Category Archives: Diocesan News

Two celebrate jubilees

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JACKSON – Sister Mary Trinita Eddington, OP, well known in the health care field of Jackson is celebrating 60 years as a Dominican Sisters of Springfield, Ill. Sister’s home parish is St. Cabrini in Springfield. She was baptized in St. Patrick’s Parish, Springfield.
She entered the Springfield community on June 27, 1952 and made her first profession of vows on Jan. 4, 1954. Sister Eddington received her MS in nursing administration from Indiana University, Indianapolis, IN; a BS from Marycrest College, Davenport, IA; her RN degree from St. Dominic School of Nursing, Jackson,  and a certificate as a family nurse practitioner from Mississippi University for Women, Columbus.

St. Dominic’s Hospital and Community Health Clinic has been her life ministry as a Springfield Illinois Dominican. Sister Eddington presently is vice-president of St. Dominic Community Health Services, Inc., director of St. Dominic Community Health Clinic, and a family nurse practitioner providing primary health care to the poor, homeless and disadvantaged in West Jackson.

SALTILLO – Father Benjamin Piovan celebrated 50 years of priesthood with a Mass at the mission in Saltillo, Mexico in March. Father Piovan was born in Padova, Italy, Feb. 24, 1936, and entered the Salesian Seminary at the age of 11. He came to the United Stated in 1953 and was ordained March 23, 1964.

He taught and served at schools in New Jersey and Louisiana before he became the pastor of the mission. He will have another celebration on May 29 at St. Charles Catholic High School in the Diocese of New Orleans.

St. Alphonsus School closes

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McCOMB – Parents and students learned Friday, April 4, that St. Alphonsus School will close at the end of this year. The school has seen declining enrollment for the past couple of years and despite efforts on behalf of the staff and administration, enrollment is again down for the upcoming year.

Principal Tim Roberts sent a letter home to parents so they could find a place for their students as soon as possible and promised refunds to everyone who pre-registered for next year. In an email to Mississippi Catholic he asked for prayers for the school community as they go through this transition. Both the preschool and elementary school will close.

“It is sad that St. Alphonsus was unable to sustain sufficient enrollment to remain a viable Catholic school for the community of McComb and Pike County,” said Catherine Cook, superintendent of Catholic Schools for the diocese.

“I commend Tim Roberts and the pastor, Father Brian Kaskie, for evaluating the situation in order to avoid sacrificing the quality of education offered and to prevent an unmanageable financial burden on the parish. Making the decision now in addition to providing parents with time to find alternative placement gives faculty and staff an opportunity to find employment rather than finding out in the summer when jobs may be more difficult to obtain,” Cook added.|

“Both St. Alphonsus Parish and the Diocese of Jackson sincerely appreciate the individuals and families who have supported the mission of Catholic Education in McComb, Mississippi, and the operation of this school for the many years it has existed. Throughout its history, St. Alphonsus Catholic School has helped create generations of spiritually enlightened and academically enriched citizens,” wrote Roberts in his letter.

Kairos ‘walk’ transforms lives

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PARCHMAN – There are many efforts and initiatives designed at reforming the criminal justice system. It is an arduous task needing committed people to take on the task of seeing beyond the surface and reaching an understanding of true rehabilitation of the whole person rather than short term solutions.

For the weekend of March 27-30, a Kairos “walk team” spent four days ministering with inmates at the State Penitentiary. Kairos is an ecumenical effort. Each team is made up of people from different Christian denominations.
Kairos “walks” are four days and three nights of sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is a spiritual retreat that developed out of the Cursillo Movement and is designed specifically to strengthen the faith of individuals who are incarcerated and transform them into faith-filled persons who will have a positive impact in prison and once released in the broader commnunity.

According to Kairos materials, “As the Kairos community inside a prison grows and begins to gain influence, the incidences of violence decrease. Incarcerated participants who are released re-enter the outside world with a God centered, perspective and focus on becoming productive citizens.
“Female family members find support, strength and encouragement. Youthful offenders acquire new God-centered values and change their direction in life. Families are reunited with a hope for the future.”

