Franciscan Daughters of Mary celebrate 25 years with Mass on the feast day of their patron

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

Bishop Emeritus Roger Foys recalled the founding of the Franciscan Daughters of Mary, 25 years ago when one of the diocesan priests recommended a small group of women who were “looking to follow the footsteps of St. Francis” — with hopes of being received into the Diocese of Covington.

Bishop Foys remembered asking them what they were about, to which the sisters replied with their special concern — “To care for others. To preserve life in any way.”

The rest, he said, is history.

On the evening of Oct. 4, the feast of the sisters’ patron, St. Francis of Assisi, a Mass was held celebrating not only this feast day, but the 25-year anniversary of the sisters’ founding.

Celebrated at the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington, Bishop Foys served as celebrant and homilist. Joining him in concelebrating were priests from the Dioceses of Covington, Cincinnati and Indianapolis — representing all from the tri-state whom the sisters have come to serve through their charism of stewarding and preserving life.

Joining in the celebration was a crowd of individuals all gathered to celebrate the sisters and their work, and to pray for them.

In his homily, Bishop Foys recalled the story of St. Francis — how he was born to a wealthy family, his conversion and turning to a life of prayer, solitude and meditation.

In addition, he shared a story of St. Francis from the “Little Flowers of St. Francis” — a collection of vignette stories from the people who knew him.

With the congregation, Bishop Foys recounted the story of the Wolf of Gubbio — a vicious wolf who was attacking all the animals, and eventually, the people, of the village.

“Francis visited Gubbio when he heard of this, and told the villagers that he wanted to see the wolf,” said Bishop Foys. And, although the villagers advised St. Francis not to, he made the sign of the cross, and insisted.

As the wolf rushed at St. Francis with open jaws, “Francis made the sign of the cross and commanded the wolf to cease his attacks in the name of God,” Bishop Foys recanted from the “Little Flowers.”

Calling him “Brother Wolf,” St. Francis was able to make peace between the wolf and the people of Gubbio — saying that the wolf played “one of his forepaws on Francis’s outstretched hand.”

“Is it any wonder that Francis is such a popular saint?” Bishop Foys asked the congregation. “He is genuine. He is real. He is committed by his actions to the words he preaches and teachers. Francis saw God’s hand in everything and everyone.”

He continued, saying, “Everything and anything we have comes ultimately from the hand of God. And, so, you see God’s beauty in a sunrise or a sunset, in a bird or a dog or a wolf.”

Circling back to the sisters celebrating their anniversary, Bishop Foys commented on their “remarkable” mission to “care for anyone who comes. No questions asked — because anyone who comes is a child of God to be treated with dignity and respect.”

“We pray that the ministry will continue to flourish and to grow,” Bishop Foys concluded, “and just as Francis brought peace to the wolf and the people of Gubbio, may the sisters bring peace and reconciliation to all who walk through their door.”

St. Paul School celebrates the100-year anniversary of its reopening

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Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

Bishop John Iffert gathered with the Florence community and St. Paul Church, Florence, parishioners to celebrate Mass in honor of the parish school’s 100-year anniversary. Saturday, Sept. 28, St. Paul Church was standing room only with overflow seating in the narthex, a testament to the impact that the school and church have had on the Florence community.

Bishop Iffert took a moment in his homily to reflect on the last 100-plus years of St. Paul Parish and School, using a “History of the Diocese of Covington Kentucky” by Paul E. Ryan as his main point of reference.

“There was a fellow who came here, his name was Cornelius Ahern. He moved into the Florence area, and he tried to find out how many Catholics were here, and he could identify three Catholic households in Florence,” Bishop Iffert said.

One of the Catholics living in Florence was the wife of a protestant doctor, Mrs. Scott. The others were Mr. and Mrs. Ferneding, keepers of the local tavern. Despite the absence of Catholic church in Florence, Mr. Ahern traveled to Covington where he met with the pastor of St. Mary Church, Father Thomas Butler and asked him to come back to the village of Florence and celebrate Mass for the small number of Catholics. It took a few months, but Father Butler made his way to Florence, and in 1851, in the small living room of the Ahern house, the Catholic faith had a new spark in Florence.

