Dec. 11, 2009

The Catholic News & Herald 1 December 11, 2009

Serving CatholiCS in WeStern north Carolina in the DioCeSe of Charlotte

In our schoolsSmall gifts add up; Student artwork selected by Duke Children’s Hospital

| 2

Around the dioceseBishop presents Gabriel Award; Ready to run; Dinner is served

| Page 13

Culture WatchOn and off campus; Play brings St. John Vianney to life; Not so secret

| Pages 10-11

DeCember 11, 2009 volUme 19 no. 6

www.charlottediocese.org

PerspectivesLegislating against charity; The truth about immigrants and health care

| Pages 14-15established Jan. 12, 1972

by Pope Paul vi

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

photo by sueann howell

Father Timothy Reid, pastor of St. Ann Church, addresses the congregation during the St. Ann Church dedication on Saturday, Dec. 5. Pictured (from left) are: Deacon George Salzony, Bishop Peter J. Jugis, St. Ann altar servers, Father Timothy Reid, Monsignor Anthony Kovacic, Father Christopher Roux (master of ceremonies) and Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin.

Fulfilling the promise, a half-century later

“Happy to be a priest.” Retired Archbishop John F. Donoghue of Atlanta reflects on the 25 years of his priestly ministry since being installed as the second Bishop of Charlotte in 1983.

SUEANN HOWELLSpecial to the

Catholic News & Herald

CHARLOTTE — The past 54 years have been an exercise in perseverance for St. Ann Church. For more than half a century, the clergy and parishioners there have been praying, working and waiting for the dedication of a completed church on property purchased under Raleigh Bishop Vincent S. Waters’ leadership in 1955.

The current bishop, Most Reverend Peter J. Jugis, has been waiting since his baptism there in 1957.

On Saturday, Dec. 5 the culmination of a half-century’s hopes and hard work came to fruition as Bishop Jugis dedicated the new church.

Immigration reformNext up on bishops’ wish list for Congress

See REFORM, page 7

St. Ann parish community rejoices in new church

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Over the years, hundreds of thousands of postcards have come from U.S. Catholics in organized efforts to influence members of Congress on issues ranging from partial-birth abortion to human cloning to health care reform.

A new postcard campaign in 2010 will urge Congress to take up as its next priority comprehensive immigration reform that would reunite families, regularize the status of an estimated 12 million people in this country illegally and restore due process protections for immigrants.

“We want to increase Catholic grass-roots support for immigrat ion reform, but we also want to show members of Congress a strong Catholic voice and strong Catholic numbers in support of immigration reform,” said Antonio Cube, national manager of the U.S. bishops’ Justice for Immigrants project, in a November conference call with reporters.

The postcard campaign will coincide in most places with the bishops’ National Migration Week, Jan. 3-9, although it might be held earlier or later in some dioceses, Cube said. It also is part of a multifaceted interfaith campaign called “Home for the Holidays,” designed to stress the family reunification aspect of immigration reform.

The Catholic Church is uniquely situated to comment on the immigration issue, because of its “long history of welcoming and serving

See DEDICATION, page 8

Twenty-five years and counting

See DONOGHUE, page 4

DAVID HAINSDIrector of commuNIcAtIoN

CHARLOTTE — Retired Archbishop John F. Donoghue tells an amusing story about his move in 1993 from the Diocese of Charlotte to the Archdiocese of Atlanta. He was in Spain attending a Eucharistic Congress with some priests

from the Diocese of Charlotte when he received a telephone call from the Papal Nuncio, the representative of then Pope John Paul II to the United States. “He told me that the Holy Father would like for me to go to Atlanta,” said Donoghue. “And I said, ‘What for?’”

Archbishop Donoghue reaches a milestone

courtesy photo

2 The Catholic News & Herald December 11, 2009

Current and upcoming topics from around the world to your own backyardInBrief Apparent miracle

cured teen’s cancer

PublisHer: Most reverend Peter J. JugisiNTeriM eDiTor: Heather bellemoreGraPHiC DesiGNer: Tim FaragheraDverTisiNG MaNaGer: Cindi FeerickseCreTary: Deborah Hiles

1123 south Church st., Charlotte, NC 28203Mail: P.o. box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237PHoNe: (704) 370-3333 FaX: (704) 370-3382e-Mail: [email protected]

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DECEMBER 11, 2009Volume 19 • Number 6

CHARLOTTE VICARIATE CHARLOTTE — Opus Dei Recollections will be offered for men and women at St. Matthew Church by a priest of Opus Dei on Dec. 11 (Men’s Recollection) and Dec. 12 (Women’s Recollection). The Men’s Recollection will start with confession starting at 6:30 p.m., and the program from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The Women’s Recollection begins at 9:30 a.m. with confession. The program starts at 10 a.m. and ends after Mass celebrated at 12 noon. For more information contact Joe or Remy Ignacio at (704) 752-7155.

CHARLOTTE — The Abbey Choir from Sussex, England will be performing a Christmas Program, Saturday, Dec. 12 at 7 p.m. at St. Gabriel Church, 3016 Providence Road. This amazing choir of 40 students has previously toured in Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Poland and Ireland. This is their first visit to the United States. The program is free. For more information, call the church office at (704) 364-5431.

CHARLOTTE— The Compassionate Friends of Charlotte, a support group for parents who have lost a child, will hold a Memorial Candle Lighting Service on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 6:30 p.m. in the St. Matthew Chapel located at 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. Please bring a picture of your child to share. The candle lighting is open to everyone. You can also bring an appetizer or dessert to share during the reception. For more information, call Donna or Ralph Goodrich at (704) 882-4503.

CHARLOTTE — St. Gabriel Church will present “The Journey – A Walk to Bethlehem,” a glorious festival of lessons and carols, on Friday, Dec. 18 at 7 p.m. at the church located at 3016 Providence Road. This free program will feature beautiful live scenes, traditional Christmas music and the extraordinary unfolding of the Christmas story narrated by Ty Boyd. The church is located at 3016 Providence Road, Charlotte. For more information, call (704) 364-5431.

HUNTERSVILLE — St. Mark Church will sponsor the Eighth-Annual St. Mark Christmas Play on Friday, Dec. 18 from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the church located at 14740 Stumptown Road. All are invited to attend this evening of song, dance and drama as we follow the adventures of Seraphim and Cherubim who are on a mission from God to find hope for the world. For more information, call Donna Smith, director of religious education, at (704) 948-1306 or by email at [email protected].

CHARLOTTE — Father Rick DeClue will lead an Advent Retreat for Women

Diocesanplanner

Catholics hopeful, dejected by Obama plan to add troops in Afghanistan

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Catholic groups with a stake in matters of war and peace were alternately hopeful and dejected by President Barack Obama’s plan to add 30,000 troops to the war effort in Afghanistan.

“I think he’s making a tragic and horrible mistake,” David Robinson, head of Pax Christi USA, said of Obama during a Dec. 2 telephone interview with Catholic News Service from Pax Christi headquarters in Erie, Pa. “The irony of him announcing this fateful escalation the week before (Obama accepts) the Nobel Peace Prize, this is Greek tragedy.”

“We hope and pray for his success, that his strategy works,” said Maryknoll Sister Mary Ellen Gallagher, who is on the staff of the Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns in Maryknoll, N.Y.

Obama outlined his war plans in a Dec. 1 address at the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y. Broadcast across the nation, Obama said he would add 30,000 soldiers to the effort, but also announced the withdrawal of troops beginning in July 2011 in the expectation that the Afghan government would be able to accept the added responsibility.

“I was very glad to hear the president give an exit timeline for Afghanistan,” Pax Christi’s Robinson said. “I just don’t agree that we’re going to be able to make

enough of a difference on the ground in the next 18 months that will put us in a better position to leave then than we are now.”

Robinson added, “War is not going to change the dynamic. They’re not going to be able to ... in the 12-month time frame that the president gave them ... create a corrupt-free Afghan government, double the size of the Afghan military and engage Pakistan in a productive manner when none of that had been accomplished in the last eight years.”

Sister Mary Ellen of Maryknoll voiced similar concerns.

