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News Briefs
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NEWS BRIEFS Jun-9-2009
By Catholic News Service
U.S.
Nuns use high-tech methods to spur vocations to religious life
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- With an estimated 184 million adults using the Internet and 75 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds having a Facebook or MySpace account, the Sisters of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus are going high-tech to spread information about their order and the call to a religious vocation. In response to the decrease in number of women answering the call to sisterhood, religious orders are using a variety of technological ways as outreach. Three sisters of the society each use a different method to extend their reach beyond the church door and are painting a more modern picture of what it means to be a woman religious. For the past two years, Sister Mary Ann Buckley has been serving in Chile, ministering to migrant women. She helped expand the society's reach in Latin America with the development of a Spanish-language Web site. The society's site, www.shcj.org, provides information about the order's founder, Mother Cornelia Connelly, the sisters' overall mission and gives information about joining the order. Sister Mary Ann not only maintains the Spanish Web site, but she shoots and uploads video clips to the Web and provides occasional theological reflections on her blog.
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Connecticut parishioners turning to pastors for financial help
HARTFORD, Conn. (CNS) -- When they have nowhere else to turn in tough economic times, people are turning to their local Catholic pastors. This year, in ways pastors were never equipped to assist in the past, they are reporting having to help people make mortgage and rent payments, obtain prescriptions and health care, pay for utilities and dramatically reduce the cost of feeding their families. "Normally, our parish ability to assist is extremely limited, and the Emergency Assistance Fund has been a godsend for us to be able to help the people in the community," said Father John L. Williams, pastor of the Church of the Epiphany in Cheshire, Conn. Since the fund was introduced March 5 as an initiative of the Hartford Archdiocese's 2009 Archbishop's Annual Appeal, it has helped subsidize families and individuals seeking help with basic human needs and day-to-day necessities, including utilities, food, clothing, shelter and transportation. Pastors forward applications for assistance that they receive to Catholic Charities, which administers the fund. Rose Alma Senatore, president and CEO of Catholic Charities, said that so far there have been more than 150 requests coming from about 80 parishes, totaling more than $350,000. Response to the fund's creation was immediate, said Carmen Dosal, who handled the requests for the opening weeks of its operation. "Once it was made public to the parishioners, then they (the referrals) started coming in. By mid-March, it was just an avalanche," Dosal told The Catholic Transcript, newspaper of the Hartford Archdiocese.
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Amended bill on abuse lawsuits still 'terrible' policy, official says
ALBANY, N.Y. (CNS) -- Even with an amendment to include public institutions, a bill that would temporarily waive statutes of limitations on filing sex abuse lawsuits "remains terrible public policy," said the New York State Catholic Conference in Albany. As originally written, the Child Victims Act of New York -- also known as the Markey bill after sponsor Democratic Assemblywoman Margaret Markey -- applied only to suits against individuals and private institutions. On June 3 Markey said she would amend her proposal to include public institutions. "After several years of denying the fact that her bill would exempt public institutions, Mrs. Markey has now acknowledged that her original bill did just that. However, even this amended bill remains terrible public policy for the state," said Richard E. Barnes, executive director of the New York State Catholic Conference, said in a June 4 statement. Markey's bill "could easily result in hundreds of billions of dollars in settlements against all entities, public and private, in every corner of our state. Clearly, such staggering numbers make this legislation a matter of grave consequence and intense public interest," Barnes said. In March the Catholic conference, which represents the state's bishops in matters of public policy, mounted a statewide campaign to educate people about the Markey bill. The measure also would lengthen the period in which alleged victims may sue over child sexual abuse in the future.
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Rosary is family matter because 'family matters,' priest tells crowd
EASTON, Mass. (CNS) -- Holy Cross Father John Phalen told a crowd of about 1,000 Catholics at a June 6 rosary fest in Easton that "the rosary is a family matter because the family matters." The priest, who is president of Holy Cross Family Ministries, urged his listeners to "have a time and a place for praying the rosary daily and benefit from its healing presence." "Families are not chosen," continued Father Phalen, "but are given to us by God. The family rosary is just what's needed to place God at the center of the family unit." Father Phalen, who is continuing the mission of famed "rosary priest" Holy Cross Father Patrick Peyton, was the opening speaker at the Family Rosary Fest held in the stadium at Stonehill College. The event was part of Holy Cross Family Ministries yearlong celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Father Peyton, its founder and a candidate for sainthood.
