Category Archives: Diocesan News

Purple Dress racers gather to ‘run’ domestic violence out of city

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JACKSON – Cindy Hyde-Smith, commissioner of the State of Mississippi Department of Agricultural and Commerce, welcomes a crowd of more than 400 people of all ages who attended this year’s Purple Dress Run on Thursday, Oct. 23. Proceeds from the event sponsored by Catholic Charities, benefit the battered women’s shelter. Purple-clad participants gathered before sundown at Jaco’s Tacos for the 5K run/walk through downtown Jackson in support of awareness for domestic violence issues. Sam Rhodes, 23, a visitor from Virginia who was invited by his family to enter the run, was the first to cross the finish line at 6:19 p.m. After the race the crowd gathered at Jaco’s Tacos to continue the celebration with food, music and drink.
Michael Thomas, development director for Catholic Charities, (contributer of photo), said this year’s race was the most successful so far raising $18,000. “People went all out to make this a festive, friendly event,” Thomas added.

College retreat inspires director

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By Fran Lavelle
My last official act as the campus minister for the college students at Mississippi State was a peer-led retreat at Lake Forest Ranch the weekend of October 17-19. This year’s theme was “The One and Only” and the talks revolved around on the things that keep us from staying focused on God. The weekend was glorious. The weather was beautiful, the camp was enshrined with early signs of fall, and the students who took this spiritual

LAKE FOREST RANCH – John Suedel and Anna Jackson give a talk about time at the college retreat sponsored by the Office of Campus Ministry (Photo courtesy of Fran Lavelle)

LAKE FOREST RANCH – John Suedel and Anna Jackson give a talk about time at the college retreat sponsored by the Office of Campus Ministry (Photo courtesy of Fran Lavelle)

journey to the woods were exceptional. It was in a word: perfect. I was reminded of how precious and essential these opportunities away with God really are.
Once back in Jackson I wondered why more people don’t take advantage of opportunities to take retreats. One of the talks, given by college sophomores Anna Jackson from Starkville and John Suedel from Clinton, was on time. They correctly pointed out that we have a misguided concept of “making time” for God. God, they asserted, made time. We do not need to make more of it. What we do need, however, is recognize that God should not be appropriated to a few fleeting minutes in the “busyness” of our days.
Rather, they contended, God should be in all that we are and all that we do. In essence, all our words, actions and thoughts should be focused on bringing greater glory to God. If we “take” time to center ourselves on Christ and we take time to deepen our intimacy with Him we will as a result be more intentional and focused on God. I marveled at their awareness and insight.
It occurred to me that we “make” time for the things that matter most to us. We travel weekend after weekend to tournaments, juggle kids between activities, travel to major cities to hear our favorite artist in concert or spend an entire day taking in a college football game. Now, before you criticize me let me say I love the garden and enjoy entertaining dinner guests. I love watching the sunset. I love spending time with family and friends. I get it.
These are the activities that make life special. It is not in the “doing” of these things that trips us up. It is when we adopt “activity” over presence. It’s when we jump from activity to activity rendering ourselves completely exhausted at the day’s end. It’s when we are so busy taking pictures to post on social media that we failed to “see” what is actually happening. Perhaps we fail to recognize that how present we are to others impacts how present we are to God.
I was walking into the office this morning with the usual background sounds of city traffic, sirens and car radios. The juxtaposition of waking up Sunday morning to the calls of nature versus the daily noise of life called me to recognize why retreats really matter. We were not hard-wired for the fast-paced, instantaneous world we live in. However, we have become conditioned to accept the insidious pace of modern life.
I remember in the 80s my dad used to give me a hard time about yuppies being “stressed out” all of the time. Our world then was a cacophony of bleeping fax machines, conference calls and hauling around cell phones that were the size of a shoe box. We thought we were busy.
The speed of life has exponentially increased since then. We multitask, we devour media nearly 24/7, we are literally lost without our smart phones and Facebook reminds us daily of how we’re doing in “keeping up with the Joneses.” Psalm 46:10 reminds us, “Be still and know that I am God.” What better way than a retreat to help us find the space and the freedom to put on pause the duties that press us into frenzied activity?
Advent will soon be here. Perhaps a retreat would help integrate a prayerful experience in the midst of Christmas parties, shopping and decorating. You don’t have to make a special trip to a retreat center. If you love the beach, make a trip to your favorite coastal town. If you enjoy hiking a trip to the mountains may be just what you need to reconnect with God.
A favorite retreat for me has always been a weekend alone at a state park. I fast from noise – no radio, television or cds. I take a journal, my Bible and spiritual reading. In the beginning the silence is too much to bear. I think I’ll go crazy before the weekend ends. Many years later, the silence for me has become a welcomed opportunity. My visits with God rarely involve audible words.
My college students reminded me quite profoundly the misguided notion of making time for God. If we take two weekends a year for retreat, that leaves us with 50 more to do the other things we enjoy. If weekends away are not for whatever reason do-able let’s be aware of those pockets of time and space which allow our hearts and minds to be present to God, our One and Only.
(Fran Lavelle is the director of the Office of Faith Formation)

