The Catholic News & Herald 1 May 11, 2007

Serving CatholiCS in WeStern north Carolina in the DioCeSe of Charlotte

Around the DioceseVows to Secular Carmelites; Knights events

| Page 4

Culture WatchCurriculum guide studied; Vatican photographers

| Pages 10-11

Parish ProfileOur Lady of the Mountains a spiritual home in Highlands

| Page 16

MaY 11, 2007 volUMe 16 no. 29

www.charlottediocese.org

PerspectivesHonoring women at home; Faith influencing life

| Pages 14-15

established Jan. 12, 1972 by Pope Paul vi

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte

Courtesy Photo

Khadija Mohamed, a refugee from Somalia, looks up from her work in her English as a Second Language class in Charlotte.

Strangers in a strange new land

CNs Photo by bob roller

Father Patrick Kenny, an Irish-born priest of the Diocese of Auckland, New Zealand, comforts U.S. Army Sgt. Juan Roldan at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington April 17. Father Kenny, who is a chaplain at Walter Reed, was visiting the soldier from Paterson, N.J., who lost both his legs in an explosion in Iraq.

Pope thanks Swiss Guards for dedicated, loyal service

See SWISS, page 7

Holy healing

by KAREN A. EVANSStAff wRitER

CHARLOTTE — Imagine fleeing the only home you’ve ever know, with no idea if you will ever see it again. Or walking 15 days and nights through the desert without food or water.

Imagine watching as your husband is shot to death in front of you. Or living for years in squalid, unsanitary conditions in a refugee camp.

Unfortunately for 12 million refugees and 21 million internally displaced persons around the world, these aren’t horror stories they’ve heard, but their own stories — their own lives.

Five former refugees shared the i r s to r ies o f persecution, fear, hunger —

Benedict in BrazilPope says he wants to help reinforce Christian values, counter threats

See BRAZIL, page 7

See CHAPLAIN, page 9

by MARK PAttiSONcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

WASHINGTON — Father Patrick Kenny, like many priests, finds that the number of priests able to collaborate with him in his ministry is shrinking, and that the flock is growing.

Father Kenny’s flock is at Walter Reed Army Medical C e n t e r i n Wa s h i n g t o n , which came under national

scrutiny in late winter after The Washington Post exposed severe shor tcomings in outpatient care and myriad red tape at the 113-acre facility.

The Irish-born priest, now 72, has been a chaplain at Walter Reed for 27 years of his 47 years of priestly ministry.

It all started as a way for

‘Exempliary soldiers’

Refugee forum in Charlotte highlights world crisis

by JOhN thAViScAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

SAO PAULO, Brazil — Arriving in Brazil on his first papal trip to Latin America, Pope Benedict XVI said he wanted to help reinforce Christian values and counter new threats to the poor, the abandoned and the unborn.

“I am well aware that the soul of this people, as of all Latin America, safeguards values that are radically Christian, which will never be eradicated,” the pope said May 9.

The pope addressed several hundred civil and church dignitaries at an airport

by cAROl GlAtZcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI thanked the Swiss Guards for their dedicated and loyal service of watching over the Vatican and keeping popes safe.

The Swiss Guard’s 500 years of service to the church in

See REFUGEE, page 5

Walter Reed chaplain who tends to war wounded finds number growing

2 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007

Current and upcoming topics from around the world to your own backyardInBrief Cardinal praises Bush pledge to veto any

attack on pro-life policies

RIsINg FROM THe RUBBLe

PublisHer: Most reverend Peter J. JugisediTor: Kevin e. MurraysTaff WriTer: Karen a. evans GraPHiC desiGNer: Tim faragheradverTisiNG MaNaGer: Cindi feerickseCreTary: deborah Hiles

1123 south Church st., Charlotte, NC 28203Mail: P.o. box 37267, Charlotte, NC 28237PHoNe: (704) 370-3333 faX: (704) 370-3382e-Mail: catholicnews@charlottediocese.org

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MAy 11, 2007Volume 16 • Number 29

CHARLOTTE VICARIATECHARLOTTE — The Semi-Annual Rosary Rally will be held May 20 at 3 p.m. at St. Patrick Cathedral, 1621 Dilworth Rd. East. This 33-year-old diocesan tradition will include recitation of the rosary, a eucharistic procession and Benediction. For more information, call Tina at (704) 846-7361.CHARLOTTE — Father Timothy Reid will present “Seeking the Heart of God” at St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., Thursdays, May 24 through June 28, 7-9 p.m. This lecture series deals with understanding the spirituality of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. Each participant will need a copy of St. Teresa’s “Interior Castle.” For more information, please contact Susan Brady at (704) 541-8362, ext.4.CHARLOTTE — St. Matthew Church, 8015 Ballantyne Commons Pkwy., will host a free Christian Coffeehouse May 27, 7-9 p.m. in the Banquet Room of the New Life Center. Single and married adults are invited for an evening of contemporary Christian music, food and fellowship. For more information, or to reserve a table for six or more, call Kathy Bartlett at (704) 400-2213.

GASTONIA VICARIATEBELMONT — A free adult faith formation series, “The Church and Human Sexuality,”

will meet Tuesdays through May 22, 7:30- 9 p.m., at Queen of the Apostles Church, 503 N. Main St. For more information, call Dennis Teall-Fleming at (704) 825-9600, ext. 26 or e-mail teallfleming@yahoo.com.

GREENSBORO VICARIATEGREENSBORO — All practicing Catholic women of Irish birth or descent, or who are the wife of a member of the Ancient Order of Hibernians are invited to participate in The Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, a social, cultural and charitable group for an ongoing series of fun and informative activities. LAOH will meet May 14 at 7:30 p.m. in the Kloster Center of St. Pius X Church, 2210 N. Elm St. Any questions can be directed to Mary Driscoll at (336) 785-0693. GREENSBORO — A Mass and Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick will be celebrated at Our Lady of Grace Church, 2205 West Market St., May 19 at 1 p.m. Anyone who is experiencing physical, mental or emotional afflictions, is of advanced age or is facing surgery is encouraged and invited to receive this sacrament. For more information, call Maureen Cavanaugh at (336) 274-6520 ext 30.GREENSBORO — The Greensboro Council of Catholic Women will host a luncheon May 23 at the Cardinal Country Club beginning at 11:30 a.m. The program will feature a performance by the Scottish Country Dancers. For more information, call Carmen Wood at (336) 545-9266.HIGH POINT — Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, 4145 Johnson St., invites everyone to attend the Third Annual International Festival,

Diocesanplanner

Pastor seeks to console scattered flock after devastating tornado

DODGE CITY, Kan. (CNS) — With his church destroyed by a powerful tornado and his parishioners “scattered to the four winds,” Father Gregory LeBlanc, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Greensburg, spent part of May 6 visiting the displaced in local shelters.

“It was so good to visit with a number of you Sunday in the shelters,” Father LeBlanc said in a parish bulletin posted on the Web site of the Diocese of Dodge City.

“I am at a loss as we look at what needs to be done now and what needs to be done in the future. God bless us and keep us together even as we are scattered about,” he wrote.

Tim Wenzl, media liaison for the Dodge City Diocese, said St. Joseph Church was destroyed in the May 4 tornado, with only a memorial bell and a statue of St. Joseph left standing in an exterior niche of a wall.

But all 160 parishioners have been accounted for and no one was killed, he added.

Another Catholic church, St. Peter and Paul in North Ellinwood, lost its steeple and has a large hole in its roof, Wenzl said. The church, which was built in a rural area and predates the Second Vatican Council, had been closed but was being maintained as a heritage site, he added.

Bishop Ronald M. Gilmore of Dodge City asked for prayers for the people of Greensburg and other towns

devastated by the May 4 tornado, which the National Weather Service classified as an F5 storm, with winds exceeding 200 mph.

“In addition to our prayerful support, I know that we want to be of whatever material assistance we can be,” the bishop said in a May 7 statement. “Catholic Social Service-Catholic Charities for Southwest Kansas plays a distinctive role among community resources in responding to these crises.”

Bishop Gilmore asked each parish in the diocese to hold a special collection or send funds from its general treasury to assist in the recovery efforts.

“Even as we are grateful that all parishioners of St. Joseph Parish, Greensburg, have been located, we mourn the loss of those who have died this past weekend and pray for the repose of their souls and for the comfort of their loved ones,” the bishop said.

At least 12 people died in the tornado. Greensburg, a town of about 1,500 people, was about 95 percent destroyed, according to City Administrator Steve Hewitt.

Father LeBlanc, who also is pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Pratt and lived at the Pratt parish, planned to return to Greensburg sometime May 7, the first day that people were allowed in to assess their damages, Wenzl said.

The priest said eight Catholic schools were prepared to take in any students displaced by the tornado, with all fees waived.

WASHINGTON (CNS) — The head of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities welcomed President George W. Bush’s May 3 promise to “veto any legislation that weakens current federal policies and laws on abortion.”

Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia also expressed gratitude May 4 for pledges by 155 members of the House of Representatives and 34 senators to uphold any such vetoes.

“These pledges help ensure that through the rest of this administration and this Congress, Americans need not fear that the federal government will pursue new ways to force them to be involved in government-funded abortions, coercive population programs abroad or the destruction of embryonic human beings,” the cardinal said. “Instead, we should work together to build respect for human life at its most defenseless stages, and to support women and families facing an unintended pregnancy or caring for family members challenged by age,

illness or disability.”Bush outlined his stand in identical

letters May 3 to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. Current law prohibits federal funding for abortion except in cases of rape, incest or where the life of the mother is endangered.

“Recent legislative practice has ensured that taxpayer funds do not underwrite organizations that perform or promote abortion as a method of family planning,” the president wrote.

Also protected under U.S. laws or policies are human embryos and the conscience rights of health care providers and entities, and taxpayer funds may not be used in “coercive or involuntary family planning programs,” he added.

“I believe it is the most basic duty of government to guard the innocent,” Bush said. “I will veto any legislation that weakens current federal policies and laws on abortion, or that encourages the destruction of human life at any stage.”