For this Kairos “walk,” Olive Branch Queen of Peace parishioner, Bryan Shaver, served on the team. It was his fifth “walk.” Shaver visited Mississippi Catholic shortly after the weekend at Parchman and shared his thoughts about the transformations among the inmates and among the team members.

“I got involved in Kairos after hearing a homily by Father Terry Langley sharing that he had wanted to serve in prison ministry when he retired,” Shaver said. “I had no clue that the next day, I would begin that  journey myself when a friend talked to me about Kairos.
“As part of the Prayer Team, I worked with the inmates who felt the need to share issues they had. We also would pray over them as they came in contact with Jesus Christ.
“In my ‘discovery’ talk I shared with them the need to study and pray on their new journey with Jesus Christ, he added.” During the “walk,” Shaver spent two 12 hour days praying with the inmates and four hours on Sunday, the closing day.

“The best story I can relate was when one of our ‘prayer warrior’ inmates shared with us some truly tough things he had experienced which caused him to end up in prison. He was so sorry for the lives he had hurt. The tears we all shed fell on my feet. I felt as though his tears from his sins washed my feet of my sins,” Shaver said in describing the experience.
In concluding his account of the most recent Kairos, Shaver shared a personal note: “I had no intention of going to prison but since my friend urged me, I just thought I would attend the first meeting and drop off. I am still here three years later and am forever changed.”

2014 Legislative review

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By Maureen Smith
Catholic advocates scored a couple of victories in the 2014 legislative session, including passage of the criminal justice reform bill and a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Other issues, such as Medicaid expansion, again languished. Here is a brief look at the session, which ended Wednesday, April 2.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM
The criminal justice reform bill has the cornerstone of this year’s Catholic Day at the Capitol (CDC). Governor Phil Bryant signed it into law Monday, April 1, and it will go into effect July 1. A task force wrote the mammoth bill, House Bill 585 (HB 585), which includes the opportunity for addicts to go to drug courts and get treatment instead of just jail time, new guidelines on the minimum amount of time served and offers other options to prevent jailing people with probation violations. The bill saw many revisions during the legislative process, but advocates are pleased with the start of what they hope will be more comprehensive reforms to come.

“Although motivated primarily by the escalating costs to the state for our huge prison population, the Mississippi Legislature did the right thing in passing criminal justice reform legislation,” said Msgr. Elvin Sunds, vicar general for the diocese. “Society needs to be protected from violent offenders and those who would commit serious crimes. However, we do not need to fill our prison beds with non-violent offenders and minor drug offenders.
“The objective of our criminal justice system should be reform and rehabilitation so that individuals can return to society as productive citizens. This legislation takes a big step in the right direction by emphasizing alternative to incarceration and by providing judges more discretion in sentencing,” he added

“HB 585 will lead to tremendous improvement in the criminal justice system but it is just a beginning. For example, the law will significantly expand eligibility for drug courts but the funding for the expansion has not been provided.  Despite a significant increase in funds for drug courts in the Administrative Office of the Courts appropriation, from $4 million to nearly $8 million, the estimated cost of full implementation is $11 million,” said Andre de Gruy, a member of the Criminal Justice Task Force which wrote the bill. He said while more work needs to be done, this bill includes the ability to do that because it established a follow-up task force to measure outcomes.

“Another area that will need significant improvements is re-entry programs. With people transitioning from prison to the ‘free-world’ there will need to be services to help them adjust to their new circumstances. One of the best provisions of HB 585 is the establishment of an oversight task force to monitor its implementation,” said de Gruy, who is also Catholic.

At CDC, advocates explained that Mississippi has the nation’s second highest rate of incarceration, but there is no proof this practice lowers crime rates or recidivism. De Gruy said many of the reforms lined up with the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops’ 2000 statement “Responsibility, Rehabilitation and Restoration: A Catholic Perspective,” calling for restorative justice that seeks to recognize that “the dignity of the human person applies to both victim and offender.”

He said the task force looked at research-based alternatives to just putting people in jail with hopes of bringing restorative justice into the system. Restorative justice seeks to heal communities and not just punish offenders.

