Anchor 01.22.10

Diocese of Fall River

The Anchor

F riday , January 22, 2010

Signs of hope one decade into the new millennium

By Dave Jolivet, Editor

FALL RIVER — For many it seems like it was only yesterday that we were awaiting the dawn of a new millennium. Some were very nervous for its arrival — would Y2K bugs cripple computer systems and shut down airports, banks and utilities? Would we be able to recover from such a catastrophe?

Others viewed the arrival of the year 2000 with rose-colored glasses — seeing it as the beginning of a new era in history, one in which we could learn from past mistakes and build on present successes.

The Catholic Church was no different. She was still very much in the throes of the clergy sex-abuse scandals that would eventually rock it to the core. But there was hope for the future, with her leader, Pope John Paul II, declaring the year a jubilee for the Church and her

people.

This, however, wasn’t yesterday.

Amazingly to most, we are already 10 years into the 21st century. There were no major computer glitches to resolve, life carried on as usual.

Great strides have been made, as have great mistakes — in all walks of life. And the Catholic Church faithfully continues the mission set out for her by Jesus Christ more than 2,000 years ago. She continues to learn and make amends for past mistakes, and also strives to bring the Good News to all corners of the earth, utilizing modern communication technologies and methods.

Several priests of the Fall River Diocese were blessed to have been ordained in that historic year of 2000, including Msgr. Gerard P. O’Connor, pastor of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Acushnet, and FaTurn to page 18

Diocesan collection for Haiti is January 24-25, 30-31 FALL RIVER — Bishop George W. Coleman has authorized a second collection to be taken up at parish Masses throughout the Fall River Diocese to support relief efforts in Haiti after January 12’s powerful earthquake ravaged the impoverished nation, claiming a staggering number of lives and causing almost incomprehensible damage.

The bishop has asked that parishes take up the collection either the weekend of January 23-24 or January 30-31.

In the wake of this tragedy, Bishop Coleman has encouraged all to continue to pray for the suffering people of Haiti and to remember those who perished.

Proceeds from the diocesan collection will support the efforts of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic Church, as they respond to immediate emergency needs for such necessities as water, food, shelter, and medical care, as well as to the long term need to rebuild after widespread destruction, and to the pastoral and reconstruction needs of the Church in Haiti.

CRS has worked in Haiti for more than 50 years and has offices and programs in place.

Donations to the collection can also be sent directly to the Fall River Diocese at PO Box 2577, Fall River, Mass., 02722.

Please mark “Haiti Relief’ in the memo section of the check.

People can also donate directly with a credit card at crs.org.

a sickening sight — Vandals spray-painted a Nazi swastika with the message “we’re back” on the side door to St. Kilian’s Church in New Bedford recently. (Photo by Kenneth J. Souza)

New Bedford church and rectory vandalized

By Kenneth J. Souza Anchor Staff NEW BEDFORD —Brazen acts of vandalism against a New Bedford church last month are being treated as a potential hate crime by

local authorities.

Father Hugo Cardenas, IVE, pastor of St. Kilian’s Parish, filed an incident report December 10 with the New Bedford Police Department afTurn to page 15

A new evangelization looks to bring lost Catholics home

By Deacon James N. Dunbar FALL RIVER — They have many titles, for instance — “Catholics Returning Home,” “Catholics Come Home,” and “Return to Me With All Your Heart.”

Yet all the new evangelization outreach programs underway in several dioceses and archdioceses — as well as Christ the King Parish in Mashpee — have a similar goal: to reach out to Catholics who have drifted away from the practice of the faith, and lead them back to Christ and his Church.

And while the faith initiatives

place their hope and strength in the powerful action of the Holy Spirit, they also point up the need on the human plane for prayerful

action by clergy and laity in meeting their baptismal responsibilities to Jesus to be his prophets, priests and kings.

“There’s so much going on

among diocesan ecclesial and parish groups and Catholic agencies in regard to this Year of Evangelization [in Rhode Island] that began last October, and while it is not headline material, it is wonderful and doing God’s work,” reported William Patenaude, chairman of the Diocesan Evangelization Committee of the Diocese of Providence, R.I. “What’s exciting is seeing so many dedicated members of groups and organizations joining in this effort — actually bringing people together — in opposition to the work of Satan to Turn to page 15

January 22, 2010 — A day of prayer and penance — Page 18

News From the Vatican

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January 22, 2010

Pope condemns violence to Christians, immigrants

By Carol Glatz Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI condemned the use of violence, especially when the name of God is used to justify aggression against others.

“Violence against Christians in some countries has provoked the indignation of many people,” especially because the recent hostility has been perpetrated during “the most sacred days” of the Christmas season, he said after his Angelus address to pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square January 10.

Though the pope did not specify which countries he was referring to, Christians have recently been targeted in Egypt, Malaysia and Iraq.

Seven people died in a drive-by shooting in the southern Egyptian town of Nag Hammadi as they were leaving the Virgin Mary Church after Christmas Eve services January 6.

Homes and shops were set on fire in nearby villages a few days later by Christians and Muslims. Interreligious tensions have been high since a Christian man was accused of raping a Muslim girl in November.

In Malaysia six churches have been firebombed since a court ruled that the word “Allah” can be used by nonMuslims as a term for God. The word for God is “Allah” in both Malay and Arabic, though some in the predominantly Muslim country of Malaysia said the word should be exclusive to Islam.

In Iraq, where a Christian church in Mosul was targeted in late November, another church was bombed in late De-

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cember.

After praying the Angelus at noon, Pope Benedict emphasized that political and religious leaders “must not shirk their responsibilities” when it comes to confronting violence against fellow citizens.

“There can be no violence in the name of God, nor can one think of honoring him by offending the dignity and freedom of other people,” he said.

The pope also condemned the poor living conditions, exploitation and violence immigrants are subjected to.

“An immigrant is a human being, who is different only because of country of origin, culture and traditions, but he or she is a person to be respected and is someone who has rights and duties,” he said.

He said people are often tempted to exploit immigrants in the work world and in how they are forced to live.

“Violence must never be the way to resolve difficulties,” he added.

Dozens of people have been injured following violent clashes in the southern Calabrian town of Rosarno. Some local residents attacked immigrants with iron bars, gunfire and cars in the violence.

Hundreds of immigrants took to the streets after two foreigners were attacked January 7.

The pope said lying at the heart of the problem of violence against immigrants and religious minorities is the lack of respect for the human person.

“I ask you to look at other people’s faces and discover that they have a soul, a history and a life; they are a person and God loves them just as he loves me,” he said.

OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE DIOCESE OF FALL RIVER Vol. 54, No. 3

Member: Catholic Press Association, Catholic News Service

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PUBLISHER - Most Reverend George W. Coleman EXECUTIVE EDITOR Father Roger J. Landry fatherrogerlandry@anchornews.org EDITOR David B. Jolivet davejolivet@anchornews.org NEWS EDITOR Deacon James N. Dunbar jimdunbar@anchornews.org OFFICE MANAGER Mary Chase marychase@anchornews.org ADVERTISING Wayne R. Powers waynepowers@anchornews.org REPORTER Kenneth J. Souza k ensouza@anchornews.org Send Letters to the Editor to: fatherrogerlandry@anchornews.org PoStmaSters send address changes to The Anchor, P.O. Box 7, Fall River, MA 02722.

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welcome guest — Pope Benedict XVI visits Rome’s main synagogue January 17. During his visit the pope strongly reaffirmed the Church’s commitment to dialogue with the Jews and its modern teachings against anti-Semitism. At left is German Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. From right is Rabbi Shear-Yashuv Cohen, the chief rabbi of Haifa, Israel, and Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni, the chief rabbi of Rome. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano via Reuters)

Visiting Rome synagogue, pope honors memory of Holocaust victims

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service ROME — Laying a wreath at a memorial to Roman Jews rounded up by the Nazis in 1943 and joining in a standing ovation to a dwindling group of Holocaust survivors, Pope Benedict XVI broke the ice with Rome’s Jewish community even before he began to speak.

The pope made his first visit to Rome’s main synagogue January 17, strongly affirming the Catholic Church’s commitment to improving Catholic-Jewish relations, its respect and appreciation for Jewish faith, its condemnation of antiSemitism and his own hope that Catholics and Jews can work together to bring biblical values back to society.

Pope Benedict began by telling some 1,500 people packed into the synagogue that he came to “confirm and deepen” the dialogue and to demonstrate “the esteem and the affection which the bishop and the Church of Rome, as well as the entire Catholic Church, have towards this community and all Jewish communities around the world.”

But he also responded to a widespread impression within the Jewish community, especially the community in Rome, that Pope Pius XII did not do enough to speak out against the Holocaust. Pope Benedict’s decision in December to advance the sainthood cause of Pope Pius led for calls within the Rome community for the visit to be cancelled and some people boycotted the meeting.

The pope said he could not come to the synagogue without remembering the Jews of Rome “who were snatched from their homes, before these very walls, and who with tremendous brutality were killed at Auschwitz.”

“How could one ever forget their faces, their names, their tears, the desperation faced by these men, women and children?” he asked.

While many people remained indifferent to Hitler’s attempt to exterminate the Jews, he said, “many, including Italian Catholics, sustained by their faith and by Christian teaching, reacted with courage, often at risk of their lives, opening their arms to assist the Jewish fugitives who were being hunted down, and earning perennial gratitude.”

Throughout the meeting, Holocaust survivors, wearing light and dark blue striped scarves, and their children wept at mentions of the Nazi attempt to exterminate the Jews.

Without mentioning Pope Pius by name, Pope Benedict told them, “the Apostolic See itself provided assistance, often in a hidden and discreet way.”

Welcoming the pope to the synagogue, Riccardo Pacifici, president of Rome’s Jewish Community, said the only reason he was born was because his father had been hidden by nuns in a convent in Florence, but many others were not so lucky.

“The weight of history is felt even at today’s event because there are wounds that are still open and cannot be ignored. For this reason, we also respect those who decided not to be here today,” he said.

Pacifici told the pope, “The silence of Pius XII during the Shoah is still painful today.”

If Pope Pius had spoken out more loudly, he said, “maybe he would not have been able to stop the death trains, but he would have sent a signal, a word of comfort, of human solidarity, for our brothers and sisters who were transported to the chimneys of Auschwitz.”

Rabbi Riccardo Di Segni, the chief rabbi of Rome, spoke about the responsibility of people of faith to protect God’s creation, starting with human life and human dignity.

“The silence of God or our own incapacity to hear his voice in the face of the world’s evils is an in-

scrutable mystery,” the rabbi said.

“But the silence of man is on a different level; it makes us wonder, it challenges us, and it does not escape justice.”

The rabbi said that despite continuing tensions, Catholics and Jews must move forward in their dialogue.

All of the speakers mentioned Pope John Paul II’s visit to the synagogue in 1986 and every mention was met with clapping, but the longest applause came when Pope Benedict greeted the retired chief rabbi, 94-year-old Elio Toaff, who had hosted Pope John Paul’s visit.

In his speech, Pope Benedict said that “the closeness and spiritual fraternity” of Catholics and Jews flows from sharing the Hebrew Scriptures or Old Testament.

“It is in pondering her own mystery that the Church, the People of God of the New Covenant, discovers her own profound bond with the Jews, who were chosen by the Lord before all others to receive his word,” he said.

Pope Benedict said the Ten Commandments are central to the values that Christians and Jews share with each other and must share with an increasingly secularized world.

Acknowledging one God as the creator of the universe, calling for respect for human life and upholding the dignity of the traditional family, the Ten Commandments are “a beacon and a norm of life in justice and love, a ‘great ethical code’ for all humanity,” he said.

The pope told his audience that while Christians and Jews pray to the same God, “they often remain unknown to each other. It is our duty, in response to God’s call, to strive to keep open the space for dialogue, for reciprocal respect, for growth in friendship, for a common witness in the face of the challenges of our time, which invite us to cooperate for the good of humanity in this world created by God.”

January 22, 2010

The International Church

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CRS distributes food from Haitian warehouses, Dominican Republic

worldwide assistance — A Russian rescue worker carries Senvilo Ovri, 11, a survivor of the earthquake, out of the remains of a house in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. As many as 200,000 people died in the January 12 earthquake that devastated Haiti. (CNS photo/Tatyana Makeyeva, Reuters)

Stories of hope, sadness emerge from earthquake ruins in Haiti

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Here is a collection of vignettes from Haiti: Earthquake claims Haitian Brother One of the tens of thousands of victims in the Haitian earthquake was Salesian Brother Hubert Sanon, 85.

Salesian Father Mark Hyde, executive director of the Salesian Missions based in New Rochelle, N.Y., said Brother Hubert was the first Haitian to become a Salesian brother.

Details surrounding Brother Hubert’s death were unknown, but Father Hyde said he died in the Salesian compound that houses the National School of Arts and Trade, known as ENAM among Haitians.

The Salesian generalate in Rome issued a brief statement saying that Italian Salesian Father Attilio Stra, the school’s director, “confirmed the destruction” of the trade school and said it was most likely the more than 200 students and several staff members were dead. Father Stra, who was seriously injured during the earthquake, sent an email to Rome saying, “It’s a miracle I’m alive.”

The number of students believed dead later was estimated by the Salesians at up to 500.

Brother Hubert professed vows in 1947 and worked at the school’s Lakay program for young adults and teen-agers on the streets. The program tries to reunite the young adults with their families. For those unable to find their families, the program offers the young people a place to stay and teaches them a trade in preparation for employment.

“What is happening?” Haitian asks U.S. caller Junior Sinsmyr thought Haiti had been attacked.

Sinsmyr, senior translator at an American-sponsored medical clinic in Port-au-Prince, was not exactly sure why his world was falling down all around him the evening after the earthquake hit.

Brent DeLand, a member of Christ the King Parish in Springfield, Ill., who established the

SARTHE Medical Clinic, was on the phone with 24-year-old Sinsmyr when a major aftershock shook the Haitian capital.

“I was stunned when he answered the phone,” DeLand said.

“His response was ‘What is happening?’ He asked me what an earthquake was. I told him. I’m not sure he really understood what an earthquake was.

“Then he sort of understood and I asked ‘What do you see?’ He said, ‘Well, I’m in the middle of the street. In all directions there are no buildings left.”

“As we were talking the second aftershock hit and I knew it because I was watching it on CNN. He said, ‘Oh, no, the world is shaking.’ That was a fairly profound comment.

I asked what was happening. I couldn’t hear him because of all the screams and cries.”

Then the line went dead.

As of Monday, DeLand had not heard from Sinsmyr or anyone else from the clinic since the night of January 12. He was hoping to travel to Haiti with a small group of volunteers, as originally planned. They were expecting to have to deal with more than routine medical procedures.

Courage of Haitians “starts young,” says U.S. nun who nursed hundreds Sister Mary Finnick, a nurse who directs the Matthew 25 House in the Delmas 33 area of Port-auPrince, found that “the courage of the Haitian people starts young” when she opened an impromptu triage and treatment center in a nearby soccer field after the quake.

“The children, though crying, did not have temper tantrums and cooperated as much as is possible for a three-year-old when you make a splint, clean out a head wound and debride backs and legs,” the Grey Nun of the Sacred Heart reported in an email this week.

“In all of this, we also hear the Haitian voices raised in song, praising God for being alive,” she added.

Sister Mary said she, two other Matthew 25 staff members, six guests from Pennsylvania and New

York, and three Haitian doctors treated 300-400 people in the hours after the magnitude 7 earthquake.

“We began to see some very horrible conditions caused primarily from the cement blocks, which most of the houses are built with, poor and rich alike,” she wrote.

“There were many head wounds, some so serious it surprised us the person was still alive. Most were deep wounds that should have been sutured, but we had no material to do that.”

When supplies ran out, “we finally cut up pillowcases for bandages,” Sister Mary reported.

Although the downstairs of the house experienced no structural damage, Sister Mary said, the upper floors had more damage and “the wall between us and the neighbor has quite a large hole.” But she encouraged medical teams that had been scheduled to come to Haiti not to change their plans.

“There is a great need for medical supplies, suturing, betadine, analgesics ... everything ... and personnel to bring it,” she said Aid worker finds scene from Dante’s “Inferno” “It looks like Dante’s ‘Inferno.’”

That’s how Mike Henry, Haiti project director for Cross International Catholic Outreach, described the scene in Port-au-Prince after the quake.

