All Souls Day, a national day of mourning

By Tere Turner
In an attempt to keep our two children, Erik and Alec, aware of my Mexican cultural heritage, this year my husband and I decided to erect a Day of the Dead altar and a cemetery to show them what a traditional Mexican Day of the Dead celebration is all about. We wanted them to know that a cemetery is not just a place where people are buried but it’s a place where we can visit and spend time with them in special occasions such as All Souls Day, observed every year on Nov. 2.
We took them shopping to buy the figures and some of the food to adorn the altar and the cemetery. We cut flowers from our yard and let them dry and dyed sand to be the cemetery’s grounds. They also made food and fruits with play clay.

In Latin America, people include photographs of their beloved dead, intricate paper cutouts, flowers and favorite foods in their altars for the Day of the dead. (Photos courtesy of Tere Turner.

In Latin America, people include photographs of their beloved dead, intricate paper cutouts, flowers and favorite foods in their altars for the Day of the dead. (Photos courtesy of Tere Turner.

We want Erik and Alec to learn to honor their deceased family members they way we do it in my home country. But, there is much more to the Day of the Dead than simply candy sugar skulls and images of “La Catrina,” the famous female skeleton dressed in a fancy hat.  November 1, All Saints Day, and November 2, All Souls Day, are celebrated throughout Mexico with many fascinating customs, including colorfully decorated graves and commemorative altars with offerings laid out for the deceased.
According to tradition, the spirits of the dead are expected to pay a holiday visit home on the Day of the Dead and offerings of their favorite food and drinks are laid out to provide them with sustenance for their journey.
Many people set up these altars in their homes as the Day of the Dead approaches. These altars often consist of a table or overturned crates or boxes covered with clean linens and then elaborately decorated. These decorations include toy skeletons, intricate tissue paper cut-outs, candles, incense, flowers (particularly marigolds), photographs of deceased relatives, candy skulls inscribed with the name of the deceased, and a selection of his or her favorite foods and beverages, as well as baked goods, including sugary sweet rolls called “pan de muerto.”  These goods are called the “ofrenda de muertos” (offering to the dead).
In addition to the altars, many family burial plots in local cemeteries are also decorated. Relatives clean up around the grave sites, cut down any weeds, and give the tombs a fresh coat of paint if required. The graves are then decorated according to local customs and traditions which may include crosses formed from marigold petals “flores de Cempazuchitl” or embellished with colorful wreaths and flowers.

A Day of the Dead cemetery can honor many family members who have died. This model shows how families in Mexico go to the graves of their family members on the Day of the Dead to decorate them and celebrate their lives. Marigold flowers are commonly used in decorations.

A Day of the Dead cemetery can honor many family members who have died. This model shows how families in Mexico go to the graves of their family members on the Day of the Dead to decorate them and celebrate their lives. Marigold flowers are commonly used in decorations.

Day of the Dead celebrations, with its blending of pre-Hispanic and Roman Catholic rituals, illustrate a perfect example of religious syncretism and the blending of cultures that has come to define Mexico and its people.
(EDITOR’S NOTE: In Latin American countries, on Nov. 2, people go to the cemeteries to spend time with their loved ones and to adorn their tombs with flowers. They also honor them with Masses and rosaries. It’s more like a festive day to remember them.)

Habitat, Catholic neighbors continue Greenview transformation

Volunteers Polly Hammett of St. Francis of Assisi and Msgr. Elvin Sunds of St. Therese help position the trusses for the 2016 Catholic Build House on Greenview Drive in Jackson. (Photos by Peggy Hampton)

Volunteers Polly Hammett of St. Francis of Assisi and Msgr. Elvin Sunds of St. Therese help position the trusses for the 2016 Catholic Build House on Greenview Drive in Jackson. (Photos by Peggy Hampton)

