Summer tradition: Vacation Bible School around the diocese
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Monthly Archives: July 2014
Youth Briefs
JACKSON St. Richard School basketball camp for third-seventh graders of St. Richard School or parish, July 14-18, and July 21-25, from 9 – 11:30 a.m. Registration fee is $50. Details: Paul Daschbach, 601-278-5256, pmdasch@yahoo.com.
– The parish high school youth group (Faith Life) is selling T-shirts for $15 and golf polos for $30. Details: Melissa Shapley, 601-366-2335.
MADISON St. Joseph School, five-day cheer camp, for rising first-through sixth-graders, July 21-25, from 9 a.m. – noon, conducted by the school varsity cheerleaders. Cost is $100 per student. On the final day of camp, parents are invited to watch the performances.
– Summer used uniform sale, Saturday, July 19, from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. in the school library. Details: Paula Morgan, 601-573-1244, henryandpaula@bellsouth.net.
MERIDIAN St. Patrick and St. Joseph parishes new coordinator of Catechetical (PSR) and youth ministry is Marianne Hurst. She will join the parish staff on Friday, Aug.1.
NATCHEZ The St. Mary’s Basilica CYO is collecting children’s books for pediatric patients at Natchez Regional Medical Center, Natchez Community Hospital and Blair Batson Children’s Hospital through July 15. Look for the collection box at the entrance of the church.
YAZOO CITY St. Mary, swimming party and cook out on Sunday, July 13, from 4 – 7 p.m. p.m. the home of Frank and Melissa McGraw.
Home work mission trip
JACKSON – The Youth Office of the Diocese of Jackson is inviting Mississippi’s Catholic teens to the Home Work Mission Trip set for July 21-25 in Northeast Mississippi, including Tupelo, Fulton and Booneville.
Home Work is open to teens who were in grades nine, 10, 11 or 12 this past school year. “One of the great things about this event is that youth will be able to make a bunch of new friends from parishes all over Mississippi,” wrote Kathie Curtis, director of the Office of Youth Ministry, in her invitation letter.
Some of the activities may include assisting with day camp, painting parish classrooms, preparing and serving meals for the needy, doing home maintenance and repairs for the elderly, and assisting with Habitat for Humanity.
Curtis is asking youth to figure out what are their unique gifts and talents and how they can use them to serve God now.
Participants will be housed in the Catholic Life Center at St. James Catholic Church in Tupelo.
Cost is $75. Spaces are limited. Get an application on the Office of Youth Ministry page of www.jacksondiocese.org. For more information contact Kathie Curtis, 601-949-6934, kathie.curtis@jacksondiocese.org.
Bracelet foundation benefits childhood cancer patients
Carrie Lambert, left, and Ruth Powers join the Healing Hands ministry at St. Mary Basilica to make bracelets to raise money for Berkeley Mardis, a teenage cancer patient. Organizers hope the foundation they have formed to sell the bracelets will expand to support children with cancer world-wide.
By Maureen Smith
NATCHEZ – A simple act of kindness has taken on a life of its own with the founding of Berkeley’s Bracelets. Berkeley is a 15-year-old New Orleans girl who has cancer. Carrie Lambert, a friend of her grandmother and member of St. Mary’s Basilica, made her a hat and a shawl to wear while she was in the hospital for treatments.
“She sent me a thank-you note and in it she talked about how blessed she was. It really touched me” said Lambert. As Lent was approaching, Lambert was trying to think of what her sacrifice would be. She prayed about it and woke up before dawn with the idea to start Berkeley’s Bracelets.
Lambert taught members of the Healing Hands ministry at the basilica how to make the bracelets and the group began selling them as a way to help cover the cost of Berkeley’s treatments. Organizers then got the idea to encourage kids with cancer to share the bracelets with one another. The group explained the concept in their mission statement. “There are different colors assigned by the American Cancer Society to represent the different forms of cancer. Berkeley’s type of cancer has been designated as yellow. The foundation hopes to offer bracelets, their patterns, and packets so others can start up a foundation like this for their child,” reads part of the statement.
