Acadiana Catholic December 2012

Acadiana CatholicDecember 2012 Volume 28 No. 12

O Come, Let us Adore Him!

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The Official Monthly Publication of the Diocese of Lafayette

AcAdiAnA cAtholic December2012 Volume28 Number12

Insidethisissue

Advent campaign encourages people to receive sacrament of reconciliation in preparation for ChristmasLAFAYETTE

“In this sacrament, the sinner,placinghimselfbefore themerci-fuljudgementofGod,anticipatesin a certain way the judgment towhichhewillbesubjectedat theend of his earthly life. For it isnow, in this life, that we are of-fered thechoicebetweenlifeanddeath, and it is only by the roadof conversion that we can enterthe Kingdom, from which one isexcludedbygravesin.”The Cat-echism of the Catholic Church

It is in this spirit that BishopMichaelJarrellandtheCouncilofPriestsareencouragingallpeopletoreceivethesacramentofrecon-ciliation during the Advent sea-son.AccordingtotheCatechism,members of the Roman CatholicChurch are obligated to confessserious sins at least once a year.The seasonofAdvent,whichex-istsforthepurposeofpreparingto

celebratethebirthofthesaviorJe-susChrist,isinmanywaysanide-altimetofulfillthisobligation.

Thus, to further aid people inthis endeavor, Bishop Jarrell hasasked all church parishes of theLafayette Diocese to support a

special campaign entitled “TheLight is ON for You” by offer-ing opportunities for confessionfrom6:30-8:00p.m.on the threeWednesdays of Advent. In ad-dition to these services, many

churchparisheswillalsobeoffer-ing penance services and oppor-tunities for confession betweennow and Christmas. Those whoareinneedofreceivingthesacra-mentof reconciliation should re-fer to “Advent activities planned

throughout the diocese” on page19 of this edition, and also refertotheirlocalchurchparishbulle-tinsforadditionaldatesonwhichconfessionsmaybeheardintheirarea.

Tolearnmoreandhelppreparethemselves to receive the sacra-mentofreconciliation,individualsmayalsovisit thediocesanweb-site at www.diolaf.org and lookfor “The Light is ON for You”logo found on the home page.Clickingonthisgraphicwilltakeviewers to a special page whichfeaturesalistofFrequentlyAskedQuestionregardingthesacrament,aswellasaprintablePDFcopyofan examination of conscience toguidepeopleinaprayerfulreviewoftheirconducttohelpthempre-pare to receive the sacrament ofreconciliation.

Father Michael Delcambrewill also appear on the Decem-ber 9 episode of Tell the People to talk about “The Light is ONforYou”campaign.TheprogramairseverySundayat11:00a.m.onKATCTV-3.ForafullscheduleofTellthePeopleforthemonthofDecember,pleaseseepage18.

As Chancellor of the diocese, Msgr. Russell Harrington (right) presented Bishop Mi-chael Jarrell with a token of appreciation on behalf of the entire diocesan central office staff at a recent breakfast in honor of the 10th anniversary of the bishop’s installation as the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Lafayette. Photo by Eugene Thibodeaux

Central office employees celebrate Bishop Jarrell’s 10th anniversaryLAFAYETTE

Employees of the Diocese ofLafayette’scentralofficesrecent-ly celebrated the 10th anniver-sary of Bishop Michael Jarrell’sinstallationasthesixthbishopofthediocese.HewasinstalledonDecember18,2002,afterhavingserved as bishop of the DioceseofHouma-Thibodaux.

Fortheoccasion,BishopJarrellcelebratedMassforthecentralof-ficestaff,whichwasfollowedbybreakfastinImmaculataCenter’sMarianHall. During thebreak-fast, diocesan Chanellor Msgr.Russell Harrington presentedBishopJarrellwithatokenofap-preciationonbehalfoftheentirecentralofficestaff.

BishopMichaelJarrellisana-tive of Opelousas. He was or-dainedasapriestfortheDioceseofLafayettein1967,andappoint-ed as the second bishop of the

DioceseofHouma-ThibodauxinDecemberof1992. Hisordina-tion to the episcopy and his in-stallationtookplaceonMarch4,1993,andheremainedinservice

to the people of the Diocese ofHouma-ThibodauxuntilNovem-ber2002.

Congratulations, Bishop Jar-rell, on 10 remarkable years.

Annualcollectionsupportsthoseinreligiousorders.....6

Mr.BernelFontenot:“Youmightberetiring,butinourhearts,you’renotgoingany-where!”.................13

Marriage101:therealmean-ingofafamilyChristmas...14

Adventactivitiesplannedthroughoutthediocese.....19

LetAdventenrichyourfami-ly’sChristmas...........23

PopetellsyoungtowelcomeChrist’sembrace..........40

AsSandyrecoverycontinues,parishesmeetneeds.......44

Page4December2012 AcadianaCatholic

ACADIANA CATHOLIC (ISSN0888-0247) (USPS507-760) ispublishedmonthly for$12peryearby theSouthwestPress,1408CarmelDrive.,Lafayette,LA70501-5298.PeriodicalpostagepaidatLafayette,LAandadditionalmailingoffices.

POSTMASTER:Send address changes toAcadiana Catholic, 1408 Carmel Drive,Lafayette,LA70501-5298.

OfficialMonthlyNewspaperfortheDioceseofLafayette,LouisianaCopyright2012

PublisherMost Rev. Michael Jarrell, D.D.

BishopofLafayette

Managing EditorStephanie R. Martin

(337) 261-5512 [email protected]

Marketing DirectorBusiness Mgr / Advertising Director

Patrick Breaux(337) 261-5518(337) 280-2862

[email protected]

Contributing WriterKathleen Toups

Theological ConsultantsMsgr. H.A. Larroque, J.C.D.Father Curtis Mallet, J.C.L.

Vicars General

TheDioceseofLafayetteserveseightcivilparisheswitha population of 304,921 Catholics. Published monthly.Deadlinefornewsandadvertisingcopyisnoonofthe15thdayofthemonthprecedingpublication.Forrenewalsub-scriptions, the name of your church parish and your ad-dresslabel(ifavailable)arerequested.Thepublisherandeditor reserve the right to reject, omit or edit any articleor letter submitted forpublication. TheRomanCatholicDioceseofLafayetteand/ortheAcadiana Catholiccannotbeheldliable,orinanywayresponsibleforthecontentofanyadvertisementprintedinthispaper.

Diocese of Lafayette Web page:www.diolaf.org

AcAdiAnA cAtholic

Men’s work dayST.MARTINVILLE

A men’s work days has beenscheduled for Our Lady of Sor-rowsRetreatCenterinSt.Mart-invilleonDecember15.Thedaywillbeginat8:00a.m.andcon-cludeatapproximately4:00p.m.Masswillbecelebratedat12:00noon,andlunchwillbeprovided.All men are encouraged to lenda hand with carpentry, plumb-ing,electrical,painting,andcon-crete work. For more informa-tion,pleasecontactVicGuidryat(337) 824-3045 or the Commu-nity of Jesus Crucified at (337)394-6550.

Annual basketball fundraiserOPELOUSAS

OpelousasCatholicSchoolwillhost the annual basketball gamefundraiser to benefit the seminar-ians of the Lafayette Diocese onTuesday,December18.Thegamewillbeheldinsidetheschoolgym-nasiumandwillfeaturetheRunnin’REVSversesSlammin’SEMS

The fun-filled family event,sponsored by the St. LandryChurch Knights of Columbus,helps to promote vocations as itsupports theDioceseofLafayetteOfficeofReligiousVocationsandOpelousasCatholicSchool.

For more information,contactJaredNormandat(337)945-2906orCharlieRoyat337-942-9701.

LAFAYETTEIn honor of the Advent and

Christmas seasons, the Cathe-dral of St. John the EvangelistinLafayettewillhost“AServiceofNineLessonsandCarols”onSunday, December 16 at 7:30p.m.TheCathedralChoir,underthedirectionofMr.ThomasNiel,willsingseasonalfavoriteswhichwillbeinterspersedwithreadingsfromHolyScriptureandtheOf-ficeofReadings.FatherChester

Lessons & Carols at the Cathedral

Arceneaux,pastor,willofficiate.This service is free of charge

andopentothepublic.Formoreinformation, please call (337)232-1322 or email [email protected].

Day of RecollectionST.MARTINVILLE

Our Lady of Sorrows RetreatCenterinSt.MartinvillewillhostaDayofRecollectionforMenandWoman Considering a Vocationto the Priesthood or ConsecratedLife on Saturday, December 22.Theeventwillbeconductedfrom9:00a.m.until3:00p.m.andwillincludethecelebrationofMassas

well asAdorationof theBlessedSacrament.

Menandwomenwhohavere-spondedinfaithtoareligiousvo-cationwillbeonhandtooffertheirtestimonies, and participants areaskedtobringabrownbaglunch.Formoreinformation,pleasecon-tact Father Michael Champagne,CJC,at(337)394-6550.

From December 18, 2003Bishop Michael Jarrell (center) blesses the entrance of the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Lafayette as he enters before his installation Mass. Photo by P.C. Piazza

AcadianaCatholic December2012Page5

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FirstSaturdayBLESSEDVIRGINMARY

FirstSundayofAdvent

SecondSundayofAdvent

ThirdSundayofAdvent

FourthSundayofAdvent

TheHolyFamilyofJesus,Mary,&Joseph 31

St.FrancisXavier St.JohnDamascene Weekday St.Nicholas FirstFridaySt.Ambrose

TheImmaculateConcep-tionoftheBlessedVirginMary

Weekday St.DamasusI OurLadyofGuadalupe

St.Lucy St.JohnoftheCross Weekday

Weekday Weekday Weekday Weekday WeekdaySt.PeterCanisius

Weekday TheNativityofourLord(Christmas)

St.Stephen St.John TheHolyInnocents FifthDay,OctaveofChristmasSt.ThomasBecket

SeventhDay,OctaveofChristmasSt.SylvesterI

The Holy Father’s Prayer Intentions for December:General Intention:

Thatmigrantsthroughouttheworldmaybewelcomedwithgenerosityandauthenticlove,especiallybyChristian

communities.Missionary Intention:

ThatChristmayrevealhimselftoallhumanitywiththelightthatshinesforthfromBethlehemandisreflectedinthefaceof

hisChurch.

Meeting of the King’s Men7:00PM

OurLadyofWisdomChurch,Lafayette





Kaycee Auxiliary Shopping Extravaganza

9:00AM-3:00PMCrowley(CornerofS.AvenueE&

ElmStreets)Safe Environment Initial/Continuing

Education Session4:00PM

St.FrancisSchool,Iota

Survivors of Violence Mass2:00PM

ImmaculataChapel,Lafayette

Holy Hour for Vocations6:00-7:00PM

St.PatrickChurch,Lafayette

For a list of Advent parish missions and opportunities for confession, please refer to “Advent activities planned throughout the diocese” on page 19 of this edition, and to your local church parish bulletins.

Divine Mercy Night6:30PM

St.PeterChurch,NewIberia

Food for the Journey11:30AM-12:45PM

CrownePlazaHotel,Lafayette

Deadline for Child Smile Donations

DonationsmaybedroppedattheImmaculataCenter,

Lafayette

Rediscover Your Knowledge of Your Catholic Faith, Part 8

St.MaryMagdalenChurch,Abbeville6:30PM

Healing Mass5:30PM

St.JosephChurch,Parks

Scrpiture Study, Session 3OurLadyQueenofAngels

Church,Opelousas6:00-7:00PM



Companions Along the JourneyImmaculataCenter,Lafayette

6:30-8:30PM

Year of Faith Catechism SeriesOurLadyofSorrowsRetreat

Center,St.Martinville7:00-8:30PM

Men’s Work DayOurLadyofSorrowsRetreat

Center,St.Martinville

Christmas Concert2:00PM

ChurchoftheAssumption,Franklin

Lessons & Carols7:30PM

CathedralofSt.JohntheEvangelist,Lafayette

Annual Basketball Fund-raiser: Runnin Revs vs.

Slammin SemsOpelousasCatholicSchoolGym

Scrpiture Study, Session 4OurLadyQueenofAngels

Church,Opelousas6:00-7:00PM



Year of Faith Catechism SeriesOurLadyofSorrowsRetreat

Center,St.Martinville7:00-8:30PM

Day of Recollection for Men & Women Considering a

Vocation to the Priesthood or Consecrated Life

9:00AM-3:00PMOurLadyofSorrowsRetreat

Center,St.Martinville

New Year’s EveDiocesan Central Offices

Are Closed

Diocesan Central Offices Are Closed for the Christ-mas/New Year’s holidays





Diocesan Central Offices Are Closed for the Christ-mas/New Year’s holidaysDiocesan Central Offices

Are Closed for the Christ-mas/New Year’s holidays

Midnight MassDecember24,2012

CathedralofSt.JohntheEvangelist,Lafayette

Those who are unable to attend may tune in to KATC TV-3

to watch from home.


“Believe and be Blessed”

Limited Edition Print 17”x11” • $40.00

Cal l [email protected]

Commissioned charcoal drawingsby Louisiana artist

Pray for our priestsListed below are the priests for whom Catholics are asked to pray daily during the month of December. The calendar is sponsored by the Serra Club of Lafayette.

01PopeBenedictXVI02BishopMichaelJarrell03Fr.MarkThibodeaux,SJ04Fr.PaulThibodeaux05Fr.JudeThierry06Fr.GeorgeThychery07Fr.NicholasTrahan08Fr.ClintTrahan09Fr.HaroldTrahan10Fr.JosephSaiTran,SVD11Fr.GeneTremie12Fr.StephenUgwu13Fr.JasonVidrine14Fr.RichardVidrine15Fr.ThomasVoorhies16Fr.ThomasVu17Fr.RichardWagner,SSJ18Fr.ArthurWarren19Fr.AndrewWhitman,SJ20Fr.LawrenceAbara21Fr.AmbroseAkalawu,CSSP22Msgr.RobertAngelle23Fr.ChesterArceneaux24Fr.JulesArceneaux25Fr.MichaelArnaud26Fr.ArockiamArockiam,SVD27Fr.JustinArockiasamy,SVD28Fr.HerbertBennerfield29Fr.LloydBenoit30Fr.PaulBergeron31Fr.ConleyBertrand

Eternal Father, we lift up to You these and all the priests of the world. Sanctify them. Heal and guide them. Mold them into the likeness of your Son, Jesus, the Eternal High Priest. May their lives be pleasing to You. In Je-sus’ name we pray. Amen.

Christmas concertFRANKLIN

The Church of the Assump-tionoftheBlessedVirginMarywillpresentitsannualChristmasConcert entitled “Lessons andCarols” on Sunday, December16,2012at2:00p.m.Allarein-vitedtoattend.

The concert will consist ofthreedistinctchoirs,allofwhichhavebeenwell-receivedby thecommunityinthepast.Theadultvocalchoir,under thedirectionofDexterThibodeaux,thehand-bell choir, under the directionof Dale Fangue, and the youthchoirofHansonMemorialHighSchoolwillallperform.

The Church of the Assump-tionisalsopleasedtoannouncethat accompanying the choirsagain this year will be guestmusicians performing on vio-lin,trumpetandflute,aswellasa renowned local guest soloist.Performancesof traditionalandcontemporaryChristmaspieces,interspersed with the beautifulliturgical narrative of the birthof Christ, are sure to enhancethespiritualityoftheChristmasSeason.

LAFAYETTEThe 25th annual collection

fortheRetirementFundforRe-ligiouswillbetakenupDecem-ber8-9,2012,intheDioceseofLafayette, La. The parish-basedappeal is coordinated by theNational Religious RetirementOffice (NRRO) in Washington,D.C., and offers financial sup-port for the day-to-day care ofover34,000seniorCatholic sis-ters,brothers,andreligiousorderpriests.

Lastyear,theDioceseofLafay-ette,La.,contributed$92,978.63to this collection. In 2012, theBrothersoftheChristianSchoolsandtheSistersoftheMostHolySacramentreceivedfinancialas-sistance made possible by thenationalappeal.Additionally,re-ligiouswhoserveorhaveservedinthediocesebutwhosecommu-nities are based elsewhere mayalsobenefitfromtheRetirementFundforReligious.

The collection was initiatedin 1988 by Catholic bishops ofthe United States. Proceeds aredistributed to eligible religious

Annual collection supports those in religious orderscommunities to help underwriteretirement and health-care ex-penses.Nearly95percentofdo-nations directly support seniorreligiousandtheircommunities.

Contributions to the2011ap-peal totaled $27.4 million andenabled the NRRO to distribute

$23 million in financial assis-tance to 453 religious commu-nities. Additionally, nearly $2.9million was disbursed to assistreligious communities with thegreatest needs and to supportongoing education in retirementandelder-caredelivery.

Since the collection began,Catholics in the United Stateshavedonatedover$671milliontosupportseniorreligious.“Words

cannot express our gratitude,”said NRRO Executive DirectorandPreciousBloodSisterJaniceBader. “We are humbled by thegenerous and prayerful supportthat so many people share withourelderreligiouseachyear.”

Despite the unparalleled gen-erositytothecollection,religiouscommunities continue to facesignificant challenges in meet-ing the high costs of care. Lastyear’sdistributionsamountedtoapproximately $907 per eligiblereligious.Yettheaverageannualcostofcareforaseniorreligiousstands at $37,200 per person,while skilled care can exceed$56,000.In2011alone,thetotalcostofcareforwomenandmenreligiouswasover$1.1billion.

Religiouscommunitiesarefi-nancially autonomous and thusresponsible for the care andsupport of their elder members.Traditionally, senior religiousworked for small stipends, andany surplus income was oftenreinvested in community minis-tries.Asaresult,manyreligious

The annual collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious will

be taken up December 8-9.

communitiesnow lackadequatesavings for retirement andeldercare. Annual distributions fromthe Retirement Fund for Reli-giousofferreligiouscommunitiessupplemental retirement fund-ing and help to furnish variousnecessities, such as prescriptionmedicationsandnursingcare.

“Ourgoal is tohelp religiouscommunitiesdevelop retirementstrategies that will enable themtocarefortheirseniormemberstodayandintheyearstocome,”saidSisterBader.


Certi�ed Recognition Masters

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RCIA workshopsLAFAYETTE

TheLafayetteDiocese’sOfficeofChristianFormationwouldliketoremindeveryonetomarktheircalendars for two RCIA work-shopswhichhavebeenscheduledfor2013.Bothworkshopswillbeconducted from 9:00-11:00 a.m.on the given dates, and will beconductedbyJohnSchexnaildre,RCIAconsultantforthediocese.

On January 26, St. JosephChurch in Lafayette will host“RitesintheCatechumenate.”

On March 2, Nativity of OurLady Church in New Iberia willhost “Prayer in the Catechume-nate.”

These workshops provide anexcellent opportunity for repre-sentativesfromthevariouschurchparishes of the diocese to meetand share their best RCIA prac-ticesastheyreceivetrainingonaspecificRCIAtopic.Thereisnofeetoattend,butparticipantsareencouragedtoregisterwithLynneBroussardat(337)261-5550.

byKathleenToupsLAFAYETTE

Participation in Year of Faithactivities offers opportunities togrow in the faith, Father TomVoorhiestoldthoseattendingtheNovemberFood for the Journeyluncheonmeeting.

FatherVoorhies,pastorofSts.Peter and Paul Parish, Scott, ischairmanofthediocesanYearofFaith committee. HebeganbyexplainingthesignificanceoftheYearofFaithlogo,alargerepro-ductionofwhichwasondisplayinthemeetingroom.

Thelogosymbolicallydepictsa large boat, representing theChurch with a large main mastof a cross and sails emblazonedwithanIHS,theLatininitialsforJesus.Alargecirclebackofthesails represents the sun, for theSonofGod,ourEucharist.

Father Voorhies noted PopeBenedict XVI has described theYear of Faith as an opportunitytogrowinfaith,tospreadit,andtoshareitwithourbrothersandsisters.

In his papal statement Porta Fidei,thePopequotesfromActs14:21,whichrelatethetravelsofPaul and Barnabas opening thefaithtotheGentiles.Fromthebe-ginningofBenedict’spontificate,FatherVoorhiesrecalledthat thepopehastriedtogetpeopleexcit-

Year of Faith, a chance to grow edaboutajourneyoffaith.“Hewas especially concerned aboutthosewhohavelosttheirfaith,toreachoutandbring themback,”FatherVoorhiessaid.

The Year of Faith started onOctober ll, Father Voorhies not-ed, and coincides with the 50thanniversary of the beginning oftheSecondVaticanCouncil.Itisalso the 20th anniversary of theCatechism of the Catholic Church inwhichCardinalRatzinger,nowthepope,wasinvolved.

PopePaulVIproclaimedaYearofFaithin1967,FatherVoorhiessaid,tocombattheconfusionfol-lowingVaticanII. ItwasayearofrenewalwhichtheChurchal-waysneedsafteracouncil.

BlessedPopeJohnPaulIIwasthefirsttospeakofanewevan-gelization,FatherVoorhiespoint-edout.Thispopealsoexpressedconcern with helping those whohavelostthefaithtogetitback.Back in 1992 John Paul II waslooking forward to the jubileeyear 2000 and emphasized allCatholicshaveadutytoproclaimChristtoallpeople.Healsocitedthe Catechism as a great tool inundertakingthefaith.

