When should I be confirmed?

Transcription

When should I
be confirmed?
Diocese of Knoxville is
considering changing the age
to receive the sacrament of
confirmation
1
2
The East Tennessee Catholic Magazine | March 2015 | www.dioknox.org
contents
YOUR LIFE
10
4
From the bishop
Life-changing –
With Mary, we better contemplate
the face of Jesus and learn to be his
face to others.
5
Once upon a time ...
Sisters sowed the seeds of faith in
East Tennessee.
6
8
Local news
YOUR STORIES
10
Cover story
When should I be confirmed? –
Diocese of Knoxville is considering
changing the age to receive the
sacrament of confirmation
17
Feature story
A history of serving East Tennessee –
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas live
out foundress Catherine McAuley’s
charism.
21
Feature story
Maryville College sociology
professor leads study of Asian
Catholics for USCCB.
22
Pope watch
Huge crowds greet the pope in
Sri Lanka, Philippines.
23
Praying for perspective
Weathering storms.
The Magazine of the
Catholic Diocese of Knoxville
March 2015
Volume 3: Issue 2
Bishop Richard F. Stika
PUBLISHER
Bill Brewer
EDITOR
Dan McWilliams
ASSISTANT EDITOR
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Margaret Hunt
ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT
Bill Brewer
Lourdes Garza
Chloe Kennedy
Monsignor Xavier Mankel
Dan McWilliams
George Valadie
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Patrick M. O’Brien
PRESIDENT/
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
Elizabeth Martin Solsburg
DIRECTOR OF CUSTOM PUBLISHING/
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Jenny Bis
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
La Cosecha
Hacia la Santidad.
21
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The East Tennessee Catholic Magazine (USPS 010-650) is a membership publication of the Diocese of Knoxville, 805 S.
Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919. Published six times per year. Send all subscription information and address changes to: The
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Catholic MagazineTM, 805 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919. ©2013 The East Tennessee Catholic Magazine, Diocese of Knoxville.
TM
COVER PHOTO BY
STEPHANIE RICHER
3
iStock©
He Dwells Among Us • March 2015
LIFE-CHANGING
WITH MARY, WE BETTER CONTEMPLATE
THE FACE OF JESUS AND LEARN TO BE
HIS FACE TO OTHERS
A
n examination of the
lives of the great saints
reveals something they all
share in common in their
love of Christ – a profound
love of His mother and
ours: Mary! This would be
why the great mystic priest
St. Padre Pio urges us to
"Love the Madonna, and
make people to love her,”
a plea I cannot take lightly
as a bishop. For saints of
Christ are saints of Mary –
and today, more than ever,
we need saints.
Saints are the ones who
truly make a difference in the
world, in our communities
4
and in our parishes. And if we
are to more quickly and easily
become the saints we are
called to be, we should entrust
and consecrate ourselves to
Christ through Mary.
Of the many spiritual
masterpieces written that
help to guide the faithful
towards a deeper love of
Christ, I pray you will take
up St. Louis de Montfort’s
book True Devotion to Mary
and allow him to guide you
over a course of 33 days that
will change your life forever.
St. John Paul II called
his reading of True Devotion
to Mary a turning point in
his life. He first read it as a
youth, and would re-read
many times during his
pontificate. Such was the
impact of this book that
when he was elected pope in
1978, he took as his papal
motto the first words of St.
Louis’ prayer, Totus Tuus – “I
am all thine, and all that I
have is thine most loving
Jesus, through Mary, your
most Holy Mother.”
Another great saint whose
life was changed by this book
was St. Thérèse of Lisieux,
who we also know as the
“Little Flower” of Jesus. After
her religious profession as
a Discalced Carmelite, she
painted a picture of her soul
as a lily white flower with
its petals opened so as to
catch the divine graces that
poured into it from a star
above. And within that star
was the letter “M” for Mary,
for it was through Mary that
Christ came to us – and it is
through Mary that we receive
his graces.
It is not uncommon to
hear the argument from
non-Catholics and even
some Catholics that a Marian
devotion detracts from giving
the proper focus to Christ.
But St. Louis de Montfort
confronts this falsity and
shows how the opposite is
true – a correct devotion to
Mary is above all devotion
to Christ and no one else
can lead us more quickly in
bringing us closer to Christ
than Mary.
St. Faustina, the great
saint of God’s mercy, was
deeply devoted to the Blessed
Mother and would pray, “O
Mary, my Mother and my
Lady, I offer you my soul, my
body, my life and my death
and all that will come after
it. I place everything in your
from the bishop
Bishop Richard F.
Stika, third bishop of
Knoxville, Tenn.
hands ...” She understood
what St. Louis de Montfort
preached – that as Jesus
Christ came to us through
Mary, it is through Mary
that we must go to him. And
whatever we place in the
hands of Mary, she gives to
Jesus, but only after she has
adorned it and made it more
beautiful.
The sacred act of
consecrating ourselves to
Jesus through Mary is the
permission we give her to
lead us to Christ along the
way that she knows better
than any other human. Like
a good mother, she shows us
the best way.
I regret that I did not
sooner taken up St. Louis
de Montfort’s book. But
God willing, after preparing
myself according to the 33day preparation that St. Louis
recommends, I and members
of the Frassati Fellowship
will make our consecration
to Jesus through Mary on
March 19, the feast of St.
Joseph, spouse of the Blessed
Virgin Mary. I pray you will
also want to take up True
Devotion to Mary and make
your consecration.
I can assure you
that it will be lifechanging. 
yourlife
Sisters sowed the
seeds of faith
in East Tennessee
T
he wonderful gathering for the 5 p.m. Mass at the
Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus on Feb. 8 is
proof positive that of all the great things brought to the
Diocese of Knoxville by our first three bishops (and there
are many great things), an increase in the number of
priests and seminarians may be near the top of the list.
At the top of the list of holy accomplishments by Bishop
Richard Stika, I would also list the increase in the number
of women religious among us. And that Feb. 8 gathering
at the cathedral was a superior indication that not only
are there priestly and religious vocations abounding in
the Church in theory, but in practice as well.
Many old-timers were
blessed to have had sisters
in our schools when we
were growing up – not only
in the religion classroom,
but also throughout the
rest of the school and in the
parish, too. Sisters ran our
hospitals, excelled at parish
visitation, managed the Sunday
schools of religion and the
summertime vacation Bible
schools. They could be seen on
our streets, in our stores and,
most and best of all, in our
chapels and parish churches
wherein grace abounded.
The Sisters of Charity of
Leavenworth, Kan., helped
plant the faith in the early
days. St. Cecilia Dominicans
from Nashville had “schools
once upon
a time
Monsignor Xavier
Mankel is vicar general
and historical archivist for
the Diocese of Knoxville.
of excellence” in our diocese
before the term became
popular.
Sisters of Charity of
Nazareth, Ky., were present
and the BVM Sisters graced our
convents. The Sisters of Mercy,
at first from Nashville and later
from Cincinnati, added to the
presence of women religious
and did a fine job in our
schools and hospital.
The first theological
controversy in our family
came when my dear Methodist
mother taught me the Hail
Mary prayer one way and
Sister Joan Marie taught it
another. My poor daddy! We
said the Our Father very often
those days (Mother knew
the “Catholic ending” of the
Lord’s Prayer). The Hail Mary
controversy was solved more
by omission than commission
in our home. Nowadays, the
“standard” prayers are printed
at the beginning or at the end
of the religion books and used
in CCD or school.
To list the “head”
knowledge, in addition to the
spiritual knowledge of the
faith in those sisters, boggles
my mind. They were brilliant
women, good teachers and
very good Catholics.
Sister Joan Marie managed
the 25 first-graders and the 25
second-graders in the same
room. The police were never
called.
We had Sister Josephine in
the third grade. Sister became
ill and we had a “lay” teacher
off and on that year – Mrs.
Nora Winstead, a wonderful
Catholic lady and a veteran of
the public school system.
In the fourth grade, we
basked in the smile of Sister
Noreen, whose every word,
even in arithmetic, sounded
like warm honey being poured
slowly from a jar. We also
had Sister Ethelbert Hobbs
during those years. She had to
contend with a new invention:
the ballpoint pen. She won the
battle; no ballpoint pens were
used in her presence. Students
not gifted with her method of
discipline had ballpoint ink
(early models leaked) on faces,
in our hair, on clothes, books,
papers, the furniture – any
place young people touched.
Those were the days.
Some sanity returned when
we entered the sixth grade.
The girls were taught by gentle
Sister Martinez (who also had
the entire fifth grade) and the
sixth-grade boys with all of the
seventh-graders were taught by
Sister Mary Francis Gleason. In
later years when asked, “Who
was the very best teacher you
ever had?” the easy answer
would be, “Why, Sister Mary
Francis.” There never was any
discussion following.
When asked who the best
student she ever had, she
would sort of glance rapidly in
my direction and then say (and
it was very true), “Frank Shea
was the best student I ever
taught.” No argument there.
In the eighth grade, we
had Sister Celestine. She
was principal and also local
superior. The young assistant
pastor was Father Paul Clunan.
