The Good Catholic Life

Summary of today’s show: The Year of Faith declared by Pope Benedict XVI is rapidly approaching and Archbishop Rino Fisichella, head of the Vatican’s efforts centered on the New Evangelization, recently gave a landmark address on the topic to an Australian national conference on the topic. Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell are joined by Michael Lavigne to discuss the address and to talk about what the New Evangelization and the Year of Faith will mean for us in Boston. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell Today’s guest(s): Michael Lavigne of the Office of the Episcopal Vicar for the New Evangelization Links from today’s show: Archbishop Fisichella’s address at the First National Conference on the New Evangelization in Australia Today’s topics: Archbishop Rino Fisichella on the Year of Faith and the New EVangelization 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed Fr. Mark O’Connell to the show. Fr. Mark said at the end of each summer, the SMA Fathers, an African missionary order based in Dedham, welcomes people from all over the archdiocese, including Cardinal Seán and many archdiocesan priests. There was a Mass celebrated by the cardinal and a dinner with traditional African foods. Scot said today we will be discussing an address given by Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for New Evangelization, to the the Church in Australia. He discussed the upcoming Year of Faith that has been proclaimed by Pope Benedict, including just what it is and what we’re expected to do. 2nd segment: Scot and Fr. Mark welcome Michael Lavigne from the Office of the Episcopal Vicar for the New Evangelization. Michael said plans for the upcoming Year of Faith are well underway and they hope to make announcements after Labor Day. Scot said Cardinal Seán has allocated a lot of resources in the archdiocese to the Year of Faith. Michael explained what the New Evangelization is. He said it’s focus is on those who are already baptized, especially those who are Catholic, including those who have fallen away from the faith or even those who sit next to us in the pews who don’t know the faith or don’t know friendship with Christ. Scot said growing up here, after he went through CCD in eight grade, confirmation prep was not formal catechetical classes and then there was nothing after that. Beyond eighth grade, for most people it was a self-study. This New Evangelization is tied to adult faith formation. Michael said he grew up very involved in his church, but realized at age 19 that he didn’t really know about about the faith. Now today we have the Internet and all kinds of resources and we need to do a better job at pointing people to those resources. Scot asked Michael about the difference between knowing about Christ and knowing him in a personal way. Michael said the idea of truly embracing the faith and being called to holiness wasn’t present in his childhood. His knowledge of the faith was more about himself than about Christ and others. Scot said for those listening who feel the same way Michael did, they shouldn’t feel like they have done something wrong. The Year of Faith is a recognition that many Catholics are in this same boat. Fr. Mark said it’s the responsibility of the community to be evangelizers to the community and not to be alone in their own faith. Scot said Archbishop Fisichella, as the leader of the Vatican efforts in the Year of Faith, was invited to address an Australia-wide evangelization conference. It’s the first time he’s given such a significant address in English and it applies to the whole English-speaking world. The address is entitled “The timeliness of the proclamation” and begins: In the very first line of his Motu Proprio, Ubicumque et Semper, which officially established the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI draws the attention of all to the person of Jesus Christ. “It is the duty of the Church to proclaim always and everywhere the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He, the first and supreme evangelizer, commanded the Apostles on the day of his Ascension to the Father: ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you’” (Mt 28:19). Such a beginning emphasizes both the necessity of placing Jesus Christ at the center of the new evangelization and the importance of recognizing that the faith received from the Apostles and that which is to be preached is namely the person of Jesus Christ. Scot said when you think of all the Church teaching and all the books written about the faith, Archbishop Fisichella is saying that’s all great but let’s boil it down to the Good News of Jesus Christ and the person of Jesus. Fr. Mark said there is a unique approach here by the Pope and the archbishop: We need to have a personal relationship with Jesus, beyond being in church on Sundays. Michael said being Christian is first and foremost about Jesus Christ and the essential truths about Him. Scot said there’s so much we do as Catholics, like our social ministries, but even before we begin those good acts, we need to slow down and reflect on the revelation, love, and person of Jesus Christ, who took on flesh and taught us so much, and then offered himself as a sacrifice for us only to rise again. We have to take time to reflect on that, especially if we’re too busy doing all the other things we have to do as Christians. Michael said we should awake every morning and re-center ourselves in Christ, to reflect on this beautiful gift of life. From both Scripture and Tradition, we can see that the path of the new evangelization has been marked out: we are called to renew the proclamation of Jesus Christ, of the mystery of his death and resurrection to stimulate people once more to have faith in him by means of conversion of life. If our eyes were still capable of seeing into the depths of the events which mark the lives of our contemporaries, it would be easy to show how much this message still holds a place of special importance. Therefore, we need to direct our reflection towards the meaning of life and death, and of life beyond death; to face such questions, those affecting people’s existence and determining their personal identity, Jesus Christ cannot be an outsider. If the proclamation of the new evangelization does not find its power in the element of mystery which surrounds life and which relates us to the infinite mystery of the God of Jesus Christ, it will not be capable of the effectiveness required to elicit the response of faith. Scot said he says we just need to tie this mystery of Jesus Christ to the biggest questions: What is the meaning of life? What is the meaning of death? What happens after death? Michael said every human being is wired to ask those questions and we know the answer starts first and foremost with Jesus Christ. Fr. Mark said the key is to make it relevant to the people in the pew. They can’t just start from scratch: “You need to love Jesus more.” We need to show them why it’s important to give this priority. Scot said the archbishop is saying to compete with everything else in life first with the big questions. The ideologies that de-evangelize people don’t have answers to these questions. Michael said when his brother’s firstborn was born, he told him about the excitement and how when he first held his daughter, it made him think about God and how God made him and why God made him. We need to engage people in the every day moments to evangelize them in that way. Christ, who is the new Adam, revealing the mystery of the Father and of his love, reveals man fully to himself and manifests to him his most exalted vocation… Through the Incarnation, the Son of God united himself in a certain sense to every human being. He worked with human hands, thought with human intelligence, acted with a human will and loved with a human heart. Being born of the Virgin Mary, he made himself truly one of us, like us in all things but sin. The innocent lamb, freely shedding his blood, he earned for us eternal life; in him God has reconciled us to himself and with one another and he has torn us away from slavery to the devil and to sin, such that each one of us can say, along with the apostle: the Son of God ‘has loved me and sacrificed himself for me’ (Gal 2:20). By suffering for us, he has not only given us an example that we might follow in his steps, but he has also opened up for us the way we are to go; if we follow it, life and death will be sanctified and will be given new meaning” (Quoting from Gaudium et Spes, the 2nd Vatican Council document) Fr. Mark said Jesus loves us as we are. We don’t have to get our lives in order first. Jesus walks with us and gives meaning to us in this life. Yet, before proceeding to a further discussion on the Year of Faith, it is necessary to examine, from a unique perspective, the present crisis in which society finds itself; that with respect to its connection to the question of God. The new evangelization cannot think that this question lies beyond its field. In contrast to the past, today we do not encounter great systems of atheism, if they were ever great; hence, the question of God needs to be addressed in a different way. Today God is not denied, but is unknown. In some respects, it could be said that, paradoxically, interest in God and in religion has grown. Nevertheless, what I note is the strong emotive connotation and declining religion in the plural; there is no interest in a religion and much less for the theme of the ‘true religion’; what seems to count are, rather, religious experiences. People are looking for different modalities of religion, selected by everyone taking up that which they find pleasing in the sense of ensuring for them that religious experience which they find more satisfying on the basis of their interests or needs at the moment. To this must be added that, especially for the younger generations, their horizon of understanding is characterized by a mentality strongly influenced by scientific research and by technology. These achievements, unfortunately, already hold the upper hand, even with respect to the basic elements of grammar and to culture in general. Thus, the new evangelization requires the capacity to know how to give an explanation of our own faith, showing Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the sole savior of humanity. To the extent that we are capable of this, we will be able to offer our contemporaries the response they are awaiting. Scot said the challenge if the New Evangelization today is not competing with atheism, but the bad practice of religion, a watered-down form of religious practice. People say they are spiritual, but not religious. Michael recalled how in his youth, the church youth group was not appreciably different from the Boy Scouts or other organizations and so people feel okay going anywhere. Scot said it’s a consumeristic view in seeking experiences that make me feel good, but not seeking the truth or anything that makes us uncomfortable in a good way. Fr. Mark likes the line: “we will be able to offer our contemporaries the response they are awaiting.” The only way to do that is to be more involved in our own faith, to know our own faith, to be part of our parish in a meaningful way. The new evangelization begins once more from this point, from the conviction that grace acts upon us and transforms us to the point of bringing about a conversion of heart, and of the credibility of our witness. … Hiding away in our churches might bring us some consolation, but it would render Pentecost vain. It is time to throw open wide the doors and to return to announcing the resurrection of Christ, whose witnesses we are. As the holy bishop Ignatius wrote, “It is not enough to be called Christians; we must be Christians in fact.” If someone today wants to recognize Christians, he must be able to do so not on the basis of their intentions, but on the basis of their commitment in the faith. If we want to be effective in the New Evangelization, we need to first ask for a conversion in ourselves. And then through ourselves, witness through our actions. Fr. Mark related a story he heard from a comedian who gives himself credit for having charitable thoughts, but never follows through. Michael said we need to have an integrity. Thus, the Year of Faith is a path, an opportunity, that the Christian community offers to the many people who possess a longing for God and a profound desire to meet him again in their lives. It is essential, therefore, that believers recognize the responsibility to provide an authentic companionship of faith, to become a neighbor to those who seek the reasons for and explanations of our Catholic beliefs. These opportunities, provided by the Year of Faith to form authentic friendships in faith, bring to the fore the very question of community. Scot said Christianity is a team sport, meant to be experienced as a group where we all work together to help each other. Fr. Mark reflected on what makes a good neighbor, someone who’s willing to help out, who is concerned with your well-being. Michael said the Archdiocese’s efforts will be focusing on the creed and the Catechism and the meaning of the Second Vatican Council. The second part will be to focus on prayer and all the different ways we all pray as Catholics. The third part will be becoming active witnesses to those around us, discerning the ways the Holy Spirit is giving us the opportunity to act and to share our faith with others. Scot said there will be a lot of opportunities to come together in person, including for those who haven’t been to church in a long time. Michael said this will be at both the parish level and archdiocesan level. Fr. Mark said some people are afraid of studying, that there is a fear that the faith is out of touch. He said the Church is pointing out in particular the documents of the Vatican II and they are rich and have the answers and are relevant. Scot said the Catechism of the Catholic Church is a tremendous document, but it may be difficult to read for beginners, so he recommends the YouCat, which is very accessible given in question and answer format. Scot wanted to end with two quotes from Archbishop Fisichella. The first was from Cardinal Ratzinger made about a week before he was made Pope: “What we need at this time of history are people, who, through a faith which is enlightened and lived out in practice, make God credible in this world … We need people who keep their gaze fixed upon God, learning from there what true humanity is. We need people whose intellect is enlightened by the light of God and whose hearts God may open up in such a way that their intellect may speak to the intellect of others and that their hearts may open the hearts of others. Only through people who are touched by God can God return to humanity.” Hence, the new evangelization starts from here: from the credibility of our living as believers and from the conviction that grace acts and transforms to the point of converting the heart. It is a journey which still finds Christians committed to it after two thousand years of history. Scot’s favorite part is that we need people who keep their gaze fixed on God, learning from there was true humanity is. Michael said the key to what we do is that it’s all about Who, Jesus Christ. God uses as instruments of grace for those around us. It’s about God first and foremost so I let go of me and let God work through me. Fr. Mark said we often hear people say they wish they listened years ago, but the Year of Faith is an opportunity for us to jump in now. Archbishop Fishichella concluded with this story from the Middle Ages: A poet passed by some work being conducted and saw three workers busy at their work; they were stone cutters. He turned to the first and said: ‘What are you doing, my friend?’ This man, quite indifferently, replied: ‘I am cutting a stone’. He went a little further, saw the second and posed to him the same question, and this man replied, surprised: ‘I am involved in the building of a column’. A bit further ahead, the pilgrim saw the third and to this man also he put the same question; the response, full of enthusiasm, was: ‘I am building a cathedral’. The old meaning is not changed by the new work we are called to construct. There are various workers called into the vineyard of the Lord to bring about the new evangelization; all of them will have some reason to offer to explain their commitment. What I wish for and what I would like to hear is that, in response to the question: ‘What are you doing, my friend?’, each one would be able to reply: ‘I am building a cathedral’. Every believer who, faithful to his baptism, commits himself or herself with effort and with enthusiasm every day to give witness to their own faith offers their original and unique contribution to the construction of their great cathedral in the world of today. It is the Church of our Lord, Jesus, his body and his spouse, the people constantly on the way without ever becoming weary, which proclaims to all that Jesus is risen, has come back to life, and that all who believe in him will share in his own mystery of love, the dawn of a day which is always new and which will never fade. Fr. Mark said he knows that God has created each one of us for a reason and while we could spend our lives running away from that meaning, we should spend our lives understanding and fulfilling what God has called us to do. 3rd segment: Now as we do every week at this time, we will consider the Mass readings for this Sunday, specifically the Gospel reading. Gospel for the Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 19, 2012 (John 6:51–58) Jesus said to the crowds: "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever." Scot said the readings hits both the original hearers of the time and us today. He said we are called to “gnaw” on the flesh of Jesus and drink his blood, as it literally says in the original Greek. For Jews to even touch blood was to become unclean, so this was incredibly shocking. To follow him as a disciple we need to understand the great gift of the Eucharist for us. Michael said this is the source and summit of the Christian life and who we are as Catholics. One of those things he wrestled with as a 19-year-old was this mystery and so he took Christ at his word and believed without having understanding. It’s critical to those of us called to witness to receive the Eucharist regularly because it will empower us in all we will face. Scot said the kernel of the Good News is right here. Fr. Mark said the Old Testament fed people with literal food for the journey and Jesus gives us his body and blood as true food for the journey, whatever journey we take. If we live the Christian life the right way, we will be uncomfortable at times, but Jesus gives us what we need to accept whatever challenge we receive. Scot said this reading tells us not to take the Eucharist for granted. This food nourishes us for eternity. Michael said St. Thomas Aquinas points out that Christians live life abundantly, but that with the Eucharist we live out life super-abundantly, ultimately with God in heaven. It gives us a taste of heaven. Scot said we can take the greatest things in our life for granted, even our spouses and children. We have to approach the Eucharist without taking it for granted. Fr. Mark said if we truly understood and didn’t take it for granted truly, we would approach the altar on our knees and in awe. Michael said the Eucharist is the source of the Christian life because all grace that enables us comes from us. It’s the summit because it’s the place where we gather as a community, as brothers and sisters in faith.

