Feb 6, 1998

Page 1

ii/^a

OH!

"iiiH

mm^

m

Mou33"noo 301;)

m

Lie

(13JiIW¥¥¥V¥¥¥=iVl<¥¥W¥¥¥¥¥¥l=m¥>fi'

News & Herald Volume

Serving Catholics in Western North Carolina in th e Dio cese of Charlo tte

Number 22

7

Protests

«

February

6,

1998

Go Unheeded

Karia Tucker

Executed HUNTSVILLE, Texas (CNS)

Despite protests from Pope John Paul II, American Catholic bishops and other

groups opposed to the death penalty, convicted killer Karla Faye Tucker was executed Feb. 3 in Huntsville. Tucker, given a lethal injection, bethe first woman executed in Texas

came

since the Civil

War and

the first in the

nation since 1984.

Before her death, the 38-year-old Tucker apologized to the families of her victims and said, "I hope God will give you peace for this." Speaking to her own husband and other family members, she said, "I

am

going to be face to face with Jesus now. I love all of you very much. I will see

you

all

when you

get there.

I

will wait

for you."

Less than a week before the execution. Bishop William S. Skylstad of Spokane, Wash., chairman of the U.S. bishops' Domestic Policy Committee, had urged Texas Gov. George W. Bush to "heed the calls of our Holy Father, our brother bishops and concerned citizens

Texas to grant clemency in this case." "Our call for mercy in this case does way detract from the brutality of Ms. Tucker's crime," Bishop Skylstad wrote Bush. "We can only imagine the depth of the loss felt by the surviving in

not in any piece, "I Am the Resurrection and the Life," is one of two stained-glass works designed by Our Lady of Mercy Church parishioner Betti Pettinati-Longinotti for the Winston-Salem parish. The design is placed in the church, while another, "I Am the Way, the Truth, and the Life," resides in the eucharistic chapel at Joseph House on the parish grounds.

The above [

See Tucker, page 6

RCIA Commission Gathers Catechists, Offers Support By

JIMMY ROSTAR

Baptist

Staff Writer

CHARLOTTE — Those who the

community of faith through

Church

in

training for those

serve

the Rite

Tryon. "This is team are charged with

who

rating Scripture, prayer, theology, sacred

to help

mission of the Diocese of Charlotte sponsored a workshop Jan. 10 at St. Thomas

Aquinas Church for

RCIA team mem-

bers, pastoral associates, clergy,

one involved

and any-

in coordinating the initia-

tion process at the parish level.

Through

"The people here today have

vari-

ous degrees of experience and opportunities to go to workshops and learn," said Joanna Case, who is serving as commission co-chairperson with Father

Lawrence Heiney, pastor of

St.

John the

list

pose, Villapando said, is vice to pastors and parish RCIA staffs." "This is not a juridical body and does not fit into any official diocesan organizational flow chart," Villapando added. "It is not policy-making. Its reason for

for full reception into the church.

have a new resource

them celebrate their ministry. The recently appointed RCIA Com-

of Faith Formation, submitted a

in their parishes."

such gatherings, commission members hope to offer a network of support to those who make the RCIA process come alive for the men and women preparing

in the diocese

fice

of quaUfied individuals.

Case, a board member of the North American Forum on the Catechumenate, was one of four presenters of ideas, suggestions and resources at the workshop, attended by 75 catechists who traveled from as far away as the Asheville and Greensboro vicariates to attend. "When you're teaching, you also constantly need to update yourself, so I really think this workshop is great," said Helga Bracke, an RCIA team member at St. Therese Church in Mooresville. Like Bracke, dozens of catechists heard about and experienced ways of incorpo-

of Christian Initiation of Adults process

Villapando, director of the diocesan Of-

the responsibility of the catechumentate

tradition, doctrine

RCIA

and discussion

in their

group sessions. The commission was appointed late last fall by Bishop William G. Curlin, after Father Anthony Marcaccio, diocesan director of liturgy, and Dr. Cris

existence

is

primary purto "provide ser-

Its

service, service

and more

service."

includes visible signs tices

itself

liturgical prac-

and understanding of history

lation to Scripture, for instance

in re-

that

give people a very real sense of Jesus

and his purpose, she added.

Workshop

sessions explored the role

of sponsors in the initiation process, the

wealth of resources available to present-

and the variety of prayer styles and forms that can enhance one's faith life. Throughout the seminar pervaded an emphasis on making the process an exciting and experiential one for those in ers,

In addition to Father

Case, commission

important part of our Catholic faith," said

Case. Like the sacraments, faith

Heiney and

members

are

Linda

Schlensker of St. Andrew the Apostle Church, Mars Hill; Miriam Picconi of St.

Thomas Aquinas Church; Carlos Castaneda of St. John Neumann Church, Charlotte; Capuchin Father Martin

RCIA groups. "Know who they are and where they are in their faith journey," said Father

Thomas

Schratz to catechists during a session on

Aquinas Church; and Linda Licata of St. Paul the Apostle Church, Greensboro. At the workshop, facilitators evidenced various ways to illustrate tenets

prayer he led with Picconi. The two are

Schratz, parochial vicar of St.

of Catholicism during

"The sense of

RCIA

leaders of the RCIA team at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, and they pointed out ways of encouraging and creating meth-

sessions.

the tangible

is

a very

See RCIA Commission, page 3


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
Feb 6, 1998 by Catholic News Herald - Issuu