Nov. 6, 2009

November 6, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 1

www.charlottediocese.org

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Perspectives Health care reform; Stewardship Awareness Sunday; Out of Africa

Established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul VI NOVEMBER 6, 2009

After a Catholic divorces...

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

A gathering of angels

Annulment process explained

Historic day ensures bright future for Holy Angels interim editor

correspondent

See ANNULMENT, page 9

no. 2

HEATHER BELLEMORE

JOANITA M. NELLENBACH HAYESVILLE — In the understanding of annulment, one of the biggest “divorces” is the separation of fact from fiction.

Who hasn’t heard one or more of the following: annulment is “Catholic divorce”; “annulment takes years to get”; “it’s way too expensive, but if you have a lot of money, your annulment is guaranteed”; “if your marriage is annulled, children of that marriage are considered illegitimate.”

None of that is true, said David Tilly to those who attended his program on annulments, Oct. 30 at St. William Church in Murphy and Oct. 31 at Immaculate Heart of Mary Mission in Hayesvile.

Tilly, a parishioner at St. Joseph Church in Bryson City, is one of more than 40 advocates in the diocese who work with those seeking annulments.

The Tribunal of the Diocese of Charlotte, headed by Father John Putnam, judicial vicar, deals with issues involving canon (Church) law. Among those issues is annulment, or the decree of nullity of a marriage.

Tilly, who has served as an advocate for eight years, said “the Diocese of Charlotte emphasizes justice, healing and mercy with respect to marriage issues. The Church doesn’t

vOLUME 19

courtesy photos

Residents are pictured above smiling with caregivers at Holy Angels in Belmont. The nonprofit organization unveiled a new donor wall sponsored by the single largest gift it has ever received and announced a new accreditation valid for three years from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehalbilitative Facilities at the Gathering of Angels event in Belmont Nov. 1.

BELMONT — One could never guess that a small day care facility founded by the Sisters of Mercy in Belmont during the 1950s would now be known as the thriving organization, Holy Angels.

With 35 major donations of over $100,000 each, the unveiling of a new donor recognition wall, and the recent achievement of accreditation valid for three years from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitative Facilities, Holy Angels celebrated their supporters in a gathering on their campus Nov. 1.

For over 53 years, the private, non-profit corporation of Holy Angels has provided residential services and innovative programs for children and adults with

See ANGELS, page 7

A generous response

Cardinal: New Vatican move not a reflection on Anglican Communion LONDON (CNS) — An English cardinal said Pope Benedict XVI’s decision to receive entire groups of Anglicans into the Catholic Church did not represent a comment on the state of the Anglican Communion.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, retired archbishop of Westminster, said a forthcoming apostolic constitution to establish “personal ordinariates” should

not be seen as an attempt by the Vatican to poach Anglicans disaffected by such issues as the ordination of women and sexually active homosexuals as priests and bishops.

The former Catholic cochairman of the AnglicanRoman Catholic International Commission made his remarks in the Richard Stewart Memorial Lecture at Worth See ANGLICAN, page 8

cns file photo by

L’Osservatore Romano

Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury, head of the Anglican Communion, presents a gift to Pope Benedict XVI during their meeting at the Vatican Nov. 23, 2006. The Vatican announced Oct. 20 that the pope has established a special structure for Anglicans who want to be united with the Roman Catholic Church.

Culture Watch

Around the diocese

Archival anecdota

Priest brings spirituality to football; Vatican honors Jesuit missionary to China

Widescreen winner; These prayers will travel far; A lesson in discipleship

Bishop Joseph Howse, second African-American priest in diocese

| Pages 10-11

| Pages 4-5

| Page 12

November 6, 2009

2 The Catholic News & Herald

InBrief

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

Health care reform information WASHINGTON (CNS) — The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has sent bulletin inserts to almost 19,000 parishes across the country in an effort to urge Catholics to prevent health care reform from being derailed by support for abortion funding.

“Health care reform should be about saving lives, not destroying them,” the insert states. It urges readers to contact Senate leaders so they support efforts to “incorporate long-standing policies against abortion funding and in favor of conscience rights” in health reform legislation.

The insert highlights an amendment sponsored by Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., which “addresses essential pro-life concerns on abortion funding and conscience rights.”

“Help ensure that the rule for the bill allows a vote on the amendment,” the insert states. “If these serious concerns are not addressed, the final bill should be opposed.”

Support for Families

Diocesan planner cns photo by

Nick Carey, Reuters

Jeff Latta picks pumpkins outside his house in Albany, Ohio, in early September. He grows them and sells them for extra money to help him stay current on his mortgage. The U.S. bishops’ Nov. 21-22 Catholic Campaign for Human Development collection will focus on helping families still struggling in tough economic times.

Collection to help families struggling in bad economy WASHINGTON (CNS) — “Families are struggling. Faith is calling” is the theme for this year’s national collection for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, which will be taken up in most U.S. Catholic churches the weekend of Nov. 21-22.

“This year, our call as Catholics to bring glad tidings to the poor...to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free is more important than ever before,” said Bishop Roger P. Morin of Biloxi, Miss., who is chairman of the U.S. bishops’ CCHD subcommittee.

He made the comments in a letter to parishes asking Catholics to be as generous as possible during the annual collection that is the primary source of support for the U.S. bishops’ domestic anti-poverty program.

Twenty-five percent of the proceeds support projects in the diocese where the funds are collected.

“The mission of CCHD is crucial in 2009 — to uplift and embolden all who are one layoff or one medical scare away from the poverty line — and all who are already there,” the bishop said.

The nation’s current economic crisis has left many families and individuals without the security of a job, health care

or a sufficient retirement fund, a press release on the collection noted.

According to U.S. census figures, the number of people currently living in poverty is estimated at 39.8 million, which is almost 3 million more than a year ago. The unemployment rate reached a 26-year high of 9.8 percent in September.

For nearly 40 years, CCHD has funded community groups that create affordable housing, obtain fair wages and provide job training, as well as organizing projects led by low-income individuals to help people and resolve problems in their communities.

CCHD-funded programs “empower the poor and marginalized to make decisions, seek solutions to local problems and find ways to improve their lives and neighborhoods,” according to the agency.

CCHD also has educational programs to teach Catholics about poverty and creates opportunities for them to interact with the poor and reflect on a faith response to poverty.

Last year CCHD awarded more than $7.7 million to 250 grantees throughout the U.S.; 776 Catholic parishes, 18 Catholic charities organizations and 51 religious communities were involved in CCHD-funded groups.

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

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — A St. Peregrine Healing Prayer Service for all those suffering from cancer and other serious diseases will be held at Saint Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., on Thursday, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m. Please join us for this solemn prayer service and blessing with a relic of St. Peregrine. For more information please call the church office at (704) 543-7677.

CHARLOTTE — The African Affairs Ministry of the Diocese of Charlotte is sponsoring a Black Catholic History Month Celebration on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Our Lady of the Assumption Catholic School in Charlotte. The theme this year is, ‘We’ve Come This Far by Faith: Black Catholic Spirituality Past, Present and Future.’ Keynote speaker will be Terrial ‘Terry’ Aiken, youth minister at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in High Point. For more information, contact Sandy Murdock at the Diocese of Charlotte African Affairs Ministry at (704) 370-3267.

Bulletin inserts were distributed to dioceses Oct. 29, the day House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and other House leaders unveiled an $894 billion health care reform bill called the Affordable Health Care for America Act. “The bishops want health care reform, but they recoil at any expansion of abortion,” said Helen Osman, USCCB communications secretary, who helped organize the campaign. “Most Americans don’t want to pay for other people’s abortions via health care either.

“This impasse on the road to reform of health care can be broken if Congress writes in language that assures that the Hyde amendment law continues to guide U.S. federal spending policy,” she said.

The Hyde amendment bars funding of abortion in the spending bills for the departments of Labor and Health and Human Services and in military hospitals, federal employees’ health benefits, foreign assistance and other circumstances.

CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Church will sponsor a Christian Coffeehouse on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 7:30 – 9:30 p.m. at the St. Matthew Parish Center. Live Christian Contemporary music by Kathy & David with Redeemed, a 10-member band, host and provide the music and entertainment. The event is free and open to everyone. Beer, wine, snacks, soft drinks and desserts are served in a candlelit room with tablecloths and fresh flowers. To reserve a table for 6 or more, call (704) 400-2213 by Friday, Nov. 13.

HUNTERSVILLE — St. Mark Church will host a special pre-release screening of ‘The 13th Day,’ the amazing new movie about Fatima, on Sunday, Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. in the parish hall located at 14740 Stumptown Rd. For more information or to RSVP., contact Tim Flynn at stmarklifeteen@gmail.com.

CHARLOTTE — St. Gabriel Church will sponsor Shekel Savvy on Monday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m. in the Ministry Center. A panel of experts will help identify ways to manage your family’s budget and rebuild financial security.

Topics include: mortgage refinancing, debt management, expense reduction, and setting personal financial goals. There will be a panel discussion with experts on hand to address individual questions. Child care with reservation only. For more information call (704) 364-5431.

CHARLOTTE — Theology on Tap, a St. Matthew young adult ministry connecting parishioners in their 20s and 30s, presents a Real Life Series talk entitled, ‘Living in a Culture of Endless Choices,’ on Thursday, Nov. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Harpers Restaurant at Carolina Place Mall. Come socialize with other young adults

November 6, 2009 Volume 19 • Number 2

Publisher: Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis Interim Editor: Heather Bellemore 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

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November 6, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 3

FROM THE VATICAN

Religious freedoms violated, says Vatican’s U.N. nuncio UNITED NATIONS (CNS) — The right to religious freedom “continues to be widely violated,” the Vatican’s nuncio to the United Nations told a U.N. committee Oct. 21.