CNs Photo by Dave KauP, reuters

An American flag hangs in the rubble May 6 in Greensburg, Kan., after a devastating tornado ripped through the area the evening of May 4. The tornado, rated an F5 and the most powerful to hit the U.S. in eight years, demolished every business on the main street. All the churches, including St. Joseph Catholic Church, also were destroyed. At least 12 people died, and at least 50 people were injured, some critically, authorities said.

The Catholic News & Herald 3 May 11, 2007

Pope says church must continue to reach out, face vocations crisis

froM THe vaTiCaN

a non-denominational family event with food, entertainment, music, art, exhibits and games from around the world. The free event begins at 4 p.m. May 27. For more information, contact Larry Kwan at hlkwan@lexcominc.net or (336) 688-1220.

HICKORY VICARIATEHICKORY — St. Aloysius Church, 921 Second St. NE, is offering a weekly Catholic Scripture Study. Catholic Scripture Study is a program whose members not only learn the Scriptures, but come to a deeper understanding of their faith in a setting that builds Christian fellowship. Evening and daytime classes meet at the church, Wednesdays, 6:45-8:30 p.m., and Thursdays 9:30-11:15 a.m. For more information, call Ann Miller at (828) 441-2205, or e-mail stalscss@charter.net.

SALISBURY VICARIATEMOORESVILLE — A Support Group for Parents Who Have Lost a Child of any Age meets the second Monday of each month at 7 p.m. at St. Therese Church, 217 Brawley School Rd. We draw strength from others’ experience of loss and grief. For more information, call Joy at (704) 664-3992.

SMOKY MOUNTAIN VICARIATEWAYNESVILLE — Adult Education Classes are held the first three Wednesday evenings of each month beginning at 6:45 p.m. in the St. John the Evangelist Church Social Hall, 234 Church St. For more information, call Charles Luce at (828) 648-7369 or e-mail luce54@aol.com.FRANKLIN — The Women’s Guild of St. Francis of Assisi Church, 299 Maple St., meets the second Monday of each month at 1 p.m. in the Family Life Center. The meetings feature guest speakers and special events

periodically. For more information, call Claire Barnable at (828) 369-1565.

WINSTON-SALEM VICARIATECLEMMONS — A Charismatic Prayer Group meets Mondays at 7:15 p.m. in the eucharistic chapel of Holy Family Church, 4820 Kinnamon Rd. Join us for praise music, witness, teaching, prayers and petition. For more details, call Jim Passero at (336) 998-7503.CLEMMONS — The Knitting Ministry of Holy Family Church, 4820 Kinnamon Rd., meets Monday evenings, 6:30-8 p.m., to pray, learn to knit, reflect on life’s lessons and reach out to others in our community. Opportunities exist for the beginner to the experienced as we knit and purl Prayer Shawls, Preemie Blankets or Squares for Survivors. Please contact Rosemary at (336) 766-2315 or Carmel (336) 766-0650 for more information.KERNERSVILLE — Holy Cross Church, 616 S. Cherry St., hosts a Senior Coffee House the first and third Mondays of each month, 10 a.m.-12 p.m., in Salesian Hall in the Child Development Building. Call the church office at (336) 996-5109 ext. 12 for directions or information.

is your parish or school sponsoring a free event open to the general public? deadline for all submissions for the diocesan Planner is 10 days prior to desired publication date (fridays). submit in writing to Karen a. evans at kaevans@charlottediocese.org or fax to (704) 370-3382.

Pope to women religious: To bring hope, first renew your spirituality

Swing in their step

May 12 — 10:30 a.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. Philip Church, statesville

May 12 — 5 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. elizabeth of the Hill Country Church, boone

May 13 — 11 a.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. lucien Church, spruce Pine

May 14 — 7 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. Mary Church, shelby

Episcopalcalendar

Bishop Peter J. Jugis will participate in the following events:

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — While the church must continue to be a missionary church reaching out and giving support to younger churches, it must also face the widespread crisis of vocations, Pope Benedict XVI said.

As the church continues i ts missionary activities around the world, “we cannot help but see the difficulties that emerge today in this field,” he said in a May 5 speech to participants of two separate missionary conferences.

The Superior Council of the Pontifical Missionary Works and the World Mission Congress “Fidei Donum” met in Rome recently to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Pope Pius XII’s encyclical, “Fidei Donum” (“The Gift of Faith”).

The letter highlighted the missionary needs of Africa and urged established churches to help younger churches with prayers and funding. It also called on diocesan priests, religious and laypeople to help in the missions.

Pope Benedict thanked all those who have dedicated themselves to spreading the Gospel.

Missionary work has helped make every baptized person feel part of one church and has led to “reciprocal enrichment” as cultures and communities exchange their gifts and talents, he said.

However, some of the difficulties facing the church today in continuing its missionary mandate include the declining numbers and advanced age of “clergy in the dioceses that once sent missionaries to faraway regions,” the pope said.

“In this context of a widespread vocations crisis, this certainly represents a challenge that must be faced,” he said.

Nonetheless, without ignoring the problems, the church must look to the future with hope and confidence, he said, “giving a renewed and more authentic identity to ‘Fidei Donum’ missionaries” that responds to a world that is much different from that of 50 years ago.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Renewing their own spirituality and carefully studying the needs of others, women religious will be able to live the Gospel message and bring hope to the world, Pope Benedict XVI said.

The pope, meeting May 7 with almost 800 superiors of women’s congregations, asked the religious to follow the biblical example of the prophets, who “first listen and contemplate and then speak, allowing themselves to be totally permeated by that love for God, which fears nothing and is stronger even than death.”

The International Union of Superiors General was holding its plenary meeting in Rome. The participating superiors represent almost 600,000 sisters working in 85 countries around the world.

The theme of the plenary was “Challenged to weave a new spirituality, which generates hope and life for all.”

During the May 6-10 plenary, the women were to focus specifically on helping other women, migrants, safeguarding the earth, working with the laity and interreligious dialogue.

Pope Benedict told them that prayer and prophetic action are “the ‘threads’ with

which the Lord urges you, dear religious, to weave the fabric of your service to the church,” giving witness to Gospel values “courageously incarnated in the contemporary reality, especially where there is human and spiritual poverty.”

Some of the focus areas, he said, are new for many religious congregations, and the best way to “travel unexplored missionary and spiritual paths” is to maintain a solid grounding in prayer and contemplation.

An authentic prophet, he said, “does not worry so much about doing works, which are undoubtedly important, but not essential. The prophet tries above all to be a witness to the love of God, trying to live it among the realities of the world.”

Pope Benedict told the superiors their first concern must be to help the members of their congregations to keep their eyes focused on Christ and to place themselves at the service of the Gospel.

He also encouraged them to share their gifts and talents with others — priests, laypeople and especially families — “who are committed to the one mission of the church, which is building the kingdom of God.”

CNs Photo by Paulo WhitaKer, reuters

recovering drug addicts rehearse a dance routine that they will present to Pope benedict XVI during his visit to the Fazenda da esperanca (Farm of Hope) drug rehabilitation center in Guaratingueta, brazil, may 3. The pope will visit the Franciscan-run center during his may 9-13 trip to brazil.

May 16 — 7 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationour lady of lourdes Church, Monroe

May 18 — 7 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. Peter Church, Charlotte

May 19 — 2 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. Mark Church, Huntersville

May 20 — 11 a.m.Sacrament of Confirmationour lady of Consolation Church, Charlotte

May 21 — 7 p.m.Sacrament of Confirmationst. John Neumann Church, Charlotte

May 22 — 1:30 p.m.Building Commission MeetingPastoral Center, Charlotte

4 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007AROUND THE DIOCESE

Honoring stewards

Dinner recognizes stewardship ministries, people

Courtesy Photo

Deacon Mike Stout and parishioners serve pasta at a dinner concluding the stewardship renewal program at St. barnabas Church in Arden April 21.

ASHEVILLE — The Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites recently advanced one of its members during its Lenten Day of Reflection.

Mary Ann Poli made her temporary promises to the superiors and community of the Flower of Carmel Community in Asheville during its Lenten Day of Reflection in Asheville March 10.

Poli, a parishioner of and youth minister at St. Barnabas Church in Arden, promised a life of evangelical perfection in the spirit of the evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience and in the spirit of the beatitudes for the next three years.

The Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites is an order of lay people and diocesan priests who embrace a calling to strive for Christian perfection in the world according to the spirit and ideals of the Order of Discalced Carmelites.

Following in the way of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross, Secular Carmelites endeavor to make their lives as grace-filled and fruitful as possible in every way for the Catholic Church and the world.

Poli’s temporary promises mark the midpoint in her journey to becoming a full Secular Carmelite.

The journey began with a six-month period of visitation with the community before becoming an aspirant for one year — she then received a scapular, which is the ceremonial habit of the secular order.

At the end of three years, she may be invited by the community to make her promises permanent.

Disca lced Carmel i t e Fa ther Anthony Haglof, prior of the Discalced Carmelite hermitage in Hinton, W.Va., and spiritual assistant for Flower of Carmel Community, celebrated Mass and officiated at the March 10 temporary promises ceremony in the home of Jim and Loretta Potts.

Elizabeth Pantas, the community’s formation director, accepted Poli’s promises on behalf of the community.

WaNT MORe INFO?for more information on the secular order of discalced Carmelites, visit www.ocdswashprov.org.

for more information on the flower of Carmel Community, call elizabeth Pantas, director of formation, at (828) 628-4621, or ella reid, president, at (828) 667-3903.

On the journeyWoman makes promises to Secular Discalced Carmelite community

BELMONT — Approximately 300 people attended the first Catholic Family Expo in the Diocese of Charlotte, held at Belmont Abbey College April 13-15. The expo, themed “Formation for Vocations,” featured speakers, breakout talks, exhibitors, Mass and prayer.

“Our faith will bring us happiness as individuals and as families as we learn, love and live the vocation God calls us to,” said Tim and Miki Hill, co-presidents of Catholic Family Expo, in a written welcome letter to expo participants.

