March 11, 2005

March 11, 2005

The Catholic News & Herald 1

www.charlottediocese.org

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Liturgical Norms Bishop Peter J. Jugis introduces new liturgical norms in the Diocese of Charlotte | Pages 9-11

Established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul VI March 11, 2005

Serving Catholics in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte

Growing up in the faith

Preschool Faith Day allows kids, parents to play, learn by

JOANITA M. NELLENBACH correspondent

MAGGIE VALLEY — Preschool Faith Day at St. Margaret of Scotland Church gave kids a chance to learn and play, while parents looked at the materials that will be used for preschool faith formation this fall.

St. Margaret of Scotland Church historically has had a majority of adults and retirees, but now more families are moving to the area and joining the parish. In May, nine youngsters will make their first Communions, the most in a number of years.

About 15 children, ages 5 months to 10 years, attended the faith day, in the parish hall March 5.

See PRESCHOOL, page 7

vOLUME 14

no. 23

Recommitting faith

Deacons recommit to ministry, service Candidates advance toward diaconate by

DEACON GERALD POTKAY correspondent

CHARLOTTE — Deacons and their wives recently converged for their annual recommitment ceremony.

The annual Mass, this year celebrated at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte March 5, is a time for deacons to renew their spirit as they continue their See DEACONS, page 8

Photo by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Sierra Franklin, 10, offers batons to Olivia Masciarelli, 1. On Preschool Faith Day at St. Margaret of Scotland Church in Maggie Valley March 5, children ages 6-10 helped the younger children as a way to give alms for Lent.

Sacred sleuth

A new vision

Archeologist believes he has found St. Paul’s tomb

Catechists discuss lifelong faith formation in parishes

Sarcophagus buried beneath basilica

by JOHN THAVIS

Speaker emphasizes learning, not teaching by

JOANITA M. NELLENBACH

catholic news service

correspondent

VATICAN CITY — A Vatican archeologist believes he has rediscovered the tomb of St. Paul, buried deep beneath the main altar of the Rome basilica dedicated to the apostle.

The sarcophagus, which lay

HICKORY — “Isn’t it interesting how we try to force God into people?” Leif Kehrwald asked. “But God is already there. Why don’t we create an atmosphere for people to discover God’s presence in their lives?”

Lifelong faith formation

See TOMB, page 17

involving the whole parish community can foster that atmosphere, said Kehrwald, project coordinator for family and intergenerational services for the Center for Ministry Development in Naugatuck, Conn. He spoke on “Toward a ‘Whole’ Vision for Faith Formation” at the Catholic See FAITH, page 5

Photo by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Leif Kehrwald speaks on whole-community catechesis at the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory March 3.

In Our Schools

Perspectives

Parish Profile

Students design new school; Guardsman visits; outreach efforts

Toxic thinking; Vatican II’s spirit; ‘Gospel of Life’

Catholic life thrives at St. Gabriel Church

| Pages 6, 12-13

| Pages 18-19

| Page 20

2 The Catholic News & Herald

InBrief

March 11, 2005

Current and upcoming topics from around the world to your own backyard

Cuban bishops say cardinal treated poorly by U.S. officials HAVANA (CNS) — Cuban Cardinal Jaime Ortega Alamino was held for three hours and treated disrespectfully by U.S. immigration officials at the Miami airport when he tried to enter the United States on a Vatican diplomatic passport at the end of February, said the Cuban bishops.

An official wanted to open a file on the cardinal as a possible dangerous person and began asking him questions, which he refused to answer, said the bishops in a March 3 statement.

The cardinal said he told the U.S. officials he was a well-known figure and complained that they were arbitrary in deciding which Cubans needed a file, according to the bishops’ statement.

Cardinal Ortega is president of the Cuban bishops’ conference and head of the Havana Archdiocese. He is a frequent traveler to Miami, where there is a large Cuban-American community.

The incident occurred Feb. 25 and was first reported Feb. 28 by El Nuevo Herald,

Commanding attention

Diocesan planner ASHEVILLE VICARIATE CNS photo by Bob Roller

Kermit Phillips of New River, Tenn., and Eric Herman of Millersville, Md., stand in front of the U.S. Supreme Court March 2 with signs illustrating their opposing positions on whether Ten Commandments monuments should be displayed on government property. The Supreme Court heard arguments in two cases regarding such displays.

Supreme Court hears arguments in two Ten Commandments’ cases WASHINGTON (CNS) — In two cases argued March 2 over displays of the Ten Commandments on government property, Supreme Court justices raised questions about the motives of government authorities who ordered the displays, about the difference between versions of the commandments, and about what sort of tests should be used to evaluate the displays’ constitutionality.

In the cases, the court is being asked to rule on the constitutionality of a 40-year-old granite Ten Commandments monument on the grounds of the Texas state Capitol in Austin, and on displays of framed copies of the commandments amid other historic documents on the walls of courthouses in McCreary and Pulaski counties in Kentucky.

Although some defenders of the monuments have portrayed the cases as a critical turning point for religious rights, other legal observers have said it is more likely that they will affect little more than other such monuments.

Supporters of the monuments in both cases, including the acting U.S. solicitor general, argued that the Texas Legislature and county supervisors in the two Kentucky counties were not promoting a particular religion but merely giving appropriate credit to the historic importance of the commandments in the foundation of the U.S. government and its legal system.

Attorneys for opponents of the

monuments tended to stick to the specific circumstances of each case, avoiding the justices’ efforts to discuss the circumstances under which it would be appropriate to have governmentsponsored displays of the Ten Commandments.

Attorney David Friedman, arguing for the American Civil Liberties Union in its case, McCreary County vs. ACLU of Kentucky, said the counties’ supervisors “absolutely intended and felt they had a right to display the Ten Commandments because of the religious nature of the displays.”

Even a third version of the display, which included equal-sized versions of other historic documents in addition to the commandments, emphasized that the tablets Moses received from God are “‘the’ foundation of our legal system,” he said.

Such monuments around the country typically include the version of the commandments familiar to most Protestants. It differs from the one familiar to Catholics in that it includes a prohibition on worshiping graven images and combines what the Catholic version treats as two commandments forbidding coveting a neighbor’s wife and coveting a neighbor’s goods.

Justice Antonin Scalia argued that “it doesn’t matter what version it is if it stands for the belief that the law is from God.”

ASHEVILLE — UNC-Asheville will host a talk on “Catholic Social Teaching” by Father David A. Boileu of Loyola University March 14 at 7:30 p.m., at UNC-A’s Highsmith University Union Swannanoa Room, 1 University Heights. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, call UNCAsheville’s Center for Diversity Education at (828) 232-5024.

BOONE VICARIATE NORTH WILKESBORO — If you have a special need for prayers, or would like to offer your time in prayer for others’ needs, please call the Rosary Chain at St. John Baptist de La Salle Church. The Rosary Chain is a sizable group and all requests and volunteers are welcome. For details, call Marianna de Lachica at (336) 667-9044.

SPARTA — St. Frances of Rome Church, Hendrix and Highlands Rds., sponsors the Oratory of Divine Love Prayer Group in the parish house the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at 1 p.m. Call (336) 372-8846 for more information.

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Road East, invites all to Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament March 18. Stations of the Cross will begin at 7:30 p.m. followed by Benediction and adoration until midnight. You may come at any time of the evening for as long as you like to visit and spend time with our Lord before His True

a Miami Spanish-language daily newspaper, citing unnamed sources.

Zachary Mann, a Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokesman, told Catholic News Service that the cardinal was treated courteously and professionally and was held for an hour.

The bishops said that the treatment of the cardinal was “brusque and discourteous,” and he was told he had no choice but to answer the questions if he wanted to enter the United States.

When the cardinal said he had the option of returning to Cuba, an official told him he had been given permission to stay in the United States for 30 days, said the bishops.

During the cardinal’s time at the airport, U.S. officials made no mention of the cardinal’s criticisms of the Cuban and U.S. governments, said the bishops.

Cardinal Ortega has criticized restrictions on religious liberty in Cuba and has opposed the U.S. economic embargo

Presence. For more information, call Tina Witt at (704) 846-7361.

CHARLOTTE — St. Gabriel Ministry Center will present “Dealing with the years that follow” March 16, 6:30-8 p.m., at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. While attention is usually focused on persons who are grieving in the first year after a death occurs, the needs of grieving persons go on. Spiritual friendship, care and concern are still needed, regardless of how much time has passed since the loss.

We will explore some of these feelings and ways to cope, as well as signs that may point to the need for specific grief work. The presenter will be Janice Olive of Hospice of Charlotte.

For more information, call BJ Dengler at (704) 364-5431, ext. 212.

CHARLOTTE — A Polish-language Mass will be celebrated at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., on Palm Sunday, March 20 at 3:30 p.m. in the Daily Mass Chapel. Reconciliation will be offered at 2 p.m. For more information, call Elizabeth Spytkowski at (704) 948-1678.

CHARLOTTE — As the 40th anniversary of the closing of Vatican Council II approaches, many Catholics are still unaware of the importance of this Ecumenical Council. Msgr.

John McSweeney will be giving several presentations on what Vatican II really was and its importance to the Church. All sessions will meet in the New Life Center, room 102, of St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. The program meets Mondays, March 21 and April 4 from 7-8:15 p.m. or Tuesdays, March 22 and April 5, 6:30-7:45 p.m. Childcare is available by reservation at (704) 543-7677 ext. 1011.

CHARLOTTE — All women of the diocese

MARCH 11, 2005 Volume 14 • Number 23

Publisher: Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis Editor: Kevin E. Murray Staff Writer: Karen A. Evans Graphic Designer: Tim Faragher Advertising Representative: Cindi Feerick Secretary: Deborah Hiles 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203 Mail: P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237 Phone: (704) 370-3333 FAX: (704) 370-3382 E-mail: catholicnews@charlottediocese.org

The Catholic News & Herald, USPC 007-393, is published by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte, 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203, 44 times a year, weekly except for Christmas week and Easter week and every two weeks during June, July and August for $15 per year for enrollees in parishes of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte and $23 per year for all other subscribers. The Catholic News & Herald reserves the right to reject or cancel advertising for any reason deemed appropriate. We do not recommend or guarantee any product, service or benefit claimed by our advertisers.

Second-class postage paid at Charlotte NC and other cities. POSTMASTER: Send address corrections to The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237.

The Catholic News & Herald 3

March 11, 2005

FROM THE VATICAN

Vatican says cardinals to stand in for pope during Holy Week activities following his hospitalization for respirator y problems and a tracheotomy.

Papal spokesman Joaquin NavarroValls said March 7 the Vatican hoped the pope would be back in the Vatican for Holy Week, but he would decide how or if he would participate in the week’s many liturgies.

Over the past few years, due to his limited mobility, the pope has forgone performing certain Holy Week rituals, such as washing the feet of priests on Holy Thursday and carrying the cross on Good Friday; instead, he has assigned the task to others.

This time several cardinals, including U.S. Cardinal J. Francis Stafford of the Apostolic Penitentiary, have been asked to preside over the Holy Week liturgies and events.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Catholic

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican announced that a series of cardinals would be standing in for Pope John Paul II in the celebration of Holy Week events.

For the first time in his 26-year pontificate, the pope was not scheduled to preside over Holy Week and Easter celebrations, said a March 8 Vatican press statement.

However, the pope was expected to impart the papal blessing “urbi et orbi” (to the city of Rome and the world) March 27, Easter, following Mass presided over by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, Vatican secretary of state.

Where the pope would be when he was to offer his Easter blessing “was left purposely vague,” said a Vatican official, since it was still unclear as to what extent the pope would be able to resume

are invited to the annual women’s day at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., March 19. Most of us are “busy about many things.” How do we make time to listen to the Lord? “Having a ‘Mary heart’ in a Martha World” will feature Susan Brady as facilitator.

The day will open with Mass at 8 a.m. and the program will begin at 8:30 a.m. To register, please call Kathy Murray at (704) 849-0398.

outreach program for those who have left the Catholic Church and are thinking of returning. Landings will meet Saturday evenings beginning March 12. Anyone interested in participating should call the church office at (828) 754-5281.

CHARLOTTE — The Young Adult Faith Reflection group meets at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid Rd., the first and third Mondays of each month. The group will read “The Faith Explained,” third edition, by Leo J. Trese and a chapter will be covered every meeting. For more information, call Jordan (704) 737-1964 or Ryan at (704) 377-1328.