Archbishop Celestino Migliore told the U.N. General Assembly’s Third Committee, which deals with social, cultural and humanitarian issues, that more cases of religious freedom violations have recently been brought to courts and international human rights groups.

Amid the increase of religious intolerance worldwide, he said Christians have been the group most discriminated against. In recent months, Christian communities in Asian and Middle Eastern countries have been attacked, leaving many injured and killed and churches and homes burned.

He said these actions have occurred

in response to anti-blasphemy laws that criminalize any defamation of Islam and often are used to “foster injustice, sectarian violence and violence between religions.” Under these laws, some people have falsely accused others of blasphemy to settle a personal score.

A r c h b i s h o p M i g l i o r e u rg e d governments not only to repeal the antiblasphemy laws but also to address the root causes of religious intolerance.

Education, not legislation, is the best way to stop religious intolerance, he said.

“Legislation which restricts freedom of expression cannot change attitudes,” said Archbishop Migliore.

He urged people of different faith traditions to work together to end religious intolerance, especially by educating young people “on the importance of tolerance and respect for cultural and religious diversity.”

as you listen to speaker Lisa Tolido, founder of Be Strong Ministries. For more information and to RSVP, go to http://www.meetup.com/ youngadultlife.

has been away from the Catholic Church but might want to come back, HOSEA is a small group setting where one can ask questions, get answers and find out what is new since they have been away. For information, call Jan Hitch at (336) 884-5097.

CHARLOTTE — Join Father Patrick Hoare for Encyclical Tuesdays in November from 7-9 p.m. in the education wing at St. John Neumann Church, 8451 Idlewild Rd., as he explores Pope Benedict’s third encyclical, “Caritas in Veritate.” This encyclical calls us to see the relationship between human and environmental ecologies while linking charity and truth to the pursuit of justice, the common good and authentic human development. Materials will be provided for this series of workshops. For more information or to reserve a space, call (704) 535-4197.

GREENSBORO VICARIATE GREENSBORO — St. Paul the Apostle Church welcomes Justin Catanoso, author of ‘My Cousin The Saint,’ on Thursday, Nov. 12, from 6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. in rooms 1 through 8 in the PLC for a lecture, small group discussion and covered dish supper. Last name A-H brings salad or side, I-P brings main dish, Q-Z brings desserts. Drinks will be provided. For more information call the church office at (336) 294-4696.

GREENSBORO — The Men’s Early Morning Bible Study Group will discuss the Catholic Epistles through November and December. Join us for sharing, prayer and Bible study every Tuesday at 6:30 a.m. in the parish library, St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road, Greensboro. For more information contact the church office at (336) 294-4696 or email gmagrinat@pol.net.

HIGH POINT — A fall session of HOSEA (Hope of Seeing Everyone Again) will be held at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, 4145 Johnson St., Wednesdays from 7:15 p.m. to 9 p.m. through Dec. 2. If you or someone you know

Episcopal

calendar

Nov. 8 Sacrament of Confirmation (11 a.m.)

Saint Joan of Arc Catholic Church, Candler

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — New media are not just instruments for communicating, but they are having a huge impact on culture — on the way people interact and think, Pope Benedict XVI said.

“This constitutes a challenge for the church, called to proclaim the Gospel to people of the third millennium,” the pope said Oct. 29 during a meeting with members of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.

The content of the Gospel message remains unchanged, he said, but the church must learn how to transmit that message to new generations and must do so by taking advantage of the new technology and new attitudes toward communications.

Pope Benedict said one of the marks of the new media culture is its multimedia and interactive structure.

New technology is not leading to developments only in television or radio or the Internet, but is “gradually generating a kind of global communications system” in which

media are used together and the audience participates in generating content, he said.

“I want to take this occasion to ask those in the church who work in the sphere of communications and have responsibility for pastoral guidance to take up the challenges these new technologies pose for evangelization,” the pope said.

Pope Benedict encouraged all producers and users of media “to promote a culture of respect for the dignity and value of the human person, a dialogue rooted in the sincere search for truth (and) for friendship that is not an end in itself, but is capable of developing the talents of each person to put them at the service of the human community.”

The pontifical council, he said, is called to study the new media culture and offer Catholics ethical guidance so that they recognize the importance of the communications media and use it effectively to spread the Gospel.

SALISBURY VICARIATE STATESVILLE — St. Philip the Apostle Church is hosting a Parish Mission on Sunday Nov. 8 through Wednesday, Nov. 11 from 7 p.m. – 9 p.m. each evening. Father Matthew Habiger, O.S.B. will be leading the mission.

He was ordained a priest in 1968, and in 1985 he earned a doctorate in moral theology at The Catholic University of America. He has served as president and chairman of the board of Human Life International. He writes a weekly column for Catholic newspapers called, “NFP Q & As,” and also focuses primarily upon promoting God’s Plan for marriage spousal love. Child care will be provided. All are welcome. Please contact Barbara Hall at (704) 872-2579 with questions about this event.

WINSTON SALEM VICARIATE CLEMMONS — A Healing Mass will be celebrated at Holy Family Catholic Church on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at 7 p.m. Redemptorist Father Alvaro Riquelme of the Catholic Charismatic Movement of the Diocese of Charlotte will be the celebrant. All are invited to attend. For more information please call the church office at (336) 778-0600.

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 catholicnews@charlottediocese.org or fax to (704) 370-3382.

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

Nov. 7 Sacrament of Confirmation (11 a.m.)

Saint Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, Charlotte

Church must adapt to media, pope says

Nov. 10 N.C. Catholic Schools Fall Conference Diocese of Raleigh Nov. 10 Catholic Voice N.C. Meeting Diocese of Raleigh

cns photo by

L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters

Pope Benedict XVI receives credentials from Iran’s new ambassador to the Vatican, Ali Akbar Naseri, at the Vatican Oct. 29.

Pope urges religious freedom in Iran VAT I C A N C I T Y ( C N S ) — Welcoming Iran’s new ambassador to the Vatican Oct. 29, the pope praised the “deep religious sensibility” of the Iranian people, and said the Catholic community there — which dates to the church’s early centuries — has a long history of living in harmony with the Muslim majority.

“The Holy See trusts that the Iranian authorities will know how to strengthen and guarantee for Christians the freedom to profess their faith,” the pope told the ambassador, Ali Akbar Naseri, in a speech.

He said the Vatican expects the Iranian government to “assure to the Catholic community the essential conditions for its existence, notably the possibility of having sufficient religious personnel and ease of movement throughout the country to ensure religious services for the faithful.”

In Iran, a country of about 70 million people, there are about 100,000 Christians, the vast majority of whom are Armenian Orthodox. According to Vatican statistics, Catholics number about 17,000.

4 The Catholic News & Herald

November 6, 2009

AROUND THE DIOCESE

Are you as smart as a second grader?

A lesson in discipleship

Kids helping kids in need

Courtesy photo

Mrs. Betsy Pruitt helps second-grade student Kayla Echevarria with a mathematics challenge at St. Michael School in Gastonia on Oct.27. Pruitt organized the Second Grade Math Night at the school for the 11th consecutive year. Pruitt and a crew of volunteers kicked off the evening with a spaghetti dinner for more than 70 students, families and friends. After eating their fill, everyone participated in a variety of math games involving

courtesy photo

CHUCK O’DONNELL Special to The Catholic News & Herald

estimating, counting, addition, subtraction, measuring and tangrams, a Chinese puzzle that can take different shapes. In all, the students participated in more than 35 math games and projects. The math on Pruitt’s service at the school is impressive; she has been a teacher at St. Michael School for 30 years.

Recently, the Wednesday-afternoon fourth grade faith formation classes at St. Luke Church in Mint Hill demonstrated through action what it means to be disciples of Jesus.

Soup, sandwich and a lesson in life

The parish has a long-established ministry to support students at Thomasboro Elementary School in Charlotte. Throughout the year, the parish furnishes donated school supplies and winter clothing to the students in need at Thomasboro, a school with one of the highest poverty rates in the area.

Since the faith formation classes at St. Luke Church were learning about discipleship, the Beatitudes, and reaching out to help those in need, one of the teachers contacted the parish ministry leader for Thomasboro, Kathy Capps, to see if there was something that could be done by the students and their families as a community service project to help current needs at Thomasboro.

The faith formation class soon learned that some of the Thomasboro students go home in the afternoon facing little if anything to eat for dinner. Additionally, the St. Luke Church ministry was in desperate need of collecting non-perishable food supplies that could be discretely distributed to the most needy children and families at Thomasboro.

The class decided to take up the project and enlisted the support of two other classes and teachers in the effort. As a result of the generosity of the families, students, and teachers, more than three cartons and four bags of groceries were donated to help the urgent needs.

Capps addressed the combined faith formation classes to thank the children and tell them just how different life is for the poor of their own age, and how much the

courtesy photo

donated food will mean to their fellow students and families.

The ministry has set up a food collection location to continue providing needed

St. Patrick School third-graders show off their grilled cheese sandwiches at the soup kitchen at First Disciples Church in Charlotte Oct. 19. The students supported the kitchen by assembling and delivering more than 100 grilled cheese sandwiches. Pictured from left: Agany Barac, Aidan Healy, volunteer Ryan Ammons, Dabney Asmer, Lindsey Ellalasingham, Carson Foster.

supplies donated by St. Luke Church parishioners.

The faith formation students learned firsthand how discipleship can translate into direct action to help the neediest among us.

Chuck O’Donnell is a parishioner and faith formation teacher at St. Luke Church in Mint Hill.