“We pray for the success of the strategy as outlined by the president, but as the months go on if the strategy is not working, if the principals in Afghanistan are not taking their full responsibility we have to look at it and come down hard on them,” she said.

“Those are our concerns. We support the president. He expressed himself; he’s eloquent. But as we know, war does not settle problems. We’ve seen that, we’ve seen that in our own history,” she said.

“It appears to me that our military is in need of that help there,” said Jose Garcia, national executive director of Catholic War Veterans of the USA.

A 35-year Army veteran, now retired, Garcia said, “We started it. We need to finish what we start.”

ST. PAUL, Minn. (CNS) — Not too long ago, 14-year-old Joey Schwartz had never heard of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos.

He could not have imagined making a pilgrimage with his family from Savage, Minn., to the New Orleans shrine of the Redemptorist priest, especially since he was extremely ill with a rare form of cancer that had returned after a short remission.

Dur ing Mass a t the shr ine , Joyce Bourgeois, the Seelos Center administrator, laid her hands on Joey’s shoulders in prayer. Each member of the family felt “spiritually overwhelmed” by the experience,

according to Paul Schwartz. Added Joey: “I don’t know how to explain it, but I did feel different.”

According to his doctor, Joey is now cancer-free and his family is eager to share the story of the apparent miracle.

For now, Joey is continuing with his course of chemotherapy. “Nothing is telling us to stop that, and we’re going to go by what our doctor is saying,” said Melinda Schwartz.

At the same time, Paul and Melinda Schwartz truly believe Joey is cured. “God didn’t do this for our family for us to keep it a secret,” she said. “We want to get the word out about Blessed Father Seelos.”

cns photo by shannon stapleton, reuters

U.S. Army cadets bow their heads in prayer during an invocation before U.S. President Barack Obama speaks about Afghanistan policy at the u.S. military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Dec. 1.

For more events taking place in the Diocese of Charlotte, visit www.charlottediocese.org/calendarofevents-cn.

Minnesota family cites prayers to Blessed Seelos


Papal preacher addresses priestsFroM THe vaTiCaN

on Saturday, Dec. 19 at St. Vincent de Paul Church, 6828 Old Reid Road. It will begin with Mass at 9 a.m., followed by talks in the Activity Center on the theme, “The Word Became Flesh and Made His Dwelling Among Us.” For more information and to register, call Peggy Pohlheber at (704) 588-7311.

CHARLOTTE — “Annunciations,” A Guided Ignatian Advent Retreat will be offered by St. Peter Church, 507 S. Tryon St., on Saturday, Dec. 19 from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon in Biss Hall (under the church). Parking is free in The Green parking garage next door to the church. To attend the Saturday session, please email [email protected].

CHARLOTTE — A Polish Mass will be celebrated on Sunday, Dec. 20 at 3 p.m. at St. Matthew Church at 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy. The sacrament of Reconciliation will be available beforehand starting at 2 p.m. For more information, call (704) 948-1678.

GASTONIA VICARIATE BELMONT — The Abbey Choir from Sussex, England will be performing a Christmas Program, Sunday, Dec. 13 at 3 p.m. at the Belmont Abbey Basilica, 100 Belmont-Mt. Holly Road. This amazing choir of 40 students has previously toured in Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Poland and Ireland. This is their first visit to the United States. The program is free and open to the public.

GREENSBORO VICARIATE GREENSBORO — Our Lady of Grace Church will host an Advent/Christmas Concert featuring the adult and children’s choirs on Thursday, Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. in the

church located at 2205 West Market Street. Come enjoy medieval to contemporary music, with flute, cello and violin. For more information, call (336) 274-6520.

GREENSBORO — The Men’s Early Morning Bible Study Group will discuss the Catholic Epistles through December. Join us for sharing, prayer and Bible study every Tuesday at 6:30 a.m. in the parish library, St. Paul the Apostle Church, 2715 Horse Pen Creek Road, Greensboro. For more information contact the church office at (336) 294-4696 or email [email protected].

WINSTON-SALEM VICARIATEWINSTON-SALEM — The Secular Franciscans invite area Catholics to a Come and See, an opportunity to find out about St. Francis and St. Clare, their way of life, and to learn about the Secular Franciscans. The event will be held at Our Lady of Mercy School Media Room, at 1730 Link Road, at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call Anne Modrow SFO at (336) 760-1938 or email [email protected].

is your parish or school sponsoring a free event open to the general public? Deadline for all submissions for the Diocesan Planner is 10 days prior to desired publication date. submit in writing to [email protected] or fax to (704) 370-3382.

Vatican, Russia upgrade ties to full diplomatic relations

December 12 – 11:00 a.m.Institution to Ministry of acolyte for Deacon CandidatesCathedral of st. Patrick, Charlotte

December 19 – 10:00 a.m.Dedication of sacred Heart Catholic Churchsalisbury

December 22 – 10:00 a.m.Diaconate Ordination of Lucas RossiCathedral of st. Patrick, Charlotte

Episcopalcalendar

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following event:

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Priests are not called to judge others, but to bring God’s saving grace, his love and compassion to the world, said the preacher of the papal household.

The preacher, Capuchin Father Raniero Cantalamessa, told Pope Benedict XVI and top Vatican officials Dec. 4 that St. John’s Gospel recalls, “‘God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.’”

Priests, who are continuing Christ’s work on earth, are asked to adopt this outlook toward all people: “Do not judge, but save” them, the papal preacher said.

Offering an Advent meditation during the Year for Priests, Father Cantalamessa dedicated his reflection to the role of priests.

Again citing St. John’s Gospel, the preacher said God loved the world so

much, he gave his only son “so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but have eternal life.”

Priests are called to continue this mission and offer people “sympathy, a sense of solidarity, and compassion,” he said.

Jesus, the compassionate high priest, is able to sympathize with human weakness, the papal preacher said. The priestly servant of Christ should also “’deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so for this reason must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people,’” he said, quoting from the St. Paul’s Letter to the Hebrews.

Jesus was stern with those who were hypocritical or full of themselves, and with “the teachers and leaders of the people,” he said. Jesus was harsh with the powerful, and gentle with the weak, he added.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican and Russia announced they would upgrade diplomatic relations to the highest level.

During a meeting at the Vatican Dec. 3, Pope Benedict XVI and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreed to establish full diplomatic ties between their two countries. Since 1990 they have exchanged diplomatic representatives but without full relations.

The two leaders discussed “the challenges currently facing security and peace” and the international and political situation in the world, according to a written statement released by the Vatican after the meeting.

They also discussed “cultural and social questions of mutual interest, such as the value of the family and the contribution believers make to life in Russia,” the Vatican statement said.

In a customary exchange of gifts, the pope presented Medvedev a copy of his encyclical “Caritas in Veritate” (“Charity in Truth”) in Russian. The president gave

the pope 22 volumes of an encyclopedia on the Russian Orthodox Church.

The Vatican and the Russian federation forged high-level official contacts in 1990, a year before Russia voted the communist government out of existence and the former Soviet Union collapsed. It was the first time the two countries exchanged official representatives since full diplomatic relations had been broken after the Russian Revolution of 1917.

Tense relations between the Russian Orthodox and Catholic churches had been partially responsible for the lack of establishing full diplomatic relations in the past, said said Pavel Dyukarev, charge d’affaires at the Russian Embassy to the Vatican, Dec. 4.

“It’s true that the (improved) relations between the two churches have facilitated” this political step forward, “but there is no direct link, just an atmosphere that has been marked by closer, friendlier relations,” said the diplomat.

cns photo by debbie hill

The guardian of the Church of Nativity, Polish Franciscan Father Jerry Kraj, right, walks in the daily procession from the Church of St. Catherine to the grotto in the Church of the Nativity in bethlehem, West bank, Nov. 26. He said the main role of the Franciscans at the site, which is traditionally held to be the birthplace of Christ, is to care for the spiritual life at the shrine.

All part of job for Franciscan at Nativity churchPaint to pilgrims

BETHLEHEM, West Bank (CNS) — Supervising painters, welcoming pilgrims and helping to solve territorial disputes — it’s all part of a day’s work for the priest at the church marking where Jesus was born.