The foundation also hopes the patients feel a sense of being connected with others facing similar challenges. “I think that the most important thing for Berkeley’s Bracelets is to bring happiness to the others fighting their own pe
rsonal fight,” said Berkeley Mardis in an email from the hospital. “The bracelet is a constant reminder that we are not alone in the fight and that there is always someone caring about us and praying for us. And I really think the teens and preteens who receive these bracelets will like them,” she added.
The bracelets are made using a technique called Tunisian or Afghan crochet, which combines elements of crochet and knitting. Each one has a charm on it, sometimes a “B” for Berkeley, sometimes a cross or a dove.
Mardis’ grandmother, Regina, is the secretary at St. Mary’s. She said the teen has been strong throughout her ordeal. “She has never cried, she is smiling all the time. We just can’t believe her spirits,” said the elder Mardis. She explained that Berkeley, a high school softball player, found a knot on her leg, but dismissed it as an injury from her sport. When it would not go away she went to her doctor and got the surprising diagnosis.
Her cancer, osteosarcoma, stayed on the outside of her bone. In late spring, doctors removed a section of bone and muscle from her leg and then, in a second surgery, removed a benign spot from her lungs. “Right now she is cancer free, but she still has to go through chemo until October,” said Mardis.
The teen hopes to rejoin the softball team when she is done with treatments. Her family has incurred more than half a million dollars in costs so far, even with insurance. “I hope that Berkeley’s Bracelets will continue to bring joy for many days and years to come. I am very thankful for all that the program has done to help with our huge medical expenses, but more importantly I want to see it raise awareness, not only for osteosarcoma, but for childhood cancers in general. I am one blessed girl to have so many people who love me and my family,” said the teen.
The foundation hopes to send bracelets to children with cancer. Each one will come in a little bag with a note about the project.
The foundation is asking permission to hand out the bracelets in children’s hospitals to spread the idea. Each would come in a mesh bag with a letter from the organizers and information on how to purchase more bracelets or a pattern to make one. “I would like to be able to deliver some of the bracelets myself to the kids because it would give me the opportunity to meet some new people who may be going through something similar to me. But my resistance is low due to the chemo I am taking, so I cannot visit any of my peers who are sick,” said Berkeley.
The group has set up a facebook page where order information is posted. The bracelets cost $6-7 and the pattern is $10.
Child immigrant influx demands attention
Millennial reflections
By Father Jeremy Tobin, O.Praem
There are thousands of children crossing the border, fleeing inhumane conditions in their home countries especially El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras as well as Mexico. This was not entirely unexpected by those who advocate for immigrants and who push for reform.
What is unusual is the age of these refugees, some very young. They tell of no hope back home. This was the last desperate attempt by their parents to try at least get some of the family to survive.
For years some Guatemalans that we serve told me there is no meaningful work in Guatemala.
The same could be said for much of Central America and Mexico. Much of this has its roots in American trade policy. There will be no substantial immigration reform until we rethink and redo our trade policies with Latin America. They insure vast importation of American grain and other goods which drive out local farms and businesses.
The governments of these countries and the wealthy benefit, but the people suffer. Some years back they were rioting in Mexico over the price of tortillas after NAFTA was fully felt in Mexico. This woke up some people, but had little effect. Every time things go bad south of the border the only hope is migrate to “El Norte.” Nothing changes that. We have got to stop exploiting Latin America.
The Dignity Campaign, among other things, advocates a revision of trade policies. It emphasizes fair trade, not just free trade. It emphasizes the local producer over corporate interests. Unless conditions improve in Mexico and Central America there can be no real immigration reform. We need to hold hearings about the effects of CAFTA and NAFTA and collect evidence about the way those agreements displace people.
