The Good Catholic Life

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry **Today's guest(s):** Brian Benestad, professor of theology at the University of Scranton and author of the book "Church, State, and Society"; and Janet Benestad, Secretary for Faith Formation and Evangelization for the Archdiocese of Boston * [University of Scranton](http://www.scranton.edu) * ["Church, State, and Society: An Introduction to Catholic Social Doctrine (Catholic Moral Thought)"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0813218012/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=0813218012) **Today's topics:** Catholic social doctrine **Summary of today's show:** Brian and Janet Benestad discuss with Scot Catholic social doctrine, being a Catholic in the public square, and how to establish a hierarchy among the various elements of Catholic social teaching. **1st segment:** Scot began by asking what the Church asks of us in the public square, how do we form our consciences, and how do we apply Church teaching to the public square? This will be addressed today by our guests, Brian and Janet Benestad. Scot began by noting today's news that Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver has been appointed to become archbishop of Philadelphia. Janet said this is big news. He has been recognized nationally for his leadership in Denver. Scot said Archbishop Chaput has written two books on applying our faith to public life. Brian said Chaput is not afraid to teach the counter-cultural aspects of the Catholic faith today. * ["Render Unto Caesar," Archbishop Charles Chaput](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385522290/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0385522290) * ["Living the Catholic Faith," Archbishop Charles Chaput](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/156955191X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=156955191X) Chaput was a classmate of Cardinal Seán in seminary. They are both Capuchins, studied together, and were ordained on the same day. They were both appointed as bishops at a young age. People have been drawing comparisons between the two. Cardinal Seán was appointed to Boston in its darkest days and Philadelphia is going through similar difficulties today. * [John Allen's interview with Archbishop Chaput in the National Catholic Reporter](http://ncronline.org/news/people/exclusive-interview-archbishop-charles-chaput) The archbishop's installation will be on September 8, 2011 in Philadelphia. **2nd segment:** Janet said she and Brian will celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary on September 11. Of course, their 30th anniversary was 9/11/2001 and they were traveling in Europe at the time. They have four children, 3 of them in New England. Two of them are married. They have 4 grandchildren ranging in age from 1 to 7. Their unmarried daughter lives in Rhode Island and teaches at Portsmouth Abbey. Their unmarried son is an Air Force lawyer who recently returned from Iraq. Brian has been a professor of theology at University of Scranton since 1976. In addition to "Church, State, and Society," he's written extensively on Catholic social teaching and bioethics. When they lived in Scranton, Janet started as a parish CCD teacher. In the 1980s, she taught political science, philosophy and history as an adjunct professor. Later, she was hired by the Diocese of Scranton and worked there for 10 years in the area of parish life, which is similar to her work in Boston in faith formation and evangelization. She's been in Boston for a little more than two years. Boston is a much bigger place and very challenging, while very rewarding. Her areas of coverage are much larger as well: healthcare, cultural diversity, and more. Brian and Janet have also taught together at the Master of Arts in Ministry program at St. John Seminary, teaching the Catechetical Certificate. They began when they were first married teaching catechetics at St. Theresa in West Roxbury and after they moved to Scranton, Brian still had Janet's assistance and input on his work. Brian said it's a great gift to teach theology at the university. He would continue to do it even if he were financially independent. Practically all of his work is with undergraduates. He's been on sabbatical this year, finishing up the work for the book. Scot said he was surprised that there weren't many books on the totality of Catholic social doctrine outside of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church. He wanted to help people understand what the Church means by justice. For example, social justice is a new term in the 20th century. People are still trying to figure out what it means. Scot asked the difference between Catholic social doctrine and what is commonly referred to as social justice. Brian said social justice is commonly understood as a set of structures that enable society to pursue the common good. It's not understood as a personal virtue. That's very different from Catholic social tradition which sees justice as a virtue. Social justice is meant to in the same way that St. Thomas Aquinas called communicative justice, which is the virtue that directs all the other virtues. Social justice is all those things that contribute to the common good and meeting people's needs. Catholic social doctrine is based on the dignity of the human person. All else is understood in relation to that. Common good is the sum of all the conditions that enable people or groups to achieve perfection, to achieve your dignity. Dignity is acquired by the way you live. People can act beneath their dignity or in accord with their dignity. If society really supports a marriage and family life, then it helps people realize they need to live a certain way to achieve their dignity. **3rd segment:** Scot said the USCCB lists [seven themes of Catholic social teaching](http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/projects/socialteaching/excerpt.shtml): 1. Life and Dignity of the Human Person 2. Call to Family, Community, and Participation 3. Rights and Responsibilities 4. Option for the Poor and Vulnerable 5. The Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers 6. Solidarity 7. Care for God’s Creation Scot said the lists seems to be prioritized. Sacredness of life and dignity of the human person is most important. Some Catholics would advocate that they're all equal so if someone is not supporting the dignity of the human person but supporting the rest, you're doing well, but Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI would disagree. Brian said you can never act against the dignity of the human person. Janet said if we don't recognize the dignity of the human person and their life, then all the rest is irrelevant. The common good depends on all seven, but there might be some play in how to achieve them, but the protection of life can only be achieved in certain narrow ways and violation of that is always wrong. Brian said since 1973, and the Roe v. Wade decision, Catholic politicians have been saying that all of these are equal and if you get 5 out of 7 then you're doing okay. The USCCB says about Life and Dignity of the Human Person: >The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. This belief is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching. In our society, human life is under direct attack from abortion and euthanasia. The value of human life is being threatened by cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and the use of the death penalty. The intentional targeting of civilians in war or terrorist attacks is always wrong. Catholic teaching also calls on us to work to avoid war. Nations must protect the right to life by finding increasingly effective ways to prevent conflicts and resolve them by peaceful means. We believe that every person is precious, that people are more important than things, and that the measure of every institution is whether it threatens or enhances the life and dignity of the human person. Scot surmised that the paragraph itself is written in a prioritized order as well: abortion, euthanasia, cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and then the death penalty. Janet said the bishops have been clear that abortion is preeminent. The bishops have said that if a politician takes a position contrary to the Church's teaching, the bishop will approach him, talk with him, ask him to be in conformity with the Church, and if they still refuse, to refrain from receiving Communion. Pope Benedict XVI, when he was Cardinal Ratzinger, [laid out how a Catholic should approach a political candidate](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0403722.htm) who supports abortion. The voter could only vote for a pro-abortion candidate if there was a proportionate reason, but nowhere have the bishops laid out what such a proportionate reason is. Voting for a politician *because* of his pro-abortion stance would be material cooperation with evil, while voting for a pro-abortion politician *in spite of* his stance on abortion because he had another stance that would prevent evil, would be *remote* material cooperation, which means it doesn't take away all the evil of the situation, but reduces some of the culpability for it. Janet said we become responsible when the politician begins to pass laws that will affect society. **4th segment:** Scot said Catholic social teaching is not based on bishops deciding on the Church's political positions in the public square. Brian said the commitment to the Catholic social teaching is rooted in and strengthened by our spiritual lives. It is based on the Deposit of the Faith received from Christ and the Apostles. Scot said we're called to know our faiths and not just listen to various pundits who say one thing or another. We're also facing an increasing demand that the public square should only be influenced by non-faith-related values. We're called to live as practical atheists, not letting our consciences formed by our faith influence us. Brian said this is a country that has always protected religious freedom and we can apply our faith to public issues. We don't impose our views on others. We propose an idea. We make an argument and people don't have to accept it. Janet said we should never be afraid of being excluded from public life for expressing our views. Nobody tells us we can't express our religious views when we say we should take care of the poor. So we have to say that protecting life isn't just our religious belief; it's the truth. Part of our responsibility for being good citizens is being good parents and good teachers and to share the love of Christ. Brian also recommends reading the papal social encyclicals, the documents of Vatican II, and the writings of Aquinas and Augustine on justice.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry **Today's guest(s):** Brendan O'Connell and Marianne Luthin * [Life Matters TV](http://lifematterstv.com/) * [Pregnancy Help Boston](http://www.pregnancyhelpboston.org) * [Number of Abortions - Abortion Counters](http://www.numberofabortions.com/) **Today's topics:** Life Matters TV **Summary of today's show:** Brendan O'Connell talked with Scot about his widely available cable access program, Life Matters TV, that has had more than 300 episodes and can reach more than 1 million homes in Massachusetts. Marianne Luthin of the Pro-Life Office also discussed the various ministries of the Archdiocese helping women in crisis pregnancy and suffering from having had abortions. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Marianne Luthin, director of the Pro-Life Office, and Brendan O'Connell, host of Life Matters TV, available on Boston cable access television. Marianne was one The Good Catholic Life show #8. Scot asked Brendan how he became involved in pro-life work. Over a 20 year period, starting in business school, he started to see how the public was deceiving the public purposefully and it bothered him. When he was about 35, he started dating a woman who'd had an abortion and got pregnant again. She was in law school and her parents offered to pay for school if she had an abortion. She instead had the child and started dating her when the child was 1-1/2 years old. When he moved back to Boston, he had written to a pro-choice Republican running for office saying that he would never vote for him and he ended up as a Mass. Citizens for Life chapter president. He realized the need to get our voice heard and our message out there. He said there were many people who could be convinced of the value of life. Scot said he often see intentional mischaracterizations of people in the media. Brendan said his show looks at life issue from legal, legislative, biological, political, and spiritual viewpoints. He had no idea when he began that life is being attacked at so many different levels, from the beginning of life to the end of natural life. Around 2050, he said, there is predicted there will be a dramatic decline in world population because of the initiatives against life. He had as a guest recently Don Feder who shared many of these statistics. Scot said there are many efforts our Church takes on life issues, including education through the media. Marianne said Brendan has had her on his program to talk about Project Rachel. Even though it's a secular program, she gets many responses from people who seek out help from the Church. Scot said leadership in the pro-life movement can't be easy. Brendan said he's been ostracized. Sometimes people in your own family won't talk to you. The program is in 1.3 million cable homes. He has realized that other side isn't on television, except through the occasional commercial. He realized that they have nothing to talk about except the process of killing people. He said one aspect that he's covered on the show is the economic impact of abortion, 53 million people in the US who are dead now who would have contributed to the economy. Brendan said the show is a tremendous sacrifice because he often take part-time jobs to support himself. Yet he's been invited to the White House as well. He wants to grow the program throughout New England and nationally. **2nd segment:** Brendan said the program came from wanting to have our voice heard. It was a struggle to get it on in Boston on cable access. They had filled out the application to the local cable access organization, but they couldn't get approved until Mayor Menino's former press secretary helped him get through the bureaucracy. He had a passion for getting the word out to people to change hearts and influence minds. Marianne said it's important to have such programs. We have only about 18% of Catholics in pews on Sunday and if you look at abortion statistics, you see that Catholic women have abortions at the same rate as the rest of the population. Cable access gives them access to the whole population, not just those who come to Church. The show airs in about 130 communities in Massachusetts, which is about 65% of cable viewers in the state. Being on cable access is good because people often are clicking through from local stations to other cable show and pass right by the cable access. By being low on the dial, there's a higher probability that people will click through and see the show. He has a lot of post-abortive women who confide their experiences on the show. He had a guest recently, Melissa Ohden, who survived an abortion. When she turned 14, her older sister was going to have an abortion and the adoptive parents revealed that Melissa was adopted. At 19 she sought her biological parents and 11 years later found out that she was aborted alive and survived a saline-infused abortion. She had many medical problems as an infant, but is fine now. There is a documentary about her, ["A Voice for Life."](http://www.avoiceforlife.com/) She also found out that her mother was coerced into the abortion and was more than 30 weeks into the pregnancy. Marianne said the Pregnancy Help Center in Brighton works every day with women being pressured into abortion and it gets worse in a bad economy. They are often abandoned by the fathers of the babies. If even your parents don't support you, it leaves you in a very difficult situation. That is