November 6, 2009

Widescreen winner

AROUND THE DIOCESE

The Catholic News & Herald 5

These prayers will travel far

“The Priesthood is the love of the Heart of Jesus!”

Pope Benedict XVI courtesy photo The stub and the ticket match for a win! Jason Murphy (left) Grand Knight of Council 770, along with Linda and David Mitchell, show off the 42-inch television won by the Mitchells.

The raffle, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus of St. Ann Church in Charlotte, was held to raise funds to renovate the Knights’ meeting hall. Over $3,000 was raised during the two-month sale of raffle tickets.

photo by teresa prendergast

First-grade student Madison Aye and eighth-grade student Anne Prendergast proudly display a rosary they made at Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro Oct. 22. Students at the school worked together during their monthly Big Buddy/Little Buddy time to make

St. Matthew Catholic Church, Charlotte, N C St. Matthew “yoU”niversity For three years St. Matthew has kept her Thursday evening adult/formation/education in accord with the Pope’s theme of the year. This year, in union with Our Holy Father, we celebrate the “Year of the Priest” by reflecting on the role of the priest in our Church.

rosaries for children in Our Lady of Grace’s sister parish, Our Lady of Mercy in Granada, Nicaragua. During October, children at the school also participated in a “living rosary.”

Rosary Rally

Schedule of Presentations for the “Year of the Priest” Already completed: • September 10, 2009 — Fr. Pat Toole “How did the Catholic Priesthood Originate?” and “Where do we find the Catholic Priesthood in the Bible?”

• October 1, 2009 — Fr. Pat Cahill “Why Can’t Catholics Have a Mass Without a Priest?”

Upcoming Presentations: • November 12, 2009 — Msgr. John McSweeney with Msgr. Joseph Kerin, Fr. Frank Cancro, Fr. Will Thomas “A Look at Priesthood in the South” Three guest priests will join Msgr. McSweeney as he reflects on the development of the church in the South and particularly on the role Diocesan priests played in that development. 7:00-8:30pm, NLC Banquet Room • January 7, 2010 — Abbot Placid Solari, Belmont Abbey “What is Benedictine?”

The Abbot of Belmont Abbey along with some of his community will share on the nature of Benedictine Spirituality, how that spirituality impacts their priesthood and some of the history of their service here in the Carolinas since 1876.

• February 11, 2010 — Susan Brady US Bishops’ document “Called and Gifted for the 3rd Millennium.”

• March 11, 2010 — Ralph Sullivan, Parish Vocations Awareness Team “Vocations to the Priesthood” • Wednesday, May 26, 2010, 7:30 Mass — Celebration of Fr. Eugene • Schellberg’s 50th Anniversary of Priesthood

courtesy photo

Father Rick DeClue, parochial vicar of St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte, stands in front of St. Patrick Cathedral in Charlotte following his homily at the 67th semi-annual Rosary Rally Oct. 11.

He is joined by members of the Catholic Daughters, a Knight of Columbus, altar servers, first communicants and children who assisted in carrying the statue of Mary.

The rally included recitation of the holy rosary, a eucharistic procession and Benediction.

6 The Catholic News & Herald

AROUND THE DIOCESE

Big weekend at St. Michael the Archangel Church

November 6, 2009

50 years of a good-night kiss

The blessing of a couple’s love, the sprinkling of Holy Water on a statue of the Blessed Mother and an inspiring vocation story from a member of the congregation.

Those are the highlights of a single weekend recently at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia.

The couple, Sandy and George Davis, have been married for 50 years; the statue is “traveling” into homes all over Gaston county; and the vocation has taken one parishioner to California.

The parish of more than 700 families is led by Father Roger

Courtesy photo

Arnsparger, who is assisted by Father Jose Antonio Juya, Deacon

The 50-year marriage of Sandy and George Davis is blessed by Father Roger Arnsparger

Art Kingsley, and retired Deacon Jack Weisenhorn.

at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia Sept. 27. The Davis’ love story began on New Year’s Eve of 1957 when the couple met. George was baptized into the Catholic faith on September 19, 1959 and the couple wed a week later. The Davises have three daughters

Headed for the monastery The vocation story of Paula Balog

and four grandsons. When asked what advice they would give to their grandsons about marriage, Sandy responded, “Be very sure that you both have the same outlook on life because marriage is forever and decisions must be made together. There will be good times and sad times but with mutual love, devotion and prayer, life goes on. We never go to sleep at night without kissing and saying, ‘I love you and God bless you.’”

Pilgrim passage for Our Lady of Fatima

Balog My vocation to the religious life did not come until I was in my 40s. Up until this time I lived a single life in the church and devoted myself to my career in the technology field.

I became aware that I wanted a deeper relationship with Christ. So, after praying about it, I decided to join a small group of parishioners from Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Charlotte for a retreat focusing on the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises.

The spiritual leader was Barbara Gaddy, associate director of development for the diocese. We learned about and experienced different forms of prayer and I found myself drawn to contemplative prayer. I found a great comfort in this because I never really understood why I was not drawn to the vocation of marriage.

Later I made contact with a Carmelite community in Seattle, Wash.

After some time I was allowed to make a visit and made the decision to enter into the Formation Program at the Carmelite community there. After one year, I received the habit of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and entered into the Novitiate Program.

I had just finished my first canonical year when I decided to leave Carmel and return to Charlotte in order to take care of my ill mother. I lost my mother to

congestive heart failure six months later.

After my mother’s death, I wanted to give myself a proper amount of time for discernment.

I am so grateful to my sister, Noelle, who lives in Gastonia. Noelle respected my prayer life and encouraged my return to religious life. She introduced me to St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia.

Earlier this year, I was contacted by two sisters from the Seattle Carmel community. They had transferred to the Carmelite Monastery of the Mother of God located in San Rafael, Calif. and they asked if I would pray and discern a life with their community.

I made a visit in July. After I left, the community met and voted me into their formation program.

I thank God for my vocation to the Carmelite life. I received tremendous support from my family, the parish of Our Lady of the Assumption Church and the people of St. Michael the Archangel Church. I especially want to thank the pastor of St. Michael Church, Father Roger Arnsparger, for his great witness to the Catholic faith.

I will carry many intentions with me to the monastery, and I count on the prayers of many in support of my Carmelite vocation.

Thank you.

Courtesy photo

Father Roger Arnsparger sprinkles holy water on a pilgrim statue of Our Lady of Fatima at St. Michael the Archangel Church in Gastonia Sept. 26. The blessing was one of three noteworthy spiritual events that took place at the parish recently. The statue of the Blessed Mother travels through the homes of parishioners and can be kept for up to a week. Families are encouraged to pray the rosary together during the week. Shortly after the blessing of the statue, it was booked by St. Michael Church parishioners for every week until the end of June 2010.

November 6, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 7

From the Cover

Historic day ensures bright future for Holy Angels

Gathering honors donors ANGELS, from page 1

photo by heather bellemore

photo by heather bellemore

photo by sister nancy nance

During the Gathering of Angels event at Holy Angels in Belmont Nov. 1, the late Matthew and Genevieve Barber (pictured above in a donor recognition wall installation) were honored for donating the single largest gift the organization has ever received. Leading the event was Regina Moody (below left), president and CEO of Holy Angels. Dennis Kuhn (below right), chief operating officer for Holy Angels and parishioner of St. Ann Church in Charlotte, led the dedication of the donor recognition wall installations.

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varying degrees of mental retardation and physical disabilities, some of whom are medically fragile. Programs include the Morrow Center, four Community Group Homes, five ICF/MR group homes (Intermediate Care Facilities for the Mentally Retarded), Little Angels Child Development Center, Great Adventures, Camp Hope and Cherubs CafĂŠ & Candy Bouquets in downtown Belmont. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is one of the most significant days in our history,â&#x20AC;? said Regina Moody, president and CEO of Holy Angels.

Exemplary planned giving After recognizing several donors in the audience, Moody applauded the largest single gift ever received by Holy Angels, the legacy of Genevieve and Matthew Barber. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The Barber gift is truly special and the epitome of a true planned gift,â&#x20AC;? said Sister Nancy Nance, vice president of community relations for Holy Angels.

Inspired by the Holy Angels mission, the couple remained dedicated to their plan for over 40 years, convinced their planned gift would make a lasting difference.

They were the â&#x20AC;&#x153;kindest and most unassuming people you could ever meet,â&#x20AC;? said Moody.

The Barbers first learned about Holy Angels through articles written in the 1960s by the late Kays Gary in the Charlotte Observer. The Barbers became donors with a contribution of five dollars for Christmas.

When Matthew Barber attended the Holy Angels Carolina Classic Golf Tournament in the 1990s, â&#x20AC;&#x153;thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s when he really stepped up his philanthropic efforts,â&#x20AC;? said Beth Clark, family friend and estate executor for the Barbers.

In 2006, Barber revealed to the organization that he and his wife had decided back in the 1960s that if they had any money left at their death, they would donate it to Holy Angels. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Holy Angels gives (the residents) a life, an opportunity to live,â&#x20AC;? he had said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;That greatly impresses me.â&#x20AC;?

The couple established a family trust in 2000, leaving the bulk of their estate to Holy Angels. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I was very fond of Mr. Barber and was with him most days during the last three weeks before he died,â&#x20AC;? said Carol Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell, bookkeeper for the Barbers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He showed me Genevieveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rosary beads,â&#x20AC;? said Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Another friend of his and mine, Brenda Overcash, found them to put in his hand in his last hours, and she arranged for him to have Last Rites.â&#x20AC;?

Matthew Barber died in 2007, just two years after his wife. Technical requirements surrounding the transfer of their gift were completed just recently.

