The real story behind the gay pride issue at St. Joan

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Last week, controversy erupted when Archbishop John Nienstedt informed St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in Minneapolis that it could not hold a gay pride prayer service in its sanctuary. The service -- held for several years in conjunction with the annual Twin Cities Gay Pride festival -- celebrates the gay identity. [Note: the Archbishop was in Rome; his staff acted on his behalf].

In response, organizers moved the celebration outside the church. One gay activist attended in what must have struck him as a clown's outfit, given the occasion -- the robes of an archbishop, miter and all. David McCaffrey of the Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities (CPCSM) condemned what he called Nienstedt's "reign of homophobic hatred." In an e-mail to the group's members, he characterized the archbishop's decision as "yet another volley of dehumanizing spiritual violence directed at GLBT persons and their families."

Clearly, there is hatred here. But it is not coming from the Catholic Church. Rather, it's a tool of those who are trying to compel the church to conform to their personal demands with caricatures and public mockery.

Opponents charge that the church does not welcome gays. They point to the fact that the archdiocese won't sponsor a gay pride prayer service as evidence.

But the truth is different: The church welcomes everyone. Far from rejecting gays as sinners, Christianity teaches that all human beings are sinners. In fact, it maintains, it is precisely because we are sinners that we need the Christian message.

So Michael Bayly of CPCSM got it wrong when he told the Star Tribune that "the archdiocese is now dictating to people who they can and cannot pray for." The church advocates prayer for all, straight and gay alike, because it regards all as sinners.

But "gay pride" is a different matter.

Why? To answer, we must consider why we are called to go to church in the first place. We go to acknowledge our sins, to ask forgiveness and to seek redemption and a new life in conformance with God's will for us.

As a result, pride has no place in church. Indeed, Christianity views pride as a sin.

The theologian C.S. Lewis called pride "the great sin" -- the root of almost every other transgression. Pride, he wrote, "has been the chief cause of misery ... since the world began."

So "gay pride" is out of place in church. But so is straight pride, black pride, white pride -- or any kind of pride.

The organizers of St. Joan of Arc's gay pride service seem to think that if they complain shrilly enough, they can compel the Catholic Church -- by embarrassing and humiliating it -- to come around and embrace their enlightened views. This attitude should not surprise us, because it reflects the dominant cultural mood of our age.

Today, we want wardrobes, homes and vacations that "fit my lifestyle." We want a God who does the same. Transcendent truth? We prefer to believe there's no such thing. If 52 percent of Americans disagree with the church about something, we conclude it must be the church that's wrong.

Theology, cafeteria-style

But there is a religious vision that dissents from this cafeteria-style theology. In 2008, it often comes into conflict with trendier views on the flashpoint issue of sexuality -- perhaps the greatest preoccupation of our age.

For 2,000 years, Christianity has taught that God had a purpose in creating human beings as male and female. He gave the two sexes complementary bodies and natures so that they could become "one flesh," and in the process generate new life. The faithful, committed sexual love of man and woman holds a special dignity in Christian teaching, which sees it as mirroring God's love for humanity.

In recent years, however, a different vision of sexuality has grown fashionable. In this view, sex of all kinds -- whether straight, gay or otherwise -- is best understood as a vehicle for pleasure and self-expression. Today, this vision of sex dominates our entertainment industry, is taught in our schools and inspires events such as gay pride celebrations.

The controversy at St. Joan of Arc is part of a larger picture. When the gay rights movement emerged several decades ago, its leaders asked only for tolerance -- a live-and-let-live attitude on the part of the larger society. Today, the movement increasingly demands both approval of and conformity to its creed. More and more, it labels all dissent -- even that based on religious conviction -- as "hateful."

Secular institutions have largely acquiesced. The church alone perseveres in the conviction that human sexuality has a larger purpose. That is why it is now a central battlefront in this crusade.

Katherine Kersten • kkersten@startribune.com Join the conversation at my blog, www.startribune.com/thinkagain.

167 comments so far

Four Men Ordained in Winona; Most Since 1976!

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Applause in the sanctuary echoed as rain pounded the roof Saturday morning at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, where four men were ordained into the diocesan priesthood.

More than three decades have passed since the diocese of Winona ordained four men in one Mass, which last happened in 1976.

The Diocese of Winona ordained four priests, from left to right, William Thompson, Thomas Niehaus, Ubaldo Roque Huerta and Jeffrey Dobbs, Saturday at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Winona. (Photo by Fred Schulze/Winona Daily News)

Bishop Bernard J. Harrington, who presided over the liturgy, joked that while Pope Benedict XVI ordained 29 men recently in the diocese of Rome, the population difference means Winona technically ordained more priests.

“The Catholic population in the diocese of Rome is 2,500,000. The Catholic population in the diocese of Winona is 150,000,” Bishop Harrington said. “Proportionally, the diocese of Rome would need 68 deacons to be equivalent.”

The three-hour Mass was standing-room only, and the several hundred people attending prompted extra chairs be brought in for the service.

Rose Hammes, director of communications for the diocese of Winona, said the seats were two-thirds full by 8:45 a.m., an hour and 15 minutes before Mass began.

The Rev. Jeffrey Dobbs, the Rev. Ubaldo Huerta, the Rev. Thomas Niehaus and the Rev. William Thompson replaced their stoles as Harrington welcomed them into the high priesthood.

Huerta responded to a request for more priests in the area to work with Latino immigrants. He attended the Seminary of Tacambaro Michacan and Seminario Hispano de Santa Maria de Guadalupe, both in Mexico.

Niehaus, of Sleepy Eye, Minn., comes from a vocational family. Two of his brothers serve as priests and one of his sisters, Deanne, serves as a sister of mercy. He attended Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Winona, and completed his studies at the Pontifical North American College in Rome.

Thompson, of Lake City, Minn., attended St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul, specializing in Scripture studies.

Dobbs, of Pipestone, Minn., attended both Immaculate Heart and St. Paul Seminary.

“It is a blessing to be gathered to celebrate the priesthood of Jesus Christ and the love of the Eucharist,” Dobbs said after the Mass.

All of the newly ordained priests will celebrate their Masses of Thanksgiving today at their home churches. Winona Daily News

80 Priests came to the ceremony from Mexico to honor Father Huerta. I wonder if Mexico may become the "new Ireland" as a foreign source for Minnesota priests?

Free Timeline of the Life and Writings of St. Paul: Steve Ray

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In honor of the Pauline Year, the 2,000th since the birth of St. Paul, apologist Steve Ray has come up with some great teaching aids for us biblically impaired cradle Catholics. Beginning with this handy-dandy timeline chart on the life and writings of St. Paul, the 13th Apostle.

Click to enlarge


Click HERE for free downloads of Steve's writings on the Bible and the Church


Click HERE for Steve's other offerings


Official Web Site for the Pauline Year

"The Church Will Never Justify Homosexual Conduct": Philadelphia's Cardinal Justin Rigali

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(LifeSiteNews.com) - Cardinal Justin Rigali, the Archbishop of Philadelphia is always ready to answer questions, even the hard ones. He spoke with LifeSiteNews.com last week at the International Eucharistic Congress about the Church's teaching on sexuality, in the context of the current attack on the traditional definition of marriage.

