mississippicatholic.com
JANUARY 12, 2024
Cardinal says Vatican is not moving toward accepting gay marriage By ciNDy WooDeN
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The Vatican's affirmation that a priest can give an informal blessing to a gay couple who asks for one is not a first step toward the Catholic Church recognizing same-sex marriages, said Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. "Those who say so either have not read the text or have 'bad blood,' if you will pardon the expression. The statement clearly and ad nauseam states that these blessings are non-ritualized so that they are not interpreted as a marriage," the cardinal told the Spanish newspaper ABC in an interview published Dec. 25. The doctrinal dicastery's document, "Fiducia Supplicans" ("Supplicating Trust"), which was approved by Pope Francis, said that while the church "remains firm" in teaching that marriage is only a life-long union between a man and a woman, in certain circumstances priests can give non-sacramental, non-liturgical blessings to "couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the church's perennial teaching on marriage." Several bishops' conferences in Africa and elsewhere reacted strongly against the document, which was published Dec. 18, and issued statements forbidding their priests from offering such blessings. While Cardinal Fernández insisted the document "upholds with great clarity and simplicity the Catholic teaching on marriage and sexuality," he said bishops have a right and duty to advise their priests on the possible use of such blessings. "What they (African bishops) raise is the inappropriateness of performing blessings that could easily be confused with a legitimization of an irregular union in their regional contexts," he said.
In addition, he said, several African nations have laws that "penalize with imprisonment the mere fact of declaring oneself gay," so it would be difficult to imagine a priest in those countries giving a gay couple a blessing. "In reality," the cardinal said, "it is up to each local bishop to make this discernment in his diocese or in any case to give further guidance." In other situations, Cardinal Fernández said, people reacting negatively to the document simply did not read it. "The central theme of the document is the value of 'non-liturgical,' 'non-ritualized' blessings, which are not a marriage, they are not an 'approval' or a ratification of anything," he said. "They are simply the response of a pastor to two people who ask for God's help. And, in this case, the pastor does not set any conditions." Blessing two people who ask for God's help is not accepting their relationship as a marriage, "nor is it a ratification of the life they lead, nor is it an absolution," the cardinal said. "It is a simple gesture of pastoral closeness that does not have the same demands that a sacrament has." "If a priest gives this kind of simple blessing, he is not a heretic, he is not ratifying anything, nor is he denying the Catholic doctrine on marriage," Cardinal Fernández said.
– Read a statement from Bishop Joseph Kopacz on "Fiducia Supplicans" on page 6 – Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández, prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, leaves the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall after a working session of the assembly of the Synod of Bishops with Pope Francis at the Vatican Oct. 6, 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez)
Late Pope Benedict remembered on first anniversary of his death By ciNDy WooDeN
lived with and served. Looking at how prayer was an essential part of the life of Mary and Joseph, VATICAN CITY (CNS) – As an expression of ongoing affection and gratitude for the late Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis led tens of thousands of people in St. Pe- Archbishop Gänswein quoted Pope Benedict's last Angelus address, just days before ter's Square in a round of applause for his predecessor on the first anniversary of his resignation went into effect, when he explained: "The Lord is calling me 'to scale the mountain,' to devote myself even more to his death. "A year ago, Pope Benedict XVI concluded his earthly journey after having prayer and meditation. But this does not mean abandoning the church; indeed, if served the church with love and wisdom," Pope Francis told an estimated 20,000 – Continued on page 6 – people gathered in the square for the midday recitation of the Angelus prayer Dec. 31. Pope Benedict, who led the church from 2005 to 2013, INSIDE THIS WEEK died Dec. 31, 2022, at the age of 95. "We feel so much affection, gratitude and admiration for him," the pope said. "From heaven, he blesses and accompanies us." Before the Angelus, Archbishop Georg Gänswein, Pope Benedict's former personal secretary, presided over a memorial Mass at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter's Basilica. German Cardinal Gerhard Müller and Swiss Cardinal Kurt Koch, prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, concelebrated the liturgy. In his homily, the archbishop shared some of Pope Annual Report 9 Youth 14 New seminarian 4 Benedict's meditations on the readings for the day's View the diocese annual Youth photos from schools Joe Pearson accepted as feast, the feast of the Holy Family. Several times his report in this special insert and parishes new seminarian for diocese voice broke with emotion remembering the pope he
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
PARISH, FAMILY & SCHOOL EVENTS
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! CLINTON – Holy Savior, Garage Sale, Saturday, Jan. 27 from 7 a.m. to 12 p.m. Proceeds benefit youth program. Donation collection begins weekend of Jan. 21. Details: church office (601) 924-6344. COLUMBUS – Annunciation, Mardi Gras Mambo, Friday, Feb. 9 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. in the Annunciation Gymnasium. Adults only. Dinner and open bar included. To attend purchase a draw down ticket for $100 or $35 silent auction ticket at the door. Details: email psa. acseagles@gmail.com. Annunciation School, Open House, Sunday, Jan. 28 from 1-3 p.m. Accepting students Pre-K3 through eighth grade. Learn more at www.annunciationcatholicschool.org. DIOCESE – World Marriage Day, Saturday, Feb. 10 at 1 p.m. at the Cathedral of St. Peter Jackson and Sunday, Feb. 11 at 11 a.m. at St. James Tupelo. This is a wonderful celebration of the sacrament of matrimony for those couples in the diocese celebrating their 25th, 50th, 60th or greater anniversary. To register contact your parish office or go to www.jacksondiocese.org/ family-ministry to register yourself. Details: Office of Family Ministry (601) 960-8487. GREENWOOD – St. Francis, Mardi Gras Celebration, Saturday, Feb. 10, from 7 p.m. to midnight at the Leflore County Civic Center (200 Hwy 7). Cost: $40 donation per adult. Event includes New Orleans style buffet served at 8 p.m.; entertainment by DJ Traxx; swing dance contest and more. Attire: mardi gras festive or semi-formal dress. Tickets available at the church office. Details: church office (662) 453-0623. GREENVILLE – St. Joseph School, Annual Daddy-Daughter Dance, Saturday, Feb. 3 from 6-8 p.m. Community-wide event for PreK-3 through sixth grade. St. Joe School cordially invites dads or special loved ones and their daughters to an evening of good food, music and company. Cost: $50 per couple ($10 per extra). Tickets may be purchased at the school. Details: school office (662) 378-9711. HOLLY SPRINGS – Love Your #Selfie Weekend, Jan. 26-28 at Gregory House. Life is like a camera, just focus on what is important! For young women in grades 9-12. Enjoy fun, crafts, games, prizes, food and more. Details: Vickie at (662) 895-5007 or sign up in the commons area. JACKSON – Cathedral of St. Peter, Mass of Thanksgiving for MLK, Jr. and Sister Thea Bowman, Sunday, Jan. 14, 2024, at 3 p.m. Details: Office of Intercultural Ministry at (601) 949-6935. St. Richard School, Krewe de Cardinal, Friday, Feb. 2 from 7-11 p.m. at The South Warehouse. Details: school office (601) 366-1157. Theology on Tap, Dates for 2024: Feb. 7 with Bishop Kopacz; March 6 with Father Lincoln Dall; April 10 – Easter celebration. Meetings are on Wednesdays at Martin’s Restaurant Downtown Jackson. Details: Amelia Rizor at (601) 949-6931. MADISON – St. Joseph School, Jeans, Jazz and Bruin Blues $10,000 Draw Down, Saturday, Jan. 27 at the Reunion Country Club. Sponsorships available. Details: www.stjoedrawdown.com. St. Joseph School, Evening with Legendary MSU Baseball Coach Ron Polk, Saturday, Jan. 20 at 6 p.m. at the St. Joseph Fine Arts Building. (Doors open at 5 p.m.) Cost: $30 per person and don’t miss the 50/50 cash raffle. All proceeds support the St. Joe Baseball team. Details: https://bit.ly/StJoePolkFundraiser or call (601) 317-8050 with questions. NATCHEZ – St. Mary, Trivia Tuesday Night, on Jan. 15 at 6 p.m. Cost: $5 to play; $1 soft drinks; $5 potato bar. Prizes awarded. Event is BYOB. Details: church
office (601) 445-5616. PEARL – St. Jude, Floral Design for Churches Workshop, Saturday, Jan. 20, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Cost: $20 to cover cost of flowers and lunch. Details: RSVP at mary.woodward@jacksondiocese.org or call (601) 969-1880. St. Jude, Knights of Columbus Super Bowl Spaghetti Dinner, Sunday, Feb. 4. Tickets $7 each. All dinners are to-go only. Spaghetti and sauce are imported from Italy! Details: church office (601) 939-3181. SOUTHAVEN – Christ the King, Youth Activities Night, Friday, Jan. 19 at 7 p.m. in the parish hall. Event is for children from Kindergarten to fifth grade. Details: church office (662) 342-1073. Christ the King, Knights of Columbus Spaghetti Dinner, Saturday, Jan. 20 in the parish hall after Mass. Please sign up in the gathering space. Details: church office (662) 342-1073.
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
CLEVELAND – Our Lady of Victories, Parish Mission, Sunday/Monday, Jan. 28-29 from 6:30-8 p.m. Featured speaker is Paul J. Kim. He utilizes his many talents (music, comedy, inspirational talks) to communicate the Gospel message of Christ to people in a way that is engaging, entertaining and life-changing. Free meals (5:30-6:30) and babysitting! Details: church office (662) 846-6273. DIOCESE – Office of Catholic Education Monthly Virtual Rosary, Wednesday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. (Link opens at 6:30 p.m. for prayer intentions.) Visit https://jacksondiocese.org/events for Zoom link and details. NATCHEZ – 2nd annual Believe Conference, April 19-21, 2024. Featured speakers are Anne Trufant, Catholic speaker and founder of The Mission on the Mountain; Barbara Heil, Catholic speaker and founder of From His Heart Ministries; and Joanne Moody, minister author, and founder of Agape Freedom Fighters. Cost: $100 for the weekend; $50 for students. Lunch included on Saturday. Details: visit https://www.themissiononthemountain.com. PINE MOUNTAINS, GA – The Girls Garden Retreat, April 4-7, 2024 at Callaway Resort and Gardens. Retreat is for any woman who seeks goodness of God through beauty, rest, prayer and small community. Featured speaker is Laura Huval, a Grammy-nominated recording artist, Catholic speaker, author and more. Details: for registration, information and pricing visit www.girlsgardenretreats. com. LOUISVILLE, KY – National Black Catholic Women’s Gathering, July 26-28, 2024. Join Black Catholic women to engage talents for becoming and forming missionary disciples. Sponsored by the National Black Sisters’ Conference. Details: nbsc@nbsc68.org. GLOBAL ROSARY for World Peace, Friday, Feb. 16 at 9 a.m. CST. This digital prayer event will begin live from Rome. Details: visit www.HCFM. org/PrayForPeace for more information. “9 DAYS FOR LIFE” – Respect Life Novena begins Tuesday, Jan. 16 and concludes Wednesday, Jan. 24. Join Catholics nationwide in pray for the protection of human life! Download the novena or get the daily prayers and reflections by email or text message at 9daysforlife.com.
SAVE THE DATE
VICKSBURG – DCYC (Diocesan Catholic Youth Conference), March 1-3 at the Vicksburg Convention Center. All youth in grades 9-12 are invited. Keynote speaker is Doug Tooke and Catholic worship leader, Steven Joubert. Check with your
parish youth leader to register.
TRAVEL
“SPIRIT OF IRELAND AND SCOTLAND” WITH FATHER O’CONNOR – Join Father David O’Connor on a trip to Ireland and Scotland, June 8-17. Itinerary includes: flight to Dublin, two nights in Belfast, ferry to Scotland, two nights in Glasgow, Inverness and Edinburgh and return flight from Edinburg. Travel in a luxury coach from arrival time until departure, a professional driver/guide, 4-star hotels. Tour highlights include City of Belfast, Titanic, historic and architectural sites, wonderful landscapes and lakes of the Scottish highlands, Scottish food and entertainment. Cost: $4,955 (per person sharing) or $5,950 single. Only ten spots left! For more information/reservations contact Cara Group Travel at (617) 639-0273 or email bookings@ caragrouptravel.com. IRELAND AND SCOTLAND WITH FATHER AUGUSTINE – Join Father Augustine on a trip to Ireland and Scotland, Sept. 6-8. Trip includes stops in Galway, Our Lady of Knock, Cliffs of Moher, Killarney, Dingle Peninsula, Dublin, Edinburgh and St. Andrew’s Cathedral. Cost: $5,499 – all inclusive, including airfare. To register, contact Proximo Travel at (855) 842-8001 or visit www.proximotravel.com.
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MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
let there be light
Celebrating the legacy of MLK, Jr. and Sister Thea Bowman BY BISHOP JOSEPH R. KOPACZ, D.D.
