APRIL 30, 2021
mississippicatholic.com
Working together to protect God's children Editor's note: In 1981, April was declared Child Abuse Awareness month, then in 1983 April was declared National Child Abuse Prevention month and in 1989 the color blue was declared the Child Abuse Awareness ribbon color. So, Mississippi Catholic is "going blue" to raise public awareness of child abuse and to promote prevention efforts.
BY JOANNA PUDDISTER KING
JACKSON – The Diocese of Jackson recognizes April as Child Abuse Awareness Month to spread awareness of the importance of protecting children. Child abuse is an unthinkable crime, yet it happens to hundreds of thousands of our children every year. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) states on their website “The Catholic Church is absolutely committed to the safety of children. Together we can make a Promise to Protect, and a Pledge to Heal.” The same is true for the Diocese of Jackson. Since, 1986 the diocese has had a policy to respond to credible allegations of sexual abuse, long before the USCCB released the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People in 2002. The early document was less detailed than today’s version but delineated the commitment of the diocese on responding to abuse, removing offenders, assisting victims and promoting a safe environment. The policy was revised in 1994 when an Independent Review Board of lay Catholics was established. The review board is a consultative body that assesses the credibility of all allegations of sexual abuse against minors and advises the bishop accordingly. This board remains an essential resource for Bishop Joseph Kopacz, as it was for Bishop William Houck and Bishop Joseph Latino. The current board includes one pastor, two physicians, two lawyers and one professional businessperson, one of which also serves on the National Review Board of the USCCB on the protection of children and young people. The diocese, as well as Catholic Charities, requires that all employees and volunteers working with children and young people undergo a criminal background screening and participate in a safe environment training session with a training facilitator, including clergy. Nationally, over 2.65 million background checks were conducted on those working within the Catholic church in 2019. Many of the trainings mentioned above are now virtual explained, safe environment
coordinator, Vickie Carollo. “With COVID restrictions, virtual trainings have worked well,” said Carollo. “To accomodate adults who work during the day, virtual trainings can be scheduled in the evenings. Training sessions are facilitated through the local parish or school.” The diocese also provides ongoing training in a monthly safe environment bulletin format through VIRTUS, a program and service of The National Catholic Risk Retention Group. All cler-
Promise to Protect, Pledge to Heal signals the bishops' pledge to resolve the crisis of sexual abuse of children. More information on the USCCB committe for the Protection of Children and Young People can be found at www. usccb.org/committees/protection-children-young-people. (Photo from archives) – Continued on page 6 –
Slain Guatemalan migrant leaves behind legacy of faith in two countries BY ANN RODGERS ANGELUS NEWS
CARTHAGE – For nearly a quarter century, Edgar Lopez was a pillar of St. Anne Church in Carthage, Mississippi. The devoted husband and father of three spent four years studying pastoral ministry to better lead prayer groups, youth ministry, and social outreach. He gave generously from his wages as a mechanic at a local poultry plant. On Jan. 22, his charred remains were found with those of 18 others in and around a bullet-blasted truck in the Mexican-American border town of Camargo in Tamaulipas. Lopez, 49, an undocumented worker who had been deported to Guatemala after a notorious 2019 immigration raid on Mississippi poultry plants, had tried to return to his wife, children, and grandchildren in Carthage. “People are in shock. They can’t believe that something like this could have happened,” said Father Odel Medina, a priest of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity, and pastor of St. Anne. Most of the dead had relatives among Carthage’s burgeoning population of indigenous Mayan workers from Guatemala. Poultry jobs were arduous, dirty, and dangerous, but paid more for an hour of labor than the Guatemalans would make in two days in their villages. Most of the massacred migrants were from the desperately poor town of Comitancillo, seeking jobs in Carthage that Americans had long refused, Father Medina
said. He called it a bitter irony that, seven months after the government deported hundreds of undocumented poultry plant employees, they were declared “essential workers” during COVID-19. “If they didn’t work, you would not have food on anyone’s table,” Father Medina said. Lopez grew up in the village of Chicajala, where death from malnutrition is common. He had no shoes for school and was bullied by other students and teachers alike. His response, Father Medina said, was to say, “I’d like to be a teacher and change
the way they teach children.” He left for Guatemala City in his teens, entering the United States in his mid-20s. He was deported a year later, but soon returned to his wife and baby in Carthage. They bought a modest house in which they raised three children, now ages 11 to 21. He organized the first Spanish Masses at St. Anne. In addition to being a lector, extraordinary minister of Holy Communion, and youth minister, Lopez was the head of the St. Anne “directiva,” a pastoral advisory board that looked after the needs of the Latino community. He spent four years studying for certification in Hispan– Continued on page 16 –
INSIDE THIS WEEK
Diaconate Application process for program begins soon.
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Happy 75th 11 St. Dominic Health Services celebrates 75 years.
Youth 14 Photos of youth activity around the diocese.