September 3, 200650¢

Volume 80, No. 31

www.diocesefwsb.org/TODAY Serving the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend

NOTRE DAME — People of a certain agewill recall that a year or two of studying Latinused to be required in Catholic high schoolsand sometimes in public high schools. Thus,many freshmen Latin students were knownto express the maxim that “Latin is a dead,dead language, and it’s killing me.”

Carmelite Father Reginald Foster, a Latinscholar who is the Latin secretary for PopeBenedict XVI, is quick to refute that maxim,and he did so with wit and enthusiasm at anAug. 24 talk at the University of NotreDame.

“Latin is about as dead as a Bach orHandel concerto,” Father Foster told a stand-ing-room-only audience of about 150 peoplein the courtroom of the Notre Dame Schoolof Law. “Latin isn’t dead, and it isn’t going todie,” he insisted in his often-curmudgeonlystyle.

Father Foster has held the position of thepope’s Latin secretary for the past 37 years.

He appeared at Notre Dame at the invitationof law and theology professor CathleenKaveny while he was on a brief visit to theUnited States. His home monastery is at HolyHill, Wis.

Latin is too important a part of our west-ern civilization to die out, the priest said,explaining that our language, our culture andour mentality are all connected to the greatthinkers and theologians who wrote in Latin.And, of course, since Latin is the official lan-guage of the Catholic Church, all of theimportant church documents are in Latin, hereminded the audience.

One must read the great geniuses of theWestern world, such as Augustine andErasmus, in the Latin language in which theywrote in order “to feel their thoughts andsouls,” Father Foster said. “Translation does-n’t do it,” for attempting to translate suchgreat ideas would be “like a piano teacherdoing a Schubert sonata.”

The priest called Gregorian chant and the

‘Latin isn’t dead,’ says pope’sLatin secretary at Notre Dame

CNS PHOTO/MICHAELA REHLE , REUTERS

An altar is prepared in the Bavarian village

of Altotting, Germany, Aug. 25, in advance

of Pope Benedict XVI's Sept. 11 visit. In a

Sept. 9-14 homecoming visit, the pope will

stop in the town where he was born, lec-

ture at the university where he once

taught and celebrate Mass in the city

where he was a bishop.L A T I N , P A G E 4

TODAY’S CATHOLICTODAY’S CATHOLIC

BAVARIA PREPARES FORPOPE BENEDICT’S VISIT

B Y A N N C A R E Y

Katrina’s challenges, chances forrenewal linger, says Biloxi bishop

PROVIDED BY L ITTLE FLOWER PARISH

Young people from Little Flower Parish in South Bend assist with cleanup and recoveryefforts at Our Mother of Mercy Parish in Pass Christian, Miss., while on a mission trip to theHurricane Katrina-stricken Gulf Coast. Twenty-eight people from Little Flower recently spent14 days of service to assist the region.

BILOXI, Miss. — Bishop Thomas J. Rodi of Biloxisaid many people probably have mixed feelingsabout the first anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

“There is some wisdom in wanting to get on withour lives and not giving attention to Aug. 29,” theday the hurricane made landfall in 2005, he wrote inthe Aug. 18 issue of the Gulf Pine Catholic, Biloxi’sdiocesan newspaper. “It may feel to some that we aregiving the storm too much power over us if we recalland observe the day it hit.”

But he also noted that there is a need to “pauseand to remember,” reflecting on all that was lost anddestroyed by Katrina and remembering what waslearned from the disaster.

He said the extensive losses from the stormcaused many to reflect upon “what is truly importantand what is truly lasting.”

“We have been reminded that people are moreimportant than things. We have also been remindedhow important it is to tell people we love them. Wenever know when we will be separated from them.Our priests and religious have been outstanding bothin helping us to rebuild and to discern the greatestvalues in life,” he said.

The bishop also stressed that the hurricanedemonstrated people’s compassion especially as vol-unteers arrived from across the world to help out.

“It has been difficult at times to be on the receiv-ing end of this generosity, but it has been a blessingto see so many people who wish to lend a helpinghand to others. We are fortunate to be able to see somuch goodness in the world,” he added.

Bishop Rodi also noted that those directlyimpacted by the storm have had the opportunity togrow in faith even as they question why God would

K A T R I N A , P A G E 3

Faith in theworkplace

How does your

workplace rate?

Pages 10-12

Century of serviceSouth Bend’s St. Vincent de Paul

Society celebrates 100 years

Page 5

Shared faith Lead us not into temptation

Page 9

Educators offer tipsSlugging it out with the

Internet at home and school

Page 17

Wednesday night liveAdult religious education fun

in Columbia City

Page 24

Diocesan offices

closed Monday, Sept. 4,

to observe labor day

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C2 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

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TODAY’S CATHOLIC Pastoral support brings successto the Annual Bishop’s Appeal

The 20th timeWe have begun in earnest our 20th

Annual Bishop’s Appeal. I think back withgratitude to those early days. In my earlymonths here, several priests approachedme. Father Robert Epping, CSC, at thattime the pastor of Christ the King Parish,South Bend, and Father John Pfister, thenpastor of St. Jude Parish, Fort Wayne,expressed concern about the method offinancing the diocese and how it needed tobe reconsidered. We formed a committee of10 priests and six laity with Father BillSchooler, at the time pastor of St. Paul ofthe Cross, Columbia City, as chair. I recallFather Gene Kazmierczak, now retired andstill in great spirits, served on the commit-tee, as did Art Decio of St. Thomas Parish,Elkhart. When I asked Art by telephone ifhe would help us, I said, “I understand youdon’t like meetings, Art.” He replied,“Bishop, I like meetings if something goodhappens.” Dick Rosenthal, a respected fig-ure in both Fort Wayne and South Bendwho served with distinction as athleticdirector at Notre Dame, was alsoon the committee and was thefirst South Bend chair of ourAnnual Bishop’s Appeal.

I received a full report anddrove to a meeting of the com-mittee in Warsaw telling themthat I accepted the report. I onlymade one addition. The reportsaid that the bishop needed to beout front and visible on thiseffort. I promised that I would,but I said that would not do it.What would ensure success wasif the parish priest was out front.It is the priest who says theSunday Mass, visits the school,goes to the grave to lead prayersfor the deceased and visits thesick and the dying — if he supports theappeal and makes it his own, it will be suc-cessful.

We made many important decisions inthe early days and then refined andimproved it as the years went on. We indi-cated that all funds over goal would be keptin the local parish. We consulted withpriests during the early years. We latermade changes that took into account thepressure of parish schools. It was all verycollaborative. Most of all, it relieved thepressure on parishes. There was alwaysclose communion between the diocese andthe parish, and between the pastors andtheir people.

I recalled all this at our recent dinners,first in Fort Wayne and then in South Bend.We had a joyous night in South Bend wherethe turnout was, for the second time, evenslightly larger than the excellent turnout inFort Wayne. This is significant because atthe beginning a few people said to me,“South Bend will not give to this effort.”

I always am in awe of the relationship

which our priests have forged with theirpeople. There is such great communion onthe parish level between shepherd andflock.

At the South Bend dinner, I recalled thebeautiful phrase that Art Decio repeated inthe six meetings we had with our prieststhat first year — one in each of our vicari-ates. “Will Rogers said he never met a manhe didn’t like. I never met a priest I didn’tlove.”

Our new videoThe new video put together by our part-

ners from New Group Media and our com-munications director, Vince LaBarbera, isexcellent and shows the progress of thesepast 20 years. It should all make us humble,not proud. It is God’s work. As we stepaway from the Legacy of Faith, we hopewe can increase our total. Remember,everything over $4 million is returned tothe parishes. Last year, we were able toreturn about $1 million to parishes. Thisyear we hope that will increase significant-ly. John and Marjorie Bycraft, who are giv-ing outstanding leadership as diocesanchairs, said they hope to make this thehighest appeal ever, which means we willhave to go over $5.6 million. We are alsoworking hard to increase the number ofdonors. Everyone can give something. Wenever want it to become an appeal that ismade up entirely of major givers. The sig-nificant increases in teachers’ salaries overfive years would have been impossible

without the appeal. Last year, we gavegrants from the appeal to 30 parishes withschools and, of course, we give $1.7 mil-lion every year divided among our fourCatholic high schools.

These two dinners in each of our majorcities were a joy.

A mission completedI have now visited with every one of our

candidates for the priesthood. This is asummer task, which usually begins when Ireturn from vacation in late July. Earlier inthe spring, I visited with the new applicantsafter they had completed preliminary steps,which include interviews with FatherBernard Galic, director of the Office ofVocations, and assembling recommenda-tions from the pastor and various other peo-ple, such as teachers and friends.

Most important, they had a series of psy-chological tests and interviews with Dr.Susan Steibe-Pasalich. Susan, a goodfriend, is director of the counseling services

at Notre Dame and is a clinical psycholo-gist. Several years ago, she and I agreedthat she should go to St. Luke’s Institute inMaryland for further training so that shecould be helped to find serious problemswhich, as you know, have caused thechurch so much anguish in recent years. Ihave all these reports compiled by FatherGalic and his excellent assistant, MarySzymczak. I read them carefully and theninterview each candidate myself.

This year, we accepted six students. Thismeans that at the opening of the seminaryyear, we will have 19 students in formationfor the priesthood. This includes DeaconAnthony Steinacker, who is scheduled to beordained to the priesthood at the Cathedralof the Immaculate Conception on Oct. 28. Ibelieve this is the largest number in my 21years as your bishop. I attribute it, underGod’s grace, to two factors. The prayers ofso many throughout the diocese, privateprayers by individuals and parish prayers;rosary for vocations before Mass; andeucharistic adoration. The other factor isthe example and inspiration of our parishpriests, along with the devoted work ofFather Galic.

The fostering of vocations to the priest-hood is not easy. Many things must happen.Putting posters on walls or advertising doesnot do it. Here are some of the things thathave to happen, which are ongoing in ourdiocese.

• Catechesis must be strengthened. Thereis need for strong religious education inschools and in religious education programsin parishes and in Catholic high schools.

How could one give his life forthe faith if he did not know it.

• There is need for effectiveprograms of youth ministry inparishes, which include prayer,catechesis and service of those inneed. Parents must be catechizedabout the priesthood. Pope JohnPaul II wrote, “The wholechurch needs to have clearly infocus the meaning of the minis-terial priesthood.”

• There must be efforts alsofor vocations to the consecratedlife, especially among youngwomen.

• There needs to be parishretreats and missions where thefocus is on prayer and faith.

We are encouraged by these good num-bers and by the work being done for voca-tions in our parishes.

Speaking of vocationsWhat a joy and privilege to ordain four

young Holy Cross religious to the diaconatelast Sunday in the Chapel at MoreauSeminary. The previous day, they hadoffered their lives to God as religious withvows of poverty, chastity and obedience.Notre Dame was a factor in the decision ofeach to consider a priestly vocation in theHoly Cross Congregation. A special joy thatone of the new deacons was a native ofChrist the King Parish. Great blessings toJim Gallagher, Gregory Haake, StephenKoeth and Peter McCormick.

See you all next week.

BISHOP JOHN M. D’ARCY

NEWS& NOTES

This year, we accepted six students.

This means that

at the opening of the seminary year,

we will have 19 students

in formation for the priesthood.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 3SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

FDA permission to sell Plan B over thecounter called unacceptable

WASHINGTON (CNS) — TheFood and Drug Administration’sAug. 24 decision, with the appar-ent support of President GeorgeW. Bush, to allow over-the-counter sales of Plan B, the“morning-after pill,” to women18 and older defies commonsense and is “completely unac-ceptable,” according to a pro-lifeofficial of the U.S. Conference ofCatholic Bishops.

Deirdre McQuade, director ofplanning and information for thebishops’ Secretariat for Pro-LifeActivities, urged pharmacists“not to confuse FDA approvalwith a right to access” and saidthey should “refuse to stock thispotent drug for distribution ondemand.”

Plan B uses large doses ofbirth-control pills to prevent con-ception up to 72 hours afterunprotected sex. Over-the-count-er sales of the drug were expect-ed to begin before the end of theyear.

In its Aug. 24 announcementthe FDA said that, “when used asdirected, Plan B effectively andsafely prevents pregnancy.” ButMcQuade said that ignores the“potentially abortifacient” effectsof the drug.

“While Plan B can preventfertilization, the manufactureradmits it mayalso prevent anewly con-ceived embryofrom implanti-ng and surviv-ing in thewomb,” shesaid. “This isproperly under-stood as caus-ing an earlyabortion.

“Without thebenefit of adoctor’s super-vision, manywomen will beunaware of thisabortifacientaction and theother risksposed by PlanB,” McQuade added.

The FDA said the drug wouldbe made available “with a rigor-ous labeling, packaging, educa-tion, distribution and monitoringprogram” called ConvenientAccess, Responsible Education,or CARE.

McQuade said Plan B “is apowerful dose of the artificial

hormone levonorgestrel — 40times the amount found in com-parable prescription-only birth-control pills.”

“Making the more potentdosage available to women uponrequest simply offends commonsense, especially when the drug is

not designed totreat a diseaseor pathologicalcondition,” shesaid.

In an Aug.21 press confer-ence, Bush saidhe supportedwhatever deci-sion is madeabout Plan B byDr. Andrew vonEschenbach,acting FDAcommissioner,but added hebelieves thedrug “ought torequire a pre-scription forminors.”

After theFDA decision was announcedAug. 24, White House spokes-woman Dana Perino said thepresident “appreciates that theFDA did an exhaustive review,that they recognize the criticaldistinction between minors andadults and the risks a drug likethis can pose.”

“The FDA made clear that it

will insist on stringent conditionsand restrictions on access toreduce both health risks andopportunities for abuse, especial-ly to protect minors,” Perinoadded. “I’m sure the FDA willfollow through on that and makesure these important conditionsare established and enforced.”

The FDA announced July 31that it would work withDuramed, a subsidiary of BarrPharmaceuticals that manufac-tures the drug marketed as PlanB, to develop a “framework formoving emergency contraceptionmedication to over-the-counterstatus” for women 18 and older.

Barr Pharmaceuticals original-ly had sought approval for over-the-counter sales of Plan B toanyone 16 or over. Then-FDACommissioner Lester M.Crawford announced in August2005 that the agency would notgrant such approval and set a 60-day period for comment.Crawford resigned his post thatOctober.

Von Eschenbach said in a July31 letter to Duramed that theagency had received approxi-mately 47,000 comments, and“we concur with the overwhelm-ing majority of the comments ...that it is not necessary to engagein rule-making to resolve thenovel regulatory issues raised byyour application.”

B Y N A N C Y F R A Z I E R O ’ B R I E N

CNS PHOTO/HANDOUT

The Plan B emergency contraceptive is seen in an undated handoutphoto. The Food and Drug Administration’s Aug. 24 decision, with theapparent support of President George W. Bush, to allow over-the-counter sales of the “morning-after pill” to women 18 and older defiescommon sense and is “completely unacceptable,” according to an offi-cial of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Collection for CatholicUniversity set Sept. 9-10My dear brothers and sisters inChrist,

Next weekend, we will be join-ing with dioceses all over thecountry in taking up the annualcollection for the CatholicUniversity of America, which wasfounded by the bishops of theUnited States and chartered by theHoly See over a century ago.

Catholic University is dedicatedto forming its students in theCatholic intellectual tradition forthe purpose of serving the churchand society as a whole. Fordecades, many religious educators,theologians, priests, sisters andbishops in our country assumedtheir positions of leadership withthe support of the education theyreceived at Catholic University.Today’s graduates go onto careersnot just in the church but in thefields of government, architecture,law, health care and many others.

Catholic University’s School ofPhilosophy offers one of the oldestdoctoral programs in the countryand is known especially for itswork in classical and medievalphilosophy. The undergraduateprogram of its School of Nursingis ranked among the top 10 in thenation. Besides being one of thepremier Catholic universities in thecountry, Catholic University pro-vides several unique contributionsin service to the church in thiscountry. Catholic University’s

School of Canon Law is the onlygraduate school of canon law inthe United States and its NationalCatholic School of Social Serviceis one of the preeminent schools ofits kind in the country. The Centerfor Advancement of CatholicEducation provides strategic plan-ning related to Catholic schools fordioceses around the country, andthe University’s Department ofEducation offers a graduate degreein Catholic school leadership thatenables students to take their placeas administrators, principals andpresidents of Catholic elementaryand high schools. Finally, CatholicUniversity’s Life Cycle Instituteprovides social science research tothe United States Conference ofCatholic Bishops on many church-related issues.

Catholic University dependsgreatly on the financial support ofthe Catholic faithful in this coun-try. I ask you to be as generous asyou can towards this collectionwhich will be taken up next week-end, Sept. 9-10, thus contributingin a personal way to the mission ofCatholic higher education in ourcountry.

Sincerely yours in Our Lord,

Most Rev. John M. D’Arcy

allow bad things to happen.“We have had the opportunity

to learn that God is with us bothin the good times and in thestruggles of life,” he said. “Wehave also had the opportunity tolearn that God can bring goodeven out of the worst of times.

“If we open our eyes we can

see the hand of God guiding,helping and strengthening us,” headded. “We are not the same afterKatrina, but we can each be bet-ter. God can lead us to grow inwisdom, compassion and faithbecause of all we have and areenduring.”

The bishop pointed out thatmany parishes and schools areplanting an oak tree to observeKatrina’s anniversary as a memo-rial to those who have died and atangible sign of “our commit-ment to continue to grow and

together build a new future forour beloved Mississippi.”

He said the trees will taketime to grow, just as recoverytakes time. “The road of recoverywill be long and challenging,”Bishop Rodi wrote. “With neigh-bor helping neighbor, with theassistance we are receivingthroughout our nation and ourworld, and with God’s help, wewill rebuild wonderful communi-ties with a great sense of placeand a wonderful quality of life.”

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

KATRINA

“Without the benefit of a

doctor’s supervision, many

women will be unaware of

this abortifacient action

and the other risks

posed by Plan B.”

DEIRDRE MCQUADE

Pope: Worried parentsshould take heart in St. Augustine’s pathCASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy(CNS) — Pope Benedict XVIsaid parents worried about thewaywardness of their childrenshould take heart in the cir-cuitous spiritual path of St.Augustine.

After a youth spent in pleas-ure-seeking and self-indulgence,St. Augustine embraced the faithand went on to become one ofthe most important figures in thedevelopment of Christianity, thepope said Aug. 27.

Much of the credit belongs tohis mother, St. Monica, whodespite her son’s “rebellious tem-perament” never gave up on himand accompanied him for yearswith “prayers and tears,” he said.

