Porziuncola - Catholic San Francisco

Transcription

Catholic
san Francisco
Northern California’s Weekly Catholic Newspaper
Plenary indulgence announced
for Porziuncola Shrine pilgrims
By Dan Morris-Young
(CNS PHOTO/PHILIPPE NOISET TE, CATHOLIC PRESS PHOTO)
ot only will the visual impact and
prayerful atmosphere of the famed
N
Porziuncola church of St. Francis of
Pope Benedict XVI prays at the Grotto of the Apparitions
at the Marian sanctuaries of Lourdes, France, Sept. 13.
The pope traveled to Lourdes to celebrate the 150th
anniversary of Mary’s appearances to St. Bernadette
Soubirous. See stories on pages 10 and 11.
Assisi in Italy be mirrored by an exacting replica at San Francisco’s National
Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, but
an indulgence nearly identical to the
“Pardon of Assisi” has been authorized by the Church for the new San
Francisco landmark.
Announced by the Archdiocese of
San Francisco and Archbishop George
H. Niederauer, a plenary indulgence for
pilgrims who visit the new archdiocesan
shrine will be available to faithful who
visit the site following its Sept. 27
dedication through the end of the year
and who fulfill the customary requirements. (For a full explanation of the
indulgence, see Pages 6 and 7 of the
special section inside.)
Cardinal William Levada, prefect
of the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith in Rome and Archbishop
Emeritus of San Francisco, will officially proclaim the indulgence during
the dedication rite.
The indulgence will continue to be
available at the local site indefinitely
one day per year at a pilgrim’s choosing or on Aug. 2 or Oct. 4. Aug. 2 is
the anniversary of the dedication of
the original Porziuncola. Oct. 4 is the
solemnity of St. Francis. The chapel
and shrine church are located on the
600 block of Vallejo Street.
According to Church teaching, a plenary indulgence can remove temporal
punishment due to forgiven sin. It may
be applied to persons receiving it or by
them to a faithful departed. An indulgence does not apply to the actual forgiveness of sin, which is sought through
the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
The Porziuncola Indulgence or
“Pardon of Assisi” refers to the wellknown indulgence attached to the
small church near Assisi, Italy where
St. Francis is said to have received his
vocation on Feb. 24, 1208 and which
largely served as his headquarters for
the balance of his life.
The San Francisco Porziuncola, also
referred to in Vatican documents as
the Porziuncola Nuova, is a 78 percent
scale, near duplicate of the original,
said Angela Alioto, vice chair of the
Renaissance Project.
The Porziuncola is the first phase in
the Renaissance Project which will also
entail creation of a piazza on Vallejo
Street, significant upgrades to the
National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi
Church which houses the Porziuncola in
an adjacent building, and a wide range
of programs.
Those who visit the Porziuncola
Shrine as part of an organized pilgrimage may also obtain a plenary
indulgence.
Special section inside:
‘Stone-for-stone’ Porziuncola reproduction to be dedicated
By Dan Morris-Young
building adjoining the National Shrine of St. Francis of
Assisi in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood.
Cardinal William Levada, prefect of the Vatican’s
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and former
Archbishop of San Francisco, will preside and Archbishop
George H. Niederauer will be principal celebrant at the
morning dedication rite.
Housed within what was formerly the gymnasium
of St. Francis of Assisi Parish, 610 Vallejo St., the
Porziuncola Chapel itself will also be designated an
archdiocesan shrine in its own right.
Built on a 78 percent scale to accommodate available
space, the structure features remarkable duplications of a
14th century fresco, of original doors and windows, and
STONE-FOR-STONE, page 14
(PHOTOS BY DAN MORRIS-YOUNG/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
he rock-for-rock, stone-for-stone, fresco-for-fresco
replica of St. Francis of Assisi’s tiny Porziuncola
T
church near Assisi, Italy will be dedicated Sept. 27 in a
The Porziuncola
Shrine entrance,
left, and exit
grate behind the
altar, pictured
Sept. 11.
INSIDE THIS WEEK’S EDITION
Three Cups of Tea . . . . . . . . 3
Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Scripture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Movie reviews . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Oakland cathedral
dedication Sept. 25
~ Page 7 ~
September 19, 2008
Church of Nativity
facilities are blessed
~ Page 14 ~
Blind Vietnamese children
supported by priest’s group
~ Page 20 ~
SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS
Datebook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Classified ads . . . . . . . . 18-19
www.catholic-sf.org
VOLUME 10
•
No. 27
2
Catholic San Francisco
September 19, 2008
On The
Archbishop George
H. Niederauer
celebrated Mass
and the good work
of Catholic Charities
CYO benefactors at
the CCCYO Legacy
Circle Mass and
Tea Aug. 28 at
his home. Among
those joining the
Archbishop for
the event were
Carmelia Bloise,
left, Verna DeMartis
and Kay Harrington.
Where You Live
by Tom Burke
Is there someone in your life who has inspired you
as coach, player, manager or referee? Catholic Charities
CYO is accepting nominations for its newly instituted
CYO Athletics Hall of Fame. Nominations are to be
submitted on-line along with a 100-word description of
the potential nominee. There are other qualifications, too.
Go to http://athletics.cccyo.org and follow the link to the
CYO San Francisco Athletics page for the link to the nominations page. Nominations will be accepted until Sept.
26. Good luck to all! The awards dinner is scheduled for
January at St. Emydius Parish in San Francisco. Whew!
Putting that announcement together started to make me
feel like the guys from Price Waterhouse who announce
the boilerplate rules on the Academy Awards.….
Speaking of inspiring people, I had the pleasure recently
to run into Jesuit Brother Doug Draper, now retired
but still pitching in as moderator of the Fathers’ Club at
St. Ignatius College Prep where he held forth as Dean
of Students for almost 40 years. He said he’s enjoying
retirement and glad to still be part of the SI and larger
picture. In addition, Brother Draper continues to serve as
minister of the Jesuit Community at SI and assist at the
altar at weekend Masses at Our Lady of Mercy Parish
in Daly City.….On a recent flight back to Philly we
were delayed by weather for four hours in Chicago.
They had us get on the plane and off the plane twice.
After we boarded the third time, the pilot’s voice came
over the speakers, saying he had some good news and
some bad news. “The good
news is that you are going
to Philadelphia,” he said,
“and the bad news is that you
are going to Philadelphia.”
Even us dyed-in-the-wool
Philadelphians laughed out
loud. In truth, hats off to the
airline for sending me a $150
gift certificate for the delay
even though weather is not
their problem….Welcome
aboard at One Peter Yorke
Way to Vivian Clausing,
Vivian Clausing
new associate director of
youth ministry. In addition to being an attorney, Vivian
holds graduate degrees in multicultural ministry and
theology from the Franciscan School of Theology in
Berkeley. “I’m looking forward to working with the
LIVING TRUSTS WILLS
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415-614-5506 This number is answered by Barbara Elordi,
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This is a secured line and is answered only
by Barbara Elordi.
415-614-5503 If you wish to speak to a non-archdiocesan
employee please call this nunmber. This is
also a secured line and is answered only by
a victim survivor.
people of the Archdiocese,” Vivian said. “Vivian comes
with wonderful experience in youth ministry and has
worked as a catechist,” said Social Service Sister Celeste
Arbuckle, director of religious education and youth
ministry. “I know you will welcome her.” Vivian and her
husband, Karl, are the proud parents of daughters Kelsey,
a freshman at Notre Dame High School in Belmont, and
Katy, a student at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Elementary
School in Redwood City…. If you’re looking for a way
to uplift your heart physically and emotionally, think
seriously about taking part or just making a donation to
the 5k Run or Walk benefiting Strides for Life and
colon cancer research Oct. 5 at Lake Merced. The event
honors Dylan Cappel, who died in 2002 from colon
San Francisco’s Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory
rang in the new school year Aug. 22. Ready to go are
sophomore Tomisha Miller, left, junior Michael Holper,
sophomore Noel Sabella, and junior Michael Yes.
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cancer at age 23. A graduate of St. Dunstan Elementary
School and Junipero Serra High School, Dylan was an
accomplished rower and cross-country runner on his way
to the 2004 Olympics. His folks are Barbara and Larry
Cappel. “I’ve known Barbara and Larry for 15 years,”
Ayde Vigel, also of St. Dunstan’s, told me, “and they’re
the reason I got involved with Strides for Life. They are
a wonderful family.” See Datebook…. This is an empty
space without you! Send items and pictures via e-mail to
[email protected]. Mailed items should be sent to
“Street,” One Peter Yorke Way, SF 94109. Pix should
be hard copy or electronic jpeg at 300 dpi. Don’t forget
to include a follow-up phone number. Call me at (415)
614-5634 and I’ll walk you through it.
Mercy High School, San Francisco opened the new
school year with a Mass of the Holy Spirit Aug. 28.
Juniors Nadia Mandanat, left, Aisha Hameed and
Melissa Nazzal were among those in attendance.
PHYSICIAN VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Volunteer Physicians for a new medical clinic.
The Order of Malta will be opening a new
clinic this fall located in the Cathedral of Christ
the Light Center in downtown Oakland to
provide free medical care for uninsured
patients without regard to race, color,
religion or ability to pay. Volunteer physicians,
especially General Practitioners, Family
Practitioners, Internists and Gynecologists,
are currently being recruited to staff clinic.
Medical malpractice coverage will be provided.
Inquiries welcomed at (510) 587-3002.
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September 19, 2008
3
Pakistani children find champion in lost mountaineer
By Michael Vick
When Greg Mortenson first pitched his
story, “Three Cups of Tea,” the publisher
allowed him to choose the title. The subtitle, on the other hand, would be up to the
editors.
Over Mortenson’s strenuous objections,
the wording chosen was “One man’s mission
to fight terrorism and build nations … one
school at a time.” Mortenson wanted to say,
“One man’s mission to promote peace.” He
was overruled.
However, he struck a bargain with the
publisher: if the hardcover version did not
sell well enough, the paperback subtitle
would be his choice. The original hardcover
of the book, which Mortenson co-authored
with journalist David Oliver Relin, did not
fare well, Mortenson told a packed crowd of
more than 1,200 at a Sept. 8 appearance at
the University of San Francisco.
The paperback, with his preferred subtitle, has been a New York Times bestseller
for 83 weeks.
“If you fight terrorism, or even if you
promote terrorism, that’s based in fear,”
Mortenson told the predominantly student
audience. “If you promote peace, that’s
based in hope. We live in hope.”
Mortenson’s journey from unknown
mountaineer to world-renowned philanthropist began on the heels of tragedy and
failure. His sister, Christa, who suffered
from epilepsy since she was 3, died at 23 of
a severe seizure on the eve of a trip to the
cornfield-turned-baseball-diamond where
her favorite movie, “Field of Dreams,” was
filmed.
In her memory, Mortenson set off to
climb K2, the second-highest mountain in
the world and one of the most difficult to
summit, hoping to leave Christa’s necklace
at the peak. He failed, and almost died trying. Lost and exhausted, he later wandered
into the Pakistani village of Korphe, where
he met and befriended members of the native
Balti tribe who live in the shadow of the
Greg Mortenson
visits children at
the Gultori Girls
Refugee School in
Skardu, Pakistan.
Schools founded
by Mortenson
emphasize the
education of girls.
Mortenson spoke
to an audience
of 1,200 at the
University of San
Francisco on Sept. 8.
Karakoram Range of which K2 is a part.
There he learned of the tradition of three
cups of tea. With the first shared cup, one is
a stranger. With the second, one becomes a
friend. After three cups of tea, one becomes
family.
In return for saving his life, Mortenson
promised to help them in any way he could.
Their only wish was a school for their
children. The village had none. Mortenson
pledged to return after raising the money
for a school.
The women (of Pakistan) told me, ‘We don’t want
our babies to die, and we want our children to go to
school.’ I think that’s a pretty simple request.
– Greg Mortenson
“For family we’re prepared to do anything,
even die,” Mortenson said, recalling the words
of Korphe’s village chief, Haji Ali.
He tried in vain reaching out to a number
of philanthropic groups, and even wrote letters
to 580 different celebrities in the hopes that
they might bring publicity and funds to the
cause. Only one responded, NBC anchor Tom
Brokaw, with a check for $100. Mortenson
said Brokaw, who has since promoted “Three
Cups of Tea” on the air, acknowledged guilt
that he had only given $100.
“I haven’t had the courage yet to tell
him he can always write another check,”
Mortenson said.
Mortenson eventually raised the funds,
largely through the efforts of school children
donating hundreds of thousands of pennies
through his Pennies for Peace program, and
large donations from benefactors.
He did not stop with the one school. He
has continued building schools in the region.
Today dozens serve tens of thousands of
students.
Most students are girls, which is by design,
Mortenson said, explaining that schooling for
LOST MOUNTAINEER, page 18
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Providing for them the same love and generosity they provided us for generations.
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4
September 19, 2008
in
brief
NEWS
Cardinal returns medal in protest
STE.-ANNE-DE-BEAUPRE, Quebec (CNS) – Flanked
by the bishops of Quebec, Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte of
Montreal announced he was handing back his 1996 Order of
Canada medal to protest that the same award was given to an
abortion physician this summer. The cardinal said he decided
to return the medal because of the announcement that the
same honor was being awarded to Dr. Henry Morgentaler,
whose 19-year legal battle led to the lifting of the country’s
restrictions on abortion.
‘Bible Geek’ shares with teens
WASHINGTON (CNS) – Mark Hart, executive vice
president for Life Teen International, also goes by another
name: “Bible Geek.” That’s the moniker he’s been using for
more than 10 years in his weekly “Spread the Word” e-mail
messages, answering questions about the Bible, and his
weekly podcasts called “Sunday, Sunday, Sunday,” focusing
on Sunday Mass readings. In addition to explaining a Scripture
passage via e-mail, he usually responds to at least one question
a week on the Life Teen website: www.lifeteen.com.
Ask access to Cuba
WASHINGTON (CNS) – The U.S. bishops have urged
President George W. Bush to suspend – even temporarily
– the U.S. government’s ban on remittances and travel to
Cuba “in light of the devastation and humanitarian disaster
caused by recent hurricanes in Cuba.” In a Sept. 10 letter to
Bush, Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, president of
the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said that removing
the restrictions is “a necessary step which I urge you to take
without delay.” The U.S. has had a trade embargo in place
against Cuba for 47 years.
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Conversions forced
Bishops: end immigration raids
WASHINGTON (CNS) – If federal immigration officials cannot create more “humane” conditions when making enforcement raids against undocumented immigrants,
then “these enforcement raids should be abandoned,”
said Bishop John C. Wester of Salt Lake City, chairman
of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Migration. The raids,
conducted by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement
division of the Department of Homeland Security, “reveal,
sadly, the failure of a seriously flawed immigration system,” Bishop Wester said at a Sept. 10 press conference at
the bishops’ headquarters in Washington. “The humanitarian costs of these raids are immeasurable and unacceptable
in a civilized society,” he added. “Our current policies do
little to solve the problem of illegal immigration to this
country – they simply appear to do so, often at the cost
of family integrity and human dignity.”
Priests for Life drops plan
WASHINGTON (CNS) – In what the founder of
Priests for Life called a return to its roots, the organization has decided not to seek Church recognition as a
society of apostolic life that would accept and ordain its
own seminarians. Instead Priests for Life and the related
Missionaries of the Gospel of Life will continue to help
priests, seminarians and lay Catholics around the country become “more effectively pro-life” within their own
parishes and communities, said Father Frank Pavone in a
telephone interview Sept. 9. He said he founded Priests for
Life in 1991 as a way to “infuse the existing structures” of
the Church and society with
the pro-life message.
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After leading the Sacramento
Diocese for nearly 15 years,
Bishop William K. Weigand
has petitioned Pope Benedict
XVI for permission to retire,
reports The Catholic Herald,
diocesan newspaper. If
granted, the retirement would
be Nov.30, the 15th anniversary
of his appointment as the
diocese’s eighth bishop.
Bishop Jaime Soto was
named coadjutor bishop of
Sacramento last Oct. 11.
Respect Life program launched
WASHINGTON (CNS) – “Hope and Trust in Life” is
the theme for the 2008-09 Respect Life program, centered
around Pope Benedict XVI’s message during his visit to
the United States in April. A new packet of materials distributed by the U.S. bishops’ Office of Pro-Life Activities
includes pamphlets, a flier containing important points
made by Pope Benedict during his April 15-20 visit and
a CD with full-length versions of articles on a variety
of life-related topics, with recommended resources. The
Committee on Pro-Life Activities creates this package
annually to encourage schools, religious education programs and Catholic organizations to spread the Catholic
Church’s pro-life message.
Asks pope to remember Sept. 11
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – New York City’s former
fire commissioner asked Pope Benedict XVI for his
continued prayers for the victims of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. In a brief encounter at the pope’s general
audience Sept. 10, Thomas Von Essen told the pontiff
that only faith in God allowed him to survive the loss
of so many friends and colleagues in the attacks seven
NEWS IN BRIEF, page 5
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Sacramento bishop asks retirement
CUTTACK, India (CNS) – Suresh Nayak, a Catholic
from Orissa state’s Kandhamal district, cannot overcome
the experience of being forced, under the threat of death, to
convert to Hinduism. “We lost everything, but the humiliating ceremony to disown our Christian faith still haunts
me,” Nayak said at a refugee camp in Cuttack, about 20
miles from Bhubaneswar, Orissa’s capital. Thousands of
Christians in the region have been subjected to conversion ceremonies under threat of violence and death, said
Father Mrutyunjay Digal, secretary to the archbishop of
Cuttack-Bhubaneswar.
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Sept. 23 ~ 25
Rev. Xavier Pappalliyil, O.C.D.
ǣ
September:ThePresentTime—ItsPerilandPromise
October:WhyAreWeHere?CreationandFall
Sept. 26 ~ Oct. 1
Rev. Philip Sullivan, O.C.D.
InspiringaWholeheartedFaithinaHalfheartedAge
ǡ

ǡ
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ǯǤ
ST.PATRICK’SSEMINARY&UNIVERSITYȄ͵ʹͲǤͻͶͲʹͷ
Daily Masses
8:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.
Except on Sunday, September 28th
Masses will be at 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
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Author and lecturer Gil Bailie is a Catholic layman who draws on the work of
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encouragethecatecheticalrevitalizationthatGirard’sworkmakespossible.
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September 19, 2008
News in brief . . .
Debris from Hurricane Ike
is seen in this aerial
view of Crystal Beach,
Texas, Sept. 14.
Hurricane Ike hit the
Texas and Louisiana
coasts Sept. 13,
causing extensive
damage and flooding.
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is among agencies
sending volunteers,
supplies and other
assistance to the region.
For information, visit
“Disaster Response” at
www.catholiccharities.usa.
■ Continued from page 4
years earlier. According to the Vatican newspaper,
L’Osservatore Romano, Von Essen asked the pope to
remember in his prayers all those killed in the terrorist
acts, including the 343 New York firefighters who died
when the World Trade Center collapsed. Von Essen also
thanked the pope for his visit to ground zero during his
April trip to the United States.
Pope e-mails 30,000
(CNS PHOTO/DAVID J. PHILLIP, POOL VIA REUTERS)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Pope Benedict XVI sent
a brief e-mail to more than 30,000 young people who
attended World Youth Day in Sydney, Australia, or have
expressed interest in knowing more about the experience. In the Sept. 8 message, the pope greeted the young
people, offered his prayers for them and asked them to
pray for the young people of France as he prepared to
visit their country Sept. 12-15. The message was sent
through www.Xt3.com, a social networking website
established to help World Youth Day participants keep in
touch, converse with one another online and meet others
who were in Sydney.
Says Pius XII demonized falsely
ROME (CNS) – Pope Pius XII has been demonized
and his legacy of helping Jews during World War II has
been poisoned by inaccurate and incomplete historical
accounts, said the Jewish founder and president of Pave
the Way Foundation. “We have to change history” and tell
the world the truth about this wartime pope “who saved
so many lives,” Gary Krupp, foundation president, told
Catholic News Service. He spoke at the start of a Sept.
15-17 symposium that studied the papacy of Pope Pius
and unveiled new evidence of the pope’s hidden acts and
orders aimed at saving Jews from the Nazis.
Catholics reach out to Haiti
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – Catholic relief agencies
and parishes worldwide are responding to the devastation
in Haiti, battered by four deadly hurricanes. Officials
of Caritas Internationalis, the umbrella organization
for 162 national Catholic charity organizations, told
Catholic News Service Sept. 15 they are seeking $4.3
million in donations for relief aid to the poorest country
in the Americas. “The series of natural disasters affecting
Haiti comes at a critical time, as the vast majority of the
population is already struggling with rising living costs,”
said Patrick Nicholson, a Caritas spokesman in Vatican
City. Officials with the U.S. bishops’ development
and aid agency, Catholic Relief Services, said they are
mobilizing workers in Haiti, where more than a million
residents have been displaced by the storms.
