Category Archives: Diocesan News

Bishop, superintendent support school choice effort

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – Bishop Joseph Kopacz and Diocese of Jackson School Superintendent Catherine Cook signed a letter urging Mississippi Lawmakers to expand school choice in the state by passing Senate Bill 2623. The bill made it out of the committee process, but as of the publication day for this issue, the House has not debated it.
SB 2623 would expand eligibility for the state’s existing Education Savings Accounts (ESA) to all public school students, students entering kindergarten or first grade, students in foster care, children of active duty military, and siblings of eligible students. The ESA would be funded at $6,500 for special needs students and at 95 percent of the state’s formula for all others, which comes to about $5,700.
Basically, parents who qualify would get access to an account or debit card to use for their child’s education. The bill gives preference to students with special needs. Two-thirds of the Catholic Schools in the diocese serve special needs students and stand ready to enroll more.
The letter from Bishop Kopacz and Cook states, in part, “The Catholic Church teaches that parents are the primary teachers of their children and that public support should empower their choice to send their children to schools that fit their conscience. Expanding eligibility for the ESA, while prioritizing those students with special needs and from low-income families, will allow parents a real option in choosing an education that best fits their child’s learning needs.
“The Catholic schools of Mississippi have long served the neediest students and communities, educating Catholics and non-Catholics across income-levels and racial groups. Our schools have offered a well-rounded education to Mississippians for generations, and we stand ready to give an opportunity to the families who would benefit from an expanded ESA.”
The bishop and Cook got some unexpected assistance in this effort this year thanks to a mission appeal trip the bishop took to Indianapolis. When Bishop Kopacz was preaching in Indiana he met Brittany Vessely, executive director of Catholic Education Partners, a non-profit organization whose mission is to help more families have access to Catholic education. One of the services Catholic Education Partners offers is advocacy and education in states where school choice could help the community.
The organization sent Greg Dolan to Mississippi. He delivered the letter to lawmakers, helped answer questions and visited Jackson area schools during Catholic Schools Week. He explained that the current bill is not a new program. The state already has ESAs. This bill simply expands the categories of eligibility.
“This program is in existence and functionally it wouldn’t change very much. Really, the same process would go on in that parents are given a portion of the funds used for their public education,” he explained. Dolan added that school choice programs are about empowering parents to make decisions in their children’s best interest regardless of their income or location.
“We don’t do this (support school choice) because we want Catholic schools to have higher enrollment. We do it because this is what the church has taught for at least 150 years in our modern schooling environment – that the state should support parents in choices they make for good education. I happen to think personally that more people, if they had the option, would choose Catholic schools,” said Dolan.
The letter was only part of the effort to support this issue. Students from across the diocese attended a School Choice rally at the capitol on Tuesday, Jan. 23. Wearing bright gold scarves, the students provided a backdrop for advocates to speak to lawmakers about the bill.
A group even came down from Greenwood St. Francis of Assisi. St. Francis principal Jackie Lewis said she believes parents should have the right to choose the education best for their students. “My child might need something different from your child. You have to look at the specific child and the specific family and find the school that fits,” said Lewis. “Public school is not one-size-fits-all, nor is private or parochial school,” she added. The advocacy group Empower Mississippi helped organize the trip for the St. Francis students.