“How many problems thereare today in family relations, andhow many mothers are anguishedbecause their children take thewrong road,” the pope said.

“Monica, a wise woman andsolid in her faith, invites themnot to be discouraged, but to per-severe in the mission of wife andmother, keeping firm trust in Godand holding with perseverance toprayer,” he said.

He said St. Augustine, despitehis selfish behavior in his earlyyears, dedicated his life to thesearch for truth. The saint’s dis-covery of Christ came only aftera long inner torment, he said.

The pope made the commentsto several hundred pilgrimsinside the courtyard of his sum-mer villa outside Rome. Thechurch celebrates the feast daysof St. Monica Aug. 27 and St.Augustine Aug. 28.

CNS PHOTO/ TONY GENTILE , REUTERS

Pope Benedict XVI waves to thefaithful gathered for recitation ofthe Angelus at his summer resi-dence in Castel Gandolfo, Italy,Aug. 27. The pope said that par-ents worried about the wayward-ness of their children should takeheart in the circuitous spiritualpath of St. Augustine.

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writings of people like ThomasAquinas and Bonaventure “glori-ous treasures that are just sittingthere,” ready to enrich those whodiscover them. And the peoplewho become skilled enough inLatin to dip into these treasuresare not “old codgers,” he insisted,but the most broadminded peoplein history.

“Once you get into it, youwon’t put it down,” Father Fosterassured the audience.

A crisis is coming because thelast generation schooled in Latin isstarting to die off, Father Fosterwarned. And when that happens,he said, Western civilization andthe Roman Catholic Church willbe without the scholars to readtheir very sources.

Interest in Latin has sufferedbecause priorities have shifted,and “the baby got thrown out withthe bath water,” Father Fosterexplained, adding that the loss ofinterest in Latin has resulted in theloss of many things, including“standard, correct English.” Eventoday’s Catholic seminarians gen-erally do not study Latin, he said,which is quite a contrast to hisown seminary training that includ-

ed 14 years of Latin study.Father Foster said that Popes

Paul VI, John Paul II and BenedictXVI were skilled in Latin andtook Latin for granted. However,he said, he does not believe any ofthose three popes realized that theCatholic people generally don’thave a knowledge of Latin.

Rather than just criticize thisstate of affairs, Father Foster, con-tinued, he is out to “remedy” thesituation, for knowledge of Latin“is just too precious to lose.”Thus, Father Foster has taught anintensive Latin course in Rome forthe past 25 summers in which heexposes his students to a range ofworks in Latin from B.C. 200 tothe current writings of PopeBenedict XVI.

“If Latin suffers,” he said, “it’sbecause we’re not learning orteaching Latin.”

Father Foster’s unique teachingmethods, which he says do notrequire memorizing the declen-sions and conjugations that mostLatin students remember withdread, serve as a model for Latinprograms in several American uni-versities.

If the enthusiasm of his formerstudents and the many young peo-ple who lined up to shake his handafter the lecture is any indication,Father Foster may just be onto theright prescription to keep Latinalive.

ANN C AREY

Carmelite Father Reginald Foster chats with one of the students whoattended his presentation, “Is Latin Really Dead? Why the Academy andthe Church should Preserve the Latin Language.” His lecture at NotreDame attracted so many students, faculty and guests that it had to bemoved to a larger room that overflowed with about 150 people.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

LATIN

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Highlytouted research claiming thathuman embryonic stem-cell linescan be derived without harmingthe embryos is a sham, accordingto a pro-life official of the U.S.Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“They didn’t do anything likewhat the headlines are saying theydid,” said Richard Doerflinger,deputy director of the bishops’Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities,in an Aug. 24 interview withCatholic News Service. “All theyshowed was that you can kill anembryo at an earlier stage thanthey did before.”

At the Vatican, Bishop ElioSgreccia, president of thePontifical Academy for Life, saidthe new technique did not removeethical objections and mayincrease them.

Advanced Cell TechnologyInc., based in Alameda, Calif., andWorcester, Mass., announced Aug.23 that a team of its scientists had“successfully generated humanembryonic stem cells using anapproach that does not harmembryos.”

An article on the research waspublished Aug. 23 in the onlineedition of the science journalNature.

The technique involves removalof a single cell from an early,eight-cell embryo called a blas-tomere. The researchers claimedthat the method has been success-fully used in more than 1,000cases of preimplantation geneticdiagnosis, in which one cell isremoved to test for genetic dis-

eases and the embryo is implantedif no disease is found.

Up to now, stem-cell researchinvolving the destruction of humanembryos has taken place when theembryo is made up of about 150cells.

But no embryo survived theresearch carried out by theAdvanced Cell Technology scien-tists, Doerflinger said. Sixteenembryos were killed to retrieve 91blastomeres, from which twostem-cell lines were derived, theresearch showed.

The scientists postulated thatthe single-cell technique used inpreimplantation genetic diagnosiswould carry over to stem-cellresearch and that the techniquedoesn’t harm the embryos, “but wedon’t know that either is true,”Doerflinger said.

It will take many years to deter-mine whether children born fol-lowing implantation after the sin-gle-cell removal technique aretruly healthy, he added, noting thatit was only after 1 million livebirths from in vitro fertilizationthat scientists felt they had a largeenough sample size to test forabnormalities in those children.

Bishop Sgreccia told VaticanRadio Aug. 26 that removal of thesingle cell may damage theembryo. He said experimentationon animals was needed to excludethis possibility.

On a more general level, hesaid the new technique representsan additional manipulation of thehuman embryo and is thereforeunethical. It adds another layer ofartificiality to an already artificialprocess, he said.

He said it was incomprehensi-

ble why scientists were continuingto focus on the production ofembryos for stem cells, instead ofusing stem cells obtained fromumbilical cords and other parts ofthe human body.

“One reason there is a big raceto do these experiments on thehuman embryos is because fundsare being made available. Toobtain these funds, experimentsare being exempted from ethicalconsiderations, even when the out-come is uncertain and when, in myopinion, the ethical objections aremultiplied,” he said.

In a press release, Dr. RobertLanza, vice president of researchand scientific development atAdvanced Cell Technology and thestudy’s senior author, said theresearch “demonstrated, for thefirst time, that human embryonicstem cells can be generated with-out interfering with the embryo’spotential for life.”

William M. Caldwell IV, CEOof the company, said in the releasethat the research “should assuagethe ethical concerns of manyAmericans.” Ronald Green, direc-tor of the Ethics Institute atDartmouth College in Hanover,N.H., and chairman of the compa-ny’s Ethics Advisory Board, said it“appears to be a way out of thecurrent political impasse in thiscountry and elsewhere.”

But Doerflinger disagreed, say-ing that even if the company hadaccomplished what it said it didthere is no way to assure theembryos would not be harmed.

“Embryos deserve the sameprotection from being used solelyfor the benefit of others that we alldo,” he said.

Pro-life official dismisses latest stem-cell announcement as a sham

B Y N A N C Y F R A Z I E R O ’ B R I E N

SOUTH BEND — It all began inMay of 1833 with a challengefrom a local newspaper toFrederick Ozanam in Europe.

“In former times, Christianityworked wonders. But what is itdoing for humanity today? Andyou who pride yourselves onyour Catholicity, what are youdoing to show its vitality andefficacy, to prove the worth ofyour faith?” was the passagewritten in the newspaper.

A young law student at theUniversity of Paris, Ozanam,heard these words and realizedthere was a great need for posi-tive action in the name of thechurch and gathered six otherdedicated Catholic men to createa charity that would add deeds towords and demonstrate the truthof their faith.

The group was determined togo out to the poor thus creatingthe first conference of the organi-zation. It was later co-dedicatedto their Blessed Mother and tothe patron of charity, St. Vincentde Paul.

“Do not be content to say: Iam a Christian. But live in such away that it may be said of you:we have seen a man who lovesGod with all his heart and keepshis commandments,” said St.Vincent de Paul. “One of theprincipal acts of charity is to bearwith our neighbor; and we mustrealize this undoubted truth, thatthe difficulties we have with ourneighbor spring more from ourown poorly mortified tempersthan from anything else.”

This special society, dedicatedto helping the poor in France,established the following aims:

• To bear witness to their reli-gion by showing that their faithinspires them to work for thegood of humanity;

• To bring together men ofgood will for cooperative worktoward the divine ideal by fulfill-ing love of God in person of theirfellow men who are less fortu-

nate; • To establish personal contact

between society members andthose who suffer, providing themost effective brotherly aid pos-sible.

In less than two years, over100 men were drawn to the con-ference. Eventually, because thenumbers became so great sepa-rate working teams were formedand from this beginning sprungthe Society of St. Vincent dePaul.

“Thus we may, gentleman,bind together with new bonds ourChristian and friendly unit. It isour strength as well as our joy.Isolated virtues wither but tooreadily; they must be gatheredand woven together if they are tomake immortal crowns,” wroteOzanam to other members of theSt. Vincent de Paul Society.

The society evolved into aninternational organization withoutboundaries or restrictions.

Calling themselvesVincentians, members work inpairs delivering food to theneedy. They also provide cloth-ing, furniture and financial assis-tance to people during their timeof need.

In 1836, a conference wasformed in Rome. The societyexpanded into England andIreland in 1844.

The first conference in theUnited States was started in St.Louis, Mo., in 1845 and over5,000 conferences exist in theUnited States today.

One hundred years ofservice in South Bend

It wasn’t until 1904 that SouthBend saw their first St. Vincentde Paul Society conferenceemerge at St. Patrick Church.There were 70 men in the confer-ence when it started.

Eventually, other Catholicchurches began forming confer-ences within their parishes, creat-ing a network of 19 conferencesthat work with the district council

office. The St. Vincent de Paul

Society has been in the Michianaarea for over 100 years. Throughthe district council office,Vincentians can get baskets offood and vouchers for free cloth-ing and furniture to their clients.Needy people can also get finan-cial assistance through theEmergency Assistance program atthe district council office.

The society’s mission state-ment states: Inspired by Gospelvalues, the St. Vincent de PaulSociety brings people together inprayer and person-to-person serv-ice to those who are in need andsuffering — providing food,clothing and financial assistanceto families in our community.Vincentians witness God’s loveby embracing all works of charityand justice and collaborate withothers who share this vision.

“We continue to respond topeople who contact us becausethey and their families are hun-gry. Many work, or live on afixed income, but with risingenergy, housing and food coststhey just don’t have the incometo pay the bills and still put foodon the table. The number of callsfor emergency food assistancerises in the summer because chil-dren are at home and they don’t,or can’t, access food programsfor lunch or breakfast. We, alongwith other emergency foodproviders in the area, are strug-

gling to meetthe need thissummer andkeep our foodpantry stocked,”said SeanWendlinder, cur-rent executivedirector of theSt. Vincent dePaul Society.“Along withhelping peoplewith food, wealso providefree clothingand furniturethrough ourthrift store, tofamilies in need.Plus we contin-ue to offerfinancial assis-tance for rent,utilities, medical expenses, etc.,so that families in crisis keeptheir housing, their water, elec-tricity and heat / air conditioning,or so they can get the medicationthey need. Our Vincentian volun-teers make a home visit and workwith families to help them accessthose items they need to make itthrough the day and find the serv-ices that might help them in thefuture.”

The society has seen a numberof changes over the years.

“We now offer free bread,through our Bread Basket, sixdays a week to people in need.We collaborate with several otherservice organizations in the com-munity to provide free clothingfor their clients or residents. Weare trying to provide more serviceto our Vincentian volunteers —recruiting, training and consulta-tion, so that we are a strongersociety in the future. We are alsodeveloping a grassroots group toadvocate for just social policiesthat seek the common good witha preferential option for thosewho are poor and suffering — avoice for those who don’t have as

strong of avoice inIndianapolis orWashington asdo those whoare rich andpowerful,” saidWendlinderabout thechanges thesociety has seenover the years.

The outlookis bright for theSt. Vincent dePaul Societyand they predicta prosperousnext 100 years.

“Looking tothe next 100years we hopeto recruit evenmore new

Vincentians for our work in thecommunity. The society is agroup of people who respond tothose in need with compassion,and we need to train and formnew leaders for the future whowill live out their faith by theirloving actions. We realize therewill always be people who needour help, so we are working tocultivate the necessary resourcesand partners so that we will beable to respond when needed,”said Wendlinder.

5T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I CSEPTEMBER 3, 2006

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The St. Vincent de Paul Societyis celebrating over 100 years ofservice in the Michiana commu-nity with a Legacy Luncheon onThursday, Sept. 7, from 11:30a.m. till 1 p.m. at the Universityof Notre Dame’s Joyce Athleticand Convocation Center. Thespecial guest speaker for theevent is Reverend Edward“Monk” Malloy, CSC, PresidentEmeritus of the University ofNotre Dame. Unique items willalso be available at the silentauction. For more informationcall Sean Wendlinder at (574)251-4908.

Sister Mary Luke Tobindies; played role atSecond Vatican CouncilNERINX, Ky. (CNS) — LorettoSister Mary Luke Tobin, whoplayed a leading role in the U.S.renewal of religious life and wasone of a handful of femaleobservers at the Second VaticanCouncil, died at the Loretto mother-house in Nerinx Aug. 24. She was98 years old. Sister Tobin donatedher body to science. A memorialservice is to be held at the mother-house Oct. 7. An ardent ecumenistand advocate of church renewal,peace, social justice and women’srights in church and society, SisterTobin was president of her orderfrom 1958 to 1970 and was head ofwhat is now the LeadershipConference of Women Religiousduring Vatican II. She was one ofonly 15 women worldwide invitedto attend the council’s last two ses-sions as an auditor, and she was partof the commission that drafted“Gaudium et Spes,” the council’sPastoral Constitution on the Churchin the Modern World. Only twoother women were members ofcommissions that drafted councildocuments. Born in Denver May16, 1908, Ruth Marie Tobin joinedthe Loretto community and tookthe religious name Mary Lukewhen she professed her vows in1927.

China releases underground bishopafter 10 years in prisonROME (CNS) — After 10 years inprison, an underground Chinesebishop has been released and hasreceived government permission tocarry out his pastoral duties withoutregistering with the country’s state-sanctioned Chinese CatholicPatriotic Association. Chineseauthorities freed 57-year-oldAuxiliary Bishop Francis AnShuxin of Baoding in Hebeiprovince Aug. 24. The bishop hadbeen arrested in 1996 following agovernment-ordered raid on thediocese’s underground seminary,which he headed. According to anAug. 26 report by the Italian-basedmissionary news agency,AsiaNews, Bishop An was releasedbecause he accepted governmentrecognition for being a Catholicbishop in China. He did not have tobecome a member of the govern-ment-approved patriotic associa-tion, which rejects papal authorityand elects bishops without Vaticanapproval. The U.S.-based CardinalKung Foundation said in an Aug.24 statement that the bishop nowhas a work permit to serve as aCatholic bishop and to carry out hispastoral duties in China.

Catholic peace groupleaders say protests nothelping terroristsWASHINGTON (CNS) — Leadersof Catholic peace groups bristlewhen asked if their opposition tothe Iraq War and their criticisms ofthe Bush administration’s war onterrorism are harming efforts tokeep the U.S. safe. Saying that pro-testers help terrorists is a “bogusassertion,” said Dave Robinson,executive director of Pax ChristiUSA. Accusing protesters of help-

ing the enemy “is always used inwartime by the war-makers againstthose who call for governmentaccountability,” he said. Robinsonand several other leaders ofCatholic peace groups interviewedby Catholic News Service arguedthat President George W. Bush’sapproach to fighting terrorism iscounterproductive. They said itoveremphasizes a military responsethat fails to deal with the underlyingcauses that seduce people tobecome terrorists. Robinson criti-cized the label “war on terror” as a“marketing ploy.” He preferred thephrase “war against terrorists” todescribe what is needed. “Terroristsemploy specific means to causeharm and spread terror among cer-tain people. They have goals — toremove occupation troops, tochange policies,” he said.

Lefebvrite bishop saysno progress on reconciliation withVaticanROME (CNS) — A year after hismeeting with Pope Benedict XVI,the head of the Society of St. PiusX, Bishop Bernard Fellay, saidthere had been no substantialprogress on reconciliation with theVatican. Bishop Fellay said thatafter the terms of a possible agree-ment were discussed by cardinalsand Roman Curia officials in meet-ings last spring “there’s been nodevelopment” on the issue. “I thinkprobably the pope would like thingsto go quicker, and he’s probablyfacing a lot of opposition from thecardinals, from within,” BishopFellay said Aug. 24. “Right now,there’s not much happening ineither direction,” he said. BishopFellay spoke by phone to CatholicNews Service from the society’sheadquarters in Econe,Switzerland. In late August 2005,

he and another official of his ordermet privately with the pope for 35minutes, an encounter that prompt-ed speculation about possible rec-onciliation. The society, whichrejects many of the changes intro-duced by the Second VaticanCouncil, broke with the Vatican in1988 when its late founder, FrenchArchbishop Marcel Lefebvre,ordained four bishops against papalinstructions. Bishop Fellay was oneof those ordained.

Pope warns againstenvironmental damage,says it burdens world’spoorCASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy(CNS) — Pope Benedict XVIdelivered a strong warning againstenvironmental damage, saying itwas aggravating the already heavyburden on the world’s poor. Thepope, speaking at his summer villaoutside Rome Aug. 27, expressedsupport for the Italian church’s firstday dedicated to the protection ofcreation, which was to be celebrat-ed Sept. 1. The pope said the creat-ed world was a great gift of God butis presently “exposed to seriousrisks by life choices and lifestylesthat can degrade it.” He said, “Inparticular, environmental degrada-tion makes poor people’s existenceintolerable.” The Compendium ofthe Social Doctrine of the Churchsays the world’s poor, who oftenlive in polluted slums, are connect-ed to the environmental crisis. Incases of poverty and hunger, it is“virtually impossible” to avoidenvironmental exploitation, saidthe 2004 social doctrine. PopeBenedict said, “In dialogue withChristians of various churches, weneed to commit ourselves to caringfor the created world, withoutsquandering its resources, and shar-ing them in a cooperative way.”

