Dominican Sisters plant roots in Central Texas

Transcripción

OCTOBER 2013
T H E
V O L U M E 3 1, N U M B E R 9
O F F I C I A L
P U B L I C A T I O N
O F
T H E
D I O C E S E
O F
A U S T I N
Dominican Sisters plant roots in Central Texas
BY ENEDELIA J. OBREGÓN
SENIOR CORRESPONDENT
With the foundresses of
the Dominican Sisters of
Mary, Mother of the Eucharist in attendance, Bishop Joe
Vásquez blessed their new
temporary mission convent
just outside Georgetown on
Sept. 21. The convent will
house four to six of the sisters
currently working in Central
Texas.
The celebration also
served to thank those who
have made donations for the
convent and priory, now in
the planning stages, that will
eventually house 120 sisters.
The Georgetown location is
the Àrst outside Ann Arbor,
Mich., where the motherhouse
is located.
The order is led by Mother
Assumpta Long, the Prioress General; Sister Joseph
Andrew Bogdanowicz, Sister Mary Samuel Handwerker
and Sister John Dominic Rasmussen. Bishop Wm. Michael
Mulvey of Corpus Christi,
who was vicar general for the
Diocese of Austin when the
sisters arrived in 2009 and was
instrumental in helping them
come to Texas, also attended
the blessing.
Sister Elizabeth Ann
O’Reilly, who heads the Sisters’ Mission Advancement
OfÀce in the Diocese of Austin, said the blessing of the
convent is “a sign of spiritual
Periodical
Postage Paid
at Austin, Texas
BISHOP JOE VÁSQUEZ and Bishop Wm. Michael Mulvey of Corpus Christi stand with the
foundresses of the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of the Eucharist in front of an artist’s
rendering of the new priory that will be built in Georgetown. (Photo by Enedelia J. Obregón)
STUDYING
ABROAD
INTERVIEW
Respect for life
from conception to
natural death.
Page 18
ney we had no clue,” she said.
“We knew God had a plan.”
Right away, she said, they
found themselves “on the fast
track.”
“We needed a place not
only to feed, clothe and educate but also to form them,”
she said. “We had wonderful
people step up to the plate
and we haven’t had a creditor
knock on our door.”
Mother Assumpta also
joked the large crowd might
get to see a “Áying nun” since
the winds kept blowing the
sisters’ veils and the bishops’
zucchettos.
The sisters –– whose apostolate is education –– work
in 15 schools in seven states.
Their spirituality and traditional habits have attracted
many young women and the
motherhouse is bursting at
the seams at a time when
other orders are dwindling.
The Michigan location is landlocked; therefore, expansion
had to take place elsewhere.
“We didn’t know where
the Lord wanted us,” she said.
“We had an opportunity to
go to California.” Then Texas
beckoned.
Sisters have been working
in ofÀces at the Pastoral Center to develop a plan for the
community’s expansion into
See OP on Page 3
AID TO SYRIA
Agencies work
together to help
displaced Syrians.
Page 17
Young adult from
Round Rock studies at
Emmanuel school in
Rome.
Page 6
BISHOP’S
Austin Diocese
6225 Hwy. 290 East
Austin, Texas 78723
vitality and vibrancy in this
diocese.”
After the blessing, Sister
Elizabeth Ann said that whenever God opens a door, “He
deÀnitely lets you know.”
“In Texas it happened so
fast it seemed he was shoving
us through,” she said. While
they have missions in six other states, Texas will have the
second priory for the education and formation of new
sisters.
The sisters arrived in Central Texas in August 2009 at
the invitation of Archbishop
Gregory M. Aymond, who
was then bishop of the Diocese of Austin. In 2011 ––
with the help of benefactors
–– the sisters purchased 60.4
acres near the San Gabriel
River on which the convent
and priory will sit.
Bishop Vásquez blessed
the sisters saying, “May they
listen to you in faith and
prayer; may they seek only
you ... and may they Ànd you
in all they do. May they be
witnesses to the Gospel and
speak of God to everyone.”
Mother Assumpta said
that when they were asked by
Cardinal John O’Connor of
New York to start a new order in 1997 they relied only on
faith. Three months after that
he sent them to Michigan.
“When we began our jour-
ESPAÑOL
La Parroquia de
St. Albert celebra
su diversidad.
Página 29
2
THE MISSION OF THE CATHOLIC SPIRIT
As the of¿cial newspaper for the Roman Catholic Diocese
of Austin, the CATHOLIC SPIRIT is dedicated to providing information, education and formation for the Catholic community
of Central Texas. This mission calls for the newspaper:
• to provide readers with an understanding of our Catholic
faith and traditions;
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relevant to the community;
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and urban, throughout Central Texas;
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and traditions;
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life, while acknowledging the humanity of the community and
examining, with courage, topics that challenge and encourage
growth in the faith;
• to carry a commitment to social justice that will support
the renewal of the church in Central Texas.
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STAFF
Publisher: Most Rev. Joe S. Vásquez, Bishop of Austin
Editor: Shelley Metcalf; (512) 949-2400,
[email protected]
Assistant Editor: Christian R. González; (512) 949-2400,
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Spanish translation: Gina Dominguez
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VOICES
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Being grateful stewards, believers
BY DANIEL CONWAY
GUEST COLUMNIST
The Year of Faith proclaimed by Pope
Benedict XVI a year ago will conclude the
end of this church year on the feast of Christ
the King Nov. 24. All year long we have been
thinking about the mystery that is Christian
faith.
Faith is a gift. It is a beacon of light that
shines in our darkness. We all experience the
pain, suffering and confusion that are caused by
darkness in our lives.
Sin and death are the primary expressions
of darkness that no human person –– except
the Blessed Virgin Mary, by the grace of God
–– can escape. We cannot overcome the world’s
darkness by our own efforts, but our faith tells
us that we can open our minds and hearts to the
light of Christ and, so, “journey through time”
illumined by his brightness.
The church teaches that faith comes as the
result of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.
How well do we know him? How deeply do we
love him? How effectively do we serve him by
responding to the most profound needs of our
sisters and brothers in faith?
The light of Christ shines through our darkness. It illumines the shadows of our life and
touches us in what Pope Francis describes in
his encyclical, “Lumen Fidei” (“The Light of
Faith”), as “the core of our being.” When we
see with faith, we recognize the meaning of life
–– and of our individual lives.
Through faith, our minds and hearts are
opened to the truth. We are not orphans. We
are the sons and daughters of God, the brothers
and sisters of Jesus Christ, who are called to see
and to believe with great joy!
As people of faith, we are called to thank
God for this great gift. But giving thanks, expressing our gratitude in thought and word, is
only an initial aspect of being a grateful believer.
We are called not only to say thanks to God,
but to do thanks as well. This expression of
gratitude to God in action is called stewardship.
In their pastoral letter “Stewardship: A Disciple’s Response,” the American bishops teach
that authentic Christian stewardship is a disciple’s response in faith to all the gifts we have
been given by a loving and generous God.
When somebody gives us a gift or does us a
favor, we spontaneously say “thank you.” That’s
the expected response our parents taught us to
make at a very early age.
But just saying thanks isn’t really enough.
Yes, we are expected to acknowledge in words
the gift or beneÀt we have received, but we are
expected to acknowledge it in action, too. This
acknowledgment in action is not supposed to
be a “payback” in which we calculate the value
of what we have received and give exactly that
much back to the giver.
Rather, it’s intended to be a more intense
expression of grateful acknowledgment, a more
emphatic way of showing that we are aware of
what we have received and that we want to express our sincere appreciation by giving something in return.
Gratitude in action is more demanding than
just expressing thanks with words. It’s more
substantive. It costs more. It’s more complicated. But it is also more expressive, and the more
we have been given, the more we are expected
to give in return. Unless there is a willingness
to give in return, the gratitude we express with
words can easily become a mere formality.
Stewardship is the term used to express our
“sacriÀcial giving” in return to the Lord who
has given everything to us. Stewardship is not
just giving our “time, talent and treasure.” It’s
not simply a technique for asking people to contribute more to the church in order to pay the
light bills and keep parish and school ministries
going. Stewardship is the practice of putting our
faith in action –– or as one theologian has said,
“Stewardship is what we do after we say we
believe.”
The practice of stewardship should not be a
once in a while thing, any more than gratitude
to God is a once in a while thing. Gratitude, and
the expression of it in word and action, is supposed to be habitual in our lives. Stewardship
and gratitude are part of what we are about in
our day-to-day lives, every day. They are constituent elements of our Christian spirituality of
faith in action.
Let’s thank God for all his gifts. Let’s be
grateful stewards whose words and actions
show that we are responsible, generous and willing to give back to the Lord with increase. Let’s
be grateful believers who do thanks as well as
say it.
DANIEL CONWAY is an editorial writer for The
Criterion, the weekly newspaper of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis.
Father Azcona died Sept. 5 in Mexico
Father José Luís Azcona, died on Sept. 5 at
Irving, Richardthe age of 65 in Guadalajara, Mexico. He was
son, Luling, Mcborn on April 19, 1948, in Tepic, Nayarit, Mexico.
Gregor, Moody
He was ordained a priest on Sept. 27, 1985, as a
and China Spring.
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assignment was
Copyright 2013 by the Austin Diocese. All rights reAustin in 2007.
as pastor of St.
served. Reproduction of any editorial content, photograph,
Father Azcona studied philosophy at the
Eugene Parish in
art or design is prohibited without written permission of the
Jesuit College in Mexico City and the Urbaniana
McGregor and
publisher CATHOLIC SPIRIT (ISSN 0896-2715) is published 11
University in Rome, Italy. He earned a degree
Our Lady of San
times annually (monthly except one issue in July/August)
in theology at the Collegio Teologico InterJuan Mission in
by the Austin Diocese. Bishop Joe S. Vásquez, publisher,
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October 2013
3
CENTRAL TEXAS
Brazos Valley Planned Parenthood is closed
BY MARY P. WALKER
Saturday, Sept. 7 was a
sweltering day in the Brazos
Valley, but the weather could
not keep hundreds from celebrating the closing of the
Planned Parenthood abortion facility in Bryan. In a tent
across the street, the mood
was happy and prayerful, occasionally punctuated by tears
of joy.
“We are standing across the
street from where abortion began in the Brazos Valley. But,
more importantly, we are standing across the street from where
abortion ended in the Brazos
Valley!” said Jim Olson, master
of ceremonies and board member of the Brazos Valley Coalition for Life.
In July, Planned Parenthood
announced that the Bryan clinic
was closing, citing legislative
cuts in funding.
The program for the event
included speakers who told
the story of the power of God
working through peaceful,
prayerful persistence, under
the sponsorship of the Coalition.
This grassroots movement
has international inÁuence, and
serves as a blueprint for other
communities to end abortion
in their midst. The movement
also formed a new generation of
pro-life leaders, who took their
experience from what Planned
Parenthood termed “the most
anti-choice place in the nation”
to other communities.
In 1998, Planned Parenthood’s announcement that it
would build an abortion facility in Bryan alarmed a group
of Christian pro-life supporters. Forming the ecumenical
Coalition for Life, they were
determined to stop abortions
and remove the abortion provider from the community.
Speaking to the attendees,
Lauren Gulde, the Coalition’s
founder, expressed appreciation for the training she received from other pro-life individuals and organizations.
Through their mentorship,
they learned how to counsel women on the sidewalk,
before they entered the facility for an abortion. Even
after Planned Parenthood
constructed a barrier fence
and then added netting on
the fence to prevent pro-life
brochures from being passed
to the women, the coalition
continued their efforts.
In 2001, David Bereit became the second executive
director of the Coalition. His
friend, David Arabie, talked
to him about how his dying
father insisted on praying
with his son to end abortion.
Arabie’s experiences during
that time convinced him that
standing outside the facility and praying continuously
would end abortion there.
By then, Bereit admitted
that he was discouraged. Together, he and some other
coalition members desperately
prayed for wisdom and help.
They believed that God’s answer was for them to pray
continuously outside the facility for 40 days and 40 nights.
The local pro-life advocates wanted to launch an
abortion awareness activity
in the fall of 2004. They recognized that Planned Parenthood’s business increased
with the returning college students. Under the leadership
of Bereit, they took Arabie’s
kernel of an idea, reÀned it,
and marketed it to the community through education and
door-to-door outreach.
The 40 Days for Life campaign was born. Churches and
parishes promoted 40 days of
fasting, and peacefully standing and praying, around the
clock, outside the facility. Participants stood and prayed in
spite of heat, insects and rain.
Members of the Knights of
Columbus, particularly the
Aggie Knights, took on the
“Knight Shift.”
During those 40 days, abortions dropped and the local prolife community was energized.
Afterwards, the campaign was
held twice a year, in the fall and
during Lent.
The coalition also sponsored “Stand and Pray”
throughout the year when the
facility scheduled abortions.
Many also prayed outside at
other times. Drivers passing by often saw one, two or
many standing and praying on
the sidewalk.
Word of the campaign’s
success spread, and hundreds
of cities implemented their
own 40 Days campaigns. Bereit and Shawn Carney, who
along with his wife, Marilisa,
were instrumental in organizing the first 40 Days campaign, now head the national
40 Days for Life organization.
This organization advises prolife advocates in the U.S. and
other countries on how to
implement the same peaceful,
prayerful strategy within their
communities.
To date, at least 40 abortion facilities have closed after 40 Days campaigns. The
Planned Parenthood facility
in Bryan was the 38th, and
the local pro-life community
could Ànally celebrate in their
own backyard.
One of the more powerful
events in this story was the
conversion of the director of
the Bryan facility, Abby Johnson. Over the years, those
praying on the sidewalk often saw and interacted with
Johnson. They also prayed for
her. After assisting in an abortion in 2009, Johnson had a
change of heart.
Not knowing where else to
go, she went to the coalition’s
ofÀce, right down the street.
There she found acceptance,
support, friendship and a path
to God’s forgiveness. She subsequently became Catholic,
and founded And Then There
Were None, an organization
that provides Ànancial, emotional, spiritual and legal support to those wishing to leave
the abortion industry.
As speakers recounted the
events leading up to the closing, a sense of awe permeated the gathering. The idea
that God used their simple
grassroots efforts to create
a movement that has saved
thousands of lives, impacted
pro-life advocacy strategies
across the nation and internationally, and formed the next
generation of pro-life leaders
evoked gratitude and wonder.
Now that the coalition has
reached the goal for which it
had been founded, they are
exploring ways to apply what
was learned in the Brazos Valley to other pro-life endeavors.
“While our mission has always been a local one, we’ve
come to realize that America is
now watching what is happening in Aggieland,” said Bobby
Reynoso, the current executive
director of the coalition.
Those gathered also acknowledged the somber reality that although the facility is
closed, the community bears
the scars of the evil perpetrated there. Father David
Konderla reminded the crowd
that the 6,400 babies killed in
the Bryan facility have mothers and fathers. Years may
pass before they acknowledge
their loss, and the pro-life
community must be ready to
offer help and healing.
To commemorate the loss
of these 6,400 children, the
coalition organized a 24-hour
prayer vigil in front of the
closed facility on Sept. 24.
Dominicans build temporary convent in Georgetown
OP
Continued from Page 1
Central Texas, including fundraising for the new priory. Others have been teaching at Santa
Cruz Catholic School in Buda;
and Holy Family Catholic School
and St. Dominic Savio High
School in Northwest Austin.
“People have been magnanimous,” Mother Assumpta
said, noting that Texas will be
the model for future expansion plans.
Sister Joseph Andrew said
that while the monetary gifts
from the faithful are vital, it’s not
the only thing the sisters need.
“We also want your daughters,” she said, suggesting young
women attend discernment retreats.
“Open yourselves to God’s
will,” she said. “It’s the most exciting possibility you can dream
of.”
Planting the seed is important for young women.
According to the National
Religious Vocation Conference, women religious first
start thinking of a vocation
around age 14. Women religious are also more likely to
have attended Catholic school
as youngsters.
While 94 percent of current sisters are Caucasian, the
changing demographic is reÁected in the new women in
formation. About 21 percent
are Hispanic/Latina, 14 percent are Asian/PaciÀc Islander, and 6 percent are African,
black or African-American.
Sister Maria, one of the
sisters who has been working
in Central Texas, said before
entering the convent she was
Chief Financial Officer for
three car dealerships in New
York.
“I led a very materialistic
life,” she said. She was “living
A MEMBER OF THE DOMINICAN SISTERS OF MARY, Mother of the Eucharist walks
out of the newly built convent in Georgetown. Future plans include the construction of a
priory that will house 120 sisters. (Photo by Enedelia J. Obregón)
the good life, but not the best
one.”
“When you possess Christ
and do his will you truly Ànd
joy, not just happiness,” she
said. “I was looking for stuff
to make me happy but it was
temporal.”
Robert Marcarelli, director
of Mission Advancement for
the order, marveled at how
quickly the faithful have embraced the sisters and their
vision.
So far the sisters have received $13 million in dona-
tions toward their $30 million
goal.
For more information
on the Dominican Sisters of
Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, visit www.sistersofmary.
org/expansion/tx-expansion.
html.
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
CENTRAL TEXAS
4
Local Catholic student wins big on Jeopardy!
BY MICHELE CHAN SANTOS
CORRESPONDENT
Jonathan Shoemaker, 12, a
seventh grader at Holy Family Catholic School in North
Austin, took a big risk when
he decided to stake $2,000 on
a Bible question on the popular
TV show Jeopardy!.
Host Alex Trebek said,
“When this strong man was
born, God said, ‘No razor shall
come upon his head.’”
Jonathan correctly answered,
“Who was Samson?”
In answering the Daily Double question on the Kids’ Week
episode, Jonathan increased his
winnings to $4,000.
“My strategy was, if the category was Math or Religion, I’m
betting everything,” he said.
He held on through Double
Jeopardy and Final Jeopardy,
winning the match and $15,000.
He put most of the money in
his college fund, though he did
purchase a laptop. During Kids’
Week the contestants appeared
on one episode each. Unlike
when adults compete, the winners did not go on to the next
day’s show.
The best part of being on
Jeopardy! was “meeting all the
other kids and seeing what
the studio was like,” Jonathan said. “From the outside
it’s just a gray box, but inside
you can see the set, it looked
cool.” Host Trebek, who is
73 years old, was “really nice,”
he said, adding, “It’s amazing
he’s still going.”
Jonathan is a bright, polite
teenager with many interests.
He plays soccer, basketball,
tennis and baseball, and participates in math tournaments
through a program called Extreme Math.
Jonathan’s father, David,
is his Extreme Math coach.
David has a Ph.D. from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology and is the CEO of Alereon, a wireless chip company.
Jonathan’s mother, Judy, is a
graduate of Wellesley College
in Massachusetts. Jonathan has
two sisters – Emily, a freshman
at St. Dominic Savio Catholic High School, and Jessica, a
fourth grader at Holy Family
Catholic School.
Jonathan credits his Bible knowledge to Sister Jude
Andrew, his religion teacher
at Holy Family last year, and
to Sister Maria Fatima, his
current religion teacher. Both
religious sisters are from the
Dominican Sisters of Mary,
Mother of the Eucharist.
“Jonathan is a wonderful
student. I’m impressed with his
humility,” Sister Fatima said.
Sister Jude Andrew was very
excited when Jonathan’s episode
went on the air, she said.
The episode aired on July
29, although it was taped last
February.
Just earning a spot on Jeopardy! Kids’ Week was quite a
feat. Thousands of children took
a 30-question timed test online,
which was offered on only one
day. Of those students, 250 were
chosen for the next round, and
had to travel to New Orleans,
Cincinnati, New York or Los
Angeles. In New Orleans, Jonathan took another 30-question
test, did an interview and participated in a mock Jeopardy! game.
Finally, 15 students were
picked to be on the show. Jeopardy! paid for the students’ airfare and hotel; the participants
also received a free day at Universal Studios.
After the Kids’ Week competitions aired, there was controversy over a different episode
where Thomas Hurley, an 8thgrader from Connecticut, misspelled Emancipation Proclamation (he spelled it “emancipta-
The John Paul II Life Center’s Benefit Dinner
JONATHAN
SHOEMAKER,
a seventh
grader at Holy
Family Catholic School, with
Alex Trebek
on the set of
Jeopardy!.
(Photo courtesy Judy
Shoemaker)
tion”). The answer was deemed
incorrect by the show’s judges,
and he told the media he felt
cheated. Trebek was publicly criticized for appearing insensitive.
Asked about the controversy, Jonathan said it was made
clear to all the young contestants
that misspellings would only be
counted correct if the number
of syllables and phonetic pronunciation agreed with the correct answer. Because the extra
“t” made Hurley’s misspelling a
different-sounding word, Jonathan said he thought the judges
made the right decision.
Hurley eventually lost to the
top competitor at Kids’ Week,
Skyler Hornbeck, who won a
record-setting $66,000, which
was the third-highest one-day
total in the history of the show.
Jonathan’s parents were
longtime believers in the value
of a Catholic education, even
before their son won a spot on
the TV quiz show.
“The religious education and
environment at Holy Family is a
huge plus,” Judy said. “The size
of the school allows us to really
participate in everything with our
kids.”
Asked if he’s planning on
making a return appearance on
Jeopardy!, Jonathan shook his
head no.
“They told us we couldn’t
be on the show again unless 30
years had passed or Alex Trebek
retires,” Jonathan said.
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October 2013
5
CENTRAL TEXAS
Bryan Catholic Charities moves to new location
BY MARY P. WALKER
On Sept. 6, members of the
Àve parishes in Bryan and College Station joined representatives from the local community
and the Diocese of Austin to
celebrate the opening of Catholic Charities of Central Texas
(CCCTX)-Brazos Valley’s new
ofÀce. The program included a
ribbon cutting ceremony, blessing of the building by Bishop Joe
Vásquez, and an open house.
“This is a great sign of hope.
I think people are going to feel
comfortable coming here and
seeking the help of the church,”
Bishop Vásquez said.
While CCCTX has sponsored a satellite ofÀce in Bryan
since 2008, the previous location
offered many challenges. That
ofÀce operated out of a remodeled home, a building that was
not designed for public access.
It was too small, had maintenance problems, limited parking and was located far from
many of the clients. These drawbacks, combined with the need
to expand services, required
the CCCTX ofÀce in Bryan to
move.
“In order to meet the growing needs in our area, we had to
grow as well. Our new facilities
will allow us to do a better job
of providing our current services
and will allow us to bring new
services to the area,” said Vancy
Mayes, Brazos Valley Social Services Coordinator.
Located at 1410 Cavitt
Ave., near downtown Bryan,
the building offers nearly 5,000
square feet of ofÀce, meeting,
classroom, lobby and storage
space. Purchased by the Diocese of Austin, the building was
remodeled speciÀcally to meet
the needs of CCCTX, under the
oversight of Deacon Ted Baker,
who has extensive experience in
managing such projects.
In addition to disaster relief, CCCTX has three areas of
focus: Family Assistance and
Referral, the Good Samaritan
Gabriel Project Life Center,
and Immigration Legal Services
(ILS). All three programs are
expanding and will beneÀt from
the move.
The additional space and
design of the interior allows
caseworkers to see and help
more individuals and families in
a welcoming and private setting.
Through the larger classroom
and expanded parking, Good
Samaritan is able to accommodate more students in their
parenting classes.
The area is also experiencing
a greater need for affordable
legal assistance for low-income
immigrants dealing with immigration issues. The new building
allows ILS to increase the local
availability of legal help, eliminating the need for some clients
to travel to Austin for services.
Christina Reyes-Paiz, interim
THE NEW
OFFICE for the
Brazos Valley
location of Catholic
Charities of Central
Texas opened on
Sept. 6. It is located
at 1410 Cavitt Ave.,
near downtown
Bryan. (Photo by
Mary P. Walker)
director of CCCTX, views the
expansion of services in the
Brazos Valley as a model that
can be replicated in other communities within the diocese.
“We know it can be done.
It’s being done here,” ReyesPaiz said.
Bishop Vásquez praised the
good work of CCCTX in the
Brazos Valley, and reminded
those present that Catholic
Charities is much more than a
social service agency. During
the blessing service, the bishop
cited Pope Francis, who teaches
that helping the poor is a holy
endeavor. The poor are not just
the recipients of our care; we are
also spiritually enriched when
we act in charity. He explained
that when people come to Catholic Charities for help, we see
the face of Christ is in their
faces, and they in turn reÁect the
face of Christ back to us.
“Catholic Charities is making a difference in the lives of
people. Catholic Charities is
always about helping those who
need assistance, recognizing the
dignity of each person made in
the image and likeness of God,”
Bishop Vásquez said.
Bishop Vásquez thanked
the local CCCTX staff and
those who worked hard to
make the move a reality. In
addition, Mayes praised the
cooperation and collaboration that CCCTX enjoys with
other local non-profit organizations, such as the Society
of St. Vincent de Paul. This
collaboration makes all those
who seek to serve the poor
and vulnerable more effective
in their outreach, she said.
The Bryan/College Station
community also welcomed the
expansion of CCCTX. Bryan
mayor, Jason Bienski, attended the blessing and expressed
appreciation for the caring,
local presence of Catholic
Charities.
Before the blessing, the Bryan/College Station Chamber of
Commerce celebrated the new
home of CCCTX with a ribbon
cutting ceremony. Chamber of
Commerce ambassador, Andrew Robison, said, “The prosperity of a community depends
on businesses and non-proÀts
working together to serve the
public. We are blessed to have
the vibrant outreach of Catholic
Charities.”
Workshop helps Tribunal advocates prepare cases
BY THOMAS HOWARD
GUEST CORRESPONDENT
In August, people from Austin, Dallas and as far away as
Oregon gathered at Cedarbrake
Catholic Retreat Center in Belton for the annual Advocates
Training Workshop. The diocesan OfÀce of Canonical and
Tribunal Services sponsors the
workshop, which is designed to
help those who help people who
are seeking an annulment.