GASTONIA VICARIATE BELMONT — The Bradley Institute for the Study of Christian Culture will have Benedictine Father M. John Farrelly, as a featured speaker March 15 at 7:30 p.m. in the Student Commons at Belmont Abbey College. Father Farrelly’s talk, “The Holy Spirit: The Ultimate Dynamism of the World and History” is free and open to the public.

Reservations are required. A social hour with wine and cheese will follow the presentation.

For more information or to make a reservation, visit The Bradley Institute Web site at www. bradleyinstitute.org or call (704) 829-7231.

GREENSBORO VICARIATE GREENSBORO — Anyone currently unemployed or concerned about their present employment situation is invited to attend the Re-employment Support Group held in the Parish Life Center, Room 8, of St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Rd. The group will meet March 17 and 31, April 14 and 28 and May 12 and 26, 7:30-9 p.m. For more information, call Colleen Assal, (294) 4696, ext. 226.

Anyone with knowledge of job opportunities is asked to call Colleen to share them with the group.

HICKORY VICARIATE LENOIR — St. Francis of Assisi Church, 328B Woodwsay Ln. NW, will host Landings, an

Episcopal

calendar

SMOKY MOUNTAIN VICARIATE MURPHY — Rev. Steve Holcomb, pastor for Grace Mountainside Lutheran and Episcopal fellowship in Robbinsville, will preach the final in a series of Community Lenten Worship Services March 16, 12-12:30 p.m. at St. William Church, 765 Andrews Rd. The series is designed to strengthen ecumenical bonds within the community.

For more information, call Joan Kennedy at (828) 837-8519.

and Muslim members of a joint interreligious committee opened their one-day meeting in Cairo, Egypt, with a silent prayer for Pope John Paul II who was hospitalized that same day.

The Feb. 24 meeting of the joint committee of the Permanent Committee of al-Azhar for Dialogue with Monotheistic Religions and the Vatican’s Council for Interreligious Dialogue “began with a silent prayer with special intentions going for the Holy Father,” a Vatican official said March 7.

Pope John Paul was rushed to Rome’s Gemelli hospital the morning of Feb. 24 after suffering a recurrence of respiratory problems. He was hospitalized Feb. 1-10 for treatment of a flu-related inflammation of the throat.

The joint committee meets once each year to discuss issues important to Islamic-Catholic relations. This year, delegates discussed the church’s call to mission and the similar call in Islam to Da’wa.

Da’wa is the duty of Muslims to convey the message of Islam to nonMuslims. The aim of Christian mission is to propagate Christianity or to carry out humanitarian work.

A delicate balance must be struck by both religions to spread their faith without falling into proselytization, that

is, inducing another to convert to one’s own religious faith.

In a written press release, the joint committee asked that while Catholics follow their call to mission and Muslims their duty to Da’wa “the freedom of belief of each person be respected.”

Both sides agreed that in the formation of Catholic missionaries and Muslims engaged in Da’wa, religious educational institutions played an important role in instilling a sense of respect for others’ beliefs.

The joint committee agreed that every person has a “right to seek truth and to follow it according to their conscience without fear of incurring punishment” or undergoing pressure “to go against their conscience.”

Muslim and Catholic delegates also appealed to the international community to “not link together religion and terrorism since terrorism has no religion.”

Christianity and Islam “call for peace, fraternity and love among all human beings,” the statement said.

The Vatican delegation to this year’s joint committee included the head of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, and the apostolic nuncio to Egypt, Archbishop Marco Brogi.

Farming support

WINSTON-SALEM VICARIATE KERNERSVILLE — The newly formed Triad Pax Christi group will meet March 20, 3:30-5 p.m. at Holy Cross Church Child Development Center, 616 S. Cherry St. Meetings are held on the third Sunday of each month and will open with prayer, sacred silence, followed by a focus speaker with open discussion on the focus topic, as well as general issues related to peace and justice.

Call for directions or information; reservations help us with planning, however dropins are always welcome. Call Pat Henderson, Parish Care office, Holy Cross Church (336) 996-5109, ext. 12 or Marcia Kelley, (336) 784-0985.

KERNERSVILLE — Holy Cross Church, 616 S. Cherry St., invites all Catholics who have been inactive, feel alienated or want to take another look at the Catholic Church to attend a series of sessions designed to address issue that have perhaps cause a feeling of estrangement. Re-Membering Church will meet Wednesdays, April 20 through May 25, at following the 7 p.m. Mass For more information, call Juliann Demmond at (336) 996-7136.

Is your parish or school sponsoring a free event open to the general

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following events:

March 13-14 USCCB Committee on Priestly Life and Ministry Baltimore, Md. March 20 — 11 a.m. Palm Sunday Mass

Official says Catholic-Muslim committee prayed for hospitalized

Cathedral of Saint Patrick, Charlotte

CNS photo Jacquelyn Horkan, Florida Catholic

Bishop Thomas G. Wenski of Orlando, Fla., leading spokesman in the church in immigration matters and former chairman of the U.S. bishops’ migration committee, speaks at a press conference on a federal measure known as AgJOBS Feb. 24 in Tallahassee, Fla. He is joined by farmworkers and farming leaders to support the bill allowing farm laborers who are now in the country, whether legally or illegally, to become legal residents and eventually U.S. citizens. If the bill is passed, immigrant farmworkers will be able to register for temporary legal residency. They could then earn permanent residency by working in agriculture for a specified amount of time. “It is not an amnesty program,” said Bishop Wenski. “These are workers who have invested sweat equity and they deserve legal immigration status.”

4 The Catholic News & Herald

around the diocese

Depicting faith

Paintings on beatitudes brighten church by

DEACON GERALD POTKAY correspondent

GREENSBORO — At one church, people are looking at the beatitudes in a whole new way.

Parishioners saw the arrival of 16 paintings at St. Pius X Church Feb. 24.

The eight color and eight black-andwhite paintings depict the beatitudes of Jesus from the perspectives of the world and God. Dee Schenck Rhodes, the artist, is the stepdaughter of a parishioner at the church.

The beatitudes, teachings of Jesus, describe the ideal Christian character and lay down some of the guiding principles of Christian morality.

The paintings will remain on public display at the church until March 17, according to Tracy Welliver, pastoral associate. Because the paintings are going to be used for the main theme in Lent at St. Pius X Church, they have temporarily replaced eight of the Stations of the Cross. The paintings will be taken down on each Friday morning during that time period for veneration of the Stations.

Photo by Deacon Gerald Potkay

Pictured is a painting by Dee Schenk Rhodes of one of the beatitudes: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. The painting and others depicting the beatitudes hang in St. Pius X Church in Greensboro.

Photo by Deacon Gerald Potkay

“They (the paintings) add a lot to our Lenten season,” said Welliver.

“Msgr. (Anthony) Marcaccio had delivered a very good homily on the beatitudes, and now we can visualize them differently through the work of Dee Rhodes.”

“I think it is good to have another form of sacred art to brighten the church,” said Welliver.

“The colors really bring out more emotions and they make you think about it (the theme of the beatitudes) a lot more,” said Brian Rachal, a member of St. Pius X Church’s RCIA program, who helped hang the paintings.

In addition to the paintings, there will be copies of the book “Blessed Paradoxes: the Beatitudes as Painted Prayer” with pictures by Rhodes and poetic commentary available for reference and/or devotion.

Tracy Welliver, pastoral associate at St. Pius X Church in Greensboro, hangs paintings of the beatitudes at the church.

Contact Correspondent Deacon Gerald Potkay by calling (336) 427-8218 or e-mail gpotkay@triad.rr.com.

March 11, 2005

Shining lights

Women unite for World Day of Prayer service by

ELLEN NEERINCX SIGMON correspondent

HICKORY — Catholic women in Poland helped write this year’s World Day of Prayer worship service, and Catholic women in the Hickory area helped organize a service close to home.

Carole Marmorato, a parishioner of St. Aloysius Church who for eight years has headed the planning committee of Church Women United’s local chapter, received a bouquet of roses at the end of this year’s ecumenical service at First Presbyterian Church March 4. The gift was from members of the Fraternity of Brother Francis, recognizing Marmorato’s role in the community effort.

“I have really come to know a lot of wonderful people while doing this,” said Marmorato. “The enthusiasm of the 12 to 15 women who help me do this year after year really helps me.”

“I am also really thankful for the support I get from St. Aloysius (Church),” she said.

“This is an official ministry of our church through the Community Life commission.”

The World Day of Prayer is an international event uniting Christian women in

179 countries. The first event took place in Poland in 1927. In the United States, the service is sponsored and supported by Church Women United, an ecumenical movement working to bring peace and justice.

Women from 18 churches of various denominations in the Hickory area are involved in preparation for the service each year.

The women began the service by passing out bread and salt, symbols of hospitality in Poland, to welcome those in attendance. The theme, “Let Our Light Shine,” was reinforced by the Scripture readings and by the lighting of candles near the end of the service.

Dr. Emmanuel Gitlin, professor emeritus of religion at Lenoir-Rhyne College in Hickory, spoke during the service about his experiences growing up in his native Poland, and gave some information about the history, religion, and customs in the country. He led a prayer for the health of the pope, and also prayed in Polish, with the congregation repeating prayers in English.

Musicians from First Presbyterian and Zion Lutheran churches provided the music, which included a piece by the First Presbyterian handbell choir.

Photo by Ellen Neerincx Sigmon

Women light candles during the World Day of Prayer worship service in Hickory March 4.

March 11, 2005

FROM THE COVER

The Catholic News & Herald 5

larger than its component parts.”

Kehrwald focused on faith formation centered around events in the liturgical year, lifelong and systematic catechesis connected to real life, and intergenerational catechesis with everyone in the parish involved.

“I can tell you that they work,” Kehrwald said. “We’re working with

‘The life of the parish is crucial to the faith growth of families, but families are crucial to the faith growth of the parish.’

Photo by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Leif Kehrwald chats with Ann Peters of St. James Church in Hamlet during a session of parish catechetical leader in-service training at the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory March 3.

Catechists discuss lifelong faith formation in FAITH, from page 1

Conference Center March 3.

This session of parish catechetical leader in-service training was sponsored

by Harcourt Religion Publishers and was coordinated by the Diocese of Charlotte’s Central Region Leadership Team. It was a follow-up to last year’s program with Bill Huebsch on whole community catechesis.

tive aim of catechesis is to put people not only in touch, but also in communion and intimacy, with Jesus Christ. All evangelizing activity is understood as promoting communion with Jesus Christ” (80).

“In a learning community, we sense the presence and activity of God so, therefore, there is spiritual growth and discipleship,” Kehrwald said. “This leads to outreach and mission — works of outreach and generosity for others, then ourselves. This is a sense of culture that is

“I think this is the trend in the church, toward whole-community catechesis,” said Carol Brown of the Central Region team.

Kehrwald based his talks on the “General Directory for Catechesis (GDC),” which speaks of getting beyond a “schoolhouse” format of children, teachers and classes to entire-community involvement.

Times have changed, he said, since his boyhood when every room in his house had a crucifix — “even the walls catechized.”

“There needs to be some sort of rootedness and right now [people] don’t see the root,” said Mercy Sister Carolyn Coll, director of faith formation at St. Michael Church in Gastonia.

“I see movement for the sake of movement,” she said. “What I see (in society in general) is a lack of fire. How do we create a fire that enriches the community?”

Kehrwald emphasized learning, not teaching.

“No textbook series can provide full faith formation,” he said. “All generations are crucial: parents to children, children to parents. The life of the parish is crucial to the faith growth of families, but families are critical to the faith growth of the parish. What do we bring on Sunday but what we’ve lived the other six days?”

In fact, Kehrwald said, community comes before texts.

“When people ask what curriculum you use, please do not give the name of a publisher,” he said. “... Curriculum lies within the community. We need to know Jesus, not just know about Jesus.”

The GDC backs this up: “The defini-

more than 1,000 parishes across North America.”

As an example of event-centered catechesis, Kehrwald said, “Imagine First Communion as a learning experience of the whole community. Can you imagine what it would be like if we all said, ‘Wow, how incredible this Eucharist is’?”

His own parish, St. Francis of Assisi, recalled how God spoke to Francis, telling him to “Rebuild my church, which you see is falling to ruin.” Kehrwald said parishioners prepared for the feast of St. Francis, Oct. 4, by “learning about St. Francis, Franciscan values, and how we are all called to rebuild the church. It was a terrific learning experience.”

