MARCH 25, 2022
mississippicatholic.com
Regional Synod listening sessions invite Catholics to share "dreams" BY JOANNA PUDDISTER KING
JACKSON – The Catholic community in the Diocese of Jackson is continuing Pope Francis' call for the Synod on Synodality, a period of listening and dialogue to rejuvenate the church. After Bishop Joseph Kopacz opened the synod in October 2021, parishes across the diocese conducted listening sessions to hear from people who fill the pews and thoses who no longer feel connected to the church. From those sessions the Synod advisory council reviewed every submission from each parish that participated and identified core issues on the minds of those across the diocese. On March 21at St. Francis Madison, at the first of ten regional synod listening sessions with Bishop Kopacz, Fran Lavelle, director of faith formation and chair of the Synod advisory council, reviewed the things that were heard in the Synod listening sessions. These included the need to create community outreach opportunities, both within the church and the larger community; a need for healing with regard to marriages, annulments, LGBTQ, racial and ethnic divisions and the sexual abuse scandal; a need for unity; a way to be inclusive of all cultures and diverse communities; increased formation and education of lay leaders; increased faith formation opportunites for adults; the need for more evangelization ef-
MADISON – Bishop Joseph Kopacz passes out "brainstorming" sheets to those present at the regional Synod listening session held at St. Francis parish on Monday, March 21. After a cursory review of the major themes from the local listening sessions held at parishes all across the diocese, Bishop Kopacz is seeking out concrete ways to advance ideas from those local sessions at regional sessions being held throughout the diocese. (Photo by Joanna Puddister King)
forts; ways to reach the young church; among others. "What we really want to do is focus on those areas that came up that we can address within the struture of the diocese," said Lavelle. During the regional sessions participants are asked to discern three core priorities and how these can be addressed at the local level, giving concrete examples of how the church can successfully address them. Lavelle asked all to "dream" as Pope Francis in his book, Let us Dream: The Path to a Better Future. The remaining regional sessions include: – Tuesday, March 29 at St. Jude Pearl (Spanish) from 6:30-8 p.m. – Wednesday, March 30 at St. Mary Basilica Natchez (English) from 6-7:30 p.m. – Thursday, March 31 at Immaculate Heart of Mary Greenwood (English) from 5:30-7 p.m. – Thursday, March 31 at St. Francis Greenwood (Spanish) from 7:308:30 p.m. – Monday, April 4 at St. Patrick Meridian (English) from 6-7:30 p.m. –Tuesday, April 5 at St. James Tupelo (English) from 6-7 p.m. – Tuesday, April 5 at St. James Tupelo (Spanish) from 7-8 p.m. –Wednesday, April 6 at St. Mary Batesville (English) from 6-7:30 p.m.
Charities seeks foster families for refugee children BY JOE LEE
thirty years in Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties,” said program director Ebonye Debose-Moore. “The goal is to assist unaccompanied refugee minors in developing skills to enter adulthood and achieve economic self-sufficiency. Our services include youth therapy, cultural orientation, translation services, assistance with obtaining U.S. residency and more. “We place teens from age fifteen until their seventeenth birthday. They can re-
MADISON – Can you imagine meeting your future foster son or daughter at a soccer match? That’s what happened to Joey Luse of Brandon and his family, as the young Afghanistan native who joined them and one of Luse’s biological sons were on the same travel soccer team. After inviting the teen to their home a couple of times and getting to know him, the family held a surprise birthday party for him and popped the question on their minds. “We said we wanted him to be part of our family as INSIDE THIS WEEK long as he wanted,” Luse said. “It was a little awkward at first, but as we were getting to know him, he said, ‘I am really glad to be here. I miss being part of a family.’” Luse is one of many Jackson-area parents who’ve had teens from The Catholic Charities Unaccompanied Refugee Minor program (URM) placed in their homes. URM, through funding from the Office of Refugee Resettlement, places minors in therapeutic foster homes, group homes, or independent living arrangements appropriate to developmental needs. All URM youth must enter the legal From the archives custody of the Mississippi Department of Child Protection Woodward delves further Services prior to their eighteenth birthday. into war “The URM program has been active for more than
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Service Appeal 17 Where is your parish in reaching their goal?
Youth Youth activities from around the diocese
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MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
SPIRITUAL ENRICHMENT
GREENWOOD Locus Benedictus, Healing Retreat, Saturday, April 2 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., presented by Maria Vadia; Mental Well-being and Trust workshop, Sunday, April 10 from 2-4 p.m., presented by Michael Whelan, Ph.D.; God’s Love Retreat, Saturday, May 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. presented by the Locus Benedictus ministry team. Details: email contactlocusbenedictus@gmail.com or call (662) 299-1232.
PARISH, FAMILY AND SCHOOL EVENTS
BROOKHAVEN St. Francis, White Elephant Sale on April 2 by the Knights of Columbus. No clothing donations. Details: church office (601) 833-1799. COLUMBUS Annunciation Catholic School, Draw Down/Art Auction on Friday, April 22 from 6:30-11 p.m. at the Trotter Convention Center. Adults only with dinner and open bar. Draw down ticket $100. Art auction ticket $35 at the door. Details: school office (662) 328-4479. CLEVELAND Our Lady Of Victories, Egg Hunt for birth to sixth grade, April 3, 10-11 a.m., please bring 12 candy filled eggs. Details: olvcc@att.net. GREENVILLE St. Joseph, Pancake Breakfast, April 9 from 7-10 a.m. hosted by Knights of Columbus. Proceeds from event benefit family of Maria Guillen, who was diagnosed a few weeks ago with Leukemia and is currently at Children’s Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. Cost is $10. Details: Cathy Finley (662) 378-9711. MERIDIAN St. Patrick School, Annual Countdown fundraiser on Friday, April 22. Tickets will go on sale soon and are $100 for a full ticket but partial tickets can be bought for as little as $25. Grand prize is $5,000. Details: school office (601) 482-6044. SOUTHAVEN Sacred Heart School is seeking a PK-3 and first grade teacher; as well as, a social studies teacher for 6-8 grades. Must have basic understanding and acceptance of the Catholic School philosophy, goals and objectives. Details: shsjobs@shsm.org.
FEATURED PHOTO
YAZOO CITY St. Mary, Egg Hunt on Sunday, April 17, immediately following Mass. Details: church office at yazoocitystm@jacksondiocese.org.
YOUTH BRIEFS
SEARCH retreat for juniors and seniors, April 1-3, at Camp Wesley Pines in Gallman. Retreat is “for teens, led by teens” and is an experience like none other; with a strong focus on vocations. SEARCH engages youth in a special way and calls them to live out their Catholic faith in a bold real, active and healthy way. Cost $125. Details: abbey.schuhmann@jacksondiocese.org.
SAVE THE DATE
COLLECTION Rice bowl collection is set for Holy Thursday, April 14. Collect your bowl from your parish. JACKSON St. Richard, VBS 2022, June 6-9. Online registration dates will be announced soon. Details: church office (601) 366-2335. MADISON St. Francis, VBS 2022, June 20-24 for all children going into Pre-K4 through fourth grades. Help is needed to plan, teach, assist, decorate, lead music and prepare snacks. Details: Mary Catherine at mc.george@ stfrancismadison.org. PONTOTOC St. Christopher Catholic Friendship Camp, ages 7-11, June 12-18; and ages 12-14, June 1925. Details: Heidi Stephens campsm@juno.com or https://www.campfriendshipmississippi.com.
after Stations at 6 p.m. Donations accepted. All are welcome. HERNANDO Holy Spirit, Fish Fry after Stations on Friday, April 8 at 6:30 p.m. JACKSON St. Richard, Fish Fry after Stations at 6 p.m., Foley Hall, dine in or to-go. Cost: Adults $12, kids 12 and under $6. MADISON St. Francis, Rosary 6 p.m., Stations 6:30 p.m. and Lenten meal 7 p.m. every Friday during Lent. Lenten meal offering changes each week. MERIDIAN St. Patrick, Fish Fry after Stations each Friday during Lent at 6 p.m. All are welcome. NATCHEZ St. Mary Basilica, Knights of Columbus Fish Fry each Friday during Lent from 5-7 p.m. Drive through only at the Family Life Center parking lot side door. Cost: Catfish $12, Shrimp $12, Combo $14. Dinners include fries, hush puppies and coleslaw. No children’s plate offered. OXFORD St. John, Stations every Friday during Lent at 5 p.m., followed by Knights of Columbus Fish Fry from 5:30-6:30 p.m. in the parish center. Takeouts are available. Plates cost $9. PEARL St. Jude, Stations every Friday during Lent following 10 a.m. Mass and at 6 p.m. Fish Fry after 6 – Continued on page 15 –
LENTEN MEALS AND STATIONS
BROOKHAVEN St. Francis, Stations every Friday during Lent. A light meal will be served in Serio Hall following Stations. CANTON Sacred Heart, Stations on Wednesday evenings at 5 p.m. followed by a soup supper (no charge). COLUMBUS Annunciation, Fish Fry in the Activity Center after Stations every Friday during Lent at 5:30 p.m. in the main church. FLOWOOD St. Paul, Fish dinner every Friday
... Celebrating Black History ...
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CANTON – Holy Child Jesus parish celebrated Black History month on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022. Pictured is DeAsia Evans performing a spiritual dance to the song “I Shall Wear a Crown.” (Photo by Linda Jackson)
Jackson Flowood R dgeland Pearl Cl nton V cksburg Tupelo Columbus Laurel Oxford Hatt esburg
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC MARCH 25, 2022
let there be light
Call for consecration originated with Our Lady of Fatima BY BISHOP JOSEPH R. KOPACZ, D.D.