The workshop began eight
years ago when the Judicial Vicar, Father Christopher Ferrer,
invited advocates from around
the Diocese of Austin to come
and learn how to be better advocates. He thought it was very
important to teach advocates
how to prepare their cases for
presentation to the Tribunal.
“By doing so, the Tribunal
is better able to process nullity
cases in a timely fashion and,
more importantly, arrive at the
correct decision in each case,”
Father Ferrer said.
This year, three experts in
canon law made presentations:
Father Roger Keeler, doctor of
canon Law and Judicial Vicar of
the Court of Second Instance
in San Antonio; Father Matthew Iwuji, doctor of universal
and canon law and judge of the
Tribunal of Austin; and Father
Jozef Musiol, SDS, doctor of
canon law and Adjutant Judicial
Vicar of the Diocese of Austin.
Each presenter focused on
a different aspect of canon law
to describe various reasons why
a declaration of nullity (annulment) might be granted. The
premise of a declaration of nullity is that the marriage never
occurred in the Àrst place (ab
initio) due to a lack of canonical
form, an impediment or a lack
of valid consent.
Father Keeler began by
reminding attendees that the
church has clearly deÀned marriage as a “covenant, by which a
man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership
of the whole of life and which is
ordered by its nature to the good
of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring
(Canon 1055).” Then he spoke
of lack of consent caused by
various incapacities on the part
of one of the parties.
Father Musiol talked about
two different aspects of a defective consent. The church
insists that consent to marriage
be unconditionally and freely
given. Placing conditions on
a person’s consent to marry is
incompatible with the self-giving
of the spouses to establish a
partnership for the whole of life.
Further, freedom in choosing a
partner for life is a basic human
right recognized by the church.
Without this freedom to choose
a spouse, a fundamental element
of this communion of life and
love is lacking. Therefore, if
force or grave fear is used to induce consent, the validity of the
consent is called into question.
Father Iwuji covered one
impediment to a licit marriage,
impotence. In distinguishing
impotence from sterility, he
defined this impediment as
an inability to complete the
conjugal act, a necessary part
of a marriage covenant, which
is directed to the good of the
spouses and procreation of
children.
He then discussed another
of the defects in consent, that
of an individual mistaken about
the person whom they are marrying. This error can be a result
of either an error in judgment
or may be caused by fraud or
deceit. By way of clariÀcation,
he said that such an error must
be about whom the person is or
a very important quality in that
person. He added that the error
must be intentional.
During the workshop, there
were breakout sessions in which
participants discussed real cases
that have come before Tribunals
in the past. Groups of attendees
discussed cases, suggested possible grounds for nullity and
formulated an argument to support those grounds. The breakout sessions helped participants
put into practice what they had
learned from the various presentations. The attendees also
received a binder of extensive
reference materials to use in
their ministry when they return
home.
The workshop concluded
with Mass celebrated by Bishop
Joe Vásquez. In his homily, the
bishop thanked the participants
for work in their various Tribunals around the state and the
country. He reminded everyone
that they are dealing with people
whose lives are broken and who
want and need help. He encouraged each attendee to continue
to do their work remembering
that they are involved in a healing ministry directed at bringing
people back to full communion
with the church.
6
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
CENTRAL TEXAS
Young adult journeys ‘outside his comfort zone’
BY PEGGY MORACZEWSKI
CORRESPONDENT
As a child growing up in
the Austin area with a love of
track and Àeld, Robert Prybyla
never envisioned that one day
he would be enjoying morning
runs around Vatican City. But
a willingness to venture outside
his comfort zone has led to rewards beyond the imagination
of this young man.
The second of four children
born to Marianne and Robert Prybyla Sr., Robert credits his parents with serving as
his primary role models of the
Catholic faith. Robert attended
Catholic grade schools, but it
was during his years at Round
Rock High School that he had
what he called a “sacramental
awakening.”
“Reconciliation became very
important to me and I started
going to daily Mass at St. William Catholic Church, primarily because I had a job nearby,
but it was at St. William’s that
I began falling in love with the
Eucharist,” he said.
Heading north to Baylor
University, Prybyla became
actively involved at St. Peter
Catholic Center while pursuing a
degree in Mechanical Engineering. Robert’s time at St. Peter
ignited a spark that lingered in
his heart long past his graduation two summers ago.
“St. Peter’s became a primary place of community for me.
During these years I felt called
to evangelize, but didn’t know
exactly how, or where to begin.
It didn’t seem to come naturally
to me,” he said.
Returning to Austin following graduation, Robert worked
as a substitute teacher at St.
Theresa’s Catholic School. Although he enjoyed teaching
middle school, a desire to learn
more about his faith and share
it with others left him feeling a
bit unsettled, until a friend from
St. William Parish suggested he
research Emmanuel School of
Mission (ESM) – Rome (www.
esm-rome.com).
This is where life took a
sharp turn and, “moved me way
out of my comfort zone. I had
never heard of ESM-Rome, but
in October 2012, I departed for
Italy wondering what I had gotten myself into,” said Prybyla,
unaware he was embarking on
a life-changing adventure in his
journey of faith.
Emmanuel School Mission
has four locations, three in Europe and one in the Philippines.
The nine month ESM program
has four pillars: Academics,
Spiritual Formation, Mission
and Community Life. With a
smile acknowledging his partiality, Robert added, “Rome is the
best location.”
Academics are comprised
of classes in theology, the sacraments, Scripture, philosophy,
and Italian, augmented by studies in Theology of the Body,
drama, patristics and apologetics. Since the school is rooted
in the spirituality of the Emmanuel Community, spiritual
formation each day included
morning praise (singing, giving
thanks, consecrating the day to
Jesus through Mary), adoration
and Mass. Daily Masses were
celebrated in the ESM chapel or
at Centro San Lorenzo, which
was founded in 1983 by Pope
John Paul II for the youth of
the world. The relationship of
ESM-Rome to Centro San Lorenzo was enhanced when the
PontiÀcal Council for the Laity
gave ESM-Rome responsibility
for operating the Centro.
This connection likely
opened another door for Pry-
byla that he never envisioned.
Shortly after arriving in Rome,
he was asked to stand for the
youth of North America at the
opening Mass for the Year of
Faith. He joined a handful of
Catholic youth from across
the globe to receive a personal
“Message to Young People”
from Pope Benedict XVI.
Robert shared his ESM experience with 17 classmates,
who hailed from 12 countries
and spoke 21 languages. One
student relocated to the Netherlands with her family after
being forced to leave their home
country of Rwanda during the
genocide. Sharing in the lives
of the remarkable people he
encountered, both inside and
outside of the school, made
the mission trips exceptionally
rewarding.
The ESM students travelled
to the town of Diest, Belgium
for their initial one week mission during Advent, helping
a local pastor who sought to
reverse the trend of his evershrinking congregation. The
students evangelized by singing
Christmas carols in the street
and engaging people in conversations of faith as they stopped
to enjoy the music. Students
also went door-to-door inviting
residents to church. This experience began to Àll the longing
in Prybyla’s heart to share his
Catholic faith.
However, during the second
mission trip, when ESM students were allowed to teach in
the Lithuanian Public Schools,
he was especially moved. ESM
students shared their message
of faith in a classroom, created
and performed a skit for the
students, and socialized with
the children during the lunch
period. They spent the second
week in Vilnius, Lithuania, in
the city center park, next to the
ROBERT PRYBYLA, a parishioner of St. William Parish
in Round Rock, studied at the Emmanuel School Mission in Rome earlier this year, which meant he was there
when Pope Francis was elected. (Photo courtesy Robert
Prybyla)
Cathedral, visiting with people
on the street.
This was a major turning
point for Prybyla in his evangelization because, “I was way
out of my comfort zone!” The
ESM’s third and Ànal mission of
the year was at a parish in Rome,
but he admitted his heart was in
the city of St. Faustina’s mission,
Vilnius, Lithuania, the “City of
Divine Mercy.”
Now back home in Austin,
Prybyla continues to share the
Holy Spirit with all those he encounters. He is a young man on
Àre with love for God, stirred
by an amazing year of faith
and feels extremely blessed to
have had this experience. Participating in ESM-Rome left him
“Àlled with a love for the Regina
Caeli, the Angelus, adoration
and daily Mass,” Prybyla said.
He also treasured the opportunity to be present at numerous
historical events in the life of
the Catholic Church, including
Pope Benedict XVI’s resignation and last public Mass on Ash
Wednesday, as well as standing
in St. Peter’s Square when the
white smoke announced “Habemus Papam (We have a Pope!),”
and joining the ecstatic crowd
to welcome Pope Francis. He
also attended Pope Francis’ Àrst
Angelus.
On a less monumental note,
but still important, Prybyla added, “As a group, the ESM students voted ‘Frigidarium,’ near
Piazza Navona in Rome, our
favorite place for gelato!”
In five years, Prybyla sees
himself teaching math and theology at a Catholic School, “preferably middle school,” he said.
Wherever he lands, his experience in Rome has certainly taught
him how to go outside his comfort zone to do his best for God.
St. Albert the Great in Austin celebrates its diversity
St. Albert the Great Parish in
Austin will celebrate its cultural
diversity at a multicultural Mass
on Nov. 3 at 2 p.m. The celebration will include prayers and
Scripture in different languages
as well as liturgical dancing and
hymns from different countries. After the Mass, festivities
will continue with a feast of
foods from the different ethnic
groups.
Angela Baker, parish cocoordinator for social ministries,
said the multicultural celebration
began seven years ago under
then-pastor Father Isidore Ndagizimana.
“This is the most culturally
diverse parish,” Baker said. “Last
year we had 52 nations represented, and it’s been as high as 57.”
On a 6-foot-by-8-foot map
of the world, parishioners last
year placed straight pins on their
countries of origin. Pins were
placed in countries all over Asia,
Europe and Latin America. Hispanics are currently the largest
ethnic group in the parish, which
now has a 2 p.m. Sunday Mass in
Spanish.
The parish also has many
congregants from the U.S. The
Texas map had so many pins that
it got worn out, Baker said, and
they’ll be getting a new one.
“We celebrate who we are,”
Baker said. “We represent the
universal church.”
Their pastoral leadership also
is diverse –– Father Matt Iwuji,
the pastor is from Nigeria; and
associate pastor Redemptorist
Father Vincent Nguyen is from
Vietnam.
“It’s a marvelous opportunity
for people to get to know people
from different cultures,” Baker
said. “It gives us a better understanding of who we are. The
Catholic Church is world-wide.
We come from every corner of
the world.”
Baker said she doesn’t know
if the diversity at the parish arose
from the diversity in the neighborhood or vice versa.
“On the block where I live I
can go around the world just talking to my neighbors,” she said.
“Around the corner is a woman
who grew up in Palestine. Two
doors down are people from
Vietnam.”
At the Mass last year, 13 languages were heard. This year, parishioners will hear dialects from
India, Africa and the Philippines.
A choir will sing in German.
There is also a Mexican choir and
a dragon dance will be performed
by Vietnamese members.
Baker, a Colorado native,
said it was the cultural diversity as
well as the fact that the parish is a
member of Austin Interfaith that
attracted her and her late husband to St. Albert 16 years ago.
“It was not as diverse at the
beginning,” she said. “It now
is beginning to represent what
Austin looks like.”
When she arrived, the parish had between 500 and 600
families. It now has about 2,300
families.
Parishioners will wear name
tags with information on their
place of birth and the neighborhood where they live to develop
a sense of community.
For more information
about the Mass and St. Albert
Parish, visit www.saintalbert.org
or call (512) 837-7825
October 2013
7
CENTRAL TEXAS
Middle School Youth Rally is Oct. 19
For those preparing for marriage
Couples planning to marry should contact their priest or deacon at least six
months prior to their wedding date in order to begin the marriage preparation process. Engaged couples are encouraged to inquire at their parish about pre-marriage
retreats and classes. Couples planning to attend the diocesan pre-marriage retreat,
“Together in God’s Love,” are encouraged to register as soon as possible. The program will be offered in a series of classes Nov. 5, 12, 19 and 26 from 7 to 9:30 p.m.
at the diocesan Pastoral Center in Austin. The program will be offered in retreat
format Oct. 25-27 at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center in Belton. Engaged couples
must provide proof they have taken either the FOCCUS or PREPARE assessment
before attending the “Together in God’s Love” retreat. Couples must register by
contacting the diocesan OfÀce of Catholic Family Counseling and Family Life at
(512) 949-2495. For registration forms, visit www.austindiocese.org and click on
“Marriage Preparation” under “Quick Links.”
Upcoming retreats at Cedarbrake
“The Gospel of John,” a day of reÁection, will be held Oct. 14 from 9 a.m. to 3
p.m. at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center in Belton. The fourth Gospel is written
in great poetic language often telling two levels of stories at the same time. This day
will be an opportunity to enter more deeply into the Woman at the Well story and
the Eucharistic Discourse in Chapter Six. The cost is $35, which includes lunch.
“The Art and Heart of the Spiritual Life,” a weekend retreat, will be presented
Nov. 1-3 at Cedarbrake in Belton. Franciscan Father Albert Haase will present
this retreat based upon his best selling book and DVD, “Catching Fire, Becoming
Flame: A Guide for Spiritual Transformation.” The weekend will focus on some of
the important elements and attitudes of a vibrant spiritual life: prayer, surrender and
trust, confronting temptations, and experiencing God’s presence in our everyday life
and routine. The cost is $185 for a private room and $150 per person for a shared
room. All meals included.
“The Devil You Don’t Know,” a day of reÁection, will be held Nov. 14 from 9
a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Cedarbrake in Belton. Father Angelo Bertini will lead participants
in reÁecting on how, whether consciously or not, we face the devil on a daily basis.
The cost is $35, which includes lunch.
For more information or to register for any of these retreats, contact Cedarbrake
at (254) 780-2436 or [email protected].
Middle school teens are invited to participate in the 2013 middle school youth rally
Oct. 19 at St. Anthony Marie de Claret Parish in Kyle. This year’s theme is “Hope
Unbroken,” based on the Romans 5:5: “... and hope does not disappoint because the
love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has
been given to us.” Several hundred young Catholics from across the Austin Diocese
will gather for prayer, featured keynote Mike Patin, praise and worship, break-out
sessions, games and fellowship. Talk to your youth minister if you are interested
in attending, or contact Jennifer Kodysz at (512) 949-2467 or jennifer-kodysz@
austindiocese.org for more information.
Conference for men in Austin
The National Black Catholic Men’s Conference will be held Oct. 24-27 at
the Wyndham South Hotel in Austin. The overall purpose of the conference is
to provide a forum for black men to speak to the critical issues and challenges
facing the black male community, in particular the Catholic community. Secondly, the conference is calling and challenging young men to discern the call
to priesthood, brotherhood and the diaconate. Workshops will be held at the
hotel. An evening worship and praise service will be held Oct. 26 at 5 p.m. at
Holy Cross Parish in Austin. There will be singing performances by the award
winning and highly acclaimed men’s group “Men On Fire.” The registration fee
is $150 or $75 for active duty military and students. To register, contact Johnnie
Dorsey at the diocesan OfÀce of Black Catholics at (512) 949-2449 or [email protected].
Criminal Justice conference in San Antonio
The Archdiocese of San Antonio will host the sixth annual Statewide Criminal Justice Ministry Conference Oct. 25 and 26 at the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio. This conference, entitled “Responsibility, Rehabilitation
and Restoration: A Catholic Perspective on Crime and Criminal Justice,” is
sponsored by the Texas Catholic Correctional Ministers. All those interested
in the ministry of criminal justice are invited to attend. Applications for scholarships are available. For more information, contact the OfÀce of Criminal
Justice of the Diocese of Austin at (512) 949-2486 or e-mail yvonne-saldana@
austindiocese.org.
COURAGE OF AUSTIN
REGISTER TODAY!
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3RD ANNUAL
Call Fr. Becker: (512) 863-3041
Ho
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Ann
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[email protected]
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www.couragerc.net
Monday, October 28th, 2013
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Abortion in your past?
includes golf, fajita dinner,
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1-877-WeCare2
1 - 8 7 7 - 9 3 2-2 7 3 2
[email protected]
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Entry Fee: $100 /player
CHARITY GOLF
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TOURNAMENT
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Registration begins at 11:00am
Shotgun start at 1:30pm
Four Person Scramble Format
Registration, Sponsorships, and Information:
(512) 864-7755 or www.thematernityhome.org
Pastoral support for victims of sexual abuse
The Diocese of Austin is committed to providing con¿dential and compassionate care to victims of sexual abuse, particularly if the abuse was committed by
clergy or a church representative. If you have experienced abuse by someone representing the Catholic Church, please contact the diocesan coordinator
of pastoral care at (512) 949-2400.
Apoyo pastoral a las víctimas de abuso sexual
La Diócesis de Austin se compromete a proporcionar ayuda con¿dencial y compasiva a las víctimas de abuso sexual, especialmente si el abuso fue cometido
por el clero o un representante de la iglesia. Si usted ha sufrido abusos por parte de alguien que representa la Iglesia Católica, por favor comuníquese con el
coordinador diocesano del cuidado pastoral al (512) 949-2400.
How to report an incident of concern
The Diocese of Austin is committed to preventing harm from happening to any of our children or vulnerable adults. If you are aware of sexual or physical
abuse and/or neglect of a child or vulnerable adult, state law requires you to report that information to local law enforcement or the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services at (800) 252-5400 or www.dfps.state.tx.us. Additionally, if the suspected abuse is by clergy or an employee or volunteer of any
diocesan parish, school or agency, a Notice of Concern should be submitted to the diocesan Ethics and Integrity in Ministry Of¿ce at (512) 949-2400. The l
Notice of Concern can be found at www.austindiocese.org (click on the link HOW TO REPORT ABUSE). Reports may be made anonymously.
Cómo reportar un caso de abuso
La Diócesis de Austin está comprometida a la prevención del daño que se cause a cualquier niño o adulto vulnerable. Si usted está enterado del abuso
sexual o físico y/o abandono de un niño o adulto vulnerable, la ley estatal requiere que se reporte esa información a la policía local o el Departamento de
Servicios Familiares y de Protección del Estado de Texas al (800) 252-5400 o al sitio: www.dfps.state.tx.us y además, si la sospecha de abuso es por parte
del clero, empleado o voluntario de cualquier parroquia, escuela u organización de la diócesis, se debe enviar un Reporte de Abuso y debe ser presentado a
la O¿cina de Ética e Integridad en el Ministerio de la diócesis al (512) 949-2400. El Reporte de Abuso se encuentra en nuestra página de Internet diocesana:
www.austindiocese.org ( Haga click en la liga COMO REPORTAR UN CASO DE ABUSO). Estos reportes pueden ser hechos de manera anónima.
8
CENTRAL TEXAS
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Concerns raised about required ID for voting
The Diocese of Austin is
asking for parishes to help get
the word out on the new Texas
photo ID requirements for voting.
Barbara Budde, director of
the diocesan OfÀce of Social
Concerns, met with leaders of
the parish social ministries to
share information and make
sure that all voters have the
required identiÀcation.
“We are concerned that
while the ID is free, the ability of people who don’t have a
driver’s license to take time off
from work, take a bus and wait
at the Department of Public
Safety could be burdensome to
some voters,” Budde said.
October 7 is the deadline
to register to vote and people
wanting to vote in the Nov. 5
election must have a photo ID
to vote.
Johnnie Dorsey, is the director of the diocesan OfÀce of
Black Catholics and a parishioner at Holy Cross Parish in
Austin, is concerned that some
people may have difÀculty obtaining photo IDs.
“While the ID is free, they
may not have the resources to
get the ID,” he said. “People
such as students and the elderly
are on a tight budget or may not
have transportation.”
Dorsey said his parish is
considering ways to help the
poor and elderly get the required
documentation, including paying for documents. A certiÀed
copy of a Texas birth certiÀcate
costs at least $22.
The ministries are also being
asked to document any cases of
people who voted in the past
that were unable to vote under
the new voter ID laws and are
having their vote suppressed.
There are seven forms of
photo ID that are acceptable for
voting: Texas Department of
Public Safety Driver’s License,
Texas personal ID card issued
by DPS, a concealed handgun
license issued by DPS, a U.S.
military photo ID, a U.S. citizenship certiÀcate with photo, and
a U.S. passport. With the exception of the citizenship certiÀcate,
all must be current or expired
within 60 days.
Voting rights groups are also
concerned that poor people in
rural counties may not have
convenient access to a DPS
ofÀce to get their free IDs. Several groups have noted that 70
out of the 254 Texas counties
do not have a DPS ofÀce. In
the Diocese of Austin, which
encompasses 25 Central Texas
counties, a quick check found
no DPS offices in San Saba,
Blanco, Robertson, Falls and
Caldwell counties. In addition,
the ofÀces in several counties
were only open one or two days
a week.
All of the acceptable forms
of IDs cost money, except for
the DPS ID, Budde noted. And
getting the documents to get a
free ID can also cost money.
“There are some elderly
who have no birth certiÀcate
because of the nature of their
birth,” she said. Many were
born at home in rural areas
and their births were not documented. Some elderly women never learned to drive so
they have no driver’s license.
Because ethnic minorities
such as African Americans and
Hispanics have a history of voter suppression, anything that
sets up a barrier to voting is of
concern, Dorsey said.
“Voting is precious to
us,” Dorsey said. “Those of
us who lived in the 60s remember voter suppression.
Then we got the (1965) Voting Rights Act. Now we’re
beginning to see a reversal of
voting rights legislation. There
are certain elements who want
to ensure certain people don’t
get to vote.”
Dorsey said many Texas
legislators have cited fraud as
the reason for the ID laws.
The Dallas Morning
News –– citing Àgures from
the Texas Secretary of State
General Election Results in
2004, 2006, 2008, 2010 and
212 - noted that of the 66
cases of fraud pursued by
the Texas Attorney General’s
OfÀce since 2004, only four
might have been prevented
by voter ID laws. That means
only 0.0000001 percent of the
votes might have been affected by a photo ID requirement.
Putting barriers before people who traditionally have been
disenfranchised is a concern,
she said.
“The bishops want to preserve the integrity of voting,”
she said. “But there has not
been sufÀcient evidence of voter
fraud to warrant the kind of ID
law that was passed.”
For information on the
new Texas photo voter ID
requirements, visit www.votetexas.gov/register-to-vote/
need-id/.
For access to a Texas Department of Public Driver’s
License Office, go to www.
txdps.state.tx.us/administration/driver_licensing_control/
rolodex/search.asp.
Propagation of Faith collection helps share the faith
the living Word of God.
phasized the obligation of all witness to it before those we
The Society for the Propa- Christians to share the faith meet and those who share the
gation of the Faith, a Pon- with others and do so with re- path of life with us.”
tiÀcal Mission Society, is the spect. He also pointed to the
Pope Francis said he
In a world that often Holy Father’s chief missionary stifling damage done to the knows some people today
seems dark and full of suffer- arm, providing resources for church by the failure to evan- hesitate sharing the faith being and violence, Christians more than 1,150 mission dio- gelize and the sacriÀces made cause they somehow think it
can offer hope by sharing the
Gospel of Jesus Christ, Pope
Francis wrote in a message for “It is necessary to proclaim courageously and in every situation
World Mission Sunday 2013.
“It is necessary to pro- the Gospel of Christ, a message of hope, reconciliation (and)
claim courageously and in ev- communion, a proclamation of God’s closeness, his mercy,
ery situation the Gospel of
Christ, a message of hope, salvation and a proclamation that the power of God’s love
reconciliation (and) commu- is able to overcome the darkness of evil and guide us on
nion, a proclamation of God’s
the path of goodness.”
closeness, his mercy, salvation
–– Pope Francis
and a proclamation that the
power of God’s love is able
to overcome the darkness of
evil and guide us on the path ceses. Krueger urged Catho- by many Christians arou nd will limit other people’s freeof goodness,” the pope wrote. lics to be “part of the action” the world currently facing op- dom, when in reality faith emWorld Mission Sunday will and be part of the ongoing pression or even persecution powers people and frees them
be celebrated Oct. 20 at the mission of Jesus in helping because of their faith.
from despair and from chasVatican and in most dioceses. “making disciples of all na“Everyone should be able ing pleasure or material posIn the Austin Diocese, tions” by supporting mission- to experience the joy of be- sessions that cannot last and,
the Propagation of the Faith aries with prayer and Ànancial ing loved by God, the joy of therefore, cannot make them
collection will be taken up support by giving generously salvation,” he said. “It is a gift happy forever.
on World Mission Sunday. to the Society of the Propaga- that one cannot keep to oneA true Christian does not
Christina Krueger, the dioc- tion of the Faith.
self, but it is to be shared.”
try to impose the Christian
esan coordinator of Missions,
The message of the pope’s
“If we want to keep it only faith on anyone, but proclaims
said this essential observance Àrst Mission Sunday since his to ourselves, we will become the good news through word
is an experience in learn- election is filled with phras- isolated, sterile and sick Chris- and deed with respect, the
ing for Catholics of all ages. es and ideas that have been tians,” the pope wrote.
pope wrote. “The church’s
Priests, religious and lay mis- featured prominently in the
Each Christian has a re- missionary spirit is not about
sion groups supported by this speeches and homilies Pope sponsibility to share the gift of proselytizing, but the testicollection make it possible Francis has given during the faith with others, he said, and mony of a life that illuminates
for the neediest and the re- Àrst four months of his pon- the strength of one’s faith “can the path, which brings hope
jected in society to encounter tificate, including at World be measured by the ability to and love.”