That first gathering was larger than expected, however. As Father Butler made his way to Florence, in those few months word had reach Boone County and Taylorsport. People traveled from up to 15 miles away, across counties, to come to the celebration of Mass.

“People came from all over … keep in mind in those days that would be 15 miles of walking, or 15 miles of horseback,” said Bishop Iffert. “Father Butler continued to send a priest out there every couple of months to celebrate Mass in this small Catholic community. In 1855 he established a parish, and the first church was built in 1856, the first resident pastor in 1873,” said Bishop Iffert.

It was that first resident pastor, Rev. Joseph Bent, who worked to open St. Paul School sometime between 1873 and 1877.

“To have the courage to go ahead and build a little room on the back of the small church and start a school. Open to educating Catholic children, hoping to keep them from falling under the influence of the anti-Catholic Know Nothings. Can you imagine how lonely that felt, and how difficult it was,” asked Bishop Iffert. “It was a one room school along the back of the church, and it functioned until 1913, when it closed. I don’t know why it closed, but I know exactly why. It closed for the same reason that Catholic schools always close. Three things open Catholic schools, three things close Catholic schools — Catholic faculty, sufficient students and money,” said Bishop Iffert.

However, as had been made evident, the resiliency of the Catholic community of Florence shone forth once again, and in 1923 Father Herbert Egbring re-opened the school under the care the Sisters of St. Benedict.

In 1924, 100 years ago, the interior of the church was decorated and a new altar installed. It took only two years after the reopening of the school for the number of pupils to outgrow the small one room classroom and in 1925 ground was broken for a new school building. Twenty-six years later, once again, the need for a new school building arose and in 1951, the new, modern school building was blessed upon completion of construction.

The intertwining history of St. Paul Parish and St. Paul School have left an impact on not only the city of Florence but also on the counties surrounding them. It was the bravery of Cornelius Ahern, Rev. Joseph Bent and Father Herbert Egbring, that brought St. Paul Parish and School to the city of Florence where it has shone as a beacon of faith for those near and far, for over 100 years.

Congregation reminded of the uniqueness of the individual, to ‘see Jesus in everyone’ at pro-life Mass

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

The twilight of Oct. 1 brought together people across the diocese in support of life. The Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington, had its pews filled for the 2024 annual Pro-life Mass, organized by the diocesan Pro-life Office.

Bishop John Iffert celebrated the Mass, with Bishop Emeritus Roger Foys in choro, and concelebrated with priests from across the diocese — all having come together to reinforce the Catholic truth of the dignity of life from natural conception to natural death.

Earlier the same day, the Republic of Iran fired missiles upon the state of Israel, with natural disasters and armed conflicts worldwide at the top of many headlines.

Father Daniel Schomaker, pastor, St. Augustine Parish, Covington, and director of the diocesan Office of Worship and Liturgy, served as homilist for the 2024 pro-life Mass, and brought attention to these world events as a pro-life issue.

He began his homily quoting the 1996 film “Matilda,” “Everyone is born, but not everyone is born the same. Some will grow to be butchers, or bakers, or candlestick makers. Some will only be really good at making Jell-O salad. One way or another, though, every human being is unique, for better or for worse.” “It is that uniqueness that makes us so concerned about the preciousness of human life,” Father Schomaker said, “because we have been made unique. There is not now, nor has there ever been, nor will there ever be again in the history of the universe another you.”

“Think about that,” he continued, “There is only ever one you and that is true for every human being God has thought into being.”

Clarifying, Father Schomaker said that existence doesn’t begin at conception — but “at the moment God thinks of you, because it is from that moment God has loved you.”

Because of this uniqueness, “there has to be a dignity in every single one of us,” said Father Schomaker, “because every single one of us brings something new into the world.

During his homily, Father Schomaker recalled a child named Matthew — 24 weeks in utero when he died. When Father Schomaker entered the hospital room, Matthew’s grandfather, who was holding him, said to Father Schomaker, “Look, Father, he’s perfect.”

“That child is perfect because he had been made in the image and likeness of God, and he was unique,” said Father Schomaker.

“Every life is perfect, made as God has chosen,” he said, “which is why we uphold every life as having an innate dignity … the sad thing is, my friends, we live in a world that doesn’t like to recognize the dignity of the human person.”

