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News Briefs
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NEWS BRIEFS Oct-6-2005
By Catholic News Service
U.S.
Church leaders from 18 dioceses discuss parish staffing challenges
LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- Facing the future staffing needs of churches in an era of continuing priest shortages, church leaders from 18 Western dioceses gathered in Los Angeles to share and discuss new models of parish pastoral leadership. The Sept. 21-23 event, co-sponsored by the Archdiocese of Los Angeles and the National Pastoral Life Center in New York, drew 70 participants to study national trends and challenges in parish staffing. In his welcoming remarks, Cardinal Roger M. Mahony of Los Angeles urged the group not to be fearful as they considered new structural models for future pastoral leadership of churches. "It isn't about what we don't have, but rather what we do have and the new ways of being church with Jesus Christ walking forward with us," said the cardinal, who predicted in a recent pastoral statement that the number of lay parish life directors in the archdiocese would "increase considerably" beginning next year. He noted that the early church functioned in "a very creative way" with few paid ministers. "There isn't one model of parish pastoral leadership that has all the answers," the cardinal said.
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Catholic school students continue to give donations, welcome evacuees
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Since Hurricane Katrina swept through the Gulf Coast region, Catholic schools and parish religious education programs across the country have opened their doors to displaced students and relied upon familiar fundraising efforts to help those affected by the storm. The National Catholic Educational Association's Child to Child campaign for Katrina relief had raised more than $550,000 in donations as of Oct. 5. The campaign sought a $1 contribution from every student in Catholic schools and religious education programs. Currently, an NCEA committee is determining how to disburse the funds to schools damaged or destroyed by the hurricane and schools that took in displaced students. Many of the Catholic schools that took in displaced students did so without charging tuition and also "adopted" their families by providing them with food, shelter and necessary clothes. The number of displaced students was particularly high in areas close to the Gulf; in the Diocese of Baton Rouge, La., schools that were already full added extra hours to accommodate the influx of new students. In the wake of the hurricane, many schools and youth groups gave large sums of money directly to aid organizations. Others collected school supplies, household items, water, diapers, clothes, teddy bears and socks for relief organizations or groups in need.
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Man says a vision led him to tip over altar at Catholic church
DECATUR, Ala. (CNS) -- A man who claims that Pope Benedict XVI is the Antichrist and that Catholics worship idols said a vision led him to tip over and break the marble altar in Decatur's Catholic church Oct. 2. Adam Joseph Turgeon and three companions were arrested and charged with first-degree criminal mischief in the incident, which took place shortly before the end of the 11 a.m. Sunday Mass at Annunciation of the Lord Church. A fifth person reportedly with them was not charged. "This was a sad day for our entire parish," said the pastor, Father Joseph Culotta. "No faith community, in the solace of their sanctuary, should have fear that their prayer might be interrupted and their belief in religious symbols attacked," he told One Voice, the Birmingham diocesan newspaper. Witnesses said two men and three women came into church during the Communion song. A man and woman came forward screaming "this is idolatry" and "the end times are near." The man went into the sanctuary and overturned the marble altar, sending it crashing to the floor. The black and white altar top broke in two and two pedestals it rested on were knocked over and broke apart.
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Trenton Diocese receives top honors in Proclaim Awards
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The Diocese of Trenton, N.J., earned three 2005 Proclaim Awards for "Realfaith TV," a half-hour talk show for teens that deals with such issues as depression, abortion, war and self-harm. The show, which premiered in 2002, won in the categories for TV talk shows, TV public service and paid announcements, and radio public service announcements. The Proclaim Awards are given by the U.S. bishops' Catholic Communication Campaign. The awards honor excellence in communications in the dioceses that participate in the CCC. This year's awards were presented Sept. 25 during a reception for diocesan communication personnel at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington. Six Proclaim Awards and 13 certificates of merit were presented to representatives of 14 dioceses.
