The Catholic Spirit - February 13, 2020

2020

fish fry and

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lenten meal guide E O | HOT ISTOCK P

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DV ME

Where to eat from Ash Wednesday to Good Friday

February 13, 2020 • Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

fish fry & lenten meal guide

2A • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Albertville St. Albert — Knights of Columbus Lenten meal, 4–7 p.m. March 20 and April 3 in the parish center, 11400 57th St. NE. $8 per person for unlimited soup and sandwiches. Family rate available. Includes soup and grilled cheese sandwich. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. churchofstalbert.org

Blaine St. Timothy — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 21 and Fridays during Lent except Good Friday in the hospitality center, 707 89th Ave. NE. $12 adults, $10 seniors, $5 children, free 5 and under. Includes baked or deep-fried fish, French fries or baked potato, coleslaw, baked beans, bread and beverage. churchofsttimothy.com

The Catholic Spirit’s annual Fish Fry and Lenten Meal Guide features listings for parishes that wished to be included and that provided information before deadline. View updated information and the guide map at thecatholicspirit.com/nomeat.

Fridays during Lent February 28 March 6 March 13 March 20 March 27 April 3 April 10 (Good Friday)

Centerville

Corcoran

Knights of Columbus of Bloomington — Fish fry, 4:30–9 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 1114 American Blvd. W. $12.95. All-you-can-eat broiled or deep-fried cod with soup or salad, coleslaw and choice of potato. kofcbloomington.com

St. Genevieve — Fish fry, 5–8 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at the St. John campus, 14363 Forest Blvd. N., Hugo. $12 adults, $10 seniors (60 and older), $8 ages 6-12, free 5 and under.

Includes Icelandic cod, baby red potatoes, French fries, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, pickles, rolls, cookies and beverage. Ages 6-12 eligible for bike drawing. stgens.org

St. Thomas the Apostle — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m.

March 13 at 20000 County Road 10. $11 adults, $8 ages 12 and under, $32 family of four or more.

Extra piece of fish $2. Includes two pieces deep-fried fish, French fries, macaroni and cheese, and sides.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. saintsppta.org

Chanhassen

St. Raphael — Fish dinner, 5–7 p.m. March 27 at 7301 Bass Lake Road. $20 Knights of Columbus families, $8 adults, $4 ages under 10. Includes baked fish, French fries, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, toast and beverage. straphaelcrystal.org

St. Bonaventure — Fish dinner, 4:30–7 p.m.

March 6 and April 3 in Ambrose Hall, 901 90th St. E. Cost Includes ocean perch, au gratin potatoes, coleslaw, buns, dessert and beverage. saintbonaventure.org

St. Hubert — Fish fry, 4:30–6:45 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and April 3 at 8201 Main St. $30 family (up to four people over age 13; additional people $5 each), $11 adults, $5 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. All you can eat. Sponsored by Knights of Columbus Council No. 10031. Takeout available. Tickets at chankofc.org.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. sthubert.org

Chaska

St. Edward — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 13 at 9401 Nesbitt Ave. S. $10 individual or $30 family in advance; $12 individual or $35 family at the door.

Includes fish and chips or macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, dessert and beverage. Music and raffles. stedwardschurch.org

Guardian Angels — Knights of Columbus Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m. March 6, 20 and April 3 in the school gym at 215 W. Second St. $12 adults, $5 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. gachaska.org

Brooklyn Park

St. Bernard — Fish fry, 11 a.m.–8 p.m. March 20. $12 adults, $6 children. Takeout available. Cash raffle. st-bernard-cologne.org

St. Vincent de Paul — Lenten dinners, 5:30– 6:45 p.m. March 13 and 27 in Regan Hall at 9100 93rd Ave. N. $9 in advance; $10 at the door. Tickets limited. Fish dinner includes pan-fried tilapia with tartar sauce, loaded mashed potatoes, coleslaw, vegetable, dinner roll and dessert. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. saintvdp.org

Buffalo St. Francis Xavier — Fish fry, 4–8 p.m. March 6 at Huikko’s Bowling & Entertainment Center, 1207 N. Highway 25. $11 adults, $8 ages 10 and under. Hosted by the Knights of Columbus with proceeds benefiting youth ministries. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. at the church, 300 First Ave. NW. Lenten meals, 5:30– 6:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13, 20 and 27 at the parish hall (church basement), 300 First Ave. NW. Freewill donation. Proceeds go to youth ministry summer trips.

Lenten meal 5:30–6:30 p.m. April 3 at St. Francis Xavier Catholic School, 219 19th St. NW. Freewill donation. Followed by Living Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. in the school presented by the high school leadership team. stfxb.org

Cannon Falls St. Pius V — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 6, 13, 20, 27 and April 3 at 410 Colvill St. W. $12 adults, $6 ages 5-12, free 4 and under, $40 family. Includes fried or baked Alaskan pollock (all gluten-free), fresh relishes, gluten-free side dishes and desserts. Stations of the Cross at 4:30 and 7 p.m. stpiusvcf.org

Cedar Lake St. Patrick — Fish fry, 5–8 p.m. Feb. 21 and March 27 at 24425 Old Highway 13. $12 adults, $5 ages 4-12, free 3 and under. Includes French fries, au gratin potatoes, coleslaw, beans, rye bread, macaroni and cheese, and bars. Beer available. stpandc.mn.org

Edina Our Lady of Grace — Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m. April 3 at 5071 Eden Ave. $15 adults, $5 ages 10 and under.

Includes fish, pasta, baked potato, coleslaw, rolls and cake. Beer and wine extra at Father Kevin Finnegan’s Pub. Live music. Drive-thru available. olgparish.org St. Patrick — Fish dinner, 6 p.m. March 6 at 6820 St. Patricks Lane. $15 adults, $7 ages 12 and under.

Walleye and salmon. Advance reservations and payment required. Stations of the Cross at 5 p.m. stpatrick-edina.org

Elko New Market

Bloomington

Nativity of Mary — Fish fry festival, 4:30–9 p.m.

April 3 at 9900 Lyndale Ave. S. $12. Includes fish fillets or grilled cheese, French fries, baked beans, coleslaw, bread, dessert and beverage. Festival includes meat raffle, bingo and a family-friendly movie. Beer, wine and cocktails extra. nativitybloomington.org

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Cologne

Columbia Heights Immaculate Conception — Fish dinner, 4:30– 6:30 p.m. March 6, 20 and April 3 in the fellowship hall at 4030 Jackson St. NE. $10 adults, $5 ages 6-11, free 5 and under. Includes all-you-can-eat deep fried fish, baked potato, coleslaw, vegetable, roll, dessert and beverage. Children’s menu: macaroni and cheese.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. iccsonline.org

Coon Rapids Epiphany — Fish fry, 4:30–6:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 11001 Hanson Blvd. NW. $45 family, $12 adults, $8 ages 5-12 and seniors 62 and over, free 5 and under. Includes Guinness-battered cod, baked tilapia, homemade cheese pizza, baked potato and fixings, tater tots, coleslaw, applesauce, dessert and beverage. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m.

Sponsored by Epiphany Ministries. epiphanymn.org

Crystal

Deephaven St. Therese — Fish Dinner, 6–7:30 p.m. March 6 and 20 at 18323 Minnetonka Blvd. $8 individuals, $30 family. Includes deep-fried cod, coleslaw, fresh fruit, French fries, macaroni and cheese, and beverage. Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m. st-therese.org

Delano St. Maximilian Kolbe — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28 and April 3 at St. Peter’s Dining Hall, 217 S. Second St. Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus. Lenten gourmet seafood dinner, 5–7 p.m. March 20 at St. Peter’s Dining Hall, 217 S. Second St. Sponsored

by Catholic United Financial. Freewill offering.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. at St. Peter Church, 204 S. River St. delanocatholic.com

Eagan St. John Neumann — Elk’s fish fry, 5–7:30 p.m.

Feb. 28 and March 6, 13, 20 and 27 at 4030 Pilot Knob Road (new location). $16 adults, $6 ages 11 and under. Includes walleye, baked or mashed potato, coleslaw, roll, and beverage. $3 meal for ages 8 and under includes macaroni and cheese, animal crackers and milk. Sponsored by Elks, St. John Neumann and Knights of Columbus. sjn.org St. Thomas Becket — Soup supper, 6 p.m. March 6, 13, 20, 27 and April 3 at 4455 S. Robert Trail. Free.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stbeagan.org

Sauerkraut Supper and Mardi Gras Dance Holy Cross Campus • 17th Avenue & 4th Street NE, Mpls Tuesday, February 25, 2020 Dinner 4 p.m.–7 p.m. in school gym Adults $15. Children under 12 $6.

Menu • homemade sauerkraut, polish sausage, loin of pork, potatoes, rye bread, paczki, coffee or milk Take-out available • Tickets sold at the door Mardi Gras Dance: 4 p.m.–8 p.m. in Kolbe Hall Soda and Beer available • Music by Craig Ebel and DyVersa Co. Crowning of the Sauerkraut King and Queen @ 6:30 in Kolbe Hall

St. Nicholas — Fish Dinner, 4–8 p.m. March 13 at 51 Church St. $12 adults, $7 children, free 6 and under. Includes fish, potatoes, coleslaw, breads, dessert and beverage. Takeout available. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stncc.net

Excelsior St. John the Baptist — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. March 13 in the school cafeteria at 638 Mill St. $12 ages 12 and older, $10 seniors 65 and older, $8 ages 3-12, free 2 and under. Stations of the Cross in the church at 5:30 p.m. stjohns-excelsior.org

Farmington St. Michael ­­— Soup Supper, 5:30–6:30 p.m.

Feb. 26 at 22120 Denmark Ave. Freewill offering, 6:30 p.m. Stations of the Cross followed by Mass at 7 p.m. Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 6. Includes fried fish, potato, coleslaw, dinner roll and beverage. Freewill offering. stmichael-farmington.org

Forest Lake St. Peter — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 1250 South Shore Drive. $9 adults, $5 children. Includes fried cod or baked tilapia, French fries or roasted potatoes, toast, coleslaw and dessert. Children’s alternative vegetarian pasta dish. Takeout available. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stpeterfl.org

Golden Valley Good Shepherd — Fish fry, 5–6:45 p.m. Feb. 28 and April 3 at 145 Jersey Ave. S. Freewill offering.

Includes coleslaw, baked potato, green beans and dessert. Sponsored by the Knights of Columbus.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. goodshepherdgv.org

Hamel St. Anne — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 6 at 200 Hamel Road. $5. Includes Atlantic cod fish fillet, coleslaw, pickle spear, dinner roll and beverage. Additional fillet $3. saintannehamel.org

Hopkins St. Gabriel the Archangel — Fish dinner, 5– 7:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and March 27, 2020 at 1310 Main St. $30 family, $12 adults, $10 seniors 60 and older, $10 ages 8-17, free 7 and under. Includes fish tacos, baked fish and fried fish. Proceeds support parish’s good works and Hopkins Knights of Columbus Council. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stgabrielhopkins.org

Inver Grove Heights St. Patrick, Inver Grove Heights — Fish dinner, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28 at 3535 72nd St. E. $10 fish dinner, $5 grilled cheese dinner, $40 family maximum.

Includes fish or grilled cheese, au gratin potatoes, coleslaw, roll, cookie and beverage. churchofstpatrick.com CONTINUED ON 3A

fish fry & lenten meal guide

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Madison Lake

Minneapolis

Jordan St. John the Baptist — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m.

Feb. 28, March 13 and 20 at 313 E. Second St. $10 ages 12 and older, $5 for children under 12.

Includes all-you-can-eat fish, beans, salad, rolls and dessert. Takeout available. sjbjordan.org

Immaculate Conception of Marysburg — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. April 3 at the Marysburg Parish Hall, 27528 Patrick St. $12 adults, $6 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes deep-fried fish, au gratin potatoes, vegetable, coleslaw, bread, milk/coffee and dessert.

Stations of the Cross in the church at 7 p.m. maryschurches.com.

Annunciation — Fish fry, 5:30 p.m. March 20 at 509 W. 54th St. $10 adults, $8 seniors, $30 family, $7 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes deep-fried fish, coleslaw, baked potatoes, bread, cookies and beverage. Grilled cheese for children. Beer and soda available. annunciationmsp.org

Lakeville

Mahtomedi

All Saints — Lenten meals at 19795 Holyoke Ave. Soup supper, 6–6:45 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6, 20 and 27. Knights of Columbus spaghetti dinner, 5–7:30 p.m. March 13 and April 3. Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m. allsaintschurch.com

Le Sueur St. Anne — Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m. March 13 at St. Anne’s School, 511 N. Fourth St. Cost TBD. Includes baked potato, green beans, coleslaw, bun and beverage. stanneschurchlesueur.org

Lindstrom St. Bridget of Sweden — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 13060 Lake Blvd. $11 adults, $9 seniors and military, $6 ages 6-12, free ages 5 and under. Includes fried cod and baked fish, French fries, coleslaw, dinner roll, beverage, dessert and meatless spaghetti. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stbridgetofsweden.org

St. Jude of the Lake — Fish dinner, 5:30–8 p.m.

March 20 at 700 Mahtomedi Ave. $10 adults, $8 seniors, $5 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes baked tilapia or breaded cod, macaroni and cheese, potato, coleslaw and brownies. stjudeofthelake.org

Maple Grove St. Joseph the Worker — Fish fry, 5–8 p.m., March 13 and 27 at 7180 Hemlock Lane N. Freewill offering. Sponsored by Knights of Columbus. sjtw.net

Maplewood

Holy Name — Soup supper following Stations of the Cross at 6 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 3637 11th Ave. S. Freewill offering. churchoftheholyname.org

St. Jerome — Fish fry, 5–7:30 p.m. April 3 at 380 E. Roselawn Ave. $10 one piece, $12 two pieces, $14 three pieces. Pasta $5. Includes hand-battered deep-fried cod fillets, French fries, coleslaw, baked beans, applesauce, dessert and beverage. Soup supper, 6 p.m. Feb. 27, March 5, 12, 19 and 26.

Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m. stjerome-church.org

Our Lady of Lourdes — Fish fry, 5:30–7:30 p.m. on March 6, 13, 20 and 27 in Hofstede Hall, 1 Lourdes Place. $12 adults, $10 seniors, $5 children. Includes fried fish, French fries, coleslaw, dessert and beverage. Takeout and children’s portions available. lourdesmpls.org

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 13 and April 3. $10 ages 12 and up, $6 ages 6-11, free 5 and under. Soup supper 6:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6, 20 and 27. Freewill offering. Both events in Kenney Hall, 1725 Kennard St. Traditional Stations of the Cross at 6 p.m. Living Stations April 3 at 7 p.m. presentationofmary.org

Lino Lakes St. Joseph of the Lakes — Fish dinner, 5–7:15 p.m. March 6, 13, 20 and 27 in the Great Hall, 171 Elm St. $12 adults, $5 children, $30 family.

Includes pan-fried or baked fish, potato, green beans, tomato basil soup, coleslaw, homemade dessert and beverage. Fish sticks and SpaghettiOs for children.

Beer and wine available. Soup suppers 5:15 p.m.

March 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31 in the Great Hall, followed

by Mass at 6:30 p.m. in the historic church. Freewill offering. Includes homemade soups, bread and beverage. mystjoes.me

Little Canada St. John the Evangelist — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m.

March 27 in the school gym at 380 Little Canada Road. $10 adults, $9 seniors, $8 ages 12 and under, $30 family. Includes fried or baked pollock, coleslaw, grilled cheese sandwiches, au gratin potatoes, vegetables, rolls, ice cream and beverage. Soda, beer and wine extra. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. sjolc.org

Lonsdale Immaculate Conception — Fish dinner, 4–8 p.m.

Feb. 28 at Lonsdale American Legion, 115 Second Ave. NW. $14 adults, $6 ages 5-12, free 4 and under.

Includes all-you-can-eat baked or fried fish, cheesy potatoes, green beans, coleslaw, breads, dessert and beverages. Takeout available. icchurch.cc

Loretto Sts. Peter and Paul — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Feb. 28 and March 27 at 150 Railway St. E. $12 adults, $10 seniors 65 and over, $6 ages 10 and under, free 3 and under, $40 family maximum. All-you-can-eat baked cod, deep-fried cod, baked potato, macaroni and cheese, and sides, provided by Dobo’s Catering.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. saintsppta.org

Holy Cross — Sauerkraut supper, 4–8 p.m.

Feb. 25. Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at Kolbe Hall, 1621 University Ave. NE. $10 ages 12 and over, $2 ages 3-11, free 2 and under.

Includes all-you-can eat fish, French fries or potato, macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, dessert and beverage. Stations of the Cross at 4:45 p.m. in English and 6:30 p.m. in Polish at Holy Cross, 7:30 p.m. at St. Clement and 9:30 a.m. at St. Hedwig. ourholycross.org

Medina Holy Name of Jesus — Knights of Columbus seafood buffet, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28 at 155 County Road 24. $10 adults, $4 children’s menu ages 15 and under, $30 family maximum. Includes vegetable noodles and shrimp, jasmine rice, fried rice, egg rolls, beerbattered cod, cheese pizza, fish sticks, macaroni and cheese and cake. hnoj.org/lent

Mendota St. Peter — Meals at St. Peter, 1405 Sibley Memorial Highway, Mendota. Soup supper, 5–7 p.m.

Feb. 26. Freewill donation to Sharing and Caring Hands. Includes soup, bread sticks and beverage.

St. Patrick’s Day dinner, 6–8 p.m. March 14. $15 adult, $25 for two adults, $35 for a family of four. Includes corned beef brisket with cabbage, carrots, boiled potatoes with parsley and butter, rutabagas, onions, Irish soda bread and Polish rye bread. Irish coffee, assorted beverages and Irish dessert also available.

Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. April 3. Freewill donation benefits Uganda mission. Includes tilapia, red potatoes, macaroni and cheese, green beans, tossed green salad, beverages and dessert. stpetersmendota.org

Mendota Heights Holy Family Maronite — Lebanese Lenten dinners, 4:30–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 1960 Lexington Ave. S. $15 per adults, $10 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes baked or fried fish and unlimited side dishes of green beans in tomato sauce over rice, fried cabbage, Lebanese salad, flat bread and garlic sauce, homemade desserts, coffee and milk. holyfamilymaronitechurch.org

Miesville St. Joseph — Corned beef and cabbage dinner, 11 a.m.–3 p.m. March 15 at 23955 Nicolai Ave. E. $13 adults, $6 ages 6-12, free under 6. Includes corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, homemade Irish soda bread, dessert, beverage and hot dogs for children.

Takeout available. Wine and beer extra. Silent auction. stjosephmiesville.com

Our Lady of Peace — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 6 and 27 at 5426 12th Ave. S. Variety soup and bread supper served 6–6:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 20 and April 3. Cost TBD. Followed by Stations of the Cross. olpmn.org St. Albert the Great — Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m.

Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 2836 33rd Ave. S. $15 adults, $7 ages 6-12, free 5 and under.

Live music, bingo and raffles. Extra parking one block north with shuttle bus. saintalbertthegreat.org St. Joan of Arc — Soup and bread supper, 5–6:30 p.m. Feb. 26, March 4, 11, 18, 25 and April 1 at 4537 Third Ave. S. Freewill offering. stjoan.com St. John the Baptist Byzantine — Potato pancake and soup dinner, 4:30–7 p.m. March 6 and March 27 at 2201 Third St. NE. $10. All-you-caneat. Includes bread, dessert and beverage. stjohnsminneapolis.webs.com

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 3A

New Brighton St. John the Baptist — Fish fry, 6–7:30 p.m. on April 3 at 835 Second Ave. NW. $10 adults, $6 ages 5-12, $40 family. Baked or fried fish with potatoes, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese for children, and beverage. Sponsored by Knights of Columbus Council No. 1450. Mass at 5:30 p.m. April 3 only. Stations of the Cross at 7:30 p.m. stjohnnb.com

New Hope St. Joseph — Fish dinner, 5–7 pm. March 13 at 8701 36th Ave. N. $20 Knights of Columbus families, $8 adults, $4 children under 10. Includes baked fish, hash browns, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, toast and beverage. Takeout available. stjosephparish.com/kc

New Prague St. Wenceslaus — Fish fry, 11 a.m.–1 p.m. and 4:30–7p.m. March 6 at 215 Main St. E. $12 in advance, $14 at door. $7 ages 5-10, free 4 and under.

Includes baked or fried fish, famous cheesy potatoes or baked potatoes, dessert, and more. Giesenbräu brewery beer for purchase. $14 lunch menu delivery service at 952-758-3133. swsaints.org

Northfield St. Dominic — Fish fry, 5–8 p.m. March 27 at O’Gara Hall, 104 Linden St. N. $13 adults, $7 ages 5-12, free 4 and under. Includes fried or baked cod, macaroni and cheese, scalloped and baked potatoes, full salad bar, vegetables, bread, dessert and beverage. Takeout available. churchofstdominic.org

North St. Paul St. Peter — Fish fry, 4–7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6,13, 20 and 27 at 2620 Margaret St. N. $12 adults, $11 seniors, $3 ages 7-12, free 6 and under. Includes cod, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, potatoes, vegetables, bread, applesauce, beverage, gluten free options and takeout. Soda available. Music. churchofstpeternsp.org

Norwood Young America Ascension — Fish fry, 11 a.m.– 7:30 p.m. March 6 at 323 Reform St. N. $12 adults and takeout; $5 ages 6-12; free 5 and under. Drive-thru and takeout available. ascensionnya.org

Minnetonka Immaculate Heart of Mary — Fish dinner, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6 and 20 at 13505 Excelsior Blvd. $12 adults, $6 ages 12 and under. Includes baked fish, fish tacos, salad bar, au gratin potatoes, green beans, macaroni and cheese, rolls, cookies and beverage.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. ihm-cc.org

Montgomery Most Holy Redeemer — Knights of Columbus fish bake, 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m. and 4–7:30 p.m. March 8 at Montgomery American Legion, 102 Elm Ave. SW. $13 adults, $6 ages 5-10, free 4 and under. All-youcan-eat buffet includes baked and breaded cod, cheesy potatoes, green beans, bread, coleslaw, homemade bars and beverage. Cod fish sandwich available only 11 a.m.–1:30 p.m. with chips or fries for $6. Takeout available. hredeemerparish.org

Mound Our Lady of the Lake — Shrimp dinner, 4:30– 7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and 20, and April 3 at 2385 Commerce Blvd. $12 adults, $10 seniors, $6 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes shrimp, baked potato or French fries, macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, roll, cookie and beverage. ourladyofthelake.com

Oakdale Guardian Angels — Fish dinner, 4:30–7 p.m.