“As most of you know, there is a conflict going on in the Middle East,” Father Schomaker brought to the congregation’s attention, “and as I was listening to the radio, I hear different sides rejoicing over this conflict — yet no one on the radio seems to be mourning the fact that one group of human beings is taking out after another, and unwilling to recognize the dignity that they each have.”

Towards the end of his homily, Father Schomaker brought up one of his favorite saints: St. Theresa of Calcutta.

“She did not care if you were rich or poor,” he said, “she did not care where you were from; She cared if you were in need.”

Father Schomaker continued, saying, “she was asked one time why she cared for everyone and anyone, and she said ‘I see Jesus in every human being … I serve because I love Jesus.’”

“This is our call, my friends,” he said, “to see Jesus in our neighbor. To see Jesus in our family, to see Jesus in our friends, to see Jesus in the stranger, to see Jesus in the one who might be classified as enemy. It is too easy to get pulled away from recognizing the dignity of every single person who exists on Earth, everyone we are called by the Lord to love. Even those who hate us.”

“Today,” Father Schomaker concluded, “as we come together to pray for life in every stage, from the moment of conception until natural death, let us love. Let us will the good of the other, and see Jesus in everyone.”

Despite challenging path to priesthood, Father Owusu celebrates his Silver Jubilee

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Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

Father Sam Owusu, parochial vicar, Mary, Queen of Heaven Parish, Erlanger, celebrated his Silver Jubilee — 25 years in the priesthood, Sept. 15. His celebration was well attended by the priests of the Diocese of Covington, his family, friends and even a king from back home in Ghana. Though Father Owusu has been a priest for 25 years, it took him 15 years and a lot of challenges to make it to the priesthood.

Born in Ghana, Africa, to a large Catholic family, Father Owusu knew from a young age that he wanted to be a priest.

“When I was a kid, it started right from infancy, I was just a small boy. We are born into the Catholic faith; our great grandmothers introduce us to the Catholic faith,” said Father Owusu. “As I grew up, I developed a special interest, going to Mass every Sunday and other weekdays, more especially when I was an altar boy. I was in a mission house with a priest, I was an altar boy. I learned from the priest and that enticed me a lot to be someday like them.”

In Ghana, however, the path to the priesthood is long and difficult, taking 15 total years before becoming ordained. Father Owusu, however, was determined.

“The priests brought the information to those who were willing to enter into the seminary. They have entrance exams, one Saturday we went to the exams and behold, I got admission because I passed. Then it was time for us to get ready for seminary training,” Father Owusu said.

And though he was resolute in his conviction to join the seminary his parents were worried. “It was not until I was ready, when I was about to go, that I told them that this was my plan. I want to go to the seminary and be trained, if possible, to become a priest. They asked me if I could make it because many had attempted but couldn’t succeed. Many went and they failed, and they came back. They were worried if I could make it, if it is my choice, they give me their support,” he said.

With his parent’s support, Father Owusu began “Minor Seminary” which is the equivalent of high school. He attended St. Hubert Seminary in Kumasi for seven years. At the end of each year the seminarians must sit in front of a panel and be asked questions, to ensure that they are ready to move on to the next stage of their formation.

“Every single year you have to appear before a panel at the end of the academic year. You will be with them, and they will give you questions, assessing you. If they have any faults about you, it is there that they make it known to you … When you are in front of the panel, they will be bombarding you with questions. If you are not able to satisfy them, there is another question. During the time you are gone they will cast a lot on you by voting, ‘those who want him to be promoted to the next level show your hand,’” Father Owusu said.

Once Father Owusu completed Minor Seminary he had to complete one year of service to the nation.

“After the seven years we are asked by the Church and the National Government to national service, which is one year. That year is exposure to the world, exposure to people around you, to socialize, to mingle, in school you are not able to, so you are given that freedom and liberty. During that one year I was made a teacher. I was a full-time teacher. I was in elementary,” Father Owusu said.

After the completion of his year of national service he reapplied to attend Major Seminary, which would be another seven years of formation to the priesthood. The curriculum of Major Seminary is broken into three parts. There is one year for the study of spirituality, two years for the study of philosophy and four years for the study of theology.

