We commit to making a difference!
Next year the Church celebrates the 10th anniversary of Laudato Sí, Pope Francis’ encyclical letter addressed to all people, to “every person living on this planet” to “care for our common home.”
This was the spark that brought approximately 90 people from throughout Canada and the United States to Olive Branch, MS (just south of Memphis), October 7-10, to discuss two seemingly diverse themes: climate change and nuclear weapons. Hosted by the Priests of the Sacred Heart (Dehonians), the “Dehonian Conference on the Dual Threats of Climate Change and Nuclear Weapons,” featured presentations by Archbishop John Wester of Santa Fe and Sr. Kathleen Storms, SSND. Participants included Dehonian priests and brothers, coworkers, parishioners, students, seminarians and others with a connection to the religious order.
According to the presenters, two of the greatest threats to our “common home” are climate change and nuclear weapons.
“Climate change is a normal process, but what we are experiencing now is climate disruption,” said Sr. Kathleen. “Disruption gets to the roots of our existence; it creates extinction.”
As she spoke, Florida was bracing for Hurricane Milton, the second of two significant hurricanes with devastating harm in just a few weeks’ time.
Speaking on the second topic, the archbishop noted that he was profoundly impacted by a visit to Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 2017. When he returned to Santa Fe, he was acutely aware that much of the work of developing and testing atomic bombs took place in New Mexico. He has since become a staunch advocate for universal, verifiable nuclear disarmament.
In 2022, Archbishop Wester published a pastoral letter titled, “Living in the Light of Christ’s Peace: A Conversation Toward Nuclear Disarmament.”
In the years since, he has continued to keep the issue in the public eye through letters, speeches and regular “pilgrimages of peace” to Japan on the anniversary of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
One of the challenges of any conference is turning it into something more than just an isolated moment in time. In small and large-group discussions, participants identified “next steps” to be taken personally and locally to better care “for our common home.”
A final message was approved, which outlines the work of the gathering and the commitments to which it pledges.
READ MORE on the province website
PHOTOS from the conference
FINAL MESSAGE from conference
OPENING ADDRESS from Fr. Gustave Lulendo, SCJ in French and in English
Keep in prayer
As people were gathered together in northern Mississippi, talking about climate disruption, people in the path of Hurricane Milton, including our senior Dehonian community in Pinellas Park, FL, were bracing for high winds, brutal rain, and storm surges.
Fr. Greg Speck, SCJ, shared updates from the Pinellas Park community throughout the storm. Although water did get into the chapel, it was from rain, not flood waters. There is still debris on the property, but no significant damage to the building itself. As of yesterday, the electricity was out, but the community has been able to run generators to keep food cold in the refrigerator and charge the phones and an electric wheelchair used by a resident. Slowly, more electronics are being brought back online in the house.
“We appreciate your thoughts, concerns and prayers,” said Fr. Greg. “We ask that you also to pray for the people who have helped us get through thus far and to also remember those who did not fare so well.”
Also keep in your prayers Fr. Roger Phaneuf, SCJ, a member of the Canadian Region, he has moved into assisted care following a recent hospital stay. His address: Providence Pavilion, 5655 rue de Sallaberry, Ch. 932, Montréal, H4J 1J5
Please remember
+ Charles A. Schweitzer, a former brother with the Priests of the Sacred Heart and a resident at Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake, died October 5. Click here to view the obituary.
+ Yustinus Ngadimin, the grandfather of Fr. M. Ari Saputra, SCJ, a member of the Indonesian Province preparing for ministry in the US, died October 7 in Indonesia. “He became ill in recent years,” said Fr. Ari. “I love him so much; he always supported me since I was in the seminary to become a priest. I believe that he will always support me as a priest in this mission.”
Who’s in your pews?
“Who’s in Your Pews? Preaching to Your People” is the theme of the 7th Annual Preaching Conference at Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology, January 7-8, 2025. Click here to get initial news about the conference; more information about the program and speakers will be added in the weeks ahead. Questions? Contact Dn. Steve Kramer, Director of Homiletics, at: skramer@shsst.edu, 414-858-4767
“A picture is worth a thousand words”
That is what Mary Joy Torres, PhD, a teacher at the Crow Creek Tribal school and member of the choir pictured above, wrote when sharing her photo.
“This photo speaks about the joy of serving the Church through music ministry,” she continued. “Featured are the members of the Filipino choir, spearheaded by Sr. Eulogia (Yollie) Nobabos and Sr. Clary Joy Tagaylo Palasan. Choir members have dedicated their time, efforts and talents serving the churches of Stephan, Fort Thompson and Lower Brule, SD. The photo was taken September 21, when St. Joseph’s Indian School invited the Filipino Choir to sing during the Intercultural Mass that concluded powwow weekend. The Mass was an opportunity for the choir to share their God-given talents with the community and to show a part of the Filipino culture by wearing the “Filipiniana”, traditional Filipino attire, infused with the ladies complimenting their ensembles with the [Native American] ribbon skirt.
“Truly, serving the Church transcends cultural boundaries. The celebration showed the peaceful coexistence of culture through music and prayers. The Eucharistic celebration embodied the Bible verse of Matthew 18:20, which says, ‘For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them.’
Thank you for sharing the photo, Dr. Torres!
Indigenous People’s Day, Columbus Day
Although how they are noted varies greatly from state to state (and even city to city), today Americans commemorate both the long-standing holiday of Columbus Day as well as Indigenous People’s Day.
The following is adapted from the Prayer for Tolerance, Forgiveness and Reconciliation released by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops for Indigenous Peoples Day in Canada on June 21, 2021:
O God, Creator and Father of all, with humility we your children acknowledge the relationship of all living things. For this we thank you, we praise you and we worship you.
We call on you, Great Mystery, the Word made Flesh – our teacher, prophet and brother –
to open our hearts to all our brothers and sisters, and with them to grow in the wisdom, honesty, courage and respectfulness shown in The Sacred Teachings.
Give us the vision and honesty to recognize that we are all brothers and sisters of one human family, created and sustained by the One Creator. As we deal with many challenges, may we never give way to fear and anger, which can be the source of division and threat amongst peoples.
We look to how God always gives to us, as a remedy for sins of prejudice and intolerance.
We see in God the Creator of all things, One who always provides and is generous – even given the abuses we have heaped on one another and on the earth.
We see in the Son, Jesus Christ – the innocent Victim who pours His life blood out from the Cross for all peoples.
We see how the Holy Spirit is God’s gift, alive in our world today – inspiring vision and hope that we can have the same mind and heart of God!
O Creator, show us the way to healing, forgiveness and reconciliation and a renewed fellowship.
Amen
PICTURED BELOW: Students at St. Joseph’s Indian School taking part in Native American dance during the 2023 commemoration of Indigenous People’s Day.
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