Christ’s mercy, love and com- Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro. communicate it to others, to
In his message, the pope
passion, the sacraments and
Pope Francis’ message em- spread and live it in charity, to offered thanks to and prayers
BY CINDY WOODEN
CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
for the many Christians in
different parts of the world
who “experience difÀculty in
openly professing their faith
and in enjoying the legal right
to practice it in a worthy manner.”
They are “courageous witnesses” of the Gospel, he
said.
Pope Francis’ message
also was Àlled with praise and
thanksgiving for priests, religious and laypeople who have
left their homelands to spread
the Gospel. He asked those,
especially from traditionally
Catholic countries, to make
sure that in their letters and
visits home, they tell others of
their experience so that they
can help people at home “rediscover the enthusiasm and
joy of sharing the faith.”
He thanked the churches
in traditionally mission territory, such as Africa, for their
willingness to send priests
and religious to other countries, including in Europe and
North America.
“Sending missionaries is
never a loss, but a gain,” he
said.
Pope Francis urged all
Catholics to take responsibility for the church’s missionary
activity, including by giving
Ànancial support to the PontiÀcal Mission Societies and to
the Propagation of the Faith
on Oct. 19-30.
October 2013
9
IN OUR WORLD
Pope: abortion is product of ‘throwaway culture’
BY FRANCIS X. ROCCA
In his strongest public words
to date on the subject of abortion, Pope Francis afÀrmed the
sacredness of unborn human
life and linked its defense to the
pursuit of social justice.
“In all its phases and at every
age, human life is always sacred and always of quality. And
not as a matter of faith, but of
reason and science!” the pope
said Sept. 20 to a gathering of
Catholic gynecologists.
Pope Francis characterized abortion as a product of a
“widespread mentality of proÀt,
the ‘throwaway culture,’ which
has today enslaved the hearts
and minds of so many.”
That mentality, he said,
“calls for the elimination of
human beings, above all if they
are physically or socially weaker.
Our response to that mentality
is a decisive and unhesitating
‘yes’ to life.”
The pope grouped together
unborn children, the aged and
the poor as among the most vulnerable people whom Christians
are called especially to love.
“In the fragile human being
each one of us is invited to recognize the face of the Lord, who
in his human Áesh experienced
the indifference and solitude to
which we often condemn the
poorest, whether in developing
countries or in wealthy societies,” he said.
“Every unborn child, though
unjustly condemned to be aborted, has the face of the Lord,
who even before his birth, and
then as soon as he was born,
experienced the rejection of the
world,” he said. “And every old
person, even if inÀrm and at the
end of his days, carries with him
the face of Christ. They must
not be thrown away!”
Quoting “Caritas in Veritate” the social encyclical by
Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis connected the protection of
unborn life with the promotion
of social justice.
“Openness to life is at the
center of true development,”
he said. “If personal and social sensitivity in welcoming a
new life is lost, other forms of
welcome useful to social life
will dry up. Welcoming life
tempers moral energies and
makes people capable of helping each other.”
Pope Francis told the physicians that they faced a “paradoxical situation” in their professional lives, because even as
medical science discovers new
cures for disease, the “health
care professions are sometimes
induced not to respect life itself.”
The pope characterized this
paradox as part of a more widespread “cultural disorientation”
in which rising individualism
parallels a growing disrespect
for life.
“Even as persons are accorded new rights, at times only
presumed rights, life as the primary value and primordial right
of every man is not always protected,” he said.
The pope told the gynecologists that they had a responsibility to make known
the “transcendent dimension,
the imprint of God’s creative
work, in human life from the
first instant of conception.
And this is a commitment of
new evangelization that often
requires going against the tide,
paying a personal price. The
Lord counts on you, too, to
spread the Gospel of life.”
Pope speaks about his priorities in interview
BY FRANCIS X. ROCCA
In a lengthy and wide-ranging interview with one of his
Jesuit confreres, Pope Francis
spoke with characteristic frankness about the perils of overemphasizing Catholic teaching
on sexual and medical ethics;
the reasons for his deliberate
and consultative governing style;
and his highest priority for the
church today.
The pope’s remarks appeared in an interview with
Jesuit Father Antonio Spadaro, editor of the Italian
journal La Civilta Cattolica.
The interview, conducted in
August, was the basis for a
12,000-word article published
Sept. 19 in the U.S. magazine
America, and simultaneously
in other Jesuit publications in
other languages.
According to the editor of
America, Jesuit Father Matt
Malone, Pope Francis personally reviewed the article and
approved its publication.
“We cannot insist only on
issues related to abortion, gay
marriage and the use of contraceptive methods,” the pope
said in the interview, noting
that he had been “reprimanded”
for failing to speak often about
those topics. “It is not necessary to talk about these issues
all the time.
“The dogmatic and moral
teachings of the church are not
all equivalent,” the pope added.
“The church’s pastoral ministry
cannot be obsessed with the
transmission of a disjointed
multitude of doctrines to be
imposed insistently.
“Proclamation in a missionary style focuses on the essentials, on the necessary things,”
he said. “We have to find a
new balance; otherwise even
the moral ediÀce of the church
is likely to fall like a house of
cards, losing the freshness and
fragrance of the Gospel.
“The proposal of the Gospel
must be more simple, profound,
radiant. It is from this proposi-
POPE FRANCIS embraces a young woman during an
encounter with youth in Cagliari, Sardinia, Sept. 22. (CNS
photo by Paul Haring)
tion that the moral consequences then Áow.”
The pope reaffirmed one
of his major themes: the need
for mercy rather than judgment
when approaching sin.
“The thing the church needs
most today is the ability to heal
wounds and to warm the hearts
of the faithful. It needs nearness,
proximity,” he said.
“The church sometimes has
locked itself up in small things,
in small-minded rules. The most
important thing is the Àrst proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved
you,” the pope said.
“The confessional is not a
torture chamber,” he said, “but
the place in which the Lord’s
mercy motivates us to do better.
“Those who today always
look for disciplinarian solutions,
those who long for an exaggerated doctrinal ‘security,’ those
who stubbornly try to recover
a past that no longer exists ––
they have a static and inwarddirected view of things,” Pope
Francis said. “In this way, faith
becomes an ideology among
other ideologies.”
Pope Francis also spoke
extensively about his approach
to church governance.
“Many think that changes
and reforms can take place in
a short time,” the pope said. “I
believe that we always need time
to lay the foundations for real,
effective change. And this is the
time of discernment.
“Sometimes discernment
instead urges us to do precisely
what you had at Àrst thought
you would do later. And that is
what happened to me in recent
months,” he added, though
without specifying the action in
question.
The pope described the evolution of his governing style,
starting with his appointment
at age 36 as superior of the Argentine province of the Jesuits.
“My authoritarian and quick
manner of making decisions led
me to have serious problems
and to be accused of being ultraconservative,” Pope Francis
said, adding, “I have never been
a right-winger. It was my authoritarian way of making decisions
that created problems.”
Later, as archbishop of Buenos Aires, he adopted another
approach, meeting often with
his auxiliary bishops.
“I believe that consultation
is very important,” the pope
said, noting his establishment
as pope of the so-called Group
of Eight advisory panel of cardinals. “I want to see that this is
a real, not ceremonial consultation.”
With respect to the Vatican
bureaucracy, whose reform he
has made a clear priority of his
six-month old pontiÀcate, Pope
Francis pointed to the need to
devolve more authority to local
churches.
Some Vatican ofÀces “run
the risk of becoming institutions
of censorship,” he said. “It is
amazing to see the denunciations for lack of orthodoxy that
come to Rome. I think the cases
should be investigated by the local bishops’ conferences, which
can get valuable assistance from
Rome. These cases, in fact, are
much better dealt with locally.
The Roman congregations are
mediators; they are not middlemen or managers.”
In matters of belief rather
than governance, Pope Francis
said that the pope and bishops
share authority with the laity.
“The church is the people
of God on the journey through
history,” he said. “Thinking with
the church, therefore, is my way
of being a part of this people.
And all the faithful, considered
as a whole, are infallible in matters of belief.”
The pope quickly added that
“we must be very careful not
to think that this ‘infallibilitas’
of all the faithful I am talking
about in the light of Vatican II
is a form of populism. No; it is
the experience of ‘holy mother
the hierarchical church,’ as St.
Ignatius called it, the church as
the people of God, pastors and
people together.”
Among the other topics the
pope addressed in the interview
was the challenge of finding a
more visible role for women in
a church with an all-male priesthood.
“I am wary of a solution
that can be reduced to a kind
of ‘female machismo,’ because
a woman has a different makeup than a man,” he said. “The
church cannot be herself without the woman and her role.
The woman is essential for the
church. Mary, a woman, is more
important than the bishops. I
say this because we must not
confuse the function with the
dignity.”
Pope Francis, whose simple
way of celebrating Mass has attracted criticism from traditionalist Catholics, also took up the
controversial subject of liturgy.
Pope Benedict XVI’s 2007
decision to lift most restrictions
on celebrating the Tridentine
Mass was “was prudent and
motivated by the desire to help
people who have this sensitivity,” Pope Francis said. “What
is worrying, though, is the risk
of the ideologization of the (old
Mass), it’s exploitation.”
The pope also said that the
liturgical reform that followed in
the wake of the 1962-65 Second
Vatican Council is “absolutely
irreversible.”
10
IN OUR WORLD
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Cardinal offers consolation after DC shootings
the healing of those who are priests concelebrated the midday that there were one or two ad- the Mass and hearing the cardirecovering from this violent liturgy, which was attended by ditional gunmen involved in the nal’s call for all faithful to pray
attack but also for a greater about 250 people.
attack, but later police ofÀcials “makes me feel a little better,
like we are all in this together.”
One day after the tragic
For Arnetta Pena, the Mass
shooting at the Washington “The church, over and over again ... calls us to love one was an appropriate place “to beg
Navy Yard, Cardinal Donald
to stop this violence. It’s
another ... Love alone can conquer violence. Love alone God
W. Wuerl celebrated a Mass for
like the whole world has become
consolation and healing in which can bring consolation and healing. Love alone supersedes one big war zone.”
he prayed for the victims of the and is victorious, even over death.”
Tom Malarkey, who served
rampage and asked God to “heal
as a lector at the Mass, said the
–– Cardinal Donald W. Wuerl
the wounds in our society so that
liturgy “is a start to the healing
we can prevent tragedies such as
process.”
we have just witnessed.”
“I felt a togetherness here
healing, a healing that touches
The Mass was offered, Car- said that Alexis apparently acted
“We commend to the hands what is wounded and broken in dinal Wuerl said, because “we alone.
with all the people,” he said.
of our merciful and loving God, our world.”
know our prayer will be joined
In his homily at the Cathe- “We all thought about the peowho alone can judge human
The Washington cardinal to the great prayer that Jesus of- dral of St. Matthew, Cardinal ple who were killed and the
hearts, the souls of all who died was the main celebrant of the fers with us and for us.”
Wuerl called on the faithful to people who lost their loved
yesterday,” Cardinal Wuerl said Mass at the Cathedral of St.
On Sept. 16, just as the recognize that “something is ones.”
Sept. 17. “We pray for not only Matthew the Apostle. Several workday began, a gunman went wrong, that sin still persists in
Massgoer Richard Pacheco
said it was appropriate that the
on a shooting rampage at the our world. “
Washington Navy Yard, kill“Our prayer for healing is cardinal celebrated a Mass for
ing 12 and injuring at least 14 offered as well for whatever it Consolation and Healing in the
others. The FBI later identiÀed is that fostered such a culture wake of the Washington Navy
the shooter as Aaron Alexis, a of violence, a culture of death,” Yard shootings. “We pray for
their souls. We’re Catholics,
34-year-old former naval petty he said.
ofÀcer who was a military con“Somehow we need, once that’s the Àrst thing we do. The
tract worker. Alexis was killed again, in our country, in our Àrst thought is for the souls of
after a shootout with law en- land, in our nation, to foster that the departed.”
A former State Department
forcement ofÀcers.
healing that comes only when
“Death came suddenly and we recognize there is a right and worker, he said the shootings
in an unexpected manner to a wrong, that we are not free to were like deaths in the family
for a city with so many governthose at work at the Navy Yard. kill,” Cardinal Wuerl said.
It is a reminder to all of us that
He said that the faithful ment workers. Pacheco said it
we know not the day nor the should act as peacemakers and is important for Catholics, as
hour of death’s visitation,” Car- create “a civilization of love.” people of faith and as members
dinal Wuerl said in his homily. He said that “we are capable of the community, to pray for
“Jesus calls us always to walk as a people, as a nation, as in- consolation of surviving family
in a way that we can go to meet dividuals, to build a civilization members and friends, and to
pray for healing for the comhim when that moment comes.” of love.”
All of the shooting victims
“The church, over and over munity.
Pacheco said Cardinal
were civilian employees at the again ... calls us to love one
Navy Yard or military contrac- another,” he told the Catho- Wuerl’s message about the imtors working there. No active lic Standard, newspaper of the portance of allowing God’s love
military personnel were killed, Washington Archdiocese. “Love to transform one’s heart, and
but at least one D.C. Metropoli- alone can conquer violence. then to help build a civilization
tan Police ofÀcer and a Navy Love alone can bring consola- of love and a better world, “is
Yard security guard were among tion and healing. Love alone what every Mass is about, and
the injured.
supersedes and is victorious, what the prayer of the church is
about. We’re here to love each
The Navy Yard is home to even over death.”
the Naval Sea Systems ComAfter the Mass, Ronald other.”
He said the tragedy at the
mand, which includes the head- Moore said he had to attend beCARDINAL DONALD W. WUERL of Washington celquarters of Navy command cause “who would have thought Navy Yard –– apparently by a
ebrates a Mass for consolation and healing at St. Matstaff. The facility oversees the that all this time, while I’m pray- mentally ill man with a history
thew’s Cathedral Sept. 17, a day after a deadly shooting
engineering, construction and ing for the suffering people of of violence –– is a reminder to
spree at the Navy Yard in Washington. Authorities said
maintenance of the Navy’s Syria, I would also have to pray people to reÁect on “what have
13 people were killed, including the gunman, and at least
ships, submarines and combat for the suffering people in my we done in our lives to love each
eight were injured at the facility, which is the Naval Sea
other, and take care of people
systems.
own backyard.”
Systems Command headquarters. (CNS photo by Bob
Early reports had suggested
He added that attending who have problems?”
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Roller)
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October 2013
11
IN OUR WORLD
Dominican Sisters top Billboard charts
BY MARK PATTISON
It’s not exactly the Beatles
vs. the Rolling Stones, but just
as those two bands shook up the
pop charts nearly a half-century
ago, two convents’ CDs are vying for a spot atop the Billboard
classical music charts.
The defending champion, for
13 weeks straight, is “Angels and
Saints at Ephesus,” performed
by the Benedictines of Mary,
Queen of Apostles, a cloistered
convent in Missouri. Their streak
marks the Àrst time since 2006
that a CD has stayed at the top
of Billboard magazine’s classical
traditional music chart.
So far, it has kept its competition at arms’ length, including a
new CD by Andrea Bocelli and
soundtracks based on the TV
miniseries “Downton Abbey”
and the Àction best-seller “Fifty
Shades of Grey.”
But now comes the Dominican Sisters of Mary, Mother of
the Eucharist, based in Ann
Arbor, Mich., whose Àrst CD,
“Mater Eucharistae,” was released Aug. 13. This isn’t the
Dominican convent’s Àrst brush
with the mass media. Members
of the order made it to the Ànals
in the latest season of “American Bible Challenge.”
“We heard it was No. 8 on
the classical charts, and that
was just in pre-sales,” said Sister
Joseph Andrew, vicaress general
of the order, in an Aug. 12 telephone interview with Catholic
News Service from the order’s
motherhouse.
Both CDs are using the same
public relations Àrm to tout the
releases. Both CDs are on the
same label: De Montfort, a classical imprint of Decca, itself
part of the gigantic Universal
Music Group which is home to
such labels as A&M, Motown,
Island, Geffen, Interscope, Def
Jam, Capitol, Virgin, Blue Note,
MCA, Mercury, Verve, Polydor,
EMI and London.
Monica Fitzgibbons, De
Montfort co-founder, couldn’t
be more pleased.
In an Aug. 7 statement about
the Benedictines’ CD, she said,
“To have this accomplishment
come from a group of monastic
sisters is simply miraculous. The
collection of music is soothing
hearts and enabling contemplative moments. Simply a joy and
honor to behold!”
Fitzgibbons also doubles as
talent scout. The Dominicans
conduct public vespers on Sunday afternoons wherever their
sisters are stationed, explained
Sister Joseph Andrew. “Monica
and (husband) Kevin Fitzgib-
bons went to our vespers in
Phoenix one time. They heard
our prayers and they became
very interested in pursuing the
possibility of making this (CD).
We prayed over this and we
decided that we would do it.”
Recording the 15 tracks took
just three days in March at the
motherhouse. “And on the second day, the middle day, the
Holy Spirit ordained that Pope
Francis would be elected,” Sister
Joseph Andrew recalled. “We
were singing the Te Deum and
recording the Te Deum when
someone said, ‘White smoke!’,
and we went off running. It was
an interesting three days.”
With their numbers growing –– 110 sisters currently, 20
women entering the convent at
the end of August –– the Dominicans are raising funds to build a
priory near Austin (see Page 1),
to house more than 100 women.
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CD royalties will go toward
the building campaign, Sister Joseph Andrew said. Will “Mater
Eucharistae” knock off “Angels
and Saints at Ephesus”? Could
it reach the heights of “Chant,”
the 1994 CD by the Benedictine
Monks of Santo Domingo do
Silos, which peaked at No. 3 on
the Billboard pop chart, selling
3 million copies in the U.S. and
another 3 million worldwide,
with royalties putting a big dent
in construction costs? “That
would be a miracle come true,
for sure,” Sister Joseph Andrew
said. “Who knows? But no matter what, our primary goal in
doing this is bringing people
closer to God.”
And as for some competition with the Missouri Benedictines, “It’s really not competition,” Sister Joseph Andrew said. “It’s just trying to get
Christ into homes.”
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12
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
IN OUR WORLD
Digital domain needs loving dialogue, pope says
BY CAROL GLATZ
Helping the church get the
Gospel message out to the digital world depends more on a
loving passion for reaching out
to others than being tech savvy
or a verbal warrior, Pope Francis
told Catholic communicators.
“I believe that the goal is to
understand how to enter into dialogue with the men and women
of today in order to appreciate
their desires, their doubts and
their hopes,” he said in his talk
Sept. 21.
Despite the temptation that
exists today, dialogue and bringing people to Christ have nothing to do with hounding others
into submission in a kind of
“theological brainwashing,” he
said.
The pope’s comments,
which included a number of offthe-cuff remarks, came during
a special audience with participants of the PontiÀcal Council
for Social Communications’
plenary assembly meeting Sept.
19-21 at the Vatican. The discussions focused on the church and
digital communication.
In a world of rapidly changing methods of communication,
“the issues are not principally
technological,” the pope said.
He said it is important “to
know how to dialogue and, with
discernment, to use modern
technologies and social networks in such a way as to reveal
a presence that listens, converses
and encourages.”
Some people “sometimes
feel let down by a Christianity
that to them appears sterile and
in difÀculty as it tries to communicate the depth of meaning that
comes with the gift of faith,” the
pope said.
He emphasized that meeting Christ requires a personal
encounter that cannot be forced
or engineered.
“We have a great temptation
in the church today” to engage
in “spiritual harassment, the
manipulation of conscience,
a theological brainwashing,”
which, in the end, he said, only
leads people to an encounter
with Christ in name only and
not with the living person of
the Lord.
Meeting Christ involves the
living Christ and the individual
experiencing the encounter, “not
what’s wanted by the ‘spiritual
engineer,’ who wants to manipulate people,” the pope said.
“Are we up to the task of
bringing Christ into this area
and of bringing others to meet
Christ,” he asked.
People are searching for the
“precious treasure” of the Gospel, which brings light and hope
to a world that often lacks meaning, direction and purpose, he
said.
Communicators need to portray “the face of a church, which
is ‘home’ to all,” and convey the
beauty of faith and joy of meeting
Christ.
“The church must warm the
hearts of men and women. Do
our presence and plans measure
up to this requirement?” he said,
“or do we remain mired in technicalities?”
“Thorough and adequate
formation” is key, he said, because religious and lay Catholic
communicators need to be able
to venture into the darkness
of indifference without losing
their way; “to listen to (people’s)
dreams without being seduced;
to share their disappointments
without becoming despondent;
to sympathize with those whose
lives are falling apart without
Annual Homecoming
FESTIVAL
losing our own strength and
identity,” he said.
In fact, “we ourselves are
means of communication,” he
said and “the real problem does
not concern the acquisition of the
latest technologies, even if these
make a valid presence possible.”
No matter how outdated or
inadequate the tools, God loves
people so much that he “wants
to reveal himself through the
means at our disposal, however
poor they are, because it is he
who is at work, he who transforms and saves us,” he said.
The pope ended his talk by
asking for people’s prayers “because I have this mission, too,”
of communicating Christ to the
world.
Toronto Cardinal Thomas
Collins told Catholic News Service that “in many ways we’re
made to be analog Christians in a
digital world.”
The digital world is in many
ways very abstract, and it can be
isolating and disorienting,” he
said. While it has many beneÀts,
people cannot forget that human
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beings are meant “to be in relationship, personal relationship”
with others.
Analog, he said, comes from
“’analogy,’ which means connectedness, relationship, and we
always have to maintain that.”
Christians need to keep real
human connections and personal
presence alive “in the midst of a
world which, if left to itself and
its own dynamics, will dry us out,
make us abstract and disconnect
us from one another.”
Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, CEO of Salt and Light Television and adviser to the social
communications’ council, said
the pope “is the best example of
what the new evangelization is
all about.”
The priest said the pope’s
success in making the media
pay attention does not stem
from studying communication
theories.
“He didn’t hire an ad company or a public relations Àrm, he is
communicating with his person,
the credibility of his person, the
gestures, the desire to be with
people,” Father Rosica said.
The pope “has put a lot of
us to shame because we can
spin our theories, but as long as
we continue to do that without
establishing human relationships,
all of our efforts are in vain,” he
said.
“What he’s doing is he’s
touching the hearts of people,
and the world has stopped and
the world is listening,” said the
priest.
Greg Erlandson, president
and publisher of Our Sunday
Visitor Publishing Division, said
Catholic communicators can
learn some lessons from Pope
Francis.
“We have to live the faith in
a very authentic way and a very
physical way. We can’t just write
encyclicals about it, we just can’t
issue documents about it,” he
said.
However, this personal approach is not new to Christianity, “it’s really the witness
of the Gospel, the Acts of the
Apostles, so maybe we have to
keep rediscovering this,” he said.
POPE
FRANCIS
waves to the
crowd as he
arrives for
a meeting
on Sept. 22.
(CNS photo
by Paul Haring)
107th Annual
Westphalia Picnic
and Homecoming
Church of the Visitation
Sunday, Oct. 13
Sausage & Chicken Meal $8 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Praha Brothers perform from noon to 3 p.m.
Auction begins at 3:30 p.m.
Dance to “Gordon Collier Band” from 7 to 11 p.m.
Bingo, Teddy Bear Stand, Ring Stand, Fish Pond
and other fun games.
Westphalia Sausage for sale by the pound!
Shuttle Service Available
Come Join Us!
To advertise, call (512) 949-2443.
October 2013
13
IN OUR WORLD
No Other School Teaches Them To
SHINE
Like This.
Open Houses
and Information Sessions
Cathedral School of St. Mary
910 San Jacinto, Austin
512.476.1480
smcschoolaustin.org
Visits welcome anytime; contact school
office to make an appointment.
St. Helen Catholic School
2700 E. University Ave., Georgetown
512.868.0744
shcslions.org
Coffee with the Principal: Nov. 12, Dec. 3,
8:30 a.m.
St. Mary’s Catholic School
1019 S. 7th, Temple
254.778.8141
stmarys-temple.org
Holy Family Catholic School
9400 Neenah Ave., Austin
512.246.4455
holyfamilycs.org
Info Sessions: Oct. 11, Nov. 18, Dec. 6,
8:30-10 a.m., RSVP required via website
St. Ignatius Martyr Catholic School
120 W. Oltorf, Austin
512.442.8547
st-ignatius.org
507 W. Spruce, West
254.826.5991
stmaryswest.com
Holy Trinity Catholic High School
6608 West Adams Ave., Temple
254.771.0787
holytrinitychs.org
Open House: Nov. 3, 1-3 p.m.
St. Joseph Catholic School
600 S. Coulter, Bryan
979.822.6641
stjosephbcs.org
St. Michael’s Catholic Academy
3000 Barton Creek Blvd., Austin
512.328.2323
smca.com
Open House: Oct. 19, 10 a.m. - Noon
Reicher Catholic High School
2102 N. 23rd, Waco
254.752.8349
reicher.org
Open House: Oct. 22, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Sacred Heart Catholic School
545 E. Pearl, LaGrange
979.968.3223
sacredheartschoollg.com
St. Austin Catholic School
1911 San Antonio, Austin
512.477.3751
staustinschool.org
Open House: Nov. 24, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m.
St. Dominic Savio Catholic High
School
9300 Neenah Ave., Austin
512.388.8846
saviochs.org
Prospective Parent Nights: Oct. 16, Nov.
20, Dec. 11, 6:30 p.m., RSVP required
St. Gabriel’s Catholic School
2500 Wimberly Ln., Austin
512.327.7755
sgs-austin.org
Open House: Nov. 12, 8:30-10:30 a.m.,
RSVP appreciated
St. Joseph Catholic School
2901 E. Rancier, Killeen
254.634.7272
stjosephschoolkilleen.org
St. Louis Catholic School
2114 St. Joseph Blvd., Austin
512.454.0384
st-louis-school.org
St. Louis Catholic School
2208 N. 23rd, Waco
254.754.2041
stlouiswaco.org
520 Washburn St., Taylor
512.352.2313
stmarystaylor.org
St.Theresa’s Catholic School
4311 Small Drive, Austin
512.451.7105
st-theresa.org
Visitation Day: Oct. 16, call for appointment
San Juan Diego Catholic High
School
800 Herndon Ln., Austin
512.804.1935
sjdchs.org
Open House: Oct. 6, 3:30-5:30 p.m.