March 6, 20 and April 3 at 8260 Fourth St. N. $15 adults, $13 seniors, $7 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes fried or baked fish, coleslaw, red potatoes, macaroni and cheese, green beans, dessert and beverage. $13 takeout and online pre-order curbside dinners available. guardian-angels.org/fish-fry Transfiguration — Fish fry and fish tacos, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6, 13, 27 and April 3 at 6135 15th St. N. $10 adults, $8 seniors, $5 ages 12 and under, $30 per household. Includes fried or baked fish, fish tacos, coleslaw, grilled cheese, French fries, baked potatoes, dessert and beverage. March 20 spaghetti dinner. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. transfigurationmn.org

Oak Grove St. Patrick — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 19921 Nightingale St. NW. $10 adults, $5 ages 7-15, free 6 and under. Includes all-you-can-eat fish, potatoes, corn, green beans, coleslaw, macaroni, dinner roll and dessert. st-patricks.org CONTINUED ON NEXT PAGE

fish fry & lenten meal guide

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South St. Paul

Pine Island

St. John Vianney — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday in the Mother Teresa Room at 840 19th Ave. N. $14 adults, $13 seniors, $7 ages 12 and under. Includes all-you-can-eat glutenfree baked or fried fish, salad, baked potato or French fries, macaroni and cheese, roll, beverage, dessert and specialty side dishes. Beer and wine available.

Stations of the Cross at 4 p.m. sjvssp.org

St. Michael — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at 451 Fifth St. SW. $10 adults, $5 ages 12 and under, $35 family. Includes fried or baked fish, roasted potatoes, baked beans, coleslaw, rolls, dessert and beverage. Stations of the Cross at 7:30 p.m. stpaulstmichael.com

Prior Lake St. Michael — Fish fry, 5–7:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and April 3 at 16400 Duluth Ave. SE. $12 adults, $10 seniors 65 and over, $6 ages 5-13, free 4 and under. Includes fried Alaskan pollock or baked cod, potato wedges, coleslaw, macaroni and cheese, green beans, homemade rolls, dessert and beverage. Takeout available. stmichael-pl.org

Red Wing St. Joseph — Soup supper, 5:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 435 W. Seventh St. Free. Stations of the Cross at 5 p.m. stjosephredwing.org

Robbinsdale Sacred Heart — Fish dinner, 4:30–7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6, 13 and 20 at 4087 W. Broadway in school gym. $11.50 adults, $10.50 seniors 65 and over.

Includes fish fillet, baked potato, green beans, coleslaw and garlic bread. Also available: $11.50 fish sandwich, meatless spaghetti or macaroni and cheese and coleslaw; $11.50 fish fillet, cup of soup, green beans and garlic bread; $11 spaghetti and garlic bread or $14 all-you-can-eat spaghetti and bread. $5.75 ages 4-10, free 3 and under. Includes spaghetti and garlic bread; fish sandwich/green beans; or macaroni and cheese and bread. Takeout available. shrmn.org

Rogers Mary Queen of Peace — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m.

March 6, 20 and April 3 at 21304 Church Ave. $13 ages 13 and over, $8 ages 5-12, $4 ages 4 and under. Includes fried or baked fish, macaroni and cheese, baked potato, baked beans, coleslaw, dinner roll, cookie and beverage. $1 two additional pieces of fish. mqpcatholic.org

Rosemount St. Joseph, Rosemount — Fish fry, 5:30 p.m.

Feb. 28, March 13 and March 27 at 13900 Biscayne Ave. $12 adults, $8 ages 12 and under, $40 family max. Includes fried or baked cod, potato, macaroni and cheese, vegetables or salad, bread, dessert and beverages. Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m. stjosephcommunity.org

Shakopee Knights of Columbus Council No.1685 — Fish fry, 5–7:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 1740 Fourth Ave. E. $12 adults, $6 ages 5-10, free 4 and under. Includes baked or fried fish, potato salad, au gratin potatoes, green beans, fresh baked bread, dessert, coffee, milk and water. 952-445-5555

Shieldsville St. Patrick — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. March 13, 27 and April 3 at 7525 Dodd Road, Faribault. $13 adults, $8 ages 6-10, free 5 and under. Includes baked or fried fish, salad bar, baked potato, green beans and beverage. 507-334-6002

Shoreview St. Odilia — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Feb. 28 and March 13 in the Courtyard at 3495 Victoria St. N. $11 adults, $7 ages 5-12, free 4 and under. Includes all-you-caneat cod and tilapia (baked or broiled), macaroni and cheese, cheesy potatoes, corn, coleslaw, rolls, dessert and beverages. Fish tacos, 5 p.m. March 6. Includes two fish tacos, coleslaw, rice, pico de gallo, chips and salsa. stodilia.org

Stillwater Stillwater Knights of Columbus — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday at Stillwater KC Hall, 1910 Greeley St. S. $13 adults, $11 seniors 65 and over, $5 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes all-you-can-eat beer batter cod, baked cod, build your own fish tacos, baby red potatoes, coleslaw, green beans, rolls, coffee, milk, water and chocolate fudge brownie. Grilled cheese, chips and applesauce for children. $11 takeout orders. stillwaterkchall.com/fishfry

St. Louis Park Holy Family — Fish fry, 5–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday in Father Moorman Hall at 5900 W. Lake St. $8 adults, $4 children. Includes fried or baked fish and two side dishes: macaroni and cheese, garlic cheddar biscuit, coleslaw or green beans.

Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. followed by Sunday Gospel reflection. hfcmn.org

St. Paul Nativity of Our Lord — Fish fry, 5–8 p.m. March 13 and April 3 at 1900 Wellesley Ave. $12 adults, $9 children, $40 family. Fried or baked fish, choice of potato, vegetable, coleslaw and cookie, with cheese sticks for children. Beer, wine and other beverages available. Drive-up window at the garage on Wellesley Avenue. nativitymen.org/fish-fry

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Our Lady of Guadalupe — Enchilada dinner, 11:30 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday. $10 large meal (three enchiladas), $8 small meal (two enchiladas). Includes cheese enchiladas, rice, beans, beverage and dessert. Eat in or takeout.

One dozen enchiladas $20 (takeout only). olgcatholic.org St. Mark — Fish Fry, 5–8 p.m. March 27 in the school cafeteria at 1983 Dayton Ave. Cost TBD. Soup supper, 5:30 p.m. Feb. 28, March 6, 13, 20 and April 3 in Carolyn Hall at 2001 Dayton Ave. Cost TBD. Stations of the Cross and confession at 6:30 p.m. saintmark-mn.org St. Mary — Soup suppers, 6 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 261 E. Eighth St. Good Friday service and lunch, noon April 10. Freewill offering. stmarystpaul.org St. Matthew — Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent at 510 Hall Ave. $12 adults, $11 seniors, $6 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes all-youcan-eat baked or fried fish, baked potato, vegetable, coleslaw, roll, and milk or coffee. Non-fish meal also available (grilled cheese or spaghetti). Drive-up takeout on Hall Avenue. Beer and wine extra. st-matts.org St. Pascal Baylon — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday in Brioschi Hall, 1757 Conway St. $13 ages 12 and over, $6 ages 6-11, free 5 and under. Includes fried or baked cod, coleslaw, steamed mixed vegetables, macaroni and cheese, au gratin potatoes or seasoned fries, rolls, chocolate or vanilla pudding, and beverage. Milk, bottled water and soda extra. Raffle and baked goods sale. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. stpascals.org St. Patrick — Fish fry, 4:30–7:30 p.m. Feb. 28 at the American Legion, 1129 Arcade St. stpatrickmn.weconnect.com St. Stanislaus — Soup supper, 6 p.m. March 11 and 25 in church hall at 398 Superior St. Freewill offering. Followed by a Lenten reflection in the church. ststans.org St. Thomas More — Fish fry, 5:30–8 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and 27 at St. Thomas More School, 1065 Summit Ave. $12 adults, $6 ages 5-12, free 4 and under. Includes all-you-can-eat fried cod, mashed potatoes, French fries, macaroni and cheese, coleslaw, dinner roll, cookie and assorted beverages.

Beer, wine and soda available for purchase. Stations of the Cross at 5 pm. morecommunity.org

Waconia St. Joseph — Fish fry, 4–7:30 p.m. Fridays during Lent except Good Friday in the school commons at 41 First St. E. $12 adults, $6 ages 6-12, free 5 and under, $50 family maximum. stjosephwaconia.org

White Bear Lake St. Pius X — Fish fry, 4:30–7 p.m. Feb. 28, March 13 and 27 at 3878 Highland Ave. $14 adults, $12 seniors, $6 ages 6-12, free 5 and under. Includes all-you-caneat fried or baked cod, baked potato, coleslaw, pasta salad, macaroni and cheese, roll, dessert and beverage. Music by Friendly Fish Fry DeeJay. Cash bar available. Stations of the Cross at 7 p.m. churchofstpiusx.org

Zumbrota St. Paul — St. Patrick ham dinner, 10:30 a.m.– 1 p.m. March 15 at Zumbrota VFW, 25 First St. E. $12 adults, $6 ages 6-12, free 6 and under. Takeout available. stpaulstmichael.com

thecatholicspirit.com

February 13, 2020 • Newspaper of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

From priest to bishop In the days leading up to his scheduled ordination for the Diocese of Sioux Falls, Bishop Donald DeGrood talks about those who inspired him to pursue the priesthood.

— Pages 12B-13B

Coronavirus spreads, appeals made to Church for help

Crookston bishop investigated Archbishop Hebda will continue an investigation of claims made against Bishop Michael Hoeppner that he tried to cover up allegations of clergy sexual abuse in his diocese.

— Page 5B

Islam and the Church In the wake of a local priest’s critical remarks about Muslims, national expert explores what the Church teaches.

— Page 7B

People wearing masks walk near the Ruins of St. Paul’s Catholic complex in Macau, China, Feb. 5 during the coronavirus outbreak.

BELOW People wearing protective masks light candles at the National Shrine of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in Manila, Philippines, Feb. 5 following confirmed cases of coronavirus in the country.

CNS

Catholic News Service

A

s deaths continue to rise from the coronavirus epidemic, China faces a severe shortage of medical supplies, according to the only Catholic charity in the communist nation.

Jinde Charities, a government-registered charity, appealed to the universal Church for help in procuring medical supplies such as face masks, surgical masks, goggles and eye masks, reported ucanews.com.

Making an Appeal

Faith and finances Catholic United Financial grows to more than $1 billion in assets; BSM’s Ramier named CFO of the Year; parish collections stay local, also help archdiocese; Catholic Community Foundation committed to ethical investing.

— Pages 17B-19B

Ready to caucus? Catholics, start your engines

By Barb Umberger The Catholic Spirit

W

hen her children were young, Jean Stolpestad brought them to caucuses to introduce them to the process — just as her mother did when she was growing up. Her mom was an avid caucus-goer and often exclaimed, “This is how we make change.”

That message stuck with Stolpestad, who has caucused since she was in high school and brought her own children to caucuses

when they were young.

Today, Stolpestad is director of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Office of Marriage, Family and Life and a member of the Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) Life, Family and Health Care Committee. She also looks forward to caucusing with other Minnesotans starting at 7 p.m. Feb. 25.

“Caucuses are fun,” Stolpestad said.

“I love it.”

Caucuses are an opportunity for people to endorse candidates for office, choose

party delegates for district and state party conventions and present resolutions important to them to help influence their party’s platform. For example, a resolution might focus on the right to clean water or opposition to commercial gestational surrogacy.

Because only a small percentage of Minnesotans typically participate in caucuses, a determined and organized group can make a big difference — and PLEASE TURN TO CAUCUS ON 6B

Honoring Catholic business leaders whose faith shapes their work.

Nominations open through March 27 at TheCatholicSpirit.com Awardee luncheon with Archbishop Bernard Hebda Aug. 13

LEADING

FAITH

with

Parishioners throughout the archdiocese will watch a video at upcoming Masses explaining the annual Catholic Services Appeal; funds will support 20 important ministries.

— Pages 15B-16B

PLEASE TURN TO CORONAVIRUS ON PAGE 11B

G o o d Wo r k

•

In Christ

2B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

PAGETWO

“

The meaning is not to lose our traditions, so that they can be kept alive, even though we’re far (away). And we want our kids and grandkids to remember this.

Apolinar Morales, a member of Incarnation/Sagrado Corazón de Jesús in Minneapolis, told an Associated Press reporter about the Jan. 25-26 celebration of the feast of the conversion of St. Paul. The feast day is special to people of Axochiapan, Mexico, and it has been celebrated with Mexican traditions — such as dancing, a procession and meal — for two decades in Minneapolis following the immigration of Catholics from Axochiapan to the area. Read the story, “Moving faith: Mexican town’s saint feast lives in Minnesota,” at https://bit.ly/31utw86.

NEWS notes

30

ERIN WEE | COURTESY NATIVITY OF MARY SCHOOL

CLASSROOM VISITOR Archbishop Bernard Hebda speaks to first graders and their teacher, Ann Marie Bartz, at Nativity of Mary School in Bloomington Jan. 30. He celebrated Mass and visited with students at the school as part of National Catholic Schools Week, Jan. 26-Feb. 1. The school has students in preschool through grade eight.

The number of years experience in reporting, writing and communications that The Catholic Spirit’s new staff reporter brings to her position. Barb Umberger joined the team Feb. 3. She is a longtime freelance business writer whose clients have included 3M, Abbott Northwestern Hospital, Allina Health System and Blue Cross and Blue Shield. She is a member of Transfiguration in Oakdale.

75

The number of questions in the Disciple Maker Index, a survey underway throughout February in parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. The collected data is expected to supplement information Archbishop Bernard Hebda is gathering during the Pre-Synod Prayer and Listening Events. The faithful are encouraged to both attend the pre-synod events and complete the survey. For more information, see the story that appeared in the Jan. 30 edition of The Catholic Spirit at TheCatholicSpirit.com.

13:21

The length in minutes of an interview Mychael Schilmoeller had with Jesuitical, an America Magazine podcast. The pastoral care minister at St. Michael in Prior Lake, Schilmoeller was among the young adult pilgrims from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis who traveled to Rome with Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Bishop Andrew Cozzens for their “ad limina” visit. The hosts asked her what it was like to travel with her bishops, layovers and all, and how their time together influences her view of the Church. Listen to the interview at americamagazine.org/voices/jesuitical.

6

The season Open Window Theatre kicks off Feb. 13 with the regional premiere of “The World Over” by Keith Bunin. Founded by Catholic actors Jeremy and Sarah Stanbary in May 2011 with a “redemptive vision” for its plays, the theatre opens what it’s calling its “Redemption Season” in a new location, Salem Square Center in Inver Grove Heights. The theatre has been on a hiatus since 2016, when it canceled its final show of that season following a dispute with its landlords in its prior space in Minneapolis.

In addition to “The World Over,” which runs through March 15, season six includes “Tolkien” by Ron Reed, April 17-May 17. openwindowtheatre.org.

COURTESY FATHER GREG SCHAFFER

VENEZUELA VOCATION Deacon Jose Antonio Brito, 29, center, was ordained a transitional deacon — one step away from the priesthood — Jan. 25 at Holy Trinity in Puerto Ordaz. Brito’s home parish is Jesucristo Resucitado in San Felix, the mission parish of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Deacon Brito visited the archdiocese in 2010 with others from Venezuela, including Father Greg Schaffer, left, the mission’s pastor. Bishop Helizandro Teran of Cuidad Guayana, right, ordained Deacon Brito.

CORRECTIONS In the Jan. 13 issue, The Catholic Spirit incorrectly reported that the Archbishop Flynn Catechetical Institute planned to launch a School of Evangelization this fall. It plans to begin it in 2021.

In the Jan. 30 issue, a story about the Disciple Maker Index currently being offered in parishes incorrectly called the survey the “Discipleship” Maker Index.

The Catholic Spirit is published semi-monthly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 25 — No. 3 MOST REVEREND BERNARD A. HEBDA, Publisher TOM HALDEN, Associate Publisher MARIA C. WIERING, Editor-in-Chief JOE RUFF, News Editor

10,233

The number of Minnesotans who experience homelessness, according to Wilder Research’s most recent Minnesota Homeless Study, conducted in 2018. The Joint Religious Legislative Coalition is hosting a Faith Leader Housing Summit 8:30 a.m.– 12:15 p.m. Feb. 20 at Christ Lutheran Church on Capitol Hill, 105 University Ave. W., St. Paul. The event includes presentations on the Minnesota Homeless Study, panelists on what can be done to address housing challenges and advocacy on making housing a priority in the Minnesota Legislature’s 2020 bonding bill. Minnesota Catholic Conference is among JRLC’s four sponsoring member organizations. jrlc.org.

0

The number of days Sheila Swift, St. Joseph School’s volunteer coordinator, has left of chemotherapy. The entire Rosemount school surprised her with a celebration of the milestone Jan. 30, with students lining its hallways holding congratulations banners, signs, balloons and flowers. Watch a video of the emotional celebration at bit.ly/2gyhoxk.

Materials credited to CNS copy­righted by Catholic News Service.

All other materials copyrighted by The Cath­olic Spirit Newspaper.

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FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 3B

FROMTHEBISHOP ONLY JESUS | BISHOP ANDREW COZZENS

Strengthened by good friendship

A

s I was traveling to Rome last month for the “ad limina” visit with Archbishop Hebda and Bishop-elect Don DeGrood, I was reminded of the first time I went to Rome, which was when I was in seminary. I was also traveling with my then seminary classmate and close friend Don DeGrood.

We were sitting next to each other on the plane, and the stewardess at one point asked us our profession.

Don, being the one who always likes to joke with people, made her guess. She looked hard at us and said, “I’m not sure. I’ll come back.” Then she went about two rows past us, stopped, came back, gasped and said, “Are you men of the cloth?” It was the first time anyone had ever called me a “man of the cloth.”

Now, more than 25 years later, on the way to see our Holy Father for the “ad limina” visit, I couldn’t help but think how far these two “men of the cloth” had come, as the two seminary classmates had now become bishops.

I first met Bishop Don DeGrood at a pre-seminary event in August of 1993, just a few weeks before both of us began our first year of major seminary. I remember his warm personality from the first moment we met. We became immediate friends because of his exceptional kindness and our shared desire to grow in holiness as we prepared for priesthood.

Bishop DeGrood has often said in my presence that he would not have gotten through seminary without me because I helped with his studies, and it is true that we often studied together for our exams. It is also true that I would not be the priest and bishop I am today without Bishop DeGrood’s example of deep love for the spiritual life, his dedicated friendship and his constant example of pastoral charity. Actually, some people used to get us mixed up in seminary because they thought we looked so much alike. Our homiletics

Fortalecido por buena amistad

M

ientras viajaba a Roma el mes pasado para la visita “ad limina” con el arzobispo Hebda y el obispo electo Don DeGrood, me recordó la primera vez que fui a Roma, que fue cuando estaba en seminario. También viajaba con mi entonces compañero de seminario y amigo cercano Don DeGrood.

Estábamos sentados uno al lado del otro en el avión, y la azafata en un momento nos preguntó nuestra profesión. Don, ser el que siempre le gusta bromear con la gente, la hizo adivinar. Ella nos miró fijamente y dijo: “No estoy seguro. Voy a volver. Luego pasó alrededor de dos filas nos pasaron, se detuvo, volvió, jadeó y dijo: “¿Son hombres de la tela?” Era la primera vez que alguien me llamaba “hombre de la tela”. Ahora, más de 25 años después, en el camino para ver a nuestro Santo Padre para la visita “ad limina”, no pude evitar pensar hasta dónde habían llegado estos dos “hombres de la tela”, ya que los dos compañeros de seminario se habían convertido en obispos.

Conocí al obispo Don DeGrood en un evento previo al seminario en agosto de 1993, apenas unas semanas antes de que ambos comenzara nuestro primer año de seminario mayor, recuerdo su cálida personalidad desde el primer momento en que nos conocimos. Nos hicimos amigos inmediatos debido a su excepcional bondad y nuestros deseos compartidos de crecer en santidad a medida que nos preparamos para el sacerdocio.

professor was unable to distinguish between us. And, when in my second assignment as a priest I was assigned to Bishop DeGrood’s hometown of Faribault, at the first Mass in the park, even Bishop DeGrood’s own brother mistook me for him at a distance.

Although our priesthoods have had different paths, we have always stayed close friends. After three years at his first assignment, Bishop DeGrood was assigned as a spiritual director of St. John Vianney College Seminary. I was sent to study theology in Rome after five years in two parishes. By the time I came back from Rome in 2006, Bishop DeGrood had already been named pastor of St. Peter in Forest Lake, where he served for nine years. However, in 2013, our paths would cross again more intimately.

In July of 2013, then-Father DeGrood was appointed Vicar for Clergy and pastor of Blessed Sacrament on the East Side of St. Paul. Blessed Sacrament was the parish where Curtis Wehmeyer had served until he was arrested in 2012 for the abuse of three boys. As Vicar for Clergy, it was Father DeGrood’s job to help represent the archbishop in working with the priests of the archdiocese. As pastor, he had to work to heal a community and a family that had been ripped apart by the terrible evil of sexual abuse. These were both difficult assignments, and they became more difficult when the clergy sexual abuse crisis broke in the archdiocese in late September 2013, as the press started to publish stories and accusations that the archdiocese had mishandled the Wehmeyer case and others.

It was at this same time, Oct. 1, 2013, that I received the call from the papal nuncio telling me I was the new auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese.

Neither Bishop DeGrood nor I had held any positions of leadership in the archdiocesan chancery until then, but we two seminary classmates were thrust together into the greatest crisis in the history of the archdiocese. Of course, there were many good people who came together as a team to help the archdiocese

El obispo DeGrood ha dicho a menudo en mi presencia que no habría llegado a través de seminario sin mí porque ayudé con sus estudios, y es cierto que a menudo estudiamos juntos para nuestros exámenes.

También es cierto que no seré el sacerdote y el obispo que soy hoy sin el ejemplo del obispo DeGrood de profundo amor por la vida espiritual, su amistad dedicada y su ejemplo constante de caridad pastoral. En realidad, algunas personas solían confundirnos en seminario porque pensaban que nos veíamos muy parecidos. Nuestro profesor de homilía no pudo distinguir entre nosotros. Y, cuando en mi segunda asignación como sacerdote me asignaron a la ciudad natal del obispo DeGrood, Faribault, en la primera misa en el parque, incluso el propio hermano del obispo DeGrood me confundió con él a distancia.

Aunque nuestros sacerdocios han tenido caminos diferentes, siempre hemos permanecido amigos cercanos. Después de tres años en su primera asignación, el obispo DeGrood fue asignado como director espiritual del Seminario del Colegio San Juan Vianney. Me enviaron a estudiar teología en Roma después de cinco años en dos parroquias. Para cuando regresé de Roma en 2006, el obispo DeGrood ya había sido nombrado pastor de San Pedro en el lago del bosque, donde sirvió durante nueve años. Sin embargo, en 2013, nuestros caminos volverían a cruzarse más íntimamente.