Giving in perpetuity The Barbers will be recognized posthumously for their planned gift and will receive the Outstanding Legacy Award during the National Philanthropy Day Luncheon, sponsored by the Association of Fundraising Professionals in Charlotte, Nov. 18.

A portion of their gift has been placed in the Mother Mary Benignus Hoban Endowment Fund and another portion has been reserved for program expansion at Holy Angels.

The board of directors allocated a portion of the funds to install a history wall panel recognizing annual gifts, and a donor recognition wall panel establishing three giving levels, or societies.

The two lower levels were named after Holy Angels co-founders Mother Mary Benignus Hoban and Sister Marie Patrice Manley. The highest tier of giving was named in honor of the Barber largesse. The Barber Society represents individuals, organizations and businesses who donate over $100,000. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t think the Barbers knew how much they had,â&#x20AC;? said Clark. â&#x20AC;&#x153;He and Genevieve had a will leaving all but about $40,000 to Holy Angels; it was an excellent will, arranging for a trust so Holy Angels would get as much as they could,â&#x20AC;? said Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They both believed so much in what great care the children were given,â&#x20AC;? added Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Dell.

Marching forward â&#x20AC;&#x153;Were it not for the doors that were opened in sacrifice, no one would be able to enter,â&#x20AC;? said Dennis Kuhn, chief operating officer for Holy Angels and parishioner of St. Ann Church in Charlotte.

Kuhn pointed out that the location of the donor recognition and history wall panels inside the entrance to Holy Angels is a reminder of the legacy to be carried forward.

Speaker Karen Soderstrum followed his words with a first-person viewpoint.

Describing herself as a Holy Angels parent, volunteer, donor, and board member of 14 years, she said her son Tomâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s residential care at Holy Angels caused her to think about angels in a different light. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Donors are like guardian angels,â&#x20AC;? said a tearful Soderstrum. The greatest gift of Holy Angels is â&#x20AC;&#x153;the peace of mind that you gift me with; the knowledge that my child will always have a home, his home,â&#x20AC;? she said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The needs are many on this side of heaven,â&#x20AC;? said Sister Paulette Williams, leadership team member of the South Central Sisters of Mercy. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are charged to gather more people to contribute financial and human resources.â&#x20AC;?

Sister Williams stressed that what the Sisters of Mercy began, the board, administration, staff, and volunteers continue in blessings of love. â&#x20AC;&#x153;May the story of Holy Angels live on in each of us,â&#x20AC;? she concluded.

8 The Catholic News & Herald

FROM THE COVER

‘The road to Rome’ by an Anglican convert SALLY THOMAS guest columnist

The Vatican announced the Holy Father’s approval of a new canonical structure for Anglicans seeking full communion with Rome Oct. 20. The Apostolic Constitution for Anglicans, which remains as yet unpublished, will provide for the reception of Anglicans into the Catholic Church via a system of “Personal Ordinariates.”

As the official Vatican statement puts it, “pastoral oversight and guidance will be provided for groups of former Anglicans through a Personal Ordinariate, whose Ordinary will usually be appointed from among former Anglican clergy.”

According to the statement, Anglicans entering the Church will also be allowed to retain “elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony.” What does all this mean?

First of all, it is important to note that the Holy Father’s approval of these measures is not, as some press coverage has suggested, an attempt to “fish in the Anglican pond.” The Apostolic Constitution for Anglicans is a response to various Anglican groups worldwide who have been petitioning for years for full, visible communion with Rome, not an act of aggression whereby the Pope seeks to “poach” new converts.

It is a recognition that AngloCatholics — the term given to Anglicans who practice “high” Catholic spirituality and liturgy — occupy a unique place among converts: while many Protestants on the road to Rome have stumbled over Marian dogmas, devotions to saints, the need for personal confession, and belief in Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist, many high-church Anglicans have held and practiced these doctrines all their lives.

Though the RCIA process is a rich blessing for many people, Anglicans seeking to enter the Church are in most cases already convinced of the truths which these classes explain, and only desire to declare their acceptance of Church teaching and their submission to her Magisterium, so that they can receive Christ in the Eucharist. It is both good sense and great generosity on Rome’s part to devise a settled process for their reception.

While dogma creates relatively few stumbling blocks for would-be Anglican converts, liturgy is another matter altogether.

November 6, 2009

Anglo-Catholicism, the branch of Anglicanism to which most of the groups seeking full communion belong, has its origins in the Oxford Movement, a Victorian renewal in the Church of England which sought to re-found Anglicanism on its medieval Catholic roots. While many of the great figures of the Oxford Movement (most notably Cardinal Newman) ultimately became Roman Catholics, they managed to inspire an enduring and lovely tradition of Catholic worship in English, with painstaking attention to the choreography of the liturgy and to the music, and a sense that these elements are, in their beauty, both a sacrifice of love to offer to God, and a catechesis of the senses for the congregation. The single greatest factor that has caused Anglicans to recoil from the idea of conversion to Catholicism is the prospect of trading all this, which has nourished their souls, for a disposable missalette and a body of hymnody dating from circa 1975.

Anglican Use parishes — Catholic parishes composed largely of Anglican converts, usually served by a former Anglican clergyman ordained a Catholic priest, and using a version of the Book of Common Prayer adapted to include the Roman Canon — have existed for some time, but remain few, far between, and inaccessible to most converts.

The Personal Ordinariate structure will enable whole congregations, even whole Anglican dioceses, to convert corporately, resulting in more Anglican Use parishes, which maintain this rich liturgical tradition. The new initiatives, in creating a new system of supervision via the Ordinariate, should also clarify and standardize the process by which former Anglican clergy, whose orders are not recognized as valid by Rome, are ordained as Catholic priests.

Of course, at the time of the writing of this article, the documents themselves have not yet been published. Speculations about their actual content abound. Once the norms become public knowledge, both sides, Anglican and Catholic, will know what lies on the road ahead. One thing seems clear for now, however: it is a wide and generous road, and like every good road, it leads to Rome.

Vatican welcomes Anglicans ANGLICAN, from page 1

Abbey, near London, Oct. 29. He said the canonical structures announced in Rome and London Oct. 20 were simply a generous response to requests over a number of years by Anglican communities that wanted to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of distinctive spiritual patrimony.

“There is much that has been written and spoken about this matter over the past week but I would just want to emphasize that this response of Pope Benedict is no reflection or comment on the Anglican Communion as a whole or of our ongoing ecumenical relationship with them,” said the cardinal, 77, the former president of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales.

He explained that such a provision was first discussed in 1993 and 1994 by the English Catholic leadership with Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, then prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, following a request from an Anglo-Catholic group called Forward in Faith.

“After much discussion, it was finally decided that it would not be appropriate to take this initiative,” said the cardinal. He said one problem was that the question was then focused solely on clergy of the Church of England and did not refer to those of other Anglican provinces.

“It did not seem within our remit to engage in such a response,” the cardinal said in the lecture titled “ARCIC: Dead

in the Water or Money in the Bank?”

“The other reason, however, was even more important,” he said. “If the Holy See had offered such personal ordinariates then, and in particular here in England, it might well have been seen as an unecumenical approach by the Holy See, as if wanting to put out the net as far as one could. Both Pope John Paul (II) and the then-Cardinal Ratzinger would have been against such a move.

“Matters have moved on since then and the repeated requests by many Anglicans, not only from England but from other provinces of the Anglican Communion, have necessitated a new approach, which is why I think that the personal ordinariates offered by the Holy Father can be seen not in any way unecumenical but rather as a generous response to people who have been knocking at the door for a long time,” he said.

The cardinal suggested that the ordinariates did not spell the end of dialogue between Catholics and Anglicans but instead should generate “a new ecumenical enthusiasm” based on prayer and the desire for unity.

In announcing the plan, Vatican officials made it clear that Anglican priests who are married may be ordained Catholic priests, but that married Anglican bishops would not be allowed to function as Catholic bishops. They also indicated that married Anglican seminarians would be allowed to be ordained.

The Vatican clarification confirmed that married former Anglican priests would be admitted to priestly ministry, as an exception from canon law on a caseby-case basis.

Sally Thomas is an Anglican convert, a homeschooling mother, and a contributing writer for First Things magazine.

Vatican says married priests not the issue VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican has denied that the delay in publishing the apostolic constitution on Anglicans seeking admission to the Catholic Church has been caused by an internal Vatican debate over admitting married priests.

The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, said Oct. 31 that Pope Benedict XVI’s document detailing the new plan was expected to be released during the first week in November.

On Oct. 20, the Vatican said the apostolic constitution establishing the new arrangement was being briefly delayed by translation and technical reasons.

In announcing the plan, Vatican

officials made it clear that Anglican priests who are married may be ordained Catholic priests, but that married Anglican bishops would not be allowed to function as Catholic bishops. They also indicated that married Anglican seminarians would be allowed to be ordained.

The Vatican clarification confirmed that married former Anglican priests would be admitted to priestly ministry, as an exception from canon law on a caseby-case basis.

It said that criteria for a dispensation from celibacy would have to be worked out jointly by the personal ordinariate and the local bishops’ conference, and would be submitted for approval by the Vatican.

This conference will dive deep into Pope John Paul II’s teachings, addressing the most basic truths and questions of human existence.

Speaker: Bill Donaghy of the Theology of the Body Institute

Saturday, Nov. 21 — Basilica of St. Lawrence, Asheville Adults: 9am — 3pm Teens: 6:30 — 8:30pm Info: basilicatob@gmail.com Co-sponsored by the Natural Family Planning Program of Catholic Social Services

November 6, 2009

from the cover

Annulment process explained Separating fact from fiction

a valid marriage was missing at the time two people exchanged consent, a valid marriage did not come into existence.”