Santa Cruz Catholic School
1100 Main St., Buda
512.312.2137
sccstx.org
SS. Cyril & Methodius Catholic
School
105 N. Guadalupe St., Granger
512.859.2927
sscm-edu.org
14
IN OUR WORLD
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Census report shows poverty, incomes unchanged
BY MARK PATTISON
The number of Americans living in poverty last year
stayed stuck at 46.5 million
people, as did the national
poverty rate of 15 percent,
according to Census Bureau
statistics taken from its 2012
Current Population Survey.
While the percentage of
people without health insurance declined from 15.7 percent in 2011 to 15.4 percent in
2012, because of population
growth the number of uninsured stayed virtually the same
at 48 million.
After accounting for inflation, the nation’s median
household income of $51,000
was not statistically different
from year-before Àgures.
In the past half-century,
the poverty rate had climbed
to the 15 percent mark just
three times: in 1982 and 1993
as well as the past three years
starting in 2010.
During a Sept. 17 teleconference at which the numbers
were released, David Johnson,
chief of the Census Bureau’s
Social, Economic, and Housing Statistics Division, said
household incomes have neither approached the 2007 prerecession peak nor the all-time
high achieved in 1999.
But since 2007, the lowestearning 20 percent of the U.S.
population “fell much further” than the highest-earning
20 percent, Johnson said ––
more than 3 percent for the
poorest families, and just 0.5
percent for the richest.
“What we’ve found is
that there’s a great isolation
of the poor in the sense that
in the neighborhoods they’re
not mixed in, and often the
only people that they’re knowing and the other people that
they’re going to school with
are also poor,” said Clark
Massey, president of A Simple House, which works with
poor families often living in
government-run housing projects or government-subsidized
housing in Kansas City, Mo.,
and Washington.
In a Sept. 16 telephone
interview from Kansas City
with Catholic News Service,
Massey said poor Americans
are “not seeing examples of
people working 9-to-5 jobs.
They’re not seeing marriages that are working.” On the
other half of the equation,
“the greatest problem I see
is that the wealthier upper
or middle class, they’re distant from the poor. They’re in
suburban neighborhoods,” he
added. “There’s a great lack of
information between the two,
that they don’t know a lot
about each other.”
Massey said, “There’s a
huge segment of the population that’s homeless. We don’t
think of them as homeless.
They’re sleeping on couches.”
He explained: “The government prioritizes moms with
kids. Men tend to be homeless
... and the moms are in the
projects with their kids.” The
men going from dwelling to
dwelling to sleep on the couch
is a phenomenon Massey
called “couch surÀng.”
He said he sees families
that have been poor for generations.
“In the biggest cities, it’s
almost impossible to get out
of poverty,” he added. “If we
got one of our young men
into a $15-an-hour job, that
JOE WOLF
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EDDIE MAZUREK
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Pflugerville, Hutto,
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Temple, Rockdale,
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PETE PEREZ
RICKY ADAMS
512-743-2315
[email protected]
Central Austin
254-644-2802
ricky.adams@
kofc.org
Waco, West
PHILIP REYNA
CHARLES GUENAT
210-789-9683
philip.reyna@
kofc.org
Round Rock, North
Austin
254-939-1981
charles.guenat@
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Temple, Belton
DOUG DEGROOT
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512-294-2406
douglas.degroot@
kofc.org
Georgetown, Marble
Falls, Burnet
512-282-2656
william.jensen@
kofc.org
Dripping Springs,
South Austin
would be a windfall for him.
But in Washington, you can’t
rent an apartment or take
care of your kid on $15 an
hour. In Kansas City, (with) a
$10-an-hour job you can rent
an apartment. There’s more
mobility.”
Poverty rates remain highest with African-Americans
and Hispanics, at 27.2 percent
and 25.6 percent, respectively.
Only 9.7 percent of whites
live in poverty, and 11.7 percent of Asian-Americans.
The Census Bureau developed a statistic called the Supplemental Poverty Measure,
which factors in the effect of
income transfers in poverty
rates. An example of an “income transfer” is the earned
income tax credit, a federal
income tax credit for low- to
moderate-income working individuals and families.
Under this measure, the
U.S. poverty rate would be
16.1 percent –– with higher rates among seniors and
working-age Americans, but
lower among minors.
The biggest change in the
Supplemental Poverty Measure is the effect of Social Se-
curity, which cuts the poverty
rate by 8.3 percentage points.
Refundable tax credits alleviate poverty by 2.9 percentage
points; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program beneÀts, by 1.1 points; and Supplemental Security Income, by
1.1 points.
Out-of-pocket medical
costs raise the poverty rate
by 3.4 percentage points, and
work expenses raise it 1.7
points.
Massey told CNS that the
poor his agency serves keep
looking for ways to get by
Ànancially from one month to
the next.
“This is the way people
have been living for years
and years. Food stamps every month. Salvation Army
every month. We call it the
hustle. They hustle to make
it,” he said. “As far as I can
tell, it’s intergenerational. A
very common conversation
for us to have is the Salvation Army may help you
with a bill every six months
or so. When they come to
see us, they’ll update us on
all the other orgs that have
been helping them.”
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October 2013
15
IN OUR WORLD
USCCB continues legal, moral analysis of HHS mandate
The bishops’ “efforts are contraceptive services come Committee was unanimous in its
proceeding apace, and, as you from outside the objecting or- resolve to continue its struggle
know, include a careful legal and ganization’s premiums.
with the HHS mandate and he
In a Sept. 17 letter to U.S. moral analysis of the Ànal rule,”
For self-insuring institutions, likewise voiced concern regarding
bishops, New York Cardinal Cardinal Dolan wrote. He said a third-party administrator would the Catholic Health Association’s
Timothy M. Dolan said the further discussion will take place provide or arrange the services, “hurried acceptance of the acU.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops continues to study the
legal and moral implications of “We are united in our resolve to continue to defend our right
the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services’ contracep- to live by our faith, and our duty to serve the poor, heal the
tive mandate in the Affordable sick, keep our apostolates strong and faithful, and insure
Care Act.
our people.”
The USCCB also continues
–– Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan
to “develop avenues of response
that would both preserve our
strong unity and protect our
consciences,” he said.
at the bishops’ fall general meet- paid for through reductions in commodation” which he called
The letter from Cardinal ing Nov. 11-14 in Baltimore.
federally facilitated-exchange user “untimely and unhelpful.”
Dolan, president of the USCCB,
“We are united in our re- fees associated with their health
“We highly value CHA’s
was a follow-up from the bish- solve to continue to defend our insurance provider.
great expertise in their ministry
ops’ Sept. 10-11 Administrative right to live by our faith, and
The mandate does not in- of healing,” Cardinal Dolan said,
Committee meeting where they our duty to serve the poor, heal clude a conscience clause for “but as they have been the Àrst
discussed the HHS mandate, the sick, keep our apostolates employers who object to such to say, they do not represent the
among other topics.
strong and faithful, and insure coverage on moral grounds.
magisterium of the church.”
The HHS contraceptive our people,” he wrote.
The contraceptive mandate
He said the Ànal rule issued
mandate, part of the AffordIn the Ànal HHS rule on the was initially slated to go into ef- June 28 has “the same three basic
able Care Act, will require most mandate, an accommodation of fect Aug. 1, but the HHS Ànal problems” found in the original
employers, including religious religious ministries that do not rule issued this summer moved rule issued in February: a narrow
employers, to provide coverage fit the exemption, contracep- the date of implementation to deÀnition of “religious employer”
of contraceptives, sterilization tive coverage for those accom- Jan. 1. Starting Oct. 1, people that “reduces religious freedom
and some abortion-inducing modated religious organizations can begin selecting and apply to the freedom of worship by
drugs free of charge, even if the with health insurance plans is to for health insurance coverage dividing our community between
employer is morally opposed be provided separately through choices.
houses of worship and ministries
to such services. It includes an health insurance companies or
In his letter to the bishops, of service”; second-class treatexemption for some religious third-party administrators who Cardinal Dolan emphasized ment of such ministries through
employers that Àt its criteria.
must ensure that payments for that the USCCB Administrative a “so-called ‘accommodation’”;
BY CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
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and a “failure to offer any relief
to for-proÀt businesses run by so
many of our faithful in the pews.”
He stressed that the Catholic
Church has long been a leader in
providing affordable health care.
“The bishops on a national level
have been at it for almost 100
years, and our heroic women and
men religious have done so even
longer.”
But now, he pointed out,
“instead of spending our time,
energy, and treasure on increasing access to health care, as we
have done for many decades,
we’re now forced to spend those
resources on determining how
to respond to recently enacted
government regulations that
restrict and burden our religious
freedom.”
Cardinal Dolan said that
“while much remains uncertain,” the USCCB is continuing
its efforts in Congress and in
the courts particularly since the
mandate “lessens the ability
of our ministries to give fullthroated witness to our faith, a
central mission of all Catholic
apostolates.”
“As I’ve said before, this is a
Àght that we didn’t ask for, and
would rather not be in, but it’s
certainly one that we won’t run
from,” the cardinal wrote.
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16
IN OUR WORLD
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Behind pope’s summer residence is milk, honey
BY CAROL GLATZ
Not a sound bounced off the
smooth white walls and vaulted
brick ceiling as a Vatican gardener
hunched over a large, empty
glass jar.
Two other men peered over
his shoulder, waiting for the
Ànished product to ooze slowly
from the stainless steel spout.
As the thick, dark amber
Áow rippled into the container,
Vincenzo Scaccioni, the head of
agricultural operations at the pontiÀcal villa of Castel Gandolfo,
said: “This is a historic moment.”
It was historic because it was
the year’s Àrst honey harvest for
the new pope by the little known,
but very busy, papal bees.
And it was lucky because
there had been a drastic dip in
this year’s honey production.
“Maybe we’ll get three or
four kilo (seven to eight pounds),
not even,” said the Vatican beekeeper Marco Tullio Cicero, as
he peeked into the stainless steel
centrifuge that spun the honey
from its golden honeycomb.
“As long as there’s a jar for
him,” the pope, it will be enough,
said Scaccioni. “It’s a limited edition,” he said with a smile.
Scaccioni oversees 26 employees who work on the villa’s
74 acres of gardens and 62 acres
of farmland.
Pope Pius XI expanded the
papal farm in 1930, Scaccioni
said, in part to “express the universality and the fullness of the
church and countryside,” and to
make use of the fertile pastures,
which had been abandoned after
the loss of the Papal States in
1870, to provide fresh fare for the
papal menu.
The villa’s workers raise freerange chickens, rabbits, ducks,
pheasants and other fowl for
meat, calves for veal, cows to
provide milk and milk products
like mozzarella, cheese and yogurt, and hens for eggs.
They also harvest fruit and
olive orchards and vineyards, cut
hayÀelds, tend vegetable patches
and grow Áowers and plants that
often are used to decorate the
papal apartments and meeting
rooms at the Vatican.
The aromatic herbs and Áowering plants also provide an
abundance of nectar for the bees,
which work from dawn to dusk
collecting the sweet water to turn
into wildflower honey for the
cold winter months.
What the pope and his closest
aides do not use is sold to Vatican
employees and retirees at the
Vatican discount supermarket.
Scaccioni, who has a degree
in agricultural science, was promoted in November from his
role as botanist at the gardens
inside Vatican City State, to heading the pontifical gardens and
farm at Castel Gandolfo.
He said the papal farm is
ready for an overhaul, and the
Àrst thing on his list is the bees,
with an eye to expanding their
presence and boosting their
output.
The papal farm has always
had bees, he said, but in recent
years, they had been somewhat
neglected. Also, extreme weather
patterns over the past few years
haven’t helped, as intense heat
and unseasonal rains have cut
their honey production in half.
More trouble in the mix was
extensive swarming this spring.
A swarm occurs when half of the
hive’s occupants Áy off to Ànd
a new, roomier home, resulting
in smaller families with half the
workforce and double the work.
Starting from scratch, the bees
spend the entire summer building new wax comb and storing
reserves instead of just cranking
out honey for the leader of the
universal church.
While swarming hurt honey
production this year, it also meant
the bee yard doubled from eight
hives to 16, positioning the papal
bee business for future growth,
Scaccioni said.
He said, “In about two or
three years, we want to start being
able to offer pollen, propolis and
royal jelly,” all honeybee prod-
ucts that are considered to have
nutritional, cosmetic or curative
effects.
Helping the bees by increasing the number of hives and
planting more nectar-producing
plants is part of Scaccioni’s larger
vision for better supporting the
papal farm.
PAPAL BEEKEEPER Marco Tullio Cicero opens one of
the apiary’s 16 hives located at the papal villa at Castel
Gandolfo, outside Rome, Sept. 12. (CNS photo by Carol
Glatz)
Upcoming Event
Nov. 14: The Devil You Don’t Know!
OCT. 14, THE GOSPEL OF JOHN
The fourth gospel is written in great poetic language by John often telling two levels of stories at the same
time. This day will be an opportunity to enter more deeply into the Woman at the Well story and the Eucharist
Discourse in Chapter Six. Brian Egan, Cedarbrake Director, will present. Cost: $35 (incl. lunch)
NOV. 1-3, THE ART & HEART OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE WITH FR. ALBERT HAASE, OFM
Based upon his best selling book and DVD, Catching Fire, Becoming Flame: A Guide for Spiritual Transformation, this weekend retreat focuses upon some of the important elements and attitudes of a vibrant spiritual
life: prayer, surrender and trust, confronting temptations, and experiencing God’s presence in our everyday,
ordinary life and routine. The retreat draws from our rich spiritual tradition and expresses its wisdom in Fr.
Albert’s inimitable preaching and teaching style. Cost: $155 (all rooms are shared); all meals incl.
NOV. 14, THE DEVIL YOU DON’T KNOW!
On a daily basis, whether we are conscious of it or not, we face a formidable adversary who rarely claims a
dramatic role in our lives but who, nevertheless, intrudes regularly in ways that are harmful or even destructive. Fr. Angelo Bertini, will present this day. Cost: $35 (incl. lunch)
DEC. 6-8, SILENT RETREAT
“Seek first his
kingship
g p over yyou.”
Matthew
M
atthew 66:33
:33
5602 N. HWY. 317, BELTON, TX 76513
P.O. BOX 58, BELTON, TX 76513 (mailing address)
It has been said that the best time to pray is when we can’t pray, due to time constraints, obligations, or
distractions. It would seem that the best time to go on retreat might be, for most people, the busiest time of
the year. Cedarbrake is offering a silent retreat during Advent in hopes that you might step out of the hustle
and bustle of your Christmas preparations and enter into silence to prepare for the birth of Our Lord. Mass,
Spiritual Direction, and group centering prayer will be available on this weekend. Cost: $150/person (all rooms
are private); all meals incl.
TO REGISTER FOR AN EVENT: (254) 780-2436, [email protected] or
www.austindiocese.org/cedarbrake, click on “upcoming retreats”
Visit us online!
WEBSITE: austindiocese.org/cedarbrake
FACEBOOK: facebook.com/cedarbrake
October 2013
17
IN OUR WORLD
Agencies stretch to meet needs of displaced Syrians
BY PATRICIA ZAPOR
Governments and nongovernmental agencies are struggling
to keep up with the needs and
pressures created by the displacement of nearly a third of Syria’s
population because of the country’s civil war.
Assistance to the refugees
and displaced people is coming
from around the world, although
resources are thinly stretched.
Representatives of several
Catholic agencies that are involved at various levels told
Catholic News Service that their
programs include helping make
sure children can go to school
and get help dealing with psychological trauma, as well as
providing the basics for survival,
such as food, water, housing and
medicines.
Resettlement agencies, including Migration and Refugee
Services of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops, meanwhile,
are preparing for the possible
need for new permanent homes
in other countries for thousands
–– or maybe hundreds of thousands –– of Syrians who may
decide they can’t go home.
Witnesses from the State
Department and the U.S. Agency
for International Development
told a House hearing Sept. 19
that almost one-third of Syria’s
22 million people have been
displaced by the civil war, including an estimated 2 million who
have Áed the country –– typically
referred to as refugees –– and
about 5 million who have been
forced from their homes but remain in Syria –– generally called
“internally displaced.”
That makes the Syrian displaced population the largest in
the world, and it has grown at
a dramatic pace, said Anne C.
Richard, assistant secretary of
state in the Bureau of Population,
Refugees and Migration.
She said the number of refugees from Syria climbed from
230,000 a year ago to more than
2 million now. Most have poured
across Syria’s borders to Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq,
which are struggling to provide
basic services such as food, water
and housing to transient populations that in some towns exceed
the number of permanent residents, she said.
For perspective, Richard said,
“more people have fled their
homes in Syria than fled the
genocide and its aftermath in
Rwanda or the ethnic cleansing
in Bosnia.”
She quoted U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio
Guterres as saying earlier in September that “Syria has become
the great tragedy of this century
–– a disgraceful humanitarian
calamity with suffering and displacement unparalleled in recent
history.”
Nancy E. Lindborg, assistant
administrator for the Bureau for
Democracy, Conflict and Humanitarian Assistance at USAID,
told the hearing of the House
Foreign Affairs Subcommittee
on the Middle East and North
Africa that the number of people
inside Syria who need some kind
of humanitarian help is around
6.8 million, or about the equivalent of the combined populations
of Vermont, New Hampshire,
Maine, and Connecticut.
Caroline Brennan, senior
emergency communications ofÀcer at Catholic Relief Services,
recently returned from visiting
CRS-afÀliated programs in Jordan and Lebanon that are assisting with displaced Syrians.
The Syrians she encountered
mostly Áed their homes on a moment’s notice, so they need “everything you and I have used so
far this morning,” such as beds,
toiletries, hair brushes, food, towels and clothing, Brennan said.
MOHAMMAD, 11 months old, is carried by his sister across an informal refugee settlement
in late July in Qab Elias in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. Only about one third of Syrian refugees
are living in formal camps. (CNS photo by Sam Tarling of Catholic Relief Services)
The House hearing witnesses
said about 70 percent of the people who Áed Syria are not living
in formal refugee camps. Instead
they crowd into existing towns,
taxing infrastructure such as water, sewer and electrical services.
Brennan said she met families
where two or three women and
their children were crowded into
an apartment, “bursting at the
seams.” Their husbands were not
with them, some having been killed
in the war, others having remained
behind to protect property.
In the region, CRS, the U.S.
church’s overseas relief and development agency, partners with
Caritas, the international Catholic aid agency. Given the high
level of education of many of the
refugees, Brennan said it’s been
relatively easy for Caritas to Ànd
people among the refugees to
teach in the schools they set up,
and to run the various programs
such as counseling.
Children are the Àrst target
for counseling, said Brennan, telling of kids who, when asked to
draw pictures of “springtime,” illustrated the skies over blooming
Áowers with drawings of bombs,
for instance.
Mitzi Schroeder, policy director for Jesuit Refugee Service,
told CNS that in addition to
the same type of work CRS is
supporting among refugees, the
Jesuit organization is working
within Syria, helping get aid to
about 355,000 displaced people.
Food distribution, cooking
equipment and health supplies
are among the materials JRS is
helping distribute through local
networks. Some of that comes
through USAID’s disaster assistance program, she said, and is
going “all over the place,” including the major cities.
Lindborg told the House
committee that relief workers are
targeted for attack throughout
Syria. She said one medical partner agency alone had 37 medical
staffers killed, 21 injured and 13
arrested or who were missing.
Just delivering aid can be a
long, complex process. Lindborg
said a trip between Damascus
and Aleppo that used to take
three hours by car, now is a threeday slog through the 50 or so
checkpoints along the road.
Meanwhile, other organizations are preparing for the possibility that perhaps hundreds of
thousands of Syrians will decide
that they cannot return home
anytime soon and need new permanent homes in other countries.
Jeff Cox, associate director
for processing operations for
Migration and Refugee Services,
said the U.N. refugee resettlement program is gearing up to
help Ànd new homes for Syrians.
Cox said U.S. refugee agencies
have been advised by the State
Department to expect 1,000 to
1,500 Syrian refugees in 2014.
Brennan said the people she
met recognize the work to be done
to rebuild their country and all she
talked to said they are willing to go
home, to live in tents or whatever
it takes to start over again.
Cox said “everyone always
wants to go home. Resettlement
is never anybody’s Àrst choice.”
But given conditions in Syria
and the dim hopes that the Àghting
will be over anytime soon, he said,
“I think the UNHCR is gearing up
for a large refugee resettlement.”
As migration rises worldwide, pope calls for cooperation
BY FRANCIS X. ROCCA
Pope Francis called for
greater international cooperation to improve conditions for
the world’s rising numbers of
migrants and called on the media
to combat prejudices that make
immigrants feel unwelcome.
The pope’s words came in
his annual message for the World
Day of Migrants and Refugees,
which will be celebrated Jan. 19,
2014. The message was released
by the Vatican Sept. 24.
“Contemporary movements
of migration represent the largest
movement of individuals, if not
of peoples, in history,” the pope
wrote.
According to the United Nations, 232 million people, representing 3.2 percent of the world’s
population, are currently international migrants, up from 175
million in 2000 and 154 million
in 1990. A 2012 study by the Pew
Research Center listed Mexico
as world’s largest source of emigrants, and the U.S. as the most
popular immigration destination.
Noting that many migrants
experience “rejection, discrimination, trafÀcking and exploitation, suffering and death,” Pope
Francis wrote that migration
“needs to be approached and
managed in a new, equitable and
effective manner,” marked by
“international cooperation and a
spirit of profound solidarity and
compassion.”
Bilateral relations between
countries of origin and destination, as well as international
norms on the rights of migrants
and host countries, can help national governments “confront socioeconomic imbalances and an
unregulated globalization, which
are among some of the causes of
migration movements in which
individuals are more victims than
protagonists,” he wrote.
Pope Francis also encour-
aged countries to “create better
economic and social conditions
at home, so that emigration will
not be the only option left for
those who seek peace, justice,
security and full respect of their
human dignity.”
Many citizens of host countries treat immigrations with
“suspicion and hostility,” the
pope wrote. “There is a fear that
society will become less secure,
that identity and culture will be
lost, that competition for jobs
will become stiffer and even that
criminal activity will increase.”
In response, the pope wrote,
the communications media have
a special responsibility to “break
down stereotypes and to offer
correct information in reporting
the errors of a few as well as the
honesty, rectitude and goodness
of the majority.”
The pope invoked the Holy
Family’s experience of migration
during its Áight into Egypt as a
source of encouragement.
Though forced to Áee to protect the infant Jesus from death
at the hands of King Herod,
Mary and Joseph “never doubted that God would always be
with them,” Pope Francis wrote.
“Through their intercession, may
that same Àrm certainty dwell in
the heart of every migrant and
refugee.”
GOOD NEWS
18
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Respecting life from conception to natural death
BISHOP JOE S.
VÁSQUEZ is the ¿fth
bishop of the Austin
Diocese. He shepherds more than
530,000 Catholics in 25 Central
Texas counties.
Editor: Bishop, October is Respect Life Month, which people most
commonly associate with the issue
of abortion. What does it really mean
for a Catholic to respect life and why
is it so important?
Bishop Vásquez: Catholics appreciate the sanctity of human life. We know
that life must be respected, appreciated
and protected from conception until natural death. This comprehensive understanding of human life encompasses the
serious issue of abortion, but is broader.
The moment of conception is when
life is most vulnerable, which is why
the church speaks so clearly and strong
about the protection we must give to the
unborn. However, we must also respect
and protect children as they develop,
adults as they age and elderly as they near
their time of death. We must understand
that life is a sacred gift from God; therefore, we have to be very watchful and
protective of it at every stage.
Editor: Last year the U.S. bishops
did a Call to Prayer for Life, Marriage
and Religious Liberty during the Year
of Faith. Why did they pinpoint these
three things and how is this call to
prayer important to us as a society?
Bishop Vásquez: The bishops have
been concerned with these issues for
a long time. We have been advocating
for life since before the Roe v. Wade
decision, 40 years ago. The bishops have
always been concerned about quality of
life issues in the U.S. The bishops have
highlighted these three particular aspects
because we see them as essential foundation of a sound society. When a society
supports, defend and protects life, marriage and religious freedom, the society
remains strong and vibrant.
We have witnessed the under appreciation of life in the U.S., a lack of
respect for the sanctity of marriage, and
the imposed limitation on our religious
freedoms. There are true battles taking
place to redeÀne life, marriage and religious freedom at the state and national
levels. Certainly abortion is part of this
debate, as is euthanasia and other end of
life issues.
This summer we saw another attack
undermining marriage with the Supreme
Court’s decision to overturn DOMA
and then Proposition 8 in California.
These changes in the understanding of
marriage in our country remove God
from marriage. Catholics believe marriage is God given, meaning a man and a
woman come together to form a family.
As the U.S. bishops wrote in our 2009
Pastoral Letter on Marriage, “Marriage is
not merely a private institution, however.
It is the foundation for the family, where
children learn the values and virtues
that will make good Christians as well as
good citizens. The importance of marriage for children and for the upbringing
of the next generation highlights the
importance of marriage for all society.”
We must continue to pray for married
couples and for the sanctity of marriage.
Finally, the bishops feel we must
pray for religious liberty. The recent
HHS mandate involves the government
imposing rules on religious organizations
thereby forcing us to provide coverage
for procedures that violate our religious
beliefs. The Àrst amendment of the U.S.