Coming out of the splendor of the Christmas season with the culminating feasts of the Epiphany and the Baptism of the Lord, we now return to ordinary time to remain steadfast in the work of the Lord to announce the Good News of Salvation, and the presence of the Kingdom of God, the work of conversion, and of justice, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17) The feast of the Epiphany, the manifestation of Jesus Christ to all nations, inspired us to follow the radiance of the Gospel while circumventing the power and pull of evil in our world, as did the Magi in eluding King Herod. The Baptism of the Lord inspires us as God’s children, baptized into the life-giving death and resurrection of God’s beloved Son, to hear the call of the Lord and to put it into practice as his disciples. With the Holy Spirit as out guide we pray and dedicate ourselves to the will of God “on earth as it is in heaven.” The indwelling of the Holy Spirit is the foretaste and promise of glory (2Corinthians 5:5), raising us beyond the horizon of this world to the vision of eternal life. The national holiday this weekend offers us the bonus of an additional day away from many of our offices and workplaces and much more in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. At our Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle, we are going to mark this occasion in an extra special way with an additional Mass on Sunday afternoon honoring the legacy and witness of King and of our own Sister Thea Bowman, Servant of God. They were not exactly contemporaries of one another, yet they breathed the same air with the same passion for civil rights, for freedom, justice and equality for all of God’s children. When Martin Luther King Jr. was slain in Mem-
phis in April 1968, Sister Thea was pursuing an advanced degree at Catholic University in Washington DC. She would take up the torch for the next 20 years until her untimely death. They were committed disciples of the Lord Jesus, MLK, Jr. a Baptist, and Bowman, a Catholic, who like the Magi were inspired to live by the light of faith and the power of the Gospel. When Pope Francis spoke to the United States Congress in 2015, he honored King as a prophetic voice for our nation’s conscience, along with Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day and Abraham Lincoln. As a national icon, Martin Luther King Jr. is a Christian prophet whose life and violent death challenge us to resist the many-sided faces of evil nonviolently. His witness The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is pictured in an undated file photo. still confronts us today to turn away from the sins of racism, August 28, 2023 marked the 60th anniversary of the March on Washand unbridled materialism and ington for Jobs and Freedom, where Dr. King gave his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. (OSV News photo/CNS file) militarism. On the other hand, Sister spiritual giants to capture our imagination and vision Thea is not as well known nafor living. tionally but her life, cut short by cancer, also rises to “Everyone does not have access. When I say that, the distinction of prophetic witness. She labored unI mean that Martin Luther King Jr. was demonstrattiringly in the vineyard of the Lord for greater justice ing for the rights of the poor, he was demonstrating and peace with a passion securely anchored in the joy for fair and decent housing, he was demonstrating for of the Holy Spirit. Her cause for canonization continopportunities for adequate education. And not just adues to gain traction in our Catholic world around our equate educational opportunity for blacks, but for all nation, while the Diocese of Jackson works behind the children. He was demonstrating for a land where we scenes to fulfill the requirements to move the cause could love another as brothers and sisters and work forward. For example, in the recent past the diocese together for a solution to our common problems.” (Sissponsored a documentary on her amazing life, entitled ter Thea Bowman) “Going Home Like a Shooting Star.” (https://bit.ly/ “Love yourself, if that means rational, healthy, and SisterTheaFilm) Later this spring we will unveil a lifemoral self-interest. You are commanded to do that. size bronze statue of Sister That is the length of life. Love your neighbor as yourThea to be nestled in the self. You are commanded to do that. This is the breath cathedral until a shrine is of life. But never forget that there is even a greater and built in a permanent locafirst commandment, ‘Love the Lord thy God with all tion in the diocese. thy heart and all thy soul and all thy mind.’ This is the In conclusion, allow height of life. And when you do this, you live the comthe words of these two January 12 plete life.” (MLK, Jr.)
Happy Ordination Anniversary January 8
Father Bill Cullen Retired
Father José Lopez Retired
BISHOP’S SCHEDULE
Thank you for answering the call! Volume 71 Number 3 (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 www.jacksondiocese.org
Sunday, Jan. 14, 3 p.m. – Mass of Thanksgiving for MLK, Jr. and Sister Thea Bowman, Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle, Jackson Tuesday, Jan. 23, 7:30 a.m. – Mass, Carmelite Monastery, Jackson Saturday, Jan. 27, 10:30 a.m. – 100th Anniversary Celebration, Our Mother of Mercy, Anguilla Friday, Feb. 2, 10 a.m. – Four Immortal Chaplain’s Day Celebration with the MS Army National Guard, Mississippi Civil Rights Museum, Jackson Friday, Feb. 2, 7 p.m. – St. Richard School’s Krewe de Cardinal, The South Warehouse, Jackson Saturday, Feb. 10, 1 p.m. – World Marriage Day Celebration, Cathedral of St. Peter, Jackson Sunday, Feb. 11, 11 a.m. – World Marriage Day Celebration, St. James, Tupelo All events are subject to change. Check with parishes and schools for further details.
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
4 VOCATIONS CALLED BY NAME
seminarians here at the Cathedral Rectory: Will Foggo, Wilson Locke and I am pleased to announce that we have Francisco Maldonado. Will is one of our senior-most seminarians while a new seminarian who will be starting his forWilson and Francisco just started back in August. We had a great time mation this month. Joe Pearson is a native and I believe that the best way to prepare men for the priesthood is to of Flora and attended St. Richard Elemengive them a realistic look at what being a priest is like. They were able tary, St. Joseph Middle and High School, to participate in various events from meetCo-Lin Comings to parties, but they also have blessed our munity College Catholic community by their witness and their and the Univertalents. Will and Francisco visited two of our sity of Mississippi. elementary schools and Wilson and I will visHe graduated it Sr. Thea Bowman School in January before from Ole Miss in he goes back to seminary. All of them have December and assisted with Masses and helped with parish decided to apFather Nick Adam ply to enter the activities as well. One testament to the quality of our semseminary. I have inarians is the feedback that I receive from known Joe since he was in high school and the community. Wilson and I have been goam very proud that he is taking this step in ing to a local gym downtown to exercise in his journey with the Lord. Joe knows that the afternoon. One of the employees shared his decision to enter the seminary is not a with me how impressed he was by Wilson’s decision to become a priest, but rather it witness when he had a brief conversation is a decision to discern fully whether or not with him one day. I am grateful for our semthe Lord is calling him to be a priest. inarians and ask you to continue praying for The seminary is the place where men all of them as they embark on another semeswho have the maturity and the desire go to know their vocation. The guys who en- New seminarian, Joe Pearson pictured with Father ter of formation. ter do not know for sure that they will be or- Mark Shoffner outside St. John parish in Oxford. (Pho– Father Nick Adam, vocation director dained. They literally cannot know for sure to courtesy Father Nick Adam) because they are not the only ones who (Father Nick Adam can be contacted at nick.adam@jacksondioare making the decision. The church discerns with the man as well, cese.org.) and it’s my job as vocation director to help our seminarians discover their particular path. I am very happy with the group that we have studying for our diocese. I believe that each of our seminarians was called to the seminary and will become who they are called to be by the Lord, whether they get ordained or not. Over the Christmas holidays I’ve been blessed to host three of our
In memoriam: Sister M. Kristin Rever, OP SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Dominican Sister M. Kristin Rever died Dec. 27, 2023, at St. John’s Hospital in Springfield. She was born in 1942, in Assumption, Illinois, to John H. and Wanda M. [Nee: Simpson] Rever who gave her the name Kay Frances. She was baptized at Assumption BVM, Assumption, Illinois, and in 1962 made her profession of vows at Sacred Heart Convent. Sister M. Kristin taught elementary school for 19 years at parochial schools in Chicago, Matteson, and Newton, Illinois, and in Duluth, Minnesota. After study, she began ministry as a respiratory therapist, serving in that capacity intermittently at St. Dominic Hospital, Jackson, Mississippi, for a total of 14 years and at St. Mary-Rogers Memorial Hospital, Rogers, Arkansas, for two. While in Jackson she also served in the development office for St. Catherine’s Village, and as pastoral visitor at St. Catherine’s Village, 2006-2019. She remained deeply committed to the healing ministry of Jesus in all of her healthcare assignments. She frequently volunteered as pastoral visitor in parishes and worked in parish healthcare in Springfield. Sister M. Kristin was preceded in death by her parents and her brother John. She is survived by her nephew Robert Rever and niece Rhonda Beck, both of Taylorville, Illinois, her nephew John Rever, Omaha, Nebraska, and many dear cousins. Memorials to honor the memory of Sister M. Kristin may be made to the Dominican Sisters Retirement Fund, 1237 W. Monroe St., Springfield, IL, 62704.
Spirituality 5
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
Our over-complex, tortured selves IN EXILE By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
we are congenitally out of sync with time and the seasons from beginning to end. Both our special dignity and our pathological complexity take their origins in that anomaly in our nature. We are overcharged for life on this planet. St. Augustine gave this classic expression in his famous line: You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you. There is an entire anthropology and spirituality in that single line. Our dignity and our perpetual restlessness have one and the same source. Thus, you need to give yourself sacred permission for being wild of heart, restless of heart, insatiable of heart, complex of heart and driven of heart. Too often, where both psychology and spirituality have failed you is in giving you the impression that you should be living without chaos and restlessness in your life. Admittedly, these can beset you more acutely because
of moral inadequacy, but they will beset you no matter how good a life you are living. Indeed, if you are a deeply sensitive person, you will probably feel your complexity more acutely than if you are less sensitive or are deadening your sensitivity with distractions. Karl Rahner once wrote to a friend who had written to him complaining that he wasn’t finding the fulfillment he longed for in life. His friend expressed disappointment with himself, his marriage and his job. Rahner gave him this counsel: In the torment of the insufficiency of everything attainable, we ultimately learn that in this life there is no finished symphony. There can be no finished symphony in this life – not because our souls are defective, but because they carry godliness.
When all is said and done, our lives are not all that serene and peaceful. In a manner of speaking, we are always somewhat pathetic. That shouldn’t scare us. Pathetic is not a pejorative term. The word comes from the Greek, pathos, which means pain. To be pathetic is to live in pain, and we all do because of the very way we are made. You might say that doesn’t (Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teachsound right. Aren’t we made in er and award-winning author. He can be contacted the image and likeness of God so through his website www.ronrolheiser.com.) that each of us, no matter how messed up our lives might be, carry a special dignity and a certain godliness within us? We do carry that special dignity. However, despite The Pope’s Corner that and largely because of it, our lives tend to be so complex as to be pain filled. Why? Godliness isn’t easy to carry. The infinite inside us doesn’t easily fit itself into the finite. We carry too much divine fire inside to find much peace in this life. preparation for the Holy Year 2025. Yet more than worBy Justin McLellan That struggle begins early in life. To create a VATICAN CITY (CNS) – On New Year’s Eve, be- rying about organizing logistics and events, the pope self-identity as a very young child, we need to make lievers and non-believers alike give thanks for all they asked people to be witnesses to “ethical and spiritual a series of mental contractions which ultimately have received in the last 12 months and express their quality of coexistence.” limit our awareness. First, we need to differentiate As an example, he pointed out that people of every hopes for the coming year, but Christians are called to ourselves from others (That’s mom – I’m me); then, cultivate their gratitude and hope following the exam- nationality, culture and religion come together in St. we need to differentiate between what is living and Peter’s Square, so the basilica must be welcoming to ple of Mary, Pope Francis said. what is not (the puppy is alive – my doll isn’t); next, “Faith enables us to live this hour in a way different all people and provide accessible information. we need to differentiate between what is physical The pope then praised charm of Rome’s historthan that of a worldly mindset,” the pope said during and what is mental (this is my body – but I think an evening prayer service in St. Peter’s Basilica Dec. ic center but said it must also be accessible to people with my mind). Finally, and critically, as we are do31. “Faith in Jesus Christ, the incarnated God, born of with disabilities and the elderly. ing all this, we need split off as much of our lumiRoberto Gualtieri, mayor of Rome, sat in the front the Virgin Mary, gives a new way of feeling time and nosity we can consciously handle from what is too of row of the basilica during the prayer service and life.” much to consciously handle. With that we create a Pope Francis said that while many people express greeted the pope at its conclusion. self-identity – but we also create a shadow, namely, Pope Francis noted that a pilgrimage “requires thanks and hope on New Year’s Eve, in reality, they an area inside us which is split off from our conoften “lack the essential dimension which is that of re- good preparation,” and recalled that 2024 would be sciousness. lationship with the Other and with others, with God dedicated to prayer before the Holy Year. Notice that our shadow is not first of all a loom“And what better teacher could we have than our and with brothers and sisters.” ing darkness. Rather, it’s all the light and energy With a worldly mentality, gratitude and hope are holy Mother?” the pope asked. “Let us learn from her inside us that we cannot consciously handle. Most “flattened onto the self, onto one’s interests,” he said. to live every day, every moment, every occupation with of us, I suspect, are familiar with the words of Marour inner gaze turned to Jesus.” “They don’t go beyond satisfaction and optimism.” ianne Williamson made famous by Nelson MandeAfter the prayer service, the pope greeted people Pope Francis encouraged Christians to look to the la in his inauguration speech: Our deepest fear is example of Mary who, after giving birth to Jesus, had lined along the basilica’s central nave. Then, riding in not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that a mother’s gratitude in her heart for bearing the child his wheelchair, he went outside to pray in front of the we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square, taking his time to of God. our darkness that most frightens us. “Mystery makes room for gratitude, which surfac- wave to visitors, bless children and listen to the Swiss Our light frightens us because it is not easy to Guard band as it played Christmas carols. es in the contemplation of gift, in gratucarry. It gives us great dignity and infinite depth, itousness, while it suffocates in the anxbut it also makes us pathologically complex and iety of having and appearing,” the pope restless. Ruth Burrows, one of the foremost spirisaid. “The church learns gratitude from tual writers of our time, begins her autobiography the Virgin Mary.” with these words: I was born into this world with a The pope also said that the hope of tortured sensitivity and my life has not been an easy Mary and the church “is not optimism, it one. You wouldn’t expect those words from a mysis something else: it is faith in a God faithtic, from someone who has been a faithful nun for ful to his promises.” more than seventy-five years. You wouldn’t expect “This faith takes the form of hope in that her struggle in life was as much with the light the dimension of time,” he said. “Chriswithin herself as with the darkness within and tians, like Mary, are pilgrims of hope.” around her. That’s also true for each of us. Near the basilica’s main altar was an There’s a famous passage in the Book of Qoicon of the “Madonna Lactans,” or Nursheleth where the sacred writer tells us that God has ing Madonna, from the Benedictine Abbey made everything of Montevirgine in Mercogliano, Italy. beautiful in its The icon, in late Byzantine style, shows own time. HowMary nursing the infant Jesus. The pope ever, the passage prayed silently before the image before doesn’t end on a leaving the basilica. peaceful note. It Wholesale and home The service culminated with the choir ends by telling us freezer service and the 6,500 people present in the basilica that, while God Beef – Pork – Sausage singing the “Te Deum” (“We praise you, oh has made every109 - A Camellia Dr. God”) in thanksgiving for the blessings of Pope Francis prays in front of an icon of the “Madonna Lacthing beautiful in tans” or Nursing Madonna near the main altar of St. Peter’s the past year. its own time, God In his homily, Pope Francis noted that Basilica after an evening prayer service at the Vatican Dec. 31, has put timelessthe coming year would involve intense 2023. (CNS photo/Lola Gomez) ness into the human heart so that
Bring Mary’s gratitude and hope into the new year, pope says
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6 DIOCESE
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
' ... As the retired pope aged ...'