The feast of the Annunciation, March 25 which celebrates the moment in which Mary accedes in all wonder and mystery to be the mother of God’s beloved Son, takes on added significance this year in response to Pope Francis’ call to the church to consecrate Russia and the Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. For nearly a month now, there is a desperate plea and prayer for peace for the people of the Ukraine. Our prayer is not limited to this conflict but reaches out to all war-torn nations in our world. However, the inspiration to consecrate a nation, in particular, Russia, afflicted by communism, to the Blessed Mother’s Immaculate Heart originated with Our Lady of Fátima, based on her apparitions reported in 1917 by three shepherd children at the Cova da Iria, in Fátima, Portugal. The three children were Lucía dos Santos and her cousins Francisco and Jacinta Marto. The apparitions occurred between May 13, 1917 and Sept. 13, 1917. The consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary was first requested on July 13, 1917 as World War I raged and the menace of communism was advancing. Pope Francis’ decision to consecrate Russia and the Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary on the Solemnity of the Annunciation comes at another crucial time for the church and the world. The Ukraine’s Latin Rite Bishops made the appeal to Pope Francis after Russia launched its invasion on Feb. 24, one month ago. This is not the first time that the Vicar of Christ, the Bishop of Rome, has consecrated nations and peoples to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. In the aftermath of the
assassination attempt on his life in 1981, St. Pope John Paul II immediately thought of consecrating the world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and he himself composed a prayer for what he called an “Act of Entrustment,” which was to be celebrated in the Basilica of Saint Mary Major on June 7, 1981, the Solemnity of Pentecost. The following is the part which refers specifically to the Act of Entrustment: “Mother of all individuals and peoples, you know all their sufferings and hopes. In your motherly heart you feel all the struggles between good and evil, between light and darkness, that convulse the world: accept the plea which we make in the Holy Spirit directly to your heart and embrace with the love of the Mother and Handmaid of the Lord those who most await this embrace, and also those whose act of entrustment you too await in a particular way. Take under your motherly protection the whole human family, which with affectionate love we entrust to you, O Mother. May there dawn for everyone the time of peace and freedom, the time of truth, of justice and of hope.” In order to respond more fully to the requests of Our Lady, the Holy Father desired to make more explicit during the Holy Year of the Redemption the Act of Entrustment of May 7, 1981, which had been repeated in Fatima on May 13, 1982. On March 25, 1984 in St. Peter’s Square, while recalling the fiat uttered by Mary at the Annunciation, the Holy Father, in spiritual union with the Bishops of the world, who had been convoked beforehand, entrusted all men and women and all peoples to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in terms which recalled the heartfelt words spoken in 1981. In a 1989 handwritten letter, Sister Lucia said that Pope John Paul’s consecration of the whole world to the Immaculate Heart of Mary was “accepted in heaven.” The Vatican’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith said the consecration had been completed to Sister Lucía’s satisfaction. “The decision of His Holiness Pope John Paul II to make public the third part of the secret of Fatima brings to an end a period of history marked by tragic human lust for power and evil, yet pervaded by the merciful love of God and the watchful care of the Mother of Jesus and of the church.” (The Message of Fatima, 2000) On Friday, March 25 there will be prayers of consecration rising up to heaven from all over the world. Our diocese will be in solidarity with the universal church with a special holy hour of consecration at 11 a.m. at the Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle in Jackson, followed by Mass for the Solemnity of the Annunciation. Likewise, there will be prayer throughout the diocese. Cardinal Ratzinger as head of the Congregation on the Doctrine of the Faith wrote in the 2000 document, “The Message of Fatima” that “we believe that the action of God, the Lord of history, and the co-responsibility of men and women in the drama of God’s creative freedom, are the two pillars upon which human history is built. Our Lady, who appeared at Fatima, recalls these forgotten values. She reminds us that humanity’s future is in God, and that we are active and responsible partners in creating that future.” The following is an excerpt from the prayers that will rise like incense on the Solemnity of the Annunciation. “Most Holy Virgin Mary, tender Mother of men and women, to fulfill the desires of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the request of the Vicar of Your Son on earth, we consecrate Russia and the Ukraine to your Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart, O Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and we recommend to You, all the people of our country and all the world. Please accept our consecration, dearest Mother, and use us as You wish to accomplish Your designs in the world.”
Nuestra Señora de Fátima, origen del llamado a la consagración POR OBISPO JOSEPH R. KOPACZ, D.D.
La fiesta de la Anunciación, el 25 de marzo, celebra el momento en que María accede con todo asombro y misterio a ser la madre del Hijo amado de Dios. Este año adquiere un significado adicional en respuesta al llamado del Papa Francisco a la iglesia para consagrar Rusia y Ucrania al Inmaculado Corazón de María. Desde hace casi un mes, hay una súplica y oración desesperadas por la paz para el Volume 68 Number 8 (ISSN 1529-1693)
P.O. Box 2130 Jackson, MS 39225-2130 Phone: 601-969-3581 E-mail: editor@jacksondiocese.org Publisher ........................................................................................... Bishop Joseph R. Kopacz Communications Director ...................................................................... Joanna Puddister King Production Manager ...................................................................................................Tereza Ma Contributors ......................................................................................................... Berta Mexidor
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC is an official publication of the Diocese of Jackson, 601-969-1880, 237 E. Amite St., Jackson, MS 39201. Published twice per month January - April and September December; one per month June, July and August. Subscription rate: $20 a year in Mississippi, $21 out-of-state. Periodical postage at Jackson, MS 39201 and additional entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Mississippi Catholic, P.O. Box 2130, Jackson, MS 39225-2130. Website: www.mississippicatholic.com www.jacksondiocese.org
pueblo de Ucrania. Nuestra oración no se limita a este conflicto, sino que se extiende a todas las naciones devastadas por la guerra en nuestro mundo. Sin embargo, la inspiración para consagrar una nación, en particular Rusia, afligida por el comunismo, al Inmaculado Corazón de la Santísima Madre se originó en Nuestra Señora de Fátima, en base a las apariciones relatadas en 1917 por los tres niños pastores en Cova da Iria, en Fátima, Portugal. Los tres niños eran Lucía Dos Santos y sus dos primos Francisco y Jacinta Marto. Las apariciones ocurrieron entre el 13 de mayo de 1917 y el 13 de septiembre de 1917. La consagración de Rusia al Inmaculado Corazón de María se solicitó por primera vez el 13 de julio de 1917, cuando se desató la Primera Guerra Mundial y avanzaba la amenaza del comunismo. – Continúa en la pág. 15 –
BISHOP’S SCHEDULE Thursday, April 7, 6 p.m. – Pro-Life Mississippi Spring Banquet, Mississippi Trademart, Jackson Monday, April 11, 6 p.m. – Penance Service, St. Paul, Flowood Friday, April 22-23 – 118th Knights of Columbus State Convention, Robinsonville Saturday, April 30, 8 a.m. – Run Foster Run, St. Francis, Madison All events are subject to change. Check with parishes and schools for further details.
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
4 VOCATIONS CALLED BY NAME
I was ready for spring to get here, and I’m ready for Easter to get here too. The older I get the less I like the cold, and the older I get the more I am moved and drawn to the joy and light of Easter as we walk through Lent, preparing our hearts and minds to solemnly and joyfully celebrate the mysteries of our redemption. So, if you are like me and you are waiting in anticipation of the glory to be revealed, then this article is for you. This spring is going to be amazing. At 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 14 at the Cathedral of St. Peter in Jackson, you can witness the ordination of a brand new priest – Father Andrew Bowden. Then a few weeks later, Carlisle Beggerly will be ordained a deacon in preparation for priesthood on Saturday, June 4 at his home parish of Immaculate Conception in West Point. The public is invited to each of these masses, and I hope that some of you will make it a point to come and celebrate with us. This will also be a great spring (and summer) for our other seminarians. Ryan Stoer and Tristan Stovall will both be working at St. Dominic Hospital as a part of their priestly formation. I am so grateful to the pastoral care and volunteer services teams at “St. D,” who have collaborated with the diocese since 2016 to provide this experience for our second-year theologians. It is a great gift for our men to be able to get field experience ministering to the sick in their home diocese. I was a part of the first summer experience at “St. D” when I was in seminary, and it was a really rewarding experience. Father Nick Adam While Ryan and Tristan care for the sick, Will Foggo will be learning at the feet of the Divine Physician this spring and summer. Will is going to be in Omaha, Nebraska at the Institute for Priestly Formation. I have written about this two-month program before, but basically it is a summer experience where 175 seminarians from across the country gather to learn how to live out the spirituality of a diocesan priest. They learn skills that will help them remain faithful to prayer and to the call to spiritual fatherhood that they are discerning while in seminary. Grayson Foley will be placed in a diocesan parish this summer, and I’m still working out those details. Grayson spent his first summer as a seminarian with Father Aaron Williams at St. Joseph in Greenville, and he had a wonderful time and learned so much from Father Aaron and from the people of this parish and the community. I take the placement of our seminarians very seriously because their summer assignments give them a taste of what ministry in their diocese will be like. The support and the guidance that you, the people of our diocese, give our seminarians while they are on assignment (or just home for the weekend) is so vital to their priestly formation. Please pray for me as I work to build up our formation program, and please let me know if you have suggestions or feedback! Also please pray for several men who are considering applying or are in the application process right now. St. John Vianney, pray for us! – Father Nick Adam If you are interested in learning more about religious orders or vocations to the priesthood and religious life, please email nick.adam@jacksondiocese.org.