Mourn death of U.S. Muslim leader
WASHINGTON (CNS) – Catholic interreligious leaders
mourned the death of Imam Warith Deen Mohammed, who
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September 19, 2008
California bishops call Prop 6 costly, flawed
By Michael Vick
California’s Catholic bishops have released a statement
in opposition to Proposition 6, a November ballot measure
they said “offers more of the same criminal justice policies
which have failed in the past.”
Prop 6 would create multiple new crimes and additional penalties, some with the possibility of a life sentence.
According to the state voter information guide, the measure
would require a minimum of $965 million annually from
the state’s general fund for police, sheriffs, district attorneys,
adult probation, jails and juvenile probation facilities.
The bishops said the measure is too focused on retribution, and not on what they call “restorative justice.
“As bishops, we seek justice, not vengeance,” the bishops
said in their Sept. 17 statement. “We seek a type of justice
which addresses crime in terms of harm done to victims and
communities, not simply as a violation of law.”
The bishops have called for an approach to criminal
justice that seeks to rehabilitate offenders and promotes
forgiveness and reconciliation.
“Our Church teaches us to not give up on those who
violate these laws,” the bishops said. “Despite their very different claims on society, the lives and dignity of both victims
and perpetrators should be protected and respected.”
Proponents say the measure, also known as the Safe
Neighborhoods Act, will reduce violent crime by imposing
tough new penalties, particularly for gang-related offenses.
Advocates for the initiative also say funding for temporary
detention centers will help alleviate jail overcrowding that leads
to early release. These facilities, typically abandoned county
jails, military complexes and schools, would be re-purposed as
jails while more expensive facilities are under construction.
In their statement, the bishops said proponents introduced the measure “in good faith” and address “legitimate
concerns.” Still, they argued the measure would not produce
safer communities.
“We encourage those who deal with criminal justice issues
in California to join with each other to craft a wise, humane
and effective policy for dealing with crime in our state,” the
bishops said. “Only by addressing the issue from the perspective of ‘restoration’ can our neighborhoods truly be safe.”
Public Square Rosary campaign again includes San Francisco
By Tom Burke
Catholics around the nation will pray the rosary together
Oct. 11 at locations including San Francisco’s United
Nations Plaza. The effort is called the Public Square Rosary
for America crusade.
“We want to storm heaven with our prayers,” said
Juanita Agcaoili, a member of St. Peter Parish in San
Francisco and now in her second year with the rosary
rally. Last year’s effort drew more than 200 people to the
San Francisco site. Agcaoili is hoping for 300 or more
this year.
“We begin the rosary at noon,” the rosary rally captain
said, noting that Father John Jimenez, chaplain at San
Francisco General Hospital, will lead the prayer. “I love the
Blessed Mother and she asks us to pray her prayer. Mary
will help us.”
Agcaoili has been saying the rosary daily since her early
twenties. Her prayer regimen includes the five decades at
6:30 a.m. with KSFB 1260, Catholic Radio for the San
Francisco Bay Area, and additional recitations of the devotion in her travels.
“Wherever I go on the bus, at the doctors, I always have
my rosary with me,” Agcaoili, said. She said her regular
intentions include world peace, the homeless, and an end to
abortion and terrorism. The principal intention of the Oct.
11 event will be for people to return to the rosary as a daily
exercise, according to Agcaoili.
Last year, the San Francisco rally was one of more than
2,000 nationally, Agcaoili said, noting the hope is to equal
Election novena created by U.S. Catholic bishops
WASHINGTON (CNS) – The U.S. bishops are encouraging Catholics to pray a novena for life, justice and peace
before the November election. An Aug. 19 news release
said the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has made
available for download from the Internet a podcast of a
“Novena for Faithful Citizenship” at www.faithfulcitizen-
ship.org/resources/podcasts. It will be available until the
Nov. 4 election. The special novena is part of “the bishops’
campaign to help Catholics develop well-formed consciences
for addressing political and social questions,” said Joan
Rosenhauer, associate director of the USCCB’s Department
of Justice, Peace and Human Development.
St. Vincent de Paul Society to be featured
St. Vincent de Paul Society’s work with the poor, homeless and others in need is highlighted on the “For Heaven’s
Sake” TV program airing Sunday, Sept. 21, at 5:30 a.m. on
KRON-Channel 4.
Katherine McCarron of San Francisco’s St. Vincent de
Paul Society talks about the history of the 175-year-old
Catholic grassroots charity, which is best known for the
work of local conferences established at parishes, as well
as major programs here and around the world.
For Heaven’s Sake is produced by the San Francisco
Archdiocesan Office of Communications and KRONChannel 4.
Education
or exceed that number this year. The rally is sponsored by
the America Needs Fatima group of Topeka, Kan.
“Participants will proclaim their faith publicly, pray for
America, and send a clear message to secularists who want
to ban God from the public square,” said Francis Slobodnik
of America Needs Fatima. “There are rally captains in every
state and Puerto Rico. People are really excited about it and
momentum is snowballing.”
For more information, call (415) 647-7229. Website for
the campaign is www.americaneedsfatima.org.
Handicapables lunch Sept. 20
The Handicapables will meet for Mass and lunch in
a conference room of St. Mary’s Cathedral, Gough and
Geary Blvd. in San Francisco, Sept. 20 at noon. For
more information or to volunteer, call Jane Cunningham
at (415) 585-9085.
The organization seeks to enhance the spiritual,
physical and mental well-being of persons with disabilities.
California Handicapables, Inc. was founded in San
Francisco in 1965 by Nadine Calliguiri, a woman with
cerebral palsy. The organization now has branches in
the U.S., Europe and Asia.
In June, Calligiuri was honored by the Handicapables
affiliate in the San Jose Diocese at St. Joseph Cathedral
Basilica in San Jose.
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7
4 cardinals, 3 dozen bishops to attend Oakland cathedral blessing
(CNS PHOTO/GREG TARCZYNSKI)
(PHOTO BY JOHN BLAUSTEIN)
Bishop Allen H. Vigneron blesses
the crucifix in the ambo during a
ceremony at the Cathedral of
Christ the Light in Oakland Sept. 14.
The cathedral, under construction
since 2005, replaces St. Francis
de Sales, which was damaged
beyond repair in the 1989 Loma
Prieta earthquake. It will be
dedicated Sept. 25.
Vicki Nguyen pours water into the
baptismal font during the Sept. 14
blessing ceremony at the Cathedral
of Christ the Light in Oakland.
By Michael Vick
A crowd of 1,350 will gather with three dozen
bishops and four cardinals for the much-anticipated
dedication Mass for the new Cathedral of Christ the
Light in Oakland Sept. 25.
Bishop of Oakland Allen Vigneron will preside.
Among churchmen attending will be Cardinal
William Levada, prefect of the Congregation for
the Doctrine of the Faith and Archbishop Emeritus
of San Francisco; Cardinal Adam Maida of Detroit;
Cardinal Edmund Szoka, Archbishop Emeritus
of Detroit; and Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los
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Oakland, the new cathedral will replace the
Cathedral of St. Francis de Sales, irreparably
damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
Construction began on the $190 million project in
June 2005.
The dedication Mass will be invitation-only. The
first public Mass will be Sept. 28, Bishop Vigneron
presiding, with the full Mass schedule beginning
Sept. 29.
Weekday docent tours at 1 p.m. are scheduled to
begin Oct. 1. The diocese projects 200,000 annual
visitors. Groups can make arrangements through
the website: www.ctlcathedral.org.
(CNS PHOTO/GREG TARCZYNSKI)
The Oakland Diocese’s new Cathedral of Christ the Light will be dedicated Sept. 25.
8
September 19, 2008
Vatican Letter
At the Vatican, not all voices are created equal
By John Thavis
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – A provocative
article on whether brain death is true death
has illustrated once again the Vatican speaks
with many voices, not all of them equal.
The article appeared in early September
at the top of the front page of L’Osservatore
Romano, the official Vatican newspaper.
That’s a prime location in the complex
geography of Vatican media.
The author, Lucetta Scaraffia, argued
that the generally accepted practice of using
brain death as the criterion for declaring a
person dead was open to new challenges
and debate, both in the Church and in the
scientific community.
Such a debate could have deep repercussions in health care ethics, particularly
on the question of organs harvested from
brain-dead patients whose bodies continue
to function.
Within a couple of hours, the Vatican
spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi,
put some distance between the Vatican and
the article’s line of reasoning, saying the
content reflected the author’s views and not
the Church’s teaching.
In fact, previous statements by the
Pontifical Academy of Sciences and leading
Church officials have made it clear that the
Church recognizes brain death as “the true
criterion for death.”
So why was the Vatican’s own newspaper
questioning that? For one thing, it’s become
a real newspaper under new editorial leadership and is more willing to tackle issues that
were formerly off-limits.
Sometimes these salvos offer an early tip-
off of a coming trend. In January, a bishop
wrote in its pages that Catholics should show
reverence by receiving the Eucharist on the
tongue while kneeling.
The article caused a bit of an uproar and
some skepticism, but six months later this
form of receiving Communion became the
norm at papal liturgies.
Many journalists are in the habit of slapping a “Vatican says” label on anything even
faintly associated with Vatican City or the
Roman Curia. That’s often led to confusion
and illustrates a certain disconnect between
Church officials and modern media.
condemns condoms” and “Vatican rethinks
condom ban.”
On another hot topic, some media recently reported that Archbishop Raymond L.
Burke, head of the Vatican’s Supreme Court
of the Apostolic Signature, said that Catholic
politicians who support legal abortion should
not be given Communion.
Archbishop Burke made his views on
this issue well-known when he headed the
Archdiocese of St. Louis, but voicing them
as head of the Vatican’s highest tribunal
seemed to elevate them to a “Vatican says”
level. The problem was, he gave the inter-
“Many journalists are in the habit of slapping
a ‘Vatican says’ label on anything even faintly
associated with Vatican City …”
The Vatican holds to a fairly detailed
hierarchy of information that ranges from
papal proclamations on the high end to offhand comments from curial officials on the
low end. When translated into news stories,
however, such distinctions often fall by the
wayside.
One perennial area of confusion has been
the Church’s position on the use of condoms
to prevent the spread of AIDS. Although
there has never been an explicit Vatican
pronouncement on this specific issue – it
is, in fact, under study – various cardinals
and lesser-ranking prelates have weighed in,
generating headlines as disparate as “Vatican
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On foreign policy matters, the Vatican
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Officially, Vatican positions are enunciated
by the pope or the office of the Secretary of
State or through statements issued by the
Vatican press office.
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Holy See know they also must comb the
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bellwether.
Not everything is vetted, however.
Vatican officials are human, and sometimes
a microphone is hard to pass up. In 2003,
a diplomatic repair job was necessary after
Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the
Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace,
criticized U.S. forces for treating Saddam
Hussein “like a cow” when he was captured
and added, by the way, that the Iraq War had
been useless.
After a U.S. complaint to the Secretariat
of State, a high Vatican official called
selected journalists and said, not for attribution, that Cardinal Martino was not reflecting
the Vatican’s views.
Even when Pope Benedict XVI speaks, of
course, it’s not always with full papal authority. In question-and-answer sessions with
priests, he sometimes prefaces his remarks
by emphasizing that he’s only offering them
pastoral advice, not infallible directions.
One of the most unusual papal disclaimers came in Pope Benedict’s 2007 book,
“Jesus of Nazareth.” In his preface, the
pope said the book should not be read as an
expression of official Church teaching, but
as the fruits of his personal research.
It was no doubt one of the few times a pope
has said “anyone is free to contradict me.”
John Thavis
is Rome
Bureau Chief
for Catholic
News Service.
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9
Conference spotlights thorny end-of-life questions
Nancy Valko, one of three speakers at the Sept. 13 Endof-Life Issues Conference held at St. Mary’s Cathedral
in San Francisco, came to the field of bioethics through
deep personal tragedy. In 1982, Valko gave birth to her
daughter Karen, born with Down syndrome and a rare
heart defect.
Valko’s doctor gave the child only two months to live,
saying the defect was so severe it seemed inoperable.
She refused to accept the prognosis, and decided to use
her training as a nurse to research other alternatives. She
found a surgery that could correct the defect that had a
90 percent chance of success.
Reviewing the surgery, the doctor agreed, but made it
clear to Valko he would support her either way.
“Either way for what?” Valko asked. She then realized
the doctor would approve of withholding treatment, not
because it had no potential for success, but because her
child had Down syndrome.
Just months before Karen’s birth, a similar case made
headlines. A child with Down syndrome, nicknamed
“Baby Doe,” was refused treatment at the request of the
parents for tracheoesophageal fistula, an abnormal connection between the trachea and the esophogus.
Then Surgeon General C. Everett Koop ignited controversy when he said the child was denied treatment not
because the surgery was risky, but because the baby had
Down syndrome.
These events still fresh in her mind, Valko refused to
follow suit. She had always been pro-life, and would not
abandon her child. Karen died less than six months after
birth from pneumonia-related complications, but Valko
said in that six months her daughter set her down a course
that would last the rest of her life.
Valko spoke at length about her clinical experience,
relating it to issues of abortion, euthanasia and brain death.
One of her patients, 17-year-old Mike, was involved in an
accident and had broken nearly every bone in his body.
“He’s the only patient I’ve ever seen with a blood pressure of 300 over zero,” Valko said.
Valko took an interest in Mike, despite his doctor’s protestation that the boy was a brain-dead “vegetable.” After
spending time with him, she could get him to move his
finger and say hello, but for reasons unknown to her at the
time, he would not do the same in front of the doctor.
She finally got him to repeat the actions for fellow
nurses and then the doctor, who was astonished. Mike
recovered. Months later he came to thank Valko for saving
his life. When she asked him why he refused for so long
(PHOTO BY MICHAEL VICK/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
By Michael Vick
to respond in front of the doctor, he said he remembered
the man calling him a “vegetable.”
These and other experiences taught her not to give up
on comatose patients. Valko said this should raise concern
regarding current organ donation protocols. For years the
total cessation of all brain function has been used as a
criterion to declare people dead. Valko said that while she
supports organ donor programs, it is important to examine
the use of brain death as a criterion, given the number of
cases where patients regain consciousness.
Other issues discussed at the day-long conference
included:
• A talk on the legislative efforts of the California
Catholic Conference, the lobbying arm of the state’s
Catholic bishops. Carol Hogan, CCC director of communications and pastoral projects, related the history
of euthanasia laws in the United States, with particular
emphasis on California. Hogan spoke of the continued
need to resist the recently passed AB 2747, called a
“stealth assisted suicide” bill by opponents, which has
not yet been signed into law.
• Discussion of the hospice movement, an effort to
improve the lives of persons nearing death without hastening their death. Mary Schembri, director of parish and
community response with Catholic Charities CYO, spoke
about the need for “comfort, care and symptom management to help patients live intensely the final experience of
their lives.” Schembri also discussed advance directives,
instructions given by individuals specifying what actions
should be taken for their health in the event they are no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity.
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people, was largely positive. Evaluation forms handed out
to nurses attending the conference for course credit rated
most aspects of the event highly. Many suggested topics
for future conferences, including more focus on abortion
issues and practical discussion about how to write advance
directives.
Delores Meehan, co-founder of Walk for Life West
Coast, said she found the talks engaging and informative.
“How refreshing to hear front-line testimony that the
trend toward forcing us to exit life before our Creator
ordains it is wrong, and more importantly, unnecessary,”
Meehan said.
The event was sponsored by the Respect Life Program
of the archdiocesan Office of Public Policy and Social
Concerns. For more information, contact the program
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10
September 19, 2008
Pope highlights liturgical excellence during trip to France
By John Thavis
(CNS PHOTO/REGIS DUVIG NAU, REUTERS)
VATICAN CITY (CNS) – One of the
subthemes of Pope Benedict XVI’s Sept.
12-15 visit to France was liturgical excellence, a lifelong concern of the German
pontiff that has carried over into his papal
agenda.
The pope didn’t zero in on specific
liturgical problems in France, but he
repeatedly reminded his audiences in Paris
and Lourdes why quality matters when it
comes to worship.
Analysis
Speaking Sept. 12 in Notre Dame
Cathedral, which he called “a living
hymn of stone and light,” the pope used
the setting to illustrate the Christian
community’s age-old effort to reach for
splendor when praying to God.
“Certainly, the beauty of our celebrations can never be sufficiently cultivated,
fostered and refined, for nothing can be
too beautiful for God, who is himself
infinite beauty,” he said.
But he said Church liturgies should be
carried out to offer, as closely as possible,
“a foretaste” of eternal salvation.
The same evening, speaking to
academics about the contributions of
monastic culture, he singled out singing
and chant as outstanding forms of prayer,
Pope Benedict XVI raises the host during a Mass for the sick at the Marian
sanctuaries of Lourdes, France, Sept. 15. During his Sept. 12-15
trip to France he underscored good liturgical practice.
particularly for some books of Scripture
like the Psalms.
“For prayer that issues from the word
of God, speech is not enough: Music is
required,” he said. For the Church, it’s
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an opportunity to “sing with the angels”
and lead the word to its highest destination, he said.
But liturgical singing, as the monks
knew well, demands excellence, the pope
said. Such song is measured according
to the very highest standards because, in
communal prayer, “one is singing in the
presence of the entire heavenly court,”
he said.
The pope said the importance of
monastic singing was illustrated by a
remark St. Bernard made about the poor
singing of monks: that a badly executed
chant actually made the community more
remote from God.
The pope went on to say the idea
of speaking with God through song is
what gave rise to the great tradition of
Western music. “It was not a form of private ‘creativity,’ in which the individual
leaves a memorial to himself and makes
self-representation his essential criterion,”
he said.
“Rather it is about vigilantly recognizing with the ‘ears of the heart’ the inner
laws of the music of creation, the archetypes of music that the Creator built into
his world and into men,” he said.
At Lourdes, the pope spoke in sermons
about the importance of recognizing the
real presence of Christ in the Eucharist
and the effect that should have on liturgical practice.When Catholics contemplate
the sacred host, they meditate on Christ
past, present and future, he said.
“We contemplate what we shall
contemplate in eternity, where we shall
discover that the whole world has been
carried by its Creator during every second
of its history,” he said.
“That is why we receive him with
infinite respect,” he said.
Pope Benedict, who relaxed restrictions on the use of the Tridentine rite a
year ago, told reporters on his way to
France that the new Mass approved after
the Second Vatican Council remains the
“normal” liturgy for the church.
The pope’s own liturgies in France,
as in Rome, have followed the new rite,
but they have also introduced traditional
touches, such as placement of the cross in
the center of the altar.
Another change in Roman liturgies
also is being used on papal trips: In Paris
and Lourdes, those receiving Communion
from the pope received the host on the
tongue while kneeling.
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Catholic
san Francisco
(PHOTO BY DAN MORRIS-YOUNG/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
The Porziuncola
Chapel at the
National Shrine of
St. Francis of Assisi
in San Francisco
(left) will be
completed by its
formal blessing
day, Sept. 27.
It is a scaled-down
replica of the
small church near
Assisi Italy which
St. Francis himself
helped renovate
and which today
(above) sits within
the Basilica of
Santa Maria degli
Angeli, about three
miles from Assisi.
Blessing of the Porziuncola Shrine
at the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi
San Francisco – September 27, 2008
Archbishop George H. Niederauer, principal celebrant
Cardinal William J. Levada, presiding
S2
September 19, 2008
Archbishop Niederauer
An Oasis of Benediction: May St. Francis
give us his peace … and his challenge
The Shrine of St. Francis stands at one the busiest and most colorful intersections of San
Francisco. East meets West as Italian and Chinese restaurants compete to attract the steady
stream of tourists who wander through North Beach. The nearby church of Sts. Peter and
Paul is graced with a large public square. The Shrine boasts no such amenities. It is right
in the thick of things.
I suspect that this is exactly where St. Francis would want the Porziuncola to be. His
life was memorable in many ways, but perhaps his most audacious act was to preach the
Gospel in the town square. Before Francis, if you wanted to hear the message of Christ,
you went to church. This was easy to do in Catholic Italy. Churches large and small could
be found on nearly every block. But Francis realized that, although the Good News could
be heard only a few steps away, some found it difficult to cross the threshold. His solution
was breathtakingly simple: he and his companions would proclaim the Gospel in the town
square, where people went about their daily chores.
With the opening of the Porziuncola Chapel, the gentle hand of St. Francis reaches
out to offer passersby and pilgrims a moment of peace in their hectic day. He knows that
they might be hesitant to climb the stairs and enter the beautiful church of St. Francis, but
the humble Porziuncola right on the street may help them overcome their hesitations. It is
an Oasis of Benediction planted in the midst of swirling traffic, café chatter, and tourists
consulting maps to get their bearings.
One of the saint’s favorite blessings was, “May the Lord give you his peace.” And that
peace is what the Porziuncola Chapel embodies.
