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News Briefs
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NEWS BRIEFS Oct-12-2005
By Catholic News Service
U.S.
Los Angeles Archdiocese releases files on priests accused of abuse
LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- The Los Angeles Archdiocese Oct. 12 released personnel files on 126 priests accused of sexually abusing minors. Some of the files go back to the 1930s. They were released as part of settlement talks with attorneys representing some 560 people who have sued the archdiocese, claiming they were sexually abused as minors by Catholic clergy. The files, posted on the archdiocesan Web site in a 155-page report, show that until recent years the archdiocese often returned accused priests to ministry after treatment -- a practice once common in almost all U.S. dioceses. In other cases priests were removed from ministry or laicized. Some priests were already dead when the first allegation of abuse was lodged with the archdiocese.
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Bishops to deal with liturgy, lay ministry, death penalty in November
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- When the U.S. bishops meet in November, major items on their agenda will include decisions on a statement about lay ecclesial ministry, a new text of Scripture readings for Masses with children and a new statement calling for an end to the use of the death penalty in the United States. The annual fall meeting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will be held in Washington Nov. 14-17. Also on the agenda are the election of a new USCCB general secretary, the election of chairmen-elect for seven USCCB committees and approval of 2006 priorities, plans and budget for the USCCB. The proposed statement on lay ecclesial ministry, "Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord," is intended as a "foundational document" on one of the most significant phenomena to emerge in the church since the Second Vatican Council -- the rapid growth of lay ministerial leaders collaborating with the priests and deacons as an integral part of parish and diocesan life.
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Diocese of Biloxi receives $4 million in donations, aid
BILOXI, Miss. (CNS) -- In just a week's time the Diocese of Biloxi received a $1 million donation to help rebuild churches and schools damaged by Hurricane Katrina and a $3 million grant from Catholic Charities USA to help the diocese with humanitarian needs in its long-term recovery efforts. Within the diocese, 10 churches were destroyed or gutted; 10 others suffered major damage. Six Catholic schools were destroyed and others suffered major damage. "These are dark days but there are a lot of lights shining brightly," Bishop Thomas J. Rodi said Oct. 7 at a press conference at the diocesan pastoral center after receiving a $1 million donation from philanthropist and businessman Joseph C. Canizaro. "We have suffered much loss because of the destruction and damage inflicted by the fury of Hurricane Katrina," the bishop said. "Despite our losses, there is a strong spirit of determination to rebuild our communities so that they are even better than before."
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Homegirl Cafe serves up opportunity for at-risk girls
LOS ANGELES (CNS) -- Patricia Zarate has parlayed her family recipes and creative delectable concoctions into the newly opened Homegirl Cafe and Catering in Los Angeles' Boyle Heights. "Enchiladas de Mi 'a Ma" is her mother's recipe. "Rosa's Mole" honors the woman who taught her not to be afraid of making mole. The homemade jalapeno pesto with panela cheese "Consuelo's Sandwich" is named after a community leader who loves jalapeno pesto. A division of Homeboy Industries headed by Jesuit Father Greg Boyle, Homegirl Cafe also fulfills a longtime dream to offer young women caught up in gangs a place to work and learn practical cooking, baking, food preparation and service skills. As cafe and catering manager and head chef, the slender and silver-haired Zarate boldly mixes textures and colors like the green papaya, jicama, mango, green beans and a homemade citrus dressing in "Nora's Salad."
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Priest works to bring Burmese young people to U.S. for education
CAMP HILL, Pa. (CNS) -- Ever since he was ordained a priest in the Diocese of Myitkyina, Burma, in 1979, Father Donald Lasap Khawng Lum has always found a way to provide for the needs of his flock. During his first pastoral assignment, he was put in charge of 57 children who had no shelter or food, so Father Lum built them places to live out of sticks and grass and, for their food and water, he raised animals, fished, grew a garden and dug a well. He built wooden coffins for poor Catholic villagers who could not afford to bury their dead. He bought an elephant for people in a mountainous area who needed transportation. He persuaded a Catholic couple to donate land for a seminary for his diocese. Today, Father Lum ministers to people in the Harrisburg Diocese and he is working with local Burmese Catholics to find a way to bring young people from his country, now known as Myanmar, to the U.S. for education.