Major Seminary is the last of many hurdles to becoming a priest, but the greatest of challenges still faced Father Owusu. When it was time to be ordained a deacon, the seminary would send banners to be published at the seminarian’s home parish, and any place they stayed doing mission work. These banners notified people of the seminarians upcoming ordination and invited anyone with grievances against them, or reasons that they should not be made a deacon, to come forward.

“Many people have suffered calamity of that,” said Father Owusu, “because based on the report from those mission churches, from your home parish, from the seminary, it can go against you. Normally, you always have to keep your fingers crossed, praying that you might not fall victim, otherwise it can be a big blow to you. You can become a disgrace to your family, very humiliating, and people look at you in a different eye. You pray that God will always save you out of trouble.”

After being ordained a deacon, Father Owusu was well on his way to being ordained a priest. On July 17, 1999, he was ordained a priest, making him one of only four people from the seminary class of 55 to make it all the way through the 15 years. Once ordained he worked at six different parishes within Kumasi, which is a city in the Ashanti region of Ghana.

In June 2007 he was asked by his Bishop to go serve the West African immigrants in Italy. During his five-year tenure there he was able to establish an additional Catholic church for the immigrant community. While in Italy he had the opportunity to travel to the Island of Malta, Germany, Spain, Sicily and France. While in Spain he attended the 2011 World Youth Day where he and the opportunity to concelebrate Pontifical Mass with Pope Benedict XVI. Upon his return from Italy to Ghana his Bishop asked him if he would consider going to Northern Kentucky.

“And I, like the prophet Isaiah said, ‘Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: whom shall I send and who will go? Then I said here I am Lord, send me,’” Father Owusu said.

Father Owusu’s first assignment in the Diocese of Covington was to St. Joseph Parish, Cold Spring. After leaving St. Joseph Parish he was assigned to St. Timothy Parish, Union, before landing in his current position as Parochial Vicar at Mary, Queen of Heaven, where, he said, he thoroughly enjoys saying Mass and the people of the parish and school.

Holy Cross District High School is recognized as a National Blue-Ribbon School

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Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

Holy Cross District High School, Covington, has been awarded its first distinction as a National Blue-Ribbon School. They are the only school in the Diocese of Covington be awarded the blue ribbon in 2024. The National Blue Ribbon program recognizes outstanding public and nonpublic elementary, middle, and high schools based on overall high academic achievement or success is closing the achievement gap among diverse groups of students.

The path to recognition as a Blue-Ribbon School is not an easy one. The application process is rigorous, requiring the submission of test scores, faculty interviews and a written application. This process alone deters many.

“I did some research over the last few days,” said Mike Holtz, principal, Holy Cross District High School, “there are over 30,000 high schools and grades schools in the United States of America, only 356 are recognized as a National Blue Ribbon School, and that’s us.”

This distinction sets Holy Cross apart as one of the top 1.2 percent of schools across the United States. Each year, the National Blue Ribbon accepts 420 nominations of which 356 are selected.

Upon seeing their school listed as a Blue Ribbon recipient the students, who had all been gathered in the gymnasium, erupted into cheers as confetti and balloons rained down around them. Students hugged and high fived as chants of “We are H.C.” rang out among them. The students, faculty and staff cheered and jumped for five consecutive minutes, celebrating the achievement that marks not just their success, but the successes of those that helped get there.

“One hundred years ago was Holy Cross’ first graduating class … This honor is a long time in the making. Yes, we sent our test scores in, we filled out the form, answered the questions of what we’re doing now, but there have been a ton of people who have gotten us to this point,” said Mr. Holtz standing in front of teachers past and present, and a few alumni who were in attendance. “What we’re being recognized for now is what we have been doing for a long, long time. This honor is not only about the now, it’s for everybody who got us here.”

“I just want to tell you how awesome it is to be here. You are the only school in the Diocese of Covington who is being recognized for a Blue Ribbon today, so congratulations,” said Kendra McGuire, Superintendent of Schools, Diocese of Covington, as the students erupted into more cheers. “On behalf of Bishop Iffert and the Diocese of Covington, and in particular our Schools Office, we send our sincere congratulations to you for all this hard work. I will tell you; this is a lot of hard work.