Franciscan Father Jerzy Kraj calls his job as guardian of the Church of the Nativity “an honor and a big responsibility.”

Father Kraj brought in Polish volunteers

to complete a freshly painted sanctuary with energy-saving lighting.

“Pilgrims come (to the Holy Land) once in a lifetime, and we must ... give them the opportunity to feel as if they are in their home,” he said.

These pilgrims, who have continued to come to the Holy Land for centuries despite ongoing violence and tensions, are “a sign of hope of the Christian presence,” he said.

4 The Catholic News & Herald December 11, 2009FROM THE COVER

Archival Anecdota

courtesy photos

At left, Bishop Donoghue gives Holy Communion to Mercy Sister Christine Beck at St. Patrick Cathedral April 4 1987. At right, Bishop Donoghue reads an early issue of The Catholic News & Herald.

For the month of December, here is a look back at the the journey of Archbishop John Francis Donoghue.

Biographical Facts:• Born 9 August 1928 in Washington, D.C.• Ordained 4 June 1955 at St. Matthew

Cathedral in Washington, D.C.• Elevated to rank of Chaplain of His

Holiness and given the title of “Monsignor” in 1970.

• Appointed 2nd Bishop of the Diocese of Charlotte on 6 November 1984.

• Consecrated Bishop of Charlotte on 18 December 1984.

• Installed as Archbishop of Atlanta on 19 August 1993.

• Retired 9 December 2004.• Appointed Rector of Holy Spirit Prep

School in Atlanta, GA on 23 February 2005

During his time as Bishop of Charlotte:• The number of Catholics in the diocese

grew from 70,000 to 94,000, and 24 parishes and missions were added.

• The first and only Charlotte Diocesan Synod was held from September 1986 – May 1987.

• The Catholic schools in Mecklenburg County underwent regionalization, and MACS was born.

• The Catholic Conference Center in Hickory was constructed.

• St. Lawrence in Asheville was elevated to rank of Minor Basilica.

• The Diocese of Charlotte began publishing its own newspaper, The Catholic News and Herald.

• Coat of Arms as Bishop of Charlotte:• Episcopal Motto: To Live in Christ Jesus

(adapted from Philippians 1:21)• Top left quarter – Celtic cross edged in

gold honoring St. Patrick, the patron saint of the Diocese of Charlotte cathedral.

• Top right quarter – White with black ermine tails honors Bishop Donoghue’s long friendship with the late Cardinal O’Boyle ( former Archbishop of Washington, D.C.)

• Bottom left quarter – Gold crown symbolizing Queen Charlotte for whom the See city was named.

• Bottom right quarter – Personal arms of Bishop Donoghue; white cross with fleur-de-lis symbolizes both Blessed Virgin and St. John Vianney, the bishop’s baptismal patron. Red and green quarters honor the arms of the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. and the bishop’s Irish ancestors, the O’Donoghue and Ryan clans.

Interesting Fact:archbishop Donoghue promoted eucharistic adoration wherever he went and under his watch Perpetual adoration began in the Charlotte Diocese; it first started at St. Law-rence basilica in asheville following at st. Gabriel Church in Charlotte. as archbishop of atlanta, he practiced what he preached by participating in perpetual adoration at the cathedral every Thursday at 1 a.m.

Pastoral assignment Bishop Peter J. Jugis announces the following pastoral assignment for the Diocese of Charlotte.

effective Dec.12reverend J. Patrick Cahill

From: Parochial Vicar, St. Matthew Church in CharlotteTo: Parochial Vicar, St. Gabriel Church in Charlotte

from the office of the bishop

Archbishop Donoghue was ordained to the priesthood in 1955 and served the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. until 1984 when he was named the second Bishop of Charlotte. The 25th anniversary of his ordination as bishop is Dec 18.

When he arrived there were fewer than 70,000 registered Catholics in the Diocese of Charlotte. Although he had been a priest for 29 years, Charlotte was his first assignment as a bishop.

A quarter century af ter his installation Mass in Charlotte’s old Convention Center, the Archbishop lives in retirement in Georgia. The welcome and support he received during his nine years as Bishop of Charlotte are still fresh in his mind.

Although the diocese was small in 1984 compared to today with more than 425,000 registered and un-registered Catholics, then-Bishop Donoghue saw the need for long-term planning. Notable projects he instituted include a major reorganization of Catholic schools, the construction of the Catholic Conference Center, and inauguration of publication for this newspaper.

Archbishop Donoghue began his service in the Diocese of Charlotte by giving thanks to God and to the people of the diocese who had already made him feel welcome.

At 81, Archbishop Donoghue is enjoying retirement and is still joyful at the decision he made in the early 1950s to respond to God’s call to the priesthood.

Donoghue recently spoke with Diocesan Director of Communication David Hains about his memories of Charlotte, the Eucharistic Congress and his life in retirement. His remarks have been edited for brevity and clarity.

What was your assessment of the Diocese of Charlotte when you arrived?

The thing that impressed me the most was how friendly everyone was. The priests, the religious and the laity were all very happy, even though they didn’t know me. And they were all very supportive. I was very grateful for the support they gave me the whole time I was there.

What was it like transitioning from a large, urban archdiocese in Washington, D.C. to a mission diocese here in Charlotte?

Well I didn’t feel it was a mission diocese. I felt it was a very active diocese and a lot of that was because of Bishop Michael Begley who preceded me. He was very outspoken about faith and was very much in line with the teaching of the church. I had great respect for him. We talked on occasion about what was going on in the diocese and about what help he could give me. And he was always very generous in responding to any call for help that I gave him.

Once you got settled into the Diocese of Charlotte, did you have a plan for some things that you wanted to accomplish?

No one was fighting me not to do things. They wanted me to do whatever I thought was helpful. And it was true of the priests; they were very cooperative in doing the things we wanted to do. Also , I thought that we needed some more schools.

If you look at physical structures in the diocese, one of your big accomplishments was the construction of the Catholic Conference Center in Hickory. Why did you undertake that?

I thought it was a good way to bring our Catholic people together. It didn’t cause us any problem financially. And that is the kind of thing that I was afraid of, that we wouldn’t be able to do some of these things because we didn’t have the money. But everybody was very cooperative and did what they could to support it. And I always found the support very good down there.

The Diocese of Charlotte Eucharistic Congress (Sept. 10 and 11, 2010) is modeled after the eucharistic congresses that have been held in the Archdiocese of Atlanta since 1995. You instituted the congress there. What was your reason for starting the Eucharistic Congress?

Well, I remember as a kid my mother used to take me to the novena on Monday nights in Washington. I was always impressed with the Benediction at the end of the novena. (As Archbishop) I thought that if we could get the people to make a greater expression of devotion to the Eucharist that we would be able to do a lot more than we were doing. So I decided to give it a shot. And of course, the people, like they always did, supported it and without the support of the people you can’t do anything. The first year we had only about 150 people and each year we have grown, (25,000 attended in 2010). I have visited your Eucharistic Congress on two occasions and I was very impressed with how fast you got it moving.

Tell us a little bit about what you are doing in retirement.

I am living in a parish (All Saints, Dunwoody, Ga.) and I am helping out. The pastor is a very good guy and we get along very well together. And so, I do the best I can and I hope I earn my room and board (laughs).

Do you have any thoughts or observations on the celebration of your 25th anniversary as a bishop?

I still love the priesthood. I’m happy to do what I can for the diocese here and to work with the priests and the bishops.

you can listen to the interview by visiting www.CharlotteDiocese.org, the diocesan website. on the homepage, click on Catholic News & Herald.

Archbishop Donoghue reflections

DONOGHUE, from page 1

http://www.charlottediocese.org/catholicnews.html

The Catholic News & Herald 5 December 11, 2009ADVerTISemeNT

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6 The Catholic News & Herald December 11, 2009ArouND THe DIoCeSe

New senior residence nears completion, accepts applications

Charlotte Catholic WomenThe 40-unit apartment building

for low-income senior c i t izens incorporates “green” building features to make it energy efficient, reduce its environmental impact and enhance its residents’ quality of life.