– Continued from page 1 – God asks me this it is precisely so that I may continue to serve her with the same dedication and the same love with which I have tried to do so until now, but in a way more suited to my age and strength." In the same way, the archbishop said, prayer marks the rhythm of the life of the church, "which is the great family of God." As the retired pope aged, he said, his life – with a growing intensity and interiority – became more focused on prayer. Born Joseph Ratzinger, he tried to model his life on St. Joseph, the archbishop said. It could be seen in his intimacy with the Lord and with the people around him, "relationships distinguished by great courtesy, humility and simplicity."
Pope Benedict XVI
April 16, 1927 – December 31, 2022
Pope Benedict XVI poses in Alpeggio Pileo near his summer residence in Les Combes, at the Valle d'Aosta in northern Italy, July 14, 2005. Pope Benedict died Dec. 31, 2022, at the age of 95 in his residence at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Reuters/ Vatican Pool)
Statement from Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz and the Diocese of Jackson on the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith's declaration "Fiducia Supplicans" – on the pastoral meaning of blessings By Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz
JACKSON – "Fiducia Supplicans," the declaration issued by the Holy See’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) and approved by Pope Francis reminds us that each one of us is in need of God’s blessings, healing, compassion and mercy. To seek a blessing from a priest is to acknowledge the need for God in one’s life and the desire to grow stronger in a relationship with God. The declaration does not change the church’s teaching on marriage as a union of one man and one woman in lifelong fidelity and openness to children; nor is it a step toward the ratification of same-sex unions nor a compromise of the church’s teaching on these irregular relationships. It is a document on the nature of blessings and the pastoral use of giving informal, spontaneous blessings to individuals seeking to experience God’s healing love and grace in their lives. To quote the document directly, the DDF sums up its declaration thusly: “ … following the authoritative teaching of Pope Francis, this Dicastery finally wishes to recall that ‘the root of Christian meekness’ is ‘the ability to feel blessed and the ability to bless. This world needs blessings, and we can give blessings and receive blessings. The Father loves us, and the only thing that remains for us is the joy of blessing him, and the joy of thanking him, and of learning from him to bless.’ [Catechesis on Prayer: The Blessing (2 December 2020)] In this way, every brother and every sister will be able to feel that, in the church, they are always pilgrims, always beggars, always loved, and, despite everything, always blessed.” (FS #45) The full text of the document may be found on line at: https://bit.ly/FiduciaSupplicansDeclaration I encourage all the faithful to read the actual document in its entirety.
The Diocese of Jackson has launched a third-party reporting system that will enable all diocesan employees, volunteers and parishioners to anonymously (or named if preferred) make reports. Examples of this activity include fraud, misconduct, safety 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 in Deerfield, Illinois, Lighthouse Services maintains ethics, safety and fraud hotlines for over 4,100 organizations between the U.S. and abroad.
To make a report visit www.lighthouse-services.com/ jacksondiocese or call 888-830-0004 (English) or 800-2161288 (Spanish). 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
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
NATION 7
Serving church, country ‘an honor,’ says priest promoted to general in Air Force Chaplain Corps priesthood by providing scholarships that help struggling dioceses pay for seminarian tuition as well as room and board. After his ordination in 1997, Father Zalewski began serving as a parish priest in his diocese and as a military reserve chaplain at bases in the Florida Panhandle. He would eventually be deployed again in 2008 as a “wing chaplain” to Al-Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates, serving military personnel supporting U.S. operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. “He knows that the many sacrifices of our service members have created a toll – physical, mental and spiritual,” Catholic Extension said. “Father Zalewski recalls his visits to military bases over these past years where he would encounter young soldiers wearing prosthetics, reminding him of what they gave on the battlefield. “More troublesome, still, are the wounds that are not visible. Father Zalewski laments that despite many efforts within the services, suicides among military personnel are not decreasing and more needs to be done to stem this tide.” Father Zalewski said, “It’s been an honor to serve my country in the military, and an honor to serve the Catholic Church in America through Catholic Extension’s mission committee. I see that many of our service members come from rural communities – so Extension is a direct contributor to their spiritual well-being and strength.” Roughly a quarter of all active-duty military personnel are Catholic, Extension noted, but “as a general, he will serve people regardless of their religious affiliation. … His job will be to ensure that these young, self-sacrificing men and women, who have given so much to our country, have the spiritual care they need.”
Father Pete Zalewszki, pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Tallahassee, Fla., is seen during a Dec. 14, 2023, ceremony at the Florida National Guard Headquarters in St. Augustine where he was promoted him to brigadier general in the Air Force Chaplain Corps. Now the highest-ranked Catholic clergyman in the U.S. Armed Services, he will minister to members of both the Air and Army National Guard. (OSV News photo/courtesy Catholic Extension)
BY OSV NEWS
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – At Blessed Sacrament Parish in Tallahassee, Father Peter Zalewski is a busy and beloved pastor, tending to the activities of his church community and the local Catholic school, the largest primary school in the Pensacola-Tallahassee Diocese. But the pastor also serves in the Air Force Chaplain Corps, and with his Dec. 14 promotion to a one-star, or brigadier, general, he now holds the highest rank in the military of any Catholic priest. On his one day off a week, he’ll be tending to meetings at the Pentagon or elsewhere in Washington, because he now serves as the primary adviser to the chief of the National Guard Bureau on religious, ethical and morale issues. As a general, Father Zalewski will provide guidance and programs directing National Guard chaplain personnel and supporting Army and Air Guardsmen. The Dec. 14 promotion ceremony at the Florida National Guard Headquarters in St. Augustine was the culmination of Father Zalewski’s nearly 40-year life in the military, which began in 1984 as a cadet at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In the early 1990s, he deployed in major military operations, including serving as an intelligence officer in Operation Desert Storm in the first Gulf War. He was following in the footsteps of his father, who served two tours in Vietnam, but he also pursued a military career with encouragement of his mother, who helped him appreciate the meaning of serving the Armed Forces. The Florida native eventually heard the call to pursue the priesthood instead of Air Force pilot training, so in 1992 he became a seminarian for the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee. He also became an Air Force chaplain candidate. At his promotion ceremony, Father Zalewski thanked his parishioners at Blessed Sacrament, as well as St. Dominic in Panama City, Florida, where he was previously pastor, for always supporting his dual responsibilities. “Thank you for your support,” he said. “We have to protect those who protect us. So, thank you for allowing me to do that. That means a lot to me.” Father Zalewski’s remarks were reported by Catholic Extension in an article on its website, www.catholicextension.org. The priest’s connection to the Chicago-based organization is twofold. He serves on its mission committee, which helps Catholic Extension increase its impact and awareness around the country. He also has involved his parish in raising financial support for various Extension initiatives over the years. But the priest also was a beneficiary of Extension’s funding of seminary education when he was in formation to be ordained for the Pensacola-Tallahassee Diocese. Each year, Catholic Extension supports 400 seminarians on their path to the
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January 13/14, 2024
8 NaTION
Turning to Our Lady of Guadalupe with love, hope saved her life, singer says
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Mississippi Catholic 2024 Publication Schedule
BY THERESA CISNEROS
Oros carefully made her way onto the altar, set down a bouquet of red roses near two giant images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Juan Diego bedecked with hundreds of flowers, and sang two songs to the Virgin while looking deep into the compassionate eyes that she’s come to know so well. It was a moment that she had trained for all her life. Oros was born in Aguascalientes, Mexico, into a family of nine that is both musically inclined and devoutly Catholic; one of her brothers spent six years in the seminary, while another is currently a Jesuit novice. She immigrated to Santa Maria in California as a preteen, and studied music theory and vocalization, singing to God and to Our Lady of Guadalupe. At 12, she discovered a love for Mexican “ranchera” music when her father bought her a copy of Linda Ronstadt’s 1987 album “Canciones De Mi Padre” – in which the American singer recorded traditional mariachi songs that were of special significance to her family. “I would lock myself in my room and listen to the cassette over and over and over again until I learned all the songs,” she said. Since then, Oros has remained close to the singing world. She’s enjoyed a long career working in TV, radio, the recording industry and now in publishing as editor-in-chief of Iconos, her own magazine highlighting music and entertainment news. While she’s remained mostly behind the scenes, she has recorded jingles, produced her own albums and sings when the occasion arises. While living in New York, she had the chance to sing on the “Late Show with David Letterman,” for fashion designer Oscar de la Renta and open for Mexican “ranchera” icon Vicente Fernández at Madison Square Garden. Oros accepted the chance to sing during this year’s “Mañanitas” celebration at the cathedral, out of gratitude for the role she said Our Lady played in saving her life just five years ago. In 2018, Oros went into septic shock, and then fell into a coma, after undergoing a medical procedure in Aguascalientes. After awakening, she suffered a cerebral thrombosis and other complications that worsened her prognosis. Drifting in and out of consciousness, she spent the early days of her recovery in a clinic named, aptly, for Our Lady of Guadalupe, where she said she experienced the love of Jesus for her through Mary. A pivotal point in her healing, she said, came when she and her husband received messages from Mary through a prayer group. “She said, ‘I am with you, do not be afraid,’” Oros said. “’You will heal from this but we will do this together ...’ In other words, she wanted me to get closer to her Son while holding her by the hand.” Today, Oros’ body and faith have grown continually stronger. “She interceded for me to live,” she said. “We always look for the opportunity to thank her and to be in communion with her.” Surviving the near-fatal incident has shown Oros that Our Lady of Guadalupe is very much alive and is there to help all of her children, she said. “We may not be perfect, we may be sinners, we may fall, but in the end this is proof of the love and mercy of Christ through his mother. She is the key to the door that opens to Christ and to our salA radiant Rosy Oros stands before an image of Our Lady of Gua- vation.”
LOS ANGELES (OSV News) – Five years ago, Rosy Oros lay comatose in a hospital bed in Mexico – some 1,500 miles away from home – after experiencing complications from a medical procedure that had taken a drastic toll on her body and mind. She was suffering internal and external bleeding, her organs were damaged, and doctors gave her only a 2% chance of surviving. As she lay there on the brink of death, she finally opened her eyes and – in a haze – saw a familiar set of brown eyes gazing back at her, lovingly, that were very much still alive. Those eyes belonged to an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe hanging just a few feet away, at once filling her heart with love and hope that the Virgin Mary she’d held dear since childhood would intercede with Jesus to help her make it out of the clinic alive. Oros’ healing journey came full circle this December as she and other musicians sang hymns of praise and thanksgiving to Our Lady of Guadalupe during the annual “Las Mañanitas” celebration at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in honor of her feast day. “I am so humbled and blessed to be able to stand there and in my own simple way give thanks to the Virgin,” Oros told Angelus, the online news outlet of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. “It may seem insignificant but I know that she is receiving it with a lot of love and that it makes her happy, because she knows my heart.” At the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, the festivities ran from the evening of Dec. 11 into the early hours of Guadalupe’s feast day, Dec. 12. As in years past, the celebration featured Aztec and Ballet Folklorico dancers, veneration of the only relic of St. Juan Diego’s “tilma” in the U.S., the rosary, a musical tribute that included “Las Mañanitas,” and ended with midnight Mass, where Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles said the Guadalupe story is a reminder that “Jesus Christ loves us so much that he came to share our hopes and dreams and to offer his life for us.” “Just as she did with Juan Diego, the most holy Mary entrusts each of us with a task. She has a message that she needs us to spread and she is sending us to tell the whole world about Jesus.” he said. Oros aimed to do just that as she and six other guest singers delivered individual serenades to the Virgin backed by Mariachi Garibaldi de Jaime Cuellar.
dalupe at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles during the annual “Las Mañanitas” celebration Dec. 11-12, Theresa Cisneros writes for Angelus, 2023, in honor of Our Lady’s feast. The singer credits her heal- the online news outlet of the Archdiocese of ing from a deadly infection to the intercession of Our Lady of Los Angeles. Guadalupe in 2018. (OSV News photo/Victor Alemán, Angelus)
The staff at Mississippi Catholic is looking forward to a busy and productive 2024 .As always, we invite participation from faithful from across the diocese. Please submit your stories, photos and events so we can include them in the paper. The publication schedule for 2024:
PRINT Friday, Jan. 26 Friday, Feb. 9 Friday, March 8 Friday, April 12 Friday, May 10 Friday, June 14 Friday, July 19 Friday, Aug. 23 Friday, Sept. 13 Friday, Oct. 11 Friday, Nov. 8 Friday, Dec. 6 Friday, Dec. 20
DIGITAL ONLY Friday, Feb. 23 Friday, March 22 Friday, April 26 Friday, May 24 Friday, Sept 27 Friday, Oct. 25 Friday, Nov. 22
Look for special sections this year marking Catholic Schools Week, the priestly ordination of Tristan Stovall, graduations and the sacraments of First Communion and Confirmation. Send events and story ideas to editor@ jacksondiocese.org. Please, send information three to four weeks before or within one week after an event. Ads are due one week prior to publication, with space reservations due two weeks prior. Visit the paper online at www.mississippicatholic. com. The staff here at Mississippi Catholic would like to thank you, our readers, for your prayerS and support and wish you a blessed New Year.
