Monthly Archives: November 2014

Diocesan Schools earn top rankings

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All four high schools in the Diocese of Jackson were honored in a recent ranking of private high schools, three of the four landed in the top 20 among private schools in the state of Mississippi. Madison St. Joseph School got top billing on the list, compiled by Niche, a company whose website provides reviews and insights into elementary and secondary schools nationwide.
Greenville St. Joseph School ranked fourth on the list, Cathedral sits at 19 and Vicksburg Catholic was ranked 28th out of the 66 schools profiled.
Niche’s website says “a high ranking indicates that the school is an exceptional academic institution with a diverse set of high-achieving students who rate their experience very highly.” The site uses statistical data and reviews to create the rankings.
“This rating by a national organization is a testament to the performance of and quality of our students here at St. Joe,” said Keith Barnes, Madison St. Joseph School’s principal. “Our students work hard and are guided by a top-notch, caring faculty that is second-to-none in the state.”
Niche has been ranking colleges across the United States for 12 years. The company was founded in 2002 by Carnegie Mellon University students as CollegeProwler.com.
Students and parents can use the company’s website, www.niche.com, to explore high school rankings, as well as compare educational outcomes across schools and school districts. Students can also create an account to compare college rankings and characteristics.

Official appointments

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On the recommendation of Very Reverend John Edmunds, ST, General Custodian of the Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity:111414medina

Reverend Odel Medina, ST, appointed pastor of Carthage St. Anne, in addition to duties as pastor of Kosciusko St. Therese, and associate pastor of Camden Sacred Heart, and Canton Holy Child Jesus, effective Nov. 1, 2014.

 

 

Reverend R111414venturaaúl Ventura, ST, appointed associate pastor of Carthage St. Anne, and Kosciusko St. Therese, in addition to duties as pastor of Camden Sacred Heart, and Canton Holy Child Jesus, effective Nov. 1, 2014.

+Joseph R. Kopacz
Bishop of Jackson

Season calls for hope, rest, renewal

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By Bishop Joseph Kopacz
We are now at the halfway point of the month of November, a month that majestically begins in our Catholic tradition of faith with the feast of All Saints along with the hope-filled commemoration of All Souls. During this time of year, our hearts and minds are naturally and spiritually drawn to the end of time and space, as we know it, to the mystery of eternal life.
“We are God’s children now.  What we shall later be has not yet come to light. (1Jn3). We see things dimly now, as in a mirror, but then we shall see face to face,” (1Corinthians 13). We are called to be in eternal communion with living God, through Jesus Christ, crucified and risen from the dead. “I believe in the communion of saints, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting,” are the statements of faith that conclude the proclamation of creedal belief that we proclaim on Sundays and feast days.
The seasons of the year, God’s gift of creation, speak to the seasons of human life, and the inexorable engine of time. Autumn provides the natural setting in the Northern Hemisphere to reflect upon, and embrace the reality that mortality has the upper hand in this life. Even in Mississippi as the daylight hours diminish the early autumn mornings can be brisk, bordering on cold.
During these southern November days, I am delighting in the fall foliage, and the brown grass, and the leaves that cover backyards and fairways, a full month after NEPA (Northeast Pennsylvania). The natural world in manifest ways is dying to self, preparing to rest in winter’s dormancy. In a paradoxical way there is a unique beauty with dying and death in the natural world that can draw us deeper into the finitude of our own lives.
So it is with the seasons of human life. Developmental psychologists have made enormous contributions to our understanding of life’s challenges and opportunities at every stage on the journey, beginning with life in the womb up to the moment when the sun sets on a person’s life. Early on we seek to establish our identity.
Upon this foundation we continue to build the structure of our lives at the onset of adulthood. At mid-life, stagnation frequently comes knocking at the door, and we must dig deeper to remain loving and productive. With the onset of old age wisdom can be the welcome guest, or a person could succumb to various forms of despair. “Therefore we do not lose heart.  Although our outer selves are wasting away, our inner selves are being renewed each day,” (2Corinthians 4,2).
It is true that the gift of faith in Jesus Christ blesses us with the promise of eternal life through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Yet, there is sober reality all around us slogging through time, even while we possess the sense dof the eternal. In the movie, “The Hobbit,” Gollum and Bilbo Baggins go head to head with riddles that entertain, but also confront the viewer with life’s somber reality.
Riddle 3:
It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt.
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills.
It comes out first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter.
The answer is darkness. A poignantly clever riddle, no doubt, but in faith one that succumbs to the powerful words of the Word made flesh, Jesus the Christ. “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life,” (John 8,12).
Gollum’s final riddle stumps Bilbo, and he needs more time to solve it.
Riddle 5:
This thing all things devours;
Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;
Gnaws iron, bites steel;
Grinds hard stones to meal;
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats mountain down.
Bilbo needed more time to realize that the answer to the riddle is time. Sometimes people are given more time to get it right, or to right wrongs, and sometimes not. Time is fleeting (tempus fugit); it passes quickly. “Our days on earth are like grass; like wildflowers, we bloom and die,” (Psalm 103,15). Yet, once again we have the words that are eternal in the face of the conquering worm. “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die,” (John 11,25).
Jesus once said to the Sadducees, non-believers in eternal life, who were trying to trip him up: “You are so wrong. Our God is the God of the living, not the dead,” (Matthew 22, 32). The Catholic Church celebrated the promise of eternal life in the recent canonizations of Saint Pope John Paul II, and Saint Pope John XXIII. We embrace the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting.
As we pray for our beloved dead with greater attention and intention this month, and ask the intercession of the saints, may their love and prayers on our behalf inspire us to live a life worthy of the calling we have received by virtue of the three gifts that last, faith, hope, and love.

