Friends come together to honor Fr. Yost

Fr. Charles Yost, SCJ, died last July. A member of the Sacred Heart Community at SHML, he often celebrated Mass at Good Shepherd Chapel for the lay residents of Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake. That’s where Pat and Tom Brown met him.

“It’s because of him that we are Catholic,” said Pat.

She and her husband, Tom, moved to SHML shortly after they retired. She was a medical transcriptionist and he had spent over 50 years as a church music director, though not in a Catholic parish. His last assignment was at a Methodist church in suburban Milwaukee. It’s where he spent most Sundays for 27 years until his retirement.

A priority for Tom and Pat following their move to SHML was to find a church. “We were seekers,” said Pat, “and Fr. Yost recognized that.”

While seeking a church, the Browns began attending Mass at SHML. The commute was easy – just an elevator ride to the first floor. “We enjoyed Fr. Yost’s homilies; it was a good match for us,” said Pat.

Fr. Yost noticed Pat and Tom, and also noticed that they didn’t go to communion. “Why?” he asked.

“We aren’t Catholic,” said Pat.

Thus began a friendship that eventually led to the Browns converting to the Catholic faith.

Following Fr. Yost’s death, several SCJs and lay residents at SHML created an informal committee to discuss possibilities to honor him. The result was the purchase a replica of the St. John’s Bible to be gifted to the SCJ and lay residents of SHML in memory of Fr. Yost.

On Saturday, the bible was placed in the SHML lobby on an ambo handmade by Frs. Byron Haaland, SCJ and Jim Schroeder, SCJ.

Click here to read the full story on the province website.

Preparing for the General Chapter

Following the appointment of Fr. Heiner Wilmer, SCJ, as bishop of the diocese of Hildesheim, the congregation begins – three years earlier than planned – to prepare for a General Chapter. The planning commission has a busy task. Instead of the usual year or more for its work, this year’s committee has less than three months! The XXIV General Chapter will take place July 14-27 in Rome.

Members of the planning committee include Frs. Oliviero Cattani (ITS), Fr. Juanjo Arnaiz (ESP) and Fr. Levi Ferreira (GER).

The US Province will hold a chapter at the Provincial Conference Center on June 18 to select its delegates; the Canadian Region will hold its chapter on June 6 at Dehon House in Ottawa.

SCJ experiences migration story in the midst of healing

Fr. Tony Russo, SCJ, is at St. Camillus in Milwaukee for a few weeks of rehab following hip surgery. He says that he is recovering well and receiving excellent care, excellent care taking place in the midst of North America’s colorful tapestry of cultural diversity.

“The doctor who saw me to treat a drug reaction following the surgery is a Muslim man named ‘Ishmael’ who works in a Catholic facility,” said Fr. Tony. “One of my nurses is a nun from a religious community based in India, and the nursing supervisor – a very effective person in his position – is a man from the Philippines. Here are all of these immigrants taking excellent care of an aging Catholic priest.”

“These are the real stories of immigrants,” said Fr. Tony.

Please continue to keep Fr. Tony in prayer during his recovery process.

Immigration and the Church’s Response

Barbara Graham, Director of Legal Services for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese Milwaukee, will speak on the current state of immigration policy and faith-based responses on Tuesday, May 29. The program will take place from 7:00 – 8:30 p.m. at the Provincial Conference Center in Franklin (Hales Corners), WI.

Graham has served in her position for over 17 years, focusing on family-based immigration, including help with visas, temporary protective status, asylum representation, citizenship, community outreach and public education.  She was named Attorney of the Year for Law-Related Education by the State Bar of Wisconsin, and has received numerous awards, most recently the Pro Bono Hero Award from the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

Graham will speak about current enforcement policy and practice (particularly the role of Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, or ICE), and how the Church is responding.  She will also explain the difference between “sanctuary cities” and the “New Sanctuary Movement” among churches, and what involvement in sanctuary can mean legally and practically.

The program is sponsored by the North American Migration Committee. It is free and open to the public. For more information, contact email Mark Peters or call him at 414-427-4273

Welcome!

As of April 22, Fr. Yohanes Yuliwan Maslim, SCJ, is a member of the Canadian Region. An alumnus of the ESL program at SHSST, he is originally from the Indonesian Province and has been ministering in Toronto for several years.

Update

Fr. Jim Walters, SCJ, no longer uses his Yahoo email account; you can reach him at his SHSST email address.

Provincial’s calendar

Fr. Ed Kilianski, SCJ,begins the week with a conference call with the Province Council. On Thursday, April 26, he flies to Mississippi for SHSM board meetings; he returns on April 29. Fr. Ed will take part in graduation exercises at SHSST on May 4 and then the North American retreat from May 6-11. May 14-21 he will be in Texas for a visitation, returning to Milwaukee on May 23.

Variety of topics addressed at meeting of rectors and formators in Rome

As noted in the previous Fridge Notes, Fr. David, a member of the US Province formation team, along with Fr. Tom, president-rector of Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology, were in Rome last week for a meeting of Dehonian rectors and formators from around the world. Fr. David shares a few notes from the gathering:

“There was much discussion around the need to study, communicate, and make part of our formation the writings and texts of Fr. Dehon.  Many said that words like ‘reparation’ and ‘oblation’ are not commonly used today. Part of formation has to be teaching these concepts to our students and teaching them to share Fr. Dehon’s insights with others.

“Students in formation, many felt, should be encouraged to study French so that they can learn the founder’s works directly. Also, we should continue to seek ways to translate our Dehonian theology into modern terminology

“We spoke about social media and social communication. There was reflection on how different entities in the congregation respond to the ever-growing reality of social media, internet, cell phones, etc. Rather than trying to prevent social media, the focus was more on how social media can be used appropriately.

“Thursday afternoon, Fr. Giuseppe Boggia, SDB, talked about current challenges in formation.  He said that many young people today want to be ‘free.’ The formation director can help the student find authentic freedom by helping him grow into his true self, his true vocation rooted in baptism.

“On the final day of the conference, participants heard from members of the general administration staff. Fr. Radoslaw Warenda, SCJ (communications director), spoke about the Mission Statement; Fr. Luca Zottoli, SCJ (general treasurer), gave a presentation on the need to promote a Dehonian sensibility in formation toward poverty and solidarity with the poor; and Fr. Stefan Tertünte, SCJ (director of the Centro Studi Dehoniani), reviewed the DehonDocs site.”

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