ANNULMENT, from page 1

want people to suffer for years in a bad marriage.”

“It’s better to have it and not use it than to want it and not have it,” said Father George Kloster, pastor of St. William Church and Immaculate Heart of Mary Mission. Obtaining an annulment isn’t “as laborious as it once was. It’s becoming more and more pastoral. People have told me that the healing really began after they got the annulment.”

How does an annulment differ from a divorce? The Catholic Teaching on Annulment, by Father W. Becket Soule, gives the simplest explanation.

“A divorce states that two people, who had been validly married, are married no longer. A declaration of nullity, on the other hand, states that because something which is necessary and indispensable for

Reasons for an annulment A decree of nullity can be granted, Father Soule writes, if at least one of three reasons existed at the time of the marriage: 1) A lack of “canonical form.” In a Catholic marriage, the canonical form is marriage “in the presence of a properly delegated priest or deacon and two witnesses.” So, marriage before a justice of the peace or a Protestant minister, without a dispensation from the bishop of the diocese, would be a lack of canonical form.

2) An impediment to the marriage, such as one or both partners being below the minimum legal age, marriage between close relatives or marriage to someone else.

3) A defect in the partners’ consent.

The bride and groom marry each other by giving their consent to the marriage promises. If one or both partners’ consent is “seriously defective,” the marriage is invalid. Defects include, but are not

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limited to, a refusal to have children, infidelity at the time of the marriage or if one or both partners always thought it would be okay to have an affair, one or both parties believe they can get out of the marriage, or marrying to escape a bad home situation.

How the process works “Many start the annulment process but never finish,” Tilly said, adding that once some petitioners learn that they must put in some effort, they lose interest in pursuing the matter.

There are a number of steps involved, but these are not meant to make life difficult for the petitioner. Rather, as Father Soule writes, “Church law concerning annulments both protects the sanctity of marriage and offers a compassionate response to those suffering the effects of a union flawed from its inception.”

It is, he said, up to the petitioner (the person seeking the annulment) to provide the proof that the marriage was invalid. The advocate working with the petitioner will establish the grounds for the annulment.

The first step, Tilly said, is to “talk with your pastor, or your local advocate.”

At their first meeting, the advocate and the petitioner discuss the marriage; this usually includes some preliminary questions to help establish initial grounds for an annulment. Petitioners are rarely turned away from seeking an annulment, but this is a legal process and the tribunal judge will require facts to make a decision.

The petitioner completes, at home, a narrative of the marriage, based on the questions provided by the advocate.

The petitioner then provides a recent, certified copy of his or her baptismal certificate, with notations as to when he or she received first Communion, confirmation, and was married.

“Don’t worry if you don’t have all these notations or think that the information will be difficult to get,” Tilly said. “The certificate with the required information will normally be obtainable.”

Father Kloster said that churches routinely receive requests for such information and knows where to obtain it.

The petitioner also provides a

The Catholic News & Herald 9

certified marriage license and divorce decree. The annulment process cannot begin until the divorce has been granted.

The petitioner is then asked to supply three witnesses who knew both petitioner and respondent (the petitioner’s former spouse), preferably at the time of the wedding. These witnesses must be willing to give written testimony.

The tribunal contacts the respondent, who must be notified of the proceedings.

The respondent is given the opportunity to participate but is not required to do so.

The petitioner signs forms appointing the advocate and stating that he or she understands that the petitioner’s cost of processing the annulment is $500.

“However no one is turned away because of inability to pay that fee,” Tilly said.

Conversely, having lots of money doesn’t guarantee an annulment.

When all of the forms are completed, the advocate sends the package to the tribunal, which contacts the respondent and witnesses for their testimony.

After all the testimony is received, the case goes back to advocates, who write briefs supporting each point of view. The package then goes to a “defender of the bond,” a person with a degree in canon law, who reviews the information to ensure everyone’s rights are protected and that the facts that support the invalidity of the marriage are present. The defender also writes a brief in defense of the marital bond.

The tribunal judge considers the case and makes a decision.

If the decision is affirmative, the case goes to a second court (for the Diocese of Charlotte, this court is in the Archdiocese of Atlanta). If this court concurs, it ratifies the decree. The Tribunal in the Diocese of Charlotte then issues the final decree of nullity.

Tilly said, “If the petitioner gets things done quickly and thoroughly, the annulment could be granted in as little as six to eight months.”

“I would strongly encourage anyone who has been divorced and remarried, and has given up on the Church, to give us another shot,” Tilly said. “Come back.”

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

November 6, 2009

10 The Catholic News & Herald

Culture Watch

A roundup of Scripture, readings, films and more

Priest brings spirituality to football JOHN SHAUGHNESSY catholic news service

INDIANAPOLIS — Father John Hollowell took the handoff and sprinted downfield.

Fifty yards later, the 30-year-old teacher, chaplain and assistant football coach at Cardinal Ritter Junior/Senior High School in Indianapolis finally came to a stop and spiked the ball.

“I couldn’t believe how fast he was,” laughed Michael Timko, varsity football player for Cardinal Ritter.

“Early in the season, as a coaching staff, we try to show them the discipline of the game and the need for developing good habits,” said Father Hollowell, who also serves as a sacramental minister at St. Malachy Parish in Brownsburg.

“Now, it’s our challenge to get them to play with passion and, at the same time, enjoy it.”

Discipline, passion, challenge and joy — all four words describe the priesthood of Father Hollowell, who was ordained June 6. There’s also an element of “surprise,” at least in the way he has used his priesthood to connect with people in the hope of bringing them closer to God. “The kids see the passion in him — not only for football but for a Christian

life,” said Ty Hunt, head coach of the Ritter Raiders’ varsity football team.

Father Hollowell embraces his role of bringing young people closer to God as a teacher, coach and chaplain.

“I try to make the bridge between football and their life,” said the priest, who coached football for two years at Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis before entering the seminary. “I think, in general, sports teach them about life.”

Father Hollowell describes football as “a very Catholic game.”

“It’s oriented around discipline and family,” said the priest, the oldest of 11 children — a football team in itself. “If you don’t like the guys you are playing with — no matter how good you are — you’re not going to win. You’re not going to find success.”

He also hopes that when the young athletes look at his life they will look beyond his intensity for football and see his passion for his faith — and the priesthood.

“There’s such a need for priests,” he says. “If someone became a priest because of me, that would be the ultimate compliment.”

“For me, being a priest is truly a gift,” he added. “For the first time in my life, I feel like I’m doing what I truly should be doing.”

WORD TO LIFE Sunday Scripture Readings: nov. 15, 2009

November 15, Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Cycle B Readings: 1) Daniel 12:1-3 Psalm 16:5, 8-11 2) Hebrews 10:11-14, 18 3) Gospel: Mark 13:24-32

SHARON K. PERKINS cns columnist

On a Saturday afternoon in February 2008, my close family members and I gathered at my parents’ home to attend to my father who was dying of pancreatic cancer. Knowing in our hearts that the end was near, we engaged in a surreal sort of vigil that alternated between raucous, laughter-filled games of dominoes at the kitchen table and gentle, lingering visits to my dad’s hospital bed in the living room. We all felt resistance to saying our goodbyes, but knowing that the time for doing so was passing quickly, we clearly needed someone to guide us through that process in a prayerful way.

My parents’ parish priest was that someone. Having just celebrated the parish Saturday evening Mass, he immediately came to the house and led us through a ritual prayer for the dying that was at once one of the most heartbreaking and profoundly joyful experiences of my life. Because of the compassionate ministry of a priest (who also had visited

Dad frequently in the hospital), our family was able to release my father to eternal life in a way that drew us closer to God and to each other. For that selfless gift, I will always be grateful.

I have been blessed many times in my life by the ministry of priests — from the family friend who helped me through a crisis of faith in my teen years, to the college chaplain who so beautifully preached our wedding homily, to the parish pastors who warmly welcomed our three children through baptism and anointed our ailing parents before surgery, to the spiritual director who guided me through a powerful midlife retreat.

The Letter to the Hebrews describes Jesus as the high priest par excellence who offered himself on our behalf as a sacrifice for sin and, in turn, gifted his church with priestly ministers. In this Year for Priests proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI, let us not only give thanks for their service but also let us support and pray for them so that they might live out their priestly vocations in holiness and joy.

Questions: Can you recall an experience in which you were helped by a priest?

What can you do this week to show your appreciation and support for a priest?

Scripture to be illustrated: “Every priest stands daily at his ministry” (Hebrews 10:11).

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE Scripture for the week of November 8-14 Sunday (Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time), 1 Kings 17:10-16, Hebrews 9:24-28, Mark 12:38-44; Monday (The Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome), Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12, 1 Corinthians 3:9-11, 16-17, John 2:13-22; Tuesday (St. Leo the Great), Wisdom 2:23-3:9, Luke 17:7-10; Wednesday (St. Martin of Tours), Wisdom 6:1-11, Luke 17:11-19; Thursday (St. Josaphat), Wisdom 7:22-8:1, Luke 17:20-25; Friday (St. Frances Xavier Cabrini), Wisdom 13:1-9, Luke 17:26-37; Saturday, Wisdom 18:14-16; 19:6-9, Luke 18:1-8.