“As your principal pointed out, very few schools are recognized each year for this award. This is a testament to the leadership here at Holy Cross, to your incredible teachers and especially you. The only way you can get your Blue Ribbon application in is to have good test scores, so that means you are working hard, and you are doing a great job,” said Mrs. McGuire.

Seminary Ball returns for 2024 event with new location and video focusing on new ‘Propaedeutic Year’ of seminarian formation

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

The Seminary Ball — an annual soiree raising money for the Seminarian Education Fund — is preparing to return for its 2024 event the evening of Oct. 18.

This year, the event will be held at a new location, the Receptions event center in Erlanger, and will feature a full open bar for the entirety of the evening, and a tent-covered outdoors to enjoy during cocktail hour before and after the program. John Garvey, the emcee for last year’s event, will be returning to emcee at the 2024 Seminary Ball — and the seminarian “Q&A” with Bishop John Iffert, which allowed attendees to submit questions for the seminarians, will return as well.

Deacon Joshua Heskamp, who entered the transitional diaconate early this year and will be ordained in the upcoming spring, will be the seminarian speaker at the event.

In addition to these changes, the yearly video that releases for the Seminary Ball as promotion for the Seminarian Education Fund, will be focusing on a new aspect of seminarian formation in the United States — the Propaedeutic Year — with perspectives from seminarians William Fuller and Andrew Pugh, who entered seminary last year and were among the first to experience this additional year of “prayer, study and community.”

“We’ll be talking about the Propaedeutic Year and those new stages of formation, called the PPF, or Program of Priestly Formation,” said Jim Hess, director of the diocesan Office of Stewardship and Mission, which hosts the ball. “That’ll be a knowledge piece — we’re trying to make people more aware of where they are.”

With intention on teaching and sharing more about the process that seminarians go through, changes to both seminarian posters and pages on the diocesan website are being put into place as well. The new PPF is divided into four stages: the Propaedeutic Stage (Build the Basics), the Discipleship Stage (Deepen Faith), the Configuration Stage (Shepherd Like Christ) and the Transitional Diaconate (Unite and Ordain).

“It’s still very much worth looking into the Propaedeutic Year and applying for the seminary,” William Fuller says in the new video, “because here you’ll have more opportunity to pray than anywhere else — and prayer is really where discernment lives.”

Currently, there are five seminarians in the Diocese of Covington — and all the money raised the night of the Seminary Ball goes into funding their education, as well as the money raised in the collection the following weekend, said Mr. Hess. “The ball benefits the collection directly.”

For more information on the Seminary Ball, or to register for the event, visit https://covdio.org/seminaryball/.

‘Please, thank you and I’m sorry’ are the keys to a long marriage, Bishop Iffert quotes Pope Francis at wedding anniversary vespers

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Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

The Office of Catechesis and Evangelization hosted the annual wedding anniversary vespers, Sept. 15, Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, Covington, where couples celebrating significant anniversaries are invited to meet and be blessed by Bishop Iffert. The couples join Bishop Iffert in celebrating solemn vespers and a vow renewal ceremony before being greeted and blessed individually.

“Congratulations to everyone that is here today,” said Bishop Iffert, “because this year you are celebrating a milestone anniversary. We have folks who are here, 70-plus years of married life together. We have folks that are still finishing their first year together and will be marking their first anniversary.”

In his homily, Bishop Iffert recalled some advice given to young couples by Pope Francis early in his papacy. “What Pope Francis told these young couples, who are newly married, he asked them to remember three words … really the first words that your parents taught you to share with others.” The words, Bishop Iffert said, are please, thank you and I’m sorry.

During his time as a parish priest, Bishop Iffert was often asked to work with couples who seemed to be having a hard time adjusting to married life. Though he had little experience with marital counseling, Bishop Iffert asked the couples to develop three habits.

“The first habit I would like you to develop is, I would like you to remember to talk to one another every day. Not to talk about who’s going to take out the trash, who’s going to pick up the kids … 10 minutes a day or more where you talk to one another the way you talked to one another when you were courting. Speak to one another about your dreams, speak to one another about your ideals, about your hopes, about what you long for, about the person you still want to be and want to become … share what we find beautiful, to find in one another still that you are discovering one another, that you are still a land of surprises to one another, that you can still surprise each other even after years and years and years of marriage,” said Bishop Iffert.