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC MARCH 25, 2022
Spirituality 5
Our best farewell gift IN EXILE By Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
In his farewell speech in John’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that he is going away but that he will leave us a parting gift, the gift of his peace, and that we will experience this gift in the spirit he leaves behind. How does this work? How do we leave peace and a spirit behind us as we go? This is not something abstract, but something we experience (perhaps only unconsciously) all the time in all our relationships. It works this way. Each of us brings a certain energy into every relationship we have, and when we walk into a room, that energy in some way affects what everyone else in the room is feeling. Moreover, it will stay with them after we leave. We leave a spirit behind us. For example, if I enter a room and my person and presence radiate positive energy: trust, stability, gratitude, concern for others, joy in living, wit, and humor, that energy will affect everyone in the room and will remain with them after I have left the room, as the spirit that I leave behind. Conversely, even though my words might try to say the contrary, if my person and presence radiate negative energy: anger, jealousy, bitterness, lying, or chaos, everyone will sense that, and that negative energy will remain with them after I leave, coloring everything I have left behind. Sigmund Freud once suggested that we understand things the clearest when we see them broken, and that is true here. We see this writ large, for instance, in the case of how a long-term alcoholic parent affects his children. Despite trying not to do so, he will invariably bring a certain instability, distrust, and chaos into his family, and it will stay there after he is gone, as the spirit he leaves behind, short-term and long-term. His person and his presence will trigger a feeling of distrust and chaos, and the memory of him will do the same. The same is true in reverse vis-à-vis those who bring positive energy, stability and trust, into a room. Unfortunately, often at the time, we do not sense the real gift that these persons bring and what that gift does for us. Mostly it is felt as an unspoken energy, not consciously perceived, and only later in our lives (often long after the persons who did that for us are gone) do we recognize and consciously appreciate what their presence did for us. This is true for me when I think back on the safety and stability of the home that my parents provided for me. As child, I sometimes longed for more exciting parents and naively felt safety and stability more as boredom than as a gift. Years later, long after I had left home and learned from others how starved they were as kids for safety and stability, I recognized the great gift my parents had given me. Whatever their human shortcomings, they provided my siblings and me with a stable and safe place within which to grow up. They died while we were still young, but they left Wholesale and home us the gift of peace. freezer service I Beef – Pork – Sausage suspect the same is true for many of 109 - A Camellia Dr. you. Natchez This dynamic (wherein we bring 601-445-8743 either stability or
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chaos into a room) is something which daily colors every relationship we have and is particularly true regarding the spirit we will leave behind us when we die. Death clarifies things, washes things clean, especially regarding how we are remembered and how our legacy affects our loved ones. When someone close to us dies, our relationship to him or her will eventually wash clean and we will know exactly the gift or burden that he or she was in our lives. It may take some time, perhaps months, perhaps years, but we will eventually receive the spirit he or she left behind with clarity and know it as gift or burden. And so, we need to take seriously the fact that our lives belong not just to us but also to others. Likewise, our deaths do not belong only to us, but also to our families, our loved ones, and the world. We are meant to give both our lives and our deaths to others as gift. If this is
true, then our dying is something that will impart either a gift or a burden to those who know us. To paraphrase Henri Nouwen, if we die with guilt, shame, anger, or bitterness, all of that becomes part of the spirit we leave behind, binding and burdening the lives of our family and friends. Conversely, our dying can be our final gift to them. If we die without anger, reconciled, thankful for those around us, at peace with things, without recrimination and making others feel guilty, our going away will be a sadness but not a binding and a burdening. Then the spirit we leave behind, our real legacy, will continue to nourish others with the same warm energy we used to bring into a room. (Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teacher and award-winning author. He can be contacted through his website www.ronrolheiser.com and now on Facebook www. facebook.com/ronrolheiser)
The Pope’s Corner
Pope prays for an end to war in Ukraine
By Carol Glatz
aglia of Naples and titled, “Forgive us for the war, Lord.” The prayer compared the suffering of Jesus to those who were “born under the bombs of Kyiv,” those lying “dead in the arms of a mother in Kharkiv” and the “20-year-olds sent to the front line.” “Forgive us if, not content with the nails with which we pierced your hand, we continue to drink from the blood of the dead torn apart by weapons,” said the prayer recited by the pope. “Forgive us if these hands that you had created to protect, have been turned into instruments of death.” He concluded the prayer by asking forgiveness from God for those who “legitimize cruelty” through violence and prayed for an end to the war through divine intervention. “O Lord, stop the violence. Stop us, Lord,” he prayed. Before the general audience, Pope Francis met with students from the “La Zolla,” a lay-run Catholic school in Milan. After addressing the children, the pope departed from his prepared remarks and asked the young students to think about the boys and girls suffering in Ukraine. “They are like you – 6, 7, 14 years old,” he said. “You have a future ahead of you, the security of growing up in a peaceful society. Instead, these little ones must flee from the bombs, they are suffering so much with the cold weather there.” Asking the students to join him in prayer, Pope Francis closed his eyes and lowered his head, praying to God to protect the children caught in the war who “do not have anything to eat” and are forced to flee their homes. “Lord Jesus, look at these children, these boys and girls. Look upon them and protect them. They are the victims of our pride, of us adults. Lord Jesus, bless these children and protect them,” Pope Francis said before leading the stuPope Francis prays during a meeting with students from Milan dents in praying a Hail Mary. in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican March 16, 2022. The pope (Follow Arocho on Twitter: @arochoju) prayed for children in Ukraine who are forced to flee from bombings. (CNS photo/Stefano Dal Pozzolo, pool)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Asking God to forgive all people tempted by violence, Pope Francis prayed for an end to the war in Ukraine and the fratricidal killing of both combatants and civilians caught in the crossfire. “Forgive us Lord if we continue to kill our brother. Forgive us, Lord, if we continue to kill our brother, if we continue, like Cain, to take the stones from our field to kill Abel,” the pope prayed March 16 before concluding his weekly general audience. “Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, we implore you to stop the hand of Cain, enlighten our conscience, let not our will be done, do not abandon us to our own doing,” he prayed. “Stop us, Lord, stop us, and when you have stopped the hand of Cain, take care of him also. He is our brother.” The prayer for peace in Ukraine that the pope recited was composed by Italian Archbishop Domenico Batt-
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Current war tactics date back centuries; Bishop Elder describes destruction in time of U.S. Civil War
a convert, endeavored also to obtain the reBy Mary Woodward spite, and when he could JACKSON – This week we are journeying back to not succeed, he helped Civil War times in analyzing the current situation in the to save the things.” world. In no way would I equate the motives of the Civil Two months later, War to that of Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, but the siege on July 18-20, Bishop tactics are classic military maneuvers that date back cen- Elder is able finally to turies. visit Jackson and this In July 1863, the city of Vicksburg fell after a 47- is what he reports: July day siege by General Ulysses S. Grant. Forty miles to 18: “General Crosby, the east, General William Sherman arrived at Jackson to Commanding the Rear implement a similar siege strategy. Guard, first refused to let My knowledge of Civil War tactics may not be pre- me go to Jackson. When cisely accurate, but we read in Bishop William Henry I explained that I wantElder’s diary about the Civil War’s destruction to Jackson ed to see to the Sisters and its only Catholic church – St. Peter. Bishop Elder’s [of Mercy], he agreed to writing style is more phrase-based than in complete sen- let me go. tences, but it is easily followed. “Left Brandon at 4 The original St. Peter Church was located about five p.m. for Jackson. Some blocks south and east from its current location on the cotton burned along the corner of West and Amite Streets in the center of the road and some burning capitol city. In May 1863, it along with the school and [still]. Federal Pickets rectory was burned to the ground by Federal troops ex- allowed me to go to the iting Jackson. The troops were ordered to burn tar in hospital – the field hosa storage shed adjacent to the church according to the pital of the Confeder- A view from a drone shows the site of a destroyed shopping center after it was diary and despite the pleas of Father Orlandi, the pastor, ates during the siege of hit during a Russian military strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, March 21, 2022. During his to move the tar into the street away from the church, the Jackson: attended still by March 20 Angelus, Pope Francis condemned Russia’s war on Ukraine, calling it shed was set ablaze and with it all the parish buildings. Confederate Surgeons – a “senseless massacre” and “sacrilegious” attack on human life. (CNS photo/ We read in the diary marked May 21: “Father Or- although in the Federal Marko Djurica, Reuters) landi begged for fifteen minutes to roll the barrels into Lines. Dr. Hinckley – and buggy. General Ewing is a Catholic from Ohio. He the street where they would burn with less danger to the son of Lawyer Hinckley of Baltimore has charge.” promised to see that the Sisters’ Convent in Vicksburg church, but the officer would allow of no delay and the July 19, Sunday – “No Mass. Spent the day visiting would be preserved unhurt for them. I could not talk shed was so close that there was no possibility of saving the hospital. The Federal Soldiers wounded here were much, I felt myself choaked with sadness.” the church, etc. – All the ornaments and furniture were moved – nearly all of them to town today.” I share these moments to bring us back to the notion removed to safety. Dr. Hewet, surgeon in the Federal July 20 – “Continued in the hospitals till dinner time. that no matter the era, the destruction of war only hurts Army, brother to Rev. Dr. Hewet of the Paulists, himself The doctors here have been very polite to me.” those caught in the middle. The human toll – both phys“After dinner drove ical and spiritual – is immeasurable. into Jackson – trestle Those trying to bring aid and relief to the people work burning – rails torn of Ukraine in the midst of the chaos and savage vioup – crossed river on the lence are much like the wandering Bishop Elder trying pontoon bridge of the Fed- to minister to those he encountered in field hospitals and erals. In the warm ashes burned-out towns. and ruins at every step. Now as we are spectators to a war unfolding before Melancholy desolation. us, let us pray for peace and hope for a miracle. Found Father Orlandi at Pope Francis is consecrating Ukraine and Russia to Mrs. O’Connor’s house. the Immaculate Heart of Mary on March 25, the Feast of Sad meeting.” the Annunciation of Our Lord. Here is a snippet of the “The chapel he had fit- prayer he is using: ted up with so much labor Therefore, O Mother, hear our prayer. – in the Spengler’s Saloon Star of the Sea, do not let us be shipwrecked in the – has been burned – the tempest of war. chalice and crucifix stolen Ark of the New Covenant, inspire projects and paths – though recovered bro- of reconciliation. ken – bought by a CathQueen of Heaven, restore God’s peace to the world. olic Federal soldier and Eliminate hatred and the thirst for revenge, and teach brought back to Father us forgiveness. Orlandi. Father Orlandi’s Free us from war, protect our world from the menace house was robbed of all of nuclear weapons. his clothes and the proviQueen of the Rosary, make us realize our need to sions he had laid up. pray and to love. “He is now living on Queen of the Human Family, show people the path Army rations – he has no of fraternity. place to cook them. Today Queen of Peace, obtain peace for our world. he has eaten only some Amen. A man walks near a block of destroyed apartment buildings in Mariupol, crackers.” “We went to General Ukraine, March 17, 2022. A theater in Mariupol, where hundreds of people are (Mary Woodward is Chancellor and Archivist for the Ewing’s quarters to find Diocese of Jackson.) said to have taken shelter, has sustained heavy damage after it was bombed a safe place for my horse by Russian forces. (CNS photo/Alexander Ermochenko, Reuters)
