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Diocese of Fall River, Mass.

F riday , April 24, 2015

Diocese to mark World Day of Prayer for Vocations with Holy Hour

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff

Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., speaks to a gathering at the Stoneforge Tavern & Publick House in Raynham during one of several kickoffs for this year’s Catholic Charities Appeal. (Photo by John E. Kearns Jr.)

FALL RIVER — In 1963 Pope Paul VI designated the fourth Sunday of Easter as the “World Day of Prayer for Vocations.”

Also known as Good Shepherd Sunday — so named because John’s Gospel reading of the day recounts Christ calling Himself “the Good Shepherd” ( Jn 10:11-18) — it is an opportunity for the Universal Church to pause and pray for increased voca-

tions to the priesthood and religious life.

And for more than a half-century now, the Holy Father has issued an annual message for the day, addressing the ongoing need for vocations.

In keeping with that trend, faithful from across the Fall River Diocese have been invited to gather at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Fall River on that Sunday, April 26 at 3 p.m., for a Holy Hour Turn to page five

Bishop asks faithful to remember the ‘joy’ of giving as Charities Appeal kicks off

By Becky Aubut Anchor Staff

FALL RIVER — The theme of the 74th annual Catholic Charities Appeal may be a bit wordier than past themes, admits Jim Campbell, but “Feed the Hungry, Shelter the Homeless, Comfort the Sorrowful, In His Name … It’s what we do,” encompasses what the Appeal and its donors are about: “We’re putting the imperative out there, that this is what we do as Catholics and as part of our Catholic social teaching,” said the director of

Development for the Fall River Diocese.

Last year the Appeal raised $4.3 million, a slight dip from the all time record set in 2013 of $4.4 million: “Last year was strong but it wasn’t a record setter,” said Campbell. “For a diocese of our size, it demonstrates tremendous generosity on a part of most of our parishes. There was an increase — 30 of our 84 parishes showed an increase and 45 met what they had done the year before.”

Turn to page 15

‘May we never abandon the poor and less fortunate’

By Linda Andrade Rodrigues Anchor Correspondent

RAYNHAM — There is a call to action around the diocese, as the caring, hard-working and generous folks of our parishes gather in support of the ministries of the Diocese of Fall River. Their mission is to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless and comfort the sorrowful because it’s what they do.

“Tonight is the first of three kickoff events,” said Catholic Charities Appeal director James A. Campbell at the Stoneforge Tavern & Publick House. “It’s a tradition for all the local parishes to promote the campaign.”

The informational session for the Taunton-Attleboro deaneries featured talks by Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., and director of Campus Ministries Father David C. Frederici, as well as the premiere of the video, “It’s

What We Do.” “It’s truly good to be here with all of you,” said Bishop da Cunha. “This is my first time sharing this moment with you as we kick off our campaign for Catholic Charities. I am so happy to see so many people who share their talents, time and resources.”

The bishop said that his route to Fall River was long — one with many turns.

“But from the moment I arrived here, I have felt so much at home, so very welcomed by all the priests, deacons and religious, and the people wherever I go,” he said. “I tell them I really am at home here because I know God sent me here.”

He said that he thanked God for the wonderful gift when he first received his appointment as Bishop of Fall River.

Turn to page seven

Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., posed with several young seminarians from the area during a reception welcoming him on September 24 in Westport. Bishop da Cunha formerly served as director of Vocations for the Society of Divine Vocations.

From left: Kevin Brawley, Ryan Healey, Matt Gill, the bishop, Larry Valliere, Steven Booth, and Gregory Bosse. (Souza)

Dynamic faith duo to bring to diocese mission of healing, prayer for priests, love for Eucharist

By Dave Jolivet Anchor Editor

NEW BEDFORD — In chapter 10 of Luke’s Gospel, Jesus sends out 72 disciples “in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. And He was saying to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore beseech the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.’’’

More than 2,000 years later Jesus’ Church on earth has grown exponentially, yet still, “the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.”

Following the lead of their predecessors two millennium earlier, a dynamic faith duo has been traveling the world as a pair, spreading the Good News of the healing power of the Eucharist, the importance of the priesthood, and refueling priests to carry on the mission they professed when they answered God’s call to serve Him. For 30 years Vincentian Father

Kevin Scallon and St. Clare Sister Briege McKenna, both natives of Ireland, have paired to minister to priests and bring messages of hope and healing to countless people across the globe.

Father Scallon and Sister Briege will be conducting a parish mission May 4 through 7 at St. Anthony of Padua Church in New Bedford. For four days, there will be two sessions daily, at noon and at 7 p.m.

“We wanted to provide times that Turn to page 20

Father Kevin Scallon, C.M., and Sister Briege McKenna, O.S.C., will be directing a mission from May 4-7 at St. Anthony of Padua Church in New Bedford.

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April 24, 2015

Mass, exhibits, events at Catholic University honor archbishop’s legacy

WASHINGTON (CNS) — On a Tuesday night in 1953, roughly 25 million people in the United States gathered around their television to watch a program featuring that year’s Emmy

winner for “Most Outstanding Television Personality.” However, instead of tuning in to a slickly produced program made in Hollywood, these people turned on their sets to see a priest in full

cassock, standing in front of a chalkboard. Few members of the American Catholic Church, especially in the 20th century, are as quickly recognized as Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.

In honor of the 75th anniversary of the first TV broadcast of his NBC program, “The Catholic

Hour,” and to draw attention to his sainthood cause, The Catholic University of America sponsored a number of events April 13-17.

The events included an April 13 panel discussion on “Media and the New Evangelization,” of which Archbishop Sheen has been called a pioneer; as well as memorial Mass and Holy Hour

and the dedication of a memorial classroom in his honor.

In a video produced by the university highlighting Archbishop Sheen’s time spent studying and lecturing there, university president John Garvey said that his life and example are “a reminder to all of us that we’re all called to be saints.”

April 24, 2015

tice — and Mary. They were the two realities that motivated his preaching and what he proposed in his missions.”

St. Alphonsus focused on Mary’s role as the “Queen of Mercy,” the Redemptorist said. “The basic characteristic he emphasizes is that Mary is God’s welcomer; that is, when we are afraid to approach God because of our sins, she welcomes us and helps us turn to Him. So, her mercy is acceptance and her mercy is her ability to intercede for us and her mercy is to always anticiPope Francis passes flag twirlers as he arrives to lead a recent general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Mother and son: Pope Francis shares personal, intimate devotion to Mary

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — From Easter to Pentecost — and especially during the Marian month of May — Catholics recite the “Regina Coeli” prayer “with the emotion of children who are happy because their mother is happy” that Jesus has Risen from the dead, Pope Francis said.

Although his devotion to the Mother of God is profound, it is simple in many ways: Mary is a mother to every believer; Jesus would not leave His followers orphans.

While his connection to Mary clearly is a matter of heart and mind, it is also physical. Whenever Pope Francis passes a statue or icon of Mary, he kisses it or allows his hand to rest tenderly upon it.

Honoring the Mother of God, of course, is a solid part of Catholic tradition and a mainstay in the devotion and teaching of the popes. St. John Paul II’s motto, “Totus Tuus” (“All yours”), and the large M on his coat of arms were just the most graphic elements of a devotion that led to a whole body of teaching about Mary, her role in Catholics’ faith life and the importance of praying the Rosary.

Pope Francis would not have an argument with any of St. John Paul’s Marian piety or discourse.

But there are differences.

“The sense of Pope Francis’ devotion to Mary is a little more personal, more intimate” than St. John Paul’s was, said Redemptorist Father Sabatino Majorano, a professor at Rome’s Alphonsianum Institute. Pope Francis expresses “that feeling that exists between a son and his mother,

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News From the Vatican

where I think Pope John Paul’s was more that of a subject and his queen.”

The difference, he believes, comes from their roots: Pope Francis’ Latin roots — not just in Argentina, but also from his Italian family — and St. John Paul’s Slavic, Polish culture.

Retired Pope Benedict XVI spoke and wrote less about Mary than his predecessor and successor, but one now-solid Marian custom began in his pontificate: Whether or not it is a Marian feast day, a statue of Mary is placed prominently near the altar at papal Liturgies.

Pope Francis’ habit of touching images of Mary is a typical Latin American gesture, one Father Majorano said he saw repeated thousands of times at Brazil’s Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, which is staffed by his brother Redemptorists.

“The tactile experience is part of praying. It’s a Spirituality that takes flesh, becomes concrete; it is not just an idea or a theory.”

At Mass and other formal Liturgical services, Pope Francis uses incense to bless the Marian images. He notices the images and often comments on them.

In Caserta, Italy, last July, Pope Francis celebrated the feast of St. Anne, Mary’s mother. A locally loved statue of St. Anne holding the hand of her little girl, Mary, was placed to the side of the altar.

In his homily, the pope said, “When I was using the incense, I noticed something very beautiful: The statue of St. Anne does not have a crown, but her daughter Mary is

crowned. St. Anne is the woman who prepared her daughter to become queen, to become queen of Heaven and earth.

This woman did a great job.”

Visiting Naples in March, Pope Francis told priests, nuns and seminarians that one way to make sure Jesus is the center of their lives is to ask “His mother to take you to Him. A priest, a Brother, a nun who does not love Mary, who does not pray to her — I would even say one who does not recite the Rosary — well, if you don’t love the mother, the mother will not give you the Son.” In the same talk, the pope spoke again about how he recently read “The Glories of Mary,” a hefty book written in 1750 by St. Alphonsus Liguori. “In this book, I like reading the stories about Mary that are behind each chapter; in them you see how Mary always leads us to Jesus.”

Father Majorano, an expert in the writings of St. Alphonsus, said he and his confreres were not surprised to hear Pope Francis praising the 265-yearold work of their founder.

The style St. Alphonsus uses to speak of Mary reflects the Latin culture he and the pope share — “warm, written with the heart more than the head, although it is intelligent,” Father Majorano said.

“In general, St. Alphonsus in his books shows a great knowledge of patristic works and other Church writers — he cites them continually — but this work on Mary is written more with the heart.”

The two focal points of St. Alphonsus’ life, he said, were “the crucifix as an expression of God’s love — not His jus-

pate our needs, like she did at the wedding at Cana.”

In his official proclamation of the 2015-2016 Year of Mercy, Pope Francis wrote, “Mary attests that the mercy of the Son of God knows no bounds and extends to everyone, without exception. Let us address her in the words of the ‘Salve Regina,’ (‘Hail Holy Queen’) a prayer ever ancient and new, so that she may never tire of turning her merciful eyes toward us, and make us worthy to contemplate the face of mercy, her Son Jesus.”

Pope Francis accepts resignation of Bishop Robert W. Finn

Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — Nearly twoand-a-half years after being the first U.S. bishop convicted of a misdemeanor in failing to report suspected child abuse by a priest in his diocese, Kansas City-St. Joseph’s bishop has resigned.

The Vatican confirmed Pope Francis’ acceptance of Bishop Finn’s resignation according to Canon 104 Article 2 in the Code of Canon Law in an April 21 statement, released at noon local time.

Article 2 of Canon 104, according to the Vatican’s website, refers to a situation when “a diocesan bishop who has become less able to fulfill his office because of ill health or some other grave cause is earnestly requested to present his resignation from office.”

Finn’s resignation will take effect immediately, and although he will still be a bishop, he will no longer lead a diocese. It is up to Pope Francis to choose his successor.

The brief Vatican statement gave no word as to what Bishop Finn will do following his resignation.

Last September, two years after Bishop Finn’s trial and guilty verdict, an archbishop held a visitation on behalf of the Vatican and met with Bishop Finn.

The reasons for the visitation were not revealed, however some reports indicate that the visitation was intended to evaluate the bishop’s leadership of his diocese.

In September 2012, Bishop Finn, now 62, was convicted on a misdemeanor count of failure to report suspected child abuse after he and his diocese failed to report that lewd images of children had been found on a laptop belonging to Father Shawn Ratigan, a priest of the

diocese, in December 2010.

The diocese’s vicar general had told Bishop Finn about one of the images, but the bishop did not see them himself.

Father Ratigan attempted suicide after the images were discovered and initially had not been expected to live. Diocesan officials told law enforcement officials about the images in May 2011, months after their discovery.

A diocese-commissioned independent investigation said diocesan officials conducted “a limited and improperly conceived investigation” into whether a single image, which the vicar general did not see, constituted child pornography.

