CHANCERY WORRIES ME

On an almost daily basis, as pastor, I receive mailings and emails from our Chancery or Archdiocesan offices. Some are very confusing. Just last week the Worship Office sent me the following:

"I am writing to see if you would serve as chrismatory at Confirmation on May 20, 7:00 pm at the Basilica. Candidates from St Edward's will be confirmed that evening."

A "chrismatory" is a container to hold the Chrism Oil used at Confirmation so I was wondering if they wanted to force feed me large quantities of the oil which somehow was to be discharged upon the those to be confirmed (or confirmandi as the Worship Office would say). This seemed possible as it is hard to keep up with all the liturgical changes that are being dictated.

Thankfully, I requested a clarification and received the response, "Oops, I spelled it wrong. It's chrismator." Or in plainer words even a pastor can understand, would I help with confirming the candidates?

Gladly.

ABORTION & HEALTH CARE

One book on health care that is most enlightening is "The Healing of America: A Global Quest for Better, Cheaper, and Fairer Health Care," by T.R. Reid. He has lived for years overseas and points out the strengths and weaknesses of all different types of plans, some private or employer paid, others public and most a mixture. But all these countries provide for universal coverage.

They do not have the situation of St Ed’s parishioners, one who buys their pills one at a time, and another who lost a job and now is facing lifelong debt from healthcare expenses. And quite a few who simply go without. People can certainly differ over what to do but we must acknowledge the need. Indeed our U. S. bishops have for decades promoted a universal and single payer national health plan. But they more recently have expressed concerns over covering abortion even indirectly with proposed universal plans.

T. R. Reid, a Catholic, has an interesting perspective that universal coverage reduces abortion. Here's his argument: The latest United Nations comparative statistics, available at http://data.un.org/, demonstrate the point clearly. The U.N. data measure the number of abortions for women ages 15 to 44. They show that Canada, for example, has 15.2 abortions per 1,000 women; Denmark, 14.3; Germany, 7.8; Japan, 12.3; Britain, 17.0; and the United States, 20.8. When it comes to abortion rates in the developed world, we're No. 1.

No one could argue that Germans, Japanese, Brits or Canadians have more respect for life or deeper religious convictions than Americans do. So why do they have fewer abortions?

One key reason seems to be that all those countries provide health care for everybody at a reasonable cost. That has a profound effect on women contemplating what to do about an unwanted pregnancy. The connection was explained to me by a wise and holy man, Cardinal Basil Hume. He was the senior Roman Catholic prelate of England and Wales when I lived in London; as a reporter and a Catholic, I got to know him.

In Britain, only 8 percent of the population is Catholic (compared with 25 percent in the United States). Abortion there is legal. Abortion is free. And yet British women have fewer abortions than Americans do. I asked Cardinal Hume why that is.

The cardinal said that there were several reasons but that one important explanation was Britain's universal health-care system. "If that frightened, unemployed 19-year-old knows that she and her child will have access to medical care whenever it's needed," Hume explained, "she's more likely to carry the baby to term. Isn't it obvious?"

It is very significant, that all the European countries (many with majority Catholic populations) provide abortion coverage in their universal plans and that there is no opposition to these provisions by their Catholic hierarchies. The Catholic Health Association (CHA) which represents all the U S Catholic  hospitals and nursing homes, the largest private health care system in the United States, has also pointed out this expectation of reduced abortions in their support of universal coverage.

ARCHDIOCESAN PLANNING PROCESS AND REALITY

An insert is included in the bulletin this week about the Archdiocese's planning process. It contains some common comments that the planning task force has received from parishioners. Not noted in the insert is that at 3 meetings that I have attended one of the strongest refrains has been that we need to expand who can be ordained, first of all married men. Indeed this entire process seems to be primarily motivated by the obvious but unstated fact that we do not have enough priests to staff existing parishes. Thus we have to close or consolidate parishes that otherwise are very viable. Most Protestant denominations would keep such parishes open as they have more than enough clergy to staff them. We are losing what the insert calls "parish culture and community" because our leadership refuses to face reality.

Or maybe they are facing reality but just in an unreal way. I had to laugh at the insert's stating, "There is a deep concern for the well-being of priests..." Just this week I received the minutes of the last meeting of Archbishop Nienstedt with our Council of priests.  In them it is noted that the Archbishop apparently without consultation has dictated that priests can no longer retire at age 65 but must wait until age 70. "Archbishop Nienstedt indicated that a new policy is needed, because given the shortage of priests we cannot afford to have them retiring at age 65." Now that is deep concern.

I am glad that we have already conformed for years on the Parish Annual Disclosure Form being published annually to the parish.

OUT OF THE PARK

I want to thank you and the Bloomington Athletic Association for your generous response for baseball equipment for the youth of our sister parish community in Jinotega, Nicaragua. Sister Parish volunteers packaged up last Sunday 45 boxes and 1360 pounds of mainly baseballs, along with some soccer and basketball, equipment. Bridging provided a truck to take it all to the shipper.

Thanks to all for your help and donations!  Thanks also for your ongoing and undying support of the efforts of the Sister Parish ministry! Thanks especially to Sue Kellett who leads this great effort. What a team! You hit it out of the park!

LOCK-UP TEAMS

One very unique ministry at St. Edward’s are the Lock-up Teams. This sounds rather threatening, but it actually allows for hospitality and openness. Two nights each week we do not have maintenance staff present to lock the church. And so on Thursday and Friday nights the Lock-up teams close the church. This lets us schedule meetings on those evenings and enables the chapel to be kept open beyond normal business hours. We are one of the few parishes in the Archdiocese that has its chapel open from early morning, usually by 7:30 am, until 9:30 or 10:00 pm. The Lock-up teams are essential for this to happen.

Since I have been here (1998) Fran O'Brien has served as coordinator of this program. He has done a wonderful job and is now stepping down. Parishioner Bill Bach has volunteered to head it now. Thank you Bill, and thanks to all who serve in this great ministry. And a very special thank you to Fran.

All members of the volunteer Lock-Up Teams are invited to a special Open House.

Date:         Saturday, March 13
Time:        9:00 am - 10:30 am
Location:   Auditorium (lower level)
RSVP:       Call the parish office, (952) 835-7101 by Monday, March 8

Donuts, coffee and juice will be served.  We have a few vacant positions on the Teams and would welcome any new volunteers to come to the Open House. For more information call Rena Chrysler, Director of Stewardship & Administration (952) 835-7101 x208, or the new Chair of the Lock-Up Teams, Bill Bach, at (952) 884-7300 (work) or (952) 884-3811 (home).

ANYWAY

We began Lent with 3 very prayerful Ash Wednesday services. At the noon service, our Director of Adult Faith Formation, Heidi Busse, gave a wonderful message in which she recited a poem attributed to Mother Teresa. It is titled,
"Do It Anyway," and reportedly was written on the wall of Mother Teresa's home for children in Calcutta. This poem seems to be based on a composition originally by Kent Keith, but much of the second half has been re-written in a more spiritual way.  It is a good reflection as we begin Lent which is a special time for us to focus on our relationship with God.

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered.
               Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. 
               Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some unfaithful friends and some genuine enemies. 
               Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and sincere people may deceive you. 
               Be honest and sincere anyway.

What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight.
               Create anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. 
               Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, will often be forgotten. 
               Do good anyway.

Give the best you have, and it will never be enough. 
               Give your best anyway.

In the final analysis, it is between you and God. 
               It was never between you and them anyway.