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WORLD
Church's support extends around the clock to families of fire victims
MEXICO CITY (CNS) -- The Catholic Church in Hermosillo, Mexico, has provided around-the-clock spiritual and material support to the families that lost children in a June 4 fire at a day care center that has claimed at least 44 young lives. Hermosillo Archdiocese spokesman Father Luis Cobacame told Catholic News Service June 8 that church staff members have been accompanying families of victims to hospitals, funeral homes and private residences. In addition, the archdiocesan health ministry has provided medical and psychological attention to burn victims, while the archdiocesan food bank and Caritas, the international Catholic aid agency have provided the mostly poor and working-class families with groceries, household items and transportation, he said. Priests and others from the archdiocese led more than 100 religious services June 8 in parishes and funeral homes across Hermosillo, an industrial and agricultural center of 700,000 residents located 175 miles south of the Mexico-Arizona border. The services followed a June 7 Mass celebrated by Archbishop Jose Macias Salcedo of Hermosillo in a sports complex for 10,000 people, who Father Cobacame said have rallied to support the families of the deceased children but have been distressed by the tragedy. "We've never had such a painful event in this city that we can remember," Father Cobacame said. "The city is in total mourning ... people are crying in the streets," he said.
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Lebanon's opposition setback seen as a boost for diplomatic relations
BEIRUT, Lebanon -- Lebanon's Western-backed ruling majority remains in power as a result of the country's hotly contested June 7 parliamentary elections, a setback for the Christian opposition backed by Hezbollah. Christian opposition leader Michel Aoun, a Maronite Catholic who forged alliances through his Free Patriotic Movement with Hezbollah in 2006, had hoped to claim the majority in the Lebanese parliament. Hezbollah, which is supported by Iran and Syria, is considered a terrorist group by the United States. Lebanon's politically divided Christians were considered the determining factor in the election; 58 percent voted for the ruling coalition and 42 percent for Aoun's bloc, according to Lebanon's An Nahar newspaper. Under Lebanon's governing system, half of the parliament's 128 seats are allocated for Christians and the presidency is reserved for a Maronite Catholic. Christians represent about 40 percent of Lebanon's population of approximately 4 million. The March 14 ruling coalition, comprised of Sunnis, Druze and Christians, was victorious in four of Lebanon's five major cities, including Beirut and Tripoli. Of Lebanon's 128 parliamentary seats, the ruling coalition now holds 71 seats, a gain of one since the 2005 elections. The opposition now has 57 seats, a loss of one. Hezbollah has maintained its 11 seats. The outcome "is favorable to what the U.S. wants and most likely will lessen tensions with Israel," said Habib Malik, associate professor of history at Lebanese American University and the author of "Between Damascus and Jerusalem: Lebanon and Middle East Peace."
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Christian Brother who guided church in Madagascar is beatified
VATICAN CITY (CNS) - An energetic convert to Catholicism who guided the church in Madagascar through extreme difficulties was beatified in the country's capital. Brother Raffaele Rafiringa, born in the African country in 1856, was declared "blessed" in a ceremony June 7 in Antananarivo by Archbishop Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes. In an interview with Vatican Radio on June 6, Archbishop Amato traced the remarkable history of Blessed Raffaele who, as a lay Christian Brother, found himself at the helm of the fledgling church organization when the country's ruling family expelled ordained missionaries. During the exile of the priests from 1883-86, Blessed Raffaele's leadership "not only did not damage Catholics, but actually increased their number," Archbishop Amato explained. When the missionaries were allowed to return, he said, they found a flourishing Catholic network: schools to prepare catechists to teach in the countryside, retreats organized for missionary sisters and excellent schools for children. On Sundays Blessed Raffaele directed a very well-attended Liturgy of the Word, Archbishop Amato said. As a boy, the archbishop explained, Raffaele Firinga was fascinated by the teachings of three French La Sallian missionaries who came to Antananarivo in 1866. He was allowed by his family to attend the school they had established and was baptized at the age of 14. After working at the schools and studying himself, he became a brother. He added the prefix "Ra", which means "Sir" to his last name, which became Rafiringa.
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Relics of St. John Bosco will travel to five continents
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Celebrations for the bicentennial of the birth of St. John Bosco, the founder of the Salesian order and champion of underprivileged children, are underway with a five-continent "pilgrimage" of his relics. The crystal and aluminum urn containing a likeness of the saint and his right arm bone has been displayed in several Italian cities. On June 4, top Vatican officials honored the saint when the urn was brought to the St. Callixtus catacombs on the Appian Way in Rome. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican secretary of state, and Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, participated in a Mass there for St. John Bosco, who was inspired in a boyhood dream to devote his life to children and young people on the margins of society. The urn's journey began in Turin, in northern Italy, on April 25 in a celebration of the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Salesian order. It will travel first to Chile, stop in several South American countries, Central America, the United States, Canada, Asia, Africa and back to Europe. The pilgrimage is expected to end in Turin in 2014. The bicentennial of St. John Bosco's birth in Castelnuovo D'Asti, near Turin, will be celebrated with events in 2015.