Now we have a humanitarian disaster. The Catholic bishops have asked the White House and Congress to protect unaccompanied children from other countries and respond to the root causes of poverty.
Bishop Eusebio Elizondo, Auxiliary Bishop of Seattle and head of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Migration, urged the government to protect these children from the dangers of human trafficking, smugglers, gangs and organized crime. The bishops stress this as a humanitarian issue and not one to be used to make political points.
Further, a delegation from the USCCB Committee on Migration visited Mexico and Central America to examine factors driving child migration to the United States. Bishop Elizondo said, “It is truly a humanitarian crisis which requires a comprehensive response and cooperation between the branches of the U.S. government. Young lives are at stake.”
A draft memo from Homeland Security said that 90,000 children could be arrested trying to illegally cross the Mexican border. This is more than three times the number of children apprehended last year. They declare this a “crisis.”
“People that live north have no idea what’s going on down here, and if they did, they would be appalled by what the government is letting happen,” said Chris Cabrera, vice president of the National Border Patrol Council in the Rio Grande Valley, a U.S. Border Patrol Workers Union. They are overwhelmed. Needed resources are lacking. There are not enough immigration court judges to do the work. These children have rights.
The word we need to incorporate into this discussion is ‘compassion.’ We need to treat these children and their families with compassion.
Relief agencies are reaching out, but they need more help. The Catholic Church is speaking up. We can do better. No church in the country has more Latino members than we do. It is imperative that every way we can, we raise consciences to this problem.
First, by reaching out to the children to ensure that they are treated in a fair, just and legal manner, and receive fair due process. Second, support efforts to reunite families. Third, lobby the government to provide legal relief. Fourth, to push for fair and just immigration reform that goes beyond what is called comprehensive.
The bills in the works today do not really address a meaningful path to citizenship. Workers are not fully protected. The underlying causes, like those mentioned in the beginning, are not addressed.
(Father Jeremy Tobin, O.Praem, lives at the Priory of St. Moses the Black, Jackson.)
Annual Bishop’s Ball packs the house
State’s bishops lead church in turbulent time
In light of the 50th anniversary of the passage of the Civil Rights Act on July 2, 1964, we would like to share some portions of Bishop Richard O. Gerow’s notes from the time.
July 1 (Wednesday) Jackson – This morning at 10 o’clock our meeting of ministers convened in our library. There was a specially large number of Negro ministers. During the meeting it was proposed that if this group could sit down and talk with the Mayor of Jackson perhaps we could understand each other better. What the Negro ministers want especially is some means of communication with the civic authorities. At present they feel that there is as it were an impenetrable wall between them and the Mayor. They would like at least to be able to talk to him. I volunteered to telephone Mayor Thompson and attempt to arrange a meeting with him; in fact, to invite him to come and sit in at this meeting. I phoned. He was busy in a Council meeting but he would be asked to call us later. He called after our meeting had dispersed. He refused absolutely to a meeting of any kind. I asked him if he would meet with Bishop Brunini, Bishop Allin, and myself. He said he would be glad to meet with us for a social visit – but not to discuss race. So our attempt was a failure.
July 3 (Friday) The Civil Rights Bill has now been passed by the U. S. Congress and has just been signed by President Johnson. Accordingly, this morning I issued to the press and mailed to all our priests the following statement:
“The Civil Rights Act has been passed by the Congress of the United States. The people of our beloved Mississippi have the historic opportunity of giving to the world an example of true patriotism in a Democracy. Each of us, bearing in mind Christ’s law of love, can establish his own personal motive of reaction to the Bill and thus turn this time into an occasion of spiritual growth. The prophets of strife and distress need not be right.
“Dear Christian, Catholic people, your Bishop calls upon you to accept the action of Congress as loyal Americans and to make a positive contribution to our State by rejecting the spirit of rebellion and by standing for justice, love and peace.”