BE SURE TO JOIN OUR E-NEWS LIST TEXT MSCATHOLIC TO 84576 OR EMAIL EDITOR@JACKSONDIOCESE. ORG TO BE ADDED TO THE LIST.
Annual report
2 0 2 3 Chancery Office of the Diocese of Jackson Dear Friends in Christ, As I mark the 10th anniversary of being installed as the 11th Bishop of Jackson on Feb. 6, 2014, I am continually amazed over the manifold array of ministries of which our beloved diocese is comprised. The annual report is a unique opportunity to present an overview through manageable detail of the day-to-day commitment of our diocesan staff to faithfully serve the Lord Jesus and the people of God entrusted to us. These efforts support our diocesan mission to proclaim our Lord, crucified and risen, by word and deed, and to foster the work of the Gospel in our parishes, schools and ministries throughout our expansive diocese. A lot of work goes on each day to get the job done well.
It may appear to some that the business of the chancery is an insulated world, and that a parish three hours distant is an independent body like so many congregations in Mississippi. This perception would be flawed because our diocese is a living, dynamic body, the Lord’s own for sure, that is inextricably linked in all its parts. This is the nature of the Catholic Church and most recently this unity is being fostered by the world-wide synod process through the theme of Communion, Participation and Mission. During this season of Eucharistic renewal, we recall that the Mass, our sublime and most important act of worship, is the extraordinary and ordinary daily prayer by which we proclaim and strengthen our unity with the Lord and with one
another, as well as the ultimate good of eternal life with God. With so much at stake, ever before us at the chancery is the commitment to be good stewards of the generosity of the people of God from every corner of our diocese. A careful reading of this report will portray the complexity of our diocesan network, as well as the careful stewardship that is applied each day. This inspires confidence throughout our diocesan network. As I have stated in previous reports, I am grateful for the commitment to collaboration among our diocesan leadership and personnel that meaningfully engages leadership throughout the diocese. In conclusion, this year in the grassroots throughout our diocese, we are engaged in a process of pas-
toral reimagining that is rooted in the marks of our faith and church as One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic. It is an endeavor that has the potential to bear much fruit, the kind that lasts. (John 15:16) The challenge for all of us, whether in our families or in our diocesan ministries, is to keep our eyes fixed on the Lord as we go about our daily responsibilities and toils. Ever mindful of the power of prayer, may the Lord who has begun this good work in us enlighten our minds and hearts to value the things that ultimately matter. Sincerely yours in Christ,
+Joseph R. Kopacz Bishop of Jackson
Financial Report
Carolyn Callahan – Director, Department of Temporal Affairs The full audit report for the Chancery office finances of the Diocese of Jackson is available online at https://jacksondiocese.org/temporal-affairs. Included in the audited financial statements are the Current Fund and Deposit and Loan Fund. The Current Fund represents the services provided to the parishes, schools and missions by the diocesan bishop and his representatives including the offices of the Bishop, Vicar General, Chancellor, Archives, Communications, Education, Faith Formation, Liturgy, Seminarian Education and Vocations, Stewardship and Development, and Temporal Affairs. The Deposit and Loan fund represents the savings of all parish and school locations and the related investment portfolio. Separate from this report are the income and expenses of Catholic Charities and the Catholic Foundation. Two main sources of income for the Chancery office are the annual Cathedraticum Assessment and the Catholic Service Appeal. The Cathedraticum Assessment is currently 10.5% of the annual parish income less certain exemptions for approved capital campaigns and subsidies paid to schools. Income from this annual assessment funds the expenses of the Office of the Bishop and his extended administration, all priest retirement and health insurance costs, and seminarian education, stipends, and benefits costs. Personnel salary and benefits, clergy benefits and assistance, and seminarian education represent the major expenses of the administration of the Bishop. Other routine expenses include workshops and conferences held and attended, travel, newspaper printing and distribution costs, and grants awarded to parishes and schools.
Significant areas to note for the finances of the diocese and the Department of Temporal Affairs since the last annual report filed in January 2023 are: • The investment portfolio of the Deposit and Loan Fund exceeds the balance of savings less loans. The return on investment continues to increase the cost basis of the account balances and is not withdrawn for operations. • Other cash invested is slightly greater than the balance of restricted net assets remaining from past donations. See note five of the audit report for the details of restricted net assets. • Temporal Affairs works with an investment consultant who manages the D & L portfolio and restricted reserves of the Chancery regularly. The Diocese Investment Committee meets quarterly to review the progress of the portfolio and offer expert oversight. • The diocesan property and liability insurance plan experienced an overall increase of 29% and the employee and priests’ medical insurance plan experienced an increase of 6.5%. Both increases were at the lower end of the average range for other dioceses across the United States, but created a challenge nonetheless for the Chancery, parishes, and schools. Temporal Affairs works regularly to minimize increases and reviews other plans to ensure we have the best coverage possible. • Temporal Affairs contracted with Catholic Charities of Jackson to provide accounting services to the agency beginning Jan. 1, 2023. The agency’s accounting system was converted to that of the Chancery office and the agency continues to directly manage grant accounting for all of its funding sources with Temporal Affairs providing
all other accounting services. This collaboration between Catholic Charities and the diocese has strengthened both organizations while all sources of income remain properly separated. • As detailed in note six of the audit report, the full unfunded liability of the Lay Employee Frozen 403b plan was added to the balance sheet of the chancery, retroactively to June 30, 2022. As a multiple-employer plan for the employees of the chancery and Catholic Charities which was frozen as the diocese moved to a fully funded 401k plan as of July 1, 2014, our audit firm required the full liability to be reported. Previously the unfunded liability of the plan related to the employees of the chancery was the only portion recognized. Temporal Affairs continues to work with retirement plan attorneys and investment account managers to improve the status of this plan. • Technology upgrades were made throughout the chancery office during the year. • The Diocesan Finance Council and its separate committees meet throughout the year and include members who are experts in various areas to provide oversight of Temporal Affairs and financial advice to Bishop Kopacz. Committees of the Council include the Budget Committee, Audit Committee, Investment Committee, Revenue Committee, and the Deposit and Loan Rates Committee. Other committees of the diocese providing financial oversight include the Cathedraticum Committee and the Compliance Committee. • Temporal Affairs continues to have a strong working relationship with its external audit firm and the audit report was received without exceptions again in 2023.
Catholic Diocese of Jackson Stewardship and Development Director Rebecca Harris
Catholic Education Executive Director of School Operations Karla Luke
• In summer of 2023, the Office of Catholic Education (OCE), and all schools and Early Learning Centers began collaboration on a diocesan wide strategic plan set for implementation during the 2024-2025 school year. • The OCE and Diocesan Catholic Schools embarked on a year long of service to schools and communities adopting the annual theme of “Serve the Lord with Gladness,” echoing Psalm 100:2. • The OCE in collaboration with the Office of the Chancellor welcomed fifth graders from across the diocese to the Mass of Holy Chrism during Holy Week. This was such a success with our seminarians in attendance, the event will continue annually. • In response to calls for increased security in all schools, the OCE partnered with the Department of Homeland Security and MEMA to have comprehensive physical inspections of all schools and Early Learning Centers. All staff at each school received Civilian Response to Active Shooter Events (CRASE) training. • The Office of Catholic Education welcomed Virginia Hollingsworth to our staff as the Coordinator of Curriculum, Professional Development and Assessments.
Class of 2022 • 161 graduates • Scholarship Recipients: 140 • Scholarships Offered: $8,729,700 • Scholarships Accepted: $4,470,674
• Scholarship Average: $31,933 per graduate • Service Hours over 4 years: 15,942 • Average Service Hours: 100 per graduate
Stats for Catholic Schools High Schools ..............................................................4 Elementary Schools .................................................12 Early Learning Centers .............................................3 Full-time teachers ..................................................386 Number of students ............................................3,331
Chancellor
Mary Woodward • The Chancellor is charged with managing diocesan archives and records for the bishop. • The Chancellor is the official ecclesiastical notary for the diocese; and coordinates diocesan liturgies celebrated by the bishop. • The intricate process for the cause of canonization of Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, is the responsibility of the Chancellor’s office as well. • Over the past year, the following activities have been a part of the workings of the Chancellor’s office: • Assisted in the process of separately incorporating parishes in order to better link canon and civil law. • Coordinated the annual Diocesan Chrism Mass and two ordination Masses. • Facilitated several canonical processes for the diocese. • Collaborated in further developing an enterprise content management system to build a more compliant records management platform for the diocese. • Authored a bi-weekly column for the Mississippi Catholic – From the Archives.
Quick Stats Catholic Population .......................................45,051 Number of Parishes ...............................................72 Number of Missions ..............................................17 Diocesan Priests ....................................................49 Diocesan Priest Outside Diocese ...........................1 Retired Priests .......................................................21 Religious Order .....................................................19 Priests Resident Abroad ..........................................0
Stewardship Office • The Stewardship Paths monthly e-newsletter provides parishes/parishioners with stewardship materials. It includes weekly readings, reflections and more on time, talent and generosity. • Collaborated with the Office of Vocations on the 4th annual Homegrown Harvest which raised approximately $121,000. • Worked with parishes to write Catholic Extension grants and initiative projects which funded over $121,000. Catholic Service Appeal • The CSA raises money for 14 ministries in our diocese. The 2023 Catholic Service Appeal goals was $1,200,000. The CSA raised $1,362,036.05 with 2,700 donors with an average gift of $516.26. There was an increase in dollars raised, donors and average gift. The following ministries received funds through the 2023 CSA: • Seminarian Education $175,000 (15%) • Retired Priests $150,000 (13%) • Clergy Healthcare & Assistance $150,000 (13%) • Permanent Diaconate Program $10,000 (.5%) • Evangelization/Communications $50,000 (4%) • Religious Ed. & Faith Formation $40,000 (4%) • Youth Ministry $40,000 (4%) • Intercultural Ministry $30,803 (3%) • Campus Ministry $50,000 (4%) • Family Ministry $30,000 (3%) • Young Adult Ministry $20,000 (2%) • Catholic Charities $350,000 (30%) • Parishes & Schools Grant Assistance $50,000 (4%) • Prison Ministry $10,000 (.5%) Catholic Foundation • Celebrating 50 years in 2023, the Foundation manages 400 trusts with investments reaching $58M. • Distributed 5% to trust beneficiaries totaling $2,333,791.58. • Funded 25 grant projects totaling $82,428. • The Foundation had 480 members and raised over $80,000 for membership. The annual membership funds the operations of the Foundation office so that management fees are not charged to each trust. • Sponsored the 41th annual Bishop Cup Golf Tournament and raised over $40,000.
