March 20, 2009

March 20, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 1

www.charlottediocese.org

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Perspectives What would Jesus do during Lent?; the responsibility to fight injustice; detoxing from technology

Established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul VI march 20, 2009

In search of truth

| Pages 14-15 Serving Catholics in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte

Deacons recommit to ministry at annual Mass

by DEACON GERALD POTKAY

KATIE MOORE staff writer

correspondent

Editor’s note: This is the fourth in a series of conversion stories.

Photo by Deacon Gerald Potkay

CHARLOTTE — Permanent deacons of the Diocese of Charlotte recently gathered to commit once again to their diaconate service in the church.

Eighty-seven deacons and wives gathered for the deacons’ annual recommitment Mass celebrated by Bishop Peter J. Jugis at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte March 14.

During the ceremony, the deacons’ wives also promised to support their husbands in their vocations to the church.

“It bodes well for the Diocese of Charlotte that so many of you are gathered here today with such enthusiasm i n s o n g a n d p r a y e r, ”

Bishop Peter J. Jugis, assisted by Deacons Michael Zboyovski (left) and Carlos Medina, celebrates the permanent deacons’ annual Mass of recommitment at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte March 14.

See DEACONS, page 12

CHARLOTTE — Rodney Odom’s journey to Catholicism began in the main library of Philadelphia about seven years ago.

He was Christian by birth, but had abandoned religion.

Then, a general interest in spiritualism ignited his quest.

“In my search for more, I found myself reading about the See CONVERT, page 5

Corrective correspondence In letter, pope responds to criticisms over excommunication decision of bishops

by JOHN THAVIS catholic news service

VATICAN CITY — In a letter to the world’s bishops, Pope Benedict XVI expressed regret that his lifting of the excommunications of four traditionalist bishops gave rise to a storm of protests and bitterness.

The pope said the controversy over Bishop Richard Williamson’s statements denying See POPE, page 13

no. 20

Called to be ‘men of prayer’

Man’s quest for meaning leads to monastic life by

vOLUME 18

A journey of faith Iraqi refugees find hope, seek better future in North Carolina by

ANN KILKELLY

special to the catholic news & herald

Editor’s note: Names and details were changed for privacy.

CHARLOTTE — Leaving her husband behind in danger in Iraq and journeying to America with their two y o u n g c h i l d r e n , A m a l ’s Lenten journey takes on a

new meaning.

This year, her Lenten journey is a “trust walk” with Jesus.

“I feel that Jesus is with me right now,” said Amal, a Catholic and native of Iraq.

She prays for hours each day, taking in the words of Scripture, finding consolation in

Courtesy Photo by Ann Kilkelly

See IRAQ, page 6

Amal, a Catholic Iraqi refugee recently resettled with her children in the Diocese of Charlotte, holds open her Bible written in Arabic in this undated photograph.

Championing women

On the road to peace

Culture Watch

Local Catholics participate in U.N. commission

Pope’s hopes for Africa; Kenyans fight ethnic tension

Book on preparing youth to lead; Catholic radio expands

| Page 7

| Page 9

| Pages 10-11

March 20, 2009

2 The Catholic News & Herald

InBrief

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

WASHINGTON (CNS) — President Barack Obama met for half an hour March 17 with Chicago Cardinal Francis E. George, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the White House and the USCCB announced.

Brief statements issued by the White House and the USCCB said little more than that the two presidents had met for a private, 30-minute afternoon session in the Oval Office.

The meeting was not included in Obama’s daily schedule released to the press and no mention was made of it by either organization until it was over.

“The president and Cardinal George discussed a wide range of issues, including important opportunities for the government and the Catholic Church to continue their long-standing partnership to tackle some of the nation’s most pressing challenges,” said the White House statement.

Indulging in forgiveness

CNS photo by Cindy Wooden

Italian young people listen to a guide describing the central doors into the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome March 10. A plenary indulgence is offered for Catholics who visit the basilica during the year of St. Paul, which ends June 29. To receive the indulgence a person must confess sins, receive the Eucharist and offer specific prayers.

Splendidly pure: Receiving indulgences in the year of St. Paul VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Many of the pilgrims recently coming out of the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls were glowing — and not just because the sun was shining brightly.

Crossing the threshold of the “Pauline Doors,” praying at St. Paul’s tomb, confessing their sins, receiving the Eucharist and offering specific prayers, they came away with a plenary indulgence.

Sister Palmagnese Rossini, a member of the Sisters of Mary Reparatrix, made her pilgrimage March 10.

Asked why she wanted an indulgence, she said: “We are all children of Adam and Eve and despite the sacraments and the sacrifice of Jesus, we have a residue of sin. We want to be splendidly pure like the Blessed Mother,” and an indulgence gives repentant Christians that extra shine.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines an indulgence as “the remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sin whose guilt has already been forgiven.”

Especially for the Pauline year — marking the 2,000th anniversary of the apostle Paul’s birth — the Catholic Church is offering an indulgence to pilgrims who visit his tomb at the Basilica of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls.

Cardinal Andrea Cordero Lanza di Montezemolo, archpriest of the basilica, said that with the Pauline year, which began last June, “the number of pilgrims from around the world is increasing.”

“They come to visit the tomb of the apostle,” he said, and the indulgence is an extra grace available to those who

Obama, president of U.S. bishops hold private meeting

have the right attitude of faith.

In an article for the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, the pope’s chief ecumenist said the Pauline year reminds Christians — both Catholics and Protestants — of St. Paul’s central teaching that we receive justification and salvation from Jesus Christ through no merit of our own.

Writing in the March 7 edition of the newspaper, Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, said Catholics must understand that the church changed the way indulgences were handled in order to make their meaning and their relationship to salvation in Christ clear.

“When we speak of the church’s treasure of grace, we are not talking about any material reality or a kind of depository from which the church can make withdrawals when needed,” he wrote. “The treasure of grace is, in the end, Jesus Christ” and his immeasurable mercy, which the church — the body of Christ — shares.

Even after a person’s sins are forgiven, the cardinal said, it is obvious he or she “still lives in this world marked by the consequences and structures of sin.”

An indulgence helps attenuate those consequences and gives each Christian added strength to continue the daily battle against sin, he said.

While Catholics are under no obligation to seek an indulgence, he said, “it is a useful and beneficial pastoral gift for facing … the struggle against the power and violence of evil.”

Diocesan planner For more events taking place in the Diocese of Charlotte, visit www.charlottediocese. org/calendarofevents-cn.

ASHEVILLE VICARIATE ARDEN — A Women’s Lenten Program on the theme, “Staying at the Cross” will be held at St. Barnabas Church, 109 Crescent Hill Dr., March 28. Stations of the Cross, led by local Secular Franciscan women, will take place at 9 a.m., with registration at 9:45 a.m. The program begins at 10 a.m. with guest speakers and small group discussions. A soup and salad luncheon will be provided and door prizes will be awarded. All women are welcome; there is no cost to attend. To RSVP, contact Marcia Torres at (828) 697-1235 or e-mail johnandmarciatorres@yahoo.com.

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — Solemn vespers of Lent will be held at 6 p.m. every Sunday evening during Lent at St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Rd. E. Vespers is the name given to the official liturgical evening prayer of the church and completes the Divine Service for that day. The evening vespers will include a reflection on the seven last words of Christ. On March 22, Father Christopher Roux gives the reflection on the fourth word, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” On March 29, Father Brad Jones

“The president thanked Cardinal George for his leadership and for the contributions of the Catholic Church in America and around the world,” said the statement.

The statement from the USCCB said: “The meeting was private. Cardinal George and President Obama discussed the Catholic Church in the United States and its relation to the new administration.

“The meeting lasted approximately 30 minutes.

“At the conclusion, Cardinal George expressed his gratitude for the meeting and his hopes that it will foster fruitful dialogue for the sake of the common good,” the USCCB statement added.

Mercy Sister Mary Ann Walsh, director of media relations for the USCCB, said she expected no further information about the meeting to be released. gives the reflection on the fifth word, “I thirst.”

For more information, contact the church office at (704) 334-2283.

CHARLOTTE — The St. Matthew Columbiette’s are now accepting applications for the Gene Marie Alfaro Scholarship. The $1,000 scholarship is awarded to a graduating high school senior who is pursuing a career in nursing or other health related fields. If interested, call Diana Congdon at (704) 814-0624. To be considered, applications must be received by April 14.

CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Young Adult Life invites those in their 20s and 30s to Theology on Tap’s “Lent: 40 Days in the Desert.” This series will be held once a month for four months at Mario’s Pizza/John’s Place, 3016 Weddington Rd., Suite 100 and will explore the various events associated with the Lenten season. On March 26, St. Matthew Church parishioner Dean Nikodemski will speak on Christ’s passion, what it means and what it has to do with us today.

Come for food and drinks at 6:30 p.m. Speakers will begin at 7 p.m. For more information, e-mail st.matthews.yal@gmail.com.

CHARLOTTE — Dealing with Loss in the Years that Follow, a grief education event, will he held at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd., March 26 at 7 p.m. Presenter is Janice Olive of Hospice & Palliative Care Charlotte Region. For more information, call BJ at (704) 362-5047 ext. 212.

CHARLOTTE — A monthly respect life Mass will be celebrated March 28 at 9 a.m. at St. Ann Church, 3635 Park Rd. Immediately after Mass there will be exposition of the Blessed Sacrament. You may either stay in prayer or go pray the rosary with Father Reid at a local abortion facility. The morning will conclude with Benediction upon Father Reid’s return. For more information, contact Danielle Mathis at tmathis3@carolina.rr.com.

CHARLOTTE — A solemn prayer service including a blessing with the relic of St. Peregrine

March 20, 2 009 Volume 18 • Number 20

Publisher: Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis Editor: Kevin E. Murray STAFF WRITER: Katie Moore Graphic DESIGNER: Tim Faragher Advertising MANAGER: 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.