“WehavefaithbythegraceofGod,” Father Voorhies empha-sized, “and we can never havefaith without the grace of God.We shouldchoose to respond to

thatgracetofollowChrist.”FatherVoorhiesquotedfroml

Peterl,6-9,whichencouragesthedisciples to believe in Jesus, topraiseandrejoicewithHim,“be-causeyouare receiving thepur-poseofyourFaith,thesalvationofyoursouls.”

To participate in the Year ofFaith, Father Voorhies pointedout, there are ten activities sug-gested. Theseincludeparticipa-tionintheMass,reconciliatrion,learnaboutthelivesofthesaints,eadtheBible,readandstudythedocumentsofVaticanII,studytheCatechismoftheChurch,volun-teer in yourchurchparish,helpthose in need, invite a friend toMass,incorporatetheBeatitudesinyourlife.

Ifmoremotivationisneededtoperform some of these activiies,FatherVoorhiessuggestedoneofhis favorite writers, Scott Hahnwho reminds us that God lovesus even thoughwehave sinned.Christdiedforusandwehavetorespondtothis.Wehavetogonofurther than to learnmoreaboutourfaith.

TheYearofFaithcallsforcer-tainspiritualactions,FatherVoo-

rhiesnoted,conversion,catechu-mens,communion.Thisincludesevangelizing, catechizing, sacra-mentalizing.

“We take part in a spiritualcourtship, engagement and mar-riage, with a goal of the eternalwedding feast of the Lamb inHeaven,”hesaid.

Inconclusion,FatherVoorhiesencouraged his audience to takepartintheactivitiesoftheYearofFaithandnotedamajordiocesaneventnextyearwillbeavisittothe diocese by Cardinal DiNar-doofHouston. He also recom-mendedthemonthlyFaithofourFathers series sponsored by theCentralRegion.


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“BeFire!”byGrahamN.Smith

This ismy abso-lutefavoritetime of theyear. I’msure partof that isnos t a lg i a ,memoriesofwaiting ex-citedly forSanta Claus

tocome,withimagesofreindeerandelvesandtinseleverywhereIlookedandthesmellofaChrist-mastreebeingsetupinthehouse.Iseethatexpectantjoynowintheeyesofmylittlegrandkids.

But it’s more than that. Allyear long, we celebrate wonder-ful feasts of God’s love for us,particularlyEaster,with thePas-sionofJesusandourredemptionthroughHisCross.And,there’sPentecost, with the outpouringoftheHolySpiritthatempowersus to be witnesses for the GoodNews!

Christmas is different. It’sabout a promise, one as big asthey come, that no matter how

bad things get, don’t be afraid!Godlovesyou,andHe’scomingtorescueyou!

When I really feel burdened,the start of the Gospel of Lukeis one of my favorite places togo, because there that promiseringsout likeabuglecall abovethechaosofabattle.Zechariah,marriedtoElizabethandchildlessinoldage, isburning incense inthe sanctuary of the Lord whenthe Archangel Gabriel appears.

Gabriel’s first words are, “Donotbeafraid,Zechariah,becauseyourprayerhasbeenheard.”HegoesontotellZechariahthatafterall theseyearsofwaiting,Eliza-bethwillgivebirthtoasontobenamed John, who will be greatin thesightof theLordandwillturnmany in Israel toGod. (Lk.1:7-16). Gabriel then appearsto Mary and says, “Do not beafraid,Mary,foryouhavefoundfavor with God.” He tells herthat although she is a virgin, bythepowerof theHolySpirit shewillgivebirthtoJesus,whowill

becalled“SonoftheMostHigh”andwhosekingdomwillhavenoend.(Lk.1:26-35)

And then there are the shep-herds. Guarding their sheep inthedarkofnight,suddenlythey’resurrounded by the glory of theLordandanangelappears.“Donotbeafraid,”theangelsays,“forbehold, I proclaim to you goodnewsofgreatjoythatwillbeforall thepeople. Fortodayinthecity of David a savior has been

Don’t be afraid! God loves you, and He’s coming to rescue you!

bornforyouwhoisMessiahandLord.”Andtheskyisfilledwithangels proclaiming, “Glory toGod in thehighest,andonearthpeacetothoseonwhomHisfavorrests.”(Lk.2:8-14)

Don’t be afraid! God lovesyou, and He’s coming to rescueyou!

Thishasbeenaturbulentyear.We’vejustbeenthroughanelec-tion campaign that seemed tohavealotmoredivisivenesssownonallsidesthansolutions. TheHHSmandate threatensour reli-giousfreedom.TheMiddleEastseemsripetoeruptintofull-scalewaralmostanyday.SuperstormSandy devastated the Northeast.The economy has been badlybattered and doesn’t seem to beheading formeaningful recoveryanytimesoon.

Don’t be afraid! God lovesyou, and He’s coming to rescueyou!

I think we need to burn thatmessage into the marrow of ourbones. When the Yuletide fes-tivities are behind us and we’reinthebleak,coldrainsofJanuaryandFebruary, it stillneeds tobeshiningbrightinsideussothatwecangiveitawayandlightupthedarknessaroundus.

When the Communists threwthe missionaries out of China inthelate1940’s, therewereabout2millionChristians there. Thegovernment launched a severecrackdown,killingandimprison-ing Christian leaders, outlawingworship gatherings, and seizingchurches.Evangelizingwasase-riouscrime.Whenforeignmis-sionarieswereallowedbackintoChina in the late 70’s, they ex-pectedtofindveryfewbelieversbut were astonished to discoverthattherewereabout60million!How did that happen, with noseminaries, almost no ordainedclergy,veryfewBiblesandinthefaceofcrushingpersecution?

According to Alan Hirsch,writingin“TheForgottenWays,”itwasbecauseofthepowerofthatsimplemessage:Don’tbeafraid!Godlovesyou,andHe’scomingtorescueyou!ItwaswhatHirschcalls a “sneezable” idea – easilypassed on and easily “caught”,fromonehearttoanother.

No matter how bleak thingsmay be this coming year, I’mstandingonthatGoodNews,andI’msharingitwitheveryoneIcan!The loveof Jesus is thegreatestChristmasgiftofthemall!


Bishopsagreeonneedforbetterpreaching,morepenance;OKDaycausebyCatholicNewsServiceBALTIMORE(CNS)

During their annual fall gen-eralassembly inBaltimoreNov.12-15, the U.S. bishops voteddownadocumentonthetroubledU.S.economy,passeddocumentson penance and better preach-ing, approved a reorganizationoftheirCommunicationsDepart-mentandendorsedthesainthoodcauseofDorothyDay.

On the assembly’s openingday,thebishopsdiscussedonthenation’s troubled economy andwhat their response to it shouldbe,butadaylatertheirproposeddocument“TheHopeoftheGos-pelinDifficultTimes:APastoralMessage on Work, Poverty andthe Economy” did not gain thetwo-thirdsvoterequiredforpas-sage.

When it was introduced Nov.12, some bishops criticized thedocument for being too long tobepracticalandforfailingtoin-cludeavarietyofpointsandhis-toricalreferences.

On the assembly’s secondday, the bishops approved theirfirst new document in 30 yearson preaching. The document,“PreachingtheMysteryofFaith:TheSundayHomily,”encouragespreachers toconnect theSundayhomilywithpeople’sdailylives.

ThedocumentwaspreparedbytheU.S.ConferenceofCatholicBishops’ Committee on Clergy,ConsecratedLife andVocations,chairedbyArchbishopRobertJ.CarlsonofSt.Louis.

Whenheintroducedthedocu-

mentNov.12,thearchbishopsaidpreaching must be done “moreeffectively in the context of thenewevangelization. ...Ourpeo-ple hunger for better preaching,preaching that would help themrediscovertheirfaith.”

The bishops also overwhelm-inglyapproved--ina236-1vote--an exhortation encouragingCatholics to take advantage ofthesacramentofpenance,orrec-onciliation.

The text was prepared by thebishops’ Committee on Evange-lization and Catechesis, chairedby Bishop David L. Ricken ofGreenBay,Wis.Theexhortation,tobemadeavailableinpamphletform,willaimtoeasethefearsofCatholics who have not gone toconfessionforsometime.

Itwillbemadepublicintimeto allow for dioceses to prepareforLent2013.

On a voice vote, the bishopsendorsed the sainthood cause ofDorothy Day, co-founder of theCatholicWorkermovement.

New York Cardinal TimothyM. Dolan, USCCB president, ispromotingDay’scause;herCath-olic Worker ministry was basedinNewYorkCity.ThecausewasfirstundertakenbyoneofCardi-nalDolan’spredecessorsinNewYork,CardinalJohnO’Connor.

Cardinal Dolan and otherbishops who spoke Nov. 13, in-cludingsomewhohadmetDay,calledhersainthoodcauseanop-portunemomentinthelifeoftheU.S.church.

Thebishopsalsoapprovedex-pandingthememorialforBlessedFrancisXavierSeelos,aGerman-

born Redemptorist priest whoministered throughout antebel-lum-era America for more than20years.ArchbishopThomas J.RodiofMobile,Ala.,noted thatBlessed Seelos ministered at atimewhen“immigrantswerenotwelcomedwell inmanycircum-stances,”whichhesaidhascon-temporarysignificance.

A year after U.S. Catholicsbeganusinganewtranslationofthe missal at Masses, the bish-opsagreed tobegin revising theLiturgyoftheHours--updatinghymns,psalms,variouscanticles,psalm prayers, some antiphons,biblicalreadingsandothercom-ponents of the liturgical prayersusedatvariouspartsoftheday.

Archbishop Gregory M. Ay-mondofNewOrleans,chairmanoftheCommitteeonDivineWor-ship, said theworkwouldprob-ably take three to five years tocompleteandtheaimwouldbetomoreaccuratelyreflecttheorigi-nalLatintexts.

The bishops approved a reor-ganization of their Communica-

tions Department that would in-cludehiring a director of publicaffairswhowouldworktounifymessages on the activities andstancesoftheUSCCB--notindi-vidualdiocesesorbishops--andbettercarryoutchurchcampaignsrelatedtonewevangelization,ac-cordingtoCardinalDolan.

Cardinal Dolan said the US-CCB’s communications effortmusttakeadvantageofnewcom-munications technologies. Thecostofhiringapublicaffairsdi-rectorandsupportstaffandotherservicesisestimatedat$400,000annually, according to the sup-portingdocument.

Theplancallsforareorganiza-tionof theCommunicationsDe-partment,whichincludesamediarelationsoffice,customerandcli-ent relations, creative services,which is responsible for onlineandvideomessages, andCatho-licNewsService.

The bishops were also urgedtobroadentheirsupportfortheirnationalcollections.InaNov.13

continued on page 14


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Catholic home missions grants to help fund 84 poor home mission diocesesUSCCBWASHINGTON

TheU.S.ConferenceofCath-olic Bishops’ Subcommittee onCatholic Home Missions an-nounced November 19 the ap-proval of over $8.4 million ingrantfundingtoaidinevangeli-zation, religiouseducation,min-

istry training and other supportof84missiondiocesesacrossthecountry.

These home mission dioces-es across the United States facegreat challenges due to the rug-ged terrain of their location andthe poverty of the populationtheyserve.

“Each year we are presentedwith the opportunity to sharethegenerousgiftsofthenation’sCatholics with mission dioceseshere at home. Most people aresurprisedtolearnthatover40per-centofthediocesesintheUnitedStates receiveoursupport,”saidBishop Michael W. Warfel of

Great Falls-Billings, Montana,chairman of the subcommittee.“Wehearregularlyfromthebish-ops of home mission dioceseshow essential our funding is totheirabilitytoprovidethesacra-mentsandspreadtheGospel.”


porObispoMichaelJarrell

El Cen-tro para laI n v e s t i g -ación Apli-cada sobreel Apos-t o l a d o ,( C A R A ) ,

localizado en Georgetown Uni-versity en Washington, D.C., ll-eva a cabo numerosas investiga-cionessobrelaIglesiaCatólicaysusactividades.Publicainformesmuyinteresantes.Muchosdeés-tospuedenserleídosenlapáginaweb: cara.georgetown.edu. Lossiguientespuntosmellamaronlaatención:

• Entre el 1992 y 2010 elnúmerodesacerdotesenelminis-teriopastoraldisminuyóde32,729a26,652;elnúmerodediáconosaumentó de 10,672 a 17,289; yelnúmerodeministroslaicosau-mentó de 21,569 a 37,929. Así,elnúmerodepersonasenminis-terios para los feligreses ha au-mentadoen17,200enlosúltimos18 años. De muchas maneras,nuestro pueblo está mejor aten-didoahoraqueenelpasado.

• Seestimaque74millones

de estadounidensesse identifican como

católicos.Deestenúmero50mil-lonesasistenamisaenNavidadyPascuadeResurrección.Delos50millones,36asistenamisaporlomenosunavezalmes,ydelos36millones, 17 millones asisten se-manalmente, aproximadamente el23 por ciento de los 74 millones.Es también interesante saber queel 31% de los que se identificancomo católicos asisten a misa encualquier Domingo del TiempoOrdinario; el 45% asiste al Miér-colesdeCeniza;yel68%asisteamisaenNavidadyPascuadeRes-urrección.

• CARAtambiénmidelatasadepermanenciaentrelasreligionesdentrodelosEstadosUnidos,estoes,elporcentajedeaquellosadul-tosqueconservanlamismafeconlaquefueroncriados.Losresulta-dossonlossiguientes:

Hindú–84% Judía–76%

Musulmán–76% GriegaOrtodoxa–73%

Mormón–70% Católica–68%

Bautista–70% Luterana–59%

Pentecostal–50% Budista–49%

Metodista–46%

Anglicana/Episcopal–45%Sindenominación–44%

IglesiaReformada–42%Congregacionalista–37% TestigosdeJehová–37%Atea–30% IglesiadeSantidad–32%• Este estudio en particular,

fueunarevelaciónparamí.Escu-chamosmuchoacercadelnúmerodecatólicosqueabandonanlaigle-sia.A menudo, se pinta una ima-gendesalentadoraysentimosqueestamosfallandoennuestramisióncomopastores,padresdefamiliaymaestros.Muchodeestoesverdady debemos incrementar nuestrosesfuerzos de evangelización. Nodebemos estar satisfechos hastaque nuestro nivel de pertenenciaseadel100%.Aunasí,podríamossentirnosbienporelhecho–yesunhecho–queloscatólicosestánmejor que la mayoría de las de-nominaciones cuando sehabladepertenencia de los miembros. Elorgullo no es apropiado, pero losnúmerosenseñanquelosesfuerzosdelospadresdefamilia,clero,es-cuelas,equiposdelasparroquiasydelascomunidadesestánteniendounefectopositivo.Todaslasmisas,homilías,oracionesenloshogares,clasesdereligión,retiros,estudiosde laBiblia, actividadesde la ju-ventud, etc., están dando resulta-dos. No deberíamos estar satis-

fechos,perotampocodeberíamospensarquesomosunfracaso.Losnúmeros son mejores de lo quenoshanhechopensar.

• Entrelosaños2007y2008,lapoblacióncatólicaaumentópor555,789 miembros. Solamenteunapartedelcrecimientofuede-bido a la inmigración, dejando316,979sinexplicación.

• Enlageneracióndelpre-VaticanoII,96%deloscatólicoseranblancosno-hispanos,yel2%erahispano.Enlageneracióndelmilenio (nacidosenel año1982o después), el 50% eran no-his-panosblancos,yel45%eranhis-panos.

• La razones más impor-tantes de asistir a misa para lageneracióndelmileniosonlade“experimentar la liturgia” y la“necesidaddelaEucaristía”.Lasrazonesmásimportantesparanoasistir son que “simplemente nosonpersonasreligiosas”yporlas“responsabilidadesfamiliares.”

ElTiempodeAdvientosecen-traenlaSegundaVenidadeCris-toalfinaldelostiemposyensuprimeravenidaaBelén.Celebra-mos el nacimiento del Salvador.Es nuestroprivilegioproclamarconunnuevoardorenestostiem-pos,estaBuenaNueva,siempreantiguaysiemprenueva.

FelizNavidadatodos.


byBishopMichaelJarrell

T h eCenter forA p p l i e dResearchin theApostolate( C A R A ) ,l o c a t e d

at Georgetown University inWashington, D.C., conductsvolumes of research on theCatholicChurchanditsactivi-ties. It usually produces veryinteresting reports. Most ofthese can be read on its web-site: cara.georgetown.edu.Some items which caught myeyeare:

• Between1992and2010,thenumberofpriestsinpastoralministrydecreasedfrom32,729to 26,652; the number of dea-cons increased from 10,672 to17,289;and thenumberof layecclesial ministers increasedfrom 21,569 to 37,929. Thus,thenumberofpersons inmin-istry to parishioners has in-creasedby17,200overthepast18 years. In many ways, ourpeople are better served nowthantheywereinthepast.

December 2012• In rounded numbers, 74

million Americans self-identifyasCatholics.Ofthisnumber50millionattendMassatChristmasand Easter. Of the 50 million,36millionattendatleastonceamonth,andofthe36million,17million attend weekly, about 23percent of the 74 million. It isalsointerestingthat31%ofself-identified Catholics will attendMassonanygivenSundayinOr-dinaryTime;45%attendonAshWednesday;and68%attendonChristmasandEaster.

• CARA also measuresretention rates among religionsin theUnitedStates, that is, thepercentage of those raised in afaithwho remain affiliatedwiththefaithasanadult.Theresultsare:

Hindu—84% Jewish—76%

Muslim—76% GreekOrthodox—73%

Mormon—70% Catholic—68%

Baptist—60% Lutheran—59%

Pentecostal—50% Buddhist—49%

Methodist—46% Anglican/Episcopal—45%

Non-denominational—44%Reformed—42%

nones(nothinginparticu-lar)—38%Jehovah’sWitnesses—37%Congregationalists—37%

Holiness—32%Atheists—30%• Thisparticularstudywas

a revelation tome. WehearsomuchaboutthenumberofCath-olicsleavingtheChurch.Often,averydismalpicture ispaintedandwefeelthatwearefailinginour mission as pastors, parentsand teachers. Much of this istrueandwedohavetoincreaseour evangelization efforts. Weshouldnotbesatisfieduntilourretentionrateis100%.Yet,wemight takesomecomfort in thefact—anditisafact—thatCath-olicsaredoingbetter thanmostdenominations when it comesto retentionofmembers. Prideisnotappropriate,but thenum-bersdoshowthat theeffortsofparents, clergy, schools, parishstaff members and the commu-nityarehavingapositiveeffect.All of those Masses, homilies,home prayers, religion classes,retreats,biblestudies,youthac-tivities, etc., are accomplishingsomething. We should not be

satisfied,butneithershouldwethinkofourselvesascompletefailures.Thenumbersarebet-terthanwehavebeenledtobe-lieve.

• Between 2007 and2008, the Catholic populationincreasedby555,789members.Onlyapartof thegrowthwasdue to immigration, leaving316,979unaccountedfor.

• In the pre-Vatican IIgeneration, 96% of Catholicsare non-Hispanic White, and2% are Hispanic. In the Mil-lennial generation (b. 1982 orlater), 50% are non-HispanicWhite,and45%areHispanic.

• Milleninals’topreasonsfor attending Mass are “expe-riencingliturgy”and“needforthe Eucharist.” Their top rea-sonsfornotattendingare“justnot a religious person” and“familyresponsibilities.”

The Advent Season focus-es on the Second Coming ofChrist at the end of time andon his first coming at Bethle-hem.WecelebratethebirthoftheSavior.Itisourprivilegetoproclaimafreshinourowntimeand place, this Good News,everancient,evernew.MerryChristmastoall.

continued from page 10

Home missions

The Subcommittee primarilysupports home mission diocesesin theUnitedStates thatareun-able to offer their communitiesthebasicpastoralministrieswith-outassistance.Thegrantsarefi-nancedthroughtheannualfund-

raising campaign known as theCatholicHomeMissionsAppealandsupportsuchpastoralservic-es as: evangelization activities;religious education; training forpriests,deacons,religioussistersandbrothers,andlaity,aswellasministrywithethnicgroups.

Three examples of diocesesfunded from the Catholic Home

MissionsAppealaretheDiocesesofFairbanks,Alaska;Cheyenne,Wyoming;andElPaso,Texas.

The Fairbanks Diocese facesmany challenges given its lim-ited access to 41 of its 46 par-ishes.Manyvillagesseeapriestonlyonceamonth.Ateamoftwopriests, three sisters and threebrothers serve eight villages.

Grantswill allow thediocese toofferadultcatechesisandtotraindeacons and Eucharistic min-isters. The diocese will receive$135,000nextyear.

The Cheyenne Diocese faceschallenges found in small con-gregations scattered over vastdistances. There are 31 active



Did You Know?Safe Environment Tips

Internet Safety for KidsThe Internet has become the new schoolyard for child

molestersseekinggirlsorboystovictimize.Internet“chatrooms”provideateenagerwithanopportunitytoengageina“live”conversationwithfriendsfromschoolorchurch,orwithotherteenagersfromaroundtheworld.Achatroomissimiliartoanold-styletelephonepartyline,exceptthatteensaretyping.Lawenforcementhasfoundthatchildmolestersusechatroomstogaineasyandsafeaccesstoteens.Becauseoftheseeminglycaringandseductivetalentofchildmolest-ers,teenagersshouldbewarnedthatwhentheyareinachatroom,theyshouldneverprovideanyonewithprivateinfor-mations,personal information,andespecially their specificphysciallocation.

Source: Bob Farley, “Exposing the Dangers of Chat Rooms,” featured March 14, 2005, at www.virtusonline.org/virtus.