En julio de 2013, el entonces Padre DeGrood fue nombrado Vicario de Clero y pastor del Santísimo Sacramento en el Lado Este de San Pablo. El Santísimo Sacramento fue la parroquia donde Curtis Wehmeyer había servido hasta que fue arrestado en

get through this crisis, but, as I was going through those difficulties, I was never more grateful to have my close friend at my side. His integrity, his leadership and his care for victims of sexual abuse were and are an incredible example to me. His kindness, his sense of humor and his affirming friendship were a rock for me when we were often dealing together with very difficult things.

Without his friendship, and several others, I’m not sure how I would have gotten through the difficulty of those months. Bishop DeGrood served as pastor of Blessed Sacrament until 2015, when he became fulltime Vicar for Clergy until 2017. He was an important part of the healing that happened in the archdiocese and at Blessed Sacrament during those years.

Testimony to this has been given publicly by the Hoffman family, who were Wehmeyer’s victims. They speak openly about the incredible compassion and accompaniment of Bishop DeGrood as he helped them find healing in their faith. Some of them even helped bring up the gifts at his episcopal ordination.

This is why it was such a blessing for me to take part in the ordination of Bishop Don DeGrood as the ninth bishop of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on Thursday, Feb. 13. No one ever knows what the Lord will do with one’s life, when you place your life fully in his hands. I would have never dreamed that these two young “men of the cloth” who traveled together as seminarians would one day serve together as bishops in our province. It makes one very grateful for the gift of spiritual friendship, and the knowledge that when we share the love of Jesus Christ as friends, our friendships grow deeper and stronger even in difficulties.

I know that Bishop DeGrood will continue to bring his incredible compassion, integrity, leadership and pastoral love to the people of Sioux Falls. Please pray for him and for all who give their lives in service of the Church, that we might be strengthened together by good friendships.

2012 por el abuso de tres niños. Como Vicario del Clero, el padre DeGrood fue el trabajo de ayudar a representar al arzobispo en el trabajo con los sacerdotes de la arquidiócesis. Como pastor, tuvo que trabajar para sanar a una comunidad y a una familia que había sido destrozada por el terrible mal de un abuso sexual. Ambas fueron tareas difíciles, y se hicieron más difíciles cuando la crisis de abuso sexual del clero se rompió en la arquidiócesis a finales de septiembre de 2013, cuando la prensa comenzó a publicar historias y acusaciones de que la arquidiócesis había manejado mal el caso Wehmeyer y otros.

Fue al mismo tiempo, el 1 de octubre de 2013, cuando las historias de mal manejo de los abusos sexuales por parte de la arquidiócesis estaban en la prensa todos los días, que recibí la llamada del nuncio papal diciéndome que yo era el nuevo obispo auxiliar de la arquidiócesis.

Ni el obispo DeGrood ni yo habíamos ocupado cargos de liderazgo en la cancillería arquidiocesana hasta entonces, pero nosotros dos compañeros de seminario fuimos empujados juntos a la mayor crisis en la historia de la arquidiócesis. Por supuesto, había mucha gente buena que se reunió para ayudar en equipo para ayudar a la arquidiócesis a superar esta crisis, pero a medida que estaba pasando por esas dificultades nunca estaba más agradecido de tener a mi amigo cercano a mi lado. Su integridad, su liderazgo y su cuidado por las víctimas de abuso sexual fueron y son un ejemplo increíble para mí. Su amabilidad, su sentido del humor y su amistad afirmando fueron una roca para mí cuando a menudo estábamos lidiando con cosas muy difíciles.

Sin su amistad, y varios otros, no estoy

seguro de cómo habría superado la dificultad de esos meses. El obispo DeGrood sirvió como pastor del Santísimo Sacramento hasta 2015, cuando se convirtió en Vicario de tiempo completo para el Clero hasta 2017. Fue una parte importante de la curación que ocurrió en la arquidiócesis y en el Santísimo Sacramento durante esos años. El testimonio de esto ha sido dado públicamente por la familia Hoffman, que fueron víctimas del abuso de Curtis Wehmeyer, hablan abiertamente sobre la increíble compasión y acompañamiento del obispo DeGrood mientras les ayudaba a encontrar sanación en su fe. Algunos de ellos incluso ayudaron a repartir los dones en su ordenación episcopal.

Por eso fue tan bien para mí participar en la ordenación del obispo Don DeGrood como noveno obispo de Sioux Falls, Dakota del Sur, el jueves 13 de febrero. Nadie sabe nunca lo que el Señor hará con la propia vida, cuando usted pone su vida plenamente en sus manos. Nunca hubiera soñado que esos dos jóvenes “hombres de la tela” que viajaban juntos como seminaristas algún día servirían juntos como obispos en nuestra provincia. Hace que uno esté muy agradecido por el don de la amistad espiritual, y el conocimiento de que cuando compartimos el amor de Jesucristo como amigos, nuestras amistades se hacen más profundas y fuertes incluso en las dificultades.

Sé que el obispo DeGrood seguirá aportando su increíble compasión, integridad, liderazgo y amor pastoral a la gente de Sioux Falls. Por favor oren por él y por todos los que dan su vida al servicio de la Iglesia, a fin de que seamos fortalecidos juntos por buenas amistades.

4B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

LOCAL LOCAL

4 • The Catholic Spirit

Candlemas March 9, 2017

Candles glow at the beginning of Mass Feb. 2 at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis on the feast of the Presentation of the Lord. The day is also known as Candlemas because on that day, the midpoint of winter, candles are blessed for use in the church and in people’s homes.

At the Basilica, all weekend Masses St. Joseph Carondelet Sisterfeaturing Avis openedofwith a procession Allmaras, center, talks with Rose members of the choir singingCarter, with lit left, candles, and Ireneand Eiden at Peace House in designated south Minneapolis Feb. 27.upSister Avis parishioners walking the aisles goeslighting to the center weekly and visits candles for members of the frequent guests like“Candlemas Carter. Eiden, of an congregation. was St. William in Fridley, a lay consociate important day forismy family,” Johan of the Carondelet Sisters. van Parys, director of Peace liturgy House and is a day shelter for the poor and homeless. sacred arts at the Basilica, wrote in “It’saareflection real privilege to know people published inthese the parish and bulletin. hear their stories,” Sister Avis said. “I “That day, all of us attended could not survive onduring the streets morning Mass, whichlike ourthey do. There so many people pastorare blessed the gifted Candlemas here.”

Said Carter of Sister Avis: “She’s candles we took home with us. ... We an angel.

Shethem hides wings under that brought outher when someone sweatshirt. truly isdisaster an angel.” was sickShe or when struck, Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit and we prayed in the glow of their flame. When we cleared out the house after my parents died, we found several half-burned Candlemas candles hadis National Catholic Sistersthat Week supported and given us hopeof March 8-14. Anus official component throughout years.and We stopped Women’s Historythe Month our work and candles one headquartered at lit St.those Catherine University last time prayed for my parents.”

Paul, theand week celebrates women DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT in St. religious and their contributions to the Church and society. View local events, including two art exhibitions, at www.nationalcatholicsistersweek.org.

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FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Crookston bishop investigation continues

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit The Congregation for Bishops in Rome has authorized Archbishop Bernard Hebda to investigate further claims that Bishop Michael Hoeppner of Crookston interfered with an investigation of clerical sexual misconduct, according to a Feb. 4 statement from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Judge Tim O’Malley, director of the Office of Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, will oversee the investigation, serving as the archbishop’s delegate.

The statement says that the investigation will continue to look into claims that the bishop, “had engaged in ‘acts or omissions intended to interfere with or avoid civil or canonical investigations of clerical sexual misconduct’ as prescribed by the motu proprio, ‘Vos estis lux mundi.’”

Pope Francis promulgated the “motu proprio,” meaning an edict personally issued by the pope, in May 2019 to set new worldwide norms for reporting sexual abuse and to hold bishops accountable for abuse and/or its cover-up. It states that if a bishop is accused of misconduct, the Holy See will mandate his metropolitan archbishop to investigate the claim.

As archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Archbishop Hebda is metropolitan archbishop of the bishops in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

Bishop Hoeppner, 70, is reportedly the first sitting U.S. bishop to be investigated under the new norms.

In September 2019, The Catholic Spirit reported that Archbishop

CNS

Bishop Michael Hoeppner of Crookston concelebrates Mass at the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls in Rome Jan. 15. The Vatican Congregation for Bishops has authorized Archbishop Bernard Hebda to conduct a further investigation into allegations Bishop Hoeppner thwarted a police or canonical investigation of clerical sexual misconduct in his diocese.

Hebda had been mandated to conduct a preliminary investigation of Bishop Hoeppner’s actions.

Archbishop Hebda noted at that time that he had engaged qualified laypeople, including staff from the archdiocese’s Office of Ministerial Standards and Safe Environment and its Ministerial Review Board, to conduct the investigation.

In November, Archbishop Hebda announced he had submitted a report about the investigation to the Congregation for Bishops, and that the Holy See would determine the next steps.

While Archbishop Hebda has not

disclosed the claims against Bishop Hoeppner, the bishop has been publicly accused of trying to cover up allegations of sexual abuse against a priest of the diocese, Msgr. Roger Grundhaus. Ron Vasek, a Catholic layman, accused the priest of sexually abusing him when he was a teenager in 1971. Vasek said during a May 2017 press conference that Bishop Hoeppner tried to pressure him to recant the accusation in 2011 and again in 2015, when he was a candidate for diaconate ordination.

He was not ordained. The bishop has repeatedly denied the allegations.

According to the Diocese of Crookston, the allegation against Msgr. Grundhaus was reported to law enforcement in 2011.

In May 2017, Vasek filed a lawsuit against Bishop Hoeppner. Four months later, the diocese announced that Bishop Hoeppner had reached a settlement agreement with Vasek that includes a statement that there was no admission of unlawful conduct on the bishop’s part.

The Diocese of Crookston’s website lists Msgr. Grundhaus as retired and on leave from public ministry. His name does not appear on the diocese’s list of priests with credible claims of child sexual abuse against them.

As Archbishop Hebda’s investigation continues, the Congregation for Bishops has specified that Bishop Hoeppner’s “faculty to deal with cases of sexual abuse against clerics of the Diocese of Crookston” is transferred to Archbishop Hebda for the duration of the investigation, according to the archdiocese’s statement.

The Diocese of Crookston, where Bishop Hoeppner has served since 2007, encompasses 14 counties in northwest Minnesota.

West St. Paul pregnancy help center to expand

By Susan Klemond For The Catholic Spirit Despite some opposition to its expansion plans, officials at a pregnancy resource center in West St. Paul won approval from the City Council to broaden services and create enough room to help twice as many people.

More than 350 people, mostly supporters, attended a City Council meeting Jan. 27 that ended with council members approving Wakota Life Care Center’s plans.

The center, which counts among its supporters volunteers from about eight Catholic parishes in the area, is committing $3.2 million to expand a facility that already offers material assistance, pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, and family life and fertility classes.

The center plans to break ground on a new facility at its current Robert Street location in May, after demolishing its present building.

When it’s completed in May 2021, the facility will be nearly five times larger. In addition to bringing more medical services such as mental

health care, the expansion will provide additional room for consultations, classes and storage, said Dan Saad, 57, center director and a parishioner of St. Michael in Prior Lake.

Center officials plan to provide services in a temporary location along Robert Street during construction, Saad said.

About 40 people testified at the City Council meeting, some concerned about classifying the clinic as a medical facility. Supporters touted the center’s help to women and families.

Three of six council members plus the mayor approved the permit, site plan and preliminary plat review.

Three council members recused themselves from voting.

The number of people praying and supporting the center made for a joyous victory, Saad said.

“I know the process it took to get there and for the 44 years of history in this community, to have 350 supporters come out and be a part of the vote, hear it and cheer for it was an incredible feeling,” he said.

Founded in West St. Paul in 1976

by two doctors and a religious sister to assist pregnant women and their families, Wakota has seen client visits increase 82 percent since it expanded educational offerings through its 2016 affiliation with the Guiding Star Project. Guiding Star, an Ironton, Minnesota-based holistic healthcare organization, focuses on fertility, childbearing, breastfeeding and family life.

Expanding the center’s footprint and services will help it continue to meet a need in the community, said Vaunae Hansel, president of Elevate Life, a network of 30 Minnesota and Wisconsin pregnancy resource centers that offers training, marketing help and other assistance to its affiliates, including Wakota.

Wakota has been “a historic landmark in that community and provides for so many in need,” Hansel said.

The center still needs to raise $300,000 for the project. Supporters who want to help financially are encouraged to attend a Feb. 22 gala in Bloomington, Saad said. For more information, visit guidingstarwakota.org.

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 5B

in REMEMBRANCE

Priest remembered as giving ‘110 percent’

By Dave Hrbacek The Catholic Spirit Betty Schneider was hired in 1985 by Father Roger Carroll to work as a secretary at St. Columba in St. Paul. That was the beginning of a friendship that lasted 35 years, until the priest’s death in Minneapolis Jan. 30 at the age of 92.

“I worked, I always said, for and with him from 1985 to 2002, when he retired,” said Schneider, 88, who belongs to Maternity of Mary in St. Paul. “He was just such a great person. He was very knowledgeable about so many areas that I enjoyed. …

He was a very caring and kind person who always gave 110 percent of himself to everyone he came in contact with. He always made time for whoever needed him.”

Father Carroll was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and FATHER ROGER ordained a priest in 1963 at CARROLL the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul. He was preceded in death by his four siblings, one of whom was also a priest. His first assignment was at the Cathedral. He also served at Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, St. Michael in Prior Lake and St. Andrew in St. Paul. St. Andrew was his last assignment before retiring, and he transferred there from St. Columba. Not long after that, Schneider switched to St. Andrew, too, to continue working for him.

She enjoyed the many conversations they had in the office. One of her favorite topics was heaven. She wondered whether people who died would be reunited with their families in heaven, and she said Father Carroll always reassured her that they would.

“He was close to his family, and they were always gracious and good to him,” she said.

“All I can say is, well done, good and faithful servant. Enjoy a well-deserved reward in heaven with your family and your friends. You will be greatly missed on this side of heaven.”

His funeral Mass was Feb. 10 at Maternity of Mary in St. Paul. Interment will be at St. Michael Cemetery in Sioux Falls at a later date.

The homilist at the funeral Mass was Father Mike Arms, 78, a longtime friend who got to know Father Carroll while both were serving at the Cathedral in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

In 1974, they helped form a priest support group that still exists today. Father Carroll came to the monthly meetings all the way up to about the last two months, Father Arms said, and he always offered wisdom about priestly ministry.

“Beyond that, we were good friends and would go to Vikings football games together and just socialize a lot, especially with Father Tom Fitzgerald,” another member of their group, said Father Arms, who has Vikings season tickets and last took Father Carroll to a game in 2018. “He was a big (Vikings) fan.”

In recent years, Father Arms said that when the two priests called each other during the football season, one often would say to the other, “Are you ready for some football?”

Father Arms also was ready for advice on how to be a pastor, which Father Carroll supplied in abundance, he said. Father Carroll was a pastor when the group started, while Father Arms became one several years later. He appreciated being able to learn from Father Carroll.

“He was certainly a very integral part of the group,” Father Arms said. “He was just a good mentor and a good pastor and a good friend.”

LOCAL

6B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

CAUCUS CONTINUED FROM 1B that’s a big reason the MCC encourages participation, said Jason Adkins, executive director of the conference, which is the public policy arm of the bishops in Minnesota.

“We often complain about our choices and the positions of the parties, but here is a concrete opportunity to help shape the process,” Adkins said. “We should shape the parties, instead of letting them shape us.”

Stolpestad encourages people not to feel intimidated by a caucus. Many people are there for the first time, and others are ready to help.

“You likely will recognize a few familiar faces, too,” she said, “as caucus attendees are your neighbors.”

Despite deep polarization in today’s politics, it’s important for people to participate, Adkins said.

“Politics, in the mind of the Church, is a form of charity,” he said. “It serves the common good. It is a way to love our neighbor. It’s not optional.”

Everyone has gifts to share that no one else can, Adkins said.

“We are called to share that unique perspective as we order our common life together,” he said. “One way to do that is voting, but politics is more than one day in November.”

Stolpestad encourages Catholics not to fear articulating their principles in a caucus resolution. Gospel values elevate the common good, she said.

“As Catholics, we have a lot to bring and offer to the public square,” Stolpestad said.

MCC’s website, mncatholic.org, has an entire page and links to more information on the caucuses and March 3 presidential nominating primary.

The site includes easy-to-draft resolutions that reflect Catholic social teaching on such issues as the right to clean water, recognition of pornography as a public health hazard, opposing legalization of assisted suicide and opposing commercial surrogacy.

“We developed resolutions that can and should be used in either party’s caucuses,” Adkins said. “They all involve combating the throwaway culture, where persons are commodified and discarded, or where the gift of creation, such as water, is not properly stewarded. These are significant and interconnected themes highlighted by Pope Francis.”

Resolutions are a way to bring what’s important to people to the political process, Stolpestad said. It’s turning the wheel on the democratic process.

“It’s where things that matter can surface,” she said.

SEVEN STEPS TO CAUCUS A caucus is an opportunity to influence a party’s platform. Participation is key. A caucus often is under two hours. Caucuses are run by volunteers using Robert’s Rules of Order. Below is the general outline of how to caucus, adapted from information provided by the Minnesota Catholic Conference. To read more, visit mncatholic.org/ caucus.

1. Find “house districts,” precinct names/ numbers and locations for Feb. 25 caucuses at Minnesota Secretary of State’s caucusfinder.sos. state.mn.us.

2. Sign in at 6:30 p.m., then visit with neighbors.

3. The event should convene promptly at 7 p.m.

Do ask questions along the way. Everyone is a volunteer, and often half the attendees are there for the first time.

4. Elect someone to run the caucus and elect a “precinct chair,” someone who will be active for the coming two-year cycle (or longer). Then it’s time to submit a resolution to influence the party’s official platform, which is the most powerful part of caucuses. (MCC has information on how to submit resolutions at mncatholic.org/caucus.)

5. Elect delegates. The number varies, but they will represent the precinct at the conventions that follow, from the Senate District level right up to the party’s national convention.

6. Straw polls or preference ballots often are taken. In a hurry? People typically can vote early and leave, depending on the rules.

7. Adjourn. It’s a formal step; people can leave whenever they need because the entire process is voluntary.

SUPER TUESDAY Minnesotans get an early and important shot at nominating presidential candidates this year.

For the first time since 1992, the state is holding a presidential primary.

Minnesota joins 13 other states holding primaries on March 3, “Super Tuesday.”

People who can’t make it to the polls March 3 can vote early in person or by mail.

Two of the four major parties in Minnesota are participating this year: the Democratic-FarmerLabor (DFL) Party and the Republican Party.

President Donald Trump is the only presidential candidate on the Republican ballot. Fifteen presidential candidates are listed on the DFL ballot.

Instructions for early voting, sample ballots and other information can be found on the Minnesota Secretary of State’s website at myballotmn.sos.state.mn.us. ­— Barb Umberger

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COURTESY TIMOTHY SCHMALZ

WORK IN PROGRESS Canadian sculptor and Catholic Timothy Schmalz works on a commission for the University of St. Thomas at a studio in China in this undated photo. A world-renowned artist for his large-scale bronze Christian statues, Schmalz’s work includes “Angels Unawares,” which last year became the first statue installed in St. Peter’s Square in Rome in more than 400 years. St. Thomas selected Schmalz to create a 12-foot statue of its patron, St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), for the plaza in front of the recently renovated and restored campus chapel, as part of its new Iversen Center for Faith project. The sculpture, which will be cast in bronze, shows St. Thomas holding the pages of his bestknown work, the “Summa Theologiae,” ascending to heaven and turning into a dove. At his feet is an Ionic column, and sketches show plans for a bust of Aristotle, the Greek philosopher who influenced St. Thomas’ work. The green in the photo is from the studio light, not the materials, Schmalz explained in an email to Victoria Young, chair of the university’s art history program. “When we started talking about the Iversen Center for Faith, we wanted to increase our spiritual reach to people of all faiths, and we can do that with artwork, but we still are a Catholic campus that greatly values that tradition that we’ve had for over 125 years,” Young told The Catholic Spirit. “We don’t have a recent statue of Thomas Aquinas. We knew it was important to commission one that could be energetic and powerful and really connect with people to show the power of his vision, [and] ... the power of art to represent that vision is a way to engage people in their faith in a different way.”

In 2017, the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis installed a cast of Schmalz’s “Homeless Jesus,” a statue that draws on Matthew 25 to depict Jesus as a homeless man sleeping on a park bench. The work has been installed in multiple cities around the globe.

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FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 7B

What’s the Church’s relationship with Islam?

Lonsdale priest Father Nick VanDenBroeke apologized Jan. 29 after remarks he had made in a homily about Muslim immigration and Islam being “the greatest threat in the world” sparked national controversy. “My homily on immigration contained words that were hurtful to Muslims. I’m sorry for this,” said Father VanDenBroeke, pastor of Immaculate Conception, in a statement. “I realize now that my comments were not fully reflective of the Catholic Church’s teaching on Islam.” In a separate statement, Archbishop Bernard Hebda noted he had spoken with Father VanDenBroeke Jan. 29 and reiterated that the Catholic Church holds Muslims in esteem, quoting Popes Benedict XVI and Francis.

To further explore the RITA relationship between ’ GEORGE-TVRTKOVIC the Catholic Church and Islam, The Catholic Spirit interviewed Rita George-Tvrtkovic’, an associate professor of theology at Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois, and a former associate director of the Archdiocese of Chicago’s Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. She will be speaking at the University of St. Thomas Feb. 18 on “What Muslims Can Teach Catholics about Christianity.” The Catholic Spirit received her responses via email. They are edited for length and clarity.

Q What does the Church teach in general about Islam?

A The basis for all Catholic relationships

with Muslims today is the Second Vatican Council document “Nostra Aetate” (“On the Church’s Relation to Non-Christian Religions,” 1965). The document’s introduction says that “the Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in (other) religions” and encourages interreligious dialogue in general, but it also has two sections devoted to Judaism and Islam in particular.

Section 3 on Islam says that the Church regards Muslims “with esteem” and outlines areas of theological agreement (that God is creator, merciful, powerful, revealer; that Christians and Muslims believe in judgment and resurrection of the body; that they have similar practices such as prayer, fasting and almsgiving; and that they revere some of the same figures, such as Mary).

Areas of disagreement are also mentioned, the most prominent being how Christians and Muslims understand Jesus (Christians believe he is the Son of God, while Muslims consider him a prophet). Section 3 ends with a plea to engage in dialogue and cooperation with Muslims on peace and social justice issues. Since Christians and Muslims are the largest and second largest religions in the world, respectively, it seems especially urgent for our planet that Christians answer this call to collaborate for the common good.

Q Did Vatican II change the Church’s relationship with Islam? Why?

A “Nostra Aetate” is the first positive

Catholic “theology of Islam” at the highest level of Church authority — an ecumenical council (Vatican II). The document explicitly “exhorts” all Catholics, not just experts, to engage in

dialogue and cooperation with Muslims.

