The Catholic Telegraph February 2022

MAGAZINE

191st year | issue 2

bringing faith into the home

february 2022 | catholic media | 1

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edi t or’s not e

What Inspires You? Whether we like it or not, media has infused itself into almost every aspect of our lives. We watch local television news and streaming services, listen to the radio as we drive and scroll through social media feeds at our leisure – it is our constant companion.

But we can choose what we consume, more so now than ever before. Search through Netflix movies or Apple podcasts and it’s easy to be overwhelmed with the offerings. Why do we seek it? Are we looking for entertainment? Information?

Inspiration? A break from reality? A connection to some greater truth?

Catholic media outlets began over 200 years ago. The Catholic Telegraph’s 191 years of existence, its continued growth and its expansion into new media environments testify to a desire for Truth.

These thoughts flitted through my mind as I listened to the Epiphany Mass homily, which, while not specifically about the media, helped solidify why Catholic media is still needed.

Father Sunberg said, “Are we paying attention to the signs of the time that we’re living in? Are we observant to what’s going on around us in the world and in the Church? And if we’re paying attention, is what we’re seeing and what we’re hearing – is it leading us closer to Christ or further away from Him? Does it meet up to what He left us in the scriptures and the teachings of the Church? Or is it deceiving us to believe or follow something else counterfeit?”

This crystallized Catholic media’s essentiality – in all its forms. Through each venue, Catholic media provides a view of the world around us through the eyes of Christ, through the lens of Truth. These outlets challenge us, and may even make us uncomfortable when our secular beliefs clash with the teachings of Christ and those of His Church.

And while that collision of beliefs may be uncomfortable, it means Catholic media is doing its job! Their offerings, presented with authenticity and charity, should help us grow in our faith, broaden our faith perspective and welcome Christ’s teachings into our hearts.

The popularity of Catholic media heavy hitters, like Bishop Barron’s Word on Fire and Father Mike Schmitz’s Bible in a Year podcast, reveal that Catholics are looking to media when seeking to grow their faith – and what’s easier than the resources readily available in those devices kept a hand’s reach away?

There are so many media options at our fingertips! While many are not necessarily bad, Catholic media offers something the others don’t: a means to view the entire world we live in with an eye to the world to come.

cteditorial@catholicaoc.org

THE CATHOLIC TELEGRAPH 191st Year No. 2 • February 2022 513-263-6635 • thecatholictelegraph.com

PUBLISHER Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr

EDITOR Jessica Rinaudo

MEDIA SALES Deacon Graham Galloway

GRAPHIC DESIGN Emma Cassani

PHOTOGRAPHY Margaret Swensen

DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT Dominick Albano

NEW MEDIA EDITOR Greg Hartman

SOCIAL MEDIA Katherine Geiger

100 East Eighth St., Cincinnati, OH 45202 ctadvertising@catholicaoc.org The Catholic Telegraph (xUSPS 094-520) ISSN. 10736689 is published monthly by the Archdiocese of Cincinnati 100 E 8th St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. Periodicals postage paid at Cincinnati and at additional mailing office.

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contents news

catholic media

columns

8 BEACONS OF LIGHT

18 EARNESTLY SEEKING ANSWERS

7 QUESTION OF FAITH

JEREMY HELMES

Foundational principles: Eucharist

KATIE SCIBA

Why does the Church honor saints’ relics?

12 CROSS-GENERATIONAL FRIENDSHIP KARY ELLEN BERGER

Sister McNally, C.PP.S. and high school student formed lasting bond through letter-writing

Founder of The Catholic Woman brings the truth of feminine genius to the world

FATHER DAVID ENDRES

16 A CLOSER LOOK DR. KENNETH CRAYCRAFT

22 ON AIR: ANNA MITCHELL

Zeros, ones and the end of man

KARY ELLEN BERGER

Sacred Heart Radio’s morning voice

20 CATHOLIC AT HOME KATIE SCIBA

34 DEVELOPING YOUNG STUDENTS’ FULL POTENTIAL

24 DANIEL RUDD

EILEEN CONNELLY, OSU

Black Catholic journalism and racial advocate stands out as one of the archdiocese’s greatest historical figures

21 KIDS’ CORNER St. Gabriel

24 CATCHING FOXES

GAIL FINKE & EMMA CASSANI

St. Philomena Montessori opens doors in McCartyville Pope Francis’ Prayer Intention for February For religious sisters and consecrated women: We pray for religious sisters and consecrated women; thanking them for their mission and their courage; may they continue to find new responses to the challenges of our times.

ON THE COVER PHOTO BY: MARGARET SWENSEN

Anna Mitchell, co-host of Sacred Heart Radio’s Son Rise Morning Show, on air.

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Accept the invitation to act

SARAH ATER

31 DID YOU KNOW?

JOHN STEGEMAN

St. Clare, College Hill

Podcast lives in the tension between faith and culture

32 SEIZE THE MOMENT NICHOLAS HARDESTY

26 BECOMING 21ST CENTURY SAINTS

To know or not to know?

That is the question.

MARGARET SWENSEN

36 THEOLOGY OF THE BODY

YouTuber Harris Craycraft on using technology as a means for evangelization

DR. ANDREW SODERGREN

30 A PRIEST’S PERSPECTIVE

38 MAKING CATHOLIC MEMORIES

FATHER EARL FERNANDES

WAYNE & MARIANNE TOPP

Technology and the human condition

St. Scholastica

33 SHINE ON

42 THE FINAL WORD

DOMINICK ALBANO

JOE DUCA

What is good?

A few notes on sculpting time

Original Unity: Imago Trinitatis

SEEK THE LORD ARCHBI S HO P D E NNIS M. SCH NUR R The pandemic-necessitated change from physical to virtual interactions in business, education and even entertainment reminded us that in-person communication is the fullest and best form of communication. That is why God became one of us through the Incarnation.

And yet, the Good News has always reached the largest numbers of people through the media of the day. That began with the Bible under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. In a sense, Sts. Matthew, Mark, Luke, John and Paul were the original Catholic media figures as they reported and reflected on the life, death and resurrection of Christ in writings that became part of the canon of the New Testament.

In a similar way, missionary disciples of succeeding generations in the Church have used books, newspapers, magazines, radio, television, videos, websites and, most recently, social media to attract, educate and evangelize Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Bishop Edward D. Fenwick founded The Catholic Telegraph newspaper for exactly those purposes in 1831, when the Diocese of Cincinnati was just 10 years old.

Now in its 191st year, The Catholic Telegraph endures today as an engaging monthly magazine with the mission of “bringing the faith into the home.” That is because print remains an important means of communicating the goodness, beauty and truth of the Catholic faith. Today, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati utilizes the full spectrum of communication media, from print to digital. The archdiocese also encourages and appreciates the evangelizing work of Sacred Heart Radio in greater Cincinnati and Radio Maria in greater Dayton.

Long before the coming of digital media, Pope St. Paul VI wrote prophetically in his 1975 apostolic exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi about the importance of new communication technologies. “The Church would feel guilty before the Lord if she did not utilize these powerful means that human skill is daily rendering more perfect. It is

through them that she proclaims ‘from the housetops’ the message of which she is the depositor. In them she finds a modern and effective version of the pulpit. Thanks to them she succeeds in speaking to the multitudes” (EN 45).

Along the same lines, Pope St. John Paul II referred to presentday social communications as “the modern equivalents of the Areopagus” (Redemptoris Missio 37), referring to the hill in Athens from which St. Paul preached to large crowds (Acts 17:22-31). This is a positive comparison, and the Church has consistently viewed new forms of media as potential partners in mission.

In his message for World Communications Day in 2021, “Communicating by Encountering People Where and As They Are,” Pope Francis noted dangers as well as opportunities in today’s omnipresent media. “[T]he risk of misinformation being spread on social media has become evident to everyone,” he wrote. “We have known for some time that news and even images can be easily manipulated, for any number of reasons, at times simply for sheer narcissism.

Being critical in this regard is not about demonizing the internet but is rather an incentive to greater discernment and responsibility for contents both sent and received.”

Discernment of content involves taking the time to reflect on such questions as: Is this true? Is it charitable? Is it helpful?

That is especially important before sharing on social media.

Even Catholic sources of information require such scrutiny.

As St. Paul urged, “Test everything; retain what is good” (1 Thess. 5:21).

Catholic media and Catholics who work in media step into these spheres, proclaiming the Good News and the teachings of the Church, meeting people where and as they are. As we engage with the media, whether it be through what we consume on television and radio, or how we interact on social media, let us do so with an eye towards Christ and that which is good, beautiful and true.

S E E K T H E L O R D / F E B R UARY 2022 | 5

BUSCA AL SEÑOR ARZOBISPO DENNIS M. SCHNURR

El cambio de las interacciones presenciales a las virtuales, necesitado por la pandemia, en los negocios, la educación e incluso el entretenimineto nos hace recordar que la comunicación presencial es la mejor y más completa forma de comunicación. Por eso Dios se convirtió en uno de nosotros a través de la Encarnación.

Y, sin embargo, la Buena Nueva siempre ha llegado al mayor número de personas a través de los medios de comunicación del día. Eso comenzó con la Biblia bajo la inspiración del Espíritu Santo. En cierto sentido, san Mateo, san Marcos, san Lucas, san Juan y san Pablo fueron las figuras católicas originales de los medios de comunicación que informaron y reflexionaron sobre la vida, muerte y resurrección de Cristo en escritos que se convirtieron en parte del Nuevo Testamento.

De manera similar, los discípulos misioneros de las generaciones venideras en la Iglesia han utilizado libros, periódicos, revistas, radio, televisión, videos, sitios web y, más recientemente, las redes sociales para atraer, educar y evangelizar a católicos y a los no católicos por igual. El obispo Edward D. Fenwick fundó el periódico The Catholic Telegraph (El Telégrafo Católico) exactamente con esos propósitos en 1831, cuando la Diócesis de Cincinnati tenía solo 10 años.