March 20, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 3

FROM THE VATICAN

Papal preacher says intelligent design is truth of faith, not science VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Affirming the reality of an intelligent design for the creation and development of the universe is not a scientific theory, but a statement of faith, said the preacher of the papal household.

Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, offering a Lenten meditation to Pope Benedict XVI and top Vatican officials March 13, said the controversy that has arisen between scientists supporting evolution and religious believers promoting creationism or intelligent design is due mainly to a confusion between scientific theory and the truths of faith.

The intelligent design theory asserts that the development and evolution of life is such a hugely complex process that a supreme being, God, must be directly involved in it. While some proponents of intelligent design claim that it is a

scientifically valid theory, most scientists dismiss it as pseudoscience.

The arguments, Father Cantalamessa said, are due to the fact that, “in my opinion, there is not a clear enough distinction between intelligent design as a scientific theory and intelligent design as a truth of faith.”

While science and evolution can explain part of the history of creation and how life exists, they cannot explain why, he said.

“Even those who eliminate the idea of God from the horizon don’t eliminate the mystery,” the preacher said.

“We know everything about the world, except how it started. The believer is convinced that the Bible furnishes precisely this missing first page. There, as on the title page of every book, is the name of the author and the title of the work,” he said.

for those suffering from cancer or other incurable diseases will take place March 26 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. St. Peregrine is the patron saint of cancer and incurable diseases. This healing prayer service will be offered on the fourth Thursday of each month at 7:30 p.m. in the Sanctuary.

For more information, call the church office at (704) 543-7677.

at Belmont Abbey College, 100 Belmont-Mt. Holly Rd., March 25 at 7:30 pm. Presenter will be Dr. Grattan Brown, assistant professor of theology at Belmont Abbey College. The presentation is free and open to the public, and will take place in the Mezzanine of the Abbot Walter Coggin Student Commons. To register for the event, RSVP to Jillian Maisano at JillianMaisano@bac.edu or (704) 461-6869.

MINT HILL — Deacon Rafael Torres will lead the Stations of the Cross in Spanish at St. Luke Church, 13700 Lawyers Rd., Thursdays during Lent at 6:15 p.m. There will be a Lenten Retreat in Spanish with Deacon Edwin Rodriguez March 21 from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. For more information, call (704) 846-7753.

CHARLOTTE — St. Peter Church, 507 S. Tryon St., is offering a Retreat for Men March 28, from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in Biss Hall. The theme: “Do not be afraid, I am with you always” will address the need to depend on the Lord for his support especially in troubled times. The retreat and parking (in the Green Parking Garage) are free. For more information, call (704) 332-2901 or visit the Web site at www.stpeterscatholic.org.

CHARLOTTE — A Mass in Polish will be held at St. Matthew Catholic Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., on Palm Sunday, April 5 at 3 p.m. Confessions will be available from 2 p.m. For more information, call Elizabeth Spytkowski at (704) 948-1678.

GASTONIA VICARIATE GASTONIA —The youth group at St. Michael Church, 708 St. Michael’s Lane, will present Living Stations on Good Friday, April 10 at 12 p.m. They will take us through Palm Sunday, the Last Supper and then through the Stations of the Cross. All are welcome to join in this meditation on the Lord’s passion.

BELMONT — “Obtaining Stem Cells: Should We Take The Whole To Heal A Part?” an exploration on the ethics of future adult stem cell versus embryonic stem cell research will be held

Episcopal

calendar

March 25 Episcopal ordination of Bishop Robert E. Guglielmone of Charleston Charleston, South Carolina

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI declared a year of the priest in an effort to encourage “spiritual perfection” in priests.

The pope will open the special year with a vespers service at the Vatican June 19 — the feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the day for the sanctification of priests. He will close the celebrations during a World Meeting of Priests in St. Peter’s Square June 19, 2010.

The pope made the announcement during an audience March 16 with members of the Vatican Congregation for Clergy.

He met with some 70 participants of the congregation’s March 16-18 plenary assembly, which focused on the missionary identity of the priest and his mission to sanctify, teach and govern.

During this jubilee year, the pope will also proclaim St. John Vianney to be patron saint of all the world’s priests. At present he is considered the patron saint of parish priests.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the death of this 19th-century saint who represents a “true example of a priest at the service of the flock of Christ,” the

pope said.

In his address, Pope Benedict said the priestly ministry consists of total adherence to the ecclesial tradition of participating “in a spiritually intense new life and a new lifestyle which was inaugurated by the Lord Jesus and which the apostles made their own.”

Priestly ordination creates new men who are bestowed with the gift and office of sanctifying, teaching and governing, he said.

The pope underlined the necessary and “indispensable struggle for moral perfection which must dwell in every authentically priestly heart.”

The pope said he was calling for the special year for priests in an effort to foster the priest’s yearning “for spiritual perfection, upon which the effectiveness of their ministry principally depends.”

Priests also must be “present, identifiable and recognizable — for their judgment of faith, their personal virtues and their attire — in the fields of culture and charity which have always been at the heart of the church’s mission,” he said.

Meeting of the minds

GREENSBORO VICARIATE GREENSBORO — A screening of the documentary, “Love Lived on Death Row,” will be shown in the Fellowship Hall at St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Rd., March 26, 7-9 p.m. The documentary tells the true story of the Syriani sibling’s journey from hate and anger to love and forgiveness for their father who was sentenced to death for the 1990 murder of their mother. A panel discussion will follow the screening. For more information, call Jeannine Martin (336) 294-4696 ext. 225.

HIGH POINT — The Eagle’s Nest, Immaculate Heart of Mary School’s kindergarten-readiness program, is hosting an open house March 24, from 6 until 7:30 p.m. at 4145 Johnson St. Prospective students and parents will have the opportunity to tour the classroom, meet the teachers and discover what this unique program has to offer. Application and admission information also will be available.

All faiths are welcome. For more information, contact the school at (336) 887-2613 or visit www.ihm-school.com.

Is your parish or school sponsoring a free event open to the general public? Deadline for all submissions for the Diocesan Planner is 10 days prior to desired publication date.

Submit in writing to kmmoore@charlottediocese.org or fax to (704) 370-3382.

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

March 22 (5 p.m.)

Pastor Installation of Capuchin Franciscan Father Nicholas Mormando Immaculate Conception Church, Hendersonville

Pope declares year of the priest to inspire spiritual perfection

March 28 (5 p.m.)

Boy Scout Camporee Mass Camp Belk, Mint Hill March 29 (12:30 p.m.)

Annual Youth Lenten Pilgrimage Belmont Abbey, Belmont

CNS photo by L’Osservatore Romano

Pope Benedict XVI listens as Rabbi Shear-Yashuv Cohen, chief rabbi of Haifa, Israel, speaks during their meeting at the Vatican March 12. Representatives of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel asked the pope to make Holocaust studies a required subject in Catholic schools, saying it could help stamp out antiSemitism in future generations.

Missionaries of Charity re-elect Sister Nirmala as superior general CALCUTTA, India (CNS) — The Missionaries of Charity, the congregation founded by Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, re-elected Sister Nirmala Joshi as superior general March 13.

But because the order’s religious superior general can be elected for only two consecutive terms, her third term in office will require papal approval, reported the Asian church news agency UCA News.

More than 160 electors from around the world cast their votes in a secluded Missionaries of Charity house during

the last phase of the congregation’s 10th general chapter, which began Feb. 1.

Archbishop Lucas Sirkar of Calcutta presided over the election of the superior general and four councilors.

According to the constitution of the Missionaries of Charity, the congregation holds its general chapter every six years to address major congregational issues and other matters.

It requires that the successful candidate for superior general receive an absolute majority of votes after three rounds of secret ballots.

4 The Catholic News & Herald

March 20, 2009

AROUND THE DIOCESE

Take the whole to heal a part?

Belmont Abbey professor to clarify stem cell debate by

MARY B. WORTHINGTON correspondent

Photo by Kevin E. Murray

Oratorian Father Joseph Pearce watches as members of the Ancient Order of Hibernians place a wreath on the grave of the first pastor of St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly March 17.

Remembering their roots

Irish Catholics pay tribute to immigrants on St. Patrick’s Day by

KEVIN E. MURRAY editor

MOUNT HOLLY — Irish-American Catholics gathered on St. Patrick’s Day to pay tribute to those who helped plant Catholicism’s roots in the Diocese of Charlotte.

The Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) and Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians (LAOH) held a ceremony and Mass at St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly March 17.

In the church cemetery, the Hibernians placed a wreath on the grave of Father T. J. Cronin, the church’s first pastor, and U.S. and Irish flags on the graves of the Irish immigrants who built the church in 1843.

“We’re here to pay tribute to those who came before us,” said Janice Donahue of the LAOH. “They came from Ireland with nothing, but they were strong in their faith,” she said of the immigrants, who mined for gold along the Catawba River.

“This church was their place to come and talk about their home, their families and their faith,” said Donahue.

The small, white clapboard church

accommodates nearly 100 people. It has no electricity, no bathrooms; six big windows were used to light and heat the church.

St. Joseph Church is the fourth Catholic church built in the state. In 1979, it was designated as a National Historical Site by the U.S. Department of Interior.

Oratorian Father Joseph Pearce, AOH and LAOH state chaplain, celebrated Mass after the ceremony.

The Hibernians hoped the Mass would put faith at the forefront of some local St. Patrick’s Day activities.

“In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday, and it needs to be here in the United States,” said Joe Dougherty of the AOH. The Ancient Order of Hibernians, founded in New York in 1836, describes itself as the oldest lay Catholic organization in the United States.

WANT MORE PICS? More photos of the St. Patrick’s Day ceremony at St. Joseph Church are available online at www.charlottediocese.org.

saintly visit

BELMONT — “As faithful citizens, Catholics should form their consciences on this issue so that they can effectively cut through false rhetoric and oppose all killing of embryonic human life,” said Dr. Grattan Brown.

Brown, assistant professor of theology at Belmont Abbey College, was speaking about the issue of stem cell research. He will present “Obtaining Stem Cells: Should We Take the Whole to Heal a Part?” at Belmont Abbey College March 25.