The diocese’s legal counsel also said that that single image did not constitute child pornography.

Further investigation revealed that the photos had been taken in and around churches where the priest had worked.

In 2012, Father Ratigan was sentenced to 50 years in federal prison on child pornography charges.

Bishop Finn was sentenced to two years’ probation for failing to report suspected abuse.

The diocese settled two lawsuits from the parents of two girls photographed by Father Ratigan for a total of $1.8 million in February 2014.

The Father Ratigan case has also triggered further legal action from an arbitrator who levied a $1.1 million penalty against the diocese, on the grounds that the diocese violated the terms of a 2008 abuse lawsuit settlement in which Bishop Finn and the diocese agreed to report suspected child abusers to law enforcement.

The diocese objected to the arbitrator’s penalty, but it was upheld in court and the diocese paid the fine.

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April 24, 2015

Kidnapped Nigerian girls deserve more than just a hashtag, activist says

Jos, Nigeria (CNA/ EWTN News) — The hundreds of Nigerian schoolgirls abducted a year ago by the group Boko Haram deserve a major, sustained rescue effort, says a Nigerian lawyer who urges far more global attention for the wider crisis in the country.

“Every day of captivity for these girls is a dark day in their lives and their parents’ lives. It’s harder to keep hope alive,” international human rights lawyer Emmanuel Ogebe of the U.S.-Nigeria Law Group recently told CNA. He said not enough is being done to find the girls. In his view, intervention of an international coalition is needed.

“The world hasn’t aligned itself similarly to counteract Boko Haram, as they are doing with ISIS,” he said, referencing the Islamic State terrorist group, to which Boko Haram has reportedly pledged allegiance.

On April 14, 2014, Boko Haram militants abducted nearly 300 predominantly Christian girls from a secondary school in Chibok. Several dozen escaped, but there are 219 girls believed to remain in captivity.

Escapees have reported rape, forced marriage, forced labor and abuse. The group International Christian Concern said some of the abuse was intended to coerce them into rejecting Christianity.

Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau claimed the abducted girls have all converted to Islam and have been married, Agence France Presse reports.

The abduction of the Chibok girls prompted a social media campaign using the hashtag “# B r i n g B a c k O u r G i r l s . ” Participants in the campaign included U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, human rights activist and Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, and more than a dozen Hollywood personalities.

But while the social media effort may have raised awareness, Ogebe said concrete action to rescue the girls has been lacking.

“There needs to be massive deployment of intelligence assets and available technology to look for the girls, and this needs to happen on a sustained basis. We cannot wait for every anniversary before we have a fresh hashtag campaign,” he said.

The lawyer also pointed out that the kidnapping of the school girls was far from an isolated incident.

According to Amnesty International, at least 2,000 women have been abducted in 38 mass kidnappings in northeast Nigeria since the start of 2014. Boko Haram is believe to have killed at least 15,500 people since 2012.

Ogebe said Boko Haram’s “onslaught” has continued despite Nigeria’s elections and the regional efforts of the military.

He pointed to what he sees as a double standard in the reaction to violence by Boko Haram and the reaction to the actions of ISIS: the latter have drawn strong global condemnation and airstrikes from an international coalition.

While the beheading of 21 Coptic Christians in Libya

by Islamic State militants inspired “global outrage,” Ogebe said, there was little reaction to Boko Haram’s September 2013 mass beheading of 170 people, 150 of whom were Christians.

Both groups have declared their own Islamic caliphate and follow strict interpretations of Islamic law. Last month, reports were released indicating that Boko Haram had pledged its allegiance to ISIS. Ogebe said the international community appears not to have a consistent approach, “in spite of the fact that both terror groups are now aligned.”

“What clearer evidence do we need that this is the same ideology at war?” he asked.

In addition to global cooperation to rescue the girls, Ogebe also said that international humanitarian assistance from religious groups is “desperately needed.”

“This really has the potential for a huge crisis. And we don’t have any of the major humanitarian groups working in Nigeria,” he said.

On April 14, Nigerians marked the anniversary of the Chibok kidnapping with protests and vigils.

Muhammadu Buhari, Nigeria’s president-elect, has said it not known whether the girls can be rescued and their whereabouts are unknown.

“As much as I wish to, I cannot promise that we can find them,” he said, while pledging that his government will do “everything in its power to bring them home.”

Bishop William Skylstad, then-outgoing president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic bishops, applauds as Chicago Cardinal Francis E. George smiles after being elected president of the conference in 2007.

Cardinal George, 78, died April 17 after a long battle with cancer. (CNS photo/Nancy Wiechec)

Apostolic Blessing offered to those who mourn Cardinal George

Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — In a telegram to Archbishop Blase Cupich of Chicago, the Holy Father offered his blessing to all those who mourn Cardinal Francis E. George.

“To all who mourn the late cardinal in the sure hope of the Resurrection, I cordially impart my Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of consolation and peace in the Lord,” Pope Francis said in the telegram, according to Vatican Radio.

The Holy Father praised the late archbishop emeritus for his service to the Church as an Oblate of Mary and for his episcopal service in Yakima, Portland, and finally, Chicago.

Saddened to hear of Cardinal George’s passing, the pontiff offered his “heartfelt condolences” to the faithful of the Archdiocese of Chicago.

“I join you in commending the soul of this wise and gentle pastor to the merciful love of God our Heavenly Father,” the pope said.

Pope Francis also offered prayers for Cardinal George during his daily Mass at Casa Santa Martha last Saturday morning.

Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican Secretary of State, gave his condolences in the telegram while praying “that the merciful Lord will grant (Cardinal George) the reward of his faith and his tireless labors for the Church.”

The 78-year-old cardinal passed away April 17 after battling cancer for several years. He was first diagnosed with bladder cancer in 2006 and underwent a five-hour surgery to remove his bladder and other parts of his body affected by cancer. In 2012, his doctors discovered that the cancer had returned, this time to his kidney and liver.

The funeral Mass for Cardinal George took place April 23

at Holy Name Cathedral in Chicago after lying in-state for two days. He was buried in a family plot at the All Saints Cemetery in Des Plaines, Ill. At a press conference, Archbishop Cupich lauded the cardinal for his bravery in overcoming challenges, which included a battle with polio as a teen-ager that left his legs permanently weak.

“Cardinal George was a respected leader among the bishops of the United States,” Archbishop Cupich noted, particularly pointing to his work to fight the clerical sex abuse scandal: “He stood strong among his fellow bishops and insisted that zero tolerance was the only course consistent with our beliefs.”

The first Chicago native to become the city’s archbishop, Cardinal George retired in 2014 amid his battle with cancer and was succeeded by Archbishop Cupich.

He had shepherded the archdiocese since 1997.

Cardinal George leaves behind a robust legacy as a leader among the American bishops and an influential figure in the global Church. He worked with the U.S. bishops and Vatican to fight clerical sex abuse, prominently speaking in favor of a “zero tolerance” policy.

He was also a religious freedom advocate, strongly opposing regulations under the Obama Administration that would require Catholic organizations to cooperate with providing abortion and contraception. A long-time commenter on the state of culture, Cardinal George is known for once saying that he believed he would die in bed, his successor would die in prison, and then his successor will die a martyr in the public square, but that the following successor would pick up the fragments of society and help to

rebuild civilization.

Born Jan. 16, 1937, Francis Eugene George joined the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate and was ordained a priest in 1963. He obtained a master’s degree in philosophy at The Catholic University of America and a doctorate in American philosophy at Tulane University in New Orleans. He later studied at the Pontifical Urban University in Rome, where he earned Doctorate of Sacred Theology.

Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of Yakima in 1990.

He became Archbishop of Portland, Ore. in 1997 and was appointed the following year to be the Archbishop of Chicago. He was elevated to the College of Cardinals in 1998.

The cardinal served as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2007-2010. He was a member and advisor for numerous other committees at the U.S. bishops’ conference, including those dealing with doctrine, missions, evangelization and catechesis, Pro-Life activities, Divine worship, African American Catholics and religious liberty.

During his time as archbishop of Chicago, Cardinal George wrote pastoral letters on evangelization and the problem of racism.

He also wrote two books reflecting on faith in relation to culture and the common good.

Archbishop Cupich recalled Cardinal George as a man who was close to the diocese that he led, “always choosing the Church over his own comfort and the people over his own needs.” He praised the cardinal for his example throughout his life, including his final battle with cancer. “Let us heed his example and be a little more brave, a little more steadfast and a lot more loving,” the archbishop said.

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April 24, 2015

Diocesan faithful invited to Holy Hour for Vocations on Sunday continued from page one

with Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., who will lead the prayer and also preach on the topic.

“We need to establish a positive culture of vocations in the diocese, to let people know how important it is for everyone to pray and encourage young people to consider the possibility that God may be calling them to service in the Church,” Bishop da Cunha recently told The Anchor. “We need to let our people know that promoting vocations is everybody’s business. They need to know that priests have a happy and fulfilled life, and that the Church needs faith-filled and generous men to respond to God’s call to service in the Church.”

According to Father Kevin Cook, director of the Vocations Office for the diocese, it’s appropriate that the Church pray for vocations on a day that also commemorates Jesus’ self-identification as the Good Shepherd, tending to His flock.

“Our Lord told us that the harvest is great and the laborers are few, so we must pray for the Master of the harvest to send us laborers for the harvest,” Father Cook said.

“As a diocese we are called to pray with great humility and frequency for all vocations, but especially this day we are being called to pray for those called by Our Lord to the priesthood, that they will respond with great generosity.”

“Like the Good Shepherd Who cares for His flock, the priest is called to imitate Christ in a radical way, especially in his relationship with the people of God,” added Father Jay Mello, assistant Vocations Director and recruiter for the diocese. “This year, our new bishop will be presiding over and preaching at a Holy Hour for vocations.

It is a great witness of how we are united with the entire Church throughout the world in praying to the Lord of the Harvest, the Good Shepherd Himself, praying that He might send us more young men to work in His vineyard as priests in our diocese.”

While a calling to the priesthood or religious life remains the focal point of the day, Bishop da Cunha also stressed how important all vocations are to the Church.

“Even though there is a

great need to focus on vocations to the priesthood on that day, the Church invites us to also reflect and pray for us to honor the vocations of all Christians given at Baptism: the vocations of Marriage, priesthood, diaconate, consecrated life, and the single life,” the bishop said.

Father Cook thankfully noted how many dioceses have seen a noticeable increase in vocations to the priesthood in recent years, and Fall River is no exception.

“For a while, our diocese had been struggling with the amount of seminarians, but there are hopeful signs that we may be turning a corner,” Father Cook said. “At this time we have seven seminarians — one studying in Rome, four studying at St. John’s Seminary in Brighton, and two studying at Our Lady of Providence in Providence, R.I.” Father Cook attributes this uptick in diocesan vocations to several factors — not least of which is the continued support of his brother priests and, in particular, the guidance of Bishop da Cunha, who is member of the Society of Divine Vocations, a congregation whose central mission is “vocational discernment and religious formation.”

“I think the bishop brings different insights about vocation work and has inspired different priests to make vocation promotion more prevalent in their parishes,” Father Cook said. “Furthermore, I think I am seeing more brother priests inquire about vocations, as well as more priests are telling me about young men in their parishes with whom they have had conversations about possible priestly vocations.”

“I think that our new bishop belonging to a religious community that has vocations as a priority should be a clear indication that this is a priority for him,” agreed Father Mello. “Hopefully that will impact the number of men entering the seminary in future years as he carries out his ministry here in our diocese.”

Another great tool that has helped promote diocesan vocations in recent years has been the annual Quo Vadis Days experience, which Father Cook described as “a great combination of prayer, Sacraments, talks, fraternity, and sports.”

“During this week we strive to help young men grow in their faith, become more open to praying about whatever the Lord is calling to them to do, to grow in their understanding of the different vocations but, in particular, the priesthood, and to build up a fraternity with other young men from around the diocese who are trying to grow in their own faith,” Father Cook said.

“The seminarians all help run the program and it gives the young men an opportunity to get to know some of the future priests of the diocese.”

Highlights such as the day-long group mountain hiking trip not only provide the young men with an opportunity to make new friends and get some exercise in the process, but also to share thoughts about their faith and potential calling.

“By sharing this week with others from the diocese, many realize they are not alone in taking their faith seriously and many develop some great friendships from this week,” Father Cook said. “I find most leave Quo Vadis Days with a greater openness to praying about their vocation.”