Black Catholic History Month: celebrating gifts of diversity, honoring contributions

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Will Jemison
Since the first week of November, we have seen a drastic shift in the balance of power of our nation. The party that enjoyed some level of comfort as the leading Senate party, has now found itself having to reinvent how they manage their affairs and interactions in dealing with the party that is, in theory, in control of Congress.
The new majority party in Congress is also now forced to reflect on how they got to this point and how they will, in turn, be forced to deal with a new degree of scrutiny that comes with the great gift in which they have been given, leadership.blackcatholichistorylogo
As we begin our observance of Black Catholic History Month, let’s consider the above reference and compare ourselves as our elected officials must do, with a strong lens focused on inflection. In the state of Mississippi, Catholics represent a relatively small percentage of those who identify as Christian.
However, our presence is often felt at the highest levels of both local and state government as a force for positive change in social justice and civil issues that affect all Mississippians, regardless of religious affiliation. Of course, this involves each group within our church having to be at the table and answer the call to service when tasked.
Predominately black parishes have historically been the beacon of hope within traditionally underserved communities in Mississippi. During the days of Jim Crow, our parish schools were often the only schools where children could receive a quality education without fear of the school closing for over-excelling or for lack of books, desks, teachers and other necessities afforded majority schools.
Religious sisters from across the nation, including the Sisters of the Holy Family, Oblate Sisters of Providence, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Dominican Sisters, and Sister Thea Bowman’s order, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration, all came to Mississippi with a sense of purpose to, in their own way, change the educational landscape of a state that for decades refused to invest in the sustainable growth of black Mississippians.
Although many of these challenges still exist today, the landscape of our state changed when religious sisters and brothers, priests, lay associations and ordinary citizens united to carefully discern their charism and set forth to change the lives of many they didn’t know.
As we celebrate the many individuals who have contributed to the tapestry of our diocese and the larger church, let’s also take time to reflect on how we achieved the many opportunities given to us and more importantly, what we will do with the blessings we now have.
Will we allow our opportunities to help others and bring more people to the church go unused? Will we allow our blessings and the richness of our Catholic faith to die for lack of willingness to reach outside the church and share our gifts?
In honor of Black Catholic History Month, each edition of Mississippi Catholic will feature articles highlighting the many contributions Catholics of African descent have made to the overall church. Special recognition will be given to the four causes for sainthood of American black Catholics who gave selflessly for the growth of Catholicism in the black community. Those causes; Father Augustus Tolton; Venerable Mother Henriette DeLille (Founder of the Sisters of the Holy Family); Mother Mary Elizabeth Lange (Founder of the Oblate Sisters of Providence); and Venerable Pierre Toussaint; each have the possibility of becoming the first black saint from the United States.
Please mark your calendar for the Bishop’s 2015 Martin Luther King, Jr. Celebration on Sunday, Jan. 11 at 3 p.m. in St. Peter Cathedral in Jackson. The keynote speaker is noted civil rights attorney, Benjamin Crump, of Tallahassee, Fl. Crump is best known for his representation of the families of Trayvon Martin, and most recently, Michael Brown of Ferguson, Mo. Also, during this upcoming celebration, we will honor several religious orders who have served our diocese faithfully through the years and welcome the Redemptorist community who are now serving the Mississippi Delta. This event is free and open to the public. A reception recognizing our honorees will immediately follow.
(Will Jemison is the director of the Office of Black Catholic Ministry for the Diocese of Jackson.)

