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Catholic Christian Family Movement launches new year of initiatives

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By Berta Mexidor
RICHLAND – Dedicated Catholics gathered this month to take part in an ongoing movement here in the diocese aimed at promoting Christianity in marriages, families and communities and bringing people closer to God.
Juan and Maribel Melo, presidents of Catholic Christian Family Movement (Movimiento Familiar Cristiano Catolico – MFCC), led the assembly Sept. 6 at the Richland Community Center. The event marking the MFCC program’s kickoff of activities for the year attracted people from many areas and more than 35 couples, many of them with children were in attendance.
Bishop Joseph Kopacz attended the opening assembly and addressed those attending giving everyone a message of hope. He talked about the ongoing immigration crisis in Mississippi that several families of the diocese have faced and continue to experience, including families involved in the MFCC faith movement.

RICHLAND – The Liturgy coordinators of the MFCC, Herlinda and Jaime Martínez made a detailed presentation, on Friday, Sept. 6, about the five pillars of the movement. (Photos by Berta Mexidor)

Bishop Kopacz said to them “… the jail, the separation is very difficult, there is much suffering in this life, but there is much hope also, in the communities of faith and in the people, who are coming to help.”
MFCC is a national lay movement recommended by the U.S. Catholic Bishops. As part of movement initiatives, programs and events led by trained coordinators and leaders are aimed at saving and strengthening marriages and helping children, individuals and families develop faith and a strong sense of Christian community.
The Richland event included talks, activities and breakout sessions when small groups gathered in discussions. Spiritual advisors and leaders were on hand for counseling and to answer any questions. Many people expressed their joy about the start of a new year of activities.
At one-point, new members of the movement program were introduced and welcomed during the assembly. Among the participants were presente Francisco and Isabel Mazy, delegates, and Miguel and Lizet Cruz, both vice presidents. Sister Maria Josefa García Álvarez, a member of the Missionary Guadalupanas of the Holy Spirit congregation, is one of the spiritual advisors along with Brother Theodore Dausch, CFC and father Odel Medina, pastor of St Anne Carthage.
This year, Father Juan Chavajay, pastor of St. Therese in Jackson, also joins the movement serving as an advisory team member. Charlene Bearden, Diocese of Jackson coordinator of the Office of Family Ministry, was also on hand showing her support.

RICHLAND – Couples began the assembly, on Friday, Sept. 6, by thanking each other, reaffirming the love they profess and the commitment on keeping their marriage in faith.

In preparation of the September kickoff event, spiritual counselors and coordinators met Aug. 3 at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson. During the meeting, movement members received training and discussions were presented about expansion and growth of the outreach with five elements at the center: prayer and liturgical life; study; apostolic action; hospitality and economic contribution.
For more information on MFCC, contact Juan and Maribel Melo at 601-826-3305 or 601-209-3232. The national website is www.mfccusa.net.

Catholic organizations in Florida marshaling aid for Dorian victims

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By Catholic News Service
MIAMI – In the wake of Hurricane Dorian’s brutal blasting of the Bahamas, Catholic organizations in Florida continued to raise funds to aid victims there.
The best aid from individual Catholics is monetary donations. Money can be used to buy supplies in bulk and get them delivered promptly and to reboot the local economy, enabling communities to start getting back on their feet. Money also ensures the items sent are actually the items needed – not just immediately after the disaster but months later, when recovery is ongoing.
“It’s the agencies that are on the ground providing the help, they really know what is needed. So it’s best to give them the resources so they can purchase locally what is needed. It helps to get businesses back up and running locally,” Peter Routsis-Arroyo, director of the Archdiocese of Miami’s Catholic Charities, told the Florida Catholic, Miami’s archdiocesan newspaper.
Arroyo noted the “tremendous amount of manpower” and agency funds required to organize, pack and ship donated items. “If we had just turned that money over to them, there’s none of those costs involved in that,” he said.
Not to mention that some items may only be needed the first few days.
“Maybe they need MREs (meals ready to eat) for the first two days, but that’s it,” he said. Other needs will arise as reconstruction begins, Arroyo added.
The Catholic Church has a distinct advantage, though, when disaster strikes anywhere: an interconnected network of churches and agencies with deep roots and deep knowledge of the affected communities.
The Miami Archdiocese has many links to the Archdiocese of Nassau. Priests from Miami’s Metropolitan Tribunal helped Nassau set up its tribunal a decade ago. For years, representatives from the Bahamas Women’s Auxiliary have joined members of the Miami Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women at their annual convention – sometimes bringing Nassau Archbishop Patrick C. Pinder with them.
“We’ve been in constant contact with Archbishop Pinder,” Routsis-Arroyo said, adding that what he’s dealing with “is overwhelming.”
“He sends us a list of what he needs and it’s easier for us to collect monies, purchase in bulk, not have to pay taxes or anything. And then we have friends of the agency who will ship it for free to him. And then he knows how to get it to whoever he knows on his end,” Routsis-Arroyo said.
Those “friends” include shipping companies and wealthy individuals who offer to cover the costs or deliver the goods free of charge.
Normally, relief work in a foreign country is done by the U.S. bishops’ overseas agency, Catholic Relief Services. But Routsis-Arroyo explained that CRS doesn’t have any offices in the Bahamas “so they work with the archbishop and the local Caritas,” which is part of the international network of agencies under the umbrella of Caritas Internationalis
When Dorian slammed into the Bahamas, Knights of Columbus of Florida went into action.
The first order of business: texting with a fellow Knight of Columbus by the name of Patrick Pinder.
“We are in touch with Archbishop Pinder of Nassau by text,” said Ronald Winn, a resident of Pensacola and state disaster response chairman for the Knights of Columbus.

