NOVEMBER 22, 2023
mississippicatholic.com
US bishops' meeting shows united front on mission but no clear synod action plan By Peter Jesserer Smith
BALTIMORE (OSV News) – For two days, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops met in plenary assembly in Baltimore advancing key issues related to liturgy, living out the faith, including in the public square, and retooling the conference to better serve the church's mission. However, the bishops' Nov. 13-16 meeting, which took place nearly three weeks following the conclusion of the global Synod on Synodality, also concluded without a common game plan for how bishops could get consultative feedback from their local parishes with respect to the synod's "halftime" report before it reconvenes in 11 months. At the assembly's opening Mass Nov. 13, the bishops prayed for peace, with USCCB president Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services in the homily saying they asked for wisdom to help others embrace Jesus Christ, and noting the feast day of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, the first American saint, and herself an immigrant who championed care for immigrants. The public portions of the bishops' plenary assembly Nov. 14-15 were marked with extraordinary unanimity as the bishops' closed-door "fraternal dialogues" gave them time for face-to-face group discussions to work out contentious issues in advance of presentations and votes.
Bishops attend Mass Nov. 13, 2023, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore at the start of their 2023 fall plenary assembly. (OSV News photo/courtesy Angelus Virata, Baltimore Basilica)
The bishops approved a letter to Pope Francis, affirming their shared concern over global conflicts, his teaching on "ecological conversion," and their commitment to prayerfully reflect on the Synod on Synodality synthesis report. In their addresses, Cardinal Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the U.S., and Archbishop Broglio offered contrasting viewpoints on synodality. Cardinal Pierre focused on Luke's Gospel account of the risen Jesus revealing himself to his disciples on the road to Emmaus as illustrating "precisely the synodal path in its essential elements: encountering, accompanying, listening, discerning and rejoicing at what the Holy Spirit reveals." Archbishop Broglio shared his view that existing advisory structures in the U.S. church, both at the diocesan and national level, are examples of existing synodal realities to "recognize and build on" while remaining open to "new possibilities." Over Nov. 14-15, the bishops voted with overwhelming majorities on every issue: U.S. adaptations to the Liturgy of the Hours and liturgical drafts related to consecrated and religious life; national revised statutes for Christian initiation; and it also approved without controversy supplements to its teaching on faithful citizenship that reference Pope Francis' 2020 encyclical letter "Fratelli Tutti" ("Brothers All") while naming abortion
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Walton’s “Advent Reflections for this Day" offers unique path to deeper Advent experience By Joanna Puddister King
book offers a weekly focus on the Sunday Gospels, allowing readers to dive deeper JACKSON – Parishioner of St. Paul Flowood, Monica Walton, didn’t envision her into the spiritual meaning of Advent without the pressure of daily readings. One 2022 Advent Reflection booklet she made and shared with friends and family would of the standout features of this book is the inclusion of “Modern-Day Parables,” original stories created by Walton that draw parallels between the Gospel passages lead to the publishing of her first book, but it did. Earlier this year, Sunrise Press rose out of Dogwood Press, and contemporary situations. Walton says that the parables provide fresh perspeca small but traditional publishing house headed by Joe Lee, parishioner of St. Francis of Assisi – Continued on page 6 – Madison. Walton said even though Lee’s publishing house was focused INSIDE THIS WEEK on mystery and suspense fiction, he was Catholic and thought she would get his perspective even though she was hesitant to do so. As chance would have it, Lee was “sufficiently Monica Walton intrigued” with Walton’s pitch and he ended up creating Sunrise Press, a subsidiary of Dogwood Press that considers faithbased works of fiction and nonfiction for publication. The 2023 edition of “Advent Reflections for this Day” – the very first book published by Sunrise Press Youth 11 Called by name 4 From the archives 7 – is a unique and thoughtfully crafted resource for indiYouth photos from schools Fr. Nick writes on taking Woodward writes on upviduals seeking a more profound connection to the Saand parishes time for prayer date on Sr. Thea Cause cred Word during the busy Christmas season. Walton’s
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
PARISH, FAMILY & SCHOOL EVENTS
ABERDEEN – St. Francis, Christmas Party, Sunday, Dec. 10 with happy hour at 5 p.m. and dinner at 6 p.m. Potluck, sign up to bring your dish in the parish hall. Dirty Santa with $15 gift after dinner. Details: church office (662) 813-2295. ANGUILLA – Our Mother of Mercy, Celebrating 100 years of our Catholic faith, Saturday, Jan. 27. Mass at 10:30 a.m. with reception following. Please join us! CHATAWA – Our Lady of Hope and Camp Chatawa, Christmas in Chatawa, Saturday, Dec. 16 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Enjoy a live Nativity, pancake breakfast, train rides, caroling hay ride, Santa and Mrs. Claus, reindeer games, crafts and hot chocolate bar. Cost: $20 per person. Details: RSVP at ourladyofhopems.com. St. Richard School, Krewe de Cardinal, Save the date: Friday, Feb. 2 from 7-11 p.m. at The South Warehouse. Details: school office (601) 366-1157. Catholic Charities, Born Free/New Beginnings program is seeking a sponsor(s) for Christmas 2023 gifts. Born Free offers substance abuse treatment for pregnant mothers and mothers with children ages 0-4 residing in Mississippi. Details: www.catholiccharitiesjackson.org or call (601) 326-3714. CANTON – Diocesan Young Adult Advent Day of Reflection, Saturday, Dec. 2 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Camp Bratton Green. Join young adults from around the diocese for a day of fellowship, fun and prayer. Cost: $30 Details: register at https://jacksondiocese. flocknote.com/signup/140596 or contact amelia.rizor@ jacksondiocese.org. GREENWOOD – St. Francis, Bingo, Monday, Dec. 4 at 6 p.m. in the school cafeteria. Details: church office (662) 453-0623. HERNANDO – Holy Spirit, Cockatils and Catholicism, Friday, Dec. 8. Mass at 6 p.m. with talk and coctails after with Father Bruce Cinquegrani speaking on the Blessed Mother. Details: RSVP at https://bit.ly/
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CocktailsCatholicismDec2023. Holy Spirit, Advent Day-by-Day “Slow Down and Just Breathe.” Three part program begins Thursday, Dec. 7 from 6:30-8 p.m.; then Thursday, Dec. 14 and 21 in Chapel Hall with facilitator Chris Greer. Don’t be overwhelmed by the demands of the season, we can wait for Jesus in joyful hope! Details: church office (662) 4297851; sign up in the narthex. JACKSON – St. Richard, Liturgical Living: Liturgy of the Word, Wednesday, Nov. 29 from 6-7 p.m. in Foley Hall. Series will focus on the order and structure of the Mass, beginning with the Liturgy of the Word. All adults welcome for refreshments, resources and fellowship. Nursery available. Details: RSVP to dre@ saintrichard.com. St. Richard, Christmas Candlelighting Celebration for Deceased Loved Ones, Thursday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. in Foley Hall. Sister Dorothea Sondgeroth, OP will share comments on her own experiences with lost loved ones. A brief ceremony of prayer and rememberance is included, followed by drinks and light refreshments. Details: please RSVP to Nancy at (601) 942-2078 or ncmcghee@bellsouth.net. Carmelite Gift Shop, Meet Emanuele Fontanini, Friday, Dec. 1 from 1-4 p.m. Location: 2155 Terry Road. Details: call (601) 373-3412. MADISON – St. Anthony School, Starry Night Gala, Saturday, Dec. 9 at the Sheraton Flowood. VIP preview party from 6-7 p.m. with general admission opening at 7 p.m. Cost: Event tickets $150 per couple. You do not need to be present to win the $5,000 raffle and tickets are only $10 per chance. Details: purchase tickets at https://bit.ly/StarryNight2023. St. Francis, Ring in Your Faith 10k/5k, Monday, Jan. 1 at 8 a.m. You are guaranteed a delicious New Year’s Day meal and fellowship after the race. Cost is $30, with proceeds to assist Knights ongoing service projects. Register at https://bit.ly/ringinyourfaith2024. Details: Joe at leslieslee@hotmail.com.
