Local News February 2007
Dr Janet Smith to Speak Tonight at Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Phoenix (February 22)- Dr Janet Smith, the chair of the Life Ethics committee at Sacred Heart Major Seminary will be speaking tonight at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church, 2121 South Rural Rd, in Tempe. The topic of tonights presentation is “A Culture of Life vs. A Culture of Death” where she will explore what has happened in our culture to make “rights” out of things that were once crimes. For further information contact the parish at 480.967.8791
Diocese of Phoenix to Celebrate the beginning of Lent with Ash Wednesday Liturgies
Bishop Olmsted places ashes on the forehead of Patricia Fischer on Ash Wednesday 2006
PHOENIX (February 16, 2007) The Diocese of Phoenix will begin the holy season of Lent with Ash Wednesday liturgies at parishes throughout the diocese on Wednesday, February 21.
At Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral, 6351 N. 27th Ave., ashes will be distributed during the Masses, which will be held at 6:15 a.m., 8:30 a.m., noon, 6:30 p.m. and a 8:30 p.m. Spanish Mass. Ashes will also be distributed at prayer services that will be held at the half hour from 1 to 5 p.m. at the Cathedral. In addition, there will be special Spanish prayer services at 6 p.m., 7 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. in Smith Hall at Ss. Simon and Jude during which ashes will be distributed.
St. Mary’s Basilica, 231 N. 3rd St., part of the downtown pastoral center complex of the Diocese of Phoenix, will be distributing ashes during its noon and 5 p.m. Masses.
Priests at all parishes of the Diocese will bless ashes and participate in applying the ashes to the foreheads of Roman Catholics with the Sign of the Cross and the reminder, “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return.” The ashes remind the faithful of the need to do penance for sin and to seek spiritual renewal by means of prayer, fasting and good works.
All Saints Catholic Newman Center Students to Aid in New Orleans
Tempe, Ariz.(February 14) -- Instead of shopping for a new swimsuit and beach towel for their upcoming spring break, forty-three Arizona State University students who attend the All Saints Catholic Newman Center
in Tempe, Ariz. are stocking up on face masks and mosquito repellant.
They will spend the week of March 11-17, 2007 in New Orleans, LA to renovate a school building into a community center– a critical piece of the New Orleans neighborhood rebuilding plan. The students will replace walls, flooring and do a lot of painting to create this much-needed light in the devastating aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
The Newman Center will be working with Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish, which hosts many of New Orleans’ neighborhood meetings and helps families find resources for rebuilding and reoccupying their homes. As many news reports have mentioned, many residents have not returned to the area. The future of families returning to historic areas of New Orleans depends greatly on the work done in these neighborhoods.
While the mission of the service trip is one of great need and importance, it is also one of significant expense. The group of students is looking for its own transportation and housing and will need to provide its own food. The cost per person is $600, which comes to a total of $25,800 for all forty-three applicants to participate. Even with their own lean finances, each student is committed to paying $250 out-of-pocket, and will try to earn the rest through various fundraisers, such as bake sales and pancake breakfasts, in order to participate.
Lourdes Alonso, Campus Minister for Newman Center at ASU, says that the Newman Center community, students’ families and friends, and others who want to support the service trip can help make it possible by making a donation. “Our biggest challenge right now is transportation cost, “Alonso said. “But our goal is to raise enough money through fundraisers and donations to ensure that each student who wants to participate on our service trip is able to go. This is an incredible opportunity for our students to add to the future health of New Orleans and bring a new commitment to their faith and service back to the Phoenix community.”
To donate, call (480) 967-7823 to get in touch with the development office, or mail to: All Saints Catholic Newman Center, attn: Lourdes Alonso, 230 E. University Dr., Tempe, AZ 85281. Donated supplies for painting and dry walling are also being accepted. Please call if you are interested in donating supplies.
Bishop Thomas Olmsted to Bless Marriages
At Celebrate Marriage 2007
PHOENIX (February 6, 2007) Married couples are invited to attend Celebrating Marriage 2007 event Saturday, February 10 at Ss. Simon and Jude Cathedral, 6351 N. 27th Avenue. This event holds up the ideal of lifelong, committed marriage as beautiful, desirable and possible.