“And this is the vocation we are all called to — to love God and love our neighbor,” they wrote. “Every vocation stems from this first and primary vocation to love.”

Catholic Family Expo was founded 16 years ago as the National Association of Catholic Home Educators, but was broadened to include all Catholic families, regardless of their educational choices.

According to its Web site, the organization’s mission is the help the faithful cultivate a personal relationship with Jesus, instill a sense of social responsibility and assist parents impart these goals to their children.

Through the expos held in different cities, it provides a “comfortable and affordable setting for people to hear and experience something new about

life in Christ.”Gregory and Christine Williams,

parishioners of St. James the Greater Church in Concord, helped organize the expo at Belmont Abbey College.

“We’ve gone to conferences elsewhere, and we felt this area would welcome and embrace this kind of conference,” said Christine Williams.

To p i c s a t “ F o r m a t i o n f o r Vocations” included vocations, family and education.

Among the dozens of speakers were Father Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, and Dr. Martha Shuping, a Winston-Salem-area psychiatrist, on pro-life issues; Dr. William Thierfelder, president of Belmont Abbey College, on self-esteem; Ray Guarendi, an author and psychologist, on being a strong parent and Catholicism; and Gail Buckley, founder and executive director of Catholic Scripture Study, on “Giving God the Reins.”

Williams said she hoped participants felt “refreshed and renewed in their spirit and able to live out their vocation to the world.”

“The conference was a wonderful experience,” she said.

Another Catholic Family Expo is scheduled in the Diocese of Charlotte for June 2008.

Vocations, family explored at Catholic Family ExpoConference features speakers, prayer

Courtesy Photo

mary Ann Poli (left), a parishioner of St. barnabas Church in Arden, is pictured with Discaled Carmelite Father Haglof, spiritual assistant for Flower of Carmel Community, and Elizabeth Pantas, community president. Poli made temporary promises to the community March 10.

ARDEN — An Italian dinner was held for all parishioners of St. Barnabas Church in Arden April 21.

More than 300 parishioners attended the dinner, concluding the parish’s sixth annual stewardship renewal program. The program began in January with “treasure renewal” forms being sent to all parishioners in conjunction with each parishioner’s 2006 statement of giving, which could be used for tax purposes.

The time and talent portions of the stewardship renewal began in March with mailings detailing the ministries available to parishioners. Lay speakers

followed and a ministry fair concluded this renewal. The time and talent renewal program spanned a period of five weeks.

The second annual dinner was held to recognize all who are a part of stewardship ministries and was open to all parishioners.

“The par ish enjoys making stewardship a way of life in their church and community,” said Ken Marino, stewardship committee chairperson.

Father Dean Cesa and Deacons Art Kingsley and Mike Stout lead the parish of 750 families.

The Catholic News & Herald 5 May 11, 2007FROM THE COvER

Refugee forum in Charlotte highlights world crisis

REFUGEE, from page 1

and ultimately, hope and gratitude — during “Refugees Among Us: The New Americans” presented by Catholic Social Services’ Refugee Resettlement Office at the Levine Jewish Community Center in Charlotte May 6.

Hosted by the Diocese of Charlotte’s Refugee Resettlement Office of Catholic Social Services in collaboration with the Levine Jewish Community Center (JCC), the program highlighted the plight of refugees in their own words.

Various organizations, including the diocesan Office of Justice and Peace of CSS, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, Forest Hill Church’s Sacks of Hope and Crisis Assistance Ministries were also on hand to offer information and opportunities for advocates, donors and volunteers.

The panelists, all of whom have been in the United States less than 10 years, represented Ukraine, Somalia, Vietnam, Liberia and Sudan.

Hawa Massaquoi, a Christian native of Bambo, Liberia, told the 160 audience members how she awoke in 1990 to the sounds of people shouting in the streets.

“Everyone was ordered out of their houses by soldiers — they said ‘get out, or we will burn your houses,’” Massaquoi said.

A bloody civil war had erupted in Liberia in December 1989, escalating with the assassination of President Samuel Doe Sept. 10, 1990.

Massaquoi’s husband was killed by soldiers while she stood by helplessly.

“Our country was quite good until this nightmare war came,” she said. “It tore our country to pieces.”

Massaquoi and her children fled Liberia, and she spent the next 16 years in refugee camps in Ivory Coast and Ghana. On Dec. 5, 2006, she was able to join her daughter in Charlotte, but her four other children, between 19 and 33 years of age, remain in a refugee camp in Ghana.

She desperately wants her children to come to the United States, but the program which allowed her to immigrate closed before her children and two grandchildren could be approved for refugee status.

Massaquoi hasn’t been able to find a job yet. Her daughter, Yatta Wuor, is supporting her mother and her family members in Ghana. The Ghanaian government does not permit refugees to hold jobs, and camp residents must still pay for rent, utilities, water, food and other necessities.

“These are stories we hear everyday in our office,” said Cira Ponce, director of the diocesan Refugee Resettlement Office. “There are so many refugees all over the world who need our help and our prayers.”

New hope in a new homeOnly 16 of the 192 United Nations

member states currently accept refugees. In 2005, there were 53,813 refugees

admitted to the United States for resettlement.

Each year, the diocesan Refugee Resettlement Office helps about 350 refugees adjust to their new lives in the United States.

Refugees, most of whom speak no English when they arrive, are met at the airport by a case manager and provided with a furnished apartment and a week’s worth of “culturally appropriate” food, said Mary Jane Bruton, community relations coordinator for the Refugee Resettlement Office.

The refugees take intensive English as a Second Language classes and, once their English is satisfactory, the refugee office provides employment services, matching them with potential employers.

“What refugees need most are employers willing to hire them and volunteers to serve as mentors or ‘American friends,’” Bruton said.

“Refugees make good, dependable employees,” she said. “They have a high work ethic, are conscientious and loyal. They really want to work.”

Refugees are often employed in the areas of woodworking, warehouse distribution and 10 key data entry, Bruton said.

The idea for the refugee forum came after CSS and JCC co-sponsored a screening of the documentary “Lost Boys of Sudan” in January to a standing-room-only audience of more than 400 people at the Levine Jewish Community Center in Charlotte.

“We had lots of interest in refugees — how they get here, what their lives are like, and so on,” Bruton said. “People really wanted to help, and CSS wanted to provide an opportunity for that.”

Most refugees prefer to return home as soon as circumstances permit, generally when a conflict has ended, a degree of stability has been restored and basic infrastructure is being rebuilt, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. In reality, few have the opportunity to do so. The majority find new hope and new lives in the United States.

Massaquoi nevertheless continues to hope.

“I would like to go back and rebuild my country,” she said.

Contact Staff Writer Karen A. Evans by calling (704) 370-3354 or e-mail kaevans@charlottediocese.org.

WaNT MORe INFO?for more information on the diocesan Refugee Resettlement Office of Catholic social services, call (704) 370-3283 or visit www.cssnc.org.

What is the difference between an immigrant and a refugee?an immigrant is a foreign-born individual who voluntarily leaves his/her country of origin and has been admitted to reside permanently in the u.s. as a lawful Permanent resident. according to the 1951 Convention relating to the status of refugees, a refugee is a person who “owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group, or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is unable to or, owing to such fear, unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country.”The key difference then, is that an immigrant chooses to leave his/her country of origin. a refugee, on the other hand, is compelled to seek asylum in another country.How many uprooted people are there throughout the world?according to recent estimates from the u.s. Committee for refugees, there are 12 million refugees and asylum seekers throughout the world, and 21 million internally displaced persons in need of protection and assistance. in 2005, more than 3 million people were uprooted from their homes and or/countries. How many refugees does the U.s. accept for resettlement each year?in 2005, there were 53,813 refugees admitted to the u.s. for resettlement. The yearly cap was 70,000 for 2006 and is set by the president in consultation with Congress and the state department.How many refugees have been resettled in Charlotte?since 1975, Catholic social services has resettled 9,500 refugees in the Charlotte metro area. Hebrew immigrant aid society North Carolina has resettled an additional 1,000 people. in 2006, Css resettled 331 refugees from vietnam, Cambodia, the former soviet union, sudan, liberia, Cuba, somalia, iran and Congo. Hias-N.C. resettled Hmong and Meskhetian Turks, in addition to the above nationalities.

Photo by KareN a. evaNs

David Thon, a refugee from Sudan, answers questions during “Refugees Among Us: The New Americans” at the Levine Jewish Community Center in Charlotte May 6 as Woc Hwing y from vietnam and Khadija Muya from Somalia look on. The forum, co-hosted by Catholic Social Services’ Refugee Resettlement Office, offered refugees an opportunity to share their stories and shed light on the plight of the world’s 33 million refugees and internally displaced persons.

“There are so many refugees ... who need our help and our prayers.”

— Cira Ponce

LeaRN: educate yourself and others on the human rights situations that cause people to flee, and learn about critical assistance programs that sustain displaced populations and help them to rebuild their communities. Visit Refugees International at www.refintl.org.aDVOCaTe: Write your elected official or a letter to the editor and let them know that you 1) support legislation to help the uprooted, and 2) oppose efforts to treat refugees as terrorists. visit united states Conference of Catholic bishops at www.usccb.org/mrsVOLUNTeeR: Mentor or tutor a newly arrived refugee.visit Catholic social services of the diocese of Charlotte at www.cssnc.org or call (704) 370-3283.DONaTe: Give money to an international agency that provides aid to refugees.Visit: www.refintl.org.gIVe: Household goods and job opportunities to a local agency helping refugees to start new lives in the u.s. visit www.cssnc.org or call (704) 370-3283.

Courtesy Photo

Halima Mnongerwa holds her son Mohamud Abdalla as she tries blowing a bubble-gum bubble during a break from her English as a Second Language class. Mnongerwa, a native of Somalia, was assisted by Catholic Social Services’ Refugee Resettlement Office when she resettled in Charlotte.

