Bishop James V. Johnston to head Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph

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1 GREETINGS/REACTIONS This morning the Vatican announced that Pope Francis has appointed The Most Reverend James V. Johnston, Jr., as the Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St Joseph. This news is met with great delight and appreciation. It has been my privilege to work closely with Bp.-designate Johnston in Missouri for the past six years. He is a man of great compassion and kindness, with a deep sense of loyalty to the Catholic faith. His recent pastoral outreach to the parishes within his current Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau is perhaps one of the best models in the United States. When addressing the public, he is always well-informed, sensitive, and a man of good humor. He will remain in my prayers throughout this transition. Archbishop Robert J. Carlson, St. Louis Congratulations to our fellow Cursillista Bp.-designate Johnston on his appointment as Bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph, MO. Thank you for being a good shepherd to this flock. Our thoughts and prayers go with you as you begin this new assignment. We also pray for the man God will send to shepherd this flock in Springfield-Cape Girardeau. Sharon Essner God bless you, Your Excellency! Spencer Mead The Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph is getting a good man! Vickie Thompson Petkovic See Greetings Reactions / 11 BISHOP GREETS STAFF Bp.- designate greeted chancery staffer Sr. Anita Helgenberger, OSB, after a press conference Sept. 15 announcing Pope Francis has named him the next bishop for the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. (Photo by Leslie A. Eidson) The Mirr r Vol. LI, No. 11 DIOCESE OF SPRINGFIELD CAPE GIRARDEAU, MISSOURI September 18, 2015 One Church, East to West: Loving Jesus, Serving Jesus, Sharing Jesus Bishop James V. Johnston to head Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph Abp. Robert Carlson of St. Louis will install Bp.-designate Johnston Nov. 4, 2015 By Leslie A. Eidson Springfield On Sept. 15, 2015, Pope Francis appointed Springfield- Cape Girardeau Bishop James V. Johnston, Jr., as the seventh Bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph in northwest Missouri. The appointment was made public in Washington by Abp. Carlo Maria Viganó, apostolic nuncio to the US. Bp.-designate Johnston s episcopal ordination and installation as Bishop for the Diocese of Springfield- Cape Girardeau was March 31, He will continue as Diocesan Administrator of Springfield-Cape Girardeau until his Installation as Bishop of Kansas City-St. Joseph on Nov. 4, If there has been no bishop appointed for the Diocese of Springfield- Cape Girardeau, the diocesan College of Consultors will elect and name the next Administrator. Bp.-designate Johnston will succeed Bp. Robert Finn, 62, who resigned April 21, Bp.-designate Johnston s nomination falls just five months after the diocese s former bishop stepped down after becoming the first US bishop convicted of a misdemeanor in failing to report suspected child abuse by a priest in his diocese. BISHOP APPOINTMENT Abp. Joseph Naumann introduced a smiling Bp.- designate James V. Johnston as the seventh Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph during a press conference Sept. 15, Abp. Naumann is the Bishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas and serves as the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph until the installation of Bp.-designate Johnston on Nov. 4, (Photo by Joe Cory/The Catholic Key) The Most Reverend Joseph F. Naumann, Bishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas, has been serving as Apostolic Administrator of Kansas City-St. Joseph since April, and introduced Bp.-designate Johnston to the chancery staff at a press conference held the morning of the appointment in the Catholic Center, 20 W. 9th St. in Kansas City. After reading a statement of greeting, Bp.- designate Johnston fielded a host of questions from area media. Also considered a missionary diocese, the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph comprises 15,429 square miles in Missouri. It has a total population of 1,530,829, of which, 125,854, or eight percent are Catholic. Comparatively, the Diocese of Springfield- Cape Girardeau comprises 25,719 square miles and is around six percent The Catechism in brief See Head Diocese / Endowed with a spiritual soul, with intellect and with free will, the human person is from his very conception ordered to God and destined for eternal beatitude. He pursues his perfection in seeking and loving what is true and good (GS 15, 2) The next issue of The Mirror will be Oct. 2, If you would like to receive the diocesan newspaper via in digital format, please contact Angie Toben at (417) , or her: atoben@dioscg.org. The Catechism of the Catholic Church compiles the living tradition of the Catholic Church and divides it into four sections: What Catholics believe (the Creed), how the faith is transmitted (worship and sacraments), how Catholics are called to live (moral life), and prayer.

2 2 The Mirror September 18, 2015 COLUMNS Your life does not belong to you It was revealed this week that, for the first time in its history, Harvard University, which had been founded for religious purposes and named for a minister of the Gospel, has admitted a freshman class in which atheists and agnostics outnumber professed Christians and Jews. Also this week, the House and the Senate of California passed a provision that allows for physician assisted suicide in the Golden State. As I write these words, the governor of California is deliberating whether to sign the bill into law. Though it might seem strange to suggest as much, I believe that the make-up of the Harvard freshman class and the passing of the suicide law are very really related. I suppose we shouldn t be too surprised that non-believers have come to outnumber believers among the rising cohort of the American aristocracy. For the whole of their lives, these young people have been immersed in the corrosive acids of relativism, scientism, and materialism. Though they have benefitted from every advantage that money can afford, they have been largely denied what the human heart most longs for: contact with the transcendent, with the good, true, and beautiful in their properly unconditioned form. But as Paul Tillich, echoing the Hebrew prophets, reminded us, we are built for WORD ON FIRE Bp. Robert Barron worship, and therefore in the absence of God, we will make some other value our ultimate concern. Wealth, power, pleasure, and honor have all played the role of false gods over the course of the human drama, but today especially, freedom itself has emerged as the ultimate good, as the object of worship. And what this looks like on the ground is that our lives come to belong utterly to us, that we become great projects of self-creation and self-determination. As the Bible tells it, the human project went off the rails precisely at the moment when Adam arrogated to himself the prerogative of determining the meaning of his life, when he, in the agelessly beautiful poetry of the book of Genesis, ate of the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. Read the chapters that immediately follow the account of the Fall, and you will discover the consequences of this deified freedom: jealousy, hatred, fratricide, imperialism, and the war of all against all. The rest of the Biblical narrative can be interpreted as God s attempt to convince human beings that their lives, in point of fact, do not belong to them. He did this precisely by choosing a people whom he would form after his own mind and heart, teaching them how to think, how to behave, and above all, how to worship. This holy people Israel a word that means, marvelously, the one who wrestles with God would then, by the splendor of their way of life, attract the rest of the world. On the Christian reading, this project reached its climax in the person of Jesus Christ, a first-century Israelite from the town of Nazareth, who was also the Incarnation of the living God. The coming-together of divinity and humanity, the meeting of infinite and finite freedom, Jesus embodies what God intended for us from the beginning. And this is precisely why Paul, one of Jesus first missionaries, announced him as Kyrios (Lord) to all the nations, and why he characterized himself as doulos Christou Iesou (a slave of Christ Jesus). Paul exulted in the fact that his life did not belong to him, but rather to Christ. In his letter to the Ephesians, he wrote, there is a power already at work in you that can do infinitely more than you can ask or imagine. He was referencing the Holy Spirit, which orders our freedom and which opens up possibilities utterly beyond our capacities. To follow the promptings of this Spirit is, for Paul and for all the Biblical authors, the source of life, joy, and true creativity. All of which brings me back to Harvard and legalized suicide. The denial of God or the blithe bracketing of the question of God is not a harmless parlor game. Rather, it carries with it the gravest implications. If there is no God, then our lives do indeed belong to us, and we can do with them what we want. If there is no God, our lives have no ultimate meaning or transcendent purpose, and they become simply artifacts of our own designing. Accordingly, when they become too painful or too shallow or just too boring, we ought to have the prerogative to end them. We can argue the legalities and even the morality of assisted suicide until the cows come home, but the real issue that has to be engaged is that of God s existence. The incoming freshman class at Harvard is a disturbing omen indeed, for the more our society drifts into atheism, the more human life is under threat. The less we are willing even to wrestle with God, the more de-humanized we become. TM Bp. Robert Barron is the founder of Word on Fire Catholic Ministries and an Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Holy orders configures the recipient to Christ In June and August, our diocese was blessed and privileged to ordain two men to the Sacred Priesthood. Many of the faithful from throughout southern Missouri gathered with these two men and their families to offer them their support and prayers in their vocation, but also to witness the power and beauty found in the Rite of Ordination. The actions and gestures of the Rite of Ordination reveal to us the nature and mystery of ordained priesthood. These actions and gestures are not merely symbolic, but they actually confer and bring about the ontological change that takes place in the newly-ordained priest. In our Catholic sacramental theology, this means that this sacrament configures the recipient to Christ by a special grace of the Holy Spirit, so that he may serve as Christ s instrument for his Church. By ordination, one is enabled to act as a representative of Christ, Head of the Church, in his triple office of priest, prophet, and king (Catechism of the Catholic Church [CCC], #1581). We think about what these actions and gestures mean: being called forth by name from among the people; the promises of prayer, service, and obedience made to the bishop; lying prostrate on the floor, which is an LIVING THE LITURGY Fr. David J. Dohogne outward expression of self-surrender and laying down one s life for others as Jesus willingly and lovingly laid His Body on the Cross for us; the Laying on of Hands by the bishop and priests and the Prayer of Ordination; the clothing with the priestly vestments of the stole and chasuble which is a sign for the priest to be a shepherd to others; the newly-ordained having the palms of his hands anointed with Sacred Chrism; being presented with the gifts of bread and wine reminding the priest of the offering of these gifts to God on behalf of His People; and finally the Greeting of Peace exchanged by the newly-ordained priest with those who also live and share in the gift of ordained priesthood. God has always provided shepherds for His People, even since the earliest days in which the tribe of Levi was set apart by God for the service of the sanctuary and to serve as priests to His People. While Christ invited all people to follow Him, He selected the Twelve Apostles for special service and the role of leadership to those who would give their lives to Him. Through ordination, a priest is set apart. This doesn t exactly make him better than others, but it does make him unique and different. There seems to be a growing movement today, even within the Church, to diminish and downplay the role and vocation of the priest in the life of the Church. For some, the priesthood is seen merely as a function with no special purpose rather than an authentic vocation from God. This notion perhaps stems from a misguided idea of equality for all basically that everyone and everything is equal. Through ordination, the priest becomes an alter Christus (another Christ). In everything he does, especially in the Sacred Liturgy, the priest is acting in persona Christi (in the person of Christ). In many ways, we have somehow blurred the lines between the ordained sacramental priesthood and the common priesthood of the faithful, which is shared by all who are baptized. While the ministry of both the lay faithful and the ordained are directed toward the same purpose and complement each other, they are different and certainly not in opposition to each other. The nature and purpose of the ordained priesthood is most uniquely revealed to us in the sacraments, especially in the Holy Eucharist. While the liturgical ministries of the lay faithful are important in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist, they are not equal to or more important than the action of the priest. I recently read an article about priests in parishes and situations whose role is seen merely as functional rather than vocational and the struggles they experience in establishing and finding their identity, role, and meaning in who they are as a priest, asking the question: What is my purpose and calling? The Catechism reminds us that the whole Church is a priestly people. But for the good of this common priesthood, there exists another participation in the mission of Christ: the ministry conferred by the Sacrament of Holy Orders, where the task is to serve in the name and in the person of Christ the Head in the midst of the community. (CCC #1591). In a spirit of love and gratitude, let us offer our prayers and support to those called and chosen by God to serve as His holy priests. May God bless you all! TM