ABORTION
House bill 1400 bans abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy unless a woman’s life is in danger, the pregnancy will permanently injure her or if the baby has an abnormality which would make it unable to survive. This brings Mississippi in line with most other states in the Southeast with similar bans, including Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas. Some of those bans are being challenged.

There is only one abortion clinic left in the state, Jackson-based Women’s Health Organization, and the clinic owner told the Associated Press her clinic does not provide abortions after 16 weeks of pregnancy so it would not be affected by the ban. That clinic is already involved in a court battle challenging a 2012 law intended to close it by requiring all doctors practicing there to have admitting privileges at local hospitals. HB 1400 is awaiting the governor’s signature and should take effect July 1.

“Mississippi is overwhelmingly pro-life. Like most people in our country, Catholics and non-Catholics in Mississippi find late term abortions particularly abhorrent. I am glad this legislation provides some limit to this terrible practice and provides additional protection to the unborn,” said Msgr. of the legislation.

DRUG TESTING FOR AID RECIPIENTS
A bill that may require welfare recipients to take drug tests has drawn criticism from advocates for the poor. House Bill 49 requires those who apply for temporary assistance for needy families (TANF) to fill out a questionnaire. Based on that, a person could be ordered to take a drug test. Those who fail the test will be offered treatment before they can receive their aid and will have to undergo a second test after treatment.
Supporters say the bill, already signed by the governor, will strengthen communities by helping those who may need treatment become better parents. Opponents, including Rims Barber, civil rights advocate and head of the Mississippi Human Services Coalition, said this measure will actually discourage people from getting help and unfairly targets the poor.

“There was no evidence that welfare recipients are more likely to use drugs than any other part of our society, and nothing that showed that the state knows how to properly screen and treat people for addiction. What we end up with is a system that makes people feel guilty for even applying,” wrote Barber in his annual legislative roundup. Catholic Charities also spoke out against the measure.

MEDICAID EXPANSION
One key issue that did not make the agenda, Medicaid expansion. It failed in last year’s session after much public debate. Advocates tried to bring up expansion again, arguing that it would bring better jobs and economic stimulus to the state, but lawmakers never brought forward a bill in this session. Advocates say they will continue to talk about the issue.

FINANCIAL AID/ COLLEGE COSTS
Although the legislature did raise the eligibility limit to allow some students to attend college, advocates at the Mississippi Economic Policy Center said the increase will only apply to about 500 students and they will continue to push for more opportunities for more Mississippians to get higher education.
In a separate, but related issue, Catholic Charities was part of a group that went to the Capitol to speak with lawmakers about allowing deferred action students, who were brought to the United States as children, to take advantage of in-state tuition at institutions of higher learning.

Monique Davis, director of the Office of Parish Based Ministries, pointed out that these students are considered residents in public elementary and in high schools. Lawmakers told Catholic Charities and immigration representatives they will consider commissioning a study on the issue. Davis said she is hopeful.

2015
Davis said she and her staff are already at work on Catholic Day at the Capitol for 2015. They are considering some format changes to make it easier for people to attend and are working on building stronger relationships with all the lawmakers, but particularly the dozen Catholic representatives.

Rape crisis center marks 30 years

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JACKSON – On Thursday, May 1, the Jackson Rape Crisis Center of Catholic Charities, Inc. will mark its 30th anniversary with a celebration at Smith Park in downtown Jackson from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. The Rape Crisis Center was established May 1, 1984, to help eliminate and reduce the incidence of rape and sexual assault through prevention and education, as well as provide free coordination of services to victims and survivors of rape and sexual assault and their family members.
During its 30-year ministry, the Rape Crisis Center has provided direct services to more than 3,000 individuals in a service area that includes the counties of Hinds, Rankin, Madison, Warren, Simpson, Yazoo, Sharkey and Issaquena.
All services are free and include a 24-hour telephone crisis line, hospital crisis intervention, short-term and long-term counseling, family therapy, support groups, emergency shelter, court advocacy, community awareness and prevention education.
Recently the center hosted a rape prevention workshop for teens including lessons for both boys and girls on self-respect, abuse and prevention.
The 30th Year Anniversary Celebration is free and open to the public.
To seek help from the Crisis center call 601-982-7273 (RAPE).