5 simple ways you can help refugees

Q&A

6 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007AROUND THE DIOCESE

Knights collect funds for mentally challenged

Courtesy Photo

Sixty people enjoy the inaugural Widows and Widowers Dinner at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Greensboro march 29. The full-menu dinner, hosted and served by Knights of Columbus Council 13236 in Greensboro, was to honor the wives of deceased knights as well as surviving spouses at St. Paul the Apostle Church.

For faithful service

BURNSVILLE — Knights of Columbus Council 12233 recently raised $7,525 and donated $5,832 to agencies working with the mentally challenged in Yancey, Madison and Mitchell counties.

Members of the council come from three small Catholic churches in western North Carolina: Sacred Heart Mission in Burnsville, St. Lucien Church in Spruce Pine and St. Andrew Church in Mars Hill.

The funds were d is t r ibuted locally, proportionately based upon the collections received at the sites where members from the specific agencies assisted with collections. In Yancey County, Mt. Opportunity received $1,192 and Residential House received $1,917.

Mt. Opportunity in Madison County received $1,001 and $1,721 in Mitchell County. The remaining funds were donated to the North Carolina state Knights office for statewide assistance for activities for the mentally challenged, especially Special Olympics.

According to Grand Knight Joe Ference, the funds were raised through Operation LAMB collections. LAMB (Least Among My Brethren) is taken from the Gospel of Matthew 25:40: “Whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.”

Knights of Columbus councils conduct this program throughout the United States to help the mentally challenged. Contributions were collected during the annual “Tootsie Roll Campaign” held on alternating weekend August through December.

“We couldn’t begin something of this nature without the support of the area’s citizens,” said Harry Hamelink, campaign director. “We are grateful to all who helped make this event so successful.”

There are more than 12,100 Knights of Columbus in North Carolina. Organized into councils, their charitable efforts stretch from Franklin in the west to kill devil hills in the east. According to 2004 statistics, the Operation LAMB

program of North Carolina has raised more than $13 million since its inception in 1973. Since donations cover basic overhead costs, every penny raised from the tootsie roll campaign goes directly to this special cause.

aTTeNTION ReaDeRs!HaVe a sTORy TO sHaRe?

do you have a story to share with The Catholic News & Herald? do you know of people who are living the tenets of their faith? do you have photos of a parish- or ministry-based event?

if so, please share them with us.Contact staff Writer Karen evans at (704) 370-3354 or kaevans@charlottediocese.org.

Remembering loved ones

Courtesy Photo

Dr. Cris villapando, director of faith formation programs for the Diocese of Charlotte, presents a certificate of appreciation from bishop Peter J. Jugis to Gertrude Kim for her 26 years of service as a volunteer parish catechetical leader, catechist, translator and pastoral liaison at St. John Lee Korean Church in Charlotte May 6.

Courtesy Photo

Grand Knight Joe Ference (center) presents a check to vicky Pressly in Madison County. Ference and other members of Knights of Columbus Council 12233 raised more than $7,500 for Mt. Opportunity and the North Carolina state’s Knights office through operation lAmb. Also pictured are Knight Jim Halula, Elaine English, Knight vincent Salomone, Knight Harry Hamelink (back) and Knight Larry Thompson.

The Catholic News & Herald 7 May 11, 2007FROM THE COvER

BRAZIL, from page 1SWISS, from page 1

Rome reflects “a long history of loyalty and generous service always offered with dedication, at times to the point of heroically sacrificing one’s life,” he said.

The pope’s comments came May 5 during a special audience with Swiss Guards and 38 new recruits.

New soldiers are sworn in during a ceremony at the Vatican every May 6 to commemorate the day 150 Swiss Guards died saving Pope Clement VII’s life during the sack of Rome May 6, 1527.

Each recruit took an oath to “faithfully, loyally and honorably” serve the pope with all his strength and to sacrifice his life, if necessary, to defend the pontiff.

To serve in the Swiss Guard, soldiers must be male Swiss citizens, Catholic and at least 5 feet 8 inches tall. They must have an impeccable reputation, be under age 30, unmarried when they begin their service and have served in the Swiss Army.

It was in June 1505 when Pope Julius II first wrote to the Swiss confederation, asking for a contingent of Swiss soldiers who would protect the pope and his palace. The first 150 Swiss soldiers arrived Jan. 22, 1506, at the gates of Rome.

In 2006, half a millennium since the Swiss Guard’s arrival, a contingent of former guards took part in a 439-miles

welcoming ceremony outside Sao Paulo, where his plane touched down after a 12-hour flight from Rome.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva greeted the pope warmly as he descended from the aircraft.

In their brief remarks at the airport, the pontiff and the Brazilian president highlighted the importance of family, the challenges facing young people, and the Catholic Church’s contribution to social programs in Latin America’s most Catholic and most populous country.

Da Silva told the pope that the country needs spiritual and moral leadership “to face the challenges of this new millennium.”

Saying that “the presence of the Catholic Church has been fundamental in Brazil, contributing to the country’s spiritual, moral and social life,” the president mentioned the church’s collaboration in social efforts, especially the government’s program to fight hunger.

Noting that his administration has “paid special attention to our youth, especially those who are poorest and most in need,” da Silva said it was important to ensure the country’s young people “a future that is dignified in every material and spiritual dimension.”

The pope said he had come with an essentially religious message that reflected the goals of the Fifth General Conference of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean, which he was to open May 13.

The pope said he expected the c o n f e r e n c e t o s t r e n g t h e n t h e subcontinent’s Christian identity “through the promotion of respect for life from the moment of conception until natural death as an integral requirement of human nature.”

“It will also make the promotion of the human person the axis of solidarity, especially for the poor and abandoned,” he said.

The pope emphasized that the majority Catholic populations of Latin America must make a particular contribution for the common good if the region is to solve its problems and build a future of peace and hope.

That means strengthening the family as “the basic cell of society” and promoting the values present in every level of society, especially among the indigenous peoples, he said.

The pope’s reference to the unborn was significant in Brazil, where there has been increasingly political pressure to make abortion legal. Officials say clandestine abortions are practiced widely in the country.

On the plane carrying the pope, his entourage and about 70 journalists, the pope spoke warmly about Brazil and said he was happy to return to Latin America, where he had visited several times as a cardinal.

Answering reporters’ questions, he said that while he was aware of the immense social and economic problems in the region, he also was acquainted with the rich qualities of the people.

After greet ing the Brazil ian cardinals, Pope Benedict boarded a helicopter for the short flight to the Campo de Marte Airport where he received a key to the city before boarding the popemobile for the trip to St. Benedict Monastery, where he was to spend the night.

Spending two and a half days in Sao Paulo, the pope was to meet with the Brazilian president in Bandeirantes Palace as well as with representatives of other Christian churches and other religions in St. Benedict Monastery.

He was to meet with young people in Paulo Machado de Carvalho stadium before canonizing a Brazilian Franciscan, Blessed Antonio Galvao, during his May 9-13 visit.

Then he moves to the Basilica of the National Shrine of Our Lady Aparecida, where he will inaugurate the bishops’ conference, celebrating Mass and delivering a major speech to participants of the May 13-31 meeting.

The trip turns a spotlight on Latin America, a geographical area that has had little attention from this pope to date, but where 43 percent of the world’s Catholics live.

It also broadens the horizons of the pope’s two-year pontificate, taking him outside Europe, where four of his previous five trips have occurred.

Contributing to this story was

Barbara J. Fraser in Sao Paulo.

Pope wants to reinfoce Christian values, counter threats

Pope thanks Swiss Guards for dedicated, loyal service

trek from Switzerland to Rome to pay tribute to the first 150 soldiers to answer Pope Julius’ call.

Pope Benedict said May 5 that the guards’ dedication has “rightly earned them the esteem and trust of all pontiffs” who have always been able to count on their “help, support, and protection.”

“Thank you, dear friends, for your quiet, but efficient presence next to the figure of the pope; thank you for your professionalism and also for the love with which you carry out your mission,” he said.

He told the guards to remember that in addition to being “exemplary soldiers” they are also called to be “good Christians.”

“The Lord is calling you to holiness,” he said, and urged them to live a life of simplicity, solidarity and prayer.

CNs Photo by Max rossi, reuters

8 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007FAITH ON FRONT LINES

“I don’t remember much. I think I’ll be here for a while.”

— Sgt. Juan Roldan

CNs Photo by bob roller

Father Patrick Kenny greets U.S. Army Spc. vincent Ramirez during his daily rounds as chaplain at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington April 17. Father Kenny stopped to visit with Ramirez who was awaiting therapy; he had lost a leg in an explosion while serving in Iraq.

The wounded warriors

bullet eventually lodged in his hip, it did extensive internal damage before it found its resting place. Father Kenny consoled him before giving him a blessing.

“He’s a great man, a great man. He’s come a long way,” the priest said.

“I’ve got a long way to go still,” Bustamante interjected.

The care of manyDespite Walter Reed’s slogan, “We

Provide Warrior Care” — which is prominently displayed at the main hospital entrance and throughout the complex — not every patient at Walter Reed is a casualty of war.

The hospital also treats active-duty personnel with maladies that afflict them as they would civilians, the children of active-duty military personnel, and retirees from the armed forces.

Col. Chuck Callahan, Walter Reed’s deputy commander, was waiting for surgery when Father Kenny stopped in, accompanied by a reporter and a photographer from Catholic News Service.

“Can I tell them of the time you almost stabbed me?” Callahan asked the priest with a laugh. “He tried to shake my hand while a pen was still in it.”

In the pediatrics ward, 5-month-old Laura McCoyd, whose parents both served in the Marines, was ready to check out after having gotten over some breathing difficulties. Dad Kevin and mom Janet McCoyd had the books “Our Daily Bread’ and “The Children’s Living Bible” on a table at Laura’s bedside.

The infant slept through Father Kenny’s blessing.

Endless hopeThen there was 23-year-old Pfc.

Casimir Werda of the Detroit suburb of Novi, Mich., who was blinded in a March 14 attack while serving in Iraq. His mother, Flo, was at his side while he sat in a chair, strumming the lyrics to Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” on a guitar that was autographed for him by Fleetwood Mac chanteuse Stevie Nicks.

