May 6, 2005 - Issue #9
Local News | Opinion/Editorials | Letters to the Editor
Local church leaders offer opinions about, hopes for new pontiff
Does anybody in Alaska know the man chosen last month to become the 265th successor of St. Peter?
One Anchorage priest almost celebrated Mass with Pope Benedict XVI when he was known as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. Another chatted with him in the streets of the Vatican a few times. And both Archbishop Roger Schwietz and his predecessor, Archbishop Francis Hurley, have spoken with the new Holy Father once or twice.
Other local Catholics certainly know the name Ratzinger, which appeared frequently in the press during the cardinal’s 24 years as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. But everyone knows you can’t trust what you read in the papers.
Despite the general shortage of intimate knowledge about Pope Benedict XVI, Southcentral Alaska church leaders were not shy about sharing opinions, hopes and predictions about their new leader.
Well, some weren’t shy.
Here’s a sampling from interviews with the Catholic Anchor over the past two weeks:
"I think this new pope is telling us he is not be seen as a continuation of the Cardinal Ratzinger who was the prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. He has been coming across since his election as the pastor of the whole church.
"He has talked very strongly about his desire to carry on the work of ecumenism, seeking the unity of the church. He’s said several times that he wants to work in collaboration with the leadership of the church and in continuity with the history of the church.
"This man has a deep sense of history and a deep longing to accomplish some of the things that Pope John Paul II was not able to accomplish, in a particular way reaching out to the Eastern churches. …
"The particular image that he has of being one who is divisive in the church and unwilling to listen or to compromise I think is an unfair image. I’m acquainted with how he dealt with a theologian from my own religious community, an Oblate from Sri Lanka, and how with a lot of dialogue they avoided confrontation and were able to come up with some agreements.
"But it’s true he took very seriously the task that Pope John Paul had entrusted him with, to guard the integrity of the faith, and sometimes that calls for some strong stands."
Sister Barina, pastoral associate of Our Lady of the Angels Parish in Kenai, said it’s too early to tell how Benedict XVI will handle the papacy.
"You never know. When somebody takes on a completely different position with much different responsibilities, you never know how the person might respond.
"I just came back from a Catholic women’s convocation in Seattle. The whole theme was ‘Uprising of Hope,’ but the impression that I got from many of these women was not a lot of hope that things are going to change.
"As for me, I’m coming from a place that doesn’t have a resident priest, so that’s probably our first concern, and I don’t see that changing under this new pope."
The pastor of St. Benedict Parish in Anchorage narrowly missed an opportunity to concelebrate Mass in 2001 with then-Cardinal Ratzinger.
Father Giebel was accompanying a few seminarians to the Vatican to witness a consistory, or meeting of cardinals. In Rome, however, the priest was thwarted at the gates of St. Peter’s Basilica by police.
"I missed out on the whole thing," he said.
Now, Father Giebel is planning to write the pope to follow up on that missed opportunity from four years ago.
"Next time I’m coming to Rome, I’m going to say Mass with you," the letter will say.
Boisclair, of Anchorage, holds a doctorate in Scripture and is an associate professor of religious studies at Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage. She is also the Cardinal Newman Chair of Catholic Theology.
"I’m impressed with his concern for the Eucharist as the center of Catholic life, and that may mean some reconsideration of who is to be ordained and who is not to be ordained," Boisclair said. "Are we going to give up the Eucharist for celibacy, if we don’t have priests?"
Boisclair said she found it interesting to learn that the pope’s former students have noted his care as a mentor and teacher. He was a professor of theology at four German universities from 1959 to 1977.
She said that completing a thesis with respect for a mentor still intact is no small feat. "If you come out of it still caring for the person, that says a lot about (the mentor)," she said.
Deacon Greene of Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Anchorage said he’ll be watching how Pope Benedict handles World Youth Day this August in Cologne, Germany. The annual youth event showcased Pope John Paul’s popularity with the youth.
"Three-fourths of the stuff the pope would say the average kids would disagree with, but they treated him like some sort of a rock star," Deacon Greene said. "Can Ratzinger do that?"
