07.08.11

The Anchor Diocese of Fall River

F riday , July 8, 2011

Riley J. Williams to be ordained tomorrow at St. Mary’s Cathedral

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff

Diocesan parishes donate more than ever to Appeal

FALL RIVER — The results are in and the 70th annual Catholic Charities Appeal achieved the fifth highest total in its history, and the highest total ever recorded from parish donations.

Total returns from the campaign equalled $4,241,127.

“This total was only $58,000 below last year’s total (1.4 percent), and only $67,000 below our all time high, and that is only because a gift we receive each year from a family bequest was down

more than $87,000 due to the low interest rate during the past year.

So there is much to celebrate.

Our pastors and parishioners have so much to be proud of as they brought in more than any other year in our 70-year history,” said Mike Donly of the Appeal office.

“An amazing accomplishment” was the unanimous sentiment expressed throughout Appeal headquarters as the Appeal came to a close on June 28. “It’s Turn to page 18

June 30, 2011

unselfish generosity. I am especially grateful for the goodness of the many benefactors who made an extra effort to give this year. On behalf of all those who will be assisted by the Catholic Charities Appeal and to those who worked very hard to make this year’s collection a success, I extend my heartfelt thanks. May God bless all our donors for their readiness to make a sacrifice and kindly provide help at this moment of great need.

With deep appreciation and gratitude, I am

Bishop Coleman thanks donors

Dear Friends in Christ, As Bishop of Fall River, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to the priests, deacons, religious, and lay faithful of this Diocese who have contributed to or in any way supported the 2011 Catholic Charities Appeal.

During this time when so many of our brothers and sisters find themselves in situations of unemployment and underemployment, the response of a great number of people, parishes, and businesses in the Diocese of Fall River to our annual Appeal reflects a remarkably

Sincerely yours in the Lord,

Bishop of Fall River

FALL RIVER — As he prepares to make his priestly promises before Bishop George W. Coleman tomorrow inside St. Mary’s Cathedral, Rev. Mr. Riley J. Williams took time to pause and reflect on the long journey to his ordination and how God has guided him along the way.

“Looking back over the past eight years, it is amazing to see how the Lord has guided my growth and formation,” Rev. Mr. Williams told The Anchor.

“While it could certainly be trying at times, even the challenges have helped to make me who I am today. This doesn’t mean, though, that it was all uphill; God never gave me more than I could handle and was with me all the way.”

The son of Tedd and Carol (Elston) Williams and a parishioner of Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in Osterville,

Rev. Mr. Riley J. Williams

Rev. Mr. Williams is a graduate of Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth. He spent four

years studying at the Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio before moving on to another four years of study at the prestigious Pontifical North American College in Rome.

“Having the opportunity to study in Rome has been a real blessing,” Rev. Mr. Williams said. “My pastor, Father Philip A. Davignon, used to say that one day I would study there, and I took it as a joke. The experience of being there is so much more than the buildings, though: it’s the history, the saints who lived there, the presence of the Holy Father; all have been great formational experiences for me, giving me fruits that I hope to bring back to the faithful of the diocese.”

Rev. Mr. Williams credits his family, parish priests and othTurn to page 19

Unique for a reason: U.S. bishops release new marriage videos

By Becky Aubut Anchor Staff

WASHINGTON D.C. — The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage has recently released the second of five videos for the promotion and protection of marriage.

Chaired by Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, an ad hoc committee for the Defense of Marriage came together in December of 2008 to create a video series and supplementary reading guides to help educate, catechize and advocate for a better understanding of the truth that marriage is a “permanent, faithful union of one man and one woman,” explained program specialist Andrew Lichtenwalner, during

a phone interview from his office in Washington, D.C. With the financial support of the Knights of Columbus and the encouragement of the archbishop, different experts in the field of marriage came together to identify four key themes as important for promoting and protecting marriage.

“With the recent challenges to the legal definition of marriage,” said Lichtenwalner, “the ad hoc committee focused on catechesis and education, and the definition of marriage and public policy advocacy.”

The first video, “Made for Each Other,” focuses almost solely on the fundamental core of marriage being the one-on-one union of a man and a woman; an idea that seems to Turn to page 18

Want to know what time Mass is? There’s an app for that

By Dave Jolivet, Editor

FALL RIVER — Two years ago, The Anchor published a feature on one of the many helpful tools Catholics can find on the Internet. Faithful on vacation or away from home for any reason can quickly and accurately locate a Catholic church and the weekend Mass times with a few clicks of the mouse at Masstimes. org.

While that website continues to furnish Catholics

with that necessary information, some may find the method a bit outdated already.

With the advent of iPhones and iPads, comes a fountain of information one can slip into his or her pocket, purse, or briefcase. But Catholics on the go needn’t worry about finding where to fulfill their weekly obligation, TheCatholicDirectory.com, a service of CatholicWeb.com, has developed an application that can be utilized on these “smart” devices to

locate the nearest Catholic churches and find Mass times. The app, called Catholic Mass Times, is a free download available at the iTunes Store (itunes.apple. com) for iPhones, iPod Touch, and iPads.

The usefulness of the new app doesn’t end at finding churches and Mass times. Other valuable information, available at the tap of a screen or the swipe of a finger, includes getting maps and directions to Turn to page 15

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Pope says Eucharist is antidote to modern individualism

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI said the Eucharist is the heart of Church life and an “antidote” to the increasingly individualistic global culture.

Addressing pilgrims on the feast of Corpus Christi, which commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the pope said the Eucharist was like the “pulsing heart” that gives life and meaning to everything the Church does.

As the Sacrament of Communion, it is able to transform people’s lives, leading them to God, he said.

“In a culture that is more and more individualistic — a culture in which we are immersed in Western society, and that tends to spread itself throughout the world — the Eucharist constitutes a type of ‘antidote,’” the pope said.

“It works in the minds and hearts of believers and continually disseminates in them the logic of

communion, of service, of sharing — in short, the logic of the Gospel,” he said.

The pope said this spirit, nourished by the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, was evident in the lives of the early Christians, who lived fraternally and shared their worldly goods in common, so that no one was impoverished.

“And even in later generations through the centuries, the Church, despite human limits and errors, continued to be a force of communion in the world. We think especially of the most difficult periods of trial: what it meant, for example, in countries ruled by totalitarian regimes, to be able to gather at Sunday Mass,” he said.

Against the emptiness produced by a false sense of freedom, the pope said, the Eucharist is like a medicine that helps people regain an attachment to the truth and the common good.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI called for emergency assistance to thousands of people fleeing the violence and civil strife in North Africa and the Middle East, and he appealed to nations to explore “every possible form of mediation” to bring an end to the conflicts.

He asked the Vatican’s coordinating body of Church funding agencies for Eastern Catholic churches to “do everything possible” to help the minority Christian populations remain in the region.

The pope’s appeal came during a recent meeting with the Vatican coordinating body, known by its Italian acronym ROACO. The ROACO assembly was holding its annual general meeting at the Vatican.

Participants were discussing the changes taking place in North Africa and the Middle East as well as how bishops were following up on the special Synod of Bishops for the Middle East in

2010.

The pope said the region of North Africa and the Middle East “is so important for world peace and stability” and he said the events unfolding there were “a source of anxiety throughout the world.”

He said his thoughts and prayers were with all those “who are suffering and to those who are trying desperately to escape,” often without hope.

“I pray that the necessary emergency assistance will be forthcoming, but above all I pray that every possible form of mediation will be explored, so that violence may cease and social harmony and peaceful coexistence may everywhere be restored, with respect for the rights of individuals as well as communities,” the pope said.

He called for “fervent prayer and reflection” so that the Church may be able to “read the signs emerging from the present season of toil and tears.”

Aid needed for those fleeing North Africa, Middle East conflicts

The Anchor www.anchornews.org

OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER Vol. 55, No. 27

Member: Catholic Press Association, Catholic News Service

Published weekly except for two weeks in the summer and the week after Christmas by the Catholic Press of the Diocese of Fall River, 887 Highland Avenue, Fall River, MA 02720, Telephone 508-675-7151 — FAX 508-675-7048, email: theanchor@anchornews.org.

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Send address changes to P.O. Box 7, Fall River, MA, call or use email address

PUBLISHER - Most Reverend George W. Coleman EXECUTIVE EDITOR Father Roger J. Landry fatherrogerlandry@anchornews.org EDITOR David B. Jolivet davejolivet@anchornews.org OFFICE MANAGER Mary Chase marychase@anchornews.org ADVERTISING Wayne R. Powers waynepowers@anchornews.org REPORTER Kenneth J. Souza k ensouza@anchornews.org REPORTER Rebecca Aubut beckyaubut@anchornews.org Send Letters to the Editor to: fatherrogerlandry@anchornews.org

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The Anchor

July 8, 2011

woolen symbol for shepherds — Woolen palliums are carried by servers during Mass celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI on the feast of SS. Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican June 29. The pope presented palliums to 41 archbishops from 25 countries. The woolen pallium is a sign of the archbishop’s communion with the pope and his pastoral responsibility as shepherd. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

People can abuse reason when they demand proof from God, pope says

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — While empirical science has done much to further progress, subjecting God and His truth to scientific scrutiny represents an incorrect and despotic use of human reason, Pope Benedict XVI said.

How reason, truth and faith interconnect has always sparked debate throughout history, the pope said during a recent award ceremony in the fresco-covered Clementine Hall in the Apostolic Palace.

The pope gave three European theologians the Ratzinger Prize for their excellence in theological studies: Manlio Simonetti, an 85-year-old Italian professor and expert in ancient Christian studies and patristic biblical interpretation; Father Olegario Gonzalez de Cardedal, a 76-year-old Spanish priest and professor of dogmatic and fundamental theology; and Cistercian Father Maximilian Heim, a 50-year-old German theologian and abbot of the Heiligenkreuz monastery in Austria.

The pope used the occasion to talk about the significance and the challenges surrounding theology.

He noted the important contributions theology has made, but warned that theology must not only be concerned with the past as that would “leave the faith today in darkness.”

Nor must theologians only look at psychological or sociological studies leaving faith on the wayside as that would strip theology of meaning and a solid

foundation, he added.

Though studying the past and understanding human and social sciences are important in theology, the pope said the real question at stake is: “Is what we believe in true or not? In theology the question of truth is at play: truth is its ultimate and essential foundation.”

Christ is the truth, and people can and must know Him through reason, he said.

“From here one understands that Christian faith, by its very nature, must call forth theology, it had to ask itself about the reasonableness of faith.”

So while reason is fundamental to faith, there is an incorrect use of reason — a “despotism of reason which becomes the supreme and final judge of everything,” he said.

The pope said this use of reason, which is “incompatible with the nature of faith,” can be seen in Psalm 95, which recalls Meribah as the place where the early Israelites tested God and “tried me though they had seen my works.”

Putting God to some sort of a test is even more pronounced in today’s world, where natural science and its empirical method have achieved so much, the pope said.

But there is a limit to how reason is used: “God is not an object of human experimentation. He is a subject and He manifests Himself only in a person-to-person relationship,” he said.

The correct use of reason in matters of faith then is when it

is used on a personal level and is driven by love.

The pope said: “Love wants to know better the person who loves. Love — true love — doesn’t make us blind,” it makes people see.

Love will satisfy a person’s thirst to really know the other, and that is why those who seek the truth are on the path to seeking God, he said.

“This is why authentic theology is so important. Solid faith leads reason to open itself up to the divine, so that reason, guided by love for the truth, may know God even more from up close,” he said.

Therefore, theology must be made up of two elements: “humility, which lets us be ‘touched’

by God, and discipline, which is tied to the order of reason, (which) keeps love from blindness and helps develop its power to see,” he said.

During the ceremony, the pope greeted each of the prize recipients, handing them each a large award certificate and a small envelope.

The prizes included a check for $87,000.

The Ratzinger Prize will be awarded each year in sacred Scripture, patristics and fundamental theology.

This was the first time the prizes were awarded since the establishment last year of the Joseph Ratzinger (Benedict XVI) Vatican Foundation, which promotes theological studies on the pope’s writings and to reward promising scholars.

July 8, 2011

The International Church

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Pope advances sainthood causes, including priest killed by Nazis

great view — A statue of Mary stands in the window of a house during a recent Catholic procession in the southern village of Seehausen, Germany. (CNS photo/Michael Dalder, Reuters)

Pastoral letter molds ministry to young people with same-sex attraction

OTTAWA, Ontario (CNS) — A new pastoral letter from Canada’s Catholic bishops is aimed at helping school boards, teachers, parents and students in their ministry to young people with same-sex attraction.

The eight-page document from the bishops’ Commission for Doctrine explains Church teaching on homosexuality and encourages sensitivity to teenagers and young adults who are attracted to people of the same sex.

The document was published as publicly funded Catholic schools in Ontario work to incorporate the provincial government’s equity policy, which encourages respect and acceptance of individuals of diverse backgrounds into schools.

Ottawa Archbishop Terrence Prendergast, a member of the doctrinal commission, said the document offers a clear explanation of the Church’s teaching on homosexuality.

“If we are going to be Catholic school boards and we are going to try to have equality and equity in our outreach to young people, then we need to be clear about what the Church’s teaching is,” he said.

The letter urges educators to encourage chastity, “especially since society often misunderstands and scorns this virtue.”

“Avoidance of difficult questions or watering down the Church’s teaching is always a disservice,” it said. “Such attitudes could lead young people into grave moral danger.”

The bishops stressed the virtue of chastity, describing it as “a way of loving” that entails “more than the avoidance of sin” but involves the successful inte-

gration of sexuality and a person’s bodily and spiritual being.

“Through a Christ-centered love Christians can be fulfilled in all aspects of life, including the gradual integration of their sexuality. On this challenging journey, only a greater love can heal a lesser love,” the document said.

“God catches us up in His love,” Archbishop Prendergast explained.” Sometimes we figure, how can I love as a human person when I’m torn in my attractions? Allow God to love you and to heal you, and perhaps you can redirect love into a different way or channel it into a cause.”

Not everyone is called to marriage, he said, but people can find ways of giving themselves to others “that can heal them as well as help other people to heal.”

Even Jesus counted on the love of God to keep going, the archbishop said. “Married people are tempted. Priests who have the vow of chastity, bishops are tempted. Everyone is tempted by this drive of sexuality, to love and beget life,” he said.

But chastity and celibacy are not sentences of loneliness, the archbishop added.

“We can be with other people in different ways,” he said, stressing friendship and support groups such as Courage and EnCourage for families and friends of those struggling with samesex attraction.

The letter recognizes the “enormous pressures” facing young people grappling with same-sex attraction such as “unjust discrimination, the sense of invisibility and isolation, and ignorance of their particular situ-

ation.”

It urges priests and pastoral workers to examine themselves honestly in an effort to remove barriers that might make young people experiencing same-sex attraction feel unwelcome. It urges parents to “respond lovingly and trust divine providence” if their child reveals same-sex inclinations and to continue welcoming him or her into their home.