But there is more. It is said that the purpose of the Gospel is twofold: to comfort the
afflicted, and to afflict the comfortable. With that in mind, we might also see this humble
chapel as a challenge. In the words of the great American poet, Vachel Lindsay:
Would I might wake St. Francis in you all,
Brother of birds and trees, God’s Troubadour,
Blinded with weeping for the sad and poor;
Our wealth undone, all strict Franciscan men,
Come, let us chant the canticle again
Of mother earth and the enduring sun.
God make each soul the lonely leper’s slave.
May St. Francis give us his peace … and his challenge to our complacency.
Archbishop George Niederauer visits the Porziuncola Chapel to check
on progress of the construction project earlier this summer.
Most Rev. George H. Niederauer
Archbishop of San Franicsco
Best Wishes and God Bless You
upon the Dedication and Blessing of the Beautiful Porziuncola
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A Tradition of Faith Throughout Our Lives.
September 19, 2008
S3
A reflection by Cardinal William Levada
Already a year before the city of San Francisco was
formally incorporated on April 18, 1850, the Church of
St. Francis of Assisi opened its doors in welcome. With
the 1849 Gold Rush, the sleepy town of San Francisco
with its 450 or so inhabitants ballooned overnight to
several thousand souls, each coming to San Francisco
searching for new prosperity and a secure future for
themselves and their families.
St. Francis was the first parish church in the city preceded only by Mission Dolores. Officially named Misión
San Francisco de Asís, the Mission had been founded in
1776 by Father Francisco Palou and supported by Blessed
Junipero Serra. (Even then it was commonly known as
Mission Dolores due to the proximity of the nearby creek
Arroryo de los Dolores. It is from the Mission, of course,
that our beloved City and Bay take their names.)
In this city of immigrants, a city which in many
ways epitomized the tumultuous energy of the “Wild
West,” that little Church of St. Francis must have been
a welcome oasis of peace — a place of quiet and prayer
for Catholics and for all San Franciscans who sought a
moment to recollect themselves before God.
In the intervening years as San Francisco grew up
around it, the Church of St. Francis would play an
important role in the life of the Catholic community. San
Francisco’s first bishop, Archbishop Joseph Alemany,
would designate the church his pro-Cathedral for three
years prior to the construction of St. Mary’s Cathedral
on California Street.
In 1852, Archbishop Alemany ordained Father John
Quinn to the priesthood in St. Francis Church, which
would have been the first priestly ordination in the new
State of California.
The Church ministered to the various communities
of immigrants as well. While Mass was celebrated in
Latin, preaching and pastoral services were conducted
in English, Spanish, Italian and French, allowing parish- Cardinal William Levada, center, toured the Porziuncola construction site earlier this summer with archdiocesan
ioners of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds to practice
attorney Larry Jannuzzi and Angela Alioto who heads up the National Shrine of St. Francis Renaissance Project.
their faith.
Prefect of the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and Archbishop emeritus of San Francisco,
Generations of Catholics have worshipped at St.
Cardinal Levada will preside at the Sept. 27 blessing of the Porziuncola.
Francis Church, expanding it and embellishing it with
beautiful artistic expressions of faith. The church was
completely rebuilt after the 1906 earthquake and fire, and Shrine continues to offer a rich experience of liturgy and residents of North Beach. The project also must look to
the shrines, windows and murals added in the subsequent worship, inviting the faithful through the sacraments of the preservation of such a treasure, and so funds will be
years would ensure that the church remained a place of reconciliation and Holy Eucharist to receive God’s grace raised to ensure the seismic stability of the buildings as
beauty and reflection in the heart of San Francisco.
well as enhance the exterior and interior architecture
and nourish their faith.
When I arrived in San Francisco in 1995 to become
Throughout my years as Archbishop of San Francisco, and artwork.
its seventh Archbishop, I was sad to learn that St. Francis I had been in regular contact with longtime Shrine supThese brick-and-mortar projects, while important,
Church, despite its vibrant history and contribution to porter, Angela Alioto. Our conversations often focused do not express the heart of the Shrine’s mission, and
the faith of so many, had been closed in
so the ongoing Renaissance Project will
the aftermath of the 1989 Loma Prieta
support religious, artistic, educational and
earthquake and because of the changing
cultural programs at the National Shrine so
‘We hoped to create a
demographics in that part of the City.
that it might truly be an international center
I hoped there would be some way in
that expresses the life of St. Francis and
place where Catholics
which the Archdiocese could preserve
Franciscan spirituality.
this important piece of our Catholic
This is an exciting moment in the life of
and all people of good
heritage, and so, after consulting with
the Archdiocese of San Francisco and the
various people and organizations and
National Shrine. It is my hope and prayer
will would feel
sensing a continued interest in St. Francis
that these celebrations dedicating the new
Church, I re-opened the church on Feb.
Porziuncola may be an invitation for people
22, 1998, dedicating it as a Shrine for the
to come and discover this spiritual center in
spiritually at home.’
Archdiocese of San Francisco.
the heart of San Francisco. I urge everyone
Creating a Shrine for our diocese was,
to gather their families, parish prayer groups,
I hoped, a way to preserve this precious
friends and schools and make a pilgrimage to
piece of our Catholic identity as well as promote devotion on ways of making the National Shrine of St. Francis the National Shrine of St. Francis.
to our patron, St. Francis.
God has blessed us with the life and ministry of his
a true spiritual “center” of San Francisco — a place
The following year, the National Conference of where not only tourists would come to experience a servant Francis, and with pioneering men and women
Catholic Bishops (now the U.S. Conference of Catholic beautiful and historical piece of our City, but where the who began building this testimony to their faith 159
Bishops) granted the Church of St. Francis the title of spirit of our great patron St. Francis would be alive. We years ago. I am sure that you will find at the Shrine of
National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi. This decision hoped to create a place where Catholics and all people St. Francis — as they did — a place of prayer, a place
by the bishops of the United States was an affirmation of of good will would feel spiritually at home. In 2006, the of pilgrimage, and a place of peace.
the Shrine’s contribution to the growth and support of the Renaissance Project was born to bring the Shrine to its
faith in California, as well as a way to honor St. Francis, true potential.
ensuring that his principal shrine in our country would
The dedication of the Porziuncola chapel is the first
be located in the city which bears his name.
phase of the Renaissance Project, which is, I suppose,
As a national shrine, the Church of St. Francis con- a not-too-subtle way of saying that we have work yet
Cardinal William Levada
tinues to offer a place of prayer and peace to many visi- ahead of us. The project also envisions the creation of a
Prefect,
tors, pilgrims and residents of San Francisco, inviting all Piazza San Francesco, a gathering place in front of the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith
people of good will to encounter the love and beauty of Shrine made by converting a portion of Vallejo Street
The Vatican
God reflected in the beauty of this house of worship. The into open space for visitors, pilgrims and, of course, the
ITALIAN – AMERICAN
COMMUNITY SERVICES AGENCY
The Mater Dolorosa Community
joins Cardinal William J. Levada &
Archbishop George H. Niederauer
in prayer when they preside over
the dedication and blessing of the
Porziuncola on September 27, 2008
Casa Fugazi
678 Green Street
San Francisco
California 94133
Tel. 415.362.6423 Fax 415.362.3565
www.italiancommunityservices.org
The spirit of the Porziuncola is alive in California
at San Damiano Retreat in Danville.
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At the heart of the Shrine’s mission: St. Francis’ spirituality
S4
September 19, 2008
Behind the scenes
Porziuncola Nuova: a great privilege for San Francisco
By Angela Alioto
Vice chair, Renaissance Restoration Project
Angela Alioto, vice chair
of the Renaissance
Project of the National
Shrine of St. Francis of
Assisi and the moving
force behind the
construction of the
Porziuncola Shrine,
displays the key
to the chapel.
Since the first day I arrived at the train station in
Assisi, as a 14-year-old learning Italian in Florence, I
immediately felt the love, compassion, joy and sorrow of
our patron saint, Francis of Assisi, better known to me,
my children and now my grandchildren as “Francesco.”
Since that summer in 1965, I have been fortunate enough
to return to Assisi every Aug. 2, for more than 40 years,
with the exception of the year I ran for mayor of San
Francisco and the year my husband died.
At age 18 in Florence I became a tertiary Franciscan
(SFO); that means I am a member of Francesco’s Third
Order. He was a genius. He understood the immense value
of secular members who want to try and live a Franciscan
life, but also be married, have children, and live and work
in a secular world.
By age 24, I had four children – Angela Mia, Adolfo,
Joseph and Gianpaolo. We lived and still do, in Fregene,
Roma every summer. So, on Aug. 2 I would get all the kids
in the car and go get Francesco’s pardon at his favorite
little place in the world, the Porziuncola, in Santa Maria
Degli Angeli, Assisi.
When you enter the door of the little Porziuncola, you
are pardoned of all of your sins – so I thought the sign
outside meant when I was a kid. So, of course I would go
in and out and in and out of the door, several times. Years
later I would have my children do the same, especially
my son Joe!
One night in 1216, Francesco was deep in prayer in
the Porziuncola and a great light appeared with our Lord
and our lady and the angels surrounding the altar. Our
Lord asked Francesco, “What do you want, Francesco?”
And Francesco responded, “I want everyone to go to
paradise, so I want that every person who comes to this
little Porziuncola, who repents and confesses their sins
to be pardoned of all” so that they can go to paradise.
Up until this time in 1216, one had to travel to the Holy
Land to receive such a grace and pardon. Our Lord
granted Francesco’s wish – as is inscribed above the front
door of the Porziuncola: our Lord’s four words in Latin,
Petitiodem Tuam Francisce Admitto, “Your petition is
granted, Francesco.”
Every Aug. 1, I go to Assisi and prepare for the pardon which means: 1) visit the Porziuncola 2) celebrate
the sacrament of confession 3) take Communion 3) say
prayers, the Our Father, the Creed , the Hail Mary and a
prayer for the Pope. (On Pages 6S and 7S see an article
on the plenary indulgence available to visitors to the local
Porziuncola replica.)
When you enter the large basilica of Santa Maria
During the construction
of the Porziuncola
replica at the National
Shrine of St. Francis,
Angela Alioto has been
nearly a daily presence.
Here she reveals the
words that greet
pilgrims who enter:
Hic Locus Sanctus Est
(“This is a holy place”).
degli Angeli, you see the little humble Porziuncola in dinary little Porziuncola Nuova, but also the Pardon,
the middle of the nave. Its humility is obvious. The every day of the year. Makes my heart skip a beat. The
basilica has about 20 to 25 altars (never counted them). incredible Pardon granted by Pope Benedict XVI through
On Aug. 1 and 2, every altar has at least one priest, usu- our Cardinal William Levada and our Archbishop George
ally two, hearing the confessions of us penitents. The Niederauer on Aug. 2, 2008, grants three days of pardon at
lines are always very long. An average of 25,000 people our Porziuncola – Aug. 2, Oct. 4 (the feast of Francesco)
every year go through the
and any one day the devoted
Basilica on these two days.
person wishes throughout
The friars all speak at least
the year! Phenomenal! To
two languages. There are It never fails to amaze me – the
someone like me who has
signs indicating languages
lived the beauty of the pardon
so one can get in the right thousands of young people
for 85 percent of my life, it’s
line. The atmosphere is one
a surreal concept that such
who stop and kneel, always
of contemplation.
an amazing privilege is right
After confession I always
here in our City in our Nuova
go inside the Porziuncola and leaving with a smile, having
Porziuncola. The “Nuova
pray. The number of people
Porziuncola’s Pardon” also
who pass, the incredible experienced just a few moments
has a daily three-month
differences in their shoes
period starting on Sept. 27
(since my eyes are looking at
until the end of this year.
of the saint they call Poverello
the floor) tell one about the
We are so very, very fortuincredible diversity in their
nate to have the Porziuncola
lives, but all the differences (poor little man)
in our City, recognized by the
disappear in their same love
pope and carrying the Pardon
of Francesco, our Lord and
of Assisi that Francesco
our lady. It never fails to amaze me – the thousands of asked for almost 800 years ago. To quote Francesco,
young people who stop and kneel, always leaving with “Welcome, good people” to a life of Pax et Bonum in
a smile, having experienced just a few moments of the Francesco’s American City, San Francisco.
saint they call Poverello (poor little man).
(For more information on the Renaissance Project
Now, with the opening of our Porziuncola in San of the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, visit
Francisco on Sept. 27, we will have not only the extraor- www.shrinerenewal.org.)
'3"/$*4$"/ '3*"34
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Pax
et
Bonum
Congratulations
and
Prayerful Good Wishes
to the
Shrine of
on the dedication
of the
Porziuncola
The Church of the Nativity
Menlo Park - California
September 19, 2008
S5
St. Francis’ conversions: III
Saint embraced the leper;
later he became the ‘leper’;
at end, Christ embraced him
(Following is the third in a series of reflections on the
life of St. Francis of Assisi provided by the Archdiocesan
Worship Commission.)
Francis had been a troubadour as a youth. His songs of
courtly love echoed through the piazzas of Assisi. After his
conversion he sang songs to a new mistress, “Lady Poverty.”
For 16 years he walked the roads of Italy, journeyed to Spain
and even, on two occasions, visited the Holy Land. (With
his customary directness, Francis requested an audience
with the Muslim sultan. He thought that if he could just tell
him about Jesus he would convert, and all these crusades
could be avoided!)
Francis’ joy sustained him, even in the midst of
exhaustion, illness, and misunderstanding, and it must
have been contagious. The Fioretti (“Little Flowers of
St. Francis”), among the most popular books ever written, convey something of the simple charm that radiated
from St. Francis.
But the saint who laughed also wept. He was moved by
the beauty of creation, by the pain of others, and above all
by the Passion of Christ. He could not think of our Lord’s
sufferings without weeping. It was Christ crucified who had
told him, “Rebuild my Church,” and the cross was never far
from Francis’ thoughts. There are two seemingly contradictory images of the saint: the joyful wanderer singing the
beauties of creation, the mournful penitent weeping over
the sufferings of Christ.
G. K. Chesterton points out that, while paradoxical, these
images are not contradictory: “The whole point about St.
Francis of Assisi is that he certainly was ascetical and he
certainly was not gloomy.”
The “new madness” Francis preached was in reality the
very ancient folly of the cross about which St. Paul had
written to the Corinthians: “We preach Christ crucified, a
stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those
who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of
God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is
wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than
men.” (1 Cor 1:23-25)
CONVERSIONS: III, page S9
of the Porziun
g
n
i
s
cola
s
e
l
B he National Shrine
t
of
at
St. Francis
The St. Brendan
Catholic community
WELCOMES
this marvelous
blessing to the
Archdiocese
and to the city of
San Francisco
“The Death of St. Francis” by Italian fin-de-siècle painter
and illustrator Luigi Brusatori, completed about 1920, is
one of the murals depicting the life of the beloved saint
at the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi Church.
“Make me an instrument of your peace.”
– PRAYER OF ST. FRANCIS
Bishop Allen Vigneron
and the Catholics of
the Diocese of Oakland
join in celebrating the
dedication of the Porziuncola.
May the prayers offered
in this little chapel help
bring peace to our world.
S6
September 19, 2008
September 19, 2008
S7
‘The Pardon of Assisi’
Church bestows plenary indulgence possibility for pilgrims to the Porziuncola
A
The connection between the Porziuncola and indulgences goes back to the time of St. Francis. The celebration provides an opportunity to appreciate the much-misunderstood doctrine of indulgences.
First, we should recall how important this little church
near Assisi was to St. Francis. The abandoned chapel
of Our Lady of the Angels was one of the sacred buildings restored by Francis after he heard Christ tell him,
“Francis, rebuild my Church.” It was in this church that
he heard the Gospel passage that inspired him to abandon
all his possessions and devote his life to preaching the
Good News.
Here he welcomed St. Clare when she expressed a
desire to live a life of complete poverty, and it was here
that Francis himself died.
The Poor Man of Assisi owned nothing (the
Porziuncola belonged to Benedictine monks, and Francis
paid a “rent” of one fish a year for its use), but free of
possessions though he was, Francis deeply loved this
little chapel.
There is an ancient tradition that in the year 1216
Francis made an audacious request of the newly-elected
pope, Honorius III: that anyone who prayed in the chapel of Our Lady of the Angels could receive a plenary
indulgence. The pope acceded to Francis’ request, with
the stipulation that this indulgence could be obtained only
on the anniversary of the dedication of the chapel (Aug.
2). In later centuries, the privilege of the Porziuncola
Indulgence was extended to all Franciscan churches, and
later still to every parish church on Aug. 2.
What does the indulgence mean, and why did St.
Francis ask for it?
At right, St. Francis
asks Pope Honorius III
to grant the “Porziuncola
Indulgence” in this
detail of a fresco by
Ilario da Viterbo (1393)
on the apse of the
Porziuncola Chapel, Assisi.
The replicated chapel in
San Francisco will include
a reproduction of this
14th century masterpiece.
Above, the saint is
portrayed sharing the
good news of the
granting of the indulgence.
and sacrifices. It is true that the practice of granting
indulgences led at times to abuses, but the doctrine
itself is both sound and biblical. It is simply a concrete
expression of the commandment of St. Paul: “Bear one
another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal
First, we must be clear that the granting of an indul6:2; see 1 Cor 12:26).
gence has nothing to do with the forgiveness of sin. God
In the time of St. Francis it was possible for someforgives us when we are truly sorry for our sins, and
one to receive a total remission of penance (a plenary
Christ instituted the sacrament of reconciliation as the
indulgence) in several ways. The most common was
ordinary means by which our sins are forgiven.
to make
a pilgrimage to one of the important
If God forgives us freely, why must we do penance?
shrines of Christendom. Such journeys
Not to obtain forgiveness, but to undo the harmful effects
were not made in air-conditioned
of sin on ourselves and others. We might think of sin
buses, with occasional stops at souveas a kind of spiritual pollution. Works of
nir stands. They were long, dangerous
generosity restore the spiritual
and costly. Ordinarily, poor people
environment that has
could afford neither the time nor the
been damaged
expense to undertake a pilgrimage.
by selfishness.
It was these people Francis had
Prayer, fasting
in mind when he made his bold
and works of
request.
mercy are traHere is how Pope Benedict
ditional forms of
XVI explained the matter sevpenance, and have
eral years ago: “Francis, who
always been central
had discovered the poor and
to Christian disciplepoverty itself, was urged
ship.
in his request by concern
In the first centufor those persons who
ries of the Christian
did not have the means
era, the regimen of
or the strength to make
penance was arduous.
a pilgrimage to the
Christians who confessed
Holy Land; those who
serious failings entered
could not give anything
into a time of prayer and
except their faith,
fasting that could extend
their prayers, their
for years. Only at the end
willingness to live
of this time were they rectheir very situation
onciled to the Church and
of poverty accordpermitted to approach the altar
ing to the Gospel.
to receive the Eucharist. The
In this sense,
pattern of confession – penance
the indulgence
– reconciliation was changed in
of Porziuncola is
the Middle Ages to the sequence
the penitence of those who
with which we are familiar: conare already afflicted, on whom life itself
fession – reconciliation – penance.
imposes penitence enough. Without doubt an interiThis arrangement puts the emphasis
orization of the very concept of penitence was implied,
on contrition, not the penance. We
and even if the necessary and accepted visible expression
recognize that we have failed in love
of God or
of it was lacking, a pilgrimage to the simple and humble
neighbor, turn to the Lord in sorrow, and receive his
site of the Porziuncola was also an encounter with the
forgiveness. The penance we perform is undertaken to
radicality of Gospel as Francis himself had experienced
undo the effects of our selfishness. More time in prayer
it in that place.”
or works of charity direct our attention to God and others,
This greater interiority of penance must be coupled
instead of ourselves.
with a catholicity of
What, then, is an
outlook; otherwise the
indulgence? It is an act
penance we perform
by which the Church It is true that the practice of granting
can become yet another
mitigates a person’s
penance in virtue of indulgences led at times to abuses, but the expression of self-centeredness. We should
our shared membership
do penance not only
in the Body of Christ. doctrine itself is both sound and biblical.
for ourselves, but for
In the early centuries
others. Pope Benedict
a Christian who had
makes this point very
denied the faith during
succinctly: “In the spiritual field, everything belongs to
persecution was required to perform a rigorous penance.
everyone. There is no private property. The good of one
Another Christian enduring imprisonment or awaiting
becomes mine, and mine becomes his.”
execution could offer his or her sufferings on behalf of
First, spiritual goods come from everyone. Ultimately, of
the weaker member, whose penance was lightened or
course, they come to us from Christ, but often he shares them
lifted altogether. We might think of a penance as the
with us through the other members of His Body, the Church.
medicine prescribed by the Church for the healing of
The martyrs who at one time supported others through their
one of her members, and an indulgence is a lessening
sufferings continue to assist us. In the communion of saints,
of the dose, based on that individual’s frailty and the
PARDON OF ASSISI, page S9
ability of Christians to help one another by their prayers
(PHOTO BY CNS)
t the dedication of the “Porziuncola Chapel” at the National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi, Cardinal William
Levada will announce the granting of a plenary indulgence to pilgrims who visit the shrine and fulfill the
customary requirements for obtaining the indulgence. (See inset box for particulars.)