A man hangs his clothing amid the rubble of destroyed homes Sept. 6, 2019, after Hurricane Dorian hit the Abaco Islands in Marsh Harbour, Bahamas. In the wake of Hurricane Dorian’s brutal blasting of the Bahamas, Catholic organizations in Florida continued to raise funds to aid victims there. (CNS photo/Marco Bello, Reuters)

The Knights’ Florida Council has had a long relationship with the Knights in the Bahamas, which is considered part of the Florida jurisdiction. When Dorian hit the Bahamas, the texts between the archbishop and the Knights in Florida were traded back and forth.
Winn was prepared to respond to the bishop and his people. Since, July 1, the Knights have stepped up service efforts with their new Disaster Response Program. Once Dorian made landfall in the Bahamas, the organization developed a fundraising campaign posting information about it on their state and supreme council websites.
“Things change day by day,” Winn told the Florida Catholic, newspaper of the Diocese of West Palm Beach. He added that some Knights have offered to navigate their own boats to the Bahamas to deliver items.
The Knights’ disaster response program arose following the destruction Hurricane Harvey wrought in Houston in 2017.
Florida State Deputy Scott O’Connor of Pembroke Pines in the Archdiocese of Miami said in a statement, “We have a much more defined program with people and contacts, and we are also working directly with Catholic Charities because they already have an infrastructure in place.”
The Boca Raton-based Cross Catholic Outreach, is providing assistance to the Bahamas with shipments of food, medicines and other critical resources. Cross Catholic Outreach has already shipped over 540,000 meals to help affected families and children.
To get resources in quickly and distributed effectively, Cross Catholic Outreach is working with Catholic Charities of Miami and Archbishop Pinder of Nassau. The first shipments included scientifically formulated meals designed to do more than satisfy hunger.
“It’s important to address hunger with nutrient-rich meals,” said a statement by Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach. “The food we are shipping is created for situations like this, and it will go a long way in keeping people healthy as they face the stresses and hardships ahead.”

(Contributing to this story were Ana Rodriguez-Soto in Miami and Linda Reeves in Boynton Beach.)

Church must seek new paths in Amazon

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By Junno Arocho Esteves
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The Synod of Bishops for the Amazon will help the Catholic Church make its presence felt and voice heard in a region that is dangerously approaching “a point of no return,” said the special secretaries of the synod.
“It is a great and continuing challenge for the Catholic Church to make the original Amazonian peoples feel part of it and contribute to it with the light of Christ and the spiritual richness that shines in their cultures,” Cardinal-designate Michael Czerny and Bishop David Martinez De Aguirre Guinea wrote in an article published Sept. 12 in La Civilta Cattolica, the Jesuit journal.
Cardinal-designate Czerny, undersecretary of the Migrants and Refugee Section of the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, and Bishop Martinez, apostolic vicar of Puerto Maldonado, Peru, said the synod will take place at a time when “both human and natural life are suffering serious and perhaps irreversible destruction.”
The synod, scheduled for Oct. 6-27, will focus on “Amazonia: New paths for the church and for an integral ecology.”
The Amazon rainforest includes territory belonging to nine countries in South America and has experienced significant deforestation, negatively impacting the indigenous populations in the area and leading to a loss of biodiversity.
As special secretaries, Cardinal-designate Czerny and Bishop Martinez will assist Brazil’s Cardinal Claudio Hummes, synod relator general, in providing a comprehensive outline of the synod’s theme at the beginning of the meeting and summarizing the speeches of synod members before work begins on concrete proposals for the pope.
In the article, titled “Why the Amazon merits a synod,” the prelates said that the synod for the Amazon is an effort to implement “’Laudato Si’ in this fundamental human and natural environment.”
Much like Pope Leo XIII’s 1891 encyclical “Rerum Novarum” recognized the exploitation of workers in the early days of the industrial revolution, Pope Francis’ observations on the “gross inequality and cruel marginalization” caused by financial and consumerist greed call “for a new attitude toward nature and the social environment.”
“This new synthesis is a wake-up call to the entire world, to all of humanity,” they wrote. “But it also suggests a new socio-pastoral orientation and dynamic for the church, which must understand the challenges faced by individuals and families and groups within these various dimensions.”
However, Cardinal-designate Czerny and Bishop Martinez wrote that the church “cannot give spiritual guidance and pastoral care if people are understood in isolation from – i.e. not integrated with – how they live and function within the actual natural, economic and social conditions that they face.”
They also noted that the crisis facing the region is not limited only to environmental problems such as pollution, privatization of natural goods and trafficking.
“Mercantilism, secularization, the throwaway culture and the idolatry of money” coupled with decreasing numbers of priests and religious “is endangering the presence of the Catholic Church among the indigenous peoples of the Amazon.”
Such challenges, they added, require a response that moves from a “ministry of visits to a ministry of presence.”
“This is why, during the October Synod, the entire world should walk with the people of the Amazon; not to expand or divert the agenda, but to help the synod to make a difference,” the prelates wrote. “The Amazon region is huge, and its challenges are immense. If destroyed, the impacts will be felt worldwide.”

