J U N E 1 8 , 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C20 Back pew

CATHOLICNORTH COUNTRYNORTH COUNTRYThe Diocese of Ogdensburg Volume 69, Number 9

JUNE 18, 2014

INSIDETHIS ISSUEPope and presidentspray for peace in HolyLand l PAGE 13

U.S. bishops holdspring meeting in New Orleans l PAGE 14

CALLED TO SERVE

Rest in Peace, Fr. Silver

NCC summer schedule

Around the DiocesePAGE 18

Deaconsgather inLake Placid

F U L L S T O R Y, PAG E 1 2

FULL STORY, PAGE 4

The next issue of the NCC will be

dated July 2. It will feature a

number of stories about how

diocesan Catholics are working to

tackle poverty in this areaPHOTO BY JESSE SOVIEMatthew Conger, who is entering his fourth year of seminary at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary inWynnewood, Penn., assists at parish liturgies at Notre Dame Church in Ogdensburg during his vaca-tion times. Conger is one of five seminarians currently studying for the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

Bishop LaValley invited thepermanent deacons of thediocese and their wives tojoin him for a convocationheld June 3-4 in Lake Placid.The assembly was entitled

Deacons: Living the Vision. Itfocused on the current stateof the diaconate, the uniqueopportunities and stresses ofthe men and women affectedby the call, and the role of thedeacon in living the vision forthe diocese outlined byBishop LaValley at the ChrismMass in April.The gathering also included

practical workshops for thedeacons in liturgy and CanonLaw conducted by FatherDouglas Lucia, episcopal vicarfor worship in the diocese.

Fr. Stitt, diocesan

vocation director,

announces a new

prayer initiative

for vocationsFULL STORY, PAGE 4

PrayersFrom Home

Father Scott Belina,

the youngest priest

of the diocese reflects

on his first year of the

priesthood. Seton

graduate and NCC

writer Rachel Daly,

writes about her

decision to enter

religious life

FULL STORIES, 5 & 6

Young vocationsexplored

Bishop seeks a

‘culture of vocations’

in diocese as part of

visioning planFULL STORY, PAGE 3

Vocationissuefor 2014

Pope encouragespriests to keeplove for Jesus alive

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Celebratingan early morning Mass with acongregation made up ofpriests and bishops, PopeFrancis said they regularlyneed to ask themselves ifthey love Jesus as much aswhen they first encounteredhim, and whether ministry,not administration, is stilltheir priority. "This is the question I ask

myself, my brother bishopsand priests: 'How is your love

today?' This is what Jesusasks" in the Gospel of John(21:15-19), the pope saidJune 6 at Mass in the chapelof his residence."Am I in love like I was the

first day? Or have work andworries led me to concen-trate on other things and for-get love a bit?" the popeasked, according to a sum-mary in L'Osservatore Ro-mano, the Vaticannewspaper.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C news 19

OBITUARIESBloomingdale - Mary Inez Vancour, 82;Funeral June 13, 2014 at St. Paul'sChurch; burial in St. Paul's Cemetery.

Carthage - Donna M. (Pound)Lightholder, 67; Funeral Services June 5,2014 at St. James Church.

Colton – Michael J. Regan Sr., 76; FuneralServices June 9, 2014 at the Buck FuneralHome; burial in South Colton Cemetery.

Constableville – Leo V. Jordon, 87; Fu-neral Services June 6, 2014 at St. Mary’sChurch; burial in Calvary Cemetery, PortLeyden.

Constableville – Lawrence H. Kirk, Jr., 60;Funeral June 7, 2014 at St. Mary’sChurch; burial in St. Patrick’s Cemetery.

Ft. Covington – Theresa E. Thomas) Ker-nan, 85; Funeral June 13, 2014 at Cap-piello-McKenzie and Cosgrove FuneralHome; burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Hogansburg – Louise (Hart) Cree, 84; Fu-neral June 10, 2014 at St. Regis Church;burial in St. Joseph’s Cemetery.

Keeseville - Michael H. Smith Sr., 60; Fu-neral Services June 12, 2014 at St. John'sChurch; burial in Clintonville MethodistCemetery.

Lake Placid – Dennis Goodman Smythe,62; Funeral Services June 7, 2014 at St.Agnes Church.

Long Lake - Elizabeth Jane Sylvester, 98;Funeral May 31, 2014 at St. Henry'sChurch; burial in Long Lake Cemetery.

Louisville - Shirley A. (Matton) Silver, 76;Funeral Services June 10, 2014 at St.Lawrence Church; burial in St. LawrenceCemetery.

Louisville – Vance Mathew Smith, 54;Memorial Services June 11, 2014 at St.Lawrence Church.

Lowville - Robert J. Bush, 94; FuneralServices June 2, 2014 at St. Peter'sChurch; burial in Martinsburg Cemetery.

Malone - Geraldine P. (Barney) Butzer, 89;Funeral Services June 2, 2014 at NotreDame Church; burial in St. Mary's Ceme-tery, Ft. Covington.

Malone - James Van Steenburg; FuneralServices June 6, 2014 at Notre DameChurch; burial in Tongore Cemetery, OliveBridge.

Massena - Henry G. Durant, 72; FuneralServices June 13, 2014 at Church of theSacred Heart; burial in Calvary Cemetery.

Massena - Margaret (Selmenci) Gabor,93; Funeral June 14, 2014 at St. Mary'sChurch; burial in Calvary Cemetery.

Massena – Gilda M. (Lombardi) Rufa, 86;Funeral Services June 9, 2014 at Churchof the Sacred Heart; burial in MassenaCenter Cemetery.

Moria - Robert R. Gaurin, 81; FuneralServices June 3, 2014 at the Flint FuneralHome; burial in Pine Grove Cemetery,Norfolk.

Nicolville - Otto Drenwett, 78; FuneralServices June 2, 2014 at St. ThereseChurch; burial in St. Therese Cemetery.

Norfolk - Marion E. Bond, 97; FuneralServices June 7, 2014 at Church of theVisitation.

North Lawrence – Theresa Ann (Dumas)Monroe, 84; Funeral Services June 14,2014 at St. Lawrence Church; burial in St.Patrick Cemetery.

Ogdensburg – George T. Rheome Jr., 67;Funeral Services June 9, 2014 at Frary Fu-neral Home; burial in Notre Dame Ceme-tery.

Ogdensburg - Robert J. Tebo "The Candy-man", 93; Funeral Services June 12, 2014at Notre Dame Church.

Philadelphia – Matisha L. “Tisha” (Higby)Wineglass, 33; Funeral Services June 7,2014 at St. Joseph’s Church; burial in St.Mary’s Cemetery, Evans Mills.

Plattsburgh - George J. Light, 70; FuneralServices June 11, 2014 at St. John'sChurch.

Plattsburgh - Theresa M. (Lucia) Parent,85; Funeral Services June 3, 2014 at OurLady of Victory Church; burial in Whisper-ing Maples Memorial Gardens.

Plattsburgh – Floyd J. Renadette, 87; Fu-neral Services June 10, 2014 at St. Peter’s

Church; burial in Whispering MaplesMausoleum.

Port Henry - Charles M. Cooke, 95; Fu-neral Services June 11, 2014 at St.Patrick's Church; burial in St. Peter & PaulCemetery, Moriah.

Potsdam - Thomas R. White, 79; FuneralServices June 12, 2014 at St. Mary'sChurch; burial in St. Mary's Cemetery.

Ticonderoga – Rolland H. Yaw, 89; Fu-neral June 9, 2014 at St. Mary’s Church;burial in St. Mary’s Parish Cemetery.

Tupper Lake – John F. LaMora, 45; Fu-neral Services June 5, 2014 at Holy NameChurch; burial in Parish Cemetery.

Watertown - Barbara M. (Capone) Cook,70; Funeral June 3, 2014 at Holy FamilyChurch; burial in Glenwood Cemetery.

Watertown – John C. Helmerci, 91; Fu-neral Services June 6, 2014 at the D.L.Calarco Funeral Home; burial in Glen-wood Cemetery.

Watertown – Bridget T. (Baxter) McCot-ter, 80; Funeral services June 7, 2014 atSt. Anthony’s Church; burial in St.Michael’s Cemetery, Antwerp.

Watertown - Helen G. (Keruski) Osier,101; Funeral Services June 13, 2014 atHoly Family Church; burial in North Wa-tertown Cemetery.

Watertown - Howard E. Rowe, 93; FuneralServices June 5, 2014 at Sacred HeartChurch; burial in N. Watertown Cemetery.

Watertown - Richard C. Van Slyke, 86; Fu-neral Services June 11, 2014 at HolyFamily Church; burial in Foxwood Mau-soleum, Ogdensburg.

West Chazy – Harold E. Relation, 94; Fu-neral June 6, 2014 at St. Joseph’s Church;burial in parish cemetery.

West Chazy – Theresa A. (Bedard) Thorn-ton, 86; Funeral Services June 14, 2014 atSt. Joseph’s Church; burial in Mt. CarmelCemetery, Plattsburgh.

The Pontifical Mission Societies of theDiocese of Ogdensburg, Inc.The Society for the Propagation of the FaithSr. Mary Ellen Brett, SSJ, Director

622 Washington St., Ogdensburg, NY 13669(315) 393-2920; fax 1-866-314-7296mbrett@rcdony.org

As we are now firmly into the month of June in the Mis-sion Office, the calendar reminds us of our annual appealfor funds, prayer and sacrifice for the St. Peter the Apostlecampaign. This is an annual awareness campaign wherethe pleas of Pontifical Mission Societies can be heard for as-sistance with our Missionary Priests, Brothers and Sisters inthe Mission Lands.

St. Peter the Apostle Annual Appeal

The help you send to the Society of St. Peter Apostle is lifegiving assistance for hundreds seminarians and hundredsof houses of formation for religious Sisters and Brothers incountries throughout Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands, aswell as parts of Europe and Latin America. But it is notenough as more help is needed each year to support thegrowing number of seminarians and those called to reli-gious life. Additionally, there is a need for building new seminaries

and convents, and repairing existing and old structures. “Our work is now and will always be about filling every

moment of every day with God’s love,” said Joshua, as hewas preparing for the priesthood at St. Thomas AquinasSeminary in Nairobi, Kenya. He and his 125 classmateseach received $700 annually from the Society of St. PeterApostle to support their studies. This is about $60 amonth. Religious Sisters and Brothers in Kenya receive similar

support from the Society. Without that help, help theycount on from you and other generous supporters, theywould be unable to pay their school fees, unable to preparefor a future of service to the poor and the abandoned. As these young men and women are called to follow

Christ, to be His loving presence to the abandoned and for-gotten, to those in greatest need you are called as well! Ifyou are able to do so in your kindness and generosity,please provide for their education and essential work in ourChurch? You can help to write a story of hope by bringingto the poor the light and love of Jesus, while in the presenceof a priest, Sister or Brother. Please know that any and allgifts matter, and are very gratefully received. God Bless!

Vocations

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It’s bittersweet that our 2014Vocation Issue “Called toServe,” includes a farewell to aman who lived a life of servicein two vocations: as a husbandand father and as a priest.Father E. John Silver died last

week, 27 years after the deathof his beloved wife, Rosemary.For the first half of his adultlife, he was a banker devotedto his family, his communityand his church.His studies for church min-

istry began in the diocesanDeacon Formation Programand continued in the John XXIIINational Seminary in Massa-chusetts before his 1993 ordi-nation to the priesthood by

Bishop Brzana.As he prepared for ordina-

tion, the future priest sat downwith the North CountryCatholic and reflected on hisexpectation that his life as ahusband and father would en-rich his ministry as a priest. “There are so many times

that people come in with fam-ily problems and I hope to givethem the benefit of my experi-ence,” he said. “I don’t want totell them what to do but givethem an idea of what’s workedfor us.”Upon his death, one of his

former parishioners shared amemory showing how his hopecame to be: “I met Father Silver

when he was a priest at St.Mary's Cathedral. He was akind and gentle man andbrought a refreshing perspec-tive to his ministry having hada family himself. He got a greatlaugh when he used to standwith the other men for the Fa-ther's Day blessing. A greatman and a wonderful priest!”Another friend shared mem-

ories of Father Silver after hemoved to South Caroline uponhis 2002 retirement:“I was serving as the music

coordinator for the NewmanClub liturgy at Coastal CarolinaUniversity when I met FatherSilver. Father would periodi-cally celebrate Liturgy there for

the students. The warmth andcaring he had for others waspersonified in his dealings withthe students. He always had astory to tell, and always a smileon his face. He was always ap-preciative of my efforts to pro-vide the music at the liturgy.My memories of him as a gen-tle person, a kind priest, agolfer and an avid Patriots fanwill remain with me always. Hewill be missed by all who knewhim.”Yes he will be missed by his

children, his grandchildren andall the rest of us who calledhim Father.Rest in peace, Father John.

MLK

You and I have been blessedto live in the most beautifulpart of this country – of thisworld. Living here in the Dio-cese of Ogdensburg, thebeauty of God’s creation is nosecret. I have often experi-enced so many of these bless-ings in this area of ours. I have lived on the shores of

Lake Champlain, on the shoresof Lake Ontario and on thebanks of the St. LawrenceRiver. I have recently had theopportunity to live in theAdirondack Mountains. It israther special to walk eachmorning looking up at the tow-ering Adirondacks. What apowerful reminder of beauty ofthis world.My faith teaches me to be-

lieve in a Creator. In some way,I believe and I know that myGod has fashioned this world.God the Father is a Creator. Be-cause I believe in God as a Cre-ator, I must see somethingsacred in this land where I live.So, my spirituality is led byrivers and lakes, by trees andmountains right to God. Fur-ther, I know that God has en-trusted this natural world toyou and me. We must dosomething to do all we can toprotect our world.I have read and been in-

structed often – as I suspect

you have – about the manythreats to our climate and tothis natural world. Many ofthese sound rather frighteningto me. So something must bedone. Many have written tome and approached me withthe lists of the importantthings that individual can do.You have probably seen suchlists, I know. We must makecertain that we can get thesegood practices out to every-one.I have discovered that we

have a group of people here inour diocese, who are workingto take these challenges seri-ously. They have studied anddiscussed the challenges anddangers. They are working todo something. Their effortsare based strongly on theirfaith as Catholics. They tellme, “It is fundamental to ouridentity as Catholics to care forthe earth. No one is off thehook.” So, our group has sentme materials to help me under-stand the importance for us all

– and the many reasons for usall to do what we can – even, asjust an individual. One of theirgoals is form “a green parish.”Let me quote a booklet thatwas prepared for a parish: “Agreen parish is a community ofbelievers which fosters adeeper understanding of thesacredness of our earth asGod’s creation. It strives to ac-complish religious convictionthrough sound environmentalleadership by building relation-ships of common understand-ing among parishioners. It alsofacilitates specific actions andinitiatives that positively im-pact Mother Earth and all itcommunity of life.”I am certain that our dioce-

san group will reach out toeach parish with a plan tomake each a “green parish.” Ihave priest friends in manyplaces who have worked hardto bring good ecological prac-tices to their parishes. I knowmany people who certainly arecommitted to such good prac-tices – and truly trust that theirefforts will make a differenceand make their world a betterplace. I have watched a goodfriend, a priest, who almostpersonally has taken on aparish recycling program.Everything is on his list.I sat down recently with my

friend, Father Paul Beyette,who is truly committed tothese programs – to talk aboutsolar panels. He is convincedthat these solar panels domake a difference and con-tinue to make a difference inmany places. Father Paul ispart of our diocesan group thatis working to get the messageout that we can all so some-thing. I am certain he hassome good ideas about how tomake a parish a “green parish.”We can all so something.So, I asked Father Paul if had

convinced anyone about solarpanels. He smiled – and imme-diately filled me in on the factthat Bishop LaValley was plan-ning to install solar panels atthe Bishop’s residence in Og-densburg. I will close this with the re-

cent pleas given by Pope Fran-cis: “Whenever we fail to carefor our brothers and sisters increation, the way is opened todestruction, and hearts areburdened…Lord, grant that allwho have positions of respon-sibility in economic, politicaland social life, and all men andwomen of good will – grantthat we all be “protectors” ofcreation, protectors of God’splan inscribed in nature, pro-tectors of one another and ofthe environment.”

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C2 Diocesan Life

REV. JOSEPH A. MORGANVice President

SR. JENNIFER VOTRAW, SSJSecretary-TreasurerMARY LOU KILIAN

Editor/General Manager

BISHOP TERRYR. LAVALLEYPresident

EDITOR’S NOTE

Farewell to a man of two vocations

A PASTOR’S PERSPECTIVE

God has entrusted the natural world to us

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 3

FOLLOW ME

By Bishop Terry R. LaValley

As part of our diocesanEnvisioning Process, one ofthe three Pastoral Prioritiesthat each of our parisheswill soon address in a fo-cused manner is Creating aCulture of Vocations.In his Message for the

World Day of Prayer for Vo-cations on May 11th PopeFrancis reflected on Jesus’familiar words in Matthew’sGospel: “The harvest is plen-tiful, but the laborers arefew; pray therefore the Lordof the harvest to send outlaborers into his harvest.”(cf. Mt.9:35-38) The Holy Fa-ther reminded us that weare that harvest; we are thefield. Jesus lives and walks

along the paths of ordinarylife in order to draw near toeveryone. It is within theculture of our daily work,recreation, school activities,and yes, even on the ballfields that Jesus meets us.Daily prayer prepares us towelcome the encounter.Jesus and His followers tookto the road and beckoned allwho would hear: “Followme.” Today Jesus continues to

come to us in our dailywalks of life with the samemessage of love. His call tolet go of self for the sake ofothers continues today.Every person is called tosuch holiness.The entire Church of Og-

densburg is now challenged,through fervent prayer andwitness of life to create anenvironment here in theNorth Country where God’speople can identify andcourageously respond tothe Lord’s call to holiness. All members of the

Church are responsible forlooking after Church voca-tions and supporting Chris-tian vocations to the singleand married life. A sobering thought: When

was the last time there wasa Church vocation fromyour parish, from your fam-

ily? Genuine vocations willsurface, indeed, flourish inthe Diocese of Ogdensburgas our energy and fervor tobring Christ to others in-crease.Care for all vocations pre-

supposes strong family pas-toral ministry in ourparishes. That’s why ourPriority of StrengtheningFaith Formation in FamilyLife is critically important inproviding a culture ripe forvocations. The family is the primary

community for the trans-mission of the Christianfaith. When families be-come fractured and secular-ized, vocationaldiscernment is a real strug-gle because the truths andbeauty of our faith have lesschance of being taught andexperienced. The limitless quest for

material goods and the pre-cipitous decrease in reli-gious practice todaydiscourage individuals frommaking the courageous

Gospel choices that fosterholiness of life.The joy-filled example of

our consecrated religiousand clergy motivates othersto the initial interest andthen earnest desire to un-dertake great commitmentin the Church and the wishto give one’s entire life tothe Lord in the Church.

As the Diocese embracesour third Pastoral Priority,Building Parishes with Liv-ing Stones, we know that avibrant parish, one that isSpirit-filled and mission –motivated is the seedbedfor vocations. The joy-filledleadership of our pastorsenlivens our parish familiesand attracts the young to

consider a Church vocation.Again this year, as the

priests of the Diocese gath-ered at our recent annualPresbyteral Convocation, wetruly enjoyed our time to-gether. We joined our Jubi-larians in celebration ofmany wonderful years ofzealous priestly ministry inthe Lord’s vineyard. What agift! Pope Francis preached:

“The true joy of those whoare called consists in believ-ing and experiencing thatHe, the Lord, is faithful, andthat with Him we can walk,be disciples and witnessesof God’s love, open ourhearts to great ideals, togreat things…” For vocations to flourish,

each of us must nurture ourown baptismal call to holi-ness. A vocation flows fromthe heart of God and blos-soms in the good soil offaithful people. The Church believes that

the parish family is a fruit-ful womb, capable of offer-ing nourishment andsupport to those who jour-ney towards priestly min-istry. Pope Francis noted that

“the harvest will be plentifulproportionate to the gracewe have meekly welcomedinto our lives.” In this sea-son of planting our fields,we pray for such a plentifulharvest for the Church inthe North Country.

Creating a culture of vocations

PHOTO BY PAT HENDRICKFour of the seminarians of the Diocese of Ogdensburg joined Bishop LaValley and priests of the diocese for the jubilee Mass duringthe Presbyteral Assembly May 21 In Lake Placid. Shown with Bishop LaValley are, from left, Leagon Carlin (first year college, PontificalCollege Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio), Matthew Conger (fourth year college, St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Wynnewood, Penn),Todd Thibault (third year theology, Josephinum), Michael Jablonski (second year theology, Josephinum) and Father Joseph Giroux,pastor of Malone Catholic Parishes.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C18 around the diocese

STRAWBERRY FESTIVALPlattsburgh – St. Peter’s Church will behaving a strawberry Festival, sponsoredby St. Therese’s GuildDate: June 19Time: 5 p.m. to 7Features: Strawberry Shortcake, French

Strawberry Pie, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie,Strawberry Sundaes, Hamburgers,Sausage with peppers and onions, HotDogs, beverages, Cake Walk, Trick Trays.