The habit of speaking to one another so deeply, reinforces the same message as saying please does, not taking one another for granted. “Saying please is an indication that we will not take one another for granted … say please, don’t take one another for granted, talk to one another about your ideas and dreams every day,” said Bishop Iffert.

The second habit Bishop Iffert asked the couples to develop is gratefulness for one another, reinforced by saying thank you. “Second Pope Francis says … remember every day to say thank you. Remembering to say thank you reminds us that we are grateful for one another, that we are gifts to one another,” said Bishop Iffert. “There is a second practice that I used to encourage couples to take part in every day, and that is every day to come up with … another reason to be grateful to your spouse. As I would walk through this exercise with people, I was amazed at the beautiful things people would say, sometimes extraordinarily ordinary but nonetheless fruitful, beautiful … Think of another reason to be grateful for one another, and as often as you can, to share a compliment, to compliment the other. So, that they know that you are grateful, that you are not taking them for granted.”

“The third is very simple … he [Pope Francis] said when you hurt one another, and you will hurt one another … be quick to say, ‘I’m sorry,’” Bishop Iffert said. “Those words remind us of the responsibility we have of one another. To draw one another towards Christ, to draw one another towards salvation, we all get harmed from time to time, we forget we all do some of the harming from time to time. Let us remember that we are reliant on the grace of God and that your marriage is one of the graces that God intends for you.”

As part of drawing each other towards salvation in the action of saying I’m sorry, Bishop Iffert said, is the third habit that he invites couples to develop. “The third practice that I always encourage people in their marriage is to pray with one another. I believe it is the most intimate thing we can do, to really be a child of God in front of one another. To be the person God calls us to be, and together to come before the Lord as his children.”

“The Pope asks those of you who are newly married, and he asks those of you who have been married for seven decades, don’t take one another for granted, say please, be grateful for one another, say thank you, and when you harm one another, be quick to say, ‘I’m sorry.’ To ask for forgiveness from the bottom of your heart and ask much as you can to give that forgiveness willingly and easily, knowing it is a reflection of the way we ask God for forgiveness each day. Let me propose alongside, please, thank you, and I’m sorry, let me propose these three little practices, no matter what stage of marriage you are in. Speak to one another about the things that are most important to your heart, and to yourself … Be grateful for one another, everyday think of something new about why you are so grateful for the gift of one another…Third, pray with one another. Every day, if you’re not already, invite the Lord into your marriage,” said Bishop Iffert to conclude his homily.

With over 4,700 cumulative years of marriage sitting in the Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption, both the Pope’s and Bishop Iffert’s advice did not fall on deaf ears. Husbands and wives shared glances at each other throughout the homily

A matter of dignity: Jail ministry isa pro-life issue, says Benedictine

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Maura Baker

Staff Writer

For the last few years, Benedictine Sister Dorothy Schuette corresponds regularly through letters with incarcerated inmates — nowadays, this is the primary way that Sister Dorothy serves the imprisoned, but her ministry began early on, in 1991.

Working at Mother of God Church, Covington, at the time, the Kenton County jail was on her route. She started visiting the jail, and there learned of the Exodus ministry.

“That was, at that time,” Sister Dorothy explained, “started through the Interfaith Commission of Northern Kentucky. That was a good training program for people who were interested in this ministry, and it was people from different denominations — another important feature I thought was good, because it meant that the churches cooperated with each other … it was a real ministry of Christ.”

At the time, Sister Dorothy said she had a “sense of reflection” on how we, as Christians, were called as ministers, “how God was working in us.”

This ministry in the early 90s was just the beginning of Sister Dorothy and the diocese’s involvement in jail ministry, when visitation was the “focus.”

It was when Bishop Emeritus Roger Foys became bishop of Covington that he asked Sister Dorothy to take part in developing a diocesan jail and prison ministry — as none existed through the diocese at the time.

“We were able to learn from other dioceses,” like the Archdiocese of Louisville, Sister Dorothy explained, “I believe the ministry expanded at that time, too, to come to understand that it was important to help people who are incarcerated to continue to come back and forth into jail — the revolving door kind of scenario — that was very obvious in many places, in our poorer areas, especially.”