(The Vatican later outlined four areas of interreligious dialogue: the dialogue of theology, of religious experience, of social action and of life. Every Catholic can engage in the dialogue of life.)

But it’s also worth noting that there are many examples of Christians in history who engaged positively with Islam, including Thomas Aquinas (d. 1274), who incorporated philosophical dialogues with Muslim scholars such as Ibn Rushd and Ibn Sina into his “Summa Theologiae” and other writings; Nicholas of Cusa (d. 1464), whose critique of the Qur’an includes a serious engagement with its statements about Mary and Jesus, which he assesses positively; and Riccoldo da Montecroce (d. 1320), a Dominican who lived in Baghdad for a decade, learned Arabic and studied Islam with Muslims.

Even though Riccoldo was critical of aspects of Islam, he also praised Muslims for their studiousness, devotion to prayer, generosity in almsgiving and hospitality to strangers.

Louis Massignon (d. 1962) is another important Catholic figure who influenced the development of the Church’s approach to Islam. Massignon was a French Catholic and scholar of Islam who coined the term “Abrahamic faiths” and who taught many of the framers of “Nostra Aetate.” He also founded, along with an Egyptian Christian colleague Mary Kahil, a Christian-Muslim dialogue group called Badaliya, long before Vatican II. The Church’s engagement with Islam in history has thus been complicated, and it varies greatly depending on time and place. One cannot generalize.

Q What does the Church’s

relationship with Islam look like today on more concrete levels? Are there areas of good interfaith dialogue or collaboration?

A There are many examples of positive

Christian-Muslim relations between ordinary Catholics and Muslims all over our country and the world; unfortunately, they don’t often make the news. Just one example is a Catholic-Muslim women’s dialogue group that has been meeting weekly for the past 20 years in Bridgeview, Illinois; the women are parishioners at St. Fabian’s Catholic Church and members of the nearby Mosque Foundation.

These women know each other well, as they are not only sisters in faith but neighbors and friends. There are also countless Christian-Muslim student dialogues on college campuses, which include not only friendly conversations but also joint social justice projects.

There are scholarly dialogues, such as one between Catholic and Muslim professors who have been meeting twice a year for several years. It is sponsored

by The Catholic University of America and John Carroll University in Cleveland. There are also official dialogues sponsored by the Catholic Church, such as the National CatholicMuslim Dialogue sponsored by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and various national Islamic organizations.

Q What is your response to Catholics who think that Islam should not be esteemed, since it does not share the Christian belief that Christ is God?

LEARN MORE “What Muslims Can Teach Catholics about Christianity” Second Annual Terence Nichols Memorial Symposium featuring Rita George-Tvrtkovic’ 7 p.m. Feb. 18 McNeely Hall, room 100 University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Campus 2115 Summit Ave., St. Paul Free and open to the public Sponsored by St. Thomas’ theology department’s “Theological Encounters Program: Encountering Islam” in collaboration with the Jay Phillips Center for Interfaith Learning iSTOCK | SEDMAK

A painting in Cordoba, Spain, of St. Francis preaching before Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil near Damietta, Egypt. Last year marked the 800th anniversary of the encounter. At a November 2019 conference on the subject at The Catholic University of America, scholars said the future saint witnessed peacefully to the Muslim sultan and his writings reveal the meeting had a profound impact on his life.

A Christianity is the only religion that

believes Jesus Christ is the son of God. My point is that Islam is not unique in this; Jews, Hindus, Buddhists and others also do not believe Christ to be divine.

Yet Muslims and Christians can and should have fruitful conversations about their different beliefs about Jesus; we should not shy away from differences, for often the best theological learning occurs when we examine our disagreements.

Aside from Jesus, the Muslim view of God is similar to Christian views in many ways. Interreligious dialogue should include a discussion of both differences and similarities; for this often will lead you to learn more about your own faith.

Indeed, a Christian who is asked by a Muslim to explain the Trinity will certainly need to study and reflect on his or her own understanding of this important doctrine. Furthermore, when Catholics get to know individual Muslims (since there is no such thing as dialogue between “Christianity and Islam” but only between individual Christian and Muslim believers), they might be surprised to see how devoted Muslims are in praying five times a day, in fasting during Ramadan and in giving alms. They might be inspired to live out their own Catholic faith more fervently, to pray more, to be more charitable.

Concrete encounters with Muslims will dispel fear and ignorance, and can lead to respect of them and a deepening of one’s own faith. The biblical scholar Krister Stendahl called this “holy envy.”

Q What about people’s fears that

Islam is a religion of violence and promotes the killing of Christians?

A This is an important question, and to

answer it I will begin with Rule No. 4 of Dr. Leonard Swidler’s “Dialogue Decalogue,” the ground rules for interreligious dialogue. Rule No. 4 states, “We must not compare our ideals with our partner’s practice but, rather, our ideals with our partner’s ideals, our practice with our partner’s practice.”

What that means is that Christians in 21st century America should compare

Islamic terrorists who incorrectly cite religion to justify what they do (but who are a minority and who are condemned by the vast majority of Muslims as un-Islamic) to white supremacists who also cite religion to justify what they do (who are also a minority and are condemned by the vast majority of Christians as un-Christian). These are all examples of “practice” in the sense that religion has often been distorted and harnessed by supposed believers to justify immoral purposes. No religion is immune from this. Catholics who are at all self-critical about their own religion will note that Catholics who spoke out against slavery and Jim Crow were in the minority, not majority. The history of all religions shows a disparity between ideals and practice.

Likewise, if we want to compare ideals, then we should compare Biblical and Qur’anic injunctions to be merciful, loving and generous. Countless examples of such ideals can be found in both scriptures; for example, there is a verse in the Qur’an which says “killing a single soul is like killing all of humanity.” Because we are human, there have always been Christians and Muslims who fail to live up to these ideals. But there are also many who have lived up to them. Just as Catholics have saints (both canonized and everyday saints) to admire, so too do Muslims have many examples of “friends of God” they revere for their holiness and good works.

Q So, what can Muslims teach Catholics about Christianity?

A Benedictine University’s student body

is exceedingly diverse: We are around 50% Catholic, 25% Muslim, plus many others (Protestants, Eastern Orthodox, Hindus, Sikhs, “nones,” etc.). So every theology class I teach is an opportunity for interreligious dialogue. And what is interesting is that not only do nonChristians learn about Christianity, but quite often, Catholics — both nominal and catechized — learn something about Christianity too, and not only from me, but also from their non-Christian classmates. For example, nominal (“in name only”) Catholics may have heard about fasting but haven’t tried it. So when we discuss Christian fasting in class and they hear a Muslim peer talk about Islamic fasting, nominals might be encouraged to examine it in their own tradition.

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

8B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

NATION+WORLD

Catholic leaders: Plan lacks Palestinian input

By Judith Sudilovsky Catholic News Service Calling U.S. President Donald Trump’s Peace-to-Prosperity plan a “unilateral initiative,” Church leaders in the Holy Land said it did not give “dignity and rights” to the Palestinians.

“This plan will bring no solution but rather will create more tensions and probably more violence and bloodshed,” the Assembly of the Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land said in a statement Jan. 29. The group includes Catholic bishops and patriarchs of different rites as well as the Franciscan custos of the Holy Land and one nun.

In the long-awaited plan, which Trump called the “deal of the century,” the president proposed the possibility of a future independent Palestinian state and the recognition of Israeli sovereignty over West Bank settlements, creating Israeli enclave communities. The plan also recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s capital while allowing for a Palestinian capital in villages on the outskirts of East Jerusalem, where, according to the plan, the U.S. would build a future embassy to the Palestinian state.

But, the Church leaders said in their statement, such proposals must be reached with the agreement of both the Israelis and the Palestinians.

“These proposals have to be based on equal rights and dignity,” they added. “The plan Peace-to-Prosperity, presented yesterday, does not contain these conditions.”

In Lebanon, retired Melkite Catholic Patriarch Gregoire III Laham, who served in Jerusalem as bishop for 26 years, said the proposed plan would “be the gateway to more wars and conflicts in the region.” He called it “the ultimate blow to every dialogue in the region, and to every peace process in the region.”

“This will be a fire, and fuel for the fire of anti-Semitism and

CNS

Catholic Palestinians pray Feb. 2 during Mass at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in Aboud, West Bank.

Islamophobia in the East and West, and it will fuel hatred ... for the entire West, and will even spread religious fundamentalism everywhere, and in the relations of states and peoples,” the retired patriarch said.

He appealed to “the rulers of the entire world, especially the United States of America, Russia, and Western and Eastern Europe: Stand together in the face of the ‘deal of the century,’ and combine your efforts for the only honorable and humane solution, namely, two states having equal rights and obligations” and to work toward a just, comprehensive and stable peace.

The Church leaders said Trump’s plan endorses “almost all” the demands and the political agenda of the Israelis while ignoring the demands of the Palestinian side. They said they expected that previous agreements by the two parties would “be respected and improved upon the basis of complete human equality among peoples.”

However, the plan indicated that past agreements had failed.

“Reciting past narratives about the conflict is unproductive,” the plan said. “In order to resolve this

conflict, the solution must be forward-looking and dedicated to the improvement of security and quality of life, while being respectful of the historic and religious significance of the region to its peoples.”

Trump said the plan would include $50 billion of commercial investments in the future Palestinian state once conditions for statehood are met, including a “firm rejection of terrorism.”

He promised that “no Palestinians or Israelis will be uprooted from their homes.”

Palestinians cut off relations with the United States in December 2017 when Trump moved the U.S. embassy to Jerusalem. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas rejected the peace plan, calling it a “conspiracy.” He said Jerusalem “was not for sale.”

In 2000 and 2008, Palestinians turned down other statehood proposals by the Israelis, including an offer of a land swap for 100% of the West Bank.

One aspect of Trump’s plan calls for a high-speed rail linking the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The Gaza Strip has been under an air, land and sea blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt in 2007, when Hamas took control of the Palestinian area from the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority.

The 1.8 million Palestinian residents of the coastal Gaza Strip are cut off from the remainder of the Palestinian territory by the blockade, which also restricts their free travel access to the rest of the world.

Bishops from Europe and North America who have visited Gaza in recent years have described it as an open-air prison.

A day after the plan’s announcement, Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett called on the interim government to move forward to annex West Bank Jewish settlements, the Jordan Valley and the area around the Dead Sea before the March 2 national elections, Israel’s third in one year.

Sister who works with homeless attends State of the Union

By Carol Zimmermann Catholic News Service Mercy Sister Mary Scullion, co-founder and executive director of Project HOME, an organization that helps the homeless in Philadelphia, was one of the many guests who attended the Feb. 4 State of the Union, which she hoped would draw attention to homelessness and inspire federal aid to alleviate it.

The woman religious was invited by Rep. Dwight Evans, D-Pennsylvania. Members of Congress can bring one guest to the State of the Union, and Evans chose Sister Scullion to “highlight the need for more affordable housing dollars and support of policies to reduce poverty and homelessness.”

He also said that he hoped her presence would bring attention to “the need to prevent cuts to programs that help the vulnerable” including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Social Security disability benefits.

Sister Scullion was not singled out as were some of President Donald Trump’s 11 guests during the televised speech, but she felt she championed her cause in meetings before the address where she discussed homelessness with both Democrats and Republicans in Congress.

These meetings “were the positives” of the visit, she said, adding that she also was encouraged by the number of women she met who said they had been educated by women religious. The advocate for the homeless, named one of the “World’s Most Influential People” by Time magazine in 2009 and described in the magazine profile as the “Mother Teresa of Philadelphia,” came to Washington fully aware of who she was representing and kept them at the forefront of her mind.

She said the State of the Union, and reaction to the president’s words, included “too many moments of division” and only a few examples of unity.

“A lot of the president’s speech was disturbing,” she said, calling out what she described as “an overall distortion of facts” that included the “demonization of immigrants” and a mention of the value of prayer immediately followed by a promise that Americans can keep their guns.

Sister Scullion said she was encouraged by Trump’s message about criminal justice reform and commitment to ensure early childhood education and day care, but she cautioned that these promises should be checked for accuracy. The woman religious said she was bothered by the president’s words describing this country as “better than everyone else” and his failure to mention “what needs to be done for millions of Americans still struggling to make it in our economy.”

She said the division, palpable during the State of the Union but also in the country at large, impacts the work she does because “the solution to end homelessness involves all of us as one human family” and needs bipartisan support.

“I go back with a little of both: encouragement and discouragement,” she said.

Among calls for unity, Trump criticizes Democrats at prayer breakfast

By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service As four members of Congress and a well-known economist called for healing, unity and “love of neighbor” at the National Prayer Breakfast, President Donald Trump broke ranks and criticized Democrats for impeaching him while hailing Republicans who acquitted him.

“As everybody knows, my family, our great country and your president have been through a terrible ordeal by some very dishonest and corrupt people. They have done everything possible to destroy us and by so doing very badly hurt our nation. They know what they are doing is wrong, but they put themselves far ahead of our great country,” Trump told more than 3,000 people at the 68th

annual breakfast Feb. 6 in his first public remarks following the acquittal a day earlier.

“I don’t like people who use their faith as justification for doing what they know is wrong. Nor do I like people who say, ‘I pray for you,’ when they know that that’s not so,” Trump said, in apparent references to Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-California, who sat at the head table on stage for the event.

Romney was the only Republican who voted to impeach Trump on one of two counts he faced. In explaining his vote Feb. 5, Romney cited his Mormon faith as guiding his decision.

Pelosi used sharp words Dec. 5 in response to a reporter’s question about

whether she hated the president after she cleared the way for House Democrats to begin drafting articles of impeachment.

“I don’t hate anybody,” Pelosi said. “I was raised in a Catholic house. We don’t hate anybody. Don’t accuse me of hate,” Pelosi said at the time, explaining that the Constitution required Congress to act in response to a president’s alleged illegal actions.

Trump’s initial comments contrasted with prayers offered by four members of Congress: Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-California, House minority leader, who is Baptist; Rep. David Kustoff, R-Tennessee, who is Jewish; Rep. Xochitl Torres Small, D-New Mexico, who is Lutheran; as well as Pelosi. All four

prayed that the country would treat others with dignity and respect and to express God’s love in daily life.

Moving on, Trump recapped several actions his administration has undertaken including steps to support prayer in classrooms, aid persecuted religious minorities such as the Yazidis in Iraq and Christians elsewhere, and policies to protect unborn children.

“Faith keeps us free. Prayer makes us strong. And God alone is the author of life and the giver of grace,” he said.

In his 25-minute speech, Trump pledged to protect people of faith, ministers, rabbis and others from what he characterized as ongoing attacks on religious practice. “We won’t let that happen,” he said.

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

NATION+WORLD

Videos added to ‘Faithful Citizenship’ guide

Baltimore museum showcases medieval missal used by St. Francis of Assisi

By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service

By George P. Matysek Jr. Catholic News Service More than eight centuries ago, St. Francis of Assisi and two companions randomly opened a prayer book three times inside their parish church of St. Nicolo in Italy.

Hoping God would send them a message, the wealthy young men prayerfully consulted the manuscript once for each person of the Holy Trinity.

Remarkably, each of the three Gospel passages they landed on contained the exact same command: Give up worldly possessions and follow Christ.

Taking the words to heart, St. Francis established a rule of life governing what would become his Order of Friars Minor.

The Franciscans embraced radical poverty to draw closer to Christ while also evangelizing others.

The same book that inspired St. Francis in 1208 is expected to inspire thousands of others as the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore places it on public display for the first time in 40 years Feb. 1 through May 31.

The Latin missal, which contains Gospel readings and prayers used at Mass, underwent a painstaking two-year conservation effort aimed at repairing centuries of wear and tear.

The missal, especially beloved by Catholics, isn’t just a historic artifact.

Because it was touched by a saint, it is also considered by many to be a religious relic.

“This is our most-requested manuscript,” said Lynley Herbert, curator of rare books and manuscripts at the Walters.

Herbert noted that Franciscans from around the world have visited the Walters over the decades to catch a glimpse of the richly illuminated book.

Because of its significance to the Franciscan community, the Walters has let them view it even when the manuscript’s fragile condition kept it from public display.

“We’ve become a site of pilgrimage,” Herbert explained. “I’m contacted probably monthly, if not weekly, with requests to see this book.”

Herbert said the missal was commissioned for the Church of St. Nicolo in Assisi. An inscription inside the manuscript notes that the book’s donor lived in Assisi in the 1180s and 1190s.

“The manuscript was probably made just before 1200,” she told the Catholic Review, the media outlet of the Baltimore Archdiocese. “In the 15th century, it had to be rebound because the binding probably started falling apart after so many centuries of use.”

The St. Francis Missal is believed to have been housed at St. Nicolo until an earthquake damaged the church in the 19th century. The church’s artifacts were then dispersed, and the church was torn down. All that remains today is the church’s crypt.

Henry Walters, whose art collection became the basis for the Walters Art Museum, purchased the St. Francis Missal from an art dealer in 1924,

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 9B

CNS

The restored St. Francis Missal, a 12th-century manuscript that St. Francis of Assisi consulted as he was discerning his spiritual life, will be on display at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore from Feb. 1 to May 31.

according to Herbert.

Abigail Quandt, head of book and paper conservation at the Walters, supervised a meticulous conservation effort undertaken by Cathie Magee, who worked on the project as an Andrew W. Mellon Fellow in Book Conservation.

Quandt said the major challenge was repairing 15th-century wooden beech boards that helped hold the book together. The boards and some of the parchment pages had been attacked long ago by insects and were left with many holes, she said.

As conservators worked on preserving the manuscript, each page was digitized so anyone with internet access around the world can view and study the book.

It will be available through the Walters’ Ex-Libris webpage, https://manuscripts. thewalters.org, by searching on “The St. Francis Missal.”

The exhibition also will feature several other objects, including paintings, ivories and ceramics of different time periods, highlighting “different aspects of the ripple effect of this manuscript across time and how it impacts different people,” Herbert said.

In addition to items related to St. Francis’ contribution to the Franciscan movement, there will be objects connected with St. Clare, the first woman to follow St. Francis, and St. Anthony of Padua, who was focused on preaching and spreading the Franciscan message, Herbert said.

“There’s also a case that will focus on private devotion and secular Franciscans,” she said.

Herbert noted that the missal itself has three full pages of colorful illuminations, including an elaborate depiction of the Crucifixion that shows Christ on the cross with two angels overhead. Mary and St. John the Beloved stand by his side.

The free exhibition, sponsored in part by the Archdiocese of Baltimore, was debuting with the book open to one of the three Gospel text passages St. Francis read in 1208. Halfway through the exhibition, the page will be turned to one of the other passages St. Francis read.

“When the manuscript has been shown in the past, it has always been open to one of the illuminations — which are really actually quite lovely,” Herbert said. “But we thought about it long and hard, and we decided that it would be more meaningful for people coming to see it for this exhibition if we showed the openings that St. Francis actually may have interacted with.”

A series of long-planned videos that supplement the U.S. bishops’ quadrennial “Faithful Citizenship” document that provides guidance to voters during a presidential election year have been finalized for viewing.

Posted on the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ website at faithfulcitizenship.org and the USCCB’s YouTube channel, five videos in four languages explore various aspects of Catholic social teaching while reflecting the teaching of Pope Francis.

The videos are part of the bishops’ effort to broaden their outreach through the document, titled “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship: A Call to Political Responsibility,” Jill Rauh, director of education and outreach in the USCCB’s Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, said.

“The videos intend to help Catholics engage in participation in political life, first and foremost, guided by their faith as opposed to any affiliation with any political party that they have,” Rauh explained Feb. 5. “In addition, the videos invite Catholics to engage with civility and to learn about and advocate on behalf of all of who are vulnerable, from the unborn to immigrants to people who are in poverty, to our common home, to families.”

Four English-language videos of about two minutes in length examine

participation in public life, protecting human life and dignity, promoting the common good and loving others. The fifth video is a six-minute compilation of the highlights of the four shorter pieces. Videos in Spanish, Tagalog and Vietnamese are slightly longer.

Each video was produced with young people in mind, Rauh added. “The (bishops) had a particular interest in creating videos for sharing on social media and engaging with young people,” she said.

Along with images and voices of young people, each piece features one bishop narrating an aspect of Catholic social teaching. Each production closes with a different prayer specifically written for the series.

A letter introducing the document is one of the resources. Approved by the bishops during their fall general assembly in November, the letter reminds Catholics that “we bring the richness of our faith to the public square” and that “faith and reason inform our efforts to affirm both the dignity of the human person and the common good of all.”

Other wide-ranging resources are being made available to parishes, schools, prayer groups and other interested parties through the faithful citizenship web page.

Scenes showing people feeding the hungry, protecting God’s creation, comforting the elderly, caring for children, migrant people and families, and engaging in civil discussions are prominent in the productions.

10B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

NATION+WORLD

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Pope Francis of St. John Paul: ‘He suffered so much’

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service St. John Paul II taught the world that truly great faith and holiness dwell in “the normality of a person who lives in profound communion with Christ,” Pope Francis said in a new book.

Precisely because he allowed people to see he was a human being — whether skiing or praying, hiking or suffering — “every gesture of his, every word, every choice he made always had a much deeper value and left a mark,” Pope Francis told Father Luigi Maria Epicoco, author of the Italian book “San Giovanni Paolo Magno” (“St. John Paul the Great”).

The book, published by Edizioni San Paolo and released Feb. 11, was written to mark the 100th anniversary of St. John Paul’s birth May 18, 1920.

Much of the book is biographical information about the late pope, but each chapter includes Pope Francis’ response to questions from Father Epicoco about his relationship with the late pope and observations about St. John Paul’s spirituality, personality, events in his life and his teaching.

Pope Francis said there is “total harmony” between his thoughts about the meaning of ministerial priesthood and St. John Paul’s teaching on priesthood.

Asked if he thought the abolition of mandatory celibacy for most Latin-rite Catholic priests would be a way to address the priest shortage, he said: “I am convinced that celibacy is a gift, a grace, and following in the footsteps of Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI, I strongly feel an obligation to think of celibacy as a decisive grace that characterizes the Latin Catholic Church.

I repeat: It is a grace.”

Father Epicoco also asked Pope Francis about St. John Paul’s insistence that women cannot be priests because Jesus chose only men as his apostles.

“The question is no longer open for discussion because the pronouncement of John Paul II was definitive,” Pope Francis said. However, he said, usually the question betrays a misunderstanding of the role of ministerial priesthood and focuses only on people’s function in the Church, not their importance.

Like Mary, he said, women are the ones who “teach the Church to pass through the night trusting the daylight

will come, even when daylight is still far off. Only a woman is able to teach us a love that is hope.”

Father Epicoco also noted how often Pope Francis speaks of evil, and he asked Pope Francis where he sees evil at work today.

“One place is ‘gender theory,’” the pope said.

“Right away I want to clarify that I am not referring to people with a homosexual orientation. The Catechism of the Catholic Church invites us to accompany them and provide pastoral care to these brothers and sisters of ours.” Gender theory, he said, has a “dangerous” cultural aim of erasing all distinctions between men and women, male and female, which would “destroy at its roots” God’s most basic plan for human beings: “diversity, distinction. It would make everything homogenous, neutral.

