t eanc 0 VOL. 40, NO. 41
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Friday, October 25, 1996
FALL RIVER, MASS.
FALL RIVER DIOCESAN NEWSPAPER FOR SOUTHEAST MASSACHUSETTS CAPE COD & THE ISLANDS Southeastern Massachusetts' Largest Weekly
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$13 Per Year
Migration Mass set for Oct. 27
Immigra.nt advocates call for understanding By Dave Jolivet Anchor Staff A group of 98 people from the Fall River Diocese was among thousands who joined the March for Justice in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 12. Edwin Aldarondo, Hispanic advocate, basic needs, Joseph Andrade, community organizer, basic needs, from the New Bedford office of Diocesan Cath'olic Social Services, and Frank HoIland, coordinator of the Immigration Law Education and Advocacy Project in the Fall River/New Bedford offices, led the contingent, consisting mostly of Hispanic youths from the Fall River/ New Bedford area. "The purpose of th'c march was to raise our voice to protect the poor in this country," said Aldarondo. "It was a human rights movement and an immigrants rights movement." The mar~h was organized by Coordinadora '96, a newly created group based in Los Angeles made up of a large number of small Latino a.ctivist organizations throughout the U. S. "The Washington residents along the route were very supportive," said Andrade. "It was great to see the unity for one cause." The Personal Responsibility and Work Reconciliation Act of 1996, H R-3734, signed by President Clinton on Aug. 22, cut a number of services to immigrants. Some of the changes included: Current and fUlul'(' legal immigrants are barred from receiving SSI and Food Stamps until they become citizens. . States will be prohibited from
providing aid undl!r the AFDC program and from using TANF block grant funds to.aid most legal immigrants who enter the country on or after the dqte the bill is enacted. The same rules apply to the Medicaid program. Aldarondo feels that the march had an impact on President Clinton and he noted that the president has indicated that he will consider amending some of the changes affecting immigrants. "Some of' the laws haven't even been enacted yet, and already people in the Fall River Diocese are feeling the effects at the local CSS food pantries," said Aldarondo. There are many immigrants in the diocese who will' be affected by welfare reform. "The need is great right now for the diocesan community to help our brothers and sisters in' need," said Andrade. "CSS helps anyone who comes to our doors, and I would .like to stress that parishes throughout the diocese can help a great deal by raising funds for food for these people." Holland added that ther'e is a lot of anti-immigrant sentiment in this country, including within the diocese. "The people of Latin America have made a strong contributjon to this country," he said. Not only are immigrants fighting a battle against discrimination and racism, there is also a battle to , fight· against misiMormation. A document released by the United States Catholic Conference (USCC) attempts to clear up some of these misconceptions. According to it, undocumented "illegal;' immigrants
constitute only one to 1.5 percent' of the total U.S. population; over 85 percent of immigrants come to this country legally, with 8 of II joining close family members already living here; undocumented immigrants pay $7 billion per year in taxes and legal immigrants pay an additional $63.3 billion, while the combined group receives only $42.9 billion in services such as education and public assistance; only two percent 'of working-age immigrants receive welfare, compared with 3.7 percent of workingage native-born Americans. Both Alda.rondo and Holland see a need for people within the diocese to consider how immigrants are treated, and to stand up for them. "We need to come together and live the Catholic doctrine of being one body," said Aldarondo. "The immigrant population should' be able to see that the Catholic Church is stilllding up for them," declared Holland.
MIGRATION MASS OCT. 27 The annual Diocesan Migration Mass will be celebrated by Bishop Sean O'Malley, OFM, Cap., at Bishop Connolly High School, 373 Elsbree St., Fall River, on Oct. 27 at' 2:30 p.m. The liturgy will be followed by ethnic entertainment and a sampling of pastries from countries throughout the world. There is no charge for the program. Father John Oliveira, diocesan coordinator of National Migration Week and pastor of St. John the Baptist parish, New Bedford, noted that the thenle of this year's celeTurn to Page 13
NEARLY 100 people from the Fall River Diocese attended a March For Justice in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 12. The march was held to call attention to the needs of the poor in this country and also the plight ofthe immigrants who face a battle with discrimination, racism and misconceptions. (Photo courtesy of Edwin Aldarondo)
THE 100th anniversary of St. Kilian's parish, New Bedford, will be commemorated with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Sean O'Malley, OFM, Cap. on Oct. 27 at 10:30 a.m. (Anchor file photo)
St. Kilian parish celebrates 100 years By Christine Vieira Mills Anchor staff It was the time of horses and carriages, cobblestone streets, long ·swishing dresses and parasols. It was 1896, before the technological explosion of the Industrial Revolution and just about the time that the Catholic population in what would later become the Fall River diocese was beginning to swell and to burst the seams of its churches. It was a time when Most, Rev. Matthew Harkins, then the bishop of Providence, still cradled the Fall River diocese-to-be. He appointed Rev. James J .. Brady to pastor the new St. Kilian's Church, founded to re.duce the pressure on overcrowded SI. Lawrence Church, also in New Bedford. Father Brady served 100 families from Fairhaven to Lakeville and offered Mass in such places as the Guard of Honor Hall in Weld Square and the Federation Hall until September 5, 1897, when St. Kilian's basement was ready for use. This Sunday, Bishop Sean O'Malley, OFM, Cap., will help the small parish, that now has 325 families, mark its 100th anniversary as he celebrates 10:30 a.m. Mass in their beautiful church. The history of St. Kilian's par-
ish is one of untiring persistence, of buildings raised and razed, of true dedication and support by parishioners. Father Brady, an Irishman by birth, who was its pastor for its first 36 years, na'l1ed the parish in memory of an Irish bishop martyred while preaching the Gospel in Germany. True to his heritage, he held many important parish events, such as major land purchases and ground breakings on March 17, St. Patrick's Day. The upper church superstructure was opened November 6, 1927, after 31 years of construction, and was dedicated on that day by Bishop Daniel F. Feehan, Fall River's second bishop. Throughout the years, fundraisers, including a War Bond campaign in 1945, kept the church refurbished and repaired. Its granite 135-foot spire houses a white 'marble statue of its patron saint in an exterior niche. Inside there is a white marble altar guarded by relief statues of angels. Side altars are dedicated to the Sacred Heart, St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin. The mahogany pews accommodate 1,500 worshipers in a church often flooded by sunlight through its large stained glass windows. A Turn to Page 13