OLD HOME DAYSAltona – Holy Angels Church is holdingOld Home DaysDate: June 22Schedule: Mass, 10 a.m.; Parade, 11

a.m., Chicken BBQ, Noon; Altona’s GotTalent Show 6 p.m. to 9 with a $500grand prize; Fireworks, 9 p.m.Features: Michigans, Cheeseburgers,

Hamburgers, Clam Chowder, HotSausages w/ Peppers & Onions, FrenchFries, Fried Bread Dough, Sno-cones, Cot-ton Candy, Desserts and more. GameBooths & Dunkin Booth. Live entertain-ment. Free Raffles for BBQ Grill, BoysBike, Girls Bike Drawing during TalentShow - Must be present to win.

JUNE FESTIVALPlattsburgh – St. Peter’s Church will behaving its June Festival.Date: June 29Time: Noon to 4 p.m. Features: 11 a.m. Mass outdoors

(weather permitting). Free children’sgames, bounce house, dish pitch, booksale, bake sale, cake walk for the chil-dren, food concessions, raffle, and liveauction. Auction begins at 1 p.m. SetonAcademy Cafeteria.

LOST SHEEP QUILT SHOPEllenburg Center –The Lost Sheep QuiltShop at Our Lady of Adirondacks Houseof Prayer is hosting several programsduring the upcoming weeks.Jo’s Little Women’s Club: A year of mak-

ing little and big quilts using Jo MortonFabrics. Classes and meetings begin June7 from 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 Take 4 Placement Class: July 12 from 9

a.m. to 3, cost - $15. This class uses 4 fatquarters plus backing material. Great forbeginners and advanced quilters. Sew Together: any Tuesday from 10

a.m. to 3. This is a quilting group de-signed to share ideas, help fellow quil-ters, teach beginners. Bring your ownprojects to sew. Bring a bag lunch if youcome for the day. Place: The Lost Sheep Quilt Shop, Our

Lady of the Adirondacks House of Prayer(The shop is open Tues. - Sat, 10 a.m.-4p.m. Evenings and other times by ap-pointment.)

Contact: 518-594-3253 Website: th-elostsheepquiltshop.weebly.com; email:thelostsheepquiltshop@gmail.com

EUCHARISTIC ADORATIONPlattsburgh – Eucharistic Adoration is held throughout the year every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.Place: St. John’s “Holy Family” Adoration

Chapel, downstairsTime: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m Contact: call 518-561-5083 or email

Sjohnsadoration@aol.com

BREAKFAST BUFFETBrushton – St. Mary’s will be havingtheir breakfast buffet.Date: June 22Time: 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.Place: St. Mary’s Parish CenterCost: Adults, $8; Seniors, $7; Children 6-

12, $4; under 5, free; Immediate Familyof 5 or more, $25Features: Take-outs available by calling

518-529-6580. Sponsored by St. Mary’sCatholic Church events committee.

LATIN MASSConstable - A Tridentine (Latin) Mass iscelebrated each Friday at 5:30 p.m. be-ginning July 4 with Fr. Howard Venetteas the celebrant. Mass will also be cele-brated every first Saturday at 9 a.m.Place: St. Francis of Assisi Church

BEREAVEMENT MEETINGWatertown – There will be an ecumeni-cal bereavement meeting.Date: June 23Time: 7 p.m.Place: Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse

Hearthside Hospitality CenterSpeaker: Ms. Deb Doss LCSW-RTopic: The Tasks of Mourning

SPAGHETTI SUPPERWatertown – St. Anthony’s Altar RosaryChurch will be having Spaghetti Supper.Date: June 26Time: 4:30 p.m. to 7 Place: St. Anthony’s church basementCost: Adults, $8; children $4.50; under 3,

free; sauce, $5 per quart meatballs are$.75Features: Take-out orders begin at 4

p.m. Please bring your own containers

MOUNT CARMEL FEASTWatertown-St Anthony’s Church, to have98th annual Mt. Carmel Feast in honor ofour Lady of Mt. Carmel. Dates: June 27-June 29Place: St. Anthony’s ChurchSchedule: Bingo June 27-7p.m. in the

school gym; Rides by Ontario Amuse-ment Company. Grounds open June 27from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.; June 28 & 29– 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Religious Processionbegins at 5 p.m. Sunday followed byBenediction of the Blessed Sacrament.Fireworks Sunday night at 10 p.m.Features: Traditional Italian foods. En-

tertainment each night: Fri: Les Gates;Sat: Nick Mulpagano; Sun: Fred and the

Eds. $1,700 cash Raffle after fireworksContact: Parish office 315-782-119

LIFERIGHT MEETINGWatertown ¬ Liferight of Watertown, apro-life educational organization, meetsthe first Wednesday of the Month.Time: 1 p.m. Place: 312 Sherman St.Features: The office has a wide variety

of videos, books and educational materi-als which may be borrowed. Topics in-clude infanticide, assisted suicide,euthanasia and chastity. Contact: Phone 315-788-8480

FEAST DAY OF SS PETER AND PAULSouth Colton- Msgr. Robert H. Aucoin,pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Colton andSt. Mary Parish in Potsdam, will be cele-brant of a vigil Mass of the Feast Day ofSS Peter and PaulDate: June 28Time: 6 p.m.Place: St. Paul's OratoryFeatures: Procession to the Sacred Heart

Shrine after Mass. An Ice Cream Socialwill follow; bring a lawn chair.

INDEPENDENCE DAY BREAKFASTNorwood – First annual St. Andrew’sParish Independence Day Breakfast and50/50 raffle.Date: July 4Time: 8 a.m. to 11:30Cost: Adult, $6-advance, $7 at the door;

age 6-12, $4-advance, $5 at the door.

FIRST SATURDAY ROSARYMassena - St. Mary's Church is holding aspecial rosary to mark First SaturdayDate: June 7Time: 3:15 p.m.Features: Rosary to Our Lady of Fatima

will be prayed in reparation to Her Im-maculate Heart and for World Peace fol-lowed by a private meditation on theGlorious Mysteries. Confessions begin at2:45 pm and the Vigil Masss at 4 pm.

BIBLE STUDYOgdensburg – St. Mary’s Cathedral ishold an eight session program “A QuickJourney Through The Bible.”Date: Starting June 25 for 8 WeeksPlace: Bishop Brzana HallFeatures:Deacon Dave Sandburg will be

presenting the program created by JeffCavins, a renowned bible scholar andformer Baptist pastor,Contact: ww.saintmaryscathedral.net/

bible-study.

LATIN MASSPotsdam – A Tridentine (Latin) Mass iscelebrated each Sunday Time: 11:30 p.m.Place: St. Mary's Church

EUCHARISTIC ADORATIONMassena – St. Mary’s & St. Joseph’s holdBenediction and Adoration every Fridaymorning.Time: 9 a.m. to 10Place: St. Mary’s Family Room

BEREAVEMENT SUPPORT GROUPMassena – Sacred Heart/St. Lawrenceholds a Bereavement Support Group lastTuesday of each month.Time: 2 p.m.Place: Sacred Heart ConventContact: 315-769-3137

BUILDING STRONG FAMILIESNorfolk – A workshop to be held, “Build-ing Strong Families: Marriage, Sex, andthe Church.Date: July 26Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Place: Church of the Visitation Parish

CenterCost: $20 (Includes lunch)Features: Dr. Angela Franks-- author,

professor, speaker, television host—brings vast experience to this topic.Using the wisdom of the Church, Dr.Franks will consider current issues thatthreaten marriage, including commit-ment-phobia, hook-up culture, pornog-raphy, definition of marriage, andunintended consequences of contracep-tion. The day will include prayer, discus-sion, and practical guidance forstrengthening marriages. Registration: Register at

rcdony.org/BSFContact: Angelo/Suzanne Pietropaoli ,

apietropaoli@rcdony.org, or at 518-483-0459.

WOMEN OF GRACE RETREATOgdensburg – Women of Grace Retreatto be held again for a spirit filled week-end retreat.Date: June 27-29Place: Wadhams HallSpeaker: Johnnette Benkovic, of Living

His Life AbundantlyFeatures:Weekend includes celebra-

tion of the Eucharist,, adoration, prayer,talks, music, and sacred sisterhood. ,Johnnette will unfold the truths of au-thentic femininity Contact: Mary Dillenback at marydil-

lenback@twcny.rr.com; 315-771-1377.

The North County Catholicwelcomes contributions to “Around the Diocese”. Parishioners are invited to send information about activities to:

North Country Catholic, PO Box 326,Ogdensburg, NY 13669; fax, 1-866-314-7296;

e-mail news@northcountrycatholic.org.

Items must be received in the NCCoffice by the Thursday before publication.

CLINTON

FRANKLIN

JEFFERSON

ST. LAWRENCE

DIOCESAN EVENTS

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C4 called to serve

By Father Bryan StittDiocesan Director of Vocations

My family estimated thatbefore my grandmotherpassed away last month,she prayed over two millionHail Mary’s. At the age of 96she had prayed for her hus-band, her 10 children, andtheir children and grand-children. She prayed forpeace, success and safetyon their dairy farm; and sheprayed for Vocations.

My grandmother was notalone.

How many peoplethroughout our North Coun-try who are aged and ill aredoing great spiritual good!

They know that they arenot able to physically dowhat they used to do butare now being given thechance to accomplish thingson an even higher level.

Didn’t St. Paul say: “There-fore, I am content withweaknesses, insults, hard-

ships, persecutions, andconstraints, for the sake ofChrist; for when I am weak,then I am strong.”?

This year the Diocese ofOgdensburg Vocations of-fice is hoping to tap intothat powerhouse of SpiritualStrength. We are initiatingthe “Vocations Prayer Apos-tolate.” Prayer pamphletsfor the homebound weremade available to all thepriests at their annual Pres-byteral Assembly so thatthey could get to the home-bound as soon as possible.

Of course the prayers inthe pamphlet are a guideand reminder, not a formulathat must be followed. Anyprayers such as the ‘Our Fa-ther’ or ‘Hail Mary’ are won-derful in their support forvocations.

The important thing is tohelp the sick and home-bound remember the powerof the prayers. For PopeFrancis said in this year’sWorld Day of the Sick: “I

turn in a special way to thesick and all those who pro-

vide them with assistanceand care. The Church recog-nizes in you, the sick, a spe-cial presence of thesuffering Christ. It is true.At the side of – and indeedwithin – our suffering, is thesuffering of Christ; he bearsits burden with us and hereveals its meaning.”

We’ve all heard about theDiocesan Pastoral Plan forthe next five years in whichone of the three prioritiesfor the Diocese of Ogdens-burg is developing a Cultureof Vocations.

I’ve had a number of con-versations and meetingsabout this already. The onetheme that keeps coming upis: developing a Culture ofVocations cannot simply beabout another program orresource. It must be firstand foremost be about a re-lationship with the Crucifiedand Risen Lord.

There are very few whohave a better appreciationof the Cross of Jesus than

those who are suffering. Please help us encounter

Christ by offering yourprayers and sufferings forvocations.

My grandmother’s prayersbore much fruit: many faith-ful marriages and generoussingle people, loving par-ents and joyful children, apriest and even a Carmelitesister are in her family.

Some might point out thatthese blessings are not en-tirely the result of herprayers—there was a lot ofhard work involved. True.But one thing that we didlearn from Oma was thatprayers and sacrifices areeffective—regardless ofwhether you could make itto two million Hail Mary’s.

---Editor’s Note: For more in-

formation or to requestprayer pamphlets, pleaseemail Fr. Bryan Stitt atbstitt@rcdony.org or call315-393-2920 extension1450.

Prayers from HomeNew prayer apostolate for the homebound

Memorial Mass held for Fr. E. John Silver, 87MALONE – A memorial Mass for

Father E. John Silver, 87, washeld June 13 at Notre DameChurch with Father Joseph A.Morgan, vicar general, pre-siding.

Father Silver died June 6 atGrand Strand Regional Med-ical Center in Myrtle Beach,South Carolina.

Burial was in Notre DameCemetery, Malone.

Father Silver was born May6, 1927 in Malone, the son ofthe late Joseph Oliver andSadie Nichols Silver.

He was a 1945 graduate ofFranklin Academy in Maloneand then enlisted in the USNavy where he served duringWWII from 1945-46.

After his military service,he attended Clarkson Collegein Potsdam where he re-ceived a bachelor’s degree inbusiness administration in1950.

From 1954 to 1988 FatherSliver was employed by Ma-rine Midland Bank working in

various locations throughoutthe North Country.Prior to his retire-ment, he achievedthe position of vicepresident of thebank.

In 1958, he mar-ried RosemaryMcGum in Antwerpwith whom he raisedtwo daughters.

After his wife’sdeath in 1987, Fa-ther Silver beganstudies for thepriesthood at Blessed JohnXXIII Seminary, Weston, Mas-sachusetts.

He was ordained on May23, 1993 by Bishop Stanis-laus J. Brzana at St. Mary’sCathedral in Ogdensburg.

Prior to becoming a priest,Father Silver was very activein several charitable organi-

zations including the UnitedWay, Kiwanis and theElks club well as manyCatholic organiza-tions such as theKnights of Columbusand as a member ofthe pastoral council ofNotre Dame Church

After Father Silver’sordination as a priest,he was assigned asparochial vicar at St.Mary’s Cathedral inOgdensburg and St.Bernard’s, Saranac

Lake, administrator of St.Agnes in Lake Placid and atSt. Joseph’s, Philadelphia andSt. Michael’s, Antwerp.

In 1996, Father Silver wasnamed parochial vicar at St.Augustine’s, Peru and, in1997, pastor of St. VincentDePaul, Cape Vincent.

Father Silver retired in

2002. Following his retire-ment, he moved to SouthCarolina for six months ofthe year, serving at St. JamesChurch in Conway and theremaining months he helpedout in Rosiere.

In addition to his wife, Fa-ther Silver was predeceasedby his brother, Leon Silverand his sister Eleanor Patter-son.

He is survived by daugh-ters, Kimberly Silver-Harmonand her husband Timothy J.Harmon of Malone and MaryAlice Rounds and her hus-band, Tim Rounds ofBrainardsville; a brotherDonald Silver of Malone; foursisters, Kathryn Jackson ofBradenton, Fl., Paulie Bohonof FL, Joan Brooks (Vern),Mooers, Ann Duffy (Robert)of Troy, ten grandchildrenand ten great-grandchildren.

Father E.John Silver

Maleficent is a live-actionfeminist retelling of the Dis-ney version of "SleepingBeauty" which casts the vil-lainess of that 1959 ani-mated feature -- here playedby Angelina Jolie -- in amore positive light.

Betrayed by the futureking (Sharlto Copley) of thehuman realm that bordersthe enchanted territory sheprotects, the initially goodfairy of the title --portrayedin youth by Isobelle Molloy -turns bitter and vengeful.

She eventually exacts ret-ribution by cursing the sov-ereign's infant daughter tofall into an endless slumberon the day before her 16thbirthday --a trance fromwhich only "true love's kiss"will be able to awaken thelass.

As the child (Elle Fanning)grows up, however, her in-nocent goodness melts theevildoer's heart. So muchso, that - aided by theshape-shifting crow (SamRiley) who serves as her as-sistant and scout - the re-pentant villainess strives tothwart the fulfillment of herown malediction.

Though it can be viewedas an honorable conversionstory warning against ambi-tion and the thirst for re-venge, director RobertStromberg 3-D fantasy star-tlingly subverts its sourcematerial in a way that regis-ters as vaguely anti-maleand anti-marriage.

It also has enough darkimagery and bloodless bat-

tling to frighten the smallestmoviegoers. Some harsh ac-tion violence.

The Catholic News Serviceclassification is A-II -- adultsand adolescents. The Mo-tion Picture Association ofAmerica rating is PG --parental guidance sug-gested.

Some material may not besuitable for children.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C entertainment 17

GUGGENHEIM 2014 - MEET THE STAFF

Visit www.rcdony.org/youth for information aboutCamp Guggenheim and registration forms for weekly sessions beginning June 29-July 4

Anna FisherI belong to St. Joseph's

Church in West Chazy,where I grew up, and amcurrently majoring in Envi-ronmental Planning andManagement at SUNY Platts-burgh. Camp Guggenheimhas held a special place inmy heart since I was acamper, and I am so blessedto have been chosen to beon staff this year. I am look-ing forward to a faith filledsummer of bringing youngpeople closer to God, and tobe part of a wonderful staff.

Juliet BoninoI grew up in Wyomissing,

PA, a member of St IgnatiusLoyola Parish and am cur-rently studying to be anurse at Franciscan Univer-sity. I am SO excited to beon staff at camp because Iam ready for an adventureout in nature with the Lord,the campers, and all thecounselors. This is my firstexperience with Guggen-heim, as I was not a camperhere, and feel incrediblyblessed and privileged to beon staff with such a dedi-cated and holy staff.

The NCC Will observe the June 21 to July 4 event in the July 2 issue.This years’ theme is Service to the Poor and the Vulnerable

Fortnight 4 Freedom

AT THE MOVIES

MALEFICENT

CNS PHOTO/DISNEYAngelina Jolie stars in a scene from the movie "Maleficent."

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 5

YOUNG CATHOLIC VOICE

This will come as no sur-prise to many, but it's withgreat joy that Ishare with you thatI am discerning avocation to the reli-gious life! God has been

working hard onmy heart for thepast few years, andwhile He could al-ways change thingsup, it seems at thispoint that the reli-gious life is indeedwhere He is callingme. Here is the story of how

my vocation has unfoldedthus far:I think my childhood was

pretty normal in most ways.But deep down inside me,there was always a specialdesire to love in a big way.I remember one day in

fourth grade, my teachertalked a little bit about whatit was like meeting her hus-band, and she said that shehad decided that she wouldonly marry if the right guycame along. I thought tomyself that I too wanted tohold out for the best guy,the biggest romance ever.

And the same kind ofthinking carried over into

other areas of mylife—I wanted thevery best of every-thing. I worked hardon the soccer field, Ididn't stop studyinguntil I had A's inevery class, and Imade plans to travelthe world and learneverything there wasto know. There was some-

thing inside me thatjust wanted to giveand receive the very

best in life.One day, when I was in

seventh grade, Father BryanStitt came and gave a talkon vocations to my class atSeton Catholic. I don’t re-member much about it, butI remember that every char-acteristic of a priest or reli-gious that he mentioneddescribed me perfectly.A few weeks later, I hap-

pened to go to confession toFather Bryan at school, andas I was leaving, I sheep-ishly stammered, “By theway, thank you for comingto talk to us about voca-tions.”

He cheerfully went on totell me that his cousin hadjust become a Carmelite outin California, and that shecouldn’t be happier.

Please pray for me as I continue to take the next steps in my vocation, and Ipromise to pray for you too!

As I left, I thought to my-self, “Well, I guess I’ll have togive up that great romance Ialways wanted, along withany success and adventure Iever dreamed of.” I glumlybegan to readjust my men-tal picture of the future.The thought that I might

be called to the religious lifegrew heavier and heavier inmy mind, until finally I gaveit up. After giving it athought and deciding that itcould never make mehappy, I believed I was offthe hook.Something changed, how-

ever, the summer before Iwent to college. I had com-pletely forgotten about mybrief stint of discernment inseventh grade, when sud-denly, Father Bryan’sCarmelite cousin, SisterShawn Pauline, OCD, ap-peared to give a talk duringmy last week as a camper atCamp Guggenheim. The main reason why I

had given up thinking aboutreligious life was that I hadbelieved that it would meanleaving all of the biggest de-sires of my heart unfulfilled.But Sister Shawn Pauline ex-plained that a religious is abride of Christ, and thatJesus fulfills the part of herheart that longs for aspouse. A few weeks later, I went

away to college. What hap-pened there could fill sev-eral books, but in a nutshell,I began to feel the tug onmy heart to consider reli-gious life once again, and inthe turmoil of trying to dis-

tinguish God’s voice fromeverything else, I began tospend increasing amountsof time in Eucharistic Adora-tion. At some point I real-ized that in those intimatetimes of prayer with Jesus,He had won me over andbegun to show me that Hecould fulfill even a heart asbig and thirsty as mine. Infact, He was the only thingthat could fulfill it. This girl who longed for

everything had found herEverything.St. Augustine, the patron

of my home parish,summed up my story per-fectly when he said, “To fallin love with God is thegreatest romance; to seekhim the greatest adventure;to find him, the greatesthuman achievement.” Jesushas shown me so deeplythat this is true. Please pray for me as I

continue to take the nextsteps in my vocation, and Ipromise to pray for you too!

RachelDaly

God has been working on my heart!