The letter also warns of the temptation to suicide by those who can “no longer deny or ignore their deep-seated same-sex inclinations” and urges young people to accept the love of God to help them through their difficulties.

The letter outlines Church teaching on sexuality, matrimony, and the distinction between inclinations and actions.

“While homosexual acts are always objectively wrong, same-sex inclinations are not in themselves sinful or a moral failing,” it said. “To the extent that a same-sex attraction is not freely chosen, there is no personal culpability in having such an inclination.”

“Nonetheless, when oriented toward genital activity, this inclination is ‘objectively disordered,’” the letter said, quoting the “Catechism of the Catholic Church.” “This does not mean that the person as a whole is somehow defective or ‘badly made,’ or that he or she has in some way been rejected by God.” For those who do not see marrying someone of the opposite sex as an option, “choosing chastity as a positive value is even more of an ongoing challenge,” it said.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI advanced the sainthood causes of 27 candidates, including 14 martyrs from the Spanish Civil War, an Austrian priest who died in a Nazi death camp, and a Jewish wife and mother who converted to Catholicism and founded a religious congregation.

During a recent meeting with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes, the pope signed a decree recognizing a miracle attributed to the intercession of Hildegard Burjan — a German mother of one, born in 1883 who founded the Society of Sisters of Caritas Socialis.

The recognition of the miracle clears the way for her beatification. She died in Vienna in 1933.

Pope Benedict also signed decrees that pave the way for several other beatifications, including: — Spanish Bishop Salvio Huix Miralpeix of Lleida, who was martyred in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War. — 13 sisters of the Daugh-

ters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul who were martyred in 1936 during the Spanish Civil War. — Father Carl Lampert, born in Austria in 1894 and martyred in Germany’s Buchenwald concentration camp in 1944.

— Sister Manuela de Jesus Arias Espinosa, the Mexican founder of the Poor Clare Missionary Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament and of the Missionaries of Christ for the Universal Church; she was born in Mexico in 1904 and died in Rome in 1981.

— Father Mariano Arciero, an 18th-century Italian diocesan priest.

— French Dominican Father John Joseph Lataste, founder of the Bethany community.

Eight other decrees approved by the pope signify that the Church recognizes that the men and women lived the Christian virtues in a heroic way and that they are venerable. Recognition of a miracle attributed to each candidate’s intercession is needed for that person’s beatification.

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The Church in the U.S.

July 8, 2011

Iraqi Sister founding religious order to serve Boston’s spiritually poor

Boston (CNA) — Iraqi Sister Olga Yaqob is beginning a women’s religious order in the Boston Archdiocese this year, to carry out the Church’s mission to evangelize.

“Our main spirituality will focus on Jesus, and then carry His presence out into the world,” Sister Olga of the Eucharist told CNA recently.

“I have seen a lot of spiritual poverty in our country — people who are spiritually hungry,” she said.

“They don’t know what kind of loving Father we have, what kind of beautiful faith our Catholic Church has.”

The 44 year-old Sister — known for her tireless energy and beloved by her students — responded to an invitation from Cardinal Sean O’Malley to start the new order and is leaving her current post as chaplain at Boston University.

Sister Olga explained in an interview that the process of founding the Daughters of Mary, Our Lady of Nazareth has been three years in the making.

She said that Cardinal O’Malley was familiar with her personal story, including her conversion to the Roman Catholic Church six years ago after being a member of the Assyrian Church in Iraq and starting a women’s order there in 1995.

“He knew a lot about the history of my vocation and ministry in Iraq and also here in the United States before he received me into his diocese,” she said.

After observing her work with young people at Boston University, as well as her service to parishes throughout the archdiocese, the cardinal asked Sister Olga in 2008 if she would consider founding a new women’s religious community.

“To be honest I was really sort of surprised — I never thought I would do something like this again,” she said, “and humanly speaking I was a little bit afraid as well because it takes a lot of suffering to start a new order.”

However, she said that ultimately, “it wasn’t really so much questioning cardinal’s discernment, it was more just to discern the timing.”

Sister Olga noted that the decision to launch the effort this year was perfect, and that “it’s really amazing to see the response since the announcement has been made.”

She said that a group of young women from Boston University have been discerning joining the

community with her and she’s been receiving phone calls from parishes and adult Catholic communities in the area as well as from people out of state.

“It’s been really a tremendous response,” she said.

Right now, however, the main tasks at hand are drafting the order’s constitutions and looking for possible locations for a convent.

“I’ve told everyone that until the constitutions are signed by His Eminence I won’t be able to officially welcome anyone,” she said. Meanwhile, the Iraqi Sister has already started the official steps “in terms of writing the constitution and other canonical steps.”

Sister Olga said that “if everything comes together” the community will open by fall or the end of this year.

She noted that the chosen name of the order — the Daughters of Mary, Our Lady of Nazareth — has “a lot to do with the ministry that we will be doing.”

“We will be a very eucharistic and Marian order — eucharistic Communion, daily adoration, and Marian devotion,” she said. “These will be the two lungs we will be breathing out of as religious women.”

“I personally chose the words ‘daughters’ instead of ‘Sisters’ of Mary because it keeps us focused on that element of humility,” Sister Olga said. “We always look up to our mother to teach us and guide us and lead us as we try to bring the good news of Jesus’ love and mercy to the world.”

She said that the group “will be a contemplative and apostolic community,” meaning that they will base their spirituality off of contemplative prayer but still go out into the community to perform “corporal and spiritual works of mercy.”

Sister Olga also said the order’s habits will consist of a simple blue gown and veil along with a draped rosary.

She emphasized how the “presence of a religious Sister wearing a habit, bringing a smile and that motherly face of the Church” serves as profound witness to the surrounding culture.

“To have that spiritual presence of a religious Sister and bringing that motherhood of the Church — it’s very much needed in our country,” she said.

profession of faith — U.S. Military Academy cadets hold hands during the Lord’s Prayer while attending Mass at Camp Buckner in West Point, N.Y., recently. Camp Buckner is the site of a summer field-training program for second-year cadets. (CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz)

Priest says Catholic bloggers ‘an extraordinary reality’ in Church life

PITTSBURGH (CNS) — Catholic bloggers are “an extraordinary reality in the life of the Church.”

Msgr. Paul Tighe, secretary for the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications, made that observation during an impromptu meeting about blogging held during the Catholic Media Convention in Pittsburgh.

Catholic bloggers have a strong sense of community, Msgr. Tighe said, and Church leaders need to be aware of what’s happening in the blogosphere because bloggers can “reach places that we’re not going to reach.”

“We can provide them with the right kind of materials that they can work with,” he said.

“They can give a reach out into broader communities. And that’s important.”

Msgr. Tighe was joined at the meeting by Elizabeth Scalia, managing editor of the Catholic portal at the religion website Patheos and a columnist for the ecumenical journal First Things. Scalia maintains her own frequently visited blog at www.patheos.com called “The Anchoress.”

Scalia was one of approximately 150 Catholic bloggers from several countries who participated in a May 2 meeting of bloggers at the Vatican.

She said the meeting helped bloggers see that the Vatican takes them seriously, wants to work with them and “understands the fact that we are largely autonomous people not looking to be controlled.”

“The bloggers came away very happy,” Scalia said. “And

I think the Church came away pretty happy, too, because the bloggers, for the most part, said that we like you. We want to be clear on your behalf. We want to help out.”

Scalia and Msgr. Tighe suggested that the next step to follow the bloggers’ meeting at the Vatican would be for groups of bishops or individual bishops to meet with bloggers.

This was important for Scalia because blogs, their comment boxes, also known as “comboxes,” and “alternative media” in general are where a growing number of the faithful are exploring their faith.

“This is where they’re expressing confusion or fear or disgust,” she said. “This is where they’re saying, ‘Is there going to be a Church in 20 years for my kids? How do I pass this on to them?’ This is where they’re daring to wonder.

“I think it’s really important for our shepherds to say, ‘If this is where the sheep are feeding, I had better get to know that turf. I had better get to see what they’re feeding on. I want to see where in that field they’re moving a little too close to the walls.’”

Scalia went on to recommend that all bishops have someone to monitor blogs and other social media and to have a blog themselves.

But while it’s important for bishops to pay attention to bloggers, Scalia also noted that Catholic bloggers have a need for their bishops.

“We’re the sheep, too,” she said. “And we need the support of the bishops ... through their encouragement, their correc-

tion from time to time.

“That doesn’t mean that we want to be put under obedience.

We clearly don’t. But, at the same time, we are absolutely in need of the shepherd’s guidance and the shepherd’s support.”

Attending the meeting was Deacon Greg Kandra, a deacon of the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y., who maintains a prominent blog named “The Deacon’s Bench.” He also is now executive editor of ONE magazine, published by the Catholic Near East Welfare Association.

He said members of the clergy who blog have a duty to be “vigilant about making sure that the Church’s teachings are fairly represented.”

“One of the big subjects of the day right now is about homosexuality and same-sex marriage,” said Deacon Kandra. “And I get this a lot from people that the Church hates gay people. And I have to intervene periodically and say that’s not actually the case. There is a lot of clarification that has to go on.”

Even though he acknowledged that Catholic bloggers often debate issues quite vigorously, Msgr. Tighe said the May 2 Vatican event confirmed for him there is a vibrant community among them.

“I felt that we were gatecrashing a party, because there were all these people who knew each other and were delighted to meet each other,” Msgr.

Tighe said. “We provided the venue for that. That was great.

It wasn’t our party, but it was great.”

The Church in the U.S. Catholics may not participate in civil unions, R.I. bishop says

July 8, 2011

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (CNS) — Saying that civil unions “promote an unacceptable lifestyle, undermine the faith of the Church on Holy Matrimony, and cause scandal and confusion,” Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin reminded Catholics that they may not participate in such ceremonies.

“To do so is a very grave violation of the moral law and, thus, seriously sinful,” he said in a statement, the day after passage of legislation that will give

same-sex couples who enter into civil unions the same rights and benefits as marriage in Rhode Island.

The state Senate agreed to the bill, which the House had already approved, on a 21-16 vote late June 29 and Gov. Lincoln D. Chafee, an Independent, has said he will sign it. Some proponents of same-sex marriage in the state opposed the bill, however, saying it did not go far enough and allowed overly broad religious exemptions.

Bishop Tobin said he was “deeply disappointed” at the decision to permit civil unions.

“The concept of civil unions is a social experiment that promotes an immoral lifestyle, is a mockery of the institution of marriage as designed by God, undermines the well-being of our families, and poses a threat to religious liberty,” he said.

He said the Church members should “have respect and love for persons with same-sex attraction” but must remember

Catholic bishops call N.Y. gay ‘marriage’ law profoundly unjust

Washington D.C. (CNA/ EWTN News) — The New York legislature’s recognition of samesex “marriages” undermines the common good and will place officials in a position to “retaliate” against those who uphold basic truths about marriage, the U.S. bishops’ point man on the defense of marriage said.

“Making marriage law indifferent to the absence of either sex creates an institutional and cultural crisis with generational ramifications yet to be seen,” Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of Oakland said recently.

“To eliminate marriage’s very essence — its essence as the union of husband and wife — from its legal definition is to ignore not only basic anthropology and biology but also the purpose of law generally.”

Law is meant to uphold the common good, not undermine it, stated Bishop Cordileone, who heads the U.S. bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage.

He pointed to children as one group that will suffer the consequences of the vote, since their “basic right” to be raised by their mother and father ignored by the state.

“Also, as demonstrated in other states where marriage redefinition has occurred, officials there will be in a position to retaliate against those who continue to uphold these basic truths. This is a mark of a profoundly unjust law,” he said.

After a strong push by Catholic Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, homosexual activists, and several wealthy Republican backers, the legislation passed the New York Senate by a margin of 33 to 29 votes. All but one Democratic senator voted for the bill and all but four Republican senators voted against the bill.

Senate Republicans declined to use their control of the Senate to stop the legislation from coming to a vote.

Bishop Cordileone thanked those involved in the grassroots effort to oppose the bill.

“Those courageous legislators and active citizens in New York who defended marriage should be applauded for their inspiring witness,” he said.

While the bill contains some last-minute protections for religious organizations, the Oakland bishop said marriage is “a funda-

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) — California’s Catholic bishops have urged Catholics in their state to contact lawmakers and ask them to vote against a bill removing parental rights to a teen vaccination against sexually-transmitted diseases.

The bill, which already passed in the state Assembly and is currently before the state Senate, would remove the parental consent requirement for vaccinating children 12 and older and would allow children to be given Gardasil vaccine intended to prevent human papillomavirus, or HPV — a virus that can cause cervical cancer. The vaccine was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in

2006 and is recommended by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A legislative alert distributed by the California Catholic Conference that cited figures released in January by the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System said minors do not have adequate judgment to make a decision about this vaccine.

Catholic San Francisco, the archdiocesan newspaper, reported that California law already allows children 12 and older to consent, without parental involvement, to treatment for sexually-transmitted diseases. The bill would expand that right to immunizations against these diseases.

Parents should determine teens’ vaccinations, say bishops

mental good that must be protected in every circumstance.”

“Exemptions of any kind never justify redefining marriage.”

The Catholic Bishops of New York reacted to the bill’s passage in a recent statement.

They said the legislature undermines marriage and the family, and also warned of attempts to enact “government sanctions” against churches and religious organizations that preach the truth about marriage.

Similar state senate legislation had failed in a 2009 vote of 38-24.

Efforts to recognize “gay marriage” in law have continued since the Massachusetts Supreme Court ordered the state to recognize such unions in a November 2003 ruling.

State legislatures in New Hampshire, Vermont and Connecticut have passed “gay marriage” bills, as has the District of Columbia’s city council.

The Iowa Supreme Court unanimously imposed “gay marriage” on the state in 2009. Opponents have since voted to recall three state Supreme Court justices and are working to pass a marriage amendment there.

Forty-one U.S. states have laws or constitutional amendments defining marriage as a union of a man and a woman, the Associated Press reports. A marriage amendment will be on the Minnesota ballot in 2012.

Legislative efforts to redefine marriage in 2011 have failed in Maryland and Rhode Island.

that “homosexual activity is contrary to the natural law and the will of God and, therefore, is objectively sinful.”

“Persons with same-sex attraction are required to live the Christian virtues of chastity and modesty, as all persons are,” Bishop Tobin added.

The Rhode Island vote came less than a week after the New York Legislature approved a same-sex marriage bill, which the state’s Catholic bishops said would undermine marriage and families.

Bishop Tobin urged Catholics in Rhode Island “to pray for God’s patience, mercy and forgiveness in these distressing times.”

“Can there be any doubt that Almighty God will, in his own time and way, pass judgment upon our state, its leaders and citizens, for abandoning his commands and embracing public immorality?” he asked.

