees on Domestic Policy, International Policy, Pro-Life Activities, Communications, Doctrine, Education, and Migration United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

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s Catholics, we are led to raise questions for political life other than “Are you better off than you were two or four years ago?” Our focus is not on party affiliation, ideology, economics, or even competence and capacity to perform duties, as important as such issues are. Rather, we focus on what protects or threatens human life and dignity. Catholic teaching challenges voters and candidates, citizens and elected officials, to consider the moral and ethical dimensions of public policy issues. In light of ethical principles, Catholic bishops offer the following policy goals that they hope will guide Catholics as they form their consciences and reflect on the moral dimensions of their public choices. Not all issues are equal; these 10 goals address matters of different moral weight and urgency. Some involve matters of intrinsic evil that can never be supported. Others involve affirmative obligations to seek the common good. These and similar goals can help voters and candidates act on ethical principles rather than particular interests and partisan allegiances. The hope is that Catholics will ask candidates how they intend to help our nation pursue these important goals. • Address the preeminent requirement to protect the weakest in our midst—innocent unborn children— by restricting and bringing to an end the destruction of unborn children through abortion. • Keep our nation from turning to violence to address fundamental problems—a million abortions each year to deal with unwanted pregnancies, euthanasia

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•

•

•

•

•

•

and assisted suicide to deal with the burdens of illness and disability, the destruction of human embryos in the name of research, the use of the death penalty to combat crime, and imprudent resort to war to address international disputes. Define the central institution of marriage as a union between one man and one woman, and provide better support for family life morally, socially, and economically, so that our nation helps parents raise their children with respect for life, sound moral values, and an ethic of stewardship and responsibility. Achieve comprehensive immigration reform that secures our borders, treats immigrant workers fairly, offers an earned path to citizenship, respects the rule of law, and addresses the factors that compel people to leave their own countries. Help families and children overcome poverty: ensuring access to and choice in education, as well as decent work at fair, living wages and adequate assistance for the vulnerable in our nation, while also helping to overcome widespread hunger and poverty around the world, especially in the areas of development assistance, debt relief, and international trade. Provide health care for the growing number of people without it, while respecting human life, human dignity, and religious freedom in our health care system. Continue to oppose policies that reflect prejudice, hostility toward immigrants, religious bigotry, and other forms of discrimination. Encourage families, community groups, economic structures, and government to work together to overcome poverty, pursue the common good, and care for creation, with full respect for religious www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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groups and their right to address social needs in accord with their basic moral convictions. Establish and comply with moral limits on the use of military force—examining for what purposes it may be used, under what authority, and at what human cost—and work for a “responsible transi-

VIEW POINTS •

tion” to end the war in Iraq. Join with others around the world to pursue peace, protect human rights and religious liberty, and advance economic justice and care for creation.

Light from the south George Weigel Denver Catholic Register

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he master plan for the New Evangelization in Latin America is rather long—20-times longer than the Gospel of Mark, I’d guess. But in virtually every other respect it’s an entirely admirable piece of work that should be known throughout the world Church.

Prior to an April visit to Argentina, I read the “Aparecida Document,” the final report of the Fifth General Assembly of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean (CELAM), which was held in Brazil in 2007. The first thing to note about the Aparecida Document is its strongly evangelical thrust: everyone in the Church, the bishops write, is baptized to be a “missionary disciple.” Everywhere is mission territory, and everything in the Church must be mission-driven. Then there is the document’s forthright Christocentrism, which reflects the teaching of Pope Benedict XVI, who opened the assembly with a masterful address. The whole purpose of evangelism is to foster friendship

with Jesus Christ, the Son of God who reveals both the face of the merciful Father and the truth about our humanity. The Aparecida Document is also noteworthy for its lack of defensiveness. If Catholics are leaving the Church and finding a spiritual home in Pentecostal communities, that’s the Catholic Church’s fault; it’s not something to be blamed on buckets of gold from El Norte and the machinations of the U.S. government, as two generations of Latin American churchmen had often charged. The Catholic Church must figure out what is missing in its presentation of the Gospel and its living of the Gospel. Filling those gaps is the way to invite back home those Catholics