Art Showcase and floral workshop

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JACKSON – St. Richard Parish will hold its fourth annual Chatham Art Showcase on Friday, May 2, from 6 – 9 p.m. in Foley Hall. The gallery will feature works in oils, pottery, acrylics and watercolors from a group of artists and contemporary craftspeople from local and state artistic circles. These collections will be available for viewing and purchase. The event will also feature musical entertainment and light refreshments. Tickets are not required. Mississippi State University professor emeritus, Ralph Null, will conduct a floral workshop the same day from 10 a.m. – noon in Glynn Hall. Cost is $25. To register contact Raymond Barry, 601-366-2335. Pictured is one of the paintings available by artist Bill Wilson.

Tennis tourney loves Charities

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By Jennifer Kelemen
JACKSON – The USTA $25,000 Women’s Challenger tennis tournament was held March 30-April 7 at the River Hills Club. The event is the sixth longest running challenger event in the country and features competitors from across the globe.
The Women’s Single winner of the tournament was Ulrikke Eikeri from Norway, and the Doubles winners were Chanal Simmonds from South Africa and Masa Zec-Peskiric from Slovenia.

The Challenger features daily tennis play including elimination rounds for the professionals and Pro-Am for those who are not up to professional level but who love to play the sport. Almost every evening Catholic Charities hosted a social event in conjunction with the tournament.

Tuesday night featured a chef cook-off between River Hills Club and St Dominic’s. Wednesday was Margarita and Mexican cuisine, and Friday night was a delicious Crawfish boil. Several nights of the week guests were entertained by the sounds of Dan Hammond.

St. Dominic, the largest sponsor of the event, hosted a ladies luncheon, “Serving Up Women’s Health,” featuring three physicians, Dr. William Dotie Jackson, Dr. Richard Guynes, and Dr. John Baten, who spoke briefly about an issue in their specialty that is important to women’s health.

St Dominic also provided consultations for tennis injuries, a night with The Spa at St. Dominic’s, and heart assessments aboard St. Dominic Care-A-Van.
“Catholic Charities would like to thank St. Dominic’s, Sanderson Farms, Cups/Cappy’s Oil, NewSouth Neurospine, CSPIRE Foundation, WAPT News and all the other sponsors who helped to make this year’s tournament a great success. It is by the generosity of others that Catholic Charities can continue to provide services for those who are in need.

Parish takes Lenten pilgrimage

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NATCHEZ – On Wednesday, March 12, a group of 20 Vicksburg St. Paul parishioners and their pastor, Father Thomas Lalor, traveled on a Lenten pilgrimage to the Basilica of St. Mary. Father David O’Connor, pastor of St. Mary, prayed with the group, then explained the history of the church, its bishops and its people. He led the visitors on a tour of the basilica – telling of its architecture, art in stained glass and marble, and spirituality. He explained its being given the title of minor basilica by Blessed John Paul II. Parishioners saw the oldest shrine honoring Mary, the Immaculate Conception and stopped to pray at the gravesite of Bishop John Chanche, first bishop of the diocese. The Altar Society with the aid of Father Lalor, who served many years in Natchez, organized the pilgrimage and invited the parish. (Submitted by Glenda LaGarde)

Hispanic leaders share successes, challenges

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By Elsa Baughman
JACKSON – Hispanic leaders of the Diocese of Jackson gathered on Wednesday, March 26, with two goals in mind, to present the reality of each parish and the greatest challenges they have as parish leaders. Bishop Joseph Kopacz, Jeanne Howard, director of the Office of Faith Formation, Cathy Cook, superintendent of Catholic Schools and Msgr. Elvin Sunds, vicar general, were invited to attend the gathering held at the Cathedral Center.

Bishop Joseph Kopacz (center) takes notes while Sister Pat Godri, lay ecclesial minister at Carthage St. Anne Parish, makes her five-minute presentation during the Hispanic ministry meeting March 26. More than 50 Hispanic leaders attended and 20 of them addressed the present reality and challenges in their communities. (Photo by Elsa Baughman)

Bishop Joseph Kopacz (center) takes notes while Sister Pat Godri, lay ecclesial minister at Carthage St. Anne Parish, makes her five-minute presentation during the Hispanic ministry meeting March 26. More than 50 Hispanic leaders attended and 20 of them addressed the present reality and challenges in their communities. (Photo by Elsa Baughman)

More than 50 leaders of the different parishes and missions which have Hispanic communities, some of them priests and religious, were present. Twenty of them shared what they are doing to serve in their communities, talking about the services they provide and the needs they face.