In a separate statement, Bishop Salvatore J. Cordileone of Oakland, Calif., chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Subcommittee for the Promotion and Defense of Marriage, affirmed Bishop Tobin’s comments and denounced passage of the civil unions bill.

Elevating same-sex relation-

5

ships to marital status with all of the rights of marriage, even if the new status is not called marriage, “fails justice because now the government is treating as similar two different realities that cannot be considered as analogous or equivalent in any way,” Bishop Cordileone said.

Marriage Equality Rhode Island called the civil unions legislation “fundamentally flawed” and, along with nine other organizations supporting same-sex marriage, urged Chafee to veto it because it allows religiously affiliated organizations — including hospitals, day care centers, schools or cemeteries — not to recognize same-sex unions.

“The bill put forth by the Legislature would create onerous and discriminatory hurdles for same-sex couples that no other state has ever put in place,” they said. “By allowing individuals and institutions a free-floating license to discriminate against a whole class of people, in defiance of a general law, this bill represents a huge step backward from both Rhode Island’s longstanding nondiscrimination commitments and the balance and language embraced in the law throughout the country.”

6

The Anchor Loving in the truth those involved in the gay lifestyle

Last week we began a look at the controversy at St. Cecilia’s Church in Boston over the scheduling of a Mass originally advertised to celebrate “gay pride” and then after criticism postponed and relabeled to a “welcoming Mass,” which while perhaps no longer explicitly extolling gay pride still seems poised to give no-questions-asked hospitality to those who believe that gay pride should be glorified, including within the context of a Catholic Mass.

We noted that the controversy raises several concerns that extend beyond a particular parish or archdiocese with regard to the authentic pastoral care the Church owes those immersed in a gay lifestyle or in any lifestyle that exalts practices that are incompatible with the Gospel. The only adequate Christian response to anyone is love, but this love can never remain a shallow hospitality that fails to help the person recognize and respond to the rather conspicuous ways Christ is challenging him to turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel. Particularly with those ensconced in a gay lifestyle — which is a way of life built on regarding several basic truths of anthropology, sexual morality, marriage, Scriptural inspiration, and magisterial authority as antiquated and repressive “hang-ups” from which people need to be liberated — the Church’s charity must always be bound to the compassionate, clear and compelling presentation of the fullness of the truth that alone can set them free (Jn 8:32). The stakes of the Church’s failure to carry out this service to the truth are huge, not only for those presently involved in a gay lifestyle, but also for the conscience formation of all in the Church and society. As we recently witnessed in New York and are well aware of in Massachusetts, people are being barraged by an aggressive, well-financed gay campaign, assisted by the media and educational establishments, to get people to adopt the anthropological and moral categories of the gay movement and anathamatize those of the Church. If the Church remains silent in the face of the moral heresies of the gay movement today, it could prove to be as injurious to her mission for the salvation of souls as if she had remained silent before the Christological heresies of the fourth and fifth centuries.

With that in mind, we will examine three common falsehoods that have come to the surface in the St. Cecilia’s controversy to which the Church must respond with the truth.

The first is the facile citation of “What would Jesus do?” that was repeatedly employed by supporters of the “gay pride Mass” against criticism of the Mass. They implied that Jesus would never do anything other than embrace those in the gay movement and that the critics were nothing other than modern Pharisees against whose hypocrisy Jesus reserved His most pungent castigations. The irony of this reference to what Jesus would do is that it suggests that just as Jesus never turned His back on sinners, neither would He turn His back on gays and lesbians; while absolutely true, it goes against one of the fundamental premises of the gay movement, that gays and lesbians are doing nothing sinful. Thinking about what Jesus would or would not do as a standard for morality, nevertheless, is helpful. It deserves to be asked: Would those defending gay pride by citing WWJD think that Jesus would want to associate with, not to mention participate in, a gay pride parade like the one held in downtown Boston last month, in which men dressed in religious drag as the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence,” shamelessly simulated acts of sodomy on parade floats, and passed out free sex paraphernalia and sadomasochistic literature to passers-by? We see a relevant example of what Jesus would do in His interaction with the woman caught in adultery (Jn 8:2-11). He first defended her against those who sought to kill her by reminding her accusers that they were not innocent enough to throw stones at anyone else. But after assuring her that He didn’t condemn her, He told her to go and sin no more. The Church likewise seeks to protect and defend those engaged in same-sex conduct from hatred and violence, but, like her Founder, lovingly insists they leave the gay lifestyle behind.

The second falsity is about the “acceptance” of those with same-sex attractions. Many of those speaking to the media during the St. Cecilia’s controversy expressed their desire to be accepted and allowed to worship God “as they are.” This is a sincere and noble desire. Those in the gay movement, however, generally have two profound errors about what this acceptance should entail.

One error flows from the fact that those in the gay movement generally have too shallow and reductive an understanding of what it means to “accept” them. They want others to acknowledge their attractions for people of the same-sex, not condemn them for having them, and not try to get them to change them. The Church, however, can’t stop there at the level of their attractions, because their sexual desires are neither co-extensive with “who they are” nor are the fundamental basis of their identity and dignity. True acceptance also involves recognizing that at the deepest level of his or her being, those with same-sex attractions are made in God’s image and likeness, and ordered ontologically as male or female toward sexual complementarity (Gen 1:27). Those with same-sex attractions need to accept this fundamental truth about who he or she is, even though it’s obvious that they faultlessly do not experience these natural attractions. This is one reason why the Church teaches that those with same-sex attractions experience an “affective disorder,” a misalignment between their nature as a male or female and their sexual feelings (CCC 2357). This fuller truth about who they are can’t be ignored or rejected when they ask for, and we give, acceptance. Just as we must go beyond a shallow welcoming that fails to help them in turn welcome the fullness of the Gospel, so we must also go beyond a superficial acceptance that fails to help them accept the full truth of how God made them.

Another error over “acceptance” occurs when those in the gay movement suggest that by accepting them we must accept his or her same-sex activity, as if their actions, like their attractions, are something over which they have no control. Cardinal Sean O’Malley responded to this demand with clarity and courage back in 2004: “Sometimes we are told, ‘If you do not accept my behavior, you do not love me,’ In reality we must communicate the exact opposite: ‘Because we love you, we cannot accept your behavior.’” True love means, obviously, that we don’t condemn them for the behavior that disfigures their identity, but it does mean that we try to help them to change their behavior to align it with the love of God and true love of others.

The third falsehood relates to the common calumny that any opposition to the gay agenda, or any criticism of a “gay pride Mass,” comes exclusively from “homophobia” or “hatred” for those with same-sex attractions, as a few members of St. Cecilia’s alleged in interviews with the media.

While there’s no dispute that, sadly, in some places real homophobia does exist, ministers to the gay community have a duty to disabuse those entrusted of their care of thinking the Church’s teachings on same-sex activities are based on hatred rather than love grounded in truth; they also have the responsibility to remind them that judging others and/or lying about their character are grave sins from which those with same-sex attractions are not excepted.

These false accusations, however, lead to a larger point about how much the tide has turned with regard to the direction of bullying between those with same-sex attractions and others in society. Whereas in the past, those with same-sex attractions were often subject to ill-treatment and ridicule on account of his or her attractions, including scandalously by those who claimed to be Christian, now it’s Christians who are often subjected to ridicule and, in a growing number of cases, discrimination. If anyone doubts this point, they should just ponder what Constance Cervone of Jamaica Plain said in a June 28 Boston Globe article on St. Cecilia’s: “It was harder for me … to come out as a Catholic than as a gay person.” This is an indication that, at least for her, “Christianophobia” is more now menacing than “homophobia,” and highlights something that the Church as a whole, and those who minister to the gay community, must have the courage to address.

Next week we will finish this three-part series on the full pastoral care of those with same-sex attractions in the truth by focusing on the Church’s responsibility to call them and everyone in the Church to true love, which is always and exclusively chaste love.

H

July 8, 2011

What the hell?

ave you ever, without really that God isn’t the one who sends people thinking or meaning it, told to hell, we are! We freely choose hell someone to “Go to hell?” Perhaps we every time we freely choose somehave been on the receiving side of such thing or someone over God, which we a comment. Regardless of the circumcall sin. God respects our freedom so stances, I wonder if people really grasp much that He will not force people the significance of such a comment. into heaven who throughout their lives The concept of eternal damnation and chose a life separated from Him. And punishment is not a topic to talk about, that’s what hell is, eternal and everlastbut it is necessary because it is a reality. ing separation from God. Today we reflect upon the existence The “Catechism” teaches, “We of this reality, which is the third of the cannot be united with God unless we “Last Things,” hell! freely choose to love Him. But we canRecently I was asked by an elderly not love God if we sin gravely against person who has been Catholic her Him, against our neighbor or against whole life, “Father, does the Church ourselves. To die in mortal sin without still believe in hell?” I was a bit taken repenting and accepting God’s merciful back at first but responded, “Of course, love means remaining separated from why do you ask?” She explained to me Him forever by our own free choice. that she presumed the Church didn’t This state of definitive self-exclusion believe it anymore because she never from communion with God and the hears about it, and that it was a thing blessed is called hell” (CCC 1033). of the past. Furthermore, she told me Another claim about hell is that she had recently read an article in Time it is something the Church invented magazine, to scare “What if people into there’s no becoming Putting Into hell?”

Christians. the Deep That The Gospel article, and its makes it clear

By Father title, raised that hell is some great real. Jesus Jay Mello points for disspoke about cussion. What hell often and if hell didn’t exist? What if we all just constantly warned us against going go to heaven when we die? That would there. There will be a time, He said, certainly be nice, wouldn’t it? when God will judge the world with But the questions that immediately perfect justice. When He does, “He come to my mind are, “Then, why the will say to those on His left, ‘Depart Church?” “Why have faith?” “Why live from Me, you who are cursed, into the a moral and upright life?” If we are all eternal fire prepared for the devil and going to heaven, we can do whatever his angels’” (Mt 25:41). we want, right? Wrong! This clearly While we should not fall into doesn’t reflect what our Lord Jesus the trap of thinking that we all go preached or what His Church has taught to heaven, we must remember with from the beginning, or continues to conviction that the Gospel is the Good teach today.

News. The Gospel teaches us that we Yes, the Lord proclaimed the Kingdon’t have to be counted among those dom of Heaven! Yes, the Lord died who are separated eternally from God. upon the cross to redeem all humanity.

He has provided the way for our sins to Yes, the Lord defeated sin and death be forgiven and for us to inherit the gift forever by His resurrection from the of eternal life. That way is Jesus Christ dead. But our entrance into the heaven- and His Church. ly kingdom is a choice we freely accept “The affirmations of sacred Scripture or reject. God has invited each of us, and the teachings of the Church on the but our entrance into the Father’s house subject of hell,” the “Catechism” conis contingent upon our response to that tinues, “are a call to the responsibility invitation. incumbent upon man to make use of his There is a heresy called “Univerfreedom in view of his eternal destiny. salism” that claims that because God They are at the same time an urgent loves the world that He would not send call to conversion: ‘Enter by the narrow anyone to hell. The Gospel emphatigate; for the gate is wide and the way cally articulates God’s love for the is easy, that leads to destruction, and world: “For God so loved the world, those who enter by it are many. For the that He gave His only begotten Son.” gate is narrow and the way is hard, that What some forget, however, is the secleads to life, and those who find it are ond part of that verse: “so that whoever few’ (CCC 1036). believes in Him shall not perish but Perhaps the woman who asked me have eternal life” (John 3:16). What the question about hell has touched about those who don’t believe in Him? upon something very important: maybe What about those who freely reject the we don’t think enough about hell.

Gospel and the teachings of Christ and Maybe we need to be reminded and we His Church? need to remind others that our actions Following this same way of thinking, have consequences. Perhaps the most there is another question that we hear important thing to remember is that hell asked all the time about how an allis no joke. It is for real and it is forever! loving and all-merciful God could send Father Mello is a parochial vicar at anyone to hell? The fact of the matter is St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth.

July 8, 2011

Q: At daily Mass in two local parishes the priests will offer the list of prayers to the faithful, and then ask the congregation to verbally add their prayers.

This has led to some profound prayers underlining some of the current local, national or international concerns of the faithful; but more often or not it is the same people offering the same intentions daily, many of them spoken too quietly for others to hear. On occasion the offered prayers have contained political bias, or suggested a lack of knowledge of Church teaching. It is precisely because of some of these problems that I understand the prayers of the faithful are to be limited to the celebrant? — D.P., Innisfil, Ontario A: Norms regarding the prayers of the faithful are found in the “Introduction to the Lectionary,” Nos. 30-31.

No. 30 states: “In the light of God’s word and in a sense in response to it, the congregation of the faithful prays in the universal prayer as a rule for the needs of the universal Church and the local community, for the salvation of the world and those oppressed by any burden, and for special categories of people.

“The celebrant introduces the prayer; a deacon, another minister, or some of the faithful may propose intentions that are short

A

fter narrating a history of man prior to the birth of Christ, G.K. Chesterton arrives at Christ’s birth. The idea he wishes to communicate required some breadth of expression, though perhaps we can summarize it by saying that he wishes us to mark that what was most universal about “The Greatest Story Ever Told” is also what is most strikingly original about it: it was a dream come true. The originality of the Gospel is quite simply that it happened. We had once dreamed of God’s walking around as men, now God walked around as a man.

The word “story” is intriguing. When we think of a “story” we think of something fictional, something that is not true but somehow has meaning.

A closer look, however, tells us that though it appears to us as the most ancient of literary devices, as it turns out, it isn’t so much a literary device as it is an inescapable construct of mind. We understand the world through story, creating stories in order to think, to speak, and to act. An infant sees an object

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The Anchor

Prayers of the faithful

beforehand and approved by the and phrased with a measure of pastor or celebrant. It is praisefreedom. In these petitions ‘the worthy to follow the general people, exercising its priestly order indicated in No. 30: asking function, makes intercession for for the universal Church, the all men and women,’ with the local community, etc., although result that, as the Liturgy of the special intentions are usually word has its full effects in the prepared for particular occafaithful, they are better prepared sions such as confirmations and to proceed to the Liturgy of the Eucharist.”

No. 31 continues: “For the prayer of the faithful the celebrant presides at the chair and the intentions are announced

By Father at the ambo. The assemEdward McNamara bled congregation takes part in the prayer of the faithful while standing ordinations (see the “General and by saying or singing a comInstruction of the Roman Mismon response after each intensal,” No. 70). tion or by silent prayer.”

The tendency to pronounce As can be seen, there is no abstract intentions should also be mention of spontaneous intenavoided. For example, instead of tions being offered. And this is asking generically for “human usually inadvisable for the very rights” the request should be for reasons you mention: the danger those who suffer persecution or of rambling, and the offering of injustice. political or even theologically If the priest wishes to ofincorrect intentions. fer the people an opportunity Yet, this is not an absolute to add their own intentions it is rule. There are some communities with a long tradition of inter- probably better for him to say cessory prayer who have learned something like “Let each one to formulate brief concrete inten- add in silence his own personal tions according to the indications intentions” and then observe a moment of silence before recitgiven in the ritual, above all on ing, with hands extended, the weekdays or in small groups. concluding prayer.