Ahora en su año 191, The Catholic Telegraph perdura como una revista mensual atractiva con la misión de “llevar la fe al hogar”. Esto se debe a que la letra impresa sigue siendo un medio importante para comunicar la bondad, la belleza y la verdad de la fe católica. Hoy, la Arquidiócesis de Cincinnati utiliza todo el espectro de medios de comunicación, desde impresos hasta digitales. La arquidiócesis también alienta y aprecia el trabajo evangelizador de Sacred Heart Radio (Radio Sagrado Corazón) en el área metropolitana de Cincinnati y Radio María en el área metropolitana de Dayton.

Mucho antes de la llegada de los medios digitales, el Papa san Pablo VI escribió proféticamente en su exhortación apostólica Evangelii Nuntiandi de 1975 sobre la importancia de las nuevas tecnologías de la comunicación. “La Iglesia se sentiría culpable ante Dios si no empleara esos poderosos medios, que la inteligencia humana perfecciona cada vez más.

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Con ellos la Iglesia ‘pregona sobre los terrados’ el mensaje del que es depositaria. En ellos encuentra una versión moderna y eficaz del ‘púlpito.’ Gracias a ellos puede hablar a las masas” (EN 45).

En la misma línea, el Papa san Juan Pablo II se refirió a las comunicaciones sociales actuales como “areópagos modernos” (Redemptoris Missio 37), refiriéndose a la colina de Atenas desde la cual san Pablo predicó a grandes multitudes (Hechos 17:22-31). Esta es una comparación positiva, y la Iglesia ha visto constantemente nuevas formas de medios como socios potenciales en la misión.

En su mensaje para el Día Mundial de las Comunicaciones en 2021, “Comunicar encontrando a las personas donde están y como son,” el Papa Francisco señaló los peligros y las oportunidades en los medios omnipresentes de hoy. “[S]e han vuelto evidentes para todos los riesgos de una comunicación social carente de controles,” escribió. “Hemos descubierto, ya desde hace tiempo, cómo las noticias y las imágenes son fáciles de manipular, por miles de motivos, a veces sólo por un banal narcisismo. Esta conciencia crítica empuja no a demonizar el instrumento, sino a una mayor capacidad de discernimiento y a un sentido de la responsabilidad más maduro, tanto cuando se difunden, como cuando se reciben los contenidos.”

El discernimiento del contenido implica tomarse el tiempo para reflexionar sobre preguntas como: ¿Será cierto? ¿Será caritativo? ¿Acaso ayuda? Estas consideraciones son especialmente importantes antes de compartir en las redes sociales. Incluso las fuentes de información católicas requieren tal escrutinio. Como exigió san Pablo, “examínenlo todo y quédense con lo bueno” (1 Tes. 5:21).

Los medios católicos y los católicos que trabajan en los medios entran en estas esferas, proclamando la Buena Nueva y las enseñanzas de la Iglesia, conociendo a las personas donde y como están. A medida que nos relacionamos con los medios, ya sea a través de lo que consumimos en la televisión y la radio, o cómo interactuamos en las redes sociales, hagámoslo con la mirada puesta en Cristo y en lo que es bueno, bello y verdadero.

QUE ST IO N O F F A IT H

WHY DOES THE CHURCH HONOR SAINTS’ RELICS? Why does the Church honor saints’ relics? What is their history and purpose?

Reverencing saints’ bodies has a long tradition in the Church, from both regard for the human body and belief that the sacred can be mediated through the material. Scriptures share examples of Jesus’ power mediated through objects – such as the woman healed after touching the hem of His garment (Mt. 9:20-22). And in the Acts of the Apostles, people were even healed just by touching St. Paul’s clothing (Acts 19:1112).

CATACOMBS

In the first centuries of Christianity, believers distinguished themselves from the Roman Empire’s pagans by insisting upon burial (as opposed to cremation). Seeking a place to bury their dead, in Rome they interred the deceased on a few parcels of land owned by wealthy Christians, tunneling underground to maximize the number buried. Visits to graves became linked to prayers for (and to) the dead, especially when popes and martyrs were buried there. Christians prayed among their deceased relatives and friends’ remains, and even celebrated Mass there.

RELICS’ USE

This tradition of praying with the deceased developed as the Church began to honor certain men and women as members of the communion of saints and to reverence relics – usually the saints’ bodies or objects connected with saints – in churches and homes. As this practice grew, it was seen as essential for every altar on which Mass was celebrated to house a saint’s bodily relic. While no longer required in altars, the relic’s presence suggests the reality that when the Mass is celebrated, heaven and earth unite.

Eventually the Church distinguished between classes of relics,

holding the saint’s actual body as most worthy of honor. These “first class” relics include flesh, bone, teeth, and hair. Also to be respected, lesser relics include the holy person’s belongings, most often clothing. Another relic class developed eventually, for an object touched to a first class relic.

Non-Catholics criticize the use of relics, seeing their reverence as superstition. Never worshipped, relics are a physical connection to a holy person, and so are honored or reverenced. Often found in churches and sometimes in homes (since the faithful are permitted to keep them), for most Catholics, relics are not a significant part of their spiritual lives.

AUTHENTICITY

In the Church’s early years, relics were distributed without a means of assuring their authenticity, resulting in the need for the Church to testify to their legitimacy. Though there undoubtedly were fakes, the Church guards against this.

Relics are bound by string and a wax seal imprinted with the certifying official’s insignia and accompanied by an official document (with the same insignia) indicating the saint’s name and the class of relic. If the relic is separated from the document, it may not be publicly displayed.

The tradition of relics can be seen as unusual, perhaps even superstitious, but the reverence afforded the saints is ancient.

As we honor these holy people and request their intercession, their remains remind us of what their lives represent, for we venerate the relics of the saints to adore better Him whose saints they are.

FATHER DAVID ENDRES

is associate professor of Church history and historical theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology.

Q U E S T IO N O F F A IT H / F E B R UARY 2022 | 7

FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES #1: EUCHARIST

BY JEREMY HELMES

This article is the first in a series covering each of the six foundational principles of Beacons of Light, the pastoral planning process of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati.

The Eucharist makes the Church. This simple statement is at the heart of what it means to be a member of the Catholic Church, the community of the baptized who gather each Sunday to do what Jesus commanded: Participate in His Sacrifice on the Cross, sharing a sacred meal – His body and blood – together in His memory.

It’s no surprise, then, that Archbishop Dennis Schnurr established “Eucharist” as Beacons of Light’s first principle with these words: “The Mass is the source and summit of the whole Christian life. Accordingly, the Eucharist is the essential moment for building up and strengthening the parish community, along with the sacraments and other celebrations of the paschal mystery – the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

Yet, we are experiencing a Eucharistic crisis. Consistent Mass participation is declining nationally, with a sharp drop in attendance locally for the past decade. We anticipate our churches continuing to fill as the pandemic wanes, but attendance to-date remains far below even two years ago.

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Perhaps it is partly because parish liturgical life isn’t what it should be. The U.S. Bishops teach: “Good celebrations foster and nourish faith. Poor celebrations may weaken and destroy it.” This includes diminishment of the Eucharist’s importance in our lives – some Catholics even lacking belief in Christ’s Real Presence in the Eucharist.

When parishes shape their new Family and plan a vibrant future together, the Eucharist’s centrality must be upheld.

The following goals help parish Families design effective plans that ensure the Eucharist has primary importance.

• The Sunday Eucharist is life-giving, beautiful, and transformative: When gathered for Mass, especially on Sundays, we are changed to be more fully like God. We experience God’s love through the sacraments and He nourishes us for mission so that we can be more faithful disciples and witnesses to the Gospel.

• Christ’s Presence is felt: Sacramental celebrations and other liturgies are unique, privileged and true encounters with Jesus Christ, who is present in Word and Sacrament.

• Unity is lived: As the sacrament of unity (1 Cor. 10:17), Eucharistic celebration is an opportunity for Family parish members to worship together, honoring and celebrating each one’s cultural traditions, particularly special feast days.

• Formation is essential: Catechize (teach and make real) the faithful’s understanding of what they celebrate in the liturgy and how to celebrate it well.

• Ars Celebrandi is faithful and participatory: Grant importance and attention to the “art of celebrating” the liturgy, such that the faithful’s full, conscious and active participation are kindled and drawn more fully into the mystery of Christ through well-prepared preaching and music, fidelity to the texts and rubrics and the prayerful understanding of liturgical texts, feasts and seasons.

• Ministers are formed: Priests, deacons and lay liturgical ministers should be well-trained and formed for pastoral leadership of prayer communities and imbued with the spirit of the liturgy.

• Sacred Space leads to God: Churches, chapels and other sacred buildings are houses of the Church and houses of God: they should be “truly worthy and beautiful, signs and symbols of heavenly realities.”

• Adoration is encouraged: Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and catechesis regarding this holy practice, are readily available to prolong the Eucharistic Presence of Christ we experience at Mass and to adore Him as a community, even outside of Mass.

As we, together, plan our future in Families of Parishes, the primacy of the Eucharist comes to fruition through the prayer and hard work of both parish leaders and all the faithful. There may be difficult adjustments: changes to Mass schedules, new musical repertoires, new needs for liturgical ministers, and more. Through all of these efforts, we are called to uphold the Eucharist as the heart and center of parish Family life.

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B E A CO N S O F L IG H T / F E B R UARY 2022 | 9

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Cross-Generational Friendship Sister Ellie McNally, C.PP.S. and High School Student Jacob Wells Formed Lasting Bond Through Letter-Writing

BY KARY ELLEN BERGER

Most high school students are focused on schooling and outside activities like sports, clubs, work and various interests. For a Bishop Fenwick High School student and St. Maximillian Kolbe parishioner, one particular interest is a priority – connecting with his pen pal.

wanted to do when I grew up. I answered that I had an interest in journalism. You see, she was an English teacher at the high school and college level. She asked for my address and she wrote me a beautiful letter that uplifted me. I responded and we eventually became pen pals.”

Jacob Wells’ pen pal isn’t in a different state or country. Rather, she is Sister Eleanor McNally, C.PP.S. (affectionately known as Sister Ellie) of the Sisters of the Precious Blood and 103 years young.

As a child, Sister McNally lived in California, and her family moved to Arizona when she was about 10 years old. She met the Precious Blood Sisters there, in her elementary school.

Their friendship began in 2019 through Wells attending Mother Teresa Catholic Elementary School in Liberty Township. The Random Acts of Kindness Club, to which he belonged, created Easter baskets for the Sisters.