3 September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN NEWS/COLUMN The Mirror 3 ON THE WAY Bp.-designate James V. Johnston First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you Rom 1:8 On Tue., Sept. 15, 2015, it was publicly announced in Rome, and here in Missouri, that Pope Francis has appointed me to be the next Bishop of God s mysterious designs Kansas City St. Joseph. My installation there will take place on Nov. 4, 2015, the feast of St. Charles Borromeo. It has been difficult to fully describe the mixture of thoughts and emotions that such an event brings about in one s life. I attempted to put it into words with the brief statement Catholic Radio phone-a-thon ALREADY FUNDRAISING Not yet even installed in the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, Bp.-designate James V. Johnston participated with Abp. Joseph Naumann in a Catholic Radio phone-a-thon on Tue., Sept. 15. Greeting the public and sharing stories of the day and his life, Bp.-designate Johnston and Abp. Naumann raised $7,000 for Catholic Radio during the segment. (Photo by Leslie A. Eidson) at the Press Conference in Kansas City. I am humbled that Pope Francis would appoint me to take on this new responsibility. I look forward to serving the People of God in northwest Missouri. I am also moved by the prospect of no longer seeing so many of you, sharing faith and life with you, worshiping with you, walking the path of discipleship with you. My life has been changed, and for the better, from having been your bishop these past seven and one-half years. As we make our way though this life, we are reminded, often abruptly, that we cannot ever absolutely plan our lives. These Divine interruptions often startle us, but they are part of God s mysterious designs in which we are led by God. Our lives get interwoven with new friends, and we are changed. Ultimately, God s actions in our lives are directed toward our salvation and the salvation of others. I had similar feelings and thoughts when I was called to serve you nearly eight years ago, and looking back, I am very grateful. I will have a few weeks before I leave for this new appointment. I look forward to greeting many of you personally before I go, but I realize that may not be possible. I assure you of my love and prayers and my continued prayers for this great diocese. TM Annual NCCW convention held in Orlando Orlando, FL Bp.-designate James V. Johnston celebrated the opening Mass for the National Council of Catholic Women (NCCW) at their annual convention in Orlando, FL, Sept. 10, along with Bp. Greg Parkes of Pensacola- Tallahassee. The liturgy was held in the Basilica of Mary, Queen of the Universe and launched the 95th annual gathering of the NCCW held Sept The theme of the 2015 convention was Be the Voice of Catholic Women: Sowers of Hope. Over 600 women attended the annual gathering of women leaders from Catholic women s organizations in parishes and dioceses throughout the US. Women representing hundreds of thousands of Catholic women nationwide gathered these days for leadership development, spiritual renewal, and fellowship. Bp.-designate Johnston is the US Conference of Catholic Bishops Episcopal Liaison to the National Council of Catholic Women. TM 95TH NCCW CONVENTION Some of the contingent from the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau posed for a photo during the 95th annual convention of National Council of Catholic Women. Pictured were: (row one): Joyce Luten, Diocesan Council of Catholic Women (DCCW) president; Rita Leukenotte, DCCW vice-president; Treva Boulch, DCCW s ecretary; Mary Rowley, NCCW province d irector ; (second row ) : B p.-designate James V. Johnston, Jr.; Alice McIntosh, President, Parish Council of Catholic Women, St. Catherine of Siena Parish, Piedmont, MO ; Fr. Jim Unterreiner, DCCW s piritual a dvisor ; (third row): Doris Eftink, DCCW s pirituality chair; Polly Mungle, DCCW s ervice c hair. (Submitted photo) Public calendar Tue. Sept. 22- Papal Visit and World Mon., Sept. 28 Meeting of the Families Philadelphia, PA, and Washington, DC Tue., Sept. 29 Priests Committee meeting, Mountain View, MO Wed., Sept. 30 Mass and lunch with 12-noon Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri staffers; 4 p.m. Business meeting with Province Director for the National Conference of Catholic Women Thu., Oct. 1 Vespers, Year of 7 p.m. Consecrated Life celebration with consecrated women and men of our Diocese, St. Agnes Cathedral, Springfield Fri., Oct. 2 Board meeting, Missouri Catholic Conference, Jefferson City, MO Masses of Thanksgiving for Bishop-designate Johnston With the announcement of his appointment as the new Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, plans are underway to have a wonderful send-off for Bp.-designate James V. Johnston. Everyone is welcome to attend one of two Masses: Mon., Oct. 12, 7 p.m. St. Vincent de Paul Church, Cape Girardeau Tue., Oct. 20, 7 p.m. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church, Springfield Receptions will follow both liturgies, allowing people to greet and thank Bp.-designate Johnston for his time here as our Shepherd.

4 4 The Mirror September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN NEWS /COLUMN TWENTY SOMETHING Christina Capecchi Waiting for a husband, keeping the faith Arleen Spenceley can t remember the last time she went on a date. It must ve been 2014, she says without a trace of panic. Even though she s in the thick of wedding season and nearing her 30th birthday, the fact that she s still single doesn t seem to bother Arleen. She s not freaking out. She s not losing sleep. She s not pulling back-to-back novenas for a husband. When she prays, she can hardly bring herself to ask God for anything, she feels so richly, wildly blessed. Arleen Spenceley, the girl with the bouncy hair and bouncy name, the cradle Catholic from Tampa, FL, with the large Twitter following, has much to be thankful for: a dynamic journalism career, an award-winning book, a bustling speaking schedule, friends who are like family and family who are friends. God has given me so many awesome opportunities, she said. In the summer of 2009, back when Arleen was 23, the spirited brunette made a gutsy decision: She outed herself as a virgin, writing in Florida s biggest newspaper, the Tampa Bay Times, about her faith-based reasons for saving herself for marriage. It was a terrifying move, one that she tried to back out of at the last minute, but her editor pushed for. And ultimately, her convictions compelled her to act. There came a point where I decided, If I don t do this, nobody else will. Because I know the truth. I know chastity is what equips us to love authentically. Half an hour after the column was published, Arleen s phone began ringing. The calls, s, and Tweets continued pouring in for two years. Arleen realized she had hit a nerve. She had not just written a column; she had inadvertently launched a chastity campaign and rendered herself its poster child. With grace and humility, she has embraced that mission, letting it carry her on a series of adventures she never anticipated: explaining her mystifying virginity to National Public Radio, coping with cruel comments from readers, blogging voraciously at ArleenSpenceley. com, writing her 2014 book Chastity is for Lovers: Single, Happy, and (Still) a Virgin and reporting on celibate singles. (A researcher at the National Center for Health Statistics admitted that she hadn t bothered gathering data on the 2 to 3 percent of Americans ages 25 to 44 who are virgins. It s just so rare, she told Arleen. I don t even know what their prognosis would be. ) Making the case for chastity which, Arleen is quick to clarify, is the church s call to all Catholics, married and single alike feels important. I consider this a privilege and also a responsibility, she said. I know virgins exist who feel alone, and I want them to know they re not. I know people are saving sex from now on who aren t sure it s possible, and I want them to know it is. A national speaking campaign would seem like a sure-fire way to change Arleen s single status, introducing her to like-minded men and aspiring grandmas. No, she says, that simply isn t the case. The men aren t lining up. Occasionally Arleen throws herself a pity party or lets herself dabble on wedding-themed Pinterest boards. But even when her heart aches, she s pretty good about keeping her head on straight. When we feel unhappy, she writes in her book, is it because we re single or is it because of what we say to ourselves about being single? For now, she s working on herself managing her time and her messes, practicing forms of sacrifice, whether it s forgoing sugar or Facebook for a year. She wants to be her very best at the ultimate vocation love which is something she can imagine for tomorrow and live out today. TM Christina Capecchi is a freelance writer from Inver Grove Heights, MN, and the editor of SisterStory.org. Youth delve into Franciscan spirituality at NDHS Franciscan Leadership Class empowers youth with mission of discipleship Cape Girardeau We have been called to heal wounds, to unite what has fallen apart, and to bring home those who have lost their way. St. Francis of Assisi These words of St. Francis of Assisi are the inspiration for a new program at Notre Dame Regional High School, Cape Girardeau. Principal Br. David Migliorino, OSF, and Assistant Principal Tim Garner recognized a need to transform the Campus Ministry program at the high school, thus establishing the Franciscan Leadership Class. I truly believe that this new venture has been inspired by God, said Br. Migliorino, OSF, himself a consecrated Franciscan religious. He is calling our students to become like the Man from Assisi as we build our Church, school, and society with living stones. The new program has a two-fold purpose: to assist in planning and implementing liturgies, retreats, and prayer services; as well as to empower our young adults to evangelize and spread their faith. All of this is done under the inspiration, teachings, and philosophy of St. Francis of Assisi. Faculty nominated over 200 sophomores, juniors, and seniors for the program, with close to 150 students accepting the call. Just as Jesus called the Apostles, we followed his example and called students to become apostles in our school and in the world, said Danny Strohmeyer, Theology Department Chair. Current freshmen will be nominated for participation in the program at the end of first semester. The new class seeks students who have exemplified leadership in some capacity in the school or church community. The program kicked off the year with a retreat on Aug. 11, the feast of St. Clare of Assisi. One hundred twenty students participated in team-building activities and benefitted by a reflection from Br. Migliorino on Franciscan spirituality. The day closed with Mass. The retreat really helped me get closer to the other people in the program, said Allie Ziegler, a junior, and made me excited for the upcoming events this year. TM FRANCISCAN LEADERSHIP CLASS Brother David Migliorino, OSF, spoke on Franciscan spirituality during a retreat Aug. 11 with students on the feast of St. Clare of Assisi. The Franciscan Leadership Class has been established at Notre Dame Regional High School, Cape Girardeau. (Submitted photo) The Mirror: Newspaper of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau USPS Publication Publisher: Bishop-designate James V. Johnston, Jr. Editor: Leslie A. Eidson Production: Glenn Eckl Circulation/Advertising: Angie Toben, atoben@dioscg.org Published every other week except the last week in December at 601 S. Jefferson, Springfield, MO Address all communications to 601 S. Jefferson, Springfield, MO ; Telephone (417) ; FAX (417) ; atoben@dioscg.org POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Mirror, 601 S. Jefferson, Springfield, MO When giving change of address, state both old and new address, also old and new parish. Subscription: $14 per year. Periodicals postage paid at Springfield, MO, and additional mailing offices. Vol. LI No. 11 Sept. 18, 2015 Single copy price, $0.50 Copyright 2015, The Mirror, CNS, CNA, USCCB, The Vatican, as noted. The Mirror OnLine: Diocese of Springfield-Cape