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C16 commentary

SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS

The great feast of the Body and Blood of ChristIn the first reading for this

great feast of Corpus Christi(Solemnity of theBody and Blood ofChrist), Moses re-minds the people inthe desert to “re-member theirstory”. And what astory! From the begin-

ning of creation,God has alwaystaken care to feedthe people he cre-ated. They failed toappreciate the deli-cious fruit in theGarden of Eden, so they lostit! But later he gave themthat mysterious “manna” inthe desert. They got tired ofthat, too. Then Jesus promised

them something much bet-ter than manna. “After all”,he told them, “your fathersate manna in the desert, andthey’re all dead!”. However, they couldn’t

trust him and all his talkabout “flesh and blood”.

They ran! Except Peter and the apos-

tles who did a dou-ble-take, thought alittle about the al-ternative of leavinghim, and decided tostay it out. How lucky for the

Church and forthemselves thatthey did! Eventhough the LastSupper was stillshrouded in mys-tery, they got theidea of how hewould give them his

own Body and Blood. That wonderful Emmaus

incident of Jesus breakingbread with his discipleshelped a lot, but it took thepower and light of Pentecostfor their firm understand-ing. St. Paul insists we are all

one body when we celebrate- French or Latino, Ameri-can or African or Chinese -we are all one body - for re-joicing, for loving, and for

giving away. I think the biggest ques-

tions this week for us, be-sides firmly believing in theReal Presence, is the ques-tion of how much of the Eu-charist do we share? After all, if we really be-

come the Body and Blood ofChrist in the Lord and inone another, then selfish-ness has no place. Of course, we want to

savor the Lord’s friendshipfor some time after receiv-ing Holy Communion, butthen we must “go” and“give”. We give when we dis-cipline ourselves to answerthe pastor’s call for help in aparish activity, or when weare patient with our chil-dren (even if we have toforce a smile and a kindword of correction), or wedecide to make time eachday for deep prayer with theLord We share Eucharist when

go with our families on aSunday afternoon to visit agrandmother or an aunt—or

a neighbor--in the nursinghome or hospital. It’s a ser-mon to our children thatthey will probably remem-ber even more than Father’scarefully prepared homily! hen, there are the big is-

sues of social justice! Theseare all connected with theHoly Eucharist.This feast is a time for

reminiscence for us “older”people. Remember Sundayafternoon Benediction andVespers, with the wonderfulsmell of incense, the clank-ing of the censor, and thosebeautiful Benedictionhymns? Many of us still re-member the great CorpusChristi processions in our

home parishes or in ourCatholic high school. I remember taking part in

a grand Corpus Christi pro-cession in Rome in 1979when Pope John Paul II re-stored this ancient custom,and carried a huge mon-strance publically from St.John Lateran to St. MaryMajor, with thousandssinging and weeping for joyat the honoring of Jesus inthe Blessed Sacrament. Whenever possible, look

for opportunities to bringyour children to parishdays of Exposition andBenediction. These devotions are a

cherished part of ourCatholic heritage, andhighly recommended byPope Francis.May the heart of Jesus, in

the most Blessed Sacrament,be praised, adored, andloved, with grateful affec-tion, at every moment, in allthe tabernacles throughoutthe world, even until theend of time. Amen.

MonsignorPaul E.Whitmore

Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ

READINGSDeuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a1 Corinthians 10:16-17John 6: 51-58

JUNE 22

WATERTOWN – A Mass of Chris-tian Burial for St. Joseph Sis-ter Helen Mary McKeever, 93,was held June 12 at the Sis-ters of St. Joseph Mother-house with Father DonaldRobinson, her cousin, asmain celebrant.She died June 9 at the

motherhouse. Burial was inGlenwood Cemetery.Sister Helen Mary was born

June 14, 1920, in Cape Vin-cent, the oldest daughter ofFred and Geraldine Con-stance McKeever. She gradu-ated as valedictorian from St.Mary’s Catholic School inClayton. She attended theWatertown School of Com-merce and was employed assecretary to Sprague Chevro-let Car Company and atBagley and Sewell Companyfor several years. She entered the Sisters of

St. Joseph Dec. 29, 1946, andreceived the habit on July 1,1947. She professed finalvows on Aug. 28, 1952. Sheearned a BS in Education atthe College of St. Rose in Al-bany, NY and a MS in LibraryScience at Syracuse Univer-sity.Sister Helen Mary served

for many years as a teacherin grade school and highschool, in religious educa-tion, and in social workthroughout the Diocese. Shewas assistant librarian atMater Dei college in Ogdens-burg from 1969 - 1975.From 1975 until her retire-

ment in 2001, Sister HelenMary was assistant librarianand director of the library atImmaculate Heart Central inWatertown, completing 53years of ministry in the Dio-cese of Ogdensburg. In 1990,

Sister Helen Mary receivedthe New York Library Associ-ation Award for Commend-able Service in Librarianship. Sister Helen Mary was pre-

deceased by her parents andby two sisters, Norma Wet-terhahn and Audrey McK-eever. She is survived by her sis-

ter, Justine Hacker, Ovilla,TX, and nephews and nieces,including Gerry and KathrynWetterhahn, Julie and StevenDillenback, Dr. Joseph andRegina Wetterhahn, Jon andPatricia Wetterhahn, Davidand Linda Hacker, Jonathanand Andrea Hacker, and Deb-bie and Ronald Hunt; a closefriend, Denise Wetterhahn,and several cousins, greatnephews, and great nieces.Online condolences may

be made at http://www.cum-mingsfuneral.com.

Funeral held June 12 for SrHelen Mary McKeever, SSJ

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C 15J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4

N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C6 called to serve

By Fr. Scott BelinaParochial vicar, St. Mary’s Cathedral

“Bless me, Father, for Ihave sinned.”These are the most hum-

bling words spoken. Theyare so humbling because Isay these same exact wordswhen I go to confess mysins and ask for God’s par-don and peace. They are sovery humbling, and they areat the heart of the mysterythat is the Priesthood.A year ago, on May 25,

2013, I lay prostrate on thesanctuary floor of St. Mary’sCathedral. My presencethere that morning was apublic response to a per-sonal call that had unfoldedin my life for many years,and which I had discernedwas God calling me to givehim my life as a priest. Mo-ments later, in the presenceof family and many friends,Bishop LaValley imposedhands on me, and then withhands outstretched overme, prayed the prayer of Or-dination—the same ritualthrough which every priestis linked, through theirBishop, to the Apostles.That is where it began forme, and so I must beginthere as I reflect on my firstyear as a priest: complete,total and undeserved gift—agift for which I am eternallygrateful.This first year of priest-

hood has given me a joy be-yond imagining—a joy thatcannot be manufactured,only discovered and grate-fully received. I encounter

this joy each day as I servethe People of God, and espe-cially as I celebrate theSacraments with and forthem. This privilege issomething I treasure, asthrough it I am able to seethe awesomeness and im-mensity of God’s providentlove for his people. It is alsoencountered in the sacredduty of preaching. I canonly hope that the words Ispeak become an opportu-nity for God’s people tomeet him personally. Fi-nally, I am truly blessedwith so many visits to peo-ple in the hospital, in thenursing homes, and even in

their own homes. Echoingsome words of Saint JohnPaul II, each visit, in a mys-terious way, is an encounterwith God himself.Make no mistake, as a

priest I am challenged daily.When ordained a priest, aman does not suddenly re-linquish his humanity or be-come “perfect” in a singlemoment—I know this all toowell! Each day, I am chal-lenged to invite Jesus moredeeply into my own life thatI might undergo conversionof mind and heart and solive the Gospel I preach. Iam called to give God evenmy weakness and insuffi-ciency, because it is pre-cisely in my weakness thathis power is made perfect (2Cor. 12:9). I must remainawake and attentive so asnot to grow accustomed orlukewarm to the treasuresof our Faith. I have learned several les-

sons over the past year—lessons that surely I willlearn again and again. First,God loves me beyond mydeepest imagining. This istrue for everyone, and it

cannot be overstated. It issomething that each of usneeds to know in our bonesand in the depths of ourheart: we are known andloved by God! Second, Godis—and always will be—aGod of surprises. As I do hiswork, I should fully expectto be surprised. Third, I amnot in control, and neverwill be: “Without me, youcan do nothing” (Jn. 15:5).Fourth, as Blessed MotherTheresa of Calcutta oftensaid, "God desires fidelity,not success." I want to be asaint, and go to heaven.When I stand before God, hewill not ask me whether ornot I was good at anything,but he will know whether ornot I was faithful. Fifth, thepriesthood is a gift, and nota right or anything which Ihave earned or taken formyself. I am reminded ofthis daily. A perfect exampleof this is the celebration ofthe Sacraments. Without thepower of Christ at work, thewords that I speak are wind.Yet, when I am gatheredwith his people to pray,Christ is present and he is at

work. Lastly—and this is agross understatement—Ihave a whole lot more tolearn! This is just the begin-ning!This is why the words,

“Bless me, Father, for I havesinned” are so humbling. Itis because the priesthood ispure gift. A priest said to meonce when I was first con-sidering entering the semi-nary, “God does not call thequalified. Rather, he quali-fies those who are called.”Perfect examples of this factare the Apostles, those firstmen on whom Jesus be-stowed the Priesthood. Theywere weak, and some ofthem quite thick-headed.They constantly misunder-stood Jesus. The Lord hasshown me much mercy andlove, and has made me andevery other priest an instru-ment of this same mercyand love. This mystery liesat the heart of the Priest-hood: knowing and experi-encing God’s mercy and lovein his own life, in the midstof his own weaknesses andsinfulness, the priest canthen love others in theirweaknesses and sinfulnesswith the very love of Godthe Father.After a year, I must thank

God for his utter generosityin my life. He has chosenme out of love and given methis vocation. I cannot imag-ine being happy doing any-thing else. For that, I cannotthank God enough. What Ican do, however, with hisgrace, is to make my life acontinual offering, a daily‘sacrifice of praise’ for hisglory.As I begin my second year

as a Priest of Jesus Christ, Iask for your continuedprayers. Pray for me that Imay be faithful to God’s giftof the Priesthood, and that Imight truly live each daythe joy of the Gospel. On be-half of all my brotherpriests and our Bishop, I askyou to pray also for them.May the Lord give you hisPeace!

‘Bless me, Father, for I have sinned’Newest priest of the diocese reflects on his first year

PHOTO BY JUSTIN SORENSENFather Scott Belina, pictured during his ordination May 25, 2013, reflects on his first year as a priest of the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

By Fr. Vincent T. Freeh, MSC Religious Superior

WATERTOWN - On June 1, 2014,the patronal feast of OurLady of the Sacred HeartParish in Watertown becamethe occasion for the openingof a series of celebrationsmarking the 75th anniver-sary of the establishment ofthe Canadian and UnitedStates communities of theMissionaries of the SacredHeart (MSC) as provinces intheir own right. The threat of war in 1939

added urgency to the trans-fer of governance from theEuropean provinces ofFrance and Germany to theoffshoot communities theyhad formed respectively inCanada and the UnitedStates. In both cases, themove proved to be a spur togrowth. By the summer of1939, when the actualchange in governance tookplace, MSC priests and broth-ers had been active in Water-town and its environs formore than 60 years.It all began in 1875 with

Father Jean-Baptiste Chap-pel, MSC, who moved toThompson Street, ministeredto the French Catholic com-munity in the city and be-came pastor of St. Mary’sparish in nearby Evans Mills. Father Joseph Durin, MSC,

and two seminarians arrivedfrom France in 1876, formingthe first MSC communityoutside of Europe—secondonly to one other communitylocated in France itself! By 1878, Father Durin had

established Our Lady of theSacred Heart Parish. Twoyears later he was able toprevail upon the bishop topermit three Sisters of St.Joseph from Buffalo to opena school in the parish. The Sisters arrived in early

1881, destined to bringCatholic education toparishes throughout the en-tire Diocese of Ogdensburg.Shortly after the turn of thecentury, Father StephenRoyet, MSC , had seen to theconstruction of the impres-sive Gothic style church thatstood on the corner of

Thompson and West LyndeStreets. Before returning to France

in 1910, he had also openedSt. Anthony’s chapel on Arse-nal Street to serve the Italiancommunity.

A series of celebrations markingthe 75th anniversary of the

establishment of the Canadianand US communities of the

Missionaries of the Sacred Heartas provinces in their own right began June 1

As the ethnic compositionOur Lady of the Sacred Heartbecame more diverse, BishopJoseph H. Conroy, on March1, 1925, designated theparish as territorial andtherefore mandated to carefor all non-Italian Catholicsin the city north of the BlackRiver. By this time, the newgrade school, built in 1923,had expanded to includegrades seven and eight. In many ways, the change-

over from European to localleadership did little to alterthe everyday life and min-istries of the Watertown MSC.Its influence was felt mostlyin increased participation inthe growth and mission of

the province as a whole. This broader sense of pur-

pose countered the other-wise natural tendencies tolimit attention to parochialaffairs, thereby serving toenlarge parishioners’ globalvision which has now be-come an outstanding charac-teristic of MSC friends andbenefactors in the NorthCountry. Evidence of this perspec-

tive is exemplified in thelaity-led Sacred Heart Foun-dation which contributes tothe education and formationof MSC brothers and priestsin the United States and inmany parts of the world.This year, drawing on invest-ments that now exceed $2.5million, the Foundation wasable to award scholarships tostudents in Colombia, Brazil,Cameroon, Dominican Re-public, Fiji, India, Indonesia,Korea, Papua New Guineaand the Philippines.The opening celebration of

the anniversary was led byFather Jonas Tandayu, MSC,pastor of Our Lady of the Sa-cred Heart, whose purposewas to let parishioners knowthat this particular Mariandevotion has special signifi-cance not only for vowed re-ligious but for all the faithful.The chief reason for this

value is found in the culturaldominance of secular materi-alism. In the words of PopeJohn Paul II, “We are nowstanding in the face of thegreatest historical confronta-tion humanity has ever expe-rienced.” As homilist for the Mass,

Father Vincent T. Freeh, MSC,religious superior of the Wa-tertown MSC community,spoke of how relationshipsformed Mary’s identity asOur Lady of the Sacred Heartand how this same dynamicof friendship shapes theidentity of every person. By seeing and entering into

Mary’s relationship with Fa-ther, Son and Holy Spirit, aperson can acquire a livelyChristian sense of identityand purpose, while comingto experience a more inti-mate, meaningful relation-ship with the Triune God, hesaid.The US Province of the Mis-

sionaries of the Sacred Heartis sponsoring an anniversaryraffle featuring a trip for twoto Italy with a six-night stayat MSC International Head-quarters on the Via Asmarain Rome including a general

audience with Pope Francis.Special events for the

months ahead in Watertowninclude a Mass of thanksgiv-ing for parishioners, bene-factors and friends with theFather Mark McDonald, MSC,Superior General, as cele-brant, followed by dinnerand a program honoring thelate Missionary of the SacredHeart Father Benoit Dostie.Also planned is a reunion

of and recognition for allMSC brothers and priestswho have served in mainte-nance, parish ministry, edu-cation or chaplaincies in theDiocese of Ogdensburg. The annual Sacred Heart

Foundation Dinner, andother events highlightingcontributions made by otherreligious, by lay MSC and byindividual members of thecommunity Will be held witha view to give praise andthanksgiving to God and toexpress thanks to collabora-tors, friends and benefactorswho both support and takepart in achieving the goalsenvisioned by Father JulesChevalier, founder of theMissionaries of the SacredHeart.

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Missionaries of the Sacred Heart: 75 years!J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4

N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C14 World/nation

AT A GLANCE

CATHOLICWORLDPope internationalizes Vatican financial watchdog agency VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis named a slate of new members to the Vati-can's financial watchdog agency, replacing an all-Italian panel with membersfrom Italy, Switzerland, Singapore and the United States. Cardinal Pietro Parolin,Vatican secretary of state, also promoted Tommaso Di Ruzza, an Italian, to be theagency's "ad interim" vice-director. A former official at the Pontifical Council forJustice and Peace, Di Ruzza had been an assistant at the financial authority,which is directed by Rene Brulhart. The Vatican made the announcements June 5.Pope Benedict XVI established the Financial Intelligence Authority in late 2010 tomonitor Vatican financial operations and ensure they met international normsagainst money laundering and the financing of terrorism. In November 2013,Pope Francis revised the agency's statutes. He clarified the roles of the authority'spresident, board of directors and director, and specified that it would have twoseparate offices: one concerned with supervision and regulation, the other withfinancial intelligence. New finance laws passed in October formally expanded thecompetence of the Financial Intelligence Authority by including the task of "pre-ventive" vigilance, which involves ensuring the proper organization and trust-worthiness of all Vatican financial operations.

Christians among 500,000 fleeing Mosul after Islamist forces seize city BEIRUT (CNS) -- Church leaders in northern Iraq struggled to find shelter forChristians who were among hundreds of thousands who fled Mosul, the coun-try's second-largest city, after Islamist forces took over much of the town, aChaldean Catholic archbishop said. Christians began fleeing early June 9, Arch-bishop Amel Shamon Nona of Mosul told Catholic News Service in an email. "Thesoldiers and all policemen left the city," seemingly abandoning the people, Arch-bishop Nona wrote. He called the situation a tragedy. "And we started organiz-ing, working all through the night, to find a place for them (the people who hadfled Mosul) in nearby villages," the archbishop said. News reports said severalhundred heavily armed members of the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraqand the Levant occupied government facilities, broadcast stations and banks asthey worked their way through the city. The BBC reported that up to 500,000people left Mosul as the ISIL forces occupied the city. Many headed to threetowns in Kurdistan in northern Iraq, where temporary camps were established.

Pope to traffickers, arms manufacturers: God's judgment will come VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis denounced those responsible for human traf-ficking, slave labor and arms manufacturing, saying people producing weaponsof war are "merchants of death. One day everything comes to an end and theywill be held accountable to God," the pope said at his weekly general audienceJune 11. The pope also launched an appeal to the international community tohelp safeguard children from forced labor, highlighting the plight of an esti-mated 160 million child workers worldwide. Holding up a bright red leaflet,which had, in Italian, "All together against child labor" written on it, the popeasked the world community to help "eradicate this scourge." The leaflet was partof the International Labor Organization's #RedCard campaign, urging people to"blow the whistle," like a referee on a soccer field, and give a "red card" to thoseexploiting children. Speaking at the end of his audience talk, the pope said June12 was World Day Against Child Labor -- a day meant to call attention to the mil-lions of children forced to work in degrading conditions, "exposed to forms ofslavery and exploitation, as well as abuse, maltreatment and discrimination."

By Carol Zimmermann Catholic News Service

NEW ORLEANS (CNS) - During theirJune 11-13 spring general as-sembly in New Orleans, thenation's Catholic bishopsvoted to extend their Ad HocCommittee on Religious Lib-erty and to approve work ona limited revision of theirquadrennial documentaimed at guiding Catholics inelection decisions. They also were urged to

promote and supportCatholic families by payingclose attention to the upcom-ing synod on the family atthe Vatican and to promotethe World Meeting of Fami-lies to be held next year inPhiladelphia. The bishops heard about

the progress made and thework that still needs to bedone on efforts to protectchildren from sexual abuse.They received a report abouttheir aid to typhoon victimsin the Philippines and wereadvised about the workbeing done to make sure re-ligious educational materialsconform to the Catechism ofthe Catholic Church. The public sessions of the

meetings took place June 11and the morning of June 12before the bishops went intoexecutive session. "It is always a great joy for

us to be together," Arch-bishop Carlo Maria Vigano,apostolic nuncio to theUnited States, told the bish-ops at the start of their meet-ing. There is "unity andstrength from the Holy Spiritwhen you gather as onechurch," he added. The nuncio emphasized

the need to be in solidaritynot only with each other butalso with Catholic leadersand the faith community inthe Iraqi city of Mosul, whereChristians were among thehundreds of thousands ofpeople who began fleeing

June 9 after Islamist forcestook over much of the city. Prior to the vote on a three-

year extension of the Ad HocCommittee on Religious Lib-erty, Baltimore ArchbishopWilliam E. Lori, its chairman,compared the body's work tothe "humble beginnings ofthe pro-life movement." The ad hoc committee was

formed in 2011 and the"need for its sustained workis at least as great as when itstarted," he told the bishops. Several bishops said they

appreciated the materials thecommittee provided themand their dioceses and feltthe work was important. Another item the bishops

unanimously approved was alimited revision of the 2007statement "Forming Con-sciences for Faithful Citizen-ship" and the draft of a newintroductory note for it. Therevision and draft will bepresented for a vote by theU.S. bishops at their annualfall assembly in November. The document has been is-

sued before every presiden-tial election for almost fourdecades. A note in the current intro-

duction, revised in 2011,clarifies that the document is"does not offer a voters'guide, scorecard of issues ordirection on how to vote,"but instead "applies Catholicmoral principles to a range ofimportant issues and warnsagainst misguided appeals to'conscience' to ignore funda-mental moral claims, to re-duce Catholic moralconcerns to one or two mat-ters, or to justify choicessimply to advance partisan,ideological or personal inter-ests." The bishops also voted to

permit the Committee onClergy, Consecrated Life andVocations to seek a renewedrecognitio, or approval, fromthe Vatican for the NationalDirectory for the Formation,Ministry and Life of Perma-

nent Deacons in the UnitedStates. Vatican approval tothe text would be for anotherfive-year term. The bishops, by applause,

showed their support of aletter to be from ArchbishopJoseph E. Kurtz of Louisville,Kentucky, president of theU.S. Conference of CatholicBishops, to Pope Francis,inviting him to attend theWorld Meeting of Familiesnext September in Philadel-phia. Read at the meeting by

Archbishop Kurtz, the lettersaid the pope's presencewould "add significance" tothe gathering and "deepenthe bonds of affection" manyCatholics feel for the Holy Fa-ther. Archbishop Vincenzo

Paglia, president of the Pon-tifical Council for the Family,said the Philadelphia gather-ing was a key factor in pro-moting family life, which hesaid is currently in crisis. "The family today is living

out a paradox," he told thebishops. "On the one hand,great value is given to thebonds of family, everywherein the world" but he alsonoted that today's familiesare weakened and often "losetheir way." Philadelphia Archbishop

Charles J. Chaput told theU.S. bishops the 2015 gather-ing "comes at a time whenthe church in the UnitedStates urgently needs an op-portunity for joy and re-newal. It's also a time of greatconfusion about the natureof marriage and the family." "Our goal is to exclude no

one from the excitement ofthis meeting,” ArchbishopChaput said. “Our goal is tooffer the beauty of Catholicteaching about marriage andthe family with confidenceand a spirit of invitation toevery person of good will,"he said. "That's the heart ofour theme: 'Love is our mis-sion; the family fully alive.'"