Connected catechesis, Kehrwald said, includes reflection at home before participating in services at church. For instance, he said, “It doesn’t make sense to come (to Mass) on Holy Thursday if you don’t take time to think and pray at home about what it means to wash each other’s feet.”

Kehrwald said a pastor’s involvement is crucial. He suggested helping pastors to get a taste of the concept by inviting them to training sessions that focus on whole-community catechesis.

Donna Tarney of St. John Neumann Church in Charlotte said that it only takes one person to get things rolling.

“No one can stop me from arranging an event that involves all generations,” she said. “Once you start, they’ll come.”

Contact Correspondent Joanita M. Nellenbach by calling (828) 627-9209 or e-mail jnell@dnet.net.

6 The Catholic News & Herald

in our schools

March 11, 2005

Deeds of love and faith

Designs in mind

Photo by Karen A. Evans

Bailey Miller and Miles Jordan, eighth-graders at Sacred Heart School, present their plans for a new school to members of the building committee March 4.

Students unveil ideas for new school facility by

KAREN A. EVANS staff writer

SALISBURY — Sacred Heart Church recently purchased 40 acres on which to build a new church, school and multipurpose facility.

The new property gave the eighthgrade class an opportunity to use their math skills and give some valuable input for the new school.

Students worked in pairs for three weeks to design new school plans. The teams then each submitted a scale drawing or model and a two-to-three page paper explaining the reasoning and concepts used.

The entire student body, faculty

and staff were surveyed to evaluate the needs for the new facility. The students then incorporated the feedback into their designs.

The majority of the designs included larger classrooms, covered walkways, expanded parking areas and separate wings for the elementary and middle school classes.

As part of their grade, the students presented their designs to representatives of the building committee March 4.

“Although no decision has been made as to what building will be built first on the new property, I felt having students design a future school would

Courtesy Photo by Lisa Horton

First- and fourth-graders at St. Ann School in Charlotte prepare 200 lunches to help feed the homeless at Urban Ministry Center in Charlotte Feb. 22. The lunches each contained two sandwiches, an apple, cookies and a bag of carrots. The students also decorated the lunch bags with personal messages of love and faith. The outreach effort was part of the school’s annual Lenten “Good Deeds” service projects, which included collecting books for Thompson Child Development Center in Charlotte and dog toys for the Humane Society animal shelter, and raising donations for the school’s Pennies for Patients Campaign for the Leukemia Society and Samaritan’s Feet.

Masking fun

Reading for relief

Courtesy Photo

Teacher Sheri Smith and her homeroom class of first-graders get into the Mardi Gras spirit in February with decorative masks and other decorations at Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro.

Photo by Karen A. Evans

Emma Rose Lowder presents a check for $250 to Terri Jarina, program director for the Office of Justice and Peace of Catholic Social Services. Emma Rose, a kindergartner at St. Patrick School in Charlotte, raised the money by collecting pledges for reading books. She read 100 books and donated the money to Catholic Relief Services for tsunami relief. Patrick Lowder, Emma Rose’s father, works for Bank of America, which matched Emma Rose’s contribution, for a total of $500 raised by the six-year-old.

March 11, 2005

AROUND THE DIOCESE

Celebrating faith

The Catholic News & Herald 7

Kids, parents enjoy Preschool Faith Day PRESCHOOL, from page 1

Courtesy Photo

“It was nice to see all the children gathered together,” said Augustinian Father Francis Doyle, pastor. “I hope their enthusiasm will make our parishioners even more committed.”

The children visited four “stations”: music, with songs such as “Jesus Loves Me”; Easter stories about Jesus, his care for children, and Hebrew Scripture stories such as Noah and the Ark; activities with Bible puzzles and puppets with Bible figures; and crafts, including making colorful cross-and-bead necklaces and Easter bonnets made from paper plates and bowls.

Parents helped out with snacks and at the four stations.

“It was just that they get to know each other better, so when they start in the fall they’ll know each other better,” said Michelle Pipitone, who was there with her daughters Michaela, 10, and Madeleine, 8, and son 5-year-old son Nicolo.

“In church they have to be quiet, so today they could play together,” said Pipitone.

The 6- to 10-year-olds helped the

younger ones.

“This was their almsgiving for Lent,” said Tracey Fowler of the faith formation team.

Alex and Tina Masciarelli brought their daughters: Sophia, 4, Fiona, 2, and Olivia, 1.

“It’s just a chance for the kids to get together, to learn and have fun together,” Alex said. “Our parish has been growing and changing, and we need this.”

Tina agreed. She and her husband plan to help out.

“Our children’s spiritual formation is very important to us,” she said. “I think it’s important for our kids to see us doing it together. We come to church together, pray together, eat dinner together every night.”

Both parents work full time. Alex teaches Spanish at Waynesville Middle School; Tina is a social worker with REACH of Haywood County, which helps abused women and children.

She said that’s one of the reasons that she and her husband are committed to a strong, family-oriented faith formation program, because, “being a social worker, I see what happens to kids down the road who don’t have that.”

Contact Correspondent Joanita M. Nellenbach by calling (828) 627-9209 or

Children from St. James the Greater Church in Hamlet perform during a bilingual children’s liturgy at the church, opening the Family Lenten Activity Day Feb. 20. About 100 people attend the bi-monthly event that involves the entire parish in whole-community catechesis.

Photos by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Tracey Fowler of the faith formation team helps 7-year-olds Kelly Leon (center) and Sydney Franklin make Easter bonnets out of paper bowls during Preschool Faith Day at St. Margaret of Scotland Church in Maggie Valley March 5.

8 The Catholic News & Herald

around the diocese

March 11, 2005

Deacons recommit to ministry, service DEACONS, from page 1

Photos by Deacon Gerald Potkay

Above: Deacons and wives attend the recommitment Mass at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte March 5.

Bellow: Diaconate candidate Stephen Pickett and his son Kaheem speak with Bishop Peter J. Jugis at the celebration dinner after the recommitment Mass for deacons March 5.

individual journeys and renew their commitment to Bishop Peter J. Jugis.

“This is a joyous occasion that brings each of us the joy of serving, as well as the realization of whom we are doing it for,” said Deacon Timothy Rohan, permanent deacon at Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro. “The grace we receive when renewing our vows helps us to continue to faithfully serve God’s people to the best of our ability.”

The Mass was also a time for the deacons’ wives to once again renew their promises of support for their husbands in their ministry.

“This is a wonderful occasion that brings all of God’s servants together for renewal and to remind ourselves of our purpose and mission as deacons,” said Deacon Jeffrey Evers, permanent deacon at St. Matthew Church in Charlotte.

“We came to remember what we committed ourselves to at ordination and to recommit ourselves to the next year fully renewed in spirit,” said Deacon John Sims, permanent deacon at St. Therese Church in Mooresville.

Candidates for the permanent diaconate, who were instituted into the Office of Reader by Bishop Jugis during the Mass, and their wives and relatives joined in the celebration. For the candidates, the event was a major step in the long journey to ordination as deacons.

“In receiving the Bible during the rite of institution today, you candidates are to see to it that the Word of God grows strong in the hearts of Christ’s people, and that it grows strong in your own hearts, too,” said Bishop Jugis during his homily to the candidates.

“This was a very meaningful time for us as we go through our spiritual journey,” said candidate Richard Han-

ners. “We, that is, all of the men in the program are grateful to serve.”

“It was especially momentous because I was baptized at St. Patrick’s,” said candidate Kevin Williams. “It was neat to have come this far in our journey towards ordination.”

“It makes everything more real about the whole process (towards ordination),” said Theresa Williams, Kevin’s wife. “It’s a blessing to have the entire deacon community together with the candidates.”

“What the Lord asks of his servants is humility,” said the bishop.

Bishop Jugis spoke about Christ’s role as a model of humility right up to his total humiliation on the cross.

“Those who serve Christ must be like the Divine Master ... (they) must identify themselves with the Master in all things,” said the bishop. “The Lord’s people must see Christ in us ... through our deeds and in our actions, in and outside the church.”

God, as man, came to seek what was lost, said Bishop Jugis.

“This is what people are craving ... they are looking to get on the path to salvation,” he said. “You have the light that people want, the light of God leading to salvation. Their hearts will not be at peace until they find the light of Christ.”

Bishop Jugis encouraged the deacons and candidates to “seek always to live united to Christ.”

Contact Correspondent Deacon Gerald Potkay by calling (336) 427-8218 or e-mail gpotkay@triad.rr.com.

March 11, 2005

LITURGICAL NORMS

The Catholic News & Herald 9

New liturgical norms for Diocese of Charlotte Vatican says Mass norms promote reverence by

KEVIN E. MURRAY editor

CHARLOTTE — Bishop Peter J. Jugis has promulgated new liturgical norms for the Diocese of Charlotte.

The new norms, which cover all aspects of the Mass from Introductory Rites to Communion, will take effect Holy Thursday, March 24.

The norms for celebrating Mass ensure reverence for the Eucharist and preserve the unity of the Catholic Church, according to a recent Vatican document.

“Liturgical norms are necessary because ‘in liturgy full public worship is performed by the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, that is, by the Head and by the members,’” said the document, “Redemptionis Sacramentum” (“The Sacrament of Redemption”), written by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments.

“No one should be surprised if, with the passage of time, Holy Mother Church has developed words and actions, and therefore directives, for this supreme act of worship,” said the document, approved by Pope John Paul II

and released in April 2004. “Eucharistic norms are devised to express and protect the Eucharistic mystery and also manifest that it is the Church that celebrates this august sacrifice and Sacrament.”

The Vatican confirmed the English translation of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal March 19, 2003. The General Instruction presents norms for the celebration of Mass.

It includes detailed instructions for each part of the Mass; for the duties of the celebrant, other ministers and the people; for differences when there are concelebrants and when a deacon is present or not; for the arrangement and furnishing of churches; and for the bread and wine, the vessels and vestments.

“The current norms, prescribed in keeping with the will of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, and the new Missal that the Church of the Roman Rite is to use from now on in the celebration of Mass are also evidence of the great concern of the Church, of her faith, and of her unchanged love for the great mystery of the Eucharist,” said the instruction.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, The celebration of the Holy Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life” (Lumen Gentium, 11). After many years of preparation, the third typical edition of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal was approved in English translation on March 17, 2003. This document provides the framework of our celebration of the Sacred Mysteries and guides us that we may celebrate the Holy Sacrifice in unity and peace. On March 25, 2004 the Holy See issued a further instruction on the Eucharist entitled, “Redemptionis Sacramentum” (“The Sacrament of Redemption”) to provide greater clarity to certain matters regarding the Most Holy Eucharist and “to preserve this mystery of faith with reverence, care, devotion and love.”

It is with this in mind that I have the joy of promulgating the following liturgical norms for the Diocese of Charlotte. They are outlined here for the benefit of all the Christian faithful of our Diocese and are to be considered normative for the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy on Holy Thursday, March 24, 2005, the beginning of the Triduum of Easter.

Sincerely Yours in Christ,

The Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis, J.C.D. Bishop of Charlotte

Liturgical Norms of the Diocese of Charlotte General Norms

1. It is the right of all of Christ’s faithful that the Liturgy, and in particular the celebration of Holy Mass, should truly be as the Church wishes, according to the stipulations as prescribed in the liturgical books and in the other laws and norms.1 The norms set forth here, therefore, are presented to insure the prayerful and worthy celebration of the Sacred Mysteries within the Diocese of Charlotte so that all of God’s faithful might celebrate with one heart and one voice.

2. Any construction or significant alteration of a sanctuary requires the approval of the bishop.

3. The preference is that the tabernacle should be located in the sanctuary, apart from the altar of sacrifice in an appropriate place, not excluding an older altar no longer used for celebration. The tabernacle is to be immovable and non-transparent and locked in such a way that the danger of profanation is prevented to the greatest extent possible.2 The sanctuary as defined by the General Instruction is the place where the altar stands, where the word of God is proclaimed, and where the priest, the deacon, and the other ministers exercise their offices.3 4. There is to be a crucifix permanently displayed near the altar and visible to the congregation. There should be only one crucifix prominently displayed in the sanctuary. If a processional crucifix is used, it should not remain in the sanctuary during the celebration of Mass.4 5. All parish churches and chapels are to have kneelers so that the faithful might kneel for both the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy and private devotion.