Unless he had a funeral, he
spent every morning with the
eighth grade. He began with a
prayer and then lit the first of
20 cigarettes he would smoke
end to end. Then he would
leave and we would get back to
eighth-grade classes and chores.
This column will not have
room for my high school
teachers. I’ll profile them
later. We products of Catholic
schools have inherited a
wonderful bequest. Pope
Francis’ endorsement of
consecrated and religious
life continues to bear fruit as
Christ’s body, the Church,
grows and glows. 
5
news
St. Mary Church to hold High School Young
Women’s Retreat 2015
St. Mary Church in Oak Ridge will hold a High School Young
Women’s Retreat at the church March 27-29.
St. Mary is inviting high school youths from across the diocese
to learn about God’s call to them to be daughters of the king. The
high school girls on retreat will be joined by University of Tennessee
students and FOCUS missionaries, who will lead them in small groups
to discuss the True Beauty series. They also will hear from speakers,
including Crystalina Evert.
According to the True Beauty series, “Young women don't have to
look far to get a good view of what the world thinks of them. If they
look at magazine covers, they see skinny models in risqué clothing
with cover blurbs promising ‘proven methods to satisfy your sexual
partner’ or the ‘top ten ways to turn your guy on.’ If young women
listen to the world, they'll believe that sex is a tool to help them get
what they want and lead to the love they are looking for. Deep down,
however, young women want to be admired for who they are, not for
their sex appeal. They want to live a joyful life and find loving, giving
relationships. In short, they want to know that they are worth waiting
for. Sadly, many young women haven't had someone teach them how
to achieve that desire of their hearts. It's time for our young women to
understand the gift of their femininity. Based in biblical teaching and
godly principles, this study will help them understand their dignity and
become women of true beauty.”
Those attending the retreat will then join the Dominican Sisters in
their chapel to take part in the sisters’ evening prayer and Holy Hour
with confession. Also included
in the weekend retreat is an
afternoon tea featuring delectibles
created by laywomen who make
them professionally.
The retreat will begin at 6 p.m.
on Friday, March 27, and conclude
at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, March
29. For more information, contact
St. Mary youth ministry coordinator
"Wave 1" Parishes Margaret Merrill at
[email protected].
Feb. 2015 –
July 2015
• Blessed Teresa of
Calcutta, Maynardville
• Holy Cross, Pigeon Forge
• Holy Ghost, Knoxville
• Our Lady of Perpetual
Help, Chattanooga
• St. Bridget, Dayton
• St. Francis of Assisi,
Townsend
• St. John XXIII, Knoxville
• St. Joseph, Norris
• St. Jude, Helenwood
• St. Michael the Archangel,
Erwin
• St. Patrick, Morristown
• St. Therese, Clinton
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officially kick off on the weekend of April 18-19.
Projects planned for Wave 1 parishes range from paying off debt
to building a new church. Through the Home Campaign, parishes
keep at least 50 percent of the funds raised to tackle their own needs,
while also helping to address key diocesan initiatives. Those initiatives
include the newly established Pope Francis Charitable Trust Fund,
funding for Catholic education and priest retirement and the building
of our new cathedral.
If your parish is participating in Wave 1, be on the lookout for more
information through bulletin and pulpit announcements about your
parish’s campaign projects. If you would like to volunteer to help with
the campaign, please contact your pastor. To learn more about the
Home Campaign, visit: www.thehomecampaign.org
Home Campaign Wave 1
parishes in planning phase
Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish close to reaching its goal
For parishes participating
in Wave 1 of the Home
Campaign, there is a great
amount of planning currently
under way prior to each
parish campaign kicking off.
Pastors and their leadership
teams are hard at work
recruiting volunteers and
finalizing details about the
parish projects they hope to
accomplish with their share
of the campaign funds. All
Wave 1 parish campaigns will
Sacred Heart Cathedral Parish kicked off its Home
Campaign in September with a goal of raising $10 million
toward the cathedral project. After only five months, the parish
has received gifts and pledges totaling nearly $9 million.
Father David Boettner, rector of the cathedral, and parish leadership
are confident they will reach and exceed the $10 million goal.
“The success of the cathedral parish’s Home Campaign signifies
the commitment of our parishioners to lead the way in this important
initiative. With the support of many others across the diocese, we will
be able to build a beautiful and timeless cathedral that everyone in our
diocese will be able to call home,” Father Boettner said.
A ceremonial groundbreaking is planned for the new cathedral
on Sunday, April 19. To learn more about the progress of the
cathedral project, visit: www.sacredheartcampaign.org.
7
La Cosecha
CAMBIO DE VIDA
Con María contemplamos mejor el rostro de Jesús
y aprendemos a ser su rostro para los demás
U
n examen de las vidas de los grandes santos revela algo que
todos tienen en común en su amor a Cristo-¡un profundo
amor a su Madre y a la nuestra-María! Esta sería la razón por la
cual el gran sacerdote místico, San Padre Pío, nos insta a "Amar
a la Virgen y hacer que la gente la ame" un pedido que no puedo
tomar a la ligera como Obispo. Porque los santos de Cristo son
santos de María y hoy, más que nunca, necesitamos santos.
Los santos son los que
verdaderamente marcan
una diferencia en el mundo,
en nuestras comunidades
y en nuestras parroquias. Y
si queremos ser los santos
que estamos llamados a ser
más rápida y fácilmente,
debemos encomendarnos y
consagrarnos a Cristo por
medio de María.
8
De las muchas obras
maestras espirituales escritas
que ayudan a guiar a los fieles
hacia un amor más profundo
de Cristo, les pido que lean el
libro de San Luis de Montfort,
“Tratado de la verdadera
devoción a María”, y permitan
que los guíe a través de un
curso de 33 días que cambiará
su vida para siempre.
Viviendo nuestra fe Católica Romana
en el Este de Tennessee
San Juan Pablo II llamó a
su lectura del “Tratado de la
verdadera devoción a María”
un punto decisivo en su vida.
La primera vez lo leyó en su
juventud y lo releería muchas
veces durante su pontificado.
Tal fue el impacto de este libro
que, cuando fue elegido Papa
en 1978, tomó como lema
papal las primeras palabras de
la oración de San Luis, Totus
Tuus – “Yo soy todo tuyo, y
todo lo que tengo es tuyo
amantísimo Jesús, a través de
María, tu Madre Santísima”.
Otra gran santa cuya vida
cambió por este libro fue Santa
Teresa de Lisieux, que también
conocemos como la “Pequeña
Flor” de Jesús, [Santa Teresita
del Niño Jesus]. Después de
su profesión religiosa como
carmelita descalza pintó un
retrato de su alma como una
flor de lirio blanco con sus
pétalos abiertos con el fin
de captar las gracias divinas
derramadas en ella desde una
estrella en lo alto. Y dentro de
esa estrella estaba la letra “M”
de María, porque fue a través
de María que Cristo vino a
nosotros, y es por intermedio de
María que recibimos sus gracias.
No es raro escuchar el
argumento de los no católicos
e incluso algunos católicos que
una devoción mariana resta
de darle el enfoque propio
a Cristo. Pero San Luis de
Montfort enfrenta esta falsedad
y muestra cómo es cierto
lo contrario: una devoción
correcta a María es, sobre todo,
una devoción a Cristo y nadie
más nos puede llevar más
rápidamente a acercarnos a
Cristo que María.
Santa Faustina, la gran santa
de la misericordia de Dios, era
profundamente devota de la
Santísima Madre y oraba: “Oh
María, mi madre y mi Señora,
te ofrezco mi alma, mi cuerpo,
mi vida y mi muerte y todo lo
que venga después. Pongo todo
en tus manos. ... “Ella entendió
lo que San Luis de Montfort
predicaba, que como Jesucristo
vino a nosotros a través de
María, es a través de María
que debemos ir a Él. Y todo
lo que ponemos en las manos
de María, ella se lo da a Jesús,
pero sólo después de que ella
lo ha adornado y lo ha puesto
más hermoso.
El acto sagrado de
consagrarnos a Jesús por María
es el permiso que le damos
para llevarnos a Cristo por el
camino que ella conoce mejor
que cualquier otro ser humano.
Como una buena madre, ella
nos muestra la mejor manera.
Lamento no haber leído y
practicado antes el libro de
San Luis de Montfort, “Tratado
de la verdadera devoción a
María”. Pero si Dios quiere,
después de prepárame de
acuerdo a la preparación de 33
días que San Luis recomienda,
yo y los miembros de la
Fraternidad Frassati haremos
nuestra consagración a Jesús
por María, el 19 de marzo,
fiesta de San José, esposo de la
Santísima Virgen María. Ruego
que también ustedes lean y
apliquen el libro, “Tratado de
la verdadera devoción a María”,
y hagan su consagración. Les
puedo asegurar que les va a
traer un cambio de vida. 
de parte
del Obispo
Obispo Richard F.
Stika, tercer obispo de
Knoxville, Tenn.
