July 23, 2004

July 23, 2004

The Catholic News & Herald 1

www.charlottediocese.org

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Nurses in the house

Parish nurses provide vital links | Page 5

Established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul VI July 23, 2004

Serving Catholics in Western North Carolina in the Diocese of Charlotte

Harvesters of sorrow

Catholic leaders rally support for the ‘traditional family’

JOANITA M. NELLENBACH

by PATRICIA ZAPOR catholic news service

correspondent

WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA — Soon the 10 empty trailers would fill with Hispanic migrant tomato pickers.

Located in a “park” in Bryson City, a couple of trailers had boards piled inside and looked as if they were getting new floors. Others weren’t that fortunate. In at least one trailer, rat droppings littered the floor and the kitchen ceiling was falling in.

“These (trailers) are among the worst I’ve ever seen,” said Hector Rodriguez, executive director of the Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network (CMFN), an Idahobased organization of farmworkers and their pastoral agents.

Rodriquez toured camps in See CAMPS, page 7

WASHINGTON — The Senate’s attempt to approve a constitutional amendment banning homosexual marriages July 14 lost a first round on a 48-50 procedural vote, 12 short of what was needed to keep the measure open for discussion and a vote on the legislation itself.

The Federal Marriage Amendment had been endorsed at press conferences earlier in the week by the general secreSee MARRIAGE, page 13 Photo by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Hector Rodriguez (right), executive director of the Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network, chats with Rafael Guido (left) who transports tomatoes from Hendersonville to markets elsewhere. With them are Capuchin Franciscan Father John Salvas, parochial vicar of Immaculate Conception Church in Hendersonville and Antonio Garcia, Hispanic Ministry Coordinator for the Asheville Vicariate.

by DAVID HAINS special to the catholic news & herald

Chickens penned behind the trailers in Cullowhee are slated for migrants’ dinners.

Pope says relaxing part of observing Lord’s day

Protecting God’s Children

‘Silence’ is a way to hear God’s words, says pope

Assistance coordinators ready to help in Diocese of Charlotte

Photo by Joanita M. Nellenbach

no. 38

Marriage amendment fails first Senate vote

Migrant camp visits expose ‘horrid living conditions’

by

vOLUME 13

CHARLOTTE — As a part of its commitment to support the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People,” the Diocese of Charlotte has appointed three coordinators to assist survivors of sexual abuse.

The charter, adopted by

the U.S. bishops in 2002, calls for every diocese to have proper procedures and personnel in place for handling allegations of child abuse, to reach out to survivors, to remove abusive clergy and to adopt comprehensive safe-environment programs.

The assistance coordinators are located in each of the See HELP, page 8

CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy — While attending Sunday Mass is the most important part of observing the Lord’s day, moments of rest, reflection and recreation with friends and family also are helpful, Pope John Paul II said.

“Listening to the word of God is the most important by

Photo illustration by David Hains

Nancy Miller-Campbell is one of three assistance coordinators in the Diocese of Charlotte.

See SILENCE, page 16

Another chapter

Autonomous entities

Culture Watch

Women religious elect leaders, set goals

Vatican, diocese budget relationships

Mother Delille book; ‘Passion’ impact measured

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2 The Catholic News & Herald

InBrief

July 23, 2004

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

Shorts? No service

WASHINGTON (CNS) — The defeat in a House committee of a proposal to give $25 million in U.S. funds to the U.N. Population Fund was “a victory for women and children around the world, and for the U.S. taxpayer,” said the U.S. bishops’ chief spokeswoman on pro-life issues.

Cathy Cleaver Ruse, director of planning and information in the bishops’ Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, praised the July 12 vote in the House Appropriations Committee on an amendment proposed by Rep. Nita Lowey, D-N.Y. The committee vote was 32-26 against Lowey’s amendment.

“The United States should remain out of the business of financing the exploitation of women through coercive programs supported” by the U.N. population agency, Ruse said in a July CNS photo by Valerie McGuire

A visitor wearing shorts looks over the dress requirements for entering St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican in mid-July. Adults wearing shorts or those with uncovered shoulders are not permitted in the basilica.

Vatican conference underscores universal issues of tourism industry VATICAN CITY (CNS) — As long lines of tourists were waiting to clear security to get into St. Peter’s Basilica, a Vatican office was discussing short pants.

The Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers’ Sixth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Tourism, held July 5-8 in Bangkok, Thailand, included talks about paid annual leave as a benefit or a right, the human need for rest and relaxation, the benefits of traveling abroad, the obligation to respect local laws and customs, and the responsibility of host communities to be welcoming.

But a much-discussed Vatican custom, but one which still takes many visitors by surprise, is that people wanting to enter St. Peter’s Basilica as sightseers or pilgrims must dress appropriately.

The long-standing rule is that adults are not permitted to enter wearing shorts and that shoulders must be covered — no tank tops or spaghetti straps.

Those responsible for preserving the decoration as well as the decorum in the basilica, however, have rescinded a 2003 decision that, for women, “shorts” include the mid-shin-reaching slacks known variously as capris or pedal pushers.

“This year short pants are OK, as long as the knees are covered,” an official at the basilica said. Men are still asked to wear full-length slacks.

Three young nurses visiting from Denver were disappointed that the one wearing shorts could not go into the

Pro-life official praises vote on funds for U.N. population agency

church, but as Michelle Lancaster said, “I don’t want to offend anyone. When you travel, you should try to blend in as much as possible.”

At the Bangkok conference, retired Indian Archbishop Raul N. Gonsalves of Goa and Daman identified a lack of modesty as one of the chief offenses of individual tourists visiting his diocese’s famed beaches.

Too often, he said, “the permissive lifestyle of foreign tourists, nudity, massages on the beaches, infatuations and drug use induce local youths to experiment with drugs and sex.”

The archbishop said that in sending and receiving tourists, in working with local officials and in cooperation with the World Tourism Organization, Catholics should promote a “renewed tourism in which people can enrich themselves culturally by promoting the dignity of others, respecting their differing cultural baggage, protecting and promoting the safeguarding of the earth, thereby encouraging harmony and peace.”

Another topic at the Bangkok conference was the human need for rest and relaxation, the development of paid leave policies and the consequent expansion of foreign travel among people who are not seriously rich.

12 statement.

She pointed out that in July 2002 Secretary of State Colin Powell said the U.N. Population Fund’s support of China’s population planning activities “allows the Chinese government to implement more effectively its program of coercive abortion.”

As long as the U.N. agency “supports these barbaric policies imposed on families, it must remain ineligible for U.S. funding, period,” said Ruse.

Gail Quinn, executive director of the pro-life secretariat, had asked committee members in a letter to oppose the amendment.

“Current federal policy ... reflects a broad international consensus among member nations of the United Nations” which have “condemned ‘forced sterilization and forced abortion’ as ‘acts of violence against women,’” Quinn wrote.

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

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — Just Second Fridays (JSF) will take place Aug. 13, 1-2 p.m., in the Atrium Room of the Annex Building of St. Peter Church, 507 S. Tryon St. Rev. Dr. Ben Bushyhead, director of community and recreation services for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, will speak on “Myths, Misconceptions and Stereotypes of Native Americans.” JSF is a monthly lunchtime speaker series sponsored by the Office of Justice and Peace, Catholic Social Services, in partnership with St. Peter Church. Parking is available in the underground garage next to the church. Bring your lunch; cold drinks are provided. Call (704) 370-3225 for further information.

CHARLOTTE — Where is your faith journey taking you? Join Dorothy, the Scarecrow and friends for this grand adventure on “The Yellow Brick Road” featuring music by Kathy and David with Redeemed, food and coffee.

St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., will host a Teen Coffeehouse July 24, 7:30-9:30 p.m. All high school teens are invited to join us for this very special eve-

ning. Please call Erin Dunne at (704) 543-7677 for details.

CHARLOTTE — The Diocesan Ministry for Gay and Lesbian Catholics invites family and friends to celebrate the annual LBGT Mass July 28 at 7 p.m. at St. Peter Church, 507 S. Tryon St. for Mass with a reception afterwards in Biss Hall. For more information, call Kevin Melody at (704) 596-3845.

CHARLOTTE —The Young Widowed Group meets at 7 p.m. on the second Tuesday of each month in the Fellowship Hall of St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. For more information, contact facilitator Sister Therese Galligan at (704) 362-5047, ext. 216.

CHARLOTTE — Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is offered in the chapel of St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., each Friday following the 9 a.m. Mass until Saturday at 9 a.m. Adorers are needed, particularly during the hours of midnight-6 a.m. for more information, call Charles and Bernice Kish at (704) 8 46-7387.

HUNTERSVILLE — Elizabeth Ministry is forming a group at St. Mark Church, 14740 Stumptown Rd. Elizabeth Ministry offers confidential, one-to-one contact, information, comfort and healing for women who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth or early infant death. Please call Sandy Buck at (704) 9484587 for more information.

CHARLOTTE — Perpetual Adoration of the

July 23, 2 0 0 4 Volume 13 • Number 38 Publisher: Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis Editor: Kevin E. Murray Staff Writer: Karen A. Evans Graphic Designer: Tim Faragher Advertising Representative: Cindi Feerick Secretary: Sherill Beason 1123 South Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203 Mail: P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237 Phone: (704) 370-3333 FAX: (704) 370-3382 E-mail: catholicnews@charlottediocese.org

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

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

The Catholic News & Herald 3

July 23, 2004

FROM THE VATICAN

Pope offers prayers for victims of school fire in India the victims were burned to death, while the others were killed in a stampede. A witness said the school’s main door was locked when the blaze began, but was unlocked by the escaping teachers. Most primary schools in India keep the main door locked to keep children from running out into the street, The Associated Press reported.