By Peggy Hampton
JACKSON – As he prepared for Saturday evening Mass, Msgr. Elvin Sunds gazed through the trees near St. Therese Catholic Church and his eyes fixed on a rooftop. He realized it was the same roof of a Habitat for Humanity house on Greenview Drive, on which he was working that day with parishioners from St. Therese, St. Richard and Madison St. Francis of Assisi Parishes.
“The family who will call this house home will be our next door neighbors,” he said. “I look forward to welcoming them.”
The Greenview home is part of a neighborhood in South Jackson being revitalized by Habitat for Humanity. The street filled with blighted, decaying and abandoned homes is being transformed into a beautiful, safe neighborhood where working families live, grow and thrive.
This is due, in great part, to the hard work and commitment of their “neighbors” at St. Therese and the many volunteers from area Catholic churches, who have given their time and resources to improve housing.
Every fall parishes in the Jackson area pool resources and volunteers to build a Habitat house for a family. This is the 31st year for Catholic churches to partner with Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area and a local family in need of a decent, safe, affordable place to live. Partner churches this year are Flowood St. Paul, Madison St. Francis of Assisi, Clinton Holy Savior, Gluckstadt St. Joseph Parish and Jackson St. Therese, St. Richard, Christ the King and St. Peter the Apostle Parishes along with St. Dominic’s Health Services and the Catholic Diocese of Jackson,
The Catholic community has played a significant role in the transformation by partnering with Habitat on the first two houses built on the street – the Pope Francis House and the 2015 Catholic Build home – and now the 2016 Catholic Build Home. Habitat has acquired 27 properties on Greenview Drive, demolished 17 derelict houses and by the end of 2016 will have built 12 new Habitat homes on the street. More Habitat builds are planned for 2017.
Msgr. Sunds worked with volunteers recently on the 2016 Catholic Build house on Greenview, which is just west of St. Therese Church. “It is wonderful to see Habitat building so many homes on Greenview Drive,” Msgr. Sunds said. “They are not just building homes. They are building a neighborhood. On behalf of St. Therese Parish, thank you!”
The new neighbors of the 2016 Catholic Build Home are Ariel and Chris Jones and their three children ages seven, eight and nine. The Joneses have worked on the Habitat homes, investing “sweat equity” and will purchase the home with a no-interest loan. Ariel thanked all the volunteers and Habitat, which also assisted them in learning more about budgeting and home-ownership.

Homeowners Ariel and Chris Jones have worked on other Habitat houses to earn ‘sweat equity.’

Homeowners Ariel and Chris Jones have worked on other Habitat houses to earn ‘sweat equity.’

“I am so grateful for the energy, the love and the care that the Catholic Build volunteers and sponsors have shown our family,” said Ariel, who is a medical assistant at a local clinic. “My family is so grateful for the love they are putting in building our home. They are the most loving people I have ever met. This is a great build!”
Chris, a house painter, said the new home is a blessing. “From the bottom of my heart, we appreciate it and thank you!” The Catholic Build volunteers have been dedicated in their efforts throughout the years and are motivated by service and love of others.
“Why am I here? I enjoy the community coming together to do something that will make our community a better place to live and worship,” said Ben Mokry of St. Therese. One Catholic Build volunteer family worked on several Greenview homes.
“I think everyone deserves decent housing, volunteering on a Habitat house is one small way that I can help,” said Ibby Joseph of St. Francis. “My husband likes to volunteer and he encouraged me to volunteer as well. I have worked not only on the Catholic Build houses but also the Habitat house the Episcopal community built on Greenview Drive.”
Mike McElroy of St. Francis said he volunteers “because it is fun!” “That’s why God made it fun,” responded Polly Hammett of St. Francis.
Kerryn DeVerteuil of St. Therese agrees. “It’s good to meet and work with parishioners from different churches and develop a special relationship with them,” he said. “It’s uplifting as well to work with the homeowners and see their joy and happiness in getting their first home.”
Msgr. Sunds said building homes to help others is “living out Jesus’ command to love one another and show love through our actions.”
“It is wonderful to be building a neighborhood next to our church and have people who will be living here as our neighbors,” he said. “It is great to see the community coming together to provide housing for someone who otherwise not be able to afford a home.”
(Peggy Hampton is the Public Relations, Marketing and Fundraising Coordinator
for Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area.)

Habitat volunteer Ben Mokry of St. Therese Parish works on the roof.

Habitat volunteer Ben Mokry of St. Therese Parish works on the roof.

David Joseph of St. Francis of Assisi adds insulation.

David Joseph of St. Francis of Assisi adds insulation.

Celebration includes memories of strength, resilience

By Mary Margaret Halford
VICKSBURG— For Angela Canizaro, St. Paul Catholic Church is so much more than a building, it’s a tradition.
On October 16, the downtown Vicksburg church celebrated its 175th anniversary since that tradition of faith began, and Canizaro has been around for 83 of those 175 years.
“I’ve been here all my life,” Canizaro said at a reception following a celebratory service. “I am amazed at how we’ve changed over the years.”
Canizaro and the parishioners of St. Paul experienced the liturgical changes that came as a result of Vatican II.
“I remember the classes we had that showed us how and why things changed after Vatican II,” Canizaro said. “The laity was so much more involved after that, and we adjusted.”

Rosemary Canizaro, longtime parishioner, chats with Bishop Emeritus Joseph Latino after the Mass.

Rosemary Canizaro, longtime parishioner, chats with Bishop Emeritus Joseph Latino after the Mass.