Summary of today’s show: On our first live Thursday show in several weeks our panel of Scot Landry, Fr. Roger Landry, and Gregory Tracy look at the news headlines of the week, including the passing of pro-life icon Nellie Gray; the Republican Party’s pick of vice-presidential candidate Paul Ryan who ensures that the next vice-president will be Catholic; and the controversy over the New York archdiocese’s Al Smith Dinner and Cardinal Dolan’s traditional invitation to the sitting president to attend. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry Today’s guest(s): Gregory Tracy, managing editor of the Pilot, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Boston, and Fr. Roger Landry, pastor of St. Bernadette Parish in Fall River Links from today’s show: The Anchor The Pilot Some of the stories discussed on this show will be available on The Pilot’s and The Anchor’s websites on Friday morning. Please check those sites for the latest links. Today’s topics: Nellie Gray; Paul Ryan; Al Smith dinner 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed everyone to the show and said Susan Abbott had the day off from the show. He welcomed Gregory Tracy to the show and they caught up on what Greg has been doing since he’s last been on the show about a month ago, including his vacation on a lake in southern Virginia. Scot then welcomed Fr. Roger to the show and they talked about his trip to the Caribbean and St. Lucia and the unique way of celebrating the liturgy with the local steel drum music. Scot said we’re beginning today’ examination of the news with a story about the death of one of Cardinal Seán’s heroes, Nellie Gray, the organizer of the annual March for Life in Washington, DC for the past 39 years. Greg said Cardinal Seán had known Nellie from the beginning of the March when he was just a Franciscan priest serving in DC. Cardinal Seán statement on the passing of Nellie Gray Having received news of Nellie Gray’s death, I wish to express my sincere condolences and prayers for her family and for all who came to know and love her in the Pro-Life Movement. Her love for life and her dedication to protecting the unborn, the most vulnerable among us, have inspired countless generations of Catholics and non-Catholics alike, and we will miss her tremendously. Nellie Gray will be remembered as the Joan of Arc of the Gospel of Life. The architects of the pro-abortion movement in the United States thought that the opposition would go away, but close to 40 years later the issue is still very much alive, thanks in part to the annual March for Life and because of people like Nellie who are committed to the culture of life. Having participated in every single March for Life since its inception, I have witnessed firsthand her advocacy and dedication. I was honored by her presence in Boston in 2009, when during the Boston Catholic Women’s Conference we conferred upon her the Culture of Life Award. Her death is a great loss for both our Church and our Country, but her life has left a meaningful and lasting impression upon the hearts of those who knew her and upon the many hearts of those whose lives she saved. We will keep Nellie Gray and all those who mourn her death in our prayers. We ask God to grant her eternal rest and peace, and we give thanks to Him for the gift of her life. Scot asked Fr. Roger what it means for her to be the Joan of Arc of the Gospel of Life. Fr. Roger said in the great battle between life and death, she had all the great virtues of a real military leader, including organization and courage. She was also an incredible inspiration in her faith just as the young girl in armor inspired so many men in her cause. Nellie as like that as well. “Nellie Gray, 86, dies; was March for Life founder and emcee”, Boston Pilot/CNS, 8/15/12 Dave Jolivet’s column in The Anchor, “My View From the Stands” Scot said Nellie leaves much in her legacy, including the many lives saved. she was never officially asked by the bishops, but responded to a need and that effort was blessed by the bishops. Scot said the Church needs many entrepreneurs who want to innovate. He said the March for Life is one of the biggest gatherings in the Church in the US ever year. Greg said he has gone nearly every year he’s worked for the Pilot and he has seen it grow younger in that there are more and more young people coming every year. Greg said he was touched by Nellie’s story and to see that she started her work on the March later in her life and she thought at first it was going to be a one-time deal and she ended up doing it for the rest of her life. Fr. Roger said the March for Life allows people not to feel alone in being pro-life, especially in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He recalls the first time going to the March when he was a pro-life student leader at Harvard and it wasn’t easy. He remembers being warmed by the presence of so many from colleges all over the country, proudly standing up for life. He believes that today the median age of the participants is under 22 and this is what frightens those on the other side of the issue. 3rd segment: Scot said last week Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney announced Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, a Catholic, as his running mate. For the first time, we have two Catholics on the opposing tickets. Greg said Ryan’s selection is a good choice, bringing something to the ticket that Romney lacked. In addition to being pro-life and pro-marriage, he appeals to a wing of the Republican party that wanted someone more conservative. “Romney’s running mate comes from longtime Wisconsin Catholic family”, Boston Pilot/CNS, 8/15/12 Scot said he and Fr. Roger speculated in the days leading up to the announcement about the running mate and Fr. Roger had picked Ryan. He had a sense that Ryan would be good on economic issues for the Republican ticket because he’s been articulate on these issues. He has a plan that’s coherent and compelling, even if not everyone will agree with specifics or even generalities. Fr. Roger said that as an individual and as a moral theologian, we he recognizes the need to address the massive federal dent. What he likes about Paul Ryan is that he not only goes to Mass on Sunday (Biden himself goes to Mass every Sunday too), the faith appears to penetrates Ryan’s life in a way that it doesn’t for Biden. Fr. Roger said there was an interesting exchange of letters between Ryan and Cardinal Dolan on economics and the federal budget in which Ryan showed his facility with Catholic theology. Fr. Roger noted that some more liberal Catholics, like the National Catholic Reporter, have criticized Ryan as a “dissenting” Catholic. Fr. Roger said Ryan has argued persuasively for his point of view as compatible with Catholic social teaching. If Ryan can engage so well with Cardinal Dolan, it shows Catholics how we should know our faith. Scot said in the coming months part of the election story will be the defining of what it means to be a good Catholic in the public sphere. Greg said many Catholics feel like they are political orphans without a party because neither party fully represents their views. In the past the Democrat Party was the party of choice for many Catholics and many older Catholics still reflexively vote Democrat. Greg noted that the bishops don’t tell Catholics for whom to vote, but they do propose the principles and application of the principles by which Catholics should consider candidates. Scot said one of the ways Catholics form their consciences before voting are voting guides. There will be several voting guides coming out in the next few months. He said not all issues are created equal. He asked Fr. Roger to help listeners to prepare for the types of voting guides and the types of issues they’ll hear. Fr. Roger said there is a hierarchy of truths in the Church and some of them are so central that we would be prevented from voting for a candidate who opposes them. If there were a candidate who was very good on the economy, but wanted to torture for a candidate who wanted to torture children, we couldn’t vote for him. It doesn’t mean we had to vote for the other party, but there are some things we just can’t do. We laos have to distinguish between ends and means. We have to make sure candidates line up with the ends we want as Catholics even if we disagree on means. But if they disagree on ends, calling evil good, then we cannot support them. Fr. Roger warned that some voter guides will try to understate the Catholic faith and make an equivalence between tax policy to benefit the poor and the safeguarding of marriage. They are the same value. one is an intrinsic evil in which it can never be done and the other is a narrow issue in which it could be applied in some cases. Voting is a moral decision and like any more decision we will have to answer to God for it. What values will we show to God? Scot said one of the most important political events in the Catholic realm each year is the annual Al Smith Dinner in New York. Al Smith was a Catholic presidential candidate in the early 20th century. Before the presidential election, the major party candidates are invited to the dinner, which benefits Catholic healthcare for the poor. This year’s invitation to President Obama and Mitt Romney has generated controversy, with some shocked that the Catholic Church would bring the architect of the HHS mandate to this fundraiser for Catholic healthcare. “Dinner is about engaging candidates, not endorsing them, cardinal says”, Boston Pilot/CNS, 8/15/12 Greg said it’s always been the tradition to invite the candidates, except on a few occasions and when that has happened, there has been criticism of the Church for seeming partisan. Cardinal Dolan has made it clear that the issue of the HHS mandate is not partisan. He also noted that tone of the dinner is lighthearted and Cardinal Dolan has said that this isn’t a honor being given neither is it a platform for Obama to expound on his views. He also made a point that he wants to bring a level of civility to politics. We want to dialogue with the government on the HHS mandate. What would it say to the president if we said we couldn’t stand to be in the same room with him for dinner? Scot asked Fr. Roger for his take on the controversy. He said some people want to see that this is an opportunity to make a point about Obama. Fr. Roger said what motivates a lot of critics is that many Church leaders have been pathetically soft on Catholic legislators who have dissented from Church teaching and so many see this incident in that light. At the same time, we have to beware of a pharisaicalism in which we write off all the sinners. The Pharisees took such great exception to Jesus talking to, eating with, and going into the homes of sinners and Cardinal Dolan is receiving the same kind of criticism. Some people want a kind of excommunication for Obama, but Fr. Roger thinks we need to keep lines of communication open and have an opportunity to have a conversation that highlights how the Catholic charity they’re raising money for is just the kind that is affected by the HHS mandate. Cardinal Dolan also said he hoped his own credentials in defense of life would prevent people from questioning them or questioning their own relationship with the Church. Scot said in local stories about Fr. Jack Ahern and Fr. Doc Conway receiving awards from the City of Boston for their work stopping crime in Dorchester; the news of Fr. Thomas Foley being sworn in as a chaplain in the US Air Force; the retirement of Fr. Robert Kennedy; and a priest-physician who gives a unique perspective on physician-assisted suicide.