6. The words of prayers, responses and readings are to be utilized as they appear in the approved Mass texts. For example, The Nicene Creed, the response at the Orate fratres, and the preface dialogue, and other Mass texts are not to be altered. No foreign elements are to be introduced into the liturgy other than those that are called for by the liturgical norms, e.g. liturgical dance.5 7. Sacred song is prayer “prayed twice.”6 The people’s participation in sacred song should be carefully nurtured and a parish repertory of sacred music should be developed over time. Purely secular lyrics have no place in the sacred liturgy.7 8. Silence can foster reverence and reflection. Before Mass begins, a time of silence is commendable in the church, the sacristy, and in adjacent areas so that all may be disposed to carry out the sacred actions in a devout and fitting manner. Sacred silence, as a part of the celebration, is also to be observed at the designated times: for example, after each

invitation to pray, at the conclusion of each reading, after the homily, and after Communion.8 9. All presidential texts are to be spoken or sung in a loud and clear voice so that everyone might hear them. While the presiding priest is speaking these texts, the organ or other musical instruments should be silent.9 10. With the exception of the altar cloth, which should usually remain on the altar at all times, the altar should be as bare as possible before Mass begins. No vessels or books should be on the altar before Mass. If the altar candles block the people’s view, they should be placed near, but not on the altar.10 11. When altar coverings other than white are used, the uppermost cloth must be white.11 The corporal, which is the cloth placed immediately beneath the chalice and paten for the celebration of the Mass, should be unfolded and placed on the altar at the Presentation of the Gifts,12 and should be removed from the altar at the end of the Communion Rite for proper laundering. “Permanent” corporals that remain on the altar from Mass to Mass are not appropriate. It may be necessary to use several corporals on which are placed the extra ciboria and communion cups.

12. Planning for the Mass should include providing for a sufficient number of hosts to be consecrated so that all can receive hosts consecrated during that Mass, underlining the connection between consecration and communion. Generally, reserved hosts should not be brought from the tabernacle unless needed at a particular Mass.13 13. The sacred vessels should be made of precious metal; Materials that break easily may not be used; e.g., glass, ceramic, porcelain, & crystal.14 Materials that are deemed precious to a region, e.g. hardwoods, may be used only if they are lined with precious metal.

14. It is a praiseworthy practice to cover the chalice with a veil, which may be either the color of the day or white.15 15. Appropriate public and private devotion to the Eucharist outside Mass should also be encouraged.16 16. It is preferable that priests who are present at a Eucharistic Celebration participate as concelebrants. If not, they should participate wearing their proper choir dress or a surplice over a cassock.17 17. Proper liturgical vesture should be used for the celebration. For priests: the alb, the stole and the chasuble. For the deacon: the alb, the stole, and the dalmatic. If there are not a sufficient number of chasubles for concelebrants, they may concelebrate with the alb and stole.18

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LITURGICAL NORMS

(General Intercessions), addressing the people directly, with hands folded. The deacon is the proper minister of the petitions; in his absence a reader or another member of the lay faithful may announce the petitions.37 The series of intentions in the Prayer of the Faithful follows this order: * For the needs of the Church; * For public authorities and the salvation of the whole world; * For those burdened by any kind of difficulty; * For the local community.38 37. The presiding priest concludes the Prayers of the Faithful with a prayer, with his hands extended.39

Liturgy of the Eucharist Preparation of the Gifts

38. The bread and wine to be consecrated, and the offerings for the Church and for the poor are to be brought up in the offertory procession.40 The priest may be assisted by the deacon or other ministers in receiving the gifts. Only the bread and wine are to be placed by the priest on the altar; the other offerings are to be placed away from the Eucharistic table. Nothing should be placed on the main corporal until it is handed to the priest.41 39. The bread used at Mass must be made only from wheat, recently baked and, according to the ancient tradition of the Latin Church, unleavened.42 40. The wine used must be “from the fruit of the grape vine,” natural and unadulterated, that is, without admixture of extraneous substances.43 41. The private prayers of the priest at the Preparation of the Gifts are made only in his name and are to be prayed quietly.44 Only prayers beginning with “Blessed are you, Lord...” may be said aloud if there is no music at this point. If there is music or singing it should continue and the prayers said inaudibly. The chalice and paten are raised only slightly from the altar during these prayers.

42. The main chalice should be larger and more prominent than any other cups used; they are all prepared at this time. A drop of water is poured into the main chalice alone.

At celebrations involving a large number of cups, they should be filled beforehand and brought to the altar at this time.

43. The pouring of the Blood of Christ after the consecration from one vessel to another is to be avoided, “lest anything should happen that would be to the detriment of so great a mystery.” Flagons, bowls, and other vessels that are not fully in accord with the established norms should not be used as containers for the Precious Blood.45 44. After the presiding priest washes his hands (lavabo),46 the people are to stand when the presiding priest says “pray brethren” (Orate Fratres).47

Eucharistic Prayer

45. In the dioceses of the United States of America, the people should kneel beginning after the singing or recitation of the Holy, Holy (Sanctus) until after the Amen of the Eucharistic prayer, except when prevented on occasion by reason of health, lack of space, the large number of people present, or another good cause. Those who do not kneel should make a profound bow when the priest genuflects after the consecrations.48 46. The words of the Eucharistic Prayer belong to the whole Church and are not to be supplemented or altered by the presiding priest. Only approved Eucharistic prayers may be prayed.49 47. Instrumental music is not allowed while the celebrant prays the Eucharistic Prayer.

48. The deacon(s) assisting at Mass kneel from the epiclesis until the priest shows the chalice to the people, just before the Mystery of Faith.50 This rubric does not apply to deacons unable to kneel for reasons of health or age.

49. At the epiclesis, when appropriate, a server rings a bell as a signal to the faithful. According to local custom, the server also rings the bell as the priest shows the host and then the chalice.51 50. The presiding priest does not break the host at the time of the consecration. The fraction rite occurs later in the Mass at the Lamb of God.52 51. The words of institution are to be said clearly and distinctly as their meaning demands.

52. At the final doxology (“Through him, with him...”), a deacon stands next to the priest elevating the chalice while the priest elevates the paten with the host. The deacon elevates the chalice to the same height as the priest does the host. If there is no deacon but there is a concelebrating priest, he may elevate the chalice. This elevation is of one paten and one cup. The faithful do not to join in saying or singing the final doxology with the priest.53

Communion

53. Holding hands during the Our Father is not found in the Order of the Mass.

54. At the Rite of Peace following the Our Father, “it is suitable that each person offer the sign of peace only to those nearby and in a dignified manner.”54 55. The priest should ordinarily not leave the sanctuary during the sign of peace (except on special occasions, e.g. funerals and then only to greet the family of the deceased).55

March 11, 2005

The gift of peace should not seem to flow from the ordained to the laity.

56. The fraction rite (breaking the bread) is reserved to the priest and deacon. Lay persons do not participate in this rite. The Agnus Dei litany is sung during this rite. It may be repeated until the fraction is completed, but its last petition is always “grant us peace.”

Other tropes may replace the phrase “Lamb of God” during such repetitions. 56 57. The fraction takes place before the showing of the host. The host is broken over the paten and should never be broken in such a way that particles of the Eucharist might be scattered or desecrated in any way.

58. The faithful kneel after the Agnus Dei.57 59. All concelebrating priests must receive a host consecrated at the same Mass,58 and must receive the Precious Blood consecrated at the same Mass.59 60. Concelebrating priests genuflect before they receive from the chalice at the altar,60 if they are able to do so.

61. The Communion Song should begin when the presiding priest receives Communion.61 62. The priest may be assisted by extraordinary ministers in the distribution of Communion, if other priests or deacons are not available and there is a large number of communicants. Extraordinary ministers in order of preference for such occasions are: duly instituted acolytes, and then others who have been deputed or commissioned for this purpose. In case of necessity, the priest may depute suitable faithful persons for a single occasion from the congregation.62 Pastorally, extraordinary ministers are commissioned for three years at a time. This allows others to participate-especially in large parishes.63 63. Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion should not approach the altar until after the priest receives both species, they may, however, approach the sanctuary before the priest receives Communion.64 The location for the extraordinary ministers prior to receiving Communion is somewhat determined by the physical structure of the building.

64. Communion ministers, as a rule, should receive under both kinds.

65. Extraordinary ministers are always to receive the vessel containing either species of the Most Holy Eucharist from the hands of the presiding priest, a deacon or another priest.65 66. Neither deacons nor extraordinary ministers may ever receive Holy Communion in the manner of a concelebrating priest. The practice of priests and extraordinary ministers waiting to receive Holy Communion until after the distribution of Communion to the congregation is not in accord with liturgical law.66 67. If Communion is given under both kinds, the administration of the cup belongs to the deacon(s).67 If there are several stations for the consecrated hosts and for the Precious Blood, it is acceptable for the deacon(s) to assist the priest(s) in distributing the consecrated hosts.

68. “The Church’s custom shows that it is necessary for each person to examine himself at depth, and that anyone who is conscious of grave sin should not celebrate or receive the Body of the Lord without prior sacramental confession, except for grave reason when the possibility of confession is lacking; in this case he will remember that he is bound by the obligation of making an act of perfect contrition, which includes the intention to confess as soon as possible.”68 69. Catholic ministers licitly administer the Sacraments only to the Catholic faithful, who likewise receive them licitly only from Catholic ministers. Hence, in general non-Catholics are not admitted to Holy Communion in the Catholic Church, and Catholics are not to receive communion in churches that are not Catholic.69 70. At Communion, the faithful are not permitted to take the host or the chalice by themselves, and still less to hand them on to one another.

The normative posture for the reception of Holy Communion in the dioceses of the United States is standing. However, communicants should not be denied Holy Communion because they kneel.70 71. When receiving Holy Communion, the communicant bows his or her head before the Sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the Lord from the minister. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is also made before receiving the Precious Blood.71 72. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand at the discretion of each communicant.72 When receiving in the hand, the communicant should be guided by the words of St. Cyril of Jerusalem: “When you approach, take care not to do so with your hand stretched out and your fingers open or apart,” 73 but rather place one hand as a throne beneath the other, then step to one side and using the lower hand receive the host taking care that nothing is lost.

73. The Communion-plate for the Communion of the faithful should be retained, so as to avoid the danger of the sacred host or some fragment of it falling.74 74. If Communion from the chalice is carried out by intinction, each communicant, holding a communion plate under the chin, approaches the priest who holds a vessel with the hosts, a minister standing at his side and holding the chalice. Self-intinction is not permitted and one who receives Communion by intinction may never receive in the hand.

The hosts that are used must be consecrated, and it is altogether forbidden to use nonconsecrated bread or other matter.75 75. As circumstances allow, after communicants have returned to their places, they may kneel or sit while the period of sacred silence after Communion is observed.76

March 11, 2005

LITURGICAL NORMS

The Catholic News & Herald 11

Introductory Rites

18. The procession of the priest(s), deacon(s), and servers though the midst of the people is a striking sign of ministry in the midst of God’s people and is highly recommended for Masses celebrated on Sundays and Solemnities, as well as other Masses, when practical.

The Book of the Gospels may be carried in procession. This is the role of the deacon if he is present; otherwise, The Book of the Gospels may be carried by a lector. The Lectionary is never processed.19 19. When the Eucharist is reserved in the sanctuary: 20 * the priests and ministers genuflect as they enter the sanctuary; * those carrying incense, the processional cross, or candles simply bow their heads. * The deacon or lector carrying the Book of the Gospels approaches the altar and places the book on it, without a bow of the head.21 20. When the Eucharist is reserved in a place outside the sanctuary:22 * the priests and ministers make a profound bow to the altar as they enter the sanctuary 23; * those carrying incense, the processional cross, or candles simply bow their heads.24 * The deacon or lector carrying the Book of the Gospels approaches the altar and places the book on it, without a bow of the head. 25 21. The Lectionary is placed on the ambo before Mass and is never carried in the entrance procession or in the recessional.26 22. The Book of the Gospels may be carried in the entrance procession, slightly elevated, by the deacon, or, in the absence of a deacon, by a lector (reader).27 23. The Book of Gospels is placed at the center of the altar until it is carried to the ambo by the deacon, or in his absence, by the priest who will proclaim the gospel.28 24. After the Sign of the Cross and the Greeting, the presiding priest, the deacon or a lay minister may briefly introduce the Mass of the day. Only the presiding priest, however, may invite the people to take part in the penitential rite.