The deacon also said people will be looking for the new pope to "open avenues of dialogue between different factions — the right, the left, the center — within the church."
"The hopes for the papacy are the hopes for the church: to be able to come to grips with some of these major problems … face them head on," Deacon Greene said, listing the shortage of priests, the role of women in the church, the implementation of Catholic social teaching and the clergy sex abuse scandal.
The pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Seward said he was surprised by the outcome of last month’s papal conclave.
"I’ve always admired him and his loyalty and his wisdom, but he would not have been on my top 10 list," Father Tero said.
A younger leader from Africa or Latin America may have energized more young people, the priest speculated. However, the 78-year-old Pope Benedict’s age is a boon in that he served as an expert adviser during Vatican II, and may be one of the last popes to lead the church with that first-hand experience, Father Tero said.
Rogers, faith formation director at Anchorage’s St. Patrick Parish, said then-Father Ratzinger had been a mover and shaker at the Second Vatican Council, but "then his focus narrowed as prefect" of the doctrinal congregation.
"I’m hoping as pope he’ll have a broader scope again because his attention has to be on the whole church rather than one aspect of the church.
On the role of women in the church, she said: "I think he tends to be very straight line; I would hope that he would come to a little more pastoral approach, be a little more accepting of women in leadership roles in the church."
When he was studying in Rome in the early 1990s, Father Walsh, now pastor of St. Andrew Parish in Eagle River, occasionally bumped into the man who would become pope.
"He’d always stop and chat with you even for just a little bit and find out where you were from and what you were studying," the priest recalled.
"I think that we are already seeing his pastoral side as well as his humility. I have been told that he really listens.
"According to members of the National Review Board, he is one of the few curial cardinals who ‘got it’ when the priest sexual abuse scandal came to light.
"My impression is that he will be a pope who listens well and will act decisively."
The retired archbishop said he has long been impressed with Pope Benedict’s intellect and his willingness to engage in dialogue in pursuit of sound theology.
"There’s a lot that can be handled by having a good thorough discussion," the archbishop said.
The former doctrinal prefect had a reputation for the strong stands he took, but often the less controversial points he made were overlooked, Archbishop Hurley said.
For example, last year when U.S. Catholics were feverishly debating whether Catholic pro-choice politicians should receive Communion, then-Cardinal Ratzinger weighed in.
Archbishop Hurley said he appreciated that Pope Benedict gave his opinion on the matter but ended by saying that it was ultimately up to the local bishop to decide how to handle the question.
"If there’s more of that, I think it will be very helpful."
Providence worker accused of arranging abortion for girl
Archbishop Roger Schwietz said he plans to look into allegations that a social worker from a Catholic health care facility in Anchorage helped arrange an out-of-state abortion for a 15-year-old girl. The girl and her parents are suing the Sisters of Providence and the Providence Family Practice Center social worker over the incident.
"It is morally wrong to participate in any way in abortion, even secondarily," the archbishop said. "Although I don’t know the details of this particular case, I intend to reiterate this principle with Providence and demand that procedures be in place to ensure that no participation in abortion, direct or indirect, be allowed in any of the system’s health care facilities."
The Anchor is not identifying the girl or the social worker because of the sensitivity of the case.
A Providence spokeswoman in Anchorage wouldn’t comment on the particular allegations because the matter is in litigation.
"Those are allegations," Karina Jennings said. "That doesn’t make them facts."
Jennings denied that the social worker broke any laws. However, she said that the incident is going to be investigated by the health system’s ethicists to determine if it violated Catholic ethical norms.
"There are questions from an ethical standpoint, and there is going to be an ethical review and investigation into the boundaries by which we provide support for the procurement of abortion," she said.
The lawsuit, filed in state superior court March 5, alleges that in early March 2003, when the girl was 15 weeks pregnant, she went to Providence Family Practice Center to obtain information about pregnancy and parenthood.
The social worker "counseled the plaintiff on the availability of and procedure for terminating her pregnancy," according to the lawsuit.