Asked why it has become more common to see some elements within the Church promoting what is contrary to official Church teaching on homosexuality, Cardinal Rigali was quick to point out that it is not 'the Church' but members of the Church which do so at times.

"This goes back to the time of St. Paul," explained the Cardinal, "St. Paul says they will be teachers with itchy ears." He added: "They will come up with all kinds of doctrines and this is what's happened in the history of the Church and the history of the world and this will continue to happen."

Cardinal Rigali said however that it was an "aberration" to justify "homosexual conduct and worse than that homosexual marriage."

"The Church accepts people as they are," he said. "Jesus says the church is like a net, it pulls in everybody, everybody belongs to the church, there are sinners, there are saints, there are people with wrong ideas. But the Church continues to proclaim what Jesus taught."

"There is no room in the Church for the acceptance of aberrational ideas," he said. "There is room in the church to accept, to understand and to love people whoever they may be. Not to tell them that what they are advocating is right, not to justify it. That is quite different. That is totally, totally different."

Cardinal Rigali, who is also the President of the Pro-Life Committee of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, suggested that no amount of pressure would get the Church to alter its position.

"There are some people that say the church is intolerant - no! We accept people but we cannot be unfaithful to Christ. We will not accept gay marriage. The church has explained this over, and over and over again and she will have to continue to explain it."

Addressing people with same sex attraction he said, "these are good people and our way of treating them is very important. The respect we show them and even the understanding of their personal situations. But just because someone is in a personal situation does not mean we can change our teaching to accommodate the person."

On getting the teaching of the Church across in today's culture, Cardinal Rigali said "The Church has to continue, St. Paul says, ‘praedica verbum’, preach the word in season and out of season and that's what we do."

However, he added, "This is something we have to teach in the most effective way possible, with clarity yes, with fidelity yes, with sensitivity. We can't take people and choke them and say you're going to be doing it and you're going to follow the teachings of the Church and this is the teaching of the Church. No. St. Paul says in omnia patientia doctrina, speaking to Timothy, ‘with all patience and following the teaching’, following the teaching, these are the two elements."

"We present the beauty of human sexuality," he said, "we explain God's plan. We try to understand people who have the same sex attraction we try to help them; try not to speak platitudes to them but tell them what God's plan is and how they are to face their life."

The Philadelphia Archbishop concluded: "That's why we have organizations like Courage and Encourage because for parents it's a very, very difficult thing. But God's plan is to be presented in all its beauty, all its power with fidelity."

It's Official! Archbishop Nienstedt Got the Job! He's now OUR Shepherd!

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God Bless Him! Archbishop Nienstedt was in Rome this past weekend to receive the pallium, the symbol of his authority as Archbishop of St Paul and Minneapolis. It was carried live on EWTN. I missed it.

"When we take the pallium upon our shoulders", [Pope Benedict XVI] explained, "this gesture reminds us of the Shepherd who takes upon his shoulders the lost sheep, which on its own was not able to find the way home, and brings it back to the fold". But Jesus Christ "also wants men who will 'carry' together with Him" lost humanity.

"The pallium", he added, "becomes a symbol of our love for the Shepherd, Christ, and of our loving together with Him - it becomes a symbol of the call to love men as He does, together with Him: those who are searching, those who are questioning, those who are sure of themselves and those who are humble, the simple and the great; it becomes a symbol of the call to love all with the power of Christ and in view of Christ, so that they may find Him, and in Him, themselves".

The pallium, he added finally, is a sign of collegiality, of unity among all the bishops and with the pope: "No one is a Shepherd on his own. We are successors to the Apostles thanks only to being in collegial communion, in which the college of the Apostles finds its continuation. Communion, the 'we' of the Shepherds, is part of being Shepherds, because the flock is only one, the one Church of Jesus Christ And finally, this 'with' also refers to communion with Peter and with his successor as the guarantee of unity". Whispers in the Loggia

Father Z has his own perspective on the ceremony:

Before they receive the pallium the Archbishops take an oath:

Ego…
Archiepiscopus [PLACE and NAME]
beato Petro apostolo,
Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae,
ac tibi, Summo Pontifici,
tuisque legitimis Successoribus
semper fidelis ero et oboediens.
Ita me Deus omnipotens adiuvet.

I…
Archbishop of the _ diocese (these are adjectives)
will always be faithful and obedient to
St. Peter the apostle,
the Holy Roman Church,
and to you, the Supreme Pontiff
and to your legitimate Successors.
So help me God Almighty.

In recent decades this oath is made also in the presence of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople or his delegate.

The Holy Father blessed the pallia today with these words (my close but not too literal translation):

O God, eternal Pastor of souls, who committed to blessed Peter the Apostle those who are called "the flock" by Jesus Christ Your Son, that they should be governed by him after the model of the Good Shepherd (boni Pastoris typo) , through our ministry pour forth the grace of Your blessing upon these Pallia, which as symbols You desired to be concrete signs (documenta) of pastoral care.

Receive the our humble prayers and grant through the intercession and merits of the Apostles, that whoever will bear them, You generously making it so, may understand himself to be the Shepherd of Your flock, and will show forth in his work that which is signified by the name.

Let him take up the evangelical yoke lain upon his neck, and let it be for him so light and sweet, that in running by example swiftly along the way of your commands, he may merit to be admitted into the everlasting pasture.

When the Pope places the pallium on the neck of the archbishop kneeling before him, he says:

For the glory of Almighty God and the praise of the blessed Virgin Mary and of saints Peter and Paul, for the decorum of the Sees committed to you, unto a sign of the authority of a metropolitan, we bestow upon you the Pallium taken from the Confession of saint Peter, so that you may use it within the confines of your ecclesiastical provinces.

May this Pallium be for your a symbol of unity and a token (tessera) of communion with the Apostolic See; may it be a bond of charity (vinculum caritatis) and a spur of fortitude, so that in the day of the Coming and the revelation of the great God and prince of shepherds Jesus Christ, you may together with the the flocks entrusted to you obtain (potiamini) the stole of immortality and glory.

There are some nice things here. First, the image of a tessera is lovely. A tessera is literally a small block or cube. It is used to describe the little cubes that make up a mosaic. It is still the Italian word for an officially issued pass or a ticket or i.d. card. In this case it makes me think of how each of these archbishops, so different in themselves and in very different places through the world, are contributing in their individual way to the "big picture".

Here's a political invocation that the ACLU shouldn't object to!

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Minister Joe Wright of the Central Christian Church in Kansas delivered the following opening invocation before the Kansas State Senate:

'Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask your forgiveness and to seek your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values.

We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery.

We have rewarded laziness and called it welfare

We have killed our unborn and called it choice.

We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable.

We have neglected to discipline our children, and called it building self esteem..

We have abused power and called it politics.

We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition.

We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography, and called it freedom of expression.

We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment.

Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin, and set us free.

Amen!'

The response was immediate. A number of legislators walked out during the prayer in protest. In 6 short weeks, Central Christian Church, where Rev. Wright is pastor, logged more than 5,000 phone calls with only 47 of those calls responding negatively. The church is now receiving international requests for copies of this prayer from India, Africa, and Korea

Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on his radio program, 'The Rest of the Story,' and received a larger response to this program than any other he has ever aired.

Archbishop Burke Appointed to Roman Curia; Goodbye to St. Louis

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Archbishop Raymond Burke, former Bishop of La Crosse, currently Archbishop of St. Louis, was appointed this morning to the position of the Prefect of the Apostolic Signature, the Vatican's highest judicial court. He will most certainly become a Cardinal at the next consistory.

Today brings the confirmation of the long-rumored appointment of Archbishop Burke to be the head of the Apostolic Signatura in Rome. From the Vatican website:

This position ordinarily carries a promotion to Cardinal as well, which is of some solace to those His Grace leaves behind in St. Louis.

It is certainly a bittersweet announcement for those in St. Louis and around the world who have rejoiced in the Archbishop's stalwart defense of orthodoxy, his courage, his perseverance, and his wise and faithful pastoral care. He has been a shining example of how a Bishop should guide and govern.

Of course, this promotion will almost certainly obtain for him the Cardinal's red hat, and thus a seat at any conclave that may occur for the next twenty years. His Grace turns 60 at the end of the month. May it be in the plans of Almighty God that someday Cardinal Burke appears on the balcony in St. Peter's Square; whatever may come for him, however, we can be assured that His Grace will fulfill his duties with the same zeal he has shown in St. Louis and in the past. . . .

A word of warning-- brace yourself for the unrestrained glee of the so-called progressive crowd who will not be able to contain themselves. The press will interview every disaffected self-described "Catholic" who ever sought out a guitar Mass. They will say this is a repudiation of the just discipline he has dealt to schismatics. That it is a repudiation of his position that Canon 915 requires that pro-abortion "Catholic" politicians must be denied Holy Communion. That it is a way to get him out of the way.

Do not fret. God alone suffices, and we can trust His Son to send us another shepherd of souls after His Heart-- which, by the way, is Archbishop Burke's episcopal motto: Secundum Cor Tuum, or After Your Heart. . . . St. Louis Catholic

Midwestern Catholics who were looking forward to Archbishop Clayton Nienstedt joining Archbishop Burke, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver, Michael Sheridan of Colorado Springs, Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix, Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz of Lincoln, NE, Bishop Robert Finn of Kansas City, MO, Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, KS, Bishop Samuel Aquila of Fargo, Bishop Robert Morlino of Madison as the midwest leaders of the conservative American Church will have a large vacant chair at their Round Table.

Pray for St. Louis that they get another great shepherd to lead them.


Dr. Ed Peters, Canon Lawyer, has some thoughts:

Friday, June 27, 2008

First thoughts on Abp. Burke's promotion to the Signatura

Although the Roman Rota is the Church's highest judicial court, because so much law in the Church is administrative, the Apostolic Signatura, which sits atop that administrative system, is effectively the Church's highest adjudicatory body. Throw in that the Signatura resolves disputes that arise over Rota cases, and the preeminence of the Signatura is clear. Pastor Bonus 121-125; 1983 CIC 1445.

Abp. Burke, as head of the Signatura, will undoubtedly be made a cardinal (my guess, at the very next consistory) and so will be eligible to vote for the next pope. He is also sure to be named as a voting member to several other key Roman dicasteries (likely Bishops, Clergy, and Legislative Texts, probably CDF and Education, among others) making him the most influential American in Rome. James Cdl. Stafford (formerly of Denver) also serves on several dicasteries, but his main work on the Apostolic Penitentiary is by its nature not high-profile.

I am frankly a little sad at this one. Abp. Burke is a vital presence in the Church in America; but if the pope says that his abilities are needed at the universal level, then who can complain? Let's just pray that a worthy successor in St. Louis is named quickly.

posted by Dr. Edward Peters

Arnold, I didn't know that you had it in you!

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Addressing a Catholic Health Association meeting, Gov. Schwarzenegger vows to pray 20 rosaries a day for health care reform

Jeepers, not even the Pope prays more than one 20-decade rosary a day. That's gonna be about 10 hours a day for Arnold on his knees. Maybe he should.

It is a “moral crisis,” said Schwarzenegger, “for the greatest state in the greatest country in the world to have 6.7 million people that are uninsured, and out of that, a million children.” Schwarzenegger expressed his confidence in Dean’s support in helping him implement his health care proposal.

“And I know that, with your help, we can do it,” Schwarzenegger said to the assembled health care leaders. “And even if it takes praying 20 rosaries every day, I will be on my knees praying the 20 rosaries – but we are going to get the job done!” California Catholic Daily

Gay Pride Demonstration Defying Archbishop Nienstedt at St. Joan of Arc, Minneapolis

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The homosexuals are doing it again. They want us to think that they just want to be accepted. If you think that is true, please watch their parade this weekend and if you don't throw up, I'd be surprised. Who could accept those exhibitionists?

In addition, for some years they have had a prayer service at St Joan of Arc Parish in South Minneapolis. This year, Archdiocesan officials, who had been tipped off by someone who saw an announcement, informed the Joannies that "no mas", no more, will that prayer service extolling a lifestyle that is forbidden by the Commandments of the Church be held on Church property. St. Joan's itself immediately and cooperatively complied with the instructions of the Archdiocese.

Of course, "no" doesn't mean much to the folks at the Catholic Pastoral Committee on Sexual Minorities (CPCSM), an organization not affiliated with St. Joan's. Don't be confused by the word "Catholic" in the name of the CPCSM. The organization serves to promote the homosexual lifestyle and get itself welcomed within the Church. Of course, once they are within the Church, they will be working to convince the Church that to be truly "welcoming", it must abandon everything in it and regulated by it that has the slightest offensive aspect to it with respect to the depraved practices of homosexuals.

Their real purpose is to destroy the Church, retaining the pretty things that impose no rules, obligations or inconveniences upon homosexuals.

So this evening the CPCSM gathered outside of St. Joan's and had a sedate little march around the building to the rear, the entrance that is rarely used.. That side of the building looks better on television.

It was a rather subdued crowd, very straight looking, mostly older, many of them probably parents of homosexuals. A couple of "statements" were read, one entitled "My Name is Not Et Cetera." It was listened to silently and at the end acknowledged with polite applause. Kind of a take off on some famous speech I think: "My name is gay! my name is lesbian! My name is transgender! My name is homophobe!" Etc. Really bad poetry.

Here's a few photos that I took.

Maybe there's hope for Canada

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For the past 25 years, the time of my still ongoing reversion to the Church after a period nearly equally as long when going to Church was only important when my Mom was present. Not out of anger at anything. Just sloth, acedia, spiritual laziness, I thank God daily for His Mercy for calling me back.