25. The presiding priest leads Forms A and B, both of which are followed by the (nonsacramental) absolution and the Kyrie. Neither the priest nor the people should make a sign of the cross at this point. The presiding priest, the deacon, or a cantor may lead Form C, which incorporates the Kyrie.29 26. The Rite of Blessing and Sprinkling with Holy Water may replace the Penitential Rite at Sunday Mass. Other introductory rites for special occasions (e.g., the blessing of palms on Passion Sunday, or the blessing of candles on the Presentation) take the place of the Penitential Rite, which is then omitted.

27. Since the Gloria is a hymn, it should ordinarily be sung rather than recited, when required by the rubrics. If it cannot be sung, the Gloria is recited rather than omitted. It may not be replaced by any other hymn of praise.30

Liturgy of the Word

28. The readings proclaimed as the Word of God must always be taken from Sacred Scripture, according to the norms laid out in the Lectionary.31 29. There should be only one ambo. It is used for the proclamation of the Word of God, including the Scripture readings and Responsorial Psalm, as well as the homily and Prayers of the Faithful. The dignity of the ambo requires that only a minister of the word should go up to it. Announcements, presentations, and testimonials are not to be given from the ambo.32 30. The Responsorial Psalm should be sung, especially on Sundays and Solemnities. If it is not sung, it is recited. As the Psalms are the Word of God, they may not be replaced by songs or non-biblical texts.33 31. The Gospel Acclamation may be omitted if not sung.34 32. If a deacon is present and ministering at Mass, he should proclaim the Gospel. In his absence, a concelebrating priest may proclaim the Gospel; if there is none of the above, the presiding priest proclaims the Gospel.

33. The homily is required on Sundays and holy days of obligation at Masses celebrated with a congregation and is highly desirable at all Masses. The homily is reserved to the ordained;35 only bishops, priests or deacons may preach the homily at Mass. The presiding priest should normally give the homily, which is properly a reflection on the Scriptural readings or feast of the day, applied to the concrete situation of the community. He may, however, delegate the homily to a deacon or to a concelebrating priest, for a good reason.

While laypersons may not deliver the homily, they may translate the homily as it is being delivered by the ordained minister.

34. The Creed is obligatory on Sundays and Solemnities.

35. The proper Profession of Faith on Sundays and Solemnities is the Nicene Creed.36 During the proclamation of the Nicene Creed, all bow at the words: “by the power of Holy Spirit... and became man”; on the Solemnities of the Annunciation and Nativity of the Lord, all genuflect during these words.

36. The presiding priest invites the congregation to join in the Prayers of the Faithful

CNS file photo by Octavio Duran

The Vatican’s new document on liturgy insists that lay people delegated to assist with the distribution of Communion be referred to as “Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion” and that they be called upon when there are an insufficient number of ordinary ministers — bishops, priests or deacons — to give Communion.

76. Care must be taken that whatever may remain of the Blood of Christ after the distribution of Communion is consumed immediately and completely at the altar.77 This function is normally reserved to the priest and deacon; however, in the Diocese of Charlotte, they may be assisted if they choose by the instituted acolytes or extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion who distributed the chalices.78 77. The empty sacred vessels are purified by the priest at the altar or credence table.79 The deacon purifies at the credence table.

If purification is delayed until the dismissal of the people, they should be placed on a corporal and covered. They are to be purified immediately after the dismissal of the people.80 78. While it is the norm for priests and/or deacons to perform the required purification of the sacred vessels following Communion, in virtue of the indult granted to the Bishops of the United States, in cases of real necessity extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion may assist with this task.81 When the assistance of extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion is employed, the purifications should take place at the credence table immediately after Communion or immediately following the dismissal of the people.

79. The Prayer after Communion ends the Communion rite; no announcements or other activities (including second collections) that might distract from this solemn moment should be made or take place until this prayer has been offered.82 If a layperson offers a reflection (e.g. a missionary appeal), it should be given after this prayer is concluded. Second collections are proper either immediately following the first collection or following the Prayer after Communion.

80. Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion being sent to care for those unable to participate with the community should be sent forth from the celebration by the presiding priest. This emphasizes the connection of the reception of Holy Communion outside of Mass by the sick with the Holy Sacrifice.83

Concluding Rite

81. Only the presiding priest and the deacon(s) of the Mass kiss the altar at the end of Mass.

82. When the Eucharist is reserved in the sanctuary: * the presiding priest and ministers genuflect as they leave the sanctuary; * those carrying incense, cross, or candles bow their heads.84 83. Neither the Book of Gospels nor the Lectionary is carried out in the reces1 Congregation for Divine Worship, sional.85 Redemptionis Sacramentum, 25 March 2004, 11-12.

2 Congregation for Divine Worship, General Instruction of the Roman Missal (Third Typical Edition), 17 March 2003, 314; RS 130.

3 GIRM 295.

4 Cf. GIRM 117, 122, 308.

5 GIRM, 399; RS, 11-12, 59; Notitiae 11 (1975) 202-205; Canon Law Digest, Vol. VIII, pp. 78-82 6 St. Augustine.

7 GIRM 41, 48, 111, 393, Sacrosanctum Concilium 112ff, Musicam sacram.

8 GIRM 45.

9 GIRM 32.

10 GIRM 306, 307.

11 GIRM 117, 304.

12 GIRM 73, 118, 139.

13 GIRM 85.

14 RS 117.

15 GIRM 118.

16 RS 134-141.

17 GIRM 114; RS 128 18 GIRM 119, 209; RS 123, 125.

19 GIRM, 120d.

20 GIRM 49, 274.

21 GIRM 173, 195.

22 GIRM 49.

23 GIRM 49.

24 GIRM 274.

25 GIRM 173, 195.

26 GIRM 118b, 120d.

27 GIRM 120, 172, 194.

28 GIRM 117, 122, 173, 194.

29. GIRM 51, 52. cf. Order of Mass 30 GIRM 53.

31 GIRM 57.

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in OUR SCHOOLS

March 11, 2005

Hunger for a cause

Wind vs. wall Caution tape seals off the entrance to Charlotte Catholic High School March 8, the result of storms with wind gusts of 60-70 mph that lashed across Charlotte, uprooting trees, downing power lines and causing damage to the school’s roof above the entrance about 7:45 a.m.. A steel wall protecting cooling equipment was ripped from its foundation and left unstable, causing school officials to send students home at 11 a.m. as a safety precaution. High winds prevented a crane and workers from repairing the damage, canceling classes March 9.

Photo by Kevin E. Murray

Special skaters

Photo by Karen A. Evans

Seventh-graders at St. Mark School in Huntersville show off pictures of children whom they will help by participating in the 30-Hour Famine for World Vision. Students fasted for 30 hours, beginning during the school day March 4, to raise awareness of the millions of people who live in poverty worldwide. Monies raised will go to World Vision, an organization that helps millions of starving and hurting children in some of the world’s poorest countries.

Courtesy Photo

Members of the Charlotte Checkers ice hockey team assist with the floor hockey competition of the 2005 Special Olympics Southeast Region Ice Skating Competition at Charlotte Catholic Feb. 11-12. The non-skating events, such as floor hockey and Olympic Town, were held at Charlotte Catholic where 46 students volunteered to help out during the events.

March 11, 2005

in OUR SCHOOLS

The Catholic News & Herald 13

National Guardsman visits students in Winston-Salem Capt. Almond grateful for prayers,

by SUSAN deGUZMAN correspondent

WINSTON-SALEM — Students at St. Leo the Great School in Winston-Salem recently met a soldier who was grateful for their support.

“Your prayers and support helped me feel confident that I would come back,” revealed Capt. Mark Almond to students at St. Leo the Great School.

Almond, of the 113th Field Artillery of the N.C. National Guard, visited the school Feb. 16 with a slideshow presentation of his experiences in Iraq. An uncle of one of the students, Almond was prayed for regularly by the students and faculty, along with several other relatives serving overseas.

Almond reported to Fort Bragg for active duty Oct. 1, 2003. He was deployed to Iraq last February and stationed at Kirkush Military Training Base, about 30 miles from the Iranian border.

His mission was to train, protect and support the Iraqi National Guard to take over the security of the country.

“When I first arrived I was scared to death,” he admitted to the students. “I expected something bad to happen since our training prepared us for fighting.”

Although trained in combat arms, Almond is grateful that he never was required to discharge his weapon in a hostile manner while in Iraq. His only encounter with combat involved enemy fire at his vehicle.

Almond showed many pictures of Iraqi children, pointing out those of close in age to the students at St. Leo the Great School.

“The Iraqi kids loved to get their pictures taken, as they seldom have the opportunity to see themselves,” he said.

“These kids are not in school. We [the soldiers] would encourage them to go to school, even though they are not required to go past the seventh or eighth grade,” he

said. “They could choose to stay at home and work for their parents.”

The U.S. troops have helped to build schools and medical facilities for the people of Iraq. Some of Almond’s slides showed a facility that his unit helped to build.

“All you see right now on the news are violence and explosions. There are so many good news stories that aren’t being told,” said Almond.

He said there are 25 million people in Iraq and fewer than 2,000 of them are terrorists.

Some of the slides were of families working in a nearby brick factory. The workers’ roles are well defined, according to Almond.

Mostly young boys and older girls do the loading and unloading of bricks on donkey-drawn carts, he said. Young girls lead the carts and the older boys work inside the factory putting the bricks into the kiln. The fathers typically stand guard nearby. The mothers stay in the home and cook the meals.

The wages, comparated to U.S. dollars, are about $3.50 per day for the younger children, $4.50 per day for the older ones, and $7.50 per day for the fathers, said Almond.

“It was very rare to see a young lady in Iraq who was not covered up, even with the temperatures well over 100 degrees,” said Almond.

He recalled his hottest day in Iraq reaching 145 degrees. The females typically did not speak to the male troops, he said, although they would speak to female soldiers.

Almond expressed his gratitude for the outreach efforts that St. Leo the Great School put together in the past year for the troops.

“The items you sent helped us make friends with the Iraqi people,” he said.

A “Teddy Bears for Troops” collection was organized by one determined

Photo by Susan deGuzman

Capt. Mark Almond of the N.C. National Guard thanks students of St. Leo the Great School in Winston-Salem Feb. 16 for their outreach efforts to soldiers in Iraq. Pictured are (from left): student Lucy Freiburger; Principal Georgette Schraeder; Capt. Almond; mother Jahala Almond; niece Lauren Allen; sister Loretta Allen; and student Hilary Kenney. Almond returned a plaque presented to the school last November from a colonel in the N.C. National Guard. second-grader that resulted in more than 100 bears collected for soldiers to give to Iraqi children. A collection of snacks, movies and magazines, as well as ornaments to decorate a Christmas tree at the request of an Army chaplain, were packaged and sent to the troops last fall.

When asked about his ability to attend Mass in Iraq, Almond said he was able to attend weekly Protestant services as the chaplain was not Catholic, but that a priest did visit their camp on Easter, Thanksgiving and on a few other occasions. Almond was an extraordinary minister of holy Communion and was able to distribute the Eucharist to troops.

He also told the students that he prayed every night and always carried with him a couple of rosaries; a prayer

book; a prayer card from his mother; a prayer that his niece gave to him from Father Joseph Kelleher, a retired priest in Winston-Salem; and a special coin from his mentor, Col. Mabry Martin, whom the students know from a visit to the school last fall.

“Your prayers and support helped me know that you were concerned about us and cared for us,” said Almond. “I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Please continue to pray for the troops who are there.”

Almond returned a plaque presented to the school last November by Col. Mabry Martin of the N.C. National Guard. At the time the plaque was not engraved, but now reads, “From N.C. National Guard, Saint Leo the Great School, With appreciation

Warming

Courtesy Photo by Donna Birkel

Third-grade students at St. Leo the Great School in Winston-Salem hold a few of the 111 blankets collected by students for the poor and homeless of Winston-Salem. The Salvation Army picked up the blankets Feb. 15 to distribute them as needed. Pictured are (from left) Rachel Whittemore, Nicholas Adams, Alex Ruley, Natalie Lassiter and Will Killoran.

1 4 The Catholic News & Herald

March 11, 2005

Culture Watch

Dorothy Day’s long-delayed biography of mentor Peter reviewed by RACHELLE LINNER catholic news service

“Peter Maurin: Apostle to the World” is Dorothy Day’s biography of her mentor, now published decades after Day wrote it.