FROM THE ARCHIVES
25 de marzo de 2022
Mississippicatholic.com
“Sirviendo a los Católicos Hispanos de la Diócesis de Jackson desde 1997”
Corazón Ardiente llega a Mississippi Por Berta Mexidor
Internacional de Cine Católico y promotora del filme, ha estado en contacto con Iliana y las dos están muy entusiasmadas con la oferta que hacen por primera vez a los católicos de Mississippi. El filme es en español con subtítulos en inglés. Iliana, proveniente de California, trabaja en Jackson dando clases y conferencias promoviendo oportunidades de negocios y de administración de finanzas personales para la comunidad Hispana. Iliana espera una buena acogida de la película y celebra la oportunidad de ofrecer la primera producción católica en español en Mississippi a todos los católicos de la región, especialmente a todos los devotos del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús. La pelicula ha sido promovida a traves de redes sociales. Para más información sobre la película visite las páginas de Facebook #PeliculaCorazonArdiente #FestivalInternacionaldeCineCatolico
JACKSON – La película está basada en una historia real sobre la investigación de los milagros del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, En su página oficial señalan que Karyme Lozano, reconocida actriz Mexicana, protagoniza a una “escritora de exito que investiga las apariciones del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús en busca de inspiración para su próxima novela. Guiada por María (María Vallejo-Nájera), experta en misterios, Lupe descubrirá las revelaciones a Santa Margarita María de Alacoque y conocerá a santos, asesinos, exorcistas, papas, presidentes, conspiradores..., así como milagros y crímenes. Al hilo de su investigación, Lupe irá descubriendo también los secretos de su propio corazón, afligido por viejas heridas que necesitan ser sanadas.” Esta es una película para la familia. En tiempos de necesidad material, de paz y espiritual en todas las comunidades, la consagración a los corazones de Jesús y María se hace más fuerte. Iliana Salmerón Hall, feligresa de St. Francis Madison, católica y devota del Corazón de Jesús, se ha convertido en la líder del grupo, que en Mississippi, está promoviendo la puesta en la gran pantalla de esta película, producida y promovida por el Festival Internacional de Cine Católico El filme ya ha estado en los cines de diferentes países. En 2020 fue galardonada con el “Grand Prix” del “Niepokalana 2020”, XXXV Festival Internacional de Cine Católico en Polonia. Gaby Jácoba, directora del Festival
JACKSON– Este es el cartel oficial de la producción. Por primera vez en Mississippi se ofrece una película católica en español. (Foto cortesia de Iliana Salmeron Hall y Gaby Jacoba)
Consagración papal de Rusia, Ucrania tiene historia de controversia Por ciNdY WoodeN
CIUDAD DEL VATICANO (CNS) – Mientras que los obispos en Ucrania y Rusia están agradecidos de que el Papa Francisco consagrará sus naciones a María, otros católicos esperan ansiosamente el texto de la oración del Papa para ver si lo hace “correctamente”. La cuestión es si consagra explícitamente a Rusia, nombrada en voz alta, al Inmaculado Corazón de María cuando hace la consagración el 25 de marzo y si todos los obispos del mundo lo hacen al mismo tiempo. Hasta el comienzo de la Segunda Guerra Mundial, el mensaje que Nuestra Señora de Fátima dio a tres niños pastores en Portugal en 1917 fue simplemente uno de oración y arrepentimiento. Pero en 1941, mucho después de la muerte de los Santos. Francisco y Jacinto Marto, la última de las videntes, sor Lucía dos Santos, dieron cuenta completa del "secreto" de la aparición. María, dijo, primero les mostró una visión del infierno. Entonces María instó a la oración por la conversión de Rusia, pidió su "consagración" en el nombre de su Inmaculado Corazón y prometió su eventual triunfo. La tercera parte del secre-
to, objeto de muchas especulaciones, no fue revelada hasta que San Juan Pablo II ordenó su publicación en junio de 2000. Es clara la devoción de San Juan Pablo a María y, en especial, a Nuestra Señora de Fátima. Después de que un aspirante a asesino le disparó en la fiesta de Nuestra
– Continúa en la pág. 4 – VATICANO– La estatua original de Nuestra Señora de Fátima, en esta foto de archivo del 13 de octubre de 2013, antes de la celebración de la Misa del Papa Francisco en la que consagrará al mundo a María, en la Plaza de San Pedro en el Vaticano. El Papa invitó a los obispos del mundo a unirse a él para "consagrar y encomendar" Rusia y Ucrania a María este 25 de marzo. (Foto CNS/Paul Haring)
25 de marzo de 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
Homenaje: Despedida y Continuidad Por Berta Mexidor
JACKSON – Un homenaje siempre es dado a las personas que han dedicado una parte de su vida al servicio de los demás. Algunos lo reciben al irse de un lugar a otro, otros reciben la distinción al tomar la batuta del que se va. La comunidad católica de Houston hace un homenaje conjunto a dos líderes católicos de la comunidad Hispana de la Diócesis: a Lorenzo Aju, LEM por el servicio cumplido y a otro, Danna Johnson por el mérito ganado a través del trabajo realizado por muchos años. Con alegría por estos dos fieles servidores de la comunidad católica de Houston, el obispo Joseph Kopacz se complació en anunciar que, desde el primero de abril de 2022, la Sra. Johnson se convertirá en la Ministra Eclesial Laica (LEM) de la iglesia Católica Immaculate Heart of Mary en Houston. Danna, como todos la conocen, viene a reemplazar a Lorenzo Aju, LEM quien sirvió a la comunidad por 17 años. Lorenzo Aju, LEM de la parroquia Inmaculado Corazón de Maria, de Houston, recibió su homenaje y placa de reconocimiento por su servicio de 17 años a los católicos del área, de parte del Padre Tim Murphy y de los miembros del Decanato 5, de la Diócesis de Jackson. Todos, en asamblea, dieron su merecida despedida a Lorenzo Aju y le desearon éxitos en su nuevo ministerio. Danna ha sido hasta ahora la coordinadora del Ministerio Hispano en St Christopher Pontotoc y coordinadora del Centro de Caridades Católicas en Vardaman. Danna además, es la coordinadora de la Semana de la Migración, evento celebrado cada año por el Decanato V, donde se reúne la comunidad a compartir con lideres religiosos de nivel nacional. Danna Johnson, quien posee una maestría de Estudios Pastorales de Loyola University, ha coordinado, a través de varios años, la preparación universitaria, semana tras semana, de un grupo de lideres Hispanos. Este grupo y Danna como líder recibirán el próximo mayo el premio Kairos del Instituto Loyola para el Ministerio, de la Universidad Loyola de Nueva Orleans. El premio es otorgado principalmente por la persistencia que han tenido al asistir a clases, incluso durante la pandemia. La tenacidad de este grupo es un reflejo de la constancia y servicio de personas como Danna. Por todo esto y más, el Obispo Joseph Kopacz ha visto en Danna todo el potencial para asumir la responsabilidad de ser una Ministra Eclesial Laica a servir a la comunidad de Houston. Danna seguirá con sus “responsabilidades para la comunidad católica de Vardaman y ayudará a San Cristóbal de Pontoctoc en las próximas semanas,” dijo el obispo en un comunicado a través de Flocknote. El “Padre Tim y Danna están haciendo planes para mantener nuestros muchos ministerios y TUPELO – Lorenzo Aju, Ministro Eclesial Laico de la parroquia Inmaculado Corazón de María, de Houston, recibe un homenaje y placa de reconocimiento, de manos del Padre Tim Murphy, por sus 17 años de servicio a los católicos del área. Los miembros del Decanato 5, de la Diócesis de Jackson, dieron su merecida despedida a Lorenzo Aju y le desearon éxitos en su nuevo ministerio. (Foto cortesía de Danna Johnson) fortalecer el futuro de nuestra Iglesia. Por favor oren por Danna en esta transición,” concluía el obispo Kopacz. Danna está contenta con su nueva asignación y con un poco de temor ante la gran responsabilidad del nuevo reto. Pontotoc fue tambien un desafío Después de años de trabajo la transición de Pontotoc será más fácil, porque ya hay un consejo pastoral. “... Extrañaré mucho a mi comunidad de Pontotoc, a quienes quiero mucho, pero no voy muy lejos...,” dice Danna. Para comenzar en Houston, Danna ya tiene la experiencia de Pontotoc, del trabajo con la comunidad católica en Vardaman y la guía, apoyo y ejemplo del Padre Tim, que no se cansa. “... lo que Dios nos mande a hacer hay que tomarlo TUPELO – Todos los años Danna Jonhson lidera la celebración de la Semana de la Migración, convocada por el y hay que poner a Dios en el centro,” concluye Decanato Cinco, de la Diócesis. En esta foto de archivo, Danna responde las preguntas e algunos de los asis- Danna. tentes a la Semana de la Migración con el tema “Construyendo Comunidades Hospitalarios”. En esta ocasión la celebración duro tres días, y concluyo el 12 de enero de 2019. (Foto de Berta Mexidor)
25 de marzo de 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
¿Qué dicen las Escrituras? Por Obispo Joseph R. Kopacz, D.D.
¿Qué dicen las Escrituras?, fue la pregunta, al comienzo del pasaje de la carta de San Pablo a los Romanos, el pasado fin de semana al comienzo de la Cuaresma. La respuesta de Pablo a su propia introducción retórica es el Kerygma. “Si con tu boca reconoces a Jesús como Señor, y con tu corazón crees que Dios lo resucitó, alcanzarás la salvación.” (Rom 10:9) Habiendo sido atado por Cristo, San Pablo testifica que “... y ya no soy yo quien vive, sino que es Cristo quien vive en mí,” (Ga 2:20); “... el amor de Cristo se ha apoderado de nosotros,” (2Cor 5:14) y “... a nada le concedo valor si lo comparo con el bien supremo de conocer a Cristo Jesús.” (Fil 3:8) Este es el arrepentimiento y la conversión que nos llama el Miércoles de Ceniza con las palabras, “apártense del pecado y sean fieles al Evangelio.” La oración, el ayuno y la limosna son una invitación a caminar fielmente con el Santo que nos ama y nos salva. ¿Qué dicen las Escrituras? Qué pregunta tan fundamentalmente importante para nuestras vidas de fe, con todas las facetas que en última instancia importan, como es en este caso, el misterio del mal. El primer domingo de Cuaresma tenemos la lucha definitiva entre Jesús y el diablo, el enemigo, el espíritu maligno de este mundo y lo que las Escrituras dicen que triunfó para el Hijo de Dios, totalmente divino, pero humano. Piedras en pan, el engañador sedujo. “No sólo de
pan vivirá el hombre, sino también de toda palabra que salga de los labios de Dios.” (Mt 4:4) Desde la cima de la montaña con la visión Putinesca de la realidad, seduce el enemigo. “Yo te daré todo esto, si te arrodillas y me adoras.” (Mt 4:9) ¡Ah no!, “Adora al Señor tu Dios, y sírvele sólo a él.” (Mt 4:10) Finalmente, desde el parapeto del Templo, el diablo condujo la seducción al poder religioso a través de una falsa representación del Dios vivo. A su vez, Jesús respondió con una respuesta terminante; “No pongas a prueba al Señor tu Dios.” (Mt 4:7) ¿Qué dice la iglesia en el Sacramento del Bautismo sobre el misterio del mal? “¿Rechazas a Satanás y todas sus obras y todas sus promesas vacías?” ¿O rechazas el espejismo del mal y te niegas a ser dominado por el pecado? Obviamente, durante estos cuarenta días, no estamos haciendo sombra en la renovación de nuestras promesas bautismales, acompañando a los catecúmenos y candidatos con quienes proclamaremos al mundo que, aunque el mal, el pecado y la muerte son demasiado reales, estos no lo son y no tienen la última palabra porque el crucificado ha resucitado. ¿Qué dice el Catecismo de la Iglesia Católica (CIC) sobre el misterio del mal? El CIC es una compilación de casi 2000 años de experiencia orante y vivida de los seguidores de Cristo. Sobriamente, leemos que el mal, el sufrimiento, la injusticia y la muerte contradicen la Buena Noticia de Jesucristo y sacuden la fe de los creyentes.” (CIC 164) A veces, Dios parece ausente e incapaz de detener el mal. Sin embargo, no somos impotentes, porque el poder de Dios se manifiesta en la resurrección de Jesucristo de entre los muertos, que es la primera y última palabra en
la vida y en la muerte. (CIC 272) Sin embargo, ¿por qué existe el mal? (CIC 309) San Agustín dice que no podemos encontrar una solución, una salida, sino a través de la conversión al Dios vivo. (CIC 385) Tenemos que combatir los movimientos de la concupiscencia y la tentación del pecado que no cesan de llevarnos al umbral del mal. Estamos llamados a revertir la rebelión del principio y realizar una ruptura con el pecado, un odio al mal, un disgusto con la acción pecaminosa del pasado, confiando en la gracia y la misericordia de Dios. (CIC 1431) La presencia del mal afecta todas las relaciones, incluido el matrimonio, amenazando el vínculo de unidad a través de la discordia, la dominación, la infidelidad, los celos y los conflictos. (CIC 1606) Lo que se necesita es una vida de ponerse en las manos de Dios, entregarse en adoración y servicio. (CIC 1889) Estas citas hasta ahora están tomadas de las tres primeras secciones del CIC, el Credo, los Sacramentos y la Vida en Cristo. La cuarta y última sección del CIC es el desarrollo de la oración del Señor, la mente y el corazón de Cristo que aborda la tentación y la realidad del mal. Por la gracia de Dios y el poder de la fe, podemos dejar de lado la tentación y alejarnos del camino destructivo y el dolor del mal. Recordemos la oración de Jesús en la Última Cena. “No te pido que los retires del mundo, sino que los guardes del Maligno.” (Jn 17:15) (CIC 2850) De hecho, Jesús quiere que nos comprometamos plenamente con este mundo caído porque en Él somos la luz del mundo, testigos de la fe, la esperanza y el amor, la reconciliación, la justicia, la paz y la promesa de la vida eterna y que busquemos las respuestas a las preguntas implacables de la vida en las Escrituras y en la tradición viva de la iglesia.
