OND Mar. B Vol. 71 No. 6

VOL. 71, NO. 6

WWW.CROOKSTON.ORG

Making Catholic voices count TURN TO PAGE 6 TO READ ABOUT WHAT PARTICIPANTS OF CATHOLICS AT THE CAPITOL LEARNED AND SHARED WITH MINNESOTA LEGISLATORS. Catholics at the Capitol attendees gather in the Capitol Rotunda for the closing rally on March 9, while the bishops of Minnesota line up for a photo.

More than 1,000 Catholics from around the state came for the day of education and advocacy.

(Photo credit: Katrina Genereux/OND)

Inset: Bishop John M. Quinn of the Diocese of Winona, Bishop Paul D. Sirba of the Diocese of Duluth, Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Bishop John M. LeVoir of the Diocese of New Ulm, Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner of the Diocese of Crookston, Bishop Donald J. Kettler of the Diocese of St. Cloud and Auxiliary Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis hold signs in the Capitol Rotunda just before the Catholics at the Capitol closing rally. (Photo credit: Margaret Stokman/MCC)

Middle School Youth Rally day of fun, sacraments Keynote speaker Chris Kostelc leads a game to kick off the 2017 Ignite Middle School Youth Rally held at St. Bernard’s, Thief River Falls, on March 19. Students listened to Kostelc’s presentation, experienced Eucharistic Adoration, had the opportunity for Confession, spent time in small group discussion and celebrated Mass with Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner.

VISIT FACEBOOK.COM/OURNORTHLANDDIOCESE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS OF THE MIDDLE SCHOOL YOUTH RALLY. COVERAGE OF THE EVENT WILL APPEAR IN THE NEXT ISSUE OF OND.

INSIDE VOL. 71, NO. 6:

Pg. 3 - Rite of Election & Call to Continuing Conversion Pg. 8 - New Evangelization Summit coming to Bemidji Pg. 12 - 2017 DAA Status Update

MARCH 22, 2017

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March 22, 2017

A

COMMENTARY

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

Voice from the Valley

BY BISHOP MICHAEL J. HOEPPNER

CATHOLICS AT THE CAPITOL I must say, March 9, 2017 – our day in St. Paul and the Capitol – was outstanding! Catholics of other states have held such events, but our day here in Minnesota stands out for two reasons. First, ours was the biggest. The bishops of the Minnesota Catholic Conference had hoped that at least 750 or 800 Catholics would participate. We had for sure 1,000 join in the day maybe even 1,200! From what I’m told, this makes our turnout the largest. Second, our day was outstanding because it was organized to allow for all, not just some, of the senators and representatives to be visited. Catholics were able to visit their representatives and senators who are their neighbors, people from their own district.

We blanketed the state and got our message out about tax credits to ensure equal opportunity for education in Minnesota, family assistance for the poor of Minnesota, fostering real health care and opposing

assisted suicide. The day was most outstanding because it began with prayer, continued with prayer and ended with prayer.

There was standing room only for Morning Prayer and Mass at the start of the day. In the Capitol’s Rotunda, groups continually prayed the rosary throughout the afternoon. The event ended with a rally in the Rotunda and prayer. There certainly was an outstanding spirit among the group. I know the Holy Spirit was with us so that our efforts will bear good fruit for our common life together as Minnesotans. I offer my thanks to all who made this outstanding day possible.

CHRISM MASS I was privileged, to conduct a Lenten retreat day for the curial staff of Bishop Folda in the Diocese of Fargo. The retreat was framed by the beautiful scene from the Gospel reading for the Third Sunday of Lent. This reading is the story of the Samaritan Woman at the well from the fourth chapter of John’s Gospel. Jesus initiates the conversation by saying to

the woman: “Give me a drink.”

St. Augustine comments that what Jesus is really asking for is her faith. The whole ensuing conversation centers around Jesus’ words: “If you only knew what God is offering and who it is that is saying to you: ‘Give me a drink’, you would have been the one to ask, and he would have given you living water.” (Jn. 4:10) A bit later in St. John’s Gospel, Jesus goes to Jerusalem for the Jewish Feast of Tabernacles. On the last day of the festival, John tells us, “Jesus stood there and cried out: ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me!

Let him come and drink who believes in me!’” The narrator adds, “As scripture says: ‘From his side shall flow fountains of living water. He was speaking of the Spirit which those who believed in him were to receive for, as of yet, there was no Spirit because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (Jn. 7:37-39) Jesus helps the Samaritan woman at the well and others of her village to come to a greater understanding of who he is and the gift of eternal life

he offers.

I am happy to invite you to this year’s Chrism Mass, which will be held on Monday, April 10, at 6:30 p.m. Representatives from all our parishes and the various institutions of the diocese will attend. You don’t have to be your parish representative to attend! I especially encourage families to make the trip so that the children might experience this wonderful liturgy. We will begin a half hour earlier than in years past in hopes that this will make traveling easier for those who come from a distance.

The living water that Jesus speaks about is the Holy Spirit.

As Jesus hung upon the cross, his side was pierced and blood and water flowed out signifying the sacramental life of the Church. The Holy Spirit comes to us in this sacramental life, beginning with Baptism. At the Chrism Mass, the bishop blesses the Oil of Catechumens and the Oil of the Sick and he consecrates Chrism so that through their use, the Holy Spirit and di-

vine life might flow to us.

Many years ago, recognizing the presence of the Holy Spirit in the chrism, St. Cyril of Jerusalem wrote: “Take care not to imagine that this muron, this chrism oil, is anything ordinary.

In the same way as the bread of the Eucharist, after the invocation of the Holy Spirit, is no more ordinary bread, but the Body of Christ, so the holy chrism is no longer ordinary, or, if you prefer, common, but it is the charism of Christ, made efficacious of the Holy Spirit by the presence of his divinity.”

I look forward to the Chrism Mass this year and hope you can come to join in the celebration. May it help us to better understand who Jesus is for us and the wonderful gift he offers us, the living water of the Holy Spirit.

BISHOP’S CALENDAR (USPS 414-940)

April 4

7:45 a.m.

Mass, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

April 5

9:30 a.m.

Diocesan Cemetery Board Meeting, Chancery

April 9

9:00 a.m.

Palm Sunday Mass, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

April 10

6:30 p.m.

Chrism Mass, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

April 13

7:00 p.m.

Mass of the Lord’s Supper, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

April 14

3:00 p.m.

Good Friday Lenten Service, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

Associate Editor: Mrs. Janelle C. Gergen

jgergen@crookston.org

April 15

8:30 p.m.

Easter Vigil, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston

Editorial Assistant: Mrs. Katrina Genereux

kgenereux@crookston.org

Our Northland Diocese is a semi-monthly newspaper committed to publishing Good News for the purpose of strengthening and furthering the Reign of God in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Crookston.

Subscriptions: $16.34 per year in the diocese, $17.88 per year outside the diocese.

Publisher:

The Most Reverend Michael J. Hoeppner Bishop of the Diocese of Crookston

Editor:

Dr. Mark Krejci

Proofreader:

NATIONAL COLLECTION UPDATE

The faithful of the Diocese of Crookston generously supported the Archdiocese for the Military Services national collection with a donation of: $23,290.53.

VICTIM ASSISTANCE STATEMENT

If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, your first call should be to law enforcement.

If you have been abused by a Catholic priest or another person in Church ministry, the Diocese of Crookston Victim’s Assistance Coordinator is also available to offer you help and healing.

Please contact Louann McGlynn at 218-281-7895 (24-hour confidential number) or Lmcglynn@ crookston.org.

Deacon Dan Hannig

For questions about subscriptions or address changes, please contact: Mrs. Renee Tate at rtate@crookston.org Periodical postage paid in Crookston, MN and additional mailing offices.

Postmaster: send address changes to: Our Northland Diocese PO Box 610, Crookston, MN 56716-0610 Phone: 218-281-4533 Publishing dates and submission deadlines for news and advertisements can be found online: www.crookston.org/ond/

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

LOCAL

March 22, 2017

3

Preparing for full communion with the Catholic Church

By Katrina Genereux Staff Writer, OND

CROOKSTON, MINN. – The Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion was held at Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston, at 3 p.m., on Feb. 19.

Each year, on the first Sunday of Lent, people who seek full communion with the Catholic Church attend these rites at their local cathedrals.

Bishop Hoeppner greeted the catechumens and candidates, saying, “We are happy to be here this afternoon to enroll the catechumens into the Book of the Elect ... and to encourage the elect ... to encounter Jesus in the Easter sacraments.

We are happy to be here today to acknowledge and encourage the candidates as you too prepare to encounter Jesus in the Easter sacraments and come to fuller communion with us in his bride, the Church.”

This year, six catechumens from three parishes signed their names in the Book of the Elect during the Rite of Election.

Catechumen are those who desire to receive all three of the sacraments of initiation during the Easter Vigil Mass. After the Rite of Election they are called the elect.

The catechumens were presented, along with their godparents, to Bishop Hoeppner.

After going through a formula of questions and answers, they were invited to come forward and sign the Book of the Elect.

Bishop Hoeppner then showed the book with their signatures to the assembly.

Bishop Hoeppner then greeted each of the elect and presented them with a holy card featuring Mary, Undoer of Knots.

Next, the Call to Continuing Conversion was celebrated.

There were 12 candidates from six parishes. Candidates are those who have been previ-

Candidates and their sponsors are presented to Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner during the Call to Continuing Conversion held at Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception on March 5. (Photos credit: Katrina Genereux/OND)

Aida Daranovic, a catechumen from St. Francis de Sales, Moorhead, signs the Book of the Elect during the March 5 Rite of Election.

ously baptized, and now seek to complete their Christian initiation and receive Confirmation and Eucharist during the Easter Vigil Mass.

After being presented to Bishop Hoeppner, affirmed by their sponsors and the assembly, and recognized, Bishop

CORRECTION: St. Francis de Sales, Moorhead, Lenten Penance Service was omitted from the OND Lenten Reconciliation Listing published on March 8.

