Day: April 18, 2013

On
Kevin Wondrash, Catholic Herald Staff

Scott Jablonski ordained to the diaconate

A packed St. Joseph Church in Baraboo witnessed Scott Jablonski ordained to the diaconate on Sunday, April 14. To view more photos from the diaconate, visit St. Joseph Parish, Baraboo Facebook page here. (Contributed photo/Bryan Thompson)

BARABOO — Scott Jablonski was ordained to the transitional diaconate by Bishop Robert C. Morlino during the 10:30 a.m. Mass at St. Joseph Church in Baraboo on Sunday, April 14. He is expected to be ordained to the priesthood in the Diocese of Madison next year.

‘Witness’ to the faith

In his homily at the Mass, Bishop Morlino spoke about the “beauty” of the Office of Deacon, and how a deacon is called to “testify” and proclaim the Gospel at the liturgy and in their daily life.

“Our new Deacon Scott is a very great witness — he loves to testify, and he’s one of the most pleasant testifiers I’ve ever met,” said Bishop Morlino. “The Lord has given him such marvelous gifts, that he’s now put at the Lord’s disposal.”

You can read more on the bishop’s message in his column here.

Journey to ordination

Deacon Jablonski, originally from Appleton, returned to Catholicism after years searching for answers and learning about different religions. He received first Communion as a youth, but says his family members did not practice the faith. He was recently interviewed by EWTN for The Journey Home series telling the story of his personal journey getting to know Christ more fully.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Catholics at the Capitol

In his encyclical Deus Caritas Est (God Is Love), Pope Benedict XVI said, “The Church . . . cannot and should not replace the State. Yet at the same time she cannot and must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice. She has to play her part through rational argument and she has to reawaken the spiritual energy without which justice, which always demands sacrifice, cannot prevail and prosper.”

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On
George Weigel

A reformed (and re-formed) College of Cardinals

The Catholic Difference column by George Weigel

The recent papal interregnum and conclave underscored the importance of re-forming, and reforming, the College of Cardinals.

As configured on February 28, 2013 (when Benedict XVI’s abdication took effect), the College was a somewhat strange electorate, albeit one that produced a striking result. Almost 20 percent of its members were retired. Only eight cardinal-electors were under 65 (and half of the youngsters were Americans — Cardinals Burke, DiNardo, Dolan, and Harvey).

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On
Kevin Wondrash, Catholic Herald Staff

St. Ambrose presents Beauty and the Beast

MADISON — It’s a “tale as old as time,” as the song goes.

With an opening night of Thursday, April 25, students at St. Ambrose Academy in Madison will present their production of Beauty and the Beast.

It will be the first time the school will produce a full-length musical production with full orchestra. In past years, the musicals have been so-called “junior” versions, with piano accompaniment only.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Curbing gun violence: Treat ownership of guns more like ownership of cars

Editor's View by Mary C. Uhler

Parents of children killed in the December 14, 2012, Newtown, Conn., massacre have been giving powerful testimony to legislators on proposed tougher gun laws at public hearings in their own state and elsewhere.

At a hearing in Connecticut, Veronique Pozner said of her son, “Noah was our six-year-old force of nature.” Noah was one of 20 first-graders killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

“He lies forever motionless in the earth. He will never get to attend middle school or high school, kiss a girl, attend college, pick a career path, fall in love, marry, have children, or travel the world,” his mother said.

It is indeed sad that these children were killed by a man who obtained a gun from his own home. The lives of these 20 children and so many other people in our country have been snuffed out by people wielding guns.

How can we deal with this situation? There are many issues involved, including our Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms. In my mind, this refers more to the military defense of our country, but, of course, it can also apply to self-defense. However, I don’t believe that ordinary citizens need assault weapons to protect themselves.

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On
Jean Mueller

Keeping the conversation ‘upbeat’

Ask Jean column by Jean MuellerQ: A recent visit to a relative in a nursing home left me feeling very frustrated. My mother-in-law only wanted to complain about everything. This included everything from “I’m sure I have cancer,” to “my roommate leaves her television on all day,” and ending with “I think that infection is coming back.” You get the picture. It doesn’t make for a pleasant visit and I end up feeling as though my visits are an opportunity for a complaint session. I leave feeling less motivated to visit. Any suggestions? (From a daughter-in-law in Madison)

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On
Patrick Delaney

Popes’ challenge to faithful in the Year of Faith

Year of Faith column logo

With his calling for a Year of Faith, Pope Benedict XVI issued a direct challenge to each of us stating, “To rediscover the content of the faith that is professed, celebrated, lived, and prayed, and to reflect on the act of faith, is a task that every believer must make his own, especially in the course of this Year.”

What exactly is “the content of the faith,” where does it come from, and how does it relate to the “act of faith”?

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On
Fr. Tad Pacholczyk

Facing the effects of same-sex parenting

Making Sense out of Bioethics column by Fr. Tad Pacholczyk

In March, 2013, the British paper The Independent ran an article entitled, “Children in gay adoptions at no disadvantage: Research confirms same-sex couples are just as good at parenting as heterosexuals.”

The article, based on a study at Cambridge University, concluded there was “no evidence” to support the claim that children’s masculine or feminine tendencies were affected by having gay or lesbian parents, nor were the quality of their family relationships significantly different.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

‘Read. Run. Reach.’ program in full swing at All Saints Catholic School in Berlin

The kindergarten class at All Saints Catholic School in Berlin collected food items on Macaroni Monday during its Acts of Kindness Food Drive. (Contributed photo)

BERLIN — The Community Health Network (CHN) wellness campaign “Read. Run. Reach.” is in full swing at All Saints Catholic School (ASCS) in Berlin.

This campaign began on February 28 as collaboration between the schools in Berlin and CHN as a way to increase awareness of the importance of literacy, physical activity, and being kind and thoughtful in actions.

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On
Bishop Robert C. Morlino, Bishop of Madison

Joyful news of a new deacon: Scott Jablonski
This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop.

Dear Friends,

This last weekend in Baraboo I ordained Scott Jablonski to the diaconate and I’m so very grateful to Scott and to Fr. Jay Poster and the faithful in Baraboo for their tremendous welcome and hard work in preparing for the Mass. Here I’d like to recount a few things I shared with our new deacon and the people there, but would address here to all the faithful:

Sons of the bishop

The deacons and the priests of the diocese, in a special way, are all sons of the bishop. And although the ages don’t quite work out for all of the priests and deacons, it works fine with Deacon Scott.

And this is why it’s such a blessing to be a bishop, even with everything else that comes along with the office; it’s so wonderful because the bishop gets to call the deacon or the priest, “my son.”

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