Líderes Hispanos recibirán Premio Kairos del Instituto Loyola Por Berta Mexidor
St. Helen de Amory y han sido auspiciados por la oficina diocesana de JACKSON – Cada año, en la Formación de Fe. Convocatoria de Honores de su Solo 12 participantes, de los 15 Colegio, el Instituto Loyola para que comenzaron, continúan en el el Ministerio entrega su Premio programa y están a punto de gradKairós. uarse con buenos resultados. Este año, el honor a recaído La preparación para el certificaa un grupo de 12 líderes del Dedo de LIMEX consta de seis semescanato V de la Diócesis de Jackson, tres. Todos se reúnen en una parroestudiantes del Programa del Instiquia a tomar las clases del profesor tuto Loyola para la Extensión del de la Universidad de Loyola, a Ministerio (LIMEX). veces a distancia, principalmente a En carta de felicitación conjuntravés de la pandemia. ta con la Profesora de Teología y Al final de cada semestre, los Ministerio Marjorie R. Morvant, el estudiantes se reúnen en un retiro doctor Thomas Ryan, director del para discernir sobre el futuro de Instituto Loyola para el Ministerio, sus vidas y su llamado al trabajo Vicedecano de la Facultad de Enministerial y “... luego, de acuerdo fermería y Salud de la Universidad con su discernimiento con Dios, Loyola Nueva Orleans, informó al TUPELO –Líderes del programa LIMEX posan después de un retiro espiritual de discernimienencontrarán el cómo implementar grupo que el Instituto Loyola para el Ministerio “... ha decidido otor- to con el padre Clem Oya, en St. James, el 22 de mayo de 2021. En foto de archivo apare- sus conocimientos en las comunigarle este año el Premio Kairos a cen: Mariano Hernández, Magaly Heredia, Teresa Pena, Luis Rosales, Bernardo Sorcia, Luis dades,” explicaba Danna, quien poDanna Johnson y a su grupo LI- Gordillo, Eduardo Padilla, Yolanda Chávez, Ma. de Jesús Hernández (Chuchi), María León, see una maestría de Estudios PasMEX por la resiliencia que usted y Alejandro López, Raquel Thompson y Danna Johnson. (Foto cortesía de Danna Johnson) torales de Loyola University y sirve de facilitadora para toda la logística sus estudiantes han demostrado al "El premio Kairos del Instituto Loyola La Universidad Loyola de Nueva Ory el vínculo con la Universidad. completar el programa LIMEX. para el Ministerio se otorga a una clase o leans ofrece programas de Maestría y El grupo incluye padres y madres de En estudios teológicos, el nombre del grupo de estudiantes que han demostrado Certificado a ministros eclesiales laicos familia, muchos de ellos viajando muchas premio, la palabra griega kairos, significa los valores centrales de LIMEX, de excel- (LEM) así como a los líderes parroquiales millas y comprometidos al servicio de la “un tiempo lleno del Espíritu cuando las encia académica y colaboración para el que sirven a su iglesia. Los participantes iglesia por más de 15 años. Los premios personas y las circunstancias se unen de ministerio, al completar sus cursos duran- Hispanos de la Diócesis pertenecen a las se entregarán en la Graduación de Honuna manera extraordinaria para cumplir te el año calendario en el que se grad- parroquias del decanato V: St. James de ores de la Facultad de Enfermería y Salud los propósitos de Dios en el mundo," con- uarán. ¡Felicitaciones por este premio!” Tupelo, St. James de Corinth, St. Christode Loyola el sábado 14 de mayo. tinuaba el doctor Ryan. concluía el Dr. Ryan pher de Pontotoc, St. Matthew de Ripley y
25 de fmarzo de 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATÓLICO
Mensaje de Fátima "... Al final ... mi Corazón triunfará" Oración de Consagración al Sagrado Corazón de Jesús Señor Jesucristo, arrodillados a tus pies, renovamos alegremente la Consagración de nuestra familia a tu Divino Corazón. Sé, hoy y siempre, nuestro Guía, el Jefe protector de nuestro hogar, el Rey y Centro de nuestros corazones. Bendice a nuestra familia, nuestra casa, a nuestros vecinos, parientes y amigos. Ayúdanos a cumplir fielmente nuestros deberes, y participa de nuestras alegrías y angustias, de nuestras esperanzas y dudas, de nuestro trabajo y de nuestras diversiones. Danos fuerza, Señor, para que carguemos nuestra cruz de cada día y sepamos ofrecer todos nuestros actos, junto con tu sacrificio, al Padre. Que la justicia, la fraternidad, el perdón y la misericordia estén presentes en nuestro hogar y en nuestras comunidades. Queremos ser instrumentos de paz y de vida. Que nuestro amor a tu Corazón compense, de alguna manera, la frialdad y la indiferencia, la ingratitud y la falta de amor de quienes no te conocen, te desprecian o rechazan. Sagrado Corazón de Jesús, tenemos confianza en Ti. Confianza profunda, ilimitada. ++
– Viene de la pág. 1 –
Señora de Fátima en 1981, le dio crédito a ella por guiar la bala para que lo hiriera y no lo matara. Hizo colocar la bala en la corona de la estatua de María en el santuario de Fátima. Recuperándose del tiroteo, el Papa Juan Pablo II hizo que le llevaran al hospital el texto de la Hermana Lucía sobre el "tercer secreto". Grabó un "Acto de Encomienda" del mundo a María en junio de 1981. Tres años después, el 25 de marzo de 1984, en la Plaza de San Pedro, lo hizo en persona. La descripción del evento del Vaticano dice: "El Santo Padre, en unión espiritual con los obispos del mundo, que habían sido 'convocados' de antemano, encomendó a todos los hombres y mujeres y todos los pueblos al Inmaculado Corazón de María". Pero algunos devotos de Nuestra Señora de Fátima argumentaron que la "consagración de Rusia" solicitada por María en 1917 nunca se realizó correctamente. Antes de su muerte, Sor Lucía insistió, en cartas publicadas en la revista católica italiana 30 Giorni y personalmente al cardenal Tarcisio Bertone, en que la consagración había sido realizada correctamente en 1984 por San Juan Pablo. En la ceremonia, el Papa confió el mundo entero a María e invocó su ayuda para la liberación del mal, el hambre, la guerra, el odio y la injusticia. Pidió a los obispos del mundo que se unieran a él, un detalle importante para los millones de seguidores de Fátima, quienes dicen que María quería que la consagración se llevara a cabo con el episcopado mundial. Pero su oración a María no mencionó a Rusia por su nombre, y eso hizo que algunas personas pensaran que no se había hecho correctamente. Luego está la cuestión de la "conversión" de Rusia, algo que era fácil de suponer que se refería a gobernantes comunistas o a un sistema de gobierno comunista que gobernaba la Unión Soviética, oprimiendo a las comunidades tradicionalmente ortodoxas del país y persiguiendo duramente a los católicos y otros. En 2017, el centenario de las apariciones de Fátima, el arzobispo católico Paolo Pezzi de Moscú le dijo a Catholic News Service que había visto la conversión de Rusia a Cristo durante su vida. "No debemos interpretar a Nuestra Señora de Fátima como un anuncio de la conversión de Rusia al catolicismo", dijo, sino a Cristo. Aunque Rusia no tiene una religión estatal oficial, la mayoría de los rusos se identifican con la Iglesia Ortodoxa. San Juan XXIII leyó el secreto. Escribió en su diario, "17 de agosto de 1959: 'Audiencia: Padre Philippe, Comisario del Santo Oficio, que me trajo la carta que contiene la tercera parte de los secretos de Fátima. Tengo la intención de leerla con mi confesor". El difunto cardenal Loris Capovilla, quien era el secretario del Papa Juan en ese momento, le dijo a CNS en 2012 que estuvo presente cuando se le llevó el texto al Papa y lo vio. "Debo decir que a veces ha habido explotación del culto a María con fines políticos," dijo. Coincidiendo con lo dicho por el arzobispo Pezzi, el cardenal Capovilla dijo: “Cuando el mensaje de Fátima dice: 'Al final, Rusia se convertirá y mi corazón triunfará', siempre lo he interpretado de esta manera: ¿A qué se convertirá? Cristiandad." Pero para eso se necesitaba una aparición mariana, dijo. “Todo el cristianismo, todo, para mí, para los protestantes, para los ortodoxos, se resume en estas palabras: Conviértanse, reconozcan su condición de pequeñas criaturas y crean en el Evangelio, pónganlo en práctica, vívanlo”. él dijo. "Me parece que eso es todo".
TOME NOTA Vírgenes y Santos Domingo de Ramos. Abril 10 Semana Santa. Abril 10-17 Viernes Santo. Abril 15 Pascua de Resurrección. Abril 17 Divina Misericordia. Abril 30 Santa Catalina de Siena. Abril 29 Participa La película Corazón Ardiente estará en cartelera del cine Malco de la ciudad de Madison, del primero al 7 de abril. El Obispo Joseph Kopacz tendrá una Sesion de escucha en St James Tupelo, el dia 5 de abril, de 7 a 8 p.m. como parte del Sinodo de la Sinolidad. Anuncios St. Michael Forest – Las Estaciones de la Cruz se rezarán los viernes a las 7 p.m Oficina de Servicios Sociales en Senatobia está abierta miércoles y jueves de 9 am a 3 pm para ayuda con comida, orientación o ayuda financiera. Servicios y personal bilingüe disponibles. Llame para hacer una cita al 662-560-1991
La gente reza por la paz en Ucrania frente a una réplica de la estatua original de Nuestra Señora de Fátima en la Iglesia de la Natividad de la Santísima Virgen en Lviv, Ucrania, el 18 de marzo de 2022, en medio de la invasión rusa del país de Europa del Este. (Foto CNS/ Pavlo Palamarchuk, Reuters)
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC MARCH 25, 2022
NATION
WASHINGTON (CNS) – The church’s charitable outreach to people fleeing war, political instability, poverty and other threats is a requirement for followers of Jesus, the Administrative Committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said in a March 17 statement. “Some may question why and how the church supports refugees and migrants, regardless of race, creed or color, but the simple truth is that Christ identifies with those in need: ‘For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed me,’” the committee said, citing Matthew 25:35. Led by Los Angeles Archbishop José H. Gomez as USCCB president, the committee said various challenges have forced people to flee in search of safety and security and that their plight requires a Christian response. “This means that when people are hungry and knock at our door, we feed them. When they come to our door cold, we clothe them. And when someone who is a stranger comes, we welcome him or her. The church does this everywhere she exists,” it said. The statement comes as the efforts of U.S.-based church agencies in ministering to migrants and refugees have faced rising challenges from those who say doing so encourages more people to come to the United States, especially from along the southern border.