“Some think sacrificing embryos is no big deal, but think about it: we all began that way,” Brown said in an interview with The Catholic News & Herald.

“In contrast to other types of stem cell research, embryonic stem cell research systematically destroys human life and should not be accepted by any humane society,” he said.

The debate about the morality of different types of stem cell research came to the forefront with President Barack Obama’s March 9 signing of an executive order reversing the ban on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research.

Calling the research “immoral,” the National Catholic Bioethics Center recently explained how embryonic stem cell research has failed to yield positive results and how patients treated with these methods have reported tumors and tissue rejection.

“Recent advances have obviated the need for destroying human embryos to access pluripotent stem cells,” the center said in a March 9 statement.

“Scientists have demonstrated that they can reprogram ordinary human skin cells into pluripotent stems cells which will not cause tumors or rejection. There are several ethical stem cell research alternatives that already have successfully treated thous ands of patients,” the statement said.

Some recent successes in ethical stem cell research include treatments for cardiac disease, pediatric brain tumors, cerebral palsy and blood diseases.

Misunderstanding of the research is not limited to Catholics, Brown said.

“There is a lot of false rhetoric and emotional manipulation out there,” he said. “Most of the time, evaluating

Dr. Grattan Brown research involves balancing benefits and risks. This method works pretty well until you consider means of research that automatically offend dignity in some way, like killing.”

“This issue will impact both our lives and our faithfulness because practices like embryo destructive research greatly influence our society and culture,” Brown said.

Contact Correspondent Mary B. Worthington at marybethworthington@ gmail.com.

WANT TO GO? “Obtaining Stem Cells: Should We Take The Whole To Heal A Part?” begins at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 25 in the student commons at Belmont Abbey College. It is free and open to the public.

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Courtesy Photo

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March 20, 2009

from the cover

The Catholic News & Herald 5

Man’s quest for meaning leads to monastic life CONVERT, from page 1

popular religions,” said Odom, who is now a parishioner at Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte.

After looking into other world religions, he found that he was being drawn back to his Christian roots.

He began reading books about Catholic saints — John of the Cross, Padre Pio, Teresa of Avila and Francis of Assisi.

“I could feel or understand what they were saying,” said Odom. “I thought, ‘I want to follow these people to Jesus.’”

He also began reading books about Mary, particularly about her apparitions in Fatima and Lourdes. It was around that same time that Odom decided he wanted to become a monk.

“I sold my house, gave my car away and I moved to Greenville, North Carolina,” he said.

He wanted to start living a simple, monastic kind of life.

“I decided there was no sense in waiting until I go to into a monastery, I might as well start now,” he said.

Through further research, Odom discovered Belmont Abbey, which prompted his move to Charlotte.

“Belmont Abbey was the closest monastery that I knew about,” he said.

“In my head, monasteries were places where there weren’t a lot of people.”

He was surprised to find Belmont

Abbey at the center of a bustling college campus and decided he would probably be better off in a more secluded environment.

“When I came to Charlotte, I came here with nothing. So I basically was in the men’s shelter for three or four months,” he said.

In the meantime, he got a temporary job, found a place to live and began attending Our Lady of Consolation Church. It was there that he met Dale Brown, pastoral associate and coordinator of the parish Right of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) program.

Brown said that Odom’s conversion was unique because he felt drawn to religious life from the beginning.

“He knew where he wanted to go but he just didn’t understand how to get there,” said Brown, who was able to point him in the right direction.

“I said to him, ‘Rodney you have to keep in mind that God is not going anywhere,’” said Brown, as she explained to Odom that he would have to go through RCIA before he could become a monk.

“Once he came to fully understand what the church teaches, he was willing to abide by those teachings,” she said.

After his meeting with Brown, Odom said his approach to his conversion process shifted.

“In my mind I was fired up to get through the process,” said Odom, but he was beginning to understand that he would have to be patient.

During his time in RCIA, Odom continued his search for a monastery

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Courtesy photo

Rodney Odom is pictured in an April 2008 photo at Mepkin Abbey in Moncks Corner, S.C. during a twoweek visit to the monastery. Odom, a recent convert to Catholicism, is planning to become a monk. with a more cloistered environment.

In his search, he came across Mepkin Abbey in Moncks Corner, S.C. When he visited Mepkin Abbey for the first time, he stayed for three days.

He went for a second visit in fall 2007 and stayed for two weeks.

“During those first visits I guess I was just extremely nervous,” said Odom, reflecting on the difficulty he had adjusting to the strict monastic lifestyle, which included rising at 3 a.m. each day for prayer.

After he became Catholic at the Easter Vigil in 2008, Odom arranged to make a 30-day visit to Mepkin Abbey in February 2009.

“Each time he came back with a better attitude,” said Brown.

“When he came back from the month-long visit, he had a glow on him that I had never seen before,” she said.

Odom agreed that his most recent visit was also the most beneficial. He attributes that to a stronger devotion to the Eucharist and a more open state of mind.

“I think a lot of it had to do with the fact that I had been dedicating myself to go to Mass five times a week,” he said.

In keeping with his simplistic lifestyle, Odom relied on public transportation to get to church — a three-and-a-half hour roundtrip journey by bus.

“I was now used to dedicating a significant portion of my life to God,” he said.

Going to Mass became a priority for Odom. It became “more important than getting sleep,” he said.

“Somehow I must have been made empty,” he said, because “this time when I went to Mepkin, I received a lot.”

“After the first week, your mind starts to quiet down,” he said of his month-long stay at the monastery. “You sit and you start to discover things that you never knew you could discover just by sitting.”

During his visit, Odom also had a chance to meet with the abbot and several of the priests.

He filled out an application, and if all goes according to plan, he will enter the monastery in September.

“The reason I became Catholic is because of the saints,” said Odom, “reading about the saints and how they lived their lives.”

On his journey from the book-lined walls of the Philadelphia public library to the tranquil Mepkin Abbey monastery, Odom has learned that certain things in life just take time.

“Patience was not one of my strong points,” he said. But “it is a characteristic of monastic life.”

“If you don’t learn patience then you can’t be a monk,” said Odom.

But sometimes he has a hard time hiding his enthusiasm.

“Once you discover the love of God and how sincere it is and how pure it is, it’s hard not to follow it,” he said.

6 The Catholic News & Herald

March 20, 2009

FROM THE COVER

Iraqi refugees find hope, seek better future in N.C. IRAQ, from page 1

Psalm 55:23 — “Cast your care upon the Lord, who will give you support� — and the words from Joshua 1:9 — “Do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord, your God, is with you wherever you go.�

Amal and her children were resettled in Charlotte in February through the Refugee Resettlement Office of Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Charlotte. The past few years of their lives have been fraught with peril and danger.

She and her husband were middleclass, well-educated Christians with promising futures in the construction of new homes in Baghdad. The industry collapsed with the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Shortly after, Amal and her husband — both of whom speak English — secured jobs as translators for the coalition forces. Working closely with U.S. troops, Amal saw the good they were trying to accomplish in Iraq, especially the democratic way of life they hoped to establish after the fall of Saddam Hussein. She was grateful for their efforts.

Then her cousin was murdered.

A message from the terrorists assured Amal the bullet had been meant for her, because she “was a Christian and was working with the enemy,� she said.

Both she and her husband quit their jobs as translators and went into hiding.

Terrorists next kidnapped Amal’s brother and his family had to pay $20,000 for his release. He returned home with a message for Amal: the terrorists would find her sooner or later, and kill her.

So Amal and her family fled to

WANT MORE INFO? For more information on CSS’s Refugee Resettlement Office, visit www.cssnc.org/refugee.html or call (704) 370-3283.

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Jordan, praying en route that the border would be open when they arrived. Amal believes her prayers were answered — when they arrived at the border, they were allowed to cross, but the border was then closed to the cars behind them.

Amal’s faith did not falter, even when her husband’s passport was stolen and he was subsequently deported back to Iraq. There he found a note from the Islamic Army of Iraq pinned on the door of their home: “You are Christian and work with the Americans. So we are taking your house and are making it our headquarters.�

Amal’s husband stayed with relatives, but he was soon kidnapped.

After a year, the family made contact with the terrorist group and paid a ransom for his release.

Today he remains in Iraq in hiding, trying to find a way to leave the country.

Challenges ahead Many Iraqi families have been torn apart since the invasion and subsequent violence. A significant number of Christians have already fled, and continue to flee, Iraq and the Middle East.

Latin-rite Archbishop Jean Sleiman of Baghdad, in an interview with Vatican Radio Feb. 23, said Christians in countries like Iraq and the Palestinian territories leave out of “fear of Islamic fundamentalism and being legally discriminated against� in an Islamic republic or under Shariah, the religiously based law of Islam.

He said the international community must help Iraq build peace and democracy by guaranteeing “the primacy of law and primacy of nation.� “Many problems will be solved because (a state of) law equals equality and justice,� he said.

Catholic Social Services’ Refugee Resettlement Office helped resettle nearly 400 refugees in 2008. While the number of refugees has increased over the years, federal funding has decreased. “This is a challenge for us,� said Cira Ponce, Refugee Resettlement

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A resident holds his rosary beads as U.S. soldiers patrolling a market walk past him in Mosul, about 240 miles north of Baghdad, Iraq, Feb. 2. Thousands of Christian families in Mosul were forced to leave last fall after numerous murders of Christians. parish to join, but a lack of transportation has made both difficult.

In the meantime, she prays every night for her husband’s safety and looks forward to the day the family will be reunited. “I know that God will bring him home. I trust in my God,� she said.

Office director. “This ministry is a service God has blessed and, we trust, God will continue to help us find the means to provide for people like Amal,� she said.

Amal said democracy and freedom are precious to her, and she continues to hope both will prevail and endure in Iraq.

Until that day, she looks forward to the new life her family can create in America. She dreams one of her children will grow up and become a senator.

She currently is looking for work to help support her family and a Catholic

Contributing to this story was Catholic News Service.

