The Catholic Spirit - May 8, 2025

– April 21, 2025

Poor and powerful pray for eternal repose of a pope ‘with an open heart’

By OSV News

Pope Francis was “a pope among the people, with an open heart toward everyone,” said Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, as he presided over the funeral of the pope, who died April 21 at the age of 88.

And the people — an estimated 200,000 of them — were present as 14 pallbearers carried Pope Francis’ casket into St. Peter’s Square and set it on a carpet in front of the altar for the funeral Mass April 26. His burial took place later the same day in Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major after being driven in a motorcade through the center of the city where he served as bishop from the day of his election to the papacy March 13, 2013.

Security around the Vatican was tight, not only because of the number of mourners expected but especially because of the presence of kings, queens, presidents — including U.S. President Donald Trump — and prime ministers from more than 80 countries and official representatives from scores of other nations. Also present were the residents of a Vatican palace Pope Francis had turned into a shelter for the homeless and the 12 Syrian refugees he brought to Rome with him from a refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos in 2016.

What follows is the English translation of the prepared text of the homily, which was delivered in Italian by Cardinal Re. The translation was provided by the Holy See Press Office and has been lightly edited for style:

In this majestic St. Peter’s Square, where Pope Francis celebrated the Eucharist so many times and presided over great gatherings over the past 12 years, we are gathered with sad hearts in prayer around his mortal remains. Yet, we are sustained by the certainty of faith, which assures us that human existence does not end in the tomb, but in the Father’s house, in a life of happiness that will know no end.

On behalf of the College of Cardinals, I cordially thank all of you for your presence. With deep emotion, I extend

respectful greetings and heartfelt thanks to the heads of state, heads of government and official delegations who have come from many countries to express their affection, veneration and esteem for our late Holy Father.

The outpouring of affection that we have witnessed in recent days following his passing from this earth into eternity tells us how much the profound pontificate of Pope Francis touched minds and hearts.

The final image we have of him, which will remain etched in our memory, is that of last Sunday, Easter Sunday, when Pope Francis, despite his serious health problems, wanted to give us his blessing from the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. He then came down to this square to greet the large crowd gathered for the Easter Mass while riding in the open-top Popemobile.

With our prayers, we now entrust the soul of our beloved pontiff to God, that he may grant him eternal happiness in the bright and glorious gaze of his immense love.

We are enlightened and guided by the passage of the Gospel, in which the very voice of Christ resounded, asking the first of the apostles: “Peter, do you love

me more than these?” Peter’s answer was prompt and sincere: “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you!” Jesus then entrusted him with the great mission: “Feed my sheep.”

This will be the constant task of Peter and his successors, a service of love in the footsteps of Christ, our Master and Lord, who “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10:45).

Despite his frailty and suffering toward the end, Pope Francis chose to follow this path of self-giving until the last day of his earthly life. He followed in the footsteps of his Lord, the Good Shepherd, who loved his sheep to the point of giving his life for them. And he did so with strength and serenity, close to his flock, the Church of God, mindful of the words of Jesus quoted by the Apostle Paul: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

When Cardinal Bergoglio was elected by the conclave on 13 March 2013 to succeed Pope Benedict XVI, he already had many years of experience in religious life in the Society of Jesus and, above all, was enriched by 21 years of pastoral ministry in the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires, first as auxiliary, then as

Turn to pages 8B and 9B for more on Pope Francis and for news on the May 7 conclave as the College of Cardinals gather to elect the next pope.

coadjutor and, above all, as archbishop.

The decision to take the name Francis immediately appeared to indicate the pastoral plan and style on which he wanted to base his pontificate, seeking inspiration from the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi.

He maintained his temperament and form of pastoral leadership, and through his resolute personality, immediately made his mark on the governance of the Church. He established direct contact with individuals and peoples, eager to be close to everyone, with a marked attention to those in difficulty, giving himself without measure, especially to the marginalized, the least among us. He was a pope among the people, with an open heart toward everyone. He was also a pope attentive to the signs of the times and what the Holy Spirit was awakening in the Church.

With his characteristic vocabulary and language, rich in images and metaphors, he always sought to shed light on the problems of our time with the wisdom of the Gospel. He did so by offering a response guided by the light of faith and encouraging us to live as Christians amid the challenges and contradictions in recent years, which he loved to describe as an “epochal change.”

He had great spontaneity and an informal way of addressing everyone, even those far from the Church.

Rich in human warmth and deeply sensitive to today’s challenges, Pope Francis truly shared the anxieties, sufferings and hopes of this time of globalization. He gave of himself by comforting and encouraging us with a message capable of reaching people’s hearts in a direct and immediate way.

His charisma of welcome and listening, combined with a manner

PLEASE

Global pastor: In word and deed, pope preached mercy, outreach

By Cindy Wooden Catholic News Service

Pope Francis, who died April 21 at the age of 88, energized millions of Catholics — and caused concern for some — as he transformed the image of the papacy into a pastoral ministry based on personal encounters and strong convictions about poverty, mission and dialogue. His gestures — from tenderly embracing the sick to repeatedly visiting prisoners — touched millions of hearts. But controversy raged over his denunciations of the excesses of unbridled capitalism, his warnings about the human contributions to climate change and his insistence on accompanying, not judging, gay people. With bronchitis and difficulty breathing, Pope Francis was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital Feb. 14. He was diagnosed with double pneumonia and a complex infection. He had returned to the Vatican March 23 to continue his

convalescence. Doctors said he died of cerebral stroke, coma and irreversible cardiovascular collapse.

Elected March 13, 2013, Pope Francis was the first pope in history to come from the Southern Hemisphere, the first non-European to be elected in almost 1,300 years and the first Jesuit to serve as successor to St. Peter.

In the first three years of his papacy, he published three major documents: “Evangelii Gaudium” (“The Joy of the Gospel”), a detailed vision of the program for his papacy and his vision for the Church — particularly the Church’s outreach and its response to challenges posed by secular culture; “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home,” on the environment; and “Amoris Laetitia” (“The Joy of Love”), his reflections on the discussions of the synods of bishops on the family in 2014 and 2015.

Holiness was the topic of his March 2018 apostolic exhortation, “Gaudete et Exsultate” (“Rejoice and Be Glad”)

in which he insisted being holy is not boring or impossible, and that it grows through small, daily gestures and acts of loving kindness. Following in the footsteps of his predecessors, Pope Francis was an untiring voice for peace, urging an end to armed conflict, supporting dialogue and encouraging reconciliation. The pope described Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as “madness” and called on the world’s bishops to join him in consecrating Ukraine and Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. When Hamas militants attacked communities in Israel, killing scores of people and taking more than 200 people hostage in late 2023, and Israel retaliated by attacking Gaza, Pope Francis made repeated appeals for the return of hostages, a ceasefire to deliver humanitarian aid and a real commitment to a negotiated peace. Promoting peace, solidarity and respect for the Earth, the pope insisted people needed to recognize each other as brothers and sisters and issued an

encyclical about that, “Fratelli Tutti, on Fraternity and Social Friendship.” He signed the text at the tomb of St. Francis of Assisi on the saint’s feast day, Oct. 4, 2020. Pope Francis pursued two ambitious projects: revitalizing the Church’s efforts at evangelization — constantly urging outreach rather than a preoccupation with internal Church affairs — and reforming the central administration of the Vatican, emphasizing its role of assisting bishops around the world rather than dictating policy to them.

His simple lifestyle, which included his decision not to live in the Apostolic Palace and his choice of riding around Rome in a small Fiat or Ford instead of a Mercedes sedan, sent a message of austerity to Vatican officials and clergy throughout the Church.

He said he did not like to travel, but he made 47 foreign trips, taking his message of Gospel joy to North and South America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

CNS | PABLO ESPARZA

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, dean of the College of Cardinals, prays before the casket of Pope Francis during the pope’s funeral in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican April 26.

Archbishop celebrates Mass at Cathedral of St. Paul for repose of the soul of Pope Francis

By Josh McGovern The Catholic Spirit

Learning of the April 21 death of Pope Francis, Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis celebrated a Mass for the repose of the soul of the pope at noon the same day at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.

Hundreds of people attended the Mass, even with short notice provided only that morning.

Helena Schmitt, 26, said she came in mourning. “It felt wrong to just be at home,” she said. “I wanted to be with other people.” Mario Zapata, 23, a member of the Cathedral parish, said he wanted to pray for the repose of the pope’s soul and “for the upcoming weeks and for the next selection of a pope.”

In his homily, Archbishop Hebda noted that the last recorded prayers by Pope Francis focused on Jesus’ victory over sin, and he hoped that Pope Francis might share in eternity with the Lord in heaven and hear the blessing, “Well done, my good and faithful servant.”

In many ways, the archbishop said, the theme of Pope Francis’ pontificate was “inviting us to come and experience the loving mercy of our God.”

Archbishop Hebda remarked that during the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy declared by Pope Francis from 2015 to 2016, the archdiocese celebrated with 24-hour confessionals. He also remembered Pope Francis preaching the joy of the Gospels.

While reading the pope’s first encyclical letter, “Evangelii Gaudium” (The Joy of the Gospel), Archbishop Hebda said he felt like one of the disciples on the road to Emmaus.

“My heart was burning within me,” the archbishop said. He appreciated that Pope Francis called Catholics to be simple in proclaiming the kerygma (the proclamation of salvation through Jesus Christ), “that we have a God who loves us and a God who saves, and who offers to us his mercy.”

After celebrating the Mass at noon, Archbishop Hebda held a news conference and noted several of the pope’s primary focuses in his 12-year papacy. “His message has been so important, I think, for all of us,” the archbishop told members of the news media gathered in the Cathedral. “His emphasis on inclusion of all kinds of people, his great love for the poor, his great love for the Earth, for the environment, and his desire to help us to listen better to one another, even when we have differing opinions. I think that’s been very significant for this archdiocese, but for the Church around the

world as well.”

The archbishop invited prayers for the pope and for the Church “that she be given another such fine leader. It’s interesting, just in my life with the popes that we’ve had, you see how each pope brings a different gift to that work of being the successor of Peter. Pope Francis, I think, especially in his love for the poor and those on the margins, has been so significant for us. I think he’s left a lasting imprint on us that I hope we’ll be able to honor in the days to come.”

Earlier in the morning, Archbishop Hebda celebrated a Mass for staff at the Archdiocesan Catholic Center (ACC), also in St. Paul.

“How beautiful that we have the sign of the risen Christ in a risen life,” Archbishop Hebda said during the ACC Mass. “I think that has to motivate us in our lives. It’s certainly what motivated Pope Francis in his life. ... As the headlines from the Vatican read this morning, ‘Pope Francis is called home.’ That’s the same for all of us. We trust in heaven, that is our home. That is the source of our hope.”

The archbishop noted at both Masses that he wore a pallium, a liturgical vestment worn by metropolitan archbishops. It is a white wool band with crosses that symbolizes unity with the Holy Father and Christ.

Archbishop Hebda received his pallium from Pope

Francis while in Rome on the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul after he was named archbishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. “It was a beautiful celebration in St. Peter’s (Basilica) and Pope Francis handed me the box with the pallium in it as a reminder that I’m supposed to keep this province always in communion with him and with Peter,” Archbishop Hebda said at the ACC Mass. “It’s a visible reminder of that connection that we had with the Church through Pope Francis. I’m very proud to wear that today.”

Receiving the pallium was one of many encounters Archbishop Hebda had with Pope Francis. During the Mass at the Cathedral, Archbishop Hebda recalled the difficulties the Twin Cities faced after the death of George Floyd in 2020. “Pope Francis mentioned that he was united with us in prayer,” Archbishop Hebda said. “In particular, he mentioned the Church of St. Paul and Minneapolis to all of the world, saying he was united with us in prayer because he knew of the suffering that was there.”

The noon Mass at the Cathedral was the first of nine Masses that were offered in the archdiocese during the traditional nine days of mourning and prayer for the repose of the soul of the pope. At the Vatican, those nine days began April 26.

‘The people’s pope:’ Bishops Kenney, Izen, Pates reflect on Pope Francis’ legacy

By Joe Ruff

The Catholic Spirit

“Pope Francis was the ‘people’s pope,’” Bishop Kevin Kenney reflected recently as people around the world mourned the loss of the pope, who died April 21 at age 88. “Pope Francis had a great love for Jesus, and he exemplified that love by how he interacted with people.”

Bishop Kenney remembered receiving the telephone call last June from Cardinal Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to the United States, informing him that Pope Francis had appointed him as the next auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. Bishop Kenney said he was humbled, but he also hesitated because he didn’t want to leave his parish and sit in an office the rest of his ministry. Cardinal Pierre responded that “Pope Francis wants his bishops to be out amongst the people,” Bishop Kenney said. “This sums up who Pope Francis was to me.”

From apostolic exhortations and encyclicals, the “Joy of the Gospel,” “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home,” “All Brothers,” “Light of Faith,” and “Joy of Love,” the pope “leaves us

a gift of his wisdom and care,” Bishop Kenney said. “Pope Francis’ care for the Gospel message, the human person, love for our neighbor, fraternity and the Earth lead us deeper into Church teachings and the Gospel message.”

Bishop Michael Izen was appointed by Pope Francis as an auxiliary bishop for the archdiocese in 2023. Bishop

Emeritus Richard Pates once served as an auxiliary bishop in the archdiocese, retired as bishop in Des Moines, Iowa, in 2019 and since then has called his native Twin Cities home. Both bishops, along with Bishop Kenney, reflected in separate emails on the late pope’s impact on the Church and the world.

Pope

“I think Pope Francis will be remembered for his humility, mercy and joy,” Bishop Izen said. “Twelve years ago, when Francis first became pope, he chose simpler living arrangements and simpler transportation.” Bishop Izen said he gave a homily shortly before Pope Francis died that emphasized the pope’s words on mercy by saying to the congregation, “The Lord never tires of forgiving us.”

The pope’s joyful approach to life can be seen in his first encyclical, “The Joy of the Gospel,” Bishop Izen said.

“Another word I’ve heard to describe

him ... is pastor,” Bishop Izen said. “Evidently, the pope didn’t see himself as a great administrator, but he was a great pastor. He was with the people.”

Bishop Pates said he had two opportunities to personally greet the Holy Father, including after a general audience in Rome when the bishop described to Pope Francis a four-day priest’s convocation held in Des Moines to study environmental concerns in response to the pope’s encyclical “Laudato Si’.”

The pope “spontaneously lit up and with vigorous voice said, ‘Avanti,

avanti’ (go for it! go for it!),” Bishop Pates said. “He then traced a cross on my forehead accompanied by a wide smile and steady contact with my eyes. When I returned to the diocese, I did so with renewed conviction and not only strongly encouraged our priests but also developed a strong commitment to ‘Laudato Si’’ and spoke of it frequently at appropriate opportunities.”

The second time, also a moment that Bishop Pates said demonstrated the pope’s moral leadership, occurred when the bishop was chairman of the International Justice and Peace Committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Bishop Pates and others met with several ayatollahs of the Shi’a Muslim tradition in Qom, Iran, and later in Rome to discuss the issue of nuclear weapons and the morality of their use in warfare.

Bishop Pates introduced the religious leaders to Pope Francis in Rome. “He warmly welcomed and embraced them, creating enormous goodwill,” Bishop Pates said. “He went out of his way to take hold of my hand and with halting English again looking straight into my eyes, he said, ‘Thank you. What you are doing is very important.’”

PHOTOS BY DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

ABOVE LEFT Archbishop Bernard Hebda delivers the homily at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul during Mass for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis. ABOVE RIGHT With a picture of Pope Francis in the sanctuary, Archbishop Hebda celebrates the Mass.

