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Issue of September 28th– October 11th
Flooding affects area parishes, schools, agencies
As the rain kept falling the weekend of Sept . 12-13, Bobby Walls of Dolton knew the water would come up in her basement. That’s why she doesn’t really keep anything on the floor.
But her teenage foster-daughter wasn’t so lucky, losing several pairs of shoes and clothing that she had left in baskets on the basement floor. The water ended up a little shy of knee-deep, said Walls, who was back at work at Catholic Charities’ South Suburban Office Sept. 17.
Knowing Scripture = knowing Christ
Upcoming World Synod of Bishops on the Bible calls to attention to increased interest in the Word of God by Catholics in the archdiocese
St. Jerome said, “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ.” Pope Benedict XVI has echoed these words several times since ascending to the chair of Peter and has called together the world synod of bishops to discuss the importance of the Bible in today’s church Oct. 5-26.
Our own Cardinal George will participate in the month-long gathering at the Vatican. The last synod of the world’s bishops took place in 2005 on the Eucharist.
Catholics have a better familiarity with the Bible than they often think they do because if they attend Sunday Mass for a three-year span, they hear almost the entire Bible read to them. We may not be able to quote chapter and verse like other Christians, but we know the stories.
God's Word spread at Scripture School
Over the past few decades, Catholics have taken up reading some important literature.
The Bible.
While Protestants have been reading the Bible since Luther, “until the Second Vatican Council there wasn’t that much interest on the part of Catholics. That’s changed quite a bit,” said Patrick Redington, interim director of the Chicago Catholic Scripture School that will be celebrating its 10th anniversary next year.
Archdiocese honors lay Catholics for their service
More than 200 laypeople were honored for their service to the Archdiocese of Chicago and to their parishes at a special prayer service and ceremony Sept. 21 at Holy Name Cathedral.
Seven people received the Bishop Quarter Award, named for the first bishop of the then-Diocese of Chicago. The episcopal vicar of each vicariate nominates the recipient from his area; Vicariate I, which includes Lake County and the Northwest suburbs, honored two people.
The Christifideles Award was given to people from 141 parishes, including many married couples, two groups including parents and an adult child and one brother-sister pair. Christifidelis recipients are nominated by their pastors.
When justice begins with a park
Catholic Campaign for Human Development aids Little Village group
The Near West Side Chicago neighborhood of Little Village is starving for green space for its children to play and be safe. Right now there is only one community park in an area that is home to 95,000 people.
But that soon may change with the help of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. CCHD is an annual nationwide collection organized by the U.S. bishops that, for 37 years, has “funded low-income controlled empowerment projects around the country and has educated Catholics “about the root causes of poverty within the context of Catholic social teaching,” according to the USCCB Web site.
Illinois bishops make statement on citizenship
The Catholic Bishops of Illinois released the statement “Our Conscience and Our Vote,” on Sept. 22 to help prepare Catholics for the upcoming election and further participation in the political process. The statement is available at the Catholic Conference of Illinois Web site, www.catholicconferenceofillinois.org, and was sent throughout all the Catholic dioceses in Illinois. For more information, call (312) 368-1066..
When I came home from my morning run the other day, my usual quota of dogs had doubled. Playing in the yard were Polly, our 2-yearold mutt, weighing in at about 45 pounds on a wiry body that can seeming run forever without getting tired, and a little white puffball, something like a bichon frise, with a collar but no tags.
Jason Evert’s message is chastity. The young, San Diego-based Catholic has talked to more than 1 million students around the country, in religious, private and public-school settings and others at more than 1,000 assemblies.
In all those cases, Evert said the teens are eager to hear the chastity message. He delivers a message of abstinence, faith and love, delivered with doses of humor and candor.
He is the author of nine books, including “If You Really Loved Me,” “Pure Love” and “Theology of the Body for Teens.”
From Sept. 14-17, Evert carried his message to Catholic teens around the archdiocese through the Respect Life Office’s Chastity Education Initiative.
While here, Evert spoke with editor Joyce Duriga.