The Catholic Difference

who move away from their historic spiritual home. The Catholic failure here, the bishops frankly concede, is an evangelical failure. And the answer to that failure is what they call “permanent catechesis;” an ongoing encounter with the Lord Jesus, deepened spiritually through Word and Sacrament, the Bible and the Eucharist. In a meeting with Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J., the archbishop of Buenos Aires and one of the world Church’s great leaders, I asked how the Aparecida Document—which seemed such a break from previous CELAM documents—had happened. The cardinal cited three reasons. First, Aparecida is a Marian shrine, and meeting there oriented the bish-

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The Catholic Church must figure out what is missing in its presentation of the Gospel and its living of the Gospel. www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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>>

Filling those gaps is the way to invite back home those Catholics who move away from their historic spiritual home. ops’ reflections in two directions. First, toward the traditional piety of Latin America and toward Our Lady as the Star of the New Evangelization, as Blessed John Paul II had named her. In that intersection between past and future, and under Mary’s protection, there was an opportunity for real creativity in facing the truth of the Church’s situation and prospects. Second, the bishops had regular contact with the throngs that came to Aparecida on pilgrimage. Iit was as if CELAM was meeting, not in some convention center or monastic enclosure, but right in the middle of the People of God on their pilgrimage through the early twenty-first centu-

ry—a pilgrimage in which both popular piety and new missionary initiatives will be part of the New Evangelization and in which lay Catholics will be the Church’s primary evangelists. And third, the cardinal replied, prayer surrounded the bishops. As they discussed the future of the Church in Latin America and the Caribbean at the shrine of Aparecida, they could hear their people praying around them. Thus the fifth CELAM conference became, not another bureaucratic exercise, but a kind of retreat. There is no need to over-romanticize this; the Aparecida Document was also the result of some hard thinking and hard work, some of it

done by Cardinal Bergoglio, who was too modest to claim any such credit. But it is also true that the Aparecida experience suggests that good things happen at mass meetings of bishops when the bishops live like pastors, in close contact with their people, and when their deliberations seem more like the Upper Room of the Acts of the Apostles than an annual stockholders’ meeting. The Aparecida Document also suggests that Latin America is far more than just the demographic center of the Catholic Church. (George Weigel is a Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.)

Retired Diocesan Priests’ Fund Collection Collection Taken May 6, 2012 Total from all parishes in the Diocese of Corpus Christi

Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi Inc.

$63,408.54 Amounts received through May 31, 2012

Catholic Charities Dinner and Dialogue Featuring Special Guest

To view your parish’s contribution go to WWW.DIOCESECC.ORG/SPECIALCOLLECTIONS

Thank you for your contribution

October 18, 2012 7:00 p.m. Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz International Center For more information please call (361) 442-2224 ext. 24

“I look forward to visiting with you and enjoying beautiful music and this inspirational story. I hope you can join us.” Bishop Wm. Michael Mulvey

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A testament to faith and religious freedom Father Jesus Francisco Lopez Pastor, Immaculate Conception Parish in Taft

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he film “For Greater Glory” features a stellar cast of American and Mexican actors portraying the lives and events of a conflict in Mexico known as the Cristero War.

The fundamental reason for this tragic event, which cost the lives of more than 200,000 people, was the Mexican government’s attack on religious freedom. The Mexican government set itself up to be the sole grantor and measure for a freedom based on mere secularist and materialist definitions. However, there were those who believed that absolute freedom is not and can never be born in nor granted by any human institution. They believed that God alone is the author and grantor of absolute freedom and this God given right must be defended even to the point of martyrdom. “For Greater Glory” is set during the height of the violent and bloody war (1926-1929) and reveals the history of the Cristero defenders of religious freedom through a powerful and memorable story of faith, martyrdom and conversion. To better appreciate the film’s message in its historical context we should review the antecedent political maneuvers that led up to the Cristero War. An already delicate relation between Church and State took a downward slide in 1855 with the political reforms orchestrated by President Benito Juárez. Known as www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

