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Catholic education: More than ‘a marvelous means of teaching justice, charity’

Posted on by Deacon Pete Gummere

History and personal experience have shown me that Catholic education is a beautiful act of justice and charity and a marvelous means of teaching both justice and charity. Finally, it has been undervalued for its lasting contribution to the Church and the community. It has been a powerful instrument for evangelization of our young people and the broader community.

I was blessed to attend schools served by Franciscan Sisters, Jesuit priests, and Edmundite priests.

Catholic education in the United States began as a work of highly motivated, generous, and effective religious orders of sisters, brothers, and priests. Their schools were founded with zeal for the Catholic faith and for the education of young people.

Those religious orders originally had provided most of the staffing at Catholic schools. Tuition costs, if any, were considered a true bargain. Today, Catholic education remains an act of generosity by the faculty, most of whom are lay women and men. They frequently work for salaries far below the scale they would receive in public schools.

The Catholic institutions in which I studied and taught (part time) inculcated both a sense of justice and charitable service in their students. We would expect that outcome considering how prominent justice and charity are in biblical teaching; they are well developed in Catholic theology. The sense of justice and charity driving my efforts in ministry was inculcated by the Jesuits, particularly concern for the poor and marginalized. Concern for people in other countries was inspired by the Franciscan sisters.

I also have witnessed the enduring impact of one high school teacher and coach on an entire community. In 1975, my wife, Mary Anne, and I purchased our first home in Englewood, New Jersey. The house was roughly across the street from our new parish church, St. Cecilia’s, and the other parish buildings — an elementary school and high school.

On the first Sunday in September, after the 11 a.m. Mass, we heard the unmistakable sound of a football team with cleats on, walking across the paved parking lot. As they walked, they whistled, “When the Saints Go Marching In.” The team gathered in front of the church at a statue of Our Lady. They prayed a decade of the rosary then returned to the parking lot to board the bus to their first game of the season. That tradition had been followed before every football game St. Cecilia’s had played for more than four decades; it began with a young teacher who taught chemistry, physics, and Latin. He also coached the football team. His impact on the community endured.

He truly was an extraordinary coach. He openly acknowledged to his students and players that his strength came from daily Mass and communion. One of the New York newspapers identified St. Cecilia’s as the best high school football team in the country.

The coach taught his players about priorities: God, family, studies, football – in that order! I think those priorities are applicable to each one of us though we might substitute another endeavor for football.

He subsequently served as an assistant coach at Fordham University and West Point; then as an assistant coach for a few years with the New York Giants. While with the Giants he arranged for one of his former colleagues at St. Cecilia’s, Father Tim Moore, to serve as a chaplain for the team, a position the priest relished; he continued with his field passes to every home game even years later.

Then the coach got a real break: He was offered the head coaching job with the Green Bay Packers. He was so Catholic that he earned the nickname “The Pope” in Green Bay. Coaching with his St. Cecilia’s philosophy in the NFL, Coach Vince Lombardi’s teams won 74 percent of their games.

Lombardi’s faith and zeal are worthy of emulation, especially by those engaged in educating our young people.

—Deacon Pete Gummere is a senior deacon; he previously served at Corpus Christi Parish based in St. Johnsbury and as the director of diaconate for the Diocese of Burlington.

—Originally published in the Fall 2023 issue of Vermont Catholic magazine.

 

Synodality must serve evangelization, archbishop says at synod Mass

Posted on by Catholic News Service

The whole point of synodality is to serve the Catholic Church’s mission of evangelization, an archbishop told participants in the assembly of the Synod of Bishops.

“As we talk about what processes, structures and institutions are needed in a missionary synodal church, we need to make sure that these do in fact assist the mission of bringing the good news to those who are in need of salvation,” Lithuanian Archbishop Gintaras Grušas of Vilnius said in his homily during a Mass with synod participants Oct. 18.

