Diocese of Fall River
The Anchor
F riday , May 8, 2009
MOMS ministries are active and thriving in local parishes By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff
FALL RIVER — For Benedictine Sister Paula Hagen, co-founder of Ministry of Mothers Sharing, the idea of starting a maternal-based peer ministry group for local parishes seemed obvious. “Mothers are great at giving back,” Sister Hagen told The Anchor. “The parish that gives them spiritual nourishment
The gift of Spiritual motherhood
will reap the benefits of an adult growing in her expression of faith. She loves being connected to other faith-filled mothers and families and is spiritually nourished by sharing her faith in words and actions.” What began as an assignment for Sister Hagen to develop a family ministry more than 25 years ago eventually evolved into MOMS, a nationwide outreach parish-
based ministry she co-founded with Vickie LoPiccolo Jennett and Patricia Hoyt. A spiritual growth and support group for all women, MOMS is based on the Gospel values expressed in Vatican II, particularly its program entitled “Called and Gifted for the Third Millennium.” The initial process begins with an established eight-week faith-sharing journey that affirms mothers in their sacred voca-
By Deacon James N. Dunbar
NEW BEDFORD — On May 10, Mother’s Day, people the world over will honor their mothers — living or deceased — for the gift of life. For many it will mean a joyful visit, cards, flowers and even a cookout. For others it will be a more reflective day that might include more spiritual gifts such as prayers, Masses and holy Communion. Although the national holiday is meant to pay tribute to birth mothers, an adopting mother or even a guardian, the annual event also reaches out to those Church leaders called “spiritual mothers,” whose gift of self brings life in many forms to so many, thereby enriching all human society. In his apostolic letter “Mulieris Dignitatem” (“On the Dignity and Vocation of Women”) the late Pope John Paul II insists that a woman finds her meaning and purpose in life through motherhood, through making a feminine, and not gender-neutral, gift of self. For many it poses a conundrum: If a woman can only discover herself through a sincere gift of self, and that gift is expressed through motherhood, what about women who are not mothers? Pope John Paul II, although never formally defining spiritual motherhood, made it candidly clear that it means nurturing the emotional, moral, cultural and spiritual lives of others. Every woman, like the Blessed Virgin Mary, he said, is called to be overshadowed by the Holy Spirit so as to be abundantly fruitful, to be Turn to page 15
tion. In the end, MOMS is an empowering opportunity for women to reach out and become leaders in the Catholic Church. “MOMS is a ministry that provides a process for women to grow spiritually in their understanding of the vocation of motherhood,” said Mary Boespflug, national director of MOMS. “A mother’s spiritual growth reaches far beyond herTurn to page 18
The Mother of the Pro-Life movement By Dave Jolivet, Editor
HAVING LUNCH WITH OUR MOTHER — Students take a lunch break at the foot of a statue of the Blessed Mother on the grounds of St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River. More than 500 eighth-graders from Catholic schools across the diocese gathered at the diocese’s mother church for a tour and a Mass. Story on page 17. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — At the recent Boston Catholic Women’s Conference, Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley said, “When the history of the Pro-Life movement is written, many Pro-Life leaders think Nellie Gray will be considered the Martin Luther King Jr. of the Pro-Life Civil Rights movement.” He added “But to me, she’s going to be the Joan of Arc of the Gospel of Life.” Strong praises indeed, yet every bit justifiable. There are many other words to describe this 84-year-old champion of the unborn, but none more accurate than “Mother of the March For Life.” For more than 35 years, Texas native Nellie J. Gray has been the adoptive mother of millions of unborn children in the United States, unceasingly working to end the senseless slaughter of the most defenseless of all of God’s creations, the child within in the womb. And like any good mother, she sacrifices everything to protect her children. As a young woman, Gray served as a corporal in the Women’s Army Corp during Turn to page 14
Abortion foes labeled ‘extremists’ By Gail Besse Anchor Correspondent
BOSTON — George Washington, Mother Teresa, Ronald Regan and Pope Benedict XVI would fall within the “extremist” categories that President Barack Obama’s Administration targeted in a recent warning on domestic terrorism. Among the categories are military veterans, gun owners, citizens who favor limited federal government, and those who oppose abortion and defend traditional marriage. “The report in my opinion was
not only absurd but a case of ‘profiling’ at its worst,” said Salem Attorney Philip D. Moran, president of the Pro-Life Legal Defense Fund. He and other Bay State legal experts and Pro-Life leaders welcomed news that groups are challenging the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to retract these remarks. The American Center for Law and Justice has launched a national campaign in reaction to this “warning” contained in the April 7 report. The ACLJ is a Washington, D.C.-based constitutional law firm. Its retraction demand letter expresses “grave concerns” about the “inflammatory statements” in the report “Rightwing Extremism: Current Economic Turn to page 18
MOTHER TO MILLIONS — Nellie J. Gray, foundress and president of the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C. has been responsible for speaking out for the unborn, saving countless babies from abortion, and inspiring vocations and prompting many to join the fight to speak for those who cannot speak for themselves. (CNS file photo)