Please note - St. Francis de Sales will hold a Penance Service on Monday, March 27 at 7:00 p.m. at 601 15th Avenue N Moorhead, MN 56560

Our Northland Diocese apologizes for the error!

Hoeppner greeted each candidate and presented them with a prayer card.

Following these rites, intercessory prayers were offered for the elect and the candidates as they continue moving toward the Easter sacraments.

“Know that we will continue

Bishop Hoeppner greets Shane Defreece, a candidate from St. Bernard’s, Thief River Falls, at the conclusion of the Call to Continuing Conversion. Bishop Hoeppner handed out holy cards featuring Mary, Undoer of Knots to each of the candidates and elect.

to pray for and rejoice with you during these special days as we journey, all of us, through this Lent and prepare ourselves to celebrate at Easter Our Lord’s suffering, dying and rising to

new life in him,” Bishop Hoeppner said.

Afterwards, a reception honoring the elect and the candidates was held in the Cathedral Parish dining room.

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March 22, 2017

COMMENTARY

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

Supporting, encouraging new growth in family farming The decline of small, family farms and rural communities isn’t just a problem for smalltown residents or American Gothic enthusiasts. It carries with it consequences for all Minnesotans that we should address.

That’s why the Minnesota Catholic Conference has lent its support to HF 608/SF 1414, a bill that would make it easier for beginning farmers or ranchers to enter into this important work. This legislation would create tax incentives for older, established farmers to rent or sell their land to new or beginning farmers.

This bill, along with HF 1461/SF 1317, which would create grants to be used to increase urban agriculture production capacity and fresh food access, are practical, sound steps that each Minnesotan can support to restore a vocational vision to agriculture, whether it is our particular calling or not.

CHANGING LANDSCAPE Rural America and agriculture have changed considerably since my great-grandfather, Paul Dehn, a staunch German Catholic, first put his plow in rural North Dakota soil in the early 1900s. In his day, farms were small and families were big. The millions of family farms that dotted the countryside supported thriving rural communities across the nation; Small Town, USA, was growing, and Main Street was lined with businesses, schools, and churches.

FAITH IN THE PUBLIC ARENA

By Shawn Peterson

Associate Director for Public Policy Minnesota Catholic Conference

ACTION ALERT Newcomers to agriculture face many obstacles in Minnesota.

Let’s ask our lawmakers to pass HF 608/SF 1414. The bill would make it easier for them to live out this important vocation. This legislation would create tax incentives for older, established farmers to rent or sell their land to new or beginning farmers, instead of turning it over to large corporate farms. You can also ask your legislators to support HF 1461/SF 1317, which would create grants to be used to increase urban agriculture production capacity and fresh food access.

To find contact information for your state senator and state representative, call 651-296-8338 or visit www.gis.leg.mn/iMaps/districts/ But agriculture has changed in America. Farms have become bigger, while families are smaller. In the pursuit of higher yields and with fewer children choosing to embrace the farming vocation, farms have consolidated into huge enterprises.

As a result, rural communities have become stagnant, the network of business and social relationships once centered around family farming are now waning.

In 1920, there were nearly

6.5 million farms nationwide, with the average size no more than 200 acres. But by the early 2000s, the numbers had flipped.

The total number of farms had dropped to under 2 million, but the average farm size had ballooned to well over 400 acres.

In fact, only 10 percent of farms account for 70 percent of all food produced in America today.

BIG PROBLEMS WITH BIG AG This shift towards more

large-scale, industrial agricultural operations has brought with it serious consequences.

For one, the concentration of food production in the hands of a few (and increasingly in the form of fewer and fewer genetic strains) undermines food security, which would be better served by more suppliers and by biodiversity in our seeds, crops, and even livestock.

For another, industrial agriculture’s reliance upon heavy machinery and chemical usage to produce maximum yields is taking a toll on creation. Topsoil is being depleted at record rates. And agricultural abuse has environmental implications beyond just our ability to grow food: The Environmental Protection Agency reports that chemical usage in agriculture is responsible for 70 percent of water surface pollution in America.

The change in the face of agriculture has coincided with an exodus from rural America. According to U.S. census data, 60 percent of the nation’s population lived in rural areas in 1900, compared to less than one-fifth of Americans today.

Fewer farmers working the land means fewer people living in rural areas, fewer families attending small community parishes, fewer children attending rural Catholic schools and fewer people opening businesses to serve their rural neighbors.

AGRICULTURE AS VOCATION The problems facing agriculture in America are complicat-

ed, but one part of the solution could be restoring a vocational vision to agriculture, the type of vision that upholds farming as not merely a way to make a living, but as a comprehensive and fuller way of life.

The Catholic Church has long championed this vocational approach to agriculture, recognizing the farmer’s unique call to be a steward of God’s creation, but also to nurture social and even spiritual growth in his or her house and community as well. Pope Benedict XVI has called family farming a “guardian of values and a natural agent of solidarity between generations.”

Restoring a vocational approach to agriculture necessitates restoring more farmers to the land. Currently, the median age for ranchers and farmers is 56 years, and there are not enough younger people waiting in the wings to take on the load when the current generation retires. Much of this is due to the prohibitive cost for the new or beginning farmer. But if we are to attract more young farmers and their families back to the countryside to build community, practice sustainable agriculture, and share in the work of the Creator, we will need public policies that support them in their vocation. Tax credits to support new farmers and to encourage others in urban areas to get back to the land are a step in the right direction.

Understanding Jesus in terms of his fundamental being I have been reading, with both profit and delight, Thomas Joseph White’s latest book, “The Incarnate Lord: A Thomistic Study in Christology”. Father White, one of the brightest of a new generation of Thomas interpreters, explores a range of topics in this text – the relationship between Jesus’ human and divine natures, whether the Lord experienced the beatific vision, the theological significance of Christ’s cry of anguish on the cross, his descent into Hell, etc. – but for the purposes of this article, I want to focus on a theme of particular significance in the theological and catechetical context today.

Father White argues that the classical tradition of Christology, with its roots in the texts of the Gospels and the Epistles of Paul, understood Jesus onto-

WORD ON FIRE

By Bishop Robert Barron

Founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles

logically, that is to say, in terms of his fundamental being or existential identity; whereas modern and contemporary Christology tends to understand Jesus psychologically or relationally.

And though this distinction seems, prima facie, rather arcane, it has tremendous significance for our preaching, teaching, and evangelizing.

In the famous scene at Caesarea-Philippi, Jesus turns to his Apostles and asks, “Who do people say that I am?” He doesn’t ask what people are saying about his preaching or his miracle-working or his impact on the culture; he asks who they say he is. St. John’s Gospel commences with a magnificent assertion regarding, not the

teaching of the Lord, but rather his being: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God … and the Word was made flesh and dwelled among us.” In his letter to the Philippians, St. Paul writes, “Though he was in the form of God, Jesus did not deem equality with God a thing to be grasped at,” implying thereby an ontological identity between Jesus and the God of Israel.

Following these prompts – and there are many others in the New Testament – the great theological tradition continued to speculate about the ontology of the Founder. Councils from Nicea to Chalcedon formulated ever more precise articulations of the being, nature, and person of Jesus, and the most significant theologians of the early

centuries – Origen, Irenaeus, Gregory of Nyssa, Maximus the Confessor, Augustine, etc.

– tirelessly speculated about these same matters. This preoccupation with the being of Jesus signals, by the way, a major point of demarcation between Christianity and the other great religions of the world. Buddhists are massively interested in the teaching of the Buddha, but they are more or less indifferent to the ontology of the Buddha; no self-respecting Muslim worries about the existential make-up of Muhammad; and no Jew is preoccupied with the “being” of Moses or Abraham. Father White points out that the time-honored practice of ontological speculation regarding Jesus comes to a kind BISHOP BARRON: Cont. on Page 7

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

COMMENTARY

March 22, 2017

5

You may not believe this, but every family needs Confession For Catholics of a certain age, or for those who are members of a parish whose church was not either built or renovated from about 1970 onward, you know what it was like to walk into the old-style confessional.

It was dark, you knelt down in front of the screen, the sliding door covering the screen was opened by Father on the other side, and you began with those wonderful words, “Bless me Father, for I have sinned.” You may wonder why I call them “wonderful words”. I call them this because when you pray this phrase, you reflect your humility before God. You say to God, “I make mistakes, I mess up.”

By asking for the blessing, we are able to experience a grace that – in the words used by the priest – absolves us from our sins. Beginning with the wonderful words at the beginning of the sacrament and continuing through the absolution, we receive God’s grace which we are to take into the world.

Over the years, I have often been asked: “What can I do to be a better husband, wife, parent, child, brother, sister, grandpa, grandma?” In the very act

PRAYING WITH THE FAMILY

By Dr. Mark Krejci

Director of the Office of Marriage, Family and Life

to this question greatly varies from situation to situation.

But there is definitely one thing that you should do no matter what you have done wrong in your family – and I hope you can guess what this is based on what I have written so far! Go and confess your sins and experience God’s grace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

While a number of Catholics go at least one time per year (43 percent according to the Pew Research Center) over half do not. We can talk forever about why that is the case but I do not wish to use space in this column talking about how we got here as a Church. Let’s talk about where we should be

of asking this question we are admitting that we are not perfect in our families. Good for you who do this! We all make a mess of things. From committing slight errors, failing to meet the needs of our family members or emotionally wounding members of our family, we all sin against our families (unless you are a saint I suppose). We fail to live up to God’s expectation that we reflect God’s love in our families. Good for you if you admit it to yourself, better if you can admit this to the members of your family whom you hurt with your actions, and even better if you decide to do something about it.

What can you do? The answer

going. If you want to be a better person, a better member of your family, a better person in the world, go to Confession. If it has been awhile, don’t worry about not knowing what to say because most priests have a card in the room to help you with that. Not convinced yet?

