Catholic News Around Indiana
Compiled by Brandon A. Evans
Diocese of Evansville
2016 National Day Of Prayer
By Tim Lilley
From beginning to end, the May 5 observance of the 65th National Day of Prayer provided a collective witness of the Evansville area’s unity … and diversity.
After students from Mater Dei High School opened the event with the National Anthem, Bishop Charles C. Thompson welcomed everyone and introduced Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke, who officially proclaimed May 5, 2016, as National Day of Prayer in the City of Evansville.
“It is fitting that on this 65th anniversary of the National Day of Prayer we focus on the need for healing and reconciliation within our community and our nation,” the proclamation reads, in part. What followed was a 40-minute testimony to the desire for that reconciliation – and continued strengthening of unity – in the Evansville area.
For the first time at this event, the Latino American Society of Evansville invited local residents who are natives of Central and South America to attend and hold the flags of their home countries. Against the colorful backdrop – those flags waving proudly with the American and POW/MIA flags at Four Freedoms Monument – Evansville Fire Department chaplains and representatives of nine faith traditions prayed.
When he stepped to the microphone to offer the closing prayer, Bishop Charles C. Thompson acknowledged the common themes of those who preceded him – prayers for refugees, the homeless, the sick and oppressed; and prayers for tolerance, peace, an end to hatred and discrimination.
“I don’t normally stray from the script,” he said, “but today, I am. I would like our presenters to step forward, and let us all join hands in a moment of silent prayer for our country and our world.”
That moving, emotional moment is shown in the lead photo with this report.
For the past couple of years, representatives of the Evansville Fire Department and Police Department have immediately followed Mayor Winnecke to offer prayer for all men and women in uniform, and all first responders. This year, however, the series of prayers began with a moment of silence in memory of Rev. F.P. Miller, longtime pastor of First Ebenezer Baptist Church in Evansville, who lost a brief-but-courageous fight against cancer last December.
Pastor Miller’s daughter, Rev. Veltri Taylor, has succeeded him at First Ebenezer Baptist. She led the crowd in a moment of silence for her father, who had participated in the National Day of Prayer observance for more than 20 years.
“I wonder when we pray,” Rev. Taylor said after the tribute to her late father, “… do we pray for selfish goals or for the common good of all people to be united one day in the glory of God?” She and those who followed her focused emphatically on the common good. They prayed for an end to violence, hatred and discrimination; for the sick, weak and oppressed; for refugees.
Every presenter also noted the need for reconciliation and unity.
Photo caption: Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke joins Bishop Charles C. Thompson and other presenters for a silent prayer during the May 5 observance of the 65th National Day of Prayer at Four Freedoms Monument in downtown Evansville. Photo by Daniel R. Patmore.
(For news from the Diocese of Evansville, log on to the website of The Message at www.themessageonline.org)
Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend
Young adults host road rally competition
By Jacob Laskowski
FORT WAYNE — Young adults at Our Lady of Good Hope Parish in Fort Wayne have been building a new ministry to reach out to their peers in their neighborhood called Fort Wayne Frassati, based on the patronage of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati. The Italian almost-saint was passionate about bringing his peers deeper into their faith and brought many souls to the Lord through social activities such as skiing. Through all that he did, whether social activities or service to the poor, Blessed Frassati led others to the Blessed Mother and to the Eucharist. He died at 24.
“This is our goal with Fort Wayne Frassati,” said Jacob Laskowski, a co-director of the group. “We host trivia nights, ski trips, Bible studies, and events like this road rally — solely as an effort to bring more souls deeper to Christ. We do that through providing opportunities for formation and prayer as a part of every event we host.”
The road rally featured more than 20 challenges for the young adult teams of 4-5 people per car to complete within one hour. Faking a proposal at the mall food court was one of the many risky challenges that earned participants points, as well as taking a selfie with a priest, writing on sidewalks with chalk to encourage people to pray the rosary, and taking a photo with a random family at a local restaurant. At the end, the final challenge of the night was spending 30 minutes in silent prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
“A perfect end to the evening,” adds Laskowski. “Everything in our lives should revolve around our personal intimacy with Christ — especially in the Eucharist.”
Teams were composed of 30 area young adults, many of whom hadn’t met each other before.
“We wanted to bridge the gap between acquaintances and new friendships,” said Monica Bodien, the other co-director of Frassati. “We have such a great group of young adults here at Our Lady, and building up deeper relationships with each other is fundamental to helping us build a deeper relationship with God. We can’t thrive in our faith on our own. We were made for community.”