The Mass, celebrated at the Altar of the Chair in St. Peter’s Basilica, opened the fourth and final module of synod assembly, which is centered on “participation, governance and authority” and intended to respond to the question, “What processes, structures and institutions in a missionary synodal Church?”

“Synodality, including its structures and meetings, must be at the service of the church’s mission of evangelization and not become an end in itself,” Archbishop Grušas said.

Celebrating the Mass on the feast of St. Luke, the archbishop, who is president of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences, said that in St. Luke’s Gospel the evangelist “often highlights the role of women in the life of the church and in announcing the good news.”

“St. Luke is the Marian evangelist par excellence,” the archbishop said, but he also highlighted the examples of “the Samaritan woman at the well who announced the Messiah, Mary Magdalene, the first to announce the message of the Resurrection, as well as the various women throughout the Acts of the Apostles who assisted the growth of the early church.”

“If Luke were documenting the synod, thanks be to God, he would find many of the themes that he favored at the forefront of our own deliberations in these days,” he said.

Archbishop Grušas noted that both in St. Luke’s Gospel and in the Acts of the Apostle, the evangelist “clearly shows that the Holy Spirit is the protagonist in the life and growth of the church,” repeating a quote from Pope Francis which has become a refrain among synod participants.

The participants trickled into St. Peter’s Basilica before the Mass while a Rome seminary choir sang hymns. Moments of silence during the Mass were occasionally breached by the sound of cheers from Pope Francis’ general audience taking place in St. Peter’s Square.

Although only 20 percent of synod members are not cardinals or bishops, Archbishop Grušas insisted that “in the announcement of the kingdom, the equality of all the baptized comes to the forefront.”

“All are called to this, not just ordained ministers,” he said. “It is important that all the baptized hear this call, this vocation, and respond to it, committing their lives, words and actions to Jesus’ mission.”

—Justin McLellan, CNS

SoulCore engages whole person in sacred experience of rosary

Posted on by Cori Urban

Joanna Bisceglio of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Stowe is a student of St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body,” and she believes that the health of body, mind, and soul are interconnected.

So she finds SoulCore — a movement born from the desire to nourish body and soul through prayer, core strengthening, and functional movements — the perfect combination as it is centered on the prayers of the rosary. It is an apostolate that intentionally engages the whole person in the sacred experience of the rosary.

“I also love to bring people together in faith and fellowship,” said the SoulCore certified leader

in the parish, adding that her pastor once told her the program is “like evangelization through fitness.”

Her pastor, Father Jon Schnobrich, explained that SoulCore is not “Catholic yoga” but is focused on prayer in and through stretching and exercising the body. “The meditations are focused on the mysteries of the holy rosary and lead the participant into a greater awareness of and the indwelling presence of God we receive in baptism,” he said. “Apart from a good workout for the body, the intention of SoulCore is to glorify God in all things.”

People of all ages and abilities join the 50-minute class at the parish center; they either bring their fitness matt or sit on a chair, depending on their level of personal fitness. “As we pray, each functional movement is simply an invitation,” and participants choose the level to which they take it, Bisceglio said. Prayer is the center, and the movements are optional and self-paced.

“Exercise and praying are linked to produce peace in my heart and soul. Now I often ‘hold’ a stretch for a Hail Mary instead of counting to 10,” said Lynn Altadonna of Blessed Sacrament Parish.

Bisceglio, who participated in a SoulCore Leader Training Retreat in Cleveland, pointed out that the need to involve the senses in interior prayer corresponds to a requirement of human nature: “We are body and spirit, and we experience the need to translate our feelings externally. We must pray with our whole being to give all power possible to our supplication (Catechism of the Catholic Church 2702).”

“Uniting body, mind, and soul in prayer makes our prayer more powerful,” she noted from Soulcore.com. “By uniting body with internal prayer, we offer God more perfect worship/praise.”