So, that became part of diocese’s jail ministry, Sister Dorothy said, helping individuals who got out of jail reacclimate into society.

Nowadays, with her letters to a couple of inmates with whom she has a continued relationship, Sister Dorothy has found it important to support them “and the fact that they are valuable human beings. Although they may not ever have a change of residence besides the prison, they are loved and valued — and that counts for something,” Sister Dorothy said.

One woman whom Sister Dorothy corresponds with has become a lay minister, “because she does a lot of giving witness of her own life and encouraging other women there in their pursuit of a decent life … she was telling me in her last letter that there seems to be a decrease in the violence in that jail over the past several years,” said Sister Dorothy, proudly.

In 2009, the diocesan jail and prison ministry switched hands to Catholic Charities, whom Sister Dorothy encourages those interested in getting involved to contact, as they have “formalized” the ministry.

“They’ve brought people in who feel called to this ministry,” said Sister Dorothy, “and have discerned what they can do and what they see as needed or helpful. They’ve done many good things this way.”

However, Sister Dorothy also explains, that is only the “tip of the iceberg”— as with any ministry in the Catholic Church.

While some people are the “visible hands and feet of Christ,” all people need to have a heart that allows for recognizing the dignity of other people, she said — including the incarcerated and inmates on death row — a part of the institution Sister Dorothy believes firmly should be abolished.

“There is no pro-life unless we recognize the dignity of every life,” said Sister Dorothy, “and that is so essential as far as our underpinning.”

Amendment 2 is a ‘need’ not a ‘want,’ said diocesan superintendent

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Bella Young

Multimedia Correspondent

This coming November, next to presidential candidates and local races, will be ballot Issue 2, and the Diocese is urging for a “Yes” vote. Issue 2 proposes an amendment to the Kentucky constitution wherein the Kentucky “General Assembly may provide financial support for the education of students outside the system of common schools,” reads the proposed amendment.

Should the amendment be passed, it will “allow people in Kentucky to work with legislators so that we can look at improving educational options for students in Kentucky,” said Kendra McGuire, superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Diocese of Covington.

For Mrs. McGuire, the passage of this amendment is not a want, it is a need. “What we see is countless families who struggle to make the tuition payments. Families who are below the poverty threshold established by the government, or very close to it, that it is a great burden on them,” she said.

Currently, every state surrounding Kentucky and 48 out of 50 states, have some form of school choice for grades K12.

“We are kind of pigeonholing the students in K-12. Right now, school choice exists, and state funds can go and support students in preschool programs, it goes to private institutions at the college level in Kentucky. The only group that is not supported are students in the K-12 realm,” Mrs. McGuire continued saying, “We want to be able to help children from the time they are of school age, whether that be preschool all the way through college because it is a vested interest for everybody in Kentucky that every student is successful, that they come out of school well prepared to be contributing citizens of Kentucky.”

Part of what makes the proposed amendment necessary, Mrs. McGuire said, is because no two students are the same. Some students need a fastpaced learning environment, while others need a school more focused on support resources. Without the proposed amendment there is a lack of education opportunities for students and their families.

“As a mom of six children, I can look at each of my children and see the differences in every single child … We know from research that in order for children to be successful and be able to learn, that they have to be able to come into school and feel like they’re welcome, they’re part of the environment. They have to feel like they’re safe, they have to feel like they’re happy and ready for learning. Sometimes students need a different place,” Mrs. McGuire said.

It is important to remember that the amendment itself would not immediately cause change, but rather it would allow for Kentucky lawmakers to discuss potential school choice options. Mrs. McGuire hopes that with the passing of Issue 2, lawmakers will be able to put aside partisans and focus on what is best for the children of Kentucky.

“Hopefully we can set aside this difference between public and nonpublic, and instead we can focus on how we best serve the children in Kentucky,” said Mrs. McGuire. “The children in Kentucky, they all need to be successful, and I think, no matter which side of the issue we are on, we all have the same goal. But at the end of the day if we don’t pass Amendment 2 in November we’re not going to be able to have that conversation of what can be better and what can be improved.”

How can you do that?