Werda is working on improving his guitar-playing skills while the Walter Reed medical staff is working to improve his health.

“Maybe someday he’ll get his eyesight back,” Father Kenny said.

“That’s what we’re hoping,” Flo Werda replied.

And these were just Father Kenny’s morning rounds prior to his noontime weekday Mass, with an improvised invocation for a critical care nurse sandwiched in between.

The priest still had many more people to see as part of his typical 12-hour workday.

by MARK PAttiSONcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

Editor’s Note: This article contains descriptions of war wounds.

WASHINGTON — Along with all the other military jargon and abbreviations, a relatively new term keeps bubbling up to the surface at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well as in popular parlance: IED.

It’s short for improvised explosive device. IEDs account for a large share of the wounds sustained by U.S. soldiers in Iraq — and for a large share of the patients at Walter Reed, many of whom have lost limbs because of the devices.

The patient information sheets at Walter Reed aren’t always accurate, but they include identification of patients by religion. Father Patrick Kenny, the only full-time Catholic chaplain at Walter Reed, uses them to greet, comfort and bless the Catholic patients there.

Sgt. Juan Roldan was with his infantry unit when one of the devices exploded. The injuries he sustained required that both his legs be amputated above the knee.

“I don’t remember much,” Roldan said softly as his mother stayed by the foot of his bed. “I think I’ll be here for a while.”

“He’ll be walking — soon,” Father Kenny said, providing positive reinforcement to Roldan after extending a blessing to the soldier.

Spc. Vincent Ramirez was sitting in a hospital corridor in his wheelchair when Father Kenny spied him and gave him a blessing. Ramirez was awaiting therapy; he had lost one leg to an IED.

Pvt. Adrian Garcia of El Paso, Texas, was with his parents in his hospital room when the priest dropped in. Garcia lost both legs above the knees because of an IED. Father Kenny murmured a blessing to both Garcia and his parents.

Spc . Chas t i e Ma t thews o f Dycusburg, Ky., too, is a victim of one of the devices. When he spoke with a Catholic News Service reporter in mid-April, he had been at Walter Reed for three weeks. How much longer would he stay before he could go back home?

“Nine months, it may be,” he replied.

He and other soldiers from his unit were in a jeep when they hit an IED.

“I’d seen the wire and we really didn’t know how to avoid it,” Matthews recalled.

The other soldiers in the jeep were also injured — one, Matthews said, had burns over 38 percent of his body — but “I got the worst of it.”

Matthews, too, lost both his legs.Spc. Ulises Lopez of Phoenix was

in relatively better shape. He got his injuries from armor-piercing munitions, but he lost no limbs, and was slated to stay at Walter Reed only a few days.

His two sisters, Elvira and Adelina, flew in from Phoenix to stay with him until he was released.

Spc. Jesus Bustamante of Tucson, Ariz., was hit by a sniper. While the

IED wounds account for large share of Walter Reed patients’ injuries

The Catholic News & Herald 9 May 11, 2007FAITH ON FRONT LINES

commanders who run Walter Reed, and many of its workers as well.

When President George W. Bush signed a bill two years ago implementing the recommendations of the federal Base Realignment and Closing commission — which had recommended that Walter Reed be closed — many workers left well before the facility’s scheduled closure in 2011.

The recent headlines over patient care and living conditions brought higher tensions, and lower morale, to Walter Reed. While some in Washington have argued to keep it open, others are clamoring for the hospital to be closed ahead of schedule, contending that the dysfunction that exists is beyond repair.

There are also the weekly protests and counterprotests every Friday night. The original protesters, an anti-war group, are now dwarfed by a larger assemblage supporting U.S. war policy in Iraq; their members occupy all four corners of the intersection at Walter Reed’s main entrance, while the anti-war group now congregates at a small recessed area a half-block south.

If Father Kenny comes close to feeling dismay about anything, it’s with the influx of patients to Walter Reed.

“It’s quite a challenge,” he said.

Restless spiritFather Kenny’s not a military

chaplain. He wears his black clerical suit with white collar tab, while Walter Reed’s other chaplains wear a green camouflage uniform with a cross on the right arm to signify their chaplain status.

“It helps sometimes” to not have military status, Father Kenny confided. “I can speak freely, speak my mind” to the military personnel stationed at Walter Reed.

him to make a little money while he was in Washington pursuing studies at The Catholic University of America.

Father Kenny had mainly served in parish and university ministry for 20 years as a priest of the Diocese of Auckland, New Zealand, which had given him the OK to go to the United States for further education.

But New Zealand’s immigration laws, according to Father Kenny, stated that upon returning to the country after getting this extra education, he could stay in New Zealand only two more years. So he asked permission to remain in the United States, and Father Kenny’s bishop agreed.

Back then, the priest said, there were six or seven priests in the Walter Reed chaplaincy. These days, he is the only full-time priest at the hospital, which has seen a sharp uptick in patients because of the number of active military personnel wounded in the Iraq War.

Father Kenny rents a small apartment about two blocks east of Walter Reed. But more often than not, he sleeps overnight in the Catholic chaplain’s office inside Walter Reed’s inpatient facility.

Ongoing challengesAffable would be too mild a word

to describe Father Kenny, who awakes at 5 a.m. most mornings to begin what is typically a 12-hour day — at least — visiting patients, talking with Walter Reed staff, celebrating Mass, administering the sacraments and giving a blessing to anybody who asks for one.

He’s on his feet a lot — “today I’m wearing Nikes,” Father Kenny told a Catholic News Service reporter as he waited for an elevator to take him to another ward inside the hospital.

But a frown never creased his face as he shuffled along the corridors making his rounds.

After 27 years there, Father Kenny has outlasted the tenure of the military

Walter Reed chaplain who tends war wounded sees numbers growing

“It’s quite a challenge.”— Father Patrick Kenny

CNs Photos by bob roller

Above: Father Patrick Kenny greets Kevin and Janet McCoyd in the pediatrics ward of Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington April 17. Father Kenny stopped in to check on the former U.S. Marine’s 5-month-old daughter, laura, who was having breathing difficulties. below: Father Kenny is greeted by nursing assistant Colleen Cozine April 17 at Walter Reed.

CHAPLAIN, from page 1

“I suppose if I were a military chaplain, I’d have to mind protocol and rank,” he said.

Even if he had ever wanted to be a military chaplain, he couldn’t. He’s still an Irish citizen.

“I never dreamed I’d be staying this long,” he said.

Two days after Father Kenny led a CNS reporter and photographer on his rounds, he flew to his native Ireland for a month to visit one of his three sisters. It was, he said, his first vacation in three years. The priest is from Maynooth in County Kildare.

But he’ll be back once his vacation is over. He may move more slowly now than he did when he first took up his ministry at Walter Reed, but he has no plans of stopping.

“I haven’t been sick a day in my life,” Father Kenny said.

10 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007

a roundup of scripture, readings, films and moreCulture Watch WORD TO LIFE

SUNDAY SCRIPTURE READINGS: MAY 20, 2007

WEEKLY SCRIPTURE

May 20, Seventh Sunday of EasterCycle C Readings:

1) Acts 7:55-60 Psalm 97:1-2, 6-7, 92) Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 203) Gospel: John 17:20-26

Greatest anticipation is that of God’s gifts to us

by bEVERly cORZiNEcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

One golden Saturday morning it was my lot to monitor a film crew’s use of our parish office space. While I waited for the crew’s arrival, I stared at the beautiful morning unfolding outside in the parking lot and in a grassy area nearby.

With the arrival of each car I wondered, “Is this part of the crew?” Car after car indeed was filled with a “crew.” However, these people were not the crew I was anticipating.

Out of each vehicle spilled children with one or both parents and an occasional grandparent. Today was the long-awaited First Eucharist Preparation Day. I soon became the unofficial greeter.

One young person informed me that the next Saturday, when he would receive the Eucharist for the first time, would be

“the best day of all.”Nearly every child brought a gift to

the event. When I asked about them, I was proudly told that the bags were full of toiletry items for people who were sick. The spirit of anticipation and joy that seemed to animate each group was contagious.

Members of the camera crew began to arrive. During introductions someone asked, “Are you always this happy when you have to work on a Saturday morning?”

“I had some help this morning!” I replied.

The gorgeous day, the children and their families, meeting the film crew, watching their creativity and attending Saturday evening Mass all became a part of a gift called Saturday.

Most of us would agree that one of God’s great gifts to humanity is Scripture. In fact, some passages or books in the Bible seem to literally knock us over with a great, “Aha!”

John’s Gospel is one of those books. The entire 17th chapter is a prayer of Jesus.

Today’s Gospel comes from the closing verses of Chapter 17. When this prayer is ended Jesus will go to the garden, but not before he has included in his prayer those who are yet to come.

Questions:When have you prayed in anticipation

of an event yet to happen or an unknown person to enter your life? How has this affected the way this event or person becomes a gift to you?

sCRIPTURe FOR THe Week OF May 13-19sunday (sixth sunday of easter), acts 15:1-2, 22-29, revelation 21:10-14, 22-23, John 14:23-29; Monday (st. Matthias), acts 1:15-17, 20-26, John 15:9-17; Tuesday (st. Isidore), acts 16:22-34, John 16:5-11; Wednesday, acts 17:15, 22--18:1, John 16:12-15; Thursday (ascension Thursday), acts 1:1-11, ephesians 1:17-23, luke 24:46-53; Friday (st. John I), acts 18:9-18, John 16:20-23; saturday, acts 18:23-28, John 16:23-28.

sCRIPTURe FOR THe Week OF May 20-26sunday (seventh sunday of easter), acts 7:55-60, revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20, John 17:20-26; Monday, acts 19:1-8, John 16:29-33; Tuesday (st. Rita of Cascia), acts 20:17-27, John 17:1-11; Wednesday, acts 20:28-38, John 17:11-19; Thursday, acts 22:30; 23:6-11, John 17:20-26; Friday (st. gregory VII, st. Bede, st. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi), acts 25:13-21, John 21:15-19; saturday (st. Philip Neri), acts 28:16-20, 30-31, John 21:20-25.

by JERRy filtEAUcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

WASHINGTON — The U.S. bishops are studying a draft curriculum guide for Catholic high school religion courses across the country.