COURTESY BISHOP RICHARD PATES

Francis greets Bishop Richard Pates after a general audience in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Sept. 28, 2016.

PAGETWO

WINNERS Bishop Michael Izen, center, stands with finalists from Holy Catholic High School in Victoria during the second annual Archdiocesan Catholic School Visual Arts Exhibition May 2 at Hoedeman Gallery of Sacred Art at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul. From left are freshman Bennett van Blyenburgh, sophomore Lydia Katz, freshman Thea-Amor Lopez and sophomore Alaina Bollig. Lopez took second place and Katz placed third in the ninth- and 10th-grade category. Winning Best of Show for the second consecutive year was AnnMarie Vance, a senior at St. Agnes School in St. Paul. Bishop Izen presented the awards to all winners and Father James Peterson, the pastor of St. Odilia in Shoreview, was the event’s emcee. Students created art expressing this year’s theme: The Saints.

SCHOOL CHOICE Andrea Urzua, a graduate of Shakopee Area Catholic School in Shakopee and former Aim Higher Foundation scholarship recipient, addresses those gathered for a news conference at St. Charles Borromeo School in St. Anthony April 21 on school choice legislation. The Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) and the Washington, D.C.-based Invest in Education sponsored the news conference. Bills being considered by the Legislature include HF19 and its companion SF244, which would establish an Education Savings Account (ESA) program in Minnesota that allows eligible students from low-income households to receive state funding for educational expenses. MCC and Invest in Education Foundation also support federal legislation that would provide tax credits for individuals and businesses to contribute to nonprofit organizations that offer scholarships to K-12 students.

COURTESY ARCHDIOCESAN OFFICE FOR THE MISSION OF CATHOLIC EDUCATION

Practicing CATHOLIC

Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the May 2

“Practicing Catholic” radio show featured a discussion with Bishop Kevin Kenney about hope during Easter. It also featured an interview with Tom Schulzetenberg, the director of strategic projects at St. Mary’s University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, and his wife, JoAnn, the head of school at the Way of the Shepherd in Blaine. The Schulzetenbergs shared what it was like to live in Rome during the first four years of Pope Francis’ papacy. The program also included a talk with Sheila McCallum, a Little Falls artist, about how faith and art intersect. Listen to interviews after they have aired at archspm org/faith-anddiscipleship/practicing-catholic or choose a streaming platform at Spotify for Podcasters.

The Catholic Spirit is published semi-monthly for The Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis Vol. 30 — No. 9

MOST REVEREND BERNARD A. HEBDA, Publisher

TOM HALDEN, Associate Publisher

JOE RUFF, Editor-in-Chief

REBECCA OMASTIAK, News Editor

NEWS notes

Four men in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis will be ordained transitional deacons at a 10 a.m. Mass May 10 at the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis. They are: Charles DeReuil II of St. Joseph in West St. Paul, Dominic Miller of Sts. Joachim and Anne in Shakopee, Peter Romens of St. Paul in Ham Lake and Sebastian Spencer of St. Charles Borromeo in St. Anthony. A fifth seminarian, Steven Lang of St. Michael in Stillwater, is studying in Rome and will be ordained a transitional deacon there in October.

The Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) co-sponsored a rally and advocacy day at the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul May 7 urging lawmakers to prevent nonpublic school student aid cuts in the state budget. Minndependent, an Edina-based nonprofit that focuses on private and independent schools, also sponsored the effort to invite school staff, students, families and concerned members of the public to the rally and to meet with legislators to discuss the issue. Eliminating the funds would cut roughly $100 million in aid over the biennium, including funding for services such as transportation, nursing and standardized testing. The MCC asked those who were unable to attend the events May 7 to use the MCC action alert webpage at mncatholic org/action_23393 or the Minndependent action alert online at minndependent org/advocacy to reach out to legislators.

The University of St. Thomas Theology Department, its Racial Justice Initiative and its Initiative on Restorative Justice and Healing held several events April 28 through May 3 commemorating the fifth anniversary of the May 25, 2020, police-involved killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Panel discussions and talks on the university’s St. Paul campus explored the impact that Floyd’s death had on people and communities, as well as creative ways to help create a more just world. A community cleanup day was held May 3 at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis, the site of Floyd’s death.

Parishioners of Pax Christi in Eden Prairie took on a Lenten project this year, raising more than $50,000 to fund six wells in Africa through Florida-based Cross Catholic Outreach and its Water for Life campaign. Father William Murtaugh, pastor, brought the idea to a lay leadership community council meeting at the parish in December. In January, the council approved a Lenten project centered on clean water access. By Ash Wednesday, parishioners were ready to donate. Total donations counted after Palm Sunday were enough to fund six wells and a partial well at $8,200 each.

The Archdiocesan Prayer for Vocations — written by Archbishop William Brady while he served as archbishop of St. Paul from 1956 to 1961 — has been slightly revised to include permanent deacons and consecrated men and women. Nicole Bettini, delegate for consecrated life in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, said Archbishop Bernard Hebda recently revised the prayer to include the breadth of consecrated vocations, which includes religious sisters and brothers, consecrated virgins and members of secular institutes. She added that it is Archbishop Hebda’s desire that the prayer is prayed in parishes, at the conclusion of confirmations and in homes. Bettini pointed out the change in a recent note to consecrated women and men as the Church prepares for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations on May 11, Good Shepherd Sunday. The revised prayer: “O God, we earnestly ask You to bless this archdiocese with many priests, deacons, and consecrated women and men, who will love You with their whole strength and gladly spend their entire lives to serve your Church and to make You known and loved. Bless our families; bless our children. Choose from our homes those needed for your work. Mary, Mother of the Church, pray for us and pray for our clergy and all those in consecrated life. Obtain for us many more.”

in REMEMBRANCE

Deacon Dols served at 5 parishes

By Josh McGovern The Catholic Spirit

Deacon Bernard “Bernie” Dols, ordained in 1987, died April 25 at the age of 90. The Marine Corps veteran taught drafting and building construction estimating for 30 years at Dunwoody Institute (now Dunwoody College of Technology) in Minneapolis. He was also a clown for the Aqua Jesters Clown Club, entertaining people in Aquatennial parades and children’s hospitals. He began his ministry at Our Lady of Victory in Minneapolis, where he served from 1987 until 1992. From there, he ministered at St. Joseph the Worker in Maple Grove (1992-

1993), St. Vincent de Paul in Osseo (1993-1997), St. Timothy in Blaine (1997- 2001) and St. Gerard Majella in Brooklyn Park (2001-2005). He retired from active ministry in 2005.

He is survived by his three children, three grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his wife, Beverly.

A funeral Mass was held May 2 at St. Gerald Majella.

ART

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

DEACON BERNARD “BERNIE” DOLS

FROMTHEARCHBISHOP

ONLY JESUS | ARCHBISHOP BERNARD HEBDA

Mourning Pope Francis, prayers for cardinal electors

Cultures often pass on their wisdom by means of proverbs. In the 18 years that I lived in Rome, I struggled to make sense of some of the more colorful Italian sayings. Given the strength of the Catholic Church in Italian life over the centuries, it shouldn’t be surprising that many of those sayings involved ecclesiastical references. For example, a Roman who wants to say that something happens very rarely, might indicate that it happens only “ogni morto del papa” (every time a pope dies). Whether that’s better than “once in a blue moon” I’ll leave to you.

A Roman, on the other hand, who wants to emphasize that no one is irreplaceable, might, without intending any disrespect, remind us that “morto un papa, si fa un’altro” (when one pope passes another is made).

I’m confident that another amazing pope will indeed “be made,” but I am sure glad that we have had a chance in these past weeks to mourn the passing of Pope Francis. With the passing of Pope Francis, so many communicated to me their sadness. I was overwhelmed by the number who came to the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul for an impromptu noon Mass on the day of the pope’s passing, and I was delighted

Luto por el Papa

Francisco, oraciones por los cardenales electores

Las culturas suelen transmitir su sabiduría mediante proverbios. Durante los 18 años que viví en Roma, me costó comprender algunos de los dichos italianos más pintorescos. Dada la fuerza de la Iglesia católica en la vida italiana a lo largo de los siglos, no debería sorprender que muchos de esos dichos incluyeran referencias eclesiásticas. Por ejemplo, un romano que quiera decir que algo ocurre muy raramente, podría indicar que solo ocurre “ogni morto del papa” (cada vez que muere un papa). Si eso es mejor que “una vez cada tanto”, lo dejo a su criterio.

Un romano, por otra parte, que quisiera subrayar que nadie es irreemplazable, podría, sin ánimo de faltarle el respeto, recordarnos que ““morto un papa, si fa un’altro” (cuando un Papa pasa, se hace otro).

Confío en que “nacerá” otro papa extraordinario, pero me alegra mucho que hayamos tenido la oportunidad en estas últimas semanas de lamentar el fallecimiento del papa Francisco. Con su fallecimiento, muchos me expresaron su tristeza. Me conmovió la cantidad de personas que acudieron a la Catedral para una misa improvisada al mediodía el día del fallecimiento del Papa, y me encantaron las historias que compartieron.

El Papa Francisco claramente conmovió a muchos habitantes de Minnesota,

by the stories that they shared.

Pope Francis clearly touched the hearts of many Minnesotans, even nonCatholics. I was grateful, for example, to receive a letter of condolence from the Jewish Community Relations Council that spoke of Pope Francis as a “resolute global force for good and a champion of dignity for all.” The Islamic Center of Minnesota likewise mentioned the late Holy Father’s “commitment to concepts of peace, justice, and compassion for marginalized communities throughout the world” and noted that he served as “a reminder of our collective moral obligation to serve the poor and those in need.” A number of the Lutherans who participated with me in the “Together in Hope” pilgrimage in 2018 sent photographs of our encounter with Pope Francis, obviously cherishing that moment.

Pope Francis, the first pope from the Americas and from the Southern Hemisphere, was an amazing man who will surely be missed. I’ll always be particularly grateful for his exceptional kindness to the young adults from our archdiocese who accompanied the bishops from our region on our last ad limina visit. I’ll always be indebted, moreover, for the time that he gave to me and the organizers of our Archdiocesan Synod when we traveled to Rome on a pilgrimage of thanksgiving. While the Holy Father’s

incluso a los no católicos. Por ejemplo, agradecí recibir una carta de condolencias del Consejo de Relaciones con la Comunidad Judía, que describía al Papa Francisco como una “fuerza global decidida por el bien y un defensor de la dignidad para todos”. El Centro Islámico de Minnesota también mencionó el “compromiso del difunto Santo Padre con los conceptos de paz, justicia y compasión por las comunidades marginadas de todo el mundo” y señaló que servía como “un recordatorio de nuestra obligación moral colectiva de servir a los pobres y necesitados”. Varios luteranos que participaron conmigo en la peregrinación “Juntos en la Esperanza” en 2018 enviaron fotografías de nuestro encuentro con el Papa Francisco, recordando con cariño ese momento.

El Papa Francisco, el primer Papa de las Americas y del hemisferio sur, fue un hombre extraordinario que sin duda extrañaremos. Siempre estaré particularmente agradecido por su excepcional amabilidad con los jóvenes adultos de nuestra arquidiócesis que acompañaron a los obispos de nuestra región en nuestra última visita ad limina. Además, siempre estaré en deuda con él por el tiempo que nos dedicó a mí y a los organizadores de nuestro Sínodo Arquidiocesano cuando viajamos a Roma en una peregrinación de acción de gracias. Si bien el personal del Santo Padre era consciente, con razón, de las exigencias de su agenda, el sin duda dio la impresión de querer pasar más tiempo con nosotros. Si cabía alguna duda del cariño especial del Santo Padre por nuestra arquidiócesis, no olvidemos sus oraciones por nosotros

staff was rightfully mindful of the demands on his calendar, he certainly gave the impression of wanting to spend more time with us.

If there was any doubt that the Holy Father had special affection for our archdiocese, let’s not forget his prayers for us at his first General Audience in June 2020 when he spoke about being joined with the “Church in St. Paul and Minneapolis” as our community reeled from the death of George Floyd. While he spoke often about the call to accompany those in need, he modeled it for us on that day, accompanying us in our grief and distress.

It’s significant in this Jubilee Year that Pope Francis had called us to be “pilgrims of hope.” It is with true Christian hope that we can be confident that the conclave will provide us with the leadership that our Church needs to address the challenges of 2025 and beyond. While no one knows for certain who will be elected as successor to Peter (an Italian proverb indicates that “the one who enters the conclave as pope exits as a cardinal”), we need not be anxious or fearful. As I have stated before on these pages, we have a God who has a plan.

Please join me in praying for the cardinal electors who will be assuming the huge responsibility of electing the next head of the universal Church. May they be selfless, and true instruments of

en su primera Audiencia General en junio de 2020, cuando habló de su unión con la Iglesia de San Pablo y Minneapolis mientras nuestra comunidad se recuperaba de la muerte de George Floyd. Si bien habló a menudo del llamado a acompañar a los necesitados, ese día nos lo demostró, acompañándonos en nuestro dolor y angustia.

Es significativo que en este Año Jubilar el Papa Francisco nos haya llamado a ser “peregrinos de la esperanza”. Con verdadera esperanza cristiana, podemos confiar en que el cónclave nos brindará el liderazgo que nuestra Iglesia necesita para afrontar los desafíos de 2025 y más allá. Si bien nadie sabe con certeza quién será elegido sucesor de Pedro (un proverbio italiano indica que “quien entra al cónclave como papa sale como cardenal”), no debemos sentirnos ansiosos ni temerosos. Como ya he dicho en estas páginas, tenemos un Dios que tiene un plan.

Les pido que se unan a mí en oración por los cardenales electores que asumirán la enorme responsabilidad de elegir al próximo líder de la Iglesia universal. Que sean altruistas y verdaderos instrumentos del Espíritu Santo en esta importante labor.

ARCHDIOCESAN SYNOD 2025

the Holy Spirit in this important work. Please join me as well in praying for whomever is going to be elected. The Roman Missal provides a prayer in the “Mass for the Election of the Pope” that could help us to articulate our desires at this time:

“O God, eternal shepherd, who govern your flock with unfailing care, grant in your boundless fatherly love a pastor for your Church who will please you by his holiness and to us show watchful care.”

I was blessed to be in St. Peter’s Square on the day that Pope Benedict XVI was elected and the experience will be forever etched in my memory. While I had always admired Cardinal Ratzinger for his intellect and kindness, I came to see a new vigor and holiness in him after his election and attributed that to the prayers of the faithful and the work of the Holy Spirit. With that in mind, let us already begin to lift up our new Holy Father in prayer, asking Mary, Mother of the Church, to wrap her mantle of charity and protection around him. May all that he will accomplish be for the glory of God.

OFFICIALS

Please turn to page 18B for the latest clergy assignments.

Por favor, únanse a mí también para orar por quien sea elegido. El Misal Romano ofrece una oración en la “Misa para la Elección del Papa” que podría ayudarnos a expresar nuestros deseos en este momento:

Oh Dios, Pastor eterno, que gobiernas tu rebaño con inagotable cuidado, concede, en tu infinito amor paternal, un pastor para tu Iglesia que te agrade por su santidad y nos muestre su cuidado solícito.