Austrian cardinal saysDarwinism should bestudied as scienceRIMINI, Italy (CNS) — AustrianCardinal Christoph Schonborn ofVienna said he thought Darwin’stheories on evolution deserve to bestudied in schools, along with thescientific question marks thatremain. It is right to teach “the sci-ence of Darwin, not ideologicalDarwinism,” Cardinal Schonbornsaid Aug. 23. He spoke at a meetingin Rimini sponsored by theCatholic lay movementCommunion and Liberation, andhis remarks were reported byItalian newspapers. In 2005,Cardinal Schonborn helped fuel thedebate over evolution and intelli-gent design when he wrote in TheNew York Times that science offers“overwhelming evidence for designin biology.” He later said some sci-entists had turned Darwin’s teach-ings into an ideological “dogma”that admitted no possibility of adivine design in the created world.In Rimini, the cardinal said he didnot regret writing The New YorkTimes article, but said that in retro-spect he might have been morenuanced. “Perhaps it was too muchcrafted with a hatchet,” he said.

Syro-Malabar Catholicscall for more dioceses,end to restrictionsCOCHIN, India (CNS) — Syro-Malabar Catholics from around theworld called for an end to restric-tions on the Oriental church’sadministration and demanded moredioceses. Cardinal VarkeyVithayathil, head of India’s Syro-Malabar church, called for an endto “dominance of the Latin-rite”over the Syro-Malabar church,reported UCA News, an Asian

church news agency based inThailand. Cardinal Vithayathilspoke at an Aug.18-20 internationalmeeting that brought together Syro-Malabar church leaders in Cochin,in Kerala state, the base of theSyro-Malabar church. The 400 del-egates represented Syro-Malabarcommunities in Australia, Canada,Germany, Persian Gulf nations, theUnited Kingdom and the UnitedStates, as well as in major Indiancities outside Kerala. Organized bythe Syro-Malabar CatholicCommission for Evangelizationand Pastoral Care of Migrants, theCochin meeting was the first gath-ering of its kind.

Former CatholicCharities head amongjet crash victimsALEXANDRIA, Va. (CNS) — Aretired Catholic Charities execu-tive, Arnold Andrews, was amongthe 49 people who died Aug. 27 ina commuter jet crash in Lexington,Ky., said Catholic Charities USApresident Father Larry Snyder.“Arnold was a true leader in theCatholic Charities movement. ...His commitment to people who arepoor and vulnerable was aninescapable part of who he was andwas evident in even the briefestconversation with him,” FatherSnyder said. Andrews, 64, retiredlast year as executive director ofCatholic Charities of the Diocese ofSt. Petersburg, Fla. From 1999 to2005 he was a member of thenational organization’s board oftrustees. The early Sunday morningcrash occurred at Lexington’s BlueGrass Airport when Comair Flight5191 mistakenly tried to take offfrom Runway 26, a 3,500-foot gen-eral aviation runway, instead ofRunway 22, the 7,000-foot strip itwas supposed to use.

Conscientious objectionstill possible in all-volunteer U.S. militaryWASHINGTON (CNS) —Conscientious objection to fightingwars is still a possibility 33 yearsafter the U.S. ended obligatory mil-itary service. But objectors in theall-volunteer U.S. armed forceshave to be opposed to all wars andnot just to a particular one such asIraq. Even with volunteers, wherethe presumption is that someoneenlisting is willing to fight, the lawallows troops to change their mindsfor religious or philosophical rea-sons. One result has been that afterthe Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacksactivities picked up at the CatholicPeace Fellowship, which helps mil-itary personnel filing for conscien-tious-objector status or just wantinginformation about Catholic moralteachings on war. “Sept. 11 shapedwhat we have done since,” saidHoly Cross Father Michael Baxter,national secretary of the CatholicPeace Fellowship, based in SouthBend. Through e-mails, telephonecalls and personal contacts, theonce-dormant Catholic group hasactively aided about 60 peopleseeking conscientious-objector sta-tus since Sept. 11 and fielded morethan 1,500 requests for information,said Father Baxter, also an assistanttheology professor at the Universityof Notre Dame.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C6 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

NEWS BRIEFS

CNS PHOTO/JAYANTA SHAW, REUTERS

Missionaries of Charity nuns pray at the tomb of Blessed Mother Teresa on what would

have been her 96th birthday in Calcutta, India, Aug. 26. Mother Teresa, who died in

1997, was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2003.

MISSIONARIES OF CHARITY PRAY AT TOMB OF FOUNDRESS

SEPTEMBER 3, 2006 T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 7

Cancer survivorswant to ‘sack’breast cancerSOUTH BEND — Nearly 20 localcancer survivors boarded a TranspoTrolley bus on Wednesday, Aug.16, for the third annual SecretSisters Society media tour, in aneffort to raise awareness about howwomen can receive free mammo-grams.

The Secret Sisters Society, anarm of the Women’s Task Force ofSaint Joseph Regional MedicalCenter (SJRMC), took to the streetsof South Bend aboard the trolley topromote their fifth annual luncheonand style show. The Secret SistersSociety Luncheon & Style Showwill be held on Wednesday, Sept.20, at the University of NotreDame’s Joyce Center at 12 p.m.The classy and festive event isorganized by SJRMC’s Women’sTask Force (WTF), which is com-prised completely of volunteerswho are all cancer survivors.

“Every one of us on the trolley isa cancer survivor,” said JoanLennon, WTF coordinator forSJRMC. “We all have a pink ‘sackpack,’ which is the official breastcancer color, because we want to‘sack’ breast cancer.”

The sack packs symbolize theSecret Sisters Society’s concern forother local women who need life-saving mammograms but cannotafford them. Michiana women areencouraged to take advantage of themany benefits offered by theupcoming Secret Sisters SocietyLuncheon & Style Show, as it rais-es funds to assist underservedwomen, age 40-49, in receiving afree screening mammogram.Women can receive their mammo-grams at SJRMC/South Bend,S J R M C / M i s h a w a k a ,SJRMC/Plymouth, MemorialHospital of South Bend and ElkhartGeneral Hospital.

Since March 2003, nearly 1,300free mammograms have been pro-vided or scheduled as a result of theSecret Sisters Society Luncheon &Style Show. The event celebratessurvivorship, provides educationregarding the importance of earlydetection, and raises funds toensure that all women seeking to beproactive and responsible for theirhealth are able to receive a mam-mogram. All models in the eventare cancer survivors themselveswith uplifting stories.

The WTF is assisted in thisevent by community volunteerswho share in their goal to provideopportunities for early detection.For ticket information on the SecretSisters Society Luncheon & StyleShow and for details on sponsor-ship opportunities, please call theWomen’s Task Force of SaintJoseph Regional Medical Center at(574) 472-6095.

Remembering 9/11FORT WAYNE — Bishop John M.D’Arcy will celebrate the 12:05p.m. Mass in the Cathedral of theImmaculate Conception onMonday, Sept. 11, as a memorial ofthe fifth anniversary of the Sept 11,2001 terrorist attacks in New YorkCity, Washington, D.C. andPennsylvania. Bishop D’Arcy hasalso asked that parishes hold a sim-ilar memorial Mass.

Junior high confirmationrally set Oct. 7NORTH MANCHESTER —Manchester College will be thehost site for the 2006 Junior HighRetreat. This retreat is sponsoredby the diocesan offices of catech-esis and youth ministry. Thetheme of this confirmationpreparatory retreat is “Catch theSpirit.”

The day will include the sacra-ment of reconciliation and otherround-robin sessions. The eventwill also include a praise and wor-ship concert, a keynote addresswith Apex Ministries and closingMass with Bishop John M.D’Arcy.

Registration forms must bereturned to Janice Martin, the Officeof Catechesis by Friday, Sept. 22.For additional information, contactMartin at (260) 399-1411 orjmartin@fw.diocesefwsb.org. Visitthe diocesan Web site at www.dio-cesefwsb.org/jrhighrally for infor-mation.

Three is a charm: Another“Best College” rankingfor Saint Mary’s College NOTRE DAME — The PrincetonReview names Saint Mary’sCollege as a Best MidwesternCollege for 2007. This comes juston the heels of another top rankingby U.S. News & World Report anda Golf Digest ranking recognizingSaint Mary’s as the third bestschool for student-athletes inter-ested in playing collegiate golf(Princeton and Yale ranked firstand second, respectively). ThePrinceton Review’s rankings are

based largely on student opiniondata collected via survey and post-ed on their Web site.

The Princeton Review’s “BestColleges: Region by Region” sec-tion of princetonreview.com iden-tifies colleges that “stand out asacademically excellent institu-tions of higher learning,” accord-ing to the Web site. Each collegeselected had to meet ThePrinceton Review’s standards forexcellence, based on admissionsselectivity, fire safety, academics,financial aid and quality of life.Colleges on the list were alsorequired to allow The PrincetonReview to survey students anony-mously.

SJRMC announces Web siteSOUTH BEND — In prepara-tion for excavation at the site ofits new hospital at Edison Lakes,Saint Joseph Regional MedicalCenter went live Aug. 18 with abrand new Web site,www.mynewhospital.org, dedi-cated entirely to the project.

The Web site contains a widevariety of information, includingtime line of project events; thedesign process; renderings of thenew hospital and patient and pro-cedure rooms; answers to fre-quently asked questions about theproject; as well as some fun statis-tics.

“We will constantly keep thiscomprehensive Web site updatedas we realize that this is a veryexciting project, not just for SaintJoseph, but for the entire commu-nity,” said Nancy R. Hellyer, SaintJoseph’s CEO.

Ground preparation for SaintJoseph’s new hospital will beginthis fall with the foundation being

poured in the winter. Saint Josephplans on opening its new hospitalin August of 2009.

Visit www.mynewhospital.orgfor all the information.

Lecture series presents“Bringing Tradition to Life”NOTRE DAME — The SaintMary’s College Center forSpirituality presents three eveningprograms as part of its annual falllecture series. This year’s theme is“Bringing Tradition to Life.”Admission is free and open to thepublic.

• Wednesday, Sept. 6 — AnaMaria Pineda from the theologydepartment of Santa ClaraUniversity will deliver a talk titled“Welcoming the Stranger:Hospitality in the ChristianTradition.” It will address issuesrelated to comprehensive andresponsible immigration reform.Pineda has extensive experiencein Hispanic ministry.

• Wednesday, Oct. 25— ClaireWolfteich of Boston University’sSchool of Theology will discuss“Women, Spirituality and theWorkplace.” In her talk, Wolfteichexplores spirituality not only interms of prayer and the interiorlife, but also in terms of work,family, community and public life.

• Monday, Nov. 6 — St.Catherine of Siena (as portrayedby actress Nancy Murray, OP) willtalk about “Voices from the Past,Wisdom for Today, Hope forTomorrow.” St. Catherine of Sienawas a 14th century saint and advi-sor to princes and popes on socialand political issues of the day.Sister Nancy Murray, who hasportrayed St. Catherine hundreds

of times, is the sister of comedianBill Murray.

All presentations begin at 7:30p.m. in Stapleton Lounge, LeMans Hall, Saint Mary’s College.

SJRMC to sponsor two-day pastoral crisis intervention trainingSOUTH BEND — On Sept. 14-15, Saint Joseph RegionalMedical Center (SJRMC) is pro-viding a two-day training pro-gram, Pastoral Crisis InterventionTraining.

The program is designed toprepare participants to providebasic crisis intervention servicesto individuals in acute crisis usinga structured system. SaintJoseph’s Crisis InterventionTraining, which will be in theEducation Center of the SouthBend Campus from 9 a.m. to 5p.m. both days, is being organizedby Sister Laureen Painter, SaintJoseph’s vice president of missionintegration. The workshop is opento all educators, mental healthprofessionals, clergy, social work-ers and fire/rescue personnel inthe community.

The idea came about as a wayto localize Critical Incident StressManagement (CISM). CISM is anintervention protocol developedspecifically for dealing with trau-matic events. It is a formal, highlystructured and professionally rec-ognized process for helping thoseinvolved in a critical incident toshare their experiences, vent emo-tions, and learn about stress reac-tions, symptoms, and given refer-rals for further help if required.

The cost of attending the con-ference is $75 per participant, andincludes lunch and breaks, as wellas a workbook and Certificate ofParticipation. For more informa-tion, please contact Janet Kenyonat Saint Joseph Regional MedicalCenter at (574) 237-7205.

Leadership conferencecelebrates 50 years ofserviceHUNTINGTON— The leaders ofU.S. orders ofCatholic sistersmet in Atlanta,Ga., Aug. 18- 21,to commemoratethe 50th anniver-sary year of theL e a d e r s h i pConference ofWomen Religious (LCWR).

During this meeting new boardmembers were installed includingVictory Noll Sister Mary JoNelson. Sister Mary Jo is also thenew LCWR chair for Region 7,which includes Michigan andIndiana. Sister Mary Jo serves onthe leadership team of Our Ladyof Victory Missionary Sisters inHuntington. Sister VirginiaKampwerth, PHJC, also serves assecretary on the executive com-mittee for Region 7.

More than 800 leaders fromacross the country gathered inassembly and discussed key reli-gious life issues. A special featurewas the participation in part of theassembly of approximately 100local Atlanta women leaders fromvarious faiths and professions.

AROUND THE DIOCESECANCER SURVIVORS PROMOTE FREE MAMMOGRAMS

PROVIDED BY SAINT JOSEPH REGIONAL MEDIC AL CENTER

Nearly 20 local cancer survivors boarded a Transpo Trolley bus on Wednesday, Aug. 16, for

the third annual Secret Sisters Society media tour, in an effort to raise awareness about

how women can receive free mammograms.

SISTER MARY JONELSON, OLVM

ELKHART — The parking lotwas full. The high school hall-ways echoed with enthusiasticapplause. A masculine voice ledhundreds of voices in heartfeltsongs of praise and team spirit.

Was it a pep rally? In a way, itwas — and a whole lot more.

The second annual CatholicEucharistic Congress broughttogether hundreds of HispanicCatholics from area parishes tolearn more about their faith andencourage their participation inthe life of the church.

“The purpose is that people beconverted and have a (relation-ship) with their church,” saidLupita Zepeda, spokesperson forcongress organizers. “Also, to bemore available to the Eucharistand to know more about their reli-gion and to be more devoted toour Blessed Mother, the VirginMary.”

Held during the weekend ofAug. 12-13 at Memorial HighSchool in Elkhart, the Congressalternated inspirational speakerswith times of music and worship,including holy hour and a closingMass.

Speakers included DeaconEliut Casanova and his wifeMarie of New Jersey, MiquelAquino from the CharismaticCenter in New York, FelipeRocha of Fort Wayne, Father PhilDeVolder, pastor, Father WilsonCorzo, associate pastor, andDeacon Ramiro Reyes, all of St.Vincent de Paul Parish in Elkhart.Felipe Rocha and Miguel Aquinoalso provided inspirational music.

“Three years ago DeaconReyes and layperson MiguelReyes had the idea to organize acongress,” Zepeda explained.“Last year they made it a reality... this year Miguel Reyes was theorganizer with the support of ourassociate pastor Father WilsonCorzo and Deacon Ramiro.”

The congress was sponsoredby the Hispanic Pastoral Group ofSt. Vincent. More than 300 peopleattended the sessions, along withabout 60 volunteers who helpedorganize and kept things runningsmoothly, Zepeda said.

Throughout the Congress, par-ticipants were taught, encouragedand challenged to live the life ofChrist. And the response from theaudience was overwhelminglypositive as they cheered andapplauded, raised their hands inprayer, and passionately sangalong with the music leaders.

The last speaker before theclosing Mass, Father DeVolderstarted his reflection by apologiz-ing for not speaking Spanish verywell and then continued with asimple, heartfelt message foreveryone present.

“Of all the sacraments, theEucharist is the most important,”he said. “The reason is simple —we don’t receive bread, we don’treceive wine — we could go toMartin’s or Kroger’s for that!”

After the light laughter dieddown, Father DeVolder continued.“In the church of Christ, wereceive Christ ... we are Catholics— we have the Eucharist.”

It’s that active identity asCatholics organizers dreamed ofwhen they planned the congress— and as they look to the future.

“We hope the HispanicCatholic people get moreinvolved and active in ourchurch,” Zepeda said. “We hopethe Holy Spirit and our BlessedMother will assist in growing thespirituality in the Hispanic com-munity.”

The Hispanic Congress willskip next year because of jubileecelebrations — but they’ll beback the following year.

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Wirtner makes temporary incorporation toMissionaries of the Precious Blood

CARTHAGENA, Ohio — FortWayne native Vincent Wirtner wastemporarily incorporated with theMissionaries of the Precious Bloodon Aug. 13 during a liturgy at St.Charles Center in Carthagena,Ohio.

During the same ceremony,Brother Matthew Schaefer, CPPS,made his profession before FatherAngelo Anthony, CPPS, provincialdirector of the Cincinnati Provinceof the Missionaries, becoming thenewest brother of the congregation.

Also making their temporaryincorporations to the congregationduring the same liturgy wereCincinnati native Kevin Scalf andAntonio Sison of Manila, thePhilippines.

Wirtner, 43, is the son of Vinceand Charlyne Wirtner, members ofSt. Joseph Church in Fort Waynewhere Father Tim Wrozek is thepastor. He credits many people

with helping him in his vocationaljourney. “God has blessed me withmany people and mentors in mylife,” Wirtner said.

“My family and friends, St.Joseph Parish, Bishop Luers HighSchool, priests and religious of thediocese have all played a signifi-cant part in my vocation. I am ableto make this commitment onlybecause God has spoken throughthe people in my life and each ofthese people were willing to sharetheir faith journey with me,”Wirtner said. “I make the next stepto theological studies with confi-dence because of the love and sup-port of all these people and nowwith the added support of themembers of the Precious Bloodfamily.”

Wirtner, Scalf and Sison willbegin advanced formation this fallat the Catholic Theological Unionin Chicago.

EGETraditional

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& HAM

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Join us for our old fashioned

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topped off with homemade pie!IMMACULATE

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SUNDAY, SEPT. 10

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Store hours: Mon.& Tues. 9:30 to 5:00, Wed. & Thurs., 9:30 to 7:00; Fri. 9:30 to 5:00, Sat. 9:30 to 4:00

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PROVIDED BY THE MISS IONARIES OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD

Brother Matthew Schaefer, CPPS, second from left, poses with CPPS can-didates, from left, Vincent Wirtner, Kevin Scalf and Antonio Sison after aliturgy in which Brother Matthew was definitively incorporated into theMissionaries of the Precious Blood.

‘Live the life of Christ,’ participants areencouraged at Eucharistic Congress

B Y K R I S T I W A R D

For more information on future con-gresses, contact Deacon RamiroReyes at (574) 389-9634.

KRIST I R . WARD

Father Phil DeVolder, pastor of St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Elkhart,addresses more than 300 participants and 60 volunteers at the HispanicCatholic Eucharistic Congress held at Memorial High School in Elkhart onAug. 12-13. The two-day event included speakers, music and worship anddrew participants from seven area parishes.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 9SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

Office of Spiritual Development and Evangelization“Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.”