St. Joseph School, Jeans, Jazz and Bruin Blues $10,000 Draw Down, Saturday, Jan. 27, 2024 at the Reunion Country Club. Sponsorships available. Details: www.stjoedrawdown.com. MERIDIAN – St. Patrick, Candy Cane 5k Dash and Fun Run, Saturday, Dec. 2. Details: register at https:// bit.ly/CandyCane2023. St. Patrick, Memorial brick campaign. Cost of each brick is $125, with a maximum of three lines with up to 18 letters per line. Brick size is 4x8 inches. Net proceeds for recent parish repairs. Details: https://www.bricksrus.com/donorsite/catholicmeridian. NATCHEZ – St. Mary Basilica, Advent Fair and Wreath Workshop, Sunday, Dec. 3 at 3 p.m. in the Family Life Center. Families can come to learn about the history and symbolism of the Creche, with craft activities for kids, snaks and the opportunity to make an advent wreath for your home. Details: church office (601) 445-5616. OLIVE BRANCH – Queen of Peace, Harmonies of Christmas Concert, Sunday, Dec. 3 at 4 p.m. All are welcome! Details: church office (662) 429-7851. Queen of Peace, Breakfast with Santa, Sunday, Dec. 3 at 11 a.m. in the social hall. Details: church office (662) 429-7851. PAULDING – St. Michael, 180th Celebration with Bishop Kopacz, Saturday, Dec. 2 at 10 a.m. Details: caevans745@gmail.com. STARKVILLE – St. Joseph, CYO Garage Sale, Saturday, Dec. 2 from 8-11:30 a.m. in the parish hall. Details: church office (662) 323-2257.
CARMELITE GIFT SHOP 2155 TERRY ROAD JACKSON MS 39204 601-373-1460/601-373-3412
November 13—December 23
... Cathedral ‘shiny and new’ ...
Thank you for your support to our apostolate of prayer. To donate online, please visit our website www.jacksoncarmel.com We wish you a joy-filled Christmas and grace-filled New year. God bless you! Our loving prayers for peace,
Carmelite Nuns of Jackson
JACKSON – Father Nick Adam, rector of the Cathedral of St. Peter, is extremely pleased with the final outcome of the exterior work done by Marsh Waterproofing at the Cathedral. Due to little to no rain, the big job took only half the time with little disruption to day-to-day activities. Special thanks go to Mary Woodward and Traci Avalon for their assistance with the project. (Photo by Tereza Ma)
APPLIANCE AUDIO VIDEO BEDDING FURNITURE SUPERSTORE
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MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC NOVEMBER 22, 2023
let there be light
Catholics, a people of thanksgiving By Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz, D.D.
As we celebrate the cherished national holiday of Thanksgiving, it is a time to recall the foundations of this long weekend that breathes life into the heart and soul of our nation. George Washington, our nation’s first president, with the backing of Congress in 1789, declared the last Thursday of November as a day set apart for Thanksgiving to Almighty God for the blessings of liberty, the harvest and much more. President Abraham Lincoln in 1861 called for the renewal of this day set apart for Thanksgiving to inspire greater unity in our nation in the midst of the Civil War. This many years later our national time of thanksgiving can soften and heal the divisions that plague our nation in 2023. As Catholics, we are inherently by God’s grace a people of thanksgiving, most notably whenever we gather at the altar to celebrate the Eucharist, the great prayer of gratitude for the love of God poured out in Jesus Christ for the gift of salvation. An abiding spirit of thanksgiving is at the center of the current Eucharistic revival, a permanent disposition that allows us to live in a manner worthy of our calling within and beyond the hallowed walls of our churches. The prayers that are proclaimed at each Eucha-
ristic celebration embrace the reality of thanksgiving Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with from hearts and minds that are open to God’s trans- praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. For the forming grace. At the beginning of the Preface, the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulportal of the Eucharistic prayer and Consecration, ness continues through all generations.” the priest declares. “It is truly right and just, our duty May the Holy Spirit bestow upon us this marveland our salvation, always and everywhere to give you ous spirit of praise and thanksgiving as we funnel into thanks, Father most holy, through your beloved Son, our churches and gather around our family tables for Jesus Christ, your Word through whom you made all Thanksgiving. things.” The national holiday of Thanksgiving has deep This marvelous expression of gratitude is already roots in our Judaic Christian tradition. As we give unfolding at the Preparation of the Gifts when the thanks to the Lord on the day itself and throughout priest proclaims, “Blessed are you Lord God of all the weekend, which is the feast of Christ the King, the creation for through your goodness we have received culminating celebration of the church year, may the this bread and wine which we offer to you, fruit of the prayer for unity, and a greater spirit of loving generosearth and of the vine, and the work of human hands, ity be at the center of our intentions. they will become for us the bread of life and spiritual “But now in Christ Jesus, you who once were far off drink.” The prayers over the bread and wine are of- have been brought near through the blood of Christ. fered separately at the altar and after each, the con- For he is our peace, who has made the two into one gregation responds, “Blessed be God forever.” What a by breaking down the barrier of hostility…As a result, heartfelt expression of thanksgiving! you are no longer strangers and foreigners. Rather, One of the most powerful expressions of thanksgiv- you are fellow citizens of the saints and members of ing at the center of worship is Psalm 100. You can feel the household of God, built upon the foundation of the the joy and read how it captures the spirit of the faith- apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as ful people of Israel so many centuries ago. the cornerstone.” (Ephesians 2:13-14, 19-20) “Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. Worship the Lord with gladThe Diocese of Jackson has launched a third-party reporting system that will enness; come before him able all diocesan employees, volunteers and parishioners to anonymously (or named with joyful songs. Know if preferred) make reports. Examples of this activity include fraud, misconduct, safety that the Lord is God. It is violations, harassment or substance abuse occurring at a Catholic parish, Catholic school or at the diocesan level. The system is operated by Lighthouse Services. Based he who made us, and we in Deerfield, Illinois, Lighthouse Services maintains ethics, safety and fraud hotlines are his, we are his people, for over 4,100 organizations between the U.S. and abroad. the sheep of his pasture.
Happy Ordination Anniversary December 16
Father Alexis Zuniga Velasquez, ST
St. Anne Carthage, Sacred Heart Camden & Holy Child Jesus Canton
December 18
Deacon Carlos Sola
Father Antony Chakkalakkal
St. Dominic Hospital & Cathedral of St. Peter
December 19
Father Augustine Palimattam Poulose
Retired
The Association of Priests of the Dioceses of Jackson and Biloxi provide a small pension to our retired priests. As you consider your estate plans, please remember these faithful servants by making a donation or leaving a bequest to the Association of Priests. Our parish priests dedicate their lives to caring for us, their flocks. Let us now care for them in their retirement. Donations can be made payable to the Association of Priests and can be mailed to: Diocese of Jackson, P.O. Box 22723, Jackson, MS 39225-2723
December 27
St. James Tupelo
Father Thomas Mullally, SVD
To make a report visit www.lighthouse-services.com/jacksondiocese or call 888-830-0004 (English) or 800-216-1288 (Spanish).
St. Patrick & St. Joseph Meridian
Thank you for answering the call!
