May 6, 2013 - Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown

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Page 8 The Catholic Register, May 6, 2013 ord of Life The Pope Teaches By Pope Francis One Cannot Follow Jesus, Or Love Jesus, Without The Church VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Following Jesus means belonging to the church, the community that gives Christians their identity, Pope Francis said. “It is not possible to find Jesus outside the church,” he said in his Mass homily April 23. “The great Paul VI said it is ‘an absurd dichotomy’ to want to live with Jesus without the church, to follow Jesus outside the church, to love Jesus without the church.” Dozens of cardinals living in Rome or visiting the Vatican joined the pope in the Pauline Chapel of the Apostolic Palace for the Mass on the feast of St. George, the martyr. The feast is the pope’s name day; he was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. In his homily, Pope Francis spoke about the persecution of the first Christian communities and how opposition did not stop them from sharing their faith in Christ, but went hand in hand with even greater missionary activity. “Precisely at the moment persecution erupted, the missionary activity of the church erupted as well,” the pope said. When the first Christians began sharing the Gospel with “the Greeks,” and not just other Jews, it was something completely new and made some of the Apostles “a bit nervous,” the pope said. They sent Barnabas to Antioch to check on the situation, a kind of “apostolic visitation,” he said. “With a bit of a sense of humor, we can say this was the theological beginning of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.” Barnabas saw that the church was growing, he said. The church was becoming “the mother of more and more children,” a mother that not only generates sons and daughters, but gives them faith and an identity. Christian identity is not a bureaucratic status, it is “belonging to the church ... the mother church, because it is not possible to find Jesus outside the church,” Pope Francis said. “It is the mother church who gives us Jesus, gives us identity.” Pope Francis said that when Barnabas witnessed the crowds of new believers he rejoiced with “the joy of an evangelizer.” The growth of the church, the pope said, “begins with persecution -- a great sadness -- and ends with joy. This is how the church moves forward -- as I saint, I don’t recall which right now, said -- between the persecution of the world and the consolation of the Lord. The life of the church is this way.” “If we want to take the path of the mundane, negotiating with the world,” the pope said, “we will never have the consolation of the Lord. If we seek only consolation, it will be superficial.” The life of the church is a path that always alternates between “persecution and consolation, between the Cross and the Resurrection,” he said. ONE MORE TIME: Bishop Carroll High School, Ebensburg, celebrated graduation on June 3, 1963, with Mass at Holy Name Church. The new school had been dedicated on June 10, 1962. Bishop J. Carroll McCormick presented diplomas to the graduates, who were presented to the Bishop by Father Faber J. Malloy, principal. Monsignor Francis A. McNelis, diocesan superintendent of schools, addressed the graduating class. What power does a word have? To a writer, words are vastly important. This morning, listening to the radio, I heard the word “anodyne” and knew that, first, I didn’t know what it meant and second, I would find out before morning’s end. “Anodyne,” I discovered, means “serving to alleviate pain” or “not likely to offend.” How apt a definition, I thought, as I mulled over how words can so easily inspire or cause offense, and yet, how often we fling them about without appreciating their effect. The Associated Press announced that they would no longer use the term “illegal immigrant.” Immediately, folks lined up on either side of this word debate. “Political correctness,” shouted those who throw that label at any innovation with which they disagree. Others, saw wisdom in the decision. “Illegal immigrant” so quickly descends to merely “illegal” as if that singular, ugly word sums up a fellow human being whose hopes and aspirations are akin to our own. A term that used to be freely used, is “mental retardation.” It was not invented or intended to be pejorative, but to define a certain level of intellectual ability. But one need only occasionally visit a school playground to realize why there’s a movement to “eliminate the R-word.” For The Journey By Effie Caldarola Words Can Lift Us Up, Or Weigh Us Down Words fall from favor, and rightly so. But one word that always lifts the heart and never falls from grace is the word “hope.” The season leading up to and including Lent and the triduum saw momentous things happen in our Catholic Church, and if you weren’t left