Constitution guarantees freedom of religion; this is not only freedom to worship
but freedom of religion means we get
to deÀne who we are as a religion. The
government doesn’t deÀne us, which it is
trying to do with recent legislation.
Therefore, these three areas continue
to be of great importance to the bishops.
The Call to Prayer for Life, Marriage
and Religious Liberty is very important
because we depend upon God to help
us persevere through this struggle. All of
our efforts, which include our advocacy
in the legislative process, must begin
with prayer.
Editor: Respect for human life is
essential to our faith but that doesn’t
make it easy to embrace. How can
Catholics form their consciences and
hearts on what it means to respect life?
Bishop Vásquez: The Àrst thing
we have to do is inform ourselves about
what Scripture and the church teach us
about life at all its stages and development. I encourage people to read Scripture and the Catechism of the Catholic
Church, where we can Ànd a wealth of
information on the church’s teaching on
the beauty of human life. If we depend
on society to teach us about human life,
we will discover a completely different
understanding from what the church
teaches. I would encourage those who
have difÀculty understanding what the
church teaches to speak to priests, deacons, religious or lay people. The diocese
also has an excellent OfÀce of Pro-Life
Activities and Chaste Living that can
provide resources for those interested
in learning more about the sanctity of
human life. The church is countercultural in many ways; therefore, we have
to stand up for what we believe and be
ready to defend what we believe.
Lately, I have witnessed our young
people doing this, which gives me great
hope. They are not simply following the
popular voice and trends; they are learning and understanding what the church
teaches. This is refreshing! Another
sign of hope for me is the closing of the
Planned Parenthood in Bryan/College
Station and other such clinics in our
state. Hopefully, this is a sign of more
respect for life in our state.
Editor: Blessed John Paul II
called our culture a culture of death.
How can parishes and individuals
promote the dignity of life in this
culture?
Bishop Vásquez: We had this
terrible tragedy up in Newtown where
these innocent children and adults
were killed. This very sad tragedy really
made me think as a bishop how much
our society does not appreciate life. Of
course, not everyone would walk into
a school and kill innocent people, but
this horrible violence is one example
of how persons in our society have
succumbed to a culture of death. The
culture of death is not just a reference
to abortion, but it is also about violence to women, abuse of children, and
neglect of the elderly. When people
are being taken advantage of and when
people are hurt by others, the gift of
life is impaired and damaged. We must
defend the lives of those whose voices
go unheard, especially the unborn, the
immigrants and the weak, we must
speak for those who cannot speak for
themselves. We believe life is a precious
gift from God; therefore, we must learn
how to appreciate it.
Blessed John Paul II, who was very
sick in the last years of his life, was a
great witness of life for us. He showed
us the dignity of life even in the midst of
pain and suffering.
I would encourage our clergy to
continue to speak on these issues from
the pulpit, in counseling and in the
sacrament of confession. We must
always speak about these matters with
great compassion and understanding.
As clergy, we are called to help people
understand the dignity of the human
person and to offer compassion for
those who are sick and for those who
are caring for them. As Pope Francis has told us, we must stay close to
those who are entrusted to our care.
I also encourage people to go out
and serve –– go to a hospital or to a
nursing home, visit a hospice center or
a homeless shelter. All of these places
give us an opportunity to be with
people and to surround ourselves with
those who are sick, hurting or dying.
When we do this, we realize the value
and the beauty of all human life and our
faith is strengthened as we help those in
need of compassion and love.
Editor: In August the Fort Hood
shooter was sentenced to death.
How should a Catholic look at his
crimes and his sentencing in regard
to respect for life?
Bishop Vásquez: First of all we
have to say that what Major Nidal
Hasan did was an evil thing. The fact
that so much human life was taken was
shocking, and our prayers are with the
family members who are left trying to
make sense of their lives after losing
their loved ones. But does this type of
act give us a right to take someone’s
life? I think not. Again, I go back to
Blessed John Paul II, who advocated
strongly against the death penalty.
We must remember the persons who
commit such heinous crimes never
lose their human dignity. Taking the
life of a criminal does not compensate
for the lives that were lost. Respect for
life even means respecting the lives of
those who commit violent criminal
acts. This is extremely difÀcult. However, we believe that every life is sacred,
and it is only God who can give life and
take life.
Editor: What is your prayer for
us during Respect Life Month?
Bishop Vásquez: My prayer is that
all of us will come to appreciate human
life in all of its stages, and that we really
appreciate Àrst of all the gift of life that
God has given to each of us. In coming to appreciate this gift of life, may we
grow in deeper appreciation for the lives
of those closest to us: our parents, our
siblings, our spouses and our children.
May all of us come to appreciate life
in all of its states from conception to
natural death.
THIS
RESPECT
LIFE POSTER
is available to
download in
English and
Spanish at
www.usccb.
org/about/prolife-activities/
respect-lifeprogram/index.
cfm. There
are also many
other resources available for
Respect Life
month. (Poster
courtesy
USCCB)
GOOD NEWS
October 2013
19
‘Let your light shine’ through Catholic Services Appeal
BY SCOTT WHITAKER
GUEST COLUMNIST
Each November, parishes across
the Diocese of Austin participate
in the Catholic Services Appeal
(CSA). Through the CSA, Catholics
throughout our diocese are able to
join together to support many critical
diocesan ministries. Each gift to the
CSA enables us to provide quality
formation for 41 seminarians and 223
priests; educate thousands of students
in our 23 Catholic schools; form our
deacons, catechists and lay ministers; care for our retired priests; and
provide direct assistance to countless
families in need through Catholic
Charities of Central Texas. Now in
its 36th year, the CSA has provided
more than $70 million of support to
these ministries.
In addition, the CSA also allows
us to share the gift of our Catholic
faith with our communities. This
year’s theme, “Let Your Light Shine,”
reminds us that we have been called
by Christ to share his light and love
with the world.
“The light of Christ shines, as in
a mirror, upon the face of Christians;
as it spreads, it comes down to us,
so that we too can share in that vi-
sion and reÁect that light to others...
Faith is truly a good for everyone; it
is a common good. Its light does not
simply brighten the interior of the
Church, nor does it serve solely to
build an eternal city in the hereafter;
it helps us build our societies in such
a way that they can journey towards a
future of hope,” writes Pope Francis
in “Lumen Fidei.”
This year was designated a “Year
of Faith” by Pope Benedict XVI.
During this year, we have been called
to reopen the “door of faith” that
was Àrst
opened at
baptism
and rediscover and
renew our
relationship with
Christ
and his
church. As
the Year
of Faith
draws to
a close,
this is an
opportune
time to
share our
renewed
faith with our diocesan community.
As Pope Francis reminds us in
“Lumen Fidei,” “Faith is passed on,
we might say, by contact, from one
person to another, just as one candle
is lighted from another.” By sharing
our blessings with one another, we
are also sharing the light of our faith
with one another, and spreading the
gospel of Jesus Christ.
The Catholic Services Appeal
provides us with a chance to be
involved in diverse ministries, such as
the education of seminarians, Catholic schools,
Catholic
Charities,
Hispanic
ministry
and youth
ministry,
which
affect our
entire
Catholic
community. By
sharing
our faith
and our
gifts with
one another, we
are bring-
ing the light of Christ not only to our
communities in Central Texas, we are
also building a community of faith
that will last for generations. This
commitment to stewardship allows
the diocesan church to provide the
necessary resources that one parish
could not provide alone.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus
challenges us to let our light shine before others (Mt 5:16). At a time when
needs are increasing and resources
are limited, our generosity to the CSA
not only brings the light of Christ
to individuals, families and parishes
throughout our diocese, but it also
serves as a powerful witness of our
own faith and trust in the Lord.
Please prayerfully consider supporting the Catholic Services Appeal this
November. Commitment weekend in
our parishes is Nov. 2-3.
For more information about the
CSA, visit www.austindiocese.org or
call (512) 949-2400.
SCOTT WHITAKER is
the diocesan director of Stewardship
and Development.
He can be reached
at (512) 949-2444
or scott-whitaker@
austindiocese.org.
All are invited to join us for our annual
All Souls’ Day Mass
Saturday, November 2nd at 10:00 am
St. Helen Catholic Church, Georgetown
Celebrated by Fr. Brian McMaster, Director of Vocations, Diocese of Austin
Con-celebrated by Fr. Robert Becker, Pastor, St. Helen Catholic Church
Remembering all our
Faithfully Departed, and
especially those who are
at rest at Our Lady
of the Rosary Cemetery.
Following Mass at St. Helen
Catholic Church, please
join us as we proceed to Our
Lady’s sacred grounds, where
there will be blessings for
the families with loved ones
interred at Our Lady, along
with our annual scattering
of wildflower seeds, and
refreshments of soul cakes.
“Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them”
OUR LADY OF THE
ROSARY CEMETERY
& PRAYER GARDENS
330 Berry Lane
Georgetown, Texas 78626
www.olotr.com
512.863.8411
GOOD NEWS
20
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Faithful citizens vote even in ‘off’ elections
BY BARBARA BUDDE
COLUMNIST
This November there will be an election. For most of us the ballot will consist
of Constitutional amendments placed
there by the legislature. Cities and counties might have other local initiatives on
the ballot, but we won’t be voting for any
person holding ofÀce either at the state or
federal level. This is what we call an “off”
election year. As a result, many will decide
not to vote. I hope that is not the case in
the Catholic community. Faithful citizenship calls us to participate in the political
process and to exercise the right and duty
we have to vote.
I did a quick search of the last time
there was an off-year election with
Constitutional initiatives on the ballot
and most counties in the state, including
in our own diocese, had voter turn outs
that were in the single digits. I want to
commend Llano County for being the
standout in our diocese. In 2011 they
had more than 17 percent of eligible
voters who actually voted in that offyear election. Honorable mention goes
to Fayette and Brazos counties both of
which had more than 15 percent of registered voters go to the polls and San Saba
County, which had about 14.5 percent of
registered voters who actually voted.
The great irony is that our country
was founded by those who fought and
died for the right of self-determination.
We did not do it perfectly when the
country was founded and we had to
make many changes along the way – but
voting is the cornerstone of democracy
and in many instances we abdicate that
precious right to vote.
This year the Voter ID law passed by
the 2011 legislature is in effect. A voter
registration card is no longer sufÀcient
to vote. Every person will also need to
show a valid picture ID. The list of acceptable IDs from the Secretary of State
OfÀce includes:
• Texas driver license issued by the
Texas Department of Public Safety
(DPS)
• Texas Election IdentiÀcation Cer-
tiÀcate issued by DPS
• Texas personal identiÀcation card
issued by DPS
• Texas concealed handgun license
issued by DPS
• U.S. military identiÀcation card
containing the person’s photograph
• U.S. citizenship certiÀcate containing the person’s photograph
• U.S. passport
The ID must be “current.” The website says, “With the exception of the U.S.
citizenship certiÀcate, the identiÀcation
must be current or have expired no more
than 60 days before being presented for
voter qualiÀcation at the polling place.”
There is also a requirement that the name
on the ID and on the voter registration
list must be “substantially similar.” There
are guidelines to help election judges
make determinations about what “substantially similar” means.
Please be aware that the Texas Election IdentiÀcation CertiÀcate issued by
DPS is free. However, any person who
needs this identiÀcation because they
may lack any of the others on the list
must present proof of citizenship such
as a certiÀed birth certiÀcate. Those are
not free.
Any person who is over the age of
65 can apply to vote by mail. Clearly in
this instance an ID cannot be required,
so all seniors are able to vote by mail, but
must apply. There are exemptions for
persons with disabilities or persons who
lost their ID due to natural disaster. Detailed information on these exemptions
as well as “Frequently Asked Questions”
are all available from the state at www.
votetexas.gov/register-to-vote/need-id/.
Far too many of us exempt ourselves
from the right and duty to vote. We can
change that this year. Voter registration
closes Oct. 7. Remember to register, remember your ID and remember to vote!
BARBARA BUDDE
is the diocesan
director of social
concerns. She
can be reached at
(512) 949-2471 or
barbara-budde@
austindiocese.org.
Diocesan Middle School Youth Rally 10.19.13
Location: St. Anthony Marie de Claret Parish, Kyle
prayer
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fellowsh
breakouts
Looking for a Sales
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fun!!!
Featuring: Mike Patin
Contact your parish youth ministry representative or
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For more information about how to include the Catholic church in your will or estate plan,
contact Scott Whitaker at (512) 949-2441 or [email protected]
October 2013
GOOD NEWS
21
Bl. Contardo: Layman dedicated to faith, academia
BY MARY LOU GIBSON
COLUMNIST
It may be that Blessed Contardo
Ferrini is not well known today, but
in the mid 19th century he was considered the world’s leading authority
on Roman law. From a very young
age, he had a tremendous intellectual curiosity and was encouraged in
his academic pursuits by his father,
Rinaldo Ferrini, a professor of mathematics and science.
Contardo was born on April 5,
1859, in Milan, Italy. As a student,
he professed his love for the Catholic faith openly and often and that
BLESSED CONTARDO FERRINI
(Courtesy of AmericanCatholic.org)
caused friends to nickname him “St.
Aloysius” (after St. Aloysius Gonzaga).
He was 17 when he entered the
University of Pavia. He especially
loved languages and learned Hebrew
and Greek so he could read the Bible
in its original language. Paul Burns
writes in “Butler’s Lives of the Saints”
that he also knew Syriac and some
Coptic and was at ease with German,
English, Dutch, French and Spanish.
He also developed a love of poetry
and became a keen mountaineer.
At age 21, Contardo became a
doctor of law at the university. His
doctoral thesis, which related penal
law to Homeric poetry, brought
him a scholarship to the University of Berlin in 1880. There was
much prejudice against Catholics in
the German capital, but Contardo
found an active group of Catholics
who were involved in social and
charitable work. Through this group,
Contardo joined the local branch of
the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
He returned to Italy in 1883 and
was a lecturer at the universities at
Messina, Modena and Pavia. Contardo received his Àrst professorship
at the young age of 26. During his
years as a student and later as a professor, he prayed and thought about
whether he had a vocation to the
priesthood, or to a religious order,
or as a married person.
Ultimately, he made a vow of
lifelong celibacy and became a
member of the Third Order of St.
Francis. Burns writes that Contardo
did not believe he had a vocation to
the priesthood.
Throughout his life, he pursued his interest in social work and
became a city councilor of Milan
in 1895. According to Burns, he
deplored the papal ban on Catholics
taking part in Italian politics. He
advocated for the importance of
marriage and the value of Catholic
elementary education.
As a faculty member at the
University of Pavia, he helped found
the St. Severinus Boethius Society,
an international organization that
promoted scholarship for university
students. John Delaney writes in the
“Dictionary of Saints” that Contardo
was regarded by his students and
colleagues as one who lived a life of
holiness in the midst of academia.
He was passionate about the
faith he lived. “Our life,” he said,
“must reach out toward the InÀnite,
and from that source we must draw
whatever we can expect of merit and
dignity.” (www.americancatholic.
org) Editor Marion Habig notes in
“The Franciscan Book of Saints” that
Contardo showed in his speeches and
writings that faith and science are not
opposed to each other, but that faith
is rather a shield to protect us from
error.
He was instrumental in beginning
the University of the Sacred Heart in
Milan, which opened after his death.
In 1900, he developed a heart condition and went to his country home
in the village of Suna in 1902 to
rest. While there, he became ill with
typhus and died on Oct. 17, 1902, at
the age of 43.
He was declared Venerable by
Pope Pius XI in 1931 and beatiÀed by
Pope Pius XII in 1947. At his beatiÀcation, Pope Pius held Contardo up as
a model of a Catholic lay person and
an example of how holiness can be
achieved in modern times. His body
is venerated in a chapel of Milan’s
Catholic University. He is the patron
of universities and his remembrance
day is Oct. 17.
MARY LOU GIBSON
is a member of St.
Austin Parish in Austin. She is a retired
state employee.
Anointing of the sick is not just for the dying
BY DEACON GUADALUPE RODRIGUEZ
GUEST COLUMNIST
The sacrament of anointing of the
sick is the Catholic Church’s best kept
secret. To discover this sacrament is to
Ànd a treasure of hope, comfort and
peace.
For many centuries this sacrament
was called “extreme unction” until the
Second Vatican Council called it “The
Anointing of the Sick.” Many may
refer to it as “Last Rites” because there
was a time when the sacrament was
reserved for someone who was near
death.
Today the sacrament is reserved
for those who are “seriously” sick. The
Apostolic Constitution of the Second
Vatican Council refers to the sacrament as “Sacram Unctionem InÀrmorum,” and states, “The sacrament
of Anointing of the Sick is given to
those who are seriously ill by anointing
them on the forehead and hands with
duly blessed oil — saying, only once:
‘Through this holy anointing may the
Lord in his love and mercy help you
with the grace of the Holy Spirit. May
the Lord who frees you from sin save
you and raise you up.’”
The Catechism of the Catholic
Church states “’The Anointing of the
Sick’ is not a sacrament for those only
who are at the point of death. Hence,
as soon as anyone of the faithful
begins to be in danger of death from
sickness or old age, the Àtting time
for him to receive this sacrament has
certainly already arrived” (1514).
A person with a serious condition
may receive the sacrament more than
once without regard to his or her age.
“If a sick person who received this
anointing recovers his health, he can
in the case of another grave illness
receive this sacrament again. If during
the same illness the person’s condition
becomes more serious, the sacrament
may be repeated. It is Àtting to receive
the Anointing of the Sick just prior to
a serious operation. The same holds
for the elderly whose frailty becomes
more pronounced” (CCC 1515).
Only a priest can administer the
Anointing of the Sick. “The celebration of the sacrament includes the following principal elements: the ‘priests
of the Church’ — in silence — lay
hands on the sick; they pray over them
in the faith of the Church — this is the
epiclesis (descent of the Holy Spirit)
proper to this sacrament” (1519).
Priests may administer the sacrament during Mass, a prayer service, or
in the privacy of the parish ofÀce or
sacristy, visiting the sick at home, or at
the hospital. The church recommends
that it be preceded by a good confession and followed by holy Communion
(if possible).
A parish may hold a “communal
celebration” for the Anointing of the
Sick (perhaps after a Mass). At these
communal celebrations, the priest
will usually tell the faithful that this
sacrament is for those suffering from
physical, emotional or spiritual illness. While the faithful do not have
to provide details of their sickness
as they come forward to receive the
sacrament, the faithful respect that the
sacrament is reserved for those with
serious illnesses or conditions.
The origin of this sacrament is
Jesus’ command, “In my name... they
will lay their hands on the sick, and
they will recover” (Mk 16:17-18).
Further evidence of this sacrament
is in the Letter of James, “Is anyone
among you sick? He should summon
the presbyters of the church, and they
should pray over him and anoint [him]
with oil in the name of the Lord, and
the prayer of faith will save the sick
person, and the Lord will raise him up.
If he has committed any sins, he will
be forgiven” (5:14-15).
Early church fathers wrote about
this sacrament. St. Augustine (d. 430)
said he “was accustomed to visit the
sick who desired it in order to lay his
hands on them and pray at their bedside.” The Council of Constantinople
II in 553 mentions the Anointing of
the Sick as a sacrament. However, the
church did not ofÀcially declare it as a
sacrament until 1551, at the Council of
Trent in response to the denial of this
sacrament by the Protestants, when it
stated, “This sacred anointing of the
sick was instituted by Christ our Lord
as a true and proper sacrament of the
New Testament. It is alluded to indeed
by Mark, but is recommended to the
faithful and promulgated by James the
apostle and brother of the Lord.”
As with all seven sacraments, in the
Anointing of the Sick, heaven touches
earth and we can experience the presence and power of our ever-loving and
almighty God. The church encourages
all those who are seriously sick to seek
the comfort and grace of the anointing
of the sick.
DEACON GUADALUPE RODRIGUEZ is the
Co-Director of Diaconal Formation
for the Diocese of Austin. He can be
contacted at guadalupe-rodriguez@
austindiocese.org or (512) 949-2410.
22
GOOD NEWS
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
How to invite someone to consider priesthood
BY FATHER BRIAN MCMASTER
VOCATION DIRECTOR
This year the new diocesan seminarian poster is themed “Called by God,
Invited by You.” The poster features
testimonies from our seminarians about
how they were invited by someone to
consider the priesthood and the effect
the invitation had on them. Our seminarians share how they were encouraged
by priests, parents, youth ministers,
teachers, other seminarians, fellow
parishioners and others. The poster reminds us how important and effective a
simple invitation can be. To build a “Vocation Culture” in our parishes, schools,
youth groups and diocese means each of
us take up the role of praying for vocations, actively looking for those we think
might have a calling, and verbally inviting
them to consider it.
There are some helpful points to
remember regarding our role in inviting
men to consider priesthood. First, it’s
everyone’s responsibility to invite. We
all play a role in building up the Body of
Christ and the church. It is important for
us to encourage men to consider priesthood especially now when the culture at
large proposes many different values.
Secondly, it’s as simple as an invitation. We don’t have to convince someone they’re called. Don’t be afraid of the
initial “no.” It’s even OK to expect it.
There are numerous stories in Scripture
and in the history of the church in which
men and women were called by God
to do something extraordinary yet they
were initially hesitant or resistant. But the
invitation stayed with them like a seed
that slowly grew and blossomed into a
loving response to God’s will.
Thirdly, it’s also important that we
are not too forceful or nagging when
we invite someone. We simply need to
make the invitation and then humbly
trust that God will cultivate the sense
of calling in the man.
What does an invitation sound like?
All we have to do is tell the man what
we see in him. Here are some examples
of what to look for and how to say it.
I see in you…
• A strong relationship with Jesus
Christ. You are committed to prayer
and devoted to the Eucharist.
• Joy and conÀdence. You’re a
happy and healthy single man with an
attractive personality.
• A compassion for others and a
desire to serve. You have many of the
gifts to become a servant leader.
• A love of the church. You’re active
in the parish and proud to be Catholic.
• Virtue and strength of character.
You’re striving for holiness. You trust
in God’s mercy and use the sacrament
of reconciliation.
What’s next? You may want to
encourage him to take a pro-active step
that will help him respond. Here are
some suggestions of how to encourage
him to respond.
I hope that you would…
• Be open. You might be hesitant at
Àrst. So too were many of the great saints
and Àgures from the Bible who were
called to an extraordinary life by God. Be
not afraid! Trust that God desires your
happiness even more than you do. God
is never outdone in generosity.
• Pray. It’s all about your relationship with God. Discernment happens
within a dedicated prayer life. Listen
to his voice especially in Mass, during
Eucharistic adoration, while reading
Scripture, and while praying the rosary.
• Talk to someone. Consider
talking to someone whose faith you
admire. Speak with a priest or a
seminarian. Call the diocesan Vocation
Director –– he is there to help.
• Learn more. Check out www.
austinvocations.com for some ways
to learn more about priesthood and
discernment. Read some good books
such as “To Save a Thousand Souls.”
• Attend a discernment event. Jesus
said “Come and see.” Go to one of the
monthly discernment dinners, attend a
discernment retreat, visit a seminary, or
attend Project Andrew (in February).
May all of us continue to pray
for vocations to the priesthood and
religious life.
FATHER BRIAN
MCMASTER is the
diocesan Vocation
Director. He can be
reached at (512)
949-2405 or
fr-brian-mcmaster@
austindiocese.org.
Is it wrong to buy health insurance now?
BY REV. TADEUSZ PACHOLCZYK, PH.D.
COLUMNIST
Many individuals and business owners are struggling in conscience about
whether to purchase health insurance
coverage, either for themselves or for
their employees, on account of the
Health and Human Services (HHS)
Mandate. A provision of PPACA
(ObamaCare), the mandate requires
“preventive health services” to be covered by all health insurance issuers and
all group health plans. Those insurance
plans must provide coverage (with no
co-pay) for the full range of Food and
Drug Administration (FDA)-approved
contraceptive methods for women.
These include not only surgical sterilizations, but also potential abortion-causing
agents such as Plan B (the morning-after
pill), intrauterine devices (IUDs) and
another form of “emergency contraception” known as Ella. This drug,
which the FDA acknowledges may also
work against the life of the embryo “by
preventing attachment (implantation) to
the uterus,” can be taken up to Àve days
after sex.
The chief moral concern, of course,
is that by purchasing such mandated
coverage, an individual would be
subsidizing pharmaceutical abortions,
contraceptives and sterilizations for others, and business owners would similarly
be subsidizing these procedures for their
employees through their health plans.
Employers, in other words, would provide coverage for (and thereby potentially
facilitate) various acts of vice on the part of
their employees, and all who pay for health
insurance coverage would potentially fund
and thereby support the vice of their neighbors. This raises the serious moral concern
of “cooperation in evil.”
In general terms, any cooperation in
evil should be avoided, or at least minimized to the extent prudently possible.
By purchasing a policy with problematic
inclusions, one would likely cooperate “materially” in the commission of
various evils by others, but the debate
on this matter hinges on whether that
material cooperation should be considered “immediate” or “mediate.” Immediate material cooperation — when your
assistance is essential to the evil action
— is never morally permissible, but
mediate material cooperation — when
your assistance is incidental or remote
from the bad activity itself — may be
allowable under temporary extenuating
circumstances. It could be allowable
as long as the cooperator manifests
resolute opposition to the evil and takes
reasonable steps to limit and ultimately
eliminate that cooperation. This is a key
difference between allowable toleration
and tacit approval.