Apostolado Hispano de la Diócesis de Knoxville | marzo 2015
HACIA LA SANTIDAD
H
ace varias semanas el Vaticano retomó el caso del Monseñor Óscar
Arnulfo Romero Galdámez, Arzobispo de San Salvador hacia la
beatificación. Este es el primer paso para obtener la santidad. Su caso
ha sido examinado desde 1993 y desde esos años de vacilación existió
la duda de que su muerte había sido causada por su involucración en la
guerra política de su país. Pero el pasado 3 de febrero de 2015, el Vaticano
decretó que Monseñor Romero murió por “in odium fidei” o sea por los
que odian a la fe y lo declaran mártir tanto por esa causa y por confesar el
credo y por hacer obras que ordena Jesús con nuestro prójimo.
Para que una persona sea considerada
para la beatificación es necesario que un
milagro ocurra por medio de la intercesión
de esa persona. En este caso, como
Monseñor Romero ha sido declarado
mártir, no es necesario comprobar el
milagro. “La palabra mártir viene del
griego y significa testigo. Es utilizada por
la Iglesia Católica para indicar a los que
mueren por Cristo”– (contribución de
Eduardo Cea de la iglesia Holy Cross de
Pigeon Forge, TN). Eduardo añade, “No se
trata entonces de morir simplemente, sino
de hacerlo por amor a Dios”.
La historia nos cuenta cómo Monseñor
Romero fue balaceado el 24 de marzo de
1980 justo cuando estaba celebrando la
Santa Misa en la capilla de un hospital.
Dicen que la bala voló 35 metros desde
la calle para llegar al altar de la capilla.
Les recomiendo que vean este video que
relata los detalles del asesinato
http://tinyurl.com/nzogwzj.
“YO RECUERDO ...
nos dice Celia Martínez
de St. Patrick Church,
Morristown, TN oriunda
de El Salvador
Ella recuerda que cuando tenía 10
años y vivía en San Salvador su
padre le explicaba lo que estaba
pasando en el país con la guerra
civil. Se oía mucho sobre lo que
Se espera que la ceremonia de
beatificación se efectúe entre el 24 de
marzo y el 15 de agosto de 2015. Aunque
el decreto oficial de ser mártir remueve
el requisito de un milagro atribuido a la
intercesión de la persona, no remueve el
requisito del milagro para la canonización.
También nos dice Eduardo, “Hoy se
quiere emplear esta palabra [mártir] para
los que mueren por un ideal político,
socia,l religioso o creativo…Nada
más inadecuado: pueden ser héroes,
campeones, caudillos, líderes, pero nunca
mártires”. Ojala que este articulo les aclare
lo que es un mártir como lo han sido
miles, más recientemente los cristianos
asesinados de Iraq y de África. Que el
ejemplo de ellos y de Monseñor Romero
nos inspire a seguir las enseñanzas de
Jesús y que nos lleve a servir al prójimo
donde sea necesario y a proteger nuestra fe
sobre todas las cosas. 
Ya el Papa Benedicto XVI le había dicho
a la prensa en el 2007 que “ciertamente
el [arzobispo] fue un gran testigo de la
fe” quien “se merece la beatificación. No
lo dudo”. Siete años después, el Papa
Francisco citó las palabras que Monseñor
Romero dijo en la Misa de Exequias de un
sacerdote asesinado por los guerrilleros,
“Debemos estar dispuestos a morir por
nuestra fe aunque el Señor no nos de ese
honor.”
También, durante su primera visita
a la catedral de la Arquidiócesis de San
Salvador, el Papa Juan Pablo II declaró:
“Dentro de estas paredes de esta catedral
descansan los restos del Arzobispo Óscar
Arnulfo Romero, un pastor celoso cual
amor de Dios y servicio a sus hermanos y
hermanas lo llevaron a sacrificar su vida
de una manera violenta
mientras celebraba el
“El que toca
sacrificio del perdón y la
uno de mis
reconciliación”.
sacerdotes,
me toca
a mí.”
ARZOBISPO DE SAN
FOTO:
Óscar Romero,
estaba haciendo
SALVADOR
J. Puig Reixach, 2013
Monseñor Romero. Se
http://www.puigreixach.net/
contaba que cuando
había balaceras en
ayudando a sacar de
la calle, él iba hacia los heridos
la cárcel a hombres, mujeres y
y muertos a rescatar a los que
jóvenes, levantaba muertos y
todavía estaban vivos. Una vez, la
heridos. Ella nos dice: “Para mí, él
balacera se dirigió hacia un grupo
es un santo, fue sacerdote y hay
de niños, Monseñor recogió a los
unos que dan la vida por uno y él
que estaban moribundos y los llevó
fue un ejemplo; lo mataron porque
a un orfanatorio. Muchos recuerdan
quería la paz y no la injusticia de
a Monseñor Romero como una
antes. En realidad merece ser santo
persona muy dinámica pues andaba
por todo lo que hizo por la gente”. 
Artículo de Lourdes Garza
9
| COVER STORY |
when should i
10
yourstory
Bishop Richard F. Stika, center, is
joined by Father Chris Michelson, far
left, pastor of St. Albert the Great
Parish in Knoxville, and Father Tony
Budnick, near left, associate pastor
of St. Albert, along with Deacons Bob
Smearing, far right, and Mike Eiffe, near
right, at the 2014 confirmation of teens
who attend St. Albert the Great.
be confirmed?
11
| COVER STORY |
Diocese of Knoxville is
considering changing the age
to receive the sacrament of
confirmation
STORY BY BILL BREWER
PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEPHANIE RICHER
S
igns – and side effects – of
dwindling participation by
high school students in the
sacrament of confirmation
have become all too real.
More Catholic teens are opting out
of confirmation instruction, swayed
by considerable distractions facing all
youths in today’s culture. As a result,
the high numbers of young Catholics
receiving the sacraments of baptism and
first holy Communion in the Diocese of
Knoxville are falling by nearly 50 percent
for confirmation. Confirmation equips
Catholics for active participation in the
worship and apostolic life of the Church.
Confirmation is the full initiation into
the Catholic Church community and
completes the grace of baptism through
the gifts of the Holy Spirit that seal or
“confirm” the baptized in union with
Christ. In the Diocese of Knoxville, nearly
every parish confirms Catholic youths in
their sophomore or junior years of high
school, which is when the sacrament is
administered in most U.S. dioceses.
As confirmation classes have been
shrinking, priests are facing issues on
the back end, such as Catholic couples
coming to them for marriage instruction
when one or both haven’t been confirmed.
Many priests feel compelled to instruct
couples to be confirmed before marriage
to be fully initiated into the Catholic
faith, since canon law says Catholics
who have not received the sacrament of
confirmation are to receive it before they
are admitted to marriage if it can be done
“without grave inconvenience.”
Statistics that reflect the declining
number of diocesan youths receiving
the sacrament of confirmation each year
12
have prompted Bishop Richard F. Stika to
appoint a committee to study the possibility
of lowering the confirmation age.
Bishop Stika led a diocesan-wide
conference on confirmation Feb. 7
at Knoxville Catholic High School.
Attended by more than 100 people
from parishes around the diocese, the
conference featured reports on the status
of confirmation programs in parishes and
gave attendees the opportunity to ask
questions about the issue.
Bishop Stika said he was pleased with
participation in the conference and
praised the input from clergy and laity.
He will make a decision on whether to
lower the age for receiving the sacrament
once the Confirmation Committee of the
Presbyteral Council issues its report to
the full Presbyteral Council after which
the council makes a recommendation to
Bishop Stika.
The bishop said he welcomes feedback
on the issue from parishes and parents
to help the Confirmation Committee,
Presbyteral Council and him reach a
decision that is best for the diocese.
“So many parishes have different
expectations,” Bishop Stika said. “I do not
want to mandate from the top down on
this. This is a collaboration.”
He said that while the sacrament of
confirmation has evolved from being
celebrated early in a child’s life to now
high school, it was never intended to be a
rite of passage.
While the lower numbers of
confirmations in the diocese compared
to baptisms and first Communions are
sobering, Bishop Stika makes it clear
that any effort to reverse the trend is to
improve preparation for the sacraments
and, in turn, incorporate best practices
for teaching the faith and evangelization.
Sensitive to the impact any change
in the confirmation age could have on
parish youth ministries, and out of a
desire to maintain strong and viable
youth ministries, Bishop Stika wants to
ensure that youth ministry programs will
be enhanced by the decision.
“We’re not doing this out of fear, but
to increase the faith,” he said. “This is a
serious subject when you look at the
statistics. When I first told the committee
that, when they report to the Presbyteral
Council, if they do anything to move the
experience of confirmation to a lower
grade, to a lower age, I want to make
“We’re not doing this
out of fear, but to
increase the faith ...
If we do move the
confirmation age,
there will have to be a
real strong emphasis
on youth ministry in
the diocese.”
- BISHOP STIKA
sure they know the confirmation process
and programs in our parishes do have
to involve the high schools. So, if we do
move the confirmation age, there will
have to be a real strong emphasis on
youth ministry in the diocese.”
Father Ron Franco, CSP, pastor
of Immaculate Conception Church
in Knoxville and a member of the
Confirmation Committee of the
Presbyteral Council, explained during
the conference that many questions
surround the way the sacrament is
currently administered.
He said the review process actually
began in May 2013, when Bishop Stika
raised concerns with the diocesan
Presbyteral Council about the way
the diocese approaches confirmation,
about the age at which confirmation is
celebrated and the larger issue of ministry
to families, youth and young adults.