The one- and two-bedroom apartments are available to those who are at least 55 years old and are capable of independent living.

All seniors who qualify for low-income housing assistance can apply, regardless of religious affiliation.

The building is a project of the diocesan Housing Corporation and the Affordable Housing Group of NC, Inc.

The Affordable Housing Group is a nonprofit organization that develops affordable housing and provides assistance to community-based and faith-based organizations in North Carolina.

The diocesan Housing Corporation is an outreach to create, promote and operate housing facilities that provide necessary services to enrich and empower the lives of seniors, families and individuals with low income and special needs. It is partly funded by contributions to the Diocesan Support Appeal.

MOORESVILLE — The Diocese of Charlotte announced the availability of Curlin Commons, its first affordable senior apartment development in Mooresville Nov. 25.

Curlin Commons is named for Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin of Charlotte, who served as bishop from 1994 until his retirement in 2002.

Bishop Peter J. Jugis, who took part in the January groundbreaking ceremony, said Curlin Commons is “a fitting tribute to a servant of God who continues to spend his life and ministry caring for the needs of others, especially the poor.”

“We are excited and blessed with the anticipated opening,” said Jerry Wildelski, director of the Housing Corporation for the Diocese of Charlotte.

The apartments are anticipated to be ready for occupancy by March, 1, 2010.

“We want interested seniors to contact us soon regarding application information to become an occupant,” said Wildelski. He added that those who are interested will be put in contact with Excel Property Management company, who is sending out application and qualification packets this month.


The Charlotte Catholic Women’s Group gathers for its annual Christmas Coffee and Reflection at St. Vincent de Paul Church in Charlotte Dec. 7. Father Timothy Reid, pastor of St. Ann Church in Charlotte, spoke on “How to Meditate on Mary; Advent A Time of Joyful Expectation.” The Charlotte Catholic Women’s Group meets monthly and is open to all Catholic women in the diocese. Their mission is to foster in women a greater desire to know, love and serve Jesus Christ and his church.

courtesy photos

Curlin Commons is pictured (top) in a professional rendering. Application for rooms in the complex has just opened. The buildings are currently under construction (bottom) and are expected to be ready for occupancy March 1, 2010.

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The Catholic News & Herald 7 December 11, 2009FROM THE COVER

Cardinal, congressman address concern

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Health care reform use their private insurance to pay for an abortion, Stupak said.

The Senate Dec. 9 rejected a bipartisan amendment to its version of health care reform legislation that would have excluded abortion coverage.

In his opinion piece, Cardinal Mahony said it makes no sense to deny more than 10 million undocumented immigrants in this country necessary health care services.

“It certainly does not help Americans as a whole to remain healthy when millions of people, including schoolchildren, cannot get basic preventive care like immunizations and medications,” he added.

The cardinal said the Senate bill bars undocumented immigrants from using even their own money to buy health insurance in the government-sponsored marketplace.

“To deny our immigrant brothers and sisters basic health care coverage is immoral,” he said. “To allow people’s basic health needs to be trumped by divisive politics violates American standards of decency and compassion. We should pass health care reform that provides access to all, in the interests of the common good.”

Regarding the House amendment on abortion, Stupak said the language in it “is completely consistent with the Hyde amendment, which in the 33 years since its passage has done nothing to inhibit private health insurers from offering abortion coverage.”

“There is no reason to believe that a continuation of this policy would suddenly create undue hardship for the insurance industry — or for those who wish to use their private insurance to pay for an abortion,” he said.

He also noted that the amendment is consistent with the opinion of a majority of Americans and cited recent polls that show 61 percent of Americans do not want taxpayer dollars to pay for abortions.

Stupak noted the Senate’s action to table a similar amendment, but hoped “the spirit of our legislation will make it into the final bill.”

He encouraged his fellow lawmakers “to work to pass health care reform legislation that provides access to quality, affordable health care for all Americans.”

NEW YORK (CNS) — A cardinal and a Catholic congressman used op-ed columns in The New York Times to discuss their concerns about health care reform efforts in Congress, namely a lack of coverage for undocumented immigrants and confusion over an amendment to the House bill to bar federal funding of abortion coverage.

In a Dec. 8 op-ed, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony of Los Angeles called health care bills in Congress “fundamentally flawed” for failing to prohibit federal financing for abortions and protect current conscience laws; to include provisions to ensure affordability; and to defend immigrants’ rights to health care.

All of those areas, he said, were critical for reform to be acceptable to the U.S. Catholic Church, but he focused on the need for health care for immigrants, saying health care for them is good for the nation’s well-being.

The next day Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., in an op-ed titled “What My Amendment Won’t Do,” said he wanted “to set the record straight” about an amendment sponsored by him and other House members to ban abortion funding in the House bill. The amendment passed 240-194 Nov. 7 and led to passage of the Affordable Health Care for America Act in a 220-215 vote.

The House amendment “maintains current law, which says that there should be no federal financing for abortion” and will not prevent those who want to

Bishops to renew focus on immigration reform

immigrants for generations” and because it is “present in both the sending countries as well as the receiving countries,” Cube said.

Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City, chairman of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Migration, predicted in a Nov. 17 interview with Catholic News Service that the prospects for Congress to pass immigration legislation will depend a great deal on how health care reform fares in the coming weeks.

If health care reform fails to pass, Bishop Wester told CNS at the U.S. bishops’ fall general assembly in Baltimore, it will mean the political parties are so divided that the chance of passing immigration reform will be greatly diminished.

However, success with health care legislation will bode well for an immigration bill, he said: “That will mean there’s a momentum in the country.”

President Barack Obama has promised repeatedly that immigration reform would be the next big issue on the administration’s domestic agenda.

At a Nov. 13 press conference, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, whose agencies handle most immigration-related law and policies, said the political climate, economy, border security issues and immigrant flows have all changed since the last attempt to pass an immigration bill in 2007, making the goal more attainable now.

“I’ve been dealing hands-on with immigration issues since 1993,” said the former Arizona governor. “So trust me, I know a major shift when I see one, and what I have seen makes reform far more attainable this time around.”

She cited improved border security, with particular attention to stopping smuggled cash and weapons on which drug cartels thrive, as well as fewer illegal entries to the United States, partly because of improved enforcement and partly because of the poor economy.

Napolitano outlined an immigration reform package that echoes the comprehensive approach long advocated by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, other religious and immigrant rights organizations. She also came out strongly in favor of offering a way for the millions of undocumented immigrants to legalize their status.

“We will never have a fully effective law enforcement or national security system as long as so many millions remain in the shadows,” she said.

Bishop Wester said he’s confident that his fellow bishops are ready and willing to work to help pass a comprehensive reform bill.

“The bishops know the stories, they see the people, the human faces,” he said. One of the biggest problems with previous attempts to pass immigration reform, said Bishop Wester, was that the “loud, strident voices” opposed to reform caused many members of Congress to hesitate to support legislation.

“We were outperformed 10-to-1 in terms of media,” said the bishop.

He said the bishops’ coming postcard campaign, as well as plans to use community-based networks such as Facebook and Twitter to remind members of Congress of the level of support for reform, will help offset those opponents.

Other denominations will be organizing their congregations in similar ways, especially in seven states whose members of Congress are considered critical to the immigration reform debate — Ohio, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, Arkansas, Missouri, South Carolina and North Carolina.

REFORM, from page 1

cns photo by bob roller

Marta Veronica Cumez Solovi poses in late April outside the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa, where she was an employee during a federal immigration raid May 12, 2008. The U.S. bishops plan a postcard campaign in 2010 to urge Congress to make comprehensive immigration reform its next priority.

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8 The Catholic News & Herald December 11, 2009FROM THE COVER

New St. Ann Church dedicated

‘One tremendous blessing from God’

DEDICATION, from page 1

For Father Timothy Reid, pastor of St. Ann for the past two and a half years, this day was marked by gratefulness.