Annunciation explores expansion

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By Heather Skaggs
Columbus – Annunciation School is in the initial planning phase of expanding to possibly include ninth grade. Currently, the school serves students PreK 4 – 8th grade.
The school is looking at the possibility of adding a ninth grade class in the 2015-2016 academic year, with the hope of offering students the opportunity to complete grades PreK – 12th in the coming years. This is the result of a large number of ACS parents having voiced sincere interest in the addition of a ninth grade class and a commitment to the continued growth of the school.
Accoring to Joni House, ACS principal, enrollment has steadily increased over the past six years, with more than 10 percent total increase from the 2013-2014 academic year, and a 76 percent enrollment increase from six short years ago.
As a result, in August a new middle school building was added to accommodate the students. The new facility houses five large middle school classrooms and an updated computer lab used by the entire student population.
House said everyone is excited about the possibility of expanding the school to serve students in higher grades. “What we offer our students is unique to North Mississippi, and the commitment to high academic and moral standards will remain the same in the future and in all grades. I personally invite you to visit our school and experience the Annunciation difference for yourself,” House said.
Tours of the school are available daily by appointment. Contact Heather Skaggs, marketing and admissions director, 662-328-4479,  acsmarketing@cableone.net, to schedule a tour.

Catholic Build kicks off 29th year of partnership

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[Show slideshow]

 

JACKSON – At 7:45 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 18, Father Michael O’Brien of St. Richard Parish gathered with volunteers, Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area staff and homeowner Carolyn Madlock, to bless Catholic Build 2014 in Jackson. Every fall parishes in the Jackson area pool resources and volunteers to build a house for a family. This is the 29th year for the project.
Father O’Brien began with a reading from the Acts of the Apostles about how the early Christian community shared everything. “I thought that passage might be very appropriate because that is our version of that today – the community coming together, to make sacrifices, to work together, to give of their time and gifts and talents to build a house together for Carolyn and her family,” said Father O’Brien. Madlock is an employee of St. Dominic Hospital.
Ibby Joseph, a member of Madison St. Francis of Assisi has helped build 12 homes. “My husband got me started. It makes me feel useful. I agree that everyone deserves decent housing,” she said. “This is a little way that I can help. My sister teased me that the houses that I worked on will fall down. I don’t think they have,” joked Joseph.
Marion Coleman is a Habitat homeowner and a fellow employee at St. Dominic. She said she came out to pay it forward. Her coworker, Marshall Belaga, said this is his way of contributing to the overall health of the community. “One of the things that as a psychiatrist I deal with is a lot of people who live on the streets. Housing and a secure place to live, along with food, are a prerequisite to mental health,” he said.
Jim Jeter, chief development officer and foundation executive director at St. Dominic Health Services and member of the Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area Board of Directors, was on hand to work.
“Many people do not understand what a ‘not-for-profit’ healthcare organization really means. St. Dominic’s leadership and employee involvement in Catholic Build is one of many examples of how we try to give back to the community we serve,” Jeter said.
“Our only reason for existing is to serve our community with time, talent and treasure,” he explained. “We are a ministry of Christian healing, and Habitat is just one way that we give back. I am proud to serve on a board that truly helps individuals by giving a hand up, not a hand out,” continued Jeter.
Charles Graham, a member of Christ the King Parish, has been volunteering at Habitat builds for 18-20 years, volunteering initially in a community service project with fellow firemen. “I do it to give back. I have been blessed and want to pass on that blessing,” he explained. “I like building and repairing, and have the skills and tools. It was just a natural for me, when I retired from the fire department, to keep on volunteering at Habitat builds. Once you work on a build, you are hooked,” he noted.
Volunteers also came from Gluckstadt St. Joseph and the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle. Habitat homeowners must invest ‘sweat equity’ in their homes, meaning they work to help build and maintain their homes. The organization will help them learn about homeownership and money management even after they move in. Work will continue for two months.
Plans are already underway for the 2015 Catholic Build. For more info, contact Merrill McKewen, resource development director, Habitat for Humanity Mississippi Capital Area, at 601-353-6060.
(Peggy Hampton, Public Relations, Marketing and Fundraising Coordinator for Habitat for Humanity and Maureen Smith contributed to this report)

