Denver, Colo., Jul 10, 2014 / 05:34 pm (CNA/EWTN News) - Efforts in several states to legalize recreational marijuana use poses serious harm to individuals as well as to communities that are already broken, said members of a recent panel.
“For the state to say something that’s really manifestly harmful – though it might have some benefits, manifestly harmful – is legal, is just short-sighted and irresponsible,” Dr. E. Christian Brugger stated at a July 1 panel discussion at Denver’s Holy Ghost Catholic Church.
Brugger is the J. Francis Cardinal Stafford professor of Moral Theology at Denver’s St. John Vianney Theological Seminary. He was one of several panel members discussing moral, legal, pastoral and personal concerns with recreational marijuana use.
Brugger argued that recreational marijuana use carries many long-term negative side-effects and is morally wrong because users intend to impair their cognition.
Legalization of the drug teaches that its use is permissible, he cautioned.
Greensburg resident brings hope
to Japan on tsunami anniversary
By DAVID MYERS
Southwest Kansas Register
When Matt Deighton of Greensburg boarded a plane for Japan, he could not have begun to imagine the difference he would make to the nation still reeling from a tsunami that claimed more than 19,000 lives, with hundreds still missing.
What brought him to Japan begins with a five-year-old boy named Evan.
“In 2003, Evan walked up to his dad sitting in his upper Manhattan office and said, ‘Dad, I want to send my toys out to those kids in the wildfires of California. They came to New York and helped us.’ This was after fires had killed 15 people and burned hundreds of homes in California.
“In two weeks,” Deighton said, “they were driving the largest U-Haul truck available across country. And on the side of it the truck it read, ‘New York Says Thank you.’”
Legalizing pot erodes communities, panel warns
By Matt Hadro
SpiritLife classes for September 22, 2012 at Heartland Center for Spirituality, Great Bend, KS
Participants may attend for the day, for a single talk or register for the complete 2 year program with the option of spiritual director’s training in year three.
For more information, contact sister Kathy Goetz (620 792-1232) or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. or http://heartlandspirituality.org/spiritlife .
9:30 – 10:35 a.m. Encountering Christ. Philip St. Romain, D. Min.
How do we encounter Christ in his personal/historical, ecclesial (Church), sacramental, and cosmic modes of presence to us? We will review ways to do each.
10:55 a.m. -12:00 Encounter with World Religions. Jolene Geier OP..
God works in ways that we may not fully understand through the multiple religions practiced by faithful people around the globe. Expanding our understanding of different religions will help us to respect others the way Jesus did during his life and ministry.
Spiritual formation Group – a time to process what’s been happening in classes; sharing one’s journey; inquiry and feedback.
Group is held from 1:00 - 1:45 p.m. each class day.
2:00 p.m. -3:00 p.m. Kataphatic Prayer: Icons, Lectio Divina. Marcia Bercheck and Renee Dreiling OP.
The two prayer styles we will be using today are examples of kataphatic prayer i.e. prayer that is mediated through the senses. Through holy images or icons our spirits are nourished, our eyes are refreshed and our whole bodies become full of light. Icons are windows unto the vast spaciousness of God. Lectio Divina means “divine reading” and describes a way of reading the Scripture in order to let go of our own agenda and to open ourselves to what God wants to say to us. Through its four stages of reading, reflecting, responding, and resting, we allow God's word to penetrate our hearts so that we may grow in an intimate relationship with God.
Caritas leader: 'The whole Middle East is at stake'
by Elise Harris
Vatican City, Jul 11, 2014 / 09:42 am (CNA/EWTN News) - The secretary-general for Caritas International has voiced his concern over the lack of aid being provided to those suffering from conflicts, urging the faithful to get involved and break the “cycle of indifference.”
“It’s difficult to raise funds for the whole Middle East. For Syria there’s a lot to be done inside and outside with refugees, what is happening right now with Israel and Palestine again, will have consequences where we will have to intervene as well,” Michel Roy told CNA July 11.
“So the whole Middle East is at stake right now, and there are people dying of hunger, or malnourished among the people in Syria that are not reachable by the humanitarian organizations.”
Vatican II marks 50-year anniversary
Diocese of Dodge City to republish historic
daily journal by SW Kansas’s second bishop
In celebration of the Year of Faith and the 50th anniversary of Vatican II, the Catholic Diocese of Dodge City is going to republish Bishop Marion J. Forst’s “Daily Journal of Vatican II,” first published in 2000 and currently out of print.
The 192-page text recounts the daily experiences of the second bishop of the Diocese of Dodge City as he attended Vatican II functions in Rome from October 1962 to December 1965.
The book should be ready for order before Christmas. Following is a review written soon after the journal’s publication.
Reviewed by
CYPRIAN BERENS, O.F.M.
Bishop Marion F. Forst, author of this journal, was consecrated bishop of Dodge City, Kansas, in 1960, appointed auxiliary bishop of Kansas City, Kansas, in 1976 and resigned in 1986. He has resurrected the personal notes he wrote more than 35 years ago, not to explain the documents of Vatican II, not to teach the new trends that originated with the Council, really not to teach anything, but only to share the human experience of one American bishop in those historic meetings.
The result is a brief and very pleasant book, sometimes funny, often inspiring.