In a July 17 statement, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India asked for “more safety measures for schools, especially in the rural areas of the country.” It said government should provide the best facilities for education “so that a similar tragedy may not be repeated.”

The school students came from all faiths. Some Catholics said they enrolled their children there because church schools had refused them admittance, UCA News reported.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In sup-

Blessed Sacrament is available for all members of the clergy and laity in the Diocese of Charlotte at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Rd. Any parishioner interested in the Apostolate and who would like to make a firm commitment to adoration for one hour a week is welcome to join the Perpetual Adoration Society. For details, call Kathleen at (704) 366-5127 or e-mail Terri at terridugan@earthlink.com CHARLOTTE — The Cancer Support Group for survivors, family and friends meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. For more information, call Marilyn Borrelli at (704) 542-2283.

GASTONIA VICARIATE BELMONT — All middle and high school youths are welcome to join Dennis Teall-Fleming for Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament every Tuesday, 5-6 p.m. in the Adoration Chapel at Belmont Abbey College for an hour of prayer and devotion. For details, contact Dennis at (704) 825-9600, ext. 26 or e-mail teallfleming@ yahoo.com.

GREENSBORO VICARIATE GREENSBORO — All young adults in their 20s, 30s and 40s, single or married, are invited to Theology on Tap, a speaker series for Catholics. Theology on Tap is a casual forum where people gather to learn and discuss the teachings of the Catholic Church. Sessions consist of a social hour at 7 p.m. and speakers beginning at 8 p.m., Aug. 17, 24, 31 and Sept. 7 at Anton’s Restaurant, 1628 Battleground Ave. For more information, e-mail greensborotot@yahoo.com or call Deb at (336) 286-3687.

GREENSBORO — Notre Dame Catholic High School is planning an alumni reunion for Aug. 14, 2004. For more information, call Nicholas Schnyder at (336) 333-3456 or e-mail nicholas. schnyder@bellsouth.net.

HICKORY VICARIATE HENDERSONVILLE — The Widows Lunch Bunch, sponsored by Immaculate Conception Church, meets at a different restaurant on the first Wednesday of each month at 11:30 a.m.

Reservations are necessary. For more information and reservations, call Joan Keagle at (828) 693-4733.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope John Paul II offered prayers for the victims of a school fire that killed 90 children and left another 100 injured in southern India.

In a telegram sent to Indian authorities in the pope’s name, the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, said, “The Holy Father was deeply saddened to learn of the devastating school fire in Kumbakonam which has taken the lives of so many young children and has left so many others injured.”

Told of the tragedy while vacationing in the Alps, Pope John Paul “was particularly struck and prayed” for the children, spokesman Joaquin NavarroValls said.

Police said the July 16 blaze at the Lord Krishna Middle School started in a makeshift kitchen and quickly spread through the school. More than 30 of

SALISBURY VICARIATE SALISBURY — Elizabeth Ministry is a peer ministry comprised of Sacred Heart Church parishioners who have lost babies before of shortly after birth. Confidential peer ministry, information and spiritual materials are offered at no cost or obligation to anyone who has experienced miscarriage, stillbirth or the death of a newborn. For details, call Renee Washington at (704) 637-0472 or Sharon Burges at (704) 633-0591.

Vatican seminar looks at ways to meet U.N. anti-poverty goals by 2015 port of the U.N.-defined millennium development goals, Pope John Paul II encouraged efforts to drastically reduce poverty, debt and poor health conditions in Third World nations by 2015.

The pope’s backing for the U.N. objectives came at a time when many were questioning whether achieving the millennium goals 11 years from now was realistic.

The pope’s remarks, in a letter to Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, were made public during a July 9 Vatican seminar, “Poverty and Globalization: Financing for Development, Including the Millennium Development Goals.”

The Vatican’s minisummit brought together government leaders, representatives of nongovernmental organizations, U.N. development directors and financial strategists who discussed ways of financing the development goals.

The millennium development goals, endorsed by world leaders at the U.N. Millennium Summit in September 2000, set several concrete objectives to be achieved by 2015; they included reducing by half the number of poor around the world and improving health and education in the developing world.

Cardinal Martino said the pope’s support of the project would spark greater international support at a time of growing skepticism that the U.N. goals can be met.

In his letter, the pope said that while much work has been done to reduce the debt of poor countries, “more is needed if developing nations are to escape from the crippling effects of underinvestment and if developed countries are to fulfill their duty of solidarity with their less fortunate brothers and sisters in other parts of the world.”

“In the short to medium term, a commitment to increase foreign aid seems the only way forward,” the pope said.

Other solutions discussed at the seminar included plans to create an international tax on the trade of armaments and high technology, a strategy balked at by some, such as Germany, Japan and the United States.

Cardinal Martino, citing a remark made by Pope John Paul on another occasion, said that “to make promises to the world’s poorest and then break them is unpardonable.” He said the U.N. goals should be reassessed every 15 years after 2015.

Unholy weather

SALISBURY — Our Lady Rosary Makers of Sacred Heart Church, 128 N. Fulton St., are making cord rosaries for the missions and the military. The group meets the first Tuesday of each month in the church office conference room, 10-11 a.m. For more information, call Cathy Yochim at (704) 636-6857 or Joan Kaczmarezyk at (704) 797-8405.

SMOKY MOUNTAIN VICARIATE HAYESVILLE — “Cherokee History and the Trail of Tears: Catholics and Cherokees Continuing Dialogue” will host Russ Townsend, archeologist, interim director of the Tribal Historic Preservation Office of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and member of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.

Townsend will share the story of the Cherokee people before the coming of the Europeans, what was happening in Europe before Columbus and others began their explorations, and the events leading up to the Trail of Tears and the impact it still has on people today. Following the presentation, there will be an opportunity to discuss ways to apply Catholic social teachings and address justice issues of the Cherokee people today. The workshop will take place Aug. 7 at 1 p.m. at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 316 Main Street in Bryson City. For more information or to register, call Mary Herr at (828) 497-9498 or email maryherr@dnet.net.

Is your parish or school sponsoring a free event? Please submit notices for the Diocesan Planner at least 15 days prior to the event date in writing to Karen A. Evans at kaevans@charlottediocese.org or fax to (704) 370-3382.

CNS photo by Rick Musacchio, Tennessee Register

Mother Rose Marie Masserano, left, Sister Mary Justin Haltom, center, and Sister John Mary Fleming, who are Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia, examine the damage to their motherhouse in Nashville, Tenn., after a storm ripped a section of a newly installed roof from the building July 13. No one was injured when debris crashed into the roof section of the structure, which was built in 1887.

4 The Catholic News & Herald

around the diocese

Lounging at the luau

Journeying down under

High schoolers explore ancient cultures in South

KERNERSVILLE — For many in the group, it was the trip of a lifetime.

“I climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge, surfed at Bondi Beach and scuba dived in the Great Barrier Reef,” said Teddy Lynch, a sophomore at Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School. “When will I ever get to do that again?”

Teddy was one of 38 Bishop McGuinness students and parents to take the “Journey Down Under” June 16July 2, an educational adventure trip that included stops in New Zealand, Australia and Hawaii.

The group first explored the Maori culture at Rotorura on New Zealand’s North Island. Attending a Maori “hangi,” the travelers enjoyed a traditional feast while experiencing the Maori creation story in song.

Later, the group attended Mass at St. Michael’s, a predominantly Maori parish.

A lasting impression was a Maori Com-

July 23, 2004

munion song, sung by congregation members, said Mike Streich, a history teacher at Bishop McGuinness who was on his fourth South Pacific tour.

The trip continued to cosmopolitan Sydney, Australia, where the group toured the world-famous Opera House and enjoyed a harbor cruise. Students also scaled the landmark Harbor Bridge and learned to surf at Bondi Beach.

The tour continued to tropical Cairns, Australia, where the Great Barrier Reef meets the rain forest. The group spent two days at the remote Fern Tree Resort and explored the aboriginal community at Kuranda and Tjapukai near Cairns.

They then departed for Honolulu, Hawaii, where they visited Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial.

Tentatively, the 2006 South Pacific sojourn will include Raratonga, Cook

Courtesy Photos

Although once thought to be the domain of only Protestant Churches, Vacation Bible Schools are now common in Catholic parishes and teach children about their faith through Bible stories. At St. James Church in Hamlet (above), forty children entertained their parents with Bible verses and songs at the July 9 luau closing of the Lava Lava Island Vacation Bible School. At Holy Family Church in Clemmons (below), more than 160 children (and 70 volunteers) participated in this year’s Vacation Bible School.

Pictured above are: (back row, from left) Brad Bradley, Isle Castellanos, Alicia English, Michael Whitley; (middle row, from left) Gabrielle Stephens, Hayley Wilson, Kathie English; (front row, from left) April Whitley, Segio Chappero, Kristopher Phillips, Angeliz Hernandez and Daniel Lucero.

Pictured below are (from left) Victoria Murray, Joanna Shaw, Tim Sharp, Nick Griffin and David Griffin.