I knew a couple whose marriage had really hit a tough time.

They did not like each other, when they did talk an argument usually broke out, they blamed the other person for everything wrong in their marriage and each saw themselves as someone who did nothing wrong.

They thought they should work to save their marriage but it was hard for them to even talk about solutions without feelings being hurt. So they agreed that, to work on their marriage, they would start to go to Confession every other week. Of course they went into the reconciliation room separately, and they never talked to each other what they were listing as their sins or what Father told them to do for penance, but the act of humility of going to Confession and especially the grace they received from God through the sacra-

ment opened their hearts to each other. It was a looooong process, but I bet if that couple would have gone into a divorce lawyer they would not be married today. Instead they consulted a different type of advocate, the Holy Spirit, and received the power to re-engage in their daily sacramental marriage.

Many Catholics go in for their annual trip to Confession during Lent and God bless you for that. Let me give you a suggestion: use this annual visit to start a regular routine. Go to Reconciliation perhaps every two or three weeks, or even once a month, and make it a point to reflect on how you have letdown your family, your spouse, and others. Bring these sins before God in the sacrament. You will be given a “booster shot” of God’s grace which you will bring back to your family. If you remain hesitant, remember these words of encouragement from Pope Francis: “It is not a torture chamber where you’ll be raked over the coals,” but rather “Confession is an encounter with Jesus whose ‘mercy motivates us to do better.’”

Deciding on priorities ... when the bleacher seat trumps the church pew This issue of OND, I thank guest columnist, Bob Noel, of St. Joseph’s Church in Moorhead, for the following words on a subject we too often don’t want to discuss.

A few weeks ago, I received news that my former high school basketball coach, Cactus Warner, had passed away.

Cactus was returning to Halstad on Feb. 19 to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Norman County West’s state championship when he was involved in a serious car accident. Cactus, always a competitor, would not win this battle. The injuries he sustained were too great. Sadly, Cactus passed away on Monday, February 27.

Cactus Warner was a fantastic coach. A patient teacher of the game, he never yelled, never called out or belittled his players. He had a masterful understanding of basketball and a methodical way of teaching it. From basketball, he culled many life metaphors of teamwork and character development. At appropriate times, Cactus would pause practice to share these lessons with his players. We loved playing for Cactus.

On Thursday, March 2, we celebrated a Mass of Chris-

LIFE

FIRST

By Father Don Braukmann

Parochial Vicar - St. Philip’s Parish, Bemidji and St. Charles Parish, Pennington

tian Burial in the gymnasium at Norman County West High School in Halstad. Mass was held on the very court where Cactus played basketball in the late 1950s and early 60s; the same court where Cactus coached dozens of young men who loved and respected him.

Appropriately, “Cactus Court” now bears the name of this great mentor.

Prior to Mass, one of Cactus’ cousins led his family and friends in a rosary. It was beautiful. During the rosary, I was flooded with memories from 30 years ago. One memory of Cactus in particular overshadows the rest. Midway through the season during my junior year, I approached Cactus to let him know that I would be attending a

Teens Encounter Christ (TEC) weekend, and that I would have to miss a big game against the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons. Approaching Cactus, I was apprehensive. I tried to downplay the importance of the retreat, even blaming my mom for “forcing” me to go. Simply stated, I did not want to disappoint Cactus.

When I shared my request with Cactus; he simply looked me in the eye and with conviction said, “Good for you Bobby.

My daughter went on a retreat like that and it changed her life.

Have a great time and don’t worry about the game.”

In that moment, I realized that my coach understood basketball. For him, basketball was an opportunity and a platform to teach young people about

what is most important in life, and in this case, it allowed Cactus to affirm what was most important in my life: my faith.

That TEC weekend experience was the single most profound marker on my faith journey. During that weekend, I experienced a deep and more intimate relationship with Jesus Christ, and I recommitted myself to my Catholic faith. I often think, “What if I would have missed that opportunity?

Where would I be today on my faith walk?” It was a game changer for me.

I have been teaching for over 20 years now, and I have shared that story many times. I share it when I sense student athletes feeling trapped, pressured and exhausted as sports and activities like volleyball, hockey and basketball have become yearround, overlapping and sometimes seven-day-a-week commitments.

When I was a kid, Wednesday evenings and Sundays were sacred. Schools, churches and communities had an unwritten contract respecting this time. It was understood that whether kids were practicing their faith or not, their need for “Sabbath” would be honored. Over

the years, parents, coaches, leagues and organizations have slowly whittled away at these designated times for faith and family. It seems that each team, sport, and league vies for “its time,” too often carving away at Wednesdays and Sundays.

Churches and youth groups find themselves like Lazarus, at the gate of the rich man, longing for the scraps that fall from the table of these hoarding athletic schedules.

For example, this past Ash Wednesday evening, the Minnesota State High School League scheduled sectional hockey championships across the state of Minnesota. When I watched the sports news that night I thought, “Wait, this can’t be right? This must be day-old news or something. Sanctioned athletic events on Ash Wednesday?”

Once again, the bleacher seat trumped the church pew.

I wondered how many athletes had to reshuffle their school schedules in order to attend an Ash Wednesday service. How many fans had to make the choice between worshipping with their faith comLIFE FIRST: Cont. on Page 7

6

March 22, 2017

LOCAL

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

More than 1,000 Catholics visit state legislators At least 40 from Diocese of Crookston attend day of education, advocacy ST. PAUL, MINN. – On March 9, during what was called an historic day, more than 1,000 Catholics gathered in St. Paul to learn about upcoming legislation and visit their senators and representatives.

The event, Catholics at the Capitol, was planned by the Minnesota Catholic Conference, the public policy voice of the Catholic Church in Minnesota. According to Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner, this event was a way for Minnesota Catholics to have a positive impact on the state through sharing Gospel values.

“As a bishop, I was so pleased to see people become willing to be engaged in the political process. That can result in good things happening. We’ve been looking for a way to make that happen for a number of years,” he said.

All of the state’s bishops took part in the day which began with Mass, followed by briefings on legislative issues, instruction on visiting lawmakers and inspiration from two dynamic speakers at the RiverCentre in St. Paul. After lunch, attendees went to the State Capitol to meet with their legislators, spend time praying the rosary, and tour the newly-renovated Capitol building.

GETTING PREPARED Bishop James D. Conley of the Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska, delivered the first keynote address. He is a member of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ ad hoc Committee for Religious Liberty, and spoke about how the State of Minnesota needs to hear Catholic voices and perspectives.

“Believers have a critical and important role to play in the public life for the common good to build a culture of life and a civilization of love,” he said. “We must do all of this as disciples, as missionary disciples of Jesus Christ. Your state needs your faith and your witness.”

He spoke about how the success of democracy depends on the participation of believers.

He said that while Catholics may be politically homeless, their true home is God’s kingdom. He encouraged everyone to trust in God’s plan especially when the results are not visible on earth.

“The time in which we live is a very difficult one for Catho-

These issues were the focus of Catholics at the Capitol: Expanding Educational Opportunity:

Opportunity Scholarship Tax Credits (HF 386/SF 256)

Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner shares a few remarks to close the morning session of Catholics at the Capitol, which was held March 9 at the RiverCentre in St. Paul. (Photo credit: Katrina Genereux/OND)

lics and for our nation. The Church in Minnesota has faced very great difficulties in recent years and will continue to face them. Still, God calls us to be faithful to our mission and to trust in him,” Bishop Conley said.

Gloria Purvis, the chairperson for Black Catholics United for Life and an EWTN television and radio host delivered the second address.

“All of us gathered here today to go over to the seat of power in Minnesota to give glory to God. That’s why Minnesota is going to come back to the truth. That’s why Minnesota is going to be pulled back away from being detached from reality when it makes public policy,” Purvis said.

She also shared her personal perspective on the legislative issues being addressed by Catholics at the Capitol. She encouraged those gathered to continue voicing their concerns, regardless of obstacles they may encounter.

HIGHLIGHTING THE ISSUES MCC chose the following three issues as the focus of Catholics at the Capitol: expanding educational opportunity, fostering family economic stability and protecting life and advancing care.

“We thought these three issues in particular were clear,

important and ones that could be enthusiastically presented to our legislators,” Bishop Hoeppner said. “How wonderful it was that we had 1,000 plus people blanketing all the districts – the representatives and senators were all visited on that day.”

Bishop John M. Levoir, of the Diocese of New Ulm; Bishop Donald J. Kettler, of the Diocese of St. Cloud; and Auxiliary Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens each delivered a short presentation about one of the issues. A video was also shown highlighting a personal story from each issue, and Jason Adkins, Executive Director of MCC, shared talking points for the legislative visits.

AJ Garcia, the Director of the diocesan Office of New Evangelization and Justice, coordinated the trip for around 40 attendees from the Diocese of Crookston. He appreciated the morning program and training.

“The MCC did a great job of putting together thought-provoking and interesting videos and at the same time gave essential information that people of all ages and backgrounds could consider and digest,” he said. “There was an energy in the room of excitement and confidence – excitement to be a part of the historical event CATHOLIC VOICES: Cont. on Page 9

This bill creates tax credits for individuals and organizations that donate to scholarship granting organizations. Low- and middleincome students are eligible to receive those scholarships. The bill also creates a refundable tax credit for low-income families to apply toward private school tuition.

“What we are asking the government of the State of Minnesota to do is make it so underprivileged children [can] be allowed a quality education.”

– Auxiliary Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis

Fostering Family Economic Opportunity:

Boost Minnesota Family Investment Program Assistance (HF 1603/SF 806) and Remove MFIP Marriage Penalty (HF 1453/SF 1165) The Minnesota Family Investment Program (MFIP) cash grant increase will make an additional $100 per month available in cash assistance to families in poverty. The benefit has not been increased since 1986. Removing the marriage penalty will create an 18-month transition period after a couple marries before their MFIP benefits end.

“We believe that in a time of budget surplus ... that the needs of the poor and vulnerable should come first.”