Summary of today’s show: Fr. Eric Bennett has been a priest of the Archdiocese for just over six weeks now and joins Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O’Connor to talk about what it’s been like to finally live and minister as a priest, what is just what he expected, and what has been a surprise to him. They also discuss today’s Feast of St. Maximilian Kolbe and Fr. Chris’ vacation in Poland the couple of weeks, as well as tomorrow’s Feast of the Assumption. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O’Connor Today’s guest(s): Fr. Eric Bennett Links from today’s show: Gate of Heaven & Saint Brigid Parishes, South Boston Today’s topics: Catching up with newly ordained Fr. Eric Bennett 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomes every one back to the show after two weeks of vacation and Best Of shows. He welcomed Fr. Chris O’Connor to the show. Scot said on his vacation included a trip to Pennsylvania for a reunion with college friends and a visit to Niagara Falls. Fr. Chris visited Poland. He visited Krakow, the hometown of Pope John Paul II, where the faith is very much alive and vibrant. They also visited Auschwitz. He said the first thing that hits you is the organization of evil, the extermination of people in a systematic way. But also profound was the cell of Maximilian Kolbe, the Franciscan priest who gave his life in the place of a married father. Today is the Feast day of St. Maximilian. A candle continues to burn in that cell as the sign that the light of Christ shines in the darkness and evil has not overcome it. Today’s guest is Fr. Eric Bennett, one of six men ordained by Cardinal Sean in June. Scot said Fr. Eric has also visited Auschwitz. Fr. Eric said he too was astonished by the organization of evil, but also the goodness that God did through Kolbe. Despite the mass murders, the legend that lives on is the story of hope from those who gave their lives and survived. Fr. Chris said St. Maximilian is one of his favorite saints because he’s not like a museum piece that you can’t identify with. This man, however, walked the earth only 60 years ago. He was a priest who had a sense of what his vocation is about. He’s very real. Fr. Eric said for someone to give their life, it’s a culmination of the living of a virtuous life knowing Christ’s love. He said this morning in his homily at Mass he spoke of the opportunity for a “white” martyrdom for everyone every day as opposed to St. Maximilian’s “red” martyrdom. Fr. Chris said Kolbe’s example resonates with young people immediately because the choice was so stark. He rose to the occasion and stepped forward when he could have just kept his head down and stayed silent. Scot said one of the legends of the pro-life movement, Nellie Gray, died over the weekend. She had organized the March for Life after Roe v. Wade came down and Cardinal Seán was very close to her, going to every one of the marches for 39 years. Back in 2009, the Boston Catholic Women’s Conference gave Nellie Gray the Culture of Life award. Cardinal Seán called her the Joan of Arc of the pro-life movement. Fr. Chris has been on the March for Life. He said many vocations have come from the March and St. John’s Seminary sends all its men every year to the March. Even more profound is the numbers of young people from all over the country walking in peaceful protest. The March instills in young people at a very young age of the value, gift, and sanctity of human life. “The Mother of the Pro-Life Movement”, Dave Jolivet, The Anchor, 2009 Gray said what keeps her motivated to maintain the fight is that 50,000,000 babies are killed each year. “That should make front-page news in the New York Times and Washington Post,” she said. “But it doesn’t. The people are kept in the dark. The feminist movement has manipulated popular opinion with language like ‘pro choice,’ and a ‘woman’s right to privacy.’ After fighting against evil in World War II, I get very upset that we have Americans trying to justify abortion. Americans cannot think they can authorize the killing of an unborn child. Somehow a juggernaut of evil has grown in this country, including Catholics who vote for pro-choice candidates. We will never win this fight until this juggernaut is exposed and eliminated. I just don’t know how we’re going to do it.” Fr. Eric said for the first time this year there was a March for Life in the city of Rome and the pro-life movement in Europe is looking to emulate the movement in the United States. 2nd segment: Scot said Fr. Eric is assigned this summer at St. Brigid-Gate of Heaven Parish in South Boston before he heads back to Rome for his final year of study. Fr. Eric said he recently talked to a friend about he’s finally able to be in the parish as a priest, after anticipating this for six years. The most beautiful part is how people open up to him, how deep their faith is, the trust they put in their priests and that is very humbling. Fr. Chris said Fr. Eric had mentioned to him that hearing confessions has been profound. Fr. Eric said he’s impressed by how people want to be in union with Christ through Communion and forgiveness of their sins. It makes him to want to be a better person to see how they’re growing in holiness. Fr. Eric has also been visiting inmates to hear how they are growing in faith. Fr. Eric said the people recognize the fundamental change in him and people more than twice his age now call him Father and recognize him as priest. Scot said people sometimes try to define a priest by the duties he performs, but spiritual father is also a relationship. Scot asked Fr. Eric about the duties and whether any of those activities surprise him after ordination. Fr. Eric said this past weekend they had a cleanup of St. Augustine chapel in the cemetery in South Boston and he was surprised by the simple and humble response of people wanting to come and honor the dead through their service. The chapel is the oldest Catholic building in the archdiocese and the earliest priests are buried there. The people want to be part of a culture and a community more than just join to Mass. Fr. Chris asked about the experience of homily preparation and preaching. He said as a deacon he had weeks to prepare homilies, but now he has to prepare one every day. He reads the Scriptures the day before, tries to find a story to make a connection to the Gospel, and he looks forward to developing a sense of where he’s heading in preaching, developing a preaching plan with goals and milestones, like a teaching plan. He is trying to look at virtues and talk about how to live as a Catholic today. Scot asked about Fr. Eric’s preaching style. He doesn’t go off the cuff, but goes from a complete written text so he doesn’t ramble. Fr. Chris said every priest has a basic homily they preach. Fr. Eric said in order to live as Catholics we need to know God and his love, so we go to the sacraments to know and receive his love and are sent forth into the world to help the world know and love him. Fr. Chris asked Fr. Eric what the experience off going into prison to preach is like. Fr. Eric said he feels like he needs to tailor his homily to the particular community. This weekend, at the prison, he didn’t go from a text and went off the cuff and relied on the movement of the Holy Spirit. Because they don’t have Mass all the time, he feels like he can be a little more braid-based and general in his approach. Scot asked about why its important for people to pray every day and get to daily Mass. Fr. Eric said we all need a reminder each day about how God loves us. At Mass we come to the Lord and receive him and we are in Communion with him. Everything in life flows from him. It’s our opportunity to ask God to help us work on one thing that day. It was praying every day while a student at Boston University changed his life. As a child we go to Mass out of obligation, but as adults we go because we understand Jesus Christ is our happiness. Fr. Chris said the Mass can become rote and habit. We need to go to Mass as if it were our first Mass, our last Mass, our only Mass. Mother Teresa first said that to priests, asking them to celebrate the Mass in that way. Scot said many people are doing their best to be Catholic but only going through the motions. He asked how God spoke to Fr. Eric so he recognized that he was taking God for granted. Fr. Eric said Fr. Paul Helfrich of the Brotherhood of Hope had patience with him as his spiritual director and walked beside him the whole way. 3rd segment: Scot said tomorrow is the Feast of Assumption, a holy day of obligation for Catholics. Scot said the educational process in seminary in Rome is slightly different, which is why Fr. Eric is returning to Rome. He is getting a Licentiate degree, which is equivalent to a Master’s Degree. He has been asked by Cardinal Seán to study moral theology at the Angelicum in Rome. Fr. Chris asked what it was like to meet Pope Benedict with Cardinal Seán. Fr. Eric said he went as secretary for one of the auxiliary bishops during an ad limina visit. Scot said Rome is a wonderful place to study for the priesthood. Fr. Eric said he sees the universality of the church in Rome. It also becomes home. When people come and see Rome for the first time, it reignites his own faith, as does the excitement and joy of people from around the world. Scot asked Fr. Eric what kind of pastoral service he did in Rome. Fr. Eric said he wishes he would have had an opportunity to work in a parish, but he was able to do street evangelization in St. Peter’s Square with the Legion of Mary, encouraging people to see their visit as a pilgrimage. He’s also worked on a college campus in campus ministry there. Fr. Eric said clerics and a smile go a long way to breaking the ice with the people they talked to in the square. People often approached him, sometimes with mundane questions of Mass times, or they would go and introduce themselves to people who might seem lost. Fr. Chris asked what the blessing has been from studying in Rome. Fr. Eric said one blessing is seeing how the Church lives in Rome, but also seeing how people mix the way they live their faith with those from elsewhere. Scot said his brother Fr. Roger Landry couldn’t wait to get to Rome after ordination in order to celebrate Mass at the great places. Fr. Eric said he is too, as well as going to places throughout Europe to celebrate Mass in the great churches and at the altars of great saints. He also helps to encourage the men coming up behind him to see that ordination is not too far away. Fr. Eric said he’s also been blessed to spend his time studying for the priesthood from all over the United States. That can be difficult, but it can also be educational in how they share their pastoral strategies and how the Lord is working in other dioceses. Fr. Chris asked about the unique characteristics of Gate of Heaven and St. Brigid in South Boston. He said they have a lot of pride in their community. There’s an older generation with deep roots that is slowly being supplanted by young adults without the same roots. One of the plans for the future is to reach out to them. Scot said Gate of Heaven is magnificent church and would be a cathedral in many dioceses. Fr. Eric said Fr. Bob Casey has done a great job at maintaining and renovating the parishes. They discussed what life is like in the rectory there where there are several priests that cross several generations.

The Good Catholic Life is on summer vacation! In the meantime, we're bringing you some of our favorite shows. We will return on August 14 with an all-new show. Summary of today’s show: Chuck Hall has had a long journey through just about every Christian denomination until finally landing in the Catholic Church, where he is now preparing for ordination as a deacon. Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell listen to Chuck tell his tale, from hippy to evangelical Christian to Catholic in 2008, and how he furthered discerned the call to the diaconate. Also the role that G.K. Chesterton played in his conversion. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell Today’s guest(s): Chuck Hall Links from today’s show: Permanent Diaconate for Archdiocese of Boston BostonDiaconate.org The American Chesterton Society Today’s topics: A convert becomes a Catholic deacon with help from Chesterton 1st segment: Scot asked Fr. Mark about the concert by the Three Priests that we did a show about last week. Fr. Mark said they sang all the standards and the concert hall had many priests in it. He said most of the priests were dressed casually, except they all had black pants and black socks and were easily picked out. Scot said this week was a Mass celebrating men who have been ordained for 25 years. Fr. Mark said he was a first year theology student in the seminary when these men were fourth year. Twelve men were present for the Mass, while four more couldn’t attend because they are serving outside the archdiocese. Fr. Mark said this week he had his third-year theology seminarians for Mass this week at the Pastoral Center. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Chuck Hall. He’s studying for the diaconate and is a parishioner at Our Lady of Hope in Ipswich. Scot asked him about his preparation for the diaconate. Chuck said it’s been an incredible experience and it’s being revealed why God led him to this place. He has great affection for the deacon brothers and their families he’s in formation with. There are 15 men in his class from a variety of backgrounds. Chuck said he’s so busy with formation now, he’s not as involved in his parish as he was, but he previously started the Wednesday evening prayer group and has been active in Bible studies. He’s also been involved in music in the life of the Church. This is new for him. One of the surprises of formation was that his musical past has a place in his life in the Church. His love for music in the past came flowing back to him in an unexpected way. Scot said Chuck is halfway through the four-year program. He said the first year is a year of discernment. He talked about one of his first classes, which helps with spiritual discernment. Fr. Mark asked about the wives’ involvement. Chuck said his wife came to every single activity in the first year, but in the second year she missed a class and broke her perfect attendance. Scot recalled his time in the seminary and having the time to slow down and pray and discern, and that was tough to maintain when he left. Chuck said one of the lessons from a class this year was the understanding of a number of things about the Catholic that he never fully grasped before. As a convert, he doesn’t have the reflexive knowledge of the faith that others have. To see it broken out in the class, he understands now the why and how. He’s learned for the first time how the Mass is a sacrament, what baptism is about and how it introduces us to the life of God. Chuck says becoming a deacon was not his idea, but when he looked into, all the doors opened, and all the other doors closed. God was telling him he as enough information and God wanted him to have more formation. Chuck said after becoming Catholic he got involved in the parish, helping start a prayer group and responding to an ad in the bulletin for Eucharistic ministers at a local hospital, which has been very fruitful. He went to the pastor and gave him his idea for starting a prayer group in the parish. The pastor said, Ask the pastor and then go do it. He was surprised at the lack of bureaucracy. In the course of that, people he would encounter at the parish or hospital or at the software company he worked at would ask him if he’d thought about the diaconate. One time at the hospital, he visited a patient. When he came in the room, the man was talking on his phone to someone and at the end of the conversation, the man said, “I have to go,. The deacon is here to talk to me.” When he talked to his priest, he told him that God seemed to be calling him. Chuck said the deacon has a particular role in the Church, different from priests or religious or laypeople. They have one foot in the world and one foot in the parish. They are always in places that priests or religious are not. The particular call to the diaconate is a call to be an icon in the world. It involves a deep commitment. Scot said Chuck attended his first Mass in 2006 and only came into the Church in 2008 from Evangelical Christianity. He said one of the misconceptions of people considering the call is that it’s all up to them, but instead it’s up to both the Church and the person discerning. If the Church decides the deacon candidate is not being call to the ministry, then that’s it. Chuck said that as a convert he had a strong sense of the integrity of the Magisterium and believes that the Church isn’t going o let him down. The Church wants to help form him and discern for him and he’s going to let them do that. Fr. Mark said he read the Chuck defended the Church even before he was Catholic. It happened around the time of the scandals and in conversations with a friend about conspiracy theories surrounding the “DaVinci Code” and gnostic writings. He had suggested that his friend should read some materials, and as he was digging into the early Church fathers, he began to see the evidence for the Church’s claims. One of the books he suggested was