Collection helps prevent homelessness 30 years and still going ...

Collection helps prevent homelessness

On Nov. 1-2, Catholics in the Orlando Diocese will have the opportunity to “Bring God’s Hope to Those in Need” during the annual parish collec-tion for Catholic Charities of Central Florida. This collection is critical for preventing homelessness in the area and helps individuals and families pay for rent, utilities, food and emergency medical ex-penses.

Click on the ORLANDO DIOCESE above for more on this story.

palm beach dioceseorlando diocese Venice diocese

WWW.THEFLORIDACATHOLIC.ORG | Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 | Volume 75, Number 24

The Palm Beach Diocese was created from por-tions of the Miami Archdiocese and the Orlando Diocese in the summer of 1984. Five counties — Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie — make up the diocesan area that covers 5,115 square miles.

Thirty years later, the church of southeast Florida celebrates its growth.

Click on the PALM BEACH DIOCESE for more on this story.

30 years and still going

strong Through prayer, song and reverence the faith-

ful of Jesus the Worker Mission in Fort Myers took time Oct. 5 to honor and celebrate Our Lady of the Rosary.

While Our Lady of the Rosary is the patroness of Guatemala, the celebration at Jesus the Worker was welcoming to the entire community, which includes faithful from across the Americas.

Click on the VENICE DIOCESE above for more on this story.

Catholics honor Our Lady

of the Rosary

Ruth found support and compassion through Emergency Family Services at Catholic Charities of Central Florida. The program provided comprehensive case management, as well as financial and food assistance and job counseling. She was able to find a job and return to self-sufficiency. (CHRISTINE YOUNG | FC)

Various moments and celebrations in the Palm Beach Diocese’s 30-year history. (FC ARCHIVE PHOTOS) A close-up of the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary used

during a procession celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary Oct. 5. (BOB REDDY | FC)

Learning about Ebola from experience in African nation

Pope beatifies Paul VI — great helmsman of Vatican II

Familiar Florida face tapped as president

of National Council of Catholic Women

FLORIDACatholicORLANDO EDITION

www.thefloridacatholic.org | oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014

Nov. 1-2 is the annual parish collection for Catholic Charities of Central Florida Christine YoungSpecial to the Florida Catholic

ORLANDO | Marcy is a ha rdwork i ng mot her a nd g randmot her whose world came crashing down after be-coming a victim of a financial crime. (Her last name is not being used to protect her iden-tity.) She had no safety net, began to fall behind on her rent and electricity, and was on the verge of homelessness. She was working full time, but her income was not enough to support the basic needs of her family of four children and one grandchild.

Marcy puts her family first and had to make difficult de-cisions to provide for their needs.

“Being a mother, I make sac-rifices. And I don’t buy myself anything. When school start-ed, I sacrificed some of my bill money in order to make sure my kids had the things that they needed for the first few weeks of school. I’ve always been playing catch-up. But to-day is a new day,” she said.

With nowhere to turn, Mar-cy came to Catholic Charities of Central Florida asking for help. Sandy Diaz, a case man-ager with Emergency Family Services, listened to Marcy’s situation and provided her with emergency financial as-sistance to pay rent and elec-tricit y. The family also re-ceived food assistance.

In addition, Diaz referred Marcy to the Family Stability Initiative, a program of Catho-lic Charities of Central Florida. The program’s goal is to keep families in their home so that children will not be moved

from school to school during a period of financial crisis. Mar-cy met case manager Adriana Santos, who developed a com-prehensive plan that helped Marcy responsibly manage her finances to prevent a financial meltdown in the future.

Her case managers helped her budget her expenses, grow her savings account and also provided life coaching so she would have the confidence she needed to believe in herself.

“My case manager helped me understand that this is not going to last forever,” Marcy

said. “Words cannot express the help that they give you and the people that they place in your life in order to help you, to console you, to guide you, direct you and also to love you.”

Catholic Charities of Cen-tral Florida’s Emergency Fam-ily Ser vices program offers support and compassion to people like Marcy who find themselves in an unexpected financial crisis. Through fi-nancial assistance and case management, t he program helps individuals and families

become self-sufficient.Unfortunately, Marcy’s sto-

ry is not unique. According to Florida KIDS COUNT, there are 599,613 people living in poverty throughout Central Florida. About half are chil-dren.

“During a financial emer-gency, our friends and neigh-bors often risk losing every-thing — home, family, health,” said Joseph Buranosk y, ex-ecutive director of Catholic Charities of Central Florida.

Collection helps prevent homelessness in Central Florida

Top left, Marcy, left, a client of Catholic Charities of Central Florida, meets with her case manager Adriana Santos. Marcy was facing a financial crisis when she received emergency financial assistance and case management — the lifeline she needed to keep her family from becoming homeless. (JACQUE BRUND | FC) Top right, earlier this year Catholic Charities of Central Florida held a workshop to help clients and their children break the cycle of poverty by developing strong financial habits and encouraging saving at an early age. (ELIZABETH WILSON | FC) Bottom, Ruth found support and compassion through Emergency Family Services at Catholic Charities of Central Florida. The program provided comprehensive case management, as well as financial and food assistance and job counseling. She was able to find a job and return to self-sufficiency. (CHRISTINE YOUNG | FC)

PLEASE SEE COLLECTION, 2

CNA/EWTN News

VATICAN CITY | The final report of the Synod on the Family, released Oct. 18, pres-ents substantial changes with respect to the much-discussed midterm report, especially regarding homosexual persons and the di-vorced and remarried.

The final report was voted on, paragraph by paragraph, by the synod fathers; and, by Pope Francis’ choice, the result of each poll has been publicized, thus showing a glimpse into the synod fathers’ thought.

Though all the paragraphs gained a ma-jority of votes, not all of them reached the supermajority of two-thirds, which is re-quired for official approval. With 181 voting synod fathers (out of 193), a simple majority is 93, while the supermajority is reached at 123 votes.

Speaking with journalists during a press briefing Oct. 18, Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See press office, com-mented that in light of preparations for the 2015 synod, the paragraphs that failed to gain official approval “cannot be considered as dismissed, but primarily as paragraphs that are not mature enough to gain a wide consensus of the assembly.”

An overall glance at the final reportLike the midterm report, the final report

is divided in three parts, titled: “Listening, context, and challenges of the family”; “The

synod on the Family

Final report released

PLEASE SEE SYNOD, 15

Bishops from around the world attend the Synod on the Family. (CNA/EWTN NEWS)

2Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR ORLANDO COMMUNITY

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DIOCESE OF ORLANDO

Vol. 75, No. 24

“As Catholics, we are blessed by the realization that all we have comes from God. And when we share these gifts with those who are suffering, we are bringing God’s hope to those in need.”

On Nov. 1-2, Catholics in the Diocese of Orlando will have the opportunity to share their bless-ings and “Bring God’s Hope to Those in Need” during the annu-al parish collection for Catholic Charities of Central Florida. This collection is critical for prevent-ing homelessness in the area and helps individuals and families pay for rent, utilities, food and emergency medical expenses.

“G o d’s m e r c y, e x p r e s s e d through our good deeds, brings forth hope among the people with whom we live, work, socialize and minister,” said Bishop John Noonan, urging the faithful to re-spond to our brothers and sisters in need. “Understanding how we express God’s hope through his mercy is a profound path to holi-ness.

“We honor the people served by Catholic Charities of Central Florida as we minister to them, acknowledging their dignity as children of God,” Bishop Noonan added.

Thanks to the generosity and support from volunteers and do-nors, Catholic Charities of Cen-tral Florida served more than 100,000 people during the last fiscal year. n

COLLECTIONFrom 1

LINDA CALDWELLof the Florida Catholic staff

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS | St. Mary Magdalen Parish was awarded the Archbishop Thom-as J. Murphy Award by the Inter-national Catholic Stewardship Council. The highest award given by the council, it is presented an-nually to one parish worldwide for its extraordinary efforts to embrace, foster and live Catholic stewardship.

Father Charlie Mitchell, pas-tor, and about 20 parishioners accepted the award during the opening plenary session at the council’s 2014 conference, held Oct. 5-8 at Buena Vista Palace Ho-tel in Orlando. The award is named after the late archbishop of Seattle. The council is a highly respected organization dedicated to advanc-ing Christian stewardship, Catho-lic philanthropy and resource de-velopment throughout the world.

“In my many years here at St. Mary Magdalen, I have had numer-ous moments of pride in being able to call myself pastor of this won-derful parish. This ranks among those moments,” Father Mitchell said earlier in a letter to the parish-ioners. “You, my brothers and sis-ters, are being recognized among the leading dioceses and parishes of our world as an outstanding ex-ample of what it means to live a life

of true discipleship and Catholic stewardship. Thank you.”

Father Mitchell said for the past 10 years, the parish community has made a concerted effort to live as a stewardship parish. Melissa Findley, steward for time, talent and evangelization, said the parish is blessed by parishioners’ gener-osity. The parish has 2,813 people involved in ministry and 213 min-istries and services.

“Our efforts have borne fruit in so many ways,” Father Mitchell said. “We have grown in our vi-sion of ministry and in the focus of that ministry, always seeking to sharpen our understanding of who we are, and maybe even more im-

portantly, who we are becoming as we follow God’s mission for us.”

“Christian stewardship is about forming disciples who are so joy-ous in the Lord that they desire to give of their entire being,” said Meghan Post, director of The Cath-olic Foundation of Central Florida. “It’s comforting to know that we can rely on parishes like St. Mary Magdalen to show us the way to true, lasting joy.

“Only when we’re willing to give of ourselves can we be Christ-like to another person,” she added. “St. Mary Magdalen is a wonderful ex-ample of this culture of sacrificial giving that flows throughout our entire diocese.” n

St. Mary Magdalen Parish receives international award for stewardship

The Catholic Foundation of Central Florida Inc. has been recognized by the International Catholic Stewardship Council (ICSC) for excellence in promoting the theology of Christian stewardship through written publications and other media. The foundation is an independent nonprofit committed to raising, managing and distributing charitable funds on behalf of the parishes, schools and ministries of the Diocese of Orlando.

This marks the third consecutive year that the foundation has won first-place honors under the category of “Total Foun-dation Effort” and the second consecutive win under the category of “Total Planned Giving Effort.” The foundation was also named co-recipient of the “Total Appeal

Effort” award for materials created to communicate the annual “Our Catholic Appeal.”

Staff members from The Catholic Foundation accepted the awards Oct. 7 during the international council’s annual conference at Buena Vista Palace Hotel in Orlando. The ICSC is widely recognized as the premier source of education, networking and information to advance the ministry of Christian stewardship as a way of life in the Catholic Church.

Meghan Post, president of The Catholic Foundation, characterized the successive wins as “another sign that the Catholic voice in Central Florida is clear, unified and strong.”

FOUNDATION RECEIVES AWARD

Bishop John

Noonan

My Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

Grace and peace of Our Lord, Jesus Christ be with you. Recently, Pope Francis spoke about mercy, “Like a good mother and educator, the Church fo-cuses on the essential, and the essential, according to the Gospel is mercy, as Jesus clearly tells his dis-ciples: ‘Be merciful, just as your father is.’” God’s mer-cy, expressed through our good deeds, brings forth hope among the people with whom we live, work, socialize and minister.

Understanding how we express God’s hope through his mercy is

a profound path to holiness. One opportunity for offering a living example of mercy is to participate in the Catholic Charities of Central Florida Collection to be held Nov. 2.

We honor the people served by Catholic Charities of Central Florida as we min-ister to them, acknowledg-ing their dignity as children of God.

Through your generos-ity and the good work of the staff and volunteers of Catholic Charities of Cen-tral Florida, we help fami-lies in crisis with their rent, electricity, food and medi-

cine. Case managers walk with an individual to provide not a hand

out, but a hand up — a plan for self-sufficiency, resources for education, food, housing, medical care, voca-tional training and job assistance. You are like the saints who served Jesus in this way, practicing mercy by ensuring each person’s basic needs are met with kindness and compassion.

Pope Francis also said, “The rule of hospitality is always sacred: There is always a dish of food and a place to sleep for those in need. Learning to share what we have is important.”

I ask you to share; to be as gener-ous as possible with your offering for the Catholic Charities of Central Florida Collection, knowing that annually, in our nine-county Dio-

cese of Orlando, there are 1 million hungry mouths to feed and hun-dreds of thousands of families who are sustained with God’s hope be-cause you are merciful. I am grate-ful to you for your continued good deeds which glorify our heavenly Father.

May we abide with God in love that grace and mercy are granted us this day and always.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend John NoonanBishop of Orlando

‘HGenerosity helps pave path to holiness

ope 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.’

— Romans 5:5

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3 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014YOUR ORLANDO COMMUNITY


ORLANDO | This year, the Dio-cese of Orlando recognizes two re-ligious sisters who are celebrating 60 years as consecrated religious. They are honored for their minis-try of love and dedication to serv-ing others for the greater glory of God.

SiSter of St. JoSeph JoSephine Marie Melican

Sister Melican is a self-pro-claimed “Nav y brat.” Born in San Diego, her family frequently moved throughout the United States before settling in Jackson-ville in 1950. It was during her early years in Florida that she felt God’s calling to religious life.

“I became acquainted with the Sisters of St. Joseph while in high school,” Sister Melican said. “There was something there that

I admired, I liked and I wanted. I started to think about a religious life during my freshman year and the calls kept getting stronger as the years went by. By the time I

graduated from high s c h o o l , I w a s c e r-t a i n t h a t w a s w hat I wa nted, and I en-tere d t he convent.”

S i s t e r M e l i c a n also felt a strong call-

ing to teach. In 1956, she began teaching at elementary and high schools throughout the state. Al-most 20 years into her ministry, she was called to serve in geriat-rics. Sister Melican earned a mas-ter’s degree in gerontology from Columbia University in New York

in 1971, and began a new phase in her ministry, serving as the admin-istrator at All Saints Nursing Home in Jacksonville for 10 years. She also ministered at other facilities in the years that followed.

“I love teaching but I also love taking care of the frail, the ill and the elderly. It is really such a re-ward to have people respond who may not usually respond,” she said. “It is such a joy to see how they re-spond as I am bringing Christ into their lives.”

In 1995, Sister Melican began caring for elderly sisters at Our Lady of Lourdes Convent in St. Au-gustine. Today, Sister Melican is serving as a minister to the sick at St. Margaret Mary Parish in Winter Park.

adrian doMinican SiSter clarice Moyle

Sister Moyle is a native Floridi-an. Born and raised in Jacksonville, she first learned of the consecrated

life as a student in Catholic school. Her teachers were the Sisters of St. Joseph. They taught her reading and writing and, more important-ly, taught her about the love of God.

W h i l e studying at Barry Uni-versity, Sis-ter Moyle m e t t h e D o m i n i -can Sisters of Adrian, M i c h . , and heard God’s call to serve in a religious

vocation. She entered the convent and earned her bachelor’s degree in education.

While preparing for her new vocation, Sister Moyle was asked to teach 63 Spanish-speaking kin-dergartners. This challenging as-signment laid the groundwork for

a lifelong ministry in education. Sister Moyle said teaching God’s children is the greatest vocation in the Church.

“If you can teach a child to read and write and to search for knowl-edge, then they can do anything,” she said.

Sister Moyle ultimately earned her master’s degree in education from Barry University. Throughout the years, she served in a multitude of educational roles — teacher, de-partment chairwoman, assistant principal and principal — in Flor-ida, Michigan and Puerto Rico. In the Diocese of Orlando, Sister Moyle taught at Bishop Moore Catholic High School in Orlando, and St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School in Altamonte Springs. She retired from teaching in 2007.

Today, Sister Moyle volunteers at St. Mary Magdalen Catholic School and is part of the bereavement ministry at Annunciation Parish in Altamonte Springs. n

Two religious sisters celebrate diamond jubilees

Sister Melican Sister Moyle

“Together in Holiness,” a nation-al conference series for Catholic couples, is coming to the Diocese of Orlando Nov. 15 at St. Mary Mag-dalen Parish in Altamonte Springs. The half-day event aims to inspire couples and families not just to sur-vive, but to thrive together in holi-ness. The morning includes Mass, presentations on marriage and family, Eucharistic adoration, and opportunities to receive the Sacra-ment of Penance.

The series is an initiative of the John Paul II Foundation for Life and Family, a national Catholic apos-tolate, which has the mission of proclaiming the Gospel of life and forming families as intimate com-munities of love. Speakers for the conference include Deacon Har-old Burke-Sivers, evangelist and national radio host of “From the Rooftops”; Dennis Johnson Jr., sec-retary for evangelization and family life for the Diocese of Orlando; and Chris and Sarah Stravitsch from the John Paul II Foundation. The three presentations will explore why the Catholic Church teaches that every family is a domestic Church, of-fer insights on prayer, and provide practical guidance for praying with your spouse and children or grand-children.

The event runs from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Registration is $45 for a couple or $25 for an individual. Breakfast, lunch, and free child care are in-cluded. St. Mary Magdalen Parish is located at 861 Maitland Blvd., Altamonte Springs. For more infor-mation and to register, visit www.TogetherInHoliness.org. n

Conference for couples coming to Orlando


ORLANDO | Religious sisters from throughout the Diocese of Orlando joined Bishop John Noonan in honoring and cel-ebrating the ministries of Adrian Dominican Sister Clarice Moyle and Sister of St. Joseph Josephine Marie Melican, who have each served the Church for 60 years.

The celebration was part of the annual Sisters Jubilee and Renewal of Vows Mass Oct. 18 at the Marriott Orlando Airport Ho-tel. This joyous occasion brings together the many religious com-munities of the diocese and is one of two annual events organized by the Sisters’ Council of the dio-cese.

The event was made even more special since Sister Moyle cel-ebrated her 80th birthday on the same day.

“We are blessed by this com-mon life we share of being conse-crated, ministerial women,” said Adrian Dominican Sister Rose-mary Finnegan, diocesan moder-ator of women religious. “We are, indeed, most grateful for the sup-port we feel not only from each other, but from Bishop Noonan and the people of this diocese.”

During the celebration of Mass, the women renewed their vows, professing, “I pray that my vowed life may continue to foster justice, peace and goodness in our world,

community and Church.”Bishop Noonan recognized

five sisters who have retired dur-ing the past year: Sister of the Pre-sentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Paula Schwendinger, Sister of Mercy Nora McCann, Sister of Notre Dame de Namur Gail Grimes, Sister of the Holy Name of Jesus and Mary Rose Christina Momm, and Sister of the Holy Name of Jesus and Mary Giovan-nina Saleeby, thanking all of the sisters for their ministries.

“The laborers are few,” he said. “Sisters, what you have given to the people is precious. You have

given them the example of your life, your dedication, your love and service to the people of God. I saw it and witnessed it at each farewell. The people love you, and they thank you for your service to the Church and to the people.

“Today it is with a sense of joy we come to thank you,” he contin-ued. “We say to you, thank you for what you do, thank you for your life of service, not only to God but to the people who you live with every day. You don’t know the seeds you plant, but you have truly touched the lives of many people. For that, as your brother

in Christ, I am eternally grateful.”Following the liturgy, the sis-

ters gathered for a luncheon, where Bishop Noonan and Sis-ter of Mercy Immaculata Knox presented Sister Moyle with an etched glass commemorating her anniversary, and an autumn mum. Sister Melican was unable to be at the event as she was also being recognized by her order at the provincial house in St. Augus-tine.

Bishop Noonan praised all of the sisters for their commitment to the Lord and his Church.

“I want to thank all of you for the good that you do every day,” he said. n

Bishop expresses gratitude to religious sisters

Bishop John Noonan presents Adrian Dominican Sister Clarice Moyle with an etched glass commemorating her 60th anniversary as a religious sister. (PHOTOS BY LINDA CALDWELL | FC)

Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary Sister Christine Hernandez chats with Adrian Dominican Sister Rosemary Finnegan before the celebration of the annual Sisters Jubilee and Renewal of Vows Mass.

4Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR ORLANDO COMMUNITY32479-1024


DEBARY | On Oct. 14, a team of faith leaders at St. Ann Parish in DeBar y kicked off a seven-month adult education series based on Bishop John Noonan’s “The Way, the Truth and the Life” video series.

Forty people — from teens to seniors, from St. Ann and neigh-boring parishes — participated in the first of eight sessions that will explore the the teachings of the Catholic Church as they relate to the important issues of our time, such as the definition of life, marriage, freedom, sci-ence and technology, and more.

“We have Bible studies and we have adult education that covers various topics, but this is more in-depth,” said Sam Hallman, director of faith formation. “It includes the Bible but it actually gets to the meat of what we be-lieve in and why we believe it.

“We say, ‘I know as a Catholic I believe in this,’ but then we all have different opinions about the issues and that is where it gets fun,” she continued. “Every-body has an opinion. This delves into how our opinions correlate with the doctrine of the Catholic Church.”

“The Way, the Truth and the Life” video series was launched Dec. 1, 2013. Available in English and Spanish, the series is aimed at helping people know and un-derstand the core tenets of the Catholic faith and, just as im-portant, how to integrate those tenets into their daily lives. The short video messages are aug-mented with supporting mate-rials, such as discussion ques-tions, information on saints, and

Catholics enkindle a deeper faith

prayers. The first session of the St. Ann

ser ies ex plored t he Church’s definition of life. The evening opened with a prayer and a view-ing of “The Meaning of Life” vid-eo. Then Cathy Mojock, parish business manager and the eve-ning’s facilitator, delved into the topic at hand.

“The meaning of life is a con-stant, reoccurring theme in our Church,” she said. “Why is the theme of life and human dignity always coming up in our teach-ings? Why do we spend so much time on it? Because understand-ing the foundational belief of what is life is the first step in un-derstanding the Church’s moral teachings.”

The evening continued with small-group discussions cen-tered on general topics, such as “What can I do as an individual to help society value human life in all of its stages?” as well as spe-cific topics, such as abortion, end of life, and human trafficking.

Hallman said she hopes that people would walk away with a greater knowledge of what they believe and why they believe, a closer relationship with God, and a means of opening up discus-sions with their families at home. Participant Ben Parojino was cer-tain to do just that.

“Understa nd ing where ou r Church stands on issues is im-por tant because how can we represent that point of view if we don’t understand it?” he said. “I am going to take away a better understanding about the issues we face when it comes to respect for life. I loved the fact that we all had different points of view at the table. We got different perspec-tives of where people were com-ing from and that is what this whole community is about. It was a great program.” n

To learn more about “The Way, the Truth and the Life” video series, visit www.orlandodiocese.org/ waytruthlife.

Tim Campbell of St. Ann Parish shares his opinion during a small- group discussion on “The Meaning of Life.” (LINDA CALDWELL | FC)

32326-1024

News briefs

Prayers offered to end death penalty

Three prayer services will be held in the diocese to pray for the abolishment of the death pen-alty, and for the victims of violent crimes, their families, and those who are to be executed because of the death penalty.

Gov. Rick Scott signed a death warrant for Chadwick Banks to be executed Thursday, Nov. 13, 6 p.m., at Florida State Prison in Starke. Banks was convicted of the 1992 murder of his wife, Cas-sandra, and the rape and murder of his 10-year-old stepdaughter, Melody Cooper.

Prayer services are:• Nov. 11, 5 p.m., St. Margaret

Mary Parish chapel, 526 N. Park Ave., Winter Park. Daily Mass will follow.

• Nov. 12, 11 a.m., St. Patrick Parish, 6803 Old Highway 441 S., Mount Dora.

• Nov. 13, a bus will leave at 2:30 p.m. from the parking lot of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, 201 Uni-versity Blvd., Daytona Beach, for a 6 p.m. prayer service outside the prison in Starke.

For more information on the prayer services, contact the Of-fice of Advocacy and Justice at [email protected] or 407-658-1818, ext. 2086.

Red Mass to gather legal professionals

Continuing this historic tradition of the Church, Bishop John Noonan will celebrate a Red Mass Nov. 6, 12:10 p.m., at St. James Cathedral in Orlando, invoking the intercession of St. Thomas More, patron saint of lawyers, for all members of the local judiciary.

All members of the judiciary — including judges, attorneys, and all members of the legal profession — are invited to attend. Following the Mass, a luncheon reception will be held in the St. James social hall, and the St. Thomas More award will be presented to a member of the legal profession who represents the ide-als and values held by St. Thomas More. The St. Martin de Porres award will also be presented to an organization offering charity to people in need.

The celebration will also be the inaugural gathering for the newly formed Catholic Lawyers Guild of Central Florida, a lay Catholic or-ganization whose focus is prayer, study, generosity and evangeliza-tion. The group seeks to help mem-bers integrate and further the Cath-olic faith of its members in their chosen profession. For information on the Catholic Lawyers Guild, contact Keith Hesse at [email protected] or 407-244-8221.

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ACCOUNTING

Eighth-grader Madelyn, left, and sixth-grader Lucille prepare to crown a statue of the Blessed Mother at Sacred Heart Catholic School in New Smyrna Beach. October is the Month of the Rosary. (LINDA CALDWELL | FC)

SaCred hearT CeleBraTeS Mary

Bishop John Noonan and Neil, a resident of Bishop Grady Villas, lead the opening prayer at the Harvest Ball Oct. 11 at the Rosen Plaza Hotel, Orlando. During the prayer, participants asked God to bless all who live at Bishop Grady Villas as well as bless everyone who supports their efforts to help adults with disabilities reach their full potential through residential, vocational, employment and community services. (CHRISTINE YOUNG | FC)

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6Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR ORLANDO COMMUNITY32256-1024


ORLANDO | Rose Tuttle of Sts. Peter and Paul Parish prayerfully waited in the narthex of St. James Cathedral Oct. 11. The summit of a long journey of faith was about to be realized, as she and 12 others were about to be commissioned as lay ecclesial ministers in the Diocese of Orlando. Bishop John Noonan commissioned the men and women, representing 13 par-ishes, during the rite of commis-sioning and prayer service at the cathedral. Two others were com-missioned in absentia earlier.