/in

Most Rev. John Iffert

Bishop of Covington

Catholics Embracing All God’s Children (CEAGC) is a support group for parents and family members of gay, lesbian and transgender people. A local group, they are nurtured by and affiliated with a Lexington based group called Fortunate Families. After meeting with members of CEAGC on two prior occasions, I accepted an invitation to celebrate Mass with members of the group and their neighbors at St. Joseph Parish in Cold Spring on the Memorial of St. Augustine. That decision caused some to ask of me, “How can you do that?”

People ask the question naturally enough because the Catholic Church embraces the Scriptural foundations of sexuality and marriage. To be moral, every sexual act is to be both unitive (contributing to a permanent communion of life and love between spouses) and procreative (open to the creation of new human life). God created men and women in a way that complement one another, and their union leads to the continuation of the human family.

In this moral framework, homosexual acts — like every sexual act outside of marriage, and any sexual act between spouses that separates the unitive and procreative dimensions of sexuality — are grave matter for sin. If freely chosen and embraced, such acts can be an obstacle to our salvation. The Church, therefore, calls all her children to be chaste. Those who are married are to be monogamous within marriage, as a sign of God’s own faithfulness to God’s people. The rest of us are called to abstain from sex all together. In recognizing that adults can have a meaningful and fully human life without being sexually active, the Church is an almost unique and clarion voice in our society.

So then, how? First, the Church firmly asserts that all individuals, without regard to orientation, must be accepted with “respect, compassion and sensitivity” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2358). Pope Francis teaches, “The Church makes her own the attitude of the Lord Jesus, who offers his boundless love to each person without exception” (Amoris Laetitia, 250). This is to be the attitude of the Church’s ministers and all faithful Catholics. The principle is rooted in the belief that every person is made in the image of God and possesses inherent dignity.

The Church especially recognizes the complexities faced by families whose members identify as gay, lesbian or transgender. “Such families should be given respectful pastoral guidance, so that those who manifest a homosexual orientation can receive the assistance they need to understand and fully carry out God’s will in their lives” (AL, 250). This is precisely what I hoped to accomplish by offering this Mass with and for these CEAGC families and their neighbors.

Finally, the Church distinguishes between homosexual orientation and homosexual acts. As mentioned above, our attractions and urges do not define us. Before all else, we are children of God. We should look to our relationship with Christ in the Holy Spirit for our purpose and fulfillment.

Nevertheless, some of our brothers and sisters have an exclusive attraction to people of the same sex, and they experience this as an important aspect of who they are. “In so far as the homosexual orientation can lead to sexual activity which excludes openness to the generation of new human life and the essential sexual complementarity of man and woman, it is, in this particular and precise sense only, objectively disordered. However, it must be quite clear that a homosexual orientation must never be considered sinful or evil in itself” (Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales, Cherishing Life, 111).

The presumption that our gay or lesbian brothers and sisters are guilty of unconfessed sin that would preclude them from receiving the Eucharist is discriminatory and never just.

I received letters and e-mails from about two dozen people urging me not to celebrate Mass with CEAGC. I took each one seriously and investigated each complaint about the group or Fortunate Families. In each case, I judged that the complainant failed to make this distinction between orientation and action, presumed sin that was not in evidence, or failed to make the distinction between supporting persons and endorsing an advocacy agenda. I am happy to report that the liturgy on the Memorial of St. Augustine was a solemn, joyous and prayerful moment. The Church was full. The ministries of hospitality, acolyte, word and music were beautifully and respectfully carried out. I recognized most of those in attendance. They are people who regularly attend our parishes and receive Holy Communion faithfully. I was especially impressed by the number of parents who were grateful that they and their children were welcomed by the Church with respect and warmth.

I called all present to remain prayerfully and studiously open to the teaching of the Church about sexuality and marriage. I also encouraged the congregation with a story of a gay man who once witnessed to me his great love for Christ and the Church. That witness had a lasting effect on my life. I invited all to be living witnesses to others. The full text of my homily is available at www.covdio.org.

Although I was glad to pray with this community and appreciated their invitation to walk with them, I was disturbed that such a simple and natural pastoral response resulted in conflict in this local Church. I asked all present to pray in love for one another, that God bring out of this moment a greater understanding of what the Church teaches and the divine gift of peace and unity. It remains my prayer.

Peace to you and to all who seek the truth with sincerity of heart.