“There are dead bodies everywhere,” Henry said in a report from the Haitian capital. “It is hell on earth.”

Jim Cavnar, president of the Catholic aid agency based in Pompano Beach, Fla., said the earthquake “has done more than shake the earth. It has shaken the fragile hopes and dreams of the Haitian people, who just last year were the victims of devastating storms and flooding.”

But even amid the devastation, there were signs of resilience.

“The girls were shaken up quite a bit when it happened,” said an unnamed person who works with Cross Catholic, in a message to Cavnar, “but now they are playing with the kids of the parents who are staying in our home.”

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Although getting basic supplies such as food and water to the hundreds of thousands left homeless by Haiti’s January12 earthquake has been a Herculean task, aid workers were finding ways around traffic blockades, crowds of people and the country’s lack of infrastructure.

Baltimore-based Catholic Relief Services, which is coordinating the Church’s relief and recovery efforts in Haiti, was able to get a jumpstart on distributing aid because it already had warehouses filled with supplies in Haiti set up after the 2008 hurricanes in the region.

After it distributed plastic sheeting, water storage containers, mosquito nets, and hygiene kits from the Port-au-Prince warehouse the agency began distributing supplies from one of its other warehouses in Les Cayes, about 90 miles from Port-au-Prince.

CRS volunteers and staff in the Dominican Republic on Monday were purchasing and assembling boxes of food, including sardines and peanut butter, to deliver to Portau-Prince. The ultimate goal was to have enough boxes of prepared food to feed 50,000.

Bill Canny, CRS’ director of emergency operations, spoke to Catholic News Service while traveling from the Dominican Republic to Haiti. He said some of the relief efforts were still a work in progress, for instance, distribution of food from the U.S. government that arrived in Port-au-Prince via ship.

“We’re waiting to see how that develops,” he said.

The agency was sending additional supplies from the Dominican Republic: water storage containers and water purification tablets for 2,000 families; and plastic sheeting, water storage containers, mosquito nets and hygiene kits to serve an additional 500 families.

“We’re moving additional emergency staff in as quickly as possible,” Canny said. “We know it’s chaos in Port-au-Prince and help is needed immediately.”

Donal Reilly, CRS’ regional technical adviser for emergencies, said that the food shipment would begin to fulfill the most pressing needs of Haitians, whose recovery is hampered by their poverty.

Amid the work of distributing basic supplies, CRS also has experts on the ground to determine how to respond to water and sanita-

tion conditions, shelter and medical needs.

Karel Zelenka, CRS’ country representative in Haiti, said in a report on the CRS website that staff arriving in Haiti will join the CRS staff sleeping outside, in tents or cars, as aftershocks continue in Port-au-Prince. CRS’ Haiti headquarters building was damaged but did not collapse.

CRS, the U.S. bishops’ international relief and development agency, pledged an initial $5 million for earthquake relief. The agency has been working in Haiti for 55 years.

Prior to the earthquake, more than 300 staffers were already in Haiti and more than 100 were based in Port-au-Prince.

CRS President Ken Hackett told CNN Monday that the fact that Haiti is a predominantly Catholic country affects the agency’s work there.

“It gives us a network of effective partners in the Catholic Church in their schools and their mission and their hospitals and their health centers, so that network in Portau-Prince is what will be activated first,” he said.

Other Catholic relief agencies have also been getting basic supplies ready to ship or have begun distributing them.

Cross International Catholic Outreach, a Catholic aid agency based in Pompano Beach, Fla., distributed food from 10 trailers containing turkey, soup, canned food, protein drinks and nutritional food packets.

The agency also was assessing earthquake damage in Leogane, a rural area west of Port-au-Prince, that runs along a fault line. Mike Henry, the agency’s project officer, was working out of his car in Portau-Prince.

Food For The Poor, an international Christian relief organization based in Coconut Creek, Fla., has prepared nearly 100 containers of medical supplies, rice and canned food to be distributed in Haiti, where it has a long history of work.

U.S. military helicopters on Monday were continuing to ferrying water and other humanitarian relief supplies from an American aircraft carrier to crowds in Port-auPrince. Volunteers and government workers were occupied with the task of burying the country’s dead, which the Red Cross estimated at 45,000-50,000.

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The Church in the U.S.

January 22, 2010

Don’t squander Sunday homily, U.S. archbishop tells seminarians in Rome

By Father Matthew Gamber Catholic News Service ROME — Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington encouraged U.S. seminarians in Rome to see the Sunday homily as a privileged moment and urged them not to squander the unique weekly opportunity to reach their parishioners.

“It is from the pulpit that Sunday after Sunday we have an opportunity directly to touch our people in a way that nothing else we do can,” Archbishop Wuerl said. “Every priest has hundreds or even thousands of hearers each Sunday.

We must not squander this opportunity.”

The archbishop cited statistics showing more people in the United States go to church on any one Sunday than all the people attending major sporting events throughout an entire year.

“Among all the occasions we have to proclaim the word of God, however, none has as privileged a place as the Sunday homily,” he said January 10 during the 2010 Carl J. Peter Lecture at Rome’s Pontifical North American College.

The annual lecture seeks to fos-

ter preaching skills for seminarians who will return to the United States as parish priests after completing their training in Rome. The archbishop’s talk was part of celebrations for the college’s 150th anniversary.

Strengthening communion within the Catholic Church should be one of the primary goals of homilists, the bishop told the seminarians.

“None of us preaches as a free agent,” he said. “One cannot be truly Catholic, much less a preacher of the faith, apart from this bond of personal and doctrinal unity” with the Catholic Church and its leaders, he said.

“We are challenged to recognize our spiritual unity so that we might become one family embracing all people of all colors, ethnic backgrounds and national origins united in the truth that is Jesus Christ and in the gift of his Holy Spirit,” he said.

Through their studies the future priests should prepare to address the many challenges to Church unity and teaching that have arisen in contemporary U.S. society, he said.

Archbishop Wuerl listed some

of the sensitive topics that the seminarians should be prepared to preach on as “clear but loving shepherds” when they assume their roles as parish priests, including cohabitation before marriage, capital punishment, in vitro fertilization, same-sex marriage, abortion, human trafficking and health care access.

Challenges to Church unity have come even from within Catholic institutions, and the future priests also should be ready to address these situations, the archbishop said.

He did not give specific examples, but said: “In recent discussions on the relationships between bishops and Catholic institutions, it is of note that institutions that are recognized as Catholic and then exercise their ministry and activity as a part of the church are not independent from the Church leadership — the bishops.”

There should be a visible unity between all those who preach and teach in the name of the Catholic Church, he said. “This allegiance includes acceptance of the necessary prudential judgments of the bishop required to sustain a unity of

faith and practice,” he said.

Archbishop Wuerl said that in their future preaching the seminarians should unite “clarity and compassion as Jesus did.”

“From the pulpit the priest must proclaim the truth — the complete and unvarnished truth — that is the

way to salvation,” he said. But a good priest also “meets the members of his flock where they are, to support and walk with them on their pilgrimage to the Father,” and in this way helps build up the communion of the Catholic Church, he said.

January 22, 2010

The Church in the U.S.

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Another Catholic mobilization under way on abortion in health reform

end of long ordeal — Rep. Chris Smith, right, accompanies David Goldman, center, to a news conference in Rio de Janeiro December 18. Goldman was successful in securing custody of his son Sean Goldman and the two were reunited Christmas Eve. The boy was taken to Brazil five years ago by his mother and kept there even after her death by her wealthy second husband and powerful family through a convoluted series of legal maneuvers. (CNS photo/Bruno Domingos, Reuters)

Pro-life Catholic congressman advocates for ‘left-behind parents’

By Lois Rogers Catholic News Service

TRENTON, N.J. — In scores of news photographs documenting David Goldman’s legal quest to bring his young son home to New Jersey from Brazil, U.S. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., was a frequent presence.

Sometimes he appeared solemnfaced and off to the side at press conferences while an obviously distraught Goldman pleaded for the return of his nine-year-old son, Sean. Other times he was in front of the microphone, making the case for Goldman’s parental rights.

The boy was taken to Brazil five years ago by his mother and kept there even after her death by her wealthy second husband and powerful family through a convoluted series of legal maneuvers. It was a human drama that captivated the world and led to the American father’s reunion with his son on Christmas Eve. But for Smith, who is Catholic, it was a process that was “enveloped in prayer.”

In a December 29 interview with The Monitor, Trenton diocesan newspaper, Smith recalled spending three hours with Goldman in the Brasilia cathedral on Feb. 24, 2008.

“While we were there,” he recalled, “there was a novena to St. Faustina and we sat through it listening to the singing in Portuguese. The phraseology sounded like an encouragement ... not bells and whistles you understand, but an encouragement.”

Smith would be the first to say that faith drives him. “Not the kind you wear on your sleeve,” he said. “I’ve never worn my faith on

my sleeve and I never will.

“But when you ask me if I do (this work) as a believer, I will tell you that I do it as faithfully as I can,” he said.

Smith, who co-chairs the House Pro-Life Caucus, said getting involved with Goldman’s quest was just part of the mission entrusted to him over the years as a legislator. It’s a mission he regards as seamlessly interconnected to the human rights issues he has embraced over nearly four decades.

“My parents inculcated me in the importance of helping the underdog,” he said.

Twelve years of Catholic education at St. Cecelia School in Iselin and St. Mary High School in Perth Amboy grounded him, he said, in the need to “stand up against injustice.”

An opponent of capital punishment, abortion and embryonic stem-cell research, Smith has been equally devoted to combating human trafficking, torture and religious persecution. The rights of immigrants, environmental concerns, veterans’ needs and fair labor practices all have been part of his agenda.

In 28 years in Congress, his legislative legacy so far ranks him third out of 435 members in the House of Representatives whose bills have become law.

When asked about his body of legislative work, Smith responds with Scripture. “All this is Matthew 25,” he said. That chapter says in part, “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Helping to reunite David and Sean Goldman is but the latest

application of Matthew 25, Smith said.

“What you do for the least of our brethren includes the family, the left-behind parent,” he explained.

On July 16, Smith introduced for himself and several co-sponsors a bill called the International Child Abduction Prevention Act, aimed at ensuring compliance with the 1980 Hague Convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction.

In numerous recent interviews, he described child abduction as “child abuse pure and simple. It’s a growing problem that leaves shattered lives and broken hearts.”

He says real “systematic change” is necessary to bring more than 2,800 abducted children home to the U.S. The bill, he said, includes “18 new actions the (president and secretary of state) could take against a country in a pattern of noncooperation” to see that a child is returned home. These include withholding foreign aid and cultural exchanges, loan guarantees and imposing economic sanctions.

Smith’s role in the Goldman case sparked involvement with a “whole group of left-behind parents” from around the country for whom he has become a legislative point person.

“We’re working now on a (legislative) package which, I believe, would get countries complicit in child abductions to work with the left-behind parents,” he said.

The cases “just tug at your heart,” Smith added. “We’re going to pass the legislation. We’re serious about it.”

WASHINGTON (CNS) — In the thousands of pages that make up the Affordable Health Care for America Act and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, the House- and Senate-passed versions, respectively, of health reform legislation, the word “abortion” only comes up a few dozen times.

But as congressional leaders work to hammer out an agreement on health care reform, a key player in the U.S. bishops’ lobbying efforts thinks an insistence on expanding abortion funding in this country could sink the reform movement that the bishops have encouraged for decades.

“It’s a high-risk strategy” for Democratic leaders in Congress to work behind closed doors to reconcile the House and Senate health reform bills, Richard Doerflinger, associate director of the bishops’ Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, told Catholic News Service.

If House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid present a bill that has not been debated openly and say, “Take it or leave it,” Doerflinger added, “Congress may leave it.”

Throughout the process, Catholic leaders have been clear that they want to see the U.S. health system reformed but not in a way that expands abortion funding or leaves too many people behind.

“It’s very difficult to figure out even what’s going on” in the reconciliation process, Doerflinger said.

“We hear very little about what’s getting worked out.”

In January, through a series of bulletin inserts and pulpit announcements, the bishops were mobilizing Catholics nationwide to tell their senators and representatives that the final health reform bill must not “advance a pro-abortion agenda” and must be “accessible and affordable for all,” including immigrants.

The bill that comes closest to meeting those criteria is the House’s Affordable Health Care for America Act. It specifically states, “No funds authorized or appropriated by this act (or an amendment made by this act) may be used to pay for any abortion or to cover any

part of the costs of any health plan that includes coverage of abortion,” except in cases of rape, incest or danger to the mother’s life.

The House bill also gives purchasers in the “health insurance exchanges” full choice of health plans without any requirement that they pay for elective abortions, but the Senate bill does not, according to an analysis of the two bills prepared

by Doerflinger for the bishops.

“The Senate bill allows all but one plan in each state exchange to cover abortions, and forces each purchaser of these plans to write a separate check each month to pay for other enrollees’ abortions,” the analysis says.

Doerflinger said the Senate bill also is flawed because its language restricting abortion funding through health plans is not permanent and could change from year to year and because the limitation “doesn’t cover the entire bill.” For example, the section of the bill on a new $7 billion program expanding community health centers around the country has no restrictions on abortion funding, he said.

Another failure in both bills is a lack of full conscience protection for health care providers, plans, institutions and employers, Doerflinger said.

Another USCCB official is working to improve the final bill’s treatment of immigrants.

Kevin Appleby, director of migration and policy services in the bishops’ Migration and Refugee Services, said in a recent telephone briefing with media that “Congress would be wise” to lift the current five-year ban on legal immigrants participating in federal health programs like Medicaid.

“Many of them will soon be Americans,” he said. “Why wait to give them good health?”

He and others participating in the briefing also advocated for allowing undocumented immigrants to buy health insurance through the state exchanges with their own money.

“Access to health care should not be governed by where someone was born but by their God-given dignity,” Appleby said.

A Greek Pilgrimage In the Footsteps of St. Paul November 2 - 11, 2010 We will visit the Churches he founded.

Also other places of interest such as the Acropolis, the Temple of the Unknown Soldier, the Temple of Zeus, and many, many others.

The pilgrimage also includes a three-day cruise to the Greek Islands and Turkey. $3,569 from Boston all inclusive (Insurance is optional) For complete information on this fabulous pilgrimage, please contact Msgr. John J. Smith: 508-675-3622

6

The Anchor Seeing their faces and responding

We have all been watching with tear-filled eyes and pierced hearts the scenes of devastation coming from Port-au-Prince, Haiti. We’re staggered by the estimated death toll of 200,000. Our stomachs have turned as we’ve seen tens of thousands of lifeless bodies lying on the sides of the road. We’ve reacted with sorrow and horror at the deaths of thousands more who could have survived the aftermath of the earthquake if basic first aid care, antibiotics, food and water had gotten to them in time. We’ve mourned with the survivors who have lost their whole families. We’ve prayed and agonized with those who have been waiting for word from loved ones. We’ve rejoiced when in the midst of such darkness, a teen-age girl or a little baby in diapers is extricated alive from the rubble and brought into the light.

Even if most of us did not think about Haiti much or at all prior to last Tuesday afternoon, few of us now can stop thinking about the island and its suffering people. Those seven seconds of destruction, and the days since, have changed all that. The images of our fellow human beings in the worst of circumstances have profoundly moved us, indelibly marked us, and begun to bring out the best in us. Americans have been responding with typical, overwhelming private generosity to the cries for help and assistance.

In this is a valuable lesson. Just as we witnessed with 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, and the tsunami in Malaysia, most of us cannot pass by the other side of the road — as the first two figures did in Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan — when we see the catastrophic suffering of our brothers and sisters. No matter how poor they may be, no matter their geographical distance from us, no matter their race, religion or language, we immediately recognize our common humanity when disaster strikes. The sight of suffering in others, Pope John Paul II wrote in his beautiful 1984 apostolic letter “Salvifici Doloris,” unleashes love in the human heart. While it may be easy under ordinary circumstances to focus with tunnel vision on our own business, when calamities strike, in a sense they strike us all. We then recognize that others have it worse than we do and we are moved to respond with genuine compassion. It’s on these tragic occasions that the world becomes more human and that we begin to sense the profound truth that we’re all members of the same human family.