Open to young men ages 14 to 19 in the diocese, this year’s Quo Vadis Days is being held July 6-10 in Medway.

“Each year we have had an increased number of young men from around our diocese participating in this weeklong retreat for high schoolaged boys,” Father Mello said.

“We are hoping to continue that trend this year with another record number of guys.

It is a great week of fraternity, prayer, discussion and sports where priests and seminarians give talks on prayer, chastity, discernment and priesthood.”

“It really is an incredible week,” Father Cook said. “Applications can be picked up from the priests in any parish, or can be downloaded on the diocesan Vocations website.”

Parents who are interested in having their sons participate should contact either Father Cook at Holy Family Parish in East Taunton, Father Jay Mello at St. Michael’s or St. Joseph’s Parish in Fall River, or speak to their parish priest or high school chaplain for more information.

While diocesan programs and apostolates remain important resources to promote and foster vocations, Father

Cook stressed that discernment often begins at home.

“When people sense their families are supportive of a possible vocation, they become more open to think and pray about it,” Father Cook said. “When the support is not there in the home, many times individuals are hesitant to pray and talk about a possible calling, because of the fear of rejection from loved ones.”

Father Cook said lay people can be of great help by simply talking to someone they think might have a possible calling.

“Studies have shown that a large percentage of those being ordained in recent years say they first considered a possible calling because someone asked them if they have thought about whether they were being called,” Father Cook said. “And we should be fostering a love for all vocations — whether we are being called to a particular vocation or not — and willing to talk about them with others, especially with youth.”

“Lastly, we should speak about our love for particular

vocations,” he added. “When priests speak about their love for the priesthood, it helps foster an environment of promoting vocations.”

“I think the most important thing that the lay faithful can do to promote vocations is to speak to their children about being open to God’s will in their lives,” Father Mello said. “So often adults ask children what they want to be when they grow up, however, as Christians, we should refocus that question and encourage them to think about what God might want them to be when they grow up.”

Those who cannot attend the designated Holy Hour on April 26 are encouraged to pray for vocations in their own way.

“I would hope that at every parish we will have at least prayers for vocations offered at every Mass,” Bishop da Cunha said.

All are invited to attend the Holy Hour for vocations at the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in Fall River on Sunday beginning at 3 p.m.

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April 24, 2015

Anchor Editorial

Exodus, a fundamental experience of vocation

The Fourth Sunday of Easter has been observed as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations for more than a half century. Pope Francis wrote a message to the entire Church to help guide us in our prayer this weekend, which he signed at the Vatican on Palm Sunday. The pope said that this special Sunday “reminds us of our need to pray, as Jesus Himself told His disciples, so that ‘the Lord of the harvest may send out laborers into His harvest’” (Lk 10:2).

Referring back to the Second Vatican Council, the pope wrote, “Since the Church ‘is by her very nature missionary’ (Ad Gentes, 2), the Christian vocation is necessarily born of the experience of mission. Hearing and following the voice of Christ the Good Shepherd, means letting ourselves be attracted and guided by Him, in consecration to Him; it means allowing the Holy Spirit to draw us into this missionary dynamism, awakening within us the desire, the joy and the courage to offer our own lives in the service of the Kingdom of God.” As usual, Pope Francis offers us, individually and as the entire Church a challenge.

He said that “to offer one’s life in mission is possible only if we are able to leave ourselves behind. I would like reflect on that particular ‘exodus’ which is the heart of vocation, or better yet, of our response to the vocation God gives us. When we hear the word ‘exodus,’ we immediately think of the origins of the amazing love story between God and His people, a history which passes through the dramatic period of slavery in Egypt, the calling of Moses, the experience of liberation and the journey toward the Promised Land. The Book of Exodus is a parable of the entire history of Salvation, but also of the inner workings of Christian faith. Passing from the slavery of the old Adam to new life in Christ is an event of redemption which takes place through faith (Eph 4:22-24). This passover is a genuine ‘exodus’; it is the journey of each Christian soul and the entire Church, the decisive turning of our lives towards the Father.”

The Holy Father said that this is a “basic movement, which is part of the experience of faith. Belief means transcending ourselves, leaving behind our comfort and the inflexibility of our ego in order to center our life in Jesus Christ. It means leaving, like Abraham, our native place and going forward with trust, knowing that God will show us the way to a new land.” In writing this, the Holy Father was not saying that we’re all called to go to a new geographical place, but rather to a new Spiritual one, one in which Christ reigns.

The pope views this move as a positive one: “[T]hose who set out to follow Christ find life in abundance by putting themselves completely at the service of God and His Kingdom. All of this is profoundly rooted in love. The Christian vocation is first and foremost a call to love, a love which attracts us and draws us out of ourselves, ‘decentering’ us and triggering ‘an ongoing exodus out of the closed inward-looking self towards its liberation through self-giving, and thus towards authentic self-discovery and indeed the discovery of God’” (Pope Benedict, Deus Caritas Est, 6).

Pope Francis said that “the exodus experience is” a paradigm for all true Christian living, but is especially needed in “a vocation of special dedication to the Gospel. This calls for a constantly renewed attitude of conversion and transformation, an incessant moving forward, a passage from death to life like that celebrated in every Liturgy, an

experience of passover. Vocation is always a work of God. He leads us beyond our initial situation, frees us from every enslavement, breaks down our habits and our indifference, and brings us to the joy of communion with Him and with our brothers and sisters, allowing Him to help us leave ourselves and our false security behind, and to strike out on the path which leads to Jesus Christ, the origin and destiny of our life and our happiness.”

Speaking communally, the pope told us, “This exodus process does not regard individuals alone, but the whole Church. The Church is faithful to her Master to the extent that she is a Church which ‘goes forth,’ a Church which is less concerned about herself, her structures and successes, and more about her ability to go out and meet God’s children wherever they are, to feel compassion (com-passio) for their hurt and pain. God goes forth from Himself in a Trinitarian dynamic of love: He hears the cry of His people and He intervenes to set them free (Ex 3:7). The Church is called to follow this way of being and acting. She is meant to be a Church which evangelizes, goes out to encounter humanity, proclaims the liberating word of the Gospel, heals people’s Spiritual and physical wounds with the grace of God, and offers relief to the poor and the suffering.”

The pope dispelled the idea that “to hear and answer the Lord’s call” is just “a private and completely personal matter fraught with momentary emotion. Rather, it is a specific, real and total commitment which embraces the whole of our existence and sets it at the service of the growth of God’s Kingdom on earth. The Christian vocation, rooted in the contemplation of the Father’s heart, thus inspires us to solidarity in bringing liberation to our brothers and sisters, especially the poorest. A disciple of Jesus has a heart open to His unlimited horizons, and friendship with the Lord never means flight from this life or from the world. On the contrary, it involves a profound interplay between communion and mission” (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 23).

Rather than being a burden, “this exodus towards God and others fills our lives with joy and meaning. I wish to state this clearly to the young,” the pope wrote, “whose youth and openness to the future makes them open-hearted and generous. At times uncertainty, worries about the future and the problems they daily encounter can risk paralyzing their youthful enthusiasm and shattering their dreams, to the point where they can think that it is not worth the effort to get involved, that the God of the Christian faith is somehow a limit on their freedom. Dear young friends, never be afraid to go out from yourselves and begin the journey! The Gospel is the message which brings freedom to our lives; it transforms them and makes them all the more beautiful. Your life will become richer and more joyful each day!”

Calling the Blessed Mother the “model of every vocation,” Pope Francis noted that she “did not fear to utter her ‘f iat’[may it be done] in response to the Lord’s call. With the generous courage born of faith, Mary sang of the joy of leaving herself behind and entrusting to God the plans she had for her life.”

May we reflect upon our own Christian exoduses this weekend and pray that others will join us on this journey.

Pope Francis’ Regina Caeli message, April 19 Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!

In the Biblical readings of today’s Liturgy, the word “witness” resounds twice. The first time is on the lips of Peter: he, after the healing of the paralytic at the door of the temple of Jerusalem, exclaims: “The Author of life you put to death, but God raised Him from the dead; of this we are witnesses” (Acts 3:15). The second time is on the lips of Jesus Risen: He, on the evening of Easter opens the minds

of the disciples to the mystery of His death and Resurrection and says to them: “You are witnesses of these things” (Lk 24:48). The Apostles, who saw with their own eyes the Risen Christ, could not keep silent about their extraordinary experience. He had revealed Himself to them so that the truth of His Resurrection could reach everyone through their witness.

And the Church has the duty to prolong this mission, every baptized person is called to give witOFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER

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ness, with their words and with their lives, that Jesus is Risen, that He is alive and present among us.

We all are called to give witness that Jesus is alive! We can ask ourselves: who is the witness? The witness is one who has seen, who remembers and who recounts. To see, to remember and to tell are the three verbs that describes the identity and mission.

The witness is one who has seen with objective eyes, he has seen a reality, but not with indifferent eyes; he has seen and involves himself in the event.

That is why he remembers, not only because he knows how to precisely reconstruct the events, but also because those facts have spoken and he has grasped their profound meaning. Then the witness recounts, not in a cold and detached way, but as one who has questioned himself, and from that the day has changed his life. The witness is someone has changed his life. The content of a Christian witness is not a theory, an ideology or a complex system of precepts and prohibitions, or even a moralism. But rather a message of Salvation, a concrete event, indeed a Person: it is Christ Risen,

living and sole Savior of all. He can be witnessed by those who have had a personal experience of Him, in prayer and in the Church, through a path that has its foundation in Baptism, its nourishment in the Eucharist, its seal in Confirmation, its continuing conversion in Penance.

Thanks to this path, always guided by the Word of God, every Christian can become a witness of Jesus Risen. And [the Christian’s] witness is all the more credible the more it is evident by a way of living that is evangelical, joyful, courageous, meek, peaceful, merciful. Instead, if the Christian lets himself be taken in by comfort, by vanity, by selfishness, he becomes deaf and blind to the question of the “resurrection” of so many brothers and sisters. How can he communicate the living Jesus, how can he communicate the liberating power of Jesus Christ, His infinite tenderness? May Mary, our mother, sustain us through her intercession, so that we can become, with our limitations, but with the grace of faith, witnesses of the Risen Lord, bringing to the people who we find the Easter gifts of joy and peace.

Following the recitation of the Regina Caeli prayer, the Holy Father said the following: Dear brothers and sisters, In these hours, news is coming in concerning a new tragedy in the waters of the Mediterranean. A boat carrying migrants has capsized last night roughly 60 miles off the Libyan coast and it is feared that there are hundreds of victims. I express my deepest sorrow in the face of such a tragedy and I assure for those lost and their families my remembrance in prayer. I address a heartfelt appeal so that the international community acts decisively and promptly, to prevent such tragedies from occurring again. They were men and women like us! Our brothers and sisters who are looking for a better life. Hungry, persecuted, wounded, exploited, victims of war, they were looking for a better life. They were looking for happiness. I invite you to pray in silence first, and then all together for these brothers and sisters.

Moment of silence Hail Mary …

Please, do not forget to pray for me. I wish you a good Sunday and a good lunch!

Anchor Columnist The difference God made through Francis Cardinal George

April 24, 2015

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ast Friday, the most impactful American bishop of the last generation, Cardinal Francis George of Chicago, died at the age of 78 after a long, courageous, public and serene battle with cancer.

Even though outside of Chicago his name might not have been recognized in every Catholic household, his work made a profound difference in how every English-speaking Catholic prays the Mass, how children are protected in Catholic institutions, how the Church interacts with an increasingly secular culture, how the U.S. Bishops’ Conference functions and chooses its leaders and in scores of other ways.

Although I was never close enough to him to be numbered among his friends, I did know him, and, from the time he used to celebrate Mass at St. Paul’s in Cambridge when I was an undergraduate at Harvard, I looked toward him for guidance and example.

Cardinal George was a sincere, bold, and visionary leader who united truth and charity and had a great ability to transcend the simplistic frames that so often straightjacket others in the Church.