5 DIOCESAN NEWS September 18, 2015 The Mirror 5 Benton St. Denis Parish will hold a dinner, Sun., Oct. 11, 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m., in the parish hall. The all-you-can-eat buffet will include chicken and dumplings, kettle beef, chicken and dressing, sweet potatoes, buttered potatoes, green beans, slaw, and dessert. Adults: $9; children (ages six-12): $5; children (ages five and under): free. Carry-outs available for $9. For more information, call (573) Bolivar Sacred Heart Parish Council of Catholic Women (PCCW) will host a Fall Festival, Sat., Oct. 3, in McKenna Hall, 8 a.m.-3 p.m. There will be a variety of vendors, with handmade crafts, and a bake sale booth. For more information, call Taylor, (417) , or the parish office, (417) Branson Our Lady of the Lake Parish will hold an Arts and Crafts Festival, Fri.-Sat., Oct. 9-10, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sun., Oct. 11, 9 a.m.-2 p.m., on the parish grounds (inside and outdoor booths). There will be unique gifts, handcrafted items, and one-of-a-kind special occasion gifts. Food and drinks will be available for purchase, including authentic Mexican dishes, Sunday only, at 9 a.m. For more information, contact Joyce Arnold, (417) , ext. 103, or info@ollbranson.com; or Janet Bostnick, (417) Clyde, MO The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration will host a Come and See Weekend, Fri., Oct. 9, 5 p.m.-sun., Oct. 11, 12- noon. Those interested in learning more about a religious vocation will join the Sisters for prayer, recreation, meals, and reflection. There is no cost to attend. For more information, contact Sr. Ruth Elaine Starman at vocation@ benedictinesisters.org. Kimberling City Our Lady of the Cove Parish Council of Catholic Women will hold a Fall Garage Sale, Fri., Oct. 9, 8 a.m.-2 p.m., and Sat., Oct. 10, 8 a.m. to 12-noon, on the parish grounds, rain or shine. Saturday will be $3 brown bag sale. This is a large garage sale with something for everyone. For more information, contact Debbie Kraft, (816) Kimberling City Our Lady of the Cove Catholic Church will host a parish mission, Sun.- Tue., Oct , 6:30-8 p.m. The speaker is Michael Cumbie. From the deep South, steeped in Evangelical fundamentalist traditions, Cumbie underwent a dramatic conversion to Catholicism. He now travels the nation teaching and preaching the very truths he once despised. For more information, contact the parish office, (417) Leopold St. Anthony Parish will hold a Fall Dinner, Sun., Oct. 11, 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m., in the parish hall. Menu includes kettle beef, dumplings, dressing, all the trimmings, drinks, and dessert. Adults: $9; children: (ages six- 12): $4; children (ages five and under): free. For more information, call (573) St. Louis, MO Students for Life of America will host Saint Louis Leadership Summit, Sat., Oct. 3, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m., Lee Lecture Hall, St. Louis University. Bagels and coffee at 9:30 a.m.; Summit begins at 10 a.m. Hear from experts on the most effective pro-life activism that is changing the culture on campuses across the country. Personalized, hands-on training and preparation will leave you confident in your goals and activities, and better equipped to change your campuses for Life. Cost: $15. To register, visit regconfsl15. Scott City St. Joseph Home and School will host its 25th Annual Dinner Auction, Sat., Oct. 17. This year s theme is A Night at the Oscars. Doors open at 5 p.m.; meals served at 6 p.m. Tickets: $30/person. Menu includes choice of steak or chicken with potato casserole, green beans, salad, rolls, dessert, and drinks. For more information or to buy tickets, call Kim, (573) ; Michael, (573) ; or Jordan, (573) Springfield The Secular Franciscan group will meet Sat., Sept. 26, beginning with lunch at noon (optional), and then at 1 p.m. in the day chapel at Holy Trinity. Contact for new inquirers is Steve Moncher, stevemoncher@ gmail.com, or call (417) Springfield St. Joseph Parish Quilters will host a Quilted and Hand-Sewn Sale, Sat., Sept. 26, 1-6 p.m., in the parish hall. There will be an array of quilts, blankets, baby items, and other hand-sewn articles for sale. Proceeds help support the parish food pantry, Save Our Structures (SOS), and St. Joseph Catholic Academy. For more information, contact Shirley Baum at (417) Springfield St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish Council of Catholic Women (PCCW) will hold a Fall Bazaar, Sat., Nov. 7, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and Sun., Nov. 8, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Lunch available for purchase. There will be a bake sale, 45 craft vendors, including painted glass and wood, pottery, jewelry, and many handmade crafts. For more information, contact Annie Feelove, (417) Springfield St. Elizabeth Ann Seton will hold a Cherub Mass, Wed., Oct. 14, 6 p.m. in the church, in celebration of the lives of all children who have died. There will be a reception following Mass with light refreshments. For more information, contact Barbara Carey, lvswolves47@ hotmail.com. Springfield Immaculate Conception Parish will hold a Fashion Show, Thu., Nov. 19, at the Old Glass Place! Tickets: $45/person, or $350/table of eight, and are available for purchase on the Immaculate Conception Websitenews page, or in the school office. There will be trendy local boutiques, and uniquely wonderful food from Metropolitan Farmer. For more information, find the I.C. Fashion Show on Facebook, or call Gabrielle Martin, (417) Look! Ham & Bean Dinner! Where? Holy Trinity White or Pinto Beans, Corn bread, Cake, Slaw, Coffee, Ice Tea, Kooaid Church, Aurora When? Sun., Oct. 4; carry-outs begin at 10 a.m.; Dine in 10:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.; Drive-thru service available How much? $5 advance; $6 at door; Kids under 8 eat free! 60 percent of proceeds goes to the Veterans Memorial at Maple Park Cemetery, Aurora Schedule The next safe environment in-service opportunities will be held at the following locations: Sun., Sept. 27 1:30-4:30 p.m....st. Peter, Joplin Sat., Oct :30-3:30 p.m....holy Trinity, Springfield Sun., Oct p.m....our Lady of the Lake, Branson Tue., Oct p.m....st. Francis de Sales, Lebanon Sat., Oct a.m.-1 p.m....st. Vincent de Paul, Cape Girardeau Thu., Nov p.m....guardian Angel, Oran Tue., Dec noon-3 p.m....the Catholic Center (Pallotti), Springfield Mon., Dec. 14 5:30-8:30 p.m....our Lady of the Lake, Branson Preregistration is necessary; go to and click on registration on the left or call your parish/school office for assistance; or call Ken Pesek at The Catholic Center, (417) ; or him at kenpesek@dioscg.org. Participants must be present for the entire training. Training sessions are for adults only. Schedules may be found on the diocesan events calendar at or at

