The Catholic Diocese of Saginaw Monthly Newsletter for August 2008 is now available online.
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July 30, 2008
July 29, 2008
USCCB launches new cultural diversity website
WASHINGTON (USCCB) — The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church (SCDC) of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is launching a new website.
The Secretariat wants to build a strong online presence through the use of innovative and effective communication resources to support the overall evangelization efforts of the Church.
The new website features links to the five ethnic offices in which the secretariat is organized. In the site information can be found about the Bishops’ Committee on Cultural Diversity and its subcommittees.
Features include resources such as articles, PowerPoint presentations, demographics, videos and more, which will be periodically updated.
"It is our hope that the site will be a place where anyone can go to learn about the various Catholic ethnic communities, the wonderful diversity present in our Church and the many resources the Secretariat has to offer," said Jesuit Father Allan Figueroa Deck, Executive Director of the Secretariat.
The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity was created in January of this year. It works in a collaborative spirit to promote the pastoral efforts and priorities of the Committee on Cultural Diversity and its subcommittees.
Its focus is to minister to culturally diverse Catholic communities including Hispanic, African American, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and Native American. The Pastoral Care of Migrants, Refugees and Travelers also serves numerous other communities of Catholics.
The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church new website address is http://www.usccb.org/scdc/index.shtml
The Secretariat wants to build a strong online presence through the use of innovative and effective communication resources to support the overall evangelization efforts of the Church.
The new website features links to the five ethnic offices in which the secretariat is organized. In the site information can be found about the Bishops’ Committee on Cultural Diversity and its subcommittees.
Features include resources such as articles, PowerPoint presentations, demographics, videos and more, which will be periodically updated.
"It is our hope that the site will be a place where anyone can go to learn about the various Catholic ethnic communities, the wonderful diversity present in our Church and the many resources the Secretariat has to offer," said Jesuit Father Allan Figueroa Deck, Executive Director of the Secretariat.
The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity was created in January of this year. It works in a collaborative spirit to promote the pastoral efforts and priorities of the Committee on Cultural Diversity and its subcommittees.
Its focus is to minister to culturally diverse Catholic communities including Hispanic, African American, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and Native American. The Pastoral Care of Migrants, Refugees and Travelers also serves numerous other communities of Catholics.
The Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church new website address is http://www.usccb.org/scdc/index.shtml
July 28, 2008
BXVI: World Youth Day a New Pentecost
VATICAN CITY (VIS) - On Sunday, Pope Benedict XVI appeared at the balcony overlooking the inner courtyard of the Apostolic Palace at Castelgandolfo, to pray the Angelus with the faithful and pilgrims gathered there.
The Pope spoke of his recent trip to Australia to preside at the 23rd World Youth Day where, he said, he had had the opportunity "to encounter the youthful face of the Church."
He also recalled how people - using "a beautiful expression that encapsulates the essence of these international days established by John Paul II" - had described the participants as "young pilgrims of the world."
"These meetings," the Holy Father explained, "represent stages of a great pilgrimage across the planet to show how faith in Christ makes us all children of the one Father Who is in heaven, and builders of a civilisation of love."
What characterised the meeting in Sydney, he went on, "was an awareness of the central role of the Holy Spirit, a leading player in the life of the Church and of Christians."
The Pope went on to recall how, during the days leading up to the closing Mass, bishops from all over the world had presented catecheses in the churches of Sydney, "moments of reflection and of prayer, indispensable in order to ensure the event left not only outward traces but a profound interior impression on people's consciences.
"The evening vigil in the heart of the city, under the Southern Cross," the Pope added, "was a choral invocation of the Holy Spirit," while during the Eucharistic celebration of Sunday, July20 , he had "invited everyone present to renew their baptismal promises.
"Thus," he went on, "this World Day became a new Pentecost, from which the mission of young people started out afresh, called to be apostles of their peers like so many saints and blesseds" such as "Blessed Piergiorgio Frassati whose relics, placed in Sydney cathedral, were venerated by a constant pilgrimage of young people.
All young men and woman are called to follow their example and share the personal experience of Jesus which changes the lives of His 'friends' with the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God's love."
The Pope spoke of his recent trip to Australia to preside at the 23rd World Youth Day where, he said, he had had the opportunity "to encounter the youthful face of the Church."
He also recalled how people - using "a beautiful expression that encapsulates the essence of these international days established by John Paul II" - had described the participants as "young pilgrims of the world."