In evaluating the speciÀcs of the
HHS mandate, the National Catholic
Bioethics Center (NCBC) has reached
the provisional conclusion that paying
premiums for a policy that also includes
coverage for the above-mentioned
procedures, devices and drugs (while
opposing the mandate) does not appear
to involve an individual in immediate
material cooperation in evil, because a
number of intervening causes are likely
to exist between the paying of the premiums by a subscriber, and the action of
another enrollee who chooses to engage
in one of the immoral activities. The key
difference between acceptable and unacceptable forms of material cooperation
involves the “causal distance” between
what we do by our act of cooperation,
and the act of the other person using the
abortifacient substance or the contraceptive that is covered by the health plan
into which we have paid. The paying
of the premiums does not appear to
be causally immediate to the chosen
action of direct sterilization, abortion or
contraception.
To put it another way, payment into a
health care plan that includes coverage for
immoral procedures would only “make
possible,” but would not “bring about”
the evil action of the principal agent, and
hence would represent mediate material
cooperation on the part of the person
paying into the plan. Such a payment
could be made, albeit under protest.
Thus, the position of the NCBC is
that individuals purchasing insurance under the HHS mandate could choose to
do so licitly as mediate material cooperation assuming a proportionately serious
reason, and a lack of suitable alternatives,
and an ongoing effort to resist/oppose
this unjust mandate through case-appropriate means. A proportionately serious
reason is often likely to exist, because
of the seriousness of our obligation to
care for our health. For business owners,
meanwhile, it is a particularly difÀcult
question, and they may Ànd it best to
discontinue providing health insurance
to their employees (even though they
may have to pay associated Ànes). The
NCBC discusses this option, and some
of the morally relevant factors surrounding such a decision, in its analysis available at www.ncbcenter.org/document.
doc?id=450&erid=0.
The HHS Mandate represents
bureaucratically coerced personal and
institutional involvement in the commission of intrinsic evils. No person
should ever be coerced by the state to be
directly complicit in such acts. The HHS
Mandate is an affront to every American. It is immoral and offensive. If the
government’s current attempt to coerce
Americans into violating their most
deeply held convictions doesn’t breach
their religious freedom, then nothing
does. No individual or institution should
have to be concerned about violating
their conscience when they merely seek
to safeguard the well-being of themselves, their families, or their employees
by purchasing health insurance.
FATHER TADEUSZ PACHOLCZYK,
PH.D. earned his doctorate in
neuroscience from
Yale. He is a priest
of the Diocese of
Fall River, Mass.,
and serves as the
Director of Education at The National
Catholic Bioethics
Center in Philadelphia. For more information, visit
www.ncbcenter.org.
GOOD NEWS
October 2013
23
Accreditation is important for Catholic schools
BY NED VANDERS, ED.D.
SUPERINTENDENT OF CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
In accordance with the decision
of the Catholic Bishops of the State
of Texas, each school recognized by
its bishop as a Catholic school, is to
be accredited by the Texas Catholic
Conference Education Department
(TCCED). The Diocese of Austin
Strategic Plan for Catholic Schools
(2009) has as one of its goals that
schools build a culture of continuous
improvement to ensure they meet or
exceed the rigorous standards established by the TCCED. The acknowledgment of accreditation ensures
that each school meets and exceeds
quality standards expected by the
community. The strategic plan further
states that all schools in the Diocese
of Austin consider undergoing the
accreditation process of the Southern
Association of Colleges and Schools
(SACS).
In May 2013, the Catholic Schools
in the Diocese of Austin (CSDA)
entered into an integrated partnership
with SACS in which SACS would
recognize the TCCED accreditation
process. Before the partnership, a
school seeking SACS accreditation
would have to host two visiting teams
with two separate visits – one for
TCCED and another for SACS – or
a combined visit with the two teams
together. St. Louis Catholic School in
Austin, St. Joseph Catholic School in
Bryan, and St. Austin Catholic School
in Austin were already SACS accredited schools prior to the partnership.
This integrated partnership streamlines the process, as well as the work
and resources involved in preparing
for an accreditation visit.
As a result, the CSDA has been
awarded accreditation with the South
Association of Colleges and Schools
Council on Accreditation and School
Improvement (SACS CASI). The
action was taken at the AdvancED
Accreditation Commission meeting
held last June.
Dr. Mark Elgart, President/CEO
of AdvancED, the parent organization of SACS CASI, stated, “SACS
CASI Accreditation is a rigorous process that focuses the entire school on
the primary goal of creating lifelong
learners. CSDA is to be commended
for engaging in this process and demonstrating a commitment to continuous improvement.” This means that
the CSDA is recognized nationally
as a quality system of schools. Since
SACS CASI accreditation is recognized across state lines, this not only
eases the transfer process as students
move from accredited school to
accredited school, but also assures
parents/guardians that the school is
meeting nationally accepted standards
for quality and successful professional
practice.
Both TCCED and SACS accreditation demonstrate to our school
communities our commitment to
excellence, our openness to external
review and feedback, and our desire
to be the best we can be on behalf
of the students we serve. The rigorous accreditation process focuses the
CSDA on raising student achievement, providing a safe and enriching learning environment, creating
lifelong learners, and maintaining
efÀcient and effective operations.
As SACS accredited schools,
CSDA is part of the AdvancED
network of over 32,000 schools in
more than 71 countries that are committed to continuous quality improvement through accreditation. SACS
CASI provides nationally recognized
accreditation, the purpose of which
is continuous school improvement
focused on increasing student performance.
Although CSDA is just two
months into the 2013-2014 academic
year, activities and plans are already
underway for the next school year.
CSDA is hosting numerous open
houses over the next several months,
leading up to registration in January and February for the 2014-2015
school year. Please check the www.
csdatx.org website calendar for the
dates and times of the open houses,
as well as the ad on Page 13 in this
issue.
Catholic schools assist parents in
the religious formation and education
of their children. Catholic schools
integrate Catholic teaching and values
into every aspect of the learning process and experience of school so that
young people’s journey into adulthood will also be a journey of faith
and a growing internalization of these
teachings and values. Providing an
excellent academic education, Catholic schools help young people reach
their God-given potential.
It is never too late to begin
thinking about enrolling in a Catholic school. In fact, many Catholic
schools enroll students throughout
the school year.
DR. NED VANDERS
is diocesan Superintendent of Catholic
Schools. He can be
reached at (512)
949-2497 or
ned-vanders@
austindiocese.org.
Collection for Seminarians and Priests
The special collection for Seminarians and Priest Education was taken up April 6-7. If your parish Ànds an error, call the diocesan Finance OfÀce at (512) 949-2400.
For more information about this collection, visit www.austinvocations.com.
Parish
Totals
Austin Central Deanery
Austin, Cristo Rey
Austin, Holy Cross
$251.00
Austin, Our Lady of Guadalupe
$1,544.10
Austin, St. Austin
$1,814.89
Austin, St. Ignatius
$3,815.80
Austin, St. Julia
$500.14
Austin, St. Mary Cathedral
$3,085.04
Austin, San Jose
$3,481.00
Austin Central Deanery Totals
$14,491.97
Austin North Deanery
Austin, Holy Vietnamese Martyrs
$3,750.00
Austin, Sacred Heart
$2,611.00
Austin, St. Albert the Great
$3,769.00
Austin, St. Louis
$4,109.65
Austin, St. Theresa
$6,959.00
Austin, St. Thomas More
$7,689.43
Austin, St. Vincent de Paul
$4,980.66
Cedar Park, St. Margaret Mary
$4,421.15
Lago Vista, Our Lady of the Lake
$1,274.11
Austin North Deanery Totals
$39,564.00
Austin South Deanery
Austin, Dolores
$907.00
Austin, St. Andrew Kim
$180.00
Austin, St. Catherine of Siena
$5,597.45
Austin, St. John Neumann
$7,144.82
Austin, St. Paul
$2,674.85
Austin, St. Peter the Apostle
$1,711.00
Austin, San Francisco Javier
$225.00
Lakeway, Emmaus
$1,553.00
Austin South Deanery Totals
$19,993.12
Brenham/La Grange Deanery
Brenham, St. Mary
$1,589.00
Chappell Hill, St. Stanislaus
$394.00
Dime Box, St. Joseph
$361.00
Ellinger/Hostyn Hill, St. Mary
$946.00
Parish
Totals
Fayetteville, St. John
$1,060.00
Giddings, St. Margaret
$1,109.00
Lexington, Holy Family
$186.00
Old Washington on the Brazos, St. Mary $68.78
Pin Oak, St. Mary
$477.00
Rockdale, St. Joseph
$303.77
Somerville, St. Ann
$391.00
Brenham/La Grange Deanery Totals $6,885.55
Bastrop/Lockhart Deanery
Bastrop, Ascension
$1,984.28
Elgin, Sacred Heart
$1,012.31
Lockhart, St. Mary of the Visitation
$1,625.66
Luling, St. John
$624.15
Martindale, Immaculate Heart
$406.68
Rockne, Sacred Heart
$1,965.00
Smithville, St. Paul
$799.00
String Prairie, Assumption
$658.00
Uhland, St. Michael
$229.75
Bastrop/Lockhart Deanery Totals
$9,304.83
Bryan/College Station Deanery
Bremond, St. Mary
$800.00
Bryan, St. Anthony
$1,606.88
Bryan, St. Joseph
$1,246.00
Bryan, Santa Teresa
$306.50
Caldwell, St. Mary
$1,107.83
College Station, St. Mary
$4,369.19
College Station, St. Thomas Aquinas $3,038.72
Franklin, St. Francis of Assisi
$50.00
Frenstat, Holy Rosary
$557.00
Hearne, St. Mary
$530.52
Bryan/College Station Deanery Totals $13,612.64
Georgetown/Round Rock Deanery
Andice, Santa Rosa
$1,985.00
Corn Hill, Holy Trinity
$1,285.00
Georgetown, St. Helen
$5,645.84
Granger, Sts. Cyril and Methodius
$1,040.50
Parish
Totals
Hutto, St. Patrick
$1,569.35
Manor, St. Joseph
$478.09
PÀugerville, St. Elizabeth
$2,635.96
Round Rock, St. John Vianney
$5,565.44
Round Rock, St. William
$12,328.51
Taylor, Our Lady of Guadalupe
$493.75
Taylor, St. Mary of the Assumption
$1,945.52
Georgetown/Round Rock Deanery $34,972.96
Killeen/Temple Deanery
Belton, Christ the King
$2,663.00
Burlington, St. Michael
$169.00
Cameron, St. Monica
$560.00
Copperas Cove, Holy Family
$4,615.00
Cyclone, St. Joseph
$387.00
Harker Heights, St. Paul Chong Hasang $4,974.00
Killeen, St. Joseph
$3,290.33
Marak, Sts. Cyril and Methodius
$206.00
Rogers, St. Matthew
$351.00
Rosebud, St. Ann
$233.75
Salado, St. Stephen
$478.00
Temple, Our Lady of Guadalupe
$1,007.00
Temple, St. Luke
$2,198.00
Temple, St. Mary
$2,171.00
Westphalia, Visitation
$964.00
Killeen/Temple Deanery Totals
$24,267.08
Lampasas/Marble Falls Deanery
Bertram, Holy Cross
$166.00
Burnet, Our Mother of Sorrows
$442.79
Goldthwaite, St. Peter
$69.00
Horseshoe Bay, St. Paul the Apostle $1,653.50
Kingsland, St. Charles Borromeo
$387.70
Lampasas, St. Mary
$623.88
Llano, Holy Trinity
$429.32
Lometa, Good Shepherd
$123.00
Marble Falls, St. John
$663.00
Mason, St. Joseph
$289.50
Parish
Totals
San Saba, St. Mary
$285.57
Sunrise Beach, Our Lady of the Lake
$165.00
Lampasas/Marble Falls Deanery Totals $5,298.26
San Marcos Deanery
Blanco, St. Ferdinand
$280.00
Buda, Santa Cruz
$3,359.96
Dripping Springs, St. Martin de Porres $1,473.00
Johnson City, Good Shepherd
$205.00
Kyle, St. Anthony Marie de Claret
$2,628.51
San Marcos, Our Lady of Wisdom
$579.00
San Marcos, St. John
$3,529.95
Wimberley, St. Mary
$1,492.84
San Marcos Deanery Totals
$13,548.26
Waco Deanery
China Spring, St. Phillip
$366.75
Elk, St. Joseph
$192.00
Gatesville, Our Lady of Lourdes
$527.92
Hamilton, St. Thomas
$136.00
Lott, Sacred Heart
$230.00
McGregor, St. Eugene
$470.25
Marlin, St. Joseph
$83.35
Mexia, St. Mary
$480.88
Tours, St. Martin
$602.00
Waco, Sacred Heart
$1,398.00
Waco, St. Francis on the Brazos
$550.50
Waco (Hewitt), St. Jerome
$2,632.86
Waco, St. John the Baptist
$111.75
Waco (Bellmead), St. Joseph
$1,136.21
Waco, St. Louis
$4,095.12
Waco, St. Mary of the Assumption
$1,184.84
Waco, St. Peter Catholic Center
$76.60
Waco Deanery Totals
$14,275.03
Grand Total
$196,213.70
24
BULLETIN BOARD
Retreat & ReÁection........
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
For Your
Information
“Turning Point: The Greg Hall
Story” will be presented by the Frontline Faith Project Oct. 5. Deacon Greg
Hall is a deacon of the Archdiocese of
Galveston-Houston whose expertise
helped rescue 33 Chilean miners. The
Frontline Faith Project is an outreach
program of Mary’s Touch, which is a
radio program that shares stories of
devotion, courage, faith and miracles.
Frontline Faith provides MP3 players,
preloaded with seven hours of inspirational Protestant and/or Catholic content, to members of our armed forces
throughout the world. “Turning Point:
The Greg Hall Story” will be held Oct.
5 from 9 to 11 a.m. (breakfast will be
served) at St. Edward’s University and
that evening from 6 to 11 p.m. (includes
dinner and a live auction) at Pebble
Creek Country Club in College Station.
For more information, call (512) 3639147.
A celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Divine Mercy apparitions
to St. Faustina will be held Oct. 5 from
9:15 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. at the Mercy
of God Prayer Center in Manor. The
celebration will include music, a live
enactment of the conversations between
Jesus and Faustina, veneration of a relic
of St. Faustina and prayers for healing.
For more information, e-mail vcook@
hotmail.com.
Young women are invited to a
night of adoration, praise, worship
and chocolate Oct. 5 from 7 to 9 p.m.
at St. Louis Parish in Austin. This is intended to be a night for women to come
toe-to-toe and heart-to-heart with the
Lord. For more information, visit www.
femgenius.com.
On Oct. 6 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at
Life Chain will be formed in Georgetown. Participants will meet at the Crestview Baptist church parking lot at 2300
Williams Dr. in Georgetown where
pre-printed pro-life signs will be distributed. Participants will stand or sit and
pray as they hold signs up for the trafÀc
to read the message of love of children
and the message of life. Participants are
encouraged to bring a chair, umbrella,
friends, hearts of prayer and love of life.
For more information, contact Scott and
Julie Tefft at (512) 863-0039.
Catholic Scripture Study of Austin
meets on Wednesdays from 9:30 to
11:30 a.m. at St. Louis Parish in Austin.
The weekly two-hour Bible study consists of prayer, small group discussion
and guest lecturers. This year the course
is studying Joshua and James. The class
follows the Austin Independent School
District calendar for holidays, including Christmas break. Register online at
www.cssaustin.org. For more information, contact Rosemary Howard at (512)
345-3687.
Catholic Scripture Study of Cedar Park meets on Wednesdays from
6:30 to 8 p.m. and Thursdays from
9:30 to 11 a.m. at St. Margaret Mary
Parish in Cedar Park. The weekly
Bible study consists of prayer, small
group discussion and guest lecturers. This year the course is studying
Joshua and James. The schedule follows the Leander Independent School
District calendar for holidays. For
more information, contact Bob Gorski at (512) 636-2927 or bobgorski7@
gmail.com.
Crossroads Cultural Center will
feature award-winning Brazilian pianist,
Marcelo Cesena, for an evening of music
and conversation Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at
St. Louis Parish in Austin. Playing everything from Chopin to moving original
works, Cesena will share the journey of
the unexpected encounters that have
changed his life. The event is free and
open to the public. Seating is limited. Reserve a seat at beautyatx.eventbrite.com.
A Prepare-Enrich Facilitator
Training will be offered Oct. 12 from
9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the diocesan Pastoral
Center in Austin. This training will prepare participants to give the PREPARE
premarital inventory to couples preparing for marriage and to discuss the results in a manner that has been shown to
effectively reduce later marital conÁict.
The PREPARE has a specially-designed
version for Catholic couples and is available in both English and Spanish. This
training, given by a certiÀed PREPAREENRICH trainer, will also cover the
ENRICH instrument, for couples who
are already married. This instrument
can be used in marriage mentoring and
other marriage enrichment approaches.
To register or for more information,
contact Sara Lockey at (512) 949-2495
or [email protected].
Pax Christi Austin meets the third
Sunday of every month at 7 p.m. at the
Father John Payne House at St. Ignatius
Martyr Parish in Austin. Everyone is
welcome. Pax Christi Austin is a member of Pax Christi International and Pax
Christi USA, the Catholic peace and
justice movement that works and prays
to create a world that reÁects the peace
of Christ. For more information, contact
Bob Rankin at [email protected].
THRiVE! is sex education that
leads to love that will THRiVE, not
just survive. An Adult Education
Night will be offered Oct. 24 at 5:15
p.m. at St. Louis Parish in Austin. The
class will focus on communicating to
youth that they can be loved now, as
they yearn to be, but in ways consistent with biblical teaching. For more
information, contact the Office of
Pro-Life Activities and Chaste Living
at [email protected]
or (512) 949-2486.
Diocesan offices will be closed
Nov. 1, All Saints Day, which is a holy
day of obligation.
“The Gospel of John,” a day of reÁection, will be held Oct. 14 from 9 a.m.
to 3 p.m. at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat
Center in Belton. The fourth Gospel is
written in great poetic language often
telling two levels of stories at the same
time. This day will be an opportunity to
enter more deeply into the Woman at
the Well story and the Eucharistic Discourse in Chapter Six. Brian Egan will
be the presenter. The cost is $35, which
includes lunch. For more information,
contact Cedarbrake at (254) 780-2436 or
[email protected].
An English Cursillo weekend for
men will be held Oct. 17-20. For more
information, contact Robin Spencer at
(254) 220-3883 or [email protected].
The next Benediction Experience will be held Oct. 19 from 9 a.m.
to noon at St. John Vianney Parish in
Round Rock. This experience is aimed
at encouraging Eucharistic spirituality
and seeks to help participants become
more involved with what happens during Mass. The day will include lunch. For
more information, contact Father Tom
Frank at (512) 444-7587.
Sarah’s Hope, a free spiritual support program for couples struggling to
conceive or with pregnancy loss, will
host a Couples Healing Retreat Oct. 19 at
St. Thomas More Parish in Austin. The
suggested donation is $70 per couple for
the whole day, which includes meals. An
Adoption Information Dinner Program
will conclude the day (suggested donation of $35 per couple for those who
attend just the dinner). Register at http://
shap1019.eventbrite.com. For more
information, e-mail [email protected] or call (512) 736-7334.
All singles are invited to a retreat
entitled “The Art and Heart of the Spiritual Life” Nov. 1-3 at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center in Belton. Franciscan
Father Albert Haase will present the retreat based upon his best-selling book and
DVD, “Catching Fire, Becoming Flame:
A Guide for Spiritual Transformation.”
The weekend will focus on the important
elements and attitudes of a vibrant spiritual life: prayer, surrender and trust, confronting temptations, and experiencing
God’s presence in our everyday, ordinary
life and routine. Cedarbrake is offering
all singles (not married) who would like
to attend the retreat, a discounted rate of
$90. For information, and to receive this
rate, contact Austin Catholic Singles at
[email protected].
St. Albert the Great Parish in Austin will host “A Day of ReÁection: Looking forward to Advent and Christmas”
with Father Roger Keeler Nov. 16 from
8 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the parish hall. Father
Keeler is a lecturer in the Oblate School
of Theology in San Antonio. He is also
the Chief Judge of the Appellate Court for
the Catholic Dioceses of Texas. Tickets
are $15 each, and a light lunch is included.
For more information, contact Carolyn
Hunt at (512) 834-0528 or Pat Guthneck
at [email protected].
Couples planning to attend the
diocesan pre-marriage retreat, “Together
in God’s Love,” are encouraged to register as soon as possible. The program will
be offered in retreat format Oct. 25-27
at Cedarbrake Catholic Retreat Center
in Belton and in class format beginning
Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. at the diocesan Pastoral
Center. Engaged couples must provide
proof they have taken either the FOCCUS or PREPARE assessment before
attending the “Together in God’s Love”
retreat. Couples must register by contacting the diocesan OfÀce of Catholic Family
Counseling and Family Life at (512) 9492495. For registration forms, visit www.
austindiocese.org and click on “Marriage
Preparation” under “Quick Links.”
NFP classes....................
Web-based classes on the Sympto-Thermal Method of natural family
planning will begin Oct. 9 at 8 p.m. Subsequent classes will be held Nov. 13 and
Dec. 11. Engaged or married couples are
invited to learn more about this method.
The cost is $150 per couple. For more
information, visit www.ccli.org.
Classes on the Sympto-Thermo
Method of natural family planning will
be held in Spanish beginning Oct. 12 at 6
p.m. at Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in
Temple. Subsequent classes will be held
Nov. 16 and Dec. 14. For more information, visit www.ccli.org or contact Betty
and Jorge Martínez at (254) 563-3862 or
[email protected].
An introductory session on the
methods of natural family planning will be held Oct. 21 at 7:30 p.m.
at St. Thomas More Parish in Austin.
This class satisÀes the Austin Diocese
NFP requirement for marriage preparation. To register contact Amanda
and Ryan Ransom at ransomsnfp@
gmail.com.
Send in your items!
CATHOLIC SPIRIT offers this page, “For Your
Information,” as a “community bulletin board.”
Items of general interest of upcoming parish and
diocesan events, including parish social events,
will be printed at no charge at the discretion of
the editor. The deadline for material is the 10th
of the month, with publication occurring the
łrst week of the following month. Material may
be e-mailed to catholic-spirit@austindiocese.
org or faxed to (512) 949-2523.
BULLETIN BOARD
Conferences & workshops.....................................
October 2013
25
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal Austin (CCRA) of the Diocese of Austin will host a Life in the
Spirit Seminar Oct. 19 from 8:30
a.m. to 4:45 p.m. at San José Parish
Hall in Austin. The speakers include
Fathers Robert Becker, Ron Feather
and John Kim. The cost for the day
is $10. For more information, contact [email protected] or (512)
563-7851.
The National Black Catholic
Men’s Conference will be held Oct.
24-27 at the Wyndham South Hotel
in Austin. The overall purpose of the
conference is to provide a forum for
black men to speak to the critical issues and challenges facing the black
male community, in particular the
Catholic community. Secondly, the
conference is calling and challenging young men to discern the call to
priesthood, brotherhood and the diaconate. Workshops will be held at the
hotel. An evening worship and praise
service will be held Oct. 26 at 5 p.m.
at Holy Cross Parish in Austin. There
will be singing performances by the
award winning and highly acclaimed
men’s group “Men On Fire.” The registration fee is $150 or $75 for active
duty military and students. To register, contact Johnnie Dorsey at the
diocesan OfÀce of Black Catholics at
(512) 949-2449 or johnnie-dorsey@
austindiocese.org.
The Archdiocese of San Anto-
nio will host the sixth annual Statewide Criminal Justice Ministry Conference Oct. 25 and 26 at the Oblate
School of Theology in San Antonio.
This conference, entitled “Responsibility, Rehabilitation and Restoration:
A Catholic Perspective on Crime and
Criminal Justice,” is sponsored by the
Texas Catholic Correctional Ministers. All those interested in the ministry of criminal justice are invited to
attend. Applications for scholarships
are available. For more information,
contact the OfÀce of Criminal Justice
of the Diocese of Austin at (512)
949-2486 or e-mail yvonne-saldana@
austindiocese.org.
An Annulment Writing Workshop will be held Oct. 25 from 7 to
9 p.m. and Oct. 26 from 10 a.m. to 3
p.m. at the diocesan Pastoral Center
in Austin. This workshop is designed
to be a spiritual and emotional healing
experience for people who are seeking an annulment. Participants will
learn about the annulment process,
and receive help in writing their personal history, which is an important
and often painful part of the process.
The cost is $30 per person, which includes lunch and materials. For more
information, contact Pat Thompson
at (512) 261-8500 or (512) 970-7063.
The University Catholic Center
and St. Austin Parish in Austin
will host a presentation entitled
“Vatican II: An UnÀnished Building
and Its Impact Fifty Years Later” by
Dr. Richard R. Gaillardetz on Oct.
30 at 7 p.m. Dr. Gaillardetz is the
Joseph Professor of Catholic Systematic Theology at Boston College
and he has published numerous articles and has authored eight books
(one volume was co-authored) and
edited two others (one was co-edited). Parking will be available at
St. Austin’s parking garage on the
corner of San Antonio and MLK.
For more information, visit www.
utcatholic.org.
Golf tournaments...............................
The third annual Emmaus Golf Tournament will be held Oct. 5 at Flintrock Falls Golf Course. In addition to supporting Emmaus Parish in Lakeway and its 50-plus growing ministries, this year’s event will support Lake
Travis Crisis Ministries, an all-volunteer, ecumenical, Christian outreach mission that provides food, love, prayer,
Ànancial assistance and encouragement to those in crisis in the Lake Travis area. Sponsorships are available. Visit
www.emmauslakeway.com/golf for details and to register.
The eighth annual Golf Tournament beneÀting Mobile Loaves & Fishes at St Margaret Mary Parish in Cedar Park
will be held Oct. 14 at Teravista Golf Club in Round Rock. Registration will begin at noon with a shotgun start at 1:30
p.m. The cost is $125 per individual player, which includes 18 holes with a cart and one dinner. There is a $50 discount
for couples: husband/wife, father/son, or mother/daughter registration combination playing on the same team. Additional dinner guests are welcome with the purchase of a dinner ticket for $10. To register contact, Brian Van De Walle at
(512) 762-2210 or [email protected] or register online at www.mlf.org.