Generally, however, and The minister reading the intenespecially on a Sunday, the intentions of the universal prayer is tions should always be prepared

Liturgical Q&A

usually the deacon, followed by the instituted lector and any member or members of the faithful.

However, even when a deacon or instituted lector are present, there may be occasions, such as weddings, first Communions, Confirmations, funerals and other special occasions, when pastoral reasons allow for several members of the faithful to recite the intentions of the General Intercessions.

An important point to observe here is that the people’s “exercising the priestly function” is not limited to those who read the intentions.

The “prayer” of the prayer of the faithful consists in the response or silent prayer made by the people after the invitation “Let us pray to the Lord.”

Thus the exercise of the common priesthood lies in the very fact that each member of the assembly participates in offering intercessory prayer for all men and women. Interceding before God for our fellows is an eminently priestly function in which all baptized Catholics may participate albeit always in communion with the sacred priesthood.

Some other readers asked about the practice of reciting the Hail Mary during the Prayer of the Faithful.

While this custom is not uni-

The God in a cave

near herself. She must create an true.” But the story that arrived image of herself as a heroine in Bethlehem more than 2,000 and imagine the space between years ago now, emerges as the her and the object as her cosmic shocking truth and the story obstacle, the one she must about it as One Thing, the word overcome. Only when she has made flesh. this epic drama in mind can she This story starts in the same actually set about the task of crawling toward the object to seize it.

This is the crucible in A Twitch which language and the Upon a Thread vision of her own body moving through space

By Jennifer Pierce is formed. Before she can speak or move, she is making stories — true ones — and telling them to place where Chesterton started herself. his history. In a cave. Artists The odd thing: as we master have confused us, but the gethese basic aspects of our ography of Palestine and their physical world, we encounter traditional animal husbandry other “objects” that we can’t practices tells us, it was no quite explain. How do things man-made stable but a cave, a move? What is the wind? Why hole in the earth. “It might be do things fall to the earth? suggested,” writes our friend, Recalling our first mastery we “in a somewhat violent image, create other stories to help us that nothing had happened in master these unknown things. that fold or crack in the great But now we are making stories grey hills, except that the whole that we know are not strictly universe had been turned inside true. And we start to think that out.” this is the nature of stories. If Chesterton notes what an something is a “story” it is “not honest historian must; this

particular story has had a hold on man like no other story known, this humble story of an Infant born in an animalian hole that was very close to being subterranean, a story so small, it almost disappears into that hole. The fragility of facts requires a witness. And here we have a convergence of witnesses telling the same story in remarkably similar detail. A Man, born in a cave in Bethlehem, walked the earth, did some remarkable things, said some remarkable words, and died on a cross in Golgotha.

His Body was placed in yet another hole, and the most remarkable thing of all occurred there according to many witnesses. It has been hypothesized that it was a lie, a conspiracy of stories weaving together pretending to be the reality that Chesterton and I are here asking you to believe once again. If that is so, under torture, the early Church martyrs never let on. If it is a lie, 12 uneducated fishermen and

versal, it seems to have its roots in English liturgical practice from even before the Second Vatican Council. One reader suggested that a document exists impeding this practice, but I have been unable to find it. I would say that, barring some authoritative intervention, the practice could continue where it has been customary to do so.

The objections to the use of the Hail Mary are usually based on the principle that liturgical prayers are practically always directed to the Father, and on rare occasions to the Son. However, when the Hail Mary is used in the Prayer of the Faithful she is not addressed directly but is usually invoked as a mediator to carry our prayer to the Father within the context of the communion of saints.

This invocation is certainly unnecessary from a liturgical standpoint, and it is probably better not to introduce it where it does not exist. However, I do not believe it needs to be forbidden where already well established.

Father Edward McNamara is a Legionary of Christ and professor of Liturgy at Regina Apostolorum University in Rome. His column appears weekly at zenit.org. Send questions to liturgy@zenit.org. Put the word “Liturgy” in the subject field. Text should include initials, city and state.

a few others, lived in fear and trembling and protected that secret with their lives. Why? If you’ve ever tried to keep a secret in an organized way — a surprise party, say — you’ll know how difficult that is. If the secret is something that would save you from torture and death, you could imagine, quite easily, how quickly that lie would escape. Around the time of the first scourging.

And yet some claim it is not merely untrue — it is unreasonable. Chesterton cannot accept this: if it is unreason, what peculiar breed of unreason is it that formed a European identity for some 1,600 years and more? “I attempt no apologetic about why the creed should be accepted,” he asserts. “But in answer to the historical query of why it was accepted and is accepted, I answer for millions of others in my reply; because it fits the lock, because it is like life.”

Jennifer is a parishioner of Corpus Christi in East Sandwich, where she lives with her husband Jim and three children.

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n this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus describes four types of receptivity to the seed of the word of God He is trying to sow in each of us. Our whole life on earth and eternity can be summarized by this parable, because the whole point of human life is to respond to the gift of God’s action in our lives.

In farming, in addition to irrigation and sun, there are really two crucial elements, good seed and good soil. In terms of the seed at question in our spiritual life, the seed is the Word of God, which doesn’t have the least defect. The prophet Isaiah describes this perfection in the first reading, when God says, when through him “The word that goes forth from My mouth does not return to Me empty, without carrying out My will and succeeding in what it was sent to do.” The Word of God does its job. The question about what fruit any of us bears, therefore, depends solely on the soil. It depends on how receptive and responsive we are to God’s action.

Jesus gives us the parable of the four types of soil so that we might take an accurate “soil sample” of our soul, to determine how open and responsive our heart is to God. The first is soil “at the

July 8, 2011

The Anchor

Taking our soil sample

edge of the path.” Alongside depends on it, because in fact ancient farms were dirt paths it does! that over the course of decades The second type of soil, of would become packed down receptivity, is rocky ground. and hardened. When seed was In Palestine, there are parts of scattered by a sower, there was the country where there is a no chance for it to penetrate layer of dirt a few inches thick this type of soil. By this imover a solid layer of limestone. age, Jesus is referring to all those who are “hardened,” who are Homily of the Week stubbornly set in their ways, who think they Fifteenth Sunday know everything they in Ordinary Time need to know, who

By Father have no receptivity Roger J. Landry at all to the word of God. They’re not necessarily bad people, but their ingrained habits, set When the seed is sown here, ideas, or in some cases prejuit immediately takes root and dices prevent God from getting begins to germinate because through. You obviously see this the sun warms that soil very type of soil in some hardened quickly, but as soon as the sinners who obstinately refuse roots try to go deeper into the to listen to the appeals of those soil, they hit the rock and die who love them to get help for lack of nutrients. Jesus and change their lives. But says that this image refers to you also find this type even in those who hear the Word and morally-upright daily comreceive it with joy, but because municants, clergy and faithful, of the lack of roots, whenever who because of the passage of some tribulation or persecution years have become so set in comes because of the Word, their ways that they basically the person falls away. We see tune out the daily readings people with this type of soil they’ve heard so many times very often in those who come before. People with this type to Church on Ash Wednesday, of soil must first begin truly to make a resolution to convert hang on the Word of God as it and to begin to practice the is proclaimed, as if their life faith again, but fail to follow

through. But we also see this type of soil in many, for example, who come to Mass each week, enjoy it, but who leave Mass pretty much unchanged.

Those who find themselves with this type of soil must seek to allow the Word to go deep within them through meditation or lectio divina that leads to deeper penetration and understanding.

The third type of soil, or receptivity, is the seed sown among thorns. Jesus says this refers to those who hear the Word and understand it, but then “the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.” Unlike those along the path, the seed gets planted. Unlike the rocky soil, there’s every possibility for these people to bear good fruit, because their soil is deep. But Jesus says these people don’t bear the fruit that God wants either, because worldly cares and anxieties distract them from allowing the explosive power of the word of God to change their lives and through them change the world.

They’re focused more on storing up treasure on earth than treasure in heaven. They’re more worried about the little

things of life than they are about what matters to God. This leads to the fourth and last type of soil, the one good type of soil to which the Lord refers, and which He wants everyone of us to have: those who hear the Word of God and understand it, bearing fruit 30-, 60- or 100-fold. These are those who hear the Word of God, try to understand it, let it take root through meditation, and then make resolutions to let it to change their lives, leading to our bearing fruit in acts of love for God and for others. Notice that Jesus says that good soil doesn’t bear “a little” fruit, but massive quantities of fruit. That’s what the Word of God can do when we receive it well! Just look at what the Word of God did in the life of the saints!

As we prepare on Sunday to have the divine Sower inseminate us with the living Word and the Word-made-flesh, we ask Him to till the soil of our souls so that His life might sink so deeply into ours that, united to Him, we might bear abundant fruit, fruit that will last into eternal life.

Father Landry is pastor of St. Anthony’s Parish in New Bedford and the executive editor of The Anchor.

Upcoming Daily Readings: July 9, Gn 49:29-32;50:15-26a; Ps 105:1-4,6-7; Mt 10:24-33. Sun. July 10, Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Is 55:10-11; Ps 65:10-14; Rom 8:18-23; Mt 13:1-23 or 13:1-9. Mon. July 11, Ex 1:8-14,22; Ps 124:1-8; Mt 10:34-11:1. Tues. July 12, Ex 2:1-15a; Ps 69:3,14,30-31,33-34; Mt 11:20-24. Wed. July 13, Ex 3:1-6,9-12; Ps 103:1-4,6-7; Mt 11:25-27. Thur. July 14, Ex 3:13-20; Ps 105:1,5,8-9,24-27; Mt 11:28-30. Fri. July 15, Ex 11:10-12:14; Ps 116:12-13,15-18; Mt 12:1-8.

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n a recent article, Yale professor David Gelernter noted that modern America had “two extraordinary accomplishments: victory in the Cold War and the all-but-eradication of race prejudice in a single generation.” The back story of the latter is worth pondering around Independence Day. When I was growing up in Baltimore in the 1950s, everything and everyone around me was segregated. Five years before I was born, local idiots vociferously insulted Jackie Robinson when he came to town with the Montreal Royals, prior to his debut in Brooklyn. Twenty-odd years later, the man for whom I occasionally served Mass, Cardinal Lawrence Shehan, was shouted down at a Baltimore City Council meeting when he testified in favor of an open housing bill. Until my latter high school years, the n-word was heard in polite circles, even among people who would never deliberately harm someone they so designated. That ingrained patterns of prejudice changed dramatically

Moral revolutions in America

was most often rooted in Christian within a generation is indeed an conviction. The classic civil rights extraordinary accomplishment. movement called America to a And it was a moral accomreckoning with the truths its Decplishment — a moral revolution.

The civil rights movement in its classic period was predominantly a Christian movement; its appeals to American traditions of equality and fairness were regularly buttressed by appeals to

By George Weigel biblical ideas of justice.

The legal movement to end segregation may have been led by laration of Independence deemed lawyers, but the movement in the self-evident; it also called America streets was led by black Baptist to a reckoning with its God. ministers and other clergy, and The United States today is no their presence helped give the paradise of racial comity, and the classic civil rights movement the bitter residues of segregation can character of a revival. be found among blacks and whites Now it is certainly true that, in 2011. That truth notwithstandin the period immediately foling, America is also the most ralowing the 1964 Civil Rights Act cially egalitarian society in human and the 1965 Voting Rights Act, history. Most Americans don’t legal change accelerated cultural recognize this because Americans, change. But a critical mass of being the cultural children of moral passion was essential to Calvinism, are very good at selfgetting that legal change through flagellation. Compare the United Congress. And that moral passion

The Catholic Difference

States today with Europe and Latin America, however.

It is impossible to imagine an Afro-Bavarian (or Afro-Saxon, or Afro-Prussian) chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, just as it is impossible to imagine an AfroItalian prime minister of Italy or an Afro-French president of France.

Brazil advertises its racial tolerance but no Afro-Brazilian president is likely anytime soon.

One of the reasons why the heroic Dr. Oscar Biscet was kept in a communist dungeon in Cuba for years is that Biscet is Afro-Cuban, and the pale-faced inheritors of the Castro brothers’ failed revolution are major-league racists. The reason there will almost certainly not be an African pope in the next 20 years is not American racism, but concerns about a black man in white among European and Latin American papal electors.

The remarkable racial egalitarianism of the contemporary United

States not only stands in sharp contrast to the country’s history of racial prejudice; it tells us something important about the future, and specifically about the future of the Pro-Life movement, which is the natural heir to the classic civil rights movement. And what it tells us is that, within living memory, America was moved to undertake massive cultural and legal change on the basis of religiously-grounded appeals to moral truth.

Yes, the America of the Montgomery bus boycott and the freedom riders and the Letter from Birmingham Jail and the Edmund Pettis Bridge is a different America than the America of the Kardashians, MTV, Bernie Madoff and “gay marriage.” But America still asks, in song, “may God thy gold refine.” And while it does, there is real hope for reincorporating everyone, born and unborn, into the community of common protection and concern.

George Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.

Having a real bear of a day

Friday 8 July 2011 — in the wilds of Dighton — Bear Lake Days in Bear Lake, Mich. mean the title literally, dear readers.

Bear with me and I will explain. It’s that time of year when young bears leave their dens and strike out on their own. I’ve found it’s always wise to keep abreast of these matters. In my neighborhood, we already have coyotes and foxes and deer and fisher cats, oh my, but no bears.

That has changed. Seems on Sunday morning, an adolescent black bear was spotted lumbering down the street past my rectory. A bear had been previously reported wandering around in Attleboro, then in

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Taunton, Somerset, Swansea, and Rehoboth. Finally, the switchboards at the Dighton Police Station lit up. He (or

she) is in The Dightons. According to the assistant press secretary of the State Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, it’s probably the same animal. This bear sure gets around.

What to do? State and local officials say there is no danger to public safety — usually.

Bears do not pose a threat to humans — most of the time.

The animal will wander off on its own — probably. (It’s illegal to shoot a tranquilizing dart at a bear after sunset.)

Just take in the bird feeders and secure the trash cans and have a nice day.

There seems to be a lot of conditional clauses in use here.

During “The Invasion of the Black Bear,” I was four miles away at the church.

It was the feast formerly known as Corpus Christi. We used all the options available to honor Our Lord and Savior present among us in the most Holy Eucharist. There was hymn-singing, incense, extra candles, bell-ringing and ad-

When templates replace facts

aving previously dedicated a column to the case against Dominique Strauss-Kahn, it’s only fair that I relate what has transpired since then. To summarize, Strauss-Kahn — who was at the time head of the International Monetary Fund and poised to run for president of France — was accused of rape while in New York City, and despite being roundly condemned in the court of public opinion, seems on the verge of being exonerated of the charge.