The Catholic Church was on the forefront in pursuing and speaking out for justice and dignity for all. For more than a year before the act was signed into law, Bishop Gerow joined by his auxiliary, Bishop Joseph Brunini, were in dialogue with the Episcopal and Methodist bishops plus several prominent ministers in the African American community.
This group evolved into the Committee of Concern when churches began to be burned in reaction to the passage of the law and the breaking down of segregation. The Committee of Concern raised donations to help rebuild these houses of worship destroyed by hate, ignorance and intolerance.
These were very turbulent times in our nation and Mississippi in particular. The leadership of the church stepped up in this violent time to remind people of what a true Christian was called to be. Being Christian is not always popular and not always safe, but it is what we are called to be by Christ Jesus.
We offer Bishop Gerow’s notes as food for thought. With the humanitarian crisis growing on our own border with thousands of children braving treacherous treks across perilous terrain in order to find safety and freedom from violence and oppression, perhaps we should remember the prophets of strife and distress of our not so distant past and pledge to heal rather than hurt again. MTW
Annual gathering provides skills for ministry
Perpetual distraction challenges us
IN EXILE
By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
There’s a story in the Hindu tradition that runs something like this: God and a man are walking down a road. The man asks God, “What is the world like?” God answers, “I’d like to tell you, but my throat is parched. I need a cup of cold water. If you can go and get me a cup of cold water, I’ll tell you what the world is like.” The man heads off to the nearest house to ask for a cup of cold water.
He knocks on the door and it is opened by a beautiful young woman. He asks for a cup of cold water. She answers: “I will gladly get it for you, but it’s just time for the noon meal, why don’t you come in first and eat.” He does.
Thirty years later, they’ve had five children, he’s a respected merchant, she’s a respected member of the community, they’re in their house one evening when a hurricane comes and uproots their house. The man cries out: “Help me, God!” And a voice comes from the center of the hurricane says: “Where’s my cup of cold water?”
This story is not so much a spiritual criticism as it is a fundamental lesson in anthropology and spirituality. To be a human being is to be perpetually distracted. We aren’t persons who live in habitual spiritual awareness who occasionally get distracted. We’re persons who live in habitual distraction who occasionally become spiritually aware. We tend to be so preoccupied with the ordinary business of living that it takes a hurricane of some sort for God to break through.
C.S. Lewis, commenting on why we tend to turn to God only during a hurricane once put it this way: God is always speaking to us, but normally we aren’t aware, aren’t listening. Accordingly pain is God’s microphone to a deaf world.
However none of us want that kind of pain; none of us want some disaster, some health breakdown, or some hurricane to shake us up. We prefer a powerful positive event, a miracle or mini-miracle, to happen to us to awaken God’s presence in us because we nurse the false daydream that, if God broke into our lives in some miraculous way, we would then move beyond our distracted spiritual state and get more serious about our spiritual lives.
But that’s the exact delusion inside the biblical character in the parable of Lazarus and Dives, where the rich man asks Abraham to send him back from the dead to warn his brothers that they must change their way of living or risk the fiery flames. His plea expresses exactly that false assumption: “If someone comes back from the dead, they will listen to him!” Abraham doesn’t buy the logic. He answers, “They have Moses and the Prophets.
“If they don’t listen to them, they won’t be convinced either, even if someone came back from the dead.” What lies unspoken but critically important in that reply, something easily missed by us, the reader, is that Jesus has already come back from the dead and we aren’t listening to him. Why should we suppose that we would listen to anyone else who comes back from the dead? Our preoccupation with the ordinary business of our lives is so strong that we are not attentive to the one who has already come back from the dead.
Given this truth, the Hindu tale just recounted is, in a way, more consoling than chiding. To be human is to be habitually distracted from spiritual things. Such is human nature. Such is our nature. But knowing that our endless proclivity for distraction is normal doesn’t give us permission to be comfortable with that fact. Great spiritual mentors, not least Jesus, strongly urge us to wake up, to move beyond our over-preoccupation with the affairs of everyday life.
