Updates

Called by Name

Posted on by
Reply

When Jesus teaches something in the Gospel, do we take notes? Do you apply His words to the way we live our lives? We say that we believe that Jesus is the Son of God, and therefore is God Himself, but do we take what He says in the Gospel seriously?

Take Matthew 19. Jesus tells his listeners that he is calling for an understanding of the marriage covenant that goes beyond a civil contract. He raises marriage to the dignity of a sacrament and thus says that the old Jewish understanding of divorce is no longer valid. But later on in the chapter, Jesus goes even further. He states that some are called to forgo marriage “for the sake of the Kingdom of God,” and then he makes the stakes even higher, saying “whoever can accept this ought to accept it.” (Matthew 19:12)

Father Nick Adam
Father Nick Adam

When we think about vocations to the priesthood and religious life, do we ever think about this clear teaching of Jesus. He is calling some to forgo the goodness of marriage to point people toward the Kingdom of God, and yet don’t we often see the call to celibacy as the rare “exception to the rule,” or something to consider after other goals have been accomplished or other more pressing questions about our lives and futures have been answered?

It is true that marriage to another is a natural desire of our hearts, but I challenge all those who profess the faith to really examine the way they see the possibility that they, or someone they love are being called to an incredible life, a life of fruitfulness not in a marriage bond, but in a deep, life giving relationship with the church.

God wants to give us many great leaders who can build up the church as spiritual fathers and mothers, begetting and protecting the many souls entrusted to them, and courageously pointing the laity toward the Kingdom when things seem most desperate, when tragedy has struck, or when temporal leadership has let them down. But we won’t have that great stock of leadership if we don’t take the words of Jesus extremely seriously. Jesus doesn’t say, well, those who don’t want to get married for some reason or who have exhausted all other options should think about doing this. No, he wants the very best potential husbands and fathers and wives and mothers to answer the call if they receive it. He wants the most talented and gifted among us to use their gifts for the church in ordained ministry or consecrated life if he calls them to it.

In order to answer the call, however, one must be open to it, he or she must be listening. Please encourage young men and women in your midst to be open to this call and help them to be open to the call by talking about it and learning about it yourself. Parents, help your children and teach them this lesson that Jesus gives us in the Gospel. We must shift the way in which the church sees the call to priesthood and religious life. We should give God our best, our first shot. We should all open the way to this call in our hearts, then if we don’t receive it, we can joyfully pursue a life-giving married life. Think of the gifts that would be brought to bear in our parishes and our diocese if all of us took the teachings of Jesus seriously, and were open to whatever the Lord called us to. “Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

Welcome acolytes

(Fr. Nick travels a lot, but he puts his homilies on the internet for those who would like to hear them! Go to www.jacksonpriests.com/podcasts each Sunday evening to listen. You can also find out all you want to know about our Vocation office at www.jacksonpriests.com.)

Structure, ritual and habit as anchoring love, prayer and service

Posted on by
Reply

IN EXILE
By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
In his book, The Second Mountain, David Brooks suggests that a key to sustaining fidelity in any vocation is to build a structure of behavior for those moments when love falters. He’s right.
Anybody who has made a commitment to be faithful for the long haul inside a marriage, a friendship, a faith community or a vocation to serve others, will need more than initial enthusiasm, bare-footed sincerity, affective energy and good resolutions to sustain himself or herself on that road. It’s one thing to have a honeymoon with someone, it’s another to be in a marriage over many years. It’s one thing to be an enthusiastic neophyte on a spiritual journey, it’s another thing to remain faithful inside that journey for seventy or eighty years. And it’s one thing to go out for a season and serve meals to the homeless, it’s something else to be Dorothy Day.
So the question is: how do we sustain our initial enthusiasm, sincerity, affective energy and good resolutions through the boredom, heartbreak, misunderstanding, tiredness and temptations all of us will undergo in our lives, whether that be in our marriage, our vocation, our church life, our prayer life or our service to others?

Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI

That question was put to me recently, speaking to a group of young seminarians, I shared that I had just celebrated forty-eight years of ministry. The seminarians peppered me with questions: What’s the secret? How do you get through the rough times? How do you sustain good intention, good will and good energy year after year? How do you sustain your prayer life over forty or fifty years?
I answered with an insight from Dietrich Bonhoeffer who, whenever he officiated at a wedding, would tell the couple: Today you are very much in love and think your love will sustain your marriage. It can’t. But your marriage can sustain your love. I advised the seminarians in the same way: don’t trust your present enthusiasm and good energy to sustain your priesthood; let your priesthood sustain your enthusiasm and energy. What’s at stake here?
A genuine commitment in faith, love or service becomes a ritual container, an ark, like Noah’s, that existentially locks you in. And the fact that you’re locked in is exactly what makes the commitment work. You enter naïvely, believing that your good feelings and affective energies will sustain you. They won’t. Inevitably they will be worn down by time, familiarity, boredom, misunderstanding, tiredness, wound and new obsessions that emotionally tempt you elsewhere. So how can you sustain yourself in a commitment through periods of dryness? David Brook’s answer is a good one – by building a structure of behavior for exactly those moments.
How do you do that? Through routine, ritual and habit. Anchor your person and your commitment in ritual habits that steady and hold you beyond your feelings on any given day. Set rituals for yourself, certain ritual behaviors, which you will do regularly no matter how you feel.
For me, as a priest, some of these are pre-set. As a priest, you are to daily pray the Office of the Church as a prayer for the world, no matter how you feel. You are to celebrate the Eucharist for others regularly, irrespective of whether or not this is personally meaningful to you on any given day. You are to do some private prayer daily, particularly when you don’t feel like it. The list goes on. These rituals give you structure and healthy routines, and they are needed because in the priesthood as in every other vocation, there are times of fervor when feelings are enough to sustain you; however there are also desert times, bitter times, angry times, times when love falters. It’s then that a structure of behavior can steady and sustain you.
The same holds true for marriage. Couples have to build a structure of behavior for those times when love falters. To name one such ritual: a wife and husband need to have some ritual expression of affection when they wish each other a good day as they part each morning, no matter their emotions and feelings on a given day. That ritual is a container, an ark, which locks them in and holds them together until a better season and better feelings return. Ritual can sustain love when it falters.
In understanding this, we need beware of “Job’s friends,” that is, beware of the various books and gurus on spirituality, prayer and marriage that give you the impression there’s something wrong with you if your enthusiasm and emotional affectivity are not the glue that daily sustains you in your commitment. Simply put, these are books written by spiritual novices and marriage manuals written by someone confusing a honeymoon for a marriage.
Enthusiasm and good feelings are wonderful, but they can’t sustain you through a marathon. For a marathon you need to have long-practiced strategies to carry you through the long tiring miles in the middle and at the end.