“Being a part of this building project has been a great privilege, and I’m so thankful to our Lord for this opportunity. I’m also grateful to the good people of St. Ann’s who have made the necessary sacrifices to make this church a reality. Now we are blessed with a church that truly gives glory to God and elevates the hearts and minds of all who enter it. Every detail of our new church communicates the beautiful truths of our Catholic faith, and I hope that the Catholics of Charlotte will enjoy St. Ann’s for the wonderful gift that it is.”

Bishop Emeritus William G. Curlin, bishop of the Diocese of Charlotte for eight years, was in attendance.

“It certainly is a joyful occasion for Father Reid, who has done such a magnificent job bringing this to completion, and for the people who sacrificed to make this day come true… It’s just a happy time for the whole diocese. When one church is built, the whole diocese celebrates,” said Bishop Curlin.

Charter members of St. Ann Church, Bob and Clara Skurla were among the lay faithful present.

“I have been waiting for this day for 54 years,” said an emotional Bob Skurla, who turned 86 this year. “St. Ann’s Church is not just beautiful, it is breathtaking.”

Contributing to its beauty are the stained glass windows designed by Emil Frei Co. Over 80 years old, they were originally installed in the Holy Rosary Slovak Catholic Church in Ashley, Pa., which closed its doors in 2007.

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“We are present this morning in a place which is one tremendous blessing from God – one more sign of his love – which fills us with joy: a project which began more than 50 years ago, now finally being brought to completion and dedication,” said Bishop Jugis.

The new 12,000-square-foot church was constructed on the site of the former Park Road church, which was originally intended as a community hall basement.

Designed by Washington, D.C. architect James McCrery, it seats 570, has 27-foot ceilings and an architectural style that gives it an old-world feel.

“James did a masterful job of creating a noble and beautiful church, utilizing much of the structure of the existing church,” said Tom Mathis, chairman of the St. Ann Church building committee. “I now more fully appreciate how the architecture actually contributes to the quality of the liturgy,” he added.

From interior paint colors to flooring, every detail is meant to draw those who enter closer to Christ and help them grow in their Catholic faith.

The walls in the sanctuary are painted gold and white to signify purity and innocence. They remind worshippers to strive to be pure of heart. The coffered ceiling is painted blue to represent the sky, a symbol of heavenly love and affection for the Blessed Mother, who is the daughter of St. Ann.

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Photos (top to bottom, left to right): An early photo of St. Ann Church from the diocesan archives; A new photo of the completed St. Ann Church; Bishop Peter J. Jugis holds the architectural plans to the new St. Ann Church as he presents the keys to Father Timothy Reid, pastor. Tom Mathis, St. Ann Church building committee chairman, observes.

diocese of charlotte archives photo by patrick staub


The Catholic News & Herald 9 December 11, 2009FROM THE COVER

‘One tremendous blessing from God’Resurrection feature moments in the lives of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Jesus. St. Ann, St. Joseph, St. Cyril and St. Methodius, the apparition of Jesus to St. Margaret Mary revealing his Sacred Heart, and St. Martha and St. Mary with Jesus are just some of the additional subjects depicted in numerous expertly crafted stained glass windows that adorn the church.

The marble altar is masterful in its design. Constructed of Vermont marble and surrounded by Jerusalem marble flooring, it features a circular mosaic with a field of stars set in blue with a cross, an Alpha and Omega symbol and a Eucharistic host. The five wounds of Christ are also represented.

The baptismal font is made of the same marble as the altar to highlight the connection between the sacrament of Communion and baptism, both sacraments of initiation.

The eight-foot high pulpit has a commanding presence. The pulpit was made in the mid-1700s in England. It is elevated to the left of the altar and is made of dark, carved wood, which complements the arches throughout the sanctuary and the altar rail.

Concelebrating the Mass with Bishop Jugis were Monsignor Anthony Kovacic, Father Conrad Hoover and Father Frank O’Rourke (former pastors of St. Ann Church); Father Roger Arnsparger, pastor of St. Michael Church in Gastonia; Father John Putnam, pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Salisbury; and

Father Christopher Gober, pastor of St. Bernadette Church in Linville and St. Lucien Church in Spruce Pine.

Father Christopher Roux, rector of St. Patrick Cathedral, served as master of ceremonies.

Deacon George Szalony of St. Ann Church assisted. Seminarians from the diocese of Charlotte, members of the Knights of Columbus and altar servers from St. Ann Church participated.

During the Mass of dedication, gifts were brought up by Sister Helen Nagle, former principal of St. Ann School for 17 years, and Sister Judy Monahan, both of the Sisters of St. Joseph who have been serving St. Ann Church for 18 years.

“This is the fulfillment of the promise,” said Sister Helene. “As the Israelites waited for many years, from generation to generation…so did this (church community). One of the first things I heard when I came here 18 years ago was ‘We will have a church someday.’ Today is the day,” she added.

In his closing remarks Bishop Jugis said, “This Mass of dedication also reminds us that we have a mission to bring Christ to the world. At this altar we pray for the world’s salvation. From this place we want Christ’s message to go out to the whole world, so that all may become children of God and enter the kingdom of Heaven. May this church building, which we now dedicate to the perpetual service of God, help to bring us to eternal life.”

photos by sueann howell

Pictured (from top to bottom): The new interior of St. Ann Church in Charlotte. Members of the Knights of Columbus speak with Bishop Peter J. Jugis after the Mass of dedication.

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a roundup of scripture, readings, films and moreCulture Watch

WASHINGTON (CNS) — Whether they attend Catholic, private or public colleges, Catholic students can face challenges to their faith in the new environment of campus life.

But a variety of programs on and off campus are working to remind students of their Catholic roots and helping to make their college experience not only a time of academic growth, but of spiritual growth as well.

More than 100 college students who are parishioners at St. James Church in Setauket, N.Y., receive twice-yearly reminders “that your parish family loves you and is thinking of you,” according to Mary Arasi, who has been running the program for 15 years.

Some 75 students belong to Knights of Columbus Council 11949 at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn., including 20 who joined this year.

“It’s nice to have good relationships with people who have the same beliefs and desires as me,” said Paul Shovelain, a St. Thomas senior who is grand knight of the St. Thomas council.

According to Michael Brewer, college council coordinator for the Knights of Columbus, there are 160 college councils throughout the U.S., with the oldest, at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, scheduled to celebrate its 100th anniversary next year.

For some Catholic campus groups, the main focus is service. Twenty-one students from Catholic Campus Ministry at Adelphi University in Garden City, N.Y., and Hofstra University in Hempstead, N.Y., are headed to Belize during their winter break Jan. 10-18.

While there, they will mentor students at Mount Carmel High School, offering after-school activities and sharing their faith stories, and will build houses with Habitat for Humanity.

“This mission trip is vital because it gives us the opportunity to use our gifts and talents to not simply help those who are suffering, but to also lead them closer to Christ,” said Joe Dujmovic, an Adelphi junior who is going on the trip.

Students from six historically black colleges and universities come together at Lyke House, the Catholic center at the

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — With millions of documents filling almost 53 miles of shelf space, the Vatican Secret Archives obviously still hold some secrets.

Despite the aura of mystery surrounding the archives, the Vatican actually encourages academics to research its holdings and has worked with a Belgian publishing house to bring 105 of the most important, or curious, documents to the public.

The coffee-table book, “The Vatican Secret Archives,” was published by VdH Books in Dutch, English, French and Italian.

Cardinal Raffaele Farina, the Vatican archivist, wrote in the introduction that he knows popular books and movies love to imply there are deep dark secrets intentionally hidden from public view.

But, as Bishop Sergio Pagano, prefect of the archives, explained, the “secret” in the archives’ title comes from the Latin “secretum,” meaning “personal” or “private.”

In fact, Pope Leo XIII ordered the archives opened to researchers in 1881, and currently 60 to 80 scholars work there each day, poring over the parchments, ledgers, letters and texts.

The most fragile ancient documents in the archives have been digitally scanned, and scholars consult them on one of the computers in the archives’

Index Room.But most of their requests result

in the actual document being retrieved from storage in an underground bunker, a loft or one of the many rooms lined with 16thand 17th-century wooden cupboards.