Courtesy Photo

Students and parents from Bishop McGuinness Catholic High School in Kernersville pose atop the Harbor Bridge in Sydney, Australia, a stop on their “Journey Down Under” June 16-July 2.

July 23, 2004

around the diocese

Is there a nurse in the house?

Parish nurses provide vital link between parishioners, health services by

KAREN A. EVANS staff writer

CHARLOTTE — In the earliest days of the Catholic Church, members of the community would first go to their parish priest for healing.

Throughout the centuries, as medical practices improved and became more accepted, people turned to physicians for health services.

Over the past 20 years, churches have begun to return to their historical status as a link between parishioners and the healthcare community through parish nursing programs, also known as congregational nursing.

As a member of a church’s ministry team, a parish nurse combines professional nursing expertise with faith concepts to facilitate the healing mission of a congregation. A parish nurse is also a pastoral connection between faith and health, helping people connect what they believe with life choices.

Several churches in the Diocese of Charlotte have parish nurses, most of whom are not paid for their time.

Most parish nurse programs are funded through hospital grants and parish assessment.

“We serve as educator, advocate and facilitator,” said Linda Sheridan, parish registered nurse for St. Francis of Assisi Church in Jefferson. The church is one of 12 members of the Ashe Congregational Health Ministry Program.

Sheridan said she works with parishioners to counsel them about medications, to educate them on healthcare issues and to connect them with various health and service agencies.

Another major part of her parish nurse ministry is home and hospital visits to the sick and dying, for whom “I facilitate the administration of the sacraments

CNS photo by Karen Callaway, Northwest Indiana Catholic

Parish nurses act as personal health counselors to discuss health concerns with parishioners and make home/hospital/nursing home visits. of anointing of the sick and the Eucharist by a priest,” she said.

“Our role (as parish nurses) is to promote healthy lifestyles and disease prevention based on the whole person — body, mind and spirit,” said Christine Judge, parish registered nurse at St. Pius X Church in Greensboro.

Established in 1998, the Congregational Nurse Program in Greensboro initially had 10 churches as members.

Today, 31 faith communities, including the Jewish congregation, are members.

Ten more communities will begin participation in 2005.

Because they do not operate under the supervision of a physician, parish nurses do not perform “hands-on” nursing care, such as providing wound care or injections. Rather, they serve as a health educator to promote an understanding of the relationship between lifestyle, attitudes, faith and well-being.

Nurses in the parish setting also are referral sources to help people utilize community resources and services and are facilitators to recruit and coordinate volunteers and support groups within the congregation.

The Catholic News & Herald 5

Cheryl Fleming is the parish registered nurse coordinator for the Belmont parish nurse ministry and serves as the parish nurse for three Belmont-area churches including Queen of the Apostles Church.

Fleming sees herself as a “champion of the underdog” for people having a difficult time navigating the increasing complex healthcare system. “(Parish nurses) wear many hats — we’re not just educators, not just counselors — we do a bit of everything,” she said.

Fleming’s work as a parish nurse extends beyond the church into the community at large. With a $2,000 grant from the diocesan development office, she has organized a health and safety fair for the Belmont community to be held July 31.

“We hope to find ways to build bridges between faith and ethnic communities,” said Lelia Moore, congregational nurse coordinator of Moses Cone Health System.

Moore said she is trying to make connections within the Hispanic, Montagnard and Korean communities to serve their medical needs.

One way to accomplish this bridge building is events such as the Festival of Health and Hispanic Culture, held at Our Lady of Grace Church in Greensboro in October 2003. The festival featured cultural exhibits and activities as well as health and wellness exhibits.

According to Caring Congregations, Inc., an educational nonprofit organization whose mission is to educate and support parish nurses and other health ministers, the goal of parish nursing is “to allow God to comfort another person through the nurse, to put the person being cared for in a position to be conscious of the presence of God in his or her life and current situation.”

“In the early Christian Church, the Catholic community took care of its own people,” Judge said. “Now, we’re getting back to those roots.”

Contact Staff Writer Karen A. Evans by calling (704) 370-3354 or e-mail kaevans@charlottediocese.org.

6 The Catholic News & Herald

around the diocese

Sisters of St. Joseph set priorities, elect congregational leaders PHILADELPHIA — More than 400 Sisters of St. Joseph, including several from the Diocese of Charlotte, gathered at Chestnut Hill College for sessions of Chapter 2004.

Every five years, the sisters convene a Chapter of Affairs and Chapter of Elections to establish priorities, set directions for the foreseeable future and elect congregational leaders.

During the June 25-July 4 sessions at the Catholic liberal arts college, the sisters adopted a five-point chapter document, calling themselves to realize its goals over the next five years through processes involving contemplation, education, conversion and courageous action.

Attending from the Diocese of Charlotte were Sister Joan Pearson, Hispanic ministry coordinator for the Hickory Vicariate; Sister Mary Karalis, a teacher at Our Lady of Mercy School in Winston-

Salem; and Sister Helene Nagle, principal of St. Ann School in Charlotte.

During the gathering, delegates elected Sister Patricia Kelly to a second term as congregational president. Sisters Anne Myers, Mary Barrar, Mary Dacey and Dorothy Urban were elected to serve on the General Council of the Congregation.

Sisters who are residents of Saint Joseph Villa, the congregation’s nursing home, adopted delegates as prayer partners and, bearing the “wisdom of the elders,” five residents attended a morning session to address the delegates. Sister Florentine Scanlon, who at 101 claims the title of “Eldest Resident,” shared her words of wit and wisdom in an endearing, handwritten letter.

Graduating cheers

July 23, 2004

Sisters of Mercy elect leadership team, set BELMONT — With the conclusion of their Chapter of Assembly July 24, the Sisters of Mercy have announced their new leadership team and its 2004 Chapter Actions to be implemented over the next four years.

A Chapter of Assembly is conducted and attended by Sisters of Mercy delegates once every four years.

They prayerfully consider actions that will call the community to specific action as well as elect its new leadership team for the next four years.

Those elected to the Sisters of Mercy Regional Community of North Carolina Leadership Team for 20042008 include Mercy Sister Paulette Rose Williams as president and Mercy Sister Pauline Mary Clifford as vice president.

Three councilors were also elected to the leadership team: Mercy Sisters Mary Angela Perez, Donna Marie Vaillancourt and Jill Katherine Weber.

The new team will assume office Sept. 24.

Sister Williams, a native of Concord, spent much of her life within the Catholic

educational system. She has served as vice president of the regional community and at Charlotte Catholic High School as assistant principal and principal.

A native of Ireland, Sister Clifford served as president from 1988 until 1996 and as vice president from 1996 until 2000.

She recently worked in Ireland at Mercy International Center.

Sister Perez, a native of Guam, has taught in North Carolina and Guam and served in Guam as a councilor. In 1996, she was elected president of the Guam Region of the Regional Community of North Carolina.

Sister Vaillancourt was born in Asheville and has served in many ministries, including education, director of formation, novice and vocations director, and codirector of a spiritual sanctuary for adults.

A native of Mount Vernon, N.Y., Sister Weber has served as a teacher and principal. She later began ministering as a home health physical therapist in addition to her primary ministry at Holy Angels. She also serves as cochair of Life Development and Life

DON’T PROCRASTINATE! CALL NOW!!

Courtesy Photo

Graduates receive their certificates during the diocesan Lay Ministry Program graduation and commissioning ceremony at the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory June 6. Pictured are (from left) Marie Cordero, Robin Brooks, Susan Britt and Bill Barr and Randal Romie.

July 23, 2004

The Catholic News & Herald 7

from the cover

Tour exposes ‘horrid’ camp

to data collected by CMFN. “In 1995, the network had its first national consultation,” he said. “We had done a survey to assess the needs of migrants. One of the needs was for pastoral formation.”

CMFN is conducting surveys of diocesan Hispanic ministry directors and migrants to develop its next national gathering.

“The data will serve as the basis for reflection on the migrant reality today and for planning how to address those needs,” said Rodriguez.

CAMPS, from page 1

Bryson City, Cullowhee and Hendersonville July 7 to assess the situation faced by migrant farmworkers.

The group on the tour in Bryson City and Cullowhee included Augustinian Father Francis J. Doyle, pastor of St. Margaret Church in Maggie Valley; Franciscan Sister Andrea Inkrott, director of diocesan Hispanic ministry; and Eduardo Bernal, Hispanic ministry coordinator for the Smoky Mountain Vicariate.

Escorting the group was Josie Ellis, a registered nurse with Vecinos Incorporados (VI), which provides healthcare and advocacy for migrants.

VI ministers in five counties and camps throughout the area that are just as bad as these, Ellis said.

“We’ve done clinics in these trailers and actually had rats running across the floor,” Ellis said. “We asked the landlord to put screens in the windows last year because so many of the babies were covered with flies, and he said, ‘We don’t beautify.’”

Ellis had high praise for Father Shawn O’Neal, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Bryson City and Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Cherokee.

He’s willing to go to the camps, she told Rodriguez. “(Father Shawn) came out here and sat on the floors of these nasty trailers and talked to them and talked to the children and gave them all the instruction they needed (to be baptized),” Ellis said.

Critical conditions Last year, Ellis said, 147 men stayed in the 10 trailers. The landlord charged $600 to $800 per month per trailer.