BISHOP’S SCHEDULE Sunday, Nov. 26, 9 a.m. – Mass for Feast of Christ the King, Christ the King parish, Jackson Saturday, Dec. 2, 10 a.m. – Mass and 180th Anniversary Celebration, St. Michael, Paulding Tuesday, Dec. 5, 7:30 a.m. – Mass, Carmelite Monastery, Jackson
Volume 69 Number 21 (ISSN 1529-1693)
P.O. Box 2130 Jackson, MS 39225-2130 Phone: 601-969-3581 E-mail: editor@jacksondiocese.org Publisher ........................................................................................... Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz Communications Director ....................................................................... Joanna Puddister King Production Manager....................................................................................................Tereza Ma Contributors ......................................................................................................... Berta Mexidor MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC is an official publication of the Diocese of Jackson, 601-969-1880, 237 E. Amite St., Jackson, MS 39201. Published digitally twice per month January – April and September – December; once per month June, July and August. Mississippi Catholic mails 14 editions per year – twice per month in December and January; and once per month February – November. For address changes, corrections or to join the email list for the digital edition, email: editor@jacksondiocese.org. Subscription rate: $20 a year in Mississippi, $21 out-of-state. Periodical postage at Jackson, MS 39201 and additional entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Mississippi Catholic, P.O. Box 2130, Jackson, MS 39225-2130. Website: www.mississippicatholic.com w www.jacksondiocese.org
Saturday, Dec. 9, 6 p.m. – Starry Night Gala for St. Anthony School, The Sheraton Refuge, Flowood Sunday, Dec. 10, 9:30 a.m. – Mass and Renovation Blessing, St. Joseph, Greenville Sunday, Dec. 17, 8:30 a.m. – Mass, St. Joseph, Meridian Sunday, Dec. 17, 11 a.m. – Mass, St. Patrick, Meridian with blessing of High Altar and Columbarium following at 12 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 24, 10:30 a.m. – 4th Sunday of Advent Mass, Cathedral of St. Peter, Jackson Sunday, Dec. 24, 4 p.m. – Christmas Vigil Mass, Cathedral of St. Peter, Jackson Saturday, Jan. 27, 10:30 a.m. – 100th Anniversary Celebration, Our Mother of Mercy, Anguilla All events are subject to change. Check with parishes and schools for further details.
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
4 VOCATIONS CALLED BY NAME If we expect young people to discover God’s will for them then we must teach them how to speak with Jesus in times of silent prayer. In order to prepare ourselves for regular conversation with the Lord where he can speak to us, we need to answer a few questions. When? This is often the question we struggle to answer the most I think, or at least we struggle to answer it with consistency. The key is to pick a time and stick to it. The morning is typically the best time because the day hasn’t started yet, and Father Nick Adam we don’t have a thousand issues running through our heads. If you are like me and you are not a morning person, that doesn’t mean you can’t pray in the morning, it just means you might pray a little later than others do, and that’s ok! Just pick a time that’s realistic for you with your schedule and stick to it! Where? Another question that we can struggle to answer or to have consistency with. It is vital to have a space that is set apart in order to spend time in prayer. This doesn’t have to be your local parish or adoration chapel, but that would be a great place to choose. The key is that it needs to be a quiet space and anything in the room needs to help you bring your mind to God (icons, crucifix, etc.) rather
Email: amelia.rizor@jacksondiocese.org
Register by scanning the QR code or visit https://jacksondiocese. flocknote.com/signup/140596
than staying in the things of the world (computer screen, music, etc.). It may be tempting to play ‘mood music,’ but I wouldn’t, even sacred music like chant. We need to learn that being in silence is ok, and though it feels that we are alone, we aren’t – the Lord is here to meet us. How? Here’s my starter kit – your Bible, a journal and 20 minutes. Read a passage from Scripture slowly, then read it slowly one more time. What word, phrase, action of a character, etc. sticks out to you. (Example: I’m reading about the storm at sea and the fear of the apostles sicks out to me) – talk to Jesus about why that word, phrase, action, etc. is affecting you. Talk to Jesus for about five minutes, or until you’ve said all you want to say. Then allow the silence to come back into your heart and wait for the Lord to respond. Sometimes he responds with a feeling or a thought that bubbles up, sometimes you’ll feel nothing, but this is all about consistency. It is about allowing God the space to act in your life. After your time of silence, write in your journal what you spoke to Jesus about and what you think he said back to you. Please share this article with a young person in your life and encourage them to enter into daily prayer and encourage them by your own example of daily prayer.
– Father Nick Adam, vocation director
(Read about our current seminarians and their inspirational vocation stories at https://jacksondiocese.org/seminarians. Father Nick Adam can be contacted at nick.adam@jacksondiocese.org.)
Spirituality 5
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC NOVEMBER 22, 2023
Helplessness as fruitful IN EXILE By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
imaginatively or feel God affectively, when the very sense of God’s existence dries up inside us and we are left in an agnostic darkness, helpless (in head, heart and gut) to conjure up any sense of God. However, (and this is the point, precisely because we are helpless and unable to conjure up any imaginative concepts or affective feelings about God) God can now flow into us purely, without us being able to color or contaminate that experience. When all our efforts are useless, grace can finally take over and flow into us in purity. Indeed, that’s how all authentic revelation enters our world. When human helplessness renders us incapable of making God serve our self-interest, God can then flow into our lives without contamination. Now, this is also true for human love. So much of our love for each other, no matter our sincerity, is colored by self-interest and is at some point self-serving. In some fashion, we inevitably form those we love into
our own image and likeness. However, as is the case with Buckley’s critique of the atheistic thinkers of the Enlightenment, this isn’t always the case. There are certain situations when we can’t in any way taint love and make it self-serving. What are those situations? Precisely those in which find we ourselves completely helpless, mute, stammering, unable to say or do anything that’s helpful. In these particular “dark nights of the soul,” when we are completely helpless to shape the experience, love and grace can flow in purely and powerfully. In his classic work The Divine Milieu, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin challenges us to help others both through our activity and through our passivity. He’s right. We can be generative through what we actively do for others, and we can be particularly generative when we stand passively with them in helplessness.