“Hard to believe, but I went to the convent in Dayton straight out of the eighth grade in 1933, which means I have been in the community for 88 years,” said Sister McNally.

“During the delivery, we played Bingo and got to know each other,” said Wells. “She asked me what I

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Sister McNally’s career and vocation combined with Wells’ passion for writing to spark a unique connection between them.

“I never would have guessed that God would bless me with something as little as an Easter basket delivery and turn it into a life-changing friendship,” shared Wells. “You would not believe how much your spirit would be uplifted if you even read a sentence of her letters. Also, replying to her letters really just helped me to reflect on my life and I was able to express recent events, feelings, thoughts, etc.”

“It fills my soul to have this friendship with Sister McNally,” continued Wells. “She is one of the few people in my life who I feel comfortable sharing my spiritual journey, questions and experiences. She is interested in my daily life and asks me about my schools, sports, friends, Boy Scouts, family and everyday life. She really cares about me and I am so grateful that God brought us together.”

“

It fills my soul to have this friendship with Sister Ellie. She is one of the few people in my life who I feel comfortable sharing my spiritual journey, questions and experiences.

“I feel very humble and grateful that a young person like Jacob finds me a person with whom he can feel comfortable as we share our own spiritual lives,” said Sister McNally.

“Corresponding with Jacob has given me a lift knowing that God is still alive and working in our youth and I am privileged to experience that through Jacob. Most importantly, I have seen God’s love shine through Jacob and that touches me deeply.”

Sister McNally and Wells correspond through traditional letters, emails and visits and he recently visited for her December birthday, bringing Christmas gifts for her and the other Sisters.

He doesn’t know where his life’s path will take him, Wells said, but his connection with Sister McNally had a significant impact and he’s a better person for having her in his life.

The Sisters of the Precious Blood, the Missionaries of the Precious Blood and the Adorers of the Blood of Christ announce the foundation of the

Precious Blood Spirituality Institute to let the whole world know in a new way about the redeeming, healing power of the Precious Blood of Jesus.

Our world needs it.

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To learn more, visit: preciousbloodsistersdayton.org cpps-preciousblood.org preciousbloodkc.org adorers.org

Missionaries of the Precious Blood N E W S / F E B R UARY 2022 | 13

BOOK REVIEW

Reading the News Without Losing Your Faith

by Christopher Altieri

REVIEWED BY DR. KENNETH CRAYCRAFT

Evelyn Waugh’s 1938 novel, Scoop is the fictional account of accidental reporter William Boot, sent from England to cover a fictionalized version of the Italo-Abyssinian war. Based on his own experience of covering the actual war, Waugh’s novel is a satirical – even cynical – sendup on journalism’s practices, journalists’ characters, and the economic considerations that drive news coverage.

Lord Copper of The Daily Beast, the editor who deployed Boot, was hopeful for “a very promising war” and wanted “to give it full publicity.” Neither reports of lost lives nor damage done were of any consequence, other than for their ability to increase The Daily Beast’s circulation. Nor was accuracy highly valued: Journalism was less about reporting news than competing for the most compelling scoop, and thus, selling copy.

the reported news does not correspond with the events that gave rise to it.

I was reminded of Scoop by Christopher Altieri’s riveting new book, Reading the News Without Losing Your Faith.

“The purpose of newspapers,” the saying goes, “is to sell advertisements.” In our internet and social media age, Altieri notes, “outrage” is a primary means of selling those ads (or inducing those clicks). This is not simply a description of media and its methods for communicating, but rather a sign of our social environment’s general health. And this affects Altieri’s primary concern: news about and within the Church.

Reading the News Without Losing Your Faith is not an exercise in hand-wringing, however. The author both exposes the malady and proposes the remedy, reminding us that, because we are not saved by the news, neither should we despair over it. We must remember that our hope lies elsewhere, and thus Altieri closes on this hopeful but realistic note:

Among Altieri’s past journalist bona fides are serving as a long-time worker on Vatican Radio’s English desk, a Rome correspondent for The Catholic Herald and a frequent contributor to Catholic World Report and other Catholic media outlets. From this experience, he gives an inside baseball account of how news happens, even when 1 4 | THE CATHOLIC TE LEGRAPH

The bad news is that Altieri confirms impulses observed

by Waugh and exaggerated in Scoop. Reading the news is an inexact art because those delivering it are often driven by considerations other than factual accounts. The good news is that Altieri teaches us to develop a critical eye, suggesting helpful practices that assist us, as the title suggests, in reading the news without losing our faith.

Examples he uses include, Humanae Vitae’s controversial development, Pope St. John Paul II’s skillful (but imperfect) use of media, and the (sometimes) sketchy coverage of Pope Francis’ (sometimes) difficult off-thecuff comments.

“The world is fallen. We await fullness of its redemption.

We have good days and bad – and there have been some big wins along the way – but the only true and lasting victory belongs to Christ, Our Lord, who conquered sin and death. Most of what we do is muddling . . . and that’s all the more reason to be about it.”

Christopher Altieri, Reading the News Without Losing Your Faith (London: Catholic Truth Society, 2021). ctsbooks.org

2022

“Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”

- Matthew 5:16

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A CLO SE R LO O K

ZEROS, ONES AND THE END OF MAN Problems arising from technology and social media are more than could possibly be accounted for in one magazine.

From the relatively mundane problem of work distraction, to more seriously annoying intrusions on privacy, to the tragedy of social-media-driven violence, stories about digital technology and social media fill headlines every day.

While while problems created by technology are diverse, a common thread runs through them all. The difficulty is not technology, per se – there’s nothing wicked about zeros and ones – rather, the problem arises when technology is divorced from the true vision of the human person, and thus disordered from the good.

I do not simply mean, as people often say, “It’s not the technology that’s the problem, it’s the use to which it is put.” That observation is true, but it does not reach deep enough into the issue. Rather, it’s that technology’s use has been largely divorced from the discipline of science. And this is directly affected by the modern understanding of nature and the human person, which rejects a “teleological” approach. Taken from the Greek word telos (meaning “end” or “purpose”), a teleological view sees all things as directed toward some highest end, a given in nature. In ancient Greek philosophy that end was a vaguely defined happiness.

As incorporated into Christianity’s understanding of creation, teleology means the proper purpose of all things is to order us toward love of God. Nature is used correctly only when it is ordered toward that end. Thus, 1 6 | THE CATHOLIC TE LEGRAPH

when we say that something is “disordered,” we mean that it is not oriented toward the person’s good and, ultimately, the glory and praise of God. Until the so-called Enlightenment, science was the discipline that discerned how natural goods are properly ordered. From the Latin word for “knowledge,” science – rooted in a teleological view of the person – is discovering how natural goods can be ordered toward a shared understanding of the person’s good, seen as friendship with God. Modern rejection of teleology also rejects science as the quest for ordered knowledge. Technology was the development of tools and methods to serve science’s purpose. Divorced from that proper end, however, technology is reduced to the ability to control nature, according to whomever has the power to do so. If technology is not ordered by the goods that science seeks to know, it becomes the disordered power to manipulate.

Nature, therefore, is subject to nothing other than our relative control over it. In the digital age, we think we have conquered nature with our ones and zeros. But have we?

In his famous 1943 book, The Abolition of Man, C.S. Lewis suggests that the answer is not as obvious as we might think. He uses the airplane, contraception and the “wireless” to demonstrate his central assertion that “what we call Man’s power over Nature turns out to be a power exercised by some men over other men with Nature as its instrument.” And this takes us directly to the heart of modern digital technology’s danger. Unconcerned by

a universally accepted vision of the good of the human person, those who manipulate the ones and zeros ultimately control much of our lives. It is less that they are controlling nature than that they are controlling others using nature as their tools.

Lewis could have been talking about Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Snapchat when he presciently observed that what we call “power” over nature is actually “a power possessed by some men which they may, or may not, allow other men to profit by.” As this power is refined, those wielding it become more adept at manipulating it, which results in ever fewer people asserting ever greater control over ever more people. Whether by self-appointed overseers or rigged algorithms, the digital lives of billions are manipulated by the whims of hundreds.

Enrich your prayer life this Lent

starting your day with a simple reflection from Lent with Dorothy Day. The Franciscan friars invite you to join them in prayer and reflection this Lenten season with the pocket booklet Lent with Dorothy Day

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In the digital age, we think we have conquered nature with our ones and zeros.

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But have we?

This is not to suggest that modern digital technology is a bad thing. I wrote this column on a computer, quoting from an electronic edition of Lewis’s book and emailed a draft to my editor, who made suggestions on her computer and emailed it back to me. I will post the published version on Facebook and Twitter, and you might read these words on your smartphone or tablet. These are all good things.

The rise of Catholic digital media attests to the proper use for technology, when ordered toward its proper ends.

What is not good, however, is that as we become ever more dependent on digital information technology through social media, we fall ever more under the power of those relatively few who determine what we may or may not see, post or say. This is not the fault of the zeros and ones, but rather the disordered use to which they are put. Catholic digital media is a hopeful antidote to that malady.

A Loving, Nurturing Home for Children and Adults with Complex Disabilities

Honor St. Joseph Day with a donation supporting our ministry of extraordinary and compassionate medical and personal care.

www.stjosephhome.org/donate DR. KENNETH CRAYCRAFT

is an attorney and the James J. Gardner Family Chair of Moral Theology at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology.

10722 Wyscarver Rd. | Cincinnati, OH 45241 513-563-2520 | www.stjosephhome.org A CL O S E R L O O K / F E B R UARY 2022 | 17

{ e a r ne stly }

seeking ANSWERS Founder of The Catholic Woman Brings the Truth of Feminine Genius to the World

BY KATIE SCIBA

Before converting to Catholicism, Corynne Staresinic believed common misconceptions derived from “cheap caricatures” of Catholicism about women in the Church, particularly, the notion that a faithful Catholic woman’s destiny lays either in stern religious life or focused entirely on serving men and producing children. Staresinic had wondered how any woman would feel truly welcome in this environment.

“Women are given so many different narratives,” Staresinic said. Earnestly seeking answers, she discovered she was in holy company with other women and men who both affirmed women’s actual roles in the Church and inspired her online platform, which spreads the message that every woman has a valued place in the Catholic Church.