Where Do Your Kids Go to Have Fun?Protectingchildrenfromharmextendsbeyondthetimethat

they are under your direct supervision. Know where yourchildrenspendtheirtimewhenschooolisoutortheyarenotinthehouse.Wheredotheygatherandplaywithotherkids?Arethereotheradutlsinthearea?Ifso,whoarethey,andwhatreasondotheyhavetobethere?Knowingtheanswerstothesequestionswillhelpyoutokeepyourkidssafeevenwhenyouarenotwiththem.

Source: www.missingkids.com

To report the abuse of children and young people, please contactSister Kathleen Farrelly, O.Carm, LCSW

Victim Assistance Coordinator for the Diocese of Lafayette1001 West Pinhook Road, Suite 205

Lafayette, LA(337) 298-2987

St. Edmund students combine lessons in sci-ence & prayer with “floating rosary”EUNICE

Who says science and prayeraren’t compatible with one an-other?

PhysicsstudentsatSt.EdmundHigh School in Eunice recentlytook on a class project whichhelped them learn about gravita-tional force. They constructed arosary made of helium ballons,with the goal of finding out howmuchgravitationalforceitwouldtaketoliftacross(madeofStyro-foam)tothe“heavens.”

Prior to the ‘Rosary Lift,’ theelementary students prayed a ro-sary in the elementary courtyard.Atthemomentoflift-offtheentirestudentbodygatheredinthepark-inglotofSt.AnthonyChurchandsangtheHailMarywhilewatchingtheballoonsrisetotheheavens.

CurrenttotalsshowthattheSt.Edmund Catholic School Face-book page photo received over1,600 likes, 112 shares and over80comments,Belowisanemailreceivedfromafanoftheproject:

“Greetings St. Edmund Catho-licFamily!!!

Photo submitted by St. Edmund School

I saw your post/photo of the“floating rosary”!!!Whatabeau-tiful witness to the traditions ofourCatholicFaith!!! I’vealreadyposted thephotoonmyFBwall.I called a homeschool mom anddear friend in Huntsville, Ala-bama to post it on her wall aswell. THANK YOU for makingmymorning.If“I”amthishappy,I can only imagine how happyCHRISTfeelsforSt.Edmund.”

Vermilion Catholic School in Abbeville recently received a visit from Megan Boudreaux (pictured third from right), founder and director of Respire Haiti. In two years, Ms. Bou-dreaux has built up this organization to provide schooling for more than 500 children of Gressier, Haiti, and is currently working to construct a church, medical clinic, and community center as well. Photo submitted by Vermilion Catholic School

Vermilion Catholic School receives visit from founder/director of Respire Haiti

Lafayette

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LAFAYETTEIntheNovember2012editionof

the Acadiana Catholic, it was an-nounced that Mr. Bernel Fontenot,DirectoroftheLafayetteDiocese’sOffice of Community Develop-ment, had retired. Mr. Fontenot’srolewiththeofficespansnearly37years,duringwhichherepresentedthe diocese in the development ofmore than 30 facilities designedto provide housing for the elderly,handicapped,andlow-incomeindi-vidualsandfamiliesthroughouttheeightcivilparishesofthediocese.

Fromabusinessperspective,Mr.Fontenot has maintained the im-ageof a consummateprofessional,working with a variety of peoplethroughout all levels of develop-menttoensurethateachandeveryfacilityhasbeencompletedaccord-ing to its necessary specifications.As important as this attribute is,however,itisnotthefirstthatcametothemindsofhisassociateswhentheyheardofhisretirement.Thosewhohavehadtheprivilegeofwork-ingmostcloselywithMr.Fontenotovertheyearssimplyrecalledhowmuch they will miss the pleasurethatopportunityhasprovided.

“As I reflect over the past 23years, Ihavebeenblessed toworkasBernel’ssecretary,”offeredCon-nie Lantier. “Bernel has a gift ofnotlookingatoutwardappearances,butseeingthevalueanddignityofeachpersonheserved.Hehashadagreatimpact,notonlyonme,butalso others who worked under hissupervision.Iwillneverforgetthekindnessandgenerosityhehasgiv-enme,andwhatagreatrolemodel

In honor of Mr. Bernel Fontenot: “You might be retiring, but in our hearts, you are not going anywhere!”

hehasbeen.Ifeelhonoredtohavehimasapartofmylife.”

“Formanyyears,Ihavehadtheprivilege to provide architecturalservices for the Diocese of Lafay-ettebyworkingthroughtheOfficeof Community Development withBernel Fontenot,” added Jack K.Tolson of Ardoin, Gaudet & Tol-son,Ltd.“Itisveryevidentthathehas exemplifieda true compas-sionate heartby providingaffordable liv-ing facilities toserve very lowincome elderly,frailelderly,anddisabledpersonswho otherwisewould not havea safe place tolive. Theapart-ments and nurs-ing homes nowserveover1,250people. . .plusthose who willlive in two newcomplexesnowunderdevelopment.I certainly appreciate the trust andconfidencewhichMr.Fontenothasplacedinthosewhoworkwithourfirm to design and administer themany successful apartment devel-opments.”

“I have worked for the DioceseofLafayetteforover35years,un-der the supervision of Mr. Fon-tenot,” said David Landry, formerAdministrator and current consul-tant for Consolata Nursing HomeinNewIberia,oneof the facilities

constructed under the Office ofCommunity Development. “Un-derBernel,weexpandedConsolataHome from 77 beds to 114, withan additional six-bed wing for theclergyofthediocese.IthasbeenagreathonortoworkunderBernel;Iconsiderhimaveryclosefriendandwishhimnothingbutthebest.”

“I first learned of Bernel whileworking atthe Deaf Ac-tion Center in1992,” saidPaulette Guth-rie, ActivitiesC o o r d i n a t o rat Village duLac, whichis another ofthe diocesan-ownedhousingfacilities. “InOctober 2004,I went to himrequesting towork in Vil-lageduLac,soI could workdirectly with

the residents, particularly the deafanddeaf/blind.IbroughtmyfolderwiththeideasIhadtoimprovethequalityoflifeforthoselivinginthevillage, and he began opening thedoors for me that very day to themost incredible eight years of mycareer.

“Bernel’s love for the residentswasbeautiful towatch;he’dcometohavelunchalmosteveryday,andthe residents would wait for him.Hewasamaninpower,buthewaskindandgentlewith the residents,

andhegaveme the freedomtodomyjob,withthetrustthatI’ddoitwell.”

Karol Meynard (Director of theOffice of the Pro-Life Apostolate)and her assistant Trista Littel alsoechoedthosesentiments.

“Bernel always sharedwordsofencouragement. We witnessed hispro-lifestancethroughthejoyandmutualrespectexchangedinhisin-teractionswiththedisabled,elderly,infirmed and the poor who visitedhim.HepersonifiedMatthew25—‘Whenyoudiditfortheleastofmybrothersyoudidittome.’WethankGodforBernel.”

“IwillalwaysrememberMr.Ber-nel Fontenot as kind, considerate,thoughtful, and a true gentleman,”said Cristina LeBlanc, Director ofthe Office of Hispanic Ministry.“WhenIfirststartedworkingatthediocese, he would bring his secre-tary for lunch on Secretary’s Dayandhewouldinvitemeaswell,outof kindness. Thank you, Mr. Ber-nel.”

Fellow central office employeeLisaFrederick (SafeEnvironment)wasalsotouchedbyMr.Fontenot’sgentlemanlybehavior.

“WhenIfirststartedworkingforthediocese,Mr.Bernelmadeabigimpression on me, because he al-waysrememberedmyname.Itwasasmallthing,buthewasjustalwayssuchathoughtfulpersonandmadeyoufeelspecialwheneverhespoketoyou.”

“Congratulations on the occa-sion of your retirement!” declaredCharles Tate, Consultant with Ar-


Mr. Bernel Fontenot


Marriage 101: the real meaning of a family Christmas

St. Basil KCs raise funds with poboy sale

The Knights of Columbus, St. Basil Council #10721 recently held its annual Po Boy Sale at the church hall. Members cooked and served over 1,400 sandwiches to raise funds for various community projects. The Council includes among its many charitable organizations the residents of LARC and schools in the Ridge and Judice area. Photo submitted by Rick Latiolais

report, they heard that a declineindiocesanparticipationinthesecollections since 2009 has beena loss of $8.7 million to Catho-licprogramsthatbenefitfromthecollection.

BishopKevinJ.FarrellofDal-las,chairmanoftheCommitteeonNational Collections, describedthe collections as “an importantmechanismformobilizingcollec-tiveactioninthechurchuniversaland a way for all the faithful toparticipate in solidarity with therestofthechurch.”

The bishops were initiallyscheduledtoconsideradocumenttitled“ContemporaryChallengesandOpportunitiesfortheExerciseof the Teaching Ministry of theDiocesanBishop,”developedbytheCommitteeonDoctrine.Thedocument urged bishops to takeadvantageofnewtechnologies--socialmedia,bloggingandcellphone technology -- to respondand explain church teachingwhenitisportrayedinaccurately,particularlybytheologians.

Cardinal DonaldW.Wuerl ofWashington, committee chair-


Bishops’ fall general assemblyman, decided to withdraw thedocument in favor of a morecomprehensive statement in linewiththebishops’newcommuni-cationplanandtheongoingworkthroughout the USCCB relatedto the new evangelization. Thebishops, on Nov. 12, agreed ina voice vote to the appointmentof a working group -- made upof the committee chairmen fordoctrine,evangelizationandcat-echesis,andcanonicalaffairsandchurchgovernance--todraftthedocument.

The bishops voted for a stra-tegic plan that will guide theUSCCB’sworkforthenextfouryears,a“roadmap”toshapecon-ference programs and activitiestostrengthen the faithofCatho-lics and help them actively liveouttheirfaith.

During the first year, the fo-cuswillbeonfaithandactivitiescloselytiedtotheYearofFaith.In 2014 and 2015, initiativeswill strengthen parish life andworship.Thefinalyearcalls forCatholics to be witnesses to thewiderworld.


byKelleyChapmanWhat is Christmas? For me, Christmas is

aboutfamilyandthecelebrationofthebirthofJesusChristandnotthematerialisticthings.Theholidaysareagreattimeforfamiliestoturntheirfocusontheirblessingsandwhattheyaregrate-ful for, whether it is family, friends, your job,beingabletogive,etc.Familytimecanbespentinmanydifferentways.

Ifyouhavesmallchildreninthehouse,helpthemunderstand themeaningofChristmasearly. Nativityscenes,especiallythosethatchildrenareabletoplaywith,booksthatfocusontheChristmasstory,drivingaroundlookingatChristmaslights,baking cookies, and/or donating clothes or toys for those childrenwhoarelessfortunatearejustafewthingsthatyoucandotohelpchildrenunderstandthemeaningofChristmas.

Familiesthathavegrownchildrencanestablishtraditionsasex-tended family: thewhole familyvolunteering at a shelter servinglunch, coming together to hear the Christmas story read from theBible,enjoyinggumboonChristmasEvewiththewholefamily,oradoptingachildoraparishionerinneedtowhomthewholefamilycangive.

ThebirthofJesusChristshowsusthatweareallfamily.AsArch-bishopofNewOrleansGregoryAymondsaid,“MaythisspecialfeastofJesus’birthdayhelpustorenewourcommitmenttofamilylife.Intherushofourdailyroutinesandthethousandthingsthatseekourattention,wemustnottakeforgrantedourfamilyandthoseclosesttousinfriendship”.

Christmasisnotaboutthepartiesorhowmuchyouspendoneachgift.ChristmasisaboutfamilyandthebirthofJesusChristoursav-ior.Enjoythetimethatyouhavewithyourfamilyinsteadoffocusingonthestressoftheholidayseason.

Forvolunteerinformation,pleasevisitthefollowingwebsites:

www.catholicservice.organdclickonvolunteerwww.use.salvationarmy.org/(orvisityourlocalofficeforlocationsoftheAngelTree)

Sources for this article:

www.arch-no.org/news

frosted.wordpress.com/2007/12/22/family-the-meaning-of-christ-mas/


At their annual fall meeting in Baltimore, the U.S. bishops issued a call to Catho-lics to take advantage of the sacrament of penance, especially those who have not gone to confession for some time. In a 2009 file photo, Bishop Michael O. Jackels of Wichita, Kan., hears confes-sion during a youth rally in Washington. CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz

The bishops also approved a2013 budget of $220.4 millionandagreedtoaddanationalcol-lection for the U.S.Archdiocesefor the Military Services. Thebudget for2013 representsa1.3percentincreasefrom2012.

Thenewcollectionforthemil-itaryarchdiocesewouldbegin in2013.Undertheplan,itwouldbetaken voluntarily in parishes ev-erythreeyears.BishopMichaelJ.Bransfield of Wheeling-Charles-ton,W.Va.,USCCBtreasurer,saidthe 2013 budget includes a sur-plustotalingmorethan$749,000.He also told the bishops thatthere was a projected surplus of$250,000for2014,meaningtherewasnoneed to seek an increaseintheannualdiocesanassessmentforUSCCBoperations.

In his presidential address toopentheassembly,CardinalDolanNov.12toldthebishopstheycan-notengageculture,dialoguewithothersorconfrontchallengesun-lesstheyfirstrecognizetheirownsins and experience the grace ofrepentance.

Thecardinalalsosaidthesac-ramentofpenancewassomethingtheUSCCBplannedtostressforallCatholicsyear-roundwith re-flectionson re-embracingFridayas a day of penance, includingthepossiblereinstitutionofabsti-nenceonallFridays.

The bishops’ assembly, whichopenednearlyaweekafterElec-tion Day, included discussionsabout religious liberty, marriageandimmigration.

InastatementissuedNov.13,LosAngelesArchbishopJoseH.

Gomez,aschairofthemigrationcommitteechair,urgedPresidentBarack Obama and congressio-nal leaders to work together ona bipartisan immigration reformbill. He also encouraged peopletomaketheirvoicesheardinsup-port of an immigration system“which upholds the rule of law,preserves family unity and pro-tectsthehumanrightsanddignityoftheperson.”

Duringanewsconferencejustafter the statementwas released,severalbishopsunderscoredtheirsupportforimmigrationreform.

The bishops’ assembly, whichopenednearlyaweekafterElec-tion Day, also included discus-sions about religious liberty andmarriage.

Archbishop William E. Lori


Bishops’ fall general assembly of Baltimore, chairman of theAdHocCommitteeforReligiousLiberty,saidNov.12theworkofdefendingreligiouslibertywouldcontinue despite “setbacks orchallenges.”

SanFranciscoArchbishopSal-

vatore J. Cordileone, chairmanoftheSubcommitteeforthePro-motionandDefenseofMarriage,said Election Day was “a disap-pointingdayformarriage,”whichpoints to the need to “redoubleourefforts.”

A marble statue of the Virgin Mary was donated to Teurlings Catholic High School by Mrs. Joann Delhomme and her children and grandchildren in memory of Mr. Rene “Poochie” Delhomme. The statue, sculpted from marble found in Carrara, Italy, is housed within a newly constructed grotto at Teurlings Stadium. Bishop Michael Jarrell, along with TCH Chancellor Hampton Davis, Fr. Brian Taylor, and Fr. Gary Schexnay-der, blessed the statue. Photo submitted by Teurlings Catholic High School

Marble statue donated to Teurlings campus

BALTIMORE(CNS)A decline in diocesan participa-

tioninnationalcollectionshascostprogramsbenefitingfromthecollec-tionsabout$8.7millionsince2009,statisticsfromtheOfficeofNationalCollections at the U.S. Conferenceof Catholic Bishops show. PatrickMarkey, executive director of thenational collections office, toldCatholicNewsServiceNov.14thatdioceses have dropped some col-lections or otherwise combine twoormorenationalcollections,result-inginlessfundsforvitalprogramsthat serve church programs in theU.S. and around the world. Statis-tics from the office covering 2009

Bishops urged to broaden support for national collections through2011showtheamountcol-

lected was off about $2.9 millionannuallyfromearlieryears.Thesixcollections administeredby thena-tionalcollectionsofficeraised$56.1millionin2011,Markeysaid.Whilethe losses are small, theydo affectthe programs that benefit from thecollections,BishopKevinJ.FarrellofDallas,chairmanoftheCommit-teeonNationalCollections,saidinareportduringthebishops’fallgener-alassemblyinBaltimore.“Thefactisthatthegoodthatthenationalcol-lectionsdo is evendeeper than theprojects they fund,” Bishop Farrellsaid. “In our parishes, when donecorrectly,thenationalcollectionsareanimportantinstrumentofevangeli-zationandcatecheticalformation.”


Seminarian BursesWhat is a seminarian burse?

Aseminaryburseisa“named”portionoftheseminaryendowmenttrustfund,whichwasstartedfortheDioceseofLafayetteintheyear1919.Burs-esarecommonly“named”eitherbythepersonorpersonswhoestablishedthem,orinmemoryofadeceasedlovedone.

How do seminarian burses contribute to the diocese’s ongoing seminary formation?

Moneydonatedtotheseminarytrustfundremainsasuntouchedprinci-pal,whileinterestfromthetrustisusedtopayforthediocese’sannualcostofseminaryformation.Currently,theinterestfromthetrustpays20%ofthisexpense,whiletheremainderissupplementedbyfundsraisedduringtheBishop’sServicesAppealCampaign..

When is a seminarian burse complete?Typically,aburseiscompletedwhenitsbalancereaches$15,000.This

amount represented the total cost of educating a single seminarian backwhenthepracticewasfirstestablished,althoughtodaythatcosthasrisentoapproximately$200,000.Onceabursehasreached$15,000,anewbursemaybeopenedifthosewhoestablishedtheoriginalwishtocontinuetheirdonations.

Atthistime,atotalof98burseshavebeencompletedfortheDioceseofLafayette.

IncompleteBurses

Who can establish and contribute to a seminarian burse?

Anyoneiscapableofestablishingaburseandnamingitasdesired,andanyonecancontributesimplybyspecifyingthedesignatedbursenamewhenthe contribution is made. Contributions may be mailed to the LafayetteDiocese’sOfficeofVocations,1408CarmelDrive,Lafayette,LA70501.

How is a seminarian burse established?Anyonewhoisinterestedinestablishinganewseminarianbursemay

alsocontacttheOfficeofVocationsat(337)261-5690.

202 Bishop Jeanmard Memorial Burse203 Bishop Jeanmard Assumption Burse204 Bishop Jeanmard-Sacred Heart Burse205 Msgr. Amable S. Doutre Burse206 Msgr. Joseph Peeters Burse207 Msgr. Louis Massebiau Burse208 Msgr. George Mollo Burse209 Rev. Louis P. Castel Burse210 Rev. Julian Van Exem Burse #1211 Bishop Duburg Assembly Burse212 Henry Lastraps Burse213 Genevieve Lastrapes Burse214 Church Point Burse220 St. John Marie Vianney Burse222 Rev. Auguste M. Viel Burse223 St. Andre Fournet Burse224 Julie Landry Burse226 A.C. Maraist Burse227 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #1228 Rev. Moise Hebert Burse229 Jeff Bienvenu Burse230 Immaculate Conception Burse #1231 Gaspard Petitjean Family Burse232 Msgr. John A. Vigliero Burse233 Lay Honorees Burse#1235 J.M. Lapeyre Family Burse237 St. Stephen Burse238 M/M P.J. Reiners Burse241 John Joseph Borel Burse243 Msgr. L.C. Habetz Burse245 Rev. J. Otto Jud Burse #1246 Rev. J. Otto Jud Burse #2251 Msgr. Hubert A. Lerchen Burse252 St. Theresa Burse #1253 Serra Club Burse355 Gabriel Lucas Memorial Fund (Morse) Burse255 CDA Burse #1256 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #2258 Heck & Langlois Guillot Burse259 M/M Fournet Burse #1261 Rev. OJ. Chauvin Burse262 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #3263 Denise & Erin Canan Burse265 O’Neil Hebert Burse267 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #4269 Lay Honorees Burse #2270 Military Chaplains Burse273 Bishop Schexnayder Memorial Burse #1277 Bishop Schexnayder Memorial Burse #2279 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #5282 Caliste A. Duplantis, Jr Burse285 Rev. Verbis Lafleur Burse #1

287 Msgr,. John Disch Burse289 Msgr. Lawrence Fournet Burse296 A Priest Burse #1298 Msgr. Paul Fuselier Burse #6299 James J. Frey, Sr Burse302 Ben & Louisa Larriviere Burse305 Laperouse Family Burse306 Marcel/alfred Gaudet Burse #1307 CDA Burse #2310 Msgr. George Bodin Burse311 Rev. Verbis Lafleur Burse #2312 M/M Milton Esteves Burse313 Sacred Heart Parish, Ni Burse314 Luke/Rita Bernard Burse315 Marcel/Alfred Gaudet Burse #2316 Marcel/Alfred Gaudet Burse #3317 Marcel/Alfred Gaudet Burse #4320 Lay Honorees Burse #3321 Fr. Jean Paradis Burse #1324 Msgr. Albert Bacque Burse #1325 Fr. Raphael Gauthier Burse #1328 Anonymous #1329 Sonnier Burse333 Lay Honorees Burse #4334 Anonymous #2335 Msgr Edward D. Fruge336 Pro-life Priest Burse338 M/M Milton Esteves Burse #2339 M/M Milton Esteves Burse #3341 Luke & Rita Bernard Memorial Burse #2342 Coignard/Gremillion Burse343 St. Theresa Of Lisieux Burse344 Eula Mae Bernard Burse345 Leonas & Alice Freyou Fam Memorial Burse347 Anonymous #3349 Bishop’s Helper Burse #1350 Bishop’s Helper Burse #2353 Nativity Of Our Lady Burse355 Gabriel Lucas Mem (Morse)357 Therese Esteves Burse #4360 Lay Honorees Burse #5361 Anonymous #4362 St. Jude Burse365 Msgr. Guy Lemoine Burse369 Anonymous #5371 Mildred Arceneaux Burse374 Anonymous #6382 Anonymous #7388 Blessed John Paul II391 Florence Mauboules Trust

Complete Burses

CorrectionOntheSeminarianBursespageoftheOctobereditionoftheAcadi-

ana Catholic,theincorrectsponsoringparishesweregivenforsemi-nariansAndrewSchumacherandBrentSmith.ThecorrectsponsoringparishforbothisOurLadyofWisdomParish,Lafayette.