Sometimes we are the most helpful and life-giving at the very times when we are most helpless. We’ve all been there. We’re at a funeral and there’s nothing to say that will ease the heartache of someone who has lost a loved one. We feel awkward and helpless. We’d like to say or do something, but there’s nothing to be said or done, other than to be there, embrace the one nursing the grief and share our help(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teachlessness. Passing strange, but it is er and award-winning author. He can be contacted our very helplessness that’s most through his website www.ronrolheiser.com.) helpful and generative in that situation. Our passivity is more fruitful and generative than if we were doing something. We see an example of this in Jesus. He gave both The Pope’s Corner his life and his death for us – but in separate moments. He gave his life for us through his activity and his death for us through his passivity, that is, through what he absorbed in helplessness. Indeed, we can divide each of the Gospels into two clear parts. Up until his arrest in the Garden of Gethsewill bring them great fulfillment and happiness,” Pope By Cindy Wooden mane, Jesus is the active one: he teaches, he heals, VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The only way for parents Francis said. he performs miracles, he feeds people. Then, after To instill that in children, he said, they must know to teach their children the beauty and importance of he is arrested, he doesn’t do anything: he is handmarriage and of accepting children as a gift from God that God loves them. cuffed, led away, put on trial, scourged and cruci“When we realize that at the root of our being is the is through their example, Pope Francis said. fied. Yet, and this is the mystery, we believe that he Children “are immersed” in a media and cultural love of God our father, then we see clearly that life is gave us more during that time when he couldn’t do environment extolling virtues and practices that are good, that being born is good and that loving is good,” anything than during all those times he was active. “at odds with what, until a few decades ago, was con- the pope said. We are saved more through his passivity and helpFirm in the knowledge that one is loved by God and sidered ‘normal’ but is no longer the case,” the pope lessness than through his powerful actions during is a gift to one’s family gives a person the strength he told members of the European Parents’ Association. his ministry. How does this work? How can help“Parents thus find themselves constantly having to or she needs to avoid “a demeaning tendency to hoard lessness and passivity be so generative? show their children the goodness and reasonableness material goods, a constant concern not to run risks, Partly this is mystery, though partly we grasp of choices and values that can no longer be taken for not to get overly involved, not to get our hands dirty.” some of it through experience. For example, a lovInstead, he said, they learn to see how “life blosgranted, such as the importance of marriage and the ing mother dying in hospice, in a coma, unable to family, or the decision to accept children as a gift from soms in all its richness and beauty” when it is shared speak, can sometimes in that condition change with others. God,” the pope told the group Nov. 11. the hearts of her children more powerfully than That Christian outlook, the pope said, is also the In his talk, Pope Francis reiterated the church’s she ever could during all the years when she did strong support for the right of parents “to raise and root of a healthy society because it trains young people so much for them. What’s the logic here? By what educate their children in freedom, without finding “in sound and respectful relationships with others, a metaphysics does this work? themselves constrained in any sphere, particularly in readiness to cooperate in view of a shared goal, formLet me begin abstractly and circle this question that of schooling, to accept educational programs con- ing them to take responsibility, a sense of duty and the before venturing to an answer. The atheistic thinkvalue of sacrifice for sake of the common good.” trary to their beliefs and values.” ers of the Enlightenment (Nietzsche, Feuerbach, While the culture and its values change, “the needs Marx and others) offer a very powerful critique of of the human heart rereligion and of religious experience. In their view, main the same,” the pope all religious experience is simply subjective prosaid, and that is the place jection, nothing more. For them, in our faith and where parents must start religious practices, we are forever creating a god in educating children to in our own image and likeness, to serve our self-inbe good Christians and terest. (The very antithesis of what Christians responsible citizens. believe.) For Nietzsche, for instance, there is no di“God himself has vine revelation coming from outside us, no God in planted in our nature heaven revealing divine truth to us. Everything is an irrepressible need for us, projecting our needs and creating a god to serve love, truth and beauty, those needs. All religion is self-serving, human an openness to others projection. in healthy relationships How true is this? One of the most influential and an openness to himprofessors I’ve studied under, Jesuit Michael Buckself as our creator,” he ley, says this in face of that criticism: These thinksaid. “These yearnings ers are 90% correct. But they’re 10% wrong – and that of the human heart are 10% makes all the powerful allies of every difference. educator.” Buckley made Parents must help this comment their children recognize while teaching “the beauty of life in this Wholesale and home what John of the world and grow confifreezer service Cross calls a dark dent and enthused about night of the soul. Beef – Pork – Sausage the prospect of embarkWhat is a dark ing on the adventure of 109 - A Camellia Dr. night of the soul? life, convinced that they Pope Francis receives a gift from a member of the European Parents’ AssociaIt’s an experience too have a mission to car- tion in the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Nov. 11, 2023. (CNS photo/Vatican where we can no ry out, a mission which Media) longer sense God
Parents teach Christian values best by example, pope says
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Natchez 601-445-8743
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
6 DIOCESE
' ... how we address issues and concerns of the church in the United States ...' do immediately was request guidance from the Synod Secretariat in Rome, on how to engage their local churches in a focused and as "our pre-eminent priority" among other relevant way "because the first responsibilithreats to human life and dignity. ty of the bishops is to go back to their own The U.S. bishops voted to support the people and to say these are some issues that sainthood cause launched by the Archdiocese impact us in particular." of New York for Father Isaac Hecker (1819He indicated a synodal culture needs to 1888), founder of the Paulist Fathers. They take root in the local church first – noting also endorsed an effort to declare St. John parish or diocesan pastoral councils are not Henry Newman a "doctor of the church." used in some places since they are not manThe bishops voted to reauthorize their Ad datory – in order to discern what structures Hoc Committee Against Racism for two more are needed to support it at all levels of the years, discern its future place in the conferchurch. ence structure, and change rules so retired The bishops' showed a move toward deepChicago Auxiliary Bishop Joseph N. Perry, ening that kind of engagement by replacing who is African American, could continue the USCCB's current strategic planning cycle leading that committee. with a mission planning process that would The U.S. bishops elected Archbishop allow the conference to have defined regular Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City as secreresponsibilities and the flexibility to focus on tary-elect of the U.S. Conference of Catholic "mission directives that evolve after a proBishops, and also elected chairmen-elect for cess of discernment" that can be informed by six committees – education, communicabishops engaging in local and regional contions, cultural diversity, doctrine, national sultation. Bishops attend Mass Nov. 13, 2023, at the Basilica of the National collections and pro-life activities – as well "I think it is more synodal," Archbishop as bishops for the boards of Catholic Legal Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore at Broglio said in an interview with OSV News, Immigration Network Inc., or CLINIC, and the start of their 2023 fall plenary assembly. (OSV News photo/cour- "and I think that will be something that will Catholic Relief Services, the U.S. church's tesy Angelus Virata, Baltimore Basilica) make a difference in how we address issues overseas relief and development agency. and concerns of the church in the United cluded, the bishops did not seem to have any definite A surprise came when the bishops decidStates in a different way, in a new way." process or task force to help them engage the faithful ed to punt approval of a pastoral framework for Indigenous Catholic ministry that they had commissioned in consultation on the synod's 41-page report summa(Peter Jesserer Smith is national news and features four years ago in order to revise and revisit the plan at rizing the body's consensus, matters for consideration editor for OSV News. Follow him on X ( formerly known and priority actions. their June 2024 assembly. During a Nov. 14 press conference, Bishop Flores as Twitter) @jesserersmith.dinary General Assembly of Outside the hotel where the bishops' assembly was the Synod of Bishops, visit https://www.synod.va/en/ held, the Baltimore-based Defend Life organization told OSV News he anticipates it will be discussed in news/a-synodal-church-in-mission.html)) held a rosary rally led by Bishop Joseph E. Strickland. June once bishops have taken the time to "let it sink in The event, however, was planned in advance of the and read it carefully." He said what the USCCB could
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bishop learning Nov. 11, just days before the assembly, that Pope Francis had removed him from pastoral governance of his Diocese of Tyler, Texas. About 125 participants, including some clergy and religious, participated. Bishop Strickland told reporters, including OSV News, that he was told by "the nuncio" – indicating Cardinal Christophe Pierre – not to attend the fall plenary meeting. He said he "respected" the decision," as well as his "commitment to be here for this prayer." Back in the bishops’ assembly, the prelates heard an update on the National Eucharistic Revival revealed attendees of the National Eucharistic Congress July 17-21 in Indianapolis now have the option of purchasing single-day and weekend passes, among other provisions to make participation more affordable and flexible, including scholarships and increasing housing options. A plenary indulgence also will be available to anyone who participates in one of the four main routes of the national pilgrimage to the Eucharistic congress. The bishops also heard an update on the newly launched Institute on the Catechism. Some bishops advocated that instituting lay men and women to the new ministry of catechist would fill a need for authentic, well-formed witnesses to bring that "evangelizing catechesis" to others. The bishops most sustained public dialogue took place over the mental health campaign launched in response to the "dire mental health crisis" in the U.S. with some bishops calling for more Catholics to enter the mental health field, educating seminarians and priests in properly referring people for counseling, or connecting people with mental health resources similar to the "Walking with Moms In Need" initiative. With respect to the Oct. 4-29 Synod on Synodality, the bishops heard about positive experiences from some of their delegates, particularly the value of the synod's "conversations in the Spirit" as a model for carrying out regular conversational interaction among the church's members for the sake of the church's mission. However, by the time the plenary assembly con-
' ... prepare for the coming of the Lord ...' – Continued from page 1 – tives on the Scripture, making it even more relevant to our daily lives. The decision to create a weekly Advent reflection, as opposed to a daily one, lies in Walton’s experience with the face-paced nature of the Advent season, often causing people to lose sight of its true significance. She explained, “Sometimes it feels like you can’t catch up if you get behind a few days. I wrote the book with myself and other busy people in mind.” “Advent Reflections for this Day” contains four Sunday Gospels, followed by Walton’s unique contemporary parables, three thought-provoking questions to consider how the reader might respond in similar situations, and three suggestions on how to live out the Gospel’s message during that particular week. The emphasis is on personal reflection, with no right or wrong answers. As Walton puts it, “It’s about thinking, ‘how can I be the best I want to be.’” Bishop Joseph Kopacz enjoyed Walton’s Advent reflections, sharing news of the books release with pastors across the diocese, saying that the book is
“strongly recommended for parishes as well as individuals who look to further their walk with God, and to prepare for the coming of the Lord.” While the book is suitable for people of any Christian denomination, it is predominantly Catholic, specifically focusing on Year B of the Catholic Liturgical Calendar. Walton plans for editions covering Year A and B if her publisher agrees. She has a wealth of her “Modern-Day Parables” to draw from for future offerings, having written over 100 of them with no shortage of inspiration. Walton encourages readers to start the book the week of Nov. 27, as the first Sunday of Advent falls on Dec. 3. This year, the Advent season is a bit shorter, with the fourth week ending on Christmas Eve, explained Walton. “Advent Reflections for this Day” is available for purchase at various local bookstores, including Lemuria (Jackson), Lorelei Books (Vicksburg), Book Mart and Café (Starkville), Impression Books (Flowood) and Pass Christian Books (Pass Christian and Gulfport). For those who prefer online shopping, the book can also be ordered at dogwoodpress.com at a cost of $8.95.