Ann Kilkelly is development director for Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Charlotte.

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around the diocese

The Catholic News & Herald 7

Championing women’s rights

Local Catholics participate in annual U.N. commission on women MARY B. WORTHINGTON “The ability to get my voice heard on NEW YORK CITY—The first two weeks of March found tens of thousands this topic was very of women from around the world at the important to me.”

United Nations in New York City for by

correspondent

the 53rd Commission on the Status of Women (CSW).

Catholics from the Diocese of Charlotte were among those bringing the Catholic Church’s hope-filled message of the dignity of women to the March 2-13 commission, which focused on the role of women as caretakers, specifically in the context of HIV and AIDS. The CSW is a functional panel of the U.N. Economic and Social Council and is devoted solely to gender equality and the advancement of women.

Representatives of member states gather each year at the U.N. headquarters to assess progress on gender equality, set global standards and formulate tangible policies to promote gender equality and the advancement of women worldwide.

Jessica Rohaly, 20, a parishioner of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte and a sophomore at the College of Notre Dame of Maryland, attended the commission — her second — with fellow students, faculty and members of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, who sponsor the college.

Rohaly helped to develop document language for the commission regarding the importance of education for girls.

Dr. Martha Shuping, a psychologist and parishioner of St. Leo the Great

— Jessica Rohaly Church in Winston-Salem, held workshops with Concerned Women for America for world leaders on the detrimental aftereffects of abortion on women’s health.

Both women reported success in their missions.

For Rohaly, success was hearing the text developed by her group proposed during a presentation by a delegate from the United States.

“While I do not know whether our language will be used in the final document, the most exciting part of the conference was to hear our words used,” said Rohaly.

Speaking on the issue of the rights and dignity of women, Rohaly explained how girls in poor countries are often pulled from school to care for a family member afflicted with HIV and AIDS. “The effects of the epidemic of AIDS often falls on women and girls,” she said. “Even if living with the disease themselves, they are often expected to perform extensive domestic duties along with caring for sick family members.”

Shuping, a participant in various U.N.

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CNS photo by Chaz Muth

A group of students from the College of Notre Dame of Maryland Feb. 27 look over some of the U.N. proposals concerning equality for women globally shortly before leaving campus for New York to attend a conference of the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women. From left is Jessica Rohaly, 20, of Charlotte, N.C.; Micah Yousefi, 22, of Forest Hill, Md.; Ashley Chesson, 22, of Chevy Chase, Md.; and Barbara Bailey, 59, of Baltimore, Md. commissions since 2005, specializes in psychological care of women and men after abortion.

Most recently, she co-authored a study in the Journal of Psychiatric Research indicating an increased incidence of a variety of mental health problems after abortion based on analysis of the national comorbidity survey.

Shuping shared some examples of attendees at her workshops who thanked her for her research, explaining how it will help them in their home countries where they are resisting pressure for normalizing or legalizing abortion.

“Pro-woman, pro-life nongovernmental organizations have a very important role to play, even if abortion is not the specific topic of the commission,” said Shuping.

“Because there is a constant pressure by the U.N. to make abortion a universal right, it is all the more important to educate on the issue during the CSW,” she said. “The CSW should look to a long range of women’s issues, not just the one issue addressed during a particular conference. Abortion is not a solution because it causes so much pain for women.”

“Why not educate the women of the world on the negative impact of abortion since so many are involved in promoting it,” she suggested. “Let’s let the nations know the consequences.”

Finding solutions Though abortion was not the commission’s focus, Samantha Singson, director of Government Relations for Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute, said “the United States delegation openly stated that ‘sexual and reproductive health and rights’ would be a priority issue for the Obama administration.”

“Reproductive health” is a phrase commonly used to refer to access to abortion, contraceptives and sterilization.

Both Shuping and Rohaly spoke of the challenges of bringing forth

Catholic Church teachings in a way that is acceptable to a secular or nonCatholic audience.

“If we try to evangelize the culture by saying, ‘the pope says,’ we don’t get too far,” said Shuping. “However, when you show the scientific data on how abortion hurts women, people are better able to understand.”

“We have to get wording into documents that are logical and moral without using religion,” said Rohaly.

“It’s a back-door approach.”

The Vatican regularly sends delegations to the commissions. The late Pope John Paul II took a particular interest in the activities of the United Nations regarding the dignity of women.

On the occasion of the fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995, he wrote “Letter to Women,” in which he extolled women’s dignity and perseverance despite unfavorable conditions throughout history.

“Women’s dignity has often been unacknowledged and their prerogatives misrepresented; they have often been relegated to the margins of society and even reduced to servitude,” wrote Pope John Paul.

“We need only think of how the gift of motherhood is often penalized rather than rewarded, even though humanity owes its very survival to this gift … .

Women will increasingly play a part in the solution of the serious problems of the future,” he wrote.

Rohaly said it was in studying Catholic Church documents and teachings such as “Letter to Women” throughout her high school years that propelled her to take up the challenge and come to the defense of women.

“I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity,” she said prior to the commission. “The ability to get my voice heard on this topic was very important to me.”

Contact Correspondent Mary B. Worthington at marybethworthington@ gmail.com.

8 The Catholic News & Herald

challenges in africa

March 20, 2009

To embrace a continent

Pope says trip to Africa will focus on continent’s hopes, challenges

by JOHN THAVIS catholic news service

Editor’s note: This is part of a series regarding Pope Benedict XVI’s March 17-23 trip to Africa and the October Synod of Bishops on Africa.

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI said his trip to Africa would be a missionary journey highlighting the continent’s challenges, its enormous potential and its “profound religious soul.”

The pope, speaking two days before his departure for Cameroon and Angola, said he was not bringing a political or social program to Africa, but simply the Gospel message of love that is “capable of transforming the world.”

“This is the grace that can also renew Africa, because it generates an irresistible power of peace and a deep and radical reconciliation,” the pope told pilgrims at his noon blessing March 15.

“With this visit, I intend to embrace the entire African continent: its thousands of differences and its profound religious soul; its ancient cultures and its difficult path of development and reconciliation; its serious problems, its painful wounds and its enormous potential and hopes,” he said.

The pope dedicated the trip to St. Joseph, whose feast is March 19, and entrusted to the saint the challenges

and hopes of all segments of the African population.

“In particular, I am thinking of the victims of hunger, of disease, of injustice, of fratricidal conflicts and every form of violence that unfortunately continues to strike adults and children, as well as missionaries, priests, men and women religious, and volunteers,” he said.

The pope said that among the main purposes of his weeklong visit was to confirm the faith of Catholics and encourage all Christians in ecumenical cooperation. He said the trip, his first to the African continent, was inspired in part by the evangelizing efforts of St. Paul.

“I depart for Africa with the awareness that I have nothing to propose and to give to those I will meet except Christ and the good news of his cross, a mystery of supreme love, of divine love that overcomes every human resistance and makes possible even forgiveness and love for one’s enemies,” he said.

The pope spent March 17-20 in Cameroon, where he met with African bishops and hand-delivered the working document for the Synod of Bishops for Africa, to be held in Rome next October.

The pope will visit Angola March 20-23, celebrating Masses, meeting with civil and religious leaders and meeting with young people in a soccer stadium.

It is his 11th foreign trip since his election as pope in 2005.

Angola enjoys growth but still recovers from deadly civil war VATICAN CITY (CNS) — One of Africa’s major oil producers, Angola is also one of the world’s poorest countries.

Most people live on less than $1 per day, and more than half of the population is unemployed. The average life expectancy is about 38 years.

Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975 and is still recovering from the physical, social and political repercussions of a 27-year civil war that broke out soon after.

Fighting began between two longtime rivals, the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola, known as MPLA, and the National Union for Total Independence of Angola, or UNITA. The conflict evolved into a prominent Cold War battle, with the Soviet Union backing the MPLA and the United States supporting UNITA. A peace agreement was signed in 2002, but Angola’s constitutional republic remains in transition.

The government is highly centralized and dominated by President Jose Eduardo dos Santos of the MPLA, but elections have been deemed free and fair. Dos Santos held legislative elections in September 2008 and announced plans to hold presidential elections in 2009.

According to reports by Human Rights Watch and the U.S. State Department, Angola’s human rights record is marred by a string of abuses, including unlawful killings by police,

forced eviction without compensation, restrictions on freedoms of speech and press, and the arbitrary detention and torture of civilians by the Angolan army.

Angola has enjoyed recent economic improvements. High prices in the international oil market have worked to Angola’s advantage as a supplier of crude oil to the U.S. and China. Postwar reconstruction efforts and the resettlement of displaced people have led to growth in construction and agriculture.

Catholics in Angola number about 8.6 million, more than half of the 15.5 million total population. The ratio of priests to Catholics in the country is 1-to10,800, one of the highest in Africa.

The latest Vatican statistics show there are 18 hospitals in Angola owned or administered by the Catholic Church, as well as 42 orphanages, four marriagecounseling centers and 25 centers for social education.

In total the church runs 454 socialservice institutions in Angola.

Near the end of the war, church leaders in Angola promoted peace efforts by holding national and diocesan councils to establish humanitarian programs and help rebuild the country.

The bishops’ conference of Angola and Sao Tome joined with other Christian churches at an ecumenical peace forum in 1999 to bring Angolan churches together to work for peace and to encourage dialogue with the international community.

CNS photo by Saabi/Galbe.Com

A priest teaches philosophy to students at the Seminary of St. Therese of Mvolye in Yaounde, Cameroon, Feb. 9. Boys from a minor seminary at the institution may advance to the major seminary to become priests.

Pope Benedict XVI is traveling in Cameroon and Angola until March 23 on his first papal visit to Africa.

Cameroon seen as stable country, but also highly corrupt VATICAN CITY(CNS) — Cameroon was created in 1961 by the unification of French Cameroon and part of British Cameroon.

Situated on the West coast of Central Africa, the country’s general stability and fertile land have brought about the development of agriculture, infrastructure and a profitable petroleum industry.