Photo caption: The Fort Wayne Frassati road rally brought out a friendly competitive spirit between young adults from Our Lady of Good Hope Parish. Participants smile before they were given a list of the challenges to map out a strategy before the start of the race. After the allotted two minutes of planning, all the teams ran to their cars and raced to complete the challenges.
(For news from the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend, log on to the website of Today’s Catholic at www.todayscatholicnews.org)
Diocese of Gary
Milestone marriages celebrated for their fidelity and their faith in God
By Marlene A. Zloza
GARY—“Fidelity” was a recurring theme as Bishop Donald J. Hying celebrated the 34th annual Wedding Anniversary Mass for the Diocese of Gary on May 7 at Holy Angels Cathedral.
Sponsored by Catholic Charities, 88 couples married 25 through 74 years gathered, many holding hands throughout the service, to give witness to their “faithfulness to a person, cause or belief demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support,” – the dictionary definition of fidelity.
Bishop Hying added his own definition, lauding the married couples for saying “I will be with you, no matter what changes, no matter what happens. . .Keep witnessing, keep living, we need your example in a world where fewer people are getting married,” he added.
Recognizing the special significance of the day, the bishop called it a “trifecta” of celebrations encompassing not only the “beautiful marriage renewal,” but the vigil of the Ascension and Mother’s Day.
In his homily, the bishop reassured the couples that they are not alone in their journey, for they have the ever-present power of God to support them. “In all three readings today we hear the word power,” the bishop noted. “Jesus says he will send the Spirit…Jesus is filled with the power of God…that power and grace of God has sustained you for 25 or more years. How else can you explain such an amazing thing – that you’ve stayed together all these years?”
“You have to have a lot of faith to get you through everything, the ups and downs,” agreed Pat Rolewski, of St. John the Evangelist in St. John, celebrating 59 years of marriage to husband Dan.
“Communication and don’t get selfish” is the key to a successful marriage,” said Joyce Stodola of Munster and St. Thomas More, who has shared 55 years of wedded bliss with her husband, Deacon Stanley V. Stodola, and shared him even at the anniversary Mass as he helped serve at altar. “Keep God in your life – church and God,” she added.
The bishop asked the couples to “think how God mysteriously led you to each other. . .think back on the day you decided to get married, think of your wedding day when you said your vows to each other in front of family and friends.”
In a touching reminder of their wedding vows, Bishop Hying asked each couple to stand and again exchange their wedding rings as he blessed them, with husband and wife each repeating the traditional invocation: “Take this ring as a continued sign of my love and fidelity. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
Remember that it’s a lifetime commitment, and don’t enter into it lightly,” said Bob Hornback, parishioner of St. James the Less, Highland, who will officially celebrate 30 years of marriage in August. “When you take those vows, it’s for life.”
Photo caption: Deacon and Mrs. Robert and Ann Viviano exchange a kiss during the 34th annual wedding anniversary Mass on May 7 at Holy Angels Cathedral in Gary. The Vivianos, who celebrated their 50th anniversary, are members of St. John the Evangelist, where Robert is a senior deacon. (Anthony D. Alonzo photo)
(For news from the Diocese of Gary, log on to the website of the Northwest Indiana Catholic at www.nwicatholic.com)
Diocese of Lafayette
Calligraphy, prayer a natural connection for Peru pastor
By Caroline B. Mooney
PERU — The ancient craft of calligraphy, which means beautiful writing in Greek, was used by monks to record scriptural writings. From the advent of the Gutenberg press in 1455 to today’s readily available computer fonts, there has been a serious decline in this written art.
But for Father Adam Mauman, pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Church here, calligraphy is an extension of his prayer life.
It began with a junior high school art project.
“I really enjoyed the art,” he said. “There’s something beautiful about it. I like the precision in it.
“The monks used to make their own inks and own quills,” he said. “For years that’s how they passed along Scriptures and other books with no printing presses. For centuries that’s how our knowledge was passed on.”
With no formal classes other than the eighth-grade project, his work has been self-taught, studying books and “practice, practice, practice,” Father Mauman said. “I’m still using the old Sheaffer pen my dad bought me in junior high. I have tried other pens, but I always like this one. I took it on a retreat last week to a monastery where I did a little calligraphy.
“It’s a lesson in patience — that’s probably why my dad encouraged me,” Father Mauman said. ”My background is construction management and I used to do a lot of drafting. A lot of what I enjoy about calligraphy is I have to visualize what will fit on the page. You have to lay it out beforehand, and sometimes it runs off the page. Recently while working on a few pieces that weren’t fitting, I just tore them up and started over.”