Requirements
for obtaining
Porziuncola
Indulgence
The faithful who visit the Porziuncola Chapel
of the National Shrine of St. Francis at any time
during the three months following its dedication on
Sept. 27 may obtain a plenary indulgence, which
may be applied to themselves or to one of the
faithful departed.
In addition, in the future a plenary indulgence
may also be gained by those who visit the Shrine
on Aug. 2 (the anniversary of the dedication of the
original Porziuncola); Oct. 4 (the solemnity of St.
Francis); and on one other day in the year, chosen
by the individual. Those who come to the Shrine
as part of an organized pilgrimage may also obtain
a plenary indulgence.
The requirements to be met to receive the
indulgence are:
1. To spend time in prayer at the Porziuncola
Chapel, and recite the Lord’s Prayer and
Creed.
2. To celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation
within a week or so of making this pilgrimage.
3. To receive Holy Communion within this time.
4. To pray for the intentions of the Holy Father.
(There are no specific prayers required.)
5. To be free of any attachment to sin, even
venial sin. This is perhaps the most challenging requirement; however, if one still has
some attachment to sin the indulgence would
be partial, not plenary. A plenary indulgence
can remove all the temporal punishment due
to forgiven sin.
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dedication of the Porziuncola
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S8
September 19, 2008
Following is an English translation of the decree from
the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary granting
permission for Cardinal Willian Levada to impart the papal
blessing (to which a plenary indulgence is attached) on the
occasion of the dedication of the Porziuncola Chapel.
Following is an English translation of the decree
from the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary
granting a plenary indulgence to those who visit the
Porziuncola Chapel on certain occasions each year. See
Page 7S inset for additional information.
Following is an English translation of the decree
from the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary
granting a plenary indulgence to those who visit the
Porziuncola Chapel at any time within three months of
its dedication. See Page 7S for requirements.
APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY
Prot. N. 511/08/I
Prot. N. 510/08/I
Prot. N. 512/08/I
DECREE
DECREE
MOST HOLY FATHER,
THE APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY, by reason of
the faculties granted to it in the most special manner
by His Holiness in Christ, our Father and Lord, Pope
Benedict XVI, by Divine Providence, benignly grants to
His Eminence and Most Reverend Father, William Joseph
Levada, Cardinal Deacon of the Holy Roman Church,
Archbishop Emeritus of San Francisco in California,
Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,
that he might bestow on all the Christian faithful present on
the 27thday of the month of September in the year 2008,
at the consecration of the new “Porziuncola,” the national
Sanctuary of Saint Francis within the Archdiocese of San
Francisco in California, after having offered the divine
Sacrifice, and who, in a spirit completely removed from
the influence of sin, and who might be present for these
sacred rites, the papal Blessing with an attached plenary
Indulgence, after having completed the accustomed conditions (sacramental Confession, Eucharistic Communion
and Prayer for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff).
The Christian faithful who even though they are not
physically present for the sacred rites for reasonable circumstances, may devoutly receive the papal Blessing provided
that they are following the sacred rites by means of radio or
television broadcasts in their completion, may also receive
the plenary indulgence according to the norm of law.
All things to the contrary not withstanding.
Given at Rome at the offices of the Apostolic Penitentiary
on the 2nd day of August in the year of the Lord’s Incarnation,
2008, in the pious memory of the Porziuncola.
THE APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY, in order to promote the religious practice of the faithful and for the salvation of souls, by reason of the faculties granted to it in the
most special manner by His Holiness in Christ, our Father
and Lord, Pope Benedict XVI, by Divine Providence, attentive to the request from the Most Excellent and Reverend
George H. Niederauer, having recently been named
Metropolitan Archbishop of San Francisco in California,
benignly grants from the celestial treasury of the Church the
gaining of a plenary Indulgence to each and every member
of the Christian faithful which also can be applied to the
faithful souls detained in Purgatory through the manner of
judgement, if truly penitent, having confessed and received
Holy Communion, they devoutly visit the named shrine of
the “new Porziuncola” attached to the National Sanctuary of
St. Francis, and thereupon offer prayers to God and according to the intention of the Supreme Pontiff, concluding with
the Lord’s Prayer and the Profession of Faith: a. on August
2, on which date the Indulgence of the “Porziuncola” took
place; b. on October 4, the feast of St. Francis of Assisi; c.
once each year, on a date freely chosen by the individual
member of the faithful; d. for all pilgrims who have taken
part in a sacred pilgrimage.
The present decree will be valid in perpetuity with
due regard for any communication of Apostolic Letters in
Brief form. All things to the contrary not withstanding.
Given at Rome at the offices of the Apostolic Penitentiary
on the 2nd day of August in the year of the Lord’s Incarnation,
2008, in the pious memory of the Porziuncola.
JAMES FRANCIS CARDINAL STAFFORD
Major Penitentiary
Gianfranco Girotti, O.F.M., Conv.
Titular Bishop of Metensis, Regent
Major Penitentiary
Congratulations on the
Dedication & Blessing of the
Congratulations from
George Hugh Niederauer, Metropolitan Archbishop
of San Francisco in California, offers to Your Holiness
a humble and filial sense of profound veneration in the
name also of the presbyterate and faithful entrusted to his
pastoral care; and he reverently presents:
After long lasting labors, which indeed the faith and love
of the Christian population of all of California exemplifies,
on the upcoming September 27, the shrine named “the new
Porziuncola” will be solemnly consecrated as an attached
nationalsanctuary of St. Francis. At the pious celebration rightly
carried out in adoration of God and of Our Lord Jesus Christ,
and in honor of his Most Blessed Mother, the Christian faithful
will be rightly instructed concerning the spiritual matters.
By reason, moreover, of this sacred event in order that
the most important desired ends of sanctification may be
obtained, the Most Excellent Petitioner implores that the faithful who visit the new Porziuncola piously and who recite there
the Lord’s Prayer and the Creed, may be granted a plenary
Indulgence for three months from the ate of consecration.
And God, etc.
On August 2, 2008,
THE APOSTOLIC PENITENTIARY, by mandate
of the Supreme Pontiff, having complied freely with
the requests presented, concedes the petitioned plenary
Indulgence under the accustomed conditions (sacramental
confession, Eucharistic communion, prayers for the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff), indeed in a spirital together
removed from the influence for any sin.
The elderly, the sick, and all who cannot leave their
home for a grave cause, can equally obtain the plenary
Indulgence, having attested to the detestation of any sin,
and with the intention of observing, whenever it will be
immediately possible, the three customary conditions, if
they attach themselves spiritually to the solemn celebrations or the pious visitations, and with their own prayers
of sorrow and acceptance of the mercy of God received
through Mary.
The present concession will be valid for this event. All
things to the contrary minimally not withstanding.
PORZIUNCOLA
This replica of the little chapel
will be a source of reflection &
inspiration for the many who will visit.
“THE OTHER
ST. FRANCIS OF ASSISI CHURCH”
in East Palo Alto, the southernmost
end of the Archdiocese.
From Bishops Brown, Luong and McFarland,
the clergy, religious and laity of the
Diocese of Orange, California
?
?
October 4th will be a big day for us too
as we give our saint his due
with a multi-lingual, multi-cultural
celebration Friday, Saturday & Sunday.
United in our devotion to this great saint
we look forward to visiting the new shrine.
Major Penitentiary
Apostolic Penitentiary?
The Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary,
formerly Sacred Penitentiary, is one of three tribunals
of the Holy See. It is a tribunal of mercy, which deals
primarily with matters of the internal forum, such as
lifting excommunications and dispensing from sacramental impediments. It is also the body responsible for
granting of indulgences.
September 19, 2008
Conversions: III . . .
■ Continued from page S5
All that Francis had given up – possessions, status, security – he had given
up for the sake of Christ, who had called
him to take up his cross and follow him.
Francis let everything else go so that he
could embrace the cross. Toward the end of
his life, he in turn was embraced by Christ
crucified in a remarkable way.
Francis’ final years were particularly
difficult. He saw the leadership of his community taken from his hands, and his “little
brothers” were heading in a direction not to
his liking. He was afflicted with a painful
disease of the eyes, and even more painful
– and useless – remedies.
In 1224 he retired to Mount Laverna for
a lengthy retreat. On Sep. 14, the Feast of
the Exaltation of the Cross, Francis underwent a profound and mysterious event.
He himself would not speak about it, but
it was an encounter with the Passion of
Christ so intense that it left the marks of
the Crucified on his body.
What St. Paul had ardently desired
was Francis’ own longing, too: “Indeed
I count everything as loss because of the
surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus
my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the
loss of all things … that I may know him
and the power of his resurrection, and may
share in his sufferings, becoming like him
in his death, that if possible I may attain
the resurrection from the dead.” (Phil 3:
7-10)
“Becoming like him in his death, that
if possible I may attain the resurrection
from the dead”: if there is a “secret” to
the life of St. Francis, this is it. On Mount
Laverna Christ fulfilled Francis’ hopes in a
way beyond his wildest expectations. This
embrace by the Crucified was to carry the
Poor Man of Assisi from this world to the
glory of heaven.
Did the reception of the stigmata make
Francis indifferent to this passing world?
No. It was after this event that he wrote his
beautiful “Canticle of Brother Sun”; and
he intervened to make peace between the
quarreling bishop and mayor of Assisi. He
still traveled from town to town to preach,
although his poor health made it necessary
for him to be carried on a donkey. But the
experience on the mountain was the climactic moment in Francis’ journey of discipleship. He could follow his Master no more
closely here on earth.
In September 1226, the dying Troubadour
of God asked to be brought home to his
beloved “Little Portion,” the church of St.
Mary of the Angels which he had rebuilt as a
young man in the first fervor of his conversion.
The man who had owned nothing, but appreciated everything, sent word for a friend to come
from Rome – and to bring him some of the
delicious pastries she had made for him in the
past. Then, on the afternoon of Oct. 3, Francis
instructed his Brothers to remove all his clothing and lay him naked on the bare earth. In this
way he welcomed “Sister Death.”
Francis was well aware of the insight
of Job: “Naked I came from my mother’s
womb, and naked shall I return.” (Job 1:21)
He had stripped himself of all he possessed
years earlier in order to follow naked the
Lord who had stripped Himself of everything
out of love for him. Paradoxically, the less
Francis could call his own, the more he
rejoiced in the beauty of the creation which
he accepted as God’s gift to him. Now, he
died as he lived – owning nothing, yet for
that very reason closer to the earth; one with
every human being in our common nakedness; united to the Lord who had died naked
on the cross. Clothing not only protects, it
conveys status. It says something about who
we are. Francis had put all this aside. One
S9
Stefano Lazzari, chief fresco artist for the Chapel of the Porziuncola Shrine project,
and his crew place the interior fresco which depicts scenes of St. Francis’ life,
including his indulgence appeal to Pope Honorius III and his announcement
of the indulgence’s granting. See details on Page S6. The artwork
is a replica of the 1395 IIlario Di Viterbo Palla fresco.
thing only he could not take off: the marks of
the crucified Christ. These had not been put
on from without, like the clothes his father
had given him. They emerged from within,
from a heart on fire with love of God.
Francis of Assisi has inspired artists,
novelists and filmmakers; the simple drama
of his life makes him one of the most popular of saints. If you go on pilgrimage to his
Pardon of Assisi . . .
■ Continued from page S7
(PHOTO BY RICK DELVECCHIO/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
“… the holiness of one profits others, well beyond
the harm that the sin of one could cause others. Thus,
recourse to the communion of saints lets the contrite
sinner be more promptly and efficaciously purified of
the punishment for sin” (CCC 1475).
Secondly, spiritual goods can be shared with everyone.
By our prayers and sacrifices we can assist others. This
is why one of the requirements for obtaining a plenary
indulgence is to pray for the intentions of the Holy
Father. This is a concrete way of praying for the needs
of the whole Church of Christ on earth, which has been
entrusted to his pastoral care. We can also assist our
departed sisters and brothers who are experiencing a
At left Brother Gianpaolo Masotti of the
Franciscan community in Assisi, Italy, holds a
case containing a rock used more than 800 years
ago when St. Francis and his followers built the
church where the Franciscan order was born.
The relic will be encased and on display at the
Porziuncola Shrine at the National Shrine
of St. Francis in San Francisco.
National Shrine in the city bearing his name,
you can see the events of his life portrayed
on the walls of the church, and there is a
wealth of material available about him.
By all means, acquaint yourself with his
life story. But take to heart the words he
himself spoke at the end of his life: “I have
done what was mine to do. May Christ teach
you what you are to do.”
final purification as they prepare to enter into the glory
of heaven.
All the members of the Church – the saints in heaven,
the souls in purgatory, and the faithful on earth – form
one Body, all helping to bear one another’s burdens on
our common pilgrimage to the Kingdom.
Francis’ request came from a heart that desired all
people to know the mercy of God, and it is in that spirit
that we should understand the indulgence attached to
the place so cherished by him. In the words of Pope
Benedict: “To ask for indulgence means entering into
this communion of spiritual goods and placing oneself in
turn at its disposal. The change in the idea of penitence
which started in Porziuncola has brought us to this point:
even spiritually, no one lives for himself alone. Only then
can concern for the salvation of one’s soul be freed from
anxiety and selfishness, because it becomes a concern for
the salvation of others. Therefore the Porziuncola and the
indulgence which originated there becomes a mission,
an invitation to place the salvation of others above my
own, and in this way, to find myself. It means no longer
asking, will I be saved? but rather, what does God want
of me so that others may be saved?”
(Note: quotations from Pope Benedict XVI are taken
from a talk delivered in the church of Our Lady of the
Angels, Assisi, in August 1996. This commentary was
prepared by the archdiocesan Worship Commission.)
ITALIAN CATHOLIC FEDERATION
Cucina Italiana
CONGRATULATIONS
AND
The Officers and Members of the
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(established in 1924 in San Francisco)
are proud to be part of such a
happy occasion.
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FAMILY-OWNED / FAMILY RECIPES
How wonderful for the Archdiocese and
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have a replica of such a special chapel.
Our Best Wishes on the dedication and
blessing of the Porziuncola.
For Information about the I.C.F., please call
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BLESSINGS
from
St. Gabriel Parish
&
School Community
S10
September 19, 2008
Project manager: ‘This is a little chapel, but a big deal’
Alfonso Rocciola
suspends retirement
to oversee venture
be part of that. My entire family has been
here to see this – my wife, our children,
our grandchildren. We will all be here for
the dedication later this month.”
Have you found it difficult to work
with the multitude of artisans and
craftspeople?
“Well, it’s been a little bit different.
They work all hours of the day. It was a
very big pleasure.”
Compiled by Tom Burke
The unseen faces of the Porziuncola
construction include Alfonso Rocciola,
project manager. Rocciola, who recently
retired after 37 years as a senior superintendent with Nibbi Brothers contractors,
was asked back by the firm especially for
the Porziuncola undertaking.
He and his wife, Marisa, are longtime members of St. Patrick Parish In
Larkspur. Their now-adult children, Dino
and Viviana, are graduates of St. Patrick’s
School there. An older daughter, Angela,
attended school in Italy.
The builder took a few minutes from
his work at the shrine Sept. 11 to speak
with Catholic San Francisco. Through the
year-long effort he has managed a crew of
about 200 people that has included representatives from virtually every trade as
well as artisans from across the world.
At the time of the interview, he had
not had a day off for about six weeks and
expected that pace to continue through the
Porziuncola dedication Sept. 27.
What are your thoughts beyond the
nuts and bolts of the Porziuncola project
and the shrine?
“This has brought me closer to my
faith. As working men, we sometimes
bypass Mass on Sunday and miss time
with our families. This experience told
me, ‘You have to be better than what
you are.’”
Tell us a little about yourself.
“I was born in Savona, Italy near Genoa
and came to the United States and San
Francisco for the first time in 1962 taking
work as a carpenter. I went back to Italy
in 1967 but came back for good in 1971
and went to work for Nibbi.”
Do you know how you were selected
for the Porziuncola project?
“Nibbi thought this was the right job
for my personality and also because
I speak Italian and am very Catholic.
Almost every day I have been speaking
with people on the project who only
speak Italian.
I have been very good through the
years finishing jobs on time and within
budget. When Angela Alioto and I traveled to Italy for stone, I was able to get
the merchants to lower the price on many
occasions.”
Have you ever visited the original
Porziuncola?
“I didn’t even know the Porziuncola
existed. I knew about Assisi, but not the
Porziuncola. Last March, Angela Alioto
said she was going to take me to the
original Porziuncola and I said Òkay.’
At first, I thought it would just be another
church, but it’s not. It is really different. It
is unique. While we were there we had a
meal with the Friars and it was very exciting. They eat pretty good, too.”
Is St. Francis of Assisi your favorite
saint?
“He is now. Before it was St. Anthony
of Padua, but now it’s St. Francis.”
You have worked closely with Angela
Alioto, the project’s driving force.
“It has been a very good. We are both
full speed ahead. We don’t have first gear,
second gear. We are always in fifth gear.”
What are pilgrims going to find at the
Shrine and in the Porziuncola?
“First of all, I think they will find a
place to pray and a place that is cozy.
People will find themselves feeling closer
to God and St. Francis. It is very worth
the trip. It is worth every minute of hard
work. It will be good for the Church, the
Italian community and North Beach. This
is a little chapel, but a big deal.”
Alfonso Rocciola
What have been the highlights of the
project?
“I think the highlight is the feeling we
all have here. We usually treat every job
as a job, but this is not just a job. To do a
job like this you have to have your heart
in it. All the workers knew they were in a
church. ‘No swearing.’ I told them all.”
What details might not be completed
until after the dedication and blessing?
“Everything will be done. We have to
honor the schedule and the budget. Later,
a few cosmetic things might be added, but
the job will be complete for Sept. 27.”
What has it been like to work on a
project that will have an impact on San
Francisco and its faith community for
a very, very long time?
“This an opportunity of a lifetime. The
Porziuncola will be here forever. To be part
of that is a great gift. I’m very lucky to
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September 19, 2008
S11
Porziuncola:
rocks, replicas,
imagination
The creation of the Porziuncola Shrine at the National
Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi will have taken about 15
months and included:
• 35,000 pounds of Pietra Rosa marble from Assisi
• 300 rocks from the caves of Mt. Subasio in Assisi
• 2,000 pieces of sandstone from Wisconsin
• 12 replicas of frescoes spanning five centuries
• 16 Italian artisans working in San Francisco
Lucio Duchi was master woodworker on the Porziuncola Chapel.
Tile work was done by Venice Tile. Above, the entrance step
into the chapel and a close-up of the floor’s tile artistry.
The exterior walls of
the Porziuncola include
duplications of the remnants
of fresco work found on the
original church in Assisi, Italy.
(PHOTOS BY CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
Eric Clausen was master
metalsmith on the Porziuncola
replication. Above: an iron
gate at the rear of the chapel,
behind the altar. Right:
one of the chapel windows.
Below: the ornate rail
that can separate the
altar area from the
congregational worship space.
Stonework for the Porziuncola was painstakingly duplicated using
visits to and extensive photographs of the original structure.
September 19, 2008
With the scaffolding
taken down, the mural
on the inside of the front
entry hall of the building
housing the Porziuncola
is exposed, right.
Above, muralist Angela
Tirrell takes a overall look
at the project progress as
does, left, student artist
Manmar Laham in July.
Wall mural created
for building housing
Porziuncola Shrine
Under the leadership of master muralist Angela Tirrell
and the director of the Academy of Art University’s
graduate fine art and illustration program, Mark Tennant,
a team including master of fine arts painting students met
a rigorous deadline and created an original mural for the
inside entrance wall of the building that now houses the
Porziuncola chapel.
Formerly the gymnasium for St. Francis of Assisi Parish
which was closed as a parish in 1992, the host structure
adjacent to National Shrine of St. Francis of Assisi Church
is called Luogo di Santa Chiara and located on the corner
of Columbus Avenue and Vallejo Street.
The mural represents the Medieval Giotto-esque style,
according to a fact sheet provided by The Renaissance
Project.
“The greatest satisfaction about our mural,” Tirrell told
Catholic San Francisco, “is that we’ve paid homage to the decorative genius of Giotto’s fresco cycle of the life of St. Francis
while we’ve breathed life and beauty onto a simple white wall,
framing the humble simplicity of the Porziuncola.”
“I felt honored,” she added, “when the scaffolding
came down and one of the student muralists whispered in
admiration of our work, ‘I want to bring my children to
look at this.’”
Congratulations on the Dedication
and Blessing of the replica of
St. Francis Porziuncola in Assisi.