Lead us not into temptationReflection and connection

Perhaps it might help us toreflect on how often we havepracticed the spiritual disciplinesof Christ in the last two weeks.Where am I now, and how mightI improve in the areas of praying,reading Scripture, attendingMass and obeying God’s will?How well am I prepared to dealwith my temptations when theycome?

Evangelization andactionFor interior renewal

During your prayer time thisweek, reflect on the disciplinesof Christ in the sacred Scriptures.Might I suggest: Mk 1:35; Mk6:46; Lk 4: 1-13; Lk 5:16; Lk6:12; Lk 22:39-40; Lk 22:44; Jn4:34; Jn 5:19; Ps 119.

Reaching out to othersConsider how you — or what

you say and do — may lead oth-ers into temptation and the possi-bility of sin. How might yourespond virtuously to the tempta-tions introduced by others? Howcan you avoid being a temptationto someone else?

Transforming societyDare to be radically different

from mainstream America. Dressmodestly; communicate withkindness and love; remain purein thought and deed; proclaimthe Gospel by your attitude, yourhabits and spiritual self disci-plines.

Closing Prayer:Our Father, who art in heaven

... lead us not into temptation,but deliver us from evil. Amen.

Opening prayer Lord Jesus Christ, son of the

living God, please have mercy onme, a poor sinner. Amen

Scripture: Lk. 4: 1-13

CommentaryOne of my greatest food temp-

tations is ice cream ... light, ofcourse ... especially if it’schucked full of chocolate andnuts. I have been known to saythat “a day is not complete with-out a little ice cream” ... in a coneor bowl ... summer, fall, winterand spring. Why do I call icecream a temptation? Because thiscreamy, smooth, cold, yummyfood entices me to eat too manycarbohydrate calories that eventu-ally end up on my hips. I am“over-attracted” to what might —by itself — be a delicious, goodand somewhat nutritious foodwhen eaten in moderation. Whydoes it seem that things that look,feel and taste so good have thepotential to lead us into tempta-tion and sometimes even sin? Ifice cream was the only tempta-tion on our spiritual journeys, lifewould be a whole lot easier, and Ithink we would all reach perfec-tion a lot faster ... but, unfortu-nately, it’s not.

Tempted? Temptations seem to slither

through our senses in so manyways in today’s world. It is diffi-

cult to know where to look orwhat to listen to without beingled into temptation. Healthyhuman interactions and touch areconfused with the constant bom-bardment of inappropriate physi-cal behaviors we see all aroundus. In some ways we have almostbecome numb to the cunningnessof everyday temptations. But allis not doom and gloom.

Temptations can be allowedby God to help us to grow inChristian virtue. Father JeanNicolas Grou, a French Jesuitpriest who wrote “The SpiritualLife” during the time of theFrench Revolution, says:“Temptations are the reward ofyour previous fidelity; and Godallows them on purpose to makeyou still more agreeable in hiseyes and consequently more holyand perfect.” — page 98.

Father Grou reminds us that inour spiritual journey we shouldreally expect to be tried withevery sort of temptation, particu-larly in the areas of our liveswhere we think we’re strongest.

Father Grou asks, “What is avirtue worth that has never beenexercised?” — page 99.

Holiness would be easier toachieve and less rare if it wasnever challenged by temptation.Virtue would be “less virtuous” ifit was never tried. Temptations, ifhandled with the Holy Spirit’sgift of fortitude, strengthen thevirtues of faith, hope and loveand carry these virtues to a high-er level.

When we try to handle eventhe smallest of temptations alone,we may be setting ourselves upto fail. Father Grou explains:“God knows perfectly, and infi-nitely better than we do, what our

strength really is, for we deriveour strength solely from him andhis grace.” — page 102. In ourhectic lives and individualisticsociety, we often think we can —and should — go it alone. Manyof us fail to ask for God’s assis-tance in overcoming temptations.We live in a “if it feels good, doit” world where a life of virtue isoften considered abnormal. Butwith God’s help, temptations donot have to lead us into sin.

Dealing with our temptations

If we are truly honest withourselves about our temptations,we would probably admit thatthere are times when we like“playing with fire.” There is a bitof a “rush” in regurgitatingunkind or impure, totally sensualthoughts and desires. Gettingburned by playing too long — ortoo confidently — with tempta-tions can be very painful and canaffect our spiritual maturity andgrowth.

The sacred Scriptures revealthat Jesus, like us, was tempted,but that he never allowed thetemptations to lead him to sin.Jesus, although both fully humanand fully divine, demonstratesthroughout his life on earth a vir-tuous self discipline that we, too,can use to deal with our tempta-tions. In the book “Deliver Me,”Richard Exley writes, “After athorough study of the Gospels, Iam convinced that the source ofJesus’ strength lay in the spiritualdisciplines he practiced: prayer,study of the Scriptures, publicworship and obedience to theFather’s will.” — page 108.

There was no “magic pill” forJesus to take to help him over-come his human temptations. Theconsistent practice of these disci-plines allowed Jesus to bring allof his thoughts, desires andactions into submission to hismission on earth.

If Jesus had to build habitsand disciplines to overcome histemptations, aren’t we also calledto do the same?

The key to dealing with temp-tations, as Richard Exley sug-gests, “ ... is in the way we liveour lives before the temptationscome.” — page 116.

Forming the habits of prayer,reading and study of theScriptures, public worship andobedience will give us the foun-dation to fight our human tempta-tions — just as it did for Jesus.Temptations are not allowed byGod so that we might give intothem but rather to help us growin holiness and virtue by doingwhat is right and good with thehelp of God’s grace. Knowingthat temptations are rampant inthe world today, let us make gooduse of these spiritual disciplinesso that we may be prepared whentemptations occur. Let us disci-pline ourselves so that we maylive by God’s commandmentsrather than by our innately self-centered human nature. We cando our part to prepare, but it isalso important to always remem-ber, as Christ knew and FatherGrou taught, that God is reallyand truly the source of ourstrength.

JUBILEE PILGRIM CROSS VISITSALBION PARISH

PROVIDED BY BLESSED SACREMENT PARISH

Blessed Sacrament Parish in Albion receives and processes

the traveling Jubilee Pilgrim Cross in the LaGrange

County community on Aug. 12.

Aug. 25-Sept. 1

Our Lady of Guadalupe Warsaw

Sept. 1-8

Sacred Heart Warsaw

Sept. 8-15

St. Bernard Wabash

Sept.15-22

St. Robert Bellarmine/

Manchester College North Manchester

Sept. 22-29

St. Francis Xavier Pierceton

Sept. 29-Oct. 6

St. Martin de Porres Syracuse

Jubilee PilgrimCross

Disciples in Mission literature can be found at

www.diocesefwsb.org/DM

B Y G I N N Y K O H R M A N

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C10 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

F A I T HErcoline dedicated to providing break in the storm for those in needSOUTH BEND — CatholicCharities of the Diocese of FortWayne-South Bend has been in thebusiness of serving those in thecommunity who struggle with theadversity of life since 1922.Services range from pregnancy,adoption and foster care programsto community services, includingemergency food pantry, to immi-gration and retired volunteer pro-grams.

A nonprofit, church-affiliatedagency, Catholic Charities assistsindividuals regardless of religiouspreference, race, gender or nationalorigin. It takes dedicated, caringpeople to orchestrate these pro-grams.

West Region Director RobErcoline, is one of those dedicatedpeople.

Ercoline, who holds a graduatedegree in theology from theUniversity of Notre Dame, has apassion for social justice. His workwith the underprivileged began inthe late 1980s as a teacher atMarian High School, Mishawaka.“I was teaching Scripture, churchhistory and social justice. I beganto realize I had a calling to not justteach about the struggles of thepoor, but to work more hands-onwith them,” he recalls.

Ercoline’s early volunteer workbegan at the Advocacy Center inSouth Bend and included spendingovernights at the Center for theHomeless. He next found himselfas pastoral associate at LittleFlower Parish, where he and hiswife Conni and their three childrenare currently members. There, asdirector of outreach ministries tothe poor, he worked daily with vol-unteers, local social service andgovernment agencies to meet theneeds of the poor for the next 12years. He worked as the director ofadult faith formation at the parishas well.

Following the closure of theMichiana food bank in 1992,Ercoline stepped up to assist in theestablishment of what is now theFood Bank of Northern Indiana.Currently, the food bank serves 11counties in northwest Indiana, dis-tributing five million pounds offood each year to 300-memberfood pantry agencies, one of whichis located at the Miami StreetCatholic Charities office site. He

was also instrumental in openingand directing the food pantry atLittle Flower Parish, which islocated in a high need area of St.Joseph County and has served onthe board of directors for the foodbank since 1994.

Ercoline’s impressive resumeincludes spiritual direction at sev-eral sites, retreat planning, teach-ing, co-coordinating the St. JosephCounty Crop Walk, sitting on sev-eral service agency boards andmuch more. But his main focus ismeeting with Catholic Charitiesclients in his office on MiamiStreet in hopes of meeting theirmost desperate needs. There, sincebecoming director in 2003, he hasbeen responsible for all depart-ments in the west region, includingbudgeting, fundraising, supervisionof employee staff and volunteersand coordinating the brief servicesprogram and food pantry.

His faith plays a large role inhow he conducts business and isnot only evident in his gentle,humble demeanor but radiatesthroughout his office. Scriptureverses and framed Catholic art-work grace the walls there alongwith action figures and other toysfor the youngsters who accompanytheir parents to the office.

“My office is kid-friendly,” hesays. “Experience has helped merecognize the stresses people areunder when they come here.”

One may even encounter thesounds of Gregorian chant playedsoftly in the background. All thisintentionally creates the peacefulenvironment in which this manministers to the poor.

“The artwork and music areconversation starters. It gives thema break in the storm,” saysErcoline.

Ercoline’s formal training inspiritual direction has equippedhim with the tools to guide hisclients with the hard questions oflife as he hopes many who seekemergency services at this faith-based organization will feel safe insharing their burdens and worries.

“There are all types of povertyin the world — emotional, spiritualand financial,” he concedes. Thetraining, he says, has helped himrecognize from his own personallife experience, a deeper compas-sion and empathy for those heserves.

Meeting the needs of the poorhas had a tremendous impact on

his faith, but even he admits thestress can occasionally becomeoverwhelming. “We see so manymore than we can help,” helaments. In prayer and meditation,Ercoline finds a way to rememberthat “the responsibility is all ofours, but God will provide.”Working with the staff of CatholicCharities helps. “Most of the staffis here because they want to be.They are mission and value driv-en,” he reports.

This faith-filled man is “pleasedand proud to walk with CatholicCharities” and looks forward toadditional growth in coming years.“The journey with the poor is along-term journey,” he says,adding that he’s definitely in it forthe long term. His work atCatholic Charities bears witness,he asserts, “to the connectionbetween what we believe and howwe live our lives.”

For more information on theprograms at Catholic Charitiesvisit their Web site atwww.ccfwsb.org

B Y K A Y C O Z A D

KAY COZAD

Rob Ercoline sits at his desk in his office at Catholic Charities in SouthBend where he meets with clients with various needs. He intentionallycreates a peaceful environment with artwork and music to provide a“break in the storm” for those in need. Ercoline has been the WestRegion director for Catholic Charities since 2003.

in the workplace

Communities United — a goodworkplace for concerned Catholics

SOUTH BEND — JenarioMorgan and Jerry Niezgodski saytheir faith and interest in Catholicsocial teaching made it easy forthem to come to work as outreachcoordinators for CommunitiesUnited to Strengthen America,which opened a South Bend officein March. Niezgodski grew up atSt. John the Baptist on the westside of South Bend and nowattends Holy Family. Morganmoved here from Detroit and isactive at St. Augustine.

Communities United, a nationalorganization, which currently hasoffices in 14 locations includingBloomington and Evansville, seesits mission as educating and mobi-lizing middle-class Americans aboutthree issues that directly affect them— health care, retirement and eco-nomic prosperity. The local organi-zation has sponsored public semi-nars on each of these issues.

Communities United encour-ages the poor to move into what

Morgan prefers to call the workingclass. Niezgodski worries that themiddle class is shrinking, squeezedby government taxes and policies.

Besides an open house intro-ducing the office at 207 W. Colfax,Communities United invites peo-ple to drop in for “community con-versation and coffee” on Saturdaymornings and express their con-cerns. The outreach coordinatorsnetwork with neighborhood organ-izations, churches, colleges andfraternal organizations, and theyencourage people to sign petitionsurging their elected representativesto take action. They talk with indi-viduals and sponsor surveys tofind out about people’s actual con-cerns, priorities and opinions. Theyhope to become a center wherepeople can register to vote.

Shelly Haggerty, communica-tions director, records local storiesabout people who have been per-sonally affected by these issues:the couple whose retirement sav-ings were decimated by a majorillness, the college student whowill wind up $75,000 in debt, the

Vietnam vet who has no insuranceto cover the knee replacement heneeds, the worker whose job hasbeen outsourced to China, the sol-dier who re-enlisted only to pre-serve the health care benefits hisfamily needs.

A recent meeting at the down-town library showed a PBS docu-mentary that raises the pointedquestion, “Can you afford toretire?” Director Kathy Liggettpoints out that most people haveconfidence in their pension plansand Social Security even thoughthe latter is approaching insolven-cy and the government’s PensionBenefit Guarantee Corporation,now responsible for 44 millionAmericans whose companies canno longer pay their pensions, is$23 billion in debt. More and moreAmericans are relying on 40l(K)’s,yet few of us are savvy enough toinvest wisely or wealthy enough toweather the vicissitudes of thestock market.

At a follow-up meeting, Jack

B Y J I L L B O U G H T O N

U N I T E D , P A G E 1 1

F A I T H I N T H E W O R K P L A C E 11SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

Growing number of corporations have workplace chaplaincy programs

SPRINGDALE, Ark. (CNS) —Across the United States and over-seas, there is a growing trend inlarge corporations and smallerbusinesses to offer a workplacechaplaincy program.

While chaplains have servedhospitals, prisons and policedepartments for a while, havinginterfaith ministers in the corporateworld is a relatively new concept.Companies are hiring or contract-ing with chaplains as a way toaddress employee issues, includingmental health, retention rates, pro-ductivity and morale.

One of the largest Americancompanies, Tyson Foods Inc., withcorporate offices in northwestArkansas, now has a chaplaincyprogram that serves employees in81 plants and 161 locations. Tysonis the world’s largest processor andmarketer of chicken, beef andpork.

Workplace chaplaincy pro-grams also exist at Coca-ColaBottling Co., the Federal Bureauof Investigation and other majoremployers. Some companies con-tract with organizations such asCorporate Chaplains of America ofWake Forest, N.C., andMarketplace Ministries of Dallasfor chaplains.

The Tyson program is overseenby director Alan Tyson (no relationto the Tyson Food family), andmanagers of chaplain operationsCharles White and Justo GonzalezII. In addition to these full-timecorporate chaplains, there are 126part-time chaplains available toemployees at Tyson plants in theUnited States, Canada and Mexico.

Gonzalez, in charge of thewestern division, took the positionin February after serving as clini-cal coordinator of the pastoral careprogram at All Children’s Hospitalin St. Petersburg, Fla. White was apastor in a Baptist church inKentucky for 20 years.

“Tyson did a national search forthis position and I saw their ad,”said Gonzalez, who has master’s

degrees in divinity and pastoralministry. “When I first saw it, Isaid this is me. It is a positionwhere you recruit, train, supervise,provide pastoral ministry and walkalongside the hurting, the broken— and just offer some grace andlove.”

An empathic and personableman, Gonzalez wears many hatsand travels a great deal in coveringhis territory.

He said the chaplains are adiverse group, “not only in termsof faith traditions but in terms ofcultures and linguistic abilities.”

Among them are 60 Caucasians,42 Hispanics, 18 African-Americans and four Asians, hesaid. Fifty-one are bilingual and 11are women, added Gonzalez, whois bilingual.

When the chaplains are atTyson plants, they are there towalk the production lines andcheck on the employees.

“It is amazing what happenswhen people get to know you andtrust you. One little conversationof ‘how are you today?’ and otherthings come out,” he told theArkansas Catholic, newspaper ofthe Little Rock Diocese. “Peopletalk to us about a variety of issues.

“In many ways it is a spiritualemployee assistance program. Wewalk with folks on short-term crisesand counseling intervention. Wewill probably do up to four sessionswith them, he said. “Then if we findthey need other services or servicesbeyond the skill set of the chaplains,we tap into the communityresources — spiritual or secular.”

Gonzalez is a member of St.Raphael Church in Springdale. Hehas contacted the pastor, FatherJohn Antony, to see how the com-munity and Tyson can shareresources to help employees.

Father Antony said he sees a lotof merit in combining efforts.

“I know that we will be work-ing a lot with Tyson just becausewe have so many people whowork with Tyson — not only inwhite collar jobs but also the bluecollar jobs — the ones who workin the plants — a lot of whom are

Hispanic,” he said.Key factors in the chaplaincy

program’s success are requiringconfidentiality and prohibitingchaplains from proselytizing.

“You will never see me carry-ing a Bible,” Gonzalez said.“Spirituality and faith is best livedout by your actions than spokenthrough your words.”

He said his faith comes withhim into a room. “It is who I am— the essence of my soul,” hesaid.

Even in the brief time Gonzalezhas been involved with the pro-gram, he has dealt with marriageissues and counseled an employeewho was talking about suicide.

Last August, Tyson Foods was asponsor for the first WorkplaceChaplaincy Conference at YaleDivinity School in New Haven,Conn. Participants discussedissues, problems and trends in thevarious programs around the coun-try. A second conference is plannedfor Nov. 9-11 at the school.

“Tyson was one of the moversand shakers in bringing that meet-ing together,” Gonzalez said, “ Ithink we are on the cutting edge ofworkplace chaplaincy.”

A chaplaincy program is a win-win situation for both employerand employee, he said.

“It is also good businessbecause an employee that is takencare of doesn’t have to carry atwo-ton crisis on their back and isbetter able to be focused and moreproductive and able to stay with uslonger,” Gonzalez said.

B Y M A R I L Y N L A N F O R D

Work is notan end to itself.

It must be performedwith God.

CNS PHOTO/COURTESY OF T YSON FOODS

Justo Gonzalez II, right, is pictured with Tyson Foods chaplaincy directorAlan Tyson, seated, and Larry Petton, a part-time chaplain who works atthe world headquarters in Springdale, Ark. Gonzalez, a member of St.Raphael Church in Springdale, is a manager of chaplain operations atTyson Foods Inc. The company now has in place a chaplaincy programthat serves employees in 81 plants and 161 locations. Director Tyson is norelation to the Tyson Food family.

