CNS/JORGE DAN LOPEZ, REUTERS
Remembering John Paul II A man holds a rosary in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium during an event to mark the sixth anniversary of the death of Pope John Paul II on April 2. The late pope will be beatified May 1 by his successor, Pope Benedict XVI, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.
THE EAST TENNESSEE
Volume 20 • Number 15 • April 10, 2011
The
newspaper
of the D iocese of K noxville www.dioknox.org
Morristown pastor becomes U.S. citizen
‘Entering fully into the life of the Church’ The diocese’s catechumens and candidates take part in the deanery Rite of Election ceremonies. By Dan McWilliams
B Y D A N M C W I LLIAMS
ather Joseph Hammond, CHS, became a U.S. citizen in February, and his parish family at St. Patrick in Morristown helped him celebrate the occasion. The native of Accra, Ghana, who has served in the diocese for 13 years, was among more than 165 people from 59 countries who took part in naturalization ceremonies Feb. 18 at the City-County Building in Knoxville. U.S. District Judge Thomas Varlan presided and led the new citizens in the Oath of Allegiance. “It was great,” said Father Hammond. “It was very moving and emotional, especially when the judge came and read the orders and rights and all the things you are supposed to do.” The St. Patrick pastor said he had no trouble with the citizenship exam. “The questions and answers were very straightforward and very easy,” he said. About 15 St. Patrick parishioners attended the ceremony in Knoxville, and more than 200 turned out for a “Citizenship Celebration” for their pastor Feb. 26 at the parish center. At that event, Father Hammond received a new Marian chasuble, stole, and alb purchased by several parishioners. The Cabrera family of St. Patrick joined their pastor in becoming U.S. citizens. José, wife Ana, and sons Eddie and Fermin Cabrera took part in the ceremony in Knoxville. Father Hammond has lived in the diocese since 1998, when Bishop Anthony J. O’Connell invited the Crusaders of the Holy Spirit priest to serve in East Tennessee. He served as associate pastor at both Notre Dame in Greeneville and St. Patrick, as well as Five Rivers Deanery coordinator of Hispanic Ministry, for many years. He became the fulltime associate at St. Patrick in 2005 and continued in his deanery Hispanic Ministry role until he became Citizenship continued on page 2
M
ore than 270 catechumens and candidates took a major step toward becoming members of the Catholic Church on the weekend of March 12 and 13 as the diocese celebrated its annual Rite of Election ceremonies in each deanery. Bishop Richard F. Stika and Mercy Sister Mary Timothea Elliott, director of the diocesan Office of Christian Formation, came to Immaculate Conception Church in downtown Knoxville for the Smoky Mountain Deanery’s Rite of Election on the evening of March 12. As did their counterparts in the other three deaneries, the catechumens and candidates at IC declared before the bishop their desire “to enter fully into the life of the Church.” The bishop told the future Catholics at IC that they likely had a leg up on cradle Catholics, comparing the Church’s newcomers with immigrants taking U.S. citizenship tests, who often know more about the country’s history than nativeborn Americans. “There’s so much we take for granted,” he said, cit-
DAN MCWILLIAMS
F
Bishop Stika speaks with candidate Allison Jackson of Sacred Heart Cathedral during the Smoky Mountain Deanery’s Rite of Missioning on March 12 at Immaculate Conception Church. Looking on is another Sacred Heart candidate, Trace Molzon. Behind Trace is his mother, Ashley Piehl. GREETING THE ELECT
ing one sacramental that can become routine despite its deeper significance. “When we enter a Catholic church, by tradition we dip our fingers in the holy water and make the sign of
the cross. . . . It reminds us that we’re baptized, for it is holy water that reminds us we belong to the Christian faith—the Catholic faith. That’s why we make the sign of the cross.”
The full name of each of the four ceremonies last month is the Rite of Election of Catechumens and Call to Continuing Conversion of Candidates. CatRite of Election continued on page 6
New look, new frequency for ETC The diocesan newspaper is being redesigned and going monthly. The new format debuts at the end of April. This issue
He dwells among us ................. 2 Living the readings.................... 4 Life and dignity ....................... 12 La Cosecha ............................ 14
The East Tennessee
The Catholic difference ............ 18 Stories from the CNS wire ...... 19
dioknox.org May 1, 2011 Volume 20 Number 16
Bishop Richard F. Stika
News from The Diocese of Knoxville
6
New American DOK priest passes citizenship exam
8
Where Jesus walked Bishop Stika talks about Holy Land trip
7
Rite of Election 273 will join the Church this Easter
New building dedicated for Knoxville Ladies of Charity Bishop Stika blessed the facility, naming it in honor of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. by Mary C. Weaver
T
he Ladies of Charity of Knoxville have even more opportunity to “do something beautiful for God,” with the move to their new and much larger facility on Baxter Avenue. Dedicated by Bishop Richard F. Stika on March 18, the former Royal Beauty Supply building is now named in honor of Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. The 25,000-square-foot building at 120 W. Baxter Ave. will house the LOC’s food pantry, emergency services, and thrift store, providing five times more space than the former location, downstairs in the unused former Holy Ghost Church.
‘People of faith must live up to the invitation of Jesus . . . to stand with the poor.’ The LOC also used to rent a 1,000-square-foot space for its food pantry in the Catholic Charities building on Dameron Avenue. Now all operations are under the same roof.
LOC presidents Former and current Ladies of Charity of Knoxville presidents Erika Fuhr (left) and Debbie Donahoo share a happy moment during the dedication ceremony for the LOC’s new building on Baxter Avenue in Knoxville. The new facility has five times the square footage of the organization’s old headquarters. The Diocese of Knoxville Living our Roman Catholic faith in East Tennessee
“We as people of faith must live up to the invitation of Jesus to love our brothers and sisters and to stand with the poor, as St. Vincent de Paul reminded us,” the bishop said shortly before the ribbon-cutting ceremony. St. Vincent de Paul, a French priest renowned for his generosity, founded the first Ladies of Charity group in 1634. In his remarks the bishop cited two heroes of the Church: Pope John Paul II, who will be beatified on May 1, and Mother Teresa. “Pope John Paul reminded us again and again of the first words that came out of his mouth when he was elected pope on that beautiful, sunny October day: ‘Be not afraid!’ And we remember the expression attributed to Blessed Teresa, ‘Do something beautiful for God.’ “These are reminders to us as people of faith that we must be concerned about our sisters and brothers, whatever their color, whatever their language, wherever they were born,” the bishop said.
BY MARY C. WEAVER
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or the first time in nearly 10 years The East Tennessee Catholic is getting a new design. The redesigned newspaper will launch with the May 1 edition, which will mail to subscribers on April 26. Graphic designer Carol Rumbolt, a parishioner of Sacred Heart Cathedral, redesigned the paper, with the help of a committee made up of Media Office staff, clergy, and the faithful. Bishop Richard F. Stika approved the design on Feb. 17. The ETC is also becoming a monthly. We weighed the decision for nearly a year and ultimately chose to reduce our frequency in order to cut costs, particularly the cost of postage. Mailing less frequently—and printing less often—will save the Diocese of Knoxville Redesign continued on page 3