“As one of the younger attendees,” he writes in the Prologue, “I decided to take brief notes of each day’s activities. Never was there any intention of publishing this journal.” A few close friends, however, read his jottings and thought they should be made public.
Vatican backs a 'Pause for Peace' during World Cup final
By Elise Harris
Vatican City, Jul 10, 2014 / 11:53 am (CNA/EWTN News) - The Pontifical Council for Culture launched an effort designed to unite the world in asking for peace in warring countries by observing a moment of silence during the final game of the World Cup.
“Sports were born around religious festivities. Sporting events were moments of peace when wars ceased, as for the Olympic truce,” Msgr. Melchor Sanchez de Toca y Alameda said July 10 for the launch of the campaign.
“Why not for the World Cup? Why not a pause, a moment of silence, a truce for peace?”
Msgr. Sanchez, undersecretary at the Pontifical Council for Culture and head of the section for culture and sport, spoke in reference to the ancient Greek tradition “ekecheiria,” or “truce”, that was put into practice during wartimes in order to allow citizens safe travel to the Olympic Games.
Fiesta de Colores
(See the slide show at the top of the SKR main page)
By David Myers
Southwest Kansas Register
ULYSSES -- One would be hard-pressed to find an annual event in the diocese that is as much a feast for the senses as is Fiesta de Colores.
On Sept. 9, the Most Rev. John B. Brungardt and an estimated 500 people packed into the Civic Center in Ulysses for the day-long celebration of music, food, dance, and praise.
Having been celebrated in the diocese for more than 35 years, Fiesta de Colores began as a reunion of sorts for those who first took part in Cursillo, a three-day conversion experience that still takes place throughout the year in the diocese.
But what began for just a small group of people, has, over time, blossomed into a diocesan-wide celebration that has at its heart the rich Catholic culture of Mexico.
Calabrian police take stand against mafia following Pope's visit
by Elise Harris
Vatican City, Jul 8, 2014 / 08:35 am (CNA/EWTN News) - Two weeks after Pope Francis’ harsh condemnation of mafia corruption in the Italian region of Calabria, police abandoned a Marian procession which paused to bow in front of the house of a mafia leader.
According to Italian news agency ANSA, anti-mafia activists in southern Calabria have officially opened an investigation regarding a July 2 procession in the town of Oppido Mamertina carrying a statue of the Virgin Mary.
While in the midst of their route the procession paused in front of the home of local 'Ndrangheta leader Peppe Mazzagatti, 82, who is currently serving a life-sentence and is under house-arrest due to health reasons. Those bearing the Marian statue made a gesture like a bow in front of Mazzagatti’s house.
Companion Camp 2014
Twenty boys in grades six through eight learned June 20-22 that while life in seminary is not all fun and games, there is a good dose of both.
Besides the celebration of Mass, spiritual exercises, and one-on-one conversation time with the seminarians monks of Conception Abbey, participants enjoyed a spirited game of soccer, a good, old fashioned water fight, and a don’t-break-the-egg drop.
The day before they set out on three buses (from Dodge City, Garden City, and Great Bend) for Conception Seminary in Conception, MO, four high school “camp staff” began working “behind the scenes to help with setup, cleaning, and other tasks that come up during the weekend,” explained Becky Hessman, Coordinator of Vocations.
Goretti Sanchez attended her second camp in the very important role of “mom”. Two mothers and a grandmother of participants took part, providing not only valued leadership, but offered a motherly presence to all the boys.
“It’s a good opportunity for the boys to see what the process is of becoming a priest,” Goretti said. “They think that the seminary life is very boring, but then they realize it’s not at all. At camp, they get to interact with seminarians. I thought it was interesting for the boys to see the preparation to become a priest.”
Goretti said that the most poignant part of the event was “being with my child (Andy). I want the best for him and want him to know there are so many options in life. If this is his call, maybe he will consider it in the future.”
It’s Andy’s second camp as well, and his last, since he’ll be too old to attend next year. “It was a pretty nice camp,” said the 13-year-old. “You get to meet the monks. The big Sunday Mass was nice. They brought us to the back and showed us some of the bones of the saints where we prayed.”
Father Ted Stoeklein assistant vocation director, said, “The monks and the staff at Companion Camp did a sensational job. For me, it was a good introduction to retreat. For the boys, it appeared to be a weekend full of action and prayer. I literally couldn’t keep up with them. I’m grateful to Manuel Ultreras, Goretti Sanchez, Kelly Wright, Norma Alvarez and Olga Zuniga for driving and supporting the boys on the journey.”
Sister Roserita Weber, OP and the 
‘Ministry of Presence’
By Charlene Scott Myers
Special to the Register
GARDEN CITY – Sister Roserita Weber, O.P. works in the Ministry of Presence to assist the many immigrants who have flocked to this city in search of employment and a better life for themselves and their children.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2010 report on the Kansas Hispanic population, Finney County (where Garden City is located) had a population of 46.7 percent Hispanics.
The population has risen since then, and includes not only Hispanics and other immigrants, but also refugees who are Ethiopians, Burmese, Vietnamese, and Somalians, among others.
“Garden City High School had students from 35 different countries when I came here, and 10 percent of the population was Vietnamese,” recalled Sister Roserita, who has been involved in the Ministry of Presence in Garden City since 1995. Sister Janice Thome, O.P. joined her in 1996.