Its economy is dependent on commodity exports; per capita income is about $2,000 a year.

President Paul Biya’s Cameroon People’s Democratic Movement has retained power for more than 25 years.

National elections have been held, but opposition parties say they have been unfair, and human rights organizations have faulted the government for restricting freedoms of speech, press, assembly and association.

According to the U.S. State Department, the country’s corruption level is among the highest in the world.

A report issued in December 2007

by Transparency International, the global coalition against corruption, said more than 80 percent of Cameroonians

surveyed considered the nation’s police and political parties to be corrupt.

The number of Catholics in Cameroon is rising steadily. In the 40-year period from 1920 to 1960, the number of Catholics rose from 60,000 to 700,000.

The most recent Vatican statistics tally about 4.8 million Catholics, roughly 26 percent of Cameroon’s 18.2 million total population.

The first indigenous priests were ordained in 1935. In 1988, Cardinal Christian Wiyghan Tumi was the first Cameroonian named to the College of Cardinals.

Vatican statistics show there are 23 hospitals owned or administered by the Catholic Church. The church runs 10 centers for the care of people with Hansen’s disease, 12 orphanages and 18 centers for social education.

In total there are 460 social-service centers run by the church in Cameroon.

Cameroon’s literacy rate is among the highest in Africa. More than 400,000 students are enrolled in schools, including universities, run by the Catholic Church.

March 20, 2009

challenges in africa

The Catholic News & Herald 9

On a road to peace

* the breathtaking countryside * the traditions of our Catholic faith * the legends of her people

In Kenya, dioceses work to control ever-present ethnic tension against each other.

The bishop and those diocesan workers who could safely make it to the diocesan compound opened the gates and Editor’s note: This is part of a series offered shelter to about 10,000 people. regarding Pope Benedict XVI’s March

By Feb. 28, 2008, when a power17-23 trip to Africa and the October sharing government was announced Synod of Bishops on Africa. and Odinga became Kenya’s prime minister, the overt postelection violence ELDORET, Kenya — It was the had stopped, and all of the diocesan Christmas holidays, and diocesan offices resources were being used to care for the were closed. James Kimisoi, head of area’s displaced people while promoting the peace and justice commission of reconciliation and peace-building. the Diocese planned to General be and of Fr.Eldoret, Mo West, Vicar and fordiocese the had One Chancellor, year later, the in the office only to pay people who made great strides in rebuilding trust monitored the polls in the December among neighbors, but church officials 2007 national elections. had run out of money to provide most Mwai Kibaki was declared the of the services offered before the winner and sworn in as Kenya’s president violence began.

August 2007 an hour later. Then the violence began,17-25, Today, many of those displaced said Kimisoi. by violence remain living in tents Homes were looted and burned instead of their homes. An uneasy peace — some with the people locked inside crisscrosses the country, where many — and some Kenyans were beaten have said violence bubbles just below the and killed. International observers surface, ready to explode again. claimed the election was rigged, and as Part of the unease remains because supporters of opposition leader Raila people do not trust one another, said Odinga expressed outrage, the violence Father Charles Lukati, development escalated, pitting rival ethnic groups

by LIZ QUIRIN catholic news service

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Girls help move dirt Feb. 18 as youth build a “peace road” between two communities in the Diocese of Eldoret. Kenya. The road symbolizes the trust and the peace the communities are re-establishing after postelection violence tore them apart. coordinator for the Diocese of Eldoret.

Church officials also said the perpetrators of the violence have not been named or brought to justice, and many worry that if perpetrators are not held accountable for their crimes, the violence will be repeated and possibly escalate.

A government truth commission has drawn up names of perpetrators, but those names have not been made public.

“Without justice there can be no peace,” said Msgr. Michael Rop, Eldoret diocesan vicar general.

“The political violence has disrupted pastoral activities,” he told Catholic News Service. “This is the biggest disruption anyone has seen.”

‘A miracle road’ On the other side of the country, on the coast in Malindi, Bishop Francis Baldacchino said the postelection violence “was horrible. Nobody expected such a tragedy.”

Once the violence began, Catholic officials focused on helping the displaced and victims of violence. For instance, the U.S. bishops’ Catholic Relief Services helped set up water and latrines in the Eldoret church compound when the refugees were camped there.

Many Kenyans have received help to rebuild with grants from the Eldoret Diocese through international church aid agencies like CRS and Caritas Australia.

Voucher programs in villages have given people money to spend on materials to rebuild and replace some of the household items and farm implements destroyed in the violence.

Fraud-reduction processes have been established, and village committees were directed to look first at women and children and single heads of households in determining eligibility.

While not everyone qualified to receive the vouchers, the program has made a difference in villages where it was used.

One project in the Eldoret Diocese brought together people in two villages to build a “peace road.”

A portion of the road always existed, and the two villages, which supported different political candidates in the election, belonged to the same parish: St. Mary’s Church.

A great deal of mistrust existed between the two villages and spilled over TOP HEAD into the parish.

NO RISK to “This is a miracle road,” said St. Mary’s pastor, Father Thomas up to 7/31 Dougherty, a Scottish member of the St. Patrick Missionary Society who has lived in Kenya for many years.

“The Kikuyu (a tribe that supports Kibaki) and the Kalenjins (who support Odinga) are working together on the road. It’s a real miracle after what happened to us,” he said.

The project requires youths from both villages to work an eight-hour day, and their wages are paid from a grant from Caritas Australia. Elders from both villages mentor the youths.

Since the road is almost finished, the youths are asking for other projects they All f can work on together.

West “The people of both communities are showing the world action,” Father Dougherty said. “The country of Kenya is full of talk but little action. A man told me: ‘Our words of peace and unity are in this road because we did it together.’” * Ft. Laude Eldoret’s diocesan director, Kimisoi, * Half Moo said the work that went into the project Bahamian before it was begun, and the hours and hours of meetings with the bishop and * Oranjesta staff have paid off. an excursio “That’s why they have not had any * Willemsta difficulties (with the road project),” specialties, he said. * Panama C Always just below the surface magnificen is the issue of land ownership. * Puerto Li The violence began as a politically canals, exp motivated event, then degenerated into ethnic violence. paradise!

At the core are issues of land ownership that were not settled in the PLUS, all th 1960s when the British relinquished colonial ties to the country.

Price starts a The situation is complicated, said Father Charles Kirui, pastor hotel of and air St. Patrick’s Church in Burnt Forest village, but “at the end of the day we’re Deposits are all God’s children.”

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March 20, 2009

10 The Catholic News & Herald

Culture Watch

A roundup of Scripture, readings, films and more

WORD TO LIFE

Sunday Scripture Readings: march 29, 2009

March 29, Fifth Sunday of Lent

Books offer food for thought on preparing youths to lead churches reviewed by DANIEL S. MULHALL catholic news service

The question “What is the role of young people in the church today?” provides the linkage between two recent books.

The authors of “Awakening Youth Discipleship” argue that young people today have the role of providing leadership in resisting the consumer culture in which they (and we) live. The author of “Reverse Mentoring” argues that young people are ready to take leadership roles in the church today if only the older generations will let them.

Both books provide much food for thought that will be of interest to anyone who works with young people or who is engaged with ministry in the church.

“Awakening Youth Discipleship: Christian Resistance in a Consumer Culture” is a collection of six articles by three college professors and the transcript of a conversation among them — Brian Mahan, Michael Warren and David White.

The articles examine how the consumer culture in which we live shapes the attitudes and behaviors of everyone.

Mahan’s and White’s articles are written from an experiential approach and offer suggestions on what can be done to overcome those cultural biases.

Warren’s two articles are written from a more academic perspective and provide a solid basis for the book’s argument. Warren writes, “Most youth ministry is reduced to a program of a particular church, rather than an organic statement of its inner life.”

For Warren, ministry is a way of life, and if we want to form young people to live Gospel-centered lives in a consumer culture, the church community must first learn how to live this way.

As Warren bluntly puts it: “When the local church is a living sign of the good news, then its ministry to youth is likewise a living sign, flowing out of what the church is living.”

Rev. Earl Creps is a pastor, ministries consultant and university professor within the evangelical Christian community.

His book, “Reverse Mentoring: How Young Leaders Can Transform the Church and Why We Should Let Them,”

is directed primarily to those who serve as youth pastors in evangelical churches, but also raises significant ideas and issues that will be of interest to those who work with youths and young adult ministries in the Catholic Church and to those concerned about the church of the future.

Rev. Creps writes that the church of the next generation must be shaped by the members of this next generation and not by the old folks who are in the church’s leadership today. Through a series of anecdotal tales, he explains how much he has learned about using technology more effectively from younger people.

From these stories Rev. Creps then argues that young people today are ready to take leadership roles in the church but that they are not allowed to because the current leadership isn’t willing to get out of the way.

The goal of the book “is to prepare spiritual leaders to apply reverse mentoring as a spiritual discipline, a way of experiencing personal formation through exercising the kind of humility that invites younger people to become our tutors.”

The concept of reverse mentoring is taken from the field of business, which recognizes that the input of younger generations is needed in order to build products that will be of value and interest to their peers.

The concept certainly holds true for churches: In order to attract younger members, churches must understand the needs of these young members and make ways for them to influence what the church offers and how it is offered.

The value in this book is what it reveals about how different the lives of “Generation X” — those born between 1965 and 1976 — and “millennials” — born from 1977 to 2000 — are from those of the baby boomer generation that now holds most leadership positions in churches.

Pastoral leaders interested in reaching out to these younger generations will find much here that will assist them in this task.

Mulhall is the national catechetical adviser to a Catholic textbook publishing company.

Cycle B Readings: 1) Jeremiah 31:31-34 Psalm 51:3-4, 12-15 2) Hebrews 5:7-9 Gospel: John 12:20-33

Sacrifice is needed to find more fulfilling future

by JEAN DENTON catholic news service

I watched my young friend Curtis play in his final collegiate basketball game recently. It was a joy.