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WORLD
Doctrinal head says church teaching authority is at service of Gospel
ROME (CNS) -- The church's teaching office is not an autonomous authority but operates at the service of the word of God and the Gospel, said U.S. Archbishop William J. Levada, head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Archbishop Levada made the comments Oct. 10 in a talk at Rome's University of Sant'Anselmo. It was his first major public address since assuming duties at the helm of the congregation, which is charged with promoting and protecting Catholic doctrine and morals around the world. Noting that this fall marks the 40th anniversary of the end of the Second Vatican Council, the archbishop said the council's Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation ("Dei Verbum") rightly emphasized the interconnectedness of several theological notions: revelation, the word of God, Scripture, tradition and magisterium. "Dei Verbum," Archbishop Levada said, affirmed that the church's teaching office "is not above the word of God, but serves it" by listening to it devoutly, guarding it scrupulously and explaining it with the help of the Holy Spirit.
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At audience, pope calls for prayers for peace in Jerusalem
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI called for prayers for peace in Jerusalem, asking that it become a meeting place free of discord. During his general audience in St. Peter's Square Oct. 12, the pope ended his catechesis on a psalm that prays for peace in ancient Jerusalem by asking for prayers for that city today. "We also want to pray for the city of Jerusalem that it may be ever more a meeting place of religions and peoples and really a place of peace," the pope said. In his reflections on Psalm 122, the pope said the Hebrew word "shalom" or "peace" was traditionally considered to be the root word of the holy city's name, "Jerushalajim," "interpreted as 'the city of peace.'" Jerusalem was not only a seat of government, it was also "the highest judicial seat" of the house of David, he said. Jewish pilgrims would head to the city in order to settle any controversy and return home "more just and peaceful," said the pope.
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Hong Kong bishop says Chinese church more united than it appears
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Catholic Church in China is much more united than it seems on the surface, said a bishop from Hong Kong. Bishop Joseph Zen Ze-kiun told the Synod of Bishops Oct. 12 that the church in mainland China "appears divided in two parts, one officially recognized by the government and one clandestine that refuses to be independent from Rome." But, he said, "in reality, it is just one church, because we all want to be united to the Holy Father." Since the 1950s, China has had a government-approved Catholic Church that elects its own bishops with government approval and initially was forced to reject ties to the Vatican. An underground church has always maintained loyalty to the Vatican. According to information released by the Vatican, Bishop Zen said the two churches have been living "a forced separation." He has said that up to 85 percent of the government-approved bishops have reconciled with the Vatican and that, in many regions of China, Catholics from the two churches intermingle at the parish level.
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Washing of feet highlights Eucharist's role in mission, bishop says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The Gospel of John's account of the Last Supper features Jesus washing his disciples' feet and sending them forth, highlighting the fact that the Eucharist leads to mission and service in the world, said Bishop William S. Skylstad of Spokane, Wash. The bishop, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, addressed the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist Oct. 8 and spoke to Catholic News Service in Rome Oct. 12. The washing of the feet, he told CNS, "is integral to the Last Supper": It is St. John's way of saying Christ's followers remember his sacrifice in the Mass, but they also must remember his admonition to go out and serve the world. Bishop Skylstad said that while some synod members have focused on abuses of liturgical norms or a lack of reverence for the Eucharist, most bishops seem more focused "on the positive aspects of Eucharist and celebration." "If you are looking for warts and moles" in how the Eucharist is celebrated, "you are going to find them," he said. "But I would rather focus on the positive things and continue to improve them."