Her misgivings were answered through Pope St. John Paul II’s Letter to Women and online Catholic resources.

“I was on Catholic Answers all the time and watching ‘Journey Home’ by EWTN.” These resources brought clarity to this new Catholic who had myriad questions. “I found stories of people coming to the faith from any and every background and I saw I wasn’t alone.”

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Staresinic quickly discovered that each person’s identity was fulfilled, not suppressed, when pursuing holiness.

“Christ offers us the true narrative of who we are as women. We’re empowered by Christ,” she said. “The media helped me while I was working through all of this on my own.”

These discoveries and new understandings led her to found The Catholic Woman, an online apostolate launched by Staresinic and her husband to bring the truth of feminine genius to the world. Through stories and letters from Catholic women, free minidocumentaries, and a book published just last year, The Catholic Woman bolsters readers’ faith experiences, conveying that Jesus comes to them in their particular circumstances. Its website, thecatholicwoman.co, underscores the apostolate’s mission to “foster a sense of belonging amongst millennial Catholic women by illustrating the many faces and vocations of women in the Church so that each and every one of them is inspired to intentionally live out their faith.”

“I’ve realized for myself that God wants to meet us personally where we are. He wants me and loves me and has a story for my life. I’ve been moved to better consider that God calls us to unity as Catholic women, not uniformity,” said Staresinic.

In the home, office and beyond, subscribers and followers learn that a woman’s place is in the heart of Christ. Multi-faceted, The Catholic Woman’s foundation is its collection of deeply personal letters from varied Catholic women, relating how each found belonging in the Catholic Church – yielding fruits of freedom and community.

Smiling as she recalls messages from followers about The Catholic Woman’s impact, Staresinic said, “In the testimonies we’ve received from readers about how our mission has impacted their lives, we’ve [heard about women facing] isolation in their faith and [struggling] to find others like them in their communities — whether they are single or working in ministry, or in a secular workplace… they’ve shared that our letters have encouraged and strengthened them in their own faith, [and] they have been moved to keep growing in holiness and keep seeking God,” she said.

Staresinic shared the story of one professional who struggled to find her place in the Church.

“She was taught prior to her conversion that the Church teaches that a woman’s place is exclusively in the home.

So, after she converted, she struggled with figuring out how her professional life fit into the life of the Church.

But […] the letters on our website from other women like her have shown her that the ‘tenderness and the beauty of being a woman can spread through all aspects of one’s life, and not only family life, but professional life as well.’”

This is just one example of The Catholic Woman’s impact on souls, and online followers are growing both in number and in faith. Commenting on the Internet community’s enthusiastic response to her young ministry, she said, “[It] speaks to the need for this kind of mission — one that explores the theological basis and the practical implications of the Church’s vision on women; one that earnestly addresses common feminist questions about Catholicism; and one that is completely free and accessible online to any Catholic woman who is seeking answers to these kinds of questions.”

The sky’s the limit for Staresinic, her team, and The Catholic Woman. Visit thecatholicwoman.co for their free, new video program, Cultivating Catholic Feminism, and to purchase A Place to Belong: Letters from Catholic Women for yourself or women in your life.

CA T H O L IC M E D IA / F E B R UARY 2022 | 19

CA T H O LIC A T HO ME

ACCEPT THE INVITATION TO ACT “There’s a new episode of The Chosen,” my husband said. In minutes the two of us were eagerly settled in the living room with our five children, ready for our favorite show. The kids’ questions during episodes range from “Is Jesus in this one?” to my favorite, “Why does Mom cry every time we watch this?” That makes me laugh, and they’re spot on. Most of The Chosen episodes bring me to tears over Christ’s love and humanity, and when we tune in I become more certain of how approachable our Lord is.

IMPACT

It’s effective shows like The Chosen that are fantastic at drawing people closer to Jesus and transforming hearts. The Internet is chock full of content made for exactly this, and the reach seems to extend farther each day. I’ve personally seen how God uses shows, podcasts and even TikTok to make an impact.

On the Formed platform, my little boy Thomas watched the half hour animation, The Day the Sun Danced, a brief account of Our Lady of Fatima’s appearance and messages to three shepherd children in Portugal. Mary’s words were honest, yet gentle when she spoke of Purgatory, Hell and the need to pray the Rosary. Each time Thomas watches it, he wants to live differently and refocuses his attention toward Heaven. Compelled by the whole story, even as such a little boy, he prays for souls in Purgatory and offers Rosary decades often. I saw the same animation when I was a little girl and it fascinated me to a lasting degree - the show itself, Mary’s voice and the miracle of the sun have stayed with me since childhood; when recalled, there is always a clarity that compels me to disregard distractions and set my sights on our Lord.

REINFORCEMENT

Of course, the life of faith in an imperfect 2 0 | THE CATHOLIC TELE G RAPH

soul can be inconsistent. Decades after I first saw The Day the Sun Danced, my faith lacked the same clarity as when I was little. I struggled to trust God and felt lost and uncertain. An episode of The Abiding Together podcast refortified the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd, and ultimately gave me confidence to know I was loved and sought by God. I’ll never forget the picture painted by the podcast hosts: they said that it’s the Good Shepherd’s job to protect us from evil, that we don’t have to do it ourselves. From this simple idea, I understood that all I need to do is recognize the sound of my Shepherd’s voice so I can follow Him over the cacophony of the world. And so I picked up my Bible to better hear what Jesus wants to say to me.

TAKE A STEP

It’s amazing how powerful a tool highquality media is for the New Evangelization; yet while evangelical media’s impact reaches far and wide, it’s paramount to retain the objective – moving people to a real, personal connection with Jesus. YouTube videos and Instagram posts that provide a better understanding of Catholicism or deeper relationship with Christ are good, but rendered meaningless if we don’t accept the invitation to act. A podcast on the Sacrament of Reconciliation should send us to the confessional, compelling us rather than just being interesting.

So take a step. The next time you’re struck by an episode of The Chosen, your favorite podcast or a simple truth in a meme, receive it, then act. Return to Confession, pick up your rosary, run to adoration and reunite yourself with the God Who spoke to your heart.

KATIE SCIBA

is a national speaker and Catholic Press Awardwinning columnist. Katie and her husband, Andrew, have been married for 14 years and are blessed with six children.

K i d s”

Co rn er

Feast Day: September 29

“I am Gabriel,

who stands before God. I was sent to speak to you and to announce to you this good news” (Luke 1:19).

St. Gabriel is one of God’s archangels, along with St. Michael and St. Raphael. Their feast day is Sept. 29th.

As God’s messenger, St. Gabriel delivers joyous news to His people.

He is a perfect communicator, and therefore, is the patron saint of messengers, communication professionals and postal workers.

Artwork usually pictures him dressed in blue or white and carrying a scroll, trumpet, lily, lantern or a scepter.

In the Old Testament, this archangel appears before Daniel to interpret his dreams and is described as “one who looked like man.” When sent in the New Testament to tell Zechariah that his wife, Elizabeth, even in her old age, will have a son (John the Baptist), Gabriel is described as “an angel of the Lord.” His bestknown visit, however, was the Annunciation, when he tells Mary she will conceive by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Son of God, Jesus.

Pray for St. Gabriel’s intercession to help you communicate better in everyday life - at school, online, over the phone and at home.

Annunciation

Elizabeth

St. Gabriel

Archangel

Good News

Zechariah

Communicate

Mary

Daniel

Messenger

CA T H O L IC M E D IA / F E B R UARY 2022 | 21

{ o n a ir }

anna mitchell Sacred Heart Radio’s Morning Voice

BY KARY ELLEN BERGER

Life-long resident of the Queen City Anna Mitchell, co-host and producer of Sacred Heart Radio’s Son Rise Morning Show, was always interested in the media.

“I have a few ‘full circle’ moments, but the best one is that [growing up] we always watched Channel 9 [WCPO], and when I was in grade school, Brian Patrick was the main morning anchor,” said Mitchell. “My most memorable field trip was in second grade when we went We have an to the WCPO studios interesting role as and got to meet him. specifically Catholic Little did I know then (at 8 years old) that 16 journalists who years later he would love the Church. be my colleague! He was the original host of the Son Rise Morning Show. And yes, I did tell him about that field trip.”

Growing up in Greenhills, Mitchell attended Our Lady of the Rosary and later Roger Bacon High School. She graduated from Ohio University with a focus on print journalism and noted that she “had no real interest in broadcasting.”

“In my first couple of weeks at OU, my older sister encouraged me to volunteer at the local NPR affiliate (they employed students), and I ended up working there all four years,” shared Mitchell. “I was determined to be a print journalist all through those years and didn’t change my mind until the very end of senior year when I came to the realization that I was actually better at radio, and enjoyed doing it, too.”

Since December 2008, Mitchell has been a valued member of the Sacred Heart Radio team. She shared that she applied for different jobs prior to being at Sacred Heart Radio, but God had a plan in place.

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“I had been applying for any opening I could find at local NPR stations around the country,” said Mitchell. “In September 2008, a job opened up in Columbus, which I was sure was meant for me. Just after I applied for it, I was asked to be the 20s Group president [at St. Gertrude]. I told our chaplain that I didn’t think I should take it because I was sure to be moving to Columbus in a month, but he told me to pray about it and get back to him. So, I went home that day and, for the first time in my life, turned on EWTN Television, which happened to be playing Mother Angelica and her Sisters praying the Rosary. As I listened to their prayers, I prayed for guidance and concluded that I should take the president position, and if I have to move, we’ll deal with that later.”

“Well, Columbus never called me, and it was my leadership position in the 20s Group that served as the reconnection point with Matt [Swaim, co-host of the Son Rise Morning Show], which would end up putting me on Mother Angelica’s EWTN Radio Network,” continued Mitchell.

“God is so good.”

Mitchell and her husband, Will, are proud parents to Roma, Tommy, Freddie and another child due this spring. The family splits time between Old St. Mary’s and St. Gertrude parishes.