He’d had an outstanding season, reaching peak performance at the end of his college career. A few days earlier, he admitted to his mother that he was feeling the bittersweet emotions that come with the end of “the best time of my life.”

I remember four years ago when he played in his last high school game, and he was feeling similar conflict, sad about leaving his teammates and excited about beginning again on the college level.

Back then, his sadness was tempered by some difficult struggles with unfair treatment and the resulting lack of selfconfidence and disappointment.

As a 17-year-old, though, Curtis was an extraordinary example to his friends as he quietly, humbly endured those trials without public complaint, thanks to the guidance and support of his family who

assured him of his worth.

His friends and family since then have been gratified by his development and wonderful success as a college player and his growth and capability as a man.

His college career was everything his high school experience wasn’t, although the testing of the latter certainly prepared and strengthened him for it.

Curtis’ family and friends are sad we won’t get to watch his graceful performance on the court anymore. But we also know that when he leaves it behind, there is much ahead in his next stage of life that will be even richer and more fulfilling.

The Gospel for this fifth Sunday of Lent tells us — as Jesus told his disciples — that the only way to a new and greater life is by leaving the old one behind. The grain of wheat cannot serve its bigger purpose until it falls to the ground to grow and produce much fruit, he explained in simple terms.

Jesus felt troubled at leaving his friends in this earthly life, but he knew God’s truth — that it was necessary in order for him to live his glorified life.

That included his promise that those who love and follow him also will follow him out of this lesser life and to a greater life with God. Questions: When have you had to leave a place or end a situation in order to begin “a new life”? In retrospect, why was it necessary for the old circumstance to die away? How does this prepare you for celebrating Easter?

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE Scripture for the week of March 22-28 Sunday (Fourth Sunday of Lent), 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23, Ephesians 2:4-10, John 3:1421; Monday (St. Toribio de Mogrovejo), Isaiah 65:17-21, John 4:43-54; Tuesday (Lenten Weekday), Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12, John 5:1-16; Wednesday (The Annunciation of the Lord), Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10, Hebrews 10:4-10, Luke 1:26-38; Thursday (Lenten Weekday), Exodus 32:7-14, John 5:31-47; Friday (Lenten Weekday), Wisdom 2:1, 12-22, John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30; Saturday (Lenten Weekday), Jeremiah 11:18-20, John 7:40-53.

Scripture for the week of March 29–April 4 Sunday (Fifth Sunday of Lent), Jeremiah 31:31-34, Hebrews 5:7-9, John 12:20-33; 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, Daniel 3:14-20, 91-92,95, Daniel 3:52-56, John 8:3142; Thursday (St. Francis of Paola), Genesis 17:3-9, John 8:51-59; Friday, Jeremiah 20:10-13, John 10:31-42; Saturday (St. Isidore), Ezekiel 37:21-28, Jeremiah 31:10-13, John 11:45-56.

The Catholic News & Herald 11

March 20, 2009

Nebraska-based Spirit Catholic Radio expands reach with new signal Call to check our “church visits” calendar Broadcast now reaches 1.5 million listeners

by S.L. HANSEN catholic news service

until an equipment transfer is completed in early spring.

The broadcast enterprise, which LINCOLN, Neb. — After a decade also has a Web site at www.kvss.com, is of discussions, years of planning and supported totally by listeners’ fundraising and countless prayers, Spirit 2-Day Special Sale –donations Fri. and Sat., and business underwriters.

Catholic Radio is now broadcasting with Currently, the average listener a new FM signal from Lincoln, Neb., donation is about $210 a year, or just shy reaching a potential audience of 1.5 of $20 a month. But there are roughly million listeners in eastern Nebraska and 215 families who are donating $1,000 or western Iowa. more a year. Underwriting by businesses Spirit Catholic Radio, which has Ace Hardware provides about a fourthINSIDE of the budget. been available in Omaha for 10 years, It is “a wonderful way get Blvd 3716 WTtoHarris broadcasts a mix of contemporary the word out about Charlotte your business,” Christian music and Catholic program28269 Soukup said. ming from the EWTN Radio Network, 704/562-5001 With a new station and a broader St. Joseph Communications and St. reach, “the benefits are going to be Joseph’s Radio, Catholic Answers, Ave huge for businesses and groups who Maria and Starboard Communications. underwrite” Spirit Catholic Radio’s “There’s a sense of joy and excitement CAROLINA CATHOLIC CORNER programming, he added. in my heart that I’ve never experienced Not only are Catholic business before,” John Soukup, manager of the owners interested in underwriting 102.7 FM station in Lincoln, said about KVSS, but so are Protestant owners, the new broadcast outlet. said Soukup.

Spirit Catholic Radio, operated by “They like the alternative format to VSS Catholic Communications, will advertising on secular stations,” he said. maintain its main studio in Omaha in A contribution of any size qualifies addition to its new Lincoln studio and as membership in the Spirit Catholic office. Its broadcasts will be heard on Radio family. both 88.9 FM in Omaha and 102.7 FM “If all you can do is pray, you’re a member,” said executive director Jim Carroll.

“We can’t thank people enough for the many prayers and support they’ve given to this endeavor,” he added. “It’s only by God’s grace and a lot of hard work by many good people that we were able to make this all happen.”

Spirit Catholic Radio began broadcasting on 102.7 FM the afternoon of Jan. 29, after the paperwork was signed and VSS Catholic Communications officially took over the station.

The day had no special spiritual significance, but a quote from the day’s Gospel reading from St. Mark seemed especially fitting: “Anyone who has ears to hear ought to hear.”

YOU ARE INV

CNS photo by Bob Ervin, Catholic Spirit

Bishop Fabian W. Bruskewitz of Lincoln, Neb., and Archbishop Elden F. Curtiss of Omaha, Neb., pose in the studios of KVSS Spirit Catholic Radio in Omaha. Spirit Catholic Radio began broadcasting Jan. 29 and covers large parts of the Diocese of Lincoln and Archdiocese of Omaha. It reaches 1.5 million listeners.

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12 The Catholic News & Herald

March 20, 2009

from the cover

Deacons recommit to ministry at annual Mass DEACONS, from page 1

said Bishop Jugis.

In the Catholic Church, the diaconate is the first of the three ranks in ordained ministry, and a permanent deacon is the only ordained man allowed to be married.

As ordained ministers, permanent deacons may perform baptisms, witness marriages and assist in various liturgies of the church.

In the diocese, all active deacons also are required to participate in continuing education and an annual retreat. Like the priests, who recommit themselves to priestly service at the annual chrism Mass during Holy Week, the permanent deacons gather for a similar recommitment Mass.

It is God’s “grace which empowers you to do your ministry,” Bishop Jugis told the deacons during his homily.

The bishop said that during the

deacons’ ordinations, “we prayed to the Holy Spirit to help you faithfully carry out your ministry.”

“You promised to work with humble charity and to be faithful in proclaiming the faith,” said the bishop at the recommitment Mass. “You promised to serve the Lord. Now you must live that moment and put it into practice.”

To be successful in their ministries, the deacons must be “men of prayer,” said Bishop Jugis.

“It was the Lord who imposed these joy-filled obligations as you became his stewards. Therefore, always refer back to the Lord — the one who calls … always go back to the source, to Jesus,” said the bishop.

“Orient yourself to Jesus … and renew your commitment to him, and strengthen the bond of friendship with him … and between one another.”

C o n t a c t C o r re s p o n d e n t D e a c o n Gerald Potkay by e-mailing gpotkay@ triad.rr.com.

Diaconal Assignments

Photo by Deacon Gerald Potkay

Permanent deacons and their wives are pictured during the deacons’ annual Mass of recommitment at St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte March 14.

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPAL Seeking principal for Catholic Elementary School in Garden City, SC for 2009 – 2010. Qualifications: practicing Catholic, Master’s Degree in

Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following diaconal assignments:

Administration, principal certification, five years teaching experience.

Deacon George Szalony, assigned as chaplain, Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and formation director for diocesan permanent diaconate, while continuing diaconal ministry at St. Ann Church in Charlotte, effective Sept. 11, 2008.

Contact: Laurence Bolchoz at (843) 222-9217 or

Deacon William Griffin, assigned to St. Matthew Church in Charlotte, effective Feb. 2.

email lbolchoz@sc.rr.com by March 27, 2009.

Diaconal Retirements

Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following diaconal retirements: Deacon Gordon Forester, retirement from St. Paul the Apostle Church in Greensboro, effective Sept. 17, 2008.

CSS Grant/Contract Writer

Catholic Social Services seeks part-time employee to write, edit, and research grant/contracts.

Four-year degree and successful grant/contract writing experience required.

Deacon Joseph Smith, retirement from Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in High Point, effective Sept. 23, 2008.

Deacon John Weisenhorn, retirement from St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia, effective Oct. 14, 2008.

Deacon Bernard Wenning, Jr., retirement from St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, effective March 3.

Pastoral Assignments

Visit www.cssnc.org/employment for a full job description.

This is a three-year funded position. Submit cover letter and resume to gacarter@charlottediocese.org by April 6, 2009. No telephone calls please. EOE

Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following priestly assignments: Redemptorist Father Francis Ezanikatt, as parochial vicar, St. James the Greater Church in Concord, effective Feb. 4.

Redemptorist Father Vang Cong Tran, in residence, St. James the Greater Church in Concord, effective Feb. 18.

Capuchin Franciscan Father Nicholas Mormando, pastor, Immaculate Conception Church in Hendersonville, effective Feb. 27.

Capuchin Franciscan Father Martin Schratz, pastor Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte, effective March 3.

Vincentian Father Thomas Hynes, parochial vicar, St. Mary Church in Greensboro, temporary assignment effective Feb. 18.

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March 20, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 13

from the cover

Pope responds to criticism over excommunication decision its direct and personal style, and said it showed the pope had listened carefully to what people were saying.