Meyers presented a pratical retire-ment planning seminar.

Communities United has awealth of information availableonline and in print. Some of itbreaks down government budgetsand applies them to local issues.

Economic prosperity issuesinclude rising prices and minimumwage legislation. One issue thataffects everyone these days is theprice of gasoline. At a recent semi-nar, people spilled out of the officeto check the air pressure in theirtires. Every vehicle was low, whichdirectly affects fuel efficiency.

IUSB provided the location fora June 24 forum on health care.

Rather than advocating one partic-ular plan, Communities Unitedtries to raise awareness of theissue and how the large number ofAmericans without health insur-ance affects all of us.

Morgan sees his work withCommunities United as similar toneighborhood organizing he did inDetroit. It’s an outgrowth ofCatholic social teaching, a way togo about putting it into action bybeing accountable and makingothers accountable. “After I leavework, I can go home and sleep,knowing I’ve helped people.”

Niezgodski, whose father was apolice officer and politician, sayshis whole family has social action“in our blood.” He sees this job as“100 percent connected with myfaith” and also talks aboutaccountability, ethical and moralvalues.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10

UNITED

F A I T H I N T H E W O R K P L A C E12 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

Faith and prayer abound at Redeemer Radio

FORT WAYNE — With theadvent of the new millennium,mass media was recognized as animportant venue for the “newevangelization” of the world, asproclaimed by the late Pope JohnPaul II. Fort Wayne has beenactive in fulfilling that mandatewith the premiere of its first allCatholic radio station, RedeemerRadio, WLYV 1450 AM, onJanuary 1.

Redeemer Radio PresidentChris Langford appreciates thework environment at the stationsaying, “It’s nice to work in aCatholic environment. I get towork with people who share agreat zeal for the faith.”Langford, a longtime member ofSt. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish,says even as a young adult hewanted to share the “preciousgift” of his faith with others.

His “day job” office at ITT isopen to anyone who wishes todiscuss the faith. “People at workknow I’m Catholic and they askquestions,” he told Today’sCatholic. Langford has participat-ed for years in a weekly Biblestudy at ITT and prays beforeevery meeting.

As he has evangelized overthe years he became acquaintedwith Catholic radio. “I thought Icould put my time into radio andreach more people,” saysLangford. After receivingapproval from Bishop John M.D’Arcy, he and friend Jim Royraised funds to buy air time onChristian radio to broadcast thepopular syndicated Catholic pro-

gram, “Catholic Answers Live.”An outgrowth of buying air timewas the realization that he couldbuy the station for a little morethan adding a new Catholic pro-gram and be able to share thefaith more effectively. With per-mission from the financialdonors, the station changed handslate in 2005.

The station is staffed mainlyby volunteers with one paid posi-tion. Langford, who is a volun-teer himself, finds the radio staff

has an appreciation for their faithand “are willing to make sacri-fices to bring the faith to others.”His own faith has grown sincethe purchase of the station, hesays. “We’ve encountered diffi-culties and challenges technicallyand it becomes clear that Godmakes this happen.”

There is a freedom to workingin a Catholic workplace, says thepresident. “The staff can go todaily Mass or adoration whenthey can.” The station has a poli-

cy that Catholic holy days areholidays for the staff. Prayerbegins each meeting and the staffcontinually prays for the specialintentions shared in the work-place.

Kris Billingsley, who holdsthe only paid position at theCatholic station, is executivedirector. She is responsible forfund raising, development, com-munity engagement, marketingand volunteer coordination.

After working in the secularworkplace she humbly says, “It’sa blessing to work here whereyou can be open with your faith.”Prayer, she finds, is the key toher day.

“If I keep up regular devotionsand daily holy hour, it’s amazingwhat my day is like. God orches-trates if you just give him yourtime,” says Billingsley, who isalso a parishioner at St. ElizabethParish. She admits she praysabout everything and feels Godalways answers her prayers.

The power of prayer is illus-trated as she recalls the day thestation was hit by lightning. “Weimmediately fell into prayer,” shesays. The broadcast was up andrunning soon after.

Billingsley, like Langford,feels her faith continues to growas she and the volunteers atRedeemer Radio are free to sharetheir faith. “I see miracles all the

time. I’m never disappointed inGod.” The staff is encouraged byPresident Langford himself tospend time in prayer and theresult, Billingsley says brightly, is“no one panics when problemsarise — they just go forth withpeacefulness.”

The outward mission ofRedeemer Catholic Radio is toevangelize, bring inactiveCatholics back to the church andmake good Catholics better bysharing the fullness of the faith.At the foundation, Billingsleysays, “It’s a joy and a blessing towork in a Catholic environment.It’s freeing. I can be myself andexperience my faith — it’s a bigpart of who I am.”

Redeemer Radio providesCatholic programming 24 hours aday, seven days a week, includingSpanish broadcasts and hasrecently added local broadcastingto its syndicated lineup.

It is a lay apostolate and is notowned or sponsored by theDiocese of Fort Wayne-SouthBend.

Marketing professor publishesethics guide for job interviews

NOTRE DAME — Recentresearch shows that only one in 20corporate recruiters includes ethicsinquiries when interviewing jobcandidates.

In addition, recruiters reportthat a rising number of job appli-cants act unethically during theinterview process, such as embel-lishing a résumé or reneging on ajob offer.

Patrick Murphy, professor ofmarketing and co-director of theInstitute for Ethical BusinessWorldwide at the University ofNotre Dame, has written a briefguide on ethics for the recruitmentprocess to inform job seekers andrecruiters. The guide covers thebenefits of ethical work environ-ments, includes sample questionswhich recruiters and job seekerscan pose during an interview, andlists unethical behaviors to beavoided.

“This guide will be widelyused and valued by our organiza-tion in its recruiting efforts,” saidHarold Tinkler, chief ethics andcompliance officer for Deloitte &Touche USA. “The clear, simpleand professional approach for pro-viding guidelines to both inter-viewers and interviewees will helpus to more fully integrate ethicalconsiderations into the interviewprocess.”

The two-sided guide will bedistributed to Notre Dame stu-

dents as well as to recruitersthrough college and universitycareer centers. It also is availableonline atwww.ethicalbusiness.nd.edu andwill be distributed more widely bythe project’s cosponsors, the fel-lows program of the EthicsResource Center and the BusinessRoundtable Institute for CorporateEthics.

Founded in 1922 and based inWashington, D.C., the EthicsResource Center is a nonprofitorganization dedicated to theadvancement of organizationalethics through research and themeasurement of ethics and com-pliance programs in corporations.

The Business RoundtableInstitute for Corporate Ethics is anindependent entity established inpartnership with BusinessRoundtable — an association of160 chief executive officers fromleading companies. Based inCharlottesville, Va., the institutebrings together leaders from busi-ness and academics to fulfill itsmission to enhance the linkbetween ethical behavior and busi-ness practice through executiveeducation programs, practitioner-focused research and outreach.

Notre Dame’s Institute forEthical Business Worldwide,founded in 2001, brings businessleaders to campus, holds an annualethical dimensions in researchconference, and encourages dia-logue among students, faculty,alumni and business executives topromote ethical business behavior.

B Y M A R Y H A M A N N A N D D E N N I S B R O W N

B Y K A Y C O Z A D

PROVIDED BY REDEEMER RADIO

Redeemer Radio Executive Director Kris Billingsley, seated, andRedeemer Radio President Chris Langford find sharing their faith to bea tool of evangelization both on and off the air.

For more information on the stationor to view its broadcasting sched-ule, visit their Web site atRedeemerRadio.com.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 13SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

COMMENTARYTODAY’S CATHOLIC welcomes letters from readers. All letters must be signed and include a phone number and address for verification.

Today’s Catholic reserves the right to edit for clarity and length. Address letters to: Today’s Catholic • P.O. Box 11169 • Fort Wayne,

IN • 46856-1169 or e-mail to: editor@fw.diocesefwsb.org

EDITORIAL

Real steps must betaken towardMideast peace

When will we have enoughkilling and rampage? When will allcountries of our world realize thatterrorism and war benefit none ofus?

We, as members of the GeneralCouncil of the Sisters of Providenceof Saint Mary-of-the-Woods, addour voice to those of the LeadershipConference of Women Religious, anational organization of 850 leadersof communities of Catholic sisters,in calling for an immediate andunconditional ceasefire by theIsraeli army and the Hezbollah mili-tia currently engaged in violentcombat in Lebanon, Israel andGaza.

Each day when we open ournewspapers, or watch televisionnews, attacks in the Middle Eastseem to be extremely brutal, ran-domly killing dozens and dozens ofinnocent civilians each day who aretrying desperately to flee fromharm’s way.

If we all raise our voices loudenough, perhaps Hezbollah willhear the condemnation of their

deliberate invasion of Israeli bor-ders, abduction of two Israeli sol-diers and the targeting of Israeli citi-zens. The Hezbollah militia, whichdoes not act in the name of theLebanese government, has gravelyendangered the citizens of Lebanon,the fragile democracy of that nationand the infrastructure that supportsthe country.

If we raise our voices simultane-ously in a different direction, per-haps Israel will hear our condemna-tion of disproportionate response,killing and wounding hundreds ofcitizens of Lebanon, and inflictingmassive damage on the essentialinfrastructure of that country.

If we raise our voices in unisonto President George W. Bush andour lawmakers, perhaps his admin-istration will stop its obstructionistpostures and delaying tactics at theUnited Nations and within the inter-national community. The deliberatepostponement of any efforts to bringviolence to an immediate haltbefore beginning diplomatic negoti-ations prolongs the terrible sufferingof the Lebanese and Israeli peoplesand worsens an already horrifichumanitarian crisis. We call uponmembers of the United StatesCongress to act decisively andimmediately mandate that the

United States join with the interna-tional community to end the vio-lence now.

As the killing continues, humani-tarian efforts are limited. Food andmedical supplies are in criticallyshort supply. Vehicles carrying foodand medicine are often mistaken ormisidentified for military transportvehicles, therefore becoming targetsfor attack.

We commit ourselves along withthose from other religious commu-nities to exercise all of our rightsand duties as citizens to urge ourleaders to act as responsible mem-bers of the world community. Wejoin our prayer with religious peo-ple of all faiths who long for peace,who believe in a God of peace, andwho are working to make God’sdream for a world at peace a reality.

Let peace prevail!Sincerely in Providence,

Ann Margaret O’Hara, SP, general superior

Denise Wilkinson, SP, vicar/general officer

Marsha Speth, SP, general officerNancy Reynolds, SP,

general officerPaula Damiano, SP, general officer

Marie McCarthy, SP, general officer

Today’s Catholic editorial board consists of Bishop John M. D’Arcy, Ann Carey, Don Clemmer, Father Mark Gurtner, Father Michael Heintz,Tim Johnson, Vince LaBarbera and Msgr. J. William Lester.

Promotion of ethics toyoung is encouragingIt is encouraging to see the various new initiatives by the University

of Notre Dame to teach and encourage ethical behavior in youngpeople and in adults.

We reported in our Aug. 13 issue about a new program originat-ing with Notre Dame psychology professor Clark Power to motivatechildren and their parents to view youth sports as recreational playthat develops virtue and Christian behavior. Power, director of NotreDame’s Center for Ethical Education, teaches that one should bemotivated to play sports primarily for the joy of the activity, withrespect for rules, self and opponent.

Thus, winning should be a secondary goal, and rude and offensivebehavior should be out of bounds for spectators as well as partici-pants.

In this week’s special section on Faith in the Workplace, wereport on another Notre Dame initiative created by Patrick Murphy,professor of marketing and co-director of Notre Dame’s Institute forEthical Business Worldwide. Murphy has written a guide on ethics injob seeking and recruiting, in which he identifies unethical behaviorsand points out the benefits of an ethical work environment.

Since our culture glorifies personalities from the sports and enter-tainment industries who often act unethically and immorally, it isessential to stress the importance of ethical behavior and to teachthese values to children and young adults. The Notre Dame pro-grams attempt to do this, but these programs alone can’t do the job:The responsibility for teaching ethical behavior to young people andencouraging it among other adults rests on every one of us, andshould guide our daily actions.

For example, if children see their parents steal products from theirjob sites, this sends the message that stealing is appropriate if it isdone discreetly. If children see adults accept excessive change from acashier, they assume that one has no obligation to correct such anerror. If children see adults lie their way out of sticky situations, theywill learn to do the same thing. And if children see adults take creditfor someone else’s work, they will perceive this as the easy way outof a tough assignment.

If we want our children’s heroes and heroines to be the everydaypeople who act with honor in the difficult situations of day-to-daylife, we must continually model ethical behavior ourselves and praiseit in other people. Then, our children’s sports heroes will become theathletes who gives their all for their teams and act with dignity,rather than the mouthy athletes who get television time because theybehave outrageously.

And their role models will be the everyday people who act hero-ically, like the cash-strapped young mother who returns the walletfull of money she finds, or the struggling student who rejects achance to cheat on a test.

Life can be hard. Oftentimes we are tempted to take unethicalshortcuts to ease our burdens, but unethical shortcuts ultimately harmthe individual and society.

It is good to be reminded by the Notre Dame initiatives that ethi-cal behavior, on the other hand, builds character and self-esteem andinfuses Christian values into a world that too often lacks values ofany kind.

The fact that many people make the playing field uneven by theirunethical behavior should not tempt us to act in a similar manner: Itshould reinforce the necessity to act with honor and virtue, always.

Plan B poses risks and ethical concernsWe are dismayed to see that the Food and Drug Administration

has approved over-the-counter sale of the Plan B “morning after pill”to women 18 and older. The fact that this medication will cause anabortion if a woman is pregnant is reason enough to object to thisdecision, but there are plenty of other reasons, too.

It will be impossible to keep minors from obtaining the drug, forteens can easily get other adult products like alcohol from complicitnon-parental adults. And Planned Parenthood has announced alreadyit will push to have the age limit lowered, further eroding the role ofparents in medical decisions affecting their children.

Furthermore, the lack of medical supervision for any female tak-ing this powerful drug, apparently as frequently as she pleases, pre-sents great health risks. The easy availability of the drug also facili-tates coercive behavior by sexual partners who reject the responsibil-ities of possible parenthood.

We also are concerned about the pressure already put on pharma-cists to dispense the drug, even if they have a conscientious objec-tion because of its abortifacient qualities.

This is a harmful decision that should not stand.

Drawing peace closer

If Dec. 8 is the feast of theImmaculate Conception ofMary, it makes sense that nine

months later, this coming Friday,Sept. 8, is the feast of her birth.

It’s a good time to recall apromise she made.

After telling the three childrenat Fatima that if her requestswere not heeded, Russia wouldspread its errors throughout theworld, that there would be manymartyrs, and whole nations wouldbe destroyed — which has hap-pened — she said: “In the end,my Immaculate Heart will winout. The holy father will conse-crate Russia to me. Russia will beconverted, and a certain period ofpeace will be given to the world.”

A certain period of peace. Canthat time be hastened?

Why not? In describing theanguish of the last days of planetearth, our Lord said: “For thesake of the elect, those days willbe shortened.”— Mt 24:22.

If more people would heed therequests Mary made at Fatima,why not say the time betweennow and the promised period ofpeace can be shortened and thatblessed peace for the world, sonow shattered by violence andbloodshed, can be drawn closer?

What requests? The dailyrosary. “Terco.” Every time Maryrequested the daily rosarythrough the three children,according to Lucy, the oldest, she

used the world “terco,” inPortuguese meaning “a third,” inother words the third part of therosary, the five decades either ofthe joyful, the sorrowful or theglorious mysteries — which wasthe composition of the rosary atthat time in 1917. Now there arethe mysteries of light added byPope John Paul II. But only fivedecades were ever indicated byMary to be prayed daily.

Other requests were sacrifices“for poor sinners” (Mary’s ownwords) so they wouldn’t go tohell, the vision of which the threechildren were shown briefly, totheir utter distress. Lucy said:“This sight lasted only a moment,and we must thank Our Lady forhaving promised beforehand totake us to heaven, or I believe wewould have died of fright andhorror.”

And, in a later apparition toLucy in 1925, receivingCommunion on the first Saturdayof each month, promising “at thehour of death, with the gracesneeded for their salvation, allthose who on the first Saturday offive consecutive months, shallconfess and receive holyCommunion, recite five decadesof the rosary, and, besides, keepme company for 15 minuteswhile meditating on the mysteriesof the rosary, with the intentionof making reparation to me.” The“confess” part has been interpret-ed as meaning within eight daysbefore or after.

Shorten the time. If not by the

first Saturdays, at least by thedaily rosary and offering for“poor sinners” some huge disap-pointment, or deprivation, inone’s life.

Russia has not yet been “con-verted” as far as can be dis-cerned, but ever since Pope JohnPaul II consecrated the humanrace, including Russia, to theImmaculate Heart of Mary March25, 1984 in St. Peter’s Square,things have changed. Within onlya few months afterwards, therewas a change in Russian leader-ship that led to the collapse of theSoviet Union and freedom formany previously enslavednations. The atmosphere is fertilefor the conversion of Russia. Ifnot yet accomplished, it can besaid, hopefully, to be “on theway.”

The “period of peace” awaitsthe human race. The gap betweenthen and now can be shortened— by alert elect.

B Y F A T H E R W I L L I A M P E I L

Father William Peil is a retiredpriest of the Diocese of Gary. Heresides in Fort Wayne.

C O M M E N T A R Y14 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

22nd Sunday inOrdinary TimeMk 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23.

The Book of Deuteronomy isthe source of this week-end’s first reading.

Deuteronomy is from thePentateuch, the collection of fivebooks that appears as a groupfirst in sequence in the presentversions of the Bible.

The Pentateuch is special notbecause it is a grouping of sever-al books, but because these bookscontain the law as given by Godthrough Moses. They form, as itwere, the constitution of Judaism.

In this reading, Moses submitsthe law to the people. He tellsthem that they must obey this lawwhen they enter into their land. Itis important to note that the law,coming from God, reveals thebest of wisdom and logic. Itoffers the ideal path for a societyto follow. Harmony and accordnecessarily, inevitably, will fol-low.

Since God authors the law,nations observing the Hebrewswill realize the awesomeness ofthe Hebrews’ God.