Tuve la suerte de estar en la Plaza de San Pedro el día de la elección del Papa Benedicto XVI, y la experiencia quedará grabada para siempre en mi memoria. Si bien siempre admiré al Cardenal Ratzinger por su intelecto y bondad, tras su elección percibí un renovado vigor y santidad en él, y lo atribuí a las oraciones de los fieles y a la obra del Espíritu Santo. Con esto en mente, comencemos ya a elevar nuestra oración a nuestro nuevo Santo Padre, pidiendo a María, Madre de la Iglesia, que lo cubra con su manto de caridad y protección. Que todo lo que logre sea para gloria de Dios.

12 propositions to be discussed at Synod 2025

After reviewing the 12 top vote-getting propositions from Archdiocesan Synod 2022 via a series of videos sent at the beginning of Lent, Archdiocesan Synod 2025 members will pray together, discuss in small-group and large-group formats, and then vote on the propositions for the coming years of implementation. Synod 2022 propositions already being implemented (small groups, the Mass and parents as primary educators of the faith) will continue to be discussed. View the propositions at archspm org/synodpropositions

Archdiocesan Synod 2025: Seeking the Holy Spirit’s guidance, inspiration

By Joe Ruff

The Catholic Spirit

Nearly 500 people across the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis are preparing for a June 7 Be My Witnesses Assembly in St. Paul to help Archbishop Bernard Hebda determine pastoral priorities for the coming years.

They are viewing 13 videos detailing 12 propositions and attending one of four, three-hour morning or evening retreats that include opportunities for confession and Mass with the archbishop. They also are taking advantage of four optional, online gatherings to further discuss the propositions, and participating in service projects such as serving meals to people experiencing homelessness.

The effort is part of implementing Archbishop Hebda’s pastoral letter, “You Will Be My Witnesses: Gathered and Sent From the Upper Room,” which grew out of several years of preparing for and then holding a two-day Archdiocesan Synod Assembly of 470 people in 2022.

In his pastoral letter, the archbishop called for a similar, one-day gathering — Archdiocesan Synod 2025 — as he explained the importance of continuing to listen, discern and adapt to help foster unity, renewal and evangelization in the archdiocese.

Deacon Joseph Michalak, an adviser on the pastoral letter and on faith formation in the archdiocese’s Office of Discipleship and Evangelization, said he has helped lead the retreats and other aspects of the preparation.

“This is for renewal of the whole archdiocese,” Deacon Michalak said. “(Archbishop Hebda) is relying on the whole body of Christ. It’s a collective discernment.”

Mike Cole, 68, of St. Nicholas in Elko New Market, said he has participated in preparation opportunities as he gets ready for the assembly at Cretin-Derham Hall

Archdiocesan Passport Adventure

By The Catholic Spirit

high school. Cole said he did not participate in the first Synod.

“The archdiocese has done a great job providing insight to the meaning of the propositions, and to prayerfully discern how to be open to the Holy Spirit’s direction at the Synod,” Cole said of the videos, which feature Archbishop Hebda and Bishops Michael Izen and Kevin Kenney.

The three-hour retreat offers ways to spiritually prepare for the Synod, and people at the online meeting he attended brought “focus and zeal,” Cole said.

While Cole brings fresh eyes to Synod 2025, Allen Gieske, 76, of St. Bridget of Sweden in Lindstrom, said the June gathering will be his second Archdiocesan Synod.

“I was one of the voting members from St. Bridget of Sweden at the 2022 gathering,” Gieske said. “It was a great experience to be participating with so many others who have committed themselves to promoting the Synod and who are seeking to hear the how Holy Spirit will lead us going forward.”

A Synod proposition he hopes will be promoted is invigorating efforts to bring youth and adults into a fuller understanding of their faith and its importance in their lives, Gieske said.

“We need to be clear, concise and energetic in reaching out to them, and we (need) a message that will touch their hearts,” Gieske said.

Like Cole, Suzanne Wiatros, 63, of St. John the Evangelist in Little Canada, will be new to the Synod Assembly, as will about half of the participants at the June 7 gathering. But Wiatros is part of her parish’s Synod Evangelization Team, or SET group, which helps carry out the three pastoral priorities already set in motion in the archdiocese: Forming small groups in relational evangelization through the Parish Evangelization Cells System; educating the faithful in the beauty, form and meaning of the Mass and the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist; and forming and inspiring parents as the first educators of the faith to their children.

Wiatros said she hopes the Synod encourages people to live and share the faith with the wider community. She hopes to go to heaven, Wiatros said. “But, you know, I want to have other souls go to heaven, too. That’s what I want to see from the Synod.”

Catholics around the world are marking 2025 as a Jubilee Year, with the theme, “Pilgrims of Hope.” At the same time, the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis is celebrating 175 years since its founding July 19,1850.

As part of these celebrations, from May 17 through Oct. 12 the faithful are invited to become Archdiocesan Jubilee Pilgrims and experience the archdiocese’s rich diversity by visiting seven churches that are not their own and marking them in a special passport that is being developed, the Archdiocesan Passport Adventure.

Spontaneously or with a plan, alone as a form of prayer and pilgrimage or with a group including family, Vacation Bible School, summer camp, or a prayer team, Jubilee Pilgrims might visit one or both co-cathedrals, specially marked this year as Jubilee sites — the Basilica of St. Mary in Minneapolis and the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul. Look for the Jubilee Cross in each of them. Jubilee Pilgrims might consider visiting the oldest church, St. Peter in Mendota, or attending a Mass at a Maronite or Byzantine church, a traditional Latin Mass or Mass celebrated in Spanish.

“As the living Body of Christ, we are blessed by the diversity of gifts which have enriched our local Church throughout these 175 years,” Archbishop Bernard Hebda notes in the passport that will be available at archspm org/passport. “Given the breadth of these gifts and experiences,” the archbishop writes, “it should not be surprising that no two churches in the Archdiocese are the same, and that even the liturgy is celebrated in ways that reflect the distinct histories of each parish community.”

Capping off the passport adventure will be an Oct. 12 Archdiocesan Adventure Ice Cream Social after the 8 a.m., 10 a.m. and noon Masses at the Cathedral of St. Paul. Archbishop Hebda and Bishops Michael Izen and Kevin Kenney plan to be there.

12 SYNOD PROPOSITIONS

A dozen propositions out of 40 received the most votes in a gathering of 470 people at the Archdiocesan Synod Assembly in June 2022 as Archbishop Bernard Hebda sought pastoral priorities for unity, renewal and evangelization in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Three of those propositions are being implemented: Forming small groups in every parish of the archdiocese, particularly following a model called Parish Evangelization Cells System; educating the faithful on the beauty, form and meaning of the Mass, with special emphasis on Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist; and forming and inspiring parents to understand and fulfill their responsibility as the first teachers of their children in the ways of faith.

Those propositions and the remaining eight will considered June 7 at a similar gathering —called the Be My Witnesses Assembly — at Cretin-Derham Hall in St. Paul. The assembly will help Archbishop Hebda discern pastoral priorities for the coming years, and it will culminate with the annual Pentecost Vigil Mass at the Cathedral of St. Paul, also in St. Paul. (All of the faithful across the archdiocese are invited to attend the vigil Mass.)

A one-sentence summary of the remaining eight propositions: uDevelop a faith formation plan at every parish and Catholic school in which parents encounter Jesus, grow in their faith, and are supported in teaching their children.

uDevelop at each parish (or collaboratively among parishes) a vibrant youth ministry.

uTeach individuals and families the art of Christian living in the modern world, to be witnesses of the abundant life for which God created us.

uCreate or strengthen a formation plan at every parish to help adults and families live and witness to the faith.

uParishes and their deaneries (geographical groupings of 10 to 15 parishes) work together to provide social and faith-based events to help young adults encounter Christ.

uFoster welcoming and hospitality that seeks to encounter people where they are and opens wide the doors to Christ.

uBuild parish community through events and social gatherings, including Mass.

uEncourage and empower the laity to work with clergy in parish leadership.

BISHOP KENNEY CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

are treated like criminals, he said.

“In two of those three facilities, there’s no fresh air opportunity, there are no windows, there are no opportunities to go outside. Medical care is slow if it even exists,” Kraemer said. “The food is jail food. You’re treated like a prisoner. … Our mission is to visit and support people in immigration detention in Minnesota. And while we do that, we are supporting, we’re encouraging, we’re affirming, we’re advocating through our peaceful and compassionate presence. The bottom line is to let folks know that they’re not alone, that they’re not abandoned, that there are actually folks in the community that truly care about them.”

Conversations with Friends, represented by Kraemer, was among eight organizations at the gathering that offered services to the immigrant community. Others included the Minnesota Department of Human Services, Immigrant Defense Network, Immigration Law Center, International Institute of Minnesota, Unidos Minnesota, St. Mary’s Health Clinic and Advocates for Human Rights.

The day included a gathering song in Spanish and English, “Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo,” translated to “We Are the Body of Christ” in English. In addition to group conversations, those present prayed the Litany of Detainees, and to end the day, celebrated a bilingual Mass with Bishop Kenney presiding.

MIKE COLE ALLEN GIESKE SUZANNE WIATROS

JOSH MCGOVERN THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT Bishop Kevin Kenney speaks at the University of St. Thomas School of Law in Minneapolis during the Catholic Racial Justice Coalition (CRJC) event called Accompanying Migrants and Immigrants in Our Times. Bishop Kenney was the keynote speaker.

4 recognized as 2025 ACCW Laywomen Volunteers

By Josh McGovern

The Catholic Spirit

The Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women (ACCW) honored four members May 2 for their involvement in the organization, their parishes and communities.

The awards were given at the ACCW’s 92nd annual convention at St. Michael in St. Michael. Also at the banquet, Terri Pontious of St. Timothy in Blaine was installed as the new ACCW president by Archbishop Bernard Hebda. She will serve a two-year volunteer term. The banquet’s theme was “Renewing Your Faith Trusting God’s Direction” and featured speaker Kristen Harootunian, the social media content manager for Minding Your Mind, a Pennsylvania organization focused on ending mental health stigma.

ANDREA COWELL

Cowell tries to emulate Jesus in her interactions with her family — her three married sons, daughters-in-law and eight grandchildren — by loving, encouraging and supporting them. For 41 years, Cowell has been a member of St. Pius X in White Bear Lake, where she has served as a lector, cantor, choir member, funeral minister and member of a lectio divina small group. She also co-chairs the Divine Mercy Sunday devotion, and is a Companions in Grief facilitator. She has volunteered at local food shelves and is active in pro-life efforts. A Third Order Carmelite, Cowell serves as director of her community of lay Catholics wishing to live out Carmelite spirituality and charisms. In the ACCW, Cowell is involved in events such as the Penny Auction and Advent Morning of Reflection. She is co-chair of the Spirituality Commission and helps oversee First Friday Fellowship.

ACCW Golden Rose Award

By Josh McGovern

The Catholic Spirit

Seven female teens and young adults received the Golden Rose Award May 2, sponsored by the Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women (ACCW). The award recognizes those who regularly attend Sunday Mass and are active in parish and community activities. They were presented at the ACCW’s 92nd annual convention at St. Michael in St. Michael.

Each parish in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis was invited in January to nominate girls and women ages 14 to 21 for outstanding skills in leadership, spirituality and service.

Honored were Eleanor O’Reilly of Holy Trinity in Goodhue, Micaela Gabrielle Verdeja of the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Isabelle Moyer of St. Joseph in Waconia, all age 16; Ella Haus, 17, of St. Henry in Monticello; Kylie Schachtner, 18, of St. Pius X in White Bear Lake; Nell Gibbs,18, of Divine Mercy in Faribault; Kayla McLellan, 21, of St. Timothy in Blaine.

Schachtner and Haus are both altar servers at their parishes. Moyer, Gibbs and McLellan have taken mission trips in the United States and internationally.

Moyer intends to attend a Steubenville conference in St. Paul this summer and has always had a love of faith

KAREN MILLNER

An active member of St. Ignatius in Annandale and the ACCW since 1973, Millner attends daily Mass and Eucharistic adoration, helps bring Communion to the homebound, has taught faith formation and been a committee member for parish events.

Millner has four children and 22 grandchildren and has shared religious books and prayers with them.

In 1990, Millner became a charter member of the local Kiwanis, a service organization dedicated to improving communities and helping children, and she leads the Kiwanis’ fundraisers.

MARCIA SIMON

Raising two small children as a widow, Simon leaned on her faith and the help of her parents and in-laws. She was involved with her children’s school events and parent group. Later in life, her faith helped her care for her aging parents. She also overcame two battles with cancer.

Simon is a servant leader at St. Dominic in Northfield, serving on church committees, with liturgy and as a Eucharistic minister. She also has served on school, parish and community finance committees.

For the ACCW, Simon has served as treasurer, and in two different deaneries as president, vice president and treasurer. For the Southwest Deanery, she co-chairs the International Commission.

In 25 years as a member of the Rice County Fair Board, Simon worked as

the parking committee chair and with several committees, including finance and beautification. As Rice County became more diverse, Simon helped families learn about the fair and its activities. For 20 years, she helped organize the parade line-up for Dam Day in Morristown. Simon also worked at the food shelf at St. Vincent de Paul Society and made food for the volunteers.

PATTY BRADWAY

A member of St. Pius X in White Bear Lake and a nurse in hospitals and schools for 37 years, Bradway has been married 36 years and is the mother of three children. She has helped as a catechist, lector, choir member and prayer partner and taught young people how to pray the rosary.

In 2017, Bradway helped organize talks and prayer sessions inspired by the 100th anniversary of Marian apparitions in Fátima, Portugal. She is also a graduate of the Catechetical Institute at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul.

For the ACCW, Bradway coordinates the funeral rosary ministry and parish pilgrimages.

Bradway has been working at a pregnancy resource center since 2019, conducting ultrasounds and offering emotional support. Her pro-life beliefs led her to the local Republican party, even serving as vice-chair for her political unit. She ran for the Minnesota House of Representatives in 2024.

and God. She is a senior at Waconia High School in Waconia and has stepped out in faith to participate in Bible studies with her friends and attend youth groups.

Haus, Verdeja and O’Reilly were recognized for their musical talents. Haus is part of the teen choir at St. Henry and often leads praise and worship. Verdeja plays clarinet and piano, and she is in her high school concert, symphonic and jazz bands.

O’Reilly is a member of Holy Trinity’s choir and regularly cantors at Mass. A junior studying elementary and special education at Bethel University in St. Paul, McLellan has served students with disabilities and those from impoverished backgrounds. She also is an assistant coach for a girls youth hockey team. Gibbs, who plans to study biochemistry and run track at Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, has served in hospitals and nursing homes and delivered food for Meals on Wheels. For 11 years, she has participated in mission retreats to Divine Mercy’s sister parish in Guatemala, as

well as mission trips to Belize and Jamaica. As part of her church youth group, O’Reilly volunteers for a service project each month. She helps her family at home and on their dairy farm. In the summer of 2024, she was the Vacation Bible School director at Holy Trinity.

Verdeja led the Eagan High School LINK Program, which pairs freshmen with junior and senior class mentors. Verdeja also volunteers for projects through the school’s Interact Club, an organization partnered with the Rotary Club of Eagan. Verdeja is training as a sacristan and is active with other young adults at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul. At St. Pius X, Schachtner has led living Stations of the Cross and the ACCW Advent Morning of Reflection. She is trained in a Reach More program, which helps Catholics become effective evangelists. Haus is in the Minnesota Honor Society at Monticello High School in Monticello and is involved in golf, theater, a math league, the Knowledge Bowl, choir and band.