The pope said he was taking the unusual step of writing to the bishops the extent of the Holocaust was “an because the episode had generated “a unforeseen mishap” — one that could have discussion more heated than any we have been anticipated, however, by paying more seen for a long time,” both inside and attention to information easily available outside the church. He said his overture on the Internet. to Bishop Williamson and the other three The pope said he was particularly bishops of the Society of St. Pius X was saddened at the reaction of some Cathodesigned to close a wound and bring unity lics who seemed willing to believe he to the church, by lifting excommunications was changing direction on Catholic-Jewincurred in 1988 and opening the way to ish relations and were ready to “attack dialogue with the society. me with open hostility.” He thanked “our But when Bishop Williamson’s Jewish friends” who helped clarify the comments about the Holocaust were matter and restore a sense of trust. circulated, “it suddenly appeared as The Vatican published the letter in six something completely different: as the languages March 12. Vatican spokesman, repudiation of reconciliation between Jesuit Federico Lombardi, called Christians and Page Jews,1 and thus as the PB 269Father ad_men_7-675x9_CNH.qxd:PB 2/10/09 12:12 PM it a “unique, exceptional document” for reversal of what the (Second Vatican) POPE, from page 1

Council had laid down in this regard to guide the church’s path,” he said.

As a result, he said, “an avalanche of protests was unleashed, whose bitterness laid bare wounds deeper than those of the present moment.”

“I was saddened by the fact that even Catholics, who, after all, might have had a better knowledge of the situation, thought they had to attack me with open hostility,” he said. “Precisely for this reason I thank all the more our Jewish friends, who quickly helped to clear up the misunderstanding and to restore the atmosphere of friendship and trust.”

The pope acknowledged something critics have pointed out: that a simple Internet search would have revealed Bishop Williamson’s views on the Holocaust and helped the Vatican anticipate the reaction. “I have learned the lesson that in the future in the Holy See we will have to pay greater attention to that source of news,” he said.

Pope Benedict said he deeply regretted another mistake: that the lifting of the excommunications was not

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adequately explained and gave rise to misinterpretations about the traditionalist society’s status in the church.

He emphasized that the removal of the excommunications was a disciplinary measure that affects individuals. But the fact that the Society of St. Pius X has no standing in the church depends on doctrinal reasons, he said.

“Until the doctrinal questions are clarified, the society has no canonical status in the church, and its ministers — even though they have been freed of the ecclesiastical penalty — do not legitimately exercise any ministry in the church,” he said.

In view of the importance of the doctrinal issues still to be clarified with the society, the pope announced that he was putting the Pontifical Commission “Ecclesia Dei,” which has handled reconciliation efforts with traditionalist groups, under the auspices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

“This will make it clear that the problems now to be addressed are essentially doctrinal in nature and concern primarily the acceptance of the Second Vatican Council and the post-conciliar magisterium of the popes,” he said.

He underlined what Vatican officials have said in recent weeks, that for the Society of St. Pius X full communion implies acceptance of Vatican II. “The church’s teaching authority cannot be frozen in the year 1962 — this must be quite clear to the society,” the pope said.

At the same time, he said, some defenders of Vatican II need to be reminded that being faithful to the council also means being faithful to the church’s entire doctrinal history, without cutting “the roots from which the tree draws its life.”

After making his clarifications, the pope confronted the question: “Was this measure needed? Was it really a priority?” He answered with a heartfelt defense of his reconciliation move, saying the church cannot stop working for unity among its ranks.

“That the quiet gesture of extending a hand gave rise to a huge uproar, and thus became exactly the opposite of a gesture of reconciliation, is a fact which we must accept,” he said.

“But I ask now: Was it, and is it, truly wrong in this case to meet halfway the brother who ‘has something against you’ and to seek reconciliation?” he asked.

The pope said he recognized that disturbing statements have often come from the society’s leadership, reflecting “arrogance and presumptuousness.” But he said he has also witnessed “an openness of hearts” among some members. He said the traditionalist society deserves the same kind of tolerance given to other members in the church.

“At times one gets the impression that our society needs to have at least one group to which no tolerance may be shown, which one can easily attack and hate. And should someone dare to approach them — in this case the pope — he, too, loses any right to tolerance; he too can be treated hatefully, without misgiving or restraint,” he said.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, denied reports that the pope was isolated or cut off from much of the Roman Curia, and added that the pope had received many letters of support during the recent controversy.

March 20, 2009

14 The Catholic News & Herald

Perspectives

A collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

Detoxing from the virtual world during Lent Technology helps, hinders our daily lives It happened to one young lady I know, just like it happens every day in towns and cities across the world.

She felt the stares in the hallways.

She heard the whispers flicker down the lockers like a particularly vibrant species of butterfly. It’s easy to become the subject of a rumor; she slipped up socially, and the next day found herself the chosen topic of discussion between classes and in the cafeteria.

Before cell phones, Facebook and the Internet, though, there would have been refuge at home or a favorite hangout.

When I was in high school, you could escape, exit the rumor mill through the school’s front doors, get on the bus and go home. I often went to my room to read books, listen to music or do my homework. In my room, surrounded by the things I loved, I felt empowered.

There’s no such refuge today, not in a world where text messaging is even more instantaneous than e-mail, and where Facebook is as real a hangout as the hamburger stand.

The rumors and bullying continued after the girl left school for the day. Mean comments were posted on her MySpace profile, turning a safe space into another place where she felt assailed. People would text her all evening, and it wasn’t always nice.

A New York teenager recently filed a lawsuit against four classmates who founded a Web site dedicated to “holding [her] up to public hatred, ridicule and disgrace.” Another girl reported receiving text messages from unknown numbers, telling her that “U R smelly,” “Nobody likes you” and “I hate you.”

This can have real life-and-death consequences. In Cincinnati recently, 18year-old Jessie Logan killed herself after a nude photo was texted to hundreds of people. She was teased at school — and

Letter to the Editor Gratitude for pro-life guest column We owe a huge debt of gratitude to Father Matthew Buettner for his March 6 column, “A response to Nancy Pelosi: Prochoice Catholic legislators give scandal to faithful, set dangerous precedence.”

Father Buettner made it abundantly clear that the attempts to modify church teaching on abortion to suit one’s politics are not at all acceptable.

There is no such thing as a “prochoice Catholic.” For those who would justify voting for a pro-abortion political candidate, I would suggest they have an in-depth discussion with their pastor, preferably in a confessional, and definitely before receiving holy Communion.

— Joseph Stock Otto, N.C.

Coming of Age KAREN OSBORNE cns columnist

out of school — when kids who didn’t even know her would text her mobile phone with messages calling her horrible names.

No wonder Archbishop Benito Cocchi of Modena, Italy, recommended giving up social networking and text messaging for Lent. He said that a textual fast would help teens “detox from the virtual world and get back in touch with themselves.”

I think he might have a point.

Plastic cases, jangly devices and electronic circuits aren’t the problem, but they do serve as enablers for people who are ready to hear a rumor and pass it on, who are gunning for gossip, who serve as bystanders when someone is being hurt, who want power over others through hurting them with words.

The existence of mobile phones and Facebook make it imperative for teens to stand up to bullying and teasing, whether it’s in school, on a social-networking site or a mobile phone.

Technology does make it easier to tease, but it also makes it easier to stand up and say no.

Don’t contribute to the problem, even if you think it’s harmless fun. Standing up to tech-teasing and cyberbullying can be as easy as pressing a “stop” button.

Don’t pass on photos or rumor texts.

Don’t start or join online groups created to ridicule other people. Don’t create fake accounts or impersonate others online. Don’t tolerate people who do.

Don’t forward private IM conversations without the permission of the other party.

Don’t send nasty text messages.

Most of all, get empowered and refuse to be part of the problem. Take Archbishop Cocchi’s advice and “detox.”

You don’t necessarily have to turn off the phone; just turn off the teasing and encourage others to do the same.

The responsibility to fight injustices

Taking innocent life, even in its most nascent stages, is always intrinsically evil On March 9, President Barack Obama signed an executive order reversing the ban on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. In doing so, President Obama pledged to “use sound, scientific practice and evidence, instead of dogma” as a guide to federal policy.

Many scientists believe that stem cells harvested from embryos could help advance medical technology to develop cures for certain diseases and illnesses.

This is because stem cells harvested from human embryos have the capacity to be manipulated to form any of the body’s cell types, and thereby repair or replace damaged tissue or organs.

On March 11, the Charlotte Observer ran an editorial hailing President Obama’s decision as “long overdue.” The editorial went on to opine that “it seemed to many Americans that the failure to pursue stem cell research aggressively and broadly was an immoral choice, given so much human suffering and so much scientific promise of real results from it.”

But while there has been a restriction on federally-funded embryonic stem cell research, there has been a great deal of embryonic stem cell research that has been privately funded during the past eight years.

While embryonic stem cell research does hold promise of finding cures for diseases such as diabetes, Parkinson’s disease and even cancer, the research is morally reprehensible because it requires the destruction of human life.

Embryonic stem cells are taken from living human embryos, thereby destroying the embryo in the process.

In fact, in December 2008 the Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith released a bioethics document, “Dignitas Personae” (“The Dignity of a Person”), which clearly condemns this practice: “The obtaining of stem cells from a living human embryo, on the other hand, invariably causes the death of the embryo and is consequently gravely illicit. …

History itself has condemned such a science in the past and will condemn it in the future, not only because it lacks the light of God but also because it lacks humanity” (no. 32).

Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on ProLife Activities, called President Obama’s

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Guest Column FATHER TIMOTHY REID guest columnist

decision “a sad victory of politics over science and ethics.”

The cardinal said embryonic stem cell research is wrong due to the fact that it destroys “innocent human life” by “treating vulnerable human beings as mere products to be harvested.” He noted also that the executive order “disregards the values of millions of American taxpayers who oppose research that requires taking human life.”

Furthermore, there are morallypermissible alternatives to embryonic stem cell research that have proven to be much more effective than embryonic stem cell research, thus making embryonic stem cell research unnecessary — a point often ignored by the mainstream media.

Specifically, there have been great advances in reprogramming adult stem cells so that they behave like embryonic stem cells.