The Epistle to James providesthe second reading. James occursonly rarely among the readings atMass. The author of this epistle isnot known for certain, since four

men with this name appear in theNew Testament. Several wouldhave had credentials in the earlychurch, James, the son ofZebedee and brother of John;James, the son of Alphaeus, “theLess”; and James, the kinsman ofJesus. Then, the father of JudasIscariot was James. Strongerarguments as to authorship applyto one or the other of these per-sons than to all.

Important in this reading is therevelation that God wills us tolive. In the broader Christian con-text, as after all this is from theNew Testament, this means eter-nal life. Not only does God willthat we live, but God has givenus the way to life.

Also important is the reminderthat by serving orphans and wid-ows, we purify ourselves so thatwe can stand before God.

St. Mark’s Gospel supplies thelast reading. Jesus frequentlydebated the Pharisees and othersfamiliar with the Law of Mosesabout particulars in this law. Suchis the case today. Often, thedebate itself distracts us. Attimes, unfortunately, we interpretthe discussion as demeaning, oreven repudiating, the law ofMoses by Jesus.

In reality, the words of Jesusreaffirm the law. He does not dis-miss the law but rather goes tothe kernel of the law. The essenceof the law is wholeheartedly tolove God, and in this love to trustin, and to obey, God.

Finally, these discussionsreveal the identity of Jesus.Moses was merely the humaninstrument by which God spoke.The Law of Moses actually wasthe law of God. Jesus defined andapplied the law because Jesuswas God, speaking as the lawgiv-er. This identity was hardly over-looked by the Pharisees and other

religious scholars of the time.They understood that by address-ing the law as Jesus addressed itindicated that Jesus claimed to beGod.

ReflectionThe first reading contains a

thought that human invariablydismiss. The thought simply isthat, because of human limita-tions and shortcomings, peopleoften put themselves in unfortu-nate situations. Indeed, they candoom themselves. God, however,lovingly rescues them, not simplyby drawing them from the quick-sand, but by leading them awayfrom the quicksand.

He leads us away from thequicksand by giving us the law,or the roadmap to life.

God gives us this path to life.He does not force us to walkalong this path. We must followGod, by following God’s Son. Itis as simple as that. Discipleshipis voluntary, but it is the onlyway to eternal life. It is the onlylogical choice to make in choos-ing a path through earthly life.

CATEQUIZ’EM By Dominic Camplisson

Photographs and memories: Moving a piece of ecumenical historyVATICAN CITY (CNS) — Apiece of ecumenical history ismaking a move this summer.

After more than 40 years at itslabyrinthine office on Viadell’Erba, the Vatican’s PontificalCouncil for Christian Unity is relo-cating toward the Tiber River, afew hundred yards farther downthe road from Vatican City State.

Throughout August, curioustourists watched as movers stackedbox loads of documents marked“presidente” and “segretario” onthe sidewalk leading to St. Peter’sSquare.

Shopping carts borrowed fromthe Vatican supermarket wereloaded with books and files andwheeled to moving vans. Insidethe old office, giant rolls of bubblewrap stood at the ready, and wallsbore the ghost images of photo-graphs and icons removed for thetransfer.

Moving an entire office isunusual at the Vatican, where turfis generally protected down to thelast square centimeter. But churchofficials wanted the council’ssprawling third-floor space for aunique project: miniapartments forretired apostolic nuncios.

After bouncing around theworld, the nuncios often have noplace to call home when they leavethe diplomatic corps. Many end upliving a rather isolated existence atthe Vatican’s Domus SanctaeMarthae, a type of clerical hotel.

The new quarters, after remod-eling, will provide living space, acommon kitchen and dining area,and a community life, Vaticansources said.

The Christian unity council wasoffered space in another buildingthat the Vatican purchased a fewyears ago. Packing began inearnest during August, and the 23-person staff was expected to bemoved in and ready for businessby early September.

“It’s goodbye to an era,”Bishop Brian Farrell, secretary ofthe council, said as he stood amidthe packing crates and disassem-bled computers.

The era began in 1960, whenBlessed Pope John XXIII createdthe Secretariat for Christian Unityas part of the preparations for theSecond Vatican Council. By 1963,it had pretty much taken its presentform, with two sections dealingwith Eastern and Western ecu-

menical affairs. In 1974 the secre-tariat added a subcommission forrelations with Jews. It wasrenamed a council in 1988.

From the beginning, the officeat Via dell’Erba was an ecumeni-cal crossroads. Symposiums inwhat was once a state-of-the-artconference room brought togetherexperts from various churches.Plenary sessions of the council’sapproximately 35 cardinal andbishop members mapped out ecu-menical strategies.

Official delegations from otherchurches came to visit the coun-cil’s offices and often left behindgifts.

“They all passed through here,patriarchs and heads of churches,Reformed and Orthodox,” said

L E T T E R , P A G E 1 5

Jesus is God, speaking as the lawgiver

THE SUNDAYGOSPEL

MSGR. OWEN F. CAMPION

As events in the Lebanon unfold, this quiz looks at that nation in theBible and in Christianity.

1.The name Lebanon is thought to have derived from a color associated with its snowy

peaks and limestone mountains.What color?

a.Red b.Blue c. White

2. Lebanon was famous for its tress, specifically these trees:

a.Redwoodsb.Cedarsc.Oaks

3.What were the trees mainly used for?

a.building materialb. fuelc.making statues of JHWH

4. But Hosea tells us of another property they possess:

a.Their narcotic qualitiesb.Their fragrancec.Their toxicity

5. According to the Song of Songs, these two animals are to be found in the Lebanon,

at least at that time:

a.Lions and leopardsb.Hyaenas and camelsc.Rabbits and platypuses

6. Solomon used wood from Lebanon for this building whose name is a dead giveaway:

a.Rome Depot from Tyreb.Palace of the forests of Lebanon c.Beirut Banquet Hall

7. Solomon also used the services of Hiram, a bronze worker from this Lebanese city:

a.Ankara b.Corinth c.Tyre

8.This coastal city was home to these people, one of with whom Jesus had at least one

documented conversation:

a.Hittitesb.Trilobitesc.Phoenicians (Syria Phoenicians)

9.This infamous biblical woman was also Lebanese, of a Tyrean family:

a.Mary Magdaleneb.Jezebelc.Salome

10. Although Lebanon is home to a great variety of religious groups, this Catholic

group is generally associated with Lebanon more than anywhere else:

a.The Rastafariansb.The Coptsc.The Maronites

11.Their name, and claimed origin, goes back to this friend of St. John Chrysostom:

a.Marion Son of Morrisb.St.Maroc.Mario,of the Super Mario brothers

12. His disciples, after his death, founded a monastery on this river:

a.The Orontesb.The Jordanc.The Litany (Litani)

13. Maronites are unusual amongst the Eastern (Uniat) churches because they do not

have, and never had, one of these:

a.A priesthoodb.An orthodox (non-Catholic) counterpart or equivalentc.A liturgy

14.Their church is headed by a leader based in Lebanon with this title:

a.Patriarchb.Grand Pooohbahc.Archimandrite

15. Nowadays Maronites are found

a.only in Syria and the Middle East due to travel restrictions.b.all over the world,notably in the USA and South America.c. in all nations except Israel,where they are barred as Arabs.

ANSWERS:1.c,2.b,3.a,4.b,5.a,6.b,7.c,8.c,9.b,10.c,11.b,12.a,13.b,14.a,15.b

READINGS22nd week of ordinary timeMonday: 1 Cor 2:1-5 Ps 119:97-102Lk 4:16-30Tuesday: 1 Cor 2:10b-16 Ps 145:8-14Lk 4:31-37Wednesday: 1 Cor 3:1-9 Ps 33:12-15,20-21 Lk 4:38-44Thursday: 1 Cor 3:18-23 Ps 24:1-6Lk 5:1-11Friday: Mi 5:1-4a Ps 13:6 Mt 1:1-16,18-23Saturday: 1 Cor 4:6b-15 Ps 145:17-21 Lk 6:1-5

THE VATICANLETTERJOHN THAVIS

C O M M E N T A R Y 15SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

I belong to a parish where a large per-centage of the parishoners are in theupper economic scale. My observationis that the majority have few children,mostly two. I should not be judgmen-tal, but common sense says that birthcontrol is being practiced. Should theybe receiving Communion if this is amoral sin? — J.C., South Bend

In order for a person to commita mortal sin, three things must bepresent. First, the action must begrave matter. God’s word, whichcomes to us through Scripture andthe tradition of the church, tells usthose things that are grave matter.Second, one must have sufficientknowledge that a particular actionis grave matter. Finally, a personmust be free in choosing thataction.

With this being said, it is cer-tainly true that the use of artificialbirth control in order to render acouple sterile is grave matter.Thus, if a person uses contracep-tion, having sufficient knowledgethat contraception is grave matterand having freely chosen thataction, that person has committeda mortal sin, that is, that personhas separated himself from God. Aperson in a state of mortal sinshould never receive holy

Communion until they haverepented and, generally speaking,have received the sacrament ofreconciliation.

I believe, then, that there aretwo separate issues in your ques-tion. First, are many Catholic mar-ried couples using contraception?You imply that the answer is yes,and I think that this is not anunreasonable assumption.

However, it must be kept inmind also that there are a goodnumber of Catholic couples whowould like to have more childrenbut carry the cross of infertility.

Second, this is a question thatcannot be answered because fromthe outside one cannot judgewhether another person is in a stateof mortal sin. Only God knows theperson’s true knowledge of an evilact or the freedom with which aperson acted. Therefore, for allthese reasons you are right inimplying that we should not bejudgmental.

This does highlight the need forthe church continually to proclaimthe Gospel in this area. It shouldcontinually be proclaimed that con-traception is a grave evil, whichdestroys marriages and society, asPope Paul VI warned, and that freelychoosing the use of contraception

with full knowledge, also destroysone’s relationship with God.

If we go to Mass throughout the weekand then miss Sunday Mass due to aninsignificant reason, does the CatholicChurch still believe that it is a mortalsin and that if unconfessed, God willcondemn us to hell? Also, if Catholicsmust go to Mass in order to be saved,how are members of other religionssaved who do not have that rule? — K .M., Fort Wayne.

Yes, purposefully missingSunday Mass is a grave sin. Andyes, if one dies unrepentant of amortal sin committed, then Godjudges that that person has chosento be separated from him foreverin hell. Please, though, refer to theanswer to the previous questionconcerning what is necessary tocommit a mortal sin. By the way,

any Mass attended after 4 p.m. onSaturday evening or anytime onSunday fulfills the obligation toattend Mass. A wedding Mass onSaturday evening, for example,would fulfill the obligation.

As for the second part of yourquestion, we believe that in theCatholic Church, God has given usthe fullness of the Christian faith.This means that in the CatholicChurch can be found everythingthat God wants us to have in orderto be saved and to live theChristian life. So purposefully toreject something, which is essen-tial to the living of the Christianlife is like saying, “God, I want tolive as a Christian on my ownterms.” Sunday Mass is one ofthose things that is essential towhat it means to be a Christian.

Unfortunately, because of thedivisions in the body of Christ, notall Christians have access to every-thing that God wants them to havein order to live the Christian life,such as the Eucharist. However,God does not hold us accountablefor those things that are beyondour control or for those things thatwe do in true ignorance or withlack of freedom. Therefore, thosethat are not Catholic are not heldresponsible for Sunday Mass

because they do not have trueaccess to the Mass.

We as Catholics, though, areheld responsible because we dohave access to what God has givenus in order to live the fullness ofthe Christian life. We should recallChrist’s words from Luke 12:48,“Much will be required of the per-son entrusted with much, and stillmore will be demanded of the per-son entrusted with more.”

We as Catholics have beengiven the greatest of treasures inthe Mass, and God wishes this giftto bear great fruit in our lives.

THAT’S A GOODQUESTION

Catholics have been given the greatest of treasures in the Mass

SCRIPTURE SEARCHBy Patricia Kasten

Gospel for September 3, 2006Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

Following is a word search based on the Gospel readingfor the Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time, CycleB: concern about what we put into ourselves and what

we give from our hearts. The words can be found in alldirections in the puzzle.

JERUSALEM ATE DO NOT EATHANDS TRADITION ELDERSMARKETPLACE CUPS WELL DIDISAIAH HONORS WORSHIP MESAID TO THEM HEAR ME OUTSIDEEVIL THOUGHTS THEFT MURDERADULTERY DECEIT ENVY

EVIL THOUGHTS

S A O J E R U S A L E M

A T N E D E C E I T R A

I R H A B H C H A E E R

D A A G N O A E D M D K

T D I L U N T D P R R E

O I A K D O S I W A U T

T T S S N R H S E E M P

H I I O E S P T L H J L

E O D D R U H U L D E A

M N L O C E C O D I N C

U E W M F K W L I H V E

Y R E T L U D A D A Y E

Today’s Catholic welcomes ques-tions from readers to pose toFather Richard Hire, FatherMichael Heintz, Father MarkGurtner and the Office ofWorship. Please e-mail yourquestions to editor@fw.diocese-fwsb.org or mail them to Today’sCatholic, That’s A GoodQuestion, P.O. Box 11169, FortWayne, IN 46856. Include yourname, city and an e-mail addressor phone number so we can con-tact you if necessary. Anonymitywill be preserved upon request.

Great places — Chicago’sCatholic architecture

When I was a choirboy, oneof the most etherealmotets we sang was

Anton Bruckner’s setting of a textfrom the old Mass for theDedication of a Church, “Locusiste a Deo factus est” (“Thisdwelling is God’s handiwork”).Once, there were no shortage ofCatholic churches whereBruckner’s “Locus iste” could besung without a sense of irony.That’s no longer the case, alas,given the train wreck that isCatholic Church architecture inAmerica these past two genera-tions. I am not nostalgic about thepre-Vatican II liturgy. It was oftencelebrated in execrable Latin withsaccharine music and little senseof ritual propriety; “lost like aJesuit during Holy Week” was ahappy put-down of rubrical incom-petence that, in truth, applied farbeyond the Society of Jesus. Still,sloppy liturgy was often celebratedin magnificent churches: embodi-ments of the conviction that thisplace was, indeed, God’s handi-work, and that here the human metthe divine in a singular way. Nor isall the bad architecture we find intoday’s church a byproduct of theSecond Vatican Council. St. John’sAbbey Church in Collegeville,Minn., is a case in point: designedin a brutalist form of theInternational Style by MarcelBreuer, it was begun in 1953,when no one imagined a VaticanII. And for all that St. John’sAbbey has given the church inAmerica, Breuer’s compositionstrikes me as a telling example ofhow certain architectural formssimply do not lend themselves toChristian worship, because theycannot convey a sense of the tran-

scendent or of this world’s perme-ability to the transcendent. Ofcourse, measured against the PizzaHut-imitation churches that nowclutter the U.S. Catholic landscape,St. John’s Abbey Church has a cer-tain ... distinction. But that isdamning with very faint praiseindeed.

All of which is by way ofgrumpy introduction to somethingsplendid: a wonderful new book,“Heavenly City: The ArchitecturalTradition of Catholic Chicago.”The text, by Denis McNamara ofChicago’s Mundelein Seminary,explains how Catholics built mag-nificent urban churches, once upona time, and why those churches aredecorated the way they are; JamesMorris’s stunning photographsbring the results to light for thoseunfortunate enough not to spendenough time in the GreatAmerican City. “Heavenly City” isso beautifully illustrated that I canimagine using it as a source ofprayer — as many Catholics praywith icons today. It would be fatu-ous to pick a favorite from theriches that McNamara and Morrislay before the reader. Suffice it tosay that they offer almost 70examples of churches, built in var-ious styles over more than a centu-ry, which testify to their builders’belief that a church is the “domusDei et porta coeli” (“the house ofGod and the gate to heaven’), notsimply the “domus ecclesiae” (“thehouse of the church”). And that, Isuggest, is the key to understand-ing the demise of church architec-ture in our time: like much elsethat has gone awry with the once-bright promise of mid-centuryliturgical renewal (which wasrarely taken more seriously than in

some of those Chicago churches),the idea that the liturgy is some-thing we do, rather than our privi-leged participation in somethingGod is doing, is the nub of theproblem. Or as one prominentliturgist recently wrote, “If materi-al edifices have any intrinsicmeaning, it is because of the com-munity who assembles there andwhat they do when they are gath-ered — namely, hear the word ofGod proclaimed, break that wordfor one another, and celebrate thelife, death, and resurrection ofJesus Christ in the various sacra-mental rites.”

In other words, it’s all about us.Or mostly about us, with the occa-sional nod toward the incarnateword of God, whose body andblood we receive in the most holyEucharist. “Heavenly City”reminds us that, because ourchurches are homes for theBlessed Sacrament, it is God him-self who gives those buildingstheir real and full depth of mean-ing. If we remembered that, wemight start building beautifulchurches again.

Paola Fabrizi, who has worked atthe council since 1969.

Like many at the council,Fabrizi is ambivalent about themove.

“Naturally, there’s an emotionalattachment to these offices,because they are a reminder of allthat’s been accomplished. But thenew office is also beautiful, andit’s good to turn the page,” shesaid.

Some of the most preciousmemories were captured in photosthat have long hung on the wallsof the council’s office: sessions of

Vatican II, Pope Paul VI’s historicmeeting with OrthodoxEcumenical Patriarch Athenagoras,and Pope John Paul II seated withecumenical leaders in Assisi, Italy.

They’ll all be dusted off andplaced in the new locale, whichhas a better display area.

As workers wrapped up the lastof the furniture, still hanging onthe wall of the old conferenceroom was a gilded icon showingthe embrace of Sts. Peter andAndrew — the patron saints of theWestern and Eastern churches. Itwas a gift of PatriarchAthenagoras to Pope Paul.

“Don’t worry, we’re taking thatwith us,” said Fabrizi.

LETTERCONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

GEORGE WEIGEL

THE CATHOLIC DIFFERENCE

George Weigel is a senior fellow ofthe Ethics and Public PolicyCenter in Washington, D.C.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C16 SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

SportsCYO ATHLETES ENCOURAGED TO ENTER NFL-SPONSORED COMPETITION An NFL-sponsored Punt-Pass-Kick

Competition will be held at Homestead High School on Sunday, Sept. 17, at 10 a.m. All proceeds will

benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs of Fort Wayne. All CYO students age 8-15 are encouraged to attend.

For more information contact Sofia Rodriguez at sofia@visionsmkt.com or (260) 466-3600.

Poor Handmaids ministry assists poor children in Africa with toys, balls

DONALDSON — It may notseem like a lot to children here inthe United States, but in an Africanschool, balls bring joy and smilesto children, some who have noth-ing to play with. Unfortunately, theballs are now sitting waiting to besent.