It is an attack on difference, on the creativity of God and on men and women.”

Pope Francis said he did not want “to discriminate against anyone,” but was convinced that human peace and wellbeing had to be based on the reality that God created people with differences and that accepting — not ignoring — those differences is what unites people.

Speaking of his relationship with St. John Paul II, Pope Francis said he was in the car in Argentina when he heard that then-Cardinal Karol Wojtyla had been elected pope in 1978. “I heard the name Wojtyla and thought, ‘an African pope.’

Then they told me he was Polish.”

He said he liked the new pope right away, especially because of his reputation for spending time with university students, being a sports enthusiast, his devotion to Mary and, especially, because of his reputation as one who prayed often and deeply.

“In 2001, when I was made a cardinal, I felt a strong desire when I knelt to receive the cardinal’s biretta not only to exchange the sign of peace with him, but to kiss his hand,” Pope Francis said.

“Some people criticized me for this gesture, but it was spontaneous.”

“We cannot forget the suffering of this great pope,” he said. “His refined and acute sensitivity to mercy certainly was influenced by the spirituality of St. Faustina Kowalska, who died during his adolescence, but also — perhaps, especially — because of his having witnessed the communist and Nazi persecutions. He suffered so much!”

CNS

New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan gives Communion to residents of a home for the elderly in Camaguey, Cuba, where he celebrated Mass Feb. 9. The archbishop of New York was in the midst of a six-day mission visit, his first to the island.

From Fifth Avenue to Camaguey, cardinal’s visit displays world ties

By Rhina Guidos Catholic News Service Cuban Archbishop Wilfredo Pino Estevez gently motioned U.S. Cardinal Timothy Dolan toward the man quietly sitting in the chair who had recently lost part of his leg due to complications from diabetes.

With a gentle smile, the archbishop of New York approached the man and softly traced the sign of the cross on his forehead, stopping to briefly chat with him, then touching his shoulder in comfort during a Feb. 9 visit to a facility in Camaguey, where a small group of women religious, along with a small staff, care for the sick and elderly.

While governments may disagree with one another over ideologies, that doesn’t mean religious organizations can’t be a source for good works that need to be carried out in a society, said the cardinal, following a visit to the center named after Cuban Archbishop Adolfo Casildo Rodriguez Herrera, and popularly referred to as the Monsenor Adolfo Rodriguez center, because he envisioned the facility but didn’t live to see it come to fruition.

Cardinal Dolan, in the midst of a six-day mission visit, his first to the island, thanked the three religious sisters of the order of St. Camillus of Lellis “for your example” after celebrating Sunday Mass with them and a group of more than two dozen residents of the facility.

At the same hour they regularly celebrate Sunday Mass at the center each weekend, he celebrates Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City, he told them, expressing joy about being with them in Camaguey instead of on Fifth Avenue. He said he was paying the visit as their neighbor but also as a brother in Christ.

Living on an island, sometimes it’s easy to feel isolated, said Archbishop Pino of Camaguey, but visits from outside, such as Cardinal Dolan’s, remind Catholics in Cuba of that universal church they belong to.

“Just that simple detail, of realizing that at the same time we celebrate a humble Mass here with 10 or 15 people, that at that same hour in New

York and in other parts of the world, we’re sharing the same things. It’s very exciting,” Archbishop Pino said.

“Sometimes we’re not always aware of those things, of the great things that God carries out through us.”

That connection with Catholics from outside, particularly with those who have roots in Camaguey, in fact, is what made the center for the elderly a reality, Archbishop Pino said. The U.S. has a great “Camagueyan” colony of Catholics living in the U.S. who contributed to the building of the center, which took 13 years to build, and provides essential services in the rural area. With help from the Cuban diaspora, the center will acquire an ambulance set to arrive any day, Archbishop Pino told the cardinal.

Some of the residents showed the cardinal plaques bearing the names of Camagueyans living abroad, who had donated the money to finance their room or who had contributed to name a room after a loved one.

“They showed a quiet dignity,” the cardinal said of the interaction he had with the 40 or so residents, many whom he personally greeted during or after Mass and who proudly showed him their living quarters.

Such services provided by the sisters and staff become important as the island ages, said Archbishop Pino.

“Sadly, the Cuban population is old and there isn’t a great population boom,” he said. “Some people are afraid to have children in the midst of difficulty. That is something Pope John Paul II warned us about during his visit. Simply put, there is a low birth rate.”

The teachings of the Gospel, to care for others, then become more important, Archbishop Pino said, adding that even though Scripture warns against telling others about one’s good works, “for one day, I would like to disobey God,” and tell others what great things the Church does, from feeding the poor, visiting or caring for the elderly, as is the case at the Monsenor Adolfo Rodriguez center, he said. “There are so many great works of charity that the Church carries out here.”

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

HEADLINES uMideast patriarchs tell pope they’re concerned about Christian survival. In a private meeting Feb. 8 with Pope Francis, Catholic patriarchs of the Middle East had an opportunity to sound the alarm regarding the survival of Christians in the region as a result of persecution, extremism, economic insecurity and immigration to the West. They provided Pope Francis with an overview of the general conditions of their countries and regions — Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Egypt and the Holy Land — particularly wars and crises that have led to the emigration of Christians and the need to follow the faithful pastorally in their adopted Western countries. uGeorgetown University plans to divest from fossil fuels within a decade. Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., is embarking on a plan to end new investments in fossil fuels companies, gradually divest from those firms and boost its endowment portfolio in renewable energy and energy efficiency. The university’s board of directors decided Feb. 6 to take the steps following a yearslong campaign by

CORONAVIRUS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1B “There is a serious shortage of some medical supplies. As the flu has spread all over the country, hundreds of pieces of masks and protective clothing are consumed daily. Medical supplies are not just lacking but dangerously lacking,” said a message from Jinde.

The Catholic Church’s official social services agency, Caritas International, has no local partner in China like most other countries in Asia have. Started in 1997 and officially recognized in 2006, Jinde (advancing love) does the work of Caritas, carrying out the relief work of the Church in China.

Ucanews.com reported the charity’s Feb. 2 message in Chinese, titled “Urgent appeal from China,” saying it was seeking help from the universal Church.

“So many people are desperately looking for supplies abroad,” said the message signed by Father Zhang Shijiang, Jinde official.

“Can I order some medical items such as protective clothing and masks for front-line health care workers through the universal Church?”

The message said the “urgent need for emergency treatment” has led many medical workers on the front line to be exposed to a “very dangerous environment.”

The virus has claimed the lives of more than 1,000 people in mainland China since the first case was reported in Wuhan city in December. More than 40,000 people are now infected and face the threat of developing choking pneumonia as the contagion continues to spread. The virus has also spread to other countries, including the United States.

Although China has stepped up its efforts to contain the spread of the virus with the production of protective equipment, efforts could not meet soaring demand, the message said.

Father Shijiang said the shortage of medical staff to fight the disease had also left Church members agonized.

“The helplessness and toil that I have experienced in the past few days have made me deeply experience how limited people are. This test also awakens us to pay more attention, care and help to those who face war in the future,” he said.

NATION+WORLD students and other activists to encourage the divestment in an effort to address climate change. The step is the latest in a national and international trend that finds Catholic banks, institutions, organizations, dioceses and religious congregations divesting from companies primarily focused on fossil fuel extraction. uLegionaries elect U.S. leader as superior general. During a general chapter meeting largely devoted to their order’s sexual abuse crisis, the Legionaries of Christ elected Feb. 6 U.S. Father John Connor as superior general for the next six years. A native of Severna Park, Maryland, Father Connor is the first superior general of the Legionaries who was not born in Mexico, where the order was founded in 1941.

Addressing sexual abuse was a priority of the meeting, he said. The order’s founder, the late Father Marcial Maciel Degollado, sexually abused at least 60 minors and fathered at least three children. uOperating losses, low enrollment lead Buffalo Diocese to close seminary. Bishop Edward Scharfenberger of Albany, New York, apostolic administrator of the diocese, said Feb. 4 that Christ the King Seminary’s board of trustees decided the seminary would “cease operations”

after determining that a decade of losses averaging $500,000 per year could no longer be sustained. The seminary has 26 seminarians enrolled this academic year, about 10% of its capacity. The announcement of the closing came days after Bishop Scharfenberger said that diocesan officials are nearing a decision on filing for bankruptcy and reorganization under Chapter 11 after the diocese reported a $5 million loss for fiscal year 2019. The abuse crisis led to the early retirement of Bishop Richard Malone in December. For more than a year, he has faced questions about how he has addressed the clergy sex abuse crisis, particularly a situation involving two priests’ relationship with a seminarian that he has called “a very complex, convoluted matter.” uBishops among critics of Canada’s quick changes to assisted suicide law. The federal government is coming under increasing fire from critics for how quickly it is moving to change the regulations around assisted suicide and for how short a time period Canadians were given to express their views in an online survey overseen by the Ministry of Justice. In a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau dated Jan. 31 — four days after the federal

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 11B government’s two-week online survey of Canadians regarding changes to the so-called Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) law — Archbishop Richard Gagnon, president of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, reiterated Church opposition to governmentsanctioned assisted suicide while slamming the idea that a survey is the way to address “grave moral questions.” uSeminarian murdered by kidnappers in Nigeria. An 18-year-old seminarian, kidnapped along with three other seminarians, was found murdered in Nigeria. Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of Sokoto confirmed the death of Michael Nnadi, who was kidnapped with the others Jan. 8 during an attack at the Good Shepherd Seminary in Kakau, in Nigeria’s Kaduna state. He said Nnadi and the wife of a doctor were arbitrarily separated from the group and killed.

The three other seminarians were released in late January. Nnadi’s death is the latest in a string of attacks against Christians in Nigeria, who have been targeted by terrorist groups like Boko Haram, but also by bandits seeking to extort money from the Catholic Church.

— Catholic News Service

12B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

‘GOD is LOV

Bishop DeGrood reflects on his p Stories by Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

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DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Bishop Donald DeGrood smiles Jan. 22 at his former parish, St. John the Baptist in Savage, where he was pastor from 2017 until his appointment as the ninth bishop of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. He was to be ordained Feb. 13 at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Sioux Falls.

JOIN THE CELEBRATION uWatch the 2 p.m. Feb. 13 installation via the Diocese of Sioux Falls’ YouTube channel, where it will be streamed live and archived. u Attend Bishop DeGrood’s Mass of Thanksgiving 2 p.m. Feb. 16 at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. Following the Mass will be a social hour in Hayden Hall, where the faithful will be able to congratulate the new bishop and receive a blessing.

ishop Donald DeGrood traces his earliest inklings of being called to the priesthood to around age 10, when he was in fourth grade and beginning to serve at Mass. His inspiration was Father Francis Pouliot, his pastor at St. Lawrence in Faribault.

He’s “just a humble, humble parish priest, and I kind of looked up to him and said, you know, I’d like to be like him someday when I grow up,” said Bishop DeGrood, 54, who was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis in 1997.

He called that priest, now in his 90s, on Dec. 13, the day it was announced that Pope Francis had named him bishop of Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “I wanted him to be aware of what a beautiful impact he’s had on my life,” said Bishop DeGrood, most recently the pastor of St. John the Baptist in Savage.

Bishop DeGrood was to be ordained a bishop at the Cathedral of St. Joseph in Sioux Falls 2 p.m. Feb. 13.

Archbishop Bernard Hebda was to preside at the Mass and consecrate him a bishop.

After the 5 a.m. announcement, Bishop DeGrood spent the early hours of Dec. 13, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, on the phone with family and friends, sharing the news and receiving their reaction. Besides Father Francis, however, there was another who had a profound impact on his priesthood, but whom he couldn’t call: his uncle and namesake, Donny Noy, who died in 1985, when Bishop DeGrood was a sophomore in college.

His uncle had been paralyzed from the neck down since birth, and he needed help to preform daily tasks. Bishop DeGrood was the fourth of five brothers growing up on a farm, and the older ones were needed to help their dad. It was often Bishop DeGrood’s job to assist his uncle. He witnessed his Uncle Donny’s love of prayer, especially the rosary, which he prayed throughout the day, accompanying a recording of the mysteries on the record player. When family members needed prayers for a special intention — like rain for their crops — they asked Donny to intercede. And “amazing fruits” came from his prayer, Bishop DeGrood said.

“He was a tremendous prayer warrior, and one of the reasons he has had such an impact on my life was he was one of the happiest people I knew as a kid,” he said in a Dec. 31 interview with The Catholic Spirit. “In a sense, he had nothing, but he had everything. And what he had was the greatest good: He had the friendship with God, and particularly through our blessed mother, Mary.”

One memory of his uncle stands out: When Bishop DeGrood was around 13, he took his uncle to the creek that ran through the property. There, his uncle told him in his limited language, “‘I want to be a priest. I can’t be a priest. You be a priest. I pray you be a priest.’”

“And it was this profound look in his eyes that I realized this was something more than, certainly, his own passion, his own desire, but this was like one of those moments when you just stop, and you realize, ‘I need to listen.’ So it was something that certainly penetrated to my heart.”

But he also thought, “Uh-oh,” because he knew when Donny prayed, his prayers were answered.

At that age, Bishop DeGrood was still thinking of the priesthood, but he had a lot of apprehensions. He feared inadequacy — that studies weren’t easy for him, that he couldn’t speak in front of people, that he wouldn’t know what to say in the confessional. And he wanted to have a family and be a farmer, like his dad.

He credits his eventual priesthood to Donny’s prayers — on earth and in heaven — and when there are serious intentions, he still asks for his uncle’s prayers. He asked for them the day the papal nuncio, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, called to inform him Pope Francis had asked him to become a bishop.

Bishop DeGrood was born in Faribault on Valentine’s Day, 1965, to Robert and Joanne DeGrood. They were parishioners of St. Lawrence in Faribault, which has since merged with other area parishes to create Divine Mercy. He attended kindergarten at a one-room country schoolhouse 2 miles away, “a ‘Little House on the Prairie’ kind of thing,” he said, with a hill, woods, train tracks, a teeter totter and a swing. His father had attended the school through eighth grade. He remembers his grandpa bringing a lamb for show-and-tell.

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priesthood and what’s prepared him to lead the Diocese of Sioux Falls BISHOP DEGROOD’S PRIESTLY SERVICE Parochial vicar, All Saints, Lakeville (1997-2000) Spiritual director, St. John Vianney College Seminary, St. Paul (2000-2004) Pastor, St. Peter, Forest Lake (2004-2013) Pastor, Blessed Sacrament, St. Paul (2013-2015) Vicar for Clergy, Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis (2013-2017) Pastor, St. John the Baptist, Savage (2017-2020)

EXTRAORDINARY IN THE ORDINARY The Diocese of Sioux Falls covers the area of South Dakota east of the Missouri River. Sioux Falls, with its population around 180,000, is by far the largest city in the state. Many of the diocese’s 119 parishes are in small rural towns. For Bishop DeGrood, the time he anticipates spending in the country seems like a homecoming.

“So much of my deep roots come from the farm,” he said. “And to be called to Sioux Falls, I’m so honored, because it brings me back to that place, like Nazareth, where there’s a lot of common ordinary things. But in the midst of that, extraordinary things. ... For me, it speaks to my heart.”

Although he’ll be farther than a three-hour drive from the family farm, he’ll have a tangible reminder with him often: His crosier was carved from an oak tree from the farm. At the center is a crucifix.

“It captures for me the nature of love, of God’s love for us,” he said, “the extent of love that God has, the nature of love, that sacrificial, seeking what’s the good of the other. Christ, laying down his life in love for us.”

He now sees the meandering road that led to his priestly ordination as a sign of that love and God’s patience with him, because it allowed him to gain management experience, business acumen and people skills, “all those kinds of things which became a really big help to me in being a pastor,” he said, “and now, God willing, as a bishop, too.”

He’s pastored an urban parish and suburban parishes, sat on numerous boards and served as a spiritual director. In each role, he’s learned more about himself, leadership, human nature and new facets of ministry. He’s been grateful for “group work” and collaborating with others.

“I’ve learned so much from the various members of various boards, and I see the great wisdom and insight of having a group of people processing various sorts of things, like ‘how do we help this priest?’ or ‘how do we deal with this particular issue?’” he said. “Because I don’ t have all the answers, and that actually brings me a lot of consolation even as I look to Sioux Falls. I don’t have all the answers. I don’t need to know all the answers right now. I need to pray. I need to get the right people in the right spots, meaning that I have to have people with the gifts and knowledge, (so) that I can listen well, that I can get a healthy, full perspective ... before making a decision on something.”

His parents wanted him to have a Catholic education, so in first grade he moved to St. Lawrence’s parish school; third through sixth grades were at nearby Sacred Heart, and seventh and eighth grades were at Immaculate Conception, all in Faribault, and now merged into Divine Mercy Catholic School.

High school was at Bethlehem Academy, also in Faribault, the Dominican-founded, oldest Catholic high school in the archdiocese. He graduated in 1983.

The feeling of being called to the priesthood had persisted, so that fall, Bishop DeGrood entered St. John Vianney College Seminary in St. Paul. He spent his first two years of college there, but left “to sort out the marriage question.” He graduated in 1987 with a philosophy degree. He worked for six years, first at Tradehome Shoes and then Land O’Lakes. He dated, had a company car and owned a home in New Ulm. One evening, on “one of those can’t-wait-for-spring kind-of days,” he was watching the sunset from a rocking chair when “a very clear grace came to me,” he said. “It was just very clear: ‘I want you to be a priest.’”

“I knew this was from God. This was different from any other sort of thing we experience that are just human things, and my response was, ‘Yes. Mary, as long as you help me.’”

He was around 28 at the time, and he remembers for the first time in his life feeling like he had found interior joy and peace — even though responding to the call meant big changes.

He returned the company car and moved his stuff to the seminary in St. Paul with his brother’s 1976 Dodge Brougham that “smelled like the farm,” Bishop DeGrood said, smiling.

But, “I’ve never questioned, because that’s how strong the grace was — the grace of the call to be a priest. And so I’ve

really been living off that grace,” he said.

In terms of grace, the call to be a bishop was similar to the call to priesthood, he said. He was in a meeting at the parish Dec. 2 when the literal call came from Archbishop Pierre. He recognized the 202 area code as Washington, D.C., but ignored the call. His phone rang again. Same number. He excused himself and took the call. Archbishop Pierre shared the news.

Bishop DeGrood asked for time to think and pray.

“I knew that I had to go right to the adoration chapel and pray, because I knew there was one question that needed to be answered: ‘God, what do you want?’”

He spent less than 15 minutes in the chapel at St. John the Baptist, but he experienced the grace of God saying, “‘I want you to say yes, and I will give you everything you need.’”

“When I was given that grace ... there was this clear sense of wow, ... but how about my flock that I love here?” at St. John the Baptist. “My experience of grace was, ‘I will take care of them, and you can carry them in your heart.’”

He experienced “an expansion of the heart,” he said, to carry in it both his former parish and the people of Sioux Falls.

His second apprehension was leaving his family and his brother priests, he said, but he felt God saying, “‘But you can take your best friend’ — that’s God. And I’m like, OK, I can do this.” Again, he asked for Mary’s help.

“And there was this incredible joy, incredible peace, and when I focus on the grace of the moment, that still remains,” he said. “There’s no question in my mind this is what God wants.”

It’s still been difficult to say goodbye to parishioners at St. John the Baptist. He choked up during Mass the Sunday after the announcement. As he collected himself, someone from the congregation called out, “We’re with you, Father!”

As he looks back, he recognizes that God has been preparing his heart for this next role and the transition it entails. “A lot of the more recent graces have been around detachment — to be detached from everything in some very practical ways,” such as from his cabin in northern Minnesota, he said.

“I just thought it was a spiritual growth, which it was, but I also see how that opened the doors for me to be able to say yes,” he said. “So there was a freedom in my heart that I didn’t have before on the same level, that unreserved readiness to say yes to the Lord, whatever he asks.”

Bishop DeGrood chose “God is love” as the motto that will guide his episcopal ministry. It will be on his coat of arms.

“We’re made for love,” he said. “That’s what the heart longs for, and that’s why we search for it. We’re trying to find happiness, and happiness is divine love.”

By “divine love” he means sacrificial love, he explained, “where you seek the good of the other.”

He looks back with gratitude on his childhood and the examples of sacrificial love that surrounded him: his parents; his family’s care for his uncle and later, his grandma, who had a stroke; three of his aunts who were religious sisters; another aunt with 10 kids who also cared for his Uncle Donny and grandparents.

“It’s not what I can get out of this relationship,” he said about divine love. “It’s about how can I lose myself in love — love of God, love of others. So receive God’s love, share that with him, and then that sends me out to want to love others in the same way. So it’s a love of God flowing through me, and that’s what I’ve experienced in my priesthood in a very beautiful and profound way of being able to be a vessel of love.

I find that the more I focus outside of myself — meaning, focus on God and my relationship with him and others — the happier I am. So that tells me about how I am made, and how we as human beings are made.”

The day he was announced as Sioux Falls’ next bishop, he stood alongside the diocese’s retiring Bishop Paul Swain at a press conference and said his goal for his new flock is for everyone to go to heaven. For him, that means to love, to teach and to preach from the heart in his diocese.

“I’m a firm believer that God gives everybody gifts, and part of my role as pastor and now as bishop is really to discern those gifts and to listen to the spirit of God working through them, so that it’s really of God, whatever he does that he works out here. So that’s why I’m not going in with a specific plan.”

The spiritual life is one of his passions, he said.

“The whole purpose of that is to get people to heaven, and that’s the purpose of the Church,” he added.

Difficult trials Helpful to Bishop DeGrood as a bishop will be the experience he gained while the Vicar for Clergy, an advisory role, in the archdiocese during some of the local Church’s darkest days, as Catholics grappled with revelations of clergy sexual abuse and accusations of cover-up.

He was at the emotional epicenter of the crisis in 2013, as he was appointed pastor of Blessed Sacrament in St. Paul, one year after the removal of then-Father Curtis Wehmeyer, who was arrested in 2012 and later convicted and imprisoned for sexually abusing three boys in the Hoffman family, who were parishioners. Their mother, Joy, worked on the parish staff. The case became the basis for the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office filing civil and criminal charges against the archdiocese in 2015 for failing to protect the brothers.

Bishop DeGrood became both Vicar for Clergy and pastor of Blessed Sacrament in July 2013, just as media began reporting on cases of clergy misconduct and questioning the archdiocese’s handling of the Wehmeyer case.

“There was so much purification that had to happen in my life through that time,” he said. “Trying to tend to both of these needs (being pastor and Vicar for Clergy) on both ends, and the family and the victim-survivors. ... And having to sell one of the two (parish) sites for financial reasons for the parish and working through that with the community, and all the complexities and all the stuff’s blowing up all over the place — it just brought me all to a greater level of poverty that I realized my inadequacy.”