This lesson is important for us to remember as we mark today the 37th anniversary of U.S. Supreme Court’s disgraceful decision Roe v. Wade, which invented a constitutional right for mothers to end the lives of their babies in the womb. Since that decision, according to statistics coming from the abortion industry, nearly 50 million of our fellow human beings in our country alone have had their lives taken at the same vulnerable stages of growth and development in which we once were. In an age of trillion dollar budgets, it may be hard for us to comprehend the significance of such a number. With the images of the horror of 200,000 dead in Port-au-Prince very much in our minds, however, we can begin to express such a number’s true magnitude. Fifty million dead is roughly the equivalent of the death toll of 250 such earthquakes. It would take one such earthquake every day for eight months to equal the amount of those killed through abortion. Over the 37 years of the American abortion age, it would mean one such catastrophe every seven to eight weeks.

The reality is that most Americans, including most Catholics, look at abortion more or less the same way we regarded poverty in Haiti prior to 4:53 p.m. last Tuesday: We look at it as an issue.

We may consider it an important issue, perhaps even the most important issue of all. To view it as an issue, however, is essentially to dehumanize it, changing abortion from the intentional death of tiny boy or girl to a topic for discussion, debate and activism. Before January 12, many of us knew that Haiti was a very poor country, but for most of us, Haitian poverty remained just one issue among a long list of many on the periphery of our attention. All of that changed last week when we began to see the images with our own eyes. At that point, Haitian hardship ceased to be an issue. The Haitian people developed faces we could not forget or ignore. And we began to respond the way compassionate human beings respond to those in great trouble.

The same transition still needs to occur for most of us with respect to abortion. We need to see the tiny human faces, the “embryos” sucking their thumbs, the “fetuses” playing indoor soccer on the mother’s uterine walls. We all rightfully weep when a doctor tells a pregnant woman we know that she has miscarried the son or daughter she had been awaiting with eager longing and whose name she had probably already chosen. For anyone who has had a miscarriage or known someone dear who has suffered one, miscarriage will never be able to be just an issue: it is the tragic death of a real human being at a stage of life in which we once were. In abortion, the life of a child just as important, just as human, is not just lost but taken. We need to respond to his death just as human beings do to all such tragedies. But in order to do that, we cannot forget the little boy’s or girl’s human face, human hands and human heart. Please take a look at the photo on this page and do not forget that abortion means giving someone the choice and authority to put him or her to death.

Since Roe v. Wade, the Pro-Life movement has made much progress. At the time of the decision, even Supreme Court justices claimed not to know when human life begins. Such a claim would be laughed out of a high school biology class today. Thanks to ultrasounds, higher resolution digital photos and videos of obviously human children in the womb, the incredible ability of doctors to save the lives of children born months premature, and the persistence of members of the Pro-Life movement to cut through the spin of supporters of abortion, attempts to pretend that abortion is anything other than the brutal taking of the life of a human baby in the womb have all been exposed as sophistry. Having lost the science, all that remains is a chilling rights argument: that a mother’s rights trump her child’s in the womb, and therefore a mother should have the right to choose to have her baby put to death.

This is a losing argument — we would never give mothers the “choice” to end the lives of their newborns or terminate their troublesome teen-agers — and it’s no surprise that recently there have been major shifts to the Pro-Life cause. A Gallup Poll last May indicated that 51 percent of Americans now call themselves Pro-Life, compared to 42 percent who self-describe as prochoice. This is an incredible seven percent shift in just the last year and the first time in the history of such polling that a majority of Americans have called themselves Pro-Life. A Pew Research Center poll in October confirmed that shift and demonstrated that support for abortion has been plummeting among almost all demographic groups. This is good and hopeful news.

We are unfortunately incapable of preventing earthquakes because we are powerless to stop the shifting of tectonic plates that cause them. We can, however, stop the carnage flowing from the man-made destruction of abortion. To do so, we need to remember faces of the children whose lives are threatened and then begin to work as hard to save their lives as so many are working so hard to save our fellow human beings in Haiti.

January 22, 2010

Father Vianney’s eight-year Calvary

In the past two weeks, we’ve focused on two that the young priest longed to remain in Ars. of the great challenges St. John Vianney faced in Since he had paid for his seminary education his priestly life. The first came from various lay and therefore felt a responsibility for him, and people in Ars who disparaged, harassed, slan- since it was obvious that he could benefit from dered, and physically attacked him, seeking to having another priest in Ars to help out with the drive him out of town; they rejected his message daily pilgrimages, he wrote the bishop asking of conversion and holiness and took out their op- that Father Raymond be assigned with him. At position on the messenger. The second trial came the diocesan headquarters, this request was wellfrom some of his priestly peers who treated him received. The bishop and his chief collaborators as if he were a disgrace to the priesthood, mocked knew that Father Vianney didn’t have the time him, insulted him, preached against him, forbade or skill set to give adequate attention to admintheir people to go to him, and sought to have the istration. He also had developed a reputation of bishop remove him. giving alms not only to those truly in need but to As excruciating as these antagonisms were, those who were routinely taking advantage of his they provided the crucible not only for the Curé goodness. They figured Father Raymond, who of Ars to grow in Christian virtue but to put that was a capable organizer and a zealous teacher, heroic virtue on display. Many of his detractors would be able to bring some order. in both camps, witnessing how he sought to The bishop assigned him as curate but gave overcome their evil with good, ended up not only him some authority to look after the administrarepenting of their deeds but becoming among his tive affairs. He took that inch and tried to stretch most staunch supporters. it to a marathon. As soon as Father Raymond reAn even more difficult test than these, how- ceived his letters, he went to the rectory and said ever, occurred much closer to home. It occurred, that he wished to take the room where the Curé in fact, in the rectory, at the hands of a priest as- had slept for the previous nearly three decades. sistant, Father Antoine Raymond.

The Curé was diligently moving his few things One of the most seldom discussed challenges down to a damp room on the first floor before of priestly life is what modern Church sociolo- the parishioners got wind of it and came to stop gists called “rectory living.” The very fact that it. Father Raymond began to identify himself a bishop assigns as the pastor or two or more men “curé” to parishto live and work ioners and in the together does not Church regismean that they ters. He started will cohabitate almost immediand collaborate ately changing easily. There are, parish customs

By Father of course, rectory that had been Roger J. Landry situations — like long established.

St. John Vianney He was brazen, experienced with preemptory, arhis first pastor and mentor, Father Charles Bal- rogant, and some parishioners said even a little ley — in which pastor and curate become true tyrannical. What bothered the people of Ars the friends who inspire each other to become better most was how disrespectful he was to their paspriests. There are many more in which the priests tor. Within a few weeks, the leading parishioners get along just fine and treat each other with pro- couldn’t take it anymore and went to see the fessional respect and genuine fraternity. bishop. His administrative duties were removed.

There are occasions, however, in which livFor the next eight years as Father Vianney’s ing and working together can become a cruci- assistant, Father Raymond routinely berated the fixion for one or both. A recent in-depth study great confessor in private and in public, badexamining why some young priests abandon the mouthed him to parishioners and pilgrims, ocpriesthood showed that one of the chief reasons casionally contradicted him from the pulpit and was because they couldn’t get along with their declared everywhere that Father Vianney was pastor. It’s hard enough to work for a boss with “entering his second childhood.” He even tried whom one does not see eye-to-eye; it’s doubly to take credit for all the good that was happendifficult to live with him. Rectory tensions often ing in Ars. lead young priests to seek outlets and some of Father Vianney tolerated it all with great these outlets are not conducive to priestly perse- patience. At first he tried to assert himself, but verance. On the flip side, there are many pastors learned that that only made Father Raymond who admit that, as exhausting as it is to be the more belligerent. From that point forward, he reonly priest in a parish, they prefer to live and solved to keep him informed, to consult him, and work alone, rather than have a curate assigned to give in to him as much as possible. to them who might be a pastoral and personal He saw Father Raymond as the antidote to all cross. Some priests provide more harm than the praise he got from the crowds. “While there is help. That’s what happened for Father Vianney some incensing, there are also quite a few kicks,” when his first assistant arrived. he confided to a friend. “He’s not afraid to tell For his first 27 years in Ars, Father Vianney me the truth about myself,” he said, gratefully, was the only priest. After recovering from a seri- to the bishop. “Without him it would have been ous illness, he asked the bishop for two weeks difficult for me to know that I loved the good off to travel to his native Dardilly to rest with God a little.” He judged his love for God on how his brother and his family. The bishop granted much he was able to love Father Raymond. He his permission provided that he was able to find routinely defended him when others were justly coverage. That task proved much easier than an- criticizing the curate’s behavior. ticipated, because Father Antoine Raymond, a One Holy Week, when Father Raymond’s young pastor of Savigneux, volunteered. behavior was particularly obnoxious, the saint Father Vianney had known Antoine Raymond was persuaded to dictate a letter to the bishop from the time he was in high school seminary in asking for him to be transferred. After reviewMeximieux and generously volunteered to pay the ing the letter, however, Father Vianney decided latter’s college and major seminary costs. Visiting to tear it up, saying, “The good God carried his Ars and seeing the throngs of pilgrims coming to cross this week. I can certainly carry my own.” confession, the future Father Raymond began to It was Father Raymond who, anticipating that dream of becoming Curé of Ars one day himself. he would likely never succeed the Curé of Ars, He must have believed that people were coming finally asked for a transfer. The bishop appointed for some other reason than Father Vianney. him pastor of Polliat. A missionary priest, Father When Father Vianney was planning to make Toccanier, took his place. It was, in a sense, an his home visit, Father Raymond jumped at the earthly recompense for the Curé of Ars. Father chance to offer himself to the bishop as his suc- Toccanier loved and revered him, took care of cessor. The bishop declined, but accepted the him, and inspired him to continue giving heroyoung priest’s offer to cover for Father Vianney ically until the finish line of his life. while he was away. When the holy Curé reGod always brings good out of evil. He used turned, he discovered that Father Raymond had Father Raymond’s vices to help sculpt Father Vialready taken up a quasi-permanent residence in anney into an even greater saint.

Ars, despite remaining pastor in Savigneux.

Father Landry is pastor of St. Anthony of Father Vianney soon recognized the obvious, Padua Parish in New Bedford.

Putting Into the Deep

January 22, 2010

M

ost Catholics know that when we meet the Holy Father, it is very polite, and a sign of reverence, to kiss the pope’s fisherman’s ring, which is a sign of his office. This little gesture, however, is not only limited to the pope. It is still practiced, today, mostly by older people in small villages and towns throughout Europe towards every priest. In this case, of course, it is not a ring being kissed but the priest’s hand.

I have experienced it a few times here in the United States with people who came from one of the old countries.

When I was a young shy seminarian, I didn’t know how to react to this gesture. When I talked about this with my spiritual director he gave me an answer that I will remember for the rest of my life: “Dariusz,” he said, “when people kiss your hand it is not your hand they are kissing but the hand of Christ whom they see in you.”

What a great lesson in humility that was for me, and what a great lesson in what the priesthood is all about. I always need to remember that, because I am a priest, people will and should see Christ in me.

It is hard work occasionally to overcome my own pride and not to take for myself the praise that is due to the Lord. Because of my weaknesses, moreover, it is not easy at times to reflect in my life

7

The Anchor

A life with extended arms, palms up

the face of Christ for others to see. another important aspect of a diAs I write this reflection on ocesan priest’s life: ordained for a priesthood, on my life as a priest, particular diocese, we are attached I stand on the threshold of a new to a particular place. For me, the assignment. This reminds me of a question, “Why the Diocese of crucial part of the priest’s life: the Fall River?,” comes to my mind vow of obedience to the bishop. once in a while. When I came How often we are tempted to do from Poland to SS. Cyril and our own things, to do what we Methodius Seminary in Orchard think is right, disregarding the guidelines and Year For Priests advice of our local shepherd. When this happens, Vocational Reflection when we priests follow our own way, the people in our community will

By Father see this and very often the Dariusz Kalinowski unity of the local Church will be compromised in one way or another. Obedience, Lake, Mich., it was up to me to however, as hard as it is, is one of find a bishop who would welcome the most powerful ways to grow me into his diocese. It was Bishop in humility.

Sean O’Malley who invited me Endings and new beginnings to Fall River. Quite often people are great opportunities to pause have asked me why I chose this and check our lives against the diocese. I didn’t always know the values we have chosen to follow. answer then, but I think I know The year of the priesthood has just it now. God put me here because begun. I am writing these words of the people I have encountered at the Shrine of the Divine Mercy and will encounter, because of the in Stockbridge, where I am here people to whom I have ministered with my brother priests celand will minister, the people with ebrating our 10th anniversary of whom I have become friends. ordination. For me those 10 years This is the heart of my priesthood: of service to God’s people were to serve the people of God, to lead spent in three parishes: St. Mary’s them and to walk beside them on in Mansfield, Our Lady of Victory this most amazing journey of all, in Centerville, and St. Patrick’s in the journey of faith.

Wareham.

The great mystery of priestThese assignments point to hood unfolds in front of my eyes

O

n the morning of New Year’s Day, when the town was still very quiet, there was a knock on the rectory door. A few of the servers had come to prepare things for the evening Mass in honor of Mary, the Mother of God. For a few years now, we’ve had a procession around the park in the center of town, a sort of “peace procession.” The servers had come to lower the statue of Mary and decorate it with flowers for the procession. I gave them the keys to the church and they left eager to prepare the church. Within a few minutes they were back at the rectory with the story that the infant Jesus had been stolen from the manger in front of the altar.

I asked them to be sure because it had been there the night before when we finished

back where he belongs — Gloria Duron and Mery Dias return the “stolen” Baby Jesus to the church Nativity scene on the feast of the Epiphany. (Photo courtesy of Father Craig A. Pregana)

every single day, in many different ways, some expected and some most unexpected. One way that I see clearly the grace of God working in my life — and this affirms me that I am walking on the right path — is my personal growth. I used to be an extremely shy young man who wanted to be a priest but couldn’t imagine myself preaching in front of a congregation. Over the years I have become a more outgoing and confident person, not afraid of interacting with people. God has given me various challenges to form me to become a better tool in his hands. I have learned very well that one of the best ways to grow and to serve God and his people is to welcome such challenges when they come.

Every person, especially in a leadership position, needs to have a strong support group. It is even truer with us priests, since we don’t have wives and children standing beside us. Since I left my family back in Poland, my brother and sister, nieces and nephews, aunts and uncles, it is important to me to have a strong “extended family.” These are my friends. Some of them have invited me to be the godfather of their children. It is very enriching to share my life and my faith with people who know me more

The thieves of Epiphany

the vigil Mass. They assured me that it was from generation to generation. Time and gone and someone had stolen it. distractions, however, crowd out some of The news began a week-long search the traditions. Fortunately in Guaimaca, for the infant Jesus. We announced at the there are some who are trying to capture evening Mass that someone had taken the again the lost tradition, and so it happened infant from the manger. During the weekwith the baby Jesus. end Masses, During the we made it evening Mass known that the on January 5, I Christ child was noticed a small missing and we note that was simply wanted left on the altar

By Father it returned to the which read, “The Craig A. Pregana manger.

Christ child that Then we was robbed last began hearing, week will be from the older folks in town, that there returned tomorrow at Mass,” signed, “Las was an old tradition of “stealing” the child Ladronas,” or “the thieves.” Seeing the Jesus from the manger and returning it on note, I read it out loud to the congregation January 6, the traditional celebration of and invited everyone back the following “Epiphany.” It celebrates the manifestation night for Mass at 7 p.m. of the Christ to the world symbolized by The following night, people began the presence of the Magi. coming to church. Considering it was a The tradition consisted in someone Wednesday night the church was full, altaking the image of the child Jesus from most as full as it was for Christmas. There the manger sometime after Christmas was a palpable excitement in the assembly and returning it to the parish on the feast to learn the identity of the “thieves.” Since of Epiphany, or sometimes during Holy the words “las ladronas” are feminine, Week of the same year. The person who we began to guess who it might be. Some had “stolen” the child would then provide thought it was the sacristan and her assisa “fiesta” or party for the parish on the day tant; others thought it was the choir because of Epiphany to celebrate the return of the their seats are closer to the altar. I thought Christ child. it was the Dominican Sisters recently There are many traditions that the returned from their visit to Dighton. people of Latin America hold to celebrate The Mass proceeded as normal but no Church feasts, calling people together as one came forth with the baby Jesus. The a family to honor the saints or a part of moment came for the final prayer and still Church life. It is a way to pass on the faith the image had not been returned. As I

Our Mission

than just as their parish priest.