Confirmations ......................................................367 Marriages ..............................................................141 Permanent Deacons ..............................................13 Deaths ...................................................................381 Brothers ....................................................................4 Child Protection Sisters ......................................................................38 Seminarians ..............................................................7 Background checks for Child Protection Program .. Lay Ecclesial Ministers ............................................7 ...........................................................................1,917 Baptisms ...............................................................679 Number of children trained .............................4,880 Adult Baptisms ......................................................66 Number of adults trained ...................................850 First Eucharist .....................................................588 Total Number of Background Checks ........ 23,000+
12 de enero de 2024
Mississippicatholic.com
“Sirviendo a los Católicos Hispanos de la Diócesis de Jackson desde 1997”
Papa Francisco: Lleven Gratitud y Esperanza de María al nuevo año Por JUstin MCLeLLan
El Papa dijo también que la esperanza de María y de la Iglesia "no es optimismo, CIUDAD DEL VATICANO (CNS) – En la víspera de Año Nuevo, creyentes y no es otra cosa: es fe en un Dios fiel a sus promesas...Los cristianos, como María, somos creyentes dan gracias por todo lo que han recibido en los últimos 12 meses y expre- peregrinos de esperanza". Cerca del altar mayor de la basílica había un ícono de la "Madonna Lactans", san sus esperanzas para el próximo año, pero los cristianos están llamados a cultio Virgen de la Lactancia, procedente var su gratitud y esperanza siguiende la abadía benedictina de Montevirdo el ejemplo de María, dijo el Papa gine, en Mercogliano, Italia. El icono, Francisco. de estilo bizantino, muestra a María "La fe nos permite vivir esta hora amamantando al niño Jesús. El Papa de un modo distinto al de una menrezó en silencio ante la imagen antes talidad mundana", dijo el Papa dude salir de la basílica. rante un servicio de oración vesperLa Misa culminó con el coro y las tino en la Basílica de San Pedro el 31 6.500 personas presentes en la basílica de diciembre. "La fe en Jesucristo, cantando el "Te Deum" ("Te alabamos, Dios encarnado, nacido de la Virgen oh Dios") en acción de gracias por las María, da una nueva forma de sentir bendiciones del año pasado. En su el tiempo y la vida". homilía, el Papa Francisco señaló que El Papa Francisco dijo que mienel próximo año supondría una intensa tras muchas personas expresan gratpreparación para el Año Santo 2025. itud y esperanza en la víspera de Año Sin embargo, más que preocuparse Nuevo, en realidad, a menudo "les por organizar la logística y los evenfalta la dimensión esencial que es la tos, el Papa pidió a la gente que fuera de la relación con el Otro y con los testigo de la "calidad ética y espiritual demás, con Dios y con los hermanos de la convivencia". y hermanas". Como ejemplo, señaló que en la Con una mentalidad mundana, la plaza de San Pedro se reúnen persogratitud y la esperanza "están aplasnas de todas las nacionalidades, cultutadas sobre el yo, sobre los propios ras y religiones, por lo que la basílica intereses", dijo. "No van más allá de debe ser acogedora para todos y ofrela satisfacción y el optimismo". cer información accesible. El Papa Francisco animó a los El Papa Francisco señaló que una cristianos a fijarse en el ejemplo de peregrinación "requiere una buena María que, tras dar a luz a Jesús, preparación", y recordó que 2024 se tenía en su corazón la gratitud de dedicará a la oración antes del Año una madre por haber dado a luz al Santo. hijo de Dios. La escena de la Natividad del Niño Jesús se ve después de la oración del Ángelus "¿Y qué mejor maestra que nues"El misterio hace lugar a la gratitud, que aflora en la contemplación del Papa Francisco en la fiesta de San Esteban, el primer mártir cristiano, en la Plaza tra santa Madre?", preguntó el Papa. del don, en la gratuidad, mientras de San Pedro en el Vaticano el 26 de diciembre de 2023. (Foto CNS/Lola Gómez) "Aprendamos de ella a vivir cada día, se sofoca en la ansiedad del tener y Las posadas y la escenificación de la Navidad se repiten en cada rincón del mundo. cada momento, cada mirada interior del parecer", dijo el papa. "La Igle- (debajo) Feligreses de St. Christopher Pontotoc durante su actuación en varias posa- dirigida a Jesús". sia aprende la gratitud de la Virgen das celebradas por diferentes familias y Misa de Navidad. (Fotos de Aracley Nieves) María".
12 de enero de 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
St. Christopher Pontotoc: Comunidad en Crecimiento Por Berta Mexidor
PONTOTOC – En solo un año y varios meses, la comunidad de St Christopher Pontotoc ha visto como el Espíritu Santo mueve a líderes de fe. El domingo 7 de enero, feligreses celebraron la Epifanía de Nuestro Señor. Los Magos tuvieron la colaboración de muchos para repartir juguetes y chucherías a los niños en ese día, después de Misa celebrada por el Padre Tim Murphy. Ya antes habían celebrado la Navidad, precedida de varias posadas, de familia en familia. El pasado 27 de diciembre, celebraron un convivio, en despedida del 2023, con intercambios de regalos, entre los que hubo bufandas y gorros para el frio, abrazos, muestras de hermandad cristiana y "un brindis para un futuro mejor de la comunidad, con la alegría de la unión," expresó Aracely Nieves, una de las organizadoras de la cena, junto a Juana Maria López.
En marzo del 2022, la comunidad despidió a Danna Johnson, quien por el mérito ganado por muchos años fue a fungir como Ministra Eclesial Laica (LEM) en la iglesia Inmaculado Corazón de María en Houston. En ese momento Nieves aceptó un reto y agradece, al final del año 2023, la inspiración del Espíritu Santo que la ha hecho conocer a tantos padres de "adolescentes y jóvenes de mucho corazón," dijo y a todos los voluntarios que han participado en cada una de las actividades. Como Houston no está lejos, Danna ha seguido ayudando de varias formas a Nieves, quien en pocos meses se ha dedicado a reunir a los jóvenes de la región en varias danzas y bailes folclóricos, además de animarlos a realizar representaciones de la aparición de la Virgen de Guadalupe y la escena de la Natividad. En julio del 2023 llegó a la parroquia la Hermana Raquel Otez, religiosa hondureña, y comenzó su ministerio como Pastora Asociada. La Hermana Raquel viene del colegio de las Hermanas de Notre Dame, es bilingüe Inglés-Español y trajo la experiencia de trabajar por 22 años en Caridades Católicas de St Louis, MO. El diácono Carlos Sola y su esposa hacen su trabajo también con toda la comunidad Hispana, y juntos a la Hermana Raquel, bajo el liderazgo del Padre Tim Murphy, hacen que la comunidad de Pontotoc encuentre formas de incrementar su fe. A todos ellos, Nieves les dice" ...Nunca olviden los buenos recuerdos y muchas gracias por su servicio.”
Los feligreses de San Cristóbal comenzaron el año 2024 para la celebración de la Epifanía, con la misma energía del 2023 (izq.) Los tres Reyes Magos se aprestan a repartir regalos. Al final de diciembre los presentes de convivio de fin de año agradecieron el apoyo recibido de parte del diácono Carlos Sola y su esposa y en especial de la guía espiritual del Padre Tim Murphy y de la Hermana Raquel Otez. (arriba der.) Aracely Nieves y el Padre Tim. (centro) Juani López y Hna. Raquel. (centro der.) Chary Martínez, quien siempre ayuda alegremente, con su gorro nuevo. (Fotos de Aracely Nieves)
Acudir a Virgen de Guadalupe le salvó la vida, dice una cantante Por Theresa Cisneros
LOS ÁNGELES (OSV News) – Hace cinco años, Rosy Oros yacía en coma en la cama de un hospital de México – a unos 1.500 kilómetros de su casa – tras sufrir las complicaciones de un procedimiento médico que había afectado drásticamente a su cuerpo y su mente. Sus órganos estaban dañados, sufría hemorragias internas y externas y los médicos sólo le daban un 2% de posibilidades de sobrevivir. Cuando estaba al borde de la muerte, abrió los ojos y, en medio de una nebulosa, vio unos ojos marrones que le devolvían la mirada, amorosamente. Esos ojos pertenecían a una imagen de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, que colgaba a unos metros de ella, y que llenó su corazón de amor y esperanza de que la Virgen María, a la que tanto apreciaba desde niña, intercediera ante Jesús para ayudarla a salir con vida de la clínica. El viaje de curación de Oros cerró el círculo este mes cuando ella y otros músicos entonaron himnos de alabanza y acción de gracias a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe durante la celebración anual en la Catedral de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles "Me siento muy humilde y bendecida por poder estar allí y, a mi manera, dar gracias a la Virgen", dijo Oros. Como en años anteriores, la celebración contó con bailarines aztecas y del Ballet Folklórico, la veneración de la única reliquia de la "tilma" de San Juan Di-
ego en Estados Unidos, el rosario, un tributo musical y terminó con la Misa de medianoche, donde el arzobispo José H. Gomez dijo que la historia de Guadalupe es un recordatorio de que "Jesucristo nos ama tanto
Una radiante Rosy Oros ante una imagen de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en la Catedral de Nuestra Señora de los Ángeles en la celebración anual, el 11 y 12 de diciembre de 2023, en honor a la festividad de Nuestra Señora. La cantante atribuye su sanación de una infección mortal a la intercesión de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en 2018. (Foto OSV News/Victor Alemán, Angelus News)
que vino a compartir nuestras esperanzas y sueños y a ofrecer su vida por nosotros". Oros se propuso hacer precisamente eso mientras ella y otras seis cantantes invitadas --entre ellas la nominada al Grammy Latino Graciela Beltrán. Vistiendo un vestido largo y un chal rojo, se dirigió con cuidado al altar, depositó un ramo de rosas rojas cerca de dos imágenes gigantes de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe y San Juan Diego y cantó dos canciones a la Virgen mientras miraba profundamente a los ojos compasivos que tan bien conoce. Fue un momento para el que se había entrenado toda su vida. Oros nació en Aguascalientes, México, y emigró a California cuando era preadolescente, y desde muy pequeña estudió solfeo y vocalización, cantando a Dios y a Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe. A los 12 años, descubrió su amor por la música ranchera mexicana. Oros ha desarrollado una larga carrera en la televisión, la radio, la industria discográfica y, ahora, en el mundo editorial como editora en jefe de ICONOS, su propia revista de actualidad musical y del espectáculo. Dirigiendo su atención hacia la imagen enmarcada de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe en el altar, cantó "Mi Querida Guadalupana" y "Hay Unos Ojos" – esta última es una canción del álbum "Canciones de Mi Padre" de Ronstadt. (Theresa Cisneros, periodista independiente con 24 años de experiencia, escribe para Angelus, de la Arquidiócesis de los Ángeles.)
12 de enero de 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
Celebramos Legado de Martin Luther King, Jr. y Hermana Thea Bowman Por Obispo Joseph R. Kopacz, D.D.
Saliendo del esplendor del tiempo navideño con las fiestas culminantes de la Epifanía y el Bautismo del Señor, regresamos ahora al tiempo ordinario para permanecer firmes en la obra del Señor de anunciar la Buena Nueva de la Salvación y la presencia del Reino de Dios, obra de conversión, de justicia, de paz y de alegría en el Espíritu Santo. (Romanos 14:17) La fiesta de la Epifanía, la manifestación de Jesucristo a todas las naciones nos inspiró a seguir el resplandor del Evangelio mientras eludimos el poder y la atracción del mal en nuestro mundo, como lo hicieron los Magos al eludir al Rey Herodes. El Bautismo del Señor nos inspira, como hijos de Dios, bautizados en la muerte y resurrección vivificante del amado Hijo de Dios, a escuchar el llamado del Señor y ponerlo en práctica como sus discípulos. Con el Espíritu Santo como guía oramos y nos dedicamos a la voluntad de Dios “en la tierra como en el cielo.” La morada del Espíritu Santo es el anticipo y la promesa de gloria (2 Corintios 5:5), que nos eleva más allá del horizonte de este mundo a la visión de la vida eterna. El feriado nacional de este fin de semana nos ofrece el bono de un día adicional fuera de muchas de nuestras oficinas y lugares de trabajo y mucho más en honor a Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) En nuestra Catedral de San Pedro Apóstol, vamos a celebrar esta
ocasión de una manera muy especial con una Misa adicional, el domingo por la tarde en honor al legado y testimonio de Martin Luther King Jr. y de nuestra propia hermana Thea Bowman, Sierva de Dios. No eran exactamente contemporáneos unos de otros, pero respiraban el mismo aire con la misma pasión por los derechos civiles, por la libertad, la justicia y la igualdad para todos los hijos de Dios. Cuando Martin Luther King Jr. fue asesinado en Memphis en abril de 1968, la hermana Thea estaba cursando estudios avanzados en la Universidad Católica de Washington DC. Ella tomaría la antorcha durante los siguientes 20 años hasta su prematura muerte. Eran discípulos comprometidos del Señor Jesús, MLK, Jr., un bautista, y Bowman, una católica, quienes, al igual que los Reyes Magos, fueron inspirados a vivir por la luz de la fe y el poder del Evangelio. Cuando el Papa Francisco habló ante el Congreso de los Estados Unidos en 2015, honró a MLK como una voz profética para la conciencia de nuestra nación, junto con Thomas Merton, Dorothy Day y Abraham Lincoln. Como ícono nacional, Martin Luther King Jr. es un profeta cristiano cuya vida y muerte violenta nos desafían a resistir las múltiples caras del mal de manera no violenta. Su testimonio todavía nos confronta hoy para alejarnos de los pecados del racismo y del materialismo y militarismo desenfrenados. Por otro lado, la hermana Thea no es tan conocida a nivel nacional, pero su vida, truncada por el cáncer, también alcanza la distinción de testimonio profético. Trabajó incansablemente en la viña del Señor por una mayor justicia y paz con una pasión firmemente anclada en el gozo del Santo Espíritu. Su causa de canonización continúa ganando terreno en nuestro mundo católico en toda nuestra nación,
Papa Benedicto XVI In-Memorian
Abril 16, 1927 – Diciembre 31, 2022
mientras que la Diócesis de Jackson trabaja entre bastidores para cumplir con los requisitos para hacer avanzar la causa. Por ejemplo, en el pasado reciente la diócesis patrocinó un documental sobre su maravillosa vida, titulado "Going Home Like a Shooting Star." (Regreso a Casa como una Estrella Fugaz) A finales de esta primavera, develaremos una estatua de bronce de tamaño natural de la hermana Thea que se ubicará en la catedral hasta que se construya un santuario en un lugar permanente en la diócesis. En conclusión, Dios permita que las palabras de estos dos gigantes espirituales capturen nuestra imaginación y visión de la vida. “No todo el mundo tiene acceso. Cuando digo eso, quiero decir que Martin Luther King Jr. se estaba manifestando por los derechos de los pobres, se estaba manifestando por una vivienda justa y decente, se estaba manifestando por oportunidades de educación adecuada. Y no sólo oportunidades educativas adecuadas para los negros, sino para todos los niños. Se estaba manifestando por una tierra donde pudiéramos amar a los demás como hermanos y hermanas y trabajar juntos para encontrar una solución a nuestros problemas comunes.” (Hermana Thea Bowman) “Ámate a ti mismo, si eso significa un interés propio racional, saludable y moral. Se te ordena que hagas eso. Esa es la duración de la vida. Amarás a tu prójimo como a ti mismo. Se te ordena que hagas eso. Este es el aliento de vida. Pero nunca olvides que hay un primer mandamiento aún mayor: “Ama al Señor tu Dios con todo tu corazón, con toda tu alma y con toda tu mente”. Ésta es la cumbre de la vida. Y cuando haces esto, vives la vida completa.” (MLK)
Declaración del obispo Joseph R. Kopacz sobre la declaración del Dicasterio para la Doctrina de la Fe "Fiducia Supplicans" Por Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz
Pope Benedict XVI poses in Alpeggio Pileo near his summer residence in Les Combes, at the Valle d'Aosta in northern Italy, July 14, 2005. Pope Benedict died Dec. 31, 2022, at the age of 95 in his residence at the Vatican. (CNS photo/Reuters/Vatican Pool)
JACKSON – "Fiducia Supplicans", la declaración emitida esta semana por el Dicasterio para la Doctrina de la Fe (DDF) de la Santa Sede y aprobada por el Papa Francisco nos recuerda que cada uno de nosotros necesita las bendiciones, la curación, la compasión y la misericordia de Dios. Buscar la bendición de un sacerdote es reconocer la necesidad de Dios en la vida y el deseo de fortalecerse en una relación con Dios. La declaración no cambia la enseñanza de la Iglesia sobre el matrimonio como la unión de un hombre y una mujer con fidelidad para toda la vida y apertura a los hijos; ni es un paso hacia la ratificación de las uniones entre personas del mismo sexo ni un compromiso de las enseñanzas de la iglesia sobre estas relaciones irregulares. Es un documento sobre la naturaleza de las bendiciones y el uso pastoral de dar bendiciones informales y espontáneas a personas que buscan experimentar el amor sanador y la gracia de Dios en sus vidas.