(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teacher and award-winning author. He can be contacted through his website www.ronrolheiser.com.)

Compassion matters

Posted on by

From the hermitage
By sister alies therese
“Abba Pambo asked Abba Anthony (The Father of Hermits 4thC), ‘What ought I to do?’ Abba Anthony replied, ‘Have no confidence in your own virtuousness. Do not worry about a thing once it has been done. Control your tongue and your belly.’”

Sister alies therese

Actually, the hermits were trying to get some clarification as to whether they were being ‘good hermits’ or not, so Abba Anthony’s friend Abba Nisteros the Great replied: ‘Not all works are alike. For Scripture says that Abraham was hospitable, and God was with him; Elijah loved solitary prayer and God was with him; and David was humble, and God was with him. Therefore, whatever you see your soul desire according to God, do that thing, and you will keep your heart safe.’” (The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, Ward, SLG).
Conceivably these folks might have been married, asking how to make a perfect marriage or maybe priests or a bishop asking how to do perfect works. We all want to know, from someone with perhaps more experience than our own, how to do the works of the Gospel perfectly.
Equally, they might just have been trying their hearers with the notion that they can indeed become perfect on their own if they just knew how to do it! Not possible. Many opportunities to be compassionate and hospitable come our way with or without ‘titles’ or ‘important’ jobs. Gratitude, for example, is a work of compassion we can all share in. The Scriptures mention so many and no one person can do them all!
Compassion is not a virtue, but a way of life. Hospitality calls us to receive others as Christ. You are probably familiar with Exodus 20:15ff where the Scriptures give us an outline of a compassionate life. Who do we see there as most compassionate? Well, God. ‘… and if they cry out to Me, I will surely hear their cry.’ (21) Perhaps it is also just another way of saying that our Christian way of life is: Love of God, Love of neighbor? That includes those with whom you disagree!
A compassionate life has been shown in many and varied ways in our Christian Catholic life. We can look to founders of religious orders that focused on education of the poor, healing the sick, or living a life of prayer. We look to first-responders, nurses, doctors, those who put their lives on the line. We only have to look to Ephesians 4ff to get some ideas about how these might be lived in the community. Paul in prison, (after mentioning all sorts of horrid things we do) says this: ‘in place of these, be kind to one another, compassionate and mutually forgiving, just as God has forgiven you in Christ.’ (32)
Our days have been difficult. Political squabbles have caused families to cease speaking to one another and anger has flourished. Election outcomes have distanced many. Christians still persecuted; do we pray for their persecutors?
We might focus on the compassion of Jesus, hanging from the Cross, midst great anguish, focuses on the thief next to Him: ‘a single good word made the thief pure and holy, despite all his previous crimes, and brought him into Paradise.’ (Luke 23:42) [Philokalia #90, page 319]
How can we learn one single, good ‘word’ for someone who comes to us; that may all they need to hear? In this time of pandemic, in this month remembering those who have died/served, in this time of Thanksgiving, in this time of Christ the King, in this beginning of Advent we have many ‘words’ to learn. Can we draw forth from God in humility what we need and then share that with whomever the Lord brings onto our path?
Another place in our devotional life is the 6th and 8th Stations, – Veronica, who in her compassion for Jesus gently wipes His face. The women weep over their children. Are the children in cages, the 550+ still separated from their parents, those who live on Death Row at Parchman (or anywhere in our prisons) are their faces being wiped in gentleness and compassion? The COVID patients still dying and the many who suffer while recovering. Who speaks a word of compassion into their ears encouraging them to stick it out? Who brings a word of compassion to their families? Who speaks a word of compassion to you when you feel abandoned, lost or that God is far away? Remember, ‘the treasury of compassion is inexhaustible’ (Faustina, Chaplet, Closing Prayer).
Amma Syncletica puts it plainly: ‘Whatever people say by the grace of the Spirit, therefore, that is useful, springs from love (compassion) and end in it. Salvation, then, is exactly this – the two-fold love of God and of our neighbor.’ (Life, Bongie, 1996)
Blessings.

(Sister alies therese is a vowed Catholic solitary who lives an eremitical life. Her days are formed around prayer, art and writing. She lives and writes in Mississippi.)

The beauty of generosity

Posted on by
Reply

Reflections on Life
By Melvin Arrington
The sixth Fruit of the Spirit, called “goodness” in a majority of the Bible translations commonly used by Protestants, is rendered as “generosity” in two of the most popular versions favored by Catholics: the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), and the New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition (NRSVCE). According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (#1695), the Holy Spirit prompts us to do good works, “to act so as to bear the fruit of the Spirit by charity in action.” Simply put, the easiest way for people to see Christ in our lives is through our generosity.
Generosity has everything to do with giving, whether it’s your time, talents, or treasure. Donations must always be made out of love, and not to call attention to yourself. And to anyone who might be tempted to boast about how much he has contributed, Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen applies this cautionary remark: “never measure your generosity by what you give, but rather by what you have left.”

Melvin Arrington, Jr.