When he asked upon his appointment to Chicago whether he was a conservative response to a liberal predecessor, he replied that the Church

is concerned about true and lein Seminary to train people false, good and evil, not left across the country in Liturgical and right. studies. He also supported the When the group Dignity, work of Father Frank Phillips which believes that Church to found the Canons Regular teaching on chastity and of St. John Cantius to put sexual morality are not part many aspects of the Liturgical of the Good News, claimed reform into beautiful action. that under him the Church He was one of the greatin Chicago was becoming est articulators and defenders unwelcoming to those with same-sex attractions, he said that the Putting Into Church indeed heartily welcomes everyone the Deep but also calls everyone to conversion and

By Father seeks to help them Roger J. Landry live according to the Gospel.

What are aspects of his legacy? Beyond the of the faith within the rapidly multitude of things he did to secularizing culture and various strengthen the Archdiocese branches of government. He of Chicago, I’d like to focus understood the culture at its on five things that have had a roots and was able prophetigreat impact well beyond the cally to preach to it and model Windy City. for others how to preach efHe was the foremost fectively within it.

American figure of LiturgiHe was one of the boldest cal reform. His work at the agents of the New EvangelizaU.S. Bishops’ Conference and tion. In 2000, he took one of with the Vatican’s Vox Clara the most talented priests in the Commission was pivotal in country, Father Robert Barron, the decade-long work of the and gave him the permission retranslation of the Roman to develop resources to help Missal that priests throughout all Catholics throughout the the English-speaking world United States. Father Barron now use at Mass. It led to a started Word on Fire Catholic much richer, more humble, Ministries, an apostolate that more Sacred vocabulary. In has led not only to the “Cathe year 2000, he founded the tholicism” series, but so many Liturgical Institute at Munde- other helpful resources. With-

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out Cardinal George’s unselfish magnanimity in placing Father Barron’s talents at the service of the wider Church, we might never have any of them.

Cardinal George’s election as the president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops not only led to a great reform and consolidation of the conference’s central infrastructure, but also to a major change in its mentality. Prior to his election, which was a sign of the esteem his brother bishops had for him, cardinals were not elected to lead the conference because, the idea went, they already had a great deal of influence. But rather than use that influence to strengthen the situation of the Church in the country, many bishops looked at it as an opportunity to give someone else a voice. The election of Cardinal George was a sea-change, making possible the selection of the bishop considered to be their best qualified leader — something that seemed to be replicated in the selection of New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan as his successor, and hopefully will be repeated many times over.

Finally, Cardinal George played a pivotal role in formulating and defending the

radical response of the U.S. bishops to the clergy sexual abuse scandals, which led to a Copernican shift in the Church law. The Vatican initially resisted the U.S. bishops’ “zero tolerance” policy that mandated that a priest would be irreversibly removed from ministry following the admission, conviction or substantiation of one case of the sexual abuse of a minor. There were many canonical reasons for the Vatican’s hesitancy, but it was Cardinal George who successfully got the Vatican to budge. Now as the sexual abuse problem has been seen in its worldwide context, that zero tolerance policy is gradually being adopted by the Church across the globe.

The cardinal authored two books I’ve read more than once and highly recommend: “The Difference God Makes: A Catholic Vision of Faith, Communion and Culture” and “God in Action: How Faith in God Can Address the Challenges of the World.”

God made a great difference in the life of Francis George and through him and his faith-filled response to Divine action also made a great difference in the Church and the world.

Anchor columnist Father Landry can be contacted at fatherlandry@ catholicpreaching.com.

ated while law enforcement searched for the bomber, a student at the university. During the crisis the Catholic community on campus and from afar came together.

“The students prayed the Rosary during the evacuation, and I received messages by email, phone, Twitter and Facebook,” he said, which offered prayers and support. “We belong to a Universal Church, and we are a stronger university.”

One-hundred percent of the funding at the five colleges comes from Catholic Charities.

“I thank you for helping bring us Christ in a time of crisis and pain,” said Father Frederici. “Pray for the staff of our campus ministry programs.

Pray for our students. A majority of them will remain here after college, beginning careers and families.”

The 16-minute video presentation featured an introduc-

tion by Bishop da Cunha.

“I have come to know and love the people God has placed in my care,” said the bishop, who praised the caregivers and sought solace for the needy.

“May we never abandon the poor and less fortunate.”

There were also interviews with people who serve in the diocese and those who are served by them. Some of the ministries highlighted were hospital chaplaincy, campus ministry, transitional housing, TV Mass for the sick and homebound, Permanent Diaconate, Adoption By Choice, pregnancy counseling, Marriage preparation, soup kitchens, CYO, Hispanic apostolate and immigrant assistance.

“For those parishes that have not signed up (for the DVD), we encourage you to do so,” said Campbell. “This is worthy of being shown or uploaded to the parish website.”

‘May we never abandon the poor and less fortunate’ continued from page one

“People told me how lucky I was to come to this beautiful diocese where they have Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket,” he recalled. “But as I began going around visiting the parishes, schools and institutions, and seeing the wonderful work by Catholic Social Services, I discovered our diocese has many poor and needy.

I found many facing serious difficulties, as well as our own diocese facing serious financial challenges. And so my perception changed, but I was not sad or disappointed.”

According to the bishop, the Catholic Charities Appeal is an opportunity to share our gifts and serve one another.

“God became poor to enrich us with His poverty,” he said.

“No one is too poor who has something to give, and no one is so rich who doesn’t need anything. Our wealth is not made of material things but of the

faith, talent and the generosity of our people.”

Then he issued a challenge.

“Imagine what we could do together if our resources were even greater,” he said. “The Appeal is primarily driven by the parishes, and the enthusiasm of each parishioner is an expression of our common responsibility. No matter how large or small our contribution may be, we can, with this one act, live our faith by helping others experience the same love of God that blesses us.”

Father Frederici, who oversees campus ministry at the five colleges in our diocese, also expressed the importance of Catholic Charities in reaching out to young people.

He said that it was through the example, presence and leadership of the campus minister at his alma mater, Worcester State University, a passion was

awakened in him for the Christian faith; and his vocation began to solidify.

“I love being a priest,” he added.

So when he was offered the opportunity at UMass Dartmouth, he said he “jumped at the chance.” He explained that 85 percent of the students identified as Catholic are not aware of Church teachings, and of the remaining 15 percent, 90 percent will stop going to church their freshman year.

He said that they initiated a five-year plan of outreach to change these statistics so that college students develop a relationship with Jesus Christ, receive the Sacraments, study Scripture, perform community service and perhaps discern a vocation.

After the bombing at the Boston Marathon in 2013, UMass Dartmouth was evacu-

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his Sunday we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday.

Each year I celebrate this solemnity as a priest I find it to be more and more meaningful and humbling. We are called to be renewed each Easter season with the awareness that Jesus is Risen and that He shepherds us. In the Gospel this week we hear Our Lord say: “I am the Good Shepherd.” Here He speaks to the chosen people in words that God promised of Himself through the prophet Ezekiel: “I Myself will be the Shepherd of My sheep.” And for us, we are being called to be renewed in confidence that we are shepherded by God. He seeks us out, He calls us to hear Him and to trust in His will, and to trust He nourishes us (especially through the Sacraments and teachings).

What I find so striking is how in shepherding us, Jesus does not leave us to figure out on our own how to hear Him and follow, but gives us human shepherds to guide us so we can know Him. He promises the Holy Spirit will be given to the Church to lead us and that the human shepherds are given authority to speak in His name so we can know the truth. He feeds us through the human shepherds so that as they

April 24, 2015

Jesus’ human shepherds

teach and give us the Sacraments, see our shortcomings.

Jesus Himself will move our It is also a challenge for the souls where we need to be moved faithful to trust in the Lord (even though the human shepthrough His shepherds. It is herds may have had no idea what good for the faithful to rememwe needed in that moment). ber that even when you see your But though He is the Good shepherds’ faults, they are giving Shepherd, He also knew the their lives for the Lord and the human shepherds were not perfect instruments, yet nonetheless that is Homily of the Week the path He chose in Fourth Sunday His infinite wisdom to care for us and guide us. of Easter In the Gospels and the

By Father history of the Church Kevin A. Cook you see the sins, weaknesses, and imperfections of the Apostles (the very first shepherds that Christ Church. Yes, our trust is badly would build His Church upon) shaken when a shepherd acts out and shepherds. You see at times in grave sin. In the past people their fears, their selfishness, their would sometimes put their pride, their lack of understanding, shepherds on pedestals and that their concerns about what others was not good for them or the think, and even betrayal. All the shepherd. At times some would shepherds will fail at times (even not call the priest on his need for the great saints), yet the Lord conversion if he did something keeps calling them to shepherd seriously immoral and make His people. For those of us who him accountable. Even worse we are called as bishops, priests, and know there were some in posideacons we know we are always tions of shepherding who were being called to conversion and unwilling to respond to those sins need to keep learning how to lead of other shepherds when they God’s people, and at the same were brought to light. time we must be willing to face But, on the other hand, some different challenges while we still people are far too critical of their

shepherds rather than trying to see their goodness and efforts in shepherding. Yes, our shepherds need advice on things and also we can lovingly and humbly express to them if we disagree with a practical decision they have made, but far too often many of us fall in the temptations to focus on our shepherds’ shortcomings and speak negatively of them to others. It is astonishing how many people will stop practicing their faith or leave their parish because their shepherd isn’t to their liking: whether he doesn’t preach the way they like or his personality isn’t like some other priest they know.

It is one thing if the priest is preaching things contrary to the faith (then one should speak to them about what they said so they can clarify or correct themselves but if they don’t then one should notify those in positions of authority over them), but if they just aren’t good preachers or administrators, or if they don’t have the most dynamic personality, or if they maybe struggle with certain venial sins, whatever their faults we are still called to love them and trust that Jesus is shepherding us through them.

Sometimes the Lord has placed through the bishop a particular priest in your parish so that as he tries to shepherd he may grow through the love of the people there, and the people may grow by opening their hearts to him and learn to see goodness in others with their failings. As we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, please remember to pray for your shepherds that they will continue to seek to listen to Christ and His Church, and give of themselves more generously.

This Sunday our shepherd, Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., will be leading a Holy Hour at the cathedral in Fall River at 3 p.m. to pray for vocations. Please come pray with him for all vocations, but in particular for those Christ is calling to be shepherds. Pray for our seminarians that they will seek to know and do the Lord’s will. The Lord is calling, but so many are not listening or are distracted by false shepherds. Let us pray that more will hear and respond, so countless souls will know what it means to be shepherded and nourished by the Lord.

Father Cook is pastor of Holy Family Parish in East Taunton and director of the Diocesan Vocations Office.

Upcoming Daily Readings: Sat. Apr. 25, 1 Pt 5:5b-14; Ps 89:2-3,6-7,16-17; Mk 16:15-20. Sun. Apr. 26, Fourth Sunday of Easter, Acts 4:8-12; Ps 118:1,8-9,2123,26,28,29; 1 Jn 3:1-2; Jn 10:11-18. Mon. Apr. 27, Acts 11:1-18; Pss 42:2-3,43:3-4; Jn 10:1-10. Tues. Apr. 28, Acts 11:19-26; Ps 87:1b-7; Jn 10:22-30. Wed. Apr. 29, Acts 12:24-13:5a; Ps 67:2-3,5-6,8; Jn 12:44-50. Thurs. Apr. 30, Acts 13:13-25; Ps 89:2-3,21-22,25,27; Jn 13:16-20. Fri. May 1, Acts 13:26-33; Ps 2:6-11b; Jn 14:1-6.

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ast week a Bristol County jury found former New England Patriot Aaron Hernandez guilty of first-degree murder, for which he received a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole. Still pending is his trial for a couple of other murders he is charged with in the Boston area. The death penalty is not in play for him because Massachusetts abolished the death penalty years ago for crimes under state law.

On Tuesday, the day after the Boston Marathon was run on Patriots Day, the penalty phase of the trial of Dzohkhar Tsarnaev began in Boston Federal Court. He was recently found guilty of 30 counts of violating federal law in the Marathon bombing of a couple years ago, and 17 of those counts carry a possible death penalty. And so testimony is being taken, and the jury will decide, whether he gets the death penalty.