“This is the most beautiful mo-ment,” said Tuttle, who is the co-ordinator of her parish’s Mother Sharing ministry. “It has been three years of a journey that has had its ups and downs, answer-ing a call to the spirit. It feels like everything is right with the world, that I am in the right place in this moment and the future will be as the spirit leads. I am ready to em-brace it all.”

The public commissioning is the culminating event of a three-year journey for the laity of the diocese who answered a call to ministry, demonstrated leader-ship qualities within their par-

ishes and organizations, and ben-efited from theological education and ministry formation. With the induction of this year’s class, more than 400 men and women have become Commissioned Lay Eccle-sial Ministers in the diocese since the program’s inception in 1981.

During the prayer service, Bish-op Noonan called on the newly commissioned to be the mes-sengers of Jesus Christ, centering their lives in prayer.

“In your lives, prayer has to be

Bishop commissions 15 lay ecclesial ministers2014 Lay Ecclesial Ministers

The following individuals were commissioned Oct. 11:

Evelyn Bean, St. Stephen Parish, Winter Springs.

Jon Bean, St. Stephen Parish.Carlos Bernard, Blessed Trinity

Parish, Orlando.Manuel Castaneda, Holy

Redeemer Parish, Kissimmee.*Jim Cushing, Holy Family Parish,

Orlando.Russell Hoffman, St. Peter Parish,

DeLand.*Juan Mendez, St. Isaac Jogues

Parish, Orlando.Rosana Mourad, Corpus Christi

Parish, Orlando.Luisa Negret, St. Catherine of Siena

Parish, Kissimmee.Luis Padilla, Annunciation Parish,

Altamonte Springs.Nilsa Patterson, St. Margaret Mary

Parish, Winter Park.Miriam Perez, St. Mary Magdalen

Parish, Altamonte Springs.Margie Steinbarger, Most

Precious Blood Parish, Oviedo.Elsie Torres, Holy Cross Parish,

Orlando.Rose Tuttle, Sts. Peter and Paul

Parish, Winter Park.* Commissioned in absentia

FYI

the most important thing,” Bish-op Noonan said. “If we are not people of prayer, how can we be-come messengers of Jesus Christ? In order to be messengers of Jesus Christ, we have to know him in our very heart and our very soul.

“Today as you come forward, as we come to recognize you, we call you to that authenticity of knowing, loving, believing Jesus Christ,” he added. “We ask you to truly become the messengers of Jesus Christ, the messengers


ORLANDO | Bishop John Noon-an’s latest mission trip Oct. 12-16 to the Diocese of San Juan de la Maguana, Orlando’s sister diocese in the Dominican Republic, was filled with great joy and gratitude for many blessings of God. The trip’s highlights included a blessing of the recently completed high school dor-mitories in Azua and a mortgage-burning party in Guayabal.

The festivities surrounding the blessing of the buildings Oct. 14 be-gan with the celebration of Mass, concelebrated by Bishop Noonan and Bishop José Grullón Estrella. During Mass, several children re-ceived the Sacraments of Confir-mation and Eucharist. Afterward, joined by the people of San Juan as well as several dignitaries, Bishop Noonan blessed the buildings, marking a dream come true.

“The blessing of the buildings is a big accomplishment because this is a continuation of our efforts to edu-cate the young people in San Juan de la Maguana. It is fulfilling,” Bishop Noonan said. “We started with an elementary school and now we are blessing a high school residence. It shows that the work that has been

done over these last years is being fulfilled.”

In 2002, Ursuline Sister Berna-dette Mackay, director of the di-ocesan Mission Office, started the educational effort in the Dominican Republic with three schools in three towns: La Cucarita, El Montazo and Los Guayuyos. There are now five Catholic schools operated by the Diocese of Orlando and enrollment has grown from 30-40 students to more than 400.

“What ended up happening, from my perspective, is that her wish has not only educated a few children, it has empowered an entire commu-nity,” said Henry Fortier, secretary of the Education Secretariat and superintendent of Catholic schools in the Diocese of Orlando. “She has brought that Light of Christ into those communities and has helped the people realize that there are many other things they can do. And with the gifts that God has given them, they can more fully reach a greater potential. It has transformed the communities on those hills.”

“As the understanding of educa-tion has grown on the hill, more and more families want their children to get advanced degrees,” Fortier add-ed. “The blessing of these buildings is proof of their dreams.”

The following day, Bishop Noon-an led a burning of the mortgages party. About 13 years ago, the faith-ful of Central Florida embarked on a mission to bring the dream of home ownership to their brothers and sisters in the Dominican Republic. Many years and several construc-tion missions later, the dream has come true for many. Today, those whose homes were built as part of that first housing project have paid off their mortgages.

“The burning of the mortgages is a wonderful experience because this is the first area we went to as a diocese to work in, and that area has fulfilled our dreams of not only building homes for the people, but teaching them how to build homes,” Bishop Noonan said. “Now many have paid off their mortgages. That is the fulfillment of their dreams.”

Interspersed throughout the cel-ebrations, educators from the Dio-cese of Orlando — Fortier; Gloria DelOrbe, principal of Holy Redeem-er Catholic School, Kissimmee; Nel-son Matthews, Spanish teacher at Father Lopez Catholic High School, Daytona Beach; Yvonne Toro, as-sistant principal at Bishop Moore Catholic High School, Orlando; and Flora Torra, a local psychologist — held teacher in-service workshops

for the 18 Catholic schools in San Juan de la Maguana. Fortier said the intent of the fall mission is to share educational resources with all of the Catholic schools in the diocese, not just the five the Orlando Diocese sponsors.

New reasons to rejoice for sister dioceseLooking back on the week’s

events, Fortier said, “Thirty years ago, we were called and we went. As we look to the future, we are still listening to that call of where else we need to go within those communi-ties to support the people of God.” n

that are called to bring forth God’s blessing to the world.”

“This is a joyous occasion in the Diocese of Orlando,” said Dennis Johnson Jr., secretary for evange-lization and family life. “Baptism enrolls all of us into ministry, but these 15 leaders have taken that commitment seriously with addi-tional formation, study and prac-tical application. We are grateful for their efforts and look forward to their years of service in their parishes.” n

Faith formation leaders congratulate the Diocese of Orlando’s newest Commissioned Lay Ecclesial Ministers. (PHOTOS BY LINDA CALDWELL | FC)

Bishop John Noonan shares a moment with Rosana Mourand of Corpus Christi Parish after her commissioning as a lay ecclesial minister.


DIOCESAN EVENTSHelpers Mass and rosary

procession: Saturday, Nov. 1, 8 a.m., Incarnation Parish, 1515 Edgewater Drive, Orlando. Pray for the unborn, healing for the mothers and fathers, and the conversion of staff and doctors. Mass begins at 9 a.m., followed by a rosary procession to a nearby abortion clinic. Contact Office of Advocacy and Justice, [email protected].

Orlando Concert Band: Saturday, Nov. 1, 2 p.m., Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, 8300 Vineland Ave., Orlando. Kickoff event of 2014-2015 Basilica Concert Series. Features 65-piece wind and percussion ensemble and basilica’s organist, William Picher. Free-will offering taken for Catholic Charities of Central Florida. 407-239-6600.

“Links for Health” golf fundraiser: Saturday, Nov. 1, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Kissimmee Bay Country Club, 2801 Kissimmee Bay Blvd., Kissimmee. Benefits St. Thomas Aquinas Medical Clinic. Scramble tournament includes raffle, auction, lunch and awards following play. Cost: $60 per player. Sponsorships available from $100-$2,000. Register online: www.cflcc.org/welcome, click on events, St. Thomas Links for Health. Contact Kelly Bender, [email protected] or 407-325-3006.

Youth for life rally: Saturday, Nov. 1, 5 p.m., Bishop Moore Catholic High School, 3901 Edgewater Drive, Orlando. High school youths, parents, and adult ministry team leaders are invited to a free celebration of life. Speakers, including speaker and musician Steve Angrizano, activities, and Mass. Contact Office of Advocacy and Justice, 407-246-4820, [email protected].

Concert at the Cathedral: Sunday, Nov. 2, 3 p.m., St. James Cathedral, 215 N. Orange Ave., Orlando. Fauré’s “Requiem” performed by cathedral choir, diocesan choir, and orchestra. 407-246-4860.

Congreso Juvenil 2014: Saturday, Nov. 8, 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m., Resurrection Parish, 1211 S. Vineland Road, Winter Garden. Retreat experience to renew young adults and empower them to live the Gospel. Sponsored by

Secretariat of Evangelization and Family Life. Includes music, prayer and keynote presentations. Cost: $10, includes breakfast and lunch. 407-246-4926.

Lector institute: Saturday, Nov. 8, 9 a.m.-noon, Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, 201 University Blvd., Daytona Beach. Workshop in two parts. Part one: overview of basic skills and documentation regarding the ministry of lector. Part two: participants will join live virtual workshop presented by Graziano and Nancy Marcheschi. Presented by the Office of Liturgy. Cost, $15. Contact Aaron Kohl, [email protected], 407-246-4860; or visit www.orlandodiocese.org/ministries-offices/liturgy-and-music and click on “Workshops & Events.”

Marriage and family conference: Saturday, Nov. 15, 8 a.m.-1 p.m., St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 861 Maitland Blvd., Altamonte Springs. Theme: “Together in Holiness.” Event for couples to help marriages and families thrive in holiness. Free child care. Visit www.TogetherInHoliness.org.

“Empty Bowls Gala”: Saturday, Nov. 15, 6 p.m., Polk State College 3425 Winter Lake Road, Lakeland. Features live and silent auctions of ceramic bowls painted and signed by national and local celebrities. Benefits Catholic Charities of Central Florida’s Agape Food Bank. Tickets: $75 each or $500 for a table of eight. Visit www.cflcc.org/emptybowls for information, sample bowls, and online registration. Register online: www.cflcc.org/welcome, click on events, Empty Bowls. Contact Brenda Reddout, [email protected].

The Lettermen concerts: Monday, Dec. 1, Church of the Resurrection, 3855 S. Florida Ave., Lakeland; Tuesday, Dec. 2, Our Lady of Hope, 4675 S. Clyde Morris Blvd., Port Orange; Wednesday, Dec. 3, St. Margaret Mary Parish, 526 Park Ave. N., Winter Park; Thursday, Dec. 4, Holy Name of Jesus Parish, 3050 N. Highway A1A, Indialantic; Friday, Dec. 5, Holy Redeemer Parish, 1603 N. Thacker Ave., Kissimmee. Shows are at 2:30 p.m. and 7 p.m. For the fourth consecutive year, the legendary group will perform benefit concerts in Central Florida with special guest Florence LaRue of the Fifth Dimension. The combination greatest hits and Christmas concert will help

support Catholic Charities of Central Florida and its work in preventing homelessness. Tickets: $25, general admission; $45, VIP. For more information and to purchase tickets, http://www.cflcc.org/ConcertTourfortheHomeless; or Renee Baker, 407-658-1818, ext. 2121.

Concert: Friday, Dec. 5, 7:30 p.m., Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, 8300 Vineland Ave., Orlando. This concert features works for choir and orchestra as well as a Chirstmas carol sing-along. Tickets: $18. 407-239-6600.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Fall festival: Friday, Oct. 24, 6-10 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 25, noon-10 p.m.; Sunday, Oct. 26, noon-6 pm., Nativity Parish, 3255 N. Ronald Reagan Blvd., Longwood. Includes games, inflatable rides, tea room, silent auction, book nook, bake sale, artisan’s boutique, raffle, turkey dinner, bingo, purse and shoe boutique, pie eating contest, car show and a variety of international festival foods. Live entertainment. 407-467-4201.

Arts and crafts show: Saturday, Oct. 25, 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; and Sunday, Oct. 26, 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Prince of Peace social hall, 600 S. Nova Road, Ormond Beach. Over 40 booths. Benefites Prince of Peace Council of Catholic Women activities and charities. Food and refreshments available. Free admission. Sharon Wilbert, [email protected], 386-672-6583.

Pumpkin run: Saturday, Oct. 25, registration at 6:30 a.m., race at 7:30 a.m., Mead Gardens, 1300 S. Denning Drive, Winter Park. Sponsored by St. Margaret Mary and St. Stephen parishes. 5K event to benefit the parishes’ missions in Jacmel, Haiti. Registration before Oct. 21: adults, $30; students 10-18, $20; Free for children 9 and under. After Oct. 21, fees increase $5 for adults and students. Visit www.pumpkin5K.com.

Catholic speaker: Tuesday, Oct. 28, 7 p.m., Holy Family Parish, 5125 S. Apopka-Vineland Road, Orlando. Centered on the theme, “Setting the World Ablaze,” renowned Catholic speaker and author Dr. John Wood will speak on “Ordinary Lives, Extraordinary Mission: Five Steps to Winning the War Within.” www.extraordinarymission.com. 407-876-2211.

Community harvest festival: Friday, Oct. 31, 5-11 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 1, 11 a.m.-11 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 2, noon-8 p.m., All Souls, 3280 W. First St., Sanford. Midway rides and children’s activities, musical entertainment, food, crafts, games of chance, bingo, raffles, silent auction. Halloween treasure hunt on Friday. www.allsoulsharvestfestival.com, 407-322-3795.

RETREATS/DAYS OF REFLECTION

San Pedro Spiritual Development Center: 2400 Dike Road, Winter Park. 407-671-6322; [email protected]; www.

sanpedrocenter.org.• Hermitage retreat, Thursday,

Nov. 13-Sunday, Nov. 16. Quiet prayer, shared meals, reflection. Led by Franciscan Father Vianney Cunningham, and Jeanne and Tony Walters. Limited to eight participants.

• Senior day, Thursday, Nov. 13, 9 a.m. “The Month of November: Remembering the Church,” led by Carol Stanton. Please bring a picture of a deceased loved one. Suggested donation: $10.

• Taizé prayer, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 7 p.m. An evening of contemplative prayer and music.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Catholic Volunteers in Florida is taking applications for several volunteer position openings for upcoming program year, July 2015-June 2016. Applicants should have college degree and heart for serving following positions and/or populations: adults and children with developmental disabilities; social services case manager; advocate for children and teens; families seeking emergency financial services; or youth ministry. Volunteers commit one year to live simply and give of themselves by working full time in exchange for housing, health insurance and small monthly stipend. Visit cvif.org. Valarie Amica, [email protected], 407-426-7771.

Catholic Charities of Central Florida seeks volunteers for the following programs. If interested, contact Flavia Cavalcante, 407-658-1818, ext. 2026; [email protected].

• Semoran food pantry volunteers: 1771 N. Semoran Blvd., Orlando, Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and 1 p.m.-3:30 p.m. to help us sort, pack, stock and distribute food to those in need. Must be 16 or older.

• Emergency family assistance clerical volunteers to assist 10 a.m.-2 p.m. in Orlando, Kissimmee, Poinciana and Winter Garden.

• Refugee youth mentor: Volunteers help refugee children learn to speak English and learn American culture; one-two hours weekly, flexible schedule. Must be 21 or older.

SUPPORT MINISTRIES/PEER GROUPS

Separated and divorced: • Mondays, 7:30 p.m., Holy

Redeemer Parish, 1603 N. Thacker,

Kissimmee. Sylvester, 407-406-0707.

• Catholic Divorce Survival Guide, Tuesdays, 6:30-8:30 p.m., Cost: $30, scholarships available; first Fridays, Mass and dinner, social; St. Margaret Mary Parish, 526 Park Ave. N., Winter Park. Lori Reinneck, [email protected], 407-645-0284.

Families with incarcerated loved ones:

• Third Saturdays, 8:45 a.m., St. Mary Magdalen Parish, Mother Teresa Room, 861 Maitland Ave., Altamonte Springs. 407-463-5780 or email [email protected].

Bereavement support groups:

• Wednesdays, Sept. 17-Oct. 29, 10 a.m., St. Paul Parish Family Enrichment Center, Room 224, 1330 Sunshine Ave., Leesburg. Open to parishioners. Faith-sharing group provides comfort through prayer, Scripture, fellowship. To register, call Theresa Sheneman, 352-787-6210.

• Mondays, Oct. 13-Nov. 17, 7-8:30 p.m., St. Margaret Mary Parish Family Life Center, 526 Park Ave. N., Winter Park. Six-week faith-based bereavement support group, with facilitator Sally Kopke of VITAS Innovative Hospice Care, will explore life after the death of a loved one. Different topic each week. To register, contact Sharon, 407-998-5660, [email protected].

• Blessed Trinity Parish, Building L, 5 S.E. 17th St., Ocala, multiple groups; and first Wednesdays, 7-9 p.m., Compassionate Friends, Ocala chapter, for bereaved families who have experienced the death of a child. Peggy McClaskey, 352-694-2978.

• First Thursdays, 6:30-8 p.m., St. Stephen Parish Enrichment Center 1, Room 103, 575 Tuskawilla Road, Winter Springs. For anyone who has lost a loved one, spouse, parent, child or sibling. 407-699-5683.

• Thursdays, 10-11:30 a.m., St. Mary Magdalen Parish life center, Mother Teresa Room, 861 Maitland Ave., Altamonte Springs. Rosemary Kazyk, 407-831-1212.

• Wednesdays, 7 p.m., Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, 201 University Blvd., Daytona Beach, Pat Beeman, 386-788-7128.

CORRECTION:A ministry to the sick

coordinators’ meeting Nov. 13 at St. Mary Magdalen Parish was inadvertently misclassified as a general training session in the Around Your Community section of the Oct. 10 issue of the Florida Catholic. This meeting is intended for parish coordinators in the Central Deanery North.

Red Mass: Thursday, Nov. 6, 12:10 p.m., St. James Cathedral, 215 N. Or-ange Ave., Orlando. Members of the ju-diciary, including judges, attorneys and all members of the legal profession are invited to join Bishop John Noonan in prayer and ask the Spirit of God for wis-dom in their service. During the Mass,

Catholics reaffirm their commitment to justice and their faith. Luncheon and awards ceremony follow in the social hall. Sponsored by the Catholic Lawyers Guild of Central Florida. To sponsor the lunch or purchase a ticket, visit http://tinyurl.com/odRedMass or contact Keith Hesse, [email protected].

DIOCESAN EVENTS WITH BISHOP JOHN NOONAN

The season of Thanksgiving through Christmas can be a difficult time. It may be you lost someone this year…to death, divorce, or estrangement. Or you may have a high conflict extended family, or family member. The causes may be endless, but the distress doesn’t have to be! Reveille Counseling is offering a 3-week group to help you to:

• Free yourself from unhealthy patterns in the areas where you have influence.

• Identify options in your unique circumstances using your own personal strengths.

• Activate a plan to reduce distress and celebrate these holidays with purpose and joy!

Register for this group by calling us at 407-333-0404, oremail [email protected] or [email protected].

The group will meet weekly from 11/4–11/18, at 2:30 p.m..At 3074 W. Lake Mary Blvd., Ste 132, Lake Mary, 32746

The cost is $35 per session. Registration is required as space is limited.

CONQUERING HOLIDAY STRESS

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ADVERTISEMENT 8Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic

There are 600,000 people living in poverty in the Diocese of Orlando. - Florida KIDS COUNT

240,500 of them are children. - Florida KIDS COUNT

Lakeland and Orlando rank in the top ten hungriest metropolitan areas in the United States. - Food and Research Action Center, 2013

Central Florida has one of the highest numbers of chronically homeless people in the United States. - Impact Homelessness

Orange, Seminole, and Osceola Counties combined rank 2nd for both the total number of homeless people and for the total number of homeless veterans. - U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development

19.2% of people in Polk County live below poverty level. - USDA Economic Research Service

30.2% of them are children. - USDA Economic Research Service

Bring God’s Hope to those in need

Help Prevent Homelessness and Provide Rent, Electricity, Medicine and Food to Families in Crisis

“We honor the people served by Catholic Charities of Central Florida as we minister to them, acknowledging their dignity as children of God.”

– Bishop John Noonan

► Participate in the special collection at parishes Nov. 1 and 2►“Donate” at www.cflcc.org/specialcollection2014► Mail a donation to: Catholic Charities of Central Florida Special Collection 1819 N. Semoran Blvd., Orlando, FL 32807

► Call 888-658-2828 for more information

How you can Help

To change lives, we need your help. Join us!

www.cflcc.org • [email protected] • 888-658-2828

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ADVERTISEMENT9 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 201432312-1024

FLORIDACatholicPALM BEACH EDITION


years and still going strong30

LINDA REEVES of the Florida Catholic staff

PALM BEACH GARDENS | Lorraine Sabatella clearly recalls a day in June 1984 when Pope John Paul II announced the creation of a new Florida diocese.

At the time, Sabatella, current chan-cellor of the Palm Beach Diocese, was working at St. Paul of the Cross Parish in North Palm Beach, which was consid-ered the northern tip of the Miami Arch-diocese. But after that announcement was made, Palm Beach Gardens became the center of a new diocese with the mis-sion chronicled in Matthew’s Gospel, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations.”

“How exciting it was to learn that we in the northern portion of the Archdio-cese of Miami would become our own diocese,” Sabatella said. “Little did I know then that I’d soon be asked to help set up a diocesan Marriage Tribunal, working with the newly appointed judi-cial vicar, Father Tim Lynch, as one of a handful of employees in rented offices with folding chairs, makeshift tables and typewriters.”

Three decades later, the diocese has its own chancery building equipped with more modern office chairs, desks and computers. As Palm Beach cel-ebrates its 30th anniversary, it focuses on the growth, which has increased by

Palm Beach Diocese marks three decades of ministry

‘Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.’ — Mt 13:31-32

‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. ...

Please see diocese, 2

april 13, 2007: Tara Worley is baptized by Father Donald Finney of st. Peter Parish in Jupiter during the 2007 easter Vigil.

Jan. 6, 2006: Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito visits inmates at the Palm Beach County Jail. (FC FIle PHOTOs)

april 4, 1986: Pro-life participants gather at sanborn square, Boca Raton.

sept. 6, 1985: Bishop Thomas Daily visits Belle Glade.

sept. 16, 1999: Deacons steve McMahon and Dennis Demes at a deacon ordination in august 1999.

June 27, 1996: sally Henshaw of Boynton Beach delivers donated bread to a Guatemalan woman in lake Worth.

CNA/EWTN News







synod on the family

final report released

Please see sYNod, 15

Bishops from around the world attend the synod on the Family. (CNa/eWTN NeWs)

2Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR PALM BEACH COMMUNITY

‘Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the ages.’

— Mt 28:19-20

leaps and bounds, and continues to strive beyond challenges so that its mission remains constant: building up and uniting the members of the body of Christ.

Annette Russell, executive secre-tary to Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito, has been part of the diocesan fam-ily and witnessed its birth and growth since early years. She said she is “so very blessed” to serve the diocese and the “ever-growing ministry of the Church.”

“Although we are a relatively young diocese and have had some difficult challenges ... we are still at a very ex-citing time because we have a very strong faith community and the dio-cese has kept true to its mission and in the growth of our ministry and service to those in need and the faith commu-nity,” Russell said.

THE STARTThe Palm Beach Diocese was cre-

ated from portions of the Miami Arch-diocese and the Orlando Diocese in the summer of 1984. Five counties — Indian River, Martin, Okeechobee, Palm Beach and St. Lucie — make up the diocesan area that covers 5,115 square miles.

Pope John Paul II officially es-tablished the diocese Oct. 24, 1984, and Bishop Thomas V. Daily was installed as the first bishop during ceremonies at the Cathedral of St. Ig-natius Loyola. Bishop Daily immedi-ately began the difficult job of setting the course of building the city of God here with the help of faithful and the support of faith-filled families and individuals.

“We worked with Bishop Daily to launch a new diocese,” Sabatella said. “Now 30 years later, I’m so proud and blessed to still be a part of this vibrant, diverse Diocese of Palm Beach under the leadership of our wonderful, holy and truly humble shepherd, Bishop Gerald Barbarito, serving God, the clergy and the people throughout our five counties and beyond. What a jour-ney this has been.”

Since the very beginning of the journey, the Palm Beach Diocese grew. On the one-year anniversary, faithful celebrated with a party at the Shera-ton Resort in Palm Beach Gardens. Church leaders attended, including

the late Archbishop Edward A. Mc-Carthy of Miami.

The archbishop described the first year of the diocese as one “full of chal-lenges in creating the structure, but one of change and growth.” Bishop Daily, in attendance and celebrating his installation anniversary, joyously responded in song, singing a Carpen-ters hit, “We’ve Only Just Begun.”

GROWTH IN EARLY YEARSThe South Florida area in general

had also just begun to grow and de-velop its seaside communities and agricultural areas. Statistics show that there were 117,120 Catholics in the area, and to minister to them, the dio-cese began with 38 parishes and one mission, served by 60 diocesan priests, 47 active religious priests, 13 perma-nent deacons, 82 religious sisters and four religious brothers.

The tropical area continued to at-tract New Yorkers, Bostonians and Midwesterners, and Haitian, West In-dian, Hispanic and Asian immigrants along with snowbirds and vacationers. The area grew in population and cul-tural diversity.

Willie Peralte, a parishioner of Holy Family in Port St. Lucie and a native of Haiti, came to the area in 1987. He at-tended St. Lucie Parish in Port St. Lu-cie, and later became a parishioner at Holy Family.

“It was nice. I had just arrived here and I felt like I belonged,” Peralte said. “The pastor encouraged me to become involved.”

PROGRESS MADEBecause of its geographic charac-

teristics and its economic profile, the

Palm Beach Diocese became known for both its extreme wealth along the Gold Coast, and its poverty in rural ar-eas and portions of cities. And by 1990, it was one of the fastest-growing dio-ceses in the United States. As a result of the growth, the diocese continued to expand ministries and initiatives, outreach and services.

By August 1990, five more parishes and a mission were established. There were 74 active priests incardinated in the diocese and 46 religious order priests. Five men had been ordained for the diocese, and seven candidates were studying for the priesthood at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach.

The diocese also had 16 elementary schools, three high schools, the re-gional seminary, St. Mary’s Hospital, the Cenacle Retreat House and various social services through Catholic Char-ities with 10 branch offices throughout the diocese.

