Author Archives: Joanna King

Parish children rally for change

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By Joanna Puddister King
CANTON – On Aug. 11, just days after many children of immigrants felt the ultimate fear of never seeing their parents again, the children of Sacred Heart parish rallied and prayed for change on the historic Canton courthouse square after the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids on Wed., Aug. 7 rocked six Mississippi communities.

Signs carried by the children as they marched included messages of fear and reform. Two young girls carried a sign that read, “I will not sit in silence while my parents are taken away.” Another young boy’s sign read, “Immigration should not be only for the rich! We need change,” a message that resonated with 18-year-old Dulce Basurto-Arce, who spoke on the courthouse steps.

“It is very difficult to come to the United States legally,” said Basurto-Arce. “Most of the families who come here can’t afford the process to come in legal(ly). In today’s society becoming legal is only for the rich. . . . We are all humans. We all deserve the same opportunity. It should not be a crime to work for a better life, a better future for their kids. Something they didn’t have back in their country.”

The event lasting about one hour included laps around the courthouse with pauses for prayer, refection, song and unity. The crowd of about 100 were out to show their support and love, some having signs of their own – “Migration is an act of courage.”

For the final lap, Mary Hicks, a young adult who organized the event, called for those present to march for change and hold hands with some of the children who were now missing a parent.

In closing, Hicks thanked the crowd for their support and then spoke directly to the kids. “I want y’all to look out at all of these people that don’t have any idea how you are feeling, but they are out here to support you in this hot sun, in this heat. They are out here because they love you and they care about you.”

Through tears, Hicks continued, “And I know that there is a lot of hate out there in the world, but these people care about you. And there are a lot more that care about you, so know that you are not alone.”

Journey of Hope for football star Rocky Bleier

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By Joanna Puddister King
JACKSON – From winning the Purple Heart and the Bronze Star for his service in Vietnam, to playing football with the Pittsburg Steelers and winning four Super Bowl rings, Rocky Bleier is the true definition of success.

He played college football at the University of Notre Dame and graduated in 1968 with a degree in business management. While there he led the Fighting Irish to a National Championship in 1966 and served as team captain in 1967.

After college, Bleier experienced two drafts. The first was by the NFL to the Pittsburg Steelers. He saw little action in his first year but did not know a second draft awaited him in December of 1968 into the U.S. Army, as his rookie year ended.

At a time when President Nixon was coming into office, Bleier found himself serving on the battle fields of Vietnam. After his platoon was ambushed, he was seriously injured, losing part of his foot in a grenade blast and was told by doctors he would never play professional football again.

After such harrowing, heart-wrenching news, where did Bleier find the strength and courage to go on to win four Super Bowl rings?

Bleier will tell his story on Tuesday, Oct. 8 at the Jackson Convention Complex for Catholic Charities Journey of Hope fundraiser luncheon at 12 p.m. A sponsorship meet and greet event will be held Monday, Oct. 7 at 6 p.m., where guest will have the opportunity to meet and take pictures with Bleier.

Julie O’Brien, development associate at Catholic Charities, feels that Bleier is the perfect fit for their Journey of Hope event. “[He] has a tremendous message of encouragement, hope and helping those who have been less fortunate in life. His support of veterans and their families coincides with our Supportive Services for Veteran families program and the other programs at Catholic Charities,” said O’Brien.

For over 50 years, Catholic Charities has strived to provide help and create hope for residents of the 65 counties of the Diocese of Jackson. With a breadth of services that include adoption, mental health counseling, refugee and immigrant services, domestic violence shelters and counseling, housing for low-income families and elderly, emergency assistance and veteran support, among many others, Catholic Charities is here to serve all of God’s children.

Being a veteran himself, Bleier appreciates how Catholic Charities works to provide housing stability among low-income veteran families and the outreach and case management services the organization provides to them.
“I have seen the difficulty that some of our veterans have in making the transition from military to civilian life. I believe that home ownership is one of the foundations for that transition and veterans are a proud group of people who at times find it difficult to ask for help,” says Bleier.

For the Journey of Hope event, Catholic Charities needs table leader volunteers. Information on the event and volunteering can be found at www.catholiccharitiesjackson.org or by contacting Julie O’Brien at 601-326-3758, email Julie.obrien@ccjackson.org.