Why does he qualify, but Hernandez doesn’t? The reason is that federal law allows for

Crime and punishment — Here and now

the death penalty for federal the subject. We Catholics are crimes involving homicide, unequivocally Pro-Life with whereas state law doesn’t for respect to the unborn and the state crimes, no matter how elderly, indeed all innocent horrendous. How fair is that? human life; and to extend the Polls show that most of the Pro-Life stance to all human people in Massachusetts are life, to encompass even those opposed to the death penguilty of serious crimes, seems alty in the Marathon bombing case, and the Catholic bishops of Massachusetts, together with Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley, OFM Cap., have expressed

By Dwight G. Duncan their opposition, as have the parents of eight-year-old Martin Richard, the poster-boy of doable and more in keeping an innocent victim, who was with the intrinsic value of brutally killed in the bombing. human life. Tsarnaev can be As the Richards’ eloquently rendered incapable of further wrote, “the continued pursuit mayhem by life imprisonof that punishment could ment. Honoring human life, bring years of appeals and however innocent, by directly prolong reliving the most taking human life, however painful day of our lives.” guilty, seems to enter a vicious My own thinking on the circle of violence. I don’t know death penalty has evolved about you, but I get queasy from unenthuastic support thinking about official methto virtually total opposition, ods of execution, whether by largely because of the leaderelectric chair, lethal injection, ship of St. John Paul II in de- hanging or guillotine. veloping Catholic teaching on I also think about the

Judge For Yourself

ramifications of God’s Word on the subject. St. Paul quotes Deuteronomy in his Epistle to the Romans: “Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is Mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord” (Rom 12:19).

Or the words of the prophet Ezechiel, “Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?” (Ez 18:23).

I can’t help but feel sorry for Dzokhar Tsarnaev. By most accounts, he was a nice kid before getting involved in this atrocity, even if a bit of a pothead. Obviously, through his older brother he participated in doing something truly monstrous and despicable: killing and maiming innocent human beings in a terrorist act — ostensibly in revenge for our country’s killing of Muslims abroad. According to the note he left in the boat, he saw his brother as a martyr;

and he expressed a desire himself to be a martyr for jihad. It seems that posture is his current attitude, judging from his demeanor at trial. Putting him to death may tend to validate that crazy perception, at least in the Muslim world. But with the time a life sentence would give him, together with maturity of years, he may come to realize the true horror of his crimes, that this was no video game, and that even the ostensible death of innocents is never a valid reason to kill other innocents. And so he could conceivably repent of his crimes, which would be vastly preferable to having him die in his sins.

We cannot bring the victims back to life or restore their lost limbs. We can, however, stop the further shedding of blood in this matter. I think it could be just to execute him, but it would be better — more merciful — not to.

Anchor columnist Dwight Duncan is a professor at UMass School of Law Dartmouth. He holds degrees in civil and canon law.

April 24, 2015

Wednesday 22 April 2015 — Homeport: Falmouth Harbor — Administrative Professionals Day ou know me, dear readers. I have a sense of humor that keeps me seriously dedicated to my writing. After weeks of frivolity, however, I need to get serious. I want to share with you a pastoral responsibility that I find difficult: removing a Church volunteer from a particular ministry. It’s an eventuality any administrator must face. For a priest, it’s a very delicate situation needing to be handled with the utmost charity.

Church volunteers are not the same as those of other institutions (be they for-profit or not-for-profit). Where would a Church be without a dedicated band of volunteers? These are crème de la crème parishioners who generously offer time and talent to the Church.

Most parishes don’t have someone charged with recruiting, training, and overseeing Church volunteers. In fact, I’ve never met a parish human resource officer. The task often falls to the pastor — or at least, when all is said and done, he becomes the default person.

By their very nature, priests tend to be caring, sensitive and

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stared out the window.

My heart was heavy with worry and doubt. Behind me I heard the unmistakable sounds of changing classes. As I moved to my desk, I closed my personal thoughts then opened the Internet activity for my seventh-grade class. I smiled at my students who were noisily entering the room. Then I reached behind me for the connector cable for the LCD. When I turned back to face the class, I was met with a group of happy students screaming my name and surrounding my desk: “We’ve created a country for you! You’re the ruler.” As I stared into their beaming faces, I said to myself, “Oh please, I’m not really up for this today.”

Though the Holy Spirit quelled my verbal response, some part of that must have shown on my face. Their next words were a persuasive chorus of “Everyone there is kind to one another.”

I suddenly remembered an incident earlier in the year. As kids sometimes do, someone had been mean to another. After stopping the behavior, I had the teachable moment discussion re-

Anchor Columnists When to ‘fire’ a volunteer

people-centered. It goes hand- do because they are baptized.

In Baptism, all of us take on in-hand with today’s ministry. the responsibility to support Who would ever want to be the Church. According to No. called to the priesthood if he 2043 of the “Catechism of the couldn’t stand dealing with people every day for the rest of Catholic Church,” “The faithful have the duty of providing his life? People-person types for the material needs of the often find it difficult to deliver the dreaded line, “You’re fired.” Church, each according to his abilities.” This means more We are the very antithesis of Donald Trump. This makes it extremely difficult for a priest to say The Ship’s Log such a thing. I find it Reflections of a personally distressing.

Parish Priest Nevertheless, it sometimes becomes absoBy Father Tim lutely necessary for the Goldrick good of the community and for the good of the than occasionally putting a individual. Like it or not, it’s part of my job. When that time dollar bill in the collection comes, I want to do everything basket.

Let’s consider preventahumanly possible to be calm, tive strategies. How does the kind, and compassionate. I parish recruit volunteers — a want to do my best to assure personal invitation — a blurb that the volunteer’s relationin the bulletin? Is there a clear ship with the parish remains job description for volunteers? intact.

Is a well-meaning parishioner Secondly, those who take always accepted into any parish an active part in the life of the ministry regardless of ability to parish are, strictly speaking, fulfill the role? Should a cantor not volunteers at all. Ideally, be able to carry a tune? Should they are not doing something because they want to feel good a Church organist know how to read music? Should a about themselves or because reader know how to proclaim they want to increase their influence or status in the com- Scripture and how to use a microphone? Should a colmunity. They do what they

lection counter know how to accurately count money? Does a catechist need to know Jesus and to practice the faith? These are questions of competency.

Avoid future problems by not trying to force a round peg into a square hole. This, by the way, applies equally to all the baptized, including the ordained.

Look at the parish volunteer orientation and training. Is an altar server taught the difference between a thurible and a purificator? Are the gift bearers informed of the correct time to present the bread and wine?

Are the musicians clear on the varying degrees of priority assigned to music in the Liturgy?

How are volunteers recognized and thanked? Avoid future situations by initial training, continuing education, unwavering support, and adequate supervision.

If a problem seems to have developed, get the facts. Do not act on gossip. It is important that your decision is based on accurate and objective information. Also, once you have verified the facts, don’t delay in taking action. Delay makes the situation worse.

What would be the rea-

9 sons for letting go a volunteer already in service? Be alert to problems of conduct. Some of these are cause for immediate removal. In this category would be violation of the Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children, carrying a firearm into a Church setting, theft of Church or personal property, functioning under the influence of drugs or alcohol, physical violence or threats thereof, and other grievous behaviors.

This also applies equally to all the baptized, again including the ordained, the salaried and the non-salaried.

Maybe a moral line has been crossed. Maybe the faith is being erroneously expressed. Are there unacceptable attendance, dependability, or other behavioral issues? Don’t overlook the possibility that the volunteer may be affected by economic problems, declining physical or mental health, aging, or increasing time constraints.

Perhaps there are situations in a volunteer’s personal life that are affecting performance.

It’s a dirty job, but somebody has to do it. If not, volunteer morale suffers, as does the whole parish.

Anchor columnist Father Goldrick is pastor of St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth.

Is it really that simple?

garding Our Lord’s wish that we treat our neighbor as we would treat ourselves. That day, I had told them my classroom was a “kingdom of kindness.” We were nice to each other not because of fear of detention (punishment), but because that was the world we wished to have so that was the world we needed to work to create.

Amazed and invigorated by what the Holy Spirit had allowed to sprout from that seed, I grinned and asked “Just where is my new kingdom?” A student went to the globe, spun it, and pointed to an island which had “no name.” So now they had named it after me. Evidently my country was a tropical island paradise where everyone is kind to one another. Though I recognized the fairy tale quality of the story, in some important ways it would be a nice legacy for a Catholic educator.

Sometimes life can throw us painful moments and we adults can feel so removed from the innocent, anything-is-possible

world of children. We allow our hurts and subsequent bitterness to switch our focus from planning to survivor perhaps not even realizing how much we have lost. As Martina McBride in her song “Anyway” sings, “You can spend your whole life build-

ing something from nothing / one storm can come and blow it all away.” McBride’s reminder to “Build it anyway” may fall upon an aching heart wondering, “Just what difference does it make?”

Msgr. Gregory Malovetz addresses this in his February 15 reflection in the book “Praying With St. Luke’s Gospel.” He suggests that John the Baptist’s call to the tax collectors and soldiers was God’s invitation for them to have a different view of

their place in the world. Those tax collectors, soldiers and each of us are God’s children who are invited to and have a responsibility to dream a bigger dream.

With God’s love a new beginning is always possible.

What each of us sees or feels as we hear “Build it anyway” or “Dream Big” is God’s challenge and call to find a way (perhaps even a new way) to live out our love for Him. It is that journey or work on the dream that brings us and all those whose lives we touch closer to God. Sometimes we will be leaders when we dream big, but other times we may just be part of someone else’s vision.

Our school recently reviewed protocols in case of an intruder. As my students and I practiced, we were on the floor for exactly four minutes before students started talking. I gently reminded them that we all had to remain absolutely quiet. My seventh-grade boys wanted to help me “take down” anyone

who would enter. One gave me a lesson in magazine size and rate of fire for an AK-47! That silenced all of us. I asked if they wished the big boy/girl version.

To their chorus of yes, I calmly replied that if any intruder tried to enter that they were to leave, keep running and grab any other kids along the way. I would stay behind. One boy strongly said, “That ain’t gonna happen.”

Another student said, “Put your hand in the center here with us, Dr. Flavin. We are making a pact. If there ever is an intruder, we are all going to be silent. He will leave. Then, we are all going to walk out of here together.”

Ah, regardless of what the world sends our way, working together to create the world we wish to have.

I shall never get an island paradise named after me. No matter, I have already found and live in a world where everyone is kind to one another.

Anchor columnist Helen Flavin is a Catholic scientist, educator and writer and a member of St. Bernadette’s Parish in Fall River. biochemwz@hotmail.com.

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April 24, 2015

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April 24, 2015 vided professional leadership as a long-standing member of Bishop Connolly’s Executive Committee; and Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III and his wife Sharon Bogan Quinn, vice president of Borden & Remington Corporation, who have provided leadership and support for numerous Bishop Connolly initiatives and events as past parents.

During the awards ceremony, Myron reflected upon the parallels between Pope Pius X and Bishop Connolly’s own students. Myron explained that when Pope Pius X was a young Top photo, Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, student, his teachers recognized S.D.V., (center) celebrates with Bishop that he was gifted intellectuConnolly High School’s 2015 Pope Pius X ally and Spiritually. EventuAward recipients (left to right) Sharon ally he was invited to enter the Bogan Quinn, Nicholas Christ, Bishop Emeritus George W. Coleman, and Bris- seminary, but his family did not tol County District Attorney Thomas have the resources to send him.

Quinn III. At left, Bishop Connolly princi- It was only through the suppal Christopher Myron extends his con- port of others that Pope Pius X gratulations as Bishop da Cunha pres- was able to pursue the Cathoents Bishop Coleman with his Pope Pius lic studies and priesthood that X Award for his commitment to Catholic eventually led to his papacy. education and the Bishop Connolly comThroughout his priesthood, he munity. never forgot his own beginnings and chose to take up the cross of the poor.

“Each of our recipients has achieved a certain status and respect for what they have recipients Nicholas M. Christ, well what St. Francis has said, achieved, but this award recogDistrict Attorney Thomas M. ‘Preach the Gospel at all times, nizes who they are as servants Quinn III and Sharon Bogan and when necessary, use words.’ of Christ,” Myron said during Quinn in appreciation for the They remind us to be not only the ceremony. “We thank you unique gifts each has given to hearers, but doers of the Word.” for being another foundation Recognized for their “exem- piece upon which Bishop Constrengthen and advance the Fall River Catholic high school’s plary leadership, steadfast com- nolly will grow into the future.”