The diocesan Pastoral Center, lo-cated next to the Cathedral of St. Ig-natius Loyola, was dedicated January 1989 to house diocesan offices and the Catholic Charities main office. Funds for the $2 million, 27,600-square-foot structure were provided through the “New Beginnings” fund established by Bishop Daily in 1988. Prior to the construction of the building, diocesan offices were located in rented space in an office complex one mile south of the cathedral at North Military Trail and Northlake Boulevard.

The following years brought more growth to the area, especially in the western communities where devel-opment took over the farms and agri-cultural fields. The population grew quickly in the northern part of the dio-cese as well. At one point, Port St. Lucie was one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States. Today, figures esti-mate the diocese’s Catholic popula-tion at nearly 235,000.

New parishes were formed to better serve God’s people here, and churches and schools have been built. Today the diocese has a total of 50 parishes and three missions, and three high schools, 12 elementary schools and three preschools. In total, 63 priests have been ordained for the Diocese of Palm Beach over the years. The dio-cese’s permanent deacon program, established more than 10 years ago,

From 2

Please see anniversary, 3

Diocese: Southeast Florida Catholic community thrives and grows

Feb. 23, 1996: Thomas and marion rosato of Holy redeemer Parish in Palm City kiss at the annual Wedding anniversary mass.

June 25, 1998: Bishop raymond W. lessard of savannah, Ga., stands with Father Brian Horgan following the priest’s ordination mass in Cork, Ireland.

Dec. 4, 2009: Teens take part in “Catholympics,” held during a diocesan event for middle school students.

sept. 6, 1985: Pope John Paul I I freshman Billy mcCleneghin carries his books.

Nov. 8, 1991: lillian Fournier and son Victor attend a Catholic Charities listening session for parents of adults with developmental disabiltiies.

Nov. 28, 2004: Bishop Gerald m. Barbarito visits with Carmelite sisters for the aged and Infirm during an anniversary celebration.

Jan. 12, 1990: Bishop Thomas Daily installs Father leslie Cann as pastor of st. Christopher Parish in Hobe sound. (FC FIle PHoTos)

3 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014YOUR PALM BEACH COMMUNITY

Bishop Thomas V. Daily was appoint-ed fou nd i ng bishop July 17, 1984. He was installed Oct. 24, 1984. He served until he was transferred

to New York, where he served as bishop of Brooklyn.

Bishop J. Keith Symons was installed as bishop July 31, 1990. He served until June 2, 1998.

Bishop Anthony J. O’Connell was installed as bishop Jan. 14, 1999. He served until March 8, 2002.

Cardinal Sean P. O’Malley of t he Order of Friars Mi-nor Capuchin c o m m u n i t y was installed as bishop Oct. 19, 2002. He served u nt i l Ju ly 1,

2003. He was installed as arch-bishop of Boston July 30, 2003, and elevated to the College of Cardinals Feb. 22, 2006.

Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito was appointed July 1, 2003. He was ordained Jan. 31, 1976, as a priest for the Diocese of Brooklyn, N.Y. His minist r y

there included serving as a par-ish priest, assistant chancellor and vice chancellor. He served as master of ceremonies for Aux-iliary Bishop Joseph P. Denning and was episcopal secretary to Bishop Thomas V. Daily, when he was bishop of Brooklyn. Bish-op Barbarito was appointed aux-iliary bishop of Brooklyn June 28, 1994, and ordained bishop of Brooklyn Aug. 22, 1994. He served as regional bishop for Brooklyn Vicariate East and vicar for ministry responsible for ongoing formation of priests. He was appointed bishop of the Diocese of Ogdensburg, N.Y., and installed Jan. 7, 2000. Since 1994, Bishop Barbarito has served as a member of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on the Relationship between Eastern and Latin Rite Catholic Churches, as well as the Canonical Affairs Commit-tee. He served on the board of directors for Catholic Legal Im-migration Network, and cur-rently serves on the Committee for the Protection of Children and Young People. He serves as the vice president of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops and is the episcopal liaison for its Education Committee.

has formed 46 men, who have been ordained and are serving in various ministries of the Church.

MOVING FORWARDThe diocese continues to face

an ever-changing population of di-verse cultures and organizing ways to best minister to and evangelize the people here and unite all as one holy Catholic Church. During the 25th anniversary jubilee celebrated Oct. 24, 2009, Bishop Barbarito said Catholics should “look back with gratitude” and “look forward with great hope.”

Bishop Barbarito reminded those gathered how the diocese is still relatively young, but with many accomplishments and an integral part of the history of the 2,000-year-old Church of Jesus Christ. He said God is calling all here to continue

to carry out the mission of the Lord, and reminded all to turn to Our Lady Queen of the Apostles, patron-ess of the diocese, for help.

“We look to Mary to continue to guide us to her Son and to help us appreciate better his presence in the Eucharist,” he said. “May we draw strength from Christ’s pres-ence among us and continue to grow in love as we build up his body here in the Diocese of Palm Beach, this great city of God.”

The diocese is young, but it does have many accomplishments all in the name of carrying out the mis-sion and ministry of Jesus Christ. The achievements go beyond the construction of buildings. Over the past 30 years, clergy have bap-tized 136,847 people. That figure is greater than the population of many towns in America, including Clearwater and Pompano Beach in Florida. There have been nearly 100,000 people, who have gone through formation and received the sacrament of holy Commu-nion. Nearly 65,000 people have been confirmed, and nearly 30,000 marriages have been celebrated in the various parishes, uniting cou-ples on their journeys to family life and having children, the future of the Church.

“The diocese has grown so quickly and so beautifully,” said Peralte. It is beautiful.”

Don Kazimir, director of Catho-

lic Charities Respect Life Ministry, has been involved with the dio-cese since the early years. He has watched Catholics get more in-volved in issues of concern to the Church, and credits education and evangelization of the ministry of the Church. He watched initiatives such as the pro-life movement grow across the diocese and America, and more and more Catholics striv-ing to get better informed on legis-lation and policy-making. He began working full time and became part of the diocesan family in 1995.

“Since then, I became aware of all the wonderful things the Cath-olic Church does throughout the world to carry out God’s plan,” he said. “I’m very proud of our Church and this feeling continues to grow every day.” n

The diocesan archives depart-ment contributed statistics for this story.

Diocese of Palm Beach Anniversary Mass: Oct. 24, 11:30 a.m., Chapel of Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola, 9999 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens. Celebration and thanks-giving to mark the 30th anniver-sary of the Diocese of Palm Beach. Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito, main celebrant. 561-622-2565.

FYIFrom 2

anniversary: Palm Beach Diocese looks toward future with optimism and prayers

Five shepherds of the Palm Beach Diocese

July 29, 1988: Bishop Thomas V. Daily, left, installs Father Thomas J. rynne as pastor of St. martin de Porres Parish in Jensen Beach, offering him the keys to the church and document of assignment. (FC FILE PHoToS)

Feb. 13, 1987: msgr. John mcmahon, then vicar of Social Services, and Eileen Comiskey accept the Lourdes Auxiliary Humanitarian Award.

oct. 9, 1987: mary Lou Tansey, left, Father James murtagh and Patricia Cantieri review plans for a new developmentally oriented kindergarten classroom at Holy Name of Jesus School.

REFLECTING ON 30 YEARS

JIM DAVISFlorida Catholic correspondent

PALM BEACH GARDENS | Rumors crackled as early as 1983: A new branch of the Church — the Diocese of Palm Beach — was about to be born.

The priests reacted with excite-ment, the old-timers among them recall.

“It was a whole new world. We’d start everything from scratch,” said Msgr. John McMahon, 73, pastor emeritus of St. Joan of Arc in Boca Raton. “We were in on the ground floor, establishing a new area of the Church.”

Father Thomas Rynne, nearly 87, retired pastor at St. Martin de Porres in Jensen Beach, echoed the sentiments. “We’d be starting

Palm Beach Diocese needed a dis-tinct identity: Who is in it; what it’s good at; how it serves.

“We were kind of isolated from

New diocese is ‘whole new world’ Veteran priests recall diocese’s past, look to its future

off in a new diocese. Not that we wanted to get away from the old one, but it was nice to start a new venture. I was very happy about it.”

But how does one begin a dio-cese? With, well, beginnings — innovations, buildings, organiza-tional structures — and a strong, ebul l ient bishop l ike Bishop Thomas V. Daily.

The priests remember Bishop Daily, who served the diocese from 1984 to 1990, as an outgoing man, ready to try new solutions and willing to listen, though un-afraid of making decisions.

“He was an outstanding pas-tor, easy to get along with,” said Father Seamus Murtagh, 79, most recently the pastor of St. Ann in West Palm Beach. He believes PLEASE SEE priests, 4

‘We were kind of isolated from Miami, and we felt like a stepchild. And each parish felt like the Lone Ranger. Bishop Daily built an identity for the diocese.’

— Msgr. John McMahon

the bishop learned that flexibility during his tenure as a missionary in Latin America.

An example was retirement at 65, an option the diocesan priests requested. At first, Bishop Daily demurred, then he said, “Well, if that’s what the troops want … ,” Father Murtagh said.

Bishop Daily also had a sense of order, according to Msgr. McMa-hon. “He worked on putting some structure into the diocese, build-ing a community. He tried to work in a collegial manner, yet having everyone know who reports to whom.”

That was good for a young dio-cese that was more than 60 miles from its former mother church in Miami, Msgr. McMahon said. But to run independently, the new

4Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR PALM BEACH COMMUNITY31641-1024

Miami, and we felt like a step-child,” Msgr. McMahon recalled. “And each parish felt like the Lone Ranger. Bishop Daily built an iden-tity for the diocese.”

One characteristic of the new diocese turned out to be resilience, the monsignor recalled: through five bishops, through welcoming people of social, ethnic and eco-nomic backgrounds.

The diocese also developed a sense of being a “Church for the poor,” he added. He mentioned churches that serve farmworkers, such as St. Philip Benizi in Belle Glade.

Another mark of compassion was a home for AIDS patients, a rarity in an age when many people feared even touching the patients. The home closed when medica-tions were developed to treat the disease, Father Murtagh said.

Also big on the diocesan menu are the annual collection for Catho-lic Charities, and support drive for St. Vincent de Paul Regional Semi-nary. The seminary has launched a building program to accommodate projections of record enrollment, the priests noted.

Father Murtagh likewise praised Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito, who arrived in 2003. He was a natural choice to take over the diocese

founded by Bishop Daily, for whom he once worked as chancellor in Brooklyn, Father Murtagh said.

He sees Bishop Barbarito as qui-eter, more low-key than the found-ing bishop “dealing with people in a friendly, personable way,” he said. “It’s a different style.”

Msgr. McMahon sees the bish-op’s leadership as a subtle way of running a diocese, yet keeping in touch with the Church at large. “He challenges us to work through the tension of pyramid and con-ciliar approaches. It’s easy to be provincial.”

Continuing challenges? The diocese has its share, the veteran priests agreed.

Father Murtagh said the dio-cese needs an endowment for its schools. “Tuition is getting too expensive for some parents. Chil-dren should be able to go even if they can’t afford it. That makes such a difference to the Church in the long run.”

Msgr. McMahon said that thou-sands of Central American chil-dren are expected to f lee to the U.S. for refuge. Catholic Charities of Palm Beach is looking into this major issue that is in the forefront. He hopes the diocese will continue its habits of flexibility and creativ-ity.

“Pope Francis said the Church is a hospital in a battlefield,” he said. “What worked in the past won’t work tomorrow. We’ll have to look at our pastoral approach and see if

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it fits in with the values we have.”That kind of nimble approach

will help the diocese meet its chal-lenges, the monsignor said. “It’s still new and has a lot of energy. Some good men are coming up. It has good leadership.”

Father Rynne is even more san-guine about the future of the dio-cese. “I hope that it continues to advance as it is. I consider it a great honor that I was part of it.” n

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DIOCESE OF PALM BEACH

Vol. 75, No. 24

LIVING THE TRUTH IN

LOVE

Bishop Gerald

Barbarito

Oct. 24 is a very significant and joyful day for the Diocese of Palm Beach. It is the 30th anniversary of the establishment of this vibrant and still-growing diocese by Pope John Paul II. Thirty years ago, with the Diocese of Venice to our west, we came into existence with our territory having been carved from the Archdiocese of Miami and the Diocese of Orlando. We have grown significantly in these 30 years with

an increase of popu lat ion a s well as churches to accommodate the population. We continue to c ompr i s e f i ve c o u n t i e s i n southern Florida made up of the faithful of vari-ous ethnic back-grounds from Se-bastian to Boca Raton, and from Okeechobee to

Palm Beach. We continue to grow as the living body of Christ here in southern Florida.

We are still a young diocese compared to the length of years other U.S. dioceses have been in existence. Placed next to the his-tory of the Church, which extends for almost 2,000 years, the length of existence of the Diocese of Palm Beach is miniscule. Nevertheless, as part of the universal Church, our birth truly goes back to Pentecost itself and we are an integral part of the history and life of the Church.

Of the many blessings of the Diocese of Palm Beach, one of them now is that we were estab-lished by a saint of the Church — St. John Paul II. Soon, on Nov. 1, we will be celebrating All Saints’ Day. The celebration of All Saints’ Day is one in which we remember all the saints of the Church — those who are officially canonized, such as St. John Paul II, as well as all those who are now in the fullness of life with God in heaven. These include many people with whom we have lived such as our parents, spouses, grandparents, children, relatives and acquaintances. They also include those whom we sim-ply passed on the street without any recognition.

All Saints’ Day reminds us of the call to holiness which is made to each one of us. Holiness is what life is all about and it is in recognizing this that we find true joy, not only in the life to come, but here and now. As a diocese, we support each other in that call to holiness.

Holiness means living each and every day in the manner in which

God has called us. It means recog-nizing the presence of God in our lives and in the many different re-lationships that are part of them. Holiness recognizes that God loves each and every one of us in an inti-mate manner and wants us to enter into a real relationship with him.

Holiness does not mean that we are free from fault and sin. Quite the contrary is true. Holiness of life recognizes that we are all sinners and that Christ came to call us and to heal us. It is God who is the Lord of life and by depending on him and his mercy we come to know the fullness of life. Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, keeps reminding us of this.

Just five years ago we celebrat-ed our silver jubilee as a diocese. The theme for our celebration was “Twenty-five Years — a Eucharistic People.” The celebration of the Eu-charist transcends all of time as it brings before us the passion, death and resurrection of Christ, and unites us with the entire Church around the world including all the saints in the fullness of God’s king-dom. Whatever our ethnic back-ground may be, whatever our eco-nomic condition, whatever our age or whatever language we speak, in the Eucharist we truly become one family in Jesus Christ. We rejoice that now for 30 years we have been a eucharistic people and recognize that it is the Eucharist which will carry us into the many years ahead until the Lord ultimately comes at the end of the age and fully estab-lishes his kingdom.

On this 30th anniversary of our diocese, as we look toward the fu-ture, we do so with a great deal of hope. The Church has just complet-ed an Extraordinary Synod on the matter of the family. Family life will continue to be a priority within the Diocese of Palm Beach. The family is the “domestic Church” in which the love of God is first experienced.

During the coming year, much discussion and reflection will con-tinue to flow from the synod that was just concluded as the Church prepares for another Synod on the Family in October 2015. Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, will most like-ly be coming to the United States in September for the World Meeting of Families, which is to take place in Philadelphia. As a diocese of di-verse and vibrant families, we will continue to support family life in the Diocese of Palm Beach and to continue our efforts to realize, in the words of our founder, St. John Paul II, “As goes the family, so goes society.” We can certainly affirm that as goes the family, so goes the diocese!

Another priority in the life of the Diocese of Palm Beach for our fu-ture will be the encouragement of vocations to the priesthood and re-ligious life. However, in doing this, we realize that the primary voca-tion to which God calls most men and women is that of the family. It is from the family that vocations to the priesthood and religious life are encouraged. We need to continue to do all we can to instill in our young people the virtues of commitment and sacrifice which are the cornerstones of marriage, as well as of the priesthood and re-ligious life.

Pope Francis frequently reminds us that we live in a “throwaway cul-ture” and in this culture it is diffi-cult for young people to find true joy in life, which comes from such commitment. As we look to the fu-ture of the diocese, we look to pro-viding a culture of vocations, which heeds the call of God in life.

Another priority for the future of the life of the Diocese of Palm Beach is Catholic education. Two years ago we developed a “Strate-gic Vision 2020: Charting a Course for Excellence” which has outlined specific goals to be attained in our

30 years and looking forward

Our Lady Queen of the Apostles is the patroness of the Dioces of Palm Beach. The stained glass picutred above is from her namesake parish in Royal Palm Beach. (JIM DAVIS | FC)

Oct. 24 — 11:30 a.m., Mass, 30th anniversary of Diocese of Palm Beach, Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola Chapel, Palm Beach Gardens.

Oct. 25 — 2:30 p.m., Mass, Countdown to Krakow World Youth Day, Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola.

Oct. 26 — 11 a.m., Mass, installation of Father Peter Truong as pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish, Rivera Beach; 3 p.m., Mass, Knights and Ladies of the Holy Sepulcher, St. Vincent de Paul Seminary, Boynton Beach.

Oct. 29 — 5:30 p.m., Social/din-ner with Passionist Priests community, Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center, North Palm Beach.

Oct. 30 — noon, Luncheon, Catholic Charities Elder Affairs Program, Airport Hilton, West Palm Beach.

Nov. 2 — 10 a.m., Mass, All Souls’ Day, Our Lady Queen of Peace Cemetery, West Palm Beach; noon, Mass/lunch, Remembrance Tree, Dioc-esan Council of Catholic Women, St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary.

Nov. 4 — 11 a.m., Meeting/lunch, Central Deanery priests, St. Ann Parish, West Palm Beach.

Nov. 5 — 10 a.m., Taping of Television Mass, Parallax Studios, West Palm Beach.

Nov. 9-13 — Meeting, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Baltimore.

Nov. 11 — Pastoral Center closed in observance of Veterans Day.

BISHOP’S SCHEDULE

Catholic schools by the year 2020. We will continue to implement this plan, which emphasizes that, while our schools are meant to have the highest academic standards, their purpose is to do so in a thoroughly Catholic context in handing on the treasure of the Catholic faith to our young people. We also realize that Catholic schools are but one of the means of handing on our Catholic faith. Our religious education pro-grams for our young people as well as for adults will continue to be a priority in regard to our diocesan family.

As we celebrate this 30th an-niversary and look to the future with renewed hope, we continue to depend upon the Eucharist as that which brings us to the holiness of life to which our diocese is called. May St. John Paul II continue to intercede for us and our patroness, Our Lady Queen of the Apostles, continue to lead us to her Son as one family.

Congratulations to all! It is a joy for me to be part of this vibrant and faith-filled family. n











6Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR PALM BEACH COMMUNITY31667-1024

LINDA REEVESof the Florida Catholic staff

PORT ST. LUCIE | Father Son Linh Hoang held a big communi-ty event at St. Elizabeth Ann Se-ton that was not just for parishio-ners, but for their furry, feathered and finned friends as well.

Everything from cats and dogs to hamsters and horses arrived at the parish’s pet blessing Oct. 4 in honor of the feast of St. Francis of Assisi. Similar events were held at parishes around the diocese and the world.

St. Francis lived from 1181 to 1226. He was the son of a wealthy cloth merchant, who gave up all his worldly possessions to the poor to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. He is loved by Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Known for his great love of creatures, he is referred to as the patron saint of animals. In 1221, he founded the Order of Friars Minor, which today is known as the Franciscan order.

The Diocese of Palm Beach has two parishes served by Francis-can priests — St. Mark in Boyn-ton Beach and St. Lucie in Port St. Lucie. Both parishes held special weekend celebrations in honor of the founder of their order: St. Lu-cie Parish on Oct. 4 and St. Mark Parish on Oct. 5.

It was the f irst t ime Father Hoang held an animal blessing as parochial administrator of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. The event attracted a procession of families of the community and their ani-mals to the parish grounds that featured a big water dish and a small white statue of St. Francis of Assisi for celebrations.

Julia Cuccurullo, 12, attended ceremonies at St. Elizabeth. She snapped photos of some of the dogs and introduced people to

Feast of St. Francis celebrated through pet blessingsPeyton, her four-legged compan-ion.

“He likes to run and chase squirrels,” she said about her 4-year-old friend, held tightly in her arms.

During ceremonies, Fat her Hoang talked about St. Francis and his great love for all of God’s creatures, but he also mentioned the saint’s love of God and the Church and his witness as he ministered and gave to the poor.

Father Hoang prayed for the health of all the animals gath-ered on the grounds, then asked all to form a line. One by one, Fa-ther Hoang blessed each animal, some on a leash, others in car-riers and in cages and a couple wearing ribbons and bows.

“My Sophie brings me so much joy,” said George Trocchiano at-tending the blessing with his be-loved companion puppy. “She is a true gift from God.”

Father Hoang blessed Sophie, made the Sign of the Cross over her and gave her a pat on the head. Although he does not have a friend like Sophie, he does have pets: two goldfish named Gina and Tina.

“I have a 175-gallon tank at the rectory,” Father Hoang said.

He officially began his new ap-pointment at St. Elizabeth Sept. 1 and plans to carry on the bless-ing of animals ceremony next fall and add other events, activities and ministr y programs to the parish agenda this year. Only in the parish a short while, he has

Savannah Sternberg, 9, left, and her friend, Hope Piscottano, 9, cuddle Phoenix the cat during an animal blessing at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish.

Father Son Linh Hoang, parochial administrator of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Port St. Lucie, blesses Peyton held by her owner, Julia Cuccurullo, during an animal blessing ceremony at the parish Oct. 4.

Christine Warner pets Kramer, a Labrador mix, during a pet blessing event. (PHOTOS BY LINDA REEVES | FC)

31772-1024

helped raise $55,000 for the reno-vation of facilities on the parish property near the church. The project has begun.

“We will have six classrooms,” he said about the refurbishing of buildings that will add new space for additional religion classes. “We expect that the buildings will be completed by Christmas.”

A parking lot project is also underway at the parish. With the support of a generous donor, the parish is upgrading parking ar-eas.

“We are blessed,” said Father Hoang, who has a vision of con-tinuing to grow the parish in the footsteps of past leaders, in-cluding Father Edmund Szpieg, the retired pastor emeritus who served the parish since 1999. n Carol Sacchetti spends time with her dogs Sofia and Coco.

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DIOCESAN EVENTSDiocesan “Countdown to

Krakow”: Oct. 25-2-8 p.m., Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola, 9999 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens. Sponsored by the Office of Catechetical Leadership, Youth and Young Adult Ministry Formation. Theme: “Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy.” Features Mass, adoration and exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, singer and songwriter Jon Niven, dinner. All are encouraged to create a 22-inch-by-28-inch flag representing schools, parishes, ministries and organizations to which they are affiliated, and bring it to display. Dee Aitken, 561-622-2565, [email protected].

“Town and Gown”: Oct. 30, 7:30 p.m., St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, 10701 S. Military Trail, Boynton Beach. An evening for the community to join the students and faculty for a presentation, “When God Seems Silent” by Msgr. Michael Muhr, dean of Spiritual Formation. R.S.V.P. to Barbara, 561-732-4424.

All Souls Day Mass: Nov. 2, 10 a.m., Our Lady Queen of Peace Cemetery, 10941 Southern Blvd., Royal Palm Beach. 561-793-0711.

5th annual “Remembrance Tree” ceremony: Nov. 2, All Souls’ Day, noon, St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, 10701 S. Military Trail, Boynton Beach. Hosted by the Palm Beach Diocesan Council of Catholic Women and the seminary. Mass celebrated by Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito. For a small donation, you can honor your departed loved ones with this special memoriam. Guests can also attend a lunch that follows ceremony. Lunch cost: $10, reservations required. To make reservations or memoriam, call Barbara, 561-732-4424.

Night of worship with concert: Nov. 16, 7 p.m., Our Lady Queen of Peace Cemetery, 10941 Southern Blvd., Royal Palm Beach. Features Christian singer Audrey Assad. Advance admission: $15; $18 at the door. 561-793-0711 or ourqueen.org/events to purchase tickets.

Lumen Christi Gala, Dec. 13, The Breakers, 1 S. County Road, Palm Beach. Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito’s annual dinner dance to support Catholic schools. All net proceeds go to tuition scholarships, which are shared equally among diocesan schools. 561-775-9520. Specially priced hotel rooms for gala guests. Reservations required by Oct. 29. Call The Breakers, 1-866-751-7272 and request Lumen Christi rate.

Taping of televised Christmas Mass: Dec. 18, 5:30 p.m., Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola, 9999 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens. Main celebrant: Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito. Mass will air Christmas morning on local television for the benefit of the sick, homebound and others in the community. All participants are asked to wear fine holiday attire. Mass followed by holiday refreshments. 561-775-9529 or [email protected].

Permanent deacon formation: Applications now being accepted for next sessions, which begin Jan. 31, 2015. Men interested in applying for the program are asked to speak to their pastor for permission to apply. Applications can be downloaded by visiting the diocesan website, www.diocesepb.org. 561-775-9540.

Catholic Charities: • Elder affairs luncheon: Oct.

30, noon, Hilton Palm Beach Airport, 150 Australian Ave., West Palm Beach. Special tribute to representatives of local hospice organizations. All are invited. Ticket: $75. 561-345-2010.

• Adoption awareness workshop: Nov 1, 1-5 p.m., Birthline/Lifeline Pregnancy Care Center, 212 E. Boynton Beach Blvd., Boynton Beach. Presentation

focused on all aspects of adoption including legal matters, grant assistance, waiting period, domestic adoption in Florida and home-study requirements. 561-738-2060.

• Rosary gathering: First Saturdays, 9 a.m., near the Presidential Women’s Center in West Palm Beach, 100 Northpoint Parkway, West Palm Beach. Led by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Palm Beach Respect Life Office. 561-345-2000, ext. 287.