Hope Haven doubles capacity, expands services

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By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – Catholic Charities’ Hope Haven Residential, the only crisis stabilization unit for adolescents in the state of Mississippi, will double the number of teens it can serve thanks to a new facility. The new home can accommodate 16 young people and will have an exercise room and a space for arts and crafts as well as group activities.
On Thursday, Jan. 25, a moving crew along with the staff of Hope Haven and other Catholic Charities programs rolled up their sleeves to haul beds, dressers, couches and everything else needed to make a home. They set up bedrooms, common areas, offices and more in hopes of having the new facility up and running by mid-February. The Knights of Columbus from Flowood St. Paul Parish followed to paint and make repairs.
Michelle Hamilton is the director of Hope Haven. She said the new home is more conducive to the needs of the program and she is very excited about expanding. Teens in acute crisis spend 14 days in Hope Haven. “They receive individual and group therapy. We give them a physical and a TB test. They meet with our psychiatric nurse practitioner to review their medications, if they have them, or consider if they may benefit from medication,” she explained.
The teens aren’t the only ones who get care. “We take in the youth and their families,” said Hamilton. Therapists work with the whole family to determine what has caused the behavior or situation that prompted the teen to go to Hope Haven. They then work with both the teen and family to resolve conflict and develop coping skills to help everyone in the future. The family participates in the therapy so healing and progress can continue beyond the stabilization period.
If a teen needs more residential treatment after two weeks, “we help find the right place for them. We provide referrals and facilitate the move,” said Hamilton.
Being able to expand services at Hope Haven will make the therapy done there stronger. “We are very excited about the exercise room and the arts and crafts,” said Hamilton. “The teens need to figure out new coping skills. That looks different for different people. Some have never been taught coping skills at all,” she added. She said when a child finds the right activity – a long walk, painting or drawing or exercise or meditation or any number of other things, he or she knows immediately when it’s the right coping skill for them. Being able to offer a variety of things to try makes Hope Haven an even better program.
“We are very excited to move into a larger facility that will allow us to provide more services and reach more children who need help,” said John Lunardini, COO for Catholic Charities. “With so few options in the state for teens who need mental health care, this expansion makes sense. It also fits into the mission at Catholic Charities to reach out to the most vulnerable. When we see a place where we can do more, we are going to step up and expand or improve our offerings,” Lunardini added.
The new facility will also have a clothing closet for the teens. Hamilton said Hope Haven would welcome donations for the closet, arts and crafts room, snacks for the residents and even gift cards. “Gift cards for restaurants and movies help us because we like to take outings with the residents,” said Hamilton. Those who wish to donate can contact Hope Haven at (601) 371-1809 or email michelle.hamilton@catholiccharitiesjackson.org or tammie.harper@catholiccharitiesjackson.org

Peregrinación por la vida en Locus Benedictus

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Por el padre Michael McAndrew, CSsR
GREENWOOD – El 20 de enero, unas setenta y cinco personas asistieron a la segunda Peregrinación por la Vida en el Santuario de María, Madre del Delta, para celebrar la vida desde la concepción hasta la muerte.
La peregrinación celebra la valoración de la “prenda perfecta” de la vida; un término acuñado por el cardenal Joseph Bernardin en una conferencia de 1983, afirmando que los obispos deben considerar como cuestiones provida no solo el aborto, pero tambien la inmigración, la atención a los ancianos, la pena de muerte, la proliferación nuclear y otros asuntos que amenazan el respeto de vida humana.
El día incluyó una caminata de tres millas, con cinco paradas para reflexionar sobre los valores de la vida que incluían el derecho a la vida como un niño; la dignidad y el respeto de las personas de todas las culturas, idiomas y razas; lo sagrado de nuestro medio ambiente; respeto por los ancianos y aquellos que sufren enfermedades; y celebrando la juventud.
Bailarines aztecas de Jackson dirigieron la ruta. Después de la caminata, testimonios fueron brindados por una persona quien sobrevivió cáncer tres veces, un médico, un capellán de la prisión, un ministro de la juventud y un niño (un ciudadano de los EE. UU.) cuyo padre se encuentra en medio de un proceso de deportación. Todos estos testimonios exigen celebrar la vida, la dignidad humana y la fe.
Los participantes viajaron desde Jackson, Greenwood, Greenville, Cleveland, Vardaman, Memphis, Batesville y otros lugares. El obispo Kopacz cerró este día de celebración y oración con el santo sacrificio de la misa.

(El padre redentorista, Michael McAndrew, vive en Greenwood como parte de la comunidad de sacerdotes que sirven a los hispanos en el Delta)