When asked how Catholic media impacts the world today, Mitchell said, “There is a lot of real journalism happening, but it’s not the ‘gotcha journalism’ that many of us have come to expect from secular coverage of the Church. We have an interesting role as specifically Catholic journalists who love the Church: We understand that because we have a vested interest in the Church, we have to seek the truth and hold authorities accountable when necessary. I’m also very glad to see a greater effort in Catholic media to cover ‘nonChurch’ stories that need to be covered from the Catholic perspective, which is absolutely vital in helping the faithful form a Catholic worldview.”

Anna Mitchell interviews Jessica Rinaudo, The Catholic Telegraph editor, live on Sacred Heart Radio’s Son Rise Morning Show.

CA T H O L IC M E D IA / F E B R UARY 2022 | 23

Catching FOXES Podcast lives in the tension between faith and culture

BY JOHN STEGEMAN

parish Director of Evangelization in Houston, TX., and Carey, 38, is Director of Development for Lehman Catholic High School.

Labels don’t stick well to the Catching Foxes podcast.

Carrying an explicit tag, the podcast discusses serious topics like sex, alcohol, death, and struggles with the faith, and it occasionally contains adult language.

Categorized under Apple Podcasts’ Religion and Spirituality section, the show is broader than that. Its hosts discuss sacred art and beauty one week, the perils of hookup culture another, while the Marvel Cinematic Universe fills much of a third.

With more than eight million downloads in seven years and 10,000 to 20,000 listeners per episode, Catching Foxes’ popularity is well-documented. But categorizing it is no easy task.

“We never called ourselves a Catholic podcast,” said cohost Luke Carey, an Oakwood native and parishioner of St. Albert the Great in Dayton. “It’s kind of a tricky balance because our faith is there in every episode, but is every episode going to be some kind of catechetical discussion? No.” Carey and co-host Michael Gormley, better known as Gomer, met while attending Franciscan University of Steubenville. Years later they started the podcast, not as a ministry, but to have conversations about faith and culture that didn’t fit other platforms. Both are married and work full-time for the Church: Gormley, 39, is a 2 4 | THE CATHOLIC TELE GRAPH

“My biggest fear is that we’ll scandalize people. I never want to do that,” Carey said. “Nor do I want to be voyeuristic about sin, but I do want to create a space where we can talk about it.”

Catching Foxes’ listeners are priests, religious men and women, and missionaries, as well as those on the periphery of Catholicism. Most are Millennials and Gen Zers, including both converts and those living perhaps not an ideal Catholic life but who feel drawn to the faith. It’s not for everyone, and Carey says he and Gormley are okay with that.

“This is where Catching Foxes exists,” he said. “There is a moment that a lot of single Catholics in their 20s often experience. They’re at a bar talking to someone.

You hit it off and things start to escalate in a good, healthy way. Right there, the world and our Christian faith collide. The person you’re talking to may expect to hookup or eventually escalate things into a type of relationship that does not match our values.

[Navigating] that moment of tension, that’s what our show is about.”

Reflecting “what youth ministers talk about at the bar after an event,” the duo share a favorite pastime, talking about pop culture, which alleviates any tension from their serious faith discussions. Thus listeners are invited to experience a conversation between good friends.

“It’s about discussion over instruction,” Carey said.

“We hope it leads people to the Lord and through it God can reveal Himself and provide opportunities for healing.”

Even the show’s name blends faith and culture, referencing Song of Songs 2:15, calling to mind the song and album by the indie rock band mewithoutYou called “Catch for us, the Foxes.”

Catching Foxes is available at CatchingFoxes.fm and on most podcasting platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and Spotify.

Pope Francis wants to hear from YOU!

There’s still time to register and attend one of the remaining sessions for the global Synod on Synodality.

February 5 St. John the Baptist (Harrison) 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.

February 10 Mount St. Mary’s Seminary (Cincinnati) 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.

February 10 St. Albert (Kettering) 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Sign language provided

February 23 Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception (Dayton) 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.

In Spanish

February 24 Our Lady of Victory (Cincinnati) 7 p.m. – 9 p.m.

Register for a session at catholicaoc.org/synod

4.0 x 5.0

CA T H O L IC M E D IA / F E B R UARY 2022 | 25

BECOMING

21st Century SAINTS YouTuber Harris Craycraft on using technology as a means for evangelization

BY MARGARET SWENSEN

When asked about his YouTube subscriber numbers, Harris Craycraft humbly replied, “Ninety-four thousand, I think.” His channel has become a reliable online resource for thousands wanting to learn about the newest smartphone or tablet.

Craycraft has produced and posted videos on YouTube for nearly half of his life, beginning in 2012 at the age of 12. Now 22 and a senior at Boston College, his videos look a little different than those recorded in his bedroom as an eighth grader. “Especially the early videos where I just set up a camera, clicked record, then clicked stop recording. There were no bells and whistles to it. It was really just for the sake of sharing my love of technology.”

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Six hundred and sixty-four videos and 35.9 million views later, Craycraft’s channel is financing college and earned him the reputation as the “YouTube Guy.” Technology remains his channel’s central theme, but the content is more personal.

“I don’t try to hide from my Catholic identity. I think that everyone is meant to find Christ and I try to subtly suggest that in my videos.”

Our Lady’s image makes a cameo appearance during the iPad Mini 6 review, St. Augustine’s Confessions is carefully placed in a video dedicated to note-taking on the iPad Pro and the one-decade rosary bracelet is always conspicuous on his wrist.

His videos now often speak directly to students his own age, offering practical school survival advice while using the apps and gadgets that we can no longer live without. Having established a viewership, Craycraft feels called to open up about personal experiences, reflecting on struggles with friendships, studies and switching majors.

“It’s kind of just being honest with my own experience. I have a day in the life video on YouTube where I share my journey of going for a run as part of marathon training and going to class and working on videos and doing Zoom calls and that kind of boring stuff. But also I shared stopping in the chapel to pray, going to the candlelight Mass at 10 p.m. and all these things that most people don’t ever see online.”

Not denying its dangerous and devious uses, Craycraft admitted, “I recognize in my own life that technology can be incredibly beneficial, but also can be really damaging to the soul.”

But we must also acknowledge technology’s great good.

Archbishop Fulton Sheen, Bishop Robert Barron, Father Mike Schmitz and the like proved technology’s effectiveness in our collective call to the New Evangelization.

“YouTube has shown me the power and beauty of video, especially in the 21st Century, so if we’re on a quest of becoming 21st Century saints, this has shown me that there is a route in video and video editing and technology.”

As graduation rapidly approaches, Craycraft is considering new trajectories for his channel: “I want to keep sharing my joy of technology without hiding who I think technology is ultimately supposed to help us serve, and where technology is ultimately supposed to bring us.”

Subscribe to Craycraft’s YouTube channel at: youtube.com/c/HarrisCraycraft

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RACIAL JUSTICE

Daniel Rudd C AT H O L I C J O U R N A L I S T

BY SARAH ATER

One of the most influential Catholics in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s 200 year history, Daniel Rudd was a man of deep faith, zeal for justice and untiring activity. He founded the first Black Catholic newspaper, American Catholic Tribune (ACT), and the National Black Catholic Congress. Through a worldview influenced by the Catholic faith, he saw the Church as the vessel of truth, justice and equality of all people, such that the Catholic Church was “the only place on the continent, where rich and poor, white and black, must drop prejudice at the threshold and go hand in hand to the altar” (ACT, Aug. 9, 1890, 2).

Born into slavery in Bardstown, KY., during 1854, his parents, Robert and Elizabeth Rudd, were devout Catholics. His family served as sextons for St. Joseph Proto-Cathedral, and Daniel later reminisced about receiving instruction from the parish priest.

As a young man, Rudd moved to Springfield, OH, to live with his brother, Charles. He attended St. Raphael Church, completed high school, then began work in newspapers and established ACT’s forerunner, the Ohio State Tribune. He advocated for racial integration in Springfield schools and racial equality.

Rudd first published ACT in Cincinnati during 1886, primarily for Black Americans, but he knew many subscribers were white. For the newspaper’s 11 years, he shared the Catholic faith, asking readers to give its teachings a fair hearing. He believed that by observing history, they would see how the Catholic Church supported and uplifted the lowly, the poor and society’s outcasts.

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Through ACT, Rudd also advocated for recognition of Black Americans’ equal dignity, asserting that no race is better than another and all are brothers and sisters before Jesus. A hopeful and optimistic man, he acknowledged how racism’s stain seeped into the Church, so that he considered those Catholics who separated people by skin color as “less than Catholic.” He promoted Black Americans’ rights on a practical level, including desegregation, and wrote passionately for higher education and vocational school opportunities.

When he founded the Black Catholic Congress, Rudd sought to mobilize the laity. He was convinced there were more Black Catholics than was known, who only needed an organization to rise up and give them a voice. The congress met five times between 1889-1894, the second meeting held at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Chains in Cincinnati.

Because those in the Church who spoke explicitly about racism faced strong resistance – from both Catholics and non-Catholics – the Congresses had to proceed gently. They focused on the active African slave trade, supporting “Colored [religious] sisters” and admitting African Americans into labor and trade unions.

To honor Rudd’s legacy in both journalism and battling racism, the Archdiocese of Cincinnati’s Catholic Social Action and African American Pastoral Ministries offices erected a historical marker for Rudd on Dec. 5, 2021, at St. Raphael Church in Springfield. The marker’s two sides commemorate his work as a Catholic journalist and as a layman of faith and action. It includes Rudd’s own words written in 1890, “This country is not properly civilized and will not be until men learn to treat each other on their merits and not the color of their skin, their eyes, or their hair.”

Further reading: Gary Agee, A Cry for Justice: Daniel Rudd and his Life in Black Catholicism, Journalism and Activism, 1854-1933, 2011.

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A PRIE ST ’ S PE R SPE CT IV E

TECHNOLOGY AND THE HUMAN CONNECTION In Nov. 2021, Pope Francis video-messaged the Pontifical Council for Culture, which gathered virtually for its Plenary assembly. He lamented that the message could not be given in person because the digital universe makes everything “incredibly close but without the warmth of presence.”

Our culture is being transformed, said the Pope, by a technological revolution that, at times, threatens our shared cultural vision, including how we communicate. Describing our epoch as an “age of liquidity,” he called conference attendees to rediscover what it means to be human, learning not only from Greco-Roman civilization but also the biblical vision of man and woman, which can inform our understanding of culture.