In this way I am able to live and exercise my priesthood not only on a parish level but also in more of a family setting.

The sacraments and preaching are the center of a priest’s ministry. What an amazing way to encounter people and reveal to them the all-powerful and all-knowing God. It is simply unbelievable to be able to connect heaven and earth, to be able to “bring” God down from his heavenly throne to the hearts of his people, to be a tool through which this is accomplished. What an amazing grace and responsibility.

My liturgy professor back in the seminary once told me, explaining the position of priest’s hands while celebrating the Eucharist, that when the priest has his hands extended, the palms should be facing up in the gesture of holding and lifting up the prayers of the entire community. I like very much the image behind this explanation: lifting up to God the prayers of other people; helping others to be close to God, to walk in the company of Mary and all the saints. This is the wonderful ministry of priesthood in which I share.

Father Kalinowski, ordained in 1999 for the Diocese of Fall River, is currently studying canon law at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

began to explain that I truly did not know who had taken the manger piece, there were fireworks outside the church.

As the noise grew and everyone focused their attention to the main entrance, two figures entered dressed as “visitors from the East.” Mery and Gloria entered the church carrying the Christ Child in procession.

The choir began singing “We Three Kings” and everyone applauded. The “thieves” brought the child to the manger, where we offered a blessing and incensed the manger again as they placed the Christ child with Mary and Joseph. It was truly a moment of community celebration.

Mery, a faithful member of the choir, and Gloria, who manages the local television transmission, explained how they had taken the child only to try to recapture the tradition of celebrating the feast of Epiphany. They invited everyone to a reception of coffee and cookies after Mass. We sang Christmas hymns and enjoyed the evening together as one family of faith.

There are many customs and traditions that have been lost to time and “development” but can be recaptured. This celebration of the return of the baby Jesus helped us to come together as a parish family and celebrate that Jesus lives among us. Maybe they don’t have the elegant holiday dinners and celebrations that are part of first world culture. Still, these simple traditions remind them that Jesus comes to the poor, as well, and lives in their midst.

Father Pregana is pastor of the Fall River Diocese’s mission in Guaimaca, Honduras. www.FallRiverMissions.com

8

January 22, 2010

The Anchor

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or a moment, go back in time to around 30 A.D., at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, and put yourself in the congregation at Nazareth, described in the Gospel reading, listening to Jesus.

You walk into your synagogue on the Sabbath as your ancestors have done since time before time. Tradition is at the heart of your faith reflected in the format of the service. All stand for a reading from the Scriptures, which are assigned according to a long established sequence. At the conclusion, all sit and, by custom, the reader, who is either the rabbi or a knowledgeable member of the community, begins a teaching on the passage.

But the reader is not doing the assigned reading. It is a reading that describes the coming Messiah. You have heard that Scripture passage

And then … what do you do?

innumerable times, but you, an awakening, a tug on your and those around you, notice heart, which you have not felt something very different in before. The easy answer is to the young reader. He seems blend back into the crowd. to lend a spirit and life to the But there is something words, as though he, someabout him that goes beyond how, wrote them.

Impossible, but he has everyone’s attention Homily of the Week as he begins to speak.

Third Sunday The moment is one of in Ordinary Time high drama and hushed expectancy.

By Deacon The reader then Karl Buder claims to be the Messiah. And he proclaims his identity with unmistakable clarity his words. He identifies himand certainty. “Today this self as Messiah by what he Scripture passage is fulfilled will do. In essence he is sayin your hearing.” This declaraing, “If you have any doubts tion is so unambiguous that about me, here is my plan of it demands a decision from action. I will bring the Gospel you. What do you do? Do of salvation to the poor. I will you forsake your culture and free people from spiritual cast your lot with this new and physical bondage. I will Messiah? The battle rages proclaim a time of forgivewithin you because you feel ness from God for peoples’

sins. Actions do speak louder than words. Judge me by my actions.” Deep in your heart you know, that to accept him as Messiah, you also have to buy into his plan of action, to make it your own.

You have to accept the whole package. This really is an all or nothing proposition.

What do you do?

I find it quite breathtaking that Jesus offers to us precisely the same decision as he offered the Nazarenes 2,000 years ago. As he broke open the Scriptures for them, he does the same for us, today, demanding a response from us.

Ezra broke open the Scriptures for the Israelites causing them to weep and prostrate themselves before the Lord. Their plan of action was to feed the poor and the hungry. Jesus asks much more from us.

Baptism makes us members of the Body of Christ and we all have our duties to perform in the Church, depending on our individual, God-given gifts. “Now the body is not a single part, but many. You are Christ’s body, and individually parts of it.” Without our participation, the Body of Christ is incomplete. As the Messiah would be identifiable by his actions, so are we identifiable as his followers by our actions.

The Nazarenes’ encounter with Christ required them to make a decision. Our encounter with the Risen Christ in the Eucharist requires us to make an ongoing decision to follow him, reflected in our everyday actions. There is no middle ground, no easy way out.

What do you do?

Deacon Buder serves at Good Shepherd Parish on Martha’s Vineyard.

Upcoming Daily Readings: Sat. Jan. 23, 2 Sm 1:1-4,11-12, 19,23-27; Ps 80:2-3,5-7; Mk 3:20-21. Sun. Jan. 24, Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, 1 Cor 12:12-30 or 12:1214,27; Lk 1:1-4;4:14-21. Mon. Jan. 25, feast of The Conversion of St. Paul, Acts 22:3-16 or 9:1-22; Ps 117:1bc,2; Mk 16:15-18. Tues. Jan. 26, 2 Tm 1:1-8 or Ti 1:1-5; Ps 96:1-3,7-8a,10; Mk 3:31-35. Wed. Jan. 27, 2 Sm 7:4-17; Ps 89:4-5,27-30; Mk 4:1-20. Thur. Jan. 28, 2 Sm 7:18-19,24-29; Ps 132:1-5,11-14; Mk 4:21-25; Fri. Jan. 29, 2 Sm 11:1-4a,5-10a,13-17; Ps 51:3-7, 10-11; Mk 4:26-34.

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Lord, please don’t hear this prayer — yet again

his past December 28, I was jolted out of my morning fog at 8 a.m. Mass when the deacon offered this petition: “For those who are considering abortion: may our prayers and the intercession of the Holy Innocents whom we honor today help them choose life as the best option, let us pray to the Lord.”

I can’t remember whether I blurted “What?” loud enough to be noticed by my faithful companions at daily Mass — many of whom wear hearing aids — but I know I certainly didn’t

intercessions for weekday answer with the prescribed Masses, bought from a “litur“Lord, hear our prayer.” gical aids” service: the daily The best option? Oh, so intercessions come with a the decision whether to carry a child to term is a pragmatic calculation, and we’re to pray that those concerned get the calculation, er, right?

How did this morally degrading nonsense

By George Weigel get written? How did it get past an editor with any theological grain of sense?

It happened because the par- tacky binder in a tear-’em-outafter-you-use-’em format, they ish I was attending, like many fit neatly inside the ambo — so others, uses canned general why not? Well, December 28 illustrated why not: because more often than we’d like to admit, these intercessions are thoughtlessly written, reflecting the ambient cultural smog rather than the truth of Catholic faith. Moreover, they’re typically organized to suggest that the world of politics is, somehow, the real world: after a brief intercessory nod to the pope, the bishops, or both, we’re immediately invited to pray for sundry social and political causes, never identified as such but wrapped in the gauziness of Feel Good Prayer.

And what gets omitted is often as instructive, and depressing, as what gets addressed.

How often last year did you hear a general intercession petition for Christian unity?

For the relief of persecuted

The Catholic Difference

Christians? For the conversion of non-believers? For victory in the war against terrorism?

(Eight years and four months after 9/11, I’m still waiting for that one.) But I’ll bet you heard a dozen or more exhorting you to environmental responsibility.

In parishes that take their liturgy seriously, the canned intercessions usually disappear on Sunday, to be replaced by intercessions composed locally by responsible parties, sometimes with the aid of thoughtful resources like “Magnificat.” The solution to the weekday problem, I suggest, is to regularize and routinize the petitions at daily Mass, making them serenely formulaic and thus immune from the temptation to political or cultural homiletics.

Here’s one possible scheme for such a “reduction:” For the holy Church of God throughout the world, let us pray to the Lord.

For Benedict, Bishop of Rome, and the bishops in communion with him, let us pray to the Lord.

For this local Church of [name of diocese], for [name of bishop], its chief shepherd, and for the priests and deacons of [name of diocese], let us pray to the Lord.

For this parish of [patron of

other name], its pastors and its people, let us pray to the Lord.

For an abundance of vocations to the priesthood and the consecrated life, let us pray to the Lord.

For the unity of all Christians, for the relief of those suffering persecution for their Christian faith, and for the conversion of their persecutors, let us pray to the Lord.

For the civil authorities, that we may be governed in justice and truth, let us pray to the Lord.

For those who are sick, and for all those with special needs, let us pray to the Lord.

For our beloved dead, let us pray to the Lord.

That, I suggest, covers the most important bases. Such a scheme also locates the local parish within the broader Christian community of the diocese, and locates the diocese within the ambit of the universal Church: facts about which Catholics in America often need reminding. And such a formulaic schema avoids politics while making clear that we should pray regularly that the politicos recognize both the responsibilities and limits of their power.

Try it. It is, if you’ll permit me, the best option.

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

January 22, 2010

You can dress them but you can’t take them out

Fortunately, there’s a handMonday 18 January 2010 — at book entitled “How to be a home in Old Dighton Village — Perfect Stranger: a Guide to Other National celebration of the life of Martin Luther King Jr., Civil Rights leader and Baptist pastor other taught me Reflections of a to look both Parish Priest ways before crossing the street, to avoid swimming

By Father Tim after meals, and never Goldrick to enter a church that wasn’t Catholic. Who knew what danger lurked People’s Religious Ceremonies.” inside?

The pope himself now routine- It’s the best ecclesiastical etiquette ly visits Protestant churches, syna- book out there. As far as I know, gogues and mosques. It serves one it’s the only one.

The guidebook contains 20 well, in this day and age, to know and practice proper etiquette when chapters on correct behavior when visiting other people’s houses of visiting a church not one’s own.

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The Ship’s Log

worship. Listed alphabetically is everything from Assemblies of God to United Church of Christ, with chapters on Islam, Hindu and Buddhist places of worship.

I did once visit a Buddhist Temple in Fall River. I was on my way to The Anchor office when I noticed the international distress signal. The American flag on the front lawn of the Temple was flying inverted. I immediately stopped my car. I rang the doorbell. Nobody answered. I didn’t have my guidebook with me. Fortunately, I had not arrived during a meditation session, when it is forbidden to enter or leave. Inside, there was

Cooperating with God’s family planning

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The Anchor

Couples, of course, are free he Smillie children have to use Natural Family Planning 75 first cousins, a number when they have discerned before that isn’t so astronomical when God that it would be better not to divided among all of their aunts conceive a child at that time. God and uncles: 10 on their mom’s has given the woman a cyclical side and six on their dad’s. pattern to her fertility and the Molly roots her attitude of Church has consistently taught complete openness to life in her that if a couple has a serious reaparents’ generous outlook. Times son, it is moral to have recourse weren’t always easy for her famto the infertile periods of the ily when she was growing up; wife’s cycle. nevertheless she witnessed how For the Smillies, however, her parents entrusted their lives to God. She met her future husband at college.

Lavishly Together they studied Generous the Church’s documents about marriage. In John Love Paul II’s Familiaris ConBy Joan Kingsland sortio they read about how a person’s fertility is a gift for the other. When cooperation with God in the area that is withheld, the self-giving of life has involved following anbetween spouses isn’t total. other natural rhythm: they believe Molly and John were convinced God intended to space children that they wanted to give themapart by the natural means of selves completely to each other. breast-feeding.

From the time of their courtship, The more a baby nurses, the they perceived children as an more the hormone oxytocin is reintegral part of marriage. leased to stimulate milk producNot long before her wedtion. At the same time as the milk ding, Molly’s dad offered her supply is building up, a woman’s some advice. Since he was a fertility is suppressed. man of very few words, what he Some women say this doesn’t said made a deep impression on always work, but the explanation her. He said that as a physician for this may come from not alhe had met many people who lowing the child to nurse as often had waited until they were well as he expresses the desire or from established with their own homes a woman’s milk drying up if she before trying to have kids; when partially bottle feeds. In any case, they finally felt ready none came the Smillie children are spread along. Since it’s hard to predict apart by about three years: Marie, how long an individual woman’s 21; Tess, 18; Sarah, 16; Michael, window of fertility will be open, 13; Ciara, 10; Hannah, seven; he recommended they let God plan their family and that they not Stephen, four and William one.

There are other benefits from put life on hold. breast feeding. For one, it’s a Entering marriage John and powerful way for the mother to Molly decided to entrust their bond emotionally with her child fertility to God. “He knows our and to meet his or her affecfuture, what we can handle,” they tive needs. There’s a security at said. “He will do what is right feeling held, the warmth of the for us.”

mother’s embrace and the tenderness of her gaze and caresses.

For another, the mother is biochemically reaffirmed in her roles as wife and mother. The hormone oxytocin does more than merely stimulate milk production. It also “promotes a powerful and selfless devotion” (Miriam Grossman, “Unprotected,” p. 7) as well as increases trust. It’s the same hormone released during sexual activity, which brings a woman to bond emotionally with her husband.

Molly definitely experiences a more relaxed, loving feeling from nursing. She adds that this makes her nicer to all of her kids and her husband, not just to the baby.

Like their own parents, John and Molly have found it hard to make ends meet on one income. Along the way they have experienced their share of hardships and challenges. But so far, they believe the Lord has been sustaining them.

As a couple they find strength by attending daily 7 a.m. Mass together. Any child who is up and wishes to go with them is welcome to go along. The family attends Mass together as a family on Sundays and prays the rosary together every evening. They also follow the liturgical seasons of the Church.

“He’ll take care of us because he’s generous,” they insist. The Smillies feel confident saying this since they’ve been generous with God. And it is hard to outdo God in that quarter.

Joan Kingsland, a consecrated woman of Regnum Christi, teaches theology at Mater Ecclesiae College in Greenville, R.I. She received a doctorate from the John Paul II Institute for Marriage and Family in Rome.

an altar dedicated to some Buddha or other (there are hundreds of buddhas in Buddhism,) flowers, meditation cushions, and burning incense. I heard chatter in an adjacent room.

A group of women, dressed in sarongs, was preparing a meal.

They looked startled to see a Catholic priest suddenly appear in their kitchen. I suppose even my own parishioners would be. At any rate, I explained with some difficulty that the flag outside was flying upside down and asked what the cause of their distress might be. I drew blank stares. I can only surmise that the custodian had mistakenly raised the flag upside down that morning. Convinced the Buddhists weren’t in distress, I continued on my way.

Wait, dear readers, there’s more. When visiting an Assembly of God, avoid arriving during prayers. You’re free to leave at any time. In a Baptist church, don’t enter during prayers or announcements. Don’t leave during the sermon or the blessing. It’s considered bad form. In a Christian Science Church, guests are welcome to come and go at any time, but don’t ask to meet the pastor. The “pastor” is a Bible and a book by Mary Baker Eddy. They have no clergy.

In a Church of Christ, there are no ushers. Sit wherever you want.

If you need to leave, do so between hymns. Sing with gusto, but not while sneaking out the door.

In a church of the Disciples of Christ, if you have to arrive late, do so during the hymns. Don’t arrive during the sermon, Bible reading, prayers, or communion.

It’s considered offensive.

If you are attending an Episcopalian service, men should wear jacket and tie; women, dresses.

Polite chitchat, warm smiles, and conviviality are the order of the day.

If you are attending a Greek Orthodox service, know it will

last up to two hours. There will be plenty of incense. If you have asthma, bring your nebulizer.

If you are visiting a Hindu or Islamic place of worship, don’t just do something, sit there.

Remain silent. Be sure to remove your shoes before entering the sanctuary.

Do you find yourself in a Jehovah Witness Kingdom Hall?

Know that members are forbidden to set foot in your own church.

Witnesses are not ecumenical. The Congregation of Elders will give talks on the Bible. Pay attention.

There will be a quiz. Seriously.

Are you in a Mormon Temple?

Be prepared to stand midway through the service for the “Rest Hymn.” Do not use cameras or any other video or audio recorders.