The biggest shock was not the changes that I found in the parishes in the Twin Cities. It was the secularization of Canada, especially Quebec, the spiritual home of the North American Church. Quebec is the home of the Shrine of Ste. Anne de Beaupre, the grandma of Our Lord who came through with miracles for my grandma and my great-grandma, for certain, and I wouldn't be surprised to learn that when my Mom visited there, I was high on her intentions list. Moms know everything about their kids.

I've been putting off visiting the Shrine because of the horrors I have heard about the Church in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada.

But maybe God, in His Mercy, has begun to call them home, too.


On this patronal feast of the place founded four centuries ago as New France, the True North's Fr Raymond deSouza recaps the Eucharistic Congress in the context of a stirring renaissance for the long-beleaguered church in Quebec:

It has been oft-remarked — and oft-celebrated, to be sure — that Quebec’s faith seems to be a thing of the past, an obstacle to development and progress best left behind without nostalgia. The result has been the spectacular dismantling — sociologically speaking, overnight — of what was once perhaps the most Catholic corner of the world. For many observant Catholics in Quebec, the rapid and aggressive secularization of the culture has been a cause of discouragement and even despair. For the Church, the pain of souls turning away from Christ was compounded by an internal crisis of confusion about the faith itself. Was there room in Quebec for a confident Catholic voice?

That confusion and fear was left behind last week. There is nothing more fundamental to the Catholic faith than the Eucharistic — the belief that Jesus Christ is truly present in the sacrament under the appearance of bread and wine. During the congress, Catholics from around the world joined the Church in Quebec to proclaim that faith. And on Thursday evening, when 20,000 pilgrims filled the streets of the Old City in a Eucharistic procession, the Church in Quebec proclaimed her faith with serenity and confidence, unapologetic about taking her place in the culture that she did so much to shape.

The exuberance of the congress, especially with young people from across Quebec and Canada as key participants, hinted that something new was on the horizon in Quebec. On Friday evening, when twelve men were ordained priests at the hockey coliseum, the 12,000-strong congregation broke the constraints of normal liturgical practice, applauding and cheering as if, well, they were at a hockey game.

“Twelve new priests — like the twelve apostles — for a new foundation for the Church in Quebec!” said Father Stéphane Pouliot, who had invited me to the ordination. He is himself a young, vibrant priest from south of Quebec City.

“I feel as if I was raised from the dead,” said Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Archbishop of Quebec, demonstrating that it was not only the young who were deeply affected by the week-long congress. “I believe that we have reached a turning point in the history of the Catholic Church in Quebec.”

Cardinal Ouellet is not customarily a man of extravagant rhetoric, so his words indicate that something important is afoot. The quadrennial Eucharistic congresses are planned years in advance, so when it was announced in 2004 in Guadalajara, Mexico, that Quebec would be the next host, no one could have known that Quebec society was about to begin a contentious conversation about its culture and identity....

In the history of cultures and nations it is usually only possible to identify a turning point well after the fact. And so it will not be possible to know what the impact of Quebec 2008 will have on the future. But for those who were here last week, it seemed that a corner was turned. And for that, this year will mark a very happy St. Jean Baptiste indeed.

Whispers in the Loggia

Another Visit by the Mystery Church Shopper

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A friend who had read the report on a parish that might have been a bit harsh, has asked that another parish be visited. Duly chastened, the Mystery Church Shopper, cashed in a few savings bonds and filled up the ol’ gas tank and made a visit this morning.

As is usual, the church shall remain anonymous, mostly to avoid return messages from the celebrant. And because he is sadly aware that the errors observed probably were made at many other of the 220 parishes in our archdiocese. I’m not in the business to criticize the Church. I prefer to think of it as encouraging reverent Masses according to the book, in whatever language the parish chooses.

There seems to be a trend that not all parishes read “the book.”

At the church this morning, a beautiful newer structure, 80% full on a gorgeous Sunday morning, things started out well. A silver chalice was on the altar. The two lectors read better than any I have ever heard before, reading with feelings and emphasis. The cantor, a tenor, had a beautiful voice, well accompanied by a pianist at a grand piano. The celebrant, a visiting priest, gave an extremely fine homily, the Creed was said properly and the Prayers of the Faithful were extremely relevant and appropriate. They included a prayer for a new pastor. The previous pastor of the parish had recently retired so that is why there was a visiting priest, probably from the ranks of the retired.

That’s what we used to call the “Mass of the Catechumens.” Parishes seem to have few problems with that.

But when they get to the Offertory, the beginning of the “Mass of the Faithful”, things seem to wobble a bit.

I was pleased to see that the obligatory Kool-Aid pitcher was not used in the bringing of the wine to the celebrant. In this case, it was a glass carafe, even though “the book” requires a container of a “noble metal.” One wonders how a parish can afford a building worth many millions of dollars, and not have a few hundred left over for a proper container.

Everybody knelt at the Eucharistic prayer, I was pleased to see, and things went fine until the Lord’s Prayer. For some reasons, the priest’s prayer, “Deliver us from Evil Our Lord. . . .” was omitted and the congregation just jumped right into the Protestant innovation, “For Thine is the. . . .”

Father had walked into the congregation for the handshake of peace (contrary to archdiocesan instructions).

Then, after the Agnus Dei, the “Lamb of God” prayers, Father did not receive Communion himself right prior to the Communion for the Faithful after the “O Lord I am not worthy” invocation..

The platoon (about 16) of Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, probably called something different at this parish, came up to the altar and began by doing something nice that I have only seen at one other parish: a ritual washing of hands. After all, if they are going to touch the Body of Our Lord with their own, unconsecrated hands, the least they can do is be sure that they are spiritually cleaned. It’s not in “the book”, but I think it’s great.

Then one of the ministers (it always seems to be a woman) took the Precious Blood and poured it into the ceramic cups for distribution to the congregation. [Can a cup made of a “noble metal” be that expensive? They look like they were purchased at the Rennaissance Fair.] That is something that is supposed to be done before the Consecration to avoid the possibility of “spilling” the Precious Blood. Another minister assisted the celebrant by distributing the Body of Christ into the various patens needed for the Ministers. The Celebrant should be doing that alone also.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but the Extraordinary Ministers (called by another name) did not receive Communion themselves prior to the congregation. But when they had all finished, they lined up and received Communion under both species from two of their number. Then, much to my shock, Father stood up from his chair and stood in line and quietly waited until it was his turn.

He, the Celebrant, “in persona Christi”, who had consecrated the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ was being treated as if he had just walked in off of the street. Very (small d) democratic, I suppose, but absolutely against the rules.

I don’t understand the impulse to be so creative with the words and rubrics of the Mass. People wouldn’t dare extemporize with the Pledge of Allegiance or the Star Spangled Banner.

Sung Latin Mass to be held every Sunday in Davenport.

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Una Voce Quad Cities takes great pleasure in making the following announcement:

Beginning August 3, 2008, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass will be offered in the extraordinary form (Missa Cantata) every Sunday at 4pm at St. Anthony’s Church in Davenport, Iowa. Frs. Scott Lemaster, David Brownfield, and Tim Regan will alternate in offering the Mass. For parish information see this.