And the church, which is nestled just atop a hill on the banks of the Mississippi River, weathered quite a physical change when a tornado ripped through downtown on a Saturday afternoon in December 1953, destroying nearly everything in its path.
“After it (the tornado) was all over, a man came running down the street yelling that Washington Street was no more, it was gone,” Canizaro said. “The next day was Sunday, and it was time for Mass, so we all went to the (St. Francis Xavier) auditorium, and the nuns took us in. We just carried on.”
During Bishop Joseph Kopacz’s homily at the 175th anniversary Mass, he noted the difference between a church building and the actual faith of the people.
“The image we’re given in the Gospel is when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith?” Kopacz challenged the assembly. “Churches, sure—but, faith? I think yes. When that tornado hit, people rallied. Their faith was such a power, and you’re being here today is a sign that if the Lord did come back today, He’d find faith.”
The Rev. Tom Lalor, who is the current pastor of St. Paul, agreed that the faith of his parish has remained steadfast through the years.
“I see that sense of fidelity of the people through the centuries,” Lalor said. “Hundreds of people came as immigrants from a very hard life. They came here with the lived faith of their ancestors, and it is being lived out here today, that very same faith.”
Lalor also appreciates the changes that have been made over the years, and the way the church has evolved without losing its true purpose.
“When those people started this 175 years ago, they had no idea there was going to be a Vatican II, they had no idea we’d be saying Mass in English,” Lalor said. “I think our celebration was a magnificent moment of prayer, it was a celebration of the people of God celebrating this faith from 175 years ago being lived out today.”
After the Mass, parishioners made their way to Farrell Hall, where artifacts, scrapbooks, photos, and other items were on display.
“Just to see that history, it was like going into a museum,” Lalor said. “It gives you that sense of precious heritage that has been passed on and is being lived here right now.”
And for church members like Canizaro, it was a walk down memory lane coupled with a taste of what’s to come.
“My father came over from Italy when he was 16 years of age, and I watch my niece sing as a cantor today,” Canizaro said. “They’re carrying on the tradition, and that’s what this is all about.”
“I do miss so much of the old, and you can change the physical church, but as long as we have the Eucharist, that’s all that matters,” Canizaro said. “We’ve changed some things along the way, but that has never changed, and if it wasn’t for my faith in that, I don’t know what I’d do.”

Ashely Roesch and her children, Madelyn and Brayden look at photos. (Photos by Mary Margaret Halford.

Ashely Roesch and her children, Madelyn and Brayden look at photos. (Photos by Mary Margaret Halford.

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Conference expands idea of stewardship through lens of vocation

By Christopher Luke
NEW ORLEANS – October second through 5th, diocesean and parish representatives from across the world came to New Orleans to participate in the International Catholic Stewardship Conference (ICSC). The Catholic Diocese of Jackson was represented by Bishop Joseph Kopacz, Rebecca Harris, director of Stewardship and Development for the diocese, Father Lincoln Dall, pastor of Tupelo St. James, and  Dale Persons, a member of Greenwood Immaculate Heart of Mary and others. With 80 sessions and several keynote speakers, Dale Persons said the conference had a “tremendous amount of information to absorb: “like drinking out of a firehose.”
ICSC gives attendees the opportunity to learn more about innovative ways to implement stewardship in their parishes. Stewardship is most commonly known by the catchphrase of ‘time, talent, and treasure,’ but it is much more than that.
“Many people do not really understand stewardship,” said Persons. The road toward living a life of stewardship is paved through evangelization and intentional discipleship. Father Dall explained how speaker Catherine Doherty, a Russian baroness who founded the Madonna house, spoke greatly of the stewardship mission. “Stewardship pertains to everything, and I am responsible for my part of that everything,” she said.
“I love her quote’s sense of responsibility for our own little slice of God’s universe in the imperfect reality of our human lives. Our life of discipleship is to permeate our lives. Stewardship is to permeate our lives as well,” said Father Dall.
Stewardship is not a program the church implements to raise money; it is a call to build a true individual relationship with Jesus Christ.
We are called to the challenge of becoming mature disciples when we answer the call of Jesus Christ. It is a choice to live a way of life in stewardship, not a series of actions completed over a time period. Bishop Kopacz said he appreciated the diverse presentations. “The conference explained stewardship in a lot of ways. Giving our life to the Lord means caring for his body the church. Dedicating ourselves in whatever way our time and resources allow us to. The church is the body of Christ, and caring for the church is all throughout scripture. Caring for family and community in a unique way leads us to better lives as Stewards of Christ,” said the bishop.
This conference explained stewardship and the keys to a successful stewardship program. Stewardship is being mindful, prayerful, grateful, gracious, committed and accountable. Being mindful of our present reality, making the most of our moments because they will never come again. Having an open prayerful relationship with the Lord. Being grateful for every moment in a day and giving every moment and action to the Lord; being gracious and bringing Jesus to everyone that needs Him; being committed to the calling of stewardship and how great of a blessing it is; being accountable and holding each other accountable.
Father Lincoln explained that the call to evangelize in parishes comes from the top of the leadership chain. “Pope Francis and Pope Benedict XVI have challenged us to a new evangelization where our own community and our own parish are the mission field, where we grow in our relationship with Christ, and out of that relationship, we are able to evangelize others. I see this as the foundation and context in which we practice stewardship,” he said
“I highly recommend that more people from our diocese go to ICSC. In addition to learning new ideas for stewardship, attending ICSC has made me prouder than ever to be a Catholic and more committed to being a better, more involved Catholic,” said Persons. “I saw firsthand the fact that devout Catholics at this conference are fun, fun-loving, have a great sense of humor, smile, laugh, genuinely happy, and are wonderful people with whom to spend time,” he added.
“I really enjoyed the ICSC in New Orleans this year.  I am very grateful that the diocese gave this opportunity to attend. I want to encourage other pastors and members of the stewardship committee in parishes to attend in the future,” said Father Dall. “This conference helped me reflect upon the different facets of stewardship as I try to bring a sense of stewardship to my parishioners here in Tupelo,” he added.
Next year, the 55th Annual ICSC Conference will be in Atlanta, Georgia, from September 17-20. ICSC is offering a Super Early Bird Discount. For more information about the conference or to find out what the Office of Stewardship and Development can do for individual parishes, contact Christopher Luke at cluke@jacksondiocese.org or (601)-960-8481.
(Christopher Luke is the Coordinator for Stewardship for the Diocese of Jackson.)