At a park in Cullowhee, the few people already in residence were away or staying indoors. Other trailers, now unoccupied, would soon house migrant tobacco pickers. Those trailers — with broken, screenless windows — looked just like they did last year, Ellis said.

Photos by Joanita M. Nellenbach

Hector Rodriguez (left), executive director of the Catholic Migrant Farmworker Network, chats with year-round residents in Hendersonville July 7. Roberto Morales (sitting nearest the wall) is a gardener; Ruben Lopez works in construction.

“The lack of healthcare, the horrid living conditions, the degradation of the human spirit, it’s the most immoral situation I’ve ever seen ...”

— Josie Ellis

Trailers with broken windows, just as they were when migrants lived in them last year, will soon house migrant tobacco pickers in Cullowhee.

“They’re just hardworking, nice people trying to survive,” Ellis said. “It’s profound. It’s really profound.”

Ellis was sometimes moved to tears

as she described to Rodriguez the conditions faced by migrants.

“The lack of healthcare, the horrid living conditions, the degradation of the human spirit, it’s the most immoral situation I’ve ever seen, and I see it 12 hours a day,” Ellis said. “We’re all culpable.

Everyone who eats is culpable.”

Meeting the needs Founded in 1986, CMFN works to bring the Catholic Church’s pastoral presence to thousands of migrant farmworkers throughout the country.

Rodriguez will add what he learns at camps in the Diocese of Charlotte (and later in the Diocese of Raleigh)

Welcoming the stranger Although it was his first visit to North Carolina, Rodriguez said he already had a “very favorable impression of Hispanic ministry in this diocese.”

“I’m fascinated by all these coordinators,” he said. “In many dioceses, it’s a one-person office. So, we have these leaders ... and they have leaders (that they are developing in the Hispanic community).”

The Diocese of Charlotte has nine Hispanic ministry coordinators who serve its 10 vicariates; but helping migrants is a job for all, not just the diocese’s coordinators, Rodriguez pointed out.

“It’s [everyone’s] vocation as baptized Christians,” he said. “It’s their vocation as a Christian to love their neighbor; that’s straight from Jesus’ mouth, not from me.”

“Welcoming the stranger is what true religion is all about, and as people who consume food, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for them to know who puts it on their plates,” he said.

That evening, Capuchin Franciscan Father John Salvas, parochial vicar of Immaculate Conception Church in Hendersonville, escorted Rodriguez to visit migrant fieldworkers and permanent residents in Henderson County.

Father Salvas said that there are about 10,000 permanent Hispanic residents in Henderson County. Mid-July through October each year, 5,000 migrants arrive to pick apples, peppers, string beans and tomatoes.

Workers, some of them as young as 15 or 16, were unloading boxes of tomatoes at a distribution point in another area of the county. Two of the men asked Father Salvas for a blessing.

They dropped to their knees on the loading dock while he extended his hands and prayed over them.

“The overall challenge is church being church,” Rodriguez said later.

“We need to be who we would be to any of our brothers and sisters, and yet these folks are so hidden that for the most part we pay them no mind because we don’t know they’re there.”

“It is up to (Sister) Andrea and Eduardo and others to educate us; they’re the facilitators to help us get out of

8 The Catholic News & Herald

FEATURE SECTION

Assistance for HELP, from page 1

three regional offices of Catholic Social Services. David Harold is the assistance coordinator for the Winston-Salem region, Michele Sheppard serves the Asheville area and Nancy Miller-Campbell works out of the Charlotte office.

So far, each assistance coordinator has worked with two victims — some have reported incidents that took place within the diocese; others said they were abused elsewhere and later moved to the diocese.

In either situation, the assistance coordinators work to help the survivors of sexual abuse — they ensure both civil and diocesan authorities review their cases; coordinate appropriate therapy, for which the diocese pays; and help the survivors cope with their experiences.

“It takes a tremendous amount of courage to come forward, because there is such confusion about sexual abuse,” said Miller-Campbell.

Survivors are revisiting a crime, she said, and at the same time many feel “they are speaking out against their church.”

But the assistance coordinators want to assure any survivors who have not come forward that their cases will be handled with: confidentiality, to ensure privacy; thoroughness, to assure that the case is properly investigated; and resolve that will bring reconciliation and the proper therapeutic solution to the victim.

Harold has counseled hundreds of sexual abuse survivors during his career as a counselor, although none have been victims of sexual abuse at the hands of clergy.

“I guess that gives you an idea of how rampant the problem is for our society and not just the church,” he said.

Although all three assistance coordinators are qualified to counsel victims of sexual abuse, their role as an assistance

Photo illustration by David Hains

Assistance coordinators work with victims of sexual abuse to ensure both civil and diocesan authorities review their cases; coordinate appropriate therapy; and help the victims cope with their experiences. coordinator prohibits them from offering counseling. Miller-Campbell said there is often a fine line between assisting and counseling.

“When we are contacted, we offer counseling services through a non-diocesan counselor. We also ask the victim to give us a written statement of the incident that took place. This is then presented to the chancery, the (diocesan) Review Board and to civil authorities,” she said.

“Some people just need to be told ‘I’m sorry,’” said Sheppard. “We are here to stand by them and help them get the services they need. Some people just need someone to listen to them. They have been afraid to step forward, they are worried that no one will listen.”

“The good news is that there are therapies available that are very effective” in helping survivors cope with their trauma, said Harold.

Cognitive behavior therapy, for example, teaches survivors to relax when they recall traumatic events, he said. The technique removes the pain and suffering

associated with the event.

“A third to one half of the survivors are able to achieve significant relief after four to six sessions with a therapist,” said Harold.

The assistance coordinators agree that the diocese puts the concerns of the survivors first and acts quickly to investigate allegations that are made. But they also worry that there are other’s out there who are suffering needlessly because they are afraid to come forward.

“Sex abuse is a taboo subject to begin with, but these people often feel they are speaking out about a priest who tends to be put on a pedestal,” said MillerCampbell. “And so it takes a tremendous amount of courage for them to come forward when the dynamic of religion is included.”

The Diocese of Charlotte reported no incidents of sexual abuse at the hands of clergy during the 2003-04 fiscal year.

Future plans to remain vigilant in the protection of children and young people include the publication of a guide for victims and survivors. This guide will be distributed to churches in the diocese.

David Hains is the director of communications for the Diocese of Charlotte.

Contact him at (704) 370-3336 or e-mail dwhains@charlottediocese.org.

Want More Information?

The assistance coordinators are located in diocesan offices in Charlotte, Winston-Salem and Asheville. They can help survivors of abuse whether the incident took place in the Diocese of Charlotte or in another diocese. If you want to contact an assistance coordinators, call or e-mail: Charlotte: Nancy Miller-Campbell, (704) 370-3217 or nmcampbell@ charlottediocese.org; Asheville: Michele Sheppard, (828) 255-1970 or mmsheppard@ charlottediocese.org; Winston-Salem: David Harold

July 23, 2004

Catholic efforts to prevent child sex abuse needed in public schools, says WASHINGTON (CNS) — Because of the prevalence of child sex abuse, public schools must develop prevention programs that include educating staff, parents and students, said an educator who prepared a federally mandated study for Congress on the issue.

Sex abuse of students by teachers and other adults in the public school system “is a problem that needs to be taken care of,” said Charol Shakeshaft, professor of educational policies at Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y. Her study, commissioned in June by the U.S. Department of Education, estimated about 4.5 million public school students have been abused by public school employees or adult volunteers.

When informed of child sex abuse prevention programs that involve educating children, parents and employees in Catholic dioceses, Shakeshaft praised these as a “good idea” and a “good step” toward curbing child sex abuse.

Her study showed that 9.6 percent of public school students from kindergarten through 11th grade reported unwanted sexual harassment or abuse by public school employees. Students listed teachers and other educators as being responsible for 57 percent of the incidents.

Shakeshaft hopes her report will lead to a national survey devoted exclusively to gathering data on child sex abuse in public schools.

Bishop Wilton D. Gregory of Belleville, Ill., president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, has said that child sex abuse is a national problem and has expressed hope that efforts to curb it in the church will spur similar efforts by

July 23, 2004

The Catholic News & Herald 9

FEATURE SECTION

Autonomous entities

As some U.S. dioceses face financial crisis, Vatican has own problems

Church hierarchy prevents intervention in diocesan budgetary property lies inside the Vatican walls; the buildings used for institutional purposes are listed as having no commercial value.

The pope’s six-story Apostolic Palace, with its gilt ceiling and frescoed walls, is entered as a debit, reflecting cleaning and upkeep costs.

The perennial problem at the Vatican is generating income, so the Vatican asks dioceses to pitch in. Despite the abuse scandals, donations from Catholics, dioceses and religious orders in the United States have remained steady in recent years, Vatican officials said.

To spur more generosity, the Vatican in the 1980s began publishing a consolidated financial statement, detailing expenses and income.

The Holy See financial statement covers the costs of running the Roman Curia — congregations, councils, tribunals, commissions, media, and several educational and cultural institutions, along with 118 nunciatures around the world.

But figured separately are the budgets for Vatican City State, the administration of St. Peter’s Basilica, the Vatican bank, the Vatican’s missionary aid societies, and several other institutions connected with the Holy See. There is one major oversight body for all the Vatican’s financial operations, the 15-member “Council of Cardinals for the

CNS photo by Ed Langlois, Catholic Sentinel

Archbishop John G. Vlazny of Portland, Ore., along with his cabinet and advisers, announces July 6 that the Archdiocese of Portland is filing for bankruptcy. It is the first U.S. Catholic diocese to seek the legal protection of Chapter 11.