– Jason Adkins, Executive Director, MCC

Protecting Life and Advancing Care:

Legalize Assisted Suicide (HF 1885/SF 1572) and Palliative Care Advisory Committee (HF 345/SF 112) Legislation has been introduced to legalize assisted suicide.

It lacks sufficient safeguards, and could allow for elder abuse and harm to vulnerable persons. It also undermines the practice of medicine and creates economic incentives that could endanger those with disabilities or anyone who needs costly treatment. Instead, Minnesota should be embracing policies that advance care, such as the Palliative Care Advisory Committee, which would advise the legislature about ways palliative care access and delivery can be improved in our state. Palliative care focuses on pain management and symptom management for people at all stages of life.

“Care is the answer; love is the answer. Death is never the answer.”

– Bishop John M. LeVoir, Diocese of New Ulm

Stay informed by joining the Minnesota Catholic Advocacy Network by visiting www.mncatholic.org

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

LIFE FIRST: Cont’d from Page 5 munity, and cheering for their team with their school community? How many kids and adults simply missed this important beginning of Lent because of this selfish scheduling decision?

Critics will say, “Well, if ‘church’ were more interesting, then kids would choose church!”

For kids, it is not always as simple as “making a choice.”

Over the years, I have had many conversations with young people who fear the loss of playing time or worry they will fall off the radars of their coaches if they do not participate in off-season leagues or tournaments or if they miss Sunday night or Wednesday night practices.

The problem is that adults,

who should know better, are the ones scheduling this chaos. When we do this, we send a loud and very clear message to the young people that (name the sport) is more important than church. Worse, we rob kids of their Sabbath, the day gifted to all of us by our Creator Himself.

When I heard Cactus was coming home at the end of February, I was excited about the possibility of seeing him.

I hadn’t spoken to Cactus in years, and I wanted to make sure that I thanked him for not only honoring, but also affirming my priorities. I did not get a chance to thank Cactus, but I am certain that Cactus’ Savior thanked him for me.

Thanks Cactus.

Pre-Kindergarten Teacher Needed Cathedral Elementary School’s Pre-Kindergarten Program “Rising Stars” is now accepting applications for a Pre-Kindergarten teacher.

Effective: 2017-2018 school year Requirements: Current Elementary and/or Pre-School Education License or willing to obtain Minnesota license.

Salary and Benefits: Full-time position with benefits, salary commensurate on experience.

Interested applicants may send resumes or questions to: Patricia Jones, Principal Cathedral Elementary School 702 Summit Ave, Crookston, MN 56716 pjones.cathedral@midconetwork.com

Parish Secretary/Office Manager Sacred Heart, East Grand Forks, MN is looking for a full-time parish secretary/office manager. Duties include, but are not limited to greeting parishioners, routing phone calls, maintenance of parish database, Sacramental record keeping, editing parish bulletin, managing master calendar and basic office managing duties.

Applicants must possess strong sense of Catholicism, people skills, time-management skills, and strong computer skills with proficiency in Microsoft Office.

Please submit resume to Len Vonasek

by March 20.

Sacred Heart Church, 200 3rd St. NW, East Grand Forks, MN 56721.

COMMENTARY

March 22, 2017

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BISHOP BARRON: Cont’d from Page 4 of climax with the meticulously nuanced teaching of St. Thomas Aquinas in the High Middle Ages.

However, commencing in the 18th century with the thought of Friedrich Schleiermacher, Christology took a decisive turn. Attempting to make the claims of the Christian faith more intelligible to a modern audience, Schleiermacher explained the Incarnation in terms of Jesus’ relationship to and awareness of God. Here is a particularly clear articulation of his position: “The Redeemer, then, is like all men in virtue of the identity of human nature, but distinguished from them all by the constant potency of his God-consciousness, which was a veritable existence of God in him.” Armies of theologians – both Protestant and Catholic – have raced down the Schleiermacher Autobahn these past two hundred years, adopting a “consciousness Christology” rather than an “ontological Christology.” I can testify that my theological training in the 70s and 80s of the last century was very much

conditioned by this approach.

Father White strenuously insists that this change represents a severe declension in Christian theology, and I think he’s right.

The abandonment of ontological approach has myriad negative consequences, but I will focus on just a few. First, it effectively turns Jesus into a type of super-saint, different perhaps in degree from other holy people, but not in kind.

Hence, on this reading, it is not the least bit clear why Jesus is of any greater significance than other religious figures and founders. If he is a saint, even a great one, well people can argue so is Confucius, so is the Buddha, so are the Sufi mystics and Hindu sages, and so in their own way are Socrates, Walt Whitman, and Albert Schweitzer.

If Jesus mediates the divine to you, well and good, but why should you feel any particular obligation to propose him to someone else, who is perhaps more moved by a saintly person from another religious tradition? Indeed, if “God-consciousness” is the issue, who are we to say that Jesus’ was

any wider or deeper than St. Francis’ or Mother Teresa’s? In a word, the motivation for real evangelization more or less dissipates when one navigates the Schleiermacher highway.

More fundamentally, when the stress is placed on Jesus’ human consciousness of God, the spiritual weight falls overwhelmingly on the side of immanence. What I mean is our quest for God, our search for the divine, and our growth in spiritual awareness become paramount, rather than what God has uniquely accomplished and established. When the Church says that Jesus is God, she means that the divine life, through the graceful intervention of God, has become available to the world in an utterly unique manner. She furthermore means that she herself – in her preaching, her formal teaching, in her sacraments, and in her saints – is the privileged vehicle through which this life now flows into human hearts and into the culture. It is easy enough to see that the transition from an ontological Christology to a consciousness Christology has conduced toward all manner of relativism, subjectivism, indifferentism, and the attenuation of evangelical zeal.

One of my constant themes when I was professor and rector at Mundelein Seminary was that ideas have consequences.

I realize that much of what Father White discusses in his book can seem hopelessly abstract, but he is in fact putting his finger on a shift that has had a huge impact on the life of the post-conciliar Church.

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March 22, 2017

LOCAL

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

Workshops held for cantors, music ministers throughout diocese

Jean LaJesse, Regent of Court Bishop Schenk and Margee Keller, Minnesota State Regent, take a photo with Bishop Michael J. Hoeppner in his office at the Chancery. (Photo credit: Janelle C. Gergen/OND)

Crookston Catholic Daughters to host 2017 State Convention Court Bishop Schenk #2010 will host the 47th Minnesota Catholic Daughters of the Americas State Convention from April 20-22 in Crookston.

The three-day gathering is a time for members of the Catholic Daughters from all over the state to gather for meetings, prayer and fellowship.

The convention co-chairs are Jean LaJesse, Regent of Court Bishop Schenk and Margee Keller, Minnesota State Regent.

The theme chosen for the convention is “Sing of the

Lord’s Goodness”.

The Catholic Daughters of the Americas strive to embrace the principles of faith working through love in the promotion of justice, equality and the advancement of human rights and human dignity for all man kinds. Catholic Daughters courts participate in local, state and national charity and community service projects.

According to information provided by the Catholic Daughters, there are 29 courts in Minnesota, and six of them are in the Diocese of Crookston.

Lutherans and Catholics: Encountering Christ Together The Lutheran-Catholic clergy and parish staff day will take place on April 20, at the Trinity Lutheran Christian Life Center (210 7th Street South, Moorhead). It will feature Rev. Mark Hanson, ELCA Bishop Emeritus, and Rev. John Crossin, an Oblate of St. Francis de Sales. Bishop Hanson was the Lutheran co-chair and Father Crossin was a member of the task force which led to the publication in 2015 of “Declaration on the Way: Church, Ministry and Eucharist,” a look at the Catholic-Lutheran dialogue of the past 50 years.

The day begins at 10 a.m. and concludes at 4 p.m.

The event will be free to the clergy of the Diocese of Crookston, but registration is required. The fee for parish staff members is $40. Please RSVP to Jessica Guzman by April 13, by calling 218-281-

4533 or emailing jguzman@ crookston.org.

A free public event entitled: “Can Lutherans and Catholics be Friends” will begin at 7 p.m. at the same location, featuring the day’s speakers. No RSVP is required to attend the evening portion, and everyone is invited to come.

Berta Sabrio, a clinician from Baltimore, responds to a participant’s question during a workshop held at St. Francis de Sales, Moorhead, on March 11. A workshop was also held at St. Mary’s, Fosston, on March 10. The diocesan Office of Worship coordinated the “NPM Local Cantor Intensive Workshops”, and the Mount St. Benedict Foundation underwrote all expenses. (Submitted photo)

St. Philip’s, Bemidji, to host satellite New Evangelization Summit; all are welcome In Her deepest identity, the Church exists to evangelize!

This is accomplished by first knowing Jesus Christ! We need faith as an anchor to face the struggles of the world today.

Are we ready to share the faith, to evangelize? Can we see conversion and renewal happening in our parishes? Is it even possible? Yes, it is and God wants to do it through us! Attend the New Evangelization Summit (NES) to be inspired and prepared to evangelize.

This two-day conference will feature speakers who are leaders in the New Evangelization to provide inspiration, encouragement, training, practical wisdom and resources on how Catholics can effectively evangelize. All Catholics – pastors, missionaries, lay ministers, and the lay faithful – will benefit im-

mensely from this opportunity to be equipped in the fundamental mission of the Church.

The annual NES will be held in Ottawa and streamed to 34 host-sites. The broadcasting of the event will provide a way for Catholics from around the world to participate in the summit. Approximately 5,000 likeminded Catholics will be united in one goal – to be formed as evangelists and be part of a network of Catholic evangelists.

In the Diocese of Crookston, St. Philip’s, Bemidji, is going to host this monumental event.

Registration is open now. Sign

up by visiting: www.newevangelization.ca/#price. Select Bemidji in the drop-down menu, and click the “Buy Now” button.