• Healing retreat for those suffering in the aftermath of abortion: Nov. 7-9, in Spanish, Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center, 1300 U.S. Highway 1, North Palm Beach. Developed by Rachel’s Vineyard healing ministry. Men and women invited. Opportunities to experience the grieving process and identify effects of abortion. Discussions, spiritual exercises, prayer and reflection. Sacrament of reconciliation offered. Memorial service honoring the aborted child and Mass. Participation and all calls strictly confidential. 561-602-4778 or [email protected].

• Christmas tea: Dec. 9, 2-5 p.m., Chesterfield Hotel, 363 Cocoanut Row, Palm Beach. Christmas-themed auction. Children’s choral performance. 561-630-2695 or [email protected].

COMMUNITY EVENTS

Presentation on life issues: Oct. 25, noon, St. Martin de Porres Parish, 2555 N.E. Savanna Road, Jensen Beach. Presenter: Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk, director of the National Catholic Bioethics Center. Topic: Care and treatment decisions for compromised patients or patients at the end of life. 772-334-4214.

International festival: Oct. 26, 1-5 p.m., St. Mark Parish, 643 St. Mark Place, Boynton Beach. Features ethnic food, entertainment and treasures of Italy, Ireland, Germany, the Caribbean islands, Africa, Guatemala and America. Cost: $10 adults; $5 children under 10. Public welcome. 561-734-9330.

Presentation on human trafficking: Oct. 29, 6 p.m., St.. Bernadette Parish, 30 N.W. California Blvd., Port St. Lucie. Hosted by parish social justice ministry. 772-336-9956.

Presentation on human trafficking: Oct 30, 7 p.m., St. Joan of Arc Parish, 370 S.W. Third St., Boca Raton. Presenter: Maurice Middleberg of the nonprofit organization Free the Slaves, dedicated to promoting awareness of modern-day slavery. 561-809-8378.

Bazaar: Nov. 1-2, Ascension Parish, 7250 N. Federal Highway, Boca Raton. Hosted by Council of Catholic Women. Crafters and

vendors invited. Reservations required for space. 561-414-1020 or [email protected].

Fall festival: Nov. 6, 6-10 p.m.; Nov. 7, 6 p.m.-midnight; Nov. 8, 1 p.m.-midnight; Nov. 9, 1-10 p.m., St. Luke Parish and School, 2892 S. Congress Ave., Palm Springs. Carnival rides, vendors, games, food, raffle. Proceeds benefit school renovations. 561-965-8980.

Festival of crafts: Nov. 8, 8:30 a.m.-2 p.m., Our Lady of Lourdes, 22094 Lyons Road, Boca Raton. More than 60 tables of handcrafted items. Baked goods, refreshments, children’s activities. Entertainment by characters in costume from “The Wizard of Oz” production. Raffle. Free admission. 561-483-2440

Gala: Nov. 8, 6 p.m., St. Anastasia Parish, 407 S. 33rd St., Fort Pierce. Entertainment by comedian Hank Western. Buffet, cocktails, music and games. Admission: $75 per person. Proceeds benefit educational needs of St. Anastasia School students. 772-461-2233.

Craft and tag sale: Nov. 8, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., St. Matthew Parish, 6090 Hypoluxo Road, Lake Worth. Vendors wanted. 561-434-5606, [email protected].

Holiday marketplace: Nov. 13, 6-9 p.m.; Nov. 14, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., St. Clare Parish, 821 Prosperity Farms Road, North Palm Beach. Over 25 vendors selling Christmas gifts and decor, handmade jewelry, handbags, accessories, art, home decor, personalized items and baked goods. Raffle. Smoothies, subs and salads. Sponsored by St. Clare School Association. Proceeds benefit school programs and needs. 561-312-1850.

Fall bazaar: Nov. 22, 7 a.m.-1 p.m.; Nov. 23, 7 a.m.-1 p.m., St. Francis of Assisi, 200 W. 20th St., Riviera Beach. Flea market with reasonably priced items. Food. Proceeds benefit parish. 561-758-3061.

40th annual arts and craft fair: Nov. 22, 9 a.m.-6 p.m.; Nov. 23, 8 a.m.-2 p.m., Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola, 9999 N. Military Trail, Palm Beach Gardens. Handmade items, holiday gifts and gifts for other occasions, bake sale, raffle, snack bar and activities for children. Proceeds benefit youth ministry and mission trips. 561-622-2565.

Music at St. Patrick: Nov. 30, 3 p.m., St. Patrick Parish hall, 13591 Prosperity Farms Road, Palm Beach Gardens. Performers: Orchid City Brass Band. Free, but free-will offering appreciated. 561-626-8626

Christmas concert: Dec. 12, 7:30 p.m., Our Lady Queen of the Apostles, 100 Crestwood Blvd. S., Royal Palm Beach. Features performances by Alexis Rizzolo and Christine Zaide. 561-798-5661.

Men’s Scripture study and discussion: Tuesdays 7-9 p.m., Holy Name of Jesus, Holy Family Room, 345 S. Military Trail, West Palm Beach. Led by Deacon Jack Hamilton. 561-722-6793.

Prayer gathering: Fridays, 9:45 a.m., and Tuesdays, 3 p.m., 8177 Glades Road, Boca Raton. Pray with others for the end of abortion. 561-347-1636.

Prayer gathering: Fridays, 5 p.m., on the sidewalks near A Woman’s World Medical Center that offers abortion services, 503 S. 12th St., Fort Pierce. Treasure Coast rosary group leads rosary recitation for the end of abortion. 772-465-8298.

Pray the rosary for life: Saturdays, 9-10 a.m., sidewalks just north of the Wellington Regional Medical Center, 10101 Forest Hill Blvd., Wellington. All invited to pray for the end of abortions. 561-784-0689.

RETREATS/DAYS OF PRAYER

Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center: Retreats and programs available. Season theme: “Blessed are you.” Reservations required except when stated. Location: 1300 U.S. Highway 1, North Palm Beach. 561-626-1300 or www.ourladyofflorida.org:

• Centering prayer: Wednesdays, 4-5 p.m., main chapel.

• Silent weekend retreat: Oct. 31-Nov. 2. “Blessed are you,” led by retreat team. Cost: $195.Deposit and registration required.

• Day of reflection: Nov. 5, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13), led by Passionist Father Paul Wierichs. Cost: $30. Reservations required.

• Depression recovery: Nov. 14-16. “We live in hope,” led by Passionist Father John Powers. Cost: $225. Registration and deposit required.

• Day of reflection: Dec. 3, 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. “Advent: A Time for Turning,” led by Passionist Father Damian Tower. Cost: $30. Reservation required.

• Advent day of reflection: Dec. 20, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., led by retreat team. Concludes with Mass for the fourth Sunday of Advent. Cost: $30. Reservation required.

Cenacle, spiritual direction and programs: 1400 S. Dixie Highway, Lantana. 561-249-1621.

• Centering prayer: Thursdays, 7-8:30 p.m. Free-will offering appreciated.

ANNOUNCEMENTSTheology study program:

Wednesdays and one weekend a month, St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary, 10701 S. Military Trail, Boynton Beach. Master level degree program for laypersons. Degree sessions begin January 2015. 561-732-4424, ext. 151.

Women of Grace ministry program is seeking volunteers to facilitate study programs for English-speakers and also for Spanish-speakers. Training sessions are held at St. Joan of Arc Parish ministry buildings, 319 S.W. Third Street, Boca Raton. Registration: Martha Nicolli, 561 212 8673 or [email protected].

Events listed on this page and others taking place in the Diocese of Palm Beach are listed on the Events Calendar on the diocesan website at www.diocesepb.org/events. Organizers/ministry leaders can promote activities by visiting the website and going to the News and Events section for submission information. Submitted information may also appear in diocesan E-News. For more information, please contact the Office of Communications at 561-775-9529.

Promote diocesan, Parish and school haPPenings Weekly Televised Mass: The

televised Catholic Mass airs each Sunday at 9:30 a.m. on Ion Televi-sion Networks (check your local listing), featuring priests of the five-county diocese and Bishop Gerald M. Barbarito. Weekly homilies are available online at www.diocesepb.org/videos. To support the Catholic Mass, please contact the Diocese of Palm Beach Office of Communica-tions at 561-775-9529.

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561-793-0711 • www.ourqueen.org • 10941 Southern Blvd., Royal Palm Beach, FL

All Souls Day Mass – Sunday, Nov. 2 at 10 a.m.The Most Reverend Gerald M. Barbarito, Bishop of the Diocese of Palm Beach, will celebrate All Souls Day Mass. All clergy, parishioners, families and friends of the Diocese of Palm Beach are invited to attend this Mass in remembrance of our beloved Faithful Departed. Light refreshments will follow. Please note: This Mass fulfills your Sunday obligation.

Veterans Day Mass – Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 11:30 a.m.This Mass in our outdoor chapel, celebrated by Father Julian Harris of St. Thomas More, willbe offered on Veterans Day. The dedication of our new Veterans Memorial will follow,along with light refreshments.

Night of Worship with Audrey Assad – Sunday, Nov. 16 at 7 p.m.You are invited to join us for a powerful evening of praise with Audrey Assad, acclaimed Catholic music artist. Her recent “Death, Be Not Proud” album beautifully reflects our message as a Catholic cemetery, that Jesus Christ has conquered sin and death.

Visit ourqueen.org/events for more information or to purchase tickets.First 100 youth and college students to email [email protected] receive free tickets to the concert!

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National leader offers youth ministers real stats, helpful tipsJIM DAVISFlorida Catholic correspondent

MIAMI SHORES | Inspiring young Catholics to embrace their faith takes more than just segre-gating them into ministries just for their age range, according to one expert in youth ministry.

To help younger Catholics cre-ate an “emotional connection to the faith community,” it will take “engagement” and “integration,” especially since engagement leads to spiritual commitment.

“For my generation, belief led to belonging,” said Robert McCarty, executive director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Min-istry. “For the modern generation, it’s the opposite: Belonging leads to behavior, and behavior leads to be-lief.”

McCarty spoke at a Sept. 16 meeting at Miami’s Pastoral Center which brought 87 officials from 36 schools, parishes and other minis-tries. Improving outreach to youths is part of the archdiocese’s Strategic Pastoral Plan, issued in October. Among other goals, the 28-page document called for more effective ministry to parishioners 18-35 years old. It also called for the reopening of an archdiocesan Office for Youth and Young Adults, something that was accomplished this month when Rosemarie Banich was hired as its director. (See accompanying story.)

McCarty’s presentation — one of two dozen he gives each year across the U.S. — was aimed at explaining the emotional makeup of modern

youths, and how to help them build a relationship with the Church.

After an introduction by Stephen Colella, the archdiocese’s new di-rector of Evangelization and Parish Life, McCarty gave interesting stats:

• 44 percent of American adults have changed their religious affili-ation, and 20 percent are now unaf-filiated.

• Only 68 percent of people brought up Catholic continue in the Church — a slide of more than 20 percentage points from the older generation.

• 60 percent of Catholics who are now unaffiliated left the Church be-tween 13 and 23 years old.

• Only 32 percent of all Ameri-cans 18-29 years old are affiliated with any religion — the group com-monly called the “Nones.”

• Only 39 percent of Catholics

now marry in the Church.McCarty’s dire summary: “Our

youths and young adults are just bleeding out. We have to make a full-court press.”

How to do that? McCarty said it would take “engagement” and “integration” to help form relation-ships, which is a natural approach for Catholics.

“Our relationship with Jesus Christ has to do with our relation-ship with the community of be-lievers,” he added. “It is not an in-dividual religion; it’s a communal religion.”

McCarty offered a few ideas on how to engage and mainstream young parishioners:

• Having them take part in li-turgical events, like Stations of the Cross and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament.

• Sponsoring “intergenerational” parish events, like social gatherings and service projects, not only with adults, but with their own families.

• Holding blessings of pets, bi-cycles, even car keys. The youths should also be formally blessed just

before leaving for a mission, Mc-Carty recommended.

He finished with a bit of en-couragement for the youth leaders themselves. “We’re in this for the long haul,” he said. “These kids are going to be different adults because of what we did.”

Asked their reaction, youth lead-ers often used two words — “ex-cited” and “energized” — as much from hearing from one another as from McCarty.

“It’s exciting to see all the efforts in support of youth,” said Ivan-nia Van Arman, youth minister at Blessed Trinity Church, Miami Springs. “It’s good to get reminders of what works.”

Also at the meeting were officials of Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart in Coconut Grove, run by the Religious of the Society of the Sacred Heart. They came away en-thusiastic.

“I feel renewed, excited to work with the girls tomorrow,” said Eri-ca Ramirez, the school dean. “We need continual opportunities for

Daphne Dominique, assistant to the principal at Archbishop Curley Notre Dame Prep and youth minister at St. Martha Parish, listens to Robert McCarty’s presentation Sept.16. (MARLENE QUARONI | FC)

renewal.”Her campus minister, Consi

Panzer, agreed. “(McCarty) lit a fire. Sometimes we need that. We need to rethink what we know.”

Colella, the archdiocesan direc-tor of evangelization and parish life, said he has heard similar reactions. “They’ve felt energized and said they were thankful that they were not alone. And they’re excited at the prospect of archdiocesan training.”

Daphne Dominique, assistant to the principal at Archbishop Curley- Notre Dame Prep in Miami and a member of St. Martha Parish in Mi-ami Shores, said it’s important to re-alize young people want to feel they are part of the community. “(They seek) acceptance from older people, a sense of belonging to the Church. They get pushed away.”

McCarty also spoke on youth outreach at the archdiocese’s con-vocation for priests the following day. As he wrapped up his talk, he said, he got a standing ovation.

“It’s the first time I’ve seen that in 15-20 years,” McCarty said. “I hear the priests saying, ‘Yep, we get this.’”

The next goal in the Strategic Plan is to train 40 to 50 young adults in peer-to-peer ministry. Also ahead are elements such as training parish-based young adult missionaries, publishing a list of youth ministry models, and holding youth retreats, including at least one in the Florida Keys.

Colella said he would turn the Strategic Plan into a “menu of possibilities” from which parish leaders could choose. He said the Strategic Plan is “aggressive but wonderful.”

“I think people like having clear goals. They know they’re working hard and reaching people, and they want to reach more people. This is an exciting new chapter.” n

Robert McCarty, executive director of the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, pictured speaking at a priests convocation, also spoke to youth ministers Sept. 16 at the Archdiocese of Miami Pastoral Center. (ANA RODRIGUEZ-SOTO | FC)

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see story, page 2

Top, Father Patrick O’Connor, Oblates of St. Francis de Sales, Administrator of Jesus the Worker Mission in Fort Myers, leads a procession celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary Oct. 5. Above right, the faithful pray during a daylong celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary at Jesus the Worker Mission. Above left is a close-up of the statue of Our Lady of the Rosary used during the celebration. (PHOTOS BY BOB REDDY | FC)

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2Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic YOUR VENICE COMMUNITY

BoB Reddyof the Florida Catholic staff

FORT M Y ERS | Through prayer, song and reverence the faithful of Jesus the Worker Mis-sion in Fort Myers took time Oct. 5 to honor and celebrate Our Lady of the Rosary.

While Our Lady of the Rosary is the patroness of Guatemala, the celebration at Jesus the Worker was welcoming to the entire com-munity, which includes faithful from across the Americas.

Pope Francis said he finds great joy that the Universal Church des-ignates October to the holy rosary. “Mary accompanies us in prayer, particularly in the prayer of the rosary,” which Pope Francis said, “sustains us in the battle” against the “evil one and his accomplices.” The true source of this strength comes from prayer, which he called “the breath of faith. … When we call upon the intercession of Mary we ask that she help us to become more open to God’s sur-prises, to be faithful to Him each and every day, and to praise and thank Him, for He is our strength.”

The celebration at Jesus the Worker Mission began with a gathering in front of a temporary outdoor shrine to Our Lady of the Rosary. The shrine included a stat-ue that was placed on a platform adorned with flowers and rosaries. The faithful prayed the holy ro-sary before the platform was car-ried throughout the parking lot as music reflecting the community’s strong devotion to the Blessed Vir-gin was sung.

The ceremony was led by chil-dren dressed in traditional Guate-malan clothing and carrying flow-

Our Lady of the Rosary celebrateders. Many of the adults also carried flowers and wore traditional cloth-ing.

Father Patrick O’Connor, Ob-lates of St. Francis de Sales, Ad-ministrator of Jesus the Worker, then began the Mass after the dis-play was carried into the Church and placed to the right of the altar as a temporary shrine. He blessed the shrine with incense and holy water and then blessed the faith-ful with holy water.

D u r i ng t he Ma s s, Fat her O’Connor said a devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary through the praying of the rosary creates a strong bond within the commu-nity. “This is such a wonderful day that celebrates the Blessed Virgin in a special and inspiring way. Use Mary as a guide in your life and find the same devotion to Jesus as she had for her Son.”

While the faithful are blessed by the grace of God, Father O’Connor continued, everyone must take ad-vantage of this grace by honoring Him by the way we live our lives. The faithful can be aided in this effort “by continuing to seek the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, especially to Our Lady of the Rosary, as she continues in heaven to speak on our behalf.”

Naturally, the best way to seek the intercession of the Blessed Vir-gin is through regularly praying the rosary, he added.

After the Mass was concluded, rosaries were distributed which were made and donated by the faithful of St. Francis Xavier Par-ish in Fort Myers. Additional rosa-ries were distributed at each Mass throughout the weekend.

The celebration continued after the Mass and included a barbecue

with chicken and ribs, as well as Guatemalan food, and traditional and modern Guatemalan dancing.

The activities transitioned into the parish hall where people were entertained by wooden marimbas (a type of large xylophone played by six people at the same time), folk music and additional danc-ers. The dancers, first children and then adults, performed a variety of courting and celebratory dances. Some of the music and dancing has been passed down generation to generation for centuries.

Feast dayThe widely known feast of Our

Lady of the Rosary Oct. 7 marks the anniversary of the combined Christian fleet in the 16th century at the Battle of Lepanto defeating the Ottoman Empire fleet off the coast of Italy. Ahead of the battle, Pope Pius V called for all of Europe to pray the rosary for victory and led a rosary procession in Rome. After the victory, Pope Pius de-clared Oct. 7 the Feast of Our Lady of Victory, which transitioned to become the modern-day Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary.

Know n as the patroness of peace and conversion to Jesus, Our Lady of the Rosary has made a great impact on many cultures, none more so than for the people of Guatemala. The popular tra-dition that dates back centuries states that the Blessed Virgin Mary travelled through the Amer-icas with the Holy Child Jesus. The Infant Jesus fell asleep when they reached Guatemala and so they stayed there.

The depiction of this story is found in the modern representa-tion of Our Lady of the Rosary. The first known image in Guate-mala was commissioned in 1592. The statue depicts the Blessed

Mother holding the Christ Child in her arms and is made of pure silver. The image of the Blessed Virgin has a large rosary in her right hand and in the other hand she holds the Child who seems to be trying to free Himself from her embrace.

The original statue exists to this day, but the robes of Our Lady and the pedestal are not visible, having been covered by elaborate garments and ornaments. In 1821, Guatemalan patriots adopted Our Lady of the Rosary as the patron of the national independence move-ment.

The Virgin of the Rosary was solemnly declared “Queen of Gua-temala” in 1833 and was crowned canonically Jan. 26, 1934, in a ceremony in the principal square

Praying the RosaryHolding the crucifix, make the Sign of

the Cross and recite the Apostles’ Creed.Say the Our Father. Say three Hail

Marys. Say the Glory Be.Announce the First Mystery; then say

the Our Father. Say 10 Hail Marys. Say the Glory Be.

After each decade say the following prayer requested by the Blessed Virgin Mary at Fatima: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fire of hell, lead all souls to Heaven, especially those who have need of your mercy.”

Announce the next Mystery and repeat above. Conclude the rosary by praying the Hail Holy Queen.THE MYSTERIES OF THE ROSARY

Joyful (Monday and Saturday)The AnnunciationThe VisitationThe NativityThe Presentation Jesus in the Temple

The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple

Sorrowful (Tuesday and Friday)The Agony in the GardenThe Scourging at the PillarThe Crowning with ThornsThe Carrying of the CrossThe CrucifixionGlorious (Wednesday and Sunday)The ResurrectionThe AscensionThe Descent of the Holy Spirit The AssumptionThe Coronation of the

Blessed Virgin MaryLuminous (Thursday)The Baptism in the JordanThe Wedding Feast of CanaThe Proclamation of the

Kingdom of GodThe Transfiguration of Our LordThe Institution of the Eucharist

PRAYING THE ROSARY

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of Guatemala City in front of the Cathedral because there was no church large enough to hold the multitude that had gathered. The crown on the head of the blessed image is a valuable silver jewel with which the people of Guate-mala wanted to show their de-votion and enthusiasm for their patroness. It is studded with 121 emeralds, 80 pearls and 44 dia-monds, a gold rose and more.

Devotees claim the coloring of her beautiful face changes from bright pink to a much more faded shade whenever there is a con-flict or some national misfortune is imminent. The entire month of October is occasion for national celebration, feasting and constant pilgrimages to the sanctuary of the Virgin of the Rosary. n

More than 1,000 people participate in a procession celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary Oct. 5 at Jesus the Worker Mission in Fort Myers. (BOB REDDY | FC)

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3 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014YOUR VENICE COMMUNITY

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DIOCESE OF VENICE

Vol. 75, No. 24

My Brot hers and Sisters and Christ,

As the Church prepares to cel-ebrate the magnificent Solemnity of All Saints on Nov. 1, it is helpful to reflect on the importance of the Saints in the life of the Church and in our own lives.

The celebration of the Solemnity of All Saints is a celebration of the uni-ty of the Church in the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ. In the Apostles’ Creed, the Church boldly proclaims, “I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Cat hol ic Chu rch, t he Communion of Saints.” The connection is clear — to be united in the Church is to be united with the Saints who are with Jesus in Heaven. It is good to have friends in such high places! They are the faithful members of the Body of Christ, who have gone before us, marked with the sign of Faith. They have fought the good fight; they have finished the race; they have kept the Faith (cf. 2 Tim 4:7). Because of this, we honor them and venerate them as mas-terpieces of God’s grace.

Pope Francis often prays for the intercession of particular saints and sees them as examples to follow in his own life, remark-ing that, “when I have a problem I ask the saints, not to solve it, but to take it in (their) hands and help

United in the saints of Christme accept it.” The Holy Father also reminds us that the saints are not superheroes, nor were they born perfect. “They are like us, like each of us, they are people who before reaching the glory of heaven lived a normal life, with joy and pain, weariness and hope.

… When they knew God’s love, they followed him with all their heart, with-out conditions or hypoc-risy; they spent their life in the service of others, they endured suffering and adversit y w ithout hate and responding to evil with good, spreading joy and peace.”

It is important to re-member that as part of the Church, we are never alone. The Saints care for us and they care about

our daily trials and struggles. As we go through the joys and chal-lenges of our lives, the Saints are there to help us grow in holiness. They constantly respond to the call to intercede for us, standing ready to help with their prayers and supplications. Therefore, we should turn to the Saints to ask for their help, confident that they will be our witnesses before the face of God.

Through the process of canon-ization, the Church recognizes the Saints as models and intercessors (CCC, 828) calling our attention and devotion to those who have lived and died for Christ. In the

history of the Church, the Saints have always borne witness to the love of God to the world despite challenges, difficulties, and even martyrdom. Even in some of our own lifetime, we praise God for the witness of saints such as St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) who died in a Nazi concentration camp for her Faith. We experienced the heroic sanc-tity of saints such as St. John XIII who called for the Second Vatican Council and St. John Paul II who helped us to live its teachings and whose feast day we celebrated just this week. We seek to exemplify the radical love and care for oth-ers that Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa) practiced, and we stand in union and solidarity in a special way with the saints in the Middle East who are being mar-tyred even today for their Faith. Most recently, Pope Francis be-atified Pope Paul VI, moving him one step closer to canonization and citing him as an example of a “great Pope, a courageous Chris-tian, and a tireless apostle who held fast — at times alone” against “the advent of a secularized and hostile society.” All of these saints, old and new, are gifts from God.

The Saints are not distant from us and we should not be distant from them. Many of us bear their names and thus that person is our patron saint, either directly or as Confirmation names, and we should know their feast days. For example, if your name is Patrick,

March 17 is the feast day of your patron. A great number of our par-ishes and institutions are proudly dedicated to them. We should know not only their names, but how they lived and how they died. We should know what their lives truly meant, their strengths, their characteristics, and where the grace of God operated in their lives. These should all be regularly remembered and celebrated.

The Solemnity of All Saints honors all the Saints of God and calls us to greater unity with Je-sus Christ and with His Body, the Church. Through our devotion to the Saints, we participate more fully in Our Lord Jesus Christ. As the old saying goes, the closer we come to Jesus, the closer we come to one another. The Saints show us that true unity is found in Christ and in His Body the Church and not in dissention from it.

Let us constantly remember the Saints that God, in His goodness, has given to us to be our broth-ers and sisters in the Faith, asking them to intercede for us and for the world.

United with you in Our Lord Je-sus Christ and in the Communion of the Saints,

+Frank J. DewaneBishop of Venice in Florida


SARASOTA | Supporters of Catholic schools are often willing to do almost anything to help ensure the students receive the best qual-ity education possible, including cooking their own meal at a benefit dinner.

The St. Martha Catholic School fourth annual interactive dinner, “Escape to the Caribbean,” was held Oct. 4 at Michael’s On East in Sarasota and presented by London Bay Homes. Event sponsors were Diamond Vault and Mercury Print-ing. The evening was co-chaired by Amanda Lopez and Courtney Ed-brooke.

Starting with a silent auction that included a variety of packages and gifts, the evening included the sounds of Caribbean music in the

Interactive dinner to benefit school is huge success

background and fun for all. Prior to dinner, St. Martha Catholic School Principal Siobhan Young welcomed everyone and hoped they would

have lots of fun. Bishop Frank J. Dewane also thanked everyone for supporting Catholic education, not-ing how the 200 or so guests clearly

recognized the value of such a qual-ity education. He gave the blessing over the meal and then the evening went into high gear with the start of the interactive dinner.