The social worker then helped the girl schedule an abortion with a clinic in Renton, Wash., according to the lawsuit, and assisted her in arranging to travel there, accompanied by her 17-year-old boyfriend. The travel and abortion itself were paid for by the state’s Medicaid program, according to the lawsuit.
The abortion took place on March 20.
It was not clear why the abortion wasn’t done in Alaska, but Yale Metzger, the attorney representing the girl and her parents, suggested the reason might be that no local facilities would do the abortion since the girl was past the first trimester.
According to Metzger, the girl’s parents called the police when they discovered their daughter was missing, then learned from another family member that she had gone to Washington for the abortion.
The girl and her parents are seeking unspecified damages in the suit for "infliction of emotional distress," according to Metzger.
Jennings, the Providence spokeswoman, defended how the case was handled.
"We believe the standard for good medical practice and counseling was provided to the patient," she said.
She said that health care workers in Alaska are legally obligated to inform patients of all relevant treatment options.
If a patient wants to have an abortion, Providence workers explain that the procedure is not an option at Providence, but that other facilities are available, Jennings said.
Abortion referrals are a safety measure, she said, a way to "try to ensure that our patients receive medical treatment from an appropriate, professional provider."
She would not discuss the case in question, but did say, "Normally, we wouldn’t advocate for the procedure — we certainly don’t perform it, as everyone knows — and we would not assist in the procurement of it."
As for informing parents when a minor is pregnant, Jennings said current law does not allow it without the minor’s consent. Providence workers do encourage patients to talk with their families but can’t force them to, she said.
The Alaska Legislature passed a law in 1997 that requires minors to get the consent of a parent or a judge before having an abortion, but it was never implemented due to legal challenges. The case is currently before the state Supreme Court.
It was unclear whether Alaska law allows its Medicaid program to take a minor out of state for an abortion without notifying a parent.
A spokesperson for the state Department of Law said department staff were hesitant to comment on that question because "the state is not a party in the litigation."
But it appears such an action would violate the policy of the Health Care Services Division, which administers the state’s Medicaid programs.
"For us to transport a minor out of state our basic requirement is that the minor be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian," said division director Dwayne Peeples.
But, he added, "We usually depend on the medical provider to have made the arrangements and gotten prior authorization, and then we would issue vouchers for the travel."
Father Crouse, who served in Alaska for 11 years, dies
Father Charles Crouse, a priest of the Anchorage Archdiocese who left Alaska in 1993 to study and work in the Midwest, died April 20 in Ohio. He was 54.
Father Crouse had a "long-term heart defect" that had gotten progressively worse over the past 14 months, according to his brother, Dan Crouse.
Father Crouse was a candidate for a complex heart surgery but a persistent infection prevented him from having the operation, his brother said in a telephone interview last week.
Father Crouse was one of nine children who grew up in Warren, Ohio. He graduated from Ohio’s Youngstown Sate University with a degree in French and went on to St. Mary’s Seminary of the West in Cincinnati, where he met a seminarian who sparked his interest in coming to Alaska. That seminarian friend is now Bishop Michael Warfel of Juneau.
Retired Archbishop Francis Hurley ordained Father Crouse for the Anchorage Archdiocese in 1982, and the priest served in a series of parish assignments over the next 11 years. He was associate pastor at St. Anthony Parish in Anchorage (1982-84), assistant pastor at St. Patrick Parish in Anchorage (1984-89), campus minister in Anchorage (1989-91) and parish administrator at St. John the Baptist Parish in Homer (1992-93).
In 1993 he left Alaska to enter the Benedictine monastery at St. Meinrad Archabbey in St. Meinrad, Ind. The following year he professed temporary vows and took the name Thomas.
Archbishop Hurley told the Anchor last week that Father Crouse had been interested for a long time in monastic life. As a parish priest, Father Crouse became an excellent liturgist, the archbishop recalled. Liturgy is one of the special charisms of the Benedictines.
At St. Meinrad, Father Crouse worked at the abbey’s publishing operation, Abbey Press, and taught classes. But after four years there, when it was time to profess permanent vows, Father Crouse decided to leave St. Meinrad and return to secular life.