Dennis Boudreauxis the son of Mr. andMrs.ScottBoudreaux.HeissponsoredbySt.Theresa Parish in Ab-beville,andiscurrentlyinhisfirstcollegeyearatSt.JosephSeminaryCollege,LA.

Payton Bourque is theson of Mr. and Mrs.Jared Bourque. He issponsored by the Ca-thedral of St. John theEvangelist in Lafayette,and is currently in histhird college year at St.Joseph Seminary Col-lege,LA.

Joseph Boustany is thesonofDeaconandMrs.EdwardBoustany.Heissponsored by Our Ladyof Fatima Parish in La-fayette, and is currentlyinhis thirdcollegeyearat Theological College,Washington,DC.

Patrick Broussard isthesonofMr.andMrs.StevenJ.Broussard.Heis sponsoredby theCa-thedral of St. John theEvangelist in Lafayette,and is currently in histhird theology year atPontifical NorthAmeri-canCollege,Rome.

Branson Cambre isthesonofMr.andMrs.Rick Cambre. He issponsoredbySt.PiusXParish inLafayette, andiscurrentlyinhissecondcollegeyearatSt.JosephSeminaryCollege,LA.

Photos by Paul Kieu

219Msgr.Wm.J.Teurlings (13,417.00)236JohnE.Lee,Jr. (9,324.60)239St.Joseph (9,076.48)242LeeC.Lavergne (7,079.73)244Rev.JulianVanExem#2 (12,524.06)248Msgr.AlphonseMartel (11,000.00)253SerraClub (15,534.49)254RustyRandol (1,742.76)260St.Theresa#2 (5,697.46)266Paul&MaryKarre (2,105.00)268M/MFournet#2 (570.65)271Rev.J.A.M.VanBrero (710.00)272MsgrP.AlexandreBorel(1,625.00)274MsgrEmeryLabbeBurse (6,310.00)278MsgrDanielBernard (3,674.64)281HarryVanTielFamily (3,969.00)283NoemieL.Petitjean (2,000.00)284Msgr.DanielHabetz (6,590.00)286P.J.Reiners#2 (9,500.00)288RevOscarDrapeau (2,000.00)290Rev.P.G.J.Kemps (1,000.00)291LucilleM.GriffinMem.(5,000.00)292Anonymous (10,470.00)293Msgr.FernandGouaux (4,770.00)294RobertA.FreyMemorial (7,360.00)297APriestBurse#2 (12,400.00)308Harold/RubyMoreauFamilyMemorial(5,000.00)309LibbyHolcombreMemorialBurse (2,000.00)318Msgr.MarcelMurieBurse (5,260.00)319Marcel/alfredGaudet#5(1,942.80)322FrJeanParadisBurse#2(5,000.00)323CharleneRichardBurse (3,030.00)326Fr.RaphaelGauthierBurse#2 (3,757.17)327Msgr.AlbertBacqueBurse#2 (325.00)330RevVerbisLafleur#3 (8,250.00)332Ben/LouisaLarriviereBurse#2 (3,750.00)337Col.ChapKennethBienvenuBur (13,814.99)340Rev.JamesDoironBurse (2,272.17)346Msgr.AlexanderO.SigurMem. (2,250.00)348Rev.J.WilsonMatt&MireFam (500.00)351SonnierBurse#2 (11,300.00)352St.EdmondChurchParish (9,000.00)354CDA#3 (10,750.63)355GabrielLucasMemFund(Morse) (15,194.21)356Mrs.LouiseWhite (10,110.00)358ThereseEsteves#5 (7,516.49)359StPeterPar-NewIberia (10,422.35)363RamonaCrosbyBennerfield (2,180.52)364St.JudeBurse#2 (8,030.00)366A.Otis&EttaHebertMemorial (5,000.00)367BishopO’DonnellBurse(3,545.00)368ReverendJulesSpeyrer (10,000.00)370Msgr.BurtonMoutonBurse (10,700.00)375RevCharlesMarinBurse (500.00)376BishopJeanmardBurse (6,214.00)377MarieFranquesKennethLacaze (3,000.00)378BishopGerardFreyBurse (12,522.00)379Rev.MoiseHebert#2 (3,403.61)380LayHonorees#6 (3,974.50)381MrsDorphiMarieDuhonMem. (2,181.50)382AnonymousRetiredPriest#7 (15,000.00)383JamesKBourqueMemBurseFund (4,330.00)384BishopSchexnayderBurse#3 (940.19)385Fr.MikeBakowskiMemBurse (3,600.00)386Coignard/GremillionBurse#2 (2,500.00)387InMemoryOfMr&MrsScrantonMouton(9,000.00)388BlessedJohnPaulII (21,030.00)389Rev.DonaldLegerMemBurse (960.00)390Claire&AllenAnding (15,000.00) November Donors253SerraClub1,000.00376HalinaKozeill500.00389Richard&NadineCain25.00391FrancisMauboulesTrust15,000.00


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Carmelites elect Sr. Mary John Billeaud to serve as prioress for next three yearsLAFAYETTE

Lafayette’sCommunityofDis-calced Carmelite nuns recentlyelectedSisterMaryJohnBilleaudto serve as prioress for the nextthree years. Sister Mary Johnsucceeds Sister Regina Mullins,who served in this capacity formanyyears.

SisterMaryJohn is the fourthdaughterofthelateLouisM.Bil-leaudandLucileCorneBilleaudof Broussard. She entered Car-melimmediatelyaftergraduatingfrom St. Cecilia High School inBroussard, where she was vale-dictorianofherclass.

In Carmel, Sister Mary Johnhas served in many capacitiesover the years, including a term

asprioress,severaltermsascouncilsister,andmanyyearsastheDirec-torofFormation.

“It is in a spirit of trust inGodand love formycommunity that Iaccept thisduty,”saidSisterMaryJohn.“Inexpressingmygratitudetomysistersfortheirsupport,IusethewordsofSisterReginathat,to-gether,wecancontinue togo for-ward‘handinhand,’growinginourvocationofconstantprayerandin-timacywithOurLordinordertobeofgreaterservicetotheChurchandtoallwhodependonourprayers.”

Along with the new prioress,elected council members includeSisters Regina Mullins, CatherineArceneaux, Jacinta Cormier, andCamilleHoang.

Sacred Heart School seniors recognized by Heisman programVILLEPLATTE

SacredHeartHighSchoolisex-tending a special congratulationsto Sadie Costanza and BrandonSoileau,whowererecentlynamedSchoolWinnersfortheprestigiousWendy’s High School HeismanAward.CostanzaandSoileauwerechosenfortheiroutstandingexcel-lence in academics, athletics, andcommunity/school leadership andwillmoveon to thenext roundofjudgingtocompetetowinthecov-etedNationalaward.

“OnbehalfofSacredHeartHighSchool,weareextremelyproudtocelebrate the exceptional athleticandscholasticachievementsofSa-die and Brandon with this presti-giousaward,”saidDianeFontenot,Principal.

TheWendy’sHighSchoolHeis-mancelebratestheachievementsofthenation’stophighschoolseniorsboth in and out of the classroom.Just as the collegiate Heisman isknownforbeingthehighestawardin college football, the Wendy’sHighSchoolHeismanawardisrec-ognizedasthemostesteemedaward

atthehighschoollevelasitencour-agesfutureleadershipbyacknowl-edgingwell-roundedstudents.

“These students are an inspira-tiontothosearoundthemandwillhonorably represent their schoolin thenextstageofWendy’sHighSchool Heisman award judging,”saidArchie Griffin, the only two-time winner of the Heisman Me-morial Trophy and Wendy’s HighSchool Heisman program spokes-person.“

Congratulations to Sadie Costanza (left) and Brandon Soileau (right) for winning the Wendy’s High School Heis-man Award. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart School

Quiz Bowl winners

First place winners, Academy of the Sa-cred Heart Schools, Grand Coteau.

Second place winners, St. Thomas More High School, Lafayette

LAFAYETTECongratulationstothewinners

of therecentQuizBowlcompe-tition hosted by the ImmaculataCenterinLafayette.

FirstplacewasawardedtotheteamfortheAcademyoftheSa-credHeartSchoolsinGrandCo-teau. Members include DavidVenable, Raven Bouvier, KateEdwards, Bre’Anna Sonnier-Thompson, TheresaAubert, andMalloryManuel.

Second place was awarded tothe team for St. Thomas MoreHighSchoolinLafayette.Mem-bersincludeDylanSimon,DavidLaCour, Ethan Duhon, BrandyStorey,FloydCarey,AustinLadd,

TimothyAndries,GerardDrake,andMrs.ChristineWise.

St. Thomas More team mem-berAustinLaddwasalsorecog-nized as the competition’s HighScorer.

Photos submitted by Dr. Nancy Ehret

High Scorer Austin Ladd, St. Thomas More High School, Lafayette



Bernel Fontenot

doin,Gaudet&Tolson,Ltd. “Thenumeroushousingandcommunitydevelopments sponsored by theDiocese of Lafayette have beenblessed by your leadership andcompassion to do far more thansimply shelter the least fortunateamong us. They have offered a

refugewhereourbrothersandsis-terscanbeseenabout.Whilethosekindsoulsperhapsareunabletoac-knowledgefortheserviceyouhavesolongprovidedinHisname,northeimmenseobligationseachofusmustassumeifwearetomaintainthehighstandardsyouhavesetforus. You might be retiring, but inour hearts you are not going any-

byCarolGlatzCatholicNewsServiceVATICANCITY(CNS)

Intheirmissiontoserveallpeo-ple, Catholic health care facilitiesalsomustbevigilant inmaintain-ingtheirChristianidentityandpro-tecting the life and dignity of thehumanperson,saidtheheadofthePontificalCouncilforHealthCareMinistry.

“It’s fundamental that Catholichealthcentersmaintaintheirproperidentitywithoutcompromise,wel-coming everyone without, how-ever, ceding to harmful forms ofsecularization or relativism,” saidArchbishop Zygmunt Zimowski,councilpresident.

The archbishop opened thecouncil’sNov.15-17 internationalconference,whichfocusedon“TheHospital, Setting for Evangeliza-tion: a Human and Spiritual Mis-sion.”

Adhering to the Gospel is “al-most impossible to undertake andmaintainfaithfully”ifpeopledon’tseetheirworkas“anauthenticvo-cation” and if people’s lives are“devoid of faith in humanity andcharity-love,” he told the nearly600 participants from around theworld.

While Catholic health workersareexpectedtobeat theforefrontinmedical and scientificdevelop-mentsandtherapies,theymustalso“humanize”suchprogress,protectpatients from being turned into“mereobjects,”andrespectallhu-manlifefromitsconceptiontoitsnaturalend,hesaid.

Catholics who are inspired bytheir faith “have tobeproponentsand pioneers of an ethical forma-tionthatwillaccompanytheirpro-

Heal all people while keeping Catholic identity alive, says archbishop fessionalstudies,”saidMsgr.Jean-MarieMupendawatu,thecouncil’ssecretary.

Healthcareworkerscan’tignoreethical problems they encounteronthejobthinkingsuchdilemmasareaconcernonlyforethicistsand

moraltheologians,hetoldjournal-istsNov.13.

Experts in ethics and moralityaren’tmakingabstractpronounce-ments “from an ivory tower” norare they regarding “the necessaryand exciting progress of scienceand technology” with suspicionanddistrust,hesaid.

Morality and medicine, ethicsandsciencehavetoworktogetherin partnership and translate intoethical and moral practice in theworkplace,hesaid.

InatalkNov.15,SouthAfricanCardinalWilfridNapierofDurbantold conference participants that“bishopsneedtospeakupinsup-portofhealthcareworkers”andtosupportthemspiritually.

Catholic “workers are undertremendous pressure to conform

topoliticalwhims”thatgoagainstchurch teaching and their facili-tiesruntheriskofforfeitingpublicfundingwhentheyrefusetocoop-erate with unethical policies, hesaid.

Bishopsandthereligiousorders

Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, president of the Pontifical Council for Health Care Min-istry, talks with Dr. Patrizio Polisca, Pope Benedict XVI’s personal physician, during the council’s international conference at the Vatican Nov. 15. CNS photo/Paul Haring

thatrunCatholicfacilitiesneedtobe “the caregivers of the caregiv-ers,” helping them face the risksandwithstandthepressuresbybol-steringtheirfaith,hesaid.

Offering people in the healthfieldspiritualandpastoralsupport“dignifiestheirwork,groundstheirworkinGodandinspiresworkersto see their work as a service to

Christandtotheleastofhisbroth-ers and sisters,” Cardinal Napiersaid.

U.S. Father David G. Murray,whoworkedatthePontificalCoun-cilforHealthCareMinistryfor12years,hasbegunaprojectwiththeRome Diocese to help Catholicsapply the Gospel in the field ofhealthcare.

The Christian Association forHealth Care, which can be set upinanyfacility--public,privateorChristian--byCatholicswhoworkthere,aimstogatherCatholicem-ployeesandhelpensuretheiriden-tityshinesthroughinaction,hetoldCatholicNewsServiceNov.10.

“There isa lackofcommunionamongthedifferenthealthprofes-sionals” in each facility, said Fa-therMurray,whoalsoworkswiththe Idente Missionaries of ChristtheRedeemer.

ProfessionalbarriersneedtobebrokendownsoCatholicadminis-trators, doctors, nurses, assistants,volunteers,janitors,securityandsoon canunite tomanifest theGos-pel,hesaid.

“You can’t testify the Chris-tianspiritunlessthere’sagenuineChristian spirit” manifest in theunityofpeoplecomingtogetheras



LAFAYETTEInpreparationforthecelebra-

tion of Christmas, the LafayetteDiocese encourages everyoneto participate in the many Ad-vent missions and penance ser-vicewhichwillbeofferedinthechurch parishes. While the fol-lowingeventswillhelpguidein-dividualsinthisendeavor,readersshouldnotethatthisarticledoesnotnecessarily representallAd-vent activities planned through-outthediocese. Peoplearealsoencouragedtorefertotheirlocalchurchparishbulletinsforinfor-mation on any additional eventswhichmaybescheduled.

TheCathedralofSt. John theEvangelistinLafayettewillhost“TheChristChildisComing—IsThereRoomatYourInn?”onDe-cember9(7:00-8:00p.m.)and10(6:30-7:30p.m.).Theeventwillbe presented by Deacon RandyHyde.

St.JosephChurchinPlaisancewill host itsAdvent parish mis-sion from December 10-11, be-ginningat6:00p.m.nightly.

Immaculate Heart of MaryChurchinLafayettewillpresent“Going on Faith” from Decem-ber 10-12, from 7:00-8:00 p.m.nightly (with musical prelude at6:45p.m.).PresenterswillbeFa-ther Michael Champagne, CJC;Deacon Michael Morrison; andSisterEvaReginaMartin,SSF.

St. Joseph Church in Parkswill host a healing Mass, withthe rosary, prayers for healing,

Advent activities planned throughout the dioceseandconfessionstofollow,at5:30p.m.onDecember11.TheeventwillbeledbyFatherBradGuil-lory,pastor.

St.CharlesBorromeoChurchin Grand Coteau will host Ad-ventpenanceservicesbeginningat7:00p.m.on theeveningsofDecember12and19.

HolyGhostChurchinOpelou-saswillhostanAdventpenanceservice beginning at 6:00 p.m.onDecember13.

Our Lady Queen of AngelsChurchinOpelousaswillhostacity-wide penance service from6:00-8:00p.m.onDecember17.

St. Thomas More Church inEunicewillhostatri-parishpen-ance service beginning at 6:00p.m.onDecember17.

St.PeterChurch inCarencrowillhost“ThePersonofChrist”from December 17-19, begin-ning at 6:30 p.m. nightly. ThepresenterwillbeFatherMichaelChampagne,CJC.

Immaculate ConceptionChurch in Morse will host itsAdvent parish mission at 6:00p.m.onDecember18.Thepre-senter will be Father KendallFaulk.

St.TheresaChurch inCrow-ley will host its Advent parishmission from December 18-20,beginningat5:00p.m.nightly.

St. John the Baptist ChurchinLyonsPointwillhostitsAd-ventparishmissionat6:00p.m.onDecember20.ThepresenterwillbeFatherKendallFaulk.

Sts. Leo-Seton football team wins championship

Sts. Leo-Seton Catholic School’s 7th and 8th grade football team recently participated in the Acadiana Christian League championship game against Opelousas Catholic. At the final buzzer of the game amidst the roar of the fans, SLS players were announced as winners of back-to-back championships allowing them to enjoy the cherished ACL championship trophy for yet another year. Pictured are this year’s championship team along with their ever-supportive cheerleaders, mascot and coaches. Photo submitted by Sts. Leo-Seton Catholic School

News from Opelousas Catholic SchoolOPELOUSAS

Opelousas Catholic students inlower elementary grade levels areenjoyingmaththroughtheSingaporeMathprogram.Thesemathstrategiesforworkingwordproblemshelpthestudentshavefunwithmath.

The teachers have been trainedin using this program to give thestudentsaconcretesetofstepstheycanusetosolvethemajorityofwordproblems. Part of the program in-volvesteachingthekindergartenstu-

dents todetermine identicalobjectsbased on attributes such as shape,colorandpattern.

Inotherschoolnews,localphysi-canDr.KimHardeyrecentlyspoketo Opelousas Catholic high schoolstudents as part of their introduc-tionintothe“TheologyoftheBody”study for grades seven throughtwelve. This course in the religionprogram will delve deep into themoral sanctity of relationships andmarriage.

Singapore math strategies at Opelousas Catholic School. Photo submitted by Opelou-sas Catholic School


onefamily,hesaid.Bycomingtogether,theCatholic

staff can lobby administrators onpoliciesandpractices,whichcouldincludesimplemeasurestoprotectpatient dignity during an exam orevenworkingforrecognitionoftherighttoconscientiousobjectionformoregravematters,hesaid.

“Wefeelit’suselesstotalkaboutthe Christian spirit if you don’tfix something that’swrong in thehealth system. People will neverbelievethatyouareactuallydoingthe will of God if you don’t takecareofthesedetails”ofconcretelyprotecting and respecting humanlifeanddignity,hesaid.

Association members alsowould come together for prayerand education aimed at develop-ing “a deeper understanding ofthehumanbeing”anditsunityofbody,mindandsoul,hesaid.Such

astrategy isevenmorenecessaryasdiocesesorreligiousordersselltheirfacilitiesorturncontroloverto secular administrators, FatherMurraysaid.

Intheseinstances“wecancon-centrateonthespiritoftheCatho-lics who are at the facilities,” hesaid, “empowering them spiritu-ally, humanly and doctrinally sothat theycanbethechurchinthehealthfield.”

Bishop Robert J. McManus ofWorcester,Mass.,who is amem-berof theU.S.bishops’Commit-teeonDoctrineandchairsitssub-committee on health care issues,attended the Vatican health careconference.

HesaidthatintheUnitedStates,the Catholic identity of Catholichospitals“isrootedinandoverseenby”thebishops’document,“Ethi-cal and Religious Directives forCatholicHealthCareServices.”

“Thatdocument reallypresentstheCatholicframeworkandiden-titywhichshouldcharacterize thehospitalthatcallsitselfCatholic,”hetoldCNSNov.15.

AsthenumberofreligiousmenandwomenwhoworkedatandranCatholic facilities in the UnitedStatesdecreased,theneedgrewtoarticulateclearlytheelementsthatconstituteaCatholicinsitution,hesaid.

“Whenthesistersandthebroth-erswerethere,theCatholicidenti-tywasverymuchenforcedbytheirpresence,”saidBishopMcManus.Astheybeganleaving,thebishopssawtheneedforguidelinestoen-sure“theidentitywouldnotwitherawaywiththeabsenceofthereli-gious.”

The directives reaffirm ethicalstandardstaughtbythechurchandoffer guidance on specific moralissues, especially concerning re-spect for life and human dignity,andministeringtopeople’sphysi-calandspiritualneeds.

Health identitycontinued from page 18

For those unable to attend, videos of the “Faith of Our Fathers” speaker series will be posted online at www.diolaf.org. To access the entire video archive of the series, click on the “Year of Faith” banner located at the top of the home page, and select “Faith of Our Fathers: A Year of Faith speaker series” from the options provided.

“Faith of Our Fathers” is accessible onlineLAFAYETTE

In conjunction with the La-fayette Diocese’s Office of Ra-dio/TV Ministry, the diocesanwebsiteisnowhostingaspecialarchive which will eventuallycontain the entire “FaithofOurFathers”series.