Fotos por Hermana María Elena Méndez, MGSpS

St. Christopher Parish dedicates new Glenmary Hall

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By Mike Talbert
PONTOTOC – Gaudete Sunday, the third Sunday of Advent, was an appropriate day for the standing-room crowd of 250-plus at Pontotoc St. Christopher Parish to dedicate the new multipurpose parish hall.
The dedication activities were centered around a bilingual Mass celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz. He noted that this Sunday was part of the celebration and preparation for Christmas, a time for thanksgiving.
“The Mass is always a prayer of thanksgiving,” the bishop said. “We give thanks a little more so because of the dedication of this building.”
The building was named Glenmary Hall in honor of the Glenmary Home Missioners, who helped found and build St. Christopher during a 50-year period from 1965 to 2015. The church grew from a storefront mission to one of the larger Christian congregations in Pontotoc County. Liz Dudas of the Glenmary Home Office in Nashville represented Glenmary for the dedication. Dudas has long been active in North Mississippi mission activities.
Joining as concelebrants of the Glenmary Hall dedication mass were Glenmary priests, Father Gerry Peterson (known in the community as Father Pete), whose Hispanic ministry operated for 13 years out of Pontotoc, retired Glenmary President, Father Robert Dalton of Houston, and Father Tim Murphy, the current pastor..
In honoring the effort so many that went into the new structure, that replaced an aging doublewide trailer, Bishop Kopacz, in his dedication, asked a “blessing for all the labor that went into the building and the building itself.”
In recognition of those efforts, Danna Johnson, Coordinator of Hispanic Ministry at St. Christopher, revealed plaques, one in English and one in Spanish, that will be a permanent part of Glenmary Hall entryway. The plaques demonstrate that the building of Glenmary Hall was a community effort involving many contributions of money and personal effort.
Among those honored on the plaque were those whose donations helped make the construction possible, including Elmon and Bonnie Thomas, and the Hodges family Zeke, Karen and Billy, who made their donation in memory of their late nephew Robert E. Woolard III.
“Their financial generosity was a great blessing,” Johnson said.
Also honored were those who provided at lot of the hands-on work on the new hall, including much of the carpentry, roofing, painting and finishing work.
“They were our Saint Josephs, our expert carpenters,” Johnson said. “Their work is a testimony to God’s presence among us.”
Those “St. Joseph” workers include Martin Jara, the Marcelino Ramos family, Luis Gordillo, the Oscar Zuniga family and the Miguel Torres family.
Also among those honored were the George Adrian memorial that allowed the completion of landscaping work, and David and Teri Strange, who donated sound equipment. David, with his brother Danny installed the sound system for the new building, which will not only be a parish hall but will service for Sunday Hispanic mass. Segio Vega and Mi Pueblo Restaurant donated kitchen equipment.
Inclosing the presentation, Johnson said, “We also want to thank Father Tim Murphy, our pastor, whose dedication and support made this possible.”

(Mike Talbert is a retired newspaperman who grew up attending Mass at the original storefront church in Pontotoc!).

40 Days uses Lenten season to support suspense

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Book review:

By Donna Biggert
With his latest novel 40 Days, Joe Lee has created another page-turner set in the fictitious Mississippi town of Oakdale. The story begins with the protagonist, Duane Key, starting to realize he must make some drastic changes to set right the results of a life of bad decisions. Joe writes him with an all-too-believable list of screwed-up relationships, but gives him true-to-life redeeming characteristics while he surrounds him with a faithful lifelong friend, a sincerely loving girlfriend, and a precious six year old son.


Additional characters like Duane’s self-centered egotistic career-minded wife Toni, his crazy ex-girlfriend and Oakdale’s librarian, Candi Redding, as well as the individuals they each interact with, also display an overabundance of mixed-up personalities indicative of real life. As with his other seven novels, Lee develops his characters to the extent that you feel you know them. With his meticulous descriptions and every-day life details, he makes Oakdale seem like many a small Mississippi town, with colorful and off-color citizens, nosy neighbors and a laid-back pace.

The faith-based element of this story makes it a little different from Lee’s previous novels. With references to the Catholic Church, a tremendously understanding priest, and the Lenten Season, this book is a good representation of a lay Catholic’s grasp of God’s love. Particular descriptions about Duane’s baptism, the church, and God’s love and forgiveness are comforting reading for a believer. The entire story is built around an almost unbelievable numerical countdown that Duane experiences which only he can see. Lee even numbers the chapters in descending order to accentuate the countdown of forty days, emphasizing that time is running out. As the suspense builds with the countdown, so does the sense of urgency for making amends for past misdeeds.

The all-too-lifelike unpredictability of troubled individuals is played out in several scenarios. Virtues like hope and charity as well as the determination to correct past misdeeds are demonstrated all through the story.

As Duane, the protagonist, deliberately and methodically sets about making many big and positive changes in his life, the writer uses the countdown to underscore the sense of urgency Duane feels. True remorse, forgiveness, and redemption are threaded throughout the pages.