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC NOVEMBER 22, 2023
DIOCESE 7
Servant of God, Sister Thea Bowman cause update
MEMPHIS – Bishop Joseph Kopacz visits Sister Thea Bowman’s gravesite in late October 2018, in preparation for taking her cause before the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in November 2018. (Photo by Deacon Ted Schreck/courtesy of archives)
By Mary Woodward
JACKSON – On Nov. 18, 2018, Bishop Joseph Kopacz officially opened the cause for the beatification and canonization of Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, who died on March 30, 1990, at her family home in Canton. Bishop’s edict was read to the faithful in the Cathedral of Saint Peter the Apostle in Jackson during the Sunday liturgy. Having received the nihil obstat from the Holy See’s Dicastery for the Causes of Saints and gotten approval from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops at the November 2018 plenary meeting in Baltimore, the cause opened the diocesan phase of the intricate canonical process leading to possible beatification. During this phase, the Servant of God’s (this is the title she now carries) writings, theology, biography is studied and documented by appointed experts. A tribunal consisting of an episcopal delegate, promoter of justice, and notary, interview witnesses who knew her
canonical process as the diocesan phase. If a miracle is proven and accepted, the Servant of God is put on the schedule for an official liturgy of beatification. The next step would be canonization and that requires a second miracle. That miracle would have to happen after the beatification. All-in-all, the Roman side of the process takes a long time. In the meantime, Bishop Kopacz has commissioned a life-size bronze statue of the Servant of God by a well-known bronze sculptor from Saucier, Mary Davidson. The statue will be placed in the Cathedral until a shrine location can be developed. We will feature the statue project and its uniqueness in a future article. As for now, we need many prayers for the cause, especially for those involved in working through the fine details of the diocesan phase. We also can use donations to the cause as it does have several financial costs for travel, translations, experts and administration. Donations may be made to the Diocese of Jackson and sent to the Chancellor’s Office, 237 E. Amite Street, Jackson, MS 39201. Make sure you mark the donation for Sister Thea’s Cause. To donate online or to learn more about the Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, visit our website at https://www.jacksondiocese.org/thea-bowman. From this site you may watch the wonderful documentary on her life “Going Home Like a Shooting Star” and find a link to the cause’s official site with photos and tributes to her. Presenting a cause for canonization is one of the noblest things a diocese can undertake as an official act of the church. It is exciting to know that over the next several months we are participating in this ancient tradition and moving forward in completing the diocesan phase of this esteemed process. (Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson.)
and ministered with her. The questionnaire for the witnesses is quite extensive – probing into the virtues and the faith, hope and love shown throughout her life from childhood to death. Those interviews must be transcribed and sent to the witness for any additional comments then a signature of approval for inclusion in the Canonical acts. When the pandemic hit, all interviews stopped. We were about two-thirds of the way through the list of witnesses. We are now slowly regrouping and hope to complete the entire process by the end of next year. This will involve tying up several loose ends and printing everything in triplicate so that it may be sent to Rome. When all is ready, Bishop Kopacz will lead a special liturgy in which the documents will be sealed and presented to the postulator to deliver to the dicastery. Once that is completed, the postulator will work with the dicastery to move the cause forward. At a certain point, once the cause is in Rome, The Holy Father may declare the Servant of God as Venerable – showing heroic virtue. After Venerable, the next step is beatification and in order to be beatified there must be a miracle. Examination of Sister Charlene Smith and Sister Thea Bowman pictured the miracle goes in their ealy FSPA years. (Photo courtesy Franciscan Sisthrough a similar ters of Perpetual Adoration/fspa.org/theabowman)
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
8 BRIEFS would give it back a million times over to be united to Jesus,” added Borba, who is studying to be a priest for the Diocese of Fresno, California. WASHINGTON (OSV News) – The chairman of the U.S. bishops’ migration committee has sent a letter to lawmakers in Congress urging enhanced protections be put in place for migrant children. “In recent months, several concerning reports have emerged regarding incidents of migrant children in the United States suffering exploitative labor conditions and other harmful situations,” Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, said in his Nov. 9 letter. “Among migrants, unaccompanied children constitute the most vulnerable group,” added the bishop, who is chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration. His letter follows the Nov. 1 introduction of a bipartisan, bicameral measure that would add protections for minors to immigration courts, which do not currently have protocols specifically for processing children. Sens. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, alongside Reps. Dan Goldman, D-N.Y., and Maria Salazar, R-Fla., introduced the Immigration Court Efficiency and Children’s Court Act, legislation they said would establish a Children’s Court within the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which they argued would both combat the immigration court backlog and strengthIndi Gregory, an 8-month-old child suffering from a degenera- en due process rights for unaccompanied tive disease who was at the center of a legal battle in the U.K. migrant children. Reps. Hillary Scholto keep her on life support, is pictured Sept. 22, 2023, the ten, D-Mich., and Lori Chavez-DeRemer, day of her baptism. Indi died Nov. 13, 2023. “I knew she was R-Ore., are also original co-sponsors of special from the day she was born,” Dean Gregory, her father, the legislation, according to a release from Bennett’s office.