Muralist Angela Tirrell put a finishing touch on a
segment of the mural which covers the inside wall
of the building which houses the Porziuncola.
Nibbi Brothers General Contractors / 180 Hubbell Street, San Francisco, CA 94107 / www.nibbi.com
(PHOTOS BY DAN MORRIS-YOUNG/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
S12
September 19, 2008
11
In France, Pope Benedict shows many dimensions of ministry
LOURDES, France (CNS) – Being pope is not a onedimensional job, a fact that was clearly evident during
Pope Benedict XVI’s four-day visit to France.
Arriving in Paris Sept. 12, the pope first engaged in
an important political encounter that attempted to build
on the new openness shown the Church by President
Nicolas Sarkozy.
Next, in a brief meeting with Jews, he managed to
capsulize in 20 graceful lines the Church’s respect for
Judaism and its firm rejection of anti-Semitism.
That evening, the pope slipped into his academic role
and delivered a lecture on monasticism’s influence on
Western civilization to 700 scholars and intellectuals.
He then switched gears and led vespers in Notre Dame
Cathedral with priests and religious, emphasizing that
while their ranks may be thinning their role in the Church
has lost none of its value and, indeed, is irreplaceable.
Finally, he stepped outside and energized a waiting crowd
of 40,000 young people, drawing roars of approval when he
said the Church needs them and has confidence in them.
It was a whirlwind beginning and demonstrated a
remarkable pastoral versatility on the part of the 81-yearold pontiff.
The next day, after celebrating Mass for a larger-thanexpected crowd in Paris, he went to Lourdes and showed
another side of his role as universal pastor – a Marian
side.
It’s no secret that, as a theologian and bishop, Pope
Benedict was not always comfortable with Marian devotion and claims of apparitions. But over the years he has
widened his views, saying in 2002 that, “the older I am,
the more important the mother of God is to me.”
So at Lourdes, pilgrims heard the scholarly pope
preach the value of “humble and intense prayer” like the
rosary. He told his listeners that devotion to Mary was
not a form of “pious infantilism” but an expression of
spiritual maturity.
When he took a drink from the Lourdes spring that
many pilgrims believe to be the font of miraculous cures,
he was demonstrating that the Christian lives by simple
signs and symbols as well as by theological ideas.
Those aged 65+ who qualify will
receive either 12 weeks of case
management, or 12 weeks of
counseling w/case management.
There is a small stipend for participation.
(CNS PHOTO/REGIS DUVIGNAU, REUTERS)
By John Thavis
Pope Benedict XVI prepares to anoint a nun with holy
oil during a Mass for the sick at the Marian sanctuaries
of Lourdes, France, Sept. 15. The pope was in Lourdes
primarily to mark the 150th anniversary of Mary’s
appearances to St. Bernadette Soubirous.
Senior
Living
The pope’s trip to Lourdes was bound to be compared
to Pope John Paul II’s moving visit to the shrine in 2004.
Ailing and unsteady, the late pope had to ask for help on
the altar; it was his last foreign trip.
Pope Benedict was not a personal witness to suffering
like his predecessor, but he left no doubt that ministry to
the sick is a benchmark of Catholicism.
At his Mass with thousands of sick people Sept. 15,
the final day of his visit, he thanked Catholics at Lourdes
and all over the world who volunteer their time and effort
to help the infirm.
That highlighted a key theme of Pope Benedict’s pontificate, one he has underlined in encyclicals but which
is sometimes overlooked: that personal charity – love
in action – is the ultimate expression of faith in Jesus
Christ.
Another difference between Pope Benedict and Pope
John Paul surfaced during the visit. The late pope, on his
first trip to France in 1980, sternly critiqued the French
drift from the faith, asking Catholics, “France, the eldest
daughter of the Church, are you faithful to the promise
of your baptism?”
Pope Benedict took a softer approach, alluding to
pastoral problems but keeping the focus on the positive
– for example, the enthusiastic crowd of 260,000 people
at his Paris liturgy. In his final talk to French Catholics,
he praised them for their “firm faith” and said he had been
likewise encouraged by the strong turnout of youths at a
Paris vigil.
Where he offered more instructional advice was in his
talk to French bishops. He touched on a sore point when he
urged the bishops to show flexibility toward traditionalists
who want to take advantage of his 2007 rule change on
the use of the Tridentine rite, the Mass rite used before
the Second Vatican Council.
As a whole, though, the pope framed his message in
optimistic terms. Whether talking to politicians, pastoral
workers, scholars, the sick or the young, he emphasized
the Church is at home in France, and its voice – including
the voice of prayer – must continue to be heard.
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September 19, 2008
Catholic
san Francisco
Plain talk about life
Recently, the Committee on Pro-Life Activities of the U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops issued a fact sheet on the Catholic Church’s constant teaching
of respect for unborn human life – quoting The Catechism of the Catholic Church:
“Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured
abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary
to the moral law.” (2271)
From earliest times, Christians sharply distinguished themselves from surrounding pagan cultures by rejecting abortion and infanticide. The earliest widely used
documents of Christian teaching and practice after the New Testament in the 1st
and 2nd centuries, the Didache (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles) and Letter of
Barnabas, condemned both practices, as did early regional and particular Church
councils.
Of course, knowledge of human embryology has been very limited until recent
times. Many early Christian thinkers accepted the biological theories of their time,
based on the writings of philosophers such as Aristotle, who assumed a process
was needed over time to turn the matter from a woman’s womb into a being that
could receive a specifically human form or soul. The existence of the human ovum
(egg), like so much of basic biology, was unknown.
However, such mistaken biological theories never changed the Church’s common conviction that abortion is gravely wrong at every stage. At the very least,
early abortion was seen as attacking a being with a human destiny, being prepared
by God to receive an immortal soul (cf. Jeremiah 1:5: “Before I formed you in
the womb, I knew you”).
St. Augustine in the 5th century affirmed this rejection of abortion at every
stage. He knew of theories about the human soul not being present until some
weeks into pregnancy. Because he used the Greek Septuagint translation of the Old
Testament, he also thought the ancient Israelites had imposed a more severe penalty
for accidentally causing a miscarriage if the fetus was “fully formed” (Exodus 21:
22-23) – language not found in any known Hebrew version of this passage. But
he also held that human knowledge of biology was very limited, and he wisely
warned against misusing such theories to risk committing homicide.
In the 13th century, St. Thomas Aquinas made extensive use of Aristotle’s
thought, including his theory that the rational human soul is not present in the first
few weeks of pregnancy. But he also rejected abortion as gravely wrong at every
stage, observing that it is a sin “against nature” to reject God’s gift of a new life.
During these centuries, theories derived from Aristotle and others influenced
the grading of penalties for abortion in Church law. Some canonical penalties
were more severe for a direct abortion after the stage when the human soul was
thought to be present. However, abortion at all stages continued to be seen as a
grave moral evil.
From the 13th to 19th centuries, some theologians speculated about rare and
difficult cases where they thought an abortion before “formation” or “ensoulment”
might be morally justified. But these theories were discussed and then always
rejected, as the Church refined and reaffirmed its understanding of abortion as an
intrinsically evil act that can never be morally right.
In 1827, with the discovery of the human ovum, the biology of Aristotle was
discredited. Scientists increasingly understood that the union of sperm and egg
at conception produces a new living being that is distinct from both mother and
father. Modern genetics demonstrated that this individual is, at the outset, distinctively
human, with the inherent and active potential to mature into a human fetus, infant,
child and adult. From 1869 onward the obsolete distinction between the “ensouled”
and “unensouled” fetus was permanently removed from canon law on abortion.
Secular laws against abortion were being reformed at the same time and in
the same way, based on secular medical experts’ realization that “no other doctrine appears to be consonant with reason or physiology but that which admits
the embryo to possess vitality from the very moment of conception” (American
Medical Association, Report on Criminal Abortion, 1871).
Thus modern science has not changed the Church’s constant teaching against
abortion, but has underscored how important and reasonable it is, by confirming that
the life of each individual of the human species begins with the earliest embryo.
Given the scientific fact that a human life begins at conception, the only moral
norm needed to understand the Church’s opposition to abortion is the principle
that each and every human life has inherent dignity, and thus must be treated with
the respect due to a human person. This is the foundation for the Church’s social
doctrine, including its teachings on war, capital punishment, euthanasia, health
care, poverty and migration. Conversely, to claim that some live human beings do
not deserve respect or should not be treated as “persons” is to deny the very idea
of inherent human rights. Such a claim undermines respect for the lives of many
vulnerable people before and after birth.
MEH
The measure of success
If one were to read the opening
paragraphs of the Sept, 12 Catholic San
Francisco account of the Second Annual Lay
Convocation, one might conclude the 2008
event at USF was a far cry from the success
of the full-capacity attendance of the Lay
Convocation of 2007.
If event attendance were the only arbiter of success, then, indeed, stressing the
marked difference between the 300-plus
attendance at the 2007 event and the 100
gathered at the 2008 event would be the
expected “news.”
But such a lead, and such a conclusion,
ignores two important realities of human
experience.
First, no movement, be it in the Church
or in civil society, has effected true adjustment of consciousness by amassing mere
numbers of “interested parties” alone.
Evolution of understanding and movement from that new understanding
to new practice comes when people
concerned about the direction that
society or institutions are taking are
both willing to have open, frank and
good-willed conversations with each
other and those in leadership, and,
after conversation, are then committed
to nurturing that new consciousness in
their own circle, and in the institution.
Such conversations were an integral
part of this year’s event, and have
been part of the Convocation’s ongoing work since last year’s gathering.
That is success.
Second, with no slight to the
benefit of meetings like the inaugural
Northern California Lay Convocation
where the intent is to discern issues,
the agenda of the second Convocation
was not to simply observe and record,
but to begin to address the issues
raised, namely, the vitality of parish
councils, women’s roles in the Church,
and the effectiveness of homilies.
Listing grievances is relatively easy.
Pledging commitments to meet those
challenges, not so easy. Ninety-seven
participants in the 2008 Convocation
pledged specific projects to which
they would commit energies. That is
success.
Begin and develop the conversations, the Convocation did. Evolve
from observation to action, the Convocation
did. Now, as more movement is made, we
look forward to full coverage in Catholic
San Francisco of the developments (such
as the inauguration of an official archdiocesan accent-reduction program for our
beloved non-native priests) spurred by the
Convocation’s efforts.
Rob Grant
Northern California Lay Convocation
www.NorCalLayConvocation.org
San Francisco
issues makes perfect sense. A candidate
who professes to be pro-life at the moment
of human life’s conception but is willing to
risk that same human life 18 years later in
an unjust war is not pro-life at all.
God is perfect, but we are not, so it
is impossible for anyone to do no harm
throughout one’s life. Therefore, it is imperative that we vote for the person who will do
the least harm.
Bev Castro-Leon
San Bruno
(Ed. note: Father Ronald Cioffi directs the
Trenton Diocese’s Office of Social Concerns.)
Marian era – now
As a member of the Ecumenical Society
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I was both sad
and disappointed to see the Aug. 22 letter
of Oscar Ramirez. How did he ever come
to such an opinion about the last 40 years
neglecting Mary in teaching and in devotion?
Nothing is farther from the truth. This
is a Marian era. Persons who think
like this are certainly out of touch
with the contemporary Church.
And why accuse the ecumenism of disrupting progress in Marian
doctrine and devotion? This is not
the case. In fact, mainline Protestant
churches are closer than ever to the
Catholic position in Marian matters.
I would hope Mr. Ramirez and
others would make contact with other
writers and Marian devotees like
Marianist Brother John Samaha, and
with proactive Marian organizations
and movements. We are called to
think with the Church and not outside, or against, the Church.
I hope Catholic San Francisco
will do more to focus on the correct and proper approach to Marian
doctrine and devotion as Pope Paul
VI requested following Vatican II in
Marialis Cultus.
Joseph George
Sunnyvale
L
E
T
T
E
R
S
Seek least harm
As no political candidate, or anyone
else, is capable of perfection when it comes
to morality, Father Robert J. Cioffi’s remark
that we may vote for a person who is prochoice if we feel we have a moral reason to
support the candidate for a stand on other
Sheer audacity
Thank you for your articles on
the origin of human life at conception. The sheer audacity of Catholic
politicians who manufacture their
own views is pitiful. They need our
prayers.
Ruth Hayburn Cisek
San Francisco
Focus on fetus
One way to change people’s hearts on
abortion is to focus on the fetus.
Please do a series of educational teaching – with wonderful pictures – about the
developing child.
Maybe if people understood them better, they would include them in the social
justice issues so important to all of us. God
includes everyone in the human family.
Mary Daly
Fairfax
See for yourself
➣ Note that the newspaper reserves
the right to edit for clarity and length.
I am writing in response to the Sept. 5
letter from Laurette Elsberry regarding her
opinion that Medjurgorje is a hoax.
I have been to Medjurgorje two times.
I have witnessed humility, devotion, honesty
and many positive spiritual renewals. There
is evidence of healing and other supernatural
phenomena.
The visionaries live simply and show
great patience with opening up their homes
to pilgrims. I urge the letter writer to go
there in humility and let our Lady touch her
heart. Our Lady asks us to pray, fast, receive
Communion, go to confession and renew our
lives. What is tawdry about that?
Gayle Harrington
Greenbrae
Send your letters to:
Medjugorje doubts gone
Letters welcome
Catholic San Francisco welcomes
letters from its readers. Please:
➣ Include your name, address and
daytime phone number.
➣ Sign your letter.
➣ Limit submissions to 250 words.
One Peter Yorke Way
San Francisco, CA 94109
Fax: (415) 614-5641
E-mail:
[email protected]
I went on a pilgrimage to Medjugorje in
March with about 30 pilgrims. I went with
doubts but returned a believer.
After a recent reunion with my fellow
pilgrims, it was clear to see that we all were
blessed in some way by our pilgrimage
LETTERS, page 15
September 19, 2008
13
Twenty Something
Handwritten holiness: 42 cents to say thanks
Even when my status is marked “busy,” my friends
strike up Gmail chat. The proverbial red circle somehow
loses its street cred in cyberspace.
Minimizing the screen doesn’t free me. My account
beeps with each new comment, flashing “Erin says…” at the
bottom of the monitor. Invariably, I follow the ellipses.
The swiftness of electronic communication can be a nuisance, binding us to a ping-pong match that strong-arms our
better intentions. That’s why I appreciated the advice in “The
Last Lecture,” the bestseller by Randy Pausch. The 47-year-old
father of three recently lost a brave battle to pancreatic cancer.
“Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful
things humans can do for each other,” Randy wrote. “And despite
my love of efficiency, I think that thank-you notes are best done
the old-fashioned way, with pen and paper. You never know what
magic might happen after it arrives in someone’s mailbox.”
I decided Randy’s counsel warranted a little shopping, so I
headed to a nearby paper store to replenish my thank-you card
stock. As I entered, I inhaled slowly, taking in a glorious sight.
Who knew there are so many ways to say thanks? With
a salsa dancer spinning below the word “gracias.” With a
ladybug perched on a red ribbon. With a demure Chinese
girl handing out red and orange hydrangeas.
I found myself running my fingers over the deckle
edges, delighting in the tactile experience – smooth and
coarse, silver foil and wire accents. The cards inspired a
spark of wonder, reminding me of Pope John Paul II’s letter
to artists, who are “captivated by the hidden power of sounds
and words, colors and shapes.” Faced with artistic marvels,
he wrote, “wonder is the only appropriate attitude.”
I dropped $46 in wonder.
And I set to writing my thanks, taking a page from St.
Paul’s letters. In his handwritten epistles, he called for gratitude
again and again. “Therefore, encourage one another and build
one another up,” he told the Thessalonians. “Rejoice always.
Pray without ceasing. In all circumstances give thanks.”
Many centuries later, G.K. Chesterton, the jolly freethinker, echoed St. Paul. “I would maintain that thanks are
the highest form of thought,” he said, “and that gratitude is
happiness doubled by wonder.”
I selected a card with glittery ice-cream cones and began
writing to a friend who’d sent a care package. I described each element she had tucked inside, turning it over in my hand and mind.
Then I jotted a few thoughts on Life in General, more whimsical
than newsy. I was riding the looping l’s and arcing a’s.
Writing by hand slowed my mind and broadened my
view. I didn’t write about the day’s happenings or the calendar’s demands, but my feelings, how my life was coalescing
with long-term goals
and deeply-held values.
Stroke by stroke, line by
line, it felt honest.
As I signed and sealed
the card, my heart throbbed
with wellness. Slipping it
in the mailbox, I marveled
at the process that would
Christina
carry my thoughts to her
door step. Unlike e-mail,
Capecchi
it wouldn’t arrive instantaneously. That time lag
excited me. I knew she wouldn’t click delete after reading it.
I’m joining in the back-to-school spirit of sharpened
pencils and blank notebooks, assigning myself one thank-you
note a week. A thanks for something, anything. Weekly.
As we pinch pennies this year, the U.S. Postal Service
is experiencing a drop in volume. But personally, I can’t
imagine a better use of 42 cents.
Christina Capecchi is a freelance writer
from Inver Grove Heights, Minn.
E-mail her at [email protected].
The Catholic Difference
Campaign 2008: America and the world
According to the mid-summer polls, Americans are primarily concerned about the U.S. economy as the country enters the
last lap of the 2008 election cycle. No visitor to the gas pumps,
and no investor, can doubt why. Yet we also live in a globalized world in which the tectonic plates that shape international
politics are shifting, often dangerously. What does a Catholic
optic on world politics suggest about these circumstances? What
questions might thoughtful Catholic voters put to the principal
presidential candidates about U.S. foreign policy?
Some suggestions follow; Iraq will be addressed in a
separate column.
Questions for both candidates:
1) We know what you think the Bush administration got
wrong. What do you think the Bush administration got right?
Would you, for example, continue the administration’s massive funding of AIDS relief and AIDS prevention in Africa?
Would you follow the Bush administration in resisting the siren
song of condom-mania in fighting AIDS? Would you continue
President Bush’s other Third World health initiatives?
2) At the United Nations this past April, Pope Benedict XVI
spoke of a “duty to protect” as the fundamental task of governments and the litmus test of political legitimacy. There are several
prominent cases, however, where governments are manifestly
failing in their “duty to protect.” Without using the words “international community,” please tell us in specific terms what you
propose to do about the genocide in the south Sudan? Avoiding
that same phrase, please describe your approach to impending,
government-caused starvation in Zimbabwe? And, once again
avoiding the words “international community,” what would you
have done about the grotesque irresponsibility of the Burmese
military junta when faced with a major humanitarian disaster?
3) Europe keeps proclaiming that “this” is its “moment”
– and then does nothing. How will you persuade European
governments to change the rules-of-engagement that govern
their forces in Afghanistan, so that they actually fight the
Taliban and al-Qaeda? Will you challenge European governments to invest in the military capabilities that will permit
coordinated western responses to global crises? How can
Europe help contain and deter a revanchist Russia?
4) The president of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has
frequently stated his determination to incinerate the State of
Israel, and on occasion has made similar threats against the
United States and Great Britain. Do you believe him? Do you
agree that Iran, governed as it is today, cannot be permitted to
acquire nuclear weapons – which it could then use, or transfer to
terrorist organizations? If, however, you are prepared to live with
a nuclear-armed Iran, why do you believe that deterrence will
work in this case, given the passion for martyrdom among Shi’ite
jihadists, some of whom are in the Iranian government?
5) What will you do with the hard-core terrorists now held
at Guantanamo? Do you agree with the Supreme Court majority
that foreign terrorists now held abroad have the same constitutional rights as American citizens imprisoned here in the U.S.?
6) What steps will you take to ensure that the
Department of State, the Department of Defense, and the
Central Intelligence Agency recognize the dynamic, multiple
roles that religious conviction plays in world politics?
7) What measures will you take to counter the barrage
of anti-American agitprop
that comes from new
media like al-Jazeera and
old, once-respected media
like the BBC?
8) What will you do
about the terrorist camps
in Waziristan and the
George Weigel
other essentially ungoverned tribal areas of
Pakistan?
9) Is Afghanistan really governable? If not, how does
NATO prevent Afghanistan from reverting to Taliban barbarism and acting as a base camp for global jihadism?
10) Is the first use of military force ever morally justifiable? Is so, when? If not, why not?
11) Can liberal democracy take root in the Arab Islamic
world?
A question for Sen. John McCain:
How would you work with Democrats so that the war
against terrorism is a bipartisan effort?
A question for Sen. Barack Obama:
Is it possible that President Bush is unpopular in Europe
because he forced Europeans to face truths they’d been avoiding for years? If consultation with old allies leads to strategic
paralysis, at what point are you willing to act unilaterally?
George Weigel is Distinguished Senior Fellow of the
Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C.
Spirituality for Life
Honesty as sobriety
You are as sick as your sickest secret!
That’s a popular aphorism in recovery circles and it
speaks a deep truth. If we have to hide something then
we aren’t well, at least if the blemishes we are hiding
are moral rather than physical.