Jesus challenges us to not be anxious about how we are to provide for ourselves. He also challenges us to read the signs of the times, namely, to see the finger of God, the spiritual dimension of things, in the everyday events of our lives. All great spiritual literature does the same. Today there is a rich literature in most spiritual traditions challenging us to mindfulness, to not be mindlessly absorbed in the everyday affairs of our lives.
But great spiritual literature also assures us that God understands us, that grace respects nature, that God didn’t make a mistake in designing human nature and that God didn’t make us in such a way that we find ourselves congenitally distracted and then facing God’s anger because we are following our nature.
Human nature naturally finds itself absorbed in the affairs of everyday life, and God designed human nature in just this way.
And so, I think, God must be akin to a loving parent or grandparent, looking at his or her children at the family gathering, happy that they have interesting lives that so absorb them, content not to be always the center of their conscious attention.
(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser, theologian, teacher and award-winning author, is President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, TX.)
Retreats nourish spiritual health
St. Mary of the Pines
Eight-day retreats – $640
Five-day retreats – $400
Weekend directed retreats – $160
Directed Retreats. The resident retreat director is Sister Dorez Mehrtens, SSND. During 2014, she is available for directed retreats on the following dates: Aug. 18-26, Sept. 2-9, Sept. 24-Oct. 3, Oct. 6-13. To schedule a retreat contact Sister Dorez, 601-783-0411 or 601-810-7758 (cell).
Private Retreats. A private retreat is a retreat without a director and may be scheduled any time space is available. The individual chooses his/her own resources and rhythm of prayer and reflection throughout the day. Suggested donation: $65 per night. Financial assistance for any retreat is available upon request.
Annual Women’s Retreat,” Oct. 24-26. In this retreat participants will explore their inner spiritual journeys through the graces great women of scripture has passed on to them. The presenter, Sister Janet Franklin, CSJ, has a background in literature, chaplaincy and spiritual direction studies. Cost is $135 for single rooms and $115 for double rooms.
Contact: St. Mary of the Pines Retreat Center, 3167 Old Highway 51 South, Osyka, MS, 39657, 601-783-3494, retreatcenter@ssnddallas.org.
The Dwelling Place
“Be Still and Know that I am God,” July 31-Aug. 5. Two, three or five day retreat. Come for some time personally adapted to your needs. It is a time of quiet and prayerful reflection primarily using scripture. Retreats are scheduled at specific times but retreatants are welcome to come privately any time that is convenient to the person. Three hermitages (small cottages) are available.
“Joy of Coming Home,” Saturday, Sept. 6, from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. A reflective journey focusing on our personal connection to God and the wedges that hold us or help us. Presenters will be Karen Hodges and Lee Oswalt from Tupelo who have facilitated outdoor prayer journeys for women for 14 years. Cost is $45.
Contact: The Dwelling Place, 2824 Dwelling Place Road, Brooksville, MS, 39739, 662-738-5348, www.dwellingplace.com.
Benedictine Center
“Introduction to Centering Prayer,” Aug. 29-31. Centering Prayer is a form of Christian prayer rooted in the ancient Christian contemplative tradition. Its purpose is to foster a deeper intimacy with Christ through the silence and stillness of contemplative prayer. This workshop/retreat is designed for those new to Centering Prayer. Private rooms and the ability to maintain silence are required. Cost for private rooms is $210. Contact: Benedictine Sisters, 916 Convent Road, Cullman, AL 35055, (256) 734-4622, shmon@shmon.org.
WILLWOODS COMMUNITY
Married Couples Retreats, July 19-20, Aug. 23-24, Sept. 20-21, and Nov. 1-2, at Joseph Abbey Christian Life Center in Covington, La. Contact: Jason Angelette, 504-830-3716, jangelette@willwoods.org, www.faithandmarriage.org. Suggested donation of $275 per couple is requested but not required.