“Faith of Our Fathers” issponsored by the Central Re-gion of the diocese, in recogni-tionoftheYearofFaiththathasbeendeclaredbyPopeBenedictXVI. “Faith of Our Fathers”conists of six separate sessions,with each session feature threedifferent speakers on three con-secutive evenings. For specificdates and times, please refer tothe“Events”calendarlocatedontheYear of Faith page at www.diolaf.org.

The first session was recent-ly hosted by Sts. Peter & PaulChurch in Scott, and featuredMsgr. Robie Robichaux, JCL,VJ; Father Michael Russo, and

FatherBryceSibley.TheOfficeof Radio/TV Ministry filmedeach evening, and produced thevideosegmentswhichhavenowbeen uploaded to the web forviewingatanytime.Thosewhowere unable to attend, or thosewhosimplywanttowatchagainandsharewithothers,maydosobyvisitingwww.diolaf.orgtoac-cessthevideos.

Presently, the “Faith of OurFathers” video featuring Msgr.Robichaux is accessible on thehome page of the site, directlyunderBishopJarrell’sphoto. Alink which will take viewers tothe archive of the other videosin the series is located there aswell.

TheOfficeofRadio/TVMin-istrydoesintendtocontinuethefilming and production of the“FaithofOurFathers”segments,and the videos will continue tobeuploaded to thewebas soonastheyareavailable.


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byCarolGlatzCatholicNewsServiceVATICANCITY(CNS)

Inaworldhitbynaturaldisas-ters, wars and violence, peopleneedthestabilityandhopefoundonly in God’s word, Pope Bene-dictXVIsaid.

Insteadofbeingobsessedwithpredictions and forecasts of theendof theworld,peopleof faithneed to take responsibility fortheir lives and personal behaviorandlooktoGodforguidance,hesaid.

“In themidstof theupheavalsoftheworld,”Jesus“remainsthesolidandsteadyanchor,”hesaidNov.18,commentingontheday’sGospelreadingduringhismiddayAngelusaddress.

Speaking to pilgrims gatheredbelow his apartment window inSt.Peter’sSquare,thepopecom-mentedon the apocalyptic imag-ery Jesus used when he told hisdisciples “the sun will be dark-ened,andthemoonwillnotgiveitslight,andthestarswillbefall-ingfromthesky,andthepowersintheheavenswillbeshaken.”

Jesus transformed the imagesand words from the Old Testa-mentwhen he put himself at thecenteras“thesonofmancomingfromthecloudswithgreatpowerandglory,”thepopesaid.

“Jesusisnotdescribingtheendof the world, and when he usesapocalypticimagery,heisnotact-inglikeaclairvoyant,”hesaid.

“To the contrary, he wants hisdisciples,ofeveryera,toloseallcuriosity for dates and predic-tions,”hesaid.“Insteadhewants

Hit by upheaval, people need stability, hope of God’s word, pope says

togivethemthekeytoadeeper,essential reading and, above all,to show the right way to go, to-dayandtomorrow,tofindeternallife.”

Jesusremindshisfollowersthat“everythingpasses,but theWordofGoddoesnotchange,andbe-fore theWord, each one of us isresponsible for his or her behav-ior.Itisuponthis,thatweshallbejudged,”thepopesaid.

“Today there isnoshortageofnaturaldisasters,andunfortunate-lyalsowarsandviolence.Stillto-dayweneedasteadyfoundationfor our life and our hope, evenmoresobecauseoftherelativismin which we are immersed,” hesaid.

The word of God gave rise toallofcreationandcreationobeysthatword;thesun,themoonandthe starsexistbecause theywere“called”intobeing,thepopesaid.

With Jesus’ incarnation,God’swordsbecame“thetrue‘stars’thatguideman’sthinkingandjourneyonearth.”

At theendof theAngelus, thepopealsopraisedfoodbanksandother initiatives that teach “shar-ingasaresponsetothedifficultiesofsomanyfamilies.”

Pope Benedict XVI greets the crowd after praying the Angelus from the window of his apartment overlooking St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Nov. 18. CNS photo/Paul Haring

A woman raises rosaries for Pope Bene-dict XVI to bless as he leads the Angelus from the window of his apartment over-looking St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Nov. 18. The case of the rosaries fea-tures an image of Blessed John Paul II. CNS photo/Paul Haring

LAFAYETTEThe Lafayette Diocese’s Of-

fice of Radio/TV Ministry in-vites everyone to tune in forSunday Mass at 10:00 a.m. onKATCTV-3.Thediocesantele-visionprogram, Tell the People,is also scheduled to air on thechannel immediately followingtheMass.

On December 9, Father Mi-chael Delcambre will discuss“TheLightisONforYou”cam-paign. Father Michael Russowill focuson“LivingbyTruth”and Bishop Michael Jarrell willreviewChurchstatistics.

TheDecember16episodewillfeature an interview with Mrs.StephanieBernard,newProgramCoordinatoroftheOfficeofJus-tice&Peace.Mrs.Bernard,whoisalsotheDirectoroftheOfficeofBlackCatholicMinistry,willalso talk about the upcomingRev.Dr.MartinLutherKing,Jr.ceremony.FatherRussowillad-dressthetopicof“Joy”andBish-opJarrellwillreflectonthe10th

Tell the People for DecemberanniversaryofhisinstallationasthesixthbishopoftheDioceseofLafayette.

On December 23, there willbeaspecialsegmentdesignedtohelp viewers deal with holidaystress, while Father Russo andBishopJarrelleachdeliveraspe-cialChristmasmessages.

OnDecember30,KarolMey-nard will talk about upcomingpro-life activities and FatherRussowillofferinsightsintotheHolyFamily.BishopJarrellwillconclude the show with a year-endreviewforthediocese.

On January 6, Ashton Mou-ton will talk about the upcom-ing “Catholics Come Home”workshop to be held at St. PiusX Church in Lafayette. FatherHamptonDaviswillbefeaturedon thesegment“WhatItMeanstobeCatholic”;histopicwillbeannouncedatalaterdate.Tocon-cludetheshowandstartthenewyear,BishopJarrellwillfocushissegmentonalookaheadto2013intheLafayetteDiocese.



Let Advent enrich your family’s Christmas preparations

While the Advent wreaths seen in churches are traditionally made of evergreen branch-es, and use one pink and three purple candles, homemade variations can also be made. If you find it difficult to find pink and purple candles, for instance, simply tie pink and purple ribbons around plain white candles. Photo by Cathy Bourque

byStephanieR.MartinLAFAYETTE

This past Sunday marked thebeginning of Advent, the four-weekliturgicalseasonoftheRo-manCatholicChurchwhichaidsinthepreparationforthecelebra-tion of Christmas. Of course,Adventdoesn’t refer to the typeofpreparationthatprobablyfirstcomes tomindasChristmasap-proaches.It’snotaboutdecorat-ingorshoppingorcooking;someof those things can be includedin family Advent activities, buttherealheartofAdventistohelpuspreparespirituallyforthecel-ebrationofthebirthofthesavior,JesusChrist.

“Advent,thispowerfulliturgi-calseasonthatwearebeginning,invites us to pause in silence tounderstand a presence.,” offeredPope Benedict XVI during hishomilyatFirstVespersofAdventin2009.“Itisaninvitationtoun-derstandthattheindividualeventsof the day are hints that God isgiving us, signs of the attentionhehasforeachoneofus.”

Perhaps one of the most rec-ognizedsymbolsoftheseasonistheAdventwreath.Typically,thewreathissetuponatablenearthealtarinmostchurches.Versionswilldiffer,butusuallythewreathiscomposedofevergreenboughsinacircularshapethatrepresentsGod’sunendinglove.Fourcan-dlesareset into thewreath--one

for each of the four Sundays inAdvent.Threeofthecandlesarepurple,andoneispink.

OnthefirstSundayofAdvent,the parish pastor will bless theAdvent wreath, usually beforethestartoftheMass,andthefirstpurplecandlewillbelit.There-mainingcandlewillsubsequentlybe lit over the next three weeksof Advent--another purple forthesecondweek,thepinkforthe

Families can obtain “Blessing of an Ad-vent Wreath” by visiting online at www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/liturgical-resources/advent. The USCCB site also contains many other great Advent and Christmas resources designed to help families focus on the spiritual aspects of the Advent and Christmas seasons.

third,andthefinalpurpleforthefourth. It really isa remarkableritual, beautiful and intriguingto witness, but the blessing andlighting of the Advent wreathdoesnothavetobeconfinedtoachurch.Familiescanalsosetupan Advent wreath in their veryownhomes.

The wreath does not have tobe anything fancy--evena smalltablewithjustthefournecessarycandleswilldo.Also,ifyoufindit too difficult to find pink andpurple candles in the store, useplain white candles and simplytie apprioprately colored ribbonoryarntodistinguishthem.Theimportant thing is to create thewreathasafamily--leteveryonecontribute a little something to

theprocess.Once the Advent wreath is

set up at home, families canalsoblessthemjustastheirpas-tor blesses the one used in theirchurch parish. “Blessing of anAdventWreath”maybeobtainedthroughthewebsiteoftheUnitedStates Conference of CatholicBishops (USCCB) at www.us-ccb.org/prayer-and-worship/li-turgical-resources/advent.

After the wreath has beenblessed,familiesshouldmakeitapoint togather around it at leastonceaweek--everydayifpossi-ble--tolightthecandlesandhavefamilytimetogether.Somefami-liesmightenjoysittingdownandreading bible stories during thistime, or they could create theirveryownAdventcalendartohelpremind them of special prayerintentions they wish to offer upeachdayduringthisfamilyprayertime.TomakeanAdventfamilyprayer calendar, simply draw upa calendar grid to represent allthedaysofAdvent,and leteachfamily member take turns con-tributinghisorherdesireddailyintentionuntilallofthedaysarefilled. Some possible intentions

couldbe:• Prayersforgrandparents&otherfamilymembers• Prayersforthoselessfor-tunate• Prayersofthanksgivingforpersonalblessings• Prayersforteachers&classmatesAnother Advent family activ-

ity might be the preparation ofthenativitycrib. TakeanemptycribandplaceitneartheAdventwreath, and each evening aftertherespectivecandleshavebeenlit,goaroundandaskeachfamilymember to share whatever kindacts he or she has performed inJesus’namethroughout thatday.Foreachactperformed,thatfam-ilymembercanthenplaceapieceofstraw(orapieceofyarn)intothecrib.Thus,bythetimeChrist-masarrives,thecribwillbefilledwith evidence of the family’sgooddeedsuponwhichtheinfantJesuscanrest.

Families may also use theirAdvent prayer time to recognizeother special feast days that fallinto the timeframe. These mayincludetheFeastofSt.NicholasonDecember6, theFeastof theImmaculate Conception on De-cember 8; and the Feast of OurLadyofGuadalupeonDecember12.

Onafinalnote,families--espe-cially those with older children--should take some time to talkabout thesacramentof reconcili-ation,andconsidermakingafam-ilyeffort foreachmember to re-ceivethesacramentinpreparationforChristmas.Toaccessalistoffrequentlyaskedquestionstohelpleadafamilydiscussion,andalsotoprint“AnExaminationofCon-science” to help each individualprepare to receive thesacrament,please visit the diocesan websiteatwww.diolaf.organdclickontheimageshownbelow.

Church parishes throughout the diocese will be participating in “The Light in ON for You” by offering the opportunity for confession from 6:30-8:00 p.m. each Wednesday during Advent. All are wel-come to attend.


The lighting of the Advent Wreath. Photo by P.C. Piazza

Joyous Signs That Christmas is Near

Prayerand

Reflection

Right: Last year, seniors from Hanson Memorial School’s Touch Class visited an area nursing home to bring Christmas wreaths to the residents, taking the time to visit with them and help them decorate their doors for the Christmas season. Photo submitted by Hanson Memorial School

Left: In another act of goodwill, students from the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau visited a Cerebral Palsy clinic to perform a fun holiday skit for the clinic’s Christmas party. Photo submitted by the Schools of the Sacred Heart

Acts of GoodwillStudents from Sts. Leo-Seton School in Lafayette performed at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center last year during Advent to help share the story of Jesus’ birth. Photo submitted by Sts. Leo-Seton School

Photo submitted by St. Francis School


Joyous Signs That Christmas is Near

Photo by P.C. Piazza

For a child is born to us. . . .(Isaih 9:5)

Photo by Cathy Bourque

The 12th annual Luminary Message of Love. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart High School, Ville Platte




CongratulationsCongratulationstothefollowingchurchparishes/missionsforhavingreached

theirfundraisinggoalsforthe2012-2013Bishop’sServicesAppealCampaign

Parish Pastor % of Goal Met St.Thomas Fr.JamesNguyen 140.2%


Home missions

diocesanand14activereligiousprieststoserve53,000Catholicsspreadover98,000squaremiles.Thediocesewasgranted$75,000tohelpcoverthecostsofeduca-tionfor11seminarians.

TheElPasoDioceseministersto678,000Catholics,whorepre-sentover79percentofthetotalpopulationof thearea.Thedio-cesealsohasalargeandmostlyuncatechized Hispanic popula-tion that is constantly changingbecause of its proximity to theMexican border. The ratio ofpriests to Catholics is 1:6,800.

A grant totaling $105,000 willfund youth and evangelizationprograms in nine parishes and15missionsinruralwestTexas,reaching out to 26 towns andcommunities.

ThenationaldatefortheCath-olic Home Missions Appeal isthefourthSundayinApril;how-ever, somedioceses takeup theAppealatothertimes.

For more information on thework of the Subcommittee onCatholic Home Missions, visithttp://www.usccb.organdsearch“homemissions.”

Nativity story’s significance continues to unfold today, pope writesbyCarolGlatzandFrancisX.RoccaCatholicNewsServiceVATICANCITY(CNS)

The Nativity story, like thewholestoryofChrist,isnotmere-ly an event in the past, but hasunfoldingsignificanceforpeopletoday,withimplicationsforsuch

Pope Benedict XVI holds a copy of his book “Jesus of Nazareth: The Infancy Narra-tives” as he talks with RCS Publisher Paolo Mieli and Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, at the Vatican Nov. 20. Pope Benedict published the last part of his trilogy on the life of Jesus, delivering an early childhood narrative which strongly reaffirms the doctrine of the virgin birth as an “unequivocal” truth of faith. The book is being published simultaneously around the world in 21 lan-guages. CNS photo/L ‘Osservatore Romano via Reuters

issues as the limits of politicalpowerandthepurposeofhumanfreedom,PopeBenedictwritesinhisthirdandfinalvolumeonthelifeandteachingsofJesus.

“JesusofNazareth:TheInfan-cyNarratives”isonly132pageslong,yetitincludeswide-rangingreflectionsonsuchmattersasthe

significance of the Virgin Birthand the distinctive views of na-tureinancientpaganandJudeo-Christiancultures.

The book was formally pre-sentedattheVaticanNov.20,andwasscheduledforpublicationinEnglishandeightotherlanguagesin50countriesNov.21.

In the book, Pope Benedictexamines Jesus’ birth and child-hoodasrecountedintheGospelsof Sts. Matthew and Luke. Hisinterpretationofthebiblicaltextsrefers frequently to the work ofotherscholarsanddrawsonava-

riety of academic fields, includ-ing linguistics, political science,arthistoryandthehistoryofsci-ence.

The book’s publication com-pletesthethree-volume“JesusofNazareth” series, which also in-cludes“FromtheBaptismintheJordan to the Transfiguration”(2007) and “Holy Week: Fromthe Entrance into Jerusalem totheResurrection”(2011).

Jesuit Father Federico Lom-bardi, Vatican spokesman, saidat the Nov. 20 book launch thatthe three books are the “fruit ofa long inner journey”by JosephRatzinger,whosepersonalviews



Community celebrates special Feast day

The community of St. Martin de Porres in St. Martinville recently celebrated the Feast Day of their parish patron. After the Mass, several parishioners gathered with pastor Father Herb Bennerfield to show their love for the church. Photo submitted by St. Martin de Porres Church

Registration now open for Cycle 1 of VLCFFLAFAYETTE

RegistrationiscurrentlyopenforCycle1oftheVirtualLearn-ing Community for Faith For-mation (VLCFF). Registrationfor the cycle will remain openuntilJanuary9,andclasseswillbeconductedfromJanuary13-February16.

The VLCFF is coordinatedand sponsored by the Institutefor Pastoral Initiatives (IPI)at the University of Dayton- a Catholic Marianist Institu-tion. Its goal is to support theChurch’s professional ministryofreligiouseducationandfaithformation in cyberspacebyof-feringadultreligiouseducationandfaithformationanytimeandanywhereviatheinternet.TheVLCFF has proved to have aworldwide reach, as illustratedby a September 2012 releasewhich announced that 12 reli-gious educations teachers fromthe Diocese of Guyana, SouthAmerica were enrolled to par-ticipate.Toreadthefullarticle,please visit https://vlc.udayton.edu/news.

TheDioceseofLafayetteisinpartnershipwith theUniversity

ofDaytonInstituteforPastoralInitiatvie. As such, residentsof the diocese are able to par-ticipate in these online coursesat the reduced cost of $40 percourse(thecostforresidentsofnon-partnering dioceses is $90per course). Successful com-pletionofVLCFFcoursesmaybeapplied towardaCertificateinCatechesisorcontinuingedu-cationhoursas requiredby theDioceseofLafayette’sOfficeofCatholicSchools.

A total of seven cycles havebeenscheduledforthe2013cal-endaryear,withofferedcoursesvarying from cycle to cycle.Some courses being offeredduringCycle1include:Catho-lic Beliefs; Communication &Community;DesigningandIm-plementingAdultLearningandFaith Formation; Sacraments;andTheSecondVaticanCoun-cil:AnOverview.

Afulllistofallcoursesbeingoffered during Cycle 1, alongwith specific descpritions ofeach,maybeaccessedthroughhttp://vlc.udayton.edu/calendar.

Registration for Cycle 2 oftheVLCFFwillopenon Janu-

ary15,with classes tobe con-ducted from March 3-23. Toreview which courses will beoffered during this cycle, aswell as other cycles througouttheyear,pleaserefertothelinkabove.

ForfurtherinformationonthepartnershipbetweentheUniver-sityofDaytonInstituteforPas-toral Initiativeand theDioceseofLafayette,pleasecontacttheOfficeofChristianFormationat(337)261-5550.

* All dates and offerings subject to change.

Cycle 1: January 13 - February 16

Cycle 2: March 3 - March 23 (Seminars Only)

Cycle 3: April 7 - May 11

Cycle 4: May 26 - June 29

Cycle 5: July 14 - August 17

Cycle 6: September 1 - October 5

Cycle 7: October 20 - November 23

Toviewofferedcoursesandtheirdescription,ortoregistertopar-ticipate,pleasevisithttp://vlcff.udayton.edu

2013 VLCFF Schedule of Cycles



Nativity story

they represent. While much ofwhat the pope says is acceptedCatholic dogma, the texts them-selvesarenotpartofthechurch’sMagisteriumandtheirargumentsare free to be disputed, FatherLombardisaid.

Inhisnewbook, thepopear-gues that Matthew and Luke, intheirGospelaccounts,setout to“write history, real history thathadactuallyhappened,admitted-ly interpreted and understood inthecontextofthewordofGod.”

Thepopecallsthevirginbirthand the resurrection “corner-stones” of Christian faith, sincethey show God acting directlyand decisively in the materialworld.

“These two moments are ascandal to the modern spirit,”which expects and allows Godtoactonlyinideas,thoughtsandthespiritualworld,notthemate-rial,hewrites.Yetitisnotillogi-cal or irrational to suppose thatGod possesses creative powersandpowerovermatter,otherwise“thenheissimplynotGod.”

Thepopeenriches theGospelaccounts with personal reflec-tions as well as questions andchallengesforhisreaders.

For example, considering theangel’s appearance to the shep-herds,whothen“wentwithhaste”tomeetthechildSavior,thepopeasked “How many Christiansmake haste today, where thethingsofGodareconcerned?”

Pope Benedict examines thepolitical context of the time ofJesus’birth,whichfeaturedboththe so-called “Pax Romana” --thewidespreadpeacebroughtbythe Roman ruler CaesarAugus-tus--andKingHerod’sthirstforpower,whichledtotheslaughteroftheinnocents.

“Pax Christi is not necessar-ily opposed to PaxAugusti,” hewrites. “Yet the peace of Christsurpasses thepeaceofAugustusasheavensurpassesearth.”

The political realm has “itsown sphere of competence andresponsibility;”itoverstepsthosebounds when it “claims divinestatus anddivine attributes” andmakes promises it cannot deliv-er.

The other extreme comes

with forms of religious perse-cution when rulers “tolerate nootherkingdombuttheirown,”hewrites.

Any sign God announces “isgivennot fora specificpoliticalsituation,butconcernsthewholehistoryofhumanity,”hewrites.

ThepopewritesthattheThreeWise Men symbolize the purifi-cationofscience,philosophyandrationality.

“They represent the inner dy-namic of religion toward self-transcendence, which involvesthesearchfortruth,thesearchforthetrueGod,”thepopewrites.

The pope also argues that thestarofBethlehemwasatruece-lestialevent.

It“seemstobeanestablishedfact,”hewrites,thattheconjunc-tion of Jupiter and Saturn hap-penedin7-6B.C.,which“aswehave seen is now thought likelyto have been when Jesus wasborn.”

AkeytopicinthebookistheroleofhumanfreedominGod’sdivineplanforhumanity.