Although the lawyer for the purported victim spoke eloquently of her virtues, her trauma, and her straightened circumstances, which fed into a given template: wealthy man used power and strength to bully helpless servant; the actual story may have been quite different. It seems that the Guinean immigrant previously lied on her asylum documentation, that she had a history of prostitution, and that she had intended for her encounter with the Frenchman to be lucrative. Indeed the meeting appears to have been “consensual” (as Strauss-Kahn always insisted it was) and which the woman later tried to manipulate into greater financial gain.

So what have we learned?

Despite France’s collective horror that a lowly domestic can make a charge against a powerful figure, another element of the American legal system is that the process — if followed assiduously —

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July 8, 2011

should flush out the facts sooner or later. And this happened.

All should be equal before the law, and that’s redolent of the natural law on which our system is based, and entirely in keeping with our faith.

In the frenzied hours following the revelation that Strauss-Kahn seems to have been falsely accused, I couldn’t help but think of the Dreyfuss affair of the late 19th century, in which a

French soldier was accused of treason for handing over sensitive documents to the Germans. The fact that he was Jewish made the entire case a template for larger questions that were debated endlessly in every sector of society.

Indeed, one commentator famously noted, “That Dreyfuss is guilty, I deduce not from the facts themselves, but from his race.”

In a similar fashion, StraussKahn’s case is fomenting peripheral discussions that are entirely unrelated to the truth.

Some French feminists met to discuss the matter and said that the fact that the victim lied made no difference. Carolyn de Haas warned, “If journalists think that this moment of political theater changes our way of seeing things, they are

wrong.” Since the feminist construct is based on the belief that men are the enemy and patriarchy is anti-woman, it’s no surprise that they will use this to illustrate perceived flaws in the system — no matter what transpired.

Thus, de Haas elaborated: “Why did the DSK affair have to happen for the political class and the media to discover that there are 75,000 women in France raped each year? That professional inequality is the rule? That equality is an illusion?”

So despite the fact that there was no rape, and that the affair had nothing to do with gender equity or job parity, some feminists will force their round pegs into square holes. Why can’t we ask questions that are at least related to the story?

Is it true that the hotel union winks at a profitable (though illegal) prostitution service offered to wealthy guests? What happens to immigrants whose paperwork for entry is riddled with lies? Will those who defended Strauss-Kahn’s womanizing see that his playboy reputation seriously clouded the facts in this case?

Between this and the Duke lacrosse case, there should be serious soul searching, but not along the lines we see emerging from certain feminist circles.

Mrs. Kineke is the author of “The Authentic Catholic Woman” (Servant Books) and blogs at feminine-genius. typepad.com

ditional altar servers. Besides Holy Mass, we held adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, evening prayer, and Benediction. The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ was a lovely day of celebration of the real presence.

In our diocese, this is the day to commission eucharistic ministers for a year of service at the altar. Those I invite to serve in this capacity are a mix of young people and mature men and woman. We held the annual commissioning at all weekend Masses and the community prayed over them. Their assistance will be very much appreciated in the year ahead. There’s no way I can distribute Holy Communion at weekend Masses all by myself.

At the end of Mass came the brief announcements.

Parishioners are preparing to spend a week at our diocesan mission in Honduras. A group of women were selling parish cookbooks. The Vacation Bible School (“Panda Mania”) was taking registrations. The men of the Knights of Columbus are planning their first annual Chili Night in July cook-off contest. A bus trip to Canobie Lake Amusement Park was boarding. There would be a “coffee house” event at the Pastoral Life Center that evening. The annual Catholic Charities Appeal was drawing to a close.

The parish contribution to this year’s Appeal was barely shy of achieving the $40,000 mark for the first time. People were “pumped,” as they say. I announced, “If there is anyone here at Mass today who has not yet given to this year’s Appeal and would like to do so, we have, for your convenience donation cards, pens, and even envelopes at the doors.

No donation is too small.

This parish may be about to make history in its generosity towards the poor and needy. “Give us a hand here.”

That’s exactly what they did.

The congregation applauded spontaneously. I told you they were pumped. “That’s not what I had in mind,” I clarified. People laughed out loud when they realized what they had just done. In the end, though, the misunderstanding was corrected and the parish surpassed the $40,000 mark.

Bear in mind that means about a 22 percent increase over last year’s record-breaking level of giving and an increase of 68 percent over just four years ago when we were still two separate parishes. I feel blessed by these parishioners.

That Sunday evening I attended the “coffee house” sponsored by the parish Youth Group. It was “groovy,” as we used to say. There were small café tables, ambient lighting, and over-stuffed chairs. How did the kids know to do this?

They were not around in the 60s and 70s. They must have done a lot of Internet research.

On stage, they faced the audience with aplomb. I could never have done that at their age.

They also have talent coming out the ears. There was nothing much I could contribute in the way of singing or dancing, so I decided to go with comic relief. With some encouragement, I clandestinely morphed into an aging “hippie” still out searching for Woodstock. A good laugh is good for morale, I figured.

When all was said and done, that “bear of a Sunday” proved to be a shot in the arm.

Father Goldrick is pastor of St. Nicholas of Myra Parish in North Dighton.

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Veteran altar server celebrates milestone anniversary

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff

SEEKONK — If Bob and Rhea White had listened to a misguided doctor after the couple became pregnant with their eighth child, their 33-year-old son Eric probably wouldn’t have just celebrated his 25th year as an altar server with their parish.

“I was 45 and my wife was 44 at the time,” said Bob White, a longtime parishioner at the former St. Stephen’s Parish in Attleboro and now Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Parish in Seekonk. “We just had Eric, who was born with Down syndrome, and he told us if we were going to have another one, we should consider aborting the child. I told him I wouldn’t kill my kid if he was born with two heads, and I walked away.”

Thankfully, the couple ignored the doctor and gave birth to Eric’s younger brother, Bob, who became instrumental in getting his big brother to become an altar server.

“My youngest son Bob was an altar server and when Eric said he wanted to do it, he taught him,” Bob White said. “Bob only did it for three or four years, but Eric is still going.”

“I like serving Mass,” said Eric, who began as an altar server alongside his brother when he was just eight years old. “My brother Bobby taught me everything.

I like bringing the chalice to the altar and I also carry the cross and lead the procession at the beginning of Mass.”

According to Eric’s father, there were even times at their former parish that he ended up being the lone altar server.

“There are quite a few altar servers at Our Lady Queen of Martyrs now, but we didn’t have as many at St. Stephen’s and he sometimes served by himself and he did everything,” he said.

Looking back over his years as an altar server, Eric said he was most proud of an anniversary Mass celebration at the former St. Stephen’s Parish, which he served with then-Bishop Sean P. O’Malley, OFM, Cap. “It was an honor for all of us to be part of that Mass,” Bob White added. “I was a lector, Eric was an altar server, and my wife was an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion. We all participated in the Mass.”

Eric’s mother, Rhea, explained how Eric was always

striving to be active in the parish and with the help of a special needs teacher, he studied for and received his First Communion and Confirmation with his peers.

Having attended St. Mary’s School in Taunton and grown up in a faith-filled family, Rhea said she tried to instill those same values in all her children. “We always attended Mass as a family and I always enjoyed

Anchor Person of the Week — Eric White. the Liturgy and the music,” she said.

“All my children have a strong belief in God and the majority still attend church faithfully,” Bob added.

“The most important thing is to believe in God and

go to church,” Eric said, echoing his father’s sentiments.

“Eric is a grand, wonderful young man,” said his pastor, Father Thomas L. Rita. “Looking back over the years starting with St. Stephen’s Parish, he has been generally on the spot. He’s a wonderful altar server and you can always count on him.”

Although his parents are daily communicants, Eric only serves Mass on weekends since he works Monday through Friday at Attleboro Enterprises, doing piecework.

Despite his Down syndrome, Eric has never wanted or needed any special attention when serving Mass, and as the elder statesman he now tries to pass along his experience to the younger crop of altar servers.

“I help them and show them how to serve,” he said.

“He tries to help others and be there for them,” his mother said.

With all his siblings now out of the house, Eric is the only one remaining at home with his parents, and the three share their faith in tangible ways.

Not only does Eric serve Mass, he also prays faithfully everyday and joins his family in praying the Rosary on Sunday.

“Eric always does the last decade of the Rosary,” his father said.

Prayer played an important role in Eric’s life a few years ago when he was also diagnosed with terminal cancer and was given just two years to live.

“The cancer spread and was in his lungs and his lymph nodes,” his father said. “They even thought it had spread into his bones.”

Bob and Rhea said there was an immediate outpouring of love and support for Eric and their family at the time and they knew many prayers were being offered on Eric’s behalf.

Rhea said Eric’s cancer was so advanced that Hospice was coming to the house. Even though he was quite sick at the time, arrangements were made for Eric to attend Mass.

“One night in the hospital he went to bed with all this cancer, and the next morning he work up cancerfree,” his father said. “The Lord took it away overnight. Even his doctor was calling him ‘my miracle boy.’”

“I prayed and my faith in God cured me,” Eric said.

Twirling a drumstick in his hand with the dexterity of Buddy Rich, Eric talks about his love for music, which like altar serving is something he picked up from his siblings. In his room he proudly shows off his CD collection, which includes an assortment of Christian recordings, a few familiar pop selections … and a healthy dose of Huey Lewis and the News.

“I like Huey Lewis,” he said, pointing to a poster-sized photograph of a grinning Huey Lewis with an arm around a beaming Eric. He was fortunate enough to meet this favorite music idol when he performed at the nearby Warwick Musical Theater.

Eric’s parents are proud of all that their son has accomplished and his father said even though he’s faced some challenges with Down syndrome and being a cancer survivor, the one thing he doesn’t worry about is his son’s soul.

“God has personal people He cares about and I think Eric is one of them,” he said. “I know when his time comes he’ll have a place in heaven.”

And having just surpassed his milestone silver jubilee as an altar server, Eric has no plans to retire anytime soon.

When asked if he sees himself serving Mass at age 65, he didn’t hesitate to respond: “Yeah.”

To submit a Person of the Week nominee, send an email with information to fatherrogerlandry@ anchornews.org

The Anchor

July 8, 2011

Amid new media outlets, newspapers still have major role, bishop says

PITTSBURGH (CNS) — Although social media is the rage in today’s world of communication, one Catholic bishop offered an impassioned speech in support of Catholic print publications. During a panel discussion at the recent 2011 Catholic Media Convention, Pittsburgh Bishop David A. Zubik said Catholic newspapers and magazines continue to be the best way to reach people in the pews.

“There has been no greater and more consistent success in Catholic communications in the United States than through the use of print,” the bishop said. He cited figures from the Catholic Press Association’s official directory, which showed that Catholic newspapers and magazines in the United States and Canada

reach almost 13 million households. “That is an extraordinary number and that is still going on today,” said Bishop Zubik. “We can and we must use every means of social communications available to us today: television, radio, Twitter, Facebook, Skype and whatever has evolved since you and I began our meeting this morning. But I believe that it is incumbent on us as bishops and on us as Church to maintain a vital Catholic print presence.”

His remarks were greeted with applause. Bishop Zubik noted that he could not predict whether the printed word would still have the same impact in 20 years, but today, “absolutely and fundamentally the best option ... to evangelize the evangelizers, is through Catholic print.”

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Pope launches Vatican web portal, tweets the news

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI inaugurated the Vatican’s online news portal with a click, and then announced the launch with the first-ever papal tweet.

“Dear Friends, I just launched News.va.

Praised be our Lord Jesus Christ! With my prayers and blessings, Benedictus XVI,” the pope said in his message on the news site’s Twitter account.

His tweet — 117 characters — went viral, and within 24 hours http://twitter.com/ news_va_en had more than 35,000 followers. At the end of three days the follower count stood at more than 65,000.

The pope was flanked by Vatican communications officials as he tapped an iPad and officially launched www.news.va, which aggregates news content from the Vatican’s newspaper, radio, TV and online outlets.

The pontiff was then given a brief tour of the portal’s features. The launch came on the eve of the feast of SS. Peter and Paul and the 60th anniversary of Pope Benedict’s ordination into the priesthood.

Archbishop Claudio Celli, who heads the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, said at a news conference that the site would streamline news from the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano; Vatican Radio; the Vatican television station, CTV; the Vatican Information Service, VIS; the Fides missionary news agency; the Vatican press office; and the main Vatican website.

It offers print, video and audio material in Italian and English. New languages will be added gradually, beginning with Spanish, followed probably by French and Portuguese.

Thaddeus Jones, an official of the pontifical council who coordinated the creation of the portal, said the site gives all the news generated by the various information sources but will highlight the latest most important items of the day.

It features a list of the 10 most-read stories and offers links to many social network sites.

Users can share content through Facebook, Twitter and email, Jones said.

Gustavo Entrala, CEO of 101, the Spanish digital media agency chosen for the technical development of the new site, said it was constructed on a high-end flexible platform that allows millions of people to use it at the same time.

The first big test, said Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, head of the Vatican press office, will be the World Youth Day event in Madrid August 16-21, which will be attended

by Pope Benedict and which is expected to generate heavy traffic to the site.

Costs of the development and maintenance of the site will be borne exclusively through donations from private organizations and foundations, Archbishop Celli said.

It will not be supported at present or in the future by advertising or other commercial initiatives, he said.

While Pope Benedict may not appear to be a media-savvy pontiff, Archbishop Celli said, “in reality, with this pope Vatican communications have made enormous strides.”

The archbishop gave as an example the pope’s reply when his advisers proposed an appearance on YouTube. According to the archbishop, the pope replied, “I want to be present wherever the people are found.”

iPope — Archbishop Claudio Celli, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, assists Pope Benedict XVI with the new Vatican news portal on an iPad at the Vatican recently. The information portal at www.news.va aggregates the Vatican’s various media into a one-stop site for all things papal. (CNS photo/ L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters)

Visit The Anchor online at http://www.anchornews.org

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, July 10, 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Msgr. Gerard P. O’Connor, pastor of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Acushnet

July 8, 2011

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Denver archbishop says Supreme Court is wrong on video game violence

special celebration — Pope Benedict XVI listens as Cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, speaks during Mass on the feast of SS. Peter and Paul in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican June 29. During the liturgy, the pope gave palliums to 41 archbishops from 25 countries.

The Mass also marked the pope’s 60th anniversary as a priest. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Pope marks 60 years as a priest, bestows palliums on archbishops

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Celebrating Mass with archbishops from 25 countries, Pope Benedict XVI reflected on his 60 years as a priest, calling it a demanding and “awe-inspiring” ministry that brought him closer to God. The pope’s unusually personal recollection came June 29, the anniversary of his priestly ordination in Bavaria in 1951 and the feast of SS. Peter and Paul, the patron saints of Rome.

During the three-hour-long Mass, he gave 41 archbishops the woolen pallium as a sign of their communion with the pope and their pastoral responsibility as shepherds. Among them were four prelates from the United States, including Archbishop Jose H. Gomez of Los Angeles, and one from Canada.