La Ley Juárez, the reforms included anti-Catholic regulations whereby the Church’s property was nationalized. Monasteries and convents were also suppressed and new ones prohibited. These measures remained in place with the exception of the years 1876-1911 when under the presidency of Porfirio Díaz the Church experienced some freedom and growth. The revolution of 1910 overthrew the Díaz regime and a few years later a very secular and antiCatholic Constitution of 1917 emerged. By 1925, President Plutarco Elías Calles fearing an economic collapse due to a boycott headed by La Liga Nacional Para la Defensa de las Libertades (the National League for the Defense of Religious Liberty) put in place his own regulations known as La Ley Calles. This act gave rise to the violent and bloody attack perpetrated by the Calles government against faithful Catholics whom he considered to be fanatical and superstitious. It is at this stage of the conflict that “For Greater Glory” presents us the struggle for religious freedom as it is played out in the lives of an atheist general and a faith-filled 14-year-old boy who would later be proclaimed Blessed by the Church. General Enrique Gorostieta, played by Andy García, is a retired decorated general of two civil wars. Though he and his family live well, he personally struggles with the meaning of life. When he accepts command of the Cristero forces he does so for monetary reasons but as he associates with the Cristeros he is impressed and moved by their zeal as defenders of the Catholic faith.

Unlike himself, they do not seek worldly compensation but seek a far more noble reward, the right to worship God freely. The General is further inspired by the 14-year-old Jose Luis Sanchez del Rio, played by Mauricio Kuri, who joined the Cristeros out of love for Christ and a duty to defend religious liberty. Government forces captured Jose Luis and tortured him severely in an attempt to get him to deny Jesus Christ. Amidst severe torture and battery he responds to his torturers with the Cristero battle cry, “Viva Cristo Rey.” For his unwillingness to deny Jesus Christ, he is paraded through the street to be executed. One last time he is asked to deny Christ and again he demonstrates his strong faith and determination when he answers, “Viva Cristo Rey. “ Jose Luis’ martyrdom so moves General Gorostieta that he seeks the Sacrament of Confession and in the course of war he too meets a heroic end. Apart from its entertainment value “For Greater Glory” is a film that can inspire faith and devotion. The compelling scene of Jose Luis’ martyrdom can cause us to examine our own fidelity to Jesus Christ. General Gorostieta’s story of conversion is a testament to how a man who leads a vacuous life can find purpose and meaning by witnessing the active faith of exemplary Christians. Overall, the film beckons us to consider the extent to which we are willing to defend our religious values and to what degree we are willing to offer our lives for the greater glory of God. JULY 2012 | SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC

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What About Ventilators? Making Sense

Father Tadeueusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. National Bioethics Center

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he use of ventilators can pose particularly challenging problems during end of life situations for families. When should we place a loved one on a ventilator? If somebody is on a ventilator, can we ever “pull the plug?”

Understanding our moral duty depends upon whether the use of a ventilator in a particular case can be considered “ordinary” or “extraordinary.” Ordinary interventions can be understood as those medicines, operations and treatments that offer a reasonable hope of benefit for the patient and that can be obtained and used without excessive pain, expense or other significant burden. Use of a ventilator will sometimes satisfy these criteria, and other times it will not, depending on the specifics of the patient’s situation. Consider a young woman with serious pneumonia who is having difficulty breathing and is placed on a ventilator. The physicians treating her believe the pneumonia eventu-

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out of

ally can be controlled so that she can be weaned off the ventilator and breathe on her own in a few days or a week. They believe the device will be needed mostly as a temporary “bridge to healing,” that it will be effective while in use, and that it will not impose much burden on her. In such circumstances, the use of the ventilator could reasonably be considered “ordinary” and thus morally obligatory. Whenever there is a considerable hope of recovery from the illness by making use of a particular means (a ventilator, in this case), and when the patient can employ the means without much difficulty or burden, it is likely to be “ordinary” treatment. Thus, in the experienced hands of a well-trained physician, in a developed country with access to proper medication and equipment, intubation and ventilation of a patient can be a lowburden intervention. The difficulties associated with using a ventilator, however, can become notable depending on the details of a patient’s situation. Dr. Stephen Hannan, a pulmonary and critical care specialist in Fort Myers, Florida recently summarized some of the burdens associated with ventilation, noting particularly, “…the physical discomfort of the endotracheal tube going from the mouth, traversing the oropharynx, crossing the larynx, and reaching the trachea. Sedation, analgesics, and physical restraints