6 6 The Mirror September 18, 2015 Bishop James V. Johnston to head Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph From Page 1 Diocese of Knoxville on June 9, He earned a Licentiate in Canon Law Catholic. Bp.-designate Johnston s from the Catholic University of America home Diocese of Knoxville in Tennessee is around three percent Catholic and approximately 14,000 square miles. Similar to the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau, the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph has two cathedrals: The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Kansas City, MO, and the Cathedral of St. Joseph, in St. Joseph, MO. in In Knoxville, Bp.-designate Johnston served in parish ministry and as Chancellor and Moderator of the Curia. In 2005, he and two other priests were awarded the Citizens Award for Bravery by the US Department of the Interior for helping to save a family in danger of plunging over a waterfall in Glacier National Park. Since his episcopal ordination, Catholic Charities of Southern Missouri Biography Bp.-designate Johnston was has been established, offering aid to thousands across the southern born on Oct. 16, 1959, in Knoxville, TN. He attended Catholic elementary and secondary school and in 1982 earned a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. Bp.-designate Johnston left a career in engineering in 1985 in order to pursue a call to the priesthood. He attended St. Meinrad School of Theology in Indiana, obtained his Master of Divinity Degree there in 1990, and was ordained a priest for the portion of Missouri and beyond, including many mothers and babies at LifeHouse Crisis Maternity Home in Springfield. In 2011, Trinity Hills Catholic Worker House and Farm was instituted for prayer, service, and formation. Bp.-designate Johnston endeavored a historical first in August of 2014: After a year-long envisioning process, he traveled some 2,300 miles in 17 days to visit each parish and mission church in the diocese establishing its new vision, priorities, DIOCESAN NEWS and goals: One Church, East to West: Loving Jesus, Serving Jesus, Sharing Jesus. At the time of his episcopal ordination and installation as Bishop, the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau had six men in studies and formation for the priesthood. With a deliberate and a pro-active approach, the Diocese currently has 16 men discerning a call to the priesthood at Diocesan College of Consultors Fr. David Dohogne four seminaries in three states. Among his national commitments, Bp.-designate Johnston served on the US Conference of Catholic Bishops Committee on Child and Youth Protection and is currently Episcopal Liaison to the National Council of Catholic Women. Bp.-designate Johnston s Episcopal Motto is THE LOVE OF CHRIST URGES US ON. TM Fr. J. Friedel Fr. Hank Grodecki Diocesan Statistics for Kansas City-St. Joseph Diocese of St. Joseph Established March 3, 1868 Diocese of Kansas City Established September 10, 1880 REDESIGNATED Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, August 29, 1956 Comprises the 27 Counties in the State of Missouri of: Andrew, Atchison, Bates, Buchanan, Caldwell, Carroll, Cass, Clay, Clinton, Daviess, DeKalb, Gentry, Grundy, Harrison, Henry, Holt, Jackson, Johnson, Lafayette, Livingston, Mercer, Nodaway, Platte, Ray, St. Clair, Vernon, and Worth. Square Miles: 15,429 Total Population: 1,530,829 Catholic Population: 125,854 Parishes: 88 Missions: 10 Active Diocesan Priests: 79 Retired Diocesan Priests: 33 Permanent Deacons: 66 Religious Brothers: 23 Religious Sisters: 205 Seminarians: 35 Colleges and Universities: 2 Students: 4,909 Diocesan High Schools: 3 Students: 930 Private High Schools: 4 Students: 2,472 Diocesan Elementary Schools: 25 Students: 6,585 Private Elementary Schools: 1 Students: 285 Catechesis/Religious Education Students: 7,552 Teachers: 1,286 Fr. David Hulshof Fr. Tom Kiefer Msgr. Thomas Reidy Fr. Allan Saunders Statement to the Diocese from Bp. James V. Johnston September 15, 2015 Dear Friends, This morning in Rome, Pope Francis announced that he has appointed me to be the next bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. I have accepted his appointment, trusting in the love of Jesus Christ and God s mysterious providence. In doing so, I cannot deny my sadness at the prospect of departing the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau. These seven and one-half years as your bishop have been some of the happiest of my life. I love all of you and will always love this great diocese. My installation in Kansas City is set for November 4, I will serve as the diocesan administrator here, until that date, after which a diocesan Administrator will be elected by the diocesan college of consultors. None of us can totally plan out our lives. I trust in God s plans for me and the Church and am confident that all things work together for the good for those that love God (Rom 8:28). I am eager to serve the people of northwest Missouri as best I can as their new shepherd. I ask you to pray for me, and for the Dioceses of Springfield-Cape Girardeau and Kansas City-St. Joseph. Sincerely yours in Christ, The Most Rev. James V. Johnston, Jr.

7 September 18, 2015 WORLD MEETING OF FAMILIES/PAPAL VISIT The Mirror 7 Papal parenting guide: Francis delivers how-to for families By Carol Glatz Vatican City Love is our mission. The family fully alive T he mission of the Christian family, today as yesterday, is that of proclaiming to the world, by the power of the Sacrament of marriage, the love of God. From this very proclamation, a living family is born and built, one which sets the hearth of love at the center of its human and spiritual dynamism. Afamily, by the grace of the Lord, lives to the full its vocation and mission glorifies Him. The values and virtues of the family, its essential truths, are the strengths on which the family nucleus rests and cannot be called into question. We are called, rather, to review our own life-style which is always exposed to the risk of being contaminated by a worldly mentality individualist, consumerist, hedonist and to rediscover ever again the royal road, in order to live and proclaim the grandeur and beauty of marriage and the joy of being and making a family. We invite people to fulfill in their commitment to proclaim the Gospel of marriage and of the family and to experience the pastoral proposals in the social and cultural context in which we live. The challenges of this context should stimulate us to enlarge the space afforded to faithful love open to life, to communion, to mercy, to sharing, and to solidarity. I urge all married couples, therefore, priests and parish communities, as well as movements and associations to let themselves be led by the Word of God, on which rests the foundation of the holy edifice of the family, the domestic Church and the family of God (cf. Lumen Gentium, nn. 6 and 11). I express my appreciation to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia for its generous availability and organizational commitment put at the service of the universal Church and of families across the different continents. I ask the Lord to reward even now this beloved particular Church with abundant heavenly graces. Meanwhile I invoke the intercession of the Virgin of Guadalupe and of Aparecida. From my heart I ask you to please pray for me. Excerpted from Papal Message for the World Meeting of the Families in Philadelphia 2015 The Gospel of Marriage, Pope Francis, Dec. 9, 2014 Pope Francis knows the family is made up of real people living in the real world, which is why he often gives downto-earth advice. The Catholic Church has long taught that the family is a school of humanity the first and best place to learn about love and respect. In fact, a healthy society relies on citizens who learn love, responsibility, loyalty, acceptance of others, and solidarity from their family relationships, Pope Francis has said. The pope, a former teacher, has, in a way, been handing today s families detailed lesson plans, offering guidance in what actually needs to be done. The world Synod of Bishops on the family, which the pope has convoked for October, also is expected to deliver concrete guidelines for the pastoral care of the family and its members. By devoting his general audience talks to the family since last December, as well as making the family a key topic of other speeches and homilies, Pope Francis has been offering concrete and, at times, colorful advice, which will give people gathering for the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia in September plenty of material to parse through. The pope s approach starts from the bottom up. He doesn t begin with a textbook concept or picture-perfect ideal everyone needs to magically become an exact replica of. The family is a real institution made up of very human, and therefore, limited members who need real help. With examples from his own life and the real lives of others, he points to what is happening on the ground and then builds a pastoral plan what would God s response be to this reality. For example, the Christian response to the all-too-typical problem of anger or misunderstanding is to choose the path of dialogue, which requires eating lots of tart humble pie, he said in a homily in January Other similarly practical advice he has given couples: play with your kids more, stop the swearing, be more affectionate, and always say, Please, May I, and Thank you. Moms and dads must lead the way, he says;they are the most influential role models for their kids. Kissing in front of the children is a beautiful witness, he told parents in June Children watch their parents carefully and when they see that dad and mom ADVICE FOR FAMILIES Pope Francis has spent the past year talking on the role of family in society for the September World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia and synod in October. (CNS photo/paul Haring) love each other, the children grow in that climate of love, happiness and security. He has told youngsters to go out, discover the world and build everything together, do everything with love, everything is possible, and faith is an event always to be proclaimed. Talk to your best friend, Jesus, every day, he told children in December 2014, and be apostles of peace and serenity at home and at school. Remind your parents, brothers and sisters, and peers that it is beautiful to love one another and that misunderstandings can be overcome, because when we are united with Jesus everything is possible, he said. Giving advice to grandparents, the pope has said that families and kids need their prayers, wisdom, and gifts to give them the encouragement, hope, and faith they often lack in today s frenetic world. We older people can remind ambitious young people that a life without love is barren. We can tell fearful young people that worrying about the future can be overcome. We can teach young people who are in love with themselves too much that there is more joy in giving than receiving, he told his fellow seniors in March The pope s dream is that families challenge today s throwaway culture with the overflowing joy of a new embrace between young and old people. Key to drawing the needed strength and inspiration is reading the Gospel, prayer, confession, Communion, and fellowship with the poor, he said in May Imagine how much our world would change if each one of us began right here and now and seriously took care of ourselves and generously took care of our relationship with God and our neighbor, he told Vatican employees and their families before Christmas last year. The Holy Family is still the perennial role model for families, the pope has said. Mothers can mirror the same love and attention Mary had for her son, and fathers can exemplify the patience and understanding of Joseph who did everything to support and protect his family. Real secret: Jesus The real secret, he said, is just to welcome Jesus, listen to him, speak to him, take care of him, protect him, and grow with him like Mary and Joseph did, and that is how the world will become better. Pope Francis knows families cannot do it on their own. He also insists policymakers and leaders devise and support policies that build up families and neutralize their biggest threats: war, poverty, consumerism, and economic policies that promote the worship of money and power. Justice for women must be promoted since, in the West, they face discrimination in the workplace and often are forced to choose between family and job obligations, the pope has said. Also, women too often face violence in their lives as fiancees, wives, mothers, sisters, and grandmothers and, in developing countries, women bear the heaviest burden by having to walk miles to collect water, often risk dying in childbirth, and face kidnapping, See Parenting Guide / 8

