6
THEANCHOR- Diocese of Fall River-Fri., June 15,2001
Iteering pOintl Publicity Chairmen are asked to submit news items for this column to The Anchor, P.O. Box 7, Fall River, 02722. Name of city or. town should be included, as -- - 'well as full dates of all activities. DEADLINE IS NOON ON FRIDAYS. Events published must be of interest and open to our general readership. We do not carry notices of fundraising activities,which may be advertised at our regular rates, obtainable from our business office at
of natural family planning classes sponsored by The Couple to Couple League will begin June 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Saint Anne's Hospital. For registration information call Rita Quinn at 401-635-8773 or Diane Santos at 508-67~-5741 ext. 2480.
LAKEVILLE - A ProLife Day of Reflection will be held June 16 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. at His Land, Precinct Street. Attendees are asked to bring a bag lunch. Coffee will be provided. Mass will be celebrated by Father Stephen A. 508-675-7151. . Fernandes. For registration inATTLEBORO St. formation call Ed Shivvers at Joseph's Parish has 24-hour 508-295-6279. Eucharistic Adoration beginning after the 9 a.m. Mass evMASHPEE The ery First Friday .of the month. monthly meeting of. St. John It ends before the 9 a.m. Mass of the Cross, Third Order on Saturday. Support from Carmelites is held every third people from all ages is wel- Sunday of the month at Christ come. For more information the King Parish. Mass will be call Pauline L'Heureux at 508- celebrated at 5:30 p.m. and 222..:7047. prayer and study will follow. For more information call EAST FREETOWN Mary Good at 508-759Volleyball games for young 6354. adults will be played June 21 . NEW BEDFORD - The and July 5 and 19 from 6:308:30 p.m. at Cathedral Daughters of Isabella HyaCamp for anyone in their 20s cinth Circle #71 will hold its or 30s. For more informa- monthly meeting June 19 at tion call Bud Miller at 508- Holy Name of the Sacred 675-3847. Heart of Jesus Parish Center at 7 p.m. For more information FALL RIVER - A heal- call Mary Macedo at 508-993ing mass in celebration of the 9179. 20 th anniversary of the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin NEW BEDFORD - DeMary at Medjugorje will be votion to Our Lady of Perheld June 19 at 7 p.m. at petual Help is celebrated ev. Holy Name Church. It will ery Tuesday and to Divine include witness~s from sev- Mercy every Thursday at the eral people who recently re- noon Mass at 'Our Lady of turned from Medjugorje. For Perpetual Help Church. For more information call 508- more' information call 508679-6732. 992-9378.
FALL RIVER - A healing service will be held June 24 from 2:30-4 p.m. at Saint Anne's Shrine. It will include rosary, Benediction and the opportunity for people to be prayed over in. dividually. FALL RIVER - Catholic Social Services seeks volunteers to teach ESL, English as a second language, and civics in the Attleboro and Taunton areas. Prior teaching experience is not necessary and training will be provided. For more information call Areli Hodkinson at 508-226-4780 or 508-674-4681. FALL RIVER -
A series
NORTH DARTMOUTH The next Retrouvaille weekend will be held September 14-16 and. offers couples a c h ance t 0 h ea I an d renew •
.
troubled marnages ..RedIscover yourself. and y.our spouse and a lovmg relatlOnship in marriage. For more information. call 1- 800-4702230 or the Diocesan' Office of Farnily Ministry at 508-9996420. POCASSET - The ninth' annual Mass of the Anointing of the Sick will be held June 24 at 2 p.m. at St. John the Evangelist Church, 841 S-hore Road. For more information. call Pauline Hubert at 508759-1190.