ChristLife offers personal growth and renewal

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By Joanna Puddister King
JACKSON/NATCHEZ – A renewal of evangelization efforts has been underway for some time in the Catholic Church, ChristLife being one of those endeavors. The goal of ChristLife is to increase active participation in parishes and to call church members to a closer, more meaningful relationship with Jesus Christ.

Designed for Catholics, the three-part program consists of three courses of seven weeks each. The first course, Discovering Christ, invites people of all backgrounds to open the door to encountering Jesus and be a part of the Church. Following Christ, the second course, covers Catholic discipleship, including daily personal prayer, hearing God in Scripture, the power of the sacraments, forgiving one another and spiritual warfare, among others. The final component of the program, Sharing Christ, equips Catholics with the practical skills to proclaim the Gospel and invite others into a personal relationship with Jesus. All of these elements combine to enrich community members and build up spirits that will last long beyond the course dates.

The ChristLife program has been run at several parishes within the diocese with much success. Nancy McGhee, parishioner at Jackson St. Richard, attended the program at Flowood St. Paul several years ago, the first parish to offer the ChristLife program in the diocese.

“I personally experience renewal and spiritual growth from the ChristLife program. I am totally interested in evangelization of adults and being a part of helping others experience the power of the Holy Spirit and a deeper personal relationship with Jesus Christ,” said McGhee.

Having been involved in charismatic renewal, the Cursillo movement, Renew, developing the small church communities and a “Go Make Disciples” class at Jackson St. Richard, McGhee feels that ChristLife has some of the best parts of all those programs.

“I think people who really go through the whole ChristLife program with a sincere desire to gain a deeper faith relationship with Jesus and to be renewed in the power and gifts of the Holy Spirit do receive that,” says McGhee. “This in turn, makes all that we do as The Church more meaningful … the sacraments, getting involved in church activities, furthering religious education, helping the poor, wanting to be a part of a small faith community, feeling more a part of the parish in general and most importantly gain an excitement about lay discipleship . . . sharing your faith and the love of Christ with others in ordinary everyday ways, inviting people in, reaching out to people that our pastor would never see or know, doing our part in growing the Kingdom with the love of God shining through us in our imperfect beings.”

Natchez St. Mary Basilica will be using the ChristLife program for the first time this Fall. Out of a series of book studies, the Parish Council and a group of parishioners developed an action plan for moving the parish forward in a number of areas, including deepening the Christ-focus of both individual parishioners and of the parish as a whole. The first step was to find and implement a parish-wide program with this focus.

Ruth Powers, program coordinator at St. Mary Basilica, said, “After talking with parishioners from St. Jude in Pearl, who had taken part in the Discovering Christ program and seeing how excited they were about ChristLife, that is the one we chose. We have been working with a Christlife consultant since March on getting the necessary teams formed to implement the program.”

Powers “hope(s) that by the end of the program parishioners whose relationship with Christ is not a major focus in their lives will be moved toward Christ as a focus; that parishioners who have a relationship with Christ will have that relationship deepened and that those with a deep relationship will be on fire to share that relationship with others. We have found that Catholics in general do not seem to be comfortable with sharing Christ with others for a number of reasons. Our hope is that this experience will begin to break down those barriers, because God knows our communities and our world need Christ right now.”

Both Jackson St. Richard and Natchez St. Mary Basilica plan to offer the three-part series of ChristLife. There is no fee to participate and the program includes meals and childcare is offered if needed. All are welcome to register and attend.

Jackson St. Richard will be offering a daytime Discovering Christ program beginning on Thursday, August 29 in Foley Hall. Classes will meet Thursdays at 10 a.m. with a Saturday retreat scheduled for September 28. To register visit saintrichard.com/christlife or call Nancy McGhee at 601-942-2078.
Natchez St. Mary will begin their inaugural offering of the ChristLife series on Sunday, October 6 at the O’Conner Family Life Center. Classes will meet Sundays at 5:30 p.m. with a Saturday retreat scheduled for October 27. For more information or to volunteer contact Ruth Powers at 601-445-5616.