Our heartfelt gratitude goes to Bishop Martin Amos and his director of liturgy, Deacon Frank Agnoli, who administered a diocese-wide survey of interest in the Traditional Latin Mass and then encouraged six diocesan priests to seek training in the extraordinary form. We are also deeply grateful to these priests (three of whom will be offering the Traditional Mass at St. Wenceslaus in Iowa City, also beginning August 3^rd, at 1:30pm) for sacrificing their time and energy to offer us the ancient form of Mass, and to the Canons Regular of St. John Cantius in Chicago who offered the (by all accounts superb) training program they attended in May. Thanks to Father Z

Apparently, fasting from Midnight is not necessary for Masses held at 4:00 p.m. A three hour fast will suffice, it has been said. But I would check with the parish with the later Masses, just to be sure.

Parochial Charter Schools in Minnesota

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Guarding the perimeter,

protecting the freedom

I support prayer and am in favor of school but I don't think they should be part of the same phrase. 'Prayer in school' makes me nervous. Each prayer sings of traditions and beliefs that may be wildly dissimilar. We want to protect the right to hold these wildly dissimilar beliefs. So how can a public school favor one church's prayer over another?

I was raised as a JFK Catholic in the day when separation of church and state was thought of as the bedrock of constitutional conservatism. If you wanted to pray in school, you put on your squeaky uniform corduroys and attended St. Thomas More Catholic Elementary School in Alhambra, Calif., with tuition paid by your parents. I prayed a lot at St. Thomas More, but our Catholic prez, bowing to the wishes of conservative Protestants, vowed to keep the sacred and secular far apart.

Today, prayer in school and faith-based government programming is conservative constitutional bedrock. This month, President Bush met in the Vatican to discuss world affairs with the Roman Catholic pope — the same leader JFK had to keep his distance from.

In Bush's first term, the U.S. Department of Education issued a rule that orders schools to allow students to engage in voluntary, non-class-time prayer. Prayer in schools, it seems, is now the law of the land. So is Bible reading, saying grace in the cafeteria or gathering at the flagpole for vespers. And teachers may participate, as long as they are not leading the choir.

I think we can stipulate that the favored prayer in most American schools, and of those wielding the political might right now, would sing of the divinity of Jesus Christ.

Hold that thought while we take a detour to Inver Grove Heights. The issue has come to light there not because students are discussing the Gospels at lunch but because they are bowing in the direction of Mecca.

The state investigated a publicly funded charter school that serves a predominantly Muslim population. It did so because Star-Tribune columnist Katherine Kersten attacked the school as a front for Islamic indoctrination. She reiterated her charges last weekend on the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal.

The Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy, or TiZA, is paid for by the taxpayers and has a strong connection to the Muslim religion. It shares space with an Islamic religious group, has daily prayer in the classroom, conducts weekly half-hour communal prayer events in the gymnasium and offers optional, after-school instruction in the Quran, along with secular activities such as the Boy Scouts.

Officials from the state education department visited TiZA. They concluded the school was largely complying with the law. The Bush administration rule was cited in the state's report; because the prayer was "voluntary," it was mostly OK. Two areas of concern were the length of the 30-minute communal prayer service and the fact that school buses do not leave until the after-school program is finished. TiZA was told to make changes.

It appears that, with some adjustments, TiZA can satisfy concerns of the state. Joe Nathan, a charter school expert who heads the Center for School Change at the University of Minnesota, visited TiZA after the controversy arose.

Nathan said in his view, TiZA is well within the rules. "In part because of the national fury over 9/11, and resentment about oil prices, some people have gone a little nuts in dealing with this little school that's enormously successful,'' Nathan said.

Islam does not accept the divinity of Jesus Christ. There are parts of the Muslim world where the Quran is read as a call to arms against America. Are we worried that TiZA blurs the line between church and state, or are we worried that the church in question is a threat to our state?

In 2003, supporters of Ascension Catholic elementary school in North Minneapolis decided to launch a public charter school on church property. The new school would be called "Ascension Academy." It would serve grades 9-12, picking up where Ascension Catholic left off. The principal of Ascension Catholic (private) would run Ascension Academy (public).

One could assume that a few prayers might drift over from the Catholic elementary school to the public high school. Both were to be on parish grounds and both were named for the moment when Jesus Christ's divinity was sealed by his ascension into heaven.

Here's what critical state officials who reviewed the charter school application had to say:

"This school seems more like a private religious school than a public high school... There appears to be very strong religious undertones to this proposed school's mission/vision ... this again sounds like a private school with a very early enrollment date to assure the students who are attending an existing school that they will be students in the new charter school."

The sponsoring group addressed the concerns, and Ascension Academy's charter was approved. According to Morgan Brown, assistant state education commissioner, the dual role of the principal has since ended and the school has attracted no religious complaints.

In Minnesota, charter schools have fewer restrictions than other public schools. Leasing space from churches — whether it's the Muslim American Society of Minnesota or the Catholic Archdiocese — is acceptable under state policy. And Nathan and state officials say there have been few complaints about charter schools crossing the line.

The prayers at TiZA make me nervous. Not because we should fear praying Muslims, but because we want Muslims, Mormons, Catholics, Evangelicals, Baptists, Episcopalians, Unitarians, Methodists and every other religious group to have the absolute right to pray and worship according to their own traditions and beliefs.

Religion is built on those beliefs. But religions don't believe the same stuff. Their beliefs not only conflict, they contend. The Ascension of Jesus — forgive me, St. Thomas More — is a fiction to Muslims and Jews. The Angel Moroni of the Book of Mormon is a farmer's prank to many Christian denominations. Kosher, halal, fish-on-Fridays, nuns' habits and the hijab — all refer to discrete beliefs that have caused bloodshed for centuries.

Except in America. We have created peaceful space for all beliefs by making sure no single faith is preferred by government. Or at least, we have tried to. That space is what we call "freedom of religion." It must be guarded zealously and its perimeters secured against incursions by "faith-based" armies currently on the march.

It took a group of praying Muslim children to remind us of this. If we ask whether TiZA is a madrassa, we must ask if Ascension Academy is a Catholic prep. The answer from public officials is that neither crosses the line. But to an old JFK Catholic, it sure looks like the line has moved.

Jim Ragsdale is an editorial writer at the Pioneer Press. His e-mail address is jragsdale@pioneerpress.com.

Most Essential Catholic News Web Pages

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Time Magazine has come out with its list of the ten most essential web pages for its readers: Sites we can't live without:

They include Wikipedia (Online Encyclopedia), Yahoo Finance (Haven for armchair investors and money junkies), Craig's List (Essential site for want ads), ESPN (Megasite for scores, schedules and sports analysis), Yelp (User submitted evaluations), Facebook (Classier and cleaner in design than MySpace), Digg (Barometer of the issues most web surfers are interested in), Google (Much more than a search engine), TMZ (Chock-full of juicy celebrity tidbits, photos and videos); and Flickr (Digital Photo Sharing).