It is not clear to Archbishop Hurley or Dan Crouse why Father Crouse made that choice but both suspected it had something to do with his heart condition.
"His heart problem probably factored into everything," the priest’s brother said.
Father Crouse never asked to be laicized, the church process of returning a priest to the lay state, according to Archbishop Hurley. But he also did not request faculties to function as a priest in Ohio.
Dan Crouse said his brother continued to serve the church, though.
"He never left ministering of one sort or another for the church," he said. Father Crouse got involved with Blessed Sacrament Parish in Warren, providing counseling and assisting in the choir, his brother said.
Father Crouse also moved into his parents’ home in Warren and assisted in caring for his mother, who suffered from early-stage Alzheimer’s.
He also went to work for the American Red Cross, marketing the organization’s services.
When Father Crouse’s heart condition began to deteriorate last year, his family members, most of whom live in Ohio, were there to help care for him, Dan Crouse said. But one brother, Pete Crouse, whom Dan described as Father Crouse’s "physical, emotional, intellectual twin," is in the military serving in a deployed assignment.
When it was clear Father Crouse was actively dying, his family sent word for Pete Crouse, who rushed home on emergency leave. The family told Father Crouse that his brother Pete was coming and that he had to hold on.
"He held on for 10 hours," Dan Crouse said. "That mystified the doctors."
When Pete Crouse arrived the family had about 90 minutes together to pray around Father Crouse’s bed, Dan Crouse said.
A Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated April 25 at Blessed Sacrament Church in Warren, followed by interment at All Souls Cemetery there.
Nondenominational chorus enhances Catholic events in Anchorage
There’s an old expression: "He who sings prays twice."
If that’s true, then the 160 members of the Anchorage Concert Chorus have offered a multitude of prayers, including enhancing the midnight Mass telecast each Christmas Eve since 1991 from the Alaska Center for the Performing Arts.
The chorus also sang at events for the retirement of Archbishop Francis Hurley, the installation of Archbishop Roger Schwietz, and the Jubilee 2000 confirmation liturgy five years ago at the Sullivan Arena.
A generous record for a group that’s not affiliated with the Catholic Church.
"It’s a very ecumenical group," said Mary Ann Molitor, president of the board of the chorus and the music director at Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish.
"Several board members have said they aren’t Catholic, or even Christian, but they wouldn’t miss midnight Mass for anything because of the sense of peace it brings them," Molitor said.
The Anchorage Concert Chorus was founded in 1946 in a burst of ecumenical spirit before the word was in fashion.
Lorene Harrison, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday, created the chorus to perform Handel’s "Messiah." The population of Anchorage at the time was 14,000, and Harrison knew the choir she directed at the city’s Presbyterian church couldn’t do it alone. So she invited choirs from the other three churches in town, Lutheran, Catholic and Episcopal, and from the chapels at Fort Richardson to join in.
A choir of all faiths was born.
Today, the members of the chorus perform about 12 formal events a year, as well as many smaller events. Members are not paid.
In fact, according to executive director Sandy Adams, members contribute about $400 a year in dues and fund-raising efforts.
Besides Adams, who works part time, only conductor Grant Cochran and any musicians or accompanists are paid.
With about 165 singers, it’s the biggest community chorus in the state, and, according to Adams, one of the largest of its kind in the country.
Each year, Cochran conducts auditions, and current members re-audition.
The requirements for the chorus, other than having a good voice, include being able to read music and to "sight read" — pick up a piece and read it on the spot, Adams said.
She laughed that the group "turns away sopranos; they’re a dime a dozen. But we’re always screaming for men, especially tenors."
Sue Linford, a Holy Family Cathedral parishioner, has been a member of the chorus since 1981. She’s frequently joined the group on overseas tours, singing in Great Britain, Russia, and Eastern Europe before the fall of the Soviet Union.
"We’ve become a family," Linford said.
Indeed, members of the chorus sometimes have the sad duty to perform at funerals for members or their families. But then sometimes they sing at weddings.