The Catholic Worker movement came into being through the providential 1932 meeting between Day and Maurin. Maurin was, quite literally, an answer to her prayer for help in finding a way to reconcile her compassion for the poor, her radical political instincts and the staunchly anticommunist Catholic Church she had joined at such a personal cost.

Day wrote that Maurin “made you feel a sense of his mission as soon as you met him and he aroused in you a sense of your own capacities for work (and) for accomplishment.”

Day, in 2000 named a “Servant of

God,” the first step in the canonization process, always insisted that it was Maurin (“holier than anyone we ever knew”) who was a “saint of his day.”

In 1947, at a time when Maurin’s health was deteriorating, Day set out to write a full portrait of a man commonly characterized as eccentric and to flesh out the ideas behind his aphoristic “Easy Essays.” (A number of these are reprinted in this book.)

Francis J. Sicius, a professor of history at St. Thomas University, has edited Day’s previously unpublished manuscript and provides a well-researched, solid explanation of the personal and philosophical influences of Maurin’s early life.

Sicius is particularly helpful in explaining how Day appropriated Maurin’s Christian personalism, mystical body theology and Catholic social teaching in the service of her own interest in “urban charity, labor and nonviolence.” Maurin’s plan included the formation of laity for their own apostolate, urban houses of hospitality and the practice of the works of mercy “at a personal sacrifice,” features associated with the Catholic Worker.

Less well-known was his emphasis on the Green Revolution, “farming communes for the cure of unemployment” and the Catholic European thinkers that informed his synthesis of “cult, culture, and cultivation.”

Much of this synthesis was the product of his life experience. Maurin, born in 1877, was raised in a large family in the strongly communal peasant society of southern France. He “reached young adulthood at the time in France when Enlightenment

WORD TO LIFE

A roundup of Scripture, readings, films and more

sensibilities were clashing with Catholic tradition over the best way to ameliorate the social convolutions of the 19th century.”

The man Day met had the happiness of someone who “has found his vocation in life and has set out on the way and is sure of himself.”

But Maurin’s early and middle years were marked by seeming failure. At 14 he joined the Christian Brothers but left without taking final vows; later, he was active in the radical Catholic social movement Le Sillon, and eventually became disillusioned with its direction.

In 1909 he left France to homestead in Canada and spent two lonely years in the severe wilderness of Saskatchewan. That effort was followed by 14 years living “the life of a penniless vagabound who worked for little more than sustenance” as an itinerant in Canada and the United States.

Day writes, “He began to understand the humiliations of the very poor and by seeking them voluntarily he found peace and rest in them.”

Day had a palpable respect for Maurin’s integrity, meekness and humility. She is not totally successful in showing him as “human, sympathetic, and warm,” and hers is, by far, the more vivid and attractive personality in these pages. But Day has accomplished the more difficult task of writing an eloquent meditation on poverty, the distinctive characteristic of the Catholic Worker “school for charity.”

One cannot think about Peter Maurin without encountering this total poverty and it is through this, even more than his ideas and incessant lectures, that he taught what it meant to embrace the eternal in the midst of a worldly apostolate. He had no income, no superfluous possessions, turned the other cheek, accepted mockery over his frequently disheveled appearance, “ate what was put before him,” and neither smoked nor drank.

The one treasure Maurin had was his acute mind, but his final years were marked by the great sadness and terrible stripping — through atherosclerosis, a form of arteriosclerosis — of even this gift. “His mind is tired,” Day sadly reports. “He cannot think. ... He no longer talks, no longer teaches.”

Peter Maurin died May 15, 1949, attended to and remembered by a community that continues to take seriously the demands of personal responsibility he lived with such fidelity.

The measure with which Dorothy Day measured Peter Maurin is the same by which we honor her.

“He has reached the poorest and the most destitute by living always among them, sharing their poverty, and sharing what he has with them. And this expression of love is rarer than one thinks.”

Day has served her teacher well.

Anyone who is grateful for her luminous Catholic life has reason to be grateful to him as well.

Linner, a librarian and writer, lives in

Sunday Scripture Readings: march. 20, 2005

March 20, Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion Cycle A Readings: 1) Isaiah 50:4-7 Psalms 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24 2) Philippians 2:6-11 3) Gospel: Matthew 26:14-27:66

Self-emptying service key to martyrdom by

SHARON K. PERKINS catholic news service

About this time a year ago, Mel Gibson’s motion picture “The Passion of the Christ” was receiving a great deal of attention. Thousands of moviegoers viewed the film, sometimes two and three times, as a way of considering the sufferings of Christ as presented through graphic imagery.

While general reaction to the film was mixed, the experience of most Christians was a shocked realization of the horror of Christ’s physical torture and a profound appreciation for the depth of his anguish.

A year later, many of us learned through the local and national news media about Sister Dorothy Stang, a 73-year-old Sister of Notre Dame de Namur who was martyred in Brazil.

Like Jesus in Matthew’s account of the Passion, she did not resist her attackers, nor did she allow death threats to pre-

vent her from doing the work that she believed she was sent to do.

The brutal circumstances of her death produced shock and outrage among the Christian community in Brazil and throughout the world.

Given the calamitous nature of Sister Stang’s martyrdom and the dramatic circumstances of Jesus’ crucifixion, it is only natural to interpret these violent deaths for the sake of the reign of God as the definition of supreme sacrifice — and so they are. However, St. Paul notes that Jesus’ sacrificial giving was a process that commenced long before it culminated in the crucifixion. Likewise, Sister Stang began pouring out her life on behalf of the Amazon peoples long before her murder.

While many believers in our world today are indeed killed for their faith in Jesus, many more are spared physical martyrdom. How, then, are we to be “martyrs” — the Greek word meaning “witnesses” — for the sake of Christ?

St. Paul’s epistle provides an important insight by reminding us that Jesus’ entire life was characterized by self-emptying service. Each follower of Jesus, therefore, is called to engage in this same sort of activity through whatever opportunities come along, no matter how simple or small or hidden.

From allowing another driver the right of way, to changing a diaper for the hundredth time, to lightening a co-worker’s burden, there are multitudes of ways to humble oneself for the sake of others and in so doing, glorify the Lord who offered his life — and his death — for our sake.

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE Scripture for the week of March 13-19 Sunday (Fifth Sunday of Lent), Ezekiel 37:12-14, Romans 8:8-11, John 11:1-45; Monday (Lenten Weekday), Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62,John 8:1-11; Tuesday (Lenten Weekday), Numbers 21:4-9, John 8:21-30; Wednesday (Lenten Weekday), Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92,95, John 8:31-42; Thursday (St. Patrick), Genesis 17:3-9, John 8:51-59; Friday (St. Cyril of Jerusalem), Jeremiah 20:10-13, John 10:31-42; Saturday (St. Joseph), 2 Samuel 7:4-5,12-14,16, Romans 4:13,16-18,22, Matthew 1:16,18-21,24.

Scripture for the week of March 20-26 Sunday (Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion), Matthew 21:1-11, Is 50:4-7, Philippians 2:6-11, Matthew 26:14—27:66; Monday (Monday of Holy Week), Isaiah 42:1-7, John 12:1-11; Tuesday (Tuesday of Holy Week), Isaiah 49:1-6, John 13:21-33, 36-38; Wednesday (Wednesday of Holy Week), Isaiah 50:4-9, Matthew 26:14-25; Thursday (Holy Thursday), Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14, 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, John 13:1-15; Friday (Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion), Isaiah 52:1353:12, Hebrews 4;14-16; 5:7-9, John 18:1-19:42; Saturday (Holy Saturday), Exodus 14:15-15:1 Romans 6:3-11, Matthew 28:1-10.

The Catholic News & Herald 15

March 11, 2005

NBC-TV’s ‘Committed’ episode defiles Eucharist

This ‘Cake’ not worth eating

Catholic Leauge demands ‘more than an apology’ from show creators NEW YORK — The misuse and disrespect shown to the Eucharist during an episode of “Committed” has outraged Catholics nationwide.

During the Feb. 22 episode of the NBC-TV sitcom, two non-Catholics are mistakenly given holy Communion at a Catholic funeral Mass, and they try to dispose of the Eucharist and eventually drop it in a toilet.

“To say that Catholics are angry about this show would be an understatement — the outrage is visceral and intense,” said William Donohue, president of Catholic League, an organization that defends the civil rights of Catholics, lay and clergy alike, to participate in American public life without defamation or discrimination.

“The complaints have come from bishops, college chaplains, pastors and the laity, and they have come from all over the country,” said Donohue. “NBC has made a direct frontal assault on Roman Catholicism, choosing to mock, trivialize and ridicule the body and blood of Jesus Christ.”

In the episode, two characters — one who is Jewish, one who is Protestant — do not know what to do with the Eucharist, so they make several failed attempts to get rid of it, such as slipping it into the pocket of a priest and dropping it into a tray of cheese and crackers.

The priest, who is portrayed as not knowing the difference between the Eucharist and a cracker, grabs the “cracker” but balks when he discovers it is the last one. He then changes his mind, saying, “Oh, what the hell.”

According to Catholic League, the

most offensive moment of the show comes when the two non-Catholic characters accidentally flush what they think is the Eucharist down the toilet.

“What happened was deliberate,” said Donohue. “According to a January 2 story in the Cincinnati Enquirer, the writers for the series ... have been encouraged by NBC executives to ‘push the limits of comedy.’”

“For obvious reasons, the writers of ‘Roseanne,’ ‘Murphy Brown’ and ‘Ellen’ chose not to push the buttons of homosexuals or some other protected group, so they decided to play it safe and stay in good standing with their bosses by bashing Catholics,” said Donohue.

“More than an apology is needed,” he said. “This episode should be retired for good, and that is what we will demand.”

WRITE A LETTER The “Committed” episode that defiled the Eucharist was Episode No. 10 and aired Feb. 22, 2005.

Letters can be written to the show creators and producers at their program offices and to NBC-TV at the following address: DeAnne Heline and Eileen Heisler, producers “Committed” 3000 Alameda Avenue Burbank, CA 91523 NBC-TV

CNS photo from Sony Picture Classics

Sienna Miller and Daniel Craig star in “Layer Cake,” a technically proficient but unpleasantly seamy story of a London cocaine dealer who gets caught up in the machinations of a crime kingpin and a stolen shipment of Ecstasy pills. The thriller is too complex with its difficult-to-follow plot, tricky-to-decipher accents, flashy but empty presentation, and more expletives per minute than any film in recent memory. One brief but graphic sex scene, nudity, brutal violence with attendant gore, pervasive rough and crude language, and drug use.

The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted.

Michelangelo exhibit traces life of St. Peter’s by

GERARD PERSEGHIN catholic news service

WASHINGTON — A new exhibit at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington touches the very roots of the church, and the artists and architects whose work is on display are on the historical and artistic “A” list.

“Creating St. Peter’s: Architectural Treasures of the Vatican,” on exhibit through May 31, features Michelangelo’s original model of the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. The 140-plus artifacts and original architectural drawings in the show include works by Renaissance masters such as Michelangelo, Bramante, Raffaello, Bernini and Fontana.

The 16-foot-tall, 13-foot-wide wooden study model of St. Peter’s dome was built for Michelangelo in 1560, and it shows the inner and outer domes and how they function together. Tools used to build the basilica are also showcased, including a

wooden winch like ones used to put the obelisk in place outside the basilica.

The 98-foot tall, 331-ton Egyptian obelisk in the square is supposed to mark where St. Peter was crucified; inside St. Peter’s the main altar covers the spot where he is said to be buried.

Cardinal Adam J. Maida of Detroit, who conceived and developed the cultural center, said the exhibition offers the American public “one of the great architectural wonders. We’re looking at some of (Michelangelo’s) original work and how he conceived and created one of the great churches of the world.”

Cardinal Maida attended a press opening along with Cardinal Francesco Marchisano, who is president of the Fabbrica of St. Peter’s.

He oversees the physical maintenance of St. Peter’s Basilica, which is visited by tens of thousands of people a day.

Cardinal Maida pointed out that the model of the dome has been “out of the Vatican only on three occasions.”

When the exhibition closes, it will go back to the permanent collection in the Vatican Museums. He said the exhibition in Washington is a prelude to a Vatican celebration of the 500th anniversary of the basilica next year.