VATICAN
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The Vatican published Pope Francis’ calendar for Holy Week and Easter, which includes the Way of the Cross at Rome’s Colosseum for the first time in two years. The annual commemoration of Christ’s passion at the Colosseum was canceled in 2020 due to restrictions on outdoor gatherings to prevent the
BRIEFS 13 spread of COVID-19. And in 2021, there was a pareddown Way of the Cross service in St. Peter’s Square. As is customary when first publishing the pope’s calendar for Holy Week, the Vatican did not provide the time or place for his celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, April 14. Before the pandemic, Pope Francis had made it a tradition to celebrate the Mass and foot-washing ritual at a prison or detention center, refugee center or rehabilitation facility. Here is the schedule of papal liturgical ceremonies and events for April released by the Vatican March 21: – April 2-3, Apostolic visit to Malta. – April 10, Palm Sunday, Mass in St. Peter’s Square. – April 14, Holy Thursday, morning chrism Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. – April 15, Good Friday, afternoon liturgy of the Lord’s passion in St. Peter’s Basilica. – April 15, Way of the Cross at night in the Colosseum. – April 16, Easter vigil Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. – April 17, Easter morning Mass in St. Peter’s Square, followed at noon by the pope’s blessing “urbi et orbi” (the city and the world). – April 24, Divine Mercy Sunday, Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica. VATICAN CITY (CNS) – The real battles people should be fighting and funding are the ones against hunger, thirst, poverty, disease and slavery, Pope Francis said. Instead, vast sums of money are spent on arms for waging war, which is “a scandal” that just drags civilization backward, he said in an address to a group of Italian volunteers. “What is the point of all of us solemnly committing ourselves together at international level to campaigns against poverty, against hunger, against the degradation of the planet, if we then fall back into the old vice of war, into the old strategy of the power of arma-
www.SeektheHoly.org
ments, which takes everything and everyone backward?” he asked. The pope made his remarks in an audience at the Vatican March 21 with volunteers representing the Italian organization “I Was Thirsty.” Founded in 2012, the group sets up projects that provide clean drinking water to communities in need around the world.
WORLD
WARSAW, Poland (CNS) – A Ukrainian priest described escaping from his bombed-out parish in Mariupol and said he still hopes some Catholics will survive the relentless Russian onslaught. Pauline Father Pavlo Tomaszewski said the decision to leave was not easy, “but when they started shelling the whole city, we realized we’d have to go.” “They bombed and shelled us without any break for four days – since our monastery had no cellar for hiding in, we could see tall apartments blocks exploding in front of us,” said the priest, who comes from the western city of Kamenets-Podolsky but studied in neighboring Poland. “Although there’d been water, food and gas and electricity supplies at the beginning, these were deliberately hit to cut off what people needed for daily survival. By the end, with no sense of time, we’d lost any contact with parishioners or with the outside world.” The priest spoke at a March 18 virtual news meeting organized by the pontifical agency Aid to the Church in Need, as Russia’s Defense Ministry confirmed its forces were “tightening the noose” around Mariupol, a port city on the Sea of Azov. Up to 90% of all buildings in the city were reported damaged. Father Tomaszewski said Russian forces had targeted civilians from the outset, bombing and shelling Mariupol’s eastern districts, but had intensified “atrocities against the innocent population” in retaliation for Ukrainian resistance.
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
14 DIOCESE
'... It takes commitment, and not just in terms of time ...' – Continued from page 1 –
main in our program until age twenty-one. The minors come from many countries, including Haiti, the Sudan, Guatemala and Honduras. Some are victims of human trafficking. Some are victims of political persecution. There has been no information released at this time regarding Ukraine, but it’s a possibility we may receive referrals from there.” The foster parents, who go through a URM training program, have varying backgrounds. Carol O’Connor of Jackson is a firsttime foster parent. A former educator with the Jackson Public School District who once lived in Ethiopia, O’Connor has had a foster son from Eritrea (a country north of Ethiopia) with her since Thanksgiving 2020. “During the pandemic I felt I wanted to do something of value,” O’Connor said. “An Ethiopian friend suggested I contact Catholic Charities, and I went through the training and got certified.” Her foster son, though argumentative at first, became comfortable with O’Connor’s parenting style over time. “He had a rough upbringing, spending time in a refugee camp. There’s no biological family he’s in touch with,” O’Connor said. “But he’s a cheerful person – I can tell when he’s up first thing in the morning because he is singing – and he has calmed down over time. He is now in twelfth grade. It has been really a worthwhile experience for me.” While it’s only O’Connor and her foster son at her home, Sandra Pugh of Hinds County has a biological daughter as well as the African foster daughter she has taken in. “She has been with me two years,” said Pugh, who has served as a foster parent for over a decade. “There were cultural changes for her, but we have a similar faith. Language was not a problem. Once she got going in school, it wasn’t a large challenge – she’s a smart girl. She will be graduating high school and going on to college.”
“Because we’re Christians, we enjoy offering a better life and opportunity. It would be good if we had more parents volunteering, because we can make a difference in their lives. There are many of the same challenges you face in raising your own. Once the foster understands your culture, they blend in with your family. “We’ve found that the biggest challenge is the language barrier,” Debose-Moore said. “The youth that come over speak several different languages, English often being their second or third choice. Once they get into the home, they start working on improving English skills. Most would love to be in foster homes where they are culturally matched. That’s not always possible, but we do our very best.” Luse’s foster son works part-time in the restaurant business and will join his foster brother closest to his age at college this fall. While very close to his Jackson-area family, there is healthy, ongoing communication between the foster son and his biological family in Afghanistan. “It takes commitment, and not just in terms of time,” Luse said. “There were adjustments we had to make – we didn’t have a fire evacuation plan – but if that’s the price to pay to help a young child get through high school, get a car, get a job, and plan a path to adulthood, it’s a small one. We’ve gotten as much or more from the relationship than he has.” (If you are interested in learning more about becoming a foster parent with Catholic Charities Unaccompanied Refugee Minor program, please contact program director, Ebonye’ Debose-Moore at (601) 981-0725 or visit www.catholiccharitiesjackson.org.)
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC MARCH 25, 2022
‘... Ella nos recuerda que el futuro de la humanidad está en Dios ...’ La decisión del Papa Francisco de consagrar Rusia y Ucrania al Inmaculado Corazón de María en la Solemnidad de la Anunciación llega en otro momento crucial para la iglesia y el mundo. Los obispos del Rito Latino de Ucrania hicieron el llamamiento al Papa Francisco después que Rusia lanzara su invasión, hace un mes, el 24 de febrero. Esta no es la primera vez que el Obispo de Roma y Vicario de Cristo consagra naciones y pueblos al Inmaculado Corazón de María. Después del atentado contra su vida en 1981, el Papa San Juan Pablo II inmediatamente pensó en consagrar el mundo al Inmaculado Corazón de María y él mismo compuso una oración que llamó un “Acto de Encomienda”, que fue celebrado en la Basílica de Santa María la Mayor el 7 de junio de 1981, en la solemnidad de Pentecostés. La porción siguiente es la que se refiere específicamente al Acta de Encomienda: “Madre de los hombres y de los pueblos, Tú conoces todos sus sufrimientos y sus esperanzas, Tú sientes maternalmente todas las luchas entre el bien y el mal, entre la luz y las tinieblas que sacuden al mundo, acoge nuestro grito dirigido en el Espíritu Santo directamente a tu Corazón y abraza con el amor de la Madre y de la Esclava del Señor a los que más esperan este abrazo, y, al mismo tiempo, a aquellos cuya entrega Tú esperas de modo especial. Toma bajo tu protección materna a toda la familia humana a la que, con todo afecto a ti, Madre, confiamos. Que se acerque para todos, el tiempo de la paz y de la libertad, el tiempo de la verdad, de la justicia y de la esperanza.” Para responder más plenamente a las peticiones de Nuestra Señora, el Santo Padre quiso hacer más explícito el Acta de Encomienda durante el Año Santo de la Redención del 7 de mayo de 1981, que había sido repetida en Fátima el 13 de mayo de 1982. El 25 de marzo de 1984 en la Plaza de San Pedro, recordando el fiat pronunciado por María en la Anunciación, el Santo Padre, en unión espiritual con los Obispos del mundo, que habían sido convocados de antemano, encomendó a todos los hombres y mujeres de todos los pueblos al Inmaculado Corazón de María, en términos que recordaron las sentidas palabras pronunciadas en 1981. En una carta manuscrita de 1989, la Hermana Lucía dijo que la consagración del mundo entero al Inmaculado Corazón de María por parte del Papa Juan Pablo II fue “aceptada en el cielo.” La Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe del Vaticano dijo que la consagración se completó a satisfacción de la hermana Lucía. “La decisión del Santo Padre Juan Pablo II de hacer pública la tercera parte del «secreto» de Fátima cierra una página de historia, marcada por la trágica voluntad humana de poder y de iniquidad, pero impregnada del amor misericordioso de Dios y de la atenta premura de la Madre de Jesús y de la Iglesia.” (El Mensaje de Fátima, 2000) El viernes 25 de marzo habrá oraciones de consagración subiendo al cielo desde todo el mundo. Nuestra diócesis se solidarizará con la iglesia universal con una hora santa especial de consagración a las 11 a.m. en la Catedral de San Pedro Apóstol en Jackson, seguida de una Misa por la Solemnidad de la Anunciación. Asimismo, habrá oración a través de toda la diócesis. El Cardenal Ratzinger como jefe de la Congregación para la Doctrina de la Fe escribió en el documento de 2000, “El Mensaje de Fátima” que “...creemos que la acción de Dios, Señor de la historia y la corresponsabilidad de hombres y mujeres en el drama de la libertad creadora de Dios, son los dos pilares sobre los que se construye la historia humana. Nuestra Señora, que se apareció en Fátima, recuerda estos valores olvidados. Ella nos recuerda que el futuro de la humanidad está en Dios y que somos socios activos y responsables en la creación de ese futuro.” Lo siguiente es un extracto de las oraciones que se elevarán como incienso en la Solemnidad de la Anunciación. “Santísima Virgen María, tierna Madre de los hombres y mujeres, para cumplir los deseos del Sagrado Corazón de Jesús y la petición del Vicario de Tu Hijo en la tierra, consagramos Rusia y Ucrania a tu Doloroso e Inmaculado Corazón, ¡oh!, Reina del Santísimo Rosario y encomendamos a Ti, a todo el pueblo de nuestra patria y de todo el mundo. Por favor acepta nuestra consagración, Madre queridísima, y úsanos como Tú deseas para realizar Tus designios en el mundo.” – Viene de la pág. 3 –
dIOCESE 15
In memoriam: Sister Rosemary Empen, OP SINSINAWA, Wis. – Sister Rosemary Empen, OP, died March 2, 2022, at St. Elizabeth Manor, Footville, Wis. Her religious name was Sister Aemilia. The funeral Mass was held at the Dominican motherhouse, Sinsinawa, March 11, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery. Sister Rosemary made her first profession as a Dominican Sister of Sinsinawa Aug. 5, 1957, and her perpetual profession Aug. 5, 1960. She taught for 16 years and served as principal for five years. Sister Rosemary was a missionary in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, for 13 years. This work led her to continue her ministry with Spanish-speaking people when she returned to the United States. She served as pastoral minister for 12 years, director of a multicultural center for five years, and codirector of a Catholic parish for 10 years. Sister Rosemary was a gentle person who responded to the needs of others by asking, “What will we do about this?” She also served in Illinois, New York, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Mississippi. In the Diocese of Jackson, Sister Rosemary served as codirector at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish, Houston, 1996-2006.