ANDREA COWELL

KAREN MILLNER

MARCIA SIMON

PATTY BRADWAY

ELEANOR O’REILLY

ISABELLE MOYER

MICAELA GABRIELLE VERDEJA

ELLA HAUS

KYLIE SCHACHTNER KAYLA MCLELLAN

NELL GIBBS

Joy of the Gospel

Honoring Pope Francis (1936-2025)

Benilde-St. Margaret’s School

St. Louis Park, MN

Beth El Synagogue

Cathedral of Saint Paul

National Shrine of the Apostle Paul

The Catholic Cemeteries

Catholic Charities Twin Cities

Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota

Co-Cathedral

Basilica of Saint Mary

Demontreville Jesuit Retreat House

Donald’s Uniform

Episcopal Homes

Ignatian Volunteer Corps Twin Cities

Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas

JIT Powder Coating Company

Tim and Donna Milner

McGough

Opus

Our Lady of Peace Hospice & Home Health Care

Premier Banks

Saint Therese Senior Living Communities

Saint Thomas Academy & Visitation School

Saint Thomas More

The Jesuit Parish of the Twin Cities

Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet St. Paul Province

St. Catherine University

University of St. Thomas

Archbishop Bernard A. Hebda,

Bishop Michael J. Izen,

Bishop Kevin Kenney and the faithful of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis

POPE FRANCIS HEADLINES

uArgentina bids farewell to native son Pope Francis with a Mass that draws thousands. Thousands gathered in Buenos Aires’ iconic Plaza de Mayo on April 26 to mourn Pope Francis, the Argentine-born pontiff who died April 21 and whose legacy began in the city’s poorest neighborhoods. Archbishop Jorge García Cuerva led a deeply emotional outdoor Mass just hours after the pope’s funeral in Rome, calling Francis “the father of us all” and urging Argentines to mourn openly. Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, Francis served as archbishop of Buenos Aires from 1998 to 2013, known for his humility, subway rides and advocacy for the marginalized. Many remember him for empowering “curas villeros,” priests ministering in the city’s shantytowns.

uAfricans remember Pope Francis as a Christian leader who had the continent at heart. As the world mourns Pope Francis, Catholics across Africa are reflecting on a pontiff who many say had their continent close to his heart. From Cairo to Cape Town, his death sparked both grief and curiosity — could the next pope be African? Of the current 18 African cardinal-electors, 17 were appointed by Francis himself. Their presence in the College of Cardinals has grown from 8% in 2013 to 12% today. Africa is home to nearly 270 million Catholics — about one in five globally. During five apostolic visits, Francis addressed the continent’s biggest challenges, including poverty, conflict, migration and climate change.

uThousands wait hours to pay their respects to Pope Francis. After the casket bearing Pope Francis’ body was placed in St. Peter’s Basilica, tens of thousands of mourners lined up to pay their respects. The open casket was transferred April 23 from the chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where the pope had lived, to the basilica. Waiting times varied, with some told to expect a three-or four-hour wait, while some people leaving the basilica said it had taken nearly five hours. uWorld leaders remember Pope Francis as an important international player. World leaders are mourning the death of Pope Francis, honoring him as a global advocate for peace, justice and human dignity. Tributes poured in from presidents, prime ministers and royalty, reflecting his powerful voice on the world stage — from his calls for peace in Ukraine and Gaza to his defense of migrants and the poor. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the pope’s ability to “give hope and ease suffering,” while King Charles III and others recalled their personal encounters with the pontiff. Leaders from India, France, Germany and even Nicaragua — despite internal persecution of Catholics — acknowledged his legacy of compassion and dialogue.

uPope Francis thanked a nurse for taking him to St. Peter’s Square one last time. Pope Francis’ final moments were peaceful, and he managed to give one last farewell to his nurse, Massimiliano Strappetti, before slipping into a coma early April 21, Vatican News reported. Among his last words were his thanks to Strappetti late April 20 when he said, “Thank you for bringing me back to the square,” referring to the pope’s surprise appearance after giving his Easter blessing from the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. The 88-year-old pope, who was still recovering from pneumonia, did not attend the Easter Mass April 20, but he did appear shortly after noon to give the solemn blessing. “The pope wanted to make one last significant surprise by going to St. Peter’s Square for a ride in the popemobile,” Vatican

News said in a report April 22. However, the pope was a little unsure and asked Strappetti, “Do you think I can do it?” The nurse reassured him that he could, Vatican News reported. For 15 minutes, Pope Francis rode around St. Peter’s Square and a portion of the wide boulevard leading to the square, filled with about 50,000 people. He blessed a few babies and tried to wave; the crowds were thrilled, waving and running where possible to get a closer view.

u In his final testament, Pope Francis asked for a simple burial, prayed for peace. In his brief final testament, Pope Francis asked to be buried at Rome’s Basilica of St. Mary Major and said he had offered his suffering for peace in the world. “I offered the suffering present in the latter part of my life to the Lord for world peace and brotherhood among peoples,” he wrote in the document dated June 29, 2022, and published by the Vatican April 21, hours after he had died. “Feeling that the sunset of my earthly life is approaching and with lively

hope in eternal life, I wish to express my testamentary will only as to the place of my burial,” he wrote.

uPope Francis dies during the Jubilee, leaving the Holy Door open in a papal first. With his death April 21, Pope Francis marked yet another first in the history of the Catholic Church: He became the first pope to open the Holy Door of St. Peter’s Basilica without living to close it. The pope opened the Holy Door Dec. 24, 2024, marking the beginning of the Holy Year 2025, a tradition normally celebrated in the Church every 25 years as a time of spiritual renewal and pilgrimage. His death four months later means the Holy Door will be sealed by his successor — an unprecedented moment in the modern history of Jubilee celebrations. Only once before had a Jubilee begun under one pope and concluded by another. In 1700, Pope Innocent XII, already gravely ill, gave his blessing for the start of the Jubilee he had declared in 1699 but was unable to preside at the opening of the Holy

Door. He died in September 1700 and it fell to Pope Clement XI, elected later that year, to close the Holy Door and conclude the Jubilee. u A U.S. cardinal will play a key role until a new pope is elected. With the death of Pope Francis, the practical aspects of overseeing the day-to-day needs of the Church and organizing a papal election fall to U.S. Cardinal Kevin Farrell. Standing in the chapel of Pope Francis’ residence, it was Cardinal Farrell who announced to the world that the pope had died. The 77-year-old, Irish-born former bishop of Dallas, Texas, has been “camerlengo” or chamberlain of the Holy Roman Church since 2019, although the job was basically just a title while Pope Francis was alive. Now Cardinal Farrell’s responsibilities range from ensuring that nothing is touched or tampered with in Pope Francis’ rooms in the Domus Sanctae Marthae to selecting the technicians who will sweep the Sistine Chapel for electronic bugs, cameras and recording devices.

— CNS and OSV News

Your Family’s Legacy Starts with a Simple Conversation

What do you want your family’s legacy to be?

If you struggle to answer that question, consider this one: What do you want to pass on to your children when you yourself pass on?

You might think of gifting your children an inheritance of money to provide financial support. Or perhaps, you picture an heirloom, an artifact that has been in the family for generations. Maybe you’re thinking more sentimentally of family traditions that you’ve honored together at countless Christmases or Easters. You might even be thinking of what could have an impact beyond your immediate family: your faith and values.

The obstacle many face

We know many families that were Catholic for years are now mixed-faith families. Research shows that half of young Americans who were raised Catholic no longer identify as such. Maybe your family has experienced this statistic personally.

But just because your children or grandchildren don’t share your faith now, doesn’t mean they won’t always. And, it doesn’t mean your values can’t still be passed on.

How to talk about your faith and values

Having a conversation about your faith and values doesn’t have to be a big deal. It doesn’t have to be tense or contentious. Start at the dinner table by asking your children how they would like your family to be remembered – kind, compassionate, intelligent, ambitious, generous, fun-loving? What traits and values drive their everyday decisions? If they had $1,000,000 to give away, what organizations would they support? Whom do they admire for their generosity, and why?

As you listen to their answers, you’ll likely find similarities and common ground. Even if your daughter’s path has strayed from the Church, your faith – and your shared experiences – has likely left an imprint.

Practice what you preach

A beautiful way you can express your faith and values as a family is through generosity. Once you’ve identified as a family how you’d like to be remembered, which charities you love, and whom you hope to honor, put your money where your heart is! By giving together, you’ll not only make a difference for your selected nonprofits, you’ll make a lasting impression on your children too. This practice will quickly establish generosity as a family value and a key piece of your family’s legacy.

‘A LITTLE BIT HEAVENLY’ Epiphany church renovation features murals painted by school art teacher

Story and photos by Dave

Hrbacek

The Catholic Spirit

Tom Pomeroy visited Epiphany’s newly renovated church on a recent weekday. Only a few brushstrokes remain to get the Coon Rapids church ready for its 11 a.m. June 1 dedication Mass with Archbishop Bernard Hebda.

Pomeroy paused as he stood in the doorway to the nave (portion of the church containing the pews). It has only been a month since he and other parishioners could take in a remodeling project that stretches back 10 years. Soon after seeing the results, Pomeroy decided to start making weekday visits for prayer, alternating between the main church and the adoration chapel, which also has been updated in recent years.

“I love it when it’s quiet and nobody else is in there,” he said of the main church. “It’s a little bit heavenly. … I can’t think of a better place to take my time and pray.”

That is exactly the kind of reaction that the pastor of Epiphany, Father Thomas Dufner, envisioned when he decided to remodel the church, focusing mostly on the sanctuary. A parishioner, Nick Vasko, oversaw the entire project, and another parishioner, Mark Sanislo, an artist who has been instrumental in the artwork at a number of churches, including the Newman Center at North Dakota State University, and who teaches art at Epiphany Catholic School, painted the main mural directly behind the altar, plus two other murals, one on each side of the sanctuary. The newly updated church was featured during the opening Mass of the Archdiocesan Men’s Conference March 22.

“One of my (altar) servers asked me if this triumphal arch (above the main mural) was the gate of heaven,” said Father Dufner, who has been pastor of Epiphany since 2012. “And, I said yes, it is. This is a triumphal arch in the style of what the Romans used to build. … This is the triumphal arch for the victory of Jesus Christ over sin and death.”

Father Dufner has been interested in beautifying the church since his time at Epiphany as parochial vicar in the early 1990s. Bishop Robert Barron of WinonaRochester added encouragement in 1999 at the Presbyteral Assembly in Rochester when he called on priests to update and improve their church interiors.

“The opportunity came to do something,” Father Dufner recalled. “We didn’t know what, but we knew we could do something.”

Over the next few years, Father Dufner began to develop his ideas and worked with Vasko, showing design samples to parishioners. It was a gradual process that led to the final design that was approved not long after the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

“We started with new sanctuary designs in 2015, and I would always run them past our parishioners,” Father Dufner said. “Finally, we were able to say, ‘Everyone is happy with this.’”

Next came a capital campaign to fund the project.

Father Dufner set the goal at $2.5 million, $1.5 million for the church project and the other $1 million for other projects, including an upgrade to the parking lot. The work began in July 2023, starting with the removal of the entire sanctuary, including the concrete floor.

“All the money flew in to pay for this new project,” Father Dufner said. “We got enormous buy-in from the people. We found very broad support. Even some of the folks who initially might have been reluctant (to donate) found themselves liking it more and more.”

Pomeroy and his wife, Carrie, are among the donors. They became parishioners several years ago, joining their two adult daughters and their families. Tom called the new sanctuary “very impressive” and “beyond my wildest imagination.”

After the design for the structure was set, Father Dufner next needed to select the image for the main mural.

“I was praying to St. Joseph and I said, ‘I don’t know what to do. You have to take care of it,’” Father Dufner recalled. “And within two days, I was meeting the artist, Mark Sanislo, for something else. On his phone was a screen saver of God the Father. I said, ‘That’s it. That’s what I want.’”

The final design includes God the Father at the top, with the Holy Spirit directly underneath and Jesus on the cross below that. It is meant to resemble a vision of the Trinity that was experienced at Tui, Spain, by Sister Lucy, one of three children who had visions of Mary at Fátima, Portugal. Sanislo then added pictures of 20-some saints, along with angels. After the main mural was completed, Sanislo added murals of the wedding at Cana and the baptism of Jesus, located on either side of the sanctuary.

Everything combined has created a worship space that draws people to come and look, including Father Dufner.

“I can’t even walk past the church through the foyer without poking my head in to see the beauty that’s here,” he said. “I have to stop and see. It’s attractive. It pulls me in. I have to see this. It’s majestic, it’s glorious. It’s what God deserves.” Editor’s note: Turn to pages 16B and 17B to read

ABOVE Archbishop Bernard Hebda, center, celebrates Mass at the beginning of the Archdiocesan Men’s Conference March 22 at the newly renovated church at Epiphany in Coon Rapids, joined by other priests and deacons, along with Bishop Kevin Kenney, second from left.

FAR LEFT Father Thomas Dufner, pastor of Epiphany, stands inside the newly renovated church.

LEFT This mural of the baptism of Jesus is located on the right side of the sanctuary and was painted by parishioner Mark Sanislo, who teaches art at Epiphany Catholic School.

FAITH+CULTURE

Local college student to join National Eucharistic Pilgrimage

By Christina Capecchi For The Catholic Spirit

Frances Webber is preparing for the adventure of a lifetime: to join the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage this month on its 10-state journey. The 21-year-old is among eight “perpetual pilgrims,” a group of young adults chosen to make the entire trip — and the only one from Minnesota. Their pilgrimage begins in Indianapolis on May 18 and concludes in Los Angeles on June 22.

“It’s exciting,” said Webber, a member of Nativity of Our Lord in St. Paul. “It’s radical and new and a huge gift.” Webber is completing her degree online through St. Joseph’s College of Maine. She serves as outreach coordinator for Assumption in St. Paul and lives with a group of women from St. Paul’s Outreach, the collegeoriented Catholic ministry.

Q When did you learn you’d been chosen as a perpetual pilgrim?

A I found out with an email in December. I didn’t tell anybody for the first 48 hours because I wasn’t sure it was real. I hadn’t done the best interviews. I was frazzled.

Our director of pilgrimages, Maria, tells us: “You guys all have this funny itch to go do things. You’ll just go on wild trips or adventures.” I think there’s a particular compulsion to just go and not get caught up in the details. That was probably what they saw in me: a radical openness to what the Lord is doing.

Q How will you travel?

A We’ll have a 15-passenger van. They removed the first row of seats and put a tabernacle in it, with a place for perpetual Eucharistic adoration on top of it, so it’s a consecrated chapel. It’s with the Handmaids (of the Heart of Jesus) in New Ulm now, so my friend and I are driving it down to the starting point in Indiana. Bishop (Andrew) Cozzens is friends with their foundress (Mother Mary Clare), and he’s the guy who started this Eucharistic revival, so it just worked out for the Handmaids to watch the van for the year.

Q A chapel on wheels!

A That’s what we’re called to do. If your life has been transformed by the Gospel, then your response should always be to go — whatever that looks like in your life.

Q I love that Masses for the Eucharistic pilgrimage will be celebrated in various languages, rites and liturgical musical styles. And your path is called the St. Katharine Drexel Route for its outreach to the marginalized, including stops at nursing homes, food banks and a federal prison.

A Yeah, we’re doing a procession inside a federal prison. We’re intentionally making space and time to bring Christ to people who would not normally get to encounter

Eucharistic adoration. Jesus is truly present in the sacrament, and people deserve to encounter that. Jesus is worth being taken everywhere.

Q Do you plan to document the trip?

A I would love to make a little scrapbook. My hope for this pilgrimage is that the Lord would seal on my heart the things I need — his hopes and graces for me — going forward, beyond the pilgrimage.