Scripture for the week of November 15-21 Sunday (Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time), Daniel 12:1-3, Hebrews 10:11-14, 18, Mark 13:24-32; Monday (St. Margaret of Scotland, St. Gertrude), 1 Maccabees 1:10-15, 41-43, 54-57, 62-63, Luke 18:35-43; Tuesday (St. Elizabeth of Hungary), 2 Maccabees 6:18-31, Luke 19:1-10; Wednesday (Dedication of the Basilicas of St. Peter an St. Paul, St. Rose Philippine Duchesne), 2 Maccabees 7:1, 20-31, Luke 19:11-28; Thursday, 1 Maccabees 2:15-29, Luke 19:41-44; Friday,1 Maccabees 4:36-37, 52-59, Luke 19:45-48; Saturday (The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary), 1 Maccabees 6:1-13, Luke 20:27-40.

cns photo by John Shaughnessy, The Criterion

After a play during a football game in late September, Father John Hollowell coaches Eddie Cmehil, a sophomore wide receiver and defensive back for Cardinal Ritter Junior/Senior High School’s varsity football team in Indianapolis. The 30-year-old priest, who is a teacher, chaplain and assistant football coach at the school, encourages his players to play with passion and at the same time to enjoy the game.

The Catholic News & Herald 11

November 6, 2009

cns photo courtesy of the Vatican

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This painting shows Mary drawn in the manner of a Chinese empress. The 19th-century work by Wang Suda is part of a Vatican exhibit on Father Matteo Ricci (1552-1610), an Italian Jesuit who spent 28 years evangelizing in China and bringing Western science to the faraway continent.

Vatican honors Jesuit missionary to China VATICAN CITY (CNS) — A new Vatican exhibit highlights the life of a Jesuit missionary whose extraordinary i n t e l l i g e n c e , c u l t ure and openmindedness helped him bring Christianity to imperial China four centuries ago.

The exhibit is part of a series of events marking the 400th anniversary of the death of Father Matteo Ricci, an Italian Jesuit who spent 28 years evangelizing, absorbing Chinese culture and bringing Western science to the faraway Asian continent.

The show, which opened Oct. 30 in the Braccio di Carlo Magno hall in St. Peter’s Square, is titled “On the Crest of History, Father Matteo Ricci (15521610): Between Rome and Peking” (the name formerly used for the Chinese capital Beijing).

It was Father Ricci’s scientific acumen and enthusiasm for cultural exchange that won the trust and admiration of the Ming Dynasty Emperor Wanli.

The relationship ensured that he and his Jesuit brothers would have the freedom to evangelize, the show’s organizers explained in a news conference at the Vatican Oct. 28.

A proficient cartographer, Father Ricci was perhaps most appreciated for the maps of the world he made for the Chinese, who at the time had little knowledge of the other continents, said Antonio Paolucci, director of the Vatican Museums and head curator of the exhibit.

Father Ricci also translated many works, including a Catholic catechism into Chinese and the teachings of

Confucius into Portuguese, which Paolucci explained was the lingua franca of the time.

Born in 1552 in Macerata, in central Italy, Matteo Ricci entered the Jesuit order in 1571. After years of study, he sailed to India, where he was ordained in 1580.

After first traveling to Macao, in 1582 he and another priest established a Jesuit residence in Zhaoqing, a city in the Guangdong province. The order encountered difficulties and hostility over the next few years, but Father Ricci was instrumental in eventually opening more residences for Jesuit missionaries.

In 1601, after overcoming many obstacles, he arrived in Beijing, where he was admired and befriended by the elite of the city. There he stayed until his death at 58. The emperor made an unheard-of concession, allowing Father Ricci, a foreigner, to be buried in Beijing.

Bishop Claudio Giuliodori of Macerata said that Father Ricci’s “extraordinary missionary adventure brought him to build, for the first time in history, a true bridge of dialogue and exchange between Europe and China.”

In a message to the Diocese of Macerata inaugurating the anniversary celebrations, Pope Benedict XVI wrote that it was Father Ricci’s great respect for Chinese traditions that “distinguished his mission to search for harmony between the noble and millenary Chinese civilization with the Christian novelty.”

The show is scheduled to remain open until Jan. 24.

12 The Catholic News & Herald

November 6, 2009

around the diocese

From the office of the Bishop Archival Anecdota For the month of November, here is a look back at the the journey of Bishop Joseph Howze.

Deacon Assignments Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following deacon assignments: Deacon Mark J. King, assigned to St. Matthew Church in Charlotte, effective August 14.

Deacon David P. Boissey, Sr., assigned to St. Benedict Church in Greensboro, effective November 1.

Deacon Retirements Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following deacon retirements:

ewing for the position of Sales h insurance, paid vacation, To arrange an interview, call E

Deacon Curtiss Todd, retirement from St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, effective March 16.

Deacon Ronald R. Caplette, retirement from St. Francis of Assisi Church in Lenoir, effective July 1.

Deacon Incardinations courtesy photo

Diocese of Raleigh clergy (from left) Bishop Vincent Waters (Bishop of Raleigh), an unidentified cleric, Father Joseph Howze, and another unidentified cleric, are pictured following the ordination to the priesthood of Father (now Bishop) Joseph Howze, May 7, 1959.

Bishop Joseph Howze was the second African-American priest ordained for the Diocese of Raleigh.

Father Howze served as a priest in central and western North Carolina, prior to his appointment as the Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Natchez-Jackson, Mississippi in November 1972.

30 August 1923 – Lawson Howze born in Daphne, Alabama.

1948 – He graduated from Alabama State University in Mobile, AL and taught biology and chemistry at Central High School in Mobile, Alabama.

4 December 1948 – Lawson Howze baptized and received into the Catholic Church.

At this time, he took the name of Joseph.

1950 – Joseph Howze attended Epiphany Apostolic College in Newburgh, NY - a seminary associated with the Josephite Fathers.

1952 – He began teaching at St. Monica High School in Tulsa, OK. September 1953 – Joseph Howze attended the Little Seminary in Buffalo, NY as a seminarian for the Diocese of Raleigh.

7 May 1959 – Having graduated from Christ the King Seminary in St. Bonaventure, N.Y., Bishop Vincent Waters ordained Joseph Howze to the priesthood at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh. This was the first ordination of an African-American diocesan priest that took place in the state North Carolina. Immediately, Bishop of Waters named Fr. Howze the Assistant Pastor of Our Lady of Consolation Church in Charlotte.

10 May 1959 – Fr. Howze offered his first solemn high Mass at Most Pure Heart of Mary Church in Mobile, AL, the church where he was baptized 10 years earlier.

15 October 1959 – Fr. Howze began his second assignment as administrator of Our Lady of Victory parish in Southern Pines.

11 June 1960 – Fr. Howze became assistant pastor at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Sanford.

18 November 1960 - In addition to being assistant pastor in Sanford, Fr. Howze was re-assigned as assistant pastor to Our Lady of Victory Church in Southern Pines.

14 March 1961 – Bishop Vincent Waters appointed Fr. Howze as assistant vocation director for the Diocese of Raleigh.

17 May 1961 – In his hometown of Daphne, AL, Rev. Joseph Howze baptized his sister and her eight children, and received them into the Church.

1 August 1961 – He returned to Our Lady of Consolation Church as assistant pastor.

30 July 1962 – Fr. Howze named pastor of St. Teresa of Avila parish in Durham.

3 December 1964 – Bishop Waters appointed Fr. Howze as associate editor of the North Carolina Catholic newspaper.

28 December 1965 – He became pastor of St. Anthony Church in Asheville.

12 September 1969 – Bishop Waters combined the Asheville parishes of St. Anthony of Padua and St. Lawrence and appointed Fr. Howze as pastor. He became the 12th pastor of St. Lawrence.

8 November 1972 – Pope Paul VI appointed Rev. Joseph Howze Titular Bishop of Maxita and Auxiliary Bishop of NatchezJackson, Mississippi.

28 January 1973 – Joseph Howze was ordained auxiliary bishop and became the third African-American priest to be ordained bishop in our country’s history.

He chose “Unity of God’s People” as his Episcopal motto.

6 June 1977 – Bishop Howze installed as the first bishop of the new Diocese of Biloxi.

15 May 2001 – Bishop Howze retired as Bishop of Biloxi. After retiring, he dedicates more time to prayer, especially the rosary.

7 May 2009 – Bishop Howze celebrated his golden jubilee as a priest.

Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following deacon incardination: Deacon Ronald D. Sherwood, incardinated from the Diocese of Youngstown in Ohio and assigned to St. Mark Church in Huntersville, effective July 30.

EDITOR The Catholic News & Herald is looking for an editor.

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November 6, 2009

2,000 babies saved from abortion WA S H I N G T O N ( C h r i s t i a n Newswire) — “Through the grace and mercy of God — and the faithful prayers of more than 200,000 volunteers standing vigil outside abortion facilities — an incredible miracle has taken place,” said David Bereit, national director of 40 Days for Life.

“Starting with the first-ever 40 Days for Life campaign in Bryan/College Station, Texas in 2004, and continuing through the international 40 Days for Life effort that is under way this fall, we now have confirmed reports of at least 2,000 babies whose lives have been saved from the tragedy of abortion,” Bereit said. “Who knows what wonders each of these children will bring to the world!”

Frequently, it is simply the sight of people peacefully standing in prayer that will convince a woman to turn away from abortion. “When people ask me what to say when they’re at the vigil,” said Bereit, “I often say — just pray and don’t worry about it. We have countless stories of women rejecting abortion and leaving the clinics even when not a single word was spoken.”

RESPECT LIFE

The Catholic News & Herald 13

40 Days for Life founder

It is often the prayer of children that has this effect. “Just last week, I heard about two little girls who were singing ‘Jesus Loves Me’ at a 40 Days for Life vigil,” he said. “They sang as a woman went in for an abortion appointment — then watched as she left the clinic in tears, read the number of a pregnancy resource hotline, and called for real assistance.”