Prepared by the Committee on Catechesis of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the draft sets the framework for six core semesters, plus five elective courses, from which schools may choose two — preferably in the senior year or one each in the junior and senior years.

The curriculum framework, developed at the request of publishers of catechetical materials, is intended as a guide for those publishers and for diocesan offices and Catholic high schools to help them develop their own curriculum guidelines and evaluate religion textbooks for use in their schools.

“It is planned that this curriculum framework will also be adapted to shape catechetical instruction for high school age young people in parish religious education and youth ministry programs,” said Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington, chairman of the Committee on Catechesis.

He added, however, that the committee recognizes that “not all the points in the curriculum framework can be fully developed” in texts and materials for such out-of-school catechetical programs.

The bishops have been asked to study the draft and submit comments and suggestions for revision by July 1 so that a revised draft can be prepared for final consideration and a vote when the bishops hold their general meeting in Baltimore this November.

Archbishop Wuerl invited the bishops to involve members of their diocesan staffs, school administrators and teachers in the consultation if they wish to do so. But each diocese should collate such responses into a single submission back to the committee, he said.

“I’m very pleased this guide will be presented to the bishops in November,” said Father James Hawker, vicar for education in the Diocese of Charlotte.

“There’s no question that it will be extremely helpful to publishers and

dioceses, and be very valuable for all responsible for fashioning and forming curricula that are reflective of church teaching,” he said.

A challenge faced by religion teachers, said Father Hawker, is how to present the content.

The right blend of method and content is needed “get the content across in a way that is palatable while at the same time being accurate and a total reflection of the church,” said Father Hawker.

According to the framework, the first semester of the core curriculum should treat the revelation of Jesus Christ in Scripture, giving students an introductory understanding of the Bible and its meaning for Christians, with special emphasis on the Gospels.

The curriculum’s second semester is about Jesus Christ, Son of God. The third, on Jesus’ mission in the world, focuses on the paschal mystery of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection for the redemption of humanity.

The fourth semester is about the church and the fifth is about the sacraments as privileged encounters with Christ. The sixth, about life in Christ, covers topics such as vocation, sin, virtue, grace and the commandments.

The elective courses in the draft framework curriculum are titled “Scripture,” “History of the Catholic Church,” “Living as a Disciple of Jesus Christ in Society,” “Living the Call of Jesus” and “Ecumenical and Interfaith Issues.” Within each semester the framework presents an outline of topics to be covered, citing Scripture and Catechism of the Catholic Church references where relevant.

The introduction to the curriculum framework says i t is “strongly recommended” that publishers and school and catechetical programs follow the framework’s sequence of core semesters because it “reflects a systematic point of view in which each course builds on a foundation laid by those which precede it.”

Some national uniformity in sequence is also desirable because of the mobility of society, it says.

Contributing to this article was Editor Kevin E. Murray.

Bishops study draft of guide for high school religious curriculum

The Catholic News & Herald 11 May 11, 2007

CNs Photo by l’osservatore roMaNo

This L’Osservatore Romano photo showing Pope John Paul II at a Nov. 24, 1999, general audience is the most requested photo from the vatican photo service’s archives.

by cAROl GlAtZcAthOlic NEwS SERVicE

VATICAN CITY — They are not pushy or pesky; rather, the pope’s own paparazzi are the epitome of discretion and class.

Vatican photographers stand out from other media shutterbugs, not just because they’re always dressed in ironed dark suits and ties, but because, coolly clicking away, they are the ones standing right next to the pope.

The papal photographers are also the only ones allowed to shadow the pontiff almost everywhere he goes, even during more private moments — be they special audiences inside the Vatican with heads of state or an intimate luncheon with cardinals or bishops.

According to the head of the Vatican’s photo service, Salesian Father Giuseppe Colombara, the job of the four official papal photographers is to create a visual record of the pope’s activities and important Vatican events.

With the click of a shutter, pho tog raphe r s immor t a l i ze an “unrepeatable masterpiece of an instant,” he said.

For the past 30 years, papal photographers have captured and preserved thousands of unforgettable scenes as varied as Pope John Paul II collapsing into the arms of his aide after being hit by a bullet in 1981 to him trying on U2 singer Bono’s sunglasses during a 1999 meeting with the Irish rock star.

These photos and more are on display April 25-May 27 at a special exhibit at the Braccio Carlo Magno, a hall next to St. Peter’s Basilica, to celebrate the photo service’s 30th anniversary and the second anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI’s election.

Called “Vatican Click,” the exhibit showcases 382 photos from the more than 5 million housed in the Vatican’s photo archives.

The exhibit also shows early black-and-white shots of life in and around the Vatican during the 1930s-1960s: Ethiopian seminarians leaping in a rare Roman snowfall, and Italian dictator Benito Mussolini watching workmen build the Via della Conciliazione, the wide boulevard leading to St. Peter’s Square.

Picture perfectBefore the Vatican photo service

was established, the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, hired professional photographers “from the outside” to take papal pictures, Father Colombara told Catholic News Service.

Then in 1977, the newspaper’s editor in chief decided the paper should hire its own photojournalists who would work exclusively and specifically on covering the Vatican and the pope. The timing was providential as just one year later, the most media-friendly pope in modern times, Pope John Paul, was elected.

Father Colombara said the late pope was a natural.

“He had an extraordinary sensibility. He just knew, felt when a photographer

was near and instinctively, almost automatically, would smile,” move or turn in a way that was perfect for a picture, he said.

A close, though professional, rapport grew easily over the years between Pope John Paul and the Vatican photographers, said the Salesian priest. But the shooting and snapping ease hit a speed bump in 2005 after the election of Pope Benedict, who was not used to having bulbs flash and shutters click at his every move.

However, Pope Benedict is much more comfortable now with his personal paparazzi, Father Colombara said, and has often directly expressed to the photographers his appreciation for their hard work. Pope Benedict is also the first pope to have granted the Vatican’s television and photography crews wide permission to film him in his private apartments, showing “without mystery, without secrets that the day in the life of a pope is made up of a lot of work and simplicity,” he said.

‘Image is everything’Father Colombara said the best

pictures of any pope are the ones in which he “radiates human warmth” and when his fatherly face “points to the very meaning of (his) mission: the person of Jesus.”

While pictures of Pope John Paul at Jerusalem’s Western Wall or Pope Benedict in a Turkish mosque have important historical value, sometimes it’s the simpler shots of a pope hugging a child or praying the rosary that have a greater, more emotional impact on the viewer.

“A beautiful photo, a beautiful image offers an entryway, the first step of evangelization,” Father Colombara said.

When a picture of a pope expresses “love, welcoming, understanding, acceptance,” it can “make the church loved very, very much and be very appreciated by almost everyone,” whatever their faith belief may be, he said.

Just as the church hired great painters and sculptors to depict the beauty and mystery of God and the Gospels, it also has employed the power of the photograph, which can be highly effective in a world where “the image is everything,” he said.

‘Vatican Click’Unlike pesky paparazzi, pope’s photographers snap coolly, with class

12 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007yOUTHS IN ACTION

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members of boy Scout Troop 77 prepare to plant dogwood trees outside the basilica of St. lawrence in Asheville as part of an Eagle Scout project April 21.

Basilica benefits from Eagle Scout project

by cAROlE McGROttycORRESPONdENt

ASHEVILLE — Nicholas Glum and his fellow Scouts have been hard at work around the Basilica of St. Lawrence in Asheville.

Nicholas, 16, helped to refurbish the interior and exterior of the basilica April 21 as part of his Eagle Scout project. Eagle Scout is the highest rank in the Boy Scouts.

Nicholas, a Life Scout — a rank earned by fulfilling leadership positions, service hours and merit badges — with Troop 77 and parishioner of St. Barnabas Church in Arden, could not find any service projects to be performed at his parish.

He contacted Bud Hansbury, maintenance operations manager at the basilica, who had two projects for Nicholas to do.

One involved refinishing the pews and floors, the other was building a handicap ramp outside the basilica.

In addition, Nicholas decided to plant two dogwood trees.

“The dogwood is the tree of the Sacred Heart, and I am devoted to the Sacred Heart,” said Nicholas.

“The trees will be a backdrop for the Sacred Heart statue instead of the view of the red garage,” he said.

Other Troop 77 members and family assisted Nicholas with his two-fold project.

The Catholic News & Herald 13 May 11, 2007IN OUR SCHOOLS

Courtesy Photo

Pictured are eight students from the fourth and fifth grades at Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro, who performed an Odyssey of the Mind skit entitled “Around the World in Eight Minutes.”

Odyssey of the Mind is an international program open to students in kindergarten through college that provides an opportunity to develop creative solutions to varying problems. Teams—which compete within their division at regional, state, national and international levels—work collaboratively without any outside assistance and limited guidance from their coaches.

The skit by the Our Lady of Grace School team follows the adventures of “Sarge” and his friends as they travel to Antarctica, Japan and an up-until-now undiscovered location called Makeeyak. The students developed all elements of the skit, including plot, characters, dialogue and costumes.

Because more students were interested in participating on the school’s first Odyssey of the Mind team than rules allow, the students were scheduled to present their skit at the school’s annual talent show in May instead of entering it in competition.

The team includes Andrea Balzano, Erin Egan, Michael Ellis, David Markun, Bobby Mason, Mary Rose Stepnowski, Ben Trainor and Noah Williams. Also pictured is honorary team member Zachary Trainor.

Mind meld

Pictured is Caitlyn Carmean, an eighth-grader at St. Pius X School in Greensboro, who took third place in the dance category at the 2007 Artistry Awards show sponsored by the Greensboro youth Council at the Carolina Theatre March 24.

Ar tistry Awards is a performing and fine ar ts competition for students, ages 13-19, attending public, private or home schools within Guilford County. Categories include drama, instrumental, dance, vocal performance, visual art, print art and creative writing.