A recovering alcoholic once told me: “Sobriety is
only 10 percent about alcohol or a drug. It’s 90 percent
about honesty. You can drink, if you can do it honestly.”
Indeed you can do anything, if you can do it honestly.
That’s an interesting moral principle: You can do
anything if you don’t have to lie about it.
There are exceptions to this, of course, if people
have hardened their spirits or are otherwise so morally
insensitive that they are not ashamed to openly admit
or even flaunt duplicity. But the principle is sufficient
as a moral guide for basically anyone walking in grace.
Simply put, you can do anything as long as you can be
honest about it.
That covers a lot of ground. Could you cheat someone, be sexually unfaithful, slander someone, or commit
a sin of any kind and feel comfortable in sharing that
openly with those who are closest to you? The need to
hide some action from others is a strong moral nudging.
If we are walking (at least essentially) in grace we don’t
need any other commandment. We can do anything as
long as we don’t have to lie about it.
There is another insight in this. When we do something wrong and then cover it up and lie, it is not so
much the particular thing that we did wrong that harms
us, it’s the lying about it afterwards that does the real
damage.
We are all weak, we all fall, we all commit sin. God
understands this and it is not so much the sin itself that
harms us. What causes the real harm is lying, covering
up, sneaking around, not being transparent, living a
double life.
Why? Because the human spirit is not made to live
in dishonesty and duplicity. When we do wrong, we
either have to stop doing what we are doing or, at least in
honesty and contrition own our weakness, or our spirits
will automatically begin to harden and to warp. Such is
the anatomy of the soul. It cannot tolerate moral duplicity
for long without hardening and warping.
Indeed, that is how the unforgivable sin against the
Holy Spirit, the one
infamous sin that cannot be forgiven, can
happen. It begins with
lying, rationalization,
cover-up and dishonesty. When we sustain
a lie for any length of
time, we begin to warp
Father
our own insides and the
Ron Rolheiser
sin can become unforgivable not because
God doesn’t want to
forgive but because we no longer see any need to be
forgiven. Lying, especially to ourselves, hardens and
corrupts the spirit.
That’s why Satan is called the prince of lies rather
than the prince of weakness. That’s also what is contained
in Martin Luther’s famous axiom: Sin bravely! The invitation, in Luther, is not that we should have the courage
to sin without flinching, but that, if we do sin, we should
ROLHEISER, page 18
September 19, 2008
(PHOTO BY TOM BURKE/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
14
A new play area and outside dining area adjoin the new
multipurpose building at Nativity Parish and School.
Msgr. Steven Otellini opens rites of blessing of new facilities at Church of the Nativity
in Menlo Park with Archbishop George H. Niederauer. At left is school principal
Carol Trelut with Mike Hickam, eighth grade teacher. Crossbearer is Patrick Castle.
Pavilion, classroom, play area blessed at Church of Nativity
By Tom Burke
The new John and Susan Sobrato
Pavilion, a new kindergarten classroom
and an added play area for Church of
the Nativity Parish and School in Menlo
Park were blessed and dedicated Sept. 13.
Archbishop George H. Niederauer presided
at the rites.
Msgr. Steven Otellini has been pastor of
Church of the Nativity since 2004. “We’ve
been fundraising for four years, but the
idea of the multipurpose building goes
back at least 10 years,” he told Catholic
San Francisco. The building has been ready
since June and since then has been put to
use for activities including the annual parish carnival, school assemblies and sports
practices.
“We have to remember that it’s not just
a gym for the school,” Msgr. Otellini said,
pointing out social events and large gatherings held in previous years off-site can now
be held at Nativity.
“Also, I think the accomplishment
of getting the project to completion is
important to the parish,” he added. “At
$9 million, it is the largest economic
project in parish history.” Approximately
$7.5 million has been raised toward that
amount and fundraising is ongoing, Msgr.
Otellini said.
Support for the construction spread
throughout the parish environs. “Not one
person came forward to block the construction,” Msgr. Otellini said. “The neighbors
were behind this 100 percent.”
Contributors from all levels of financial
ability have taken part. “The donor roster
shows a wide breadth of people who have
helped,” he noted. “It is great here. I am
the luckiest priest in the United States to be
pastor at Church of the Nativity.”
“Building on their excellent tradition of
more than 50 years of support for Catholic
education in Menlo Park, the people of
Nativity Parish, under the leadership of
pastor Msgr. Steven Otellini have completed and dedicated a beautiful and vital
addition to the facilities of their parish
school,” Archbishop George Niederauer
told Catholic San Francisco after the ceremonies. “The Sobrato Pavilion, the kindergarten building, and the Father Davenport
Field express for all who see them the commitment of the priests, the parishioners, the
teachers, the principal and the staff to the
work of Nativity Parish School.”
During the ceremonies, the Archbishop
gave special thanks for the work of the
Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed
Virgin Mary who served at Nativity
Elementary School from its beginnings in
1956 until 2004.
Carol Trelut is principal of Nativity
Elementary School and couldn’t be happier
about the new additions. “The buildings are
ready to go,” Trelut said, noting that the
Stone-for-stone . . .
■ Continued from cover
of other details of its Italian forerunner.
The dedication will cap a nearly 15-month construction effort
that has pulled together the efforts of a team of international artists, stone masons, metalsmiths, muralists, tile experts and others
– including master of fine arts students from the Academy of
Art University in San Francisco.
The original Porziuncola was restored in the 13th century
by St. Francis and his followers, and today draws thousands of
pilgrims annually. It is contained in a nave of the Basilica of
Santa Maria degli Angeli near Assisi.
A featured aspect of the local Porziuncola will be the encased
display of a stone used more than eight centuries ago in the repair
of the original Porziuncola, perhaps by St. Francis himself. The
72 Franciscan friars of the Assisi community met in 2006 and
agreed to donate the relic to the San Francisco shrine. Members
of that community delivered the rock in late April and representatives will be present for the dedication Mass.
A San Francisco attorney and former president of the Board
of Supervisors, Angelo Alioto has spearheaded the $2.9 million
Porziuncola undertaking which is part of the larger Renaissance
Project of which she is director and vice chair. She and others
see the Porziuncola Chapel as a major step toward generating
local, national and global interest in the National Shrine of St.
Francis.
“Our goal is to transform this beautiful but sadly underutilized
facility into an international spiritual center where people of all
faiths – or even no faith – can come and feel the power of St.
Francis’ message of universal love,” said Alioto, a native of San
Francisco and daughter of the late former Mayor Joseph Alioto.
(See Alioto’s personal reflection on Page S4.)
“This will change San Francisco,” said Father Robert
Cipriano, rector of the National Shrine of St. Francis. “We’ll
Mary, are the parents of Nativity sixth grade
student, Patrick, and Nativity graduate,
John, now a student at Bellarmine Prep.
“We have come into our age,” Castle
said with a smile. “We were a 50-year-old
school and really showed it.” Among first
steps in the project was saving money,
Castle said. “We kept all of the play structures we had earlier. The cost for new ones
was in the area of $85,000.”
Castle, other school parents and parishioners have put “thousands of hours”
into the project, Castle said, additionally
donating materials. Gifts have ranged from
“tree mulch to granite countertops to tile
floors.”
Financial donors have also been generous, he said. “We’re going to have a big
donor board. If you gave a dollar or you
gave a million dollars, your name will be
on it.”
“The new construction adds to the great
sense of pride already present at Nativity,”
Castle said.
“Our Sisters who have served at
Nativity consider it one of their favorite
places to have lived and ministered,” said
Presentation Sister Pam Chiesa, congregation president. “Many students and parishioners still come to the motherhouse to visit
Sisters they have known. Our Sisters’ place
in the history of Nativity Parish and School
has been very significant to the Sisters of
the Presentation.”
Archbishop George Niederauer
sprinkles new play area with holy water.
school’s time of having to rent gyms for
home games is now over. “We now also
can have stage productions, rallies and so
much more. The kindergarten classroom is
custom-made for children that age and that
makes a huge difference.”
Russ Castle, a Nativity alumnus, oversaw the building project. He and his wife,
have a depth of spirituality not yet experienced here. It will open
pathways to ecumenical dialogue, a welcoming of all people.”
“The opening will be a well-accepted media event,” he
added. “After that, people will start to come, perhaps slowly at
first. First it will be the poor of San Francisco, then the people
of California, then the people of the West Coast, then the people
of the United States, and then it will become world-known. It’s
absolutely magnificent that we have this holy place now. Francis
is so loved by people, even non-Christians.”
In a reflection on the Porziuncola replica (see Page S3),
Cardinal Levada also called attention to the ecumenical and
interreligious appeal of St. Francis, saying he hoped it will be
“a place where Catholics and all people of good will would feel
spiritually at home.”
It was Cardinal Levada as Archbishop of San Francisco
who oversaw the re-opening of St. Francis Church in 1998 as
the St. Francis Shrine Church. A year later, the U.S. bishops’
conference recognized the church as the National Shrine of St.
Francis of Assisi.
Having two official Church shrines – one national, one
archdiocesan – sharing the same location is perhaps unique in
the Church, archdiocesan officials said.
The Porziuncola Chapel’s frescos, doors and marble floors
have all been created by artisans in Assisi and in Citta del
Castello, Umbria, Italy, according to a Renaissance Project
fact sheet.
An original mural in the Medieval Giotto-esque style adorns
the entrance to the building which houses the Porziuncola Chapel.
It was created by master of fine arts students under direction of
master muralist Angela Tirrell and the director of the School of
Fine Art, Mark Tennant.
Nibbi Brothers Construction is the Porziuncola project’s
general contractor. Engineer is Murphy Burr Curry, Inc. Architect
is Taylor Lombardo, Inc.
(For further information, visit www.shrinerenewal.org or
www.shrinesf.org.)
SCRIPTURE SEARCH
By Patricia Kasten
Gospel for September 21, 2008
Matthew 20:1-16a
Following is a word search based on the Gospel
reading for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle
A: a parable about the generosity of God. The words
can be found in all directions in the puzzle.
KINGDOM
LABORERS
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© 2008 Tri-C-A
www.tri-c-a-publications.com
Sponsored by Duggan’s Serra Mortuary
500 Westlake Avenue, Daly City
650-756-4500 ● www.duggansserra.com
September 19, 2008
A READING FROM
THE BOOK OF ISAIAH
IS 55:6-9
Seek the Lord while he may be found,
call him while he is near. Let the scoundrel
forsake his way, and the wicked his thoughts;
let him turn to the Lord for mercy; to our
God, who is generous in forgiving. For my
thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your
ways my ways, says the Lord. As high as
the heavens are above the earth, so high are
my ways above your ways and my thoughts
above your thoughts.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
PS 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18
R. The Lord is near to all who call upon
him.
Every day will I bless you,
and I will praise your name forever and
ever.
Great is the Lord and highly to be praised;
his greatness is unsearchable.
him.
The Lord is gracious and merciful,
slow to anger and of great kindness.
The Lord is good to all
and compassionate toward all his works.
him.
We are sure to whine when things don’t
go our way. We learn whining from an
early age with our siblings. No matter how
precise the division of food, candies, cookies, brownies, or even toys, someone will
complain, “It is not fair.”
On the airplane, my nephew George, a
flight attendant, brought a customer from
the coach section to the First Class section
(a common thing they do on the flight),
filling an empty seat in First Class. He
was reprimanded by his superiors because
another first class passenger, who paid extra
for that comfort, complained to the airline.
“It’s not fair,” he cried.
At school, a teacher tries to extend generosity to the class after many of them do
poorly on a test, but when he offers to grade
the scores upward on a curve, the few who
studied hard and made A’s complain. “It’s not
fair,” they cry. This familiar line is repeated
daily in all cultures around the world.
Someone tries to be generous and compassionate, and they are criticized by those who
think they alone rightly deserve the privilege.
But most of us know, if God were to treat
us fairly, giving us only what we deserve,
we would be poor, indeed. Mercifully and
compassionately, God does not treat us fairly,
but with immense generosity.
Jesus’ parable of the vineyard and laborers would have been familiar to his hearers in
first century Palestine. Laborers were hired
on a daily basis from a pool of available
workers. In Jesus’ time, if a man didn’t find
work one day, his family often didn’t eat the
next. The fact that they were still waiting at
five p.m. around the marketplace shows how
badly they needed work.
Letters . . .
to Medjugorje. Miracles happened, from
the cure of fourth-stage lung cancer to the
healing of a broken relationship between a
parent and child.
The real miracle was the high level of
spirituality in that blessed place. The church
was constantly filled to overflowing with
prayerful people – the many confessionals
with long lines of penitents; the respectful
young people, many who give up a year of
their lives between high school and college
in service to the poor.
Nothing is preached there that is outside
our Church’s teachings, but like Lourdes and
Fatima: prayer, repentance, sacrifice. “By
their fruits you shall know them.” I am truly
grateful for the fruits of Medjugorje.
Bonnie de Rutte
Lagunitas
Peace before pride
I was disappointed in George Weigel’s
Sept. 5 article “Campaign 2008: Jaw, Jaw,
Twenty-Fifth
Sunday in
Ordinary Time
Isaiah 55:6-9;
Psalm 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18;
Philippians 1:20c-24; Matthew 20:1-16a
The Lord is just in all his ways
and holy in all his works.
The Lord is near to all who call upon him,
to all who call upon him in truth.
him.
A READING FROM THE LETTER OF
PAUL TO THE PHILIPPIANS
PHIL 1:20C-24, 27A
Brothers and sisters: Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.
For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. If I go
on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor
for me. And I do not know which I shall choose.
I am caught between the two. I long to depart
this life and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary
for your benefit. Only, conduct yourselves in a
way worthy of the gospel of Christ.
A READING FROM THE GOSPEL
ACCORDING TO MATTHEW
MT 20:1-16A
Jesus told his disciples this parable:
“The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner
who went out at dawn to hire laborers for
his vineyard. After agreeing with them for
the usual daily wage, he sent them into his
vineyard. Going out about nine o’clock, the
landowner saw others standing idle in the
marketplace, and he said to them,
‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will
give you what is just.’
Scripture reflection
DEACON FAIVA PO’OI
God does not treat us ‘fairly,’
and thank goodness for that
What point is Jesus trying to make?
In real life, who was the vineyard owner?
Who were the early workers? Who were the
latecomers? The vineyard owner was God.
The latecomers were sinners, tax collectors
like Zacchaeus, an outcast in Jesus’ time
who seriously listened to his words and
repented. They were people, like the good
thief, who hung beside Jesus, repented at
the last minute, and was saved. They were
people, like the prodigal son, who repented
after leaving home and was welcomed
back by his father. The early workers were
Pharisees who were angry and whining
because the sinners repented, entered God’s
Kingdom late, and were receiving the same
reward as they.
When we hear the Gospel, like the
laborers, we focus so much on hours and
wages, equitable pay for the number of
hours worked or a day’s wages. However,
this parable is really about God’s way (first
reading) and God’s justice, not ours. What
God offers is not wages, but a generous gift
of salvation unearned for all workers in is
vineyards. It doesn’t matter what hour we
come, salvation is granted. All we need to
do is come!
The righteous and sinner alike are welcome in the kingdom. God’s superabundant
generosity to us goes far beyond any measurement by human standards. God’s standard is defined in the first reading: “As high
as the heavens are above the earth, so high
are God’s ways”. As the responsorial Psalm
says, “The Lord is just in all His ways.” His
thoughts and his ways are about righteousness and relationships, not retributive justice.
war, war.” I heard Churchill on the radio
when he said, “Jawr, jawr, wa, wa.” He
seemed to be reverting humorously to his
childhood when he stuttered. However,
regarding the question “can the power of
‘jaw, jaw’ change minds bent on wickedness?” the answer is yes, yes indubitably.
When Chamberlain (who was dying of
cancer) announced that he was going to visit
Hitler (a political and philosophical genius)
and had the courage to put his reputation at
risk, it was hailed in Europe as the greatest
thing that ever happened and was praised
by the League of Nations as putting peace
before pride.
No one else had guts like Chamberlain.
Éamon de Valera (who was president of the
League of Nations and a sometime bitter
enemy of Chamberlain) wrote the following
to Chamberlain: “Let nothing daunt you or
deflect you in your effort to secure peace. The
tens of millions of innocent people on both
sides who have no cause against each other but
who are in danger of being hurled against each
other with no alternative but mutual slaughter
are praying that your efforts may find a way of
saving them from this terrible doom.”
In his closing address to the League,
de Valera hailed Chamberlain as a “knight
of peace” who had attained “human greatness, and a glory greater than that of all the
conquerors.”
In regard to Khrushchev, remember it
was he who opened the gates of the Gulag and
let millions of people including the author of
the “Gulag” go free at a time when Stalin was
still an icon. Jaw, jaw hasn’t failed with North
Korea because there has not been any worthwhile effort made between U.S.A. and Korea
except sending an orchestra to Pyongyang.
Regarding the Argentinean-Chilean
dispute, full credit goes to the Vatican for jaw,
jaw in ending that peacefully. Britain is building 17 nuclear power stations. France has
many more. If Iran would like one for power
to supply electricity, why the bellicosity?
Padraig Quinn
San Mateo
Listen to W.S. Gilbert
In May, 2008, I expressed the hope
in a letter to Catholic San Francisco that
Archbishop Niederauer would explain to Mrs.
Pelosi the Church’s clear teaching on abor-
15
So they went off. And he went out again
around noon, and around three o’clock, and
did likewise. Going out about five o’clock,
the landowner found others standing around,
and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here
idle all day?’
They answered, ‘Because no one has
hired us.’
He said to them, ‘You too go into my
vineyard.’ When it was evening the owner of
the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon
the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’
When those who had started about five
o’clock came, each received the usual daily
wage. So when the first came, they thought
that they would receive more, but each of
them also got the usual wage.
And on receiving it they grumbled
against the landowner, saying, ‘These last
ones worked only one hour, and you have
made them equal to us, who bore the day’s
burden and the heat.’
He said to one of them in reply, ‘My
friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not
agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take
what is yours and go. What if I wish to give
this last one the same as you? Or am I not free
to do as I wish with my own money? Are you
envious because I am generous?’ Thus, the
last will be first, and the first will be last.”
(See the Psalm response, “The Lord is near
to all who call upon Him”).
The Gospel invites us to stop comparing
ourselves to others. It invites us to accept
ourselves as we are. It invites us to follow
Paul’s advice to the Galatians. St. Paul
writes: “Each one should judge his own
conduct. If it is good, then he can be proud of
what he himself has done, without having to
compare it with what someone else has done
(Gal. 6:4).” Ultimately, the important thing
in this life is not how we compare ourselves
to others, or what other people think of us,
or how hard we work in God’s vineyard.
The important thing is what God thinks of
us, and the love and faith that motivates our
work, in doing God’s will, not ours.
And so, as we turn to our heavenly
father, let us thank him for the zeal and the
inspiration of those who have been called at
a later hour to work in the vineyard of God’s
kingdom. Let us pray and ask God to inspire
and help us to join the late-comers to our
Church in bringing the great harvest that is
out there. Eucharist is the greatest example
of God’s compassion and generosity. He has
withheld nothing from us. As we receive
the Eucharist at Mass, may we be one with
Christ as a sign of God’s limitless love and
self-sacrifice for us.
Deacon Faiva Po’oi serves at
St. Timothy Parish, San Mateo,
and is also the archdiocesan
liaison to the Tongan community.
His ministry includes religious
instruction, preaching, marriage
preparation and social justice.
tion and politicians issued in June, 2004 by
Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI.
The Holy Father wrote: “Regarding the
grave sin of abortion or euthanasia, when a
person’s formal cooperation becomes manifest
(understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his [her] consistently campaigning
and voting for permissive abortion...his [her]
pastor should meet with him, instructing him
about the Church’s teaching, informing him
[her] that he is not to present himself [herself]
for Holy Communion until he [she] brings to
an end the objective situation of sin.”
Archbishop Niederauer continues to
delay making that instruction clear to Mrs.
Pelosi. What is more, he describes the leading advocate of abortion in the United States
Congress as a “gifted, dedicated and accomplished public servant.”
In Iolanthe W.S. Gilbert wrote: “Faint
heart never won fair lady! Nothing venture,
nothing win.”
The Archbishop is a genial man of letters. He could do worse than to consider Sir
William’s words.
Gordon M. Seely, Ph.D.
Belmont
16
September 19, 2008
Music TV
Books RADIO Film stage
‘Burn After Reading’:
a witty comedy caper
By Harry Forbes
NEW YORK (CNS) – Those Coen boys
– Joel and Ethan – are nothing if not versatile, and “Burn After Reading” (Focus) is
as different from their grim Oscar winner
of last year, “No Country for Old Men,” as
it can possibly be.
Not that there isn’t a dark undertone here,
but this is primarily a witty caper comedy.