He has written special projects, including a quote for his sister, who is a lawyer, on the justice of law and writing out the surveyor’s creed when he worked for a surveyor.
“I did wedding invitations once in college, but halfway through addressing all the envelopes and writing out the table settings, it became work, not recreation,” Father Mauman said. “If you have an error, you start over. I won’t do those again.
“I’ve moved a lot, but the only furniture I own is my drafting table and a couple of chairs,” he said. “I can’t let the table go. It’s not expensive, but I’ve had it since eighth grade and used it for calligraphy all these years.”
On the table are current projects and various books on calligraphy. Boxes filled with past projects are nearby, as well as a calligraphy history that was downloaded from the Internet.
Father Mauman enjoys writing in uncial script, which is all capital letters.
“When I first began, I used more of a chancery hand which has ascenders and descenders, capital and lower case,” Father Mauman said.
“If you look at the oldest Scripture manuscripts, they were written in capitals. That allows you to fit more on a page,” he said. “A long-term hope of mine is to write out the Book of Psalms. To write the entire Bible by hand is unrealistic, but I think the psalms are doable.
“As I was going through seminary, I realized the beauty of just reflecting on what I was writing and I started to use that as a way of practicing ‘lectio divina’ or ‘divine reading,’” Father Mauman said.
Photo caption: “As I was going through seminary, I realized the beauty of just reflecting on what I was writing and I started to use that as a way of practicing ‘lectio divina’ or ‘divine reading,’” Father Adam Mauman said.
‘Our home, now your home’: Sisters retrace ‘a sacred journey’ of memories, hopes in Tipton
By Caroline B. Mooney
TIPTON — A prayer service was held May 4 for a small gathering of sisters from the Congregation of St. Joseph and their friends to mark the transfer of ownership of the sisters’ former Tipton motherhouse and retreat center to the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana.
“We, the Sisters of St. Joseph, are delighted to celebrate with you, the new owner of the sacred space, the wonderful story of our presence in Indiana since 1888,” said Sister Wanda Wetli, CSJ. “Since 1957, St. Joseph Center has been a place of welcome, peace, love, courage and support to many.”
In 2007, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Tipton joined with six other Sisters of St. Joseph congregations to form the new Congregation of St. Joseph. In 2012, the 10 sisters who still lived at St. Joseph Center moved to other facilities and a partner was sought to reuse the retreat and conference facilities.
The center served as a quiet getaway, a spiritual retreat, offering inspiring speakers and a meeting place for groups. The 43-acre tract, at 1440 W. Division Rd., north of Tipton, includes farm acreage, plus six major buildings, including the motherhouse and chapel, a gymnasium, and four houses.
St. Joseph Center offers a chapel, meeting rooms of different sizes, individual rooms for overnight guests, and a dining room. Little Noddfa is a retreat house at the front of the property, and the House of Prayer is a log home for personal retreats. There is ample space for walks among shade trees and flower gardens, with a labyrinth for quiet meditation and prayer.
The diocese will use the property as a centrally located diocesan retreat and conference center that also will be available to community groups.
“We rejoice with your, our dear friends of the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana, with whom we have shared ministry since the earliest days of our arrival,” Sister Wanda said. “We have been ‘companions on the journey’, blessed with the strong support of our bishops, priests and lay brothers and sisters. We feel most confident that our home, now your home, will continue to be a hallowed spot, a place of love and serenity.
“As we reflect on our history, we are equally eager to learn of your hopes and dreams for the future,” she said. “A future that will always be accompanied by the love and prayers of your Sisters of St. Joseph.
“St. Joseph Center has been a wonderful blessing for the Sisters of St. Joseph and for so many others who have called this place home through the years: our associates, the students of our St. Joseph Academy, former lay residents, retreatants, and family members,” Sister Wanda said. “Many lives have been enriched and strengthened through the various ministries and interactions which have occurred in this holy place. To remember is a beautiful thing. Memories reveal God’s presence in our life. Memories retrace a sacred journey.”
Photo caption: Bishop Timothy L. Doherty receives a statue of St. Joseph as a gift from the Congregation of St. Joseph. A small gathering of sisters and friends for a prayer service on May 4 marked the transfer of ownership of the congregation’s former motherhouse and retreat center to the Lafayette diocese. (Photo by Caroline B. Mooney)
(For news from the Diocese of Lafayette, log on to the website of The Catholic Moment at www.thecatholicmoment.org)