why the Church's work in pregnancy help is so important. More than 100 parishes across the archdiocese provide assistance in this area. Pregnancy Help is available in English, Spanish, and Portuguese at [PregnancyHelpBoston.org](PregnancyHelpBoston.org) or at 888-771-3914. Scot said 313 episodes of LifeMatters TV is very impressive. Brendan spoke of some of his favorites. He had Fr. Tad Pacholczyk on in 2004 to talk abouit embryonic stem cell research. This has been a frequent topic, including Fr. Kevin Harrington and Fr. Nicanor Austriaco. Mary Ann Glendon was also a guest on the show. He gives her credit for refusing an honor at Notre Dame when President Obama was asked to speak. He's also had Nellie Gray, Ambassador Ray Flynn, and Cardinal Seán. Brendan said Nellie Gray has a unique perspective on abortion, that they should be considered crimes against humanity. She is a key organizer of the March for Life, which brings hundreds of thousands of people every year and get almost no press coverage. How would someone get Life Matters TV on their town local's cable access station? Brendand assumes there would be one pro-life person in each town. Go to the Life Matters TV and become a town sponsor. It costs nothing to become a local sponsor; they just need to be the local person requesting it. They could become involved in raising awareness of the show, especially in their local parishes. Brendan takes care of most of the distribution, although a town or two may require the local sponsor be the one to bring the DVDs into the station. In the top 40 metropolitan areas in Massachusetts, they're all in but about 3 or 4 of them and he'd like to get in those as well. They would also like to get more than one sponsor for each town in case there's someone who moves. **3rd segment:** When we talk about the teachings on the dignity of human life, we should refer to Pope John Paul's encyclical Evangelium Vitae. He talked about the fact that our sense of the dignity of human life is undergoing an eclipse. * [Evangelium Vitae](http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae_en.html) In talking about the eclipse of the value of human life, everyone acknowledges there are some things that are very wrong. But the pope points out in abortion and euthanasia, we've got them upside down and our culture calls them human rights. >All this explains, at least in part, how the value of life can today undergo a kind of "eclipse", even though conscience does not cease to point to it as a sacred and inviolable value, as is evident in the tendency to disguise certain crimes against life in its early or final stages by using innocuous medical terms which distract attention from the fact that what is involved is the right to life of an actual human person. The challenge is to break that eclipse. Scot said the debate of the issues uses lots of euphemisms: Who isn't in favor of choice or women's rights? But who suffers more than the women, except for the babies? Marianne said in her work with Project Rachel she sees so much pain. It is a ministry to those who have undergone abortion. Many women have identified their entire adult experience around this pain of abortion. Yet everyone around them have said, "What's the big deal?" The woman is in grief from a loss that is never going to be completely reconciled. Scot said Planned Parenthood and others profit from this pain, sometimes using our tax dollars, and then use that money to market to other women. Scot said some people say that calling ourselves pro-life and not anti-abortion desensitizes people to the evil of abortion. Brendan thinks pro-life is a better term because it's optimistic. In fact, pro-choice as a term was a response to pro-life. They change the language to make it all palatable. Now abortion is only considered after implantation in the womb because Planned Parenthood sells contraception that itself aborts the baby by preventing implantation. Thus women are told it's just contraception and not abortion. The stress on a woman of taking an abortion pill, like RU-486, can even be greater than a surgical abortion. Brendan said research shows that it has a more devastating impact physically and psychologically. The reason is that the women are ingesting the pills themselves and don't have an abortionist to blame in their mind and they then don't have anyone to turn to. Also, it takes 3 or 4 days to work, but once the pill is taken it can't be stopped, which can be agonizing for a woman who changes her mind. Brendan pointed out that the pills also suppress the immune system, which is leading to illness and even death for women who take them. Marianne said the Centers for Disease Control released a study that has shown women dying from RU-486. Nevertheless the FDA approves the pill in the US. Scot said if the drug did not receive so much political support because of abortion, it would never be legal. Brendan also brought that a guest, Dr. Joel Brind, talked about the increase in the number of younger women having breast cancer. Many studies show that there is a real abortion/breast cancer link. Women who've had abortion have a much higher percentage of breast cancer starting ten years out from the abortion. It's primarily abortion of a first pregnancy. The women's breast does not complete development until the first pregnancy and with abortion the development is stopped abruptly and leads to the developing cells becoming cancerous. **4th segment:** Scot asked Marianne about some key initiatives in the pro-life office. The Archdiocese is one of the few US dioceses that runs its own crisis pregnancy center. They also run Project Rachel, a post-abortion ministry for women and men feeling grief and sorrow from an abortion. There is a network of priests who minister to them, they have counselors on call, and they provide a series of retreats. Project Rachel is at [ProjectRachelBoston.com](http://projectrachelboston.com/) or call 508-651-3100. Her office also overviews parish-level respect life education for students as well as parish baby shower programs to help provide support and resources for women who need help continuing their pregnancies. The Catholic Daughters of America every year do a ministry called Pennies for Life, where they collect pennies outside of parishes. They have raised $100,000 from pennies and provide those funds to various pro-life ministries.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O'Connell **Today's guest(s):** Fr. Gerry Dorgan, Pastor of St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish in Danvers * [St. Mary of the Annunciation Parish, Danvers](http://stmarychurchdanvers.org/) * ["A day to celebrate Father Dorgan," Danvers Herald, 4/10/08](http://www.wickedlocal.com/danvers/news/lifestyle/religion/x1620715324#axzz1RRfpaqIU ) **Today's topics:** Pastor Profile: Fr. Gerry Dorgan **Summary of today's show:** Fr. Gerry Dorgan joins Scot and Fr. Mark to discuss his 53 years in the priesthood; his 20 years at St. Mary in Danvers; how he ended up teaching in the seminary after just 5 months as a priest; what makes a good homily (hint: not that's short!); and his love of art and art history. Also, this Sunday's Gospel from Mass. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Fr. Mark back to the show. He asked how his summer is going at its halfway point. He is starting his vacation this weekend. on today's program, one of Fr. Mark's former pastors, Fr. Jerry Dorgan, will be on the program today. Fr. Mark was at Fr. Dorgan's parish for two years before he was sent to Rome to study canon law. Fr. Mark will always remember how Fr. Dorgan gave him a good sendoff from the parish. Fr. Dorgan was also Fr. Mark's homiletics professor in the seminary. When Fr. Mark presented his first homily to the professor, Fr. Dorgan said it would be a very good children's homily. Unfortunately, Fr. Mark was not writing a children's homily. **2nd segment:** Scot and Fr. Mark welcomed Fr. Dorgan to the show. He is celebrating 53 years as a priest this year. He has been at St. Mary in Danvers since 1991 and was at the seminary before that. He began his priesthood at St. Margaret Mary in Westwood, but wasn't there long because he was suddenly drafted to Cardinal O'Connell Minor Seminary. He attended graduate school at night and studied English Literature and also taught American history. He was 24 years old, had been ordained for four months, and was suddenly teaching English and history. Fr. Dorgan graduated from St. John Prep at 16 and then attended Holy Cross College. He'd already been thinking about the priesthood and at the end of the year he transferred to the seminary. After ordination he taught at seminaries until being made pastor in 1991. Scot was surprised that Fr. Dorgan has had only three assignments in his priesthood, which is very unusual over such a long period. He also did a religious talk show on WBZ Radio. The year he was ordained, there were 61 in his class. St. Mary's in Danvers is a wonderful parish. They have about 100 people who come to daily Mass to the 7am and 9am Masses. Scot has heard that there is a tradition in the parish that after Sunday Mass, the people kneel after the final song and pray a prayer of thanksgiving. Fr. Mark also heard that the original St. Mary's Church was demolished during the construction of Route 128 and that it was a good thing because the old building in such bad shape. The new church was built by [Gray Architects](http://www.grayarchitects.net), who have built many beautiful churches in the area. In 1998, they built a parochial school. Fr. Dorgan said it is going very well. It is shared with St. Richard of Chichester Parish in Danvers. It was founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph. There is a strong relationship with St. John's Prep. * [St. Mary of the Annunciation School](http://www.smadanvers.org/) * [St. John's Prep](http://www.stjohnsprep.org/) Having taught at the college seminary for many years (St. Clement's Seminary), he had taught many of the priests who serve in the Archdiocese today. Fr. Mark noted that Fr. Dorgan's collection of books took over many rooms at the seminary. Fr. Mark estimated that there were many more than 10,000 volumes. One day he told Fr. Dorgan about a favorite Wyeth painting in the Museum of Fine Arts. So Fr. Dorgan found a book with the image of the painting and gave it to Fr. Mark. He told him he'd been hoping to count down his collection and Fr. Mark said he would need to give away many more books to even make a dent. **3rd segment:** Fr. Dorgan taught homiletics in the seminary. He noted it's never been particularly noted as a strength in the Catholic Church. Scot asked him why it's not one of our strong suits compared to other Christian faiths. Fr. Dorgan said in Protestant churches the primary experience of Sunday worship is the homily while the Liturgy of the Eucharist is of equal importance to the Liturgy of the Word. He thinks it's important for the people to hear God's Word and to love and live it. Scot wonders if the problem is that laypeople encourage shorter homilies or if it's that priests are so busy during the week that they don't put as much preparation into it, especially if people aren't going to appreciate a long homily. Fr. Mark asked how helps a seminarian who is a terrible preacher. Fr. Dorgan said they often just need help determining what the message should be and how to deliver it. He believes that prayer is a key part of preparing a homily. Fr. Mark said Fr. Dorgan would not allow his students to have notes in front of them when preaching. Fr. Dorgan said a man would not read from a paper when on a date with his wife or girlfriend. Scot said he would certainly never do that if he wanted a second date. Fr. Dorgan said a Sunday homily should be 10-12 minutes. If it's well done it doesn't seem very long at all. During the week, he might speak for a minute or two. Scot asked when you have such a diverse audience for the homily, how do you prepare for it to address everyone. Fr. Dorgan said that strictly speaking the Lectionary is the basis of the homily and so the priest studies the readings to determine what it means to him and to the situation of his parish. **4th segment:** Scot noted that Fr. Dorgan also studied art history to teach it in the seminary as well. Fr. Dorgan said he thinks there's a tremendous potential in art history, particularly in Western art where so much of it is religious. He puts reproductions of fine art in his church to expose the congregation to beautiful religious art. A picture is worth 1,000 words. Art in Roman Catholicism is a tremendous part of our tradition. He was not himself an artist, but his family were lovers of art and he went to many art auctions as a child. He has a triptych of the [Annunciation](http://www.metmuseum.org/works_of_art/collection_database/the_cloisters/annunciation_triptych_merode_altarpiece_robert_campin/objectview.aspx?page=1&sort=6&sortdir=asc&keyword=annunciation&fp=1&dd1=7&dd2=0&vw=1&collID=7&OID=70010727&vT=1&hi=0&ov=0) in the Museum of Metropolitan Museum of Art. It is in the [Cloisters Museum](http://www.metmuseum.org/cloisters/) of the Metropolitan Museum. He is also a big fan of [Albrecht Durer](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrecht_D%C3%BCrer). His favorite museum in the world is the Louvre in Paris. He loves [Chartres Cathedral](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chartres_Cathedral) outside of Paris. In Italy, Florence is his favorite place for art. When showing art, he prefers reproductions instead of slides. He prefers to be able to see the art in three dimensions as it was intended. There was a discussion of the sacred art in the churches of Boston, especially in churches that have closed. Most of the art has been preserved. Scot noted that Immaculate Conception in Newburyport and St. Mary in Dedham have beautiful art. They also agreed that the two parish in Charlestown and St. Mary in Melrose are also beautiful. Scot added that [St. Anthony of Padua in New Bedford](http://www.saintanthonynewbedford.com/images/virtualtour.html), where his brother is pastor, is the most beautiful church in the United States. The church was built to be the cathedral when the area become a diocese, but it was placed in Fall River instead. Scot said the [Cathedral in Covington, Kentucky](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cathedral_Basilica_of_the_Assumption,_Covington) has the largest stained glass window in the United States. **5th segment:** Now, as we do every week, we look forward to this coming Sunday's Mass readings to help us prepare to celebrate together. * [Gospel for Sunday, July 17, Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 13:24-43)](http://www.usccb.org/nab/071711.shtml#gospel) >Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man who sowed good seed in his field. While everyone was asleep his enemy came and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. The slaves of the householder came to him and said, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where have the weeds come from?’ He answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’ His slaves said to him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’ He replied, ‘No, if you pull up the weeds you might uproot the wheat along with them. Let them grow together until harvest; then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning; but gather the wheat into my barn.”’” > >He proposed another parable to them. “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a person took and sowed in a field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. It becomes a large bush, and the ‘birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.’” > >He spoke to them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch was leavened.” > >All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. He spoke to them only in parables, to fulfill what had been said through the prophet: I will open my mouth in parables, I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation of the world. > >Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. His disciples approached him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.” He said in reply, “He who sows good seed is the Son of Man, the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. The weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. They will throw them into the fiery furnace, where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Whoever has ears ought to hear.” Fr. Dorgan recalls a professor telling him that great writers have one thing to say. The Bible is a big book and has one thing to say: I'll be with you. I'll be the one who'll be there with you. In exodus 3, the Lord says to Moses to go to Pharaoh to let his people go. The Lord says, "I'll be with you." He does about 130 funerals in his church each year and the people often choose the reading, "If God is with us, who can be against us." The good news is that we do not walk alone. Scot said God is sowing good seed, which is us. Even if we have a small seed of faith, God will make it grow. Mother Teresa going to Calcutta with millions of people in need. Look at the good she did for Calcutta and the entire Church. The weeds are those things in life which take us away from God, which distract us from him. Fr. Mark recalled Mother Teresa said that if you want to feed everyone in the world, start with one. The message of the mustard seed and the yeast is essentially the same. When Fr. Mark was ordained his uncle, Fr Dana Delaney, preached the homily. He said the yeast is the opposite of the bad apple. You plant the yeast and it makes everything grow, whereas one bad apple ruins the barrel. Scot said the last line is almost in-your-face because everyone has ears and so they are all called to hear. Fr. Mark notes that the owner of the field lets wheat and weeds grow together. We give the weeds a chance because they might be wheat in the end. God is patient with us and stays with us in difficult times.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Susan Abbott **Today's guest(s):** Fr. Roger Landry, executive editor of The Anchor, the newspaper of the Fall River diocese; and Gregory Tracy, managing editor of The Pilot, the newspaper of the Boston archdiocese * [The Anchor](http://www.anchornews.org) * [The Pilot](http://www.pilotcatholicnews.com) * 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:** Decision on 8 closed churches, South Sudan, Church teaching on chastity **Summary of today's show:** Fr. Roger and Greg discuss with Scot and Susan the news of the week, including Cardinal Seán's decision on the future of 8 closed churches; the struggles of the Church in the new nation of South Sudan; the Church's teaching on chastity, especially for those with same-sex attraction; new vicars forane for the archdiocese; and more. **1st segment:** Scot told Susan that there is big news in the Archdiocese today with Cardinal Seán making a decision on the fate of eight closed churches. Susan noted that today is the Feast of Bl. Kateri as well as Bastille Day. Scot noted that on yesterday we learned that today is also the Feast of St. Camillus. She also was at CatholicTV this week taping a show with Msgr. James Moroney on liturgy. cot said Msgr. Moroney is one of the world's experts on Catholic liturgy and is teaching at St. John Seminary. He is in high demand to educate people on the upcoming changes to the Roman Missal this Advent. Scot said the Pilot is back this week from its two week hiatus. **2nd segment:** Scot welcomed Fr. Roger and Gregory back to the show. He said Cardinal Seán has announced his decision on eight churches that had appealed closure. Six are being relegated to profane uses and two others for new uses (St. Therese and St. Jeremiah). * ["Cardinal Makes Decisions on Future of Eight Closed Churches," Official statement](http://www.bostoncatholic.org/Utility/News-And-Press/Content.aspx?id=20960) * St. James the Great, Wellesley * St. Jeanne D'Arc, Lowell * Star of the Sea, Quincy * Our Lady of Lourdes, Revere * St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, Scituate * Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, East Boston * St. Therese, Everett * St. Jeremiah, Framingham Greg said relegation to profane use, but not sordid use. Profane use means not set aside for sacred use; a use other than sacred worship. It clears the way to sell or transfer the property for other purpose. The Planning Office for Urban Affairs, for example, has converted some closed churches to affordable housing. St. Therese will become an oratory of St. Anthony in Everett for use by the Brazilian community. In canon law, a church is a public place open to all; a chapel is a private place of worship; and an oratory is designated for a particular group of Catholics and anyone who is a member of that group are welcome to use the oratory. Fr. Roger added the category of the shrine, which is like a church but doesn't have similar rights in canon law to a church. The pastor of St. Anthony had made a request to the Archdiocese, saying that he had too many Masses each weekend in one church building and needed another. The Brazilian community has grown large enough to warrant another building, but they didn't want the extra overhead of a separate parish, with the need for a parish staff and all the separate issues. Susan asked what a rectorate is. Greg said a rectorate is essentially a parish, except it's under the direct authority of the bishop and not a pastor. In a cathedral, the bishops it the pastor and he appoints a rector to run the cathedral parish. It means that the rectorate doesn't have the same right in canon law that a parish does. Scot said it's big news because many of these churches have had vigils in place since they were closed during Reconfiguration in 2004-2005 with many contentious appeals to re-open the churches. He noted that the parishes have already been canonically suppressed or closed. The church is not synonymous with the parish. The church building's disposition is now being decided. Scot said the funds from any sales of property will go to the archdiocese for the use of any parishes in need. Susan said the sacred objects from the churches will first be offered to welcoming parishes and then to other Catholic parishes. She noted that the stained glass windows in the Bethany Chapel of the Pastoral Center contain many stained glass windows from closed churches. Scot said Cardinal Seán said maintaining these buildings were drawing needed resources from other parishes. >What I have heard from these consultations is that we have reached a point as a community of believers where we must relegate these Church buildings as part of the continuing healing and rebuilding of the Archdiocese. I continue to put my trust and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ to help us come together as one Catholic family, inspired by the Holy Spirit and guided in our principles and commitment to do God’s work. Fr. Roger said the Church has a high standard for the use of sacred buildings because God has been present there in the Eucharist and the worship of God has taken place there. He noted that in other places where it wasn't taken seriously one church was used as a restaurant and then later turned into a place of ill repute. He said the Church isn't taking the sacrifices of those who built the churches lightly. He said the Vatican takes seriously the decision to relegate to profane use. It can't just be to save money or help with organizational matters. It must go beyond to grave reasons. These buildings are holy ground. Scot said Cardinal Seán made the consultation on the churches available to everyone in the Church. He said it's the first time any diocese used an electronic survey to receive responses from people and there were about 400-500 responses for the eight churches. Greg said the Vatican has recently turned its attention to the question of the relegation of churches in other places in the country where there have been closures. In most cases the Vatican has upheld the right of a bishop to suppress a parish, but has taken a more conservative stance on the relegation of churches. He thinks this was kept in mind in the making of this decision in Boston. **3rd segment:** Scot said a big story in the worldwide Catholic Church was the independence day for the new nation of South Sudan on July 9. About 80% of the country are Catholic. The people of South Sudan had suffered great persecution over decades by the Islamic majority in the north. * ["Catholic officials: People of South Sudan will need patience," CNS, 7/11/11](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1102743.htm) * [Fr. Landry's column in his parish bulletin about Fr. Vicentio from South Sudan](http://www.saintanthonynewbedford.com/bulletins/SANB%2007.17.2011.pdf) * ["Independence Day in South Sudan," by Tony Magliano](http://paxchristiusa.org/2011/07/11/sudan-independence-day-in-south-sudan/) This week, Fr. Roger has a priest from the Archdiocese of Juba in South Sudan to preach at his parish. He wrote a letter to the parish and said the Church in that country is at a crossroads. In a country the size of New England, they have just 20 miles of roads. Most of their churches, seminaries, and schools need to be rebuilt. The country needs police departments founded and they need an army to defend their borders. In order for there to be real forgiveness, they need much support. He has suggested to the missionary from Sudan that he preach on what it takes for his people just to get to Mass. Many of them would have to walk 20 miles each way to Mass and they would travel at night to avoid being waylaid by soldiers from Khartoum in the north. They wanted more rosaries so if they were killed on the road their last words would be the Hail Mary. Their Mass would last for hours and hours because it might be the last time they would get together in prayer. They need not just our prayers, but also our financial assistance. Fr. Roger suggested sending a donation to Catholic Relief Services with a memo marking it for use in South Sudan. Fr. Juba wrote in his letter: >Our people are desperate. They have lost everything and are unable to help themselves. Many, particularly the most vulnerable children and the elderly, are dying daily from starvation and curable diseases. We in the Church are the hope for our people. Our clergy, religious catechists and lay leaders are fighting against all odds to keep the flames of faith burning in our country. While burying the dead, supporting the survivors, sheltering the displaced, healing the wounded and broken-hearted, and feeding the orphans and displaced children, widows and the elderly, we continue to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ vigorously, build the Church and consolidate faith in our country. > >We need your help to continue to keep hope alive among our traumatized people. I am therefore appealing to you, our brothers and sisters in faith, to help us in our struggle for survival. Thank you in advance for standing in solidarity with us in our time of need. May our Risen Savior Jesus Christ bless you with the fullness of grace, peace and health! Susan said she was moved by the live broadcasts from South Sudan during independence celebrations, hearing the jubilation of the people in the streets. She was also pleased the Ken Hackett, the retiring president of Catholic Relief Services, was representing Catholics in the US there. (She noted that Hackett was a parishioner at St. Theresa's in West Roxbury.) Fr. Roger said it will take a long time for the Church there to build up its institutions and so he encourages all to make a long-term commitment of prayer and financial resources to South Sudan. He said the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church and they have bled very much there. He expects in the future to have many clergy and religious to come from there. **4th segment:** Scot said Fr. Roger has published his third in a series of editorials in The Anchor on topics related to issues brought up by controversy at St. Cecilia in Boston, which held a Mass devoted to welcoming homosexuals into the Church. * [Fr. Roger's third in a series of editorials on issues raised by situation at St. Cecilia's in Boston](http://catholicpreaching.com/index.php?content=articles&articles=20110715anchor) Fr. Roger's editorial said all are called to chastity in the Church: married, single, priests & religious, and those with same-sex attraction. Fr. Roger said chastity is often confusing to people because they confuse chastity and continence, which is the same as abstinence. He said that chastity is tied to piety as preached by Pope John Paul II. >Piety is the habit that helps us to revere others according to their true dignity, according to the image of God in them. St. Paul wrote to husbands and wives, “Be subordinate to each other out of reverence for Christ” (Eph 5:21, calling them to recognize and revere Christ in each other and mutually lay down their lives for each other out of love for the Lord they recognize dwelling in the other. Linked to piety, chastity helps us to see the other as sacred subject instead of a sexual object, to treat the other with reverence rather than randiness. Susan said t he archdiocese has an office for Respect Life Education that teaches chastity in schools and religious education. Many parishes are adopting a course on theology of the body adapted for teens. Fr. Roger quotes Pope John Paul's theology of the body quite a bit in his editorial. >Blessed Pope John Paul II’s insights help us better to see why all of us in the Church, no matter our state of life, are called to chastity. > >Husbands and wives are called to chastity in their marriage. This means that they reverence the other as a sacred gift, raise their attractions to the level of their spouse’s genuine good (including, obviously, the good of the soul) and see the other as created in God’s image, fully accepting the paternal meaning of a man’s masculinity or the maternal meaning of the woman’s femininity, In simple terms, their love is meant to be holy, not horny. Lusting after each other — what Jesus called “adultery in the heart” — is, therefore, a desecration of the other in one’s intentions. Fr. Roger said those who are unmarried are to reverence others and never take advantage of others for their own gratification. Such relations should only be following a lifelong commitment. We cannot have a consumerist attitude. >Can those with same-sex attractions truly love each other? Absolutely. The Church by no means is condemning those with same-sex attractions to a loveless life; the question is what practices will be consistent with genuine love and the objective good of the people involved. The Church teaches that those of the same-sex can clearly exercise the love of friendship (philia) in which the other becomes like a second self. The Church teaches that they certainly can — and are called to — have true Christian love (agape) toward each other, a willingness to sacrifice themselves and even die to themselves and their pleasures for the other’s true good. But the Church stresses that they need to ensure the romantic attractions (eros) they have for each other do not damage the one they love by opposing or destroying the love of agape and philia. For this they need chastity, which helps them raise their romantic attractions up to the sacred dignity of the person, which is violated by same-sex sexual activity. Those of the same sex are able to love one another, but of the type of philia and agape, which are self-sacrificial. If they have this elove, they will realize that reducing the other to their sexual attraction and mutually using each other destroys friendship and self-sacrificial love. They are called to raise their attractions up to the reverence of each other. Same-sex sexual activity is not consistent with this type of love or the good of the soul. * [Courage](http://couragerc.net/) Fr. Roger said an article in the Anchor updates on the past year of the availability of pro-life Choose Life license plates which has raised $90,000. They need to have 3,000 plates total to abide by Mass. Dept of Motor Vehicles requirements and they are only about two-thirds there. It is a great witness for life and raises money for great causes. A benefactor put up a $100,000 bond for the plates and will lose that bond if they do not reach 3,000 plates. * [Choose Life license plates](http://www.machoose-life.org) Greg said the Cardinal this week has named 20 vicars forane for the Archdiocese. Most people have never heard of the vicariate. The Archdiocese has five regions: Merrimac, South, Central, West, and North. Each of those are divided into four vicariates that cover a couple of towns. The vicar forane is responsible for communication between the bishop and the parishes and visiting the parishes to ensure that sacramental records are being properly maintained and report to the regional bishop. * [List of vicars forane in the Archdiocese of Boston](http://www.bostoncatholic.org/About-The-Archdiocese/Content.aspx?id=11878) Scot said Fr. Dan Sheehan's obituary is in the Pilot this week. He was one of the first priests of the St. James Society in the archdiocese. He said there is also a story about the Vatican asking a retired bishop to visit the Cleveland Diocese where Bishop Robert Lennon is the ordinary, related to the reconfiguration plan there. Bishop Lennon is a former auxiliary bishop and vicar general of Boston. * ["Vatican asks retired US bishop to visit Ohio diocese, assess leadership," Catholic News Service, 7/11/11](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20110711.htm) The Toledo diocese has asked Catholics not to donate to the Susan G. Komen Foundation because of their support for Planned Parenthood and embryonic stem cell research. * ["Toledo bishop asks Catholic groups to suspend support for Komen fund," Catholic News Service, 7/12/11](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20110712.htm) Bishop Aquila of Fargo, North Dakota is also asking his brother bishops to consider moving confirmation before first communion. This will be discussed in a future show. * ["Bishop Aquila urges sacrament of confirmation before First Eucharist," by Kevin J. Jones, Catholic News Agency](http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/bishop-aquila-urges-sacrament-of-confirmation-before-first-eucharist/)