8 8 The Mirror September 18, 2015 WORLD MEETING OF FAMILIES/PAPAL VISIT Pope Francis goes to Washington By Matt Hadro Washington DC The setting for Pope Francis address to Congress in September recently grew by giant proportions as the public will be able to watch the telecast from outside the US Capitol building. Pope Francis also wishes to make a brief appearance on the West Front of the Capitol building after he addresses a joint meeting of Congress on Sept. 24. The speech will be broadcast live to the public outside the West Front of the US Capitol building, and an inauguration-like setting on the steps of the Capitol is planned for the event, the Washington Post reported. The outdoor telecast will be a ticketed event open to the public. Tickets will be managed by the Members of Congress and Officers of the US House of Representatives, House Speaker Boehner s office confirmed. Speaker Boehner s office called the papal visit to Capitol Hill unprecedented and a historic moment for the country. We look forward to welcoming Pope Francis and Americans from all walks of life to our Capitol on Sept. 24, Speaker Boehner s office said. The address to Congress comes in the middle of Pope Francis whirlwind tour of Washington, DC from the evening of Sept,. 22 until Sept. 24. On the morning of Sept. 23, he will visit President Obama at the White House with a welcoming ceremony for him on the South Lawn. Then he will meet with the US Catholic bishops at St. Matthew Cathedral in a prayer service. Later in the afternoon at 4:15 Let us show our appreciation for the many years of dedicated service these consecrated men and women have provided our diocese by attending one of two events planned for the Year of Consecrated Life: Vespers (evening prayer of the Church) will be Thu., Oct. 1, 7 p.m., in St. Agnes Cathedral, Springfield Thu., Oct. 15, 7 p.m., in St. Mary Cathedral, Cape Girardeau Receptions will follow both events ALL ARE WELCOME! PAPAL VISIT Pope Francis will spend Sept , 2015, in the US. p.m., he will celebrate the canonization Mass of Bl. Junipero Serra at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. On the morning of Sept. 24, Pope Francis will address a joint meeting of Congress at 9:20 a.m. He will then visit St. Patrick Catholic Church in downtown Washington, DC and appear at Catholic Charities, DC for their weekly St. Maria s Meals program for the homeless, before he departs DC for New York City, followed by Philadelphia for the World Meeting of Families. Speaker Boehner first extended the invite to Pope Francis in March of The Vatican accepted the invitation in February. It is with reverence and admiration that I have invited Pope Francis, as head of state of the Holy See and the first Pope to hail from the Americas, to address a joint meeting of Papal parenting guide From Page 7 rape, and forced marriages, he said in May Culture needs a humanizing re-haul, too, he said, to ease the pressure on couples to not be afraid of the lifelong commitment of marriage and to see children as a blessing, not a burden. Pope Francis has been especially vocal about resisting current trends that seek to legitimize same-sex unions, contraception, and fluid notions of gender. He warned families in the Philippines against this ideological colonization that tries to destroy the family and takes away human identity and dignity, and he repeatedly has reaffirmed Church teaching that marriage is a lifelong bond (Credit: Daniel Ibanez/CNA) the United States Congress, Speaker Boehner stated in a formal invitation. Both Boehner and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) expressed their anticipation of the papal visit. Pope Francis has renewed the faith of Catholics worldwide and inspired a new generation of people, regardless of their religious affiliation, to be instruments of peace. In the spirit of the namesake of San Francisco, St. Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis universal message of love and compassion speaks to millions around the world, Rep. Pelosi stated. In a time of global upheaval, the Holy Father s message of compassion and human dignity has moved people of all faiths and backgrounds. His teachings, prayers, and very example bring us back to the blessings of simple things and our obligations to one another, Speaker Boehner stated. CNA between a man and a woman. Given the many challenges both within society and within the walls of the family home Pope Francis regularly praises the many men and women who are fighting the good fight every day. Leaders and communities should kneel before these families, who are a true school of humanity, who are saving society from barbarity by staying together and safeguarding their bonds amidst difficult conditions, even in poverty and crisis, he has said. Regular men and women who care for their infirm loved ones, miss a night of sleep, and still roll into work the next day are the hidden heroes and the hidden saints of today, he said. CNS

9 WORLD MEETING OF FAMILIES/PAPAL VISIT September 18, 2015 The Mirror 9 Pope s action-packed trip to Cuba, US Vatican City Pope Francis itinerary while in Cuba and the US confirms several highly anticipated events including a special UN Summit and the canonization of Bl. Junipero Serra. He is also set to meet with groups he frequently prioritizes: homeless, prisoners, and migrants. The Vatican recently issued a final schedule for Pope Francis upcoming 10-day trip to both Cuba and the United States of America. The schedule confirms that he will visit the small Caribbean Island Sept , and will then travel to the US Sept , before landing in Rome the morning of the 28th. Pope Francis recently played a key role in helping thaw icy relations between the two countries, which after more than 50 years of broken ties agreed in December to restore diplomatic relations. After leaving from Rome s Fiumicino airport the morning of Sat., Sept. 19, Pope Francis will land in Havana that evening, where he will receive an official welcome. The next morning he will meet with Cuban president Raul Castro, before heading to Vespers with priests, religious, and seminarians that evening. He will travel to Holguín Sept. 21, where he will celebrate Mass and bless the city before flying to Santiago that evening. He departs from Santiago at 12:30 p.m. on the 22nd, and is scheduled to land in Washington DC at 4 p.m. local time. While in the US Pope Francis is scheduled to participate in several major events, including the canonization of Bl. Junípero Serra, considered a founding father of California, and meetings with the US Congress as well as a special summit at the headquarters of the UN in New York. Wasting no time, Pope Francis will canonize Bl. Junípero Serra at Washington DC s National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception the day after he lands. The next morning at 9:20, he will be the first religious leader to address a joint meeting of Congress, according to congressional historians. Francis will later meet with homeless before heading to New York. Once in New York, the Pope will address the UN Special Summit on Sustainable Development the morning of Sept. 25. He will then participate in an interreligious encounter at the Ground Zero memorial, where Benedict XVI also stopped during his visit in Francis will conclude the day by meeting with child and family migrants in Harlem, and then celebrating Mass in Madison Square Garden. He leaves for Philadelphia the next morning, where he is set to participate in the World Meeting of Families. After meeting with bishops, priests, and religious the morning of the 26th, the Pope will participate in an encounter for Religious Freedom with the Hispanic community and other immigrants in Philadelphia s Independence Mall. That evening he will attend a prayer vigil for the World PAPAL PILGRIMAGE Two buses filled with pilgrims from the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau are heading to Philadelphia to attend the papal Mass during the World Meeting of Families. Pictured are diocesan Director of Family Ministries and Coordinator of Youth Ministry Troy Casteel and Katie Newton, from the offices of Family Ministries, Youth Ministry, and Worship, both of whom will take as many photos as possible with Catholic Extension s Flat Francis to share with the diocese. (Photo by Angie Toben) Organizers for meeting of families expect 1.5 million for papal Mass Meeting of Families. On his final day in the US Pope Francis will meet with bishops present for the family gathering as well as prisoners in Philadelphia s Curran- Fromhold correctional facility. After celebrating Mass that afternoon the Pope will greet the organizers, volunteers, and benefactors of his trip before departing for Rome. He is scheduled to land around 10 a.m. Sept. 28. Please see below for the full schedule of the Pope s visit: Sat., Sept. 19, :15 a.m. Departure by plane from Rome s Fiumicino airport for Havana 4 p.m. Arrival at the International José Marti airport of Havana 4:05 p.m. Welcoming ceremony at airport of Havana Sun., Sept. 20, a.m. Holy Mass in the Plaza de la Revolución in Havana 4 p.m. Courtesy visit to the president of the State Council and the Council of Ministries in the Palacio de la Revolución in Havana 5:15 p.m. Celebration of Vespers with priests, religious, and seminarians in the Cathedral of Havana 6:30 p.m. Greeting to the youth in the Padre Félix Varela Cultural Center in Havana Mon., Sept. 21, a.m. Departure by plane for Holguín 9:20 a.m. Arrival at the International Arrivo Frank Pais airport of Holguín 10:30 a.m. Holy Mass in the Plaza de la Revolución in Holguín 3:45 p.m. Blessing of the City from the Loma de la Cruz in Holguín 4:40 p.m. Departure by plane for Santiago 5:30 p.m. Arrival at the international Antonio Maceo airport in Santiago 7 p.m. Meeting with bishops in the San Basilio Magno seminary in Santiago 7:45 p.m. Prayer to Our Lady of Charity, with the bishops and the papal entourage, in the minor basilica of Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre sanctuary in Santiago Tue., Sept. 22, a.m. Holy Mass at the minor basilica of Virgen de la Caridad del Cobre sanctuary in Santiago 11 a.m. Meeting with families in the Our Lady of the Assumption Cathedral in Santiago and blessing of the city outside the cathedral 12:15 p.m. Farewell ceremony at the airport 12:30 p.m. Departure from Santiago for Washington DC 4 p.m. Arrival to Andrews Air Force Base in Washington, DC and official welcoming ceremony Wed., Sept. 23 (Washington, DC) 9:15 a.m. Welcome ceremony and meeting with President Obama at the White House 11 a.m. Papal Parade along the Ellipse and the National Mall (time approximate) 11:30 a.m. Midday Prayer with the bishops of the United States, St. Matthew Cathedral 4:15 p.m. Mass of Canonization of Junipero Serra, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Thu., Sept. 24 (Washington, DC, New York City) 9:20 a.m. Address to Joint Meeting of the US Congress 11:15 a.m. Visit to St. Patrick in the City and Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington 4 p.m. Depart from Joint Base Andrews 5 p.m. Arrival at John F. Kennedy International Airport 6:45 p.m. Evening Prayer (Vespers) at St. Patrick s Cathedral Fri., Sept. 25 (New York City) 8:30 a.m. Visit to the United Nations and Address to the United Nations General Assembly 11:30 a.m. Multi-religious service at 9/11 Memorial and Museum, World Trade Center 4 p.m. Visit to Our Lady Queen of Angels School, East Harlem 5 p.m. Procession through Central Park (time approximate) 6 p.m. Mass at Madison Square Garden Sat., Sept. 26 (New York City, Philadelphia) 8:40 a.m. Departure from John F. Kennedy International Airport 9:30 a.m. Arrival at Atlantic Aviation, Philadelphia 10:30 a.m. Mass at Cathedral Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul, Philadelphia 4:45 p.m. Visit to Independence Mall 7:30 p.m. Visit to the Festival of Families Benjamin Franklin Parkway Sun., Sept. 27 (Philadelphia) 9:15 a.m. Meeting with bishops at St. Martin s Chapel, St. Charles Borromeo Seminary 11 a.m. Visit to Curran-Fromhold Correctional Facility 4 p.m. Mass for the conclusion of the World Meeting of Families, Benjamin Franklin Parkway 7 p.m. Visit with organizers, volunteers and benefactors of the World Meeting of Families, Atlantic Aviation 8 p.m. Departure for Rome CNA