The Creed: What Christians Believe and Why it Matters. As he began to hear about the scandals, despite being a Presbyterian, he began to feel that it was his Church being attacked, that all Christians had a stake in the Church. In most of the world, when people think Christians, they think Catholic. Even Hollywood always equates the two. So there must be something about theChurch is she’s always the target and always has this body of wisdom in it. He said G.K. Chesterton is very unusual: It’s both too militant and too passive, too much this and too much the opposite. So he picked up a copy of the Catechism and see what the Church really believes. It produced a full picture of his own belief, but opening it all up even further. He began to feel that this is Jesus’ Church. Scot said its natural for a Christian man to defend what’s important to you. He said a lot of men return to the Church because they feel called to defend it and so they pick up the Catechism and take other steps to lose their faith. Scot said Chuck came of age in the 60s and began to respond to Christ’s call in the 70s. He went through a lot of different Christian groups. Chuck said when he filled out his application for the diaconate program he was supposed to fill out a spiritual biography. It was pointed out to him how he zigged and zagged through is life, but from his own viewpoint it’s a straight line in how he responded to God at any particular point in time. His first “God moment” was when he was 8 and went to see a friend and she was at Catechism class at her Catholic church. As he was walking home, he thought, “If God exists, that’s all that matters.” He recalls thinking that’s too big for him, but that it’s true. His parents dropped him off at the local Protestant church on Sundays to get a religious education that for a faith they didn’t share with him. So there was a lot of input from religion so when his life was beginning to fall apart in the late 60s, it was natural for him to turn to God. There came a moment when he was at a party in 1971 that was next to a church. He saw a friend take drugs and nearly die and he turned to God in the church and told Him he couldn’t do it anymore. When he told his friends that, he was directed to a new pastor in town. The pastor found himself sitting with two hippies smoking away, but Chuck was told for the first time that Jesus died for him. At school at University of New Hampshire, Chuck became involved with Campus Crusade for Christ. It took a long time for him to really start changing. He was introduced to a lot of great writers and philosophers, like C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton. His testimony is that he cried out to God and He heard Chuck’s cry. God reached out to Chuck. Chuck started with the conservative Baptists, where he learned to love his Bible. Then he took a turn to Reformed theology, including Presbyterian Church in America. He began to sense there was more to the picture, including the corporal works of mercy. He came to understand that these things need to be part of his life. He went to his minister and asked how to discern how to show these things in his life. The minister told Chuck that if he’s called to these, the minister will know before Chuck will. Chuck knew that was the wrong answer. When Chuck would take communion at the Presbyterian church (not Catholic communion, they don’t believe in the Real Presence) once per month like they did, he would be in tears. This was the beginning of his move to Catholicism. Scot said he read in Chuck’s biography of the importance of G.K. Chesterton for those thinking of converting to Catholicism. Chuck said he was introduced to Chesterton through his Father Brown mystery stories. He realized that there was a lot more in the books than just a mystery. At one point, he was at Keene State College studying classical guitar and he met a used book store owner he sold him many Chesterton books. He began to realize while he was reading “Orthodoxy” that he was becoming accustomed to the way the mind works and how one forms a philosophy. G.K. Chesterton’s books on Amazon.com Chesterton, who was not a theologian, but a journalist, wrote about what the Catholic mind thinks about. When Chuck finally decided to convert to Catholicism, all that Chesterton he’d read came back to him. Fr. Mark asked where someone should start with Chesterton. Chuck said the Father Brown stories is a good place to start. 3rd segment: Now as we do every week at this time, we will consider the Mass readings for this Sunday, specifically the Gospel reading. First Reading for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 5, 2012 (Exodus 16:2–4, 12–15) The whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. The Israelites said to them, “Would that we had died at the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt, as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! But you had to lead us into this desert to make the whole community die of famine!” Then the LORD said to Moses, "I will now rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion; thus will I test them, to see whether they follow my instructions or not. “I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. Tell them: In the evening twilight you shall eat flesh, and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread, so that you may know that I, the LORD, am your God.” In the evening quail came up and covered the camp. In the morning a dew lay all about the camp, and when the dew evaporated, there on the surface of the desert were fine flakes like hoarfrost on the ground. On seeing it, the Israelites asked one another, “What is this?” for they did not know what it was. But Moses told them, “This is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.” Gospel for the Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, August 5, 2012 (John 6:24–35) When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. And when they found him across the sea they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” Jesus answered them and said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, you are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled. Do not work for food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.” So they said to him, “What can we do to accomplish the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” So they said to him, “What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do? Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.? So Jesus said to them, ”Amen, amen, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven; my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." So they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst.” Scot asked how can you miss the complaints of the Israelites? They’re cranky because they’re hungry, but even despite that God supplied them materially with the food so they wouldn’t be hungry and so they would know he cares for them. Fr. Mark said none of us can excuse ourselves. How often do we grumble against God? But God in the Old Testament says okay, so I will feed you. So now the disciples ask Jesus what he will feed them. More than physical food, he gives the food that feeds our body and soul. Scot said Jesus says they came to him because the disciples at the loaves and are filled. How often do we pray for material things thinking that will be for our good. Jesus instead says do not work for the material things. The apostles had just seen this monstrous miracle of feeding the thousands from a few loaves and fishes. But Jesus says the true bread from heaven is the one that gives life for the world in every possible way. Of course, they ask for it and he says that he is the bread of life. Jesus gives life. Jesus is life. Fr. Mark said after all the ways God has blessed us, our attitude can be “What else you got?” if we’re only looking at worldly things. Jesus wants us to keep our eyes fixed on heaven, not on the world. Scot said we say to God, help me get the life you want for me. Fr. Mark said for that to happen, we have to be silent in our prayer to listen for the voice of God.

Summary of today’s show: Fr. Joseph Scorzello has been a priest-secretary for two cardinals, a parochial vicar, a pastor, and now a seminary professor. He joins Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O’Connor to talk about attending seminary in Rome just after the Second Vatican Council closed; serving in several of Boston’s Italian parishes; being asked to become a priest-secretary by Cardinal Humberto Medeiros and his successor, Cardinal Bernard Law; and ultimately ending up at St. John’s Seminary where he teaches philosophy and imparts his decades of pastoral experience upon the young men who will follow him into the priesthood. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O’Connor Today’s guest(s): Fr. Joseph Scorzello Links from today’s show: St. John Seminary Today’s topics: Priest Profile: Fr. Joseph Scorzello 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed Fr. Chris O’Connor back to the show and notes that they are recording today at St. John Seminary. He noted that the seminary is called the heart of the Church and asked Fr. Chris what that means. Fr. Chris said this place and its purpose serves as the lifeblood of any diocese. As Cardinal Seán has said, without priests, there is no Eucharist and the Eucharist is at the heart of our Catholic existence. The seminary provides priests and those who will minister throughout the Archdiocese. While the principal purpose is to form priests, they also offer all sorts of programs to the laity as well, in order to shape and form them to be co-workers with the priests. The parish is only as good as the pastor who empowers the people around him to assist him in running the parish and in evangelization. Evangelization is a big part of our agenda. It involves every man, woman, and child in a parish so they offer programs to educate the laity in such a way that they know him in a deep and profound way and transmit that to others. Scot said The Theological Institute for the New Evangelization and St. John Seminary are able to do this work because of the great work of the faculty, including Fr. Joseph Scorzello. He asked Fr. Chris to tell listeners about Fr. Scorzello. Fr. Chris described Fr. Joe as a great mentor to him. He said he’s a man of deep prayer and is always present in the seminary and values the work of seminary formation. He said when bishops from others dioceses ask why they should send their seminarians to St. John’s, Fr. Chris notes it’s a regional seminary forming men from around New England and building those relationships among the priests and it has a great faculty, who are all united on the right stuff and who value and treasure the priesthood. 2nd segment: Scot and Fr. Chris welcomed Fr. Joseph Scorzello. Scot said Fr. Joe has had an interesting priestly life. He asked him about his background. Fr. Joe said he was born and lived for 10 years in East Boston and attended Most Holy Redeemer Church. They moved to Hyde Park and went to Most Precious Blood Parish and attended St. Raphael’s school. From there he went to Christopher Coilumbus High School in the North End and graduated from there in 1962 and entered Cardinal O’Connell college seminary in Jamaica Plain. After two years there, he came to St. John Seminary and studied Philosophy at St. Clement’s Hall. After two years there, he received a bachelor’s degree and was appointed by Cardinal Cushing to theological studies at the North American College in Rome and the Gregorian University. He was there for four years until 1970 and was ordained in Rome on December 19, 1969. They were ordained at the end of the first semester of the fourth year of theology which was unusual, but which was allowed for seminarians at the Gregorian University. He was ordained by Bishop Hickey, who became the cardinal archbishop of Washington, DC. Scot asked what it was like to be studying in Rome during Vatican II. He said it was exciting academically speaking. Many of the faculty were members of the commissions that put together the draft documents for the Council. Fr. Joe said it was all part of the course material he was studying. They would refer to the documents in their courses on Scripture and fundamental theology and more. He was there just a couple of years after the close of the council. Bishops came to visit who were members of the council. In 1968, Pope Paul VI wrote the important encyclical Humanae Vitae. Scot asked about the change in the liturgy and whether Fr. Joe was trained in both the old and new rites. Fr. Joe said at his ordination they had the new English translation of the Mass in a binder on the altar because it was so new. He also offered Mass in Italian. His first Christmas Eve Mass was in Italian with the workers at the North American College. Fr. Chris said there are two basic systems for seminary formation, the French system and the Italian system. St. John’s follows the French system, having been founded by the Sulpician order, where the faculty live with the men. Fr. Joe explained the Italian system, in which the college is a living space. At the NAC, all the Americans from all over the states would live together, eat together, pray together, and do some formation together. Their intellectual formation was done at a university. Most went to the Gregorian University, but there were others as well, including the Angelicum. after ordination, during the second semester, the new priests celebrated Mass at the college, and during Lent they went out to the hospitals in Rome to hear confessions. Next to the college is a hospital for children, where the sickest children are sent. Many of them die there. He would go over to pray with the family at the death of their children. He never wanted to hear the phone ring. Scot asked whether the change in the liturgy was controversial among the seminarians or were they in favor of the change to vernacular. Fr. Joe said most of the men were happy to see the vernacular, but there was tension as well and its true in himself. It’s difficult to leave what you were brought up with and familiar with. Now there was a new way of doing something. His concern, even now with teaching the Tridentine rite, we have to celebrate the Eucharist and it has to be prayerful. If we’re doing it in a language we’re not familiar with, it may not be as prayerful as it could be, especially as the priest-celebrant leading it. As the president of the assembly, the priest has to lead the assembly in prayer. He said some of the men in his class didn’t have as much Latin as others and were happy to go into the vernacular. Certainly Gregorian chant was irreplaceable. Overall, everyone was happy with the change, if perhaps not as happy with all the translations. He said the new translation is a bit more reverent and using a language that is a bit different from regular day-to-day language so it lends itself to a prayerful environment. Scot noted that it often takes several generations after a Council for the Church to appropriate all aspects of it. Fr. Joe said he returned home to Boston in July 1970 and celebrated his first Mass here on July 19. His first assignment was St. Mary’s Italian Church in Salem, which had a small Italian community. The monsignor who was there was a wonderful first pastor. He was very respectful of Fr. Joe. At one point, he was in charge of religious education and when concerns came up about the textbook, he accepted Fr. Joe’s decisions on the matter. He was prayerful and concerned about his people as well. He was then assigned to Our Lady Help of Christians in Newton. They also had a large Italian community there. There were four priests there at the time. They had a grammar school and a high school, where he taught for a year. He also visited the grammar school often as well. He also taught religious education. He celebrated funerals and weddings in Italian and heard confessions in Italian and had Communion calls in Italian, about 20 or 30 per month. He was also on call at the hospital for the occasional Italian patient who didn’t speak English well. After eight years he moved again to St. Anthony’s in Revere, another strongly Italian parish. St. Anthony’s had four priests as well. This was about 10 or 11 years in the priesthood for Fr. Joe so he was the senior curate in the house, that is the most senior of the priests not the pastor. Fr. Joe was put in charge of the parish band even though he’s neither a musician or singer. He was there for about 2–1/2 years and one day got a call from Bishop Thomas Daily who asked him to come in. Cardinal Medeiros wanted him to come in and meet on Friday. The whole week from Monday to Friday he wondered what it was about. On Friday, the cardinal told him he wanted to appoint him as his secretary. Fr. Scorzello thought it was a mistake at first, but the cardinal insisted that it would be a good fit. The Cardinal asked if he needed time to think about it, but Fr. Joe said that if it was the wish of the archbishop then he didn’t have to think about it. He was asked not to talk about it until he got the official appointment, except for his pastor. The next week, Fr. Joe got a call from the cardinal himself who told him to call his parents and tell them first. Scot said he can’t recall any personal