said. (OSV News photo/courtesy Indi Gregory family via Christian Concern)
NATION
BALTIMORE (OSV News) – Attendees of the National Eucharistic Congress July 17-21 in Indianapolis now have the option of purchasing single-day and weekend passes in order to make attendance more affordable and flexible, the bishop overseeing the congress announced Nov. 15. Speaking at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ fall plenary assembly, Bishop Andrew H. Cozzens of Crookston, Minnesota, also said scholarship funds may help ease the costs for some attendees, via the bishops’ Solidarity Fund. Standard passes for the five-day congress are $299-$375 for adults, and $99 for children ages 2-18 traveling with their family. The single-day passes will range $49-$95 depending on the day, and weekend passes will be $125. Registration does not include housing, transportation or meals related to the congress. Registration for day and weekend passes will open in January. A limited number of discounted single-day passes will be available for early registrants. The National Eucharistic Congress is the pinnacle of the National Eucharistic Revival, a threeyear initiative the USCCB launched in 2022 to renew and strengthen Catholics’ understanding of and love for Jesus in the Eucharist. MENLO PARK, Calif. (OSV News) – At age 50, seminarian Scott-Vincent Borba doesn’t consider his to be a late vocation. “God called me at age 10,” he told OSV News. “I just accepted late.” Now in his pastoral year at St. Patrick’s University and Seminary in Menlo Park, California, Borba shared with OSV News how he traded a life as a young, highly successful cosmetics industry executive – a career that included co-founding the e.l.f. line of products, regular media appearances, and clients such as actress Mila Kunis – for a life of priestly service. Fame, fortune and a nonstop work schedule ultimately couldn’t silence a call Borba experienced at age 10, and his journey back to his childhood faith and his vocation has brought profound joy, he said. “I have never been happier. I have never been more full of joy,” he said. “With everything the world can give me, I
VATICAN
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Embrace God’s unconditional love and live in a way that is based on and radiates hope, Pope Francis told Catholic young people. Christian hope “is the celebration of the love of the risen Christ, who is always at our side, even when he seems far from us,” the pope said in his annual message for local celebrations of World Youth Day. Hope is nurtured by prayer and the concrete choices one makes every day, he said in the message, published Nov. 14 at the Vatican. “I urge all of you to choose a style of life grounded in hope,” he wrote. For example, instead of sharing negative things on social media, share things that inspire hope. “Each day, try to share a word of hope with others. Try to sow seeds of hope in the lives of your friends and everyone around you,” the pope wrote. While the next international celebration of World Youth Day will be held in Seoul, South Korea, in 2027, Pope Francis has asked Catholic young people around the world to prepare for the Holy Year 2025 and its Jubilee of Young People in Rome, which will be part of the Holy Year celebration. In the two years preceding the Jubilee of Young People, dioceses around the world are to celebrate World Youth Day on a local level on the feast of Christ the King, which will be Nov. 26 this year and Nov. 24, 2024. VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Often enough, the first people who need to be evangelized are Christians themselves, Pope Francis said. “A Christian who is discontented, sad, dissatisfied, or worse still, resentful or rancorous, is not credible” and will not attract anyone to a relationship with Jesus and a life of faith, the pope said Nov. 15 at his weekly general audience. After almost a year of audience talks about “zeal for evangelization” and highlighting the example of saints and other exemplary men and women from around the world, Pope Francis said his last talks in the series would focus on four points from his 2013 apostolic exhortation, “The Joy of the Gospel.” The first point, the subject of his talk Nov. 15, was the essential role of joy in the life of Christians and in their ability to share the Gospel
with others. “The Gospel is not an ideology; the Gospel is a proclamation of joy,” he said. “All ideologies are cold, but the Gospel has the warmth of joy. Ideologies don’t make people smile, but the Gospel is a smile. It makes you smile because it touches your soul with the Good News.”
WORLD
NOTTINGHAM, England (OSV News) – British bishops expressed their condolences to Dean and Claire Gregory, parents of 8-month-old Indi who died Nov. 13 after neither a court battle nor Italian citizenship granted to the infant prevented the British courts from halting her life-support. Following the death of baby Indi, Bishop Patrick McKinney of Nottingham and Bishop John Sherrington, Lead Bishop for Life Issues and Auxiliary of Westminster, wrote in a statement that they learned about the death of the child with “deep sadness,” assuring the parents “of our prayers and those of all the Catholic Community, including Pope Francis, at this sad time.” “As a baptized child of God, we believe that she will now share in the joy of heaven after her short life which brought deep joy to her parents who loved and protected her as a precious gift of God,” the bishops said. The father of the girl said earlier that he was not religious, but he had chosen to have his child baptized Sept. 23 after feeling the “pull of hell” in their court battle to extend her life. Indi died at 1:45 a.m. U.K. time Nov. 13. NICE, France (OSV News) – The Little Sisters of the Poor, a religious order founded in 1839 by St. Jeanne Jugan, serves the elderly poor in over 30 countries around the world. They serve the neediest with assistance, care and prayer. Now one of their own needs prayers. On Oct. 31, the Little Sisters in Nice experienced a devastating blow when “a car went out of control and up onto a sidewalk, striking two sisters,” the congregation said in a message sent to supporters. “One, less seriously injured, was hospitalized and has now returned home. The other, a 28-year-old sister from India, sustained serious head injuries and doctors do not give any hope for her recovery,” Sister Constance Veit, U.S. communications director for the order, said on behalf of the French sisters. “If this is God’s will, we accept, but we also see this as a call to arms, to pray for her healing, knowing that nothing is impossible to our loving God,” the sisters wrote. “Would you please join us in praying through the intercession of Father Ernest Lelièvre for the healing of Sister Isabelle Antoinette? ... Because of his holiness and missionary zeal we believe he could be a powerful role model and intercessor for the clergy of our day.” Father Lelièvre (1826-1889) traveled the world to establish homes run by the sisters. WARSAW, Poland (OSV News) – On Warsaw’s Rakowiecka street, flanked by a smart new Metro station and office building, a gray cement wall runs mournfully along a damp surface of fallen leaves. At midpoint in the wall, a narrow gateway opens out onto crumbling barrack buildings, still daubed with political graffiti between tightly barred windows. When Mokotow prison was opened as the Museum of Cursed Soldiers and Political Prisoners of the Polish People’s Republic in March, six years after shedding its last inmates, it was agreed regular Masses and liturgies should be held to dispel the site’s dark, malevolent associations. Today, dedicated to communist-era resistance fighters and political prisoners, the museum’s melancholy courtyards and corridors gain special poignancy during the commemorative month of November. “Though this is a secular institution, it’s also a place of prayer,” explained Father Tomasz Trzaska, the museum’s chaplain. “While Poles place candles each year on the graves of loved ones, we should remember many victims of past misrule have no known resting place. It’s especially those people we pray for in November, as work continues to uncover and identify their remains.” Given the horrors perpetrated here, Father Trzaska thinks religious ceremonies are important – especially for ex-inmates who sometimes show up with friends and relatives. “This museum should serve as a visible warning of humanity’s darker side,” said Lidia Ujazdowska, a Warsaw historian.