Mother Delille effort in hands of Vatican investigators

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The Sisters of the Holy Family in New Orleans await authentication of a miracle of the Venerable Henriette Delille, their founder, as her cause for sainthood moves through the final steps. Sister Delille was the first native-born African American to have her cause for canonization officially opened by the church. In 2010 Pope Benedict XVI declared her venerable. The authentication of one more miracle would result in beatification.
In September of this year the congregation 111414delilleunveiled a portrait of their founder. The nine-by-four-foot painting by artist Ulrick Jean-Pierre was commissioned by late congregational leader, Sister Eva Regina Martin, SHF, and hangs in the motherhouse. It shows Sister Delille surrounded by the poor she served for her whole life with St. Augustine church in the background.
Delille was born a free woman of color in New Orleans in 1812. She was born into a family of concubines and may have even borne two sons who died as toddlers, but she had a conversion at the age of 24. At that time African-American women were not allowed in any religious order. Undaunted, Sister Delille studied with white nuns to learn about religious life. She and two friends formed a society, professed their own vows and started serving the poor and elderly of color in their community.
The group was recognized years later as the Sisters of the Holy Family. Last year two members of the congregation came to the Diocese of Jackson to encourage devotion to their founder in hopes of advancing her cause.
Sisters Doris Goudeaux and Laura Mercier, both SHF, said during their 2013 presentation that the Sisters of the Holy Family begged for support from the very start of their order. “No matter how they were treated, they depended on the Divine Providence of God,” said Sister Goudeaux. “They knew no matter what they suffered they would be rewarded. They knew they were doing what Jesus wanted them to do.” They picked up poor elderly and children off the streets and found a way to care for them. The Sisters are credited with opening the first nursing home in the United States, a ministry they are still running in New Orleans.
They educated slaves and made sure they were baptized as well as caring for those affected by yellow fever. In many cases, they had to teach their students in secret with little or no reliable support. “They begged in the street daily and some days they went to bed having only had sugar water,” said Sister Goudeaux.
Sister Delille died at the age of 50. Only one example of her writing exists, a simple but profound prayer she penned in the flyleaf of a book on the Eucharist right after her conversion. The congregation still uses the prayer today, encouraging others to say it. “I believe in God.  I hope in God. I love. I want to live and die for God.”

Presentation offers update on Tolton cause

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JACKSON  – Brother Gerard Jordan, O.Praem, presented the story of Father Augustus Tolton at Christ the King Parish Saturday, Nov. 8. Brother Jordan is traveling the country on behalf of Bishop Joseph Perry, of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Bishop Perry’s diocese is sponsoring Father Tolton’s sainthood cause.
The Office of Black Catholic Ministry brought the presentation to Jackson. In late September, the archdiocese sealed up all its research about Father Tolton’s life, evidence of two alleged miracles and countless favors into a formal packet to go to the Vatican for the next step, confirmation of the research and verification of the miracles. Part of this step in the journey is for advocates to travel the world, telling the story of Tolton, the first African American diocesan priest in the United States. “Rome has to hear from you,” said Brother Gerard. “You are the church. If you don’t want this to happen, it won’t,” he added.

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JACKSON – Brother Gerard Jordan, O.Praem, brought a presentation about Father Augustus Tolton to Christ the King Parish Saturday. Nov. 8. The priest is a candidate for sainthood. (Photo by Maureen Smith)

