Day: September 21, 2017

On
Michael Lancaster, Superintendent of Catholic Schools

What is the main purpose of education?

First in a series.

It’s that time of year again when the air starts to cool, leaves reveal their true colors, and children board buses back to school. All of us have experienced the end of summer vacation and the start of school.

Generation after generation, the cycle repeats. It is a rite of passage, part of the fabric of our modern society. It is so common that most of us take it for granted, rarely pausing to reflect on the purpose of school, or an education.

Purpose of education

The purpose of education and the means by which to achieve it have been the discussion of much national debate over the last decade.

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On
Fr. Tadeusz Pacholczyk

The ‘expendable children’

Couples who struggle to get pregnant are turning with greater frequency to the in vitro fertilization (IVF) industry for assistance.

In some cases, they can end up feeling they are “too pregnant” when twins, triplets, or quads arise. This occurs from the practice of implanting more than one embryo at a time to improve pregnancy success rates.

‘Selective reduction’

A multiplet pregnancy can involve significant risk, both for the children in utero, and for the mother. Because of these risks, the pregnant mother will sometimes be advised to opt for a “selective reduction,” where potassium chloride is injected into one or two of the growing babies, to cause their hearts to seize, followed by death and the gradual re-absorption of their bodies during the remainder of the pregnancy.

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On
Chris Lee

Eric Scheidler to speak at 40 Days for Life kick-off event

MADISON — Vigil for Life-Madison’s 2017 40 Days for Life Kick-off event will be held at 6 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 25, at Holy Name Heights (a.k.a. Bishop O’Connor Center).

Guest speaker will be Eric Scheidler, the executive director of the Pro-Life Action League. The league was founded in 1980 by his father, veteran pro-life leader Joe Scheidler, to fight abortion through non-violent direct action. Eric is the oldest of the seven Scheidler children.

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On
Bishop Robert Barron

Church ministers to body, mind, and soul

One of the greatest heroes of the social justice wing of the Church is, quite rightly, the 17th century “slave of the slaves,” St. Peter Claver.

Born in Barcelona, Claver joined the Society of Jesus and was known, even as a young man, as a person of deep intelligence and piety.

Spurred by what he took to be the direct prompting of the Holy Spirit, the young Spaniard volunteered to work among the poor in what was then known as “New Spain.” Arriving in Cartagena, he saw the unspeakable degradation of the captives brought in chains by ship from Africa, and he resolved to dedicate his life to serving them.

Letter tells of Claver’s work

We have a wonderful letter that Peter Claver wrote to his Jesuit superior in which he vividly describes apostolic work that he did among the slaves, just after they came ashore in Cartagena. He speaks of hopeless people staggering off the ships, stark naked, starving, and disoriented.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Why the Church loves immigrants

Some people seem to feel the Catholic Church’s love of immigrants comes from a selfish point of view.

This opinion came to light in an interview airing on September 10 on the CBS-TV program 60 Minutes. Steve Bannon, former White  House chief strategist for President Donald Trump and now executive chairman of Breitbart News, said on the program that the Catholic bishops of the United States have “an economic interest in illegal immigration” as “they need illegal aliens to fill the pews.”

I beg to disagree. The Catholic Church’s love of immigrants is certainly not based on an economic interest. It is true that many immigrants do contribute of their time, talent, and treasure to Catholic parishes. But many of them start out living in poverty, and it may take years for them to be able to give anything back to the Church as they get settled in their communities here.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

Island Church Foundation to honor St. Wenceslaus

WATERLOO — The Island Church Foundation invites the public to visit the historic St. Wenceslaus Church, commonly known as the Island Church, for the annual St. Wenceslaus Day celebration on Sunday, Sept. 24.

The celebration will take place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will include a Mass in the church at 2:30 p.m.

Featured events include a historic tractor display presented by neighbors, and local historian Edward Langer will be on hand to share ancestral history from his recent trip to Lanskroun.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

St. Jerome School plans annual Gala

COLUMBUS — “Welcome to Paradise” is the theme of the third annual St. Jerome School Gala to be held on Saturday, Oct. 14, in the school gymnasium at 1550 Farnham St. Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

The evening features a catered Caribbean buffet, open bar (beer, wine, and tropical coolers), and live music by Bahama Bob’s Island Music. Event tickets are $40 each or two for $75. There will also be a raffle (with five travel prizes), sweet deals, silent auctions, and mystery boxes. Gala raffle tickets are $50 each with the grand prize valued at $5,000.

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