Domestic Violence month offers opportunities for mercy

By Maureen Smith
JACKSON — The color for Domestic Violence Awareness Month is purple “to represent the bruises,” explained Betsy Smith. She is a social worker for the Catholic Charities Domestic Violence Shelter’s transitional housing, but she is also a survivor of abuse herself.
“It only took me once to leave, for some women, it takes seven or eight tries,” she said. Smith was living in California with her husband and children when the abuse began to take its toll. “I can remember my children would play outside all the time because they didn’t want to be inside with all that tension,” she said. Then her daughter began showing destructive signs of anxiety. “She started twisting her hair so much it was falling out. When I saw the impact of the situation on her, I knew it was time to leave.”
Smith carefully planned her escape, shipping her belongings and documents home to her family in Mississippi so when the time came she could just walk out with her kids. “My family was supportive,” Smith explained. “They supported me coming home. Many women don’t have that.”
Smith started working at Catholic Charities in 1990. By 1995 she had landed in the domestic violence program and has been there ever since. “I have a passion for this.”
She uses her experience to show the women who come to the shelter that they can make a new life for themselves. “I tell them, ‘don’t be a victim, be a survivor.’ You can be whatever you want. I don’t like excuses. You are going to have to get on with your life,” she said. Smith said many of the women who come have trust issues already so convincing them to seek therapy, to listen and to follow a program can be difficult. “Therapy is a hard sell,” she said.
“When they say to me, ‘you don’t understand,’ I can say, I do understand because it did happen to me,” she continued. When a woman comes to the shelter, the staff works with her to transform her life, but the women have to make the decisions, come up with the plan and act on it. “I tell them, ‘I don’t want to do anything for you. I want to know what you want to do.’”
Women and children can stay in the shelter for 45 days. The shelter offers support groups, case management, help to file a restraining order, childcare and meals. The staff helps the clients decide what steps to take to establish a new life, find a job and housing. If a woman is making progress on her journey, but needs some additional support, she may be able to move into the transitional housing Smith oversees. It is communal housing where women can continue to save money, work and learn life skills.
“Once a woman leaves the shelter we check on her in 30 days and again in six months to see if she is still living violence free,” said Arteria Puckett, program manager for the domestic violence program. She said her staff loves to see the success stories. In one case, a woman with five children came to the shelter with no job, no transportation and no local support system. That woman was able to get a license as a Certified Nursing Assistant. She is continuing her education and even found a home that can accommodate her whole family. “She did it because she never gave up,” said Puckett.
“Learning how to do all this is an education process,” said Smith. “They (her clients) have been just surviving, they have never dreamed,” she said. The staff at the shelter wants to give women the space and the tools to imagine the lives they want and then go get them.
The shelter will be moving into a new facility some time around the new year with more room for more families, but will continue to operate through the transition.
Anyone suffering abuse can call the shelter 24-hours a day at 800-799-7233 (SAFE).