Father Tolton’s story has all the drama and intrigue of a classic American adventure tale. Born into slavery at the cusp of the Civil War, Father Tolton’s brave mother ran away from her owners with her three tiny children in tow. When they were stopped at the Mississippi River by a group of Confederate soldiers, it looked like the group was doomed. A troop of Union soldiers stepped in. The two groups agreed they would put mother and children into a boat in the Mississippi River and it would be up to Martha Tolton to try and get to freedom on the other side.
“The boat was old, they only gave her one oar, the Mississippi River is huge and Martha Tolton had never rowed a boat in her life,” explained Brother Jordan. “When she was half way across the soldiers started shooting at them. (Tolton) said she never missed a beat. Can you imagine? Three babies and a mother who had never been in a boat,” Brother Jordan added. The family made it to shore and eventually settled in Quincy, Illinois.
The pastor in Quincy tried to put 14-year-old Tolton in the parish school, but the white families rose up against him. He was educated by nuns who agreed to tutor him separately. He had a similar experience when he tried to enter seminary. He and his pastor wrote letters to every seminary in the country, but none was ready to accept an African American.
In 1872 letters to the Vatican and help from numerous priests and faithful resulted in his admission to the Collegium Urbanum de Propaganda Fide in Rome. He studied in Rome for six years, spending extra time studying African culture and languages since he assumed he would be sent to Africa as a missionary. He was ordained at Easter in 1886. The cardinal in charge of assignments sent Father Tolton back to Quincy, where hundreds came to his first Mass.
Father Tolton was assigned to St. Joseph Parish in Quincy. Although the parish was meant to serve the African American community, crowds of both white and black faithful came to hear Father Tolton. The pastor at the white parish, St. Boniface, complained to the bishop several times. Father Tolton, frustrated and upset, finally asked to be moved. He opened St. Monica Parish in a storefront in Chicago in 1891 and began raising money for a real structure.
Father Tolton would never see the church completed. He died during a heat wave in July 1897 at the age of 43. In his 11 years as a priest he had attended five gatherings of the Black Catholic Caucus. “Thousands lined the streets of Chicago when he died. Thousands more lined the train route when his body was sent back to Quincy,” said Brother Jordan.
How is it that Father Tolton was so famous at the time of his death, but now very few know his story? Brother Jordan said racism and a lack of promotion caused him to fade into the background, but that now is a critical time for Father Tolton.
“The work begins with you. You have got to tell the story,” he urged. Brother Jordan outlined four priorities for the faithful who wish to support Father Tolton’s cause. “The first and foremost is to pray, asking God to prove to the world that heaven and earth made a connection through the intercession of Father Tolton,” said Brother Jordan. “The second thing that needs to happen is catechesis,” he said. Brother Jordan also brought prayer cards and books for everyone, paid for by Father Ricardo Phipps, pastor of Christ the King. The third step is to tell the story, especially to children. Finally, said Brother Jordan, is to pay the cost for all the research and verification, currently at $264,000.
Brother Jordan closed by saying he has written a plan any parish or group can use to establish small groups who will pray together and share Father Tolton’s story. Father Phipps said he would like to establish a group at his parishes and will start spreading the word in the coming weeks.
Those who wish to learn more about Father Tolton can visit the website www.toltoncannonization.org.

Cathedral Holy Day Mass offered in Latin

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JACKSON – Dec. 8, the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception is the patronal feast day of the United States. It is a holy day of obligation. Because it is on a Monday, the Diocese of Jackson recommends no Vigil Masses for the feast day be scheduled on Sunday evening.
If a parish already has a Sunday evening Mass that Mass would fulfill the Advent Sunday obligation and not the feast day. Therefore to fulfill both obligations we will have to go to Mass two days in a row. If a parish is planning a Guadalupe celebration for Dec. 7, the Mass must be for the Advent Sunday Mass. The opening collect for the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe may be used to close the intercessions. Guadalupe festivities should not be held on Dec. 8.
At. St. Peter Cathedral, the 5:15 p.m. Mass will be in Latin, except for the Liturgy of the Word. “Latin is the first language of the church and the liturgy,” said Mary Woodward, director of the diocesan liturgy office. “We wanted to offer Latin on this feast to celebrate some of the ancient traditions of our church,” she added.
According to Woodward, the Mass will be the ordinary form of the Roman Rite and should not be confused with the extraordinary form, which is often called the Latin Mass. The Mass will include Gregorian chant, antiphons and Mass parts, including the Gloria, in Latin. The readings, homily, Creed and intercessions will be in English.
“The ordinary form is celebrated in Latin throughout the world. One of the most beautiful Masses in which I have participated was at St. Mary Major Basilica in Rome where it is celebrated every Sunday in Latin with choir,” Woodward said.
Members of UnaVoce are partnering with cathedral music director, James Scoggins, to select the chants and hymns. Father Joe Dyer will be the principal celebrant.
A worship aid is being developed so that congregants may actively participate in the Mass. All are welcome.