Para citar directamente el documento, el DDF resume su declaración así: “… Teniendo en cuenta todo lo afirmado anteriormente, siguiendo la enseñanza autorizada del Santo Padre Francisco, este Dicasterio quiere finalmente recordar que «esta es la raíz de la mansedumbre cristiana, la capacidad de sentirse bendecidos y la capacidad de bendecir […]. Este mundo necesita bendición y nosotros podemos dar la bendición y recibir la bendición. El Padre nos ama. Y a nosotros nos queda tan solo la alegría de bendecirlo y la alegría de darle gracias, y de aprender de Él a no maldecir, sino bendecir».[31] De este modo, cada hermano y hermana podrán sentirse en la Iglesia siempre peregrinos, siempre suplicantes, siempre amados y, a pesar de todo, siempre bendecidos.” (FS #45) El texto completo del documento se puede encontrar en línea en: https://bit. ly/FiduciaSupplicansDeclaration ES Animo a todos los fieles a leer el documento en su totalidad.
Alrededor Diocesano: Navidad y Posadas
12 de enero de 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
JACKSON – (der.) Feligreses de la Catedral de San Pedro, durante posada parroquial, dijeron que Ni Santa, Regalos o Cola son centro de la Navidad (debajo i-d) Santa Claus: Wilmer Urizar, Gustavo García, Estela Vidal, Yancy Molina, Sonia Granillo, Francisca Prudencio, Josefina Gavino, Ángeles Quinteros y Nathaly Aguirre. (Fotos de Lorena Urizar)
HOUSTON – (der. arriba) Niños de primera Comunion hicieron la representación del Nacimiento de Jesus en la Misa en español en la vigilia de Navidad el 24 de Diciembre, en la iglesia Inmaculado Corazón de María. Al próximo dia, 25 de dic. (arriba) el Padre Binh bendice el nacimiento durante la Misa en Inglés. (Fotos de Danna Johnson, LEM)
PONTOTOC – (izq.) Feligreses celebraron la temporada navideña con varias posadas, de casa en casa de familias del lugar, hubo intercambios de regalos y convivencia de despedida del 2023, un año que trajo a la comunidad tantos ejemplos de fe y bendiciones, mayormente con jóvenes como los protagonistas. (Fotos de Aracely Nieves)
TOME NOTA Feliz Año Nuevo Envíenos sus fotos a editor@jacksondiocese.org Síganos en Facebook @Diócesis Católica de Jackson Visite Nuestra página web www.mississippicatholic.com/Español
Directors’ Summaries Faith Formation Director Fran Lavelle
Office of Family Ministry • The Office served over 50 engaged couples in 2023 through Engaged Encounter weekends. • Hosted World Marriage Day at the Cathedral of St. Peter honoring 60 couples celebrating their 25th, 50th or 60th wedding anniversary. • Partnered with “Her PLAN (Her Pregnancy and Life Assistance Network)” to assist with creating a web-based comprehensive directory of services supporting pregnant and parenting women. • After the overturning of Roe v. Wade we continue to promote and provide resources for those dealing with unexpected pregnancies. Office of Intercultural Ministry • Sister Amelia Breton came to the diocese in January as the Coordinator for the Office of Intercultural Ministry, bringing a diocesan presence at events of various ethnic and cultural groups. • Participated in the National Black Catholic Congress, with a group of 14 participants from around the diocese. • Offered presentations on intercultural communications for ministry leaders. Office of Religious Education & Faith Formation • The Pastoral Ministry Workshop, a formation program for lay leaders, continues to be a great success and fills an important need for formation of many lay ministry disciplines. • The annual Fall Faith Formation Day featured Dr. Tim Hogan who spoke on Renewing the Church with Families of Faith, with over 100 people in attendance. • The High School Confirmation Retreat was held in January 2023 with 123 youth and chaperones in attendance. • Presented RCIA retreats, days of reflection for women’s groups, religious education parent sessions and other opportunities to present formation materials. Office of Youth Ministry • The OYM sponsored multiple events for youth in grades 7-12 in 2023; including the diocesan youth conference, DCYC in March 2023; Search in January 2023; and the Middle School Fall Retreat in October 2023. • Abbey Schuhmann, coordinator for the OYM, is a member of the faculty for the Pastoral Ministries Workshop presenting a programming workshop on “Developing, Maintaining and Balancing Programs.” • She also sponsors and coaches the First Things in Youth Ministry Training Program, with seven parish youth ministers in progress with the training. Office of Young Adults and Campus Ministry • The Office of YACM held a fall campus ministry retreat for all college students at Locus Benedictus Retreat Center.
• Coordinator, Amelia Rizor visited Campus Ministry teams at all colleges and universities in the diocese. • Held a retreat for young adults ages 21-35 at Camp Bratton Green; and looks to add more retreats and events in 2024. • Coordinated sporting activities such as basketball, co-ed softball and kickball throughout the year. • Theology on Tap began in the Jackson area in October, featuring speakers on a variety of topics, and currently has a schedule through monthly through April 2024.
Communications
Director Joanna Puddister King • Continues to assist in implementing parish and diocese email and text communication tool – Flocknote. • Communications staff attended the Catholic Media Conference, connecting with other diocesan communications staff around the country and learning about the latest in Catholic media; as well as, attending various workshops enhancing video and other communications skills throughout the year. • Provides communications support to all departments for various projects and events; in addition to requests from parishes for assistance. • Maintains presence with postings on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. All may be followed with the tag @jacksondiocese. • Boosts chancery department and Catholic Charities events with online advertising. • Mississippi Catholic continues publish 14 printed editions and 21 digital editions through Flocknote per year. The digital edition is made available to all parishes under the diocese Flocknote system to send to their parishioners. To join the email list, text MSCATHOLIC to 84576. An English and Spanish version are available. • Works with Bishop Kopacz on videos touching on various Catholic events, holy days and Catholic social teaching topics. • Completed a new website for the Diocese of Jackson. Visit jacksondiocese.org for information and events around the diocese.
Vocations
Director Father Nick Adam • We have seven seminarians studying for the diocese. The cost of tuition/books/fees for all is about $300,000. Father Carlisle Beggerly was ordained a priest on May 27, 2023, and Deacon Tristan Stovall was ordained a transitional deacon on May 20, 2023. He will be ordained a priest on May 14, 2024. • Four seminarians exited the program; and three new seminarians entered the program. Our processes of entry and shared discernment with the seminarian continue to be bolstered by robust requirements like psychological evaluations both during the application process and midway through the formation process. One prospective seminarian is participating in the High Calling pre-seminary online discernment program. • Launched our first summer language immersion to Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico. Three seminarians took part along with Father Nick Adam. • Held the 4th Annual Homegrown Harvest Festival to support seminarian education. • Launched the Catholic Women’s Burse Club, which engages the women of our diocese directly in support of our mission. Membership in the Burse Club requires a minimal donation and/or a dedication to pray for our seminarians and for more men to consider the priesthood. A quarterly newsletter is sent out by the Vocation Director to engage the members and more events will be considered in the future to build on this engagement.
Permanent Diaconate Director Deacon John McGregor
• There are currently 13 active Permanent Deacons in the Diocese of Jackson and two who are retired. There are seven men in their second year of formation and have been admitted to Candidacy and instituted as Readers. Tentatively, these men would be ordained in 2026.
2023 Statements of Income and Expenses
INCOME
Cathedraticum Assessment Management fees Workshop and convention fees Registration fees and tuition Total Assessments and Fees
$ 2,715,364 139,500 92,660 83,810 $ 3,031,334
Donations Catholic Foundation Trust Income Beqiests Grants Catholic Service Appeal Total Donations, Bequests, and Grants
$
519,949 255,866 40,000 265,432 1,337,478 $ 2,418,725
Newspaper advertising income SMP Insurance program net Rental income Other Income Total Other Operating Income
$
Investment and loan interest & dividends Unrealized and realized gain on investments Gain on disposal of property Reversal of loan lossess Total Investment Income
TOTAL INCOME
Total income – FYE 06/30/2023 Donations, Bequests, and Grants 30%
Assessments and Fees 38%
55,634 1,400 116,349 $ 173,383 $
1,235,523 959,621 149,468 $ 2,344,612
$ 7,968,054
Investment Income (including unrealized gains) 30%
Other Operating Income 2%
Total expenses – FYE 06/30/2023 EXPENSES
Salaries and Wages Employee Benefits Priests Benefits 403b Frozen Plan, Charities and Chancery Total Salaries and Benefits
$ 1,610,881 340,419 637,965 407,548 $ 2,996,813
CSA Allocated to Catholic Charities Grants, Contributions, and Assistance Total Assistance Given
$
358,275 300,689 $ 658,964
Advertising Dues, Subscriptions and Periodicals Ecclesiastical Affairs Insurance Expense Chancery Insurance Program Diocese Net Interest expense DL Funds MS catholic newspaper, printing and distribution Office supplies, and Printing Pastoral Profesional services Public relations Registration fees abd tuition Computers and Software Travel Workshops and conventions held and attended Other Expenses Total General Expenses
$
Maintenance, Building, Grounds, Equipment Depreciation Telephone and Utilities Other Total Facilities Expenses
TOTAL EXPENSE
14,034 18,293 48,156 112,806 41,891 601,731 176,467 41,377 140,770 408,941 6,062 448,788 54,986 16,739 172,078 262,796 $ 2,565,915
$
103,671 280,239 78,694 1,651 $ 464,255
$ 6,685,947
Questions regarding diocesan finances may be sent to Carolyn Callahan, Director, Department of Temporal Affairs via email at carolyn.callahan@jacksondiocese.org.
General Expenses 38%
Salaries and Benefits 45%
Assistance Given 10% Facilities Expenses 7%
The Diocese of Jackson has launched a third-party reporting system that will enable all diocesan employees, volunteers and parishioners to anonymously (or named if preferred) make reports. Examples of this activity include fraud, misconduct, safety violations, harassment or substance abuse occurring at a Catholic parish, Catholic school or at the diocesan level.
To make a report visit www.lighthouse-services.com/jacksondiocese or call 888-830-0004 (English) or 800-216-1288 (Spanish).