Study of the Organizational and Economic Problems of the Holy See.” Pope John Paul II established it as a type of “wise men” panel to provide guidance on a host of issues, including the Vatican bank scandal of the early 1980s.

In early July, the council met to

by JOHN THAVIS catholic news service

VATICAN CITY — When the Archdiocese of Portland, Ore., filed for bankruptcy in early July, some people wondered why the Vatican didn’t bail it out.

The head of a sex abuse victims group in Portland said the Vatican needs to “sell a few paintings if they think they can’t afford to pay for this.” The archdiocese had been hit hard by sex abuse settlements totaling more than $50 million.

But the Vatican is highly unlikely to start selling its paintings or statues in order to rescue a diocese from financial ruin. The Vatican does not see its role as that of overseeing diocesan budgets or financial crises.

And besides, the Vatican doesn’t think it’s rich.

“I wish we were. If we had so much money, we wouldn’t have to go around holding out our hands to the world’s dioceses,” said Cardinal Sergio Sebastiani, head of the Prefecture for the Economic

Affairs of the Holy See. As for selling part of its artistic patrimony, the cardinal said, “The Vatican’s paintings have no commercial value.

There are a lot of fables about the riches of the Vatican ... but the reality is much more prosaic.”

In fact, a popular saying among Vatican number crunchers is one attributed to a Latin American archbishop: “I can do more with one dollar than the pope can do with Michelangelo’s ‘Pieta.’”

While the universal church’s hierarchical structure can mean direct Vatican intervention in pastoral and dogmatic affairs, budget problems are left to the local church to resolve. The Vatican does not assume responsibility for diocesan financing in nonmissionary countries, although it may be called upon to approve major sales of church properties.

Even the budget for the Diocese of Rome — the pope’s own diocese — is managed independently of the Vatican.

The Portland bankruptcy was being followed by some Vatican offices, but not with a view toward financial intervention.

“The Vatican would never get involved in the budget affairs of a diocese.

Financially, a diocese is an autonomous entity. If it were a case of gross mismanagement by a bishop, the Vatican could intervene, but not to resolve a budget crisis,” said one Vatican official.

The Vatican has enough problems managing its own budget these days. In 2003, the Holy See ran a sizable deficit for the third straight year, despite cutting back costs. It blamed the falling dollar and sluggish investment markets for the shortfall.

What’s often overlooked when the Vatican discloses its annual financial figures is the size of the total numbers.

The Vatican has only a yearly operating budget of just $260 million.

That’s less than half the budget of major universities like Notre Dame, and about one-third the budget of U.N. specialized agencies like the Food and Agriculture Organization.

The Vatican’s net worth is difficult to gauge, but has been estimated at close to $1 billion. That would be less than the endowment funds of many major universities in the United States.

In the wake of huge settlement payments on abuse cases, a few U.S. dioceses have announced plans to sell off property.

At the Vatican, property sales are never seriously considered. Most of its choice

1 0 The Catholic News & Herald

July 23, 2004

Culture Watch

A roundup of Scripture, readings, films and more

Priest’s decade of research yields book on Mother

Sisters of the Holy Family founder may become first African-American saint by

FLORENCE L. HERMAN catholic news service

NEW ORLEANS — Henriette Delille, a free black woman born in New Orleans around 1810 and descended from a long line of free black women, set aside the life expected of her and made a courageous choice to live for God, said her biographer.

She founded the Sisters of the Holy Family, a religious community for black women.

Researching and writing the biography of Mother Henriette Delille was like putting together the pieces of a jigsaw

puzzle, said Benedictine Father Cyprian Davis.

His forthcoming book, “Henriette Delille, Servant of Slaves, Witness to the Poor,” chronicles her life.

Father Davis, a professor of church history at St. Meinrad School of Theology in Indiana, said he wanted the book to be a “serious scholarly work” and has spent the past 10 years assembling the various pieces of Mother Henriette’s life.

In 1994 the Sisters of the Holy Family chose Father Davis to write the biography of their foundress, whose canonization cause was accepted in 1988 by the Vatican.

If her cause advances, she could become the first African-American saint.

Because there were few letters or

diaries, Father Davis found his information in civil records, church records and financial records, and in the archives of the Sisters of the Holy Family.

In the middle of some bookkeeping records, Father Davis found Mother Henriette’s rules for the sodality or confraternity that she was planning to form.

The Delille family became free because Mother Henriette’s great, great grandmother, Nanette, who was brought to America as a slave, was freed after the death of her owner.

Years later, Nanette had amassed enough money to buy her daughter and two of her grandchildren out of slavery.

In about 1836, Henriette underwent a religious experience during which she wrote, “I wish to live and die for God.” “She was active in baptizing slaves and encouraging marriages among them,” said Father Davis.

Additionally she was active in the St. Claude School, an establishment for the education of young girls of color.

During the 1840s, Mother Henriette began assembling the group of women who would become the Sisters of the Holy Family, who received full ecclesiastical approval in 1851.

Judging by the sisters’ library and archives, Father Davis concluded that the fledgling group was made up of educated and literate women.

Mother Henriette had been sick periodically during her life. In 1852, she drew up a will in which she left a gift to help “continue the charitable works that I have founded.”

Mother Henriette died in 1862, probably of tuberculosis, Father Davis said.

Father Davis said he enjoyed doing the research for his book.

WORD TO LIFE

Sunday Scripture Readings: AUG. 1, 2004

Aug. 1, Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Cycle C Readings: 1) Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23 Psalm 90:3-6, 12-14, 17 2) Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11 3) Gospel: Luke 12:13-21

by BEVERLY CORZINE catholic news service

Pausing in the midst of a busy day to go to lunch has become part of the fabric of American life. For harried workers, lunch, though it may be quick, provides a bit of peace in an otherwise hectic day.

Friends who infrequently see one another find that lunch provides a time to catch up on each other’s lives.

Whether the eatery drips with highdollar elegance or caters to those living on a shoestring, meeting for lunch has the ability to nourish the body and, surprisingly, sometimes the soul.

Two of my friends and I meet frequently. On any one day our luncheon discussion can lead to side-splitting laughter, a time to safely vent or misty, tear-clouded eyes. Sometimes the thread of conversation leads us into little trips down memory lane where we begin to shed light on the persons we have become.

One of us grew up in a middle-class Texas family, one grew up in poverty,

one grew up with everything money could buy. During this particular meal we came around to discussing our divergent backgrounds and what life had been like for us as children who had everything or its opposite.

Out of such divergence we discovered that in each of our lives there was a person of wisdom who mentored us, laughed with us and loved us when we were impressionable children. The loving wise one in each of our lives was a grandparent who took the time and had the patience to help us discover the kind of treasure that lasts forever.

In the Gospel reading for this Sunday, we find a member of the ever-present crowd trying to get Jesus to settle an inheritance dispute between two siblings.

Jesus removes himself from the argument, but also uses this feud over possessions to teach a greater lesson with the familiar parable of the wealthy farmer whose only solution for a bountiful harvest is to build bigger barns rather than to share his wealth.

This familiar parable is sandwiched between two admonitions, one from Jesus to the crowd and one from God to the rich farmer: “Life does not consist of possessions,” but “in what matters to God.” Both of these admonitions found their way into the wisdom that our grandparents shared with us long ago.

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE Scripture for the week of July 25 - July 31 Sunday (Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time), Genesis 18:20-32, Colossians 2:12-14, Luke 11:1-13; Monday (Sts. Joachim and Anne), Jeremiah 13:1-11, Matthew 13:31-35; Tuesday, Jeremiah 14:17-22, Matthew 13:36-43; Wednesday, Jeremiah 15:10, 16-21, Matthew 13:4446; Thursday (St. Martha), Jeremiah 18:1-6, Luke 10:38-42; Friday (St. Peter Chrysologus), Jeremiah 26:1-9, Matthew 13:54-58; Saturday (St. Ignatius of Loyola), Jeremiah 26:11-16, 24, Matthew 14:1-12 Scripture for the week of August 1 - August 7 Sunday (Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time), Ecclesiastes 1:2; 2:21-23, Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11, Luke 12:13-21; Monday (St. Eusebius of Vercelli, St. Peter Julian Eymard), Jeremiah 28:1-17, Matthew 14:13-21; Tuesday, Jeremiah 30:1-2, 12-15, 18-22, Matthew 14:22-36; Wednesday (St. John Vianney), Jeremiah 31:1-7, Matthew 15:21-28; Thursday (The Dedication of the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome), Jeremiah 31:31-34, Matthew 16:13-23; Friday (Transfiguration of the Lord), Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14, 2 Peter 1:16-19, Luke 9:28-36; Saturday (St. Sixtus and Companions, St. Cajetan), Habakkuk 1:12—2:4, Matthew 17:14-20

The Catholic News & Herald 11

July 23, 2004

Survey: Impact of ‘Passion’ doesn’t match viewers’ enjoyment of it

A supreme film is ‘Bourne’

Only 18 percent of moviegoers said film changed religious behavior

by MARK PATTISON catholic news service

WASHINGTON — A telephone survey examining the attitudes of moviegoers who saw “The Passion of the Christ” found that while a solid majority liked the film seeing the movie brought about few changes in individuals’ faith or beliefs.

