Day: September 12, 2019

On
Cathy Lins, Catholic Herald Correspondent

Stations of Cross find new home in Ridgeway

stations of cross
Outdoor Stations of the Cross have been installed recently at St. Bernardette Parish on the exterior of the Religious Education Building at St. Bridget Church in Ridgeway. A formal blessing of the Stations will be done on Saturday, Sept. 14, following a 10 a.m. Mass at the church. A procession to the Stations will include the blessing and praying of the Stations. (Cathy Lins photo)

RIDGEWAY — On Saturday, Sept. 14, on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, St. Bernadette Parish will have a formal blessing of its newly installed life-size outdoor Stations of the Cross.

The Stations are on the exterior of the Religious Education Building located at 106 North St. in Ridgeway.

Fr. Lawrence Zurek, OFM Conv, will join Fr. Steve Petrica, VF, pastor, in celebrating Mass at 10 a.m. at St. Bridget Church, followed by a procession to the Stations for their blessing, which will include praying the Stations.

Father Zurek is the administrator of the Basilica of St. Josaphat, which is a ministry of the Conventual Franciscans on the South Side of Milwaukee in the historic Lincoln Village neighborhood. It is one of 82 minor basilicas found in the United States.

Franciscan devotion

Father Petrica shared that there is a long association between the Franciscan order and the Stations of the Cross devotion, which they promote as a way to vicariously walk the actual Via Dolorosa in Jerusalem.

The original Via Dolorosa winds through Jerusalem, from the site where Pilate condemned Jesus to death to Mount Calvary and to the tomb where Jesus was buried.

Father Petrica said, “The Franciscans have historically been associated with the devotion and with the holy sites in Jerusalem. (Although it’s a different branch of the Franciscan family that maintains the holy sites.) It was customary for the blessing of Stations to be reserved to a Franciscan priest. That practice is no longer obligatory, but we chose to honor the historical connection. Father Zurek also reminded me that the Feast of the Holy Cross is when St. Francis received the Stigmata.

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On
Laura Green, For the Catholic Herald

CMC celebrates 10 years under Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish

MADISON — Ten years ago, Msgr. Ken Fiedler of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish had “keys to an empty building, no money, and no staff” after he boldly decided to take on the task of operating the Catholic Multicultural Center (CMC) when the Diocese of Madison shut it down due to budget concerns.

On August 3, 2009, the CMC reopened under Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish with a budget of $250,000, a staff of four, and a handful of community programs, including a free meal three times a week.

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On
Fr. Greg Ihm, For the Catholic Herald

Mazzuchelli Pilgrimage 2019

Every pilgrimage is a response of the inner desire in each one of us to seek God. On this pilgrimage, we discovered a helper in Venerable Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, OP, and in seeking we found the joy connected to the gift of self which makes us want to seek God all the more.

The Mazzuchelli Pilgrimage took 22 pilgrims across the Mississippi River, through the cow and farm- dotted canvas of rolling hills in southern Wisconsin with all of it orchestrated sounds and smells, to the quiet tomb of a missionary that laid the foundation of the faith in the Diocese of Madison.

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On
Bishop Donald J. Hying, Bishop of Madison

Freedom of religion is at risk worldwide

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

Worldwide, Christians are being killed explicitly for their faith in alarmingly large numbers these past years. North Korea, the Middle East, and Africa are some of the top hotspots for Christian persecution.

Believers in Christ are being systematically driven out of the Holy Land through intimidation, prejudice, and lack of opportunity. Soon, there will be almost zero Christians in the country where Jesus lived. More martyrs are being born through a bloody death than any time since the early Church!

Religious freedom at risk

Here at home, we do not face such overt violence because of our religious beliefs, but some significant shifts in political praxis have put our religious freedom at risk.

The First Amendment of the Constitution guarantees religious liberty in our country. This right is not some beneficent gift from the government; it is inscribed in our human nature as an inherent right to exercise freedom of conscience. No one can either compel or restrict religious belief or practice. Faith is a sacred gift nurtured in the heart and soul.

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On
Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

Let’s recover a sense of compassion

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines compassion as a “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.”

Perhaps it’s the constant news of disasters deluging us these days, but it seems as if many people have lost a sense of compassion. We’ve almost become numb to the suffering of others, whether it be from mass shootings, natural disasters, immigrants’ distress, or wars.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

Memorial service for aborted children to be held in Dane

DANE — On Saturday, Sept. 14, pro-life Americans throughout the country will gather at the gravesites of aborted babies and other memorial sites dedicated in their honor for the seventh annual National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children.

Solemn vigils will be held at these sites to commemorate the more than 60 million children who have lost their lives to legal abortion since 1973, and to remind our society of the humanity of the unborn child.

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On
Kevin Wondrash

Priests of the diocese to gather for annual assembly

WISCONIN DELLS — Priests of the Diocese of Madison will be gathering Sunday through Wednesday, Sept. 15 through 18, at the Chula Vista Resort in Wisconsin Dells for their 39th annual Presbyteral Assembly.

The Presbyteral Assembly provides opportunities for prayer, education, and socializing for the priests. The theme for this year’s assembly is “The Sacrificial and Fatherly Heart of the Celibate Priest.”

Fr. Scott Jablonski, director of continuing formation for priests, said, “We are excited to welcome two excellent guest speakers: Fr. Carter Griffin and Dr. John Bergsma.”

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