Modest clothing is expected.

Are you attending a Seventh Day Adventist service? Don’t be confused when everyone gets up and leaves. The service is not over. The congregants have gone into gender-separate rooms for the ceremony of the washing of the feet. They will be back in about 10 minutes. Listen to the nice organ music while awaiting their return.

In a United Church of Christ, a collection plate donation of $10 isn’t considered excessive.

I remember the day when, as young high school students, my sister Mary and I went with our youth group to an Eastern Rite Catholic Church. My sister, wearing high heels for the first time, walked with some difficulty.

Dead center in the church, visible to all, she wobbled and fell to the floor in a heap. Her broadbrimmed hat rolled down the aisle.

Mother taught her better than that.

I looked it up. This faux pas isn’t in my church etiquette guidebook.

You can dress them up but you can’t take them out.

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

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The Anchor

January 22, 2010

An inspiration to family, fellow parishioners

By Michael Pare Anchor Correspondent

“Make It Known Ministry” Presents a Concert Featuring

Father Pat

Refreshments will be served following the Concert

Sunday, February 7, 2010 at 2PM St. Julie Billiart Parish, 494 Slocum Road North Dartmouth, MA ~ Donation of $10 per ticket ~ Doors open at 1:30PM

*Please note that lost or stolen tickets cannot be replaced*

- NO REFUNDS –

For more information please call Betty Ann at 508-996-5267 or Barbara at 508-999-7290

Tickets also available at the Parish Office

POCASSET — Being raised on a 100-acre farm in Bellingham seems to have paid dividends for Pauline Pleau — physically and spiritually. At 83, Pleau, a long-time parishioner at St. John the Evangelist Parish in Pocasset, is a picture of health.

“The only medication I take is a multi-vitamin each day,” she said. “I don’t seem to have any aches and pains. I don’t worry about things.

Every day I thank God for that.”

That good health and the energy that goes with it allow Pleau to remain dedicated to her parish, while at the same time keeping up her part-time job as a cashier at the Christmas Tree Shop.

A child of devout French-Catholics, Pleau remembers a childhood marked by hard work and a commitment to the Catholic faith. It was a simpler time, a slower time. The family spent time together. They ate the right foods. They remained close to God through prayer.

“We didn’t have a car, living on the farm,” she said. “There was always a lot of work to do, but Sunday was a day of rest. If for some reason we didn’t get to Mass, we all gathered and prayed the rosary.”

Perhaps it is that investment in good living that fuels Pleau in her tireless commitment to Anchor person of St. John the Evangelist. Pleau.

Every morning, Pleau is there to lead a dedicated group of worshipers in the rosary before Mass.

Even on those days when she is scheduled to work.

“We pray for all of our friends and families,” she said. “I think we all take comfort in that.”

Family has always meant the world to Pleau.

After growing up in Bellingham, one of 11 children, she met her husband Bernard, who was one of 14 children, during World War II. He worked in a paper mill. They met at the local grange. Eventually, they married and raised 10 children of their own.

Bernard and Pauline lived their faith together. It was always an important part of raising a big family, she said. And being involved at their parish, St. Joseph’s in Medway, was a part of that. It was what you did. Living their faith in such a way sent the right their message to their children, and others.

Nelson Pleau, one of their 10 children, now lives in upstate New York. The importance of family and faith was a lesson he remembers his parents teaching through their actions.

“The faith of our family was always important to all of us,” said Nelson Pleau. “It was a good upbringing. It was such a large family … we had cousins and cousins and cousins. We would spend so much time together. And during all those years, my mother was busy volunteering at church, doing whatever she could.”

Bernard and Pauline remained in the Bellingham area and then moved to Cape Cod in

the early 1980s. Once settled in Pocasset, they were quick to become involved at St. John the Evangelist.

Bernard passed away in 1990 after a lengthy illness. Pleau still misses him dearly. Fortunately, her large extended family has always kept her busy. She has 12 grandchildren and another 12 great-grandchildren. There are regular visits.

In fact, several of her children returned this past fall to help repair a fence that had fallen.

“It was sort of a mini reunion,” said Nelson Pleau. “It was a lot of fun.”

But each and every day, it is at St. John the Evangelist where Pleau demonstrates so beautifully her commitment to God and those around her.

She is now serving in her second year as President of the Women’s Guild, a dedicated organization that spearheads fund-raising efforts for several parish causes.

Twice each year, for example, the Women’s Guild collects pennies, donating the proceeds to unwed mothers with babies, as well as to the St. Vincent de Paul Society.

This year, the Women’s Guild held a Harvest Fair in the fall, raising $4,000 for the parish. A portion of that money allowed the parish to purchase new covers for its missals, with the rest of it also going to St. Vincent de Paul.

Pleau is also in charge of running “55 the week — Pauline and over luncheon” every Tuesday from October through June in the Parish Center.

“Everyone brings their own lunches,” said Pleau. “We serve coffee, tea and cold drinks. We may do readings. It’s a social gathering.”

St. John’s pastor, Father Robert Donovan, says that Pleau makes these 55 and over luncheons enjoyable. “Pauline makes it a joy to reach out to the seniors of the parish and to care for their needs,” he said.

Constance Murphy, a long-time parishioner, appreciates all that Pleau does for St. John’s.

She notes that Pleau’s “homemade treats” are well known to all those who attend the weekly luncheon.

“Her life is dedicated to helping others,” said Murphy. “She is the perfect example of someone who lives her faith each and every moment of the day. She is just such a wonderful person.”

Nelson Pleau feels blessed that his mother keeps so busy. Often, he’ll get a call from an old friend marveling at the fact that they just saw Mrs. Pleau at the Christmas Tree Shop. And being so involved at St. John’s is a perfect outlet for a woman so dedicated to her faith.

“She has a great group of friends who are all so involved in the parish,” he said.

Nelson Pleau pauses for a bit, searching for the word to best describe his mother and her life so well-lived.

“She’s an inspiration,” he said.

To nominate a person, send an email message to FatherRogerLandry@AnchorNews. org.

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The Anchor

January 22, 2010

The intent was there — and it was a great one

here have been certain events throughout history that have raised the question in many people, “How can God let this happen?” Some of the more prevalent disasters include the Holocaust, the great World Wars, Pearl Harbor, September 11, the Columbine and Virginia Tech massacres, the great tsunami of 2004, and most recently the cataclysmic earthquake in Haiti.

These are questions to which we’ll probably never know the answers. That’s where faith comes in. All Christians know that God does not want to see any of his children suffer. As hard as it is to accept sometimes, the old adage is true — “Everything happens for a reason.”

In each of the aforementioned instances, thousands of innocent people were killed, injured, displaced, or permanently scarred mentally. Also in each of these instances, humanity’s true colors came shining through.

Even more thousands rallied around the victims with all

By Dave Jolivet types of support — physically, financially, spiritually, and psychologically — as is the case with our Haitian brothers and sisters.

I’m usually irked by the greed and need

for “respect” in sports, but this weekend brought it to a new level.

Juxtaposed against the images filtering out of Haiti, of collapsed buildings, tent villages, human suffering beyond our comprehension, were images of ball players admitting to cheating, a Red Sox closer looking to cash in big time, and an NBA millionaire star charged with felony gun possession.

I watched all of the NFL playoff games and witnessed crazed fans ridiculously dressed with crazed looks on their faces hoping to advance to the Super Bowl.

I must admit I felt a bit uncomfortable observing such a great disparity in what human beings are going through — some partying in luxurious football cathedrals, and others simply trying to scrape up a few drops of water and bits of food.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying one’s self or trying to better one’s lot in life (to a degree), I just wish everyone could share a piece of the pie. Maybe it’s guilt, but I think it’s more compassion. I hate to see anyone suffer.

Christ said we’ll always have the poor with us, and how right he was. I don’t know why that is, but I must have faith — but some-

My View From the Stands

times it’s difficult.

But the good Lord does tend to throw us a bone every now and again, just when we need it.

Last weekend, Denise, Emilie and I went to Sunday Mass together, as usual.

(Not Igor though — as has been mentioned in previous columns, she’s a devil dog.)

Just prior to the second collection, the one for Catholic Communications, I noticed Emmie digging in her pocket. When the basket came by she dropped $10 in.

Now keep in mind that $10 can get a 14-year-old seven or eight downloaded songs on iTunes — a very big deal.

I wondered why she would be so generous to maintain the TV Mass. It turned out that was not her intent. She thought the second collection was for the Haitian earthquake victims. She has shown great concern for these people since the January 12 catastrophe.

She was heartbroken when I told her the collection wasn’t for those poor people.

I promised her that I would add $10 to her parents’ Haitian donation this weekend.

She so wanted to be a part of their recovery, and she will be.

All too often, I question why God lets bad things happen to people, and then he does something like send me a teen-age girl to show me he loves all his children, despite their dire circumstances.

I pray that everyone receives a similar message when their faith gets tested.

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The Anchor

2009 Marian Medals video to air on TV

FALL RIVER — A video of the 2009 Marian Medals Ceremony that took place on November 22 at St. Mary’s Cathedral in Fall River is airing on several cable television public access channels in the Fall River diocese.

As of press time, the schedule is as follows: — Barnstable, Chatham, Dennis, Harwich, and Yarmouth, cable channel 17, January 27 at 11 a.m.

— Fall River, cable channel 95, January 28 and February 4 at 12 noon.

— Marion and Mattapoisett, cable channel 9, January 24 and 31 at 5:30 p.m.; January 26 and February 2 at 6 p.m.; and January 28 and February 4 at 3 p.m.

— Mashpee, cable channel 17, January 28, February 4 and 11 at 4 p.m.

Please note that public access channels in other communities are also airing the Marian Medal Ceremony video. However, not all airings are scheduled far enough in advance to include the information in this listing. Additional airtime information for other communities will be published as the information is made available.

The 2009 Marian Medal Ceremony video is also available for purchase. Copies may be ordered in either VHS format ($22.95) or DVD format ($24.95).

To obtain a video, please forward a check payable to the Diocesan Office of Communications, Diocese of Fall River, PO Box 7, Fall River, Mass. 02722.

Shipping is included in the video cost.

CNS Movie Capsules NEW YORK (CNS) — The following are capsule reviews of movies recently reviewed by the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“The Book of Eli” (Warner Bros.)

This unexpectedly contemplative and lyrical, if violent, homage to spaghetti Westerns, martial arts films and religious faith follows a lone hero (Denzel Washington) as he traverses a post-apocalyptic landscape using his considerable fighting skills to safeguard the only extant copy of the King James Bible. Director siblings Albert and Allen Hughes have succeeded at making an entertaining and relatively substantive movie, while refraining from saturating the proceedings in blood or prolonging the violent passages.

Still, some moviegoers will find the pairing of Scripture with stylized aggression unnecessary and avoidable. Intermittent strong violence including gunand swordplay and a killing intended to be merciful, much rough language, some crude language, and brief sexual innuendo. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classifica-

January 22, 2010 tion is L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

“Daybreakers” (Lionsgate) This potentially intriguing, but excessively violent tale, set in a futuristic world where a mysterious plague has transformed the vast majority of the population into vampires, and where the blood supply drawn from the few remaining mortals is rapidly dwindling, follows the efforts of a conscientious undead researcher (Ethan Hawke) to develop a viable substitute, his conflict with the greedy chief (Sam Neill) of the conglomerate sponsoring his work and his eventual partnership with two fugitive humans (Willem Dafoe and Claudia Karvan) who may have discovered an alternative solution to the crisis. Co-writers and directors Peter and Michael Spierig effectively conjure a society where blood-suckers are the norm and use it to make satiric points about corporate excess and environmental irresponsibility, but the intermittently gory proceedings move toward a climactic scene of orgiastic bloodletting. Graphic gruesome violence, including decapitation, dismemberment and exploding bodies; upper female nudity; at least three uses of profanity; and some rough and crude language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O — morally

offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

“The Spy Next Door” (Lionsgate/Relativity) Generally good-hearted but thin martial-arts comedy in which an undercover spy (Jackie Chan) posing as a mild-mannered pen salesman is left in charge of his divorced girlfriend’s (Amber Valletta) three kids (Madeline Carroll, Will Shadley and Alina Foley), even as he works to thwart the evil schemes of a Russian criminal (Magnus Scheving) bent on cornering the international petroleum market.

Director Brian Levant’s family-oriented offering — which also features country singer Billy Ray Cyrus and comedian George Lopez as Chan’s CIA colleagues — while sketchy, is mostly free of worrisome content and charts its central character’s self-sacrificing efforts to protect the youngsters and win their trust, but scenes of handto-hand combat makes it unsuitable for the smallest viewers and brief interludes of mildly risque humor further restrict its appropriate audience. Considerable, though nongraphic martial arts violence, acceptability of divorce, some vaguely sexual humor, at least one crude term.

The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II — adults and adolescents.

Motion Picture Association of America rating, PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

Diocese of Fall River TV Mass on WLNE Channel 6 Sunday, January 24 at 11:00 a.m.

Celebrant is Father Marc H. Bergeron, pastor of St. Anne’s Parish in Fall River

January 22, 2010

The Evangelicals: ‘Me and Jesus …’

O

utside of Catholicism The mainline churches (Presand Pentecostalism, byterian, Congregationalist, the largest and most rapidly Episcopalian, and the like) have growing sector of Christianity largely capitulated to the secular is that which is broadly desigacceptance of premarital sex, nated evangelical Protestant, or abortion, and homosexual consimply evangelicalism (usuduct, espousing what socioloally not capitalized). What the gist W. Bradford Wilcox calls a philosopher Wittgenstein said “Golden Rule Christianity” that about the aroma of coffee can honors tolerance, inclusivity, be said likewise of evangelicaland social justice (except for the ism: everyone knows it exunborn) as paramount virtues. ists, but no one can precisely Evangelicals, however, have describe it. Evangelicalism isn’t resisted the abdication of moral a denominational family, like principles that Christians have Presbyterianism or Lutheranheld since the earliest days of ism, but an umbrella term used the faith. to unite conservative Chris“Evangelical” was first used tians from different traditions. to designate the adherents of the Consequently, the differences Lutheran Reformation. It was among evangelicals are often later applied to the early Methvery stark. For example, some odists and others who sought evangelicals affirm Calvinist predestination while others prefer Arminian free The Fullness will. The fact that of the Truth many Baptists, Pentecostals, Methodists,

By Father Presbyterians, LutherThomas M. Kocik ans, and Anglicans identify themselves as evangelical only adds to the confusion. Although to reinvigorate Christian faith many small evangelical dewithin the Church of England. nominations have been formed Evangelicalism is rooted also in the last hundred years, most in Christian fundamentalism, evangelicals are members of an American movement occurindependent, nondenominaring at the turn of the twentieth tional congregations with names century in opposition to liberal like Grace Gospel or Calvary trends within Protestantism.

Bible Church. What, then, holds Among these trends was a the evangelical world together? strong skepticism about ChrisWhere is its center of gravity? tianity’s supernatural content Most observers agree that in (the inspiration of Scripture, the addition to affirming traditional virgin birth and bodily resurrecChristian doctrines such as the tion of Jesus, miracles, and so Trinity and the two natures on). While those liberal Protof Christ (human and divine), estants who called themselves evangelicals emphasize the iner- “modernists” sought to accomrancy and authority of the Bible, modate traditional Christian the necessity of accepting Christ beliefs to modern science and as Lord and Savior (being “born culture, their conservative opagain”), the atoning sacrifice ponents were eager “to do battle Christ, and the importance of royal for the fundamentals,” bearing witness to the Gospel. in the words of Baptist pastor “At bottom, one cannot distinCurtis Lee Laws. American guish evangelical teaching from Protestants fought bitter internal traditional Christian orthodoxy,” battles over who would control explains Catholic convert and their denominational seminarwriter Thomas Howard, “… yet ies, local churches, and mission the flavor of evangelicalism is boards. very different from that of the The fundamentalists were the traditional Church.” cultural losers in the modernistThat flavor is defined by a fundamentalist conflict symdouble negative. First, evangeli- bolized by the famous Scopes calism is definitely Protestant, “monkey trial” of 1925. After which means that it is neither their defeat, they became Catholic nor Orthodox. Absent increasingly sectarian, taking from evangelical teaching are refuge in an allegedly pure, litsuch doctrines as the Real Pres- eral understanding of the Bible ence of Christ in the Eucharist, detached from the interpretative the sacraments as channels of tradition of the wider Christian grace, the apostolic succession, community. The story of modthe authority of Tradition, and ern evangelicalism began during the intercession of the saints.

