From: pcnews [mailto:pcnews@cathdal.org] 
Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2012 5:19 PM
To: Maria Carrillo
Subject: Memo from Bishop Farrell
Importance: High

From:  Bishop Kevin Farrell

To:       All Pastors and Parishes

Updated Materials on HHS Issue

As you know, the mandate stands from the Department of Health and Human Services that will violate conscience rights and religious liberty. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops is asking that all parishes throughout the country use the bulletin inserts provided below this weekend to further inform our Catholic faithful of the bishops' stand on this issue.

I ask that every parish in the Diocese of Dallas make sure that these inserts are available to all parishioners attending Masses this weekend.  I encourage you to also use a pulpit announcement to direct parishioners to the inserts in the bulletins.  We must continue to inform our people of the importance of making their voices heard in asking Congress to fix this serious problem.

Please take the time to read the Urgent Memorandum from the USCCB provided in the following links and then use the bulletin announcements in English and Spanish this weekend.  I hope you will join me in this effort and in asking the Holy Spirit to provide wisdom and courage to our elected leaders that will lead them to overturn this violation of our First Amendment Rights.

Maria A. Carrillo

Communications Office

Catholic Diocese of Dallas

214.379.2876 office

214.520.3247 fax

Faithful Citizens in the Spiritual War for Our Country

As members of a Catholic faith community we should all be aware of and engage in the current spiritual war that is going on for the future of our country and our Church. This is primarily done by what is called Faithful Citizenship. This involves listening to our Church to help us form our consciences and direct our actions in support of defending the faith in the public arena. It also involves supporting and encouraging our bishops as they carry out their formation and leadership roles in this battle.

You have undoubtedly heard of the PresidentÕs Health and Human Services Mandate that has been challenged by our Bishops. Interestingly, just the week before it was announced, our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI had instructed the U.S. Bishops during their January ad-lima visit that they must respond publically to such challenges by the government. This message was clearly needed as the bishops past liberal bent and limited responsiveness has led to a Òfalling shortÓ of the ideal reaction of bishops by many but not all bishops to these challenges. Praise God, the PopeÕs message was apparently heard loud and clear by the new and articulate leaders of the U.S. Bishops, as we witnessed in the U.S. bishopsÕ immediate response challenging this unjust mandate. For example, most of you heard a letter from Bishop Farrell read at Mass the Sunday following the mandate, summarizing the strong opposition to this directive and urging prayer and seeking wisdom from the U.S. Bishops website. This has been the case in a majority of U.S. dioceses.

Our President then attempted to deflect their criticism by shifting the ÒagentÓ of this mandate (but not the result) from Catholic service organizations to their insurance providers, which still fails to address the core issues, as the blog response from leading U.S. Bishops and Bishop Cardinal-designate DolanÕs response and Press interview on ÒCBS This MorningÓ explains. As Archbishop Chaput makes very clear in his strong summary on the HHS situation, this situation has brought out and made visible an ongoing pattern that in fact represents a bold secularist attack on religious freedom and imposition of laws and regulations that are contrary to our beliefs and our Christian consciences. So the issue is really much bigger than simply forcing Catholic institutions to provide insurance that includes free contraception and abortion inducing procedures. The latest U.S. Bishops statements have declared this ÒcompromiseÓ totally unsatisfactory and calls for a full rescission of the HHS mandate along with a call to pass the new Respect for Rights of Conscience Act, legislation that would protect the conscious rights of all U.S. citizens. They have also encouraged all Catholics to contact their Representatives and Senators and ask them to support this legislation now under consideration in both the House and Senate.

But even the bishopÕs statements and implied understanding by the Catholic faithful are still developing and need our prayers. This is the result of a well-meaning past focus on the ChurchÕs social teachings that had led to a serious conciliation with secularist forces and support in 2006 that helped elect a president in the White House who promised to support their liberal policy agenda. Many bishops did not comprehend the practical conflict between desiring a humanitarian result and the political reality of forced government intervention that might include morally offensive elements. This has now left many of them feeling betrayed and unsure of how to defend the ChurchÕs basic right of conscious without jeopardizing their humanitarian goals like universal health care, which has now been forced on them as a direct attack on conscious rights. Furthermore, many independent Catholic service organizations are being led by lay proponents of this liberalistic agenda who have failed to comprehend the bigger picture as described in the PopeÕs great encyclical on Love in Truth, Caritas in Veritate

I want to urge you to take some time to become familiar with these issues and become a ÒsoldierÓ in this spiritual war for our country and our way of life as Christian Americans. God has graced us individually and as a community, preparing us for this time and calling us to take action under His direction. To help us do this I have suggested some reliable sources (see hyperlinks above) that will help us to be informed and ready to respond.

I pray that God will direct your discernment and guide your responses.

David Peterman (Sr.)

(© 2012 Catholic Charismatic Services of Dallas)

Being a Young Adult Christian in a Secular World.

During January 2-4 several CCGD Young Adults attended an international retreat for young adults, “Being a Young Adult Christian in a Secular World.” The reports of their experiences at the January 8 Community Gathering were inspiring.

John Wagner shared about the bonding time during the 16-hour overnight van trip to Alleluia Community in Augusta, GA.  Socializing and playing rugby with Australians preceded the Friday night talk on how to be Christian in the secular world. “Community really helps with our lives and that was really the main focus of the weekend, it was community; how community helps us; prayer in the community.” John said. Bob Garrett, leader of Alleluia Community, talked about how community is a combination of inward, outward and upward, and at the center of those three circles is where community resides. “And he was absolutely correct,” John said. “I wouldn’t be here, the ‘small here,’ that I am today, without all of you helping me to be better inward, outward and upward.”

John reported that Chuck Hornsby’s talk on the charismatic gifts and what it means to be a charismatic community member was a delight.  “The Lord’s Day Meal ending the weekend was one of the greatest manifestations of community that we had. Everyone was coming together sharing a meal and it was absolutely amazing. It was absolutely one of the best weekends I’ve had in my life. It was absolutely amazing.”

Laura Chapman reported the stories of several speakers who experienced divine encounters. Then Chuck Hornsby gave them homework: Find at least 25 divine encounters on the way to Augusta and back home. God’s Delight Young Adults has four so far. “Our first one was when we stopped in Birmingham, AL, on the way and we had lunch with Kent Graeve. In the parking lot of a big shopping complex we prayed with him, Laura said. “We were all excited about our first encounters. It continued from there and honestly, it’s still going.”

Laura reminded us, “God has given all of us gifts and especially when we were baptized in the Spirit, we prayed for gifts of discernment and for wisdom. There are daily chances to use those gifts. Not just in this gym, not just on this campus, not just in our homes with our family, it’s everywhere we go; it’s in the parking lot; it’s in the airport, it’s in school or at work. There are always chances to just say ‘yes’ to pray for someone from afar and to ask them what it is they need, That’s what we started doing. We asked our waiters and waitresses if there’s anything we could pray with them for. And it’s been really special and it’s exciting and it sounds a little nutty of sorts but, once you get through the first door, we discovered it’s real easy to keep going.” She challenged us to notice the opportunities God gives us to say “yes’ and to do something radical for him.

Rick Chapman said that although college schedules prevented more than five young adults to go “it was one of the most wonderful trips that I’ve ever had the opportunity to go on. It was like the song that we sang: “I’ll hold your people in my heart.” Those kids were fantastic. I’ll just leave you with one quick thing. One young lady got up at the end of her talk and said: ‘The world offers you comfort, the world offers you entertainment and relaxation. But you’re not made for that. You’re made for greatness in the Lord.’ Amen.

(© 2012 Catholic Charismatic Services of Dallas)