Golfers turn out for Catholic Foundation

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GLUCKSTADT – The 2014 Bishop’s Cup golf tournament attracted more than 80 golfers to sunny Lake Caroline Golf Course in Madison County. The tournament helps fund the Catholic Foundation of the diocese.

Father Patrick Noonan looks over items in the silent auction at the dinner following the Bishop's Cup golf tournament.

Father Patrick Noonan looks over items in the silent auction at the dinner following the Bishop’s Cup golf tournament.


Teams from parishes vie for the Bishop’s Cup trophy each year. St. Paul Parish in Flowood captured the trophy this year in the new “scramble” format instead of individual stroke play, which had been used in previous tournaments.
St. Paul had four parish teams competing in the tournament. Twelve other parishes had at least one team vying for the trophy and bragging rights for the year. With a scramble score of 55, St. Paul parishioners Dave Clements, Michael Kimbrell, Sean Oakley and Will White made up the winning foursome. Bishop Joseph Kopacz presented them with the trophy at the tournament banquet. St. Dominic Health Services’ team had the second lowest score with a 57.
Other golfers came from Greenwood, the defending champions; Brookhaven, Clinton, Jackson, Leland, Madison Natchez and Vicksburg. For the third year, St. Aloysius High School in Vicksburg has sent members of their golf team to play.
Bishop Kopacz tested his golfing skills along with several other members of the clergy. One foursome even included Father John Kuntz, a priest visiting from Minnesota. Father Charles Loyacono represented the Delta clergy, and Nick Adam represented the diocesan seminarians.
Bishop Joseph Kopacz shares some closing remarks with the banquet attendees following the golf tournament. (Photos by Mary Woodward)

Bishop Joseph Kopacz shares some closing remarks with the banquet attendees following the golf tournament. (Photos by Mary Woodward)


For many years the tournament was held at Colonial Country Club in Jackson, but Colonial closed this past year. Foundation golf committee members, led by chairperson, Steve Carmody, settled on Lake Caroline because of its links-style natural features and the close proximity of the Mermaid Restaurant, which hosted the tournament banquet.
Despite the course club house burning to the ground last spring, the tournament went on with great spirit, sport and camaraderie among the golfers. The day was on the cool side with a strong breeze, but the sun shone down upon the links providing some warmth as the day went on.
At the evening banquet golf prizes were awarded and attendees were able to bid on artwork, vacation packages, and various other objet d’art. More than 100 attended the evening festivities.
According to Rebecca Harris, executive director of the Foundation, this year’s tournament saw an increase in sponsors and golfers from last year. “The new ‘scramble’ format and venue provided a lot of excitement. We certainly appreciate all of our sponsors, players and vendors who helped make this year’s tournament such a success,” Harris remarked.
This year’s sponsors were: Acme Printing Co.; Bank Plus; Benchmark Construction Corp.; Brunini, Grantham, Grower and Hewes, PLLC.; Capital Glass Company, Inc.; Citizens National Bank; Coker & Palmer, Inc.; D2; Earle and Irene Jones, Ergon; Home-Land Title Real Estate Service; Insurance & Risk Managers; Insurance Consulting GroupKim and Gary Taylor; Lefoldt and Associates; Mike and Diane Pumphrey; Nucor Steel Jackson, Inc.; Old River Companies, Inc.; Raymond James; Rusty’s Boat; Southland Management; St. Dominic Health Services, and Tico’s.

In November, pause to remember those who have died

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By Mary Woodward
We are well into another November as 2014 marches on to its end. The Church traditionally honors the dead during this month. In our diocese we place the names of family and friends who have gone on before us marked with the sign of faith beneath the altar in St. Peter Cathedral. After the All Souls Mass, cathedral altar servers placed flowers on the graves of Bishops Richard Gerow and Joseph Brunini who are buried outside the cathedral in a cemetery for bishops.