Bishops focus on religiousliberty, election document,upcoming family synod

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C8 Diocesan Life

June 18 – 12 p.m., Speaker andLuncheon with the Plattsburgh Ro-tary Club at the American Legion Post20 in Plattsburgh

June 20 – 12 p.m., Teacher of the YearAward Luncheon at the Bishop’s Resi-dence in Ogdensburg

June 21 – 1 p.m., Keynote Speaker atImmaculate Heart Central HighSchool in Watertown

June 22 – 9:30 a.m., Mass at St. Au-gustine's Church in Peru

June 23 – 7:15 p.m., Novena andMass at St. Mary's Cathedral

June 24 – 10:50 a.m., Mass at St.Joseph's Home in Ogdensburg

June 25 – 12 p.m., Mass at St. Mary'sCathedral

June 26 – 12 p.m., Mass at St. Mary'sCathedral

June 27 – 9:45 a.m., Episcopal Coun-cil Meeting at the Bishop’s Residencein Ogdensburg

6:30 p.m., Mass at the Women ofGrace Retreat at Wadhams Hall in Og-densburg

June 30 – 10:50 a.m., Mass at St.Joseph's Home in Ogdensburg

July 1 – 4 p.m., Mass at CampGuggenheim in Saranac Lake

Bishop’s Schedule

”Water is a vital element essentialto survival…

Water is not an unlimited resource.Its rational use in solidarity demandsthe collaboration of all people ofgood will with government institu-tions so as to ensure the effectiveprotection of the environment, un-derstood as a gift from God.” St JohnPaul ll.

A current issue in NYS and othersurrounding states is fracking. In spitethe many positive benefits of thisnew method of obtaining naturalgas, i.e., more jobs, source of energy, italso poses some ethical concerns re-garding long range effects on humanhealth, food supplies and safety ofour clean water. One of these ethicalquestions is the amount of freshwater used in the process. Did youknow that hydrofracking uses 2-10million gallons of fresh water perwell? The number of fracking well isgrowing in an exponential rate andalready exists in 28 states.

What can I do?PRAY…. to the Holy Spirit for our

legislators that their decisions maydiscern what is best for the commongood of all.

LEARN… See web pages of :USCCB, NYS Catholic Conference,Catholic Rural Life, Catholic Coalitionon Climate Change.

ACT…. Consider contacting Gov-ernor Cuomo Office requesting an ex-tension of the Moratorium onFracking for 3-5 years to allow moretime to study the irreversible impacton our fresh water supply, and effectson health and environment in ourstate.

Environmental Stewardship

This week marks the anniversary of the deaths of the following

clergymen men who have served in the Diocese of Ogdensburg

June 19 – Rev. Gerard Chouinard,O.M.I., 1955; Deacon David F. Moltz,2011June 20 – Rev. James O’Hara, 1949June 21 - Msgr. Joseph F. Luker, 1972June 23 – Rev. Edward Cheavlier,O.M.I., 1894; Rev. Donat Morrisette,O.M.I., 1976June 24 – Rev. John Simard, 1943;Msgr. Timothy P. Holland, 1948; Rev.Joseph P. Ryan, 1968; Rev. W. CyrilRapin, 2006June 25 – Rev. J. Rodrique Lauzon,1944June 26 – Rev. Jean B. Frigon, O.M.I.,1930; Rev. Arthur St. Cyr, O.M.I., 1957June 27 – Rev. Auguste A. Brunet,O.M.I., 1866; Rev. Francis X. Charbon-neau, 1928June 28 – Rev. John J. Regnery, O.S.A.,1954June 29 – Rev. Pierre Huet de la Valin-iere, 1806; Rev. Adonat L. Dufresne,1940; Rev. Gilbert J. Faucher, 1981;Deacon Francis E. LeRoux, 1996July 1 – Rev. Norbert Callahan, M.S.C.,1909; Rev. William A. O’Connor, 1922;Rev. P. Leon Legault, 1991

Rest in Peace

The next issue of the North Country Catholicwill be dated July 2

NO PAPER NEXT WEEK

If you have a complaint of suspectedmisconduct involving diocesanclergy, religious, employees or volun-teers, contact Victims Assistance Co-ordinator, Terrianne Yanulavich, Adult& Youth Counseling Services ofNorthern New York, PO Box 2446,Plattsburgh, NY, 12901; e-mail: terri-anneyanulavich@yahoo.com Phone:518-483-3261; or Father James Sey-mour, the Episcopal Vicar for Clergyat 315-393-2920 , ext. 1340

To Report Abuse

The Diocese of Ogdensburg hasscheduled sessions for ProtectingGod's Children for Adults.Pre-registration online is required inorder to participate. Participantsmay preregister at www.virtus.orgby selecting the registration buttonand following the directions. All employees and volunteers whoparticipate in church sponsored ac-tivities with minor are required toparticipate in this training. Further information is availablefrom Atonement Sister Ellen Don-ahue, 315-393- 2920, ext. 1440.Upcoming programs:June 24 - 9 a.m., Camp Guggen-heim, Saranac Lake

Protecting God’s Children

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C world/nation 13

By Francis X. Rocca Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Praying forpeace in the Holy Landalongside leaders of long-an-tagonistic nations, PopeFrancis called on God to actwhere human efforts hadfailed, to end what he de-scribed as violence inspiredby the devil. "More than once we have

been on the verge of peace,but the evil one, employing avariety of means, has suc-ceeded in blocking it," thepope said June 8 at anevening ceremony in the Vat-ican Gardens. "That is whywe are here, because weknow and we believe that weneed the help of God." The pope addressed his re-

marks to Israeli PresidentShimon Peres and PalestinianPresident Mahmoud Abbasduring an "invocation forpeace" in the Holy Land, to

which he had invited themduring his visit to the regiontwo weeks earlier.

Praying for peace in the Holy Land alongside leaders of long-antagonistic nations

"I was young, now I am old.I experienced war, I tastedpeace," Peres said in an Eng-lish portion of his statement."Never will I forget the be-reaved families, parents andchildren, who paid the costof war. And all my life I shallnever stop to act for peacefor the generations to come.Let's all of us join hands andmake it happen." According to an official

translation of Abbas' pre-pared Arabic text, the Pales-tinian president said: "Wewant peace for us and for ourneighbors. We seek prosper-ity and peace of mind forourselves and for others

alike." The event, at which Chris-

tians, Muslims and Jewsprayed in each other's pres-ence, was almost certainlythe first of its kind at the Vat-ican, according to Jesuit Fa-ther Federico Lombardi,director of the Holy See PressOffice. Joining the group was Ecu-

menical PatriarchBartholomew of Constan-tinople, whom Father Lom-bardi had described as one ofthe event's "four protago-nists," and Franciscan FatherPierbattista Pizzaballa, cus-tos of the Holy Land and theprincipal coordinator of theevent. The five men rode together

in a white minivan the shortdistance to the site of theceremony, a triangular swathof lawn walled off by tallhedges along two sides. Thesetting had been chosen, ac-cording to Father Lombardi,because of its "neutral" ap-

pearance, lacking in religiousimagery. Pope Francis and the two

presidents sat at the cornerof the triangle where the twohedges met. Along the hedge to to their

left sat what the Vatican de-scribed as "political" mem-bers of the Israeli andPalestinian delegations, in-cluding both nations' ambas-sadors to the Holy See;Christian religious leaders,including PatriarchBartholomew, Greek Ortho-dox Patriarch Theophilos IIIof Jerusalem and PalestinianLutheran Bishop MonibYounan; and musicians whoperformed between prayersduring the ceremony. Along the other hedge sat

various Muslim, Jewish andDruze religious figures, in-cluding Rabbi Abraham Sko-rka and Omar Abboud,longtime friends of the popefrom Buenos Aires and lead-ers respectively in their city's

Jewish and Muslim commu-nities, who accompaniedPope Francis during his visitto the Holy Land. Members of the Palestinian

and Israeli delegations andguests of Pope Francis read aselection of Jewish, Christianand Muslim prayers, in orderof their religions' historicalprecedence. Each set ofprayers praised God for cre-ation, begged forgiveness ofsins and asked for peace inthe Holy Land. At the end of the cere-

mony, which lasted about anhour and 45 minutes, thepope, patriarch and the twopresidents kissed each otheron both cheeks, then took upshovels and added dirt to thebase of a newly planted olivetree. They then spent about 15

minutes speaking privatelyinside the nearby Casina PioIV, a 16th-century villa whichnow houses several pontifi-cal academies.

Pope tells presidents only God can bring peace

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 9

Sister Caroline Fernandes, Provincial of the Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod from Pune, Maharastra, India, made an official visit to theFoundation of the Sisters of the Cross in the Diocese of Ogdensburg May 13. Pictured above are Bishop LaValley, Sister of the CrossJaquiline Mary Sellappan, superior of the Watertown convent; Sister Caroline and Atonement Sister Ellen Donahue, Episcopal Dele-gate for Religious. The Sisters of the Cross will mark the fifth anniversary of their foundation in Watertown in December, 2014.

The Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod currently serving in Watertown are shown above.Pictured front center is Sister Rosy Soosairaj, registered nurse at Samaritan MedicalCenter; back, from left, are Sister Maria Flavia D’Costa, chaplaincy service to SamaritanMedical Center; Sister Maria Angelica Rebello, pastoral associate for Holy FamilyChurch and Sister Jaquiline Mary Sellappan,pastoral associate for St. Anthony’s Church.Sister Caroline Fernandes, provincial, visited all of the ministerial sites in Watertown.

LATHAM, NY - Sister Barbara St.Andrews, a Sister of St.Joseph of Carondelet, has re-cently moved to St. Joseph’sProvincial House. After 28 years

serving in the Og-densburg diocese,Sister Barbara hasretired from activeministry.A native of the

North Country, Sis-ter Barbara was bornin Plattsburgh andraised in Canton, thedaughter of Mar-garet and Neil J. St.Andrews, Sr. She at-tended CantonSchools and The College ofSaint Rose in Albany beforeentering the Sisters of St.Joseph of Carondelet Sept.15, 1957.Before returning to the

Diocese of Ogdensburg, Sis-ter Barbara taught and was aprincipal in elementaryschools in the Albany andSyracuse Dioceses.From 1986-1990 Sister Bar-

bara taught in the LearningSkills Center at Mater DeiCollege in Ogdensburg. She

also taught DevelopmentalEnglish and Speech 101 atthe Ogdensburg CorrectionalCenter.Sister Barbara served as

the Reading, Writing,Lab Coordinator atSUNY Canton from1990 to 1995 and,from 1995 to 2012,she was a counselor inthe Equal OpportunityProgram (EOP) whereshe worked with fi-nancial & academicneedy students to pre-pare them for collegelevel courses.After retirement

from SUNY Canton inMay 2012, Sister Barbaraheld the position of PastoralCare Coordinator at St.Joseph’s Nursing Home, Og-densburg, from July 2012 toFeb. 2014.During her years in the

North Country, Sister Barbarawas a Delegate on the Dioce-san Council of Religious Lifeand served a number ofyears as secretary. She alsochaired the Diocesan Reli-gious Jubilee Celebration forfive years

Sister Barbara’s love ofmusic led her to join Og-densburg’s Communitysinging group “Showtime”.For many years she could beseen at the OFA auditoriumperforming with the chorus,in skits, singing duets and

solos. She joined Pro-Musica for

the 2013 Christmas Concert.From 1990 to 2012, Sister

Barbara was a member of St.Raphael’s parish in Heuvel-ton. She was a lector, Eu-charistic minister and

co-chaired many sessions ofevangelization topic shar-ings. Her new address is: Sister

Barbara St. Andrews, CSJ, St.Joseph’s Provincial House,385 Watervliet Shaker Rd,Latham, NY 12110

SISTERS OF THE CROSS OF CHAVANOD WELCOME PROVINCIAL

Sister BarbaraSt. Andrews, CSJ

CSJ presence in the diocese comes to an end

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C12 called to serve

North Country deacons gather for convocationBy Deacon Kevin MastellonStaff Writer

LAKE PLACID- The first mencalled to the restored orderof Permanent Deacon in theDiocese of Ogdensburg wereordained Oct. 4, 1980 byBishop Stanislaus J. Brzana.Since then well over 100

men, most of them marriedand engaged in employmentoutside the Church, havebeen called to serve the peo-ple of God as deacons Withministries of service, liturgyand proclaiming the GoodNews of Jesus Christ.This June Bishop Terry R.

LaValley invited the deaconsof the diocese to assemble

with their wives for a confer-ence with him. It marked the first time this

deacon community has beencalled by the Bishop of Og-densburg to such a gather-ing.The assembly, entitled

Deacons: Living the Vision,focused on the current stateof the diaconate, the uniqueopportunities and stresses ofthe men and women affectedby the call, and the role ofthe deacon in living the vi-sion for the diocese outlinedby Bishop LaValley at theChrism Mass in April.Bishop LaValley delivered

the opening address to over100 participants. He held pri-vate discussions with thedeacons and separately withthe wives. Those closed doormeetings allowed for an ex-change of views related tothe responsibilities of dea-cons (and wives) to theirfamilies, spouses and the

parishes or other entitiesthey serve. The gathering also in-

cluded practical workshopsfor the deacons in liturgyand canon law. Father Dou-glas J. Lucia, J.C.L.,conductedthem. Father Lucia is theEpiscopal Vicar for Worshipfor the Diocese and alsoserves on the MatrimonialTribunal. Each deacon participant re-

ceived a copy of a new publi-cation of the Department ofWorship detailing the dutiesand responsibilities of dea-cons at various liturgical cel-ebrations, including theMass. This marks the firstcompilation for priests anddeacons of the diocese of thefunction of deacons atliturgy. Copies will be madeavailable to pastors in thenear future.The wives were led in their

workshops by Sister MiriamNajimy, a Daughter of the

Heart of Mary. A marriedcandidate for the diaconatecannot be ordained withoutthe expressed approval ofhis wife. Sister Miriam re-minded the deacon spousesof that gift to their husbands.She encouraged the wives

to continue to support theirdeacon husbands in theirministry. She likened thedeacon wife’s expression oflove and support of her dea-con husband to that of Maryof Nazareth. Mary gave her-self when God called. Marywas “the living will of Godthrough whom Jesus cameinto the world,” Sister Miriamsaid. The deacon candidate’swife is asked by God to shareher husband. Like Mary ofNazareth’s decision, the an-swer to follow the will of Godis an act of love and faith. The Assembly was held at

the Crowne Plaza Hotel andResort in Lake Placid. BishopLaValley and his staff, FatherJames Seymour, Vicar forClergy and the St. LawrenceSociety of Deacons of theDiocese of Ogdensburg wereinvolved in planning theevent.

PHOTO BY MARY LOU KILIANMembers of the committee organizing the deacon gathering included Deacons MarkBennett of Plattsburgh, Kevin Mastellon of Watertown and Gary Frank of Clayton.

PHOTO BY DEACON KEVIN MASTELLONBishop LaValley opened the June 3-4 diocesan convocation for deacons with an address during which he asked for their support forthe diocesan vision he outlined at this year’s Chrism Mass.

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N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C10 called to serve

By Deacon Richard Van KirkDeacon, St. Raphael’s Church, Heuvelton

I wanted to do somethingdifferent for Lent this yearand decided to take AuntKitty up on her longstand-ing invitation to visitTurkey; and besides, she iswell into her eighties and re-cently underwent lung can-cer surgery. She wouldbenefit from the prayersand seeing family from theStates. Her daughter (our cousin)

Jennifer lives in the countrybetween Izmir (Smyrna) andEphesus with her husbandAyhan and daughter Lara.They recently bought athree bedroom multi-levelhome in a gated communityminutes from the AegeanSea and enthusiastically in-vited Linda and me to visitand explore the neighboringancient biblical sites. My Wife Linda chose to

stay home on the Ranch thistime, and to “sit this oneout,” providing I return witha large supply of Turkishpistachio nuts!Ayhan met me at the

newly remodeled Izmir air-port and took me into thecity to pick up Jennifer andLara at their elite privateschool. Jennifer is an Eng-lish teacher; her daughter isin 8th grade. Jennifer andLara have been commutingto Turkey’s third largest citysince moving to their newhome.

I spent most of my timetraveling with Ayhan. Hehelped to immerse me inTurkish culture throughoutmy journey and to teach mebasic language.According to tradition, St.

John took the Blessed

Mother Mary and came toEphesus. He wrote hisGospel in or near Ephesusand the Revelation in Pat-mos in 96AD. He died in thechurch named for him onAyasuluk Hill. John's grave was marked

by a memorial and enclosedby a smaller church in the4th century. Two hundred years later,

Emperor Justinian believedthat a tomb dating from the300s was John's, so he builtthe basilica on the site dedi-cated to the saint.

The basilica erected byEmperor Justinian was oneof the largest and most im-portant churches in Chris-tendom. Designed in theshape of a cross with a six-domed roof, it sits on Aya-suluk Hill overlooking thetown of Selcuk and sur-rounding valley. Legends abound about the

place: that it held the relicsof St. John’s cloak made bythe Theotokos; the originalBook of Revelation was keptthere; and a piece of theCross that hung around St.John’s neck. They were lostwhen the Basilica was rav-aged by the Ottomans in the14th century and convertedto a mosque. The building was com-

pletely destroyed in 1402by Mongols and subsequentearthquake activity. There was a cool breeze

coming up from the valleywhen we arrived at theBasilica. We were one of thefirst to arrive that morningand I was happy to have theplace to myself. With everything missing

and destroyed, there is noevidence to suggest the re-mains of the Apostle weretouched. No other siteclaims the body of the saint.St. John must still be there,encased under what wasonce a magnificent altar. I made my way to the arch

behind the marble floorwith the simple sign notingthe burial place of St. John. I

sat on a brick seat in thenave behind the altar, in aplace I would stand as dea-con serving Mass. “In the be-ginning was the Word, andthe Word was with God, andthe Word was God.” I tried comparing the mo-

ment with the one I had atSt. Peter’s tomb. “Little chil-dren, love one another.There is no greater com-mandment than this, thatyou love one another.” A Turk sat nearby and of-

fered to give us a tour. Jen-nifer spoke with him andinterpreted. I followed themas the man spoke to Jen-nifer about the various in-terests of the Basilica: thebaptistery, an ancientprayer room, a large stonewith the architect’s name onit, and another large stonewith the emperor and hiswife’s names engraved. Iwas happy not to listen. A wall of very large stones

framed a marble doorway.On one of the stones, about12 feet high, there werecrude inscriptions, as ifscratched with a nail orchisel, Greek symbols lyingsideways. I thought it wasancient graffiti and I askedthe guide who said, “Chris-tianity will be forever.” In the ruins of a once

mighty Church of God, withmassive stones lying aboutlike pebbles, in a placewhere Christianity was notmore than a byword: Chris-tianity will be forever.

Deacon Richard Van Kirk of St. Raphael’s Parish in Heuvelton spent time during Lentvisiting family members living in Turkey. Among his stops sas in Ismir, site of St.JohnCathedral. He is shown above at the entrance.

This picture was taken at the Basilica of St John in Turkey. “The tau is the sign of theCross; it has always been a symbol of Christianity. The phi has an eternal understand-ing. The Church will be forever,” said Deacon Van Kirk.