The liturgy in St. Peter’s Basilica began with a fanfare of trumpets.

The pope smiled as he processed toward an altar ringed with flowers, pausing to greet a delegations sent by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople.

The pope devoted most of his homily to his 60 years of priestly ministry, and twice he excused himself for perhaps speaking too long about his recollections. He said he felt he had to look back on “the things that have left their mark.” “‘I no longer call you servants, but friends.’ Sixty years on from the day of my priestly ordination, I hear once again deep within me these words of Jesus that were addressed to us new priests at the end of the ordination ceremony by the archbishop, Cardinal Faulhaber, in his slightly frail yet firm voice,” the pope said.

“I knew, at that moment, the Lord Himself was speaking to me in a very personal way,” he said.

The pope said he felt called into the circle of those God knows in a special way, to a friendship that implies responsibilities.

“He trusts me to proclaim His Word, to explain it aright and to bring it to the people of today,” he said.

Pope Benedict said friendship in this sense is about conforming one’s will to God and being prepared to step outside oneself and toward others — moving “beyond the inertia of self-centeredness.”

This calling of the priest to friendship with God is “so aweinspiring that one can feel daunted as the decades go by amid so many experiences of one’s own frailty and his inexhaustible goodness,” he said.

The pope placed the pallium, a stole made from lamb’s wool, around the shoulders of the archbishops as they knelt before him. In his sermon, the pope said the pallium signified the “yoke of friendship with Christ,” the pastoral duty to be a shepherd and communion with the pope.

“It means that we must be shepherds for unity and in unity, and that it is only in the unity represented by Peter that we truly lead people to Christ,” he said.

The pallium is presented every year to new archbishops or those who have been assigned to a new archdiocese. Four new archbishops — including Archbishop Guire Poulard of Port-au-Prince, Haiti — were unable to attend the ceremony and received their palliums at home.

In addition to Archbishop Gomez, those receiving the pallium included Archbishops Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, Gustavo Garcia-Siller of San Antonio, J.

Peter Sartain of Seattle, and Gerald Lacroix of Quebec.

Afterward, at a reception for well-wishers, the U.S. archbishops spoke about the deeper meaning of the Mass. Archbishop Sartain, who came to Rome with nearly 500 pilgrims, said the pallium liturgy was “a wonderful expression of our unity together — first of all with the Holy Father, and through the Holy Father with the apostolic mission of preaching the Gospel everywhere in the world.”

Archbishop Coakley, noting that the pallium is made of wool, said it symbolized a pastoral challenge.

“It’s a sign of the Good Shepherd, being charged with carrying and caring for the sheep, as Christ the Good Shepherd would carry the lost and forsaken sheep to lead them back to the fold,” he said.

“The Lord entrusted care of the flock to Peter — and Peter, today in this ceremony, in a very visible and symbolic way, entrusts to each of us some share of that burden.”

Archbishop Garcia-Siller said the pope’s words rightly underlined the joyful task of building unity in the church, adding: “I hope I will be an instrument of the unity that Jesus wanted.” He said that when the pope laid the pallium on his shoulders, he told the pope of this desire for unity.

“The pope responded, ‘San Antonio, Texas, yes!’ Few words, but very meaningful,” he said.

Speaking at his noon blessing after the Mass, Pope Benedict thanked Catholics around the world for the prayers they offered on the occasion of his 60th anniversary as a priest. At the Vatican’s request, Church communities around the world joined in 60 hours of eucharistic adoration to mark the anniversary.

Denver (CNA/EWTN News) — Denver Archbishop Charles J. Chaput says a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision on video game violence is “wrong,” and will contribute to “poisoning our future.”

In a July 1 column for First Things, Archbishop Chaput wrote that the court’s June 27 ruling “extends and elevates the individual’s right to free expression — or in this case, a corporation’s right to make a healthy profit — at the expense of family sovereignty, the natural rights of parents and the intent of the Constitution’s authors.”

The decision in the case of “Brown vs. EMA” struck down a California law that banned minors from buying or renting violent video games.

Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for the majority, said violent video games deserve First Amendment protection just like books, plays and movies. He wrote that video games should not be included in categories of expression that are excluded from First Amendment protection — namely, obscenity, incitement and fighting words.

But Archbishop Chaput said the ruling overlooked the government’s duty to protect human dignity and the common good. “A law which respects mothers and fathers trying to make good choices for their family does just that,” he wrote.

Archbishop Chaput clarified that he does not believe video games are “bad.” But to allow minors access to violent video games without parental consent, he said, violates natural law and parents’ rights.

Justices Ginsburg, Kagan, Kennedy and Sotamayor joined Scalia in finding California’s law unconstitutional. Justice Alito and Chief Justice Roberts supported the majority opinion, but argued in a differing opinion that violent video games may cause significant social problems because they have a different impact on youth than radio, television or literature.

Archbishop Chaput acknowledged that the court’s affirmation of what lawmakers can and cannot ban is important, in light of some religious teaching being labeled hate speech because of the recent push for gay “marriage.”

But he said the court acted prematurely in its decision to strike down the law, and made “a serious mistake in too quickly lumping violent video games under the same protections given Grimm’s Fairy Tales or network TV.” The archbishop argued that the California law protected parental authority and minors because it “did not preclude parents from buying or renting violent video games for their minor children — if they chose to do so as parents.”

He called attention to Justice Clarence Thomas’ minority opinion, which held that the Constitution’s intended definition of free speech does not include a right of minors to access speech without parental or guardian consent.

Justice Thomas indicated in his dissent that the Founding Fathers supported parents’ complete authority to direct the development of their minor children.

“Video games can simulate, and potentially stimulate, violence in a far more intensely immersive way than traditional media,” Archbishop Chaput noted, citing the opinion of a former army officer and author who once called violent video games “murder simulators.”

The Archbishop of Denver said that Colorado’s 1999 Columbine High School shooting is “indirect but brutally real proof” of his point. He was Archbishop of Denver when the shootings occurred, and said he still remembers visiting with families of victims and “trying to make sense of the violence to the wider community.”

Archbishop Chaput addressed a special session of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation two weeks after the 1999 shootings, saying the violence found in video games has a direct impact on youth and is among the roots of real-life violence.

“Common sense tells us that the violence of our music, our video games, our films, and our television has to go somewhere,” he said at the 1999 session. “It goes straight into the hearts of our children to bear fruit in ways we can’t imagine — until something like (the Columbine shootings) happens.”

Specializing in: Brand Name/ Foreign Auto Parts 1420 Fall River Avenue (Route 6) Seekonk, MA 02771

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Grasping at straws

ith the current state of play. Next year will mark the 25th affairs on the New Eng- anniversary of this phenomenon, land sports scene, I find myself and for the past 24 years, it’s left grasping at straws for things to me shaking my head. Prior to this complain about. But hey, I am a unnatural mingling of the AmeriNew England sports fan, so it’s can and National leagues during not only my right to complain, it’s the regular season, the only time an inherent duty.

I could bemoan the fact that the Red Sox have been playing .500 ball for the last few weeks, but that seems pretty lame considering they’re only

By Dave Jolivet a game-and-a-half behind the first-place Yankees as we go to press today. the designated hitter rule reared There’s not much to yap about its ugly head was during the with the Patriots and the Celtics World Series. Now, the silly rule considering neither may play a established by the A.L. in 1973, game this coming season. And takes center stage a couple of hunthe Bruins? There’s nothing to dred times a year instead of four bat an eyelash at except that they at most. must get Brad Marchand signed.

I don’t consider myself a That being said, I managed to baseball purist. Any changes for rake in a stalk of straw on which the good of the game are OK with to grasp this week. me, but I don’t consider the DH Major League Baseball rean enhancement. cently completed its interleague

My View From the Stands

This week in 50 years ago — Reverend Mother Marie DePiro, resident of Villa Fatima in Taunton, was named vicar general of the Sisters of St. Dorothy. Mother Marie previously served as Provincial of the North American Province of the congregation.

25 years ago — Father Joseph Viveiros, then-director of the diocesan Office of Developmental Disabilities, Fall River, was among delegates from the dioceses of New England who attended the 10th annual Project FAITH seminar. FAITH is an acronym for Franco-American Interest in the Handicapped.

If you ask me (and no one usually does, but that’s no matter), pitchers are athletes, and as a result should actually play the whole game.

At all levels of baseball, from Little League on up through college, the rule of thumb is that a team’s star pitcher or pitchers are usually the most athletic. That means they can usually hurl the horsehide with great skill, and hit the horsehide with great skill. And they can usually play just about any position as well.

But once they hit the pros, pitchers become half the men they used to be. Batting practice for a pitcher largely consists of honing one’s bunting skills.

Since 1973, the American League has done away with such foolishness, and National League pitchers, by and large, are pretty much designated outs. Is this what Abner Doubleday had in mind?

I vote no. If I had my way, I’d have my pitching staff take as much batting practice as my “position” players. I don’t care if that increases the risk of injuries.

Pitchers are baseball players, and playing baseball consists of throwing, catching, hitting, and running — pure and simple.

Can you imagine if Major League pitchers actually went to the plate with a purpose? Can you imagine if any pitcher at bat had the potential for doing damage?

That would be an enhancement.

But no one asked me, and I was just grasping for something to complain about anyway. Let’s see what I can come up with next week. Then I won’t have to worry about it for two weeks as we take our summer break. By the time we come back, I’m sure the Red Sox will provide me with plenty of fodder.

Diocesan history 10 years ago — A new van was purchased and christened for the Bethany House Adult Day Health Care Program and the residents of Marian Manor in Taunton. The purchase of the wheelchair-accessible vehicle was made possible by donations and a grant from the Amelia Peabody Charitable Fund.

One year ago — A funeral Mass was held for 21-year-old Army Specialist Scott A. Andrews at Holy Name Church in Fall River. Andrews, who was serving in Afghanistan, was the second soldier from the city killed in “Operation Enduring Freedom” within two months.

July 8, 2011

Eucharistic Adoration in the Diocese

Acushnet — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. Francis Xavier Parish on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays and Fridays 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Saturdays 8 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays end with Evening Prayer and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.; Saturdays end with Benediction at 2:45 p.m.

ATTLEBORO — St. Joseph Church holds eucharistic adoration in the Adoration Chapel located at the (south) side entrance at 208 South Main Street, Sunday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Brewster — Eucharistic adoration takes place in the La Salette Chapel in the lower level of Our Lady of the Cape Church, 468 Stony Brook Road, on First Fridays following the 11 a.m. Mass until 7:45 a.m. on the First Saturday, concluding with Benediction and Mass. buzzards Bay — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. Margaret Church, 141 Main Street, every first Friday after the 8 a.m. Mass and ending the following day before the 8 a.m. Mass.

East Freetown — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. John Neumann Church every Monday (excluding legal holidays) 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady, Mother of All Nations Chapel. (The base of the bell tower).

East Sandwich — Eucharistic adoration takes place at the Corpus Christi Parish Adoration Chapel, 324 Quaker Meeting House Road, Monday through Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Sunday, 12 p.m. to 9 p.m. Also, 24-hour eucharistic adoration takes place on the First Friday of every month with Benediction at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning.

EAST TAUNTON — Eucharistic adoration takes place in the chapel at Holy Family Parish Center, 438 Middleboro Avenue, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. On First Fridays, eucharistic adoration takes place at Holy Family Church, 370 Middleboro Avenue, following the 8 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 8 p.m.

FAIRHAVEN — St. Mary’s Church, Main St., has eucharistic adoration every Wednesday from 8:30 a.m. to noon in the Chapel of Reconciliation, with Benediction at noon. Also, there is a First Friday Mass each month at 7 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour with eucharistic adoration. Refreshments follow.

Fall River — Espirito Santo Parish, 311 Alden Street, Fall River. Eucharistic adoration on Mondays following the 8:00 a.m. Mass until Rosary and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

FALL RIVER — Notre Dame Church, 529 Eastern Ave., has eucharistic adoration on Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. in the chapel.

FALL RIVER — St. Anthony of the Desert Church, 300 North Eastern Avenue, has eucharistic adoration Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

FALL RIVER — Holy Name Church, 709 Hanover Street, has eucharistic adoration Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the Our Lady of Grace Chapel.

FALL RIVER — Good Shepherd Parish has eucharistic adoration every Friday following the 8 a.m. Mass until 6 p.m. in the Daily Mass Chapel. There is a bilingual Holy Hour in English and Portuguese from 5-6 p.m. Park behind the church and enter the back door of the connector between the church and the rectory.

Falmouth — St. Patrick’s Church has eucharistic adoration each First Friday, following the 9 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 4:30 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 9 a.m.

HYANNIS — A Holy Hour with eucharistic adoration will take place each First Friday at St. Francis Xavier Church, 347 South Street, beginning immediately after the 12:10 p.m. Mass and ending with adoration at 4 p.m.

MASHPEE — Christ the King Parish, Route 151 and Job’s Fishing Road has 8:30 a.m. Mass every First Friday with special intentions for Respect Life, followed by 24 hours of eucharistic adoration in the Chapel, concluding with Benediction Saturday morning followed immediately by an 8:30 Mass.

NEW BEDFORD — Eucharistic adoration takes place 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesdays at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, 233 County Street, with night prayer and Benediction at 8:45 p.m., and Confessions offered during the evening.

NEW BEDFORD — There is a daily holy hour from 5:15-6:15 p.m. Monday through Thursday at St. Anthony of Padua Church, 1359 Acushnet Avenue. It includes adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, Liturgy of the Hours, recitation of the Rosary, and the opportunity for Confession.

NORTH DARTMOUTH — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. Julie Billiart Church, 494 Slocum Road, every Tuesday from 7 to 8 p.m., ending with Benediction. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available at this time.

NORTH DIGHTON — Eucharistic adoration takes place every First Friday at St. Nicholas of Myra Church, 499 Spring Street following the 8 a.m. Mass, ending with Benediction at 6 p.m. The Rosary is recited Monday through Friday from 7:30 to 8 a.m.

OSTERVILLE — Eucharistic adoration takes place at Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 76 Wianno Avenue on First Fridays from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and every Friday from noon to 5 p.m., with Benediction at 5 p.m.

SEEKONK ­— Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish has eucharistic adoration seven days a week, 24 hours a day in the chapel at 984 Taunton Avenue. For information call 508-336-5549.

Taunton — Eucharistic adoration takes place every Tuesday at St. Anthony Church, 126 School Street, following the 8 a.m. Mass with prayers including the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for vocations, concluding at 6 p.m. with Chaplet of St. Anthony and Benediction. Recitation of the Rosary for peace is prayed Monday through Saturday at 7:30 a.m. prior to the 8 a.m. Mass.

WAREHAM — Adoration with opportunities for private and formal prayer is offered on the First Friday of each month from 8:30 a.m. until 8 p.m. at St. Patrick’s Church, High Street. The Prayer Schedule is as follows: 7:30 a.m. the Rosary; 8 a.m.