“The Passion” has become the eighth-biggest domestic-grossing film of all time, with receipts of $370 million.

Nine out of 10 viewers rated “The Passion” as either excellent or good, according to a survey conducted by the Barna Group of Ventura, Calif. Barna called 1,618 adults chosen at random; of those, 646 respondents had seen the movie.

But only 18 percent of the moviegoers said they had changed their religious behavior as a result of the film; 16 percent said they had changed their religious beliefs because of the movie’s content; and 10 percent said they had done both.

“Among the most startling outcomes drawn from the research is the apparent absence of a direct evangelistic impact by the movie,” the survey said. “Despite marketing campaigns labeling the movie the ‘greatest evangelistic tool’ of our era, less than one-tenth of 1 percent of those who saw the film stated that they made a profession of faith or accepted Jesus Christ as their savior in reaction to the film’s content.”

The survey added, “Equally surprising was the lack of impact on people’s determination to engage in evangelism.

Less than one-half of 1 percent of the

audience said they were motivated to be more active in sharing their faith in Christ with others as a result of having seen the movie.”

Only 6 percent of those surveyed said they had seen a movie in the past two years that led them to change something they believe about the Christian faith. Of that group, “The Passion of the Christ” was cited by 53 percent, while “Left Behind,” “A Walk to Remember” and “Joshua” all registered 7 percent or less.

According to the survey report, when “pressed to describe specific shifts in their spiritual perspectives,” those who said their religious beliefs changed because of the film listed: the perceived importance of how they treat other people; more concern about the effect of their life choices and personal behavior; and a deeper understanding of, or appreciation for, what Christ had done for them through his death and resurrection.

Those who said their religious behavior changed said they prayed more often, attended church services more often and/or became more involved in church-related activities.

“Immediate reaction to the movie seemed to be quite intense,” said Barna Group research director George Barna in a statement, “but people’s memories are short and are easily redirected in a media-saturated, fast-paced culture like ours.”

“The typical adult had already watched another six movies at the time of the survey interview, not including dozens of hours of television programs they had also watched,” he said.

CNS photo from Universal

Matt Damon and Julia Stiles star in “The Bourne Supremacy,” a frenetic film about a CIA amnesiac assassin struggling with disturbing memories of a violent incident in which he may have played a part. Fine performances but extremely fast editing take this a couple of notches below the excellence of the first film, “The Bourne Identity.” Scenes of intense action violence and a brief instance of crude language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 — parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

But Barna added, “Don’t lose sight of the fact that about 13 million adults changed some aspect of their typical religious behavior because of the movie and about 11 million people altered some pre-existing religious beliefs because of the content of that film. That’s enormous influence.”

Of those surveyed who saw “The Passion of the Christ,” 53 percent said they were born-again Christians. If those numbers are reflective of the moviegoing public, the Barna survey said, then 36 million born-again adults

saw the movie, as did 31 million adults who do not define themselves as bornagain.

According to the survey, 68 percent of Catholics who saw “The Passion” rated it as excellent, as did 78 percent of bornagain Christians. The movie was judged excellent by 67 percent of all surveyed who saw it.

The survey, conducted during the last week of May, claims a 2.4 percent margin of error among all respondents, and a 3.9 percent margin of error among “The Passion” viewers.

1 2 The Catholic News & Herald

around the diocese

Farewell blessing

July 23, 2004

Abbey honors former N.C. senator and local artist Marshall and Jeanne Rauch receive 2004 Grace Award

Photo by Carole McGrotty

Father Joseph Long Dinh offers a blessing to Rupert and Donna Muana during a farewell brunch in his honor July 4 at the Basilica of St. Lawrence, where he had served as parochial vicar for two years.

Father Dinh was assigned as a parochial vicar of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte July 6. Father C. Morris Boyd was assigned as parochial vicar of the basilica.

Classifieds EMPLOYMENT COUNSELING SUPERVISOR: Catholic Social Services Charlotte Regional Office. Requirements: master’s level degree in social work, counseling, or other human resource field with 3 years’ post-graduate counseling experience, including administrative or supervisory responsibility. Send resume to: Geri King, Catholic Social Services, 1123 S. Church Street, Charlotte, NC 28203.

DIRECTOR OF FAITH FORMATION: Our growing parish community of 1500 families is seeking a full-time Director of Faith Formation.

Candidate must be experienced with master’s degree in theology, religious education or a related field. Send resume and a statement of your vision of Faith Formation to: Faith Formation Search Committee, St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road, Greensboro, NC 27410; fax (336) 294-6149; e-mail sbarnes@ stpaulcc.org.

SPANISH TEACHER: Immaculate Heart of Mary School has an opening for a parttime middle school Spanish teacher. Needs to be either NC Certified or open to obtaining Lateral Entry. Please fax resume and cover letter to (336)-887-2613 or email to nachter@ihmchurch.org or mail directly to Immaculate Heart of Mary School, 605 Barbee Ave., High Point, NC 27262 — ATTN: Principal.

TEACHER, GIFTED AND TALENTED: Saint Patrick School needs a Gifted and Talented teacher. The teacher must have experience teaching students who are gifted and talented. A master’s degree is preferred. Please send resume to: Angela Montague, Principal, 1125 Buchanan St., Charlotte, NC 28203.

School announces two openings to begin with the 2004/05 school year: 1) Elementary School Counselor: 3/5th time and 2) First Grade Teacher - FullTime. Send letter of application and resume ASAP to William Meehan, Principal, Immaculata Catholic School, 711 Buncombe St., Hendersonville, NC 28791.

YOUTH MINISTER: Needed for vital, active, growing suburban parish near Charlotte. Part-time; hours and benefits negotiable. Team builder, organizer, good communications needed. Degree or commensurate experience; certification in youth ministry or desire to certify. Send applications to Fr. Jerry McAndrews, St. Therese Catholic Church, 217 Brawley School Rd., Mooresville, NC 28117; email jmcandrews@sainttherese.net or fax 704-660-6321.

SERVICES

INSURANCE: Best Health Insurance plans at best rates! Call Mike Wilkinson (704) 845-1416.

TUTOR: Licensed, experienced Elementary & Special Education teacher. Advocacy services for special needs students also available. Member of COPAA. (704) 449-2992.

PRODUCTS HOT TUB/SPA: 04 Luxury model in factory wrapper, 6 person, 31 jets, ozonator, chrome jets, redwood cabinet, aromatherapy, never used, warranty. Cost $6700, sell $3625. (704)651-7977.

FOR RENT MOUNTAIN CABIN: Enjoy the quiet of the NC mountains in a newly renovated 150 year old cabin on the New River in Jefferson, NC. Sleeps 8, 2 cable TVs, foosball, fireplace, covered deck and all amenities. Call Patti or Bill for details: 336-286-2050.

TEACHER AND COUNSELOR: Immaculata

Classified ads bring results! Over 125,000 readers! Over 49,000 homes!

Rates: $.70/word per issue ($14 minimum per issue) Deadline: 12 noon Wednesday, 9 days before publication How to order: Ads may be E-mailed to ckfeerick@charlottediocese.org, faxed to (704) 370-3382 or mailed to: Cindi Feerick, The Catholic News & Herald, 1123 S. Church St., Charlotte, NC 28203.

Payment: For information, call (704) 370-3332.

BELMONT — Belmont Abbey College presented its annual 2004 Grace Award to Marshall and Jeanne Rauch in a special ceremony celebrating their accomplishments May 27.

More than a hundred guests attended the event at the college, including members of the Rauch family; Abbot Placid Solari, OSB, then-interim president of the college; and Msgr. Mauricio W. West, vicar general and chancellor of the Diocese of Charlotte.

Named for Charles L. “Chuck” Grace, president of Cummins Atlantic, Inc., of Charlotte and a longtime supporter of Belmont Abbey College, the Grace Award honors an individual in the Gaston/Mecklenburg County area who has made significant contributions to the college and the community.

The Rauches were selected by the Belmont Abbey College Associates and the Belmont Abbey College Board of Advisors in recognition of their

public service and commitment to the community.

Recipients of the Grace Award include Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin and Msgr. West.

Loyal and devoted friends of the college, the Rauches have dedicated their lives to improving not only ties between Gaston County and the greater Charlotte area, but also communities across the state. From the N.C. Senate floor in Raleigh (where Marshall served as a senator for the 25th District for 23 years) to the Country Art and History Museum (where Jeanne served as its first president in 1976), Marshall and Jeanne Rauch continue to leave their mark and make a difference.

As spiritual leaders, the couple serves as examples with their committed ministry and service to their Jewish faith.

July 23, 2004

The Catholic News & Herald 13

IN THE NEWS

Marriage amendment fails MARRIAGE, from page 1

tary of the U.S. bishops’ conference and a panel of clergy and activists.

“Marriage is not an arbitrary social arrangement that can be altered by either the church or the state,” said Msgr. William P. Fay at a July 12 Capitol event.

“It is God’s will for humanity and the keystone of every human community,” he said.

Msgr. Fay was among a dozen speakers, including Christian and Jewish clergy. But even supporters of the amendment had conceded it was unlikely to pass on its first hearing.

“The protection of marriage is essential to the health and well-being of our nation, and the vast majority of Americans know it,” he said. “The truths about marriage that we seek to protect are truths that are present in the order of nature and can be perceived, even without faith, by the light of natural reason.”