People from each table got up and began to cook with the guid-ance of a pair of chefs who talked the amateur cooks through the sau-téeing process step by step. The first course was Jamaican shellfish stew, followed by pan-seared jerk corvina then a curried flat iron steak. Des-sert was rum banana flambé with curry and coconut ice cream. Each table had its own fun, cheering on each new wave of cooks.

The evening also included a live auction that offered items such as trips, dinner with Father Fausto Stampiglia, Pallottines, Pastor of St. Martha Parish, prime parking at the school and even an orthodontic treatment. n

St. Martha Catholic School Assistant Principal Mary Trichter, right, and Principal Siobahn Young, center, cook during the school’s fourth annual Interactive dinner, “Escape to the Caribbean,” at Michael’s On East in Sarasota Oct. 4. (BOB REDDY | FC)

From the Bishop

Frank J. Dewane












SARASOTA | With the inten-tion of thanking and honoring all of the men and women who have served our country, and those who continue to serve our country today in the armed forces of the United States, Bishop Frank J. Dewane in-vites everyone to attend the annual Veterans Day Mass Nov. 11 at Sara-sota National Cemetery in Sarasota. With the completion of Patriot Plaza and pavilion, the Mass will be un-der cover and there will be ample on-site parking for those in atten-dance.

The opening ceremony begins at 2:45 p.m., followed by the Mass at 3 p.m. Bishop Frank J. Dewane will celebrate the Mass and he will be joined by concelebrating priests from across the Diocese.

The Mass on Veterans Day is celebrated to allow the faithful an opportunity to honor veterans and pray for them, many of whom are laid to rest at Sarasota National Cemetery.

“It is an honor and privilege to have the opportunity to celebrate Mass for the intention of our vet-erans each year at this important celebration,” Bishop Dewane said. “We gather to memorialize the sac-rifice of the soldiers who fought for the freedoms that we enjoy. We pray for those who have gone before and thank them for their service to their country, and honor the men and women who are buried at Sarasota National Cemetery and elsewhere.”

He said that it is important to remember and pray for those who answered the call to serve and gave their life for all of us to keep our liberties, while also taking time to pray for those they left behind. A special prayer intention will be made for the men and women who continue to serve our country in defense of the freedoms we hold dear.”

Prior to the start of the Mass there will be a presentation of the colors by a Knights of Columbus color guard. The opening proces-sion will then begin with members of the Knights of Columbus color

corps leading the way, followed by the concelebrating priests and Bishop Dewane.

Following the Mass, Bishop Dewane and the priests, escorted by the Knight of Columbus color corps, will proceed to the nearby graves where they will stand in si-lent prayer. At that time a U.S. Army honor guard will make a ceremoni-al rifle volley. This will be followed by the playing of taps.

A military display will be set up nearby with f lags represent-ing each branch of the U.S. armed forces: Army, Navy, Air Force, Ma-rines, Coast Guard and Merchant

Veterans Day Mass at National Cemetery

Marines. The flags will be flanked by uniformed members of Home-land Security. To recall how some-times the military services mark the death of a soldier there will be a “fallen soldier, battle cross”: a white cross with dog tags hanging from it, and a rifle and its bayonet embed-ded in the ground, with a helmet poised on top and a pair of empty military boots at the base. Also on display will be a wooden cross with candles.

All are welcome to attend the Mass. Active military personnel are asked to wear their uniforms for the occasion. Priests from across

The Knights of Columbus colors corps stands at attention at the conclusion of the 2013 Veterans Day Mass at Sarasota National Cemetery. The 2014 Mass will be celebrated in the newly opened Patriots Plaza at the cemetery. (FC FILE PHOTO)

the Diocese of Venice are invited to concelebrate at the Mass. It is being coordinated by the Diocese of Venice with special assistance from the fourth-degree Knights of Columbus.

Sarasota National Cemetery is located on State Road 72 (exit 205 at Clark Road), approximately four miles east of Interstate 75. A water station and restrooms will be in place for the ceremony. There will be handicapped parking and golf carts available to shuttle those who need extra assistance. Guests are encouraged to arrive early. n


SEBRING | Invoking the Holy Spirit, Bishop Frank J. Dewane called upon legal professionals to have insight and grace and above all, be people of mercy during an annual Red Mass held Oct. 6 at St. Catherine Parish in Sebring.

“You are scholars of the law but always remember you are called by God to be witnesses to your Faith,” Bishop Dewane said. “Know that Divine Law is funda-mental to who you are and who you strive to be. Through the two pillars of the Commandments lay a love of God and love of neigh-bor.”

Acknowledging that working in the legal professional entails many challenges, Bishop Dewane added that it “takes a heart and the love of God to love thy neigh-bor. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will inspire you to be ever faithful to the Commandments. Further

we pray to the Holy Spirit to send down the graces needed to protect always the most vulnerable in so-ciety.”

Those in the legal profession are respected and responsible members of society who are ca-pable of doing much good through the grace of the Holy Spirit, he continued. “Let the Holy Spirit inspire you to see the good that is around you. Let that hope that is Jesus be the source you turn to in times of difficulty.”

The Red Mass derives its name from the red vestments worn by the priests, which represent both the tongues of fire of the Holy Spirit and scarlet robes tradition-ally worn by justices from the 13th century when the tradition of such a Mass for those in the legal profession was first established. Throughout the Mass, Bishop De-wane invoked the Holy Spirit to bestow His gifts of wisdom, cour-age and right judgment upon all attorneys, judges and those serv-

ing in civic office. The first Red Mass in the Dio-

cese began in 2008 when legal pro-fessionals in Sarasota approached

Bishop Dewane in hopes of emu-lating similar, more well-known Red Masses which take place each year. The most notable of these

Red Mass celebrated for legal communityRed Masses is for the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. in early October, and by the Florida Bish-ops for the Florida Legislature in Tallahassee in March. A Red Mass is now celebrated annually in Sarasota and Sebring.

The annual Mass has gained a special significance for local Cath-olic legal professionals as it unites them in their Faith. Although they serve the legal system in different ways, they are also first and fore-most Catholics. This Mass serves as a poignant reminder to those who participate about who they are and where they come from.

Following the Mass in Sebring, the attorneys present from High-lands County renewed the oath they took when they first became attorneys in the state of Florida. Also present was the Sheriff of Highlands County and Chief of Police for Sebring, as well as a number other local and county government officials. A reception followed in the Parish hall. n

Bishop Frank J. Dewane greets people following the annual Red Mass for legal professionals, which was celebrated at St. Catherine Parish in Sebring Oct. 6. (BOB REDDY | FC)



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40 Days for Life vigil to end abortion continues to Nov. 2BoB Reddyof the Florida Catholic staff

FORT MYERS | The 40 Days for Life international prayer campaign that began in Texas several years ago is still going strong. The local fall campaign, which began Sept. 24, is taking place outside abortion facilities in Fort Myers and Saraso-ta. Participants pray for the women who enter the Planned Parenthood abortion facilities at these loca-tions as well as for the people who work inside.

Paula Hellenbrand, who is the 40 Days for Life co-coordinator in Fort Myers, said it upsets her to see women who are visibly pregnant go into the abortion facilities and don’t realize there is an alternative to abortion: that is life.

“The facilities are providing a wretched life of regrets for these women and death for the children,”

Life cannot be ‘thrown away’Hellenbrand said. “My prayer has been in every campaign that plac-es like this would close not just to-day, but forever.”

The 40 Days for Life campaign receives the full support of the Di-ocese of Venice and Bishop Frank J. Dewane. Twice during the fall campaign Bishop Dewane partici-pated in prayer vigils, first in Sara-sota on Oct. 3 and then Oct. 9 in Fort Myers. In Fort Myers, he first celebrated Mass at St. Cecilia Par-ish before leading more than 100 participants to a nearby Planned Parenthood facility. He greeted and thanked each participant for being there and then joined in the praying of the rosary and the recit-ing of several additional prayers and songs.

Among those participating was a group representing the Bishop Verot Catholic High School Re-spect Life Club. They carried the main 40 Days for Life sign and waved to cars as they passed by on the busy street.

During his homily, Bishop De-wane reminded the faithful that Pope Francis has been unwavering in his support for life and in his op-position to abortion. Pope Francis said “each one of us is called to rec-ognize in the fragile human being

the face of the Lord. … Every un-born child, condemned unjustly to being aborted, has the face of the Lord, who before being born, and then when He was just born, experienced the rejection of the world.”

Continuing to refer to the word s of t he Hol y Fat her, Bishop Dewane said we are all counted on to spread the “Gos-pel of Life” in whatever way we can. “Life cannot be discarded as if it is trash, which is ex-actly what an abortion is. We as Christians and followers of Christ must not allow this ‘cul-ture of death’ to continue,” he said.

Since the first 40 Days for Life campaign began in 2007, nearly 9,000 babies have been saved. The campaign has taken place in more than 500 cities world-wide. In the Diocese of Venice, the fall campaign takes place in Fort Myers and Sarasota. Dur-

ing the spring campaign, there are prayer vigils in Port Charlotte and Naples. In addition, there are prayer vigils at abortion facilities throughout the year. n

For more information about the Respect Life activities email [email protected], call 941-484-9543 or visit www.dioceseofvenice.org/respectlife.

The Respect Life Club of Bishop Verot Catholic High School in Fort Myers participates in the 40 Days for Life prayer vigil Oct. 9. The group is seen here with Bishop Frank J. Dewane who celebrated Mass at nearby St. Cecilia Parish and participated in the vigil. (BOB REDDY | FC)

Bereavement counselors unite for day

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PORT CHARLOTTE | Every parish has a core group of people who dedicate their time to help-ing others overcome loss. These unsung heroes use their personal skills to reach out and help others change from being overwhelmed by a feeling of desolation to having a renewed hope and purpose.

The Diocese of Venice Depart-ment of Evangelization, Family Life Office, recently invited those in the parishes who serve as sup-port group leaders for bereavement, grief and loss to attend a daylong program designed to help them be more successful at what they do.

The Bereavement Training Day was held at St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Port Charlotte Oct. 11, and was attended by about 100 people who were interested in learning more about how to better serve those who are suffering. Family Life Director Angela Exner said the goal of the day was to be a support to those in the parishes, and then offer additional assistance in developing resources that are most helpful.

Carrie Hansen of the Institute for Psychological Sciences was the keynote speaker, and said those in grief support must be great listen-ers. This is not just someone who lets someone else talk on endlessly, she continued, but rather a person who actively listens and responds to the individual need.

“When dealing with those who have suffered a loss, you are meet-ing someone at the worst time in their life. It can be difficult to help remind them that life will continue and that there is still much to be grateful for,” Hansen said. “There are many ways to do this and plenty of resources available if you want to go further into specific topics.”

Hansen also spoke about re-maining positive and being one’s self when providing counseling, but also seeking support from oth-ers when the outreach becomes personally overwhelming.

“Each grief counselor gets in-volved for different reasons, but take care not to let it do the same damage you are trying to help oth-ers avoid,” Hansen added. “Do not lose hope, do not lose your faith, stay aware of your own emotions and you will be better able to help others.”

Father Casey Jones, parochial vicar of San Pedro Parish in North Port, celebrated Mass, and also shared his insights as a priest when working with the homebound and homebound outreach. He empha-sized the need to be the light of Christ for others and to be open to seeing that light in others. n

‘Life cannot be discarded as if it is trash, which is exactly what an abortion is. We as Christians and followers of Christ must not allow this culture of death’ to continue.’

— Bishop Frank Dewane


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Cathedral School honors top scholars

A total of 39 students at Epiph-any Cathedral Catholic School in Venice were recognized Oct. 10 as recipients of scholarship awards from eight different funds. The awards totaled $60,000, more than double the previous year, and they included the Victor Huber Scholar-ship; Father Esteban G. Soy Schol-arship; Edward and Ann Ochen Scholarship; Gerald E. and Mari-lyn S. DeWan Scholarship; Bishop John J. Nevins Scholarship; Coun-cil of Catholic Women Scholarship; Dr. Thomas E. Collins Scholarship; and Knights of Columbus Council 7052 Scholarship.

Epiphany School Principal Mi-chelle Kroll praised the students for being “true Disciples of Christ and representing the Cathedral School in such a positive way.” Kroll also thanked the benefactors, many of whom were present, for holding Catholic education dear to their hearts and supporting it in such a direct way.

Five of the eight scholarships are endowed in perpetuity through the Catholic Community Foundation of Southwest Florida. In 2014, two new scholarships were added.

Bishop Frank J. Dewane took part in a reception for the students and their proud parents, thanking

them all for taking their educa-tion seriously. “You each should be proud of your accomplishments and keep working to grow strong academically and most important-ly, spiritually.”

Bishop Dewane also thanked the parents for having the confidence and trust in choosing to send their children to a Catholic school. “You should all be congratulated too for raising such bright young men and women.”

St. Vincent de Paul group receives grant

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Sacred Heart Conference, in Punta Gorda has received a $5,000 grant from Walmart and the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida. The money will be used to buy a refrigerator/freezer for St. Vincent-Sacred Heart’s food pan-try.

Walmart donated $3 million to the 50 food banks nationwide that received the most votes from the public on Facebook. More than 120 food banks competed, includ-ing the Harry Chapin Food Bank, which provides most of St. Vincent-Sacred Heart’s food. Harry Chapin was the 11th top vote-getter. It received $60,000, sharing $5,000


VENICE | Taking time out to discover and receive the gifts God has provided should be the focus of all the faithful, but in particu-lar for youth who are still trying to develop their true Catholic iden-tity, Bishop Frank J. Dewane told young people during a question-and-answer session at Epiphany Cathedral Parish in Venice Oct. 8.

The questions for Bishop De-wane varied widely from personal to covering topics such as seeking explanations about key elements of the faith, the saints, the Sacra-ments, and details about Pope Francis.

A key theme for the evening focused on reminding the young people that the Church of God is a Church of Hope, and that the faith-ful must always strive to be People of Hope. “Remember God is pres-ent everywhere; you just have to look a little harder sometimes to find Our Lord,” Bishop Dewane said.

Several of the questions were about the Sacraments, and in par-ticular about Confirmation and Reconciliation. The youth were curious about the need to receive the Sacraments and what benefit

they really have.Each Sacrament helps magnify

the Gifts of the Holy Spirit upon the individual receiving the Sacra-ment. “These gifts become a part of who you are from that point for-

ward,” Bishop Dewane said. “Con-firmation is the full entrance into the Catholic Faith. Reconciliation helps you develop your ongoing dialogue with Jesus, helping you grow closer to Him in your life.”

Youth ask Bishop poignant questions

Two of the most poignant ques-tions were: “Why did God make me?” and “How can I be a better witness to the Gospel?”

“We were all made to know, love and serve God,” Bishop Dewane

said, admitting that the answer may seem simple, but can be over-whelming for many to fully follow. “As the Ten Commandments tell us: love God, love your neighbor and love yourself. Follow these simple guidelines when you feel distant from the Lord and you will find your way back to Him.”

He added that one of the key de-votions of Pope Francis is to Our Lady Undoer of Knots. This is a devotion which reflects how many people feel and live out their faith, tied up in knots. Devotees seek the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Christ in helping to untie some of those knots in life.

W hen speaking about Pope Francis, Bishop Dewane said that the Holy Father was interested in learning about what the Diocese is doing to reach out to youth in the area, and noted the large annual Youth Rally which keeps grow-ing and brings in more than 1,500 youth from across the Diocese.

“You young men and women of God bring a joy and newness to the Faith that is inspiring to me, the Holy Father and everyone,” he continued. “You bring so much joy, energy and enthusiasm to the Church. Carry that joy to others by being the Light of Christ to the world.” n

Bishop Frank J. Dewane speaks to youth from Epiphany Cathedral Parish in Venice during a question-and-answer session in the Parish hall Oct. 8. (BOB REDDY | FC)

News briefs

each with three local food pantries including St. Vincent-Sacred Heart.

“We want to thank everyone who cast a vote for Harry Chapin,” said Gary Moerke, president of St. Vin-cent-Sacred Heart. “That also was a vote for us, and will enable the pur-chase of a badly needed refrigera-tor/freezer to store fresh meat and other foods for the needy.”

In the last 12 months, St. Vin-cent-Sacred Heart distributed more than 157 tons of food from its pan-try at 25200 Airport Road to quali-fied families throughout Charlotte County.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is an international Catholic lay organization founded in 1833 to serve the poor, regardless of re-ligious affiliation. It provides food, clothing, home furnishings and financial assistance to individuals and families in need.

School butterfly garden dedicated to former teacher

The students at St. Ann Catholic School in Naples gathered Oct. 17 for a prayer service and the dedi-cation of a butterfly garden to the late Diane Dennis, who taught at the school. The ceremony was led by Father Michael Vannicola, Ob-lates of St. Francis de Sales, Pastor

of St. Ann Parish, and Principal Gina Groch. The youngest students wore butterfly hats for the ceremo-ny. Butterfly-attracting plants were planted and butterflies were re-leased during the memorial to col-onize the garden. Students wrote prayers on butterf ly stationery, which will be placed in a basket in the garden and will be given to the Dennis family. In addition, the garden will be decorated with an angel steppingstone, angel wind chimes, and a statue of St. Francis. A special prayer was written for the ceremony by Groch.

Students collect socks for needy

The first-grade students at St.

Charles Borromeo Catholic School in Port Charlotte are learning how to help others by collecting socks during the month of October. The “Soctober” effort came in response to the first-graders learning that an estimated 600,000 people live on the streets and they do not have basic needs such as socks. The stu-dents’ collection was to help prove that even the smallest acts of love, like donating socks, can make a big difference in the lives of their homeless neighbors. In addition to collecting the socks, the students are counting and charting their progress throughout the month. Anyone interested in donating socks can drop them off at the school at 21505 Augusta Ave., Port Charlotte, or call 941-625-5533.

Father Eric Scanlan as Parochial Vicar of Epiphany Cathedral in Venice, effective Sept. 9, with other duties involving vocations work.

Father J.J. McCarthy, Carmelites, retired from his duties as Director of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat Center in Venice.

Father Adrian Wilde, Carmelites, retired effective Oct. 5, as Pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grove City.

Father Sean Morris, Oblates of the Virgin Mary, as Director of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Retreat Center in Venice, effective Oct. 8.

Father Bernadine Tan Minh Dang, Congregation of Mother Co-Redemptrix, is relieved of his duties as Parochial Vicar of St. John XXIII Parish in Fort Myers, effective Oct. 17.

Father John Eude M. Vu Tien Cao, Congregation of Mother Co-Redemp-trix, as Parochial Vicar of St. John XXIII Parish in Fort Myers, effective Oct. 17.

OFFICIAL APPOINTMENTSBishop Frank J. Dewane, after broad consultation,

announces the following appointments:



SARASOTA | At the age of 12, Nadja Hallibegovich was a happy girl who loved her family, enjoyed going to school and had few worries to think about as she lived in one of the most beautiful cities in Europe — the host of the 1984 Winter Olym-pics, Sarajevo, Bosnia, of the former Yugoslavia.

Hallibegovich was the keynote speaker was the eighth annual Hu-manity Working to End Genocide rally at Incarnation Parish in Sara-sota on Oct. 5.

Bishop Frank J. Dewane, who is on the Board of Humanity Work-ing to End Genocide and honorary chairman of the rally, gave the in-vocation for the rally and noted that Humanity Working to End Geno-cide is an example of people having local responsibility to take action even if events are taking place in other parts of the world.

“We gather to give witness, but also to ensure that past genocides are not forgotten,” Bishop Dewane said. “We must pray for the victims and have a strong resolve that such atrocities can never be allowed to happen again.”

When Hallibegovich began her talk, the anticipation of her story was palpable among those attend-

Childhood survivor of war recounts experienceing the rally. Most knew of the war in Bosnia, but the story they heard brought many to tears.

War came suddenly and fero-ciously for the carefree Hallibe-govich. Her childhood was shat-tered without warning. She went from having no worries to worrying whether or not she or her family would survive each new day. First there was no more school, then the sounds of war approached and then surrounded her home, an apart-ment building in the middle of the fighting. The residents in the build-ing sought shelter in the basement and struggled to survive for months with a lingering fear that they would all be killed at any moment.

In the three-and-half years of fighting there was an ongoing struggle to find basic necessities such as food and water. The family remained in their damaged build-ing throughout the war because there was nowhere else to go. A walk through the streets was risky as mortar shells and snipers could strike at any time. Her mother con-tinued to work at a bank many miles from home, the only income for a time, while her father sought water and food each night, the safest time to go out.

Hallibegovich did not go outside very often, but sometimes she had to and that was when a mortar shell

exploded near her. Her legs had shrapnel in them and she was told that she would likely lose her legs. Being a young girl, she was resigned to her fate. Fortunately, her legs were saved, but the physical and mental scars took a long time to heal.

With her life upside-down, Hal-libegovich took to writing poetry and putting her thoughts into a diary. Wanting to express herself in a great way she called into the National Radio station, which was the sole source of information for the besieged residents of Sarajevo. Many called in to ask for help, to report where food or water supplies

were located, and others called in to share their stories. All of the callers were adults until Hallibegovich picked up the phone.

During that first call she shared her emotional story and read a poem she wrote about the experi-ences. She was then asked to be-come a regular contributor and even had her own show called “The Music Box.” Hallibegovich explained that having this outlet of sharing her poetry and story with others helped her get through the trauma of living in an active war zone. Many have since thanked her for sharing her story as it was

similar to many others in the war-torn city.

“I truly understand those who live where war is taking place to-day — in Syria, Iraq and elsewhere. The greatest tragedy is that many of the victims are children who are losing their innocence each day,” she said. Today Hallibegovich lives in Canada and speaks about her experience to groups all over the world.

Humanit y Work ing to End Genocide began as a small group of people who wanted to raise awareness of an ongoing genocide in Darfur, Sudan. Since then a co-alition has been created to include many civic, religious, business and community organizations in Sarasota and Manatee counties. The group has a mission “to cre-ate and maintain a community of conscience calling for action to stop mass atrocities and geno-cide throughout the world.”

At the conclusion of the rally, there was a plea to those gathered not to become complacent to the hate that can pervade in the world, as it becomes like a disease and if unchecked, genocide may not be far behind. n

For more information about Hu-manity Working to End Genocide please visit www.hwegsrq.org.

Nadja Hallibegovich speaks about her experiences as a childhood survivor of war. (BoB reddy | Fc)

Nadia SmithSpecial to the Florida Catholic

VENICE | Recently the Diocese of Venice has received many re-quests to offer support for parents and family members who have loved ones with same-sex attrac-tion. Through the Office of Evan-gelization, Bishop Frank J. Dewane has responded with the establish-ment of an apostolate that will help families in such situations respond in Catholic charity.

EnCourage is an outgrowth of Courage, a spiritual support system for men and women with same-sex attractions, and brings family members together to seek guidance in understanding and supporting their loved ones who experience these attractions.

In order to meet the needs of the faithful in the Diocese, “EnCourage was chosen because of their long track record of helping people in need, their faithfulness to Catholic teaching, and their commitment to help all people strive for holiness, no matter their sexual orientation,” said Eric Sammons, the Diocese of Venice Director of Evangelization.

The kickoff meeting for EnCour-age within the Diocese took place Oct. 7 at Resurrection Parish in Fort Myers. At that meeting, Paul Dar-

row, a former fashion model who was recently featured in a critically acclaimed documentary, “Desire of the Everlasting Hills,” shared his journey from being entrenched in the homosexual lifestyle and hav-ing thousands of partners, to find-ing a wholeness and joy in chastity through the Catholic Church.

“I would feel morally negligent if I didn’t share my life experience and share the joy found in loving God,” Darrow said. “I have been given hope and I want to give others the same hope.”

Darrow’s testimony and advice to the parents and family members was well received and many people signed up for the next meeting in January, which will be private and confidential in nature, Sammons said. He also added that “a number of people expressed that they were extremely thankful to the Bishop for bringing EnCourage to the Dio-cese.”

During the meeting and in a spe-cial presentation at Theology on Tap — South Sarasota County at Epiph-any Cathedral Parish Oct. 9, Darrow explained how Courage gave him the support and strength he needed to solidify a relationship with Christ and share with so many men and women, who, like him, have strug-gled with same-sex attraction.

“In those Courage meetings, you hear men and women sharing with raw honesty how they are battling their deepest desires, but it is also gloriously uplifting to see them do-ing it simply because of their enor-mous love for God,” Darrow said. “And they have all said that had they not discovered Courage when they did, they would be dead.”

The Diocese plans in the future to establish a local chapter of Cour-age as well, in order to directly help those with same-sex attraction to live chaste lives within fellowship, truth and love.

Darrow was candid about how deep in sin he was and how sex had become his god. But he also said there were moments when God broke through his darkness. One such moment was on his way to get his results for an HIV test. He was

convinced he would test positive. His partner at the time had died from it, as did about 90 percent of those he knew. He was in such de-spair as he drove to the clinic when suddenly a ray of light came through his sunroof and he had a supernatu-ral experience.

“A blissful calm came over me and I felt words from the very center of my being and those words said, ‘Don’t worry Paul, you do not have AIDS because you have so much to do to make up for the way you have been living.’ And even though at that point in my life I was agnostic at best, I felt in my heart that those words were from God,” Darrow said.

True to the voice’s promise, when he arrived at the clinic, the doc-tor told him that he was negative. Although he said that he felt like a death sentence had been pardoned

and he knew whom to thank, it took several more “moments of grace” before he finally found himself seeking out the Sacrament of Rec-onciliation after 40-plus years.

Darrow had asked the Lord to help him bring “many souls to Christ” and to help him become chaste. Both prayers were answered. Opportunities have now opened up to not only share his testimony in speaking engagements around the country, but also to share his story in a documentary that has had worldwide reach throughout the Internet. (It can be seen for free at www.everlastinghills.org.) Now he finds himself in a position “to bring many souls to Christ,” he said. “That’s God’s grace.”