“Money is still needed to payfor balls to be shipped,” notedJulie Dowd, communicationsdirector of the Poor Handmaids ofJesus Christ (PHJC).

The project, which has beencoordinated in Donaldson, wasstarted after Sister GermaineHustedde, a Poor Handmaids sisterwho ministers at the St. Francis ofAssisi School in Mintunguu,Kenya, mentioned the lack of toysavailable to her students.

“The older children use the fewballs they do have and the youngerchildren have nothing,” SisterGermaine told Susie Black, thecoordinator of the PHJC MinistryServices during a recent visit.

The African school, which isprivate, has approximately 250

students, 80 of which are boardersand the others are day students.Many of the boarders are orphanswhose parents have died of AIDS.The school is kindergarten througheighth grade and includes bothboys and girls.

Friends and families of thosewho work and volunteer with thePoor Handmaids donated approxi-mately 300 balls.

To offer assistance call SisterMary Jo Shingler, PHJC develop-ment director at (574) 935-1737.

New Haven CYO team openswith ‘family affair’

FORT WAYNE — CatholicYouth Organization (CYO)Coach Joe Wharton is pleased theSt. John the Baptist New Haventeam “finally has some eighthgraders.” This year’s rosterincludes 19 of them as comparedto just four a year ago. There arealso 10 seventh graders on theteam who came up from a win-ning-sixth-grade season.

“We’re experienced, lack a lit-tle in size, but have great teamspeed,” Wharton said before theseason opener against Holy

Cross. He also said, “We arelooking to build on the 2005 wintotal of one.”

And build they did. TheRaiders laid a great foundationwith a big win over Holy Crossin the first game of the day atZollner Stadium on Sunday, Aug.27. Wharton summarized afterthe Sunday game, “It was kind ofa McCarthy show.”

Brothers Mike and NickMcCarthy scored all five Raidertouchdowns, and cousin GregMcCarthy added the 3-point-after-touchdowns. Nick scored arushing touchdown and a recep-tion from quarterback Kyle

Sovine. Two of Mike’s touch-downs came from rushing, whilethe third came on the openingkick off return at the start the sec-ond half.

The Raiders led 22-0 at thehalf and the final was 36-8.

Holding Holy Cross to just atouchdown, Wharton feels strongabout his defense this season.Tim Tippman had an interceptionand Leighton Painter had somebig receptions for the Raiders inSunday’s game.

Other volunteers coaching thisyear include Brad Bodette, SteveHenry, Mark Watts, Troy Hofferand Ed Brames.

B Y M I C H E L L E C A S T L E M A N

B Y M I C H E L L E D O N A G H E Y

St. Rose-St. Louis CYOvolleyball team hashigh expectations

FORT WAYNE— The 2005 St.Rose-St. Louis Catholic YouthOrganization (CYO) volleyballteam had an impressive 21-3 fin-ish in what was predictedto be a “rebuildingyear.” They won theblue league (smallschool) CYO tour-nament for the sec-ond year in a row.And they lost justtwo eighth graders.This year, in herrookie season as varsi-ty coach, Lori Wagnerhas “very high expectations.”

The Twins return five eighthgraders: Abby Gerardot andKatie Kayser who will play mid-dle; Elizabeth Swygart, setter;and outside setters, Jenna Scottand Madison Smith. Roundingout the lineup will be seventh-grade-setter Alisha Gerardot. Therest of the roster includes seventhgraders: Allyssa Bosler (whoplayed as a sixth grader), TessaKayser, Abby Heimann, KatieGriebel, Madeline Jacquay andKristina Lay.

With practices just underway

for the 2006 season, CoachWagner is looking to her eighthgraders for leadership. She hopesto “work the bugs out of the rota-tion” before the games officiallybegin.

Wagner has coached withLaure Gerardot at the

fifth-and-sixth level forthe past eight years.Gerardot’s daugh-ters have moved onto the college andhigh school levelsnow, so Wagner has

moved up with herdaughters and is

adjusting to the morecompetitive style of varsi-

ty play. Wagner says she hasbeen used to the “learning”league at the fifth-and-sixth-grade level. This year, Wagnerhas 12 players on her team. Shesays, “It is going to be a chal-lenge. Not everyone will get asmuch playing time as they wouldlike but that is what has to hap-pen in order for us to stay com-petitive and have a good season.”Wagner’s daughter, AshleighGerardot, will assist her whileTina Voors has taken on the fifth-and-sixth-grade spot.

B Y M I C H E L L E C A S T L E M A N

USF’s Kurtz, Knepper onVSN Preseason Super SixGRAND ISLAND, Neb. –University of Saint Francis sen-ior Brian Kurtz and juniorWilliam Knepper have beennamed No. 1 at their respectivepositions in the Victory SportsNetwork Preseason ‘Super Six.’Kurtz (Fort Wayne, BishopLuers High School) has playedinside linebacker for the Cougarsthe last three seasons and wasNo. 4 on the 2005 VSN SuperSix Linebacker list. Knepper(Warsaw, Warsaw High School)was an NAIA All-American atinterior defensive line in 2005, isNo. 1 at that position to start the2006 season.

This is the fifth football sea-son that VSN (formerlyNAIAFOOTBALL.NET) hasreleased the list known as the“Super Six.”

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 17SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

Sales RepresentativeToday’s Catholic, the official publication of the

Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, seeks an

experienced sales person, who is a practicing

Catholic, to sell advertising space in this

newspaper to established accounts, and to

develop new accounts in the lower half of

the diocese. Qualifications include good

communication skills, the ability to work

a minimum of twenty hours per week and

experience with email and Microsoft Office.

To apply, send cover letter and resume to:

Kathy Denice, Business ManagerToday’s Catholic

P.O. Box 11169, Fort Wayne, IN 46856

Keeping kids safe on the Internet — at school or away

It’s back to school time — atime when kids get back tocommunicating regularly with

their friends, often online. Theyalso may enjoy talking to otherpeople besides their classmates atschool, and they may enjoyexpressing themselves without par-ents watching from over theirshoulders whenever possible.

While you want your kids tohave freedom, you don’t want toworry that an Internet predator isjust around the corner waiting foryour child to make the wrongmove.

MySpace.com, a popularInternet hangout for kids, is one ofthose places where kids spend timewith their friends and peers. Whilemost of the time such sites have noproblems, parents and studentsshould use caution when postingpersonal information on theInternet, advises school adminis-trators from the Diocese of FortWayne-South Bend.

“We tell students not to assumethat other people viewing informa-tion on blogging sites are who theyportray themselves to be. I encour-age them to care for each other andto be charitable in what they postabout others, both classmates andadults,” notes Marian High School,Mishawaka, Principal Carl Loesch.

Loesch and other school admin-istrators at Marian made sure lastschool year that students under-stood the risk of chat and informa-tion rooms by inviting a specialguest to a convocation. “We had awonderful presentation for ourentire student body from MitchKajzer of the St. Joseph CountyHigh Tech crimes unit. He focusedon providing information for ourstudents to make safe choices,relaying information of cases inour area that involved adults solic-iting children through the Internet.Our students responded positivelyto this presentation,” notes Loesch.

At Bishop Luers High School,Fort Wayne, newsletters were sentto parents on the issue of “dangersof the Internet,” says Principal

Mary Keefer. At Bishop Luers, shepoints out that the schools takesmeasures to keep kids safe.

“We are very careful with theblocking of all sites that could beunsafe for our students. No studentmay use our school computers forany e-mailing of any kind,” saysKeefer. She adds that they havehad “no problems with the issue(use of Internet) in house. Ourhandbook tells parents and stu-dents of our rules, regulations andconcerns.”

Keefer says she has simplewords of wisdom that parentsshould take to heart when allowingtheir children unlimited use of thecomputer at home: “Our advice isalways the same. Parents must betuned in to what their children aredoing on the computer. They mustinform their young people of thedangers of placing personal infor-mation into cyberspace for anyoneand everyone to see.”

“We tell students that once youpost a blog on myspace.com, it isin cyberspace forever,” says SaintJoseph’s High School Principaland Director of Student Life,Susan Richter. “Students do notknow who may read it — we tellthem never to give physicaldescription, address, phone num-ber, school name, etc. We used‘Learn the Four-Rs of InternetSafety’ from www.isafe.org.”

Saint Joseph’s also held anassembly with CommanderMitchell Kajzer (High TechCrimes Unit and a representativefrom the prosecutor’s office),which Richter says “was wellreceived by students.”

“We hope to have a similar pro-gram this fall for our parents,” shesays. “Unfortunately, the schoolcannot control what students doafter they leave school, but withthe Internet, many issues do comeback into the school.

“We handle each case the bestway possible,” Richter says.

“High tech does create moreproblems. I always tell students toknow who they are talking withonline and be careful who has theire-mail address,” Richter says.

At school, Richter notes there

are “safeguards and security toprevent students from using siteslike MySpace.com while at school.We are checking where studentsare surfing while in school.Students also have to sign anagreement that they will use theInternet responsibly while inschool.

“Our ‘Student-ParentHandbook’ has an entire section oncomputer usage — what is accept-able vs. nonacceptable.Consequences are spelled out andour technology director is workingwith our faculty to monitor studentcomputer use,” she adds.

Internet safety tips fromMySpace.com

Taking time today is wellworth it to ensure that your chil-dren, no matter what their age,are safe on the Internet.MySpace.com has several tipsthat can help kids and parentsfeel comfortable about Internetuse:

• “Talk to your kids about whythey use MySpace, how theycommunicate with others andhow they represent themselves onMySpace,” notes MySpace.com.

• While using the Web site,MySpace notes that kids “shouldnot lie about how old they are.MySpace members must be 14years of age or older,” saysMySpace, and notes that theytake special precautions to protectyounger members and are “notable to do so if they do not iden-tify themselves as such. MySpacewill delete users whom we find tobe younger than 14, or those mis-representing their age.”

• Kids, because of their open-ness, often say things that adults

would never consider saying. Butit can be a safety detriment thatthey should be reminded about.Parents should always remindtheir children not to post anythingthat could embarrass them lateror expose them to any danger.Although MySpace is public,teens sometimes think that adultscan’t see what they post. Tellthem that they shouldn’t postphotos or any other informationabout themselves.

• Teens are often more trustingthan adults as well. Remind themthat people aren’t always whothey say they are, so they shouldbe careful when adding“strangers to their friends list. It’sfun to connect with newMySpace friends from all overthe world, but members should becautious when communicatingwith people they don’t know.Teens should talk to parents ifthey want to meet an on linefriend in person, and if the parentthinks it is safe, a meeting shouldtake place in public and withfriends or a trusted adult present,notes MySpace.com’s safety tips.

• If your child ever doesencounter a problems withharassment, hate speech or inap-propriate content, it should bereported. “They should report itto MySpace or to the authorities,”says MySpace Safety Tips.

Are you worried?What Are Signs That Your

Child Might Be At Risk On-line?• Your child spends large

amounts of time on-line, especial-ly at night.

• You find pornography onyour child’s computer.

• Your child receives phonecalls from men you don’t know

or is making calls, sometimeslong distance, to numbers youdon’t recognize.

• Your child receives mail,gifts, or packages from someoneyou don’t know.

• Your child turns the comput-er monitor off or quickly changesthe screen on the monitor whenyou come into the room.

• Your child becomes with-drawn from the family.

• Your child is using an on lineaccount belonging to someoneelse.

Attributed to the FederalBureau of Investigation (F.B.I.)pamphlet, www.fbi.gov/publica-

tions/pguide/pguidee.htm

Cutting off Internet usenot always the best idea

While many parents wonderwhether it is worth the risk lettingtheir child online by themselvesor if there are special sites thatthey should block, the F.B.I notesthat “sex offenders have contact-ed children via most of the majoronline services and the Internet.The most important factors inkeeping your child safe online arethe utilization of appropriateblocking software and/or parentalcontrols, along with open, honestdiscussions with your child, mon-itoring his or her online activity,and following the tips (in thispamphlet.)

“Forbidding your child totallyis not the answer says the F.B.I.There are dangers in every part ofour society. By educating yourchildren to these dangers and tak-ing appropriate steps to protectthem, they can benefit from thewealth of information now avail-able on line.”

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B Y M I C H E L L E D O N A G H E Y

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Book explores bringingChristian values into business

Anyone serious about livingtheir faith will look to theLord and the church for

guidance and direction, especiallyso when difficulties arise,whether in the area of personalrelationships, illness, financialproblems or even the workplace.The last of that list is the focus of“Doing the Right Thing atWork,” by James L. Nolan (St.Anthony Messenger Press,$12.95).

What are your core values?How do you implement those inthe workplace? How do you treatothers fairly — Christianly, if youwill — when business is not goingwell? The questions and answersput forth by Nolan concerning themeshing of faith, business andethics into Catholic living are ade-quate, but are targeted at too smallof a demographic.

St. Anthony Messenger hasdone a noble job over the past sev-eral years releasing spiritual bookswith a practical focus that helpsCatholic live more faith-filled lives.This time, though, they missed theboat a bit. If you are a businessowner and/or are dealing with bigcorporations and lots of huge deci-

sions concerning employees,money and business practices, youmay find some useful suggestionshere. But for the rest of us — thosetrying to keep God at the center ofour workday — thewriting feels almost toopretentious. A lot ofbig words and ideasleaves the readerfelling unsatisfied.

Nolan wraps hismusings around reportsof what occurred atsessions of theWoodstock BusinessConference, an organi-zation he has directedfor several years. Themajority of us are not going to con-nect very well with problems ofcorporate politics or making sureethics are followed during million-dollar deals. We just want to learnhow to get along with our cowork-ers, confront situations in aChristlike manner or fight for rightsof employees (often ourselves) inthe correct fashion.

To be fair, Nolan contributes afew good suggestions. For exam-ple: “As Christians in the world ofwork we are called by God to con-tribute to the sanctification of theworld. This is a heavy-duty assign-ment. This is the mission to build

the kingdom of Christ.” Nolan,however, just a paragraph beforethat quote, recounted Pope JohnPaul II’s teaching, which couldhave much more impact if fol-

lowed: “Christians chargedwith responsibility in thebusiness world are chal-lenged to combine thelegitimate pursuit of profitwith a deeper concern forthe spread of solidarityand elimination of thescourge of poverty whichcontinues to afflict somany members of thehuman family.”

Oh, that our businessleaders of the world would

take that comment to heart. As Iwrite this, the news is reporting thatthree of the major oil companiesmade more than $5 billion in prof-its for the second quarter of 2006.While the working poor continuesto try to make ends meet as theirtransportation expenses increase, itwould seem the pursuit of profithas passed the legitimate stage inthe oil-industry world.

With the revelation of corrup-tion in major companies such asEnron, World.com, etc., it’d be niceif we got wind of some of the big-wigs doing the right thing.

B Y Y O R K Y O U N G

“Faith and Doubt atGround Zero,” Sept. 11, PBS

NEW YORK (CNS) — The pow-erful yet emotionally draining“Frontline” program “Faith andDoubt at Ground Zero” examinesthe question of spirituality and evilin the aftermath of the horrificattacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The program, to be rerunMonday, Sept. 11, 10 p.m.-mid-night EDT on PBS (check locallistings), explores the challengesconfronted by believers and nonbe-lievers as they try to cope with thedifficult questions of good and evil,God’s power in the face of malevo-lence and the potential for darknesswithin religion itself.

As with a lot of programs, spe-cials and media coverage of Sept.11, “Faith and Doubt” subjects itsviewers to the dreadful images ofthe day: the twin towers sliced byplanes then collapsing in a cloud ofblinding debris and dirt; the confu-sion and chaos as people, coveredin a thick layer of dust, flee to safe-ty; and the tear-stained faces offamily and friends desperate toknow about their missing lovedones. This initial part of the film isdifficult to watch, naturally, but itserves to set up the circumstancesfor the discussion that follows.

The program grapples with thequestions of religion and faiththrough the reflections of a varietyof people from survivors to thewidow of a firefighter; from priestsand rabbis to security guards andopera divas; from Christians andJews to Buddhists, Muslims andatheists. Those interviewed speakwith an unexpected candor aboutthe challenges the horrible acts ofSept. 11 have placed on their faith.

A woman who lost her motherexplains that despite being raisedIrish-Catholic she had fallen awayfrom the church. After Sept. 11, shefound solace and comfort in herCatholic faith and its traditions,particularly the belief that hermother was in heaven.

But others speak of the futilityof believing in a God who couldnot be bothered to intervene orsimply isn’t strong enough to pre-

vent evil of this magnitude. Thisparticular point — whether Godphysically enters our lives or mere-ly watches — is volleyed back andforth. The participants’ words areheartfelt and poignant, whetherthey relate that the tragedy onlyaffirms their belief in a higherpower or affirms that there is noGod at all. “How could a God be inthe horror of what I saw?” one mansincerely asks.

“Faith and Doubt” also pondersthe existence of evil and its connec-tion to the potential for violencewithin the context of religion.“From the first moment I lookedinto that horror ... I recognized reli-gion,” says Msgr. Lorenzo Albacete.Rabbi Brad Hirschfield agrees.“Religion drove those planes intothose buildings,” he says.

This part of the program is moresatisfyingly handled. The filmmak-ers speak with several religiousleaders and scholars who now findthemselves confronting the darkside of their faith and the potentialdanger of religious fervor. OneMiddle East expert described theattacks and the thought processleading up to it as a “rapturous cel-ebration of death,” which harkensback to Pope John Paul II’s term “aculture of death.” It seems to get atthe heart of understanding whathappened on Sept. 11.

The topic of faith is a difficultone — describing it, defining it,explaining it to those without any.“Faith and Doubt” manages to bethought-provoking and balanced inits presentation. One rabbi says hisjob is to help people live with themystery of God, not unravel it,which seems close to the program’sconclusion that there are no easyanswers when it comes to faith.

Given graphic images and frankdiscussion about faith, religion andevil, parents should consider care-fully whether their adolescent chil-dren will be able to handle watch-ing the program.

B Y A N N E N A V A R R O

Anne Navarro is a former staffmember of the Office for Film &Broadcasting of the U.S.Conference of Catholic Bishops.

‘Curious George’ premieres Sept. 4, PBS

NEW YORK (CNS) — PBS con-tinues its long tradition of qualitychildren’s programming with“Curious George” a delightful edu-cational series premiering Monday,Sept. 4, on public television sta-tions (check local listings).