“This is a fascinating exhibition from many points of view — architecture, physics, art, history, religion, mathematics — that appeal to a wide audience, from schoolchildren to scholars, to the casual viewer,” said Msgr. William A. Kerr, executive director of the cultural center.

Schools from around the country are planning to send groups of students to Washington to see the exhibition. Seniors groups are also lining up for tours.

Cardinal Marchisano said the basilica “represents the heart of the Christian faith.”

Contributing to this story was Mary Frances McCarthy.

1 6 The Catholic News & Herald

March 11, 2005

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March 11, 2005

The Catholic News & Herald 17

in the news

Archeologist may have found St. Paul’s tomb

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TOMB, from page 1

A way to put some new life into your stewardship

by BARBARA GADDY associate director of development, diocese of charlotte

CHARLOTTE — Springtime in Savannah, Ga., is both breathtaking and energizing. Signs of new life abound all over this historic southern city.

The fourth Regional Stewardship Day Conference at the Savannah DeSoto Hilton on April 23 will be no exception. The conference, sponsored by the Charlotte, Charleston, Raleigh and Savannah dioceses and the Archdiocese of Atlanta will help bring the stewardship message alive with keynote speaker Father Dan Mahan, pastor of St. Louis Catholic Church in Batesville, Ind. Father Mahan began serving as a parish priest in 1989. Since that time he has taken the stewardship message to three different churches at which he has pastored. Currently, as shepherd of a parish of 1,500 families, Father Mahan promotes stewardship as a spiritual way of life that draws his parishioners into a deeper relationship with Jesus.

Stewardship education is a priority for Father Mahan and it is exemplified by his position as faculty member and director of formation for the Summer and Winter Institutes of the International Catholic Stewardship Council.

His talk is sure to inspire and breathe new life into our stewardship efforts.

The breakout sessions will cover a wide array of topics and provide concrete ideas for promoting stewardship in parishes.

Pastors, parishioners and committee members looking for a fresh new approach after several years of promoting parish stewardship should attend a session titled “Keeping it Alive” by Dan Loughman, director of stewardship for the Diocese of Wichita, Kan. Participants are certain to get new ideas and insights.

In addition to serving as the diocesan director of stewardship, Loughman is also a member of a vibrant parish that began promoting stewardship more than 30 years ago.

Jim Kelley, director of development for the Diocese of Charlotte and internationally recognized speaker on stewardship, will cover the formation and responsibilities of the parish stewardship committee in his talk.

In response to many requests from small, rural parishes to address their stewardship needs, Father George Kloster, pastor of St. William Church in Murphy and Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Hayesville, will share his successful approach to stewardship.

Msgr. Patrick Bishop of Transfiguration Church in Marietta, Ga., will team with Deacon Bill Hampton of St. Matthew Church in Sharpsburg, Ga., to speak about hospitality from both large and small parish perspectives in their session.

The testimony of fellow parishioners who have embraced stewardship has the ability to change our lives. One session will have lay witness talks by Don Bray of Fayetteville and Laura Graban of WinstonSalem.

The education of children and youths is an important aspect of the total parish stewardship effort. Mimi Jurgielewicz, director of religious education at the Church of the Nativity in Charleston, S.C., will share her unique program of calling our young people to action in “Catholic Kids Guide to Stewardship.”

A post-conference tour of the magnificent Cathedral of St. John the Baptist followed by Mass will bring prayerful closure to what is sure to be a busy, yet energizing, day.

It is the hope of conference planners that participants will return to their own parishes with a renewed emphasis on living and promoting stewardship as a way of life — a life of real Christian discipleship.

WANT TO GO? For additional information on the Regional Stewardship Day, or to receive a registration brochure, contact Jim Kelley at (704)

hidden for centuries, had a hole into which the faithful could stick cloth pieces to make secondary relics, said Giorgio Filippi, the archeologist and inscriptions expert at the Vatican Museums who carried out the studies.

The tomb lies directly beneath a historic inscription that reads: “Paul Apostle Martyr.” The marble sarcophagus was apparently first placed there during reconstruction of the basilica in 390 AD. “I have no doubt this is the tomb of St. Paul, as revered by Christians in the fourth century,” Filippi said as he stood next to the main altar of St. Paul Outside the Walls.

Filippi’s discovery was the result of more than five years’ archeological sleuthing. Surprisingly, the findings have not yet made a huge impression inside the Vatican or in ecclesiastical circles. The Vatican newspaper, for example, has yet to report on the discovery.

The sarcophagus lies several feet below the marble structure of the main altar, embedded in a platform of concrete. Filippi managed to reach the back side of the sarcophagus, but he said opening the tomb would be practically impossible without destroying the altar area.

He added that, in any case, it was not essential to check what’s inside the sarcophagus.

The important thing is that it was clearly venerated as the tomb of St. Paul, he said.

History uncovered Tradition holds that St. Paul suffered martyrdom by beheading in the first century, and that his body was buried in a cemetery along the Via Ostiense, where the basilica was built. A first church was erected there in 320 AD, and a larger basilica was constructed in 390; it was remodeled several times over the centuries and almost totally destroyed by fire in 1823.

Pilgrims still come to St. Paul’s, but not nearly as many as those who pour daily into St. Peter’s Basilica, located some five miles away. On a recent weekday afternoon, no

CNS photo by John Thavis

Giorgio Filippi, an archeologist and inscriptions expert at the Vatican Museums, believes he has rediscovered the tomb of St. Paul.

more than 75 people were inside the church.

Filippi began his detective work in 1993, when he studied the early Christian inscriptions in the cloister of the basilica and in the monastery nearby. He began asking questions of older monks and caretakers, trying to discover where some of the inscriptions and other artifacts came from.

He soon discovered that by lifting up certain pavement stones in the basilica’s floor, a series of underground chambers and tunnels were accessible — most of them unmapped and forgotten. The excavations yielded a Roman sarcophagus and a wealth of other material.

In the year 2000, Filippi said, pilgrims coming to St. Paul’s for the jubilee year asked for the burial place of the Apostle and were disappointed not to see and touch it.

Depths of research After the jubilee ended, at the request of the basilica’s papal administrator and on behalf of the Vatican Museums, Filippi made plans for a systematic study of the area under the altar. In 2002 and 2003, he examined, among other things, three vertical holes leading down to the lid of the sarcophagus.

The holes had been established many centuries earlier so that devotional items could be lowered to the tomb’s surface.

One reason the tomb ended up so far below the altar was that the altar area had been progressively raised due to changes that occurred through the centuries, Filippi said.

One of these holes — now closed with mortar — led inside the sarcophagus, apparently so that pieces of cloth could come into contact with relics of the saint.

Filippi said the practice of creating these kinds of secondary relics was popular in the late fourth century, especially after the Emperor Theodosius banned the sale and distribution of corporal relics.

Theoretically, experts today could open the hole to the sarcophagus and stick a small video probe inside. But for now, no such examination is foreseen. Filippi said there’s no hurry; as the last 11 years of work has demonstrated, he’s happy to take

1 8 The Catholic News & Herald

March 11, 2005

Perspectives

A collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

A special ‘Gospel of Life’ is gospel of Christ Life is joyful, so it is to be proclaimed (Nos. 80-82), celebrated (Nos. 83-86) and served (Nos. 87-89). The message of life is not optional, or added on to the Gospel, but is at the heart of the Gospel. “The Gospel of Life” is simply the Gospel of Christ, for he is life (see No. 29). The church is inescapably pro-life (No. 28) precisely because she is feminine. The church is the bride of Christ and mother of believers — and, in fact, of all humanity (No. 3).

The earth today is covered with innocent blood, which cries out from the ground to the God who made it (see Nos. 7-9, Gen. 4:2-16). But thanks be to God, there is another blood that cries out to heaven more eloquently (see No. 25, Heb.12: 22,24).

The cry of the blood of Christ brings mercy to those who shed the blood of their brothers and sisters. The shed blood of Christ teaches the meaning of love, which is to sacrifice oneself for the good of the other person. It reverses the dynamic of the culture of death, which sacrifices the other person for the good of oneself.

The blood of Christ, one drop of which can purify a billion worlds, gives us strength to carry out the “great campaign on behalf of life” which is called for by this encyclical (No. 95). The prolife movement itself, in fact, is a sign of hope and victory (No. 26). The encyclical looks to the day when “death will be no more” (Rev. 21:4 see No. 105). That time is coming, and that promise is, in a nutshell, the Gospel of Life.

Father Pavone is national director of Priests for Life.

Eliminating charitable deductions Waxhaw, N.C. Regarding Father Frank Pavone’s column “Free speech in church” (March 4), I heartily agree that freedom of speech in homilies is essential and changes in the law that would allow greater freedom would be desirable.

A change in the law that Father Pavone doesn’t consider is eliminating the charitable deduction in its entirety. This would allow complete freedom without any consideration of government restrictions.

Celebrating the Year of the Eucharist There’s no eucharistic church without eucharistic celebration

Guest Column FATHER FRANK PAVONE guest columnist

March 25 marks the 10th anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s encyclical, “The Gospel of Life” (“Evangelium Vitae”). This is not just another document.

It is literally a celebration. It celebrates Christ, who is personally the Gospel and the Life. It celebrates humanity, love and true freedom.

The church knows how to celebrate; the world has forgotten. The church knows how to receive and give life and love. In fact, the very meaning of life is to give and receive love (see No. 81). But the world has become too preoccupied with usefulness, efficiency and productivity (No. 22). The world is too busy with its frantic flight from all suffering and death (Nos. 64, 66-67). It flees these because it has forgotten what they mean.

It sees them only as things to be avoided and controlled.

Ironically, such forgetfulness envelops the world even more in the very things it tries to escape. And in the midst of its slavery to death, the world shouts about freedom, all the while fearing it will be shackled by the one who brings true freedom — namely, Christ.

The world needs “good news,” that is, “Evangelium.” The document begins, “The Gospel (Evangelium) of life is at the heart of Jesus’ message. Lovingly received day after day by the church, it is to be preached with dauntless fidelity as good news to the people of every age and culture” (No. 1).

Letters to the Editor In response to Karen Dietlein’s column “Your impossible dreams” (Feb. 11), this is a very good article about the many voices that bombard us every day.

Let every one of us remember that our own minds speak both negative and positive words and thoughts to us along with the outside voices.

God also has something to say to us.

Let us hear his voice.

— Jack Renkenberger

Our poor ailing pope proclaimed this the “Year of the Eucharist.” As we get older, we realize that life has to get back to basics. In his last days as pope he is calling the church to get back to basics.

The Eucharist is at the heart of Catholic spirituality.

Whenever I have been angry or disappointed in the church, it is the Eucharist that keeps me inside her embrace.

It is the mystical presence of Christ. It draws us together in worship. It defines us as a people; it makes us “church.” It also gives us strength. Food for the journey, both personally and as a community of faith.

Our church is based on what the Lord has given to us, namely himself.

We do what he has handed on to us, as St. Paul says in the first letter to the Corinthians.

In the sixth chapter of John, Jesus told his followers that unless we join ourselves to him completely, that is “eat my flesh and drink my blood,” we would not have life within us.

What is true for us as individuals is true for the church. If we do not have the Eucharist, the church has no life. At least not as a Catholic Church.

Our parish, like many others, is trying to refocus on the Eucharist this year.

As usual, it is the parishioners who have taught me and been the most creative in our devotion.

At the entrance to the church we have a banner proclaiming the “Year of the Eucharist” made by two women in our parish who are great seamstresses.

At Christmas, we gave out 500 copies of the pope’s letter proclaiming this year and meditating on the role of the Eucharist in our church.

Each Sunday, we entrust a different family with a “traveling chalice” to carry to their home. They are supposed to put it in a prominent place where they eat their evening meal (but not atop the television set). Each night for a week they pray for more vocations to the priesthood and the

As an alternative, the church could simply refuse to take the charitable deduction. The freedom attained from not accepting “Caesar’s coin” (including tax deductions for donations) is tremendous. Charity may then be given where the need is perceived to be without any concern about government control or regulations.

I believe that the law allowing deduction of charitable donations from taxes is one of the most severe restrictions to charitable giving in this country.

To receive a deduction a person must find an organization that approximates his or her charitable values and donate there.

This precludes making donations personally even though the need may

Parish Diary FATHER PETER J. DALY cns columnist

religious life and lay ministry. This is to make a connection between our eucharistic worship and the priesthood.

If there is no one to celebrate the Eucharist, there will be no eucharistic church. The families seem to like coming forward, and it makes the work of vocations a family matter.