The cost of $35 is a great price to listen to and be inspired by Bishop Robert Barron of the Archdiocese of Los Angles, Sr. Miriam James Heidland, Peter Herbeck and more! The event begins May 12 from 7 – 9:30 p.m. and continues May 13, from 9 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Lunch will be provided on Saturday.

Please contact Blake Quick with questions at bquick@ stphilipsbemidji.org or 218441-4907.

wants your news and advertisements!

Find 2017 publishing dates and submission deadlines on the web: www.crookston.org/ond The next OND submission deadline is: Wednesday, March 29, by 12:00 p.m.

E-mail: Janelle C. Gergen, Associate Editor jgergen@crookston.org

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

LOCAL

March 22, 2017

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CATHOLIC VOICES: Continued from Page 6 and confidence that we could walk into a meeting with a lawmaker and speak on the issues at hand.”

“I thought that the Minnesota Catholic Conference did a great job setting us up to be successful. The videos, the speakers and their enthusiasm, then the presentations of the bishops just put us in the right frame of mind and heart to be ready to go into this,” said Father Chuck Huck, Pastor of St. Philip’s Bemidji.

AT THE CAPITOL Volunteer district leaders set up 15 minute meetings with their legislators and led the discussion. They were joined by anyone else from their district who was there for the day.

Groups from districts within the Diocese of Crookston ranged in size from four to 30 people.

Bill Miller of Sacred Heart, Roseau, was the leader for District 1 and set up and led meetings with Reps. Debra Kiel and Dan Fabian, and Sen. Mark Johnson. He said it was a little nerve wracking to prepare for, but that they were welcomed into the legislators’ offices, and the things they shared were well-received.

“I think we made them stronger, and maybe it will help them as they have to stand up on the floor and defend some of their values,” Miller said. He said he would encourage people to find opportunities to reach out to their lawmakers.

“It helps you stand up, you learn about the process … I am confident now that we can all make a difference, and I haven’t always felt that way,” he said.

“I was surprised and impressed with the willingness and authenticity of the individuals that I met with,” said Garcia. He was part of the District 1 group. “They listened to us and valued our input, it was encouraging to see them engage with us amidst a very demanding schedule.”

John-Paul Walski, a teenager from Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Crookston, attended Catholics at the Capitol with his mother and three siblings. He enjoyed seeing all of Minnesota’s bishops there and meeting some of them. He attended the meetings with legislators from District 1.

“It was interesting to see their points of view on all the topics we brought up,” he said.

Shawn and Paul Erickson of

Sen. Paul J. Utke, greets Father John Cox, OMI, and other visitors from the Diocese of Crookston outside his office on March 9 at the start of their meeting. (Photo credit: Katrina Genereux/OND)

St. Joseph’s, Moorhead, and Ann and Ralph Schellack also of St. Joseph’s, Moorhead, met with the District 4 legislators – Sen. Kent Eken, Rep. Ben Lien and Rep. Paul Marquart.

Paul said the meeting was very relaxed and conversational. Shawn and Ann were glad for the chance to thank the lawmakers in-person for ways they have supported life and dignity in the past. The group also invited the men to pray with them at the start of the meeting.

“I think they are well versed in all of the different bills and really seem to understand the concerns that we come with representing our constituents, and they really appreciated getting some of the things that Minnesota Catholic Conference had prepared,” Shawn said.

Each district leader received handouts about the three issues with district-specific information to share with their lawmakers.

“I was really impressed for the first time this is taking place, the room was full and every district was represented,” Shawn said. “We are called to give glory to God and that is what this day is all about.”

“It is a faith commitment to be out in the public square and to be like Jesus and spread the message of working for the common good of everyone,” Ann added.

John and Carol Lindow of Our Lady of the Pines, Nevis, enjoyed their first visit to the

Like OND on Facebook, and check out www.facebook.com/ournorthlanddiocese for additional photos from Catholics at the Capitol.

Capitol. They met with legislators from District 2 – Rep. Steve Green, Sen. Paul Utke and Rep. Matthew Grossell.

“I was very impressed with the sincerity,” John said. “Both the representatives and the senator were very sincere about their job, about our agenda, and I was happy to be here and to share that with them.”

“It was affirming to know that the legislators that we talked to are like-minded. They value the same things we do and they seem to be strong voices in our state government, so it was great,” Carol said. “They need our support, they need to know that we’re behind them.”

Dan DeCrans of Our Lady of the Pines, Nevis, was also part of the group from District 2. It was his first time meeting with lawmakers.

“The thing that really was great for me was meeting the two state representatives and the senator from District 2 and how very pro-life they were and open to the bills that we were asking them to support.”

“This is actually my first time here and I thought it was a very, very awesome day. It was so positive and the representatives, the house and senate both from District 2, they were both

so down-to-earth,” said Jeanette Goehring of Our Lady of the Pines, Nevis.

Deacon Kermit Erickson of St. Philip’s, Bemidji thought the day was interesting. He felt the morning events prepared them well for the afternoon visits.

“I have never been to the Capitol before and never visited with the representatives before; it was an interesting process,” he said. After this experience, he plans to encourage more people to connect with legislators.

While the legislative visits were occurring, the rosary was prayed in the Capitol Rotunda every half hour from 1 – 3 p.m. Father Huck led the 2:30 p.m. rosary. The bishops also led prayer at different points throughout the day.

“We were praying to God and through the intercession of Mary throughout the day, and the presence of the Holy Spirit that everybody could feel, was God talking to us and communicating to us and letting us know that the prayer was heard and the prayer was answered,” Bishop Hoeppner said.

TAKING THE MESSAGE HOME Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda, of the Archdiocese of St.

Paul and Minneapolis; Purvis and Bishop John M. Quinn, Bishop of the Diocese of Winona, spoke in the Capitol Rotunda while people gathered on all three levels of the building for a closing rally.

“As we complete this day, I’m really the opening, because what we do now, this is what’s really going to make the difference. It’s the opening for us to remain in the public square.

We’ve got to keep the Gospel alive and not be intimidated and not be afraid,” said Bishop Quinn.

He encouraged everyone to continue sharing their values with lawmakers and to hold them accountable.

“Brothers and sisters, we are so proud today to be together as a Catholic family, to be here in this beautiful place, but now the work begins.”

David Liedl of St. Philip’s, Bemidji, attended the event with his wife, Cassandra and their infant daughter. He said that being at the Capitol with at least 1,000 other people helped him see his faith as having an impact on the world outside their home.

“It’s not just something you’re living in your private lives … you’re taking the Gospel message to go and spread the word and make disciples,” he said.

He added that attending this event will make him more likely to reach out to lawmakers in the future and to encourage others to do the same.

Father Huck hopes everyone who came to Catholics at the Capitol will share their experiences with others around them.

“I think the thing we’re going to come back with is a spirit of telling others we need to be in contact with our legislators, they want to hear our voice, they want to know what we are thinking,” he said. “Even if we may not agree on something, it is important for them to hear what their constituents are thinking.”

Garcia encourages everyone to sign up for MCC’s Catholic Advocacy Network by visiting www.mncatholic.org.

“Contact your elected official when there is a bill or issue that you are passionate about. They want to hear from us – the people that put them in their place of authority. Take advantage of the access we have to them,” he said.

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March 22, 2017

COMMENTARY

WORD to LIFE March 26 Psalm 23:1-6;

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

FOR FAITH-SHARING GROUPS

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT Ephesians 5:8-14;

By Sharon K. Perkins Catholic News Service

In the U.S. there is an eight-month period called daylight saving time. Each fall, we move our clocks back one hour and in the spring we move the clock an hour ahead (“spring forward, fall back”).

Aside from confusing my body’s sleep cycle and causing people to be an hour late for Mass one Sunday out of the year, the manipulation of the clock serves a useful purpose. Taking advantage of the longer and later daylight hours during those eight months presumably allows us to use less electricity in lighting our homes and thus conserve energy.

The downside for me, however, is that my mind and body shut down an hour earlier in the wintertime, making me much less productive than I’d like to be. Because it’s already dark by the time I get home from work, I’m less inclined to take that pre-dinner walk or work in the yard like I did during the summer.

I have to make new rules to make the clock work for me during the months of November through March.

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus also changes the Sabbath rules – by using spittle, kneading clay and healing a blind man. But he’s not simply flouting convention for the sake of it. Rather, he is making a point that the covenant between God and human beings – which the strict observance of the Sabbath venerates – is fulfilled in Jesus’ merciful act of bringing sight to human beings, both physically and spiritually. The bystanders, whose well-meaning religious zeal led them to object so strenuously to the healing, missed the entire point.

Jesus came to the world to bring judgment, “that those who do not see might

April 2

FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT

1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a; Gospel: John 9:1-41

Ezekiel 37:12-14; Gospel: John 11:1-45

Psalm 130:1-8;

Romans 8:8-11;

By Jeff Hedglen Catholic News Service

see, and those who do see might become blind.” Simply put, his light comes to those who admit their blindness and acknowledge their need for healing. And nothing – not our past transgressions, nor our current narrow-mindedness, nor our inevitable future failings – can prevent his radiance from piercing our darkness.

As St. Paul tells the church at Ephesus: “You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.” Regardless of what the clock says, it’s daytime for the disciple of the Lord Jesus.

Questions: Have you ever been blind to your own selfrighteousness?

How did your attitude prevent you from seeing Jesus’ merciful healing at work right in front of you?

“WE HAVE TO DO THE WORKS OF THE ONE WHO SENT ME WHILE IT IS DAY.” – JOHN 9:4

When it became clear that my mother This week’s readings speak of the was not going to survive her cancer, along promise of resurrection. Ezekiel says, “I with the devastation of this news and the will open your graves and have you rise heartache I felt, I also realized that I had from them,” prefiguring what actually never been to a funeral. happens to Lazarus, which is brought to I was 25 years old and, thankfully, I fulfillment in Jesus and, hopefully, awaits had not lost anyone extremely close to us all. me up to that point in my life. I did not want my mother’s funeral to be my first, so I started to attend funeral Masses for people from my parish, even if I did not know them well.