memories of Cardinal Medeiros. Fr. Joe said he’s known many priests and bishops and says from his own judgment that he was a bishop who was holy, intelligent, and perceptive. He had them to a higher degree than anyone else he’s known. He knew the diocese well, he loved the people and priests, he was intellectually acute. At the time, Fr. Joe was studying for his comprehensive exams in philosophy, and the cardinal was hospitalized for a week and every night the cardinal quizzed him on the work. Scot asked what the cardinal’s legacy is in the Archdiocese. Fr. Joe said he stabilized the archdiocese’s finances certainly, but his legacy is really his gentleness, his love of his priests, and the lasting memory of him among the people. He said the funeral Mass for the Cardinal was incredible. They celebrated memorial Masses for him all week and the cathedral was filled for all of those Masses. Fr. Chris said one of his earliest memories is of standing in the huge line at the cathedral for the wake. The line went out the cathedral doors and they had to wait more than an hour and a half to go by. He remembers the reverence and love and outpouring of the people. Bishop Daily was appointed administrator and then out of the blue a bishop from Missouri was being sent to Boston. Fr. Joe said Bishop Bernard Law was named in January 1984 and came up for the news conference and met with the auxiliary bishops of Boston, the secretaries, and the bishops of the metropolitan region. He asked Fr. Joe to return to Springfield-Cape Girardeau to help him transition to Boston. He stayed there for six weeks. Fr. Chris noted it was only supposed to be 10 days originally. When he was told he needed to stay for six weeks, Fr. Joe told Bishop Law that he’d have to make a few phone calls, to Bishop Daily, of course, but more importantly to his mother so she wouldn’t worry. Fr. Joe said his mother was delighted to hear from him. Much later, after Cardinal Law had retired to Rome, after the death of Fr. Joe’s sister, he called Fr. Joe’s mother to extend his own sympathies to her. Scot said he has heard from many, many people about Cardinal Law that when somebody was ill or in the hospital or somebody had died that was close to one of his priests or to somebody that worked in the chancery, that the cardinal was tremendous in those moments. Scot said that for the archbishop, there is so much administration and so much ceremony that there isn’t a lot of time for simple pastoral ministry of a priest. Fr. Joe said while he was with the cardinal as his secretary,one time as they traveled from Worcester, the cardinal wanted to go to Ipswich because there was a nun there who was dying that he wanted to visit. It was already after 8pm and the house was secluded and once they were there the cardinal gave the anointing and visited for a while and they didn’t get home until after 11pm. The Cardinal came to Fr. Joe’s dad’s wake and funeral too. He continued the tradition set by Cardinal Medeiros. They both had a great deal of affection for the priests and the people. After his time as priest-secretary, Cardinal Law asked him to become administrator of Most Precious Blood in Hyde Park. Bishop Riley was the pastor there and was getting on in years so he had very much on his plate as auxiliary bishop and pastor of parish and school. This was after the cardinal’s first year in Boston. It worked out for Fr. Joe very well to go back to his home parish. While Fr. Joe was there was when his own father got sick and died so it was a blessing to be close to home. After 5–1/2 years, he asked not to become pastor and asked for sabbatical for six months to write his dissertation. He went up to St. Anselms College abbey to live with the monks and wrote a rough draft of his dissertation. After that he was assigned to St. Mary’s in Brookline with Fr. Jack Ahern and Fr. Richard Lennon, now the bishop of Cleveland, and Fr. Joseph Trainor, He taught school there again and religious education. He continued working on his doctoral dissertation and celebrated his 25th anniversary of his priesthood while there. He took his mother and sister to Rome to celebrate. They visited with friends in the city every night and had a wonderful time. Cardinal Law got them very good audience tickets to greet Pope John Paul II. The Friday of the week, December 17, he got a call from the Vatican inviting them to celebrate Mass in the private chapel with Pope John Paul on the following morning. They went to the early Mass with the Pope and met him afterward. He was at St. Mary’s for another after that and then he was appointed Pastor of St. Francis of Assisi in Medford. Scot noted that you can see it from Route 93. After six years there, Fr. Joe was asked whether he wanted to stay or apply to another position. He wasn’t happy with all the administrative work of the pastor so he asked to be made a parochial vicar. The cardinal asked him to come in and talk about it. The cardinal said he would respect his decision given that Fr. Joe had always been obedient and said yes to the bishop’s requests. So he appointed him as parochial vicar at Our Lady of Lourdes in Brockton. after a couple of years, he got a call from Fr. John Farren, a Dominican priest he didn’t know. Fr. Farren asked Fr. Joe to come and teach at the seminary. Fr. Joe said the first year, he came from Brockton twice per week to teach, which was a bit difficult. At the end of the year, he said he couldn’t keep it up any longer at 60 years old doing two jobs. Fr. Joe asked Cardinal Seán to appoint him full-time to the seminary or to the parish. That was 7 years ago. Fr. joe said the great gift of working at the seminary is the priestly fraternity with the faculty. Most priests live alone in their rectories or with one other priest, but in the seminary there are many more priests. Then the young men in the seminary are very courageous and inspiring to dedicate themselves to Christ and His Church. Fr. Joe said he’s always enjoyed being a priest, but the seminary is a very special assignment. Scot said it’s unusual for a priest serving many years in parishes to come onto the seminary faculty as a professor late in life. Fr. Joe said that was one of the reasons Fr. Farren asked him to come to the seminary. He wanted him because of his pastoral experience. Most of the priest-faculty have only spent a limited amount of time in the parish, so in classes and at meals, the students are intent on talking about his pastoral experiences. Fr. Chris said Fr. Joe really shines in those lunches in which he imparts his wisdom in both the good and bad, the dangers and what to look out for and watch for as a priest.

Summary of today’s show: The final language for the physician-assisted suicide ballot question facing voters in Massachusetts this November has been issued by the Secretary of State’s office and Janet Benestad returns to update Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell on what it says, what’s been happening in the educational initiative and to hear from Sarah Barry, a recent high school graduate working in Janet’s office this summer, who recently wrote about her experiences working in a nursing home and how that relates to this issue. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O’Connell Today’s guest(s): Janet Benestad and Sarah Barry Links from today’s show: Suicide is Always a Tragedy Question 2: Prescribing Medication to End Life, Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Death with Dignity 2012 Today’s topics: Physician-Assisted Suicide 1st segment: Scot Landry asked Fr. Mark O’Connell back to the show after a couple of weeks away. Fr. Mark has spent his vacation working on some publications. Scot said after today we’ll be on vacation for a couple of weeks, so for the next two weeks we’ll have some pre-taped shows and some of our best previous shows. Scot said today we’ll talk about recent developments in the assisted suicide ballot initiative in Massachusetts. Fr. Mark said we have a lot of work to do before the ballot because there’s still a lot of ignorance on it. Today’s guest is Janet Benestad, Secretary for Faith Formation and Evangelization and chairperson of the Cardinal’s education initiative committee for this issue. Also joining us is Sarah Barry, who is interning in Janet’s office this summer, who will be attending college in the fall. As a senior at Montrose School, she we wrote a paper on physician-assisted suicide based on her experiences working at a nursing home. Scot asked Sarah what she thinks young people especially should know about this issue. She said they should know they have the power to effect change. They should remember this affects young people, not just the elderly, not just in the future, but now as well. Sarah said it harms the understanding of human dignity and devalues life. Scot said we wouldn’t be talking about assisted suicide if we didn’t have Roe v. Wade and aborted 50 million people in America since the early 1970s. Janet said there’s no doubt it has devalued human life. She also said that the age limit for assisted suicide under this initiative is 18. They can request assisted suicide without notifying anyone in their family. When the state puts the wooer over life and death in the hands of a private individual or institution, then we’ve really devalued life. Forty years ago, this would have been unimaginable. Scot said Massachusetts was targeted for this initiative in a presidential election year because it’s seen that if it passes here it will pass everywhere. Janet noted that by 2030, 60% of the population will be between 66 and 84 and this will affect the broad swath of people. Fr. Mark commented on Janet saying the power is in the hand of the physician. Janet said the emphasis is on the voluntary aspect of the assisted suicide where the doctor is seen to be acting only on the request of the patient. But the New England Journal Of Medicine, which has been in favor of the ballot question, are now saying that physicians need to extricate themselves from this. Major groupings of doctors are opposed to assisted suicide and being involved in the prescription of lethal medication. The Supreme Court has said the public welfare requires the preservation of life. When the law says this is part of normal medical care at the end of life, the physician is putting into the hands of the patient the opportunity to end his life. The doctor is participating in the killing of the person. Now, the law isn’t administering the drug, but he is giving the lethal weapon to the patient. Fr. Mark said when the patient is unable to administer it himself, then it means that anyone like a caregiver or anyone can give it. There’s no requirement to have family present or notified. Janet said there are none of the important safeguards. There is no requirement for a psychiatric examination. Scot said in theory the bill purports to allow someone with a terminal diagnosis to ask for a prescription to end your life. Scot said even people with treatable diseases get depressed, never mind those with terminal illnesses as they consider the pain, the struggle, being a burden on others and more. Even a terminal diagnosis may not truly be terminal with treatment. Janet noted that in the Netherlands under the law with a lot of supposed safeguards it devolved into easy assisted suicide and even euthanasia (killing without the patient asking). Scot said the main argument of the proponents is that people suffer needlessly at the end of life and too many people turn to “violent means” to end their lives. Janet said in Oregon where this is legal, pain is only the sixth most frequent reason people choose suicide. Loss of autonomy is listed as the number one. Janet said women tend to be more opposed than men, probably because of the fear of the loss of control. Scot said pain can be treated with a lot of advances in palliative care. The arguments of the proponents is if we have fears about the end of life, then this is a blanket solution. Scot said the main proponent in Massachusetts of assisted suicide tells the story of her father committing suicide by gun and that people should have the option of suicide of medication as a better option. Why should suicide be a better option in any situation? Fr. Mark asked Sarah about the use of compassion to mean helping someone die. She said it’s the opposite of true compassion. They might be trying to do the right thing for the elderly and infirm, but it doesn’t respect the human person. Fr. Mark said real compassion is showing someone true love through palliative care. Scot said at the beginning and end of life we go through a phase of having to be cared for. That changes not just the person being cared for, but also the person who cares for the other. Why should we deny others that opportunity. Scot asked Janet about the prescription used in Oregon. She said in Oregon the patient gets 100 capsules, which they take home and empty into a drink and then they have to get most of that medication down. If you don’t you won’t slip into unconsciousness in about 5 minutes and die in a couple of hours. It has happened that it took four days for the person to die. If you don’t get enough down, you can vomit and choke to death on it. This ballot initiative talks about death with dignity, but this is neither dignified nor compassionate. Anybody can help there sick person with this difficult process. Scot said the pills themselves are very big and there’s a lot of them. This isn’t just a little pill that puts you out. Janet said 9 of the 71 who received prescriptions in the most recent year came back later to ask for a new prescription years later. This means (1) the diagnosis was wrong and (2) something deterred them from doing it the first time. There’s no guarantee in this law that the doctor will know you well enough or take the time consider whether you know what you’re doing. She said it’s also been shown when depression is treated, then the desire for suicide goes away. Scot said in the Netherlands, a much higher percentage of elderly people don’t trust their doctors anymore. They’re afraid of being pressured by their doctors to end their lives. So they avoid going to the doctor to be treated for normal medical care. 2nd segment: Scot said we’re going to look at the ballot initiative language and he’s going to encourage all his friends to vote No on Question 2. This is the summary voters will see on the ballot: This proposed law would allow a physician licensed in Massachusetts to prescribe medication, at a terminally ill patient’s request, to end that patient’s life. To qualify, a patient would have to be an adult resident who (1) is medically determined to be mentally capable of making and communicating health care decisions; (2) has been diagnosed by attending and consulting physicians as having an incurable, irreversible disease that will, within reasonable medical judgment, cause death within six months; and (3) voluntarily expresses a wish to die and has made an informed decision. The proposed law states that the patient would ingest the medicine in order to cause death in a humane and dignified manner. Scot noted that nothing in this uses the language of suicide which is disappointing. Janet said mentally capable means two physicians have to certify the person as mentally capable, but a psychological exam is not required. We also think of a longtime physician relationship, but you can go to any doctor and in Oregon people have doctor-shopped for one who will prescribe for them. Fr. Mark said seeing the bottle makes it particularly horrifying but even one pill would be horrible. Scot noted that an 18-year-old in the state can’t drink, but they can ask for a lethal prescription. The proposed law would require the patient, directly or through a person familiar with the patient’s manner of communicating, to orally communicate to a physician on two occasions, 15 days apart, the patient’s request for the medication. At the time of the second request, the physician would have to offer the patient an opportunity to rescind the request. The patient would also have to sign a standard form, in the presence of two witnesses, one of whom is not a relative, a beneficiary of the patient’s estate, or an owner, operator, or employee of a health care facility where the patient receives treatment or lives. Scot said first, they have to orally or verbally communicate to a physician on two occasions. Janet said if you can’t write or speak, the request can be made through someone who says they’re familiar with their way of communicating. Someone can say, I think Grandma wants this, and that would be good enough. It doesn’t even have to be videotaped to provide proof. Janet said there is no requirement that anybody has to be present and if there is a suspicion of foul play, this may not be investigated and the death certificate will say the person died of the underlying disease, not assisted suicide. Also as to the witnesses, while it says one of the witnesses cannot be a relative who stands to inherit, the other can be. And the second can be the heir’s best friend. Scot said there’s no safeguard to ensure the witnesses are truly objective. Is this the sort of society we want? Janet said even those in favor of assisted suicide should be wary of this bill because of how poor the safeguards are. The proposed