Moreover, adult stem cells taken from umbilical cords are as versatile as embryonic stem cells and have already been used to reverse illnesses and rebuild damaged organs. To date, there have been 72 cures and treatments developed from adult stem cells, but zero cures and treatments that have come through embryonic stem cell research.

You can find more information on embryonic and adult stem cell research at www.stemcellresearchfacts.com.

Our Catholic moral tradition has always held that it is not licit to perform an evil action simply to derive some good from it. The taking of innocent human life, even if that human life is in its most nascent stages, is always and in every way intrinsically evil.

The decision by President Obama is a grave injustice that will further erode the proper respect for human life in our country. As Catholics we have the responsibility to fight such injustices through all legitimate means open to us (for example, by voting for pro-life candidates, holding peaceful protests, writing letters to our elected officials, etc.).

In addition to committing ourselves to fighting such evils in the public forum, let us also pray and offer sacrifices for all those who support or who are involved in embryonic stem cell research, that they will come to understand the true evil of this practice and repent.

Father Reid is pastor of St. Ann Church in Charlotte.

March 20, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 15

Who — or what — is our master?

Our Lenten challenge is to indentify where we’ve put our trust There were seven of us gals gathered around a coffee table with a bottle of red wine, a bottle of white and a lot of good chatter. We all taught preschool together at one time, and we’re dedicated to maintaining our friendship. So every month or two, we make a date and catch up on families, jobs, vacations, life.

It occurred to me late in the conversation that no one had said, “Hey, let’s talk about the economy.” But just as the late afternoon sun breaking through the window infused the room with light, so too did the economy, unbidden, seep into every nook and cranny of our conversation.

One woman told us that her daughter, son-in-law and the kids had moved back home with her. They could no longer afford the mortgage on the condo and were trying to sell it.

Others, married to oil-company workers, that mainstay of our Alaskan economy, talked about possible layoffs and definite wage freezes.

Another spoke of her son and daughter-in-law buying a vacation home close to theirs in Arizona. The home was a foreclosure and they were getting a terrific buy.

For my part, when asked about my graduating daughter’s college plans, I

mentally cringed at the current state of our college savings portfolio. No, this economic downturn is unavoidable.

Did I say “downturn”? Every week, it seems, the media and their experts come up with a new term. Downturn seems too polite and cautious now.

We’ve moved from “recession” to “severe recession,” and then some use the “D” word, only they tell us it won’t be as bad as the Great Depression. At least that’s what they assure us now.

Some remark that this event, whose end we really cannot foresee, will change the way Americans live and spend forever. That reminds me of the commentator who said after 9/11 that Americans might never regain their sense of humor.

Please — historical events may change us, but it takes a lot to revolutionize us. But it is Lent, a time for reflection and personal revolution.

Reflection should include how we feel about money, affluence, trust, security.

Some people think money and prayer belong in two separate niches of their psyche. I, on the other hand, feel challenged by Thomas Merton, who said, “A life is either all spiritual or not spiritual at all.” How hard it is to ask how

During Lent: What would Jesus do?

Christ calls us to aim higher, follow moral high road Of all the many crucial questions we need to ask ourselves this Lent, the first and most important question should be: What would Jesus do?

Sometimes the answer is obvious.

Other times it takes considerable soulsearching and honest dialogue to figure out the Lord’s moral high road.

The Ten Commandments give us a foundational guide to morality. They instruct us in the basics.

But Jesus calls us beyond the basics.

He says, “Come follow me.”

The Gospel story of the rich young man is an excellent illustration. A welloff man approaches Jesus with the question: “Teacher, what good must I do to gain eternal life?”

Jesus replies, “Keep the commandments.” After explaining that he has kept all of the commandments, the rich man asks, “What do I still lack?”

To that Jesus answers, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to (the) poor. ... Then come, follow me.”

What does it mean to follow Jesus?

In the story of the rich young man, it means more than simply being a decent human being. The Lord directs his followers to be most generous with the poor. But even that’s not enough.

Throughout the Gospel, Jesus extends the meaning of the

commandments. For instance, he goes beyond the ban on stealing, and warns us to rid ourselves of all greed.

Certainly his warning would now include corporate greed.

According to a representative of the International Food Policy Research Institute, U.S. financial giants Morgan Stanley and American International Group (better known as AIG) used regulatory loopholes to buy over 2 billion bushels of grain, which was then kept off the market to send food prices soaring.

Their lust for profit caused countless people to go hungry.

Jesus would insist that corporate officials turn away from their greed and make up for all the harm they did to hungry people.

However, since a quick repentance is unlikely, and since regulatory loopholes were never closed, the government has a responsibility to ensure that these innocent victims are rescued.

Many American corporations purchase much of their merchandise from sweatshops in poor countries where employees are treated almost as slaves.

Certainly Jesus would not put “everyday low prices” above human suffering. He would, and is, calling us to challenge these greedy companies.

For the Journey EFFIE CALDAROLA cns columnist

I measure up against that phrase!

In a time when my college and retirement funds sink, do I thank the Lord for asking me, “Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?” (Mt 6:25) Your heavenly Father knows you need these things, Christ says, and as for me, well, I’m supposed to seek first the kingdom of heaven and not worry about all that “stuff.”

What better time than Lent in the midst of recession to ask: Where have I really put my trust?

My mother lived and suffered through the Great Depression. It did change her. She saw her father lose his farm, and she had to work as a teenager to help her family survive.

She clung to security after that, and unlike our generation, she was a woman who saved money strenuously.

But she didn’t really enjoy her money because she tried never to spend it. And she didn’t give a lot of it away.

I don’t judge her; I have those same tendencies.

And that’s why I feel Lent is calling right now and demanding that I answer in an honest way, What do I seek first? Who — or what — is my master?

Making a Difference TONY MAGLIANO cns columnist

Instead of taking advantage of desperately poor workers, shouldn’t we be urging such companies to ensure just wages, decent working conditions and reasonable hours for these brothers and sisters?

The Lord calls us beyond a mere observance of the law. “Be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Jesus is inviting us to aim higher, to love as he loves!

The Fifth Commandment insists that we not murder. But in traditional Jewish understanding of the law, killing in war or capital punishment is not forbidden by this commandment.

But to bring this commandment to fulfillment, Jesus teaches, “But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you. ... Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.”

Jesus makes no exception to killing.

He is calling us to follow him and totally abolish both war and capital punishment.

He is directing those who will listen to respect the life and dignity of every single person — even enemies and murderers.

That’s what Jesus would do!

Ethical and legal wills Legacy Notes JUDY SMITH diocesan planned giving director

Deeply rooted in western religions, the practice of writing ethical wills has reemerged as a way of leaving behind something more meaningful than material goods.

As the name suggests, ethical wills are intended to be spiritual counterparts to the legal documents that dispose of our worldly goods after our deaths.

The undeniable assumption inherent in ethical wills is that we are more than the sum of our material parts, and we should pass along the intangibles the way we do cash or stock.

An ethical will is a way to leave what is most important to us beyond our possessions. There are many reasons for writing one, including the following: — We all want to be remembered, and we all will leave something behind.

— When we tell our stories and the stories of our parents and grandparents, we ensure that their stories will not be lost.

— When we take the time to explore the things in our Catholic faith and in our lives that matter to us, it helps to identify what we value most.

— When we articulate what we value now, we can take steps to ensure the continuation of our values for future generations.

— Writing an ethical will helps us come to terms with our mortality and creates something of meaning that will live on after we are gone.

— Writing an ethical will grounds us in our Catholic faith and provides a sense of completion in our lives.

An ethical will reflects the “voice of the heart.” Think of it as a love letter to your family. Every ethical will is as personal as the person writing it and will be an important document for your families and loved ones.

Your will, whether legal or ethical, reflects what is most important in your life.

Doesn’t it also make sense to remember your Catholic faith in your final statement to the world as a Christian steward?

When you leave a bequest to your parish through your legal will, you support its works of education and Christian service, or help maintain a beautiful church for worship.

Your bequest to the diocesan foundation is a “gift that keeps on giving.” These gifts support the church in its good works, including Catholic education, Christian service and seminarian formation.

By remembering in your will your parish, a Catholic school, a Catholic agency, the diocesan foundation or the Diocese of Charlotte, you thank God for the blessings received in this life, and for the faith that sustains you.

Bishop Peter Jugis and Abbot Placid Solari invite you to join them for the cesan Youth and Young Adult Lenten Pilgrimage at Belmont Abbey College (I-85 at exit 26).

March 20, 2009

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The Catholic News & Herald 16

“And The Word Became Flesh and Made His Dwelling Among Us.” — John 1:14 Bishop Peter Jugis and Abbot Placid Solari invite you to the Diocesan Youth Lenten Pilgrimage to Belmont Abbey Sunday, March 29 12:30pm – 6:30pm Belmont Abbey College (I-85 at Exit 26)

Your day also will include: • Eucharistic procession • Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament • Adoration • Praise and Worship music • Witness talks by Abbey students • Vespers and Benediction • Pilgrimage T-shirts for first 500

Bishop Peter Jugis

Abbot Placid Solari

Dr. William Thierfelder

You will hear inspirational talks by Bishop Jugis, Diocese of Charlotte; Abbot Placid Solari, Belmont Abbey College; Dr. William Thierfelder, President, Belmont Abbey College.

SCHEDULE 12:30 PM - Arrival, Campus tours and Welcome activity 1:00 PM - Greetings: Abbot Placid and Dr. William Thierfelder 1:45 PM - Student and Parent Programs Students: Praise and worship with Abbey Students and Confessions Parents: Talks by Dr. Thierfelder; Dr. Lucas Lamadrid

3:30 PM - Quiet Transition to Basilica 4:00 PM - Witness Talk - Adoration and Vespers 4:15 PM - Exposition of the Most Blessed Sacrament, Bishop’s Address 4:45 PM - Eucharistic Procession 5:30 PM - Vespers with Bishop Jugis and the Monks of Belmont Abbey 6:00 PM - Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament 6:15 PM - Closing Remarks and Blessing

Information at www.GoEucharist.com