(Follow Arocho on Twitter: @arochoju)

Renowned journalist Cokie Roberts, lifelong Catholic, dies at age 75

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By Carol Zimmermann
WASHINGTON (CNS) – Cokie Roberts, a broadcast journalist and political commentator who spoke publicly about her Catholic faith and her admiration for the Sacred Heart sisters who taught her, died Sept. 17 due to complications from breast cancer. She was 75.
Roberts, who died at her home in Bethesda, Maryland, was an Emmy award-winning reporter, author and frequent keynote speaker at Catholic college graduations. She was described as “a true pioneer for women in journalism,” by James Goldston, president of ABC News, her longtime employer. He said her “kindness, generosity, sharp intellect and thoughtful take on the big issues of the day made ABC a better place and all of us better journalists.”
She was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame and was listed one of the 50 greatest women in the history of broadcasting by the American Women in Radio and Television. She also was named a “Living Legend” by the Library of Congress in 2008.
Roberts started her radio career at CBS and in 1978 began working for NPR covering Capitol Hill, where she continued to work as a political commentator until her death. Roberts joined ABC News in 1988 and during her three decades there, she was a political commentator, chief congressional analyst and co-anchor with Sam Donaldson of the news program “This Week” from 1996 to 2002.
She was born in New Orleans in 1943 with the full name Mary Martha Corinne Morrison Claiborne Boggs and was nicknamed “Cokie” by her brother.
Roberts attended Catholic schools in New Orleans and Bethesda, run by the sisters of the Society of the Sacred Heart. During her career, she also wrote eight books, including a book with her husband, Steve Roberts, also a journalist, called “From This Day Forward” about their interfaith marriage. Steve is Jewish.

Cokie Roberts, a Catholic, who was the daughter of politicians and grew up to cover the family “business” in Washington for ABC News and NPR over several decades, died at age 75 Sept. 17, 2019, in Washington of complications from breast cancer. She is pictured at Georgetown University in Washington April 4, 2014. (CNS photo/Phil Humnicky, Georgetown University)

Cokie Roberts’ roots are both political and Catholic. She is the daughter of Hale Boggs, the former Democratic House majority leader and representative from New Orleans, who died in a plane crash in 1972. Her mother, Lindy, was elected to fill his seat and served nine terms. Lindy Boggs, who died in 2013, was appointed U.S. ambassador to the Vatican in 1997, a post she held until 2001.
Over the years, Roberts addressed big Catholic gatherings including those of the National Catholic Educational Association, Catholic Charities USA and the Leadership Conference of Women Religious.
In a 2014 interview with America magazine by Mercy Sister Mary Ann Walsh, who died the following year, Roberts said: “There is no way to talk about my faith absent the Society of the Sacred Heart. The women who were my teachers and remain my dear friends mean the world to me. They took girls seriously in the 1950s – a radical notion, so there was never any ‘grown-up’ need to reject them, only to thank them – and they keep the faith.”
When asked about her family’s Catholic and Democratic background, Roberts said it’s “an interesting balancing act in all kinds of ways to try to convince people that I am a fair-minded journalistic observer while coming from a family that has been strongly identified for many decades both politically and religiously.”
She said she also had made clear her “continuing commitment to Catholicism – as opposed to many who say, ‘I was raised Catholic.'” She said she didn’t think she had been “discriminated against officially” as a Catholic woman, but she also answered the question about this with her own question: “Are there people in this society still who think that to be a believer is to be a little bit simpleminded? Sure. And to be a Catholic, still a little simpler still? Yes,” she said.
That didn’t stop her though from being public about the role of faith in her life and in others’ lives.
During a 2009 LCWR meeting in New Orleans, she told the sisters that their vitality extends beyond their numbers and can best be seen in the lasting effects they have had on students and others they are serving.
“You wonderful, holy, awe-inspiring women – you women of spirit – have taught us well. Your teaching will go on, constantly creating a better world for the people of God, corralling the chaos to create a better quality of life for others that you can be proud of.”
She also praised the church’s efforts to help the poor at a 2006 Catholic Charities USA convention in Minneapolis where she said: “It seems to me that your issues are actually the ones that Jesus talked about.” She also challenged the conference participants to educate parishioners about the “option for the poor,” a Catholic social teaching that puts the needs of the poor and vulnerable first.
A funeral Mass was held Saturday, Sept. 21 at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C.
Roberts is survived by her husband, her children, Lee and Rebecca, and her six grandchildren.
A statement released by her family said she will be missed “beyond measure, both for her contributions and for her love and kindness.”

