FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ~SLANDS
·t eanc 0 VOL. 27, NO. 29
FALL RIVER, MASS., FRiDAY, JULY 29, 1983
$8 Per Year
Hispanic
pastoral
draft
,
By Liz Sehevtehuk
/
WASHINGTON (NC) - The National Conference of Catholic Bishops Ad Hoc Committee for Hispanic Affairs has prepared the first draft oli a new pastoral letter on Hispanic ministry with in the U.5'. Church. Called "The Hispanic Pres ence: Challenge and Commit ment," the 7,500·word document was prepared by a Hispanic Af· fairs subcommiuee, chaired by Bishop Ricardo Ramirez of Las Cruces, N.M. The U.S. bishops called for the draft at their general meeting in Washington in November 1982. A second draft, based on the reaction to the first draft. ils expected to be considered by the bishops at their Nov. 14 to 17 general meet· ing.
FATHER HERBERT T. NICHOLS, associate pastor at 81. Joseph's parish, Taunton~ designed this bumper; sticker and is distributing it as his personal Holy Year project. Combined with the· young priest's license plate, it packs a pow,erfun message. (Rosa Photo)
Central America hot By Agostino BODO WASHINGTON (NC) - Presi dent Reagan continues to attract controversy by his Central Am erican policies, even in his ef forts to gain more public sup port. A case in point ,was his forma tion of a bipartisan commission to revaluate the policy and sug gest changes. Reagan hopes this approach will receive more sup-
port in Congress, where his aid requests are being cut by critics, and that such congressional sup port will help shape a national consensus. But his choice' of Henry Kiss inger, former secretary of state, to head the bipartisan group brought criticism from congress ional liberals, who hold Kissinger responsible for the 1973 over throw of Chile's Marxist presi
dent and conservatives, who said the Soviet Union was al lowed to expand its wOrld'influ ence while Kissinger was part of the Nixon and Ford administra tions. Another controversy arose when media, citing unnamed ad ministration officials, said Car dinal Terence Cooke of New York would be a commission member. Cardinal Cooke respon·
• ISSUe
ded by issuing a public state· ment July 19, prior to the nam ing of the remaining commission members, asking that he not be named. Later, on July 22, U.S. Catholic Conference president, A~ch· bishop John R. Roach of St. Paul Minneapolis, issued' a statement criticizing Reagan's Central Am· erican policy and asking the ad· Tum to Page Six
Diocese at NFP Washington parley
By James B. BUrke WASHINGTON(NC) - The marital values connected with natural family planning should be 'tau~ht along with its tech niques, speakers' stressed at a confereJ1ce on natural methods of regulating birth. The National Meeting and Working Conference on Natural
Family Planning, held at the Catholic University of America July 17-21, was the first national gathering of diocesan coordina tors of natural family planning. Among coordinators present was Sister Lucille Levasseur, SMSM, of the Fall River Diocesan Off ice of Family Ministry. One conference organizer de
scribed the gathering as a "new address at the conference. constituency" in the American "It involves a fundamental ap church. proach to human sexuality that Experts on natural family places conjugal intimacy in the planning· told the conference to . larger context of marital rights and responsibilities," he said. expect it to renew family life. The cardinal urged diocesan Natural family planning is coordinators to work toward a "not simply another method of "positive, strengthening apbirth control," Cardinal Terence Turn to Page Six Cooke of New York said in an
"We commit ourselves to en gage in a thorough, conscien· tious and long·standing pastoral effort to enhance the catholicity of the church and the dignity 9f all its members," the bishops said in the document. Among the actions they suo gest are "greater study of His panic prayer forms and greater use ot Spanish in the liturgy;" Spanish language classes for priests; Spanish catechesis pro· gramS; Bible study for Hispanics; more work by parishes and dio ceses to assist migrant workers and others; better pastoral out· reach to Hispanic families; at tention to the comunidades eclesiaes de base (basic ecclesial communities); and integration of Hispanic ministry efforts with social justice' programs. The document states that "Hispanics are challenging all of us to be more fully "catholic" and to, be "n truly universal Church, a Church with open arms which welcomes different ex· pressions o'f our 'one Lord, one faith, one· baptism. one God and Father of all.' " "We urge all U.S. Catholics to explore creative possibilities in responding innovatiyely, flexi bly and immediately'to the His· panic presence," Ute bishops wrote. "Hispanics apd non·His· panics should worf' together. teach and le&m from one an other. and together evangelize in the fullest anell broadest sense c~ the word."