SoulCore began in Stowe last fall and takes place on Fridays at 9:15 a.m. in the parish hall after the 8:30 morning Mass.

“Soulcore is the perfect balance of spiritual growth and a great workout,” said Blessed Sacrament parishioner Aurora Heanue. “While saying the five decades of the rosary, beautiful scripture and meditative thoughts are offered that you can focus on while getting a terrific workout. It’s the best of both worlds.”

In the spring, there will be a SoulCore program in Morrisville at All Saints Catholic Academy

from 3:15 to 4 p.m. on a day yet to be determined. It will be student-oriented and include families.

Bisceglio said it is also hoped that SoulCore will be offered online next year in conjunction with the Diocese of Burlington.

“I love SoulCore because it is the perfect opportunity or method to get a rosary in my day and offer up sacrifice for a loved one in a special way,” said Blessed Sacrament parishioner Elisabeth Oritz. “The exercises really focus you on what you are offering up, and for my life it’s a great way to combine prayer and a workout unlike anything else I’ve done.”

A freewill donation of $10 is suggested — but not required — for SoulCore at Blessed Sacrament.

“I’m grateful for this opportunity to bring more people into the incarnational experience of another way to pray that embraces the whole human person — body, mind, and soul,” Father Schnobrich said.

For more information, go to soulcore.com.

—Originally published in the Fall 2023 issue of Vermont Catholic magazine.

 

Oct. 17 is day of prayer, fasting for peace in Holy Land

Posted on by Our Sunday Visitor

As war between Israel and Hamas rages, Catholics in the U.S. are heeding a call to pray and fast for peace in the Holy Land.

In an Oct. 13 statement, the patriarchs and heads of the churches of Jerusalem urged “the people of our congregations and all those of goodwill around the world to observe a Day of Prayer and Fasting” on Oct. 17.

The efforts are “in support of all those who have suffered in this war and of the families reeling from the violence,” said the statement.

On Oct. 7, Hamas militants stormed from the Gaza Strip into approximately 22 locations in Israel, gunning down civilians and taking at least 199 hostages, according to Israel, including infants, the elderly and people with disabilities.

The coordinated attack took place on a Sabbath that marked the final day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, which celebrates the gathering of the harvest and the divine protection of the ancient Israelites as they escaped from slavery in Egypt.

Israel declared war on Hamas Oct. 8, placing Gaza under siege and pounding the region with airstrikes. Hamas has continued to launch strikes against Israel. To date, some 1,400 in Israel, including at least 30 U.S. citizens, and more than 2,700 in Gaza have been killed. Israel placed Gaza under siege, and has warned some 1.1 million in Gaza to move south within the enclave ahead of an expected ground offensive by Israeli forces. So far, half a million in Gaza have heeded the evacuation order, according to the Israel Defense Forces, as United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said the Middle East is “on the verge of the abyss.”

“There is yet time to stop the hatred,” said the Jerusalem patriarchs and heads of churches in their statement.

Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem — who has offered himself in exchange for the hostages — particularly urged “prayer times with Eucharistic adoration and with the recitation of the rosary to Our Blessed Virgin Mary.”

“This is the way we all come together despite everything, and unite collectively in prayer, to deliver to God the Father our thirst for peace, justice and reconciliation,” said Cardinal Pizzaballa in an Oct. 11 letter.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops posted to X, formally known as Twitter, Oct. 12 that they “join Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, and all the Ordinaries of the Holy Land in calling for a day of fasting, abstinence and prayer” Oct. 17.

Bishop David O’Connell of Trenton, New Jersey, echoed that exhortation, saying “we need to pray.”

He directed faithful “in this month of the rosary” to “pray this most effective prayer that our Blessed Mother will intercede with her Divine Son for the people affected by the current war. Pray for peace.”

Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington asked faithful in his diocese to join him “in participating in this sacrificial offering to God with the intention to end the violence and hatred in the midst of this crisis.”