Annunciation Maternity Home in Georgetown will host its third annual Charity Golf Tournament Oct. 28 at
Berry Creek Country Club. Registration will begin at 11 a.m. Shotgun start at 1:30 p.m. The cost is $100 per player, which
includes golf, a fajita dinner and player bag. Sponsorships and volunteer opportunities are available. For more information, visit www.thematernityhome.org or call Alyssia at (512) 864-7755.
God is calling.
Are you listening?
The Congregation of Holy Cross has
retreat programs for high school, college,
and post graduate men designed to guide
you along the way as you seek to hear
and answer God’s call. Learn more,
retreats.holycrossvocations.org
Pray and give generously
World Mission Sunday
The Society for the Propagation of the Faith
a Pontifical Mission Society
October 20, 2013
www.IAmAMissionary.org
BULLETIN BOARD
Festivals and Fun.....................................................
26
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
St. John Parish in Luling will host
its annual Fall Festival Oct. 5-6. The
weekend begins with Mass at 4 p.m. on
Saturday and continues with games, king
coronation at 6:30 p.m., cake auction, live
music and bingo. Sunday’s events begin
at 11 a.m. A turkey dinner will be served
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for $7 per plate. A
live auction will be held from 1 to 3 p.m.
and bingo from 4 to 6 p.m.
St. William Parish in Round Rock
will host its annual Oktoberfest Oct. 5 at
6:30 p.m. in the parish hall. The night will
begin with a delicious German dinner
featuring authentic German food and
conclude with a live auction with items
ranging from tickets to sporting events,
art, jewelry, and more. Tickets cost $25
each and include dinner. For more information about the dinner and auction, visit
www.saintwilliams.org/oktoberfest2013.
St. Joseph Parish in Killeen will
host its annual Fest-of-All Oct. 6 on the
parish grounds. Activities include a silent
auction, cake walk, plant booth, a variety
of food booths, live music and dancing,
and games for all ages.
St. Mary Parish in San Saba will
hold its Fall Festival Oct. 6 from 11 a.m.
to 5 p.m. on the parish grounds. An
authentic Mexican meal, prepared by
parishioners, will be served from 11 a.m.
to 2 p.m., and will include a main entrée,
rice, beans, salad and drink for $8. Activities include food booths, a silent auction,
games for all ages, entertainment by local
performers and more.
St. Mary Parish in Hearne will host
its annual Fall Festival Oct. 6 from 11 a.m.
to 4 p.m. on the parish grounds. A meal
of spaghetti and meatballs will be served
from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Activities include a
variety of food booths, games for all ages
and live auction will begin at 1 p.m.
St. Matthew in Rogers will host
its annual Festival Oct. 6 on the parish
grounds. Plates of pulled pork, sausage
and all the trimmings will be served from
11 a.m. to 5 p.m. for $8 each. Plates will
be available for dine-in or to-go. Activities
include bake and craft sale, bingo, food
booths, children’s games and more.
Ascension Parish in Bastrop will
host its annual Fall Festival Oct. 6 from
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the parish grounds.
A barbecue dinner will be served in the
parish hall and a variety of food booths
will be set up outside. Activities include
games for all ages, bingo, cake walk, entertainment, a live auction, silent auction
and much more.
Holy Family Parish in Lexington
will host its Fall Festival/Picnic Oct. 6
on the Parish Activity Center grounds. A
meal of fried chicken, noodles and all the
trimmings will be served beginning at 11
a.m. A country/live auction will begin at
12:30 p.m. Activities include music, food,
games for all ages and more.
St. Mary Parish in Mexia will host
their annual barbecue Oct 6 from 11 a.m.
to 2 p.m. An auction will be held as well
as country store, bake shop, and children’s
games will continue until 4 p.m.
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in
Austin will host its annual Jamaica Oct.
6 from noon to 10 p.m. on the parish
grounds. Activities include food booths,
games for all ages, bingo, a silent and a live
auction, live music and more. Admission
is free until noon, $5 until 6 p.m. and $7
after that (there is a discount for seniors,
and children under 12 are free all day).
The 107th annual Westphalia Picnic and Homecoming will be held Oct.
13 at Visitation Parish in Westphalia. A
sausage and chicken meal will be served
from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; plates are $8 each.
The Praha Brothers will perform from
noon to 3 p.m. An auction will begin at
3:30 p.m. Other activities include a dance
from 7 to 11 p.m., bingo and games.
The Ladies of Charity of Austin
will host their 50th Luncheon and Fashion Show Oct. 16 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
at St. Louis Parish’s Wozniak Hall in
Austin. Lunch and homemade cookies
will be served, and there will be fashions displayed from St. Vincent de Paul
Thrift Store. Tickets are $15 at the door.
Proceeds will beneÀt St Louise House in
Austin. For more information, call (512)
459-8247.
The fourth annual St. I SMASH, a
rock & roll street dance, will be held Oct.
19 at 6:30 p.m. at St. Ignatius Martyr Parish in Austin. There will be food and music by Latin rock superstars, Del Castillo
Burse
Burse
The Diocesan Council of Catholic
Women has completed a burse for the
Clerical Endowment Fund (CEF) in
honor of Father James Chamberlain.
The totals for the burse as of July 31,
2013, are listed below by council.
Austin Council
$1,152.00
Brazos Valley Council
$596.00
Central Council
$3,334.50
Eastern Council
$584.00
Northern Council
$1,999.00
Southern Council
$3,892.67
Temple Council
$319.00
Other
$5.00
Previous Balance
$3,083.21
Total
$14,965.38
The Clerical Endowment Fund provides low-cost loans to parishes. Interest
from the loans is used to educate diocesan
seminarians. For information, contact either Father Ed Karasek at (254) 826-3705
or Mary Ann Till at (512) 353-4943.
The Diocesan Council of Catholic
Women has completed a burse for
the Clerical Endowment Fund (CEF)
in honor of Father Don Moss.
The totals for the burse as of Aug.
31, 2013, are listed below by council.
Austin Council
$443.00
Brazos Valley Council
$410.00
Central Council
$857.00
Eastern Council
$515.00
Northern Council
$1,107.00
Southern Council
$555.00
Temple Council
$371.00
Western Council
$83.00
Previous Balance
$6,965.27
Total
$11,306.27
The Clerical Endowment Fund provides low-cost loans to parishes. Interest
from the loans is used to educate diocesan
seminarians. For information, contact either Father Ed Karasek at (254) 826-3705
or Mary Ann Till at (512) 353-4943.
and special guests the Bravados. Advance
tickets are $15; tickets at the door will be
$20. No one under the age of 12 will be
admitted. All proceeds beneÀt St. Ignatius
Martyr Catholic School Annual Fund. For
information or to purchase tickets, visit
www.stismash.com.
Middle school teens are invited
to participate in the 2013 middle school
youth rally Oct. 19 at St. Anthony Marie
de Claret Parish in Kyle. Several hundred
young Catholics from across the Austin
Diocese will gather for prayer, featured
keynote Mike Patin, praise and worship,
break-out sessions, games and fellowship.
Contact Jennifer Kodysz at (512) 9492467 or jennifer-kodysz@austindiocese.
org for more information.
St. Mary, Our Lady of the Lake
Parish in Lago Vista will host its annual Fall Fest Oct. 19 from 10 a.m. to 4
p.m. on the parish grounds. There will
be vendor booths, food, music, casserole
sales, bake sales, activities for the children,
and fun for the whole family. Activities
will be followed by a German meal at 5
p.m. For more information, visit www.
stmaryourlady.org.
St. Helen Parish in Georgetown
will host its Fall Festival Oct. 19 and 20
on the parish grounds. Festivities begin
with bingo, burgers and sodas on Saturday
at 5 p.m. On Sunday, activities begin at
10 a.m. and will include a silent auction,
crafts, games for all ages, a petting zoo,
car show and more.
St. Stephen Parish in Salado will
host its annual Fall Fest Oct. 20 beginning at 11 a.m. on the parish grounds.
Barbecue will be served from 11 a.m. to
1:30 p.m. A live auction begins at 1 p.m.
Activities include a carnival, cake walk,
crafts for children, a silent auction and
climbing wall. There will also be a washer
tournament.
St. Mary Parish in Bremond will
host its annual Homecoming Festival Oct.
20 on the parish grounds. Sausage, beef
and all of the trimmings will be served
from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. for $8 a plate.
Activities include bingo from 4 to 8 p.m.,
games for all ages and live music.
St. John Vianney Parish in Round
Rock will host Vianney Fest Weekend
2013 Oct. 25-27. Friday’s event is golf at
Forest Creek Golf Club beginning at 1
p.m. with dinner and a dance to follow at
7 p.m. Saturday will include family night,
bingo and a movie. Sunday’s events begin
at 11 a.m. with a barbecue dinner, live and
silent auctions, bounce houses and a car
show. For more information, visit www.
sjvroundrock.org.
Cathedral School of St. Mary in
Austin will host its annual Fall Festival
Oct. 27 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on the
grounds. There will be food, games, a
silent auction and much more.
St. Louis Catholic School in Austin
will present Fun Fest 2013 Oct. 27 from
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the school grounds.
Potential sponsors and volunteers should
contact Lucinda Soto at lsoto@austin.
rr.com or (512) 925-8635 or Angela
Fuller at [email protected] or (512)
750-3592.
St. Margaret Parish in Giddings
will host its annual Fall Festival Oct. 27 at
the Sons of Hermann Hall in Giddings.
The dinner will be served at 11 a.m. and
an auction will begin at 12:30 p.m.
The Harker Heights Ladies of
Charity will host a Holiday Bazaar Nov.
2-3 at St. Paul’s Parish Center in Harker
Heights. Saturday’s hours are from 9 a.m.
to 7:30 p.m.; Sunday’s hours are from 8
to 11 a.m. There will be a variety of items
for sale to include handmade crafts, baked
goods, books, jewelry, fabric, Christmas
and religious gifts. All proceeds go to help
those living in poverty and needing help
within the community. For more information, contact Jane Barr at (254) 690-8255.
The annual “Taste of India” organized by the India Catholic Association
of Central Texas will be held Nov. 2
from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the parish hall
at St. Thomas More Parish in Austin.
The evening will include delicious Indian
cuisine, traditional music, song and dance
performances, Henna, games and more.
Tickets are $25 each and the proceeds
will beneÀt orphanages in India and the
Mobile Loaves and Fishes in Austin. For
information, contact Mario Gonsalves at
[email protected].
St. Mary Parish Altar Society in
Temple will hold its annual Turkey Dinner and Bazaar Nov. 3 at the Knights of
Columbus Hall in Temple. Serving will
begin at 11 a.m. The meal will consist of
turkey and dressing with all the trimmings,
a drink and dessert. To-go plates will also
be available. Booths will include plants,
crafts and a country store. A live auction
will begin at 12:30 p.m.
The Knights of Peter Claver Ladies Auxiliary and Junior Daughters will
host their annual Mother-Daughter Tea
Nov. 3 from 2 to 5 p.m. at Ebenezer
Family Life Center at 1014 E. 10th St. in
Austin. The theme is “Vessels for God’s
Glory: Make me, Mold me.” Tickets are
$15. For information, contact Iris Sims at
(512) 507-8405.
Masses.......
Bishop Joe Vásquez will celebrate
the 22nd annual Red Mass Oct. 3 at 6
p.m. at St. Mary Cathedral in Austin.
The guest speaker will be Kim Daniels,
spokeswoman for Cardinal Timothy
Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops. The Mass marks the
beginning of the judicial year and invites
all law makers and legal professionals.
For more information, contact Margaret
Kappel at (512) 949-2444 or [email protected].
The Catholic Charismatic Renewal of Austin (CCRA) will host its
monthly Mass Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at Sts.
Cyril and Methodius Parish in Granger.
Father Robert Becker will celebrate the
Mass. For more information, contact
Sabrina Perez at (512) 466-7669 or visit
www.ccraustin.org.
A Mass commemorating the beginning of Black Catholic History
Month will be celebrated Nov. 3 at 10
a.m. at Holy Cross Parish in Austin.
For more information, contact Johnnie
Dorsey at the diocesan OfÀce of Black
Catholics at (512) 949-2449 or [email protected].
October 2013
ESPAÑOL
27
Respetando la vida en todas sus etapas
Este verano, vimos otro ataque
socavando al matrimonio con la
decisión de la Suprema Corte de
obispo de la Diócesis
derrocar el DOMA y después la
de Austin. Es pastor
Proposición 8 en California. Estos
para casi 500,000
cambios en el entendimiento del
católicos en 25
matrimonio en nuestro país remueven
condados en el
a Dios del matrimonio. Los Católicos
Centro de Texas.
creemos que el matrimonio es dado
por Dios, lo que quiere decir que un
Editora: Señor Obispo, Octubre es el Mes de Respeto a la Vida, hombre y una mujer se unen para formar una familia. Tal como los obislo cual la mayoría de la gente
pos de Estados Unidos escribie-ron
asocia con el aborto. ¿Qué sigen la Carta Pastoral del 2009 sobre el
niÀca realmente para un Católico
el respetar la vida y por qué es tan matrimonio, “El Matrimonio no es
simplemente una institución privada.
importante?
Es la base para la familia, donde los
Obispo Vásquez: Los Católicos
aprecian la santidad de la vida huma- niños aprenden los valores y virtudes
na. Sabemos que la vida debe ser res- que los harán buenos Cristianos y
petada y protegida desde el momento buenos ciudadanos. La importancia
del matrimonio para los niños y para
de la concepción hasta la muerte
la crianza de la siguiente generación,
natural. Este total entendimiento de
subraya la importancia del matrimonio
la vida humana abarca el muy serio
para toda la sociedad”. Debemos contema del aborto, pero va más allá. El
momento de la concepción es cuando tinuar orando por las parejas casadas y
por la santidad del matrimonio.
la vida es más vulnerable, razón por
Finalmente, nosotros los obispos
la cual la iglesia habla tan clara y
sentimos que debemos rezar por la
fuertemente sobre la protección que
libertad religiosa. El reciente mandato
debemos dar a los no-natos. De cuHHS involucra al gobierno impoalquier modo, debemos también resniendo reglas sobre organizaciones
petar y proteger a los niños mientras
religiosas y por lo tanto, forzándonos
se desarrollan, a los adultos mientras
a proveer cobertura de procedimienenvejecen y a los ancianos mientras
se acercan al momento de su muerte. tos que violan nuestras creencias
religiosas. La primera enmienda de la
Debemos entender que la vida es un
Constitución de los Estados Unidos
don sagrado de Dios; por lo tanto,
tenemos que vigilarlo y protegerlo en nos garantiza la libertad religiosa; esto
no solo signiÀca libertad de culto sino
cada etapa.
que podemos deÀnir quiénes somos
Editora: El año pasado los
como religión. El gobierno no nos
obispos de Estados Unidos hiciedeÀne, que es lo que se está tratando
ron un llamado a la oración por la
de hacer con la reciente legislación.
Vida, el Matrimonio y la Libertad
Por lo tanto, éstas tres áreas
Religiosa durante el Año de la
continúan siendo de gran importanFe. ¿Por qué resaltaron estas tres
cia para los obispos. El Llamado a la
cosas y cómo es éste llamado a la
Oración por la Vida, el Matrimonio y
oración importante para nosotros
la Libertad Religiosa es muy imporcomo sociedad?
tante por que dependemos de Dios
Obispo Vásquez: Los obispos
hemos estado preocupados por estos para que nos ayude a perseverar a
través de esta lucha. Todos nuestros
asuntos por mucho tiempo. Hemos
estado interviniendo por la vida desde esfuerzos, que incluyen nuestra intervención en el proceso legislativo,
antes de la decisión de Roe v. Wade
deben empezar con la oración.
de hace 40 años. Los obispos hemos
Editora: El Respeto por la vida
estado preocupados sobre la calidad
de los asuntos de la vida en los Esta- humana es esencial a nuestra fe
pero no por ello es fácil de adopdos Unidos. Hemos resaltado estos
tres aspectos particulares por que los tar. ¿Cómo pueden los Católicos
formar sus conciencias y coravemos como la base fundamental
zones respecto a lo que signiÀca
de una sociedad sólida. Cuando una
sociedad apoya, deÀende y protege la respetar la vida?
Obispo Vásquez: Lo primero
vida, el matrimonio y la libertad relique tenemos que hacer es informargiosa, la sociedad se mantiene fuerte
nos sobre lo que la Escritura y la
y vibrante.
Hemos sido testigos de la subesti- Iglesia nos enseñan sobre la vida en
mación de la vida en Estados Unidos; todos sus estados y desarrollo. Invito
a la gente a leer la Escritura y el Cauna falta de respeto por la santidad
tecismo de la Iglesia Católica, donde
del matrimonio, y la limitación impuesta sobre nuestra libertad religiosa. podemos encontrar gran riqueza en
información sobre las enseñanzas de
Existen verdaderas batallas llevánla iglesia sobre la belleza de la vida
dose a cabo para redeÀnir la vida, el
humana. Si dependemos de la sociematrimonio y la libertad religiosa a
nivel estatal y nacional. Ciertamente el dad para enseñarnos sobre la vida
humana, descubriremos un entenaborto es parte de este debate, como
lo es la eutanasia y otros asuntos rela- dimiento totalmente diferente de lo
que enseña la iglesia. Yo animaría a
cionados a la vida.
E L O BISPO J OE S.
VÁSQUEZ es el quinto
todos aquellos que tienen diÀcultad
entendiendo lo que la iglesia enseña
a hablar con sacerdotes, diáconos,
religiosos o laicos. La Diócesis
también cuenta con una excelente
oÀcina de Actividades Pro-Vida y
Castidad que puede proveer recursos
a aquellos interesados en aprender
más sobre la santidad de la vida humana. La iglesia es contracultural en
muchos sentidos; por lo tanto, debemos mantenernos fuertes en los que
creemos y estar listos para defender
lo que creemos.
Últimamente, he presenciado a
nuestra gente joven hacer esto, lo
que me da gran esperanza. Ellos no
están simplemente siguiendo la voz
popular y las tendencias; ellos están
aprendiendo y entendiendo lo que la
iglesia enseña ¡Esto es refrescante!
Otro signo de esperanza para mí es el
cierre de las instalaciones de Planned
Parenthood en Bryan/College Station
y otras clínicas similares en nuestro
estado. Espero que este sea un signo
de más respeto a la vida en nuestro
estado.
Editora: El Beato Juan Pablo II
llamó a nuestra cultura una cultura
de la muerte. ¿Cómo pueden las
parroquias y los individuos promover la dignidad de la vida en
esta cultura?
Obispo Vásquez: Tuvimos esta
terrible tragedia en Newton con estos
niños, niños inocentes y adultos
fueron asesinados. Ésta muy triste
tragedia realmente me hizo pensar
como obispo, cuánto es que nuestra
sociedad no aprecia la vida. Claro, no
todas las personas entrarían en una
escuela y matarían gente inocente,
pero esta horrible violencia es un
ejemplo de cómo las personas en
nuestra sociedad han sucumbido a
la cultura de la muerte. La cultura de
la muerte no es solo una referencia
al aborto, pero también habla sobre
la violencia contra la mujer, el abuso
de niños, el abandono a los ancianos.
Cuando la gente está siendo abusada
por otra gente y cuando la gente es
lastimada por otros, el don de la vida
se obstaculiza y se daña. Debemos
defender las vidas de aquellos cuyas
voces no se escuchan, especialmente
los no-natos, los inmigrantes y los
débiles, debemos hablar por aquellos
que no pueden hablar por sí mismos.
Creemos que la vida es un don precioso de Dios y por lo tanto, debemos aprender a apreciarlo.
El Beato Juan Pablo II, quien
estuvo muy enfermo durante los últimos años de su vida, dio un gran testimonio de vida para nosotros. Nos
enseñó la dignidad de la vida incluso
en medio del dolor y el sufrimiento.
Yo invitaría a nuestro clero a
continuar hablando sobre éstos
temas desde el púlpito, al aconsejar
y durante el sacramento de la confesión. Debemos siempre hablar sobre
éstos asuntos con gran compasión
y entendimiento. Como clero, estamos llamados a ayudar a la gente a
entender la dignidad de la persona
humana y ofrecer compasión por
aquellos que están enfermos y por
aquellos que cuidan de ellos. Como
el Papa Francisco nos dijo, debemos
permanecer cerca de aquellos que han
sido conÀados a nuestro cuidado.
También invito a la gente a salir
y servir — ir a un hospital o asilo,
visitar un centro de cuidados paliativos o un refugio para gente sin
hogar. Todos estos lugares nos dan
oportunidad de estar con la gente y
de rodearnos con aquellos que están
enfermos, lastimados o muriendo.
Cuando hacemos esto, nos damos
cuenta del valor y la belleza de toda
vida humana y nuestra fe se fortalece
mientras ayudamos a aquellos que
necesitan compasión y amor.
Editora: En agosto, el tirador
de Fort Hood fue sentenciado a
muerte. ¿Cómo debería un Católico ver estos crímenes y su sentencia con respecto al respeto a la
vida?
Obispo Vásquez: Antes que
nada debemos decir que lo que el
Mayor Nidal Hasan hizo fue un acto
de maldad. El hecho de que tanta
vida humana haya sido tomada fue
impresionante y nuestras oraciones están con los miembros de las
familias de las víctimas que están
tratando de seguir con sus vidas
después de perder a sus seres amados. Pero, ¿este tipo de actos nos
dan derecho de disponer de la vida
de alguien? Creo que no. De nuevo,
regreso al Beato Juan Pablo II, quien
intervino fuertemente contra la pena
de muerte. Debemos recordar que
las personas que cometen dichos
crímenes horribles nunca pierden
su dignidad humana. Disponer de la
vida de un criminal no compensa las
vidas que se perdieron. El respetar
la vida incluso signiÀca respetar la
vida de aquellos que cometen actos
violentos y criminales. Esto es extremadamente difícil. De cualquier
manera, creemos que cada vida es
sagrada y solo Dios puede dar vida y
quitarla.
Editora: ¿Cuál es su oración
por nosotros durante el Mes de
Respeto a la Vida?
Obispo Vásquez: Mi oración es
por que todos nosotros aprendamos a
apreciar la vida humana en todas sus
etapas, y que realmente apreciemos
antes que nada el don de la vida que
Dios nos ha dado a cada uno de
nosotros.
Al aprender a apreciar el don
de la vida, crecemos en una mayor
apreciación de las vidas de aquellos
cercanos a nosotros: nuestros padres,
nuestros hermanos, nuestros cónyuges y nuestros hijos. Que todos
apreciemos la vida en todas sus etapas
desde el momento de la concepción
hasta la muerte natural.
ESPAÑOL
28
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Caridades Católicas de Bryan se mueve a una
nueva localidad
POR MARY P. WALKER
CORRESPONSAL
El 6 de septiembre, miembros de cinco parroquias en
Bryan y College Station se
unieron a representantes de
la comunidad local y de la
Diócesis de Austin para celebrar la apertura de la nueva
oÀcina de Caridades Católicas
del Centro de Texas (CCCTX
por sus siglas en inglés)-del
Valle del Brazos. El programa
incluyó el corte del listón, la
bendición del ediÀcio por parte del Obispo José Vásquez y
una Àesta a puerta abierta.
“Este es un gran signo de
esperanza. Creo que la gente
se va a sentir cómoda al venir aquí a buscar la ayuda de
la iglesia,” dijo el Obispo
Vásquez.
Mientras que CCCTX ha
patrocinado una oÀcina satelital en Bryan desde 2008, la
localidad anterior presentaba muchos retos. Esa oÀcina
operaba en una casa remodelada, un ediÀcio que no fue
diseñado para el acceso pú-
blico. Era demasiado pequeña,
tenía problemas de mantenimiento, estacionamiento limitado y estaba ubicada lejos de
muchos de los clientes. Estos
inconvenientes, combinados
con la necesidad de expandir
los servicios, requirió que la
oÀcina de CCCTX en Bryan
cambiara de domicilio.
“Para poder satisfacer
las crecientes necesidades en
nuestra área, también nosotros
tuvimos que crecer. Nuestras
nuevas instalaciones nos permitirán hacer un mejor trabajo
al proveer nuestros servicios
actuales y nos permitirá traer
nuevos servicios al área,” dijo
Vancy Mayes, Coordinadora
de Servicios Sociales del Valle
del Brazos.
Localizado en 1410 Cavitt
Ave; cerca del centro de
Bryan, el ediÀcio ofrece cerca
de 5,000 pies cuadrados de
oÀcina, salón de juntas, salón
de clases, área de recepción y
área de almacenaje. El ediÀcio
fue comprado por la Diócesis
de Austin y remodelado especíÀcamente para satisfacer las
necesidades de CCCTX, bajo
LA NUEVA
OFICINA de Caridades Católicas del
Centro de Texas en
su localidad de Brazos Valley (Valle del
Brazos) abrió sus
puertas el 6 de Septiembre. Se ubica
en 1410 Cavitt Ave.,
cerca del centro de
Bryan. (Foto por
Mary P. Walker)
la supervisión del Diácono
Ted Baker, quien tiene una
experiencia extensa en la administración de proyectos de
este tipo.
Además de ayudar con el
alivio de desastres, CCCTX
tiene tres áreas de enfoque:
Asistencia Familiar y servicio
de Referencia, el Centro de
Vida del Buen Samaritano del
Proyecto Gabriel y Servicios
Legales de Inmigración (ILS
por sus siglas en inglés).
