Gulf Pine Catholic

10 Gulf Pine Catholic • January 3, 2025 Across the Pond From page 6 “Finally, they are airborne, but they need more string and you keep letting it out. With each twist of the ball of twine, there is a sadness that goes with the joy because the kite becomes more distant, and somehow you know that it won’t be long before that beautiful creature will snap the lifeline that bound you together and will soar as it was meant to soar… free and alone. Only then do you know that you did your job.” Jesus said, “Allow the children come to me; let them leave behind their tablets and iPads, their You- Tubes , their swipe across here fingers. The kingdom of God is theirs, no matter what language they speak as long as it is the language of love. Father Michael Tracey is retired and lives in Ireland. He can be contacted by email at mtracey1@ bellsouth.net . His website is www.michaeltracey.net Making Sense Out of Bioethics From page 6 If some insist that they want access to physi- cian-assisted suicide or euthanasia, this should re- mind us how much they need our care, support and love. It should also serve to remind us of how fearful they may be at the prospect of their illness and suf- ferings and of the loneliness that may accompany it. This should prompt us to redouble our efforts at pro- viding not only tailored treatments and appropriate pain management, but also compassion, companion- ship, and faithful accompaniment. When Mother Theresa began her ministry in Calcutta, she would take a wheelbarrow and walk around the city to pick up individuals who were des- titute and dying alone in the gutter. She would bring them back to her Home for the Dying. There she and her sisters would care for them, pray with them and remain in their presence until they passed on. Mother Teresa would offer them the chance to receive a gift -- what she termed a “special ticket of Saint Peter” -- the Sacrament of Baptism. No one, she said, ever declined the gift. Although their human frame was wasting away as death ap- proached, and even though flies may have buzzed nearby, these dying individuals were able to surren- der their life surrounded by love, warmth, and care, both human and divine, and experience, most assur- edly, a blessed and dignified death -- a “death well- died.” A 2024 Vatican document entitled Infinite Dig- nity reminds us of the important point, often over- looked in these discussions, that suffering “does not cause the sick to lose their dignity, which is intrin- sically and inalienably their own. Instead, suffering can become an opportunity to strengthen the bonds of mutual belonging.” The acceptance of the twin evils of physician-as- sisted suicide and euthanasia, far from promoting or supporting our core human dignity, constitutes a broadside attack against it. Both threaten those who are sick and vulnerable with systematic abandon- ment, not only by denying the basic protections to which they are entitled as members of the human family, but also by taking away the dignified care and loving human accompaniment due them in the final stages of their journey. Rev. Tadeusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. earned his doc- torate in neuroscience from Yale and did post-doc- toral work at Harvard. He is a priest of the diocese of Fall River, MA, and serves as Senior Ethicist at The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia. See www.ncbcenter.org and www.fathertad.com . On Friday, December 13, the Catholic Diocese of Biloxi implemented the second Healing Mass for Married Couples, sponsored by Bishop Kihneman and the Office of Marriage and Family Life. The structure of the Mass is to provide grace and healing to married couples who are having difficulty in their marriages, and to allow successful marriages through the Grace of God to continue to persevere. The Mass, officiated by Father Rofinus Jas, S.V.D., at Our Mother of Mercy Catholic Church, was an uplifting and powerful Mass expounding the presence of our Lord and Savior in our lives and especially in the beautiful and sacred institution of matrimony. The participants in the Mass felt that God was not only moving in their lives, but the reason for many of their difficulties was that they moved away from Him and they felt prey to the distractions of the material and secular world. As we prayed with them, they all said they felt the presence of God moving in them and one couple stated that this was the best “date night” they had experienced in a long time. Others said there is “power” in the presence of God and this was the beginning of a rededication to their faith in concert with a positive redirection of their marriages. Marriage is a sacred ministry, not designed to be easy, but a ministry designed to fulfill the promises made by God to Abraham, to assure that his descendants will be as numerous as the stars of the sky and the sand on the seashore. Marriage is the instrument for perpetuating the future of humanity, and it is the single most targeted institution by Satan for destruction. Through the Healing Mass for married couples, the question must be, “Is Christ the centerpiece of how you look at and approach your marriages? Is Jesus the glue that keeps your marriage whole and complete?” Marriage is a ministry guided by faith, faith in what we believe about our Lord and Savior. Faith drives us to Christ. Faith should drive our marriages to Christ. The Healing Mass for married couples is not to “fix” your marriages, but to put you in front of the Divine Fixer. It doesn’t work without Faith. In the Gospel of Matthew 15:25-28 it shows the humbling power of a strong faith. It goes, “But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Then Jesus said to her in reply, “ O, woman, great is your faith! Let it be done to you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour. The Healing Mass for married couples is that opportunity to say to our Savior, “Lord, help me.” How powerful this petition is in the presence of the Lord. And we all know, God answers prayer. God Bless you all and may your marriage magnify the Grace of God in your life. Deacon Justin Mitchell is the Director of Marriage and Family Life for the Diocese of Biloxi. Marriage & Family Life Mitchell Healing Mass for married couples: The ultimate test Pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the Diocese of Biloxi by visiting www.invisiblemonastery.com