“May the Lord Jesus, Prince of Peace, transform hearts, bring an end to war, violence and suffering, and grant peace to the world,” said Bishop Burbidge.

The Diocese of Grand Rapids, Michigan, listed a number of parishes offering Mass, Eucharistic adoration, the sacrament of Reconciliation and recitations of the rosary and the Divine Mercy chaplet.

Women religious have also rallied around the observance. The International Union of Superiors General invited its members to observe the day of fasting and prayer, saying in a message to members that “in this moment of deep concern and sorrow for the situation we are facing, we wish to share a ray of hope.”

“This is a time when we want to come together as a global community, praying together for a world where peace prevails over violence, justice over discord, and reconciliation over hatred,” they said. “United in prayer, we can bring our desire for peace and justice to God the Father.”

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious reiterated that message, adding that congregations may want to organize their members “for a specific time of prayer together.”

—Gina Christian, OSV News

Spaces Available for Annual Fall Vermont Catholic Women’s Retreat

Posted on by Holly Thayer

Spaces are still available for the 2023 Annual Fall Vermont Catholic Women’s Retreat. The retreat will take place on Saturday, October 28, 2023 from 8:30AM to 3:30PM at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Williston. The Keynote Speaker will be Sr. Paul Mary Dreger, FSE, and the Theme of the Retreat is – The Eucharistic Life: Bread of Life & Bread for Others. Registration Fee: $30, with lunch included. To register: https://vermontcatholic.org/event/annual-fall-vermon-catholic-womens-retreat-2023/.

Interregnum and diocesan administrator

Posted on by Bishop-elect John McDermott

I have been elected by the College of Consultors, an advisory board which assists in the governance of a diocese, to serve as the diocesan administrator as we await the appointment of the 11th bishop of Burlington. A question that comes up quite frequently in conversations is, “What’s a diocesan administrator and what can he do?” These are legitimate questions. The most precise answer to these questions comes from canons 421 and 427 of the Code of Canon Law, which state:

The College of Consultors must elect a diocesan administrator, namely the one who is to govern the diocese temporarily. … A diocesan administrator is bound by the obligations and possesses the power of a diocesan bishop, excluding those matters which are excepted by their nature or by the law itself.

I understand that this language can seem a bit cold and theoretical, so I would like to provide the following figure as representative for the diocesan administrator, a figure taken from JRR Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” — Denethor, Steward of Gondor. Denethor was given the responsibility of providing leadership in the City of Gondor as the citizens waited for the return of the legitimate king.  He had great authority, but he had to understand that he was not the king and so could not perform actions which were reserved to the king himself.

The diocesan administrator has the authority needed to keep the diocese on an even keel as it awaits the appointment of a new bishop, but his authority has limits. Canon 428 provides the overarching guide for the diocesan administrator: When a see is vacant, nothing is to be altered.  This means as administrator I need to avoid undertaking any significant new initiatives or programs or take actions that are reserved to a bishop alone (e.g. ordaining a man to the diaconate).  The administrator will work with the diocesan staff and advisory boards to keep things moving along because diocesan life does not come to a halt without a bishop, but the administrator will try to avoid doing anything that could jeopardize the ability of the new bishop from assuming leadership from his first day in office.

What all of this means is that just as I needed prayers when I served as the administrator in 2014 while we awaited the appointment of Bishop Coyne, so I need your prayers as we await our new bishop.  If you want a very specific intention to pray for — besides a speedy appointment of our next bishop — it would be that my administration ends a bit more successfully than Denethor’s. Those who have read the books or seen the movies will understand what I mean. If you’re not sure what this means, I encourage you to read the books.

Be assured of my prayers for all our parishes, ministries, parishioners, and ministers, and please pray for me.

In Christ Jesus,

Rev. Msgr. John J. McDermott

Diocesan Administrator

—Originally published in the Oct. 14-20, 2023, edition of The Inland See.