The plot revolves around, of all people, two
hapless Washington-based gym employees
– Linda Litzke (Frances McDormand) and
Chad Feldheimer (Brad Pitt) – who find the
memoirs of fired CIA analyst Osborne Cox
(John Malkovich) on a computer disc.
They believe they’re in possession of
classified information with which they can
extort money from Cox. After that ploy falls
flat, they try to sell it to the Russians.
All the characters are losers. Linda is pining
for love, and hopes radical cosmetic surgery will
improve her lot. She spends her days looking
for suitable prospects on the Internet, oblivious
to the fact that her boss, Ted Treffon (Richard
Jenkins), is completely smitten with her.
Cox is a serious alcoholic whose scarily
controlling wife, Katie (Tilda Swinton), has
been cheating on him with federal marshal
Harry Pfarrer (George Clooney), a married
man. As soon as she learns her husband has
left his job, she runs to a divorce lawyer to
free herself for a life with Harry.
But Harry, a chronic philanderer and no
stranger to Internet dating sites himself, is all
too cognizant of Katie’s steely bossiness, and
smoothly determines to evade her clutches.
All these characters will eventually intertwine in surprising and explosive ways.
The Coens have written an extremely
clever script, which they have directed with
assured timing. Their top-flight cast, several
of whom are veterans of earlier Coen films,
reveal surprising comic chops, as do the
well-chosen supporting players.
Pathetically lovelorn McDormand and
gum-chewing airhead Pitt, in particular,
make a priceless comic pair, as they get in
(CNS PHOTO/FOCUS FEATURES)
George Clooney and
Frances McDormand
star in a scene
from the movie
“Burn After Reading.”
way over their heads as would-be blackmailers. Clooney’s increasing paranoia as
his situation spirals out of control is deliciously conveyed. Equally well portrayed are
Jenkins’ puppy-dog adoration of his employee, Malkovich’s tightly wound desperation,
and Swinton’s hard-as-nails iciness.
Overt sex and violence are minimal, but
many will be disturbed by the David Mametlike strong language, which unfortunately
includes a few instances of some especially
strong profanity.
The film contains pervasive use of the
F-word and some profanity; two brief
instances of violence, one gruesome; implied
nonmarital sexual activity; and a sexual
sight gag. The USCCB Office for Film &
Broadcasting classification is L – limited
adult audience, films whose problematic
content many adults would find troubling.
The Motion Picture Association of America
rating is R – restricted. Under 17 requires
accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Forbes directs the Office for
Film & Broadcasting of the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
More reviews are available online
at www.usccb.org/movies.
‘Righteous Kill’: the movie might deserve what its title says
By Harry Forbes
NEW YORK (CNS) – “Righteous Kill”
(Overture) is a ludicrous police drama involving longtime partners, New York Police Dept.
detectives Turk (Robert DeNiro) and Rooster
(Al Pacino), who are on the trail of a vigilante
serial killer whose 14 criminal victims have
eluded just punishment.
Shortly into the movie developments
show the culprit may be someone within
their ranks.
Fans of the charismatic stars may welcome this chance to see them working in
tandem, and they are both in characteristic
latter-day form. (They actually had no scenes
together in “The Godfather: Part Two,” and
little joint screen time in 1995’s “Heat.”)
However, Jon Avnet’s flashy but muddled
direction, the wildly implausible, gimmicky
plot and uninspired dialogue, intentionally
choppy editing and easy-to-guess denouement are serious drawbacks.
From a Catholic standpoint, the vigilante
aspects of the plot are morally questionable.
Clearly, the aim of the police force – and
that includes homicide squad head, Lt.
Hingis (Brian Dennehy), younger detectives
Reilly (Donnie Wahlberg) and Perez (John
Leguizamo), and crime scene investigator
Karen Corelli (Carla Gugino) – is to catch
the killer. But as the victims are very bad
men indeed, we’re tempted to cheer when
they get their fatal comeuppance.
Corelli happens to be Turk’s girlfriend,
and she likes their encounters, shall we say,
rough, as we observe in one brief long-shot
sequence.
One of the killer’s victims, incidentally, is
a pedophile priest (barely seen onscreen) who
has been transferred eight times from parish
to parish. “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, if the
Church can’t stop him, someone must,” quips
Turk, echoing the mystery killer’s penchant
for leaving pithy poetry at the murder sites.
The film contains much rough language
and crude talk, some profanity, moderately
strong violence and sexual content, vigilante
justice, a reference to a pedophile priest and
brief drug use. The USCCB Office for Film
& Broadcasting classification is L – limited
adult audience, films whose problematic
content many adults would find troubling.
The Motion Picture Association of America
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September 19, 2008
St. Mary’s Cathedral
Gough and Geary St. in San Francisco – (415)
567-2020. Ample parking is available free of
charge in the Cathedral lot for most events.
Second and Fourth Fridays through
September at 7:30 p.m. in Cathedral Event
Center, Monsignor Bowe Room: Discussions
of Plato’s Works, a series on the philosophical
works of Plato, with the goal of recapturing
the wisdom of the ancient authors on perennial
questions. Free of charge. For a complete list
of dates and reading materials visit: www.stanthonypaduainstitute.org. Presented by Reynaldo
Miranda of the St. Anthony of Padua Institute. For
more information, call (888) 619-7882, or e-mail
[email protected].
Oct. 3, 4, 5: Cathedral’s 2nd Annual Festival of
Flowers showcasing the work of San Francisco’s
finest florists, adorning the shrines and altars
of the landmark Cathedral. The Festival opens
with a Gala Preview and Reception on Friday
evening, and will be open to the public during
the open hours of the Cathedral on Saturday and
Sunday, free of charge. Chief presenter is Father
Patrick Moran of the Archdiocese of Dublin,
Ireland known around the world for his expertise
in church environment. Hear him shed light on
the importance of the decorative arts to worship
space. Presentations of floral design and flowers
in sacred art, and the Little Flower Festival, will
take place downstairs in the Cathedral Event
Center. For schedule of times and events, or
tickets to the Gala Preview or Design Presentation
visit www.cathedralflowers.org.
National Shrine of
Vallejo at Columbus St. in the City’s Historic
North Beach. Visit www.shrinerenewal.org or
call (415) 983-0405.
Sept. 27: Volunteer for one of the biggest
moments to come to the Shrine – the dedication
and blessing of The Porziuncola, a replica of the
chapel which St. Francis himself helped build
in Assisi. A sacred stone from the famous city
will also be placed in the tiny worship space to
further the Shrine connection to St. Francis and
its promise to be a place of prayer, respite and
solitude for those who visit. Cardinal William J.
Levada, former Archbishop of San Francisco and
now prefect of the Congregation of the Doctrine
of the Faith, will preside. Volunteer duties include
directing participant and pedestrian traffic and
making visitors feel at home. For information, call
(415) 983-0213.
Special Liturgies
Sept. 20 through 28: San Lorenzo Ruiz De
Manila Novena at St. Anne of the Sunset Church,
850 Judah St. in San Francisco. Schedule
includes rosary and novena rites at 4 p.m. on
Sept. 20 and 27. Weekday rosary at 6:30 p.m.
and Mass at 7 p.m. Potluck and Mass at 10:30
a.m. Sept. 28. For schedule, contact Freda
Motak (415) 566-5741 or Shirley Dimapilis (415)
452-9478.
Sept. 22, 7 p.m.: Mass and installation of
officers for the San Francisco County Council of
Catholic Women at Star of the Sea chapel, 8th
Ave. at Geary Blvd. in San Francisco. A reception follows in school auditorium with a short
talk about the group and what it does. Parking
available in schoolyard. For more information,
call Cathy Mibach at (415) 753-0234.
Sept. 27, 5 p.m.: Feast of San Lorenzo Ruiz
at St. Anthony Church, 3215 Cesar Chavez St.
(Army) in San Francisco. Potluck dinner and
social follows in school cafeteria. Call (415)
647-2704 for details.
Oct. 4, 11 a.m.: First Saturday Mass at Holy
Cross Cemetery in Colma. Call (650) 756-2060.
Oct. 4, noon: The Sisters of Charity of the
Blessed Virgin Mary celebrate 175 years as
a congregation and 120 years in Northern
California with this Mass of Thanksgiving
at St. Paul Church, 29th and Church in San
Francisco.
Oct. 26, 3:30 p.m.: “Mass for Those Affected by
Crime, Abuse or Violence” will be celebrated at St.
Mary’s Cathedral, 1111 Gough St., San Francisco.
Archbishop George Niederauer will preside.
Sponsored by the Restorative Justice Board of the
Archdiocese. For information, call (415) 614-5570 or
e-mail [email protected].
Arts & Entertainment
Sept. 28, 5 p.m.:
Jerome Lenk, director
of music and liturgy
at Mission Dolores
Basilica, will present
an organ concert in
celebration of the
10th anniversary of
the Basilica organ
featuring works by
Charles Vidor. Freewill donations benefit
the music program at
Jerome Lenk
the parish. Reception
follows. For more information call (415) 621-8203
or visit www.missiondolores.org.
Food & Fun
Sept. 21, 1 – 5 p.m.: Champagne Bingo in gym
below Sts. Peter and Paul Church, 666 Filbert St.,
San Francisco. Tickets are $17 each and include
hot lunch, champagne, two bingo cards, and door
prizes. Adults only. No tickets sold at door. Free
parking available. Call (415) 885-0567. Sponsored
by parish Holy Name Society.
Sept. 23, 8:15 - 10 a.m.: Richmond Community
17
Datebook
Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28, 3-4:30 p.m.: “Family
Caregiver Mini-Sabbatical,” a four-part series for
persons helping an older spouse, parent or sibling, especially someone with increasing memory
loss. The Tuesday afternoon sessions will be held
at Catholic Charties CYO’s San Carlos Adult Day
Services, 787 Walnut St., San Carlos. Cost is $25,
but a sliding scale fee is available. Respite care
can be arranged. For information, call (650) 5929325 or e-mail [email protected].
Oct. 18, 5 p.m.: St. Luke’s Mass and
Banquet at St. Cecilia Church and
Collins Center, 17th Ave. at Vicente St.
in San Francisco. Tickets are $70 each.
Attorney Wesley J. Smith will speak on
“Assisted Suicide and the Corruption
of Palliative Care” and be honored
with the group’s annual award.
Copies of Smith’s book, “Forced Exit,”
will be available for purchase.
Contact George Maloof, M.D., at
[email protected] or (415) 3052408. Sponsored by San Francisco Guild
of the Catholic Medical Association.
Social Justice
Coalition’s Quarterly breakfast to be held at
St. Gregory Armenian Apostolic Church, 51
Commonwealth Ave, San Francisco. Topics:
Salvation Army Family Store, Richmond Planning
Association, and Friends of the San Francisco
Library. For information: Ktty Ha at (415) 6685955, ext. 375, or [email protected].
Sept. 25, noon: Golf outing benefiting Roots
for Peace, a local charity that has raised millions
for the removal of land mines in war-torn areas.
Takes place at Peacock Gap Golf Club in San
Rafael. Contact Spencer Baird at (415) 455-8008
for details.
Sept. 27, 8:45 a.m. registration: San
Francisco’s 5K Out of the Darkness Community
Walk in Crissy Field. Event benefits suicide
outreach providers including local and national
suicide prevention and awareness programs. The
walk will begin at 10 a.m. Guest speaker is State
Senator Tom Torlakson who will discuss state
mental health policy. Music, refreshments and a
thank you prize drawing at the end of the walk
also included. John Sasaki of KTVU will be the
Emcee. To register, donate or to learn more, visit
www.outofthedarkness.org or e-mail Karin Tindall
at [email protected] .
Sept. 29, 10 a.m.: 16th Annual Capuchin Golf
Tournament at Stanford Golf Course. Tickets at
$300 include lunch, driving range, greens fees,
cart, cocktails, dinner as well as prizes and
beverages throughout the day. Tickets at $50
also available for dinner only. Proceeds benefit
Capuchin Franciscan Friars charities and programs throughout California and Mexico. Call
Mike Stecher at (650) 342-4680 or Anne Hahn
at (650) 692-5044.
Sep. 26, 27, 28: 70th Annual St. Philip Parish
Festival. Festivities start with parish dinner Friday
at 6 p.m. followed by two days of games, activities
and free entertainment Saturday and Sunday from
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Teen dance takes place Saturday
at 7 p.m. Takes place on St. Philip campus at 24th
and Diamond Street in Noe Valley; details at www.
stphilipfestival.org or call (415) 824-8467.
Sept. 26, 6:30 p.m.: Evening benefiting
Daughters of Charity’s Villa Siena Senior Living
Community in Mountain View. Enjoy dinner, live
music from the Big Band era, dancing and silent
auction. Tickets are $75. Contact the Villa Siena
Foundation at (650) 961-6484 or [email protected] or visit www.villa-siena.org.
Oct. 3, 7 a.m.: Catholic Marin Breakfast Club
meets at St. Sebastian Church, Sir Francis Drake
Blvd. and Bon Air Rd. in Greenbrae for Mass with
breakfast and talk following. Speakers today
address upcoming elections. Members breakfast
$7/visitors $10. Call (415) 461-0704 weekdays or
e-mail [email protected].
Oct. 4, 6 – 11 p.m.: Casino Night 2008 at All
Souls Church, Spruce and Walnut Ave. in South
San Francisco. Play poker, blackjack, craps and
pai gow. Call (650) 871-8944.
Oct. 5: Annual 5k Run or Walk at Lake
Merced benefiting Strides for Life Colon Cancer
Foundation. $35 registration fee includes tee
shirt, drawstring sport pack water bottle and
post-race meal. Register on-line as an individual
or form a team at www.stridesforlife.org or call
(650) 588-6390.
Oct. 5, 9:30 - 1:30 p.m.: “Ultimate Home Party,”
a shopping opportunity benefiting the Ladies
Guild of St. Mark Parish, 325 Marine View - just
a few blocks off Old County Road - in Belmont.
Items for sale include jewelry, house wares and
clothing. Free admission. Raffles take place
throughout the afternoon. Call the parish office
for more information at (650) 591-5937.
Oct. 10, 11, 12: All Souls Parish Festival,
Spruce and Walnut Ave. in South San Francisco:
Friday 6 – 10 pm.; Saturday noon – 10 p.m.;
Sunday 11 a.m. – 8 p.m. Games, rides, prizes,
music and food. Call (650) 871-8944.
TV/Radio
Sept. 21, 5 a.m.: “Assisi Pilgrimage: Walking in
Faith with Francis and Clare” will air on KGO ABC
7. The hour-long documentary, whose producers
include Franciscan Communications, takes viewers to the key places in the lives of St. Francis
and St. Clare.
Sunday, 6 a.m., WB Channel 20/Cable 13 and
KTSF Channel 26/Cable 8: TV Mass with Msgr.
Harry Schlitt presiding.
Saturday, 4 p.m.: Religious programming in
Cantonese over KVTO 1400 AM, co-sponsored by
the Chinese Ministry and Chinese Young Adults
of the Archdiocese.
1st Sunday, 5 a.m., CBS Channel 5: “Mosaic,”
featuring conversations on current Catholic
issues.
3rd Sunday, 5:30 a.m., KRON Channel 4: “For
Heaven’s Sake,” featuring conversations about
Catholic spirituality.
KSFB Catholic Radio 1260 AM offers daily
Mass, rosary and talk on the faith – visit www.
ihradio.org.
EWTN Catholic TV is carried 24 hours a day on
Comcast Ch. 229, Astound Ch. 80, DISH Ch.
261 and Direct TV Ch. 370. Comcast airs EWTN
on Ch. 70 in Half Moon Bay and on Ch. 74 in
southern San Mateo County. Also San Bruno
Cable carries EWTN on Ch. 143 in San Bruno.
Visit www.ewtn.com.
Trainings/Lectures/Respect Life
Sept. 23, 24, 7 p.m.: Gil Bailie begins “The
Emmaus Road Initiative,” a series of talks on the
integration of theology and anthropology, an area
of study Pope Benedict XVI has called a path
to a “most exciting part of the Catholic faith.”
Bailie is author of “Violence Unveiled: Humanity
at the Crossroads.” The Sept 23 presentation
is at St. Patrick’s Seminary and University, 320
Middlefield Rd. in Menlo Park. The June 24 talk
is at the Dominican School of Philosophy and
Theology, 2301 Vine. St. in Berkeley. Admission
is free. Joining Bailie at St. Patrick’s is Rene
Girard a former professor at Stanford University.
For more information including sites and times of
future talks, call (707) 996-4704.
Sept. 23, 7 - 9 p.m.: “Catholic Networking,
Bettering Your Interview Technique,” at St.
Dominic Church, Bush at Steiner in San Francisco.
St. Dunstan’s Stephanie Capodanno will talk
about and demonstrate energy techniques that
can help one relax prior to an interview, as well
as in stressful situations. These interventions
can assist in bringing balance and a deeper
sense of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. Admission is free. Reservations
are requested. E-mail [email protected] or call
(415) 664-0164.
Sept. 25, 7:30 p.m.: “Perspectives on Iraq,” a
presentation by Pax Christi of Marin at Mission
San Rafael, 1105 5th Ave., San Rafael. Discussion
and poetry reading, featuring Kathy Kelly of
Witness Against War and David Smith-Ferri,
author of “Battlefield Without Borders.” For further
information, call (415) 454-8141.
Sept. 25, 5-6:30 p.m.: Jesuit Father Thomas
Massaro will deliver the 2008 Urbi et Orbi Lecture
at the University of San Francisco, Xavier Hall of
Fromm Institute, main campus, 2130 Fulton Ave.,
San Francisco. The social ethics professor’s talk
title is “For God and Country: Patriotism and
Religious Identity Today.” For more information,
visit www.usfca.edu/lanecenter or call (415)
422-5200.
Sept. 30, Oct. 7, 14, 21, 28, 6:30 p.m.: “Let Paul
Speak to the Nations,” a series looking at the life
and letters of St. Paul with Father David Pettingill
at St. Paul of the Shipwreck Church, Third St. at
Jamestown in San Francisco. Registration fee:
$25. Bring a Bible. For registration information,
call (415) 468-3434.
Oct. 3, 5:30 – 7 p.m.: 4th Annual “Domestic
Violence: Not in Our Community,” a domestic violence prevention program with survivors and advocates sharing experiences and recommending ways
to promote healthy relationships. Presented by CORA
Kumares, Kumpares; Venue: War Memorial Center,
6655 Mission St., Daly City. Call (650) 652-0800 ext.
115 or e-mail [email protected].
Oct. 4, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.: “Where Can 4 Million
Displaced Persons Find Homes? The Iraqi
Refugee Crisis.” The Western Dominican Justice
Promoters sponsor a day of study and action at
St. Mary Magdalen Parish, 2005 Berryman St. in
Berkeley. Speakers include Sister Arlene Flaherty
who traveled to Syria and Lebanon with a Catholic
Relief Services delegation and met with Iraqi
refugees, two Iraqi Dominican sisters, and Father
John Morris, professor of theology at St. Mary’s
College in Moraga. Cost: $20. Bring a lunch. For
further information or to register, contact Sister
Stella Goodpasture at (510) 261-2349 or stellamsj@
igc.org.
Sept. 24, 25, 26, 7-8:30 p.m.: A Faithful
Citizenship Conference in English will take
place at, respectively, St. Bartholomew Parish,
300 Alameda de La Pulgas, San Mateo; St.
Sebastian Parish, 373 Bon Air Rd., Kentfield;
and Holy Name of Jesus Parish, 1555 39th
Ave., San Francisco. The event will feature
a panel of experts and focus on the United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ statement, “Faithful Citizenship and Formation of
Conscience.” Speakers include Jesuit Father
George Schultze. Materials for and a discussion
of the Protect Marriage Initiative - Proposition
8 - will also be included. For more information,
contact [email protected] or call
(415) 614-5570.
Sept. 27, 7 – 10 a.m.: The St. Vincent de Paul
Society sponsors a walk around Lake Merced
beginning at Lake Merced parking lot where
Sunset dead ends into Lake Merced entrance
signs will be posted. Registration is free. To
register, http://svdp-sf.org drag mouse to the
lower left hand corner of this link “Friends of the
Poor Walk,” or call Katherine McCarron, at (415)
977- 1270 ext. 3003, [email protected].
Money raised will help those in need.
Taize/Chanted Prayer
1st Friday at 8 p.m.: Mercy Center, 2300
Adeline Dr., Burlingame with Mercy Sister
Suzanne Toolan. Call (650) 340-7452; young
adults are invited each first Friday of the month
to attend a social at 6 p.m. prior to Taize prayer at
8 p.m. The social provides light refreshments and
networking with other young adults. Convenient
parking is available. For information contact
[email protected].
1st Friday at 7:30 p.m.: Church of the Nativity,
210 Oak Grove Ave., Menlo Park at 7:30 p.m. Call
Deacon Dominic Peloso at (650) 322-3013.
Tuesdays at 6 p.m.: Notre Dame Des Victoires
Church, 566 Bush at Stockton, San Francisco
with Rob Grant. Call (415) 397-0113.