After the vote July 14, Bishop Wilton D. Gregory, president of the U.S. bishops’ conference, said the bishops were disappointed that the Senate failed to keep discussion open and ultimately hold a vote on the legislation itself.

Senate backers of the bill said they would bring the issue back at a later date.

Many of the speakers at the July 12 event said the marriage amendment is not about legislating discrimination against homosexuals, as some opponents of the effort have said.

Defining a marriage In a July 6 letter to U.S. senators, Bishop Gregory said preserving marriage as the union of one man and one woman “is not simply a Catholic concern” but “part of the common moral heritage of humanity” shared by “believers and nonbelievers, Christians and non-Christians alike.”

“It is precisely this moral heritage that must be protected today from the small but vocal minority that would alter the definition of marriage by making same-sex unions the legal equivalent of marriage,” he said.

“A same sex union is not equivalent to marriage,” added Bishop Gregory. “It is not based on the natural complementarity of male and female; it cannot cooperate with God to create

new life; it cannot be a true conjugal union.”

“The institution of marriage has been weakened and eroded by many forces,” he wrote. “The social cost is already too high.”

Support of the amendment is necessary, he had told the senators, in order “to preserve and protect this vital institution that undergirds the well-being of spouses, children, families, communities and society itself.”

Defending traditional families Last September, the bishops’ Administrative Committee issued a formal statement calling for efforts at all levels of government to support traditional marriage, including a federal constitutional amendment.

Bishop Gregory encouraged other bishops to use that statement, “Between Man and Woman: Questions and Answers About Marriage and Same-sex Unions,” as an educational resource in dioceses and as a source of background information for pastoral leaders.

In a July 2 statement, Supreme Knight Carl Anderson called on all Knights of Columbus to contact their senators and express support for the proposed marriage amendment.

“Amending the Constitution is something that we should never take lightly,” Anderson said. “But the recent same-sex marriage decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court leaves no alternative. The danger that other state or federal courts will adopt their reasoning and strike down laws protecting traditional marriage is now very great.”

In the Diocese of Charlotte, the Family Life Office of Catholic Social Services will explore ways to encourage advocacy aimed at state and national levels for the preservation of traditional marriage.

“As we do on a variety of other issues, an important part of the mission of the Family Life Office is to support the advocacy efforts of the church,” said Gerard Carter, Family Life Office director.

“In this case, we will be involved in ensuring that parishioners are made aware of the church’s statements on the threat to traditional marriage posed by recent judicial decisions on same-sex marriage,” he said.

1 4 The Catholic News & Herald

July 23, 2004

Perspectives

A collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

The problem with being first Church scrutiny leads fight against ing clergy.

This would be a good place for Catholics to say something like, “See, I told you it wasn’t only our problem.”

Some might assume that the lack of coverage is proof of a media plot to protect public schools or degrade Catholics. But all of that overlooks the greater good that was accomplished through the Catholic Church’s commitment to the “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People” — it brought a serious social problem into the open.

Even though the findings of the Shakeshaft study are shocking, they may be only a peek beneath the covers. One of its recommendations is that a more comprehensive, nationwide study be undertaken to determine the full scope and nature of the problem. If that sounds like the description of a John Jay study for public schools, it’s because the John Jay report is the beacon that lights the way to other institutions investigating the serious problem of the abuse of children.

Presumably, the public schools will also take the bold steps necessary to root out the sinful crimes.

Scouting, organized sports, private schools and summer camps, to name a few, are likely to have sordid stories in the closet that should, for the sake of the children, be brought into the light of day.

In the coming years, these institutions either will examine themselves or be called upon to do so.

As Catholics, we can be proud of the fact that our church led the way in identifying and removing a serious problem that affects defenseless children. Because the church was first to be so forthcoming about this problem, it will be remembered more than the second or the third institution that does the same.

But don’t expect the media or the public to forgive or forget the sins that were uncovered in the John Jay study. Given the media preference for titillation over a substantive response to a serious problem, Catholics are likely to be reminded over and over of the sin and not of the reconciliation. Being first may make the Catholic Church the brunt of crude jokes on late night television for years to come, but that is a small price to pay for a world in which children are safer.

Something good arising from suffering — that has a familiar ring to it, doesn’t it?

David Hains is the director of communications for the Diocese of Charlotte.

Contact him at (704) 370-3336 or e-mail dwhains@charlottediocese.org.

Catholics & the Media DAVID HAINS Guest Columnist The first time a human solo and nonstop flew across the Atlantic Ocean, it was a news event of epic proportions.

Everyone knew how lucky Lindy was and for the rest of his life, based on a single 33-hour airplane flight, Charles Lindburgh was a cultural icon.

Today, crossing the great pond that separates us from Europe is as newsworthy as a sunrise. It happens every day.

Who was the next person to make that flight? Who knows? Who cares?

It is a given with the news media that being first is noteworthy and that being second doesn’t matter because repetition is boring. Nowhere is this “star factor” for being first more amply demonstrated than the recent release of a report about the sexual abuse of minors at the hands of adults.

I’m not referring to the February release of the John Jay study that detailed sexual abuse in the Catholic Church over a 50-year period. This new study was released on June 30. Its findings are far more shocking than those of the John Jay study and its application is much broader, but it has received very little attention from the media. The Charlotte Observer buried the story on page three; the article did not show up in an archive search of newspapers in Winston-Salem, Greensboro and Asheville.

The study, entitled “Educator Sexual Misconduct: A Synthesis of Existing Literature,” was ordered by the U.S. Congress. The author, Charol Shakeshaft of Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., reviewed hundreds of scholarly reports on sexual abuse of minors by adults in the public schools.

Using accepted statistical practices, she found that 4.5 million children — 10 percent of all who are in public schools — have been abused by public school employees or adult volunteers. The majority of abuse, 67 percent, takes place at the hands of teachers and other educators with the remainder of the offenses committed by adult volunteers.

The abuse includes inappropriate language and touching, pedophilia and sexual activity of every description. By contrast, the John Jay study found approximately 10,600 cases of abuse involv-

Following God’s word brings strength, serenity, says

by CAROL GLATZ catholic news service

VATICAN CITY — Following God’s word faithfully and consistently brings strength and serenity to one’s life, said Pope John Paul II. The Lord’s teachings and commandments are “clear and give light” to the faithful as they face the sometimes dark moments in life, he said in his July 21 weekly general audience.

By being “wholly faithful to the will of God ... one will find peace in one’s soul and will be able to overcome the dark entanglements in life’s trials and reach true joy,” he said.

The large number of people requesting free tickets to this week’s general audience prompted the pope to briefly leave his summer residence of Castel Gandolfo and hold his weekly catechesis back in Rome.

The courtyard of his summer residence — some 18 miles southeast of the capital — holds about 1,000 people.

More than 5,000 people packed into the Vatican’s Paul VI audience hall to hear the pope give his July 21 address and blessings.

The Vatican said other Wednesday audiences also may be held in the air-conditioned auditorium as the need arises.

The Pope Speaks POPE JOHN PAUL II Pope John Paul focused on verses 105-112 of Psalm 119, which gives praise to God’s law.

The psalmist swears to accept, safeguard and follow God’s commands, saying, “Your decrees are my inheritance forever; the joy of my heart they are,” the pope said.

The pope said this “peaceful conscience is the strength of the believer; his consistency in obeying divine decrees is the source of serenity.”

Just as a father’s “bidding is a lamp and teaching a light,” God’s laws are “a lamp for one’s feet and light to one’s path,” he said.

Christ, too, offered this same image when he revealed, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life,” the pope said.

Ask the Bishop Do you have a question for Bishop Peter J. Jugis? The Catholic News & Herald runs a feature in which Bishop Jugis answers questions that are submitted via regular mail or e-mail.

Questions about the faith and the Diocese of Charlotte that have a broad appeal will receive priority consideration for response in the newspaper.

When submitting a question, please include your name, address and daytime phone number. Questions may be condensed due to space limitations and edited for clarity, style and factual accuracy.

Send your “Ask the Bishop” question to Ask the Bishop, The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, N.C. 28237, or e-mail askthebishop@charlottediocese.org.

Children’s status after an annulment

Question Corner FATHER JOHN DIETZEN CNS Columnist

Q. Recently I had a conversation with a 42-year-old divorced friend who never receives Communion. I asked if she ever thought of seeking an annulment. She answered, “No. I love my children [both grown], and was told by ‘others’ that they would be labeled illegitimate.” Is this true?

(Wisconsin)

otherwise. The fact that some condition was present that enabled the marriage to be annulled years later does not change the fact that this couple was thought to be married by everyone, including even themselves.

Their children are legitimate for all purposes of church law.

A. No, it is not true. If the couple were free to marry in the first place, children born during their legal union are considered legitimate, even after an annulment.

Even in civil law, such a union is called a “putative marriage.” That is, everyone thought it was a marriage, and there was no overt reason to think

A free brochure describing basic Catholic prayers, beliefs and moral precepts is available by sending a stamped, self-addressed envelope to Father John Dietzen, Box 325, Peoria, IL 61651.

Questions may be sent to Father Dietzen at the same address, or e-mail: jjdietzen@aol.com.

The Catholic News & Herald 15

July 23, 2004

What is greatness?

The death of President Ronald Reagan has begun an animated discussion about his life and legacy. The coverage of his passing was monumental.