Q As a Virginia native, what do you appreciate about Minnesota?

A The pace of life here is slower. In Minnesota in general, and in this archdiocese, the Catholic faith is incredibly accessible in a way that it’s not in most other places. Opportunities for Eucharistic adoration and Mass are abundant. There are five perpetual adoration chapels within a 15-minute drive of my house.

Q One Minnesotan pastime you’ve picked up is cribbage

A Everybody here plays it. It’s not big out East. I love the slow-moving games where I can have a conversation while playing it.

Q You’re also getting into sourdough making.

A I’m really crunchy. I’m getting into sourdough. I make yogurt. I like to make as much as I can from scratch. Part of Catholic social teaching is an understanding of process and where things come from and how we get from point A to point B — in our food, our clothing. There’s a natural enjoyment of hard work. It takes three weeks to make kombucha, but at the end, it’s better than going to a store to buy it. I’ve worked really hard over the last

couple of years to adjust my mindset from instant gratification. I’ve become so aware that we weren’t created for instant gratification. So, I push back against that in my life to build virtue. We don’t get to experience God in the same way if we are constantly living for instant gratification because God doesn’t really do instant gratification.

Q What are a few ways you push back?

A If I notice I’m craving something, I tend to cut it out. I’ll fast from sugar for a week, or I skip caffeine. It’s based on what I find myself becoming too dependent on. With my phone, I run our SPO chapter’s Instagram, but I do that on my iPad, which only has Wi-Fi and doesn’t really go anywhere. I don’t have any social media on my phone. I gravitate toward how I can distract myself in the moment when I’m bored or uncomfortable or I don’t like sitting (and) waiting. Can I take that away?

Q That’s so relatable: Trying to stay off Instagram while running it for your SPO chapter! I bet playing guitar is another good way to unplug and center yourself.

A I just learned how to play “Jersey Giant” by Tyler Childers. I play music by The National Parks and Penny and Sparrow. But I play mostly for praise and worship now. It’s how I enter into prayer. There’s often an ease that I experience that I don’t in other forms of prayer.

Q How do you stay humble?

A The Lord has given me so many good things. To experience both the grace of the Lord’s goodness alongside suffering is a really beautiful way to nurture humility in one’s life. And I am often very bad at it. I’m not the most humble person. I think about

myself a lot — far more than I should. But I also think regular confession is huge and learning to enter into confession with a reality of: “I immensely need the Lord’s grace for everything in my life.” Without the Lord, without grace, without the sacraments, I can do nothing. I can try as hard as I want — and for so much of my life I have — and it’s just impossible. There is no way to do it alone.

I have grown the most in humility by learning to be loved and to be accepted where I’m at. That removes the need to create somebody or something out of yourself or a false narrative or lean into pride the way we do when we are not loved well or when we’re afraid of being loved.

Q You are wise beyond your years! I see there is some fundraising needed for this pilgrimage. Readers can go to the website eucharisticpilgrimage org and then click the “perpetual pilgrims” tab on the top right. Once they click on your bio, they’ll see a “give now” button at the bottom.

A We have to fundraise to do what we’re doing. That is the financial reality. The pilgrims fundraise to support dioceses that can’t afford to host us, which is many of the dioceses we’re going to this year — and that is an incredibly beautiful thing to step into.

Pray for me. Pray for us. Pray for the people we’re going to encounter. And we would love to pray for the archdiocese, for you all. You can submit intentions at the website. They will all be printed out and carried to the Eucharist.

Q What do you know for sure?

A I know that the Lord is good and that he’s working for the good at all times — which I feel like, in this day and age, is sometimes hard to believe. That’s probably the only thing I know for sure.

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

AND THE BEAUTIFUL | MADELYN REICHERT

Catholic novel reflects on the nature of work

“If You Can Get It” by Brendan Hodge. Ignatius Press. (San Francisco, California, 2020). 285 pp., $16.95.

The first of May is recognized in countries around the world as a day celebrating the contributions of labor, and in the Catholic Church particularly as the feast of St. Joseph the Worker. This great feast day encourages Catholics to ask some important questions: What is the nature of work? Is it just an activity for making money, or does it have some higher purpose? What makes work dignified, and what, if anything, makes for a “good job”?

In his 2020 novel, “If You Can Get It,” Brendan Hodge explores these questions through the career missteps and misadventures of Jen Nilsson, a highpowered career woman with an excellent salary (and a beautiful San Francisco apartment) courtesy of her job in Silicon Valley. Recognizable to working women everywhere as the ideal we can only dream of matching — Jen has enviable self-discipline, a morning workout routine, a perfect wardrobe and a formidable work ethic — she is nevertheless plagued by the same identity crisis and loneliness that workaholism brings to all, regardless of gender. That is, at least, until she loses her job and her aimless younger sister, Katie, shows up at her door.

“If You Can Get It” deserves praise for its dry wit, its keen insight into the difficulties and ironies of our global supply chain and its touchingly human depiction of two radically different sisters. There’s even a subtle slow-burn romance for those who, like this reviewer, enjoy a well-written relationship. Moreover, the book keeps the reader guessing; at

several points where this reviewer was dreading a clichéd outcome, Hodge cleverly subverted expectations, making use of tropes where appropriate without relying on them.

What really fascinated this reader, however, was the novel’s ongoing discussion about the nature and purpose of work. Early in the book, Jen’s sister, Katie, astutely judges that the project Jen has been working on — an app-specific phone dongle — is something only those entrenched in the tech-world culture of Silicon Valley would think is marketable: “What’s the point? People don’t want to carry around another thing in their pockets.”

In what is certainly a surprise to Jen (but perhaps not to the reader), when the company is bought up by a larger corporation on the day of her big presentation, her role is cut and Jen is let go without much more than a platitude. Her next gig, a productline director for a luxury handbag company, burns her out in less than three months following an ill-fated work trip to China. Both of these jobs, the careful reader will note, have some things in common: both are selling fundamentally pointless products, and both treat their employees not as people but as cogs in a money-making machine.

Jen’s career disasters are not the only reflection of this theme of work and its purpose; Katie starts out the book as a drifting college graduate who spends her days playing Skyrim and blowing off shifts, and Daniel, Jen’s lawyer friend, discusses his choice to leave the corporate world for less draining legal work. Jen’s managerial-class life also briefly crosses paths with working-class people being exploited by the same forces, including harassed waitresses and underpaid factory laborers, and it’s not until she secures a position that both matches her talents and makes a useful product that her career problems are resolved. Brilliantly, however, “If You Can Get It” does not conclude once Jen has at last found a fulfilling job. Instead, Hodge pushes further, encouraging the reader to ask about the second half of the nature of labor: For whom, exactly, do we work? And can any job, even a good job, truly provide the full purpose for one’s life?

A must-read for any working young professional,

“If You Can Get It” is a funny and thoughtful meditation on the nature of work through a Catholic lens. Those in the midst of a career change will find Jen’s job-hunt fiascos hilariously relatable, and those of us lucky enough to be in satisfying careers will find ourselves appreciating just how nice it really is to have good work, if you can get it.

Reichert is publications administrative coordinator at The Catholic Spirit. She can be reached at reichertm @ archspm org

Catholic Community of St. Odilia Shoreview, MN

St. Peter’s Church Mendota, MN

CARMELITE CONSTRUCTION

CONTINUED FROM PREVIOUS PAGE

Fruitful prayer

Patty Hooley, 62, and a parishioner of St. Michael and St. Mary in Stillwater, said that if every person who has submitted a prayer request to the Carmelite nuns “would just give $10, the amount of money raised would be astounding, because I think they have affected so many people.”

Hooley said that she and her husband, Tom, have themselves witnessed the power of such intercessory prayer. Roughly 30 years ago, their daughter contracted a virus while she was in utero. A friend of the Hooleys — who would often bring food and money to the Carmelite nuns — told the Hooleys she had submitted a prayer request to the nuns.

“I received this beautiful letter, it was a personal letter saying that they were praying for me and my baby and there was a Miraculous Medal in there” along with a prayer card of Mary with pink lettering, Hooley said. “We didn’t know the sex of the baby or anything and when I saw it (the card), I said to my husband, ‘I know we’re having a girl.’”

“It brought me so much peace,” Hooley said, her voice full of emotion. “We ended up having a little girl; she was sick when she was born, but then as the months went on, after 15 months, they (the doctors) said, ‘Well, we’re not seeing anything that we saw in the beginning’” related to the virus. “We named her Mary,” Hooley said of their daughter.

When the friend who had submitted the prayer request died, Hooley said, “I thought, I need to take over what she’s doing … . So, I just started helping them with food, with some finances, nothing huge or anything but I tried to be consistent, my husband and I did.”

Hooley said “it just felt so good to be able to give back to these women” in the forms of financial support and prayer for the renovation project. She described the project as “a modest addition, true to their lifestyle, but it is much needed to make it easier for them to serve people through prayer and to help their sisters and hopefully, as they get new postulants into the order, the order will be able to grow and have some comfort in their living.”

“They’re so filled with joy and goodness, and I just love them without ever having met them,” Hooley said. She views the Carmelite nuns’ willingness to forgo “all of the creature comforts” for a life of prayer as a sign of their great love for humanity.

“I just think that they are this hidden gem in the Twin Cities and in the world — a group of women who have dedicated their lives to serve God by serving the world through their prayers of intercession, and they also offer prayers for the souls of those who have died, essentially helping to pray them into heaven. They give so much to society and they rarely, if ever, ask for help or assistance,” Hooley said.

When asked how people can best support their community, the Carmelite nuns requested prayers. First and foremost, they said they want all people to find union with God; they themselves pray for this. They also asked for prayers for the Carmelite community, that they might fulfill their vocations. They asked for prayers for their material needs; as members of a cloistered community, the Carmelite nuns rely on God’s providence for all their material needs and they receive food and other donations from the broader community.

The Carmelite nuns also said that those who are willing can help by funding landscaping efforts on the grounds.

Those who would like to contribute financially, including to help cover project costs, may do so by mailing or dropping off donations at: 8251 Mount Carmel Road, Lake Elmo, MN 55042.

Building for worship

Meanwhile, the Carmelite hermits are overseeing a chapel construction project on their grounds.

Carmelite Father John Mary Burns, prior at the hermitage, said the Chapel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is being built to “provide adequate space for the celebration (of) holy Mass, the Divine Office and personal prayer.”

“Currently, we use a tiny chapel (20 feet by 20 feet) in our community building. The space has become too small for our growing community,” Father Burns said. “Additionally, we have no room for the public to participate in our liturgical services or to pray privately at our monastery. Many people have asked to participate occasionally in our liturgy, and they seek a silent place for personal prayer. The new chapel will allow the faithful and other visitors to attend our liturgy and have a place for quiet prayers.”

Father Burns said the chapel is being built in an “authentic Roman basilica style, the first architectural style adopted by Roman Catholics after the legalization of Christianity by the Emperor Constantine in 313 A.D.”

Father Burns, who founded the hermitage with Brother Joseph Bubanko in 1987, said that “as far as we are aware, our chapel is the first authentic Roman basilica-style church built in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis since the completion of St. Mary’s Chapel on the campus of The St. Paul Seminary (in St. Paul) in 1905.”

According to the project’s webpage on the hermitage website, award-winning architect Duncan Stroik — a professor of architecture at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana — designed the plans for the chapel. Stroik’s past projects have included the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in La Crosse, Wisconsin; the chapel at Thomas Aquinas College in Santa Paula, California; and organ case restoration work at the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul.

“As a Catholic architect, there’s nothing better that I like to do than to serve God, first, and his people. And what’s better than to serve his sons?” Stroik said in a video highlighting the chapel construction progress. “I hope that other people will come here and experience the beauty and the goodness of God and of his house and of the prayer of these men.”

Father Burns explained that the chapel consists of a main nave with two aisles on either side of the nave. The sanctuary, on the east side of the nave and aisles, consists of the transept and altar as well as three apses — two smaller apses on either side of the main apse. Two chapels, one dedicated to Mary and the other to St. Joseph, will be on either side of the sanctuary. A partition will separate the monastic choir from the general seating section. The chapel

will provide seating for 44 people.

Father Burns said construction began in 2023, with the Stillwater-based George Siegfried Construction Company as the general contractor. The columns, capitals and arches were installed the summer of 2024. The chapel’s columns and arches were made from marble in Italy. The walls and roof had gone up by the fall of 2024. During the winter, mechanical and electrical systems were installed, and the concrete subfloor was poured.

Currently, work continues on the chapel’s interior, including a plaster finish on the walls.

Father Burns shared that the chapel’s first mosaic, for the shrine of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is being fabricated in Italy according to a design from Brother Christopher Burnside, “our artist.”

“The subject will be the Annunciation,” Father Burns said.

Father Burns said the hope is that construction will be substantially completed in 2026.

“Because our financial resources are limited, we have had to pace the construction more slowly in order to raise funds as we continue to build,” Father Burns said. “From our own income and from donations, we have raised about $3 million. We still need to raise another $2 to $3 million in order to substantially complete the chapel.”

Hence, the creation of the Brick Legacy Guild, which invites those interested to purchase a brick to help raise the money needed. The Carmelite hermits have also held five open houses to allow visitors to become familiar with the chapel construction project, Father Burns said.

Father Burns said that as work continues on the chapel, the community is considering other future construction possibilities.

“We currently have nine hermitages at our monastery. We will eventually need to build a few more in order to accommodate new members,”

Father Burns said, adding that no timeframe has been established for this type of project.

“By choice, we intend to remain a small monastery because the life of contemplative prayer flourishes best in an atmosphere of silence and solitude,”

Father Burns said.

More information, including donation information, can be found online at carmelitehermitage org

COURTESY CARMELITE HERMITAGE OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

This June 2024 photo shows a row of marble columns in the interior of the new Chapel of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Lake Elmo.

FOCUSONFAITH

SUNDAY SCRIPTURES | FATHER JAMES PERKL

The vision of St. John on Good Shepherd Sunday

It was lunchtime when I turned on EWTN, and the ceremony was just beginning in the atrium of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City.

The fire that was blessed to light the paschal candle was already burning when I tuned in from the rectory of Mary, Mother of the Church. Following the prayers, and ceremonies, it was beautiful to see the new light atop the paschal candle being carried into St. Peter’s Basilica. Not just in St. Peter’s, but on that holy night, around the world, in every parish on the planet, the same light of Christ would be entering our churches. In Burnsville, it happened just after sundown. Our deacon and server carried the paschal candle inside where we began sharing the light, candle to candle. The light not only illuminated our faces, but the entire interior of our beautiful church. We were listening to the Exsultet being sung and the fragrance of incense was filling the air with its own kind of music praising God! How appropriate that Pope Francis was able to hear and see all of this, before his death early on Easter Monday morning, while it was still dark.

On this the Fourth Sunday of Easter, known as Good Shepherd Sunday, I reflect on how wonderful it must have been for Pope Francis

FAITH

FUNDAMENTALS | FATHER MICHAEL VAN SLOUN

Preparation for the priesthood: Third and fourth stages

Editor’s note: This is the second of two columns on preparation for ordination to the priesthood. The first appeared in the April 3 edition.