When we give alms, it must be for the right reason; it must be for the benefit of the recipient, not the giver. There’s really no charity involved in making a donation of something you no longer want, especially if the purpose of the gift is to gain a tax benefit or to free up space in a closet in order to stockpile new possessions. As someone once said, real charity doesn’t care whether the gift is tax deductible or not.
When we donate our time, we make an offering of ourselves. Self-giving by its very nature is a sacrificial act because we’re denying ourselves to attend to the needs of others. Archbishop Sheen says the poor widow who gave two mites “emptied herself to fill the emptiness of others.” There’s just something innately beautiful about a sacrifice.
When we offer up ourselves in love we become more like Christ, who freely gave Himself up for us. Our Lord literally divested Himself of everything He had: His clothing (“He was stripped of His garments”); His mother (He gave her to John and, by extension, to us saying, “Behold, your Mother”); His life itself when He suffered and died on the Cross; and even His very Spirit (“Father, into your hands I commend my Spirit.”)
Christ surrendered everything, so we should all deny ourselves in at least some fashion. Bishop Robert Barron has written and spoken often about how generosity enlarges the human soul, transforming it from the pusilla anima (the little or petty, that is, pusillanimous soul) into one that is generous and compassionate, the magna anima (the great soul), from which our word “magnanimous” is derived.
If liberality is characteristic of the magnanimous soul who cheerfully presents himself as an offering, then miserliness and selfishness shift the focus from giving to receiving, thereby reversing the direction from outward to inward. The selfish, self-centered, ego-driven person is ultimately concerned only with self-aggrandizement. His gods are possessions, power, pleasure and prestige. He constantly has to feed his ego by acquiring and possessing. He becomes so caught up in the material world that matters of the spirit get shoved aside.
American artist Paul Cadmus (1904-99) in a painting titled “Avarice,” one of a series depicting the Seven Deadly Sins, aptly illustrates the pitfalls and consequences of a life devoted solely to material gain. The old man portrayed in this work, a stooped skeletal figure bearing the burden of his possessions on his shoulder, struggles to hold onto a single golden object that appears to be slipping away from him. The expression on his face tells the whole story: the goods of this world can’t fulfill the deepest longings of the human heart. Why cling so tightly to wealth? Why refuse to share with the poor when, as the saying goes, “you can’t take it with you?” A life that has no concern for the welfare of others and has no room for faith and matters of the spirit will never come to know abundant life.
For those struggling with their faith and seeking to escape the ego trap, acts of charity can be a remedy. When someone asked the Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins for advice on how he could learn to believe, Hopkins responded simply, “give alms.” By providing for the needs of our neighbor we can gain a better understanding of God’s love for us.
Experience teaches us that an authentic act of generosity blesses the giver even more than the recipient. Why do we derive more pleasure from giving than from receiving? Perhaps it’s because what’s perceived as a reduction in physical or monetary assets becomes, through the charitable act, an increase in spiritual goods. The more we give away, the more we gain.
The vast expanse of our world, in all its beauty and goodness, testifies to the boundless generosity of God. Everything we have has been bestowed on us from our loving God. Everything! And so, we give generously because we have received so many showers of blessings. We should never hoard these heavenly favors or use them solely for our own purposes but rather to glorify Him and serve Him by sharing our resources with those who need them more than we do. In the words of St. Ambrose, the rich man who gives to the poor does not bestow alms; rather, he pays a debt. That’s the Christian perspective on giving. What a beautiful concept!

(Melvin Arrington is a Professor Emeritus of Modern Languages for the University of Mississippi and a member of St. John Oxford.)

From the archives: an introduction

Posted on by
Reply

By Mary Woodward
JACKSON – November is designated as Black Catholic History Month by the U. S. Bishops’ Conference. As Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson, I wanted to share some of the vast treasures the archives hold in regards to the development of the church in our state and the church’s role in race relations and seeking racial justice.

In November 2018, in addition to endorsing the cause for canonization for Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman, FSPA, the U.S. Bishops published the document Open Wide Our Hearts – The Enduring Call to Love: A Pastoral Response to Racism. This document is a Pastoral Letter from the full body of bishops to the lay faithful and all people of goodwill addressing the evil of racism.

Students at Immaculate Conception School in Clarksdale, circa 1948. (Photo from archives)

The pastoral letter asks us to recall that we are all brothers and sisters, all equally made in the image of God. Because we all bear the image of God, racism is above all a moral and theological problem that manifests institutionally and systematically.

Only a deep individual conversion of heart, which then multiplies, will compel change and reform in our institutions and society. It is imperative to confront racism’s root causes and the injustice it produces. The love of God binds us together. This same love should overflow into our relationships with all people. The conversions needed to overcome racism require a deep encounter with the living God in the person of Christ who can heal all division.

Over the next few months, in conjunction with a diocesan effort to address racism led by Bishop Joseph Kopacz and the Office of Intercultural Ministry, our archives will be offering a series of articles highlighting particular moments, organizations and individuals that played a key role in shaping the diocese and Mississippi. Some of the material will inspire you and make you smile; other material may challenge you and make you uncomfortable. This is what opening the chapters and wounds of history does and if we do not study our history and be open to its contexts and settings, we will not be able to truly heal and move forward in a way that is just and honest.

One topic that many diocesan archives in the South are addressing are the sacramental records of slaves and how to preserve and present them for research. Our own archives have records from Spanish Colonial times in Natchez. The records are from 1789-1806 and hand-written in Spanish.

Felicite Giradeaux, the grand dame of Natchez and a free woman of color, will give us insight into Natchez Catholic life between 1802 and the establishment of the diocese in 1837. Our collection contains a hand-written interview with her by Bishop William Henry Elder, who is another story we will explore as he was our bishop during the Civil War.

Another topic will be education in the African American communities beginning with the first efforts at this in the basement of St. Mary Basilica in Natchez in the 1840s and growing into schools staffed by religious orders throughout the State. The diocese’s move toward integration of its own schools will be documented as well.

How to exist as a universal church in a segregated society is a fascinating topic that will lead us into the Civil Rights Movement and the church’s role in that here at what many consider “ground zero.” This was a very volatile time, and we will share some key moments of grace under fire from without and within.

