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The Catholic Herald: Official Newspaper of the Diocese of Madison

June 24, 2004 Edition   •   Volume 134, No. 24   •   Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.A.

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The Catholic Herald
Mission Statement:


The Catholic Herald is the official newspaper of the Diocese of Madison. Its purpose is to inform and educate people of the Diocese through communications that proclaim Gospel values, report the news, and comment on issues as they pertain to the mission of the Catholic Church, which is to bring all in Jesus Christ to the Father.
map showing Diocese of Madison, Wisconsin in gold-orange

Awards:

• Web edition: Catholic Press Association Best Web Site: Honorable Mention.

Award of Distinction, The Communicator Awards 2002 Print Media competition.

• Print edition: Award winner, Catholic Press Association 2004 awards competition.

Article removed: Because of a licensing agreement with Catholic News Service, The Catholic Herald may archive CNS news stories for only 30 days. A CNS article has been removed from this site: Catholics in Political Life: Text of U.S. bishops' statement.

A related story was published in the June 24, 2004 print version of The Catholic Herald.

The text of "Catholics in Political Life" is also available on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Web site at www.usccb.org/bishops/catholicsinpoliticallife.htm.


Only in the print edition ...
News & Features:

Priest appointments: Priests take new positions in parishes, offices

Special section:
Summer vacation guide

June transfer of power:
Hopeful it will stabilize Iraq

Special section: Healthy living

Columns:

• Question Corner
by Fr. John Dietzen -- Questions:
Children status after annulment; Mass for the dead

• The Pope Speaks
by Pope John Paul II -- Psalm 46:
God is refuge, strength in time
of distress

• Making a Difference
by Tony Magliano --
Civility's proper place: Have we lowered the bar in society, church?

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Act courageously: Responding to God's call
for vocations

When is the last time you did something courageous? When speaking to the people of St. Ignatius Parish in Mt. Horeb and the people of St. Mary Parish in Pine Bluff, I told them that they were acting courageously simply by going to Mass. When reading this, you may be wondering how going to Mass can be considered courageous.

A word from vocations director

"We're excited about having some of our seminarians speaking on vocations this summer at the parishes," said Fr. Jim Bartylla, director of the Diocese of Madison's Office of Vocations.

"They bring with them a youthful zeal for the Catholic faith and the priesthood. I'm sure our seminarians will gain a broad understanding of the parishes in our diocese, and our parishioners will see the vitality of the men studying for the priesthood."

If anyone is interested in a vocation to priesthood or religious life, speak to one of our seminarians when they visit your parish or contact Fr. Jim Bartylla at 608-821-3088.

It takes courage to be a Christian; it takes courage to be a Catholic. This especially holds true in today's society. One needs only to turn on his television to see the millions of people in society that are controlled by their personal desires and physical passions.

In our contemporary culture, it seems that no one takes time to live for Christ or for others; people are just too busy living for themselves.

Secular society

Advertisers portray that a life filled with fast cars, lots of sex, and hoards of food brings happiness, and even worse, many consumers believe their advertisements. Few people stop to think about how they are harming their bodies and souls by chasing after such worldly pleasures. I hate to tell these advertisers and consumers, but excessive amounts of cars, sex, food, and selfishness pave the way to hell, not happiness. Living for Jesus Christ and others is the way to happiness; this unselfish way of living always has been and always will be the way to happiness.

Upcoming visits

MADISON -- Diocese of Madison seminarians will visit the following parishes:

June 26-27: Eric Sternberg at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Madison; Greg Ihm at St. James Parish, Madison; Ben Kessler at St. Patrick Parish, Janesville.

Priest shortage

What led me to the subject of courage is the great need for priestly vocations in this diocese and in dioceses throughout the nation. Currently, the Diocese of Madison has six seminarians and under 100 active priests. The future does not look bright, especially with the fact the diocese has many priests soon to be at the age of retirement and zero ordinations this year.

In the future, Catholics may not have Mass or the Eucharist in many places throughout the diocese because of this shortage. NO PRIESTS EQUALS NO EUCHARIST. It is that simple. The Eucharist, standing as the center of Catholic faith is necessary for the physical well being and spiritual well being of all Catholics. If numbers of ordained priests keep falling the way they have been, all Catholics are in trouble.   Full story ...


Catholic Herald summer publication schedule

During the summer months, The Catholic Herald will continue to be published weekly except for three issues. Remaining issues to be skipped are July 8 and Aug. 12. Following are deadlines for the issues prior to the weeks skipped:

Issue Weeks covered Deadline Issue skipped
July 1 first two weeks of July June 23 July 8
Aug. 5 first two weeks of Aug. July 28 Aug. 12

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Diocese of Madison, The Catholic Herald
Offices: Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center, 702 S. High Point Road, Madison
Mailing address: P.O. Box 44985, Madison, WI 53744-4985
Phone: 608-821-3070     Fax: 608-821-3071     E-Mail: info@madisoncatholicherald.org

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