Bishop Connolly’s 2015 long-standing educational mis- mitment to Catholic education, Pope Pius X Award recipients and faithful service to the Bishsion. join four long-time Bishop “These individuals continue op Connolly community” were: Connolly supporters who were to support our Bishop Con- Bishop George W. Coleman, honored for their dedication nolly community as humble who provided Spiritual leadservants of Christ,” said E. ership to the school as Bishop Christopher Myron, Bishop of the Fall River Diocese from Connolly president and prin- 2003 to 2014; Nicholas M. cipal, during the ceremony’s Christ, president and CEO of opening remarks. “They depict BayCoast Bank, who has pro-

Pope Pius X Awards recognize gifts of service to Bishop Connolly community FALL RIVER — Bishop George W. Coleman, Bishop Emeritus of Fall River, was one of four individuals recognized for faithful service to the Bishop Connolly community during Bishop Connolly High School’s 2015 Pope Pius X Awards presentation held on April 11. During a special ceremony at Bishop Connolly’s Black & White Gala celebration at The Cove Restaurant in Fall River, Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha, S.D.V., presented Pope Pius X awards to Bishop Coleman and fellow

to Catholic education when the awards were originally established in 2003: Timothy J. Cotter, president and CEO of Fall River Five Cents Savings Bank from 1984 to 1998; James J. Karam, president and founder of First Bristol Corporation; Janis Karam, Bishop Connolly benefactor; and Richard L. Lafrance, president and CEO of Lafrance Hospitality Company.

Bishop Connolly holds its gala annually in celebration of the school’s educational mission and the strong circle of community supporters who give so generously to foster its continued growth. “This special gift of a Catholic education can only happen if people work together as one and provide a foundation of support to one another,” said Myron.

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April 24, 2015

April 24, 2015

13 To advertise in The Anchor, contact Wayne Powers at 508-675-7151 or Email: waynepowers@anchornews.org

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April 24, 2015

American Sisters accept Vatican reforms on doctrine, theology

Vatican City (CNA/ EWTN News) — In a joint report marking the conclusion of a multi-year mandate for reform, members of the LCWR have agreed to corrections called for by the Vatican, and said they will continue on the path of dialogue.

“We are pleased at the completion of the mandate, which involved long and challenging exchanges of our understandings of and perspectives on critical matters of Religious Life and its practice,” Sister Sharon Holland, I.H.M., president of the LCWR, said in a recent press release.

Officials of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Archbishop Peter Sartain of Seattle and officers of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious met at the Vatican April 16.

Although she was unable to attend the Vatican meeting, Sister Holland said that “we learned that what we hold in common is much greater than any of our differences.”

Cardinal Gerhard Müller, prefect of the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said in the press release that “the

congregation is confident that LCWR has made clear its mission to support its member institutes by fostering a vision of religious life that is centered on the person of Jesus Christ and is rooted in the tradition of the Church.”

This vision, he said, “makes religious women and men radical witnesses to the Gospel, and, therefore, is essential for the flourishing of religious life in the Church.”

Archbishop Sartain, who in 2012 was charged with leading their reform, presented a joint report with members of the LCWR on the implementation of the congregation’s Doctrinal Assessment and Mandate, which was issued in April 2012.

The joint report outlines the process in which the implementation of the mandate has been carried out. With the congregation’s acceptance of the joint report, the Vatican’s doctrinal assessment of the LCWR has come to a close.

Members of the LCWR leadership recently met with Pope Francis, following the official publication of the final report.

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, April 26 at 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Kevin A. Cook, pastor of Holy Family Parish in East Taunton and director of the Diocesan Vocations Office

With some 1,500 members, the LCWR constitutes about three percent of the 57,000 women religious in the United States.

However, the group says it represents 80 percent of American Sisters since its members are leaders of their respective religious communities.

In April 2012, the Vatican released the findings of a four-year doctrinal assessment of the women’s conference, which found a state of doctrinal crisis within the organization, and raised concerns of dissent from Church teaching on topics including homosexuality, the Sacramental priesthood and the Divinity of Christ.

Among the assessment’s key findings were serious theological and doctrinal errors in presentations at the conference’s recent annual assemblies. Some presentations depicted a vision of religious life incompatible with the Catholic faith, or attempted to justify dissent from Church doctrine and showed “scant regard for the role of the magisterium,” the assessment found.

At the same time the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith assigned Archbishop Sartain to oversee the conference’s reform, and he was given a mandate of up to five years to help the LCWR review and revise their statues, formation materials, presentations, events and links with affiliated organizations.

A key topic the report addressed was the mandate’s call for a careful review of the LCWR’s publications and programs to ensure that they are faithful to Church teachings.

The conference said that the nature of their publications is intended to address Spiritual matters rather than engage in formal theological inquiry, since their audience extends beyond members of the Catholic Church.

However, because of the “vital link between Spirituality and theology” as well as the goal to inspire and grow as women religious, the

report consented that all of their publications “need a sound doctrinal foundation.”

“To this end, measures are being taken to promote a scholarly rigor that will ensure theological accuracy and help avoid statements that are ambiguous with regard to Church doctrine or could be read as contrary to it,” the report stated.

It was also noted that a publications advisory committee has been put into place, and that all manuscripts will be reviewed by “competent theologians, as a means of safeguarding the theological integrity of the Conference.”

The choice of assembly topics and speakers — which has been one of the most contested points of the LCWR’s reform mandate — was also addressed in the report.

In order to stay faithful to their mission and service in the Church, the selection of discussion topics and speakers will be carried out in “a prayerful, thoughtful and discerning manner,” according to the report.

In 2012, the same year the original assessment was released, the conference hosted philosopher Barbara Marx Hubbard, an author and promoter of “Conscious Evolution” as the keynote speaker for their annual general assembly.

Since then the concept — which Cardinal Müller cautioned opposes Christian revelation — has been featured heavily in LCWR materials.

“When taken unreflectively,” the cardinal said, the fundamentals of Conscious Evolution “lead almost necessarily to fundamental errors regarding the omnipotence of God, the Incarnation of Christ, the reality of original sin, the necessity of Salvation and the definitive nature of the Salvific action of Christ in the Paschal Mystery.”

However, the joint report assures that the LCWR will select speakers and presenters who

speak “with integrity and to further the aims and purposes of the conference, which unfold within the wider context of the Church’s faith and mission.”

“When a topic explicitly addresses matters of faith, speakers are expected to employ the ecclesial language of faith,” the report reads.

“When exploring contemporary issues, particularly those which, while not explicitly theological nevertheless touch upon faith and morals, LCWR expects speakers and presenters to have due regard for the Church’s faith and to pose questions for further reflection in a manner that suggests how faith might shed light on such issues.”

The report also announced that they have revised the process for selecting the recipient of their Outstanding Leadership Award, which in 2014 was given to Sister Elizabeth Johnson, C.S.J. — a theologian whom the U.S. bishops have criticized for serious doctrinal errors, including misrepresentations of Church teaching on God. The joint report also recognized the revision of the LCWR’s statues, which have been changed to clarify the conference’s role as “a public juridic person centered on Jesus Christ and faithful to the teachings of the Church.”

The revised statutes were approved Feb. 6, 2015, with an official Decree from the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

Other topics emphasized in the report were the importance of celebrating the Eucharist and the need to pray the traditional Liturgy of the Hours prayer in religious communities.

The centrality of a communal process of contemplative prayer practiced at LCWR Assemblies and other gatherings, the relationship between LCWR and other organizations and the essential understanding of LCWR as an instrument of ecclesial communion were also discussed.

The report closes with an expression of gratitude for the “clarifying and fruitful conversation” that has taken place throughout the mandate process.

“The very fact of such substantive dialogue between bishops and religious has been a blessing to be appreciated and further encouraged,” it read, and highlighted the commitment of the LCWR leadership to its “crucial role” in serving the conference, as well as bearing witness to the vocation of religious life.

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April 24, 2015

Bishop asks faithful to remember the ‘joy’ of giving during CCA continued from page one

The diocese has roughly 310,000 Catholics and last year, 31,000 gave gifts: “You can’t make a direct correlation of 31,000 gifts and 310,000 [Catholics] because a lot of them are children, so it’s not 10 percent,” said Campbell, “but 31,000 gifts from a population of that size is very strong, relative to a larger diocese like Boston, so from a percentage standpoint I think we’re doing well.”

“Even though we have a good donor base of 31,000,” added Bishop Edgar da Cunha, S.D.V., who is experiencing his first Appeal drive in the diocese, “I think one of our goals this year would be to increase that participation — try as hard as we can to make people aware of the need but also of the joy of helping other people. If we can have people find the joy in giving, then we will increase our donor base.”

This concern for the wellbeing of others was formalized when the Diocese of Fall River initiated its first Annual Catholic Charities Appeal in 1942, states the Catholic Charities’ website. Now, seven decades later, the tens of thousands of yearly supporters can look with pride on the number of individuals and families in need that have been ministered to throughout this period; literally hundreds of thousands of men, women and children throughout all of southeastern Massachusetts, Cape Cod and the Islands of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket, due to their generosity.

The funds received during the Annual Catholic Charities Appeal support the many charitable ministries and programs sponsored by the Fall River Diocese. Throughout the year these programs touch the lives of tens of thousands of persons, some young, others old; some sick in body, others in Spirit; some broken, others confused with nowhere to turn. Without regard to race, creed, nationality, gender, or economic status, the many ministries supported by this annual fund-raising effort reach out to those in need, motivated by God’s call to love one another.

“Going around and seeing the work of the Catholic Social Services, like the shelters and those things, are very critical to our mission of serving and helping the poor,” said Bishop da Cunha. “The hospital chaplaincy program brings God’s comforting presence and the

Sacraments — that’s so important. Those are the highlights that I see and are very critical; how could we ever do without those services?”

During a tour of shelters in the diocese, the bishop, while talking to people benefitting from the programs, felt a common thread: “One of the things that I would hear from there is, ‘Where would I be if I didn’t have this place?’” he said.

“Some of them were homeless, some had come out of jail, and they were going to school, to work, and now they see there’s a future for them. They kept saying, ‘I don’t know where I’d be or what I’d be doing if I didn’t have this.’ [The programs] made a huge difference in their lives. It’s wonderful to hear we’re making a difference in the lives of people who are struggling because of poverty, addiction or abuse.”

And while the Appeal certainly helps offset the costs of programs for the destitute, homeless and needy, many other programs in the diocese benefit from the money raised, like the Catholic Youth Organization and the campus ministries at area colleges. Father David Frederici, chaplain at UMass Dartmouth, spoke at the Appeal’s kick-off dinners and talked about the good work being done on various college campuses which keep the Catholic life available and rich for college students.

“College is an exciting time in the lives of our young people,” said Father Frederici. “In the excitement, they often don’t realize the time needed to transition from living at home to living on their own, whether in a dorm or an apartment. In addition, they are challenged intellectually and Spiritually.

Campus Ministry seeks to support them in their transition into college life as well as the transition from college into the world. We provide them opportunities to grow in their faith throughout college. In addition to pastoral care and the Sacraments, we also offer retreats, catechetical opportunities, faith sharing, and opportunities for gathering with other college students socially. This fall we will be offering minitheology courses online. One student told me that what she most appreciates from campus ministry is that the friendships she has made here are founded on faith. It provides a safe environment for students to grow

and share faith.

“We also provide them with the opportunities for Spiritual direction and being a resource in their times of need. Pope Francis’ message for the World Day of Vocations says we ‘are a Church which evangelizes, goes out to encounter humanity, proclaims the liberating Word of the Gospel, heals people’s Spiritual and physical wounds with the grace of God, and offers relief to the poor and suffering.’ This is a great description of what campus ministry is about, as well as what parish ministry is about.”

It is so important that the Appeal be recognized as a benefit to all walks of life in the diocese, said Bishop da Cunha, including the next generation of the Church. “It is so critical for the future of our Church that we don’t neglect the young people,” said the bishop. “All of us, we’ll be gone one day and who’s going to replace us? The programs that enrich the faith of the young people like campus ministries and CYO is vital for the future of the Church.”

The bishop had final approval over the 15 videos created for this year’s Appeal. Each of the five deaneries had its own video highlighting the special ministries and programs within its borders, and each deanery video was in English, Spanish and Portuguese.

One thing that is unique to the annual Appeal, said Campbell, is that no annual quota or a certain goal amount is set — only a hope that each year does better than the last. This

year though, Campbell is trying to change the landscape and is challenging pastors to consider putting forth a goal to their parishioners, but not necessarily in dollars but in donors to try and encourage more people to get in the habit of contributing annually to the Catholic Charities.