law would require the attending physician to: (1) determine if the patient is qualified; (2) inform the patient of his or her medical diagnosis and prognosis, the potential risks and probable result of ingesting the medication, and the feasible alternatives, including comfort care, hospice care and pain control; (3) refer the patient to a consulting physician for a diagnosis and prognosis regarding the patient’s disease, and confirmation in writing that the patient is capable, acting voluntarily, and making an informed decision; (4) refer the patient for psychiatric or psychological consultation if the physician believes the patient may have a disorder causing impaired judgment; (5) recommend that the patient notify next of kin of the patient’s intention; (6) recommend that the patient have another person present when the patient ingests the medicine and to not take it in a public place; (7) inform the patient that he or she may rescind the request at any time; (8) write the prescription when the requirements of the law are met, including verifying that the patient is making an informed decision; and (9) arrange for the medicine to be dispensed directly to the patient, or the patient’s agent, but not by mail or courier. Scot said the key verbs are “inform” and “recommend” but there’s no documentation. While it says the medication must not be mailed, note that there is no followup. Janet noted that the prescription can be sent by mail or email, meaning a third person could fill it and take it. She said there’s lot of recommendations and few requirements for a law that can end a life. The proposed law would make it punishable by imprisonment and/or fines, for anyone to (1) coerce a patient to request medication, (2) forge a request, or (3) conceal a rescission of a request. The proposed law would not authorize ending a patient’s life by lethal injection, active euthanasia, or mercy killing. The death certificate would list the underlying terminal disease as the cause of death. Scot said they’re trying to say that this isn’t euthanasia, making it more palatable. Euthanasia is either refusing to give a treatment or actively killing. Janet said the physician is indeed creating the conditions under which the person can end their life. Scot said it puts a face on assisted suicide that this isn’t ending life, but only making someone comfortable on their way. It’s aim is the make it less objectionable. Janet said we’re giving a happy face to something we would never approve under any normal conditions. Janet noted the case of the Lockerbie bomber who was released from prison because he was supposedly dying, but he lived in Libya for three more years. She said there are many, many documented cases of people given terminal diagnoses and go on to live many years more. Participation under the proposed law would be voluntary. An unwilling health care provider could prohibit or sanction another health care provider for participating while on the premises of, or while acting as an employee of or contractor for, the unwilling provider. So a Catholic physician or Catholic hospital wouldn’t have to do this and could prevent someone from coming on the premises to do it. But of course, you only have to recall the Health and Human Services mandate to see how someone’s ideology can be forced on someone else. Janet said in Oregon one woman was told that her insurance wouldn’t cover cancer treatment, but would cover assisted suicide. The proposed law states that no person would be civilly or criminally liable or subject to professional discipline for actions that comply with the law, including actions taken in good faith that substantially comply. It also states that it should not be interpreted to lower the applicable standard of care for any health care provider. Scot said the loaded word is “substantially comply”. Janet said the liability language is meant to protect physicians who are afraid of being prosecuted. But there’s a lot of wiggle room. Janet said this law is going to define comfort care as giving lethal medication. How can that not lower the standard of care. Doctors have said this is going to lower standard of care because they will be pressured to go along with this and patients will have more suspicion of them. Scot said when healthcare providers have to look at the balance sheet, where will they be pressured to go: the cheaper route of ending lives or the more expensive route of ongoing care? A person’s decision to make or rescind a request could not be restricted by will or contract made on or after January 1, 2013, and could not be considered in issuing, or setting the rates for, insurance policies or annuities. Also, the proposed law would require the attending physician to report each case in which life-ending medication is dispensed to the state Department of Public Health. The Department would provide public access to statistical data compiled from the reports. Scot at least in theory we will be able to determine how many people will be given the medications, but we won’t know how many took it because the underlying diasease will be listed as cause of death. It also doesn’t provide penalty for not reporting. The proposed law states that if any of its parts was held invalid, the other parts would stay in effect. A YES VOTE would enact the proposed law allowing a physician licensed in Massachusetts to prescribe medication, at the request of a terminally-ill patient meeting certain conditions, to end that person’s life. A NO VOTE would make no change in existing laws. Everyone in the studio said they’re voting No on 2. Janet said it’s important for people to go to the Death with Dignity 2012 website and to see what proponents are saying. We know as Catholics and good citizens that this law is not compassionate or good for Massachusetts. We should put our resources into palliative care and hospice care. As Catholics we don’t have to have treatments that are burdensome and we can take medication to ease our pain. Now as we do every week at this time, we will consider the Mass readings for this Sunday, specifically the Gospel reading. Gospel for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 29, 2012 (John 6:1–15) Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. A large crowd followed him, because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near. When Jesus raised his eyes and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip, “Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” He said this to test him, because he himself knew what he was going to do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred days?’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.’” One of his disciples, Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what good are these for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were reclining, and also as much of the fish as they wanted. When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, “Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted.” So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. When the people saw the sign he had done, they said, “This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain alone. Scot said this is the only miracle story recounted in all four Gospels. He said this miracle precedes the Eucharist. He wondered why Jesus started with the fish and loaves instead of dropping food from heaven. Scot said Jesus wants us to participate in his miracles. Fr. Mark said this is for us as well as we are presented with giving God our little talents against a daunting problem and letting God do the rest. Scot said we want to pray for the success of the No vote on 2. We want to work to stop it. But God will magnify our efforts we put into this. Scot said in the Mass we are called to bring not just our money but everything we are to the offertory to bring the altar. Janet said one pastor tells a story about he Gospel who said a First Communion parent told him that if the little boy can be the means to the miracle and his child is receiving the Eucharist, then he is coming back to the Eucharist and the practice of his faith as well. Scot said at World Youth Day they tell the young people that they aren’t the future of the Church but the present of the Church and they can make a difference in the world. Sarah said while 18-year-olds can request suicide, they can also make a difference and prevent assisted suicide by voting against this ballot question. Fr. Mark said to notice the last line that Jesus goes back to the mountain alone to pray and the power of prayer is enormous.

Summary of today’s show: On our Thursday news show, Scot Landry, Susan Abbott, Antonio Enrique, and Domenico Bettinelli discussed the headlines of the week, including the work of the Opus Dei center in Pembroke; Our Sunday Visitor acquires a local offertory envelope company; the conviction and sentencing of an Archdiocese of Philadelphia priest; preparing for the Olympics; and an interview with the new head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Susan Abbott Today’s guest(s): Antonio Enrique, editor of the Pilot, the newspaper of the Archdiocese of Boston, and Domenico Bettinelli, creative director of Pilot New Media Links from today’s show: The Anchor The Pilot Some of the stories discussed on this show will be available on The Pilot’s and The Anchor’s websites on Friday morning. Please check those sites for the latest links. Today’s topics: Opus Dei center; OSV buys Zartarian; Philly cleric sentenced; Olympics 1st segment: Scot and Susan caught up on their week and she told him that she’s talking an online course through the University of Dayton. It is one of the avenues that catechists can use toward certification. She wanted to experience it. She’s taking a survey of Catholic doctrine course. She described the other students in her class, who hail from Hawaii, Germany, Bahrain, and throughout the United States. Scot asked if it was asynchonrous learning where they login as they can. Susan joked that if she learns anything new it will be grounds for dismissal. She said there is a lot of writing required. Scot noted that the Catholic Media secretariat has partnered with another online Catholic educational institution called MyCatholicFaithDelivered.com and noted the classes he has taken have helped him refresh his understanding of the faith. Scot welcomed Dom and Antonio to the show. One of the local stories this week in the Pilot is a feature story on Arnold Hall in Pembroke, a retreat center connected to Opus Dei. Scot and Susan recounted the well-known retreat centers in the Archdiocese of which Arnold Hall is one. “Pembroke Opus Dei center ready to ‘change the world’”, The Boston Pilot, 7/27/12 Antonio said he was contacted by Joe Billmeier from Opus Dei in June about covering a special Mass, which they couldn’t cover, so instead he offered a feature story on Opus Dei in Boston and on Arnold Hall. Antonio said the Pilot should have both hard news and feature stories. The features inspire Catholics to explore their faith in all its diversity. Scot said the article is long and the first third explains what Opus Dei is and how it’s been portrayed in Hollywood. He recounted the different levels of membership in Opus Dei. Dom talked about the experience of attending a silent retreat at Arnold Hall. Susan said there is a connection between Opus Dei and the Montrose School and she loved hearing about the young women who have been involved in programs there. She quoted the end of the story as well in which the work of Opus Dei to change the world is described. Antonio said the idea was that Christian sanctify themselves and the world through the little things they do every day. St. Josemaria Escriva promoted the idea that there aren’t two kinds of Christians: the holy clergy and the regular laypeople. But he promoted the idea that we are all called to holiness. Opus Dei is not controversial in quite the way Hollywood frames it. “If you want something controversial, it is just simply that, yeah, we want to change the world. But, how are we going to change the world? It is just everything you have heard here. It is smiling when you don’t feel like smiling. It’s undertaking this little mortification. Ir is helping the guy you work with. It is using your own initiative,” he said. For more information, go to ArnoldHall.com. “Our Sunday Visitor acquires regional firm Zartarian Publishing”, The Boston Pilot, 7/27/12 Our Sunday Visitor Scot said Our Sunday Visitor yesterday acquired the biggest local offertory envelope provider. While OSV serves more than half of the 18,000 parishes nationwide, locally Zartarian had held sway among parishes. Recently, Zartarian decided the best way to stay with the modern times was to partner with OSV, which offers so many more services. Susan related how her parish has used Zartarian for years. Scot said he is inspired by OSV’s and Zartarian’s attitude that they are in business to serve the Church. Dom said he looks forward to all the associated services that OSV will now offer to Zartarian parishes. Scot by having envelopes and online giving under the same roof means it’s not competition or taking away from one company. Antonio said he prefers the offertory in the Church where people have the experience of giving. Scot noted how people are paid twice a month or monthly and why wouldn’t we move that way in the Church. When we see our monthly giving to the Church we can compare it to what we’re paying in our monthly bills. Susan said she and her pastor have gone around on this issue for ages and he had argued that there is something about people coming and contributing in person. Scot said instead of the offertory being just about money, that people be able to submit a paper prayer petition to put in the basket. Scot noted that Our Sunday Visitor’s 100th anniversary this year. They were founded by a priest who wanted to publish pamphlets to combat anti-Catholic untruths. 3rd segment: Scot and Dom noted the story about the conviction and sentencing of a priest in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for failing to do enough when he knew of priests who had abused children. “Former secretary for clergy sentenced to three to six years in prison”, The Boston Pilot/CNS, 7/26/12 Scot read from the archdiocesan statement on the sentencing. Dom noted that it seemed like a symbolic sentencing designed to send a wide message. He hoped that this wasn’t just a message to the Church, but to all institutions where such things have happened. Scot noted there is a double standard, but we should welcome the double standard because people should have a higher expectation of the Church. Antonio said if you’re in a position of authority, you’re in a position to prevent not just one event, but many possible crimes. There is some outrage over the longer sentence for the supervisor than for the perpetrator of the crime. He said we can’t forget the horror of the sex abuse crisis. This isn’t just a Church issue; it’s a societal issue. No institution is addressing this issue more carefully than the Church. We need to pray for everyone involved and hope we can move forward. [“Pope says he hopes greatest sports event in world brings global peace”,The Boston Pilot/CNS, 7/23/12](http://pilotcatholicnews.com/article.asp?ID=14918 “Prayer, faith guide Maryland swimmer in quest for Olympic gold”, Catholic News Service, 7/19/12 Pope Benedict was asked his opinion about the start of the Olympics and he said he hopes it brings peace to the world. Scot noted that there has been conflict surrounding the Olympics, such as in 1980 when the US and the USSR had disputes over the invasion of Afghanistan or this year over the controversy surrounding the 40th anniversary of the assayer of Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games. Susan said sports is one of those things that transcend religion, culture and language. [“Pope says he hopes greatest sports event in world brings global peace”,The Boston Pilot/CNS, 7/23/12](http://pilotcatholicnews.com/article.asp?ID=14918 “Prayer, faith guide Maryland swimmer in quest for Olympic gold”, Catholic News Service, 7/19/12 Pope Benedict was asked his opinion about the start of the Olympics and he said he hopes it brings peace to the world. Scot noted that there has been conflict surrounding the Olympics, such as in 1980 when the US and the USSR had disputes over the invasion of Afghanistan or this year over the controversy surrounding the 40th anniversary of the assayer of Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games. Susan said sports is one of those things that transcend religion, culture and language. Dom and Scot talked about 15-year-old Katie Ledecky from Bethesda, Maryland, an Olympic swimmer and Catholic school student. “New Vatican doctrinal chief talks about SSPX, LCWR discussions”, The Boston Pilot/CNS, 7/26/12 Scot noted briefly the interview with Bishop Gerhard Muller, the new head of the CDF. He noted the two zingers from the interview that mentioned the Society of St. Pius X and the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. Antonio noted that you often have the most candor from such high officials when they’re first in office. Scot and Antonio talked about how Muller has seemed to be very open to all that is true, without regard to conservative or liberal ideologies.