In fact, it put so much emphasis on his administration and his style of leadership that many have been reminded of what they lived through but had forgotten.

At so many levels, this was a remarkable man. Reagan’s childhood was difficult. His father struggled with alcohol. Money was never plentiful. As Reagan himself said: “I guess we’d be called poor people, but we truly didn’t even know that we were.”

He was blessed with a “can do” spirit and eternal optimism, and much is now being written about his strong faith and dedicated Americanism.

Ronald Reagan’s success in getting the former Soviet Union to consider a change of structure and approach would seem to be his high point as president. Surely his efforts for a lasting peace did work to alter a world too long on the brink of nuclear annihilation.

But with all due respect to his many national and international accomplishments, I’d like to focus on one central strength that, for me, made Ronald Wilson Reagan a truly great person. He was someone who made mistakes. And some of them were sizable.

Life Issues Forum CATHY CLEAVER RUSE, Esq. Guest Columnist

eral trials regarding the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act made known to the general public a fact that has been known to researchers for years: that unborn children can experience pain at 20 weeks, if not before. Pain expert Dr. Kanwaljeet Anand testified that abortions at this stage will cause pain to the unborn child, and “it will be severe and excruciating pain.”

Witnesses from the abortion industry made it clear they didn’t know the research on fetal pain, and what’s more, they didn’t care.

Judge Richard Casey asked Dr. Stephen Chasen, a plaintiff in a New York lawsuit, “Does it hurt the baby?”

He answered, “I don’t know.” Later in the exchange, Judge Casey asked, “I asked you if you had any care or concern for the fetus whose head you were crushing.” His answer: “No.” Testimony also revealed that the very women making the decision to abort are kept in the dark about this important information. An exchange between Judge Casey and Dr. Marilynn Fredriksen is illustrative: THE COURT: Do you tell [the

Light One Candle MSGR. JIM LISANTE Guest Columnist For example, as governor of California, Reagan signed into law one of the most permissive abortion standards ever. But rather then defend his mistake, or simply blame it on being badly advised by others, he did something remarkable. He owned up to the wrong decision.

And more to the point, he spent the rest of his life proclaiming the absolute sacredness of human life. He was, for his eight years as president, unapologetically pro-life.

The same trait revealed itself when it came to deficits. Reagan had been elected based on a platform of shrinking gover nment, lowering taxes and balancing the budget. But, in truth, of the three goals, he only achieved the lowering of taxes. Government grew under his leadership and the deficit soared.

Again, others might have blamed those around him, but not Reagan. His farewell address as president was no-

table for its honesty. The president, after outlining his successes, also voiced his sorrow over his failures.

On a personal level, Reagan lived more of the same. Being a champion of family values doesn’t mean that living those values is easy. Clearly, Reagan had a difficult time relating to his own four children. That’s not uncommon in any family. But what he did to correct the estrangement is, I believe, uncommon.

We’re told that Reagan spent his early retirement years rebuilding bridges to his children. Before Alzheimer’s Disease incapacitated him, he worked at trying to fix that which had been broken. In other words, he accepted the failure and then saw to it that it was never too late for reconciliation.

In each of these situations we find a remarkable leader. We find someone who can admit error, attempt to heal the problem, and keep on learning and growing until the end. For me, more then any international accolade, this is where the greatness of President Ronald Reagan is most clearly reflected.

Ronald W. Reagan, R.I.P. For a free copy of the Christopher News Note, “All in the Family,” write: The Christophers, 12 East 48th Street, New York, NY 10017; or e-mail: mail@ christophers.org.

The problem of pain

Babies feel it, abortion doctors don’t In the 17th century, Philosopher Rene Descartes was notorious for believing that animals do not feel pain.

Some Descartes scholars argue that what he denied was not the animal’s ability to be conscious of pain, but rather its ability to be self-conscious about it — that is, to sense that the feelings are associated with that animal’s own self.

In America today, there are federal animal welfare laws because we recognize that animals do feel pain, regardless of whether they experience what some call existential suffering. There are laws on the humane slaughter of farm animals and on how research laboratory animals may be treated, among others.

But this compassion does not reach the unborn human baby. One culprit here is the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1973 ruling in Roe v. Wade, which requires the U.S. government to be blind to the unborn child’s claim on life where abortion is concerned. This has encouraged many to be blind to the child’s pain and suffering as well.

Every year 20,000 unborn children are killed in abortions done at 21 weeks’ gestation or beyond, according to the Alan Guttmacher Institute and the Centers for Disease Control.

Yet testimony from recent fed-

women] whether or not it will hurt the fetus?

THE WITNESS: The intent [is] that the fetus will die during the process of uterine evacuation.

THE COURT: Ma’am, I didn’t ask you that. You will deliver the baby partially and then insert a pair of scissors in the base of the fetus’ skull. ...

Do you tell them whether or not that hurts the fetus?

THE WITNESS: I have never talked to a fetus about whether or not they experience pain.

Thankfully, Senator Sam Brownback and Congressman Chris Smith have begun efforts to right this wrong by introducing the Unborn Child Pain Awareness Act, requiring that mothers be notified about the pain caused by abortions at 20 weeks. If the United States has enough compassion to pass laws on the well-being of animals, surely it can find the compassion to acknowledge the pain that abortion causes to human children.

Cathy Cleaver Ruse, Esq. is the director of planning and information for the Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Catholic commitment to Christ Ask the Bishop BISHOP PETER J. JUGIS Bishop of Charlotte

Q: Thirty years ago, I responded to a call at a Billy Graham Crusade and made a commitment to Christ. Are Catholics given a similar opportunity to respond to the full Gospel via a personal commitment to Jesus Christ? (Ronald Schuck, Cornelius) A: Our commitment to Christ and our response to him begin at our baptism.

“The Catechism of the Catholic Church” (CCC) reminds us that through baptism we are freed from sin and reborn as children of God. Baptism configures us to Christ, and seals us with the indelible spiritual character of belonging to Christ. (CCC 1213, 1272) At baptism, we first become committed to Christ. The grace of baptism accomplishes in us this unique belonging to Christ.

Confirmation, in turn, completes baptism and seals us with the Holy Spirit. The grace of confirmation unites us even more firmly to Christ, and thus strengthens our belonging to Him. We receive a special strength from the Holy Spirit to be a witness to Christ and to our faith. Our commitment to the Lord and his teaching is a lived daily reality. (CCC 1303, 1304) Holy Eucharist further increases our belonging to Christ, for in the holy sacrament is the real and substantial presence of Christ himself. When we enter into sacramental communion with the Lord, we share in a most intimate way in Christ’s life.

It is a belonging to Him, and a being with Him, which Christ promised at the Last Supper: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him.” (Jn. 6:56) These are the sacraments of initiation, which establish and increase the life of grace in us. These and the other sacraments root us in Christ.

Each day, our commitment to Christ is also nurtured through prayer, spiritual reading, works of charity and sacrifices. Our commitment to Christ is demonstrated in a most public way by our participation in the celebration of the Eucharist every Sunday.

1 6 The Catholic News & Herald

in the news

The sound of silence

CNS photo from Catholic Press Photo

Pope John Paul II looks out at the view of Mont Blanc from northern Italy July 16. The pontiff described the area where he spent 12 days of vacation as an “enchanting place.” During his holiday, the pope preached on the value of silence.

Pope, back from vacation, says relaxing part of observing Lord’s SILENCE, from page 1

thing in our lives,” the pope told hundreds of visitors gathered July 18 in the courtyard of his summer villa south of Rome.

The pope arrived at the villa in Castel Gandolfo July 17, after a 12-day vacation in the northern Italian Alps.

The pope spent his days there taking drives through the mountains and putting the finishing touches on a book about philosophy.

He also spoke to some 6,000 people who gathered in a field near Les Combes, and told them the communications overload of modern society has reduced the space for silence and contemplation.

It sometimes reaches the point of “making people incapable of reflecting and praying,” he said.

“In reality, only in silence can man listen deep in his conscience to the voice of God, which truly makes him free.

And vacations can help people rediscover and cultivate this indispensable inner dimension of human existence,” he said.

Reciting the midday Angelus prayer with pilgrims at the villa July 18, the pope said, “Christ is always among us and wants to speak to our hearts.”

“We can listen to him by meditating with faith on the sacred Scriptures, gathering ourselves in private or community prayer and pausing in silence before the tabernacle where he speaks to us of his love,” the pope said.

The commandment to keep the Lord’s day holy, he said, must include participating in a Sunday liturgy, “but other moments of prayer and reflection, of rest and brotherhood can contribute to sanctifying the day of the Lord.”

Pope John Paul told the visitors he was happy to be at Castel Gandolfo, where he will be spending most of his time until late September.

The pope will leave Castel Gandolfo Aug. 14-15 for a trip to the Shrine

of Our Lady of Lourdes in France.

Before leaving his vacation spot in Les Combes, a village in the Aosta Valley, the pope met with the local mayor and city council and with a variety of police and forest service agents.

He told the law enforcement personnel, “you have been like guardian angels, who with efficiency and discretion” ensured the vacation went smoothly.

In his remarks to the mayor and city council, the pope thanked the area’s residents for the care and concern they showed him.

Describing the area as “an enchanting place,” the pope prayed that “the Lord, whose omnipotent providence is very evident in these Alpine landscapes, continue to protect the community.”

July 23, 2004