“The only way (God) can re-deem man, who was createdfree, isbymeansofa free ‘yes’

tohiswill,”thepopewrites.Itisprecisely “the moment of free,humbleyetmagnanimousobedi-ence,”suchasMaryandJosephshowed when listening to God,“in which the loftiest choice ofhumanfreedomismade.”

Jesus, too, inhishumanfree-dom, understood he was boundtoobediencetohisheavenlyfa-ther,evenatthecostofhisearth-lylife.

The missing 12-year-old, re-discovered by an anxious Maryand Joseph in the Temple, wasnot there“asa rebel againsthisparents,butpreciselyasanobe-dient (son), actingout the sameobediencethatleadstothecrossand the resurrection,” the popewrites.

Jesus’ birth, life, death andresurrectionisastoryfilledwithcontradiction,paradoxandmys-tery, the pope writes, and “re-mains a sign of contradictiontoday.”

“What proves Jesus to bethe truesignofGod ishe takesuponhimselfthecontradictionofGod,”PopeBenedictwrites,“hedrawsittohimselfallthewaytothecontradictionofthecross.”


Sts. Peter & Paul School 4-H officers

The Sts. Peter & Paul Catholic School 4-H Club is proud to announce their officers for the 2012-13 school year. They are treasurer Lanie Fontenot, vice president Cul-len Gravouia, president Megan Laurie, secretary Alexandra Broussard, reporter Avin Domingue, and program leaders Natalie Broussard and Kylee Bobbitt. Photo submit-ted by Sts. Peter & Paul School

GRANDCOTEAUThe Berchmans Academy

Saints Robotics Team compet-ed in the Louisiana RegionalCompetition on Saturday Nov.10th at McNeese State Uni-versity.The teamplaced1st inthe robotcompetitionwith185points.Thisyear’sthemeisSe-nior Solutions. The team hasbeenworkinghardforthelast2monthsresearching,developingandstrategizingawayfortheir

Berchmans robotics team regional competition

Berchmans students with coaches and faculty members, left to right, Mary Claire Trant, Lainie Manuel, Claude LaHaye, Andrew Hebert, Hayden Reiners, Shallon Breaux, John Paddock, William Hebert, Micah Manzanares, Emily Dawkins. Photo submitted by Berchmans Academy

robot to conduct missions setforthinthechallenge.Theteamwill go on to represent Berch-mans Academy of the SacredHeart at the State Competitionin New Orleans on December8th.Congratulationstothepar-ticipatingteammembersLainieManuel, Claude LaHaye, An-drew Hebert, Hayden Reiners,ShallonBreaux,JohnPaddock,William Hebert, Micah Man-zanares.

Diocese of Lafayette names new Program Coordinator for Office of Justice & PeaceLAFAYETTE

The Diocese of Lafayette ispleased to announce that Mrs.Stephanie Bernard has acceptedthepositionofProgramCoordi-natorfortheOfficeofJustice&Peace. Mrs. Bernard will alsocontinue in her role as the dio-cese’s Director of the Office ofBlackCatholicMinistries.

Mrs.Bernardfirstbeganwork-ingforthediocesewhenshewashired as the audio/visual librar-ian and secretary for the OfficeofJustice&Peacein1984.Shefilledthatpositionfortwoyearsbefore she departed the centraloffices to accept a position asDirector of Religious EducationatSt.AnthonyChurchinLafay-ette.

In 1987, she returned to thecentralofficestaffintheroleofsecretary for the Office of Re-ligious Education (now knownas Christian Formation), andeventually resumed her formerresponsibilities as audio/visuallibrarianaswell.

In1991,Mrs.BernardbecamethesecretaryforParishServicesandJustice&Peace.Sheservedas theconsultant forelementaryandsacramentalcatechesisfromJuly 1997-June 2002, when shewaspromotedtoserveastheDi-rector of Black Catholic Minis-triesforthediocese.

“My primary responsibilitywill be to carryout themissionoftheOfficeofJustice&Peace,

which is to strive to fulfill theprinciplesofsocialjusticebyin-tergratingthefullbodyofCatho-licsocialteaching,sothatitmaybelivedoutdailyasanessentialelementofourfaith,”statedMrs.Bernard.

MinistriesoftheOfficeofJus-tice and Peace include: Catho-lic Campaign Against Poverty;Catholic Relief Services: Op-erationRiceBowl |GlobalFel-lows;CommissiononthePasto-ral Care of the Elderly; Serviceto the Survivors of Violence;Prison Ministry | Prevention ofViolence;andLongTermDisas-terRecovery.TheofficerecentlyhostedtheannualMassforSur-vivorsofViolenceonDecember2,andalsohoststheannualMassfortheElderly.

Other recent activities of theOfficeofJustice&Peaceincludethe Child Smile project, whichoversees the collection and dis-tribution of Christmas presentsfor children whose parents areincarcerated. The office alsohosts a special Christmas partyfor thesechildren,duringwhichSanta makes an apperance tohandoutgifts.

Forfurtherinformationonthemany ministries and programssupported by the Office of Jus-tice&Peace,pleasevisitwww.diolaf.organdselect“JusticeandPeace”fromthegreenOFFICEStab located along the top of thehomepage.


After reading the story “Officer Mike and Aero”, Carencro Catholic School’s third grade classes were visited by K-9 Of-ficers Barry Baldwin and Sandy of the Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office. Offi-cer Baldwin spoke with students about what it is that he and Sandy do as police partners. They also demonstrated some of the techniques they use on a regular basis. Photo submitted by Carencro Catholic School

K-9 officers visit Carencro Catholic School

z

z

GRANDCOTEAUDuring the 2011-2012 school

year,studentsatSt.IgnatiusSchoolin Grand Coteau participated in aschool-wideserviceprojecttoben-efit“DreamsComeTrue.”Thisisanon-profitorganizationthatpro-vides “dreams” to Louisiana chil-drenfromtheagesof3-18withaterminalillness.

Overthecourseoffivemonths,students,faculty,andfamiliesofSt.IgnatiusSchoolraisedover$4,700foroneofthespecialchildren.Re-

St. Ignatius School helps “Dreams Come True”cently,representativesoftheschoolpresented this special “dreamchild”her DisneyPacket. Itwasheartwarming to see her family’sgratitudeandbeinthepresenceoftheirloveforeachother.

“It is within our faith to helpthose in need,” offered MelissaRichard,AdvancementDirectorforthe school. “As the holidays ap-proach,itismoreimportanttogivethantoreceive.I’mproudtoknowthat St. Ignatius truly understandstheunselfishactofgiving.”

Loyola Institute for Ministry, CNS launch new website for Year of FaithbyCatholicNewsServiceWASHINGTON(CNS)

The Loyola Institute for Minis-try of Loyola University New Or-leans and Catholic News ServicehavelaunchedanewwebsitewhereCatholicmediaandotherscanpostnewsandinformationontheYearofFaith.

Thenewsitewillaggregatesto-ries,multimediatreatmentsandso-cial media sites that deal with theyearlongcelebrationoftheCatholicfaith.

“We at Loyola University NewOrleans are excited about this col-laborationforanumberofreasons.ItrepresentsawayforCatholichighereducationandtheCatholicmediatowork together,” said Institute forMinistrydirectorTomRyan.“ItwillfacilitatepublicityabouttheYearofFaithbygatheringinoneplacetherangeofinformationaboutit,fromeventannouncements tocontent inprintandonlinemedia.”

Ryanaddedthatthesiteisa“re-sourceforthosewhowanttogrowspirituallyduringthistime.”

“CNSisdelightedtopartnerwith

theLoyolaInstituteforMinistryinthis excellent project,” said TonySpence,directorandeditorinchiefofCNS.“Itwillbeagreatreposito-ryforresourcesontheYearofFaithandnewevangelization,locally,re-gionally,nationally,andevenacrosscountries.Usersalsocanpostinfor-mationinEnglishandSpanish.”

The site can be found online athttp://lim.loyno.edu/yearoffaith.

AlsosupportingtheprojectistheCatholic Press Association of theU.S.andCanada,whichisworkingwith the Loyola Institute on otherCatholicmediaprojects.

“Wehavebeenworkingonclosercollaborationbetween theCatholicpress and Catholic higher educa-tion.TheYearofFaithproject isagreatway for both apostolates canworktogetherforthebenefitofthegreater church,” said Tim Walter,CPAexecutivedirector.

Earlier this year, Pope BenedictXVIcalledforaworldwidecelebra-tion of aYear of Faith to kick offthenewevangelization,whichisaneffort forCatholics todeepentheirpersonal faith, as well as a call to

Catholicswhohaveseparatedthem-selves from the faith to return andsharethefaithwiththosewhohavehadnoexperiencewithChrist.

ThepopeopenedtheYearofFaithinaMassatSt.Peter’sBasilicaOct.11,markingthe50thanniversaryofthe opening of the SecondVaticanCouncilin1962.TheyearwillcloseNov.24,2013.

Thesitewasconceivedfollow-ing a recent webinar on theYearofFaithhostedbytheLoyolaIn-stituteandCPA.

The new website is availableto all Catholic media, dioceses,education institutions and otherCatholicapostolatestopostevery-thingfromnewsandfaith-sharingstoriestolocalandnationaleventsthroughout theyear.BothLoyolaandCNSarebeginningtopopulatethesitewithitsfirstmaterials.

The Loyola Institute for Min-istry is a division of the CollegeofSocialSciencesofLoyolaUni-versity New Orleans. It providesgraduate and certification pro-grams in English and Spanish,pastoral studies, theology, spiri-tualityandreligiouseducation.ItshighlyregardedLIMEXprogram,anextensionprogramforeducat-ingpastoralassociatesandothers,has been used by more than 50dioceses in the U.S. and aroundtheworld.

Local Year of Faith Events for the month of December

Dec 11, 2012 6:00PM-7:00PMScriptureStudy--Session3(AYearofFaithEvent)OurLadyQueenofAn-gelsChurch,Opelousas

Dec 13, 2012 6:00 PM Rediscover Your Knowl-edge of Your Catholic Faith--Part 9St. Mary Magdalen Church,Abbev-ille(MinistriesBuilding)

Dec 13, 2012 7:00PM-8:30PMYearofFaithCat-echism Series Our Lady of SorrowsRetreatCenter,St.Martinville

Dec 18, 2012 6:00PM-7:00PMScriptureStudy--Session 4 (A Year of Faith Event)Our Lady Queen ofAngels Church,Opelousas

Dec 20, 2012 6:00PMRediscoverYourKnowledgeof Your Catholic Faith--Part 10 St.MaryMagdalenChurch,Abbeville

Dec 20, 2012 7:00PM-8:30PMYearofFaithCat-echism Series Our Lady of SorrowsRetreatCenter,St.Martinville

For more information on the Year of Faith celebration in the Lafayette Diocese, please visit www.diolaf.org and click on the Year of Faith banner located at the top of the page.


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A Vacation with the LordOurLadyoftheOaksRetreatHouse,GrandCoteau,La.(337)662-5410

www.ourladyoftheoaks.com

Do You Hear Me Now?bySusanLaHaye,L.P.C.andSpiritualDirector

“Hewhomadeuswithoutuscannotsaveus---withoutus.”St.Au-gustine

DeaconChuckOrtegoofSt.Ann’sParishinMamoupresentedashort,butriveting,sermonafewweeksago.HesharedtheconversionstoryofprofootballlinebackerRayLewisoftheBaltimoreRavens.Chucktoldus of Ray’s rise to fame, of his participation in two super bowls, and,also,ofhisloveofcelebrityandalifeofpartiesandfunthatturnedintodebauchery.ThispathofdarknessledRayLewisintoajailcell,indictedonmurderandaggravatedassaultcharges.

RayLewis,thisstrongfootballstar,suddenlyfoundhimselfathislowestpoint,andthenheheardaVoice.ThisVoiceinhisheartwhispered,“Canyouhearmenow?”AndRaydid.Withthechargeseventuallydropped,heturnedhislifearoundandreachedouttoothers.Heisinvolvedinnumer-ouscharitableactivitiesandisacommittedChristianandthefatherofsixchildren.In2006,SportsIllustratedfeaturedhimonthecoverandwroteastoryaboutRayLewis’sChristianfaithandhisgoodworks.

WeasCatholicshaverecentlybeencalledto,“AYearofFaith.”Ihaveaquestionforallofus:DoweheartheVoice?TheVoiceofLove?HaveyouandIsloweddownenoughtohearourLordJesuswhispertousofhiscompassionandcare?Mostofusarefamiliarwiththebiblicalquotation,“Istandat thedoorandknock.”Jesusstandsat thedoor toourhearts;musttheybebrokenlikeRayLewis’sinorderforustoopenupandletChristin?

IbelievethattheGreatCreator,theonewhocraftedusoutofhislove,iswaitingpatientlyforoursurrendertothatverysamelove.Asthequotesays,“Hecannotsaveuswithoutus.”WhenwedoturnoutlivesovertoHimwefindthespecialpaththatawaits:awaytousethegiftsthathavebeensofreelygiventous,awaytoserveothersandtoliveinpeaceandjoy.

Takesometimeduringthisoftenhurriedandstressful,yetdeeplygodlyseason,todiscardwhatholdsyoubackfromtheLord.ConsidermakingaretreatwithusatOurLadyoftheOaksRetreatHouse.Spendsometimeinsilence.Restinthelovingarms.ListentotheVoice…andopenthedoortoyourheart.

IhopetosaywithyouasIwalkintheNewYear,“Yes,Lord.Ihearyounow.”

ABBEVILLEThe 18th Annual Golf Tour-

nament, Dinner andAuction re-centlyheldinAbbevilleachievedits goal of raising $75,000 forKobonalHaitiMission.Fr.GlennMeaux,theMissionfounderanddirector, said the funds will beusedforhisfeedingoutreachthatprovidesmonthlyfoodstaplesforelderlyHaitiansandtheirfamiliesinaremotecommunity.

Thefeedingprogramisacru-cial part of a broader, holisticministrythatalsoincludeshous-ing, education, income-genera-tion and spiritual support. Byintegrating the Gospel into hischaritable ministry, Fr. Meauxis transforming Kobonal villageinto a close-knit community offaith that prays together, wor-ships together and is energizedwithhopeforthefuture.

Thisyear,thefundraisingeventwas hosted with Cross CatholicOutreach, aSouthFlorida-basedCatholic relief and developmentorganizationthathasbeenasup-portive partner with Kobonal

Cross Catholic Outreach’s golf tournament, dinner and auction feeds hundreds in Haiti

HaitiMissionsince2003.The event was underwritten

through the generous supportof:MagdalenPlace,Mr.DonaldMessenger,Mr.MichaelHarson,D.A.,K&RManufacturing,LLC,Ray Chevrolet, God’s HolyAn-gels,St.PiusOutreachCatholicsCome Home, Doerle Food Ser-vices, LLC, Carmelite Monas-teryofLafayette,SeniorHelpers,Horace Mann Insurance, Mes-tayer Machine, Eagle Pest Con-trol, Thrifty Way Pharmacy ofAbbeville, Inc., MicahTek, Inc.,Bank ofAbbeville, and HospiceCompassusofLafayette.

Since 2003, Fr. Glenn Meaux (founder of the Kobonal Haiti Mission) has partnered with Cross Catholic Outreach to help the poor and needy of Haiti. Photo submit-ted by Cross Catholic Outreach


byAnaRodriguez-SotoCatholicNewsServiceMIAMI(CNS)

A planeload of nonperishablefood items--about8,500pounds--left Miami Nov. 19 for the hard-hitArchdioceseofSantiagodeCubatohelp theCatholicChurch there feedpeople affected by the ravages ofHurricaneSandy.

“ThisisaninitialresponsetothedevastationwroughtbythehurricaneinCuba,”saidArchbishopThomasG.WenskiduringapressconferenceatMiamiInternationalAirportanhourbeforetheflighttookoff.“ThiswillallowthechurchinCubatoministertothepeoplethatweremostseverelyaffectedbythestorm.”

The food -- cansof tuna,Viennasausages,Parmalatmilk, rice,beansand other nonperishable staples --was collected by various groups insouthFlorida.

Thegroups included: theFriendsofCaritasCuba,theLaSallistas,whoarealumniofschoolsrunbytheDeLaSalle Brothers in Cuba; the Mu-nicipiosdeSantiagoenelExilio,anexilegroupofformerresidentsofthevarioustownsintheprovinceofSan-tiagodeCuba;andtheDaughtersofCharityofSt.VincentdePaul,whohaveconventsthroughouttheisland.

The Archdiocese of Miami alsotookupacollectionoverthepasttwoweekends at all its parishes to raise

Florida relief flown to Cuba church leaders to help those hurt by Sandy funds to aid those hit by HurricaneSandy,inCubabutalsoinHaitiandthenortheasternU.S.

“We purchased the remainingfoodproductssowecouldhavetheplanetakeoffatcapacity,”Archbish-opWenskisaid.

MiamiAir Cargo loaned the air-plane and the pilots donated theirtime,henoted.SantiagoArchbishopDionisio Garcia Ibanez and rep-resentatives of Caritas Cuba wereamongthoseexpectedtoreceivetheshipmentinSantiago.

Within the Archdiocese of San-tiago, 100,000 dwellings were de-stroyedalongwith13churchbuild-

ings.“It’s a disaster that touches the

heart,” Archbishop Wenski said,anda“tremendouschallengeforthechurchoverthere.”

Henoted,however,thattheCath-olic Church in Cuba “has alwayssoughttohelpitspeoplefromwithinitsownpoverty.”

“This is an opportunity for usto express our solidarity with thechurchinCuba,”hesaid.

He added that the archdiocesehopes to send more supplies at alaterdate,possiblybysea,whichal-lowsagreaterquantityofitemstobeshippedatalowercost.

People stand outside their houses on a street littered with debris after Hurricane Sandy hit Santiago de Cuba Oct. 26. The first shipment of relief supplies -- 8,500 pounds of non-perishable food -- collected in the Archdiocese of Miami for the Archdiocese of Santiago took off Nov. 19 to help those affected by Hurricane Sandy’s passage through the island Oct. 25. CNS photo/Desmond Boylan, Reuters

byFr.BryceSibleyThe Year of Faith called for by

PopeBenedictXVIencouragesCath-olicsthroughouttheworldtocommitthemselves to theworkofTheNewEvangelization. The New Evange-lization is focused primarily on “re-proposing”theFaithto“tothosere-gionswheretherootsofChristianityaredeepbutwhohaveexperiencedaseriouscrisisoffaithduetosecular-

ization.”IntheUnitedStatesthereisnomorefertilegroundforTheNewEvangelization than on college anduniversitycampuses.

It is believe that somewhere be-tween 50 and 75 percent of Catho-lic students will no longer practicetheirfaithoncetheyleavecollege.Itshouldbenosurprisetomostpeoplethat the environment on most col-legecampusesisnotconducivetotheflourishing of faith. Many studentsface challenges from professors andpeers, if not outright hostility, be-causeoftheirbeliefinChrist.Manyalsofallpreytohabitsofsinandtheabuseoftheirfreedomasaresultofever-presenttemptations.

ThisiswhyCatholiccollegecam-pus ministry is so important, espe-ciallyatsecularuniversities.Notonlycanstudentsfindanoasisoffaithinthe midst of the secular mentality,but they are able to be formed and

Our Lady of Wisdom promotes new evangelization on UL campus

Our Lady of Wisdom Church in Lafayette serves the students and faculty of the Uni-versity of Louisiana at Lafayette, ministering to hundreds of individuals each week to provide them with access to the sacraments, opportunities for prayer, bible studies, mission trips, and much more. Photo submitted by Our Lady of Wisdom Church

The UL campus is blessed to have the presence of FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students), a national organization that provides formation to recent college graduates before sending them to college campuses throughout the country to evangelize. Photo sub-mitted by Our Lady of Wisdom Church

equipped for The New Evangeliza-tion.HereattheUniversityofLouisi-anawehavethemostactiveandthriv-ingCatholiccollegecampusministryinthestate,andoneofthemostactiveintheSouth.Weministertohundredsof students each week by providingthem with access to the sacraments,opportunitiesforprayer,biblestudies,

missiontrips,communitygatherings,pilgrimages, college-level theologycourses,andmuchmore.Wearealsoblessed to be on a secular campuswhere,unlikeotherplacesinourna-tion,manyofthefacultyandstaffaredevoutCatholicswhoaresupportiveofourministry.

WeareparticularlyblessedtohavethepresenceofFOCUSmissionarieshereatUL.FOCUSisanacronymfor“Fellowship of Catholic UniversityStudents” (www.focus.org) and is anational organization that providesformation to recent college gradu-atesandthensends themout tocol-lege campuses around the countrytoevangelizeandtodisciplecollegestudents.FOCUShasbeenatremen-doussuccesshereatUL.Injustoverayearwehaveover250students inBiblestudies,30 indiscipleshipandwearebringingcloseto150studentsto Orlando, Florida in January forthenationalFOCUSCollegeStudentConference(seek2013.com)

As pastor and chaplain of OurLadyofWisdomChurchandCatho-lic Student center on UL’s campus,during this Year of Faith and be-yond,Iaskyoutokeepourministryinyourprayers.Ifyouareinterestedinkeepingupwithwhatwearedo-ing, feel free to visit our website atwww.ragincajuncatholics.org or likeusonFacebook.Whathappenshereimpactsthelivesofthousandsofstu-dents,butalsoitimpactsourdioceseinatremendousway.Thesestudentswillreturntotheirparishestobein-volved in the life of the faith com-munity there. If they become firmlygrounded in their faith during theiryearsincollege,theirpresenceintheirownparisheswillbearfruitforyearsto come. We depend on the prayersandsupportofthegoodpeopleofthediocesetofulfillourmission.