Special Kids, Scouts start fund-raising for new facilities

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Joshua R. helps prepare a meal as part of life skills training in the Special Kids Program.

Joshua R. helps prepare a meal as part of life skills training in the Special Kids Program.

By Maureen Smith
JACKSON – St. Richard Parish has officially kicked off an effort to build a new facility for the Special Kids Program as well as a Boy Scout building and parking lot. The building will be located on property already owned by the parish, across from the main church building.
The Special Kids Program serves young men and women with intellectual and emotional disabilities. Younger students take classes in St. Richard School while the older kids, age 13-21, go to a parish-based program currently located in a house owned by the parish. There, teachers Kim Turner, Lindsay Blaylock and Agnes Morgan build individualized education plans for each student based on their strengths and needs. “It is the best place to be,” said Turner. “These kids are happy. The program offers a calm, stable, happy place and they are learning over here,” she added.
Because each student’s needs and goals are different, they all get very personal attention to learn life skills such as cooking, shopping, cleaning and how to navigate social situations. The students visit the public library, plan menus, shop for, cook and serve meals to special guests and run a small gift booth in the parish office. During the academic portion of the day they will all focus on one theme, but each will get a personalized lesson. “Let’s say we’re talking about money. Some kids will be counting money from the gift booth and talking about how to use it while others will just be recognizing forms of money,” Turner explained. When the students go shopping each one has a specific job. One may push the cart while another uses a written shopping list. Still another may use pictures to find needed items.

Before Special Kids Golf Tournament last year, Mary F. practiced putting.

Before Special Kids Golf Tournament last year, Mary F. practiced putting.

Every year the students host a golf tournament to raise money to support the program. This year the tournament was Thursday, Oct. 17. Turner said they prepared for weeks so the students would know what was expected of them. They have also planted a garden from which they can harvest their own food.
This is the only program in the diocese for children and young adults with these types of disabilities and Turner said the fact that it has a Catholic base is one of the aspects she loves best about it. Pastor Father Michael O’Brien agrees. He said the program is good for the whole St. Richard community, including the typical kids who take classes with the special kids in the separate elementary school program. “It is so good for them to go to school in that atmosphere,” he said. “It’s pro-life all across the board,” he went on to say.
The new development would also include a place for the Boy Scout troops to meet. That program was meeting in another house owned by the parish, but the structure is in need of repair. The special kids building, already named Farrell Hall in honor of Msgr. Patrick Farrell, who founded the Special Kids Program more than 30 years ago, would be connected by a porch to the Boy Scout building. An architect will design each to fit the needs of each program. Turner said updating the design would allow the program, which currently serves seven students, to expand.
A third goal of the project is to add off-street parking for events. Father O’Brien explained that the parish already owns some empty lots across the street. Currently people coming to events in Foley and Glynn Halls have limited parking along the street. Parish leaders decided to join the three efforts into one so the whole development could be cohesive. It will include landscaping and fit into the neighborhood.
Those who wish to donate can contact the parish. Donations can be earmarked specifically to each of the three projects. For more information, call the parish office at 601-366-2335.