“It is clear, year in and year out, how central and important the pastor is to the success of an individual parish,” said Camp-

bell. “Coincidentally, what is most important for the overall drive are the parishes. We do community and corporate outreach as well, but the success or failure of a particular campaign really is dependent upon the passion, articulation and reinforcement that each pastor makes within their community.”

For more information on the Appeal or to watch a video, please go to www.frdiocCatholicCharities.org.

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Youth Pages

April 24, 2015

Espirito Santo School choir participated in the recent Fall River Catholic Schools Collaborative Arts Night. Students from the six Catholic schools of Fall River shared their musical talents as well as their artistic talents which were displayed around the Fall River Children’s Museum.

St. Mary’s Catholic School’s, Mansfield, student council representatives coordinated a food donation day during Lent. Food collected was donated to the local food pantry, Our Daily Bread. Students continue to pray for those families who may have fallen on tough times and are grateful for all donations received.

Pre-kindergarten students at Our Lady of Lourdes School in Taunton recently dressed red for a bed. They raised $1,100 to donate to this wonderful cause.

The students at St. Francis Xavier School in Acushnet were transforming their school and classrooms to celebrate Easter in the Octave — unburying the Alleluia, singing, and creating artwork projects that reflect the joys of the season. Pictured here are some first-graders as they complete their watercolor egg projects for display.

Matthew Veary receiving a hug from Charlotte LeBlanc (who lost her husband Robert this year) as Patrick Smeltzer watches on smiling. The young men are members of the Holy Trinity Parish, West Harwich Religious Education program and its Easter Bread delivery project.

Students in grade one from St. James-St. John School in New Bedford recently worked on a weather unit and learned about rain.

The pre-k students at St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro recently had a “shopping trip” with “money” earned from doing good deeds. According to their teacher, Tammy O’Malley, “The students received tickets for being caught performing random acts of kindness. Then they shopped for items using the tickets. Eventually they will be shopping with money to help them learn about making change and counting money.” Pictured with O’Malley are Emily Pelchat, Lillian Sirard, Devyn Cairns, Aleigha Gibbs, Landon Deutscher and Baron Manley.

April 24, 2015

S

Youth Pages Alter your course

everal weeks ago, at an information night for those discerning their call to the permanent diaconate, Father Bob Oliveira told a story of a captain of a battleship doing maneuvers. It’s the perfect story to illustrate what I’d like to share with you this month.

In the story, it’s a dark, foggy night and off in the distance there is a light and the captain’s battleship is moving towards this light. And it’s on a collision course! The captain tells the signalman to send a signal out, saying, “We are on a collision course. Alter course 20 degrees.” And a signal comes back, which says, “You alter course 20 degrees.” The captain of the battleship gets a little incensed at this and decides to pull rank and says, “I’m a captain. You alter course 20 degrees.” The response comes back, “I’m a seaman. You alter course 20 degrees.” The captain is now really furious and he

says, “I’m in a battleship. You Fortunately for all of us alter course 20 degrees.” The there are many “lighthouses” in response comes back, “I’m in a our lives. These “lighthouses” lighthouse. You turn!” are placed at all of the danSometimes we think we gerous areas of life to help us are on the right course, don’t steer around them. However, if we? Sometimes when we are we are unable or unwilling to on what we think is the right course, we are often unwilling to listen to others or to see things in a different way. If this were not true, how do we explain why many

By Deacon people who are on a Frank Lucca destructive path, cannot see it? People in their lives tell them to “change your accept that the “lighthouse” is course,” and yet they still keep there to protect us from danger, on the course until they run we may very well, as the captain aground? If you’re in a battleof the battleship did, ignore the ship heading toward a lightwarnings and sail a course that house, disaster lies ahead of you will ultimately lead to destrucif you don’t begin to see things tion and loss. God places those differently — and not only will lighthouses out there to help you go down if you don’t see us steer a safe course. But the things in a new way, but you’ll lighthouse alone would not take the whole ship down with save the battleship. It took you. “someone” to do that.

Many times we ignore the warnings and run aground.

Sometimes we are able to get underway again and if we learned our lesson we could avoid other groundings in the future. If not, eventually we lose our way and ultimately sink. We see this around us every day. Some people make what looks like bad decisions over and over again! Drugs, greed and other vices may very The Bishop Feehan High School (Attleboro) girls lacrosse team was well blind us to the dangers selected by the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association even though everyone knows as a co-recipient of the 2015 MIAA Community Service Award in the that these are bad for you. As “Team” category for “making a difference and having a positive impact on their respective communities.” The lacrosse team partici- I’m writing this article, the pated in many impactful events to raise money for charitable causes news of a guilty verdict in the such as St. Jude Hospital, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Project Pur- Hernandez murder case is hitple — an organization that raises awareness for pancreatic cancer, ting the Twitter and Facebook the Tomorrow Fund which provides financial assistance to pediatric feeds. Guilty, with a sentence

Be Not Afraid

cancer patients, and Friends of Jaclyn Foundation which aids children with brain tumors.

Sophomore Bishop Stang High School (North Dartmouth) students recently participated in the 53rd Annual BCC/Rensselaer Region III Science & Engineering Fair. Students presented their science research projects that had been created for their science classes. Back row: Ryan Torres, Charlie Markert, Francesca Marini, and Mary Lyn Sullivan. Middle row: Emily Audycki, Emily Brigham, and Kathryn Gallison. Front: Misha Dubuc.

Bishop Connolly senior Georgianna Silveira has been selected to receive a $1,000 scholarship through St. Anne’s Credit Union’s 2015 Scholarship Program. Silveira is one of 11 area students chosen for the scholarship awards based on their academic performance, extracurricular activities, community service work and financial need.

of life in prison without chance of parole. A young man dead, a young man, who by the world’s standards had everything going for him, now in prison for life.

All thrown away. How does this happen? Where were the lighthouses in his life?

Where was the somebody, who might have made a difference.

When we get on a path and don’t see the warning signs is when we head on the wrong course and we’ve gone too far to steer out of the danger zone. We think we know what we are doing and we think we know the other light is another ship and we try to get them to change. It’s only when someone like the seaman states,” I’m in the lighthouse, you turn!” that perhaps we “wake up” and see where we are going and are able to steer clear.

That “someone” or seaman is you or me. We are the seaman manning the lighthouse that God has placed out there lighting the way. The lighthouse on its own wasn’t able to get the captain to change directions. It took the seaman doing something that got the captain to turn in a new direction. We are the ones who are called to help others steer the way around the dangers. We are called to be active. We need to do something. Parents do that for their children and hopefully we do that for those around us. Sometimes they get the message and make the course correction and sometimes they don’t and run aground. Hopefully, when they do go aground, someone is there to pluck them out of that

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sinking ship and that too is us!

We all know we need to be there for one another. We need to help our fellow man discover the way. That Way is Jesus.

Have we taken the challenge to be men and woman for others to heart or do we just say, “Well, the lighthouses are out there, they can steer a course on their own without my help!”

Easier, but not what is expected of us!

What have you done lately to develop your relationship with God? We need to be active followers of Jesus Christ. That means we need to take the time to develop our relationship with Him. Learning about Jesus doesn’t end at Confirmation. It is a lifetime process. Just as your relationship with a friend, or spouse doesn’t end the day you meet, you have to work at the relationship. Even a seaman needs to be prepared to be able to do the work they are called to do. Likewise, each and every one of us needs to be prepared so that we know what is expected from us. Before we can help steer others on the right course, we need to know the way ourselves.

Deacon Lucca is a youth minister at St. Dominic’s Parish in Swansea, and a campus minister at UMass Dartmouth.

He is chairman and a director of the YES! Retreat Program and the director of the Christian Leadership Institute. He is married to his wife of 35 years, Kristine, and a father of two daughters and a son-in-law and grandson. Comments, ideas or suggestions? Please email him at StDominicYouthMinistry@ comcast.net.

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April 24, 2015

FALL RIVER — Father Robert F. Kirby, age 81, passed away March 30 at the Catholic Memorial Home in Fall River.

Father Kirby also resided in Mashpee and Apollo Beach, Fla. Father Kirby was born April 5, 1933 in North Attleboro to the late Robert F. and Aurore M. (Boutin) Kirby. He is survived by his sister Irene M. Champagne of Attleboro and brothers in-law Gerard Champagne (late Lois), Robert Waterson (late Helen), and sister-in-law Pauline (late Donald). He is also survived by 15 nieces and neph-

Father Robert F. Kirby ews and many grand nieces and nephews.

Father Kirby graduated from Sacred Heart School and North Attleboro High School. He attended Cardinal O’Connell Seminary from 19511953 and entered St. John Seminary in Brighton to complete his studies. He was ordained to the priesthood by Bishop James L. Connolly, on Jan. 6, 1959 at St.

Around the Diocese

A support group to help people cope with the loss of a loved one will meet on Fridays at 10 a.m. through June 5 and again from July 10 through August 20 at Catholic Social Services, 1600 Bay Street in Fall River. Facilitator Phyllis Habib, MSW, LCSW, will lead the group. All are welcome and there is no fee to participate. For more information or to register, call 508-678-2828, extension 27 or email rsaraiva@dfrcs.org.

St. Anthony of the Desert Parish, 300 North Eastern Avenue in Fall River, is hosting a Fashion Show on April 26 at 2 p.m. in the parish center.

Fashions are being provided by TJ Maxx and will be modeled by teens and preteens of the parish. Tickets are $10 for adults and $5 for children six-10 years of age. Refreshments will be served and all proceeds will benefit the parish. For tickets or more information contact Terry at terrygalib@comcast.net. Some tickets may be available at the door and all are welcome to join the fun.

A Cosi Benefit Night will be held April 30 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Cosi’s in Wareham. During this time, 10 percent of all food and beverage sales will benefit the Damien Food Pantry, also in Wareham, and Rob Grant’s upcoming charity run in Pittsburgh on May 3.

The Southeastern Massachusetts Alzheimer’s Partnership is offering seminars for caregivers. Panel members are professionals in a variety of fields and will provide valuable information on the topics of Elder Law, Adult Day Health, Alzheimer’s Association Programs, Assisted Living, Homecare, Hospice, Long-Term Care, Geriatric Care Managers, Monitoring Programs, Reverse Mortgages, State Agencies for Elder Services, and a caregiver’s personal experience. Seminars will be held May 3 at 12 noon at St. Andrew the Apostle Church, 19 Kilmer Avenue in Taunton (RSVP to Phoebe Worcester at 508-822-9200 or pcworcester@gmail.com) and May 6 at 4:30 p.m. at the Fairhaven Council on Aging, 229 Huttleston Avenue in Fairhaven (RSVP to Pat Midurski at 508-992-6278 or pmidurski@communitynurse.com).

A Pilgrimage of Joy, Hope and Healing will travel June 17-22 to St. Joseph Oratory in Montreal and Quebec City. Father Willy Raymond, C.S.C., president of Holy Cross Family Ministries, will lead the pilgrimage with daily Mass and Rosary. Bring your prayer petitions for all your family and friends, particularly those seeking healing. The group will visit many special places of historic and religious significance and a special experience awaits at the St. Joseph Oratory of Mount Royal, where a reliquary of St. André, known as the “Miracle Man of Montreal,” is on display. The trip includes six days and five nights. For more details, call Holy Cross Family Ministries at 508-238-4095 or visit www.

FamilyRosary.org/Events.

The Diocesan Marriage Preparation Program is looking for married couples who would like to enrich their Marriage while helping engaged couples prepare for their lifetime together. There is also a Re-Marriage Prep Program for couples entering their second Marriages. If you are interested in sharing the joys and challenges of married life, contact your pastor or the Diocesan Office of Faith Formation at 508-678-2828 or email cmcmanus@dfrcs.org.

Mary’s Cathedral. He celebrated his first Mass on January 11 at his home parish, Sacred Heart Church, North Attleboro.

Father’s first assignment was to St. Roch’s Church in Fall River. He was later appointed assistant at Our Lady of the Isle, Nantucket where he remained until being appointed assistant at Holy Ghost Parish, Attleboro in 1966. In 1970 Father was appointed assistant at Holy Family Parish, East Taunton and was appointed administrator in 1978. In 1988 he was appointed pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Parish, New Bedford. Father Kirby was assigned as pastor to St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Parish in South Attleboro from where he retired in 1997.

A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated April 21 at Sacred Heart Church in North Attleboro. Burial followed at St. Mary’s Cemetery in North Attleboro.