40 Days, like Joe Lee’s other novels, is an easy and entertaining read. The characters are at once familiar and believable and while they don’t necessarily behave in a moral way, the reader is left with insight into the rightness of making amends while there is time.

(Donna Biggert is a parishioner of Madison St. Francis of Assisi. Joe Lee is a Madison author and publisher.)

Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference builds hope, encourages catechists

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By Cathy Hayden
KENNER, La. – The Diocese of Jackson was well-represented among about 1,200 Catholics who attended the Jan. 11-13 Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference in Kenner, La.
Among the parishes sending catechetical leaders to the “Go! Build a Future of Hope” conference were Pearl St. Jude, Natchez St. Mary, Yazoo City St. Mary and Jackson Holy Family. Most of those attending the 36th annual conference were lay ministers to children, youth and adults in dioceses throughout Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
“For the Diocese of Jackson, we are fortunate to have such a first-rate conference that is very reasonably priced and offers such great quality speakers, workshops and vendors. I love seeing our folks there,” said Fran Lavelle, director of the Office of Faith Formation and Religious Education for the Diocese of Jackson.
Lavelle, a member of the planning committee, said the theme of “hope” was discerned in 2016 and was “truly the work of the Holy Spirit … A huge part of the success of the conference (is) that we really trust the Holy Spirit and one another.”
Over the three days, participants were challenged to withstand today’s cultural storms and were rejuvenated with talks centering around hope inspired by Pope Francis’ recently published “On Hope.”
“The conference was very enjoyable, with sessions that pertained to a variety of ministries and some that simply nourished the soul,” said Margaret Riordan of St. Jude. “In addition to the talks that included information on music and liturgy, I especially enjoyed the session on ‘Praying Our Lives: Hope for the Restless Heart,’ which introduced the Ignatian Examen.”
Gladys Russell of Jackson Holy Family Parish goes to the conference every chance she can get. “Each time I have been able to attend the Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference, I have left with information on new ways to meet the Faith Formation needs of our parishioners,” said Russell. “Information shared at this years conference, from research done on ‘why young people leave the church,’ was especially helpful. I hope we at Holy Family, will be able to use the information to keep our young people involved in parish life,” she added.

KENNER, La., Mary Birmingham presents “Catechesis and the Catechumenate” at the Gulf Coast Faith Formation Conference. Helen Benson, director of religious education for Vicksburg St. Michael is visible in the red sweater. (Photo by Rhonda Bowden)

Keynote speakers included an opening day tag team presentation by Dr. Veronica Rayas, director of the Office of Faith Formation for the Diocese of El Paso Texas, and Dr. Joe Paprocki, a national consultant for faith formation at Loyola Press. The two of them laid the groundwork for the rest of the conference. With families no longer living in a Catholic “bubble,” they declared the current catechesis delivery “broken” and in need of repair.
“We have a new reality. The answer is not in the past,” he said.
Among Paprocki’s suggestions to repair were 1. Instigating faith instead of indoctrinating, 2. Forming small faith groups, 3. Empowering parents to be primary catechists and 4. Empowering adults to share their faith with one another.
Adding to that, Rayas emphasized that, especially with young people, the most powerful catechetical pathways are community, prayer and service.
On day two, psychologist Dr. Tim Hogan used humor in describing today’s “cultural hurricane” with revolutionary changes in technology, economic, information, relationships and religion disrupting the patterns of life we once knew. He described the result as an opportunity for responding by “priming ourselves for gratitude” instead of negativity.
Wrapping up the third day was Brian Butler, executive director of Dumb Ox Ministries, who inspired with stories of hope coming from often dark circumstances. “We have to choose to hope,” he said.
Breakout sessions appealed to a variety of church ministries, all targeting how to bring hope through catechesis to children, youth and adults.
“One could not leave “Go! Build a Future of Hope” without feeling renewed HOPE,” said Joyce Brasfield Adams, coordinator of Faith Formation at Jackson Holy Family Parish. “Each keynote speaker and each concurrent session leader gave concrete examples and practical ways to continue to hope. The session that touched me most deeply was, ‘Making Hope Real,’ led by Becky Eldredge. She led us into prayer with the acronym HOPE (Hark, Open, Pray and Encounter) based on Mark 2: 1-12. The session was not just a presentation, but a spiritual experience.”
(Cathy Hayden, a member of the RCIA team at St. Jude in Pearl, received a Master of Theological Studies degree from Spring Hill College in May 2017. She is director of Public Relations at Hinds Community College. See her related column on page 12.)