“One of the things he had noticed
was that even among students at our
Catholic high schools, a noticeable
number of students were not getting
confirmed,” Father Franco said. “The
overall diocesan statistics bear this out.
For example, in 2014, there were 1,233
first Communions in the Diocese of
Knoxville, but only 699 confirmations.
The numbers vary somewhat from year
to year, but the number of confirmations
is always consistently noticeably lower
than the number of first Communions.
If confirmation is one of the three
sacraments of initiation, which everyone
ought to receive, then that is a problem.”
Father Franco also pointed to a concern
that confirmation has become more like a
rite of passage than what it is supposed to
be – a sacrament of initiation.
“So, a further question was whether our
current practices have fostered a flawed
understanding of the sacrament,” Father
Franco said.
He noted that debate over confirmation
isn’t new; it has been going on for decades
– almost since the sacrament began being
administered in the teen years throughout
the United States over the last 50 years.
13
| COVER STORY |
Diocese of Knoxville data • Sacraments of In itiation
NUMBER OF PEOPLE RECEIVING THE SACRAMENTS EACH YEAR
Baptisms
Confirmations
2014
2013
First holy Communions
1400
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
14
2012
2011
2010
2009
“Prior to that, most confirmations
occurred at a younger age. Current
Church law, in fact, calls for confirmation
to be celebrated at around the age of 7 –
in other words, at about the same age as
first Communion – although it allows the
national bishops conference to set a later
age if they so judge,” Father Franco said.
In considering moving the age of
confirmation closer to the age of first
holy Communion, the Rite of Christian
Initiation of Adults is pointed to as
an example of the original intent of
confirmation as a sacrament of initiation,
connecting baptism and the Eucharist.
Some dioceses already have moved
confirmation back to an earlier age – even
restoring the ancient and traditional order
of the sacraments with confirmation
being celebrated either before or at the
same time as first Communion, according
to Father Franco.
One concern, he noted, is whether
confirmation is being used to keep young
people engaged in religious education,
prompting the questions of whether that
is confirmation’s function and whether
confirmation can accomplish that goal.
Also, do some people see confirmation as
a graduation from involvement with the
Church and religion?
“What will happen as society becomes
more and more secular, and confirmation
has to compete with so many other
activities? Many see this already
happening, as evidenced even now by the
growing number of those choosing not to
be confirmed,” Father Franco said.
Father Brent Shelton, pastor of St.
Francis of Assisi Parish in Townsend
and chair of the Presbyteral Council’s
Confirmation Committee, is uplifted by
the fact there is clear enthusiasm for the
sacrament of confirmation within the
diocese, as seen in the turnout for the
confirmation conference, and that the
issue is important to Bishop Stika.
“The very fact we had an open dialogue
with the bishop shows that, in a special
way, the sacrament of confirmation is tied
to the bishop,” Father Shelton said.
He noted that there appears to be a
consensus among those involved in the
discussion to move confirmation out of
the high school level, but there is no clear
consensus on what the new age should be.
Father Shelton believes the review process
yourstory
is an excellent opportunity to highlight the
sacrament of confirmation and identify best
practices in preparing for it.
“I’m not motivated so much out of fear
as I am joyfully anticipating working with
Bishop Stika and the other clergy and
laity on finding that right age. Whatever
age the sacrament is celebrated, we must
show that this is a gift from God and
not a goal,” Father Shelton said. “It’s
not something you earn. Christ earned
it on the cross. Pope Francis has said
we shouldn’t be erecting hurdles to the
sacraments. Christ has already earned
the sacraments for us. All we need do is
welcome them.”
Sister John Catherine Kennedy, OP,
teaches senior-level religion at Knoxville
Catholic High School and has witnessed
firsthand the challenges of high schoollevel confirmation preparation.
Speaking to those attending the
confirmation conference, Sister John
Catherine related a story about a student
who approached her in tears just as
school was beginning one day. The
student said she and one of her parents
had been discussing confirmation on the
way to school.
“She said, in tears, ‘I’m just not ready
to be an adult’” and was feeling the
pressures many high school students face,
Sister John Catherine said. “I said, ‘Wait
a minute. What is confirmation? Is it
something you can do? Or is it something
God does in you?’”
The Dominican sister who also is
getting her doctorate in U.S. history at
the University of Tennessee said she
and the student took a closer look at the
sacrament of confirmation to see what it
was – and what it wasn’t.
“We looked at what those documents
say about confirmation. And once she
had done that, I said, ‘Do you need to be
so upset? Do you need to be crying?’”
Sister John Catherine then asked the
girl if she was capable of receiving a
tremendous gift from God that she wasn’t
required to earn or achieve, one that God
freely gives to her out of his love for her
and one that his Son died on the cross
to provide so that she could be in full
communion and grace with God?
She then posed the question to the girl
in another way: “There’s a red Ferrari in
the school parking lot. The insurance is
paid and the gas is taken care of. Do you
want it?” The analogy drew chuckles from
the conference attendees.
Describing the holy Eucharist as the
source and the summit of Christian life,
the pinnacle of Christian initiation, Sister
John Catherine stressed the importance
for youths to complete the sacraments
of initiation by following baptism with
confirmation and first Communion – the
restored order of the sacraments.
Sister John Catherine agreed that the
statistics indicate a need to review the
diocese’s process for administering the
sacrament of confirmation and believes
confirmation at an earlier age would
"The grace
confirmation gives is a
tremendous advantage
in facing the battle ...
Restoring the order
would go a long way to
restoring the meaning
of what confirmation
really is.”
- SISTER JOHN CATHERINE, OP
benefit many students, especially as they
enter their teen years.
“The grace confirmation gives is a
tremendous advantage in facing the
battle,” she said. “I’m in favor of moving
it out of high schools to the early grades.
Restoring the order would go a long
way to restoring the meaning of what
confirmation really is.”
Like others involved in the diocesan
confirmation review process, Sister John
Catherine is concerned that the sacrament
is misconstrued as a rite of passage or a
declaration of adulthood and she sees the
angst in students who misinterpret it.
Her support for restored order is shared
by a number of clergy and laity involved
in the review process. An increasing
number of U.S. dioceses and parishes
are reverting to a restored-order policy
for the celebration of the sacraments
of confirmation and Eucharist. In
practice, Catholics who were baptized
in infancy receive confirmation before
first Communion, not after, and the
two sacraments are received at the first
Communion Mass, with confirmation
celebrated after the homily.
Sarah Trent, principal of Sacred Heart
Cathedral School and a mother of two
young children, supports lowering the
age of confirmation from high school to a
younger grade, possibly as early as second
grade. She believes instruction for the
sacrament could easily be incorporated
into the elementary curriculum.
15
yourstory
| COVER STORY |
16
"... Our greatest need
“If the goal was not to return to restored
order, there would be room to discuss
third- through sixth-grade confirmation.
Obviously, if restored order is decided
upon, the discussions will need to include
timing for first holy Communion,” said
Mrs. Trent, who is confident that younger
students would be open to instruction
and are capable of proper formation for
the sacrament of confirmation.
And for Mrs. Trent, the issue even goes
beyond confirmation.
“I believe the matter at hand is more
involved than simply the age that one
receives the sacrament of confirmation.
Ultimately, our greatest need is to develop
lifelong disciples and faithful followers
of Christ. I think we should be taking
a very close look at ways to reach out
to Catholics of all ages who no longer
participate regularly in Mass and the life
of the Church,” she said.
“As a parent, I will support any decision
that is made regarding the age at which
my children are instructed and receive the
their faith formation, I will support that
decision,” she added.
Beth Parsons, a mother of eight children
ranging in age from 25 years to 18 months
and the director of youth ministry at Our
Lady of Fatima Parish in Alcoa, also agrees
that the grade for confirmation should be
younger than high school. She is open to
what grade that should be, but she has
been impressed by younger students’
ability to prepare for the sacraments.
“I currently have a second-grader
going through first reconciliation and
first Communion preparation. To see
sacrament of confirmation. My greatest
desire is that they will always worship
in a community that is vibrant and
engaging. I pray that Hayden and Maggie
will develop such a love of the Lord
through the sacraments and instruction
that they will always seek to live out their
faith, participate in Mass and desire the
sacraments on a regular basis. If receiving
confirmation at an earlier age assists in
her enthusiasm about receiving these
sacraments is beautiful. Does she fully
understand what is going to happen?
Maybe not, but we rely on God's grace to
guide her. I do think younger students are
more receptive,” Mrs. Parsons said.
“There are older students, who are
receptive as well, but in high school
years students are so focused on learning,
sports, work and so much more, there is
is to develop lifelong
disciples and faithful
followers of Christ."
- SARAH TRENT, PRINCIPAL OF
SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL SCHOOL
little time to devote to instruction. If we
truly believe it is a gift we receive from
the Holy Spirit in confirmation, wouldn't
we want to have our children filled with
the grace sooner than later, especially in
today's world?” she added.
Students’ ability to grasp confirmation
preparation isn’t exclusive to high school,
Mrs. Parsons has discovered.