Caitlyn was selected as a finalist in the vocal and dance categories during auditions in February. Having placed third in the dance category, she received a plaque and $50.

Courtesy Photo

Pictured is the battle of the books team at our lady of Grace School in Greensboro, which won first place in its district during the state battle of the books competition at Canterbury School march 8. The students competed with teams from several schools, including St. Pius X School in Greensboro.

The sixth- and seventh-grade team at our lady of Grace School is comprised of Alex bruno, brady byrne, Jonah Carmichael, Jorge Cortes, Michaela Dimoff, Gilbert Kolosieke, Katelyn Merendino, Marie Petrangeli, Andrew Saintsing, Adam Schexnayder, John Scott and brian Sowinski. Doris melson, school librarian, is faculty sponsor and assisted with coaching by parents.

battle of the books is sponsored by the North Carolina School library media Association for students in grades six, seven and eight from eligible public, private and charter schools across the state. The competition provides a fun, challenging way to motivate middle school students to read books from a wide variety of genres.

Our Lady of Grace School hosted the regional competition at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Greensboro march 29.

Eighth-graders at Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro prepare to drop eggs during the annual class egg Drop march 8. Students prepared protective egg carriers—including egg cartons, bubble wrap and peanut butter—that would keep their raw eggs from cracking during a drop of about 15 feet. Most of the students were successful in their efforts. Pictured are eighth-graders brooke Diachenko, Caroline Cheek, Sofia Milan and Alex Justice.

Book battalion

Award-winning artistry

Egg-citing results

Courtesy Photo

Courtesy Photo

Pictured are middle school students at St. Pius X School in Greensboro who performed SchoolHouse rock live Jr. at the school for the public march 29-31. The performances were the fourth annual production for the middle school drama program under the direction of teacher Tracy Shaw.“This was the school’s first musical and most successful production ever,” said Jean Navarro, school admissions coordinator.The musical is based on the Emmy Award-winning Saturday morning educational cartoon series.

Courtesy Photo

Rocking the schoolhouse

14 The Catholic News & Herald May 11, 2007

Perspectives a collection of columns, editorials and viewpoints

Graduation thoughts: Do we honor women at home and at work?Rules, attitudes should be changed to accommodate sacrifices

It’s graduation time and in most places as many women as men will be handed college degrees.

In a survey of close to 62,000 people, fashion magazine Elle suggests that men and women are becoming a lot alike in the workplace. Men and women are similarly talented and competitive as well as equally honest.

But there is an essential difference: Women are twice as likely as men to interrupt the business day to take care of a child.

Do we as a culture facilitate the additional and vital role women continue to play as primary caregiver?

It’s doubtful. This seems decidedly shortsighted in a world that knows well that a stable home life is essential — for the civic good, the health of children and their education, even the redirection of violent personalities a la Virginia Tech.

Twenty-six years ago, Pope John Paul II published a thoughtful reflection called “The Christian Family in the Modern World.” In this apostolic exhortation, “Familiaris Consortio,” the pope wrote: “The mentality which honors women more for their work outside the home than for their work within the family must be overcome.”

The phraseology gives priority to family.

The survey in Elle and the government’s own Bureau of Labor Statistics reveal that close to half the workforce (46 percent) is female, with 75 percent of women working full time.

Thirty-eight percent of employed women are in highly demanding management and professional positions, from lawyers to business executives to pharmacists and human resource directors.

These folks deserve a little special attention.

For a while, a few companies talked of flextime and job sharing, but increasingly this is more illusion than reality.

Why?The Conference Board Review

attributes it to demands for increased corporate performance (profits) and the advent of new technology (cell-phones, laptops and Blackberries) that raise the expectation that one will be in the office — at least virtually — at all times.

These increased demands are made on men and women who are fathers and mothers. But if somebody’s mom is going to work in the next office, we say, “Well, she better be putting in the same time as the next guy” finding new clients, closing deals and making sales.

Our sense of equality is premised on scorekeeping. We tend to ignore the papal admonition to honor women who simultaneously fulfill commitments to

office and home.And if we are honest, some men and

even some women who chose not to raise children might actually resent making allowances for those contributing to the dual communities of work and family.

How might we change things?First off, ask chief executives to take

a closer look at reality. Top executives with ample resources for full-time childcare may be unwittingly blind.

Second, we might press all those folks running for president to creatively think how the laws might be rewritten to favor the economic compensation of those who are working and nurturing family at the same time.

Family tax-code allowances and credits used to do this, but they have effectively disappeared.

Third, we can adjust our own attitudes. We can recognize that the daughters we are sending to college and graduate school yearn for “life to the full,” in the business and family sense, and incredibly often manage to do reasonably well.

In 2007, the papal instruction may warrant a respectful update. Neither women nor men should be honored more for their work outside the home, but then again, women alone should not have to keep demonstrating against an unbending culture how extraordinary love can accomplish both.

Conflict is normal, and family conflicts are commonplace.

Each person has differing needs, and when one person’s needs are not being met there is usually a lot of frustration which leads to arguments.

The way we assert our needs is at the basis of all human conflict.

To minimize conflicts, try to understand the real needs of others. That requires listening. When two or more people interact without listening, the results usually lead to fireworks.

We all have attitudes which govern our behavior. For instance, someone might say:

—”I am the father, you are the mother; I have the right to decide the family priorities, therefore my rights come first.”

—”I am an adult, you are a child; I have a right to meet my needs, but you do not have a right to meet yours.”

—”I am the mother, you are working all day; I know what is best for all of us; I will decide whose needs must be met, and in what order.”

Anyone who says any of the above stomps on the needs of others.

Some arguments are more about underlying assumptions than about the issue at hand. There are an infinite variety of conflicts arising from hidden assumptions.

Whether it is in the family, the factory or the monastery, if you are in the middle of a conflict it will help immensely if you reflect on your basic assumptions.

Are you a fighter for your rights or a compromiser? A sore loser or a problem solver?

A fighter does not trust, refuses to lose, demands proof of the other person’s needs.

A compromiser is ready to give in, but in the end forfeits too much for the sake of peace.

A sore loser won’t fight and simply walks away sulking.

A problem solver listens and tries to get to the root of the issue in order to reach a compromise. The problem solver

knows that a conflict does not mean that there must be a winner or a loser.

The whole art of compromise rests on the truth that win-win solutions are possible with the help of God.

Be patient and pray. It will take time.

Professional arbitrators are problem solvers who listen to all sides. They begin with the idea that “your right to meet your needs is equal to my right to meet my needs; and yet we all have to admit that no one has an absolute right to have all their needs met.”

(When disciplining children, parental authority is superior to the needs of children, but it always helps when parents listen and reason before asserting full authority).

In adult conflicts, never start out by demanding that the others give up their right to meet personal needs. But do:

1. Define the problem clearly. Put it in writing. Let all the parties decide exactly what needs are in conflict. Listening often generates solutions.

2. Brainstorm for more solutions and share ideas; make no judgment as people voice their ideas. Just put all the options on the table and look at them.

3. Agree on the most creative solutions, keeping in mind that some things cannot be compromised, such as the laws of God and legitimate authority.

4. Choose the solution that gets the most support, and then implement it. Later, follow up to see that all promises are kept.

Just having a plan of action often diffuses the emotional heat right away.

Godspeed, and always remember to pray for peace.

Faith & Precedent

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Abortion bigger tragedy than Virginia Tech

Spirituality for TodayfAthER JOhN

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Resolving family conflictsPlan of action, listening help find solutions

Letters to the EditorI guess it was to be expected that the tragedy at Virginia Tech (“Tragedy on Va. Tech campus”) would get top billing and the big headline on the front page of the April 20 issue, while a major development in the fight against abortion (“Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act upheld”) got below-the-fold attention with most of the story on page 7.

Yes, the loss of 33 lives is a tragedy and deserves the coverage it is getting, but by comparison, the abortion tragedy is killing 3,000 young lives a day. The turn of the tide in the ongoing battle to build a culture of life deserves more attention than you have given it so far.

Every single abortion results in a dead child, and a wounded mother and others. And we as a society continue to accept that 3,000 deaths per day is a fact of contemporary existence with half of our Supreme Court holding that a “procedure” (rightly called “infanticide” by some) needs to be protected.

— George GredellPfafftown, N.C.

Commendation for archbishop’s stance

I am heartened by the stand Archbishop Raymond L. Burke of St. Louis has taken on identifying with people like Cheryl Crow to raise money (“Archbishop pulls support for hospital

benefit over Crow’s stands,” May 4).Nothing is worth throwing in ones

cards with those who give an appearance of being good while promoting child killing (abortion).

Thank you, Archbishop Burke, for inspiring us to live by faith and conscience before God.

— Shea BarjaCharlotte

The Catholic News & Herald 15 May 11, 2007

One’s Catholic heritage should influence decisions!

Is it “Cath-lick” or “Cath-ah-lick”?

Remember how, when you were a child, when you stopped and thought really hard about breathing it would screw up your breathing? The same thing with blinking your eyes?

Well, I have something similar to share with you that will, at least for the moment maybe, take your mind off your eyelids and lungs. OK, ready?

How do you say “Catholic”? I mean, how should “Catholic” be pronounced? Is it two syllables or three?

To digress a second, you can probably guess this has to do with the war in Iraq.

Seriously.It is Marilyn’s fault. At last Sunday’s

doughnuts after Mass, she started grousing about the name of that poor, besieged nation.

“On the radio this morning,” she said, “I heard Iraq pronounced at least three ways, maybe four.”

She asked, “OK, is it ear-rack, or is it eye-rack or is it uhr-rack?”

Then Marilyn did it all over again and changed the emphasis on Iraq’s second syllable to the first. We had all heard each of the versions on radio or TV.

“All I know,” said her husband, Bud, “is that if you call my friend Tony an eye-talian rather than an eh-talian, he gets all bent out of shape. He says, ‘Hey, square-head, what is the name of the country — eye-taly or eh-taly?’”