They all said they are working hard to accomplish their goals, which are many considering the cultural diversity of their communities, the language, the immigration status of their members, their social needs, etc.

Among the positive things the leaders mentioned are having sacramental preparation, increasing the number of leaders who are serving in the parish, religious education classes for the children, English classes, leadership classes through the Southeastern School of Ministry and in some communities the participation in the Catholic Christian Family Life Movement.

Since each community is different their realities are different too. Some have a priest who speaks Spanish, others have one who reads well in Spanish but can’t hear confessions or counsel those who want to talk about their problems.

Almost all the speakers mentioned their desire for more faith formation classes for their leaders who are willing to serve but don’t have the necessary knowledge to do it. In the majority of the parishes they also need help with youth ministry and faith formation for their members.

Father Tarsisius Pulling, pastor of Indianola Immaculate Conception and St. Benedict the Moor parishes, said when people don’t know much about their faith it’s easy for them to join other religious denominations. This is a problem in many areas of the diocese where Hispanics are being invited to other churches which have Hispanic preachers.

Bishop Kopacz sat in the front row, listening and taking notes. He thanked the group for the hard work they  are doing in their communities and their collaboration with one another.
“This diocese is incredible,” he said. “A lot of people are working in this ministry. We have an office dedicated to help you in your ministry and a newspaper to keep you informed.”
Bishop Kopacz told them he knows the needs are many and different in each community but something positive in this diocese he said is that “there are many priests who say ‘yes’ to learn Spanish and to serve in their communities. It’s something very special in this diocese,” he said.

He announced that a religious order has agreed to send four priests to work in the Delta for five years,  “they are going to be of great help with leadership formation in this area of the diocese,” he pointed out.

During his years of work in the Diocese of Scranton,  Bishop Kopacz served in the Hispanic communities and learned about their culture and their needs.
“Together we can build our lives and grow in communion in our faith,” he told the Hispanic leaders. He encouraged all leaders to keep up their good work as Pope Francis has said, to be missionaries in the name of Christ with joy, hope and confidence.

The programs the diocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry include the Catholic Christian Family Movement, the School of Ministry, liturgical and leadership workshops, the diocesan Hispanic Encuentro, the Southeast Pastoral Institute (SEPI) youth leadership, participation in the National Hispanic Encuentro in 2016 and the Integral Pastoral Social Planning in Jackson and Corinth.

Brother Ted Dausch, director of the Office of Hispanic Ministry, said the meeting was also aimed to give leaders an opportunity to know one another, since there are new people working in the diocese, and to listen to each other  – an opportunity to go from local to diocesan awareness.

“Although the bishop has traveled much, this is an opportunity for him to experience Hispanic ministry as a whole and listen to those who experience it everyday,” he wrote in the invitation email.

Anonymous social media challenges communities

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By Maureen Smith
The increasingly anonymous or perceived short-term nature of some social media outlets are causing problems on campuses across the nation. Apps such as Yik Yak, a message system that allows users to post anything without identifying themselves and Snapchat, on which users send photos which the app says will self-delete after a short time, have opened the door to bullying, sexting and other abusive behaviors, according to numerous news reports.

The problem, according to Jean Smith Vaughn, of the Mississippi Attorney General’s office, is that these claims are not true. Law enforcement can track down the identity of a poster and photos can be frozen or even recovered on a phone. “If you make a file, it creates a digital fingerprint on your phone,” she said.

Yik Yak and other messaging programs such as Kik use geolocation so the program only allows users within a certain radius to see posts. That same geolocation can be used to pinpoint a user and then the ‘fingerprint’ can be extracted from the phone, even if the user tries to delete the app.