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams **Today's guest(s):** Thomas J. Craughwell, author and columnist * ["Saints Preserved: An Encyclopedia of Relics"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307590739/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0307590739) * ["Saints Behaving Badly, Saints for Every Occasion: 101 of Heaven's Most Powerful Patrons"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0385517203/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0385517203) **Today's topics:** Saints and relics **Summary of today's show:** Tom Craughwell joins Scot and Fr. Matt to talk about ne'er-do-well saints and relics, particularly the surprising history of sin and crime that some saints had before their conversion as well as the long, strange, and confusing history and practice of saints' relics, preserving their bones and possessions for holy veneration. **1st segment:** Fr. Matt joins the show via Skype from St. Thecla Retreat House in Billerica where he's leading the Witness to Truth retreat for high school students. It's an overnight four-day prayer experience and leadership institute. Fr. Matt said the stories of the saints are inspirational to help us step up a bit more in our own lives to become more of the saint we're supposed to be. Today's guest has written several books on saints. **2nd segment:** Scot and Fr. Matt welcome Tom Craughwell to the show. Scot asked him how he became interested in the saints. He's always been interested since he was a kid. He started by reading about them in the books from the school library and has gone to full-on study, examining the original sources and trying to find out what they're really like, what their personalities were like. They were real human beings with all the same characteristics of people like us. In "Saints Behaving Badly", he profiles saints who were gangsters, criminals, and other never-do-wells. People are often surprised because they have a pre-coneived notion that saints were never horribly sinful before conversion and becoming saints. St. Matthew as a tax collector was an extortionist, for example. St. Dismas, the Good Thief, was a criminal his whole life until converting on the cross. It teaches that sainthood is not impossible. Fr. Matt noted the quote that Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. Saints are not angels. They're human beings and they deal with original sin and the inclination to sin. God's grace breaks through to conform their lives to him. It's always God's grace that changes hearts and minds. He asked Tom for a story from his book to capture that idea. Tom thought of [St. Margaret of Cortona](http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09653b.htm), an attractive peasant girl in Italy. When she was 13 years old, the 16-year-old baron invited her to become his mistress and she said yes to escape her life. He even told her that he would never marry her. They lived together for nine years and they had a child. One day he went away on a trip and was murdered. The shock of finding his body reminded her that she did not know if he had time to repent before he died and so she was confronted with her own mortality. She turned her back on her old life, cooperated with God's grace, and moved forward. She'd been used to the comfortable life and liked the company of men, but she remained on the path to sainthood. Fr. Matt asked if there's a guiding theme that emerges from the lives of saints who came from great sin. Tom said it varies from one person to the next. Matt Talbot had a terrible problem with alcoholism in 19th century Ireland. His friends were so tired him sponging drinks off of them that they avoided his company, even other alcoholics. That was his turning point. There are so many remarkable ways that God works. You don't know what will spark the conversion moment. But the common thread is that once these sinners realize what they've done, there is the horror that they've offended God and relief at he still loves them. Scot noted that [St. Camillus](http://www.catholic-pages.com/saints/st_camillus.asp) was a card shark and conman. (Tomorrow is the feast day of St. Camillus.) Tom said he was a mercenary in 16th century Italy. He started at 17 years old and picks up all of the vices of the soldiers. Then he learns from his father how to cheat at cards and run cons to support themselves between wars. Then his father fell deathly ill and tells Camillus to get a priest. Camillus was shocked that his hardened sinner father wanted a priest. From then Camillus tried to convert, but he had the path of two steps forward and one step back. He found St. Philip Neri who was his spiritual director. Then the 6'4" 250lb mercenary founded a hospital to care for the indigent sick and has become the patron saint of nurses. **3rd segment:** Tom said a relic is the body of a saint or objects that belonged to the saint (rosaries, clothes, letters). A third-class relic is something that was touched to the body of the saint or perhaps to their tomb. He said the roots of veneration of relics is in the Book of 2nd Kings where a man is revived after his dead body touches the bones of the Prophet Elisha. In Acts of Apostles, objects from St. Paul are touched to the sick who are healed. During the age of the martyrs, Christians worked hard to collect the remains of saints. [St. Polycarp](http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1300), the bishop of Smyrna, was burned by the Romans and the Christians collected his bones and every year on his feast day, the Christians of Smyrna gathered at his sarcophagus and the bishop said Mass on top of it. That began the custom of placing relics in the altars of churches and chapels. The relic in today's altars are typically of the patron saint of the church or chapel and it has to be a first-class relic. In older churches, before Vatican II, the relics will be relics of martyrs for a rock-solid link to the tombs of the martyrs in the catacombs. Today, while martyrs are preferred, there are also relics of other saints. Scot asked Fr. Matt what is the symbolism of the priest kissing the altar before Mass. Fr. Matt said they bow to the altar because it the place of sacrifice and the kissing of the altar is connected first with the sacrifice. Where they kiss is the altar stone, under which the relic is kept. So he thinks it's both venerating the altar of sacrifice and the relics that are there. Priests are called to live sacrificial lives like Christ and every priest is invited to consecrate his priesthood and victimhood to the Lord Jesus. Scot noted that some criticized Catholics for worshipping relics. Tom said St. Jerome and other fathers of the church warned Catholics to remember that saints are not mini-Gods. Only God is worshipped. We venerate or honor saints because they lived heroic lives here on earth and are now glorified in heaven with honors from God. Tom said worship and venerate are not synonyms. Scot also noted that the practice of veneration of saints was ratified again by the Council of Trent after the Protestant Reformation. Tom said the Council of Trent referred to the practice of the movement of saints' bodies from their tombs to place of veneration. >Further, the council insists that "in the invocation of saints the veneration of relics and the sacred use of images, every superstition shall be removed and all filthy lucre abolished." Again, "the visitation of relics must not be by any perverted into revellings and drunkenness." To secure a proper check upon abuses of this kind, "no new miracles are to be acknowledged or new relics recognized unless the bishop of the diocese has taken cognizance and approved thereof." Moreover, the bishop, in all these matters, is directed to obtain accurate information to take council with theologians and pious men, and in cases of doubt or exceptional difficulty to submit the matter to the sentence of the metropolitan and other bishops of the province, "yet so that nothing new, or that previously has not been usual in the Church, shall be resolved on, without having first consulted the Holy See." In the age of the martyrs, on the anniversary of the martyrdom of a local saint, the Christians would go into the catacombs and celebrate Mass either on the sarcophagus or facing the niche in the wall in which the body lay. These people were always living in constant danger of another persecution and so this was a very heroic act. The people did not live in the tombs or hide out from the Romans there, contrary to popular myth. They hid in the mountains or the desert. Tom said except for St. John the Evangelist and the Virgin Mary, for the first few centuries every saint was a martyr. After Constantine liberated the Church in 315, other holy persons were recognized. The Church realized that God manifests his grace in all types of conditions of life. **4th segment:** It’s time to announce the winner of the weekly **WQOM Benefactor Raffle**. Our prize this week is a Curtis Martin Book Pack (3 books): ["Made for More"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1934217492/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=1934217492) by Curtis Martin and ["Family Matters"](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1931018146/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=1931018146), by Michaelann and Curtis Martin This week’s winner is **William & Therese Redmond from Scituate**. Congratulations William and Therese! If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit [WQOM.org](http://www.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:** Scot asked about the relics of Jesus himself. He noted that the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston has a relic of the True Cross. Tom said in 326 AD, St. Helen, mother of Constantine, made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land to visit the Holy Sepulchre where Christ's tomb lay. She found three wooden crosses at the site and to determine which was Jesus' they touched an ill person to each one. After identifying the cross, they left a portion in Jerusalem and took the other part back to Rome with her. The provenance of those two portions is so good, that we can be confident of those portions' authenticity. Scot asked how relics are authenticated. In Rome, there is an official source for relics, but what is the process in general. Tom said since the Council of Trent when the Church became sensitive to the abuse of relics, there has been a process of a clearinghouse and authentication. For each new saint, part of the process is to go to the tomb, open it, and move the remains to a shrine where people can come for pilgrimage. At the time, there are church officials who authenticate the process and all the remains,. Fr. Matt asked about the [Shroud of Turin](http://www.shroud.com/). Tom said the evidence for its authenticity goes back and forth, but he keeps coming back to a photograph taken of the shroud that only in the negative showed the image of Christ on it. How could they have done that in 1240, which is the oldest authenticated mention of the shroud. But even if it isn't authentic, it doesn't change the Catholic faith one iota. It'd be nice if it's authentic, but our faith doesn't depend on it. Tom said two places claim to have St. Veronica's veil: St. Peter's in Rome and a little Italian chapel. Tom said in the Middle Ages, copies of the authentic veil were authorized and now they can't tell which was the original and which was the copy. The story of the veil goes back at least to the 4th century. Scot mentioned the [Holy House of Loreto](http://www.sacred-destinations.com/italy/loreto-holy-house). Fr. Matt visited Loreto, Italy, last month. He noted that many saints have prayed there. It is said to be the place where the Blessed Mother lived and grew up and where the Archangel Gabriel appeared to the Blessed Mother. Tom said that since it's off the tourist track , it has a more peaceful nature. The story is that in 1291, when the crusaders were expelled from the Holy Land, angels carried the house from Nazareth to Loreto and a chapel was built over it. While it can't be definitively proved to be the actual house of the Holy Family, the Church says that it cannot be definitively said not to be. Fr. Matt noted that the stones of the house have been identified as coming from Nazareth. Scot asked that if Pope John Paul II is eventually canonized, what is the process for his relics to be made and distributed for veneration. Tom said it's not uncommon in medieval cathedrals to see body parts of saints, but today the Church tends not to dismember the saint. Today they will remove a few bones and break them up for distribution. In John Paul's case, doctors had kept a few vials of his blood and that has been prepared for dissemination to a few places, such as Poland. The days of sending skulls of saints to a different place are over. Tom said in the case of John Paul that it appears he has not decomposed, but there's no definitive answer from Rome. He did note that some people pointed out that popes' bodies are sealed in three different caskets and a stone tomb, which may delay decomposition. throughout history, many saints have been disinterred after 50 or 60 years or more, their bodies were found to be incorrupt and is considered a miracle in the Church. But not every saint is incorrupt and there is no explanation for why some and not others. Fr. Matt noted that St. Bernadette looks stunning more than 150 years later. Scot asked how a Catholic should respond to someone who regards the whole practice as gross and offensive. Tom said that certainly we would not dismember a saint today. What motivated people of then and now is a desire for a physical connection with someone who was holy in this life and is with God in the next. This isn't just a spiritual reality. People even today will gawk and gather around objects like Mary Todd Lincoln's gloves stained with the blood of President Lincoln. It's a natural desire to have a link with someone they deeply admire. He has a book coming out in November on patron saints called "This Saint Will Change Your Life."

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Chris O'Connor **Today's guest(s):** Randy Raus, president of LifeTeen, and Fr. Matt Williams, Director of the Office for the New Evangelization of Youth and Young Adults * [Lifeteen](http://www.lifeteen.com/) * [LIFT](http://www.liftedhigher.com/) **Today's topics:** LifeTeen **Summary of today's show:** Randy Raus and Fr. Matt Williams join Scot and Fr. Chris O'Connor to talk about the LifeTeen ministry; its focus on the Eucharist; its effects on teens, including generating many priestly vocations; how it brings families together in the parish; and how they are helping teens prepare for the new translation of the Roman Missal coming this Advent. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Fr. Chris back to the show. He noted Fr. Matt Williams is also on the show as a guest. He said Randy Raus from Lifeteen is in Boston to speak at the Lift Ministries even tonight. Randy said Lifeteen is parish-based youth ministry in 1800 Catholic parishes in 26 countries. Most are in the US. It is Eucharist-centered with a devotion to the Blessed Mother. They lead teens to Christ through a celebration of the liturgy with music and homily geared to young people. After the Mass are Life Nights, catechetical nights. It's a large group setting that takes them out of the classroom setting to interact with their peers to talk about their faith and experience it in prayer. Randy was a parish youth ministry in Marietta, Georgia. He started with 15 kids in his youth group and had built it up to 80 young people when a teen asked him about LifeTeen. The teen said his old parish in Arizona did LifeTeen and the kids in his old parish made Mass the top priority. He realized that they needed to do more to lead teens to Christ in the Mass. The teen kept bugging him until he went on a training conference for LifeTeen and kicked off the ministry with about 300 teens eight months later. It transformed the parish. Fr. Chris asked how the Eucharist and Mary play the primary roles in LifeTeen. Randy said we are seeking to fill the God-shaped hole in our lives. Whatever a teen is facing in their lives, bring them to the Eucharist. That's the centrality of our faith and of LifeTeen. It helps them to focus on Christ and helps them understand the Real Presence in the Eucharist. Once they realize that fact, it changes everything. Allowing the Blessed Mother to intercede for them and lead them to her Son, she points them only to her Son. Scot asked what specific things do they do to make the Real Presence real for them. The key is for the adult leaders, Core members, have to be having encounters with Christ themselves and believing it. It's a contagious environment. You give them space to experience Christ. Fr. Matt's first assignment as a priest was with St. Mary in Dedham which has a LifeTeen ministry. When he first arrived at the parish, the pastor talked to him at length about LifeTeen before anything else. The kids were excited to meet him as their new priest and couldn't wait to meet him. He felt ill equipped at the time, but the kids had a simple witness that led him to go deeper. The joy of his week was celebrating that Mass every week with the kids and their families. Randy said young people bringing their families back to the Church are an unplanned benefit to the ministry. There is a part of LifeTeen now that is called ParentLife. They even see teens bringing their parents on retreat and leading them to Eucharistic adoration. Fr. Matt said he can imagine asking where are all these kids and how do we get them in our church? What is it that gets them in the doors? Randy said young people are relational, so they need someone to look them in the eye and welcome them to Mass. The average young person needs to be asked five or six times. Scot asked if peers or adults are better askers, but Randy said it just has to be somebody authentic and real, who cares enough. Today teens are easier to approach than ever before and open to adults talking to them. Teens do care that their peers are going to be there, but a genuine invite goes a long way. Even before they get in the door, there has to be a sense of hospitality. People greet them at the door, hand them a song sheet, welcome them in. The music uses instruments teens are used to hearing without taking away from the reverence of Mass and done in a quality way so they will sing along. Scot said you hear a lot that Mass is boring. But there's an energy in LifeTeen. How do they get from the former to the latter to appreciate what the Mass really is. Randy said Mass can be a great catechetical experience explaining what's happening. But the LifeNights include specific topics that break open the parts of the liturgy. Also, by going away on retreat or big conference, they experience it in a different way that puts them on fire for being engaged in the liturgy. It's part catechetical and part experiential. Fr. Matt said if everyone else is praying and you're not, then you're the one who stands out. If the community is formed and worshipping, then it encourages others to join in. **2nd segment:** Randy said in his parish they had a 6pm liturgy on Sundays. It was the last chance Mass. They took a Mass of 45 minutes to one that was 1-1/2 hours. Attendance doubled and became standing-room only. It wasn't that people were interested in Mass, but they didn't feel a part of it. And a community developed around it, not just among youth. This happens in parishes around the world. Scot asked how it affects the other Masses of the weekend. Randy said over time people would end up going to that Mass instead of others. It became the most popular and, by the way, had the highest collection. It affected the whole family with families going together and they would schedule their Sundays around this Mass. Fr. Chris said as he interviews young men looking to enter seminary he finds that most of the young men have some connection to LifeTeen and/or Steubenville. Randy said there is a positive interaction in LifeTeen between priests and young people and the young people see priests in a positive light. They also talk to teens about considering vocations in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament. The USCCB last year contacted LifeTeen and said they were a major source of vocations within the Church. The USCCB worked with LifeTeen to create a website of parish-based resources. They then surveyed seminarians and found that 49% had attended something connected to lifeTeen and 30% said lifeTeen was the determinant for entering seminary. LifeTeen's goal is to serve the Church however they can. * [USCCB website for vocations](http://www.foryourvocation.org/) * [Franciscan University of Steubenville](http://franciscan.edu/) * [Steubenville Youth Conference](http://franciscanyouth.com/) To implement LifeTeen, it takes the support of the pastor. They need someone dedicated to be a youth minister, volunteer or paid. They need a core team of adults trained to do youth ministry, putting on the LifeNights. They need musicians to learn the music and put on a vibrant liturgy. It's a lot of work, but their experience is that it has an impact on young people and transforms their lives. He said the minimum size of the core team would be five people for a small parish, but ideally you want 10 ore more. You can start with less and add more. Some parishes start with 15 teams and one year later have 75 active teens. The Mass is a community Mass, not just a teen Mass, and it's every Sunday. Of the four weeks of the months they have two catechetical nights, one on an issue and one social night. Scot asked Fr. Matt about his experience celebrating LifeTeen Mass after celebrating more traditional forms of Mass. He said at St. Mary's he had many different kinds of experience: children's choir, adult choir, and LifeTeen. Everyone has a preferred way of worshipping that speaks to them most. For him, he enjoys Christian contemporary music. To have youth and their parents who want to be there and praise God is amazing. There's something about the gift of their youthfulness that lift up the community and has a powerful effect on the whole congregation. Fr. Chris added that LifeTeen is strictly in line with all the General Instructions of the Roman Missal and there's nothing out of the norm. It is line with all of the rubrics. Randy said LifeTeen is obedient to the bishops and all of the liturgical guidelines. They work with the liturgists in the diocese. Randy said they lost four teens from LifeTeen in the Columbine shooting and Archbishop Chaput celebrated the LifeTeen Mass with the parish after the shooting. It wss the most healing experience Randy has ever had. Fr. Chris asked how LifeTeen prepares youth to transition to a more traditional parish Mass as they move on in life to college and beyond. Randy said campus chaplains love to receive LifeTeen students because they are active and involved in ministry. Randy said it's LifeTeen's job to be open to help them be open to all expressions of liturgy and not base their faith on the music at Mass. While music draws teens into the experience, it's youth ministers' role to help them develop that experience of the Eucharist to carry on to the rest of their life. **3rd segment:** Scot asked Randy how LifeTeen is helping teens approach the significant changes in the prayers of Mass that are coming this Advent. Randy said they need to feel like they're ahead of the curve and providing resources to the parishes. They created a resource called "Word for Word," a DVD and workbook that helps explain both at Mass and at Life Nights. Randy said Bishop Ron Herzog of Alexandria ordered copies for every parish to show. The videos are geared for both high school and middle school. Randy said he thinks it will help teens focus more on the liturgy and be a growth opportunity for the whole Church if we don't focus on the negative of change. Fr. Chris said Eucharist adoration plays an important part of LifeTeen. Randy said it is important, but they never make it more important than Mass. They're seeing even middle school students at their camps spending 30 minutes in silent adoration. He had one camper tell him that he feels God is asking him to be a priest because in adoration he finds himself thinking as a priest, not just a teen. He found himself thinking about all the others and hoping they see Christ in the Eucharist as well. LifeTeen is setting a norm. This is the new normal, expecting young people to encounter Christ in this way. Scot asked Randy about Life Nights. Randy said Life Nights are taught from a single person which is different from most religious ed because they have multiple teachers so the message is better controlled. They use the form of the Mass to gather, proclaim, break it open, and send forth. They set an environment for the night. They want the room to be set up specifically for the theme of the night to let teens know that this will be something different from the last time they were. There might be a video to watch or a game that engages them in the night. In the proclamation, they have someone talking, usually with notes provided to them by LifeTeen in language the teens can understand. Scot asked how bigger events outside the parish, like pilgrimages, integrate with parish youth ministry and how important they are. Randy said World Youth Day has some of the biggest impact on teens that they will have in their life. They are parish-based so they have teens come as parish groups to events. LifeTeen will once again be having at the invitation of the Vatican to have a special LifeTeen experience on one of the nights of World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain, in August. They encourage parishes to be active in diocesan youth rallies and they also offer programs for parishes to send teens to. Randy said he is passionate about youth ministry. He can't think of a more important ministry. Studies show that if teens are not active Catholics by the end of high school they don't have a high chance of being active Catholics of adults. He is the father of eight and it's had an enormous impact on his family. His brother was diagnosed with liver cancer and after the diagnosis two of his children approached him on their own and told him that he needed to receive the Eucharist and become Catholic. The week before surgery he converted to Catholicism. He has since died, but he had already developed a relationship with Christ in the Mass and with the Blessed Mother. Fr. Matt has been struck by watching the development of core team members as they become confident in their faith and then seeing young people become triggered in their faith. One of the young people in Fr. Matt's office, Danielle, is the fruit of LifeTeen at St. Mary's. A seminarian from St. Mary's is also the fruit of LifeTeen. He said the culture of the world is strong and we need to building up our college ministry to continue the strong work of parish high school ministry. When they come back they can then find a community of alumni. If someone wants to experience a LifeTeen ministry in the archdiocese: * St. Mary's in Dedham * St. Mary, Hanover * Immaculate Conception, Stoughton * St. Thomas Aquinas, Bridgewater * Holy Family, Rockland * St. Brendan, Bellingham * St. Joseph the Worker, Hanson * Sacred Heart, Weymouth * Sacred Heart, Waltham * St. George, Framingham * St. Patrick, Stoneham * St. Agnes, Reading * St. Patrick, Lowell * St. Monica, Methuen Tonight, Randy Raus will be speaking at Lift about Bl. John Paul II and his call to proclaim so many people as saints. It's not something reserved for the elite, but is something we should all be setting that as our goal. Lift is a monthly gathering on a Tuesday night, 7-9 pm at Fontbonne Academy in Milton. It starts with music by Jon Niven and his band, then a speaker who teaches on the faith, then Eucharistic adoration with time of quiet prayer, led prayer, and some songs, followed by Benediction, more songs, and fellowship after. It is intergenerational and all ages go.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Susan Abbott **Today's guest(s):** Sr. Mary Corripio and Sr. Marietta Brown of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur * [Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur](http://www.sndden.org/) * [Vocation website](http://www.askansnd.org) **Today's topics:** Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur **Summary of today's show:** Scot and Susan are joined today by Sr. Mary and Sr. Marietta to discuss the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, an international religious order with strong roots in Boston ad a tradition of educating young women and the poor, serving them and bringing them the light of Christ. **1st segment:** Scot welcome Susan back to the show. He noted that she is co-hosting on Monday, not Thursday, because of her fondness for the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. She went to a Notre Dame Sisters high school. The sisters have many schools in Boston and have had a profound effect on the Archdiocese of Boston. Susan said St. Julie, the foundress, had a particular devotion to educating young women, especially poor women. Scot noted that his mom is 65 years old today. She is the number one fan of The Good Catholic Life. Scot welcomed Sr. Mary Corripio and Sr. Marietta Brown. Sr. Marietta grew up in Dorchester, as many Notre Dame sisters have. She went to public school until high school when she went to an SND high school. After school, she joined the Sisters of Notre Dame, which was the only congregation she knew. She attended Emmanuel College, Boston State, and Boston College. She taught in many towns around Boston and then was appointed as a principal in the Midwest then came back for a time. She later spent eight years in South Africa doing teacher training. She now works in a preschool in New Mexico on a Navajo reservation. Reaching out to the poor is one of the founding charisms of the congregation. It is incredible to see how the people remain joyful even in their struggles. Sr. Mary found the SND when she went to college. She grew up in Louisiana and wanted a Catholic women's education like she had in high school. She found Trinity College where she got the call. After college, she went to Japan to teach English for a year. After that, she went to Europe on a pilgrimage to figure out what she wanted to do. She ended up in the town where St. Julie was born in the 18th century. She met the Sisters of Notre Dame in the village and ended up staying there for a weekend. That was the beginning of her life with the order. Her first ministry was to work in the Archdiocese of Boston in the Office of Cultural Diversity. She said working working with immigrants is a big part of the ministry of the order. She now works in the vocations office for the order. In the US, they have five people working in vocation ministry in California, Ohio, New Mexico and the US. **2nd segment:** St. Julie Billiart came from a large family and was a very religious child attending church daily. She was recognized as an extraordinarily spiritual child and received the Eucharist at an earlier age than other children. At one point in her life, her dad was confronted with violence and she was so shocked by the incident that she was paralyzed. Nevertheless, she continued to educate young women in religious instruction from her sick bed. Even after her recovery she continued to impress others with her special faith. She was constantly heard to say in all circumstances, "God is good." When God gave her the vision to found the order, it was through the cross. She saw women in a particular habit joined in prayer around the cross. She saw the cross was not just suffering, but also joy. Sr. Marrietta said the physical cross was making her stronger spiritually because she had a strong trust in God's will. At the time in France, the government was persecuting the Church and she snuck into areas to bring religious instruction despite her handicap and military patrols on the lookout. In the cross we see the will of God. The cross is marking this mission so stay with it and live with it because God will provide. Sr. Mary said she began the novitiate in August 2001 and 9/11 happened one month later. St. Julie used to day that if turmoil happens at the beginning of something, God will bless it. If something happens and it's too easy, then something's wrong, St. Julie used to say. there are diocesan religious orders, there are missionary orders, and there are international orders. Missionary orders make vows and promises to deliberately go out into foreign lands. International orders can go out to foreign lands, but they can also stay in the lands where they were born and raised. Diocesan sisters sometimes go internationally, but they are vowed to the diocese and are expected to stay in the diocese normally. Sr. Mary said each kind has a gift. There's something beautiful about giving back to the community that raised you. There is also the bringing the Gospel to the ends of the earth which is also such a good witness. The first SND came to the US in Cincinnati and later to Boston. They started in the North End of Boston and have grown from there, starting schools. Many sisters have worked in parishes across the Archdiocese and are in schools in every region of the archdiocese. Sr. Marietta said when they were founded, they educated young women who were too poor for education. In the Boston area, they kept to the charism very much. The Sisters of St. Joseph educated boys and the SND educated girls. In addition to the schools, the congregational also has universities. Trinity University is in Washington, DC and Emmanuel in Boston. In Africa they have sisters in hospitals and schools in Congo and Nigeria. In Japan, they also have several schools. They are in 15 countries. **3rd segment:** The schools in the local area at which SND now work: 1. Emmanuel College, Boston, MA 2. Notre Dame Montessori School, Dorchester, MA 3. Notre Dame Academy, Hingham, MA 4. Notre Dame Academy, Tyngsboro, MA 5. Notre Dame High School, Lawrence, MA 6. Notre Dame Education Center, Lawrence, MA 7. St. Mary of the Assumption School, Lawrence, MA 8. St. Patrick Elementary School and Education Center, Lowell, MA 9. Notre Dame Education Center, South Boston, MA 10. Julie's Family Learning Program, South Boston, MA 11. Saint Jude Elementary School, Waltham, MA 12. Cuvilly Arts and Earth Center, Ipswich, MA 13. Notre Dame Children's Class, Wenham, MA 14. Bishop Fenwick High School, Peabody, MA 15. Bishop Stang High School, Dartmouth, MA 16. St. Augustine, Andover, MA 17. St. Mary Star of the Sea School, Beverly, MA 18. St. John the Evangelist School, Beverly, MA 19. St. Michael School, Hudson, MA Sr. Marietta said the congregation is also working in the area of human trafficking. they are working to raise awareness and looking to see what they can do as a group. Sr. Mary said there was a collaboration among the various religious congregations in Boston to raise awareness about trafficking, holding symposia twice a year, giving talks at parishes and more. They also now have a safe house for women who have escaped and are trying to establish a new life. Much of the trafficking in Boston is domestic, people forced into either labor or sex exploitation. Recently a young woman was kidnapped by a neighbor and forced into prostitution in hotels around Boston. Young people are lured into a situation and taken advantage of. Sr. Marietta said internationally some families sell a child because they think the child will live the good life in America. The Cristo Rey high school model is one way to target poverty that leads to such desperation. The children get a good education and job experience. In Peru, the sisters live in the neighborhoods of extreme poverty. They are so poor that sometimes the teachers teach without pay. On the Navajo reservation the families are extremely poor as well, even to where they don't even have running water. They can't get rid of their garbage because they have to pay to bring it to the dump. They take their laundry into town because it's cheaper than bringing water to the homes. **4th segment:** Sr. Mary said the postulants and novices are very diverse. They have one woman who was born in Nigeria. Their novice is from Mexico. Another woman entering this year is a doctor from Italy and the other is from Arizona. The average age upon entry is 40. The national novitiate takes place in Cincinnati. The house in Ipwisch is a center for retreats and much of the order's local work. They house provincial offices, congregational offices, to provide a home to the elderly and infirm. Sr. Marietta said miracles take place through the prayer of the sisters living at their house. Susan said the Office for Religious Education often takes directors of religious education to Ipswich for days of recollection and formation. Sr. Mary said Cardinal Cushing was instrumental in helping the Sisters get the property in Ipswich. Scot said the cardinal was one of the biggest builders in the history of the Church in the United States. Sr. Mary said the order's sisters work locally mainly in the poorest areas. Susan recalled that Notre Academy in Roxbury when she went to school covered 16 acres between Duley and Eggleston Squares. She spoke about the sisters who were so formative in her life. The order has 1,600 sisters internationally and 400 of them are here in the Archdiocese.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Mark O'Connell **Today's guest(s):** Joshua Phelps, Associate Director of Pastoral Planning for the Archdiocese of Boston * [Office of Pastoral Planning, Archdiocese of Boston](http://www.bostoncatholic.org/Offices-And-Services/Office-Detail.aspx?id=1448) **Today's topics:** Why Catholics don't attend Mass and why they should **Summary of today's show:** Josh Phelps talks with Scot and Fr. Mark about the work of pastoral planning, part of which is looking at the reasons Catholics give for not attending Sunday Mass every week. Also, our hosts and guest look at this Sunday's Mass readings and how they relate to our need to respond to God's Word by being part of our parish community. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Fr. Mark back to the show. Today's show will discuss why people make the decision not to attend Mass. Fr. Mark wondered if when people go on vacation they will bother to go to [MassTimes.org](http://www.masstimes.org) to find a local Mass. Scot welcomed Joshua Phelps to the show. He is a graduate of Boston College and worked previously as a Pastoral Associate at St. Patrick, Watertown before coming to work at the Archdiocese in the Pastoral Planning office. He and his wife have been married for five years and they have two children. A couple of years ago, their family was featured in an episode of the CatholicTV program "House+Home". Josh said it's a surreal experience for people come up to them and say they saw them on TV. Josh worked previously in retail forecasting and moved to pastoral planning. Pastoral planning is a catch-all for helping parishes be the best they can be. It's their hope to help parishes work toward the mission of Christ. When an initiative like Catholics Come Home starts, while it's a project mainly of Faith Formation and Evangelization, it's near and dear to Pastoral Planning because they see the statistics regarding the Church in Boston. They see both the downward trends in some parishes and upward trends in others and then they dig down to find out why the differences are there. Josh said leadership, mission, and vision are incredibly important. Parishes that are seeing increases are those that take Sunday Eucharist very seriously and where people see the Eucharist as a very important part of their lives throughout the week. The mission is to live out the Gospel of Christ and build the kingdom of God in that parish. Parishes that take it seriously are the ones that see growth. Josh recently helped two parishes in Wayland to complete a merger. The parishes themselves initiated the merger between St. Ann and St. Zepherin to form one faith community as Good Shepherd Parish. It was a lot of work by a lot of people. As a result of the merge, people now say to their neighbors, "I didn't know you were Catholic," because went to different parishes. Fr. Mark said the merger isn't complete, but goes on for years. While being in the same town, they are very different communities and it needs leadership like that of the pastor, Fr. Laughlin, to facilitate that. Even though they were so different, they were able to come together in a process that both could embrace through proper planning and setting a reasonable timetable. Scot said parishes with very different cultures can come together fully. As the archdiocese continues to look at pastoral planning, this model will have great import for the future. Josh said every parish starts by asking what is in the best interest of the parish to move forward and thrive. In Wayland, they decided it was to come together as one parish and one community. Across the archdiocese, people are realizing the same thing. Fr. Mark said that in some places they maintain two parishes with one pastor, but it's easier like here where it's just one pastor, one parish council, one pool of money for the budget and so on. One of the most important statistics that Josh's office tracks is Mass attendance, which is an important metric for the pastoral needs of the parish. Catholic speaker Matthew Kelly spends time in one of his talks giving an illustration of the problem with the Mass according to people's claims about why they don't like to go to church. (Just 4 minutes in the beginning of the video below) * [Matthew Kelly's 7 Pillars of Catholicism on YouTube](http://www.youtube.com/user/DynamicCatholic#p/u/4/Syj8XHnClGM) Fr. Mark said he's most of those comments at one time or another in his priesthood. Scot said Kelly says the problem with the Mass is "me" and if we approach the Mass each Sunday with asking God to show us one new thing about how to improve ourselves, it would change everything. Josh said that instead people want to change the user experience as if that would make a difference. Scot said our culture is all about seeking entertainment and we're used to being spectators, but if we want to get the most out of Mass, we need to be an engaged participant by preparing: Reading the Sunday readings ahead of time; keeping a journal to Mass to write down one thing to make myself a better version of me and then to meditate on that throughout the week. Scot said he's never been let down when praying for God to help him to deepen his faith. * ["Catholics Who Have Stopped Going to Mass," Australian Catholic Bishops Conference](http://www.catholicaustralia.com.au/page.php?pg=livingfaith-reasons1) Scot said the Australian bishops conference commissioned a detailed study on why Catholics say they have stopped going to Mass: 1. Mass isn't a priority 2. Crisis of faith 3. Family or household related issues make it difficult 4. Changes to parishes or Mass schedule 5. Don't feel welcome because of their state in life, e.g. divorce or they have small kids. But the most important reason, 32% say, they don't feel it's important to go to Mass to be a good Catholic. Fr. Mark said people start by forgiving themselves and stop going to Confession. Then they decide they can pray on their own and don't need to follow rules that tell them where to pray. Scot said his brother, Fr. Roger Landry, that people who say they are spiritual, but not religious, really mean that they want God on their own terms, whereas a faithful Catholic would say that I want to love God on Jesus' terms. Josh said when he prays at home, he's praying by himself or with his wife and children, but when he's at Mass he's praying with the entire 1-billion person Church and even more if you include the saints in heaven. The Mass is an incredibly important part of our spiritual life. It is spiritual food for our souls. Fr. Mark said our community is less without the full community. The person not only needs the community, but the community needs them. The Church needs the full participation of the community, because without it we are less. Much of our culture is focused on individualism. We don't think of ourselves as part of a community. Scot said God created us to be part of a family and that's what each parish strives to be. Eucharist means "thanksgiving" and Scot's been thinking about how that relates to the American holiday. People will travel across the country on the third Thursday of November, even if they know it won't be the most fun or if it's a big hassle, but there's a sense that we're made to be with our family on that day. Our heavenly Father is like our parents who say all that matters is that the whole family is together on that. Scot said Cardinal Seán is writing a pastoral letter on Sunday Mass attendance and he will write about how much of the factors are within our control. Josh said the Australian study shows that it's no one fact that pushes people out the doors of the Church. In many cases, it just happened over the course of a long period of time. Fr. Mark said he's been impressed by the people who come on the program who see a need in their parishes and participated and made it better rather than just leaving because it wasn't what they wanted at first. Scot said John Paul II described love, not as a feeling, but as a self-gift. Pope Benedict's first encyclical was the God is love. God loved us first and how do we love him back? Not through a feeling, but through an act of the will of a self-gift. Even if we're not active in a ministry, we can give of ourselves on a Sunday morning by witnessing to our community and neighborhood that this is a priority. for one thing, it's a different experience sitting in church that's packed full of people rather than a mostly empty one. Every time we make a choice to go to Mass, it makes a difference to everyone else in that church. Scot said another reason in the study was the Sundays are not distinct any more. Businesses are open, people have to work, people have to do chores, kids' sports are scheduled on Sunday morning. That makes it even more important for the Catholic to show neighbors by our witness that Mass is our priority. Those actions will make someone notice. Archbishop Dolan of New York recently wrote about threats to Sunday Mass. He said in recent years communication technologies have made it easier for us to be distracted and make church just another in a range of options on the weekend. Scot suggested that perhaps as a response it would be fruitful for Catholics to turn off TVs and computers and other distracting devices on Sunday. In his letter, Archbishop Dolan then responded to a lot of the same objections found in the Australian study. * ["Keeping the Lord's Day Holy," Archbishop Timothy Dolan's St. Patrick's Day, 2010, Letter to the Archdiocese of New York](http://blog.archny.org/?p=570) >“Sunday is our only free time together.” (Great, what better way to spend that time than by praying together at Mass). > >“I pray my own way.” (Nice idea. But, odds are, you don’t). > >“The sermon is boring.” (You may have a point). > >“I hate all the changes at Mass.” (see below) > >“I want more changes at Mass.” (see above) > >“Until the church makes some changes in its teaching, I’m staying away.” (But, don’t we go to Mass to ask God to change us, not to tell God how we want Him and His Church to change to suit us?) > > “Everybody there is a hypocrite and always judging me.” (Who’s judging whom here?) > >... and the list goes on. > >And the simple fact remains: the Eucharist is the most beautiful, powerful prayer that we have. To miss it is to miss Jesus — His Word, His people, His presence, His Body and Blood. **2nd segment:** Now, as we do every week, we look forward to this coming Sunday's Mass readings to help us prepare to celebrate together. * [First Reading for Sunday, July 10, 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Isaiah 55:10-11)](http://www.usccb.org/nab/071011.shtml#reading1) >Thus says the LORD: Just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down and do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; my word shall not return to me void, but shall do my will, achieving the end for which I sent it. * [Gospel for Sunday, July 10, 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Matthew 13:1-23)](http://www.usccb.org/nab/071011.shtml#gospel) >On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea. Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat down, and the whole crowd stood along the shore. And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil. It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep, and when the sun rose it was scorched, and it withered for lack of roots. Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it. But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold. Whoever has ears ought to hear.” >The disciples approached him and said, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” He said to them in reply, “Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted. To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich; from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand. Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says: You shall indeed hear but not understand, you shall indeed look but never see. Gross is the heart of this people, they will hardly hear with their ears, they have closed their eyes, lest they see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their hearts and be converted, and I heal them. >“But blessed are your eyes, because they see, and your ears, because they hear. Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it. >“Hear then the parable of the sower. The seed sown on the path is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart. The seed sown on rocky ground is the one who hears the word and receives it at once with joy. But he has no root and lasts only for a time. When some tribulation or persecution comes because of the word, he immediately falls away. The seed sown among thorns is the one who hears the word, but then worldly anxiety and the lure of riches choke the word and it bears no fruit. But the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.” Josh said he sees two important aspects of the readings: The seed that is sown, which is the Word of God. The Word is perfect. And then the soil. A farmer would say there's only so much you can do with the rocky ground. He thinks of his own life and how he tries to live the Word of God superficially and he then has to uproot himself and change his life and move to more fertile ground in his life. Fr. Mark said the key is the roots. With regard to today's topic, we need an environment that isn't just a quick high, but creates deep spiritual roots. He related the story of Orpheus, whose music could seduce anyone, but when he stopped playing the people were left worse off, pining away for the music. He said the true test of a teen or college ministry is whether the young people can move on from the interesting, high energy Masses aimed at them and go to a regular Mass and remain fully engaged. Scot said the parable speaks directly to today's topic. The culture is hardened against the Word of God. When people don't understand a Church teaching, they just dismiss it rather than wonder if there might be some truth in that. He said that if we're reaching out to people to help plant the seed, but there needs to be reciprocity from that person. Even if they don't respond right away, we don't stop trying and letting the Holy Spirit work. Josh points out that the sower is actively sowing seeds, not sitting back passively. A parish should not sit back and just say that the doors are open if anyone is interested. A parish should be mission-oriented and entrepreneurial. Fr. Mark said the deep roots he spoke about are built by spending time. We have a responsibility to bear fruit. It's not just about what can I get, but what can I give.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Susan Abbott **Today's guest(s):** Fr. Roger Landry, executive editor of The Anchor, the newspaper of the Fall River diocese; and Gregory Tracy, managing editor of The Pilot, the newspaper of the Boston archdiocese * [The Anchor](http://www.anchornews.org) * [The Pilot](http://www.pilotcatholicnews.com) * 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:** Fr. Roger's 2nd editorial on true pastoral care of those with same-sex attractions; a new priest for Fall River; a silver anniversary for an altar server; Fr. John Corapi **Summary of today's show:** Gregory Tracy and Fr. Roger Landry discuss the news of the week with Scot and Susan, including Fr. Roger's latest editorial battling common falsehoods about Catholic teaching on homosexuality; the first ordination of a priest for Fall River in two years; the silver anniversary of a very special altar server; and the troubling facts about Fr. John Corapi. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Susan back to the show asked how her week has been. She's been talking to pastors about new programs they're looking to start and using the slower summer to prepare for September. Today is Scot's anniversary. He and his wife were married in Mexico City 11 years ago and it was one of the first wedding Masses celebrated by his brother, Fr. Roger Landry. **2nd segment:** Scot and Susan welcomed Gregory Tracy and Fr. Roger Landry back to the show. Scot said there will be plenty of coverage this week on the Mass that will be held at St. Cecilia's in Boston that has been in the news this week. Fr. Roger has dedicated his editorial in The Anchor in recent weeks to the bigger issues being discussed about the situation at St. Cecilia's. This week's editorial talks about what true Christian love is. * ["Loving in the Truth Those Involved in the Gay Lifestyle", Fr. Roger Landry, editorial, The Anchor, 7/8/11](http://catholicpreaching.com/index.php?content=articles&articles=20110708anchor) Fr. Roger said it's clear that there is a real movement by those who want to have the gay idea of sexuality normalized in America that there are certain principles that go against the Church's teachings with regard to the human person. The Church needs to speak clearly about this to help people understand why and what and avoid confusion. The only adequate response to a person must be love, but it can't be a pale hospitality that doesn't call someone to communion with Christ in truth. He believes this is a critical moment for the Church to respond to moral heresies promoted by members of the gay agenda. He takes up three common falsehoods in this editorial. People said "What would Jesus do?" implying that Jesus would just embrace those in the gay movement without criticism. But Jesus really wants to help those with same-sex attraction to change, just like the woman caught in adultery. He protected her from violence and didn't condemn, but lovingly insisted she leave that lifestyle behind. The second is that the "acceptance" they ask for is on the level of their sexual attractions, but the Church wants to accept someone on the basis of who they are as God made them. True acceptance also involves recognizing that at the deepest level of their being, those with same-sex attractions are made in God’s image and likeness, and ordered ontologically as male or female toward sexual complementarity. Also, some with same-sex attraction don't make a distinction between accepting themselves and accepting their acts. Fr. Roger said we need to say that because we love them, we can't accept their behavior. Scot said this is the same for many of the teachings in the Church. God created us in a certain way and sent His only Son for us and the Holy Spirit to guide the Church to teach on moral matters. Susan said when we don't understand the why behind a teaching, to seek out the why and have a preferential option for the Church's teaching. She said when people stand before a group as a representative of the Church, integrity demands they teach what the Church teaches. Scot said it's natural to project the way we think the Church ought to be, but it's troubling when Catholics believe they know more about what God wants or what Jesus would do than the magisterial authority of the Church. Our core teachings don't change. Susan said we can wrestle with doctrines we don't understand, but we should be glib about refusing them. Gregory said the real challenge is to speak the real truth with love. He said The Pilot tries to bring light into these thorny issues that people don't often understand. When people get a real detailed explanation, they usually come to realize the wisdom of the Church's teaching. Fr. Roger said the third common falsehood is that claim that those opposed to the gay agenda are motivated by homophobia or hatred. It supposes that there would be no reason for someone to oppose redefinition of marriage or approval of some kinds of sexuality other than hatred. From the editorial: >While there’s no dispute that, sadly, in some places real homophobia does exist, ministers to the gay community have a duty not only not to abet this confusion but to disabuse those entrusted to their care from thinking the Church’s teachings on same-sex activities are based on hatred rather than love grounded in truth; they also have the responsibility to remind them that judging others or mendaciously bullying others with epithets about their character are grave sins that those with same-sex attractions are not exempt from committing. Fr. Roger said the tide has turned in society with regard to bullying. In the past, those with same-sex attraction who would be subject to ridicule and discrimination. But now it's Christians who stand up for their faith who are subject to ridicule and even job loss for refusing to accede to a particular agenda or just for being Catholic. He cited a woman in the Boston Globe who said it was more difficult to "come out" as Catholic than it was to come out as lesbian. * ["Toward the True Pastoral Care of Those with Same-Sex Attractions," Fr. Roger Landry, The Anchor, 7/1/11](http://catholicpreaching.com/index.php?content=articles&articles=20110701anchor) Scot noted that there was a bill in California filed this week mandating that history of the gay movement to be taught in all schools with no opt out for parents. In Rhode Island, the governor signed a bill legalizing civil unions. Bishop Tobin of Providence wrote that civil unions cause grave scandal and are grave matter. He said that Catholics may not participate in civil unions. * ["Catholics may not participate in civil unions, R.I. bishop says," CNS, 6/30/11](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20110630.htm) >Saying that civil unions "promote an unacceptable lifestyle, undermine the faith of the church on holy matrimony, and cause scandal and confusion," Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin reminded Catholics that they may not participate in such ceremonies. "To do so is a very grave violation of the moral law and, thus, seriously sinful," he said in a statement June 30 .... Bishop Tobin said he was "deeply disappointed" at the decision to permit civil unions. "The concept of civil unions is a social experiment that promotes an immoral lifestyle, is a mockery of the institution of marriage as designed by God, undermines the well-being of our families, and poses a threat to religious liberty," he said. Gregory said he recalls people who said during the gay marriage debate in Massachusetts that allowing it would not harm anyone else's marriage. But as we see, it never ends at just allowing it. Instead, it often becomes necessary for all to accept it. For example, schools begin to teach about same-sex couples in their curricula as part of an ongoing agenda to indoctrinate children. Scot noted an Anchor story this week about a series of videos produced by the US Bishops Conference on marriage, including religious liberty and traditional marriage. The aim of the videos is to help educate, catechize, and advocate for a better understanding of the truth that marriage is a permanent, faithful union of one man and one woman. * [Marriage: Unique for A Reason video series from the USCCB](http://www.usccb.org/marriageuniqueforareason/) **3rd segment:** In the Anchor this week, the Diocese of Fall River will ordain Deacon Riley Williams to the priesthood. He will be the first priest ordained for Fall River in two years. Fr. Roger has know him since Riley was in high school. He also attended the Pontifical North American College in Rome, where Fr. Roger went to seminary. He's a convert to the faith who comes from Cape Cod. His first year as a priest will be spent in Rome getting an advanced degree. Fr. Roger said many in Fall River are concerned that they have only 6 seminarians for the diocese. Riley said in the article that his formation was enhanced by St. Francis Xavier Prep School in Hyannis, where the faculty often spoke of the possibilities of a vocation to the priesthood. We all need to promote more priestly vocations in our homes, our schools, and our parishes. It's harder to ask young men to give their lives over to Christ in the Church if the families themselves are not immersed in the Christian life, giving everything over to the Lord. Scot noted that during Reconfiguration in the Archdiocese many were upset their own parishes were closing, but a part of the problem is that there aren't enough priests. It shouldn't be just up to priests to ask young men if they want to go on a vocation retreat, but should be the duty of all Catholics. As Mother Teresa used to say, No priest, no Eucharist. Without the priests we lose most of the sacraments. Scot said another Anchor article talks this week about a man who was born with Down syndrome and started as an altar server when he was 8 years old. He is now celebrating his 25th anniversary as a server. The young man, Eric White, had cancer in his bones and lymphatic system. His family took it to prayer and the next morning he was cancer free. "I prayed and my faith in God cured me," Eric said. >"I like serving Mass," said Eric, who began as an altar server alongside his brother when he was just eight years old. "My brother Bobby taught me everything. I like bringing the chalice to the altar and I also carry the cross and lead the procession at the beginning of Mass." Gregory said the mother's doctor, when she became pregnant with another child after Eric, suggested she abort the child in case he had Down syndrome too. The implication is that Eric was a mistake, that his life was not worth living. Society has come to the notion that if anyone has any suffering that perhaps their lives are not worth living. Susan said her office is encouraging parishes to prepare for religious education with special needs children. St. Francis of Assisi in Braintree recently received an award from the town for their work with special needs children who received First Communion. Fr. Roger also recalled another man with Down syndrome who had been serving at the altar for 40 years in a parish Fr. Roger had served at on Cape Cod. He had a beautiful faith and a great reverence for the Mass. It's the unsung heroes like Eric White who not only make the Church run, but make it shine. **4th segment:** Scot said earlier this week, the news come out that Father John Corapi's religious order, the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity released a statement to respond to some remarks made by Fr. Corapi about the investigation of allegations made against him. The statement wanted to set the record straight. * [Press release concerning Fr. John Corapi from SOLT Regional Priest Servant](http://soltnews.blogspot.com/2011/07/press-release-concerning-fr-john-corapi.html) * ["Order accuses Father Corapi of sexual, financial wrongdoing, falsehoods," CNS, 7/5/11](http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1102670.htm) >While SOLT does not typically comment publicly on personnel matters, it recognizes that Fr. John Corapi, through his ministry, has inspired thousands of faithful Catholics, many of whom continue to express their support of him. SOLT also recognizes that Fr. Corapi is now misleading these individuals through his false statements and characterizations. It is for these Catholics that SOLT, by means of this announcement, seeks to set the record straight. Scot said it is a troubling development and he wanted to discuss it because he was a well-known presence on the radio network and he was scheduled to speak at a conference in Boston this summer. Fr. Roger said it is very troubling to see a priest go down the path of open vice. We have to increase our prayers for Fr. Corapi because this is a path that he used to preach to get people away from. For anyone who has been helped by Fr. Corapi needs to return the favor and pray very hard for him. Scot noted that the order has directed him under obedience to return to the community and drop the lawsuit he filed against his accuser. Gregory said that for anyone scandalized by this case, especially those who were helped by him, it doesn't necessarily invalidate everything he said. The truth of the message does not depend on the virtue of the messenger. He has seen people lose their faith when a previously revered priest were removed from ministry after accusations of abuse. If you receive a counterfeit bill, it doesn't mean you shouldn't trust US currency. Susan said she was troubled by the articles and the list of transgressions. She was also troubled that it had to be aired this way because the order felt that it had no other choice.

**Today's host(s):** Scot Landry and Fr. Matt Williams **Today's guest(s):** Gabriel Delmonaco, National Director and Vice President for Development of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association in the United States * [Catholic Near East Welfare Association](http://www.cnewa.org) * [CNEWA on Twitter](http://www.twitter/CNEWA) * [CNEWA on Facebook](http://www.facebook.com/CNEWA1926) * [Gabriel Delmonaco's blog](http://gabedelmonaco.wordpress.com/) * [Gabriel Delmonaco on Twitter](http://www.twitter,com/GabeDelmonaco) **Today's topics:** The Catholic Near East Welfare Association **Summary of today's show:** Gabriel Delmonaco talks with Scot and Fr. Matt about the work that the Catholic Near East Welfare Association does with Eastern-rite Catholics in North Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Southwest Asia, helping match sponsors who want to help with important projects for small Christian communities that are often in the minority and under pressure in their own countries. CNEWA helps fund healthcare for refugee mothers in Jordan, formation for seminarians in Egypt, schooling for deaf children in Bethlehem, and more, all under the mandate of Pope Benedict XVI. **1st segment:** Scot welcomed Fr. Matt back to the show and asked him how his holiday weekend was. He spent time at a couple of different family parties and caught up with his family. Scot went to a bunch of cookouts on Friday and Saturday and then took his kids to the Boston fireworks on the Cambridge side of the Charles River. Yesterday, Fr. Matt was on CatholicTV's This is the Day program to promote the upcoming Witness to Truth high school leadership program next week. It's not too late for teens from all over the archdiocese to sign up, meet kids from all over, grow deeper in faith, and learn leadership skills that come from the book "Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teenagers," by Sean Covey. It's coupled with the theological and cardinal virtues. Find out more at [the ONE website](http://www.one4boston.org) or their [Facebook page](http://www.facebook.com/one4boston) **2nd segment:** Scot welcomed Gabriel Delmonaco to the show. He was born in Italy and he worked in the Vatican at the Congregation for the Eastern Churches. They take care of all the Catholic Eastern Churches around the world. In 1999, he came to Boston for a conference organized by Congregation for all the Eastern Churches in the English-speaking world. He met people from the Catholic Near East Welfare Association and was taken with their mission. He told his wife that he wanted to move to New York and work for CNEWA. Scot asked him about the Eastern Churches. Gabriel said there are the Byzantine, Syrian, Coptic, Armenian, Ethiopian/Eritrean and Syro-Malankara. Some of these churches are directly linked to the apostles. Over the centuries there were many divisions in the Church, often over politics. The main division was between the Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church. But over time many of these churches reunited with Rome. They are located primarily in the Middle East, North Africa, and Eastern Europe. Scot said the Western Church has three or four rites, including the Latin-rite, the Ambrosian-rite (in Milan). What's different in these Eastern churches is the form of the Liturgy, but the commonalities are greater. When we talk about rite that's mainly about how we celebrate liturgy and pray. In the Latin-rite we have the Latin liturgy in both the ordinary (Novus Ordo) and extraordinary (Tridentine) forms. Gabriel said the Catholic Eastern-rites include anywhere that there are Catholic Eastern rite churches, such as in India (Syro-Malabar) or in Ethiopia (Geze). Scot said there is a Geze rite liturgy every Saturday in the Cathedral of the Holy Cross. Scot said in the Eastern churches, there is one particular congregation that serves the needs similar to the different congregations for the rest of the Church such as the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the Congregation for the Bishops, etc. In the past, there were departments within each of the other congregations to care for Eastern Churches, but in 1926 all those functions were consolidated into one new congregation. One of the reasons was to give more attention to the churches as they are. The churches felt they were being too Latinized, so a new congregation was created to help them maintain their traditions. **3rd segment:** CNEWA puts together people who want to help with people who are need. Sometimes the needs of Christians in those countries is overwhelming. "It's better to light a candle, than to curse the darkness." They light candles every day, saving one life at a time. Not just those overseas, but also benefactors back in the US. In the Holy Land, Christians are a minority, less than 2%. In Iraq, there were 1 million Christians in 2003. Now, they're less than half that. Christians are fighting to maintain their foothold in their own countries. CNEWA helps them to thrive in their countries. In the West Bank, instead of giving money to families or just reparing churches, instead they put people to work repairing local churches. Sometimes their help comes as medical care. For some people, it's the only health care they get. In a town north of Amman, they provide a clinic for mothers and children and there is no other way for them to get medical care. They serve all faiths, not just Christian. When the clinic was created, before the Dominican Sisters of Catherine of Siena would visit patients, the husbands would accompany their wives and would be the only ones talking to the doctors. When the sisters came to the hospital, this changed the culture and suddenly women could go to the hospitals themselves and talk to the sisters. One of CNEWA's missions is to foster interreligious dialogue. They try to promote the many areas in common among the religions. In October 2007, a group of 100 representatives of Islam presented a document to Pope Benedict explaining all the commonalities between Islam and Christianity. In most of the countries where they work, the Catholic Church is not a "Church of numbers" but a "Church of service". The Catholic community provides so many schools, hospitals, and more that vastly outweighs their proportion of the population. In Jordan, they are serving more than 500,000 Iraqi refugees and 1.9 million Palestinian refugees. They help not just individuals, but also the dioceses. They help form seminarians and sponsor religious novices and postulants. The sponsorship program connects people who want to help with people in need. They sponsor children, religious in formation, and seminarians. They allow correspondence between donors and the sponsored individual. Very strong bonds are formed between them, up to the point where the sponsors see them as their own children, even seminarians as their sons. They work through, with, and for the local Churches as a sign of respect for the people who live there. Twice per year in Rome, there's a meeting of all the agencies working for assistance to Christians in the Near East. They often meet with Pope Benedict. At a recent meeting, he asked Catholics to help those who wish to stay in their home countries above all, but even for those who don't to render all possible assistance. CNEWA's website has specific opportunities with dollar amounts to support individual projects such as a church in Iraq or a rectory in Damascus. American dollars go much further in these countries. A church in Iraq can rebuilt in Iraq for just $15,000. A rectory could be built for $30,000. A hungry family could fed for $2000 a month. **4th segments:** It’s time to announce the winner of the weekly **WQOM Benefactor Raffle**. Our prize this week is a Book Pack (3 books): [Made for More](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1934217492/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=1934217492) by Curtis Martin; [Spiritual Freedom](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0867168609/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399369&creativeASIN=0867168609) by Fr. Dave Pivonka and [Hiking the Camino](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/086716882X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=pilo0e-20&linkCode=as2&camp=217145&creative=399373&creativeASIN=086716882X), also by Fr. Dave Pivonka This week’s winner is **Robert Romig from Winthrop**. Congratulations Robert! If you would like to be eligible to win in an upcoming week, please visit [WQOM.org](http://www.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:** Every year, through the local bishops they receive thousands of projects and they narrow it down to 200 or. In Bethlehem, the Congregation of the sisters of St. Dorothy have a community for the deaf and mute called Ephatha. Because of interfamily marriage there are many genetic problems that result in deafness. This provides societal shame and the kids aren't sent to schools. The Sisters go from home to home to teach the children, including teaching them how to speak Arabic using some high-tech computer programs. They also teach the kids to lip read. They show them how to make their way around in the city, including crossing streets. The Sisters' devotion is unique. CNEWA supports about 100 of the children each year. At an AIDS clinic in India, Gabriel met a religious sister who carried an HIV-infected man on her back to bathe him each day. Gabriel said the India director of CNEWA proposed $ 2 million worth of projects but they were only able to fund $700,000. They also make ongoing commitments to schools and clinics and hospitals. There is $13 million given directly by donors, another $6 million in wills and bequests, and another $4 million in endowments, so about $25 million total. Scot said it's often difficult to make sense of all the different collections they are asked to support. CNEWA is partly helped by the World Mission Sunday collection during October, but it helps primarily Propagation of the Faith, which takes care of mostly Latin-rite areas. 81% goes to Propaganda of the Faith and 19% goes to the Congregation for the Eastern Churches in Rome. CNEWA funds come directly from donors. Right now, there are bout 50,000 regular donors. The typical donor is a woman on Social Security who is giving from her want to help a Christian in India or the Middle East or North Africa. Their oldest donor is 98 and she has been giving since 1926. Their donors are often invited to travel with Gabriel overseas to visit with those they are helping. Gabriel said his work has affected his faith life. He often thinks of the Scripture: "Whatever you do for the least of my brothers, you do it for me." He believes all of their donors receive a gift when they support CNEWA recipients. Scot said we often mistake needs and wants in the United States. there are a lot of projects that CNEWA supports that are for true needs of food, shelter, healthcare, and worship. Gabriel is able to tell his son how life is not as easy for everyone as it is for those of us who live in the developed world. With all the upheaval in the Middle East recently, it is becoming more difficult for those CNEWA serves. Food prices are rocketing upward around the world and projects and families are finding it harder to feed the hungry, for example.