Bishop DeGrood felt he had to choose between two things: discouragement and despair, or surrendering it all to God and accepting what comes. He chose to surrender.

“And it’s in that surrender to essentially suffer through those years that the Lord brought greater freedom and detachment in my life, which I needed,” he said. “It’s easy for any of us to think, ‘God, there’s a better way to do this,’ and yet he allows horrible and tremendous things to happen because of the free will of human beings. But out of that he’ll bring great things.”

That’s true for people and the Church, he said.

“I see that for the archdiocese in the years ahead. I see it hopefully for all of us — that through the suffering, trials and loss for so many dear, dear souls that God can bring new fruit through healing and his grace. And really a real inspiration for me and example has been Ben Hoffman.”

Hoffman, 26, was one of the brothers abused by Wehmeyer, and after several years living away from the Church, he’s returned with a convert’s fervor for evangelization and healing in the Church. In an interview with The Catholic Spirit in March 2019, Hoffman credited then-Father DeGrood with reaching out to him during a retreat and saying, “I’m sorry.” That encounter was pivotal in his own healing, he said.

“As I look back on those years and reflect back on this experience, for me it was you pray for them, you love them and you suffer with them,” Bishop DeGrood said. “So it’s been a privilege to journey with these souls like Joy and Ben ... who have suffered so much. That they would actually allow me in their lives is a great tribute to them.”

14B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

FAITH+CULTURE

Even before PBS airing, Dorothy Day film tops Amazon documentary chart

By Mark Pattison Catholic News Service

D

orothy Day, whose life was a series of seeming contradictions, might be bemused at this one: The DVD version of a documentary about her life has, more than a month before the film reaches the PBS airwaves, made it to the top spot on the Amazon documentary sales chart.

Of course, to make it to the top spot, people have to buy “Revolution of the Heart: The Dorothy Day Story,” which means they have the disposable income to buy it. That would seem to go against Day’s own embrace of voluntary poverty as the co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement, which dominated her life for nearly a half-century.

Martin Doblmeier, who made the film, is fully aware of the many contradictions in Day’s life and legacy, having spent two years assembling the documentary.

“She’s a very traditional Catholic. She’s not a religious leftist, as (Sojourners founder) Jim Wallis says in the film, but is comfortable with that. But she has to be called a political and social radical.

That’s a dangerous combination,” Doblmeier said in a Jan. 28 phone interview with Catholic News Service.

Doblmeier noted one of the most famous quotations of St. Augustine: “Our hearts are restless until they rest in thee, O Lord.” “Dorothy Day is a classic example of that,” he said. “It’s amazing how restless she was, and latched on to

the Catholic story line in her late 20s, and once she connects to that, she does not stray.”

Day herself uttered her own famous quote: “Don’t call me a saint. I don’t want to be dismissed that easily.” Yet, 40 years after her death in 1980, there is a Dorothy Day Guild in New York advocating for her canonization — another contradiction.

Doblmeier said there are arguments against making her a saint, which include her abortion and her two suicide attempts. But “the vault of Catholic stories is filled with stories of those who were lost but then were found,” he noted, St. Augustine and St. Francis of Assisi among them.

Others say “she received too much resistance from the Church at the time she was alive. She often found herself in tension with the Catholic Church, and they don’t want the Church to claim her,” Doblmeier said. Others oppose sainthood because, to them, it would represent “some sort of domestication of Dorothy Day, as if the idea that you have her on a refrigerator magnet,” he added.

His own take? “I think she should be canonized.”

Doblmeier said Day first started coming to his attention when he was working, as he says, “as a cub reporter for the Providence Visitor,” the statewide Rhode Island diocese’s newspaper, since renamed the Rhode Island Catholic.

The first few minutes of “Revolution of

CNS This is a still from the “Revolution of the Heart: The Dorothy Day Story,” a film by Martin Doblmeier. the Heart” go at a breakneck clip. “We do make it move pretty quickly,” he said.

“Once we get out of the funder credits, then we can create a different kind of rhythm for the film. We, like everybody else, listen to the people at the network: You’ve got to grab them in the first three minutes, you’ve got to give them a good sense of where they’re going for the next hour.”

While Doblmeier got a good bit of his

funding from the Lilly Endowment, its grant was contingent upon receiving matching funds elsewhere. The U.S. bishops’ Catholic Communication Campaign contributed a sizable chunk of matching grant funds. “I have to have total editorial control; I have to say the CCC was OK with that,” he said. “They know me, they were willing to help us out, to get this one film made.”

Doblmeier’s done 35 documentaries, several with the help of CCC grants, since leaving journalism and commercial broadcast television. “The ideas are there,” he said. “The only shortage is the funding.”

He may save some money by narrating his own films. But Doblmeier scored a coup by getting Oscar-winning actress Susan Sarandon to bring Day’s words to life on the screen, most of them from Day’s autobiography, “The Long Loneliness.”

“I asked her,” Doblmeier said of Sarandon. “I even said this to her: ‘This may sound like the prom, but you were my first choice. Not because your voice sounds so identical to the voice of Dorothy, but you’re an actress and you can bring the drama to this.’ She said yes, she was willing to do this.”

The PBS release date is March 6, a Friday, but it’s wise to check local listings for air dates and times. For those who can’t wait, the DVD includes extras, like the effort behind Day’s canonization cause and more interviews.

Annulment Questions?

Staff members of the Archdiocesan MetropolitanTribunal will be available for confidential consultation and to answer questions regarding the

investigation into the possibility of nullity

of the marriage bond (annulment process) at the Cathedral of St. Paul

239 Selby Ave, St. Paul February 26, Ash Wednesday, during and after each Mass 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information contact the Tribunal at 651-291-4466 No appointment necessary To learn more about the changes to the process, visit the Links page of the Tribunal web page, http://www.archspm.org/tribunal-annulments/

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 15B

CATHOLICSERVICESAPPEAL

Catholic Services Appeal aims to raise $6.9 million to fund 20 ministries This year’s campaign launches Feb. 22-23

By Maria Wiering The Catholic Spirit

T

he scene might feel familiar: A priest stands at the front of his church and asks the congregation to sit and learn about the annual Catholic Services Appeal.

People groan. Eyes roll. A baby cries.

As the priest talks, a basket passes from person to person as they add their donation envelopes. Until it gets to a young guy with a beard: “Frank.” Frank doesn’t put anything in the basket. Then he realizes that a voice speaking about the appeal is talking to him. He tries to explain — in a hushed, talking-in-church-sortof-way — why he didn’t give. “I don’t know where the money for the appeal goes,” he says.

“No problem, Frank,” says the voice, before launching into a list of the variety of people and ministries that are helped by the appeal each year. At the end, Frank is excited to give.

The scene is from this year’s Catholic Services Appeal video, which parishes will be showing Feb. 22-23, the Catholic Service Appeal’s 2020 commitment weekend. The Catholic Services Appeal Foundation board wanted to include some humor about the annual campaign — they get that the appeal might sound like just another annoying request for money. But they also wanted to convey that the donations people give make a significant difference in every corner of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

“It’s really something fresh and new,” said Jennifer Beaudry, the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation’s executive director, about the three-minute video. “We wanted to do something completely different to grab people’s attention and hopefully grab some of those younger donors that we don’t currently have.”

Led by an 18-member board — 12 laypeople and four priests — the CSAF is an independent nonprofit that funds 20 local ministries. It’s been a separate organization from the archdiocese since 2013.

Last year, the CSAF received about $9,062,000 in pledges, $238,000 short of its goal. Of the 186 parishes in the archdiocese, 118 met their parish goal, and eight made 90% of their goal. Last year, the goal was $9.3 million; the 2020 goal is $9 million.

This year, CSAF leaders are changing how they approach their goal. Instead of focusing on an overall total, they’re emphasizing a goal of raising $6.9 million for the ministries. In addition, they need to cover $900,000 for administrative costs — a modest figure for this type

CSAF MINISTRIES Abria Pregnancy Resources American Indian ministry Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women (ACCW) Campus Ministry – Newman Center Campus Ministry – St. Paul’s Outreach Catholic Charities Deaf ministries Evangelization Elementary school funding Elementary school scholarships High school scholarships Hospital chaplains Latino ministry Marriage, Family and Life Prison ministry Rachel’s Vineyard Twin Cities St. Vincent de Paul Society Seminarian tuition, room and board Venezuelan mission Youth and young adults of direct mail campaign, Beaudry said. They also expect to return more than $1.2 million to parishes through a revamped parish-sharing program.

Chad Trochlil, CSAF board president and a member of St. Peter in Mendota, sees donating to the appeal as a natural extension of Catholics’ parish giving.

“From a parishioner standpoint, you want to support your local parish that you go to, but the next thing you want to look at is, what’s going on in your diocese,” said Trochlil, payroll manager for St. Paul-based Bremer Bank. “And that’s really what the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation does, is that it serves those ministries within the archdiocese. So you’re taking a step beyond your parish.”

Most — if not all — Catholics in the archdiocese benefit from ministries the CSAF funds, its leaders say. But Catholics may not have thought about how these ministries are funded.

For Beaudry, the prime examples are hospital chaplains.

“I always think, what if I was in the hospital and there was no one to give me ... anointing of the sick? Or what if there was no one to give me Communion?” she asked. “And that’s something just basic: that we always assume, when you go to a hospital, ... there’s going to be a Catholic priest there. And that’s because of money that the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation gives. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be funded, and they would have to have funding another way.”

CSAF calculates individual parish goals based on the prior fiscal year’s parish plate and envelope collection, and whether it also supports a school.

To incentivize parish giving, the

CSAF returns a percentage of funds raised in a parish.

Beginning with the 2020 campaign, parishes that raise more than 100% of their goal will receive 50% of whatever they raise in addition. Meanwhile, parishes that collect more than they did during last year’s campaign will receive a “parish-sharing” amount with 25% of the difference between last year and this year’s totals.

“It’s just a small incentive to try to motivate parishes,” Beaudry said. “If they can’t hit their goal, they can at least do better than they did last year.”

In the past, parishes that hit their goal received 25% of their total funds raised. The change “was needed because we were giving $1.8 million in rebates, and really, what this should be about is the ministries,” Beaudry said. “So by changing to this new parish-sharing plan, this gives more money to the ministries, which is where this should go.”

The changes were modeled after best practices used by other U.S. archdioceses and dioceses, and they are expected to help both parishes and the CSAF hit their goals, Trochlil said.

Also new this year is an improved mobile and online giving option at givecsaf.org. Beaudry hopes that parishes will switch from using envelopes to inviting people to give via their phones during the annual in-pew ask.

“We’re hoping to down the road eliminate the in-pew giving envelope and just do everything electronically, because that’s the direction all annual funds are moving,” she said.

“Everything is more digital than it used to be, so that’s the way we need to go.”

The board would welcome seeing more new donors, even if they’re making smaller gifts, Beaudry said.

“We would love it if everybody (participated), even if they could give $10 — that would be great,” she said.

“We need to get that participation up across the board.”

About 30,900 people donated in 2019 — 3,000 fewer than in 2018.

Last year’s fundraising goal shortfall means that some of the ministries the CSAF supports didn’t receive the total funding the CSAF hoped to provide, Beaudry said. But, “we were still able to bring in quite a bit of money,” she said. “Catholics are still very generous in this archdiocese, and we need to get more people involved with the Catholic Services Appeal.”

Beaudry added: “As a Catholic community, it’s our duty to actually give and support these different ministries that can’t ... support themselves on their own.”

A ‘caress to those in need’

A

t our pre-synod Prayer and Listening events, we have consistently heard that the growth of our Church depends upon our ability to give a clearer witness to the difference that Jesus has made in our lives, especially by imitating his sacrificial love and concern for those in need. Each year, the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation (CSAF) gives us a powerful opportunity to ARCHBISHOP offer that witness by BERNARD HEBDA supporting the broader works of the Church undertaken in our archdiocese.

I am very grateful not only to the lay leaders of the CSAF who quietly contribute their time and talents to this important effort, but also to the faithful who respond with such generosity, in a way that enables our Church to provide what Pope Francis calls a “caress to those in need,” whether they be our brothers and sisters who are hospitalized, or in prison, or lacking housing and basic sustenance, or facing an unanticipated pregnancy. Through the annual appeal, we are able to provide outreach to college students, to strengthen our Catholic schools and to offer vital programs for evangelization and marriage enrichment at the archdiocesan level. It’s because of the CSAF that we are able to offer necessary leadership formation to the members of our Latino community, to sustain the important Native American ministry at Gichitwaa Kateri and to continue the work of those involved in ministry to the deaf and hearing impaired at Our Lady of Mount Carmel. It’s only through the efforts of the CSAF that we are able to support both the Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women and our seminarians preparing to serve as priests of the archdiocese.

In this year’s Catholic Services Appeal we have a remarkable opportunity to put our faith into action and make a Christcentered difference in our community.

Please join me in supporting this important effort.

16B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

CATHOLICSERVICESAPPEAL

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

Important appeal Caring for patients and their families in hospitals; helping make a Catholic school education available to all students; and serving youth in faith ministries.

These are just three of 20 ministries the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation supports with critical funding. Take a closer look with these stories by The Catholic Spirit’s Barb Umberger. Photos by the newspaper’s Dave Hrbacek.

— The Catholic Spirit Families wanting a Catholic school education for their children might think tuition costs are prohibitive.

“Many think it’s not possible,” said Michael Rogers, president of Risen Christ School in Minneapolis. Yet he has seen many families express surprise and gratitude when they learn that they can afford a Catholic school after all.

The Catholic Services Appeal Foundation supports thousands of Catholic school students across the archdiocese through funding and scholarships. Many students whose families otherwise could not afford tuition are able to attend a Catholic school.

“That and other funding helps us bridge the gap between the cost to educate a child and what a family can afford to pay,” Rogers said.

Formed in 1993 with the consolidation of five parish schools, Risen Christ offers all-day kindergarten through eighth grade. The school also is the only dual-immersion Catholic school in the state. This year, students in kindergarten through fifth grade are taking half of their instruction in English and half in Spanish.

Another grade will be added each of the next three years. Teaching teams in each grade include one English-speaking teacher and one Spanish-speaking teacher.

With dual immersion, math might be taught in English in the morning, but later in the day, children complete math worksheets in Spanish. Dual-language instruction provides many benefits, Rogers said, including better performance in both languages.

Besides core academic courses, Risen Christ offers music, physical education, computer and religion classes for all students. Middle school students participate in weekly character education sessions, building community, developing social and study skills and exploring possibilities for the future.

Just as Risen Christ offers dual-language immersion instruction, Catholic schools throughout the archdiocese offer other, specialized programming, said Melissa Uzelac, CSAF development manager.

“Together with a focus on the faith, it all contributes to a quality Catholic education,” she said. “The CSAF is proud to provide students across the archdiocese the opportunity to receive an excellent Catholic school education.”

RISEN CHRIST AMONG SCHOOLS BUOYED BY FUNDING

HOSPITAL CHAPLAINS MINISTER TO PATIENTS AND FAMILIES

St. Boniface in northeast Minneapolis is home to Father Biju Mathew, where he serves as parochial administrator. But he also has four “homes away from home” — hospitals where he serves in his other role as a chaplain: M Health Fairview’s Bethesda and St. Joseph’s hospitals in St. Paul, St. John’s in Maplewood and Woodwinds in Woodbury.

Father Mathew has regular hours at St. Joseph’s two days a week and is on call at all four hospitals.

He is one of several chaplains from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis who serve about a dozen hospitals in the archdiocese. Funds raised by the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation help pay the chaplains’ expenses as they serve patients and their families.

Father Mathew, for example, presides at Mass every Sunday afternoon at St. Joseph’s, which also is available as a broadcast in patients’ rooms. But his main role as chaplain is ministering in person to those in the hospital and their families, and sometimes to hospital staff.

Family members might need support in crisis situations or encouragement during a loved one’s recovery, said Father Mathew, who last year was funded through the CSAF but is now supported by a hospital grant. Some ask for a priest to be with them to pray when a family member’s death is near.

“Sometimes, just having a priest there, even without words,” he said, “is a comforting presence for the family.”

Patients might need emotional support or spiritual guidance when they are dealing with a serious illness. Others request sacraments. Father Mathew hears confessions, distributes Communion and anoints the sick, which he calls part of the healing ministry of Jesus.

“It brings so much comfort as I pray over patients and anoint them with the consecrated holy oil,” he said. “It helps them offer their pain and suffering to Jesus.”

Some patients cannot speak due to intubation or a medical condition. Others cannot move. “In that case, when I provide anointing of the sick, sometimes a tear comes to their eye,” he said.

God works through the medical skills of the doctors and nurses, he said, “and God works through us and our ministry.” Father Mathew also works with other members of the clergy and Eucharistic ministers in serving patients and family members. “You have the feeling that God is working through you, and you can be a comfort to people in the name of Jesus,” he said.

Seven years ago, Joaquin Martinez suggested to his 12-year-old daughter, Adriana, that she check out the youth group at the Church of St. Stephen in Minneapolis. Little did he know that he would be joining the youth group, too.

When he made the suggestion, her response, from which he sensed confusion, not sarcasm, was, “Dad, why don’t you go?” So he did. And Martinez has now served seven years as the youth director and three years as confirmation director.

The Catholic Services Appeal Foundation provides funding for services provided to youth ministers like Martinez through the archdiocese’s youth and young adult ministry, focusing on networking, resources and training. CSAF also supports the annual Archdiocesan Youth Day and national March for Life pilgrimage.

After Adriana’s first participation in Archdiocesan Youth Day, Martinez said she developed a profound relationship with God. “With tears in her eyes, she said, ‘Dad, thank you for bringing me down to this wonderful journey of life.’

She just needed to be shown the path.”

At last year’s Archdiocesan Youth Day, Adriana served as emcee for the women’s session, her father proudly recalled.

In addition to faith formation classes, programs offered for youth at St. Stephen’s include: uA “guitar group” where Martinez and another adult teach students the basics of playing the guitar; new guitar players are invited to play at Mass uA “skit group” called Performers for Christ; students have performed at confirmations and for the group’s core team. uA youth group that meets every Friday, often talking about faith.

Martinez also shepherds about 350 teens through retreats and programs that his group hosts each year.

The young people raise funds with food sales to help pay for lights, a sound system and the cost of renting the space.

The youth group helps teens keep up with their faith, and believe in a life with Christ, Martinez said.

HELPING YOUNG PEOPLE BELIEVE IN A LIFE WITH CHRIST

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 17B

FAITH+FINANCES

CUF committed to financial security, faith-filled charity

By Debbie Musser For The Catholic Spirit

SCHOOLS RAFFLE

I

n the midst of raising four children under the age of 8, working as a faith formation coordinator, obtaining her master’s degree and writing her second book, financial planning isn’t necessarily top-of-mind for Andrea Zachman.

“But Nathan and I really wanted to get things in order and understand our assets, life insurance and where all of our money is,” she said.

The couple, parishioners of St. Michael in St. Michael, worked with Joe Johnston, sales representative for Catholic United Financial.

“Joe put everything ‘financial’ about us on one beautiful sheet of paper, showing our assets and where our deficiencies were; I was really impressed,” Zachman said. “We placed life insurance on us and each child, and Joe connected us with an attorney to discuss our will and power of attorney. This gives us big peace of mind.”

The Zachmans were familiar with CUF because Nathan’s parents purchased life insurance for him when he was born.

“We wanted our children to receive the same benefit that Nathan did,” said Zachman, 37.

“Plus, we support CUF’s mission to help our school and parish,” she added.

“Our family is investing with them because they in turn are investing in our faith and the Catholic mission of being disciples of Christ.”

One of the largest financial life insurance companies in the upper Midwest and headquartered in Arden Hills, CUF serves more than 75,000 members in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Iowa.

Its total assets now exceed $1 billion, a major milestone.

“That’s a sign of having been a trusted HARALD BORRMANN partner for thousands of people” for more than 100 years, said Harald Borrmann, CUF president, CEO and board chair. “We don’t have shareholders. We are member-owned.

They believe in us and what we believe in.”

In 1878, Catholic German immigrant families in St. Paul banded together to

Since 2009, the Catholic Schools Raffle has raised more than $8 million for Catholic schools in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota.

As sole sponsor, Catholic United Financial covers all expenses including raffle tickets, promotional materials and prizes.

“Students at participating schools sell raffle tickets for $5 each, and 100 percent of the money is kept by the school,” said Tom Schisler, CUF director of sales who helped start the raffle.

“Last year, more than 89 schools raised $1.2 million.”

MYLES YORK | COURTESY CATHOLIC UNITED FINANCIAL

Volunteers help assemble personal care kits for people in need at a Catholic United Financial Gather4Good event Sept. 15 at Immaculate Conception in Columbia Heights. More than 175 volunteers assembled 2,000 kits, bringing the program’s 10-year total to 41,000 kits. form CUF, with assets of $635.73. The 485 charter members were concerned about men dying early in life and leaving their families with no means of financial support.

Over the years, CUF has gone by several names, including Catholic Aid Association from 1954-2010.

“We started with very simple life insurance and have expanded our offerings to term, whole life and universal life insurance, annuities, Medicare supplement health insurance and retirement products to meet the needs of Catholics and their families,” Borrmann said.

Beyond contributing to the financial well-being of its members, CUF’s profits are returned to local Catholic communities in the five states where it serves. This includes $18 million in grants for Catholic religious education programs since 1980, and more than $4 million in awards to over 8,000 members seeking college tuition or job training assistance.

“CUF has many ways of helping parishes and schools financially, including technology grants, funding for chastity education and co-sponsorship matching grants, so hundreds of dollars

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can be added to simple fundraisers like bingo and breakfasts,” said Father Stan Mader, pastor of St. Joseph in Waconia.

“Several of the schools I’ve been involved with have been part of the CUF Catholic Schools Raffle,” Father Mader said. “We always raised between $10,000 and $20,000, even for a very small school. I’m also working with CUF to have some representatives come out to be part of a workshop we are providing to young families on budgeting and saving.”

Another impactful CUF program is Gather4Good, where volunteers assemble personal care kits for food shelves, homelessness and abuse shelters. CUF coordinates the service project and funds the kits, which include personal messages of encouragement to the recipients.

“We also provide disaster assistance through Catholic United Response, showing up at disaster sites throughout the upper Midwest for relief and cleanup,” Borrmann said.

Borrmann is particularly proud of CUF’s Monsignor Richard J. Schuler Seminarian Fund, which helps seminarians with basic living expenses so they can concentrate on their studies and answer their call to the priesthood.

“Our school has found the raffle to be such a successful fundraiser,” said Jane Bona, principal at Immaculate Conception in Columbia Heights. “Because of the generosity of CUF, we’ve been able to invest in software programs encompassing math, social studies and language arts, as well as Spanish literature books, which support our teaching of Spanish.”

This year’s six-week ticket selling period runs through March 1, culminating in a March 12 drawing at CUF headquarters. Former Minnesota Viking Matt Birk is the emcee, and Kathryn Kueppers, Miss Minnesota and longtime CUF member, will draw the winning tickets.