Bishop Richard O. Gerow at St. Augustine Seminary in Bay St. Louis, MS in 1936 for the ordination of Clarence Howard, SVD and Orion Wells, SVD as subdeacons; Also pictured are John Kist, SVD, Joseph Bowers, SVD, Walter Bowman, SVD Carmen Chachere, SVD, John Dauohine, SVD and Leo Woods, SVD. (Photo from archives)

And of course, we have Sister Thea, who challenged the whole church to honest dialogue about systemic racism in the church and the world. Her message is a guiding beacon for us as a church still today.

We have come a long way and we have built many bridges leading to healing. We have more to build. So, I invite you to be open to what is presented and embrace the opportunity to engage in this honest dialogue with others about race and how it affects our communities.

It is through the study of our history, our shared experience, and the understanding of our ancestors – warts and all – that we will be able to honor our Catholicity and truly by united in Christ as Christ intended. I hope you will find this series helpful and hopeful.

(Mary Woodward is the Chancellor and Archivist for the Diocese of Jackson.)

Diocese of Jackson racial justice survey report

Posted on by
Reply

Exploring our traditionally African-American parishes

By Fran Lavelle
JACKSON – The mission of the Catholic Diocese of Jackson is to proclaim Jesus as Savior by living the Gospel, so all may experience the crucified and risen Lord. Our mission statement is supported by three priorities one of which is to create inviting and reconciling communities.
We are called to continuously seek ways to support our sacred mission and live out these priorities in our everyday lives. This summer we witnessed the call for racial justice not only in this country but around the globe. As a nation and a church, we are confronted with the sin of racism and are being called to eradicate it in all its deadly forms.

The Department of Faith Formation compiled a racial justice resource guide earlier this year. It can be viewed online at https://bit.ly/38uP6xh.

Historically the Catholic Church in Mississippi has not shied away from seeking racial justice, hope, and healing for all African Americans. As in the past we recognize the need to stand tall against racism. In looking at the ways we can embrace diversity in our diocese it became clear that to move forward we needed to specifically understand the current reality of racism and how it impacts our Catholic African American brothers and sisters.
Earlier this fall we sent a survey out to our traditionally African American parishes with the desire to better understand how the diocese can be an agent for change. The following is a summary report of those findings. This is the first step of many in the long and worthwhile journey to create inviting and reconciling communities.
The diocese includes thirteen traditionally African American parishes:
Sacred Heart, Camden
Holy Child Jesus, Canton
Immaculate Conception, Clarksdale
St. Anne, Fayette
Sacred Heart, Greenville
St. Francis of Assisi, Greenwood
St. Benedict the Moor, Indianola
Christ the King, Jackson
Holy Family, Jackson
Holy Ghost, Jackson
St. Joseph, Meridian
Holy Family, Natchez
St. Mary, Vicksburg
We received 99 completed surveys from eleven parishes. A majority of the responses were from women (70 female/26 male). The responses by age are ranked as follows 42 responses from individuals ages 46-65; 38 responses from individuals ages 66-80; nine responses from individuals over the age 80; six responses from individuals ages 30-45; two responses from individuals ages 18-29; and one response from and individual under the age of 18.
Survey participants were asked if they felt the diocese does a good job listening to the concerns of the traditionally African American parishes. Of the 81 people who answered this question, 39 answered “yes” and 42 answered “no.”
When asked about the top three challenges facing their parish the responses were fairly consistent across the diocese. Understandably the pandemic has affected the way in which parishes operate. There were, however, some challenges that were identified that existed before the pandemic and will require creative solutions. The top challenges overwhelmingly included: declining/aging membership; youth programs/activities; finances; community outreach; and evangelization.
In many ways the challenges facing our traditionally African American parishes are the same struggles that all parishes in the diocese and perhaps the country are grappling with. One thing is clear, as we plan for the future, the path forward must include meaningful ministry for young people of all ethnicities. We falsely state that the youth are the future of the church when in reality they are the church of today. In the Apostolic Exhortation, Christus Vivit, To Young People and to the Entire People of God, Pope Francis acknowledges, “We also must give great thought to ways of incarnating the kerygma in the language of today’s youth. Reality is greater than ideas. Time is greater than space. The whole is greater than the part. Unity is greater than the division.”

Ever loving God, in your infinite goodness,
you inflamed the heart of your servant and religious,
Sister Thea Bowman with an ardent love
for you and all people.
May her prophetic witness continue to inspire us
to share the Good News with all, but especially
with the poor, oppressed and marginalized.
May Sister Thea’s life and legacy compel us to walk together.
Gracious God imbue us with the grace and
perseverance that you gave your servant, Sister Thea, for in turbulent times of racial injustice, she sought equity, peace, and reconciliation. In times of intolerance and ignorance, she brought wisdom, awareness, unity, and charity.
May her light be a beacon of goodness and holiness
in our troubled times. We make our prayer
through Christ, our Lord.
Amen.

Pope Francis is very clear that young people “are the now of God.” They are influencing and impacting the church and the world today, and all persons of faith should be walking alongside them: as peers, as mentors, as guides, and as fellow travelers on the road toward Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God. Contextualizing that call in practical and effective ways is not only our greatest challenge but our ultimate responsibility.
When asked what the diocese can do to address racism, the clarion call was for greater dialogue among all of God’s people especially with White Catholics. Some of the young responders felt a need to be more integrated and celebrate our diversity. As we continue to develop a vision for racial justice in the diocese, we must ensure that everyone at the table is seen, valued and heard.
A question about what racial justice looks like in our churches, schools and organizations garnered some very thoughtful responses. Far and away most people’s view of racial justice comes down to dignity and respect. One respondent noted, “Racial justice should be visible, practiced, and discussed by all races coming together recognizing problems, developing solutions, and moving toward resolving those problems together.” The sense that we cannot create racial justice in a vacuum was quite clear. If we are to achieve this goal, we must do it together.
When asked how Sister Thea Bowman inspires individuals to be the disciples Jesus Christ desires us to be, her presence is still prominent in many of the responses. Sister Thea was undoubtedly a great inspiration to many people. What made her exceptional was her authentic embrace of the call to love one another.
One older woman stated, “Her legacy of love for God and humankind kindles in me a stronger will to serve, not to be served and do it abundantly. And, to love my brother as Jesus loves me.”
We are using the USCCB’s document “Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love – A Pastoral Letter Against Racism” as a framework to direct our conversations and actions. It was developed by the Committee on Cultural Diversity in the church and was approved by the full body of bishops as a formal statement at its November 2018 General Meeting. We encourage parish leaders to consider undertaking a study of the document.
In Mark 4:8, the parable of the sower, we are reminded for things to grow it is necessary to sow our seeds on good soil, “And some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit. It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.” Moving forward we will undertake a survey of all the parishes in the diocese. It is our hope that we can find fertile soil where the seeds of justice and racial harmony can grow.
There is not a better day than today to begin the difficult but necessary work of creating inviting and reconciling communities. We are in desperate need of hope, healing, and reconciliation in our church and in our world. Formed by the four marks of the church may we truly be a One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic people. As always, the journey begins with One.