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Youth Apostles Institute sponsors pro-life essay contest
McLEAN, Va. (CNS) -- The Youth Apostles Institute, an association of priests and laity dedicated to youth ministry in the Catholic Church, is sponsoring its 12th annual pro-life essay contest for young people in seventh through 12th grade. The contest deadline is Nov. 15; the contest calls for 400-word essays on the theme "The best way to love the unborn is ... ." "Since 1994, thousands of teens in the Diocese of Arlington -- and some from outside the diocese as well -- have participated," said John Iekel, pro-life ministry coordinator for the institute. U.S. savings bonds worth $100, $75 and $50 will be awarded to the top three winners in each of two divisions -- junior (seventh and eighth grade) and senior (ninth through 12th grade). Entries must be mailed to: John Iekel, Youth Apostles Institute, 1600 Carlin Lane, McLean, VA 22101, or e-mailed to: prolife@youthapostles.org. Questions about the contest may be addressed to Iekel by phone at: (703) 556-0914, or by e-mail to: prolife@youthapostles.org.
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WORLD
Cardinal: It's not automatic sin to vote for pro-abortion candidate
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- A leading expert on church law said Catholics are not necessarily sinning if they vote for a candidate who supports legal abortion. Cardinal Mario Pompedda, the retired head of the Apostolic Signature, the Vatican's supreme court, said Catholics might find sufficient reasons to consider such a candidate a "lesser evil" in a field of imperfect choices. The cardinal made the remarks in an interview published Oct. 6 by the Rome newspaper La Repubblica, following a discussion at the Synod of Bishops on the question of Communion, politics and human life issues. Cardinal Pompedda said that while the church punishes the act of procuring abortion with automatic excommunication voting for a candidate who supports legal abortion is an indirect act that should be viewed differently. "I would be cautious in applying the word 'sin,' which implies intentionality. It would be more accurate to speak of risk or imprudence," he said. "Of course, whoever votes for a 'pro-abortion' candidate assumes a responsibility, but it does not necessarily involve sin as an immediate consequence," he said.
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New draft translation of Mass prayers distributed to bishops
ROME (CNS) -- A new draft translation of the main Mass prayers in English has been distributed to bishops and was auctioned off Oct. 5 on eBay, the Internet auction site. The draft of the "Ordo Missae," or Order of the Mass, was compiled by the International Commission on English in the Liturgy, which works for 11 bishops' conferences and drafts translations of original Latin prayers. The online bidder paid $61 for the 44-page document. An earlier draft was approved by ICEL's episcopal board in 2004 and was distributed to English-speaking bishops for comment. The Order of the Mass includes the prayers that are used at every Mass, such as the Gloria, the Nicene Creed and the eucharistic prayers. It does not include all of the prayers that change each week during the liturgical year. Catholic News Service in Rome was given a copy of the latest draft Oct. 6.
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Communion in hand versus on tongue gets attention at synod
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- It was not listed as a topic for discussion, but the question of Communion in the hand versus Communion on the tongue received attention at the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. Cardinal Janis Pujats of Riga, Latvia, was the first to raise the issue, telling the synod Oct. 3 that he thought Catholics should receive Communion on the tongue -- while kneeling. When communicants stand, Cardinal Pujats said, he feels like a dentist looking into their mouths. Cardinal Francis Arinze, who heads the Vatican's worship congregation, responded by saying that arguments could be made for both Communion practices, in the hand and on the tongue, according to information released by the Vatican. Ultimately, he said, it's up to bishops' conferences to decide what is best in each country, but he added that Communion in the hand needs better catechesis. Cardinal Arinze said non-Catholics in particular sometimes fail to understand Communion in the hand. He related a story about one person who went up and received Communion and then took it home and kept the host in his scrapbook.