The preparation for ordination to the priesthood is a long journey of seven to eight years. The major points of emphasis are spiritual, human, pastoral and intellectual formation. The four stages are the Propaedeutic Stage, the Discipleship Stage, the Configuration Stage and the Vocational Synthesis Stage. This column addresses the Configuration Stage and the Vocational Synthesis Stage. The Configuration Stage is the third and longest stage on the road to priesthood. It is four years and spans Theology I to IV. The spiritual goal is for the priest-to-be to configure himself to Jesus, the great high priest, to think like Jesus thinks, to speak on behalf of Jesus, to serve and sacrifice with the generosity of Jesus, and to have a heart like Jesus. This configuration takes place by making prayer a central and indispensable part of each day with personal meditation and contemplation, a Holy Hour, the Liturgy of the Hours, daily Mass, Scripture reading, spiritual reading and theological reflection. Configuration also includes meetings with a spiritual director at least five times each semester, recollection days, conferences, seminars and an annual retreat.

Intellectual formation is an integral part of the Configuration Stage. The curriculum includes all the requirements of the Program of Priestly Formation and leads to a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) degree. A seminarian can pursue a dual degree and earn a Master of Arts in Theology (MAT) by fulfilling the more rigorous academic requirements for each course. The academic program is comprehensive and covers many theological disciplines. Some of the major areas are doctrinal theology, including individual courses on the Trinity, Christology and Ecclesiology; Church history; pastoral ministry and pastoral counseling; courses that cover specific books or groups of related books of the Old and New Testaments; sacramental theology, with individual courses on

to see us sharing the light of Christ, and even more, welcoming the newly initiated into our number from every nation, race, people and tongue on the Vigil of Easter!

In the Gospel of Good Shepherd Sunday, Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish. No one can take them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one.”

On this Sunday we are celebrating the Good Shepherd; listen again to the words chanted during the Easter Vigil before our pope died. Remember how we offered the following prayer, holding candles illuminating all on that holy night. While not the whole prayer, the humility of this next verse reminded me of Pope Francis:

“... O wonder of your humble care for us! O love, O charity beyond all telling, to ransom a slave you gave away your Son! O truly necessary sin of Adam, destroyed completely by the Death of Christ! O happy fault that earned so great, so glorious a Redeemer! O truly blessed night, worthy alone to know the time and hour when Christ rose from the underworld! This is the night of which it is written: The night shall be as bright as day, dazzling is the night for me, and full of gladness. The sanctifying power of this night dispels wickedness, washes faults away, restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners, drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty. On this, your night of grace, O holy Father, accept this candle, a solemn offering, the work of bees and of your servants’ hands an evening sacrifice of praise, this gift from your most holy Church.”

May the soul of Pope Francis, and those of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God rest in peace on this Sunday we celebrate Jesus, the Good Shepherd.

Father Perkl is pastor of Mary, Mother of the Church in Burnsville.

the sacraments of initiation, the sacraments of healing, the Eucharist, marriage and the priesthood; moral theology and Christian ethics; Catholic social teaching; canon law; preaching or homiletics; and presiding for liturgy.

For J-term (the month of January between the first and second semesters), there are three trips: one to Mexico City to encounter the poor, the second to Rome to experience the universal Church, and the third to the Holy Land to walk in the footsteps of Jesus.

During the summer there is an eight-week practicum on ministry to the sick and suffering after the first year; multicultural ministry, language immersion, or a rural ministry practicum after the second year; and a 10-week deacon internship after the third year.

Pastoral formation is yet another major component of the Configuration Stage. The goal is for the seminarian to be a shepherd of souls, a servant of the community and the individuals in the community, to make and cultivate relationships in ministry, to apply his theological education in real life pastoral and liturgical circumstances, to reflect on his experience, and receive guidance and feedback to assist in his growth and development.

To achieve these objectives, each seminarian is assigned to a teaching parish for all four years in the seminary. He meets with the pastor, his supervisor, on a regular basis, usually weekly. A Teaching Parish Committee of about 10 parishioners is assembled, and the seminarian meets with his committee monthly. One Sunday a month is designated Teaching Parish Sunday. Initially, the seminarian attends Mass and socializes with the parishioners. Gradually his role expands as a lector and extraordinary minister of holy Communion, an instructor with the school, faith formation program, or the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. Additional goals are to interact with the parish staff, the school faculty and the youth group, and serve in ways where there may be a special need or where the seminarian has a special interest or talent.

Human formation is another dimension of the Configuration Stage. The seminarian meets with his formation director at least five times each semester to attend to his personal well-being, with particular attention to self-care and healthy relationships.

The Vocational Synthesis Stage is the fourth and final stage of initial formation for the priesthood. This stage is a new requirement of the Program of Priestly Formation; it will be implemented in the coming years, will begin after ordination to the diaconate, and last a minimum of six months. The goal is to help the transitional deacon navigate the change from seminary life and academics to full-time ministry in a parish setting.

Father Van Sloun is the director of clergy personnel for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis.

DAILY Scriptures

Sunday, May 11

Fourth Sunday of Easter Acts 13:14, 43-52

Rev 7:9, 14b-17 Jn 10:27-30

Monday, May 12 Acts 11:1-18 Jn 10:1-10

Tuesday, May 13 Acts 11:19-26 Jn 10:22-30

Wednesday, May 14 St. Matthias, Apostle Acts 1:15-17, 20-26 Jn 15:9-17

Thursday, May 15 Acts 13:13-25 Jn 13:16-20

Friday, May 16 Acts 13:26-33 Jn 14:1-6

Saturday, May 17 Acts 13:44-52 Jn 14:7-14

Sunday, May 18 Fifth Sunday of Easter Acts 14:21-27 Rev 21:1-5a Jn 13:31-33a, 34-35

Monday, May 19 Acts 14:5-18 Jn 14:21-26

Tuesday, May 20 Acts 14:19-28 Jn 14:27-31a

Wednesday, May 21 Acts 15:1-6 Jn 15:1-8

Thursday, May 22 Acts 15:7-21 Jn 15:9-11

Friday, May 23 Acts 15:22-31 Jn 15:12-17

Saturday, May 24 Acts 16:1-10 Jn 15:18-21

Sunday, May 25 Sixth Sunday of Easter Acts 15:1-2, 22-29 Rev 21:10-14, 22-23 Jn 14:23-29

KNOW the SAINTS

ST. PASCHAL BAYLON (1540-1592) Born to a Spanish shepherd family, St. Paschal was said to have taught himself to read while tending sheep. At age 21 he joined an austere group of Franciscans, devoting himself to prayer and charity. He was sent on a dangerous mission to French Franciscans, and a shoulder wound he received caused him pain for the rest of his life. Long hours of prayer on his knees before the Eucharist earned this lay brother the honor of being patron of Catholic Eucharistic congresses. His emblem in art is a monstrance. His feast day is May 17. — OSV News

COMMENTARY

ECHOES OF CATHOLIC MINNESOTA | REBA LUIKEN

Oblate Sisters of Providence ministered for 30 years in Twin Cities

Editor’s note: As the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis celebrates its 175th anniversary this year, Catholic historian Reba Luiken is devoting her columns to stories of women — some well-known and others less so — who have impacted its history. The following column addresses the influence of the Oblate Sisters of Providence.

In September 1945, three Black Catholic religious sisters arrived in St. Paul from Baltimore to Catholic fanfare.

Archbishop John Gregory welcomed them with a Mass at St. Peter Claver in downtown St. Paul and religious sisters from across the archdiocese came together to host a tea in their honor the following week. Newspapers in Minneapolis and St. Paul covered the event. The new arrivals were members of the Oblate Sisters of Providence, the oldest American order of sisters and the first community of Black sisters in the United States. They had come to serve in the interracial parish. Among them was Sister Celine, who

Traveling mercies: Over the river and through the woods

The journey from a suburban Home Depot to our new country home spanned 11 miles and three helpers, winding over the river and through the woods. In the end, three crabapple trees successfully reached their destination — their trunks, an inch wide, their potential, infinite.

It started in the parking lot, where I collapsed seats and unrolled windows in my Honda Accord. I tried one configuration after another, but the trees weren’t fitting. I was about to return them to the lot when a man walked up and said four blessed words: “Do you need help?”

He asked if I lived in town, offering to drive them to my house for me, then helped me devise a plan for the trees, clearing out my trunk and suggesting a back-roads route home. Soon I was on my way. The crabapples were mine because of a stranger’s kindness. Helper No.1.

A mile later the trees began sliding precariously. I was about to pass a friend’s home, so I made an emergency exit. Being able to unload the trees there brought such relief. Helper No. 2: an old friendship coming through in a pinch.

For the last leg, I was armed with confidence and a larger vehicle. I called my grandma as I crossed the river, knowing how much she loves her crabapples. “Could you do me a small favor?” she asked. “Would you let me buy them for you?” Helper No. 3.

It called to mind the title of an Anne Lamott book: “Traveling Mercies.” The crabapples are now blooming, and wrapped into their beauty is a layered story of kindness.

had 18 years of experience as a teacher and sister in Baltimore.

In her first few years in St. Paul, Sister Celine’s ministry was focused on developing a parish education program for children and adults of St. Peter Claver in the Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul, where a new school and church were planned. Occasionally, she and the other sisters would also cross the river to then-St. Martin and St. Leonard of Port Maurice parishes, which also had substantial numbers of Black parishioners. By the fall of 1950, Sister Celine had become Mother Celine. She also became the first principal of the newly opened St. Peter Claver school,

This spring has been a time of change. Moving a family takes enormous work and many helping hands. I feel God inviting me to grow in humility, to accept the help with an open heart and no ledger. Grace doesn’t operate as a quid pro quo. It flows freely, multiplying on its own.

Hardworking Catholics are often led to believe that self-sufficiency is a virtue. I remember hosting a big Christmas party during which a guest offered to serve food. It felt like the correct answer was “no, thanks, I’ve got it.”

I had to pause and re-examine that instinct. Would she have offered to help if she didn’t want to?

I smiled brightly. “Yes, please!”

When we allow someone to help us, we instantly feel closer to that person. And the next time that person needs help, he or she will be more comfortable asking for it.

May has become so busy, earning the nickname “Maycember” for its ability to rival December’s madness. So many families are coasting on fumes till The Last Day of School.

It is time to welcome aid. As Catholics, we recognize the intricate network of carpools and casseroles as the body of Christ. “We are one body, one body in Christ, and we do not stand alone.”

It is good to be the helper, and it is holy to be the helped.

That’s the parting wisdom shared posthumously by a 49-year-old Catholic mom here who, as she would put it, recently won her battle with cancer by escaping it and joining the Lord. Her words were quoted in her obituary and read by the priest at her funeral Mass. “It’s hard to be humble and ask for help,” Angela wrote, “but I loved being a vessel that helps people be their best selves when they help me.”

That’s the crux of it, the big opportunity: How can we be a vessel for God, letting others in and allowing them to grow? It takes humility, transparency — acting as a window for God’s light to shine through. In the process, we are all made better.

Capecchi is a freelance writer from Inver Grove Heights.

where she taught alongside seven members of her order.

Two years later, she became mother superior of a new convent at St. Leonard of Port Maurice in Minneapolis, where she took up residence across the street in the former priest’s house with two more sisters who had recently arrived from Baltimore. She left the work at St. Peter Claver in the hands of her sisters. At St. Leonard there was no school, so she led other classes for children and converts and made house calls. To support their mission work, the Oblates relied on the women’s auxiliary at St. Leonard, who called themselves the Oblate Helpers. These women donated a new car to the sisters so they could continue their mission work across Minneapolis.

The work of the Oblate Sisters in Minneapolis expanded over the 1950s and 1960s to meet the needs of the community and utilize the skills of the sisters. Sister Beninga arrived in 1955 and led the music and choir programs at St. Leonard for a year or two before returning to Baltimore. She was a lifelong friend of singer Marian Anderson and a gifted accompanist in her own right. Sister Elsa, a Black Cuban sister, taught summer school in Spanish at nearby Incarnation School. Although St. Leonard never had its own school, the Oblates living there taught at Incarnation in the 1950s and 1960s, supporting the teaching ministry of the Dominican sisters. By the early 1970s, the number of Catholic school children and Catholic religious sisters were shrinking, and all the Oblate sisters were called back to Baltimore to serve in other missions in 1975, including Mother Celine.

Luiken is a Catholic and a historian with a doctorate from the University of Minnesota.

GUEST COLUMN | FATHER MARK PAVLAK

Christ’s right-hand man

Editor’s note: As the Church prepares to celebrate World Day of Prayer for Vocations on May 11, Good Shepherd Sunday, the vocations director of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis shares this reflection on the call to the priesthood.

There is an interesting phrase we Christians have professed in our Creed for centuries that is easy to gloss over: He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. To be at someone’s right hand signifies closeness, honor and authority; thus, the Father shares everything that belongs to him with his Son. You’ve heard before the expression “he’s my right-hand man,” referring to someone who is indispensable as a trustworthy and loyal coworker. Think of Christ this way to his Father: He’s his Father’s right-hand man.

Now interestingly enough, Jesus uses similar language in John’s Gospel when speaking about himself as the good shepherd: “No one can take them out of the Father’s hand. The Father and I are one” (Jn 10:29-30). So, if the Father and the Son are one, are we safe in Christ’s hand or the Father’s? Here is perhaps where St. Augustine can be helpful: “the Son is the hand of the Father, not in a bodily sense, but as being he through whom all things were made” (Tractate on John, #48). The hand works, blesses, prays, even speaks, and so if Christ is the hand of the Father, he does all these things as one who shares in his Father’s honor and authority.

Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice ... no one can take them out of my hand” (Jn 10:27, 28).

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT

Members of the Oblate Sisters of Providence once served at St. Leonard of Port Maurice in Minneapolis.

ALREADY/NOT YET | JONATHAN LIEDL

Thoughts on a new pope

The world’s attention has been on Rome, as people eagerly await the outcome of the papal conclave, so I’ll use my monthly column here to offer my own thoughts about a new pope.

In a word, he is a leader. Christ made Peter the “rock” upon which he built his Church, and the authority of the Petrine office has been passed down through the centuries to newly elected pontiffs.

While it is a bit simplistic to say that the Holy Spirit picked him, as if the cardinal-electors were divinely possessed when they cast their ballots, it is true to say that God, in his providence, has willed this man to become our new pope. He is the Vicar of Christ, and the visible sign and principle of unity for the universal Church.

Our new pope will certainly be called to exercise this aspect of his office, as he leads the Church through any number of challenges, from liturgical disputes to diverging views of moral theology.

I can also safely say that our new pontiff will be a teacher. As supreme pontiff, his ordinary teaching, or authentic magisterium, regarding Catholic faith and morals requires “religious submission of intellect and will” from all the faithful. This means Catholics should receive his teaching with reverence and strive to understand it, even if it is not defined infallibly.

The Church — and the world — will look to the new Holy Father to apply the truth of the Gospel to contemporary phenomena ranging from artificial

INSIDE THE CAPITOL | MCC

Why undocumented immigrants should have access to health care

The Minnesota Catholic Conference (MCC) and its partner organization, the Catholic Health AssociationMinnesota, have long advocated for allowing the state’s undocumented immigrant community, particularly children, to access health insurance through MinnesotaCare.

Access was granted in the 2023 legislative session, yet enrollment has outpaced initial expectations. With a tight budget forecast, some legislators are proposing that access to this subsidized program for low-income Minnesotans be eliminated. MCC is opposed to the cuts, especially for children. Whether the program will be more expensive than anticipated is unclear and, either way, we are inviting lawmakers to find creative ways to preserve health care access for immigrants while controlling costs.

Health care access comes through insurance

Like it or not, unless you are able to afford often prohibitive out-of-pocket expenses for health care, you rely on some form of health insurance, whether purchased on the insurance market, provided by your employer, or accessed through a government program. That is the system that we have. MinnesotaCare, the state’s subsidized health insurance program, gives lowincome people who do not qualify for Medicaid the

intelligence to transgenderism.