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Sharing the gifts of faith: Phyllis and Tommy Boumans

Phyllis and Tommy are parishioners of Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Brous-sard, where Tommy has been a life-long member. Photo submitted by Sacred Heart Church

byStephanieR.MartinBROUSSARD

InthetownofBroussard,thereisahousethathasstoodformorethan 100 years, a family homepasseddownovertimetoDanielBoumans, his wife Phyllis, andtheirsonTommy.Danielpassedawayseveralyearsago,butPhyl-lis andTommy still reside thereadmidst a number of very spe-cialaccomodationsDanieladdedto the home during his lifetime.There arewheelchair ramps andevenapoolthatDanieldugwithhisownhands,allforthebenefitofhissonTommy.

“When Tommy was born, hewas not expected to survive,”Phyllisrecalls.Therewerecom-plicationsfromtheumbilicalcordhavingbeenwrappedaroundhisneck, but throughout the ordealPhyllis believed resolutely thathersonwouldlive,andthatGodhadaplanforhimtofulfill.

“Faith means to me that Godwilltakecareofyou,ifyoukeephis commandments and do Hiswill,”Phyllisexplains.“Hepro-videsforwhatHegives,andHegaveusTommy.”

And so, evenwhen they real-

izedtheywouldberaisingachildwithveryspecialneeds--Tommyhas cerebral palsy--Phyllis andDaniel trusted that God wouldsee to it that they were alwaysabletomeetTommy’sneedsandtheirown.

Financially, it wasn’t alwaysthe easiest task,but evenharderthanthatattimeswastheabilityto even find the resources theyneeded.BothPhyllisandTommylaughnowastheylookbackandrealize that in many ways, theybecame the pioneers in pavingthe way for other handicappedinvidualsinthecommunity,evenwhenitcametodesignatedseat-ing at church. They livewithinwalkingdistanceofSacredHeartof Jesus Church, where they at-tendMasseveryweekend,rainorshine.

“There was one time that wealmosthadtofloathome,”Phyl-lislaughs.“WeusuallytrytogotoadifferentMass,ifIknowtheweather is going to be bad, butwestillgetcaughtsometimes.”

Neither she norTommy seemtomind,however.Theyjustem-brace the fond memories that itgivestheminstead.

Hisphysicallimitationsdidnotallow Tommy to attend schoolwhen he was younger, so theBoumans invested in equipmentthatallowedhimtoparticipateinclassesthroughaspeakerintheirhomethatconnectedtoaspeakerin the classroom, and a home-bound tutor also lended a hand.WhenitwastimeforTommytoreceive religious instruction, itwas again through homeboundcourses, although he was ableto receive his first communionat Sacred Heart along with theotherchildren.Tommyisalife-

longmemberoftheparish,wherePhyllis alsovolunteersasanof-ficereceptionistonaregularba-sis.

In fact, she and Tommy arebothvery,verybigonvolunteer-ism.

“Anybody can volunteer andofferthatsparkoffaithtoothers,”stresses Phyllis. “Sometimes,youhavetospreadtheGospelbythewayyou live,and truthfully,everybody has something to of-fer,whetherit’sprivateprayerorbringing people to church whowouldn’t otherwise have a waytogo,orjustvisitingwiththemifthey’relonely.”

That is why she and Tommyvolunteer each week to visit alocal nursing home with othermembers of the Camelot minis-try.Asapartofthisgroup,theyhelp to provide prayer servicesand offer the sacrament of holycommunion to the elderly resi-dents who might not be able toparticipate or receive the sacra-mentanyotherway.PhyllisandTommyhavebeenactive in this

ministry for about four or fiveyears, and Phyllis admits thatbondshaveformedbetweenthemandtheresidents.

“They ask about Tommy ifthey don’t see him, and we askaboutthemifwedon’tseethem,”she says. “We pray for them ifthey’re sick, and they pray forus.”

In addition to the time theyspendatthenursinghome,Tom-my and Phyllis are also activewith a local chapter of Civitan,an international organizationdedicated to helping those who

aredisabled.“We’re also very ecumenical

withourvolunteerwork,becausewelovetohelptheFirstBaptistChurch with some of their ac-tivities,too,liketheFallFestivaltheydoforthechildren,asanal-ternativetotrick-or-treatonHal-loween.”

Whentheyaren’tvolunteering,PhyllisandTommyenjoyjustbe-ing social with others. Tommybowls every week, and loves togo to the mall just to do a littlewindow shopping and peoplewatching. His physical abilitiesmay be limited, but his life ismostcertainlynot.

He laughs when his mothercreditshimforbeingsuchanin-spirationtokeepingherfaithovertheyears,butPhyllisisstillsurethatshewasrightinthinkingthatGodhadaplanforhimwhenhewasborn.

Perhapsthislinefromthebiblesumsitupbestofall.

“Faith is the realization ofthingshopedforandevidenceofthingsnotseen.”(Hebrews11:1)


byCindyWoodenCatholicNewsServiceVATICANCITY(CNS)

Shortly after announcing he wascreating six new cardinals, PopeBenedictXVI saidhewasdoing sotoshowthat“thechurchisachurchofallpeoples,(and)speaksinalllan-guages.”

The six new “princes of thechurch”hailfromsixdifferentcoun-triesinNorthAmerica,LatinAmer-ica, Africa and Asia, and representboth the Latin-rite of the CatholicChurchaswellastwooftheEasternCatholicChurches.

Inducting them into the CollegeofCardinalsNov.24,PopeBenedictbroughtupto120thenumberofcar-dinal-electors-- thoseundertheageof 80 and eligible to vote in a con-clavetoelectanewpope.

WiththeexceptionoftheCatholicnewspaperAvvenire,theheadlinesinItaliannewspapersthemorningafterPope Benedict announced the newcardinalsallpointedouttheabsenceofnewItalianornewEuropeancar-dinals.

Paintingthepope’smoveasdrasticandtryingtomakesenseofit,IlFo-glioandseveralotherpapersjumpedtotheconclusionthatthepopedelib-erately excluded Italians because ofthe“VatiLeaks”scandal.Thescandalsaw the publication of private Vati-canandpapalcorrespondence,muchof itpaintingapictureof careerismandcorruptionintheVatican,mostlyinvolving Italiancurialofficialsandbishops.

IlFoglio’sheadlinewas:“Acon-sistory to lead the church out of itsRomanmisgovernance.”

The new cardinals will make uponly5percentof theelectors in theCollege of Cardinals, but they shiftthe continental balance, even if justslightly.ThepercentageofEuropeanelectorswilldropfromalmost55per-centNov.16tojustover51percentNov.24;thefigurecontrastssharplywiththefactthat,accordingtoVati-canstatistics,lessthan24percentoftheworld’sCatholicsliveinEurope.

Thenewconsistorywillbringthepercentage of Asian electors from7 percent to 9 percent. Catholics inAsiaaccountforjustover10percentof the worldwide Catholic popula-tion.

Naming twoprelates in their 50stothecollegealsowilllowertheav-erageageofthecardinal-electors;as

By the numbers: Consistory to expand variety in College of Cardinals

Pope Benedict XVI inducted six new cardinals into the College of Cardinals Nov. 24 during a consistory at the Vatican. The appointment of six non-European cardinals represents the diversity and geographical reach of the church. CNS photos

ofNov.16theelectors’averageagewasjustover72.

Thesixnewcardinalsare:U.S.Archbishop James M. Harvey, 63,prefectofthepapalhousehold;Leb-anon’s Maronite Patriarch BecharaRai,72;IndianArchbishopBaseliosCleemisThottunkal,53,headof theSyro-Malankara Catholic Church;Nigerian Archbishop John Olorun-femi Onaiyekan ofAbuja, 68; Co-lombian Archbishop Ruben SalazarGomezofBogota,70;andPhilippineArchbishop Luis Tagle of Manila,55.

When Pope Benedict created 22cardinals in February, 16 of themwereEuropeans.

Obviously, the pope does notmakehischoicebasedongeographyfirstofall.Mostofthecardinalsholdpositions that by Vatican norms orbyancient traditionareheldbycar-dinals.

Given the large number of Ital-iansheadingVaticanofficesandthenumerousItalianarchdiocesestradi-tionallyledbycardinals,theItalianswould have a numerically powerfulbloc of votes in a conclave to electanewpope.Infact,aftertheconsis-toryisoverandthesixnewcardinalsare welcomed into the group, theItalians stillwill have28voters, 20of whom were created cardinals byPopeBenedict.

With the exception of Europe,no single continent has the numberof electors Italy has; LatinAmericacomesclosestwith21electors.

But sometimes thosewhoshould

becardinalsarekeptinanarchbish-op’s magenta for a while; the mostobvious example of that is Arch-bishopGerhardL.Muller,whowasnamed prefect of the CongregationfortheDoctrineoftheFaithinJuly.Vatican norms -- and the practicalresponsibilitiesofajobthatinvolvesdoctrinaloversightofVaticanofficesheadedbycardinals--dictatethattheprefectbeacardinal.He’lljusthave

towaitabit.Of the 120 electors who will be

part of the college Nov. 24, 40 ofthemworkinorhaveretiredfrompo-sitionsintheRomanCuria.Theother80arearchbishopswhoheaddioces-esorpatriarchsandmajorarchbish-opswhoheadEasternchurches.

Cardinal-designate Rai, the Ma-ronitepatriarch,willbringto21thenumberofcardinal-electorswhoen-tered the priesthood and ministeredasmembersofreligiousorders.TheSalesians top the list with four car-dinals -- three of them, includingCardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vaticansecretaryofstate--workintheRo-man Curia. The group of electorsalso includes three Franciscans andtwoJesuits.

A greater variety of nations, lan-guages, spiritual and liturgical tra-ditions in the College of Cardinalsobviously means a more “catholic”groupofparticipantsinthecardinals’most solemnresponsibility:electinganewpope.ButthevarietyalsohasaveryrealimpactontheRomanCu-riabecauseeachcardinalbecomesamemberofoneormoreVaticancon-gregations or councils, bringing hisexperience tobearondecisions thatimpacttheuniversalchurch.



Diocese of Lafayette – Office of Pro Life Apostolate PRO-LIFE ORATORY CONTEST

February 19, 2013 FOR HIGH SCHOOL JUNIORS AND SENIORS

Please note the location change this year: St. Pius X Catholic Church – Life Center – 201 East Bayou Parkway – Lafayette, LA 70508

Local Coordinator: Karol Meynard, Director - Office of Pro-Life Apostolate, Diocese of Lafayette

Date/Time Tuesday, February 19, 2013 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Location Change St. Pius X Life Center, 201 East Bayou Parkway, Lafayette, LA 70508 Topics (Choose One): +The Tragedy of Abortion +The Tragedy of Euthanasia,

+The Tragedy of Infanticide +The Tragedy of Embryonic Stem Cell Research What: 5–7 minute speech (Must not be less than 5 minutes and does not have to be memorized). Note cards acceptable.

No props allowed. Who: Must be high school junior or senior to participate How: Complete Registration Form listed below and return to address noted.

Judging Criteria: (Panel of three judges)

Contest standards: † Clear thesis and sense of direction in the speech † Speech should be logical, clear and organized † General sense of confidence/good word usage † Good eye contact and fluent delivery

LOCAL CONTEST: Prize:

Lafayette, Louisiana – February 19, 2013 (Tuesday) $250 Check - Winner participates in State Oratory Contest

STATE FINALS: First Place Prize:

Second Place Prize:

Knights of Columbus State Convention – TBA $500 cash, + all expense paid trip with parent/guardian (up to $1,000) to Nat’l. Competition $250 Cash

NATIONAL FINALS: First Place Prize:

Second Place Prize:

National Right to Life Convention – TBA $1,000 $ 750

Suggestions: •Research and understand your subject; your speech will reflect your efforts. •Believe in what you are saying; speak with enthusiasm, but maintain your poise. •Be creative; the judges are interested in hearing YOUR point of view. •Practice your speech in front of others, and invite constructive criticism in order to perfect your content and delivery. •Keep in mind the judging criteria when practicing and giving your speech: + Does the introduction make the audience want to hear more and does it have a clear thesis? + Is each point relevant to the topic and substantiated with current documentation? + Are the facts and figures used current? Does it have a logical, clear organization? + Does it send a pro-life message? Does the conclusion sum up the main points of the speech? •Dress appropriately (dress shirt and slacks for men, and a dress or nice pant suit for women). Keep the top portion of this form. The bottom portion is the entry form and must be completed and returned by February 12, 2013

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------cut here and use form, below-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

PRO-LIFE ORATORY CONTEST ENTRY FORM Student’s Name_________________________________________________ Social Security Number ___________________________________ E-Mail Address __________________________________________ Address/City/State/Zip____________________________________________________________________________________________________ Must be High School Jr. or Sr.

Telephone: (please include area code) _______________________Cell:________________ Age___________ Grade_____________________ Parent’s Names:______________________________School:_________________________________Topic:_________________________________ School’s Address/City/State/Zip____________________________________________________________________________________________ Student’s Signature_________________________________________ Parent Signature_______________________________________________

Completed Registration Form must be returned by February 12, 2013 to: Trista Littell · Diocese of Lafayette · Office of Pro-Life Apostolate · 1408 Carmel Dr. · Lafayette, LA 70501

2012-2013 USCCB Respect Life Theme: “Faith Opens Our Eyes to Human Life in all its Grandeur and Beauty”

Annual pro-life oratory contest to be held February 19LAFAYETTE

TheLafayetteDiocese’sOf-ficeof thePro-LifeApostolatewill host its annual Pro-LifeOratory Contest on Tuesday,February 19. The contest willbeheldfrom6:00-9:00p.m.atSt.PiusXLifeCenterinLafay-ette.

The contest is open to allhighschooljuniorsandseniors,including public and home-schooled students. Speechsmust be five-seven minutesin length,andbasedononeofthe pro-life topics listed to theright.

Thosewhowishtoparticipateintheoratorycontestmustreg-isterwiththeOfficeofthePro-LifeApostolatebyFebruary12.To register, simply completethe registration portion of theguideline form to the left andreturnitto:

OfficeofthePro-LifeApostolate1408CarmelDriveLafayette,LA70501Online registration is also

available at www.diolaf.org.Fromthehomepage,lookforthegreenOFFICEStablocatedjustbelowtheDioceseofLafayetteheading, and select “Pro-LifeApostolate”fromthepull-downmenu.Alinktotheoratorycon-test’s online registration formislocateddirectlyundertheof-fice’smissionstatement.

Participants in the oratorycontestmayalsoutilizetheOf-ficeofthePro-LifeApostolate’sweb page to research their se-lected topics for the competi-tion.ByvisitingtheResources page,viewerswillfindanalpha-betizedlistofonlinelinksorga-nized according to the pro-lifetopictowhichtheypertain.Allthosewhoplantoparticipateinthe pro-life oratory contest arewelcomeandencouragedtore-fertotheselinks,inadditiontotheirownreserach,toobtainre-liableinformationfortheirpre-sentations.

Prizeswillbeawardedtothefirst and second place winnersofthecontest,andthefirstplacewinnerwillreceivetheopportu-nitytorepresenttheDioceseofLafayette at the statewide Pro-LifeOratoryContestlaterintheyear.


St. Francis School in Iota celebrated Thanksgiving with their grandparents by having a Thanksgiving Prayer service before having lunch with their grandparents. The sev-enth grade class led the service. Those participating are from L/R; Mathew LeLeux, Will Rose, Luke Foreman, Brennan Stanley, Allison Daigle, MacKenzie Leonards, and Vincent Shreve. Photo submitted by St. Francis School

Thanksgiving prayer service at St. Francis School

byCindyWoodenCatholicNewsServiceVATICANCITY(CNS)

When young Catholics fromaround theworldgather inRiode Janeiro in July, theywill beunder the gaze of the city’s fa-mousstatueofChristwithout-stretched arms, a reminder ofhisdesiretoembraceallpeople,PopeBenedictXVIsaid.

InhismessageforWorldYouthDay2013,thepopeaskedyoungpeopletowelcomeChrist’sem-braceandsharewithothers thejoyofbeinglovedbyhim.

In preparation for the inter-national youth gathering July23-28, Pope Benedict askedyoungCatholicsto“rereadyourpersonal history,” looking athowthefaithwaspasseddownto them from previous genera-tions.

The pope also asked themnot towait tobegin the taskofsharingtheirChristianfaithwithothers.

“Wearelinksinagreatchainof men and women who have

Pope tells young to welcome Christ’s embrace, share his love transmittedthetruthofthefaithand who depend on us to passit on to others,” he said in themessagereleasedNov.16bytheVatican.

The theme of World YouthDay2013is:“Goandmakedis-ciplesofallnations.”

“Thismandateshouldresoundpowerfully in your hearts,” thepopetoldyoungpeople.

Infact,hesaid, thehearthasamajorroletoplayinbringingthemclosertoChrist,motivatingthemtosharehisGospelandde-terminingthewordsandactionsthey shoulduse in approachingothers.

“Many young people todayseriously question whether lifeis something good and have ahardtimefindingtheirway,”thepopesaid.

Faith helps people see that“every human life is priceless,becauseeachofusisthefruitofGod’slove,”hesaid.“Godloveseveryone,even thosewhohavefallen away from him or disre-gardhim.”

Pope Benedict asked youngCatholicstoreachoutwithloveto their questioning or doubt-ingpeers,helpingthemfindthehopeandmeaningfaithbrings.

As the Catholics most im-pactedbyglobalizationandnewtechnology,PopeBenedictsaid,young people need a specialawareness and have special re-sponsibilitiesinthoseareas.

“We are passing through avery particular period of his-tory,” he told them. “Technicaladvanceshavegivenusunprec-edented possibilities for inter-actionbetweenpeoplesandna-tions. But the globalization oftheserelationshipswillbeposi-tiveandhelptheworldtogrowinhumanityonlyifitisfoundedonloveratherthanonmaterial-ism.”

“Love is the only thing thatcanfillheartsandbringpeopletogether,”hesaid.

While asking the young tobring their Christian values totheirsocialmedianetworksandother online activities, he alsocautionedthemtousethemediawisely.

“Beawareofthehiddendan-gerstheycontain,especiallytherisk of addiction, of confusingthe real world with the virtual,andofreplacingdirectandper-sonal encounters and dialoguewithInternetcontacts,”hesaid.

Pope Benedict also told theyoung people that the respon-sibility to share the faith flowsfrom their baptism into thechurch, is sustained by prayer,nourished by receiving the Eu-charist,purifiedthroughconfes-sionandstrengthenedbyconfir-mation.

“Ifyouare toremainfirminprofessing the Christian faithwhereveryouaresent,youneedthe church,” he said. “No onecan bear witness to the Gospelalone.”


byKatherineMcCormickLAFAYETTE

FighttheNewDrug(FTND),national experts specializing inthescientificdangersofpornog-raphy, were recently hosted byseveral Acadiana Foundationsfor the purpose of educatingboth private and public schoolstudentsinourarea.FTNDpre-sentedtostudentsfromthefol-lowingschools:CatholicHighofNewIberia,VermillionCatholicHighSchool,OpelousasCatho-lic High School, St. EdmundHigh School, Sacred Heart ofVille Platte High School, Han-son High and Middle School,Academy of the Sacred HeartHigh School, WestminsterChristianAcademyHighSchoolandCarencroHighSchool.

Fight theNewDrugspecial-izes in 50-minute school as-semblies designed to engageand educate students about theharmfulandaddictiveeffectsofpornographyontheirbrainsandthe social consequences in ourculture.

“Both parents and studentsare talking about this issue [ofpornography use] more thaneverbefore,”saidCamLee,co-founderofthenon-profitgroup.“We’ve had more requestsfor assemblies in the first fewmonthsof2012thanwedidforthe whole of 2011.Assembliesareconductedintheschoolset-ting utilizing both live actionpresentationsfromFTNDexec-utivemembersandvideospro-duced to tell stories and high-lightrisks.Thekidsareabletoseehowthepornographyindus-try focuses on kids barely oldenoughtousetheinternet.”

Inadditiontotheschoolpre-sentations, FTND membersconducted a Parent seminar at

Fight the New Drug presents throughout AcadianaSt.ThomasMoreHighSchool.Theyencouragedparentstoaskasmanyquestionsastheywouldlike in order to become famil-iar with the information beingtaughttotheirchildren.

FighttheNewDrugmadetheirfirst tour of Lafayette schoolsduringMarchofthisyear.Afterpresenting in Acadiana for thefirsttime,CamLeenoted,“TheeducationtourinLafayettewasa huge success in our minds.We weren’t quite sure what toexpect given it would be ourfirsttimeinLouisianahoweverourexperiencefarexceededourexpectations. Itwas incredibletowatchthestudentsresponsesto thepresentationandwitnesstheir “aha” moments as theylistenedandparticipated.With-in the short time frame of 50minutes the skeptical studentswouldoftenbethefirstturnintoa “Fighter”, jumping up andflooding the stage to sign theFighter Pledge and support thecause.”

Lee further commented onhis experience with teens bysaying, “The truth is, many oftheseteenshaveneverbeened-ucatedontheharmfuleffectsofpornography.Thiswasthefirsttime formanyof them tohearthe truth about pornography.With each assembly came anewsetofchallengesaswellasanewsetofstoriesfromyoungpeople who had been person-ally affected by it or affectedbyit throughafamilymemberor friend. We received emailsdaily from students who werestrugglingwithanaddictionandwerelookingforhelp.”Ifwe’regoingtohelpthosewhoaresuf-fering from this addiction andpreventsufferingforotherswehavetotalkaboutitandtalkof-

tenaboutit.Thereisnobetterpreventionthanpureeducation.We love coming to Acadianaandcan’twaittocomeback.”