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Eucharistic adoration is key, but also has drawbacks, bishops say
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Some eucharistic practices, including eucharistic adoration, have brought people closer to the real presence of Christ, but there may be some drawbacks to watch for, said some members of the Synod of Bishops. Italian Cardinal Camillo Ruini, papal vicar of Rome, said the discovery of eucharistic adoration has been "a key development," especially for youths, in establishing a relationship with that invisible reality of the divine. He said the church has had to learn how to explain Christ's presence to people who live in a culture that does not understand reality unless it is visible. "In the extended silence of adoration, (people) find a better opportunity of personal relationship with Christ and God the Father," he said in his Oct. 6 speech to the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. Portions of some speeches from the Oct. 2-23 synod were released by the Vatican.
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Bishops say Eucharist can transform people, church, world
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The celebration and reception of the Eucharist can transform individuals, the church and the world, said members of the world Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. "When the church recalls the moral obligation to participate in the Sunday Eucharist, it wants to underline its vital importance because (celebrating) the Eucharist is the most important action for Christians and the entire church community," said Bishop Ricardo Blazquez Perez of Bilbao, president of the Spanish bishops' conference. The bishop was one of 13 synod members who made formal speeches during the Oct. 5 evening session of the Oct. 2-23 synod, according to information released by the Vatican. Bishop Blazquez said the fact that Christ instituted the Eucharist on the eve of his death was a clear demonstration that even when the church and individuals are facing great difficulties the Eucharist will give strength and life.
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PEOPLE
New Liberian government to face 'tremendous challenges,' priest says
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (CNS) -- The government formed after Liberia's Oct. 11 elections will face "tremendous challenges," but people on the streets "sound positive and energetic" about the promise of peace, said a U.S. priest. "The new government will have trouble prioritizing what to do first" in the West African country that has almost no running water or electricity, Franciscan Father Mike Perry, advocacy officer for the Africa desk at Franciscans International in New York, said in a telephone interview from Monrovia, the Liberian capital. Liberia's infrastructure was severely damaged during almost continuous internal conflict between 1990 and 2003. "The roads are dilapidated, and those who do have electricity have their own generators," he said. Monrovia, with a population of 1.6 million, has only one hospital, which "operates at low capacity," he said. "All the people we speak to tell us that they don't want any more violence," Father Perry said. Father Perry visited Liberia Oct. 2-7 as part of an interfaith delegation.
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Witnesses of tour boat accident on Lake George recall tragedy
ALBANY, N.Y. (CNS) -- "We started to see bodies. You wanted to see that they were alive. You wanted to get them up. And you saw they were not alive," Mary Olsen told The Evangelist, newspaper of the Albany Diocese. That is the image she saw on Lake George Oct. 2, after the tour boat Ethan Allen had capsized, claiming the lives of 20 elderly tourists from Michigan and Ohio. Initially, officials put the death toll at 21. Mary Olsen, coordinator of disaster relief for Catholic Charities in the Albany Diocese, and her husband, Noel, who is director of the diocesan Office of Real Property, were boating on Lake George with friends when they came across the tragic scene. They were among the first to respond to the wreck. An Oct. 5 Associated Press story reported that the National Transportation Safety Board ran a stability test on a boat identical to the Ethan Allen and determined the capsized craft could not handle the passenger load. The board planned to continue its investigation. After the accident, the captain of the boat was quoted as saying his craft flipped over after he tried to steer out of a wake, or wave, caused by another boat.
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Playwright August Wilson's story-telling came out of Pittsburgh roots
PITTSBURGH (CNS) -- August Wilson, a native of Pittsburgh's Hill District who forged his experiences in that community into an acclaimed series of 10 plays that helped to define African-American life in the 20th century, saw his work touch audiences around the world. Wilson died Oct. 2 of liver cancer at age 60 in Seattle, where he had lived for the last 11 years. Funeral services were scheduled for Oct. 8 in Pittsburgh's Soldiers & Sailors National Museum and Memorial. A memorial Mass also was to be celebrated at St. Benedict the Moor Church in Pittsburgh, where several family members still are parishioners. Wilson's works are regarded as a major literary achievement, the characters and stories he created giving voice to the challenges African-Americans faced in society.
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Copyright (c) 2005 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
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