Lenten meals and Stations cont.
– Continued from page 2 – p.m. Stations. Reservations required. Details: church office (601) 939-3181 RIPLEY St. Matthew, Fried Catfish Dinner, Fridays through April 8, 4-7 p.m. Dinner inclides two fillets, coleslaw, sweet corn nuggets and choice of beverage. Cost is $10. Dine-in or take-out. Proceeds benefit St. Matthew’s youth ministry program. TUPELO St. James, Lenten Meatless Spaghetti Dinner to benefit Diocesan Priest Education Fund on Friday, April 1 at 5:30 p.m. in Shelton Hall. Dine-in and to-go available. Served with choice of red or white sauce, salad, garlic bread and dessert. Cost: $9 for adults and $6 for kids.
GREENVILLE St. Joseph March 31 at 5:30pm GLUCKSTADT St. Joseph, Reconciliation, Wednesday, April 6 from 4-6 p.m. HERNANDO Holy Spirit, Penance Service, Wednesday, March 30 at 7 p.m. JACKSON St. Richard Thursday, April 7 at 6 p.m. LOUISVILLE Sacred Heart, Reconciliation every Wednesday during Lent at 12:15 p.m.
PENANCE/RECONCILIATION SERVICES
BROOKHAVEN St. Francis, Parish-wide Reconciliation, Wednesday, March 30 at 5:30 p.m. FLOWOOD St. Paul, Reconciliation service, Monday, April 11 at 6 p.m. The Diocese of Jackson has launched a third-party reporting system that will enable all diocesan employees, volunteers and parishioners to anonymously (or named if preferred) make reports. Examples of this activity include fraud, misconduct, safety violations, harassment or substance abuse occurring at a Catholic parish, Catholic school or at the diocesan level. The system is operated by Lighthouse Services. Based in Deerfield, Illinois, Lighthouse Services maintains ethics, safety and fraud hotlines for over 4,100 organizations between the U.S. and abroad.
To make a report visit www.lighthouse-services.com/jacksondiocese or call 888-830-0004 (English) or 800-216-1288 (Spanish). The Association of Priests of the Dioceses of Jackson and Biloxi provide a small pension to our retired priests. As you consider your estate plans, please remember these faithful servants by making a donation or leaving a bequest to the Association of Priests. Our parish priests dedicate their lives to caring for us, their flocks. Let us now care for them in their retirement. Donations can be made payable to the Association of Priests and can be mailed to:
Diocese of Jackson, Attn: Cathy Pendleton, P.O. Box 2248, Jackson, MS 39225-2248
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
16 Columns
There are other Catholic Churches? SPIRIT AND TRUTH
By Father Aaron Williams
The eyes of the world lately have been fixed on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. But, one element that isn’t being reported well is the religious differences that exist particularly between Russian and Ukrainian Christians. The majority of Russian Christians (72%) are members of the Russian Orthodox Church. The remainder of Christians in Russia are, for the majority, members of a protestant community. Very few Russians assert they are members of the Catholic Church, and even fewer profess to be Roman Catholic. Without attempting to explain centuries-old conflicts between Catholics and Orthodox Christians, suffice it to say that the major source of division stems from our understanding of the Pope of Rome as having authority, given to Christ the Lord to St. Peter, as supreme head of the church. But, apart from our political differences, the liturgy of the Orthodox Christians (not simply Russian Orthodox) is aesthetically very different from our celebrations of the Mass. The liturgy celebrated in Orthodox churches is usually one of two liturgies which find their source in St. Basil the Great and St. John Chrysostom. These “Divine Liturgies” (their term for the “Mass”) are theologically the same celebrations we experience in our churches, with a valid Eucharist and all valid sacraments. Catholic and Orthodox Christians believe the same thing about the Mass, even though we are separated. This is why Orthodox Christians who request sacraments from a Catholic priest would freely be given them, though the same cannot be said of Catholic who may request sacraments from an Orthodox priest. Now, what most Catholics do not know is that this eastern form of the liturgy also exists within the Catholic Church. There are Catholics throughout the world, and even in our own diocese, who are just as Catholic as you and me and yet are not Roman Catholic, meaning they do not celebrate the Roman form of the Holy Mass or the Sacraments and other rites. The largest of these ‘other’ Catholic Churches is the UkrainianGreek Catholic Church, which like the Russian Orthodox, also celebrate the Divine
Women of Ordinary Time ON ORDINARY TIMES By Lucia A. Silecchia
Throughout March, myriad celebrations of “Women’s History Month” unfold. I understand the sentiment behind this and see the great value in recognizing the contributions that so many of my sisters, past and present, have made to building our society. This is particularly true when it comes to celebrating those who have too often been overlooked. Yet, I find myself wishing that the world would celebrate women year-round in ways more akin to the way in which I see women celebrated by the church. Let me explain. In Women’s History Month, I see honor paid to those women who – with the odds frequently stacked against them – succeeded in the eyes of the world. Women who were pioneers, or public figures of influence, or daring “first” women to achieve great feats, or those beckoned by history to play extraordinary roles on the world stage are celebrated with great enthusiasm. Those who used their great scientific, literary, intellectual, entrepreneurial, artistic and musical gifts to advance culture as we know it are honored this month with often overdue praise and gratitude. The church also recognizes among our saints those women who did extraordinary things in the eyes of the world. We celebrate women who were great warriors like Joan of Arc; intellectuals like Hildegard, Edith Stein and Teresa of Avila; royalty like Margaret of Scotland, Jadwiga of Poland, Elizabeth of Portugal, Elizabeth of Hungary and Helena of Constantinople; foundresses like Elizabeth Seton, Scholastica, Frances Xavier Cabrini, Katherine Drexel and Jane Francs de Chantal. We also celebrate women like Teresa of Calcutta and Catherine of Sienna, whose unique roles led them to challenge
Liturgies of St. Basil and St. John Chrysostom. Ukrainian-Greek Catholics, as well as the members of the other non-Roman Catholic Churches differ from Orthodox Christians because, like us, they also accept the authority of the Pope and believe all that is professed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. So, we speak of these Catholics as being “in full communion.” The highest authority figure of the Ukrainian-Greek Catholic Church is the Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Galicia, Sviatoslav Shevchuk — who, like any archbishop, is answerable to Pope Francis. So, with this as a background, Catholics should be aware that one major point of concern for us in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is that culturally the impact of this war could be devastating to our fellow Catholics. Russian Orthodox Christians have historically been very unreceptive to their Catholic counterparts in Ukraine. In fact, the Russian Orthodox Patriarch Krill of Moscow has on several occasions publicly denounced Ukrainian-Greek Catholics as “heretics” who “abuse the liturgy with Roman customs.” During my studies at the Liturgical Institute, I was graced with the opportunity to concelebrate the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom every Sunday for several weeks at a nearby Byzantine (Greek) Catholic Church. It was a great opportunity for me to learn about and participate in an ancient Catholic rite, though differing from my own. The experience also helped me better understand the now-famous phrase of Pope St. John Paul II that, in the eastern and western liturgies, the church breathes with “two lungs.” Though our diocese does not have an eastern Catholic Church, there are several eastern Catholics among us who are members of the Byzantine (Greek) Church, the Melkite (Lebanese) Church, or the Syro-Malabar and Syro-Malankara (Indian) Churches. Mississippi does have several orthodox churches and communities, the largest of which are the Greek Orthodox Churches in Jackson. The closest Eastern Catholic Church to our diocese is St. Nicholas Byzantine Mission in New Orleans. As the situation in Ukraine worsens, and our Holy Father continues to call us to prayer, we as Roman Catholics should remember especially our eastern-Catholic brothers and sisters who have historically suffered much more prejudice against them than Roman Catholics experience, and who still suffer today. (Father Aaron Williams is parochial vicar at St. Patrick and St. Joseph Meridian.)
those who held great influence in the world at their times. These women who did great things with great holiness are honored as examples for those called and gifted to do such things with fidelity to the will of God. Yet, I am proud and grateful that the church also holds out as examples those women who lived lives that were simple in the eyes of the world. That is, after all, the way in which most of us live our lives on this side of eternity. Honored as saints are women like Ann, Gianna and Monica who lived the vocation to motherhood with extraordinary grace; Therese of Lisieux and Clare of Assisi who lived lives hidden from the world; Zelie of Lisieux who spun lace for a living and raised holy children; Josephine Bakhita and Felicity who, separated by centuries, both bore the abuse of slavery; Kateri Tekakwitha, an orphan scarred by smallpox; and girls like Bernadette, Dymphna, Maria Goretti, Jacinta, Agnes and Lucy who died long before the fullness of years would have given them the chance to have worldly accomplishments to their names. More than all others, the church honors Mary of Nazareth who did the greatest of all things when, in an instant, she gave the “yes” on which salvation turned. She is honored by such great names as the Mother of God, Queen of Heaven, Queen of Angels, and Queen of All Saints. Yet, the only title she gave herself was “handmaid of
the Lord.” I hope that this month we continue to celebrate those women whose great deeds have made our world better. Yet, if that was all we did, much would be missing. I hope that, like the church, we also take time to honor those women whose lives are not marked by the extraordinary deeds they did, but by the extraordinary love, grace and fidelity with which they did the simple things entrusted to their care. History is full of those women even if their names and stories are lost to time. If you are blessed to know such women in your life, this month may be a chance to say a simple thank you. If you were blessed to know such women who have left this life, this month may be a particular time to pray in gratitude for the goodness of their lives – a goodness perhaps hidden from the world but known to God. May God bless the great and the good women of ordinary time. (Lucia A. Silecchia is a Professor of Law at the Columbus School of Law at the Catholic University of America.)