The largest and longest coordinated pro-life mobilization in history is 40 Days for Life (www.40daysforlife.com).

The fall 40 Days for Life campaign began Sept. 23 and concluded Nov. 1. The initiative, in 212 cities across 45 American states, five Canadian provinces, and Denmark, consists of 40 days of intense prayer and fasting for an end to abortion, peaceful vigils outside abortion facilities, and grassroots community organizing.

Since 2004, some local 678 campaigns have been conducted in 282 communities, covering all 50 American states, the District of Columbia and American Samoa, as well as Canada, Australia, Northern Ireland and Denmark.

Courtesy photo

David Bereit, founder of 40 Days for Life, prays with pro-life supporters outside an abortion facility in Charlotte Oct. 23. Bereit, who founded the 40 Days for Life organization in Texas, was in Charlotte to speak at the Room at the Inn banquet fundraising event.

Wearing the message

Knights pray all day

Courtesy photo

Jerry Schmugge holds a sign in front of his pro-life tee shirt outside an abortion facility in Charlotte Oct. 26. Schmugge, a parishioner at St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte, prayed a rosary as a part of the 40 Days for Life prayer event in front of the facility.

The 40 Days for Life Vigil ended Nov. 1.

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Three members of the Knights of Columbus (K of C) stand outside an abortion facility in Charlotte during a day-long vigil on Oct. 31. The Knights were part of the nationwide 40 Days for Life effort. Churches and individuals in 123 cities in 42 states took part in the 40 Days for Life effort that included prayer and fasting to end abortion. Pictured from left are Mario Ball and Tim Brennan of the St. Joseph Church K of C council in Kannapolis and Jeff Mathews, Grand Knight of the K of C council at Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Charlotte.

November 6, 2009

14 The Catholic News & Herald

Perspectives

A collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

Out of Africa Nations and institutions must not impose on his continent policies and ideas that fail to respect human dignity and life, said Cardinal Theodore-Adrien Sarr of Dakar, Senegal.

Cardinal Sarr was among nearly 200 African bishops participating in the special Synod of Bishops for Africa, which concluded at the Vatican Oct. 25 with calls for a new spirituality to counter bad government, ethnic tensions, disease, exploitation by multinational companies and the cultural agenda of foreign aid organizations.

While Africa does need aid, that aid cannot come at the price of its dignity and self-esteem, said another cardinal.

“Anything that comes from abroad, even from the point of ideas, must respect the culture and dignity of the human person,” said Cardinal John Njue of Nairobi, Kenya.

Some foreign organizations promote abortion in their reproductive health programs for African women, he said.

“We as a church and as Africans have great respect for life starting from conception.”

Africa receives much material aid from the United States and West, yet it offers much as being an example of spirituality.

One of the many cultural norms inherent to Africa is that sexual intercourse is meant for creating new life, not so much for enjoyment, said Cardinal Njue. “The imperial culture says ‘no, it’s for enjoyment,’ and pregnancy is almost a disease.”

Cardinal Peter Turkson of Cape Coast, Ghana, whom Pope Benedict XVI named as president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace Oct. 24, presented the 57 propositions formulated by the synod and offered as suggestions for a document the pope may write about the work of the church on the continent.

“While many of the problems

Consider This STEPHEN KENT cns columnist

involve bad government, ancient ethnic tensions, disease, exploitation by multinational companies or the cultural agenda of foreign aid organizations,” Cardinal Turkson said, “the bishops believe they cannot be resolved without ‘a spirituality that unleashes signs on a social, economic and political level in our countries.’”

Economic imperialism was spoken of in the final document, but reducing suffering in the world “requires spirituality and not a strategy,” Cardinal Turkson said.

He spoke out on the need for the Catholic notion of justice in Africa and the world.

God’s justice does not demand payment for wrongdoing “because God overlooks our transgressions ... and admits us into communion,” Cardinal Turkson said, adding that when Christians think like God does they begin to forgive one another and recognize each other as brothers and sisters no matter what their nationality or ethnicity.

Thinking like God, promoting a spirituality — not a strategy with alien values — would be most welcome not just for Africa, but for all countries. Such a proactive spirituality that unleashes signs is preferable to cultural imperialism.

Kent is the retired editor of archdiocesan newspapers in Omaha and Seattle. He can be contacted at: considersk@comcast.net.

Offering thanksgiving and gratitude The biblical adage tells us it’s more blessed to give than to receive.

Sometimes, though, it’s awfully blessed to receive, too.

One of the sweetest feelings we experience is that of gratitude. Offering thanks is as natural to us as breathing; it’s one of the most universal, and loveliest, of human emotions. To me, those lacking a sense of thankfulness are more to be pitied than censured. Ungratefulness even serves as its own punishment: Ingrates, like spoiled children, are rarely happy people.

Thanksgiving gives us the opportunity to fulfill this great longing: the heartfelt need to express appreciation to someone or something for what we’ve been given. Maybe that’s why people love this holiday so much — there’s something so vital, so necessary about it.

Try imagining a holiday season without Thanksgiving; it would be like attending a church service without saying a prayer.

Too often, though, we’re so caught up in the concrete duties of Thanksgiving — shopping, cooking, serving, visiting, cleaning — that we haven’t time to reflect upon the role this holiday plays in our family and cultural lives. Perhaps now, with memory so fresh of the fragility and preciousness of life, is that time.

Growing up, I loved the cozy happiness of getting ready for the day’s big feast, our bustling kitchen smelling of roasted turkey, cinnamon-spiced pumpkin pies, and fresh, creamy eggnog.

Once everyone gathered in the living room, the laughter and tall tales began: mothers competing to exaggerate their children’s virtues, fathers to overstate their vices. For football fans, games start early and end late. Everyone was a friend that day, even cousins you couldn’t stand the rest of the year.

Best of all, though, was Thanksgiving’s sentiment — the teary, lump-in-the-throat gratitude for all of God’s blessings. That, even more than

Assistance for the Philippines Letter to the Editor In response to An Ambassador’s Plea, in the Oct. 16 issue: It is noteworthy and commendable that these organizations are making the Carolina FilAms aware of the severity of the devastations inflicted by natural disasters that occurred in the Philippines during the months of September and October 2009.

Every Filipino who lives outside of the Philippines generally stays connected with the kinfolk that they leave back home when they venture overseas to look for better economic conditions.

It is rare to find a Pinoy (moniker) who hasn’t extended a helping hand to their seemingly impoverished relatives struggling to survive amidst third world deprivations.

As laudable as their efforts are, their massive endeavor can only patch a small hole in the chasm of misery that has existed in this tropical haven for generations. Oftentimes cries for help

Guest column JIM BEMIS guest columnist

the food, family, and friends, is what really made the day special. Even our family nonbelievers gave thanks before food was served, although I never quite figured out whom it was they thanked.

It seemed so natural to me to believe that a higher being existed, providing us with everything that made us happy.

Nobody I knew was smart enough to have made trees, dogs, sunshine, and other things I loved. Not recognizing this, it seemed, confused being a creature with being a Creator. This was the only way the world made sense.

And if someone provided all this for us, it seemed only right to give Him thanks, and so we have Thanksgiving.

This may be the simple calculus of a child, but over the years my beliefs about the holiday haven’t really changed all that much.

We seem to instinctively know that it is right to give thanks, although we don’t all agree to whom we owe our appreciation. As the French proverb puts it, “Gratitude is the heart’s memory.”

And, I might add, the heart’s desire too.

And maybe that’s the point. The Thanksgiving tradition the Pilgrims began still endures because the human heart needs to give thanks, just as the human mind wants to understand.

Expressing gratitude is remembrance of our dependence on others, a confession of our humanity, and a way of recognizing that we do not walk alone.

James Bemis is an editorial board member, weekly columnist and film critic for California Political Review.

Write a Letter to the Editor are directed to Filipinos who live abroad.

It is lamentable that the same plea isn’t directed to the well-established, wealthy families and corporations who occupy the upper strata of the economic layer in the country.

Sadly, the assistance that is desperately needed in order to alleviate the suffering has been filled by the same folks who left the country because of it.

Mrs. Edith Pleta Mooresville, NC

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Send letters to Letters to the Editor, The Catholic News & Herald, P.O. Box 37267, Charlotte, N.C. 28237, or e-mail catholicnews@charlottediocese.org.

November 6, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 15

Stewardship Awareness Sunday In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus tells the story of a widow who has become a symbol of faith, trust, and true charity.

He recalls how well-to-do people were taking from their surplus and dropping their offerings in the temple treasury. A widow living in poverty dropped in the equivalent of two pennies—all that she had to live on.

We can only imagine the confusion on the faces of his apostles when Jesus said, “This widow…has put in more than all the others.” Her gift represented a total giving of self — an act of faith and trust in God’s divine providence.

We are all called to that same faith and trust in God; not by giving our last two cents to the Church, but by being good stewards of God’s gifts to us.

God asks each of us to spend time in prayer, searching our own consciences and responding to His generosity with grateful hearts.

Stewardship is part of our response to our baptismal calling to be disciples of Jesus Christ. It is an act of faith, trust and charity in which we return to God a

portion of the time, talent and treasure entrusted to us.

Stewardship is a way of life that calls us to recognize God as the source of everything we have, we are, and will ever become. Our response must be one of gratitude.

Stewardship Awareness Sunday is Nov. 8. It is a time to prayerfully reflect on the Gospel of the widow’s mite and give serious consideration to how each one of us gives of our time, talent, and treasure. We might ask ourselves the following questions: Do I give of the first fruits, like the widow, or do I give God the leftovers of my life?

Is everything I do centered on God through prayer, or do I only pray when I need something?