CUF is giving away $40,000 in raffle prizes, including a 2020 Buick Encore and a $5,000 vacation package, as well as smart TVs, Apple watches and Amazon gift cards. “We also give each school a prize for their top seller and a pizza party for the classroom selling the most tickets,” Schisler said. ­— Debbie Musser “The fund is for things like an oil change for their car — the seminary doesn’t pay for that,” Borrmann said.

“It’s proven to be very heartwarming, and by the end of the year, that fund should be at $1 million.”

CUF sees a bright future. “We have members today whose families were among our founders in 1878, and members who discovered us a month ago at a volunteer event,” Borrmann said.

“People are searching for organizations like ours that are mission-driven. For financial services, we’re an awfully good option. Ours is a great business model, and a great way to give back to Catholic communities.“

FAITH+FINANCES

18B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

High school’s CFO honored

Where does your parish offering go?

By Debbie Musser The Catholic Spirit

By Joe Ruff The Catholic Spirit

F

inancial executives are an integral part of companies large and small. They also play a critical role in nonprofit organizations.

With a nod to her outstanding financial leadership and contributions to Benilde-St. Margaret’s School in St. Louis Park, Natalie Ramier, the high school’s chief financial officer, was named a 2019 CFO of the Year by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal in the nonprofit category.

In a program the publication began in 2007, nominees last year were assessed by a panel of financial executives who took into account their contributions to the company or organization and the community.

Ramier was recognized at a November luncheon and profiled in a special issue of the Business Journal.

“Natalie is creative, driven by the educational mission, intelligent, positive, strategic, results-oriented and willing to take on anything,” said Adam Ehrmantraut, BSM president.

“She is an absolute gem.”

A former auditor and finance director in the Minneapolis office of RSM McGladrey, Ramier joined BSM in 2011. “I felt a calling to work in the nonprofit field and was very excited to be joining a Catholic educational institution,” she said.

“My father was a high school math teacher and coach; he loved his job, and I wanted to experience that passion and ability to contribute to a community as he had,” she added.

At BSM, Ramier heads all areas relating to school finances, including budgeting, strategic projections, banking and investment.

She’s also responsible for technology, human resources and facilities.

With the help of donors, Ramier led a large-scale NATALIE RAMIER construction project at BSM last year and is in the midst of another.

“We were able to open three new science classrooms and an atrium space for our students that is filled with natural light,” Ramier said.

Another project in the works is a collaboration center, where students will work in an environment similar to today’s modern workplace.

Ramier also takes pride in developing BSM’s long-term, rolling six-year budget process and corresponding facilities plan. Outside of her financial role, she prays with a small group of senior girls once a week and mentors a student who was recently accepted into Stanford University.

“My daughter currently attends Benilde, and I love the car ride home each day,” Ramier said. “Hearing about her day brings home what a wonderful, Christ-centered education we are providing to our students.”

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eople donating in collection baskets at Masses across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis might like to know that 92 cents of every dollar given stays in the parish, or supports parish-driven initiatives.

Those gifts, which also include electronic and special year-end donations, help pay staff, provide Catholic education in the parish school or faith formation programs and support ministries that serve the community.

Donations keep the lights and heat on, maintain the church and other parish buildings, support music ministry and sharing the Gospel.

Parishes also support the archdiocese, although that expense is less than 10 cents on the dollar, said Tom Mertens, the archdiocese’s chief financial officer.

Out of every dollar given to a parish, 8 cents (9 cents if a parish doesn’t directly support a Catholic school) goes to the archdiocese, he said.

About 75 percent of archdiocesan revenue in fiscal year 2019 was from those parish assessments. About 25 percent came from contributions, fees and program revenues, including funding for some ministries from the Catholic Services Appeal Foundation, Mertens said.

Archdiocesan ministries are many and reach into every parish, such as support for Catholic education in parish school and faith formation programs, support and formation for priests and deacons in all aspects of ministry and pastoral care,

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Tom Mertens seminary formation, safe environment efforts, evangelization and catechesis, the ministries and work of Archbishop Bernard Hebda and Auxiliary Bishop Andrew Cozzens, Latino ministries, marriage and family life, and communications, he said.

With the archdiocese having fulfilled nearly all of its responsibilities in its bankruptcy settlement over clergy sexual abuse allegations, and its current cash reserves, all of the money that comes to the archdiocese is helping pay for its staff, programs and ministries, Mertens said.

“The money coming in today is supporting operations and not paying bankruptcy obligations,” he said.

The archdiocese agreed in the bankruptcy settlement to pay $1 million annually over five years into the Bankruptcy Trust for the benefit of more than 400 victim-survivors who filed abuse claims against the archdiocese. The first payment was made last October.

Payments remain through 2023.

Careful budeting also is required to help the archdiocese build up a reserve fund similar to what households are encouraged to keep against an emergency, a decline in revenue or unexpected expenses, he said.

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FAITH+FINANCES

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

GUEST COMMENTARY | MIKE RICCI

CCF is grounded in ethical investing

A recent Catholic News Service article (see below) summarizes the findings of a survey conducted by Boston-based Catholic Investment Services. In part, the article states that “87% of respondents would be more likely to donate to Catholic institutions if they knew the money would be invested in ways consistent with Church teaching and values.”

We, at the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota (CCF), echo these findings. And we know that many local parishes do, too. In fact, because of our commitment to faith-consistent investment practices, 135 of the 186 parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis have entrusted their financial assets to the faithful stewardship of CCF. For this reason, many

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 19B

local Catholics can feel confident that donations made to their parishes are ethically invested in accordance with their faith.

CCF has long worked to put into practice Christ’s words: Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. We also believe the reverse is true: Where your heart is, there your treasure should be. If your heart is with the Church and her teachings, then your investments should reflect that stance.

Because of that belief, CCF has implemented all three of the strategies outlined by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Socially Responsible Investment Guidelines: 1. Do No Harm, 2. Active Corporate Participation, and 3. Positive Strategies that Promote the Common Good.

Following the first strategy, Do No Harm, CCF has developed a screening process that has helped us to identify and avoid more than 100 U.S. and 300 foreign companies in our investment portfolio because of engagement in activities that are antithetical to Church teaching.

The second strategy, Active Corporate Participation, calls for shareholders to exercise their rights in advocating for just business practices. For this, CCF partners with a Catholic-based consulting group that

advises on $4.2 billion in assets to help shareholders practice corporate engagement. Monitoring corporate activity, voting proxies, meeting in person with executives and sending formal letter campaigns are all part of corporate engagement.

The third strategy, Positive Strategies that Promote the Common Good, is more commonly known as impact investing. CCF invests in several impact funds that seek a social return as well as a financial return. As an example, CCF invests in CommonBond Communities’ Housing Opportunity Fund, which helps secure affordable housing for working people in Minnesota and across the Midwest with low to moderate income who struggle to obtain housing.

In addition to supporting parishes, CCF serves Catholic individuals and families by facilitating their philanthropy. Endowments and donor advised funds are popular charitable giving vehicles, and CCF also invests these funds in a faith-consistent manner.

We are grateful to partner with Catholic institutions and individuals who want to align their treasure with their Catholic values. Together, we’re building a more vibrant Catholic community.

Ricci is the Catholic Community Foundation’s director of Professional Outreach and Investments.

Catholics more motivated to donate if ethical investing is assured

By Dennis Sadowski Catholic News Service Nearly nine in 10 Catholics surveyed said they want their donations to Church institutions to be ethically invested, and a majority of those responding voiced particular opposition to investments in companies that produce pornography, tobacco products and e-cigarettes, according to a new survey.

The survey for Boston-based Catholic Investment Services found that about 87% of respondents would be more likely to donate to Catholic institutions if they knew the money would be invested in ways consistent with

Church teaching and values.

In contrast, about 14% of respondents said ethical investing was not a consideration when donating to Catholic institutions.

The results parallel those of a CIS survey released in April. Peter Jeton, the firm’s outgoing CEO, said the new study sought to more specifically identify what investments motivate or deter Catholics to give to Church entities.

“Ethical investing can be a motivating factor in how much people give,” he told Catholic News Service. “And if I am the CFO (chief financial officer) of a diocese or if I’m the bishop of a diocese, then I should be explaining

very clearly and with frequency what the policy is regarding how people’s money is being invested.”

The survey involved 500 Catholic adults who answered a series of online questions Sept. 7-9, 2019. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points. It covered more than a dozen types of businesses — from manufacturers of medications used during an abortion to oil and natural gas mining — to which respondents voiced objections.

The survey also asked participants what investments Catholic institutions should be making. Among those cited by respondents were clean air and water (67%), workforce education/

job training (66%), education technology (65%), agriculture and food (65%), health care providers (62%), affordable housing (60%), recycling (57%), renewable energy (53%), land conservation (50%), fitness/nutrition (49%) and banking and financial services to low-income people and small businesses (46%).

Jeton suggested that institutional financial officers and bishops be fully transparent about their investment decisions. “The better the engagement, the better for the Church,” he said.

Editor’s note: This story in its entirety appeared Oct. 8, 2019, at TheCatholicSpirit.com.

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20B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

FOCUSONFAITH SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER TOULEE PETER LY

Christ calls us to a mutual relationship

In our readings for this Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, we are reminded what a great gift freedom is in our lives.

It is a gift received from our loving God. It allows us to choose one thing over another; and in the particular case with God, the freedom to choose to respond to God’s love — or not.

I believe most everyone will agree that you can’t force one person to love another person. No mutual love can come of that, only a forced relationship. A mutual relationship requires the freedom to be involved. One person needs to engage and continue to have interactions with another person, which should inevitably draw each into one another’s lives.

Through these exchanges, each person can begin to learn what the other person likes or dislikes; this strengthens the relationship because it helps each person know what is appropriate and what is not appropriate in that relationship. After a period of time with each other, the rules have now been set and each is able to interact freely, since each person now knows what the expectations are for the relationship to work out.

In the same way, our Lord desires to have a relationship with us.

He tells us this in many and varied ways: “You know that I know and love you, and I want you to know me so that you can love me

ASK FATHER MIKE | FATHER MICHAEL SCHMITZ

How do I get better at being generous?

Q. I find myself being less-than-generous quite

often. I want to have a better attitude, but people keep wanting things from me: They want my time, my help and my financial support. How do I get better at being generous?

A. This is a fantastic question. Many people want to be wise in their lives, but it is something special when a person is asking for a way to become even more than simply wise, they want to become good. Even more, in your question, I hear you asking how you can become more like Christ.

This is the best possible question because it is the entire point of being a Christian: becoming like Christ in all things. So, when it comes to “his stuff,” how did Jesus view his life? While Jesus is the Lord of all and is fully divine and equal to the Father, in his humanity he was absolutely insistent on affirming that he lived to do the Father’s will. How did he see “his life/stuff/mission”? It might be boiled down to the statement, “All things have been handed to me by my Father.” How did Jesus live generosity? It began with his fundamental attitude toward life.

If we want to become more generous, it doesn’t begin with action, it begins with vision. It has less to do with how we live in the world and more with how we look at the world. A person can behave generously (and that would be very good), but behavior has to have a deeper root, and this deeper root is one’s worldview.

There are essentially two ways of looking at one’s life: as an owner or as a steward. I can see all of my stuff, my time, my talents and my everything as “mine,” or I can see all of those things as what has been “entrusted” to me. They are either my possessions or they are someone else’s possessions that are merely on loan to me. The difference between these two worldviews cannot be underestimated.

If I look at my life as my life, there are two natural tendencies that I will likely embrace. First, I will quickly become insensitive and indifferent to all of the good in my life. After all, if all of this is “mine,” then I will rapidly take it all for granted. It is no longer a gift, it is what I am “owed.” Of course I have this body: it’s mine. Of course I have these gifts; they’re mine. Of course I have these accomplishments; they’re mine.

If that is how I see them, then I might be generous with them, but each time, I am generous with “my” stuff. I may give you some of “my” time, but that continually costs me something. There is a limit to generosity like this, and there is a limit to gratitude if my

in return. Will you respond to me and help build this relationship that I desire to have with you?”

That is the truth of the matter; the Lord continuously calls out to us and waits for us to respond to his invitation. And like any relationship that we have with another person, there are rules to this invitation, which he already has given to us.

What are those rules? Well, there are the Ten Commandments and all that the prophets taught, our traditions and last but not least, the lessons Jesus, who IS God, gave to us and reminds us, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill” (Mt 5:17).

My brothers and sisters in Christ, if we truly desire freedom in our lives, in our relationships with others and with ourselves, in its purest sense, we need to first remember who we are, children of God, and what we were made for, heaven. Once we know this, learning why we as Christians have so many “rules” and understanding them is important. They aren’t meant to oppress us, or bind us to some tyrant, but rather, free us so we can be fully alive with ourselves and each other.

When we choose not to do that, we not only hurt God, our Father, but we hurt each other. Jesus summarizes this later in the Gospel of Matthew by saying that the first and the greatest commandment is to love God with our whole being. The second commandment is like it, to love our neighbors as ourselves (cf: Mt 22:34-40). These rules help us to do this.

There is a price to pay for freedom: rules to live by, so that we in turn can be fully alive.

Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us!

Father Toulee Peter Ly is parochial administrator of Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Maplewood.

“

These are two of the consequences of seeing oneself as the owner: ingratitude in the face of giftedness and resentment over those gifts being taken away.

attitude is like this.

In addition, if my perspective is that my gifts, things and time are my own possessions, then what is my perspective when they are taken away? Every gift we have will be taken from us. Every bit of time will be taken from us ultimately. At some point, each one of us will get sick, suffer loss, run out of time and die. If I believe that I am the rightful owner of my life, then I will likely view that loss with resentment. I could potentially become overwhelmingly bitter at the prospect of losing all of my things.

These are two of the consequences of seeing oneself as the owner: ingratitude in the face of giftedness and resentment over those gifts being taken away.

But that is not the only option. And it is not the perspective of Jesus. We can acknowledge the deeper truth that we are not owners but stewards. We do not have possessions; we have been entrusted with gifts by the Father. They are his.

Remember the parable of the talents? Or the parable of the gold coins? After the master distributes the talents or coins to the servants, he leaves with the hope that the servants will do something with his gifts. In fact, when he returns, he asks, “What did you do with my money?” It is his money. They are his gifts. Every moment, every heartbeat, is his. Every breath and every talent you or I have belongs to him. We have been entrusted with his gifts so that we can do what he wants with those gifts.

This should lead us to incredible gratitude and generosity. At every moment, we could give thanks over every little thing that we know does not belong to us, but that he continues to entrust to us. Imagine waking up and giving God thanks for the gift of sight. Imagine not complaining about being sick, but being able to breathe and saying, “God, thank you so much that I am not sniffling today!” Rather than resenting the gift that has been taken away, imagine the freedom of being able to let go of the gift without hesitation and give God praise for the amount of time he shared it with us.

The way to be generous is to acknowledge that we are not the owners of anything in this world. We are stewards. And nothing we have been entrusted with actually belongs to us; it is his and each day we have been given multiple opportunities to use his gifts the way he wants.

Father Schmitz is director of youth and young adult ministry for the Diocese of Duluth and chaplain of the Newman Center at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Reach him at fathermikeschmitz@gmail.com.

DAILY Scriptures Sunday, February 16 Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Sir 15:15-20 1 Cor 2:6-10 Mt 5:17-37 Monday, February 17 Jas 1:1-11 Mk 8:11-13 Tuesday, February 18 Jas 1:12-18 Mk 8:14-21 Wednesday, February 19 Jas 1:19-27 Mk 8:22-26 Thursday, February 20 Jas 2:1-9 Mk 8:27-33 Friday, February 21 Jas 2:14-24, 26 Mk 8:34–9:1 Saturday, February 22 Chair of St. Peter, Apostle 1 Pt 5:1-4 Mt 16:13-19 Sunday, February 23 Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Lv 19:1-2, 17-18 1 Cor 3:16-23 Mt 5:38-48 Monday, February 24 Jas 3:13-18 Mk 9:14-29 Tuesday, February 25 Jas 4:1-10 Mk 9:30-37 Wednesday, February 26 Ash Wednesday Jl 2:12-18 2 Cor 5:20–6:2 Mt 6:1-6, 16-18 Thursday, February 27 Dt 30:15-20 Lk 9:22-25 Friday, February 28 Is 58:1-9a Mt 9:14-15 Saturday, February 29 Is 58:9b-14 Lk 5:27-32 Sunday, March 1 First Sunday of Lent Gn 2:7-9; 3:1-7 Rom 5:12-19 Mt 4:1-11

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 21B

COMMENTARY TWENTY SOMETHING | CHRISTINA CAPECCHI

What I learned on the wintry pond

The snow has begun. It is expected to last 18 hours, piling 9 inches high and crippling weekend plans. The streets are emptying, the collective dash to the grocery store completed.

But here in our cul-de-sac, the party is about to begin.

One of the dads will start shoveling, another will join in, and soon the pond will be packed. Kids will skate. Adults will hover around the fire pit. And our neighborhood will hum, knit together in a timeless winter scene.

By virtue of being a journalist in Minnesota, I’ve picked up the cold-weather beat. It’s a simple story that never gets old. Year after year, on the most frigid days, editors call from New York asking how people here are coping. How are the mail carriers? The homeless shelters? The commuters waiting at the bus stop? The babies shuttled off to day care?

I bundle up and head out, removing my mittens just long enough to scribble in my legal pad. I look for new angles: the priest who still celebrated morning Mass at the cathedral, the frozen holy water.

I cover the cold for parenting magazines, offering “25 winter activities for toddlers” and “5 mama-tested hats.” Reviews of outdoor gear (hand warmers, neck gaiters, Yaktrax, Gore-Tex) are interspersed with survival tips for weary parents (the easiest boots for preschoolers, mittens connected by a string).

There is, however, a winter story I’ve never before written, and it’s my favorite one: the tale of our neighborhood pond.

Most of the year, the small pond at the foot of our

TO HOME FROM ROME | JONATHAN LIEDL

Papal advice: Hail Marys and humor

Last month, the seminarians from Region 8 (Minnesota and the Dakotas) had the privilege of joining Archbishop Hebda, Bishop Cozzens and the region’s other bishops for the beginning of their meeting with Pope Francis in the Apostolic Palace. After greeting each of us individually, the Holy Father shared some spiritual guidance with the gathered seminarians.

“Keep your sense of humor, pray your rosary and stay close to the Madonna,” he told us, before giving us his blessing.

What I found interesting about the pope’s advice was its combination of two dimensions that are normally set apart: piety and levity. It can be easy to view serious religious devotion and a kind of untroubled lightheartedness as disconnected; or, to even view them as different, opposing ends of some spectrum that we need to “balance out.” Looked at this way, religious devotion and a sense of humor don’t work together, but one merely corrects the excesses of the other.

I think this misses the mark. Rather than viewing piety and levity as unconnected or in tension, it’s probably more fruitful to reflect on the unity between them, a unity we see especially in the lives of the saints.

For instance, it’s no coincidence that a saint as lighthearted as St. Phillip Neri — the patron of laughter, humor and joy — was known to levitate while celebrating the Mass. The same saint who could

cul-de-sac goes unnoticed. Rimmed by poplars and coated by algae, it is unremarkable, beyond our scope.

Turtles sunbathe on the edge. Mallards dive down the middle. We drive on by, distracted, to get the mail, to get home, to get on with the day.

But when the winter arrives and the temperature plunges, the pond freezes over, creating a communal gathering space. Tending to our hockey rink becomes a joint endeavor. Matt hooks up the lights, and Curt, in the closest house, covers the tab. John carries down his hose, spraying hot water to smooth the ice. We all take turns shoveling.

Hockey nets, benches and a fire pit emerge. It is shared property, with hockey sticks and shovels left on the snow, at the ready. Multiple toddlers have learned to skate in the same pair of size 6 skates. They climb snow mounds, making potions out of berries.

As the sun drops, it casts long purple shadows through barren branches. Some nights we turn on a movie projector and cook hot dogs. Once a sled turned into a platter for Cheetos, gobbled up by young skaters.

The pond smells like bonfire and sounds like Nick Drake’s song “Northern Sky,” and it feels good.

Together, we have learned to not just endure the winter but embrace it. We have discovered what happens when everyone comes out to pitch in, that the sum is greater than the parts.

Our rink operates only on the darkest, coldest days, when we most need community. We gather not in spite of the chill but because of it. The ice connects us.

There is a metaphor here for Christian fellowship.

God introduces us to others when we are in the greatest need. We bond in places we do not want to be: a long line at the DMV, a hospital waiting room, a support group.

Together we find a way to make do, to keep moving while others freeze. And we trust that winter has its purpose, that beneath the snow, God is doing big and mighty things.

Capecchi is a freelance writer from Inver Grove Heights.

spend days on end absorbed in prayer also had a sign on his door that said, “The House of Christian Mirth.”

While it’s true that some of Neri’s humorous antics, such as shaving half his beard off or intentionally mispronouncing words in homilies, were employed as ways to curb his pride, the fact that he could treat himself in such an unserious way speaks to an alreadypresent gratitude and deep trust in God. He had nothing to prove and was not weighed down by his own illusions and preconceptions, and could therefore hold himself gently in his pursuit of holiness.

Neri was known to have said, “The cheerful are much easier to guide in the spiritual life than the melancholy.” This isn’t a call to be “Pollyannas”— excessively cheerful and oblivious to the reality of sin in the world and our own lives. Rather, it’s a call to be deeply sorrowful for our sinfulness, but, therefore, even more joyful for the incredible, overwhelming and undeserved gift of God’s love and mercy.

As St. Phillip Neri and the saints show us, authentic piety and authentic levity can’t be opposed. If our purported lightheartedness is coupled with a lack of reverence and devotion, it’s probably better described as foolishness. And if our pious practices aren’t leading to a light-hearted humility, perhaps we’re not practicing real piety.

Piety and levity go hand in hand. When we are truly devoted to the Lord and recognize him as the ultimate source of our self-worth and value, we can’t help but feel a freedom and lightness of heart. And when we’re willing to stop taking ourselves so seriously, we’re most ready to turn to God in dependence and devotion.

The key isn’t a balancing act of two opposites, but an integration, becoming saints like St. Phillip Neri whose piety and levity blend together in the form of one overarching virtue: holiness.

Liedl is a seminarian in formation for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.

LETTERS Inconsistent views In the Jan. 30 issue a beautiful article “Trump tells March for Life crowd he welcomes their commitment” was strategically framed inside two ambiguous articles that undermine that piece. A shock wave went through me when, after having read that article, I read the articles on the same page, one quoting Blase Cardinal Cupich’s opinion on the five non-negotiables (abortion, human cloning, euthanasia, embryonic stem-cell research and same-sex marriage). Money, politics and cafeteria-style Catholicism screamed in my ear, as I read the cardinal’s quote, “That linkage subverts any attempt to fragment our Catholic social teaching, pretending to offer so-called non-negotiables, which ends up reducing our moral tradition to a single set of issues.” How are Catholics supposed to navigate our journey to heaven when our archdiocesan newspaper touts two so-called truths that state opposing views on the same page?