And finally, our new Holy Father needs our prayers! Being the universal shepherd of 1.4 billion people is no easy task. The Holy Spirit certainly guarantees that the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church, but it’s also true that our new pope can use our intercessory efforts.

Now, as you might have anticipated, here’s a caveat. Everything I’ve said above is true. And yet, I have no idea, while writing this, who our next pope will be.

As providence would have it, I’m filing this column the day before the papal conclave begins May 7. By the time you read it, the cardinals could have elected our next pope. Or they could still be discerning who to choose as Pope Francis’ successor.

However, even without knowing who they will pick, everything I said applies: Our next pope will be the Vicar of Christ; he will teach with authority; and he will be responsible for leading the universal Catholic Church at this particular, challenging moment of history, for as long he holds the Petrine office. All of this will be true whether he comes from Asia or Africa, whether he has experience working in

opportunity to purchase at a reduced cost a basic health care plan.

In general, undocumented immigrants are ineligible for Medicaid and cannot access the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplace. So, unless an undocumented immigrant has the means for very expensive commercial insurance, MinnesotaCare is the only option for him or her.

Because immigrants have a right to treatment, they can access emergency services that end up being extremely costly to both the insurance pool and the taxpayer. It is for those reasons, and others, that many health care provider organizations — including the Minnesota Hospital Association and the Minnesota Medical Association — supported the MinnesotaCare Immigrant Inclusion Act in 2023.

But why are we “rewarding illegals”?

Refusing to provide access to health insurance or other services based solely on one’s legal status is a simplistic and blunt approach to a more complex problem. Businesses, advocacy groups and politicians have long taken advantage of our broken immigration system to induce many people to come here, and those who do can rarely get legal status or citizenship. As the late Pope Francis said, immigrants are sometimes treated like “pawns on the chessboard of humanity.”

The system needs to be fixed at the federal level, and not just with a more secure border. Until then, as Minnesotans, we can take steps to ensure the dignity and needs of our immigrant brothers and sisters, such as providing access to basic services to all people.

Undocumented immigrants, the vast majority of whom will not likely be deported, are willing to pay insurance premiums to receive health care access. The program need not be free or cheaper than what U.S. citizens pay. But they do need access to health insurance as health care is an important component of stewarding the gift of life that God has given to each of us.

State budgets are a moral document and should prioritize the protection of human dignity before other amenities. Those amenities include renovations to sports arenas, and what are essentially subsidies for favored

... Our next pope will be the Vicar of Christ; he will teach with authority; and he will be responsible for leading the universal Catholic Church at this particular, challenging moment of history, for as long he holds the Petrine office.

the Roman curia or not, or even whether he is more of a reformer or a stabilizer.

Of course, who the pope is matters, too. God doesn’t work in abstractions but through people. The personality of our next pope and the priorities he establishes will make a significant difference in this coming chapter of the Catholic Church. The way he speaks will matter. The gestures he makes will matter. His approach to evangelization will matter. The spiritual devotions and canonization causes he promotes will matter. The countries he chooses to visit will matter. The decisions he makes regarding everything from pastoral outreach to moral theology to ecumenism to the liturgy to Vatican finances to the sex abuse crisis to international diplomacy will matter. But at the end of the day, he will be the pope. And like the 266 popes before him, we all will be called to receive his teaching, respect his authority, and pray fervently for him — whoever he may be.

Liedl lives in South Bend, Indiana, and is senior editor for the National Catholic Register.

political allies, whether businesses, unions, or the government itself.

Education, shelter, health care (including for the elderly, immigrant, chronically ill and those with disability), a social safety net for the poor and vulnerable, and relieving the economic burden on families who are doing the most important work of raising the next generation should be budget priorities. And, in general, Minnesota can be proud of its track record. But it does not mean that further adjustments cannot be made to existing programs, or that spending priorities cannot be reconfigured to meet these goals.

Protecting the MinnesotaCare program should remain a key priority for Catholics in solidarity with our immigrant brothers and sisters.

Inside the Capitol is a legislative update from Minnesota Catholic Conference staff.

READERS’ mailbox

Pro-life prayers

For the last four years, my sister and her family have been praying and advocating for the unborn (and their parents) as part of a Catholic, pro-life prayer group. The group has unfailingly committed to standing on the sidewalks in front of Planned Parenthood clinics, praying for the unborn and at times, offering resources and assistance to conflicted mothers who ask for their help. In fact, they were recently approached by two such mothers who found consolation in their prayers and resources. In these volatile times, the devil has been working overtime. These faithful prayer warriors need your prayers now more than ever so they can continue their fight for nothing less than lives and souls. Please pray the St. Michael prayer (or other appropriate prayer) daily for these brave men and women and for all those whom they encounter.

Bayport

Tracy Tourville St. Charles,

iSTOCK PHOTOS | RARRARORRO

SIMPLE HOLINESS

KATE SOUCHERAY

Creating a thriving marriage

Creating a thriving marriage in this culture is nothing short of miraculous because we are in a time in which traditional marriage is threatened and diminishing in importance in the eyes of many young people.

Choosing to marry a person of the opposite gender, to have children and to remain faithful to your spouse were all aspects of a traditional marriage that were assumed just a generation or two ago. This is not so today. Therefore, to create such a marriage requires couples to stay close to those who value what they value and choose what they choose.

To create a thriving marriage in the culture we currently face requires us to develop the desire for these fundamentals. We must decide to get married in the first place and not live together beforehand, which means maintaining separate households until the wedding. That also means taking the premarital classes and

GUEST COLUMN CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20B

retreats offered by our Church and understanding, the best we can, what is asked of us in a Catholic marriage.

A thriving marriage also means that we want the best for our spouse, and we look for the best in them. We support each other and stamp out any negative thoughts immediately, knowing they are little seeds of doubt and dislike that can threaten the happiness of our union. These negative thoughts may appear to be normal and of little consequence. However, when a forest fire begins, it is often the little, smoldering spark that ignites and burns down the timber. Do not allow any negative thought to go unanswered.

A thriving marriage is also built

This time Jesus speaks of his own hand, not the Father’s. And so, if I may extend St. Augustine’s point one notch further, who calls Christ “the hand of the Father,” then I would call the priest “the hand of Christ.” With a brother’s kindness, Jesus chooses men to become sharers in his sacred ministry (cf. Preface for the Chrism Mass). In other words, he chooses the priest to be his hand: to be his right-hand man.

What greater honor could a man receive than for Christ to consider him to be a trustworthy and loyal coworker? When the Code of Canon Law speaks of those to be ordained to the priesthood, it says in part that the man must be considered “useful for the ministry of the Church” (CIC 1025, §2). I think this speaks directly to the hearts of men: Simply put, we love being useful. We don’t like standing around idle all day with nothing to do (think of the parable of the hired workers). No, we’d much rather lend a helping hand and look back on our day simply knowing that we helped someone. Before my head hits the pillow, I think of the people I fed with Christ’s body and blood, the people I helped unburden from their sins, the people who are mourning the death of a loved one, to whom I could bring a word of consolation. I think of the people lying sick to whom I brought a bit of spiritual comfort, the people who from my hands received the waters of baptism. How’s that for a useful day?

So, to readers praying about your vocations, I ask you please to consider the priesthood. In my lowly opinion, there is no greater honor than to be considered useful for the ministry of the Church and to be Christ’s hired worker. The Man who gave himself up to the point of death for your sins and rose from the dead to make you coheirs with him offers you even more: to be his trustworthy and loyal coworker in his vineyard; to be his right-hand man.

Father Pavlak is director of vocations for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis. He can be reached at stpaulpriest@10000vocations org

ACTION STRATEGIES

uStamp out any negativity in your marriage the second you notice a spark in thought, word, or deed. Do not allow it to go unaddressed.

uSee your spouse the way God sees him or her: with eyes of love. Tell them that with your actions and words.

on goodwill toward our spouse. No matter what, always assume the best. If something is said that appears hurtful or disrespectful, let it sit and do not respond immediately. Instead, look for what could be behind a comment and know it likely had nothing to do with you, but with a stressor in our spouse’s life. It is possible frustration led to a comment or action that came our way. When we assume bad will, we often assume the worst and nothing good is built on those feelings and assumptions.

A thriving marriage is also built on shared faith. Go to Mass together and stand together. Offer the sign of peace to each other, and if there is any strife between you, let it melt and wash

away. If you want to, hold hands and give each other small gestures of love. Pray together. Watch Christian movies together. Remember why you fell in love and tell each other of your love.

A thriving marriage is built on commitment. Do not let any social media or internet sites come between you. So many temptations come from these outlets and can bring discord to a marriage that was not present a mere two generations ago. It is difficult to imagine life without the input and intrusion on our lives from these sites and the negative influence they can infuse into our marriages. We must be vigilant and not allow any intrusion from this negativity to impact our marriage in a harmful way.

A thriving marriage contributes to a healthy, thriving society. If each one of us in a traditional marriage was to value our union with our spouse, and communicate that to everyone who sees us, we could change society. If we each made that our goal for the summer months ahead, through loving our spouse the way God loves him or her, we could make an enormous impact on the way we view our own marriage and the way others view a commitment to marriage. Young people must witness healthy marriages to know they are possible because so many have been impacted by divorce. Be the marriage that others can point to and say,“I want that.”

Soucheray is a licensed marriage and family therapist emeritus and a member of St. Ambrose in Woodbury.

You work hard to give your children good gifts — a loving home, a quality education, memorable experiences. Do they, too, know how to give good gifts to others? With a donor advised fund, you can teach your children how to give generously by giving together – as a family. Call us to learn how a donor advised fund can help your family build a legacy of charitable giving.

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iSTOCK PHOTO | FABIO CAMANDONA

CALENDAR

PARISH EVENTS

St. Bonaventure Annual Garage Sale — May 7-10: 5-7:30 p.m. May 7, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. May 8, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. May 9, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. May 10, at St. Bonaventure, 901 E. 90th St., Bloomington. Join us for our annual garage sale, where great deals meet community support. $2 admission May 7 preview sale, half-price day May 9, $5 bag day May 10. saintbonaventure org/garage-sale html

Holy Childhood Rummage Sale — May 8-9: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. at Holy Childhood, 1435 Midway Parkway, St. Paul. Huge sale with many treasures: household, clothing, books, puzzles, small furniture, vintage. Bag day on Friday. Enter off Pascal Street.

holychildhoodparish org/events/rummage-sale

Swing into Spring at St. Peter — May 10: 6:15-9:30 p.m. at St. Peter, 1405 Sibley Memorial Highway, Mendota. Swing dance the night away or just come to sit and listen to the sound of the North Star Big Band. $10 for adults over 18 and $5 for ages 18 and under. Brat or hot dog meal with chips, coleslaw and dessert for $7 and $5. stpetersmendota org

48th Annual St. George Church Rummage Sale — May 14-15: St. George, 133 N. Brown Road, Long Lake. Hosted by the St. George Women's Council. Better Goods room is back plus shop for unique finds; 50% off after 5 p.m. May 14 and May 15 is our bag sale. A sloppy joe lunch will be offered. stgeorgelonglake org

Art-a-Whirl at St. Clement — May 16-18: 5-10 p.m. May 16, noon-8 p.m. May 17, noon-5 p.m. May 18 at St. Clement, 901 24th Ave. NE, Minneapolis. Art-A-Whirl is a free art studio tour throughout Northeast Minneapolis. St. Clement will host over a dozen artists showcasing painting, ceramics, woodworking, photography and more. Polish happy hour the evening of May 16. ourholycross org/artawhirl

Rosary Society Spring Tea — May 17: 1-4 p.m. at St. Matthew, 510 Hall Ave., St. Paul. Enjoy tea, coffee and lemonade, plus assorted sweet and savory treats. Advanced tickets are required and can be purchased by calling the parish center at 651-224-9793. Cost: Adults: $15, ages 65-plus: $12, ages 10 and under: $7. Enter at Door #5. st-matts org/blog/st-matthews-rosary-societys-spring-tea

Children’s Clothing and Toy Sale — May 17-18: 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at St. Joseph the Worker, 7180 Hemlock Lane N., Maple Grove. Excellent items for children including allseasons clothing; newborn to 16. Outerwear, footwear, baby accessories and essentials, furniture, strollers, car seats, booster seats, books, games, outdoor toys, bikes, children’s sporting goods and more. sjtw net/childrens-sale-1 WORSHIP+RETREATS

Women's Weekend: Pilgrims of Hope — May 9-11: Christ the King Retreat Center, 621 First Ave. S., Buffalo. Experience beautiful surroundings, fellowship and spiritual renewal during this holy year of grace. Call 763-682-1394 for more info or register online. kingshouse com

Women’s Mid-Week Retreat: Finding God in Difficult Times — May 13-15: 7 p.m. May 13-12:30 p.m. May 15 at Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center, 16385 Saint Francis Lane, Prior Lake. Enter into prayer, reflection and learning. Four conference talks, guided prayer, spiritual direction, Holy Hour, ample free time for personal reflection,

unhurried confession and rest. All meals are cooked on site. Gardens blooming. 952-447-2182

Healing Mass — May 22: 7-9 p.m. at St. Michael, 11300 Frankfort Parkway, St. Michael. Healing Mass celebrated by Father Park. Following Mass, Father Park will individually pray over all of those who would like prayer. Prayer teams will also be available after Mass to pray for specific needs.

stmcatholicchurch org/church

Memory Care Mass — May 22: 1:30-3 p.m. at St. Odilia, 3495 Victoria St. N., Shoreview. All are welcome, especially anyone experiencing memory loss, their family members and their caregivers. Hospitality after Mass for socializing and community resource information will be available. For information, call 651-484-6681. stodilia org

SPEAKERS+SEMINARS

Praying and Living the Mass after Vatican II — May 15: 6:30 p.m. at Mary, Mother of the Church, 3333 Cliff Road E., Burnsville. Father Jan Michael Joncas, the presenter, is a retired priest of the archdiocese and professor emeritus of the University of St. Thomas. mmotc org

Life is Good Speaker Series — May 20-21: 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. at St. John the Baptist, 680 Mill St., Excelsior. Come and listen to Laura Elm, who formerly worked for an IVF company. After learning the hard truths about IVF, Elm was inspired to extend mercy and compassion to families and their very young ones. Elm founded Sacred Heart Guardians. stjohns-excelsior org

SCHOOLS

Preschool and Kindergarten Superhero Family Blast — May 18: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at Nativity of Mary School, 9901 E. Bloomington Freeway, Bloomington. This event features superhero-themed activities, snacks, a photo booth, and an opportunity to meet teachers. To RSVP and for details: school nativitybloomington org

YOUNG ADULTS

Following God's Call: Finding One's Vocations Over a Lifetime — May 13: 6:30-8:30 p.m. at University of St. Thomas Law School, 1101 Harmon Place, Minneapolis. How do we discern how God is calling us to fulfill his mission in the world? Do we adjust our vocations during different seasons of life? Speaker Jerry Organ answers these questions. Adoration and refreshments included. Full details: catholiccend org/events-news

OTHER EVENTS

Franciscan International Award Dinner — May 8: 6-9 p.m. at Wilds Golf Club, 3151 Wilds Ridge Court, Prior Lake. For 65 years, this event has been an opportunity for retreatants and friends of Franciscan Retreats and Spirituality Center to gather together and support the ministry of the retreat house. Call the Franciscan Retreat Center at 952-447-2182.

franciscanretreats net/franciscan-international-award

Taizé — May 9: 7-8 p.m. at St. Mary of the Lake, 4741 Bald Eagle Avenue, White Bear Lake. All are welcome to this evening prayer, which consists of music, Scripture, and silence. Taizé will be held in the Notre Dame Chapel at St. Mary of the Lake church.