Some of those I have never heard of. Some I use daily. So, without knowing the answer, I'm going to scour my bookmarks and see what are the most essential web pages that I use for covering news of Catholic Events in the Upper Midwest. Some of these will be duplicates of Time Magazine's list. They will be in the order in which I think of them.

1. Google, especially Google Alert -- Google Alert allows me to place a permanent search request on Google's search engine for subjects in which I am interested. I can receive reports daily or as they are found. I receive them daily. http://www.google.com/alerts This saves me the effort to regularly search for news information coming from different dioceses and communities about Catholics in our area. It is automatically sent to me.

Needless to say, I use Google for most of my search engine work, although my brother in California informs me that Yahoo often comes up with information that Google doesn't provide. And, Clusty (www.clusty.com) provides not as many hits, but it clusters them in groups. This is especially valuable when you regularly search for information on the same subjects. After a while you become familiar with the results and you know that you don't have to look at the results about a German football (soccer) player.

2. I love Wikipedia, the volunteer encyclopedia -- www.wikipedia.com You have to know a bit about the subject because sometimes on rare subjects there might be errors or gaps, but you can generally find concise information on what you are looking for quickly.

3. Conversion of numerical units -- http://www.chemie.fu-berlin.de/chemistry/general/units_en.html Occasionally I need to convert Fahrenheit temperatures to Centigrade or miles to kilometers. This is slick. This is where I convert dollars to pounds or Euros or vice-versa:
http://www.translatum.gr/converter/currency.htm

4. AbeBooks - used books for sale -- www.abebooks.com A consortium of most of the major used book dealers in the world.

5, The Catholic Spirit -- http://thecatholicspirit.com/index.asp Semi official news from the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, weekly (bi-weekly in the Summer). The Archdiocese puts news releases on its home page: http://www.archspm.org/

6. Father John Zuhlsdorf ("Father Z") -- http://wdtprs.com/blog/ News from Rome, especially news on the liturgy wars

7. Whispers in the Loggia (Rocco) -- http://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/ Hierarchical news involving U.S. Bishops and Cardinals

8. The Curt Jester - http://www.splendoroftruth.com/curtjester/index.html National Catholic News (and humor)

9. Lifesitenews.com -- http://www.lifesitenews.com/ A Toronto site, specializes in Pro-Life News

10. Catholic News Service -- http://www.catholicnews.com/index.html Official site of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

11, Catholic Hierarchy.org -- http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/ Statistical information on all bishops, living and dead (and retirement dates)

12. National Catholic Register -- http://www.ncregister.com/ with our Tim Drake as lead writer, an excellent source of news of the American Church.

13. John Allen, National Catholic Reporter -- http://ncrcafe.org/node/507 the number one expert on the doings of the American Church. The other "Reporter" columnists and writers are "suspect." Allen's weekly column is available by internet subscription.

14. New Advent.com -- http://www.newadvent.org/ Home of the 1911 Catholic Encyclopedia, the Douay Rhiems Bible, the Summa Theologica, writings of the early Church Fathers, and a very good headline news service.

15. Sandro Magister -- http://chiesa.espresso.repubblica.it/?eng=y Italian professor and columnist, expert on the inside goings on in the Vatican; his weekly column available by free internet subscription.

16. One News Now.com -- http://www.onenewsnow.com/ Current U.S. Catholic News Headlines

17. Catholic World News -- http://www.cwnews.com/offtherecord/offtherecord.cfm Excellent Catholic News and Commentary from Diogenes

18. Holy Smoke/U.K. Telegraph -- http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/myblogerr.html My nominee for the greatest Catholic blog name. All the news you don't want to read from once Catholic England.

19. Fabulous Fern's -- (disguise needed)

I haven't included sites like the Vatican and other theological and liturgical sites that I also consult regularly. But if you have suggestions that I or others might benefit from visiting, please let us know in the comment box.

Diocese of Winona to ordain four new priests

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The Diocese of Winona will ordain four new priests on June 28, possibly the largest group it has ordained in decades as a shortage of priests has developed both locally and nationwide.

The priests-to-be are Jeffrey L. Dobbs, 26, from Pipestone, Minn.; Ubaldo Roque Huerta, 36, of Austin, originally from Mexico City, Mexico; Thomas M. Niehaus, 30, from Mankato; and William D. Thompson, 26, from Lake City.

The Diocese of Winona ended a four-year drought when it ordained two priests in 2006. Another priest was ordained in 2007.

"The pipeline is filling up again," said spokeswoman Rose Hammes. Another priest could be ordained in the diocese this year, and three more are expected next year.

The upcoming ordinations won't make a sizable dent in the Diocese of Winona's priest shortage, however. The 20-county southern Minnesota diocese has 115 parishes, and just a handful, mainly in larger cities like Rochester, have one dedicated priest.

"The rest of them are all sharing between two or three parishes per priest," Hammes said.

The uptick in ordinations can partly be attributed to the fact that Pope John Paul II connected well with a generation of young men that is coming of age, Hammes said. At the same time, she added, the Diocese of Winona has stepped up its efforts to encourage young men to enter the priesthood.

The diocese started stepping up its efforts to attract more priests five years ago, when the Rev. Tom Melvin was named the diocese's full-time vocations director, freeing him to work full-time on recruiting new priests.

The Diocese has also laid the groundwork to attract more men to the priesthood by encouraging priests to examine the path they have taken in their lives and share the stories with parishioners.

A discovery from that process, Melvin said, is that despite the toll that the sex-abuse crisis has inflicted on the Catholic Church in recent years, priests in the Diocese of Winona are satisfied with their lives as pastors.

At the same time, the diocese has started events promoting the priesthood that are aimed at 6th graders sophomores in high school, times when the diocese believes key decisions about the future are being made.

While Melvin hopes more churches will have a single pastor dedicated to it, he said drops in rural populations may not make that ratio practical anymore.

"In some of the rural areas I don't know if we'll get back to having one priest per parish," he said.

At the same time, he said that he's focusing on realistic goals, saying he doesn't think the diocese will see a sharp increase in ordinations, as many as 10 ordinations per year for four or five years in a row, for example.

"I have to work on getting the men who are called to be priests and not force men to be priests who aren't called," he said. Rochester Post Bulletin

Iowa parishes struggle to recover from devastating floods; Last month it was tornadoes

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DUBUQUE, Iowa (CatholicNewsService) -- Iowa officials were calling the state's catastrophic flooding "the tsunami of the plains," as it wreaked havoc on citizens, business owners and Catholic parish property statewide.

Record flooding from nine of Iowa's rivers has covered millions of acres of farmland and crippled numerous towns and cities in its path.

While the water had begun to recede, it was only the beginning of a long recovery process, federal and state authorities confirmed.

The destructive flooding also has caused devastation to many Catholic parish properties and the homes and businesses of parishioners, said Dubuque Archbishop Jerome G. Hanus.

In the Archdiocese of Dubuque -- which covers 30 counties in the northeast quadrant of Iowa -- Cedar Rapids experienced the worst flooding.