This summer, Linford said, about 50 members of the chorus will tour Canada by train for singing engagements.
Molitor said the youngest member of the chorus is about 16. Several students are mentored in the program at the recommendation of their music teachers.
The oldest members are in their late 70s, with one singer retiring recently at 86.
Every chorus member doesn’t perform at every event, Molitor said.
Up to 100 typically sing at midnight Mass. Others can be found singing at the annual Christmas tree lighting in Town Square, caroling at local bookstores and singing at events for their major donors.
For their performances, including the ones for the Anchorage Archdiocese, the chorus accepts a nominal fee. This is necessary because their main concerts are at the performing arts center, a pricey venue.
So why work so hard and pay to do it?
"We’re delighted to do it," Linford said.
Molitor, who is an accountant, agreed. After Monday night rehearsals, she walks to her car and notices that everyone getting into the cars around her is singing.
"Especially during tax season, you start singing and the stress just goes," she said.
Christ is present for Mass; bells are unneeded
One of the memories that "pre-Vatican II" Catholics have of the Mass as it was then celebrated was the anticipation of the sound of bells or chimes at the time of the consecration. We knew immediately that we could look up at that time and adore the presence of Christ in the Host and Precious Blood as they were being held aloft by the priest (sometimes for a lengthy space of time).
For most Catholic folks, this was the prime moment in the Mass, the time when Catholics could be one with their Lord. To be distracted or to miss the sound of the bell was tantamount to missing Mass.
It never occurred to us then (how could it?) that there might be other ways that Christ was present when we gathered for liturgy.
When the bishops met for the Second Vatican Council, one of the key principles they put forth regarding the liturgy was that Christ is present in the liturgy in four unique ways:
1. Especially, in the Eucharist broken and shared
2. In the person of the minister
3. In the word of God
4. In the assembled people of God
In the recently published General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), the directions that guide priests and other liturgical ministers in celebrating the Mass, the first presence of Christ mentioned is that of his presence in the assembled people of God (No. 27).
Christ is present when the assembly is gathered in his name. This is precisely what Christ promised: "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Mt 18: 20). Therefore, each time we come together to celebrate the liturgy, singing and praying, Christ is present in and with us.
The second way in which Christ is with us in the liturgy is in the person of the minister. Christ is present to us in the priest who is called the presider or priest-celebrant of the liturgical assembly.
He leads the community in prayer and helps us to understand the words and actions of the liturgy. When he does so, he also acts in the person of Christ, on our behalf. He does this especially by the way he acts and speaks with dignity, reverence and humility so that the living presence of Christ is conveyed in and through him.
The third form of Christ’s four-fold presence in any liturgy we celebrate is in the word of God. No matter whether we participate in a Mass, the other sacraments, or the Liturgy of the Hours, we always hear the word of God proclaimed in Scripture.
Whether that reading is from the Old or New Testament, Christ is present in the word. In fact, at the beginning of John’s Gospel, we hear that Christ is the word of God. He is God speaking to us.
And so each time we hear God’s word from a prophet, a psalm, a Gospel, a letter, or any other Scripture passage, Christ is there for us and with us.
The fourth way Christ is present to us in the liturgy is in what the church calls the "Eucharistic species." This is the preeminent presence of Christ. Christ is especially present in the bread and wine that become the Body and Blood of Christ. What looks likes bread and wine has truly become Christ’s Body and Blood by the taking, blessing, breaking and sharing of the presider and the assembly gathered and by the grace of God.
Was it not in the "breaking of the bread" that the disciples at Emmaus recognized Jesus present with them?
What this should mean to Catholics gathered for Mass, therefore, is that they need not wait until the bell rings at the consecration to realize that Christ is present.
Indeed, the very moment we gather with one another in the house of the church, Christ is already present.
When we hear and respond to God’s word, when the presider leads us and invites to pray together, Christ becomes more and more visible and discernible to us.
All this takes us back again to the importance of signs and symbols. As human beings in our search for God, we need all the help we can get!