10 10 The Mirror September 18, 2015 WORLD MEETING OF FAMILIES/PAPAL VISIT New App offers exclusive coverage of papal visit Washington US Catholic Church leaders have launched the USA Catholic Church mobile App offering exclusive coverage of Pope Francis visit to the US Sept This is the most comprehensive virtual connection to the Catholic faith available, said Bp. Christopher J. Coyne, chairman-elect of the Committee on Communications of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, which created the App. We understand many people are looking for more ways to connect with the Church and incorporate Catholic living into their busy lives that s exactly what this App is designed to do, said Bp. Coyne, who heads the Diocese of Burlington, Vermont. The USA Catholic Church App, available for use in the US, is free to download at Google Play and Apple itunes in English and Spanish. It also can be downloaded for free via the site using a smartphone or tablet device. The announcement said the App is designed to draw millions of Catholics closer to their faith by providing access to Church information on all screens and devices. This is the only App that brings together information from all Catholic sources: parishes, dioceses, the US bishops and even the Vatican, it said. Not only will the App include religious news, daily Scripture readings and local parish content, it will feature exclusive, in-depth coverage of Pope Francis September visit to the United States. Content is available in both English and Spanish and lets users: Follow Pope Francis with the latest news and communications, including videos and photos. Access unique mobile features to view daily readings, make mobile donations, receive news alerts, get Vatican and Catholic News Service updates, including videos and photos. The App also will offer up-to-the minute coverage of Pope Francis as he addresses a joint meeting of Congress in Washington Sept. 24, the United Nations in New York Sept. 25, and the public Sept. 26 in Philadelphia at the Festival of Families during the World Meeting of Families. New parish and diocese functionality will be released for the App in October. Users can stay in contact with local dioceses and parishes through individual pages that will have Mass and confession times, homilies, events, blog posts, videos, and bulletins. Users also will be able to locate local parishes at home or when traveling with a Church Finder tool that works by location, city, state, or ZIP code. This is the first pope to address (both) Congress and the United Nations, Bp. Coyne said. It s truly a historic moment for the pope, and the USA Catholic Church App will provide news and coverage that people simply can t get anywhere else. People around the world will be able to follow live coverage of the papal trip via a video livestream at org/live. The USCCB also is launching social media profiles on Twitter and Instagram, Pope In US and Papa En USA, and will post updates to Facebook at: and In PAPLE VISIT APP The US Conference of Catholic Bishops has introduced its first mobile App, USA Catholic Church. (CNS) addition, #PopeInUS and #PapaEnUSA are hashtags being promoted with the visit. CNS Lessons from South America: How to greet and understand Pope Francis By Cindy Wooden Vatican City People make special preparations for welcoming a special guest, and watching what worked and did not work in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Paraguay may help people preparing for Pope Francis visit to the US. Some of the plans, however, will require common-sense adjustments, especially because the US Secret Service is likely to frown on certain behavior, like tossing things to the pope a phenomenon that occurs much more often with Pope Francis than with any previous pope. At the Vatican, the items tend to be soccer jerseys and scarves; in Ecuador, it was flower petals lots of them. Watching Pope Francis July 5-12 in South America it is clear: Pope Francis loves a crowd. He walks into events with little expression on his face, then lights up when he starts greeting, blessing, kissing, and hugging people. Persons with disabilities, the sick, and squirming babies come first. The Pope does not mind being embraced, but he does not like people running at him. As a nun in Our Lady of Peace Cathedral in La Paz rushed toward Pope Francis July 8, the Pope backed up and used both hands to gesture her to calm down and step back. In the end, she did get a blessing from him, though. At Mass, Pope Francis tends to be less animated. His focus and the focus he wants from the congregation is on Jesus present in the Eucharist. At large public Masses on papal trips, he sticks to the text of his prepared homilies, although he may look up and repeat phrases for emphasis. A meeting with priests, religious, and seminarians is a fixture on papal trips within Italy and abroad; in Cuba and the US, the meetings with take place during vespers services, Sept. 20 in Havana and Sept. 24 in New York. At vespers, like at Mass, Pope Francis tends to follow his prepared text. However, when the gathering takes place outside the context of formal liturgical prayer, he never follows the prepared text, and may only hit the main points of the prepared text. Pope Francis has said he needs The Pope came out to say good night; increasingly his tone was that of a dad who had already told his children five times to go to bed. a 40-minute rest after lunch and his official schedule always includes at least an hour of down time. However, like his free afternoons at the Vatican, the Pope often fills the breaks with private meetings with friends, acquaintances, or Jesuits. In fact, his trips abroad have always included private get-togethers with his Jesuit confreres. In Paraguay, he made an unscheduled visit to 30 of his confreres in Asuncion and then went next door to their Cristo Rey School to meet with more than 300 students from Jesuit schools. In South America, Pope Francis specifically asked that his meetings with the bishops be private, informal conversations similar to the way he handles the regular ad limina visits of bishops to the Vatican to report on the state of their dioceses. When he makes a formal speech to a group of bishops, his words can seem critical. But, in fact, the tone tends to be one of addressing his fellow bishops and his words are more of a collective examination of conscience than a scolding. Pope Francis speeches in general whether to presidents, civic and business leaders, young people, or even, for example, the prisoners in Bolivia acknowledge what is going well and being done right, then seeks to build on that. It s a combination of a pat on the back and a nudge forward. While Bolivia s Palmasola prison is notorious for its difficult conditions and while the Pope pleaded for judicial reform in the country, he also told the prisoners: The way you live together depends to some extent on yourselves. Suffering and deprivation can make us selfish of heart and lead to confrontation. Since the days of the globetrotting St. John Paul II, the nunciature stakeout has been a staple of papal trips. In fact, anywhere a pope sleeps, people will gather shouting and singing in the hopes that the Pope will make a special appearance. St. John Paul, retired Pope Benedict XVI, and Pope Francis have all obliged on occasion. Although in Quito, Ecuador, it seems that Pope Francis was inspired at least partially by the complaints of neighbors about the noise. The three nights Pope Francis stayed there, he came out to say good night. Increasingly his tone was that of a dad who had already told his children five times to go to bed. CNS

11 DIOCESAN NEWS September 18, 2015 The Mirror 11 Press Statement of Bp.-designate James V. Johnston to Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph September 15, 2015 It is with faith and trust in the grace and love of Jesus Christ and in God s providential designs, that I accept the appointment of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, to be the seventh bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. I am very humbled and honored by the Holy Father s appointment to be your next bishop. Pope Francis is known for surprises and he certainly gave me one several days ago when I was informed by the apostolic nuncio of his decision. I will do my best to live up to the trust that he has placed in me and be the best bishop I can for you. I pledge to serve you with generosity, kindness, and charity. I will strive to be a good shepherd to you so that we can, together, live the truth in love and be effective witnesses to the Gospel of salvation and the beauty of our Catholic Faith. I look forward to working with our priests and deacons, our consecrated women and men religious, and with all of our wonderful lay women and men. Every one of us has an important place and mission within the Church, which comes through our baptism. I am eager to join all of you in putting our focus and passion on loving Jesus, serving Jesus, and sharing Jesus. One of the challenges of the Gospel, and one that Pope Francis has made a key theme of his papacy, is to not be an inward-looking Church. Our energy and identity is to be in mission mode: to be mindful of the poor, the lost, those hungering and thirsting physically and spiritually, of those needing healing, including people who have been harmed by those within the Church. I am eager to join all of you in this mission BISHOP NAMED FOR KANSAS CITY-ST. JOSEPH Pope Francis named Bp. James V. Johnston the next Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. Pictured in the Chancery office of the diocese on Sept. 15, 2015, were Fr. Charles Rowe, Delegate to the Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph; Bp.-designate James V. Johnston; Abp. Joseph Naumann, Bishop of the Archdiocese of Kansas City, KS, and Apostolic Administrator of Kansas City-St. Joseph; and Fr. Kenneth Riley, Moderator of the Curia for Kansas City-St. Joseph. Bp.-designate Johnston is now the Diocesan Administrator for the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau until his installation as the seventh Bishop of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph on Nov. 4, that Jesus has entrusted to us. I look forward to learning more in the days ahead about the Church in northwest Missouri, my new home, and to become a part of God s family here. Gratitude I want to offer thanks to several people. I begin with Archbishop Greetings/Reactions From Page 1 Congratulations, Bishop! Your friends in Knoxville, TN, are happy for you and we will all pray for you in your new appointment! Boy, Pope Francis is full of surprises! Mary Myers This news surprised me. But I believe in that the ways of God always are good and perfect. Thank you for this great opportunity to serve in this Diocese. I appreciate so much your care for me, your patience and your prayers. Congratulations in your new assignment. I m sure you are going to do a great job there, too, as you have been doing it here. We lost a great bishop and leader; they gain a very great PASTOR. Fr. José Iván Araque Acevedo You have been a blessing for all who have known you during these seven and one-half years as our bishop! Arlene Pittman Congratulations, Bishop. Be assured of my prayers, as always, for your new challenges. You are just what the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph needs at this difficult time for them. I am confident that your kind and consistent leadership will go far to advance the healing process there. (Photo by Leslie A. Eidson) Naumann: thank you Archbishop for the wonderful care that you have given to this Church of Kansas City-St. Joseph over these past six months as the Apostolic Administrator. Your gentleness, goodness, and wisdom have been invaluable during this time. I am truly grateful to you as well for the help you have already Thank you for your kindnesses and support during the years that I have been ministering in the diocese. Fr. Hank Grodecki, CM REQUEST FOR PRAYER Bp.-designate James V. Johnston visited the Little Sisters of the Poor Jeanne Jugan Center on Sept. 15 and requested the residents and sisters pray for him. (Photo by Joe Cory/The Catholic Key) given me, and I look forward to being your neighbor. I wish to also thank Archbishop Carlson, our Metropolitan Archbishop of St. Louis, for his fraternal support and assistance. I thank God for the Diocese that I will be departing, the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau. The seven and one-half years in southern Missouri were some of the best years of my life, and I will always love the wonderful people of this great diocese. I thank the clergy, religious, and laity for their love for me. I will truly miss all of you. Finally, I want to thank the people of this Church, the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. You have recently been through uncertain and often difficult days. I am grateful to you for your strong faith and commitment, for your love for the Lord and His Church, your Church. Family One item in my biographical information that I want to expand upon is my own family. I want you to know how much my family means to me, and how big a part of my life they remain. My parents, in particular, are the ones that helped me to receive the gift of faith, and I owe so much to them. My two sisters and brother and their families are also my dearest friends, and we love each other very much. They and their children, my nieces and nephews, enrich my life. They are wonderful, good people and I look forward to introducing them to you. My dad has Parkinson s disease and so we are uncertain if he can travel. Prayer Finally, I ask all of you to pray for me and for our diocese. Pray for our priests the good men who serve you in our parishes. I ask the special intercession of our diocesan patrons: Mary, Mother of God and the Immaculate Conception; St. Joseph her spouse; and St. John Francis Regis. I entrust my ministry as a bishop to the love and protection of our Blessed Mother, Mary, as I accept this important ministry as your shepherd. Episcopal motto My Episcopal motto is taken from 2 Corinthians 5:14: The love of Christ urges us on. As I prepare to join you as part of this family of faith that is the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, let s draw our strength and confidence from the truth that Jesus Christ loves us, aids us, and never leaves us. Thank you. The Most Reverend James V. Johnston, Jr.