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
NATION
MOBILE, Ala. (OSV News) – An Alabama Catholic priest known for talking about demonology and exorcism has now been fully returned to the lay state months after he fled the country with a recent Catholic high school graduate. The Archdiocese of Mobile announced in a Jan. 5 statement that it had “received notice that the laicization of Alex Crow is complete, effective immediately” in a decision confirmed by Pope Francis. The archdiocese said Crow initiated the process and “this decision of Pope Francis is final. There is no appeal.” On Nov. 20, the former priest civilly married Taylor Victoria Harrison, 18, a June 2023 graduate of McGill-Toolen Catholic High School with whom he had traveled to Italy in July 2023 after abruptly leaving his assignment as a parochial vicar at Corpus Christi Parish in Mobile, Alabama. Harrison turned 18 in June prior to travel, but her family repeatedly expressed grave concerns their daughter had been groomed by Crow, 30, while she was a minor as he provided pastoral ministry to students. Crow handwrote her a Valentine’s Day love letter where he described himself to the minor (at the time) as “married” to her and indicated plans for the pair to be in Italy together “with our family.” Mobile Archbishop Thomas J. Rodi had suspended Crow’s priestly faculties in late July, ordering him not to present himself as a priest, and in a Jan. 5 statement thanked Pope Francis for his decision. TUCKAHOE, N.Y. (OSV News) – A beloved Italian saint is speaking to the faithful anew through a series of letters sent directly to their email inboxes. The Saint Pio Foundation has announced the release of “Epistolary,” a collection of 365 letters written by Padre (“Father”) Pio to his spiritual directors and students. A dedicated page on the foundation’s website includes a sign-up form (available at https://www.saintpiofoundation.org/saint-pios-epistolary) for receiving a weekly PFY with seven letters, one for each day of a given week. The first batch of letters was sent out Jan. 1 by the Tuckahoe, New York-based foundation. Freshly translated into English from the original Italian, the Epistolary represents a fraction of the “thousands and thousands of letters” Padre Pio wrote during his lifetime, Luciano Lamonarca, founder and CEO of the Saint Pio Foundation, told OSV News. Lamonarca said the Epistolary is one of several “gifts” he wanted to give to the Catholic community to mark the foundation’s upcoming 10th anniversary in April. But the gifts he has received from his own devotion to the saint have been life-changing, he added, noting that he and his wife Valentina credit the 2015 birth of their son Sebastian – after losing several children to stillbirth and miscarriages – to the saint’s intercession. Lamonarca told OSV News that Padre Pio’s spiritual wisdom is summarized in one of the saint’s best-known maxims: pray, hope and don’t worry. “He releases his fear, he releases everything (into) God’s grace.” ST. PAUL, Minn. (OSV News) – A multiyear investigation overseen by the Catholic Church into Archbishop John C. Nienstedt, who resigned from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, has ended with the Vatican finding he acted “imprudently” in several instances but not criminally under canon law, Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda said in a statement Jan. 5. “None of those instances, either standing alone or taken together, were determined to warrant any further investigation or penal sanctions,” Archbishop Hebda said, but Pope Francis determined several administrative actions “are justified.” Among them, Archbishop Nienstedt “may not exercise any public ministries” in the “Province of St. Paul and Minneapolis,” which covers Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota; “may not reside in the Province of St. Paul and Minneapolis”; and “may not exercise ministry in any way outside of his diocese of residence” without permission of the local bishop. Archbishop Nienstedt resigned after criminal and civil charges were brought against the archdiocese in June 2015 for failing to protect children from a former pastor convicted of sexually abusing three minors in his parish. The civil and criminal charges against the archdiocese were dismissed in 2015 and 2016, respectively. In a response to the findings, Archbishop Nienstedt, who lives in Michigan, said he
BRIEFS 9 resigned to give the archdiocese “a new beginning” and he has asked the Holy See to clarify the “imprudent” actions he allegedly committed.
VATICAN
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Giving to others in need is not enough; people must look those they help in the eyes and be willing to touch their poverty with their hands and hearts, Pope Francis said. Meeting Jan. 5 with members of the Unicoop supermarket cooperative, which is based in Florence, Italy, the pope said Christians must “be close to the people we help.” When hearing confessions, he said, he asks people if they give to the poor, to which people often answer “yes.” The pope said he asks in reply: “And tell me, when you give to the poor, do you look in the eyes of the person, touch their hand, or throw the money there?” He told the group, “Touch, touch poverty, touch,” encouraging them to develop “a heart that touches, to look and to understand.” VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Francis expressed his condolences and prayers after two bombings in Kerman, Iran, claimed the lives of 84 people and wounded scores more at a memorial for an assassinated Iranian military officer. In a telegram sent on behalf of the pope Jan. 5, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, said the pope “was deeply saddened to learn of the loss of life caused by the recent explosions in Kerman.” “He sends the assurance of his prayers for those who have died and for their grieving families” and expressed “his spiritual solidarity with the injured,” the telegram said. The pope also “invokes upon all the people of Iran, the Almighty’s blessing of wisdom and peace,” it said. The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Jan. 3 attack in southern Iran, saying it was caused by two of its members wearing and detonating explosives. The blasts went off outside a cemetery where thousands had gathered for the anniversary of the assassination of Qasem Soleimani in 2020. Soleimani, whose militia force had fought against the Islamic State in Iraq, had been killed in Iraq in 2020 by a U.S. drone strike.
WORLD
SOKOTO, Nigeria (OSV News) – Gov. Caleb Mutfwang of Nigeria’s Plateau state declared a week of mourning Jan. 1-8 to honor the deaths of at least 200 Christians killed over Christmas by Fulani Muslim herders, targeting Christians in the country. Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto said the attackers are “children of darkness” and come “from the deepest pit of hell.” The Dec. 23-28 killings also have led to thousands of people being forced to flee their homes. As many as 80 villages in Plateau state were attacked, Christian aid group Release International reported Dec. 30. Bodies continue to be discovered, and attacks are expected to continue, Release International reported. “I urge all citizens to use these days for intense prayers to seek the intervention of the almighty God in defending our territories against wicked men that have risen against us,” Mutfwang said in a video statement released Jan. 2. In a three-page New Year’s message, called “Blood and crucifixion on the Plateau,” a copy of which OSV News obtained, Bishop Kukah strongly condemned the killers as “sons
of Satan” who “came to the Plateau again, bearing their gifts of death and destruction.” he said. The Fulani herders “came from the deepest pit of hell” and snatched “the light of the joy of Christmas from thousands of people on the Plateau.” SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, Spain (OSV News) – U.S. pilgrims made up the largest international group walking the famous Camino to Santiago de Compostela, Spain, in 2023. The Way of St. James welcomed over 32,000 American visitors in a record year for the ancient pilgrimage site. Interest in the Camino de Santiago – a network of pilgrim routes across Europe that lead to the Tomb of Saint James – is greater than ever, with the worldwide number of pilgrims walking the site approaching half a million. Not everyone, however, walks because of religious reasons. According to the statistics published by the pilgrims’ office, 446,035 pilgrims from all over the world arrived in the City of the Apostles last year. With 44% of the pilgrims (almost 200,000) being Spanish, Americans were the most common international visitors (32,063), followed by Italians (28,645) and Germans (24,342). The Portuguese, French, British, Mexicans, South Koreans and Irish were also represented in the top ten, followed by pilgrims from destinations as far as Australia, Brazil and Canada. According to the Pilgrims’ Bureau, 42.6% of arrivals cited “religious reasons,” 4.7% cited “religious and other reasons” in the latest statistics and 22.7% were walking for “non-religious reasons.” MEXICO CITY (OSV News) – The U.S. Department of State has demanded the release of Bishop Rolando Álvarez of Matagalpa and other imprisoned Nicaraguan religious leaders following a wave of detentions targeting Catholic clergy over the Christmas season. The Jan. 2 statement described Bishop Álvarez and the other religious leaders – including Bishop Isidoro Mora of Siuna – as “unjustly detained” and deplored the conditions in which they were being held. Bishop Álvarez has been detained for more than 500 days, it noted. “Nicaraguan authorities have kept Bishop Álvarez in isolation, blocked independent evaluation of the conditions of his imprisonment, and released staged videos and photographs that only increase concerns about his well-being,” read the statement, signed by State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. The regime of President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, “continues to impose severe restrictions on religious communities and deny Nicaraguan citizens the ability to freely practice their religions and express their beliefs. We once again call on the Nicaraguan government to release Bishop Rolando Álvarez immediately and without conditions.” In a separate post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Miller called Bishop Álvarez’s detention “unconscionable,” adding, “Freedom of belief is a human right.” On Dec. 31, Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes of Managua urged prayer for the “families and communities that at this moment feel the absence of their priests or are experiencing other types of pain.”
10 DIOCESE
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Servant of God’s birthday sparks update of cause
FROM THE ARCHIVES By Mary Woodward
JACKSON – A few weeks ago on Dec. 30, we marked what would have been Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA’s 86th birthday. One of the towering figures in modern Catholicism in America, Sister Thea, the granddaughter of slaves, was born in Yazoo City in 1937. Her parents enrolled her in Catholic school at Holy Child Jesus in Canton, which was staffed by Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration of LaCrosse, Wisconsin. She decided at age nine to become Catholic and then entered the convent at the age of 15. Sister Thea faced many trials and challenges as the only African American in the novitiate, but she persevered and later after a few years of teaching earned a doctorate in literature from the Catholic University of America. Gifted with a brilliant mind, beautiful voice and a dynamic personality, Sister Thea shared the message of African American spirituality and intercultural dynamics throughout the country. “The common denominator in all my presentations was cross-cultural communications,” she once remarked. “We have different ways of thinking and praying and singing and dancing and relating and living. Our diversity is our greatest gift. Our diversity is a source of enrichment for our world, our church, our society and our country.” In 1979, she returned to the Diocese of Jackson to be closer to her aging parents and to become consultant for intercultural awareness in the diocese. She continued to be a highly sought after speaker and often scheduled 100 or more presentations a year on spirituality, worship and prayer. Her presentations were lively gatherings that combined singing, gospel preaching, prayer and storytelling. Her programs were directed to break down racial and cultural barriers. Sister Thea was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1984. She continued to travel and speak though her schedule was greatly cutback.
A young “Bertha” Bowman feeding chickens. (Photo courtesy of the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration)
In 1989, Sister Thea, in one of her last major appearances, addressed the U.S. bishops gathered for their spring meeting. At the meeting she spoke of what it was like to be Black and Catholic in America at that time. In the midst of her talk, she broke forth in song as she was known to do, this time capturing the tone of her talk in an old, familiar spiritual: “Sometimes I feel like a motherless child ... sometimes I feel like an eagle in the air....” By the end of the session, she had the bishops joined hand in hand, swaying in a rousing version of “We Shall Overcome.” Sister Thea died at her home in Canton on March 30, 1990. Her funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Mary Church in Jackson before a standing room only congregation of friends and admirers from around the world. For those who knew her or worked with her or were around her for even a short time, she was a great inspiration. She will always be remembered for her great commitment to justice, hope and peace and for her work within the church to open it up to the gifts of African American spirituality and diversity for all. Sister Thea was a tireless child of God who loved the Lord Jesus, his people and his church. On Nov. 18, 2018, Bishop Joseph Kopacz officially opened the cause for the beatification and canonization of Sister Thea Bishop’s edict was read to the faithful in the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle 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 Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA pictured at her 25th anniversary celebration at Holy Child Jesus parish in Canton. (Photo from leading to possible beatification. During this phase, the Servant of God’s diocese archives) (this is the title she now carries) writings, After Venerable, the next step is beatification, theology, biography is studied and documented by appointed experts. Many witnesses who which requires a miracle. Examination of the miracle knew her have been interviewed, but there are several goes through a similar canonical process as the diocemore to complete. When the pandemic hit, travel and san phase. If a miracle is proven and accepted, the Servant of God is put on the schedule for an official liturgy interviews stopped. This year we are focused on tying up several loose of beatification. Please continue to pray for the cause and if you are ends and printing everything in triplicate so that so moved go to our diocesan website – www.jacksondiit may be sent to Rome. We have enlisted the help of ocese.org – and make a donation. Msgr. Robert Sarno, a retired priest of the Diocese of Brooklyn, who served in the Dicastery at the Vatican. (Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for Msgr. Sarno connected us with a new Roman postulator, Dr. Emanuele Spedicato, who is now guiding our the Diocese of Jackson.) team and getting these details into a manageable process for us. 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.
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
NATION 11
US bishops asked to hold new rounds of Synod on Synodality listening sessions Bishop Flores said that “we all know time is short, but even modest efforts at the local level can bear much fruit. “Let us do what we can, as well as we can and trust the Lord to accomplish beyond what we can foresee,” he wrote. Launched by Pope Francis in October 2021, the first session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, organized on the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission,” took place Oct. 4-29, 2023, in Rome. The first session of the synod, also known as the “Synod on Synodality,” was summarized in a 41-page report intended to allow the global church to digest, reflect on and give feedback on its contents ahead of the synod’s final session in Rome next October. Part of that task is figuring out how decisions are made in the church in a way that is faithful to its nature – including discerning how episcopal collegiality is exercised in a synodal church – because the church’s members have “differentiated co-responsibility for the common mission of evangelization.” The synod’s report also covers topics such as evangelization as a mandate of baptism, formation in “authentic discipleship” rooted in the Eucharist and Scripture, clerical and lay formation, ministries of pastoral accompaniment, the role of the Eastern Catholic churches in the life of the universal church, ecumenism, ordaining married men to the priesthood, the role of women in the church and the ongoing impact of clerical sex abuse scandals among others. The synod’s next session in Rome will have the task of making decisions about what concrete proposals to present before the pope. (Gina Christian is a national reporter for OSV News. Peter Jesserer Smith, national news and features editor of OSV News, contributed to this report.)