2nd Friday at 8 p.m.: Our Lady of the Pillar,
400 Church St. in Half Moon Bay. Call Cheryl
Fuller at (650) 726-2249.
Vocations
Sept. 19, Oct. 17 and subsequent third
Fridays, 8 p.m.: Refresh your soul … with a
moment of peace and quiet … away from the
busyness of life … listen to beautiful music …
join others in prayer and song around the cross
… offer your restlessness and worries to Jesus,
the One who understands … let the longing in
our world and yours meet in Jesus the One who
heals. Location: Dominican Sisters of Mission
San Jose, Motherhouse Chapel, 43326 Mission
Blvd., Fremont. For further information, contact
Maria Shao, (408) 839-2068, or maria49830@aol.
com or Sister Beth Quire, OP (510) 449-7554 or
[email protected].
Oct. 25, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.: Western States
Conference of Associates and Religious meet
at Notre Dame High School, 1500 Ralston Rd.
in Belmont. Notre Dame Sister Janice Bohn will
facilitate the day on a theme of “Association: A
New Call to Prayer and Service.” Sister Bohn
has been a companion to women discerning to
become third order associates or vowed religious
for almost 30 years. Fee for the day is $30. Lunch
is available at $10 per person. Coffee and snacks
also provided. To register or for more information,
contact Kathy Noether at [email protected].
For more information about WSCAR, visit the
national website at www.nacar96.org.
Reunions
Sept. 29, 11:15 a.m.: St. Brigid High School,
all classes, at Presidio Golf Club, 9 Presidio
Terrace in San Francisco. Contact Helen Perlite
at (415) 753-5964.
Oct. 4, noon – 3 p.m.: Mercy High School,
San Francisco, Class of 1963 at Basque Cultural
Center. Contact [email protected]
Oct. 18, 6 p.m.: St. Cecilia Elementary School,
class of 1988, at Maggie’s McGarry Bar, 1353
Grant St. in San Francisco. Tickets at $10 include
appetizers. Contact Tabitha Totah at Tabitha.
[email protected].
Oct. 18: The class of 1978 from Our Lady of
Angels Elementary School is planning a reunion
with site to be announced. All members of the class
as well as former teachers are asked to contact
Julie Britton Kanzaki at [email protected].
Datebook is a free listing for parishes,
schools and non-profit groups. Please include event name, time, date, place, address
and an information phone number. Listing
must reach Catholic San Francisco at least
two weeks before the Friday
publication date desired. Mail your
notice to: Datebook, Catholic San
Francisco, One Peter Yorke Way, S.F.
94109, or fax it to (415) 614-5633,
or e-mail [email protected].
18
September 19, 2008
Lost mountaineer . . .
death threats in the U.S. for “helping the
enemy.” The threats led Mortenson’s wife,
Tara, to suggest he go on a speaking tour.
“I wanted to talk to
people about hope and comgirls is scarce in the tribal
passion,” Mortenson said.
areas of Pakistan. Important
“Instead of building walls,
side effects, he added, include
we need to build bridges.
reducing the infant mortality
The women (of Pakistan)
rate, addressing the populatold me ‘We don’t want our
tion explosion and improving
babies to die, and we want
the quality of health.
our children to go to school.’
“If we don’t educate
I think that’s a pretty simple
girls, nothing will change,”
request.”
Mortenson said.
Mortenson said with the
Mortenson has run into
help of tribal leaders and
difficulties. Two fatwa
communities that “fiercely
(Islamic religious rulings)
embrace education,” he has
called for his banishment
been able to turn a failed trip
from Pakistan. The declaraup a high peak into a journey
tions were later reversed
with much loftier goals.
with the help of respected
“I didn’t find my field
Shia leader Syed Abbas.
of dreams in Iowa, and
One school was taken
I didn’t find my field of
over briefly by the Taliban;
Greg Mortenson
dreams on the summit of
a local militia leader who
K2,” Mortenson said. “I found my field of
favors Mortenson’s work recaptured it.
After September 11, Mortenson faced dreams in Korphe.”
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have the courage of honesty so as not to lie
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One of the qualities that endeared
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and his refusal to pretend he was anything other than what he was: a sincere,
weak man struggling to live his life in
honesty.
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honesty and consequently have things to
hide, little or big secrets which we keep
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0% Financing Available
Real Estate
SPECIALIZING IN
SAN MATEO COUNTY REAL ESTATE
* Parishioner of St. Gregory’s Church, San Mateo
Today
MIKE TEIJEIRO
Realtor
(650) 523-5815
[email protected]
Plumbing and Heating
415-661-3707
Michael T. Santi
Since 1972
Ca License # 663641
24 Hour Emergency Service
Insurance Services
Multi-Policy Discounts
Insure both your home and auto with
Allied Insurance and save! With Allied
Insurance, more really is better.
MUZIO & ROVERO
INSURANCE SERVICES, INC.
P.O. Box 1178, Mill Valley, CA 94941
(415) 388-2096
Call today for
a free quote
Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company
AMCO Insurance Company
Allied Property and Casualty Insurance Company
Depositors Insurance Company
Nationwide Agribusiness Insurance Company
Des Moines, Iowa 50391-1100
www.alliedinsurance.com
Lic. # 0599101
Maintenance
Construction
GARIBALDI MAINTENANCE CO.
Specializing In
Wood Fences
S anti
If I can be of service to you, or
if you know of anyone who is
interested in buying or selling
a home, please do not hesitate
to call me . . .
800-321-2752
MORROW
CONTRUCTION
Complete Janitorial – Window Cleaning
Auto
Home
DALY CONSTRUCTION
GENERAL CONTRACTOR
Lic. #659078
t Interior & Exterior
t Remodeling
415-753-6804
Fax 415-759-8911
[email protected]
Business
Farm
Party Rentals
Quality Service Since 1946
“Large Enough to Matter, Small Enough to Care”
SM
FINE SERVICE, BETTER EVENTS.
FREE ESTIMATES (415) 441-2454
www.garibaldimaintenance.com
Fully Insured & Bonded
TABLES SEATING LINENS
SETTINGS SERVEWARE STAGING
(650) 994-6892
lic. 343633
BONDED & INSURED
415-205-1235
Complete Auto Repair
Serving San Francisco, Marin & the Peninsula.
Contact: 415.447.8463
Lic. # 872560
➤ Drain-Sewer Cleaning Service ➤ Water Heaters
➤ Gas Pipes ➤ Toilets ➤ Faucets ➤ Garbage Disposals
➤ Copper Repiping ➤ Sewer Replacement
➤ Video Camera & Line locate
PROMPT AND UNPARALLELED SERVICE
Handy Man
Painting, roof repair, fence (repair/ build)
demolition, carpenter, gutter (clean/ repair),
decks, skylight repairs, landscaping,
gardening, hauling, moving, janitorial. All purpose.
Call (650) 757-1946
Cell (415) 517-5977
NOT A LICENSED CONTRACTOR
1- 800-717-PARTY
ABBEY
party rents sf
411 ALLAN STREET DALY CITY, CA 94014
FAX 415-715-6914 TEL 415-715-6900
WWW.ABBEYRENTSSF.COM
September 19, 2008
CLASSIFIED RATES
HELP WANTED
PRIVATE PARTY
4 lines for 12.00
Each additional line $2.00
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1 time
20
2 time
15
3 time
minimum 1 inch
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words and/or phone numbers
CALL 415-614-5642
FAX 415-614-5641
EMAIL [email protected]
CALL 415-614-5640
FAX 415-614-5641
EMAIL [email protected]
PUBLISH A
NOVENA
Pre-payment
required
Mastercard or
Visa accepted
Cost
$26
If you wish to publish a Novena in
the Catholic San Francisco
You may use the form below
or call 415-614-5640
Your prayer will be published in our newspaper
Name
Adress
Phone
MC/VISA #
Exp.
Select One Prayer:
❑ St. Jude Novena to SH
❑ Prayer to St. Jude
❑ Prayer to the
Blessed Virgin
❑ Prayer to the
Holy Spirit
Please return form with check or money order for $26
Payable to: Catholic San Francisco
Advertising Dept., Catholic San Francisco
1 Peter Yorke Way, San Francisco, CA 94109
Prayer to the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit, you who make me
see everything and who shows
me the way to reach my ideal.
You who give me the divine gift
of forgive and forget the wrong
that is done to me. I, in this short
dialogue, want to thank you for
everything and confirm once
more that I never want to be
separated from you no matter
how great the material desires
may be. I want to be with you
and my loved ones in your
perpetual glory. Amen. You
may publish this as soon as
your favor is granted. M.A.B.
Prayer to the Blessed
Virgin never known to fail.
Most beautiful flower of
Mt. Carmel Blessed Mother
of the Son of God, assist me
in my need. Help me and
show me you are my mother.
Oh Holy Mary, Mother of
God, Queen of Heaven and
earth. I humbly beseech you
from the bottom of my heart
to help me in this need.
Oh Mary, conceived without
sin. Pray for us (3X).
Holy Mary, I place this
cause in your hands (3X).
Say prayers 3 days. M.A.B.
Prayer to St. Jude
Oh, Holy St. Jude, Apostle and
Martyr, great in virtue and rich in
miracles, near Kinsman of Jesus
Christ, faithful intercessor of all who
invoke your special patronage in time
of need, to you I have recourse from
the depth of my heart and humbly
beg to whom God has given such
great power to come to my assistance.
Help me in my present and urgent
petition. In return I promise to
make you be invoked. Say three
our Fathers, three Hail Marys and
Glorias. St. Jude pray for us all
who invoke your aid. Amen.
This Novena has never been known
to fail. This Novena must be said
9 consecutive days. Thanks.
M.A.B.
St. Jude Novena
May the Sacred Heart
of Jesus be adored,
glorified, loved &
preserved throughout
the world now &
forever. Sacred Heart
of Jesus pray for us.
St. Jude helper of the
hopeless pray for us.
Say prayer 9 times a
day for 9 days.
Thank You St. Jude.
Never known to fail.
You may publish.
M.A.B.
Prayer to St. Jude
Prayer to St. Jude
Christ, faithful intercessor of all who
invoke your special patronage in time
of need, to you I have recourse from
the depth of my heart and humbly
beg to whom God has given such
great power to come to my assistance.
Help me in my present and urgent
petition. In return I promise to
make you be invoked. Say three
our Fathers, three Hail Marys and
Glorias. St. Jude pray for us all
who invoke your aid. Amen.
to fail. This Novena must be said
9 consecutive days. Thanks.
E.K.S.
Christ, faithful intercessor of all
who invoke your special patronage in time of need, to you I have
recourse from the depth of my heart
and humbly beg to whom God has
given such great power to come
to my assistance. Help me in my
present and urgent petition. In return
I promise to make you be invoked.
Say three our Fathers, three Hail
Marys and Glorias. St. Jude pray for
us all who invoke your aid. Amen.
to fail. This Novena must be said 9
consecutive days. Thanks.
S.M.
St. Jude Novena
Prayer to the Blessed
Virgin never known to fail.
May the Sacred Heart
of Jesus be adored,
glorified, loved &
preserved throughout
the world now &
forever. Sacred Heart
of Jesus pray for us.
St. Jude helper of the
hopeless pray for us.
Say prayer 9 times a
day for 9 days.
Thank You St. Jude.
Never known to fail.
You may publish.
K.M.
Most beautiful flower of
Mt. Carmel Blessed Mother
of the Son of God, assist me
in my need. Help me and
show me you are my mother.
Oh Holy Mary, Mother of
God, Queen of Heaven and
earth. I humbly beseech you
from the bottom of my heart
to help me in this need.
Oh Mary, conceived without
sin. Pray for us (3X).
Holy Mary, I place this
cause in your hands (3X).
Say prayers 3 days.
J.P.
19
Caregiver Catholic San Francisco
available
CERTIFIED GERIATRIC
HOME AIDE,
native San Franciscan,
19 yrs. exp. seeks
employment with
elderly woman exc. ref.
415-307-2482
House
for Rent
2 BEDROOM, 1 BATH HOME
AVAILABLE, incl. utilities,
place a Help
fully furnished, shared
Wanted Ad in
washer & dryer, $1,600/mo.
Catholic
San Francisco Call (650) 515-8507
Elderly Caregiver
Care available
Personal care companion,
Help with daily
activities; driving,
shopping, appointments.
27 years experience,
references, bonded.
(415) 713-1366
Elderly companion,
caregiver available,
live-in or out,
experienced with
references. Call Dolly
at (415) 317-0850
Anniversary
Celebration
ALMA VIA
OF SAN FRANCISCO
CORDIALLY INVITES
YOU TO OUR
ANNIVERSARY
CELEBRATION
Saturday,
November 2nd, 2008
3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
Join us in celebrating
five years of serving our
senior community in the
San Francisco Bay Area
3:00 pm – 4:00 pm,
Prayer of Thanksgiving,
St. Thomas More Church
1300 Junipero Serra Blvd.,
classifieds
FOR ADVERTISING INFORMATION
CALL: 415-614-5642
FAX: 415-614-5641
EMAIL: [email protected]
Move in
Special
MOVE IN SPECIAL!
3 Free Months
Quail Ridge Mobile
Home/RV Park.
Located between
Grass Valley
and Oroville!
Majestic Setting –
Drug Free Park
(530) 675-9188
A Biblical Study Course
on Saint Paul,
from Sept. 18 to Dec. 18, 2008,
by Fr. David Anderson, in
Marin Catholic High School (Kentfield).
Classes are every Thursday nights,
7:30 to 9:30 PM, in the back of the
campus, by the Chapel. We will study
“The Epistle to the Romans”.
Recommended donations: $150.
For more information, check
http://www.leblogdelabergerie.com/SaintPaul.htm
or call Michele 415 566-5166.
We invite everyone to come by for a free class visit!
Help Wanted
ALL SOULS CATHOLIC SCHOOL
Serving the diverse community of South San Francisco
Teacher Aide Postions –
Starting immediately – 19.5 hours 5 days a week
Salary in line with Archdiocese standards
Please call to set up an interview with
Mr. Vincent Riener, Principal
School Office: 650-583-3562 • Fax: 650-952-1167
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.ssfallsoulsschool.org
heaven can’t wait
JOB OPENING
Serra for Priestly Vocations
Please call Archdiocese
of San Francisco
Fr. Tom Daly (415) 614-5683
Mercy High School, San Francisco, a
Catholic, College Preparatory Secondary
School for Young Women
ADVERTISING SALES
For The Largest Publisher of
Catholic Church Bulletins
This is a Career Opportunity!
• Generous Commissions
• Excellent Benefit Package
• Minimal Travel
• Stong Office Support
• Work in Your Community
Reception to follow,
Alma Via of San Francisco
1 Thomas More Way,
Lecture
Series
Call 1-800-675-5051
Fax resume: 707-258-1195
Position: Chemistry/Physical Science Teacher
Full-Time Long Term Substitute Position
November 17, 2008 – June 3, 2009
Qualifications: Credential or advanced
degree preferred. Teaching or student
teaching experience required.
Please send resume to:
Linda Ambrosini, Assistant Principal
Mercy High School
3250 Nineteenth Avenue
[email protected]
415-334-0525
www.mercyhs.org
We are looking for full or part time
RNs, LVNs, CNAs, Caregivers
RSVP by
October 17th, 2008
(415) 337-1339
Elder Care Alliance is co-sponsored
by the Sisters of Mercy of the
Americas, Regional Community of
Burlingame and the Sierra Pacific
Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church of America.
In-home care in San Francisco, Marin County, peninsula
Nursing care for children in San Francisco schools
If you are generous, honest, compassionate, respectful,
and want to make a difference, send us your resume:
Jeannie McCullough Stiles, RN
Fax: 415-435-0421
Email: [email protected]
Voice: 415-435-1262
20
September 19, 2008
Local priest founds
effort to aid blind
Vietnamese children
By Michael Vick
(PHOTOS BY ROBERT SHELLY)
A young boy takes part
in a musical ceremony
with the encouragement of Sister Thang
Nguyen, a member of the
Congregation of Lovers of
the Holy Cross, the order
that oversees facilities for
blind Vietnamese youngsters supported by the
Blind Vietnamese Children
Foundation. Above, BVCF
founder Father Thuan
Hoang of the Archdiocese
of San Francisco joins in
song with students.
Children perform at a musical presentation for fellow students and visitors
at Nhat Hong School for the Blind in Ho Chi Minh City.
(PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CATHOLIC HERALD, SACRAMENTO)
During a 1998 trip to his native Vietnam, Father Thuan Hoang
was shocked to find blind children living on the streets.
An official in the Archdiocese of San Francisco’s
Metropolitan Tribunal and Department of Canonical Affairs
as well as parochial vicar at Church of the Visitacion in San
Francisco, the priest contacted nuns in the area and asked
what was being done to care for the children. He found that
the Sisters were sheltering as many as they could. Their limited resources, however, meant “as many” was not many.
Inspired, Father Hoang started the Blind Vietnamese
Children Foundation in 2000. The organization has since
help support the opening of six centers that now serve around
250 children, plus it helps another 200 blind and disabled
children in other programs.
“That’s a small number,” Father Hoang said. “We have
plans for more centers.”
Members of the Congregation of Lovers of the Holy Cross
own the facilities and oversee the program. The Sisters teach
children to read and write in Braille, a language system using
raised dots to represent letters. They also teach the children orientation skills that allow them more freedom of movement.
Some children, particularly those whose only disability
is blindness, go to integrated schools with sighted children.
Education continues through secondary school, and eight
of the youth are now in college. The program includes
tracks for college-bound students as well as those seeking
vocational training.
The program also provides full-time care for children
with mental and physical disabilities in addition to their
blindness.
Father Hoang said BVCF has been influential in helping
shift cultural attitudes toward the blind in the areas it serves.
As the culture becomes more aware of blindness’ causes and
treatments, fewer children find themselves on the street, he
said.
“In the old days, kids were abandoned,” Father Hoang
said. “Now they recognize the value of human beings. The
parents don’t feel shame.”
“We’re so fortunate in the United States,” said Father
Hoang, who fled Vietnam in 1987 when he was 30. “We
have great resources. I felt I owed something to my native
country to do something for the children there.”
BVCF holds fundraisers once a year and sends out an
informational newsletter twice a year. The priest said the
amount raised at the yearly event – held this year in early
August at Our Lady of Peace Parish in Santa Clara – coupled
with individuals’ donations netted the organization about
$118,000 last year.
Robert Shelly, a member of the BVCF board of advisors,
said one cornerstone of the organization is that almost all of
that money goes directly to helping the children.
“We’re conscious of keeping our costs to a minimum,”
Shelly said. “I’m extremely pleased with the high amount
of our total fundraising which goes to the kids.”
Shelly visited Vietnam last December. Seeing the program for himself was an uplifting experience, he said.
“You really see the fruit of your efforts when you go
and actually see the kids, seeing their smiling faces, seeing
the results,” Shelly said. “It’s a remarkable program, and in
eight years it has grown remarkably well. I’m very proud
to be a part of the organization.”
For more information about BVCF, visit www.bvcf.net.
Cistercians building monastery
Cistercian monks from Our Lady of Chau Son Monastery in Vietnam have
established an adjunct community in Walnut Grove, located in the
Diocese of Sacramento. They now live in a cloistered, contemplative
community on 50 acres of farmland. Cistercian Father Dominic Tran is prior.
U.S. watchdog group expresses
concern over religious freedom
By Salesian Father Anthony Lobo
WASHINGTON (CNS) – A U.S. watchdog
group has released a report expressing concern
over persistent religious freedom violations in
Vietnam.
Religious freedom “in Vietnam continues
to be mixed, with improvements for some
religious communities but not for others,
progress in some provinces but not in others,
reforms of laws at the national level that are
not fully implemented or are ignored at the
local level, and still too many abuses of and
restrictions on religious freedom affecting most
of Vietnam’s diverse religious communities,”
said the U.S. Commission on International
Religious Freedom in a 32-page report released
Aug. 25.
The report includes findings from the commission’s 2007 trip to Vietnam. The commission is an independent, bipartisan federal agency
mandated by Congress to review international
religious freedom and recommend to the U.S.
secretary of state which countries should be
designated as “countries of particular concern”
for their engagement in or tolerance of systemic
and egregious violations of religious freedom.
“The U.S. government still needs to press
Vietnam’s leaders to make immediate improvements to end religious freedom abuses, ease
restrictions and release prisoners,” said Felice
Gaer, a commissioner, in an Aug. 25 press
release on the report.
“Improved conditions for some only
emphasize the inexcusability of ongoing
abuses endured by others,” said Gaer. “The
State Department should not diminish its categorization of Vietnam as a severe violator until
the Vietnamese government demonstrates a
countrywide, nondiscriminatory commitment to
religious freedom and human rights for all.”
From 2004 to 2006, Vietnam was categorized
as a country “of particular concern.” However,
it was removed from the list in 2006.