12 12 The Mirror September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN/NATIONAL NEWS Mizzou cancels contracts with Planned Parenthood; relationship with abortion doctor remains By Jennifer Brinker St. Louis The University of Missouri has severed some ties with Planned Parenthood, but the university s connection with a St. Louis abortion doctor remains in effect. In the past month, since state legislators began investigating Planned Parenthood practices in Missouri, the university cancelled 10 contracts with Planned Parenthood clinics in four states where students earned clinical hours. However, the university still has not revoked the refer and follow privileges it granted to Dr. Colleen McNicholas, a St. Louis doctor who performs medical abortions at Planned Parenthood in Columbia. University of Missouri Health System spokeswoman Mary Jenkins said McNicholas was granted the privileges in December 2014 and to date, those privileges have not been used. With these privileges, McNicholas is only allowed to refer patients to MU Health Care facilities and view their medical records. She is not allowed to admit patients to MU Health facilities or perform abortions or any other procedures there. Jenkins also noted that consistent with state law, no pregnancy terminations have been performed in any MU Health Care facility or by any MU Health Care personnel, except to save the life of the mother. No outside physician may perform these procedures in our facility. The Missouri Catholic Conference, the public policy arm of the Missouri bishops, applauded the university s decision to cancel contracts with Planned Parenthood, but work remains in getting Mizzou to completely sever itself from the abortion industry. Mizzou should revoke the hospital privileges of abortion doctor Colleen McNicholas, according to the statement. Only in this way can MU ensure that it is not aiding and abetting the abortion industry. MU should not look the other way when abortions are being performed at Columbia s Planned Parenthood, which could not be performed there without the blessing of the University of Missouri. Mike Hoey, executive director of the MCC, was among those who testified at this week s Senate committee hearing investigating Planned Parenthood s practices. I have family who attended and graduated from Mizzou, Hoey said at the hearing. This is personal for me. The people of Missouri don t want their tax dollars going toward abortion. If Mizzou wants to get out of the abortion business, they can figure out how to do it. MCC general counsel Tyler Mc- Clay said more than 800 people to date have responded to the MCC s plea to contact MU chancellor R. Bowen Loftin and the university s board of curators and urge them to get out of the abortion business. Mc- Clay said this is the biggest response the conference has received on an issue in a long time. For more information, see MCC The Church in the Modern World Sat., Oct. 3, Missouri Capitol Keynote speaker: Dr. Lawrence Feingold Workshops: Called to Stand on the Abortion Frontline Catholic Campaign for Human Development: Our Church Working on the Margins of the Modern World Death: Our Last Act of Worship Economic Justice: A Catholic Response to Poverty, Minimum Wage and Public Policy Ending the Death Penalty in Nebraska: A Lesson for Missouri Francis, Family and Philly: Recapping the World Meeting of Families How Do We Restore Ethics and Personal Integrity to Public Life? The Paramount Importance of Catholic Education Promoting Justice in Ending Racism Religious Liberty After Obergefell v Hodges: Where Do We Go From Here? The Role of the Family in Fostering Vocations Setting the Record Straight: The Truth about Global Climate Change The Solemn Closing of Vatican Council II Together in Christ: Rediscovering the Lay Vocation through Vatican II We re All Inter-Connected: Understanding Laudato Si mocaholic.org or call

13 September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN NEWS/COLUMN The Mirror 13 GUEST COLUMN Rick Becker Of Sunday Obligation, Harry Stovall, and Catholic Spleen And I said, Well, that s the one thing we ve got. Deep Blue Something, Breakfast at Tiffany s The priests call it the 5:35 p.m. Mass, and I m partly to blame. It s the weekend s last liturgy at our parish, and the processional actually kicks off at 5:30. Still, many folks like me and my family regularly slink in several minutes later. Oh, sure, we have excuses a lost shoe, one last bathroom trip, Where are my car keys?! but there s never any question that we ll throw in the towel and stay home. Nope, we ll go anyway, no matter how humiliating it is to yet again shuffle into a pew after the liturgical ball has started rolling. Or, if some domestic catastrophe prevents us from getting there at all, we ll re-group and head over to the 7 p.m. at another church. All of this fuss about simply getting to Mass leaves little room for interior preparation or composure. Consequently, when we do finally arrive and catch up with the crowd already singing or praying or (worst-case scenario) listening to the first reading, we ve taken on the appearance and disposition of people fulfilling an obligation. Which, I might add, is exactly what we re doing. If it weren t for Sunday obligation, I d sleep in today! this thought has occurred to everyone at some point, right? Certainly it s the case that our kids think that way or at least mine do. In any event, I know I would ve thought that way if I d grown up Catholic, but I didn t. Instead, I was raised Presbyterian, and while Sunday worship was clearly encouraged even taken for granted it wasn t technically required. If, for example, you d been up late traveling on a Saturday night, particularly for a youth group activity, skipping church the next morning would ve been no big deal. And if you went to churchy worship throughout the week? like required chapel services at the evangelical college I attended? Then, forgoing Sunday services was easy to rationalize as if Sunday worship and other church activities were basically interchangeable. I punched the spiritual While Sunday obligation is clearly part of the Catholic DNA, is God s ego so fragile that an arbitrary weekly demonstration of universal obeisance is absolutely necessary? clock Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, I used to argue to myself. No worship overtime for me this week. So what s up with Catholics and Sunday Mass then? You d think there d be some wiggle room here, especially for those who are otherwise pious and altruistic. Say, for instance, that I go to Mass throughout the week. Shouldn t four or five weekday Masses including four or five receptions of Holy Communion count at least as much as a single Sunday liturgy? And what if I ve also been performing apostolic works, leading Bible studies, and spending hours in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament? What s the big deal about Sunday that makes Mass on that day an obligation? While Sunday obligation is clearly part of the Catholic DNA, there was little need for it in the earliest days of the Church. The first Christians were raging infernos of faith, and they voluntarily went to great lengths to gather for the Sabbath Eucharist. When, during the persecution of Diocletian, St. John Paul II relates, [Christian] assemblies were banned with the greatest severity, many were courageous enough to defy the imperial decree and accepted death rather than miss the Sunday Eucharist. Such selfless devotion continues to be the case today in different parts of the world where Christians of various traditions brave very real threats of slaughter when they come together for Sunday worship. Time and routine, however, tend to dampen human enthusiasm for the things of God, especially when we get comfortable with our temporal situations. Faced with the half-heartedness or negligence of some, St. Pope John Paul explains, the Church had to make explicit the duty to attend Sunday Mass. Often it was enough to merely remind the faithful of this duty, but other times required something more akin to a binding mandate. Such is the case today. Referring to Sundays and holy days, the Catechism reminds us that, unless we have a serious excuse, we are obligated to attend Mass on all Sundays and holy days and it really is a big deal: Those who deliberately fail in this obligation commit a grave sin. But all this only begs the question: Why? Is God s ego so fragile that an arbitrary weekly demonstration of universal obeisance is absolutely necessary? Or, as is more commonly assumed, is Sunday obligation supposed to be for our benefit? Maybe it s just an extension of the Sabbath rest, and going to Mass on Sundays is appropriate because we re supposed to be taking a load off anyway. Far from it. The Church teaches that Sunday obligation is primarily about public corroboration of ecclesial commitment. Here s how the Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it: Participation in the communal celebration of the Sunday Eucharist is a testimony of belonging and of being faithful to Christ and to his Church. The faithful give witness by this to their communion in faith and charity. Together they testify to God s holiness and their hope of salvation. They strengthen one another under the guidance of the Holy Spirit (CCC 2182). Catholic identity In other words, taking Sunday obligation seriously is one of the main signs of Catholic identity if not the main sign. Everything else might ve withered away spiritual vitality, personal virtue, faith, hope, charity, all gone! but if you keep showing up at Mass on Sunday, it s a marker: God still matters. It s why we see folks at Sunday Mass that we never see at other church activities the ones who not only arrive a bit late, but sit in the back pews, stay seated for Holy Communion, and leave early. At least some of them must be struggling with their faith, but they re unable to let go completely and Sunday obligation is the unbreakable link. In fact, I know this is the case because I ve been there myself and I thank God Sunday obligation helped me hang on! While outsiders might dismiss this as residual guilt, getting to Mass on Sundays is nonetheless a tether for those whose faith is waning. Rather than merely a practical codification of the Third Commandment, Sunday obligation can also be the last vestiges of religious fealty: what we creatures, even in doubt and rebellion, owe God the Father at the very least. And it can be a powerful witness at least it was for novelist and Catholic convert Walker Percy: When I was in college, I lived in the attic of a fraternity house with four other guys. God, religion, was the farthest thing from our minds and talk from mine at least. Except for one of us, a fellow who got up every morning at the crack of dawn and went to Mass. He said nothing about it and seemed otherwise normal. That fellow was Harry Stovall, and it s noteworthy that Percy doesn t acknowledge any conversation with him about the Mass or faith, nor anything unusual about him other than his dogged dedication to Mass attendance. Indeed, Percy even specified that his roommate s strange behavior didn t directly contribute to his conversion at all, and for all we know, Stovall might ve been going through incredible inner turmoil with regards to his childhood religion. Regardless, he got to Sunday Mass, no matter what except on one occasion when Percy and his buddies punked Stovall and caused him to sleep in instead. You may not care much about your religion, Percy recalls Stovall declaring, but don t mess with mine. Whether in college or in the Middle East or anywhere else, Sunday obligation and fortitude go hand-in-hand. It bears repeating: To be Catholic is to get to Mass every weekend, and often that takes guts in a world increasingly hostile to our Church. And so we pray: Give us courage, God, and get us in the pew this weekend it s who we are! Amen. TM This article first appeared in the Aug. 20 edition of the National Catholic Register. It is reprinted with permission.

