Year: 2013

On
Kevin Wondrash

Adult faith formation Bible studies offered at Blessed Sacrament

MADISON — Pope Francis has captivated the attention of many people around the globe with his simplicity, humility, directness, and outreach to the marginalized.

He calls us to be in dialogue with the world reaching out to build a culture of “solidarity” or “encounter” in which a society shares and includes. This desire to love flows from the love we have received from Christ.

To help us better experience God’s love in the Scriptures and thus grow in loving, the Blessed Sacrament Parish Adult Faith Formation Committee will be offering various Bible studies this year:

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On
Fr. Donald Lange

Labor Day: Making our work a prayer

Seeing with Jesus' Eyes, a column by Fr. Donald Lange

In the 15th century in a village near Nuremberg, Germany, Albrecht Durer and his brother Albert dreamed of attending art school.

But Albrecht Sr., their father who supported 18 children, understandably couldn’t afford to send them. So the two brothers made an agreement. Albrecht would attend art school while Albert worked in the mines to pay his expenses. When Albrecht graduated, he would use his artistic talents to pay for Albert’s tuition and other expenses.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Forgiving Ryan Braun: Brewers’ fans should accept him for both his successes and his failures

Many children and adults in Wisconsin (myself included) have admired Ryan Braun during his years playing with the Milwaukee Brewers.

Whenever I went to a Brewers’ game, I saw plenty of fans wearing T-shirts with Braun’s name and the number eight. The fans applauded when Braun came up to bat, knowing that he would do his best to get a hit (his career batting average through July was .312).

Braun also seemed to be a nice guy. He accepted his many baseball awards modestly, including the National League’s Most Valuable Player award for the 2011 season.

Taking performance enhancing drugs

It was therefore painful for me and other Brewers’ fans to accept the news that Braun might have taken performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs). At first we thought it must be a mistake. However, this summer Major League Baseball suspended Braun for the rest of the season and the postseason due to his involvement with the Biogenesis clinic in Florida.

Now we know that Braun lied to us. We wonder why he and other successful athletes took PEDs. Were they greedy for more money and fame? Were they worried about sustaining their athletic prowess? Did they think they would never get caught?

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On
Bishop Robert C. Morlino, Bishop of Madison

Marriage is built on mercy and forgiveness

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.
On Sunday, August 19, I was honored and privileged to celebrate a Mass of Thanksgiving for those in the diocese marking 50 years of marriage.

It was a joyful moment, gathering about 60 couples from throughout the diocese and, in a particular way, I felt called by the Lord to point out that the durability and the steadfastness of their married lives is a “school of forgiveness,” from which all can learn.

I could see the twinkle in their eyes as I recalled that beneath the marriage covenant of each and every couple present there was a mountain of forgiveness built on 50 years of forgiveness and mercy, with and through the Lord.

It is no small feat to have built that mountain, and it is a tremendous sign for the whole world. In fact, it is one of my most cherished occasions of the whole year when I am in the company of those who, with Mary, have said their “fiat” — their, “let it be” — and continue to mean it.

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On
Catholic News Service

Cuando migrantes llegan, voluntarios parroquiales proveen transporte a Misa, comidas

ENFIELD, Connecticut (CNS) — Durante el verano el tabaco crece prácticamente como yerba mala bajo mallas blancas y en campos abiertos por todo el valle tabacalero del Connecticut central.

Casi al final de junio, cuando las plantas están aproximadamente a la altura de la rodilla, los trabajadores migratorios que han viajado miles de millas en autobús desde México y más allá, o por aire desde Puerto Rico, comienzan a llegar para empleos de tres meses cultivando la cosecha en granjas de Connecticut. Y con su llegada la parroquia St. Patrick continúa su programa de ministerio hispano de hace mucho tiempo de cultivar la fe de ellos.

Todas las noches de lunes, desde finales de junio hasta fines de agosto, dos autobuses escolares recogen 100 hombres o más en su campamento en Windsor para llevarlos a Misa y a una comida en St. Patrick.

Aunque sus esfuerzos están centrados en proveer transporte en autobús hasta la Misa y comida semanalmente, cada temporada el ministerio ofrece una amplia gama de servicios a su comunidad migratoria temporal. Tal vez el principal de estos es la obra evangelizadora de preparar a muchos de los trabajadores para recibir los sacramentos de iniciación, evento que se ha convertido en una celebración anual en St. Patrick.

 

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On
Chris Lee

Sister Helen O’Neill, OP, dies

SINSINAWA — Sister Helen O’Neill, OP (Patrick Mary), died Aug. 25, 2013, at St. Dominic Villa. The funeral Mass was held in Queen of the Rosary Chapel at Sinsinawa on August 29, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery.

Sister Helen made her first religious profession as a Sinsinawa Dominican on February 3, 1945, and her final profession August 4, 1948. She taught elementary school for 20 years, three while also serving as principal, and ministered at the college level as administrator for two years and teacher for 18 years.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Women’s Care Center-Madison helps families choose life

MADISON — Since it opened in January of 2012, the Women’s Care Center-Madison (WCCM) has affected the lives of over 435 families, including at least 50 who had a change of heart and chose life for their baby.

WCCM is located at 3711 Orin Rd. on Madison’s east side, right across the street from the Planned Parenthood abortion facility. A dedicated group of volunteers purchased the property for the WCCM, hoping to provide an alternative for those seeking an abortion.

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On
George Weigel

On really not getting it

The Catholic Difference column by George Weigel

In the wake of late-term abortionist Kermit Gosnell’s homicide convictions this past May, several state legislatures began crafting laws that would protect unborn life at earlier stages of gestation while shutting down horror houses like Gosnell’s Philadelphia “clinic.”

Whether these laws will stand constitutional scrutiny remains to be seen; what is worth noting now is the degree to which deeply-entrenched supporters of the unrestricted abortion license created by the Supreme Court in 1973 still don’t get it — and still continue to muddle the public debate with their confusions.

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