Alfredo Tuzi, director of the reading room, said the most popular topics of current research are the 1936-39 Spanish Civil War and the rise of Nazism in Germany and Fascism in Italy, roughly during the same years.

The archival material those scholars are working with has been available to the researchers only since 2006 when Pope Benedict XVI authorized the opening of all materials related to the papacy of Pope Pius XI, who died in February 1939.

Tuzi said that like any government, the Vatican has a set policy for the gradual opening of documents to public research. While some countries stipulate a number of years — often 50 years after the documents were written — the Vatican Secret Archives open records one entire pontificate at a time. Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have asked the archives’ staff to speed up the organization and cataloguing of the records from the pontificate of Pope Pius XII — who reigned during and after World War II — so that scholars can access them soon.

Atlanta University Center named for the late Atlanta Archbishop James P. Lyke.

Candis Mayweather, who graduated from Spelman College three years ago, said “I found that even though Spelman College prepared me academically, it (could) in no way prepare my faith. Lyke House was a place to grow my faith and leadership.”

cns photo by michael alexander, georgia bulletin

John Phillips, a former student at Morehouse College in Atlanta, is pictured in a Nov. 17 photo. Phillips is one of two students who served at Lyke House during their undergraduate studies and went on to become seminarians.

cns photo courtesy of vatican secret archives and vdh books

Documents from the Vatican’s Secretariat of State are seen in an underground bunker of the Vatican Secret Archives. The room looks like a parking garage and is filled with rows of steel shelves.

Not so secret

On and off campusPrograms help students keep ties to Catholic faith

New book features 105 documents from Vatican archives


cns photo courtesy st. luke productions

Leonardo Defilippis portrays St. John Vianney in a new one-man play about the saint’s life. The drama is touring the nation during the Year for Priests.

Play brings St. John Vianney to life

PORTLAND, Ore. (CNS) — A trained Shakespearean actor who has taken the stage for more than 30 years, Leonardo Defilippis falls to his knees frequently these days as he tours the nation.

It’s all for his portrayal in “Vianney,” in which he plays the French country priest who in the early 19th century instilled an apathetic town with the desire to live the Gospel.

Before the Year for Priests ends in mid-2010, Defilippis will have performed his new play all over the nation. In November, he staged it for the U.S. bishops gathered in Baltimore for their annual fall general assembly and he might do the play at the Vatican for Pope Benedict XVI.

It was the pope who proclaimed the Year for Priests in part because 2009 marks 150 years since St. John Vianney’s death. He also proclaimed St. John Vianney, patron saint of parish priests, as patron of all the world’s priests.

In an interview with the Catholic Sentinel, newspaper of the Portland Archdiocese, Defilippis said he finds himself praying to the saint for aid on the stage.

“You want to do this right because it’s kind of an awesome responsibility,” said the actor, a 57-year-old member of Holy Rosary Parish in Portland.

After years as a Shakespearean actor in the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, San Diego’s Old Globe Theater and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Defilippis embarked on a spiritual journey that led him to found St. Luke Productions in 1980, producing plays, films and television shows on the Scriptures and the lives of the saints.

In 2005, he released a major film on the life of St. Therese of Lisieux. The movie spent 70 weeks in theaters. Now there is talk of a Vianney film.

The saint is known simply as the Cure of Ars, meaning “the parish priest from Ars,” the rural village where he

spent his priestly life.Born in 1786, John Vianney

overcame many obstacles to become a priest. His father objected to his vocation, wanting him to stay and work on the family farm. His parish priest at first considered him too dimwitted for ministry. When he finally got to the seminary, he was expelled after five months because he could not get a handle on Latin.

“He is the dumbest seminarian in church history,” said Defilippis, smiling at the blunt statement, as if to prove once again that God uses humble material for great works.

With personal tu tor ing and perseverance — and because there was a priest shortage — he was ordained in 1815 at age 29. But even then, superiors forbade him from hearing confessions because he seemed so unschooled in church doctrine.

In 1818, the bishop decided to send him to Ars in central France to minister to the parish’s 230 families, who were disinterested in the faith.

The new pastor wore a ragged cassock. Eating only a potato or two a day, he led a life of poverty that earned him the respect of many, including his bishop.

The pastor sold off the rectory’s fine furniture, giving the money to the poor. He opened a free school and an orphanage.

Once the ban was lifted against him hearing confessions, Father Vianney began spending 16 to 18 hours per day in the confessional. Kings, queens and bishops came to Ars to confess to the simple country priest. An estimated 100,000 pilgrims per year visited the town.

St. John Vianney, who was canonized in 1925, “is one of the most incredible saints in the church, but not that well known,” Defilippis said. The actor hopes to change that and perhaps help open some people to a vocation along the way.

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courtesy photo

Coach Mike Krzyzewski of Duke University poses with the Melos family of Our Lady of Grace School recently in Durham. Rebecca Melos (center), a seventh-grade student, was among a handful of young artists who had their work selected to be printed as cards by the Duke University Hospital. The cards are sold as fundraisers for the hospital programs. When she returned to school, Rebecca presented a framed copy of her artwork to Gary Gelo, principal. The card is proudly displayed in the school office.

Student artwork selected by Duke Children’s Hospital

photo by heather bellemore

More than 70 first-graders from St. Mark School in Huntersville smile proudly behind the gift they purchased Dec. 9. The gift, a pink bicycle, was purchased for an 11-year-old girl from an Angel Tree request, an annual Advent project at the St. Mark Church, which collects Christmas gifts for needy families. The first-graders were asked to go home and do chores over Thanksgiving to raise money for the gift. Many cleaned their rooms, folded laundry and washed dishes, and one first-grader surprised his parents by untangling Christmas lights. They raised over $225. Donations continue to come in from the first-grade classes, who have raised enough to purchase a second gift.

Small gifts add up

courtesy photo

Fourth-graders at Our Lady of Mercy School in Winston-Salem look at some of the 200 Christmas gifts they collected at the school. Students donated money and gifts to the Helping Hands of Mercy community outreach program. The gifts were given to SCAN (Stop Child Abuse Now) for distribution. Students were asked to do extra chores to earn the money to buy the gifts or to donate one of their own gifts.

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photo by david hains

Kathryn Mobley shares a laugh with Bishop Jugis after receiving a Gabriel Award from The Catholic Academy for Communication Arts Professionals Dec. 7. Mobely, who is the news director of radio station WFDD in Winston-Salem, received the award for her 30-minute documentary titled, “The Letters.” The documentary describes how a descendent of a Holocaust survivor and the daughter of a Nazi soldier became friends. The Gabriel Awards annually recognize the best in broadcasting and films that uplift the human spirit.

courtesy photo

Parishioners of Holy Cross Church in Kernersville wave after serving their annual Christmas dinner for elderly members Dec 6. The meal was a huge success from salad to dessert and none of the 75 people who attended left hungry. The behind-the-scenes cooks and servers are pictured from left to right; Lori McCann, Chef Mike McCann, Carol F. Privette, David Privette, Norma Jean Clausen, Verna Kellum and Stew Kellum.

Bishop presents Gabriel Award

courtesy photo

Marina Huizar holds a relay-run torch aloft at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Charlotte Nov. 26. Huizar and 35 other parishioners took part in the International Run Carrera Antorcha Guadalupana Mexico-New York. The relay run from Mexico City to New York brings together two nations and thousands of families divided by the border. Departing from the most sacred place in Mexico, the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the torch is passing through every state where families of immigrants reside. The torch run began Oct. 3 and ends in New York City Dec. 12, the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe.

Ready to run

Dinner is served

courtesy photo

Youth group members from St. Dorothy Church in Lincolnton prepare to parade their float in a live depiction of the Nativity. The float won first prize in the Lincolnton Christmas parade held Nov. 29. Youth group members and parish volunteers built the float and played the parts of Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, wise men and an angel. Other youth group members donned Santa caps and walked alongside the float.

Young faithful win parade


Perspectives a collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

‘Live-giving love in an age of technology’

Guest Column

e. cHrIStIAN BruGGer, PH.D.