(Follow Zimmermann on Twitter: @carolmaczim.)

Connecting in the fostering world

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By Joanna Puddister King
JACKSON – Everyone has a story to tell and speaker CJ Fox spent time on Tuesday, Sept. 17 telling hers to a group of social workers, therapist, foster parents and Catholic Charities employees at the Jackson Medical Mall in an effort to help those in attendance connect in a more meaningful way to foster children.
Fox shared some staggering statistics at the event. Only 30% of foster children graduate from high school, while less than 1 % graduate from college. At least 66% end up dead or homeless within the first year of transition out of foster care and 80% of prisoners were once in foster care.
“There is a huge disconnect in the system. Biological parents, the kids … we’ve got to communicate better,” said Fox. “It’s imperative that we all figure out a way to work together to change these odds.”
The odds are something Fox has witnessed firsthand. She began to tell the crowd about an eight-year-old girl and her story of abuse, neglect and fear. Before long, the child was in foster care and moving from home to home. As the story telling went on, Fox noticeably began to change the pronoun she was using from “she” to “I.”

JACKSON – Speaker CJ Fox tells her foster care story to attendees of Catholic Charities in-service event on foster care. (Photos by Joanna Puddister King)

She was telling her story.
After one group home she stayed in, Fox ended up with a foster family who gave her a home and taught her how to read, as she was so behind academically. The family spent time with her and played with her, something that had not happened often before.
“They never asked ‘What’s your story?’ They just loved me where I was,” said Fox. “And I was a hard kid to love. I was anxious. I was nervous all the time. I was short-fused. I would cry if I couldn’t get something right.”
Fox thought they were a family until one day she thought she was being taken to school, but instead she was taken to a courthouse. She was afraid. “Nobody is telling me what is going on … social workers, my Dad was in the back of the room, Mom was up front, cops were all around and a judge,” said Fox.
She urged those in the crowd, “if you can make it developmentally appropriate for the child just try to talk to them about what’s going on. These are the things that are happening, but no matter what happens … it’s all gonna be ok.”
By age 16, Fox had been moved about 30 times. The last foster mom that took her in encouraged her to go to college. Something that seemed unobtainable. But Fox obliterated the odds and eventually graduated from Mississippi State University with a degree in education.
Fox attributes some of her success to sports. “I played every sport that I possibly could. If you can encourage your kids to get involved in some sort of sport, band, honor choir or what ever it looks like for that particular kid. Get them in a group to make them feel safe,” said Fox.
“The most important thing was every time I had an encounter with someone that believed in me. They believed in me more than I believed in myself.”
Fox also told the crowd that she has God to thank for guidance as well. One day while studying at Mississippi State, she was walking back to her dorm after history class, which took her past an old abandoned pool behind McCarthy gym.
“There was no water in it. It was just cracked and broken,” said Fox. While walking, Fox was thinking about her life and asked God, “Why me? What did I do? When am I gonna catch a break? … I’m tired.”
God answered. “He said because I have bigger plans for you. … He said that to me in that moment and instantaneously I look to my right and I see a tree growing out of the side of the pool,” said Fox.
“Somehow this tree is making it. … It had broken through the cement and stretched its branches to the sky for life. And I heard, ‘be the tree.’”
So, despite the odds, Fox persisted. She has been a teacher, a mentor, a volunteer, a financial service rep, a sales director, a speaker, the founder of two organizations (the Anunda Project and Unify Human:Kind, the recipient of the community SHEro award and the author of Obliterate the Odds.

Attendees at Catholic Charities “Connecting in the Fostering World” in-service at the Jackson Medical Mall have a dialogue with CJ Fox and others on the foster care system and how all parties can work together for the betterment of every child.

In addition to her story and tips on how to bridge communication gap with foster children, Fox did activities with the group of social workers, therapist, foster parents and Catholic Charities employees present. The group did a “love language” exercise and got into small groups to discuss situations that may arise involving the best interest of foster children.
Crisis intervention speciality, Andrew Cambell of Hope Haven home-based services was present at the event. During the group discussion, he offered his opinion that “professionals need to come together so they can collaborate and talk, so that when you are working on a case with a child, you won’t retraumatize [the child].”
Cambell said that a lot of times in the foster system that a child “has given that same information over and over. And the child is tired of it.”
Fox closed the event by thanking all in attendance for being so willing to go on the journey with her and she left with the words that “you can’t reach, rescue or restore every child that is out there, but you can make a difference in the life of one and that is good enough.”
To learn more about CJ Fox and how to determine your role in foster care, visit her Facebook page, Obliterate the Odds.