speechless -- wordless, as it were -- by the events of this spring, you may have been like so many with whom I spoke and consistently defined this period by one word: hope. First, we saw Pope Benedict XVI make a gracious and spiritfilled decision to step down from his weighty burdens. The ordinary Catholics I meet -- the ones who reside in pews on Sunday and not in the sometimes nasty alternative universe of constant blogging -- thought this move very practical and timely. Bishops resign at a certain age, why can’t a pope pass his duties to another, younger person? They saw it as a sign of, yep, hope. Then, everyone used the word “hope” as the selection process began, and hope translated, as it so often does, into millions of silent prayers. Pope Francis responded by asking for our blessing, and then making the significant gesture of visiting a youth prison and washing the feet of young prisoners -- male, female, Catholic, Muslim. People I knew were absolutely thrilled by this. But sadly, there are some who are harshly criticizing Pope Francis already, even his beautiful trip to the prison. Fortunately, for my adult life, I’ve remained with Catholics who, despite difficulty, live in a sense of hope. Can we criticize a pope? Of course. We don’t belong to a cult. We belong to an ancient community that’s lived through contentious times but professes a faith in conversation with reason. We discuss, we debate. But I want to be like the American nun interviewed on television after the pope’s selection. Why, she was asked, do you have such hope? She smiled broadly and said, “I live in hope.” That’s why I’m a Catholic. That’s where I want to live, too.
Q. Recently, a local priest refused to bury a resident of his town because the person did not go to church. The priest was told that the deceased had confessed and received Communion on his deathbed, but that did not seem to matter. Fortunately, a neighboring priest was willing to celebrate the funeral Mass. What should we do with regard to the first priest, except to pray for him (which I am doing)? (Wisconsin) Question Corner By Father Kenneth Doyle The Right To Church Burial John of Avila 1500-1569 May 10 A. Sometimes in cases like this, the story contains elements of hearsay and the facts become clouded. But if it really happened as you describe, then I would disagree with the first priest’s determination. According to the Code of Canon Law (No. 1176), Catholics have the right to a church funeral, and this is generally true even if the deceased was not regularly practicing his faith at the time of death. In certain situations, Catholic funeral rites may be refused, but only by exception -- notably (in No. 1184) for “manifest sinners who cannot be granted ecclesiastical funerals without public scandal of the faithful.” Notorious members of crime syndicates would be an example of this. No matter how openly sinful a person’s life has been, a Catholic funeral is never to be denied if the person has manifested repentance before dying. In the case you mention, if the pastor had any doubt as to the proper course of action, Canon No. 1184 states that he should have sought the advice of his bishop. In such situations, I believe that the presumption should normally favor the deceased -- a presumption only to be overridden in extreme situations. Simply being a sinner does not render one unworthy of a Catholic burial -- in fact, it’s precisely because we are sinners that we need the funeral Mass. Born near Toledo, Spain, John was sent by his wealthy parents to study law in Salamanca. But, renouncing such a career, he instead lived as a hermit for three years, and was ordained in 1525, after his parents had died. Though he hoped to be a missionary in Mexico, his archbishop sent him to Andalusia, where he preached successfully for nine years. He was imprisoned briefly by the Inquisition for rigoristic preaching, then continued evangelizing for the rest of his life. Many of his letters survive. A holy priest and mystic, he was a friend of St. Ignatius Loyola and an adviser of St. Teresa of Avila and several other Spanish saints. He is a patron saint of Spain. Copyright 2013, Cathoic News Service Q. In Matthew 18:21-22, we are given a standard of forgiveness which I interpret to mean that we are to forgive always (“not seven times, but seventy seven”). I’m at a loss, though, as to how to apply that in my case. For a long time, I’ve had a terrible relationship with my mother, who lost custody of two of her three children (including myself) for continually putting us in unsafe and inappropriate situations. I’ve never had a problem feeling compassion for my mother and I often pray for her. But I decided a long time ago that when I had children of my own, I would love my mother from a distance and not give her the chance to hurt or influence my children. A few times since then, I’ve tried giving her opportunities to redeem herself only