World War II, when a numSecond, evangelicalism is not ber of fundamentalist leaders mainline or liberal Protestant. called for reengagement with

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The Anchor the culture. The cause of the old fundamentalists who were now the “new evangelicals” was represented by Christianity Today magazine and, above all, by the ministry, spanning half a century, of Billy Graham.

Virtually all of the differences between evangelicals and Catholics concern the idea of mediation. The “one Mediator between God and men” is Jesus Christ (1 Tim 2:5), present and active in his body the Church.

Evangelicals stress the relationship of the individual Christian to God, whereas Catholics accentuate the communal nature of salvation. The Catholic has no reluctance in seeing his relationship with God in Christ being realized through the sacraments, the saints, and a hierarchical ministry; for any mediation attributed to the Church (which includes Mary and the saints) is only part of the mediation of Christ. Evangelicals, on the other hand, tend to regard all these secondary mediators (except for the Bible) as “getting in the way.”

In the last twenty years or so, a growing chorus of evangelicals has called for a recovery of the “catholic” roots of the faith embodied in the great creeds, theology, worship, and spirituality of the early Church. This desire for continuity with the Church in history has led many evangelicals to embrace Catholicism (and, less frequently, Orthodoxy), with its richly textured theological and liturgical life. Conversely, more than a few evangelicals are ex-Catholics.

Many Catholics who haven’t been touched by the words of Scripture in the Mass or in religious instruction later come to have a true conversion of heart and make a personal commitment to live for Christ. Sometimes this conversion takes place outside the Catholic Church.

However, as these “reborn” Christians grow in their knowledge of Scripture and in their love for Christ, they may someday be drawn back to that life of intimate encounter with the Lord in the sacraments for which there is no earthly parallel.

The whole body of Christ stands ever in need of biblically grounded faith combined with the sources of the living Tradition by which the early Church came to know the meaning and content of Scripture. Call it evangelical catholicity.

Father Kocik is a parochial vicar at Santo Christo Parish in Fall River.

Our readers respond

Abortion clinics and the law When we visit our doctor we expect them to comply with the laws and regulations set forth by the State and Federal governments to protect us, and luckily, most do. Because of the activities of recent years, it appears that the abortion industry feels that these laws do not apply to them.

A New Bedford abortion clinic closed because they didn’t think the tax laws applied to them. The Hyannis abortion clinic closed because they caused the death of 20-year-old Laura Smith by a lack of appropriate equipment and gross negligence. Apparently, the Attleboro clinic believes that the disposal of dead babies and medical equipment do not require adherence to the law. All of these clinics have in common the lack of respect for the patient and the obsessive quest for substantial profit.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ Executive Office of Health and Human Services recently received information that Four Women Health Services was improperly disposing of medical and biological waste at their 150 Emory Street abortion facility.

This prompted an investigation of the abortion clinic by the State of Massachusetts and City of Attleboro Health Departments. Based on observations made during the on-site inspection, it was determined that Four Women had numerous deficiencies and was not in compliance with State law. The State has given Four Women until January 15 to respond to these deficiencies and to come into compliance. Any additional violations could result in legal action. A copy of these findings are public record and may be obtained from the Attleboro Board of Health.

Doctors take an oath to “never do harm.” Millions of women and men are suffering as a result of past abortions. Women of today, and their babies, deserve the support and compassion that they are so desperately seeking when in a crisis pregnancy. When a couple has a planned pregnancy the baby is a precious gift from God, created in his likeness. When a couple has an unplanned pregnancy, that baby becomes a burden that must be killed in order for the parents to return to their “normal” lives. The problem is that life hardly returns to “normal” after an abortion.

Darlene Howard Mansfield

A question of uniform justice I have been reading the reports in The Anchor and our local newspapers about Pope Benedict XVI asking for discussions in Ireland pertaining to the child abuse scandals which took place between 1975 to 2004. The report names bishops who have been found guilty of covering up the scandals to protect the Church and some are being asked or told to resign.

My question is, why have resignations not been asked for here in the United States? For example, Cardinal Bernard Law was sent to Rome and made archpriest of St. Mary Major Church instead of having to resign when many clergy abuse cases took place in his Boston Archdiocese under his watch. Many of us Catholic do not understand this and we are still very upset with the Church for the inaction that was taken in our country with this terrible scandal. Paying the victims is one thing, but many of the priests and bishops guilty of overlooking the abuse are still practicing their vocations. This will never go away if justice isn’t served.

Barbara MacLean East Sandwich Death of innocents deja vu This letter was written on December 28, the feast of the Holy Innocents, a day on which we commemorate the deaths of hundreds of innocent babies brutally killed by Herod’s soldiers in Bethlehem. Now, 2,000 years later, thousands of innocent babies, born and unborn, are being brutally killed every day through infanticide and abortion by antilife doctors in our country.

Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., our Representatives and Senators use babies as pawns in their legislative chess games.

These pusillanimous and unprincipled politicians debate not whether to kill babies, but how and when to kill them, and who should pay for the killing. And we, who consider ourselves civilized, look back at Herod’s actions as barbaric.

Richard A. Carey Needham A super website Just a note of congratulations on The Anchor’s new website. It is very well done, and I will be using it frequently. All my best!

Father Gerry Shovelton Lady Lake, Fla.

Please note that the dates of this year’s Anchor subscription drive have not yet been finalized. Normally held the first week of February, the drive will be slightly delayed in 2010.

We will publicize the dates once they have been finalized. Thank you for your understanding and patience.

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The Anchor

A visit to the Holocaust Memorial Museum

A

visit to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. should be made in a lightly falling snow, as if God were soothing the pain and damping the fires of the crematoria ovens. It would be good to have such comfort from God, because he is the one to whom we look in this memorial.

He is the one from whom we seek an understanding of how such an event could ever have taken place.

There is no fee to enter the museum. I was there early on a recent November morning, and, as I was given an Identification Card for one of the victims to carry in my pocket and took the elevator up to the start of the memorial — you begin on the fourth floor and descend down — I felt uneasy about what was coming.

I am a Jew, a convert to Catholicism. I found the truth of Jesus Christ six years ago, and, after studying for nearly

T

January 22, 2010

oday, January 22, is the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that declared open season on the unborn. Jane Roe, whose real name is Norma McCorvey, had sued to have the Texas law prohibiting abortion declared unconstitutional so that she could get an abortion.

a year at my parish church of St. Patrick’s in Falmouth with then-parochial vicar Father Tad Pacholczyk, I was baptized.

For me, the Holocaust Memorial Museum was not only the history of how my kin were nearly wiped out of Europe during World War II, it was also the place where I had to reconcile my personal and loving God with the horror that struck down his Chosen People.

The museum sets out the rise of the Nazi Party, and its eventual collapse, in a series of exhibit rooms full of photographs, maps, documents and artifacts. There are movies of Hitler’s addressing huge crowds as well as copies of the progression of German laws that stripped Jews of their rights as German citizens and eventually declared the “Final Solution” — the mass extermination of the Jewish people.

More than a political or military history, though, this memorial preserves the memory of the millions of real people who perished in the concentration camps. A three-story walkway is covered with black and white photos of the simple men, women, and children of

Guest Columnist David Ament one village, and the museum’s stone corridors are etched with the names of hundreds of cities and towns emptied of their Jewish populations.

The most emotional moments for me were when I felt the dead right there with me — in a room filled with thousands of pairs of their shoes, by a pile of suitcases

on which they had naively written their names and forwarding addresses, in the darkness of one of the railroad cars that carried them to the gas chambers. When I had come through it all and entered the final Hall of Memory — where one single flame burns eternally in a huge, empty room — I could only cry.

I do not have an answer for the Holocaust, not to the question of how men could have done this to their fellow human beings. As to God, though, I think I reached an understanding.

One lesson of the cross is that God in a sense dies with us when we suffer terribly. His love for each one of us, and his personal knowledge of our lives and our suffering, go that deep.

Thus even if God did not choose to stop the Holocaust — because he really takes seriously his having made us free to love or

Women who witness

Her lawyer, Sarah Weddington, falsely claimed that she had been gang-raped. The decision fortunately came down after McCorvey gave birth, but by declaring the laws of virtually every state unconstitutional, opened the door to millions of abortions, and the resulting decimated schoolyards and

playgrounds. within a 35-foot fixed buffer McCorvey went on to work zone” around abortion clinics. for Planned Parenthood, but The law is an unprecedented eventually had a dramatic restriction of free speech in the change of heart and embraced traditional public forum of the Pro-Life views. She also conpublic sidewalks and streets. In verted to Catholicism. Recently, the words of our amicus brief, she protested the University of “the Act applies to invited and Notre Dame’s decision to defy uninvited approaches alike, the country’s bishops and honor regardless of how peaceful and our pro-abortion president at its 2009 commencement.

Another Texas woman also had a dramatic change of heart regarding abortion: Abby Johnson, director of a Planned

By Dwight Duncan Parenthood abortion clinic in Bryan, Texas, where she had worked for nine years. When she finally welcomed the speech is.” witnessed an ultrasound, she The amicus brief in Mcsaid, “I could see the whole pro- Cullen v. Coakley (yes, that’s file of the baby 13 weeks head Martha Coakley, the state Atto foot. I could see the whole torney General who is vigorside profile. I could see the ously defending this law) is probe. I could see the baby try on behalf of six courageous to move away from the probe.” women, five of whom have had She renounced her pro-choice abortions and regret it, and the views and quit as director. She sixth of whom was talked out said that her superiors had been of it in front of an abortion encouraging her to increase clinic. Three of them had two revenues by performing more abortions, including Alveda abortions. (Joseph Abrams, Fox King, niece of the Rev. Martin News Story Nov. 2, 2009).

Luther King, Jr. All of them Last month I filed an amare against the buffer zone law icus brief at the U.S. Supreme because it deprives them of Court urging them to hear the their First Amendment right First Amendment challenge to to receive information about Massachusetts’ buffer zone law, abortion and alternatives that is which is the most extreme in the relevant to their decision. country. It “prohibits a woman The stories of these women from having a conversation, recounted in the brief “demonreceiving a leaflet, or engaging strate that women do, in fact, in any type of communication experience regret when they

Judge For Yourself

St. Kilian’s Church

306 Ashley Boulevard, New Bedford, MA Sat., 6 February 2010• 508-992-7587

7:50 am Church Hall: Fatima Video Presentation.

9:00 am Church: Procession of Our Lady. Angelus. Crowning Ceremony. Sung Litany of Loreto. The Five Joyful Mysteries.

10:00 am

Mass of Our Lady: Celebrant and Preacher, Fr. Dominic, FI.

11:15 am

Lunch break (please bring bag lunch). Bookstore will be open.

12:15 pm Exposition and Procession of the Blessed Sacrament.

12:40 pm

Sermon on Our Lady by Fr. Raphael, FI. Silent Adoration.

1:15 pm

Break. Bookstore will be open.

1:35 pm

Meditations on the Passion of Our Lord.

2:10 pm The Five Glorious Mysteries. Act of Consecration. Benediction.

3:00 pm Enrollment in the Brown Scapular and Conferment of Miraculous

Medal. Procession of Our Lady.

- Confessions available throughout the day - Finish approx 3:15 pm Chapel is wheelchair accessible SELECTION OF VENUES FOR 2010: Saturday, 6 Mar 2010 St. John of God Church, Somerset, MA Saturday, 1 May 2010 St. Brendan Church, Bellingham, MA Saturday, 5 Jun 2010 Our Lady of Grace, Westport, MA

to commit atrocities — I believe that God was there in person, there to the end with every man, woman and child. No one was abandoned. No one was murdered without God’s mourning.

No one was slaughtered without the sin being pinned with Christ to the cross and the death being united to his death and resurrection.

In this loving, suffering God, and in the eternal life we rise to with him after our bodily deaths, I find my own way to accept this suffering. My own fire gives way to the falling snow, and it is enough for me.

David Ament is a practicing attorney and an active member of St. Patrick’s Parish in Falmouth. He and his wife Bev have two children and five grandchildren. January 27 is the 65th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and the U.N.’s International Day of Remembrance for victims of the Holocaust.

choose to abort a child without knowing all the facts. Several attest they have suffered psychologically and, in some cases, physically, as a result of abortion decisions made with incomplete, misleading, or false information. Several assert that they would not have chosen to have an abortion had they received accurate information.”

My co-counsel in bringing these women’s testimony before the U.S. Supreme Court are Prof. Mary Ann Glendon, of Harvard Law School, and Colbe Mazzarella, a schoolteacher and BC Law grad who both serve with me on the Pro-Life Legal Defense Fund, which paid for the printing and filing of the brief. (Prof. Glendon recently refused to accept Notre Dame’s prestigious Laetare Medal at the Obama commencement because to do so would have condoned a Catholic university honoring a pro-abortion president in defiance of the U.S. Catholic bishops.) The brief was largely researched and drafted

by Harvard Law students led

by Elizabeth Marie Ryan. The witness of these women deserves to be heard, and hopefully, the Supreme Court will decide to hear the case later this term.

Dwight Duncan is a professor at Southern New England School of Law in North Dartmouth. He holds degrees in civil and canon law.

January 22, 2010

Looking to bringing lost Catholics home

New Bedford church vandalized

continued from page one

keep people apart,” he added in an interview with The Anchor.

“At the core it is a parish-based initiative,” said Patenaude, who is at the helm of the bold, 16-month evangelization initiative “Return To Me With All Your Heart,” launched

by Bishop Thomas Tobin last October and which began on the First Sunday of Advent in 2009.

Thanks to an anonymous $200,000 donation, the multifaceted move to bring fallen-away Catholics back to the Church began with a unique, very public and quiet powerful presence.

Throughout Advent, Christmas and continuing all this month, television ads produced by CatholicsComeHome.org are filling the airwaves and reaching out to our lost brothers and sisters in Christ.

That advertising campaign that celebrates the history and achievements of the Catholic Church, and shares stories of former Catholics who have come home to the Church, features more than 1,100 commercials and is aimed at reaching 98 percent of all Rhode Islanders an average of 26 times. ”We’ve heard from so many people who think these are right on target for what we’re trying to do,” Patenaude added.

He said other dioceses that have run this campaign have seen a 20 percent increase in Mass attendance.

“The commercials’ power comes not just because of their beauty and design, filming or music,” he said. “They cause a reaction because they speak the truth — God’s truth, and the truth of and about his Church. Hearing this, our human nature, though fallen, nevertheless responds with hope, with longing.”

At the October kickoff held at Providence College, Bishop Tobin told a large group of representatives from all parishes that the Year of Evangelization “is by far one of the most important diocesan outreach efforts in recent history as we invite our neighbors back to Christ and his Church.”

He added, “This special year is an opportunity to renew and revitalize the faith and enthusiasm of every parish, school and organization of our diocesan Church, to reach out to inactive Catholics and to share the good news of the Catholic faith with the members of our community unfamiliar with the faith.”

Patenaude said, “It’s showing.

One of the recent anecdotal stories is of a post abortion woman who had left the Church 20 years ago thinking she was no longer a member of the Church and that she was not welcome. Having seen the ads she met with the priest who was her pastor, went to confession, received the Eucharist and returned

15

The Anchor continued from page one

to the Church. It really shows the Holy Spirit in action.”

“It’s an exciting time in our diocese,” Patenaude said.

“There are many souls going about their business right now unaware of the life-changing events and messages that are in motion and coming their way.”

In Illinois, the tri-Diocesan (Chicago, Joliet and Rockford) Catholics Come Home evangelization initiative led by Cardinal Francis George, was launched on December 16, and for the fiveand-a-half weeks since, presented approximately 2,000 television commercials in English, Spanish and Polish.

Three overlapping components beginning with “The Invitation” centering on the commercials; “The Welcome” by parishes as they received people who returned to the pews; and “The Accompaniment” as they returned to the sacraments, deepened the knowledge of those who came back to parish life and community.

“Christ has left us the command to go and make disciples everywhere, at all times,” Cardinal George said.

“He would have us call home those who were once disciples but who have lost contact with him and his Church. Your works and your prayers will make all the difference.”

All of the evangelical programs make it clear that the task does not require missionaries as such. Rather, because most families have a fallen away member in their midst, the job most frequently begins at home.