Echegaray cardenal, Henri de Lubac y Vaticano II

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Obispo Robert Barron

Por Obispo Robert Barron
La semana pasada falleció el cardenal Roger Etchegaray. Quizás el suyo no era un nombre familiar, pero este hombre muy decente hizo una contribución sustancial a la vida de la Iglesia, sirviendo en varias capacidades diferentes a lo largo de los años y colaborando estrechamente con el Papa Juan Pablo II. Tuve el privilegio de conocerlo a mediados de la década de 1990, cuando visitó el Seminario Mundelein donde yo era profesor de teología. El Cardenal quería dirigirse a la comunidad, pero su inglés era un poco inestable, así que traduje para él. Pero recuerdo que su sonrisa y su gozo evidente en el Señor no necesitaban ninguna traducción.
La primera vez que vi a Roger Etchegaray fue algunos años antes, en un día extraordinario en la Catedral de Notre Dame en París: el funeral del legendario teólogo Henri de Lubac. En ese momento, como estudiante de doctorado de tercer año, me dirigí a Notre Dame, con la esperanza de poder participar en la misa del funeral. Cuando me acerqué a la puerta, un agente de seguridad me detuvo y me preguntó: “Est-ce que vous êtes membre de la famille? (¿Eres miembro de la familia?),” “Non,” respondí. Luego me preguntó: “¿Est-ce que vous êtes theologien? (¿Eres un teólogo?). ”Con cierta inquietud, dije:” Oui (Si), ”y rápidamente me guió a una posición privilegiada cerca del frente de la Catedral.
Al sonido profundo de las campanas de la Catedral, el sencillo ataúd de madera de de Lubac fue llevado por el pasillo central. Noté, cuando pasó por mi posición, que el ataúd estaba coronado por la birreta roja del cardenal de Lubac. Al final de la misa, el cardenal Etchegaray se levantó para hablar en nombre del Papa. Leyó un hermoso homenaje de Juan Pablo II, y luego compartió la siguiente anécdota. Poco después de su elección al papado, John Paul vino a París para una visita pastoral. Hizo una parada especial en el Institut Catholique de Paris para reunirse con teólogos y otros académicos católicos. Después de sus comentarios formales- continuó Etchegaray – Juan Pablo II levantó la vista y dijo: “¿“Où est le pere de Lubac? (¿Dónde está el padre de Lubac?) ”El joven Karol Wojtyla había trabajado estrechamente con de Lubac durante el Vaticano II, específicamente en la composición del gran documento conciliar Gaudium et Spes. De Lubac dio un paso adelante y, Etchegaray nos dijo que el Papa Juan Pablo II inclinó la cabeza ante el distinguido teólogo. Luego Etchegaray, volviéndose hacia el ataúd, dijo: “Encore une fois, au nom du pape, j’incline la tête devant le pere de Lubac (Una vez más, en nombre del Papa, inclino la cabeza ante el padre. de Lubac).“
Esto es mucho más que una historia encantadora, porque sobre la reverencia de Juan pablo II por Henri de Lubac hay una historia muy interesante de relevancia continua para nuestro tiempo. De Lubac fue el defensor más destacado de lo que llegó a llamarse la nouvelle theologie (la nueva teología). Apartándose del Tomismo estricto y bastante racionalista que dominó la vida intelectual católica en la primera mitad del siglo XX, de Lubac y sus colegas se volvieron con entusiasmo a las Escrituras y a las obras maravillosas y multifacéticas de los Padres de la Iglesia. Este regreso a las “fuentes” de la fe produjo una teología que fue espiritualmente informada, ecuménicamente generosa e intelectualmente rica, y que puso a de Lubac “al fuego (hot water)” a un nivel considerable con el establecimiento académico y eclesial de esa época. En el apogeo de sus poderes, durante la década de 1950, fue silenciado y se le prohibió enseñar, hablar o publicar. Rehabilitado por el Papa Juan XXIII, de Lubac desempeñó un papel fundamental en el Vaticano II, influyendo decisivamente en muchos de sus principales documentos. Es completamente correcto decir que este defensor de la reforma del Concilio Vaticano II no era amigo del conservadurismo católico preconciliar.
Sin embargo, en los años inmediatamente posteriores al Concilio, Henri de Lubac se impacientó con el liberalismo católico, liderado por figuras como Hans Küng, Karl Rahner y Edward Schillebeeckx, que estaba superando los textos del Vaticano II y que se acomodaba demasiado fácilmente con la cultura ambiental, perdiendo su union con el cristianismo clásico.
Y así, junto con sus colegas Hans Urs von Balthasar y Joseph Ratzinger, fundó la revista teológica Communio, que era un contrapeso a la revista Concilium, que publicó los trabajos de los principales liberales. Fue esta escuela de Communio, ese camino intermedio entre ambos, el conservadurismo y el liberal rechazo del Vaticano II, algo que Juan Pablo II abrazó con entusiasmo. Si usted busca una evidencia clara de que el Papa polaco favoreció este enfoque, no busque más allá del Catecismo de 1992, que está lleno del espíritu de la nouvelle theologie (la nueva teología), y del hecho de que Juan Pablo II honró especialmente a los tres fundadores de Communio, haciendo a José Ratzinger jefe de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe y nombrando cardenales a de Lubac y a Balthasar.
¿Se exhiben hoy los rechazos del Vaticano II de parte de la izquierda y de la derecha? Simplemente vaya usted al espacio de los nuevos medios católicos y encontrará la pregunta fácilmente respondida. Lo que aún es muy necesario es la actitud de Lubac: profundo compromiso con los textos del Vaticano II, apertura a la conversación ecuménica, disposición a dialogar con la cultura (sin ceder) y reverencia por la tradición sin sofocar al tradicionalismo. Quizás podría invitarlo a usted a reflexionar sobre ese gesto y esas palabras del cardenal Etchegaray que aprendí hace muchos años: “Una vez más, en nombre del Papa, inclino la cabeza ante el padre de Lubac.”