Deacon observes Lent... Turkish style

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 11J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4

N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C10 called to serve

By Deacon Richard Van KirkDeacon, St. Raphael’s Church, Heuvelton

I wanted to do somethingdifferent for Lent this yearand decided to take AuntKitty up on her longstand-ing invitation to visitTurkey; and besides, she iswell into her eighties and re-cently underwent lung can-cer surgery. She wouldbenefit from the prayersand seeing family from theStates. Her daughter (our cousin)

Jennifer lives in the countrybetween Izmir (Smyrna) andEphesus with her husbandAyhan and daughter Lara.They recently bought athree bedroom multi-levelhome in a gated communityminutes from the AegeanSea and enthusiastically in-vited Linda and me to visitand explore the neighboringancient biblical sites. My Wife Linda chose to

stay home on the Ranch thistime, and to “sit this oneout,” providing I return witha large supply of Turkishpistachio nuts!Ayhan met me at the

newly remodeled Izmir air-port and took me into thecity to pick up Jennifer andLara at their elite privateschool. Jennifer is an Eng-lish teacher; her daughter isin 8th grade. Jennifer andLara have been commutingto Turkey’s third largest citysince moving to their newhome.

I spent most of my timetraveling with Ayhan. Hehelped to immerse me inTurkish culture throughoutmy journey and to teach mebasic language.According to tradition, St.

John took the Blessed

Mother Mary and came toEphesus. He wrote hisGospel in or near Ephesusand the Revelation in Pat-mos in 96AD. He died in thechurch named for him onAyasuluk Hill. John's grave was marked

by a memorial and enclosedby a smaller church in the4th century. Two hundred years later,

Emperor Justinian believedthat a tomb dating from the300s was John's, so he builtthe basilica on the site dedi-cated to the saint.

The basilica erected byEmperor Justinian was oneof the largest and most im-portant churches in Chris-tendom. Designed in theshape of a cross with a six-domed roof, it sits on Aya-suluk Hill overlooking thetown of Selcuk and sur-rounding valley. Legends abound about the

place: that it held the relicsof St. John’s cloak made bythe Theotokos; the originalBook of Revelation was keptthere; and a piece of theCross that hung around St.John’s neck. They were lostwhen the Basilica was rav-aged by the Ottomans in the14th century and convertedto a mosque. The building was com-

pletely destroyed in 1402by Mongols and subsequentearthquake activity. There was a cool breeze

coming up from the valleywhen we arrived at theBasilica. We were one of thefirst to arrive that morningand I was happy to have theplace to myself. With everything missing

and destroyed, there is noevidence to suggest the re-mains of the Apostle weretouched. No other siteclaims the body of the saint.St. John must still be there,encased under what wasonce a magnificent altar. I made my way to the arch

behind the marble floorwith the simple sign notingthe burial place of St. John. I

sat on a brick seat in thenave behind the altar, in aplace I would stand as dea-con serving Mass. “In the be-ginning was the Word, andthe Word was with God, andthe Word was God.” I tried comparing the mo-

ment with the one I had atSt. Peter’s tomb. “Little chil-dren, love one another.There is no greater com-mandment than this, thatyou love one another.” A Turk sat nearby and of-

fered to give us a tour. Jen-nifer spoke with him andinterpreted. I followed themas the man spoke to Jen-nifer about the various in-terests of the Basilica: thebaptistery, an ancientprayer room, a large stonewith the architect’s name onit, and another large stonewith the emperor and hiswife’s names engraved. Iwas happy not to listen. A wall of very large stones

framed a marble doorway.On one of the stones, about12 feet high, there werecrude inscriptions, as ifscratched with a nail orchisel, Greek symbols lyingsideways. I thought it wasancient graffiti and I askedthe guide who said, “Chris-tianity will be forever.” In the ruins of a once

mighty Church of God, withmassive stones lying aboutlike pebbles, in a placewhere Christianity was notmore than a byword: Chris-tianity will be forever.

Deacon Richard Van Kirk of St. Raphael’s Parish in Heuvelton spent time during Lentvisiting family members living in Turkey. Among his stops sas in Ismir, site of St.JohnCathedral. He is shown above at the entrance.

This picture was taken at the Basilica of St John in Turkey. “The tau is the sign of theCross; it has always been a symbol of Christianity. The phi has an eternal understand-ing. The Church will be forever,” said Deacon Van Kirk.

Deacon observes Lent... Turkish style

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 9

Sister Caroline Fernandes, Provincial of the Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod from Pune, Maharastra, India, made an official visit to theFoundation of the Sisters of the Cross in the Diocese of Ogdensburg May 13. Pictured above are Bishop LaValley, Sister of the CrossJaquiline Mary Sellappan, superior of the Watertown convent; Sister Caroline and Atonement Sister Ellen Donahue, Episcopal Dele-gate for Religious. The Sisters of the Cross will mark the fifth anniversary of their foundation in Watertown in December, 2014.

The Sisters of the Cross of Chavanod currently serving in Watertown are shown above.Pictured front center is Sister Rosy Soosairaj, registered nurse at Samaritan MedicalCenter; back, from left, are Sister Maria Flavia D’Costa, chaplaincy service to SamaritanMedical Center; Sister Maria Angelica Rebello, pastoral associate for Holy FamilyChurch and Sister Jaquiline Mary Sellappan,pastoral associate for St. Anthony’s Church.Sister Caroline Fernandes, provincial, visited all of the ministerial sites in Watertown.

LATHAM, NY - Sister Barbara St.Andrews, a Sister of St.Joseph of Carondelet, has re-cently moved to St. Joseph’sProvincial House. After 28 years

serving in the Og-densburg diocese,Sister Barbara hasretired from activeministry.A native of the

North Country, Sis-ter Barbara was bornin Plattsburgh andraised in Canton, thedaughter of Mar-garet and Neil J. St.Andrews, Sr. She at-tended CantonSchools and The College ofSaint Rose in Albany beforeentering the Sisters of St.Joseph of Carondelet Sept.15, 1957.Before returning to the

Diocese of Ogdensburg, Sis-ter Barbara taught and was aprincipal in elementaryschools in the Albany andSyracuse Dioceses.From 1986-1990 Sister Bar-

bara taught in the LearningSkills Center at Mater DeiCollege in Ogdensburg. She

also taught DevelopmentalEnglish and Speech 101 atthe Ogdensburg CorrectionalCenter.Sister Barbara served as

the Reading, Writing,Lab Coordinator atSUNY Canton from1990 to 1995 and,from 1995 to 2012,she was a counselor inthe Equal OpportunityProgram (EOP) whereshe worked with fi-nancial & academicneedy students to pre-pare them for collegelevel courses.After retirement

from SUNY Canton inMay 2012, Sister Barbaraheld the position of PastoralCare Coordinator at St.Joseph’s Nursing Home, Og-densburg, from July 2012 toFeb. 2014.During her years in the

North Country, Sister Barbarawas a Delegate on the Dioce-san Council of Religious Lifeand served a number ofyears as secretary. She alsochaired the Diocesan Reli-gious Jubilee Celebration forfive years

Sister Barbara’s love ofmusic led her to join Og-densburg’s Communitysinging group “Showtime”.For many years she could beseen at the OFA auditoriumperforming with the chorus,in skits, singing duets and

solos. She joined Pro-Musica for

the 2013 Christmas Concert.From 1990 to 2012, Sister

Barbara was a member of St.Raphael’s parish in Heuvel-ton. She was a lector, Eu-charistic minister and

co-chaired many sessions ofevangelization topic shar-ings. Her new address is: Sister

Barbara St. Andrews, CSJ, St.Joseph’s Provincial House,385 Watervliet Shaker Rd,Latham, NY 12110

SISTERS OF THE CROSS OF CHAVANOD WELCOME PROVINCIAL

Sister BarbaraSt. Andrews, CSJ

CSJ presence in the diocese comes to an end

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C12 called to serve

North Country deacons gather for convocationBy Deacon Kevin MastellonStaff Writer

LAKE PLACID- The first mencalled to the restored orderof Permanent Deacon in theDiocese of Ogdensburg wereordained Oct. 4, 1980 byBishop Stanislaus J. Brzana.Since then well over 100

men, most of them marriedand engaged in employmentoutside the Church, havebeen called to serve the peo-ple of God as deacons Withministries of service, liturgyand proclaiming the GoodNews of Jesus Christ.This June Bishop Terry R.

LaValley invited the deaconsof the diocese to assemble

with their wives for a confer-ence with him. It marked the first time this

deacon community has beencalled by the Bishop of Og-densburg to such a gather-ing.The assembly, entitled

Deacons: Living the Vision,focused on the current stateof the diaconate, the uniqueopportunities and stresses ofthe men and women affectedby the call, and the role ofthe deacon in living the vi-sion for the diocese outlinedby Bishop LaValley at theChrism Mass in April.Bishop LaValley delivered

the opening address to over100 participants. He held pri-vate discussions with thedeacons and separately withthe wives. Those closed doormeetings allowed for an ex-change of views related tothe responsibilities of dea-cons (and wives) to theirfamilies, spouses and the

parishes or other entitiesthey serve. The gathering also in-

cluded practical workshopsfor the deacons in liturgyand canon law. Father Dou-glas J. Lucia, J.C.L.,conductedthem. Father Lucia is theEpiscopal Vicar for Worshipfor the Diocese and alsoserves on the MatrimonialTribunal. Each deacon participant re-

ceived a copy of a new publi-cation of the Department ofWorship detailing the dutiesand responsibilities of dea-cons at various liturgical cel-ebrations, including theMass. This marks the firstcompilation for priests anddeacons of the diocese of thefunction of deacons atliturgy. Copies will be madeavailable to pastors in thenear future.The wives were led in their

workshops by Sister MiriamNajimy, a Daughter of the

Heart of Mary. A marriedcandidate for the diaconatecannot be ordained withoutthe expressed approval ofhis wife. Sister Miriam re-minded the deacon spousesof that gift to their husbands.She encouraged the wives

to continue to support theirdeacon husbands in theirministry. She likened thedeacon wife’s expression oflove and support of her dea-con husband to that of Maryof Nazareth. Mary gave her-self when God called. Marywas “the living will of Godthrough whom Jesus cameinto the world,” Sister Miriamsaid. The deacon candidate’swife is asked by God to shareher husband. Like Mary ofNazareth’s decision, the an-swer to follow the will of Godis an act of love and faith. The Assembly was held at

the Crowne Plaza Hotel andResort in Lake Placid. BishopLaValley and his staff, FatherJames Seymour, Vicar forClergy and the St. LawrenceSociety of Deacons of theDiocese of Ogdensburg wereinvolved in planning theevent.

PHOTO BY MARY LOU KILIANMembers of the committee organizing the deacon gathering included Deacons MarkBennett of Plattsburgh, Kevin Mastellon of Watertown and Gary Frank of Clayton.

PHOTO BY DEACON KEVIN MASTELLONBishop LaValley opened the June 3-4 diocesan convocation for deacons with an address during which he asked for their support forthe diocesan vision he outlined at this year’s Chrism Mass.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C8 Diocesan Life

June 18 – 12 p.m., Speaker andLuncheon with the Plattsburgh Ro-tary Club at the American Legion Post20 in Plattsburgh

June 20 – 12 p.m., Teacher of the YearAward Luncheon at the Bishop’s Resi-dence in Ogdensburg

June 21 – 1 p.m., Keynote Speaker atImmaculate Heart Central HighSchool in Watertown

June 22 – 9:30 a.m., Mass at St. Au-gustine's Church in Peru

June 23 – 7:15 p.m., Novena andMass at St. Mary's Cathedral

June 24 – 10:50 a.m., Mass at St.Joseph's Home in Ogdensburg

June 25 – 12 p.m., Mass at St. Mary'sCathedral

June 26 – 12 p.m., Mass at St. Mary'sCathedral

June 27 – 9:45 a.m., Episcopal Coun-cil Meeting at the Bishop’s Residencein Ogdensburg

6:30 p.m., Mass at the Women ofGrace Retreat at Wadhams Hall in Og-densburg

June 30 – 10:50 a.m., Mass at St.Joseph's Home in Ogdensburg

July 1 – 4 p.m., Mass at CampGuggenheim in Saranac Lake

Bishop’s Schedule

”Water is a vital element essentialto survival…

Water is not an unlimited resource.Its rational use in solidarity demandsthe collaboration of all people ofgood will with government institu-tions so as to ensure the effectiveprotection of the environment, un-derstood as a gift from God.” St JohnPaul ll.

A current issue in NYS and othersurrounding states is fracking. In spitethe many positive benefits of thisnew method of obtaining naturalgas, i.e., more jobs, source of energy, italso poses some ethical concerns re-garding long range effects on humanhealth, food supplies and safety ofour clean water. One of these ethicalquestions is the amount of freshwater used in the process. Did youknow that hydrofracking uses 2-10million gallons of fresh water perwell? The number of fracking well isgrowing in an exponential rate andalready exists in 28 states.

What can I do?PRAY…. to the Holy Spirit for our

legislators that their decisions maydiscern what is best for the commongood of all.

LEARN… See web pages of :USCCB, NYS Catholic Conference,Catholic Rural Life, Catholic Coalitionon Climate Change.

ACT…. Consider contacting Gov-ernor Cuomo Office requesting an ex-tension of the Moratorium onFracking for 3-5 years to allow moretime to study the irreversible impacton our fresh water supply, and effectson health and environment in ourstate.

Environmental Stewardship

This week marks the anniversary of the deaths of the following

clergymen men who have served in the Diocese of Ogdensburg

June 19 – Rev. Gerard Chouinard,O.M.I., 1955; Deacon David F. Moltz,2011June 20 – Rev. James O’Hara, 1949June 21 - Msgr. Joseph F. Luker, 1972June 23 – Rev. Edward Cheavlier,O.M.I., 1894; Rev. Donat Morrisette,O.M.I., 1976June 24 – Rev. John Simard, 1943;Msgr. Timothy P. Holland, 1948; Rev.Joseph P. Ryan, 1968; Rev. W. CyrilRapin, 2006June 25 – Rev. J. Rodrique Lauzon,1944June 26 – Rev. Jean B. Frigon, O.M.I.,1930; Rev. Arthur St. Cyr, O.M.I., 1957June 27 – Rev. Auguste A. Brunet,O.M.I., 1866; Rev. Francis X. Charbon-neau, 1928June 28 – Rev. John J. Regnery, O.S.A.,1954June 29 – Rev. Pierre Huet de la Valin-iere, 1806; Rev. Adonat L. Dufresne,1940; Rev. Gilbert J. Faucher, 1981;Deacon Francis E. LeRoux, 1996July 1 – Rev. Norbert Callahan, M.S.C.,1909; Rev. William A. O’Connor, 1922;Rev. P. Leon Legault, 1991

Rest in Peace

The next issue of the North Country Catholicwill be dated July 2

NO PAPER NEXT WEEK

If you have a complaint of suspectedmisconduct involving diocesanclergy, religious, employees or volun-teers, contact Victims Assistance Co-ordinator, Terrianne Yanulavich, Adult& Youth Counseling Services ofNorthern New York, PO Box 2446,Plattsburgh, NY, 12901; e-mail: terri-anneyanulavich@yahoo.com Phone:518-483-3261; or Father James Sey-mour, the Episcopal Vicar for Clergyat 315-393-2920 , ext. 1340

To Report Abuse

The Diocese of Ogdensburg hasscheduled sessions for ProtectingGod's Children for Adults.Pre-registration online is required inorder to participate. Participantsmay preregister at www.virtus.orgby selecting the registration buttonand following the directions. All employees and volunteers whoparticipate in church sponsored ac-tivities with minor are required toparticipate in this training. Further information is availablefrom Atonement Sister Ellen Don-ahue, 315-393- 2920, ext. 1440.Upcoming programs:June 24 - 9 a.m., Camp Guggen-heim, Saranac Lake

Protecting God’s Children

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C world/nation 13

By Francis X. Rocca Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) - Praying forpeace in the Holy Landalongside leaders of long-an-tagonistic nations, PopeFrancis called on God to actwhere human efforts hadfailed, to end what he de-scribed as violence inspiredby the devil. "More than once we have

been on the verge of peace,but the evil one, employing avariety of means, has suc-ceeded in blocking it," thepope said June 8 at anevening ceremony in the Vat-ican Gardens. "That is whywe are here, because weknow and we believe that weneed the help of God." The pope addressed his re-

marks to Israeli PresidentShimon Peres and PalestinianPresident Mahmoud Abbasduring an "invocation forpeace" in the Holy Land, to

which he had invited themduring his visit to the regiontwo weeks earlier.

Praying for peace in the Holy Land alongside leaders of long-antagonistic nations

"I was young, now I am old.I experienced war, I tastedpeace," Peres said in an Eng-lish portion of his statement."Never will I forget the be-reaved families, parents andchildren, who paid the costof war. And all my life I shallnever stop to act for peacefor the generations to come.Let's all of us join hands andmake it happen." According to an official

translation of Abbas' pre-pared Arabic text, the Pales-tinian president said: "Wewant peace for us and for ourneighbors. We seek prosper-ity and peace of mind forourselves and for others

alike." The event, at which Chris-

tians, Muslims and Jewsprayed in each other's pres-ence, was almost certainlythe first of its kind at the Vat-ican, according to Jesuit Fa-ther Federico Lombardi,director of the Holy See PressOffice. Joining the group was Ecu-

menical PatriarchBartholomew of Constan-tinople, whom Father Lom-bardi had described as one ofthe event's "four protago-nists," and Franciscan FatherPierbattista Pizzaballa, cus-tos of the Holy Land and theprincipal coordinator of theevent. The five men rode together

in a white minivan the shortdistance to the site of theceremony, a triangular swathof lawn walled off by tallhedges along two sides. Thesetting had been chosen, ac-cording to Father Lombardi,because of its "neutral" ap-

pearance, lacking in religiousimagery. Pope Francis and the two

presidents sat at the cornerof the triangle where the twohedges met. Along the hedge to to their

left sat what the Vatican de-scribed as "political" mem-bers of the Israeli andPalestinian delegations, in-cluding both nations' ambas-sadors to the Holy See;Christian religious leaders,including PatriarchBartholomew, Greek Ortho-dox Patriarch Theophilos IIIof Jerusalem and PalestinianLutheran Bishop MonibYounan; and musicians whoperformed between prayersduring the ceremony. Along the other hedge sat

various Muslim, Jewish andDruze religious figures, in-cluding Rabbi Abraham Sko-rka and Omar Abboud,longtime friends of the popefrom Buenos Aires and lead-ers respectively in their city's

Jewish and Muslim commu-nities, who accompaniedPope Francis during his visitto the Holy Land. Members of the Palestinian

and Israeli delegations andguests of Pope Francis read aselection of Jewish, Christianand Muslim prayers, in orderof their religions' historicalprecedence. Each set ofprayers praised God for cre-ation, begged forgiveness ofsins and asked for peace inthe Holy Land. At the end of the cere-

mony, which lasted about anhour and 45 minutes, thepope, patriarch and the twopresidents kissed each otheron both cheeks, then took upshovels and added dirt to thebase of a newly planted olivetree. They then spent about 15

minutes speaking privatelyinside the nearby Casina PioIV, a 16th-century villa whichnow houses several pontifi-cal academies.

Pope tells presidents only God can bring peace

By Fr. Vincent T. Freeh, MSC Religious Superior

WATERTOWN - On June 1, 2014,the patronal feast of OurLady of the Sacred HeartParish in Watertown becamethe occasion for the openingof a series of celebrationsmarking the 75th anniver-sary of the establishment ofthe Canadian and UnitedStates communities of theMissionaries of the SacredHeart (MSC) as provinces intheir own right. The threat of war in 1939

added urgency to the trans-fer of governance from theEuropean provinces ofFrance and Germany to theoffshoot communities theyhad formed respectively inCanada and the UnitedStates. In both cases, themove proved to be a spur togrowth. By the summer of1939, when the actualchange in governance tookplace, MSC priests and broth-ers had been active in Water-town and its environs formore than 60 years.It all began in 1875 with

Father Jean-Baptiste Chap-pel, MSC, who moved toThompson Street, ministeredto the French Catholic com-munity in the city and be-came pastor of St. Mary’sparish in nearby Evans Mills. Father Joseph Durin, MSC,

and two seminarians arrivedfrom France in 1876, formingthe first MSC communityoutside of Europe—secondonly to one other communitylocated in France itself! By 1878, Father Durin had

established Our Lady of theSacred Heart Parish. Twoyears later he was able toprevail upon the bishop topermit three Sisters of St.Joseph from Buffalo to opena school in the parish. The Sisters arrived in early

1881, destined to bringCatholic education toparishes throughout the en-tire Diocese of Ogdensburg.Shortly after the turn of thecentury, Father StephenRoyet, MSC , had seen to theconstruction of the impres-sive Gothic style church thatstood on the corner of

Thompson and West LyndeStreets. Before returning to France

in 1910, he had also openedSt. Anthony’s chapel on Arse-nal Street to serve the Italiancommunity.

