Gulf Pine Catholic

Gulf Pine Catholic • November 29, 2019 21 ©2019 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, DC. All rights reserved. Photographer: Jim Judkis. Collection: December 10-11 Give generously in your parish collection, or send donation to: Retirement Fund for Religious c/o Diocese of Biloxi 1790 Popps Ferry Rd. Biloxi, MS 39532 A small portion of collection pays for this advertisement. Collection: December 7-8 For Sisters de Lourdes and Florence — and 30,000 other senior Catholic sisters, brothers, and religious order priests who benefit from the Retirement Fund for Religious — service is a way of life. Most ministered in Catholic schools, hospitals, parishes, and social services, usually for little or no pay. Today, hundreds of religious communities lack enough savings for retirement and eldercare. Your gift to the Retirement Fund for Religious offers vital support for necessities, such as medications and nursing care. Please be generous. Roughly 94 percent of donations directly aid senior religious. ©2019 United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, DC. All rights reserved. Photographer: Jim Judkis. “We’ve been getting regular reports into the dio- cese about other alleged miracles attributed to the intercession of Fulton Sheen,” he said. Noting a sec- ond approved miracle is required for canonization, he added that “it’s a good thing the beatification will happen soon, because that opens the door to the miracle that might bring about his canonization.” In general a second verified miracle is required for canonization. Msgr. Richard Soseman, who oversaw early research into Archbishop Sheen’s sainthood cause and is now vice postulator, agreed it is fitting that the beatification takes place just before Christmas. “Through him, many souls were prepared to receive the word of God and come close to his Son,” said Msgr. Soseman. “His beatification will lead directly into the season of rejoicing, and prepare countless souls who will watch on television around the world to receive Jesus at Christmas with even greater joy.” Dermody is editor of The Catholic Post, newspa- per of the Diocese of Peoria. Archbishop Sheen From page 20 Extension official says Eucharist strengthens the faithful in mission area BY CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE CHICAGO (CNS) -- A recent Pew Research Center survey showed that a majority of Catholics in the United States do not believe that the bread and wine used at Mass become the body and blood of Christ. Joe Boland, Catholic Extension’s vice president of mission, who travels weekly for the Chicago-based fun- draising organization, found the study to be troubling, given that the Catholic tradition describes the Eucharist as the “source and summit of the Christian life,” he said. In a reflection written in response to the study and posted on the Extension website, Boland noted that the story of St. Thomas the Apostle, who disbelieved the resur- rection until he could physically examine the wounds of Christ, “is a timeless reminder that doubt is a common precursor to faith.” Boland escribed what he has seen on the peripheries of society, where he travels to visit poor faith communities being supported by Catholic Extension. He called them “modern-day eucharistic miracles where doubt can often lead to new faith.” One example involved a recent visit to rural Mississippi to meet with Guatemalan immigrant fami- lies, all of whom had been impacted by the largest statewide raid by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in U.S. history in August. He described meeting a breastfeeding mother who was separated from her children for more than a month after being swept up by ICE in the chicken processing plant where she worked. Every day while in detention, she gathered together with her cellmates and asked God that, if it be his will, he may allow her to see her children again, including her infant, struggling to eat in her absence. This and other examples illustrate the gratitude of the faithful during times of unimaginable hardship, Boland wrote. He said it was worth noting that the Greek root for the word Eucharist means “thanksgiving,” saying, “I’ve also heard it said that the Eucharist is the Catholic equivalent of our ‘Thanksgiving dinner,’ where we come to the table with hearts of gratitude.” Boland planned to return to Mississippi Dec. 20 for a pastoral visit by newly elevated Cardinal Alvaro Ramazzini Imeri, the bishop of Huehuetenango, Guatemala. His visit will be sponsored by Catholic Extension. The cardinal will travel to parishes hit hardest by the raids to comfort impacted families. Boland concluded that what he has witnessed rep- resents the “potency of the Eucharist” and its ability to strengthen the faithful as a sacrament of thanksgiving. The full text of his reflection can be found online at catholicextension.org/eucharistic-miracle. Catholic Extension raises and distributes funds to support U.S. mission dioceses, many of which are rural, cover a large geographic area, and have limited personnel and pastoral resources. It has been support- ing the work and ministries of these mission dioceses since its founding in 1905.