Mass; 8:30 a.m. exposition and Morning Prayer; 12 p.m. the Angelus; 3 p.m. Divine Mercy Chaplet; 5:30 p.m. Evening Prayer; 7 p.m. Sacrament of Confession; 8 p.m.

Benediction.

WEST HARWICH — Our Lady of Life Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Holy Trinity Parish, 246 Main Street (Rte. 28), holds perpetual eucharistic adoration. We are a regional chapel serving all of the surrounding parishes. All from other parishes are invited to sign up to cover open hours. For open hours, or to sign up call 508-430-4716.

WOODS HOLE — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. Joseph’s Church, 33 Millfield Street, year-round on weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. No adoration on Sundays, Wednesdays, and holidays. For information call 508-274-5435.

July 8, 2011

15

The Anchor

Support increases for single-sex college dorms

By Christine M. Williams Anchor Correspondent

BOSTON — President Theodore Roosevelt once said, “To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society.”

In light of the recent announcement that Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. will eradicate co-ed dorms, locals say Catholic colleges must promote wholesome, chaste relationships among the student population.

They say allowing young men and women to live in the same residence serves the opposite end.

Mark Schwerdt, director of admissions at Thomas More College in Merrimack, N.H., said the school, established in 1978, has always had single-sex dorms.

“So many Catholic colleges simply consider life in the classroom, and life outside of the classroom is just as formative,” he said.

At Thomas More, a school with 85 students, 90 percent of students live on campus. The college, which recently purchased 35 acres in Groton, Mass., plans for the expansion to increase the number of students to 300 but not to change the living arrangements.

Schwerdt pointed out that many students meet their spouses in college and schools must promote healthy relationships. Sex without the benefit of matrimony does not produce relationships that will end in great marriages, he said.

“College is preparation for your career and future definitely, but it’s also preparation for your marriage,” he said. “Catholic colleges should be espousing the truth of the Catholic faith, and it’s very clear that sex before marriage is a sin.”

Single-sex dorms allow students privacy in their own residences and put up an important boundary for acceptable behavior, he added.

In a Washington Post column explaining Catholic University’s change, president John Garvey said the college has a responsibility to its students by educating them on a range of topics, including morality.

“The two most serious ethical challenges college students face are binge drinking and the culture of hooking up,” he said.

Binge drinkers, who represent 40 percent of students, are 25 times as likely to miss class, engage in unplanned sex and get in trouble with the law. Heavy drinking contributes to alcoholrelated accidents — the leading cause of death for young adults aged 17-24, he said.

Casual sex is becoming increasingly common. Garvey cited data obtained by the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia that estimates that 4060 percent of college students are hooking up.

The results of these risky behaviors cause great harm to the students who participate in them and the co-ed population as a whole, he said.

Garvey called his solution “counter cultural,” but backed it up with studies that have shown that students in co-ed dorms have more sexual partners and binge drink twice as often as their single-sex housing counterparts.

A recent study, sponsored by the Cardinal Newman Society, found the same results on Catholic campuses. Binge drinking fuels casual sex, and both behaviors are done more frequently by students in co-ed dorms.

The report, titled “The ‘HookUp’ Culture on Catholic Campuses,” also noted a promising trend — a commitment to chastity on the part of a small band of students.

It cites a men’s group on the campus of Boston College in Newton. Calling themselves the “Sons of St. Patrick,” these young men are seeking to create a brotherhood of Christian men dedicated to leading virtuous lives. They gather weekly to discuss philosophy, literature and God. Father David Frederici, chaplain for Cape Cod Community College, said that many students who participate in the hookup culture feel trapped.

“It can be a very traumatic experience for a young person — that age group when they are making so many decisions on

their own and recognizing that some of their mistakes have huge consequences,” he said.

The students often feel pressure and then regret. Colleges and campus ministry must address the whole student — intellectually, physically, emotionally and sexually. They need to be encouraged to get in the habit of making healthy decisions.

“We do them a great disservice if we wash our hands and say, ‘Well, they’re all adults, they’ll take care of themselves,’” he said.

He added that Catholic ministry to college students needs to raise the bar to their level. The young people should be encouraged to ask challenging questions in order to understand why Church teaching is what it is.

“We have to get more involved and have those conversations at a college level,” he said. “We keep referring back to what we told them when they were in middle school.”

College students need to hear that sex is a beautiful and healthy part of who we are, that it is about intimacy and not only physical contact, and that it is a gift from God to be celebrated and reserved for marriage.

Father Frederici, who attended a secular college himself, called campus ministry at secular schools “vitally important.”

“The one thing that kept me sane in college when I went off for the first time being on my own with all those other pressures of dorm life — sex, drugs, you name it — I was connected to that community around campus ministry.

There were people who shared my vision and values, knew the struggles,” he said. “There was a place where I could be myself, and it was OK.”

iPhones screenshots of the Catholic Mass Times app

Smart phone app helps find Mass times continued from page one

the churches, as well as Confession times, websites, parish staff, bulletins, and phone numbers. An added feature provides users with the saint of the day, daily readings, and daily Mass videos. Users can also bookmark and make personal notes about their favorite churches.

Released in mid-2010, the Catholic Mass Times app was upgraded and improved last November.

As of press time, the iTunes website indicated that users have given the Catholic Mass Times app an average rating of four stars out of a possible five.

Some of the comments included: — “Great app for on the go when you’re out of town and need to go to Mass. Very easy

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to use and downright helpful.”

— “It’s not like you have to get on a plane in order to find this application useful — just driving an hour or so from home and we Catholics are stuck when trying to find a Mass. With links to parish websites and phone numbers this is perhaps one of the most helpful applications I have while on the road. Thank you.”

— “This app makes it easy to find Mass times when on vacation, at work, or anywhere I am away from my home parish. It has saved me numerous phone calls and web searches. It even finds Masses for parishes that don’t appear on a Google Map search.”

— “Thank you from the bottom of my heart! God bless!”

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16

Youth Pages

July 8, 2011

In Spain, pope to hold nine major meetings with young people

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Benedict XVI will preside over nine major events with young people during World Youth Day celebrations in Madrid in August, including a prayer vigil and a closing Mass expected to draw more than a million people.

The pope will hear the confessions of several young people, host a group of youths for lunch and lead a Way of the Cross with young people in central Madrid.

He will also meet with Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and with members of the royal family during his August 18-21 visit.

It will be the third international World Youth Day encounter for the German pope, who met with young people in 2005 in Cologne, Germany, and in 2008 in Sydney.

Here is the schedule for the pope’s trip as released April 18 by the Vatican. Times listed are local, with Eastern Daylight Time in parentheses.

Thursday, August 18 (Rome, Madrid) — 9:30 a.m. (3:30 a.m.), Departure from Rome’s Ciampino airport.

— Noon (6 a.m.), Arrival at Madrid’s Barajas International Airport. Speech by the pope.

— 7:15 p.m. (1:15 p.m.), Walk with several young people at Alcala Gate in Independence Square.

— 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.), Welcoming ceremony with young people in the Plaza de Cibeles. Speech by the pope.

Friday, August 19 (Madrid, San Lorenzo de El Escorial) — 7:30 a.m. (1:30 a.m.), Private Mass in chapel of apostolic nunciature in Madrid.

— 10 a.m. (4 a.m.), Courtesy visit to Spanish King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia at Zarzuela Palace.

— 11:30 a.m. (5:30 a.m.), Meeting with young women religious in the Courtyard of the Kings at San Lorenzo de El Escorial. Greeting by the pope.

— Noon (6 a.m.), Meeting with young university professors in the basilica of San Lorenzo de El Escorial. Speech by the pope.

— 1:45 p.m. (7:45 a.m.), Lunch with young people in the room of the ambassadors at the apostolic nunciature.

— 5:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m.), Official meeting with Zapatero in the apostolic nunciature.

— 7:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m.), Way of the Cross with young people in the Plaza de Cibeles. Speech by the pope.

Saturday, August 20 (Madrid) — 9 a.m. (3 a.m.), Sacrament of penance with several young people in the Jardines del Buen Retiro.

— 10 a.m. (4 a.m.), Mass with seminarians in the Almudena Cathedral. Homily by the pope.

— 12:45 p.m. (6:45 a.m.), Lunch with Spanish cardinals, bishops from Madrid province, auxiliary bishops of Madrid and papal entourage in the cardinal’s residence.

— 5 p.m. (11 a.m.), Meeting with organizing committee of the 26th World Youth Day in the apostolic nunciature.

— 7:40 p.m. (1:40 p.m.), Visit to the Fundacion Instituto San Jose. Speech by the pope.

— 8:30 p.m. (2:30 p.m.), Prayer vigil with young people at Madrid’s Cuatro Vientos Airport. Speech by the pope.

Sunday, August 21 (Madrid, Rome) — 9:30 a.m. (3:30 a.m.), Mass for 26th World Youth Day at Cuatro Vientos Airport. Homily by the pope.

Recital of Angelus, with talk by the pope.

— 12:45 p.m. (6:45 a.m.), Lunch with Spanish cardinals and papal entourage in apostolic nunciature.

— 5 p.m. (11 a.m.), Departure from apostolic nunciature.

— 5:30 p.m. (11:30 a.m.), Meeting with World Youth Day volunteers at Pavilion 9 of the new Feria de Madrid. Speech by the pope.

— 6:30 p.m. (12:30 p.m.), Departure ceremony at Barajas International Airport. Speech by the pope.

— 7 p.m. (1 p.m.), Departure from Madrid’s Barajas International Airport.

— 9:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m.), Arrival at Rome’s Ciampino airport.

the holy sÍ — Pilgrims from Spain cheer during one of Pope Benedict XVI’s general audiences in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. The banner says “Yes, Yes, Yes. The pope goes to Madrid.” The pope and tens of thousands of young people will travel to Madrid next month for World Youth Day. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

World Youth Day registration high; many want to volunteer

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Organizers of this year’s World Youth Day say that the figures for registration and requests to volunteer are higher than ever and augur well for a successful and joyful gathering in Madrid in August.

Pope Benedict XVI is scheduled to attend the event and organizers said they expect more than one million young pilgrims to join him.

Cardinal Stanislaw Rylko, who leads the Vatican agency organizing the huge event, said that some 440,000 young people had already signed up, a record number for registrations with the event still six weeks away.

More than 35,000 young Catholics have applied for one of 22,500 places in the vast volunteer corps, he said.

At a news conference at the Vatican recently, Cardinal Rylko said that every World Youth Day is “an extraordinary experience for a Church that is a friend of young people, close to them with their problems” and is able to transmit “enthusiasm and missionary zeal.” Young people, especially in increasingly secular Europe, “have a particular

need for all of this,” he said.

In fact, he said, Pope Benedict chose the Spanish capital for the August 16-21 event because of the specific need of Europe to rediscover its Christian roots and because of his conviction that young people are the most effective evangelizers.

The pope will spend August 18-21 in Madrid, meeting with the young people several times and even hearing the confessions of some of them. The sight of young people going to confession in fields and tents has been a standard part of World Youth Day gatherings, but the Madrid celebration will mark the first time the pope himself will administer the Sacrament at the event.

Yago de la Cierva, executive director of World Youth Day, said that the organization was proceeding on time and that an efficient and widespread network among parishes and other Church institutions in Madrid was contributing to the good pace of preparation.

The work of volunteers, he said, was the key ingredient in making the whole event successful.

De la Cierva said the Spanish government and local authorities were providing logistical help, certain venues and some tax breaks to companies working on the organization, but that no direct financial contribution had come from the public sector. While the total cost is expected to run up to 62 million euros ($89 million), de la Cierva said it was expected to generate 100 million euros for Madrid and Spain.

Organizers also are asking the youthful participants to contribute, if they can, to help out their peers who otherwise would not be able to attend for financial reasons, de la Cierva said.

Cardinal Rylko said that one of the “strong points” of the gathering was the opportunity for youth to hear catechesis, and that some 260 bishops would be offering sessions in several different areas of the city in 30 languages. He said he hoped the nearly 14,000 priests expected would take advantage of the opportunity to learn and absorb some of the various lessons for use back in their home parishes.

Youth Pages

July 8, 2011

O

ne of the best parts of summer vacation for me is the ability to go to daily Mass. Too often, we take our participation in Mass for granted. Too many people are merely spectators perhaps mistakenly thinking that attendance and participation are synonymous.

They aren’t. As I often remind my students, Catholicism is not a spectator sport!

One of the seven precepts of the Catholic Church is to worship God by participation in Mass every Sunday and holy day of obligation. The precept is not to just show up, although that is certainly a prerequisite. It is our duty to worship God through active participation in the Mass.

But it isn’t just a duty. It’s a grace, a blessing, an incredible opportunity to share in the source and summit of our faith!

At Mass, we are able to offer the most efficacious prayer there is for whatever intention we choose. We are able to have

Where heaven and earth meet

are at the foot of the cross, and our venial sins forgiven so that we may better be able to praise Christ is re-offering Himself God. We hear the Word of God proclaimed so that, like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, our hearts, too, may burn within us. We join with

By Jean Revil the entire community in professing our faith and in praying for one another and for the needs of the for us, for our redemption, for world. And we offer all that we our salvation. This is happening every day, sometimes multiple are, along with the bread and times a day, 364 days of the the wine, invoking the Holy year — every day except Good Spirit to change them, and us, Friday — on altars throughout into the Body and Blood of the world. How is it that people Christ. can say “I just don’t get anyKneeling before the altar, thing out of the Mass?” Are you if we are truly present, we kidding me? become aware that the fabric And then, Christ calls us in of time has opened, and that even deeper by offering to be our the sacrifice of Christ, offered food. We are allowed to receive at Golgatha on the cross, is Christ, Body, Blood, soul and being offered again and we are divinity, into our very bodies. invited to become part of it.

We cannot be left unchanged by At this altar, heaven and earth such an encounter. It would seem meet and time melts away. We

Be Not Afraid

board members — The third-graders at St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro recently designed their own board games based on the game Monopoly. The students had to build their game around a famous Massachusetts hero. They had to use all elements of a community including a hospital, restaurants, police stations and even recess and detention. Shown here are Elyse LaParle, Isabella Simoneau, Mary Davis and Morgan Gayton who created “Samsonopoly” based on Deborah “Robert” Samson. She is the Massachusetts heroine who disguised herself as a man and fought in the Revolutionary War.

bath time — The Class of 2012 at Holy Name School in Fall River recently started earning money for its eighth-grade class trip. The entire class arrived at school ready to wash as many cars as possible. The day was an ideal one, the cars numerous, the work fun and the profit higher than hoped. Here, some of the students are hard at work.

17 to me that the greater our awareness of and hunger for Christ in the Eucharist, the more profound our encounter would be. But that might be giving ourselves too much credit. Who can say what God will do, or to whom, or when, or how deep the impact of transformation may be?