At first, these ceremonies seemed to be familiar and strange at the same time.

The Mass was the same, but there were new parts I did not totally understand, and there was the whole thing about the deceased’s body being present – definitely a new experience for me.

After a few funerals I got a better sense of all the rituals that had been new to me and I felt as prepared as I could be for the looming funeral of my mother.

That day came and went like a blur, but because I had become somewhat comfortable with the Mass of Christian Burial I was at least able to get through it fully aware of what was going on.

As the years have progressed, I have been to many funerals and I now find them to be comforting and, in a particular way, a fulfillment of all that I believe.

At the beginning of the funeral, the casket is draped with a white pall and Questions: the covered casket is sprinkled with holy What has your experience of funerals been water. Each of these ceremonial actions serves as bookends to our spiritual life on like?

How does your belief in the resurrection earth. We begin in a white garment sprinkled with water at our baptism and this is impact the way you look at the passing of loved ones? repeated as we head heavenward.

“I WILL OPEN YOUR GRAVES AND HAVE YOU RISE FROM THEM.” – EZEKIEL 37:12

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

Catholic leaders react to House bill to repeal, replace health care law WASHINGTON (CNS) – Calling health care “a vital concern for nearly every person in the country,” the U.S. Catholic bishops said March 8 they will be reviewing closely a measure introduced in the House March 6 to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. “Discussions on health care reform have reached a level of intensity which is making open and fruitful dialogue difficult, even while most people recognize that improvements to the health care system are needed to ensure a life-giving and sustainable model for both the present and future,” said a letter to House members signed by the chairmen of four U.S. bishops’ committees. “Given the magnitude and importance of the task before us, we call for a new spirit of cooperation for the sake of the common good,” they wrote.

The letter was signed by Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, chair-

man, Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty; Bishop Frank J. Dewane of Venice, Florida, chairman, Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, and Bishop Joe S. Vasquez of Austin, Texas, chairman, Committee on Migration.

The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City announced that one of its native sons, Father Stanley Rother, a North American priest who worked in Guatemala and was brutally murdered there in 1981, will be beatified Sept.

23 in Oklahoma. Father Rother is pictured in an undated file photo. (CNS/Charlene Scott)

NATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS

Archdiocese announces beatification date for Oklahoma priest who was martyred in 1981 WASHINGTON (CNS) – The Archdiocese of Oklahoma City announced that one of its native sons, Father Stanley Rother, a North American priest who worked in Guatemala and was brutally murdered there in 1981, will be beatified Sept. 23 in Oklahoma.

“It’s official! Praised be Jesus Christ! Archbishop Coakley received official word this morning from Rome that Servant of God Father Stanley Rother will be beatified in Oklahoma City in September!” the archdiocese announced March 13 on its Web page. Pope Francis recognized Father Rother’s martyrdom last December, making him the first martyr born in the United States.

Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, also tweeted the news about the priest born near Okarche, Oklahoma: “Just received notification of the date for the beatification of Fr. Stanley Rother, Oklahoma priest, missionary and martyr.

September 23!”

Catholic bishops join call to Trump to support humanitarian assistance WASHINGTON (CNS) – Five Catholic prelates were among 106 faith leaders who shared their support for U.S. spending on international humanitarian aid in a letter to congressional leaders. Dated March 16, the letter cited the importance of maintaining support for the humanitarian and development programs through the Department of State “that enable countless people to pull themselves out of poverty and live life with dignity.” The letter was sent hours after the White House released a simplified version of its fiscal year 2018 budget that proposed deep cuts in federal spending on discretionary programs in the departments of State, Health and Human Services, and Housing and Urban Development as well as in the Environmental Protection Agency. Called the “skinny budget,” the president’s proposal includes a $54 billion increase in discretionary spending for the military with corresponding cuts in discretionary spending on nonmilitary programs. The budget proposes a 28 percent cut in the programs addressed in the religious lead-

March 22, 2017

11

ers’ letter. Smaller increases were included for homeland security – particularly $2.6 billion for building the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico and implementing border security technology – and $1.4 billion for school choice alternatives

Confirmation hearings open for Trump’s Supreme Court nominee WASHINGTON (CNS) – The first day of Senate confirmation hearings for Judge Neil Gorsuch, President Donald Trump’s nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court, began March 20 with a series of introductory remarks from senators establishing what they hope to ask the nominee and the importance of the role of Supreme Court justice. Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, who is chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, began the day’s hearing by praising what he said was Gorsuch’s firm respect of the separation of powers of government. A vote on the judge’s confirmation is set to take place April 3. The nominee, who currently sits on the Denver-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit, would fill the vacant seat on the Supreme Court left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia death last year. Senate Republican leaders last year chose not to vote on then-President Barack Obama’s nominee for the court, Judge Merrick Garland.

In opening remarks, many of the senators spoke of the importance of a Supreme Court justice’s role, particularly given the length of time a justice generally has the position – it is a life term. Sen. Patrick Leahy, DVermont, said the “stakes could not be higher” for the job.

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March 22, 2017

U.S.-Holy See ties won’t change with Trump, U.S. diplomat says ROME (CNS) – Despite opposing views on some issues, the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See will still look for common ground on global issues, the interim leader of the embassy said. “There’s an expectation that the relationship between President (Donald) Trump and Pope Francis will be difficult to establish” and that “the bilateral relationship between the United States and the Holy See is going to suffer and that is not the case at all,” Louis Bono, charge d’affaires to the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See said.

Bono temporarily leads the embassy while it waits for a new U.S. ambassador to be named and confirmed. Speaking to Catholic News Service March 6, Bono talked about expecta-

INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS

tions of the future relationship between the United States and the Holy See under the Trump administration. The embassy, he said, hopes to continue its joint efforts on global issues, such as combating human trafficking and ending modern slavery. “Our goal right now is to keep that relationship moving forward, to look for more areas of collaboration” and “to build upon the successes that we’ve already experienced,” he said.

“Our goal right now is to keep that relationship moving forward, to look for more areas of collaboration.”

– Louis Bono, Charge d’affaires to the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See

Pope to visit Colombia as it emerges from halfcentury of war VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis will be visiting Colombia in mid-September as the Latin American nation works to implement a new peace deal and rebuild after 52 years of war.

The Vatican announced March 10 that the pope had accepted the invitation of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Colombian bishops. The trip, Sept.

6-11, will include visits to the cities of Bogota, Villavicencio, Medellin and Cartagena. Details of the trip were to be published at a later date. Pope Francis will be the third pope to visit the nation after Blessed Paul VI and St. John Paul II. The previous papal visit there was 31 years ago in 1986. The bishops’ conference posted on their website the trip logo: the pope

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

smiling and walking flanked by the white and yellow colors of the Vatican on one side and an early indigenous symbol on the other. The motto is “Let us take the first step” (“Demos el primer paso”).

Pope talks criticisms, populism in latest interview with German weekly VATICAN CITY (CNS) – When facing criticism, a sense of humor and the grace to remain at peace are always the best response, Pope Francis said in an interview with Germany’s Die Zeit newspaper. In the interview, published March 8 online and in print March 9, the pope laughed and said the Roman dialect featured in posters that were plastered around the Rome city center criticizing him

“was great.” The poster, featuring a stern-faced picture of the pope, said: “Ah Francis, you’ve taken over congregations, removed priests, decapitated the Order of Malta and the Franciscans of the Immaculate, ignored cardinals ... but where is your mercy? There is this prayer – which is attributed to (St.) Thomas More – that I pray every day: ‘Lord, give me a sense of humor!’ The Lord preserves my peace and gives me a great sense of humor,” Pope Francis said. Vatican Radio released a brief summary with selected quotes from the nearly 6,000-word interview, in which the pope discussed several issues and events. Among the areas of discussion was his relationship with Cardinal Raymond L. Burke, current patron of the Order of Malta, who is often viewed as one of Pope Francis’ most vocal critics.

2017 Diocesan Annual Appeal Status Update

Dear Friends in Christ: Within the first month of this year’s appeal, over 3000 of the faithful have contributed to the 2017 Diocesan Annual Appeal. With prayerful delight and sincere gratitude, we thank you for your faith in the work of this local Church. If you have been unable to make a gift, there will be a second mailing on April 10, 2017. In it, you will see how your gift is invested in diocesan initiatives and the mission of God’s Church.

Thank you, God bless you and have a blessed Lenten season! +Bishop Michael Hoeppner

Parish Totals from the Office of Stewardship and Development are current as of Tuesday, March 14, 2017: PARISH