14 14 The Mirror September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN NEWS/ADVERTISING Grandparent s Day celebrated at Guardian Angel School GRANDPARENT S HONORED The halls of Guardian Angel School, in Oran, MO, were filled with love on Thu., Sep t. 17, when students celebrated Grandparents Day. The festivities began with Mass at 8 a.m. with pastor Fr. Randy Tochtrop, followed by cookies, coffee, and milk for all the students, grandparents, special friends, teachers, and staff in the school cafeteria. (Submitted photos) Teacher, senior companion in Oran dies at age 97 her parents; her brother, Arnold and Ruma, IL Sr. Mary Bernard Braun, an Adorer of the Blood of Christ for 78 years, died Sept. 10, 2015, in Ruma, IL. She was 97. Sr. Braun, baptized Georgia, was the eldest of three children born to Aloysius and Mabel (Carron) Braun. She grew up in Dupo, IL, and attended St. Teresa Academy in East St. Louis, IL, until she joined the community of Adorers and completed high school at Ruma. She made her first vows on July 1, 1937, and final vows on July 1, She earned her bachelor s degree and master s degree in history, both at Saint Louis University. Sr. Braun taught at the elementary, secondary and university levels. In the Diocese of Belleville, she served at Saints C O N T E M P L A T I V E MONK Trappist Cistercian A small self-supporting community in the Ozark foothills of Missouri. Assumption Abbey RR 5 Box 1056, Ava, MO (417) assumptionabbey@usa.net Peter and Paul Elementary in Waterloo; St. Mary in Chester; St. George in New Baden; St. Cecilia in Bartelso; St. Ann in Nashville; and St. Rose Sr. Braun in St. Rose. She also taught at St. Mary in Taylorville in the Diocese of Springfield, IL. Her secondary teaching experience was at St. Teresa Academy in East St. Louis, Precious Blood Institute in Ruma, and Gibault High School in Waterloo, all in Illinois. During her 20 years at Gibault, she taught history in the Advanced College Credit program, affiliated with Saint Louis University. After retiring from teaching, Sr. Herman H. Lohmeyer Funeral Home Locally-owned & operated u Dedicated u Caring u Professional Offices of the Catholic Cemeteries Paul & Lynn Wunderlich David Fenton Louis Lohmeyer Charlene Harris-Bengsch Gene Lohmeyer Mary Ann Johnston Joel Champ 500 E. Walnut - Springfield (417) Braun served as a parish minister to seniors at Guardian Angel Parish in Oran, MO. She began Living Mission in Later Life in 2005, first in Waterloo, and in 2009, at the Ruma Center. She had a great appreciation of humor and created it out of everyday life. Sr. Braun was an avid writer who contributed to local and diocesan newspapers, and to community publications. Sr. Braun even wrote brief histories, including one for St. Patrick Parish in Ruma and another about Fr. Pierre Gibault, the Jesuit missionary for whom Gibault High School was named. Her clever way with words often provided light entertainment at milestone birthdays of some of her sisters and colleagues as she created dialogues and toasts in their honor. Sr. Braun coached speech and debate teams and directed plays. She was a strong champion for women s rights and started a volleyball team for girls at Gibault, a team she also coached for several years. She was preceded in death by Columbia Construction Co. PO Box 1332 Cape Girardeau, MO (573) sister-in-law Dottie; her sister, Janette, and brother-in-law Jim Turner; and her nephew, James Bernard Turner. She is survived by many nieces and nephews, great nieces and great nephews, students, friends, colleagues, and her ASC community. The Mass of Christian Burial was Mon., Sept. 14, Burial was in the Ruma Center cemetery. Donations in Sr. Braun s honor can be made Online at adorers.org or mailed to Adorers of the Blood of Christ, US Region Mission Center, 4233 Sulphur Ave., St. Louis, MO TM Gorman-Scharpf Funeral Home, Inc. Brentwood Chapel University Chapel Crematory Columbarium 1947 E. Seminole Springfield MO (417) fax (417) , gormanscharpf@mchsi.com Licensed funeral directors of distinction: Bill M. Abbott W. Bruce Howell Marquis Howell, Jr. Robert Lohmeyer Harley R. Williams Don R. Lohmeyer Clint W. Mease Marquis Howell, Sr. Angela N. Collins Heather K. Howell Winford R. Laster Locally owned and operated for over 50 years

15 September 18, 2015 ADVERTISING The Mirror 15

16 16 The Mirror September 18, 2015 DIOCESAN NEWS Sikeston alumnus helps fund ipads for students and teachers By Leonna Heuring Sikeston, MO assistance from one of their school s alumnus, students at St. With Francis Xavier Catholic School in Sikeston will receive a technology boost in their education this school year. Charles B. Luber, chief executive officer of the Lay Family Foundation, presented a check for $45,000 to the Sikeston school during a back-toschool open house Aug. 17. The funds will be used to purchase 72 ipads for all teachers and students in the upper grades. In addition to the ipads, the school received a charging cart for the ipads, a traveling classroom set of ipads, cases for each ipad, Apple Care, and projectors. St. Francis Xavier currently has 122 students in pre - kindergarten through eighth grades. There are so many advantages to using ipads in the classrooms, said Amy Alcorn, St. Francis Xavier parent and school board member. To name a few, the teachers and students will be able to download classic books, use A pps for math enrichment, and enable PowerPoint presentations in the classrooms and share them on the smart boards and white boards. Luber addressed parents, students, and teachers during the Aug. 17 back-to-school open house in the church s parish center. Luber, who at age five carried newspapers for The Daily Standard, attended St. Francis Xavier School in the early 1950s. He was one of six boys in his family. His father was a barber and his mother a beautician. I learned you needed to have an education to get out of your present circumstance, whatever it is. You can always improve your circumstance by having an education, Luber said. He encouraged parents to continue supporting their children. That s what gives them the best chance at a better tomorrow and a better life than you have, Luber said. The American dream. Many people feel like it s gone. It s not gone. It s still America the best country in the world. You can t get too much education, Luber said. A 1964 Sikeston High School graduate, Luber graduated from Southeast Missouri State University, Cape Girardeau, in 1968 with an IPADS BOOST LEARNING St. Francis Xavier Catholic School alum nus Charles B. Luber, chief executive officer of The Lay Family Foundation, presented a check for $45,000 on Aug. 17 to school officials and students for 72 ipads, care packages, and cases use d by all teachers and students in fifth through eighth grades. Luber, who graduated from Sikeston High School, also provided scholarships for eight St. Francis Xavier students. accounting and economics degree. He went to law school at Memphis State, graduating in Education foundation Luber said it felt good to give back to his hometown, and then he explained his involvement with the Lay Family Foundation. I first met Henry Lay when I was a young lawyer at the May Corp., Luber recalled. He was a big dog, and he hired me as an attorney. Within 10 years, Luber was in the corporation s No. 7 position. Lay left the company, and he and Luber became business partners a few years later. He was a genius, Luber recalled. Together, they developed seven shopping centers. Henry Lay died of throat cancer in 2000 and left about $30 million in a trust for education. When he got sick, he d already set up the Foundation when he and I were working together in St. Louis, Luber said. He appointed three lawyer - friends myself, Lou Garr, and John Dooling to be trustees and run the Foundation. The Lay Foundation also provided $12,900 for tuition in scholarships to eight of the school s families. In rare cases, the Foundation reaches beyond the tuition costs and pays for student uniforms or registration, he said. Scholarships Fr. Patrick I. Nwokoye, pastor (Photo by Leonna Heuring) of St. Francis Xavier Church, said the Catholic education is important since the focus is on intellectual, human, and spiritual formation enabling them to apply the teachings they ve learned in class so as to live a life worthy of praise. Fr. Nwokoye thanked Luber for work in helping the school gather the funds to purchase the technology. We want our students to be well-educated, but we also want them to be incredible Christians who are able to create a world that is peaceful, a world that is gracious, a world that is kind and is helping in building a civilization of love, Fr. Nwokoye said. Students should also be instilled with character and ethics, which go hand - in - hand in what St. Francis Xavier is all about, Luber said. We want to create an environment that truly lends itself to learning, and a place where young people can experience a great love of God and a great love for learning, Nwokoye said. And a great love for their neighbor, Luber added. Tuition costs The tuition at St. Francis is less than half of what it costs in St. Louis, where it s $4,800 a year for each student, Luber said. The tuition here is very affordable, and seats are available, Luber noted. Students get a better education here, and now the school won t have a technical disadvantage. Saint Francis teachers participated in professional development before school began to prepare for use in the classroom, said Debbie Pollock, principal of St. Francis Xavier School. The new school year began Aug. 19. We are going to teach the children that what you write down is permanent and about cyber - bullying and different things that we teach in a Christian method that what you put out there should be loving and kind to others and not doing anything to lower character or say anything that will hurt someone, Pollock said. The ipads will add a great deal to St. Francis curriculum, the principal said. It will be able to provide enrichment and tutoring for children who need extra help. I t will improve the quality of education our children have here, Pollock said. Also, the school is about service, Pollock said. We believe children need to learn about service through others, and they feel good about themselves by helping others, Pollock said. I think any technology that can be added to the classroom is ultimately beneficial to the children. As they grow older, they re going to be expected to be technologically fluent, said Kim Heckemeyer, who has children in fifth and seventh grades at St. Francis. The ipads will make information more easily accessible, Heckemeyer said. I m just really excited because the workplace is no longer a local concept. The kids are going to be growing up and competing in a global marketplace, and the earlier they can get a basic understanding in how to implement technology into accessing information, the more successful academically they re going to be, and that will carry over into adulthood and their employability. Plus, the use of ipads will address the learning styles of all types of learners, she said. What it all boils down to is we want these kids to be as competitive as possible academically, Heckemeyer said. We re very grateful to Mr. Luber for his donation. TM This article originally appeared in the Sikeston Standard Democrat. It is reprinted with permission.