On Wednesday, March 5, Keith Barnes, Madison St. Joe principal sent out an email to parents about Yik Yak. It read, in part, “The St. Joseph Catholic school administration has been following news about Yik Yak and monitoring for its presence on our campus for the past three weeks.  Unfortunately, late this past week, we became aware that our community has discovered the app and has begun to use it inappropriately.” Barnes went on to say while the school would continue its efforts to eliminate the app parents must also be part of the solution. “If you do not want your child involved in this as a contributor, the only thing you can do is to make efforts to ensure that he or she does not have or use the app.  Perhaps more importantly, please have conversations with your children about the dangers of using their mobile devices in ways that can hurt other people,” he wrote.

Smith Vaughn agrees. “Sit down and talk to your child. It’s that one-on-one contact that’s important,” she said. The State Attorney General’s office offers training focused on internet and social media safety, bullying and more to teachers and parents. She says time and again the most effective solution is keeping an open line of communication. She tells parents to ask their kids specifically about what’s happening at school on social media and not to be discouraged if they don’t answer the first time. At some of her trainings she will wait after the session and some of the kids who would not speak during the session will return to talk to her. “A lot of times, they won’t tell you immediately, but if you wait, the kids will come back,” she said. The same holds true for parents.

She also emphasized that one poor decision can have lasting consequences. In Mobile, Ala., a 14-year old and a 16-year old are both facing charges after they posted separate threats about schools there on Yik Yak. The developers helped investigators find the youth. They claim their app is meant only for people older than 17, but there is currently no way to verify a user’s age incorporated in the app. One of Yik Yak’s founders told CNN programmers plan to geolocate every middle and high school in the country and block the app from those locations, but this feature has not been added and critics point out it will only limit use while students are physically on campus.

“I tell parents and kids the internet is forever. Once you have put something out there you have no control over where it goes,” said Smith Vaughn. While criminal charges may be an extreme example, Smith Vaughn pointed out that potential employers and even colleges and universities are looking at students’ social media presence. Even if a student deletes something he or she has posted, they cannot delete re-posts, forwards or other repetitions. “Snapchat is a favorite of child pornographers,” she said. Because the photos posted to Snapchat claim to disappear some teens may be tempted to post inappropriate photos of themselves, but once a pornographer gets a screen shot that photo can be sent out across other channels.

Vickie Carollo, diocesan director of the Office for the Protection of Children, keeps in touch with the Attorney General’s office in an effort to keep up-to-date with trends in cyber-crime and bullying since they may be signs of or gateways to abuse. She also emphasizes that self-education and clear communication are critical. “Parents have to be educated on the safety of social media. They have to be vocal and engage in frank and continuing dialogue with their children about the dangers of inappropriate usage of social media,” she said.

“Talk to your children about their activities online and on their smartphones and set clear boundaries for what they are and are not allowed to do,” she added saying sometimes just setting those boundaries helps students think twice about what they will post.
She encourages parents to be online with their children — knowing their social media channels and how to navigate them so the children know their parents will see what is happening there.

Bullying rises to a new level on some of these platforms. Because students think they are anonymous they believe they can post vicious comments about one another. Smith-Vaughn explained that even something meant to be a joke can cause problems for the poster. “Taunting and bullying each other to the point that a child may not want to go to school falls under a civil rights-era law and is a misdemeanor. We can prosecute that in youth court,” she explained.

Carollo explained that teasing turns into bullying when “unwanted aggressive behaviors among school-aged children involves a real or perceived power imbalance” or a real or perceived threat. She said it is important to encourage kids to report bullying to a trusted adult and talk to kids about strategies to keep themselves or their friends safe, such as staying near other kids or adults and talking about what they see or experience in schools.
Smith-Vaughn keeps a list of popular social media apps to circulate among her investigators and to use in her workshops with parents, educators and students. She said it is constantly evolving. Right now her list includes:

Messaging/microblogging apps: Yik Yak, Twitter, facebook, What’s App, Wickr.
Video and music apps and websites: You Tube, Vine, Spotify.
Photo and photo-message apps: Instagram, Snapchat,
Location apps: FourSquare.

The Attorney General’s office has a number of downloadable resources on the website ago.state.ms.us/publications/. Scroll down to the Cybercrime section.