“Last year, our high school youth group
was challenged by our first-grade faithformation students to a trivia game of ‘Are
You Smarter than a First-Grader?’ The firstgraders were equally as educated, on some
categories more, on the questions about our
faith. They were proud to share what they
had learned. So, if education is the key in this
equation, yes, I think younger children can
be educated for the sacrament. However, I
believe that what is most important for them
to learn is what the sacrament is and let the
Holy Spirit do the rest,” she said.
Those involved in reviewing the
preparation practices for the sacrament of
confirmation say they are grateful Bishop
Stika considers the issue serious enough
to launch a diocesan-wide assessment.
Sister Mary Marta Abbott, RSM,
superintendent of schools for the
Diocese of Knoxville, first broached the
confirmation issue with Bishop Stika.
She praises the work Bishop Stika, clergy
and laity have put into finding a solution
and is confident a good solution will be
reached. She feels certain that the solution
will be found in the lower grades.
“Today’s teens are facing more
challenges than ever before. Because of
those challenges, they would be much
better served to have received God’s grace
through the sacrament of confirmation
before they reach adolescence,” Sister
Mary Marta said.
As a religious and a high school teacher,
Sister John Catherine believes the issue
has reached crisis proportions.
“I’ve seen it anecdotally through the
years. And looking at the numbers across
the diocese, there’s a leakage between
second grade and high school. I do think
that constitutes a crisis,” she said. “A
grade of 50 to 70 in school is failing. So
if we’re only confirming 50 percent to 70
percent of our young people, that’s a crisis
and that’s why the bishop appointed a
committee to look at this. Ultimately, it’s
about the salvation of souls.” 
yourstory
| feature stor y |
The Sisters of Mercy of the Americas
in Knoxville (l to r): Sister Margaret
Turk; Sister Marie Moore; Sister Martha
Naber; Sister Yvette Gillen; and Sister
Albertine Paulus.
A HI STORY OF S ERV ING
East Tennessee
Sisters of Mercy of the Americas live out foundress
Catherine McAuley’s charism
Today, a group of women
in East Tennessee continues
to live out the charism of
Venerable Mother Catherine
McAuley, more than 180
years after she founded their
community, the Sisters of
Mercy, in 1831.
Five Sisters of Mercy of the
Americas live in the Diocese
of Knoxville: Sister Albertine
Paulus, Sister Margaret Turk
Sister Marie Moore, Sister
Martha Naber and Sister Yvette
Gillen. Four serve in Knoxville,
while Sister Yvette is pastoral
associate at Our Lady of Fatima
Church in Alcoa. A sixth Sister
of Mercy, Sister Patricia Soete,
is pastoral associate at St. Jude
Church in Helenwood. Each
has served as a Sister of Mercy
for more than 50 years and,
in some cases, more than 60
years, while the community
itself has been serving in East
Tennessee for nearly 120 years.
Sister Albertine is
the diocese’s director of
pilgrimages, after serving
almost 20 years as the
diocesan director of
evangelization.
“It’s really a continuation
of what I did as director
of evangelization,” she
"Take from my heart
all painful anxiety;
suffer nothing to
sadden me but sin,
nothing to delight me
but the hope of coming
to the possession of
you, my God and my
all, in your everlasting
kingdom. Amen.”
- from the Suscipe of Venerable
Catherine McAuley, foundress
of the Sisters of Mercy.
said, “because I was doing
pilgrimages starting in 2000
with the Jubilee Year. I’m still
coordinating them, a couple
a year, to various places that
have religious and secular
significance, natural beauty
and other points of interest.
I try to go to the Holy Land
every year. That’s my current
ministry – as well as giving
several talks a year around the
diocese – mostly to RCIA or
women’s groups.”
She also is the organist
for Masses in the chapel
at Tennova Healthcare’s
Physicians Regional Medical
Center in Knoxville.
Sister Albertine is motivated
by one basic tenet: “Say yes to
God from morning till night.”
Sister Margaret is a mission
services representative at
Physicians Regional Medical
Center, formerly the St. Mary’s
Medical Center, which was
founded by the Sisters of
Mercy in 1930.
“Presently, I visit patients in
the morning and work in the
sacristy,” she said. “I’m able to
be with people in all kinds of
situations and pray with them.
It’s wonderful.” Sister also
helps maintain the food pantry
and the clothes closet in the
hospital’s emergency room.
Sister Margaret recalls her
days as a “very young sister,
63 years ago: Thinking, as a
young novice, “Oh, I can do
this, it won’t take me long to
get this. Then, I look back
today and think, oh, how I
underestimated God! Prayer
changes everything, because
prayer is the foundation of
everything we do.”
Sister Marie, a former
president of St. Mary’s,
also is a mission services
representative at the Tennova
hospitals and serves on the
Ethics Committee at Physicians
Regional Medical Center.
“I start very early in the
morning and pray with
patients before they go to
surgery or to any of the
cardiac procedures,” she said.
“I visit other patients in the
hospital before going to Mass
out at St. Albert the Great.
After Mass, I visit a different
Tennova hospital each day,
in LaFollette, Jefferson
City, Turkey Creek, North
Knoxville and the Residential
Hospice in Halls. At each
facility, I visit the patients and
pray with them.”
Sister Marie also ministers
at St. Albert, serving as RCIA
presenter and on the Works of
Mercy Committee.
Sister Martha is liaison with
the hospital for the Mercy
Community. “I help with
By Dan McWilliams
17
VOCATION
STORIES
Sister Yvette
Gillen, RSM
18
the Sisters of Mercy, and I talked
to a sister at the Pines where I
went to school, Our Mother of
Mercy Academy in Fremont,
Ohio. She said, ‘Honey, whatever
you decide, but we really would
like you to come back to the
Mercys.’ So I prayed about it and
I entered the Sisters of Mercy. I
find it ironic that I’m in the area
that I would probably have been
in with the Glenmarys, because
they were in Tennessee at the
time when I moved here.”
“I always had
sort of a desire to
be a sister, but I
think that was more manifested
when I was in my freshman year of
high school. We had nine grades in
our Catholic school, and I thought
at the time I had a vocation. I
worked at the priests’ house, and
the pastor had two nieces who
were Sisters of Mercy. I met them,
and they said, ‘Why don’t you try
our aspirants’ school?’
“So I went to the aspirants’
school my sophomore and junior
years, and in my senior year I
moved in with my sister. I still had
vocation in the back of my mind; it
would come and go a little bit in my
senior year. But then I met a lady
who talked to me about Glenmary,
which was fascinating to me
because my father was a farmer
from way back, and I liked to do
things out in the open. I was told
that Tennessee and Kentucky were
home missions, and I saw a picture
of a sister on a tractor. Even though
I didn’t drive then, I thought, ‘Oh,
that’s me. I want to do that.’
“But I still kept contact with
“I grew up here
in Knoxville and
was taught by the
Sisters of Mercy all 12 years
of school, and I was always so
impressed by how fun-loving and
joyful and caring they were with
one another and with the children.
My parents were very involved
with our parish, Immaculate
Conception, involved in school
activities and all, but it really
wasn’t until I was a sophomore in
high school that I even thought of
becoming a Sister of Mercy.
“I remember we had an
assignment to do a book report.
I don’t remember the name of
the book, but somehow it had
‘somebody said yes.’ When
Sister Bonaventure gave my
book report back to me, she had
communication and work
to continue our spiritual
mission within the Tennova
system. I visit patients and
their families, support the
employees, especially those
who have financial needs.
We have a benevolence
fund, which is used to assist
employees in times of crisis.”
Sister Martha also is the
unofficial historian of the
hospital. “We had a wonderful
yearlong celebration for our
75th anniversary; this year
we’ll be celebrating our 85th.
My ministry is to be a Mercy
presence here, keeping our
focus as a compassionate and
caring facility, and continuing
the healing ministry of Jesus.”
Sister Yvette is serving at
Our Lady of Fatima after
spending many years as
pastoral associate at St.
Therese in Clinton.
“I’m doing spiritual-direction
training, a two-year program
that I’ll finish this summer.
I minister in the parish
as pastoral associate and
coordinator of RCIA,” she said,
of her current assignment, “I
do some spiritual direction
and pastoral counseling in the
parish, and I’m the spiritual
moderator for the Council of
Catholic Women for Our Lady
of Fatima.”
Sister Pat serves at St. Jude
Parish in Helenwood, which
has about 15 families.
Sister Martha
Naber, RSM
written on it ‘Maybe someday
Barbara will say yes.’ And I did.
“Looking back it was
wonderful, since I grew up as an
only child, that when I told my
parents about it they never put
any obstacle in my path. They
probably had their own times
when they weren’t real happy
about it. Providentially, before
they died, I was here in Knoxville
and the community allowed me
to support them during those
later years in their lives.
“When I look back over my
life, it’s such a mystery how
God works and how he forms
and even re-forms us, like the
image in Jeremiah where the
potter works with the clay. It’s all
for God’s purpose, and God’s
purpose continues to unfold. I
feel so blessed and humbled
to be able to be a member of
this community and to continue,
hopefully, to grow in wisdom and
grace along with age.”