A series of celebrations markingthe 75th anniversary of the

establishment of the Canadianand US communities of the

Missionaries of the Sacred Heartas provinces in their own right began June 1

As the ethnic compositionOur Lady of the Sacred Heartbecame more diverse, BishopJoseph H. Conroy, on March1, 1925, designated theparish as territorial andtherefore mandated to carefor all non-Italian Catholicsin the city north of the BlackRiver. By this time, the newgrade school, built in 1923,had expanded to includegrades seven and eight. In many ways, the change-

over from European to localleadership did little to alterthe everyday life and min-istries of the Watertown MSC.Its influence was felt mostlyin increased participation inthe growth and mission of

the province as a whole. This broader sense of pur-

pose countered the other-wise natural tendencies tolimit attention to parochialaffairs, thereby serving toenlarge parishioners’ globalvision which has now be-come an outstanding charac-teristic of MSC friends andbenefactors in the NorthCountry. Evidence of this perspec-

tive is exemplified in thelaity-led Sacred Heart Foun-dation which contributes tothe education and formationof MSC brothers and priestsin the United States and inmany parts of the world.This year, drawing on invest-ments that now exceed $2.5million, the Foundation wasable to award scholarships tostudents in Colombia, Brazil,Cameroon, Dominican Re-public, Fiji, India, Indonesia,Korea, Papua New Guineaand the Philippines.The opening celebration of

the anniversary was led byFather Jonas Tandayu, MSC,pastor of Our Lady of the Sa-cred Heart, whose purposewas to let parishioners knowthat this particular Mariandevotion has special signifi-cance not only for vowed re-ligious but for all the faithful.The chief reason for this

value is found in the culturaldominance of secular materi-alism. In the words of PopeJohn Paul II, “We are nowstanding in the face of thegreatest historical confronta-tion humanity has ever expe-rienced.” As homilist for the Mass,

Father Vincent T. Freeh, MSC,religious superior of the Wa-tertown MSC community,spoke of how relationshipsformed Mary’s identity asOur Lady of the Sacred Heartand how this same dynamicof friendship shapes theidentity of every person. By seeing and entering into

Mary’s relationship with Fa-ther, Son and Holy Spirit, aperson can acquire a livelyChristian sense of identityand purpose, while comingto experience a more inti-mate, meaningful relation-ship with the Triune God, hesaid.The US Province of the Mis-

sionaries of the Sacred Heartis sponsoring an anniversaryraffle featuring a trip for twoto Italy with a six-night stayat MSC International Head-quarters on the Via Asmarain Rome including a general

audience with Pope Francis.Special events for the

months ahead in Watertowninclude a Mass of thanksgiv-ing for parishioners, bene-factors and friends with theFather Mark McDonald, MSC,Superior General, as cele-brant, followed by dinnerand a program honoring thelate Missionary of the SacredHeart Father Benoit Dostie.Also planned is a reunion

of and recognition for allMSC brothers and priestswho have served in mainte-nance, parish ministry, edu-cation or chaplaincies in theDiocese of Ogdensburg. The annual Sacred Heart

Foundation Dinner, andother events highlightingcontributions made by otherreligious, by lay MSC and byindividual members of thecommunity Will be held witha view to give praise andthanksgiving to God and toexpress thanks to collabora-tors, friends and benefactorswho both support and takepart in achieving the goalsenvisioned by Father JulesChevalier, founder of theMissionaries of the SacredHeart.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 7

Missionaries of the Sacred Heart: 75 years!J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4

N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C14 World/nation

AT A GLANCE

CATHOLICWORLDPope internationalizes Vatican financial watchdog agency VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis named a slate of new members to the Vati-can's financial watchdog agency, replacing an all-Italian panel with membersfrom Italy, Switzerland, Singapore and the United States. Cardinal Pietro Parolin,Vatican secretary of state, also promoted Tommaso Di Ruzza, an Italian, to be theagency's "ad interim" vice-director. A former official at the Pontifical Council forJustice and Peace, Di Ruzza had been an assistant at the financial authority,which is directed by Rene Brulhart. The Vatican made the announcements June 5.Pope Benedict XVI established the Financial Intelligence Authority in late 2010 tomonitor Vatican financial operations and ensure they met international normsagainst money laundering and the financing of terrorism. In November 2013,Pope Francis revised the agency's statutes. He clarified the roles of the authority'spresident, board of directors and director, and specified that it would have twoseparate offices: one concerned with supervision and regulation, the other withfinancial intelligence. New finance laws passed in October formally expanded thecompetence of the Financial Intelligence Authority by including the task of "pre-ventive" vigilance, which involves ensuring the proper organization and trust-worthiness of all Vatican financial operations.

Christians among 500,000 fleeing Mosul after Islamist forces seize city BEIRUT (CNS) -- Church leaders in northern Iraq struggled to find shelter forChristians who were among hundreds of thousands who fled Mosul, the coun-try's second-largest city, after Islamist forces took over much of the town, aChaldean Catholic archbishop said. Christians began fleeing early June 9, Arch-bishop Amel Shamon Nona of Mosul told Catholic News Service in an email. "Thesoldiers and all policemen left the city," seemingly abandoning the people, Arch-bishop Nona wrote. He called the situation a tragedy. "And we started organiz-ing, working all through the night, to find a place for them (the people who hadfled Mosul) in nearby villages," the archbishop said. News reports said severalhundred heavily armed members of the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraqand the Levant occupied government facilities, broadcast stations and banks asthey worked their way through the city. The BBC reported that up to 500,000people left Mosul as the ISIL forces occupied the city. Many headed to threetowns in Kurdistan in northern Iraq, where temporary camps were established.

Pope to traffickers, arms manufacturers: God's judgment will come VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Francis denounced those responsible for human traf-ficking, slave labor and arms manufacturing, saying people producing weaponsof war are "merchants of death. One day everything comes to an end and theywill be held accountable to God," the pope said at his weekly general audienceJune 11. The pope also launched an appeal to the international community tohelp safeguard children from forced labor, highlighting the plight of an esti-mated 160 million child workers worldwide. Holding up a bright red leaflet,which had, in Italian, "All together against child labor" written on it, the popeasked the world community to help "eradicate this scourge." The leaflet was partof the International Labor Organization's #RedCard campaign, urging people to"blow the whistle," like a referee on a soccer field, and give a "red card" to thoseexploiting children. Speaking at the end of his audience talk, the pope said June12 was World Day Against Child Labor -- a day meant to call attention to the mil-lions of children forced to work in degrading conditions, "exposed to forms ofslavery and exploitation, as well as abuse, maltreatment and discrimination."

By Carol Zimmermann Catholic News Service

NEW ORLEANS (CNS) - During theirJune 11-13 spring general as-sembly in New Orleans, thenation's Catholic bishopsvoted to extend their Ad HocCommittee on Religious Lib-erty and to approve work ona limited revision of theirquadrennial documentaimed at guiding Catholics inelection decisions. They also were urged to

promote and supportCatholic families by payingclose attention to the upcom-ing synod on the family atthe Vatican and to promotethe World Meeting of Fami-lies to be held next year inPhiladelphia. The bishops heard about

the progress made and thework that still needs to bedone on efforts to protectchildren from sexual abuse.They received a report abouttheir aid to typhoon victimsin the Philippines and wereadvised about the workbeing done to make sure re-ligious educational materialsconform to the Catechism ofthe Catholic Church. The public sessions of the

meetings took place June 11and the morning of June 12before the bishops went intoexecutive session. "It is always a great joy for

us to be together," Arch-bishop Carlo Maria Vigano,apostolic nuncio to theUnited States, told the bish-ops at the start of their meet-ing. There is "unity andstrength from the Holy Spiritwhen you gather as onechurch," he added. The nuncio emphasized

the need to be in solidaritynot only with each other butalso with Catholic leadersand the faith community inthe Iraqi city of Mosul, whereChristians were among thehundreds of thousands ofpeople who began fleeing

June 9 after Islamist forcestook over much of the city. Prior to the vote on a three-

year extension of the Ad HocCommittee on Religious Lib-erty, Baltimore ArchbishopWilliam E. Lori, its chairman,compared the body's work tothe "humble beginnings ofthe pro-life movement." The ad hoc committee was

formed in 2011 and the"need for its sustained workis at least as great as when itstarted," he told the bishops. Several bishops said they

appreciated the materials thecommittee provided themand their dioceses and feltthe work was important. Another item the bishops

unanimously approved was alimited revision of the 2007statement "Forming Con-sciences for Faithful Citizen-ship" and the draft of a newintroductory note for it. Therevision and draft will bepresented for a vote by theU.S. bishops at their annualfall assembly in November. The document has been is-

sued before every presiden-tial election for almost fourdecades. A note in the current intro-

duction, revised in 2011,clarifies that the document is"does not offer a voters'guide, scorecard of issues ordirection on how to vote,"but instead "applies Catholicmoral principles to a range ofimportant issues and warnsagainst misguided appeals to'conscience' to ignore funda-mental moral claims, to re-duce Catholic moralconcerns to one or two mat-ters, or to justify choicessimply to advance partisan,ideological or personal inter-ests." The bishops also voted to

permit the Committee onClergy, Consecrated Life andVocations to seek a renewedrecognitio, or approval, fromthe Vatican for the NationalDirectory for the Formation,Ministry and Life of Perma-

nent Deacons in the UnitedStates. Vatican approval tothe text would be for anotherfive-year term. The bishops, by applause,

showed their support of aletter to be from ArchbishopJoseph E. Kurtz of Louisville,Kentucky, president of theU.S. Conference of CatholicBishops, to Pope Francis,inviting him to attend theWorld Meeting of Familiesnext September in Philadel-phia. Read at the meeting by

Archbishop Kurtz, the lettersaid the pope's presencewould "add significance" tothe gathering and "deepenthe bonds of affection" manyCatholics feel for the Holy Fa-ther. Archbishop Vincenzo

Paglia, president of the Pon-tifical Council for the Family,said the Philadelphia gather-ing was a key factor in pro-moting family life, which hesaid is currently in crisis. "The family today is living

out a paradox," he told thebishops. "On the one hand,great value is given to thebonds of family, everywherein the world" but he alsonoted that today's familiesare weakened and often "losetheir way." Philadelphia Archbishop

Charles J. Chaput told theU.S. bishops the 2015 gather-ing "comes at a time whenthe church in the UnitedStates urgently needs an op-portunity for joy and re-newal. It's also a time of greatconfusion about the natureof marriage and the family." "Our goal is to exclude no

one from the excitement ofthis meeting,” ArchbishopChaput said. “Our goal is tooffer the beauty of Catholicteaching about marriage andthe family with confidenceand a spirit of invitation toevery person of good will,"he said. "That's the heart ofour theme: 'Love is our mis-sion; the family fully alive.'"

Bishops focus on religiousliberty, election document,upcoming family synod

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C 15J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4

N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C6 called to serve

By Fr. Scott BelinaParochial vicar, St. Mary’s Cathedral

“Bless me, Father, for Ihave sinned.”These are the most hum-

bling words spoken. Theyare so humbling because Isay these same exact wordswhen I go to confess mysins and ask for God’s par-don and peace. They are sovery humbling, and they areat the heart of the mysterythat is the Priesthood.A year ago, on May 25,

2013, I lay prostrate on thesanctuary floor of St. Mary’sCathedral. My presencethere that morning was apublic response to a per-sonal call that had unfoldedin my life for many years,and which I had discernedwas God calling me to givehim my life as a priest. Mo-ments later, in the presenceof family and many friends,Bishop LaValley imposedhands on me, and then withhands outstretched overme, prayed the prayer of Or-dination—the same ritualthrough which every priestis linked, through theirBishop, to the Apostles.That is where it began forme, and so I must beginthere as I reflect on my firstyear as a priest: complete,total and undeserved gift—agift for which I am eternallygrateful.This first year of priest-

hood has given me a joy be-yond imagining—a joy thatcannot be manufactured,only discovered and grate-fully received. I encounter

this joy each day as I servethe People of God, and espe-cially as I celebrate theSacraments with and forthem. This privilege issomething I treasure, asthrough it I am able to seethe awesomeness and im-mensity of God’s providentlove for his people. It is alsoencountered in the sacredduty of preaching. I canonly hope that the words Ispeak become an opportu-nity for God’s people tomeet him personally. Fi-nally, I am truly blessedwith so many visits to peo-ple in the hospital, in thenursing homes, and even in

their own homes. Echoingsome words of Saint JohnPaul II, each visit, in a mys-terious way, is an encounterwith God himself.Make no mistake, as a

priest I am challenged daily.When ordained a priest, aman does not suddenly re-linquish his humanity or be-come “perfect” in a singlemoment—I know this all toowell! Each day, I am chal-lenged to invite Jesus moredeeply into my own life thatI might undergo conversionof mind and heart and solive the Gospel I preach. Iam called to give God evenmy weakness and insuffi-ciency, because it is pre-cisely in my weakness thathis power is made perfect (2Cor. 12:9). I must remainawake and attentive so asnot to grow accustomed orlukewarm to the treasuresof our Faith. I have learned several les-

sons over the past year—lessons that surely I willlearn again and again. First,God loves me beyond mydeepest imagining. This istrue for everyone, and it

cannot be overstated. It issomething that each of usneeds to know in our bonesand in the depths of ourheart: we are known andloved by God! Second, Godis—and always will be—aGod of surprises. As I do hiswork, I should fully expectto be surprised. Third, I amnot in control, and neverwill be: “Without me, youcan do nothing” (Jn. 15:5).Fourth, as Blessed MotherTheresa of Calcutta oftensaid, "God desires fidelity,not success." I want to be asaint, and go to heaven.When I stand before God, hewill not ask me whether ornot I was good at anything,but he will know whether ornot I was faithful. Fifth, thepriesthood is a gift, and nota right or anything which Ihave earned or taken formyself. I am reminded ofthis daily. A perfect exampleof this is the celebration ofthe Sacraments. Without thepower of Christ at work, thewords that I speak are wind.Yet, when I am gatheredwith his people to pray,Christ is present and he is at

work. Lastly—and this is agross understatement—Ihave a whole lot more tolearn! This is just the begin-ning!This is why the words,

“Bless me, Father, for I havesinned” are so humbling. Itis because the priesthood ispure gift. A priest said to meonce when I was first con-sidering entering the semi-nary, “God does not call thequalified. Rather, he quali-fies those who are called.”Perfect examples of this factare the Apostles, those firstmen on whom Jesus be-stowed the Priesthood. Theywere weak, and some ofthem quite thick-headed.They constantly misunder-stood Jesus. The Lord hasshown me much mercy andlove, and has made me andevery other priest an instru-ment of this same mercyand love. This mystery liesat the heart of the Priest-hood: knowing and experi-encing God’s mercy and lovein his own life, in the midstof his own weaknesses andsinfulness, the priest canthen love others in theirweaknesses and sinfulnesswith the very love of Godthe Father.After a year, I must thank

God for his utter generosityin my life. He has chosenme out of love and given methis vocation. I cannot imag-ine being happy doing any-thing else. For that, I cannotthank God enough. What Ican do, however, with hisgrace, is to make my life acontinual offering, a daily‘sacrifice of praise’ for hisglory.As I begin my second year

as a Priest of Jesus Christ, Iask for your continuedprayers. Pray for me that Imay be faithful to God’s giftof the Priesthood, and that Imight truly live each daythe joy of the Gospel. On be-half of all my brotherpriests and our Bishop, I askyou to pray also for them.May the Lord give you hisPeace!

‘Bless me, Father, for I have sinned’Newest priest of the diocese reflects on his first year

PHOTO BY JUSTIN SORENSENFather Scott Belina, pictured during his ordination May 25, 2013, reflects on his first year as a priest of the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 5

YOUNG CATHOLIC VOICE

This will come as no sur-prise to many, but it's withgreat joy that Ishare with you thatI am discerning avocation to the reli-gious life! God has been

working hard onmy heart for thepast few years, andwhile He could al-ways change thingsup, it seems at thispoint that the reli-gious life is indeedwhere He is callingme. Here is the story of how

my vocation has unfoldedthus far:I think my childhood was

pretty normal in most ways.But deep down inside me,there was always a specialdesire to love in a big way.I remember one day in

fourth grade, my teachertalked a little bit about whatit was like meeting her hus-band, and she said that shehad decided that she wouldonly marry if the right guycame along. I thought tomyself that I too wanted tohold out for the best guy,the biggest romance ever.

And the same kind ofthinking carried over into

other areas of mylife—I wanted thevery best of every-thing. I worked hardon the soccer field, Ididn't stop studyinguntil I had A's inevery class, and Imade plans to travelthe world and learneverything there wasto know. There was some-

thing inside me thatjust wanted to giveand receive the very

best in life.One day, when I was in

seventh grade, Father BryanStitt came and gave a talkon vocations to my class atSeton Catholic. I don’t re-member much about it, butI remember that every char-acteristic of a priest or reli-gious that he mentioneddescribed me perfectly.A few weeks later, I hap-

pened to go to confession toFather Bryan at school, andas I was leaving, I sheep-ishly stammered, “By theway, thank you for comingto talk to us about voca-tions.”

He cheerfully went on totell me that his cousin hadjust become a Carmelite outin California, and that shecouldn’t be happier.

Please pray for me as I continue to take the next steps in my vocation, and Ipromise to pray for you too!

As I left, I thought to my-self, “Well, I guess I’ll have togive up that great romance Ialways wanted, along withany success and adventure Iever dreamed of.” I glumlybegan to readjust my men-tal picture of the future.The thought that I might

be called to the religious lifegrew heavier and heavier inmy mind, until finally I gaveit up. After giving it athought and deciding that itcould never make mehappy, I believed I was offthe hook.Something changed, how-

ever, the summer before Iwent to college. I had com-pletely forgotten about mybrief stint of discernment inseventh grade, when sud-denly, Father Bryan’sCarmelite cousin, SisterShawn Pauline, OCD, ap-peared to give a talk duringmy last week as a camper atCamp Guggenheim. The main reason why I

had given up thinking aboutreligious life was that I hadbelieved that it would meanleaving all of the biggest de-sires of my heart unfulfilled.But Sister Shawn Pauline ex-plained that a religious is abride of Christ, and thatJesus fulfills the part of herheart that longs for aspouse. A few weeks later, I went

away to college. What hap-pened there could fill sev-eral books, but in a nutshell,I began to feel the tug onmy heart to consider reli-gious life once again, and inthe turmoil of trying to dis-

tinguish God’s voice fromeverything else, I began tospend increasing amountsof time in Eucharistic Adora-tion. At some point I real-ized that in those intimatetimes of prayer with Jesus,He had won me over andbegun to show me that Hecould fulfill even a heart asbig and thirsty as mine. Infact, He was the only thingthat could fulfill it. This girl who longed for

everything had found herEverything.St. Augustine, the patron

of my home parish,summed up my story per-fectly when he said, “To fallin love with God is thegreatest romance; to seekhim the greatest adventure;to find him, the greatesthuman achievement.” Jesushas shown me so deeplythat this is true. Please pray for me as I

continue to take the nextsteps in my vocation, and Ipromise to pray for you too!

RachelDaly

God has been working on my heart!

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C16 commentary

SCRIPTURE REFLECTIONS

The great feast of the Body and Blood of ChristIn the first reading for this

great feast of Corpus Christi(Solemnity of theBody and Blood ofChrist), Moses re-minds the people inthe desert to “re-member theirstory”. And what astory! From the begin-

ning of creation,God has alwaystaken care to feedthe people he cre-ated. They failed toappreciate the deli-cious fruit in theGarden of Eden, so they lostit! But later he gave themthat mysterious “manna” inthe desert. They got tired ofthat, too. Then Jesus promised

them something much bet-ter than manna. “After all”,he told them, “your fathersate manna in the desert, andthey’re all dead!”. However, they couldn’t

trust him and all his talkabout “flesh and blood”.

They ran! Except Peter and the apos-

tles who did a dou-ble-take, thought alittle about the al-ternative of leavinghim, and decided tostay it out. How lucky for the

Church and forthemselves thatthey did! Eventhough the LastSupper was stillshrouded in mys-tery, they got theidea of how hewould give them his

own Body and Blood. That wonderful Emmaus

incident of Jesus breakingbread with his discipleshelped a lot, but it took thepower and light of Pentecostfor their firm understand-ing. St. Paul insists we are all

one body when we celebrate- French or Latino, Ameri-can or African or Chinese -we are all one body - for re-joicing, for loving, and for

giving away. I think the biggest ques-

tions this week for us, be-sides firmly believing in theReal Presence, is the ques-tion of how much of the Eu-charist do we share? After all, if we really be-

come the Body and Blood ofChrist in the Lord and inone another, then selfish-ness has no place. Of course, we want to

savor the Lord’s friendshipfor some time after receiv-ing Holy Communion, butthen we must “go” and“give”. We give when we dis-cipline ourselves to answerthe pastor’s call for help in aparish activity, or when weare patient with our chil-dren (even if we have toforce a smile and a kindword of correction), or wedecide to make time eachday for deep prayer with theLord We share Eucharist when

go with our families on aSunday afternoon to visit agrandmother or an aunt—or

a neighbor--in the nursinghome or hospital. It’s a ser-mon to our children thatthey will probably remem-ber even more than Father’scarefully prepared homily! hen, there are the big is-

sues of social justice! Theseare all connected with theHoly Eucharist.This feast is a time for

reminiscence for us “older”people. Remember Sundayafternoon Benediction andVespers, with the wonderfulsmell of incense, the clank-ing of the censor, and thosebeautiful Benedictionhymns? Many of us still re-member the great CorpusChristi processions in our

home parishes or in ourCatholic high school. I remember taking part in

a grand Corpus Christi pro-cession in Rome in 1979when Pope John Paul II re-stored this ancient custom,and carried a huge mon-strance publically from St.John Lateran to St. MaryMajor, with thousandssinging and weeping for joyat the honoring of Jesus inthe Blessed Sacrament. Whenever possible, look

for opportunities to bringyour children to parishdays of Exposition andBenediction. These devotions are a

cherished part of ourCatholic heritage, andhighly recommended byPope Francis.May the heart of Jesus, in

the most Blessed Sacrament,be praised, adored, andloved, with grateful affec-tion, at every moment, in allthe tabernacles throughoutthe world, even until theend of time. Amen.