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Official says synod faces challenges about access to Eucharist
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Bishops from around the world will have to grapple with "a couple of contradictions" in order to allow the faithful to have more access to the Eucharist, said the special secretary of the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist. Archbishop Roland Minnerath of Dijon, France, said talks during the first 10 days of the Oct. 2-23 synod had shown that "on the one hand we are a church of the Eucharist, but on the other hand we seem to have fewer and fewer priests to celebrate it." According to information released by the Vatican, the archbishop said another contradiction the faithful may be experiencing concerns the sacrament of reconciliation. He said the church says participation in Sunday Mass "is obligatory and confession is important, but we can't offer that to all of our faithful," because there were not enough priests to offer confession or because priests were juggling too many duties and did not have time to offer the sacrament often enough. Archbishop Minnerath delivered his comments between scheduled talks during the Oct. 12 morning session in the Vatican's synod hall. As special secretary, he was allowed to intervene at any time if he thought it could assist in the synod debate.
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Christian reps tell synod they're sad at lack of eucharistic sharing
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Representatives of Orthodox, Anglican and Protestant churches offered the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist reflections from their traditions and expressed sadness that Christians are divided at the altar. According to published summaries of the Oct. 11 synod talks and a Vatican briefing on their content, the strongest challenge to Catholic Church restrictions on eucharistic sharing came from the Lutheran and Anglican bishops invited by Pope Benedict XVI to the Oct. 2-23 synod. Retired Lutheran Bishop Per Lonning of Norway told the synod that a young Catholic priest had invited him to receive Communion during a 1971 Mass in Belgium, but he replied, "As a guest, I will certainly do nothing in conflict with the rules of my host." However, he said, over the next 30 years at Catholic Masses in various parts of the world he has witnessed eucharistic sharing and was even invited by a Catholic archbishop to receive Communion. Bishop Lonning said the synod working document's reaffirmations that eucharistic sharing is not permissible in most circumstances "make me rather sad, especially because I know they will make many of my Catholic friends sad."
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PEOPLE
Wisconsin Bishop Wycislo dead at 97; he attended Vatican II
GREEN BAY, Wis. (CNS) -- Retired Bishop Aloysius J. Wycislo of Green Bay, at age 97 the oldest Catholic bishop in the United States, died Oct. 11 following hospitalization for double pneumonia. He had been one of a handful of remaining U.S. bishops who attended all sessions of the Second Vatican Council in the 1960s. He was to be entombed at Allouez Catholic Mausoleum Chapel in Green Bay following his funeral Mass Oct. 15 at St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Green Bay. Bishop Wycislo was a bishop since 1960 and headed the Green Bay Diocese from 1968 until his retirement in 1983. Earlier, as field director of Catholic relief efforts during and after World War II, he directed a staff that resettled hundreds of thousands of displaced persons and established 262 welfare centers in 23 countries in Europe and the Near East.
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Hearing finds priest probably killed funeral director, intern
HUDSON, Wis. (CNS) -- Parishioners are still struggling with their emotions after a hearing found probable cause that Father Ryan Erickson, a Superior diocesan priest who was then serving at St. Patrick Parish in Hudson, killed two funeral home employees in 2002. After being questioned by police about the deaths, Father Erickson, 31, hanged himself last December at the parish to which he had been transferred, St. Mary of the Seven Dolors in Hurley. Many parishioners said they were still coming to grips with how a priest could commit such a crime -- the murders of funeral home director Dan O'Connell, 39, and intern James Ellingson of Barron, 22 -- and then take his own life. "I conclude that Ryan Erickson probably committed the crimes in question," said Judge Eric Lundell. Although acknowledging the evidence was circumstantial, he said it was still very strong. "On a scale of 1 to 10, I would consider it a 10." Hudson police said the investigation is considered closed. In a statement about the Erickson case, Superior Bishop Raphael M. Fliss said Oct. 6: "In my role as bishop I know that ultimate responsibility for much of what has taken place rests on my shoulders."
END
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