For several years now we have had eucharistic adoration three days per week. This year we began Lent with a week of perpetual adoration. More than 370 parishioners came to the church to pray in the first week of Lent. I think that will be an enormous source of grace and blessing to us.

In June we are making plans for a Corpus Christi procession. We have the parade permit to go around the center of our little town, past the courthouse and post office and bank and shopping center. This procession does, metaphorically, what each one of us should do each Sunday. It takes the presence of Christ that we have received in the Eucharist out into our secular world. It makes the whole world a sanctuary, a holy place.

In the bulletin each week we print quotes from the pope or church fathers on the importance of the Eucharist.

Each of these things is only a step, a way of renewing our devotion to the presence of the Lord, a way of calling our spiritual life back to the basics. The pope, even in his infirmity, has reminded us who stands at the heart of things: Christ.

in any organization.

— Roger Kenney Warne, N.C.

Voices that be great.

Several years ago my wife and I decided to make donations without regard to deductibility and have found it very freeing. We now assist individuals or families and many of our donations go directly to their needs. The additional funds that could be available by claiming this deduction are offset by the lack of administrative costs of organized charities. Needs can also be addressed immediately without the delays inherent

The Catholic News & Herald 19

March 11, 2005

Toxic thinking

Jesus is exterminator of evil thoughts A recent column of mine received a lot of positive mail. (I get about 6,000 hits a month on my Web site: www.messengerofjoy.com). The column was titled “How to Be Your Own Best Friend,” and the essential point was this: To be your own best friend, you must first disidentify with your own thoughts.

You have to be clear on this: You are not your thoughts; rather, you are the observer of your thoughts. This means that you have control over what you allow to come and go in your thinking process.

More than that, it means you are responsible for your own happiness.

Every human being has the power to choose a happy mind-set. To wallow in the swamp of toxic thinking is to suffer needless anxiety. Jesus said, “Be not anxious.”

Everything that enters your stream of consciousness is not from God. Too many good people live in a prison of self-imposed mental anguish, allowing themselves to feel they are doomed by the past.

Nonsense! God is pure mercy and forgiveness. No matter what happened in your life, his love never changes. You are under his blessed shelter, and he is always there to minister to you.

The human mind is like a living room. Some of your thoughts are like rats and mice that sneak in and take over,

FATHER JOHN CATOIR cns columnist

soiling your new rug. Get rid of those unwelcome rodents; exterminate them.

Do not identify with your troubling thoughts. If you can’t do this by yourself, call on Jesus, the great exterminator

The spirit of Vatican II Young Catholic adults often haven’t heard of Second Vatican Council cially in young people, encouraged it to take significant steps in the direction of renewal.

No doubt some of us remember “Black Masses” — daily Masses in which the priest, facing the altar, recited prayers in Latin for the dead. Never once did we hear a homily on the Gospel.

Although these Masses allowed us quietly to melt into our own prayer corner, they did little to inspire us to cherish the awesome mysteries we were celebrating. Active participation was minimal, depriving us of true community spirit.

Oh, we were a community and actually felt like one, but it was a community that was hierarchically top heavy and vertical in its approach, lacking that sense that there is a horizontal dimension of the church through which we are linked with others around us in the congregation and deriving a wholesome richness from being one with others like us.

Vatican II generated a spirit that said to the laity: “You are church, you are the people of God. You are just as responsible for the church as are the hierarchy. Become an active participant in the church and the liturgy, and help

“Fifty-seven percent of young Catholic adults have never heard of Vatican II.” That was one of many startling findings reported at a Feb. 18 meeting of church researchers from the Life Cycle Institute at The Catholic University of America in Washington and Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y. When I heard this, my thoughts went back to a biblical text I had just read. It was about the Egyptians, who no longer had any memory of Joseph.

Not knowing Joseph, they no longer respected his descendants, the Hebrews.

That simple narrative contains several lessons. One lesson is that time moves on; nothing lasts forever. New generations tend to focus primarily on the present and to have their own agendas.

Another lesson is that if someone or some institution isn’t preserving the memory of past generations, new generations are deprived of vital roots.

The new generations are, in a sense, orphaned.

The Second Vatican Council cared very much about upcoming generations.

Its love for the liturgy and the spiritual strength the liturgy generates, espe-

of evil thoughts.

Wallowing in hurtful memories only intensifies and perpetuates a bad habit. Don’t let the past drag you down.

Break free from all this emotional pain through prayer and will power. Live in the present moment, not in your own head.

The brain only has room for one set of thoughts at a time. You can replace poisonous thinking with good thoughts in the here-and-now.

Smell the roses, feel the consolation of warm water on your hands, go for a walk, breath in the fresh air. Remember, whenever you look at a beautiful sunset, it is God’s way of telling you how much he loves you.

Thoughts of suicide, remorse over some terrible failure or feelings of fear and suspicion can bring with them an overwhelming sense of insecurity. These can all be washed away in the pure waters of God’s love. Put yourself in his loving presence more, and trust in his mercy when you feel under attack.

Bad habits are hard to break, but don’t be discouraged. There is always grace.

All will be well once you begin to believe that you are solely responsible for your thoughts and actions.

Blame no one else for your present state. If you have suffered a great reversal or humiliation, do not blame your parents, your superiors, your upbringing or your environment. Realize that you made your own choices. Face up to the truth, and make those tough decisions with courage.

Pray with confidence: “Dear Holy Spirit, soul of my soul, protect me and comfort me in this present moment. Cleanse me of my toxic thoughts, and give me peace.”

Everyone can adopt a happier frame

The Human Side FATHER

EUGENE HEMRICK cns columnist

to bring the church’s spiritual beauty to the surface.”

Vatican II spoke to the modern world and its people, saying in effect: “We don’t despise you. Rather, we are here to collaborate with you in making our world as God intended it to be.

Science and technology are essentially good and can serve as ways to make our life reflect God’s life.”

In embracing the modern world, Vatican II moved away from isolation and embraced the spirit of partnership, showing us the way to generate greater unity among Christians.

These are but a few examples of the spirit of Vatican II that young Catholic adults need to “catch” in order to better appreciate the richness of their religious heritage. Thanks to Vatican II, today’s Catholics have a new, improved Christian world vision like none before.

One hopes the finding that 57 percent of young Catholic adults never heard of Vatican II will be a wakeup call that motivates us to find more effective ways to root them in their Catholic tradition.

The paths to life and Question Corner FATHER JOHN DIETZEN cns columnist

Q. In the Gospel of Matthew (7:1314), Jesus claims the road to damnation is wide and clear, and many choose to travel it.

The gate leading to life is narrow, and few there are who find it. Does this not indicate that most of the human race will be condemned to hell? (Arizona) A. First, other places in Matthew (e.g. 8:11) speak of “many” being saved, which hints that in this passage Jesus may not be giving statistics about the population of hell.

The reference to “doors” in the passage you quote at the end of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew is hortatory, to remind disciples who may be lagging in their Christian journey that this journey requires discipline and perseverance. It is not informational, telling us how many are to be saved.

A helpful hint is contained in Luke’s passage parallel to this one of Matthew, in which someone asks, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” (Lk 13:23) Jesus simply ignores the question and stresses the need to try to enter the narrow gate.

As in other similar circumstances, Jesus is never interested in satisfying our nosiness by answering curiosity questions that have nothing to do with our holiness and relationship with him and the Father. So it is with the passage you quote. Jesus is not making a declaration about hell, but exhorting his followers to stay awake and disciplined on the path to life, which requires fresh determination and decision every day.

Questions for this column should be sent to Father John Dietzen, Box 3315, Peoria, Ill., 61612, or e-mail jjdietzen@aol.com.

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March 11, 2005

The Catholic News & Herald 20

PARISH PROFILE

Catholic life thrives in central Mecklenburg County at St. Gabriel St. Gabriel Church 3016 Providence Rd. Charlotte, N.C. 28211 (704) 364-5431 Vicariate: Charlotte Pastor: Father Edward J. Sheridan Parochial Vicar: Father Robert R. Conway Permanent Deacons: Deacon Ben W. Wenning, Deacon Robert Gettelfinger Number of Households: 3,400

St. Gabriel Church, located in central Mecklenburg County, has served many of Charlotte’s Catholics since 1957. fices, meeting space, nursery and ministry offices. Ministry outreach highlights parish life at St. Gabriel Church, with more than 100 ministerial opportunities, including groups such as the disABILITY ministry and health care ministry joining a host of other teams addressing specific and common needs of St. Gabriel’s parishioners.

In May 2002, Msgr. Richard Bellow, then-pastor of St. Gabriel Church, dedicated a 280-niche columbarium on the grounds of the church.

In January 2004, Bishop Peter J. Jugis dedicated an expanded eucharistic adoration chapel at the church. St. Gabriel Church and Maryfield Chapel in

High Point offer the only perpetual adoration of the Eucharist in the Diocese of Charlotte.

In July 2004, Father Sheridan returned to St. Gabriel Church once again to shepherd the parish he had served as pastor from 1989-98.

For nearly half a century, St. Gabriel Church has ministered to the spiritual needs of many of Charlotte’s Catholic families, who then reach out to help their neighbors in need.

Staff Writer Karen A. Evans contributed to this story.

CHARLOTTE — Over the course of four decades, the St. Gabriel Church community grew from 175 families to become the largest parish in the Carolinas, with 4,100 families attending Mass on a weekly basis in 1998.

Since the establishment of St. Matthew Church in 1986, St. Gabriel has lost a few hundred households to the southeast Charlotte church. However, St. Gabriel remains a thriving, active parish in what is now a central part of Mecklenburg County.

In 1955, 12 acres of land — then located one mile from Charlotte’s southeastern city limits — were purchased by Bishop Vincent S. Waters, then-bishop of Raleigh, to establish a new parish.

A 250-seat chapel was built, and Father Paul Byron, St. Gabriel Church’s founding pastor, celebrated the first Mass in the church in September 1957, thereby beginning a pastorate highlighted by significant growth and change.

Bishop Waters dedicated and blessed the Diocese of Raleigh’s newest church in November 1957, placing the church under the patronage of the Archangel Gabriel.

Under Father Byron’s direction, a kindergarten was begun in 1958, followed in 1960 by a grade school staffed

by Sisters of Mercy from Belmont. The school opened with 150 students; within a few years, the enrollment had climbed

to 350, and a two-story gymnasium and cafeteria were built.

By the mid-1960s, parish membership included more than 500 families.

Msgr. Michael J. O’Keefe, pastor, directed a major parish renovation when in 1970-71 he began an expansion project that would accommodate more parishioners at the increasingly crowded weekend Masses. When groundbreaking ceremonies took place in 1973 — a year after the founding of the Diocese of Charlotte — St. Gabriel Church was already North Carolina’s largest parish, with a registered count of 690 families.

During the mid- to late-1970s, parish membership continued to grow quickly and steadily, matching the city’s population growth. Membership included more than 1,000 families in 1977 when Msgr. Hugh Dolan, pastor, introduced expansion ideas that led to implementation of a master plan. That plan — developed over a number of years — consisted of parish surveys, parishioner input, committee meetings and finally, expansion and building designs that included improvements to the church, school and administrative and recreational facilities.

A fund-raising campaign was begun in 1983 during the pastorate of Msgr.

Thomas Walsh, which led to the purchase of additional property at Providence Road and Sharon Lane. Construction of a new 1,100-seat church ensued in 1985.

In September 1986, Bishop John F. Donoghue, along with Bishop emeritus Michael J. Begley, and present and former pastors of St. Gabriel Church dedicated the facility, which included a daily chapel, fellowship hall, meditation chapel, family room and music room.

Expansion continued through the 1990s, both in the number of registered families and physical growth. In May 1990, Father Edward Sheridan, pastor, began an extensive capital campaign.

The result was a 79,000 square-foot parish center, which Bishop Donoghue dedicated in December 1992. The building became the new home for the school, the faith development center offices, a gymnasium and cafeteria.

In 1997, plans were put in place to construct a three-story ministry center to house the parish faith formation of-

HAVE A STORY TO SHARE?

Were you married in the Catholic Church to a non-Catholic? If you are raising your children Catholic in an interfaith marriage and would like to share your story in an upcoming issue of The Catholic News & Herald, please contact Staff Writer Karen A. Evans at (704) 3703354 or e-mail kaevans@charlottediocese.org.