“Then it moves into the parish setting where coffee and pastries offered after Mass, special homilies, Religious Education, Adult Education, and parish societies and organizations demonstrate a welcome to reach out to those who come to Church infrequently — and even to make a one-on-one visit with others, inviting them to come back to the sacraments,” said Mrs. Penny Rinfret, director of Religious Education at Jesus Saviour Parish in Newport, R.I. “Evangelization isn’t done by standing in front of the altar and waiting for the wayward to come back,” she asserted. “We have to make a personal outreach.”

The Rhode Island program keys on several approaches.

The Friendly Visitor Program seeks to provide newly-returned Catholics with a meaningful task of helping care for the sick, thereby finding a new vigor in their spiritual lives; using the cathedral in Providence as a center of faith and learning; using the “Leaving A Light On” program to promote opportunities for the sacrament of reconciliation; providing podcasts

on diocesan websites; sponsoring civil debates on “hot-button” issues of the day; distributing invitation cards to lapsed Catholics providing local parish information and resources; using Franciscantype “listening programs” that evolve into dialogue leading to Mass; and finally, making use of inspirational teachings that stem from being a stewardship parish.

At Christ the King Parish in Mashpee, pastor Msgr. Daniel F. Hoye, reported the Catholics Returning Home evangelization effort “by a mostly lay person team of our parish has been successful in bringing back several who had become alienated from the Church or just simply slipped away.”

He said the several sessions with educational and teaching formats during the past two years did not include TV or radio promotions, “although we possibly would include those in the future … definitely radio.”

One of the success stories, he said, includes Rick, a father with three children at home who had been away from the Church for approximately 25 years.

“When his 17-year-old son, Erik, an exceptional child — asked to be baptized and receive the Eucharist, a special teacher was found within our parish to teach Erik a sufficient grasp the faith. In recent weeks Erik was baptized and received first Eucharist at a weekday Mass. Rick is now back with us as well,” Msgr. Hoye related.

Loraine Hanley Duqin of Our Sunday Visitor offered 10 reasons that influenced the decision of many people to return to the practice of the faith and that might be used as a discerning guide for evangelists.

They are: because we hunger for the Eucharist; because we want to be part of a faith community; because we want to help other people; because we want our children to have a faith formation; because the Catholic Church has the fullness of truth and grace; because we want to be healed; because we need to forgive others; because we made mistakes; because childhood memories surface; and because we want meaning in our lives.

How do you begin the process of returning to the Church?

Your local parish is the best place to begin your process of returning to the Catholic Church. Contact a parish near you and let them know you would like to return. You could schedule an appointment to speak with the pastor, find out the times for Mass, inquire about the events and programs available for adults; Scripture study, men’s/women’s clubs, serve opportunities. You may want to ask about the parish schedule for the sacrament of reconciliation.

ter discovering graffiti spraypainted on the church building and two broken windows in the adjacent rectory.

Father Cardenas said he found two messages spraypainted on the church — the first, a racial slur that has since been removed; the second, a Nazi swastika covering the side door to the church with the cryptic message “we’re back” underneath it.

“I know breaking a window and spray-painting a church might not sound like something very important when we have so many other problems in New Bedford with prostitution and drugs, but it’s considered a hate crime,” Father Cardenas told The Anchor.

In addition to the graffiti spray-painted in white, Father Cardenas said the storm door window of the side rectory entrance facing the church was also broken, as was his second-floor bedroom window.

Repeated calls to the detective handling the investigation at the New Bedford Police Department were not returned.

Although there has been little progress in the investigation to date, Father Cardenas suspects the culprit to be a teenager from the neighborhood he has encountered before.

“One day I was coming home from exercising and I saw a guy who previously had been verbally harassing me walking towards the rectory with two friends,” he said. “That same day I got into my bedroom and I noticed it felt cold and I saw glass all over the place — in my bed and on the carpet in my bedroom. Then I found a rock on the floor. It’s not too difficult to conclude that it could have been done by the same guy, because he was looking at me when I came home and he previously harassed me.”

Father Cardenas described the young man as being between 15 and 18 years old and said he previously asked police to remove him from church property for trespassing, so they are aware of him.

“It seems this guy is someone that is known in the community,” he said. “A member of our choir thinks it’s the same guy who tried to rob him.

“I want them to catch this guy and arrest him and I want him to pay for the damages.”

Although concerned about further acts of violence against the church, Father Cardenas said he hasn’t seen this person

since December 10 and there haven’t been any other incidents thus far.

“I have only been here a year and a half, and this is the first time anything like this has happened to the church,” he said. “I read that from 2008 to 2009 there have been more hate crimes against Christians than ever before. Before 2008 most of the hate crimes were committed against Jews and after 9/11 a lot were focused against the Muslims.”

While the Nazi symbol and racial slur might suggest a potential hate crime in this case, Father Cardenas prefers to believe this is just an isolated incident of one troubled teen-ager acting out — and something that is becoming all-too-common of late in New Bedford.

“I just think he thinks the Nazi swastika is cool and the message ‘we’re back’ doesn’t mean anything,” Father Cardenas said. “I don’t want to seem negative about New Bedford, but this is a war zone. There are a lot of good people here, but I also wouldn’t be surprised if someone comes into the church and breaks a crucifix or throws a Molotov cocktail one day.”

Father Cardenas said a lack of faith and trust in God and the breakdown of the family unit are two key reasons why teen-agers resort to violent acts of vandalism.

“I think a lot of our young people don’t have a mother and father to look up to and teach them values,” he said. “They don’t have the faith foundations to know better. For some of these kids, too much free time is hard to handle. It also makes them feel better about themselves by doing something like this — they break a window or vandalize something and they think they’ve defeated you.”

But Father Cardenas doesn’t seem at all defeated by the blatant attack against his church.

In fact, although the more offensive racial slur was immediately cleaned off the building, he’s decided to keep the Nazi swastika in place for the time being as a not-toosubtle reminder of how those who turn away from God can go astray.

He also kept the rock that smashed through his bedroom window.

“I’m keeping it as a souvenir,” he said.

16

Youth Pages

January 22, 2010

getting a bead on things — The second-grade students at Holy Name School in Fall River recently made rosaries with the help of the eighth-grade students. Upon completion of the project the youngsters gave the rosaries to others. At different educational levels, the groups were learning about the rosary and the miracles which have accompanied praying it — such as the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.

a bird in the hand — The first-grade students at St. John the Evangelist School in Attleboro are studying penguins through the month of January. The students are learning many facts about the different lives of penguins, reading stories, making posters and creating different projects in art class. Fun activities include walking like penguins in their classroom and finding which penguin is as tall as they. Here the students display the paper penguins they made in class.

simple and beautiful — The sanctuary of St. Rose of Lima Church in Guaimaca, Honduras, was beautifully decorated by the youth group of the mission parish of the Fall River Diocese. See Father Craig Pregana’s column on page seven of this edition.

they should be commended — Principal Bill Runey recently announced that 10 Bishop Feehan High School students have been named Commended Students in the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program. The winners were, front row from left: Stephanie Lizardi, Steven Ketchum, Anthony Lombardi, and Kelly Fischbach. Back row: Christina Roberti, Daniel Scannell, Andrew Ross, Principal Runey, Ryan Post, and Samuel Dodge.

L

ast week, Crystal Medeiros and I met with the team of YES! 26 as we began the process of team formation for the weekend to take place in April. I began the meeting with the opening prayer which in part reads, “The headlines in the newspaper report violence, murder, death. And I think of other particular suffering around us: thousands of children hungry in the Third World, death and loneliness in the world’s war-torn nations, drug-addicts exploited by pushers, kids hooked on drugs, ignorance through lack of education, sickness through lack of medical care, death on the streets. Lord, how can I respond to the cries of your people? I think of the less known sufferings: the anxieties and depression of lonely men and women; of those who attempt suicide; of those who drown their cares in over-indulgence in alcohol.

What can I do to help? I want to, Lord. I want my life to be a channel of your love to them: But what can one man, one woman, do? Help me, Lord to believe that I can help. And give me the courage and generosity to offer myself in service.

That my life might be like a candle, giving light to others.”

It has been nearly 20 years since those words were first written and yet those words, concerns and situations are as true today as they were way back then. Things just haven’t changed much, have they?

17

Youth Pages

January 22, 2010

Change doesn’t come easy

gation where a person of color I think this “understandwalking with a white person ing” of how little things have could be beaten within an inch changed was hammered home of their lives and everyone this weekend. My wife Kris would think that they deserved and I are on our annual trip to it. One of the most poignant Broadway where we tend to songs, “Change Don’t Come overdose on Broadway shows.

Easy” sums it all up.

For some reason, this year’s In “Hair,” the 1960s found crop of shows seems to have young people rebelling against a lot in common. Each of the shows we have seen takes place the status quo. I was shocked to see my generation portrayed so in a different decade and yet we were struck by the common vividly up on stage. I remember the music but find it hard to bethemes. lieve now that I thought it was In “Finian’s Rainbow,” a story of the 30s and 40s, we see cool. It was a crazy time with people trying to change their lot. The end result of the show was not only immigrants coming to this new land for a change in their life, or a leprechaun changing

By Frank Lucca to a mortal, but most importantly a white bigot who professed free love, drugs, and a gento hold Christian values and eration fighting for an identity. ideals was changed when he was forced to live the life of the They sought change and a more peaceful world. We are still at common black man in River war. (As an aside, the youth of Valley when his skin color was today’s generation seem tame changed by a wish said over compared to mine.) the “pot of gold.” Ultimately, This necessity to change the he became more understanding, world was drilled home durmore compassionate of the life ing the Mass we attended this of others and came to undermorning at St. Patrick’s Cathestand how he treated those indral. If you recall the Gospel dividuals because of their skin story (of Sunday, January 17) color wasn’t what a Christian John tells us about the wedding should do. feast at Cana. This is where In the new musical “MemJesus performed his first public phis,” we visit the 1950s and miracle by changing water the beginning of rock & roll. into wine. But it was only the We visit Memphis, the city, very first of the changes that during a time of horrific segre-

Be Not Afraid

he would bring about in this world.

Jesus was a change agent.

He changed water into wine and he changed death into life.

Jesus changed everyone he came in contact with in some way. He changed the very history of the world. Through this first miraculous sign Jesus also manifests that he came to this world to change people into “useful people.” As Jesus changed water into wine, so Jesus transforms those who come to him.

As these circumstances I report reveal, things haven’t changed much. I continue to be taken aback by how many of our brothers and sisters continue to hurt and suffer. After all these years, we still have those marginalized by race, color, education, orientation, disability, religion, political party and dozens of others things too numerous to mention. There are millions without jobs in our country. There are those without affordable medical care. Millions go to bed hungry every night.

As Christians it is our responsibility to continue Jesus’ work on earth. We should be working to bring about the changes he expects us to bring about. I’m not sure how many Christians there are in the world but there are one billion of us Catholics. As followers of

Christ, we need to take up the march toward change, a lasting change that turns this world toward the ideals that Christ left for us to follow.

I’ll grant you that some changes have taken place over the years. but how much different are we as a world today from the 1930s?

Change, however, has to start with us. So many of us are fearful of change. We don’t want it. We want things to stay the same. We need to fight for the marginalized. We need to be accepting of each other faults and foibles. We may even need to put the needs of others ahead of our own. I see glimmers of this when a natural disaster like Haiti happens but before long we are back in the same old groove.

Let us pray, help me Lord to believe that I can help.

And give me the courage and generosity to offer myself in service. That my life might be like a candle, giving light to others. As we begin this New Year let’s keep the challenge to change the world toward Christ at the forefront of our lives. As the giant billboard in Time Square says, “Think we, not me.”

Frank Lucca is a youth minister at St. Dominic’s Parish in Swansea. He is chair and director of the YES! Retreat and director of the Christian Leadership Institute (CLI). He is a husband and a father of two girls.

Catholic University opens novena of prayer and support for Haiti WASHINGTON (CNS) — Less than 48 hours after a massive earthquake devastated the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince, students, faculty and staff at The Catholic University of America in Washington responded to the tragedy by offering prayers and raising money.

The magnitude 7 tremor that struck the Caribbean nation January 12 left tens of thousands dead, caused billions of dollars in damage and destroyed hospitals, churches, schools, the presidential palace and the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption.

The Red Cross in Haiti predicted that as many as 50,000 people may have been killed in the tremor. About three million people — roughly a third of the country’s population — are believed to have been affected by the disaster.

“All of us have been moved deeply by this natural disaster — moved to the point of blinding tears, moved to the point of heartfelt prayer for a people unknown to us, thousands of miles

away,” Vincentian Father David O’Connell, president of the university, said January 14.

Father O’Connell was principal celebrant of a Mass offered at the university to kick off “CUA Cares: A Novena of Prayer and Action for the People of Haiti.”

The nine-day effort includes education to raise campus awareness to the devastation caused by the earthquake, prayers for victims and survivors and fund raising for relief efforts.

“We could not possibly explain why or how in the providence of God things like the earthquake in Haiti happen — the loss of life, the catastrophic destruction and devastation that has occurred there — no one can. But we can explain why and how we must respond,” Father O’Connell said in his homily.

Referring to Jesus’ words, “Whatever you do for the least of my sisters and brothers, you do for me,” the priest told those at the Mass, “We know what we need to do.” He asked for prayers and

support for “the people of Haiti who must place in God’s loving hands so many of their number who have died.”

“We will hold the people of Haiti close to our hearts,” Father O’Connell said. He asked the CUA community to “pray for them. And give what you can to them.”

Katie Blemings, a senior and one of five student-coordinators of “CUA Cares,” said the effort “is a great way to bring us together as a Catholic community and to help people who are in need of our help.”

“We begin our outreach with prayer,” Blemings said of the Mass that was attended by more than 200 students, faculty and staff, held in the chapel at the university’s Caldwell Hall. She said the school’s fund-raising effort has no maximum or minimum goal because “whatever we give will be more than they have.”

The university has asked every student, faculty and staff member to contribute at least $5 to the effort.

The university said it would match

all donations dollar for dollar.

Among those attending the Mass was student Remy Gouraige, a sophomore from Miami.

Gouraige said his mother and father were both born and raised in Port-au-Prince before emigrating to the United States, and he still has extended family there. He said seeing what the earthquake

did to their native land “has been tough on my parents, and they are calling (Haiti) every day trying to find out what is going on.”

Of family members living there, he said most were OK, “but we are still waiting to hear about my aunt. I also have friends at home who are still trying to find their families.”

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

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The Anchor

Signs of hope a decade into new millennium continued from page one

ther William Rodrigues, a parochial vicar at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in New Bedford. Each recently shared with The Anchor, their thoughts on answering God’s call in the 21st century.

“It was very exciting to be ordained at the dawn of the new millennium,” said Msgr. O’Connor.

“There was an atmosphere of renewal in the Church and it seemed to me that there were great expectations for the priests that were to be ordained then.”

Father Rodrigues concurred.

“The year 2000 was an exciting time for all of us,” he said. “I recall the preparation for the new millennium set out by Pope John Paul II and his call to celebrate the third millennium, facing the future with hope. There was a running joke among us that the Holy Father had heard our class was to be ordained and he thus decided to declare the year a jubilee.”

Both mentioned they had great hopes and expectations for the Church at this historic time. “My personal hopes were the same then as they are now that the Church will grow in the holiness of her people through an increased holiness of her priests,” said Msgr. O’Connor.

“While so much may change, the message and the call remain unchanged,” added Father Rodrigues.

“That is a source of strength and stability that the Church offers in our otherwise rapidly changing world.”

Father Albert Ryan has been a priest in the Fall River Diocese a

shade more that 50 years, having been ordained in 1958. Most of his ministry has been in the 20th century, but he, too, was blessed to witness the millennium change. “I was ordained in what you can call the ‘sandwich generation,’” he told The Anchor. “I witnessed the gradual change in the Church from the past to the present, and hopefully to the future. I’ve lately been doing a great deal of research on the history of the councils of the Church. There has been enormous change in the Church through the years — some good, some not so good. But the Church has always remained, and always will be the Mystical Body of Christ.”

Father Ryan admits things are different in the 2000s, but said, “The Church does what it can on a human level to change with the times. But the Church is constantly aware of the relationship between Christ and his Church. In the divine world, there are mysteries of which we haven’t yet grasped. But through God’s divine providence we will see them and understand them eventually.”