On not Cultivating Restlessness

IN EXILE
By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
Thirty-four years ago when I launched this column, I would never have said this: Restlessness is not something to be cultivated, no matter how romantic that might seem. Don’t get Jesus confused with Hamlet, peace with disquiet, depth with dissatisfaction, or genuine happiness with the existential anxiety of the artist. Restlessness inside us doesn’t need to be encouraged; it wreaks enough havoc all on its own.
But I’m a late convert to this view. From earliest childhood through mid-life, I courted a romance with restlessness, with stoicism, with being the lonely outsider, with being the one at the party who found it all too superficial to be real.  Maybe that contributed to my choosing seminary and priesthood; certainly it helps explain why I entitled this column, In Exile. For most of my life, I have equated restlessness with depth, as something to be cultivated,
This came naturally to me and all along the way I’ve found powerful mentors to help me carry my solitude in that way. During my high school years, I was intrigued with Shakespeare’s, Hamlet. I virtually memorized it. Hamlet represented depth, intensity, and romance; he wasn’t a beer-drinker.  For me, he was the lonely prophet, radiating depth beyond superficiality.
In my seminary years I graduated to Plato (“We are fired into life with a madness that comes from the gods and has us believe that we can achieve a great embrace, make ourselves immortal, and contemplate the divine”); to Augustine (“You have made us for yourself, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you”); to John of the Cross (We go through life fired by love’s urgent longings); to Karl Rahner (“In the torment of the insufficiency of everything attainable, we learn that here in this life there is no finished symphony”). Reading these thinkers helped me put my youthful romanticism under a high symbolic hedge.
Alongside these spiritual writers, I was much influenced by a number of novelists who helped instill in me the notion that life is meant to be lived with such an inner intensity and high romanticism so as to preclude any simple satisfaction in life’s normal, everyday pleasures and domestic joys.
For me, Nikos Kazantzakis’ characters radiated a passion that made them virtually godlike and irresistibly enviable, even as they struggled not to self-destruct; Iris Murdoch described loves that were so obsessive, and yet so attractive, as to make everything outside of them unreal; and Doris Lessing and Albert Camus seduced me with images of an inner disquiet that made ordinary life seem flat and not worthwhile. The idea grew in me that it was far nobler to die in unrequited longing than to live in anything else. Better dead in intensity that alive in domestic normalcy. Restlessness was to be encouraged.
And much in our culture, especially in the arts and the entertainment industry, foster that temptation, namely, to self-define as restless and to identify this disquiet with depth and with the angst of the artist. Once we define ourselves in this way, as complex, incurable romantics, we have an excuse for being difficult and we also have an excuse for betrayal and infidelity.
For now, in the words of a song by The Eagles, we are restless spirits on an endless flight. Understandably, then, we fly above the ordinary rules for life and happiness and our complexity is justification enough for whatever ways we act out.  As Amy Winehouse famously self-defines: “I told you I was troubled, and you know that I’m no good.” Why should anyone be mystified by our refusal of normal life and ordinary happiness?
There’s something inside us, particularly when we are young, that tempts us towards that kind of self-definition. And, for that time in our lives, when we’re young, I believe, it’s healthy. The young are supposed to overly-idealistic, incurably romantic, and distrustful of any lazy fall into settling for second-best.
As Doris Lessing puts it, there’s only one real sin in life and that’s calling second-best by anything other than what it is, second-best!  My wish is that all young people would read Plato, Augustine, John of the Cross, Karl Rahner, Nikos Kazantzakis, Iris Murdoch, Doris Lessing, Jane Austin, and Albert Camus.
But, except for authors such as Plato, Augustine, John of the Cross and Karl Rahner, who integrate that insatiable restlessness and existential angst into a bigger, meaningful narrative, we should be weary of defining ourselves as restless and cultivating that. High romanticism will only serve us well if we eventually set it within a self-understanding that doesn’t make restlessness an end in itself. Just feeling noble won’t bring much peace into our lives and, as we age and mature, peace does become the prize.
Romeo, Juliet, Hamlet, Zorba the Greek, Doctor Zhivago, and the other such mega-romantic figures on our screens and in our novels can enflame our romantic imaginations, but they aren’t in the end images for the type of intimacy that makes for a permanent meeting of hearts inside the body of Christ.
(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser, theologian, teacher and award-winning author, is President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, TX.)

Tallahatchie General Hospital to aquire Tutwiler Clinic

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TUTWILER — Tallahatchie County General Hospital is in the process of acquiring Tutwiler Clinic. Dr. Ann Brooks, SNJM, and her staff will continue caring for patients, but they will now have support from the hospital and its staff in what Sister Brooks is calling a ‘win-win’ situation. Administrators hope to complete the transition in early November.
“We were running everything ourselves,” said Sister Brooks. She said while she loves her patients and the community, she welcomes help with day-to-day operations and marketing.
“They have already sent someone from their IT department to work on my computer,” she said. The hospital’s communications department designed a new logo and website for the clinic. The website should be online in the coming weeks.
Tutwiler Clinic is a full-time health care clinic for patients in this underserved area of the Mississippi Delta. Thirty staff members, including two nurse practitioners and two physicians, care for the patients from babies to the elderly. The staff includes Sister Joann Blomme, OP, a counselor, Sister Cora Lee Middleton, RN, clinic coordinator, several case workers and even a van driver for patients who need transportation to appointments. Donated equipment allows the staff to perform lab tests, X-rays and EKG tests. Patients pay based on a sliding scale and the care his holistic, not just symptom management.
“Dr. Brooks’ mission is to make everyone responsible for their own health,” said Cindy Herring, co-director of public relations. She told the story of when she had a headache and Dr. Brooks showed her how to use pressure points instead of medications to relieve it. Herring said since learning the technique she has stopped having to take sinus medications.