"These meetings," the Holy Father explained, "represent stages of a great pilgrimage across the planet to show how faith in Christ makes us all children of the one Father Who is in heaven, and builders of a civilisation of love."
What characterised the meeting in Sydney, he went on, "was an awareness of the central role of the Holy Spirit, a leading player in the life of the Church and of Christians."
The Pope went on to recall how, during the days leading up to the closing Mass, bishops from all over the world had presented catecheses in the churches of Sydney, "moments of reflection and of prayer, indispensable in order to ensure the event left not only outward traces but a profound interior impression on people's consciences.
"The evening vigil in the heart of the city, under the Southern Cross," the Pope added, "was a choral invocation of the Holy Spirit," while during the Eucharistic celebration of Sunday, July20 , he had "invited everyone present to renew their baptismal promises.
"Thus," he went on, "this World Day became a new Pentecost, from which the mission of young people started out afresh, called to be apostles of their peers like so many saints and blesseds" such as "Blessed Piergiorgio Frassati whose relics, placed in Sydney cathedral, were venerated by a constant pilgrimage of young people.
All young men and woman are called to follow their example and share the personal experience of Jesus which changes the lives of His 'friends' with the power of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God's love."
July 25, 2008
Registration now open for 2008 Charity Golf Classic
SAGINAW - Down-loadable registration and sponsorship information for the 2008 Bishop's Charity Golf Classic is now available at Saginaw.org.This year's third annual event to benefit seminarian education will take place Sept. 17 and 18.
The Banquet & Silent Action is set for Sept. 17 at the Bay City Country Club, 7244 3 Mile Rd. in Bay City. The Golf Outing will tee off Sept. 18 on two courses: Swan Valley Golf Club, 9521 Highland Green Dr., and Crooked Creek Golf Course, 9387 Gratiot Rd., both in Saginaw.
The event's goal is to raise funds for three seminarian scholarships and provide a gift to local Catholic radio, which supports vocations daily through programs such as the Rosary for Vocations.
It is anticipated that he Catholic Diocese of Saginaw is anticipated to have as many as 25 seminarians enrolled this fall, according to Bishop Robert J. Carlson.
For more information about the event, registration information or sponsorship opportunities, contact Colleen Rabine, director of community relations.
Vatican approves new English translation for the Order of Mass
WASHINGTON (USCCB) — The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has received approval (recognitio) from the Holy See’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments for the new English-language translation of the Order of Mass (Ordo Missae).
This is the first section of the translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal. It includes most of the texts used in every celebration of the Mass, including the responses that will be said by the people.
In its letter, the Congregation pointed out that while the texts are binding, the approval "does not intend that these texts are to be put into use immediately."
Cardinal Francis Arinze, Prefect of the Congregation, explained the reasons for providing the text at this time. The purpose is to provide "time for the pastoral preparation of priests, deacons and for appropriate catechesis of the lay faithful. It will likewise facilitate the devising of musical settings for parts of the Mass."
The text is covered by copyright law and the Statutes of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy.
The more significant changes of the people’s parts are:
This is the first section of the translation of the third edition of the Roman Missal. It includes most of the texts used in every celebration of the Mass, including the responses that will be said by the people.
In its letter, the Congregation pointed out that while the texts are binding, the approval "does not intend that these texts are to be put into use immediately."
Cardinal Francis Arinze, Prefect of the Congregation, explained the reasons for providing the text at this time. The purpose is to provide "time for the pastoral preparation of priests, deacons and for appropriate catechesis of the lay faithful. It will likewise facilitate the devising of musical settings for parts of the Mass."
The text is covered by copyright law and the Statutes of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy.
The more significant changes of the people’s parts are:
- et cum spiritu tuo is rendered as "And with your spirit"
- In the Confiteor, the text "through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault" has been added
- The Gloria has been translated differently and the structure is different from the present text
- In the Preface dialogue the translation of "Dignum et justum est" is "It is right and just"
- The first line of the Sanctus now reads "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts"
- The response of the people at the Ecce Agnus Dei is "Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word and my soul shall be healed."
July 21, 2008
WYD 2011: See you in Madrid!
SYDNEY - Pope Benedict XVI says farewell and see you again, to the world's youth: "The time has come for me to say good-bye - or rather, to say arrivederci! I thank you all for your participation in World Youth Day 2008, here in Sydney, and I look forward to seeing you again in three years' time. World Youth Day 2011 will take place in Madrid, Spain. Until then, let us continue to pray for one another, and let us joyfully bear witness to Christ before the world."
