Author: Chris Lee

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Chris Lee

Catholic Schools Week: A time to thank teachers

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

Catholic Schools Week 2013 is scheduled from January 27 to February 2. Its theme is “Catholic Schools Raise the Standards.” This theme highlights the launch of a new initiative to ensure consistent high standards at Catholic schools across the country. The logo designed for this week illustrates a chart of steady growth culminating in the highest achievement of all, a cross representing the faith that underscores all Catholic education.

The Catholic Church’s educational mission flows from Jesus’ life and teaching. The cross symbolizes the sacrificial love that Jesus teaches us to imitate. In the Dictionary of the Bible, Fr. John L. McKenzie wrote that Jesus spent more time teaching than anything else, including working miracles, signs, and wonders. Through education, the Church continues Jesus’ teaching by preparing her members to hear, live, and proclaim the Gospel. Good teachers are keys to successful Catholic schools.

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Chris Lee

Mourning and celebrating the life of Nellie Gray

To the editor:

My heroine, Nellie Gray, founder of the annual March for Life in Washington, D.C.,  died August 13, 2012.  I mourn and celebrate her death.

Mourn, because of her death after being a beacon of inspiration to all who respect human life, from conception to natural death. Celebrate, because Nellie has come to her Heavenly reward where she can sing, dance, and praise God forever.

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Chris Lee

An opportunity to reflect on the Year of Faith

MADISON— “Beauty: Ever Ancient, Ever New” the theme for the 2013 Annual Catholic Appeal, brings forth an opportunity for all Catholics in our diocese to find the beauty God has provided in their lives. As we explore the Year of Faith and learn more about being Catholic, it invites us to look at our own lives and determine how we can enhance our faith and in turn share it.

As we approach the opening weeks of this year’s Appeal, we are drawn to reflect on our personal participation in this Year of Faith with a heightened sense of our role as a Catholic in our families and communities. The ACA supports that role and its measurable impact. Some of the important ministries we support include Evangelization and Catechesis, Catholic Charities, Seminarian Education, and Catholic education. Please visit www.madisondiocese.org to read more about the benefits of the ACA and the vital support it provides.

The $3 million goal for the upcoming year fuels ministry reaching out to all areas and walks of life in our diocese. Here are just a few examples of why your gift is so important to the ACA.

  • Evangelization and Catechesis: Provides retreats, classes, lectures, educational materials for young adults, engaged couples seeking the sacrament of marriage, catechists and educators, married couples learning natural family planning methods, as well as anyone looking to learn more about their Catholic faith.
  • Catholic Charities: Catholic Charities has been entrusted with conducting the Corporal Works of Mercy for the Diocese of Madison. Their work includes more than 35 programs serving the aging, children, individuals, families, persons with developmental disabilities, and those addicted to alcohol and drugs. It provides financial assistance to the Catholic Multicultural Center offering help to the underprivileged in Madison and beyond.
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Chris Lee

Keeping a promise to God upon receiving papal award

To the editor:

This letter is an attempt to keep a promise I made to God when I first heard that I was receiving the Benemerenti Medal. I felt totally unworthy of any recognition from the pope. When I prayed about it, I realized that God, who has given me so many opportunities to serve other people, expected me to see this as another opportunity. There was a strong sense that there was something I was to share.

That was when I made the promise. As the weeks went by, I began to see the award as a symbol of God’s forgiveness and mercy. Would there be an opportunity to share with others my confidence in God’s mercy?

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