Hispanic Ministries begins pastoral planning

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By Elsa Baughman
JACKSON – On Tuesday, Oct. 16,  the diocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry met for a second time this year with religious and lay Hispanic leaders and Bishop Joseph Kopacz to talk about the future of their work in light of a study released earlier this year.
The National Study of Catholic Parishes with Hispanic Ministries was conducted under the leadership of Hosffman Ospino, assistant professor of Hispanic ministry and religious education at the Boston College School of Theology and Ministry. The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate of Georgetown University collaborated in the study and the Diocese of Jackson participated in it.
During the morning session, Sister María Elena Méndez gave an overview of some the findings noting that the 20 million Hispanic immigrants currently living in the United States is four times the number of Irish immigrants who came between 1840-1960.
About this, Ospino said the church needs to develop a strategic plan to welcome and serve this predominantly Catholic ethnic group in the U.S. or risk alienating them.
Brother Ted Dausch, CFC, director of the Office of Hispanic Ministry, continued by saying his office will begin formulating a pastoral plan to guide their work. He told participants the office needs to know their dreams and goals so they can be incorporated into the plan.
He compared the present reality with that of the immigrants who came to this country in the 1900s and established “wonderful structures which helped support and invigorate their Catholic communities,” such as schools, hospitals, churches, etc.
“Now we need new structures that will help us too support and invigorate our communities,” he said, adding that is the reason to meet to talk about what is going on in their communities and what they want to change or add to their present reality in planning for their future.
Joel Montoya and his wife, Rosalinda, were invited to give their own experience as members of the Family Christian Movement, a program offered in the diocese through the Office of Hispanic Ministry. This program is now in its third year in the Jackson area which includes Forest and Carthage. In Tupelo, couples from New Albany and Houston are also participating.
Brother Dausch invited those present to talk with couples in their parishes about the movement and see if they are interested.
Father Lincoln Dall, pastor of Tupelo St. James Parish and the spiritual director of the movement in his parish, also gave information about how this program is working in the Tupelo area.
After lunch, Bishop Kopacz told participants there are a lot of good things happening within the Hispanic community. “I have seen that and experienced that when I have visited the different churches,” he said. “I commend you for all that is happening,” Bishop Kopacz added.
He mentioned he met recently with Brother Dausch and Sister Méndez and Sister María Josefa García of the Office of Hispanic Ministry to talk about laying the groundwork for a diocesan-wide process to bring people together to envision, to dream about the life of the diocese.
“Unity in our diocese, that is always the dream,” he said. “That was Jesus’ dream in the Last Supper, before he died, that we all may be one. So we will continue working on that. “

Redemptorists commissioned by Bishop Kopacz

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By Elsa Baughman
GREENWOOD – “Here we are, called by the grace of God,” announced Father Harry Grile, CSsR, provincial superior for the Redemptorists of the Denver Province, during a special commissioning Mass for the four Redemptorist priests who are serving in the Mississippi Delta.

Bishop Joseph Kopacz prays the prayer of commissioning for the four Redemptorist priests as members of the Hispanic ministry initiative in the Mississippi Delta. The Mass was celebrated in the newly built Chapel of Mercy on the grounds of the Locus Benedictus Retreat Center. (Photo by Elsa Baughman)

Bishop Joseph Kopacz prays the prayer of commissioning for the four Redemptorist priests as members of the Hispanic ministry initiative in the Mississippi Delta. The Mass was celebrated in the newly built Chapel of Mercy on the grounds of the Locus Benedictus Retreat Center. (Photo by Elsa Baughman)