He invited participants to dialogue and learn from each other.

If we in the West suffer from radical individualism, we might learn from the “holistic vision of Asian cultures,” the “solidarity of African cultures” and “the anthropology of Latin American peoples.”

OVERUSING TECHNOLOGY

The digital revolution changed how we communicate, and even how we understand ourselves. Some years ago, I read Sherry Turkle’s book Reclaiming Conversation. She contends that overusing technology has made us less empathetic; likes and dislikes on social media platforms and anonymous posts and comments never force us to see our words’ affect on others – how they hurt them. This overuse, she argues, leads to a lack of truly human conversations.

Even in families, members fear losing control of their emotions and thus, instead of meeting in person or speaking on the phone, they text each other so that they can edit conversations.

Many use their phones to find the next best party from a fear of missing out, but cannot seem to genuinely enjoy being at a party or being together.

This lack of truly human communication impacts dating as young people, who aren’t speaking in “real time,” have lost the art of courtship. In job interviews, many perform poorly and 3 0 | THE CATHOLIC TELE GRAPH

feel an undue pressure when having to speak “off the cuff.”

Sadly, Turkle even observed parents looking at their phones more frequently than their own children.

THE HUMAN CONNECTION

Perhaps we lost something of what it means to communicate humanly because of technology’s advances, but the biblical vision can help. Think of when Jesus looked up in the tree and, with a gaze of love, called Zacchaeus by name. How important was that gaze! Or again, Jesus bent down to look at the woman caught in adultery and said, “Neither do I condemn you but go and sin no more.” So too, Jesus gazed at Peter after his threefold denial, and Peter wept bitterly, perhaps because he still experienced Jesus’ loving gaze.

Recently, I offered Mass at St. Rita’s School for the Deaf.

Although I spoke, most children communicated through sign language, but a great deal of communication happened in their hearts. What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to communicate love and to receive love from another? We have all kinds of technology, but do we have enough love? Enough empathy? I admit, I love technology and probably overuse it, but my phone and my computer have never loved me back!

Unable to walk and residing in an assisted living facility, my mother is also a little hard of hearing. We occasionally use FaceTime to speak, but there is nothing like an in-person visit.

She smiles on the phone, but for in-person visits, she smiles more widely. When I hold her hand and agree to have tea and a biscuit, she is happy. For many years, her way of saying “I love you” was to cook Indian food. She can no longer cook now, but if she can feed me even a biscuit, it is a way to say, “I love you.”

Perhaps, those words are the message we need to hear most of all, and that we hear all the time from God. FATHER EARL K. FERNANDES

is the pastor of St. Ignatius of Loyola Church in Cincinnati and holds a doctorate in moral theology from the Alphonsian Academy in Rome.

Written by Gail Finke Illustrated by Emma Cassani

When the Great Depression halted St. Clare Parish’s church construction, parishioners in College Hill celebrated Mass in the basement for more than 25 years.

A temporary roof a few feet above street level was erected to cover the “Basement Church.”

Sept. 5, 1909 25 families met at the Ohio Military Institute to discuss a new parish.

Oct. 3, 1909 The parish’s first Mass celebrated on the stage at College Hill Town Hall.

May 29, 1910 Temporary church finished and dedicated.

1912 Sisters of St. Francis Oldenberg arrived. St. Clare School opened in their convent.

1915 School building dedicated.

1930 Rectory and basement of church built and roofed to use for Masses.

1 Copper steeple

1955 Work on the church began again. It was designed by architect Edward Schulte in a style combining late-period Art Deco lines with an emphasis on spare wood elements and spare, empty space.

1 Wood reredos Distinctive modified Art Deco reredos combines a large central crucifix with smaller, elaborately gilded paintings of the Virgin Mary and St. John, each flanked with a decorative panel attached with hinges. During Lent the panels are closed.

“Our fish fry is known for its communal spirit – as a place to see neighbors and friends.

Usually if someone comes, they stay the entire time! We have trouble turning over tables, people just don’t want to leave.” – Father George Jaquemin, pastor “Many, if not most, of the parishioners are actively engaged in parish life and in the life of the neighborhood.

St. Clare is really an anchor in the College Hill Community.” – Father George Jaquemin, pastor

1957 Current church dedicated.

St. Clare St. Clare was the first female Franciscan. A rich young woman who ran away from home to follow St. Francis, she founded the Order of Poor Ladies of San Damiano (now called the Poor Clares) to live the Franciscan life in different way from the friars, who wandered and begged. St. Clare is said to have repelled an invading army with a monstrance and, because she miraculously saw Mass on her wall when she was too ill to attend, she is the patron saint of television.

1964 German-made stained glass windows installed. They were based on the Benedicite canticle from the Book of Daniel used in the Liturgy of the Hours (“Oh all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord”).

1987 First St. Clare Lenten fish fry, which continued until Covid-19 restrictions.

2006 New parish center built. School consolidated with several other local parishes at St. Bartholomew Consolidated School (now John Paul II).

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S E IZ E T HE MO ME NT

TO KNOW OR NOT TO KNOW? THAT IS THE QUESTION “What does it mean to know God?” A reader sent this question recently, and it just about floored me. This isn’t a surface-level inquiry about a particular doctrine or practice. This is one of those deep, fundamental questions that digs down into the heart of human existence. Every single person needs to ask themselves this question. God placed it on our hearts, and it demands an answer.

How would you answer this question? At first, I wasn’t sure.

But then, I thought about my relationship with my wife and, providentially, my thoughts on knowing God fell into place.

AN IMPORTANT DISTINCTION

Before explaining further, I want to make an important clarification. There’s a difference between “knowing” God and “knowing about” God. Knowing about God means I have collected facts that describe Him. Public universities have atheists teaching religion classes for this very reason, because they know a lot about God. But, we’re after something deeper: truly knowing Him. Here’s where my wife comes in.

A BLESSED COURTSHIP

I met my wife, Amy, through the Catholic website called “Phatmass.” It provides a forum for Catholic teens and young adults to start conversations, learn about and share their faith, and even listen to some Catholic rap music – which, yes, is an actual thing.

One discussion thread asked for a link to readers’ personal websites. In the age before Facebook, to share yourself with the world, that’s what you did, you created your own website.

Well, she had one, and on a whim, I clicked on it and started learning all about this amazing young woman. There were essays and papers she had written; drawings, paintings, and graphic designs she had created; and photos she had taken – it was a spectacular collection. She was so beautiful, creative, and intelligent, I wanted to learn everything I could about her.

3 2 | THE CATHOLIC TELE GRAPH

Finally, I mustered up enough courage to send a message saying I thought she was great, and I wanted to get to know her better. To my surprise, she responded kindly.

We began chatting online, then talked on the phone or via video chat, until I took the big leap and flew to Maine to meet her in person. That was the first of many flights, either me to Maine or her to Kentucky. We went to the same college, eventually got married and now we have four kids!

It’s been a wild ride, but a good one. What I learned about Amy through her website certainly pales in comparison to what I know about her now. And that real and genuine knowing became possible for me only once I reached out. When I said, “I think you’re great and I want to get to know you better,” only then did the process of really knowing her begin.

ACCEPT THE INVITATION

The same pattern plays itself out in reference to God. If you want to experience what knowing God is like, then give it a try. Reach out to God. Tell Him you want to know Him better. Learn about Him, yes, as much as you can, but also commit yourself to Him. Talk to Him. Listen to Him. Share your life with Him and allow Him to share His life with you.

Then, you will know Him. To put it simply: Knowing God, and not just knowing about God, comes by way of relationship.

As Catholics, our relationship with God is cultivated primarily through prayer, going to Mass, receiving the sacraments, and reading the Bible. But there are many, many ways to encounter God and to know Him better. They are as varied as the people He loves so much.

You are one of those people. He loves you, too.

NICHOLAS HARDESTY

is the associate director of Adult Evangelization and RCIA for the Center for the New Evangelization. nhardesty@catholicaoc.org.

SHI N E ON

WHAT IS GOOD? Where I used to work, the phrase “world class” was thrown around often. It sounds like a noble goal, to be world class, but there’s a dilemma.

How do you define world class?

CONSIDER MUSIC.

Yo-Yo Ma was a child prodigy cellist, graduated from the Juilliard School and Harvard, recorded over 90 albums and won 18 Grammy Awards. On the other hand, at 32, Taylor Swift is one of the top selling singer-songwriters of all time, with 11 Grammy Awards.

question as they strive for excellence, many by seeking the good, the true and the beautiful-a phrase used around the Catholic Telegraph offices frequently! True - that’s an easy concept to apply. Beautiful?

Different people have different tastes, but that’s usually easily recognized, too. But good? What makes something good?

I propose a simple litmus test for goodness. It’s not perfect, but it quickly discerns whether the media you are consuming or creating is good.

Both are world class, but what if you wanted to create a world class album?

Should it be music that is masterfully composed and technically proficient, orchestrated for only the most highly trained musicians? Or should it be popular, catchy, radio-ready, and perfect for any teen to play on a ukulele?

God is the source and goal of all goodness, so instead of asking, “Is this good?” ask, “Does this lead to holiness? Does this bring me closer to God? Will this help people find God? Am I a better person for having read, watched or listened to this? Does this help me become the person God created me to be?”

Which is world class: Harry Potter or The Brothers Karamazov?

Van Gogh’s Starry Night or a YouTube video of cats dressed up as construction workers with 100 million views?

We all consume media, Catholic or otherwise, and often focus on the quantity consumed. But perhaps we should focus more on the media’s quality.

There’s the dilemma. World class is a wonderful compliment for any media, but it doesn’t identify what makes something good. Good music isn’t necessarily popular or technically proficient.

SO, WHAT DOES “GOOD” MEAN?

Catholic creators and media professionals address this central

Shine a light on the media in your life to determine if its quality is good with this simple question: Will this lead me to holiness?

DOMINICK ALBANO

is the director of digital engagement for The Catholic Telegraph, as well as an author and national speaker. He and his wife have been married for 14 years and have four sons.