News & Notes
Icons and illuminations
An unusual exhibit — icons in watercolor — opens today at Holy Family Cathedral’s education center and will run through mid-June, according to the artist, Burke Mees. The exhibit features about a dozen original works, which Mees describes as watercolor copies of Russian icons and Celtic illuminations.
Archbishop's Column
Pope Benedict XVI seeks collaboration as he begins papacy
Editor’s Note: Here are excerpts from Archbishop Roger Schwietz’s homily during the Mass of Thanksgiving for the new pope, Benedict XVI, celebrated at Holy Family Cathedral on April 22, the day the pope was inaugurated in Rome.
"Come to him, the Living Stone," we heard Peter speak to us in the Second Reading today. Of course, he was referring to his Master who, as we heard in today’s Gospel, clearly defined himself to his apostles while he was teaching, walking this earth: "I am the way and the truth and the life."
So it’s very clear to us whose disciples we are and who is the center of our life, and it is very clear to us that it is this Lord who continues to guide the church as he has guided the church for these 2,000 years and continues now in this new era that has begun with Pope Benedict XVI.
Of course, Peter, as he was talking about Jesus, the Living Stone, sort of had stones on his mind as he was writing this letter, I think. We know that Jesus referred to Peter as stone: "You are rock and upon this rock I will build my church."
Certainly, that must have been on Peter’s mind as he was writing this letter. But, he also realized that the church, in fact, was all believers together. And so he says to us in that Second Reading: You are living stones and it is of these living stones that the church is built.
As Pope Benedict XVI began his ministry speaking to us and to the cardinals the other day, he certainly committed himself to the spirit of collaboration that is so much the center of our own life in our archdiocese here in the thrust of evangelization that we have begun.
He said to the cardinals, and to us, "I ask you to support me with prayer and with constant, active and wise collaboration."
But he also promised to continue the path of the church. "I wish to continue on this path on which my venerated predecessors advanced, concerned only to proclaim to the whole world the living presence of Christ."
That ministry must begin here at the very altar of the Lord. The Eucharist is the center and the source of our life — so well our present Holy Father recognizes this and calls us to that recognition. So as we move ahead to become more and more evangelizing people, to reach out to those who do not yet know their dignity in Christ, we must continue to come back to the core, to the center of our life and the source of our strength — the very Eucharist in which Christ gives himself to us as our food for the journey.
We thank God then for what has been given to us in our new Holy Father. He invites us now to move ahead, always seeing Jesus as the way, the truth and the life. For it is in constantly looking at Jesus that we can find the way to set aside our fears, our concerns and our differences and move ahead as his disciples.
As our Holy Father continued: "The church of today must revive in herself consciousness of the task to propose again to the world the voice of him who said: ‘I am the light of the world; he who follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’ "
We can move ahead in thankfulness and without fear; in thankfulness that we have been given a new Holy Father, a new successor of Peter, the rock upon which the church is built.
We can move ahead and become who we are called to be: genuine disciples of the Lord Jesus, centered in the Eucharist and reaching out to others to proclaim Christ to others and the freedom that Christ brings to our lives and to our hearts.
Editorials
Allegations merit public response
Allegations that a Providence social worker helped a minor get an abortion are shocking and deeply troubling. At this point they are only allegations, and Providence deserves a chance to tell its side of the story. But the Catholic community and the public deserve to know what happened as soon as possible.
The social worker from Providence Family Practice Center in Anchorage is accused of advising a 15-year-old to have an abortion and then going to great lengths to help her procure it, including arranging to have her flown out of state, accompanied by her boyfriend, who was also a minor, all without her parents’ knowledge.
No one is disputing that the girl was taken to Washington State to have the abortion — a terrible tragedy for the family no matter how it happened.
If the social worker did help the girl procure the abortion, the tragedy expands, and Providence should determine if the worker knowingly violated Catholic ethical directives or was ignorant of them.
State laws protecting patient rights may complicate matters for health care workers who otherwise would not discuss abortion and would insist on notifying parents before a child makes such a tragic choice.