The day will start with a bilingual Mass with Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted at 10 a.m. Jubillarian couples with 25, 40, or 50 + years of marriage who pre-register will receive a blessed certificate from Bishop Olmsted and a blessing after Mass. At 11:30 a.m. there will be a luncheon in the Parish Hall.
Afterward Fr. Andriy Chirovsky, SThD and Halyna Chirovsky, accomplished Eastern Catholic theologians, will present “The Sacrament of Marriage: Reuniting a Divided Humanity One Couple at a Time.”
As Pope Benedict XVI recently stated "the family, based on marriage, constitutes the natural environment for the birth and education of children and, therefore, to ensure the future of the whole of humanity… Therefore, it is necessary to defend, protect and value it in its unique and irreplaceable character."
Michael Phelan, Director of the Office of Marriage and Family Life states “This event celebrates marriage as deeply valuable. The basic institution of marriage is under great strain, even attack, in the West. Part of protecting marriage is honoring it, educating about it, that it is worth the effort, that a lifelong marriage is a thing of great beauty.
For more information and registration call 602-354-2356.
St Mary's High School Students Rally for Life in DC
32 St Mary's Students in Right to Life rally in DC
February 2, 2007-32 students from Saint Mary’s High School traveled to Washington D.C. on Saturday, January 20, in order to attend the annual March for Life on National Mall. The trip, organized by Campus Minister Michael Garibaldi, and fellow theology teachers Colleen Campbell and Christina Strafaci, included several opportunities for the students to consider the dignity of all human life.
On Saturday night the group joined thousands of others teens for a youth concert. On Sunday, the group visited the National Holocaust Museum, and enjoyed free time at the National Mall, including, for many, their first chance to enjoy the fun of falling snow.
On Monday, January 22, the day of the March, the morning included a tour of the Capital Building before joining more than 100,000 people from around the world in demonstrating, through peaceful praise and worship, their support for preservation of the sanctity of life from conception to death. The experience gave our students the chance to meet others their own age and gather a strengthened conviction from their joint enthusiasm. [The group also met Theo Torrez (St Mary's Class of '06) who is studying at the Catholic University of America.] The evening of the March for Life saw time for reflection and shared thoughts on the event and its meaning, individually and collectively. Tuesday, January 23, was travel day back to Phoenix, and the opportunity to share this experience with schoolmates, family, and friends.
Bourgade Catholic High School and United Martial Arts First to Offer Certified Kung Fu Instruction in an Arizona High School
Bourgade Catholic Students Participating in Kung Fu as an elective P.E. class
February 2 PHOENIX, AZ - On Saturday, January 20, 2007 the Bourgade Catholic High School Kung Fu students received their blue belts during a ceremony at the United Martial Arts World Headquarters. Sr. Christi Laudolff, C.S.A was recognized for her work to get approval for the class, which is the first in the state of Arizona to be certified for Kung Fu instruction in a High School.
Sr. Christi Laudolff, C.S.A., the faculty member who oversees the program at Bourgade Catholic High School, suggested Kung Fu when the faculty was asked for ideas for new Physical Education courses beyond the 9th grade level. She wrote a summary and course description, goals for the course, expected outcomes and a rationale for the course in order to get approval from school administration. The expected learning results incorporate, not only physical education, but also life lessons, including discipline, focus, respect, and self-defense.
Sr. Christi, also affectionately known to her colleagues as “the Ninja Nun”, a certified black belt, also had to get approval for the class from Master Michael Leoni, who owns and operates United Martial Arts. Master Leoni then worked to provide a certified instructor, Instructor Dane Boles, to come on campus to teach the course.
Kung Fu is an upper level PE class open to sophomores, juniors and seniors. In the beginner class, students initially learn basic stances, strikes, and conditioning. Once they graduate to green belt, they begin learning the 5 animal kung fu forms starting with “Poison hands” and “Iron Body” along with the 5 animal combination forms. Mastery of these forms earns a blue belt and intermediate student status. During the second semester, students will learn the leopard, snake and tiger forms to earn a red belt and designation as advanced students. In the second year of kung fu, the students will complete the 5 animal forms with crane, drunken, and dragon along with the 5th brother staff weapon form. At the end of the year the students will be ready to graduate to first degree black belt.