EnCourage, and in the future Courage, will offer hope within the Diocese of Venice, Darrow said. “You don’t have to beat yourselves up or be angry at your child. God’s love and grace touch us all in our sinfulness. Praying and loving is the very best thing you can do. Speak truth in love.” n

For more information about plans for the Courage and EnCourage apostolates within the Diocese of Venice, please contact the Office of Evangelization at 941-484-9543 and visit www.couragerc.org.

EnCourage apostolate comes to the DiocesePaul darrow speaks to the first gathering of encourage, a support group for catholic parents whose children are homosexual. (BoB reddy | Fc)

www.hwegsrq.org

www.couragerc.org


DIOCESAN EVENTSTheology on Tap. This

exciting program for young adults (18-39) allows them to learn about the faith while building community. This year Theology on Tap will be held at various parishes throughout the Diocese. Each location will host a series of weekly talks and discussions on relevant topics in a relaxed atmosphere. Free baby-sitting, icebreakers, trivia, and food and drinks are provided. BYOB. Upcoming dates are as follows:

• Venice area, Thursdays, Oct. 30, Nov. 6, 13, 6:30-8 p.m., Epiphany Cathedral Parish hall, Venice.

• Naples area, continuously on Tuesdays, 6:30-8 p.m. First Tuesdays, St. John the Evangelist; second Tuesdays, St. Agnes; third Tuesdays, St. Peter the Apostle; fourth Tuesdays, St. William.

40 Days for Life, through Nov. 2. Join others in praying for an end to abortion during the fall campaign in Sarasota or Fort Myers. Visit www.40daysforlife.com for locations and times; or contact Jeanne Berdeaux, [email protected], 941-441-1101.

Our Lady of Perpetural Help Retreat Center, Venice.

To register, www.olph-retreat.org, 941-486-0233.

• Monthly Eucharistic Adoration, First Thursdays, 3 p.m. Next opportunity Nov. 6. Adoration with Benediction, followed by Mass. All invited.

• 11th step retreat, Nov. 14-16, for all men and women and their families who are recovering from addictions. Emphasis on the spiritual aspects of 12-step recovery with daily lectures, discussions, breakout groups, time for rest and private meditation. $250 per person for singles; $185 per person for double, includes accommodations, meals. Reservation by Nov. 3.

• Ignatian spirituality retreat for men, Dec. 15-18 Includes food, fellowship, quiet reflection and opportunity for spiritual growth. Cost: $395 per person, includes three nights’ accommodations (private rooms and baths) and all meals.

Youth Rally, Nov. 1, Charlotte Harbor Event Center, Punta Gorda. Presenters include Matt Fredd, Leah Darrow and the band, L’Angelus. All seventh-12th-graders invited. Register through parish religious education leaders or Catholic schools, or contact George Smith, [email protected].

“Sugar Bowl Show of Shows,” Nov. 2, 2 p.m., Venice Community Center, Venice. Sponsored by Catholic Charities and the local Knights of Columbus Councils. Features Brian Gurl performing “American Masters of Music.” Proceeds benefit Sugar Bowl Fund for families in the community who are experiencing a financial hardship. Tickets: $20. Sponsorship and advertising opportunities available. 941-496-8181, [email protected] or www.catholiccharitiesdov.org.

Premarital Inventory training sessions, Nov. 4 and Nov. 6, Institute for Catholic Studies and Formation, Port Charlotte. All priests, deacons and laity of the Diocese of Venice who work with engaged couples are asked to register for one of four training sessions, led by Chris Codden of Diocese of St. Cloud, Minn. Contact Office of Evangelization, 941-484-9543.

Diocesan Marriage Tribunal information evenings, Nov. 10, St. Catherine Parish, Sebring; and Nov. 17, St. Martha Parish, Sarasota. All sessions begin at 7 p.m. For those who have experienced a civil divorce/dissolution and wish to consider re-establishing their freedom for a new marriage in the Catholic Church. Includes short presentation on types of marriage cases considered by the Tribunal and opportunity for questions and answers with Tribunal personnel. No reservations required; all are welcome. Tribunal Department, 941-484-9543.

Veterans Day Mass, Nov. 11, 2:45 p.m., Sarasota National Cemetery, 9810 State Road 72 (Clark Road), Sarasota. Main celebrant: Bishop Frank J. Dewane. All priests, deacons and faithful are invited to attend and participate in honoring the men and women who served our country, and those who are serving us today. Active duty service members are encouraged to wear uniforms. On-site parking. 941-484-9543.

Encounter Jesus Christ in the Gospels, Nov. 15, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Venice. Sponsored by Office of Evangelization. Theme: “Understanding the Gospels.” $20 per person, open to all. Register: www.dioceseofvenice.org/scripture, 941-484-9543 or [email protected].

Novena of Masses for Life, the 25th of each month, started March 25 at different parishes throughout the Diocese through Dec. 25. A special observance of the life of Jesus in the womb of our Blessed Mother, Masses are offered for a greater respect for all human life. For complete schedule, visit www.dioceseofvenice.org/respectlife.

Thanksgiving baskets outreach. Guadalupe Social Services of Catholic Charities in Immokalee will distribute over 500 Thanksgiving food baskets and prayer candles to impoverished families. Please consider a monetary donation to make the holidays brighter for those struggling. Cost of each basket: $45. Send contributions to Guadalupe Social Services, P.O. Box 5034, Immokalee, FL 34143. Call 239-657-6242.

Catholic Charities Ball, Jan. 31, 2015, 6 p.m., Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota. Proceeds benefit the programs and services of Catholic Charities in Sarasota and Manatee counties, which include Our Mother’s House, St. Martha’s Early Learning Center, Bethesda House, housing counseling and foreclosure prevention, financial assistance, senior services, professional counseling, refugee services and immigration services. Tickets: www.catholiccharitiesdov.org;

941-355-4680, ext. 311; or email [email protected].

National March for Life planning, for those interested in going to the Jan. 22, 2015, march in Washington, D.C. Learn more at marchforlife.org/march-with-us/2015-hotel-information. For local information, contact Jeanne Berdeaux, 941-441-1101 or [email protected].

Casa Maria soup kitchen. Guadalupe Social Services of Catholic Charities in Immokalee manages the soup kitchen — including feeding a hot meal to 100 people each day — clothing and shower programs formerly run by Guadalupe Center. Anyone wishing to support the soup kitchen can send donations to: Guadalupe Social Services, P.O. Box 5034, Immokalee, FL 34143, and note the intention is to support the soup kitchen; or visit www.catholiccharitiesdov.org and click DONATE NOW.

Television Mass for the homebound in the northern portions of the diocese, 10 a.m. on ION Television Network; in the southern portions of the diocese, 10 a.m., on WFTX-TV (FOX-4). Check your local listings for channel information. Leaflet missals are available upon request by calling 941-484-9543 and asking about the TV Mass or by writing: TV Mass, Diocese of Venice, 1000 Pinebrook Road, Venice, FL 34285. Contact Gail Ardy, 941-486-4714, [email protected].

Safe Environment training. As part of the Safe Environment Program, the Diocese of Venice requires that all employees and those volunteers who work with children and/or vulnerable adults be fingerprinted and trained in Safe Environment. For class times and locations, contact your local parish or Diocesan school or visit the Diocesan website at www.dioceseofvenice.org. Report all abuses against minors to the Florida Department of Children and Families at 1-800-962-2873. To report abuse by Diocesan personnel or volunteers, call the Diocesan Victims Assistance Coordinator Barbara DiCocco at 941-416-6114.

COMMUNITY EVENTS

“Signature Speaker” event, Oct. 30, 7 p.m., Ave Maria School of Law, St. Thomas More Commons, Naples. Speaker: Francis Rooney, former U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, author of “The Global Vatican” which provides an inside look at impact Vatican has in today’s world. Jean Takacs, 239-687-5405, [email protected].

Fashion elegance show/sale, noon, Nov. 1, Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Parish, Sarasota. Clothing, shoes, purses, jewelry and more. Cash only. $15, seating limited; must be purchased in advance. Includes lunch. 941-755-1826, ext. 329.

Reignite, Nov. 2, 4-6 p.m., for teens; Nov. 3, 6:30-8:30 p.m., for adults, Ss. Peter and Paul the Apostles Parish, Bradenton. Speaker: Steve Angrisano, songwriter, storyteller. Free. 941-795-1228.

Benefit concert, Nov. 7, 6:30 p.m., St. Ann Parish Jubilee Center, Naples. Paul Todd will perform to benefit St. Ann Catholic School. www.paultodd.com or 239-262-4110, ext. 313.

Faith and Wine for women, Nov. 13, 6:30 p.m., St. John the Evangelist Parish. $20 includes wine, dinner. Must prepay/register. www.faithandwine.com.

Open house, Nov. 7, 9 a.m., St. Francis Xavier Catholic School, Fort Myers. Other open houses: Dec. 2, and in 2015, Jan. 27, March 4, April 30. Michele Cheatham, 239-334-7707. ext. 223.

Spaghetti dinner, Nov. 8, 3:30-6:30 p.m., Our Lady Queen of Martyrs Parish, Sarasota. Includes dessert. $8 adults; $4 children 6-12; $2 children under 6. 941-755-1826.

Annual bazaar and bake sale, Nov. 8, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Nov. 9, 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., St. Agnes Parish, Naples. Homemade crafts and baked goods. All welcome. 239-592-1949.

12th annual Hispanic festival, Nov. 8, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., St. Jude Parish, Sarasota. Hispanic food from a variety of countries, musical entertainment, children’s activities, contests and more. Benefits St. Jude Parish. Free admission and parking. Kathy Schersten, [email protected].

Fall bazaar, Nov. 8, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., St. Ann Catholic School, Naples. Food, crafts, games, activities and a chili cook-off. All welcome. Call 239-262-4110, ext. 313.

12th annual Kristallnacht Memorial, Nov. 9, Temple Shalom, Naples. Catholic-Jewish Dialogue of Collier County invites everyone to attend memorial which brings Catholics together with their Jewish “elder brothers and sisters in faith” to commemorate the horror of Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass), Nov. 9 and 10, 1938. Speaker: Rosita Kenigsberg, Executive Vice President of the Holocaust Documentation and Education Center of Hollywood, Fla. Free and open to the public. Martin Gauthier, [email protected].

Card parties, first Wednesdays, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., St. Francis of Assisi Parish hall, 5265 Placida Road, Grove City.

Sponsored by the Women’s Guild. Cost: $7, includes games, lunch and door prizes. Reservations required. 941-697-4899.

College campus outreach information.

• Catholic Student Organization (CSO) at Florida Gulf Coast University meets on campus Sundays, 7 p.m., followed by Mass, in Cohen Hall, Room 214 for adoration. “CSO Dinner,” Tuesdays, 6:30 p.m. Bible studies, Wednesdays, 7:30 p.m. Contact Father Michael Goodyear: [email protected], 239-849-7445. Catholic Student Organization is also on Facebook.

• Catholic Club at New College of Florida, Ringling College of Art and Design, and University of South Florida (Sarasota) meets Sundays for Mass at 7 p.m. at rotating campus locations. Bible study on campus each Wednesday night. Contact Father Matthew Grady: [email protected], 941-921-6631. Catholic Club is also on Facebook.

Are you a Catholic physician, health care professional or medical student? The Catholic Medical Association (CMA) helps doctors and health care professionals grow in faith, maintain ethical integrity and provide excellent health care in accordance with the teachings of the Church. The CMA offers professional, spiritual, and moral support through local chapters and annual national conferences featuring world-class speakers and CME credits. Visit www.cathmed.org to learn more.

World Meeting of Families 2015, “Love Is Our Mission: The Family Fully Alive.” Meeting will take place Sept. 22-27, 2015, in Philadelphia. Pope Francis has been invited to participate. Visit www.worldmeeting2015.org.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

After-school reading program at AFCAAM of Catholic Charities needs volunteers to work with individual students. All that is required is a willingness to make a difference in a child’s life. Adult and teen volunteers welcome. Email [email protected].

For all travelers contemplating their next FABULOUS vacation…please join us aboard Vantage’s Deluxe, 5 star, ms River Discovery II for a memorable 12 day journey along the Culinary French Waterways: Highlights of Burgundy, Beaujolais and Provence.

PLEASE JOIN FR. TONER’S GROUP ON A FABULOUS RIVER CRUISE

For a complete itinerary, cabin category pricing, andreservation application please call Joe Halizak: 239-482-1461

Departure date: Oct. 30, 2015We are adding a 4 day Pre-Trip to Paris, with a day trip to Our Lady of Lourdes.

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ADVERTISEMENT9 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 201432401-1024

October 14, 2014

Dear Bishop Dewane,

We find this verse fitting to describe how we feel about you. The Venice Diocesan Council of Catholic Women

extends our thanks to God for you and for the love and support you have given to the women of the Council.

You have encouraged us, supported us, and guided us as we strive to live out our ministry though our

faith and actions. We have always had a great working relationship with you and consider you not only our

Shepherd, but our friend. We believe your vision for the Diocese has been to live out the Gospel message.

You are living out that message and we are with you in our united journey in the Diocese of Venice.

May our patroness, Our Lady of Good Counsel, guide and protect you always.

Sincerely in Christ,Iris Gomez, PresidentVenice Diocesan Council of Catholic Women Board of Directorsand the VDCCW membership

“We always give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we

pray for you, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and the love

you have for all the holy ones.”(Paul’s letter to the Galatians 1:3)

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10Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic FLORIDA NEWS

2014 U.S. Postal Service Statement of Ownership, Management, and Circulation

1. Publication Title: Florida Catholic; 2. Publication No. 0746-4584; 3. Filing Date: Oct. 1, 2014; 4. Issue Frequency: Nov.-Oct., Semi-monthly; 5. No. of Issues Published Annually: 24; 6. Annual Subscription Price: $24; 7. Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication: 50 E. Robinson St., Ste. G, Orlando, FL 32801; 8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Office of Publisher: Same as above; 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher, Editor and Managing Editor: Publisher: Bishop John Noonan, et al., P.O. Box 1800, Orlando, FL 32802-1800; Editor: Carol Brinati, P.O. Box 4993, Orlando, FL 32802-4993; Managing Editor: Ann Borowski-Slade, P.O. Box 4993, Orlando, FL 32802-4993; 10. Owner: The Florida Catholic, P.O. Box 4993, Orlando, FL 32802-4993; 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Securitiy Holders: None; 12. Tax Status (for completion by nonprofit organizations authorized to mail at nonprofit rates): Has Not Changed During Preceding 12 months; 13. Publication Title: Florida Catholic; 14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: Sept. 26, 2014; 15a. Total Number of Copies: 63,619 (Sept. 26, 2014: 61,203); b. Paid Circulation: (1) Mailed Outside-County Paid Subscriptions: 58,941 (Sept. 26, 2014: 57,892); (2) Mailed In-County Paid Subscriptions: 76 (Sept. 26, 2014: 0); Paid Distribution Outside the Mails: 2,198 (Sept. 26, 2014: 250); c. Total Paid Distribution: 61,214 (Sept. 26, 2014: 58,142); d. Free Distribution by Mail: (1) 2,019 (Sept. 26, 2014: 1,993); (2) Free In-County Copies: 0 (Sept. 26, 2014: 0); e. Total Free Distribution: 2,019 (Sept. 26, 2014: 1,993); f. Total Distribution: 63,233 (Sept. 26, 2014: 60,135); g. Copies not Distributed: 355 (Sept. 26, 2014: 330); h. Total: 63,589 (Sept. 26, 2014: 60,465); i. Percent Paid: 97% (Sept. 26, 2014: 97%); 16. Electronic Copy Circulation; a. Paid Electronic Copies: 267 (Sept. 26, 2014: 259); b. Total Paid Print Copies + Paid Electronic Copies: 61,481 (Sept. 26, 2014: 58,401); c. Total Print Distribution + Paid Electronic Copies: 63,500 (Sept. 26, 2014: 60,394); Percent Paid (both Print & Electronic Copies): 97% (Sept. 26, 2014: 97%)

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As a way to say “thank you,” survey participants who provide their name and email (WE DO NOT SHARE EMAILS) will be entered into a drawing to win one of five

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Go to www.thefloridacatholic.org and respond by Nov. 30. From Chip and Clip and everyone at the FLORIDACatholic, we say, “THANK YOU!”

Go online and fill out our survey!

ChipHellO MY NAMe is

ClipHellO MY NAMe is

Jean Gonzalezof the Florida Catholic staff

ORLANDO | As voters head to the polls for the Nov. 4 general elec-tion, they not only will decide local, federal and state candidates, but an amendment in need of a super ma-jority, and the Florida governor race.

But before casting a vote, Flor-ida’s bishops hope voters educate themselves on issues of concern to the Catholic Church and examine their conscience as they participate in faithful citizenship.

For each election cycle over the past three decades, the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops, which serves as the lobbying arm for Florida’s bishops, sends candi-dates for congressional and legisla-tive offices a questionnaire includ-ing topics of concern to the Catho-lic Church. This year’s Candidate Questionnaire Project involves two questionnaires: one for U.S. House candidates (there are no U.S. Senate seats open) and one for candidates for state Senate, House and gover-nor. Voters can view the responses before they go the polls for the gen-eral election Nov. 4. Early voting be-gins Oct. 25.

In August, the Florida Catholic dissected the two, eight-question questionnaires issue-by-issue, and explained background as to why the question was posed to candi-dates by the conference. The ques-tions cover various topics important to Catholics, including abortion, health care, education, immigra-tion, marriage, environment, pov-erty, international assistance, reli-gious freedom, death penalty, em-ployee wages and juveniles in the criminal justice system. Michael Sheedy, executive director of the conference, said topics chosen in-clude issues Florida bishops “have taken positions on or involve a clear aspect of Catholic social teaching.”

As part of the project, candi-date responses will be distributed on a parish level through bulletin inserts. There are a total of seven different inserts, where response grids reflect the candidates run-ning in districts of that diocese. For instance, the bulletin insert for U.S. congressional candidates within the Venice Diocese includes dis-tricts 16, 17, 19 and 20, which reflect the congressional districts within the 10-county diocese.

The inserts are currently avail-able in English and Spanish online at www.flaccb.org/CQP/2014. Also at that page, visitors can find the questions on the two different sur-veys and the backgrounder on each developed by the Florida Confer-ence of Catholic Bishops.

The inserts were also available prior to the primary election in Au-gust. At that time, there were 316 candidates for the four offices. Ac-

cording to Michele Taylor, associate director for communications, based on available data and staff recollec-tion, the response rate for the pri-mary election —74.5 percent — is one of the highest since the incep-tion of the project in the mid 1980s.

The total number of candidates dropped by 100, with 216 candi-dates running for offices of U.S. House, and Florida House, Senate and governor. In the last eight years, the project has offered candidates the ability to answer the questions beyond “support,” “oppose” and “no response,” available for view online only. Some candidates choose to incorporate an explanation of up to 150 words per question along with their responses.

And since this year’s election includes a race for Florida gover-nor, the conference worked par-ticularly hard to garner as many responses as possibly from among the five gubernatorial candidates. The Florida Catholic offered the conference the space to publish the extended answers of the guberna-torial candidates who answered the questionnaire, which served as an even greater impetus to garner re-sponses.

Gov. Rick Scott and Farid Kha-vari, with no party affiliation, were the only two candidates who chose to respond.

After much deliberation with Sheedy and staffers of the confer-ence, it was decided because a ma-jority of gubernatorial candidates did not answer the questionnaire,

none of the responses would be published in the print edition of the Florida Catholic. The move was made to ensure no undue bias could be presented upon the candidates

who responded.However, Scott’s and Khavari’s

responses are online, along with the 119 other general election can-didates who responded to the ques-tionnaire. The total response rate for all 216 candidates (at press time) is 56 percent. (See box for break-down of the responses per race.)

Along with candidate responses, the conference offers other elec-tion guides on its website (flaccb.org/CQP/2014), including, Bishops of Florida Urge: Vote With an In-formed Conscience; and Election and Political Activities Guide — A Resource for Pastors and Parishes.

While the Florida bishops have not taken a support or oppose stand on Amendment 2 (medical use of marijuana), they have issued a statement titled, “Concerns Require a Closer Look,” which is also avail-able to download from the confer-ence’s site.

Amendment 2 to the Florida Constitution would allow the “use of marijuana for certain medical conditions.” To pass, it must receive a supermajority from voters of at least 60 percent.

In their statement, the bishops state, “At first glance, the proposed amendment appeals to a sense of empathy and implies safe and lim-ited use by the infirm; however, closer inspection reveals that the framework established by Amend-ment 2 is problematic.”

After listing four issues, the bish-ops said voters should “carefully assess the risks involved with legal-

izing marijuana.”“Our God-given capacity for

compassion impels us to seek treat-ment for the sick and to alleviate the pain experienced by those who suf-fer,” the bishops wrote. “However, in doing so, we must ensure that we are not endangering those we are hoping to help by exposing them to even greater harm.” n

Florida ready to head to the pollsU.S. HOUSE — 52 candidates (50

percent response rate)• 5 of 21 Democratic candidates

responded• 7 of 9 third-party candidates

responded• 14 of 22 Republican candidates

respondedFLORIDA GOVERNOR — Five

candidates (40 percent response rate)• 0 of 1 Democratic candidates

responded • 1 of 3 third-party candidates


respondedFLORIDA SENATE — 19




respondedFLORIDA HOUSE — 140




responded

FYI

www.thefloridacatholic.org

11 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014FLORIDA NEWS

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Sheila Hopkins tapped for national positionLaura DoDsonFlorida Catholic correspondent

MELBOURNE | Sheila Hopkins, the newly installed president-elect of the National Council of Catholic Women, learned early in life what it means to be a Catholic woman

and has been saying yes to her Church’s call to service and lead-ership ever since.

“I credit my grandmother, Mary Emma Snow, for exposing me to the service women offer to the Church by bringing me to the Ro-sary Altar Society where the ladies labored to maintain the church and raised funds to support the Catholic school where I started in first grade,” Hopkins said. “Their labors of love and devotion to the faith were imbedded in my heart.”

The U.S. bishops created the

national council in 1920 to give Catholic women “a common voice” and to unify the more than 250 women’s groups at that time for greater service in national issues. Today, the organization consists of more than 3,000 affiliated Catholic women’s groups in parishes across the country, representing hun-dreds of thousands of women.

“We are an organization for women of all ages and stages and I’m seeing a change,” Hopkins said. “We’re seeing a resurgence of more of the young families who

want to be involved. We must en-ergize these women who want to pursue their passion. We are striv-ing to be contemporary.”

To that end, the organization recently launched “Mary’s Mantle for Brides and Grooms,” a mentor-ing program to encourage couples to go to church and become in-volved. And a new evangelization program — “We Are Called to Wit-ness” — was written by the national council’s leadership commission at the request of the bishops and is intended to get people more en-gaged and centered on Christ.

“One of my goa ls when I assume the presi-dency in September 2015 is to ensure this is an or-ganization that serves all women,” Hopkins continued. “We are each a unique creation of God endowed with certain gifts. It is important for us to respond to the needs of the time and we do that because we are Catholic. Our new evange-lization program is a wonderful goldmine of information and ac-tion in an easy-to-use format for parishes, schools or study groups. I encourage women to read, reflect and act to spread the good news.”

In addition to her newly elected position, Hopkins serves as the national council’s chairwoman of the spirituality commission, coor-dinating the legislation committee to keep membership informed and alert especially to calls to action from the U.S. Conference of Catho-lic Bishops. She is also the current legislative advocacy chairwoman for the Florida Council of Catholic Women, Province of Miami, pro-moting statewide participation in Catholic Days at the Capital — a two-day annual event sponsored by the Florida bishops.

“When our parish, started as the student center for Catholic stu-dents attending FSU (Florida State University in Tallahassee), orga-nized a women’s club, I readily re-sponded to my pastor’s request to be the first president,” Hopkins continued. “Now, over 38 years later, my passion for the Coun-cil of Catholic Women has never waned and it has been my support in times of trials and where I have made my friends for life as the cen-ter of my social life.”

Her service in the Council of Catholic Women includes par-ticipating in multiple offices at the local parish or affiliation level to Pensacola-Tallahassee diocesan president in 2002, as well as sever-al offices at the state and national level. Hopkins is a charter mem-ber of the Friends of NCCW for the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations. From 2003 to 2005 she served as an adviser to the U.S. bishops conference’s Committee

on Marriage and Family Life.In addition to her service for the

Florida council, Hopkins chairs the board for Florida Pregnancy Care Network, a statewide network of 50-plus pregnancy centers fund-ed by the state to assist women and their children. She has served on the Florida Community Loan Fund board, Child Abuse Preven-tion and Permanency Council for

the state and the Florida Faith-based and Com-munity-based Advisory Council, among many others.

“My faith is first in my life,” Hopkins said. “I strive to ‘have breakfast with Jesus’ daily and ask him what his will is for me that day and every day. Making a difference

in the world is important, as Jesus commands us to love God and our neighbor.”

Hopkins retired in 2013 as direc-tor for social concerns/respect life for the Florida Catholic Confer-ence/Florida Conference of Cath-olic Bishops, where she worked since 2002 and represented the conference on issues of human life, dignity and social justice at both the legislative and execu-tive levels of government and in the private and public sector. She worked tirelessly, networking and coordinating advocacy projects throughout the state. From 1988 to 2002, Hopkins served as the asso-ciate director of Catholic Charities of Northwest Florida, managing four regional offices.

“I’ve been blessed with my work to protect life and the dignity of the human person,” she said. “The Catholic Church is the only de-nomination with a full-time paid lobbyist. It’s important that our bishops think that highly of us and we are blessed with that.”

Hopkins is a wife, mother of three, and grandmother of three, and is active in her parish com-munity. She was awarded the Ben-emerenti Medal by Pope Benedict XVI in 2013, and in July of this year was presented with the USCCB Pro-Life Secretariat, “People of Life” award.