Sister Marie
Moore, RSM
“I think my
vocation began
– I know it did
– at home. We went to Mass
regularly. We prayed the rosary
almost every night, and we always
said grace at meals. I had eight
brothers and sisters, so I got to
help with them, too. My mom and
“I came here in 1994, so I’m
in my 21st year here,” she said.
“We work with the poor in
many different ways, helping
them with their utilities
and other things they need,
clothing or food. We’re the
only Catholic church in this
area and, with a lot of people
here out of work, I am blessed
to be part of an extension of
the spiritual and corporal
Works of Mercy in this area.”
A long history in
East Tennessee
The Sisters of Mercy have
been in East Tennessee almost
as long as the Church itself.
For many years, they were
involved in education, and
dad were both nurses, and my
dad had gone into medical school
but couldn’t afford to finish, so he
became a nurse. I guess it kind
of rubbed off on me, but I didn’t
notice it much. I wanted to enter
the convent.
“I didn’t go to Catholic school.
I went to a county school for the
first eight years, and I went into
Nashville to the cathedral in high
school. At first I didn’t exactly
understand the sisters, but by the
end of the first or second year I
knew that they were very special.
In fact, I even thought at the end
of my sophomore year maybe I
could go ahead and enter, but my
dad said no. He said, ‘No, you’d
better finish high school first’;
besides, he knew some sisters
who were not happy. He said,
‘You’d get there, and if you were
not happy, you’d be so stubborn
you’d stay in anyway.’ So I was
glad I was going to stay home a
couple more years.
“I did enter after high school. I
wasn’t there long when the mother
provincial said to me, ‘Your dad
would be proud if you became a
nurse, wouldn’t he?’ I said he’d
be just as proud if I was a teacher
because I would be teaching in
Nashville, and we didn’t have a
hospital in Nashville. The next day
I went off to the school of nursing
... and it’s been a real part of all the
other jobs I’ve had.”
thousands of East Tennessee
Catholics attended schools
staffed by the Sisters of Mercy.
In 1896, the sisters came to
Knoxville to teach at St. Mary’s
School on the “hill,” next
to Immaculate Conception
Church. They opened Holy
Ghost School in North
Knoxville (1908) and taught
there for many years. When
Holy Ghost became St. Joseph
School (1963), the sisters
were there as well. When, in
1932, Knoxville Catholic High
School replaced the three-year
high schools that had earned
a reputation for excellence,
as part of St. Mary’s and Holy
Ghost, the sisters provided
administration and faculty.
yourstory
Sister Margaret
Turk, RSM
“There were
10 children in my
family; I had seven
brothers and two sisters. We were
raised traditional Catholics and
we lived about six blocks from
Immaculate Conception School
in Memphis. We walked to school
every day. I loved the sisters. They
were so friendly and so happy,
and I guess I always knew I was
going to be a Sister of Mercy. I
finished the eighth grade, and that
was back when we didn’t have
coed high schools, so I went to
Sacred Heart School in Memphis
for a year, then came back when
we opened an all-girls school at
Immaculate Conception. Those
were wonderful years.
“I continued to want to enter the
convent. Then, within six weeks
after the start of my senior year in
high school, I left for the novitiate
in Cincinnati. It was like ... I hadn’t
planned it. I had no intention of
entering that year, but suddenly I
became a high school ‘dropout.’
I went, and I’ve been happy ever
since ... That’s how it happened. It
was not my agenda, believe me.”
Sister Patricia
Soete, RSM
“I went to
Catholic grade
school, and I had
In 1955, the sisters opened a
school at Our Lady of Fatima
in Alcoa; and, in 1956, they
opened Sacred Heart School.
When St. John Neumann
opened its school in 1997, a
Sister of Mercy was the first
principal.
Further afield and, in fairly
rapid succession, St. Elizabeth
School opened in Elizabethton
(1936); St. Dominic School
opened in Kingsport (1946);
and St. Mary, the re-established
school in Johnson City, opened
in 1951. The Sisters of Mercy
staffed them all.
And that was just the
Monday-Friday work for the
sisters.
Every weekend, they
two aunts who were Sisters of
Mercy. One has died and the
other one lives in Cincinnati.
She’s 76 years in the convent. I
guess I was in awe of the sisters
and just watching what they did.
And I helped them after school
in any way that I could. I thought,
as I went through high school
– also taught by the Sisters of
Mercy – that the Lord was calling
me. So, I entered the convent in
Cincinnati in 1951.
“I went through the early
years of training; as a postulant
for six months; then as a novice
learning how to be a Religious
Sister of Mercy; and then
continued college courses. I
started teaching in 1956 and
taught until 1968. After that, I
felt I couldn’t continue teaching
anymore, so I asked to go
into practical nursing, which I
did. I was at Mercy Hospital in
Springfield, Ohio, until 1977.
Then, Sister Marie Moore asked
if I would come be a chaplain at
St Mary’s Hospital in Knoxville.
I was there for 15 years.
After that, I became pastoral
associate at St. Jude Church in
Helenwood.
“Over the years you take
the graces you have received
from each one of those different
ministries, touching the lives of
people whether it was in teaching
or nursing, and they form you
into who you are. It is such a
great gift to be able to help
people; it all ties in with the spirit
of mercy, and it comes together
like a drawstring. You become
the mercy that God gives –
you’re there for the people who
are in need.”
traveled into the countryside
to teach religious education in
parishes where there were no
Catholic schools. Parishioners
in Greeneville, LaFollette,
Norris, Morristown,
Harriman, and more knew
the presence of the Sisters
of Mercy for the religious
instruction of their children.
A new ministry had its
faint beginnings in 1926
when fundraising began for a
“sisters’ hospital” in Knoxville.
Requested by local doctors and
approved by the Diocese of
Nashville's bishop, St. Mary’s
Memorial Hospital opened its
doors April 22, 1930, in the
midst of the Great Depression.
Over the years, it grew into a
525-bed facility with a regional
reputation for excellence along
with a continuing ministry
to the poor. More than 120
Sisters of Mercy have served at
St. Mary’s during its 85 years,
including the five who live
there today.
Over the years, sisters
also have served in parish
and diocesan ministries, in
direct outreach to the poor,
in visitation to the elderly
and homebound, and more.
Catherine McAuley’s example
of serving the “poor, sick and
ignorant” continues to live in
her daughters today.
As Sister Pat expresses it:
“The original Sisters of Mercy
who began with Mother
Sister Albertine
Paulus, RSM
“I was raised
in a wonderful
Catholic home
where virtue was the way we
lived. Being the oldest of my
parents’ three children and being
independent and something of a
tomboy – and not afraid of much
– I just took life as it came. But
from early on, down deep, I knew
I was going to end up being a
sister. (I had two aunts in religious
life.) I just couldn’t see how it was
going to work out.
“The first time I knew for sure,
I was in fourth grade, and Father
came to visit our classroom.
He said, ‘How many little boys
are going to be priests?’ And of
course all the hands shot up. And
then, ‘How many little girls are
going be sisters?’ All the hands
shot up. I remember distinctly
looking around and thinking,
‘That’s dumb, they’re not, but I
am.’ That’s the first I remember
being specific about being a sister.
“I always knew, but I didn’t
know how it was going to actually
happen. I was just taking every
day as it came. When I graduated
from high school, which would
have been the normal time to
enter the convent, I thought,
‘There’s no way.’ That summer on
the way north to visit relatives, we
stopped at Our Lady of Cincinnati
College, where the novitiate was
located, and I couldn’t get out of
that place fast enough. I think my
parents knew more than I did,
but for me at that time it was, ‘I
cannot do this, I’ve got to get out
of here.’
“So I went to UT (the
University of Tennessee), which
was probably very, very good,
because there I learned a lot
about people that I had not
learned at Catholic High. I did all
the normal things, dated, joined a
sorority. In my sophomore year,
I was walking home one evening
from the neighborhood theater
with my date. The fellow I was
with had gone to a Benedictine
high school, and he said as part
of our conversation, ‘I’m going
down to Cullman (Benedictine
College) in January.’ I answered,
‘Well, I’m going to the convent in
February.’ It was the first I knew
about it. It just came out of my
mouth – and it made sense. I
entered that February. On Feb.
2, 1949, I handed God a blank
check with my life on it.”
Catherine McAuley followed
the call the best way they were
able, and what we Sisters of
Mercy of today are doing is the
same thing: following in her
footsteps and trying to meet
the needs of the day, which
are plenty. Each one reaches
out in a different way with her
God-given gifts, living out the
service the Lord calls her to do
in this small area of the world.”
Living out their vows
All of the sisters take vows
of poverty, chastity, obedience
and service.
“Having been at the
diocese for so long and being
responsible for a budget, I knew
about being careful with money
19
and accountable for where each
really interwoven into service
dollar went,” Sister Albertine
in the totality of our lives.”
said. “The same is true here in
Living alone for 28 years
the convent. I do a lot of the
in Clinton reinforced Sister
buying, guided by what’s needed Yvette’s vows because it made
for the wellbeing of the sisters
her more responsible, she said.
and for the legitimate needs of
“It made me more aware of my
our ministries.
responsibility because I had
“As a community we live
to form a budget, and I think
simply, sharing in
that’s where my vow of
many ways. We
poverty came in,
are challenged
because I had to
by our larger
realize I can’t go
Each one reaches out
community
out and spend
in a different way, with
to be aware
like everybody
her God-given gifts, living
of the need to
else, so I
out the service the Lord
budget wisely.
budgeted
calls her to do in this
We recycle,
and cut out
small area of the
world."
try to conserve
coupons.”
where we can, and
Sister Pat said
be good stewards of
“my call to serve as a
God’s earth.”