Abria’s Life is Wonderful Fun Run — May 10: 9 a.m.noon. at Lake Harriet Bandshell Park, 4135 W. Lake Harriet Parkway, Minneapolis. Join the celebration of motherhood at Abria’s Life is Wonderful Fun Run on Mother’s Day weekend by participating in the 10/5K walk or run! Abria Pregnancy Resources is a nonprofit dedicated to supporting women who face unexpected pregnancies. tinyurl com/4fwdt4rn

St. Vincent de Paul Holy Family Bingo — May 10: 1-3 p.m. at Holy Family Academy, 5925 West Lake St., St. Louis Park. Join us for bingo, popcorn, and fellowship! Proceeds support Society of St. Vincent de Paul to help our Neighbors in Need. Go to the back side of the school (parking lot side), street parking also is available. $18 cash only at door; must be 18 or older to play. svdphf org Immersion Trip to Chimbote, Peru — Register by May 15: Join the Center for Mission Aug. 12-20 as we journey to Chimbote, Peru. Learn more about our universal faith, be inspired by the people you serve and serve with. Transform your understanding of what it means to be the body of Christ, and encounter Christ in those you serve. Visit our website for more information at tinyurl com/y6a5rwh9 or contact Janine Ricker at 651-291-4504. Deadline to sign up is May 15, trip open to anyone over age 21. Missionary Sisters Annual Plant Sale — May 17: 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at Missionary Sisters of St. Peter, 265 Century Ave. S., Woodbury. A wide variety of perennials, come support the Missionary Sisters. clavermissionarysisters org First Annual Being Prolife in Minnesota Today Fundraiser — May 19: 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Guardian Angels, 8260 N. Fourth St., Oakdale. Come support Options for Women East. RSVP to Terry Quinn at tquinn@guardian-angels org Freewill offering.

ONGOING GROUPS

Catholic in Recovery — Every Sunday starting April 20: 7-8 p.m. at St. Mark, 2001 Dayton Ave., St. Paul. Catholic sacramental recovery and fellowship for those seeking freedom from addictions, compulsions and unhealthy attachments. We overlap Scripture reading, liturgical themes, and 12 step recovery topics. Questions? Call Eileen M. at 612-483-2973. catholicinrecovery com Calix Society — First and third Sundays: 9-10:30 a.m., hosted by the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul. In Assembly Hall, Lower Level. Potluck breakfast. Calix is a group of men, women, family and friends supporting the spiritual needs of recovering Catholics with alcohol or other addictions. Questions? Call Jim at 612-383-8232 or Steve at 612-327-4370.

Career Transition Group — Third Thursdays: 7:308:30 a.m. at Holy Name of Jesus, 155 County Road 24, Medina. The Career Transition Group hosts speakers on various topics to help people looking for a job or a change in career and to enhance job skills. The meetings also allow time for networking with others and opportunities for resume review. hnoj org/career-transition-group Fire on the Hill — Third Saturdays: 5:15 p.m. Mass followed by praise and worship at the Cathedral of St. Paul, 239 Selby Ave., St. Paul, until May 17.

Gifted and Belonging — Fourth Sundays: 6:30–8 p.m. at St. Matthew, 510 Hall Ave., St. Paul., and Second Fridays, 6:30-8 p.m. at Maternity of Mary, 1414 Dale St. N.,

DUPLEX UNIT FOR RENT

Available in Cathedral area: tinyurl.com/Albans55104

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Resurrection: single lot; section 13; Market: $2250. Price: $1750. 612-800-3484

Resurrection Cemetery: 5 graves; Section 13, Block 25, Lots 19, 20. Value: $2365/ea. Price $2000/ ea. 612-710-8697.

Part-time Law Office Typist in West St. Paul, Minnesota: Produce legal documents including Wills, Trusts, Briefs, Pleadings, and Reports. Administrative support to attorneys and paralegals. In addition, a paralegal or legal assistant is also needed with similar duties but expanded to include research and composition of documents and other related duties. QuickBooks experience preferred. Contact John Trojack 651-451-9696 or complete “Contact” on our website: TrojackLaw.com

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 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.

TheCatholiCSpirit Com/CalendarSubmiSSionS

St. Paul. Providing Catholic fellowship for young adults with disabilities, seen and unseen. Gather to share a time of prayer and reflection, followed by games and social activities. Invite friends, and bring a caregiver as needed. For more information on monthly activities and/or volunteer opportunities, call Megan at 612-456-1572 or email giftedandbelonging@gmail com

Natural Family Planning (NFP) — Classes teach couples Church approved methods on how to achieve or postpone pregnancy while embracing the beauty of God’s gift of sexuality. For a complete list of classes offered throughout the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, visit archspm org/family or call 651-291-4489.

Quilters for a Cause — First Fridays: 9 a.m.-2 p.m. at St. Jerome, 380 Roselawn Ave. E., Maplewood. Join other women to make quilts to donate to local charities. Quilting experience is not necessary, but basic machine skills are helpful. For more information, call the parish office: 651-771-1209. facebook com/profile php?id=100087945155707 Restorative Support for Victims-Survivors — Monthly: 6:30-8 p.m. via Zoom. Open to all victims-survivors. Victim-survivor support group for those abused by clergy as adults — first Mondays. Support group for relatives or friends of victims of clergy sexual abuse — second Mondays. Victim-survivor support group — third Mondays. Survivor Peace Circle — third Tuesdays. Support group for men who have been sexually abused by clergy/religious — fourth Wednesdays. Support group for present and former employees of faith-based institutions who have experienced abuse in any of its many forms — second Thursdays. Visit archspm org/healing or contact Paula Kaempffer, outreach coordinator for restorative justice and abuse prevention, at kaempfferp@archspm org or 651-291-4429.

Secular Franciscan Meeting of St. Leonard of Port Maurice Fraternity — Third Sundays: 2:15-3:45 p.m. at St. Olaf, 215 S. Eighth St., Minneapolis. General membership meeting of Secular Franciscans who belong to the Fraternity of St. Leonard of Port Maurice. Any who are interested in living the Gospel life in the manner of St. Francis and St. Clare are welcome.

For painting & all related services. View our website: PAINTINGBYJERRYWIND.COM or call (651) 699-6140.

Michaels Painting. Texture and Repair. MichaelsPaintingLLC.com. (763) 757-3187

PRAYERS

NOTICE: Prayers must be submitted in advance. Payment of $8 per line must be received before publication. REAL

Parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis submitted their 2025 spring and summer festivals for this guide, a listing of auctions, games, food and fun hosted by parishes.

The Catholic Spirit will be back at it in our upcoming July 24 issue for the Fall Parish Festival Guide, including the months of August, September, October and November.

Please note: The information represents parish submissions by press time. For updates, find the list online at TheCatholicSpirit.com.

MAY

St. Peter Claver, St. Paul — Chicken BBQ Fundraiser: May 18, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 10 a.m. Mass. 369 Oxford St. N., Silent auction, bingo and raffle, barbecue chicken, barbecue sides and soft drinks. $25. 651-888-8161. tinyurl.com/6kx5wd5m

St. Rita, Cottage Grove — Heritage Fair: May 18, 11:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. 10:30 a.m. Mass. 8694 80th St. S. Parishioners share food from their countries of origin. Free. 651-459-4596. saintritas.org

JUNE

St. Anne-St. Joseph Hien, Minneapolis — Annual Summer Festival: June 20, 5-10 p.m.; June 21, 2-10 p.m.; June 22, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. 2627 Queen Ave. N., back parking lot between church and school buildings. Food, beverages, games for children, free music entertainment. Raffle drawing June 22 at 4 p.m. Food options include a variety of authentic Vietnamese dishes: egg rolls, meatballs, fried chicken, fried rice, soups, desserts and drinks. Food is also available to go. 612-529-0503. gxannagiusehien.net

Annunciation, Northfield — Festival: June 21-22. 4996 Hazelwood Ave. June 21: 7 p.m. Mass followed by parking lot dance 7:30-10:30 p.m., featuring music by The Underdogs. Includes food, beverages, $100 cash raffle tickets for sale, 50/50 raffle drawing and kids’ activities including a bounce house. June 22: 10 a.m. Mass, followed by events including food, beverages, country store, music by Charley Sticha Band and Concrete Cowboy, bingo, tours of the church and cemetery, $100 cash raffle drawing, 50/50 raffle drawing, and kids’ activities including bouncy house. 952-652-2625.

St. Stanislaus, St. Paul — Spring Fling: June 21. 398 W. Superior St. 4 p.m. polka Mass followed by outdoor spring picnic. Hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, beans, desserts and lemonade. $7, ages 6 and under: free.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, Minnetonka — Block Party: June 28, 9 a.m.-8 p.m. 4:30 p.m. Mass. 13505 Excelsior Blvd. Food, beverages, 5k fun run, bingo, llama petting zoo, children’s chalk art contest, children’s activities, adult cornhole tournament and music featuring The Backyard Band following Mass. 952-935-1432. ihm-cc.org

JULY

Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Minneapolis — Parish Festival: July 13, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m. 10:30 a.m. Mass. 701 Fillmore St. NE. Food, beverages, wine pull, silent auction and DJ. Raffle drawing at 3:30 p.m. 763-567-1983. olmcmpls.org

St. Mary of Czestochowa, Delano — 42nd Annual Festival: July 20, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. 10 a.m. Mass. 1867 95th St. SE. Beef/pork dinner with sides and poppyseed kuchen, live polka music, kids’ games and inflatable, silent auction, bingo, country store, raffle, pull tabs, bean bag tournament, beer, wine, soft drinks, hot dogs and chips. $17 meal ticket. stmarydelano.org/our-parish/festival

St. Patrick, Jordan — Summer Festival: July 20, 10 a.m-5 p.m. 10 a.m. Mass. 24425 Old Highway 13 Blvd. Grilled chicken dinner, snack bar, raffle, kids’ games, bingo, country store, silent auction, pull tabs, antique tractors, live music, beer and soft drinks. Adults: $17, kids: $7.50, ages 3 and under: free. 952-492-6276.

St. Michael, Stillwater — Emerald Festival: July 27, noon-4 p.m. 611 Third St. S. Arts

and handcrafts fair, farmers’ market, music, trolley rides, kids’ games, kids’ crafts, mini golf, food and beverages, corned beef sliders, hot dogs, brats, chips, root beer floats, beer, soda and water. Free admission. 651-439-4400. stmichaelandstmarystillwater.org

AUGUST

St. Raphael, Crystal — St. Raphael’s 73rd Parish Festival: Aug. 1, 5-10 p.m.; Aug. 2, 2:3010 p.m.; Aug. 3, 8:30-11 a.m. 8:30 a.m. Mass Aug. 3. 7301 Bass Lake Road. Famous roast beef sandwiches, live bands, kids’ games and bottle blast, inflatable obstacle course, kiddie train ride, cash prize bingo, raffle ticket and pull tab sales, softball tournament spectating and a cornhole tournament on Aug. 2 at 3 p.m. Beer truck, state fair corn on the cob, hot dogs, St. Raphael brats, corn dogs, french fries, authentic-style tacos, walking tacos, nachos, mini donuts, popcorn, soda and water. New this year: outdoor Mass on Aug. 3 and cleanup. saintraphaelcrystal.org/parish-festival

St. John Vianney, South St. Paul — SJV Feast Day: Aug. 3, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. 10:30 a.m. Mass. 840 19th Ave. N. Pig roast, pie baking contest, corn on the cob, potluck picnic. Free lemonade, iced tea, coffee. Freewill offering. 651-451-1863. sjvssp.org

St. Gerard Majella, Brooklyn Park — Corn Fest: Aug. 8, 5-10 p.m.; Aug. 9, 3-10 p.m. 5 p.m. Mass

Aug. 8. 9600 Regent Ave. N. Pat Balder’s Super Duos Band Aug. 8, Vietnamese Band Aug. 9, corn on the cob and grilled food booth, Asian food booths, mini donuts, ice cream, soda, beer tent, basket auction, bingo, raffle, kids’ games and more. Free admission. 763-424-8770. st-gerard.org

St. Wenceslaus, New Prague — St. Wenceslaus Parish Festival: Aug. 10, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. 4:30 p.m. 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Mass. 215 Main St. E. Chicken dinner; food trucks; pork burger and hot dog stand; baking booth with kolacky and T-rings; ice cream; Merchant Mart shopping; kids’ games; live music by Colton Tupy, The Trouba Troubadours and Mitchell Hall and the Tennessee Trio; bingo; bucket raffle; split the pot; cash raffle; pull tabs, beer tent, wine, soft drinks. 952-7583225. npcatholic.org

St. Mary of the Lake, White Bear Lake — Parish Festival: Aug. 16, 6-8 p.m.; Aug. 17, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. 4690 Bald Eagle Ave. Live music, kids’ games, jewelry sales, bake and craft sale, grand raffle tickets, food trucks, dinner Aug. 16, beer, wine and soft drinks. 651-429-7771. stmarys-wbl.org/event/parish-festival

Sts. Joachim and Anne, Shakopee — JACS

JAM: Aug. 16, 4-10 p.m.; Aug. 17, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. 4 p.m. outdoor polka Mass Aug. 16, 9 a.m. Mass Aug. 17 in the Marystown church, 12:30 p.m. Spanish Mass in the Marystown church. 15850 Marystown Road. Silent and live auctions, bake sale, kids’ games and entertainment, bingo, Chicken Plop, DJ, live polka music, raffles, hot dogs, hamburgers, brats, french fries, pulled pork sandwiches, elote/corn on the cob, quesadillas, tacos, nachos, beer, wine and more. Free. 952-445-1319. ssjacs.org

Most Holy Trinity, Veseli — 58th Annual Ho-Down: Aug. 17, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. 11 a.m. Mass. 4939 N. Washington St. Polka Mass at 11 a.m. followed by food, games for all ages, prizes and cash drawings, home-baked goods, (including many Czech favorites), church tours, silent auction and continuous music until 6 p.m. Grilled pork and dumpling dinner served 11 a.m. until sold out, hamburgers, hot dogs, malts, popcorn, beer and soda. Na Shledanou Ve Veseli! We hope to see you in Veseli! 507-744-2823. mhtveseli.com

St. Genevieve, Centerville — St. Genevieve’s Annual Parish Festival: Aug. 17, 11 a.m.-3 p.m. 6995 Centerville Road. Chicken dinner, silent auction, country store, bingo, raffles, children’s games and refreshments. Adults: $14, ages 10 and under: $6. 651-429-7937. stgens.org

St. Thomas the Apostle, Corcoran — Parish Festival and Turkey Dinner: Aug. 17, 11:30 a.m.-4 p.m. 10:30 a.m. Mass. 2000 County Road 10. Turkey dinner, concessions, beer tent and activities: entertainment from the Jolly Ramblers, cash drawing, interactive kid area, beer tent, cash bingo, silent auction, craft sale, farmers’ market, bake sale, cake walk, hula hoop contest, music and more. Turkey dinner prices TBD. 763-420-2385. churchofstthomas.org/parish-festival

St. Mathias, Hampton — Fun Fest: Aug. 24, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. 10 a.m. Mass. 23315 Northfield Blvd. Pulled pork, hot dogs, German potato salad, live music, kids’ games, bingo, silent auction, country store, raffle, live auction, food, beer, seltzers and soft drinks. 651-437-9030. stmathias-hampton.com

DAVE HRBACEK | THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT