VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Be courageous in caring for and accompanying others, helping them to dream big, cultivating their unique gifts and flourishing, Pope Francis told university chaplains and pastoral workers. “The work of education is a true mission in which individuals and situations are accepted with all their lights and shadows – their shadows, too – with a kind of ‘parental’ love,” the pope said.
“This facilitates in a unique way the growth of those seeds that God has sown within each person,” he said Nov. 24 in an audience at the Vatican with people taking part in a conference on pastoral care in Catholic universities, sponsored by the Dicastery for Culture and Education.
Pope Francis told them he had “three approaches that I consider important to your service: to appreciate differences, to accompany with care and to act courageously.”
“Each person must be accompanied as he or she is, and that is where the dialogue, the journey and progress begin,” he said, explaining the importance of seeing and appreciating people’s different qualities with patience, openness and creativity.
As the prophet Isaiah said, God “creates the brightness of the sun, but does not despise the flickering light of ‘a dimly burning wick,’” referring to accepting people’s “lights and shadows” with love, the pope said.
“Believing in the vitality of the seeds that God sows,” he said, means accompanying and caring “for what is silently growing and coming to light in the, at times, confused thoughts, desires and affections of the young people entrusted to you.”
Pope Francis arrives for a meeting in the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Nov. 24, 2023, with university chaplains and pastoral workers who attended a conference sponsored by the Dicastery for Culture and Education. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
“Your attitude has to be more than just apologetic, dealing with questions and answers, prohibitions: do not be afraid to confront those realities,” he said.
There are “certain ideological currents within the church, in which people end up being reduced to a figure that is flat, without nuance” and without the “edges,” “shadows,” breadth and depth of real individuals, he said.
Uniformity does not make people flourish, he said. “If we wisely value a person for who he or she is, we can make that person into a work of art.”
Jesus himself “teaches us the art of caring” and “how to draw out the best from his creatures, by caring for whatever is most fragile and imperfect in them,” the pope said.
“Care for all of them, without seeking immediate results, but in the sure hope that, when you accompany young people and pray for them, miracles spring up,” he said.
The pope also encouraged his audience to “act courageously” since “nurturing the joy of the Gospel in the university environment is an indeed exciting yet demanding undertaking” which requires courage and taking risks.
“Where there are no risks, there are no fruits: this is a rule,” he said. He told them to do everything they can to help young people “dream and aspire to the measure of Christ: to the height, breadth and depth of his love.”
I live on both sides of a border. Not a geographical one, but one that separates the church pew from the academic halls of theology.
I was raised a conservative Roman Catholic. Although my dad worked politically for the liberal party, most everything within my upbringing was conservative, particularly as this pertains to religion. I was a staunch Roman Catholic in most every way. I grew up under the papacy of Pius XII (and the fact that my youngest brother is named Pius will tell you how loyal our family was to that Pope’s version of things). We believed that Roman Catholicism was the one true religion and that Protestants and Evangelicals needed to convert and return to the true faith. I memorized the Roman Catholic catechism and defended its every word. Moreover, beyond being faithful churchgoers, my family was given over to piety and devotions: we prayed the rosary together as a family every day; had statues and holy pictures around our house; wore blessed medals around our necks; prayed litanies to Mary, Joseph and the Sacred Heart during certain months; and practiced a warm devotion to the saints. And it was wonderful. I will forever be grateful for that religious foundation.
Father Ron Rolheiser, OMI
I went from my family home to the seminary at the tender age of seventeen and my early seminary years reinforced what my family had given me. The academics were good, and we were encouraged to read great thinkers in every discipline. But this higher learning was still set solidly within a Roman Catholic ethos that honored my religious and devotional background. My initial university studies were still friends with my piety. My mind was expanding, but my piety remained intact.
But home is where we start from. Gradually, through the years, my world has changed. Studying at various graduate schools, teaching on graduate faculties, being in daily contact with other expressions of the faith, reading contemporary novelists and thinkers, and having academic colleagues as cherished friends has, I confess, put some strain on the piety of my youth. Truth be told, we don’t often pray the rosary or litanies to Mary or the Sacred Heart in graduate classrooms or at faculty gatherings.
However academic classrooms and faculty gatherings bring something else, something vitally needed in church pews and in circles of piety, namely, a critical theological vision and principles to keep unbridled piety, naïve fundamentalism, and misguided religious fervor within proper boundaries. What I’ve learned in academic circles is also wonderful and I am forever grateful for the privilege of being in academic circles most of my adult life.
But, of course, that’s a formula for tension, albeit a healthy one. Let me use someone else’s voice to articulate this. In his book “Silence and Beauty,” Japanese American artist, Makoto Fujimura, shares this incident from his own life. Coming out of church one Sunday, he was asked by his pastor to add his name to a list of people who had agreed to boycott the film, “The Last Temptation of Christ.” He liked his pastor and wanted to please him by signing the petition, but felt hesitant to sign for reasons that, at that time, he couldn’t articulate. But his wife could. Before he could sign, she stepped in and said: “Artists may have other roles to play than to boycott this film.” He understood what she meant. He didn’t sign the petition. But his decision left him pondering the tension between boycotting such a movie and his role as an artist. Here’s how he puts it: “An artist is often pulled in two directions. Religiously conservative people tend to see culture as suspect at best, and when cultural statements are made to transgress the normative reality they hold dear, their default reaction is to oppose and boycott. People in the more liberal artistic community see these transgressive steps as necessary for their ‘freedom of expression.’ An artist like me, who values both religion and art, will be exiled from both. I try to hold together both of these commitments, but it is a struggle.”
That’s also my struggle. The piety of my youth, of my parents, and of that rich branch of Catholicism is real and life-giving; but so too is the critical (sometimes unsettling) iconoclastic theology of the academy. The two desperately need each other; yet someone who is trying to be loyal to both can, like Fujimura, end up feeling exiled from both. Theologians also have other roles to play than boycotting movies. The people whom I take as mentors in this area are men and women who, in my eyes, can do both: like Dorothy Day, who could be equally comfortable, leading the rosary or the peace march; like Jim Wallis, who can advocate just as passionately for radical social engagement as he can for personal intimacy with Jesus; and like Thomas Aquinas, whose intellect could intimidate intellectuals, even as he could pray with the piety of a child.
Circles of piety and the academy of theology are not enemies. They need to befriend each other.
(Oblate Father Ron Rolheiser is a theologian, teacher and award-winning author. He can be contacted through his website www.ronrolheiser.com.)
Twenty-four years ago, the theme for Mississippi State’s Catholic Student Association Fall retreat, now known as Cowbell Catholic, was “Open Wide the Doors to Christ.” It was my first retreat with the Catholic college students at State. I was thinking about that retreat recently when I discovered the tee shirt in the bottom of a dresser drawer. It brought great comfort in remembering a cherished part of my past ministry, and it also provoked a realization that we, perhaps, more now than ever, need to open wide the doors to Christ.
Fran Lavelle
The statement comes from St. Pope John Paul II’s inauguration of his pontificate in October 1978. He stated, “Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ. To his saving power open the boundaries of States, economic and political systems, the vast fields of culture, civilization and development. Do not be afraid.” The then Pope John Paul II was asking us to put aside our differences, to let go of conventions of power, and be open to the transformational power of Christ without fear.
In a similar way Pope Francis at the opening Mass for the Synod on Synodality in October implored the faithful to help build the church by first being welcoming to everyone (tutti). He used the word tutti three times in his exhortation to be an open and welcoming church. In his own way, Pope Francis is asking that we move beyond the conventions of the world and open our doors and hearts to everyone. What would it look like if we all carried a sense of welcoming in our hearts at church and in our ordinary lives?
I have been saying for over a year that we as Catholics have a real opportunity to lead this country away from dualistic, vitriolic and divisive rhetoric. This kind of change must first, however, start with our own conversion. All around the globe people are allowing fear to dominate the political and religious narrative. Fear based narrative divides people “us against them.” A house divided will not stand. St. Pope John Paul II was right in saying, “Do not be afraid.” Pope Francis is right in saying that everyone is welcome. Everyone. What do we have to fear in the Body of Christ? That one may think or pray differently?
One of my favorite quotes in a homily by my former pastor and dear friend, Father Mike O’Brien was, “this is not your holy country club.”
We do not have an elevated social status because we go to Mass weekly. We are not more holy, pious or all around better. We are not called to congregate within our social circle. We are called to the margins. We are called to the periphery. If faith is a gift, we are called to selflessly share it with others. It takes hard work to seek out those who are different than us to ensure that everyone is welcome. There are people who rub us the wrong way. It is easy to dismiss them as weirdos. But those so-called weirdos were made in the image and likeness of God too.
Our Synod on Synodality synthesis revealed a great desire for unity and healing. Building unity and advancing healing takes a lot of work. We should be willing to listen to and consider the viewpoints of those who don’t think like us even if we may disagree with them. If not, the discussion around unity is window dressing that might make us feel good but achieves little in the end. So how do we move from “I” to “we”, the bigger “we” and not the “holy country club” kind?
The Pastoral Reimagining Process that all parishes and missions are undertaking right now will aid us in defining how we are engaging and transforming our communities. In this current phase parishes/missions are asked to look at what are areas of growth that may require resources or a new focus. Likewise, they are being asked to look at areas of ministry that are diminishing and discern the viability of the ministry in question.
Every aspect of parish life is to be examined. It is precisely this kind of reflection and examination that fuels change. It wakes us up from the routine and presents us with an opportunity to dream, problem solve and collaborate. The work of the church is to be shared by all of its members. We all have a gift or talent that we are called to share. We take away from Mass the Word and the Eucharist to be leaven for the world in the ordinary places we work and live. Our faith is not lived out at Mass. It is fortified there. When the congregation is fed spiritually, when we open wide the doors to Christ, when everyone, everyone, everyone is welcome nothing can divide us.
(Fran Lavelle is the Director of Faith Formation for the Diocese of Jackson.)
If you are awaiting a new adventure, then now is just the time to explore. Often, we get stuck in our routines and simple paths, ministries and works of hope – things we are sure we have to do. Advent, however, is a time of awaiting something new…something that will prick our hearts and open us up for a new and deepening relationship.
Perhaps it was during advent that Grandma Moses began painting? “If I didn’t start painting, I would have raised chickens!” (My Life’s Story) She began painting at an elderly age (like 91 or so) … and painted until she passed on. What did that adventure afford her? Notoriety of course, perhaps a bit of money but likely it opened her heart to beauty, to color, to a new kind of freedom.
Gwendolyn Brooks, an American poet wrote her song “In The Front Yard”: “I’ve stayed in the front yard all my life. I want to peek at the back where it’s rough and untended and hungry weeds grow. A girl gets sick of a rose.” How can anyone get sick of a rose you might ask? Well, despite its beauty, there may be something in the back yard that takes us to the next level.
The coming of Jesus was like that I suspect. Jewish life was such a rose. And then an adventure Mary could not have imagined, Joseph wondered about, and the rest of us have to explore in faith, perhaps a new faith. Who knew? Did every young woman dream of bearing the Messiah? Did Mary? What she was offered in the back yard was well beyond what she imagined. Yet her response to the adventurous offer was … ”I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done to me as you say.” (Luke 1:38) Her understanding that “nothing is impossible for God” (Luke 1:37) launched her forth … seeking out Elizabeth and being a woman of God through whom God might show Divine favor to others.
Advent can also be a time of disgust, distress and discouragement. Why? Because it is in the darkness for us … a night of inconvenience. A night where there can be a lack of comfort, causing bother. (Webster’s New World Dictionary, 2003) We can be filled with illness, or financial stress or even a lack of faith. How will you replace these “D” words with some “R” words?
Advent causes us to stretch to revival, replenishment and renewal. We are called beyond to relinquish, repurpose and to receive. I’m particularly fond of the call to reconciliation and restoration. The coming of the Infant in the cold night in the cave was proceeded by and advent of centuries, not just four weeks. What was this introduction to the restoration of humanity to look like? Who was it for? Who brought it to the crowds, where would they go to understand?
Not only does the rose take time to flourish, but it is also bounded with thorns and often rather than appreciating it’s beauty, we are pricked and bleed. Those drops of blood disgust us and can cause distress and discouragement. However, if we are willing to learn to live in a more positive way we look to be revived and get on with it!
Advent brings us back to our senses if we let it. Advent brings us back to faith, hope, peace and love … as we walk those weeks of introduction.
Maybe we discover in English poet, Brian Patten’s poem “Interruption at the Opera House” (Selected Poems, page 20, 2007), just how inconvenient things can be if we are not attuned to the ‘rightful owner of the song.’
“At the very beginning of an important symphony, while the rich and famous were settling into their quietly expensive boxes, a man came crashing though the crowds, carrying in his hand a cage in which the rightful owner of the music sat, yellow and tiny and very poor; and taking onto the rostrum this rather timid bird he turned up the microphones, and it sang. ‘A very original beginning to the evening’ said the crowds, quietly glancing at the programs to find the significance of the intrusion …’”
Later in the poem he will express who the song is for and who leaves the hall disinterested and disgusted. Advent can be a bit like this … inconvenient indeed to my desires to have things, and order my own life, and to listen to the songs that tickle my ears.
Let’s let this Advent be one of “R” words and in a new discovery of the true song in the back yard, the one asking us to take care of each other, to invite the outcast and to allow our own lives to be furnished with a deeper union of joy.
BLESSINGS.
(Sister alies therese is a canonically vowed hermit with days formed around prayer and writing.)
“Gracia y paz a ustedes de parte de Dios nuestro Padre y del Señor Jesucristo..,” se proclamó el primer domingo de Adviento en la segunda lectura de la primera carta de San Pablo a los Corintios. (1:3) Podemos decir que este es el saludo característico de San Pablo cuando escribió a cada una de las comunidades cristianas que ayudó a establecer.
Este es el saludo al comienzo de las cartas a los Romanos, 1 y 2 Corintios, Gálatas, Efesios, Filipenses, Colosenses, 1 y 2 Tesalonicenses, 1 y 2 Timoteo, Tito y Filemón. Asimismo, San Pedro saluda a sus hermanos cristianos en sus dos cartas con un saludo casi idéntico y va un paso más allá en su entusiasmo con la frase “en abundancia.”
Obispo Joseph R. Kopacz
Este saludo característico no fue solo un saludo amistoso de los dos apóstoles, sino que es la inspiración del Espíritu Santo a lo largo de las páginas del Nuevo Testamento, así como la mente y el corazón de Jesucristo que comenzaron en la Última Cena y se anunciaron a lo largo de las apariciones de resurrección. Este saludo enmarca la Biblia como las últimas palabras inspiradas del libro de Apocalipsis. “El que da este testimonio dice: “El que testifica de estas cosas dice: «Sí, vengo pronto». Amén. Ven, Señor Jesús. La gracia del Señor Jesús sea con todos. Amén.” (Apocalipsis 22:20-21)
Maranatha – ven, Señor Jesús– es el anhelo y la visión del tiempo de Adviento. Pero este deseo es fundamental para nuestra creencia y esperanza durante todo el año, especialmente en la celebración de nuestra Eucaristía.
Después de la consagración y transformación del pan y del vino en el cuerpo y la sangre del Señor, la congregación pronuncia: “cuando comemos este pan y bebemos esta copa, proclamamos tu muerte, oh, Señor, hasta que vuelvas”.
Antes de recibir la sagrada comunión después del Padrenuestro, el sacerdote hace la siguiente súplica al Dios vivo. “Líbranos, Señor, te pedimos de todo mal, y concédenos paz en nuestros días, para que con la ayuda de tu misericordia estemos siempre libres de pecado y a salvo de toda angustia mientras aguardamos la esperanza bienaventurada y la venida de nuestro Señor Jesucristo.”
Cuando proclamamos el Credo de Nicea después de la homilía, expresamos nuestro anhelo por la venida del Señor, “… Espero la resurrección de los muertos y la vida del mundo futuro.” Amén.
Los versículos finales de la Biblia infunden a la Misa esperanza y gracia escatológica, recordándonos que “porque no tenemos aquí ciudad permanente”, (Hebreos 13:14) porque “nuestra ciudadanía está en los cielos, de donde también ansiosamente esperamos a un Salvador, el Señor Jesucristo. (Filipenses 3:20) A intervalos regulares, es un regalo poder trascender nuestro mundo y circunstancias y elevar nuestro corazón y mente a Dios a través de la fe, la oración y la alabanza.
Sin embargo, esto no es una invitación a escapar de las pruebas, tribulaciones y tentaciones. Ven, Señor Jesús, también está arraigado en el momento presente.
Con San Pablo, nos alegramos de saber que el Señor está cerca, está a la puerta y llama. (Apocalipsis 3:20) Por lo tanto, para que el Señor venga, nuestra oración está destinada al momento actual.
El saludo característico de San Pablo y San Pedro pidiendo gracia y paz en abundancia de Dios, es el paquete de regalo de Dios, para ayudarnos a alcanzar nuestro destino eterno. Su objetivo es librarnos de todo mal, liberarnos del pecado y mantenernos a salvo de toda angustia mientras aguardamos la bienaventurada esperanza.
¿No se encuentran éste entre los mejores regalos?
Al considerar legítimamente los regalos que estamos comprando para aquellos a quienes amamos, no dejemos desatendido y sin abrir este paquete de gracia y paz. Estos dones están a nuestra disposición en la oración diaria, en la Misa y en todos nuestros actos de cuidado amoroso en la vida diaria. De hecho, es éste el paquete que sigue dando por siempre. Es la abundancia de Dios.
¡Maranatha, Ven, Señor Jesús!
HOUSTON – En la iglesia Inmaculado Corazón de María, el 3 de diciembre, algunos parroquianos se reunieron para una reflexión de la Misión Parroquial de Adviento dirigida por el Padre Bill Henry con el tema: Reflexionando sobre la belleza y el amor de María y cómo ella nos llama a hacer espacio en nuestras vidas al niño recién nacido. El padre Bill ha sido sacerdote en la diócesis de Jackson durante 39 años. Se retiró hace tres años del ministerio parroquial activo y ahora sirve realizando o ayudando en retiros o organizando seminarios de vida en el espíritu en los estados del sur. En la foto, durante la Misa, los padres (i-d) Binh Nguyen y Bill Henry bendicen la Corona de adviento. (Foto de Danna Johnson, LEM)
MATAMOROS, México (OSV News) – Celebrando una Misa al aire libre en un campamento de migrantes en medio de una lluvia fría e implacable, el padre jesuita Brian Strassburger predicó sobre la paciencia. Habló de “La Parábola de las Diez Vírgenes” del Evangelio de Mateo, instando a los migrantes reunidos a “esperar bien” mientras aguardan por su momento, en condiciones difíciles.
“Las cosas no siempre van al paso que queremos o esperamos y a veces tenemos que esperar y tenemos que esperar bien”, dijo el padre Strassburger.
Para esperar bien, dijo, “pedimos la sabiduría de Dios para que nos consuele y nos ayude a ser más pacientes y a confiar en Dios”.
El Papa Francisco dirige a los miembros de la asamblea del Sínodo de los Obispos en la oración por los migrantes y refugiados frente a la estatua “Ángeles desprevenidos” en la Plaza de San Pedro el 19 de octubre de 2023. La escultura del canadiense Timothy Schmalz representa un barco con 140 figuras de migrantes de varios períodos históricos y varias naciones. (Foto CNS/Medios Vaticanos)
Les instó a involucrarse en tareas como el mantenimiento del campamento, la formación de amistades y el aprovechamiento de las clases de catecismo impartidas por sacerdotes locales – recordando cómo los migrantes han podido bautizar y confirmar a sus hijos mientras esperaban en los albergues.
“El tiempo de Dios es perfecto”, dijo. “No podemos pensar que nuestro tiempo aquí es tiempo perdido”. Más de 2.000 migrantes esperan en Matamoros, frente a Brownsville, Texas, mientras intentan conseguir citas a través de una aplicación telefónica para entrar en Estados Unidos conocida como CBP One.
El proceso puede ser frustrante, ya que algunas de las citas se asignan al azar, mientras que otras se dan a personas que llevan mucho tiempo en el sistema, según el padre Strassburger.
Las largas esperas provocaron anteriormente que muchos migrantes cruzaran irregularmente a Estados Unidos. Pero el Servicio de Aduanas y Protección de Fronteras de Estados Unidos registró 240.988 encuentros con migrantes en la frontera suroeste de Estados Unidos en octubre, aproximadamente un 10% menos que el mes anterior.
Los observadores atribuyeron este descenso a que venezolanos prefirieron esperar a ver qué pasaba en lugar de cruzar la frontera sin cita previa con el CBP One, después que el gobierno estadounidense anunciara la decisión de iniciar las deportaciones a Venezuela, país con el que Estados Unidos ha mantenido relaciones poco amistosas.
Pero la espera puede resultar agotadora, especialmente con la inseguridad reinante en Matamoros y los migrantes en el punto de mira de los secuestradores.
“Las personas no acuden a sus citas de CBP One porque están siendo secuestradas,” dijo a OSV News la hermana Norma Pimentel, directora de Caridades Católicas del Valle del Río Grande en Brownsville.
“Empecé a ver gente abandonando sus citas y cruzando el río porque tenían miedo” de permanecer en México, dijo la hermana Misionera de Jesús. Agregó que los funcionarios estadounidenses aún otorgan citas a quienes se ausentaron debido al secuestro.
Los migrantes que asistieron a la Misa en Matamoros hablaron de vivir con miedo si salían del albergue para migrantes.
El padre jesuita Flavio Bravo ofrece una bendición a una familia migrante durante la Misa del 12 de noviembre de 2023, en Matamoros, México. Tres jesuitas de la Diócesis de Brownsville, Texas, atienden a la población migrante al otro lado de la frontera, donde la inseguridad está en aumento. (Foto OSV News/David Agren)
“Muy poca gente se va de aquí por la inseguridad”, dijo Yessica Briseño, una migrante venezolana que ha pasado tres meses en Matamoros con su esposo y sus tres hijos de entre 10 y 12 años.
Briseño ha intentado infructuosamente obtener una cita con CBP One durante tres meses, algo que, según dijo, le está haciendo plantearse cruzar el río, sobre todo porque uno de sus hijos ha sufrido dificultades emocionales en el campamento y está siendo atendido por un psicólogo voluntario.
“Existe una verdadera tentación,” dijo sobre el cruce irregular.
Otros migrantes en el albergue describieron a México como el país más difícil de transitar en la ruta hacia el norte a través de América Central – incluyendo el traicionero Tapón del Darién, la espesa selva que separa Colombia y Panamá, controlada por el crimen organizado y plagada de bandidos.
“Los oficiales de migración se llevan todo”, exigiendo el pago para evitar ser detenidos, agregó Eusebio Quiñones, de 38 años, un migrante de Ecuador, que quería cruzar a Estados Unidos “legalmente” con la aplicación CBP One.
La Pastoral de Migrantes de la Conferencia del Episcopado Mexicano emitió un comunicado el 15 de noviembre, en el que describió la estrategia de las autoridades migratorias mexicanas como “contención, detención, deportación y militarización,” al tiempo que advirtió:
“No vemos una estrategia clara de coordinación entre los tres niveles de gobierno en respuesta a las condiciones inhumanas que viven los migrantes y refugiados en México”.
El cardenal de Boston Seán P. O’Malley aparece en una fotografía de archivo durante la Misa a lo largo de la valla fronteriza entre Estados Unidos y México en Nogales, Arizona. Los sacerdotes y feligreses de la Arquidiócesis de Boston deben estar “listos y dispuestos a ayudar” a la afluencia histórica de inmigrantes entrando a Massachusetts, escribió el cardenal O’Malley en una carta a las parroquias el 23 de octubre de 2023. (Foto de OSV News/Samantha Sais, Reuters)
También expresó su alarma por el gran número de migrantes atrapados en ciudades de todo México y advirtió que México “se está convirtiendo en una gran Estación Migratoria para las personas migrantes y refugiadas, en donde no se les permite tener una estancia regular (legal), pero tampoco se les permite transitar hacia su destino”.
La Misa en el albergue para migrantes – ubicado en un hospital abandonado rodeado de tiendas de campaña – termina con el equipo de jesuitas proporcionando información sobre migración de la mejor manera que entienden.
El padre Strassburger aconseja seguir con la aplicación CBP One, que según él ha mejorado después de haber sido “probada en versión beta con migrantes” tras su introducción en enero.
“Los albergues aquí estaban llenos de personas muy desesperadas y ahora están en Estados Unidos”, dijo a los migrantes. “Con paciencia y fe, todos van a recibir su cita”.
El padre Strassburger ha trabajado con migrantes varados en México desde su ordenación en 2021 y asignación para trabajar en la Diócesis de Brownsville.
Trabajando con el padre jesuita Flavio Bravo y el escolástico jesuita Joseph Nolla, el padre Strassburger celebra Misas para los migrantes, cuatro días a la semana en Matamoros y Reynosa, a 50 millas (80 kilómetros) al oeste, junto con las celebraciones en el Centro de Respiro Humanitario en McAllen Texas, donde los migrantes recién llegados reciben ayuda para llegar a sus destinos finales en los Estados Unidos.
A menudo les atiende en condiciones difíciles, como en un campamento a orillas del Río Grande, donde los migrantes que no quieren perder de vista la frontera estadounidense esperan a ser citados por el CBP One o se quedan hasta que pagan a los contrabandistas para cruzar el río.
En medio de las dificultades, él ve inspiración en la perseverancia de los migrantes.
“Me parece que los migrantes son el mejor ejemplo de cómo utilizan su fe como fuente de esperanza en medio de una situación que de otro modo puede ser tan desesperante”, dijo el padre Strassburger. “A menudo me inspiran”.
(David Agren escribe para OSV News desde Ciudad de México. Viajó a Matamoros para informar sobre la situación fronteriza entre Estados Unidos y México.)
VICKSBURG – The second grade “Saints Celebration”, with assistance from sophomores, is a wonderful tradition at Vicksburg Catholic School. (Photo courtesy of school)JACKSON – Kindergarteners at St. Richard School performed “The Great Turkey Day Race” play for school students and families before Thanksgiving break. (Photo by Chelsea Dillon)WEST POINT – Adults and youth at Immaculate Conception parish get competitive at a game of musical chairs with Father Binh Nguyen at the parish fall festival event. (Photo by Cathy Johnson)PEARL – Nate Pearson and Jojo Roberts get ready for Christmas at the St. Jude Young Apostles youth center on Wednesday, Nov. 15. (Photo by Tereza Ma)WEST POINT – Two “Ninja Turtles” play some croquet at Immaculate Conception parish’s annual Fall Fest. (Photo by Cathy Johnson)SOUTHAVEN – PreK three and four year old students culminated their unit on Nursery Rhymes with a Nursery Rhymes Olympic Day. Pictured: Addison Wade as one of the King’s Men gives her crown to another one of the king’s men to ride off and try to put Humpty dumpty back together again. (Photo by Sister Margaret Sue Broker)MERIDIAN – St. Patrick first graders enjoys a super “Saints-giving” party. They learned about their individual saint, dressed as that saint and enjoyed a special snack. (Photo by Kasey Owen)
PAULDING – On Dec. 2, the faithful gathered at St. Michael in Paulding to celebrate at milestone 180th anniversary with Bishop Joseph Kopacz and Father Adolfo Suarez Pasillas. Established in 1843, the parish is the second oldest Catholic Church in the state of Mississippi, behind St. Mary Natchez.
Paulding was a bustling town with a thriving trade center before the Civil War. At that time, it was known as “the Queen City of the East.” However, by the 1890s as railways became crucial for trade the town turned down a proposed line that would run through town. The commercial importance of the town drastically dropped but the parish continued to thrive and was a “cradle of vocations,” according to Christ: The Living Water by Cleta Ellington.
PAULDING – Judy and Ricky McDevitt present the gifts to Bishop Joseph Kopacz during a Mass celebrating 180 years of St. Michael in Paulding on Saturday, Dec. 2. The McDevitt’s aid with maintenance of the parish in preparation for Masses and special events. (Photos by Tereza Ma)
Over 20 religious came from the parish and included many Sisters of Mercy, Daughters of Charity and Brothers of the Sacred Heart. A plaque honors many of them in the back of the church building.
Therese Bergin Grant remembers when the original church was destroyed by a fire in July 1942 when she was only about four years old. The church was struck by lightning, with only a few items able to be salvaged. “I will never forget those flames,” said Grant. Until a new church was built, Mass was held in a nearby school building.
Bishop Kopacz blesses the feast following Mass in celebration of 180 years of St. Michael parish. Pictured on the far left is William Harrington, one of the decendants of Michael and Rebecca Harrington, who were one of the original families at the founding of the church in 1843.
Grant also fondly remembered her childhood at the church, walking over three miles to celebrate Mass as a child, with the occasional ride from her first cousin on his shoulders. “It was fun,” said Grant. “It’s been quite a journey through life, but I always come back to St. Michael’s.”
St. Michael also is home to a Catholic cemetery dating back to the 1860s that contains burial sites for many of the founding families of the parish. Several families present at the 180th anniversary Mass had ancestors buried in the cemetery dating back to the founding of the parish – including the Harrington, Bergin and Finnegan families.
Donnie Bergin was baptized in the church in the 1950s and remembers his pastor at the time – Father Gabriel – pointing you out if you made too much noise in church. He said that around that time about one-third of the church was full of Bergin’s – many of whom are buried in the cemetery today.
Also present at the celebration was Paula Finnegan Phillips. She said that 99% of her family members are buried in the St. Michael cemetery. She was so touched by the Mass celebrated with Bishop Kopacz and so many families present that have been apart of the parish for generations.
“It’s just very spiritual when you come to this church. It’s like you can see those who have past at Mass with you. God talks. Jesus talks. The Holy Spirit talks – when you come here. And I heard it today,” said Phillips. At present, Father Adolfo celebrates Mass at the historic St. Michael Church on the first and third Saturday of each month. Though many of the families present at the 180th celebration are members of other parishes within the Diocese of Biloxi, that borders close by, they all seem to come back to St. Michael; and feel as Therese Bergin Grant – “It’s home.”
Full pews and hearts abound at St. Michael Paulding, the second oldest Catholic Church in the state of Mississippi.
ST. MARY OF THE WOODS, Ind. – Sister Loretta Picucci, SP died on Nov. 9 in Providence Health Care. She was born on June 23, 1941 in Chicago to Joseph and Lucy Paoletti Picucci and was baptized Loretta Louise.
Sister Loretta entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Providence on Sept. 12, 1964 and received the name Sister Loretta Joseph. She professed final vows Apr. 24, 1976. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Loyola University, Chicago. Of her 59 years as a Sister of Providence, she ministered as a primary teacher for 14 years in schools in Indiana, Illinois and Washington DC. Committing herself to working with the poor, she served as an assistant director of a Congregation Day Nursery in Chicago for two years, an outreach minister at Sacred Heart Southern Missions in Mississippi for eight years, a family care professional in Chicago for five years and an ESL teacher in California for five years. Her last 15 years of active ministry were at Providence in the Desert in Coachella, California, a sponsored ministry of the Congregation serving a Hispanic community, many of whom were farm workers. There she continued to teach English. Retiring in 2018, she moved to the motherhouse where she committed herself totally to the ministry of prayer.
All of Sister Loretta’s ministries were rooted in compassion and love. She never rushed. No matter what needed to be done, she worked from a contemplative center, living in the present, giving her full attention to the task at hand and the person she was serving.
Sister Loretta is survived by a sister Josephine Mooney of Pittsburgh. She is preceded in death by a brother, Peter Picucci.
A Mass of Christian Burial was held on Tuesday, Nov. 21 at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, with burial in the cemetery of the Sisters of Providence.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Sisters of Providence, 1 Sisters of Providence, St. Mary-of-the-Woods, IN 47876.
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Whether simple or elaborate, the same every year or constantly changing, a Nativity scene echoes “the beauty of our faith,” Pope Francis wrote.
Marking the 800th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi putting together the first Christmas crèche in a cave in Greccio, Italy, the Vatican publishing house compiled texts by Pope Francis about Nativity scenes and asked him to write a special introduction.
A key message of the Nativity scene is that the mystery of Christmas “loves to hide within what is infinitely small,” the pope wrote in “Christmas at the Nativity,” which was released in English in the United States by New City Press.
“Awe and wonder are the two feelings that move everyone, young and old, before the Nativity scene, which is like a living Gospel overflowing from the pages of Holy Scripture,” he wrote.
The Italian edition of the book went on sale Nov. 21, just two days before the Vatican post office was to begin selling its 2023 Christmas stamps, which also celebrate the staging of a live Nativity scene in Greccio by St. Francis in 1223.
Pope Francis visits the Nativity scene in St. Peter’s Square after leading an evening prayer service on New Year’s Eve at the Vatican Dec. 31, 2022. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)
“The Incarnation of Jesus Christ remains the heart of God’s revelation, although it is easily forgotten that its unfolding is so unobtrusive, to the point of going unnoticed,” the pope wrote. “Littleness, in fact, is the way to encounter God.”
“Safeguarding the spirit of the Nativity scene becomes a healthy immersion in the presence of God manifested in the small, sometimes trivial and repetitive, everyday things,” he continued.
“The shepherds in the manger are those who welcome God’s surprise and live in wonder at their encounter with him, adoring him: in littleness they recognize the face of God,” he said. “Humanly we are all inclined to seek greatness, but it is a gift to know how to really find it: to know how to find greatness in that smallness that God so loves.”
On Christmas night, the angels lead the shepherds to a baby born in a manger – “not a sign of power, self-sufficiency or pride. No. The eternal God is reduced to a helpless, meek, humble human being. God lowered himself so that we could walk with him and so that he could stand beside us, not above and far from us.”
Pope Francis’ introduction to the book also included a special message to young people.
While the night sky is filled with an infinite number of stars, in the Christmas story “a special star stands out, the one that prompted the Magi to leave their homes and begin a journey, a journey that would lead them where they did not know.”
“It happens the same way in our lives,” the pope wrote. “At a certain moment some special ‘star’ invites us to make a decision, to make a choice, to begin a journey. We must forcefully ask God to show us that star that draws us toward something more than our habits, because that star will lead us to contemplate Jesus, that child who is born in Bethlehem and who wants our full happiness.”
Pope Francis also noted that the first Nativity scene in Greccio consisted of only a “crib with the hay, the ox and the donkey.”
“Before the Christmas scene, the people who flocked to the place manifested an unspeakable joy, never tasted before,” he said. “Then the priest, at the manger, solemnly celebrated the Eucharist, showing the link between the Incarnation of the Son of God and the Eucharist. On that occasion, there were no figurines in Greccio: the Nativity scene was created and experienced by those who were present.”
(Editor’s note: Columnist Ruth Powers wrote a column for Mississippi Catholic entitled “Thanks to St. Francis, 800-year tradition of nativity scene born.” You can read it online at https://bit.ly/3Rsubkm.)