Mercy Sister is to live a life
“Chastity plays out in the life
that is simple, following the
of a religious over a long period
Lord’s call and responding to
of time,” Sister Albertine added.
Catherine McAuley’s example
“When your heart belongs to
by paying attention to the
God, and you’re not exclusive
needs of people, especially
in your loving, you can have
women and children,
all kinds of ‘best’ friends. You
and living out my vow of
can be demonstrative if it’s
obedience.
appropriate. When all are God’s
“For Mother McAuley, one
people, they’re our sisters and
of her gifts was to bring a
brothers. We wish them the
sense of presence and mercy
very best, we help them any
to people. For me that means
way we can, and we pray for
paying attention to who they
them daily.”
are and helping them out.
“Vatican II helped us to
That’s the way I try to live my
be more responsible and
life as a Sister of Mercy.”
accountable in our vows,”
Sister Albertine said Vatican
Sister Marie said. “We used to
II called the sisters to study
be told what to do and when
their foundress and their
to do it, and now we know it’s
charism. “As we’ve studied
who God puts in our path that
Catherine McAuley in new
leads us to where He is calling
ways, we have come to realize
us and what we are to do.
that we’re doing in our day
“I think today we realize the as closely as we can what she
message of the Gospel in new
did in her day, reaching out
ways. Vatican II reminded us
to where there’s a need and
that the social-justice issues
putting our energy and our
are part of the Gospel, and we
lives and our strength there.”
relate them to our ministry.”
Prayer and being together
Sister Martha said she
Prayer is a dedicated ministry
“sees the vows in terms of
of the Sisters of Mercy.
our relationship with God,
“Prayer was always very
community living where
important to me,” Sister Yvette
we share life together, and
said, “because I couldn’t make
ministry where we reach out
to the needs of others. Poverty, it through the day if I didn’t
start my day with prayer.”
chastity and obedience are
20
“Our community prayer
provides the whole rhythm
of our lives,” Sister Margaret
added, “so that our prayer
together, the Office and our
celebration of Eucharist,
as well as our own private
time with God, is very
much a part of who we are.
My relationship with God
becomes more beautiful
every day, and my gratitude
has grown along with it. I’m
happier than I have ever been
in my life, and I’m growing to
know and love the Lord more.
I’m just so grateful.”
The sisters also try to attend
wakes for their many friends
and co-workers.
“One of our major
communal ministries here –
we’ve been here so long and
know so many people – is that
we try to go to the wake or
funeral whenever it’s a former
employee or someone we’ve
had a connection with,” Sister
Albertine said. “It’s common
once or twice a week in the
evening for us to be headed
out to a wake somewhere.”
And evening mealtime is
important for the Sisters of
Mercy.
“We take special care with our
evening meals,” Sister Margaret
said. “It’s our time together, and
we take turns preparing supper.
We really enjoy being with each
other, and we try to make it a
special time.
“I’d like to say something,
too, about the richness
that happens when you get
five women with our life
experience and our interests
sharing about things that we’re
doing or reading, things we
find exciting. It makes for
some good conversation, and it
keeps us aware of what’s going
on in the world and how we
might be involved in it.”
Mercy Association
Mercy Associates share
with the sisters a call to
spirituality and service rooted
in the charism of Venerable
Catherine McAuley. The lay
association began some 30
years ago. Each associate
commits to a life of prayer,
community and service,
compatible with each one’s
lifestyle and obligations.
Men and women can be
Mercy Associates; a couple
of local priests are members.
The group in Johnson City
still meets and welcomes new
members, even though there’s
no longer a Sister of Mercy
there.
An uncertain future
The Knoxville Sisters of
Mercy face an uncertain
future with Tennova planning
to move Physicians Regional
Medical Center to a new
facility in West Knoxville,
away from its North
Knoxville roots.
“Since the hospital is not
‘ours’ anymore, replacements
for us will not be coming.
We’re serving here as long
as we can, as well as we can,
and after that it’s in God’s
hands,” Sister Martha said.
“We are honored and grateful
to be part of the transition
and to have some influence
on the future.”
The sale of St. Mary’s
Medical Center to Tennova
in 2011 provided funds to
the Diocese of Knoxville that
Bishop Richard F. Stika used
to establish St. Mary's Legacy
Clinic. The mobile medical
office serves people along “the
highways and byways of East
Tennessee, reaching out to the
poor and those who do not
have access to health care,”
said Sister Martha, who also
serves with the mobile clinic.
“It is so thrilling for us as a
community to see it happen.
Whereas formerly people had
to come to the hospital for
medical assistance, now the
clinic goes out to where the
people are, which is so needed
in this day and time.” 
ALAN HOLDREN©CATHOLIC NEWS AGENCY
Pope Francis greets youth
pilgrims at Santo Tomas University
in Manila on Jan. 18.
| feature stor y |
Maryville College
sociology professor
leads study of
Asian Catholics
for USCCB
D
r. Tricia Bruce,
associate professor of
sociology at Maryville
College, is assisting the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops
(USCCB) with a project that will
help inform the development
of a broader national pastoral
plan for Asian and Pacific
Island (API) Catholics.
Dr. Bruce is working with
the USCCB’s Subcommittee
on Asian and Pacific Island
Affairs and the Secretariat
of Cultural Diversity in
the Church to conduct a
nationwide assessment of the
pastoral needs of API Catholics.
Maryville College is the “home”
for the project, said Dr. Bruce,
who is leading the assessment.
Dr. Bruce, whose research interests
include the sociology of religion, social
movements, Catholicism, immigration,
organizations and applied sociology, was
asked by the USCCB to lead the project
because of her research on “personal”
parishes in the U.S. Catholic Church.
“In the last 30 years or so, there's
been a subtle resurgence of what are
now called ‘personal’ parishes, or nonterritorial parishes that serve particular
groups,” Dr. Bruce said. “Of the personal
parishes that do exist, most of them still
serve ethnic groups – and of those, most
serve Asians and Pacific Islanders.”
Changes in immigration law after 1965
introduced higher numbers of migrants from
around the world, and the U.S. Catholic
Church has seen a rise in Asian migration.
“In more recent years, the rate of Asian
migration has surpassed the rate of Latino
migration, so this is a moment that is
introducing new challenges for the church,”
she said. “While the U.S. Catholic bishops
have acknowledged the numerous and
diverse contributions of Asians and Pacific
Islanders, they would like to move from
awareness to action with a national plan
identifying strategies to meet the needs of
API Catholics. They need social scientific
research to help identify those needs and
new demographic realities.”
After agreeing to take on the project, given
yourstory
the scope and timeline, she has involved
Georgetown’s Center for Applied Research
in the Apostolate (CARA), Dr. Jerry Park of
Baylor University and Dr. Stephen Cherry
at the University of Houston-Clear Lake. Dr.
Park, associate professor of sociology and
an affiliate fellow of the Baylor Institute for
Studies of Religion, has conducted research
on API evangelicals and Dr. Cherry, assistant
professor of sociology, recently published a
book about Filipino Catholics, Dr. Bruce said.
The three formulated questions for the
survey, which has been translated into
14 languages and was recently launched
online. In the spring, the team will follow
up with focus groups and interviews
with key leaders as a means of bringing
a mixed method approach – both
quantitative and qualitative – to give the
USCCB “the best grass-roots information
they can get,” Dr. Bruce said.
“We’re not doing it as a means of assessing
in terms of ‘what’s right’ or ‘what’s wrong’
about what’s happening,” Dr. Bruce said.
“We’re just taking a picture to tell them
what it looks like, and then they can process
it, adding a theological and ministerial
perspective to shape a path forward.”
Dr. Bruce will submit a report to the
USCCB in August, and the team will present
its findings during the USCCB annual fall
conference in Baltimore in November.
“The USCCB will take the results and
get a sense of how best to minister to this
community, and they’ll write the pastoral
plan from there,” Dr. Bruce said. “That’s
the end goal of this project.”
Dr. Bruce said there are several reasons
why it is important to conduct research
like this.
“The Catholic Church is a hugely diverse
church in the same way that the United
States is an extraordinarily diverse country,
and the Catholic Church desires to best
meet the needs of all its members as a
means of building unity,” she said. “Social
science offers a way to better understand
communities in terms of their basic
characteristics and their demographics.
The social science that we would offer
would help the church see what happens in
parishes, what happens in dioceses, what
social service needs are being met or not,
and other areas. This knowledge enables
Catholic leaders to understand and respond
to challenges that API Catholics face. It
helps the Church focus its efforts.”