(El obispo Robert Barron es autor, orador, teólogo y fundador de Word on Fire, un ministerio global de medios de comunicacion – Wordonfire.org)

Bishop calendar

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Sunday, Sept. 29, 10:30 a.m. – Feast of St. Therese, Kosciusko St. Therese
Saturday, Oct. 5, 5:15 p.m. – EOHS Mass, Feast of Holy Mary Queen of Palestine, Jackson Cathedral of St. Peter
Tuesday, Oct. 8, 12 p.m. Catholic Charities Journey of Hope, Jackson Convention Center
Thursday, Oct. 17, 5 p.m. Catholic Charities Purple Dress Run, Jackson The District at Eastover

Only public events are listed on this schedule and all events are subject to change.
Please check with the local parish for further details

Cardinal Etchegaray, Henri de Lubac and Vatican II

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Bishop Robert Barron

By Bishop Robert Barron
(Editor’s note: Bishop Joseph Kopacz is on vacation at press time. His regular column will return in our Oct. 11 edition.)
Recently, Cardinal Roger Etchegaray passed away. Perhaps his was not a household name, but this very decent man made a substantive contribution to the life of the Church, serving in a number of different capacities over the years and collaborating closely with St. Pope John Paul II. I had the privilege of meeting him in the mid 1990s when he visited Mundelein Seminary, where I was serving as professor of theology. The Cardinal wanted to address the community, but his English was a bit shaky, so I translated for him. But I recall that his smile and evident joy in the Lord needed no translation whatsoever.
The first time I ever laid eyes on Roger Etchegaray was some years before that, on an extraordinary day in Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris: the funeral of the legendary theologian Henri de Lubac. A third-year doctoral student at the time, I had made my way to Notre Dame, hoping against hope that I might be able to participate in the funeral Mass. As I approached the door, I was stopped by a security agent who asked, “Est-ce que vous êtes membre de la famille? (Are you a member of the family?)” “Non,” I responded. Then he inquired, “Est-ce que vous êtes theologien? (Are you a theologian?)” With some trepidation, I said, “Oui,” and he promptly directed me to a prime position near the front of the Cathedral. To the tolling of the deepest bells in the Cathedral, the simple wooden coffin of de Lubac was wheeled down the middle aisle. I noticed, as it passed by my position, that it was topped by de Lubac’s red cardinal’s biretta.
At the close of the Mass, Cardinal Etchegaray rose to speak on behalf of the Pope. He read a beautiful tribute from John Paul II, and then he shared the following anecdote. Soon after his election to the papacy, John Paul came to Paris for a pastoral visit. He made a special stop at the Institut Catholique de Paris to meet with theologians and other Catholic academics. After his formal remarks, Etchegaray continued, John Paul II looked up and said, “Où est le pere de Lubac? (Where is Father de Lubac?)” The young Karol Wojtyla had worked closely with de Lubac during Vatican II, specifically in the composition of the great conciliar document Gaudium et Spes. De Lubac stepped forward and, Etchegaray told us, Pope John Paul bowed his head to the distinguished theologian. Then, turning to the coffin, Etchegaray said, “Encore une fois, au nom du pape, j’incline la tête devant le pere de Lubac (Once more, in the name of the Pope, I bow my head before Father de Lubac).”
This is much more than a charming story, for upon John Paul’s reverence for Henri de Lubac hangs a very interesting tale of continuing relevance to our time. De Lubac was the most prominent proponent of what came to be called la nouvelle theologie (the new theology). Departing from the strict and rather rationalist Thomism that dominated Catholic intellectual life in the first half of the twentieth century, de Lubac and his colleagues turned with enthusiasm to the Scriptures and to the marvelous and multifaceted works of the Church Fathers. This return to the “sources” of the faith produced a theology that was spiritually informed, ecumenically generous and intellectually rich — and it got de Lubac in considerable hot water with the academic and ecclesial establishment of that time. At the very height of his powers, throughout the 1950s, he was silenced, prohibited from teaching, speaking or publishing. Rehabilitated by Pope John XXIII, de Lubac played a pivotal role at Vatican II, decisively influencing many of its major documents. It is altogether correct to say that this champion of the reforming Second Vatican Council was no friend of pre-conciliar Catholic conservatism.
However, in the years immediately following the Council, Henri de Lubac became impatient with the Catholic liberalism, led by such figures as Hans Küng, Karl Rahner and Edward Schillebeeckx, which was pushing past the texts of Vatican II, accommodating itself far too readily with the environing culture and losing its mooring in classical Christianity. And so, along with his colleagues Hans Urs von Balthasar and Joseph Ratzinger, he founded the theological journal Communio, which was meant as a counterweight to the journal Concilium, which published the works of the leading liberals. It was this Communioschool, this middle path between both a conservative and liberal rejection of Vatican II, that John Paul II enthusiastically embraced. If you seek clear evidence that the Polish Pope favored this approach, look no further than the Catechism of 1992, which is filled with the spirit of the nouvelle theologie and to the fact that John Paul specially honored the three founders of Communio, making Joseph Ratzinger head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and naming both de Lubac and Balthasar Cardinals.
Are both left-wing and right-wing rejections of Vatican II on display today? Just go on the Catholic new media space and you’ll find the question readily answered. What is still very much the needful thing is the de Lubac attitude: deep commitment to the texts of Vatican II, openness to ecumenical conversation, a willingness to dialogue with the culture (without caving in to it), reverence for the tradition without a stifling traditionalism. Perhaps I might invite you to muse on that gesture and those words of Cardinal Etchegaray that I took in many years ago: “Once more, in the name of the Pope, I bow my head before Father de Lubac.”