In Iowa's second largest city, Cedar Rapids, with a population of more than 120,000, a 9.2-square-mile area was under several feet of water. This covered 1,300 city blocks and necessitated the evacuation of 24,000 people, city officials said.

St. Patrick Church and parish buildings in the heart of downtown Cedar Rapids were swamped and water came within a foot of the roof of the four-year-old parish center, which houses parish and regional diocesan offices.

"We did some sandbagging because city officials told us we might expect a Cedar River crest of 21 to 24 feet, which might have come up to the parking lot," said Jeff Henderson, archdiocesan superintendent of schools, whose regional office was in the building. "But when we heard the crest was 31.1 feet, we knew everything inside would be gone. This was beyond anyone's wildest imagination."

The scene of people feverishly sandbagging, others evacuating their homes and packing their cars and pickups to capacity -- as well as the bumper-to-bumper traffic as people tried to escape the oncoming waters -- was surreal, Henderson told The Witness, newspaper of the archdiocese.

"I will never forget this," he said. "It felt like we were in a Third-World country."

As of June 17 Henderson reported that nine Cedar Rapids teachers and staff members from Catholic schools have lost their homes, and there may be more.

Safety was a major concern as city, state and national officials said they were conducting extensive inspections before people could return to homes or businesses. For many, the cleanup would not begin for at least two weeks, officials said.

In another part of Cedar Rapids, St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church and the neighborhood surrounding it also were inundated with high water. This parish is in the heart of an area known as Czech Village, where the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library -- built in 1995 -- is located. The building received extensive damage.

"The pastors and parish staffs are under extreme stress," said Msgr. Russell Bleich, vicar for the Cedar Rapids region whose office was also in the St. Patrick Parish center. "But they are doing their best to respond to the human needs of the people."

This is an older area of the city where many of the homes may be a total loss and the residents didn't have flood insurance, he said.

In mid-June Msgr. Bleich attended an interfaith meeting of Cedar Rapids church representatives whose congregations were affected by the flood and said the task is so great the group found it difficult to chart a plan.

"It's hard to know where to begin," he said. "First of all, we need prayers to help people get through this. We also need volunteers to attend to the human needs of those displaced and eventually we will need financial assistance."

Joe Mahony of Catholic Charities USA's Disaster Response Office in Alexandria, Va., traveled to Dubuque's Archdiocesan Pastoral Center in mid-June to help organize volunteer disaster recovery.

Mahony, along with Joe Featherston, associate director of Dubuque Catholic Charities, participated in a statewide conference call to assess the needs not only of the Dubuque Archdiocese, but also the Des Moines and Davenport dioceses where major flooding also has occurred.

Some churches and schools in the Des Moines Diocese had minor flood cleanup to do, but appeared to have escaped major damage as a result of recent severe weather.

The extent to which parishioners suffered damage as the result of storms and flooding, however, was still being evaluated June 17.

Des Moines Bishop Richard E. Pates asked all priests to include special prayers at Masses the weekend of June 14-15 for the victims of severe weather, particularly for those who lost their lives in the tornado at the Little Sioux Scout Camp, their families and the whole Scouting community. [What a welcome for Bishop Pates, formerly the Auxiliary Bishop of St Paul and Minneapolis until last month.]

"For all the victims of the flooding who have been forced from their homes and businesses, we pray for their safety and quick return home," he said. "We are grateful to the many volunteers, including youth groups from various parishes in the diocese, who have offered their time to assist with sandbagging and other important relief efforts to help keep people safe and protect property."

Though the officials in the Davenport Diocese reported little flood damage to parish and administrative buildings, they said members of their church communities opened their buildings to those displaced by rising waters and served up meals to the needy.

Shelters were full and parishioners were being asked to offer support at the facilities, said Father Ken Kuntz, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Iowa City.

Father Jeff Belger, parochial vicar at St. Mary's, helped with sandbagging efforts and gathered Iowa City university students associated with the Newman Catholic Student Center to help in the labors.

"This experience can make us bitter or better," Father Kuntz told The Catholic Messenger, Davenport's diocesan newspaper. "I think this will bring out the better."

Mahony urged collaboration to use city, state and national resources for the recovery effort and also offered the services of Catholic Charities USA.

Archbishop Hanus has asked for an archdiocesan collection to be taken up in all parishes for the victims of tornado and flood damage. A major tornado recently destroyed 400 homes in the town of Parkersburg, also in the Dubuque Archdiocese. Funds will be distributed through Catholic Charities.

And just last month, tornadoes killed 7 in Iowa, destroying the town of Parkersburg, and a week ago,
four boy scouts were killed when their camp was struck by another tornado.

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New St Mary's U President Adjusting to the Midwest

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Brother William Mann is still getting accustomed to being Saint Mary’s University’s new president.

The 13th president of the school, Mann was named to the position in December but took over from SMU chancellor and interim-president Brother Louis DeThomasis on June 1.

Saint Mary's new president, Brother William Mann, right, talks with Al Smith of Winona during a welcoming party Wednesday at SMU's Toner Student Center Lounge in Winona. Brother William is SMU's 13th president. (Photo by Andrew Link/Winona Daily News)

Until he knows the school better, Mann said he wasn’t making priorities or promises just yet.

For now, he simply wants to get used to the Midwest, beyond just getting his Minnesota driver’s license.

So far, Mann’s time in Winona has been a whirlwind of meetings with the SMU community, including students, alumni and his cabinet. The people of Winona he has met have impressed, if not shocked him.

“Kind of startlingly friendly,” Mann said. “I’ve spent a lot of time in big urban areas, so the friendliness and people going out of there way is nice, but takes getting used to.”

He served in Rome from 2000 to 2007 as the Vicar General De La Salle Christian Brothers. He taught at the high school level in New York and Rhode Island before serving as an administrator for the Christian Brothers in New England, Rome and India.

“One of the nice things, while going through all the volumes of papers I’ve had to go through, is that they are all in English,” Mann said.

In most of those positions, he’s held leadership roles in guiding multiple institutions. As vicar general, he was the second highest officer of the international Catholic teaching order that comprises over 900 schools. Mann said he is excited to be able to focus on just one institution for a change.

A member of SMU’s board of trustees from 1996 to 2001 and a longtime friend of Brother DeThomasis, Mann knows the university, but he said he didn’t come to Minnesota to shake up the community.

“I said to the new students and their parents that we are all the new folks on the block together,” Mann said. “Let’s figure it out together. I didn’t come here saying this is how we are going to do it.”

Mann brings with him the reputation as a noted scholar of John Baptist de La Salle, the founder of the order, and holds a doctorate in family ministry from Colgate Rochester Divinity School.

He said he’d like to increase the university’s focus on making its academics more career orientated, pointing to SMU’s graduate programs as a model.

“The idea is that learning is enhancing not only someone’s life but also their career opportunities, in a way that they can then serve society and the church,” Mann said.

Mann has the summer to learn the school and the community. Fostering relationships with the other local schools, deciding on the Packers or the Vikings, those are things Mann hasn’t quite gotten to yet. He’s looking forward to getting to know Winona well, even though he won’t be at one of the biggest summer get-togethers.