“Pope Francis has brought a freshness to Church teachings by using simple language and ges-tures to call us to joy in our faith and reaching out to others,” Hop-kins concluded, “as witnessed by the synods on the family that he has called. Thus, another goal for my presidency is to find ways to support families. So many have lost their moral compass through pornography, substance addiction and other destructive habits which contribute to the breakdown of the family. Through prayer and action, we can find ways to respond to the needs of children, the sick, the el-derly, the disabled.” n

National council president: ‘My faith is first in my life’

Sheila Hopkins

www.franciscanfriarstor.com


www.avemaria.edu

www.avemaria.edu

NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL NEWS 12Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic

ROCÍO GRANADOSLa Voz Católica staff

MIAMI | When Adelita was 12, her mother paid a smuggler to bring her to the United States.

It was a last-ditch attempt at a reunion. She had tried to bring her daughter to this country le-gally years ago, but her visa ap-plication had been denied. So she continued sending her money, clothes, even a cellphone to keep in touch. But when she heard from a friend that a man was chasing after her daughter, Fidelina made the decision to hire a “coyote.”

The good news is that Adelita survived the journey, which be-gan June 22 in Honduras and end-ed two weeks later in Reynosa, Mexico, a border city with the U.S. It took three more weeks — dur-ing which Adelita was cared for in a facility in Coyuga Center, N.Y. — before mother and daughter were reunited in Miami.

Still, their first meeting at the airport July 25 was bittersweet. Fidel i na, who lef t when her daughter was 17 months old, was not emotionally prepared to see a daughter who was now taller than her. “I expected to see a lit-tle girl; instead, what I saw was a woman,” she said, crying, as she recounted the story a month later.

At first, her daughter “looked at me fearfully, like a stranger,” Fidel ina said. “She was ver y quiet when she arrived. Now she laughs.”

Adelita (whose name as well as her mother’s have been changed to protect their identity) is part of the surge of unaccompanied children who have been com-ing to the United States in recent months, risking their lives along

the way. It’s a risk they and their parents are willing to take. By the end of this year, more than 70,000 unaccompanied children are ex-pected to have arrived at the Mex-ico-U.S. border, according to the U.S. Office of Customs and Border Protection. These figures do not include the number of children who begin the journey but never arrive.

For those who do arrive, the journey does not end when they are released to their parents. They then must face an immigration judge, who will decide whether or not they can stay in this country. Unlike in criminal court, howev-er, immigrants do not have a right to a court-appointed attorney, even if they are minors. They can pay for one if they want, but most cannot afford it.

“Many of the children are 5 years old. How can they answer to a judge?” said Randy McGrorty, executive director of Catholic Le-gal Services of the Archdiocese of Miami.

Having a law yer determines not only the likelihood that they will remain in the country, but also helps them protect them-selves from possible extortions by traffickers and other criminal organizations.

According to a recent report by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse of Syra-cuse University, only 50 percent of unaccompanied minors go to court with a lawyer; 77 percent of those without legal representa-tion receive a deportation order, and only 10 percent are allowed to stay in the country.

In recent months, a number of immigration groups and attor-neys have joined forces to help

the unaccompanied minors ar-riving in South Florida, among them Catholic Legal Services, St. Thomas University, the Cuban American Bar Association, Amer-ican Immigration Lawyers Asso-ciation, and Justice for All. Since August, they have been waging campaigns to recruit and train volunteer law yers while urging unaccompanied minors to bring their cases to them.

“Today we will interview and register children and then we will try to assign a lawyer,” said Elizabeth Sanchez, staff attorney at Catholic Legal Services, during an outreach day for unaccompa-nied minors held in early Septem-ber at St. Thomas University.

“It is an immigration case, not a criminal case,” stressed Sanchez.

Accord i ng to t he ter ms of t he Tra f f ick i ng Vict i ms Pro-tection Reauthorization Act of 20 08, Cent ra l A mer ica n m i-nors remain in the custody of Border Patrol officers for only a few hours. After they are inter-viewed, they are sent to shelters under the care of the Office of Refugee Resett lement, part of the Department of Health and Human Ser v ices, where t hey receive care and protection un-til they are reunited with their families.

Currently, there are 80 shel-ters across the countr y, which house more than 25,000 minors. Many of these shelters are man-aged by Catholic Charities. Be-cause those shelters are often far away from where the children’s families reside, “when minors arrive in Miami they have to re-quest to transfer their cases to a court in Miami,” said Sanchez.

They can call an automated

Children of the border: Once they arrive, their journey is far from over

Veronica Cordova, an attorney, interviews a Central American minor at St. Thomas University Sept. 6.

At St. Thomas University, a Central American girl waits while a volunteer lawyer checks, by phone, for her hearing date in immigration court. (PHOTOS BY ROCIO GRANADOS | LVC)

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phone line to find out the date of their court hearing. Right now, the courts are scheduling cases almost immediately af ter t he children’s release from the cen-ters.

“It is important for the child to

attend the hearing, even without a law yer. You can request more time to find one,” said Sanchez. “We have to help them to par-ticipate in the legal system. The government is represented by a lawyer.” n



www.cornerstonehospice.com


NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL NEWS13 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014

Miami Catholic returns from Ebola intervention in NigeriaStaff report

MIAMI | A week before the first case of Ebola landed in the U.S. — a visitor from Liberia who arrived in Dallas — an expert in infectious diseases said the West African outbreak of the deadly virus will be contained only if all ports of entry, in the region and beyond, are adequately screening for infected carriers.

Strengthening screening proto-cols at the land, air and sea ports in and around Nigeria was one of the top priorities for Dr. Aileen Marty, a former U.S. Navy doctor and 1975 graduate of Our Lady of Lourdes Academy in Miami, dur-ing a 31-day assignment in Africa. The U.S. patient — Thomas Eric Duncan — died Oct. 8 in Dallas. Two nurses who cared for him also have Ebola and are being treated.

The Miami resident and pro-fessor of medicine at Florida In-ternational University undertook the trip at the behest of the World Health Organization. She spoke with the media Sept. 22, a week after her return to the U.S.

She said that she was not im-pressed with what she saw as weak screening at airports in Europe and the United States upon her own return from West Africa. She observed that a plane full of pas-sengers from West Africa arriving in Europe did not get much scru-tiny, nor did the Miami airport ask questions of her personally.

“Certainly when I landed in Eu-rope, on an entire plane coming from a county that has Ebola, it probably would have been a good idea to at least do rudimentary questions and screening of people getting off the flight and that they get tracked wherever they are go-

ing,” she said. “In my case, I was in transit to

the U.S. and so I wasn’t screened in Europe and I wasn’t screened in Miami; and although I happen to know I am safe, the U.S. should have at least inquired about my situation,” she said.

Marty said WHO officials had been particularly worried that if Ebola gained a foothold in Nigeria — with its large urban population and the region’s largest economy — the results would have been globally devastating.

An estimated 8,000 West Afri-cans have already been infected

with Ebola, a disease that has killed just over 4,000, including one Liberian-American man who reportedly imported the virus into Nigeria in July. That patient died in Nigeria along with several others who later became infected.

“One individual flew into Nige-ria, the most populous country in Africa, by far, with an overwhelm-ing impoverished population and that led to a social and economic crisis as well as a personal tragedy for a number of individuals,” said Marty.

During her trip to Nigeria, she helped set up a special quaran-tined field hospital for treating infected patients. She also trav-eled to several states around the country to track possible cases, train border personnel and assess the overall situation.

Ma r t y s a id s he h ad f i r s t planned on being sent to hard-hit Sierra Leone, but the WHO redi-rected her to Nigeria after the first reported cases there. She said she personally screened an estimated 1,000 possible carriers, including a number of confirmed cases of Ebola.

Marty has served as a com-mander in the U.S. Navy medi-cal corps, specializing in tropical medicine, infectious disease pa-thology, disaster medicine, and in the science, medical response and policy involving weapons of mass

Dr. Aileen Marty, right, distributes forms to World Health Organization volunteers in Nigeria. (COURTESY PHOTOS)

Safer than shaking hands, Dr. Aileen Marty bumps elbows with a Lagos International airport employee.

destruction. She also attended the Navy War College. The Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery has recognized her as an expert on chemical, biological, radiation and high-energy weapons.

Recounting some of the rami-fications from that one imported case of Ebola into Nigeria, Marty said that “the entire country was affected, schools were closed, industry was affected, trade was affected, tourism was affected, sports were affected and people are now afraid of Nigerians, all because one individual in one airplane brought this disease to that country.

“Therefore, taking care of the points of entry where you enter and exit the country became an absolute imperative, and still is. While the outbreak rages on in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, you have to maintain vigilance at the points of entry in these coun-tries,” Marty said.

Nigeria is better prepared for that now, she added, due to recent efforts to bolster screening pro-cedures at the country’s interna-tional airports and seaports.

“But land por ts were a lot harder because for every legal land border crossing there are a dozen more illegal border cross-ings, so that became a campaign of dealing with the (tribal) chiefs and encouraging them to see why

Dr. Ailleen Marty, right, walks with a World Health Organization volunteer in Nigeria.

it was in their interests to control the movement of ill individuals across their borders,” Marty said.

Marty said her WHO team in Nigeria was responsible for find-ing and training local volunteers to assist with traveler screenings and creating a protocol that could be taught to college students and science majors. Nigerian physi-cians were trained to intercept cases that failed the primar y screening. The work also entailed seeking financial and other dona-tions from airlines, breweries and oil companies working in Nigeria, and mobilizing society at large to be aware of what was going on there.

“We looked for a (traveler-screening) system that would be very sensitive but not necessarily very specific, and since it wasn’t very specific we expected a num-ber of false positives, but that is a safer thing for the world,” she said. “Had Ebola spread among the impoverished people of Ni-geria it would have been a world calamity. It can be brought under control, but it does take a lot of re-sources and a lot of equipment.”

Marty said that over the years she has traveled on special as-signments in some 50 countries. The alumna received Our Lady of Lourdes’ 2007 Outstanding Career Achievement Bernadette award for her distinguished re-search and infectious disease work, including the study of bio-logical weapons such as anthrax and sarin.

“I have a lot of contacts with my class because we were a very close year in 1975,” she said. “There are 12 of us who try to get together regularly once a month; even when I lived all over the place I tried to come back to the meetings.” n


AdelAide MenACNA/EWTN News

WASHINGTON D.C. | Despite another wave of changes to the Obama administration’s Health and Human Services mandate, t he U.S. bishops’ con ference says that the regulation still fails to respect religious freedom.

“The mandate continues to substantially burden the reli-g ious l iber t y of sta keholders with religious objections to the mandated coverage,” said An-t hony Pica rel lo a nd Michael Moses, general counsel and as-sociate general counsel, respec-tively, for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“Because it does not further a

Bishops: ‘Still doesn’t cut it’ on latest tweakHealtH and Human ServiceS mandate

Kevin J. JonesCNA/EWTN News

DALLAS | Catholics in Texas are praying for the two nurses infected with Ebola, one of whom is a devout Catholic in communication with a priest.

“It is with profound sadness that we learn of the two Dallas health care workers being treated for the Ebola virus — Nina Pham and Amber Joy Vinson — after caring for Thomas Eric Duncan,” Bishop Kevin Farrell of Dallas said Oct. 15. “We pray not only for their recovery, but also for their families and loved ones.”

Pham, a nurse at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas, con-tracted the disease while caring for Duncan, an Ebola patient from Liberia who died Oct. 8. Vinson, an-other nurse who cared for Duncan, admitted herself to the same hospi-tal Oct. 14 reporting symptoms of the disease.

“This situation reminds of the countless hours of selfless service that nurses, doctors and other

No boundaries to prayer for nurse under Ebola quarantinehealth care professionals and insti-tutions provide in protecting us and our community,” Bishop Farrell said. “This is a time for our commu-nity to respond with calmness and compassion.”

Pham, reported to be a devout Catholic, is being kept in isolation and communicates with her fam-ily through Skype and phone calls. She has also been speaking with a priest, according to Annette Gonza-lez Taylor, communications direc-tor of the Diocese of Dallas.

Father Jim Khoi, pastor of Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church in Fort Worth, where Pham’s family at-tends Mass, has been holding daily prayer services for her.

The priest, citing conversations with Pham’s mother, told the Dallas Morning News that Pham is “very comfortable” and “very supported now.”

“She knows that everybody knew to pray for her especially in this dif-ficult time.”

Pham, who was recently moved to a hospital in Bethesda, Md., has received a blood transfusion from

Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly in hopes the blood contains antibod-ies that can help combat the virus.

Fort Worth’s Nolan Catholic High School, where Pham graduated in 2006, held a private prayer service for her Oct. 16.

Her case has raised some con-cerns about the disease and its transmission at Mass and in other venues. Taylor said that the Dallas Diocese has told priests and litur-gists to follow the U.S. bishops’ pro-tocols for influenza season, but she added that this action was not only in response to Ebola.

“It was sent out just as much to address the onset of flu season and the presence of the enterovirus (D68), which is very contagious, and is now in Dallas and around

the country. People with symptoms should not come to Mass,” Taylor said. “It’s not a sin to miss Mass if you are sick.” She also noted that in-dividual Catholics have the respon-sibility to decide whether to receive the precious blood from the chalice

during Communion. Bishop Farrell praised Dallas

officials for their response to the Ebola infections. He voiced confi-dence that officials “will take the necessary steps to care for the sick and protect the community.” n

compelling government interest by the means least restrictive of religious exercise, the mandate continues to v iolate t he Reli-gious Freedom Restoration Act,” they stated in Oct. 8 comments to the Department of Health and Human Services.

The comments were issued in response to an invitation for public comment by the admin-istration, after the department changed the terms of its con-troversial contraceptive man-date in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision on the “Hobby Lobby” case.

In its decision, the high court ruled against the federal contra-ception mandate as it applied to t wo closely held for-prof it companies, both family-owned businesses.

The mandate requires em-ployers to offer health insurance covering contraception, steril-ization and some drugs that can cause early abortions.

The family businesses in the court case both said the man-date forced them to violate their deeply held rel ig ious bel iefs. The Supreme Court agreed. This prompted a proposed change in the mandate from the Obama administration, the latest in a series of changes as lawsuits from hundreds of plaintiffs con-tinue to wind their way through the court system.

A lt houg h t he ma ndate i n-cludes a narrow relig ious ex-emption for houses of worship and their af f i l iated organiza-tions, many faith-based groups — such as soup kitchens, hos-pitals and schools — are not af-filiated with a specific house of worship and therefore do not qualify for the exemption.

I n s t e a d , t h e s e r e l i g i o u s groups were offered an “accom-modation” by which they could sign an authorization form di-recting an insurer or third-par-ty administrator to provide the contraceptive coverage.

Many religious groups st i l l objected to this scenario, say-ing that they were still required to authorize the coverage they found mora l ly object ionable, and arguing that the cost of the “f ree” cont racept ives wou ld ult imately be passed dow n to them through higher premiums.

I n t he wa ke of t he Hobby Lobby case, the administration has proposed an “interim final rule” that would alter this ac-commodation and also extend it to closely held, for-profit com-panies. Under the original man-date, for-profit businesses were excluded from both the exemp-tion and the accommodation.

Under the proposed changes, nonprofit and closely held for-profit employers would be able to direct ly notif y the Depart-

ment of Health and Human Ser-vices of their religious objection to the provision of contraception or related products and proce-dures. The government would then facilitate contact with in-surers and third-party admin-istrators to initiate the coverage.

In their comments, Picarello and Moses explained that the proposed rules do not funda-mentally alter the mandate, nor do they adequately address the concerns of “the vast majorit y of individual and institutional stakeholders with religious or moral objections to contracep-tive coverage.”

They also noted that the new rules for the accommodation of nonexempt religious groups still require employers to participate in the facilitation of contracep-tion coverage by providing the government with “all it needs” to provide the objectionable prod-ucts and procedures.

Addit iona l ly, t he proposed rules make “t he current situ-at ion worse for closely held, for-prof it orga n izat ions w it h religious objections to contra-ceptive coverage,” by extending the accommodation to certain for-profit businesses that were ruled to be exempt in the Su-preme Court’s recent decision.

The comments also objected to the different treatment given to houses of worship, nonprofit

N O B E L D C C C S T E PA P A C E I O T A Y E A RK I N K S O N A N N A S AE N D I O N S F O R T YD E S P O T E B B E D

E N T C O L E S L A WT H A W S P R I E D I N ES O N S W E A L D U L N AA M O F I A T S F L Y E RR E N O U N C E S E E

C R E E D I D E A L SG I F T S L I N E N E EA S I A E P I C R E G A LS L A V L I F E E L E V EP E T E F E E S R I L E S

moc.scilohtacrofsemagdrow.www

anSWerS to Page 20 Puzzle

‘She knows that everybody knew to pray for her especially in this difficult time.’

Father Jim Khoi

‘The mandate continues to substantially burden the religious liberty of stakeholders with religious objections to the mandated coverage’Anthony Picarello and Mi-chael Moses, general coun-sel and associate general counsel, respectively, for the USCCB

religious organizations and for-profit companies with religious objections. Doing so, they said, creates tiers of religious liberty rather than respecting the con-science rights of all.

“There is no legit imate, let a lone compel l i ng , reason to require a nonprofit pro-life or-ganization, for example, to en-gage in profit-making activity to qualify for an accommodation of its religious objection to aborti-facient dr ugs,” Pica rel lo a nd Moses argued. n

The Ebola crisis in West Africa has resulted in thousands of deaths. It kills up to 90 percent of persons infected. In response to this epidemic, Dr. Timothy Flanagan, center, a professor of medicine at Brown University and a Catholic deacon, is spending two months in Liberia to educate health care workers at Catholic hospitals. (COURTESY, DR. TIMOTHY FLANIGAN | CNA)

NATIONAL and INTERNATIONAL NEWS15 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014

CNA/EWTN News

VATICAN CITY | An incorrect translation into English of the orig-inal midterm report of the Synod on the Family may have spurred controversial interpretations of the document itself.

The document’s original ver-sion was written in Italian, which Pope Francis directed to be used as the official language of the synod. In prior synods the offi-cial language had been Latin, es-teemed for its precision and lack of ambiguity.

The point of controversy occurs at paragraph 50 of the relatio. The Italian original, after praising the gifts and talents homosexuals may give to the Christian community, asked: “Le nostre comunità sono in grado di esserlo accettando e valu-tando il loro orientamento sessuale, senza compromettere la dottrina cattolica su famiglia e matrimo-nio?”

In the English translation pro-vided by the Vatican, this is ren-dered as: “Are our communities capable of providing that, accept-ing and valuing their sexual ori-entation, without compromising Catholic doctrine on the family and matrimony?”

The key word “valutando,” which has sparked controversy

within the Church, was translated by the Vatican as “valuing.”

Italian’s “valutando” in fact means “evaluating,” and in this context would be better translated with “weighing” or “considering.”

The English translation, in con-trast, suggests a valuing of the ho-mosexual orientation, which could at least create confusion to those who are faithful to the teaching of the Church.

It must be said that the transla-tion was not an “official” transla-tion — the Vatican website notes at the top it is an “unofficial trans-lation” — but it was the working translation delivered by the Holy See press office in order to help journalists who are not confident in Italian with their work.

However, until now only this “working translation” has been provided.

The document was first deliv-ered in Italian, shortly before Car-dinal Peter Erdo of Esztergom-Bu-dapest, general rapporteur of the synod, was going to read it in front of the assembly. After about half an hour, the document was available in English, French, Spanish and German translations, and deliv-ered via a bulletin of the Holy See press office.

This timing suggested that the translation had been done in the

very last moments. According to a Vatican source, Cardinal Erdo had to give the document to the General Secretariat for the Synod on Oct. 11, and the document had been polished until the very last moment, and was given back to Cardinal Erdo only late Oct. 12.

That the text is not fully Cardi-nal Erdo’s may be suggested by the fact that “the post-discussion rela-tio is much shorter than the pre-discussion one,” as Archbishop Philip Tartaglia of Glasgow put it to CNA Oct. 15.

The excerpt on pastoral care of homosexuals has been addressed by critics during the discussion that followed the reading of the relatio on Monday. The document raised the impression that the Church had changed its views con-cerning homosexuality.

Cardinal Gerhard Mueller, pre-fect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, stressed Oct. 13 that “pastoral care for homo-sexuals has always been part of the Church’s teaching, and the Church has never gotten rid of or dismissed homosexuals from her pastoral programs.”

In fact, pastoral care for homo-sexuals is well described in a 1986 document, issued by Cardinal Mueller’s dicastery, “On the Pasto-ral Care of Homosexual Persons.”

Bearing the signature of the then-prefect, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, and approved by Pope John Paul II, the letter was deliv-ered to bishops worldwide, provid-ing instructions on how the clergy should respond to the claims of the LGBT community.

Far from being a document of condemnation, the document pro-vided a nuanced response to the issue of homosexuality.

The document stressed that “it is deplorable that homosexual per-sons have been and are the object of violent malice in speech or in action. Such treatment deserves condemnation from the Church’s pastors wherever it occurs. Al-though the particular inclination of the homosexual person is not a sin, it is a more or less strong ten-dency ordered toward an intrinsic moral evil; and thus the inclination itself must be seen as an objective disorder.”

Pastoral care for homosexuals was also addressed. “We encour-age the bishops to provide pastoral care in full accord with the teach-ing of the Church for homosexual persons of their dioceses,” the doc-ument read.

But, the document added, “no authentic pastoral program will include organizations in which ho-mosexual persons associate with

How an incorrect translation of the synod report created chaoseach other without clearly stating that homosexual activity is im-moral. A truly pastoral approach will appreciate the need for homo-sexual persons to avoid the near occasions of sin.”

Likewise, “we wish to make it clear that departure from the Church’s teaching, or si lence about it, in an effort to provide pastoral care is neither caring nor pastoral. Only what is true can ul-timately be pastoral. The neglect of the Church’s position prevents homosexual men and women from receiving the care they need and deserve.”

The document also dealt with the spiritual life.

“An authentic pastoral program will assist homosexual persons at all levels of the spiritual life: through the sacraments, and in particular through the frequent and sincere use of the sacrament of reconciliation, through prayer, witness, counsel and individual care. In such a way, the entire Christian community can come to recognize its own call to assist its brothers and sisters, without de-luding them or isolating them.”

The approach of the document was thus that of reaffirming the truth of the teaching of the Church, and at the same time approaching with mercy homosexual persons. n

glance to Christ: the Gospel of the Family”; and “The confrontation: pastoral perspectives.”

The 62 paragraphs of the docu-ment are filled with quotes from the sacred Scriptures, the lack of which in the midterm report was lamented by most of the small groups. Another outcome of the small groups’ suggestions is the frequent reference to the positive testimonies Christian families can give in contemporary society.

The strong stance against inter-national organizations that bind financial aid to the introduction of homosexual rights has been clari-fied and emphasized in a separate paragraph, while it was included in a wider paragraph in the mid-term report. At a first glance, all the concerns expressed by the small groups have been taken in consideration.

The divorced and remarried: pastoral consideration, points of clarification

The paragraphs on the divorced and remarried and on homosexu-al persons having been the most controversial of the midterm re-port, the paragraphs on those is-sues have been slightly modified, though they still failed to meet a

wide consensus.Regarding the divorced and re-

married, almost all the synod fa-thers agreed that “pastoral care of charity and mercy tends to the re-covery of persons and relations,” and that “every family must be lis-tened with respect and love.”

The consensus is slightly lower when the document stresses that “the synod fathers urge new pas-toral paths, that may start from the effective reality of families’ fragility, being conscious that these fragilities are endured with suffering than chosen with full freedom.”

There is even less consensus when the f inal report speaks about reforming the procedures for the declaration of nullity of marriages.

In contrast, a paragraph stating that those who are divorced with-out having remarried, who “often testify to the faithfulness of mar-riage” should “be encouraged in finding in the Eucharist the food which can sustain them.”

The report however states that “a particular discernment” must be put in action for a pastoral ac-companiment of separated, di-vorced, abandoned; focuses on the situation of those who sepa-rate because of domestic violence; and underscores that divorced and remarried must not feel “dis-

criminated” against, and that their participation in the com-munity “must be promoted” since “taking care of them is not for the Christian community a weaken-ing in faith and in the testimony to the indissolubility of the mar-riage.”

The paragraphs on access to Communion for the divorced and remarried (52 and 53) did not gain a supermajority among the synod fathers.

HomosexualityAlso, one paragraph concern-

ing homosexual couples did not gain the needed supermajority: Paragraph 55 describes the situ-ation of families “having within them persons with a homosexual orientation.” Considered vague, it received only 118 yes votes.

The following paragraph, 56, which condemned the linking of international financial aid to the establishment of same-sex mar-riage, did receive a supermajority.

Synod fathers all agree: more education is needed

There is however only one paragraph — the second one — that reached unanimity among the synod fathers.

“Despite the many signals of crisis of the institution of the fam-ily in the diverse contexts of the ‘global village,’ the wish for a fam-ily is still alive, especially among

young people, and this motivates the Church, expert in human-ity and faithful to her mission, to tirelessly and with profound con-viction announce the ‘Gospel of the family,’” paragraph two states, in part.

The final report provides large-ly the same view of the current situation of the family as did the midterm report, but it also notes positive testimonies of the family, and the role of grandparents.

The final report also addresses the importance of the affective life: “The individualistic danger and the risk of living selfishly are relevant. The Church’s challenge is to help couples in the matura-tion of their emotional dimension and in the affective development through the promotion of dia-logue, of virtue, and of trust in the merciful love of God.”

In general, the paragraphs based on sacred Scriptures and providing quotes of magisterial documents gained a wide con-sensus among the fathers. The final report also emphasized the need for a positive reception of “Humanae Vitae,” Paul VI’s encyc-lical on regulation of birth, which highlighted many positive aspects of family life and reaffirmed the doctrine of the Church.

Education has always been a primary challenge, as has been

stressed since the publication of the synod’s working document, and this is why the two final para-graphs of the final statement focus on the issue. The “educative chal-lenge” is one of “the fundamental challenges of families,” and the Church “supports families, start-ing from the Christian initiation, through welcoming communi-ties.”