Father Joseph Dyer retires

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FOREST – Father Joseph Dyer celebrated his retirement with a Mass at the Crudup Community Center in Forest on Sunday, Jan. 14. The St. Michael community gave him a beautiful farewell which included a trilingual (English, Spanish and Vietnamese) Mass celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz. Bishop Kopacz thanked him for his almost 40-years of service in the diocese. In his remarks, Father Joe thanked his parish community for their love. (Photos by Sister Maria Elena Mendez)

National Migration Week tells story of many journeys, one family

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By Maureen Smith
How can the church minister to and be strengthened by a new wave of immigrants from South and Central America? According to Dr. Hossfman Ospino, an associate professor of Hispanic ministry and religious education at Boston College, both the nation and the church have done it before and will be able to do it again. Ospino came to the Diocese of Jackson to lead and participate in a series of workshops and encounters in deanery five as part of National Migration Week, Jan. 7-13.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has been organizing a theme and providing educational materials for National Migration Week for almost 50 years as an opportunity for the Church to reflect on the circumstances confronting migrants, including immigrants, refugees, children, and victims and survivors of human trafficking.
“The theme of National Migration Week 2018 was ‘Many Journeys, One Family.’ In this context, Dr. Ospino gave a conference to pastors, Lay Ecclesial Ministers, leaders from different parishes and diocesan offices about the history of migration and how this phenomenon is re-defining the Catholicism in the 21st century,” explained Danna Johnson, coordinator of Hispanic Ministry for Pontotoc St. Christopher and head of the Catholic Charities office in Vardaman. “This was a learning experience and an opportunity to re-affirm our missionary spirit as one church here in this diocese,” she added.
In a recent article in America Magazine, Ospino compared the current influx of immigrants to when European Catholics poured into the States. Father Tim Murphy, pastor of Tupelo St. James Parish said he was encouraged by what he heard. “It’s challenging, but it’s possible. We have done this before, we have met the needs of other immigrant groups and we can do it again now,” he said. For both the European immigrants and the Hispanic immigrants, the church is at the center of their cultural experience so their presence is an opportunity to strengthen the church overall.
Father Murphy said Ospino’s statistics and suggestions “really affirm a lot of what we have been doing in this mission diocese.”
Father Murphy said beyond just research, Ospino brings a practical eye to his presentations. “He comes from a hands-on background. He did mission work and pastoral work and retreat work from the time he was 16-years old.”
Amelia McGowan, who heads the Catholic Charities Migrant Support Services, presented a video called “The Cost of Deportation.” The video is meant to raise awareness about what is happening in communities right here and help people comprehend the importance of knowing their rights. She also offered a free legal clinic to families who might have questions about their particular immigration status.
“Many Hispanic families from deanery five attended a unique presentation by Father Octavio Escobar and Ospino. Both presenters were able to challenge our roles as baptized, as Christians, and as immigrant Catholics in our communities,” Johnson said. “Father Octavio based his presentation on the article Dr. Ospino wrote in America Magazine,” she added.
On Friday, despite plummeting temperatures and ice and sleet pressing into the area, Ospino visited Vardaman. While there, he toured a sweet potato packing plant and took advantage of an opportunity to listen to a diverse group of local citizens and the advisory board of Northeast office of Catholic Charities, Inc. The group was able to share the challenges and opportunities all face in attending the different needs in this rural area of Mississippi. “He told me later this rural experience was new to him so the visit to Vardaman was mutually beneficial,” said Father Murphy.
“The outcome of this week was to have an opportunity to come together, as one family, to share, learn, and celebrate the Culture of Encounter,” said Johnson. “We believe that Amelia, Father Octavio, and Ospino made that possible. We all are blessed beyond measure with their presence among us,” she added.
“What we heard really ties in with the (Diocesan) Pastoral Plan to embrace diversity and inspire disciples,” said Father Murphy. He said he hopes he can host Ospino in Mississippi again at a later date.
To learn more about National Migration Week, go to https://www.sharejourney.org