Aren’t all social justice concerns met under the five criteria that the USCCB devised as a guide for Catholics in the voting booth? It’s been my experience that those Catholics who work for and uphold the sanctity of human life and of marriage are those welcoming the stranger, feeding the hungry, burying the dead, visiting the prisoner, recycling and respecting the environment, and striving to uphold the true teachings of the Church.

Nancy Barrett Nativity of Our Lord, St. Paul

Get to know the ‘other’ (Re: ‘Lonsdale pastor apologizes for ‘words that were hurtful to Muslims,’ Jan. 29 at TheCatholicSpirit.com.)

The controversy over Father Nick VanDeBroeke’s homily, given on Migration Sunday and the Feast of the Epiphany no less, clearly denotes a need for further education and conversation on Church teaching regarding our immigrant brothers and sisters. We as Catholics all need to wrestle with how to open our hearts to whoever is the “other” in our midst and respond as Jesus would have. We do not need any more divisive rhetoric spewed into our lives. We as Catholics and members of a diverse and polarized society need messages from the pulpit encouraging us to encounter one another, to build bridges with one another and to not tolerate or succumb to fear rhetoric. I work at Ascension in north Minneapolis and have attended services at the mosque two blocks away. Let’s get to know the “other” and truly engage in building relationships if genuinely committed to following his example.

Anne Attea Ascension, Minneapolis

Helping others not ‘either/or’ In response to the writer who opposed granting asylum to migrants as well as allowing legal immigrants to reside in Minnesota (Letters, Jan. 30), I would point out that our Somali neighbors contribute with the taxes they pay, just as we U.S.-born Minnesotans do. When considering the impact of the immigrant population, there is a large net financial gain, not loss, by virtue of their contributions to our tax base and GNP. Having just returned from time spent in the border witness immersion program in McAllen, Texas, I can state that the situation for asylum seekers is much more grim under the Trump administration. At this time, no Central Americans are being allowed entry while awaiting their hearings. These are people fleeing the worst imaginable violence, risking their very lives to escape the danger in their countries. What parent would take this risk, unless desperation led them to it? I agree that we need to take care of our native-born homeless as well as homeless veterans, but it doesn’t have to be an either/or situation.

We have the resources. What we lack is the will — and the legislation that will provide a safe, legal way to address the plight of the migrants and asylum seekers.

Jesus taught us to welcome the alien, as my grandparents were welcomed when they fled the situation in Czechoslovakia two generations ago.

Karen Thimm St. Gerard Majella, Brooklyn Park

COMMENTARY

22B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

SIMPLE HOLINESS | KATE SOUCHERAY

Love and marriage in this day and age

Marriage is the union that defines our family relationships. The quality of marriage is built on the commitment each person makes to this union that has been created by the fondness, the camaraderie and the common vision the couple shares. As St. John Paul II states, “Marriage is an act of will that signifies and involves a mutual gift, which unites the spouses and binds them to their eventual souls, with whom they make up a sole family — a domestic church.”

Do we understand the meaning and the purpose of the home as “domestic church?” Do we even attend Mass at the building we call our brick and mortar church on a regular basis? And why should we give any importance to the destination of our soul when we are just trying to put one foot in front of the other every day? We often feel that we have so much to think about and worry about, and attempting to make our home a “domestic church” often doesn’t make the list. However, when we live like this, we must ask ourselves what values we are passing on to our children.

There is a wonderful saying I learned in college: “Values are caught, not taught.” We may not realize it, but our kids are learning our values through our actions. When we skip church on Sunday in favor of a basketball practice or a tournament game, we are sharing our values with them. When we are given the incorrect change at the gas station, in our favor, and we don’t correct the clerk, we are sharing our values.

When we blatantly gossip about a friend, a neighbor or a family member, we are sharing our values.

Our children are catching our values, even if we were to state, “Do as I say, don’t do as I do.” It doesn’t work that way. Our actions speak far louder than our words, especially to our children who are watching everything we do and gauging whether it aligns with the values we say we espouse. As the adults raising our children and providing the example of good role modeling, our words and actions must align, or we have no integrity.

In this month of February, often thought of as the month of love, do loving things as often as you can to

FAITH AT HOME | LAURA KELLY FANUCCI

Talking about God and grief with children

February is a tough month for our family, bringing the anniversaries of our twins’ deaths. Each year I find myself answering hard questions from our sons about their sisters.

Why did they die? Where are they now? Will I get to see them again?

As a parent who is theologically trained (and personally affected), I find it fascinating to reflect on children’s perspectives on grief and loss. Kids ask the same questions as adults, crystallized to their purest form. They are unashamed to express intense emotion — if given safe space.

In past generations, well-meaning professionals counseled parents to protect children from life’s losses.

Research now affirms that both adults and children benefit from talking openly about death and learning to cope with loss in healthy ways.

A child old enough to love is old enough to grieve.

“

Become a person who lives your faith every day, through the simple, small decisions you make.

iSTOCKPHOTO | JACOBLUND

convey your care and concern to your spouse, your children, your neighbors and coworkers, or even people who share the roadways with you. Become a person who lives your faith every day, through the simple, small decisions you make. For it is in these decisions that we demonstrate our holiness.

Holiness is not “out there,” separate from us. It is found in the simplest of actions we take each day to express our care and commitment to create a more loving world. If you are unsure what to do, stop and think about the most loving thing you could do in the situation. Would it be to give someone a hug, or say something encouraging, or simply to be present?

During February, spend time with your family and tell them you love them, and then show it through being present and attentive. Turn off the television, or whatever device you watch, and tune in during dinnertime. Say a prayer and talk to each other. Check in on the day each person has had and listen attentively. Make the dinner table a distraction-free, phone-free zone. Carefully make or buy a Valentine’s Day card for your spouse and tell them how much they mean to you and the depth of your love for them.

Spend time this month attentively learning their love

Studies have shown that even the youngest children can be affected by the disruptions that grief brings to a family.

Here are three questions I often hear children (and adults) ask while grieving. While I’m not a clinical counselor or a medical professional, I can speak to the theological realities behind these questions — and encourage you to draw from your own faith when children in your family are touched by grief. uWhy did God let this happen?

The problem of suffering surfaces as quickly for children as for adults. Did God want this to happen?

Why did God answer other prayers but not ours? How can we trust that God is still good?

Scripture speaks of God weeping with us (Jn 11:35), promising to destroy grief (Rv 21:4) and desiring life, not death (Ez 18:32). Sharing these stories with children can open up new ways of understanding God after loss.

Older kids and teenagers can tackle thornier discussions: the doctrine of free will, the nature of sin and the reality of evil. But for all who mourn, remembering that God remains with us in sadness and suffering is what we need to hear first and foremost when someone we love has died. uWill I die, too?

Children are quick to worry once faced with mortality. Will my mom and dad die now? If I get sick, am I going to die?

While we can assure kids that modern medicine is powerful, it’s equally true that healing is a mystery.

Some people recover, some die and none of us will be

ACTION CHALLENGE Purchase a card for your spouse that tells them how much you love them. Spend time learning their love language and intentionally love them in that way each day through February and perhaps through Lent.

language, and then love them in the way they want to be loved, not the way you want to be loved. Pull out your copy of Gary Chapman’s “The Five Love Languages” and attentively love your spouse each day in small, meaningful ways.

In doing so, you will create a “domestic church,” a dwelling dedicated to living simply each day, the simple holiness we have been called by our faith to embrace.

Soucheray is a licensed marriage and family therapist and a member of Guardian Angels in Oakdale. She holds a master’s degree in theology from The St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity in St. Paul and a doctorate in educational leadership from St. Mary’s University of Minnesota.

here on earth forever. Faith means embracing mystery and trusting in what we cannot fully understand. uAre they in heaven?

Reminding children of God’s particular love for them can bring comfort. God created them and knows them (Is 43:1). God counts each of their hairs (Mt 10:30). God calls them by name (Jn 10:3).

Young children are often preoccupied with physicality. Where did my friend go? Why can’t I see Grandpa anymore?

When we mourn at any age, it helps to remember what the Church teaches about salvation and resurrection. We pray that our beloved dead are in the hands of God. We hope to see them again in heaven.

We stay connected through the communion of saints, asking them to pray for us and believing they remain united with us in love beyond what we can see.

Grieving children (and adults) need reassurance and reminders of God’s love through life’s hard times. We don’t have to hide the truth or offer easy answers in order to share God’s comfort.

Sitting with kids’ questions, making space for their emotions and surrounding them with love reflects our faith in the God who welcomed children and wept with mourners — the God who knows grief.

Fanucci, a parishioner of St. Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove, is a mother, writer and director of a project on vocations at the Collegeville Institute in Collegeville. She is the author of several books, including “Everyday Sacrament: The Messy Grace of Parenting,” and blogs at motheringspirit.com.

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT • 23B

CALENDAR Senior Mardi Gras —Feb. 25: Noon at St. Richard, 7540 Penn Ave. S., Richfield. Entertainment by the Edina Singing Seniors. RSVP to 612-869-2426 by Feb. 18. strichards.com.

FEATURED EVENTS Prayer and Listening Events — Join Archbishop Bernard Hebda for prayer, discussion and sharing about the blessings and challenges in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis as it prepares for the 2020 Synod. Upcoming events:

“Dare to Live Catholic”: Women’s Retreat — Feb. 29: 8 a.m.–1 p.m. at Blessed Sacrament, 2119 Stillwater Ave., St. Paul. Speaker Pamela Patnode. Register at 651-7380677. blessedsacramentsp.org.

Parish events Mardi Gras Bingo — Feb. 22: 5 p.m. at Holy Family Maronite, 1960 Lexington Ave. S., Mendota Heights.

651-291-1116. holyfamilymaronitechurch.org.

Feb. 15: 9 a.m.–noon at Lumen Christi, 2055 Bohland Ave., St. Paul.

Feb. 18: 6–9 p.m. at St. Stephen, 525 Jackson St., Anoka.

St. Joseph’s Lenten Mission: “Alive in Prayer” — Feb. 23-24: 7–8:30 p.m. at St. Joseph, 1154 Seminole Ave., West St. Paul. Reflections offered by Father Stephen Borello. churchofstjoseph.org.

Feb. 27: 6–9 p.m. at Our Lady of Grace, 5071 Eden Ave., Edina.

Prayer/worship

Feb. 29: 9 a.m.–noon at St. Pius V, 410 Colvill St. W., Cannon Falls.

Father Ubald Rugirangoga Healing Mass — Feb. 13: 6–9 p.m. at St. John the Baptist, 215 Broadway St. N., Jordan. Tickets required. sjbjordan.org.

WINE: Catholic Women’s Conference — 6:30–9 p.m. Feb. 21 and 8 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Feb. 22 at Our Lady of Grace, 5071 Eden Ave., Edina. Women in the New Evangelization’s 6th annual WINE conference. Social hour, dinner, networking and fun Feb. 21; 8:30 a.m. Mass Feb. 22 celebrated by Archbishop Bernard Hebda, talks by Mary Healy and Carol Razza and the music of “His Own.” Confession, adoration, shopping, prayer teams, lunch, door prizes. wineconference.org.

Music

Retreats “Listening with the Ears of our Temperaments” — Feb. 13: 7–9 p.m. at St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road, Maplewood. benedictinecenter.org.

Married couples’ retreat — Feb. 14-16 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. franciscanretreats.net.

Women’s Day of Reflection — Feb. 15: 8 a.m.–2 p.m. at St. Alphonsus, 7025 Halifax Ave. N., Brooklyn Center.

Speaker Liz Kelly. jstalberger720@yahoo.com.stalsccw.

Cathedral Men’s Retreat — Feb. 15: 9–11:30 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. Led by Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson. Register at dchueller1949@outlook.com.

Eric Genuis at Open Window Theatre — Feb. 16: 6–9 p.m. at 5300 S. Robert Trail, No. 400, Inver Grove Heights. openwindowtheatre.org.

Thomasina Petrus concert for Black History Month — Feb. 16: 7–9 p.m. at St. Joan of Arc, 4537 Third Ave. S., Minneapolis. stjoantickets.com.

Dining Out

Married couples retreat — Feb. 28-Mar. 1 at Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 First Ave. S., Buffalo. kingshouse.com.

Women’s silent weekend retreat — Feb. 21-23 at Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 First Ave. S., Buffalo. kingshouse.com.

Women’s Weekend Retreat — Feb. 21-23 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 St. Francis Lane, Prior Lake. franciscanretreats.net.

Ignatian men’s silent retreat — Thursday-Sunday most weeks at Demontreville Jesuit Retreat House, 8243 Demontreville Trail N., Lake Elmo. demontrevilleretreat.com.

Conferences/workshops “What Benedict Says About Stability in Relationships” — Feb. 18: 9 a.m.–1 p.m. at St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road, Maplewood. benedictinecenter.org.

“What Muslims Can Teach Catholics about Christianity” — Feb. 18: 7–9 p.m. at University of St. Thomas, 2115 Summit Ave., St. Paul. Lecturer Rita George-Tvrtkovic. stthomas.edu.

“Long-term Success through Long-term Care” — Feb. 27: 6:30–7:30 p.m. at Mary, Mother of the Church, 3333 Cliff Road E., Burnsville. RSVP at cybartagencymail2@ kofc.org or 952-686-7720. twincitieskofc.org.

CALENDAR submissions DEADLINE: Noon Thursday, 14 days before the anticipated Thursday date of publication. We cannot guarantee a submitted event will appear in the calendar.

Priority is given to events occurring before the next issue date.

LISTINGS: Accepted are brief no­tices of upcoming events hosted by Catholic parishes and organizations. If the Catholic connection is not clear, please emphasize it in your submission. Included in our listings are local events submitted by public sources that could be of interest to the larger Catholic community.

ITEMS MUST INCLUDE the following to be considered for publication: uTime and date of event uFull street address of event uDescription of event uContact information in case of questions ONLINE: THECATHOLICSPIRIT.COM/ CALENDARSUBMISSIONS MAIL: “Calendar,” The Catholic Spirit 777 Forest St., St. Paul, MN 55106

“The Churches of Rome” — Feb. 27: 6–8 p.m. at Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church, 155 County Road 24, Wayzata. Speaker Greg Pulles, author of “Sacred Places: Rediscovering the Churches of Rome.” RSVP by Feb. 23 to kofc@hnoj.org. hnoj.org.

Alexi Sargeant: Speaker at Open Window Theatre — Feb. 29: 10:30 a.m. at 5300 S. Robert Trail, No. 400, Inver Grove Heights. Alexi Sargeant, game designer, to present on the value of fantasy in the Christian imagination. openwindowtheatre.org.

Schools

“The Encyclicals and Faithful Citizenship” — Feb. 29: 5:30 p.m. at St. Peter, 6730 Nicollet Ave. S., Richfield. First night in this speaker series to talk about Catholic teaching in relation to political promotion. stpetersrichfield.org.

STEM Carnival at Epiphany Catholic School — Feb. 27: 4:30–6:30 p.m. at 11001 Hanson Blvd., Coon Rapids. Bring your preschool to fifth-grade child. epiphanyschoolmn.org.

Speakers Life Legal MN — Feb. 15: 6–8:45 p.m. at Bloomington Knights of Columbus Event Center, 1114 American Blvd.

W., Bloomington. lifelegaldefensefoundation.org.

“Visions of the Afterlife” — Mar. 1: 4–6 p.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle, 2914 W. 44th St., Minneapolis.

Prayer, reflection, Lenten vespers, and a talk by Father Michael Joncas.

Other events

Theology on Tap —Feb. 19: 6:30 p.m. at Gabe’s By the Park, 991 Lexington Parkway N., St. Paul. cathedralsaintpaul.org.

Vespers at Lourdes — Feb. 13: 7:30–9 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes, 1 Lourdes Place, Minneapolis. Prayer and formation for young adults. vespersatlourdes.com.

Soup supper — Feb. 17: 4:30–7 p.m. at St. Wenceslaus, 215 Main St. E., New Prague. 952-758-3888.

Women’s Silent Lenten Midweek Retreat — Feb. 25-27 at Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 First Ave. S., Buffalo. kingshouse.com.

“Connecting Lent” — Feb. 23: 11:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. at St. Patrick, 3535 72nd St. E., Inver Grove Heights. Speaker David Rinaldi. RSVP to 651-455-6624 by Feb. 17. churchofstpatrick.com.

“The World Over” at Open Window Theatre — Feb. 13-Mar. 15 at 5300 S. Robert Trail, No. 400, Inver Grove Heights. openwindowtheatre.org.

KC Council No. 3659 pro-life breakfast — Feb. 23: 7:30 a.m.–noon at St. Augustine, 408 Third St. N., South St. Paul. Kip at 651-457-9276. kc3659.mnknights.org.

“Beyond Fear, Radical Hospitality, Everyday Prophets” — Feb. 27-Mar. 1 at St. Paul’s Monastery, 2675 Benet Road, Maplewood. benedictinecenter.org.

“Faith and Politics: Where is the Intersection?” — Feb. 24: 7–8:30 p.m. at Lumen Christi, 2055 Bohland Ave., St. Paul. Presenter Bernie Evans. lumenchristicc.org.

Benefit pancake breakfast — Feb. 16: 8 a.m.–1 p.m.

KC Hall, 1910 S. Greeley St., Stillwater. Proceeds to benefit March faith formation’s Habitat for Humanity mission trip. kc1632.mnknights.org.

“As Thyself” — Feb. 22: 1–4 p.m. at Guardian Angels, 8260 Fourth St. N., Oakdale. Self-care as spiritual practice.

Led by Cami Smalley. guardian-angels.org.

Wakota’s Gala — Feb. 22: 6–9 p.m. at the Double Tree Hotel, 7800 Normandale Blvd., Bloomington. Speaker Melissa Ohden, founder of the Abortion Survivors Network. guidingstarwakota.org.

Marketplace • Message Center Classified Ads

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VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY HOUSEHOLD MANAGER The Stillwater Catholic Worker Community is seeking an energetic and compassionate woman to manage and live at Our Lady Queen of Peace House, a home for women and their children in transition. Room and board included with this volunteer position.

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Looking for Catholic JOBS? careers.archspm.org

24B • THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

FEBRUARY 13, 2020

THELASTWORD

Changing hearts and minds

T

Totino-Grace students give and receive through service immersion trips

he Rio Grande River canal, near the Santa Fe Bridge, is where El Paso, Texas, meets Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. This is the site of an annual border Mass, bringing together those on both sides of the border to share in the Eucharist.

Grace Marchek, a senior at TotinoGrace High School in Fridley, was there at the river for the Mass this past November, along with 11 other students on a service immersion trip.

“We participated in the Mass by holding clothes worn by immigrants as they crossed the border, flags of the South American countries whose citizens have migrated to our country, and crosses for the children whose lives were lost in American detention centers,” Marchek said.

“It was difficult. I was rendered speechless seeing the Rio Grande up close, the river where hundreds of immigrants have lost their lives, trying to find a better life.”

The border Mass, hosted by the dioceses of El Paso, Ciudad Juarez and Las Cruces, New Mexico, also impacted Holly Hoey Germann, a theology teacher at Totino-Grace, one of two trip chaperones.

“After sharing It was difficult. the sign of peace with those near I was rendered me, I felt a jolt of speechless seeing shock when I realized I the Rio Grande couldn’t shake up close, the river hands or hug my brothers and where hundreds of sisters across the Rio Grande who immigrants have were also participating in lost their lives, the Mass,” trying to find a Germann said.

“Never have I better life. had such a profound Grace Marchek simultaneous feeling of community and segregation.”

Germann said these kinds of experiences offer students the opportunity to make theological concepts concrete.

“Although they have received sacraments and been through

“

By Debbie Musser • For The Catholic Spirit LEFT Students and chaperones gather for a group photo in El Paso, Texas, during a Totino-Grace High School immersion trip to the U.S.-Mexico border last November.

COURTESY ANDRES LOPEZ

BELOW Juniors Madelyn Edlund, left, and Jessica Schroeder of Totino-Grace carry clothes and shoes representing children who have tried to cross the Mexican border into the United States in search of hope and safety. With them in the opening procession of a Nov. 2 border Mass are theology teacher Holly Hoey Germann and school counselor Joe Morcomb.

COURTESY FERNIE CENICEROS | DIOCESE OF EL PASO

religious education, these trips change their hearts and minds,” she said. “Our faith moves beyond facts to a lived reality.”

For the past five years, TotinoGrace students have traveled to Texas for El Otro Lado, a five-day border immersion program hosted

by Cathedral High School in El Paso.

Schools come from throughout the U.S. to learn about life at the border, visiting Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, the Border Network for Human Rights and immigrant shelters.

The trip is part of Totino-Grace’s service immersion trip program.

Since its start in 1989, it has sent over 2,000 students on more than 100 trips. In addition to El Paso, 15 trips this school year include a week in New Orleans, learning about homelessness and poverty while restoring homes, and traveling to Washington, D.C., tutoring students to gain a better understanding of the country’s education gap.

Other Catholic high schools in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis also offer service immersion trips. They include Holy Family in Victoria, which offers spring break and summer trips to Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Ethiopia and Costa Rica as well as domestic locations. And students at DeLaSalle in Minneaplis serve throughout the school year

and summer in Chicago, Jamaica and the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

Totino-Grace’s program is “dedicated to living out our Catholic, Lasallian and School Sisters of Notre Dame values, striving to improve the quality of life within our local and global community by acting on the natural human instinct to help each other and live the Gospel,” said Traci Bennington, service immersion trip coordinator and a campus minister at TotinoGrace.

Interested Totino-Grace students, along with a parent or guardian, must attend an information night for its immersion program hosted each September.

“We usually have close to 250 families attend, and we select

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(Hablamos Español)

students based on their desires and goals, what year in school they are and their availability,” said Bennington, herself a trip participant as a Totino-Grace student.

“My trips were life-changing events, and for me, they made my faith tangible. They opened my eyes up to a world outside my own, and truly made me a better person.”

Avena Fromayan, a Totino-Grace senior, said she’ll forever remember a moment from her time in El Paso.

“Touching the border fence, which signifies the line between opportunity and lack of opportunity, was so profound that the effect will be everlasting,” she said.

“The ability to meet, eat and speak with each individual was a blessing, but hearing their stories and watching their pain was agonizing,” she continued. “The trip also provided an appreciation of the challenges the border patrol faces on a daily basis.”

Joe Morcomb, trip chaperone and a licensed school counselor at Totino-Grace, helped students process each day’s experiences with reflection, discussion and journaling.

“The highlight of every mission trip is watching students be challenged and grow in their maturity, compassion and faith,” Morcomb said. “I advocate for students to find a way to experience at least one trip in high school.”

“El Paso will definitely be one of my top high school experiences,” Marchek said. “I plan to return there this summer to volunteer and also seek out ways to help in Minnesota.”