Los tres programas se encuentran expandiéndose y se
beneficiarán de la nueva localidad.
El espacio adicional y el
diseño del interior permite a
los asistentes sociales atender
y ayudar a más individuos y
familias en un lugar privado
y acogedor. A través de un
salón de clase más grande y
un área de estacionamiento
expandida, el Buen Samaritano puede acomodar a más
estudiantes en sus clases de
paternidad.
El área se encuentra también experimentando una
mayor necesidad de asistencia legal accesible para inmigrantes de pocos ingresos que
se encuentran lidiando con
asuntos migratorios. El nuevo
ediÀcio permite a los Servicios
Legales de Inmigración incrementar la disponibilidad de
ayuda legal local, eliminando
la necesidad de algunos clientes de viajar a Austin para
recibir servicios.
Christina Reyes-Paiz, directora interina de CCCTX,
ve la expansión de servicios
en el Valle del Brazos como
un modelo que puede ser imitado en otras comunidades
dentro de la diócesis.
“Sabemos que se puede
hacer. Se está haciendo aquí,”
dijo Reyes-Paiz.
El Obispo Vásquez alabó
el trabajo de CCCTX en el
Valle del Brazos y recordó a
los presentes que Caridades
Católicas es mucho más que
una agencia de servicio social.
Durante el servicio de bendición, el obispo citó al Papa
Francisco, quien enseña que
ayudar a los pobres es una
labor santa. Los pobres no
son solo los destinatarios de
nuestros cuidados; también
nos enriquecemos espiritual-
mente cuando actuamos en
caridad. Explicó que cuando
la gente viene a Caridades
Católicas para recibir ayuda,
vemos el rostro de Cristo en
sus rostros, y ellos en retorno
reÁejan el rostro de Cristo a
nosotros.
“Caridades Católicas está
haciendo una diferencia en las
vidas de personas. Caridades
Católicas siempre se trata de
ayudar a aquellos que necesitan asistencia, reconociendo
la dignidad de cada persona
hecha a imagen y semejanza de Dios,” dijo el Obispo
Vásquez.
El Obispo Vásquez agradeció al personal local de
CCCTX y a aquellos quienes
trabajaron duro para hacer el
cambio de domicilio una realidad. Además, Mayes alabó
la cooperación y colaboración
que CCCTX disfruta con
otras organizaciones locales
sin Ànes de lucro, tales como
la Sociedad de St. Vicent de
Paul. Esta colaboración hace
que todos aquellos que buscan
servir a los pobres y vulnerables sean más efectivos en su
alcance, dijo.
La comunidad de Bryan/
College Station también vió con
agrado la expansión de CCCTX.
El alcalde de Bryan, Jason Bienski, asistió a la bendición y expresó aprecio por la presencia
local de Caridades Católicas.
Antes de la bendición, la
Cámara de Comercio de Bryan/
College Station celebró la nueva
casa de CCCTX con una ceremonia de corte de un listón. El
embajador de la Cámara de Comercio, Andrew Robison dijo,
“La prosperidad de una comunidad depende de los negocios y
organizaciones sin Ànes de lucro
que trabajan juntos para servir
al público. Estamos bendecidos
de tener el vibrante alcance de
Caridades Católicas”.
October 2013
ESPAÑOL
29
La Parroquia de St. Albert celebra su diversidad
POR ENEDELIA J. OBREGÓN
CORRESPONSAL
La Parroquia de St. Albert
the Great en Austin celebrará
su diversidad cultural en una
Misa multi-cultural el 3 de
noviembre a las 2 p.m. La
celebración incluirá oraciones
y la Escritura en diferentes
idiomas así como baile litúrgico e himnos de diferentes
países. Después de la Misa,
las festividades continuarán
con un festín de comida de
diferentes grupos étnicos. Angela Baker, co-coordinadora
parroquial de ministerios sociales, dijo que la celebración
multi-cultural comenzó hace
siete años en tiempos del entonces pastor Padre Isidore
Ndagizimana. “Esta es la parroquia con mayor diversidad
cultural,” dijo Baker. “El año
pasado tuvimos 52 naciones
representadas, y hemos tenido
tantas como 57”.
En un mapa del mundo de
6 por 8 pies, el año pasado los
feligreses pusieron chinchetas
sobre sus países de origen.
Había chinchetas sobre toda
Asia, Europa y Latinoamérica.
Los hispanos son actualmente
el número étnico más grande
en la parroquia, la cual ahora
tiene una Misa en español a
las 2 p.m. los domingos.
La parroquia también tiene
muchos feligreses de Estados
Unidos. El mapa de Texas
tenía tantas chinchetas que se
maltrató, dijo Baker, y van a
conseguir uno nuevo este año.
“Celebramos quiénes somos,” dijo Baker “Representamos a la iglesia universal”. Su
liderazgo pastoral también es
diverso – Padre Matt Iwuji,
JUD, el pastor, es de Nigeria;
y el pastor asociado, el Redentorista Padre Vincent Nguyen
es de Vietnam.
“Es una maravillosa oportunidad para la gente de conocer diferentes culturas,”
dijo Baker. “Nos da un mejor
entendimiento de quiénes somos. La Iglesia Católica está
en todo el mundo. Venimos
de todos los rincones del
mundo”.
Baker dijo no saber si la
diversidad de la parroquia
proviene de la diversidad en el
vecindario o viceversa.
“En la cuadra en la que
vivo puedo ir alrededor del
mundo al solo hablar con mis
vecinos,” dijo. “A la vuelta de
MARY JANE RODRÍGUEZ Y ANGELA BAKER muestran algunos de los atuendos que
serán usados en la Misa multicultural del 3 de noviembre. (Foto por Enedelia J. Obregón)
la esquina hay una mujer que
creció en Palestina. Dos puertas más abajo hay personas de
Vietnam”.
En la Misa del año pasado, se escucharon 13 lenguas.
Este año, los feligreses escucharán dialectos de India,
África y Filipinas. Un coro
cantará en alemán. También
hay un coro mexicano y una
danza del dragón ofrecida por
congregantes vietnamitas que
actuarán después de Misa.
Baker, una nativa de Colorado, dijo que fue la diversidad cultural y el hecho de
que la parroquia es miembro
de Austin Interfaith lo que
los atrajo a ella y a su difunto
esposo a St. Albert hace 16
años.
“No era tan diversa al
principio,” dijo. “Ahora está
comenzando a representar
cómo se ve Austin”.
Cuando ella llegó, la parroquia tenía entre 500 y 600
familias. Ahora tiene cerca de
2,300.
Los feligreses usarán gafetes con información sobre
su lugar de nacimiento y el
vecindario en el que viven
para desarrollar un sentido de
comunidad.
Los ciudadanos Àeles votan aún en elecciones ‘off’ o
elecciones de iniciativas y no de personas a cargos públicos
POR BÁRBARA BUDDE
COLUMNISTA
Este noviembre habrá una
elección. Para la mayoría de
nosotros la boleta consistirá
de enmiendas Constitucionales
colocadas ahí por los legisladores. Ciudades y condados
puede que tengan otras iniciativas locales en la boleta, pero
no votaremos por ninguna
persona para ningún cargo, ni
a nivel estatal ni federal. Esto
es lo que llamamos un año
de elecciones “off”. Como
resultado, muchos decidirán
no votar. Espero que este no
sea el caso en la comunidad
Católica. La ciudadanía Fiel
nos invita a participar en el
proceso político y a ejercitar
el derecho y la obligación que
tenemos de votar.
Hice una investigación
rápida de la última vez que
hubo una elección “off” de
iniciativas Constitucionales y
la mayoría de los condados
en el estado, incluidos los de
nuestra diócesis, tuvieron un
número de votantes de un solo
dígito. Quiero reconocer al
Condado de Llano por ser el
más participativo en nuestra
diócesis. En 2011 tuvieron más
del 17 por ciento de votantes
elegibles que de hecho votaron
en esa elección “off”. Merecen
una mención honorable los
condados de Fayette y Brazos
en los cuales más del 15 por
ciento de sus votantes registrados asistieron a las urnas y el
Condado San Saba en el que
14.5 por ciento de los votantes
registrados votaron.
La gran ironía es que
nuestro país fue fundado por
aquellos que pelearon y murieron por el derecho de la auto
determinación. No hicimos
una labor perfecta cuando el
país fue fundado y tuvimos que
hacer muchas cambios durante
el camino – pero votar es la
piedra angular de la democracia
y en muchas ocasiones renunciamos a ese precioso derecho
de votar.
Este año, la ley de la Iden-
tiÀcación del Votante (Voter
ID law en inglés) aprobada por
la legislatura de 2011 entra en
efecto. Una tarjeta de registro
para votar no es ya suÀciente para votar. Cada persona
necesitará mostrar una identiÀcación válida con fotografía.
La lista de identiÀcaciones
aceptables, de acuerdo a la OÀcina de la Secretaría de Estado,
incluyen:
• Licencia de manejo de
Texas expedida por el Departamento de Seguridad Pública
de Texas (DPS por sus siglas
en inglés).
• CertiÀcado de IdentiÀcación de Elección de Texas
expedido por el DPS
• Tarjeta de identiÀcación
personal de Texas expedida
por el DPS
• Licencia para portar
armas ocultas expedida por el
DPS
• Tarjeta de identiÀcación
militar de Estados Unidos que
contenga la fotografía de la
persona.
• CertiÀcado de ciudada-
nía de Estados Unidos que
contenga la fotografía de la
persona.
• Pasaporte americano.
La identiÀcación debe estar
vigente. El sitio de web dice
“A excepción del certiÀcado de
ciudadanía de Estados Unidos,
la identiÀcación debe estar
vigente o haber expirado hace
no más de 60 días antes de ser
presentada para la caliÀcación
del votante en el lugar de la
votación”. También existe el
requisito de que el nombre en
la identiÀcación y en la lista de
votantes registrados debe ser
“substancialmente similar”.
Existen lineamientos para ayudar
a los jueces de la elección a determinar sobre lo que “substancialmente” signiÀca.
Por favor sepa que el
CertiÀcado de IdentiÀcación
de Elección de Texas expedido por el DPS es gratis. Sin
embargo, cualquier persona
que necesite esta identiÀcación
por no tener ninguna de las
mencionadas anteriormente en
la lista, deberá presentar prueba
de su ciudadanía, tal como
un certiÀcado de nacimiento.
Estos documentos últimos no
son gratuitos.
Cualquier persona que tenga
más de 65 años de edad puede
aplicar para votar por correo.
Claramente, en este caso, una
identiÀcación no puede ser
requerida, así que todos los
adultos mayores pueden votar
por correo, pero deben aplicar. Existen excepciones para
personas con discapacidades o
personas que han perdido su
identiÀcación debido a desastres
naturales. Información detallada sobre estas excepciones y
“preguntas frecuentes” están
disponibles por parte del estado
en www.votetexas.gov/registerto-vote/need-id/.
Demasiados de nosotros
nos privamos a nosotros mismos del derecho y la obligación
de votar. Podemos cambiar
eso este año. El registro para
votar cierra el 7 de Octubre.
Recuerde registrarse, no olvide
su identiÀcación y ¡recuerde
votar!
ESPAÑOL
30
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
Cómo invitar a alguien a considerar el sacerdocio
POR EL PADRE BRIAN MCMASTER
DIRECTOR DE LA OFICINA DE
VOCACIONES
Este año, el nuevo póster
del seminario diocesano lleva
por tema “Llamado por Dios,
Invitado por Usted”. El póster
muestra testimonios de nuestros
seminaristas sobre cómo fueron
invitados por alguien a considerar el sacerdocio y el impacto
que la invitación tuvo en ellos.
Nuestros seminaristas comparten cómo fueron exhortados por sacerdotes, padres
de familia, ministros juveniles,
maestros, otros seminaristas,
compañeros feligreses y otros.
El póster nos recuerda qué tan
importante y efectiva puede ser
una simple invitación. Construir
una “Cultura de Vocación” en
nuestras parroquias, escuelas,
grupos juveniles y diócesis signiÀca que cada uno de nosotros
debe tomar el rol de orar por las
vocaciones, buscar activamente
a aquellos que pensamos pueden
estar siendo llamados y verbal-
mente invitarlos a considerar
ese llamado.
Estos son algunos puntos
útiles a recordar en lo concerniente a nuestro papel de invitar a hombres a considerar el
sacerdocio. Primero, la responsabilidad de invitar es de todos.
Todos jugamos un papel importante en construir el Cuerpo de
Cristo y la iglesia. Es importante
para nosotros exhortar a hombres a considerar el sacerdocio,
especialmente ahora cuando la
cultura propone tantos valores
diferentes.
Segundo, es tan simple
como una invitación. No tenemos que convencer a alguien
de que está siendo llamado. No
tengan miedo del “no” inicial,
incluso está bien esperarlo. Existen numerosas historias en la
Escritura y en la historia de la
iglesia en las cuales hombres y
mujeres fueron llamados por
Dios a hacer algo extraordinario y estuvieron inicialmente
dudosos o se resistieron. Pero
la invitación se quedó en ellos
como una semilla que lenta-
mente creció y Áoreció en una
cariñosa respuesta a la voluntad
de Dios.
Tercero, es también importante que no seamos muy
insistentes cuando invitemos a
alguien. Necesitamos simplemente hacer la invitación y
entonces humildemente conÀar en que Dios va a cultivar
el sentido del llamado en el
hombre.
¿Cómo suena una invitación? Todo lo que tenemos que
hacer es decirle al hombre en
cuestión lo que vemos en él.
Aquí hay algunos ejemplos de
lo que hay que buscar y cómo
decirlo.
Veo en ti …
• Una relación sólida con
Jesucristo. Estás comprometido
con la oración y eres devoto de
la Eucaristía
• Alegría y conÀanza. Eres
un hombre soltero y sano con
una personalidad atractiva.
• Compasión por los demás
y deseo de servicio. Tienes
muchos de los dones para convertirte en un siervo líder.
• Amor por la iglesia. Eres
activo en la parroquia y estás
orgulloso de ser Católico.
• Virtud y fuerza de carácter.
Aspiras a la santidad. Confías
en la misericordia de Dios y
te acercas al Sacramento de la
Reconciliación.
¿Qué sigue? Puede ser que
usted quiera exhortarlo a tomar
un paso activo que lo ayudará
a responder. Aquí hay algunas
sugerencias sobre cómo invitarlo a responder.
Espero que tú…
• Estés abierto. Puede que
tengas dudas al principio. Así se
sintieron muchos de los grandes
santos y Àguras de la Biblia que
fueron llamados por Dios a
tener una vida extraordinaria.
¡No temas! Confía en que Dios
desea tu felicidad aún más de lo
que tu la deseas. Nadie es más
generoso que Dios.
• Ores. Se trata de tu relación
con Dios. El discernimiento
sucede dentro de una dedicada
vida de oración. Escucha Su
voz, especialmente durante la
Misa, la Adoración Eucarística,
la lectura de la Escritura y el rezo
del Rosario.
• Hables con alguien. Considera hablar con alguien cuya fe
tú admires. Habla con un sacerdote o un seminarista. Llama al
Director de Vocaciones – él está
aquí para ayudar.
• Aprendas más. Visita austinvocations.com para leer sobre
algunas maneras de aprender
más sobre el sacerdocio y el
discernimiento. Lee algunos
buenos libros tales como To
Save a Thousand Souls.
• Asistas a un evento de discernimiento. Jesús dijo “Ven y
mira”. Asiste a una de las cenas
mensuales de discernimiento,
atiende un retiro de discernimiento, visita un seminario o atiende
un Proyecto Andrew.
Que todos continuemos
orando por las vocaciones al
sacerdocio y la vida religiosa.
El Padre Brian McMaster
es el Director de la Oficina
Diocesana de Vocaciones.
Puede ser localizado en el
(512) 949-2405 o en [email protected].
El papa dice que iglesia debe enfrentar miembros
descarriados como madre misericordiosa
POR FRANCISCO X. ROCCA
El papa Francisco dijo que
la iglesia debe acercarse a sus
miembros con la cara de una
madre paciente, misericordiosa
y comprensiva que siempre
perdona a sus hijos que yerran
y nunca cesa de rezar para que
ellos retomen el camino de la
vida cristiana.
El papa hizo sus declaraciones el 18 de septiembre durante
su audiencia pública semanal en
la Plaza de San Pedro, donde
elaboró sobre la charla de la semana anterior sobre el tema de
la “iglesia como madre”.
“Me gusta mucho esta imagen”, él dijo, “porque pienso
que nos dice no solamente
cómo es la iglesia, sino también
qué tipo de cara la iglesia, esta
iglesia nuestra, debe tener, aun
más todos los días”.
Una madre enseña a sus hijos el camino correcto de la vida
“con ternura, con afecto, con
amor”, él dijo, porque ella “no
lo aprendió de libros, sino que lo
aprendió de su propio corazón”.
“La universidad de las
mamás es el propio corazón”,
dijo el papa con uno de los
varios usos del término italiano
informal “mamá”.
El papa Francisco dijo que
las enseñanzas morales de la
iglesia, en particular los Diez
Mandamientos, son similarmente el “fruto de la ternura,
del mismo amor de Dios que
nos los dio”.
“Usted podría decirme:
¡Pero son mandamientos! Son
un conjunto de ‘nos’”, él dijo,
antes de sugerirle a la audiencia:
“Léanlos, tal vez los han olvidado un poco, y luego piensen
sobre estos positivamente”.
Los Diez Mandamientos,
el papa dijo, “nos muestran
el camino a tomar para poder
crecer en madurez, dándonos
puntos de referencia estables
para nuestro comportamiento.
... Nos invitan a no a hacer
ídolos materiales que entonces
nos esclavizan, (sino) a recordar
a Dios, a respetar a nuestros
padres, a ser honestos, a respetar
a los demás”.
El papa Francisco asemejó
la iglesia a una madre que nunca
se da por vencida con sus hijos,
aun cuando yerran.
“Pienso en las madres que
sufren por sus hijos que están en prisión o en situaciones
difíciles”, él dijo. “Ellas no se
preguntan si (sus hijos) son
culpables o no, ellas continúan
amándolos y a menudo experimentan humillaciones, pero no
temen, no cesan de darse”.
Así mismo, dijo el papa, la
iglesia procura siempre ayudar y
alentar a sus hijos descarriados:
“nunca cierra las puertas de la
iglesia; no juzga, sino que ofrece el
perdón de Dios, le ofrece el amor
que invita a regresar al camino
hasta a aquellos hijos que han
caído en un profundo abismo”.
Invocando el ejemplo de
santa Mónica, quien nunca cesó
de orar por la conversión de su
hijo, san Agustín, el papa dijo
que las madres nunca se cansan
de orar por sus hijos, “especialmente por los más débiles, los
más necesitados, aquellos que
han seguido formas de vida
peligrosas o erróneas”.
“La iglesia hace lo mismo”,
él dijo. “Ella pone en las manos
del Señor, a través de la oración,
todas las situaciones de sus hijos”.
Los obispos preparan una carta pastoral sobre inmigración de familias
POR CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
Los obispos de la zona de la
frontera que media entre Texas
y México han decidido escribir
una carta pastoral conjunta sobre
el daño que sufren las familias
debido al actual sistema de inmigración, después de una visita
conmovedora hecha a niños
pequeños de El Paso, Texas, en
una zona que se usa como lugar
de detención de inmigración.
El arzobispo de San Antonio,
Gustavo García-Siller, le dijo al
Catholic News Service en una
entrevista por teléfono, hecha el
12 de septiembre, que después
de haber visitado a unos niños
en una parroquia de El Paso
y de haberse enterado de su
respectiva historia, los obispos
querían llamar la atención a los
efectos que sufren las familias
debido al sistema inoperante de
inmigración.
Y contó el caso de una niña
de 6 años a quien conoció allí en
el centro de detención y que ha
estado en ese lugar desde que sus
padres fueron deportados, hace
cuatro años. Aparentemente,
tanto el padre como la madre de
la niña fueron asesinados poco
después de haber sido obligados
a regresar a México y la niña
ha estado bajo la custodia de
la agencia de Immigration and
Customs Enforcement, o ICE,
desde entonces, mientras que los
funcionarios del sistema de ambos países se echan la bolita unos
a otros para colocar a la pequeña
con otro miembro de la familia.
Esa niña y otros niños que
están bajo la custodia de inmigración, anhelan estar con sus
respectivas familias, dijo. “Aquí en
este país hay 11 millones de personas que carecen de documentos.
¿Cuántos de los hijos corren el
riesgo de perder a su padre o a su
madre, o a ambos, debido a que
no tienen documentos” y podrían
ser deportados?, dijo.
La carta pastoral que se
dará a conocer el próximo mes
llevará el propósito de “presentar una explicación lógica y
racional “ de las muchas maneras en las que las familias se
ven separadas debido al actual
sistema de inmigración, dijo el
arzobispo García-Siller.
En una declaración del 8
de septiembre, al terminarse la
reunión, los obispos dijeron que
les preocupa especialmente el
peso que soportan las familias
divididas debido a los problemas
con el sistema de inmigración.
“Al presente, los más dañados son los miles de niños y
jóvenes que se encuentran privados de sus respectivos padres y
de otros familiares”, se decía en
el mensaje en donde se anunciaban los preparativos de la carta
pastoral.
SITINGS
October 2013
31
MEMBERS of the St. John’s Blanket Ministry in
Marble Falls have sewn two “Quilts of Glory” that
will be rafÀed to bene¿t wounded veterans at the VA
Hospital in Temple. For more information, contact
Karen Wilkens at (512) 789-3955 or Janet Herzog
at (830) 598-5654.
THE ANNUAL RURAL LIFE
MASS was held Aug. 13 at Holy
Trinity Parish in Corn Hill. The annual Rural Life Award was given
to Msgr. Emilian Foltyn (posthumously) and to Bernice Crabtree,
a parishioner of Holy Trinity
Parish in Llano. (Photos courtesy
Keith Thompson)
THE EVANGELIZATION TEAM at San José Parish in Austin celebrated its 12th anniversary this
summer. The team offers Kerygmatic Retreats
twice a year to help others encounter Jesus. They
also have 32 small faith communities that meet
weekly for praise, worship and catechesis. And they
organize an Evangelizing Outreach Mission once a
year in which they
take the message of Christ into
the community.
(Photos courtesy
Romie Galica)
STUDENTS at St. Gabriel’s Catholic
School in Austin signed a banner
to celebrate the birthday of Blessed
Mother Mary. (Photo courtesy Erika
Allen-Walsh)
ST. AUSTIN PARISH AND SCHOOL celebrated
the 50th Anniversary of the March on Washington
for Jobs and Freedom, on Aug. 28. Participants
gathered at the statue of Rev. Martin Luther King
Jr. on the campus of the University of Texas.
(Photos courtesy Keili Smith)
ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST PARISH in
San Marcos held its 65th Fiesta Anniversary Sept. 1. This was the ¿rst time a ¿esta
queen was crowned in 23 years. Past ¿esta
queens were invited to the festivities. (Photos courtesy Anna M. Ramirez)
THE BOY
SCOUT
TROOP of
Sacred Heart
Parish in
Austin was
awarded the
“Honor Troop
Award” by the
Boy Scouts
of America in
Central Texas. The troop was the best of 45 troops that attended
the 2013 Summer Camp. (Photo courtesy Sacred Heart Parish)
Send photos by the 10th of the month to [email protected].
THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS at St. Mary, Our
Lady of the Lake Parish in
Lago Vista awarded the
Shining Armor Pin to James
Worrall (left). (Photo courtesy Ron Smith )
32
SITINGS
C ATHOLIC S PIRIT
EMMAUS PARISH IN
LAKEWAY has begun
their fourth session of
preparing parishioners
for total consecration to Jesus through
Mary. The group uses
the book, “33 Days to
Morning Glory: A DoIt-Yourself Retreat in
Preparation for Marian
Consecration,” and
meets weekly. (Photo
courtesy Sharon K.
Perkins)
ST. JOHN PARISH IN FAYETTEVILLE held
a Kolache Bake Sale on Labor Day weekend. Also, to celebrate the Year of Faith, the
Fayetteville Chamber Music Festival performed
an open concert at St. John Parish. (Photos
courtesy Amy Babin)
ST. ANTHONY PARISH IN KYLE held its
Fiesta Fun Run on Sept. 7. Father Jason
Bonifazi, associate pastor, ran the race
and placed third in his age group. (Photos
courtesy Claudia Enriquez)
HOLY ROSARY IN FRENSTAT welcomed their
new pastor, Father Bernard Hung, with a potluck
lunch and social on Aug. 25. (Photo courtesy Marcella Franzetti)
BISHOP JOE VÁSQUEZ
blessed the new chapel at
St. Louis Catholic School in
Waco. The chapel was built
under the supervision of Father Justin Nguyen. (Photos
courtesy Brandy Kramolis)
THE LEGION OF
MARY at Our Lady of
Guadalupe Parish in
Taylor celebrated its
second anniversary on
Aug. 15. (Photo courtesy Eduardo Gutierrez)
BENEDICTINE
BROTHER MATTHIAS HAGGE
made his solemn
profession of
vows as a monk
of Subiaco Abbey at
Mass on Aug. 30. He
has taught at Subiaco
Academy for several
years and prior to that
was a parishioner at St.
Mary Catholic Center
in College Station and
employed at Texas A&M
University. (Photo courtesy Br. Ephrem O’Bryan, OSB)
Send photos by the 10th of the month to [email protected].
THE LADIES OF CHARITY OF BASTROP celebrated 30 years of service on
Aug. 10 with Mass celebrated by Bishop
Joe Vásquez. In its 30 years, the group
has served 444,550 hours and helped
nearly 17,000 families. (Photos courtesy
Bastrop Ladies of Charity)

Dominican Sisters plant roots in Central Texas

Transcripción

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