“I won’t be able to make it to Steamboat Days, unfortunately,” Mann said. Winona Daily News

The Changing Face of the Archdiocese

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El Ministerio Hispano/Latino / Hispanic Ministry
Arquidiócesis de/Archdiocese of St. Paul y Minneapolis

Las Parroquias en/Parishes in St. Paul:

Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe / Our Lady of Guadalupe, 401 Concord St.,
St. Paul (oeste) 55107 Tel: 651/ 228-0506 P./Fr. Kevin Kenney & Diácono Martín Jaques
Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun. 9 a.m. bilingue , 11 a.m. & 1 p.m. en español

Iglesia de St. James / St. Frances-St. James, 496 View St., 55102 Tel: 651/ 228-1169
P./ Fr. Miguel Betancourt, P/Fr. Alberto Curbelo & Eva Vargas, Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 11:30 a.m.

Sagrado Corazón / Sacred Heart, 840 E. 6^th Street, St. Paul (este), 55106 Tel: 651/ 776-2741 P./Fr. Eugene Michel, ofm & Prisciliano Maya
Misa/Mass: sábado/Sat. 5:30 p.m. and dom./Sun. 11 a.m.

Las Parroquias en /Parishes in Minneapolis:

Sagrado Corazón de Jesús - Incarnation, 3800 Pleasant Ave.S., Mpls 55408 Tel: 612/ 874-7169 P./Fr. Kevin McDonough (after 7/1/08) y Dcn. Carl Valdez
Misas/Mass: sábado/Sat., 6:30 p.m. y domingo/Sun., 11:15 a.m., 1 p.m. y 7 p.m.
Martes/Tues., miércoles/Wed., y jueves/Thurs, 6 p.m.

Iglesia de San Esteban / St. Stephen, 2211 Clinton Ave. S., Mpls (sur) 55404
P./Fr. Joseph Williams Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 9 a.m. & 6 p.m.

Santo Rosario / Holy Rosary, 2424 18^th Ave. S., Mpls (sur) 55404 Tel: 612/ 724-3651 P./Fr. José Santiago, OP & Hrna. Luisa Knipp,
Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 11:30 a.m. y 6 p.m.

Ss. Cirilo y Metódio / Ss. Cyril & Methodius, 1301 2^nd St. NE, Mpls (noreste) 55413 Tel: 612/ 379-9736 P./Fr. Edison Galarza
Misa/Mass: Domingo/Sun., 7:30 a.m. y 10:30 a.m.

Ascensión / Ascension 1723 Bryant Ave. N, Mpls (norte) 55411 Tel: 612/ 522-4354
P./Fr. Tim Norris Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 11:30 a.m.

Otras parroquias del area / Metro Area Parishes:

Asunción/Assumption (sede de Richfield, Bloomington y Eden Prairie)
305 E. 77^th Street, Richfield, 55423 Tel: 612/ 866-5019, Ext. 25; P./Fr. Tom Merrill, ofm conv.
Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 11 a.m. & 1 p.m.

St. John the Evangelist / San Juan Evangelista, 6 Interlachen Road, Hopkins, 55343 Tel: 952/ 935-5536 P./Fr. Jim Liekhus (after 6/20/08) & Diácono Juan Durán
Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun.: 2:30 p.m.

Los Ángeles de la Guardia / Guardian Angels, 218 W. 2^nd Street, Chaska, 55318 Tel: 952/ 227-4085 P./Fr. Paul Jarvis & Virginia Koehn Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 12 p.m.

San Marcos / St. Mark 350 Atwood St. S, Shakopee, MN 55379 Tel: 952-445-1229
P./Fr. Tim Norris (after 7/1/08) & Dcn. Juan Durán Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 5 p.m.

San Enrique / St. Henry, 1001 7^th Street E., Monticello, 55362 Tel: 763/ 295-2402
P./Fr. Timoteo Rudolphi Misa/Mass: sábado/Sat., 7 p.m.

St. John Neumann, 4030 Pilot Knob Road, Eagan, 55122 Tel: 651/ 454-2079
Maria Capouch Misa/Mass: sábado/Sat., 7 p.m.

Risen Savior, 1501 E. Co. Rd. 42, Burnsville, 55306 Tel: 952/ 431-5222
Carmen Dean Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 2 p.m.

Sta. Odilia / St. Odilia, 3495 Victoria St. N., Shoreview, 55126 Tel: 651/ 415-3313
P. James Adams, principal celebrant, Fernando La Hoz
Misa/Mass: domingo / Sun. 12:30 p.m.

San Alfonso / St. Alphonsus , 7025 Halifax Ave N, Brooklyn Center, 55429 Tel: 763/ 561-5100 P./Fr. Bill Bueche, C.Ss.R Misa/Mass: 12:30 p.m. domingo/Sun.

St. Stephen, 525 Jackson St., Anoka, MN 55303 P./Fr. John Floeder & Fernando La Hoz Tel. 763-712-7482 Misa/Mass: 6:30 p.m. sábado/Sat.

Divina Misericordia / Divine Mercy, 4 SW 2^nd Ave, Faribault, 55021 Tel: 507/ 334-2266, Ext. 16
P./Fr. Fernando Ortega (after 7/1/08) y Zulema Nieves Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 11:30 a.m. (en la Iglesia de Sagrado Corazón)

St. Mary, 165 N. Waterville Ave., Le Center, 56057 Tel: 507/ 357-4838
P./Fr. Chris Shofner Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 12:00 p.m.

Santo Domingo / St. Dominic, 116 Linden St. N, Northfield, 55057 Tel: 507/ 645-8816
P./Fr. Denny Dempsey Misa/Mass: domingo/Sun., 12:30 p.m.

St. Joseph, 426 W. 8^th St., Red Wing, 55066 Tel: 651-388-1133 or 651-291-7046 (metro area)
Misa/Mass: 2 nd Domingo de mes/Sun. of month, 5 p.m.

San Jorge / St. George, 133 N. Brown Rd., Long Lake, 55356 Tel: 952/473-1247
Fr. Ralph Huar Misa/Mass: 2x/mo. (1st and 3rd Sudays / domingos, 4:30 p.m.
Fr. Bill Bueche, C. Sr R and Fr. Patrick Foley, TOR, principle celebrants

Archdiocesan Hispanic Ministry / Ministerio Hispano Arquidiocesano



Anita (Anne) Attea, Coordinator for Hispanic Ministry
328 W Kellogg Blvd, St Paul, MN 55102 Tel: 651-290-1644

Estela Villagrán Manancero, Home Mission Coordinator
(Address is same as above ) Tel: 651-290-1639

Norberto (Rico) Sotelo, Pastoral Juvenil
(Address is same as above ) Tel: 651-357-6818

Zulma Arroyo, Chancery contact
226 Summit Avenue St. Paul, 55102 Tel: 651/ 291-4423


Twenty-three parishes, over ten percent of the total in the Archdiocese, are offering Spanish language Masses. Last year, the number was 14 parishes.