GueSt columNISt

children’s coming to be is as a product. The child becomes the end product of others interested in ‘having’ a baby (and, typically, by a procedure performed by persons other than the parents).

With use of these technologies, it is true to say that the child is “made,” not “begotten.” The Bishops write: “Children themselves may come to be seen as products of our technology, even as consumer goods that parents have paid for and have a ‘right’ to expect — not as fellow persons, equal in dignity to their parents and destined to eternal happiness with God.”

Products are not unto themselves, but unto ends (purposes) beyond them. As such, they can be made for those purposes, and unmade (destroyed) for contrary purposes. The logic of making intrinsically justifies unmaking.

What was the purpose for the baby’s making? To satisfy the parents’ desire for a baby — they “wanted a child.” If however the parents do not want a child — if the child is unwanted—he or she can be unmade.

The logic of making babies as products extends quite naturally to multiple forms of destroying new human life, forms which are routine in the assisted fertility industry: eugenic screening of IVF embryos, “selective reduction” abortions, eugenic abortions, and parents earmarking their “spare” embryonic children for embryo-destructive research.

The bishops end their preliminary analysis by teaching that when spouses procreate, they cooperate with God in bringing into existence a new human being. This extraordinary gift of sharing in God’s creative act requires resolute determination on the part of spouses to treat human life in its origins as God desires, as the bishops say, “in a uniquely personal way.” And although the desire to bring children into the world “is positive and natural,” not all means of doing so “respect this great gift.”

This article was reprinted with permission from the Culture of Life Foundation, where Brugger is a Senior Fellow in Ethics.

“I want to have children with you.” These are the opening words of the U.S. bishops’ new document on reproductive technology, Life-Giving Love in an Age of Technology, issued on Nov. 17.

The document i s addressed specifically to married couples suffering from infertility and considering their options. The text acknowledges the temptation they can experience to cut a ‘faustian bargain’ in order to secure the object of their desperate desires. And it encourages them to hope in God even in the face of human disappointment.

It attempts to balance a sincere empathy for their bitter experience of loss with clear guidance on ethically legitimate alternatives: “Some solutions offer real hope for restoring a couple’s natural, healthy ability to have children. Others pose serious moral problems by failing to respect the dignity of the couple’s marital relationship, of their sexuality, or of the child.”

At the foundation of the document is the moral conclusion that marriage is the justifying basis for genital sexual expression and procreation.

It follows that the meaning of marital intercourse derives from the meaning of marriage.

A child is a human person possessing personal dignity and value. Bringing children into the world through marital love is treating them in a way befitting of persons.

William E. May writes in his wonderful book, Catholic Bioethics and the Gift of Human Life (2008): “The marital act is not an act of making or producing… . It is something that [spouses] ‘do.’ In it they do not ‘make’ love or ‘make’ babies. They give love to one another by giving themselves bodily to one another and [in so doing] they open themselves to the gift of human life. ...Thus, when human life comes to be in and through the marital act we can rightly say that the spouses are procreating or begetting. Their child is ‘begotten, not made’” (p. 73).

Formulating this normative truth in terms of the rights of children, the bishops teach: “children have a right to be conceived by the act that expresses and embodies their parents’ self-giving love.”

This is fundamentally different, morally speaking, from bringing a child into the world by a technique in the laboratory. In “making something” one manipulates materials in the external world; one is dealing with a product.

Even though parents who generate children in the laboratory may love their children and resolve to care for them as best they can, the objective manner of the

WRITe a LeTTeR TO THe eDITORThe Catholic News & Herald welcomes letters from readers. We ask that letters be originals of 250 words or fewer, pertain to recent newspaper content or Catholic issues, and be in good taste.To be considered for publication, each letter must include the name, address and daytime phone number of the writer for purpose of verification. Letters may be condensed due to space limitations and edited for clarity, style and factual accuracy.The Catholic News & Herald does not publish poetry, form letter or petitions. items submitted to The Catholic News & Herald become the property of the newspaper and are subject to reuse, in whole or in part, in print, electronic formats and archives.send letters to letters to the editor, The Catholic News & Herald, P.o. box 37267, Charlotte, N.C. 28237, or e-mail [email protected].

The U.S. bishops on assisted reproduction

WORD TO LIFESUNDAY SCRIPTURE READINGS: DEC. 20, 2009

Fourth Sunday of AdventCycle C Readings:

1) Micah 5:1-4a Psalm 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-192) Hebrews 10:5-103) Gospel: Luke 1:39-45

Waiting in hopeMore than wishful thinking

Jeff HeNSleYcNS columNISt

The time grows short until we celebrate the coming of our Lord Jesus as an infant. Our waiting in hope is soon to be fulfilled.

Many years ago during the season leading to Christmas — a time when, most of us would agree, Christmas is over commercialized with too much tinsel and artificial snow, too many lights and too little connection to the underlying reason for the season — my wife stood along the upper rail of a mall overcrowded with Christmas shoppers. A wistful look came over her face, and a smile, and she said, “This is the one time of the year when you know that everyone here is thinking about what they can buy for someone else.” Of course, she was right.

Hope is more than a feeling, more

than a bit of wishful thinking. It has substance.

Some Scripture scholars have described more than 300 Old Testament passages that point to the birth of Jesus.

Many of them could not have been interpreted until after their fulfillment. But after the fact, they obviously direct our attention to how Jesus was to come into the world. At least three of them are found in the readings for today.

The Micah reading may be the most stunning of these, speaking as it does of one whose “origin is from of old” coming forth from Bethlehem, one who would “stand firm and shepherd his flock by the strength of the Lord,” whose “greatness shall reach to the ends of the earth,” who “shall be peace.”

Then the psalmist tells the Lord in his hymn of praise and supplication: “Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved. May your help be with the man of your right hand, with the son of man whom you yourself made strong.”

And in the Gospel of Luke, Elizabeth, Mary’s cousin, pregnant with John the Baptist, feels him leap in her womb as Mary approaches carrying the yet to be born Jesus. She says, “Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.” Mary becomes, even then, before Jesus’ birth, our example in faith, the first to believe in the Son of Man.

Question:How can you nurture the virtue of

hope in your life and the lives of those around you?

Scripture to be illustrated:“Blessed are you among women, and

blessed is the fruit of your womb” (Luke 1:42bc).

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE

sCRIPTuRe FOR THe Week OF DeCeMbeR 13-19sunday (Third sunday of advent), Zephaniah 3:14-18, Philippians 4:4-7, luke 3:10-18; Mon-day (st. John of the Cross), Numbers 24:2-7, 15-17, Matthew 21:23-27; Tuesday, Zephaniah 3:1-2, 9-13, Matthew 21:28-32; Wednesday, isaiah 45:6-8, 18, 21-25, luke 7:18-23; Thursday, Genesis 49:2, 8-10, Matthew 1:1-17; Friday, Jeremiah 23:5-8, Matthew 1:18-25; saturday, Judges 13:2-7, 24-25, luke 1:5-25.

sCRIPTuRe FOR THe Week OF DeCeMbeR 20-26sunday (Fourth sunday of advent), Micah 5:1-4, Hebrews 10:5-10, luke 1:39-45; Monday (st. Peter Canisius), song of songs 2:8-14, luke 1:39-45; Tuesday, 1 samuel 1:24-28, luke 1:46-56; Wednesday (st. John of kanty), Malachi 3:1-4, 23-24, luke 1:57-66; Thursday, 2 samuel 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16, luke 1:67-79; Friday (The Nativity of the Lord), isaiah 62:11-12, Titus 3:4-7, luke 2:15-20; saturday (st. stephen),.


Christ’s real presence

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Eucharist is not a symbolic representation of the Lord because Christ is wholly and entirely present under the species of bread and wine, said Pope Benedict XVI.

“Even today, there is the danger of reducing the reality of the Eucharist — considering it almost as just a rite of communion or socialization, and we too often easily forget that the resurrected Christ is really present,” he said during his general audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI hall Dec. 9.

The pope continued a series of talks on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages by highlighting the work of Rupert of Deutz, a 12th-century Benedictine theologian and abbot.