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC NOVEMBER 22, 2023
Scars FROM THE HERMITAGE By Sister alies therese
In the Texas death house, on Nov. 9. 2023, Brent Brewer uttered these last words, “tell the family of the victim I could never figure out the right words to fix what I have broken.” And with that he was executed and died, the seventh execution this year in Texas. In this month of November, we celebrate the dead, Dia de los Muertos, those who have gone before us, but do we pay attention, however, to every day death-dealing … wars filling the globe, hunger, abortions for inconvenience, executions, euthanasia, or the dying of those in hospital or nursing homes, fading away, cast aside? Scars are forever things; they ache. “I thought about what death is and what loss is – a sharp pain that lessens with time but can never quite heal. A scar.” So says Maya Lin, the Chinese American creator of the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC where thousands of names are beautifully inscribed to serve as reminders. Maybe we have not figured out the words or the policies that will fix what is broken? Maybe they are scars that never heal? Recently the President told us he took his grandchildren, one at a time, when they turned 15, to Dachau in Germany to see the concentration camp and to hear
Columns 9 his instruction: never again. Never again seems a lot like here we go again when we view the world and the savage massacres of men, women and children. Having visited Dachau myself I can tell you that the chills that ran up and down my spine will never be forgotten nor the ache when visiting a friend on death row. November is about remembrance, yes … and rightly so. About love and about loss. It is also about service and protection. Indeed. Perhaps, however, it might also be a month of renewal? A new commitment to peace, a month where like the suffering servant in Isaiah all people across the world are not murdered for who they are … Black, Native American, Asian, Hispanic, Jew, Palestinian, gay, women? Gary Cummins in If Only We Could See (Cascade, 2015) writes, “like the suffering servant, ‘the crucified people have no form, no comeliness, no beauty, (Is 53:2) since to the ugliness of daily poverty is added that of disfiguring bloodshed, the terror of tortures and mutilations….’ As Rauschenbusch says, ‘religiosity sharpens the steel edge of intolerance.’ As Pascal says, ‘people never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.’” What part of these are we ignoring? Let’s use the rest of this month to discover what death and fear bring to the human spirit, to the soul. Of our many remembrances let’s honor those who told the truth, who did not lie to us; let’s honor those who struggled to help others, who went out of their way to
sacrifice themselves, especially when it was unpopular. Consider your own scars received from abuse, or hatred, or hopelessness … and then ask the Good Jesus to wash your heart with His love so that you might not pass on any resentments or fears to others. In our tradition we remind one another that life has changed not ended and so does American teacher and writer Helen Coutant, in First Snow, who says: “At this moment, Lien thought she understood what dying meant. The drop of water had not really gone; it had only changed like the snowflake into something else.” Let’s pray for a change of spirit, one of the beatitudes and especially draw to our hearts the tiny children who suffer so and if living with scars of anguish might just take that other path. May our prayer join those of St. Francis as Thomas Celano (St. Francis of Assisi, 1988) writes “The common view of Francis forgets that after his vision of Christ crucified, ‘he could never keep himself from weeping, even bewailing in a loud voice the passion of Christ. For this he allowed himself no consolation and filled his days with ‘sighs.’ “Let us weep as we work for justice, let us cry out to an awesome God who promises to hear us. Blessings. (Sister alies therese is a canonically vowed hermit with days formed around prayer and writing.)
Sacrificing excitement to make the wait of Advent more holy SENIOR STANDING By Lisa M. Hendey
“Waiting has never been my strong suit. I tend to associate long waits with a childhood tradition that I’m certain my mother invented. Each Christmas when I was young, Leroy and Bessie, Mom’s parents, would make the annual drive from their home in Fort Wayne, Indiana to ours in Westminster, California. We always knew the day of their scheduled arrival. But in those pre-GPS, non-cell-phone-toting days, we had no idea of the exact hour. Sometime after breakfast, Mom would send my younger siblings and me to the front yard where we would dutifully “wait for Grandma and Grandpa” on the street curb. In retrospect, I realize it’s likely that Mom knew better, and that we were only out there for a matter of minutes, but to me, the wait felt endless. But that first sight of my grandparents as they stepped out of their car was well worth the wait on that hard curb. Perhaps the unknown of their arrival time, those hours of anticipation, made the payoff all the greater when we wrapped them in hugs and kisses. Now, as a grandmother myself, I can relate to how they must have felt. “Are we almost there?” Grandma Bessie must certainly have asked Leroy. For she was waiting too. I experience a similar impatience each year when the violet, rose and green hues of our family’s Advent wreath emerge from my Christmas bins. Those wreaths and their candles, and our daily devotionals, help us to mark the days until the Nativity of Our Lord. But it seems
the more I age, the more childlike and impatient I become for the “big day” to be upon us. Catholics celebrate liturgical seasons rather than singular days for a reason, though, and so this year, I have decided to focus on lingering in the waiting – sacrificing my own excitement as I try to make my anticipation something holy. If we are living Advent mindfully, we are preparing our hearts and minds for something even more remarkable than Christ’s birth: his second coming in salvation. Advent, at its best, can be for us a time of intense spiritual training – to make straight our paths toward our ultimate goal: an eternity in God’s presence. I realize that sanctifying the waiting does not simply happen as I slide open the doors on my glitter-gilded calendar. This year, I hope to be doing all of my usual Advent-y things. I’ll light the candles and send out the cards. I’ll seek the perfect gifts and ponder over the O Antiphons. I’ll bake the cookies and will probably burn a few of them. But I hope to approach my waiting – especially for those waits that challenge me so greatly – with greater intentionality, and here is how. Sometimes the waiting keeps us looking for resolution. We may have experienced the loss of a job, the further explanation of a pending diagnosis, or the outcome of a hoped-for plan or dream. When that happens, we understandably focus on the state of our incompleteness. In our crises of confidence, may we remember to pray for a greater acceptance of God’s perfect will for our lives. Some of us await reconciliation. We may deeply feel the loss of relationships with loved ones that have dimmed or grown dark completely. As the world around us plays out various Hallmark moments of family gatherings, we lament the empty seat at our holiday table. In the absence of our loved one’s physical presence, may we remember to pray unceasingly for their well-being. Some of us await peace. We may be overwhelmed by despair at the profound divides in our world that seem to further separate us with each passing day. Embroiled in our own traumas and those of nations around us, we may lose sight of hope. As we tune into the daily news (and the state of our own souls), may we remember in our waiting to invoke the lasting love of the Christ Child, our Prince of perfect peace. (Lisa M. Hendey is the founder of CatholicMom.com, a bestselling author and an international speaker. “Senior Standing” appears monthly at OSV News)
10 YOUTH
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Around our Catholic Schools COLUMBUS – (Left) Annunciation students participated in Superhero STREAM Day celebrating National STEM/STEAM Day recently. (Photo by Logan Gentry)
MADISON – The Lady Bruins show their volleyball skills for "Media Day" on Wednesday, Nov. 8. (Photo by Tereza Ma) MERIDIAN – (Left) St. Patrick students enjoyed the annual soccer challenge hosted by the Knights of Columbus Council 802. (Photo by Kasey Owen)
COLUMBUS – Father Jeffrey Waldrep assists Annunciation School Kindergarteners make Thanksgiving story bracelets. (Photo by Logan Gentry)
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC NOVEMBER 22, 2023
YOUTH 11
Around the diocese
JACKSON – St. Richard first grade students studied, drew portraits and presented their saints to their classmates, family and parishioners at Mass on All Saints Day on Nov. 1. (Photo by Chelsea Dillon)
COLUMBUS – Noah Langston and David Leonard walk down the aisle to present the gifts at the All Saints Day Mass at Annunciation School. (Photo by Logan Gentry)
12 NATION
NOVEMBER 22, 2023 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Bishop Strickland removed from diocese after accusing pope of backing 'attack on the sacred' By Maria Wiering and Peter Jesserer Smith