Three Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary with Sister Anne Brooks, D.O., stand by the sign on opening day of the Tutwiler Clinic on August 15, 1983.

Three Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary with Sister Anne Brooks, D.O., stand by the sign on opening day of the Tutwiler Clinic on August 15, 1983.

Three Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary joined Sister Anne Brooks, D.O., in opening the Tutwiler Clinic on August 15, 1983. That morning then Bishop William Houck offered the Mass for the Feast of the Assumption at the home of the sisters and then went with them to bless the Clinic.  In the 33 years since the Tutwiler Clinic has opened, the staff has logged 253,741 patient visits – 7,289 of those were in 2015 alone.
“We’re never sure what medical problems we’ll see each day, but diabetes and hypertension are always on the list,” said Dr. Brooks. She remembered one patient who came in after a tornado passed through the town in December of 2015. “A thin man, who looked pretty dejected was seated on the treatment table. A blood scab was forming on his head. I sat beside him, resting my arm on his shoulders. ‘What can we do for you today,’ I asked softly. He sat a little taller and then, looking straight at me he said, ‘I came to hug everyone on your staff, because my wife is alive and I’m alive.’ What could I say?” she said as she swallowed hard.
Early in the development of the clinic, Sister Maureen Delaney, SNJM, joined the staff to help with outreach and social concerns. Her work expanded and outgrew the clinic. She ended up founding the Tutwiler Community Education Center, which is still going strong today under new leadership since Sr. Delaney was elected Provincial Superior of her order.

Photographer Andy Levin made a trip to Tutwiler in 1987 to photograph the work at the clinic. Many of these patients, and even their children, are still patients at Tutwiler. (Photos courtesy of Andy Levin and Tutwiler Clinic).

Photographer Andy Levin made a trip to Tutwiler in 1987 to photograph the work at the clinic. Many of these patients, and even their children, are still patients at Tutwiler. (Photos courtesy of Andy Levin and Tutwiler Clinic).

Television shows such as “Good Morning, America” and “Sixty Minutes” aired  documentaries in 1990 on Dr. Brooks and the work of the staff at the Clinic, and the ensuing donations from many caring folks helped enlarge the clinic and its scope of services. The clinic still depends on donations to fulfill its mission. Learn more online at www.tutwilerclinic.org.

Fr. Somers remembered for exuberant life

somers-richard-colorFather Richard Lawrence Somers, 76, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, October 19, 2016, at St. Catherine’s Village. He was born in Clogh, Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny, Ireland on August 8, 1940, son of the late, Richard and Mary Somers.
He was fifth of six siblings, two sisters and three brothers. He attended the local school, after which he went on to the Minor Seminary, St. Kieran in Kilkenny City. From there he moved on to the Major Seminary at St. John’s in Waterford, where he completed his philosophy and theological studies.
Fr. Somers was ordained for the Diocese of Natchez-Jackson in June 12, 1966. He arrived in Jackson on September 1966 and shortly thereafter took up his first assignment at Bay St. Louis Our Lady of the Gulf. He also served in Biloxi, Hattiesburg, and Meridian St. Patrick. In 1975 he became pastor of Jackson St. Therese and from there moved across town to St. Richard. His final assignment was at Greenville St. Joseph where he spent sixteen years, which was his longest tenure.
He will be remembered for his love of welcoming people into the church through RCIA. “He was unique in his approach of going after people,” said Father Gerald Hurley. “He always said God chased him to Mississippi so he was willing to chase after people,” he said.

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A Knights of Columbus honor guard stood watch at Father Somers’ funeral, Saturday, Oct. 22, at Jackson St. Richard Parish. (Photo by Debbie Tubertini)

Fr. Somers retired for health reasons in 2012 and in December he moved into St. Catherine’s Village. His almost 50 years of service left a lasting impression on the church in Mississippi. His infectious optimism touched the lives of many people because of his enthusiasm, his energy, his faith and his great love of the Catholic Church. He was preceded in death by his parents; his brother, Eddie; and his sister, Peggy. He is survived by his brothers, Patty and Frank; and his sister, Teresa.
Visitation and the funeral Mass were at St. Richard Saturday, October 22. He was buried in the cemetery at Gluckstadt St. Joseph.
Fr. Somers will be greatly missed by a large number of people. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made  to St Joseph Catholic High School, 1501 VFW Road, Greenville, MS 38701.