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
DIOCESE 17
The Catholic Service Appeal supports 11 ministries throughout our diocese. Ministries that no parish alone could support. We invite you to join those who have already made a pledge. One of the ministries supported by the CSA is Seminarian Education. We are looking forward to the ordination of Andrew Bowden on Saturday, May 14. As you look over this report, I hope that you are inspired by the work that is done to help so many supported by the Appeal. Our theme for this year is Hope Rising. With your gift to the CSA, you become the 'Hope Rising' to those served by the Appeal. Bishop Kopacz mailed letters to all parishioners in the diocese asking you to support the Catholic Service Appeal. If you did not receive your letter, please do not hesitate to contact the Catholic Service Appeal Office. You can also make your gift online by scanning the QR code with your mobile phone or you can go to csa.jacksondiocese.org. We also have a text to give feature to give online by texting 601-706-5858. If you have questions, please contact me at 601-960-8477. Sincerely,
Visit csa.jacksondiocese.org to make your pledge. PARISH (highlighted equals or exceeds goal )
PARISH GOALS
Aberdeen, St. Francis of Assisi Amory, St. Helen Anguilla, Our Mother of Mercy Mission Batesville, St. Mary Belzoni, All Saints Booneville, St. Francis of Assisi Brookhaven, St. Francis of Assisi Parish Camden, Sacred Heart Canton, Holy Child Jesus Canton, Sacred Heart Carthage, St. Anne Charleston, St. John Clarksdale, Immaculate Conception Clarksdale, St. Elizabeth Cleveland, Our Lady of Victories Clinton, Holy Savior Parish Columbus, Annunciation Conehatta, St. Catherine Mission Corinth, Belmont Catholic Community Corinth, St. James the Less Crystal Springs, St. John Fayette, St. Anne Flowood, St. Paul Forest, St. Martin de Porres (Morton) Forest, St. Michael Fulton, Christ the King Mission Gloster, Holy Family Mission Greenville, Sacred Heart Greenville, St. Joseph Greenwood, Immaculate Heart of Mary Greenwood, St. Francis of Assisi Grenada, St. Peter Hazlehurst, St. Martin of Tours Hernando, Holy Spirit Hollandale, Immaculate Conception Holly Springs, St. Joseph Houston, Immaculate Heart of Mary Indianola, Immaculate Conception Indianola, St. Benedict the Moor Iuka, St. Mary Mission Jackson, Cathedral of St. Peter the Apostle Jackson, Christ the King Jackson, Holy Family Jackson, Holy Ghost Jackson, Non-Parish Donor Only Jackson, Saint Dominic Health Services Jackson, St. Richard of Chichester Jackson, St. Therese
$3, 006 $5,715 $1,264 $6,490 $2,915 $1,738 $15,690 $5,108 $3,308 $17,279 $3,738 $1,192 $2,671 $19,602 $19,165 $22,439 $31,124 $515 $115 $7,830 $4,027 $2,176 $61,311 $331 $3,824 $2,308 $1,534 $6,317 $26,654 $12,680 $5,578 $6,253 $3,095 $18,948 $1,139 $3,227 $2,700 $4,659 $2,009 $1,504 $20,515 $10,094 $8,394 $7,789 $5,800 $25,000 $121,759 $13,813
# OF TOTAL PLEGDES PLEGDES 5 29 4 18 4 6 23 3 14 45 0 1 6 32 41 59 37 2 0 16 10 9 105 0 7 7 4 12 32 13 18 25 2 54 1 14 7 3 7 1 61 14 14 43 29 78 16
$990 $6,842 $1,875 $8,415 $370 $785 $3,919 $164 $2,210 $18,225 $0 $100 $2,100 $4,766 $18,121 $33,134 $8,521 $113 $0 $4,993 $2,699 $1,069 $47,233 $0 $2,806 $1,108 $500 $1,527 $20,403 $8,676 $1,514 $5,009 $525 $19,226 $550 $1,071 $2,379 $800 $1,315 $350 $23,272 $5,452 $4,271 $9,523 $5,374 $0 $64,466 $2,935
2022 Catholic Service Appeal
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PARISH Kosciusko, St. Therese Leland, St. James Lexington, St. Thomas Louisville, Sacred Heart Macon, Corpus Christi Mission Madison, St. Francis of Assisi Madison, St. Joseph - Gluckstadt Magee, St. Stephen Magnolia, St. James Mission McComb, St. Alphonsus Meridian, St. Joseph Meridian, St. Patrick Natchez, Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Natchez, Holy Family Natchez, St. Mary Basilica New Albany, St. Francis of Assisi Newton, St. Anne Mission Olive Branch, Queen of Peace Oxford, St. John Paulding, St. Michael Pearl, St. Jude Philadelphia, Holy Cross Philadelphia, Holy Rosary Indian Pearl River, St. Therese Pontotoc, St. Christopher Mission Pontotoc, Vardeman Catholic Community Port Gibson, St. Joseph Parish Raymond, Immaculate Conception Ripley, St. Matthew Mission Robinsonville, Good Shepherd Rosedale, Sacred Heart Roxie, St. John the Baptist (Cranfield) Sardis, St. John the Baptist Mission Senatobia, St. Gregory the Great Shaw, St. Francis of Assisi Shelby, St. Mary Southaven, Christ the King Starkville, St. Joseph Tupelo, St. James Vicksburg, St. Mary Vicksburg, St. Michael Vicksburg, St. Paul Walls, Sacred Heart Southern Missions West Point, Immaculate Conception Winona, Sacred Heart Mission Woodville, St. Joseph Yazoo City, St. Mary
Totals
PARISH GOALS
# OF TOTAL PLEGDES PLEGDES
$2,495 $4,845 $1,807 $4,598 $2,753 $78,532 $40,148 $2,478 $5,169 $21,833 $10,901 $33,187 $5,226
5 5 1 11 0 87 64 12 15 52 11 36 10
$955 $223 $50 $5,696 $0 $92,959 $32,841 $1,430 $2,765 $13,872 $2,085 $17,496 $1,942
$7,525 $35,469 $5,195 $802 $20,203 $39,190 $486 $21,886 $7,537 $3,772 $2,610 $5,526 $205
16 62 4 6 70 98 2 52 21 12 4 9 0
$1,905 $46,057 $1,645 $549 $30,526 $34,494.11 $125 $24,270 $4,408 $2,509 $397 $3,210 $0
$2,997 $1,306 $1,535 $3,955 $969 $130 $3,785 $2,468 $2,850 $1,504 $19,014 $30,881 $44,986 $6,315 $24,574 $20,201 $70,000 $7,649 $1,426 $3,346 $6,720
7 6 1 8 2 4 12 9 5 6 38 42 62 19 36 25 0 16 3 6 25
$1,789 $1,265 $60 $797 $600 $130 $2,956 $794 $590 $764 $9,463 $14,991 $25,998 $3,865 $16,892 $15,641 $0 $5,492 $110 $1,295 $3,522
$1,175,331 1928
$779,099.59
18 DIOCESE
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Please, give generously, Friday April 15, 2022
MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC MARCH 25, 2022
YOUTH 19
Ashes to ashes CLARKSDALE – (Right) St. Elizabeth sixth grader Graysen Harlow holds a sign during Mass. (Far right) First grade students receive ashes from Father Raju Macherla at St. Elizabeth's School Mass. (Photo by Mary Evelyn Stonestreet) (Below) YAZOO CITY – St. Mary parish held a Children’s Mass on Sunday, March 6, where children served as lectors and altar servers. Pictured left to right: Meriella Kirby, James Blande Pettigrew, Will Foster, Ella Grey McMaster and Kelsie Kennedy. (Photo by Babs McMaster)
Children Mass
SOUTHAVEN – Sister Margaret Sue Broker distributes ashes to students at Sacred Heart School. (Photo courtesy of Sister Margaret Sue Broker)
NATCHEZ – PreK-3 student, Collins Garrity receives ashes from Father Mark Shoffner at Cathedral School. Cam Walker observes in the background. (Photo by Jessica Carter)
20 DIOCESE
MARCH 25, 2022 MISSISSIPPI CATHOLIC
Annual DCYC gives youth "Encounter" experience
By Joanna Puddister King
VICKSBURG – The annual Diocesan Catholic Youth Conference (DCYC) at the Vicksburg Convention Center was back this year after a hiatus due to COVID. Held from Feb. 18-20, the conference brought together teens from around the diocese for a weekend celebration with the theme “Encounter.” Diocesan coordinator for the Office of Youth Ministry, Abbey Schuhmann said, “It has been two years since we were last able to gather as a diocese to celebrate our Catholic faith as one large community. It was our great hope that DCYC 2022 was a time to celebrate and encounter each other but more importantly to encounter Jesus Christ through the gift of our Catholic faith.” Youth were able to do just that with keynote presenter and recording artist Joe Melendrez, described as one of America’s most exciting Catholic performers. Melendrez got his start performing on MTV at age 15 and encountered the love of God shortly after. He has since dedicated his life to sharing the Good News and sharing the Gospel in unique ways – like his Catholic hip-hop style. “Melendrez was a very dynamic and high energy presenter; his talks throughout the weekend were very interactive and powerful,” said Schuhmann. “Being a Catholic hip-hop artist, his music provided for very upbeat and entertaining sessions of worship that got all participants, young and old, VICKSBURG – Youth gather around "Encounter" weekend leader and Catholic hip-hop artist Joe Melendrez in on their feet and moving to the beat.” On Saturday of the conference, diocesan voca- prayer during the annual Diocesan Catholic Youth Conference (DCYC) held at the Vicksburg Convention Centions director, Father Nick Adam and Sister Kel- ter from Feb.18-20. (Photos ly Moline, OP, a Dominican Sister of Springfield, by Abbey Schuhmann Illinois and chaplain at St. Dominic’s Hospital in Jackson, along with diocesan seminarians led a session on discernment on Saturday afternoon. They challenged each participant to continue to seek God’s will in their life and to continue to be open to His call, said Schuhmann. Other activities during the “Encounter” weekend included small group sessions, games, Mass, Reconciliation, Adoration and a concert with Melendrez on Saturday evening. The weekend concluded with Mass celebrated by Bishop Joseph Kopacz and the presentation of the Bishop Chanche Youth Service Awards to six youth from around the diocese. This was the fourth year that the conference was held in Vicksburg. Groups from twelve parishes representing five of the six deaneries were in attendance this year. Schuhmann says that plans are already underway for the 2023 conference and invites youth from around the diocese to encounter Christ. For more information about events sponsored by the Office of Youth Ministry please contact coordinator, Abbey Schuhmann. 601-949-6934 or Abbey.Schuhmann@jacksondiocese.org.