I only know that I want to be present and available to Christ in the Eucharist and to the working of the Holy Spirit. Participating in Mass every day is the best way to do it.

Jean Revil teaches theology and is campus minister at Bishop Stang High School.

Comments welcome at: jrevil@bishopStang.com

The Anchor is always pleased to run news and photos about our diocesan youth.

If schools or parish Religious Education programs, have newsworthy stories and photos they would like to share with our readers, send them to: schools@anchornews.org

day of celebration — Students from Holy Trinity School in Fall River recently gathered outside for a special prayer service and crowning of an outdoor statue of Our Lady. Students were then transported to St. Mary’s Cathedral for Mass which observed Father David M. Andrade’s 25th anniversary as a priest. The day helped students to reflect upon what it means to “say yes to God,” how we are each called to serve others and how we can deepen our appreciation of the beautiful gift of the ministerial priesthood.

18

The Anchor

July 8, 2011

Appeal brings in $4.2 million

U.S. bishops release new marriage videos

probably hard to fathom for those who haven’t followed the results of the Appeal in past years, but the generosity of the parishioners from across the diocese has been the hallmark of this wonderful venture,” continued Donly. “When you consider the state of the economy nationally, and the fact that the two major cities of our diocese, Fall River and New Bedford, have unemployment rates of 17 and 18 percent respectively, the success of this year’s Appeal is even more significant but not surprising.

“Our faith in the generosity of the approximately 30,000 parishioners, friends, and businesses that contribute is based on many years of witnessing their selflessness in sharing with those in need.”

The parish results were similar all across the diocese, with 50 of the 90 parishes exceeding last year’s totals, 12 of them experiencing double digit increases with a few notable extremes: St. Mary’s in Norton had an increase of more than 40 percent,

be lost on recent generations as evidenced during focus groups when the question of the importance of sexual difference in a marriage elicited silence from many participants, said Lichtenwalner.

“For many of our young adults, they may not have considered sexual difference; it may not be on their radar,” he said.

“For others, though, and this came up in the focus groups, there may be a little bit more of a negative reaction. There may already be an inbuilt prejudice towards discussing the topic of difference.”

“The sexual difference between man and woman are fundamental to human experience,” said Lichtenwalner. “It’s one of those things that we don’t necessarily reflect on a lot because we live it out. The problem in our culture today is we’ve continued to move it to the side, so now we have to go back into our fundamental experience on how foundational sexual difference is to a lot of different areas, most especially marriage.”

So the committee went to work creating a video series with strong images, good visuals and stories, and used real-life interviews that touch on people’s experiences, thoughts and values of marriage. The foundational idea of marriage being between a man and a woman is powerfully enforced in the second video, “Made for Life,” a video that focuses on the indispensable place the mother and father of a child have not only for conception, but also in raising a child.

continued from page one

St. Margaret’s in Buzzards Bay had an astounding 67 percent increase, with Corpus Christi Parish in East Sandwich having an increase of more than 28 percent. St. Nicholas of Myra Parish in North Dighton showed a 21 percent jump in revenue, Our Lady of Fatima in New Bedford had a better than 16 percent increase, and Good Shepherd on Martha’s Vineyard was more than 15 percent. St. Lawrence Martyr Parish in New Bedford, due to a one time anonymous gift, had a jump of nearly 200 percent.

The annual Appeal is the only time the Diocese of Fall River asks its parishioners and friends to assist in meeting the needs of those it ministers to through its various agencies and apostolates. The fact that 94 cents of every dollar donated goes directly to ministering to those who approach these agencies and apostolates for assistance is one of the benchmarks to which the Appeal measures itself and strives to maintain every year.

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In Your Prayers Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks July 10 Rev. Pie Marie Berard, O.P., Dominican Priory, Fall River, 1938 Rev. Maurice E. Parent, Assistant, St. Michael, Swansea, 1972 Rev. John E. Morris, M.M., Retired Maryknoll Missioner, Former Assistant, St. Joseph, Fall River, 1987 Rev. Theodore M. Morin, M.S., La Salette Shrine, North Attleboro, 1987 July 12 Most Rev. Joseph P. Delaney, Bishop of Fort Worth, Texas, 2005 July 13 Rev. Arthur P. Deneault, M.S., La Salette Father, 1979 July 14 Rev. Nicholas Fett, SS.CC., Pastor, St. Boniface, New Bedford, 1938 Rev. Edmund J. Neenan, Assistant, Sacred Heart, Oak Bluffs, 1949 Rev. Vincent F. Diaferio, Pastor, Holy Rosary, Fall River, 1998

Children born from the union of a man and a woman are part of an “anthropology that drives and connects everything together. It’s the missing piece in the conversation today on marriage.

It goes right to the heart of what marriage is about,” said Lichtenwalner. “We return to sexual difference, reaffirming that it’s this anthropological foundation that makes clear that marriage is made for life, that it’s made for life because only a man and a woman can unite in a way that is best to create life.”

That message that the union of marriage is solely between a man and woman is found in the artwork chosen to represent the logo of the series. A mosaic done by well-known artist Rather Marko Rupnik featuring the parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the image of Joachim and Anne holds a deeper meaning than most may think, said Lichtenwalner, adding the importance of the image and its impact on the course of Christianity and the Catholic religion is too significant to be ignored.

“I think it’s a very beautiful one. It focuses on Joachim and Anne and the fruitfulness of their marriage, the fruit that comes forth from their marriage; being open to God’s grace and the Holy Spirit,” he said. “That image shows the beauty of man and woman together in marriage and how that union opened up to unparalleled fruitfulness in Mary and the consequences of salvation in history. It brings out the beauty of life and the oneflesh union that is so interconnected in marriage. Everything is wrapped in that image.”

Feedback from those who have viewed the first video has been positive. During a conference of the National Association of Catholic Family Life Ministers, the director of the Faith Formation Office of the Fall River Diocese, Claire McManus said she thought the video was professionally done and hopes it will help be a tool to initiate conversations among the young adults within the diocese.

“At that age, you could have a conversation about why the Church feels the need to do this and openly talk about what is going on in society right now,” she said. “Then use it as a springboard for teaching the Church’s message on marriage.”

Lichtenwalner said the committee used the ideals of Pope John Paul II as part of the process when creating the videos.

“Time and time again, John Paul II gave examples of saying the youth is our future; the

message is presented in a way that can be attractive for our young people,” said Lichtenwalner, adding the video viewer guides that come with the series were “envisioned as a tool to be used primarily by those teaching but also something that can be shared in groups of young adults in a ministry setting, as well as a broader audience.”

Three more videos are to be released, with a Spanish-speaking video to be released later this year. A comprehensive video incorporating all four Englishspeaking videos, the Spanishspeaking video will add a cultural sensitivity to embrace the strong sense of la familia and other unique needs found in the Hispanic community, said Lichtenwalner.

Early next year, the third English-speaking video will be released and will focus on the public arguments made today in favor of redefining marriage, said Lichtenwalner, that “often don’t involve marriage at all. They are on topics of rights, equality, nondiscrimination — those are all important principles in a general sense that the Church teaches about, but they’ve been kind of taken out of context.”

The last video will focus on the theme of religious liberty and the implications of redefining marriage for religious liberties.

These videos are targeted to “those who are more receptive to the Church’s teaching” said Lichtenwalner. “We have such a richness in the Church’s teachings. In light of the challenges of marriage today, there is so much that needs to be done in getting these basic concepts out and assisting people in getting the word out that’s charitable, loving and with a confidence in doing it.”

“I think it’s a good effort,” said McManus. “I think there are so many different angles that we need to approach marriage and changing the hearts and minds of people, that they understand the Church’s stand on marriage.

I think this is a very good campaign but it is a small ripple. I think the best way for people to embrace the Church’s teachings is through their own discipleship, that they raise their family in a good Christian household.”

“The whole project is infused with the message that when you’re holding up the good of a marriage, you’re holding up the good of all people,” said Lichtenwalner.

To view the videos and read the supplementary viewer’s guides, go to www. marriageuniqueforareason.org

Riley J. Williams to be ordained tomorrow continued from page one

ers from his home diocese with helping him to discern Christ’s calling — particularly the staff and faculty at the Catholic schools he attended.

“One of the biggest influences was my time at St. Francis Xavier Preparatory School in Hyannis,” he said. “There, the daily exposure to the faith, as well as the interaction of the parish clergy with the students, planted some of the first seeds which made me consider following such a way of life.

“The faith life at my home parish of Our Lady of the Assumption in Osterville was also important, not only in providing a good foundation for discernment, but also for the encour-

agement I have received along the way.”

Rev. Mr. Williams said his years at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth helped to cultivate those seeds of faith into a fully-matured calling to the priesthood.

“Stang provided a great example and a constant reminder to consider a vocation,” he said.

“Along with this came the encouragement I received from many of them to pursue becoming a seminarian.”

Expressing pride at the idea of joining the ranks of his brother priests, Rev. Mr. Williams said he’s had many key role models to follow over the years.

“Certainly my pastors, first

Around the Diocese 7/8

An Ordination Vigil will be held tonight from 6 to 7 p.m. at Our Lady of the Assumption Parish in Osterville in anticipation of the ordination of Rev. Mr. Riley J. Williams tomorrow at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River.

7/9

Our Lady of the Cape Parish, 468 Stony Brook Road, Brewster, will host its annual Summer Fair tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The fair will offer jewelry, attic treasures, collectibles, crafts, books, toys, art work, baked goods, vintage linens and tools for sale, along with a cash raffle and snacks at the cafe or lunch at an outdoor barbecue.

7/13

An all-you-can-eat Chowder Fest will be held at St. Elizabeth’s Parish, 481 Quaker Road, North Falmouth, on July 13 from 5 to 7:30 p.m. Clam cakes, clam chowder (white and red) along with corn bread will be served with lemonade and watermelon. Kids meals will available. The event is sponsored by the parish Men’s Club and members will be selling tickets after Masses to support its scholarship program and activities. Tickets are also available at the rectory, Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

7/14

The diocesan Divorced and Separated Support Group will continue its series on “Marriage Breakdown” on July 14 with the screening of the video “The Church and Marriage Crises” beginning at 7 p.m. inside the parish center of St. Julie Billiart Church, 494 Slocum Road, North Dartmouth. Parking is available on the left side of the church and discussion will follow the video.

7/14

The second talk in the three-speaker Summer Catholic Reflections series at Christ the King Parish in Mashpee will take place on July 14 beginning at 7 p.m. Dr. Thomas Groome will discuss “What Keeps Us Catholic.” Dr. Groome is chairman of the Institute for Religious Education and Pastoral Ministry and is a professor of theology and Religious Education at Boston College. The series is co-sponsored by St. Anthony’s Parish, East Falmouth; Our Lady of Victory Parish, Centerville; and Christ The King Parish, Mashpee.

7/15

St. John of God Parish in Somerset will hold its annual feast July 15-17 featuring booths, games, music, and great Portuguese food. Friday and Saturday’s hours are 5:30 to 11 p.m., and Sunday is 3 to 11 p.m. The annual parish procession will take place on the Sunday at 3 p.m.

7/16

Internationally acclaimed Irish Tenor Mark Forrest will return to Corpus Christi Parish, East Sandwich, on July 16 at 7:30 p.m. for a Eucharistic Night of Prayer. This unique hour-and-a-half program includes eucharistic adoration, music, meditations, and quiet time in prayer. Don’t miss this extraordinary opportunity to reflect and draw closer to Our Lord. For more information contact Maureen O’Brien at 508-888-2740.

7/17

Mark Forrest, acclaimed Irish tenor whose melodic voice has filled concert halls and cathedrals from Carnegie Hall to the Vatican, will perform a concert at St. Elizabeth Seton Parish, North Falmouth, on July 17 at 7 p.m. Forrest has sung inspirational hymns for luminaries such as Blessed Pope John Paul II and Blessed Mother Teresa.

His soothing Broadway melodies have entertained award-winning performers.

For tickets or more information call Pat Stone at 508-563-7770.

7/23

Courage, a welcoming support group for Catholics wounded by same-sex attraction who gather to seek God’s wisdom, mercy and love, will next meet on July 23 at 7 p.m. For location information call Father Richard Wilson at 508-992-9408.

8/6

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July 8, 2011

Father Roger J. Landry will lead a comprehensive introduction to Blessed Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body on August 6 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Holy Family Parish Center, 438 Middleboro Avenue, East Taunton. To register email imagodeihfp@gmail.com or call 508-538-1TOB (1862).

Father Thomas L. Rita and now Father Philip A. Davignon, have been great role models,” he said.

“Also, Father Roger Nolette, O.S.B., who was in residence at my home parish while helping at the hospital. The priests at St. Francis [Xavier in Hyannis] — in particular Father Edward Byington and Father Thomas Kocik — also served as examples and influences as I began and progressed in my discernment.”

While the notion of answering a religious vocation is sometimes viewed as a solitary experience, Rev. Mr. Williams said he’s found the opposite to be true.

“One of the high points for me has been meeting others following the same path,” he said. “School was just a part of seminary; some of the most important growth, and best helps, came from the friendships I’ve made along the way. Even more important, though, has been my greater realization of the Lord’s working in my own life: calling

me to holiness as well as being called to help others along the same path.”

After his ordination tomorrow, during which he will be vested by his pastor, Father Philip A. Davignon, Rev. Mr. Williams will be celebrating his first Mass at his home parish of Our Lady of the Assumption in Osterville on Sunday at 12 noon.

“Everyone at my parish has been very encouraging to me all throughout my discernment, so it’s important to me to celebrate my first Mass there,” he said.

The homilist will be Father Edward J. Byington, who founded St. Francis Xavier Preparatory School and who has been very supportive of Rev. Mr. Williams over the years.

As the only priest to be ordained from the diocese within two years and with the ongoing shortage of priests, the importance of his answering God’s call isn’t lost on Rev. Mr. Williams and he’s confident others will follow in his footsteps with a little guidance.

“While prayer is the obvi-

ous first step, I think we must be responsive to the other ways in which God’s grace is calling us to promote vocations: for priests, religious, and laity to realize the impact their invitation to consider responding to a vocation can have, as well as encouraging those who are already thinking about a vocation,” he said. “I don’t think that there is a vocations crisis, so much as a crisis in encouraging people to respond to the call. While it can be difficult to discern and respond to on your own, we as Church can do much more to create a climate of receptivity to it.”

To that end, Rev. Mr. Williams said he’s thankful for all the “support I’ve received from so many people” over the past eight years and he appreciates all the people in the diocese who have been “a continual source of encouragement” in his own vocation.

Rev. Mr. Riley J. Williams will be ordained as a priest of the Fall River Diocese by Bishop George W. Coleman tomorrow at 11 a.m. inside St. Mary’s Cathedral. The public is invited.

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The Anchor

July 8, 2011

Vacation Time

Please note that The Anchor will not publish July 22 and 29. It will return to your mailbox on August 5. The office will be closed from July 16 through July 24.

Photo by Emilie Jolivet

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