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Bishop Joseph Kopacz and Father John Bohn, pastor of St. Richard Parish, joined dozens of priests at Fr. Somers’ funeral. (Photo by Debbie Tubertini)

Diocese of Memphis welcomes Bishop Holley

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Bishop Holley is congratulated after receiving the crozier by Papal Nuncio Archbishop Christophe Pierre and Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky. (Photo by Karen Pulfer Focht)

By Suzanne Avilés
MEMPHIS, TENN. –Bishop Martin David Holley, DD, was installed as the fifth bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee on Wednesday, Oct 19. He follows Bishop Emeritus J. Terry Steib, SVD, who retires after 23 years of service to the Memphis Diocese.
Immediately after his installation, Bishop Holley joined volunteers from the diocese in two service projects to serve the hungry and comfort the sick. The effort was just one event in his “100 Days of Service,” in which he has teamed up with Catholic Charities of West Tennessee to assist the vulnerable.
In addition to Bishop Joseph Kopacz from the Diocese of Jackson, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, Justin Cardinal Rigali, Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, Donald Cardinal Wuerl and Archbishop Joseph Kurtz, president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, attended the installation.
“I am honored and humbled to join the Catholic Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee. I’ve chosen as the motto for my episcopal ministry “His Mercy Endures”, and mercy will be my guiding principle here on the banks of the Mississippi. I look forward to listening to, learning from and sharing with the people of the diocese,” said Bishop Holley.
Bishop Emeritus Steib stated, “I thank God for allowing me to serve the good people of the Catholic Diocese of Memphis in Tennessee for the last 23 years. Likewise, I thank God for sending Bishop Holley to our diocese to serve the people of West Tennessee. I offer Bishop Holley my prayers and best wishes.”
Bishop Holley was ordained as a priest in 1987 and served in his home diocese of Pensacola, Florida, before being named auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Washington in 2004. In the 12 years in Washington, he served as vicar general, moderator of ethnic ministries, a member of the Washington InterFaith Network, the International Catholic Foundation for the service of Deaf People, Catholic Athletes for Christ. He also participated on several committees for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops including the African-American Catholics, Hispanic Affairs, Pro-life and Multicultural committees. Bishop Holley has been a member of the Joint Conference of the National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus since 1983. He has been on the Board of Catholic Relief Services and is the immediate past Chaplain of the Knights of St. Peter Claver.
The Catholic Diocese of Memphis covers more than 10,000 square miles and includes more than 65,000 Catholics. Within the state of Tennessee, Catholics make up approximately 4 percent of the population. The Diocese is referred to as “The Good Samaritan on the banks of the Mississippi” and as the “Land between the rivers” referring to its location between the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers. The north and south boundaries of the diocese are the state lines of Kentucky and Mississippi.
(Suzanne Avilés is the Director of Communications for the Diocese of Memphis)