One of the dark periods of the Church, of which Father Ryan referred, was the clergy sex-abuse scandal. Much has been done to correct the horrors of a relatively few bad priests, but the Church in the 2000s continues to work to prevent a repeat of such an upheaval. “From a priests’ point of view I think we are now living in an environment where our point of departure is that every priest is a potential child mo-

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lester and this is a difficult environment,” said Msgr. O’Connor. “But those who understand what the Church teaches by the priesthood and understand what the priest truly is, can have nothing but love and respect for their priests. If people see he belongs to Jesus Christ and his Church then how can they not love and respect the priesthood?”

“The Church continues to recover,” said Father Rodrigues. “Healing takes time. Respect is earned and this is no less true for priests.

I have come to see during these 10 years, how important the sacramental role of the priest is to people of faith. Consecrating the Eucharist at Mass, saying words of absolution in the sacrament of reconciliation, administering the sacrament of the sick, and officiating at weddings and baptisms are among the most meaningful moments in the life of a Catholic. Our people appreciate what we provide and when they are treated with respect and love it is returned.”

A resurgence of eucharistic adoration has been one of the most noticeable changes in the new millennium in the Fall River Diocese.

“Look for growth in the Church and the revitalization of parishes and you will see a common thread — eucharistic adoration,” explained Msgr. O’Connor. “I think it is growing because people are trying it and they realize that it is a spiritual powerhouse. Then they get addicted and they tell their friends.” Father Rodrigues added, “The Eucharist is the center of our faith. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament reminds worshipers of this truth.”

As the second decade of the third millennium begins, hopes for the Church continue to spring in the hearts and minds of priests everywhere. “I would love to see, someday, a greater ChristianJudeo relationship,” said Father Ryan. “If God wants that to happen, it will.”

Msgr. O’Connor said the first 10 years of his priesthood have been amazing. “The whole priesthood is what I expected — the unexpected.

No two days are the same and if you try to do God’s will, we will always be surprised about what the Lord has in store for us.”

“The past 10 years have certainly not been boring,” said Father Rodrigues. “Going forward, it doesn’t look as though it’s going to be boring either. I am very hopeful about the future. One thing history teaches us is that nothing stays the same.

There will be changes, but the central teachings and practices of our faith continue to draw people who are seeking real meaning, direction and peace that only God can give.”

The Church will continue her 21st-century mission. “Nothing can stop the Holy Spirit from working,” concluded Father Ryan.

January 22, 2010

January 22, 2010 — A day of prayer and penance Following confirmation by the Vatican in February 2002, the following became particular law for the dioceses of the United States of America: “In all the dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when the 22nd falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life.

The Mass ‘For Peace and Justice’ (no. 21 from ‘Masses for Various Needs’) should be celebrated with violet vestments as an appropriate liturgical observance for this day.”

As an “Optional Memorial,” the Mass celebrated that day may be the Mass “For Peace and Justice” or follow the normal weekday Mass readings and prayers for the day found in the Ordo, with or without optional prayers related to St. Vincent of Saragossa whose feast day falls on January 22.

This particular law became mandatory in the dioceses of the U.S. for the first time on January 22, 2003.

All the faithful are encouraged to make special efforts to offer their prayers and sacrifices, whether personal and/or communal, for these intentions in regard to this observance of the January 22nd Day of Penance and Prayer.

Observing the January 22 Day of Prayer and Penance Ideas for personal prayer and communal practices: — hold a “Holy Hour for Life” in your parish or with your parish cluster; — make a private holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament, or in your home; — go to daily Mass and offer it for an increased respect for human life; — pray for those who have been wounded by abortion; — say a rosary or the Divine Mercy Chaplet; — engage in some form of fasting; — pray for those who work in the varied ministries in service of the dignity of the human person — crisis pregnancy counselors, hospice workers, clergy, pastoral care workers, medical professionals, etc.; — prayerfully consider making a commitment to continuing your prayer for the dignity of human life on an on-going basis throughout the year — for example, saying one Hail Mary every day for an end to abortion; — take some time during the month of January to read and reflect on Pope John Paul II’s encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life).

Diocesan Holy Hours Today To coincide with the anniversary of Roe v. Wade in 1973, a Holy Hour will be held today at 1 p.m. at Holy Trinity Church, Route 28, West Harwich. The rosary will be followed by Benediction of the most Blessed Sacrament.

The Anniversary of Roe v. Wade will be observed at Corpus Christi Parish in East Sandwich with exposition of the Blessed Sacrament followed by three hours of continual praying of the rosary and ending with Benediction. This will take place today from 2 to 5 p.m. Benediction will begin at 4:45 p.m.

St. Anthony of Padua Parish in New Bedford will have a eucharistic Holy Hour for Life at 4:15 p.m. today and a Mass for Life at 5:15 p.m.

Pope says young people need help avoiding trivial sense of love, sex VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Young people need help in avoiding a lifestyle where relationships and sexuality are trivialized, Pope Benedict XVI said.

“The Church asks for everyone’s collaboration, in particular from those who work in schools, to teach a lofty view of love and human sexuality,” the pope said in a mid-January speech to officials from the city and province of Rome and the Lazio region of Italy.

Young people today are looking for answers that can explain the human condition and the future of humanity as well as “for answers that can show them how to base their life on timeless values,” he said.

Christianity offers a “loftier vision of humanity” and the Church can contribute much to the urgent task of teaching young people about relationships and sexuality, he said.

“It’s necessary to avoid exposing adolescents and young people to ways that promote the trivialization of these fundamental dimensions of human existence,” that is, the dimensions of human sexuality and love, he said.

The pope said when the Church says “no” to particular behaviors and lifestyles, “in reality it is saying ‘yes’ to life, to love lived in the truth of giving oneself to another, and to love that is open to life and is not closed up in a narcissistic view of the couple.”

Haitian archbishop who died in quake portrayed as a humble man WASHINGTON (CNS) — Haitian Archbishop Joseph Serge Miot was known as a humble man who was close to the poor in the Archdiocese of Port-au-Prince.

Archbishop Miot, 63, was among tens of thousands of Haitians who died in the January 12 earthquake.

For years he served as president of the Haitian bishops’ justice and peace commission, and he often spoke of the need to help the citizens of the Western Hemisphere’s most-impoverished nation.

“The misery is so great,’’ Archbishop Miot told Catholic News Service in New York in May 1998. “Things have never been as bad as they are now. People who could not make a living in the rural areas have moved to the cities, and they are piling up in the slums.”

In an email to Catholic News Service, Archbishop Bernardito Auza, papal nuncio to Haiti, said the archbishop “was hurled from the balcony outside his room while he was waiting for another person on their way to a ceremony. The force of the earthquake threw him headfirst off the balcony and he died, it seems, from the impact.”

Because there was no elec-

In Your Prayers Please pray for these priests during the coming weeks Jan. 25 Rev. Jack Hickey, O.P., Dismas House, Nashville, Tenn., 1987 Jan. 27 Rev. John T. O’Grady, Assistant, Immaculate Conception, Fall River, 1919 Rev. Joseph M. Silvia, Pastor, St. Michael, Fall River, 1955 Rev. Thomas E. Lockary, C.S.C., Stonehill College, North Easton, 1988 Jan. 28 Rev. Joseph M. Griffin, Pastor, St. Mary, Nantucket, 1947 Rt. Rev. Msgr. John J. Shay, V.F., Pastor, St. John the Evangelist, Attleboro, 1961 Jan. 29 Rev. Christiano J. Borges, Retired Pastor, St. John the Baptist, New Bedford, 1944 Rev. Albert J. Masse, Pastor, St. Joseph, Attleboro, 1950 Jan. 30 Rev. Raymond F.X. Cahill, S.J., Assistant, St. Francis Xavier, Hyannis, 1983 Rev. Sebastian Slesinski, OFM, Conv., 2006 Jan. 31 Rev. Charles J. Burns, Pastor, St. Mary, North Attleboro, 1901 Rev. William F. Sullivan, Pastor, St. Patrick, Somerset, 1930 Rev. Manuel C. Terra, 1930

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The Anchor

January 22, 2010

tricity in the city, Church officials took Archbishop Miot’s body to the coastal city of St. Marc, said the nuncio. He said he asked that the body be buried immediately, which is not the normal Haitian tradition.

Haitian Holy Cross Father Rodolphe Arty, associate pastor of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish in Naperville, Ill., described Archbishop Miot as “a man of prayer” with a “great devotion to the Blessed Mother.”

Quigley said Archbishop Miot was “a modest man” and “very soft-spoken.”

“He was such a wonderful man,” said Liz McDermott of Le Claire, Iowa. “We lost a wonderful soul, truly a man of

God. It’s just heartbreaking.”

Joseph Serge Miot was born in Jeremie, Haiti, Nov. 23, 1946. He was ordained July 4, 1975.

As a priest, he taught and served as rector at the seminary in Port-au-Prince until he became rector of the newly established University of Notre Dame of Haiti in 1996. In July 1997, Pope John Paul II named him coadjutor archbishop of Port-au-Prince in an effort to resolve a difficult situation that arose after a failed presidential coup in 1991. Archbishop Miot was administratively in charge of the archdiocese as coadjutor; he succeeded as archbishop March 1, 2008.

Eucharistic Adoration in the Diocese Acushnet — Eucharistic adoration takes place at St. Francis Xavier Parish on Mondays and Wednesdays 9:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.; Fridays 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturdays 8 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays end with Evening Prayer and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.; Saturdays end with Benediction at 2:45 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 of the month, 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 TAUNTON — Eucharistic adoration takes place First Fridays at Holy Family Church, 370 Middleboro Avenue, following the 8:30 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 8 p.m.

FAIRHAVEN — St. Mary’s Church, Main St., has a First Friday Mass each month at 7 p.m., followed by a Holy Hour with eucharistic adoration. Refreshments follow.

FALL RIVER — St. Anthony of the Desert Church, 300 North Eastern Avenue, has eucharistic adoration Mondays and Tuesdays from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., and on the first Sunday of the month from noon to 4 p.m.

HYANNIS — A Holy Hour with eucharistic adoration will take place each First Friday at St. Francis Xavier Church, 21 Cross Street, beginning at 4 p.m.

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.

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 508336-5549.

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 at the church 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 following the 8 a.m. Mass until Benediction at 5 p.m. The Divine Mercy Chaplet is prayed at 4:45 p.m.; on the third Friday of the month from 1 p.m. to Benediction at 5 p.m.; and for the Year For Priests, the second Thursday of the month from 1 p.m. to Benediction at 5 p.m.

Taunton — Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament takes place every First Friday at Annunciation of the Lord Church, 31 First Street, immediately following the 8 a.m.

Mass and continues throughout the day. Confessions are heard from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m., concluding with recitation of the rosary and Benediction at 6:30 p.m.

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.

WEST HARWICH — Our Lady of Life Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Holy Trinity Parish, 246 Main Street, holds perpetual eucharistic adoration. 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.

Around the Diocese 1/22

Sacrament.

To coincide with the anniversary of Roe v. Wade in 1973, a Holy Hour will be held today at 1 p.m. at Holy Trinity Church, Route 28, West Harwich. The rosary will be followed by Benediction of the most Blessed

1/22

The Anniversary of Roe v. Wade will be observed at Corpus Christi Parish in East Sandwich with exposition of the Blessed Sacrament followed by three hours of continual praying of the rosary and ending with Benediction. This will take place today from 2 to 5 p.m. All are invited to drop in to pray at any time and stay for as long or short a period as they wish. Benediction will begin at 4:45 p.m. Call 508-833-8432 for information.

1/23

A Portuguese Dinner Night and Raffle hosted by the Knights of Columbus will be held at St. Dominic’s Parish, 1277 Grand Army Highway, Swansea, Sunday at 5:30 p.m. in the parish center. The menu will consist of Portuguese-style roast and potatoes, Portuguese soup, vegetables and dessert. For tickets or information, call 508-675-7206.

1/27

Bishop Connolly High School, 373 Elsbree Street, Fall River, will hold an Open House for all prospective students and their families January 27 at 6:30 p.m. The placement exam for prospective students will take place February 6 at 8 a.m. For more information, call 508-676-1071, extension 333.

1/30

Our Lady of Lourdes School, 52 First Street, Taunton, will host an Open House January 30 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Come meet and talk with staff members and parents and register students from Pre-K through Grade 5 for the 2010-2011 school year. For more information, call 508-8223746 or email olol@tmlp.com.

1/30

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 January 30 at 7 p.m. For location information, please call Father Richard Wilson at 508-992-9408.

2/5

ECHO is now accepting applications for the boys’ retreat weekend to be held February 5-7 at the Craigville Conference Center, Centerville. This retreat for high school students Grades 10-12 is a way to deepen faith and encounter Jesus in your life. For information or to download an application visit www. echoofcapecod.org or call 508-759-4265.

2/6

A Day With Mary will take place February 6 from 7:50 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. at St. Kilian’s Church, 306 Ashley Boulevard, New Bedford. It will include a video, instruction, procession and crowning of Mary, along with Mass, adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and an opportunity for the sacrament of reconciliation. For more information, call 508-984-1823.

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The Anchor

January 22, 2010

in better times — Sister Eileen Davey, right, with a mother and child in St. Louis Mary de Montfort Parish on New Year’s Day, which is also Haiti’s Independence Day.

Holy Union Sister in Port au Prince has ties to Fall River Diocese FALL RIVER — News has reached the Holy Union Sisters that Sister Eileen Davey, who has ministered in Port au Prince since September 2000, is safe. Sister Eileen administers a nutrition and early childhood education center in St. Louis Mary de Montfort Parish on the outskirts of Port au Prince.

For the first few days following the 7.0 level earthquake, the only news that her religious congregation had from the U.S. State Department was that she was alive. A Cameroonian Holy Union Sister, Elizabeth Kunsah, who lives in St. Michel, a small town northwest of Port au Prince with two other Holy Union Sisters from France traveled to the capital to see if the Sisters were safe. When she first arrived in Haiti in September 2009, Sister Elizabeth spent some time in the community with Sister Eileen and Sister Helen Ryder, an Irish Holy Union Sister.

Sister Elizabeth managed to reach the Sisters and sent news to Cameroon on Friday via satellite telephone when she returned to St. Michel.

She found the Sisters well and grateful that she had made the journey to see and be with them during such a difficult time. The Sisters’ house, the parish church of St. Louis Mary de Montfort and school are the only buildings in their area intact. They sleep each night with the people of their neighborhood in a field next to a nearby factory. Sister Elizabeth remarked that “what one sees on the television doesn’t even reflect the horror of the reality.” She also said that the situation for many other Sisters is very serious. One group has lost several Sisters and their school has totally collapsed.

Sister Eileen is moving around trying to learn the condition of the children who attended the nutrition center and generally helping wherever she can. During the day she and Sister Helen can go into

their house and have been able to get food. The main difficulty is water, both for drinking and cooking.

Sister Elizabeth said that there were already NGOs in their locality distributing necessities.

During the night that Sister Elizabeth slept in Port au Prince there was an aftershock at 4 a.m. and immediately all the people around them in the field began to pray and sing.

Sister Eileen, a native of Queens, N.Y., has many Fall River Diocese connections beginning with teaching second grade at St. Joseph School, Taunton from 1968 to 1971 and then teaching first grade at Sacred Heart School, Fall River from 1971-73 and again from 1975-77.

Since she arrived in Port au Prince in September 2000, Sister Eileen has received financial support from Sacred Heart Parish, North Attleboro. Lenten collections and fund-raising projects throughout the year have helped to support the nutrition center. St. Mary Parish has joined in fund-raising.

When the children are ready to enter elementary school, funds raised by the parishioners of St. Mary’s provide books and uniforms for the “graduates” of the nutrition center program. Each summer, Sister Eileen comes to North Attleboro and personally thanks St. Mary’s and Sacred Heart parishioners at all the weekend masses. This gives her an opportunity to visit with Holy Union Sisters Kathleen Corrigan and Celine Teresa who reside at St. Mary’s where Sister Kathleen serves as pastoral associate. All week St. Mary’s parishioners have been knocking on the Sisters’ residence to inquire about Sister Eileen.

The Holy Union Sisters are making contributions to Catholic Relief Services, an agency with a long presence in Haiti and they urge others to do so also.