“The Church is requested to support parents in their educa-tive commitment, accompanying babies, children, and adolescents in their growth through personal-ized paths able to introduce them to the full sense of life and arise choices and responsibility, lived in the light of Gospel.”

Toward the 2015 synodThe final report values more

the experience of Christian fami-lies than did the midterm report, and put in action many suggested changes. Yet, it cannot be con-sidered a definitive document. The final report will function as a “working document” for the 2015 Synod of Bishops, which is con-sidered the second part of unique synodal path on the family.

Only after that will Pope Fran-cis issue a post-synodal apostolic exhortation, which will shed light on how the Church is called to face the challenges of the family today. n

SYNOD ON the familY

SYNODFrom 1


Ann SchneibleCNA/EWTN News

VATICAN CITY | Addressing those gathered in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 19 for the beatification of Pope Paul VI, Pope Francis reminded Christians who live out the Gospel message that they are “God’s new-ness” both “in the Church and in the world.”

In his homily, the pope said God is “continually surprising us, open-ing our hearts and guiding us in unexpected ways.” In so doing, “he renews us: he constantly makes us ‘new.’”

An estimated 70,000 people, in-cluding Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, were present at the Mass to celebrate not only the closing of the Extraordinary Synod on the Fam-ily, but also the life of Pope Paul VI, who first established the Synod of Bishops as an institution of the Church designed to help the pope with his magisterial office.

“When we look to this great pope, this courageous Christian, this tireless apostle,” Pope Francis said, in reference to Paul VI, “we cannot but say in the sight of God a word as simple as it is heartfelt and

Pope beatifies Paul VI, ‘great helmsman’ of Vatican II

important: thanks! … Thank you, our dear and beloved Pope Paul VI. Thank you for your humble and prophetic witness of love for Christ and his Church.”

Referring to him as “the great helmsman of the (Second Vatican) Council,” Pope Francis cited Paul VI’s words at the closing of its fi-nal session: “Perhaps the Lord has called me and preserved me for this

VATICAN CITY | He had the unenvi-able task of being pope during a most “tumultuous” era for the Church, but Paul VI stood “deeply rooted in Christ” through it all, a theology professor has said.

“Pope Paul VI suffered greatly from the growing apostasy of the world from Christian values and from the distor-tions of the teaching of Vatican II,” said theology professor Dr. Alan Schreck of the Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio. “Through it all, he remained deeply rooted in Christ and the Holy Spirit.”

Pope Paul VI — Giovanni Battista Montini — was beatified Oct. 19 at the conclusion of the Synod on the Family. His cause for beatification moved forward after a miracle was attributed to his intercession by the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and approved by Pope Francis in May.

Benedict XVI had affirmed his “heroic virtue” in 2012, officially recognizing him as “Venerable.” As pope, Paul VI lived “heroic virtue” because though he “suf-fered” much turmoil and dissent in the Church, he directed major Church reforms and supported renewal of faith amongst the laity and religious, was a prophet about the errors of the age, and was even a well-traveled “pilgrim pope.”

The reforms of Paul VI included reforms of the Roman Curia and the College of Cardinals, as well as support for renewal movements within the Church.

“He was an able administrator who reformed the Roman Curia, as Vatican II had directed,” Schreck said. Paul VI also “internationalized the College of Cardinals” by “markedly increasing the membership in the college from the global South and East.”

Amid the cultural wreckage of the age, he saw “the need for a deep and profound prayer life for every member of the Church,” Schreck said, and supported “spiritual renewal movements.”

Paul VI also was a forerunner of St. John Paul II’s stand against communism. “He sought religious freedom concessions from Iron Curtain countries, paving the way for the downfall of communism in Eastern Europe,” Schreck said.

Perhaps Paul VI is most well known for his encyclical “Humanae Vitae” in which he upheld the Church’s discipline of priestly celibacy and its teaching against the use of artificial contraception. The stand was widely “controversial” then and now, yet Paul VI has been vindicated by time as a prophet of the destructive effects of contraception.

“Though this teaching sparked dis-sent among some Catholics, today Paul VI’s specific warnings of the negative effects of the widespread use of artificial contraception — such as increased sexual promiscuity and the decline of respect for human life — have certainly come to pass,” Schreck affirmed.

Yet as St. John Paul II was known as the well-traveled pope, Paul VI was also a “pilgrim pope,” Schreck said, citing his travels to Australia, South America, Asia, and the United States. And he promoted ministry through the end of his papacy with his “brilliant apostolic letter ‘On Evangelization in the Modern World,’” as well as his calling a synod on catechesis.

Through his faith, he guided the Church “in this most challenging period in which Western culture began to be dislodged from her Christian moorings,” Schreck concluded.

VINDICATED: WHY A MALIGNED POPE WAS BEATIFIED

service not because I am particu-larly fit for it, or so that I can govern and rescue the Church from her present difficulties, but so that I can suffer something for the Church, and in that way it will be clear that he, and no other, is her guide and savior.”

“In this humility,” Pope Fran-cis continued, “the grandeur of Blessed Paul VI shines forth: Be-fore the advent of a secularized and hostile society, he could hold fast, with farsightedness and wisdom … while never losing his joy and his trust in the Lord.”

Turning his attention to the Extraordinary Synod on the Fam-ily, which concluded its two-week course with the beatification of Paul VI, Pope Francis described the experience as one of “synodal-ity and collegiality,” in which was felt “the power of the Holy Spirit who constantly guides and renews the Church.”

“The Church,” he said, “is called to waste no time in seeking to bind up open wounds and to rekindle hope in so many people who have lost hope.”

Citing the words of St. Paul, Pope Francis gave thanks to God for the gift of the synod, and the construc-tive spirit shown by its participants. He called on the Holy Spirit, who, over the course of the synod, “has enabled us to work generously, in true freedom and humble creativ-ity,” to “continue to guide the jour-

ney” toward the Ordinary Synod of Bishops, which will take place in October 2015.

“We have sown and we contin-ued to sow patiently and persever-ingly, in the certainty that it is the Lord who gives growth to what we have sown,” he said.

At the conclusion of Mass, and before presiding over the weekly Angelus prayer, Pope Francis wel-comed all the pilgrims who had travelled to Rome to take part in the beatification.

The Holy Father also noted that Paul VI “was a staunch supporter of the mission ad gentes,” adding that “it is the witness above all of the apostolic exhortation ‘Evangelii nuntiandi’ with which he intended to reawaken the enthusiasm and the commitment of the Church for the mission.”

“‘Evangelii nuntiandi’ (‘To pro-

A tapestry of Pope Paul VI hangs in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 19, the date he was beatified by Pope Francis. (CNA/EWTN NEWS)

claim the Gospel’) is still relevant,” he said. “It is significant to consider this aspect of the pontificate of Paul VI, especially today (Oct. 19), which is celebrated as World Missionary Day.”

Pope Francis also made men-tion of Paul VI’s “profound Marian devotion.” In particular, he noted the late pope’s proclamation of Mary as “Mother of the Church” at the “close of the third session of the Second Vatican Council,” as well as his 1974 apostolic exhorta-tion “Marialis Cultus,” for the right ordering and development of devo-tion to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Before leading the Angelus in Latin, Pope Francis called on “Mary, Queen of Saints and Mother of the Church,” to “help us to faith-fully realize the will of the Lord in our life, just as the new blessed did.” n

Pope Paul VI and the Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople meet in Jerusalem January 1964. (FC ArChIVE PhOTOS)

Pope Paul VI shakes hands with well-wishers as he leaves Our Lady of the Lake Church near his summer residence at Castel Gondolfo, Italy.

75th ANNIVERSARY17 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014

About this page...

Two years ago, the Florida Catholic embarked on a journey to preserve the decades of news and events covered since Dec. 1, 1939, the first published edition of the paper. Throughout our 75th year we will publish a “look back” page where we delve into our archives and check out how a topic, event or decade was covered. While portions of newspaper articles will be reprinted on these pages, pages about these topics will be available online at www.thefloridacatholic.org. Just click on the “75” button.

coverage of the past 20 years

For the past year, the Florida Catholic has opened its archives to look back at how issues impor-tant to the Church and to Catholics were covered — from youths to immigration, sports to armed con-flicts, respect life to popes, saints to the expansion of the Church in Florida, and more. Decades were covered separately, starting with the 1940s and ending in the pres-ent day.

What a past couple of decades we have experienced. Technology has radically changed communi-cations and, in a sense, the world

seems a little smaller because even if an event happens thousands of miles away, news about it can be shared in a matter of hours, min-utes or seconds. Technological medical advances have healed, but also have blurred the ethical lines held sacred by the culture of life.

So while traipsing through the archives in the 1990s and 2000s, we tried to highlight images and head-lines that caught our eye: local and state news stories (Terri Schiavo, school choice, arrest of abortion doctor), and national/international stories with statewide impact, such

July 8, 1999

These three pro-life headlines (at top: Aug. 5, 2005; above: Oct. 2, 2008; at right: Oct. 16, 1997) were two of many that appeared in the last two decades

Oct. 20, 1995 Jan. 15, 1998

as Pope John Paul II’s historic 1998 visit to Cuba, as seen in the above headline from Jan. 22, 1998.

Dec. 5, 1996: A woman looks at portions of the 500 panels of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, which Universal Studios hosted for World AIDS Day.

May 25, 2007: A house along the east coast of Florida lies destroyed after Hurricane Jeanne hit Vero Beach Sept. 26, 2004.

Jan. 11, 2008: Michael Douglas, a resident of Pinellas Hope, a Catholic Charities site that offers shelter for homeless people, speaks at a memorial service about a homeless man he knew briefly. In the background is Father Robert Schneider.

Sept. 4, 1997: Junior Brutus, of Port Charlotte, and Christina Long, of Fort Myers, play a game of basketball with the older boys, including Mario, who is directly under the basket, at an orphanage in Haiti. The youths were part of a mission trip to the Caribbean island.

June 12, 2003

Sept. 20, 2001

Sept. 30, 2004

Feb. 8, 2001

June 11, 2002: This reflection was written by a Florida Catholic staffer in light of the U.S. bishops’ meeting on clergy sex abuse.

www.thefloridacatholic.org

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19 Florida Catholic Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014SUNDAY WORD and SCRIPTURE

Scripture readingsFriday, Oct. 24Eph 4:1-6; Ps 24:1-4b, 5-6; Lk 12:54-59

Saturday, Oct. 25Eph 4:7-16; Ps 122:1-5; Lk 13:1-9

Sunday, Oct. 26Ex 22:20-26; Ps 18:2-4, 47, 51; 1 Thes 1:5c-10; Mt 22:34-40

Monday, Oct. 27Eph 4:32-5:8; Ps 1:1-4, 6; Lk 13:10-17

Tuesday, Oct. 28Feast of Sts. Simon and Jude, apostles

Eph 2:19-22; Ps 19:2-5; Lk 6:12-16

Wednesday, Oct. 29Eph 6:1-9; Ps 145:10-14; Lk 13:22-30

Thursday, Oct. 30Eph 6:10-20; Ps 144:1b, 2, 9-10; Lk 13:31-35

Friday, Oct. 31Phil 1:1-11; Ps 111:1-6; Lk 14:1-6

Saturday, Nov. 1Solemnity of All Saints

Rv 7:2-4, 9-14; Ps 24:1b-4b, 5-6; 1 Jn 3:1-3; Mt 5:1-12a

Sunday, Nov. 2The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)

Wis 3:1-9; Ps 23:1-6; Rom 5:5-11; Jn 6:37-40

Monday, Nov. 3Phil 2:1-4; Ps 131:1b-3; Lk 14:12-14

Tuesday, Nov. 4Memorial of St. Charles Borromeo, bishop

Phil 2:5-11; Ps 22:26b-32; Lk 14:15-24

Wednesday, Nov. 5Phil 2:12-18; Ps 27:1, 4, 13-14; Lk 14:25-33

Thursday, Nov. 6Phil 3:3-8a; Ps 105:2-7; Lk 15:1-10

Friday, Nov. 7Phil 3:17-4:1; Ps 122:1-5; Lk 16:1-8

Saturday, Nov. 8Phil 4:10-19; Ps 112:1b-2, 5-6, 8a, 9; Lk 16:9-15

Sunday, Nov. 9Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome

Ez 47:1-2, 8-9, 12; Ps 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9; 1 Cor 3:9c-11, 16-17; Jn 2:13-22

Sunday word

Sunday Word

Father David

Scotchie

Sunday, Oct. 26Ex 22:20-26; Ps 18:2-4, 47, 51; 1 Thes 1:5c-10; Mt 22:34-40

Why did the chicken cross the road? You know the reason. To get to the other side.

W hy did the chicken go to church? Same reason. To get to the other side. (Or as a teen-ager told me, “Because her mom made her go.”)

Let’s try it one more time. Why did the church-going chicken vote? Simi-lar reason. To get us to the other side.

More than a few people wonder, “Why vote? Noth-ing ever changes.”

In the 2000 general elections, George Bush defeated Al Gore thanks to less than 600 votes in the state of Florida. Imagine if those few hundred vot-ers for George Bush stayed home and thought, “Why vote? Nothing ever changes.” A few vot-ers in Florida made the difference to the course of our nation.

That instance is rare in national elections. However, local elections are often the difference between a few hundred votes. Local elections might not be as sexy as national elections. Yet amendments to the Constitution of the state of Florida, such as the 2010 amendment to create fair and representative dis-

tricts in Florida, matter. Local elections affect the admin-

istration of hundreds of millions of dollars to our schools, city and county. The winners of the elections for the Florida Legislature will have a say on issues important to Florid-ians. We can make a difference. But not only can we make a difference,

we must.“Responsible citizen-

ship is a virtue, and par-ticipation in political life is a moral obligation,” our bishops wrote. “We are called to bring together our principles and our political choices, our val-ues and our votes, to help build a better world.”

“Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship” is a statement from the Cath-olic bishops of the United States. It guides Catholics to exercise political re-

sponsibility. The statement helps form our consciences that we may to contribute to civil and re-spectful public dialogue and shape our choices in the coming election in the light of Catholic teaching. We must make a difference not just because the Church teaches it. We must because Scripture commands it.

When Jesus is asked, “What is the greatest commandment?” his response is unequivocal: “Love God with all your heart, soul, and mind

and your neighbor as yourself” (cf., Mt 22:34-40).

The Lord God makes this com-mand extremely personal. “You shall not molest or oppress an alien. … You shall not wrong any widow or orphan.”

He continues, “If ever you wrong them and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry. My wrath will flare up, and I will kill you with the sword; then your own wives will be widows, and your children or-phans” (Ex 22:20-23). Wow. This lights a fire under our efforts to pro-tect from abuse and exploitation the migrant children and families at our southern border.

Again, “If you lend money to one of your poor neighbors among my people, you shall not act like an ex-tortioner toward him” (Ex 22:24). Clearly, God cares for the poor. He cares for immigrants, widows and orphans. The Son of God became one with the poor.

In these elections, speak out. Vote. Be the chicken to get us to the other side.

To take to prayer: Take a sample ballot to prayer. Pray for all of the candidates. n

Father Scotchie is the pastor of Most Precious Blood Parish in Oviedo. He holds a doctorate in preaching and gladly of fers to coach fellow clergy in preaching. He can be reached at [email protected].

Responsible citizenship is a virtue

opinion

Father Tad Pacholczyk

In the current debate over gay marriage, people sometimes ask: W ho should define marriage? Democrats or Republicans in Con-gress? The Supreme Court? Should it be put to a referendum, allowing the majority to choose a definition?

We can identify two kinds of “definitions” when it comes to marriage. The first touches on the essence, the objective re-ality, or the truth about marriage. The second involves a legal or po-litical position, advanced through the media, ju-dicial decisions or other legislative means. While these secondary defini-tions of marriage can be of interest, their true level of importance is properly gauged only in reference to the first and objective definition.

Not able er rors a re sometimes made in these second-ary definitions of marriage. In the mid-1960s, to consider but one ex-ample, prohibitions existed in more than a dozen states which outlawed persons of different races from marrying one another. A white man and a black woman could fall in love in those states, but could not legally tie the knot. The Supreme Court overturned those restrictions in 1967, recognizing that the ability to enter into marriage doesn’t de-pend on the skin color of the man and woman getting married.

Gay marriage advocates today sometimes attempt to draw a paral-lel between such mixed-race mar-

riage laws and state laws that would prevent two men (or two women) from getting married to each other. They suggest that legally forbidding two men from getting married stig-matizes those men in much the same way that preventing a black man from marrying a white wom-an stigmatized both of them.

Yet there is really no parallel at all between the two cases. W hile marriage as an objective reality is certainly color-blind to the racial configuration of the spouses, it can never be “genital-blind,” be-cause male-female sexual complementarity stands squarely at the heart and center of marriage itself.

To see this fundamen-tal point about marriage, however, we have to step beyond the cultural cli-chés that suggest that

marriage is merely an outgrowth of emotional and erotic companion-ship. The institution of marriage does not arise merely out of loving sentiment. It is born, rather, from the depths of the commitment as-sumed by a man and a woman as they enter into the total commu-nion of life implied in the procre-ation and education of children flowing from their union. To put it another way, marriage arises or-ganically and spontaneously from the radical complementarity of a man and a woman.

Sexual intimacy between men

‘Redefining’ marriage?

Please see MARRIAGE, 20

Sunday, Nov. 2The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)

Wis 3:1-9; Ps 23:1-6; Rom 5:5-11; Jn 6:37-40

This Sunday it is very difficult to prepare a Sunday Word column, for the usual rule — go to Mass anywhere in the world and the readings are the same — does not apply. You see, on All Souls’ Day, all of the read-ings which are possible selections for a funeral liturgy are possible se-lections, which leads to a huge number of possible combinations of readings. Thus, it seems opportune to discuss WHY we cel-ebrate All Souls’ Day and why we pray for the dead, since November is partic-ularly dedicated to pray-ing for the dead.

In the Catholic funeral, as in the typical Protestant funeral, we use the consoling words of the Bible. We

pray for the family that God might offer them consolation and peace. We call those who remain to recom-mit themselves to following Christ, so that they might be prepared to share the joys of heaven with their beloved dead — though not with the same fervor I’ve heard in some

altar calls at funerals! But we do something

else, something which is central to our funeral lit-urgy, which doesn’t make sense to many of our Prot-estant brothers and sisters: We pray for the deceased.

All Souls’ Day is like a big funeral for all our loved ones who have passed away, indeed for all the faithful departed. Our celebration can serve as a consolation for those who mourn, as we remember those who have died in the past year. It is a time to

pray for greater confidence in God’s mercy and love, and to recommit to living out our own lives as sons and daughters of God. In the con-

text of yesterday’s feast of All Saints, we express our hope that all of our loved ones will join the saints, in their perfect joy in heaven, and that we will one day join them as well. Finally, we pray for our deceased loved ones, trusting that, in God’s mysterious plan, our prayers some-how help them.

In “Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer,” written as he was get-ting on in years, famous the Angli-can writer C.S. Lewis wrote about prayer for the dead: “Of course I pray for the dead. The action is so spontaneous, so all but inevitable, that only the most compulsive theo-logical case against it would deter me. And I hardly know how the rest of my prayers would survive if those for the dead were forbidden. At our age, the majority of those we love best are dead. What sort of intercourse with God could I have if what I love best were unmention-able to him?”

The arguments against prayer for the dead require us to do a couple

Sunday Word

Father Alfredo

Hernández

All Souls’ Day is like a big funeral for all our loved ones who have passed away

Please see SOULS, 20


CROSSWORD 20Oct. 24-Nov. 6, 2014 Florida Catholic

CROSSWORD See puzzle solution on Page 14

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 01 11 21 31

41 51 61

71 81 91

02 12 22 32

42 52 62 72 82

92 0 13 3 23 33

43 53 63 73 83

93 04 14

24 34 44

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moc.scilohtacrofsemagdrow.www

ACROSS1 Prize won by Mother Teresa6 CC less than M10 Pace14 With speed15 Scintilla16 Liturgical ___17 Problems18 Second son of Judah19 Launch grp.20 “…world without ___. Amen”21 Charged particles23 Number of days Jesus spent in the desert24 Autocrat26 Grew less29 Talking Tolkien tree30 Cabbage salad34 Melts37 Examined furtively38 Serpent’s tail?39 Joseph and Benjamin, to Jacob40 Uncultivated country41 Bone of the forearm42 ___, amas, amat43 Decrees44 Pilot45 Repudiate47 Jurisdiction of a bishop48 Apostles’ or Nicene49 Standards of perfection53 What the Magi brought56 Queue58 Born59 The Archdioceses of Tokyo and Mandalay are here60 Heroic62 Royal64 Pole or Croat65 Eternal ___66 Ecole attendee67 Sneaky fellow68 Charges69 Angers

DOWN1 Adam and Eve were afraid because they were this2 Express a belief3 Musical groups4 Johann ___, 16th century defender of Catholicism5 Wounds6 French-Canadian Catholic singing phenomenon7 Permanent state of life characterized by the profession of the evangelical counsels8 Windy city transport initials9 Fire10 Meetings of bishops11 Pillow stainer12 Nod, vis-à-vis Eden13 Say the rosary22 Melvin of baseball23 “___ my sheep” (Jn 21:17)25 Church seats27 One of the 10 plagues28 Ran, as colors31 Easter flower32 Patron saint of Canada33 Damage by regular use34 Former Russian ruler35 Tarsus, to Paul36 Hie’s partner37 “___ be with you”40 It becomes the Blood of Christ41 Peter Fonda “golden” role43 Animal pelts44 Tennis great Roger46 Eight days of a holy season47 Evil deed50 Zechariah was the first person in the New Testament to see this (Lk 1:11)51 Depart52 Graf rival53 Breathe convulsively54 Shipwreck site55 Decree57 Frozen treats60 Mischievous person61 Schoo-fly, for one63 An Old Testament high priest

and women involves the possibil-ity of children. No other form of sexual or erotic interaction encom-passes this basic, organic and com-plementary possibility. Without parsing words, Professor Jacques LeClercq put it this way more than 50 years ago: “The human race is divided into two sexes whose rea-son for existence is physical union with a view to continuing the spe-cies.” More recently, Professor Rob-ert P. George similarly described marriage as “a union that takes its distinctive character from being founded, unlike other friendships, on bodily unity of the kind that sometimes generates new life.”

There are many kinds of love, ranging from maternal love to brotherly love to love of friends to love of neighbor to romantic love, but only one that is proper and in-tegral to marriage — namely, spou-sal love with its inscribed comple-mentarity and potential for human fruitfulness.

Marriage teaches us that men need women and women need men and that children need both mothers and fathers. In this sense, marriage and the family represent foundational realities, not con-structs that can be invented, de-fined, legislated or determined by popular vote or culture. Marriage, in fact, is the “primordial first insti-tution,” flowing out of the intimate and creative union of male and female. It precedes other societal institutions and conventions, and is essentially ordered toward creat-ing and caring for the future in the form of the next generation. Mar-riage is a given reality that we come to discover in its authentic design, not a concept for us to “define” ac-cording to our own agenda or de-sires.

Gay marriage proponents deny these foundational truths about marriage. Through vigorous leg-islative efforts, they are striving to impose a profoundly false redesign for marriage upon society so that, in the words of Professor George, marriage becomes “an emotional union for the sake of adult satis-faction that is served by mutually agreeable sexual play,” thereby un-dermining its intrinsic connection to complementary bodily union between men and women.

This forced reconfiguration of marriage is no more defensible than the efforts of those who so-cially or legislatively attempted to impose a notion of “racial purity” upon marriage or society in former times. Q

Father Pacholczyk, Ph.D., earned his doctorate in neuroscience from Yale and did post-doctoral work at Harvard. 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 Phila-delphia (www.ncbcenter.org).

of things. First, we have to discount the authority of the Second Book of Maccabees, from which we could take the first reading for Sunday (12:43-46). Although this book was accepted by the vast majority of Christian teachers of the faith until the 16th century, in order to say that praying for the dead is wrong we have to ignore the late Jewish prac-tice of prayer for the dead, precisely because of hope in the resurrection. We also have to ignore the practice of every Christian community un-til the 16th century, as we can see in epitaphs, liturgical prayers and other writings.

There is a fundamental reason for the distaste that praying for the dead causes for non-Catholic Chris-tians. It seems that we are robbing something from the unique re-demptive power of the cross. If Jesus saved us by dying on the cross, and if the dead person was judged on dying, what can we possibly do to affect that judgment or to help that person make it to heaven?

The bottom line is that a good Catholic would answer you: noth-ing. We cannot change the final judgment for anyone. That judg-ment is based on their own answer to the question of the Lord, which Matthew 25 (Mt 25:1-13 is a pos-sible Gospel passage) makes clear the Lord will ask: “How have you treated the least of my brothers and

MARRIAGEFROM 19

SOULSFROM 19

sisters?” We Catholics, however, take very seriously the notion, so prevalent in the writings of St. Paul and St. John, that we “have been baptized into Christ Jesus” and are “children of God” (Rom 6:3-9 and 1 Jn 3:14-16 are possible second readings). Our capacity to pray for any other person, alive or dead, or to help anyone by offering our sac-rifices to try to assist others comes from our union to Christ. We do not get them to heaven, but because of our union with Christ, we can help them on the journey there.

The final act of love is to pray for our loved ones who have died. We do so united in Christ and acting as members of his body. Any value our prayers and sacrifices have can only come from one source: the cross of Christ. As the souls of the saved experience the final purification (purgatory) or however we might want to call those final steps before we are received into the glory of heaven, in some way that we cannot understand, they know themselves to be enveloped by our love and prayers. If “love alone lasts,” how can this not be something good in the eyes of God? And these same souls, from their eternal home in heaven, remember us and pray for us before the throne of God, so that the “communion of saints” may be complete. Q

Father Hernández is the dean of Pastoral Formation at St. Vincent de Paul Regional Seminary in Boynton Beach.

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