(This article first appeared at WordOnFire.org. Bishop Robert Barron is the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.)

Parish calendar of events

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SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
BROOKSVILLE The Dwelling Place, Transitions and Transformation, Oct. 11–13, begins with dinner at 6:30 p.m. Am I in transition in retirement, in my workplace, my family, my residence, my relationship or health? The weekend will explore these issues. Facilitators: Dr. Francis Baird, LPC, who has a private counseling practice in Columbus and Starkville and Clare Van Lent, MA CSp., Dwelling Place Director. Donation: $180. Details: (662) 738-5348 or email dwellpl@gmail.com.
HOLLY SPRINGS Hands–ON + Hearts–IN is a program is to assist women who are discerning a call to consecrated life through hands-on service to the needy throughout north Mississippi. Monday – Thursday, Oct. 21–24. This program, coordinated by the Sisters of the Living Word, is a collaborative effort between the Chicago Archdiocesan Vocation Association (CAVA) members and Sacred Heart Southern Missions (SHSM). The hospitality team will be the Sisters of the Living Word. They previously will be offering the meals and a comfortable home base for the prayer and discernment aspects of the experience. Details: contact Sister Sharon Glumb, SLW at handsonheartsin@gmail.com or (847) 577-5972 Ext# 233.
METAIRIE, La. Catholic Charismatic Renewal of New Orleans (CCRNO), Torrent of Grace, An Evening of Worship, Sunday, Nov. 10 at 7:30 p.m. at St. Benilde cafeteria, 1901 Division Street. The evening features “Overshadow Me” with Sean Tobin, composer and worship leader from Los Angeles. The sole purpose of this gathering is to seek God, to worship and experience the presence of the Holy Spirit. Everyone is invited who desires to spend an evening with prophetic, spirit–filled music and praise. There is no charge, but a love offering will be received. Details: www.ccrno.org; info@ccrno.org or (504) 828-1368.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. National Catholic Singles Conference, Oct. 25–27. Join hundreds of single Catholics from across the country at the Diocese of Nashville Catholic Pastoral Center. The weekend includes talks by dynamic speakers (Sr. Helena Burns, Dr. Kerry Cronin, Damon Owens and David Clayton) as well as music, social events, prayer, food, fellowship and more. Space is limited. Enter promo code NASH19 for a $20 discount. Details: For more information and to register visit www.NationalCatholicSingles.com. or call Mirjana Northrop at (512) 766–5798 or email natcatsingles@gmail.com.
PEARL St. Jude – The Marian Servants of Jesus, the Lamb of God, invites you to a “Come and See” open house, Tuesday, Oct. 8, from 6:30–8:30 p.m. An opportunity for you to learn about the Marian Servant Community. Details: Contact Teresa Preuss (601) 906–1338, tepreuss@yahoo.com, or Maureen Roberts (601) 278–0423 mmjroberts@gmail.com.
STANTON, Tenn, Worldwide Marriage Encounter Weekend, Oct. 25–27 at Our Lady Queen of Peace Retreat Center. Details: Norman and Barbara Sobota at (901) 373-7030 or email sobota@bellsouth.net.