Summary of today’s show: Michael Lavigne has worked in Catholic ministry for two decades, including the last four years leading faith formation efforts for all ages in the Diocese of Portland, Maine. Now he’s come to the Archdiocese of Boston to assist the office of the new Episcopal Vicar for the New Evangelization as we prepare for the Year of Faith. Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams talk to Michael about his years in parish ministry with young people, teaching high school theology, and then working at the diocesan level. Also, Jim Wright of the Station of the Cross stops by discuss the latest WQOM news including big updates to their smartphone apps. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams Today’s guest(s): Michael Lavigne and Jim Wright Links from today’s show: Office of Lifelong Faith Formation, Diocese of Portland, Maine Michael’s blog Today’s topics: Michael Lavigne and the New Evangelization 1st segment: Scot Landry welcomed everyone to the show and noted today is the Feast of St. James the Greater. Fr. Matt Williams said he is the greater because he was martyred first, because he was present with Jesus at moments that 9 of the apostles wasn’t, because of his authority in Jerusalem; or because he was just taller than the other James. Fr. Matt is very busy this week. Tomorrow begins their middle school leadership retreat called Witness to Hope. Tonight he’s going to be at the Espousal Center for praise and worship, Mass, and a Holy Spirit empowerment primarily for young people. They will pray for a deeper receptivity to the Holy Spirit. It’s geared to all the young people who have gone through the programs of the Office for the New Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults and to receive peer support. They announced it at the Steubenville East conference this past weekend in front of 2,700 young people. Scot noted the Espousal Center is in Waltham. Speaking of Steubenville East, Fr. Matt said it was a phenomenal time with dynamic and gifted speakers. The theme was The Eighth Day, which is the day of the Resurrection. It’s held now at the University of Rhode Island. Monday night is a the high school harbor cruise. There’s still room for participants. Sign up at the Office for the New Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults website. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Jim Wright, the owner and founder of the Station of the Cross radio network and WQOM. Jim said he’s in town for some business and stopped by. They’re looking for office space for the local studio. Scot said he often hears from people how appreciative they are that Catholic radio came to Boston. Jim thanked all the listeners supporting the Station of the Cross and asked them to continue. The work is intended to bring the people back to the parishes. Scot said Jim has been in the Catholic radio ministry for more than a decade. He said Catholic radio grows by listeners recommending it and introducing to others. Jim suggested approaching your family first. Jim said August 15 will make 13 years for the Station of the Cross being on the air. Jim said the same day is also the anniversary for EWTN. Scot said the new iPhone and Android apps are just recently updated with new capabilities. Jim said you can get all of the stations of the network and a Spanish feed as well. It has podcasts as well. They’re planning more features too. To find it in iTunes or an Android marketplace, search for iCatholicFM or iCatholicRadio. Scot said Cardinal Seán would love to see even more content for Spanish-speaking people. Jim asked people to pray for a dedicated Spanish Catholic radio station. 3rd segment: Scot and Fr. Matt welcomed Michael Lavigne to the show. He is senior associate to the episcopal vicar for the New Evangelization. Scot said Michael used to work for the Diocese of Portland, Maine, and they launched three Catholic radio stations there. Michael said the Presence Radio network began a year after the Office of Lifelong Faith Formation was formed. They were overjoyed at being able to collaborate with the radio stations. Scot said Bishop Malone had wanted to raise funds for Catholic radio as a primary effort of the New Evangelization in Maine. Scot asked Michael where he comes from. Michael is originally from Woonsocket, Rhode Island. He married his wife Lori and lived in Providence for four years. They moved to Maine for four years and now moved to Boston. He began working for the Church two decades ago when called by a priest. He was the pastor of his parish when he was a junior in college and active in youth ministry. The pastor asked him to be youth minister and has worked for the Church ever since. At the parish level, Michael moved from the old model of CCD and CYO to a new comprehensive youth ministry vision for the parish. They developed a task force in the parish. They realized that young people were dealing with more and more difficult issues they hadn’t seen prominently before. The task force looked to change things up and ensure that everything was Christocentric, steeped in sacraments and prayer. In the past, everything they did in youth ministry, whether athletics or prayer, had been of equal focus. So they introduced them to Eucharistic adoration which brought them to regular Mass attendance. Michael said the world we live in is so busy and so fast with so much competing for our attention. For some young people, 20 minutes in adoration was an eternity. But once they experienced it, they wanted more of it. The kids said they loved being silent, sitting there letting Christ love them, knowing they were being prayed for. Fr. Matt said for a long time we were afraid to offer the sacraments or adoration because we thought they would be bored and we thought everything had to be fun. It might be because we aped so much of Protestant youth ministry, which doesn’t do the sacraments. Some thought this meant that sacraments wouldn’t interest them. But because of Pope John Paul II and World Youth Days, we learned they wanted to be taught. Many young people, when you teach them, have an epiphany and love what they learn. When you explain and invite, they respond. Michael said he realized early on that they also needed to reach the parents. If the kids went home to parents who extinguished the enthusiasm for the faith, they wouldn’t grow in faith. They used the teens to challenge the parents to grow in faith. They created a clear message starting from the pastor that the parents are always welcome in any youth ministry program. They prepared for everything, including bringing in their kids to register and how they would welcome them and be open to them. Michael told a story of a women who thought she couldn’t register her kids because her husband had left her. Not only did they register the kids, they got her an appointment with the pastor. Michael also taught theology in high school and coordinated confirmation. Michael said in school he had them every single day. At first it was a trial to have enough material to cover and to ensure that he would be real to them, to challenge them. His job was to witness to the Church’s teaching and why it teaches it and then show it in his own life. He said every Catholic who encounters young people has to step up and show we have a relationship with Christ that we are truly living. When they see us, they need to see someone who is proud to be Catholic with their spouse, their kids, their co-workers, their sports teams, etc. He believes he was able to make headway with these young people. After parish work, Michael moved to the Diocese of Portland and led the Office of Lifelong Faith Formation. When his situation at the high school changed, he sent out resumes. When Portland called, there were a series of events that led them to move there. There had been an office for teaching kids and and office for teens and office for young adults and some others, but they felt it was time to make the point that faith formation was for all ages and lifelong. They were strong in youth ministry but weak in formation of adults. They improved marriage preparation and RCIA. They offered something new for parents when they brought their kids for sacraments. First of all, they served the parish leaders and then offer diocesan-wide training for young people and adults to evangelize in their own lives. Scot compared the size of Providence to the size of Boston and the geographical size of Portland, Maine. He asked how they serve such a large area. Michael said it’s always been the obstacle for serving the northernmost parishes. So they used technology, like web conferencing, Skype, high-def TV, websites, email, social media and the like. They found they were able to send a lot more information in a more timely manner. If someone was having a problem in a remote parish, they could talk face-to-face via Skype and make that personal connection. It’s impossible to drive the state of Maine even once per year. They reached as many places as they could. Parishes responded to this.They were able to save money which they used to offer more scholarships and programs. Scot said Portland had a major pastoral planning process over the past five years in which parishes were grouped in clusters to shepherd personnel resources. He asked what they learned there that could help Boston. Michael said he came in after they’d gone through the most difficult parts of the process, like determining parish closings and mergings and the like. When he came in, he was able to say that now they’d done the hard part, it was time for the good stuff. Michael said one of the keys to their work was the catechetical certificate program from the Theological Institute for the New Evangelization at St. John Seminary. They partnered together and had offered it for two years before he left, and the fruit was visible immediately. Parish leaders who’d gone through it said they’d learned more than they ever thought. Some homeschooling parents said they would be more effective teachers of their children. Also catechists, deacons, and others who began to realize that we all need to continue to learn and grow. They also developed the New Evangelization Week. They taught young people the basics of the riches of the prayers of the Church, taught them how to use a Catechism, basics of the faith, how to defend the faith. Bishop Malone called it a Catholic boot camp. They examined what it means to be a son or daughter of God, how to relate to brothers and sisters in the faith–brother to brother and brother-to-sister. All of it was steeped in the Mass every day, Reconciliation, and more. In their second year, a priest came out of Confessions one night to say that the kids who had come the last year were telling him that they had gone to confession within the past week or month. He heard them wrestling with growing as disciples of Jesus Christ. 4th segment: This week’s benefactor card raffle winner is Nancy Moan from Newton Center She wins the books Girls' Night Out: Having Fun with Your Daughter While Raising a Woman of God and A Lamp for My Feet and a Light for My Path (For Catholic Teens). If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit WQOM.org. For a one-time $30 donation, you’ll receive the Station of the Cross benefactor card and key tag, making you eligible for WQOM’s weekly raffle of books, DVDs, CDs and religious items. We’ll be announcing the winner each Wednesday during “The Good Catholic Life” program. 5th segment: Fr. Matt asked Michael how he went about creating a new system so that when young people are being formed that when they get to the confirmation age, they are more receptive. Michael said in Portland, they have the restored order of the sacraments, in which 2nd graders receive confirmation along with first communion and confession. They have been doing it since 1997. Scot asked the main reason to have confirmation earlier. Michael said the general concept is that they realized they were losing so many young people after confirmation as teens or not even getting confirmed so they weren’t even getting the sacrament. So at an earlier age, more young people receive the grace of the sacrament. They did a 10-year study ending in 2007 and they found it didn’t do anything for retaining kids in grades 3 through 8. So they tackled the 6 through 8 first, bringing the Edge program from Life Teen, jumpstarting middle school youth ministry. In high school, they still had relatively high numbers, but there was still the same question of how to keep people coming to the Church. The answer is about putting witnesses to our faith, passionately in love with the Lord, in front of everyone. When people are in love with the Lord, there is joy. Fr. Matt said where the Holy Spirit is, there is life and joy. Scot said Cardinal Sean appointed Bishop Arthur Kennedy as Episcopal Vicar for the New Evangelization and created this new office to provide more resources for the New Evangelization. Michael said in the next 12 months the focus will be twofold. First, helping the Archdiocese to focus on the Year of Faith, including a celebration to kick it off and compiling recommendations for parishes to mark the Year of Faith. Second, they want to be part of all the conversations connected to Pastoral Planning to ensure that it will really be about conversion and the New Evangelization. We need to give the leaders in the parishes to grow in Christ and in turn help them to bring that to the people in the parishes. Michael said the New Evangelization is ongoing conversion of Catholics to conform our lives to the faith, to have a deeper conversion and strive to holiness. So many of our fellow Catholics have walked away from the faith. There are even people still in our pews who don’t have a relationship with Christ yet. They haven’t had that conversion experience to make it their own. Scot said he got a letter from a weekly Mass-goer that he didn’t really get his faith until he listened to Catholic radio and was led to take his faith more seriously.