Bishop Daniel E. Flores of Brownsville, Texas, speaks during a conversation about the Synod on Synodality in Rome at a Nov. 14, 2023, session of the fall general assembly of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Baltimore. Also pictured are Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services, USCCB president; and Archbishop William E. Lori of Baltimore, USCCB vice president. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)
Local Knights work on Wreaths Across America project
By Gina Christian
(OSV News) – Dioceses across the U.S. are asked to hold additional listening sessions in the next few months, following a request from the Vatican’s Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops which is preparing for the second session of the global Synod on Synodality in October. In a Jan. 2 letter (a copy of which OSV News has obtained), Bishop Daniel E. Flores of the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas – who chairs the U.S. bishops’ committee on doctrine and coordinates the U.S. bishops’ synod process – said his team is requesting “each diocese hold 2-3 listening sessions regarding the guiding questions” posed by the synod secretariat. Those two guiding questions were phrased by Bishop Flores and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Synod Team as follows: “Where have I seen or experienced successes – and distresses – within the church’s structure(s)/organization/leadership/life that encourage or hinder the mission?” and “How can the structures and organization of the church help all the baptized to respond to the call to proclaim the Gospel and to live as a community of love and mercy in Christ?” Bishop Flores asked that each diocese summarize responses to those questions in a 3-5 page document and send it to the USCCB by April 8. The diocesan summaries will inform the USCCB’s summary, which is due to the synod secretariat in May. Bishop Flores noted that in addition to the listening sessions, “we are encouraged to continue ongoing engagement with the People of God in the dynamism of a synodal style.” To that end, dioceses may also include with their submissions “a two-page testimony of best practices for synodality” they have developed, the bishop explained. Bishop Flores also wrote that in addition to the diocesan consultations taking place, “the USCCB will be holding additional listening sessions at the national level with a focus on participation, social justice, and vocations.” Diocesan-level synod leaders “will be invited to participate in a national working group with the permission of the bishop,” he said in his letter.
CLINTON – Knights of Columbus Assemby 554, with assistance of Assembly 2269 (St. Francis and St. Joseph parishes), participated in the Wreaths Across America program on Dec. 16, 2023. The national Wreaths Across America day took place at over 4,225 participating locations across the country. Volunteers remembered our nation’s heroes as their names were said aloud. Over three million veterans were honored this year. (Photo by Michael Barrett Photography)
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
12 Column
I remember it well ON ORDINARY TIMES By Lucia A. Silecchia
Many years ago, I stopped at the supermarket for groceries on my way home from work. The gentleman who rang up my order said, “that will be nineteen eightynine, miss.” I ran my credit card through the terminal, authorizing the charge of $19.89. It was then that the cashier said, either to himself, or to me, or to both of us, or perhaps only to God, “1989. That year …” His voice trailed off and he did not finish his thought out loud. If there had not been a lengthy line behind me, I might have stopped to ask him what it was about 1989 that crossed his mind. In retrospect, I regret that I did not – even if that would have roused the ire of other shoppers in a hurry to be on their way. That cashier has crossed my mind from time to time since that day long ago. I have wondered what was on his mind as he thought back on that one year of his life, a year that obviously made a deep impression on him. The year 1989 may have been a good year, but the look that crossed his face led me to believe, instead, that it was a year that held sorrow in his life. I will never know. That grocery store closed years ago. Yet, as a new year dawns I have thought of him again. All of us likely look back on certain years that have been pivotal in our own journeys through this life. Perhaps they were years of immense joy when we celebrated the births of loved ones, marriages that expanded our families, accomplishments achieved, and dreams come true. However, it is also possible – perhaps even likely – that some of the most pivotal years in our lives were those that held a measure of sorrow. Perhaps the death of a loved one, the dashing of a hope, the fading of a dream or the limitations brought on by illness made a particular year a turning point. Now that 2024 has begun, none of us know what it will hold – for us as individuals, for those we love or for the human family. Some of us begin the year anticipating this will be a momentous year. Those whose calendars hold plans for graduations, weddings, ordinations, job changes or moves are likely to look back at 2024 as a year when life changed in a dramatic way.
Yet, at the dawn of a new year it is impossible to predict all of the unanticipated, unplanned and, yes, ordinary moments that will be less dramatic but no less profound pivot points in our lives. It is these that so often are the things that change our lives in ways we cannot yet know. It may be a seemingly random conversation or chance encounter with a stranger that changes the course of our lives. It may be a decision to forgive another or ask forgiveness that sets a new path for a future. It may be reading a book recommended by a trusted friend or hearing a word spoken in a homily that offers insight into a truth that will shape the rest of a lifetime. It may be in time “wasted” with the very young or the very old on a random afternoon that gives a glimpse of something we have never noticed before. It may be a glance at an explosive sunset or a sky full of stars that makes us feel small in the best possible way – and in that smallness we get our first true sense of the greatness of God. It may be an unexpected crisis or loss that we could not foresee – a cross that breaks our heart in a way we never thought possible. And, it may be that same crisis or loss that shows us the strength a broken heart can hold and the deep kindness that dwells in the loving hearts of those who sustain us in sorrow. When 2024 ends, many of us may look back on it with the same profound reflection as a stranger long ago pondered 1989. I hope, though, that it will not only be the big things that catch our attention this year. Often, it is those things that, at the time, seem most ordinary that leave lasting marks in our lives. So often, I have realized only in retrospect that seemingly little things have changed my life in the most unexpected and important ways. There is something both exciting and frightening about the start of a new year with all the unknowns that lie ahead. I do not yet know if in the future I will ever say to a stranger, “2024. That year …” But there is one thing I do know. The start of a new year is the perfect time to repeat a prayer of St. Francis de Sales that I keep in my office, so I see it every day. It pleads “Do not look forward to what may happen tomorrow; the same everlasting Father who cares for you today will take care of you tomorrow and every day.” May God bless all that happens in the tomorrows of our ordinary times. Joyous new year! (Lucia A. Silecchia is a Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Faculty Research at the Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law. Email her at silecchia@cua.edu.)
Five events in 2024 to help us be better Catholics GUEST COLUMN
By Gretchen R. Crowe
As we flip the calendar to 2024, I must admit the thought of the coming 12 months fill me with a certain amount of dread. Entering into another election year, with all of the related political drama, can feel anxiety-inducing, to say the least. Thankfully, as people of faith, we know that our hope is found not in political parties or their candidates but in Jesus Christ and his church. So, instead of dreading the first Tuesday in November and the inevitably contentious lead-up, here are five events Catholics can anticipate with joy this calendar year. –The National Eucharistic Congress and related events In the unlikely off-chance that you haven’t heard, the first National Eucharistic Congress in the United States in almost 50 years will be held in Indianapolis in July. The event will include nationally-recognized speakers, opportunities for worship and Eucharistic adoration, and plenty of time to deepen one’s understanding and love of the Eucharist. The organizing committee has taken several steps to make the event more affordable for families in recent months, including adding the option of purchasing day passes. Leading up to the national event will be four pilgrimages, starting from different points in the country. And parishes will continue planning and holding events as part of the National Eucharistic Revival’s parish year – events that Catholics should make every effort to participate in.
–Synod on Synodality, Part 2 In October, the second part of the two-part Synod on Synodality will take place in Rome. After round one this past October, we have more of a sense of what to expect this year. We also have a synthesis document that we can continue to digest. And we have more ideas of how we might incorporate synodality in our parish communities and in our lives in general. It’s always a good time to listen to and learn from one another, especially within the context of faith, but doing so in 2024 is particularly timely in the life of the church. –Reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral in December Five years ago this coming April, the world stopped in its tracks as flames devoured portions of the historic and beloved Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. It was an event that brought nations together in sorrow. On Dec. 8, 2024, the world once again will come together – but this time in joy for the cathedral’s scheduled reopening. “Never has anyone alive seen Notre Dame as we shall see it,” Father Olivier Ribadeau Dumas, rector-archpriest of the cathedral, told OSV News in a recent interview. It’s enough to make you want to book a flight to the City of Light to celebrate. –10 years since sainthood On April 27, the church will mark 10 years since the canonization of Sts. John Paul II and John XXIII. This milestone offers us the chance to pause and reflect on these two monumental figures of the 20th century. “They lived through the tragic events of that century, but they were not overwhelmed by them,” Pope Fran-
cis said at the canonization Mass. “For them, God was more powerful; faith was more powerful – faith in Jesus Christ the Redeemer of man and the Lord of history; the mercy of God, shown by those five wounds, was more powerful; and more powerful too was the closeness of Mary our Mother.” This year is the perfect time to grow in devotion to these two saints who made such an impact on the church. –A new jubilee year Finally, the start of the 2025 ordinary jubilee year, a time of great grace for the church, will begin on Dec. 24, 2024, with the opening of the Holy Door at St. Peter’s Basilica. Pope Francis has asked that Catholics worldwide prepare for the jubilee year by studying the documents of the Second Vatican Council, especially its four constitutions. The pope has also asked that Catholics enter into a year of preparatory prayer in 2024. To that end, forthcoming from the Dicastery for Evangelization will be an “in-depth series” called “Notes on Prayer” that will promote “the centrality of prayer, personal and communal,” according to Archbishop Rino Fisichella, pro-prefect for the dicastery. We might be facing a contentious election season this year, but we can never forget how much we have to look forward to. May your 2024 be filled with joy. (Gretchen R. Crowe is the editor-in-chief of OSV News.)
14 YOUTH
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Around our Catholic Schools
MADISON – Hunter Smith, Collin Rayner and Greta Kate Ostrenga work together to build a sailboat during a STREAM lesson on Friday, Jan. 5 at St. Anthony School. (Photo courtesy of school)
JACKSON – Mrs. Sandel’s Pre-K3 class wrapped her in wrapping paper for their Christmas party at St. Richard School. (Photo by Chelsea Dillon)
HOLLY SPRINGS – Teachers at Holy Family School collaborated while starting the process of reviewing the English/Language Arts academic standards on Tuesday, Jan. 2. (Photo courtesy of school)
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC JANUARY 12, 2024
YOUTH 15
Around our Catholic Schools
MADISON – St. Anthony sixth grade student Natalia Rojas spends time with second grade student Matthew Price preparing for First Reconciliation. (Photo by Kati Loyacono) SOUTHAVEN – For an Advent Service on Dec. 11, each Pre-K through second grade student placed a leaf on a circle on the gym floor to form a wreath. Then the candles were added, followed by the lighting of the candles and the singing of the "Advent Song." (Photo by Sister Margaret Sue)
COLUMBUS – Annunciation fourth graders recently participated in a Science Fair. They presented their projects to the entire school and visitors, alike. (Photo by Logan Gentry)
JANUARY 12, 2024 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
16 Diocese
Posadas, Belen and Reyes Magos
BY BERTA MEXIDOR
JACKSON – In the Latino Hispanic tradition, Christmas starts with Posadas, weeks ahead of Dec. 25, and ends on Jan. 6 with the celebration of the Epiphany. Every Christmas season, parishioners decorate the building with nativity scenes, "El Belen" that include each protagonist of the most important event for the Christian community worldwide. The decoration came alive when people started representing the season's most important moments. The Posadas (translation for Inn) is a remembrance of the time when Mary and Joseph were looking for a place where pregnant Mary could deliver the baby, but only received rejections. Posadas are a procession during the night, led by Mary and Joseph's actors accompanied by people singing
PONTOTOC – Parishioners of St. Christopher parish represented the Nativity scene during "Posadas." (Photo by Aracely Nieves)
“Their personal witness alone always connects me to my mission and vision for this ministry.”
PEARL – St Jude parish celebrated "Posadas" on Wednesday, Dec. 20. In front, Jospeh and Mary are looking for a room at the inn. (Photo by Lauren Roberts) villancicos (Carols for this special occasion), and holding candles. "The Pilgrims… I've asked you for lodging Dear innkeeper Because the mother is going to be The queen of the heavens. The Innkeepers… Then if it is a queen Who requests it How is it that at nighttime She's traveling so alone?" Posadas are hosted by a family who opened their house's doors at the end. At the Christmas vigil, the Nativity scene is alive with people impersonating the story's characters. The Epiphany, in most of the towns, is celebrated with a big parade where three people impersonate the Reyes Magos (the wise men), who distribute sweets, and gifts among the crowd. This action is replicated at home by adults giving gifts to children.
Abbey Schuhmann’s passion for youth ministry began with her own participation in high school and college. After graduation, she and her husband were invited to help with the youth ministry program at St. Richard Catholic Church. From there, she continued to grow in her service and is now the Coordinator in the Office of Youth Ministry for the Diocese of Jackson. The young church inspires Abbey by her desire to serve and grow in her faith. “Their personal witness alone always connects me to my mission and vision for this ministry.” Parents and teens alike continually have expressed their gratitude for the opportunities of faith-sharing, fellowship and formation that the Office of Youth Formation has been able to offer. Youth ministry faces the challenges of the cost of camps, retreat centers and conference centers continuing to rise along with the cost of food. Abbey takes great pride in balancing the resources available without compromising the overall quality of the program, managing to bring in nationally recognized speakers and musicians for the annual youth conference, while ensuring that as many teens as possible have access to Youth Ministry sponsored events.
Your gift to the Catholic Service Appeal helps Abbey to inspire our youth to deepen their Catholic faith. You can mail your check to: Catholic Service Appeal PO Box 22723 Jackson, MS 39225-2273 (Please put your parish name in the memo section of your check)
Donate today at: csa.jacksondiocese.org