BIOETHICS are often necessary. The patient cannot talk while ventilator support is in use. The ventilator exposes the patient to greater risks of infection and barotrauma [damage to the lung tissue from the pressure of ventilation]. Even an untrained observer will recognize that the burden imposed by a ventilator with a standard endotracheal tube is much greater than the burden of a feeding tube.” Let’s consider an example that highlights these burdens. An 85-yearold grandfather is placed on a ventilator after suffering several serious strokes that damaged his brainstem so that he cannot breathe on his own. The physicians treating him are convinced that the damage from his most recent stroke will continue to get worse, with the nearly certain outcome that he will die in a few hours or days. Assuming that he is unconscious, and that other matters have been taken care of—last sacraments, opportunities for loved ones to say goodbye, etc.— the family could reasonably conclude that continued ventilation would be “extraordinary” and decide to have the ventilator disconnected, even though it would mean their grandfather would be expected to die in a matter of minutes without it. Such an act of withdrawing the ventilator would not be an act of euwww.SouthTexasCatholic.com

Understanding our moral duty depends upon >> whether the use of a ventilator in a particular case can be considered “ordinary” or “extraordinary.” thanasia, because he would be dying due to the underlying condition. It would be recognition of the burdensomeness of continued ventilation and an acknowledgement that heroics are not required, especially when death is imminent. Occasionally ventilators may end up being part of a long-term solution for a patient. Christopher Reeve, who played Clark Kent in the movie “Superman,” for example, was able to live for several years with a tracheostomy and a ventilator following an equestrian accident that severely damaged his spinal cord. The ventilator, while

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clearly a burden, offered many benefits to his situation as well, and in the final analysis, seemed to be a reasonable and proportionate intervention for his particular set of circumstances. Other cases with ventilators can be more difficult to decide, because a prognosis may be uncertain or debated. Sometimes the expense of providing long-term ventilation and critical care may need to be factored into the judgment about whether ventilation is ordinary or extraordinary. Determining whether there will be a “reasonable hope of benefit” to a particular patient by using a ventilator

can be challenging. Each case must be considered on its own merits, as we seek to make a good prudential judgment, and to provide for our loved ones in a way that corresponds to their real medical needs, so that we neither neglect nor overburden them in the face of powerful medical technology. (Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. earned his doctorate in neuroscience from Yale and did postdoctoral work at Harvard. He is a priest of the diocese of Fall River, MA, and serves as the Director of Education at The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. See www.ncbcenter.org.)

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JULY CALENDAR

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On July 2-6 at Our Lady of Victory Church in Beeville (707 N. Ave. E) from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Ages are from PreKinder through 6th grade. Registrations after each Mass. Classes will take place Monday and Tuesday, 4th of July will be a free day and the classes will continue on Thursday and Friday. Includes a snack and lunch. Please call Laly Arteaga at (361) 5429409 or Veronica Alaniz at (361) 319-5925.

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Theology on Tap Hey Ladies and Gents! There will be a Theology on Tap on Tuesday, July 3 from 5:30 7:30 p.m. at Carino’s Italian Restaurant.

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Hearts on Fire Retreat

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The Apostleship of Prayer hosts this retreat for young adults ages 18-39, single or married at the Newman Catholic Student Center.

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Grand Opening of Café Veritas

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July 7 from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. at Our Lady of Corpus Christi on 1200 Lantana. For more information call (361) 2899095, Ext. 309.

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Vacation Bible School

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See “Star Gazing” Rings of Saturn See the Wonders of Gods Creation in the Night Sky July 8 at 9 p.m. in the Chapel Area of Our Lady of Corpus Christi on 1200 Lantana. Hosted by Father Dan Estes.

OLCC will host missionary image of OLG Our Lady of Corpus Christi on 1200 Lantana will host the Missionary Image of

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Our Lady of Guadalupe on July 8. Veneration is from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.; Holy Hour at 4 p.m. and Mass at 5 p.m. For further information please call (210) 771-5757 or visit www.missionaryimagesa.com.

ence for every young man who wants to understand his faith better, know himself better and make new friends from all over the diocese. Explore is for young men who are enrolled in high school or who will be enrolling this fall.

‘A Covenant of Love with Mary’ at OLPH

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Metanoia Youth Conference

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Ignatian Retreat

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Free Financial Literacy Class

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Baile Ranchero

Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish will have monthly classes entitled “A Covenant of Love with Mary” in the parish hall. The next class is on Monday, July 9. Call OLPH office at (361) 991-76891 or Mrs. Maria Rodriguez at (361) 991-3356 for more information.

CDA’s Rummage Sale Catholic Daughters of Americas Rummage Sale at St. Philip, the Apostle on 3513 Cimarron Road, Friday, July 13 and Saturday, July 14 from 7 a.m.-2 p.m.