Story by Chloe Kennedy
21
pope watch
WHAT POPE FRANCIS HAS BEEN
SAYING AND DOING RECENTLY
Huge crowds greet the pope
in Sri Lanka, Philippines
During Pope Francis’ week-long trip to Asia in
mid-January, he called for reconciliation in Sri
Lanka, which is still recovering from an ethnic
conflict that lasted for 37 years, and stressed
the need to care for the world’s poor while
visiting the Philippines. On Sunday, Jan. 18,
more than 6 million people gathered in Rizal
Park in Manila for the Mass celebrated by
Pope Francis. The crowd waited for hours in
STUDENT INVOLVEMENT
Dr. Bruce often provides her students with
opportunities to assist with her research.
In 2012-13, she was awarded competitive
grants from the National Science Foundation
and the Louisville Institute, which facilitated
collaboration with students on a project
that examined personal parishes in the U.S.
Catholic Church.
For the USCCB project, she intentionally
integrated the project into some of her work
at Maryville College. Maryville College
sophomore Halle Hill, of the graduating
class of 2017, who is double majoring in
sociology and religion, has assisted with the
development of the survey, online survey
entry and outreach efforts.
Youth pilgrims fill the grounds of Santo
Tomas University in Manila for a meeting
with Pope Francis on Jan. 18.
22
“Working with Dr. Bruce on this research
project has been a wonderful, informative
and encouraging experience,” Ms. Hill said.
“Seeing that I am studying religion and
sociology, being able to see firsthand how
the two co-exist in this research is such a
rare and awesome experience, and I am
very thankful. I am encouraged to see that
what I am passionate about and love to
study has serious application in the real
world, and is much needed.”
Bruce also has enlisted the help of
Maryville College international students
and alumni, who have assisted with the
survey translations.
“Their insider/outsider perspective
has been an immense help,” Dr. Bruce
said. “The survey is the best way to draw
the broadest participation possible, but
the translation of it was difficult. It’s
not just the translation of the words; it’s
translations of meanings. For example,
it’s terribly difficult to ask questions about
race in other languages.”
Students in Dr. Bruce’s research methods
course helped enter the survey into
Qualtrics, an online survey platform, and
helped field test it. Bruce said the project
also has come up in her immigration class
and has served as a useful example in
discussions about immigration and religion.
The East Tennessee Catholic Magazine | January 2015 | www.dioknox.org
ALAN HOLDREN©CATHOLIC NEWS AGENCY
yourstory
the rain for the afternoon Mass. According to
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi,
“We think ... this is the largest event in the
history of the popes.” Father Lombardi added
that about 5 million people gathered in the
same area in 1995 for a Mass celebrated by
Pope St. John Paul II.
In Sri Lanka, on a former battleground, the
pope held a prayer service for those who lost
their lives during the island nation’s decadeslong civil war, which devastated the country.
Pope Francis explained that finding forgiveness
after such a bloody war “can only be done by
overcoming evil with good, and by cultivating
those virtues which foster reconciliation.” He
also stressed that, “The process of healing also
needs to include the pursuit of truth.” While in Sri
Lanka, Pope Francis canonized the country’s first
saint, Reverend Giuseppe Vaz.
In the Philippines, Pope Francis braved a
tropical storm to visit with survivors of Typhoon
Haiyan, which devastated the country in
November 2013. “I wanted to come to be with
you,” the pontiff said during his homily at the
open-air Mass in Tacloban, “A little bit late, but I
am here.” Because of the rain and strong winds
during the Mass, the pope wore the same kind of
yellow poncho as many in the crowd.
“We need to PROTECT,
GUIDE and ENCOURAGE
our young people,
helping them to BUILD
A SOCIETY WORTHY of
their great spiritual and
cultural heritage.”
(During homily at Mass at Rizal Park in
Manila, Jan. 18)
FUTURE RESEARCH
After the research is complete, Dr. Bruce
said that she hopes to use the data to coauthor a book with Drs. Park and Cherry.
“There's just not a lot out there about
API Catholics,” she said. “This study
carries the potential to be transformative,
with relevance to scholarship and
application beyond the U.S. Catholic
Church.”
Dr. Bruce also is working on the
American Parish Project, on which she is
collaborating with sociologists from the
University of Southern California and
Kennesaw State University. The three have
put out a national call for papers that look
at the Catholic parish in different ways.
“We're trying to understand and
reinvigorate parish studies – what is the
Catholic parish in Catholic life and in
communities more generally, and how
does it tie into other areas of sociology,”
she said. “There are some pieces of the
Asian and Pacific Islanders project that
connect with that, too.” 
Chloe Kennedy is the assistant director of communications for Maryville College. She may be reached at 865.981.8209 or
[email protected].
iStock©
WEATHERING
STORMS
Are we prepared or will
we be stranded on the
side of the road?
I
F YOU CAN FIGURE OUT THIS
WEATHER, CALL ME.
Yesterday, I left home with my heavy
coat for what turned out to be an
afternoon in the 60s. Today, my jacket
didn’t quite fight off the 30s. Tomorrow,
they’re predicting summer.
It seems I’m never wearing the right
things, though my three daughters long
ago told me that the frequency of my
“wardrobe failures” greatly exceeded the
frequency of the weather changes. Of
course, I never practiced changing clothes
as often as they did either.
Just the other day Nancy, and I were
traveling along the interstate at the end
of one of those crazy kinds of days. Left
home with a sport coat; by nightfall, we
were in some darn cold rain.
We blew past a poor soul on the edge
of the highway who was fighting off the
weather, the passing cars and one very
flat tire.
Though I’m not sure why, Nancy
blurted it out. “Oh no,” she sighed, “look
at that poor guy over there. Wouldn’t that
be horrible?”
I looked at her like she was crazy,
incredulous she had just jinxed us like
that. I’m not superstitious or anything,
but I knew we were doomed.
Sure enough, we might have made it
three more miles before her “wouldn’t
that be horrible?” was in fact horrible.
Thankfully, our spare tire was good to
go, though there have been more than
a few days in our past when I wouldn’t
have been able to say that. Heck, there
were times we lugged around two flat
spares in the same trunk – for months.
And no, I don’t know why.
Surprisingly, the various parts of our
Once, when the power had gone out
jack were all present and accounted for as in the neighborhood, Nancy went on a
well, another occasional lapse from our
tear to locate our only candle. Turns out I
past. But everything was good to go this
had moved it to the car after reading the
time.
article. We were cozy as a family could
Once home – and out of the rain - the
be sitting around the candle in the car in
entire adventure made me recall a USA
the garage. Of course we never knew the
Today article that offered a checklist of
power had come back on either.
how to prepare your car in the event that
Seriously, thirsty or not, would you
horrible weather should ever strand you.
drink water from a bucket that’s been
I’m sure it was intended for drivers in
rolling around in your trunk? And I
Buffalo or International Falls, but with
simply refuse to stock the car with toilet
our crazy weather, who knows? I once
paper. I could never get my family to
attended a late-March wedding where
retrieve it from the hallway closet when I
snow was an unexpected guest; might as
was in need; they’d never go to the car.
well be ready.
In all fairness, it’s not that our vehicle
So if you wish to test your own
was totally unprepared. I did unearth one
emergency preparedness and that of your
glove, one mitten, one sock and one muff
car’s, here’s a chance to compare your
for one ear, their mates apparently residing
family’s trunk with the author’s idea of
in the parallel universe – still to this day.
the ideal.
Here’s the thing, I really do wish we
Just use this checklist: one large
were better prepared, be it for winter
candle; a small bucket in which to burn
weather or the much bigger things in life.
it; waterproof matches; a store of highAnd there are much bigger things.
calorie; non-perishable food such as candy;
Retirement looms ahead for one and we
blankets; a shovel; a bag of sand; rock salt
haven’t exactly saved what we’ll need.
or kitty litter; a bucket to melt snow in for
But, more importantly, our souls are
water and a roll or two of toilet paper.
going to spend the great, great majority of
How’d you do? At the time, we had
their existence in a place not of this world.
three girls and a minivan, which upon
I don’t know about you but I’ve got all
my examination seemed more prepared
sorts of stuff to do to get ready for that.
for life on some other planet. I did find
There are folks that need forgiving and
some candy … five or six M&Ms lodged
kindness that needs sharing; there are
in a back seat crevice and one chocolate
the thoughtful that need thanking and so
Easter Bunny circa 1998.
many prayers that still
There was a sleeping
need praying.
bag in the back, but
But sometimes …
not one of us knew to
sometimes, we’re just
whom it belonged. It
too busy living our lives
was draped over a fully
to plan our lives. Good?
decorated two-foot
Bad? I don’t know.
Christmas tree. I had no
But I do know this.
praying for
idea and I didn’t ask.
I
need
to put a whole
perspective
I could find no
lot more planning into
George Valadie,
matches, waterproof
this whole forever thing.
president of Notre Dame High
or otherwise, but the
After all, eternity is, as I
School in Chattanooga.
cigarette lighter was
understand it, a long, long
working, if you tuned
time. We best be ready.
the radio just right. Since they had taken
Dear God – Getting there is apparently
over a lot of the household driving,
based on weathering the storms of living
it seemed a waste of time to ask them
here. Help us prepare for life with you –
about that, too.
while we live here with us. Amen. 
23

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