Author: Mary C. Uhler

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Mary C. Uhler

Putting a human face on the refugee crisis

Editor's View by Mary C. Uhler

One of the saddest pictures I’ve seen recently is that of a three-year-old Syrian boy lying on a Turkish beach. He looks like he’s sleeping with his head turned to one side. But he isn’t asleep; he’s dead.

Catholic News Service, to which the Catholic Herald subscribes, ran the picture of the little boy. However, I decided not to use that picture with this article (I felt it was too disturbing). Instead, I have included another sad picture: one of the boy’s father weeping. Abdullah Kurdi, father of three-year old Aylan Kurdi, is shown crying as he leaves a morgue in Turkey September 3.

The family of Aylan, the Syrian toddler whose body washed up on a Turkish beach, had been trying to emigrate to Canada after fleeing the war-torn town of Kobani.

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Mary C. Uhler

Dynamic Catholics can change the world

Ever since the early days of our country, Catholics have been making a tremendous impact on our society.

We do so much in our communities: feeding the hungry, giving clothing to those in need, educating children and adults, caring for the sick in hospitals and care facilities, and visiting people in prison. The list is endless.

But did you know that most of these things are being done by only about seven percent of Catholics in our country? That’s what Matthew Kelly asserts in his book, The Four Signs of a Dynamic Catholic.

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Mary C. Uhler

Witnessing to our faith through work

Work is part of everyone’s life, whether it’s paid or unpaid. Yet how often do we think about how we witness to our faith through our work?

As the editor of a Catholic newspaper, I have more opportunity than others to integrate my work with my faith. But it is still a challenge to keep a faith perspective in every aspect of my work.

For some insights on this topic, I recalled a statement made by the state’s bishops in 2001. It is called Making Wisconsin Work Well: A Labor Day Challenge by Wisconsin’s Roman Catholic Bishops (still available on the Wisconsin Catholic Conference website at www.wisconsincatholic.org and well worth another look).

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Mary C. Uhler

A book a day keeps the doctor away!

Ever since I was a child, reading has been one of my favorite things to do.

Perhaps I was fortunate that my parents didn’t buy a television until I was in the fifth grade. We spent our free time playing games of all kinds and doing a lot of reading.
In the summers, we visited the public library every week. I must have read almost every book in the library. I loved books of all kinds!

That love of reading continues to this day. I read several books every week, usually taking time to read during lunch and in the evening after my work is done. Now I’m able to access books through a Kindle, although I still like holding a “real” book in my hands.

Reading is good for health

Besides being something that’s fun to do, I’ve recently learned that reading is actually good for your health. How about that! Something that’s enjoyable and healthy, too!

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Mary C. Uhler

Learn lessons from history

We’ve all heard the saying that if we don’t learn lessons from history, we are in danger of repeating it.

This is especially true for the bad things we’ve experienced. And it seems especially true about our history of violence and war.

This year in August the world marked the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan. The United States dropped bombs on these cities during World War II.

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Mary C. Uhler

Abolish the death penalty

When I hear about someone being murdered, I say a prayer for the victim — and for the perpetrator.

Someone might question my praying for someone who has committed a crime. However, there are many circumstances that lead to that act of violence against another person.

We don’t know everything involved in that person’s life. Sometimes there may have been a lifetime of abuse he or she endured. There may have been mental illness leading to that act of violence.

Although we may be tempted to call only for justice for the victim — an “eye for an eye” — we also have to consider the possibility of forgiveness and healing for the murderer.

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Mary C. Uhler

Enough is enough!

Abortion has been legal in the United States since 1973, but that doesn’t mean most Americans approve of abortion.

According to a national Marist University survey released this year, the vast majority of Americans are very uncomfortable with abortion. Eighty-four percent said that laws should protect both the well-being of a woman and the life of the unborn child. The poll revealed that a majority of Americans say abortion is morally wrong (60 percent).

Want abortion restrictions

The survey also found support for abortion restrictions among both “pro-life” and “pro-choice” supporters, according to an article on www.lifenews.com

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Mary C. Uhler

Pope Francis inspires us to care for prisoners

Editor's View by Mary C. Uhler

Since he has been our Holy Father, Pope Francis has been spending time in prisons.

Not only does he visit prisoners in Rome, but he also puts visits to prisons on his itinerary for trips outside of Rome. When he comes to the United States in September, he will stop at a prison in Philadelphia.

When he was the archbishop of Buenos Aires, he made a point of spending time with prisoners. Even as pope, he continues to make a phone call every other Saturday to inmates he used to visit in Buenos Aires.

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