In Your Prayers Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks April 25 Rev. John J. Wade, Assistant, Sacred Heart, Fall River, 1940 Rev. Raymond J. Lynch, Chaplain, Catholic Memorial Home, Fall River, 1955 April 26 Rev. Ubalde Deneault, Retired Pastor, St. Joseph, Attleboro, 1982 Rev. James F. Greene, Pastor, Our Lady of Fatima, New Bedford, 2002 April 27 Rev. Francis J. Bradley, D.D., Retired Rector, St. Mary’s Cathedral, Fall River, 1925 Rev. Romeo D. Archambault, St. Anne, New Bedford, 1949 Rev. Edward F. O’Keefe, S.J., Retired, St. Francis Xavier, Boston, 1973 April 28 Rev. Stanislaus J. Goyette, Pastor, St. Louis de France, Swansea, 1959 April 29 Rev. James Leo Maguire, Pastor, Diocese of Monterey, Calif., 1987 Rev. Adolph Szelagowksi, OFM Conv., Parochial Vicar, Our Lady of Perpetual Help, New Bedford, 1989 Rev. Peter P. Mullen, M.M., Maryknoll Missioner, 1999 Rev. John M. Breen, M.M., Maryknoll Missioner, 2005 April 30 Rev. John A. Hurley, Pastor, St. Mary, North Attleboro, 1900 Rev. David F. Sheedy, Pastor, St. John Evangelist, Attleboro, 1930 Rev. John Moda, Pastor, St. Mary’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, Ford City, Pa., 1993 May 1 Rev. Francis J. Quinn, Founder, Immaculate Conception, North Easton; Founder, Sacred Heart, Fall River, 1882 Rev. Joseph F. D’Amico, Pastor, Sacred Heart, Oak Bluffs, 1996 Rev. Walter A. Sullivan, Pastor, St. Mary, South Dartmouth, 1997

Eucharistic Adoration in the Diocese Acushnet — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Francis Xavier Parish on Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Tuesday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.; and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Evening prayer and Benediction is held Monday through Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.

ATTLEBORO — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the Adoration Chapel at St. Vincent de Paul Parish, 71 Linden Street, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.

ATTLEBORO — The National Shrine of Our Lady of La Salette holds Eucharistic Adoration in the Shrine Church every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. through November 17.

ATTLEBORO — There is a weekly Holy Hour of Eucharistic Adoration Thursdays from 5:30 to 6:30 pm at St. John the Evangelist Church on N. Main St. Brewster — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the La Salette Chapel in the lower level of Our Lady of the Cape Church, 468 Stony Brook Road, on First Fridays beginning at noon until 7:45 a.m. First Saturday, concluding with Benediction and concluding with Mass at 8 a.m. buzzards Bay — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Margaret Church, 141 Main Street, Monday through Saturday, from 6:30 to 8 a.m.; and every first Friday from noon to 8 a.m. on Saturday.

East Freetown — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. John Neumann Church every Monday (excluding legal holidays) 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady, Mother of All Nations Chapel. (The base of the bell tower).

EAST TAUNTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place in the chapel at Holy Family Parish Center, 438 Middleboro Avenue, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On First Fridays, Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Holy Family Church, 370 Middleboro Avenue, from 8:30 a.m. until 7:45 p.m.

FAIRHAVEN — St. Mary’s Church, Main St., has Eucharistic Adoration every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Chapel of Reconciliation, with Benediction at 11:30 a.m. Also, there is a First Friday Mass each month at 7 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour with Eucharistic Adoration. Refreshments follow.

Fall River — Espirito Santo Parish, 311 Alden Street, Fall River. Eucharistic Adoration on Mondays following the 8 a.m. Mass until Rosary and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

FALL RIVER — St. Bernadette’s Church, 529 Eastern Ave., has continuous Eucharistic Adoration from 8 a.m. on Thursday until 8 a.m. on Saturday.

FALL RIVER — St. Anthony of the Desert Church, 300 North Eastern Avenue, has Eucharistic Adoration Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FALL RIVER — Holy Name Church, 709 Hanover Street, has Eucharistic Adoration Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady of Grace Chapel.

FALL RIVER — Good Shepherd Parish has Eucharistic Adoration every Friday following the 8 a.m. Mass and concluding with 3 p.m. Benediction in the Daily Mass Chapel. A bilingual holy hour takes place from 2 to 3 p.m. Park behind the church and enter the back door of the connector between the church and the rectory.

Falmouth — St. Patrick’s Church has Eucharistic Adoration each First Friday, following the 9 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 4:30 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.

MANSFIELD — St. Mary’s Parish, 330 Pratt Street, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with Benediction at 5:45 p.m.

MASHPEE — Christ the King Parish, Route 151 and Job’s Fishing Road has 8:30 a.m. Mass every First Friday with special intentions for Respect Life, followed by 24 hours of Eucharistic Adoration in the Chapel, concluding with Benediction Saturday morning followed immediately by an 8:30 Mass.

NEW BEDFORD — Eucharistic Adoration takes place 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 233 County Street, with night prayer and Benediction at 8:45 p.m., and Confessions offered during the evening. Please use the side entrance.

NEW BEDFORD — There is a daily holy hour from 5:15-6:15 p.m. Monday through Thursday at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue. It includes Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Liturgy of the Hours, recitation of the Rosary, and the opportunity for Confession.

NEW BEDFORD — St. Lawrence Martyr Parish, 565 County Street, holds Eucharistic Adoration in the side chapel Fridays from 7:30-11:45 a.m. ending with a simple Benediction NORTH DARTMOUTH — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at St. Julie Billiart Church, 494 Slocum Road, every Tuesday from 7 to 8 p.m., ending with Benediction.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available at this time.

NORTH DIGHTON — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Wednesday following 8:00 a.m. Mass and concludes with Benediction at 5 p.m. Eucharistic Adoration also takes place every First Friday at St. Nicholas of Myra Church, 499 Spring Street following the 8 a.m. Mass, ending with Benediction at 6 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 8 a.m.

NORTH EASTON — A Holy Hour for Families including Eucharistic Adoration is held every Friday from 3-4 p.m. at The Father Peyton Center, 518 Washington Street.

ORLEANS — St. Joan of Arc Parish, 61 Canal Road, has Eucharistic Adoration every First Friday starting after the 8 a.m. Mass and ending with Benediction at 11:45 a.m. The Sacrament of the Sick is also available immediately after the 8 a.m. Mass.

OSTERVILLE — Eucharistic Adoration takes place at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 76 Wianno Avenue on First Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

Taunton — Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Tuesday at St. Anthony Church, 126 School Street, following the 8 a.m. Mass with prayers including the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for vocations, concluding at 6 p.m. with Chaplet of St. Anthony and Benediction. Recitation of the Rosary for peace is prayed Monday through Saturday at 7:30 a.m. prior to the 8 a.m. Mass.

Taunton — Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament takes place every First Friday at Annunciation of the Lord, 31 First Street. Exposition begins following the 8 a.m. Mass. The Blessed Sacrament will be exposed, and Adoration will continue throughout the day. Confessions are heard from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. Rosary and Benediction begin at 6:30 p.m.

WAREHAM — Eucharistic Adoration at St. Patrick’s Church begins each Wednesday evening at 6 p.m. and ends on Friday night at midnight. Adoration is held in our Adoration Chapel in the lower Parish Hall. ~ PERPETUAL EUCHARISTIC ADORATION ~ East Sandwich — The Corpus Christi Parish Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapel is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week at 324 Quaker Meeting House Road, East Sandwich. Use the Chapel entrance on the side of the church.

NEW BEDFORD — Our Lady’s Chapel, 600 Pleasant Street, offers Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day. For information call 508-996-8274.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish has perpetual Eucharistic Adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

WEST HARWICH — Our Lady of Life Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Holy Trinity Parish, 246 Main Street (Rte. 28), holds perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. We are a regional chapel serving all of the surrounding parishes. All are invited to sign up to cover open hours. For open hours, or to sign up call 508-430-4716.

19

April 24, 2015

Anti-Cordileone ad misrepresents Catholicism, archdiocese says

San Francisco (CNA) —- A group of Catholics who ran a full-page advertisement in the San Francisco Chronicle asking Pope Francis to remove Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone don’t represent San Francisco Catholics and misrepresent the facts, the archdiocese has said.

“The advertisement is a misrepresentation of Catholic teaching, of the nature of the (archdiocese’s) teacher contract, and of the Spirit of the archbishop.”

Eva Muntean defended the archbishop, calling the signatories “a group of self-proclaimed ‘promi-

nent Catholics’ [that] has become so self-absorbed that they believe they can demand that the Holy Father remove an archbishop because he refuses to sacrifice teaching Catholic values to children in our Catholic schools.”

The ad presented an open letter signed by more than 100 people, including business leaders and Tom Brady Sr., the father of quarterback Tom Brady.

“Please provide us with a leader true to our values and your namesake,” the ad asked the pope. “Please replace Archbishop Cordileone.”

The ad accused the archbishop of fostering “division and intolerance.” It objected to the archbishop’s addition of an explanation of Catholic moral teaching to faculty and staff handbooks for the archdiocese’s four high schools. The ad claimed the explanations showed “absolute mean-spiritedness” that “sets a pastoral tone closer to persecution than evangelization.”

A high school teacher told CNA in March that the media campaign against Archbishop Cordileone “has caused fear among his supporters.”

20 Dynamic faith duo to visit diocese

but through the Eucharistic powers and their dynamic continued from page one message, priests regain that many people could attend,” mission is to reaffirm the confidence and are reinvigosaid St. Anthony’s pastor Fa- priesthood and provide bish- rated.” ther Edward A. Murphy. “The ops and priests a boost to the For the last nearly 40 years, noon session will give older great work they are doing in Father Scallon has hosted a folks, who don’t like to go out their ministries. month-long retreat for priests at night, the chance to hear “Bishops and priests come at All Hallows Seminary in and benefit from these two re- away renewed and refreshed Dublin, Ireland, in August to markable people.” after a session with Father pray for the Spiritual renewal One session, on May 5 at 3 Scallon and Sister Briege,” of the priesthood — theirs p.m., at the church will be for said Father Murphy. “Some- and their peers. priests only. times priests can feel under“Priests are free to come A large part of the pair’s valued and lose confidence, and go as they please during the retreat,” explained Father Murphy. “I’ve attended for the last 17 years. It’s a great boost to my ministry.”

In 1974 Sister Briege, while in intense prayer, was given deep insight into the mystery of the call to the priesthood.

Since then she has shared that

April 24, 2015 insight with priests and bishops in missions and retreats.

But it isn’t only the ordained who are lifted by the pair’s messages. Father Scallon and Sister Briege share a deep devotion to the Eucharist and share that devotion and the Eucharist’s healing powers with all faithful.

The daily mission schedule at St. Anthony’s is: Monday — Reconciliation (Confession); Tuesday — the Priesthood and the Eucharist; Wednesday — the Lord, the Giver of Life; and Thursday — Healing and Anointing of the Sick.

“We are so blessed to have a church that holds nearly 2,000 people, so this wonderful mission is open to everyone,” said Father Murphy.

“We are privileged to have Father Scallon and Sister Briege in our diocese.”

Sister Briege was last in the diocese in 2000 during the Diocese of Fall River’s Eucharistic Congress for the Jubilee Year 2000.

In an interview with The Anchor then, she said that Christ in the Flesh is available to everyone every day in the Eucharist and Eucharistic Adoration. “Go to Him, talk to Him, love Him,” she said.

Sister Briege’s book on the Eucharist, “Miracles Do Happen,” written in 1987, has since been translated into many languages throughout the world.

The book tells of her personal encounter with the healing power of the Eucharist; her healing of crippling arthritis at the age of 24; and her insights about the faith, the power of the Eucharist, the importance of prayer and the ministry of vocations.

In 2000, she spoke to a filled St. Anthony’s Church in Taunton, with many more watching on closed-circuit TV in the hall.

She told those gathered there, as she has to millions of others through her missions, retreats and book, sometimes Jesus heals in a way we are not expecting.

“Go to Jesus,” she said. “Nobody is ever disappointed who turns to Jesus.”

For more information about Sister Briege, visit her website at www.sisterbriege.com. For more information about the St. Anthony’s mission or for directions, contact the parish at 508-993-1691 or visit saintanthonynewbedford.com, or Father Murphy at 508496-9080.