S H IN E O N / F E B R UARY 2022 | 33

DEVELOPING

young students’ f u l l p ote nt i a l

St. Philomena Montessori Opens Doors in McCartyville

BY EILEEN CONNELLY, OSU

Simone Grace’s cheerful morning chatter about her activities and friends warms Luke Slonkosky’s heart daily as he drives his four-year old daughter to preschool at St. Philomena Montessori, a new school in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati dedicated on the saint’s feast day, Aug. 11.

Members at Sacred Heart of Jesus in McCartyville, Slonkosky and his wife, Laura, were among the parents who, over several years, approached the pastor, Father Steve Mondiek, expressing the need for a parish preschool. Father Mondiek took their requests to heart and prayer – the latter specifically to St. Philomena.

“I had just hired Carrie Winhoven as director of religious education and knew she had a background in Montessori education and was impressed by the method, so I talked it over with her and she thought it might work here,” Father Mondiek said. “We both went down to Cincinnati to check out a Montessori day school, and after discussing it with Carrie and the Pastoral Council, we decided to try it out. We knew a Catholic Montessori school would be unique, serve the people and provide the best Catholic education possible.”

Their vision became reality when Archbishop Dennis Schnurr approved plans for the school, and dedicated parishioners collaborated to make the necessary renovations and equip the classroom.

3 4 | THE CATHOLIC TE LEG RAPH

Enabling each child to develop their full potential as God created them is the school’s mission, said nowprincipal Winhoven. The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd and Montessori Method are the guiding principles and curriculum that make this possible. The Catholic component includes daily prayer, weekly Mass and time spent in the parish’s Good Shepherd Atrium.

Children also gather weekly in the St. Philomena Chapel to pray the saint’s chaplet and enjoy time in their classroom’s Queen of Peace corner watched over by a large statue of Mary.

Twenty-two children attend St. Philomena Montessori, in a morning or afternoon half-day preschool for ages three to five, or an all-day kindergarten for ages five and six. Next year’s plans add a Montessori toddler room for little ones 18 months to age three.

“The children make choices about their work and practice using their will, which is one of the greatest gifts God gave us,” said Winhoven.

“Children like meaningful work and they’re learning how to use it appropriately. They’re learning grace and courtesy, everything from sharing snacks to activities that build coordination, concentration and independence.”

In their multi-age classroom, children developed a sense of community, she said, older students helping younger ones. “The older child gets to be the leader and a helper. They learn to take care of each other and their classroom.”

Faith is, of course, key, Winhoven said. “Children are learning to pray and developing a relationship with Jesus. That’s the best gift we can give them,” she said. “I’ve seen children go over to the Queen of Peace corner and literally hug the statue of Mary.

Their faith just becomes part of them.”

Teacher’s Assistant Sonja Richard said a major benefit of Montessori education is that it enables children to grow at their own pace.

Children like meaningful work and they’re learning how to use it appropriately.

“Children are growing into their bodies and minds, so we teach them to stop, think about things and talk about them,” said Richard.

“We saw immediate growth in our daughter’s confidence and independence, anything that shows the practical side of life,” Slonkosky said. “She still makes all the mistakes of a four year old, but keeps her confidence. We’re thrilled with what she has accomplished and with the deep connection she’s establishing with our faith. She points out her friends at Mass, waves to them and prays for them. She’s a good witness for us.”

For more information about St. Philomena Montessori visit to spmohio.org.

Empowering New Neighbors For Success Catholic Charities welcomes new neighbors and accompanies them on their path to a new life. As the official refugee resettlement agency for Southwest Ohio, Catholic Charities has resettled over 12,000 refugees since 1980. We provide job readiness and placement, cultural orientation, English as a second language, case management, youth mentoring, mental health counseling, legal assistance, interpretation services, and more. All of it coming together to promote success for our families and a stronger community for everyone. DONATE TODAY. DONATE TODAY at ccswoh.org or mail in your donation.

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AM | 35 N E W S / F E B R1/3/22 U ARY10:02 2022

ORIGINAL UNITY PART 4: IMAGO TRINITATIS POPE ST. JOHN PAUL II’S THEOLOGY OF THE BODY This article is part of an ongoing series on Pope St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” (TOB).

In last month’s article, I mentioned how Pope St. John Paul II saw in the unity and distinction of our humanity as male and female a profound truth about what it means to be made in the “image of God.” Indeed, Genesis 1:27 tells us, “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” John Paul II saw the second half of this verse (“male and female he created them”) revealing something about the first half (i.e., what it means to be the image of God). Let’s unpack this connection.

AN IMAGE

What does it mean to be an image of something? If you were to take out a smartphone and snap a photo of me, you would see an image that unmistakably resembles me. However, that picture is more unlike me than like me. On your screen, the image is only a few inches tall, 2-dimensional, static and ultimately made of 1s and 0s stored on a computer chip. I am a full-sized, 3-dimensional, living human being composed of flesh and spirit. Clearly, there is a greater difference than similarity between my image on your phone and the real me.

Nonetheless, there is a true resemblance, such that when you see the image, it reminds you of the reality.

This example is helpful for us when we ponder what it means for man to be the image of God. There is always a greater difference between man and God than similarity. Indeed, we speak of God using human language and symbols that can never do justice to the glory of the Divinity. Nonetheless, by prayerfully and thoughtfully reflecting on our humanity and on Divine Revelation, we gain insights into who God is and what His plan is for us.

Traditionally, man was understood to be the image of God through the gifts of rationality and free will. Pope St. John Paul II affirmed and elaborated this understanding through his reflections on original solitude. However, he went beyond this by emphasizing a Trinitarian vision for man that is the image of God through the unity and duality of the two sexes, which gives rise to our capacity to form a communion of persons. God 3 6 | THE CATHOLIC TE LEGRAPH

is love, as St. John the Apostle tells us, and this signifies not only God’s attitude toward us but His inmost nature. Christ reveals to us that the one eternal God is Trinity, “an inscrutable divine communion of Persons” (TOB 9:3). For all eternity, the Father in love begets the Son, who eternally receives Being from the Father and gives Himself to the Father in response.

Their exchange of love is so perfect and real, that it is another Divine Person – the Holy Spirit. Each Person is truly distinct from the Others but utterly united in the one Divine Nature.

For all time, they give and receive one another in an eternal exchange of love. In this way, “God is love and in Himself He lives a mystery of personal loving communion” (John Paul II, Familiaris consortio, 11).

A COMMUNION OF PERSONS

Through our maleness and femaleness, man and woman discover in themselves the capacity to form a communion of persons. As we have seen, human nature is one, but there are two ways of being human: male and female. We can see in this unity-in-distinction a dim reflection of the Blessed Trinity’s unity-in-distinction, and that ability to form a communion of persons. When a man and a woman make a total gift of self such that they become “one flesh” in marriage, they form such a communion. Their mutual self-giving love may in time become personified in the gift of a child born of their union. Thus, man and woman form an image or icon of the Blessed Trinity through the communion of the family.

According to Pope St. John Paul II, this “trinitarian” understanding of the human person as image of God “constitutes perhaps the deepest theological aspect of everything one can say about man” (TOB 9:3). It shows us that among the rest of visible creation, man and woman have a special call and capacity to reveal, through their total self-giving, the eternal truth that God is love. In this way, we fulfill the meaning of our existence as man and woman created in the image of God. DR. ANDREW SODERGREN, MTS, PSY.D.

is a Catholic psychologist and director of psychological services for Ruah Woods. He speaks on topics related to the integration of psychology and the Catholic faith.

He and his wife, Ellie, have been married 21 years and have five children.

Are you prepared?

Let our ministry at Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Archdiocese of Cincinnati serve you. Let us help you preplan to be at peace knowing that your wishes will be carried out.

Come visit Gate of Heaven’s new Outdoor Columbaria, Baptism of Christ, by the ponds. God’s beauty surrounds us everywhere on His sacred ground at Gate of Heaven Cemetery.

Join us for a pre-planning seminar on Tuesday, February 15, 2022 at either 2:00PM or 6:00PM.

Traditional Burial • Lawn Crypts • Above Ground Mausoleum • Private Estates • Niches • Indoor Columbarium: Cremation, Glass Front Niches • Outdoor Columbaria: Cremation, Above Ground

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T H E O L O G Y O F T H E B O D Y / F E B R U A RY 2022 | 37

S T. S CHO LAS TI CA

B Y WA Y N E & MARIANNE TOP P

Monte Cassino, Scholastica left home and founded a convent near his monastery, placing its governance under her brother’s guidance and rule.

The two met once a year halfway between their homes.

On one occasion, St. Scholastica asked her brother and accompanying friars to stay overnight at their location, but St. Benedict’s rule did not allow them to spend the night away from the monastery. Refusing to take no for an answer, St. Scholastica turned to God in prayer, and He answered. A fierce thunderstorm blew up, keeping the friars shut in, and enabling the group to talk through the night until the men could leave early the next day. Just three days later, St. Benedict received a vision of his sister’s soul ascending into heaven after peacefully passing away.

This past May, we joined people across the Archdiocese on the longest U.S. Marian procession and pilgrimage. Stretching nearly 350 miles over 36 days, it touched thousands of lives.

On the final day, we prepared to walk the last two miles from Holy Cross-Immaculata to the Cathedral Basilica amid pouring rain and predictions of thunderstorms for the next four hours. A pilgrim approached the ambo with confidence to pray for Mary’s intercession. Just 15 minutes after leaving the church, the rain was completely gone! I will never forget watching the radar and seeing the storm move just a few miles south. Of course, that’s not the only time that prayer changed a weather pattern!

The saint we honor on February 10, St. Scholastica caused the opposite effect when she prayed for her brother to spend just a few more hours with her.

St. Scholastica and her brother, St. Benedict, grew up in 6th Century Italy. From a very young age, Scholastica gave herself entirely to God and remained close to her brother.

Soon after Benedict started his now-famous monastery at 3 8 | THE CATHOLIC TE LEGRAPH

Stories like these are almost too good to be true, capturing our imagination and giving us hope. Many times in my life I prayed and “knew” my request was too big, that there was no real way God would grant it, but I half-heartedly asked anyway. The truth we learn from St. Scholastica is that “nothing is impossible for God.” He CAN keep a storm from coming. He CAN make a storm pop up. He CAN cure us from our sickness. He CAN take away our pain. He doesn’t always do that, and His love for us and His plan for our salvation do not always reveal a miracle we can see. However, that should not keep us from turning to Him and asking for great things to happen in our lives. Let us, as parents, be witnesses to our children that our God is a powerful and awesome God who CAN.