“Soooo,” I ventured, “you are saying Iraq should be pronounced eh-rack and not eye-rack because your friend Tony is Italian.”

Bud nodded solemnly. “Someone has to make a decision.”

“Sounds like a Catholic kind of thing to me,” Marilyn laughed. That’s what started the trouble. She pronounced it “Cath-lick.”

“Cath-lick?” Marilyn asked, raising her eyebrows.

Betty smiled. “I know, Bud would say Cath-eye-lick, but Cath-lick is how I was brought up.”

“What about Cath-oh-lick?” I stepped in.

“Don’t you mean Cath-ah-lick?” Marilyn suggested.

“Or,” noted Bud, “if you are from Boston it could be Kaaaiith-a-lick.”

About that time Msgr. O’Kneel wandered by the table. We presented our Catholic conundrum to him.

He smiled politely, rocked back on his heels and looked up at the ceiling tiles. Finally he said, “Does this make anyone think about the road to Emmaus?”

Marilyn squinted her eyes. “Is it Em-may-us, or Em-mouse, or EM-aiy-ous?” she asked.

“Tomato, potato,” he replied wisely and strolled away.

We all looked at one another, waiting to see who blinked or breathed first.

Law’s primary aim is to unify people to counter culture of death

Your Family

bill ANd MONicA dOddS

cNS cOlUMNiStS

The Human SidefAthER EUGENE

hEMRicKcNS cOlUMNiSt

Uncle Dan

dAN MORRiScNS cOlUMNiStof racial, religious, ethnic or gender

groups have no reservations about venting their hatred of Catholics.

Harvard University professor Arthur Schlesinger Sr. characterized prejudice against the Roman Catholic Church as “the deepest bias in the history of the American people.”

This bias can make us defensive, even revert to name-calling. But is this the way to go? Shouldn’t we demonstrate that a person of a religious moral tradition is a blessing to America?

Throughout history, Catholicism has had a rich tradition of developing moral laws aimed at ennobling the individual and civilizations. Some fear this tradition because they see it placing restrictions on their liberties. This is not true!

The word “law” means to bind together. Its primary aim is to help people become unified within themselves and with their neighbors, and to counter a culture of death.

Moral law defends against that which splinters our spirit and the spirit of unity among neighbors. It is this spirit, based on the wisdom of God, in which

“Did Justices’ Catholicism Play Part in Abortion Ruling?”

This headline in the April 30 Washington Post was followed by a quote by Goeffrey Stone, provost of the University of Chicago’s law school, who felt the Catholicism of the Catholic justices of the Supreme Court was behind the decision.

Mark Silk, a professor of religion in public life at Trinity College, was also quoted as saying, “We want people of faith, but we don’t want them making decisions based on their faith.”

In the 110th Congress, Catholics comprise the largest denominational group, with 155 members — 25 in the Senate and 130 in the House of Representatives. Five Catholics serve on the U.S. Supreme Court — the chief justice and four associate justices.

Make no doubt about it! Catholics are a force in today’s politics, and whenever this happens prejudice follows.

Anti-Catholic sentiment is nothing new. Philip Jenkins, an Episcopalian historian, maintains that some people who otherwise avoid offending members

our Catholic justices were brought up.They are not lacking moral guidelines

for weighing good and evil, nor are they atheists. Catholic moral tradition is integral to them.

Interestingly, a frieze on the Supreme Court building symbolizes that justice requires counsel. When justices are faced with complex decisions and have conducted all the research possible to make them just, often this is not enough.

They need the counsel of a higher authority. A frieze inside the Supreme Court depicts Divine Inspiration standing at the shoulder of Justice — a reminder that justice needs God’s input.

Today’s bishops and the pope offer us moral guidelines. However, the ultimate authority our Catholic justices rely on is found in an age-old Catholic tradition — a tradition formed by contemplation, prayer and seeking God’s wisdom, a tradition whose mission is to promote inner and neighborly unity, justice and God’s love.

When ‘me time’ is holy, not selfish

But!At the same time, through all those

years, a parent is not supposed to become an ATM or a servant. Not just for the good of the parent but for the good of the family, a mother or father needs some “me time,” which can be especially so for the heads of single-parent households.

If you’ve ever been to the doctor for an ache or pain that your physician has diagnosed as stress-related, you may have been asked on that occasion: “So, what do you do for fun?”

Fun? Do for fun? What do I do for fun? Uh ...

It’s worse than that “high school dream” where it’s the end of the semester, final exam day, and you realize you haven’t been to a single class or even opened the text book. This fun quiz is real!

So is the need to carve out a little time for yourself through those two-plus decades of intense parenting. The “why” is universal. The “how, when and where” will vary from family to family, couple to couple, person to person.

Not infrequently, a first step is brushing aside the initial reaction that “well, it’s just not possible right now”

One the challenges of parenting is getting children not to focus solely on “me, me, me!”

Another is getting mom and dad not to concentrate only on “them, them, them!”

Yes, there are times when a little one shares freely, but more often than not the idea of “some for me and some for you” is a concept that has to be taught. It is one that we all know is hard to learn.

Becoming a parent helps a person learn this concept. Even if as a single person or a spouse we’ve tended to be a little, well, selfish, becoming a parent shifts priorities and perspectives.

The baby needs diapers. The toddler needs a new pair of shoes. The grade-schooler needs braces. There’s nothing like 20-plus years of self-sacrifice to make a parent very good at putting others first and self last.

As parents also know, it isn’t just money we’re talking about here: it’s time, energy, worry, prayers. Bottom line, it’s love.

The money, the energy, the worry, the prayers — they are each a manifestation of the love a parent has for that child, a love given without counting cost.

and considering how to make it possible, even if only for 15 minutes a week at the beginning.

Need more convincing? Three reasons you need to take some “me time”:

1. It will help your children be better parents because they’ll see it’s OK for a mom or dad to take a little break.

2. You are a child of God and your heavenly Father doesn’t want you stressed out.

3. You need to save some of your strength for those upcoming grandparenting years.

On the Web, there are tips for parents.

You can find more information at the Web site for the Canadian Mental Health Association. Go to www.cmha.ca, move the cursor to “Your Mental Health” in the upper bar, choose “Mental Health and the Family” and then click on “The Stress of Parenting.”

Bill and Monica Dodds are the founders of the Friends of St. John the Caregiver and editors of My Daily Visitor magazine.

Personal time ensures better parenting, less stress

The Catholic News & Herald 16 PARISH PROFILE

May 11, 2007

HIGHLANDS — The mission church called Our Lady of the Mountains was founded more than 60 years ago to serve the increasing numbers of Catholics in North Carolina’s westernmost counties.

For the past decade, Our Lady of the Mountains has been in the midst of another burst of growth, especially with large increases of summer residents.

Bishop Vincent S. Waters of Raleigh purchased the present property for Our Lady of the Mountains Mission in July 1945. Before the church was built five years later, local Catholics gathered with priests from Waynesville for Masses in a playhouse theater in Highlands.

In 1954, Father Charles O’Connor, pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Brevard, extended his ministry to Catholics in Highlands. From that time until 1972, Our Lady of the Mountains Mission was staffed by diocesan clergy from Brevard.

Additions to the church building marked the mid-1960s and a small apartment was added to the structure in 1972.

That year, ministerial responsibilities for Highlands shifted from Brevard to Franklin. Glenmary Father Michael Langell, then-pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church in Franklin, served the two communities for a decade before diocesan priests were assigned to the Franklin parish in 1982.

During Father Langell’s pastorate in Highlands, the church patio and basement parish hall were constructed.

In December 1986, Father John Hoover became administrator of Our Lady of the Mountains, a development which carried parish status for the Highlands church. At that time, St. Jude Church in Sapphire Valley was placed under Highlands’ pastoral care.

The church building was renovated in 1987, and a rectory was constructed the following year. As the parish grew, especially during the summers, the need for more worship space became

Our Lady of the Mountains a spiritual home in Highlands

A Mission of St. Francis of Assisi Church, Franklin315 North 5th st.Highlands, N.C. 28741(828) 526-2418 Vicariate: smoky MountainPastoral administrator: father Tien duong Permanent Deacon: deacon Charles Heine Number of Households: 60 year-round, 110 additional seasonally

OUR LaDy OF THe MOUNTaINs MIssION

father Tien duong

a pressing reality. In October 1989, the addition of a two-story wing was completed, providing another 100 seats in the church and parish hall.

When the Our Lady of the Mountains parish celebrated the 40th anniversary of their church’s construction in 1990, a bell and tower were added to the church grounds.

Father Joseph Ayathuadam served as administrator in Highlands for a short period of time in 1992.

Father Richard McCue, who had been named pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church in 1994, served as pastor to Our Lady of the Mountains along with Father James Collins, then-parochial vicar in Franklin.

From 1994 until 1996, Father Ray Berg aided these priests in their duties in Highlands. When Father Berg retired in July 1996, Our Lady of the Mountains became again under the auspices of St. Francis of Assisi Church.

In 1998, Father William Evans was assigned as sacramental minister for Our Lady of the Mountains Mission and St. Jude Church. Shortly thereafter, Father Evans was named as the administrator of Our Lady of the Mountains Mission.

With Father Evans’ retirement in June 2005, Father Tien Duong arrived in Highlands as pastoral administrator.

A variety of ministries and parish council work highlights the continued developments of the Our Lady of the Mountains community. Its members also regularly join with a number of local Christian communities for ecumenical worship services, potluck suppers, respect life gatherings and religious holiday celebrations.

An effort has been made to provide church members and visitors with opportunities for prayer and contemplation in a peaceful mountain setting, including a grotto dedicated to Mary, a meditation garden, a fishpond and a small grove of trees.

Today, the church is the spiritual

home for nearly 60 families year-round, and more than double that during the summer months.

Contact Staff Writer Karen A. Evans by calling (704) 370-3354 or e-mail kaevans@charlottediocese.org.

Photo by KareN a. evaNs

Our Lady of the Mountains Mission in Highlands is the spiritual homes for more than 60 families year-round, and double that number during the summer months.