to find out that I was wrong -- to the detriment of my children’s well-being. Despite this, I am forever being asked by friends and family to give my mother another chance by allowing her some controlled interaction so that she’ll know the blessing of grandchildren. What I’m struggling with is this: Is it enough that God knows I’ve forgiven my mother, or must I show it by giving her another chance with my children? (Rochester, N.Y.) A. You are correct in thinking that the mandate for a Christian is to strive to forgive always. From the facts as you’ve explained them, I believe that you’ve done that. (Bringing the person before the Lord in prayer is a good first step to forgiveness, because it reminds us that all of us are flawed and in need of God’s help.) I hope that your mother knows you’ve forgiven her, and I imagine you’ve been able to communicate that to her. Forgiveness, though, does not demand that you put your children in peril, and you, as their parent, are in the best position to know what would cause them harm. In situations like this, you are probably best advised to have a face-to-face discussion with a priest or other trusted counselor where all of the circumstances can be reviewed. The Catholic Register, May 6, 2013 Page 9 Sunday, May 5, 2013 The Sixth Sunday Of Easter Jesus’ Promise of the Advocate By Father John J. Slovikovski “The Holy Spirit, whom Christ the Head pours out on his members, builds, animates, and sanctifies the Church” (CCC, 747). This is done in a number of ways. First, the Holy Spirit sanctified through the Holy Scriptures, having provided divine inspiration to the human authors. Second, in the sacramental life of the Church, the Spirit is uniquely present, especially in the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist. Third, and deserving some special attention, the Spirit builds the moral life of the Church through the parceling out of His gifts. The seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom (seeking the spiritual in and above the material), counsel (right judgment), fortitude (courage), knowledge (engagement of the mystery of God), piety (reverence) and fear of the Lord (wonder and awe). Saint Thomas Aquinas says that four of these gifts (wisdom, understanding, knowledge, and counsel) direct the intellect, while the other three gifts (fortitude, piety, and fear of the Lord) direct the will toward God. In any event, “they belong in their fullness to Christ…They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them. They make the faithful docile in readily obeying divine aspirations” (CCC, 1831). The Holy Spirit is alive and well in the life of the Church. To learn more about the Holy Spirit, consult the Catechism of the Catholic Church (687-747) and YouCat(113-120). Sunday, May 12, 2013 The Seventh Sunday Of Easter The Unity Of Believers “Father…I pray that they may be one as we are one.” Jesus’ prayer for unity of the faithful engenders an opportunity for reflection on the unity of the Church including ecumenism. To begin the unity of the Church rests in her source, that is the unity of the Trinity of Divine Persons, one God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Although the Church is one, this does not discount the diversity of its membership. In the Church there are many persons, male and female, of different cultures and traditions, holding different positions, exercising different ministries, and aspiring to different vocations. Accordingly, there must be bonds of unity that exist that allow the membership to exist peacefully together in harmony. These bonds are as follows. The virtue of charity, i.e., mutual love and interdependence “binds everything together in perfect harmony” (CCC,815). More concretely, the profession of faith is proclaimed by all the faithful to express unity in belief. Not only in the proclamation of fundamental beliefs, but also in the common celebration of divine worship, especially the sacraments, one experiences visible unity in the church (CCC, 815). For this reason, it is essential that particular churches follow the rubric of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church in its regular and public celebrations of worship. In this case, familiarity breads acceptance of the common purpose and goals of the ecclesial community. Finally, apostolic succession with regard to the sacrament of Holy Orders maintains unity in terms of shepherding of the one flock of the Lord (cf. CCC, 815). The Church maintains that this unity subsists in its fullness in the Roman Catholic Communion, but that elements of goodness and truth remain in other Christian faith communities that must be acknowledged and celebrated For further reading see, the Catechism of the Catholic Church (811-822) and YouCat(129).
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May 6, 2013 - Diocese of Altoona-Johnstown

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