Obispos nos animan a estar activos en el proceso político

Por Obispo Joseph Kopacz
Recientemente, la Conferencia Católica de Obispos de los Estados Unidos (USCCB) publicó el documento histórico “Formando conciencia para ser ciudadanos fieles” como un estándar en la interminable labor de la formación de la conciencia moral como se vive en el ámbito político y social de nuestra sociedad. Si alguien se pregunta por qué la iglesia toma una actitud tan activa con respecto a las cuestiones políticas y sociales, sepan que hay muchas maneras convincentes de responder. Tenemos el pensamiento del Papa Francisco en la alegría del Evangelio.
“Una auténtica fe … siempre implica un profundo deseo de cambiar el mundo, de transmitir valores, de dejar algo mejor detrás de nuestro paso por la tierra. Amamos este magnífico planeta donde Dios nos ha puesto, y amamos a la humanidad que lo habita, con todos sus dramas y cansancios, con sus anhelos y esperanzas, con sus valores y fragilidades. La tierra es nuestra casa común y todos somos hermanos. Si bien “el orden justo de la sociedad y del estado es una responsabilidad principal de la política”, la Iglesia “no puede ni debe quedarse al margen en la lucha por la justicia”.
El Papa Francisco también nos reta a cuidar de nuestro hogar común, la tierra, ya que todos los asaltos directos al planeta tienen un impacto directo en la red de vida que nos ha encomendado nuestro amado creador. “Estos retos están en el corazón de la vida pública y en el centro de la búsqueda del bien común. Ellos están entrelazados e son inseparables. Nos enfrentamos con una sola y compleja crisis que es socio-ambiental.
Las estrategias para la solución requieren una aproximación integral para combatir la pobreza, para devolver la dignidad a los excluidos y simultáneamente para cuidar la naturaleza”. El Papa Francisco no es el primero en hablar sobre nuestro y frágil planeta, pero lo hace inspirado por la pasión de San Francisco de Asís por la creación de Dios.
La elección presidencial es un buen tiempo para que los seguidores de Cristo aprecien el discipulado y la ciudadanía como una expresión de libertad de religión y responsabilidad civil. En esta declaración, nosotros, los obispos, no tenemos la intención de decirle a los católicos por o contra quién votar. Nuestro objetivo es ayudar a los católicos a formar sus conciencias de acuerdo con la verdad de Dios. Reconocemos que la responsabilidad de tomar decisiones en la vida política recae en cada individuo a la luz de una conciencia debidamente formada, y que la participación va mucho más allá del hecho de depositar el voto en una elección en particular”.
Una conciencia histórica nos abre la vista a casi dos mil años de vida y de enseñanza de la fe, en temporada y fuera de temporada. Es el cumplimiento del mandato del Señor de ir y enseñar a todas las naciones.
De este tesoro de sabiduría podemos ver que la comunidad católica brinda contribuciones importantes al diálogo político sobre el futuro de nuestra nación. Ofrecemos un marco moral consistente — surgido de la razón humana básica iluminada por la Sagrada Escritura y la doctrina de la iglesia – para analizar las cuestiones, las plataformas políticas y las campañas. También aportamos una amplia experiencia en el área de servicio a los necesitados, educando a la juventud, cuidando de los enfermos, dando techo a los desamparados, ayudando a las mujeres con embarazos difíciles, alimentando al hambriento, dando la bienvenida a los inmigrantes y refugiados, ofreciendo nuestra solidaridad a nivel global y promoviendo la paz.
Celebramos, con todos nuestros prójimos, el compromiso de la libertad religiosa en este país que le ha permitido a la iglesia libertad para servir al bien común”.
No hay forma de evitar la crítica de que la iglesia está jugando a la política partidista cuando habla sobre temas controvertidos, razón por la cual es necesario leer el documento “Ciudadanos Fieles” en su totalidad a fin de ir más allá de su superficialidad y profundidad. Los obispos animan un corazón y una mente que se abre a la formación de la conciencia moral.
“Es verdad que los juicios particulares del documento pueden corresponder a diversos puntos a lo largo del espectro político, pero los principios fundamentales que guían estas enseñanzas no deben ser ignorados en ningún caso ni utilizados de forma selectiva para servir intereses partidistas. A la luz de estas reflexiones y las de los obispos locales, animamos a todos los católicos de los Estados Unidos a permanecer activos en el proceso político, especialmente en estos tiempos de tantos retos.
¿Cuáles son los principios básicos que iluminan la enseñanza de la Iglesia, de una generación a la siguiente a la que la Doctrina Social de la Iglesia encuentra una casa? Los principios permanentes de la doctrina social de la Iglesia constituyen el corazón de la doctrina social de la Iglesia Católica. Estos son los principios: la dignidad de la persona humana, el bien común, la subsidiaridad y la solidaridad. Estos principios son la expresión de toda la verdad sobre la vida humana, conocidos por la razón y la fe. Otras dos citas de “Ciudadanos Fieles” nos desafían como votantes para prepararnos sabiamente en el ejercicio de nuestra responsabilidad cívica y libertad religiosa.
“Los católicos a menudo afrontan decisiones difíciles sobre cómo votar. Es por esto que es muy importante votar de acuerdo con una conciencia bien formada que perciba la relación apropiada que existe entre los bienes morales. Un católico no puede votar a favor de un candidato que toma una posición a favor de algo intrínsecamente malo, como el aborto provocado, la eutanasia, el suicidio asistido, el sometimiento deliberado de los trabajadores o los pobres a condiciones de vida infrahumanas, la redefinición del matrimonio en formas que violan su significado esencial, o comportamientos racistas, si la intención del votante es apoyar tal posición.
En tales casos un católico sería culpable de cooperar formalmente con un mal grave. Pero al mismo tiempo, un votante no debería usar la oposición a un mal intrínseco de un candidato para justificar una indiferencia o despreocupación hacia otras cuestiones morales importantes que atañen a la vida y dignidad humanas. El siguiente párrafo describe los asaltos en contra de la dignidad y la vida humana.
La doctrina católica sobre la dignidad de la vida nos llama a que nos opongamos a la tortura, a la guerra injusta y al uso indiscriminado de drones para fines violentos; a que prevengamos el genocidio y los ataques contra los no combatientes; a que nos opongamos al racismo; a que nos opongamos a la trata de personas; y a que venzamos a la pobreza y el sufrimiento.
Las naciones están llamadas a proteger el derecho a la vida buscando maneras efectivas de combatir el mal y el terror, sin hacer uso de los conflictos armados excepto como último recurso, después de que todos los medios pacíficos han fallado, y a poner fin al uso de la pena de muerte como un medio para proteger a la sociedad de los delitos violentos.
Veneramos la vida de los niños en el útero, la vida de las personas que mueren a causa de la guerra y el hambre, y de hecho la vida de todos los seres humanos, como hijos e hijas de Dios. Nos oponemos a estas y todas las actividades que contribuyen a lo que el Papa Francisco ha llamado “una cultura de usar y tirar”.
Ven Espíritu Santo, llena el corazón de los fieles y enciende en nosotros el fuego de tu amor, y por favor Dios, ayúdanos en esta temporada política.
(La segunda parte de esta “Ciudadanos Fieles” continua en la próxima edición.)