Based on the beloved books byMargret and H.A. Rey, and narrat-ed by Emmy Award-winning actorWilliam H. Macy, each of the 30half-hour episodes contains twoanimated adventures involving themischievous chimp and his friend,

the Man in the Yellow Hat, fol-lowed by classroom segmentswhich apply concepts from the car-toon to the real world.

In the first installment, Georgefinds himself in high-flying troublewhen he gets entangled in a kitestring, and later, craving cannoli,solves a mystery in an Italianrestaurant.

The bite-size lessons are enter-tainingly incorporated into the sto-ries in a way that avoids makinglearning feel like a chore.

Beyond teaching children aboutmath, science and engineering, theseries encourages young viewers to

follow George’s insatiably inquisi-tive lead in being curious about theworld around them.

Visually, fans of the “nice littlemonkey” will be happy that thisnice little series stays true to thecolor palette and simplicity of theoriginal storybooks.

With so many other kids’ showstrying to outdo the competitionwith “cool” computer-animatedeffects, the gentle and refreshinglyunflashy “Curious George” is allthe more charming for its decidedly“unhip” approach.

PBS will also host a companionsite at pbskids.org/curiousgeorge.

B Y D A V I D D I C E R T O

WHAT’S HAPPENING?WHAT’S HAPPENING carries announcements about upcoming events in the diocese. Send in your

announcement at least two weeks prior to the event. Mail to: Today’s Catholic, P.O. Box 11169,

Fort Wayne 46856; or e-mail: fhogan@fw.diocesefwsb.org. Events that require an admission charge

or payment to participate will receive one free listing. For additional listings of that event, please

call our advertising sales staff to purchase space.

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C 19SEPTEMBER 3, 2006

CulverIrene W.Bieker,87,St.Mary of the Lake

ElkhartMargaret E.Wenzel,91,St.Vincent de Paul

Fort WayneMarcellus F.Dahm,86,St.Jude

Giovanna Barile,69,St.Charles Borromeo

Stephen G.Beck,38,St.Vincent de Paul

Mary Ellen Smith,81,St.Vincent de Paul

Carol Ann McLaughlin,63,St.CharlesBorromeo

HuntingtonHarrold Wall,79,St.Mary

MishawakaSusan L.Artusi,59,St.Joseph

South BendErma R.Gassensmith,75,St.Anthony de Padua

Helen M.Majewski,81,St.Adalbert

Charles P.McEndarfer,85,St.Anthony dePadua

REST IN PEACE

40thAnnual

Sept. 42006

Saint Mary of the Assumption Parish

228 North Main Street,Avilla, Indiana

LABOR DAY CHICKENBARBECUE & FESTIVAL

(Serving Barbecue & Ham 11:30 to 5:30 PM)CARRY OUTS AVAILABLE

•Games •Raffles •Fun for everyone!“JUSTUS 3” (Richard Loucks) playing

(All proceeds to St. Mary Parish)

(Peer-to-Peer Class). Supportgroups are held twice a monthfor family members as well assupport meetings for personswith the illness.

First Saturday devotions plannedFort Wayne — The WorldApostolate of Fatima will holdDevotions of Reparation at St.Joseph Church, corner ofBrooklyn and Hale, on Saturday,Sept. 2. Reconcilliation begins at7:15 a.m., meditation at 7:30a.m., rosary at 7:45 a.m. andMass at 8 a.m. Breakfast andmeeting will follow. All are wel-come.

Birthday party for Our Lady Fort Wayne — The Legion ofMary will have a birthday partyfor Mary 5:45-8 p.m. onSaturday, Sept. 9, at the OurLady of Good Hope parish hall,7215 St. Joe Rd. The rosary withslides, a potluck dinner, doorprizes, live music, games forchildren and a short talk aboutthe history of the Legion of Maryare the planned activities. CallConnie Acierto at (260) 486-1001 by Sept. 5.

Diocesan guitar workshop plannedFort Wayne — DemystifyingGuitar Chords will be heldSaturday, Sept. 16, from 10 a.m.to 12:30 p.m. at St. JosephChurch. Designed for intermedi-ate and advanced players, thediocesan guitar workshop willteach you how chords are con-structed and how to readadvanced chord symbols. Theworkshop will also put referencematerials in your hands that willaid you in your journey to chordmastery. Register online atwww.diocesefwsb.org/WOR-SHIP/musicians.htm or by mail.Cost is $15 per person. For fur-ther information, contact KenJehle at (260) 432-5113 ext. 325.

Knights plan fish fryFort Wayne — The Knights ofColumbus Council 451, 601Reed Rd., will have a fish fry onFriday, Sept. 1, from 5 to 7:30p.m. The cost is $6 for adults, $3for children 12 and under. Fish,two sides and beverage areincluded.

Knights plan fish frySouth Bend — The Knights ofColumbus Council 5521, 61533S. Ironwood Dr., will have a fishfry on Friday, Sept. 1, from 5 to7 p.m. Adults $7, children (5-12)$3. Chicken strips for $7 andshrimp for $8 will be available.

Alzheimer’s memory walkFort Wayne — The Alzheimer’sAssociation will have a memorywalk on Saturday, Sept. 9, atFoster Park. Call (260) 420-5547to register or make a donation.

Parish school celebrates 125 years Elkhart — St. Vincent de PaulSchool, 1114 South Main St., ishosting a ribbon cutting ceremonyand breakfast honoring specialguests, which include communityleaders and neighboring parishes,on Tuesday, Sept. 5. In 1881, St.Vincent de Paul School began withthree Sisters of the Holy Cross.

First Sunday rosary for familiesFort Wayne — The first Sundayrosary for families will be atMacDougal Chapel on Sunday,Sept. 3, from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.with Father Steve Colchin fromSt. Louis, Besancon-St. Rose,Monroeville attending.

St. Anne Society plans luncheonSouth Bend — The St. AnneSociety will have a luncheoncard party on Sunday, Sept. 10, at1 p.m. at Our Lady of HungarySchool. Doors open at noon.Donation of $5. Bring your owncards.

St. Therese Fall FestivalFort Wayne — St. ThereseParish, 2304 Lower HuntingtonRd., will have a fall festival onSaturday, Sept. 9, from 10 a.m.to 11 p.m. Children’s games andfood booths open until 4:30 p.m.Madeline’s Toybox will performat noon and 3:30 p.m. Auction at1 p.m. and bingo from noon to 3p.m. and 50/50 cash raffle andother prizes. Dinner grilled from11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mass at 5 p.m.followed by over 21 music andbeverages until 11 p.m.

Little Flower Holy HourFort Wayne — Father DarylRybicki, pastor of St. John theBaptist Parish, will celebrate theholy hour at MacDougal Chapelon Tuesday, Sept. 5, at 7:15 p.m.Join this special intention to prayfor priests and vocations.

Charity luncheon heldSouth Bend — The Daughters ofIsabella Notre Dame Circle 572will hold their 59th annual chari-ty luncheon “Lavender andLace” on Sept. 16 at noon at theBlue Heron at Blackthorn.Tickets are $25. Call (574) 287-1487 for reservations by Friday,Sept. 8. All proceeds benefit thedevelopmentally challenged ofSt. Joseph County.

Hospice seeking volunteersSouth Bend — CHAPC Chats:Volunteers are Mission Criticalwill be presented on Thursday,Sept. 7, from 9 to 10 a.m. and 6to 7 p.m. for adults interested inexploring volunteer opportunitieswith The Center for Hospice andPalliative Care (CHAPC). Theseone hour programs offer anoverview of the numerous volun-teer openings at the agency.RSVP to Jackie at (574) 243-3100 by Sept. 6 if you plan toattend.

Card party and luncheon plannedSouth Bend — The Altar/RosarySociety of St. Casimir Parish,

Fred Everett to Speak on Life Issues

Fred Everett, Co-Director of the diocesan

Office of Family Life, will present an overview

of Catholic teachings on life issues and the

work of the Indiana Catholic Conference,

Wednesday, September 13, 7 p.m., at the

Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the

Cathedral Center. Refreshments will be

served.

1308 W. Dunham, is sponsoringa card party on Sunday, Sept. 10,at 1 p.m. A plate lunch anddessert will be served. Donationis $4 and tickets availabe at thedoor. Bring your own cards.

Natural Family Planning classesSouth Bend/Elkhart — NaturalFamily Planning classes willbegin on Tuesday, Sept. 5, from7-9 p.m. and Tuesday, Oct. 3,from 7-9 p.m. in the first floorEducation Center of Saint JosephRegional Medical Center-SouthBend. Classes in Spanish willbegin on Monday, Sept. 11, from6-8 p.m. at the St. VincentOutreach Center in Elkhart.There is a $15 fee for the initialsession. For registration andinformation call The NaturalFamily Planning program officeat (574) 234-5411 or Evelyn atSt. Vincent’s at (574) 389-9634after 1 p.m. Individual appoint-ments for instruction can also bearranged.

Traditional chicken dinnerEge — A traditional fried chick-en and ham dinner will be heldat Immaculate ConceptionParish, County Road 400S, 4miles west of Laotto, on Sunday,Sept. 10, from noon to 5 p.m.Bingo, games, raffles and draw-ing for quilt.

Jewels from the treasure chestFort Wayne — A bookclub willmeet at a local coffee house oncea month beginning Sept. 18, anddiscuss and read excerpts from“The Treasury of CatholicWisdom,” by Father JohnHardon, SJ. Call (260) 422-2959or e-mail justadorehim@hot-mail.com for information.

Vendors needed for craft bazaarFort Wayne — The BishopDwenger Music Boosters haveopenings for the craft bazaar tobe held on Saturday, Nov. 11.Call Terry Luebke at (260) 483-5750 for information.

Legacy luncheon heldSouth Bend — The St. Vincentde Paul Society will celebrate its100th anniversary with a LegacyLuncheon to be held at theUniversity of Notre Dame JoyceAthletic and Convocation Centeron Thursday, Sept. 7, from 11:30a.m. till 1 p.m. The guest speakerwill be Father Edward ‘Monk’Malloy, CSC, president emeritusof the University of Notre Dame.Unique items will be available ata silent auction. For informationcontact Sean Wendlinder at (574)251-4908.

Moving sale supports Holy Cross sistersSouth Bend — The Sisters of theHoly Cross are having a movingsale on Saturday, Sept. 2, from 8a.m. to 4 p.m. at Our Lady ofHungary Convent, 731 W.Calvert Street. Proceeds will ben-efit the Holy Cross ministry withthe poor. For information callSister Margie Lavonis at (574)289-2531 or mlavonis@cscsis-ters.org.

Weekend retreat Mishawaka — A weekend retreatwill be held at St. FrancisConvent on Friday evening andconcludes Sunday noon Sept. 8-10. The theme of the retreat is"The Vibrancy of Life." The costof the retreat is $80. For registra-tion and further details, pleasecall Sister Barbara Anne Hallmanat (574) 259-5427.

Mental illness educational classes andsupport groupSouth Bend — The local chapterof NAMI (National Alliance onMental Illness) is offering a 12-week course beginning Tuesday,Sept. 12, for family members orfriends of persons with mentalillness as well as a nine weekcourse for individuals with men-tal illness. Classes are free butregistration is required. For moreinformation call Kris at (574)256-0725 (Family-to-FamilyClass) or Ann at (574) 259-3564

T O D A Y ’ S C A T H O L I C SEPTEMBER 3, 200620

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Premed student collects supplies for mission trip

FORT WAYNE — Overwhelminghealth and medical needs both hereand abroad make it difficult forany one person to know how tohelp those under served on theinternational scene. But onepremed student, Jennifer Royal,has found a way to help.

This October, Royal, a sopho-more at DePauw University inGreencastle, will be volunteering,along with 11 other students and20 area medical doctors, on amission trip to Quito, Ecuador.

The trip has been organized bythe DePauw chapter of theTimmy Foundation, a nonprofitorganization that provides health-care and relevant medical andeducational resources to specificinternational areas. The volun-teer-supported foundation part-ners with medical facilities incountries such as Ecuador, Haiti,Honduras and others, to assistmedically under-served children.

Royal, a 2005 graduate ofBishop Dwenger and lifelongmember of St. Vincent de PaulParish in Fort Wayne, has alwaysbeen interested in medicine.While adjusting to coursework inher biochemistry major last yearat DePauw, she stumbled uponthe Timmy Foundation.

“I saw an ad for the TimmyFoundation in the DePauwnewsletter and decided to go tothe meeting,” says Royal.

DePauw, newlyinvested in theTimmyFoundation andtheir work, sentits first group ofvolunteers toEcuador lastyear during fallbreak. Royalwas able tolearn about thattrip through pic-

tures and stories relayed at themeeting.

“Though the children in thephotos were living in poverty,they were still smiling,” Royalsays. “I had never been exposedto this. After hearing Dr. Chuck(Dietzen, founder of the TimmyFoundation) and seeing the slidesI was deeply touched. I knew Ihad to go,” she adds. And thewheels were put in motion.

Beginning this summer, Royalworked a summer job and didsome babysitting to earn her farefor the mission trip. She has ral-lied the students at St. VincentSchool to assist in fund raisingfor the effort as well. The sixthgrade will hold a bake sale anddonate the proceeds to the proj-ect. Bulletin requests have stimu-lated parish support in the formof tithe donations as well as giftsof vitamins to be offered to thechildren in Ecuador. Royal isorchestrating calls to area med-ical providers in hopes of obtain-ing sample medicines that will be

of help to the mission as well. The trip will take place Oct.

14-21, during the week ofDePauw’s fall break. Royal andthe 11 other students have beenparticipating in training sessionsin which they learn medicalbasics involving blood pressurechecks, listening to the heart andpulse checks.

Royal is a trained emergencymedical technician (EMT) and isexcitedly anticipating her role inassisting the medical staff on thetrip. “It’s going to be really fun,”she says. “Twenty doctors will bethere to supervise. We will workwith the children and help outwith the basic stuff.”

The group will live together ina camp and team with medicalstaff from the Tierra NuevaFoundation hospital, founded byFather Jose Carollo, to perform

medical exams on area childrenin school clinics from 8 a.m. to 4p.m. each day. After returning tocamp, the group will have theopportunity to attend daily Massand tour the city.

Royal hopes to purchase local-ly-crafted products to sell back inthe U.S. for a profit, which willimmediately be sent back toQuito.

Parents Mike and Bea Royaland Jennifer’s five siblings areexcited that she will have thisopportunity to help those in need.“My mom’s a little nervous, butshe really wanted me to do it,”says Royal. “My brothers and sis-ters ... think it’s cool.”

Mom, Bea, explains this willbe a humbling experience for herdaughter, saying, “She alreadylives very frugally. But it will begood for her to see the world in a

different way.” Grandma, Jodie Butler-Koehl

adds, “Jenni is resourceful andmature. She will be toucheddeeply by the Ecuador people. Itwill change her life.”

Royal is grateful for the out-pouring of assistance she isalready receiving from her parishcommunity and is currentlyaccepting sample medications,Flintstone vitamins, medical sup-plies and equipment and mone-tary donations for this worthwhilemission.

B Y K A Y C O Z A D

JENNIFER ROYAL

For more information on the mis-sion trip or to donate, contactBea Royal at (260) 490-2149.

To learn about the TimmyFoundation visit their Web site atwww.timmyfoundation.org.

Not ready for prime time catechism‘Wednesday Night Live’ is a hit

COLUMBIA CITY — Thegroup that meets every otherWednesday night at St. Paul ofthe Cross Church is something ofa dream come true for pastorFather Larry Kramer. The group,ranging from people in their 40sto their 70s, gathers to listen topresentations by Father Krameron any of a number of faith-relat-ed issues, the sort of formatFather Kramer had been trying— unsuccessfully — to set upsince his early days as a priest.

“When I work with the kidsin the schools, I always wishtheir parents were there,” FatherKramer said, noting that manyadults lack a deep understandingof their faith. This can bebecause they have not had anyinstruction since they were inschool or that, for older peopleespecially, much of it haschanged since the SecondVatican Council.

And so, in the early summerof 2006, Father Kramer decidedto give the idea another try. Hepitched the idea to his congrega-tion one Sunday, explaining thatthe format would entail only hispresentation and questions — nocomments.

“I reassured them that no onecould run away with it,” he said.

To further ensure the group’ssuccess, the coordinator of activ-ities, Kathy Kiester, suggestedthat they come up with a catchyname for the group, eventuallygoing with “Wednesday NightLive with Father Larry.”

“I said, ‘Boy, that sounds justcorny enough to work,’” FatherKramer recalls.

And it did work. The smallestnights have had over 20 people,and to the surprise of FatherKramer and everyone else, thegroup has been as large as 55 to60 people.

Topics covered at WednesdayNight Live have included thereal presence, marriage, the last

things (death, judgment, heavenand hell), war and, most recently,the priesthood.

“More people were interestedin death than they were in mar-riage if you’re going by num-bers,” Father Kramer notes of thesessions.

In the session on priesthood,attended by Today’s Catholic,Father Kramer addressed therecent controversy caused byeight women in Pittsburgh whoclaimed to have been ordainedpriests, noting that John Paul IIhad said no to the question ofwomen’s ordination, making itjust short of an infallible articleof faith.

Father Kramer also spoke onthe hierarchy, saying that thereare really only three levels: dea-con, priest and bishop. Beyondthat, he said wryly, is decoration.For instance, a cardinal is simplya bishop who has been selectedto be a special advisor to thepope who can vote to choose hissuccessor. Or a monsignor issimply a priest bestowed with anhonorary title by the pope, at therequest of a bishop, either as a

way of thanking him for hisservice or giving him some clout.

“I call myself a non-signor,”Father Kramer joked.

On the topic of sexual abuseof minors by priests, FatherKramer recalled how the attitudeand response to that behavior haschanged over the years and citedthe importance of getting abusersout of active ministry but notturning them loose so that thediocese cannot locate them.

“We have to be a little lessnaive and keep working togeth-er,” he concluded.

Reaction among parishionersat St. Paul of the Cross has beenhighly favorable, with many ofthem praising Father Kramer’sknowledge of history, depth ofthought and willingness toapproach church issues in a waythat respects them and givesthem real answers.

“They expected the same olddrill, but it wasn’t the same olddrill,” Father Kramer said as oneprobable reason for WednesdayNight Live’s success. “We cancrash through that barrier of bore-dom. ... And they find out it’s fun.”

B Y D O N C L E M M E R

DON CLEMMER

Father Larry Kramer of St. Paul of the Cross Parish in Columbia Cityfields a question during a recent session of “Wednesday Night Livewith Father Larry.” This adult catechesis group has been a success atSt. Paul of the Cross, thanks in part to its questions-only format andFather Kramer’s insistence that learning about the church can be fun.