MonsignorPaul E.Whitmore

Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ

READINGSDeuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a1 Corinthians 10:16-17John 6: 51-58

JUNE 22

WATERTOWN – A Mass of Chris-tian Burial for St. Joseph Sis-ter Helen Mary McKeever, 93,was held June 12 at the Sis-ters of St. Joseph Mother-house with Father DonaldRobinson, her cousin, asmain celebrant.She died June 9 at the

motherhouse. Burial was inGlenwood Cemetery.Sister Helen Mary was born

June 14, 1920, in Cape Vin-cent, the oldest daughter ofFred and Geraldine Con-stance McKeever. She gradu-ated as valedictorian from St.Mary’s Catholic School inClayton. She attended theWatertown School of Com-merce and was employed assecretary to Sprague Chevro-let Car Company and atBagley and Sewell Companyfor several years. She entered the Sisters of

St. Joseph Dec. 29, 1946, andreceived the habit on July 1,1947. She professed finalvows on Aug. 28, 1952. Sheearned a BS in Education atthe College of St. Rose in Al-bany, NY and a MS in LibraryScience at Syracuse Univer-sity.Sister Helen Mary served

for many years as a teacherin grade school and highschool, in religious educa-tion, and in social workthroughout the Diocese. Shewas assistant librarian atMater Dei college in Ogdens-burg from 1969 - 1975.From 1975 until her retire-

ment in 2001, Sister HelenMary was assistant librarianand director of the library atImmaculate Heart Central inWatertown, completing 53years of ministry in the Dio-cese of Ogdensburg. In 1990,

Sister Helen Mary receivedthe New York Library Associ-ation Award for Commend-able Service in Librarianship. Sister Helen Mary was pre-

deceased by her parents andby two sisters, Norma Wet-terhahn and Audrey McK-eever. She is survived by her sis-

ter, Justine Hacker, Ovilla,TX, and nephews and nieces,including Gerry and KathrynWetterhahn, Julie and StevenDillenback, Dr. Joseph andRegina Wetterhahn, Jon andPatricia Wetterhahn, Davidand Linda Hacker, Jonathanand Andrea Hacker, and Deb-bie and Ronald Hunt; a closefriend, Denise Wetterhahn,and several cousins, greatnephews, and great nieces.Online condolences may

be made at http://www.cum-mingsfuneral.com.

Funeral held June 12 for SrHelen Mary McKeever, SSJ

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C4 called to serve

By Father Bryan StittDiocesan Director of Vocations

My family estimated thatbefore my grandmotherpassed away last month,she prayed over two millionHail Mary’s. At the age of 96she had prayed for her hus-band, her 10 children, andtheir children and grand-children. She prayed forpeace, success and safetyon their dairy farm; and sheprayed for Vocations.

My grandmother was notalone.

How many peoplethroughout our North Coun-try who are aged and ill aredoing great spiritual good!

They know that they arenot able to physically dowhat they used to do butare now being given thechance to accomplish thingson an even higher level.

Didn’t St. Paul say: “There-fore, I am content withweaknesses, insults, hard-

ships, persecutions, andconstraints, for the sake ofChrist; for when I am weak,then I am strong.”?

This year the Diocese ofOgdensburg Vocations of-fice is hoping to tap intothat powerhouse of SpiritualStrength. We are initiatingthe “Vocations Prayer Apos-tolate.” Prayer pamphletsfor the homebound weremade available to all thepriests at their annual Pres-byteral Assembly so thatthey could get to the home-bound as soon as possible.

Of course the prayers inthe pamphlet are a guideand reminder, not a formulathat must be followed. Anyprayers such as the ‘Our Fa-ther’ or ‘Hail Mary’ are won-derful in their support forvocations.

The important thing is tohelp the sick and home-bound remember the powerof the prayers. For PopeFrancis said in this year’sWorld Day of the Sick: “I

turn in a special way to thesick and all those who pro-

vide them with assistanceand care. The Church recog-nizes in you, the sick, a spe-cial presence of thesuffering Christ. It is true.At the side of – and indeedwithin – our suffering, is thesuffering of Christ; he bearsits burden with us and hereveals its meaning.”

We’ve all heard about theDiocesan Pastoral Plan forthe next five years in whichone of the three prioritiesfor the Diocese of Ogdens-burg is developing a Cultureof Vocations.

I’ve had a number of con-versations and meetingsabout this already. The onetheme that keeps coming upis: developing a Culture ofVocations cannot simply beabout another program orresource. It must be firstand foremost be about a re-lationship with the Crucifiedand Risen Lord.

There are very few whohave a better appreciationof the Cross of Jesus than

those who are suffering. Please help us encounter

Christ by offering yourprayers and sufferings forvocations.

My grandmother’s prayersbore much fruit: many faith-ful marriages and generoussingle people, loving par-ents and joyful children, apriest and even a Carmelitesister are in her family.

Some might point out thatthese blessings are not en-tirely the result of herprayers—there was a lot ofhard work involved. True.But one thing that we didlearn from Oma was thatprayers and sacrifices areeffective—regardless ofwhether you could make itto two million Hail Mary’s.

---Editor’s Note: For more in-

formation or to requestprayer pamphlets, pleaseemail Fr. Bryan Stitt atbstitt@rcdony.org or call315-393-2920 extension1450.

Prayers from HomeNew prayer apostolate for the homebound

Memorial Mass held for Fr. E. John Silver, 87MALONE – A memorial Mass for

Father E. John Silver, 87, washeld June 13 at Notre DameChurch with Father Joseph A.Morgan, vicar general, pre-siding.

Father Silver died June 6 atGrand Strand Regional Med-ical Center in Myrtle Beach,South Carolina.

Burial was in Notre DameCemetery, Malone.

Father Silver was born May6, 1927 in Malone, the son ofthe late Joseph Oliver andSadie Nichols Silver.

He was a 1945 graduate ofFranklin Academy in Maloneand then enlisted in the USNavy where he served duringWWII from 1945-46.

After his military service,he attended Clarkson Collegein Potsdam where he re-ceived a bachelor’s degree inbusiness administration in1950.

From 1954 to 1988 FatherSliver was employed by Ma-rine Midland Bank working in

various locations throughoutthe North Country.Prior to his retire-ment, he achievedthe position of vicepresident of thebank.

In 1958, he mar-ried RosemaryMcGum in Antwerpwith whom he raisedtwo daughters.

After his wife’sdeath in 1987, Fa-ther Silver beganstudies for thepriesthood at Blessed JohnXXIII Seminary, Weston, Mas-sachusetts.

He was ordained on May23, 1993 by Bishop Stanis-laus J. Brzana at St. Mary’sCathedral in Ogdensburg.

Prior to becoming a priest,Father Silver was very activein several charitable organi-

zations including the UnitedWay, Kiwanis and theElks club well as manyCatholic organiza-tions such as theKnights of Columbusand as a member ofthe pastoral council ofNotre Dame Church

After Father Silver’sordination as a priest,he was assigned asparochial vicar at St.Mary’s Cathedral inOgdensburg and St.Bernard’s, Saranac

Lake, administrator of St.Agnes in Lake Placid and atSt. Joseph’s, Philadelphia andSt. Michael’s, Antwerp.

In 1996, Father Silver wasnamed parochial vicar at St.Augustine’s, Peru and, in1997, pastor of St. VincentDePaul, Cape Vincent.

Father Silver retired in

2002. Following his retire-ment, he moved to SouthCarolina for six months ofthe year, serving at St. JamesChurch in Conway and theremaining months he helpedout in Rosiere.

In addition to his wife, Fa-ther Silver was predeceasedby his brother, Leon Silverand his sister Eleanor Patter-son.

He is survived by daugh-ters, Kimberly Silver-Harmonand her husband Timothy J.Harmon of Malone and MaryAlice Rounds and her hus-band, Tim Rounds ofBrainardsville; a brotherDonald Silver of Malone; foursisters, Kathryn Jackson ofBradenton, Fl., Paulie Bohonof FL, Joan Brooks (Vern),Mooers, Ann Duffy (Robert)of Troy, ten grandchildrenand ten great-grandchildren.

Father E.John Silver

Maleficent is a live-actionfeminist retelling of the Dis-ney version of "SleepingBeauty" which casts the vil-lainess of that 1959 ani-mated feature -- here playedby Angelina Jolie -- in amore positive light.

Betrayed by the futureking (Sharlto Copley) of thehuman realm that bordersthe enchanted territory sheprotects, the initially goodfairy of the title --portrayedin youth by Isobelle Molloy -turns bitter and vengeful.

She eventually exacts ret-ribution by cursing the sov-ereign's infant daughter tofall into an endless slumberon the day before her 16thbirthday --a trance fromwhich only "true love's kiss"will be able to awaken thelass.

As the child (Elle Fanning)grows up, however, her in-nocent goodness melts theevildoer's heart. So muchso, that - aided by theshape-shifting crow (SamRiley) who serves as her as-sistant and scout - the re-pentant villainess strives tothwart the fulfillment of herown malediction.

Though it can be viewedas an honorable conversionstory warning against ambi-tion and the thirst for re-venge, director RobertStromberg 3-D fantasy star-tlingly subverts its sourcematerial in a way that regis-ters as vaguely anti-maleand anti-marriage.

It also has enough darkimagery and bloodless bat-

tling to frighten the smallestmoviegoers. Some harsh ac-tion violence.

The Catholic News Serviceclassification is A-II -- adultsand adolescents. The Mo-tion Picture Association ofAmerica rating is PG --parental guidance sug-gested.

Some material may not besuitable for children.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C entertainment 17

GUGGENHEIM 2014 - MEET THE STAFF

Visit www.rcdony.org/youth for information aboutCamp Guggenheim and registration forms for weekly sessions beginning June 29-July 4

Anna FisherI belong to St. Joseph's

Church in West Chazy,where I grew up, and amcurrently majoring in Envi-ronmental Planning andManagement at SUNY Platts-burgh. Camp Guggenheimhas held a special place inmy heart since I was acamper, and I am so blessedto have been chosen to beon staff this year. I am look-ing forward to a faith filledsummer of bringing youngpeople closer to God, and tobe part of a wonderful staff.

Juliet BoninoI grew up in Wyomissing,

PA, a member of St IgnatiusLoyola Parish and am cur-rently studying to be anurse at Franciscan Univer-sity. I am SO excited to beon staff at camp because Iam ready for an adventureout in nature with the Lord,the campers, and all thecounselors. This is my firstexperience with Guggen-heim, as I was not a camperhere, and feel incrediblyblessed and privileged to beon staff with such a dedi-cated and holy staff.

The NCC Will observe the June 21 to July 4 event in the July 2 issue.This years’ theme is Service to the Poor and the Vulnerable

Fortnight 4 Freedom

AT THE MOVIES

MALEFICENT

CNS PHOTO/DISNEYAngelina Jolie stars in a scene from the movie "Maleficent."

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C called to serve 3

FOLLOW ME

By Bishop Terry R. LaValley

As part of our diocesanEnvisioning Process, one ofthe three Pastoral Prioritiesthat each of our parisheswill soon address in a fo-cused manner is Creating aCulture of Vocations.In his Message for the

World Day of Prayer for Vo-cations on May 11th PopeFrancis reflected on Jesus’familiar words in Matthew’sGospel: “The harvest is plen-tiful, but the laborers arefew; pray therefore the Lordof the harvest to send outlaborers into his harvest.”(cf. Mt.9:35-38) The Holy Fa-ther reminded us that weare that harvest; we are thefield. Jesus lives and walks

along the paths of ordinarylife in order to draw near toeveryone. It is within theculture of our daily work,recreation, school activities,and yes, even on the ballfields that Jesus meets us.Daily prayer prepares us towelcome the encounter.Jesus and His followers tookto the road and beckoned allwho would hear: “Followme.” Today Jesus continues to

come to us in our dailywalks of life with the samemessage of love. His call tolet go of self for the sake ofothers continues today.Every person is called tosuch holiness.The entire Church of Og-

densburg is now challenged,through fervent prayer andwitness of life to create anenvironment here in theNorth Country where God’speople can identify andcourageously respond tothe Lord’s call to holiness. All members of the

Church are responsible forlooking after Church voca-tions and supporting Chris-tian vocations to the singleand married life. A sobering thought: When

was the last time there wasa Church vocation fromyour parish, from your fam-

ily? Genuine vocations willsurface, indeed, flourish inthe Diocese of Ogdensburgas our energy and fervor tobring Christ to others in-crease.Care for all vocations pre-

supposes strong family pas-toral ministry in ourparishes. That’s why ourPriority of StrengtheningFaith Formation in FamilyLife is critically important inproviding a culture ripe forvocations. The family is the primary

community for the trans-mission of the Christianfaith. When families be-come fractured and secular-ized, vocationaldiscernment is a real strug-gle because the truths andbeauty of our faith have lesschance of being taught andexperienced. The limitless quest for

material goods and the pre-cipitous decrease in reli-gious practice todaydiscourage individuals frommaking the courageous

Gospel choices that fosterholiness of life.The joy-filled example of

our consecrated religiousand clergy motivates othersto the initial interest andthen earnest desire to un-dertake great commitmentin the Church and the wishto give one’s entire life tothe Lord in the Church.

As the Diocese embracesour third Pastoral Priority,Building Parishes with Liv-ing Stones, we know that avibrant parish, one that isSpirit-filled and mission –motivated is the seedbedfor vocations. The joy-filledleadership of our pastorsenlivens our parish familiesand attracts the young to

consider a Church vocation.Again this year, as the

priests of the Diocese gath-ered at our recent annualPresbyteral Convocation, wetruly enjoyed our time to-gether. We joined our Jubi-larians in celebration ofmany wonderful years ofzealous priestly ministry inthe Lord’s vineyard. What agift! Pope Francis preached:

“The true joy of those whoare called consists in believ-ing and experiencing thatHe, the Lord, is faithful, andthat with Him we can walk,be disciples and witnessesof God’s love, open ourhearts to great ideals, togreat things…” For vocations to flourish,

each of us must nurture ourown baptismal call to holi-ness. A vocation flows fromthe heart of God and blos-soms in the good soil offaithful people. The Church believes that

the parish family is a fruit-ful womb, capable of offer-ing nourishment andsupport to those who jour-ney towards priestly min-istry. Pope Francis noted that

“the harvest will be plentifulproportionate to the gracewe have meekly welcomedinto our lives.” In this sea-son of planting our fields,we pray for such a plentifulharvest for the Church inthe North Country.

Creating a culture of vocations

PHOTO BY PAT HENDRICKFour of the seminarians of the Diocese of Ogdensburg joined Bishop LaValley and priests of the diocese for the jubilee Mass duringthe Presbyteral Assembly May 21 In Lake Placid. Shown with Bishop LaValley are, from left, Leagon Carlin (first year college, PontificalCollege Josephinum in Columbus, Ohio), Matthew Conger (fourth year college, St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, Wynnewood, Penn),Todd Thibault (third year theology, Josephinum), Michael Jablonski (second year theology, Josephinum) and Father Joseph Giroux,pastor of Malone Catholic Parishes.

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C18 around the diocese

STRAWBERRY FESTIVALPlattsburgh – St. Peter’s Church will behaving a strawberry Festival, sponsoredby St. Therese’s GuildDate: June 19Time: 5 p.m. to 7Features: Strawberry Shortcake, French

Strawberry Pie, Strawberry Rhubarb Pie,Strawberry Sundaes, Hamburgers,Sausage with peppers and onions, HotDogs, beverages, Cake Walk, Trick Trays.

OLD HOME DAYSAltona – Holy Angels Church is holdingOld Home DaysDate: June 22Schedule: Mass, 10 a.m.; Parade, 11

a.m., Chicken BBQ, Noon; Altona’s GotTalent Show 6 p.m. to 9 with a $500grand prize; Fireworks, 9 p.m.Features: Michigans, Cheeseburgers,

Hamburgers, Clam Chowder, HotSausages w/ Peppers & Onions, FrenchFries, Fried Bread Dough, Sno-cones, Cot-ton Candy, Desserts and more. GameBooths & Dunkin Booth. Live entertain-ment. Free Raffles for BBQ Grill, BoysBike, Girls Bike Drawing during TalentShow - Must be present to win.

JUNE FESTIVALPlattsburgh – St. Peter’s Church will behaving its June Festival.Date: June 29Time: Noon to 4 p.m. Features: 11 a.m. Mass outdoors

(weather permitting). Free children’sgames, bounce house, dish pitch, booksale, bake sale, cake walk for the chil-dren, food concessions, raffle, and liveauction. Auction begins at 1 p.m. SetonAcademy Cafeteria.

LOST SHEEP QUILT SHOPEllenburg Center –The Lost Sheep QuiltShop at Our Lady of Adirondacks Houseof Prayer is hosting several programsduring the upcoming weeks.Jo’s Little Women’s Club: A year of mak-

ing little and big quilts using Jo MortonFabrics. Classes and meetings begin June7 from 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 Take 4 Placement Class: July 12 from 9

a.m. to 3, cost - $15. This class uses 4 fatquarters plus backing material. Great forbeginners and advanced quilters. Sew Together: any Tuesday from 10

a.m. to 3. This is a quilting group de-signed to share ideas, help fellow quil-ters, teach beginners. Bring your ownprojects to sew. Bring a bag lunch if youcome for the day. Place: The Lost Sheep Quilt Shop, Our

Lady of the Adirondacks House of Prayer(The shop is open Tues. - Sat, 10 a.m.-4p.m. Evenings and other times by ap-pointment.)

Contact: 518-594-3253 Website: th-elostsheepquiltshop.weebly.com; email:thelostsheepquiltshop@gmail.com

EUCHARISTIC ADORATIONPlattsburgh – Eucharistic Adoration is held throughout the year every Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.Place: St. John’s “Holy Family” Adoration

Chapel, downstairsTime: 9 a.m. to 9 p.m Contact: call 518-561-5083 or email

Sjohnsadoration@aol.com

BREAKFAST BUFFETBrushton – St. Mary’s will be havingtheir breakfast buffet.Date: June 22Time: 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.Place: St. Mary’s Parish CenterCost: Adults, $8; Seniors, $7; Children 6-

12, $4; under 5, free; Immediate Familyof 5 or more, $25Features: Take-outs available by calling

518-529-6580. Sponsored by St. Mary’sCatholic Church events committee.

LATIN MASSConstable - A Tridentine (Latin) Mass iscelebrated each Friday at 5:30 p.m. be-ginning July 4 with Fr. Howard Venetteas the celebrant. Mass will also be cele-brated every first Saturday at 9 a.m.Place: St. Francis of Assisi Church

BEREAVEMENT MEETINGWatertown – There will be an ecumeni-cal bereavement meeting.Date: June 23Time: 7 p.m.Place: Sisters of St. Joseph Motherhouse

Hearthside Hospitality CenterSpeaker: Ms. Deb Doss LCSW-RTopic: The Tasks of Mourning

SPAGHETTI SUPPERWatertown – St. Anthony’s Altar RosaryChurch will be having Spaghetti Supper.Date: June 26Time: 4:30 p.m. to 7 Place: St. Anthony’s church basementCost: Adults, $8; children $4.50; under 3,

free; sauce, $5 per quart meatballs are$.75Features: Take-out orders begin at 4

p.m. Please bring your own containers

MOUNT CARMEL FEASTWatertown-St Anthony’s Church, to have98th annual Mt. Carmel Feast in honor ofour Lady of Mt. Carmel. Dates: June 27-June 29Place: St. Anthony’s ChurchSchedule: Bingo June 27-7p.m. in the

school gym; Rides by Ontario Amuse-ment Company. Grounds open June 27from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.; June 28 & 29– 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. Religious Processionbegins at 5 p.m. Sunday followed byBenediction of the Blessed Sacrament.Fireworks Sunday night at 10 p.m.Features: Traditional Italian foods. En-

tertainment each night: Fri: Les Gates;Sat: Nick Mulpagano; Sun: Fred and the

Eds. $1,700 cash Raffle after fireworksContact: Parish office 315-782-119

LIFERIGHT MEETINGWatertown ¬ Liferight of Watertown, apro-life educational organization, meetsthe first Wednesday of the Month.Time: 1 p.m. Place: 312 Sherman St.Features: The office has a wide variety

of videos, books and educational materi-als which may be borrowed. Topics in-clude infanticide, assisted suicide,euthanasia and chastity. Contact: Phone 315-788-8480

FEAST DAY OF SS PETER AND PAULSouth Colton- Msgr. Robert H. Aucoin,pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Colton andSt. Mary Parish in Potsdam, will be cele-brant of a vigil Mass of the Feast Day ofSS Peter and PaulDate: June 28Time: 6 p.m.Place: St. Paul's OratoryFeatures: Procession to the Sacred Heart

Shrine after Mass. An Ice Cream Socialwill follow; bring a lawn chair.