Discover more about WYD-Sydney:
Dear Young Friends: 'Build a future of hope for all humanity'
SYDNEY, (VIS) - On Sunday morning the Holy Father was taken by helicopter from the heliport of Victoria Barracks to Centennial Park, a public park in Sydney founded in the year 1888.
From the park he travelled by popemobile to Randwick Racecourse, making a circuit of the area as he greeted and blessed the 350,000 young people from all over the world who were gathered there to attend the closing Mass of 23rd World Youth Day.
During the Eucharistic celebration, the Holy Father administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to 24 catechumens.
Referring in his homily to the theme of this World Youth Day - "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses" - the Holy Father affirmed that "as the source of our new life in Christ, the Holy Spirit is also, in a very real way, the soul of the Church, the love which binds us to the Lord and one another, and the light which opens our eyes to see all around us the wonders of God's grace."
Benedict XVI indicated that "the power of the Spirit never ceases to fill the Church with life," explaining that "this power, the grace of the Spirit, is not something we can merit or achieve, but only receive as pure gift."
"God's love can only unleash its power when it is allowed to change us from within. We have to let it break through the hard crust of our indifference, our spiritual weariness, our blind conformity to the spirit of this age. Only then can we let it ignite our imagination and shape our deepest desires. That is why prayer is so important: daily prayer, private prayer in the quiet of our hearts and before the Blessed Sacrament, and liturgical prayer in the heart of the Church."
The Pope gave thanks to the Lord for the gift of faith, "which has come down to us like a treasure passed on from generation to generation," and especially for "all those heroic missionaries, dedicated priests and religious, Christian parents and grandparents, teachers and catechists who built up the Church in these lands."
In this context he mentioned the names of Blessed Mary MacKillop, St. Peter Chanel and Blessed Peter To Rot.
"Dear young people, let me now ask you a question. What will you leave to the next generation? Are you building your lives on firm foundations, building something that will endure? Are you living your lives in a way that opens up space for the Spirit in the midst of a world that wants to forget God, or even rejects Him in the name of a falsely-conceived freedom? How are you using the gifts you have been given, the 'power' which the Holy Spirit is even now prepared to release within you?"
"Empowered by the Spirit, and drawing upon faith's rich vision, a new generation of Christians is being called to help build a world in which God's gift of life is welcomed, respected and cherished - not rejected, feared as a threat and destroyed. A new age in which love is not greedy or self-seeking, but pure, faithful and genuinely free, open to others, respectful of their dignity, seeking their good, radiating joy and beauty. A new age in which hope liberates us from the shallowness, apathy and self-absorption which deaden our souls and poison our relationships. Dear young friends, the Lord is asking you to be prophets of this new age, messengers of His love, drawing people to the Father and building a future of hope for all humanity."
"The world," he added, "needs this renewal! In so many of our societies, side by side with material prosperity, a spiritual desert is spreading: an interior emptiness, an unnamed fear, a quiet sense of despair. How many of our contemporaries have built broken and empty cisterns in a desperate search for meaning, the ultimate meaning that only love can give?"
"The Church also needs this renewal!" the Holy Father exclaimed. "She needs your faith, your idealism and your generosity, so that she can always be young in the Spirit!"
Pope Benedict encouraged the young people to open their hearts to the power of the Holy Spirit.
"I address this plea in a special way," he said, "to those of you whom the Lord is calling to the priesthood and the consecrated life. Do not be afraid to say 'yes' to Jesus, to find your joy in doing His will, giving yourself completely to the pursuit of holiness, and using all your talents in the service of others!"
Referring then to the Sacrament of Confirmation which he was about to impart upon a number of young people, he asked those present to reflect upon the significance of receiving the "seal" of the Holy Spirit. "
"It means." he explained, "being indelibly marked, inalterably changed, a new creation". It means "not being afraid to stand up for Christ, letting the truth of the Gospel permeate the way we see, think and act, as we work for the triumph of the civilisation of love."
July 14, 2008
Saginaw pilgrims covered in Austrailian press
The South Coast Register out of Nowra, New South Wales, Australia, today featured two World Youth Day pilgrims from the Catholic Diocese of Saginaw.
READ THE STORY.
READ THE STORY.
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