nation, before finally removing him Nov. 11. Bishop Strickland did not mention his removal when posting to social media, but (OSV News) – Pope Francis has removed on Nov. 11 posted a message on X urging Bishop Joseph E. Strickland from the pastofollowers to "rejoice always that...no matter ral governance of the Diocese of Tyler, Texwhat the day brings Jesus Christ is the Way, as, the Holy See Press Office announced Nov. the Truth and the Life, yesterday, today and 11. Simultaneously, Francis has appointed forever." Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin as apostolic Bishop Strickland, 65, was ordained to administrator to oversee the diocese until a the priesthood for the Diocese of Dallas in new bishop is appointed. 1985. He ministered in the northeast Texas No reason was given for Bishop Strickdiocese since its founding in 1987 and led land's removal, although speculation about the diocese since his ordination as bishop in his future in the diocese has swirled for 2012. months following the bishop's May 12 post In 2017, Bishop Strickland issued "A on Twitter (now known as X), accusing the Teaching Diocese: Constitution on Teaching pontiff of "undermining the deposit of faith." the Catholic Faith," which outlined a new The pope's decision followed an address catechetical structure for the Diocese of Tygiven by Bishop Strickland at an Oct. 31 publer and established the St. Philip Institute of lic gathering in Rome, where he read from a Catechesis and Evangelization, over which lengthy letter, attributed to a "dear friend," he serves as president. that accused Pope Francis (among other Bishop Strickland has also supported the File photo of Pope Francis greeting Bishop Joseph E. Strickland of things) of being a "usurper of Peter's chair." formation of Veritatis Splendor, an indepenLater, the bishop opined himself that Pope Tyler, Texas, during a Jan. 20, 2020, meeting with U.S. bishops from dent, lay-run Catholic community in his dioFrancis was supporting an "attack on the sa- Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas during their "ad limina" visits to the cese with a residential development near WiVatican. The Holy See Press Office announced Nov. 11, 2023, that cred" coming out of the Vatican. nona, Texas and named for Pope John Paul The speculation about Bishop Strick- Pope Francis has removed Bishop Strickland from the pastoral goverII's 1993 encyclical. In a March 2021 message land's future was accelerated by a June 19-24 nance of the Diocese of Tyler. (OSV News photo/Vatican Media) posted to his blog, Bishop Strickland called apostolic visitation of the Diocese of Tyler the initiative "an inspiration of lay Catholics conducted by retired Bishop Gerald F. KicaAt the same time, he acknowledged that in the dioseeking a community where their families nas of Tucson, Arizona, and Bishop Dennis J. Sullivan cese "there have been some administrative issues, and can flourish in Jesus Christ." Months later, the projof Camden, New Jersey. I'm sure people are concerned." Overall, he said, "the ect was marred by scandal as its executive director On Nov. 11, Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galdiocese is really in good shape." stepped down over her adulterous relationship with a veston-Houston released a public statement on the Bishop Strickland's public opposition to Pope Fran- Texas pro-life leader. bishop's removal, explaining that after the apostolic cis seemed to increase substantially with the Synod of Bishop Strickland's public profile started growing visitation of the Tyler Diocese took place – which he Bishops the pope had called to discuss synodality in in 2018 after he issued a notice on the diocese's website described as "an exhaustive inquiry into all aspects of the Catholic Church along the themes of "communion, saying he found the accusations made by Archbishop the governance and leadership of the Diocese of Tyler participation and mission." The first session of that Carlo Maria Viganò implicating Pope Francis and othby its Ordinary" – it was recommended "the continusynod took place in October; the second is scheduled er prelates in the scandals of then-cardinal Theodore ation in office of Bishop Strickland was not feasible." for next year. McCarrick (whom Pope Francis laicized in 2019) were "After months of careful consideration by the DiBishop Strickland charged the synod would instead "credible." The post (removed from the website but arcastery for Bishops and the Holy Father, the decision lead to further confusion and division in the church. chived on the internet) directed his priests to read the was reached that the resignation of Bishop Strickland From Sept. 5 to Oct. 17, Bishop Strickland published notice at Mass and post on their websites and social should be requested," Cardinal DiNardo said in his seven pastoral letters on various topics, including the media. statement. "Having been presented with that request nature of the church and of humanity, the Eucharist, While the bishop was celebrated for his outspoon November 9, 2023, Bishop Strickland declined to rematrimony and holy orders, human love in the divine kenness by many in the pro-life movement, during the sign from office. Thereafter, on Nov. 11, 2023, the Holy plan and the error of universalism. In his final pasto- COVID-19 pandemic, he criticized the Vatican's moral Father removed Bishop Strickland from the Office of ral letter, he urged the faithful to "lift high the cross." defense of the available vaccines, which in turn had Bishop of Tyler." The Oct. 31 Rome Life Forum, sponsored by Life- relied upon studies and guidelines established under "Let us keep Bishop Strickland, the clergy and SiteNews, was billed as a "two-day strategy conference Pope Francis' predecessors. faithful of the Diocese of Tyler and Bishop Vasquez in ... held immediately after the Vatican's Synod on SynoBishop Strickland's controversial persona eventuour prayers," Cardinal DiNardo concluded. dality which threatens to formalize heretical teachings ally led to profiles in The New York Times and Esquire, OSV News was told by Elizabeth Slaten, communion the family." Organizers said the event was meant to the latter calling him a "'Red-Pilled' Bishop … Beefing cations director for the Diocese of Tyler, that Bishop "focus on confronting the evils of the Deep Church and With the Pope," a reference to a tweet in which the Strickland is "not available for comment at this time." Deep State and their involvement in the Great Reset bishop likened himself to Neo in "The Matrix," who in Bishop Strickland had himself indicated previousagenda." the film took the "red pill" in order to unplug from the ly that he would not resign willingly from office. The Bishop Strickland gave a 46-minute public address, Matrix and experience reality. "I've seen the truth," he Pillar reported in September that Bishop Strickland's which included him reading at length from a letter he explained in a 2019 interview with the National Cathremoval had been recommended to the Holy Father folsaid was written to him by an unnamed "dear friend." olic Register. lowing the apostolic visitation. This letter accused Pope Francis of being "an expert The Diocese of Tyler posted Nov. 11 a notice of the In a Sept. 20 blog post on his website, bishopstrickat producing cowards by preaching dialogue and open- transition from Bishop Strickland to Bishop Vásquez land.com, the bishop addressed rumors of an impendness in a welcoming spirit and by highlighting always as apostolic administrator, adding, "Our work as the ing resignation, saying to resign "would be me abanhis own authority." Catholic Church in northeast Texas continues." doning the flock that I was given charge of by Pope The letter outright attacked Pope Francis' validity "Our mission is to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ, Benedict XVI." However, he said that he would respect as the successor of St. Peter, claiming he had ousted to foster an authentic Christian community, and to Pope Francis' authority if the pontiff removed him his predecessor, the late-Benedict XVI (who denied serve the needs of all people with compassion and from the diocese. such allegations): "Would you now allow this one, who love," it stated. "We strive to deepen our faith, promote Many had connected the apostolic visitation to has pushed aside the true pope and has attempted to the common good, and create a welcoming environBishop Strickland's vocal criticisms of Pope Francis sit on a chair that is not his, define what the church is ment for all to encounter the loving God – Father, Son, and other church prelates, especially on X, where he to be?" and Spirit." has around 153,900 followers. Bishop Strickland said the letter's words were The bishop himself likened the apostolic visitation "challenging" but did not dispute the allegations. (Maria Wiering is senior writer for OSV News. Peto "being called to the principal's office." In July, he Bishop Strickland himself said in his address that ter Jesserer Smith is national news and features editor said on his weekly radio show, "The Bishop Strickland "one of the most frustrating things coming out of the for OSV News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @ Hour," that he believed the apostolic visitation was iniVatican, and it's supported at least by Pope Francis, is jesserersmith. OSV News national reporter Gina Christiated "because I've been bold enough, I love the Lord the attack on the sacred." tian contributed to this report. Follow her on X at @Gienough and his church to simply keep preaching the Nine days later, Pope Francis asked for his resig- naJesseReina.) truth."