(Fran Lavelle is the director of the Department of Faith Formation for the Diocese of Jackson.)

Society of the Divine Word marks 125 years of ministry in North America

Posted on by
Reply

By Dennis Sadowski
ASSISI, Italy (CNS) – Arriving in the United States as a refugee from Vietnam in 1980, Divine Word Father Quang Duc Dinh wasn’t sure what the future held.
“I was naive and innocent,” he told Catholic News Service.
Before long, he was able to begin seminary studies with the Society of the Divine Word, later becoming ordained in 1992.

Brother Wendelin Meyer, seen in an undated photo, was the first member of the missionary Society of the Divine Word to come to the United States, arriving Oct. 15, 1895, after a trip from Germany. He first came to the U.S. to bolster the society’s work at home by reaching out to German-speaking Catholics in New Jersey. (CNS photo/courtesy Society of the Divine Word) .

Today, at 59, he’s the provincial superior of the society’s Chicago province and helping other young men become missionaries to the world.
Father Dinh’s story is one that illustrates the missionary outreach work of the society: to bring the good news of Jesus to others, especially poor and marginalized people, as envisioned by its founder in Steyl, Holland, St. Arnold Janssen, who was canonized in 2003.
The Society of the Divine Word observed its 125th anniversary of the arrival of its first member in the United States Oct. 15. To mark the milestone, the society unveiled an online exhibit at https://scalar.usc.edu/works/svd125/index.
It takes viewers through the history of the order’s evolution from one man, Brother Wendelin Meyer – who volunteered to travel to the U.S. in the missionary spirit – through the most recent years that find priests of the order’s three U.S. provinces ministering in poor and marginalized communities around the world.
Titled “Empowered by the Word,” the exhibit recaps hallmark moments in the society’s U.S. ministries: the opening of a technical school for orphans in Techny, Illinois, outside of Chicago; the founding of the first seminary to train African American men who wished to become priests and brothers in Mississippi; and the broadening of outreach to marginalized communities in Appalachia beginning in the 1970s, which continues today.
“We serve the poor, minorities and marginalized people,” Father Dinh said.
The Vietnamese priest is a portrait of the multicultural spirit of the society. He is one of about 90 Vietnamese Divine Word priests trained in the U.S. He heads a province of more than 200 priests and brothers of 30 nationalities who serve in parishes in parts of Canada, the United States and several Caribbean island nations. Priests of the society’s Western and Southern U.S. provinces also serve widely.
Worldwide, the society has more than 6,000 members in 80 countries.
Brother Meyer arrived in Hoboken, New Jersey, Oct. 15, 1895, seeking German-speaking immigrants, a prime market for the society’s publications. He came to North America to bolster the society’s work at home. He sold magazines and pamphlets to finance his ministry while giving the newcomers a connection with their homeland.
During a trip to Chicago as the society looked for a new location to build its ministry, Brother Meyer learned that a 360-acre farm north of the city – owned by a German Catholic orphanage – was for sale. The property eventually was purchased and became the site of a trade school of orphan boys. It was there that the locale of Techny was born.
Techny today encompasses only the society’s Chicago Province property. It is within the town of Northbrook in Chicago’s sprawling northern suburbs.
Over the years, the society expanded. In 1909, the society opened St. Mary’s Seminary in Techny. It was the first Roman Catholic major seminary for missionaries in the U.S. Other seminaries followed.
Sacred Heart College in Greenville, Mississippi, opened in 1920 as the first seminary for forming African American priests. Within three years, it moved 300 miles south to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, becoming known as St. Augustine Seminary.

The original home of missionaries in Bay St. Louis, Miss., is seen in 1920 on a page of an online exhibit marking the 125th anniversary of the arrival of the first Society of Divine Word missionary in the United States. The society later opened St. Augustine Seminary in Bay St. Louis as a successor to its Sacred Heart Seminary in Greenville, Miss., which the order established as the first institution for forming African American men wishing to become priests or brothers. (CNS photo/courtesy Society of the Divine Word)

Other schools and seminaries followed in places such as Girard, Pennsylvania; Duxbury, Massachusetts; Bordentown, New Jersey; Conesus, New York; East Troy, Wisconsin; Perrysburg, Ohio; and Granby, Quebec. Divine Word College in Epworth, Iowa, educates men and women for missionary service as priests, brothers, sisters and lay ministers today.
Father Dinh said the society’s work in the U.S. has welcomed the opportunity to reach out to marginalized people. For example, Divine Word priests ministered to German Americans who were targeted for discrimination during both world wars, Japanese Americans interred during World War II, and African Americans who struggled generations after slavery ended.
Today, Father Dinh said, the effort focuses in many U.S. communities on Latino newcomers as well as immigrants from Poland and elsewhere. In Appalachia today, food programs benefit poor children. And in Jamaica, Antigua and elsewhere, Divine Word priests live in poverty like the people they serve.
The work continues to stem from the prophetic vision Brother Meyer first saw when he arrived in New Jersey, Father Dinh explained.
“It’s part of God’s plan,” he said. “It’s unfolding in history right now.”