But Catholic ethics on the matter are clear. According to the U.S. bishops’ "Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services," "Catholic health care organizations are not permitted to engage in immediate material cooperation in actions that are intrinsically immoral, such as abortion … " (No. 70).
Providence deserves a chance to investigate what happened and respond to the allegations. Keep in mind that the Catholic hospital has been the subject of other shocking allegations that turned out to be false, ie., Alaska Right to Life’s claims that the hospital performs abortions.
If it turns out the social worker did help the 15-year-old obtain an abortion, the Sisters of Providence should acknowledge that its employee made a terrible mistake, apologize to the family and implement better staff training at once.
If, on the other hand, Catholic ethical directives were followed in the case, that, too, needs to be explained to the community.
Press awards make us proud
We’re proud to announce that the Catholic Anchor garnered three awards at last month’s annual Alaska Press Club journalism contest.
Assistant editor Kelly DuFort showed her versatility once again, winning first place among small newspapers in the "best use of story and photos" category for her outstanding series on the global solidarity partnership between the Anchorage Archdiocese and the Cotabato Archdiocese in the Philippines. This is the third year in a row she’s received an award in that category.
Editor John Roscoe won two small-newspaper firsts, one for political or government reporting, for a story about the payday loan industry, the other for editorial writing. The judges — journalists from the (Portland) Oregonian and Newsweek — said the reporting indicated an awareness that "the best way to serve … readers is through good journalism, not by leaning, in this case, toward diocesan sources," and that the editorial writing "broadens the discussion about moral values to issues not always framed in moral terms."
Anybody can put out a message on newsprint, but that doesn’t make it journalism. The power of mass communication carries with it the responsibility to be accountable for your product, to quote people accurately, to let opposing sides explain themselves, to resist the proclivity to editorialize the news. Our peers in journalism understand all this, and we take pride in being cited for excellence.
We congratulate the other winners, too, and encourage them to keep up the good work.
Letters to the Editor
Anchor needs pope’s clarity
The confusion expressed in the Terri Schiavo editorial (March 25) was unfortunate. For example, the statement, "The swirling legal battles and tangled moral considerations make it impossible … to pass judgment on the matter," was only one of several statements that totally missed the mark. Fortunately, the late Holy Father suffered no such confusion. In March 2004 he offered clear guidance at the international Congress on Life-Sustaining Treatments and Vegetative State: "(T)he administration of water and food, even when provided by artificial means, always represents a natural means of preserving life, not a medical act. … Death by starvation or dehydration is, in fact, the only possible outcome as a result of their withdrawal. In this sense it ends up becoming, if done knowingly and willingly, true and proper euthanasia by omission."
Chugiak
Postures can’t unite church
Let’s not pretend "unity in postures" will bring a greater unity to the church, when unity in truth and morals are lacking. When feminists still clamor for ordination. When Catholics use artificial contraception, accept divorce, are promiscuous and sterilized, and stand boldly pro-abortion, pro-euthanasia and pro-homosexuality. When 70 percent or so don’t believe in the True Presence. Or the shallow, fallacious theology rampantly leading many astray. Or the indifference. Is standing instead of kneeling going to cure our woes? When Jesus is elevated, it seems we must kneel. Centuries of tradition dictate kneeling to us — as does the Angel of Fatima, who prostrated his head to the ground before the Sacred Host. Or are we trying, with "unity of postures," to elude the unhappy truth that we remain divided on greater issues at hand, by pretending we somehow adhere to St. Paul’s admonition to be likeminded? May God help us.
Anchorage
God shows love in new pope
Thanks be to God, the Holy Spirit, for choosing our new Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. How wonderful to know that like our secular national elections, our good God is protecting and preserving us from liberalism and fanaticism. Those Catholics who have been already putting their very negative and hateful opinions forth all over secular media about our new Holy Father have obviously been trusting a false spirit, not God the Holy Spirit, whom we trust to govern our church, but a diabolic spirit of the world, the flesh and the devil. Just think about their destructive, rebellious agenda! Ah, we thank our almighty and gracious Holy Spirit for his Holy Father, his vicar on earth, his guidance and his truth. His omnipotence can never be outdone. In great thanksgiving for our new pope, alleluia!