Several priests, religious and lay ministers joined Father Grile and Bishop Joseph Kopacz in the new, tiny, Chapel of Mercy, Wednesday, Oct. 15, at noon.
Fathers Patrick Keyes, Ted Dorsey, Scott Kastenberger and Thanh Dinh Nguyen, have committed to working in Hispanic ministry in the Delta for five years.
During the homily, Father Grile said he was very happy to be in Mississippi. He told the story of his congregation and their journey to minister in the United States in 1832. “There is something in our blood, the Redemptorists, that where there is a need, where there are people that God calls us to, sometimes those living in the margins of society, that is where our heart goes out,” he said.
The strategy of the church, Father Grile said, is “you gather the people (Hispanics, in this case), you tell the story (the love and mercy of God) and you break the bread (Jesus, whose life was broken for us).”
At the end of Mass, with the four priests gathered around the altar Bishop Kopacz said, “. . . In the name of Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, I, Bishop Joseph Kopacz commission you to preach the good news of Jesus Christ, in the manner of the great apostle St. Paul, to the communities of the Mississippi Delta. May God bless your labors and open the hearts of our people to hear the word of God.” Then he handed each one a cross which they placed inside their belts.
Bishop Kopacz thanked Father Grile for his glimpse into the length, breath, height and depth of the Redemptorist spirit and heroism in their mission and ministry in their serving of the Lord and their presence in the diocese.
“A lot of heart and mind has come together as we celebrate today. It’s very clear what the Lord is doing.”
Before the recessional hymn, Father Dorsey said it is a Redemptorist tradition in a gathering like this to end with a prayer for perseverance to Our Mother of Perpetual Help with the singing of the Salve Regina.
The Redemptorists’ motto is “with Him there is plentiful redemption.” Like St. Alphonsus Liguori, their founder, they follow Jesus the Redeemer in preaching this Good News to the poor.
A dinner, hosted by Lee and Magdalene Abraham, followed in the hall of the Tallahatchie Crest, a new building which houses the Locus Benedictus Retreat Center. The Abrahams are members of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish and owners of the land where the Chapel of Mercy was built.
In the Sept./Oct. 2014 newsletter the Redemptorists of the Denver Province, Father Keyes wrote, “The people of the Delta are people of great faith: churches are full on Sunday mornings. People generally don’t ask strangers where they work, they ask where they attend church.
This ministry is a daunting task, but St. Alphonsus, St. Clement and St. John Neumann are surely applauding the new initiative. In the people we minister to, we see the shepherds of Scala, the children of Warsaw and the immigrants of Philadelphia. No one needs to ask where the poor and abandoned are in the Delta. We are grateful to the Denver Province and to our benefactors who support this ministry.”

Embracing vocation takes sacrifice

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By Father Matthew Simmons
Vocation Awareness Week begins November 2. Since the week begins this year with All Souls Day, the National Conference of Diocesan Vocation Directors suggests we use Sunday, Nov. 9, the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica, to wrap up a week focusing on vocations awareness. The Lateran Basilica is the official ecclesiastical seat of the Bishop of Rome; and, as Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis has a special place in inspiring vocations to the priesthood not only for the Diocese of Rome but throughout the universal church.
“Behind and before every vocation to the priesthood or to consecrated life there is always the strong and intense prayer of someone: a grandmother, a grandfather, a mother, a father, a community…. Vocations are born in prayer and from prayer; and only through prayer can they persevere and bear fruit,” said Pope Francis.
One of the seminarians for the Diocese of Jackson recently designed a new vocations poster which you may have seen in your school or parish. It features a photograph of Bishop Joseph Kopacz laying hands on Father Rusty Vincent during the ordination Mass last summer. The poster also features the verse: “Do not conform to the customs of nations. I have set you apart to be my own” from Leviticus 20. Recently, many who work in vocation promotion are again focusing on the sacrificial element of following Christ. Both celibacy and marriage require making sacrifices.
I invite you to pray for the nine men currently in the seminary for our diocese. While seminary was a wonderful experience for me, it is also a place of discernment for priesthood. Each of these men is working to discover God’s plan for him. The vocations committee of Jackson St. Richard Parish prints a prayer card each year with the seminarians’ names as a way to personalize the prayer effort. The parish will also host a brunch on Sunday, Nov. 2, so people can support their education and meet the seminarians.
Lay people in the diocese can support the seminarians with their prayer, donations to the seminarian education fund or sending letters and cards of encouragement. Contact information for the seminarians can be found on the diocesan website www.jacksondiocese.org/about/offices/vocations/.

(Father Matthew Simmons is the director of the Office of Vocations for the Diocese of Jackson.)