Do I give a proportionate amount of time in service to others in our parish and community, or do I think someone else will take care of that?

Do I thank God for the talents He has given me by using them in parish and community volunteer ministries, or do I

Guest Column Barbara Gaddy guest columnist

use them only when I am paid?

Do I truly recognize God as the giver of all that I have, or do I think I have somehow earned it “all by myself”?

The stewardship way of life takes a leap of faith – one that is countercultural to the messages we hear every day. It calls us to ask some tough questions and respond with faith, trust, and grateful hearts.

Barbara Gaddy is the associate director of development for the Diocese of Charlotte.

Health care reform Bishops are concerned

During the past several months, the U.S. bishops have not only followed the health care debate; but, we — like other citizens interested in the common good — have also tried to shape it. For years, the body of U.S. Catholic bishops has supported health care reform. Like many other Americans regardless of party affiliation, we hold that the status quo is ultimately unsustainable. Access to health care is a human right. Our position has been, and continues to be, that any reform should aim at health care that is accessible, affordable, and respects the life and dignity of every human being from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death.

Because health care reform is too important and legitimate a goal to allow it to be hijacked by destructive agendas such as government mandated abortion coverage, we lobbied strongly that any health care legislation be “abortion neutral.” While our opposition to abortion is well known, we recognize the sad reality that abortion is legal, available and offered by insurers as optional coverage which people can purchase if they choose to do so. However, we insist that health care reform legislation under consideration does not become a vehicle for government required payments for abortion or abortion mandates.

We were heartened when President Obama declared to the nation that “under our plan, no federal dollars will be used to fund abortions.” But, alas, the legislation that has emerged from Congressional committees does not meet our essential criteria nor does it reflect the President’s pledge despite what many have heard or read. Proposals

that have been advertised as “fixing” this problem are simply inaccurate.

Contrary to what has been in place in other federal health programs since 1973, there are no conscience provisions protecting health care providers from being forced to provide abortions and sterilizations against their moral and religious convictions (i.e. the Church amendment) or exempting religiously affiliated plans from a federal mandate for providing contraceptive coverage (i.e. the Federal Employees Heath Benefits Program).

Lest longstanding protections be swept away and be replaced by unprecedented government involvement in the destruction of innocent human life, the House bill needs the addition of the Stupak amendment so that existing policies prohibiting abortion funding and mandates, along with conscience protections, are clearly incorporated.

Likewise the Senate should amend the language of its bill so that no one is required to pay for or participate in abortion.

Besides requiring taxpayers to pay for other people’s abortions or to accept abortion coverage most Americans don’t want, present bills working through Congress also contain unwise and punitive provisions against immigrants.

Legal immigrants would still face barriers to participation that would leave them worse off than at present. Even American families of modest means under current provisions in the Senate version would be required to spend more money than they can afford for health care coverage.

Our nation is at a crossroads.

Guest Column BISHOP THOMAS WENSKI guest columnist

Policies adopted in health care reform will have an impact for good or ill for years to come. No one should be required to pay for or participate in an abortion.

Recent survey showed that 67% of U.S. adults oppose requiring people to pay for abortion coverage; 56% opposed making them do so through insurance premiums.

If President Obama and the Democrats in Congress want to advance health coverage — and not just to advance an agenda on abortion — then they should take care that their legislation be in fact “abortion neutral.” Despite our long standing support for Health Care Reform, no new legislation would be better than bad legislation. While none of the bills in their current forms merit our support — and indeed if they go forward as they are now they will demand our vigorous opposition — we still advocate for genuine health care reform, one that protects the life and dignity of all. Such a genuine reform remains a moral imperative and a vital national obligation.

Bishop Thomas Wenski has served as the fourth Bishop of Orlando since 2004.

Church needs healthy debates, pope says

The Pope Speaks POPE BENEDICT XVI VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Catholic Church needs healthy debates between theologians to increase the understanding of faith, but the debate must always uphold official church teaching and must be conducted in a way that does not confuse the faithful, Pope Benedict XVI said.

The 12th-century theological debates between St. Bernard of Clairvaux and Abelard, a French theologian, demonstrate “the usefulness and necessity of a healthy theological discussion in the church, especially when the questions debated have not been defined by the magisterium, which always must remain an essential point of reference,” the pope said.

During his weekly general audience Nov. 4, Pope Benedict spoke about what modern Catholics can learn from the debates between St. Bernard, who followed the monastic theological tradition emphasizing faith and prayer, and Abelard, who followed the scholastic tradition emphasizing the use of reason.

When a theologian strays into error, the Vatican must intervene in service of the truth, said the pope, who spent more than 20 years as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Here is the text of the pope’s audience remarks in English.

To d a y w e c o n t i n u e o u r comparison of the monastic and scholastic approaches to theology which we began last week, by looking again at Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, this time in comparison with Abelard. Both of them considered theology as “faith seeking understanding;” but whereas Bernard placed the accent on “faith,” Abelard emphasized “understanding.”

Bernard, for whom the aim of theology was to have a living experience of God, cautioned against intellectual pride which makes us think we can grasp fully the mysteries of faith. Abelard, who strove to apply the insights of philosophy to theology, saw in other religions the seeds of an openness to Christ. The respective approaches of Bernard and Abelard—one a “theology of the heart” and the other a “theology of reason”—were not without tension.

They therefore illustrate the importance of healthy theological discussion and humble obedience to ecclesial authority.

Theology must respect the principles it receives from revelation as it uses philosophy to interpret them. Whenever a theological dispute arises, everyone, and in a particular way the Magisterium, has a responsibility to safeguard the integrity of the faith. As we strive to deepen our understanding of the Gospel, may God strengthen us to extol its truth in charity.

November 6, 2009

IN THE NEWS

The Catholic News & Herald 16

Bishop says heading border diocese ‘a powerful learning experience’ WASHINGTON (CNS) — Being the bishop of a border diocese has proven “a powerful learning experience,” said Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson, Ariz.

Although, during his time in Chicago as a priest and auxiliary bishop, he had awareness of and contact with immigrant populations, being on the border has given Bishop Kicanas the opportunity to see “the struggle of migrants to realize their dreams, to be aware of their fears, their aspirations,” he said.

Bishop Kicanas, vice president of the U.S. bishops, made his remarks in an interview with Catholic News Service prior to his address at a Jesuit Refugee Service-sponsored conference, “Crisis at Our Borders: The Human Reality Behind the Immigration Debate,” held Oct. 29 at Georgetown University in Washington.

“A migrant is a person possessed by a dream — just like us,” Bishop Kicanas said at the conference, co-hosted by the Institute for the Study of International Migration, Woodstock Theological Center and the university’s Center for Social Justice Research, Teaching and Service.

“You’ve probably heard people say

on television, ‘What is it about “illegal” that you don’t understand?’, or, ‘Those people are criminals — felons! They’re taking our jobs.’ But the reality is so much more complex,” the bishop said.

“Migration is a problem that calls for international solutions,” Bishop Kicanas added, noting that migration is an issue with “every country in the world,” because of war, torture, weather, refugees and the economy.

One reason for the apparent breakdown in U.S. immigration policy is that there is “no line” that immigrants can join to get on a path to citizenship, according to Frank Sherry, executive director of America’s Voice, an immigrant advocacy organization.

There are only 5,000 visas for permanent residency for every 500,000 immigrants who make it each year into the United States, he said. There are an estimated 12 million immigrants “living in the shadows” with no way to gain U.S. citizenship under current law, he said. Meanwhile, Sherry noted, 5 million minors, all of them U.S. citizens, are the children of immigrants unable to apply for citizenship.

“We’re in the 21st century and we have a set of 1950s policies,” he said.

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Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, president of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, speaks during a press conference at the Vatican Nov. 3. The press conference previewed the Sixth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, which his office is convoking Nov. 9-12 at the Vatican.

At right is Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the Vatican spokesman.

Respect for life includes welcoming migrants

Vatican officials preview world congress VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Catholics’ respect for human life and dignity must be clear in the way they welcome migrants and refugees, offer them pastoral care and lobby their governments for fairer treatment of people on the move, Vatican officials said.

Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, president of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, said globalization is not only an economic phenomenon. It also has an impact on the movement of people, and people must be the focus of Christian attention, he said.

“We know as Christians that life’s core is fundamentally spiritual and that the challenge is how to promote and safeguard every human person,” focusing particularly on the most vulnerable, including migrants who leave home in search of a better life and refugees

forced to flee violence or oppression, the archbishop said Nov. 3.

The archbishop spoke at a Vatican press conference previewing the Sixth World Congress on the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Refugees, which his office is convoking Nov. 9-12 at the Vatican.

With globalization the church not only has had to reach out to welcome and assist people on the move, but also to try to address situations that force them to seek a new life away from their homeland as well as attitudes and policies that make it difficult or impossible for them to live with dignity in a new land, Archbishop Veglio said.

Christians are obliged to work with other people of good will to build “a civilization that is worthy of the human person, meaning a life model wherein each person can enjoy legitimate freedom and security; where suffering, discrimination and fear are eliminated to the greatest degree possible; (and) where respect for fundamental human rights — exercised with their corresponding duties — is guaranteed,” he said.

Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, secretary of the council, said the congress would bring together more than 300 representatives of bishops’ conferences, Catholic aid agencies and religious orders to look at how to improve the way Catholics welcome and assist newcomers.

Citizens have a right to be concerned about the security of their homelands, but for Christians security “must always been seen together with welcome — that is the Catholic approach,” Archbishop Marchetto said.

The council secretary said the number of people living outside their homelands is huge: an estimated 200 million migrants in the world and an estimated 11 million refugees who have fled violence or persecution.