Summary of today’s show: Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O’Connor Today’s guest(s): Fr. Stephen Salocks Links from today’s show: St. John’s Seminary Today’s topics: Priest Profile: Fr. Stephen Salocks 1st segment: Due to technical difficulties, today’s show notes will delayed until later Tuesday evening. However, the audio file is available for your listening and we hope you enjoy the show.

Summary of today’s show: Infertility is becoming an increasingly common problem in the 21st century and more and more women are being pushed to artificial reproductive technologies like in vitro fertilization by their doctors, without regard to the lack of effectiveness and the physical, psychological, sociological, financial, and especially spiritual costs. Katie Elrod joins Scot Landry to talk about the Wild West of unregulated IVF and the moral and effective alternative in Natural Procreative Technologies, which respect human dignity and treats the underlying pathologies afflicting women instead of steering them immediately to very lucrative and dangerous IVF procedures. Listen to the show: Subscribe for free in iTunes Today’s host(s): Scot Landry Today’s guest(s): Katie Elrod Links from today’s show: “Faithfully Yours” 2012 Natural Family Planning Awareness Week Archdiocese of Boston’s Natural Family Planning Office Katie Elrod on CatholicTV’s “The Future Depends on Love” “Women, Sex, and The Church: A Case for Catholic Teaching” Order Form for Women, Sex, and The Church seminar DVDs Today’s topics: Infertility, Natural Family Planning, and NaPro Technology 1st segment: This week, July 22–28, the USCCB is asking all Catholic dioceses, parishes and families to mark National Family Planning Awareness Week. So as part of that effort, we will be discussing NFP, NaPro Technology and Infertility here on The Good Catholic Life today. Because of the subject matter, I wanted to note up front that this content might not be suitable for young kids. Parents will always know what age is appropriate but I did want to give a heads up if you have kids in the car or kitchen listening with you that this show might be best to catch later on our podcast or via TheGoodCatholicLife.com. “Faithfully Yours" is the theme of this Natural Family Planning Awareness Week, which is a national educational campaign of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on the Catholic teaching on married love and the gift of human life. The annual campaign, which began in 2002, promotes awareness of Natural Family Planning (NFP) methods. Bishop Kevin Rhoades of Fort Wayne-South Bend, Indiana, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth said: “NFP Awareness Week is an opportunity for married couples and Catholics everywhere to better understand and embrace the Church’s uniquely positive and liberating message on the truth of married love.“ ”The theme for 2012, ‘Faithfully Yours,’ highlights the beauty of how husbands and wives are called to live out their total dedication to one another." Our guest today to discuss NFP, a particular type of NFP called Napro Technology and Infertility is Katie Elrod. Katie is a “double-eagle” graduating from Boston College with Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Philosophy from Boston College. She has been a humanities teacher and administrator at independent schools for over fifteen years, and has taught in the Perspectives Program at Boston College. Elrod has spoken on natural fertility treatment at MIT, Boston College, Notre Dame University and at various Catholic women’s conferences. She is also the author of “Chapter 6” in the acclaimed book “Women, Sex and the Church” that came out in 2010. Chapter 6 is entitled “The Church’s Best Kept Secret: Church Teaching on Infertility Treatment.” She and her husband Kevin live outside of Boston with their son, T.J. 2nd segment: Scot welcomed Katie to the show. He noted that Katie is a teacher at Montrose School in Medfield. Katie became interested in the topic of infertility because of her own infertility. She and her husband pursued various avenues, including in vitro fertilization. She eventually found a doctor through the Archdiocese who specializes in National Procreative Technology. Katie said 35% of women are infertile and the rates are increasing. The rates for men are also increasing and they think because of environmental concerns. Men born in the 1970s have 25% fewer sperm than men born in the 1950s. Katie said she learned that infertility is not a disease in itself but is a symptom of other diseases and disorders. Ovulation disorder is the cause of 40%. It’s when the female endocrine system doesn’t produce enough of the hormones to allow the embryo to implant. Scot asked the definition of infertility. Katie said the technical term is that you are unable to deliver a baby. Some women are able to conceive but not able to carry to term. But infertility is an umbrella term and most women who are infertile have two or more pathologies going on. Scot said sexually transmitted diseases are often at the root of infertility. Katie said she was horrified to find out how common it is. The CDC estimates that there are 19 million new diagnoses of STDs every year in the US. Some of the most common forms can go unnoticed, but they cause scar tissue that prevents the egg from moving into the fallopian tube. STDs cause at least 24,000 each year in the US to become infertile. Sometimes it’s reversible, but it depends on how long it goes untreated. Scot said he understands that when a woman goes to a doctor with trouble to conceive, the doctors don’t often properly diagnose. Katie said 25% of women have unexplained fertility, meaning the doctor doesn’t find out what’s wrong. But it doesn’t have to be although it requires a lot of time, patience, and bloodwork. Scot said instead they’re often just pushed toward in vitro fertilization and assisted reproductive technologies. Katie said it’s a multi billion dollar business with a lot of money and little regulation. It gives the doctor a lot of control. They fertilize eggs in a lab and then implant them in the woman’s womb. Scot asked Katie to explain the Church’s teaching on this. Katie said there is lots of reasons why it’s bad for women, not just the morality of it. Katie said people say it’s not fair to prevent women from having IVF. It’s not just because embryos are discarded. Even if no extra embryos were created, it would still be a violation of human dignity. This procedure trikes at the core of the meaning of marriage and the marital act. The act in which designed human beings to be conceived is sacred because it mirrors the way God loves. God is love. He does not have love or contain love. He is love itself. Love is giving and to be in communion with others. This is why God is three persons. God is his own family. God’s children are created to love as God does. The highest expression of this love is in the marital act between husband and wife. In their bond they have the potential to be co-creators of a new life with God. Scot said Cardinal Seán often says the Church is seen as the Church of No, but the beauty of the Theology of the Body is that we are a Church of Yes, saying yes to God as part of his plan for us and all of humanity. Katie said saying yes rot life is saying yes to love. Scot said Katie describes IVF as the Wild West of medicine, an industry growing quickly and is very unregulated. It’s something that attempts to create human life and control fertility, but is unregulated. Katie said it’s bad medicine because it’s unregulated, bad for the husband, wife and the child. In 1982, clinics were requested to report their data to the CDC, but it’s voluntary. But no one checks the data. Because it’s seen as a women’s issue, this is why it’s unregulated. Scot said women of all ages are getting pushed to IVF, not just women getting married in later life. Katie said 60% of women using IVF are over 35, even though the success rates drop dramatically after 35 to 20% and all the way down to 5% after 40. The CDC is not tracking who’s using IVF, their age, their relationships, etc. Katie said if a woman is suffering some kind of pathology, she needs to be treated for it regardless of whether she goes for IVF. If the womb isn’t healthy it’s not good for the baby or the woman. Instead once you restore the woman to health, then let’s try to conceive in a natural way to respect the dignity of a woman. Scot said part of the reason there’s a better way is because there are risks to women. Katie said the woman goes through an invasive procedure that will only increase the physical costs. She takes a drug to stimulate her ovaries so she can produce 5 to 10 eggs in one cycle, as opposed to one per cycle. As they take Lupron, the side-effects include failure of the ovary which can result in infertility or even death. The FDA has over 6,000 complaints about the drug, but no investigation has been done. Just this year, a Netherlands study found that IVF doubles the chance of ovarian cancer. Katie said there is a movement to discourage young women from taking these drugs to sell their eggs because of the risk they’re taking. There is also a physical cost for the babies. Katie said a 2002 study concluded that IVF babies have twice the risk of major birth defects. The chance of miscarriage is 7 times higher. The movement in IVF has been to reduce the number of babies in the womb to two so there’s a desire to have fewer children at a time. But even single babies have increased risk of prematurity and low birth weight. Scot said there’s a practice of selective reduction in which doctors abort some of the babies that have been conceived. Katie said this happens in all assisted artificial reproductive technologies. Scot asked listeners to imagine how this couple that’s been struggling to conceive a child and now they’re being asked to abort their children. It’s psychologically damaging. Katie said in the New York Times there was an article about a new trend in IVF in which women who are pregnant with twins voluntarily go in and ask to have one of her children aborted in order to give the other a better chance to survive the pregnancy or even to have a better quality of life or more resources after birth. “The Two-Minus-One Pregnancy”, New York Times Magazine, 8/10/11 “Things would have been different if we were 15 years younger or if we hadn’t had children already or if we were more financially secure,” she said later. “If I had conceived these twins naturally, I wouldn’t have reduced this pregnancy, because you feel like if there’s a natural order, then you don’t want to disturb it. But we created this child in such an artificial manner — in a test tube, choosing an egg donor, having the embryo placed in me — and somehow, making a decision about how many to carry seemed to be just another choice. The pregnancy was all so consumerish to begin with, and this became yet another thing we could control.” It shows why the Church is opposed to this because we’ve dehumanized the children and turned this beautiful miracle into a base transaction. 3rd segment: Katie said her husband asked her to call the archdiocese to find out if there’s a morally acceptable choice for treating infertility. But first, she wanted to talk about the Catholic principles surrounding fertility. There are three guiding principles in the Vatican instruction Dignatitis personae: The Church believes every human being has the right to live. The Church has great concern for the half-million embryos in cryogenic storage. The spouses only have the right to become biological mother and biological father through each other. This relates to the increase in the use of donor eggs or donor sperm or surrogacy.The sexual act is a sacred act to create new life. This new life has a right to know his or her parents. The Church believes each child has the right to be conceived in the self-giving act of his parents. Men and women don’t have a right to be parents. They have a right to the marital act, but not a right to a child ataxy cost. No person has a claim on the right to the life of another. Otherwise that person would have their life subjugated to the lives of others. Scot asked how someone would feel as an adult finding out they were produced this way when there was a better way. Katie said we’re starting to get data on children conceived through anonymous sperm donors. The majority of these children say they would not do the same thing to their own children and they do think half of their identity comes through their biological father. So when a child born of an IVF, they are created through pornography and masturbation. They were created by an anonymous person in a lab in a petri dish and then implanted. And you were there with your brothers and sisters who were selectively reduced. Natural family planning is an umbrella term for methods to conceive or avoid conception through observation of natural signs in a woman’s ovulation cycle. It requires communication among a couple and fertility is a shared obligation. Katie and her husband connected with Dr. Paul Carpentier who recommended a form of NFP called the Creighton Model. It’s a kind of NFP that is standardized observation and charting of biological markers. It’s used by millions of people around the world. It was standardized by a doctor at Creighton University in Nebraska. Dr. Hilgers used NFP to help treat infertility. This subset of NFP is called Natural Procreative Technologies (NaPro Technology). It’s primary goal is to restore a woman’s reproductive health. It properly diagnoses the underlying pathologies. The woman is a full participant by charting her bio-markers and often sees before the doctor does what is wrong. It also treats all kinds of reproductive health issues, including postpartum depression and PMS. Once it is properly diagnosed, the treatment usually happens without a lot of invasive procedures. Hilgers trains other doctors in the delicate forms of laparascopy to fix endometriosis. Scot said the difference is taking time and care to treat the whole person versus ignoring the underlying problems to create the baby in the fastest way possible. NaPro is about healing the woman. It respects the woman’s biological systems. Katie said NaPro’s effective to IVF is very high. IVF success ranges from 35% at the highest down to 10% depending on age. A study of NaPro done in 2003 looked at a pool of women who have already had low success with IVF and the result was a 50% live birth rate. AMong the women who didn’t need surgery there was a 70% live birth rate. More and more medical students are interested in learning NaPro, even if they’re not motivated by the moral teaching, but because it’s good medicine. Katie said in the beginning she wish she’d been practicing NFP in the Creighton model that could have revealed the problems. She also wants to say to young women not to wait if they think something is wrong. Doctors will often tell them just ti wait, that they’ll get pregnancy eventually. Instead, find a NaPro practitioner and start treatment right away. The book and the chapter Katie wrote in it is the best resource on these fertility treatments. To women who think maybe it’s not God’s plan for them to have children, Katie said NaPro is not 100% effective. We don’t know what God’s plan is for each couple. All we can do is return women to health. A life without children by a couple who is open to life regardless is a great witness to the world which says we can have whatever we want whenever we want it. The whole purpose of the Church’s understanding of life-giving love is that we have to love. If we’re not giving love in having children, how can we love in other ways?