GOAL

COMMITTED: Received + Outstanding

PARISH

GOAL

COMMITTED: Received + Outstanding

PARISH

GOAL

COMMITTED: Received + Outstanding

Ada - St. Joseph

$10,525.00

$8,615.00

Frazee - Sacred Heart

$19,288.00

$13,692.56

Oklee - St. Francis Xavier

$7,035.00

$5,004.00

Argyle - St. Rose of Lima

$11,446.00

$8,435.00

Gentilly - St. Peter

$5,636.00

$3,937.00

Oslo - St. Joseph

$4,971.00

$3,125.00

Badger - St. Mary

$4,273.00

$3,295.00

Georgetown - St. John

$3,422.00

$5,210.00

Park Rapids - St. Peter

$28,643.00

$21,370.00

Bagley - St. Joseph

$9,038.00

$5,695.00

Goodridge - St. Ann

$2,428.00

$820.00

Pennington - St. Charles

$2,243.00

$1,525.00

Barnesville - Assumption

$15,838.00

$12,975.00

Greenbush - Blessed Sacrament

$12,315.00

$3,841.00

Ponsford - St. Theodore

$1,709.00

$1,685.00

Baudette - Sacred Heart

$9,814.00

$7,155.00

Grygla - St. Clement

$3,401.00

$2,125.00

Red Lake - St. Mary’s Mission

$1,482.00

$745.00

Beaulieu - St. Joseph

$6,001.00

$4,875.00

Hallock - St. Patrick

$7,690.00

$9,565.00

Red Lake Falls - St. Joseph

$22,320.00

$18,770.00

Bemidji - St. Philip

$76,825.00

$61,062.00

Halstad - Holy Family

$3,456.00

$6,945.00

Roseau - Sacred Heart

$12,787.00

$11,337.00

Big Elbow Lake - St. Frances

$1,658.00

$1,152.00

Hawley - St. Andrew

$12,205.00

$4,875.00

Sabin - St. Cecilia

$2,756.00

$4,475.00

Blackduck - St. Ann

$6,267.00

$2,216.00

Karlstad - St. Edward

$3,508.00

$2,735.00

Stephen - St. Stephen

$9,900.00

$7,195.00

Brooks - St. Joseph

$4,949.00

$4,065.00

Kelliher - St. Patrick

$5,259.00

$4,340.00

Tabor - Holy Trinity

$4,103.00

$3,375.00

Thief River Falls - St. Bernard

$51,002.00

$34,693.00

Twin Valley - St. Williams

$6,334.00

$5,916.00

Callaway - Assumption

$5,189.00

$4,095.00

Lake Park - St. Francis Xavier

$6,297.00

$3,950.00

Crookston - Cathedral

$44,676.00

$30,731.33

Lancaster - Holy Rosary

$1,748.00

$785.00

Detroit Lakes - Holy Rosary

$67,382.00

$47,004.00

Laporte - St. Theodore

$3,632.00

$1,582.00

Two Inlets - St. Mary

$6,095.00

$4,085.00

Detroit Lakes - St. Mary of the Lake

$17,028.00

$10,210.00

Mahnomen - St. Michael

$18,536.00

$12,595.00

Warren - Sts. Peter and Paul

$12,450.00

$8,767.00

Dilworth - St. Elizabeth

$12,979.00

$11,742.00

Mentor - St. Lawrence

$11,300.00

$15,712.00

Warroad - St. Mary

$7,498.00

$9,230.00

East Grand Forks - Sacred Heart

$68,001.00

$44,061.00

Middle River - St. Joseph

$3,617.00

$920.00

Euclid - St. Mary

$4,083.00

$3,360.00

Moorhead - St. Francis de Sales

$31,442.00

$29,750.00

Waubun - St. Ann

$5,436.00

$2,745.00

White Earth - St. Benedict

$2,101.00

$1,515.00

Falun - St. Philip

$2,149.00

$1,540.00

Moorhead - St. Joseph

$102,479.00

$85,027.00

Williams - St. Joseph

$2,488.00

$2,002.00

Fertile - St. Joseph

$6,667.00

$5,035.00

Naytahwaush - St. Anne

$2,579.00

$1,030.00

Wilton - Sacred Heart

$6,881.00

$3,638.00

Fisher - St. Francis

$4,494.00

$3,775.00

Nebish - St. John

$4,515.00

$1,490.00

Retired Priests of the Diocese

$0.00

$2,900.00

Florian - Assumption

$9,687.00

$7,445.00

Nevis - Our Lady of the Pines

$14,215.00

$5,906.00

Fosston - St. Mary

$8,993.00

$7,913.00

Ogema - Most Holy Redeemer

$4,836.00

$1,260.00

$890,000.00

$668,640.89

TOTAL:

To view the 2017 DAA video and donate online, visit www.crookston.org/daa

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

Pope Francis gestures during a March 12 visit at the parish of St. Magdalene of Canossa in Rome.

(CNS/Alessandro Bianchi, Reuters)

Sin is scary, but God is always ready to forgive, pope says ROME (CNS) – Witches don’t

really exist, so they can do no harm, Pope Francis told a young girl, but gossip, sin and evil exist and they hurt people every day. “What frightens me?” the pope asked, repeating the question posed by Sara, one of the children at the Rome parish of St. Magdalene of Canossa. “I’m frightened when a person is bad; the wickedness of people” is scary. Spending close to four hours at the parish March 12, Pope Francis answered questions from the children, met with the older and sick members of the parish, spent time with parents whose babies have been baptized in the past year and with the Canossian Sisters, whose founder is honored as the parish’s patron saint. Before

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celebrating an evening Mass, the pope also heard confessions. He had told the children that the “seeds of wickedness” lie within each human being, but that God is always willing to forgive those who are sincerely sorry for their sins. Sara had told him she’s afraid of witches, but Pope Francis told her that witches don’t really exist and those who claim to be able to cast spells are lying.

ing.” Reflecting on the day’s first reading from the prophet Isaiah (1:10, 16-20), the pope said, “You learn to do good through concrete things. Not with words, but with actions.”

The reading from Isaiah gives three examples: “Help the oppressed, hear the orphan’s plea and defend the widow.”

Pope: Conversion doesn’t happen through magic, but concrete actions VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Conversion doesn’t come from the wave of a magic wand, but from learning to do good through concrete actions every day, Pope Francis said. While even “the saintliest person sins seven times a day,” conversion happens through humility and trying to become “better than the day before,” the pope said March 14 during the Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae. “Converting doesn’t mean going to a fairy with a magic wand,” he said. “No, it is a path, a path of turning away (from evil) and of learn-

Pope Francis greets the crowd during his general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican March 15. (CNS/Paul Haring)

Shady business deals that threaten employment are ‘grave sin,’ pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Employers who make business deals that threaten people’s livelihood commit a sin that robs

March 22, 2017

13

men, women and their families of their dignity, Pope Francis said. “Whoever – because of economic maneuvering and business dealings that are not all clear – closes factories and businesses and takes work away from men and women commits a grave sin,” the pope said March 15 before concluding his weekly general audience. The pope was speaking to a group of employees from Italy’s Sky television; several hundred employees risk losing their jobs after the company announced plans to move their Rome headquarters to Milan. According to Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Sky Italia claimed the move was due to rising costs and an outdated digital infrastructure in Rome. Local workers’ unions have criticized the company’s decision that will force 300 workers to transfer from the capital while an estimated 200 employees will be left without a job. Before the audience began, the pope circled St. Peter’s Square in the popemobile, stopping along the way to kiss babies and wave to the thousands of pilgrims present.

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March 22, 2017

BRIEFS: Continued from Page 13

Nuncio: Evangelization, mercy, encounter mark pope’s first four years NEW YORK (CNS) – Evangelization, mercy, encounter and accompaniment are the hallmarks of the first four years of Pope Francis’ papacy, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, said March 15. “First and foremost, Pope Francis is committed to the work of evangelization. The main role of the church is to evangelize – to receive the gospel and offer it to the world,” he said in a conversation in New York with Jesuit Father Matthew F. Malone, president and editor-in-chief of America Media. “The raison d’etre of the church is evangelization. It’s not a business, it’s not an organization or an association for the defense of Jesus, but a group called to announce God’s presence to humanity,” Archbishop Pierre said. At a meeting of cardinals before the conclave that elected him pope, then-Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio reflected on the challenges Pope Benedict’s successor should address. Archbishop Pierre said Pope Francis’ handwritten notes from his talk were a blueprint for his papacy. In them, Pope Francis underscored the importance of evangelizing with apostolic zeal and going to the peripheries of sin, pain, injustice and misery to reach people. He warned that when the church does not come out of herself to evangelize, she becomes selfreferential and sick. He wrote,

“The main role of the church is to evangelize – to receive the gospel and offer it to the world.”

– Archbishop Christophe Pierre Apostolic Nuncio to the U.S.

“The evils that, over time, happen in ecclesiastical institutions have their root in self-reference and a kind of theological narcissism.”

The path toward corruption is a slippery road, pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Christians who trust in themselves rather than God eventually become unsympathetic to those in need and slide down the slippery path of corruption, Pope Francis said. People who place their trust in their own vanity, pride and riches lose their sense of direction and “distance themselves from God,” the pope said March 16 during his early morning Mass in the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae. “When a person lives in his own closed environment, when he breathes that air that comes from material goods, from pleasures, from vanity, from feeling safe and only trusting in himself,” the pope said, “he loses his bearings, he loses the compass and doesn’t know his own limits.” Pope Francis reflected on the day’s first reading from the prophet Jeremiah in which God warns: “Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away from the Lord.” To trust in one’s own heart, the pope said, is a “slippery path” because “nothing is more treacherous than the heart.”

INTERNATIONAL NEWS BRIEFS

other participants attending an annual course sponsored by the Apostolic Penitentiary, a Vatican court that handles issues related to the absolution of sin. “Hear confession every time someone asks you. And if you are sitting there, praying, leave the confessional open because God’s heart is open,” he said March 17. Confession “is a pastoral priority,” and is a daily call to head to the “peripheries of evil and sin, and this is an ugly periphery,” he said. “I’ll confess,” he told his audience, that the Apostolic Penitentiary “is the tribunal that I really like because it is a ‘tribunal of mercy,’ where one goes to get that indispensable medicine for our souls, which is divine mercy.”

“Hear confession every time someone asks you. And if you are sitting there, praying, leave the confessional open because God’s heart is open.”

– Pope Francis

Pope presides over Lenten penance service at Vatican VATICAN CITY (CNS) – A few hours after urging priests to be generously available for the sacrament of penance, Pope Francis went to confession, then offered the sacrament to seven Catholics. Presiding over the annual Lenten penance service March 17 in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis was one of 95 priests and bishops listening to confessions and granting absolution. After the reading of a Gospel passage, the pope did not give a homily. Instead, he and the thousands of people gathered in the basilica prayed in absolute silence for 10 minutes. Pope Francis spent about four minutes kneeling before a priest in one of the wooden confessionals before he walked to one nearby, put on a purple stole and waited for the first penitent to approach. As people were preparing, confessing and praying, the Sistine Chapel Choir alternated with the organist and a harpist in ensuring an atmosphere of peace. The pope spent 50 minutes administering the sacrament before leading the congregation in prayers of thanksgiving for the experience of the “goodness and sweetness of God’s love for us.”