NotreDamePrinciple,CindyIstre, had this to sayabout thepresentation, “Fight the NewDrug brings a powerful mes-sage regarding the dangers ofpornography. The format oflive presenters in combinationwitharelevantandvisuallyap-pealing media production al-lows the program to grab andholdtheinterestofitstargetau-dienceofhighschoolstudents.Don’t miss an opportunity toeducate your students and fac-ultyaboutthisdangerintoday’sworld!”

The Rucks Family Founda-tion, The Moody CompanyFoundation, Pinhook Founda-tion Inc. andTheStullerFam-ily Foundation are pleased toannounceplanstobring“Fightthe New Drug” back into ourprivate and public school sys-tems in March of 2013. Rec-ognizing the importance ofeducationandawarenessofthe

harmsanddangerssurroundingpornography, the followingor-ganizations have endorsed thisendeavorwiththeirencourage-mentandsupport:LafayettePo-lice Department, Crime Stop-pers,LafayetteParishSheriff’sOffice, Hearts of Hope, FaithHouse,FamilyTree,HeathEv-ans Foundation, DesormeauxFoundation Inc., LemoineCompany LLC., Hank PerretFamily, Louisiana Knights ofColumbus,TigersagainstTraf-fickingandMoralityinMedia.

Ifagroupyouknowmaybeinterested in takingadvantageofthisfreeopportunityforstu-dents and faculty in educatingthem to better understand thisserious problem affecting ourpresentcultureandtobetteras-sist thosedealingwithpornog-raphyaddictions,pleasecontactMargaret Rucks at 337-232-8460

TolearnmoreaboutFighttheNew Drug or view clips fromthe 2012 tour please see theirwebsite, at www.fightthenew-drug.org.


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byDeaconTimMaragosLAFAYETTE

Going to Mass on Sunday iseasily taken for granted with somany Catholic Churches avail-able in our diocese. There arethosewho cannot get toChurchnomatterhowmuchtheywantto.Theyareourparents,ourgrand-parents,our relativesandneigh-borswholiveinnursinghomes.

If they can no longer go toChurch to receive Jesus in theBlessed Sacrament, then theChurchgoes to thembyprovid-ingCommunionServices.Thereare hundreds of volunteers whoconduct such Communion Ser-vices every week, and many at-tendedarecentworkshoptohelpthese volunteers conduct theseservices in the correct manner.These Communion Services areoneof the fewpointsofcontactmany elderly and infirm peoplehavewiththeChurch.

Recently the Central Regionsponsored a workshop for layministers, held at St. GenevieveCatholic Church (Mystical RoseHall),andoveronehundredvol-unteerscametolearnfromDea-conEdwardBoustanytheproperpreparation so that the servicecan be conducted prayerfully.TheylearnedfromDeaconTim-othy Maragos the correct formfortheRiteofHolyCommunionOutsideofMass,andfromDea-

Central region hosts nursing home workshop for Eucharistic Ministers

conMichaelMorrisonthespecialneedsoftheelderly.

DeaconBoustanystressedthatthese services are official ritesoftheChurchandthevolunteerswhoconductthemarerepresent-ing the Church. Therefore it isvitalthatthevolunteershavethepermission of the pastor beforebeginning this ministry. Onlythose who have been appointedby the pastor as ExtraordinaryMinisters of the Eucharist mayconductCommunionServices.

For the same reason it is im-portantthatCommunionService

be conducted according to theproperritesetforthbytheCatho-licBishopsoftheUnitedStates.Whileourbishopsnaturallywantto bring the Eucharist to thosewhocannolongergotoMass,itis important thatnooneconfuseaCommunionServiceforMass,DeaconMaragosexplained.

Deacon Morrison emphasizedthe special considerations thatmustbemadewhenbringingtheEucharist.Amongthesearemak-ingsurethepersonseekingtore-ceiveHolyCommunionisinfactaCatholic,andthattheybephysi-callyabletoreceiveandconsumetheSacredHost.DeaconMorri-sonalsostressed the importanceof speaking clearly and slowly,andthatifCommunionisbrought

The Central Region of the Diocese of Lafayette recently hosted a workshop entitled “A Special Call to Serve: Nursing Home Eucharistic Ministers” in Mystical Rose Hall at St. Genevieve Catholic Church. Over 100 people were in attendance. Pctured from left to right are presenters Deacon Timothy Maragos (Our Lady of Fatima); Deacon Michael Morrison (St. Elizabeth Seton), and Deacon Edward Boustany (Our Lady of Fatima). Also present were Very Rev. Thomas James, SVD, VE, Episcopal Vicar for the Central Region, and Rev. Alphonse Thainese, Associate Pastor of St. Genevieve, along with several other deacons. Photo submitted by Mary Bergeron

to individual rooms that certainprayersaccompanythereceptionof theEucharist inorder togivethe resident time to prepare andtorecognizethesacrednessoftheoccasion.

All workshop participants re-ceived handouts to use, includ-ingtheproperriteforconductingCommunionServices.Thethreedeaconsansweredquestions,butunfortunately there were morequestions than time allotted.Still, those in attendance gaveverypositivefeedbackandweregrateful for the instruction andthe emphasis on the spiritualityofthisspecialministry.

For additional information onNursing Home ministry in theCentral Region, please contactFatherThomasJames,SVD,VE,EpiscopalVicar,orhisExecutiveAssistant, Mary Bergeron (654-8682).

To subscribe to theAcadiana Catholic, or to sign a loved one up to receive

give a gift subscription, please

contact Connie Lantier at

(337) 261-5650.


LAFAYETTESt.PiusXChurchinLafayette

has begun a parish-based pro-gram called “Catholics Return-ing Home” which is designedto reach out to non-practicingCatholicswithan invitation forthem to return to the CatholicChurch. “Catholics ReturningHome” is one of twelve modelprograms listed in the UnitedStates Conference of CatholicBishops (USCCB) directory, A Time to Listen, A Time to Heal.

As part of the program, St.PiusXChurchwillhost a spe-cial evangelization workshopfrom 9:00 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.on Saturday, January 19. Theworkshop will feature Sally L.Mews,authorof thebookenti-tledCatholics Returning Home.

“Catholics Returning Home” at St. Pius X

Mrs.Mews,whowasbornandraised in centralWisconsin, re-turned to the Catholic Churchin1980andwasinspiredtode-velopaparish-basedministrytohelpothersdothesame.

The workshop is ideal for

A Special Invitation“Meet&Greet”with

SallyL.Mews,authorofCatholics Returning Home

Friday, January 18ImmaculateHeartofMary

SchoolCafeteriaImmediately following 6:00

p.m. Mass inside the church.Allarewelcome

Bishop helps students celebrate Red Ribbon Week

In conjunction with the school’s recognition of Red Ribbon Week, Bishop Michael Jar-rell celebrated Mass at Redemptorist School in Crowley. The Mass and homily were a great inspiration to all the students. Photo submitted by Redemportist School

St. Joseph’s Diner receives donation

St. Joseph’s Diner in Lafayette recently accepted a donation from local law firm Preis & Roy that will fund Thanksgiving and Christmas Day meals for Acadiana’s hungry and homeless. The local law firm has a longstanding tradition of supporting the diner’s holiday efforts. The diner has served those in need since 1973 and currently provides over 200 meals a day. Pictured above are Holly Gauthier, Preis & Roy Director of Mar-keting (left) and Kim James Boudreaux, Lafayette Catholic Service Center Executive Director (right). Photo submitted by Preis & Roy

priests, deacons, evangeliza-tion teams, religious educators,youth ministers, parish leadersand staff members, liturgicalministers,andallthosewhoareinterestedinlearningmoreaboutthe ministry of evangelization.Thecostis$5perperson,whichincludes light refreshments and

lunch. Registration forms areavailableatwww.stpiusxchurch.net.

Additional information mayberequestedbycontactingRob-ertDelafosseat(337)319-2438,JohnSchexnaildreat(337)654-9671,orAshtonMoutonat(337)296-6713.

Calling all Catholics! To celebrate the Year of Faith, Family Missions Company will host a two-day “Evangelization 101” retreat from February 15-16 at FMC’s new retreat center in Abbeville. FMC missionaries will share their expertise about witnessing your Catholic faith. St. Pius X Parish’s evangelization outreach will be attending the retreat, but it is open to all parish groups and individuals. The cost for this overnight retreat, including food and housing is only $95 per person. Space is limited, so sign up soon by calling the FMC office at 337.893.6111, or FMC’s retreat coordinator, David Yarbor-ough, at (337) 652-6450 Photo submitted by Family Missions Company

Family Missions Company to host retreat

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AsSandyrecoverycontinues,parisheshelpmeettheirs,others’needsbyPeteSheehanCatholicNewsServiceOYSTERBAY,N.Y.(CNS

With the hurricane winds,massive tides and driving rainnow more than two weeks be-hind them,LongIslanderscon-tinuetohelprebuildtheircom-munity,homesandlives.

HurricaneSandyhitalloftheDioceseofRockvilleCentreonLong Island, which lies east ofNewYorkCity,butsomecom-munities, particularly those ontheSouthShore,weredevastat-ed by the swollen tides createdbythestorm.

DamagecausedbySandyhasbeen estimated at $50 billion,thoughsomereportsputthefig-ureat$60billion.

As of Nov. 14, the Long Is-land Power Authority had re-stored electricity to 99 percentofitscustomers,morethantwoweeks after Hurricane Sandymade landfall. About 35,000customers still had no power,becausetheirhomesweredam-agedbyfloodingandinneedofelectricalrepairs.

Atthepeakofthestorm,pow-erwasknockedoutfor8.5mil-lioncustomersin10states,withthe majority in New York andNewJersey.

TheRockvilleCentreDiocesehas asked parishes to take upbothamonetarycollectionandacollectionforneededitemssuchas food, blankets and hygienesupplies,andsetup fourdistri-butioncenters.

“We’re coordinating the re-sponse,” saidAuxiliary BishopRobertJ.Brennan,diocesanvic-ar general, assigned by BishopWilliam F. Murphy to organizethe diocese’s response. “Thatway the parishes that were notasbadlyhitcanhelp those thatwere.”

Long Beach was one of thehardest-hit areas in the region.OnNov.14,LongBeachCatho-licRegionalSchoolwasabletoreopen.

A message on the school’swebsite announced a Nov. 13parent meeting. “We hope thatmanyofyoucanjoinus,”itsaid,

“butifthismeetingtimecausesahardshipandyoucannotmakeit, then please feel free to con-tact us either through email orcallschool--onceweareopen--andwewillansweranyofyourquestions.Bewell,staysafeandGodblessyouall.”

“Long Beach looks like theGulf Coast of Louisiana dur-ingKatrina,”saidFatherKevinSmith,NassauCountyfirechap-lainandpastorofSt.Dominic’sChurch in Oyster Bay. He hadvisitedseveralhard-hitareas.

St. Ignatius Martyr on LongBeach, a barrier island off theSouthShoreofLongIsland,“isadisaster,”FatherSmithadded.“It’slocatednearthebeachandthestormsurgewaterscameuptothebuilding.Therearefourtofive feet of sand on the churchproperty.”Therectorybasementwasflooded.

LongBeachwasevacuatedbe-forethestormandmanyhomeswere destroyed, Father Smithexplained. Some remained de-spitewarnings, “afraid to leavebecausetheyfearthattheymight

beabletogetback,”headded.

Other South Shore parisheswerehardhit,suchasSt.Jude’sinMasticBeach.

“Wehadabout1,000familieswhose homes were affected,”Father Gregory Yacyshyn, pas-tor of St. Jude’s, “and possiblyas many as half of those willhavetobecondemned.”

Diocesan Catholic Charitiesofficialshavebeen focusingonrepairandcleanupeffortsofitsfacilities and trying to plan forthelong-termresponse.

The agency has partneredwith the diocese to coordinatedonationsofgoodsandservices,said Kristy D’Errico, disasterrelief coordinator for CatholicCharities.

A tractor-trailer of suppliesfrom St. John’s University ar-rivedattheagency’sHicksvilleoffices Nov. 11. Staffers andvolunteersdividedthegoodstodeliver to four parishes acrossLong Island, where the itemsweretobedividedagainandsent



Little ones celebrate All Saints’ Day

In recognition of All Saints’ Day at the beginning of November, several church parishes and Catholic schools encouraged their young ones to dress as their favorite saint. Submitted photos are from St. Leo IV Church in Roberts Cove (top left), Trinity Catholic School in St. Martinville (top right), St. Mary Early Learning Center in Lafayette (bottom left), and St. John Elementary School in Franklin (bottom right).

totheparishesinmostneed.TheNorthShoresufferedless

intensestormsurgesbutstillhadextensivepowerloss.

Father Larry Duncklee, pas-torofSt.JohntheEvangelistinRiverhead, described celebrat-ing an evening Spanish MassNov. 1, four days after Sandyhit, despite the power outage.The church was cold, he said,and“peoplebroughtcandlesandflashlightsandIusedaKaraokemachine.”

OneNorthShorechurch,OurLadyQueenofMartyrsinCen-terport,wassparedanydamageorpoweroutage,saidMsg.JohnGilmartin, pastor, “but 95 per-centofourparishionersweren’tspared.”

For several nights, the par-

Sandy recoverycontinued from page 44

ish community center was anemergency shelter. “We had asmanyas90peoplestayingthereone night,” Msgr. Gilmartinsaid,withfewerpeoplecomingas more homes had power re-stored.

In addition, parishioners re-spondedtoanappealforneededitems, fillingseveral truckloadsthatwenttotwootherparishes.

“We weren’t hit as hard assomeparishes,”saidMsgr.BrianMcNamara,pastorofOurLadyofLourdesinWestIslip,ontheSouth Shore. “We have peoplewho are hurting, but many ofthem haven’t come to us yet.”After he urged parishioners todonate needed items, he said,“wegotatonofstuff.”

Though his church lackedpower for days, said Msgr. JoeGranata, pastor of St. Hugh’s

A Bible is seen Nov. 14 amid flood-damaged family belongings cleared out of Shawn McKeon’s house after clearing it out in the Midland Beach area of Staten Island, N.Y. McKeon has been told his damage claims have been denied by his homeowners in-surance, flood insurers and FEMA because of loop holes in the different policies. The federal government’s flood insurance program may not have enough funding to cover anticipated claims from Hurricane Sandy victims, a top official at the Federal Emer-gency Manage ment Agency said. CNS photo/Brendan McDermid, Reuters

A statue of Christ is seen Nov. 12 in front of homes destroyed by Hurricane Sandy in Union Beach, N.J. More than 100 people in the U.S. perished after the storm made landfall Oct. 29 in New Jersey, causing an estimated $50 billion in property damage and economic losses. It ranks as one of the most destructive natural disasters to hit the U.S. Northeast. CNS photo/Eric Thayer, Reuters

near the North Shore, parishio-nerstookpartinaninterfaithef-fortwiththetownofHuntington.Three churches and one Jewishtemplesetupwarmingsitesforpeople to spend a few hours togetwarm,rechargecellphones,and,insomecases,haveameal.

“Iwastouchedbythenumberof people who knocked on the

rectorydoorandaskedhowweweredoing,”notedMsgr.Grana-ta,addinghehasbeenmovedbythe many who have offered tohelp.

“We still have the long-termresponse,” helping people re-build their lives,”BishopBren-nansaid.“And,ofcourse,thereisalwaysprayer.”


Year-end review: a look back at key diocesan events of 2012byStephanieR.MartinLAFAYETTE

As the year 2012 comes to aclose,let’stakeamomenttore-flect on the many events whichimpacted the Diocese of Lafay-ette throughout the last twelvemonths.

From January 29-February 5,Catholic schools in the diocesejoined others throughout thenation in celebrating CatholicSchools Week, recognizing thetheme of “Faith. Academics.Service.”

AlsoduringthemonthofJan-uary,BishopMichaelJarrellandChancellor Msgr. Russell Har-rington travelled to Rome forthebishop’sAd LiminavisitwithPopeBenedictXVI.

On the first Sunday of Lent,the Cathedral of St. John theEvangelist in Lafayette hostedtheRiteofElection,asignificantceremonywithin theRCIApro-cess. A total of 38 church par-ishes participated to present 84catechumensand129candidatestoBishopJarrell.

InMarch, theCentralRegionof the diocese was pleased towelcomethereturnofImmaculéeIlibagiza,survivorof theRwan-dan genocide, who once againvisited the area to speak at theCajundome Convention Center.The diocese also welcomed theinternationally known musicianand worship leader, Father Nel-soMedina,OP,ashevisitedtheareatospeakataLentenretreat

fortheHispaniccommunity.InApril,theAcadiana Catho-

lic reported that a scholarshipfundinhonorofLt.FatherJosephVerbisLafleurhadbeenstarted.FatherLafleurwasanOpelousasnativewhodiedinservicetohiscountry as a military chaplainduringWorldWarII.

Bishop Jarrell also celebrateda uniquely special funeral Massfor the unclaimed at the Cathe-dral of St. John the Evangelist.ItwasthefirstsuchfuneralMassheldinthediocese.

InMay,sixmenwereordainedto the transitional diaconate for

In May, Rev. Mr. William Schambough read the Gosepl at the Mass to ordain six gentlemen to the Transitional Diaconate. The following month, he was himself or-dained to the priesthood. Photo by P.C. Piazza

On the first Sunday of Lent, a total of 84 catechumens and 129 candidates were presented to Bishop Jarrell during the di-ocesan-wide Rite of Election ceremony hosted by the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. Photo by P.C. Piazza

On the last Saturday of April, people from throughout Acadiana gathered at the Cathedral for a funeral Mass for the unclaimed, the first such Mass ever to be held in the diocese. Photo courtesy of the Lafayette Diocese’s Office of Ra-dio/TV Ministry

In late January, Bishop Jarrell and Msgr. Harrington (diocesan Chancellor) trav-elled to Rome for the bishop’s Ad Lim-ina visit with Pope Benedict XVI. Photo copyright owned by the Diocese of La-fayette

theDioceseofLafayette. Theywere Andre Metrejean, DustinDought,GarrettSavoie,NeilPet-tit, Brian Harrington, and MarkMiley.

Mrs.CristinaLeBlanc,Direc-torofthediocese’sOfficeofHis-panicMinistry,wasappointedtoserveon theBoardofDirectorsoftheSoutheastRegionalOfficeandtheSoutheastPastoralInsti-tute(SEPI).

Administratorsalsoannouncedthat the Secretariat of Catholic

Charitieshadbeenadded to theorganizationalstructureofthedi-ocese.DeaconEdBoustanywasappointedtoserveasDirectoroftheSecretariat.

In June, Rev. Mr. WilliamSchamboughwasordainedtothepriesthoodtoservethepeopleoftheLafayetteDiocese. Hisfirstassignment was to St. Pius XChurchinLafayette.

Thediocese’sOfficeofVoca-tions also sponsored Quo Vadis DaysonthegroundsofJohnPaultheGreatAcademyinLafayette.The event was focused on sup-portingyoungmenfromtheagesof15-25astheyexploredapos-siblevocationalcalling.

In July, church parishesthroughout the diocese hostedspecial events and programs inrecognition of the USCCB’s“Fortnight for Freedom” whichcalledforprayer,education,andaction in support of religiousfreedom.

In August, the diocese an-nounced that Cardinal DanielDiNardo would visit AcadianainSeptember2013aspartofthecelebration of theYear of FaithdeclaredbyPopeBenedictXVI.BishopJarrellalsoordainedato-talof26mentoservethedioceseaspermanentdeacons.

In October, church parishesthroughout the diocese joyfullyjoinedotherthroughouttheworld

In July, church parishes such as Our Lady of the Lake and St. Martin de Por-res in Delcambre came together to host special events commemorating the US-CCB’s “Fortnight for Freedom.” Photo submitted by Father Herb Bennerfield

incelebratingandpromotingtheYear of Faith; the Church-widecelebrationwillcontinuethroughNovember2013.Inconjunctionwith this, the diocese launchedits 2012-2013 BSA Campaignwith the theme“United inFaithtodoGoodWorks.”

InNovember,BishopJarrell’smonthlycolumnintheAcadiana Catholicfocusedon“TheLightisONforYou”campaign,encour-agingpeople to receive the sac-rament of reconciliation duringtheAdvent season. It was alsoannouncedthatMr.BernelFon-tenot, Director of the diocese’sOffice of Community Develop-mentfornearly37years,hadre-tired, and Deacon Ed Boustanywas appointed to serve as the

On the last two Saturdays in August, Bishop Jarrell ordained a total of 26 men as permanent deacons for the Diocese of Lafayette. Photo by P.C. Piazza

newdirector.Last but certainly not least,

centralofficeemployeeshonoredBishopJarrellwithaspecialgiftin recognition of the 10th anni-versaryofhis installationas thesixth bishop of the Diocese ofLafayette.

Additionaldiocesannewsandevents from the year 2012 maybe reviewed through the onlinearchive of the Acadiana Catho-lic.Toaccessthearchive,pleasevisit theOfficeof theAcadiana Catholicpageatwww.diolaf.org,andlookforthelinkto“ReadPastIssuesOnline”locatedalongthelefthandsideofthewebpage.


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Acadiana Catholic December 2012

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