(Follow Sadowski on Twitter: @DennisSadowski)

Fighting abuse: What Pope Francis has done during his pontificate

Posted on by
Reply

By Cindy Wooden
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – In more than seven years as leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis has issued numerous new laws and guidelines for handling accusations of clerical sexual abuse and its cover-up by church officials.
He also has insisted that church leaders must take the lead as true shepherds and guardians to protect the vulnerable out of love for the Gospel, truth and justice – not because of papal mandates or legal coercion.
The pope has also widened the scope of abuse to include not just sexual abuse but the abuse of power and of conscience and the corruption of authority when it is no longer lived as service but as the wielding of power.
Like his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, Pope Francis has tried to be a role model: meeting with survivors, launching investigations, dismissing negligent or abusive clerics and tightening loopholes with the aim of fulfilling what St. John Paul II wrote in 2002, “there is no place in the priesthood and religious life for those who would harm the young.”
In a push for greater accountability, transparency and honesty, he has also shown what “mea culpa” looks like: admitting he made “serious mistakes” in his handling of clergy sexual abuse cases in Chile and expressing the “pain and shame” for the “crucified lives” of those who suffered abuse.
While ignorance, complacency and denial remain primary accomplices in the crime of abuse, here are some of the significant measures and changes put forth by Pope Francis:
– He set up a task force of qualified experts and canon lawyers in February 2020 to help bishops’ conferences and religious orders draw up or revise guidelines for the protection of minors, especially in countries experiencing extreme hardship, conflict or a lack of resources. It came ahead of a handbook prepared by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith clearly outlining leaders’ responsibilities and the procedures for handling allegations of abuse.
– In December 2019, he issued a number of amendments to a 2001 law; he waived the obligation of secrecy for those who report having been sexually abused by a priest and for those who testify in a church trial or process having to do with clerical sexual abuse.
Vatican officials are still obliged to maintain confidentiality but that does not prevent complying with civil laws, including mandatory reporting and following civil court orders.
Pope Francis changed the definition of “child” from a person under 14 years of age to a person under 18 regarding what qualifies as “child pornography.”
– In May 2019, Pope Francis issued “Vos estis lux mundi” (“You are the light of the world”) for the universal church revising and clarifying norms and procedures for holding bishops and religious superiors accountable.
It requires all priests and religious to report suspected abuse or cover-ups and encourages any layperson to report through a now-mandated reporting “system” or office that must be set up in each diocese. It insists leaders will be held accountable not only for committing abuse themselves, but also for interfering with, covering up or failing to address abuse accusations of which they were aware.
It also established that bishops and religious superiors are accountable for protecting seminarians, novices and members of religious orders from violence and sexual abuse stemming from an abuse of power.
– Pope Francis approved a sweeping new law and set of clear safeguarding guidelines and procedures for Vatican City State and the Roman Curia in March 2019.
Beefing up existing criminal laws, it is mandatory to report quickly suspected or known abuse to the Vatican tribunal and it covers all forms of physical, sexual and emotional abuse as well as serious forms of mistreatment, neglect, abandonment and exploitation against minors and vulnerable adults.
– The pope made public in March 2019 his document, “Communis Vita” (Community Life), which amends canon law to include an almost automatic dismissal of religious who have been absent without authorization from their community and out of contact for at least 12 months.
– To drive home that abuse and safeguarding require immediate, concrete action by the entire church and not just the pope, Pope Francis convened a four-day summit in February 2019 for the presidents of the world’s bishops’ conferences, representatives of religious orders and heads of Vatican dicasteries.
By sharing experiences and best practices, the summit sought to inspire all church leaders to feel in solidarity with each other and above all with the victims, families and communities that have been wounded by the scandals and, therefore, to take urgent action.
– After mandating an investigation into allegations of abuse in the church in Chile and admitting to making “serious mistakes in the assessment and perception of the situation,” Pope Francis called the nation’s bishops to Rome in May 2018. He admonished them for “grave defects” in handling abuse cases and requested all the bishops offer their resignations. He also apologized to and met with victims.
– Pope Francis issued a motu proprio, “As a Loving Mother,” in 2016, expanding on canon law that allows for the removal of bishops and superiors for “grave reasons,” by including “negligence” in the exercise of one’s office, in particular in regards to the sexual abuse of minors, where even “the lack of diligence” is considered to be grave enough for potential dismissal.
This, together with “Vos estis lux mundi” of 2019, the two documents are meant to correct what had been a lack of or unclear procedures for investigating the way a bishop or religious superior complies with norms and clearly expresses the consequences of noncompliance or cover-ups.
– The pope sent a letter in February 2015 to the president of every bishops’ conference and religious superior ordering them to have safeguarding guidelines in place for handling cases of sexual abuse as called for in a 2011 letter from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.
He said it was each leader’s responsibility to verify and assure the safety of minors and vulnerable adults in parishes and church institutions as well as to listen to and care for survivors.
– In November 2014, Pope Francis established a new board within the doctrinal congregation to review and speed up the process of hearing and ruling on appeals filed by priests laicized or otherwise disciplined in sexual abuse or other serious cases.
– The pope had his first meeting with survivors of abuse by clergy in July 2014. He celebrated Mass and met privately with six men and women at the Vatican. He repeated calls for zero tolerance and accountability for the “despicable” crime of abuse and underlined the need for ongoing vigilance in priestly formation and for better policies, procedures and training on how to implement existing norms.
– The pope formally established the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors in March 2014. The body of experts, with input from survivors, is meant to make proposals and spearhead initiatives to improve safeguarding norms and procedures. It remains an advisory body for the pope and it offers concrete assistance to every level of the church worldwide.

McCarrick report called needed step toward accountability, transparency

Posted on by
Reply

By Dennis Sadowski
CLEVELAND (CNS) – Prelates in the archdioceses and the diocese where Theodore McCarrick worked during his rise through the church’s hierarchical structure despite rumors of sexual impropriety welcomed a Vatican report regarding the onetime cardinal, saying it advances accountability and transparency regarding clergy sexual abuse within the church.