Vatican releases pope’s schedule for Fatima visit

Make confession more available, God’s heart is always open, pope says VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Hear confession every time someone asks, Pope Francis said, and don’t ever put limited hours on the sacrament of reconciliation.

“Please, let there never be those signs that say, ‘Confessions: Mondays and Wednesdays from this time to that time,’” he told hundreds of confessors and

Pope Francis kneels before a priest to confess during a Lenten prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican March 17.

(CNS/Evandro Inetti, pool)

VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Celebrating the 100th anniversary of apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima, Pope Francis will lead the evening recitation of rosary and celebrate Mass on the anniversary at the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima when he visits Portugal May 12-13. The pope will make the two-day pilgrimage to the site where Mary appeared to three shepherd children May 13, 1917. The apparitions continued once a month until Oct. 13, 1917, and later were declared worthy of

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

belief by the Catholic Church.

During his visit, the pope also will meet with President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and have lunch with the bishops of Portugal. Pope Francis will be the fourth pontiff to visit the Marian shrine, following in the footsteps of Blessed Paul VI, St. John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI, who each made visits on a May 13 to mark the anniversary of the first apparition.

St. Joseph was a dreamer of quiet strength, pope says at morning Mass VATICAN CITY (CNS) – St. Joseph, patron saint of the universal church and Jesus’ earthly father, was a “dreamer capable of accepting the task” entrusted to him by God, Pope Francis said.

“This man takes God’s promise and brings it forward in silence with strength; he brings it forward so that whatever God wants is fulfilled,” the pope said March 20 during morning Mass at Domus Sanctae Marthae.

Because the March 19 feast of St. Joseph fell on a Sunday this year, the liturgical commemoration of the feast was moved to March 20. St. Joseph, the pope said in his homily, provides an example needed “in this time where there is a strong sense of orphanhood.” By marrying Mary, Joseph ensures that Jesus is born of the House of David and provides him with an earthly father and with a stable family. The biblical St. Joseph is “a man who doesn’t speak but obeys, a man of tenderness, a man capable of fulfilling his promises so that they become solid, secure,” he said.

“This man takes God’s promise and brings it forward in silence with strength ... so that whatever God wants is fulfilled.”

– Pope Francis

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE

PRAYER CALENDAR

APRIL 2017

APRIL 1 LENTEN WEEKDAY Fr. John Cox, OMI APRIL 2 FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT Fr. Bill DeCrans APRIL 3 LENTEN WEEKDAY Fr. Joe DeCrans (retired) APRIL 4 ST. ISIDORE, BISHOP, DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH Fr. Larry Delaney APRIL 5 ST. VINCENT FERRER, PRIEST Fr. Antony Fernando APRIL 6 LENTEN WEEKDAY Msgr. Mike Foltz APRIL 7 ST. JOHN BAPTIST DE LA SALLE, PRIEST Fr. Tom Friedl APRIL 8 LENTEN WEEKDAY Fr. Augie Gothman APRIL 9 PALM SUNDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD Msgr. Roger Grundhaus (retired) APRIL 10 MONDAY OF HOLY WEEK Fr. Adam Hamness APRIL 11 TUESDAY OF HOLY WEEK Fr. Joseph Hitpas, OMI APRIL 12 WEDNESDAY OF HOLY WEEK Fr. Chuck Huck APRIL 13 HOLY THURSDAY OF THE LORD’S SUPPER Fr. Xavier Ilango APRIL 14 FRIDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD Fr. Joe Kieselbach (retired) APRIL 15 HOLY SATURDAY Fr. John Kleinwachter APRIL 16 EASTER SUNDAY OF THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD Msgr. Donald Krebs (retired)

APRIL 17 MONDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Fr. Bryan Kujawa APRIL 18 TUESDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Fr. Rick Lambert APRIL 19 WEDNESDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Fr. Gary LaMoine APRIL 20 THURSDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Fr. Bob LaPlante APRIL 21 FRIDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Msgr. Tim McGee APRIL 22 SATURDAY WITHIN THE OCTAVE OF EASTER Fr. Vincent Miller APRIL 23 SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER, SUNDAY OF DIVINE MERCY Fr. Daniel Nassaney, OMI APRIL 24 ST. FIDELIS OF SIGMARINGEN, PRIEST, MARTYR Fr. George Noel APRIL 25 ST. MARK, EVANGELIST Msgr. Jerry Noesen (retired) APRIL 26 EASTER WEEKDAY Fr. Andrew Obel APRIL 27 EASTER WEEKDAY Fr. Ray Palcisko (retired) APRIL 28 ST. PETER CHANEL, PRIEST, MARTYR; ST. LOUIS GRIGNION DE MONTFORT, PRIEST Msgr. Mike Patnode APRIL 29 ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA, VIRGIN, DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH Fr. Raul Perez-Cobo APRIL 30 THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER Fr. Mario Prada (retired)

VOCATION PRAYER OF POPE FRANCIS: God our Father, you made each of us to use our gifts in the Body of Christ. We ask that you inspire young people whom you call to priesthood and consecrated life to courageously follow your will. Send workers into your great harvest so that the Gospel is preached, the poor are served with love, the suffering are comforted, and Your people are strengthened by the sacraments. We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

PRAYER

March 22, 2017

15

POPE FRANCIS’ PRAYER INTENTION

APRIL 2017

(Photo credit: CNS)

YOUNG PEOPLE That young people may respond generously to their vocations and seriously consider offering themselves to God in the priesthood or consecrated life.

DAILY SCRIPTURE APRIL 1 - Jer 11:18-20; Ps 7:2-3, 9b-12; Jn 7:40-53 APRIL 2 - Ez 37:12-14; Ps 130:1-8; Rom 8:8-11; Jn 11:1-45 APRIL 3 - Dn 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 3362; Ps 23:1-6; Jn 8:1-11 APRIL 4 - Nm 21:4-9; Ps 102:2-3, 16-21; Jn 8:21-30 APRIL 5 - Dn 3:14-20, 91-92, 95; (Ps) Dn 3:52-56; Jn 8:31-42 APRIL 6 - Gn 17:3-9; Ps 105:4-9; Jn 8:51-59 APRIL 7 - Jer 20:10-13; Ps 18:2-7; Jn 10:31-42 APRIL 8 - Ez 37:21-28; (Ps) Jer 31:10-13; Jn 11:45-56 APRIL 9 - Is 50:4-7; Ps 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24; Phil 2:6-11; Mt 26:14– 27:66 APRIL 10 - Is 42:1-7; Ps 27:1-3, 13-14; Jn 12:1-11 APRIL 11 - Is 49:1-6; Ps 71:1-4a, 5-6ab, 15, 17; Jn 13:21-33, 36-38 APRIL 12 - Is 50:4-9a; Ps 69:8-10, 2122, 31,33-34; Mt 26:14-25 APRIL 13 - Ex 12:1-8, 11-14; Ps 116:1213, 15-16bc, 17-18; 1 Cor 11:23-26; Jn 13:1-15 APRIL 14 - Is 52:13–53:12; Ps 31:2, 6, 12-13, 15-17, 25; Heb 4:14-16; 5:7-9; Jn 18:1–19:42 APRIL 15 - (1) Gn 1:1–2:2; Ps 104:1-2, 5-6, 12-14, 24, 35 or Ps 33:4-7, 12-13, 20, 22; (2) Gn 22:1-18; Ps 16:5, 8-11; (3) Ex 14:15–15:1; (Ps) Ex 15:1-6, 17-18; (4) Is 54:5-14; Ps 30:2, 4-6, 11-12, 13b; (5) Is 55:1-11; (Ps) Is 12:2-3, 4-6; (6) Bar 3:9-

APRIL 2017 15, 32–4:4; Ps 19:8-11; (7) Ez 36:16-17a, 18-28; Ps 42:3, 5; 43:3-4; or (Ps) Is 12:23, 4bcd, 5-6 or Ps 51:12-15, 18-19; (8) Rom 6:3-11; Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; (9) Mt 28:1-10 APRIL 16 - Acts 10:34a, 37-43; Ps 118:12, 16-17, 22-23; Col 3:1-4 or 1 Cor 5:6b-8; Jn 20:1-9 or Mt 28:1-10 or Lk 24:13-35 APRIL 17 - Acts 2:14, 22-33; Ps 16:12a, 5, 7-11; Mt 28:8-15 APRIL 18 - Acts 2:36-41; Ps 33:4-5, 1820, 22; Jn 20:11-18 APRIL 19 - Acts 3:1-10; Ps 105:1-4, 6-9; Lk 24:13-35 APRIL 20 - Acts 3:11-26; Ps 8:2ab, 5-9; Lk 24:35-48 APRIL 21 - Acts 4:1-12; Ps 118:1-2, 4, 22-27a; Jn 21:1-14 APRIL 22 - Acts 4:13-21; Ps 118:1, 1421; Mk 16:9-15 APRIL 23 - Acts 2:42-47; Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24; 1 Pt 1:3-9; Jn 20:19-31 APRIL 24 - Acts 4:23-31; Ps 2:1-9; Jn 3:1-8 APRIL 25 - 1 Pt 5:5b-14; Ps 89:2-3, 6-7, 16-17; Mk 16:15-20 APRIL 26 - Acts 5:17-26; Ps 34:2-9; Jn 3:16-21 APRIL 27 - Acts 5:27-33; Ps 34:2, 9, 1720; Jn 3:31-36 APRIL 28 - Acts 5:34-42; Ps 27:1, 4, 1314; Jn 6:1-15 APRIL 29 - Acts 6:1-7; Ps 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19; Jn 6:16-21 APRIL 30 - Acts 2:14, 22-33; Ps 16:1-2, 5, 7-11; 1 Pt 1:17-21; Lk 24:13-35

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March 22, 2017

NATIONAL

OUR NORTHLAND DIOCESE