The pope said Rupert made a critical contribution to the debate going on at the time regarding the problem of how to explain the existence of evil in the world when God is fundamentally good and omnipotent.

Rupert insisted “that the origin of evil is to be found in humanity’s mistaken use of freedom, not in the positive will of God,” the pope said.

Here is the text of the pope’s audience remarks in English.

In our catechesis on the Christian culture of the Middle Ages, we now turn to Rupert of Deutz, an outstanding theologian of the twelfth century.

Rupert experienced at first hand the conflict between the Empire and the Church linked to the investiture crisis, and he played a significant role in the principal theological debates of his day.

He forcefully defended the reality of Christ’s real presence in the Eucharist, and insisted that the origin of evil is to be found in man’s mistaken use of freedom, not in the positive will of God.

Rupert also contributed to the medieval discussion of the purpose of the Incarnation, which he set within a vast vision of history centered on Christ.

His teaching on the dignity and privileges of the Virgin Mary, presented within a broad ecclesiological context, would prove influential for later theology and find an echo in the doctrine of the Second Vatican Council.

Rupert’s ability to harmonize the rational study of the mysteries of faith with prayer and contemplation makes him a typical representative of the monastic theology of his time.

His example inspires us to draw near to Christ, present among us in his Word and in the Eucharist, and to rejoice in the knowledge that he remains with us at every moment of our lives and throughout history.

The Pope Speaks

PoPe BeNeDIct XVI

Legislating against charitysex marriage in employment, adoption and foster care polices, Washington Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl said in an op-ed piece published in The Washington Post.

“The new requirements by the city for religious organizations to recognize same-sex marriages in their policies could restrict our ability to provide the same level of services as we do now,” Archbishop Wuerl wrote.

“Since Catholic Charities cannot comply with city mandates to recognize and promote same-sex marriages, the city would withhold contracts and licenses,” the archbishop said.

Catholic Charities is the largest nongovernmental provider of social services in Washington.

M i s s t a t e m e n t s a b o u t t h e archdiocese’s position — intentional and otherwise — began with headlines such as “D.C. Archdiocese Threatens to Axe Social Service Programs Over Same-Sex ‘Marriage’ Law.”

“The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington is threatening to stop providing social services, including management of city homeless shelters, unless lawmakers change a proposal to legalize same-sex marriages,” began another article.

If services are reduced, it is because of the city’s requirements. The archdiocese is perfectly willing to continue all services at the existing level, but it cannot do so when it is required to abandon its basic principles.

It has been an interesting time around the Washington area these last few weeks.

The District of Columbia City Council passed a law restricting the ability of Catholic Charities to continue its same level of social services to the city’s poor and homeless.

The Baltimore City Council passed a bill subjecting crisis pregnancy centers to a $150-a-day fine for not posting signs stating what services they do not offer.

Suburban Montgomery County Council is considering legislation to impose a $750-a-day fine (it is, after all, one of the richest areas in the U.S.) on pro-life pregnancy centers for not stating they do not provide medical advice or establish a doctor-patient relationship.

So far there’s no indication that Home Depot stores will be required to post signs that they do not perform brain surgery or that Pizza Hut franchises will be mandated to advise patrons they do not offer home loans.

Mandating that organizations must say what they do not do is ludicrous (if not unconstitutional).

The situation within the District of Columbia casts a far darker shadow over the freedom of religion.

The district council made it clear for some time that it would pass the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality Amendment Act of 2009 to legalize same-sex marriage there. Religious organizations would be required to recognize and promote same-

A pattern seems to be developing. Pro-life pregnancy centers are threatened by needless and harassing fines with no other apparent purpose than to disrupt their life-saving work. City council members would rather deny the needy vital social services than to work for a compromise that could balance religious principles and anti-discrimination legislation.

Meanwhile, the American Humanist Association held a news conference to introduce plans to place 270 ads on Washington-area trains and buses with the tag line “No God? No Problem” under a photo of four wholesome young people bedecked in Santa hats.

“We’re not trying to put down people’s religious faith,” said Roy Speckhardt, the association’s executive director. “We just don’t see the evidence.”

The evidence is there, seen in the 68,000 people served annually by Washington’s Catholic Charities and in the thousands counseled and assisted by crisis pregnancy centers.

Kent is the retired editor of archdiocesan newspapers in Omaha and Seattle. Email him at [email protected].

Consider This

StePHeN KeNtcNS columNISt

Guest ColumnBISHoP JoHN

WeSterGueSt columNISt

The truth about immigrants and health care

falls upon American taxpayers, either through higher insurance rates or tax money paid directly to providers. Permitting the undocumented to use their own money to purchase coverage would help alleviate some of this fiscal and financial burden on Americans. It also would help Americans afford their own coverage.

A study by the Kaiser Foundation concluded that immigrants are younger and healthier than average Americans and are less likely to access health care and drive up costs, keeping prices lower for everyone.

The reality is that undocumented immigrants want to pay their way, as they do with taxes, Social Security payments, and health care contributions. Why not let them? A recent study found that 84 percent of undocumented Mexican immigrants in California offered employer-based coverage accepted it and paid for a portion of the costs.

Even for legal immigrants, Congress has yet to write the right prescription. Both the Senate and House bills fail to lift the ban, imposed in the welfare reform legislation of 1996, which prevents working but poor legal immigrants from enrolling in Medicaid for five years. Legal immigrants, who are on a path to become U.S. citizens, should be eligible for programs for which they pay taxes.

Representative Joe Wilson’s now infamous “you lie” shout out to President Obama during his health care speech to Congress was featured in the press as an unprecedented breach of protocol.

Much less has been reported about the subject of the rant: keeping undocumented persons from accessing health care.

With the passage of health care legislation, a majority of the House of Representatives shouted back. The House bill permits undocumented persons to use their own money to purchase coverage in the new health care exchange. This is contrary to the stated positions of not only Representative Wilson, but also the U.S. Senate and the Obama Administration. A closer examination of the merits of the House position should convince them that, in this case, sound public policy should trump divisive politics.

With 12 million undocumented persons in the country, someone is going to need a doctor. While close to 4 million already have health care through employer-based plans, millions of others are dependent upon community clinics, emergency rooms, and the generosity of medical personnel who believe health care is a human right, not a privilege.

Although uninsured immigrants use emergency rooms much less than U.S. citizens, the cost of their care ultimately

Including immigrants in health care reform would help make health care affordable to all and make us a healthier nation. It also would make coverage accessible to the most vulnerable among us. Is that not the point of health care reform?

In the end, the debate over immigrants and health care is really a debate about another affliction ailing our nation: the broken U.S. immigration system. In truth, without a legalization program and other reforms, our elected officials will continue to be faced with policy choices that treat U.S. citizens and immigrants differently but weaken the nation as a whole. President Obama and Congress would be wise to include immigrants in health care reform and then enact immigration reform legislation, so that we are finally rid of the vitriolic immigration debates which have sullied our public discourse and confused our public policy decisions.

The writer is the Catholic bishop of Salt Lake City, Utah, and chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration.

The Catholic News & Herald 16 ADVerTISemeNT

December 11, 2009

Celebrating 3 Year National Accreditation

Excellence in Service since 1956.

Meeting International Standards of Quality

Founded in 1956 by the Sisters of Mercy, Holy Angels is the ONLY Catholic residential facility in North Carolina serving children and adults with mental retardation and multiple disabilities,

many of whom are medically fragile.

Holy Angels – 6600 Wilkinson Blvd. – Belmont, NC 28012 For more info - call 704-825-4161 or visit our web site - www.holyangelsnc.org—Email address:

[email protected]

Holy Angels lives its mission & touches the hearts of those most in need.

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Enclosed is my check for (a minimum donation of $25 per honor/memorial gift requested): $25 $50 $75 $100 $250 Other $ Make checks payable to Holy Angels Foundation Use your: Visa MasterCard American Express

Account Number: __________________ Exp. Date: ____ Signature: I am interested in learning more about Holy Angels Special Events Volunteer Opportunities

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Open Monday-Saturday, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Open every Friday evening until Christmas

Dec. 11, 2009

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Transcript of Dec. 11, 2009