Then-Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick attends a Mass in Rome April 11, 2018. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Church leaders in New York, Metuchen and Newark, New Jersey, and Washington said in statements Nov. 10 that while they had not yet read the entire 400-page report, they pledged to study it to better understand its implications for their jurisdictions as well as for the broader church.
Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, where McCarrick was ordained a priest in 1958 and the first allegations about abuse were made against him in 2017, said the Vatican report “is a necessary step” in understanding the case surrounding the former cardinal.
Cardinal Dolan credited the victim-survivors of the alleged abuse by McCarrick, now 90, who approached the New York Archdiocese with their concerns.
“You took us at our word that we wanted to assist you and in so doing, you helped bring this matter to light, proving that anyone who has abused a minor, even a cardinal will be punished,” Cardinal Dolan said.
In the Diocese of Metuchen, where McCarrick became its first bishop in 1982, Bishop James F. Checchio said in a letter to the diocese that the faith community had carried a heavy burden as the allegations were determined to be credible.
“These burdens seemingly grew heavier with each day that followed as we learned the heart-wrenching truth of the crimes and sins of the past and wondered how Theodore McCarrick was still given greater responsibilities in the church, despite the rumors of his abusive actions with seminarians and young priests,” Bishop Checchio wrote.
“While I am grateful to Pope Francis for ordering this study to arrive at the ‘truth’ of what happened, like everyone else, I am disgusted and appalled by what has taken place,” Bishop Checchio added.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin of Newark, where McCarrick became archbishop in 1986, called the report “a significant and powerful step forward in advancing accountability and transparency regarding sexual abuse.”
“Beyond the victims themselves, failures by some leaders in the Catholic Church have wounded many, including the families and loved ones of victims and the faithful,” Cardinal Tobin said.
“It is important to recognize that the church has made progress in responding to clergy abuse by implementing policies and programs to safeguard the faithful, especially the most vulnerable among us,” he added.
Cardinal-designate Wilton D. Gregory of Washington said that disclosure of the action of church leaders in the U.S. and at the Vatican was essential to help bring healing, calling it an “an important, difficult and necessary document.”
McCarrick became archbishop of Washington in January 2001, and was elevated to cardinal weeks later. He retired from his post as archbishop in 2006 at age 75.
Cardinal-designate Gregory, who was installed as the archbishop of Washington in May 2019, pledged transparency and honesty in dealing with the abuse crisis that had shaken the country and the archdiocese.
“By virtue of the simple fact that this investigation had to be conducted and this report had to be written, my heart hurts for all who will be shocked, saddened, scandalized and angered by the revelations contained therein,” Cardinal-designate Gregory said.
The Diocese of Metuchen’s reaction to the release of the report included a detailed outline of events diocesan officials took to investigate McCarrick after allegations of sexual abuse against him became public in 2018.
In response to those reports, the bishop said, Metuchen diocesan officials hired an independent law firm to oversee its own investigation and a review of its archives. The findings were sent to the Vatican as investigators there compiled the McCarrick report, he said.
“In total, the report identified that seven individuals, who were adults at the time of their abuse, came forward to report allegations of abuse by McCarrick since the first allegation against him was received by the diocese in 2004,” the statement said.
The diocese’s report also said that all abuse allegations were reported to local and state law enforcement authorities and the papal nuncio in Washington.
The long-awaited Vatican report summarizes the actions of church officials, including earlier popes, that allowed McCarrick to rise through the church’s hierarchical structure to become a cardinal despite years of rumors of sexual impropriety.
McCarrick used personal contacts, protestations of his innocence and a lack of church officials reporting and investigating accusations to become cardinal, according to the Vatican summary of its report.
McCarrick resigned as cardinal in July 2018 after the allegations became public. He was dismissed from the clerical state in February 2019 by Pope Francis after a Vatican investigation into allegations that he had abused minors and engaged in sexual misconduct with adults.
All four of the prelates in New York, Newark, Metuchen and Washington also urged anyone who has been abused by a priest, bishop or anyone else in the church to report their allegation to law enforcement and to church authorities.

(Contributing to this report was Mark Zimmermann in Washington.)