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Pope praises bishops for promotion of Christian values in Venezuela
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI praised efforts by the Venezuelan bishops to promote authentic Christian values, social harmony and the common good in their country. "I appreciate your dedication to shedding the light of the Gospel on events of major importance affecting your country, with no aim other than to spread the most authentic Christian values, as well as to promote the quest for the common good, social harmony and stability," he said. The pope made his remarks during a meeting June 8 with 42 bishops from Venezuela. It was the first group of Venezuelan bishops making their "ad limina" visits to Rome to report on the status of their dioceses. Archbishop Ubaldo Santana Sequera of Maracaibo, president of the Venezuelan bishops' conference, told the pope that the church is often an object of "unjust and savage attacks" because of its promotion of human dignity and the family. The archbishop criticized "the imposition of a new political project that is called 21st century socialism with a revolutionary stripe." Without mentioning Venezuela's socialist President Hugo Chavez, the archbishop said this project has resulted in "far-reaching changes" and "polarized the country and divided it into opposing groups."
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Nuns provide free education to young battlefield scavengers
HUE, Vietnam (CNS) -- Out-of-school children who scavenge battlefields for old bullets and shells to sell as scrap said they hope the basic education local nuns provide will open the way to a better future. Many children in Buong Tam, a central Vietnamese village about 19 miles from Hue, have dropped out of school to help support their families. Traditionally, they have worked in the fields, tending crops and cattle. More recently they have been scavenging scrap metal from the sites of pitched battles fought between 1966 and 1975 during the Vietnam War. Paul Nguyen Duy Khoa, 13, told the Asian church news agency UCA News he has helped support his seven-member family by collecting scrap since the death of his father. He and a few friends use a metal detector and hoes to dig up whatever they can find around a 109-year-old cemetery and surrounding areas. One of 172 Catholics among the 350 villagers, received educational assistance from Daughters of Our Lady of the Visitation nuns. The five nuns based in Buong Tam offer literacy and basic math classes three nights a week at their community house. Sister Agnes Luong Thi Thien, who heads the group, said the nuns also encourage families to keep their children in school by offering scholarships worth 300,000 dong ($16.80) and tutoring the pupils. She said 15 children attend school with the assistance.
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PEOPLE
CBS newsman recounts anecdotes from 52 years of reporting in CHA talk
NEW ORLEANS (CNS) -- Recounting anecdotes gathered over 52 years of news reporting, CBS newsman Bob Schieffer entertained an audience of Catholic health care leaders June 8 in New Orleans. Mimicking the distinctive voices of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, President Lyndon Johnson and newsman Walter Cronkite, Schieffer spoke to the annual assembly of the Catholic Health Association about the highlights of a career that began when he was a police reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram newspaper in Texas. For assignments he spent a great deal of time in the emergency rooms of Fort Worth hospitals, he said. At St. Joseph Hospital in Fort Worth, he said, he met nuns who were "professional, dedicated and wonderful human beings, funny, wise and up on the news of the day." In the years since, "I have never seen any care that would match it," Schieffer said. "I think it's the best." The host of CBS' "Face the Nation" since 1991 and CBS News' chief Washington correspondent since 1982 said he had planned to retire in 2008 but decided to continue working through one more presidential campaign. "It's the best decision I ever made," he said. "I would not have missed this campaign for the world." Schieffer recalled being at the University of Mississippi, also known as Ole Miss, in 1962 when riots broke out over the attempt by black student James Meredith to enroll at the school. The next time Schieffer returned to the Ole Miss campus was in 2008 for the first debate of the presidential campaign between then-Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain, when members of the Ole Miss community and Mississippi government officials went out of their way to welcome the candidates. "I was very proud to be an American" that day, he said.
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English nun a step closer to being declared venerable
LONDON (CNS) -- An English religious sister who was jailed as a heretic by the same pope who sanctioned Galileo has moved a step closer to sainthood after Vatican theologians ruled that she lived a life of heroic virtue. Sister Mary Ward, the founder the Congregation of Jesus and the Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, known as the Loreto Sisters, may be declared venerable some time in 2010, the relator for her cause, Jesuit Father Peter Gumpel, told Catholic News Service in a June 4 interview. The unanimous vote by a panel of theological consultors in late May also was confirmed June 4 by Sister Gemma Simmonds, an English member of the Congregation of Jesus."Mary Ward had a vision of what women could do in the church and in society not only decades but centuries before anyone else saw it," said Sister Gemma, a lecturer in theology at the University of London's Heythrop College.
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END
Copyright (c) 2009 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed.
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