An aerial view shows visitors looking at the Tower of London's poppy installation in London Nov. 4. The ceramic poppies symbolize the end of World War I and Remembrance Day, Nov. 11. (CNS photo/Hannah McKay, EPA)

An aerial view shows visitors looking at the Tower of London’s poppy installation in London Nov. 4. The ceramic poppies symbolize the end of World War I and Remembrance Day, Nov. 11. (CNS photo/Hannah McKay, EPA)

In Natchez on the Feast of All Souls, parishioners processed to Catholic Hill in the city cemetery and prayed around the graves of their ancestors in the faith. This year they honored Msgr. Daniel O’Beirne, who served in Natchez, Vicksburg and as Chancellor of the diocese. He was a great assistant to Bishop Richard Gerow in developing the vast archives for the diocese.
Other parishes and schools throughout the diocese marked All Saints Day with festive costumes for children mimicking favorite saints – it seems as always the Blessed Mother, St. Joseph and St. Francis were the most popular.
In November we also remember our veterans on the11th, this past Tuesday. Veterans Day honors all those who have served in the military and recognizes those still serving who will one day become veterans – please God.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I, the Great War and supposedly the war to end all wars. Unfortunately, it did not.
There was a news story on the other night which featured the red poppies immortalized in Canadian doctor, soldier and poet John McCrae’s poem written during WWI in 1915 – “In Flanders Fields.”

Natchez St. Mary Basilica parishioners process to Catholic Hill in the City Cemetery on Sunday, Nov. 2, the Feast of All Souls to pray and remember their Catholic ancestors. November is the month in which we honor the dead.(Photo by Patricia Murphy)

Natchez St. Mary Basilica parishioners process to Catholic Hill in the City Cemetery on Sunday, Nov. 2, the Feast of All Souls to pray and remember their Catholic ancestors. November is the month in which we honor the dead.(Photo by Patricia Murphy)

Poppies were the first signs of vegetation to grow again after the horrors of battles and death. Often “popping” up between graves on newly buried soldiers. The first stanza of the short poem sings:
In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
Varied stories are told about the writing of the poem and its publication, but in England this year to honor the 888,246 fallen soldiers from that country and its colonies in WWI, artists made 888,246 ceramic red poppies and placed them around the dry moat of the Tower of London with the help of countless volunteers in a process that took months. The moat was filled with a sea of red which could be seen from thousands of feet in the sky. It appears as a river of blood flowing around and out of the fortress.
No one knows exactly how many died in combat and from disease in the war to end all wars. Estimates go from six million to upwards of 15 million – this total includes Colonel John McCrae who after many years of treating the wounded himself died of pneumonia in 1918 in a military hospital.
Europe lost almost an entire generation of young men, who never came home to marry and start families. The Great War marked the end to horseback sword wielding battle charges and opened the door to weapons of mass destruction.

Flowers mark the graves of Bishops Richard Gerow and Joseph Brunini in the Bishops' Cemetery outside St. Peter Cathedral in Jackson. (Photo by Mary Woodward)

Flowers mark the graves of Bishops Richard Gerow and Joseph Brunini in the Bishops’ Cemetery outside St. Peter Cathedral in Jackson. (Photo by Mary Woodward)

And in that moat 888,246 lives are remembered – lives lost to a brutal war that left families and futures destroyed and landscapes scarred with trenches, barbed-wire and flowing blood. And in the cycle of nature, the poppies continue to grow and blow amidst this tragic human endeavor.
This November, I remember in a special way both my grandfathers one of whom spent 22 months as an artillery man in France during WWI and the other who wanted desperately to fight in this war but was caught in the worldwide flu epidemic of 1917 and never made it to foreign shores. I often wonder would I be here if he had made it to fight. So during this month honoring the dead take some time to remember all those among  family and friends who have gone on before us and also offer up some prayers for those who have no one to remember them.
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. Requiescant in pace.

Youth Briefs & Gallery

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[Show slideshow]

 

PEARL St. Jude Parish invites students high school age or older who play a band or orchestral instrument to play for the Christmas program before midnight Mass. Practices are on Sundays from 3 – 5 p.m.  until Christmas. Details: Pat O’Neil or the church office.

MERIDIAN St. Patrick Parish youth groups are collecting canned goods through Sunday, Nov. 23 to donate to Wesley House.

HERNANDO Holy Spirit Parish, youth in seventh through 12th grade are encouraged to help sort and pack Thanksgiving baskets for the elderly poor of the community on Sunday, Nov. 23, starting at 3 p.m. in the Family Life Center. A pizza supper will follow.

CLEVELAND Our Lady of Victories Parish CYO is selling T-shirts to raise money for a few trips they have planned. Order forms with the T-shirt design may be picked up at the back of the church, or in the church office. Forms and money must be turned in before Nov. 21. Details: Jenifer, 662-846-6273.