Does abortion result in automatic excommunication? Q. An article in our paper dis- municated. Several important conFinally, if there is an excomcussing the "morning-after" ditions must be met for that to hap- mimication;we do not shut people out. In addition to countless other pill, said a wo.man could be ex- pen. communicated for taking it. . First of all, a person must be at ways we offer every possible supHow can that happen? No one least 18 years old and be aware port to mothers who have had an would know whether she was that an excommunication will take abortion, the excommunication, if actuaUy pregnant. Is the inten- place if the act is carried through. ther~ was one, can be taken away when the individual goes tion to have an abortion enough for excommuni- . . - - - - - - - - - - to confession. cation? Is every person In most, ifnot all, parts of the United States, who has an abortion excOnlmunicated? It seems priests can lift the excomharsh to shut out a sinmunication immediately ner just when they need and finally in the sacrahelp. the most. (WisconBy Father ment of penance. If you John J. Dietzen are presently in touch with sin) A. Let's take yourquessomeone in this predications one at a time. It is ....- - - - - - - - - ment, please encourage true that a Catholic who procures Many people know abortion is se- her to return to the sacraments of a "completed abortion" incurs an riously immoral but know noth- penance and the Eucharist as automatic excommunication. This ing about any other penalty, in quickly as possible. She needs all includes, incidentally, not only the which case there is no excommu- the grace and spiritual support'she mother herself, but .families, doc- nication. can get. Also,ifemotionalcin<umstances For those interested in checktors, nurses and so on if their assistance or other actions made them surrounding the pregnancy are so ing references, the sections of necessary accomplices in the abor- violent as to cause grave fear and canon law most relevant here are . tion. confusion in the mother, if she is, Canons 1398, 97, 1323 and 1324. A free brochure answering As you say, it is uncertain for example, under intense preswhether an abortion actually takes sure from family or close friends questions 'Catholics ask about place following the morning-af- to "end the pregnancy" (and I can ecumenism, intercommunion ter pill. An abortive intent may be assure you from my own experi- and other ways of sharing with present, but,' while that intention eqces that this kind of tragic situa- people of other faiths is availis objectively seriously sinful, it tion is not rare), again there would able by sending a stamped, selfaddressed' envelope to Father does not in itself incur excommu- be no excommunication. nication. Some other conditions are also John Dietzen, Box 325, Peoria, Furthermore, it is important to required; but you get the point. Ill. 61651. know that even in more common More is involved here than a simple Questions may be sent to Fasurgical abortions, not every per- statement that people who have ther Dietzen at the same address, son who has an abortion is excom- abortions are excommunicated. .. or e-mail: iidietzen@aol.com.
Questions en. n d Answers
J
The still changing American family The data is out on the 2000 census, and one fact an education and good health. Writing a book called stands out strikingly: The American family is chang- ''A Parent Alone" in 1979 was when I really leamed ing. Fewer than one-fourth of all households in the what most single mothers were up against: isolation, United States now fit the description of the nuclear . loneliness, often tt:oubled children and, almost alfamily: a married couple with children, living to- ways, poverty. Many also felt abandoned by their gether under the same roof. In 1960, 45 percent of church. households were father-mother-children families. The May census rePort had me wondering if things Now that's down to 23.5 . . - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ had changed for single percent. moms, now numbering By contrast, going up 12.2 million. I called is the number of houseDeirdre Weaver, a much holds headed by single younger woman-friend, parents. The census shows about being a single mom. that seven percent 'of the I leamed from her that one By Antoinette Bosco thing hadn't changed and nation's households were. headed by single mothers, that was the pain one sufand 2.2 percent - one fers from the dreams and household in 45 - by single fathers. hopes shattered when a marriage ends. None of this surprises me. Anyone who has been . Weaver, a devout Catholic, said she felt "God has awake the past few decades has seen the major changes pushed me in front of an oncoming freight train for . f '1 l·ti fr h .. d" th d 10 amI Y I e om ow we envlSlone It 10 e ays a reason." She begap writing about being a single . of "Ozzie and Harriet" 50 years ago. mom, and this became lyric poetry she describes as Economics has played a part, with women having "a personal, emotional outpouring, like a bloodletto work outside the home; mObility is a factor, where ting necessary for wounds to heal." She says she warited people move geographically away from the support single moms to know "they are not alone." network of extended families; religious influence has But, when you begin to put words down, new ideas diminished. Even the fact that we live longer has come. When Weaver learned that 70 percent of single been cited as a reason why the nuclear family keeps moms don't have Internet access, she decided to write losing ground. a book that would help moms bridge that digital diRegardless of the reasons why, what is most im- vide. Called "Loosely Braided Fog: A 3-D Mom in portant is that we, as a nation, take notice of what is the Making," her work has now been published by happening to families. We need particularly to look Hats Off Books. Both she and her publisher will doat single parents, cut judgments and criticisms and nate some of the book's proceeds to charities which give them help they may need with their enormously teach single moms about information technologies. As for being an advocate for single parents needdifficult job of raising children alone. I know this situation well. I became a single par- ing to learn these 21st-century skills, Weaver believes ent in 1967 and raised and financially supported my that·"this is what God wants me to do." My deepest six birth children alone. I was luckier than most' respect goes to her and people like her who extend women plunged into this situation. I had my faith, help, not criticisms and judgments, to single parents.
The Bottom Line