Anchorage
Providence docs aren’t God
I am against the early labor induction procedures at Providence Alaska Medical Center. A mother is at the mercy of the doctors during a high-risk pregnancy. The pregnant mother is vulnerable and can be easily persuaded to have an early induction. The doctors may mean well; however, their personal opinions and medical assumptions can lead to human errors. A child has a God-given right to a safe and natural birth. There are many good doctors at Providence; however, some doctors are overstepping their boundaries when they try to play God.
Wasilla
End of life isn’t personal choice
I am obligated to return to an issue that should not be forgotten: the murder of Terri Schiavo. I was horrified to read the March 25 editorial, "Schiavo is in good hands — God’s." The presupposition of the article was that if we had known what Terri’s wishes had been, there would not have been a controversy. This is simply not correct. Catholics should be informed that the removal of a feeding tube from oneself or another with the intent to end a life is the same as suicide or murder, respectively. It should be the mission of our Catholic newspaper to educate people that the Catholic position is not one of personal choice, as many people may believe, but rather to affirm the inestimable value of life and the value of suffering.
Anchorage
Editor’s Note: Removal of a feeding tube may or may not be morally licit from the Catholic perspective, depending on the circumstances. We advise preparing an advanced directive in consultation with a Catholic hospital chaplain, priest or theologian with expertise in end-of-life issues.
Church, trapping can co-exist
I fail to see the connection between Catholicity and legal trapping (Catholic Comment, March 11). I have searched the catechism, the missal and even the writings of Father Clementich and have found no contradictions to practicing this way of life. Animal rights groups and activists are opposed to hunting, fishing and trapping — all of which, it seems to me, are supported by the statement about subsistence by Alaska’s bishops. Now we witness uproar over the perfectly legal trapping of a wolf outside Denali National Park, and our Catholic newspaper implies that the incident is contrary to Catholic principles. I’m glad we have a Catholic resource such as the Anchor to shed greater light on our faith and its underlying principles, but if I want to read propaganda of a secular nature I’m already able to get a full helping of it from the Anchorage Daily News.
Anchorage
Right to Life drew first blood
In response to Kristina Johannes’ letter in the April 8 issue, I would like to ask, "Who drew first blood?" The temporary dissociation of the Knights of Columbus and the Catholic Daughters from Alaska Right to Life was in response to RTL’s flier passed out at our annual prayer memorial to the unborn on Jan. 22. Not only did the flier state, "Alaska RTL cannot join in any ceremony that includes the archbishop or his representatives," but their chaplain, who made arrangements in December 2004 to come and celebrate the memorial prayer service with Archbishop Schwietz, did not show up. Lack of respect for our archbishop by the Alaska Right to Life group is the main reason for the temporary severing of ties. One of our main functions as Knights of Columbus is to defend the clergy, and Archbishop Schwietz is the head of our clergy.
Anchorage
Who writes Anchor column?
Each issue of the Catholic Anchor contains a "Catholic Comment" column (see page 4). That column identifies the writers as "we." I would like to know who "we" is. Is it just the archbishop (with reference to the Holy Spirit)? Is it John Roscoe and the archbishop? Is it John Roscoe and other staffers? Secondly, what is the nature of this column? Is it presenting to us merely the opinion of the writers with which we can disagree and still remain Catholics in good standing? Is it an exercise of the archbishop’s magisterium to which we should be adhering? Is it a mixture of both? If it is a mixture, how do we identify the parts that are an exercise of the archbishop’s teaching authority? Since the archbishop is the publisher of the paper, I think it would be helpful to all the readers of the Catholic Anchor to have this information.
Anchorage
Editor’s Note: "Catholic Comment" is the editorial voice of this newspaper. The "we" refers to the editorial staff, not the archbishop. Although editorials often cite church doctrine, and always are informed by the editor’s understanding of Scripture and Catholic teaching, they are, alas, far from infallible.