Free Home-buyer Education Class HUD Approved Housing Counseling Agency is offering free Home-buyer Education class at Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi, Inc on 1322 Comanche. Dates may change, call to confirm. For more information call the Housing Counseling Department at (361) 884-0651.

Deer Creek Camp Located near Medina, Texas, Deer Creek Camp is a summer camp for the youth in your parish (ages 7–16 years of age). It will take place the week of July 15–20.

23 Explore 2012

Explore is a summer experi-

Our Lady of Perpetual Help and St. John the Baptist Catholic Church invite Parish Youth Groups to join the first Annual Metanoia Conference on July 27-29. For sign up information and guest speakers, visit www.diocesecc.org. July 27-Aug. 4 at Our Lady of Corpus Christi on 1200 Lantana. For more information call (361) 289-9095, ext. 301.

HUD Approved Housing Counseling Agency is offering free Financial Literacy class at Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi, Inc. on 1322 Comanche. Dates may change, call to confirm. For more information call the Housing Counseling Department at (361) 884-0651. Ss. Cyril & Methodius Catholic Church and Our Lady of Guadalupe Society will be hosting a Baile Ranchero on July 28 at Monsignor Kasper Hall from 8-11 p.m. Brisket sandwiches will be served for $5.

SouthTexasCatholic.com

CALENDAR

For more calendar events

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

LOS RIESGOS QUE TOMAMOS

EN EFECTO: DURAS MEDIDAS CONTRA MANEJAR MIENTRAS INTOXICADO.

En estos días festivos de familia, hay que ser consciente que es posible que la celebración incluya bebidas alcohólicas. Ese brindis sobre la comida con parientes reunidos, te puede costar hasta $17,000 dolares en multas, costos de abogado y cuotas si manejas a casa tomado. Porque en Texas si tomas y manejas, vas a la cárcel.

CONOCE LAS LEYES. CONSIDERA LAS CONSECUENCIAS. CONSULTA Y PREVIENE. Antes de tomar y manejar, asegura a donde vas a llegar.

TOMA

MANEJA

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

CÁRCEL

Primera Ofensa • Multa de hasta $2,000 • Hasta 6 meses de cárcel • Licencia de conducir suspendida por hasta 1 año • $1,000 cada año por 3 años para retener la licencia de conducir

JULY JULY2012 2012 | | SOUTH SOUTHTEX TEXAS ASCATHOLIC CATHOLIC

55 47

July 2012 Issue SOUTH TEXAS CATHOLIC P.O. Box 2620 Corpus Christi, TX 78403 (361) 882-6191

Our Lady of Corpus Christi Calendar of Events: Saturday, July 7 Grand Opening of Café Veritas from 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. There will be live music, lots of food, coffee and, a specialty of our coffee shop “homemade ice cream”.

Sunday, July 8 See the “Missionary Image of Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Veneration: 10-4 p.m.; Holy Hour at 4 p.m.; Mass at 5 p.m.

Sunday, July 8 “Star Gazing” Rings of Saturn - See the Wonders of Gods Creation in the Night Sky Hosted by Fr. Dan at 9 p.m. in the Chapel Area

July 27-Aug. 4 Our Special Ignatian 8-day retreat comes this summer

Aug. 2-5, Sept. 27-30 and Nov. 8-11 Women’s St. Ignatius Silent Retreats (www.deepprayer.org)

Sept. 13-16 and Dec. 13-16

11 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Men’s: St. Ignatius Silent Retreats (www.deepprayer.org)

Join us for live music, food, coffee & a specialty of our coffee shop “homemade ice cream”

Our Lady of Corpus Christi

Divine Mercy Retreat

Bring this coupon to the bookstore for a 10% discount from July 20-31, 2012

Nov. 15-18

1200 Lantana • Corpus Christi

(361) 289-9095 Bookstore: Ext. 309 Retreats: Ext. 301

Please visit www.deepprayer.org for more information

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SOUTH TEX AS CATHOLIC | JULY 2012

Ongoing Events: Every Tuesday from 7-8 p.m. Miraculous Medal Novena Holy Hour

Every 1st Sunday of the month at 4 p.m. St. Peregrine Healing Mass “Come and See” Jesus in our beautiful Perpetual Adoration Chapel! All are welcome! www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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