PARISH, SCHOOL AND FAMILY EVENTS
ABERDEEN St. Francis, Adult Bible Study, Tuesdays at 11 a.m. Studying the Gospel of John. Details: church office (662) 813-2295.
BATESVILLE St. John, Knights of Columbus are holding a Rummage Sale, Friday, Nov. 1, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 2 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Please donate any clean, unbroken, gently used items that you no longer need. Details: church office (662) 563-2273.
BROOKHAVEN St. Francis, 153rd Francis Fest (formerly known as Parish Picnic), Sunday, Oct. 6, Mass at 10 a.m., Lunch, bingo, games and jumpers for the kids. Details: church office (601) 833-1799.
OLIVE BRANCH, Queen of Peace, Prayer and Worship Course taught by Sister Emily, Thursdays, Oct. 3 until Nov. 21 at 6:45 pm. The focus of the classes will be a better understanding of the liturgy and of various prayer forms. The texts that will be used are Introduction to Christian Worship, third edition and We Worship: A Guide to the Catholic Mass. Details: ctksemily@aol.com or the church office (601) 895–5007.
JACKSON St. Richard, Evening with Mary, Tuesday, Oct. 8 at 6 p.m. in Foley Hall. KC Williams, local artist, and Suzan Cox will team up to show the different ways people picture our Blessed Mother. The evening is a time for women to listen to speakers and share a dessert and conversation. There is no cost. Deadline to register is Oct. 4. Social begins at 6 p.m. with speakers starting at 6:30 p.m. Details: Suzan Cox at (601) 366-2335 or cox@saintrichard.com.
MADISON St. Francis of Assisi, Father Nick Adam, Parochial Vicar at Jackson St. Richard, will be discussing “The Power of Silence,” Monday, Sept. 30 and Tuesday, Oct. 1. In our society, our access to silence is pretty much zero. We are constantly bombarded by noise of one kind or another. But in order to encounter the Lord Jesus Christ, we have to make room for silent prayer so we can hear the Lord’s call above all the noise. These nights will include Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and Benediction, along with a meal. Details: church office (601) 856–5556.
MERIDIAN Catholic Community of St. Joseph and St. Patrick, October Festival 2019, Saturday, Oct. 5 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Includes health fair, hispanic cultural dishes, fun games for children, escape room for teens, country store and white elephant store (7 a.m. to 12 p.m.). Fish and rib plates $10; Rib slabs $20. Details: (601) 938–1337 or (601) 227-1199 to make donations (no clothing please).
VICKSBURG St. Paul will host a six-week adult catechesis program, The Mass, where Father Rusty Vincent will outline each part of the Mass, its Scriptural foundation and the reasoning behind responses and gestures. It will start Wednesday, Sept. 25th at Farrell Hall. Meals are served for $5. If you would like to attend, please email Rebecca Weatherford at faithformation@stpaulvicksburg.org. or church office (601) 636-0140.

YOUTH BRIEFS
JACKSON Sister Thea Bowman School, registration is underway for the 2019–20 school year. If you are looking for a solid academic education rooted in Gospel values serving grades PreK3 – 6th grades. Details: Shae Goodman-Robinson, principal at (601) 506-8998 for more information.
MADISON St. Anthony, Open House and Fall Festival, Saturday, Nov. 2 from 2-5 p.m. There will be games, carnival food and hayrides. Details: school office (601) 607-7054.
RIDGELAND St. Francis of Assisi, Senior Bible Break, Wednesdays from 6-7 p.m. at M7 Coffee House, 111 North Wheatley Street in Ridgeland, for all 12th graders for scripture sharing and fellowship. Bring a Bible and friends are welcome. Details: church office (601) 856-5556.

IN MEMORIAM
Long-time resident of Vicksburg, Sister Mary Fatima Starks, died Wednesday, Sept. 18, 2019, in Mobile, Alabama. A Sister of Mercy for 72 years, she was 90 years old.
Sister Fatima ministered in education, as a teacher and principal at schools in Mississippi, Louisiana, Illinois and Pennsylvania. Of her 60 years in active ministry, all but 3 years were spent serving the people of Mississippi. She gave over 30 years of service to Vicksburg Catholic school. Most recently, before moving in 2016 to the Convent of Mercy in Mobile, she served as a volunteer at St. Francis Xavier Elementary School in Vicksburg, Mississippi.
A funeral Mass was celebrated Monday, Sept. 23 at Corpus Christi church in Mobile. Sister Fatima’s burial took place at Cedar Hill cemetery in Vicksburg, Tuesday, Sept. 24.