Clergy abuse survivors face a lifetime of recurrence of PTSD

Posted on by
Reply

By Dennis Sadowski
CLEVELAND (CNS) – New job in hand, Jim Richter was adjusting well to life in Minneapolis several months after leaving his hometown of Chicago.
He was enjoying his fellowship at the University of Minnesota Medical Center despite the long hours and he was coming to realize his move was a good one.
Sexually abused as a teenager by a South Side Chicago Catholic priest who had similarly assaulted other young men, Richter wasn’t expecting to hear more about the clergy abuse scandal in Minnesota.
Then news broke about Archbishop John C. Nienstedt of St. Paul and Minneapolis, who eventually resigned in 2015 over accusations he had mishandled allegations of abuse against an archdiocesan priest. Criminal charges were initially filed against the archdiocese over this, but were later dropped. Archbishop Nienstedt also faced allegations he had engaged in sexual misconduct with adults as a priest and as a bishop, claims he denied.
Richter said he felt he had been “assaulted” again when listening to news reports on the radio as he drove to work. The reports, he said, triggered a recurrence of post-traumatic stress disorder, known as PTSD.
“This was in the same sense being reminded that the church has lots of bad actors all over the place. That was something I did not need to be reminded of,” Richter told Catholic News Service.
PTSD often occurs in a person who has experienced or witnesses a traumatic event. It can last for months or years with triggers that can bring back memories of the trauma accompanied by intense emotional and physical reactions. Symptoms can include nightmares, unwanted memories, avoidance of situations that bring back those memories, anxiety or depression.
Richter, who is now 49 and who continues to practice his Catholic faith, eventually sought counseling to cope with the disorder. He acknowledged that he can experience PTSD at any time – as can any survivor.
“It could be the news, a book, a story someone is sharing,” he said.
“Triggers are very real. Victim survivors talk about them. When we talk about them they can cause a momentary disruption in or thoughts or our feelings. Sometimes it can last a day or two. Sometimes they can last a whole season,” Richter added.
Realizing he’s not alone, for the last three years Richter has helped facilitate what he calls “peace circles” – parish-based discussion groups primarily for clergy sexual abuse survivors but open to anyone interested in responding to the abuse crisis.
Richter works voluntarily. He has consulted with victim assistance coordinators in the archdioceses of Chicago and St. Paul and Minneapolis. The circles offer a safe space – originally in person but now online because of the coronavirus pandemic – to any survivor wanting to discuss their experience.
Richter’s recurring PTSD is not unusual. Mental health experts said sexual abuse survivors can experience ebbs and flows of PTSD and that it never quite goes away.
“Everyone is different. So depending on an individual’s situation anything can trigger it,” said Deacon Bernard Nojadera, executive director of the U.S. Conference of Catholics Bishops’ Secretariat of Child and Youth Protection.
The secretariat works with victim assistance coordinators in dioceses across the country to provide new information on how to assist abuse survivors who may need mental health services to respond to their traumatic experiences.
When a survivor reaches out, Deacon Nojadera said, his office or the appropriate diocesan office acknowledges “this hurt that had occurred in their lives, extending an apology.” Most importantly, though, he explained, is to listen to what the person has to say.
“We have an opportunity to continually building right relationships,” he said.
Deacon Nojadera acknowledged that PTSD can recur and has seen it in his work with military veterans in the past. He said the church is prepared to help any survivor connect with mental health services and advice.
Dioceses and eparchies have spent $143.8 million from 2004 through 2019 for therapy, living expenses and legal expenses for survivors, according to statistics compiled by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate. The figures were included in annual reports detailing diocesan and eparchial compliance with the U.S. bishops’ “Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.”
From 2004 through 2013, the data show, $70.8 million in payments for therapy for survivors. Beginning in 2014, the category was expanded to include living and legal expenses, with payments to victims during that last six years coming to more than $71.9 million.
Victim advocates such as Tim Lennon, president of the board of the Survivors Network of Those Abused by Priests, told CNS others may shy away from church assistance, feeling that the institution that harmed them has no interest in making things better.
No matter to whom a survivor turns for help, Lennon, a survivor himself, said each person deserves broad support to help them weather their trauma.
Professionals in the church as well as professional psychologists almost always see an uptick in calls when a breaking story regarding abuse occurs. That happened in 2017 with the emergence of the #MeToo movement on social media following reports by dozens of women of their abuse by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and the 2018 Pennsylvania grand jury report that chronicled abuse allegations against more than 300 priests and other church workers over a 70-year period, starting in 1947, in six of the state’s eight dioceses.
“Any time abuse and church are in a sentence and it hits the headlines or is splashed across social media, we definitely hear more,” Deacon Nojadera said.
The release of the Vatican’s report on a former U.S. cardinal, Theodore McCarrick, should be no different.
Deacon Nojadera and diocesan victim assistance coordinators said they expect to hear from more survivors – some of them reaching out for the first time – after the report becomes public.
The Vatican announced in February 2019 that Pope Francis had dismissed McCarrick from the clerical state after the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith found him to have engaged in “sins against the Sixth Commandment with minors and with adults, with the aggravating factor of the abuse of power.”
Professionals working with abuse survivors and survivors themselves contacted by CNS offered similar advice to those experiencing PTSD: remember you are not alone, that there are people – friends, family, mental health professionals, church victim assistance coordinators – who can guide you through difficult times.
Tom Tharayil, director of the Office of Assistance Ministry in the Archdiocese of Chicago, is among those who will await the calls from victims and non-victims alike.
“These stories are never presented with a trigger warning,” Tharayil said. “What happens is they’re assaulted all over again.”
His advice to survivors is to seek support from someone because having even a small network of people to discuss the challenges being faced will help in the healing process.
Beyond friends, family and professional mental health counselors, another resource Tharayil refers survivors to is The Healing Voices website at www.thehealingvoices.org. Developed by clergy abuse survivors, the site seeks to assist people reconcile their Catholic faith with the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual harm they have experienced.
Despite the recurrence of PTSD, Tharayil said he has found that “most (victims), on balance would prefer the information comes out even if this means they will be retraumatized, if you will.”
Victim survivors acknowledge that while a recurrence of PTSD can occur when high-profile news about clergy abusers breaks, it’s not all bad because “that helps raise community awareness,” Lennon agreed.
“People begin to understand that it doesn’t just happen in Pennsylvania. It happens everywhere. It brings a lot of people forward,” Lennon said.
Lennon told CNS he has received the support of his wife and twin daughters when he has a resurgence of PTSD.
Lennon, 73, who no longer practices Catholicism, said he was raped by a priest when he was 12 while growing up in Sioux City, Iowa. He said he had repressed the memory for decades until seeing a demonstration about 30 years ago outside of the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption in San Francisco calling on church leaders to address clergy sexual abuse.
“It flashed back in my mind. ‘Oh, I was sexually molested by this priest for several months,’” Lennon recalled thinking.
He said he also sought professional mental health assistance and been able to adjust to dealing with memories of the abuse he experienced.
Heather Banis, victim assistance coordinator in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, said managing PTSD is “about how to carry that burden differently” so that it does not become debilitating.
A support system is a must, she told CNS.
“It doesn’t always take the shape of a traditional family. It isn’t always as traditional as we might think. That’s OK. What matters is that you have it,” she said.
Richter said his connection to the Catholic Church has enabled him to address PTSD when it rises anew. He said the peace circles he coordinates, while not with a formal church connection, can do the same for others.
“I recognize that every day of my life is impacted by what happened to me when I was a teenager: the way I think, the way I see work, the way I approach others, the way that I talk. But it doesn’t define me,” he explained to CNS.
Deacon Nojadera said that although the church has spent millions of dollars for counseling and other mental health needs of survivors over the years, the work of helping survivors heal is far from complete. He said dioceses and the USCCB continue to seek stronger responses to the struggles of survivors in the hope of rebuilding trust.
“Will we ever eradicate this question of clergy sexual abuse and the inappropriate sins of the flesh? No. That’s part of the human condition. But our role, our mission, is to try to bring that down to as minimal as possible. And when it does occur, the church needs to know the importance of handling and stepping up to handle the situation in morally and ethically sound ways,” he said.

(Follow Sadowski on Twitter: @DennisSadowski)