SUPPLIES •

1 sheet of black construction paper

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6 half-sheets of construction paper (any colors are fine, we did a rainbow)

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Scissors

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Glue

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Crayons

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Scholastica Craft Template (scan the QR code on this page to download it!)

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Optional – glitter glue, construction paper raindrops, etc

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TIME COMMITMENT: 15 MIN

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AGE LEVEL: 6+

Save the Date!

INSTRUCTIONS 1.

Fold the half-sheets of construction paper in half, cross-wise, to make the longer crease.

2.

Trace the umbrella panel on at least 1 or 2 of the 6 folded sheets, lining up the template’s straight edge along the fold. (To minimize cutting and tracing, trace on 1 or 2 sheets only and place on 1 or 2 stacks of multiple sheets).

3.

Cut out the umbrella panel shape. DO NOT cut the folded edge.

4.

Keeping the umbrella panels folded in half, do the following (the panels end up folded in half, stacked on top of each other while gluing).

5.

Glue one side of panel #1 to one side of panel #2.

6.

Keeping panel #3 folded, glue one side of panel #3 to the other side of panel #2.

7.

Continue this until all 6 panels are glued together.

8.

Fan out the umbrella panels and glue the unglued sides of panel #1 and panel #6 to the black construction paper.

9.

Trace and cut out the umbrella handle and glue in place.

Saturday Morning, April 9 Lunken Airport Playfield CincinnatiRighttoLife.org

10. Trace and cut out the lightning bolts and glue in place above and beside the umbrella.

11. Color and cut out the saints and glue in place where desired.

12. Finish your picture by adding raindrops of glitter glue or whatever material you’d like.

Scan with your device to download the template and watch an instructional video!

M A K IN G CA T H O L IC M E M O R IE S / F E B R U ARY 2021 | 39

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OUT & ABOUT 1) STUDENTS CREATE ASSISTIVE DEVICES

McNicholas High School engineering students learned real-world skills and provided a valuable service to the community through a semester-long partnership with May We Help (MWH). This non-profit organization co-founded

by McNicholas graduate Bill Deimling designs, builds, and delivers custom assistive devices that help people with disabilities achieve independence.

2) ARCHBISHOP BAPTIZES & CONFIRMS AT DCI

The women imprisoned at Dayton Correctional Institute had eight reasons to celebrate when Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr baptized two women and confirmed six women on Dec. 20.

3) CANDIDACY AT MOUNT ST. MARY’S

On Dec. 8, 12 seminarians at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary & School of Theology received candidacy! Candidacy is a rite that takes place during Roman Catholic seminary formation, by which the Church recognizes the seminarian as worthy of being ordained.

4) SERVICE INITIATIVES IN FRANKLIN

At Bishop Fenwick High School students are participating in a wide range of service initiatives this school year ,including Talon Thursdays, a twice a month gathering where students prepare 200 brown bag lunches to feed people in need at St. Vincent DePaul in Dayton.

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DOWN 1 Catholic director Smith, creator of the “Silent Bob” character 2 Angry 3 Not a winner 4 Nephew of Abraham 5 From the Greek word meaning “the anointed one” 6 Noisy 7 Annoying spots 8 Annoying person 9 W-4 info 10 Sacred song 11 Mother of Apollo 12 Leave out 13 “I am ___ you always, until the end of the age.” (Mt 28:20)

21 Type of knowledge that is a condition for mortal sin 22 Uses a Singer 24 Cyberauction site 26 Web-footed aquatic bird 28 Turn away 29 Inter ___ 30 Drilling grp.

31 Luxurious 32 Scheme 33 Verdi opera 34 Plot of ground 38 God’s description of creation (Gen 1) 39 Exalted 40 Ball used for dorm hoops 42 A/C letters 43 She and her sister Rachel were both married to Jacob 46 Wrote quickly 47 Father of David 49 Last Supper question 50 Founder of the American Sisters of Charity 51 Piles 52 Second of the twelve Minor Prophets of the Old Testament 53 ___ boy!

54 Grumble 56 Asian inland sea 57 Land in the water 60 Law enforcement agency 61 Dance step

A R A L

47 An epistle 48 Uncouth 52 A “greater” saint who is patron of Nicaragua 55 Deposit of ___ 58 Bishopric 59 Plains people 60 Day on which God said, “Let there be light.”

61 Middle Eastern bread 62 LAX postings 63 W.C. Handy street of song 64 Over 65 Alley 66 Sat at a red light, say 67 Evil deeds

R A R E F I E D

ACROSS 1 What we are forbidden to do by the fifth commandment 5 Families 10 Agricultural implement 14 Buck and switch ender 15 Hoax 16 18-wheeler 17 Immense 18 Disagreement 19 Arguing 20 A finish for Canaan 21 Vatican news service 22 One of the seven deadly sins 23 Sea god 25 Up and ___!

27 Deli order (abbr.)

28 From square one 29 Dada notable 32 ___ infallibility 35 Old TV movie players 36 London throne?

37 ___ of the Mohawks 38 Color of Ordinary Time 40 Louse eggs 41 Mathematician Lovelace 42 Male swine 43 Percolate 44 Slave Turner 45 Wrongful act 46 OT prophetic book

Four generations of family service to Eastern Cincinnati

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F E B R U ARY 2022 | 41

2:42

THE FINAL WORD with Joe Duca

A Few Notes on

SCULPTING TIME I’m a filmmaker by trade and philosopher by degree, thus I often procrastinate. One favorite procrastination method is mulling the question: What is the Catholic artist’s call — particularly the Catholic filmmaker— in society? Or rather, what is the filmmaker’s call, considering the call of Christians?

it, almost to possess it in infinity,” like a memory or dream.

Thus, the filmmaker has an incredible opportunity to share an experience— a memory, dream, or story – that can at the same time expand the mind and still the heart, offering a glimpse of eternity in 24 frames.

When someone expresses a thought much better and truer than I can, I have two options: say it simpler or simply acknowledge they said it so much better and truer that I must quote them at length. The latter is how I feel about these words from the great Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky:

All this gives us insight into what it means to be a Catholic filmmaker. Our responsibility is “to recreate life, its movement, its contradictions, its dynamic and conflicts,” our duty is “to reveal every iota of the truth” we have seen, even “if not everyone finds that truth acceptable.” We are called to share the moments we held on to faith, the dreams that gave us hope, the sacrifices that deepened our love—even the jokes that kept us smiling when we wanted to despair. Perhaps especially that.

To give an account of the joy that is in us, in all its strangeness, particularity, mystery, intrigue, romance, with all its thrills and laughter—that is our task.

“The allotted function of art is not, as is often assumed, to put across ideas, to propagate thoughts, to serve as example. The aim of art is to prepare a person for death, to plough and harrow his soul, rendering it capable of turning to good. Touched by a masterpiece, a person begins to hear in himself that same call of truth which prompted the artist to his creative act. When a link is established between the work and its beholder, the latter experiences a sublime, purging trauma. Within that aura…the best sides of our souls are made known, and we long for them to be freed.

In those moments we recognize and discover ourselves, the unfathomable depths of our own potential, and the furthest reaches of our emotions.”

In short—whether poetry or painting, Swan Lake or oboe playing—art’s purpose is essentially contemplative, not rhetorical, so that it gets you to see something, rather than do something. It is not primarily advertising or propaganda, instead, by purging our hearts and ordering our emotions, art enables us to see life with greater clarity. And this prepares us to face death free and full of hope.

Of all the arts, film is especially suited to open our eyes, ears and ultimately, our hearts by enveloping us in sight and sound.

Tarkovsky points out film’s unique ability to “sculpt time.” The director can mysteriously capture, cut and move pictures and sounds around, to “seize and render the passage of time…stop 4 2 | THE F INAL WORD

In It’s a Wonderful Life, when George Bailey begs to live again, we do too. And that’s our power as Catholic artists, to stop time and witness to the truth, to share why we dare to hope that all things will be made new.

It’s a relief, honestly, that in films we aren’t necessarily called to spell out truth or dissect meaning with a scalpel. Overly didactic movies don’t sit well for a reason: A film’s power isn’t in advertising, it’s in empathy. As Tarkovsky said, “If you look for meaning, you’ll miss everything that happens.” To unpack that thought, I suggest his book, Sculpting in Time, because he’s a master and I’m running out of room.

I suggest this is the Catholic filmmaker’s role: to sculpt memories, dreams, imaginings – to offer a thrilling, mysterious, romantic, hilarious account of the hope that is in us. To harrow the soul with seeds of a new vision, new dreams, new life.

JOE DUCA is the award-winning indie writer-director of Evergreen (2020) and Her Name Was Jo (2021), and a graduate of Christendom College.

Help the Cathedral Basilica bring the Good News into focus!

NOW

FUTURE

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, we have seen the importance of technology. Daily Masses streamed from the cathedral basilica have become an important touchpoint for many of our elderly, ill and those still wary of attending Mass. We would like to provide something more for them by increasing the quality of our streamed video content.

We have been presented with a marvelous opportunity for funding our video upgrade with a matching-gift challenge. A donor will contribute up to $45,000 in a dollar-fordollar match.

At this present time our video system consists of a singular camera in the far rear of the church. With a multi-camera automatic system, we will have a finer quality for our daily and special Masses, including ordinations, weddings and funerals. The cost of a new system is $105,000. This design will allow us to provide a quality presentation automatically so as not to have to hire a crew for production purposes and avoid a monthly streaming fee.

Give online at cathedralaoc.org

We need your help and hope you will accept our invitation to provide this service to further share the Good News of Jesus Christ.

I would like to support the Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains’ video system upgrade.

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Credit card number ______________________________________________________________ Amount ___________________

Exp. Date ____________

Phone _____________________

Signature _____________________________________________ Mail this form, along with your payment to: Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter in Chains, 325 W 8th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 Your donation is tax deductible. Save a copy of this document for your records!

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100 E. 8th St. • Cincinnati, OH 45202

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