INDEPENDENCE DAY BREAKFASTNorwood – First annual St. Andrew’sParish Independence Day Breakfast and50/50 raffle.Date: July 4Time: 8 a.m. to 11:30Cost: Adult, $6-advance, $7 at the door;

age 6-12, $4-advance, $5 at the door.

FIRST SATURDAY ROSARYMassena - St. Mary's Church is holding aspecial rosary to mark First SaturdayDate: June 7Time: 3:15 p.m.Features: Rosary to Our Lady of Fatima

will be prayed in reparation to Her Im-maculate Heart and for World Peace fol-lowed by a private meditation on theGlorious Mysteries. Confessions begin at2:45 pm and the Vigil Masss at 4 pm.

BIBLE STUDYOgdensburg – St. Mary’s Cathedral ishold an eight session program “A QuickJourney Through The Bible.”Date: Starting June 25 for 8 WeeksPlace: Bishop Brzana HallFeatures:Deacon Dave Sandburg will be

presenting the program created by JeffCavins, a renowned bible scholar andformer Baptist pastor,Contact: ww.saintmaryscathedral.net/

bible-study.

LATIN MASSPotsdam – A Tridentine (Latin) Mass iscelebrated each Sunday Time: 11:30 p.m.Place: St. Mary's Church

EUCHARISTIC ADORATIONMassena – St. Mary’s & St. Joseph’s holdBenediction and Adoration every Fridaymorning.Time: 9 a.m. to 10Place: St. Mary’s Family Room

BEREAVEMENT SUPPORT GROUPMassena – Sacred Heart/St. Lawrenceholds a Bereavement Support Group lastTuesday of each month.Time: 2 p.m.Place: Sacred Heart ConventContact: 315-769-3137

BUILDING STRONG FAMILIESNorfolk – A workshop to be held, “Build-ing Strong Families: Marriage, Sex, andthe Church.Date: July 26Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.Place: Church of the Visitation Parish

CenterCost: $20 (Includes lunch)Features: Dr. Angela Franks-- author,

professor, speaker, television host—brings vast experience to this topic.Using the wisdom of the Church, Dr.Franks will consider current issues thatthreaten marriage, including commit-ment-phobia, hook-up culture, pornog-raphy, definition of marriage, andunintended consequences of contracep-tion. The day will include prayer, discus-sion, and practical guidance forstrengthening marriages. Registration: Register at

rcdony.org/BSFContact: Angelo/Suzanne Pietropaoli ,

apietropaoli@rcdony.org, or at 518-483-0459.

WOMEN OF GRACE RETREATOgdensburg – Women of Grace Retreatto be held again for a spirit filled week-end retreat.Date: June 27-29Place: Wadhams HallSpeaker: Johnnette Benkovic, of Living

His Life AbundantlyFeatures:Weekend includes celebra-

tion of the Eucharist,, adoration, prayer,talks, music, and sacred sisterhood. ,Johnnette will unfold the truths of au-thentic femininity Contact: Mary Dillenback at marydil-

lenback@twcny.rr.com; 315-771-1377.

The North County Catholicwelcomes contributions to “Around the Diocese”. Parishioners are invited to send information about activities to:

North Country Catholic, PO Box 326,Ogdensburg, NY 13669; fax, 1-866-314-7296;

e-mail news@northcountrycatholic.org.

Items must be received in the NCCoffice by the Thursday before publication.

CLINTON

FRANKLIN

JEFFERSON

ST. LAWRENCE

DIOCESAN EVENTS

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C news 19

OBITUARIESBloomingdale - Mary Inez Vancour, 82;Funeral June 13, 2014 at St. Paul'sChurch; burial in St. Paul's Cemetery.

Carthage - Donna M. (Pound)Lightholder, 67; Funeral Services June 5,2014 at St. James Church.

Colton – Michael J. Regan Sr., 76; FuneralServices June 9, 2014 at the Buck FuneralHome; burial in South Colton Cemetery.

Constableville – Leo V. Jordon, 87; Fu-neral Services June 6, 2014 at St. Mary’sChurch; burial in Calvary Cemetery, PortLeyden.

Constableville – Lawrence H. Kirk, Jr., 60;Funeral June 7, 2014 at St. Mary’sChurch; burial in St. Patrick’s Cemetery.

Ft. Covington – Theresa E. Thomas) Ker-nan, 85; Funeral June 13, 2014 at Cap-piello-McKenzie and Cosgrove FuneralHome; burial in St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Hogansburg – Louise (Hart) Cree, 84; Fu-neral June 10, 2014 at St. Regis Church;burial in St. Joseph’s Cemetery.

Keeseville - Michael H. Smith Sr., 60; Fu-neral Services June 12, 2014 at St. John'sChurch; burial in Clintonville MethodistCemetery.

Lake Placid – Dennis Goodman Smythe,62; Funeral Services June 7, 2014 at St.Agnes Church.

Long Lake - Elizabeth Jane Sylvester, 98;Funeral May 31, 2014 at St. Henry'sChurch; burial in Long Lake Cemetery.

Louisville - Shirley A. (Matton) Silver, 76;Funeral Services June 10, 2014 at St.Lawrence Church; burial in St. LawrenceCemetery.

Louisville – Vance Mathew Smith, 54;Memorial Services June 11, 2014 at St.Lawrence Church.

Lowville - Robert J. Bush, 94; FuneralServices June 2, 2014 at St. Peter'sChurch; burial in Martinsburg Cemetery.

Malone - Geraldine P. (Barney) Butzer, 89;Funeral Services June 2, 2014 at NotreDame Church; burial in St. Mary's Ceme-tery, Ft. Covington.

Malone - James Van Steenburg; FuneralServices June 6, 2014 at Notre DameChurch; burial in Tongore Cemetery, OliveBridge.

Massena - Henry G. Durant, 72; FuneralServices June 13, 2014 at Church of theSacred Heart; burial in Calvary Cemetery.

Massena - Margaret (Selmenci) Gabor,93; Funeral June 14, 2014 at St. Mary'sChurch; burial in Calvary Cemetery.

Massena – Gilda M. (Lombardi) Rufa, 86;Funeral Services June 9, 2014 at Churchof the Sacred Heart; burial in MassenaCenter Cemetery.

Moria - Robert R. Gaurin, 81; FuneralServices June 3, 2014 at the Flint FuneralHome; burial in Pine Grove Cemetery,Norfolk.

Nicolville - Otto Drenwett, 78; FuneralServices June 2, 2014 at St. ThereseChurch; burial in St. Therese Cemetery.

Norfolk - Marion E. Bond, 97; FuneralServices June 7, 2014 at Church of theVisitation.

North Lawrence – Theresa Ann (Dumas)Monroe, 84; Funeral Services June 14,2014 at St. Lawrence Church; burial in St.Patrick Cemetery.

Ogdensburg – George T. Rheome Jr., 67;Funeral Services June 9, 2014 at Frary Fu-neral Home; burial in Notre Dame Ceme-tery.

Ogdensburg - Robert J. Tebo "The Candy-man", 93; Funeral Services June 12, 2014at Notre Dame Church.

Philadelphia – Matisha L. “Tisha” (Higby)Wineglass, 33; Funeral Services June 7,2014 at St. Joseph’s Church; burial in St.Mary’s Cemetery, Evans Mills.

Plattsburgh - George J. Light, 70; FuneralServices June 11, 2014 at St. John'sChurch.

Plattsburgh - Theresa M. (Lucia) Parent,85; Funeral Services June 3, 2014 at OurLady of Victory Church; burial in Whisper-ing Maples Memorial Gardens.

Plattsburgh – Floyd J. Renadette, 87; Fu-neral Services June 10, 2014 at St. Peter’s

Church; burial in Whispering MaplesMausoleum.

Port Henry - Charles M. Cooke, 95; Fu-neral Services June 11, 2014 at St.Patrick's Church; burial in St. Peter & PaulCemetery, Moriah.

Potsdam - Thomas R. White, 79; FuneralServices June 12, 2014 at St. Mary'sChurch; burial in St. Mary's Cemetery.

Ticonderoga – Rolland H. Yaw, 89; Fu-neral June 9, 2014 at St. Mary’s Church;burial in St. Mary’s Parish Cemetery.

Tupper Lake – John F. LaMora, 45; Fu-neral Services June 5, 2014 at Holy NameChurch; burial in Parish Cemetery.

Watertown - Barbara M. (Capone) Cook,70; Funeral June 3, 2014 at Holy FamilyChurch; burial in Glenwood Cemetery.

Watertown – John C. Helmerci, 91; Fu-neral Services June 6, 2014 at the D.L.Calarco Funeral Home; burial in Glen-wood Cemetery.

Watertown – Bridget T. (Baxter) McCot-ter, 80; Funeral services June 7, 2014 atSt. Anthony’s Church; burial in St.Michael’s Cemetery, Antwerp.

Watertown - Helen G. (Keruski) Osier,101; Funeral Services June 13, 2014 atHoly Family Church; burial in North Wa-tertown Cemetery.

Watertown - Howard E. Rowe, 93; FuneralServices June 5, 2014 at Sacred HeartChurch; burial in N. Watertown Cemetery.

Watertown - Richard C. Van Slyke, 86; Fu-neral Services June 11, 2014 at HolyFamily Church; burial in Foxwood Mau-soleum, Ogdensburg.

West Chazy – Harold E. Relation, 94; Fu-neral June 6, 2014 at St. Joseph’s Church;burial in parish cemetery.

West Chazy – Theresa A. (Bedard) Thorn-ton, 86; Funeral Services June 14, 2014 atSt. Joseph’s Church; burial in Mt. CarmelCemetery, Plattsburgh.

The Pontifical Mission Societies of theDiocese of Ogdensburg, Inc.The Society for the Propagation of the FaithSr. Mary Ellen Brett, SSJ, Director

622 Washington St., Ogdensburg, NY 13669(315) 393-2920; fax 1-866-314-7296mbrett@rcdony.org

As we are now firmly into the month of June in the Mis-sion Office, the calendar reminds us of our annual appealfor funds, prayer and sacrifice for the St. Peter the Apostlecampaign. This is an annual awareness campaign wherethe pleas of Pontifical Mission Societies can be heard for as-sistance with our Missionary Priests, Brothers and Sisters inthe Mission Lands.

St. Peter the Apostle Annual Appeal

The help you send to the Society of St. Peter Apostle is lifegiving assistance for hundreds seminarians and hundredsof houses of formation for religious Sisters and Brothers incountries throughout Asia, Africa and the Pacific Islands, aswell as parts of Europe and Latin America. But it is notenough as more help is needed each year to support thegrowing number of seminarians and those called to reli-gious life. Additionally, there is a need for building new seminaries

and convents, and repairing existing and old structures. “Our work is now and will always be about filling every

moment of every day with God’s love,” said Joshua, as hewas preparing for the priesthood at St. Thomas AquinasSeminary in Nairobi, Kenya. He and his 125 classmateseach received $700 annually from the Society of St. PeterApostle to support their studies. This is about $60 amonth. Religious Sisters and Brothers in Kenya receive similar

support from the Society. Without that help, help theycount on from you and other generous supporters, theywould be unable to pay their school fees, unable to preparefor a future of service to the poor and the abandoned. As these young men and women are called to follow

Christ, to be His loving presence to the abandoned and for-gotten, to those in greatest need you are called as well! Ifyou are able to do so in your kindness and generosity,please provide for their education and essential work in ourChurch? You can help to write a story of hope by bringingto the poor the light and love of Jesus, while in the presenceof a priest, Sister or Brother. Please know that any and allgifts matter, and are very gratefully received. God Bless!

Vocations

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It’s bittersweet that our 2014Vocation Issue “Called toServe,” includes a farewell to aman who lived a life of servicein two vocations: as a husbandand father and as a priest.Father E. John Silver died last

week, 27 years after the deathof his beloved wife, Rosemary.For the first half of his adultlife, he was a banker devotedto his family, his communityand his church.His studies for church min-

istry began in the diocesanDeacon Formation Programand continued in the John XXIIINational Seminary in Massa-chusetts before his 1993 ordi-nation to the priesthood by

Bishop Brzana.As he prepared for ordina-

tion, the future priest sat downwith the North CountryCatholic and reflected on hisexpectation that his life as ahusband and father would en-rich his ministry as a priest. “There are so many times

that people come in with fam-ily problems and I hope to givethem the benefit of my experi-ence,” he said. “I don’t want totell them what to do but givethem an idea of what’s workedfor us.”Upon his death, one of his

former parishioners shared amemory showing how his hopecame to be: “I met Father Silver

when he was a priest at St.Mary's Cathedral. He was akind and gentle man andbrought a refreshing perspec-tive to his ministry having hada family himself. He got a greatlaugh when he used to standwith the other men for the Fa-ther's Day blessing. A greatman and a wonderful priest!”Another friend shared mem-

ories of Father Silver after hemoved to South Caroline uponhis 2002 retirement:“I was serving as the music

coordinator for the NewmanClub liturgy at Coastal CarolinaUniversity when I met FatherSilver. Father would periodi-cally celebrate Liturgy there for

the students. The warmth andcaring he had for others waspersonified in his dealings withthe students. He always had astory to tell, and always a smileon his face. He was always ap-preciative of my efforts to pro-vide the music at the liturgy.My memories of him as a gen-tle person, a kind priest, agolfer and an avid Patriots fanwill remain with me always. Hewill be missed by all who knewhim.”Yes he will be missed by his

children, his grandchildren andall the rest of us who calledhim Father.Rest in peace, Father John.

MLK

You and I have been blessedto live in the most beautifulpart of this country – of thisworld. Living here in the Dio-cese of Ogdensburg, thebeauty of God’s creation is nosecret. I have often experi-enced so many of these bless-ings in this area of ours. I have lived on the shores of

Lake Champlain, on the shoresof Lake Ontario and on thebanks of the St. LawrenceRiver. I have recently had theopportunity to live in theAdirondack Mountains. It israther special to walk eachmorning looking up at the tow-ering Adirondacks. What apowerful reminder of beauty ofthis world.My faith teaches me to be-

lieve in a Creator. In some way,I believe and I know that myGod has fashioned this world.God the Father is a Creator. Be-cause I believe in God as a Cre-ator, I must see somethingsacred in this land where I live.So, my spirituality is led byrivers and lakes, by trees andmountains right to God. Fur-ther, I know that God has en-trusted this natural world toyou and me. We must dosomething to do all we can toprotect our world.I have read and been in-

structed often – as I suspect

you have – about the manythreats to our climate and tothis natural world. Many ofthese sound rather frighteningto me. So something must bedone. Many have written tome and approached me withthe lists of the importantthings that individual can do.You have probably seen suchlists, I know. We must makecertain that we can get thesegood practices out to every-one.I have discovered that we

have a group of people here inour diocese, who are workingto take these challenges seri-ously. They have studied anddiscussed the challenges anddangers. They are working todo something. Their effortsare based strongly on theirfaith as Catholics. They tellme, “It is fundamental to ouridentity as Catholics to care forthe earth. No one is off thehook.” So, our group has sentme materials to help me under-stand the importance for us all

– and the many reasons for usall to do what we can – even, asjust an individual. One of theirgoals is form “a green parish.”Let me quote a booklet thatwas prepared for a parish: “Agreen parish is a community ofbelievers which fosters adeeper understanding of thesacredness of our earth asGod’s creation. It strives to ac-complish religious convictionthrough sound environmentalleadership by building relation-ships of common understand-ing among parishioners. It alsofacilitates specific actions andinitiatives that positively im-pact Mother Earth and all itcommunity of life.”I am certain that our dioce-

san group will reach out toeach parish with a plan tomake each a “green parish.” Ihave priest friends in manyplaces who have worked hardto bring good ecological prac-tices to their parishes. I knowmany people who certainly arecommitted to such good prac-tices – and truly trust that theirefforts will make a differenceand make their world a betterplace. I have watched a goodfriend, a priest, who almostpersonally has taken on aparish recycling program.Everything is on his list.I sat down recently with my

friend, Father Paul Beyette,who is truly committed tothese programs – to talk aboutsolar panels. He is convincedthat these solar panels domake a difference and con-tinue to make a difference inmany places. Father Paul ispart of our diocesan group thatis working to get the messageout that we can all so some-thing. I am certain he hassome good ideas about how tomake a parish a “green parish.”We can all so something.So, I asked Father Paul if had

convinced anyone about solarpanels. He smiled – and imme-diately filled me in on the factthat Bishop LaValley was plan-ning to install solar panels atthe Bishop’s residence in Og-densburg. I will close this with the re-

cent pleas given by Pope Fran-cis: “Whenever we fail to carefor our brothers and sisters increation, the way is opened todestruction, and hearts areburdened…Lord, grant that allwho have positions of respon-sibility in economic, politicaland social life, and all men andwomen of good will – grantthat we all be “protectors” ofcreation, protectors of God’splan inscribed in nature, pro-tectors of one another and ofthe environment.”

J U N E 1 8 , 2 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C2 Diocesan Life

REV. JOSEPH A. MORGANVice President

SR. JENNIFER VOTRAW, SSJSecretary-TreasurerMARY LOU KILIAN

Editor/General Manager

BISHOP TERRYR. LAVALLEYPresident

EDITOR’S NOTE

Farewell to a man of two vocations

A PASTOR’S PERSPECTIVE

God has entrusted the natural world to us

J U N E 1 8 , 0 1 4N O R T H C O U N T R Y C A T H O L I C20 Back pew

CATHOLICNORTH COUNTRYNORTH COUNTRYThe Diocese of Ogdensburg Volume 69, Number 9

JUNE 18, 2014

INSIDETHIS ISSUEPope and presidentspray for peace in HolyLand l PAGE 13

U.S. bishops holdspring meeting in New Orleans l PAGE 14

CALLED TO SERVE

Rest in Peace, Fr. Silver

NCC summer schedule

Around the DiocesePAGE 18

Deaconsgather inLake Placid

F U L L S T O R Y, PAG E 1 2

FULL STORY, PAGE 4

The next issue of the NCC will be

dated July 2. It will feature a

number of stories about how

diocesan Catholics are working to

tackle poverty in this areaPHOTO BY JESSE SOVIEMatthew Conger, who is entering his fourth year of seminary at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary inWynnewood, Penn., assists at parish liturgies at Notre Dame Church in Ogdensburg during his vaca-tion times. Conger is one of five seminarians currently studying for the Diocese of Ogdensburg.

Bishop LaValley invited thepermanent deacons of thediocese and their wives tojoin him for a convocationheld June 3-4 in Lake Placid.The assembly was entitled

Deacons: Living the Vision. Itfocused on the current stateof the diaconate, the uniqueopportunities and stresses ofthe men and women affectedby the call, and the role of thedeacon in living the vision forthe diocese outlined byBishop LaValley at the ChrismMass in April.The gathering also included

practical workshops for thedeacons in liturgy and CanonLaw conducted by FatherDouglas Lucia, episcopal vicarfor worship in the diocese.

Fr. Stitt, diocesan

vocation director,

announces a new

prayer initiative

for vocationsFULL STORY, PAGE 4

PrayersFrom Home

Father Scott Belina,

the youngest priest

of the diocese reflects

on his first year of the

priesthood. Seton

graduate and NCC

writer Rachel Daly,

writes about her

decision to enter

religious life

FULL STORIES, 5 & 6

Young vocationsexplored

Bishop seeks a

‘culture of vocations’

in diocese as part of

visioning planFULL STORY, PAGE 3

Vocationissuefor 2014

Pope encouragespriests to keeplove for Jesus alive

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Celebratingan early morning Mass with acongregation made up ofpriests and bishops, PopeFrancis said they regularlyneed to ask themselves ifthey love Jesus as much aswhen they first encounteredhim, and whether ministry,not administration, is stilltheir priority. "This is the question I ask

myself, my brother bishopsand priests: 'How is your love

today?' This is what Jesusasks" in the Gospel of John(21:15-19), the pope saidJune 6 at Mass in the chapelof his residence."Am I in love like I was the

first day? Or have work andworries led me to concen-trate on other things and for-get love a bit?" the popeasked, according to a sum-mary in L'Osservatore Ro-mano, the Vaticannewspaper.